problem with Sony rdr-dc100

siritinga

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Hello all, my name is Ignacio, I'm from Spain.

Two weeks ago, my father bought a PVR Sony rdr-dc100 as a substitution for another SONY, because next april all analog channels will stop transmitting.

I did the quick setup, tuning all digital channels, configuring the GUIDE+ and reordering the channels to put the most used first. Also I configured some scheduled recording for that night.

Next day, I discovered that the channel ordering changed. It looked like all channels were rediscovered, same sorting that after the initial setup. The recorded TV programs were at different channels (the number was OK, but the actual channel was different due to reordering).

I reordered the channels again, and that night, my father (with sleep problems) watched that the DVR about 4AM displayed "UPDATE" on the screen for about 15min. After that, all the channels were disordered again.

This happened almost every night.

I tried a factory reset (STOP+POWER buttons at the same time) and I configured the channels again. This time I switched to EPG guide instead of GUIDE+, just to check.

Just after I did the quick setup and reordered the channels, I powered off the Sony. The UPDATE message appeared again, this time for more than 1h. After that, all channels were rediscovered again! Very frustrating. This happened two more times. at night.

Another strange symptom is that randomly, at power off, the message "POWEROFF" blinks for 1-2 minutes before really powering off. I don't know if this is OK,the other Sony unit never did this.

I don't know if there is something wrong with this particular unit, if all the model is wrong, if I'm doing something wrong or what.

I'm returning this unit but I don't know if get another unit of the same model or check another manufacturer. We were interested in the Sony because the menu is similar to the older Sony menu.

Any advice is welcome!

Thank you.
 
Welcome to the forum.

This unit is a DVDR not a PVR so I have moved it to this forum.


This problem is a known problem and the last information I have is that Sony are looking into it... and will hopefully at some stage provide a software update to deal with it.

All I can say is keep an eye on the forums for any emerging information.
 
Another strange symptom is that randomly, at power off, the message "POWEROFF" blinks for 1-2 minutes before really powering off. I don't know if this is OK,the other Sony unit never did this.

I don't know if there is something wrong with this particular unit, if all the model is wrong, if I'm doing something wrong or what.

Additional: I don't think there is anything wrong with the unit, other than being a rather odd out-sourced design with some strange characteristics and some strange design choices.
 
I think the problem with these new DC range models is they are outsourced from samsung or at least the main pcb is and sony have probably written their own firmware for it. They have done a truly terrible job of writing the firmware not only is it full of bugs and problems but it doesn't seem to take into account the actual power of the chipset and they are expecting it to do too much.

The main issues seems to be its not recording from the transport stream properly as its using 3-4x as much space on the hdd as it should.

Also dubbing is useless realtime 1x only and doesn't appear to work properly for some if not all freeview channels. It doesn't appear to have enough processing power so keeps pausing all the time which is whats written on the disc. Truly useless.

With their current functionality they are best avoided and if you are unfortunate to have one I can only suggest you return it for a refund or exchange to a earlier pioneer based sony model or a panasonic.
 
In fairness though sony have been outsourcing dvd recorders for a while, the previous hdd range were pioneer based, the non hdd models were lg I think and now they are using samsung. I think the problem is that the magnum processor that the samsung range use isn't very powerful but has a good feature in that it can record freeview (DVB) transmissions digitally. Sony have written a firmware which removes the advantage of the magnum processor and highlights all its weaknesses. They also have released a firmware which is in beta or dare I say alpha state. Certainly not fit for retail.

Sony could easily write a firmware that is superior to the samsung models but sadly I don't believe they could write a firmware for these new chipsets that would match that of the older pioneer models as the underlying processing power is much reduced.

One thing I would suggest sony provide at some point is a defrag option for these new sony models. The older pioneer based models had it, at least the 790 did and it was a good feature. It seems even more necessary on the newer range.
 
re:problems with sony rdr-dc100........
i wish i had read up on this beforehand but i had an "old " LG straight to disc recorder that had given up
and did'nt even recognise discs that were recorded by it............i looked for a newer model but was told everyone was going for these HDD type models. anyway after pushing the budget i bought the above model........i also bought sony before,a video projector and multi channel receiver......my problem is it will not finalise the disc.......i have tried different types of discs but no luck !
I will be returning this unit so any recommendations for a replacement would be very helpful.
 
Not all discs finalise. If you use VR mode instead of video mode they don't finalise to become normal dvd video discs. If you use DVD+RW discs they don't finalise unless you have a newer VR+ compatible recorder that allows them to finalise.

If you want a rerecordable disc that is DVD video compatible in older dvd players then dvd-rw is the format to use in video mode.

However with the DC range of dvd recorders you almost except any criticism of them straight away, you wonder if there is anything they can do properly.

At the moment known issues of the DC range seem to be;

1. It can't store freeview recordings properly (too much space used on hdd/dvd)
2. It can't dub from camcorders correctly via the digital input DV/firewire.
3. It can't dub properly especially lower res freeview transmissions.
4. It can't multitask properly.
5. It can't finalise properly.
6. It can't picture search smoothly.

I'm sure the list is easily extended.
 
Thanks I'll give it another go.......although from what I've read if seems a bit of a dud !
Any other unit you could recommend?
 
Thanks I'll give it another go.......although from what I've read if seems a bit of a dud !
Any other unit you could recommend?

Panasonic seem to be the only current models that work well but to be honest it almost seems like older models are better. The previous Sony range which were pioneer based designs are excellent. Even the earlier Panasonics seem to have better cases at least.
 
Many thanks for your reply. I've solved the problem I was having with finalising.......seems the unit only likes to do one task at a time. The x1 speed does not bother me to much and being able to edit on the HDD is another plus I did not have before.............again thanks , I'll be back if anything else crops up.
 
Hola Ignacio,

I'll answer in English as I see your language skills are perfect and so others on the forum can understand.
I hope you've solved the channel reset problem. I've just found out there's a new upgrade available - v. 1.3
My question is; does your unit suddenly change the language back from English to Spanish, be it a recorded programme or during Timeshift?
I'd be interested to know if this is a general malfunction or if it just happens to mine before I throw it through the window. :D

Muchas gracias de antemano.
 
Hi Friends

I have a Sony RDR-DC100 and I'm really suffering the followin problem:

With a Sony Video Cam corder I can, with a good quality, dub into the HDD. The pronle is when I dub from the HDD to the DVD the quality is poor; seems like the frames refresh is not fast enough.

The other problem comes when I wan to dub to DVD a bilingual content. I know the system CAN'T do that on the same DVD but, according the manual, It's possible doing it language per language.

*********• Bilingual titles are dubbed in stereo. Only the
audio signal that is selected in “Bilingual
Recording” in the “Audio In” setup (page 94)
(“A/L” (default) or “B/R”) is dubbed to the
DVD. To dub a bilingual title in a recording
mode other than DR with both main and sub
sounds, dub each title to a DVD-VR in
“Original” mode one by one.******


Could you please let me know what I'm doing wrong?


Many thanks in advance.
 

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