New Software Version 777 for 6000

[Phil T]

Anybody know whats new in it?

edited by Scott Greczkowski
I have received official word from Echostar whats in the 777 software upgrade, you can read it at by scrolling down or clicking HERE (http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?postid=91335#post91335)

Scott
End of Edit by Scott Greczkowski

[HTguy]

I just noticed I have it, too. Havn't found anything different so far.

It just might be a way to "unlock" PPV for the free NBA All Star Game tomorrow.

[Cyclone]

Hopefully it will fix PSIP and that acquiring signal bug.

[davhol]

I've not found any information as to the fix either. Could it be related to the oft discussed "Compressed EPG" project? I noticed that after my 501 received the 1.69 update, it downloaded a new EPG (which I had not noticed the unit doing after previous firmware updates). And then, just a couple of days later, my 6000 got an update. It might be just "coincidence." But we can always hope for intrinsic bug fixes. Say! Why not ask during the Monday Tech Forum? :)

[Mike123abc]

It must be compressed guide because now the 6000 is showing more information in the guide. It used to only show current show and next show on every channel. Now it appears to show a 3 hour block of shows, so if you have 6 half hour shows you see all 6 shows in the guide instead of just the first 2 and info not available on the rest.

Actually playing around with it more it may be a 4 hour block now!

[Darkman]

hmm..Mike - interesting..
Do you or anyone else know if/when some kinda simular versions might come out for 3900s/4000s, etc to improve guide (via compression, or other means, etc)? :)

[Scott Greczkowski]

I am working on getting full details on the 6000 upgrade now. :)

[Cyclone]

Thanks Scott.

If we are stuck on 7.76, how can we force a download? Will that "check for updates" from the menu work to initate a download?

[Scott Greczkowski]

Turn your receiver off from the remote and let is sit for about 30 minutes. :D

[Cyclone]

Ok. I leave both of my receviers "off" when ever we are not watching them. Hopefully it will be updated by the time I get home.

[normang]

Rumor has it that it may fix that aquiring issue. I see it sometimes when switching from 8VSB to Sat channels or to the guide.. Guess we'll see soon if this issue has been addressed..

[ibglowin]

Just checked, and I have the upgrade. I just tried pressing the Guide button while watching a local Digital TV station on the 8VSB. Instead of getting the dreaded "aquiring signal" screen for 60 seconds it immediately switched to my HD list showing all my HD/DTV channels. THANKS Dish for that bug fix!

Program guide is going out 3-4 hours now instead of only an hour or so as well.

[Cyclone]

Now if the can only add more that 3 networks to the analog channels and get the PSIP info. :D

[DarrellP]

It fixes the bug where a station sends out it's station assignment under 2 different channels in the PSIP.

So if a station was broadcasting the same channel on 50 and 75, neither would stick when you did the scan, they cancelled each other out. This new version fixes that bug.

[Mark Lamutt]

Something new for me, and I have no idea if it's a 6000 software issue or not. Here in Denver, our ABC broadcasts 2 digital channels - 17-1 and 17-2. Up until a week ago or so, I tuned both of them with no problems, but then 17-2 vanished, and I cannot tune to it. The 6000 doesn't add it either when I tell it to do a DTV channel scan or try to add 17 manually. Several other Dish 6000 users in Denver are also having this problem. I've talked to the engineers at KMGH about it, and they say that nothing has changed on their end. I wonder if it's because of the new software.

[Cyclone]

Well, I had a problem where channel 50 here in DC was double assigned to 50-1, 50-2, 75-1, & 75-2. A normal Scan DTV would fail to add them to my list. The 7.77 fixed this.

[lapplegate]

I tried the "test" for the guide bug (acquiring sat signal from an OTA channel), by leaving the 6000 on an OTA channel and receiver on all night.
Sorry to say that the latest download was not, for me, the guide bug fix.
It still had the info not available in the browser and when I hit the guide button, it did the acquiring sat signal.

It did seem to take less time, than the usual 45 sec. to a minute, to load the guide and the guide does seem to come up with less info not available.

This could just be my unit, though. I had not had the guide bug until I installed the 8psk. Then while hitting the guide button and getting the acquiring sat signal, the unit would boot. It would do this boot for about 3 times then the 6000 would crash and go dead. Dish has replaced the 6000 about 5 times, the 8psk twice and the 8vsb once, trying to fix this. I have also done extensive replacement of everything including connectors, cable, lnbs, switches and re-grounding to fix this with no success.
The best fixes I had were to only enter from a sat channel and when Dish picked up our locals, then I used less OTA.

If anyone can get an "official" report on what this sw upgrade was, it would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Larry

[Marcus S]

1) 8PSK Module Fix
2) 8VSB Module Fix
3) EPG Compression Upgrade
4) BootStrap 12ABCNAD Upgrade (aka counter measure upgrade)

I have also heard that this upgrade makes all E* 6000 receivers model 6000u. I am not what that means. Some on AVSFORUMS have complained that the upgrade killed their box, RMA is free in or out of warranty, and other that complained appear to be anonymous hackers.

I noted that the receiver dialed out right after the upgrade, and some have reported that they have been prompted to connect the receiver to a phone line to continue uninterrupted programming even thought they do not have any pending PPV purchases.

E* ATS would not offer this list up voluntarily but stated would confirm the list if I read off my cumulative list. YES to all queries.
E* ATS is getting more and more hesitant to confirm info to anyone unless you have a specific problem to report.

[Scott Greczkowski]

I have been trying to obtain Official Information on the 6000 777 software release but the folks at Echostar have been mum on things.

I have not taken the upgrade yet (basically because I dont shut my 6000 off its on all the time.

[Jeff43]

I have tried for two nights to get the 777 on my 6000 but to no avail. Is 777 spooled in all 6000 over a period of time or all at once?

[Marcus S]

Turn off your receiver via the remote and wait for 20 mins. After you have received the upgrade, remove the smart card until system info appears and re-insert to accept the upgrade. It will be interesting to see if this is the 1st upgrade requiring a mandatory phone line connection to keep counter measures in place.

I have also received some additional anonymous upgrade info. 6000 and older receivers will receive the EPG upgrade between now and this summer. PVR 501/508 will receive EPG upgrade extending 7 day programming to 10 day some time this summer. DP301 / 4900 / 721 will receive the upgrade last. 921 will roll out with all whistles and bells.

6000 will be discontinued this fall. There will be a stand alone HD receiver to replace it. But as usual, there will be a 6 mo gap for delivery to maximize 921 sales. (aka loose potential HD subs project in between). E* did the same thing when they discontinued the 5000, but delayed the 6000 for 6 mo's. You would think how many times burned. But then Charlie holds on to his Enron marketing team for advise.

[Mark Lamutt]

I'm at 777, and have seen no messages or anything asking me to plug in a phone line.

[Marcus S]

I have a feeling that the counter measure mostly impacts hackers, though if your receiver is connected to a phone line already, you where never aware that it dialed out. If this upgrade is as threatened, you will at least be annoyed by the increasing prompts to do so. We will see...

[Scott Greczkowski]

OK I got word from Echostar on some of the Fixes plus there is an addition new feature that Pronto owners will love....

(Remember you read this hear on DBSTalk) :D

This software will fix a couple of field issues with the local broadcasters and other minor changes.

Broadcaster sending multiple channels on the same broadcast frequency: Before, if the channels were the same, the receiver would not recognize the second channel and not display the second channel in the guide. For example if the channel is 18 and the second channel is 75, the receiver would not display channel 75.

Discrete SD/HD: This will allow people with universal remotes to toggle between SD/HD.

From what I understand the descrete HD works by pressing SD/HD and then pressing it once again within a second to go to SD and two times to force HD.

No mention of a security update nor would I post such information, if Dish is taking steps to prevent hacking then I say "God Bless em!"

[Mark Lamutt]

SWEET about the discrete HD/SD functionality! :D:D:D Gonna have to test that one out here tonight!

[Cyclone]

I have to admit, I leave my 6000 on HD all the time, So I'm not sure I'll be usingn the new discrete code.

Still, can someone explain the story on Guide info for Local Digital channels. I just bought a 6000 from DishDepot, and my guide never has any info on them. Is it because no one is broadcasting PSIP or is the 6000 broke?

Thanks,

Cyclone

[Mark Lamutt]

The 6000 doesn't support the PSIP guide. That's one of the things on the list that we'd love to see Dish add to it.

[Scott Greczkowski]

While I would LOVE to have PSIP Guide data I still dont know any stations sending out the guide data.

I know some stations experimented with it but the cost of keeping the guide going was too high.

I wonder if there is a list of places that have PSIP in use somewhere.

[Cyclone]

I thought that I saw in the 6000 manual, the program guide had show information in the guide example.

thanks for the reply Mark.

[Chris Blount]

Originally posted by Scott Greczkowski
From what I understand the descrete HD works by pressing SD/HD and then pressing it once again within a second to go to SD and two times to force HD.


I'm not clear on this. Does it mean that you can output SD & HD at the same time?

[Mike123abc]

Well my 6000s have never been plugged into a phone line during the 2 years I have had them. I never got a prompt to plug it into a phone line after upgrading to 777.

Sounds like ifyou push the SD/HD button 2x in one second you go to SD even if you were already in SD and if you press it 3x in one second you are forced to HD even if you were already in HD. That way you know for sure which state you are in from the remote.

[davhol]

Cyclone,
The 6000 will display guide info for ANALOG channels that have been tagged with ABC, CBS, or NBC. When you (manually) add an analog channel, the 6000 asks you whether you want to associate one of the big 3 networks to the channel or "none." If you assign, say CBS, then, during "primetime" hours, you'll see the guide data gotten from Dish's EPG for CBS in that time slot. This is just a bit of "smoke and mirrors" magic to get the guide data to work for the analog OTA channels. As of yet, there's no way to see the PSIP guide (if it is) being broadcast locally.

[Scott Greczkowski]

Chris,

The HD/SD thing is for people with Pronto type remotes, they can create buttons on their remote, one for HD ON and the second SD pressing the button on their remote puts them in the mode they want to view.

I leave mine on HD all the time. :)

[sonybug]

I have a 6000U got from Dish Depot in December. On Saturday, while watching the NBA All-Star game, the picture suddenly was garbled. Rebooting or removing the smart-card did not fix the problem..The diagnostics show an "NVRAM failure", which probably means nothing. Called DISH and they said I need to download the new 777 software update. Waiting for a night and trying it a number of times did not fix the problem...

Looks like the new software update killed my reciever :( Anything else I can try before
I call DISH to get a replacement....

[jerryez]

I got the 777 download and when I do a digital OTA channel scan, It finds 7 channels, but when the scan is finished it only lists 1 of the seven. I have to hit the cancel button to keep from loosing my digital channels from the scan prior to version 777. I have unplugged the 6000 and tried 20 scans, all with the same results. What do I do now.

[Scott Greczkowski]

Call Dish and ask for ADVANCED support.

[Mark Lamutt]

Jerry - also try inputting the DTV channels manually. I've also had scanning problems the last week or so that I've had 777.

[Scott Greczkowski]

I have posted detailed instructions for the Descrete SD/HD feature which is new in version 777p.

You can view it at http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=12263

[DarrellP]

Mark, your losing 17-2 was probably the station's fault and not your machine's. This happens all the time when the PSIP gets "tweaked". Get to know your local station engineer and converse with him via email, that is the best way to solve a local issue or get your questions asked.

Our local CBS engineer is a HDTV forum moderator at AVSForum and he has his own website. It's nice to have such a dedicated person responding to our digital needs.

[Mark Lamutt]

I know all of the station engineers pretty well at this point here in Denver. Talk to each of them at least weekly, and usually more than once a week. :) I posted here after having talked to him a couple of times about the 6000 issue. Word from him today is that their encoder is going back for upgrades and fixes, so I'm hoping that when they get the encoder back, everything will be good again.

Fortuantely, they are paying for a loaner to take its place until theirs gets fixed, so we don't lose out on the ABC HD broadcasts.

Which mod is your station engineer?

[HTguy]

I have discovered 2 issues with my 6000 today but I do not know if they are related to 177. Any notes of similar occurances (or not) would be appreciated.
[list=1]
I can't create a Favorite List. After selecting a list & "Modify List" the list of channels to be edited does not appear. After a minute or so the 6000 crashes & comes back on to "Aquiring Satellite." After locking in and, presumably, re-downloading the EPG everything works well but trying to create or modify a favorite list will result in the same thing.
I tried a "Soft" reset by pulling the card. Instead of getting the "Reinsert Card" & "System Info" screens the video (Ch 120, HIST) continued for several minutes, then simply froze. (As if there was now a buffer memory for a few minutes.) Changing the Ch from the front panel causes the picture to go away.
[/list=1]
I honestly don't remember ever trying to create a FL with this unit so I don't know if it's related to 177. But I have pulled the SC on several occasions & never saw that behavior before.
:confused:

[normang]

Originally posted by jerryez
I got the 777 download and when I do a digital OTA channel scan, It finds 7 channels, but when the scan is finished it only lists 1 of the seven. I have to hit the cancel button to keep from loosing my digital channels from the scan prior to version 777. I have unplugged the 6000 and tried 20 scans, all with the same results. What do I do now.

I saw this issue on 776.. I had to add most channels manually, by entering the digital station number after you press ADD DTV. It has to lock the signal or you cannot save it. Hope this helps

[Marcus S]

No OpenTV for the 6000 needs to be a wake up call for E*.

[jerryez]

I called tech support about my 6000 problem. They said to unplug the 6000 and remove the OTA module and reinsert it, then plug the unit back in. Believe it or not it worked. The unit now searches for digital channels and locks them into memory.

[Cyclone]

I called and was able to talk to tech support (not on the air though). I brought up that I would like the 6000 to be able to support more than just 3 network (abc, nbc, & cbs) when adding and configuring the local analog channels. I would like have to FOX, UPN, PBS, and WB added. They guy told me that they would have problems with the guide due to timezones if they did that. That people on the west coast would see East Coast times.

huh?

I also suggested that it would possible to map the channels to the same guide of the channel if is it carried as a "local" by Dish Network. Such as if my local channel 4 is also a Dish local on channel 8073, then if I could map my OTA local to 8073 it would show the program guide.

Again to him this was immpossible. Arg, I thought I had two very good and practical ideas.

Cyclone

[jerryez]

"I also suggested that it would possible to map the channels to the same guide of the channel if is it carried as a "local" by Dish Network. Such as if my local channel 4 is also a Dish local on channel 8073, then if I could map my OTA local to 8073 it would show the program guide."

If you remapped channel 8073 from Dish to local channel 4 and your OTA module mapped the antenna received channel 4 also, you would receive two siganls on the same channel, which would be a major problem.

[DarrellP]

Mark, it's Lee Wood.

[Cyclone]

Jerry, I don't want to remap the actual program signal, just the guide information for that channel. So when you press guide you'll see whats on, and when you press info you'll see what info is there for that program.

[lapplegate]

Originally posted by HTguy
I have discovered 2 issues with my 6000 today but I do not know if they are related to 177. Any notes of similar occurances (or not) would be appreciated.
[list=1]
I can't create a Favorite List. After selecting a list & "Modify List" the list of channels to be edited does not appear. After a minute or so the 6000 crashes & comes back on to "Aquiring Satellite." After locking in and, presumably, re-downloading the EPG everything works well but trying to create or modify a favorite list will result in the same thing.
I tried a "Soft" reset by pulling the card. Instead of getting the "Reinsert Card" & "System Info" screens the video (Ch 120, HIST) continued for several minutes, then simply froze. (As if there was now a buffer memory for a few minutes.) Changing the Ch from the front panel causes the picture to go away.
[/list=1]
I honestly don't remember ever trying to create a FL with this unit so I don't know if it's related to 177. But I have pulled the SC on several occasions & never saw that behavior before.
:confused:

I had the same problem with losing channels after the "modify" screen. I also had the unit crash (started booting after entering the "modify" screen).

Mine recovered on it's own and hasn't happened again.

This was after the 777 upgrade.

[Big D]

Earlier in this thread it was speculated that 777 fixed the dreaded "acquiring signal" issue when accessing the guide while watching a digital OTA channel. I can confirm that 777 did not fix this, it happened to me again last night, exactly as it has many, many times before. I had just tuned to a digital OTA station and accessed the guide and there it was. Funny thing is, the first time I tried to reproduce the bug after getting 777 loaded, it worked as it should, so I thought it was fixed, oh well. The PSIP issue was fixed however, I now get my KCRA Ch3 and KQCA Ch58 (digital 35) out of Sacramento correctly as 003-01 and 003-02.

[neo_dingo]

Big D is right. I 've also noticed the "acquiring signal" with 777.
I would also like to note that with 777 the signal strength on OTA channels is a lot better, with the old software I rarely got an 80 and scanning for DTV only produced about 2 channels. Now most of the chans come in around 90 signal strength. I haven't touched my OTA antenna in months so it has to be the new software.

[P Smith]

neo_dingo,

It's would be nice to have Microsoft SW improvment on my old PC-400MHz for rase CPU speed up to 3 GHz.

Unfortunatelly, never SW part of satellite receiver will increase a gain of signal.

[dmodemd]

Question:

How do you assign the network to a DTV channel? When you add an analog you can tell it which network's programming to put in the guide, but I dont get that question on an ADD DTV function.

Am I just SOL?

[davhol]

There is no way to assign network affiliation with a Digital channel on the model 6000. This type of information is (potentially) being sent in the PSIP information sent out of the digital transmitter. Unfortunately for the model 6000's firmware, PSIP processing is not available (and probably will never be). We have to hope that the future IRDs (like the model 921) will be able to use the information being broadcast by the local station (and if the station hasn't gotten up to speed, to be able to do an association like you're requesting)

[sampatterson]

I wish they would let us assciate a channel # in the locals Dish carries with our local HD channels. I live in atlanta so when setting up my local HD channel I could say use 8300 for the guide for that channel (8300 is the SD version carried by Dish), and so on for each channel.

[dmodemd]

The workaround that most people do is add those DISH locals into your HDTV favorites list so at least you can see them in the same Guide press. Of course, you have to scroll up to see them, but at least you can see whats on.

[DarrellP]

Originally posted by dmodemd
Question:

How do you assign the network to a DTV channel? When you add an analog you can tell it which network's programming to put in the guide, but I dont get that question on an ADD DTV function.

Am I just SOL?
You have to MANUALLY add the Analog station. After adding, it will pop up a screen to associate the network and give it a name.

Also, if you manually add the Digital channels, you can give them a name. That way you will see the name you assigned to it when browsing the guide. Instead of just seeing an 8 or whatever you can see whatever you call it, like KGW or NBC or WAZUP.

[neo_dingo]

Originally posted by P Smith
neo_dingo,

It's would be nice to have Microsoft SW improvment on my old PC-400MHz for rase CPU speed up to 3 GHz.

Unfortunatelly, never SW part of satellite receiver will increase a gain of signal.

just posting my experience with the new software. I fought my receiver for months, trying to fix freezing problems and the poor signal, I spent hours pointing my antenna around trying to get a decent signal. Then when it took the new update, no more freezing and signal issues are gone, coincidence???. Anyway, I'm happy.