Pixelation...only when more than 1 tuner being used

[richard1980]

My InfiniTV has started experiencing a strange issue. I experience pixelation, but only when more than one of the 4 tuners is in use, and it gets progressively worse as more tuners are used. Initially I thought it could be a HDD issue, but I ruled that out. My live TV buffer is in RAM, not the HDD. I can start watching live TV and there is no pixelation. I can then pull up the guide, start 3 recordings, and live TV becomes horribly pixelated (accompanied by audio dropouts). The 3 recordings also exhibit the same pixelation and audio dropouts. If I stop the recordings, live TV returns to normal.

I thought maybe it was an temperature issue, but temps look fine (high 40s and low 50s).

Any ideas?

[WhatHappend]

Do a WireShark capture of a single stream recording (5min), then another capture of multiple streams recording (5min). In WireShark there is an option you can analyze the RTP traffic and it will show packet loss, jitter delays and other issues.

Right Click on one of the Video Packets in the capture (udp packet with high number of packets in the capture and length is 1370 for my captures MPEG2) and select "Decode As" and choose "RTP". You will have to repeat this per each stream in your capture (4 channels recording there should be 4 RTP streams in the capture).

Then Under Telephony menu select RTP -> Stream Analysis

Example of one of my streams that had pixelation (streams with no video/audio issues don't have Lost RTP packets or Sequence Errors):

Max delta = 152.47 ms at packet no. 137520
Max jitter = 10.53 ms. Mean jitter = 0.76 ms.
Max skew = -112357.76 ms.
Total RTP packets = 147456 (expected 147456) Lost RTP packets = 169 (0.11%) Sequence errors = 13
Duration 112.37 s (-112358 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

[richard1980]

OK, here's what I get with 1 tuner in use:

Test 1

Max delta = 71.93 ms at packet no. 8893
Max jitter = 13.77 ms. Mean jitter = 5.82 ms.
Max skew = -115214.77 ms.
Total RTP packets = 19783 (expected 19783) Lost RTP packets = 0 (0.00%) Sequence errors = 0
Duration 115.23 s (-115215 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

Test 2

Max delta = 76.96 ms at packet no. 15250
Max jitter = 18.77 ms. Mean jitter = 8.57 ms.
Max skew = -149144.92 ms.
Total RTP packets = 17394 (expected 17394) Lost RTP packets = 0 (0.00%) Sequence errors = 0
Duration 149.16 s (-149145 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

And here's what I get with 4 tuners in use:

Test 1

Stream 1
Max delta = 111.62 ms at packet no. 76554
Max jitter = 13.11 ms. Mean jitter = 5.26 ms.
Max skew = -112345.38 ms.
Total RTP packets = 21366 (expected 21366) Lost RTP packets = 14 (0.07%) Sequence errors = 4
Duration 112.36 s (-112345 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

Stream 2
Max delta = 153.15 ms at packet no. 27505
Max jitter = 19.23 ms. Mean jitter = 4.61 ms.
Max skew = -112337.85 ms.
Total RTP packets = 24365 (expected 24365) Lost RTP packets = 7 (0.03%) Sequence errors = 3
Duration 112.35 s (-112338 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

Stream 3
Max delta = 138.33 ms at packet no. 8815
Max jitter = 17.53 ms. Mean jitter = 6.09 ms.
Max skew = -112330.11 ms.
Total RTP packets = 18458 (expected 18458) Lost RTP packets = 15 (0.08%) Sequence errors = 4
Duration 112.34 s (-112330 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

Stream 4
Max delta = 225.42 ms at packet no. 43173
Max jitter = 49.03 ms. Mean jitter = 3.72 ms.
Max skew = -112276.25 ms.
Total RTP packets = 30165 (expected 30165) Lost RTP packets = 17 (0.06%) Sequence errors = 4
Duration 112.29 s (-112276 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

Test 2

Stream 1
Max delta = 353.58 ms at packet no. 43416
Max jitter = 28.85 ms. Mean jitter = 7.34 ms.
Max skew = -128137.70 ms.
Total RTP packets = 17462 (expected 17462) Lost RTP packets = 14 (0.08%) Sequence errors = 1
Duration 128.15 s (-128138 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

Stream 2
Max delta = 139.74 ms at packet no. 53498
Max jitter = 13.92 ms. Mean jitter = 3.86 ms.
Max skew = -128161.39 ms.
Total RTP packets = 33226 (expected 33226) Lost RTP packets = 27 (0.08%) Sequence errors = 3
Duration 128.18 s (-128161 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

Stream 3
Max delta = 216.58 ms at packet no. 54220
Max jitter = 44.69 ms. Mean jitter = 5.74 ms.
Max skew = -128088.65 ms.
Total RTP packets = 22341 (expected 22341) Lost RTP packets = 22 (0.10%) Sequence errors = 3
Duration 128.10 s (-128089 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

Stream 4
Max delta = 184.90 ms at packet no. 96284
Max jitter = 20.82 ms. Mean jitter = 7.67 ms.
Max skew = -128124.56 ms.
Total RTP packets = 16720 (expected 16720) Lost RTP packets = 15 (0.09%) Sequence errors = 1
Duration 128.14 s (-128125 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

[WhatHappend]

Your captures show that the stream data (Video/Audio) is lost before WMC recorder service ever gets it. So that means it is not your memory/HDD/SSD/or WMC. That leaves the Ceton Card (HW/FW/driver/or settings)/ Network (Driver version/Driver Setting/Network Stack setting).

Have you changed anything about your physical setup recently (add HW card, rearranged PCIe slots, FW update of Ceton, Driver update for Ceton or Network card, Changed Ceton settings, or changed you network setup)?

This sort of happened to me when I experimented with the Ceton Network Bridging. In Bridged mode main HTPC streams were affected when another computer started/stopped a new stream.

Assuming you grabbed a Ceton Diag log with that wireshark multiple stream capture, I would open a support ticket with Ceton and upload the capture.

[richard1980]

I recently updated HW from 6408 to 6829, but I don't know for sure if the pixelation issue started after the update. At the same time, I also upgraded to beta driver 13.3.22.1342. I was previously running beta driver 2012.10.23.0732. Since I noticed this issue, I went back to 2012.10.23.0732. If I had the 6408 HW, I'd try going back to it....but I don't.

Aside from that, no changes have been made to the InfiniTV. As for Windows, I recently set up an outbound VPN connection to connect to my work computer.

I didn't save the capture file, but I can easily reproduce this issue.

[WhatHappend]

Did you install 3rd party VPN client or server software (as opposed to just using windows built in VPN support)? If so, that is a possibility.

[richard1980]

No, I'm using the built-in Windows VPN support.

[TeddyR]

If you have any other AV/Firewall/Malwaredetecter other than Windows Firewall and MSSecurity Essentials, uninstall it completely then reboot. Even if it used to work before. Disable is not enough.

AVG and other antivirus programs are known to cause these symptoms and Malwarebytes had a recent update that blocked tuner detection (WEB/URL detection feature blocked things)

Also check to make sure that the Ceton NIC adapter is still in the "Private/Home" zone. Sometimes changing settings (like adding a VPN adapter) would cause windows to "rediscover" interfaces and put them in the default "Public" zone.

[richard1980]

I submitted ticket FQR-459-38114. Let's see what they say.

[richard1980]

Update: Ceton support had me install 3 hotfixes. The issue is still unresolved.

[richard1980]

Another update: It appears there is something wrong with HW 6829.

[fiteclub]

I think I am seeing the same symptoms, Richard. I was attributing the problem to the cable signal, but after reading your post, I did some tests. I started watching a channel using one of the tuners. The other 3 were all idle. Watched station for 20 minutes and saw NO pixelation. I then started a recording on a second tuner and continued watching the original station. I began to see some minor pixelation after several minutes; I then started another recording with a 3rd tuner and continued seeing pixelation on the original tuner ( If it got worse, it was not by much). I then stopped the recordings and the pixelation went away. One difference is that I had no audio issues. I am running fw version 1.2.2.6; hw version 6829 and driver version 12.12.26.1250.

I also have an HDHomerun tuner and can say that when it is recording, I do not see issues when watching a program on the Ceton tuner.

I have never tried running Wireshark but am willing to give it a shot.

[richard1980]

Mine was pretty bad...I had quite a few occasions where half the screen was just this blob of garbage. Most of the time, the majority of the picture was watchable but still had pixelation. The real problem was the frequency that I could observe the pixelation...I'd say about 50-60% of the time there was some kind of pixelation on screen.

I'm not sure if WhatHappend posted instructions for a different version of Wireshark than what I have, but here's what I did:

1. Launch Wireshark
2. Highlight InfiniTV in the list of interfaces
3. Press start
4. Wait a bit (1-2 minutes)
5. Press the icon at the top to stop the capture
6. Click Analyze > Decode As and selected RTP
7. Click Telephony > RTP > Show All Streams
8. For each stream, highlight the stream and click the button labeled Analyze

As you can see from my posts above, I saw an increase in delta, jitter, packet loss, and sequence errors when I activated all 4 tuners instead of just 1.

If you end up with the same issue, try opening a ticket with Ceton. You may want to reference this thread or the ticket number I posted above.

[fiteclub]

Here are my WireShark results. 1 and 2 tuners does not seem to be abnormal (though I did see pixelation with 2 streams)

When all 4 tuners are active I have abnormal results and more pixelation but not really unwatchable as you seem to experience.

Test 1; 1 tuner

stream 1

Max delta = 42.73 ms at packet no. 3608
Max jitter = 20.68 ms. Mean jitter = 5.54 ms.
Max skew = -148299.43 ms.
Total RTP packets = 26761 (expected 26761) Lost RTP packets = 0 (0.00%) Sequence errors = 0
Duration 148.32 s (-148299 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

Test 2; 4 tuners

stream 1

Max delta = 233.36 ms at packet no. 267862
Max jitter = 42.43 ms. Mean jitter = 6.64 ms.
Max skew = -381908.35 ms.
Total RTP packets = 57562 (expected 57562) Lost RTP packets = 6 (0.01%) Sequence errors = 3
Duration 381.96 s (-381908 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

stream 2

Max delta = 93.84 ms at packet no. 199951
Max jitter = 13.98 ms. Mean jitter = 5.56 ms.
Max skew = -381910.41 ms.
Total RTP packets = 68661 (expected 68661) Lost RTP packets = 2 (0.00%) Sequence errors = 1
Duration 381.96 s (-381910 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

stream 3

Max delta = 293.15 ms at packet no. 276488
Max jitter = 48.69 ms. Mean jitter = 5.57 ms.
Max skew = -381903.79 ms.
Total RTP packets = 68593 (expected 68593) Lost RTP packets = 8 (0.01%) Sequence errors = 1
Duration 381.95 s (-381904 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

stream 4

Max delta = 167.25 ms at packet no. 2903
Max jitter = 26.55 ms. Mean jitter = 5.32 ms.
Max skew = -381896.21 ms.
Total RTP packets = 71840 (expected 71840) Lost RTP packets = 7 (0.01%) Sequence errors = 4
Duration 381.94 s (-381896 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

Test 3; 2 tuner

stream 1

Max delta = 44.35 ms at packet no. 14033
Max jitter = 11.60 ms. Mean jitter = 5.49 ms.
Max skew = -297846.72 ms.
Total RTP packets = 54281 (expected 54281) Lost RTP packets = 0 (0.00%) Sequence errors = 0
Duration 297.88 s (-297847 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

stream 2

Max delta = 172.69 ms at packet no. 1979
Max jitter = 29.44 ms. Mean jitter = 6.02 ms.
Max skew = -297858.56 ms.
Total RTP packets = 49497 (expected 49497) Lost RTP packets = 0 (0.00%) Sequence errors = 0
Duration 297.90 s (-297859 ms clock drift, corresponding to 11 Hz (-99.99%)

[richard1980]

Yeah, it looks like your results are similar to what I posted earlier. I wonder if the pixelation difference has anything to do with signal levels or SNR? My SNR is a bit low on some channels (my SNR range is high 33 to low 36), but the signal level is fine.

[fiteclub]

My SNR is similar to yours usually around 35-36 which should be good. BTW, I am pretty sure the higher the SNR the better so I think you meant to say a high of 36 and a low of 33. My signal levels are generally around 8-11 dBmV which is on the low side but still within spec especially with the good SNR.

I will try to start a ticket in the next few days. BTW, where did you learn that there was a problem with the HW 6829?? Is there a fix?

Bill

[richard1980]

Before I updated to 6829, I ran 6408 for quite a while and did not have this issue. AFAIK, the only beta release after 6408 was 6829. I never noticed this issue until after updating to 6829, so I have suspected that 6829 caused the issue. Yesterday, Ceton pushed me back to the latest non-beta HW, which is 6289, and the issue is now gone. After I rolled back to 6289, I tried updating to 6829 again, and that caused the issue to reappear. So I rolled back to 6289 again, and now the issue is gone.

So from what I can tell, it's a problem with HW 6829.

[fiteclub]

Sounds reasonable to me. Did Ceton send you a link to that HW firmware, or do you think I need to let them look at my diagnostics before rolling back?

[richard1980]

I'd send them a diag as well as a Wireshark capture. I'm sure if you reference my ticket number (see post 9) and maybe even this thread, it'll keep them from having to start fresh. They had me apply a few hotfixes, but I really don't think they were necessary.

[fiteclub]

Well, the downgrade did not work for me. As a matter of fact, the pixelation got way worse and now occurs even with 1 tuner streaming. Interestingly, the Wireshark capture shows no problems even when streaming all 4 tuners; but pixelation is horrid. Ceton is having me go back to 6829 and capture another wireshark stream to see if they can see anything.