StreaMaster Products Operations Manual June 26, 2016 © Niagara Video Corporation 2016
Hardware US2 (dual tuner) US-8 and DT-8 (8 tuner ATSC/QAM/DVB-T/DVB-C) 1. Power/Network 2. Tuner 3. Power 4. Ethernet 5. Coax in (ATSC/QAM/DVB-T/C) HDRack (6 tuner CableCARD) 1. Power/Network LED 2. CableCARD LED 3. Tuner LEDs 4. Coax in (digital cable) 5. USB (for tuning adapter) 6. Ethernet 7. M-CARD 8.
Power All devices should be used with the included power supply (dual-tuner models) or standard power cable (1 RU models). Ethernet Connect the Ethernet port(s) to a network switch. On models with multiple ports, all ports must be connected in order for all tuners to be accessible. A single port can be directly connected to the network interface on a PC to access that specific device. All ports are auto-crossover so a standard Ethernet cable can be used for direct connections.
Additional Tools and Software Software Installation The latest drivers, code, and firmware can be found on the Niagara Video website: http://www.niagara-video.com/downloads Windows Download and install the latest Windows release of the software. The Setup wizard is optional. When the installation process is complete it is recommended that the HDHomeRun program directory be added to the PATH so that the hdhomerun_config utility can be run from a cmd prompt.
Using the Command Line Configuration Utility (hdhomerun_config) Open a command prompt or terminal window and change directory to the HDHomeRun installation directory: "C:\Program Files\Silicondust\HDHomeRun TECH\" The list of supported commands can be obtained by running hdhomerun_config without any parameters: hdhomerun_config hdhomerun_config hdhomerun_config hdhomerun_config hdhomerun_config hdhomerun_config hdhomerun_config discover get help get - set
- scan
Supported Commands The get/set options supported by a specific device can be queried using the get help command: hdhomerun_config get help Example output: /card/status /oob/channel : /oob/debug /oob/status /sys/boot /sys/copyright /sys/debug /sys/features /sys/hwmodel /sys/ipaddr dhcp|" " /sys/model /sys/restart /sys/version /tuner/channel : /tuner/channelmap /tuner/debug /tuner/filter "0x-0x
Channel scan To run a channel scan: Format: hdhomerun_config scan /tuner [log filename] Example: hdhomerun_config FFFFFFFF scan /tuner0 scan0.log This command will scan all channels on the selected channel map plus any additional channel maps associated with the selected channel map. All standard modulation types for the selected channel map are tested. When a digital channel is found it will identify the programs on the channel.
Checking the signal strength The basic signal information can be obtained by using the get status command: Format: hdhomerun_config get /tuner/status Example: hdhomerun_config FFFFFFFF get /tuner0/status Example output: ch=qam:33 lock=qam256 ss=83(-10dBmV) snq=90(29dB) seq=100 bps=38807712 pps=0 ● ch = channel requested ● lock = actual modulation detected ● ss = signal strength. ● snq = signal to noise quality (MER).
○ stop = reason for stopping the stream The counters are reset to zero upon a channel change, but may indicate a small number of errors caused before the tuner locks on the channel. As a result, diagnostics should be based on the change in values over time, and not the initial values.Detecting the programs on a physical channel: The device will detect the programs (sub-channels).
Filtering by PID The product also supports arbitrary hardware PID filtering: Format: hdhomerun_config set /tuner/filter Example: hdhomerun_config FFFFFFFF set /tuner0/filter "0x0000-0x1FFF" hdhomerun_config FFFFFFFF set /tuner0/filter "0x0000 0x0030-0x0033 0x1FFB" When filtering by PID the stream is filtered but otherwise unmodified. The filter is cleared to pass-all (0x0000-0x1FFF) when a set channel command is received.
Streaming to a target machine Set the target IP address and port number using the set target command: Format: Format: Example: Example: hdhomerun_config hdhomerun_config hdhomerun_config hdhomerun_config set set FFFFFFFF FFFFFFFF /tuner/target udp://: /tuner/target rtp://: set /tuner0/target udp://192.168.1.100:5000 set /tuner0/target rtp://192.168.1.100:5000 The target machine must be listening on the given UDP port.
HTTP Streaming The various models can be used to stream via HTTP (unicast only) to VLC or other clients. Format: http://:5004/auto/v Example: http://10.10.10.2:5004/auto/v721 Lineup file The units support virtual channel lineup information transmitted by the cable provider and received via the CableCARD. This is available in XML and JSON format. http:///lineup.xml http:///lineup.
Datacast operation TECH3 units support Datacast TCP/IP over OTA broadcast. Datacasting often provides news, weather, traffic, stock market, and other information which may or may not relate to the program[s] it is carried with. An electronic program guide is usually included. Datacast TCP-IP packets are reassembled and then routed to the LAN port.
Using /sys/boot The /sys/boot variable allows the TECH3 unit to automatically set variables at startup, allowing you to preserve settings across power outages or simply set the power on defaults. The syntax for the /sys/boot consists of multiple lines of text; a variable name followed by a single space and then the value: (there should not be any space before the variable name) ... Example (save as boot.
Setting the channel map The channel map is a non-volatile configuration option that is used to set the channel to frequency table, to configure the channel scan table, and to optimize the auto-modulation detection. GUI: The channel map can be set for each tuner by running HDHomeRun Config (GUI).
Multicast All products support UDP and RTp multicast streaming. 1) Using HDHomeRun Config GUI or hdhomerun_config choose a desired channel and program number for each tuner. In this example we will use channel 19 program 3 on tuner 0 and channel 30 program 1 on tuner 1. 2) Choose a multicast IP address for each stream. As a general rule the multicast address should be in the range of 239.255.0.0 to 239.255.255.255. In this example we will use 239.255.1.1 and 239.255.1.
Example Boot Script Configurations Tuning 2 ATSC channels and streaming to multicast addresses using RTP: /tuner0/channelmap us-bcast /tuner0/channel 31 /tuner0/program 3 /tuner0/target rtp://239.255.1.1:59001 /tuner1/channelmap us-bcast /tuner1/channel 8 /tuner1/program 1 /tuner1/target rtp://239.255.1.2:59002 Tuning 3 digital cable channels using a CableCARD and streaming to multicast addresses using RTP: /tuner0/vchannel 702 /tuner0/target rtp://239.255.1.
Using VLC • Run VLC and select Media, Open Network. • Set the protocol to RTP. • Set the address to 239.255.1.1 and the port to 59001. • Click play. TSReader TSReader is a third party Transport Stream analyzer for Windows that works with the products: http://www.coolstf.
FCC Notice: This device complies with part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the condition that this device does not cause harmful interference. Note: This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation.
