# Charter CC Firmware Upgrade!



## djev (Jan 12, 2014)

I don't know if it's because I've been complaining a lot to Charter about this but our CC are upgrading at at my home in Fort Worth! I really hope this is a firmware upgrade being pushed out to all Charter customers. BTW, our cards are all Cisco.

We have 4 CC and so far the first 2 CC have upgraded, the second set hasn't yet. Now, the first two are on two 2-Tuner Premiers, figures, doesn't it? LOL

I'm waiting to see if the others upgrade sometime overnight, we got these years after the first two so if they are sending the upgrades via serial numbers or something that might be why they haven't begun to upgrade yet. We used to have that happen with Charter DVR boxes, they would all upgrade at different times.

Any way you look at it, I needed 2 upgraded cards and I will have them even if I have to re-pair all the boxes!


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## gmacted (Sep 27, 2013)

Can you provide us with the firmware revision?


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## djev (Jan 12, 2014)

Well, only the 2 old CC upgraded. I pulled them and swapped them, called Charter and got someone that didn't have a clue and insisted on a truck roll. I asked for, and got, a supervisor and she has a Tivo! Finally, someone that understood what we all go through!

Needless to say, an hour or so later, I have 2 Roamio models that can use all 6 tuners.

Now, the nitty gritty....

The 2 cards that upgraded to 1.5.3_F.p.1101 are both branded Scientific Atlanta with a PowerKEY Model PKM800, one of these is dated in 2007, the other in 2011. The 2 that did NOT upgrade are both branded Cisco with PowerKEY Model PKM803 both dated in 2011.

The most fun for me? I asked her if she had programs that didn't record once in a while and she almost shouted "Yes!" She was really appreciative when I explained why this happened and gave her the codes to take her boxes down to 4 or 5 tuners until she could get a firmware upgrade from her cable provider who is NOT Charter! LOL She doesn't live in a Charter area.

It did feel good to enter that 88636 code into the Roamio models and know that I'll have all 6 tuners working.


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## gmacted (Sep 27, 2013)

That's good news. I'll have to call Charter and see if they can upgrade my CableCard.

Please let us know if the other two update.


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## tarheelblue32 (Jan 13, 2014)

It's interesting that the 2 cards that upgraded were in 2-tuner boxes and the 2 cards that didn't were in 6-tuner Roamios. That's either a strange coincidence or else maybe Charter is testing out the firmware upgrade on cards in devices that don't actually need all 6 tuners first before rolling it out to cards in devices that do.


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## andyf (Feb 23, 2000)

tarheelblue32 said:


> It's interesting that the 2 cards that upgraded were in 2-tuner boxes and the 2 cards that didn't were in 6-tuner Roamios. That's either a strange coincidence or else maybe Charter is testing out the firmware upgrade on cards in devices that don't actually need all 6 tuners first before rolling it out to cards in devices that do.


or the two that were updated were PKM800 cards and the two that weren't were PKM803 cards.


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## djev (Jan 12, 2014)

andyf said:


> or the two that were updated were PKM800 cards and the two that weren't were PKM803 cards.


This is what I think happened. :up:


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## gmacted (Sep 27, 2013)

I called Charter last night to inquire about the availability of the 1.5.3_F.p.1101 firmware and I got the standard "we can send you a new Cablecard" response. I did speak to a supervisor and he said he was going to contact another department to see what was available and call me back today. I'm not holding my breath on that one, but at least I can hope. I will call them again tonight if I don't get a response.

I am wondering if the update to the firmare has to with the roll-out of the "all digital" network. I also inquired when my area was going all digital and for my area it was still unknown.


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## djev (Jan 12, 2014)

gmacted said:


> I am wondering if the update to the firmare has to with the roll-out of the "all digital" network. I also inquired when my area was going all digital and for my area it was still unknown.


Fort Worth was the first city to go all digital, that was about a year or so ago. Now, we did get Charter Spectrum and the 60/4 internet upgrade on the 18th. Whether that had something to do with it, I really don't know. I do know the 803 cable cards still do not have the new firmware, only the 800 cards do.


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## Speed13b (Sep 17, 2007)

After two months of banging my head against the wall with Charter customer support attempting to get a firmware update for my Roamio Plus, I finally had enough and filed an FCC complaint last week. I wasn't sure what would happen, but yesterday I received a phone call from Charter corporate telling me they have the complaint and one of the reps from my local office (Central Massachusetts) would call to address the issue. Later that day, the rep called and let me know they'd be in touch with me the next day to attempt a fix.

Today they called, told me they were ready to update the firmware, and asked that I turn the TV on to let them know if the "cable card firmware updating" banner appeared. It did, the card started updating. The rep told me it should take about 10 minutes and that they would call back to check on status. 10 minutes later, the update completed and I was able to assess the changes. I enabled all 6 tuners and whaddya know...they all worked! The firmware version of the card is PKEY1.5.3_F.p.1101, build date June 06 2013.

Charter called back and confirmed all was well, the Massachusetts folks were outstanding throughout...if you can get the local tech reps to help with these it'll make a big difference.

The rep stated firmware upgrades would be rolling out in a few months but they did mine today, first one they had pushed (based on the complaint of course).

Bottom line...6 tuners all work and Charter CAN push this update.


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## djev (Jan 12, 2014)

Just to update, there isn't one! The 803 series cards still do not have the new firmware. I've noticed that a few other people have remarked about get a partial upgrade as I did, just wondering if they have checked to see what series the cards are and if one series was upgraded instead of the other.


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## lorenw (Nov 20, 2013)

April 22, Charter goes all digital on my local system, I'm hopeful it will go smoothly. I do not want it to mess up my Tivo


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## djev (Jan 12, 2014)

lorenw said:


> April 22, Charter goes all digital on my local system, I'm hopeful it will go smoothly. I do not want it to mess up my Tivo


We were the first area to go all digital so keep that in mind here...

It took several days before they figured out what they needed to do with the cable cards to get them caught up with the new system. Calling Charter didn't help, no matter how many times I tried and yes, I did go through retentions and threaten to cancel. I finally posted on their Facebook page and they got the attention of someone that knew what to do.

They have had a lot of experience since that time, maybe there won't be any issues.

We went to Charter Spectrum on March 18 and it took a couple of days for the guide and cable card to match up and that was with a guided setup.


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

djev said:


> Fort Worth was the first city to go all digital, that was about a year or so ago. Now, we did get Charter Spectrum and the 60/4 internet upgrade on the 18th. Whether that had something to do with it, I really don't know. I do know the 803 cable cards still do not have the new firmware, only the 800 cards do.


My firmware upgrade to 153.1101 from the other day by Charter was also to a 800 version of the Cisco Cable card (In my Roamio 4 tuner). The Roamio Pro 6 tuner has a Cisco 803 Card and has not had the firmware updated...

As an extra added bonus my Roamio Pro received the 2.0.41 update last night, the three Mini's and the Roamio 4 Tuner are still on the previous release...

Wonder if it is an implementation "Plan" by Charter (Upgrade Older CC's first) or worse, the 803 cards have a problem with accepting an update?? (Just wondering out loud, have no real idea why one way or another). 

I do know my firmware upgrade occured a few days after filing a FCC complaint about the lack of 6 tuner support and the available outdated firmware for Cisco.

Since the "All digital" upgrade last week by Charter (and subsequent "Guided Setup" I've noticed that a number of channels are still mismatched or just not available, but there are also multiple copies of the same show running simultaneously for several premium provides (Showtime, MAX, etc). I guess it will all get sorted out eventually! For the most part everything works fine and I am not missing any programming that I know of...


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

I thought I read a posting somewhere that stated that the 800 series (and older) were given out for retail devices and the 803's were for their cable boxes? I'm not 100% sure of this, but it keeps popping in my head every time I read this thread.


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## gmacted (Sep 27, 2013)

I called Charter last week and got the e-mail address of a local Charter representative. I requested that they push the latest firmware to my CableCard, but said they needed the approval from the corporate office. They told me that they were denied the request, but said they were able to get me a "test card" with the updated firmware. I should know on Monday what day they are going to come out and install the card in my Tivo.


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

I've swapped my CC's so the Roamio Pro (6 Tuner) now has the CableCard with Firmware PKEY1.5.3_F.p.1101 and is activated, it took less than 15 minutes to swap and activate the CC's on both my Roamios's! 

I have punched in the 6 Tuner code for my Roamio Pro and rebooted the box. Verified that all 6 tuners are receiving and recording, now it's just a matter of waiting for it to fail or not to fail! I've gone as long as 6 days in past before I noticed any 6 tuner failures and as little as 3 hours. But I have a real good feeling that my 6 tuners not authorized problems are now a thing of the past!

I did talk to my Charter Tech Guy today, it seems Charter just received a large order of NEW Cisco CableCards that come with firmware PKEY1.5.3_F.p.1101 already installed. He is seeing zero problems on 6 tuner Roamios with these new cards, (Duh, Imagine that?! -lol-)

I'll post again in about a week and report how things are progressing!


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## nooneuknow (Feb 5, 2011)

HarperVision said:


> I thought I read a posting somewhere that stated that the 800 series (and older) were given out for retail devices and the 803's were for their cable boxes? I'm not 100% sure of this, but it keeps popping in my head every time I read this thread.


That was me I think you are thinking of, except it's PKM800/802, although I'm aware of the existence of PKM801/803 cards. IIRC, the odd-numbered cards have a significant difference from the even-numbered ones, when you check the specs over at SA/Cisco. IIRC, the odd-numbered ones would not be suitable for use in TiVos, unless the MSO was running some sort of a dual-capability headend.

Cox used to only issue PKM800 for retail and only use PKM802 inside their own devices.

One trip the to Cox store I was issued two PKM802 cards, while the other four acquired over time were all PKM800 cards. The receipt lists them all as PKM800 and my account data also states they are all PKM800 (I did make sure the serial numbers match the receipt and account data. The cablecard menu screens show the cards do identify as what they are labeled, on the cards themselves, so they aren't just labeled differently.

Over a year since I got the 802s, I still have never found anybody that can (perhaps a matter of "will") tell me the difference, or if it was a mistake.

I do know that Cox (here) has the impression that as long as they can keep their non-cablecard boxes working (by any means other than manufacturing more new non-cablecard ones), that they have no obligation to provide leased equipment with removeable cablecards.

After pursuing both of the matters to hell and back, I have no idea if the PKM802 cards should have been issued to me, or if they wound up in circulation due to Cox pulling leased cablecard boxes out of service.

I have noticed now that I only have three Roamios and three cards, that the one PKM800 seems to rack up a lot more RS and TA errors, both corrected and uncorrected.

If I wind up going back to the store again, I'll be sure to report how that goes. If I ever get a straight answer on the matter I'll be back, as well.


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

The two Cablecards I have are a SA PKM800 running 153.1101 firmware that updated last week and a Cisco PKM803 running 152.2401...


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## nooneuknow (Feb 5, 2011)

pshivers said:


> The two Cablecards I have are a SA PKM800 running 153.1101 firmware that updated last week and a Cisco PKM803 running 152.2401...


I know, and don't dispute anything about what you have posted, here or elsewhere.

IIRC, the even and odd numbers can coexist, if the headend is configured to work with both. I only find it odd that any MSO would choose to run a dual-support headend, rather than stick with the even, or stick with the odd numbers.

Perhaps a transition is happening. That would explain one model getting updated, while the other hasn't, has a delayed update, or perhaps never will update.

If I had bookmarked the datasheets, and could easily find what I'm trying to recall from memory, I'd just post the links and name the pages.

Since I'm on a Cox network, it's not exactly the ideal way to compare notes, although data found direct from SA/Cisco should apply no matter what MSO issues the cards.

There's a possibility (maybe) that the MSO can flash the cards to work outside the base-specs, or order the cards pre-programmed to work outside the base-specs.

Hopefully, somebody who has more knowledge on the headend, and has the spec sheets bookmarked, can come along and enlighten everybody better than I can. I'll try to find time to re-discover what I'm trying to recall. It's also a possibility that the base specs have since been revised, and what I'm trying to recall no longer applies.

EDIT/ADD: To avoid confusion (for anybody), Scientific Atlanta & Cisco are now the same company, but used to be separate entities.


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

One explanation for Charter having such a hodgepodge of Active CableCards is they have taken over a number of other cable providers over the years and had to support whatever was out in the field... 

Btw, Does anyone know if Charter is still in the running to buy TWC?


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

nooneuknow said:


> That was me I think you are thinking of, except it's PKM800/802, although I'm aware of the existence of PKM801/803 cards. IIRC, the odd-numbered cards have a significant difference from the even-numbered ones, when you check the specs over at SA/Cisco. IIRC, the odd-numbered ones would not be suitable for use in TiVos, unless the MSO was running some sort of a dual-capability headend. Cox used to only issue PKM800 for retail and only use PKM802 inside their own devices.....


 Yeah I also saw the spec sheets somewhere I think. I have the 803 card with TWC and it works fine as far as I can tell. It's still only on 153_0601 I believe. Maybe that's why mine isn't upgraded to 1101 yet?


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

pshivers said:


> One explanation for Charter having such a hodgepodge of Active CableCards is they have taken over a number of other cable providers over the years and had to support whatever was out in the field... Btw, Does anyone know if Charter is still in the running to buy TWC?


Comcast bought TWC a couple months ago.


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## nooneuknow (Feb 5, 2011)

HarperVision said:


> Yeah I also saw the spec sheets somewhere I think. I have the 803 card with TWC and it works fine as far as I can tell. It's still only on 153_0601 I believe. Maybe that's why mine isn't upgraded to 1101 yet?


It is entirely possible.

I forgot about the recent mergers/acquisitions that have been going on, which is a very likely reason why some may have one model card for one headend configuration, while others have something else. It may not be dual-config headends in all cases, but could instead be different networks supporting different models, with one side of the street on one, and the other side on the other.


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## jmbach (Jan 1, 2009)

HarperVision said:


> Comcast bought TWC a couple months ago.


I believe the deal is in the works but it still has to pass DOJ, FCC evaluation and approval.


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

jmbach said:


> I believe the deal is in the works but it still has to pass DOJ, FCC evaluation and approval.


True, but I think that stops any other deals (Charter?) from happening, at least until a final judgement is made.


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## jmbach (Jan 1, 2009)

I don't know. Above my pay grade. ;-)


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## Unbeliever (Feb 3, 2001)

Seems to be system wide. Altadena just got 1101.

--Carlos "enabled that last tuner" V.


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## schmegs (Apr 4, 2002)

I just noticed my Charter CC on my Roamio was upgraded also. I've also noticed that my Roamio has crashed and rebooted 3 times in the last 2 days... Might be unrelated, but has anyone else noticed any problems?


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

pshivers said:


> I've swapped my CC's so the Roamio Pro (6 Tuner) now has the CableCard with Firmware PKEY1.5.3_F.p.1101 and is activated, it took less than 15 minutes to swap and activate the CC's on both my Roamios's!
> 
> I have punched in the 6 Tuner code for my Roamio Pro and rebooted the box. Verified that all 6 tuners are receiving and recording, now it's just a matter of waiting for it to fail or not to fail! I've gone as long as 6 days in past before I noticed any 6 tuner failures and as little as 3 hours. But I have a real good feeling that my 6 tuners not authorized problems are now a thing of the past!
> 
> ...


I've had zero errors on my Roamio Pro since the updated CableCard with PKEY_1.5.3_F.p.1101 was installed. All Six tuners are working without failure, I consider this problem closed for my own household...

Additional Note:
Tivo's "Spring Update" (20.4.1-USA-6-840) was installed on my Roamio Pro about the same time as the Firmware upgrade occurred by Charter. Other than needing to reboot my Roamio Pro so the Tivo Mini's could see it again, it has caused no problems in my service. My Roamio 4-tuner and all 3 Mini's have not received the Spring update from Tivo...


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## nooneuknow (Feb 5, 2011)

schmegs said:


> I just noticed my Charter CC on my Roamio was upgraded also. I've also noticed that my Roamio has crashed and rebooted 3 times in the last 2 days... Might be unrelated, but has anyone else noticed any problems?


If you received the TiVo "Spring Update" software, I'd consider that to be a more likely culprit. Even more so, if you were updated, then reverted, which never should have happened.

I also really hate it when a cableco-related update happens at the same time TiVo changes things... Seems to happen more, and more, these days, for me...

As if the finger-pointing wasn't always bad enough, now it (almost) seems like the MSOs are timing their changes to coincide with TiVo software releases. It wouldn't be a hard play to make, since it's no secret when TiVo has an update about to roll-out...


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

schmegs said:


> I just noticed my Charter CC on my Roamio was upgraded also. I've also noticed that my Roamio has crashed and rebooted 3 times in the last 2 days... Might be unrelated, but has anyone else noticed any problems?


See my updated post above... 

I'm bored now, everything is working as it should with my Tivo System! So I signed up for the BETA program! Yes I know, I'm a Gluten for punishment! -lol-


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## JosephB (Nov 19, 2010)

That's weird, I am on Charter and never had problems with 6-tuners. A week or two ago (the same weekend the latest Roamio update was going out) my two Tuning Adapters rebooted and required a re-hit from Charter to start working again. I wonder if they were updating the cards and TAs at the same time?

I'm on a SA/Cisco system, 803 card, with PKEY1.5.2_F.p.1401 firmware on the card and STA1.0.0_1520_LR_F.1501 on the Tuning Adapter. Never thought to check the firmware versions previously so I don't know if that's new or not.

I've had the Roamio since January and all 6 tuners have been working and no problems except for the aforementioned rehit required last week on the TAs.


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## tim1724 (Jul 3, 2007)

JosephB said:


> That's weird, I am on Charter and never had problems with 6-tuners. A week or two ago (the same weekend the latest Roamio update was going out) my two Tuning Adapters rebooted and required a re-hit from Charter to start working again. I wonder if they were updating the cards and TAs at the same time?
> 
> I'm on a SA/Cisco system, 803 card, with PKEY1.5.2_F.p.1401 firmware on the card and STA1.0.0_1520_LR_F.1501 on the Tuning Adapter. Never thought to check the firmware versions previously so I don't know if that's new or not.
> 
> I've had the Roamio since January and all 6 tuners have been working and no problems except for the aforementioned rehit required last week on the TAs.


1.5.2_F.p.1401 is _OLD_. (2009ish, I think.) It's what was on my PK800 until a few weeks ago (I now have 1.5.3_F.p.1101) and you're very lucky not to have had tuning failures with all six tuners active. Most people with 1.5.2.1401 on Charter have to drop down to five tuners otherwise one of the tuners will randomly stop working.


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## gmacted (Sep 27, 2013)

gmacted said:


> I called Charter last week and got the e-mail address of a local Charter representative. I requested that they push the latest firmware to my CableCard, but said they needed the approval from the corporate office. They told me that they were denied the request, but said they were able to get me a "test card" with the updated firmware. I should know on Monday what day they are going to come out and install the card in my Tivo.


Just an update.

A Charter technician came to my house yesterday afternoon with three new Cisco CableCards that supposedly had the new firmware installed on them. They installed and re-paired the first one, but found it still had the old firmware on it. They installed and re-paired the second one, but found it still had the old firmware on it. At that point, the technician called the headend office who proceeded to push a firmware update to the second CableCard. After the firmware push, we verified it had the new firmware in it. Bottom line, my TiVo Roamio Pro now has a CableCard with the new firmware on it. So far I haven't had any issues with it, but I will continue to monitor it over the next few days/weeks.

For reference:

Cisco Cable Card HW: 0803 Ver. 0010

Old Firmware: PKEY1.5.2_F.p.2401 Jun 25 2010, 11:12:23 (only supports 5 tuners)

New firmware: PKEY1.5.3_F.p.1101, Jun 6 2013, 16:26:59 (supports 6 tuners)


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

gmacted said:


> Just an update.
> 
> A Charter technician came to my house yesterday afternoon with three new Cisco CableCards that supposedly had the new firmware installed on them. They installed and re-paired the first one, but found it still had the old firmware on it. They installed and re-paired the second one, but found it still had the old firmware on it. At that point, the technician called the headend office who proceeded to push a firmware update to the second CableCard. After the firmware push, we verified it had the new firmware in it. Bottom line, my TiVo Roamio Pro now has a CableCard with the new firmware on it. So far I haven't had any issues with it, but I will continue to monitor it over the next few days/weeks.
> 
> ...


Good News that you finally got the firmware upgrade! It also seems to be the first confirmed upgrade of a non-800 card (803 in your case) by Charter.

I do wonder why Charter (specifically) and most other Cable Companies are so inconsistent on keeping CableCard firmware up to date and lie about their capability to upgrade them in the field??? They would certainly save themselves a lot of support calls and truck rolls if they didn't issue any CC's until firmware was upgraded to current levels in the office!


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## JosephB (Nov 19, 2010)

tim1724 said:


> 1.5.2_F.p.1401 is _OLD_. (2009ish, I think.) It's what was on my PK800 until a few weeks ago (I now have 1.5.3_F.p.1101) and you're very lucky not to have had tuning failures with all six tuners active. Most people with 1.5.2.1401 on Charter have to drop down to five tuners otherwise one of the tuners will randomly stop working.


Well now you have me thinking....

What are the symptoms of the tuners not working? Is it the TiVo reporting that one tuner isn't authorized, or is it things like tuning failure and whatnot? Last night after re-pairing my card because I had swapped in my Roamio and never re-paired, I noticed a few channels failed to tune. Don't know if it was a TA error or not. Guess I need to do some testing...


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## djev (Jan 12, 2014)

pshivers said:


> I've had zero errors on my Roamio Pro since the updated CableCard with PKEY_1.5.3_F.p.1101 was installed. All Six tuners are working without failure, I consider this problem closed for my own household...
> 
> Additional Note:
> Tivo's "Spring Update" (20.4.1-USA-6-840) was installed on my Roamio Pro about the same time as the Firmware upgrade occurred by Charter. Other than needing to reboot my Roamio Pro so the Tivo Mini's could see it again, it has caused no problems in my service. My Roamio 4-tuner and all 3 Mini's have not received the Spring update from Tivo...


Same here, the updated firmware solved the problems. I haven't had any problems regarding the new Tivo update on any of my boxes whether they have the new firmware or the old (as the 803 on my Premier series boxes still have not seen an update).


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## djev (Jan 12, 2014)

tim1724 said:


> 1.5.2_F.p.1401 is _OLD_. (2009ish, I think.) It's what was on my PK800 until a few weeks ago (I now have 1.5.3_F.p.1101) and you're very lucky not to have had tuning failures with all six tuners active. Most people with 1.5.2.1401 on Charter have to drop down to five tuners otherwise one of the tuners will randomly stop working.


Actually, I've read of instances where owners didn't realize they had dropped to 5 tuners until they went into the history and saw some programs hadn't recorded. With so many tuners operational, if your favorites record you might not realize something else didn't.


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## djev (Jan 12, 2014)

JosephB said:


> Well now you have me thinking....
> 
> What are the symptoms of the tuners not working? Is it the TiVo reporting that one tuner isn't authorized, or is it things like tuning failure and whatnot? Last night after re-pairing my card because I had swapped in my Roamio and never re-paired, I noticed a few channels failed to tune. Don't know if it was a TA error or not. Guess I need to do some testing...


Go to your recording history and look back to see if some things didn't record, that will tell you if you dropped a tuner. I can't speak to the TA issue since we don't use them here in the DFW area.


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## JosephB (Nov 19, 2010)

I don't have any failed recordings aside from a few that didn't record because they were on HBO and the pairing on the cablecard was not setup. I guess I will try loading up 5 tuners with recordings and then try to tune several different live programs and see what happens


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## tim1724 (Jul 3, 2007)

JosephB said:


> What are the symptoms of the tuners not working? Is it the TiVo reporting that one tuner isn't authorized, or is it things like tuning failure and whatnot? Last night after re-pairing my card because I had swapped in my Roamio and never re-paired, I noticed a few channels failed to tune. Don't know if it was a TA error or not. Guess I need to do some testing...


The main symptom is that your Recording History will have entries that say "Program not available" or "Not authorized" or some similar wording. The Cablecard will sometimes tune all six channels correctly, but at random times one of the tuners will fail to be authorized.

In my experience with 1.5.2.F_p.1401 this happened every couple of days if all six tuners were enabled. Configuring the TiVo to use only five tuners stopped the problem from happening. (I now have 1.5.3.F_p.1101 and have told my TiVo to go back to using all six tuners and it works fine.)

The problem was most obvious when I had Suggestions enabled. (As then the TiVo was a lot more likely to be using all six tuners.)


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## JosephB (Nov 19, 2010)

I never had any missed recordings, but I think I was bitten by the bug. The other day after I got it re-paired and several things were recording while trying to watch live TV I kept getting channel not authorized messages.

If it works fine with 5 tuners, I probably won't push it too hard. The card in my TiVo is an 803 part number, as is the card in my TiVo HD. I have an 800 card that I had planned to use in an hdhomerun, but I don't know if it's worth the hassle to get the cards swapped, re-paired, and then try to get the firmware in the 800 card upgraded (if it needs to be upgraded, dunno what version it's on)


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## djev (Jan 12, 2014)

JosephB said:


> I never had any missed recordings, but I think I was bitten by the bug. The other day after I got it re-paired and several things were recording while trying to watch live TV I kept getting channel not authorized messages.
> 
> If it works fine with 5 tuners, I probably won't push it too hard. The card in my TiVo is an 803 part number, as is the card in my TiVo HD. I have an 800 card that I had planned to use in an hdhomerun, but I don't know if it's worth the hassle to get the cards swapped, re-paired, and then try to get the firmware in the 800 card upgraded (if it needs to be upgraded, dunno what version it's on)


That would be due to said bug...


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## JosephB (Nov 19, 2010)

I finally dug out my HD Home Run and got my 800 model card installed, and this is the software:

H/W Model: 0800, Ver: 0012
OS Ver: PKEY1.5.2_F.p.3001
Build Time: Apr 12 2011, 18:49:42

For those who got Charter to push an update, did you have a specific person or phone number you called? If I decide to try to get my sixth tuner active, I want to ride your coattails and make it as painless as possible


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

JosephB said:


> I finally dug out my HD Home Run and got my 800 model card installed, and this is the software:
> 
> H/W Model: 0800, Ver: 0012
> OS Ver: PKEY1.5.2_F.p.3001
> ...


I got the firmware push shortly after filing an FCC complaint against Charter. Still not certain if that was the trigger or if Charter just happen to start pushing the firmware about the same time.

Multiple calls and truck rolls made since October 2013 to Charter always ended with the same reply in regards to CableCard Firmware upgrades, "We don't know how to do that or who to contact to have it done"...


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## JosephB (Nov 19, 2010)

pshivers said:


> I got the firmware push shortly after filing an FCC complaint against Charter. Still not certain if that was the trigger or if Charter just happen to start pushing the firmware about the same time.
> 
> Multiple calls and truck rolls made since October 2013 to Charter always ended with the same reply in regards to CableCard Firmware upgrades, "We don't know how to do that or who to contact to have it done"...


Everything is stable, three tuning adapters in two TiVos and an HDHomeRun, albeit with only 5 tuners in my Roamio, but I don't record that much anyway. I may just let sleeping dogs lie


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## severe (Dec 12, 2009)

Called Charter yesterday. Explained the issue and requested a firmware update for my CC. The CSR claimed it couldn't be done from where she was. I requested a tech come out with a new card, but gave specific instructions on what was needed (a card with the new firmware) as we know how these things can go.

The tech showed at my door today with a stack of cards and knew nothing of my specific request. I thought, "here we go." He also seemed to know nothing about updating a card's firmware remotely. We thought we'd try what he had in hand. I wasn't feeling optimistic.

Sure enough, the first card had the new firmware already installed. I'm still a little shocked this ended well.

(Spoke a little too soon^) This visit also required me to make another call to Charter, as no channels would pull up as much 15 minutes after the tech had split. A CSR sent a few signals my way and things were soon up and running. Will continue to monitor as well.

BTW, I was thinking I'd have to update my TiVo to allow the use of 6 tuners again, but it seems all 6 are showing in the Info > Down Arrow > Right Arrow page without entering any number sequences.


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## JosephB (Nov 19, 2010)

severe said:


> Called Charter yesterday. Explained the issue and requested a firmware update for my CC. The CSR claimed it couldn't be done from where she was. I requested a tech come out with a new card, but gave specific instructions on what was needed (a card with the new firmware) as we know how these things can go.
> 
> The tech showed at my door today with a stack of cards and knew nothing of my specific request. I thought, "here we go." He also seemed to know nothing about updating a card's firmware remotely. We thought we'd try what he had in hand. I wasn't feeling optimistic.
> 
> ...


Charter's dispatch system leaves much to be desired. Every time they dispatched someone to me to work on CableCard issues, the local dispatch didn't see any notes, and sent the work order to a contractor, who is "unable to carry cablecards on the truck" per the local office. Every time someone at Charter claims they're "leaving a note" for the next person in the chain, expect that they are completely lying to you.


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## deepthinker (Oct 25, 2002)

I just switched from Verizon FiOS to Charter as the 3 year deal with locked in price was too good to pass up. At the same time I also switched from an HTPC setup with Ceton tuner back to TiVo. At first I had purchased just one Roamio Plus, but then ended up getting a second.

I thought everything was fine up until today when I went to go tune something on one of them and saw the dreaded "Not Authorized". Flipped around the tuners and realized the other five were working. So, then I went to the second TiVo to see if it was having the same issue and sure enough the 6th tuner wasn't working.

Obviously I jumped on here and found this thread. I was initially thrilled back when the Charter install happened, as I didn't realize DFW no longer needed tuning adapters, and I had read how those can be problematic. I even tested recording six things at once when the Charter install happened on the first Roamio I had bought and all six recorded and played. I picked up a CC at the local office only a couple of miles away for the second TiVo when it arrived. I then called and got it paired and also tested six recordings and they worked that day. I guess I just got lucky that all six tuners worked on initial install with both boxes and didn't realize the 6th tuners had stopped working on both boxes until now.

So, I guess now after reading this thread and seeing it is next to impossible to get someone on the phone at Charter that will push firmware, my question is this...

Since I have a Charter office just 2 miles from my house..... Should I skip calling, go to the office and have them swap out both cards to see if I get lucky with newer firmware, and then if not just keep going back harassing them until they get it right? Actually I would think/hope that they have a box up there at the office where they could test a card before I left with it to make sure it had the right firmware? Or would that be too much to ask? LOL

FYI, both of my CC's are Cisco 803 cards running PKEY1.5.2_F.p.2401.

EDIT/UPDATE: I just went into the history of both units and see some recordings that did not record saying "Not Authorized" over at least the past week. But since it's summer and almost everything is on a cable channel that repeats, they still got recorded later. So for now I've used the code I found here in TCF to drop down to 5 tuners. I'm glad I made these system switches during the summer and not during the regular TV season, because if I'd have lost stuff from the big 5 networks during the fall that don't repeat, I'd have been pissed.


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## tim1724 (Jul 3, 2007)

deepthinker said:


> FYI, both of my CC's are Cisco 803 cards running PKEY1.5.2_F.p.2401.


Tivo says you need PKEY_1.5.2_f.p.2801 or later to get all six tuners, but I've heard of occasional problems with that version. In my experience PKEY_1.5.3_F.p.1101 is quite reliable. (That's what I have on my PK800 card and I'm on Charter.)

In my area I believe Charter has pushed 1.5.3 to the PK800 cards but not the PK803 cards. (or at least they pushed it to the PK800 cards first). So if you can't get them to upgrade your card then you might see if they have any PK800s.

If you can't get a newer firmware, then you'll want to tell your TiVo to use only 5 tuners. Go to the Channel List screen and enter 88635. You should hear it ding 5 times. Then reboot the TiVo. When you want to switch back to 6 tuners, repeat the process with 88636.

I had to make my TiVo use only 5 tuners for the first six months I had it. That was a little annoying but at least it worked reliably.


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

Has anyone noticed if the 153.1101 firmware has any benefits for the 4-Tuner Roamio?

The one I have seems to be working fine most of the time, but I don't watch it very often as it is in my Sister-in-Laws room... The only odd behavior is her system loses all programming every once in awhile and I have to request a refresh from Charter to correct the problem. Firmware is 152.2401 on a PK803 CableCard...

I previously switched the CableCards between my Roamio Pro and the Roamio 4-Tuner box. The Pro had the PK803 card that Charter isn't updating firmware on at this time and I put the PK800 card from the 4-Tuner Roamio into the Pro since Charter had already upgraded the firmware to 153.1101... 

The Roamio Pro has been working perfectly on all 6 tuners since the upgraded cablecard with 153.1101 was installed.


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## shrike4242 (Dec 1, 2006)

For St. Louis customers, when you talk to Charter about FW updates on CableCards, they have no idea what you're talking about. We have Motorola cards and the only time I've seen any FW updates is when I had to have a CC swapped out due to an issue with it.

Since I'm swapping out my last Premiere XL for a Roamio Pro in the next week or so, we'll see if the current card in the PreXL will work in 5 or 6-tuner mode on the Roamio Pro.


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## tim1724 (Jul 3, 2007)

shrike4242 said:


> For St. Louis customers, when you talk to Charter about FW updates on CableCards, they have no idea what you're talking about. We have Motorola cards and the only time I've seen any FW updates is when I had to have a CC swapped out due to an issue with it.
> 
> Since I'm swapping out my last Premiere XL for a Roamio Pro in the next week or so, we'll see if the current card in the PreXL will work in 5 or 6-tuner mode on the Roamio Pro.


Motorola cards don't have the 6-tuner problem and generally don't need a firmware upgrade for Roamio.


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## DigitalDawn (Apr 26, 2009)

pshivers said:


> Has anyone noticed if the 153.1101 firmware has any benefits for the 4-Tuner Roamio?
> 
> The one I have seems to be working fine most of the time, but I don't watch it very often as it is in my Sister-in-Laws room... The only odd behavior is her system loses all programming every once in awhile and I have to request a refresh from Charter to correct the problem. Firmware is 152.2401 on a PK803 CableCard...
> 
> ...


I used to have all sorts of problems with Comcast on my XL4 until the update to 1.5.3 1101. I would lose pairing every 3-4 weeks. So, if you are having similar issues I would recommend an update.


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

DigitalDawn said:


> I used to have all sorts of problems with Comcast on my XL4 until the update to 1.5.3 1101. I would lose pairing every 3-4 weeks. So, if you are having similar issues I would recommend an update.


Thank You.... :up:


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## Chas_M (Jul 26, 2005)

This thread has been invaluable to me regarding the successful integration of Tivo Roamio I acquired a few weeks ago. Fortunately, Fort Worth has a local Charter cable store that has a few reps who will listen to you. When I went to pick up a new cable card (CC) from the store, i was given a Cisco PKM803 card. After inserting the card into the Roamio, there was a firmware update which resulted in version 1.5.2_F.p.2401 being configured. On checking the tuner status, this only allowed two simultaneous channels to be recorded with Season passes, but could view up to five channels. I don't know why this was occurring between the recording and viewing tuner activities. So I finished up researching this Tivo thread and also the thread about channels not being authorized. This lead me to realize that the CC had to be a PKM800 or PKM802 with at least version 1.5.3_F.p.1101 configured.
After finding the original PKM803 cable card was not allowing all six channels to be recorded simultaneously, I arranged by visiting the Fort Worth Charter Cable store to obtain a PKM800 cable card. By the way all the CC in the store were -803 cards. The rep in the store went to see the store manager who was very familiar with the problem and promised to get me either the -800 or -802 versions of the CC the next day. The -800 card will allow the latest cable card firmware to the installed (1.5.3_F.p.1101). 
A few days later, I picked up a Scientific Atlanta PKM800 cable card, dated 2007. I was notified that this card was already activated. Interesting ... I did not know what this meant until I installed the CC in the Roamio. The 2007 date was not a problem, I do not know if a newer CC would have behaved any differently.
After installing the PKM800 cable card, I found it already contained the 1.5.3_F.p.1101 firmware, and did not require a firmware download and immediately allowed all channels to be viewed/recorded. It did not need me to call the Charter CC pairing service with card ID or Host ID. If problems arise with simultaneous Season Passes, then I would request a re-pairing of the card by Charter cable. This never was necessary and everything is working with unto six tuners recording/viewing channels simultaneously. 
In spite of the negative press that Charter has been receiving, I take my hat off the the Fort Worth manager for helping me get the right version of the card.


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

Chas_M said:


> This thread has been invaluable to me regarding the successful integration of Tivo Roamio I acquired a few weeks ago. Fortunately, Fort Worth has a local Charter cable store that has a few reps who will listen to you. When I went to pick up a new cable card (CC) from the store, i was given a Cisco PKM803 card. After inserting the card into the Roamio, there was a firmware update which resulted in version 1.5.2_F.p.2401 being configured. On checking the tuner status, this only allowed two simultaneous channels to be recorded with Season passes, but could view up to five channels. I don't know why this was occurring between the recording and viewing tuner activities. So I finished up researching this Tivo thread and also the thread about channels not being authorized. This lead me to realize that the CC had to be a PKM800 or PKM802 with at least version 1.5.3_F.p.1101 configured. After finding the original PKM803 cable card was not allowing all six channels to be recorded simultaneously, I arranged by visiting the Fort Worth Charter Cable store to obtain a PKM800 cable card. By the way all the CC in the store were -803 cards. The rep in the store went to see the store manager who was very familiar with the problem and promised to get me either the -800 or -802 versions of the CC the next day. The -800 card will allow the latest cable card firmware to the installed (1.5.3_F.p.1101). A few days later, I picked up a Scientific Atlanta PKM800 cable card, dated 2007. I was notified that this card was already activated. Interesting ... I did not know what this meant until I installed the CC in the Roamio. The 2007 date was not a problem, I do not know if a newer CC would have behaved any differently. After installing the PKM800 cable card, I found it already contained the 1.5.3_F.p.1101 firmware, and did not require a firmware download and immediately allowed all channels to be viewed/recorded. It did not need me to call the Charter CC pairing service with card ID or Host ID. If problems arise with simultaneous Season Passes, then I would request a re-pairing of the card by Charter cable. This never was necessary and everything is working with unto six tuners recording/viewing channels simultaneously. In spite of the negative press that Charter has been receiving, I take my hat off the the Fort Worth manager for helping me get the right version of the card.


FYI, I'm using a PKM803 cable card, with 1.5.3_F.p.1101 firmware on TWC without issues.


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

Good to know the 803 card works with 153.1101, unfortunately Charter Cable has elected to only update the firmware on their 800 cards at this time...


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## deepthinker (Oct 25, 2002)

Chas_M said:


> This thread has been invaluable to me regarding the successful integration of Tivo Roamio I acquired a few weeks ago. Fortunately, Fort Worth has a local Charter cable store that has a few reps who will listen to you. When I went to pick up a new cable card (CC) from the store, i was given a Cisco PKM803 card. After inserting the card into the Roamio, there was a firmware update which resulted in version 1.5.2_F.p.2401 being configured. On checking the tuner status, this only allowed two simultaneous channels to be recorded with Season passes, but could view up to five channels. I don't know why this was occurring between the recording and viewing tuner activities. So I finished up researching this Tivo thread and also the thread about channels not being authorized. This lead me to realize that the CC had to be a PKM800 or PKM802 with at least version 1.5.3_F.p.1101 configured.
> After finding the original PKM803 cable card was not allowing all six channels to be recorded simultaneously, I arranged by visiting the Fort Worth Charter Cable store to obtain a PKM800 cable card. By the way all the CC in the store were -803 cards. The rep in the store went to see the store manager who was very familiar with the problem and promised to get me either the -800 or -802 versions of the CC the next day. The -800 card will allow the latest cable card firmware to the installed (1.5.3_F.p.1101).
> A few days later, I picked up a Scientific Atlanta PKM800 cable card, dated 2007. I was notified that this card was already activated. Interesting ... I did not know what this meant until I installed the CC in the Roamio. The 2007 date was not a problem, I do not know if a newer CC would have behaved any differently.
> After installing the PKM800 cable card, I found it already contained the 1.5.3_F.p.1101 firmware, and did not require a firmware download and immediately allowed all channels to be viewed/recorded. It did not need me to call the Charter CC pairing service with card ID or Host ID. If problems arise with simultaneous Season Passes, then I would request a re-pairing of the card by Charter cable. This never was necessary and everything is working with unto six tuners recording/viewing channels simultaneously.
> In spite of the negative press that Charter has been receiving, I take my hat off the the Fort Worth manager for helping me get the right version of the card.


Good to hear. I'm over in Watauga and Charter has a store/location on 377/Denton Hwy. less than 2 miles from me. I called the Charter folks again today about the case I opened the end of last week for an update and she said the case was still active, had been escalated to a supervisor, and was making its way to the field for them to push from the headend. So hopefully phone calls get it done for me. But, if not it's good to know I can just hit my local store and possibly get things taken care of that way. Thanks for sharing!!!


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## deepthinker (Oct 25, 2002)

tim1724 said:


> Tivo says you need PKEY_1.5.2_f.p.2801 or later to get all six tuners, but I've heard of occasional problems with that version. In my experience PKEY_1.5.3_F.p.1101 is quite reliable. (That's what I have on my PK800 card and I'm on Charter.)
> 
> In my area I believe Charter has pushed 1.5.3 to the PK800 cards but not the PK803 cards. (or at least they pushed it to the PK800 cards first). So if you can't get them to upgrade your card then you might see if they have any PK800s.
> 
> ...


I used the 5 tuner code the moment I realized I had the issue, but thanks for mentioning it.  Works just fine that way.


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## sbiller (May 10, 2002)

I'm trying to determine if there have been any set top box price reductions 
to Charter subs since they received their integration ban waiver. 

Recent filings from Charter with the FCC indicate that Charter has deployed over a million integrated STBs. 

Have they passed any of these savings on to Charter subs?


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## swong_88 (Aug 12, 2014)

Out here in Walnut, Ca (San Gabriel Valley area), Charter Communications has upgraded the Cable Card firmware. 

When I first had Charter installed on July 16th, 2014, they had the following firmware:

Old Firmware: PKEY1.5.2_F.p.2401

Only 5 tuners on my Roamio Plus worked. One of my Tivo Minis kept on attaching itself to that 6th tuner and would not be able to pick up anything... 

During the last week of July 2014, I noticed that the firmware version changed to:

New firmware: PKEY1.5.3_F.p.1101

As reported by many, all 6 tuners on the Roamio are now working.. :up::up:

Now if they would only upgrade the Cisco Tuning Adapter firmware..


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## XIBM (Mar 9, 2013)

In the Gainesville GA area they went all digital which requires either a set top box or a cable card to get anything. They gave me two set top boxes for a year for no additional charge but then I think they are $7.50 a month each add on fee.


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## sjam613 (Jul 1, 2001)

I have this posted elsewhere but thought it is more fitting here.



> I have 5 tuners working but the 6th one is not through Charter in CT. Of course the tech here today blamed Tivo.
> 
> My version is 1.5.2 2401 so I am assuming that is my tuning issue. Do I hope at some point the force out a new firmware upgrade?
> 
> ***Edit - I see that is the problem now. With them going all digital in a week, I may just authorize 5 tuners to work and hope the firmware is updated shortly.


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## Jayboy3 (Jan 2, 2010)

I have a Motorola CC from Charter, that I just got last week. Is there a way I can check to see the firmware version it runs?


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## Chas_M (Jul 26, 2005)

sjam613,
This version of the CC will not support all six tuners. An earlier post in this thread, dated 8-9-2014 (along with several others following this date) indicates that the six channel Roamio must have version 1.5.3_F.p.1101 or later. Charter in the Fort Worth area only made this available on the type PK800 CC. However, an earlier post in this thread indicates it is available in some select Charter areas on the later PK803 CC.

If you have a Charter office within a a reasonable distance from you it is worth the trip to talk to the local manager and persuade the manager to get you the correct version of the CC with the latest firmware.


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## Chas_M (Jul 26, 2005)

Jayboy3,
The firmware version of the installed CC is buried deep, many levels down in the Settings and Messages domain:
Tivo Central > Settings & Messages > Settings > Remote, CableCARD, & Devices > Cable Card Decoder > Cable Card Options (for installers) > DVR diagnostics. With the first page of the diagnostics displayed (white text on a black background), press the Channel button on the remote 16 times to scroll through the large data set for all tuners. Eventually you will see the legend "Firmware Version" on the left side of the screen with the firmware version, i.e. 1 1.5.3 F.p.1101 on the right hand side.
Hopefully you have been given a CC with the latest version, or else you will not be able to access all tuners.


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## tim1724 (Jul 3, 2007)

Jayboy3 said:


> I have a Motorola CC from Charter, that I just got last week. Is there a way I can check to see the firmware version it runs?


Most Motorola CableCARDs can handle 6 tuners. You need firmware 6.25 or later, but it's unusual to see older versions.

To check your Motorola CableCARDs firmware version:

From TiVo Central > Settings & Messages > Account & System Info > CableCARD Decoder > CableCARD options (for installers) > CableCARD Menu > CableCARD Status

It's much more common to see outdated firmware on Cisco/Scientific Atlanta or NDS cards.

TiVo's recommendations for minimum firmware versions are on this page, under CableCARD Troubleshooting -> I have a Roamio Plus or Roamio Pro, but not all of my tuners are working


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

Chas_M said:


> sjam613, This version of the CC will not support all six tuners. *An earlier post in this thread, dated 8-9-2014 (along with several others following this date) indicates that the six channel Roamio must have version 1.5.3_F.p.1101 or later.* Charter in the Fort Worth area only made this available on the type PK800 CC. However, an earlier post in this thread indicates it is available in some select Charter areas on the later PK803 CC. If you have a Charter office within a a reasonable distance from you it is worth the trip to talk to the local manager and persuade the manager to get you the correct version of the CC with the latest firmware.


Actually, FW 1.5.3_F.p.0601 will work for 6 tuners because TiVo released an update awhile ago that has the TiVo retry any tuning failures, a la the Ceton and HDHomerun tuners. It's not as efficient and the tunes may take a second or two longer, but it works.


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## sjam613 (Jul 1, 2001)

I apologize for my stupidity here but I definitely need a different card? I can't how for a firmware upgrade?


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## DeltaOne (Sep 29, 2013)

sjam613 said:


> I apologize for my stupidity here but I definitely need a different card? I can't how for a firmware upgrade?


Post a message on this Xfinity forum to ComcastTeds, asking that he push the firmware update to your CableCard. He's really good at monitoring this forum and helping users.

http://forums.comcast.com/t5/XfinityTV-and-Equipment/Cisco-Firmware-1-5-3-1101/td-p/1967519/page/8


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## sjam613 (Jul 1, 2001)

That won't help since I am Charter.


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## DeltaOne (Sep 29, 2013)

sjam613 said:


> That won't help since I am Charter.


Ah, sorry. Surely Charter has a way to request a firmware upgrade.


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

Charter in my area (San Gabriel Valley, California) is performing Firmware upgrades automatically to the older Cisco/SA cards H/W Model 800, but not the H/W 803 Cisco/SA cards, (Yet) to Firmware release 153.1101.

Good news, at least here, is Charter finally got a new large shipment of Cable Cards in a couple of months ago and according to their Tech the CC's are all at the 153.1101 firmware level.

If desired, One can now go to the local Charter Store here and pick up a new CC with the firmware needed for TiVo already installed.

I'm not sure if this is true in your area but it worth looking into....


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## deepthinker (Oct 25, 2002)

pshivers said:


> Good to know the 803 card works with 153.1101, unfortunately Charter Cable has elected to only update the firmware on their 800 cards at this time...


I can confirm this one for a fact here on Charter in Dallas-Fort Worth. After a lot of back and forth phone calls with Charter over the last month or so it finally ended up with a truck roll today. I actually ended up with a local tech that owns TiVo units (started with ReplayTV) and knew the issue well. I finally have all 6 tuners working!!! The guy just left. I can also confirm a lot of what Chas_M has also said in this thread about this issue with Charter in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in particular based on my conversations with the tech.

The tech that came to my house had been fully briefed on the situation beforehand by the CSR, who by the way never could get an answer on a solution from her people, fellow supervisors, managers, etc. But she kept sticking with it and calling me at least once a week to tell me she hadn't forgotten me(Kudos to her!!!). Anyway tech said he came with several CC's just to be safe. The two he brought into the house first were both the "green front faced colored" Scientific Atlanta branded PKM800 cards and when popped into my two units already had 1.5.3._F.p.1101 on them. It just took his calling to get them paired up and I was in business.

Now as for our conversations, remember he is also a TiVo owner, he said if anything goes wrong with either of these two cards he brought with the green colored front and I need a new one to make absolutely sure I get another green colored one to replace it. He wasn't using model numbers during our talk, but I knew what he meant. He flat out confirmed that the white colored front face Cisco/S.A. PKM803 cards have not nor does he know of any plan for them to get newer firmware. He said techs can't request certain firmware to be pushed to "any" card. The card will only get what the headend has loaded for that model and the PKM803, at least here in DFW on Charter, is stuck with 1.52_F.p.2401 for the foreseeable future.

In short, if you have the tuner issue with Charter cable here in Dallas-Fort Worth, have a Cisco/S.A. model PKM803 card, and don't have a local store nearby to go to and demand a PKM800 card, then you'll have to hit up the CSR's to get a truck roll explicitly stating the tech has to bring a model PKM800 card or he/she will be wasting a trip.

Oh and one last thing, hope and pray they have a PKM800 at all, because the tech here today told me these PKM800 ones have been hard to come by lately. He said he rarely gets calls for needing them except for the occasional random Roamio Plus/Pro owner like myself.


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## deepthinker (Oct 25, 2002)

Here is what I had before and after the tech came today for the reference of others.

*"OLD" Cards with tuner issue*
CableCARD# 1
Card Manufacturer= Cisco (White colored front with logo)
Model= PowerKEY Multi-Stream Model PKM803
Hardware Version= HW 1.0F
Manufacture Date= 11/04/2011
Firmware Version= FKEY1.52_F.p.2401

CableCARD# 2
Card Manufacturer= Cisco (White colored front with logo)
Model= PowerKEY Multi-Stream Model PKM803
Hardware Version= HW 1.0F
Manufacture Date= 07/08/2011
Firmware Version= FKEY1.52_F.p.2401

*"NEW" Cards with working 6 Tuners*
CableCARD# 1
Card Manufacturer= Scientific Atlanta (Green color front, no Cisco, just S.A. logo)
Model= PowerKEY Multi-Stream Model PKM800
Hardware Version= HW 1.2F
Manufacture Date= 06/07/2007
Firmware Version= FKEY1.53_F.p.1101

CableCARD# 2
Card Manufacturer= Scientific Atlanta (Green color front, no Cisco, just S.A. logo)
Model= PowerKEY Multi-Stream Model PKM800
Hardware Version= HW 1.2F
Manufacture Date= 07/27/2007
Firmware Version= FKEY1.53_F.p.1101

How f'ing stupid is it of Charter that I needed two CC's 4 years older made in 2007 to get newer software to enable all 6 tuners versus the two newer CC's made in 2011??? This still just baffles me.


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## sjam613 (Jul 1, 2001)

Yeah unfortunately I keep having technicians come to the house (still have a few channels not working after Spectrum upgrade). No matter how many times I tell them to have a person out with cable card knowledge they continue to send outside contractors who seem to know less than I do about the product.


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## met_fan (May 12, 2014)

Just picked up a cable card from Charter to feed the Roamio Pro I have coming next week. It's an 803 - are cable cards coming with the updated firmware these days, or is it a crapshoot whether I get the old firmware?


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

met_fan said:


> Just picked up a cable card from Charter to feed the Roamio Pro I have coming next week. It's an 803 - are cable cards coming with the updated firmware these days, or is it a crapshoot whether I get the old firmware?


They will automatically update when you plug them in to whatever the latest FW is that's available on your headend, or at least they should.


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

99% chance that 803 card from Charter will have 152.2401 firmware and not the 153.1101 you need. You will need to obtain a 800 card to get the firmware you need from Charter...


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## tarheelblue32 (Jan 13, 2014)

met_fan said:


> Just picked up a cable card from Charter to feed the Roamio Pro I have coming next week. It's an 803 - are cable cards coming with the updated firmware these days, or is it a crapshoot whether I get the old firmware?


As HarperVision stated above, the firmware update should come through when you install the CableCard into the TiVo. It can take an hour or more to finish the update. Be patient and don't pull out the card until it's done, or you will probably brick the card.


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

pshivers said:


> 99% chance that 803 card from Charter will have 152.2401 firmware and not the 153.1101 you need. You will need to obtain a 800 card to get the firmware you need from Charter...


Pretty strange that a newer card won't allow the newer software.


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## tim1724 (Jul 3, 2007)

HarperVision said:


> Pretty strange that a newer card won't allow the newer software.


For some reason Charter pushes out a new version to PK800 cards but not to PK803 cards.

My best guess is that they're using the PK803 in their own boxes and they don't want to upgrade those. But it's just a guess.


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

Here in the San Gabriel Valley Charter Techs refer to the 800 cards as "Tivo" cards, they are far and few between, it took almost a year to convince them what the real problem was with 6 tuner Tivo's. Charter as a whole is either conveniently very un-knowledgeable towards TiVo or is simply being antagonistic as a hidden corporate policy... 

and yes it is very strange they do not keep all the Cable Card Firmware at current levels... Seems to cause a lot of Truck Rolls that could be prevented if the firmware were current to begin with...


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## met_fan (May 12, 2014)

Well I'll find out Monday...I'm in Western Massachusetts, if anyone else has experience from there.


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## Kungfubarbie (Dec 8, 2014)

met_fan said:


> Well I'll find out Monday...I'm in Western Massachusetts, if anyone else has experience from there.


I'm in central MA with Charter and the Cisco card they put in the Roamio would not upgrade. I ended up swapping and putting the new card in the series 3 and bam it upgraded. The old card which is now in the Roamio was a Sci Atl and worked fine bc it already had the 153. Go figure!

Once I reached someone who would actually read me the ID numbers, we made sure the correct card was pairing with it's TiVo and it all worked from there.


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## swong_88 (Aug 12, 2014)

Something really weird just happened... It seems like my Charter Cable card has reverted to older firmware somehow.. I started noticing it today when I suddenly started getting the channel not authorized error on random channels at random times.. When I went into the cable card diagnostics, I noticed that my firmware version was suddenly:

PKEY1.5.2_F.p.2401

I have Charter in the San Gabriel Valley in Southern California.. Last year in late July, they updated the firmware and it became:

PKEY1.5.3_F.p.1101

Everything was good and all 6 tuners worked like a charm.. Is this something Charter did?? I did have to turn off my Tivo Roamio Plus a few times last week because it was updated.. Does this mean I have to call Charter and see what happened or is there something that can be done on my end?? maybe unplug the tivo unit or something? Any ideas???


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

swong_88 said:


> Something really weird just happened... It seems like my Charter Cable card has reverted to older firmware somehow.. I started noticing it today when I suddenly started getting the channel not authorized error on random channels at random times.. When I went into the cable card diagnostics, I noticed that my firmware version was suddenly:
> 
> PKEY1.5.2_F.p.2401
> 
> ...


You will have to call Charter and have them fix it, explaining that they have downgraded your CableCard to a firmware version that will not work with TiVo. I can only guess as to why they would do this??? Possibly you have the 803 card and they rolled it back?? As stated earlier you will need the 800 card in order to receive the correct firmware, hopefully Charter has not decided to downgrade everyone!


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## met_fan (May 12, 2014)

Kungfubarbie said:


> I'm in central MA with Charter and the Cisco card they put in the Roamio would not upgrade. I ended up swapping and putting the new card in the series 3 and bam it upgraded. The old card which is now in the Roamio was a Sci Atl and worked fine bc it already had the 153. Go figure!
> 
> Once I reached someone who would actually read me the ID numbers, we made sure the correct card was pairing with it's TiVo and it all worked from there.


I don't have an older unit to swap cards with, so it looks like I'll be on the older firmware. My Cisco and SA Charter boxes all appear to have the 803 card as well.


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## swong_88 (Aug 12, 2014)

pshivers said:


> You will have to call Charter and have them fix it, explaining that they have downgraded your CableCard to a firmware version that will not work with TiVo. I can only guess as to why they would do this??? Possibly you have the 803 card and they rolled it back?? As stated earlier you will need the 800 card in order to receive the correct firmware, hopefully Charter has not decided to downgrade everyone!


hmm, I just checked and I do have the 803 card.. I wonder if they did roll it back... They are suppose to be coming out tomorrow so hopefully they will be able to fix it.. I did notice something that did not happen before. When I restarted my Tivo Roamio Plus again as requested by the Charter Customer service person, I noticed that the Tivo does not complete the start up animation anymore. I see the Little Tivo mascot walking around with the music, but then it prematurely cuts off and goes directly into the Tivo main menus. I don't see the part where the Tivo mascot walks between the buildings. I only see the short black and white parts.. Well, I will let you guys know what the tech guys says.. I hope I get one that knows what he is doing...


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## met_fan (May 12, 2014)

The 803 cable card Charter gave me is showing that the firmware 1.5.3_F.p.1101, so it seems that's good. I got up and running today and at the moment my only problem seems to be that my tuning adapter is is blinking. The green light on the front is in a cycle where it blinks 8 times, stops, and repeats over and over. I'm going to call Charter about it, but I'm recording stuff at the moment and don't want to interrupt that.

Edit: I also noticed in the cable card diagnostics screen that it says the connection state of the tuning adapter is disabled.


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

Turn the TA off for 15 minutes (unplug the power)_ plug it back in then call the automated support line and request via "Box Refresh". Say no if it asks if thus is a new installation...


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## met_fan (May 12, 2014)

pshivers said:


> Turn the TA off for 15 minutes (unplug the power)_ plug it back in then call the automated support line and request via "Box Refresh". Say no if it asks if thus is a new installation...


Thanks...Charter's support line or TiVo's?


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## tarheelblue32 (Jan 13, 2014)

met_fan said:


> Thanks...Charter's support line or TiVo's?


Charter.


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## swong_88 (Aug 12, 2014)

quick update to my issue.. I called Charter Sunday night and they scheduled to have guys come out Monday afternoon. I was watching something Monday morning when a Cable Card firmware upgrade window popped up. After about 20 minutes, my 803 cable card now once again has the good firmware and everything is working once again. Strange.. At least everything is working...


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## met_fan (May 12, 2014)

pshivers said:


> Turn the TA off for 15 minutes (unplug the power)_ plug it back in then call the automated support line and request via "Box Refresh". Say no if it asks if thus is a new installation...


Thanks...that's seems to have taken care of it


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

Alright Alright! Two wins in a row!!!


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

pshivers said:


> Alright Alright! Two wins in a row!!!


I knew it!!! This is Mathew McConaughey isn't it?


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

HarperVision said:


> I knew it!!! This is Mathew McConaughey isn't it?


I'm not Mathew McConaughey, but I do see him occasionally as he lives next door to my riding buddy in Malibu.

Great actor, not so great neighbor, parties all night making lots of noise then complains about his neighbors making noise at 7:00am the following morning. Pink lives across the street and is a complete Sweetheart!

Ahhhh, the Sunny Southern California Lifestyle....


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## swong_88 (Aug 12, 2014)

Must subtract one from the win column now. Exactly 1 month after my original issue where Charter had the Cable Card firmware downgraded itself to 1.5.2_FP2401, it happened again... I don't know what is going on... Here is the series of events:

1. Tivo originally installed on July 16th, 2014. Cable card firmware was PKEY 1.5.2_FP2401.. Only 5 tuners worked.
2. July 25th, 2014 Cable Card firmware was updated to PKEY-1.5.3.FP1101. Everything was working!!!
3. Feb 22nd 2015, cable card firmware was downgraded to PKEY-1.5.2_FP2401.. Suddenly started missing show.
4. March 2nd 2015, cable card firmware was updated back to PKEY-1.5.3_FP1101 after I called Charter to complain.
5. March 22nd 2015, cable card firmware once again downgraded back to PKEY-1.5.2-FP2401.

I called them and this time the tech guy actually came and said that nothing can be done. He blamed the Tivo unit for requesting the downgrade.. He told me to call Tivo and ask them for an updated driver... I got into an argument with the tech guy's boss since he said that it was completely Tivo's problem and that I should call them to fix it... sucks...  Any advice as to what I should do now??? For the moment, the only solution I have is to disable the 6th tuner to avoid missing shows... *sign*


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

I would call TiVo support and have them do a conference call with your cable company support or that clueless supervisor.


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

File a complaint with the FCC...


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## swong_88 (Aug 12, 2014)

So something weird is going on with Roamio Plus.. A few weeks ago, Charter downgraded my Cable Card so that 6 tuners are no longer supported.. I went into the Channel Listing area to disable one of my tuners so that I won't miss any recordings. This seemed to work as I only see 5 tuners present now. 

Since that time, i have been noticing that the Roamio will suddenly bring all five of my tuners to the same channel. It will kick off the Tivo Minis that are connected. The Tivo Mini will say that it has lost the signal. After maybe 5 or 10 minutes, the Mini is able to reconnect again. It has happened maybe once a week. Not sure if it is Charter doing it or that the Roamio just does not like the fact that I disabled one of it's tuners.. Any ideas or where I can check to see why this is happening.


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

swong_88 said:


> So something weird is going on with Roamio Plus.. A few weeks ago, Charter downgraded my Cable Card so that 6 tuners are no longer supported.. I went into the Channel Listing area to disable one of my tuners so that I won't miss any recordings. This seemed to work as I only see 5 tuners present now. Since that time, i have been noticing that the Roamio will suddenly bring all five of my tuners to the same channel. It will kick off the Tivo Minis that are connected. The Tivo Mini will say that it has lost the signal. After maybe 5 or 10 minutes, the Mini is able to reconnect again. It has happened maybe once a week. Not sure if it is Charter doing it or that the Roamio just does not like the fact that I disabled one of it's tuners.. Any ideas or where I can check to see why this is happening.


It could be an issue with your Roamio where it's causing it to reboot. That's what it usually takes for all the tuners to be on the same channel.

Maybe your roamio is failing and that's what the problem has been all along?


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## swong_88 (Aug 12, 2014)

HarperVision said:


> It could be an issue with your Roamio where it's causing it to reboot. That's what it usually takes for all the tuners to be on the same channel.
> 
> Maybe your roamio is failing and that's what the problem has been all along?


I am hoping that is not the case since the unit itself is only about 8 months old.. I did check the diag screen on the CableCard and it says that the last time it was rebooted was over 3 weeks ago. Usually if I reboot the Tivo unit, I will see in the Cable Card Diag screen that it was rebooted at as well. The only other time I saw this happen was when Charter re-upgraded by CableCard. I saw all of the tuner units go to the channel. It happened again when they downgraded me back again.. I will try to reboot the system tonight once again and see if that helps..

Thanks for the suggestion although I am hoping that you are wrong.


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

It's been a little over a year now since I've had the PKM800 CableCard in my Roamio Pro firmware upgraded 1.5.3_F.p.1101, most all of my "Problems" on my 6 tuner Roamio were resolved with that upgrade.

Then a couple of months ago Charter upgraded the firmware on both my Tuning Adapters to STA1.0.0_1520_LR_F.2001 and that seems to have corrected stability problems on the TA's.

Now, last night the PKM803 CableCard in our Roamio 4-tuner (Basic?) was upgraded to firmware release 1.5.3_F.p.1101 also!

Maybe this buyout of TWC by Charter is forcing Charter to finally get all their ducks in a row!

All I know is my programming is coming up as they should and and recording are happening as they should and I have little need to be intimately aware of all the inner setting of my Tivo's anymore!

I'm even getting Dodger Baseball which most of the population in the Greater Los Angeles area has not seen in over a year!!

This is all good!! 

So what is Charter going to find to to totally screw up now?


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## UCLABB (May 29, 2012)

pshivers said:


> It's been a little over a year now since I've had the PKM800 CableCard in my Roamio Pro firmware upgraded 1.5.3_F.p.1101, most all of my "Problems" on my 6 tuner Roamio were resolved with that upgrade.
> 
> Then a couple of months ago Charter upgraded the firmware on both my Tuning Adapters to STA1.0.0_1520_LR_F.2001 and that seems to have corrected stability problems on the TA's.
> 
> ...


I used to routinely reboot my tuning adapter. However, after the last firmware upgrade by Charter, I left it alone and it seems really stable for the last two months (knocking on wood).


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

I just rebooted my Charter Cable Modem yesterday manually, it had been running continuously for 40 days! I just wanted to see if it changed anything, nothing noticeable as I was still getting 65mbps download speeds...

It use to only go 3-4 days max before it would reboot on it's own and I would have degradation on my Internet speeds just before the reboot...

Yes I can get use to a stable platform...


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## tim1724 (Jul 3, 2007)

UCLABB said:


> I used to routinely reboot my tuning adapter. However, after the last firmware upgrade by Charter, I left it alone and it seems really stable for the last two months (knocking on wood).


I still need to reboot mine occasionally, but not nearly as often since the firmware update. (Now it's about once every 3 months rather than every few weeks.)


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