Altering the VCT

[Mervin166]

Hi,

Does anyone know the format used for Digicifer II's Virtual Channel Tables?
I'd like to be able to map digital tv channels to different RF frequencies.

I'm using about 30 transcoders to map satellite service from Shaw Broadcast onto cable QAM channels for subscribers. The customers's set-top boxes are expecting specific channels on specific QAMs, but I'd like to be able to move them around to make room for some analog channels at lower frequencies.
Authorization, firmware, guides and channel maps for the set-top boxes are sent on the cable network on a 75mhz OOB channel by a Motorola OM-2000 unit.
This thing has an ethernet port on it which can send/receive packets. So I could use it to filter the data stream as I like. I just don't know how to parse the data.

I've captured about 300 mb worth of data and some of it seem to make sense, I can see channel names like TSN, NBC, etc.. But I can't find anything that looks like a frequency, and I don't even know what fields are supposed to be CRC's either.
The tables don't look like anything known like ATSC or DVB.

Can anyone help me please with that issue?
Thanks.

 

[dhcracker]

I'm sorry with that unit I'm not familiar but I do have a question for you since you obviously are way more familiar with your head end equipment.

We operate two tiny catv systems and have only 330mghz systems so you could imagine our head end is also bare bones. I have 4 spare Motorolla 4402x units that I want to setup in my test station here at my house. I am having a hard time locating the information I need for the FTA digital channels. And what I am now stumped on is the VCT settings, are these even relevant to the channel you are trying to get in? Our unit has only 3 set VCT tables in it I can only remember 480 and 67.

I am on AMC 11 trying to get CW channel to come in. I have it on port 0 transponder 15 sat I listed as C3 not sure if this is still its short name or not. the frequency automaticaly sets when you set transponder so that should be fine. But I am not getting any video and we have poor access to unaffiliated station tech lines so I'm stuck w/ an internet search until monday.

Are you familiar w/ the motorolla I am talking about? Do I have to get the correct VCT and how the heck do I figure out what channel to set there if so?

I can manually put numbers in but I don't think that is going to get me anywhere. I am wondering if this even has any relevance on getting the video and if I have something else set wrong. Do you have any ideas?

 

[Mervin166]

I'm not too familiar with the 4402 either, but in your case the vct number you have to enter might actually be the mpeg program stream id (mpeg PID).
If you can find a way to display the Program Association Table that is sent on your transponder, then you'll see a list of the 'VCT's you can use.
One way I found to get that table is to hook up the ASI out on a Scientific Atlanta D9850 to a QAM modulator and then dump the tables through the diagnostic port.