vonage and TIVO

Posts: 18 · Vonage Forum Associate Joined: Apr 08, 2004 Posts: 18

After I got my Vonage phone working, my next toy to set up is TIVO.

TIVO requires that the initial set up and download is completed via a phone line, and not an Internet connection. After set up you can configure TIVO to grab updates via either a phone line or the Internet (but not both).

Here's the problem, I set TIVO up to dial out via Vonage. It would dial, connect, negotiate, and then start downloading information, but it would then disconnect.

I called the TIVO tech support people (VERY good, by the way) and the woman had me set up the TIVO to call while she watched the connection activity. Turns out the my TIVO modem was connected to an RCA wireless phone jack system. The RCA model I got was for phones, and was NOT the model for FAX and computer modems. TIVO support said that the RCA FAX/computer model provides a stronger/cleaner signal. Hmmm

Well, luckily I had not yet cancelled my land line, so I connected TIVO to it, and it performed the initial download (1 hour) on the first connection.

At the request of TIVO tech support, I switched back to TIVO -> Vonage for subsequent (smaller) updates, and it's been working fine for a week now.

I plan to get my TIVOs on my wireless home network so that I can send recorded video from TIVO to TIVO!!

Posts: 14 · Vonage Forum Associate Joined: Apr 14, 2004 Posts: 14

That is weird. If you use Vonage, you seem to have some sort of broadband connection. Tivo can be configured to directly access the broadband connection (e.g. by means of a small WLAN hub providing wireless access and Tivo using a USB WLAN adapter). So I cannot really see why you try to use the dial-up function at all.

Posts: 18 · Vonage Forum Associate Joined: Apr 08, 2004 Posts: 18

Hi Max -- according to TIVO tech support, I must perform the initial setup (the first, big download) via dial up, and not via their network connection.

You're correct that TIVO will work over a broadband connection, but it was that first connection that held me up.

Doug

Posts: 2 · New Forum Member Joined: Apr 23, 2004 Posts: 2

Can someone help explain to a non-tech how to get my DVR to connect through Vonage? I have spent 10 hours on the phone with Vonage and Direct T.v. folks. I had it working, dialing through Vonage, for about 3 months and then it just stopped being able to connect. I've tried all the little codes, all the phone #'s possible, and even got approved for the 800 dial in # from Direct T.v. but ....but....but...but the connection just does not happen. My head is spinning from my technical ignorance trying to digest all of the info out there about external modems and serial ports and blah blah blah. The vonage folks try to help but you can tell they just don't know what they are talking about or they are not allowed to tell me to give up trying. Can anyone help? Just pretend you are responding to a 4th grader.
Thanks

Posts: 18 · Vonage Forum Associate Joined: Apr 08, 2004 Posts: 18

Can you tell us what type of setup you have? That is, how are you connecting from the DVR to the Vonage phone line?

FYI, I was able to use my Vonage connection to download updates exactly 3 times, then mine also stopped connecting. To be clear, it would dial, connect, and start the download. Then it would state "download failed" after about 1 minute.

So, I'm back to connecting via my land line.

I won't have time to play with this this weekend, so I'll look forward to your reply next week.

Doug

Posts: 2 · New Forum Member Joined: Apr 23, 2004 Posts: 2

When the system was working I had the DVR set up to dial into Direct TV's 800#. ( you have to beg a little with Direct TV, but they will give in ) I had the phone detection setting on "on." I had the prefix ,#034 programed. I would literally drag the phone line from the Vonage box over to my dvr, plug it in and choose " Make Daily Call" I would do this once a week and it worked like a charm. The system would get updates and seemed to be working. A Few weeks back it just stopped being able to connect.
It was clearly making the call but could not connect. ( Failed Connection is the message )The folks at Dircet TV act like they have never heard of someone not having a land line and the folks at Vonage, while they try to be helpful, claim that they do not officially support Tivo and therefore can not help. I understand that there is a way to hook up the DVR through serial ports but I get rather lost reading discussion boards on how to do this. Try my old way, maybe you will get lucky

Posts: 14 · Vonage Forum Associate Joined: Apr 14, 2004 Posts: 14

Here is the instruction sheets for connecting a Tivo to a WLAN:

Step 1: Connecting the Hardware
http://customersupport.tivo.com/tivoknowbase/root/public/tv2008.htm?

Step 2: Setting up the Tivo box
http://customersupport.tivo.com/tivoknowbase/root/public/tv2013.htm?

Good luck,
Max.

Posts: 18 · Vonage Forum Associate Joined: Apr 08, 2004 Posts: 18

Max, the links you provided would be helpful IF Tivo supported Wireless-G networks (they do not, except in a mixed environment).

We're trying to get TIVO working over the Vongage supported phone line.

Doug

Posts: 4 · New Forum Member Joined: Feb 18, 2004 Posts: 4

http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=135715&highlight=Vonage

Along with that thread you CAN use the network for initial setup of stand alone series 2 TiVos.
It must be a supported WIRED usb adaptor and you just put ",401" (without the quotes) in the dialing prefix.

On series 1 DTiVos you can slow the modem down with ",#019" to get a more reliable connection. This does not seem to work for the modems in series 2 TiVOs or in any of the stand alone TiVOs.

The external modem solution in the linked thread seems to work fine for most that have gone to the trouble to set it up.

I have three TiVos connected through Vonage but they are all series 1s. All of them connect and downlaod 90% of the time, which is plenty good enough for all functions.

Posts: 243 · Vonage Forum Master Joined: Jan 18, 2004 Posts: 243

My DirecTivo is connecting through a external modem thru Vonage. I've not had any problems with the updates until recently when it was trying to download a system update. The connection would work but the download would only last for 15 minutes.

So I thought I would get cleaver and I setup my second phone port for fax support by signing up online and paying the initial $10 for the setup. I connected my Tivo to the fax port and voila.. the download completed in 2.25 hours. So I called vonage and said that they do in fact support Tivo and all that they had to do was setup my phone port to allow the same kind of connections that allow the Tivo work on the fax port.

They made some changes to my config and credited back the charges for the fax port and turned it off.

Long story short I've been running Vonage and Tivo (Tivo and DirectTv daily calls) for over a month now without any more problems.

Greg