Posts by -=guybrush=-

ghtester

First of all, thanks for your reply. I absolutely praise your approach! It's mine too but this time we're going a bit (more than just a bit) beyond my knowledge given that I'm not that familiar with electronics and I don't know how to build the necessary circuitry! I need to document myself as it is certainly a very interesting approach and it could definitively help me.

I know CEC is everything but not a standard as it should be and things are often broken. The reason which has led me to think about CEC is quite a strange one. I presume one of the leds backlighting the panel is failing (or its solder joints are, not a great difference anyway) and when I turn the TV on a small portion of the panel shows a shadow because of the missing backlighting. Just turning it off immediately then on again solves the issue and I can continue using the TV for hours with no issues at all, I don't know why honestly speaking. The only explanation I could think of is a bad solder joint which gets healed by the first power on but I don't know how turning it on for just a second could be enough to induce thermal expansion, very strange I have to say!

I know it can be opened, the panel teared down and the culprit led replaced or its solder joints retouched and I could even do it but it is a matter of hours, a nightmare and even more a waste of time considering we're talking about a cheap TV set used in the kitchen so, instead of just replacing it (producing unnecessary e-waste is one of the things I hate the most), I've thought about reproducing the same by CEC (through a startup script) with the added extra of rendering a failing DVB-T TV a DVB-T2 smart one thanks to LE running on a cheap RPi Zero with an Xbox One tuner connected to it, the both of them already lying around.

This is my aim. I don't know if an RPi Zero has enough horsepower (probably not but, should that prove to be the issue, I could even switch to something better if I would reach my goal as I'm almost sure it's possible to do) while I definitively know my approach is even stranger than the issue it is intended to solve: these are my mental processes!

I'll check ASAP but I wouldn't be able to do it immediately as I haven't that TV at hand. Should that one prove to be the explanation (very likely to happen, I had guessed it too), isn't there any workaround to such kind of scenario?

I don't think so unfortunately, not from the RPi (and, I believe, any other device supporting CEC eventually connected) side but, eventually, only from the TV side with a firmware update for example (and there isn't any available, already checked). Thanks again and have a nice day!

Hi and thanks for your reply. Here is the output:

CEC bus information
===================
device #0: TV
address:       0.0.0.0
active source: no
vendor:        Unknown
osd string:    TV
CEC version:   unknown
power status:  unknown
language:      ???


device #1: Recorder 1
address:       1.0.0.0
active source: no
vendor:        Pulse Eight
osd string:    CECTester
CEC version:   1.4
power status:  on
language:      eng

Not a good sign I believe... Before turning it off, it was:

CEC bus information
===================
device #0: TV
address:       0.0.0.0
active source: no
vendor:        Unknown
osd string:    TV
CEC version:   1.4
power status:  on
language:


device #1: Recorder 1
address:       1.0.0.0
active source: no
vendor:        Pulse Eight
osd string:    CECTester
CEC version:   1.4
power status:  on
language:      eng

Hello to everyone! As the title suggests, I've hooked an RPi Zero with the latest LE stable (9.2.6) to my TV which is correctly turned off through CEC but not on. I exclude an issue with my RPi nor one with LE so I tend to believe it is something HW related to my TV or maybe, I hope, just something to be fine tuned. I've already digged around and found out that I can poke with CEC by cec-client. From SSH, I've tried

echo 'standby 0.0.0.0' | cec-client -s -d 1

and it turns the TV off just fine but when later on I've tried

echo 'on 0.0.0.0' | cec-client -s -d 1

it seems it just can't connect to the TV anymore as I get no output at all (and the TV doesn't obviously turn on). It seems to me something like the TV isn't listening to CEC commands when in stand-by and I don't think there's much room for improvement should my guess prove to be right.

Any advice? Thanks in advance to everyone!

EDIT:

For anyone interested, the use of cec-client is very well documented here, just for reference.

Quote from jernej

You have to be careful, there are two separate cases for IR, only one defaults to RC6 MCE remote:

1. Board is suspended or in sleep mode. Power management firmware is in charge of IR. If board comes with IR remote (TV boxes only), power key on that IR remote wakes up board. If IR remote is not bundled with the board (all SBCs), then RC6 MCE power key is default (your case).

2. Board is running, e.g. Kodi. In this case, Linux is in charge of IR. Again, if board comes with IR remote, correct keymap should be already active. If not, there is no default, you have to set it up (your case).

Very clear as always. I can't do anything different than saying "Thank you!" for the umpteenth time! I can confirm that I can turn it on by the Dell RC6 remote. Now I need to do the rest following the guide I've already found and linked in my previous message.

EDIT:

Everything done! I've taken a look at that guide and by this command:

 ir-keytable -c -w /usr/lib/udev/rc_keymaps/rc6_mce.toml

I've been able to sort it out. Now it works under both the scenarios. GREAT!

EDIT:

Just a bit more to learn, a bit more to tweak... The command above is absolutely fine but the changes aren't persistent: after a reboot or power down the remote stops working under Kodi.

I needed to create the file /storage/.config/autostart.sh with the following content:

(
ir-keytable -c -w /usr/lib/udev/rc_keymaps/rc6_mce.toml
)&

Now EVERYTHING is exactly as I wanted to!

Quote from jernej

-=guybrush=- Plug out and plug in is not needed anymore for a long time. Power button should work (if present) and IR too (again, if present) from LE 10 release forward. If device is TV box, power key on accompanied IR remote should work. If device is SBC, then IR scancode is set to RC6 MCE IR remote (a.k.a. Windows media center remote) power key. Unfortunately, there is no way to change that without rebuilding Crust FW and thus also U-Boot.

I own an H3 OPi PC and I was on LE 11.0 nightly. I've scoured a Windows Media Center 2 remote along with a Dell RC6 one but I couldn't control my OPi by neither of them. I've then downgraded to LE 10.0.1 stable writing it by LE SD creator tool and starting from scratch, still nothing. Not only powering it on and off, no signs of life from the remotes at all, for the menu navigation neither, just to make an example.

Am I missing something? By what I had understood, it should work (at least one of them if not the both of them) OOTB without for example the need for following this guide... It may also be that the IR sensor on my OPi is screwed (the IR sensor is built-in on the OPi PC) or needs to be enabled by a kernel parameter, I don't know.

Quote from heisenberg

I have also a WP1 running, but haven't updated to 9.2.8. Didn't even know it exists

Maybe you can ask dtech if he compiles the latest tvheadend for the WP1 with 9.2.8?

Generic build is not for WP1

Thx

Hi and thanks for your follow-up. I apologize because I know it is an OT so I would be as brief as I can. If you want to try it, you find it here but please pay attention to use the .img.gz and the workaround described here otherwise updating from official 9.0.2 would be impossible. There is another little 'piece' that needs to be noted which, instead, benni0815 gives for granted: the /flash partition needs to be remounted rw otherwise you wouldn't be able to create the necessary script which, as every script, also needs to have the executable attribute added.

Going back on topic, I'm certain dtech would be glad to do it if asked but he has other and more important things and projects to attend to and I'd like to sort it out by myself if I can otherwise I would go on with using the much older tvheadend server v4.2 already included in the official LE 9.2 repositories. Have a nice day!

Hello! I have a Wetek Play with LE 9.2.8 unofficial by dtech . I know it's an unofficial version but it's much better than the official 9.0.2 and I'd like to use the latest tvheadend builds linked here on it but I've issues with them (certainly, not linked to them but to my setup) and I'd like to undestand if there is a solution for them. I've tried to install Generic-service.tvheadend42-4.3-1906 and I get this:

/storage/.kodi/addons/service.tvheadend42/bin/tvheadend: line 1:ELF: not found
/storage/.kodi/addons/service.tvheadend42/bin/tvheadend: line 1: syntax error: unexpected word (expecting ")")

which to me seems something related to using executables for the wrong architecture (I know building a WP version for 9.2 is a nonsense given there isn't official 9.2 for it and I'm not asking for that) but shouldn't the generic build work everywhere? Too optimistic, I know!

If, on the other hand, I try WeTek_Play-service.tvheadend42-4.3-1774, I get a different error:

tvheadend: error while loading shared libraries: libssl.so.1.0.0: cannot open shared object file: No such file or directory

which is related to the fact that the addon is for the wrong LE version. Given that compiling a build suitable for my WP requires setting up a whole toolchain and I'd like to avoid it if possible, it there a way to adapt the 9.0 version just changing/adding something inside the package? Still too optimistic, isn't it?

Thanks in advance for your advices.

jernej

Thanks for your advices, precious as always!

Quote from jernej

To all,

there were quite some requests in the past to add option for waking up board via HDMI CEC. Currently I have working code for A64, but there should be no problems porting it to other SoCs.

Are there any volunteers for testing this functionality? If so, please give me exact board name. Note, it can't work on some boards (it must have external 32 kHz crystal).

I agree it would be a great addition and I'd like to help but unfortunately my OPi PC has broken HDMI so it is connected to HDMI through tv out and then an hdmi upscaler so I can't help with testing.

I've a linked question though. It has come across my mind reading of this...

When I switch it off, the green led on the board turns off, I presume this indicating a power off state (though the power supply always remains connected to the power outlet). To switch it on again, I need to unplug and then replug the power supply and that's not convenient. Is there a way to avoid this, maybe by an IR remote given that the OPi PC has a built-in infrared receiver? I'm not asking for a step by step guide: I'd just want to know if under the current conditions it could be achieved. Thanks for your advices.

jernej

If you'd like to have some testing on this HDMI CEC added functionality carried on a particular OPi model, just leave me a line and I'll see if I can scour one or maybe one among my friends and relatives has one. As already said, it would be a great addition and I'd really like to help if I can. Have a nice day!

I mark the thread as solved. No more to say. Maybe it's the cable but the quality is really poor as it can be easily seen by the photo I've attached. I don't know the reason. I have even tried with a different cable without the added resistor with the same exact outcome.

Hi and thanks for your follow-up! Nice to be here talking with you again. Yes, I've enabled composite output by provided overlay, helped by you that time too. It works fine but the only available resolutions are 720x576i and 720x480i and with the both of them the output on that old tv flickers like hell, I assume because the resolution (or maybe just the refresh rate or the both of them) is too high both for the tv and (I believe) the scart connection too. To be honest, recalling that DVD players once hadn't HDMI but just scart connections and a typical DVD resolution is indeed 720x576, then a scart should be capable of handling that but maybe my thought is completely wrong...

That's the reason why I've tried to lower the resolution following the advices given by fmafma in his thread (though I know it doesn't fit very well my scenario).

If nothing can be done (and I completely understand losing time on that isn't worth the effort for you nor anyone else apart from me), I'd just like to know if my approach with adding that kernel parameter and how I've done it is completely wrong or not. Thanks as always and have a nice day!

Hello to everyone! Could I draw someone's attention on this? Even just the last two posts by me give a good picture of the situation.

I know it has next to nothing relevance but I'd like to understand what I'm missing. Thanks in advance.

I've also tried to add the colon between 60 and D in spite of the fact that fmafma says that with kernels newer than 4.15 (and I'm on 5.10.47 so it is absolutely the case) it isn't needed anymore, to no avail unfortunately.

I've also tried to check dmesg output for "video", nothing relevant apart from the fact it correctly evaluates the added kernel parameter. It doesn't throw any kind of error nor warning (though I expected that being the sintax with the added colon wrong).

I don't know. All the, let's say, edid stuff isn't present because also fmafma is working on a NUC so a completely different platform but all the rest made sense and I don't know what I'm missing but it doesn't work.

Here I am. I've finally managed to make the necessary changes and check the results... I've checked by modetest and the output is actually composite-1 so here follow my steps:

mount -o remount,rw /flash
vi /flash/extlinux/extlinux.conf

then, I've added at the end of the APPEND line

video=composite-1:640x480@60D

saved and rebooted. No matter what resolution I input there, no changes at all. Obviously, the television still flickers badly. I don't know what to think...

Great! I'll try ASAP and get back with the results. Till then, thanks as always!

Thanks as always! I need to apologize because I've made a mess due to ignorance... NUC (Next Unit of Computing) means something which is Intel based so COMPLETELY different hardware as you point out correctly. Also, I should have known that xrandr is linked with the x11 graphical environment... Completely out of context, completely!

I've made some more research (I hope smarter than before) and found something which seems more promising here, more or less all the posts by fmafma in particular. What I plan to do is remounting /flash as rewritable then editing extlinux.conf adding something like

video=composite-1:640x480@60D

to the APPEND line BUT I don't know where and how to find the right reference to composite output.

fmafma was working with HDMI so I don't know the right let's say sintax to add a well formed kernel parameter.

I've searched a lot for a command to list all the available video outputs, to no avail unfortunately.

For example, I've found a very well laid down Wiki here and in the end Amlogic devices are discussed but I don't know if it applies to Allwinner ones too. I need to check but I don't think so: maybe still something relevant inside /sys/class but certainly not the same directory structure nor filenames given that they show a clear reference to the Company name...

I agree my mileage may vary and I could just stop here but I'd like if this wouldn't be the case...

I'm still waiting for some better insight on the topic but in the meantime I've made some research by myself. It seems I was right about the resolution which should actually be 320x240 while I've found this thread where the always very helpful chewitt (he has helped me too a lot of times!) gives an advice which involves using xrandr. Currrently I don't have the OPi PC at hand and I've tried on a Wetek Play 2 still on LE but the xrandr command isn't available there. Maybe it is on the OPi PC: I need to get hold of it and try. I would report any further update. A nice day to everyone!