Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8000 User Manual
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Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8000 User Manual

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User's Guide

Digital Video Recorder

Explorer
and Explorer 8000HD
Digital Video Recorder
• Record your favorite programs when you're away
• Record one program and watch another
• Watch two programs at the same time with the Picture-in-Picture feature
on any TV you have
• Record two live programs while watching a third program you recorded earlier
• Use instant replay anytime you want
• Pause live TV for up to 1 hour without missing a minute
• Record and store from 30 to 50 hours of standard-definition programs on the 8000
and, depending on the model, up to 80 hours on the 8000HD
• Watch and record high-definition programs on the 8000HD
for the
Picture-in-Picture Control
with
8000
Digital Video Recorder
®
™
™
High-Definition

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Summary of Contents for Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8000

  • Page 1: Digital Video Recorder

    • Pause live TV for up to 1 hour without missing a minute • Record and store from 30 to 50 hours of standard-definition programs on the 8000 and, depending on the model, up to 80 hours on the 8000HD •...

  • Page 2: Table Of Contents

    Explore Your Entertainment Options Get More Out of Your TV Take Control of Live Programs Get Started Prepare the Remote Control to Work With Your TV and Explorer DVR What’s Next? How Programs Are Formatted How HDTVs Display Picture Formats...
  • Page 3 Change the Picture Format Change the Darkness of Bars Used in Picture Displays Find Answers to Frequently Asked Questions Questions About the Explorer DVR Questions About Controlling a Live Program or Recording Questions About Watching Two Programs at Once Questions About Recording Programs and Playing Them Back...

  • Page 4: Explore Your Entertainment Options

    • Watch your recordings anytime you want. • Add the Picture-in-Picture (PIP) feature to any TV you own. With an 8000 DVR or 8000HD DVR, you can use your TV to . . . Watch • Two live programs at once with the PIP feature •...

  • Page 5: Take Control Of Live Programs

    Explore Your Entertainment Options Take Control of Live Programs Anytime you tune to a live program, the Explorer DVR begins buffering the program — that is, making a temporary recording of it — so that you can . . .

  • Page 6: Get Started

    8000HD to work with your HDTV. Note: Your cable service provider may have already installed and connected the Explorer DVR for you. If not, follow the instructions in the Connection and Set Up guide that came with your Explorer DVR to make the appropriate connections.

  • Page 7: How Programs Are Formatted

    Get Started How Programs Are Formatted Programs are broadcast in various picture formats. The picture format is one factor that determines how your television displays a program. A picture format is made up of the picture’s aspect ratio and screen resolution. Aspect Ratios The aspect ratio of a picture is the ratio of its width to its height.

  • Page 8: How Hdtvs Display Picture Formats

    How HDTVs Display Picture Formats The type of screen your HDTV uses (wide-screen or standard-screen) also determines how your HDTV displays the various picture formats that are broadcast today. Note: For your HDTV to display some picture formats, the 8000HD must be set up to output these formats to your HTDV.

  • Page 9: Prepare The Explorer 8000Hd Dvr To Work With Your High-Definition Tv

    Get Started Prepare the Explorer 8000HD DVR to Work With Your High-Definition TV If you have an HDTV and are not using a DVI connection, you may need to set up the 8000HD so that it provides video to your HDTV in picture formats that your HDTV supports.
  • Page 10 Selecting Compatible Picture Formats If your HDTV displays a black screen when you turn it on, the 8000HD may not be sending your HDTV a picture format that the HDTV supports. Follow these steps to select picture format settings that your HDTV supports. Note: Rather than selecting a single picture format setting, you may want to select all settings that your HDTV supports.
  • Page 11 - 720p (wide only) - 1080i (wide only) To start the Setup Wizard, follow these steps: Make sure that the Explorer DVR is OFF and the HDTV is On. On the Explorer DVR, press the Guide and Info keys at the same time.
  • Page 12 Use one of the following methods to select a picture format setting: • To use a setting of 480i for a standard-screen HDTV and a setting of 1080i for a wide-screen HDTV, use the Quick Setup method. For assistance selecting one of these settings, follow the on-screen instructions. •...

  • Page 13: Make The Most Of Your Entertainment Options

    Explorer DVR turns on. Turning off the Explorer DVR and turning it back on is the easiest way to turn on Parental Control for all the programming you have chosen to block. For more information on this feature, see “Block Programs With Parental Control”...

  • Page 14: Find Out When Your Favorite Programs Are On

    Find Out When Your Favorite Programs Are On From the Program Guide, you can search for programs by channel number, program title, theme, or broadcast date. After you find a program, you can tune to it directly from the guide. This section provides instructions to . . . •...

  • Page 15: Search For A Program By Channel, Title, Or Theme

    Find Out When Your Favorite Programs Are On Search for a Program by Channel, Title, or Theme The Explorer DVR automatically lists programs by channel number, but you can change this and list programs by title or theme. Press Guide programs.

  • Page 16: Search For A Program By Date

    Search for a Program by Date Press Guide . The Program Guide appears and lists the next 7 days of programs. Press Date . The Browse By area of the Program Guide displays the next 7 dates. Press Move Up Press Select .

  • Page 18: Control Live Tv And Recordings

    Control Live TV and Recordings With the Explorer DVR, you control how you watch a program because, in many ways, you can treat live programs like they are recordings. The Explorer DVR lets you control how you watch a program in all of the following ways: •...

  • Page 19: Use Instant Replay

    Speed up: Press Rewind more times to incrementally increase the speed. Press it again and the program resumes playing at normal speed. , the Explorer DVR replays one or two...
  • Page 20 Press Fast-forward To resume play at normal speed, press Play indicates the Play position and the program plays at normal speed. Status Bar Speed Indicator Rewind or fast-forward in any of three speeds: • The first press ( or ) increases the speed to 4 times normal speed. •...

  • Page 21: Use Slow Motion

    Control Live TV and Recordings Use Slow Motion While watching live TV or while playing a recording at normal speed, press Play To resume play in normal speed, press Play Watch Action Frame by Frame Analyze sports events and other programs by watching the action frame by frame.

  • Page 22: Watch Two Programs At Once

    Watch a soccer game and a basketball game at the same time by using the PIP feature. The Explorer DVR gives you the ability to use PIP even if your TV doesn’t have PIP. This section provides instructions to . . .

  • Page 23: Change The Channel Of The Pip Screen

    Watch Two Programs At Once Change the Channel of the PIP Screen If the PIP feature is not on, turn it on. (See the previous page, “Turn PIP On and Off,” for details.) Press PIP Channel Up channel. Note: You must press the PIP channel keys to change the channel of the PIP screen.

  • Page 24: Swap The Main Screen And The Pip Screen

    Swap the Main Screen and the PIP Screen To move the full-screen program shown in the main TV screen to the PIP screen, press Swap Full-screen program in main TV screen Recordings and the PIP Screen If you are . . . Recording the program in the PIP screen Recording the program...
  • Page 25 Watch Two Programs At Once The PIP Screen and the Quarter Screen The PIP screen and the Quarter screen look alike, but they are different. The Quarter screen is actually the main TV screen, but it has been reduced, as shown here, to fit within Explorer screens such as the Recorded Program Options screen.

  • Page 26: Record And Play Back Programs

    For details, see “Change the Save Time of a Recording You Have Saved” on page 40. Important: Because the Explorer DVR can save between 30 and 50 hours of recordings, depending on the programming source, it is not intended as a long-term storage device.

  • Page 27: Record A Program That You Are Watching Live

    Time Setting,” shown on this page. “Recording Without the Default Save Time Setting,” shown on the next page. . The Confirm Recording screen appears. . The Explorer DVR records the program using the Confirm Recording "The Jungle Book" USA (Ch 67)
  • Page 28 One episode Accept recording Options While the Explorer DVR records . . . You are free to do the following without affecting the recording: • Continue to watch the channel while the recording is being made. • Pause, fast-forward, or rewind the program.

  • Page 29: Record A Single Program Or All Episodes Of A Future Program

    ) to move through the listings in the guide . The Confirm Recording screen appears. Press Result The Explorer DVR saves this information and displays the Program Guide, which now highlights the program title in red. A red highlight indicates that a program is scheduled to be recorded.
  • Page 30 Important: Whenever you set up the Explorer DVR to record all episodes of a program, it records indefinitely until you cancel the recordings or run out of storage space. For details on making the most of your storage space, see “Maximize Your Storage Space”...

  • Page 31: Record Two Programs At Once

    “Record a Program That You Are Watching Live” on page 24. Recording and Watching Programs If, while recording two programs, you try to tune to another channel, the Explorer DVR displays a Channel Change Notice to let you know that you must stop a recording to change channels.

  • Page 32: Display A List Of Your Recorded Programs

    Display a List of Your Recorded Programs To display a list of your recorded programs, press List To exit from the Recorded List screen and display full-screen TV, press List again or press Exit Recorded List Screen Programs that have been recorded, as well as those that are currently being recorded, appear in this list.

  • Page 33: Display A List Of Programs You Have Scheduled To Be Recorded In The Future

    Record and Play Back Programs Display a List of Programs You Have Scheduled To Be Recorded in the Future If the Recorded List screen is not displayed, press List The Recorded List screen appears. Press Scheduled Recordings appears with a list of all the programs you have scheduled to record. Scheduled Recordings Screen If a program is currently being recorded, the Recording Now...

  • Page 34: Cancel A Recording That Is In Progress

    . The red Record indicator on the front of the Explorer DVR turns off. Forget Which Channel You’re Recording? The Explorer DVR gives you three ways to find channels that are currently being recorded: • Turn on the PIP feature and press Info the Recording Now currently recording.

  • Page 36: Manage Programs And Recordings

    Note: Even if you have blocked programming by channel, rating, or time or day, you can record the blocked programming. However, the Explorer DVR blocks the playback of the recording so that it is played back only after you have entered a valid Parental Control personal indentification number (PIN).
  • Page 37 • When the correct STOP time is shown, press Accept Explorer DVR accept the start and stop times you have entered. 10. Turn on the Parental Control feature to have the Explorer DVR block the programming you selected. For details, see “Turning Parental Control On and Off”...
  • Page 38 4-digit Parental Control PIN. Important: As a precaution, the Explorer DVR automatically turns on the Parental Control feature whenever you turn off the Explorer DVR from the Power button on the front of the Explorer DVR.

  • Page 39: Block Recordings With Parental Control

    You can keep others from watching a recording by using the Block feature. When using this feature, keep in mind that you can block only recordings that you are not watching. This feature is useful if children also use the Explorer DVR and you do not want them to watch certain recordings.
  • Page 40 Playing Back Blocked Recordings You can watch a blocked program using either of the two methods described here. (For details on how to use the Parental Control feature to block programs and recordings, see “Turning Parental Control On and Off” on page 35.) PIN Entry Enter your PIN to turn OFF Parental Control and ALLOW viewing of All programs.

  • Page 41: Maximize Your Storage Space

    Manage Programs and Recordings Maximize Your Storage Space The Explorer DVR can save from 30 to 50 hours of recordings, depending on the programming source; it is not intended as a long-term storage device. To make the most efficient use of your storage space, follow these guidelines: •...

  • Page 42: Change The Default Save Time Setting For Future Recordings

    14 days. Using this setting, the Explorer DVR automatically saves each recording for 14 days. At the end of 14 days, the Explorer DVR erases the recording to make space for other programs you want to record. You can change this setting from 14 days to 1, 2, or 7 days, or to “until erased.”...

  • Page 43: Change The Save Time Of A Recording You Have Saved

    If the Explorer DVR becomes full, some programs may be partially saved or not saved at all. The Explorer DVR holds from 30 to 50 hours of programs.

  • Page 44: Adjust The Picture Display For Hdtvs

    Adjust the Picture Display for HDTVs You can watch high-definition (HD) programs if you have an HDTV that is connected to the 8000HD. When watching programs on an HDTV, keep in mind that currently, broadcasters are offering HD programs from only their parent station, such as CBS, ABC, NBC, Fox, WB, UPN, or PBS.

  • Page 45: Adjust Pictures On A Wide-Screen Hdtv

    Adjust the Picture Display for HDTVs Adjust Pictures on a Wide-Screen HDTV HD-formatted programs have a wide format, similar to the format used in movies. If your HDTV has a wide screen, it’s perfectly suited to show HD programs. However, non-HD programs do not use a wide format and are unable to fill the wide screen.

  • Page 46: Change The Picture Format

    Change the Picture Format Because the picture quality of a program is affected by many factors, such as how the program was originally recorded and the method used to broadcast the program, you may find that displaying certain programs in a specific picture format provides the picture quality you prefer.

  • Page 47: Change The Darkness Of Bars Used In Picture Displays

    Adjust the Picture Display for HDTVs Change the Darkness of Bars Used in Picture Displays As illustrated on page 5, the 8000HD automatically adds bars to certain types of program formats to improve the picture’s display. If you decide to use these automatic settings to watch programs, you can change the darkness of the bars from Light (the default setting) to Medium or Dark.

  • Page 48: Find Answers To Frequently Asked Questions

    It contains documentation on a number of topics, including installation and setup. You will need the serial number of the Explorer DVR to access the Web site. See page 52 for details on locating the serial number. Why doesn’t the Explorer DVR respond when I press the keys on the remote control? Your remote control may not be in the Cable mode.

  • Page 49: Questions About Watching Two Programs At Once

    If a program is being recorded in the PIP screen and I turn off the PIP feature, will this stop the recording? No. The Explorer DVR will continue to record the program even if you turn off the PIP feature.
  • Page 50 If, while recording two programs, you try to tune to another channel, the Explorer DVR displays a Channel Change Notice to let you know that you must stop a recording to change channels. For details, see “Cancel a Recording That Is in Progress”...
  • Page 51 For an explanation of how the Explorer DVR records live TV, see page 2. If the end of the program is missing, the Explorer DVR may have reached its storage capacity, the program may have continued past its scheduled time, or you may have manually stopped the recording.

  • Page 52: Questions About Watching, Recording, And Playing Back Hd Programs

    Questions About Watching, Recording, and Playing Back HD Programs Are local TV stations broadcasting in HDTV? Many local TV stations are transmitting digital signals. However, transmitting a digital signal does not mean transmitting an HDTV signal. Most stations, how- ever, once they begin broadcasting in digital are offering HD programs from their parent station, such as CBS, ABC, NBC, Fox, WB, UPN, or PBS.
  • Page 53 Because non-HD programs do not use a wide format, the picture does not fill the width of the screen. To fill the space, the Explorer DVR automatically places bars on the sides of non-HD programs. You can change this display to one that removes the bars and fills the screen with the picture.

  • Page 54: Get More Information Or Assistance

    Explorer DVR. The model name (Explorer) and model number (8000 or 8000HD) are printed there. • Serial number: To find this number, look on the back of the Explorer DVR for a label that is similar to the example shown on the next page.
  • Page 55 To join the Explorer eClub, you need the serial number of your Explorer DVR and your email address. To find the serial number, look on the back of the Explorer DVR for a label that is similar to the following example. The serial number begins with SA and is located in the lower left corner of the bar code.

  • Page 56: Index

    Index Blocking programs, methods of, 33 Blocking recordings, 36 Browse By feature, 12 Buffer, explanation of, 2 Buttons. See Remote control keys Cable mode, 3 Canceling recordings in progress, 31 scheduled recordings, 30 Changing channel of PIP screen, 20 channels from Program Guide, 11 Save Time of a recording, 39, 40 Channel banner, displaying, 19 Channel buffer, See Buffer...
  • Page 57 Index HDTV display, 42 storage, 26 format, 6, 7 High-definition programs. See HDTV Information area on Explorer screens, inside of back cover Installation, instructions for, 45 Instant replay, 16 Keys. See Remote control keys List key, 29, 30 List of recordings, displaying, 29 Live TV, 2, 18 Lock symbols Closed Lock, 35, 36...
  • Page 58 Playing and recording simultaneously, 47 blocked recordings, 37 recordings, 29 Power indicator, 10 loss, 45 Program Guide Browse By feature, 12 displaying, 11 searching for programs, 12, 13 selecting a program, 11 Programs blocking with Parental Control, 33 fast-forwarding, 16 pausing, 15 recording, 24, 26, 28 removing blocking from, 35...
  • Page 59 Recovering erased recording, 46 Remote control All keys, inside of foldout placing in Cable mode, 3 preparing to use with TV and Explorer DVR, 3 Remote control keys All keys, inside of foldout Cable, 3 Channel Down, 20 Channel Up, 20...
  • Page 60 Save Latest options, 27 Save Time setting, changing, 39 Saving recordings, 10 storage space, 23 methods of, 23 permanently. See Copying recordings to VCR tape Scheduled recordings canceling, 30 displaying list of, 30 Serial number, locating, 52 Slow motion, 18 Speed indicator on Status Bar, 17 Status Bar, 15-17 Storage space...
  • Page 62 Quick Tips Press to display the last channel you were last watching. While in normal Play mode, press once while watching live TV or a recording to see the program in slow motion. Press a second time to resume normal play. Press to remove any Explorer screens or banners and display full-screen TV.
  • Page 63 See all of your favorite programs When you’re watching a favorite program and the phone rings, the Explorer DVR lets you pause the program and rewind it to play the part you missed. You can also fast- forward through portions you don’t want to watch.
  • Page 64 Main screen Turns PIP feature on or off Moves PIP screen . For more information, see page 3 of this guide. Powers the Explorer DVR on or off Turns cable mode on or off Selects an on-screen item Exits selection screens...
  • Page 65 © 2003 by Scientific-Atlanta, Inc. All rights reserved. AllTouch, Explorer, Scientific-Atlanta and the Scientific-Atlanta logo are registered trademarks of Scientific-Atlanta, Inc., 8000, and 8000HD are trademarks of Scientific-Atlanta, Inc. All other trademarks shown are trademarks of their respective owners. Product and service availability subject to change without notice.

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