--- MOD, PLEASE MAKE THIS STICKY and fix topic---

After searching and reading, none of the solutions here seem to work. Here is what worked for me after much registry searching, editing, and trial and error.

Microsoft in their infinite wisdom decides that will disable DTV support as soon as you say you are in Canada. Good job MS, we are not all in igloo's up here. You won't have a perfect Guide, but at least the HARDWARE works now.


1) Install your HDTV Card, boot your system and install it's drivers. For the ATI card, use the MCE specific drivers not the ones on the CDROM. Check the device manager and make sure the DTV card is in there... in the case of the ATI card... There is 5 devices called ATI DTV WONDER .......... in there.

2) Shut down and install your regular tuner card, in my case i'm using a WinTV-PVR 250 (non mce), make sure that it also pulls it's drivers and shows in Device Manager. No little Exclamations, if you get any of these STOP NOW AND FIX THIS.


3) Start up your system configure it for your Canadian provider, cable, digital cable, satellite, settop whatever, just get it working.

4) Now go back into TV setup and tell it you are in the USA, find a ZIP code near you and use it to setup a provider. If you choose Satellite during the CAnadian one, choose it again here, go through the full setup, this will make your standard card work, the guide will obviously be all wrong because your provider won't be an option, but trust me, we will get there.

5) Now, after you are done it should let you setup the digital card, do it, it should bring up a list of stuff in your area automagically, if it doesn't try out http://www.remotecentral.com/hdtv/ for channel listings, that's what I used. When setting up channels... Channel 43-1 is on frequency 43 by the way, the first number is the frequency, you will see, because it asks you. You will have to add in CBC, CITY-TV and things like that, as canadian channels won't be added.


6) Ok, so now you should be able to watch your regular provider (with screwed up channels and guide)


7) Head back to CONFIGURE TV and switch the ENTIRE system back to Canadian "mode" setup your Canadian provider again and make sure it's all nice and happy. Your DTV card will now not work, don't fret, we ain't done!


8) open regedit (I take no responsibility if you SCREW yourself on this part, be careful in there!)

Find the following key

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Settings\MCE.GlobalSettings

Change the following to the values below
systemGeoID == 0x000000f4
systemGeoISO2 == US

9) Reboot

10) Now in your settings menu under TV you should see Digital TV as an option, so you are good. Check out the guide, you should have your CANADIAN providers guide, and the DTV channels in the listing as well (but alas no guide)

11) What you can do for part of the guide is, go into settings, TV, Guide, Edit Digital TV Listings. If you are lucky, and some of your digital terrestrial channels also come in on your Canadian Provider you can tell it to put that guide data on them. If you are using Rogers Digital CAble then you should be able to get the guide almost perfect, on ExpressVu or StarChoice you won't, as they don't carry localized US Content like local US stations like rogers does (in Toronto) but you will be able to get guide data for City TV, CBC, and services like that.



Well that's it so far... As I tweak i'll edit this post, so hopefull a mod will make it a sticky, as i've received more than a few queries abouy my progress.

so what channels can you receive successfully... i would to try i tout as i am in vancouver. i wonder what kind of channels your able to pick up and if it's worth paying for the card. thank oyou

I'll pin it as it gets popular. Next time I edit the Most Helpful Threads index I will also add it.

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Chris Lanier
The Green Button Forum Moderator

Hmm I am trying this on a fresh install of MCE2005/Rollup 2 using the MS Update HDTV Wonder drivers and the Catalyst 5.10's for my AIW 9600. I can get things working fine with just cable in Canada (no HDTV), then fine again with US listings (wrong analog cable guide but HDTV working great), but when I move back to Canada and make the registry edits and reboot ... it doesn't work. No HDTV for me, although my analog cable is OK again. Is it possible that rollup2 breaks this trick?

Ralph Sinclair wrote:

Hmm I am trying this on a fresh install of MCE2005/Rollup 2 using the MS Update HDTV Wonder drivers and the Catalyst 5.10's for my AIW 9600. I can get things working fine with just cable in Canada (no HDTV), then fine again with US listings (wrong analog cable guide but HDTV working great), but when I move back to Canada and make the registry edits and reboot ... it doesn't work. No HDTV for me, although my analog cable is OK again. Is it possible that rollup2 breaks this trick?

 

I'm having the same issue. I tried it with rollup 1 (needed to do a reg hack to get installed), rollup 2 (has rollup 1 in it and doesn't require the reg hack). Basically it's the same thing - I do the set up, get HI-DEF channels from the states, but once I change back to Canada and do the regedits all I get is my analog with no HI-DEF. I also don't get a selection for digital TV after I do the hack, as it says I should in the article. I've re-o/sed, reloaded everything and this is the only sticking point. Oh yeah, I'm using an ATI HDTV Wonder for the HI-DEF and 2 ATI MCE analog cards. Don't bother contacting ATI - they'll give you some generic troubleshooting and then pass you off to Microsoft as this hardware is "not supported" in Canada. I've checked some Microsoft forums and they provide no new info as far as I can tell. I even tried to add the HI-DEF channels manually, but to no avail.

Any ideas?

I actually figured that out a while back and forgot to post. The trick is...

1. Set everything up as if you are in the US. You should be able to get DTV and analog stations (with the wrong guide info).
2. Use the registry hack to change your country to Canada, then reboot.
3. Go back into MCE setup and change the guide setup ONLY. Don't rerun the TV setup. Now you can set up your local Guide listings and the DTV stations will remain. I have analog cable and this works. I can't say how to do digital cable or satellite.

Thanks for the tip. I recently purchased an ati hdtv wonder.  I had no idea hdtv was disabled on mce in canada.  Please MS, get this fixed.   I get at least 10 stations OTA where I am in hamilton ontario.  I am sure many people in southern ontario are able to receive ota broadcasts.  It really can't be that hard to fix.

 

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My VMC HTCP - Vista Ultimate
ASUS P5Q, Core 2 Duo 2.66Ghz
3GB DDR2-800
XFX Fatal1ty 8600
1 X 750 GB,
ATI 550Pro, HDHOMERUN
2GB Flash for Ready Boost

...for those needing the Canadian registry values:

systemGeoID: 0x00000027 (39)
systemGeoISO2: CA

I, of course, had to redo everything to figure them out. :-)

tecH

While I’m not on Vista yet, I’ve been running mce since ‘02, and rebuilt my main mce machine a dozen times. Was using an HDTV wonder, now an avermedia a180.

I’ve done the ‘05 Canadian HD hack several times now, in fact I don’t have to look up the reg key anymore ’cause I just remember it…

I was intrigued by your new process because I’ve been thinking about switching over to vista, but I wasn’t sure about the hack process. Now I know. Thanks!

But my main question is this: In your process, you mention CTV. I’ve always been unable to tune CTV in MCE. I can get it through either card in other apps, comes in fine on my other non-pc hd tuners, but never in MCE.

So does this mean that you can tune CTV ota in Vista? That would be awesome. Did you have to do anything out of the ordinary?

g.

You are absolutely correct, CFTO doesn't work in MCE and I hadn't caught that in my testing.  I've reported the issue to Microsoft as part of the vista beta hoping we can get something done about it.  For the record, the official approach I'm taking is that when configured for use in Buffalo, several channels are available to the PC but not available to Media Center including WIVB (native CBS feed not the UPN simulcast), CFTO, and CITY.  Given that a major US station doesn't work for a US market I'm hoping it will get some attention.

I've posted complete instructions with screenshots from Vista RTM on my blog here:

http://www.thenears.com/archives/216

hamiltonguy:

I had no idea HDTV was disabled on mce in canada.  Please MS, get this fixed.   I get at least 10 stations OTA where I am in hamilton ontario.  I am sure many people in southern ontario are able to receive ota broadcasts.  It really can't be that hard to fix

 

Hi

If I understand correctly one cannot get HDTV in MCE Vista using an external ATSC Tuner  (Vbox or Fusion)  in Canada  Toronto. Using the Dvico Fusion program I get 14 good channels OTA in Toronto. I have tried for the last 3 days to make MCE see my Fusion HDTV tuner. Is there a way to make it work or do we have to wait for MS to fix it?

 

Thanks

Hi

works like a charm. I had been banging my head againts the proverbial wall to add OTA channels to Vista MCE.

I have now 13 HD channels

Again thank you

 

Didier  in the beaches, Toronto

Peter Near:

Crosspost from my blog, hope this information is useful!

During my testing of Windows Vista Media Center, it appeared that the off-the-air registry hack to get your ATSC tuners working in Canada was now defunct.  I’ve been doing some playing in the registry and have come up with a new method that does seem to work well in Canada.  I’d appreciate it if someone can test this out and confirm it in the comments.  If it is proven to work for others as well, I’ll publish this with screenshots as a more official looking FAQ.

I just tested the "old" hack, and noticed that it still works for me. Though you can follow the instructions posted above as well. The advantage of the old hack though is that you don't have to key in some of the US OTA stations. Here's what I did (has been posted elsewhere in the past...)
1. Configure MC with a US zip code, and verify that you can receive some stations
2. Close MC
3. Open regedit, search for systemgeoid (it's under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Settings\MCE.GlobalSettings) and replace the following keys with these values
systemGeoID: 0x00000027 (39)
systemGeoISO2: CA
4. Go into the guide setup and rerun it (do not rerun the TV configuration); the guide setup should start with the region which is now Canada.
5. Go through the guide setup, entering your CA provider data
6. Enter any missing DTV channels manually

That's it. In my case I still keep the DTV entries (including after reboot)