Page 2 - ii; Notice to Installers; Note to System Installer
ii Notice to Installers The servicing instructions in this notice are for use by qualifi ed service personnel only. To reduce the risk of electric shock, do not perform any servicing other than that contained in the operating instructions, unless you are qualifi ed to do so. U.S. Patents A patent no...
Page 3 - iii; Contents
iii Contents IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS ...................................................................................... iv What’s in the Carton? ................................................................................................................... vi Additional Equipment You M...
Page 4 - iv; IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS; Ground the Product
iv IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS Ground the Product WARNING: Avoid electric shock and fi re hazard! If this product connects to coaxial cable wiring, be sure the cable system is grounded (earthed). Grounding provides some protection against voltage surges and built-up static charges. Outdoor Groundi...
Page 5 - continued
v IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS , continued Protect the Product from Lightning In addition to disconnecting the AC power from the wall outlet, disconnect the signal inputs. Verify the Power Source from the On/Off Power Light When the on/off power light is not illuminated, the apparatus may still be ...
Page 6 - What’s In The Carton?; Additional Equipment You Might Need
vi What’s In The Carton? The set-top carton contains the following items: • 8450HDC and 8550HDC DVR with M-Card • Quick Reference Guide • Power Cord POWER SELECT VOL+ VOL- CH+ CH- LIST EXIT INFO GUIDE L AUDIO IN R VIDEO IN Explorer 8550HDC Additional Equipment You Might Need You might need some of t...
Page 7 - Welcome; Safety First; Important Safety Instructions; Identify Your Set-Top; Serial Number
1 Welcome The Cisco ® Explorer ® 8450HDC and 8550HDC DVR Set-Tops with Multi-Stream CableCARD ™ (M-Card ™ ) provide high-defi nition (HD) capability and broadband digital video services. Follow the instructions in this guide to install the 8450HDC and 8550HDC, to become familiar with the buttons on ...
Page 8 - Front Panel Features
2 Front Panel Features 1 Power Turns the DVR on and off 2 USB Connects to external USB devices (Reserved for future use) 3 VOL +, VOL - Increases and decreases the volume 4 CH+, CH - Scrolls through the channels 5 Select Accesses your on-screen selection 6 IR Sensor Receives the infrared signal from...
Page 9 - Back Panel Connectors
3 Back Panel Connectors 1 Cable In Connects to a coaxial cable that delivers the signal from your service provider 2 Set-Top Bar Code Contains set-top serial number and MAC addresses 3 Archive Video Connects to a video input of an archive device 4 L-R Audio Archive Connects to an audio input of an a...
Page 10 - Connecting the Set-Top; or; VCR
4 Connecting the Set-Top To connect your set-top to your entertainment devices, complete these steps. Identify the additional devices you will connect to the set-top and TV. See the Connection Diagrams section of this guide. Determine if your TV is HD or SD and whether it is wide-screen (16:9) or st...
Page 11 - Connections for an HDTV and VCR; DVI
5 Connections for an HDTV and VCR To use the set-top with an HDTV, you must make one of the following connections to view the HD content. In addition, you can make connections to a digital or analog VCR to record to a VCR tape. Refer to your TV and VCR user guides and the cabling diagrams in this gu...
Page 12 - Connections for a Standard-Definition TV and VCR; YPbPr; ideo
6 Connections for a Standard-Definition TV and VCR When using the set-top with an SDTV, you must make one of the following connections to view content. Some SDTVs may not have all these connections. In addition, you can make connections to a VCR to record to a VCR tape. Refer to your TV and VCR user...
Page 13 - View Television Programming; Access Services and Programs; Guide; Info; Stretch and Zoom Program; extended periods of time.
7 View Television Programming Access Services and Programs Access cable services and programs by pressing the following keys on the remote control: • Guide –Access the on-screen guide. The on-screen guide displays schedules of TV programs and other services available from your cable service provider...
Page 14 - Troubleshooting; No Picture
8 Troubleshooting If the set-top does not perform as expected, the following tips may help. If you need further assistance, contact your service provider. No Picture • Verify that the M-Card module is installed. • Verify that the power to your TV is turned on. • Verify that your HDTV is in HD mode. ...
Page 15 - Frequently Asked Questions; What is Digital Television?; Are Local TV Stations Broadcasting in HDTV?
9 Frequently Asked Questions What is Digital Television? Digital television (DTV) is a huge leap forward in television technology compared to analog television that has been widely available since the 1940s. DTV is delivered and displayed using digital encoding, similar to the way a PC operates. By ...
Page 16 - Picture Formats; What is Aspect Ratio?; progressive method
10 Picture Formats What is the Difference Between a Standard-Screen and a Wide-Screen HDTV? The type of screen your HDTV has (wide-screen or standard-screen) determines how the set-top displays programs on the screen. The picture format for an HDTV is a combination of aspect ratio and screen resolut...
Page 17 - Connecting to an HDTV with an HDMI Connector; Important Notes Regarding the HDMI Interface on the Set-Top; SETTINGS; MOVE UP; MOVE DOWN; Back of HDTV; Cable
11 Connecting to an HDTV with an HDMI Connector Required cables: • 1 HDMI-to-HDMI cable Important Notes Regarding the HDMI Interface on the Set-Top The HDMI interface automatically confi gures the audio output for a format supported by the television. Because not all TVs support the Dolby ® Digital ...
Page 18 - Connecting to an HDTV with a DVI Connector; Notes
12 Connecting to an HDTV with a DVI Connector Required cables: • 1 HDMI-to-DVI or 1 HDMI-to-HDMI cable and 1 DVI adapter • 1 audio Left/Right cable Notes : • When you connect the HDMI connector to the DVI connector on your HDTV, you need an HDMI-to-DVI adaptor and a separate audio connection. • Digi...
Page 19 - Connecting to an HDTV with Component Input (YPbPr)
13 Connecting to an HDTV with Component Input (YPbPr) Required cables: • 1 set component video cables (YPbPr) • 1 audio Left/Right cable CABLE OUT S-VIDEO OUT USB 2.0 120VAC 60Hz 80W 120 VAC 60Hz 4.2A 500W OPTICAL AUDIO OUT MULTI-STREAM CABLE CARD VIDEO ARCHIVE OUT 1 L R VIDEO L R Pb Y Pr DIGITAL AU...
Page 20 - Note
14 Note : This connection assumes that audio is provided by the home theater speakers. Back of HDTV DVI/HDCP IN AUDIO CENTER CHANNEL IN AUDIO IN DVI/HDCP ANT (75½) IN OUT L R ANT-1 HD 2 Y OUT ANT-2 P B P R L R AUDIO VIDEO L/MONO R L/MONO R VIDEO-1 VIDEO-2 AUDIO IN ON OFF IN HD 1 S-VIDEO VIDEO Y P B ...
Page 21 - Connecting to a Stereo VCR and HDTV (optional)
15 CABLE OUT S-VIDEO OUT USB 2.0 120VAC 60Hz 80W 120 VAC 60Hz 4.2A 500W OPTICAL AUDIO OUT MULTI-STREAM CABLE CARD VIDEO ARCHIVE OUT 1 L R VIDEO L R Pb Y Pr DIGITAL AUDIO L R IR 1394 1394 eSATA CABLE IN M-CARD SN: PKCPKPDBT M-CARD MAC: 001AC326910A THIS DEVICE IS INTENDED TO BE ATTACHED TO A RECEIVER...
Page 22 - Back of SDTV
16 CABLE OUT S-VIDEO OUT USB 2.0 120VAC 60Hz 80W 120 VAC 60Hz 4.2A 500W OPTICAL AUDIO OUT MULTI-STREAM CABLE CARD VIDEO ARCHIVE OUT 1 L R VIDEO L R Pb Y Pr DIGITAL AUDIO L R IR 1394 1394 eSATA CABLE IN M-CARD SN: PKCPKPDBT M-CARD MAC: 001AC326910A THIS DEVICE IS INTENDED TO BE ATTACHED TO A RECEIVER...
Page 23 - Connecting an External SATA Hard Disk Drive (optional); How the eSATA Drive Works with Your DVR
17 THIS DEVICE IS INTENDED TO BE ATTACHED TO A RECEIVER THAT IS NOT USED TO RECEIVE OVER-THE-AIR BROADCAST SIGNALS. CONNECTION OF THIS DEVICE IN ANY OTHER FASHION MAY CAUSE HARMFUL INTERFERENCE TO RADIO COMMUNICATIONS AND IS IN VIOLATION OF THE FCC RULES, PART 15. AVIS: RISQUE DE CHOC ELECTRIQUE NE ...
Page 24 - Recommendations for the eSATA Drive; Guidelines for Using the eSATA Hard Disk Drive; Disconnecting the eSATA Hard Disk Drive
18 Connecting an External SATA Hard Disk Drive (optional) , continued Recommendations for the eSATA Drive Contact your service provider for a list of approved external SATA hard disk drives. At a minimum, your eSATA drive should have the following capabilities: • External SATA Connector – SATA II Ca...
Page 25 - Index
19 Index F FAQs 9 FCC compliance 21 Formats, picture 10 Frequently Asked Questions. See FAQs Front panel 2 H HD broadcasting 9 mode 5, 6, 8, 16 format 9 HDTV Connections 5 formats 10 What is it 9 HDMI vi, 3, 5, 11 High-defi nition. See HD Home theater system connection 14 I Interlaced scan rate 10 I...
Page 27 - FCC Compliance
21 FCC Compliance United States FCC Compliance This device has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against such interference in a residential installation. This ...