“Reciva Gateway not responding”: Rob offers more info & possible workarounds

29 Replies

The Grace Digital Mondo

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Rob Gray, who shares the following tips:

Reciva Gateway not responding: More Info, possible workarounds.

Reading the comments in the SWLing Post blog, it sounds like many people are receiving the dreaded “Reciva Gateway not responding” message and at a loss how to proceed from there. I’m assuming that for every person that writes a comment, there are many experiencing the message and not writing. Hopefully, the following information will save some internet radios from becoming e-waste and ending up in a landfill.

As background, I’m only familiar with the CCrane WiFi1 radio, this one.:

The CC Wifi

There is a way on these radios to at least recover use of the stations stored in the presets (you did enter on the presets, didn’t you?). The material is repeated in the comments of this webpage. I suspect that many people won’t wade through the 100+ comments, therefore a separate blog posting is offered.

On to the important stuff…

Here’s what works for me as of October, 2021

During startup, the radio displays:

Message: Finding Gateway

Message: Network Error Reciva Gateway not responding

For the message “Network Error Reciva Gateway not responding”, press the BACK button (which then shows Select network). Then press the BACK button AGAIN. The display shows Preset x Stopped. At that point, select a preset from the remote or radio, and it should lock in and play your station preset (assuming the info entered to the preset is valid)!

I’ve been doing this for weeks and it seems to consistently work!

Some other possible options

Depending upon the internet radio (and I have personal experience with only two, both from CCrane), there may be some other possible solutions.

Sharpfin

I’ve looked into the Sharpfin project and it looks very interesting. With the demise of Reciva, there’s activity again with getting the radios functioning with this software. Do an internet search for the latest information and/or these links are a starting point of what’s involved:

https://github.com/jisotalo/reciva-radio-patching/blob/main/README.md

http://www.megapico.co.uk/sharpfin/mediaserver.html

Serviio

I’ve had success with my CCrane WiFi2 radio, which is TuneIn-based, using Serviio and the UPnP utility built into the wifi radio. I was NOT able to get Serviio to work with my CCrane WiFi1 (Reciva) radio for streaming live audio, but could access audio files stored on the main computer hard-drive (with tinkering). There may be other similar options usable with UPnP, but I haven’t investigated much beyond Serviio.

Rotel

It’s possible that Rotel is shut down, but the motivated can explore that option. There’s discussion of the topic on this webpage in the comments section, do a find for “Rotel.”

Summary

That’s all that I have on the topic for now. However, DON’T discard your radios yet. There are some talented and motivated people trying to figure out ways to keep these internet radios running. Keep checking back on the SWLing Post blog comments as people continue to post new information. Tinker around with them, you might get them running again! If you do decide to discard your radio, I’d urge you to find a responsible method of disposal, donate in general, donate to a gifted and motivated hacker, etc. Good luck to all that have been affected by this unfortunate and unnecessary decision to shut Reciva down.

Spread the radio love

29 thoughts on ““Reciva Gateway not responding”: Rob offers more info & possible workarounds”

  1. NT

    I wonder if anyone can advise please?

    I have an MX200i and prior to the closure of the Reciva service, I followed the excellent guidance to set up custom presets pointing to .pls files on a suitable site.

    These worked fine and at some stage I had to start relying upon the double BACK button trick using the remote. However for some reason this no longer works. Firing up the radio now reports “Unable to load station list. Port 80 connect failed.” The BACK button now only takes me one step back to .

    Also the radio seems to be unable to find anything under Media Servers so I am suspecting a problem connecting to my network, which has not changed.

    Any ideas?

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  2. Rob

    Update on the CCrane WiFi2 (that’s the radio pictured under Serviio above)
    I’ve had great success with using a very early Raspberry Pi (Model 1B?) keeping this radio running! Rather than Serviio (which requires a PC to be running, at least in my setup), I’m now using the RPi running Kodi. Kodi has no problem with the .pls files (and can run them directly itself). UPnP is still the way to go as with Serviio, and I’ve found that the RPi needs to be connected to your network with an Ethernet cable. There are some Kodi settings to configure, and if anyone needs information, write a reply and I’ll list out a procedure that works for me (I’m not sure how popular these radios are). UPnP and Kodi via RPi might work for other internet radios, however this approach didn’t work (so far) with my CCrane WiFi1 Reciva radio. A bonus with this approach is that I can disconnect the RPi from the network / power off and the CCrane WiFi2 will still retain the preset programming for a while (it’s lost if disrupted by AC power interruption, changing modes (to FM radio for example), or any irregularity like giving it bad looks (i.e. it just loses programming sometimes for no obvious reason).
    Furthermore, I use the RPi headless to program the CCrane2. Shutdown is by accessing the IP address of the RPi with a smartphone connected to the same network. Fun and amazing stuff!
    Rob

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  3. Ramzy

    I have a DMTech Starry7 Internet Radio model IS07N that uses Reciva. Just a couple of presets still work.

    I’d love to fix it. I’m looking for a way to be able to edit my presets in order to keep it up to date. It has a USB port on the back. Please help.

    Reply ↓
    1. Rob

      Sorry to hear of your difficulties Ramzy.
      It isn’t clear to me that there is much of anything you can do to edit presets at this point, if you entered presets from Reciva directly. If you configured your presets using .pls or .m3u files as pointers to audio URL’s, then you’re in luck. Unfortunately I doubt this is the case as you would likely already know what to do.
      I would recommend tinkering around as much as possible with everything short of a full reset. A soft reset in the form of power cycling (including removal from AC power) is acceptable, and could be integrated with other changes you try. If no success and with not much to lose, look into the Sharpfin thing. That’s the only hope I’m aware of currently.
      Good luck!
      Rob

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  4. Sam Z

    Just did the sharpfin patch for a Sanyo R227 radio (Feb 11, 2022) using the dliw tool – it worked very nicely.
    I am populating the presets through the web interface.

    Thank you to all in this forum for letting us know there are fixes for this issue!

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  5. Virginia

    I contacted the Grace customer support via e-mail and this is an edited response that I got:

    “We’re very sorry for the inconvenience the loss of Reciva service has
    caused. This has rendered most functions on your radio unusable. DO NOT
    PERFORM A FACTORY RESET OR THE RADIO WILL BE A BRICK. The presets and
    history on your current radio should work (not for Pandora nor SiriusXM)
    until the stream URLs change. To be able to search or use services like
    Pandora or SiriusXM, a replacement radio will be needed.

    Further explanation, if you’d like the information:
    Grace Digital does not have legal access to the code for the server or
    for the radio, so it is impossible for us change any software on the
    radio or the station database.

    So while we would love to upgrade your radio, we neither have technical
    or legal access to the code.

    A few years ago Grace Digital decided to develop a new generation of
    radios. The new radios are on a different radio hardware and software
    platform ( even though the outside housing is the same). Grace owns the
    code on the new radio platform and we control the servers, so for all
    new radios we are no longer at the mercy of a 3rdparty company such as
    Qualcomm.”

    The above didn’t make much sense to me, so I called. It seems that Reciva is the name of a company that provided the original coding and they went out of business in 2020. Thus, certain features of radios based on that coding no longer work. Apparently, they didn’t transfer to Grace the means of maintaining it when they went out of business. If you contact Grace, they are offering a discount code toward a new purchase. I’m annoyed that the situation arose in the first place — it’s their problem because they relied on an unreliable subcontractor! The discount isn’t enough to make up for that, in my opinion, but is simply better than no discount code if you choose to purchase another Grace radio.

    Reply ↓
  7. L-G

    Fick detta svaret av Moon Radio AB.
    Den server som Sangean WFR20 kopplar upp sig mot har upphört och det finns ingen nya server att använda. Detta gör att det inte går att använda internet radion på denna modell

    Reply ↓
    1. Loug

      Hur är det med länkarna, bokmärkena och webbadresserna som lagras I själva radion? Varför behöver det en server? Är det möjligt att helt enkelt använda länkarna i “mina saker”-mappen?

      Reply ↓
  9. Ted Stone

    I hope this helps some as I have a Grace GDI-IRMSamp and it is also affected by the Reciva shutdown. I can still play radio streams on it so far using:
    1. Foobar2000 with its UPnP plugin
    2. MusicBee with its UPnP plugin
    Both allow one to add custom streams.
    I will be testing MediaMonkey next.
    However, I also have an older Grace ITC-IR1000B and although it sees the UPnP servers above, attempting to play a radio stream just gives End Of Queue message. So basically, the Grace mini-amp above is now just a media player but at least it streams radio via an old computer acting as an UPnP server. I would suggest trying other newer Grace models with music players such as above with UPnP support. I will provide an update soon on MediaMonkey as I really want to find one that the older IR1000B works with… It is being stubborn for some reason.

    Reply ↓
    1. Ted Stone

      The SharpFin patches worked on Grace IR1000B. The patch server does not run on Windows 10, so use Windows 7 if you have it. At least the IR1000B is more usable now than yesterday 🙂

      Reply ↓
      1. Ted Stone

        Oh yeah, if you have an old Android phone laying around, you can use that. Go to Play store and install RadioUPnP. This app will play radio onto a reciva-less Grace radio via UPnp… Essentially, you now have a remote control for your Grace-Reciva-Less-Radio. What is interesting is that the radio does not “pull” from it, rather it seems the app “pushes” to the radio because if you go into the radio to Media servers, you don’t see anything. In the app, you choose the radio station and then just select the radio and boom, the radio plays the station. Very cool actually because it is now like a remote control (sort of like Undok for other radios)…

        Reply ↓
        1. Virginia

          Thank you, so much, I am not technologically savvy at all, but it worked for me! Thank you again for giving my radio a new life and saving it from the rubbish bin.

          Reply ↓
        2. Frans van Dam

          De telefoon maakt wel verbinding met de Sangean WFR20, maar bij het selecteren van een zender verschijnt op de display van de Sangean de melding: “Einde van de rij”.

          Reply ↓
    2. Ted Stone

      Update: MusicBee works sort of. Some streams just stop playing after 15 or 20 seconds… MediaMonkey is a no go. Foobar2000 with its UPnP component works very well and even in Ubuntu works. I am still looking into other UPnP server options on Ubuntu that may work. But so far Foobar2000 is the best…

      Reply ↓
  10. Barry Rossen

    I found a great dirt cheap replacement for my Grace Digital GDI-IRDT200 tuner: Amazon is selling refurbished 1st generation, 2019 release Echo Show 5 speakers for $35. It has a stereo analog audio output jack that mutes the built-in speaker when used. Note: the current 2021 version does not have this feature, you have to get the 2019 version. This unit does it all: Sirius XM, Amazon Music, Pandora, Spotify, Tune In , I Heart Radio, NPR, BBC. It also has a Bluetooth transmitter , a touch display screen and accepts Alexa voice commands. It has a slide switch to block the camera and a button to mute the microphone as well. Very easy to set up and use. I have it connected to the AUX input of my Onkyo receiver, and it sounds the same to me as the Grace tuner. Before I found this I was considering trying a Raspberry Pi , but this is a lot easier.

    Reply ↓
  11. Colin F Robertson

    Hi,

    I have tried your solution on my IPdio receiver. Pressing back to the internet Radio screen, I pressed a pre-set and hay presto it worked.

    Best regards,

    Colin in Scotland

    Reply ↓
  12. Mark

    Rob,

    I never had the problem with my CCWiFi2 as you describe; the ‘back button’ never worked and it was not required. My radio quickly booted up to the last preset that was selected. My main issue was the constant re-booting; the CCWiFi2 just became unusable because of the constant interruptions. I have returned the radio to its pristine box along with two remotes. I have since learned that ‘hackers’ seem to be slowly finding a method of getting it working again and there appears to be a file available with a database of stations; very large but not comprehensive—only time will reveal how it all works out. As an incentive, I would be happy to purchase a simple utility, when one becomes available, to get the radio working again with a minimum of fuss. However, it will probably end up in the landfill after I do a reset.

    I have switched to the CCWiFi3 and I am having consistent problems with it; I suspect it is called ‘stuttering.’ While listening to any station and especially noticeable on vocal passages, parts of speech are repeated three or four times in quick succession. I have also noticed very brief missing parts of speech. This problem seems to be unique to the CCWiFi3 as I never heard it on the CCWiFi2 or the Mondo+. The radio demonstrates the problem while it is the only device on the router. I have not heard of any other reports of the problem I experience so I consider it unique to a particular radio—mine.

    So… I now have two digital radios with issues; the CCWiFi3 and the Mondo+! Since the beginning the Mondo+ had quirks that sometimes require me to re-boot it to get it to operate correctly. Don’t expect me to list them all. I have read comments from others who have experienced similar issues with a newer model that was supposed to have corrected them. The problems are annoyances yet are tolerable although some other user of the radio would have returned it for replacement.

    Over the years that I had the CCWiFi2 I never had one problem, it provided flawless operation until the day Reciva died.

    Reply ↓
    1. Joe in KY

      Mark, thanks for your mention about problems with the CCWiFi3 and its stuttering.

      I purchased one this past Summer, but after getting my CCWiFi1 radio back to working with the Back | Back | Preset trick, I’ve not opened the CCWiFi3 yet.

      I believe I’ll do that before the warranty runs-out! 😀

      Thank-you!

      Reply ↓
      1. Mark

        20. November 2021

        Joe,

        I would like to think that owners of the CCWiFi3 are recipients of an early Christmas present!

        Approximately 2000 EST during the evening of 16. November I turned on my CCWiFi3 and was alerted to the download of an update.

        After the update was installed the radio operated normally and I resumed listening to the broadcast. About 15 minutes into the broadcast I realized that stuttering had become absent.

        I did an internet search regarding recent CCWiFi3 updates but found nothing.

        I thought it prudent to wait before making an announcement. After many hours of listening I have come to the conclusion that the update solved my CCWiFi3 stuttering problem—I have not heard it again on any of the internet broadcasts I monitor.

        I want to thank whoever is responsible; have a nice Thanksgiving and a Merry Christmas.

        Mark

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  14. grayhat

    I really wonder if someone tried to reverse engineer those “radios” firmware, in such a case it may be possible to patch it and bring them to life; the MAIN problem of such receivers is the fact that they use “closed source” software (yes, in case someone didn’t realize it, they ARE computers, even if they look like radio receivers, and the same goes for TV sets and other “smart” stuff, in case you didnn’t get it – and YES, a smart light bulb too) … was I sayin’ ? (forgive me I’m an old fart) oh yeah, the firmware, if they really want to fly such a business, they should consider opening the sources and/or putting some kind of “emergency proc” in their firmware

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  17. John Ainsworth

    It’s over Jim

    I have a soon to be recycled CCC WIFI1 paperweight, sigh.
    I’d like to get a wifi2 but I have too many projects to waste time hacking a product whose servers are shutting down.
    This is a failed experiment and I’m glad I didn’t get in too deep.

    Reply ↓

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