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DirecTV HD DVR - HR2*/ HR34 Master Topic: one thread for all - Page 8

post #211 of 1949
7/10/10 at 9:16am
I almost forgot.

I am perhaps one of the few people who continues to have a landline home telephone. I have a 3-way "bundle" with Fairpoint, the debt-burdened telco sucker successor to Verizon in Northern New England. Fairpoint for voice and high speed (7.1 meg) DSL. D* for TV. But, I digress.

I began having problems with intermittent dial tone. It was ultimately traced to a broken wire in the Network Interface Device (NID) on the wall outside the house. While the telco technician was here, we checked my inside telephone network for problems as his meter showed it to be slightly out of spec. Lo and behold, my relatively new HR23 was the culprit. When we disconnected it from my inside telephone wire network, the system then returned to within specification condition on his meter.

The difference was marginal and he said to leave it connected so long as no further trouble occurred. If it did, disconnect the HR23 first and see if whatever problem I might be experiencing went away.

Just a tip. If you're having landline phone problems, don't forget to include whatever D* STB you have in your troubleshooting if you have it connected to your telephone line for Caller ID.

Dana
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post #212 of 1949
7/10/10 at 9:37am
Quote:
Originally Posted by veryoldschool View Post

I've been told to expect a month or two of refurbs being used until the supply chain can catch up to the demand.
Since refurbs have been anything but "stellar", I'd suggest everyone wring the hell out of them first to make sure they're working fulling.

They seem to come in these states:

1) Customer's closed accounts and there was no defect.

2) There was a defect and it was found with the limited testing by the refurb contractor.

3) There was a defect that got completely missed/overlooked by the refurb contractor.

There's something else happening that could affect performance. Not all STBs are being recovered directly by D*. When I upgraded from an H23 to an HR23, a tech from Multiband brought the new HR23 to me at the same time as he installed additional coax. He recovered the H23 which was in perfect "like new" condition. I got credit for the recovery from D*. He said it was a relatively new program by which the used STBs were recycled locally.

That unit will be reinstalled by Multiband without ever going through a refurb examination, based on my assurance that it was "like new." It may not even be designated a refurb. Of course in this case it really was "like new" and looked it.

But, a customer might have a defective STB and not acknowledge it. Or, not realize it. In any event the next customer gets it "as is."

Hmm.

Dana
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post #213 of 1949
7/10/10 at 10:06am
Quote:
Originally Posted by drbonbi View Post

There's something else happening that could affect performance. Not all STBs are being recovered directly by D*. When I upgraded from an H23 to an HR23, a tech from Multiband brought the new HR23 to me at the same time as he installed additional coax. He recovered the H23 which was in perfect "like new" condition. I got credit for the recovery from D*. He said it was a relatively new program by which the used STBs were recycled locally.

That unit will be reinstalled by Multiband without ever going through a refurb examination, based on my assurance that it was "like new." It may not even be designated a refurb. Of course in this case it really was "like new" and looked it.

But, a customer might have a defective STB and not acknowledge it. Or, not realize it. In any event the next customer gets it "as is."

Hmm.

Dana

Earlier this year there was a big push for installer not to "shotgun" troubleshooting by throwing hardware at a problem.
Part of this was a video pointing to all the receivers that had come back and were looked at locally, only to find there was no problem [aka no defect found]. I looked at the test setup and the trash the instructor was spewing and couldn't believe it. I saw nothing that would have done a full system wring out, nor any signs of anything that would that would show anything intermittent.
In the same video was an emphasis on checking the house wiring with a LED tester. What wasn't pointed out was most of the receivers now don't use the 3-prong plugs.
Anybody that has been involved in actually "fixing" electronics could see the complete BS this was and it only pointed to how bad "refurbs" would continue to be.
Those that were really "no defect", will get returned faster into the pool, while those that did have a defect, will get returned faster too without being fixed.

I can only repeat that every end customer will be the only one that will know if it is working correctly or not and they should look seriously at their receivers early to make sure they are.
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post #214 of 1949
7/10/10 at 10:20am
I don't think the refurb process will be worth a damn until it has a discrepancy tag for receivers returned. This would at least suggest what they should look at.

I've still got a bad taste from my go rounds with a H20 years ago.
One came and wouldn't even boot. Say What?
The one I ended up with seems to work fine, but a year later I tried the component outputs and found they were hosed. I'd been using HDMI and there was a defective sync on component. "Gee I wonder why this was returned in the first place".
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post #215 of 1949
7/10/10 at 2:19pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by veryoldschool View Post

The one I ended up with seems to work fine, but a year later I tried the component outputs and found they were hosed. I'd been using HDMI and there was a defective sync on component. "Gee I wonder why this was returned in the first place".

And the moral is that there is little point to trying to track specific defects or to fix them, because whatever the first customer found defective may perfectly well be a capability the next customer doesn't exercise or, if he does, won't notice the problem, or, even if he does notice it, won't complain about it.
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post #216 of 1949
7/10/10 at 3:12pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by GregLee View Post

And the moral is that there is little point to trying to track specific defects or to fix them, because whatever the first customer found defective may perfectly well be a capability the next customer doesn't exercise or, if he does, won't notice the problem, or, even if he does notice it, won't complain about it.

Not sure I quite agree. This was an owned H20 and by the time I found out its defect, I was out of warranty, which kind of pissed me off.

Anybody that has worked with customer returns tends to find a discrepancy tag helpful, since it give you a place to start to see if it's valid/can be duplicated.
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post #217 of 1949
7/10/10 at 7:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by veryoldschool View Post

Not sure I quite agree. This was an owned H20 and by the time I found out its defect, I was out of warranty, which kind of pissed me off.

And THAT is one reason I don't mind having a leased unit. No service protection plan needed now. I had a replacement box sent to me that arrived two days after my call and was up and running in 30 minutes. I feel for your loss, but there are advantages to using leased boxes now.
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post #218 of 1949
7/11/10 at 4:40am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Deezul View Post

And THAT is one reason I don't mind having a leased unit. No service protection plan needed now. I had a replacement box sent to me that arrived two days after my call and was up and running in 30 minutes. I feel for your loss, but there are advantages to using leased boxes now.

While I agree with you about the advantage of leased vs. owned STBs, I don't come to quite the same conclusion about the protection plan since it covers the dish, its alignment and cabling as well. When I got my HR 23 delivered, the tech ran an added coax line to it. He also noticed that the existing coax didn't have the latest and greatest compression fittings so he changed them all out. Some were rusty as they are exposed to the elements.

I like the idea that if the day comes when something isn't working right, I can just pick up the phone and say "Come and fix it" without worrying about the service meter running. So far it hasn't happened and Murphy's Law being what it is, maybe it won't. But the cost is worth it to me.

That's why I buy insurance. Others prefer to be self-insured. So be it.

Dana
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post #219 of 1949
7/11/10 at 8:18am
Well after a 5 hour install the tech could not activate the receiver they gave her. I told him it was probably the receiver, and he assured me that all their refurbs are tested. I got fed up and finally left. They decided later that it was indeed the receiver. They had a tech supervisor come down to finish her install with a brand new HR-24. After that everything went smoothly.
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post #220 of 1949
7/11/10 at 8:57am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Stryker412 View Post

Well after a 5 hour install the tech could not activate the receiver they gave her. I told him it was probably the receiver, and he assured me that all their refurbs are tested. I got fed up and finally left. They decided later that it was indeed the receiver. They had a tech supervisor come down to finish her install with a brand new HR-24. After that everything went smoothly.

Good. Interesting to know that HR24s are now "in the field."

Dana
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post #221 of 1949
7/11/10 at 9:07am
Quote:
Originally Posted by drbonbi View Post

Interesting to know that HR24s are now "in the field."

Dana

We've been seeing them since April, "but" stock has been limited and warehouses seemed to be running very low [or out] right now with a 2 month lead time expected.
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post #222 of 1949
7/11/10 at 3:05pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nickff View Post

How do you know that the HR24 is causing this? Did you have another source connected to the same input that resulted in better PQ? We need more info please.

I had my blu-ray on the same input before I got directv. It was fine, no gray washed out look. I know blu-ray is 1080p so I wasn't expecting same pq. I also wasn't expecting gray washed out pq. The room is dim so it's not a lighting issue.
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post #223 of 1949
7/11/10 at 3:27pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by CedYou View Post

I had my blu-ray on the same input before I got directv. It was fine, no gray washed out look. I know blu-ray is 1080p so I wasn't expecting same pq. I also wasn't expecting gray washed out pq. The room is dim so it's not a lighting issue.

Since each output devices can have different performance the best thing I could recommend is that you record the HDNet test pattern, ch 306 on 7/17 at 5:30AM CDT is the next showing. On thing you can do is use the color bar pattern that has a grey scale setup on the botton left corner and see if you can adjust your settings for better PQ.

And don't forget that BluRay video usually has data rates greater then 20Mbps while satellite HD channels are closer to 10Mbps -> 12Mbps.
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post #224 of 1949
7/11/10 at 3:47pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by CedYou View Post

I had my blu-ray on the same input before I got directv. It was fine, no gray washed out look. I know blu-ray is 1080p so I wasn't expecting same pq. I also wasn't expecting gray washed out pq. The room is dim so it's not a lighting issue.

FWIW, my HR23 is set to deliver 1080p to my 2006 47" LCD TV and the PQ is terrific. No noticeable difference in PQ between D* HD and Blu-ray HD. Both use the same HDMI display input. The sources are switched by my Denon AVR which passes video unconverted so I'm seeing what the source provides.

Dana
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post #225 of 1949
7/11/10 at 5:49pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by rad View Post

Since each output devices can have different performance the best thing I could recommend is that you record the HDNet test pattern, ch 306 on 7/17 at 5:30AM CDT is the next showing. On thing you can do is use the color bar pattern that has a grey scale setup on the botton left corner and see if you can adjust your settings for better PQ.

And don't forget that BluRay video usually has data rates greater then 20Mbps while satellite HD channels are closer to 10Mbps -> 12Mbps.

I doubt sat hd comes close to those data rates.
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post #226 of 1949
7/11/10 at 6:02pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by EJ View Post

I doubt sat hd comes close to those data rates.

Using the network monitor on a PC running DirecTV2PC, which just passes the raw data from the STB to the PC shows some channels at that using that much network.
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post #227 of 1949
7/11/10 at 6:40pm
Fixed my problem. I had to change the brightness on the Pioneer from 0 to -30. Thanks for the info ya'll. It's amazing how much info you learn when it's your problem to solve .
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post #228 of 1949
7/12/10 at 3:59pm
DirecTV finds games that are blacked out

over the weekend I was trying to find a Mets baseball game on Comcast and the channel was blank: nothing

Tuned into the same channel on DirecTV and it was also blank....except a pop up box appeared: the box explained the game was blacked out but would search for the game on another channel

The DVR found the game [in HD] on another channel and tuned to it

Nice touch D*
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post #229 of 1949
7/20/10 at 1:09pm
I've been having a problem with my setup for quite some time (a couple of months) and finally called DirecTV today, but am waiting for a tech to come out Thursday, so I thought I'd post here to see if anyone has experienced or heard of this happening.

My setup is an HR21-200, with an HDMI cable out to my Onkyo receiver (don't have the model number here at work with me) and an HDMI out to my Pioneer PDP-5080HD.

The problem I'm having is that the audio cuts out intermittently on various shows and channels. When the audio cuts out, the Onkyo receiver will click, the HDMI indicator light goes out, the Dolby light goes out and then it all comes back. I had thought that it was a situation where the source audio signal was changing, but after watching The Bank Job last weekend and experiencing these audio cut outs during the movie, I realized that wasn't the problem.

It does it on live TV as well as DVR recorded shows. I'm not totally certain, but I believe it only does it when using the HDMI for audio. I'll try switching to using an SPDIF cable for audio tonight to test it. I am certain that it only does this when using the HR21-200 - I get no audio problems with Blu-Ray, DVD or Playstation 3.

Any suggestions?
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post #230 of 1949
7/20/10 at 1:16pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by ERLoft View Post

I've been having a problem with my setup for quite some time (a couple of months) and finally called DirecTV today, but am waiting for a tech to come out Thursday, so I thought I'd post here to see if anyone has experienced or heard of this happening.

My setup is an HR21-200, with an HDMI cable out to my Onkyo receiver (don't have the model number here at work with me) and an HDMI out to my Pioneer PDP-5080HD.

The problem I'm having is that the audio cuts out intermittently on various shows and channels. When the audio cuts out, the Onkyo receiver will click, the HDMI indicator light goes out, the Dolby light goes out and then it all comes back. I had thought that it was a situation where the source audio signal was changing, but after watching The Bank Job last weekend and experiencing these audio cut outs during the movie, I realized that wasn't the problem.

It does it on live TV as well as DVR recorded shows. I'm not totally certain, but I believe it only does it when using the HDMI for audio. I'll try switching to using an SPDIF cable for audio tonight to test it. I am certain that it only does this when using the HR21-200 - I get no audio problems with Blu-Ray, DVD or Playstation 3.

Any suggestions?

What you're seeing is a glitch in the Dolby signal that seems to be coming from the MPEG-4 transcoder on the uplink end. It isn't HDMI, as you'll get it with SPDIF too.
Onkyo receivers seem to react worse than some others to this, but the source of the problem isn't them, but DirecTV's feed.
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post #231 of 1949
7/20/10 at 1:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by ERLoft View Post

The problem I'm having is that the audio cuts out intermittently on various shows and channels.
Any suggestions?


It's not your setup but DirecTV, see http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=167900.

Some audio receivers can recover from the problem with the audio stream quicker then Onkyo's so they don't hear it but the root problem is with the Dobly Digital audio stream coming from DirecTV.
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post #232 of 1949
7/20/10 at 3:10pm
And it look like it's something that's never going to be fixed, this has been going on for nearly 2 years that I can recall.
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post #233 of 1949
7/20/10 at 6:38pm
We don't have the problem here. I'm using a HR23 connected via HDMI to a Denon 789 receiver that distributes audio to a 7.1 speaker setup and passes through video to the display as received from the HR23 which is set to 1080p.

There is also a H20 connected to a Panny HTB and a H23 in the house. No problems with audio dropout on any of them.

Dana
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post #234 of 1949
7/20/10 at 6:46pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by drbonbi View Post

We don't have the problem here. I'm using a HR23 connected via HDMI to a Denon 789 receiver that distributes audio to a 7.1 speaker setup and passes through video to the display as received from the HR23 which is set to 1080p.

There is also a H20 connected to a Panny HTB and a H23 in the house. No problems with audio dropout on any of them.

Dana

This all depends on which channels you're watching.
While I don't "have them bad", today I was watching TNT [L&O re-run] and nobody could have missed them.
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post #235 of 1949
7/20/10 at 7:05pm
I've noticed it on TNT and USA just in the last week, it manifests as just a very quick blip of missing audio, not getting the "motorboating" like in the past.
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post #236 of 1949
7/21/10 at 5:39am
Quote:
Originally Posted by keenan View Post

I've noticed it on TNT and USA just in the last week, it manifests as just a very quick blip of missing audio, not getting the "motorboating" like in the past.

That has been replaced with this so it is a small improvement.
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post #237 of 1949
7/21/10 at 6:49am
Quote:
Originally Posted by veryoldschool View Post

Onkyo receivers seem to react worse than some others to this, but the source of the problem isn't them, but DirecTV's feed.

I can attest to that. I've been having the same problem for quite a while now with an HR21 feeding an Onkyo TX-SR606 via HDMI (but optical made no difference). I've never heard it, however, from my HR22 connected to a Pioneer VSX-D711 (via optical).
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post #238 of 1949
7/21/10 at 6:54am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Vin View Post

I can attest to that. I've been having the same problem for quite a while now with an HR21 feeding an Onkyo TX-SR606 via HDMI (but optical made no difference). I've never heard it, however, from my HR22 connected to a Pioneer VSX-D711 (via optical).

I bet you could swap your DirecTV receivers and still get the same thing.
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post #239 of 1949
7/21/10 at 7:31am
Quote:
Originally Posted by veryoldschool View Post

I bet you could swap your DirecTV receivers and still get the same thing.

I bet I can't. The HR22 is my wife's....if I don't want to lose a hand (or any other body parts ) they'll be no swapping taking place.
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post #240 of 1949
7/21/10 at 7:33am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Vin View Post

I bet I can't. The HR22 is my wife's....if I don't want to lose a hand (or any other body parts ) they'll be no swapping taking place.

OK, so you "could do it", but it wouldn't be wise to.
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