Needed: T.V. Satellite Tech

[grannyd]

Satellite is bringing in the wrong channels on the wrong stations. For example;
Channel 3 is our local ABC. Ours is showing the NFL station and all other local lower numbered channels don't come in at all. All the other stations seem to be fine. Everything has been reset, including the TIVO, everything has been cleaned, reconnected and tightened. I've been waiting on a call from DTV since they "escalated my problem to the Engineering Department" (don't I feel special) So, 3 hours later I thought I'd see if any of ya'll have any ideas.

 

[RollingWanderer]

Re: Needed: T.V. Satellite Tech

Are you able to find any local stations? Are they your normal local stations? I had a very similar problem once before right after a move. Someone had entered an incorrect zip code into our account and apparently the channel order and local stations were keyed to it. Once I told support we were getting local channels from a city several states away, they tracked the problem down in short order.

-RW

 

[grannyd]

Re: Needed: T.V. Satellite Tech

RW,
Yeah zip is correct. I noticed today that the correct channels were trying to come through like your picture breaks up during bad weather, but soon went blank again. Good tip though. Before I re programmed everything the zip was all zeros. Seven hours later, still waiting on a call from the "Engineer". lol

 

[joed]

Re: Needed: T.V. Satellite Tech

The zip in your receiver is not the problem . It is controller by the zip in your file back at DTV headquarters.

The breakup tells me you have a problem with the aim on your dish. Or there is something (tree, tall building) blocking the signal. Another possibility is a bad LNB on the dish.

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: Needed: T.V. Satellite Tech

Pixelating is caused by poor signal strength. Dish moved, poor coax connection somewhere, even a branch after the winter waving in the breeze and intermittently blocking some signal with it's new leaves. I have even seen a bird sitting on the arm of the dish blocking signal reflection before now. Bad LNB is a possibility as well.

 

[DECK SWABBER 58]

Re: Needed: T.V. Satellite Tech

Lowly deck swabber of the house signing in here.

History:
Yesterday while grannyd was at work I ran a new coax cable
from the dish to the house replacing a "temporary" one because
the original one got hit by lightning a few years ago.
NO... it's not buried, that project is next. (long story, we built
a new house next to the old one, the cable is running over
the roof.)

Well, we are moving the L'rm around and I decided it's time to get the
cable into the basement so the wall outlet's work again. All I did was
run a new cable into the basement. All of the dtv channel's work
EXCEPT our 6 local channels.

I had a helluva time getting the receiver to work after doing this.
Finally everything seemed ok. Today grannyd noticed we had no
local channel's.:redface:

I am not the cause of the problem.
If I was we would have NO tv. We just don't have some tv.

Strangely enough this same thing happened once before, but neither
of us can remember.:
We DO remember that it was on dtv's end though.

 

[joed]

Re: Needed: T.V. Satellite Tech

Still could be the dish alignment. DTV used to use two different satellites. One of them was mainly locals. If your dish was not aligned properly you could still get most channels from theone sat but the locals would be out fromthe other sat.
Not I think they have three sats.
What city are you trying to receive locals from?

 

[DECK SWABBER 58]

Re: Needed: T.V. Satellite Tech

Update from Mr. grannyd:

I can't believe it's a hardware problem on our end. Everything was fine
until I disconnected the cable for about an hour.

The strange thing is that after repeated calls to dtv the local channels
would come back. Then a few hours later their gone again. They are totally
non exsistent. Where they are supposed to be are duplicate's of channels
we already have.

We are near Carbondale, IL, ABC come's from nearby, CBS from Cape Girardeau, Mo.,
NBC from Paducah, Ky.

After almost 48 hrs, the "engineering dept." that was going to call back
in no more then 3 hrs. still has not called.
Last night they got a nasty email from me saying the next contact from
us would be to cancel our service. Their response was that "someone"
would contact us within 48 hrs.

Anyone know if Dish Network has better service?

 

[joed]

Re: Needed: T.V. Satellite Tech

Those locals are found on the Directv7 satellite located at 119.0 w. Go into your setup menu and check the signal strength on the different transponders on that satellite.

The info I have been able to find says WPSD should be on transponder 23, KFVS should be on transponder 13. If you don't have signal on those transponders then you won't receive the channels.

I found the transponder info in some attachments here

http://www.satelliteguys.us/directv...49578-directv-conus-lil-transponder-maps.html

 

[DECK SWABBER 58]

Re: Needed: T.V. Satellite Tech

THANKS a bunch joed.

Really nice of you to go to all that trouble. I will check it out tonight
and post what I find.

 

[DECK SWABBER 58]

Re: Needed: T.V. Satellite Tech

Update from Mr. grannyd.

We checked the sat. transponder signals. They seem ok.

We can bring the local channels back by unhooking the
coax cable and then rehooking a few minutes later. They
will stay on quite awhile but eventually we lose them.
We compared transponder signals with and without and
they are the same.

I'm not calling directv again. I fixed the problem by hooking
up rabbit ears. We now have more locals then before.

 

[ifallsguy]

Re: Needed: T.V. Satellite Tech

If you are pulling in locals with rabbit ears, tell DTV to stop your locals.

As for Dish, they have always been responsive for issues. That includes sending a tech the Christmas eve several years ago to replace a DVR that had the hard drive die. I've never had a problem when I call, except when I get a "tech" who won't go off the script. By the time I've called them, I've run through the normal procedures (unplug the receiver for 30-60 Seconds, used the internal program to test the switches, etc) since I've got over 20 years in the industry. Normally I ask to be kicked up and have a pleasant conversation with a higher level tech and get things figured out pretty quickly.

Shortly after moving into our present house, we had an intermittent issue with lots of pixlation on HD. Spoke to a level 2 tech who verified I had run through the checklist and then started down a new trouble tree. When that didn't work he asked the following questions:

Where is the dish located? On the garage, across the yard

Is the cable aerial or buried? Buried

Could I check the connection at the ground terminal for the dish? Checked out ok

What was the weather like and had we seen temps drop? Yes, went from 38 to -20 overnight

Could I check the cable where it was next to the building? Wife said picture went in and out when I moved the cable next to the house.

In about 5 minutes, the tech had determined from his desk in Colorado the probable cause was a frayed or broken cable where it contacted the building as it came out of the ground. He had a tech there the next day to run a new cable (above ground) to verify. That was the issue and enough cable was left to allow me to rebury in the spring, located further from the building. The field tech also suggested using PCV tubing near the building, with a 90 degree joint to keep the cable clear of the building and prevent the problem.

DTV, when the fed office I worked in had an issue, told us to send them the receiver so they could check it out. They returned it over a month later, saying no problem. While the receiver was gone, a Dish tech, who was having lunch across the street noticed the bird nest on the arm of the dish and offered to remove it. DTV refused to send a tech out (this was under a government contract). The Dish tech and I cleaned it up on a weekend.

I'd never use or recommend DTV. My experience has been poor and that's all I've heard in my area. Dish is the big player here.