Satellite TV Problem
 

Thought there might be someone here that might be able to give me some help.

I have a Sony satellite Direct TV system. About 7 years old.

I'm having a reception problem on a few channels, especially the History channel. It is pretty consistant but no real pattern.

My signal is real strong on all the transponders.
Signal is 90- 96.
The mounting of the dish is real solid and no trees in the way.

I have never had rain fade and always have had excellent reception.
This problem has become evident in the last couple months.

Another problem might be related. When I tune to a station, sometimes it takes a few seconds before the picture appears.
I don't remember this before and I think it used to appear instantly.

Do you think it is the receiver or the LNB and how do I diagnose which one may be the problem?

have same system , same age and mine works fine , have a new never used lnb, dual head, free if you want to try it.

or just call direct tv like i did and whine to get the new package with free dish and throw old stuff away!!!!!

When was the last time they sent you a new card? My guess is your card is going south. If you call direct Tv they will send you a new card. Does your reciever get hot? When you pull your card out & it looks like it has been run over? If so then your receiver is getting to hot. Need to make sure it gets plenty of air.

Other thing could be your LNB ( part on dish) is going bad. I had a coach that had perfect signal strength but could not get a picture. Both Directv & Sat dish company were blaming each other for the problem. After about 2 hrs of trouble shooting I changed out the LNB & perfect picture.

1. Make sure your LNB is clean and free from dirt and moisture.
2. Check all coaxial cables to make sure terminals are tight at connections.
3. Un-plug the receiver unit for 2 minutes or longer and then plug it back in.

Saber,
I think I will call Direct Tv and see what they say.
May take you up on trying the LNB.

Turbo,
They sent me a new card about 6 months ago.
I will check the condition of the card.
Sets by itself with nothing on it so I don't think it is overheating, but I haven't felt if it is hot......I will check that.

Devil,
I think the LNB is clean and moisture free. I checked for moisture about a month ago and seemed ok.
I did check the cables and they are ok too.
I will try the un-plug idea and see if that works.

Thanks for the ideas................I will try them and let you know.

All you need to do is throw that system away and get cable!:D ;)

MPally why would we do that..... So that we can not only have crappy picture quality but also sub standard survice:p :p :p

I would check your LNB and see if that is ok. Radio Shack used to sell them. I am not sure if they do any more or not.

Let us know what it is.

Jon

If you know someone else with Directv you could take your receiver over to their house & try it. If it works then you know problem is either LNB or wiring. In the last year we have replaced more LNB's then we have since we started doing Directv.

Call Direct TV and they will re-hit your card. If you have a HU card with the football player on it, DO Not send it back to Direct TV !!! Send it to me !!!:D :D :D These cards have hidden talents if you know what I mean.....Wardey

I would check your connections for corrosion or mositure. I have worked on a few of these and that could be the problem. The receiver sends voltage (13 and 18vdc) to the LNB depending on if it is an odd or even channel.

Good luck with it.

Wardly good luck with trying and to get the HU card to last for very long. I had my H card working on EMU for over a year. I never got an HU card to work for more than a day.

Clone it !

IT'S NOT THE CARD........................I would defintely check the connections. They can loose the tight connection over time and the slightest bit of moisture in the connection can cause corrision and loose the signal transfer. When units start loosing some reception .it is also the aiming of the dish. It can need re-aligned
Why clone.........just write your own program..:)


russ7r
R U talking about emulation with an HU? not working for more than a day?

Check your connections! I had similar issues, and turned out it was a bad cable.

Thanks for all the ideas. That will be my New Years day project, checking all these things out. Well, maybe it will be my New Years day afternoon project. Will see how I feel after tonight :D

I will let you know what I find.

Happy New Year !

Opinion here only but if it were cables or LNB I would think all the channels would be bad. I’d lean towards blaming the box … take it to someone’s house and try it there.

ok Russ.......no coment.:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: Wardey

I've had the same problem.
Turned out to be the connection at the dish. Only affected some channels, just like what you're experiencing.

D_Casten- That is what I use to think but I have learned otherwise over the years. But never say never.

Ok, here is another one......
Dual LNB's dual recievers
1 in the house, 1 in the shop (of course!)
The one in the house "freezes" in digital blocks on some weekends and others are fine. Signal strength is over 90. Again, clear weather, no trees- same dish.... signal strength is at the reciever end. It appears to me like Direct TV is doing a "download" to block hackers, but they deny that (I used to see that happen on EMU system before). What's the deal??
:confused:

UMMM... GUYS DON'T BE DISCUSSING PROGRAMMING ON HERE... ;)

I used to do contract work for NDS on these little things even the new ones have hidden tallents.. ;)

I would check the LNB and maybe the reciever or the cable, sounds like you may have a voltage issue in the LNB.

Blown- first try changeing the wiring up at the LNB. If problem stays on same receiver than not the LNB, if it move to other receiver that bad LNB. Next swap receivers to see what is happening. & as last resort have DirecTV rehit the card.

Or you could call for the Dish Network....free installation

I guess I will try swapping the two recievers first. The cable goes underground in conduit & would be a problem to change ( old "big dish multi-cable"- but with a signal strength of over 90 that should not be the problem. This wife is complaining so I have to fix this....... uh oh, a forgotten detail. It only does this during the afternoon on Saturday's. Wierd huh? That was Directs "prime time" to do down load for hackers.

Alot of the time it is the connection at the LNB. It gets moisture and corrosion starts. Also it can be your cable either coming the the IRD or between the IRD and the receiver. You can pick up a new LNB at Walmart for alittle to nothing. Try rebooting your IRD and see if this might fix the problem (unpluug the IRD for 5 min. or so, then plug it back in). Hope this helps, Wardey

Also, make sure you use a good quality RG6 Cable. Wardey

Wardey, I have done the IRD reset several times. but it doesn't help. I have a spare reciever but of course they now fix the cards where they will only work in one reciever not another. They try to keep you from having sat at two locations that way.....heh, heh!

Blown - If the cable is in conduit buried underground, this is where I would check first. The conduit will get condinsation and after a peroid of time will be full of water. Any nicks or cracks in the cable could cause problems. Try and run a temp cable above the ground betqween your dish and your IRD and see if this helps.Wardey

OK ! I 'll do it. BUT-
I'm outa here!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone.

Blown- If you call Directv you can get your old card "MARRIED" to the other receiver. You will need to give them the model number & serial number of other receiver & they will have you up & working

Turbo- I know Direct will do that, but what I meant was that you cannot just swap a card in recievers quickly to determine if the card is bad or the reciever was bad. Since the card will also be changed by download then neither item will remain static, therefore one or both could have been at fault....you'll never know for sure. :(