Topic 'Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.' in forum 'Home Improvement' - dslreports.com

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Sun, 30 Dec 2012 20:33:46 EDT

SwedishRider posted : It's a good thought, but there aren't too many solar setups in these parts.. ;) Plus it's one box primarily, and it's a really hot signal off the pole. If it was all three, I'd agree, but I suspect that incoming signal is just too hot on that one STB and it's causing the box to reboot periodically.

I'll pad it, and if it keeps happening, then I'll look into power issues. Thanks for putting on your thinking cap! :)

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Sun, 30 Dec 2012 20:30:13 EDT

beachintech posted : If it's working, I'd leave it alone on that aspect. The boxes are usually wrong on that figure.
--
Ex-Comcast Tech at the Beach. I speak for myself, not my former employer.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Sun, 30 Dec 2012 20:28:36 EDT

Jack_in_VA posted :

said by PeeWee:

Just a thought has anyone thought about the electrical power fluctuations? We live in a neighborhood with a lot of solar power setups and that creates a power cycling of some sort that imitates brown outs around us. That could be an issue not considered.

You might be on to something.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Sun, 30 Dec 2012 20:11:43 EDT

PeeWee posted : Just a thought has anyone thought about the electrical power fluctuations? We live in a neighborhood with a lot of solar power setups and that creates a power cycling of some sort that imitates brown outs around us. That could be an issue not considered.
--
Iphone. Helping computer illiteracy become popular since 2007

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Sun, 30 Dec 2012 16:59:52 EDT

SwedishRider posted :

said by beachintech:

+15 is way too high on digital channels. RDC should be no higher than 55 ish, FDC you want under 10 I would say.

That DVR I would put a 10db pad on it.

I agree, a 10dB pad sounds about right. What is the minimum RDC dB level I should shoot for? I'm under 30 on all boxes, but amazingly, I'm not really having problems with the headend hearing me. I've got plenty of overhead to pad to bring up the returns to a higher level.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Sun, 30 Dec 2012 15:48:41 EDT

beachintech posted : +15 is way too high on digital channels. RDC should be no higher than 55 ish, FDC you want under 10 I would say.

That DVR I would put a 10db pad on it.
--
Ex-Comcast Tech at the Beach. I speak for myself, not my former employer.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Sat, 29 Dec 2012 19:56:18 EDT

SwedishRider posted : I'm knocking on wood as I write this, but I think things have been ironed out. Only one issue left:

What are ideal signal levels for a digital STB? (Tuners, FDC and RDC)

My signal off the ground block is really hot, and the shortest run from my amp to the DVR on that run has the tuners at about +15dBmV on most frequencies (and yes, I know to take a STB's signal readings with a grain of salt, but that is pretty high). That's scraping the upper level of acceptable strength, so I'm pretty sure I'm going to pad it. That box has a tendency to reboot (regardless what DVR is there... it's a signal strength issue).

Ideally though, what signal strengths should I be looking for for the tuners, FDC and RDC? Should I be most concerned with getting the tuners as close to zero as possible? Or should I be looking at FDC and/or RDC primarily?

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Fri, 28 Dec 2012 13:56:18 EDT

beachintech posted : Maybe in Charters implementation, not the norm among all providers.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Fri, 28 Dec 2012 06:39:02 EDT

SwedishRider posted :

said by Pacrat:

Okay... I gotta ask? Why the hell would you reboot something that was working, in your words, "flawlessly"?? Wottsamatta... you can't stand prosperity??? :uhh:

I was moving around some furniture, as I was finally getting around to getting some projects done. I needed to unplug a box and move it and a TV, and when I plugged it back in... not all my channels returned. I then tested the other boxes to see if it was a common problem... and it was.

I called the 888 number, and they wanted to roll a truck to switch out the boxes (which I knew was not needed) after sending a few hits did not reset the boxes. CSR really didn't know what to do about it. I got in touch with my contact at Charter local, and they needed about a day to get things squared away... and now everything is back to normal... and I'm hoping it stays normal! All I really want is the system to work as expected. Internet and phone are great, as are most channels... it's SDV that's been the glitchy problem.

Looking back over this thread, I think nunya hit it on the money, SDV feels very "beta". I think in time it'll be a good alternative to the traditional cable model, but it seems to be a technology that is still a work in progress. In any event, Charter local did fix it promptly again.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:56:22 EDT

dosdoxies posted :

said by SwedishRider:

Spoke too soon... :(
Looks like one problem was fixed and another created.. :(

By now I would have sent all their stuff back and bought an antenna. That's a lotta grief! :)
--
The more people I meet, the better I like my dogs.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:29:48 EDT

beachintech posted : Most likely just a coding issue, and should be able to fixed fairly easily over the phone. Don't let them tell you the boxes need to be replaced. With all the CSR's in and out of your account who knows what they did.
--
Ex-Comcast Tech at the Beach. I speak for myself, not my former employer.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Thu, 27 Dec 2012 07:25:09 EDT

SparkChaser posted :

said by Pacrat:

Okay... I gotta ask? Why the hell would you reboot something that was working, in your words, "flawlessly"?? Wottsamatta... you can't stand prosperity??? :uhh:

[att=1]

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Thu, 27 Dec 2012 02:50:00 EDT

nunya posted : It's not like it wouldn't have happened eventually anyway. Better now than later.
--
If someone refers to herself / himself as a "guru", they probably aren't.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Thu, 27 Dec 2012 02:32:18 EDT

Pacrat posted : Okay... I gotta ask? Why the hell would you reboot something that was working, in your words, "flawlessly"?? Wottsamatta... you can't stand prosperity??? :uhh:
--
Keep your eye on the ball, your shoulder to the wheel, your nose to the grindstone, and your ear to the ground. Now, try to work in that position!!!

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Wed, 26 Dec 2012 20:23:29 EDT

Jack_in_VA posted : I learned long ago... Never ever reboot/update a computer or reboot a cable box, direct tv receiver or other electronic device that does not absolutely need it to function. :D

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Wed, 26 Dec 2012 20:15:56 EDT

SwedishRider posted : Spoke too soon... :(

After days of flawless use, I rebooted a box today, and now after it booted, it won't play all my subscribed channels. It gives me the "Temporarily Off Air" screen. My other 2 boxes were playing all channels fine while that rebooted box was telling me that those channels were off air. To test if it was a bad box or the cable system, I rebooted both of the boxes that were working.. and now they also display the same off air message. All three boxes now play local channels, VOD, Music Choice... but won't play Sprout, HBO, Showtime, etc.. it's almost as if rebooting made them lose the authorization to play those channels..

Looks like one problem was fixed and another created.. :(

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Fri, 21 Dec 2012 14:20:33 EDT

guppy_fish posted : Good to hear you issue was resolved, now when BBR charter cable forum members stumble into the home improvement forum it may help them as well ;)

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Thu, 20 Dec 2012 01:26:57 EDT

SwedishRider posted : Charter local has been making an honest effort the whole time. They have rolled truck after truck trying to diagnose and fix this, but the intermittent nature of the issue made it really tough to pinpoint. I don't think any one specific data point was the "tell", but a collection of all the facts gathered over time that drifted all of us in a general direction that ended up in the headend. I do think when we all realized how many homes this affected, the focus shifted to a much broader problem search. And at the end of the day, they found the problem(s) and corrected them, and that's what really matters.

In doing so, Charter has earned my continued business, and it's well deserved. They didn't ignore my trouble calls, and yes, I provided far more help and guidance than the average customer (let's be honest... most people would have either bailed to put up a satellite dish, or just lived with it, accepting the glitch as is), but they did take my data and info and used it inevitably to fix this entire service group. I know of at least one neighbor who was ready to bail and get a dish, but now has also changed their opinion of Charter and will stay with them. They have earned a great support rep in this community, regardless of what the rest of the company is doing.

When a company does something dumb, they deserve scorn, and when a company does something well, they deserve praise. For this, they deserve praise. In this case, Charter local deserves heaps of praise.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Wed, 19 Dec 2012 23:43:23 EDT

John Galt posted :

said by aroberti:

It really sounds to me like they've been making an honest effort the whole time. Likely figuring out the problem was more wide-spread than initially thought pointed them in the right direction to find the root cause.

Agreed. The Charter techs are pretty good here also.

Troubleshooting intermittent problems is a real PITA, and when you can get more 'pointers' (in this case affected customers) it makes it easier to isolate the problem and correct it.
--
Don't ask questions -- just do as you're told.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Wed, 19 Dec 2012 23:24:20 EDT

aroberti posted :

said by jrs8084:

Did a Charter (PR) employee stumble across this post?

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Wed, 19 Dec 2012 20:53:41 EDT

jrs8084 posted : Did a Charter (PR) employee stumble across this post?

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Wed, 19 Dec 2012 20:01:42 EDT

John Galt posted : Call them back to find out what the deal was...I wanna know WHY. ;)

No shame on their part, to be sure. They did the honorable thing and followed through to resolution.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Wed, 19 Dec 2012 19:54:45 EDT

SwedishRider posted : Well, after 3 years of freezing issues, and 3+ weeks of heavy diagnostics by me and the local Charter team... it appears the culprit(s) have finally been identified and fixed. :D

I don't know the specifics... but there were 2 issues in the headend with their SDV system that needed attention, and once they were addressed, the freezing stopped. No freezes all day today... and no freezes this evening. I called a neighbor, and they have been freeze-free as well. In-house work and line work was simply chasing a ghost, but we obviously didn't know that at the time.

Given how this turned out, I'm going to keep my business with Charter. I'm satisfied as to how this turned out. I will admit, I was getting skeptical toward the end that this would be resolved, but they pulled through and finally knocked this nagging problem out. With that only problem now fixed, all three of my services run great.

And truthfully, I do feel vindicated. :D

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Wed, 19 Dec 2012 07:44:08 EDT

cypherstream posted : If you go DirecTV, check my profile, I have a link to the refer-a-friend program. You can get $10 off your monthly bill for signing up through my link.. or PM me for details.

You still want Internet so also see how much Charter's internet is by itself. Some cable providers have different packages and pricing for Internet and / or Phone if you don't also carry at least a basic level of their TV service.

There is the new Genie DVR that records 5 things at once and has picture in picture. You can hide the channels out of the guide you don't subscribe to, I know that's not a common thing with Cable.

It's worth considering, and if you want Video on Demand you need to opt for the CCK (Cinema Connection Kit) which is a small device with Ethernet on one side and coax on the other. It basically bridges your internet from your router onto the coax network so that the receivers can get out to the world and run TV Apps and VOD. The current software downloads VOD to the DVR's hard drive and then you play it from there. In the near future they are adding a "Watch Now" option that streams the VOD without having to "download" it and then go out to the DVR Playlist. With Multi-Room DVR you can access the DVR playlist anywhere.

Bottom line... compare channel lineups and pricing before making your decision. The sat guys live off of 2 year contracts so as much as an interest I have in you signing up with DirecTV so we both get $10 off (through refer-a-friend), I want you to make the best, most educated decision. Is HD a priority? Compare the HD Channel lineup between Dish, DirecTV and Charter very closely. They can be very different.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 19:19:47 EDT

Jack_in_VA posted : Directv uses what they call SWM

Google this: Directv SWM to get an idea

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 19:09:46 EDT

Killa200 posted : Amp you have now more than likely would be incompatible. Signal wise you more than likely will not need it, and if you do the installer will have one.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 19:07:20 EDT

SwedishRider posted :

said by Jack_in_VA:

Jim you don't need 2 coax for each DVR anymore. I only have one from the dish to the input block and then one coax to each DVR. My second coax from the dish now is spare.

So then if that's the case, I could have one DIRECTV dish mounted, and then wire a single coax from dish to amp, and then from there out to each outlet, as I have my cable setup now. The only difference would be that instead of Charter's incoming line, I'd replace the incoming line with the satellite dish's coax.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 19:01:24 EDT

Jack_in_VA posted : Jim you don't need 2 coax for each DVR anymore. I only have one from the dish to the input block and then one coax to each DVR. My second coax from the dish now is spare.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 18:58:29 EDT

SwedishRider posted :

said by billaustin:

I prefer DirecTV. They provide a similar setup, and have been offering whole-home DVR service for quite a while. I started with three 2-tuner DVR's when it first became available. With the HD setup I have, all DVR's have internet access and can download PPV and on-demand content. The HD receivers can access any of the DVR's and watch any recorded content. With their SWM system, there is only one cable from the Dish, and it can be split like cable. Also, DirecTV now offers a 5-tuner DVR.

Bill, so if I were to go the DIRECTV route, I could have one coax from outdoors to indoors, then have it enter a splitter (or use an 8-port amp like I have), and then only one coax run is needed for each DVR?

The problem for me is that I didn't run 2 coax drops to each outlet location... so a DVR that requires 2 coax hookups would need either a splitter immediately before the DVR, or only one hookup, which defeats the purpose of having a DVR (Only one program could be recorded or watched at a time).

The beauty of the Hopper setup is that I could get full functionality from each Hopper and Joey without the need for 2 coax runs to any of the receivers or DVRs.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 18:23:01 EDT

billaustin posted : I prefer DirecTV. They provide a similar setup, and have been offering whole-home DVR service for quite a while. I started with three 2-tuner DVR's when it first became available. With the HD setup I have, all DVR's have internet access and can download PPV and on-demand content. The HD receivers can access any of the DVR's and watch any recorded content. With their SWM system, there is only one cable from the Dish, and it can be split like cable. Also, DirecTV now offers a 5-tuner DVR.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 17:28:31 EDT

SwedishRider posted :

said by nunya:

MoCA is the shiznit.

So I take it you approve of my choice? :D

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 17:24:38 EDT

nunya posted : MoCA is the shiznit.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 17:20:51 EDT

SwedishRider posted :

said by beachintech:

I wouldn't hold out a lot of hope, customers have been affected on that large of a scale for that long and they never did anything about it.

Yeah, I'm starting to wonder myself... not due to lack of effort, as they seem to be really trying to figure this one out, but nothing is popping as the culprit.

I did some research, and of the satellite options on the table, I think a Dish Dual-Hopper/Multi-Joey setup may be the way to go given how many TVs I would want to run. All the RG6 run to my outlets is swept to 3Ghz, so I should be good to go. Put the node in the utility room, mount the dish and run it back to the node, and hook up the Hoppers and Joeys. Dish says that down the road, the Hoppers would be able to communicate with one another, so I could view any program from any Hopper or Joey. It's kinda sweet actually.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Mon, 17 Dec 2012 22:47:02 EDT

beachintech posted : I wouldn't hold out a lot of hope, customers have been affected on that large of a scale for that long and they never did anything about it.
--
Ex-Comcast Tech at the Beach. I speak for myself, not my former employer.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Sun, 16 Dec 2012 12:42:08 EDT

SwedishRider posted :

said by beachintech:

You sure you know which way the signal is flowing :)

You def have a problem outside the house, a big one from the looks of that.

Yeah, looking at those negative numbers, you'd think it was an outflow of me broadcasting to everybody else in the node. :D

No question about it now. I walked around and polled everybody around me that uses Charter for CATV, and all but one are having this freezing issue (and it may just be that he's not using affected channels). The earliest I can trace it back is to 2008, when the first resident in the area subscribed to Charter. It's been going on since at least then! :o I alerted the higher-ups at the local Charter office over the weekend, and gave the contact info to all of those residents affected. Geographically, I traced it back beyond my amp... it's at least one amp back toward the node and may go all the way back for all we know at this point... :(

In all fairness, everyone, including me, has just let it go up until now, so this has been a lingering problem, but nobody was calling and complaining. Shame on us for that I suppose. Now that it's out in the open, and there is clear evidence of a real problem, I'm hopeful it can be diagnosed and corrected.

Up to this point, Charter local has really done their best and invested time and effort to try to fix this problem. I have no complaints with their tech team to date. With all the info I have provided, and the number of my affected neighbors who called in, I am optimistic of a resolution. We shall see I suppose.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Sat, 15 Dec 2012 22:36:08 EDT

beachintech posted : You sure you know which way the signal is flowing :)

You def have a problem outside the house, a big one from the looks of that.
--
Ex-Comcast Tech at the Beach. I speak for myself, not my former employer.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Fri, 14 Dec 2012 19:51:13 EDT

SwedishRider posted :

said by John Galt:

You should talk to more of your neighbors...more 'squeaky wheels' will get more action, in addition to giving the techs more data to work with.

Walked up and down the street today, looking to see who is serviced off the same amp as me. Of those that use CATV, one neighbor has seen the issue a bit, and two others have been plagued with freezing issues exactly like mine... and then it got too dark to continue... :)

Seems that nobody realized that anybody else was having that problem.... and it wasn't so bad that anybody has been regularly calling. Now it's pretty clear... it's not just me, it's at least this neighborhood.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Fri, 14 Dec 2012 10:38:01 EDT

SwedishRider posted : Signal tanking was not a fluke... here's a better pic from a freeze this morning. Still don't know what is causing it. :(

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Fri, 14 Dec 2012 00:51:51 EDT

BillRoland posted : I can't add anything, but SwedishRider , I commend you, you have the patience of Job.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Fri, 14 Dec 2012 00:08:19 EDT

cypherstream posted : You could also try posting the information here:
»www.line-man.com/forums/index.ph···-forums/

There's a bunch of cable techs there that may have some input.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 20:03:18 EDT

SwedishRider posted :

said by beachintech:

Not showing any errors on that capture, but I would suspect they have an amp out of balance between you and the node

Two techs came back today, one a high level supervisor and the other a tech who was really sharp. They went over the cable setup in my house with a fine tooth comb. They replaced a coax length from the ground block to the inside, the ground block itself, and swept the house for leakage. They inspected my coax for acceptability and damage. A few outlets did have some leakage, though minor. But they were very thorough and everything looked to be in excellent working order when they were done...

... and within a couple of hours after they were done, a couple of freezes. :(

They then consulted with an engineer, and at this point, my house has a clean bill of health, and the poles were checked, and given a clean bill of health. Suspect is now something in the headend. I'm keeping a log with specific info they requested to be logged for each freeze and passing it along, hoping to establish a pattern or a specific failure point that can be troubleshooted.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 19:44:11 EDT

beachintech posted : Your return is really low (29 dbmv). Whatever Tuner 1 is tuned two is not functional at -20, but I can't see the freq with the lense flare. Not showing any errors on that capture, but I would suspect they have an amp out of balance between you and the node.

FDC is hitting your box at 2dbmv, but something towards the upper end is hitting at 7dbmv, this is backwards from what you would expect.

Granted, this is all from what a box is reporting and should be taken as not accurate.
--
Ex-Comcast Tech at the Beach. I speak for myself, not my former employer.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 00:11:02 EDT

Pacrat posted : Gremlins! ;)

Sorry, but that's my pat answer to questions about things I know nuthin!

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Wed, 12 Dec 2012 17:45:42 EDT

SwedishRider posted : Okay gang, one of my boxes froze, and at that moment, I immediately went to the diagnostic screen and snapped a pic. Sorry for the quality, but I had to move fast. A second or two after that pic, the power level returned to +7dBmV. The tuner that held the channel that froze instantaneously went to -20dBmV at the moment it froze! :o

What would make that happen?

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 19:57:19 EDT

SwedishRider posted : Well, line tech sat outside the house today for a couple of hours, hoping to catch a freeze up. he was tuned into the same channel as me. His TV was in his truck connected to the same tap as me.

Would you believe that in that time, I never froze. Very frustrating! :mad:

Something interesting happened though... I was getting some macroblocking on that channel, and he was getting macroblocking in the truck, but his meter was not showing any errors. That seemed very odd. But otherwise... no freezing. :(

For now, I'm keeping a log of which box froze up at what time and emailing it to a tech in the headend. He said that is very useful as hopefully a pattern could emerge and we could narrow possibilities.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Mon, 10 Dec 2012 21:06:49 EDT

John Galt posted : I was thinking more along the lines of having too many people affected for them to ignore. ;)

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Mon, 10 Dec 2012 19:47:47 EDT

SwedishRider posted :

said by John Galt:

You should talk to more of your neighbors...more 'squeaky wheels' will get more action, in addition to giving the techs more data to work with.

I've got one of my neighbors on the lookout for a freeze-up, and to leave the box alone and to call me when it happens so I can call it in.

I'm hoping to freeze all three boxes before the morning. That would give three potential pieces of info right there.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Mon, 10 Dec 2012 18:49:40 EDT

John Galt posted : You should talk to more of your neighbors...more 'squeaky wheels' will get more action, in addition to giving the techs more data to work with.

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Mon, 10 Dec 2012 16:45:30 EDT

SwedishRider posted : Headend looked into their end... they don't know what's going on- everything checked out okay. :(

They want me to replicate, let the box stay frozen overnight, and then they will log into it in the morning and see what's going on. My box just froze at 4:33 PM... and the headend leaves at 4:30. :(

Bummer... it'll still be there in the morning I suppose..

Re: CATV issue- box freezing and reboots.

Sun, 09 Dec 2012 17:39:07 EDT

beachintech posted :

said by nunya:

Nothing in your house talks to a node, it's a device doing light conversion.

Actually in newer SDV systems, node groups use a different RPD than the "@ node" resource manager. E.G. the headend doesn't give a rats ass or need to be bothered if another subscriber is added to the stream locally.
It's not simply a repeating device as you allude. It's a separate ARPD, and therefore vulnerable to failure (hardware or software).

Jim - have you talked to any of your neighbors?

You still are not talking to the node, you are talking to a card in the Head End ;)
--
Ex-Comcast Tech at the Beach. I speak for myself, not my former employer.