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Series 2: Bad Cables, or Tuner?

Discussion in 'DirecTV TiVo Powered PVRs & Receivers' started by rubybear, Mar 22, 2010.

  1. Mar 22, 2010 #1 of 4
    rubybear

    rubybear New Member

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    Oct 15, 2007
    California

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    I know this subject has been beaten to death, and that almost noone seems to be still using a Series 2 SD DVR. However, I have a few questions before I give up and put my DirecTiVo DVR out to pasture.

    I have an unmodified Series 2 Samsung S4080R DirecTivo DVR, installed August 2005. I have always used the Red, Yellow & White cables, not the S-Video one. I am also stuck with SD for the foreseeable future, as I can’t afford a new HD TV or the monthly HD fee.

    Like so many others, I’ve been experiencing pixilation on Tuner 2 (or B), and the ‘searching for signal on satellite 2’, for most of my channels. However, there are still a few channels that are ‘stable’ enough to watch clearly on Tuner 2. Tuner 1 works perfectly, even with local channels.

    How can I be sure it’s not a satellite cable issue, rather than a bad DVR? The cables are just as old as the DVR. Has anyone else received a new box (or had the tuner repaired), just to find out the cables are the problem? And if they are, does DirecTV charge to replace those? And what about the 5½ year old dish?

    Also, and I know this really isn’t a TiVo issue, but I know DirecTV subscribers post here. If I give in and replace my DVR with their R16, will they change my legacy programming package? I have had Total Choice since 2005.

    Thanks for any responses,
    rubybear
     
  2. Mar 22, 2010 #2 of 4
    whitepelican

    whitepelican Member

    684
    3
    Feb 14, 2005
    Just swap the two satellite inputs on the back of the DVR. If the problem stays with input #2, then you can be pretty sure it's not the cables, multiswitch or dish.

    I've never had any problem keeping legacy packages when adding equipment in the past. In the case of a SD-DVR for SD-DVR swap, I'm sure you could keep your programming package as is.
     
  3. Mar 23, 2010 #3 of 4
    bengalfreak

    bengalfreak Active Member

    2,147
    18
    Oct 20, 2002
    how do you know which tuner is playing what programming?
     
  4. Mar 23, 2010 #4 of 4
    rubybear

    rubybear New Member

    33
    0
    Oct 15, 2007
    California
    Good question. Well, I assume my problems are on Tuner 2 because:

    1. The 'searching for signal on satellite 2' blue box shows up on the channel I'm watching with all the pixelation on it.

    2. All the previous posts on this forum that refer to the pixelation problem seem to discuss a bad tuner 2.

    The way I am able to watch/record programs I want on tuner 1 is to turn to one of the least stable channels (for me 276, 273, 280, 384). If the screen starts to pixelate, I change the channel on THAT tuner to one of my more stable channels (265, 607). Then I down arrow to the other tuner, and change the channel to whatever I want to watch/record.

    It's a bit of a hassle, but I'm putting up with it for now. I'm basically only using one tuner, and now that DTV has 'ungrandfathered' me from the free DVR fee, I'm only getting half of what I pay for.

    I hope I answered your question!
     

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