Channel Blackouts

NorthLineTony · ‎09-20-2008

This is about the sixth or seventh time this has happened. I go to a channel and it's blacked out. The info is on, but no sound or picture. Just hapens on one channel at a time. Yes, I reset my box and it comes on, but I do not see why I have to keep resetting the box when this happens. Should I call and ask if I need a new STB, it's the DVR box, BTW.

hpmsrm · ‎09-14-2009

I'm curious to know which channels are most involved in these drop outs. We had had off and on experience with that sort of thing for many months. It was mostly happening in the group of "news" channels and of that group FNC was the one most affected. But occasionally another one would go dark....sometimes for up to 30-45 minutes. Every time I would call in the tech would run the checks and want me to go through all the reboots, etc. (usually I had already done them before I called) and then he/she would tell m that because just one channel (at any particular time) was affected the problem was most likely at the program source....not in the U-verse system. But...finally a few weeks ago I managed to convince the tech to order me a new RG. I insisted on a tech coming to the house to install it and so the old 3800 was replaced with a 3801. There has been a marked improvement in the number of channel drops. Not completely gone.....but much, much reduced. Sooooo.....maybe a new RG would help you.

I have written an E-mail to Fox News Channel to inform them of their drop-out problems and told them that AT&T says the problem is on their end of the line. Wonder what...if anything...will come of it.

There is one difference between our experience and yours, Tony. When our channel goes dark....after a few moments a message comes up reporting loss of signal and suggesting trouble-shooting procedures. Do you ever see that? Also....some of the time it would happen with all three boxes.....two STB's and the DVR. Other times....just the DVR. Crazy...huh?

Anyway.....the new RG really seems to have helped the situation a lot....if not a complete cure.

Need help? Call AT&T at: 1-800-288-2020 then follow recorded instructions.
They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.
Benjamin Franklin

mduha29912 · ‎12-14-2011

I have only had uverse for several months and I had the same thing happen. Especially on the Fox news channel but others as well. I called customer service and they sent me a new RG. It has helped a lot but I still get some blacked out channels. The other night it was the history channel. Yes, If I reboot the channel does come back on and yes, sometimes (but not always) if I hit record and then play I can view the channel. I hope it does not get bad like it was. They need to get this fixed.

NorthLineTony · ‎09-20-2008

No, it's a local channel. It doesn't blackout as i watch it, just when I go to it. It's on now. It happens once in a while, not every day. But I don;t see any reason to keep resetting the box.

mibrnsurg · ‎07-15-2008

Unluckily NLT, ATT knows about the problem, but only recourse they give is reboot. Actually the same thing I had to do when it happened on my Dish receiver, check switch, their reboot.

Personally I think it is happening in the DVR or RG as they are usually streaming since here the ethernet lite is blinking just like it is streaming.

Chris

Please NO SD stretch-o-vision or 480 SD HD Channels
1-800-288-2020, After he gets acct info, press # a bunch of times, get a menu from Mr. Voice recognition
Your Results May Vary, In My Humble Opinion
I Call It Like I See It, Simply a U-verse user, nothing more

dhascall · ‎04-21-2008

NorthLineTony wrote:
No, it's a local channel. It doesn't blackout as i watch it, just when I go to it. It's on now. It happens once in a while, not every day. But I don;t see any reason to keep resetting the box.

Tony I call this the Black screen of LiveTV (BSoLTV), not to be confused with the Black Screen of Death, recorded TV shows that won'tr play issue from last year.

1. Resetting the box will bring it back

2. The channel will record just fine and you can see it in preview

3. If the channel has an SD or HD counterpart it will be one or the other but never both, just go to the other, if you don't wish to reset the box

Phil - I only notice it when tuning into a channel. I have noticed it on ESPN 2 HD 1606, GSN 173, WTHR-13 and maybe a few others. I have seen it maybe 2x//month.

AT&T has been mum on this. I have some contacts with the AT&T Social Media Team, maybe they know something?

indyverse · ‎02-18-2008

Also in Indy but my channel is always WISH-TV HD (1008).

dhascall · ‎04-21-2008

indyverse wrote:
Also in Indy but my channel is always WISH-TV HD (1008).

That's weird, Indyverse! I never have saw it on 8 or 1008 but we do not always watch HD as we only have one HD set and the wife doesn't usually venture into "four digit" territory, lol.

At any rate - it struck again, Wednesday night. WRTV 6. 1006 was fine. Went back to 6 and still black but the info showed. I pressed the up arrow to invoke the preview / PIP. It was also blank for 6. I hit the down arrow (not the channel down) to look at the preview / PIP for WTTV 4 and it was fine, pressed the up arrow to look at 6 in the PIP and the preview appeared but still the main screen was black. I had to run, so didn't check to see when it came back up but I think that it will eventrually fix itself with a reboot.

This behavior has been noted by me, only on the DVR set.

JefferMC · ‎11-16-2009

This happens to me on occasion. It seems to be when I tune to a channel that either (1) has a recording going or (2) has just ended a recording. It seems to be only the DVR (but that is the TV I use the most). Yes, tuning to the ongoing recording works. Rebooting the DVR works. I've never waited long enough for it to "fix itself," so I don't know if it would, but it doesn't correct itself within 15 minutes.

Periodic prophylactic reboots (every 14 days) seem to help prevent this. YMMV.

flhthemi · ‎04-22-2009

It happens to me EVERYDAY. I have 3 STBs. I have seen it happen like this:

NOTHING is being recorded

STB w/DVR looses channel I am currently watching (usually 1036 Local NBC in Charlotte area but it has happened on 1790 TCMHD)

I go to the bedroom and turn on the system in there. Sometimes it's out in there too and sometimes it's not.

SD channel (0036) still functions

Preview (PIP) still displays content on ch1036

Pressing record allows me to go to recorded TV and view the recording up to the point of it being live again.

BOTH of these STBs are connected via RG6.

A. I have a 3rd STB connected via cat5 directly to the RG and this has NEVER happened on that box.

(Possibly indicating where the problem might be)

Reset brings it back.

AT&T just keeps having be re-set everything and going through the TS procedures and because all this temporarily clears the problem that's as far as I have gotten with them. So I just gave up in December and just reboot the affected box each time it happens. Soon I will probably just completely give up and go back to Time Warner for TV and Internet.

mduha29912 · ‎12-14-2011

I have the same problem in San Diego. They sent me a new RG but it did not help. I set up the DVR with cat 5 and with coax and it did it on both.

mibrnsurg · ‎07-15-2008

It's gonna continue even on cat5e, that's all I have here and I get them too. Seems only solution is a reboot ( for me they can be back anytime from 15 mins to a couple hours and always overnite), but that's just covering up the bug that is causing this they can't fix.

Chris

Please NO SD stretch-o-vision or 480 SD HD Channels
1-800-288-2020, After he gets acct info, press # a bunch of times, get a menu from Mr. Voice recognition
Your Results May Vary, In My Humble Opinion
I Call It Like I See It, Simply a U-verse user, nothing more

flhthemi · ‎04-22-2009

Last night it was totally different when it happened. We watched a recorded show and when it ended and we went back to live TV ALL the HD channels were black! SD stuff was still there and HD channels did show in preview/PIP box but no audio and no video just a black screen . I'm NOT happy at all and when it happens today, and it will, I will be calling in again and it won't be to be walked through that TS procedure. I want a tech, please!

w0sl · ‎02-13-2012

I have had this same problem for over a year. I spent a lot of time with tech support a year ago and eventually was given a new DVR. Same problem exists. It happens on the HDTV colocated with the DVR and RG. It does not happen on a remote HDTV and STB fed by RG6 coax from the RG. It happens mostly on the FOX News Channel 1120 but does not happen on the Fox News Channel 120. So, it appears to be an HD channel problem but not on SD channels. I have seen the problem on rare occasions on other channels but almost exclusively on the FOX News HD channel. Sometimes it happens when I am watching and sometimes it has already happened when I turn the set to that channel.

Another thing I have noticed is that if it happens while I am watching the channel it almost always happens at the 28 minute past the hour clock point. I thought this might have some connection to a recording, scheduled for the 30 minute point, starting up on some channel. However, it has happened when nothing was actively recording or scheduled to begin recording. Rebooting the DVR will correct the problem but if it is ignored, it will clear itself in a couple of hours or so. When it happens, I can always switch to the corresponding SD channel and see the program.

mduha29912 · ‎12-14-2011

I guess ATT does not like fox news because that is the channel I get blacked out.

flhthemi · ‎04-22-2009

I think it has more to do with the amount of time that the STB is on a channel. It happens to me on mostly ch 1036. I leave it on there because of Today Show and after that there is a local show from NBC Charlotte that we like. So the STB is on that channel for several hours everyday and that is the only channel it happens on. There was a day when we had it happen to ch 1790 (TCM HD) but it had also been there for hours. It just happened again!!! I just switched channels to make sure 1790 was the correct channel number and came back to 1036 and it's black!!

Well now I'll ring AT&T again. Strange as I JUST reset the RG half an hour ago.....

beerjunkie1995 · ‎02-19-2012

The decrypt codes for channels are not updating the way they should. A simple reboot of the dvr/stb will reload the codes. There should be a fix coming soon to correct this issue. Until then reboot your dvr/stb.

All channels have decrypt codes kind of like Dish/Direct has codes to keep viewing satellite.

Telman2 · ‎02-24-2008

I have been experiencing the same problem for a year now, it happens about once a week. I have a DVR and 3 STB's and it happens on the same STB everytime and on the same channel 1005 (NBC). I can go to any of the 3 other TV's in the house and the channel will come in fine while that box won't play it. I understand resetting the STB temporarly fixes the problem but I don't understand why I have to keep resetting my box to watch a service I'm paying a premium price to receive. It makes about as much sense as having a luxuary car that requires you to occasionally raise the hood and hit the motor inorder to keep it running.

ccwarren51 · ‎03-26-2010

This happens in our system too. It is a VIP1225/1200 (three devices). It usually happens after watching a recorded program.

Like other posters have said it seems to be only one channel, in our case channel 1007 (local ABC). Viewing the guide, I can see the preview just fine. Rebooting the STB fixes the problem.

Couple that problem with the very frequent audio hiccups makes me an unhappy Uverse customer.

jagdoran · ‎06-19-2012

I AM SOOOOO TIRED OF THIS. I AM NEVER ABLE TO WATCH FOX NEWS AND NOW I SEE THAT THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR YEARS???????? HOW CONVENIENT????????????????????

THIS IS THE LAST STRAW ...I WILLNOT SIT ON HOLD ONE MORE MINUTE FOR YOU PEOPLE TO TELL ME THERE IS NOTHING WRONG. OR YOU WILL TAKE CARE OF IT.

DIRECT TV...HERE I COME!

jagdoran · ‎06-19-2012

I ADVISE EVERYONE TO RUN FROM THIS PROVIDER....THIS IS CRAP. WHY SHOULD I HAVE TO CALL TECHNICAL HELP LINES EVERYNITE AND SIT ON HOLD FOR 2 HOURS TO GET HUNG UP ON ...AGAIN.

gamegurou · ‎06-03-2012

Chill out with the CAPS.

Created on 3/14/2012 as an outage ticket:
There is currently a known issue being investigated by Microsoft where a customer will experience a black screen on one channel randomly. This issue can be resolved by performing a power cycle on the customer's STB. If the member does not take action, the duration of the black screen can vary. If the receiver is reset, programming will resume. The issue is limited to the U-verse TV product and is random across the 22 state footprint. No current ETA provided.

As dhascall mentioned (very well), there are three things you should know about this issue.

1. Resetting the box will bring it back
2. The channel will record just fine and you can see it in preview
3. If the channel has an SD or HD counterpart it will be one or the other but never both, just go to the other, if you don't wish to reset the box

Furthermore, this has not been happening for years. It's been 3 months which is, of course, a long time.

JefferMC · ‎11-16-2009

This symptom, also known as the black screen of deep disappointment, has been going on for much longer than 3 months. Although, I must say I haven't seen it in a long while.

Kong57 · ‎09-26-2007

It has been going on longer than 3 months.I would say at least a year. It happened on New Years Day 2012. It happens on the Fox News 1210... and a few others 1753 FSSW

JefferMC · ‎11-16-2009

I should have kept my mouth shut/fingers still. It happened to me last night on ESPN2. I had just stopped and deleted a recording for the channel, and my next one was scheduled for an hour later, so I could easily just reboot the DVR, which, of course, cleared up the problem.

mibrnsurg · ‎07-15-2008

gamegurou wrote:
Chill out with the CAPS.

Created on 3/14/2012 as an outage ticket:
There is currently a known issue being investigated by Microsoft where a customer will experience a black screen on one channel randomly. This issue can be resolved by performing a power cycle on the customer's STB. If the member does not take action, the duration of the black screen can vary. If the receiver is reset, programming will resume. The issue is limited to the U-verse TV product and is random across the 22 state footprint. No current ETA provided.

As dhascall mentioned (very well), there are three things you should know about this issue.

1. Resetting the box will bring it back
2. The channel will record just fine and you can see it in preview
3. If the channel has an SD or HD counterpart it will be one or the other but never both, just go to the other, if you don't wish to reset the box

Furthermore, this has not been happening for years. It's been 3 months which is, of course, a long time.

Sorry, these black channels have been happening for more than 2 years and ATT has had no response than reboot.

Chris

Please NO SD stretch-o-vision or 480 SD HD Channels
Need Help? 1-800-288-2020, After he gets acct info, press # a bunch of times, get a menu from Mr. Voice recognition
Your Results May Vary, In My Humble Opinion
I Call It Like I See It, Simply a U-verse user, nothing more

neville82 · ‎03-16-2013

My FOX HD goes out every day for a couple hours at a time. It's the ONLY channel that blacks out which is suspicious. I have alerted Uverse and the techs are "checking into it"

dhascall · ‎04-21-2008

neville82 wrote:

My FOX HD goes out every day for a couple hours at a time. It's the ONLY channel that blacks out which is suspicious. I have alerted Uverse and the techs are "checking into it"

Other than neville82's post, I have not heard of this happening in a looong time. Has anyone else?

nebville82: Does the suggested reboot fix it?

flhthemi · ‎04-22-2009

dhascall wrote:
neville82 wrote:
My FOX HD goes out every day for a couple hours at a time. It's the ONLY channel that blacks out which is suspicious. I have alerted Uverse and the techs are "checking into it"

Other than neville82's post, I have not heard of this happening in a looong time. Has anyone else?

nebville82: Does the suggested reboot fix it?

The suggested reboot does get things back to normal until the next time it happens. However, I have not had it happen for a long time. In fact, I can't recall the last time it happened. Perhaps it's been fixed.

dhascall · ‎04-21-2008

flhthemi wrote:

dhascall wrote:

neville82 wrote:

My FOX HD goes out every day for a couple hours at a time. It's the ONLY channel that blacks out which is suspicious. I have alerted Uverse and the techs are "checking into it"

Other than neville82's post, I have not heard of this happening in a looong time. Has anyone else?

nebville82: Does the suggested reboot fix it?

The suggested reboot does get things back to normal until the next time it happens. However, I have not had it happen for a long time. In fact, I can't recall the last time it happened. Perhaps it's been fixed.