Paul guy's profile

Teacher

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6 Messages

Tuesday, May 14th, 2013 6:19 PM

Delayed response using my remote

Ever since the upgrade in on-screen format recently, there is an additional delay when I use my remote.  Is this because the current cable box is outdated and was not designed to handle the amount of data due to the upgrade in the on-screen format?  Or were we given outdated boxes to begin with? Has anyone else experienced delayed responses when commands have been pressed on the remote?

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Expert

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10.1K Messages

11 years ago

Trey-n-Heather - Because it is not a memory problem. It is a sensitivity problem. The tape you tried passed no IR. The one I am recommending blocks some IR. Not that there is not a memory problem. Slow reaction is another problem. Here is more explanation -

IR Issues

Going back 5-6 years there are many posts about IR interference. Remedies included taping over the IR sensor, hiding the STB, turning off auto brightness on the TV.

A common fault was the info button press corrupting to an STB mute action. The number of reports of this have totally fallen away. My personal initial primary problem was getting the zero to register. But, one day long ago that just went away.

Niles Audio Corp. makes IR repeaters & has a video on their web site showing the fragility of the IR coding that is used for U-verse & other boxes. They said their new line of repeaters could handle it. Oddly, a U-verse customer posted in this community that they had a NIles install that was not working & after they contacted Niles they did not get any satisfactory resolution.

I came to believe that the IR sensor is too sensitive, That the DVR is worse than other STBs. That command type buttons are worse than the number buttons. That, somehow software updates can make it better or worse, So, it is a moving target. Hard to pin down.

I noticed that the U-verse remote does work better than my Logitech Harmony model 700. I looked at the IR signal through a digital camera. It appeared to me that the Harmony IR signal is stronger than the U-verse remote. This reinforces my theory that the IR sensor is too sensitive.

Recently, my most common problem was FF and Play Buttons often corrupted to chan up and chan down more than six times a night while watching recorded shows, exclusively.

I happened to notice that I had a specific kind of "duct tape" covering the blue light on the STB. Actually, it just looks like duct tape, but is electrical tape available at the Home Depot in the electrical dept. - http://www.homedepot.com/p/Commercial-Electric-2-in-x-150-ft-Vinyl-Electrical-Bundling-Tape-Silver-30002664/202741845#specifications

This tape has a degree of transparency. I thought I would use it to cover the IR sensor. The remote has never worked better. In over 20 evenings since I applied the tape - watching recordings while FF through the ads - I have not had one chan up - chan down corruption . Previously, there would have been at least 6x20=120 occurrences.

Almost all button presses are accepted & none are changed to a different action.


RF Issues

It should not be a surprise, but it is, that half the problems with the RF remote are IR. I run an STB well hidden for a second TV. I had the IR sensor covered with black tape. I replaced the black tape with the "duct tape" & saw an immediate improvement in response to menu buttons. The number buttons were already good - see below for that solution.

The STB using RF must be hidden due to the dongle conversion of RF to IR. If it is not hidden it is subject to the following problems:

IR corruption - Ironically, the RF remote was often offered as a resolution for IR problems. But, if the STB is not hidden nothing has changed to eliminate theI IR corruption problem. If the corrupting light can be seen by the STB IR sensor it will continue to corrupt the IR signal.

If the STB IR sensor can see IR from another remote, it will respond to it.

If another STB can see the IR generated by the dongle, it will respond to it.

Note that hidden means the IR does not see outside light - If you have an optical repeater it is IR subject to corruption. If you have an IR receiver that produces RF to go through a wall, it is still IR subject to corruption. Only if the remote is RF (like the point anywhere remote) transmitted to a hidden device will it ward off IR corruption.

Previously, I found the RF remote lacking in RF power - in the same room, twelve feet away, hidden only by a thin sheet of cardboard. One method to increase RF power is to hold the remote under your chin while pressing a button - using your head as an antenna.

A better way is this antenna placed in the battery compartment - http://www.amazon.com/Cellular-Innovations-A-BOOSTER-Universal-Antenna/dp/B00009WCAP/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1366128630&sr=8-8&keywords=cell+phone+booster

With this antenna, the channel numbers are almost always accepted. With the "duct tape" in place, the other buttons work almost every time. The remote now works better than ever.

STB Issues

Once IR and RF issues are resolved, there are timing issues with the STB to contend with. Numbers process fast and Menu items process slow. You need quick, light touch on some numbers to avoid duplicates and a slow, strong press on menu activities. Effort is required to suppress the urge to press again while waiting for a response. It takes concentration to get effective results. Frequently a second press immediately cancels a slow responding first press. Current IR and RF issues amplify the effect of the timing issue.

New Member

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25.7K Messages

11 years ago

Yes it's been a known problem.  In my observation it is directly related to the amount of allocated memory versus memory in use.  You can look in system info and it will show you the amount of memory being used.  Normally if it's running 85 to 95% you will see slower than normal response times.

A while back there was an upgrade that did something with memory (maybe a year or more ago) and the boxes were running around 65% memory and remote response times were fantastic.

Teacher

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6 Messages

11 years ago

Beebeesa,I appreciate the feedback. Currently, memory is running at 80% and we still have 56% of space available for recording. Three additional questions, if you don't mind:1. Does the amount of recording space currently being used affect the memory being used in any way?2. Is newer equipment available?3. If newer, more capable equipment is not available, what options would I have, i.e., is there anything I can do to make the equipment work more efficiently by decreasing the amount of memory being used at any given time?Thanks for your time.Paul 

New Member

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25.7K Messages

11 years ago

80% is not to bad but in the 60's is where it runs pretty good.  I seem to run anywhere between 85 and 90% all the time.  With that said, if I reboot my DVR and Set Top Boxes the memory will drop but go back up slowly back to where it was.

Recording space does have an effect on overall remote response.  Mine was down to 24% available Sunday and my remote, while watching recorded shows, was almost non responsive.  Push FF twice and it would take 3 or 4 seconds before anything happened.  then pressing play was irritating because it kept FF'ing so I had to back up.  Finally deleted some recordings and got to about 50% available and things worked better.

I can't tell you whether new equipment would have less issues or not since I have had the same DVR and STB's since 2008.  I do see posts on the other AT&T forum where people are complaining but not sure if it's old or new equipment.

As for memory in use that seems to be determined by Microsoft Media Room which is the operating system for the boxes.  There are no processes you can shut down to make it use less memory like on a normal computer.

I think what needs to happen is another update be rolled out to address the memory allocation issue.  I think I saw mine had somewhere around 15,000k but only something like 7000k allocated and 6500k in use.  Seems like AT&T needs to allocate more of the memory to be used.

Maybe one of the AT&T mods can chime in about this................

Community Support

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1.7K Messages

11 years ago

I apologize for the issues you guys have been having with remote delay. For the most part, we have not heard any issues after the firmware update. beebeesa's information pretty much hit it right on the nail, and is what I usually look for when there is delay between the remote and STB.

When it comes to the equipment, if your DVR and RG are black, you have the newest equipment, but as beebeesa stated, it might not make a huge difference (For standard STBs, there is not a new one out besides the wireless one). I have my original equipment, and for the most part, don't have many issues. The only thing I have exchanged was my RG, but I have friends, which have the old ones and have had no issues. I had to change mine because of an electrical surge.

At 80%, you should not be having that many problems. One thing to consider is that it may not be an issue with the STB, but the RG. If you are having issues on all your TVs, then it could be an issue with the router.

Also, if your DVR works fine, but you have an issue with your remote boxes, it could be the wiring, or if you are using wireless, wireless interference. Although, I have tried a lot of different things, it always seems like I have a slower response with the wireless STBs anyways.

Be sure to check your remote. If the lights are dim, it can cause issues with you having to press the button multiple times to get it to work.

Either way, a good thing worth trying is rebooting all your equipment (Router and STBs). Let us know how it is working after that.

New Member

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25.7K Messages

11 years ago


Testing to David FWIW I checked my STB in the BR just a few minutes ago and it is at 90% memory use.  It had 14,592 total memory, managed memory was 7369 (fluctuating), and physical memory was 4448.  There are multiple threads on the Lithium site with complaints about the slowness with the remote.  Some go way back but several are fairly recent.

I have to say I am kind of used to it now because I have had U-verse so long but I can see where a new subscriber might not like it at all.  I just kind of know the caveats of U-verse.....Smiley Wink

Teacher

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6 Messages

11 years ago

Beebeesa,

I rebooted both receivers and the modem.  It decreased the memory usage on the 2nd receiver from 80% to 63%, while the primary receiver is now at 54% (forgot to check the reading before rebooting).  I see where there is a significant difference between the two receivers, in terms of memory, allocated memory, etc., with greater capacity given to the slave unit.  I don't know why this is so, since I'm sure there are people like me who use their slave unit at least as much as their primary unit.

The reboot didn't seem to have any effect on the delayed response, where "On Demand" was involved.  However, there is slightly less of a delay for the basic features such as accessing the list of recorded programs, accessing the Main Menu, and accessing the Guide; also, for basic features such as "fast-forward," "reverse-play," etc.

Apparently, AT&T's current equipment has lagged behind the advance in features and additional programming demands they have placed on them.

At least I have a better idea of what the problem is and what few options I have to deal with them.  Unfortunately, it seems virtually impossible to get through to a live person at AT&T when problems and questions like this arise.  I don't know what they would do if they didn't have community forums such as this one to assist their customers.  This is the second time I've had to use the community forum to get help with baffling questions I've had about the receivers.

Thanks for all your help and suggestions. You've helped alleviate a lot of frustration.

Paul

Teacher

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6 Messages

11 years ago

David_t,

I rebooted both receivers and the modem.  It decreased the memory usage on the 2nd receiver from 80% to 63%, while the primary receiver is now at 54% (forgot to check the reading before rebooting).  I see where there is a significant difference between the two receivers, in terms of memory, allocated memory, etc., with greater capacity given to the slave unit.  I don't know why this is so, since I'm sure there are people like me who use their slave unit at least as much as their primary unit.

The reboot didn't seem to have any effect on the delayed response, where "On Demand" was involved.  However, there is slightly less of a delay for the basic features such as accessing the list of recorded programs, accessing the Main Menu, and accessing the Guide; also, for basic features such as "fast-forward," "reverse-play," etc.

Apparently, AT&T's current equipment has lagged behind the advance in features and additional programming demands they have placed on them.  Not sure if firmware updates would be included in this assessment.

At least I have a better idea of what the problem is and what few options I have to deal with them.  Unfortunately, it seems virtually impossible to get through to a live person at AT&T when problems and questions like this arise.  At least they had the foresight to create the community forums such as this one to assist their customers.  This is the second time I've had to use the community forum to get help with baffling questions I've had about the receivers because I had such difficulty getting a live person on the phone.

Thanks for all your help and suggestions. You've helped alleviate a lot of frustration.

Paul

Community Support

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1.7K Messages

11 years ago

I'm glad we could help out Paul. I do apologize for the difficulties in getting a live person, but I am glad you were able to find our support community. I know I have used online forums for other products in the past, because sometimes you find people like beebeesa that are just avid users of the product that could provide much more information.

At AT&T, we are constantly working on improving our products. Thank you for choosing AT&T, and if you ever run into any issues, let us know and we would be glad to help.

New Member

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25.7K Messages

11 years ago

paulguy eventually  they will roll out a memory update and all will go back to normal.  It just take someone to initiate it.

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