E4 Fault - Picture Freeze & Cable Repull

**Rob** · 03-07-2005, 13:11

For a few days the piccy on E4 (channel 144) has been blank with no sound. Other channels appear unnaffected. I'm on the base pack with Sky Movies added using a Samsung STB.

Phoned ntl yesterday Saturday, got through after about 4 minutes (not bad). They said they'd send a signal to the box, give it an hour, unplug, leave to rest for 30 seconds, reboot etc. Did all that, no joy. Phoned again and they'd send an engineer.

Today (Sunday

- well done ntl

) engineer arrives very promptly, finds the fault odd, and whilst he now gets a picture and sound it's very jerky. The box is replaced with another Samsung. He goes away saying it'll take half hour to reload it's programming (didn't tell me I'd have to reregister the broadband too).

Hour later the E4 picture remains jumpy. I've phoned ntl (got straight through

) who have decided to send another signal to the box. Again I've to wait an hour, and unplug, etc. Now knowing that didn't solve it yesterday, I'm very sceptical it's going to work this time.

It's not as though I'm desperate to watch big bother, but E4 does often have other decent stuff on.

Any techs about got any real ideas where the problem might lie?

quadplay · 03-07-2005, 13:33

Whilst tuned to E4, press (on the remote) Page Up, Page Down, and then the Blue key - what are the Pre and Post RS error rates?

**Rob** · 03-07-2005, 14:16

Quote:

Originally Posted by jimbo

Whilst tuned to E4, press (on the remote) Page Up, Page Down, and then the Blue key - what are the Pre and Post RS error rates?

Pre is 0 per 0.5s
Post 53 per 0.5s

**Rob** · 03-07-2005, 14:54

Repowering didn't work. Engineer booked again for tommorrow morning.

quadplay · 03-07-2005, 15:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by MovedGoalPosts

Pre is 0 per 0.5s
Post 53 per 0.5s

Hmm, odd - the box seems to be creating its own errors! RS is Reed-Solomon error correction, the count is the number of incorrect bits of data received in the last half-second. Any errors after RS correction mean you'll see picture or sound issues.

Are there any devices near the box which could create electro-magnetic interference such as mobile or DECT cordless telephones or bases, microwaves or PC equipment? Make sure also that the box is well ventilated - put it on top of the TV if possible, or on a shelf in an open cabinet. Also, does this, or any other freezing or blanking occur on any other channels (particularly E4+1 and the FILMFOUR channels)?

**Rob** · 03-07-2005, 16:04

Don't have film 4 channels, E4+1 is perfectly normal.

PCs and wireless router are in a different room, and only have wired phones. STB is in the open, but on shelf under the TV, along with the DVD recorder and a SCART multi Adaptor unit. Plenty of space around for ventilation. Design of the TV and space in the house means there is nowhere else for this stuff to go, and no engineer has ever said the layout of my kit is a problem.

quadplay · 03-07-2005, 18:34

Curiouser and curiouser! Hopefully tomorrow's enginner will be able to sort it, but if not we'll have to investigate further!

**Rob** · 03-07-2005, 20:12

Will wait and see, history over the last 8 years or so of Nynex, Cable & Wireless now ntl is that TV is fine for a few months, but then decides to gradually die until there is an engineering tweak. Can't really be that cost effective. Supposedly there have been cable repulls (no way can I prove or disprove if those happened). Always was a problem qith analogue TV that one of the sky movies channels was unwatchable due to interference (one reason I upgraded promptly to digital when it became available).

I'll just have to wait this time to see what they come up with.

Thanks for your interest

dbateman2k5 · 03-07-2005, 20:30

Out of interest, what area are you in MovedGoalPosts, as i'm getting similar issues with the music channels as well

**Rob** · 03-07-2005, 20:40

Addlestone, Surrey

**Rob** · 04-07-2005, 15:25

Ok, an update

Engineer got here at about 2pm, and has just left

He was telling me that he has only 15 minutes per customer, so some others today - he has 13 to see

aren't going to be got to. As it is he was 2 hours late getting to me for his 08:00 to 12:00 appointment.

He checked and rechecked all sorts of things, gadgets plugged between the cable and STB, the box outside the house, the cabinet in the street, he even tried another cable between my external box and the STB. Those RS errors still showed up.

He finally decided the only other thing to try is a cable repull ( IP11? ). I'm the furthest in the street from the cabinet and he wonder's if that has anything to do with it. That will occur Friday, maybe, but there is no "T" in the pavement, so "construction" may have to get involved to add another factor of delays. Interestingly he says the cable is probably the original, and not a repulled one (despite my being told that was needed a couple of years or more ago), judging by the condition of the connectors used.

Something odd then happened. He plugged it all back together, rebooted the STB for the umpteenth time, and the RS errors dropped away. There are still some, but it appears the STB can currently cope. He's very bemused as he has done nothing.

The cable repull is still on.

I should add that whilst the broadand via the Samsung STB has been rock solid, I seem peridically to have these jumping TV issues. Indeed that's why the first Samsung was issued to me last Austumn. Before then an engineer has been needed every few months to tweak something. Even when I had analogue there was an interference issue never solved. I'm happy with ntl because of the convenience and all under one roof approach, but it is a pain to have to keep needing engineers every few months. Let's hope this time it will get permanantly sorted.

quadplay · 04-07-2005, 17:42

Yep, RG11 repull seems the way to go! Fingers crossed for Friday for you, mate!

**Rob** · 08-07-2005, 12:28

OK, I'm very very annoyed now. I'm experiencing the ntl "it's not my job/department" fiasco.

Cable repull was, according to the engineer who was with me on Monday, he made tha appointment there and then, for this morning, Friday 8th July. What a surprise, nobody came, yet I'm sitting here like a lemon, taking yet more time off from the office

Phone Faults. Get told yep its scheduled for sometime in SEPTEMBER !!!

Faults deny all responsibility and say I have to phone CS. He wont transfer me to that person and wont sort it himself. For a customer service organisation that specialises in communications that is pants. Ask who I can make a full complaint to but dont get any answer, he just wants rid of me.

Call Customer services. They are bemused as to why I have to call them. Apparently faults should have dealt with it. An appointment is rearranged for next Thursday. (could have been Wednseday, but I can't be in).

CS won't deal with my complaint that I'm getting the run around. That has to be in writing. Why on the back of the ntl bill does it say:

Quote:

Complaints: We hope you will not have cause to complain, but if you do please contact our customer service staff on 0800 052 2000 or at the address above and they will be pleased to help you

It's worth noting that while E4 now is a lot beter than when the engineer came on Monday, so somehow his fiddles acheived something (despite him saying he did nothing - and he accepted a fault existed), ITV1 now has intermittent freezing picture. So a fault does still exist that requires resolution.

There are just times when you really want to scream:

**Rob** · 14-07-2005, 19:59

Time for another update:

The cable repull team were due this morning. Oh dear 12:00 camne and went. However, just as I was calling ntl, my mobile rang. Someone had my complaint letter from the previous fiasco

(not really sure what they are doing about that though). He confirmed I would be seen but there were 5 jobs on for the morning so they would be a bit late.

They did arrive 3:15. Took one look and said they needed to get "construction" out. They couldn't find the "T" in the pavement, so couldn't pull the cable. They went away with the coment "it'll take us 20 minutes to get through and update ntl. It'll probably be a few weeks before constrruction turn up, then we can get rebooked. :disturbd. Mean while my TV picture is getting worse

I dunno, have ntl cut back so far now that they don't have the people to do the maintenance work? If customers start to get the hint ntl wont/ cant send somebody on time, complaints aggravation will rise, and customers will leave.

Oh and the Responsetek thingy is being kept fully apprasied of my thoughts on all this.