HR10-250 - ATSC tuner help

[Trav]

I've had my HR10 for quite some time now but the last few months I've been having trouble with my ATSC tuner(s). The audio/video will drop out at an unacceptable level on certain local channels. I've been up on my roof to adjust the antenna and I can get most of the channels to come in okay but I still get the dropouts.

My question, however, is related to the Signal Strength tester in the HR10. I go into the Settings and test the signal level on the two internal ATSC tuners and on some channels, Tuner 1 is significantly lower than Tuner 2. On a couple of them, they both stay at 90-92 no problem but on the ones I've had trouble with for quite some time, the Tuner 1 will drop down to 70 or lower and then go back up to 88 or so while Tuner 2 will bounce around a little but never goes below 85 or so.

Why would Tuner 1 be dropping out so much more than Tuner 2 when they both are getting the exact same signal from ONE coax input in the back of the unit from my antenna? Does this just mean that one of the tuners is more sensitive than the other or does it mean one of my tuners is going bad? And is there a way to specify which tuner to use when scheduling a recording?

Thanks.

 

[rickaren]

I would buy a in-line amplifier from Lowes, Home Depot or Radio Shack and give that a try. If you don't get better results you could return for a full refund. As you have seen in other posts. these turners are not very good quality and by adding an amp you should improve their signal. I saw how much lower their quality was when comparing to my DISH VIP 622 DVR. By adding a low cost amplified splitter to my set-up I was able to correct most issues on my HR10-250 that were not on the 622 hooked to the same OTA outside antenna. Good Luck!

 

[Trav]

Thanks for the tip. Do you think an amplifier would help in my situation given that I am pretty close to the towers as it is and that my signal is near 90 on most of the local channels already? The problem is that they drop down to 70 or so sporadtically but then go back up to near 90. So during a show, I will get numerous audio/video glitches but the overall signal is strong. It could be that there are trees in the line of sight of my antenna? Before getting the roof antenna, I used one of those small indoor antennas with similar results: the signal strength would be high but I'd get dropouts all the time.

But this is the first time I noticed one of the tuners showing a lower meter than the other, which sounded strange to me since they both are getting the same coax feed. Anyway, I could give the amp a try, how much do they cost?

 

[riggscm]

Trav, do you have the 6.3 upgrade??

my ATSC tuners started acting really funky after the upgrade.

 

[rickaren]

Thanks for the tip. Do you think an amplifier would help in my situation given that I am pretty close to the towers as it is and that my signal is near 90 on most of the local channels already? The problem is that they drop down to 70 or so sporadtically but then go back up to near 90. So during a show, I will get numerous audio/video glitches but the overall signal is strong. It could be that there are trees in the line of sight of my antenna? Before getting the roof antenna, I used one of those small indoor antennas with similar results: the signal strength would be high but I'd get dropouts all the time.

But this is the first time I noticed one of the tuners showing a lower meter than the other, which sounded strange to me since they both are getting the same coax feed. Anyway, I could give the amp a try, how much do they cost?

Well if it doesn't work or help, nothing! Just return it. Depending on if you use a splitter or just one line amp anywhere from $10 -$25. I would think you will see some improvement and want to keep it knowing you are receiving a better signal.

 

[Trav]

Trav, do you have the 6.3 upgrade??

my ATSC tuners started acting really funky after the upgrade.

Yes, I have the 6.3 upgrade, though the dropouts were occuring before that. However, it was just recently (post-upgrade) that I noticed the one tuner at a lower signal than the other. In particular, my internal Tuner 1 is lower than Tuner 2 for most channels.

 

[riggscm]

Well Trav sounds like you and I are in the same boat. I get searching for signal on my ant almost all the time now and I NEVER got it before, not even in heavy electrical storms. peraps there will be a update to 6.3a to fix this. and I thought I was the only one all along

 

[jim tressler]

when you say close to the towers.. how close.. if you are too close, then you could have to much signal in the line. if that was the case, then an atennuator could be helpfull to tone it down so you dont blow out the tuner.. also - is your cable run short, long or split prior to the hd tivo??? that all could cause problems

jim

 

[Trav]

when you say close to the towers.. how close.. if you are too close, then you could have to much signal in the line. if that was the case, then an atennuator could be helpfull to tone it down so you dont blow out the tuner.. also - is your cable run short, long or split prior to the hd tivo??? that all could cause problems

jim

Good questions.... here are the details:

According to Antennaweb.org, I am appx 14 miles from 3 of the big networks (3 of them are at the same tower farm). The other one is about 4 miles facing the other direction. The funny thing is that out of the 3 stations that are at the same tower farm, one of them is flawless (never drops out) while the other two fluctuate and drop out sporadtically (sometimes they are good, sometimes not).

Take last night, for example... I recorded Prison Break and Justice on Fox and they were on back to back (7-8 and 8-9). The first one (Prison Break) was very good with maybe 1 or 2 very minor glitches. However, the second one (Justice) was so full of glitches that it was unwatchable. Same station, different time. AND different tuners since my Season Passes for the two shows have them recording 1 minute early and late. So could it be that the one tuner that is dropping out more was the one that recorded Justice? Is there a way to know which tuner a show was recorded with?

Anyway, how would I know if the signal strength is too high or too low? Most of these stations are in the 85-92 range except they drop down to the 70's or totally down to 0 and back up again sporadtically. I suppose too much signal strength could make them drop to 0 and back up again? Or would trees or obstacles in the line of sight cause those problems as well?

P.S. - I am running a signal coax cable from the roof of my house down to the basement and back up to the living room... not sure how many feet... perhaps 30 feet?

Thanks again!

 

[jim tressler]

trav - 14 miles should be fine unless you are using a big a$$ deep range antenna - do you know the model of the antenna you are using - some are better than others.. The bouncing signal is typical of multipath - do you have hills or large trees in between you and the towers? that can cause multipath - the other thing to remember, the ota tuner in the hd tivo is good, but no where near as good as the 5th gen LG tuners (most new pc hdtv cards have them as well as the h20 and hr20 - when its acitvated) and is very suseptable to multipath. Also signal strength as reported by the hd tivo is not a true indication of how stong the signal is - to really measure the signal, you need the find the snr which is measured in dB's - 15db is the threshold for good locked signal.. I would do the following - head over to avs forum and find your local hdtv ota thread - someone there will know what antennas work best and from where.. http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=453241

I would also check to make sure your coax connection is good and watertight at the antenna - but at 30 feet and 14 miles, you should not need an amp (provided you have a decent antenna) you may also try and moving the antenna to different parts of the house - you would be surprised what a 1 or 2 foot move can do! good luck

jim

 

[texasbrit]

Signal "strength" that fluctuates from 85-90 down to zero is a classic sign of multipath; adding an amp may even make the problem worse. You can check by looking at the analog transmission of the same station, if you have ghosting then you have multipath (if the digital is on UHF and the analog on VHF then this isn't always a good test!).
To reduce multipath, adjusting the antenna away from the direct line to the transmitters can sometimes help. Here in DFW I could not receive PBS 13.1 which transmits on channel 14. Some days my signal "strength" was zero, other days it fluctuated between 80 and zero. When I checked the analog channel 13 I had severe ghosting. I adjusted my antenna to minimise the ghosting and I got PBS digital at a solid 90. I had lost a few points on some of my other channels but nothing serious, I was now pointed at least 10 degrees away from the direct heading to the transmitters.
If this does not work, you need to choose an antenna with better multipath characteristics. What antenna are you currently using?

 

[donyoop]

Trav, do you have the 6.3 upgrade??

my ATSC tuners started acting really funky after the upgrade.

I am now averaging one or two lockups per night when changing channels with the ATSC tuner (one ATSC channel to another). It never happened with the previous software.

Not a happy camper right now.

Don

 

[jim tressler]

my atsc tuners still work the same as they did before.. the only problem now is they are a little slower in reading the guide when you tune to a channel and sometimes when I tune to a channel I get the "searching for signal" message for a split second..

 

[Happy Camper]

Judging from your signal strength and distance from your antennas, the HR-10-250 ought to get the signal just fine. There are just so many things to worry about when trouble shooting an antenna signal, and there are lots of good articles written. Usually, it's something as simple as a loose or attenuated connector, a crimped or loose wire, a corroded or damaged antenna element, an amplifier or preamp which does not work, etc.

I came back from a friend's the other day after having "fixed" his "whole antenna going out." Turns out the GFI on the power plug supplying his antenna amp had tripped, LOL.

Our HR10-250 has worked differently and badly in many respects since the Version 6 software update, and we are mad about it. Before the change, I got a weak local channel just fine. Now, I don't get it.

Good luck.

 

[cbearnm]

Another fix I have heard about (at TiVoCommunity), but haven't tried, is to open the HR10-250 and replace the short pieces of coax that go from the back plane to the tuners. They are about 12 inches long, so you would probably need a crimp tool and make the proper length. There are those that have claimed that just cleaning them works as well.
http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=312472&page=1&pp=30
Post #73 has some pics as well.

 

[dishrich]

If you are near any FM stations, you might be getting FM overload into your tuners, particulary if any of your digital locals are in the VHF high band. (7-13) I had this very same problem with a local PBS on digital 9, as I was shooting right through the FM tower. But when I put a 4-way split on the line (since I was needing to feed other tuners anyway) knocked it down enough that now the problem station locks in consistantly.

 

[Nascarken 91xg]

Time for a filter

 

[Jimbo]

Time for a filter

You jumped into a thread from 11 years ago ?