Voom should enable OTA permanently!

[elocs]

I have to agree with what you're saying. The only fly in the ointment is that it doesn't look like cablevision had a clue that they would have to carry the losses for several years until they could build the customer base. How could they realistically believe that it was going to be profitable in such a short time is absurd. If they weren't any more committed to Voom than to kill it after 18 months, they shouldn't have gotten into it to start with.

It could be that they knew there were going to be losses, but could not stomach them or did not have the commitment to continue enduring the loss of millions of dollars. Maybe they were clueless.
Charles Dolan was the one with the vision for Voom, but it was not an altruistic venture for him. He was in it to make money and hopefully lots of money and he deserved it if he was successful. But evidently he could not find the investors who shared his vision and he was not willing to risk his life's fortune to keep Voom going. Bad for us, but such is life.

 

[T2k]

Nope, nada.

I have a new unactivated voom box.

No way to the menus so no way to enter aota channel number

CANNOT BE DONE. NEEDS ACTIVATION

Interesting enough you're the first one who claims this - against several others who still use their boxes or tried it with a never activated new box.

 

[elocs]

Interesting enough you're the first one who claims this - against several others who still use their boxes or tried it with a never activated new box.

This same question as to whether the Voom receiver would still work for ota after shutdown was raised months ago. Still no definative answer. Yes it will, no it won't. Can't be both.

 

[gutter]

Here is another question..
What will Voom do with the boxes if they decide to take them back???
they've already been expensed and the company is closing the books, so what good does it do them to get them back??? Store them in a warehouse for companies not in business any longer??? LOL..

Actually, according to another thread, this is the same box that is used by the DBS in Canada. So they could sell them to them and just re- program them.

 

[Lobstah]

I think someone posted that if you go into the menu and reset the authorization code, the box will be brain dead until it's "reactivated".

Might want to give that a try if you're looking for proof. You can call cust. svc. and tell them you hit it by mistake.

Then you'll know for yourself, and you won't be stressed over conflicting info.

Lob

 

[Lobstah]

Actually, according to another thread, this is the same box that is used by the DBS in Canada. So they could sell them to them and just re- program them.

Sure they could.
That doesn't mean it makes financial sense to DO it.
They still have to pick them up, ship them, clear them out, test them, rescreen them, repack them and then reship them.

And this is going to be done by a company that's going out of business, and someone wants to recover these as an "assett"?
How much did VOOM lose last quarter?

I'm not saying they WON'T try and get them back...I'm just saying it's hard to believe they'd be that DUMB.

Lob

 

[bryan27]

I don't know Lobstah, I could see James demanding the boxes back if Charles tells customers to keep them. Just like the 'pull the website' 'put the website up' 'pull the website' fiasco last month.

To reset your authorization and see the teal screen and no channels until your authorization code is downloaded again, press VOOM, press the GREEN button, choose 7 INSTALLER MENU, press 988, choose 5 AUTHORIZATION RESET, press OK to confirm.

Sometimes the receiver will get freaked out and the teal screen will stay. So if after an hour you still don't have anything, or you get tired of seeing nothing press the GREEN button which will give you some of the menu functions. Going through the menus will kick it back in. You can also access the status screens while you wait by pressing the GREEN button and see if the authorization is being received.

 

[seandudley]

One question about Voom Receivers and OTA: Does the receiver get the OTA EPG information from the Voom satellite signal or from the local stations? From previous threads it APPEARS that the data comes from the satellite. The answer to this question will answer the question of usefulness after April 30th.

JL

Aparently it comes over the air with the digital signal. I thought it came form the satellites, too, until my programming guide data all disappeared on my local stations in the Knoxville, TN market. Voom swapped my box, but that didn't help. CSR at Voom told me the programming data doesn't come from them, it comes from the local stations. I was then told the same thing by a high up tech guy at Voom. I then called a local station and they told me the same thing. My local Voom installer also confirmed this is correct. Unfortunately something happened to some sort of Voom software update apparently that causes it to give me "No Info" for all my local channels. My local Voom installer checked other people in my area, and found that everyone in my area has the exact same problem. My information on locals worked for over a year with no problem.

 

[67Yv8t]

Sure they could.
That doesn't mean it makes financial sense to DO it.
They still have to pick them up, ship them, clear them out, test them, rescreen them, repack them and then reship them.

And this is going to be done by a company that's going out of business, and someone wants to recover these as an "assett"?
How much did VOOM lose last quarter?

I'm not saying they WON'T try and get them back...I'm just saying it's hard to believe they'd be that DUMB.

Lob

Actually, Voom could contract directly with the Canadian company to do the collection, and refurbishment, saying for each box you collect agree to pay us $67.68 or some other dollar amount. The Canadian Company would collect as many as possible and do the refurb, and save maybe $200 each over getting new ones to put in their pool of replacements.

Voom doesn't have to spend any time or money to collect them, just sell them where they sit. Let the new owner figure out how to collect them, the new owner can contract with Installs inc or another company to go pick them up.

 

[sbmcc96]

Ota

Until a box is initially activated, it will not receive any channel maps (sat or OTA) and therefore no content. Once a box is initially activated, it is good to go. Once aspect of activation, though, is getting the authorization tiers. As long as Voom does not deactivate a box (and remove all tiers), you'll be able to continue to get OTA. The guide data comes via the sat only. You'll be able to see OTA, but will not see anything in the guide. Factory reset (9 8 8) will wipe out all authorizations, so I do not suggest doing that (as you most likely will not get Voom to send out any more authorizations at this point).

 

[bryan27]

Aparently it comes over the air with the digital signal. I thought it came form the satellites, too, until my programming guide data all disappeared on my local stations in the Knoxville, TN market.

If it came over the air then why in the world did VOOM go to all the trouble to create Super DMA channel maps to give us the guide tata for the missing channels. If the guide data for the locals is comming over the air from the stations then after the scanning software became available we wouldn't have needed the Super DMA channel maps in the first place. Let alone tell VOOM what channels were missing guide data so that those channels could be added.

The guide data for the locals is comming from the sat. The problem described of all locals having 'no info' would be impossible if the data was comming from the stations unless all the stations decided at the same time to not send guide data, which isn't very likely.

Try unpluging the dish and reboot your receiver and see when you get guide data on your locals.

 

[bryan27]

Factory reset (9 8 8) will wipe out all authorizations, so I do not suggest doing that (as you most likely will not get Voom to send out any more authorizations at this point).

Everyone's authorization codes are always being sent in the data stream. You don't have to call VOOM if you do an authorization reset the authorizations are being continuously sent. You just have to wait for your code in the stream.

 

[sbmcc96]

Yes, they come in sporadically automatically for now. Once the uplink is down they will not be available.

 

[seandudley]

If it came over the air then why in the world did VOOM go to all the trouble to create Super DMA channel maps to give us the guide tata for the missing channels. If the guide data for the locals is comming over the air from the stations then after the scanning software became available we wouldn't have needed the Super DMA channel maps in the first place. Let alone tell VOOM what channels were missing guide data so that those channels could be added.

The guide data for the locals is comming from the sat. The problem described of all locals having 'no info' would be impossible if the data was comming from the stations unless all the stations decided at the same time to not send guide data, which isn't very likely.

Try unpluging the dish and reboot your receiver and see when you get guide data on your locals.

I really don't understand it at all. I started off by arguing with the Voom rep. He said the information comes from the local stations in the digital signal, and I said I was sure it really came from the Voom satellite. Only after being told by the CSR, and the higher up Voom tech guy, and then the local TV station (ABC) confirming that they send this information in their stream on the digital signal, and then the Voom installer verifying this is how it works did I decide I must have been wrong, and it must really come in over the local digital signal. If it does really come from the satellite, I'm really confused as to why the local cheif engineer for an ABC TV station would ask, "Are you talking about the analog or digital signal", and when I answered "digital", he said, yes, we send all the program guide data for the channel in that digital stream.

I know that all the stations didn't decide to stop sending the data at the same time. In fact, on DirecTV receivers, the program guide data still shows up fine in the guide on the off-air stations as verified by my Voom installer who also installs DirecTV.

Specifically, when mine stopped working, is when Voom swapped out my box I had had for about a year to fix an audio problem. After that, in the guide, the channels 0-4, 0-6 and 0-10 showed up, which are obviously bogus channels, and the local channels stopped giving their programming guide data. I tried shutting the receiver off, unplugging it, letting it just sit there for days, replacing it a couple of times with new Voom receivers, and the installer verified that every other Voom receiver he looks at in the Knoxville, TN market does the exact same thing with the 0-4, 0-6 and 0-10 channels, and No Info for all the local channels.

So, truely I don't know what is going on here and why the heck I can't get my local information on my channels any more. Would be nice if I could get the local data off an over the air signal for when I have to use it as a OTA only tuner after Voom folds. Oh well.

 

[sbmcc96]

Local TV channels (digital) can send PSIP data over the air that contains guide information. The firmware in the box would need to interpret the PSIP and integrate it into the guide. Voom receivers do not interpret the PSIP guide info- they get the guide dat from the sat only.

 

[seandudley]

OK, that makes sense. That means that the chief engineer at the local TV station knew what he was talking about when he said they were sending the information in their digital stream, and that the people at Voom and the Voom installer didn't know how it worked which isn't extremely surprising. I guess Voom just messed something up for the Knoxville, TN market then. I reported this to them, and they are supposed to be looking into it to fix it, but somehow I doubt they will at this point.

 

[bryan27]

Yes, they come in sporadically automatically for now. Once the uplink is down they will not be available.

I wouldn't call it sporatic it's there all the time you just have to wait in line for your code

Of couse there aren't going to be any codes received once the signal satellite signal stops so I wouldn't do a reset when there is no signal.

Hopefully VOOM will be nice enough to send a software update before the termination that will remove all the software that involves the satellite including preventing the user from reseting authorization or a factory reset, but leave all OTA options functional.

 

[Lobstah]

"Actually, Voom could contract directly with the Canadian company to do the collection, and refurbishment, saying for each box you collect agree to pay us $67.68 or some other dollar amount. The Canadian Company would collect as many as possible and do the refurb, and save maybe $200 each over getting new ones to put in their pool of replacements."

So how does this work? They have to pay VOOM $$$, they're paying someone to go get the boxes, and then doing the refurb, etc...

It's still the same equation, I don't care who's doing the work. The sat box is not a high-dollar item, and I believe the cost of dealing with the used boxes will be MUCH higher than buying new boxes.

Like I said before...that doesn't mean they WON'T do it, it just means it would be a really stupid decision that would cost CV even MORE money.

Lob

 

[Satellite Expert]

Like I said before...that doesn't mean they WON'T do it, it just means it would be a really stupid decision that would cost CV even MORE money.

Lob

Actually the Star Choice DSR500 and Voom DSR550 are not exactly the same chassis. There is no ATSC component to the DSR500. In addition the firmware is totally different as the 500's was developed by SC/Motorola and the 550's by Voom/Ucentric.

It is the HDVR units that are the same hardware. (SC DSR530 and Voom DSR580) Once again different firmware developers.

The difference in hardware is that SC wanted to hit the lowest price point with their DVR version so they made the ATSC portion as future add ins. The following spec sheet shows 2 knockouts on the back of the 530 for the OTA modules; the 580 would have had them already installed. The slot for future MPEG4 is on the side.

http://www.starchoice.com/english/learn/hardware/dsr530.asp

 

[nnicko]

Regarding the OTA's, perhaps I'm reading a lot of the posts incorrectly but it seems that many of you are concerned about continuing to receive local digital broadcasts. The antenna is just that -an antenna! Just connect it to your tv and you'll pick up your locals. Naturally you won't have the on-screen guide but hey - just use the free guide in your local paper.