HR34 gets stuck at "Step 1 of 2".. HDMI issue

[zim2dive]

My setup is

HR34 -> Vizio CoStar (Google TV box.. HDMI in, adds overlays and then HDMI out)) -> Denon AVR-2113 -> TV (via HDMI)

I was trying to reduce the # of devices in the path which were applying their own processing.. and along the way, I've managed to get in a config that which the HR34 trips over and I can't seem to un-configure my way back out of it. The only way I can get unstuck is to unplug HDMI and do a reset and way long enough for the reset to finish, then reconnect HDMI.

a) Now 1st I have to say I don't understand how I can see several screens displayed as the HR34 is rebooting if HDMI is the issue ? Was there no handshaking until step 1 of 2 (which is 2/3 of the way thru the process)
b) I've "undone" every setting I can find and it still gets stuck.... exactly which piece of equipment in my chain does the HR34 think it is handshaking with?

 

[texasbrit]

There's nothing in the HR34 reboot sequence that requires it to sync with anything over HDMI. Maybe the HR34 is not freezing at all, maybe it's your display/passthru link that is incorrectly set up. try connecting the HR34 directly to the TV via HDMI and see what happens.

 

[zim2dive]

There's nothing in the HR34 reboot sequence that requires it to sync with anything over HDMI. Maybe the HR34 is not freezing at all, maybe it's your display/passthru link that is incorrectly set up. try connecting the HR34 directly to the TV via HDMI and see what happens.

100% its the HR34 that is freezing in the middle of the reboot process.

There is a small thread about this over at dbstalk (google "HR34 Step 1 of 2").. its where I got the idea to unplug HDMI and do a reset but there wasn't much other info of use.

 

[Jimbo]

100% its the HR34 that is freezing in the middle of the reboot process.

There is a small thread about this over at dbstalk (google "HR34 Step 1 of 2").. its where I got the idea to unplug HDMI and do a reset but there wasn't much other info of use.

So what happens with the set up when you do set it up with HDMI from the HR34 directly to the TV ?

 

[jcrandall]

Very odd, it boots ok when you hookup just a component or RCA video connection without any HDMI? Could try the "reset everything" and set it back to defaults - but it will erase all recordings. All else fails call and ask for an exchange on the receiver.

 

[zim2dive]

Wife is wanting to watch DVR material, so I got 1 experiment in... the boot process is

1) purple screen "Just a few more seconds..." (they misspelled "minutes" )
2) receiver self check
3) Step 1 of 2 "Just a few minutes"
4) Step 1 of 2 "almost done" (after ~2.5 minutes)
5) Step 2 of 2 (downloading guide data) (around 4 minutes in to the reboot)

When it gets stuck.. it gets stuck at #4 (call it Step 1b of 2)

I did a reboot as-is.. stuck at #4... I took the GoogleTV box out of the chain, and it got all the way thru (a little over 6 minutes total). It's been in the chain for months.. no idea why it would make a difference now.

Will do more experiments tomorrow.

 

[jcrandall]

You can do some testing on the receiver by hitting select when it is on the receiver self check. There are several tests including short and long hard drive tests. Not sure if it will find anything but never hurts to check.

 

[texasbrit]

I rather expected it to work with HDMI direct to the TV.

 

[zim2dive]

I rather expected it to work with HDMI direct to the TV.

It was still HR34 -> Denon -> TV.

 

[texasbrit]

It was still HR34 -> Denon -> TV.

OK, that would be a "normal" setup.

 

[PATECO]

I think the issue is with Google TV. Google TV tries to communicate with the HR34 over the HDMI, and it is locking up the HR34. Google TV will actually control a DISH receiver via the HDMI.

 

[texasbrit]

You're probably correct. If the Google Tv box tries to send control signals back down the HDMI cable, that could cause the HR34 to lock up. We've seen that problem with Sony and Samsung TVs using a similar system. If it is that, the control signals need to be switched off on the Google Tv box.

 

[zim2dive]

so the GTV box is telling the HR34 "stop taking so #@%^#^ long to reboot?"

HDMI CEC was the next group of settings I was going to try...

 

[DVDDAD]

I had HDMI problems with my Logitech Revue GoogleTV. It worked fine for a year or two and then it began experiencing problems. I replaced it with a SONY GoogleTV box that cleared up my problems. On a side note, I don't use it very much lately because they didn't update their flash player to be compatible with Sirius XM's web player. Now I use AppleTV to Airplay Sirius XM, my music and more to my TV. I still use my GoogleTV to view websites, Amazon Video Player and more. To keep this thread on topic, it's your GoogleTV box, when looking at replacements, you can try another GoogleTV box, AppleTV or a Roku box, depending on what suits you better.

 

[zim2dive]

I disabled HMDI-CEC on both the GoogleTV and on my AVR (I had yet to see them "do" anything anyway)... all seems to be well again. With all 4 devices in the chain, I was able to reboot without getting stuck.

thanks for the ideas!

 

[texasbrit]

I disabled HMDI-CEC on both the GoogleTV and on my AVR (I had yet to see them "do" anything anyway)... all seems to be well again. With all 4 devices in the chain, I was able to reboot without getting stuck.

thanks for the ideas!

Yes, CEC can be a real problem when a device generating CEC sends commands to one that does not process them. I struggled for a couple of weeks to track down CEC-related issues. My neighbor switched off CEC because his TV was switching to the bluray input when he powered up his bluray just to remove a disk.....