HR34 Not Recording Series

[DJ Lon]

Thought I'd toss this out there and see if anyone can help.

My HR34 Genie is being naughty. It randomly chooses what and what not to record. I have quite a few series set up to record (first run) and even though I can see the new episodes in the guide itself the series manager will say 0 episodes next to the show name and won't record anything. It's basically ruined my summer viewing season. Another weird thing it does is, for example, I have it set up to record "Zoo" on my local CBS channel and it will ignore that and record 3 hours earlier on channel 390 CBSeHD which will be a blank recording (and doesn't even show up to me in the guide). It currently has 0xa05 software (downloaded 7/9) but had this same behavior with the previous version as well.

I set up recordings from the guide itself, not via search.
I've done a red-button reset.
I've unplugged the Genie for 1/2 hour and plugged it back in.
I've done a CLEARMYBOX.
There are no conflicts or too many things recording/scheduled at the same time.
I'm pulling my hair out.

Help!

 

[ejb1980]

Seeing "HR34" in your post is all the information you need to give. Call Directv, say your receiver isn't acting correctly. They'll make you do all the usual "reset it" junk. Play along and eventually they'll offer to send someone out. HOPEFULLY, that installer will have a HR44 and just swap it out. The HR34 is the worst receiver Directv has probably ever made.

 

[Jimbo]

Seeing "HR34" in your post is all the information you need to give. Call Directv, say your receiver isn't acting correctly. They'll make you do all the usual "reset it" junk. Play along and eventually they'll offer to send someone out. HOPEFULLY, that installer will have a HR44 and just swap it out. The HR34 is the worst receiver Directv has probably ever made.

I wouldn't go as far as saying it is the worse one yet, some of the older non genies were not very good.

 

[Drucifer]

Thought I'd toss this out there and see if anyone can help.

My HR34 Genie is being naughty. It randomly chooses what and what not to record. I have quite a few series set up to record (first run) and even though I can see the new episodes in the guide itself the series manager will say 0 episodes next to the show name and won't record anything. It's basically ruined my summer viewing season. Another weird thing it does is, for example, I have it set up to record "Zoo" on my local CBS channel and it will ignore that and record 3 hours earlier on channel 390 CBSeHD which will be a blank recording (and doesn't even show up to me in the guide). It currently has 0xa05 software (downloaded 7/9) but had this same behavior with the previous version as well.

I set up recordings from the guide itself, not via search.
I've done a red-button reset.
I've unplugged the Genie for 1/2 hour and plugged it back in.
I've done a CLEARMYBOX.
There are no conflicts or too many things recording/scheduled at the same time.
I'm pulling my hair out.

Help!

Stay away from All Channels as I'm still finding that to be buggy as hell.

And double check the First Air Date as First Run wont record if the First Air Date is before the record date. Many shows are now first run airing in Canada and other countries.

 

[DJ Lon]

Stay away from All Channels as I'm still finding that to be buggy as hell.

And double check the First Air Date as First Run wont record if the First Air Date is before the record date. Many shows are now first run airing in Canada and other countries.

LOL Yes, The word for All Channels I use I can't post here because I don't want to make this message NSFW. And the only air dates I've had issue with, so far, are on BBC America so I record things on that channel manually.

I called in this morning and after the usual customer service carousel of run system info, a red-button reset, compare numbers, etc., etc. they agreed to a truck roll for tomorrow morning. If anyone is interested I'll let you know how it turns out.

And thanks for the responses...as always I appreciate the input.

 

[Jimbo]

LOL Yes, The word for All Channels I use I can't post here because I don't want to make this message NSFW. And the only air dates I've had issue with, so far, are on BBC America so I record things on that channel manually.

I called in this morning and after the usual customer service carousel of run system info, a red-button reset, compare numbers, etc., etc. they agreed to a truck roll for tomorrow morning. If anyone is interested I'll let you know how it turns out.

And thanks for the responses...as always I appreciate the input.

Let us know how it goes ...

 

[scots]

My HR34 is doing the same thing. I've had it about 3 years now. It started off only doing it on BBC America, but now it's doing it on other channels also. It seems to be completely random. One time I'll schedule a show to record all first runs and it works fine, and then I'll setup a different show to record all first runs and it'll record the first one but none of the rest. Usually it will start working properly if I delete the "problem" recording and re-schedule it.

 

[DJ Lon]

UPDATE:

A contracted technician came out this morning. I told him what was going on and he checked the lnb, signal levels, voltages, etc. and everything checked out fine. He basically told me that all he had was HR34s on his truck and that D* hands out HR44s to the contractors (at least in Phoenix) with an eye-dropper. He said that he could do a box swap but all that would do is give me another HR34 and that I'd just lose my recorded shows I already have and would probably end up with the same issues I'm having now either right away or down the road. In so many words he said D* knows about the HR34 issues on some installations but won't admit to anything. He suggested to cancel this service call and have me call back in to D* and escalate the issue. I called back and finally ended up talking to a supervisor, told him what was going on, and basically ended up telling him I don't care if you have to glue 3 HR24s together to fix this but I want it fixed. He reminded me, just like the csr, that my assumption of an HR44 being a cure all [I never said "cure all," I said "lesser of two evils"] is completely unfounded and that no one there has control of what is, or will be, installed on my premises during the service call. He assured me that he placed a note on the service call for the tech that will be out Sunday morning to have "the necessary tools/equipment to fix this once and for all."

We'll see.

 

[Zashel]

He reminded me, just like the csr, that my assumption of an HR44 being a cure all [I never said "cure all," I said "lesser of two evils"] is completely unfounded and that no one there has control of what is, or will be, installed on my premises during the service call. He assured me that he placed a note on the service call for the tech that will be out Sunday morning to have "the necessary tools/equipment to fix this once and for all."

which means the tech will come out, then look at the notes, then tell you "oh well" when he hands you a 34. my buddy was telling me about a customer who had a 44-200 installed, but because it has some issue with caller ID, the customer got D* to ship him a 44-700 which did not have that problem (buddy had 44-500's on the van). so it's not impossible to get them to give you the right receiver, but it may take *alot* of phone wrestling. alternativly, you can try asking to speak to the tech's supervisor to see if *they* wont find you a hr44.

 

[DJ Lon]

which means the tech will come out, then look at the notes, then tell you "oh well" when he hands you a 34. my buddy was telling me about a customer who had a 44-200 installed, but because it has some issue with caller ID, the customer got D* to ship him a 44-700 which did not have that problem (buddy had 44-500's on the van). so it's not impossible to get them to give you the right receiver, but it may take *alot* of phone wrestling. alternativly, you can try asking to speak to the tech's supervisor to see if *they* wont find you a hr44.

LOL I know what you mean. I haven't had any major issues with any of my HR24s over the years [knock on wood] but I can tell you that my HR24/500 has its operational quirks compared to the HR24/100s even though they're supposedly the same.

I just find this whole issue frustrating. As I've mentioned over the years in other posts, I originally got the Genie for my elderly Mom when she moved in with me when my Pop died because she really likes her TV. But here it is a little over 2 1/2 years down the road and I'm currently on my 5th one. It's not like I'm trying to score new equipment or anything; I want to keep household tensions to a minimum. If the Genie doesn't record something or a whole recording is pixellated and stuttering or something else happens with it, I'm the one that hears about it for weeks to come. I've already prepared myself for this box swap because I know I'll be hearing about the lost DVR recordings for the foreseeable future. I hate having to call in and would prefer not to. If the HR44 works, fine. If it doesn't, I guess I should tell the supervisor they can send me a "I told you so" letter. LOL But I'd at least like D* to humor me and give it a try anyway.

 

[DJ Lon]

UPDATE:

Tech is currently here with a Supervisor and an HR44 (!) and they're also replacing my LNB and SWM with a newer version because the supervisor said the old SWM I have is "prone to overheating."

 

[Hutch1814]

I think you're just getting the classic "when in doubt swap it out" speech. I haven't heard in 5 years of a SWM that is prone to overheating

 

[DJ Lon]

FINAL UPDATE:

All done. They installed a new sat dish and swapped out the HR34 for an HR44/200. Supervisor also said I now have the new digital 22 channel SWM and 1-line LNB (that were in testing) and that the old SWM16 and 4-line LNB I had will officially start to be be phased out starting this week . My receivers used to say "Slimline-3" and now they say "Slimline 3DS (DSWM)" in System Info. He also laughed and said I'm HR54-ready.

THE HR44 is awesome, it's like night/day compared to the HR34 as far as operation goes. Hopefully I won't have to call in for service for quite some time.

 

[Zashel]

if possible, mind taking a picture of the LNB label? i'd herd dubious rumors of the 22.

 

[DJ Lon]

if possible, mind taking a picture of the LNB label? i'd herd dubious rumors of the 22.

I hate to disappoint but me climbing around on my roof is out of the question, sorry.

 

[Zashel]

np, thought i'd ask.

 

[rapidturtle]

I just got my 34 swapped out for a 44, and like you said, night and day difference. I don't understand how they can try and tell customers that a genie is a genie.

 

[DJ Lon]

I just got my 34 swapped out for a 44, and like you said, night and day difference. I don't understand how they can try and tell customers that a genie is a genie.

Well I think I can understand what the CSRs mean when they insist that "a genie is a genie." On-screen menus and features look exactly the same. They just fail to mention the operational differences between the two models.

 

[texasbrit]

if possible, mind taking a picture of the LNB label? i'd herd dubious rumors of the 22.

I suspect it's just a SWM13 LNB.....

 

[peds48]

I suspect it's just a SWM13 LNB.....

Right.... Agree