Local channel mapping - NOT !

[Stingray]

This issue has been on the forum before, but has never been resolved, so with fingers crossed, lets try again!

My PVR 501 shows locals in the guide by their OTA channel number (2, 4, 7 ,50, etc.). The 508 purchased last May has never worked this way. Many calls to tech support has had no reesult. Even swapping out the unit (thank you Dish) didn't make a difference.

Two weeks ago the 501 stopped displaying the local station numbers! Again tech support continues to say that they should. They say that it has been turned over to engineering (that was said last August) and that they don't know of anyone else reporting such a problem.


Bye the way, they have led me through every kind of reboot and even deleted the account and re-initialized the receiver to force a complete software reset and guide download..... no difference! Both receivers have the latest software rev.

I know that there are some highly competent teckies on this forum and hope that one of you holds the answer !!!

Hopeful...... Stingray

 

[TNGTony]

The only question I have is, have you ever turned off the receiver for an extended period of time (A Day or so) while it is still plugged in and hooked up to the satellite dish?

If not. Try it. The receivers are never "off". However when in the standby mode, the receiver can get some info it can't while turned on.

See ya
Tony

 

[Stingray]

Yes Tony - I tried leaving the receiver "off" overnight and even for 24 hours several times..... no difference, but thanks!

 

[A_Noland]

Do you receive locals from multiple cities? If so, they don't map.

 

[Stargazer]

I am also curious if you receive locals from different cities because I have two 508's that I have been thinking about activating but want to know if I am going to have some channel mapping issues with them. The 301 I have connected right now to a dish to get locals does channel mapping.

 

[Tampa8]

"Do you receive locals from multiple cities? If so, they don't map."

There is only one set of "locals" you can get, the others are distant nets.
My 508 channel maps all the locals, and I do get other distant networks. Distant nets do not map, your true locals do.

 

[Stingray]

Do I receive more than one set of locals...... NO! Remember that one PVR did show the local channel numbers while the second (newer one) did not (untill now that neither one does).

But..... This seems far out to me, but may be part of the problem..... I live about 40 miles north west of Detroit and the Detroit stations are my locals. Just this week, Dish started rebroadcasts of the Flint locals (I believe I saw that announcement here the other day).

I live only 20 miles south of Flint and my zip code and area code put me in "the Flint area". Not that it coincides with the problem but - who knows?

I had this discussion with tech support last month and they didn't think this was the cause. Maybee it's time for another chat!

Update: Tech support is sending me a new dual LNB for my 500 dish. She believes that I may not be receiving local channel mapping due to failure of the LNB that sees the 110 satellite that sends that data.

Doesnt quite make sense to me but we'll give it a try.

Please send me any thoughts that you have..... your guess may be better than E*'s.

 

[TNGTony]

It's a waste of time. The data that tells the receiver where to map the channels is in the same stream that receives the EPG. So if you get to see the EPG, your receiver sees the info on channel mapping.

The receiver sees a string like this:

8903,49,KHON,TAG 134,1,1,35,40,0,252,255,TAG 132,TAG 128,11,25,0,2

The last number in the string is a 2. This is where the receiver will map KHON (channel 2 Honolulu)

I think you hit on the problem. If your service addess (or other identifying info) is outside the Detroit DMA of your "locals" then they aren't considered local channels. Therefore will not map to the local channel numbers!

The fact that one of the receivers mapped for a short while may have been an error in the first place considering.

Is your address physically INSIDE one of the Detroit TV market counties?

See ya
Tony

 

[Stingray]

Tony - Thanks for the reply! Your explanation makes sense. I am geographically IN the Detroit service area map that you show. I am inside Livingston county south of the northern boundry by 3 miles. North of that boundry is the zip code and area code my address is associated with.

North of that boundry is Genessee county, Flint, and the City of Fenton that is my mailing address, although I physically live in a rural township in Livingston County.

Tech support says that if I receive the Detroit locals, which I do, that the local station numbers should map into the guide - they don't (as I described earlier).

Since I used to get the local station numbers, is it possible that they have tightened up the Detroit beam which used to cover the Flint area, in anticipation of the Flint locals coming on-line?

Need more input!!

 

[TNGTony]

No. The Detroit beam hasn't changed. Since Flint came on a different satellite altogether (121°) there was no need.

I'm certain it has to do with something in your receiver because that is what it is being told to do by the Dish signal.

Now how to get passed the front line of script-reading automatons and the second line script-altering half authorized supervisors and on to the third line of real tech support which could possibly do something is another story.

Good luck!

See ya
Tony

 

[James Long]

Since I used to get the local station numbers, is it possible that they have tightened up the Detroit beam which used to cover the Flint area, in anticipation of the Flint locals coming on-line?

You are still getting the video from that beam. Besides, that's not the way spotbeams work.

In your case, they really don't work that way. Flint locals are on an entirely different satellite (121) at a completely different transponder (FSS band too).

They probably just swept through all the receivers in the Flint market with a new mapping table for the new channels and caught your receiver because, as far as E* is concerned, your zipcode is in the Flint market.

They should be able to resend the mapping.

JL

 

[Stingray]

Thank you Tony and JL for your input. I think I will change out the LNB when it arrives and then start the drill-down in tech support until I get some real support.

Next, after that, I will be removing the two 21 switches and putting in a 64 switch to tie my 61.5 sat into the system. That may start a whole new adventure!

Finally, a 921 will be added to the system - whew! Some people just can't leave well enough alone!!! Thanks again for your insight. Stingray