something strange - blank screen (merged)

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  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,352
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    Barry wrote:
    OK, managed to get the problem again, selecting Sky Sports News (Channel 83) seems to start the problem off on my box, few seconds of video then blank.

    Then selecting any channel with an MHEG stream will result in the blanking problem.....testing continues.
    I spent some time on this problem yesterday, as I had experienced it a few times, both before and after the latest software upgrade.

    There were enough clues, in what you, egrant and others on this thread had posted, to suggest that the problem related to the Sky channels so I focused on that.

    I didn't find, like you, that leaving the box on a Sky channel created the problem. However I did find that I could regularly reproduce it by tuning to either Sky News (Channel 82) or Sky Sports News (Channel 83) the pressing the channel change up button (but not the down button onto BBC channels) to visit channels 87 and 88. When I returned to a Sky channel the problem occurred.

    Sometimes this did not work, but bringing up and cancelling the text service on the Sky channel then trying again would usually cause the problem to re-occur. The problem was more difficult to create on Sky 3 (Channel 11) but I did manage to create it a couple of times in about twenty attempts by using the same method.

    I also found like BryanG2001 that switching to not just BBC1, but to any BBC channel corrected the problem within a few seconds after the screen went briefly blank, then the picture returned. Going into menu or guide only temporarily corrected the problem on the current channel but it returned after switching to another affected channel. It is easy to check if the problem has gone away on a Sky channel, as if the problem is still there even if you have a picture the text service will not work.

    I am not really all that surprised that there are not too many people reporting this problem as to get it regularly you probably need to be a bit of a news and sports news junkie (like me), who visits Sky News and Sky Sports news fairly frequently. Also the problem is automatically corrected by switching to a BBC channel, so most people probably just ignore it as a temporary glitch. It seems likely that a recent change to the Sky channels has created an incompatibility with the Humax box as I did not get this problem till a few weeks ago.

    I have tried and failed to recreate this problem with my BT Netgem iPlayer+.

    I will not be looking into this problem any more in the short term as I woke up this morning to find that I have the rather more serious dead box problem, where the box will not come out of standby either from the remote or the standby button on the box. I think that is probably only a coincidence but I hope that I have not actually created it by testing the blank screen problem.

    I find that I can temporarily correct this by using the technique that you posted on another thread by pressing the standby button on the box when doing a power recycle, but the problem re-occurs next time I put the box into standby, I will also try a restore to default settings and reloading the software but I think that I have probably got a hardware fault.
  • BarryBarry Posts: 1,259
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    It has not caused any problems with my box, and lets face mine gets a hammering with all this testing :)

    However if you still have problems, then please report.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,352
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    Barry wrote:
    It has not caused any problems with my box, and lets face mine gets a hammering with all this testing :)

    However if you still have problems, then please report.
    Yes the dead box problem (well half dead problem) occurring today is probably just a coincidence.

    I will report on how I get on with fixing that problem on the dead box thread.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 81
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    I am going get really frustrated over the coming weeks with the problem as I will be watching a lot of Sky Sports News because of the world cup. I hope Sky or humax resolve this problem soon.
  • BarryBarry Posts: 1,259
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    Well I have had an initial response from Sky.

    Basically my enquiry is receiving attention, and a reply will follow shortly.
  • BarryBarry Posts: 1,259
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    egrant wrote:
    I am going get really frustrated over the coming weeks with the problem as I will be watching a lot of Sky Sports News because of the world cup. I hope Sky or humax resolve this problem soon.

    I have found that removing the Sky Text channel (108) from the line up, and not using text on any of the Sky channels improves the situation in that you can view the channels without the blanking problem.
  • wgmorgwgmorg Posts: 5,020
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    Pressing Menu twice returns the picture whenever its happens.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,352
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    wgmorg wrote:
    Pressing Menu twice returns the picture whenever its happens.
    Yes but only temporarily on the specific channel that you are tuned to. When you retune to another affected channel the problem returns. The same applies to going into and out of the EPG.

    To get rid of the problem until you visit a Sky channel again, retune to a BBC channel for about ten seconds until the picture briefly blanks out then returns.
  • BarryBarry Posts: 1,259
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    Update from Sky (not that it helps much)

    My enquiry has now been passed onto the relevant department for investigation.
  • wgmorgwgmorg Posts: 5,020
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    Yes ... and when it happens on some channels just press menu twice... quick and easy!
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 19
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    I have also suffered from this issue (three times this week) and for me it's one of the biggest outstanding bugs - although some of us know how to recover the situation many users (inc the other half) will be confused.

    Does anyone know whether Humax are aware of this issue?
  • BarryBarry Posts: 1,259
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    Does anyone know whether Humax are aware of this issue?

    Yep post #39
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 19
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    Thanks Barry,

    I should have scanned through the thread! I think I will also email Humax to help raise the profile of the issue.

    Incidently one of the tell tail signs that this issue has occured, apart from the rather obvious BLANK screen, is the inability to access text/MHEG services on other channels.
  • BarryBarry Posts: 1,259
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    You need not bother contacting Humax if you do not want to. I have good contacts with them, and more or less speak with them daily.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 36
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    I had this problem when this thread first appeared but then it went away - until the last day or two!

    Has anyone else experienced an increase in frequency of this blank screen issue happening?

    Ian
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 4,545
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    egrant wrote:
    I am going get really frustrated over the coming weeks with the problem as I will be watching a lot of Sky Sports News because of the world cup. I hope Sky or humax resolve this problem soon.

    Hi Ewan, Humax are on to it already by the looks of it - I see they have software being tested at the moment hoping to resolve it. Will let you know more when I know more though
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 81
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    Thanks for that Marc
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 296
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    marcdavis wrote:
    Hi Ewan, Humax are on to it already by the looks of it - I see they have software being tested at the moment hoping to resolve it. Will let you know more when I know more though

    Marc, is there another update in the pipeline, saved EPG, > 20 timers, autopadding fixed....sorry got carried away there.

    Have you any inside gos??

    By the way my Hummy is performing magically now, dead chuffed, sky + a distant memory, two more months and I will have saved the cost of the Hummy in subscriptions!!

    Woolfynorm.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 4,545
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    I know what you mean woolfynorm, you are interested in some juicy gossip and speculation lol. I dont think this is the thread ;) I've got no gos really appart from whats already in this domain i.e. some bug fixes, tweaks, increase in timers, saving the epg, more repeat timer options. Apart from the usual work and talk with Humax on bug/issue fixes I guess there has been talk about some other things but some of them are frilly bits that will not have any sort of priority assigned to them. One such sideline frilly bit is 'mutiple select' in the recordings menu/list so you can delete all selected in one go rather than the process one by one if you want. As part of the USB/connectivity sideof things a Turbo mode similar to the toppy.
  • BarryBarry Posts: 1,259
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    is there another update in the pipeline, saved EPG, > 20 timers, autopadding fixed....sorry got carried away there.

    Certainly in the pipeline....we don't know how long it is though :)
    Have you any inside gos??
    ;)

    By the way my Hummy is performing magically now, dead chuffed, sky + a distant memory, two more months and I will have saved the cost of the Hummy in subscriptions!!

    Did exactly the same in Feb, and have not looked back.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 20
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    More 4 and E4 going to no vision or sound within about 10 secs of changing to those channels.Ok on all other channels.Has anyone else seen this today ?
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 28
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    A number of people have had this problem including me, but on most channels. I have just tried a suggestion made by somebody and it seems to have cured the problem

    Delete channel 108 - Sky Text.

    Have just checked channels again & no blanking - hopefully it will hold
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 20
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    Thanks for the info.
    I've just tried it again without doing anything,seems OK now.First hassle I've had since I bought it last October !
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 28
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    strange thing - seems to have just started to blank out again. But have noticed that the blanking does not affect recording
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 81
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    Check this thread for more info about the problem http://forum.digitalspy.co.uk/board/showthread.php?t=384856 , there should be a fixed released shortly to resolve the issue.
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