6412, sometimes blank screen with audio.

[couchpotatoe]

I have a 2 week old 6412 phase 3.
So whats with this blank screen with audio only?, and if you press channel up its sort of quirky where it won't maybe change up immediately and then jump 2 channels, no picture anyway. You can see the 4:3 outline on my Sony crt HDTV, so its giving me a dark grey 4:3 or some color to indicate its not the TV at fault. Theres audio.
I have to unplug the 6412 and plug it in and then it works, but of course no guide for a while
This sucks if it happens after work, get in and have to unplug to get the picture back and then no guide for a while
Its done it twice in two weeks now. First time I called Shaw who tried to reset it for me and didn't help cos it wouldn't talk back to Shaw. So whilst I had him on the phone I swapped out cables and no help. I decided on my own to unplug it for a minute and bingo that solved it, he could communicate with it again, so he reset it anyhow that time. Now I just unplug it and no resets needed.
Its a real pain.
THX.

[pwm]

I sometimes get that. I just hit "live" on the remote and the display pops up.

[spitoon]

For what it's worth, I've never seen that with my PIII box.

[couchpotatoe]

Hi, I'm back.
Pressing Live didn't do anything, I recall pressing everything. Its not recording anything at that time anyhow.

But I am back today with a similar problem, possibly related, Shaw is no help, I mention I unplugged it before and they say to try that again and see if it fixes it. Their reset to default and that didn't fix it permenantly, and waiting for the guide and functions to slowly come back aftera reset is a nuisance, especially since I have just come in, sat down to watch TV and then have to start faffing about with it!
The unplugging does get it going, but doesn't fix it. Maybe its a firmware issue??? I have seen issues come and go with other DCT models over the years....just sit patiently for weeks....

....anyhow now twice this week when we have the TV on we end up not being able to get the Guide or Info or List or other stuff to do anything, the LED flickers on the 6412s display to indicate I am pressing remote buttons, but nothing happens. Right now I am recording something so I can't unplug it, its so annoying, I think I need to swap boxes for another, this one is a month old. If its firmware then you'd all see this issue I guess.
So playing with it I can't watch what I am recording cos I can't get "List" to work. I can press REC for the channel that I am viewing, then Swap and can bring up the other recording (so I can be sure its recording the earlier program still), I can swap back. I can pause the live show I am watching and play again. It will change channels up and down or type the channel number and it changes....thats all ok, but no guide or List or info, maybe more I haven't tried to use too.

And "yes" there's brand new batteries in the remote. (It changes channel and volume and that anyhow)

This is similar to the no picture but only audio problem....it seems to stick or something and thats that, have to unplug it to reset it.

If anyone has seen this come and go I'll wait, but otherwise I guess I'll have to demand a new box and wait all day for Shaw to come again. Oh joy!

Something else Shaw mentions is they can't communicate with the box during these problem periods, until I unplug it and then its immediatly fine for them. Thats odd, like not a hardware problem, just somethings getting corrupted or crossed. Thats why I think firmware. I can look up the firmware version later after I unplug it so I can get the menus, as I said right now its recording something so I am leaving it alone. Anyhow they downloaded the firmware, etc, twice when I got it and since. So it must be the latest.

[DCTGoddess]

I would suggest getting a new DCT. Those problems are atypical.

[couchpotatoe]

Its been a couple weeks more now, and it still does odd things. It still will have the blank screen and only audio when ever it feels like, once per week, or just freeze so it won't do anything. Its drove me mad, Shaw phone help is no help!
I bought it at the Shaw outlet downtown, so my best bet now will be to put it in the box and go back then, exchange it.
From what I have been advised to exchange it ....it sounds like I have an isolated problem that most people don't have then????
I was waiting for firmware to update or something but its maddening when its froze or blank screen....as soon as I unplug it and plug it in again its ok.
But have to wait for the guide to reload.
Thankfully it remembers schedule recordings. At first I thought it'd forget those.
Also today my son said it was blank at noon and all afternoon, I was at work. But when I got home it was still blank screen, although it did record a scheduled recording mid afternoon succesfully, which I could only watch after unplugging/repplugging the unit!
I will exchange it I guess.

[bottlerocket]

6412 is three days old and I woke up this morning to the same issue. Box is on but doesn't output video from any output (HMDI, S-video). Tried pushing live but didn't work.

Once I unplugged it and plugged it back in, the box came back to life.

[magnet]

Mentioned many times before:

1. Never turn off the 6412

2. Go to a previous recording and hit play... this will bring your box back to life.

3. If the audio mutes after using the skip button too many times, hit the last button twice and your sound will come back.

[couchpotatoe]

Again!
Another day and its a blank black screen again!
Yesterday it was bright green, today blank like the 1st unit I had last week.
This has got to be a hardware problem in the 6412 or firm/software. It is not my TV, as soon as I unplug the 6412 and replug it in a second it reboots and I have picture!
This drives me nuts as I can't use the guide all night now, same thing as every day, I get in from work and blank screen almost every day. Seems to happen on any 6412, why not for everyone though?

And to cgyclaytonmagnet, Its not possible to go to a previous recording since I can't see the screen. Theres audio and I can change channles up and down, but no picture....all I see on my widescreen TV is a 4:3 dark blank picture, no fuzz, just blank/black and nothing else on sceen.

And if this problem is only resolved by leaving the 6412 on all the time then why doesn't Shaw say the 6412 has to be left on. It gets so hot when its on. But a lot of the time this thing is blank first thing in the morning cold, and after work cold, and like last night and tonight it happens after its been used for a few hours too.....turned off for supper and we come back a couple hours later and its done it again when we turn it on.

I am sorry if this seems like whining! but it drives me mad....I paid $800 for this! Its the sort of thing I expect from a $29 DVD player!!!

Shaw have no idea what I am talking about, never mind a solution. The day the tech came to look at my 1st 6412 last week, it was ok that time, of course if he'd stayed all day to watch TV with me he'd not have to wait long to see what I mean! And like I said the 2nd unit had no audio at all, and that got swapped immediately at the Shaw outlet.
This is the 3rd unit I have had in a month now. I got the 1st one a month ago, replaced my 6200 that was flawless for 10 months.

[57]

The STB should never be cold. These units are never "off" they only enter "standby" and draw a major portion of the "on" power, with the HDD always spinning. The "off" only reduces power a couple of Watts, if that, so these STBs are always warm.

Do you have good ventillation around the STB. Heat is a killer and the STB should always be "on top". Also, do you perhaps have "poor power" for the unit, that could cause it to shut down? Also have you ever measured the S/N ratio as I recommended in another thread?

[couchpotatoe]

Sorry, I guess I used the word "off" and "hot" and "cold" loosly.
I knew it doesn't turn completely off. When I say "off" I meant I just use the remote and power down so the theres no display. In that mode it won't go clap cold of course. But it cools down noticably compared to being on. If its powered on all night with the channel displayed, then I feel it is hot, stays hot, understandably normal, when its powered on all the time. Its not extreemly hot, and yes its well ventilated and is on top of other stuff, like CD player thats never on (clap cold underneath). But it'll do this even first thing in the morning when its cool all night and has been in standby.
So I just turn it off with the remote at night or when I am going out, as I expect is intended. Its still powered, no problem there. Its not even plugged ina power bar, its direct to wall for now.
I do think it is a good idea to just leave it on with the channel displayed all the time as suggested, but won't the heat and HDD spinning continually over time just wear things down?

57, you say the HDD is on all thetime, even in standby or does the HDD go off when the 6412 is powered down? or does it run all night anyway? I know the fan is on 24/7 when the 6412 is powered down. Thats fine.

57, I finally checked that S/N. It says SNR 15.4 db FAIR.
Now that doesn't sound good. How do I decipher that and what should I tell Shaw so they take me seriously if that should be fixed?
Thanks.