Channel 529 (HD NBC) Issues

[DonR]

I wonder if anybody else has the same problem as I do with HD NBC, in the last few days. It is similar to the problem with HD ABC (channel 527), that's been present for more than a year now.

What is going on in the last few days is that I am having very frequent audio dropouts. The sound is completely gone for a few seconds, sometimes along with this, the picture freezes as well, but most of the time it is sound only. The problem keeps coming back every few minutes, sometimes even 2-3 times in a single minute. It is becoming more than just annoying and I don't know if this is something local to my area (building), or is it possibly a wider problem.

[nfitz]

Yeah, I turned on the Office for a couple of minutes tonight, and this is how it was. I think it's been months since I turned to NBC during prime-time, so I figured this was just normal.

[ve3sy]

I'm not sure where the posters are located - possibly you could post a follow-up with your City

I've been watching - or trying to watch NBC TODAY show this morning and am experiencing the same issues thing here in Kitchener. Very frustrating indeed.

[57]

I normally record my NBC programmes (Leno) on Seattle, but last night I surfed past Leno on Buffalo and also encountered a long audio dropout and black screen for a few seconds. I thought it was due to my weak signal which I'm going to call Rogers about today. Perhaps it was not the signal but an issue with the affiliate, or Rogers reception of the channel.

[DonR]

Thanks, guys...looks like it's a wider problem. Time to call Rogers and see what they have to say. Hopefully, it's not going to be the same as HD ABC issue, which hasn't been fixed for more than a year now.

[DonR]

So, I called Rogers and told them about this problem. The guy who I talked to checked it himself and confirmed that he was experiencing the very same problem. He gave me the case number and said that he needed to report this to the Engineering department.

3 hours later, I got a reply from their automated service, saying that the issue "appears to be resolved".

Tonight, it is worse than ever. The audio dropouts are anything between a few seconds and several minutes long, and they are very frequent. Practically, the channel is not watchable. The problem is definitely present on HD shows, while I haven't seen it during the SD shows, so Icannot confirm that.

Rogers is going to send a technician to my place in a few days, even though I insisted that the problem is obviously much wider. When the guy shows up, I am pretty sure he will not be able to find anything. And the charade continues...

[57]

Not sure if you can record this happening, but if you can, even if only on a VCR, that may help since they'll know it's not made up...

[DonR]

Oh yeah, I can record it. I was actually planning to do it and show it to the technician when he comes. Hopefully, he won't start blaming it on the possibly faulty PVR (8300HD). I'd really prefer him to see it on a live program.

Last night, as I watched Leno, the first half hour or so was spotless, not a single glitch, but then it started like crazy. Every 10-15 seconds, audio dropouts that typically lasted 3-4 seconds each. If you guys are experiencing the same in a few different areas (Toronto, Kitchener; I am in Mississauga, btw.), I really find it hard to believe that Rogers didn't know about this already.

Are you still having these issues?

[Bombtrack]

I started taping Conan O'brien, last night being the first time. I had frequent audio dropouts and the picture freezing, I thought it was a one off thing, apparently not.

[whitbyontario]

I had the same problem with Leno on Friday night. First half was fine.

[highheat45]

Not sure if it's the same issue but the Sunday Night Football (HD) picture has been frozen for most of the broadcast tonight.

[mavrik]

I'm having the same freezing every 30 secs to a minute while watching Sunday night football as well.... So annoying! Located in Mississauga....

[TVGuy68]

I was watching PBSHD today and the sound cut out and the picture froze for a second or two, it's the first time I've seen it happen on PBS. This happened during the last half hour of Mystery @ around 10:10 PM, I'm located in Toronto.

[57]

With the remnants of Hurricane Ike coming through the area, along with some high winds, I'm not surprised that there are some glitches tonight. PBS does have occasional audio/video issues, often related to weather on the uplink or downlink (satellite) side, which could certainly explain the PBS issue and might explain why NBC was worse tonight.

See below for the thread on PBS.

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/show...977#post680977

Edit, as for NBC Buffalo, I watched about 5 minutes last night and saw 3 freezes lasting several seconds each. Keep complaining.

[DonR]

Yes, Sunday Night Football was terrible. The picture was freezing every minute or so, and at one point it stayed frozen for more than half an hour. The other two channels, broadcasting the same game (TSN and NBC Seattle) were okay.

Anyway, a technician came to my place today, checked all the connections and the signal strength, and of course everything was all right. He saw the problem, as it happened on live TV, while he was here, and I also showed him a few recordings from the last couple of days. He had no idea what was causing it.

It would be very helpful if more people called Rogers and reported this issue. If they don't hear from us, I am pretty sure that nobody will do anything to try to resolve this. My feeling is that this is a problem in Buffalo, but Rogers still need to contact the broadcaster and let them know what's going on. I am afraid that this will be the same as those issues with HD ABC Buffalo (channel 527), which are still not resolved, after more than a year.