Tuners not finding any channels (1 Viewer)

deepskydiver

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  • January 2, 2012
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    I'm at my wit's end on this. I've spent days off and on and wasted a few hours tonight.

    So . the cause of the problem was that one channel (actually 3 on the same carrier) would always deteriorate the longer I left the tuner on them. Like when recording. If I changed to another channel and returned - the signal strength improves. If I'm recording on the channel and so can't change that tuner changing the other tuner on the same USB stick did nothing. But I could get improvement by fiddling with antenna connections. It's now a single cable to the wall. I tried this solution that follows - but the frequencies seem to match what the TV and provider says: https://forum.team-mediaportal.com/...ion-of-1-tv-channel-continuity-errors.122818/

    So in desperation I uninstalled and reinstalled with the intention of a clean take with the two USB tuners I've had problems with. A Digital Now Tiny Twin and the Winfast TV Twin Dongle. Both of which (largely) worked before.

    But now I can't find any channels on either tuner after the reinstall. Nothing, with no errors in the logs I can see. I've tried them one at a time and plugged in the same cable to the TV directly which works perfectly.

    Logs attached, really grateful for any advice.. So I can get back to just the original problem!
     

    mm1352000

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    Hello again

    one channel (actually 3 on the same carrier) would always deteriorate the longer I left the tuner on them. Like when recording. If I changed to another channel and returned - the signal strength improves.
    Sounds like signal problems, or perhaps overheating (significantly less likely).

    But I could get improvement by fiddling with antenna connections.
    Another sign of signal problems. I strongly suggest you check the condition of your aerial, cabling and terminations.

    I also recommend you fully shutdown and disconnect power from all devices connected to the aerial before "fiddling". If you don't, you may damage stuff.

    It's now a single cable to the wall.
    Remember that overly strong signal can be just as much of a problem as signal that is too weak. Single cable doesn't equate to better.

    So in desperation I uninstalled and reinstalled with the intention of a clean take with the two USB tuners I've had problems with.
    Hmmm, as I very often say: uninstalling and reinstalling almost never helps and often makes problems worse. Please let us help you!

    But now I can't find any channels on either tuner after the reinstall. Nothing, with no errors in the logs I can see. I've tried them one at a time and plugged in the same cable to the TV directly which works perfectly.

    Logs attached, really grateful for any advice.
    There are no obvious errors in the log files, which indicates the problem probably has nothing to do with MediaPortal.

    If the problem were to be a MediaPortal TV Server problem, the only thing that is likely to be worth trying is changing the "preferred network provider" and "when card enters idle state..." settings.
    http://wiki.team-mediaportal.com/1_...nfiguration/02_TV_Servers#Edit_Tuner_Settings

    I notice the tune times are extremely long:
    [2015-11-09 20:56:05,562] [Log ] [18 ] [INFO ] - dvb:confused:ubmit tunerequest calling put_TuneRequest
    [2015-11-09 20:56:40,493] [Log ] [18 ] [INFO ] - dvb:confused:ubmit tunerequest done calling put_TuneRequest

    [2015-11-09 20:56:45,540] [Log ] [18 ] [INFO ] - dvb:confused:ubmit tunerequest calling put_TuneRequest
    [2015-11-09 20:57:20,509] [Log ] [18 ] [INFO ] - dvb:confused:ubmit tunerequest done calling put_TuneRequest

    That could be another sign of signal problems... or perhaps driver issues (have you rebooted the PC recently - if not, might be a good idea).

    So I can get back to just the original problem!
    As above: I suggest you don't attempt to deal with either the current or original problems by yourself.

    Regards,
    mm
     

    deepskydiver

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    I just don't know what to do.

    I've tried reverting to my previous HTPC with a quad tuner PCI card which has been solid for more than a year. And initially one of the dongles worked. But then the quad tuner card disabled itself (as it didn't have an antenna in it) and nothing I can do can make it work again. Including uninstalling and reinstalling it after Windows told me it could suddenly not find drivers which hadn't changed! Neither dongle works in either PC now. It's like a cruel joke. I have two HTPCs which no longer work. The tuners appear but never can find a channel or scan any from scratch.

    I've tried different antenna cables and a portable antenna which works with the TV. Everything does.. ! So it can't be the signal or antenna - right?

    But whatever I did to the new Intel NUC I have now somehow inadvertently repeated on the original and I have no way to record TV. After spending hours tonight I've crippled two of them and am at a loss to know where to start. I don't want to go any further on the original for fear of making it worse. As it stands the 4 tuners appear but are utterly useless on that one. I also don't understand why the ability to 'remove' a tune is only sometimes present.

    I'm just lost.. :(
     

    mm1352000

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    Including uninstalling and reinstalling it after Windows told me it could suddenly not find drivers which hadn't changed!
    Sounds like a possible driver conflict between the dongle and the card. The DigitalNow Quad card is essentially 4 USB tuners bundled onto one card. If you have one of those, it wouldn't surprise me if installing an additional USB tuner that uses the same chipset as the Quad turned out to be problematic.

    I've tried different antenna cables and a portable antenna which works with the TV. Everything does.. ! So it can't be the signal or antenna - right?
    Nope, I disagree. A cable/antenna that works with the TV is not guaranteed to work with a PC tuner.

    I also don't understand why the ability to 'remove' a tune is only sometimes present.
    The purpose of the wiki (manual) is to explain things like that. Please use it.
    http://wiki.team-mediaportal.com/1_...rver_Configuration/02_TV_Servers#Remove_Tuner

    I'm just lost.. :(
    If you would like me to help, please answer all of the following questions:

    1. Have you always shut down and disconnected power from all devices connected to the aerial/antenna before changing the cables around?
    2. Have you fully power cycled (not Windows restart) the HTPC with the 2 dongles?
    3. Is the "quad tuner PCI card" you've referred to a DigitalNow Quad? If not, what vendor/model is it?
    4. You said "initially one of the dongles worked" when you connected it to the HTPC containing the quad tuner. Which dongle was it?
    5. To get the quad tuner working: have you tried the following process?
    1. Shutdown the PC.
    2. Disconnect the dongle.
    3. Turn on the PC.
    4. Uninstall the dongle driver and software.
    5. Uninstall and reinstall the quad tuner driver.
    6. Restart the PC.
    ...and please also provide a diagram of your aerial/antenna cabling system (so I can see how many splitters, amplifiers, TVs etc. you have connected).
     

    deepskydiver

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    Thanks to you both. I've uninstalled MP and used a utility to remove the dongle drivers and on reinstalling everything the Winfast dongle works at least (the Digital Now one still not).

    So I'm back to the original problem with three channels on the one carrier gradually degrading when I watch or record. The quality starts at 80 or even 100 but after around half an hour just starts to break up. I've checked the frequency is correct and other channels seem ok - they don't degrade. But the behaviour is uniform across two different dongles now.
     

    mm1352000

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    It seems like you've chosen to ignore all my questions. Therefore I'm completely unable to help you again. Good luck.
     

    deepskydiver

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    The quad tuner problem was solved by a driver reinstall.

    The dongle which worked in the old pc was the Winfast one, which is the one working in the NUC now. I have power cycled it many times (left it of for a long time) and reinstalled everything.

    The cable is a simple single run now from the wall to the dongle. Nothing else is connected although the symptom is the same when it's through a splitter serving the TV as well.
     

    mm1352000

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    Could you please answer questions 1 and 3.

    The cable is a simple single run now from the wall to the dongle. Nothing else is connected although the symptom is the same when it's through a splitter serving the TV as well.
    Yes, but this tells me nothing about what is between the wall outlet and the aerial/antenna.
    • How long is the cable from the aerial to the outlet on the wall likely to be?
    • Is that cable RG59 coax, RG6 coax, ribbon cable... something else?
    • How long is the "fly lead" cable from the wall to the tuner?
    • Are there any amplifiers or attenuators between the aerial and the wall outlet?
    • Are there any other wall outlets? (If there are, it implies there is a splitter somewhere which you haven't mentioned.)
    You also haven't specified whether the splitter you've mentioned is "all ports power pass".

    Basically far more detail and specificity is required.
     

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