# Black screen issue on HR44-700



## Beerhouse (May 20, 2009)

Long time reader to DBSTalk.com and first (or second?) time submitter. First, I want to thank all of the moderators and regulars helping the folks out here. Keep up the good work.

Now, on to the issue. Two months ago I had the new HR44-700 and C31 client installed at the house. They replaced my HR21-200 and a newer HD receiver for which I can't remember the model number. Before the swap out my service was running just fine, minus the occasional thunderstorm. I should also add I'm a long time (13 years) DirecTV customer. The issue I'm experiencing on the new devices is that my channel blanks out and I'm getting a solid black screen on the TV connected the Genie and a solid white screen on the TV connected to the client. This started occurring a few weeks in and is happening almost on a daily basis. It appears to be signal loss but I'm not receiving any on-screen messages. If I press the Menu, Guide or Info buttons, those displays pop up just fine. To get my channel back, I just have to re-enter the number or use QuickTune. I have rebooted the devices a few times but the issue hasn't gone away. I have the Power Save feature on both devices set to Off. I have not replaced the HDMI cables because like I mentioned above, I was working just fine on the old equipment.

As for the hardware, all I can say is that I have a Slimline-3 dish. The installer did have to go on to the roof and it appears he swapped out an LNB. Hopefully that is enough information. Any suggestions would be great. I suspect I'll need an installer back out to check the connections.


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## jimmie57 (Jun 26, 2010)

Have you checked the signal strengths on all satellites ?
Does this happen when you change channels or does it just do that in the middle of watching a program ?


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## Beerhouse (May 20, 2009)

No, have not checked the signal strengths but I plan on doing so when this occurs next.

Just during the middle of watching a program.


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## Supramom2000 (Jun 21, 2007)

I had this exact same issues. In checking signal strengths, I was missing all the channels on sat 103cb, transponder 2. I had to have a tech come out as it appears to have been an issue at the switch.


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## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

Unfortunately the black screen/white screen issues aren't unheard of with Genies. Getting them on the daily basis is pretty rare, though, and makes me wonder what's really going on. Is there any more detail you can add here? Is it a particular time of day, or when left on a particular channel?


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## Beerhouse (May 20, 2009)

Yes, it does happen at a particular time of the day....approx. between Noon and 5:00 PM. The mornings and late evenings are just fine. The afternoon hours is right when the sun is directly over the house and dish. On cloudy days, the issue does not exist. Very strange problem. As for the channels, nothing specific. It's happened on the local NBC station, MSNBC, FoxAZ - 686 here in Phoenix.

This is driving the wife crazy as it's interrupting D-Backs baseball. LOL! I'll most likely check the signal strengths tomorrow and call DirecTV. Any other help is welcome. I can also post my findings here.

Oh, I should also add that I went into the advanced menu(?) and ran the hard drive utilities, etc.


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## Diana C (Mar 30, 2007)

Beerhouse said:


> Yes, it does happen at a particular time of the day....*approx. between Noon and 5:00 PM. The mornings and late evenings are just fine. The afternoon hours is right when the sun is directly over the house and dish.* On cloudy days, the issue does not exist. Very strange problem. As for the channels, nothing specific. It's happened on the local NBC station, MSNBC, FoxAZ - 686 here in Phoenix.
> 
> This is driving the wife crazy as it's interrupting D-Backs baseball. LOL! I'll most likely check the signal strengths tomorrow and call DirecTV. Any other help is welcome. I can also post my findings here.
> 
> Oh, I should also add that I went into the advanced menu(?) and ran the hard drive utilities, etc.


Sounds suspiciously like a heat related issue, either at the LNB or the switch. Do you have multiple wires running down from the dish, or a single wire? If multiple wires, where is the multi-switch located?


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## Beerhouse (May 20, 2009)

I believe there are 2 wires running down from the dish, into the attic where the multi-switch is but I'm not 100% on that. Sorry.

I do have a technician coming out next Wednesday to look everything over. The issue happened again today and I called the help desk. They had me run a System Test, which just showed the phone line not connected. No big deal there.
After pressing OK on the test screen, the channel came right back. We then ran a signal test on Sat 101 and we had numbers from 95 - 100 across the board.


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## Supramom2000 (Jun 21, 2007)

Did you check the other sats? My 101 is fine. It was 103cb.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using DBSTalk mobile app


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## Beerhouse (May 20, 2009)

Supramom2000,

Here is what I'm seeing on 103cb.

1-8 78 87 73 79 74 85 71 78
9-16 74 85 72 80 73 84 NA NA
17-24 NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA
25-32 NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA


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## jimmie57 (Jun 26, 2010)

Those will work but if a decently heavy cloud comes between your dish and the satellite you will lose your signal.
The numbers should be at least 85 and preferably in the mid 90s for that signal.

What are the numbers for 99c and 103 ca ?


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## Supramom2000 (Jun 21, 2007)

Yeah, after the tech replaced my switch, my 103cb signals are way higher than yours. They are all above 85 and most in the 90's.


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## Beerhouse (May 20, 2009)

Sorry for the delay in replying back to everyone. Here are the numbers.

99c
1-8 74 85 67 78 73 84 67 77 
9-16 73 84 69 79 75 84 NA NA
17-24 NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA
25-32 NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA

103ca

1-8 NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA 
9-16 73 77 72 76 72 76 70 76
17-24 70 77 71 74 69 76 69 77
25-32 NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA


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## jimmie57 (Jun 26, 2010)

I think DTV needs to come back and check out your system.
All of those numbers are low and I don't think they actually pass "verification" or whatever it is called when a tech puts in a new system
Tell them what your screen is doing and tell them what your satellite reading are on each of these LNBs.


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## Beerhouse (May 20, 2009)

DTV technician was out this morning and replaced an LNB, fixed a minor cabling issue and re-aligned the dish. Signal strengths look better and the issue went away this afternoon. Looks like I'm good to go now. Thanks for everyone's input.


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## Laxguy (Dec 2, 2010)

Good news! Thanks for the update.


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