# Anyone else have/had these symtoms?



## Bill Schultz (Jan 3, 2006)

I'm watching TV through my 942 when:

1. The picture freezes. 

2. After about 3-5 minutes with the picture locked up, the machine turns itself off. 

3. It stays off for a couple of minutes then it comes back on to "Disk Diagnostics." Even though is says it will take 45 minutes to run, it only takes about 10 seconds.

4. Then it searchs for the satillite signal and comes back on. 

The whole process is over in about five minutes.

This happens to me about 2-4 times a day and if I record programs at night, it's rare that even a half hour program makes it through without being chopped into two sections.

After a couple of months of complaining and jumping through Dish Networks diagnostic "hoops," they're finally going to send me another unit. This is isn't the first unit to do this. The original unit did the same thing. Although Dish says it's a hard drive problem, I'll willing to bet that when I get the new unit, the problem will still be there.

I use a professional audio/video installer who has installed about fifty of these units and he can't believe that the same problem could exist in two different sets. He thought it might be a voltage problem but I installed a battery backup unit with automatic voltage regulation and it didn't help a bit.

Any tips or suggestions will be greatly appreciated.


PS: I also have a 510 hooked up to this TV. As a test, I recorded the same programs on the 510 as the 942. Where the 942 chopped the programs into segments, the 510 recorded them perfectly.

I also tried switching the 942 and the 510 cables but the problem stayed with the 942.

As a defense mechanism, I put the 510 on the same channel as the 942. That way, when the 942 goes out, I simply switch over to the 510, back the program up a few clicks and continue watching the program. This is no way to watch television.


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## LtMunst (Aug 24, 2005)

Bill Schultz said:


> He thought it might be a voltage problem but I installed a battery backup unit with automatic voltage regulation and it didn't help a bit.


This was my first thought. I had a similar problem that was fixed with an AVR UPS unit.

What LNB/Switch setup do you have?


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## Bill Schultz (Jan 3, 2006)

LtMunst said:


> This was my first thought. I had a similar problem that was fixed with an AVR UPS unit.
> 
> What LNB/Switch setup do you have?


DPP Twin.

At one point in the "hoop jumping" the Dish Tech asked me how many dishes I had installed and I replied "Two." He said that I needed to change out the LNB to a "quad." When I advised my installer of the conversation he said I erred. I don't have two dishes - I have one (and an over-the-air antennae that doesn't count). I called the tech back and he allowed that I didn't need the quad.


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## Jon Spackman (Feb 7, 2005)

What about heat? How is your 942 installed? Does it have space underneath it for cooling? Is it in a cabinet? are there fans? Where is the 510 is it on top or somewhere cooler?

Look at hard drive temp in the menu and tell us what it says.




Jon


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## Bill Schultz (Jan 3, 2006)

j5races said:


> What about heat? How is your 942 installed? Does it have space underneath it for cooling? Is it in a cabinet? are there fans? Where is the 510 is it on top or somewhere cooler?
> 
> Look at hard drive temp in the menu and tell us what it says.
> Jon


I can't find the menu choice that gives the hard drive temp. Can you assist?

Otherwise, the 942 is placed on top of a cabinet and heat isn't a problem.


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## Bill Schultz (Jan 3, 2006)

J5Races (or anyone) - I saw on another post that the temp can be found on the diagnostics menu. When I go there, the "Hard Drive" selection is "grayed out" and can not be selected.

What now?


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## zephyr (Jun 25, 2005)

Bill Schultz said:


> J5Races (or anyone) - I saw on another post that the temp can be found on the diagnostics menu. When I go there, the "Hard Drive" selection is "grayed out" and can not be selected.
> 
> What now?


rignt above that, listed under "counters." use page up/down to scroll through counter list.


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## Bill Schultz (Jan 3, 2006)

HDD High Temp: 118
HDD Low Temp: 105
HDD Average Temp: 111F


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## paulo (Nov 16, 2005)

Bill Schultz said:


> I'm watching TV through my 942 when:
> 
> 1. The picture freezes.
> 
> ...


I have EXACTLY the same problem with my 942, and even more frequently. 

You can also do a manual soft reboot by holding the power key down for five seconds after the freeze. This reduces the time to get the receiver running again, but it doesn't cure the underlying problem.

For you guys who are interested in my hard drive temps, diagnostics shows a max of 116, a minimum of 104 and an average of 109.

I've only called Dish Network once about this. (Problem just started for me, after months of flawless operation.) But the tech rep was quick to suggest that they send me another machine. This is pure speculation on my part, but I suspect that Bill Schultz and I are not the only 942 owners to have this problem.

This is very discouraging. :icon_cry: I had hoped the 942 wouldn't be plagued with the miserable reliability that afflicted the 921.


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## Bill Schultz (Jan 3, 2006)

paulo:

The replacement 942 works perfectly. Unlike yours, my 942 was a problem from the gitgo.

Trade it in and rid yourself of the problem.


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## paulo (Nov 16, 2005)

Got fed up and called tech support back a second time. Was connected to an "advanced" tech, who sounded knowledgeable and as we went through the usual troubleshooting. But of course nothing helped and my 942 was still freezing up and resetting itself every 45 minutes or so.

The advanced tech concluded a free replacement receiver was warranted, but he explained he lacked authority to send me one. He advised he was referring my problem to the people who had that authority (customer service?) and promised they would call me back "in 24 hours."

That didn't happen, so I followed up. This time the tech support person connected me with a voice mail box and I left my number. About 90 minutes later I was contacted by a guy who asked a few questions and the promised to Fedex me a new receiver. He was polite and sounded like he was sympathetic.

I asked if this was a common problem, and he said he wouldn't call it common. But he had heard of it before. He speculated that the receiver's power supply was to blame, but he was rather vague on precisely what might be wrong with it. Instead he mumbled something about "static" which gets "cleared" with the soft reboot. That sounded fishy to me, but what do I know?

Question for you smart people: If the problem is a bad power supply, would plugging the receiver into a wall socket (instead of a surge protector or UPS) make a difference?

My replacement arrived via Fedex as advertised, although I have not yet installed it. In the meantime, my 942 is seems to be getting sicker. Last night I came home to find all the recordings erased. It won't search the guide anymore or set timers. And whenever I switch channels the receiver locks onto the new channel for a fraction of a second, then the screen goes blank for a fraction of a second, and then it locks up again. Our of morbid curiosity, I may defer installing the new receiver to see how long it takes to die altogether.


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## Mike Johnson (Jan 16, 2005)

paulo said:


> Question for you smart people: If the problem is a bad power supply, would plugging the receiver into a wall socket (instead of a surge protector or UPS) make a difference?


The tech was referring to the power supply unit in the 942 itself, so plugging it into a different power source would not help.


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