# L332 Software update



## styxfix

Please post when you get this one and your first impressions. It's suppose to be released today.

On L331, on one of my 921 receivers, I can't even change the channel without my unit locking up and my screen going totally blank. Often even a reboot won't fix it, so I'm little eager to this one to arrive.


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## Grandude

L332 arrived on my 921 today. So far I haven't seen any differences. I haven't been having any problems to speak of and hope that doesn't change.


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## AnubisPrime

L332 has now fixed the "manual record stop" issue on my machine.


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## doxieland

yet another replacement 921 received this am; software was the 331 with the usual problems, never ending record; lock-ups, blank screen and self-rebooting while trying to program in the off-air antenna stuff.....

tonight, 332 arrived; and we have already experienced the never-ending record issue......
moving around in the guide seems better, and we haven't tried to program in the off-air antenna stuff.


Anyone else with issues? And what is the 942 receiver that someone mentioned?

We don't want the "priviledge" of upgrading to a 622 and be charged more money. We just want what we paid for, a working dual tuner dvr.....

:nono2: :nono2:


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## Michael P

doxieland said:


> We don't want the "priviledge" of upgrading to a 622 and be charged more money. We just want what we paid for, a working dual tuner dvr.....
> 
> :nono2: :nono2:


 *AMEN!*


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## penguin44

332 arrived yesterday. all problems fixed, including man record, yay!!!


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## penguin44

Still have the DiscHD channel listing problem, which is annoying.


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## TFSanJose

L332 made everything quicker for me. I was able to scan off air digital channels, too. Previously I had to manually add them one at a time and I noticed that the receiver rebooted on two specific stations, so I added all but those successfully. This morning I had to reboot to get FOX off air channel back on. Using the guide I see channel 2 Fox there with signal strength around 100, but it still said channel signal lost or something like that. After reboot the channel was back - I was hoping 332 would resolve this one, maybe it's a hardware issue? I have a 921.


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## styxfix

I still haven't got the latest (L332) software. I check the menu and it it says no software update available. My system info screen is even missing information like my smart card number. I really think I have a more critical issue that's hardware related since mine crashes or gets really really slow soon after I reboot. The more buttons I push on the remote the faster the will the screen will go blank. Sometimes I can still access the menu screen.


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## doxieland

it'a one day past the 332, and as previously posted - it is NOT the fix that we've been waiting for.

today's problems include video blacking out - audio still there - when this happens, remote will not function. Receiver did stop properly at end of event once after "record to end of event " selected, however the next time it didn't.

When using the guide to browse and select programming to record, it appears to become overloaded and will lock up, requiring a hard boot.

When something is recording on one tuner we definitely CANNOT use the guide or watch a recorded show because it seems to "provoke" the lockup to occur, which causes a hard reboot. At that time, we will get a break in the recording with a loss of however long it takes to reboot. Of course, that is an improvement from the entire recording being lost, as before.

Is the REAL fix going to happen soon? is anyone else having these issues?
thanks:  :nono: :soapbox:


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## penguin44

Nope, not having the issues you stated. tried it out.


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## jadebox

doxieland said:


> it'a one day past the 332, and as previously posted - it is NOT the fix that we've been waiting for.


Yeah ... My receiver has 332 and the black overlay problem happened yesterday with just a couple of minutes left in the basketball game!

-- Roger


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## SteveB

I got a replacement 921 from dish. Has all the problems that I had before, black overlay, spontaneous reboots, and locked up controls. Some added new features is erratic disk behaviors when pausing or backspacing showing that I have paused over 900 minutes. Now the turkey comes up black, the only thing I can get on the screen is the menu and the guide without any information. The last E*
tech, who got it running by sending a special signal to the box, said it was a software problem and they will not give me a new box. I am going to reinstall the old 921 and see if it behaves as bad as the replacement box. 
Bring back L278, that worked great.


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## SteveB

Update - Reinstalled old 921, came up working perfectly, but it is running L331. Wants to install new update. Haven't let it do it yet, may wait until finished watching for the evening.


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## ClaudeR

My 921 is acting much better today - it's still stuck at L278, and now the time is right (this was the original DST weekend before Congress decided to screw with it). The box now allows me to watch a show while recording, still have to check dual recordings. My replacement will show up this week, but I don't like the sound of the 33x updates.


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## TFSanJose

Well L332 on my 921 does still work quicker (see my earlier post), but I have to reboot it on power up since all I get is a black screen. This happens usually the first time I turn it on for the day. This is my 6th 921 and from what I'm reading it sounds like several of you have received receivers 1 through 5 :-0


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## WildBill

Never had a lot of the problems that many of you report. The stuck manual record problem is fixed with L332. Discovery HD guide errors are still there. Get occasional audio dropouts and delayed response to remote commands. Nothing major so far.


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## sciggy87

Black overlay problem still there with 332, occassional random reboots while watching, sound and video slightly out of synch on HD (either satellite or off the air). Things are better with 332 but still not as good as 278. I am sorry to say that I never had any trouble with my 921 (had it for 2 years) until the L330 update. Since then my wife is telling me to go with the competition, since Dish cant get this straightened out. She missed last weeks American Idol because of botched recording by the 921 and she is po'd.


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## phongluu

331 and 332 are the worst update ever in my case.

Gezzz....when will be the time that an update will fix everyone troubles.

Now, It requires reboot every time I need to watch TV. 

P.L


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## ClaudeR

Installed my replacement 921 yesterday (mine was stuck at 278). 332 with new receiver seems to be working nicely here. The new box has a two color dish logo, the old box has a black logo. The updates probably work differently for each hardware version. 

I may still jump ship and go to cable, the Charlie fees are rediculous. HD is the same price as SD DVR service. That $20 sure closes some of the cost differential, especially with a 1 YEAR intro price on cable. I know all about the apples and oranges - less channels of crap in HD, but the integrated HD locals without extra antennas or overcompression. Very tempting indeed....


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## RedROM

My display is set up for 16x9, 1080i. In the past, 4x3 programming came in with the lateral black bars (or grey bars), while wide format programming filled the screen. Now it is stuck in wide format so 4x3 programming is stretched across the screen. Remote no longer toggles through the formats. I wonder if this is related to firmware, or maybe the remote is bad.


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## Michael P

I had L332 since the day it first was released. It seemed to fix many problems, however last night one of the old problems returned.

My EPG started acting slow (when you hit EPG the guide takes several seconds to build-up a picture, rather than the near-instant appearence in the past). Also the window that displayes the picture of the currently tuned channels will distort if tuned to an OTA signal (a sort of tripple image with vertical lines). The picture is OK if the currently tuned channel is satellite-delivered. After several hours of having a slow-display EPG I then get lock-ups while watching OTA stations. The picture gets stuck on the last 'good" frame and nothing short of a reboot will fix the situation (BTW it will reboot itself after about a minute or so if you don't hit a power button. BTW I have actually been able to do a remote power button reboot when this situation arises.

My receiver is a recently replaced HEED with the new red "half-dish" logo on the front.

As you can tell from my sig, this receiver worked flawlessly (that is by 921 standards) under L278. It's been a nightmare ever since L330.


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## pkeenan

Hello All,
Have been dealing with:
Channel XXX Lost Lock.
Please wait, or Channel Up/Down
Satellite: 119
Transponder: 6

Wondering if anyone else has had this problem. Spoken with CSR both online and over the phone. They thought it was a permissions issue and sent a signal to the 921 receiver but ot no avail. One CSR thinks it's a physical dish problem. I called a Third Party Dish Network Tech and he thinks it's the 921. Any thoughts on this? I've been all over the reset procedure with the remote and the 921. I'm up against it at this point. The third party tech was telling me to cut my losses and just get the newer HD PVR. I've got to play this out. Thanks in advance.


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## Michael P

pkeenan said:


> Hello All,
> Have been dealing with:
> Channel XXX Lost Lock.
> Please wait, or Channel Up/Down
> Satellite: 119
> Transponder: 6
> 
> Wondering if anyone else has had this problem. Spoken with CSR both online and over the phone. They thought it was a permissions issue and sent a signal to the 921 receiver but ot no avail. One CSR thinks it's a physical dish problem. I called a Third Party Dish Network Tech and he thinks it's the 921. Any thoughts on this? I've been all over the reset procedure with the remote and the 921. I'm up against it at this point. The third party tech was telling me to cut my losses and just get the newer HD PVR. I've got to play this out. Thanks in advance.


I get those whenever my dish gets misaligned or otherwise blocked, or the co-ax cable has a bad connection. I don't beleive software is the cause. Even if you lack permissions the transponder, if a signal is being received, would not generate this message.

If it's not your dish (i.e. another receiver is receiving the same transponder off the same dish) then the tuner may be going bad.


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## pkeenan

Thanks Michael,
I've tried to troubleshoot it myself. Checked the connections, dismantled the dish to check those connections, done the "Point Dish" config as well as the "Switch Check". I've given a call into a Technician to see if they can figure it out. I was wondering if anyone had experienced this due to the software update. That's when it started to get goofy on me.
Thanks for your thoughts.
Peter


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## doxieland

jadebox said:


> Yeah ... My receiver has 332 and the black overlay problem happened yesterday with just a couple of minutes left in the basketball game!
> 
> -- Roger


I am still having issues with the 921 v332 software, requiring daily reboots, sometimes with remote, other times at receiver or plug.

It seems as though using the guide, setting up recordings, actually using it for the features it was purchased for causes it to "melt down", i.e., lock up. Only fixable with reboot.

Random black screens when I am NOT touching the remote - sometimes fixable with quick on/off.
Yesterday, new issue - when selecting a new channel, the banner would appear, however the screen would remain frozen with the old channel image. On/off would not fix, reboot required.

the guide is still not predictable, just disappears at times also. Image will move to upper right corner and rest of screen will remain blue; sometimes after a minute or so, the rest of the info will appear......

does anyone else have these issues and know if there's a resolution expected soon? I LOVE the technology we enjoyed with our 921 until the end of January, when this roller-coaster ride started. I simply want my 921 to work as it had before that time.

thanks for any input and I hope my non-technical descriptions can help the software gurus figure out how to fix.

doxieland 
- 1996 big dollar spender on original equipment, and lots more spent to date!


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## Michael P

Turning the 921 off and back on (without a reboot) fixes the black screen for me.

I get a warning before the black screen appears, the EPG starts to act slow, just like it did with the previous 2 buggy s/w revisions.


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## Grandude

My 921 has become unstable with the latest download. Weird black screens, frozen screens, pic and sound running fine but unable to do anything other than force a reboot.
I've rebooted more in the last two weeks than I have in the life of my 921. I'd be happy to get the old software back.


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## SteveB

It has been almost 1 month with L332! Still having black screens, frozen or sluggish system, spontaneous reboots, and having to reboot daily or twice daily. 
Called dish helpless desk. Told me a month ago that this was a software problem. They still haven't a clue. I urged them to encourage them to solve the problem. Maybe if everyone called, this might be fixed. So please call and complain.


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## P Smith

They removed last day new beta SW for 921 from stream. Could be a sign - new SW is coming. 
Or new beta.


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## doxieland

SteveB said:


> It has been almost 1 month with L332! Still having black screens, frozen or sluggish system, spontaneous reboots, and having to reboot daily or twice daily.
> Called dish helpless desk. Told me a month ago that this was a software problem. They still haven't a clue. I urged them to encourage them to solve the problem. Maybe if everyone called, this might be fixed. So please call and complain.[/QUOTE
> 
> Doesn't seem to help to call, their response is to send another receiver; we don't have time to re-set a new receiver every week....... and while we have focused on our 921, I have just realized one of our 508 has been "eating" my recordings, a few at a time! I am so annoyed and don't know what the answer is - don't want to switch, but nephew in Texas is bailing to the other sat. service.....
> 
> And, I am tired of paying for services that aren't dependable. What has gone wrong since the first of the year???? Has anyone an update on timeframe for "fixes" for these problems? And what is the next post about, I just don't understand what the beta//stream whatever means. Can anyone provide translation for me? I have learned a lot at this website, but just don't understand what they mean, and what the significance is? Should I be ready to do a happy dance, or ready to call it quits with
> 
> Wow, what is going on, I am down to 3 recordings on my 508, from 13 yesterday. I am ready to call it quits, big time -


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## crashman

every night since L332 I get a blank screen and need to reboot the 921 before I get to watch TV. Man what I'd give to have L330 or what ever it was before the time change software fix. This is total BS an a sign of piss poor programmers for the 921.


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## Grandude

P Smith said:


> They removed last day new beta SW for 921 from stream. Could be a sign - new SW is coming.
> Or new beta.


I sure hope it means that new software is coming. I am really tired of the problems created by the 332 release. Lost picture again last night forcing me to reboot. Still no picture until I powered it off and on two times.


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## doxieland

L332 - new issues..... anyone else experiencing? I have still been daily rebooting with black and frozen screens, and wondering if that is going to be the new norm - 
When suddenly, yesterday my recorder decided it was going to "twin record" the same show.. when I attempted to set up a recorder, was given the conflict screen; sure enough it was currently recording two show, both the same channel..... Now, when I have wanted it to record the 1 min early, 3 min late show behind show on the same channel, it was not capable of doing that. Now it can record the same show twice without being asked to! I was really concerned to stop and delete one of them, for fear it would take them both out. Lucked out - and recording continued on ONE turner so I was able to record another show on the other. I did really get twin recordings, it wasn't just "blowing smoke" it actualy did two recordings of the same show/channel ---
is this part of the new patch that didn't quite work right? I am not seeing any posts, has everyone given up?
Still rebooting and finding surprises with the 921 ---- and hoping for the "Fix"
would love to know if anyone else is still having issues,
thanks,
doxieland


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## P Smith

If Dish didn't get those developers from Eldon, UK to US soil, then a support of 921 will be nightmare ( if Dish did no changes - ppl working remotely without US satellites access or in case of local support by new unexperienced in DishLinux ppl in Denver ).


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## penguin44

no problems here.


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## Michael P

crashman said:


> every night since L332 I get a blank screen and need to reboot the 921 before I get to watch TV. Man what I'd give to have L330 or what ever it was before the time change software fix. This is total BS an a sign of piss poor programmers for the 921.


See my sig. That's the version before the DST "fix". It also gave guide data to non LIL subs (which is another reason to hate 330+). Every time a good software version comes along, they have to go and mess things up because of the greedy bean counters who don't want us to get guide data without purchasing the over compressed SD locals  The DVR fee isn't enough???

What they fail to realize is there are subs who live in DMA's not carried who may be able to get a signal OTA that has guide data in the EPG stream.


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## doxieland

it's may 21, and we are STILL having 921 issues, if you "highly moderated fix-it people" are listening.

I loved my 921 until the end of Jan. From that point on, we have had several replacements all with issues -

my current issues are black screens; freeze up in guide; no guide returning for 8 hours after reboot at box; with black screen remote sometimes turns off the receiver lights, however the receiver continues to Play - with black screen and sound. 

It is really disconcerting to have freezes and reboots daily - during recordings we miss as much as 12-15 minutes of recordings with every reboot.

Is there a time frame on finishing up these software issues. I was saddened to receive an email from dish announcing that "dish on demand" is now available on my dvrs..... Did the software fix get delayed to provide dish on demand on receivers that aren't reliable enough to consider using for dish on demand. 

sorry, I am beginning to feel rather hostile about this software issue (and we had 508 issues that seem better, to some degree) however it is our 921 that is the "workhorse". 

I felt so "special" with my 921 - so intelligent for having such a marvelous service, didn't even bother with going out to movies, how outdated, to not be able to view anything without the features of my dvr..... now, I feel totally abused by this same system - sort of like a marriage gone wrong. It's a relationship I want to save, will you wonderful software people get to "software counseling" and save my relationship with my 921???


Thanks,
doxieland


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## styxfix

Doxieland, I feel your pain times two since I have two of these receivers. One works pretty well, 


> my current issues are black screens; freeze up in guide; no guide returning for 8 hours after reboot at box; with black screen remote sometimes turns off the receiver lights, however the receiver continues to Play - with black screen and sound.


my other unit pretty much has the same issues. I have to reboot at least once or twice a day and I still have issues with getting stuck on stretch mode when watching SD. I'm not sure why they just don't roll back to the software that works better.


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## toomuch

styxfix said:


> Doxieland, I feel your pain times two since I have two of these receivers. One works pretty well,
> 
> my other unit pretty much has the same issues. I have to reboot at least once or twice a day and I still have issues with getting stuck on stretch mode when watching SD. I'm not sure why they just don't roll back to the software that works better.


I have had a 921 right from the begining, I am on my 3rd replacement now, worst thing is the black screen. I have the 921 hooked to a media PC, the setup works well, except that half the time the recording is ruined by a black overlay. Tech support does not seem to have this in their log at all. They are sending somebody out (to kill my Saturday), but - looking at these postings - I don't know what they can do. I just send them a video via email - hope they can handle attachments.
I am planning to re-connect my 508 - I hope they did not introduce this software "enhencement"!


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## Michael P

> ...except that half the time the recording is ruined by a black overlay


If you reboot the 921 and playback the same portion of the recording you should see that the recording is not ruined. IMHO the black overlay is is just that - an overlay - and not a part of the actual recording.

Here is a similar video problem: sometimes I get glitches and freeze-ups on a live picture. If I rewind the live program the same portion of the program that had the glitches is now clear. I bet your recordings are also OK, if only you would reboot and try to view them again.

I know that this is a PIA to have to do to get the 921 to function correctly. It's frustrating, but usually all is not lost.


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## toomuch

Michael P said:


> If you reboot the 921 and playback the same portion of the recording you should see that the recording is not ruined. IMHO the black overlay is is just that - an overlay - and not a part of the actual recording.


I wish that was the case, I am using a PC that controls the 921 via IR, so it takes the S-video output that has the overlay.
So I assume, nobody found a fix for this?


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## Michael P

Why are you using an outboard recording device when the 921 records internally? Doesn't that negate the reason for having a DVR in the first place?

If you are recording to an outboard device, get an 811 and save the DVR fee.


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## willyryu

For the majority of the time I am a lurker at this site as well as another unmentioned site.  I would actually post more, but being disabled and typing with the side of one finger is a little frustrating and slow. Anyway, I finally had to RA my original 921, purchased Nov. 04. last month. Everything was wiped from the hard drive. When I got the replacement I knew within a few hours it would need to be RA'ed as well. Black screens, recordings not completing. missing channels and more quirks. Although it was quieter than my original and its replacement, in service since May 25th. This 2nd replacement has had only one incident of the black screen syndrome, none since doing an actual reboot, which is the reason for this post. I keep reading about rebooting, either by pulling the plug or holding in the power button. Do you get a screen that says "Acquiring data from satellite please wait"? Is this actually rebooting the receiver? I don't know, but I don't think it is. Now if you turn off the receiver then press and hold the power button in for about 15 seconds, let go. Now after the HDTV screen comes and goes the next screen will say "Receiver is in stand-by booting". After doing this boot the receiver seems to work better. Also under the inactivity mode, I keep the power-off mode enabled. I hope this will help some of you with the black screen issue as well as other of the 921's quirks. You may have to do this boot more than once if your problem doesn't clear up the first time. If you keep having problems I would bug dish and keep getting a replacement receiver until you get one that you don't have to reboot, pull plug or keep resetting everyday. Good luck.


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## Michael P

willyryu, yes all those messages are seen when you do a reboot. The black screen problem will not require an RA, as I believe the problem is with the 332 software. I just wish they would just revert to 278, that version was the best, most stable software version they ever had.


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## penguin44

What is this 'black screen' I have never got it. At least i don't think so.


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## Michael P

penguin44 said:


> What is this 'black screen' I have never got it. At least i don't think so.


It can happen at any time, you'll be watching the 921 and then suddenly the screen goes blank, except for the edges, where you can still see a small strip of the picture. It's similar to the screen you see when you press the DVR button or some of the menu functions, where the green screen comes up as an overlay on top of the picture, then too I still see the picture on the edges.

The black screen may only affect the SD outputs. Since I do not yet have an HDTV monitor I'm not aware if the same thing happens in HD.


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## Michael P

BTW: I called tech support several times about the black screen. A couple of the techs tried to insist that the problem is with closed captions on my TV. It has nothing to do with closed captions! I asked for a supervisor and they put me on hold had came back saying that their supervisor agreed that the problem was with closed captions. It's the software. None of the remote control buttons function once the black overlay screen happens. 

Besides the black overlay screen, the other problem I get is a live freeze-up. The remote also fails once the freeze up happens.

I know that one of the two problems are about to happen when the EPG and other screens get s-l-o-w. Things will still work for a time but ultimately the overlay or freeze-up happens. After a reboot the 921 is fast again and all is happy for around 24 hours, then the agony starts over.


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## swamper

I'm still seething over E's lack of response to our software problems so I called the Charlie Chat last night and wound up explaining our problems to three different people. The last lady suggested I call the Charlie Chat until I told her that was how I got to her! She confirmed all the problems and promised to "file a report." She could find no record of my previous calls. The best she could offer was that all the problems were software issues and there was no date for a fix. 

I have to admit I got a little testy with her when she asked if I'd ever considered upgrading to a 622 receiver! I told her if the 921 was an example of E's customer support, the only upgrading I would consider is moving to Direct TV. As with all the previous calls, she listened, sympathized, and promised to pass the complaints on. I told her I'd been an E customer since the beginning and they had two weeks to fix this mess or I was going to switch. She immediately offered to get someone else on the line to talk to me. After 5 minutes, she came back to explain she was still on hold waiting for that person and asked if I'd like to wait. I told her it was an exercise in futility, thanked her for listening and hung up. 

I think I'll try the attorney general in my state next. He's gone after E before and I'm sure he'd love to do it again.


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## Michael P

I found a quasi-fix for the "black screen" glitch. I set my menu to transparent. Now instead of a black screen, the picture just darkens at the point when a black screen glitch occurs. That way I can still see the picture until whatever I'm watching is through. Then it's reboot time again


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## doxieland

Michael P said:


> I found a quasi-fix for the "black screen" glitch. I set my menu to transparent. Now instead of a black screen, the picture just darkens at the point when a black screen glitch occurs. That way I can still see the picture until whatever I'm watching is through. Then it's reboot time again


I was excited about this "work-around fix" - tried it yesterday; today the usual black screens. my black screens seem to happen around 3pm consistently - could there be a signal/time/strength component involved? hate it when I have backed something up to catch the end and the darn thing goes black - there's no fix for that other than to only be recording everything that I am watching real-time.

thanks for all the 921 help; always watch for your posts as they really seem to be on the mark.

doxieland


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## Michael P

I just received my 10th 921. It did not take long for it to behave as poorly as the previous units.

1.) on the day it was installed I had an aspect ratio bug (I use the SD output so this may not be a problem on the HD output).

2.) within a week I experienced the distorted PIP/EPG window bug: where anything displayed in a small PIP window looks like a mishmash of vertical lines

3.) I had had 2 total lockups/spontaneous reboots.

Based on the above, I can say with certainty that L332 is at fault and not the hardware.

Does anybody at E* still pay attention to this forum? It did not take long for L330 & L331 to be replaced, however L332 is actually worse than the two previous versions. I've said it before, and it's in my sig: BRING BACK L278!!!


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## boy654

Sadly, it looks like E* priority is sueing FTA makers, not customer service. It's harder and harder to find some one in support who is knowlegable, much less cares about your problem.


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## Michael P

boy654 said:


> Sadly, it looks like E* priority is sueing FTA makers, not customer service. It's harder and harder to find some one in support who is knowlegable, much less cares about your problem.


The legal dept. has nothing to do with technical support (yet). BTW who are they suing in the FTA arena?


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## boy654

well, no, but it's where they decide to steer the ship. If the priorities are hunting pirates, other things start to slide. I get a clear impression any receiver not in the current lineup only gets a bare minmum of tech time before they tell you to upgrade.

Check satscams forums for the lawsuit details.


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## Michael P

Satscams....don't make me laugh (actually it's not funny). 

So the manufacturers of "FTA" receivers are being cloned (i.e. Coolsat). Poor babies. They are being beat by their own game. There is nothing on E* or D* that is truly FTA, unencrypted, yes, but not a true FTA. There is so little on E* that is unencrypted that it's not worth the investment to get a true FTA receiver, unless you are a pirate/hacker = signal thief. 

The only legit FTA receiver is one that is meant to be used on C/Ku band and not on the DBS band. A pirate receiver by any other name (i.e. a DSS "FTA") is still a pirate receiver.

And the fact that these pirates still exist has no bearing on E*'s software development. They had a near perfect 921 software in L278 but the bean counters that want to stop OTA guide data from populating our EPG's coupled with the change in DST this year put the kibosh to the best s/w a 921 has ever had.


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## boy654

I have found running an external fan to circulate cool air over the 921 has helped reduce some of the quirks. I've got a thermal sensor on the case reading 100'f, with no circulation it was at least 15'f higher. I don't have to reboot as often either.


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## Michael P

There is nothing sitting on top of my 921, there is plenty of room along the sides and a decent sized opening along the rear, I don't think ventilation is the issue in my situation. I had no problems the entire time that L278 was the current software. My woes began after the "L33x" software was deployed.


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## doxieland

was just reading one of the 622 boards, in anticipation of making a change (whether to the 622 or the D* people, not sure) and read where they actually "downgraded" the 622 software from a 4.09 to 4.05 because of "issues"

If tech can do that for the 622 people, PLEASE do it for the 921 sufferers!!

My 2 508s are still screwed-up also; I cannot believe that a simple code re-write for a time change could cause all this grief. If we could turn back time...... (didn't somebody make a lot of money off that song??)

husband is getting pretty much set that we are gonna "defect" ourselves to the other company...... I, of course, don't want to jump ship if there's any hope for the software fixes soon (been with E* since '96).

any thoughts or advice? 
thanks,
doxieland


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## P Smith

It possible to rollback the SW, but please beg Dish, not us.
Use [email protected]


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## doxieland

I was just hoping enough abused 921 users would jump on this post - and since this is supposed to be "highly monitored" by the dish techies, that that would perhaps gain momentum to "move the mountain".

if they aren't monitoring this - then I realize my suggestion is in vain.....
and probably is, even if it is being monitored....
oh well, the only failure is in not making the effort.

think my ceo letter will be my finest moment, and then we will wander the sky, seeking other signals from a-far. - maybe with a kite and key!

really enjoy the dbs- site. I have really learned a lot, for someone that really just wants to click a few buttons and watch seemlessly. i envy techies...... thanks to you all for helping.

doxieland


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## P Smith

Dish still testing a few beta versions since L3.32 went out.


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## Michael P

They wouldn't need to beta test anything if they'd just roll us back to L278.
It's the "bean counters" that want to force us to sub to those overcomperssed SD LIL's in order to get OTA guide data.

When the guide data was present the 921 was stable. As soon as they took the guide data away the problems began. Even with guide data there were small anomalies (differences between the EPG grid and browse-banner data on subchannels) but I could live with that small problem compared to the issues I have now.


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## P Smith

They had some obvious problem with coding and it was pointed to them in details in past when first leaking memory discovered, they fixed it, but later it was happen again. I don't know if support of the receiver transferred to other ppl from Eldon UK to Denver Co or original developers quit, but results you see on your screen.


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## Michael P

Leaking memory? Care to elaborate on what that means?


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## P Smith

It's common term from software debugging ( check Wiki).


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## tm22721

Michael P said:


> Leaking memory? Care to elaborate on what that means?


There are many software processes that your DVR runs in parallel that need some short term memory that is 'borrowed' from the operating system, then given back when no longer needed.

A memory leak occurs when the memory is borrowed but not given back, usually due to a set of instantaneous timing conditions that the software designer did not anticipate. The operating system eventually 'runs out' of free memory, causing many processes to become unstable or even crash.


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## Michael P

tm22721 said:


> There are many software processes that your DVR runs in parallel that need some short term memory that is 'borrowed' from the operating system, then given back when no longer needed.
> 
> A memory leak occurs when the memory is borrowed but not given back, usually due to a set of instantaneous timing conditions that the software designer did not anticipate. The operating system eventually 'runs out' of free memory, causing many processes to become unstable or even crash.


*That* sounds like the 921! So, when a memory leak happens things start to lock-up. Is this something a software update (or rollback) would fix, or is this a hardware issue?


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## Michael P

Here is a new bug to add to the 921 list or horrors: no sound on an OTA channel. Recently I'd tune to an OTA station and get picture only, no sound. I channel up and back down and the sound reappears. This has happened too many times to blame it on the station being tuned (although that has happened on one occasion in the past). If it was the station's fault doing the channel up/down routine would not return the audio (at least not as immediate as "doing the the routine" has been).


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## penguin44

Actually I have got that as well, and not even on OTA.


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## boy654

I have a 721 also, Dish did a slapdash upgrade with L725 and caused guide problems. It took several months to get a fix. My guess is the daylight patch is why they won't go back and the lousy SW support is intentional to force an upgrade.


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## doxieland

Hello tech people that highly monitor this 921 site......

I had stopped posting; but you need to know it's not because my 921 is working properly. Still black screens and lock-ups requiring reboot. Daily...

lots of quirky things; if I am watching live and a recording is getting ready to fire, I wouldn't dare touch the remote to do any other function - AND when recorder starts, it will CHANGE my channel to what is being recorded because tuner is needed..... even though only ONE show is being recorded. Lots of pixelization and "acquiring signal" that doesn't happen on the 508's we have....

Does anyone know if the 921 software going to be fixed soon? It was truly marvelous technology when working properly with the old software. 

Thanks,
doxieland


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## garebdoan

Nice post and deals!


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## doxieland

doxieland said:


> Hello tech people that highly monitor this 921 site......
> 
> I had stopped posting; but you need to know it's not because my 921 is working properly. Still black screens and lock-ups requiring reboot. Daily...
> 
> lots of quirky things; if I am watching live and a recording is getting ready to fire, I wouldn't dare touch the remote to do any other function - AND when recorder starts, it will CHANGE my channel to what is being recorded because tuner is needed..... even though only ONE show is being recorded. Lots of pixelization and "acquiring signal" that doesn't happen on the 508's we have....
> 
> Does anyone know if the 921 software going to be fixed soon? It was truly marvelous technology when working properly with the old software.
> 
> Thanks,
> doxieland


These 921 issues have continued; it's almost october and still the same old stuff. Now, instead of just a black overlay, I am losing the entire screen to darkness and cannot resolve with a simple quick on/off of receiver - takes a complete reboot. Shuts down and reboots on its own at times also, in addition to ALL the other complaints previously posted. Can't use guide for more than a few clicks ahead for scheduling recording before it blacks out. Horrible, Horrible, can anyone tell me WHEN these issues will be resolved???
thanks,
doxieland


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## P Smith

I would remove the disk and check for bad sectors.


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## Michael P

P Smith said:


> I would remove the disk and check for bad sectors.


Some of us would rather not void our "extended warranty" by cracking open the case.

I proved to the techs that the problem is L332 by getting the same issues on replacement 921's virtually out of the box (that is within 24 hours after L332 loaded). That was months (and sevral replacements) ago.

The answer is in my sig. (bring back L278), but the bean counters don't want to listen (i.e. OTA guide data for non LIL subs was a part of L278).


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## P Smith

You're not IT person, aren't you ? 

That's will be easy way to check the problem if it not in the disk.
I can tell you from my long practice in IT and DVR repairs - the bad sectors are really 'hurt' PC and DVRs.


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## doxieland

thanks for the reply regarding the drive, however my problem is software, not hardware. There have been many 921 replacements here, with no improvement -- I agree with michael p - the issue is the software. (my spouse is "IT" tech and we do know the issue is software)

Worked lilke a dream until the changes at end of Jan - from there it's been downhill ever since. The 921 WAS a remarkable device; it's a shame to experience what has happened since the software changes.

I do hope that 921 software is soon resolved. I don't care about the "hd" aspect and the mpeg 4 vs 2 - I just want the darn thing to work as it did before the software foul-up. Granted, the technology is evolving - but my 921 should still perform the operations that it was purchased to perform.

Would really like to know if there's any hope for the 921 software to be fixed and an appropriate timetable for the "fix". I can't entertain the possibility of upgrading until this issue is resolved.

thanks,
doxieland


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## P Smith

Do you remember what was version number in 'good' time ?


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## snomanx3

My 921 is at 2.78 and it wont pick up any sats now....
Is anyone else able to get sats with this sw version still??
My 921 will not grab new sw for some reason....


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## Michael P

snomanx3 said:


> My 921 is at 2.78 and it wont pick up any sats now....
> Is anyone else able to get sats with this sw version still??
> My 921 will not grab new sw for some reason....





P Smith said:


> Do you remember what was version number in 'good' time ?


To answer two questions with one post:
L278 was the last "good" version. It became obsolete when the Daylight Savings Time date changed. If you are not seeing any satellites I'd check your LNB's cables and connections.

Even with out-of-date software the receiver should still see signals on at least some transponders (it won't see the transponders that carry MPEG-4 signals, but that is a small minority of transponders).


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## P Smith

I'm pretty sure you can revert to previous version, was is the L2.78 ?


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## Michael P

P Smith said:


> I'm pretty sure you can revert to previous version, was is the L2.78 ?


Unfortunately E* has never reverted to L278 for anybody. One of the side-affects of L278 is free OTA guide data, which would give the bean counters fits. I believe that guide data helped stabilize the 921 (fewer "no information available" blocks in the guide). One of the bugs in L332 is scrolling out in time on the guide locks up the 921, I'm willing to bet the guide data has something to do with this bug (but not willing to pay E* $5 to prove it ). I already pay $6 for the DVR fee, that should cover the guide! At the very least it should guarantee that the DVR actually works   :nono:


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## P Smith

Dish did that a few times, so you can do that personally for your 921 too. Just 'dd' 3 and 4th partitions and swap them while do restore. I could mis-numbered, you could check by size - both have 1 GB.


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## Michael P

P Smith said:


> Dish did that a few times, so you can do that personally for your 921 too. Just 'dd' 3 and 4th partitions and swap them while do restore. I could mis-numbered, you could check by size - both have 1 GB.


 
What do you mean by "DD"? If this involves opening the cover forget it!

Anyway how can it revert to L278 when that version is not spooling? I figure all they can do is rehit the 921 with the current s/w. For me they just send a new 921 (I'm on #10). I wish, for once, that they would just do a rehit. I have way too much on my HD.


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## boy654

P Smith said:


> Dish did that a few times, so you can do that personally for your 921 too. Just 'dd' 3 and 4th partitions and swap them while do restore. I could mis-numbered, you could check by size - both have 1 GB.


Can you elaborate for those of us who are not Linux fluent? Even if it reverts to L278, how does that keep it from updating back to L332?


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## doxieland

doxieland said:


> thanks for the reply regarding the drive, however my problem is software, not hardware. There have been many 921 replacements here, with no improvement -- I agree with michael p - the issue is the software. (my spouse is "IT" tech and we do know the issue is software)
> 
> Worked lilke a dream until the changes at end of Jan - from there it's been downhill ever since. The 921 WAS a remarkable device; it's a shame to experience what has happened since the software changes.
> 
> I do hope that 921 software is soon resolved. I don't care about the "hd" aspect and the mpeg 4 vs 2 - I just want the darn thing to work as it did before the software foul-up. Granted, the technology is evolving - but my 921 should still perform the operations that it was purchased to perform.
> 
> Would really like to know if there's any hope for the 921 software to be fixed and an appropriate timetable for the "fix". I can't entertain the possibility of upgrading until this issue is resolved.
> 
> thanks,
> doxieland


new issues dish 921 --

last friday night cut off recordings at random times, 37 min instead of 1hr, 7 min instead of half hour; sunday night some times did not start -
yet on downstairs 508 recordings of same programs were complete.... so it's not the signal going out - so glad I was able to use the old technology for "back-up" - but that doesn't always work - 1-tuner vs 2 tuner (but at least the 1-tuner 508 is working..)

still requiring daily reboots, sometimes more than once -
have swapped out receivers too many times, when issue is software -
anyone else have info to share? 
thanks for "listening"

doxieland


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## Michael P

Usually when I get cut-off recordings or missed recordings it's due to the 921 needing a reboot. Mine needs one approx. every 24 hours, sooner if I page through the EPG.

E* Please, Pleeze! give us a fix for this stinking L332. :crying_sa


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## P Smith

Nay, they're really want you drop it in favor of new 622/722.


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## Michael P

P Smith said:


> Nay, they're really want you drop it in favor of new 622/722.


I would have switched to a 622 by now if not for the "HD Enabling fee"


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## P Smith

They don't care about this personal concern; they are more interesting to get the money either way.


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## doxieland

Michael P said:


> I would have switched to a 622 by now if not for the "HD Enabling fee"


we'd love to upgrade to the latest and greatest - but want to retire the oldest non-dvr receiver we have, not our 921. The 921 should function properly so that we can rotate our equipment..... our 508s are working ok now, with the p.369, am dreading the day they force the 4.0 download (would love the "nbr" but NOT the problems - I seem to be suffering with 921 p.332 software burn-out, maybe that's the medical code for it's driving me to the edge of sanity!

I have been reading some of the boards for the "latest and greatest" and I am reluctant to jump into a new product that seems to have its own issues, as well.

the rebooting daily is just a fact of life here, sometimes a couple of times a day - and yep, traveling into the epg seems to trigger the freeze-ups and slow-downs.

thanks for listening....
doxieland


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## Michael P

Does anyone at E* advance tech still read this forum? Every time I call I give the same explanation yet they seem not to know of these common bugs (outside of the notes on my account). THe last time they were going to do a "build" (I guess that means they were going to try and get a 921 to act-up like mine - all they need is to fire up any of the 9 921's I already sent back).

Just a glance of this thread should be enough evidence to condemn L332 to history.


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## doxieland

doxieland said:


> it'a one day past the 332, and as previously posted - it is NOT the fix that we've been waiting for.
> 
> today's problems include video blacking out - audio still there - when this happens, remote will not function. Receiver did stop properly at end of event once after "record to end of event " selected, however the next time it didn't.
> 
> When using the guide to browse and select programming to record, it appears to become overloaded and will lock up, requiring a hard boot.
> 
> When something is recording on one tuner we definitely CANNOT use the guide or watch a recorded show because it seems to "provoke" the lockup to occur, which causes a hard reboot. At that time, we will get a break in the recording with a loss of however long it takes to reboot. Of course, that is an improvement from the entire recording being lost, as before.
> 
> Is the REAL fix going to happen soon? is anyone else having these issues?
> thanks:  :nono: :soapbox:


Just wondering if everyone has given up hope for software fixes for 921. There has been no change, other than my adapting to life with daily 921 reboots and issues.

Are there still 921 owners out there? Have you had any help or offers from dish?

thanks,
doxieland


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## P Smith

Nope.


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## Michael P

I'm still here (although my wife probably thinks I need my head examined for putting up with these issues so long). 

When L330 came out I had not had the issues others had, but E* was quick to come out with L331. That version too caused somebody problems but not me. Then L332 came along and my perpetual headache began. I had a series of replacement units that all had the same issue. this proved (to me anyway) that it's definitely the L332 software that is buggy and not the hardware. 

But will anybody listen? I still think that L278 was the best version that they ever released. We lost that version thanks to the change in daylight savings time (that and the fact that L278 gave non subscribers "free" OTA guide data). I strongly believe that the presence of OTA guide data made the 921 more stable, since some of the L332 bugs rear their ugly heads when scrolling out into the future in the EPG.


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## tthomps

Up until the last several days, I was pleasantly surprise with my 921. For the past two months, I had no issues. Then the menu lockups, see-through gray overlay, and inactive buttons on recorded replay started up again. We have done a warm reboot five or six times. I still like the 921, and I am going to run it until it will not reboot.


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