# ASK DBSTalk: 921 checkswitch problems



## harpmel (Aug 17, 2004)

My 921 will not pickup sats on the second receiver. I am using a dp34 switch. I get all 3 sats on reciever #1 and 119 odd on reciever # 2. Please help.


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## Mark Lamutt (Mar 24, 2002)

Please switch the cables on your 921 so that the cable currently connected to SAT1 is connected to SAT 2 and vice versa, and report back the results.


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## Ronald K (Jan 11, 2004)

I just spent about four days trying to get all four sats to both inputs on a 921 via a newly installed superdish plus a 61.5 dish through a dp+ 44 switch and 140 feet of cabling.

What a nightmare.

The problem was two (not just one) bad cable fittings on two short lengths of wire. One down by the switch and the other between the dp+ power supply and the 921.

Ron


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## harpmel (Aug 17, 2004)

Mark Lamutt said:


> Please switch the cables on your 921 so that the cable currently connected to SAT1 is connected to SAT 2 and vice versa, and report back the results.


Switched all 3 incoming cables still the same.
I checked all cables on my 508 they all work properly.


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## Mark Lamutt (Mar 24, 2002)

I'm confused when you say you switched all 3 cables. I'm trying to determine if you have a cable problem or if one of your satellite tuners in your 921 is bad.

You have 2 cables connected to the satellite tuners on the back of your 921, and maybe 1 cable connected to your OTA tuner on the back of your 921. If you swap the two cables connected to the two satellite tuners, do another checkswitch and the results are exactly the same as they were before you swapped the cables, then one of your 921 tunes is broken and you'll have to get the receiver replaced. If, however, the problem moves to the other tuner on the checkswitch screen, then you either have a cable problem or a switch problem.


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## SimpleSimon (Jan 15, 2004)

If it's NOT a tuner or cable problem ...

He doesn't say, but if this is a new install, his box might have the original software, which might be having trouble with the switch? Maybe a pair of direct connections to the Dish 500 feed is in order.


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## Mark Lamutt (Mar 24, 2002)

The 921 never had any problems with the DP34 switch that I recall - or at least mine didn't. I downloaded L142 from the satellite connected to it originally back in December. There obviously were problems with the DPP44, and I do remember some original problems with cascaded SW-44 and SW-21 combinations.


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## harpmel (Aug 17, 2004)

Mark Lamutt said:


> I'm confused when you say you switched all 3 cables. I'm trying to determine if you have a cable problem or if one of your satellite tuners in your 921 is bad.
> 
> You have 2 cables connected to the satellite tuners on the back of your 921, and maybe 1 cable connected to your OTA tuner on the back of your 921. If you swap the two cables connected to the two satellite tuners, do another checkswitch and the results are exactly the same as they were before you swapped the cables, then one of your 921 tunes is broken and you'll have to get the receiver replaced. If, however, the problem moves to the other tuner on the checkswitch screen, then you either have a cable problem or a switch problem.


I have 1 cable going to a 508 and 2 cables going to a 921. I tested all 3 cables on the 508 and they work properly. So I guess it is the the one tuner on the 921 that is bad. Thank you for your help.


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## Mark Lamutt (Mar 24, 2002)

Probably. Call dish to go through all of this with them to get it replaced.


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## fox200 (Mar 21, 2004)

harpmel said:


> My 921 will not pickup sats on the second receiver. I am using a dp34 switch. I get all 3 sats on reciever #1 and 119 odd on reciever # 2. Please help.


When I had trouble with my DP34 switch, I found that having the 921 as the lone receiver on the switch while doing a check switch solved the problem for me. After the check switch was completed on the 921, I just connected my other 2 receivers up and all was OK.

fox


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## Savage112 (Jun 26, 2004)

I am having a similar problem. I have a 508,721,921, SW L187, 1.72, DPP44, 2 separators, dish 500, DP LNB's, 110 and 119. The 921 and power inserter and going to port 1 on the switch. The 508 is working fine, but the 921 and 721 get even transponders on one turner and odd on the other.

Check switch comes back good. There is a dual ground block between the switch and the cables going to the receivers.


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## boylehome (Jul 16, 2004)

Mark Lamutt said:


> Probably. Call dish to go through all of this with them to get it replaced.


To me it seems that there could be a problem with a connector on an RF cable. Sometimes if the copper wire is just a smish too short, It will give a person a major head ache!!. I was a victim of too short center wire! It gave me a major headache. It is amazing what a new and properly placed connector will do.


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## Mark Lamutt (Mar 24, 2002)

I would agree in most cases, but in this case the cables all worked with another receiver, but not with the 921. So, it seemed most likely that one of the sat tuners in his 921 was bad.


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## boylehome (Jul 16, 2004)

Mark Lamutt said:


> I would agree in most cases, but in this case the cables all worked with another receiver, but not with the 921. So, it seemed most likely that one of the sat tuners in his 921 was bad.


Correct, I agree. There may be a poor connector within the 921. MY 921 became very finicky when I accidentally hooked the Sat Cable to the OTA input and the OTA cable to the SAT input.


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## harpmel (Aug 17, 2004)

Dish is sending another 921 today.


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