# Second Level Tech Support



## Calebrot (Jan 2, 2006)

Can someone please give me the phone number for second level support. I called DTV today and asked for second level support and the representative refused to allow me to speak to second level support. I am having the same problems that everyone else is having and I have 8 repeat programs scheduled to record even though they are set for First Run Only. This was addressed in another thread on extra-recordings. The representative told me that before they help or exchange the unit I need to do a full reset which would completely wipe out any existing recordings and I have 4 hours of TV to watch before then. I am just really pissed off that he refused to put me through to second level support and came up with a completely stupid requirement of resetting everything, completely formatting the hard-drive is basically what he said that option will do. Menu-Settings-Setup-Reset-Reset Everything, was the option he told me to take. When I refused to do that he said he couldn't help me. I used to have a very good impression of DTV. When we had the last hurricane that devastated South Florida, Wilma, they were so kind and accomodating. I didn't have the DVR at that time, and ordered it afterwards and have gone round and round with their techs on this units problems, I am getting really tired of babysitting this piece of ****. How in my right mind can I even think of referring a friend. I care for my friends, and if I referred them to DTV, yeah I would get $50, but I'd lose them as friends because of a very poor recommendation.


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## stupid0g (Nov 25, 2005)

There is no # to my knowledge for a direct line to T2. If i recall it was disconnected due to high call volume for non hd/dvr related issues. best bet is hang up on the rep and cb in to try again.

On a side note, no T1 tech should be formatting your dvr, our policy states that is strictly for T2 to perform due to unneccesary formats, but furthermore the issue you're experiencing is unresolved at this time, and that may be the answer you get from a T2 agent.

Paul


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## Calebrot (Jan 2, 2006)

stupid0g said:


> There is no # to my knowledge for a direct line to T2. If i recall it was disconnected due to high call volume for non hd/dvr related issues. best bet is hang up on the rep and cb in to try again.
> 
> On a side note, no T1 tech should be formatting your dvr, our policy states that is strictly for T2 to perform due to unneccesary formats, but furthermore the issue you're experiencing is unresolved at this time, and that may be the answer you get from a T2 agent.
> 
> Paul


They gave me it a few weeks ago and I lost the paper it was written on, but maybe since then it has been disconnected. But what you are telling me is that the person I spoke to should not have told me to take the steps he did?

I called the DIRECTV Number and went through all the menus and immediately asked for a second level tech and the person asked, Are you calling about this issue (many links in other threads on the issues I'm having, all the standard one's) and I said yes, and he said I didn't need second level support, he could help me. So after asking a bunch of silly questions about how I set up the series link, etc., (like in the back of his mind I didn't know how to set them up), and then going on hold for a few minutes, he told me to go through menu, select settings, select setup, select reset, and then to select Reset Everything. He even made a comment like You'll lose anything you have recorded because it's like when you reformat your computer. I was like, "I can't do that right now, because I still have 4 shows to watch" He said they couldn't help me until I started fresh and rebuilt everything, all 24 series links I have set up. I said do you realize the amount of time that takes, and he said yes, but until I did it they couldn't help me. Level 1 tech!


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## stupid0g (Nov 25, 2005)

More than likely the # he provided was the T1 cb #. It was switch around about 2-3 mnths ago due to high call volume, however they've implimented a new one since then. Was just reviewing the changes to our scripts and here's whats up.

T1 techs can walk you thru the "reset everything" feature on the R15 for simple reason it doesn't reformat the hard drive.

However all "clear and delete" for Tivo, and all actual formatting of the R15 hard dirve is supposed to be transfered to a T2 agent, or a protection plan agent if applicable.

Sorry for that mix-up they've changed it abit since the R15 came out.

However the # is only good for a T1 tech unless D* has implimented a new #, i'll double check.

Paul


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## ISWIZ (Nov 18, 2005)

It has helped in the past to ask for the DVR division of Technical Support.


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## cabanaboy1977 (Nov 16, 2005)

ISWIZ said:


> It has helped in the past to ask for the DVR division of Technical Support.


I tried that too, but the guy I talked to last time claimed they don't have a lvl 2 and he worked in the DVR department. He also wanted to make me reset the system too, till I told him that all three where having issues. He then say Oh, ok a reset probably won't help then. He was the second tech that said he was taking down my name and number and that someone would call me back. That has yet to happen. That was 2 weeks ago and the time before that was the last week of december.


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## LockMD (Nov 16, 2005)

try this # it is the HD direct line, then just say you dialed it wrong and ask for tier 2 and they will transfer you no problem. Its faster than going through all those prompts. And possibly getting a level 1 that gets offended by you asking for level 2.


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## Bobman (Jan 3, 2006)

I would not even waste time calling. All your going to do is get yourself frustrated and get no real answers.

DirecTV does know about all these problems and is working on a fix, noone knows how soon though. You just have to sit back and wait. Swaping out the unit will not fix anything and your just going to have a another R-15 with the same problem.


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## cabanaboy1977 (Nov 16, 2005)

Bobman said:


> I would not even waste time calling. All your going to do is get yourself frustrated and get no real answers.
> 
> DirecTV does know about all these problems and is working on a fix, noone knows how soon though. You just have to sit back and wait. Swaping out the unit will not fix anything and your just going to have a another R-15 with the same problem.


Yeah i know, what's more frustrating is that alot of helpdesks think that reformat is the answer for everything. I can understand hitting the reset button on the r15 to correct some problems but to have reformating the R15 be part of normal troubleshooting is silly. I myself work at an IT helpdesk and I would get fired if I told someone to reformat there pc they didn't need it. One of my friends worked for a help desk that before they could go to level 2 they had to reformat the HD. Even if they new it was dead modem, CD-rom, etc. Even he thought it was dumb. What is going on with some of the helpdesks out there?


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## ISWIZ (Nov 18, 2005)

Unplugging for 5 minutes seems (in my case) to fix more problems, and keep them fixed for a longer time. An update can't be too far off.


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## Bobman (Jan 3, 2006)

Its the same with other companies too. My friend has cable and their DVR and anytime he calls with a problem, no matter what it is, the only solution they offer is to unplug the unit or to swap it out.


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## flynlr (Jan 21, 2006)

im on my second r15 now first one lasted only 4 days.. now this new one may be retarded too. turned on the tv yesterday to find i cour hear sound and see menus fine but where the pic was all I had was green fuzz,, anyway a reset cured the problem but I am so sick of resetting as you lose the quide info every time. 
why the hell cant they cache the guide info on the HDD?


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## Bobman (Jan 3, 2006)

I agree. I would either like to see the guide stored on the HD or download the entire guide during the resetting process. I know it might take a few minutes but for me I would wait.


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## Calebrot (Jan 2, 2006)

You know I found myself in a quandry about whether or not to take the $7.99/mo equipment protection plan. I felt if I didn't and the unit malfunctioned or should I say continued to function the way it is, after the 90 warranty period, without the protection plan come day 91 and the problems are not fixed then you basically are screwed without the plan. It was the free DVR offer and I am committed for 2 years, so if on day 91 without the plan, something were to go wrong, then you either have to pay the cancelation fee, (I was told by a DTV rep, that once you activate your unit, it cannot be returned to eliminate the charge) or continue to pay for the service and just not receive it for 21 months. They really have a racket going on here. Your screwed if you don't have the plan, and they are screwing you with the plan, by not covering their own equipment. I have had DTV since like 1996, never had to replace the dish or LNB until this year when Hurricane Wilma created havoc in South Florida, and now I have gone through 2 new LNB's and since the DVR was installed, it has been replaced once for a total of two units. Without the plan on day 91 you discover the problems are not fixed, your screwed.


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## Wolffpack (Jul 29, 2003)

Interesting. When did DTV's equipment change from offering a 1 year warranty to offering a 90 day warranty? The HR10-250 I received in December came with a 1 year.

It's pretty much a moot issue with the lease program coming up but selling any type of receiver with a 90 day warranty. Sounds like things are being built cheaper and cheaper.


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## ghost (Jan 31, 2006)

Calebrot said:


> You know I found myself in a quandry about whether or not to take the $7.99/mo equipment protection plan. I felt if I didn't and the unit malfunctioned or should I say continued to function the way it is, after the 90 warranty period, without the protection plan come day 91 and the problems are not fixed then you basically are screwed without the plan. It was the free DVR offer and I am committed for 2 years, so if on day 91 without the plan, something were to go wrong, then you either have to pay the cancelation fee, (I was told by a DTV rep, that once you activate your unit, it cannot be returned to eliminate the charge) or continue to pay for the service and just not receive it for 21 months. They really have a racket going on here. Your screwed if you don't have the plan, and they are screwing you with the plan, by not covering their own equipment. I have had DTV since like 1996, never had to replace the dish or LNB until this year when Hurricane Wilma created havoc in South Florida, and now I have gone through 2 new LNB's and since the DVR was installed, it has been replaced once for a total of two units. Without the plan on day 91 you discover the problems are not fixed, your screwed.


 Let me get this straight. D* is going to a lease 1 March and they won't cover the equipment if you signed up in February unless you have the $7.99 protection plan? If that is the case (I'm getting installed Saturday) I'll send the friggin' thing back the day I get it and cancel the contract. :nono2:


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## ISWIZ (Nov 18, 2005)

Bobman said:


> Its the same with other companies too. My friend has cable and their DVR and anytime he calls with a problem, no matter what it is, the only solution they offer is to unplug the unit or to swap it out.


They're all really just a computer, you already knew that. Our first question is "did you reboot?". I find that a complete shutdown works better and lets the little guy inside the box get his rest before going at it again. 
It would be nice if there were not problems but if it worked right all the time we'd all have to find something else to mess with


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## Calebrot (Jan 2, 2006)

Wolffpack said:


> Interesting. When did DTV's equipment change from offering a 1 year warranty to offering a 90 day warranty? The HR10-250 I received in December came with a 1 year.
> 
> It's pretty much a moot issue with the lease program coming up but selling any type of receiver with a 90 day warranty. Sounds like things are being built cheaper and cheaper.


The R-15 only comes with a 90 day warranty. Since it is the one they are still offering free, (free to them is you pay $99 and wait 8 weeks and get $100 back), that one is definitely only 90 days for warranty service.


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## Calebrot (Jan 2, 2006)

ghost said:


> Let me get this straight. D* is going to a lease 1 March and they won't cover the equipment if you signed up in February unless you have the $7.99 protection plan? If that is the case (I'm getting installed Saturday) I'll send the friggin' thing back the day I get it and cancel the contract. :nono2:


Not sure of how it impacts leases. I didn't even know they were offering leased equipment. I would have rather leased the equipment rather than own it outright, that way if it goes bad it's their problem and not mine. I wish I had known.


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## walters (Nov 18, 2005)

I think some above are missing the point. The tech isn't asking him to restart or pull the plug. He's asking him to clear and delete everything (and not offering any support until he does). 

Think about being told to format your drive and reinstall Windows if Internet Explorer crashed. Even then, at least you could back up and restore your data.


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## ISWIZ (Nov 18, 2005)

Walters,

Thanks, I just reread it. No, that's just a little extreme.


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## ghost (Jan 31, 2006)

Calebrot said:


> Not sure of how it impacts leases. I didn't even know they were offering leased equipment. I would have rather leased the equipment rather than own it outright, that way if it goes bad it's their problem and not mine. I wish I had known.


From what I understand leasing goes into effect 1 March as well as the price increase.:eek2:


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## Calebrot (Jan 2, 2006)

ghost said:


> From what I understand leasing goes into effect 1 March as well as the price increase.:eek2:


Prices Increases? WHAT? and How Much?


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## Wolffpack (Jul 29, 2003)

Calebrot, You need to check out the General DirecTV Discussion forum for info on the lease program and price increases: http://www.dbstalk.com/forumdisplay.php?f=12


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## ghost (Jan 31, 2006)

Beat me to it!


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## cabanaboy1977 (Nov 16, 2005)

Wolffpack said:


> Calebrot, You need to check out the General DirecTV Discussion forum for info on the lease program and price increases: http://www.dbstalk.com/forumdisplay.php?f=12


Is there any info about the leasing program yet? I really don't want to lease my R20 when it comes out.


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## Wolffpack (Jul 29, 2003)

Check out: http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=50899


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## Calebrot (Jan 2, 2006)

OK, I have had about enough of this piece of ****. Finally watched the four shows I mentioned in the beginning of this thread so I decided to take DTV advice and choose the Reset Everything. Reset everything and then reset it up, and then turned it off for a few hours to repopulate the guide. When the guide repopulated I set up my 24 (# not the show) Series Links and the problems are back. First runs are not set and repeats are, even though every one of my Series Links is set for First Run only. Called DTV to tell them and they told me this....We've noticed that Series Links don't ditinguish between First Run and Repeats for the first 30 days, after 30 days everything should be fine. Where in the hell did they get this information. She looked into my account and said that it has not been thirty days since I activated this receiver, so my First Run and Repeats won't work. OK I can delete extra recordings, no problem there, but the three Monday night CBS shows I have set for Series First Run are all First Run this coming week however none of them are set to record, so that blows here thirty day deal out of the water, because she said it would record everything for the first thirty days. Now comes the good part and I would like some comments from "stupid0g" on this request from DTV. I am now being told that I either need to reformat or call a technician for a house call. Well I don't want another technician in here because I have had four different techs here in the past four months and not one of them spoke English, I live in Fort Lauderdale, so the service company down here is from Miami, so what can you expect. But the reason w3hy I want comments from "stupid0g" on this on is because this was a Level 1 tech telling me to reformat the drive. I made sure this time, I asked if she was Level 1 and I verified that she indeed meant re-format. With all of these headaches, and with the price that our local Comcast gives for ex-DirecTV members for a year, I really want to get rid of this crap and get Comcast for a year and then switch back to DTV when the problems are worked out. I object to being used as a guinea pig and charged for a service that doesn't work.


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## Bobman (Jan 3, 2006)

Not sure why you bothered with all that. Just read this forum. Most of the problems are going to be there, if you reset, unplug the unit, do a full wipe, get another R-15, etc....

Nothing short of the next software update is going to fix these problems.

The "30 day story" they told you might be true IF its releated to a 30 day duplicate rule. The first 30 days the box records everything and then after that it wont record anything that is had recorded prior.


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## cabanaboy1977 (Nov 16, 2005)

Bobman said:


> The "30 day story" they told you might be true IF its releated to a 30 day duplicate rule. The first 30 days the box records everything and then after that it wont record anything that is had recorded prior.


That might explain why some off us aren't recording dup's and others are, but it's dumb that it's waiting for 30 days before looking at that list. I wasn't getting dup's untill I reset my box a week or so ago.


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## ISWIZ (Nov 18, 2005)

So the 30 days restarts each time the box restarts? Now that would be interesting.


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## Calebrot (Jan 2, 2006)

I think it was just a bunch of BS, the rep was just assuming something or something along those lines. I never heard anything so ridiculous with computer hardware anytime in my life, it takes 30 days to work, give me a break!


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## samo (Nov 9, 2002)

Calebrot said:


> I think it was just a bunch of BS, the rep was just assuming something or something along those lines. I never heard anything so ridiculous with computer hardware anytime in my life, it takes 30 days to work, give me a break!


There is a very simple solution for you to get at least some satisfaction. Call them and ask them to cancel service. They will switch you to the customer retention department. These people would not be able to help you with fixing your problems (as was mentioned above - these are known bugs) but they will credit your account $100 so you can get yourself R-10 from the store. They will tell you that you don't have to return R-15 and if you wish, you could keep it activated as an extra receiver or do whatever you want with it. At least that is what they did for me. People in customer retention department seem to be knoledgeble and are aware of all the known bugs with R-15.


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## unionsquare (Feb 5, 2006)

"Can someone please give me the phone number for second level support."


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## Mr. Furious (Feb 9, 2006)

I called support today because of the repeat vs. first run issue. The level 1 CSR was nice enough, and told me that the information she had indicated that the guide data had to indicate that a program was a first run or a repeat in order for the Series Link to identify it as such. I told her that we also have a DirecTiVo in the house that records some of the same shows (my wife uses a DVR80 in the bedroom) with the same settings, and it records the shows properly. She immediately transferred me to tier 2.

The rep there was also very nice, and did some checking. He gave me the same information that I'd read here - that they were aware of the issue, and that it was being worked on.

I think that the best evidence that this something fixable is that the DirecTiVos correctly identify first runs and repeats, so the flags are in there somewhere.

Now, if they can also make it so that the R15 records same-day repeats of shows not recorded the first time because of conflicts, I'll be a very happy guy.


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## jb1957 (Feb 11, 2006)

A little of my experience reaching level 2. Most of the time if you ask, they get you there right away. If you get a operator who wants to grill you, my experience is to hang up and try your luck with the next operator. Better than wasting time. I recently was trying to find out if DTV had any plans to duplicate a feature in TIVO call Season Pass Manager. Great feature...one click gets you your list of shows, and you can modify accordingly. No such thing on R-15. Closest thing is call prioritizer. Got to go thru about 7 steps to get there. 

I called DTV tech support, and the operator insisted on finding my reasons for calling before transfering me to level 2. I had a little time to kill, and decided to see where the conversation went. I told him about Season pass manager, and he didn't have a clue as to what it was. After a few minutes, he came back with the question of whether it was like NFL season pass, which he knew about. I told him, no way, and please get me to someone who knew what they were talking about. He, said OK, but he had to write up my problem. Minutes passed, and he told me to be patient while he did further research. At that point, I hung up, called again, got the operator to transfer me to level 2 right away. Turns out the supervisor I talked to didn't even know about prioritizer, the only menu that lists all your Season Passes, or, series links. He wanted me to go to the guide, find my show, then modify it. Took 7 steps to get there.

I don't think there is any point in moaning about the sleek features that the old DVR's with Tivo had. Those days are gone, and the cost of purchasing my old RCA receiver with Tivo that I originally paid $100 for is now over $375. There is no reset, or replacement that can fix the problems that R-15 has. In short, all you can do is be patient, and wait for them to find some people with the skills to create software to fix this fiasco. In the meantime...call customer service and demand that they don't charge you for a service that doesn't work. Please, everyone reading this call now. They credited my account for 6 months (a whopping $36 buck) cause they couldn't give me any answer as to when of even IF the problems would be fixed. However, they promised to call me if and when they were sure the R-15 would do what it was designed to do...WHICH IS RECORD SHOWS!!!!!


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## dutch (Feb 12, 2006)

First let me say that thanks to the members here for answering so many of my questions. 
A couple things I have experienced this past 2 weeks that may be of interest to others. I had a level2 or advanced products tech send me a D10 tivo unit to replace my D15. He had to jump through some hoops on his computer to do it but I did not have to go buy it and get a credit or send back the D15. Problem there was the D10 came in a box that had been flooded. I mean the box was falling apart and even had mildew. Back to the warranty issue I did not want this to be my replacement unit. I called and they told me I could keep it and do whatever I wanted with it. I am still using my D15. Called today regarding some new issue I have had and they offered to credit my account for the inconvenience. The level 2 gave me this number but I cant say if it goes to level 1 or 2.


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## Malibu13 (Sep 12, 2004)

Guys, this one has changed topics quite a few times in relation to the OP. Second Level Tech and CSR issues really need to be addressed in the "General Discussion Forum". This one's "closed" : )

_*I have also edited out the phone numbers, as it appears that some of the numbers may have been incorrectly listed and are non-toll free or maybe even out-of-country*_


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