CATV Stations

[kaneohe]

Thought I had solved all the problems by removing the splitter and thereby
increasing signal strength..........evidently not. Does it make sense that the
available stations change over time. Had been working fine since the splltter
removal.

Yesterday a whole bunch of local stations 2-9 and CNN 56 were missing.
Comcast had a blue screen said temporarily unavailbe; available soon.
That night the local stations 2-9 were back but CNN 56 was still missing.

This morning CNN is working.

Initial the reps sent a signal to reset the CATV box, then said the box is too old so a tech would need to replace the box. Would a tech replace the box if everything was working when he came out?

 

[MichaelB]

Initial the reps sent a signal to reset the CATV box, then said the box is too old so a tech would need to replace the box. Would a tech replace the box if everything was working when he came out?

Comcast is inconsistent but yes, would probably replace the box. Once there the tech will also check the signal strength / quality and connections.

The blue screen sounds like an encryption issue, which points to a bad STB. If you have a Comcast service outlet nearby you can go change the box yourself if you don't want the tech in your house.

 

[Root]

No. CATV RF levels leaving a headend should be fairly consistent. Digital carriers will have a lower level than analog, but both should remain consistent over time.

Possible causes of signal level fluctuations could be water in the drop, or ground block, voltage on the cable wire, LTE ingress, etc...

Blue screen sounds like a TV issue, I only know of one Comcast box that puts out a blue screen and it was discontinued 7-8 years ago. Yes, if you have a tech come to your home, he can replace the box.

 

[John Galt III]

Hope this is useful. I had been getting pixilation on some channels and some channels just got an error message. I thought it might be my splitter, but I never did anything about it other than do some research. Well.... the cable co just did an upgrade to their service, by making their signal 100% encrypted and digital. Everyone has to have a DTA or similar box to get a picture. Ever since the upgrade, I get all the channels I'm supposed to get, except two, without any pixilation (knock on wood). And without touching the splitter. I am assuming that prior to the upgrade, I was getting a combination of some channels analog, some digital, who knows. Hope this is useful.

 

[MissMolly]

In our neck of the woods Time Warner was taken over by Spectrum in the past few months. Recently there have been a number of articles in the paper about folks tuning into channels they normally watch only to see a blue screen. After the fact, Time Warner/Spectrum sent letters advising people they would no longer have access to those stations unless they paid for a higher cost subscription. I am so glad we canceled cable back in January.

 

[kaneohe]

CATV tech came out today. Problem that I had when I made appt had fixed itself so it is difficult to know if anything is improved. He installed new coax
fitting at end of incoming cable.....said old one was not as good as new one.
Also installed newer cable box. Now things are the same as before he did
anything so only time will tell. He pointed out the the incoming cable line is
having some interference from a tree.

The thing that impressed me is that he cut off the coax fitting and sometime later while I was in the room, somehow managed to reinstall the fitting and connect the new box w/o my knowledge. Maybe that speaks more to my inattention than his skills but I was impressed.