Sudden loss of signal/channels and reboots during GS

[tegandrew]

Hi all,

I've had a Tivo since June and it's been going splendidly until this morning.
All it would give me is the blue screen of no signal. I have checked the STB, cables, antenna etc and am sure that there is a signal entering the Tivo.
I can watch Now Playing shows but don't get Live TV and can't record.

I tried to fix it by rebooting to guided setup and re-doing my channels, but the Tivo reboots shortly after the first call, in one of the menus where I select my channel lineup (seems to be time-dependent rather than page-dependent).

edit:
And I've noticed a grey line at the top of the screen in the Tivo menus and while watching a recorded show - it's like the whole screen is shifted down a bit.

Thanks,
Andrew

[petestrash]

Just to confirm it's not an issue with your STB, try using a different source to provide a video signal to the TiVo. Like a DVD player, VCR, Playstation, Xbox etc. It doesn't matter what.

Is your TiVo PAL tuner modified ? if so, do you currently have it setup to use the aerial for local stations?

if you have TiVoWeb(plus) installed go to the Pal-Ntsc section and paste what is shown under "Current TiVo Boot Parameters:". Also in TiVoWeb(plus) go into MFS click on setup, then one of the numbers next to source and copy that screen. Do the same with the other set of numbers in setup if you have 2 sets.

Finally what input are you using for your STB and what type of box is it.

Peter.

[tegandrew]

It's not actually a STB, it is a JVC VCR. I ran my DVD player into the Tivo using the a different cable into the same input and it had no effect.

No PAL tuner - mostly unmodified hardware I bought in the US.

Current TiVo Boot Parameters: root=/dev/hda4 TV_STD=PAL GS=0 runideturbo=false

When I went to redo guided setup I telnetted to the Tivo and followed the instructions at the bottom of http://www.tuhs.org/twiki/bin/view/Install/PrepareTiVoDisk. Each time I go through guided setup it reboots with a purple screen a few seconds after the page where I select my channel line-up. Since doing it the first time, the channel is no longer changed on my VCR by the IR blaster.

MFS setup:
SignalSource 2274/12 {
Channel = 2274/13 2274/14 2274/15 2274/16 2274/17 2274/18 2274/19 2274/20 2274/21 2274/22 2274/23 2274/24 2274/25 2274/26 2274/27 2274/28 2274/29 2274/30 2274/31 2274/32 2274/33 2274/34 2274/35 2274/36
RFChannel = 4
Connector = 3
Component = 2683/-1
RecieverNumDigits = 2
CableBoxCodeNum = 30047
TunerDigitDelay = 150
UnattendedTunerDigitDelay = 800
LineupType = 1
Headend = 2339/-1
SignalType = 5
VariableBitrate = 1
}

[tegandrew]

Update:
On further research I found this post
http://www.forums.oztivo.net/showthread.php?t=758&page=4
and ran delallsources.tcl to remove my sources. That didn't work.
I then used my Tivo to delete everything except the recordings. That didn't work either.

The problem remains that when running Guided Setup, there is a thin grey line across the top of the screen, like the whole screen is shifted down a bit. After the first call, about 3 seconds after the select channel lineup screen shows (regardless of whether I wait on that screen or click forward), I get a purple screen reboot.

I can put it back to regular mode and watch recordings, and then try Guided Setup again, but always the same problem. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Darren King]

Seeing as you have gone this far deleting everything, what happens if you do a complete fresh image install from scratch?

[tegandrew]

I'm posting here because I really don't want to delete my shows. I've backed up the season passes, redoing GS (if it works) is no drama, but I have a nearly full 300G drive of programs. I've archived some of these but will lose a lot of stuff I don't have room to archive.

Anyway, if there are no other options available, I will reimage the disk tonight as I need the Tivo up and running again very soon.

Due to the sudden and unexpected nature of the loss of signal I'm thinking that it might be a hardware failure, but I'm hoping it is software. The only similar issue that I have found is http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=310340 but no cause or solution was provided.

[Darren King]

You're walking a fine line losing all your precious programs playing trial and error with your current hard disk the more you attempt to find a result with it. If you don't want to lose programs why not a test hard disk? Anything from around 6GB and up will do. At least this will preserve your recordings and get you a clear result on if it is hardware or software related.

[tegandrew]

Excellent suggestion Darren. Will try a test disk and report back.

[Darren King]

Good to hear that is doable :)

If it turns out to still be a problem with a fresh image on another hard disk then it goes without saying that it is a hardware problem. If this is the case I can help as it sounds like the video input chip may have died.

Of course if the test hard disk does not produce the problem then it is software.

[tegandrew]

Well, I imaged a spare 60GB drive with the 1.6.2 image and popped it into my Tivo. All went well initially. The First Setup Call took a lot longer than usual as it imported new data. I even managed to select NSW Sydney Analogue. Then on the page where I choose my inputs (S-video etc) I got the purple screen reboot.

After rebooting I went through guided setup again and it rebooted on the choose channel lineup just like it did with my other hard disk.

A strange symptom is a thin grey line at the top of the screen except on the page where the reboot is about to occur. On this page the whole screen slides up a bit to fill the space of the grey line.

So, Darren, I hope you can help.

Andrew.

[petestrash]

It is starting to sound like a hardware fault.

I'm sure someone here had a similar case within the last 2 years.

have you tried using composite input during GS instead of S-Video, just to see if it goes further.

Peter.

[Darren King]

I agree with Peter. Try the other video input and then if no joy contact me via email to arrange hardware repairs.

[tegandrew]

I don't believe changing video inputs will help as it reboots on (the first time with a new hard drive) or prior to (every other time) the screen where I select the input. So I haven't actually selected an input and it still reboots. I don't believe a Tivo will reboot during GS just because it can't receive any inputs....

Have contacted Darren and will be sending him some business today.

Thanks very much for your help Peter and Darren.

Andrew.

[tegandrew]

Follow up - end note

I sent the motherboard off to Darren who diagnosed a faulty video encoder chip. He replaced it and made a few tweaks to the motherboard for a very reasonable price. It's been up and running flawlessly for the past few days and I didn't lose any shows.

Many thanks,
Andrew.

[Darren King]

Glad to be of assistance :)