New Tivo keeps crashing

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mattwnz

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Topic # 95440 4-Jan-2012 14:42

Purchased a new Tivo during the boxing day specials for $199. However since getting it, it has been regularly crashing or freezing on a blank grey screen. eg I turn the TV on, and all that displays is a grey screen, and the fan on the back of the tivo is load(at full blow), and it is totally unresponsive if I press the tivo button or try to change channels.Thus I have to unplug it from the power supply and replug it back in.

Other times I am watching something recorded, and it will then freeze for a few seconds and then restart itself with the 'powering up' page. Sometimes when it does this it doesn't complete the startup, and recrashes and freezes on the startup page (left it for 30 minutes), so I have to unplug again.

In total it has crashed about 5 times in a week, and it hasn't had that much use.

I do have another tivo that is a year old, and hasn't had this problem, and I do know how they work.

I could ring tivo, and they will probably send me out a refurbished replacement. However as it is brand new, should I just take it back to the retailer for replacement, as it is essentially DOA? Also I did purchase a brand new product, not something that has been refurbished, which is what I would end up with if I phoned tivo.

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Reply # 564356 4-Jan-2012 14:51

take it back. This is not normal. ours has never crashed.

mattwnz

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Reply # 564357 4-Jan-2012 14:52

Just phoned tivo, which forwards to telecom braodband. they said to turn it off for 6 hours and then try again. If that didn't fix the problem, to just return it to the retailer to switch it for a new one. So that is a good solution.

mattwnz

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Reply # 564358 4-Jan-2012 14:53

BraaiGuy: take it back. This is not normal. ours has never crashed.

Thanks, will do, as definately not normal. Also probably hasn't done it's hardrive any good having to keep unplugging it.

Skolink

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Reply # 564415 4-Jan-2012 17:44

I believe this may be caused by too high UHF signal strength. If you can get to the diagnostics screen before it crashes / grey-screens what is the signal level on each tuner? You may be able to fix this with an inline attenuator.
Jaycar have fixed attenuators, or an adjustable one. I'd go for the adjustable or a 6dB fixed.

Obviously if the above is the cause, a replacement unit will not fix the problem.

mattwnz

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Reply # 564424 4-Jan-2012 18:02

Skolink: I believe this may be caused by too high UHF signal strength. If you can get to the diagnostics screen before it crashes / grey-screens what is the signal level on each tuner? You may be able to fix this with an inline attenuator.
Jaycar have fixed attenuators,? or an adjustable one. I'd go for the adjustable or a 6dB fixed.

Obviously if the above is the cause, a replacement unit will not fix the problem.

I would doubt that would be the problem, as it is attached to the same aerial as the other tivo which doesn't have the problem. The signal also isn't the strongest, due to old wiring and splitter, so sometimes prime is a pixelated in bad weather.
It has also now begun to happen more often, and goes grey/then restarts in th place on a recorded movie, (eg not watching TV at all) so I can't get past a certain part in the movie. The first couple of days I had it, it was perfectly fine. So I think it could be harddrive related and something has just failed. Infact I now can't restart it at all now, it just crashes on the 'just a few minutes page', beofre it goes back to 'starting up'. Then it goes grey with the full fan blowing.May turn it off for a few hours.
I guess if it happens with the replacement unit, then it is possibly an aerial issue. I see the tivo website does state a similar fault when the device is not activated and you go to the system info page, and it is a known defect.

aaron11

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Reply # 573097 25-Jan-2012 10:14

Did you fix it
Honestly as you know Ive had issues with mine
I gave one away and kept the other

Take it back and swap it
Ive never seen a recording appilance with so many problems even over seas you should see what they say about it on facebook

BUT its a great machine with great features for the price

freitasm

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Reply # 573110 25-Jan-2012 10:45

aaron11: Ive never seen a recording appilance with so many problems even over seas you should see what they say about it on facebook

You obviously haven't read the discussions about the TelstraClear T-Box then...

Mauricio Freitas (Geekzone Admin, Devil's Advocate, my blog, technology disclosure)

aaron11

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Reply # 573114 25-Jan-2012 11:01

Oh no I havent mate I will have a look

Havent heard any probs with the mysky??

mattwnz

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Reply # 573221 25-Jan-2012 16:34

aaron11: Did you fix it
Honestly as you know Ive had issues with mine
I gave one away and kept the other

Take it back and swap it
Ive never seen a recording appilance with so many problems even over seas you should see what they say about it on facebook

BUT its a great machine with great features for the price?

They replaced it with a new one. The new one has been perfect since, so the other was DOA. They should be as reliable as skys system, as similar types of system with harddrive. The difference is of course, is that you are only renting skys one, but tivo you own without any subscription costs.

aaron11

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Reply # 573258 25-Jan-2012 19:13

Well one thing is for sure I use to sell vcrs, and dvd players recorders etc
Never had one come back Tivo has the most failure rate or glitches of anything I have seen
Thank god they are gettin run out of the market

old3eyes

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Reply # 573430 26-Jan-2012 08:59

aaron11: Well one thing is for sure I use to sell vcrs, and dvd players recorders etc
Never had one come back Tivo has the most failure rate or glitches of anything I have seen
Thank god they are gettin run out of the market

Where did you see that. Sky selling Myskys retail these days??

Regards,

Old3eyes

aaron11

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Reply # 573516 26-Jan-2012 11:43

Hi yes you can purchase a mysky though Vodafone i think 599.
I havent had one problem with mine what so ever its great
records more than the tivo too

allan

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Reply # 573518 26-Jan-2012 11:49

aaron11: Well one thing is for sure I use to sell vcrs, and dvd players recorders etc
Never had one come back Tivo has the most failure rate or glitches of anything I have seen
Thank god they are gettin run out of the market

Well I've got two of them. One for 12 month +, the other since Christmas - not a single problem.

aaron11

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Reply # 573530 26-Jan-2012 12:07

Must of just been a bad batch that I got one or two of
Last one problem was the channel line up so that wasnt the machine it was the softwear
Still prefer my sky while i can pay for it lots of docos about antiques and stuff on there that i like !!

mattwnz

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Reply # 573720 26-Jan-2012 17:02

aaron11: Hi yes you can purchase a mysky though Vodafone i think 599.
I havent had one problem with mine what so ever its great
records more than the tivo too
?

Pretty sure they still own it though, and if not I presume there will be a contract. You need sky to use it anyway, eg you can't use it for freeview, so there is probabbly no point in owning them anyway.

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