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722 posessed?

1799 Views 23 Replies 11 Participants Last post by  Ron Barry
I recently got the 722 upgrade and I'm having all sorts of weird issues with the unit.

I've called DISH and their solution was the typical - unplug, wait 30 seconds, plug in and everything should be fixed.

Here's what I'm experiencing. First, the 722 is randomly recording shows. I mean totally random - infomercials, broadcast TV, etc. It's also recording at random lengths - so I'll get 4 minutes of "Cindy Crawford's make-up secrets" and 2 minutes of some religious show and then 34 minutes of something else. I've double and triple checked and none of the shows it's recording are in any list of any kind on the unit.

The other day it recorded an episode of "Chris Angel: Mindfreak" (which is not a program it's set to record) but instead of recording it as an entire 30 minute show, it actually recorded it on both TV1 and TV2 as 30 2 minute segments, for a total of 60 minutes.

Also, the 722 will randomly turn on in the middle of the night. The problem with this is the 722 is hooked to my home theater system and I typically just leave it on - so suddenly at 2am I'll hear voices in my living room.

If it's recording a show and I try to change the channel to the channel it's recording - so, lets say it's recording Stargate Atlantis and I try to actually switch to SciFi while it's recording, it'll say something about how I'm currently recording and switching to this show will cancel the recording and switch me to Live TV. But I'm just trying to watch the show it's already recording.

Finally, I'm also unable to stop it from recording a show once it starts. So, lets say it's recording "Flip This House" and I realize it's a repeat - there is no "stop recording" button available and if I try to delete it, it tells me that the program is currently being recorded and I cannot delete it while it's recording.

Unplugging the unit hasn't done anything. Is this typical for the 722??

I'm honestly so tired of these DISH units. This is the 3rd series of HD DVRs we've had from DISH and absolutely NONE of them have worked right. Every single one has had some sort of problem or another. I had the original HD DVR (forget the model number) and it had to be replaced something like 3-4 times.

I'm a bit frustrated with DISH at the moment...

Paul
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That does sound very frustrating. Have you tried changing your remote code/address. Maybe there is neighbor with the same codes, or something that is putting out random IR/RF in your house. It is something to try at least.
Running a Factory Default reset may also be a viable option, if you don't mind starting over.
Hmmm. 3 HD boxes in a row with problems. I would look for environmental causes at your location. Cooling, power(grounding, mis-wired outlets, fluctuation of input voltage etc.)
sampatterson said:
That does sound very frustrating. Have you tried changing your remote code/address. Maybe there is neighbor with the same codes, or something that is putting out random IR/RF in your house. It is something to try at least.
I agree !!!!!!!!!

fred
The 722 doesn't use RF for remote 1, AFAIK, and my unit is set up to be used with only a single TV. None of my neighbors withing 100+ yards has a DISH.

I don't think it could be the wiring. I had this room wired by a licensed electrician and I am using a line conditioner. The unit is on a glass shelf with no walls, so it's got very good ventilation. The original HD DVR (whatever that model was) died due to hard drive failure - they kept sending refurbished units and 3 or 4 of them died with the same problem within a few weeks. They eventually sent me the next gen (422?) which worked fine until they switched me to the 722 I have now.

I think they were wiring my street for FIOS a week or two ago. My sister has it and loves it. If it is available and I'm still dealing with these issues for much longer, I'll just make the switch.
In Single mode you can control the receiver with either/both IR and RF. If you don't use the RF remote, try removing the small antenna from the back of the receiver.
Is all your A/V gear on its own circuit or does is share a circuit with other house hold appliances such as ceiling fans etc.? You also could try removing the power conditioner at least temporarily to see if that has any baring on the problem. There have been quite a few posts here regarding plugging your box into anything but a wall outlet.
paulrus said:
I recently got the 722 upgrade and I'm having all sorts of weird issues with the unit.

I've called DISH and their solution was the typical - unplug, wait 30 seconds, plug in and everything should be fixed.

Here's what I'm experiencing. First, the 722 is randomly recording shows. I mean totally random - infomercials, broadcast TV, etc. It's also recording at random lengths - so I'll get 4 minutes of "Cindy Crawford's make-up secrets" and 2 minutes of some religious show and then 34 minutes of something else. I've double and triple checked and none of the shows it's recording are in any list of any kind on the unit.

The other day it recorded an episode of "Chris Angel: Mindfreak" (which is not a program it's set to record) but instead of recording it as an entire 30 minute show, it actually recorded it on both TV1 and TV2 as 30 2 minute segments, for a total of 60 minutes.

Also, the 722 will randomly turn on in the middle of the night. The problem with this is the 722 is hooked to my home theater system and I typically just leave it on - so suddenly at 2am I'll hear voices in my living room.

If it's recording a show and I try to change the channel to the channel it's recording - so, lets say it's recording Stargate Atlantis and I try to actually switch to SciFi while it's recording, it'll say something about how I'm currently recording and switching to this show will cancel the recording and switch me to Live TV. But I'm just trying to watch the show it's already recording.

Finally, I'm also unable to stop it from recording a show once it starts. So, lets say it's recording "Flip This House" and I realize it's a repeat - there is no "stop recording" button available and if I try to delete it, it tells me that the program is currently being recorded and I cannot delete it while it's recording.

Unplugging the unit hasn't done anything. Is this typical for the 722??

I'm honestly so tired of these DISH units. This is the 3rd series of HD DVRs we've had from DISH and absolutely NONE of them have worked right. Every single one has had some sort of problem or another. I had the original HD DVR (forget the model number) and it had to be replaced something like 3-4 times.

I'm a bit frustrated with DISH at the moment...

Paul
I just replaced a 625 that had the same symptoms. It was recording shows for short periods ( 1 to 2 minutes ) and would not always respond to the remote. Called Dish and they sent the customer another receiver. It worked fine.
paurus said:
Unplugging the unit hasn't done anything. Is this typical for the 722??
No, but I once saw a movie about a modem that kept going after it was unplugged. You should be really concerned if it asks you to play a game.

You should be able to stop recordings by going into the DVR list, select the show that is being recorded, then there should be a stop button.

What appears in the daily schedule (DVR button 3x) for today, also page up to see previous days?
BobaBird said:
What appears in the daily schedule (DVR button 3x) for today, also page up to see previous days?
I checked the previous few days and absolutely none of the programs it's recorded are listed in the timer/DishPass list. Once again this morning it turned on at around 2-3am. I've removed the RF antenna and it's still recording random shows for random amounts of time. I also am still unable to stop it from recording once it starts on one out of the 2 tuners.

The outlet is on a totally isolated circuit from the rest of the house. I'll try plugging it directly into the outlet tonight.

Thanks!

Paul
If you'll post Counters we could have more info for suggestions.
P Smith said:
If you'll post Counters we could have more info for suggestions.
Sorry, but what's a "Counter"?
ChuckA said:
In Single mode you can control the receiver with either/both IR and RF. If you don't use the RF remote, try removing the small antenna from the back of the receiver.
Or he can disable Shared view.
paulrus said:
Sorry, but what's a "Counter"?
It's in Diag menu.
Counters are under menu-6-3. You also might want to do a SysInfo and page throw and see if anything unusual shows up (Menu 6-1-3).

Well since you removed the Remote Antenna and it is still happening.. You definitely
have some very strange occurring. Wondering if you have something emitting an IR frequency in the room that is causing this (Though I would be very suprised by this fact).

What does your DVR schedule show (Press DVR 3 times and page back to see how the shows were recorded). Do you see anything usual about the shows?

You mention about some previous failures. Do these deal with your 722 or are the failures relating to other DVRs. If they are 722 related, where the symptoms the same or where there different symptoms. If they were different and the fact is you most likely got a referb with the swap, My guess would be you got a bad box, but if the symptoms are crossing boxes then I really would like externally out for issues.
Sorry for the slow update, I've been swamped at work.

I did more investigating - I checked some of the weird recordings and even stranger still, many of them aren't what the title says they are. But, weirder than that - they STILL aren't any programs I've ever scheduled to record.

So the program might say "Cindy Crawford's Makeup Secrets" but when you play it, it's "Chris Angel: Mindfreak".

It's also doing things like recording the same show twice, but in one instance recording it for 1 hour and the other instance records for 1 hour and 34 minutes.

I'll check the counter and DVR schedule, but the last time I checked the schedule none of these shows were actually in the list.

Thanks!

Paul
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Swamped at work.. I know that feeling. I will assume that your other failures you mentioned are not the same in terms of symptoms. Going off that assumption I would say Paul it sure sounds like something is corrupted in your box or possible you have an hardware issue that is resulting in sporadic behavior. Could also be a number of other things, but this is by no means normal behavior and I have not seen any reports describing anything like this recently.

Definitely check the counters, System Info, and make another pass at your DVR schedule. If nothing shows up I would suggest if you feel confident you might want to try an NVRAM reset. See thread http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=53806 post #18 for details (Not for the faint of heart and do at your own risk). If that does not get things back on track I would swap the box.

Based on your description, this does not sound like a healthy box at all.
I checked the counters and there wasn't anything suspicious. I'm leaning towards just getting a replacement. This box isn't more than a month old, so I really shouldn't be having these issues. Last night it recorded an episode of "Essence of Emril" but instead of 1 30 minute episode, I got 30 1 minute episodes!

Paul
I would accept your conclusion if you understand those numbers, but so far I seen little to nothing of ppl knowledge what that counters means. Sorry, without the numbers I can't agree with you here especially if a person never heard about them and didn't know where to get them.
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