[chuckyHDDTV]

hey gents,

Got a sevice tech to come out to the house today to switch out a WB68 multiswitch that went bad after a thunderstorm. I had diagonosed the problem prior to him coming so that when he showed up, he wouldn't spend alot of time going through his troubleshooting steps. After I explained the problem and solution, he still continued with his method of troubleshooting. After an hourand switching B band converters and wires, he was about to go into the wall when I told him to stop. He insisted he had to go inside the wallplate to make sure my connector wasn't bad. My patience had ran out. I told him to follow me so that I could show him what the problem really was. After showing him that the multiswitch was bad, he informed me that he didn't have one on hand! So right now he is on his way back to his office to bring me a multiswitch. I explained the entire thing to DTV tech support and told them what I needed. The tech guy could have avoided all this if two things would have happened, DTV should have forward my request for a multiswitch to the tech guy and the tech guy could have saved all the time troubleshooting if he would have listened to me in the first place. I'm just venting as this service call was very painful to watch. If he only listened to me....

 

[flipptyfloppity]

Be careful. Some companies view customers who understand what's going on as dangerous.

 

[carl6]

The good old 90/10 rule. 90% of the customers who "know" what the problem is are wrong, and a good technician will always verify the problem. I would agree though, if it isn't going to make any difference what order you check things, then checking the multiswitch first based on the customers input might be worth doing.

I'm glad you accurately diagnosed the problem, and I agree that the dispatching system should have a way to make sure the proper parts are on the truck when the tech shows up, which basically means anything that is in the customer's system.

Carl

 

[Carl Spock]

When I ran my stereo store, on a service tag I always wrote up what was actually wrong, not what the customer thought was wrong. It's the job of the tech to figure out where the problem is.

With a piece of stereo equipment, "one channel out" is a better description of the problem than "needs new outputs". Even if the customer is right, what caused the outputs to blow? It could end up being a connector problem, and focusing too much on one area without diagnosing the system can lead to only a partial fix.

Please notice, chuckHDDTV, I'm not saying you were wrong in your diagnosis. Obviously, you were right. It's just not good service procedure to go for the cure before you figure out the disease.

 

[chuckyHDDTV]

I hear you guys. It was just painful to wait and watch the guy go through all the trouble. Plus, after talking to him on his second trip, he told me he was on his second week on the job and was still learning a few things. I guess knowing what I know and getting with you guys just got me a bit impatient. In th end... I got a new multiswitch.

Chuck

 

[BattleZone]

DirecTV's ordering system generally won't include "repair part" equipment on the work order. A switch is usually only listed if it's coming along with a dish or receiver. The problem is that this guy is new and doesn't know how to stock his truck properly, or he's in an area where they are very stingy with switches (many areas are) and don't give him any unless it is obvious that he'll need one. Which is dumb for techs who get service calls, yes.

 

[houskamp]

If I had a dollar for every coustomer that told me he needed a lower hose on his car that needed a waterpump I'd be rich..
best one was one that asked for a price on a oil pan.. when I asked why he said: because the oil is dripping off the bottom.. uh gravity? :lol:
But I do always listen.. lots of times they do have some things that are good clues to what is wrong..

 

[Tom Robertson]

That is the big key: listening very carefully and actively. (tho a tech two weeks on the job is likely still storting things out, so I can understand he hasn't learned how to tell a knowledgeable customer--he himself doesn't know.)

Glad it's working, glad you trained a tech, hopefully he'll be around long enough to use that knowledge.

Cheers,
Tom

 

[irish316]

I had a lightning strike and I also told my tech that I believe the problem was a faulty multiswitch. Of course, my two clues were one, the MPEG-2 HD channels said multiswitch error on the screens and two, my dad has had half a dozen multiswitches go out after bad t-storms. My tech listened to me and changed out the multiswitch first, and guess what? Problem solved.

 

[paulman182]

I suppose part of the reason for all that testing was the hope that the problem was NOT the switch.

Assuming he accurately acessed that you knew what you were talking about, he might have tried the switch first if he had one with him.

 

[AirRocker]

You may have been able to go to directv.com/email and just request that a new multiswitch be sent to you... Glad everything got worked out in the end though...

 

[rustynails]

I have had similar problems with other companies. For instance with my dsl modem and the phone company. I knew that the modem was bad but I went through their process of troubleshooting instead of insisting on another modem. Some times they need to figure it out on their own so I let them.
Its just easier in the long run to have them diagnose the problem.
I am sure they have many people who think they know what the problem is and they can be very wrong.