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WESTWOOD MAX satellite receiver strange problem

R

rew

This receiver has been in service and working great for over a year. Three days ago I lost audio on all channels while the RF level stayed at 52% and the C/N was 15.7 and the BER was 0. This was the normal signal and BER for the last year. Also the buttons on the front panel would not do anything. I could still look into it via its web browser and everything looked normal. After much time on the phone with Westwood they couldn't find the problem and decided to send another receiver. Next day receiver is installed and very soon we had the same problem, Westwood sent us another receiver it arrived today and worked about an hour and then the same problem again. Westwood says it has to be a local problem and after seeing it with three receivers I think I will have to agree. Other receivers(XDS) on this dish are working fine with no changes in there RF or AG levels.
I hope to have someone with a spectrum analyzer check the dish next week.
Has anyone seen anything similar to this or have any ideas on it. The folks at Westwood have been very helpful but they have run out of ideas and I have also. The only thing common on these receivers has been the internet connection, the AC power(its ok at 120.4vac and stable) and the dish.

Thanks for any ideas
 
First idea: Unplug the net cable - or remove the net connection from your switch - boot the receiver, and see if it then works.
 
I will try that today. I did leave it connected to a different Internet connection than what it is normally on. There is nothing else on this connection. It was working when I left lastnight but dead again this morning.

Thanks for any ideas
Robert
 
Remember Westwood One has been bought by Dial Global. You may be seeing something related to the integration of the two different systems by Dial global. May be worth a call.
 
DG has not begun any integration of the two systems as of yet. I've had mine lock up once or twice over the time that Ive had it. Had to yank the AC and put it back in and then all was fine. If it's been the same problem on 3 receivers, my guess is something in the IP section. Try changing the IP settings on both ports. Make sure the livewire option is shut off too. I've seen that screw these things too.
 
Were these receivers reprogrammed for the change to transponder 5 on Dec. 22, 2011?

Have you downloaded and looked at the MAX receiver's internal log?
 
Total shot in the dark... but...

Have you checked the online programming? On the website where you setup the programming schedule, what are the end dates for your schedule? It could be that your shows a scheduled to end, so the receiver shuts them off. Just a guess.

Also, are all 4 of the audio ports going dead? Can you manually change the channel and it's still dead? If you have a strong signal level and a BER of 0, interference on the dish doesn't immediately come to my mind.

Connect the audio cable to a different port, don't connect the network cable, and manually set the channel. See what you get.
 
Have you checked the online programming? On the website where you setup the programming schedule, what are the end dates for your schedule? It could be that your shows a scheduled to end, so the receiver shuts them off. Just a guess.
Click to expand...

Good advice.
 
Ihave changed the IP settings and also tried it on a seperate internet connection that had nothing else connected to it and I have tried it with the network cable unplugged but that did not help. I have noticed that it will come back and work after it is powered down for a minute and then plugged back in. After it has run for a while the audio starts dropping out then the front panel buttons quit working and before long it is silent. I will be back on site Monday and I will check the online programming then. I think it would be odd that all the programming expires at the same time. I hope it is something that simple. WW1/DG did look at the logs several days ago and said they didnt see anything wrong.
This was reprogrammed for the change on Dec 22.

Thanks for all the ideas. I am making a list of things to try when I go back Monday.
I will let everyone know what fixes the problem.

Robert
 
I hate to suggest they send you the programming over ip. A neighbor with wifi has wreaked havoc on my xds receivers also.
 
rew said:
This receiver has been in service and working great for over a year. Three days ago I lost audio on all channels while the RF level stayed at 52% and the C/N was 15.7 and the BER was 0. This was the normal signal and BER for the last year. Also the buttons on the front panel would not do anything. I could still look into it via its web browser and everything looked normal. After much time on the phone with Westwood they couldn't find the problem and decided to send another receiver. Next day receiver is installed and very soon we had the same problem, Westwood sent us another receiver it arrived today and worked about an hour and then the same problem again. Westwood says it has to be a local problem and after seeing it with three receivers I think I will have to agree. Other receivers(XDS) on this dish are working fine with no changes in there RF or AG levels.
Click to expand...

I am having this EXACT same problem and WW1 has replaced the receiver twice in a week. It plays for a while and then goes crazy. It eventually starts working again, but won't run for an hour without dying again.

Anybody know what the solution is?

REW... you never gave us an update... got a solution?
 
I wish I could tell you what the problem was. I had someone come and check the aim on the dish. No problem was found in dish alignment. The day he came to check it everything was working normally and had been for a few days and has been ever since. We have sent the two replacement receivers back and are using our original receiver. I really dont have a clue as to what was wrong. While we had the dish down to check the alignment I did add a band bass filter in front of the LNB. I have had what I think was radar interference in the past. The station is located in Huntsville Alabama which is the home of Redstone Arsnel, and part of NASA. There is no telling what kind of RF they may be pushing thru the air and finding someone to ask about it is impossible.
I wish I could give you the answer but I just dont know. If you are able to find the problem PLEASE let us know.
 
Oh, well; after the election and the afforded space, our military effort should drop and your interference will bow-out.

Just sayin::::
 
Radar interference is a real problem your way. Also, WiMax in use tends to play havoc with C band reception. Glad you sorted it out.
 
For future enlightenment, our problem turned out to be directly related to the network connection. If we disconnect the network cable for a while, the receiver will work perfectly. Westwood insisted that we have it connected to the network and they verified that my network settings were correct, but they couldn't explain the audio loss issue. I have left the network disconnected and it has been problem free for a week.
 
Glad to hear you found your problem. Unplugging the network did not help me. My receiver is still working. Never did find the problem, it just started working after being down for most of 3 or 4 days.
Let us know if you get any more info.
 
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