Forum Discussion

rocco1504's avatar
rocco1504
On our wavelength
6 days ago

Tv keeps pixelating only on virgin.

Hi

I don't know if anyone can help but for quite a few months now my TV keeps pixelating, sometimes to the point I can't watch it. 

 Thing is it only seems to happen on virgin TV, I tried to sort it out a couple of months ago by re programming all my TV channels I.E. downloading them all again, but it fried my v6 box which got stuck in a loop, so virgin gave me another box which I've managed to keep with TIVO rather than the 360 which I read was awful., anyway that didn't solve the problem. 

 We had an engineer 😅, come and have a look and he tested the signal and said it was fine but replaced the aerial input plug on the v6 box and said it was that for sure, it was fine for one day, but it's started doing it again and I'm getting really **bleep**, as I'm paying a lot of money for a bad service. 

As I said,  it doesn't happen on freeview, Netflix, Disney or videos etc etc just Virgin 😡.

Yeah, I've tried pulling all the plugs etc, I've even bought new cables and no joy .

Please, any help would be appreciated. 

7 Replies

    • Gareth_L's avatar
      Gareth_L
      Icon for Forum Team rankForum Team
      9 hours ago

      Hello rocco1504 

      John's away right now so one of the team will pick your reply up as soon as possible.

      Gareth_L

  • rocco1504's avatar
    rocco1504
    On our wavelength
    6 days ago

    Hi japitts

    Firstly, No the tech didn't check any of the cabling outside even though I suggested he should as most of it has been here since before we moved in, in 2006, he assured me that the incoming signal was fine and that the new connector on the incoming cable should do the trick. 

    As regards new cables I've bought new HDMI cables a new ethernet cable, although the ethernet cable connection seems very loose. 

    • John_GS's avatar
      John_GS
      Icon for Forum Team rankForum Team
      4 days ago

      Hi rocco1504 

      Thanks for posting and welcome back to the community.

      I'm sorry to hear of the TV issues. I'll send you a PM now to assist further.

    • japitts's avatar
      japitts
      Very Insightful Person
      6 days ago

      Whilst I understand your efforts to try things, the HDMI lead connects your V6 to TV - if this was the cause, all video output would be affected and you've said anything internet-based is fine. The symptoms of a poor HDMI lead are also often colour tints rather than pixellation.

      Same thing for your Ethernet connection - this is what connects V6 to home router for the onward internet connection. If OnDemand & streaming is fine, this is self-evidently fine.

      Whilst I am not a home-tech so can't comment on their methods, I do have professional experience of telecoms fault-process & have had a couple of techs for signal issues over the years... the process is usually to start from your STB and work back, with a handheld test kit. When the RF levels go from "good" to "bad" (in very simple terms) you've found the source of the fault.

      There's nothing inherently wrong with having an older drop-cable, if it's properly run and connections are all clean. But IMO there's no part of your install that should be assumed as good, without being proven as such.

  • japitts's avatar
    japitts
    Very Insightful Person
    6 days ago

    What you've described are the classic symptoms of a signal issue. Only live TV is affected, and unless the issue is software-related (in which case a single reboot should be sufficient) there will be an underlying fault somewhere which will usually be a physical one. By physical, I mean it needs "boots on the ground" to identify it and resolve.

    You mention your box has already been replaced, as has one of the co-ax connectors on your incoming feed. I would assume that the tech has tested your incoming street feed at your external wall connections and various other points, and has proven that all the RF levels are fine there, thus the problem is further into your property/install.

    You mention "bought new cables and no joy" - can you explain what you mean by this? All the cabling upto and including your box itself, forms part of VM's network and - albeit well intentioned - DIY fixes often end up making things worse. VM's co-ax is also specialist-grade triple-screened to reduce RF-ingress, so if you've tried altering this yourself, that's not going to end well.

    The correct process here, is to keep reporting your fault, and keep having techs visit. If you end up in a scenario where pixellation is time-sensitive, then the issue could be external to VM's network and - potentially - being caused by in-home interference. Either that, or it's an SNR issue somewhere outside in your neighbourhood - those are usually where another user has interference or sub-standard cabling, and the fault is being injected back into the local network. They can be tricky to narrow down, so some patience may be needed.

  • rocco1504's avatar
    rocco1504
    On our wavelength
    6 days ago

    Oops,  I've just realised I've put this in the 360 section, if a mod could move it for me please