Dear DStv - technical faults thread

How do you rate the DStv service *technically* ?

  • 10 (Best)

    Votes: 4 1.6%
  • 9

    Votes: 6 2.4%
  • 8

    Votes: 6 2.4%
  • 7

    Votes: 8 3.2%
  • 6

    Votes: 10 4.0%
  • 5

    Votes: 15 6.0%
  • 4

    Votes: 18 7.2%
  • 3

    Votes: 32 12.9%
  • 2

    Votes: 17 6.8%
  • 1 (Worst)

    Votes: 133 53.4%

  • Total voters
    249
Rather irratating to say the least...
Its not just that, other than the crap buffering yesterday, over the past few days I am unable to load the Live TV channels, or seem to be able to connect to their web services, i.e. Manage Devices. On Saturday I managed to 'fix;' it by removing and re-adding the device. That only worked for a day, even that is not working anymore.
 
I have narrowed it down to a specific Explora 3 decoder that gives the picture disruption wherever and on whatever LNB port i put it on. I managed to video some of the breakup behaviour yesterday, so I shall take it in to Multichoice Randburg (it is a nuisance that I have to take all 3 decoders in together before they will even look at my problem) where hopefully I can convince them to replace the decoder (it is covered by their insurance program.) Thanks for your input - each bit of feedback helps to build up a picture and to inspire me to try something else.
You would've enjoyed the old dstv community/forum, before MC decided they don't need public participation :D
 
Soooo......... making 4 recordings of eMovies in this first week (one is on 194 eTV so shouldn't count)
And guess what..

I've had one or another of those recording schedules disappear 3 times already!

Suggest MRs (Manual Recordings).
 
Whoever designed the latest web version (as in layout), that guy should be shot!

What a )&$&@ view, super slow and a nightmare to navigate
 
Soooo......... making 4 recordings of eMovies in this first week (one is on 194 eTV so shouldn't count)
And guess what..

I've had one or another of those recording schedules disappear 3 times already!

Suggest MRs (Manual Recordings).
Check any 117 recordings as well. I keep having a problem with s4 Private Eyes. For some reason it keeps disappearing from schedules and I have to reset the season. I have so far 2 different season boxes for s4. I hope there isn't a mess up with the repeat tonight. I enjoy the show but we are only on s2. I wouldn't like to have to watch season 4 episodes off catchup in case of spoilers.

I did a recording off 138 with no problems but I think I'm going to have to check my settings 4 times a day instead of 3. Because Dstv thinks we have nothing better to do than babysit our Exploras.
Whoever designed the latest web version (as in layout), that guy should be shot!

What a )&$&@ view, super slow and a nightmare to navigate
Kept getting logged out. At least the list version of the tv guide is back.
 
Check any 117 recordings as well. I keep having a problem with s4 Private Eyes. For some reason it keeps disappearing from schedules and I have to reset the season. I have so far 2 different season boxes for s4. I hope there isn't a mess up with the repeat tonight. I enjoy the show but we are only on s2. I wouldn't like to have to watch season 4 episodes off catchup in case of spoilers.

I did a recording off 138 with no problems but I think I'm going to have to check my settings 4 times a day instead of 3. Because Dstv thinks we have nothing better to do than babysit our Exploras.

Kept getting logged out. At least the list version of the tv guide is back.

Version number?
 
Hi guys. I have a problem here. I've connected the Explora Ultra via my fibre router using the ethernet cable. All my apps are playing very well but my Catch Up Plus content doesn't want to download or play. I've formatted and rebooted multiple times but still no luck. I tried hotspotting my cellphone to the Ultra, suddenly my Catch Up Plus is downloading. Do anyone know what could be the problem?
 
Maybe someone can explain how M-Net's own movies are working this month, TIA :oops:



101 Aug movies.png

Who knows what was on last Sun. but Snake Eyes is on tonight.

On Explora and newer guide for next week we don't have Infinite, we have tonight's supposed Midnight In The Switchgrass, and on the older guide it's instead Venom: Let Their Be Carnage.

Any bets on the 28th ending up being Venom..? ;)


Fascinating....
 
I have narrowed it down to a specific Explora 3 decoder that gives the picture disruption wherever and on whatever LNB port i put it on. I managed to video some of the breakup behaviour yesterday, so I shall take it in to Multichoice Randburg (it is a nuisance that I have to take all 3 decoders in together before they will even look at my problem) where hopefully I can convince them to replace the decoder (it is covered by their insurance program.) Thanks for your input - each bit of feedback helps to build up a picture and to inspire me to try something else.
My visit to Multichoice confirmed that the decoder was faulty and they replaced it with so called refurbished unit. Got home, it worked perfectly for about 4 hours and then I started getting "waiting for signal from primary decoder" messages. After many attempts to get sense out of the Multichoice team failed as their only answer was "call in an installer", i decided to take matters into my own hands. Did you know that there is no longer an Xtraview specialist team as all call centre staff are now trained as Xtraview specialists - their specialist training seems to qualify them to break the Xtraview links and then restart them - if that does not work tell the caller to call an installer because obviously the installation that has been working for months and years is now magically not working, and they cannot tell if any of the decoders are faulty. Turned out that the replacement decoder I had received was in fact faulty, as was a 2A that appeared faulty but after checking it an agent in Roodepoort assured me it was working. I was so disgusted by the level of service from multichoice that I popped down to Makro and purchased a new Explora 3B on special for R699. Connected it and after a short call to MC to activate it, everything works perfectly. So being given a fauly 3A by MC to replace my faulty 3A converts to "must be your cabling - call an installer!! If I had a means to access the sport that we enjoy with the convenience that a working DSTV system provides, I would dump them. But I am rather disillusioned with Android black box options, so DSTV lives on for the moment....
 
MC messing around with authentication again this morning, causing some channels to stick on the E16 blocking code.

Oddly, 140 eMovies Extra is one of them.
:rolleyes:
 
My visit to Multichoice confirmed that the decoder was faulty and they replaced it with so called refurbished unit. Got home, it worked perfectly for about 4 hours and then I started getting "waiting for signal from primary decoder" messages. After many attempts to get sense out of the Multichoice team failed as their only answer was "call in an installer", i decided to take matters into my own hands. Did you know that there is no longer an Xtraview specialist team as all call centre staff are now trained as Xtraview specialists - their specialist training seems to qualify them to break the Xtraview links and then restart them - if that does not work tell the caller to call an installer because obviously the installation that has been working for months and years is now magically not working, and they cannot tell if any of the decoders are faulty. Turned out that the replacement decoder I had received was in fact faulty, as was a 2A that appeared faulty but after checking it an agent in Roodepoort assured me it was working. I was so disgusted by the level of service from multichoice that I popped down to Makro and purchased a new Explora 3B on special for R699. Connected it and after a short call to MC to activate it, everything works perfectly. So being given a fauly 3A by MC to replace my faulty 3A converts to "must be your cabling - call an installer!! If I had a means to access the sport that we enjoy with the convenience that a working DSTV system provides, I would dump them. But I am rather disillusioned with Android black box options, so DSTV lives on for the moment....
Here is the problem. The call centre operators do not have the knowledge or the insight to be able to ensure that a replacement decoder (that might have been linked to a previous account on XV) has been completely removed from any previous XV parings. IF that is not done, the decoder will NOT establish a new pairing properly and will not keep working. Every few hours or so, the system verifies all XV pairings and if something is wrong, that decoder WILL be switched off.

By going and buying a new one, you have no previous history of that decoder being paired with any other, hence it works when paired under XV.
 
If I press "i", then right or left arrow to search, ihe i-plate / bar starts scrolling through all the channels really fast.

Have to press the back button to stop the madness from continuing.

This is a new phenomenon (to me), on a basic HD decoder.

EDIT - sometimes it doesn't start immediately, but if you press the right or left arrow a few times (simply to scroll from one channel to the next to see what's currently on, as one might), it seems to give it the momentum needed to get going ..... really quickly.

Question - is this their software, or the HD decoder playing up after about 6 months ?
 
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Question - is this their software, or the HD decoder playing up after about 6 months ?
Very likely their software, but since it is regular for you now then also likely it can only be sorted by getting a new unit... which hopefully doesn't also end up going west.
 
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Thanks for your feedback @BrianG

Definitely won't replace it yet over just that.

One other thing that happens fairly regularly, is that the plate / bar gets stuck.
Pressing the back button (repeatedly, sometimes needed) eventually gets it to go away after about a minute, or two.

Their new hardware seems to be cheaply made junk.
 
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