DSTV On Demand Problems...

[DJ...]

Since installing my HD-PVR, I've had troubles with DSTV On Demand on the SD PVR. It often downloads programs without sound; often the programs just don't work at all; they sometimes start a few minutes into the actual program; the picture gets lines across it - almost like old VHS lines and a few other issues. One of the most annoying being that the "request new copy" feature doesn't actually work, or it's at least very erratic - I requested a new copy of Criminal Minds which once again had no sound and 2 days later I'm still waiting for the new copy to magically arrive - all the other new programs are now there, but no Criminal Minds.

I called Multichoice and their reaction was "have it reinstalled." So I had the techie come out and he redid the installation, yet the same problems still persist. Multichoice's response: "Eh, um, maybe buy a new decoder."

FFS I really do not trust these imbeciles so I'm not spending another cent based on their advice. am I alone with these problems? At first I thought it might have been the hard-drive being too full but it's at only 70% capacity. Any ideas apart from smashing my decoder in their reception area?

 

[hawker]

I've noticed the same with our SD PVR decoder.

Often programs have no sound.

 

[KromozIII]

If you look on the DStv forums they had some issues with the DoD last week. See what happens by the end of this week.

 

[EchoZA]

Seen as though SD-PVR is past end of line... it's no wonder No-Choice are "cripple'ing" recording etc, thus forcing people to move to HD-PVR (with all it's problems!) Every time I have an issue with my SD-PVR I take it through to NO-Choice and swop it for a "new" (read : re-conditioned) unit, thankfully I took the insurance!

 

[DJ...]

If you look on the DStv forums they had some issues with the DoD last week. See what happens by the end of this week.

This has been an ongoing issue for a few months already. It's nothing recent, however it is getting worse...

 

[DJ...]

Seen as though SD-PVR is past end of line... it's no wonder No-Choice are "cripple'ing" recording etc, thus forcing people to move to HD-PVR (with all it's problems!) Every time I have an issue with my SD-PVR I take it through to NO-Choice and swop it for a "new" (read : re-conditioned) unit, thankfully I took the insurance!

If you want to retain dual-view PVR functionality you have to retain your old SD PVR. They cannot force an upgrade like this and if they are, they will be lambasted with the new consumer protection act in place. But this isn't a recording issue - it's DSTV On Demand...

 

[EchoZA]

^^^ they are, deal with it! This is Afrika du Zuid after all

 

[Smurfatefrog]

As others have said there have been issues with DOD titles on the SDPVR lately. If you SDPVR records without any problems then it shouldn't have an issue with DOD titles, unless of cos the source material is problem

 

[KromozIII]

This has been an ongoing issue for a few months already. It's nothing recent, however it is getting worse...

Actually, I have not had an issue with it for months, even with the problems they said they had last week. Can not agree with you there.

 

[jes]

Official Multichoice response

Below is the official response from Multichoice - they mailed MyBroadband directly and requested that we post this on their behalf:
______

Sincere apologies for the frustrations you had with the DStv ON DEMAND service. There has been a few techinal issues some of which have been resolved recently.

Content Cutting off

Step 1 :
Please RESET your SD PVR using the front panel buttons (press P- and V+ simultaneously to reset the decoder).
Wait for video & audio to resume.

Step 2 :
Once normal video & audio have resumed, go to the DStv ON DEMAND screen.
Select the titles with errors that you want to watch and press RED to request new copies.
Note : We suggest that you only request new copies for titles that you want to watch (ie. don’t request new copies for content you have no interest in viewing). Please be aware that for titles which expire within the next 24 hours, it is unlikely that new copies will be recorded.

If you follow the above procedure and still get titles with substantial timing errors (ie. the whole programme is not recorded), we’d appreciate your feedback. Please include as much info as possible, including title and as much info on the timing as possible (example : there was 3 minutes of the intro screens, but the programme chopped off after 38 mins).

No Sound:

Please press LANGUAGE and select the other language option and let us know if this resolves the issue. When reporting, please can you include programme title so that we can investigate further?


Content not updating on DStv ON DEMAND (SD PVR):

Knowing the mechanism for VOD on the SD PVR, only 4 things can impact VOD content downloads i.e.:
Personal recordings ( any impulse recording or time-based recording that have been prescheduled etc)
Marginal installation which results in poor break-up / pixilation of content. The PVR will discard this immediately.
Bad weather i.e. rain storms etc
Power failures

Please advise if you encounter any further problems


Regards

 

[DJ...]

Ji jes,

Thanks for the response - it is far more detailed than the support Multichoice was able to provide me with over the phone, which in turn cost me a few hundred bucks for a reinstallation that wasn't necessary. I will try your suggestions and update this thread to let you know if it has resolved my problems. Much appreciated...

 

[DJ...]

Just a quick update: I have followed the suggestions provided by DSTV in their response posted by jes, and my issues are.....RESOLVED! The no-sound is still a slight issue, however changing to another language option resolves this - it might be an issue if the swear-filter starts kicking in, however it's a small price to pay. Hopefully this is resolved 100% in the near future, however the workaround solution is a satisfactory one.

Thanks for the help...