DirecTV error 771a and 771

[wado66]

I get alot of help from this forum so I thought I would post my issue and fix for my issue.
I came home from work and my HD receiver had a 771a error code and the other standard def. receiver had a 771 error code.
I got in panic mode and called DirecTV and setup a service call. While I was waiting for them to come the next day I got on this forum and started looking. I saw that most of the time it is cable related. So I started at the dish and checked all cable connections. And checked the grounds. ALL were loose. So I started tightening all of them. But no luck.
DirecTV came out and agreed that 99% of the time these errors are due to cabling being loose. He went thru the same proceedure and when he came to the area on the side of the house where the cable splits to the two receivers, I had left the main cable off. So after I slapped myself in the forehead and looked at him and said, "yeah I'm an idiot" he connected it. And now I'm watching TV. A $50 lesson learned. Oh well, it did make me get behind my TV and organize my wiring. Didn't want himn to think I had cables and wires all wadded up behind my TV.
Anyway, thats my contribution for the next 4 years. I really appreciate this forum.

 

[Goldenrhino]

My mother was getting that same error message last week. I've always been able to get her back up & running, so I was really frustrated that she had to wait 2 days for a tech to come. Turned out that her lawn boy had cut a cable with the weedeater. At least they didn't charge her a service call.

 

[charper1]

was the cable break hidden from your view?

 

[Goldenrhino]

was the cable break hidden from your view?

Probably not. It never even occurred to me that I should go outside & look, because I wasn't even thinking about the dish being that close to the ground. I was just focused on the DVR & the little black box. The satellite dish had been on my mom's roof since DirecTV was invented (late 70's?), & was only recently moved to the ground.

 

[charper1]

Probably not. It never even occurred to me that I should go outside & look, because I wasn't even thinking about the dish being that close to the ground. I was just focused on the DVR & the little black box. The satellite dish had been on my mom's roof since DirecTV was invented (late 70's?), & was only recently moved to the ground.

Although founded December 20, 1985 as Hughes Electronics Corporation; the DBS services were launched June 17, 1994 BTW... and these days they frown on roof installs although I have NEVER had and issue. interested in the cable run(s) though; wondering just how they were so exposed.

 

[Goldenrhino]

Although founded December 20, 1985 as Hughes Electronics Corporation; the DBS services were launched June 17, 1994 BTW... and these days they frown on roof installs although I have NEVER had and issue. interested in the cable run(s) though; wondering just how they were so exposed.

Maybe I got the year wrong. Could have been that we just had "cable" in the late '70's, before most people in our little town had it. For some reason I've always remembered one night when I had some friends staying over, & we snuck into our living room hoping to catch some nudity on HBO. We were like 14 years old. Anyway, we're in there watching "Looking for Mr Goodbar", when my dad comes in & catches us. Scandelous, huh?

Re the satellite, I do remember I'd never heard of DirecTV (or whatever it was called then...Hughes, RCA?) when my dad had that little dish installed on the roof. Up until then the only satellite dishes I'd ever seen were those giant ones.

FWIW, the dish my mom has now is on a pole that stands about 3-4 above ground. I'll check to see where the cables are the next time I'm over there.

 

[RLDreams]

A situation like this is exactly what I was thinking about when I bought the conduit and insisted on putting the cables from the dish in it ,much to the disappointment of the installer who just kept insisting it was fine to direct bury the cables and he has never put them, in conduit. $20 worth of 2" conduit gives me the added assurance myself or the dogs are not going to uncover and/or cut the cables "accidentally" at some future point, or at least not without it being painfully obvious .