Service Restored to 129 Satellite!

[dlsnyder]

The 129 outage got me motivated to re-connect my wing dish. It is now pointed at 72.7 which I can use as a backup should a similar situation arise again. Interestingly, my 722 now finds some of my SD channels on 72 and others on 119 or 110. There is a slight but noticeable difference in PQ between them in my opinion.

 

[powerhouse1960]

I can't. He acts as though he's never experienced a power outage before. Same thing. Just gotta wait till it comes back on.

Actually San Diego Gas and Electric did explain the recent massive power outage cause and remember electricity is a meter service So if you do not get it you do not pay.

 

[SmokeJumper]

The techs at Dish and SES deserve the adult beverage of their choice(*) for the extra hours they must have put in fixing this. Also kudos to the programmers who seem to have foreseen something like this happening. I'm amazed that the receivers came back without any user intervention.

* Why are sportscasters afraid of the word "beer" anyway?

Why so? It's their JOB to provide the service. I didn't see any KUDOS flying my way when I spent a week in the rain working on downed lines and helping people who never considered checking their own circuit breakers to see if "just by chance" the performed as they should and tripped.

Sure the Dish folks deserve a 'thanks", but no billboards erected to tell the world they did what they should and began restoring service when the problem was 100% obvious.

Whatever it may have been all they needed to do to halt the majority of calls saw place a splash of the screen of the down channels telling folks there was an unforeseeable (perhaps) problem which would take TIME to RESOLVE. No big hoopla about every small detail - simply acknowledge that for an undetermined amount of time it would be necessary to get by without the HD channels. Even the spoiled "new age" brats would be able to understand it - and have to live without the 'snugly things' they have come to expect in life.:boink:

Jump to the bottom line ..... it's ONLY TELEVISION - not a life support system or babysitter for the next generation of spoiled brats and their parents.:yikes

Thanks Dish Network for fixing it --- even without giving a hint of what happened to your customers.:clap

 

[Dishman1978]

Installers for the most part didnt even have a clue. I only figured it out after 2 customers called me and i checked on here.

 

[SmokeJumper]

Are ALL the HBO, STARZ etc etc back? We see only ONE of each -- East Coast feeds or so it appears. Had a handful of both HBO & STARZ before the "oops" took place.... again, the old battle-ax says we only have ONE of each now at 10:32 a.m. MDT.

THANK YOU KINDLY ............ she's driving me nutso!

Maybe a quick mention about THIS:high5: from the DN gents on SG's?

The battle-ax is bustin' my tender parts over the loss of the missing channels (IF they are really missing). I did a soft / semi-soft / semi-hard and cut-the-power reset of the 722k, but she swears there are some missing. I can't say if it is true or not since my favorite 'channel' ..... "Nursie Plays Cheerleader at Lunch Break" seems to be OK.2:2:2:2:2:2:2:

The battle-ax is hounding me to death and spoiling my afternoon rest period.:

 

[SmokeJumper]

The outage left Dish subscribers scrambling to find a solution Tuesday night and this morning. With Dish offering few answers, many customers flooded SatelliteGuys, ::: an online VERY HELPFUL AND INFORMATIVE forum for satellite subscribers.

The ALWAYS HELPFUL site struggled to keep its servers online last night, noting that at one point it had close to 6,000 users online looking for information about how to respond to the outage.::behindsofa:baby:

Some HELPFUL AS ALL GIT-OUTTAHERE 2::kiss:: Dish subscribers posted instructions : on how subscribers could configure their set-tops :::: to deliver standard-definition channels,: while Dish looked for a solution to the outage that left it with no HD channels.::::

 

[SmokeJumper]

WAG:

Ciel 2 lost a gyro and went out of spec no longer pointing toward earth, they are trying to regain control of the satellite and get it pointed correctly.

Awwww..... come on ....... is this FACT or FICTION?:neener:shocked

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

Awwww..... come on ....... is this FACT or FICTION?:neener:shocked

You Missed the WAG in the beginning... but dont feel bad I did as well.

 

[cosmo_kramer]

The outage left Dish subscribers scrambling to find a solution Tuesday night and this morning. With Dish offering few answers, many customers flooded SatelliteGuys, ::: an online VERY HELPFUL AND INFORMATIVE forum for satellite subscribers.

The ALWAYS HELPFUL site struggled to keep its servers online last night, noting that at one point it had close to 6,000 users online looking for information about how to respond to the outage.::behindsofa:baby:

Some HELPFUL AS ALL GIT-OUTTAHERE 2::kiss:: Dish subscribers posted instructions : on how subscribers could configure their set-tops :::: to deliver standard-definition channels,: while Dish looked for a solution to the outage that left it with no HD channels.::::

I see you found the smilies....

 

[3HaloODST]

While I agree that Dish Network isn't the only one that leaves us in the dark (no pun intended,) that doesn't make it right. As for the power outage thing, well that is a different story, as 90% of the time you KNOW what caused the power outage (storms, etc.) Also, when the power goes out, it's pretty easy to deduce that it's not a problem with your house, as you usually hear something blow up in the distance, other people turning on their generators, or observe that the neighbors have no lights.

With the DN outage, all we got during the outage is a "Complete Signal Loss" screen, that locks you from viewing other channels without a a workaround, and that screen can be caused by a multitude of problems, with 90% of them being a problem at your house. The signal loss screen itself even suggests looking at the dish, checking for obstructions, tightening connections, etc. It certainly doesn't mention anything about the satellite itself going down...

We're not asking for a detailed explanation of anything here, just an announcement that there is a problem, and that it is being worked on. Some people would also like to know just a little bit about what happened, and when it may be resolved. If it weren't for SatelliteGuys, I would have been checking my dish setup all night, unaware that it is not my problem. Hell, DN has no problems placing banners telling us to visit dishonline.com on channels, why can't they use that same banner to announce an outage??

Power companies and the likes can get away with leaving people in the dark (again, no pun intended,) as with 99% of people, they have no other options. It's not like they can switch to a different power company. With DISH, if they demonstrate poor customer relations, then people will jump ship to other providers.

Now I understand that this is a rare event, but I hope that DN can learn something from this, and find a better way to handle the situation in the future (somehow I doubt that will happen...)

 

[SmokeJumper]

You Missed the WAG in the beginning... but dont feel bad I did as well.

I did all the resets and bowed to the South three times while holding the old battle-ax'es head in a tub of Draino ....... she sputtered and spurted still sayin' she can't find the rest of the STARZ and HBO thingies. Perhaps I am still missin' somethin'? Perhaps .... maybe .... could be so Kapt'n Kirk?

*COSMO} .... I did indeed find the cute smilies! How'd ya' guess?

 

[photog72]

This is a good example for everyone with out OTA to think about setting it up. You would be surprised what a nice reception you might get with just rabbit ears connected. I installed a small OTA antenna in my attic and pull in 100% signal for local channels over 20 miles away. The HD quality is better than the local channels going through the satellite. It is nice to have a backup during fade out or satellite situations like we all just went through. Plus, it sure is nice to be able to record four channels at the same time. Has kept my a-- from hot water with the wife many times.

What make/model antenna is that? I am just using rabbit ears in my attic, but not getting good signal levels.

 

[SmokeJumper]

While I agree that Dish Network isn't the only one that leaves us in the dark (no pun intended,) that doesn't make it right. As for the power outage thing, well that is a different story, as 90% of the time you KNOW what caused the power outage (storms, etc.) Also, when the power goes out, it's pretty easy to deduce that it's not a problem with your house, as you usually hear something blow up in the distance, other people turning on their generators, or observe that the neighbors have no lights.

Now I understand that this is a rare event, but I hope that DN can learn something from this, and find a better way to handle the situation in the future (somehow I doubt that will happen...)

I agree. In fact I agreed in my other post --- the one where I mentioned I didn't think we owe the DN technicians any specific THANKS because that is what they are suppose to do .... fix it. I said all you did and more .... no disagreement at all. I just used more crazy "smilies" AND included some of my "humor"; as UN-humorous as it may have been. We all should know that DN is NOT typically at all outgoing when it comes to passing aroound information unless they are running a DN -vs- DeerektTV ad in prime time. They dress funny ..... their feet stink AND ..... get this ..... they don't love Hey-zoos (aka: jesus) but, I still like 'em enough to stick around for another 14 years or so.


Gotta use a smiley .... gotta use a smiley .... gotta use a

PS: We all agree .... or else .... we just say it differ'ent. :high5:

Now .... as for that STARZ amd HBO question I asked ...........................:: because I'm : and SHE won't cook dinner 'till I get her a reply.:sob:

 

[SmokeJumper]

What make/model antenna is that? I am just using rabbit ears in my attic, but not getting good signal levels.

PHOTOG ...... the rabbit ears are primarily VHF signal-grabbers I believe. The OTA is now UHF (me thinks) so that's the antenna you might need. IF you are relatively close to the stations antennas (30 miles works for me) you might just try a piece of wire .... bend each end so you can attach a "balun" .... the little "splitter" that outputs the UHF / VHF signals 300 ohms to 75 ohms reduction) (available at Radio Shack or other such electronic store) .... make about a 15" to 18" circle out of the wire (don't let the ends touch) and attach a piece of coax to the "balun". The wire you have going to the 'wabbit ears' may or may not be "coax"; if is "flat" (300 ohm) .... just attach the terminal to opposite ends of the "antenna" you made and place it so it is getting a good signal.

It may sound like a non-worker .... but, all these high price antennas they sell are not necessary to pull in the typical digital signal (HD signal) in MOST locations. Out in the boonies ... sure, it is probably a necessity .... but, if that 'wabbit ear' setup is working at all .... I'd bet you can build an inexpensive antenna yourself.

Some say I'm nuts .... others pay me to prove it!

Smileys not utilized so the sincerity of my words will shine through.

 

[Teehar]

Man what a pita this turned out to be!3 reboots and 5 switch tests to get everything back to where it was prior to the 129 malfunction.Finally had to disconnect the lines into the 722 and run test then re-connect and run again.Seems to be ok for now heaven forbid something goes wrong with 129 again.

 

[Jim5506]

OTA can be either VHF or UHF it all depends on your DMA.

Do an exact address search on TV Fool and it will show you which channels and frequencies you should be receiving.

With Digital TV there are virtual channels 3.1, 3.2 32.1, 32.2 and the like, but the actual RF channel frequency can be anything between 2 and 52.

 

[Jim5506]

Man what a pita this turned out to be!3 reboots and 5 switch tests to get everything back to where it was prior to the 129 malfunction.Finally had to disconnect the lines into the 722 and run test then re-connect and run again.Seems to be ok for now heaven forbid something goes wrong with 129 again.

I did nothing to any of my receivers last night and today they are all back to normal operation - sometimes it is best to leave things alone until they are sorted out.

My HD channels fortunately all showed up on 61.5 ( I have a 61.5 wing dish) and switched back to 129 when Dish moved them back.

 

[SmokeJumper]

OTA can be either VHF or UHF it all depends on your DMA.

Do an exact address search on TV Fool and it will show you which channels and frequencies you should be receiving.

With Digital TV there are virtual channels 3.1, 3.2 32.1, 32.2 and the like, but the actual RF channel frequency can be anything between 2 and 52.

JIM ............ a homemade antenna should do just fine though for OTA , huh?? That or a VERY inexpensive store bought one covering UHF/VHF? The home made works 100% for the majors in my neck of the woods. I don't get the five "Praise the lordie" or "Buy Me Now" channels .... but then, I don't want 'em.

 

[Bassplayer 1964]

Looks like everything is back here in my part of VA including the spotbeam local HD's. I reset everything earlier today ,actually this AM and got all but the spotbeams back.. sure was nice to see signal on 129 again albeit the weaker bird (IMHO) Hats off to the SES folks and Dish folks for getting this thing back in a useful orbit and making temporary transfers last night:clap Hopefully these sort of things will be far and few between as my OTA Hd testing done just as I expected bombed big time today It's satellite or nothing for me here as Comcast's HD is so compressed it's hard to tell a difference in this area.

 

[Teehar]

I did nothing to any of my receivers last night and today they are all back to normal operation - sometimes it is best to leave things alone until they are sorted out.

My HD channels fortunately all showed up on 61.5 ( I have a 61.5 wing dish) and switched back to 129 when Dish moved them back.

Yea if we had known that 129 was out on dish's end we would never have run the test last night.But since dish neither ran a prompt or emailed us how was anyone to know that it wasn't an issue at home.Satguys was also down at that time.Dish really needs to do a much better job of letting customers know they are having issues and working on the problem.

9 out of ten times when customer has issue they say reboot receiver and/or run switch test.SO I feel certain there were many others that did the same thing.