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[manicfiddler]

Hi Guys,

I believe this is a problem with my TBS6205, but it is brand new although exhibiting similar problems to the card I just removed which was fine for months then developed these problems.

HD channels especially but in fact any channel will display this behaviour: tune to it live and it starts off fine then the signal degrades after a period of time be it minutes or seconds.  When the channel is first tuned to signal info indicates e.g. Quality 89 Strength 90 but once degraded it reports Quality 0 Strength 90.

We also get problems when recording with the same issue or otherwise occasional Recording Timeouts resulting in a program not being recorded at all.

Attached is a log file which includes me channel hopping getting failures as described.  I don't know what to look for in this log myself but can anyone shed any light to confirm it is indeed a hardware issue rather then MC tripping itself up?

Thanks in advance

[Yaobing]

It is most likely just a matter of adjusting your antenna.  There is not much that can be logged in a log file regarding signal strength.

[RoderickGI]

The TBS6205 is a Quad PCIe tuner, correct? https://www.tbsdtv.com/products/tbs6205_dvb_t2_quad_tuner_pcie_card.html

I have a different quad tuner, but it was made clear that a strong signal was required to support the four tuners, as the signal is basically split twice within the card to each tuner. I upgraded my antenna to a new digital one so that the card received a strong signal.

Also, maybe more importantly, as you had problems with a previous card and this card is being powered internally, I would be suspicious of your PC's power supply. It may be underpowered if you have added the card to an existing PC, or just getting old and weak. Check that it is powerful enough, and always use the best power supply brands with high efficiency. Take a look at https://outervision.com/power-supply-calculator

[manicfiddler]

Thanks for that, PSU is a Zalman 500W although it is powering quite a lot. Have invested in a PSU tester so will see what happens.  Incidentally signal strength should not be an issue thanks to the booster in the loft - with a multimeter I read 9V off the aerial.

[Yaobing]

Quality 0 Strength 90

Quality is more important.

https://forum.silicondust.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4474

[RoderickGI]

Incidentally signal strength should not be an issue thanks to the booster in the loft - with a multimeter I read 9V off the aerial.

If the power supply is fine, and this happened with a previous card as well, then I would suspect the booster, or maybe connections have gone bad. Check and clean all connections in the signal path from Antenna to the tuner.

Also, if your antenna isn't getting a signal, then boosting it will just boost noise.

It looks like you are in America so I'm no expert being in Australia, but over here when we went from analogue to digital transmission nearly all of us had to change our antennas to get a good signal. Are you using an antenna designed for the signal you a receiving?

Does the manufacturer provide any software to watch TV, and if so, does it work?