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No sound

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DougF

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damian - 14 hours ago »

DougF - 4 hours ago »
I'm running through a Sony kdl32d3000 and it is a problem. Only way to fix is to perform a cold reset. It then works for a while, switching the box off and on etc.
But then I'll switch it on and no sound, so it's back to square 1

This is another 1366 x 768 set, introduced around 2007.
Can you do a factory/default reset without formatting and on initial install choose the 720p resolution option and report back?

Thanks Damian,

I did try that after reading your earlier post and the problem came back, even with the output set to 720p. I will try it again to double check however.

I am wondering why a cold reset (i.e. power off for 10 secs then back on) should fix it, but a standby cycle won't.

Must be something to do with how it negotiates the connection coming out of a cold reset being different from what it does from standby?

Maybe a software update could fix it then

<crosses fingers>

| Mon 30 Mar 2015 16:13:55 #41 |
damian

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thanks Doug,

doing a factory reset and initial install and choosing 720p as a resolution was the only way I could get one of my humax's to display properly on a particular screen. None of my other hdmi devices had problems just the humax. I'm guessing the sound in your case is linked to hdmi handshaking and the rubbish nightmare of a hdcp system that's forced upon all consumers and coming out of standby it doesn't do a full re-negotiation whereas it does from a cold restart.
Whatever humax has done differently I don't know, but I'm sure they're not going to change anything significant which could cause more trouble for others. Better would be to get rid of hdcp which causes nothing but trouble, but that's not going to happen.
Some hdmi switches/hubs have EDID settings and if it were mine I'd be tempted to look into EDID amongst other things of course.
Unfortunately it's trial and error and there may not be a sensible answer except to restart it as necessary.

| Mon 30 Mar 2015 16:42:12 #42 |
Luke

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DougF - 1 hour ago »
I am wondering why a cold reset (i.e. power off for 10 secs then back on) should fix it, but a standby cycle won't.

On the rare occasions when it happens with my Sony BRAVIA KDL-32W705B switching it to standby works for me, providing it's not one of the light versions of standby. I.e. Power saving in standby has to be on and there must not be a recording taking place, or scheduled to start in the next 40 minutes.

| Mon 30 Mar 2015 17:54:45 #43 |
DougF

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Just finished testing some things.

So factory reset and 720p made no difference. Same issues.

I think it definitely relates to handshaking. I can consistently make it come on with no sound by switching off the tv using the power switch on the set, starting the humax and then switching on the tv again.

If power saving mode is off then the only option is a cold reset.

If it is on then switching the humax to standby and back on again brings the sound back.

This suggests that you have correctly identified the issue.

Question is, what are humax willing and able to do about it?

| Mon 30 Mar 2015 20:48:14 #44 |
Barry

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Luke - 4 hours ago »

DougF - 1 hour ago »
I am wondering why a cold reset (i.e. power off for 10 secs then back on) should fix it, but a standby cycle won't.

On the rare occasions when it happens with my Sony BRAVIA KDL-32W705B switching it to standby works for me, providing it's not one of the light versions of standby. I.e. Power saving in standby has to be on and there must not be a recording taking place, or scheduled to start in the next 40 minutes.

Which HDMI port are you using on the TV Luke because I cannot replicate using port 3.

| Mon 30 Mar 2015 22:16:14 #45 |
damian

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DougF - 1 hour ago »
Question is, what are humax willing and able to do about it?

Thanks for running tests and ruling 720p out.

My older 1080i projector as well as other displays always had problems with the humax's that none of my other hdmi devices had, switching back and forth between the humax and ps3 would eventually sort the humax out.

Once the lamp life came to its end I had the choice of buying a new lamp or for twice the price of a lamp a new projector. I bought a new projector 1080p and never had any problems with the humax's. Quite what humax do with hdmi/hdcp that all the other manufacturers seem to get right I don't know although cascading is a definite problem, but as you have a 1366x768 set designed in 2007 I don't think humax will do anything but wait.
You can get hdmi edid switches/hubs from £20 - £30 on ebay, but no guarantee that it'll make any difference

| Mon 30 Mar 2015 22:40:41 #46 |
Luke

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Barry - 8 hours ago »
Which HDMI port are you using on the TV Luke because I cannot replicate using port 3.

It started out on 2 or 3 (I can't remember which), I then switched to port 4 and then port 1. As it happens on 3 ports I'm assuming that it will happen on the 4th. I've been using an HDMI cable that came with an HD or HDR-FOX T2.
It happens very rarely and only once have I been certain exactly what had been done since I last heard the sound. I went through those actions again and the sound remained.
I've given up trying to make it happen at will.

I have the Bravia set to display only active ports. There is a visible difference between the 2000T and the HDR-FOX T2s which are also connected. When power saving in standby is switched off the 2000T HDMI port is always thought to be active by the TV, but the HDR-FOX T2s port is greyed out when they are in standby. I presume that this is why switching the 2000T to non-active standby does not bring back the sound.

| Tue 31 Mar 2015 7:14:48 #47 |
Blobfishery

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damian - 6 days ago »

Blobfishery - 1 hour ago »
Thanks Gort, I'll try that. But will it mean switching settings on the TV/unplugging the RCA Cables every time I switch source?

I don't think you can re-assign rca inputs on your particular Samsung.
If I'm correct, the TV first appeared 2009, there's a firmware update from 2010.
The screen size is 1360x768 if I'm looking at the correct model, in which case set the humax resolution to 720p and not 1080i or 1080p
You may have to do a factory reset, default reset, without format and choose 720p on initial install for the 720p to stick, you'll lose your schedule list of programmes you want to record so take a note or picture with camera phone or similar.
let us know how you get on

Thanks Damian. It is a 2009 model that had a 2010 update, that is correct, but i'm sure it is a full 1080p HD TV.

Even so, I tried a factory reset then setting the resolution to 720p on initial set up, same issues unfortunately.

I've also emailed a detailed description of the problem to Humax support. Their only response was work arounds rather than a fix and they neglected to say if they were working on any kind of fix for the future. So I guess the option is either live with the problem with the work arounds or get rid and try something else. There doesn't seem to be much else on the market that would work for me, so I think I'm going to keep it and begrudgingly live with the issues.

| Wed 1 Apr 2015 2:13:01 #48 |
DougF

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Hi blobfishery,

I also got in touch with humax support and got the same response. They seem to be very familiar with the issue, so it is common.

They explained that the hdmi handshaking is pretty basic on the humax box and there isn't much they can do to fix it from a software perspective.

Like your say, there isn't much else out there so workarounds it is.

The thing that worries me is that this is the sort of thing that will put people off from owning a pvr, which is a shame because when they work well (eg. A toppy with mystuff) they are brilliant

| Wed 1 Apr 2015 9:10:43 #49 |
damian

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Blobfishery - 10 hours ago »
Thanks Damian. It is a 2009 model that had a 2010 update, that is correct, but i'm sure it is a full 1080p HD TV.
Even so, I tried a factory reset then setting the resolution to 720p on initial set up, same issues unfortunately.
I've also emailed a detailed description of the problem to Humax support. Their only response was work arounds rather than a fix and they neglected to say if they were working on any kind of fix for the future. So I guess the option is either live with the problem with the work arounds or get rid and try something else. There doesn't seem to be much else on the market that would work for me, so I think I'm going to keep it and begrudgingly live with the issues.

Because I've had so many nightmare humax problems with hdmi/hdcp over the years I take an interest just in case I've missed something.
I took a look at the specs for the samsung tv and the manual says it's 1360x768 i.e hd ready. Amongst their FAQ's there's a question about resolution and they reply that it's full hd. Personally I believe it's 1360x768 hd ready. Many years ago sony were proud that they made all the bravia tv's themselves. Around the same time there was a report that none of the big brands made tv's under 32" anymore, they just concentrated on the upmarket sets and licensed 32" and below. There's a very good chance that your samsung has very similar internals to the sony that Doug has and I don't think it's a coincidence that both suffer the same sound problem and presumably 95%+ of others with different tv's don't. The actual resolution isn't the issue here, just the fact that both sets show up incompatibilities with the humax that other devices don't.

After years of fruitless tests I had good experience with edid hdmi switches, can be got now for around £30. Not too sure if they'd work for you or whether you could borrow one to try.
I'm assuming if you disconnect the hdmi lead and then reconnect it will re-sync? and get audio back, in that case an old style mechanical hdmi switch would allow physical intervention. I'm also assuming if the eco setting is switched off and the box left permanently on then you don't have the sound problem? at cost of electricity and hardware wear though.
I resigned myself a few years ago that the problem lies in the hardware/implementation of the hdmi controller and there's little humax can do as changing anything would risk breaking something else for many others. It would appear that newer full HD sets don't have these problems so I'm guessing humax will just wait for the problem to go away.
It crossed my mind that it may have something to do with multi-channel and stereo, possibly going into standby with multi-channel present/broadcasted and only stereo being present/broadcasted when coming out of standby or vice-versa, but I'm sure somebody would have noticed that a while ago.
Lukes post above is very useful and informative; however without him being able to reliably replicate the problem it remains a mystery.
Let us know if you find a fix that works.

| Wed 1 Apr 2015 13:13:53 #50 |