Humax Freesat box

[nagden]

We have had our Freesat box for about 10 years and it has never given us any problems. Tuesday it worked ok in the morning but in the afternoon it came up with the message cannot find signal. I have changed the dish, LNB and cable, checked the position of the dish with an app on my phone without success. Has anyone else experienced similar problems. Thanks in advance

 

[OldShep]

Our box, with 500Gb, will be over 10 years. There has been at least two occasions we’ve had to give it a full factory reset.

 

[fossyant]

Elon's crashed a starlink into it !

Freesat, how quaint !

PS We've a PVR under the TV that's not been turned on in years since the internet was invented.

 

[presta]

We have had our Freesat box for about 10 years and it has never given us any problems. Tuesday it worked ok in the morning but in the afternoon it came up with the message cannot find signal. I have changed the dish, LNB and cable, checked the position of the dish with an app on my phone without success. Has anyone else experienced similar problems. Thanks in advance

I've got this 7 year old Humax Freeview box, and it's a PITA. The number of different ways the software finds to crash knows no bounds. Sometimes it'll run OK for a month or two, then other times it'll crash again ten minutes after I've just done a factory reset and spent three quarters of an hour reprogramming it.

 

[fossyant]

I have a Topfield one, which was quite expensive, but it was buggy. Smart telly all the way these days ! I don't even think it boot's any longer !

 

[CXRAndy]

We have had our Freesat box for about 10 years and it has never given us any problems. Tuesday it worked ok in the morning but in the afternoon it came up with the message cannot find signal. I have changed the dish, LNB and cable, checked the position of the dish with an app on my phone without success. Has anyone else experienced similar problems. Thanks in advance

You jumped the gun there.

I used to repair satellite equipment when I had my own little TV repair shop. Does the Humax have a signal level indicator, built into the software?

You should be getting around 13 volts DC out of the lnb output on the back of the receiver. (Digital meter to check) Does it have dual inputs for multiple dish setup?

Common things look for water damage/corrosion on the connection at the back of the receiver, water can with capillary action get inside the tuner and ruin it.

Being 10 years old dried up electrolytic capacitors can give all sorts of problems - does the receiver function normally apart from no reception?

 

[matticus]

Freesat, how quaint !

PS We've a PVR under the TV that's not been turned on in years since the internet was invented.

Do you have any useful suggestions for the OP?

 

[rogerzilla]

The part of the power supply unit that drives the LNB may have failed. Mine had the same issue. Repaired by a firm in the IoM for about £80.

 

[hobo]

The great thing with a free sat recorder opposed to streaming is you haven’t got to watch the adverts!

 

[PaulSB]

We have had our Freesat box for about 10 years and it has never given us any problems. Tuesday it worked ok in the morning but in the afternoon it came up with the message cannot find signal. I have changed the dish, LNB and cable, checked the position of the dish with an app on my phone without success. Has anyone else experienced similar problems. Thanks in advance

This isn't a solution to your problem but we did have a similar problem. The box had worked perfectly for years then one morning simply stopped. It died.

Our TV at the time was 11 years old, all the apps had stopped working, the box was our only way to access Netflix, Prime etc. Rather than buy a new box and risk the TV failing the next day we opted for a new TV.

Three weeks later Mrs P insisted we buy a new box so she could record anything with adverts and skip through them. I know when I've lost......

 

[wiggydiggy]

Sounds like OP has tried all the sensible options, I do have 2 of these myself (no longer in use but working) and found compare to a modern device like a ROKU they are extremely slow. But they had been pretty reliable, even when used with a none 'mains' aerial.

 

[PaulSB]

If the OP does have to buy a new box I was recommended the Manhattan by Richer Sounds. A company I've always found very trustworthy. To date it's worked well.

 

[the_mikey]

We have had our Freesat box for about 10 years and it has never given us any problems. Tuesday it worked ok in the morning but in the afternoon it came up with the message cannot find signal. I have changed the dish, LNB and cable, checked the position of the dish with an app on my phone without success. Has anyone else experienced similar problems. Thanks in advance

Are you getting power from the receiver to the LNB?

When you changed the dish did you use any signal finding aid? Are you certain it's still pointed at 28.2E?

 

[nagden]

Many thanks for your replies, Which I have taken onboard. The box is functioning normally but is not receiving a signal. I can’t do a factory reset because I cannot get past the « searching for a signal stage ». I have arranged the loan of another box tomorrow so I can if that is receiving a signal. Fingers crossed.

 

[presta]

Three weeks later Mrs P insisted we buy a new box so she could record anything with adverts and skip through them. I know when I've lost......

I thought the current TVs had all the functions of a Humax PVR built in. I've seen people on TV complaining that their nearly-new smart TVs don't work any more because the the broadcasters have done a software upgrade (which has also happened to my Humax, it now won't get ITVX).