# Lost VHF channels on Bolt



## Outback Paul (Dec 21, 2003)

Yesterday, I lost both my VHF channels on the Bolt.

I only use it for OTA.

I've been using my Bolt for a month now and have been receiving both channels with no issues.

I've not moved my antenna at all.

Specifically I've lost WTVD and WCTI.

I've rebooted my Bolt and that didn't fix anything.

Any suggestions on what to do?


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## jth tv (Nov 15, 2014)

VHF seems to be less reliable here, more susceptible to weather and interference from truck traffic. Fortunately truck traffic is minimal during prime time, so that while it looked like it was going to be a big problem during the day, in the end it did not matter much since I mostly watch prime time tv, took a long time to figure that out. 

I just kept on buying bigger and bigger antennas until I was satisfied with the results. I am using a outdoor antenna in my inside hallway. Once I was used to its ugliness, I was going to buy an even bigger one just for VHF but antennacraft went out of business, grrrrrr.

What are you using for an antenna ? Is the weather unusually bad ?


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## Outback Paul (Dec 21, 2003)

I live outside any city so no interference from trucks here.

My antenna is in my attic and hasn't been moved. Yesterday was sunny with a high of 52.

I'm using a Antennas Direct db4 antenna.

I've been thinking that when I get home I need to plug in directly to the TV and see if I get a picture on there. If so that tells me that the tuner is messed up on the Bolt.


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## jth tv (Nov 15, 2014)

db4 is basically flat, meaning basically UHF. It wasn't until I moved from using flat to oldstyle outdoor antennacraft HBU22 that reception became reliable. 

I've also done lots of testing with different tuners (tv, Roamio Basic, homeworx dvr, etc) and it was Not the tuner rather the antenna that made the difference in reliability. Pretty much the standard A/B test people use with entertainment equipment. I used a splitter with identical wires between two tuners and used the tv remote to quickly switch between the two, and while the signal strength scales were different, the results were always the same - good stations are good, bad ones are bad.


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## aaronwt (Jan 31, 2002)

Outback Paul said:


> Yesterday, I lost both my VHF channels on the Bolt.
> 
> I only use it for OTA.
> 
> ...


Are you sure it isn't an issue with the transmission? If they both share a tower that could be the culprit.

I know around here we've lost channels OTA for one reason or another from the transmission. But they were still up over cable because of the Fiber links they have to the cable providers.


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## Outback Paul (Dec 21, 2003)

aaronwt said:


> Are you sure it isn't an issue with the transmission? If they both share a tower that could be the culprit.
> 
> I know around here we've lost channels OTA for one reason or another from the transmission. But they were still up over cable because of the Fiber links they have to the cable providers.


I've contacted one of the stations and they aren't having any issues.

They have different towers around 100 miles apart.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

Outback Paul said:


> I've been thinking that when I get home I need to plug in directly to the TV and see if I get a picture on there. If so that tells me that the tuner is messed up on the Bolt.


That would be a good thing to do. It would be better if you could split the signal and always have the TV and Bolt connected. Sometimes having a second opinion is helpful.


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## Outback Paul (Dec 21, 2003)

JoeKustra said:


> That would be a good thing to do. It would be better if you could split the signal and always have the TV and Bolt connected. Sometimes having a second opinion is helpful.


I'll post the results as soon as I get home to test.


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## aspexil (Oct 16, 2015)

I moved the Tivo Bolt a couple of days ago and noticed immediately we lost quite a few channels even though the antenna did not move. Then noticed the antenna cable was tangled in the electrical cable rats nest. Untangled and isolated the antenna cable and the channels came back. Consumer grade coax is typically not well shielded.


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## Outback Paul (Dec 21, 2003)

I found a loose cable behind Bolt in the wiring mess and now I have my channels back.

Thanks for all the suggestions.


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## SomeRandomIdiot (Jan 7, 2016)

Outback Paul said:


> I found a loose cable behind Bolt in the wiring mess and now I have my channels back.
> 
> Thanks for all the suggestions.


That's positive, however.....As the DB4 is not designed for VHF, and those 2 stations are a LONG way away from each other in a different direction, you really should get a VHF-1 retrofit kit. Even though the DB4 has been picking up the ABC VHFs before, it wasn't designed for frequencies that low.

Call their tech support line @ 877-825-5572, so they can perform a signal analysis and go over all options with your antenna and installation.


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## Outback Paul (Dec 21, 2003)

SomeRandomIdiot said:


> That's positive, however.....As the DB4 is not designed for VHF, and those 2 stations are a LONG way away from each other in a different direction, you really should get a VHF-1 retrofit kit. Even though the DB4 has been picking up the ABC VHFs before, it wasn't designed for frequencies that low.
> 
> Call their tech support line @ 877-825-5572, so they can perform a signal analysis and go over all options with your antenna and installation.


Yeah, those signals are the lowest and I get the occasional artifacts on those channels. I had already contacted Antennas Direct and they told me about the retrofit kit but I didn't order it because things were working fine. After what happened this week I went ahead and ordered one. I'll have it tomorrow.


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