# V52 headscratcher



## billbillw (Aug 15, 2005)

I've had a Roamio Basic for just over a year with Comcast/Xfinity service. No problems with any of the channels until about a week ago. 

I tuned into DIY Network, get nothing and then a V52 message. Tried some other channels and they worked fine, but I ended up checking every channel from my custom channel list (only the HD channels) and I ended up finding five channels that gave a V52 error. Virtually every channel has greater than 90% signal strength, except for the ones that give V52 error. They show nothing. Internet service has been flawless.

Reboot didn't fix. Power off/wait/remove/reinsert cable card didn't fix it. Called Comcast Cable Card hotline. They did some things, sent signal to reset, etc. and that didn't work either. 

I've left them tuned to the channel for hours and they still don't lock.

Four of the channels are close on the tuner (741, 742, 754, 755), but one is mixed in with the locals (805). I don't know what the current status with MPEG4 implementation in the Atlanta area is, but I haven't been able to find anyone else complaining. Besides, the Roamio should work with MPEG4, right?

Bad cable card? Bad Roamio? (unfortunately, just out of warranty) Bad Comcast service?


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## thyname (Dec 27, 2010)

billbillw said:


> I've had a Roamio Basic for just over a year with Comcast/Xfinity service. No problems with any of the channels until about a week ago.
> 
> I tuned into DIY Network, get nothing and then a V52 message. Tried some other channels and they worked fine, but I ended up checking every channel from my custom channel list (only the HD channels) and I ended up finding five channels that gave a V52 error. Virtually every channel has greater than 90% signal strength, except for the ones that give V52 error. They show nothing. Internet service has been flawless.
> 
> ...


V52 only has three causes: no signal, card not paired, or bad Tuning Adapter.

Since you are getting all but five channels, the issue is most likely the CableCard not paired correctly (in other words, authorized and provisioned, but not paired).

I know with Verizon FIOS the issue happens for those "protect once" channels only, such as premium channels and all Fox channels.

You will need to call Comcast and ask them to re-pair the CableCard, and you will need to provide them with a bunch of numbers you get from TiVo CableCard menu (such as Host ID, etc.)


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## billbillw (Aug 15, 2005)

thyname said:


> V52 only has three causes: no signal, card not paired, or bad Tuning Adapter.
> 
> Since you are getting all but five channels, the issue is most likely the CableCard not paired correctly (in other words, authorized and provisioned, but not paired).
> 
> ...


Its paired. I get premium channels just fine (Showtime, HBO, etc). I have been using cablecard for more than 4 years. I know the pairing process.

This particular cablecard/Roamio combo has been working flawless for more than a year.

The channels I am not receiving are not premium channels. Comcast has "Copy Freely" flag on these channels.

Also, I do not have Tuning Adapter.

That is why its a headscratcher.


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## thyname (Dec 27, 2010)

billbillw said:


> Its paired. I get premium channels just fine (Showtime, HBO, etc). I have been using cablecard for more than 4 years. I know the pairing process.
> 
> This particular cablecard/Roamio combo has been working flawless for more than a year.
> 
> ...


Headscratcher indeed. I know you are saying the CableCard is paired, but I would suggest doublechecking with Tivo.

Also, you are sure that you subscribe to those five channels? In other words, are they still part of the package you pay for?

My other suspicion is that this has something to do with the MPEG transitioning with Comcast.... but just a guess (I don't have Comcast). Good luck! Maybe others can help more.


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## billbillw (Aug 15, 2005)

thyname said:


> Headscratcher indeed. I know you are saying the CableCard is paired, but I would suggest doublechecking with Tivo.
> 
> Also, you are sure that you subscribe to those five channels? In other words, are they still part of the package you pay for?
> 
> My other suspicion is that this has something to do with the MPEG transitioning with Comcast.... but just a guess (I don't have Comcast). Good luck! Maybe others can help more.


I have a package that has nearly all the channels and these are common channels. With Comcast/CableCard, you get a different message for unsubscribed channels. It says the channel is unauthorized or something different from V52.

I have already verified pairing. As I said, I called Comcast's CableCard hotline a few nights ago. They checked everything. They suggested swapping CableCard (a pain) or having a truck roll (another pain). I just wanted to see if anyone here had any similar experience.


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## billbillw (Aug 15, 2005)

So, no other ideas. I guess I'll swap the CableCard on Friday when I'm off work. I have a Customer service center 10-min from me and they are never busy. I'll just have the headache of authorizing and pairing the card which can take anywhere from 10 min to 45 min on the phone with Comcast's CableCard hotline, depending how competent the rep is.


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## 8bitbarbarian (Jul 4, 2004)

I'll have V52 issues with the same 5 or 6 channels occasionally. It seems to happen for a week or so every few months. The channel can be fine then it starts to break up for awhile then go away completely for a few hours then come back. Haven't done the comcast call yet but some day I'll be annoyed enough and have the time to do it.


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## billbillw (Aug 15, 2005)

8bitbarbarian said:


> I'll have V52 issues with the same 5 or 6 channels occasionally. It seems to happen for a week or so every few months. The channel can be fine then it starts to break up for awhile then go away completely for a few hours then come back. Haven't done the comcast call yet but some day I'll be annoyed enough and have the time to do it.


Mine has been consistent for over a week with these 5 channels. All show zero signal. If the cable card swap doesn't fix, I guess I'll have a truck roll and have them check the cable feed.


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## slowbiscuit (Sep 19, 2006)

I'm in the ATL as well and have seen the error recently on a couple of channels - 743 (Oxygen) and 832 (TWC). But it's a V53 error, not V52. I posted a message on the Xfinity forums and TWC was fixed within a couple of days. Looks like others are having the same issue, you might want to post a new thread there.

http://forums.xfinity.com/t5/Non-X1-Service/bd-p/CTV_Equip

BTW I think this is a card mapping issue, i.e. they are sending the wrong freqs for the channels so Tivo is tuning the wrong QAM. It's a Comcast headend issue.


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## jrtroo (Feb 4, 2008)

Pull the card and reseat. It's worked for me.


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## lebenson (Jan 27, 2008)

I have Comcast in Atlanta and had a similar issue several days ago. I had no picture and either a v52 or v53 message for 815-WGN America and Oxygen. Really didn't care about Oxygen, but I watch WGN enough, so that mattered. I called the Comcast cable card hotline. I have 2 Roamios and both had lost the 2 hd channels. We tried to fix my living room Roamio, but to no avail. Next day, the 2 channels were back and WGN changed from 1080i to 720p. Here's my theory: it has to do with the Comcast conversion from 1080i to 720p.


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## slowbiscuit (Sep 19, 2006)

Interesting, I never saw this error on any of the converted channels before. Must be a new bug introduced with the fix for playback of 720p mpeg4 channels on Comcast.


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## typeamark (Apr 20, 2015)

Got same issue and I am OTA. Heard it's a TiVo programming issue 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## steneni (Sep 18, 2011)

I had similar problems with my three Tivo's repeatedly dropping some premium channels. I am a Comcast customer. I had to keep calling to get the cable cards resync'd. I finally escalated it to what Comcast call their tier-3 tech support and the service rep found inconsistencies in my account configuration on their end. It was not a h/w issue but their system bouncing me due to these account errors. Any others suffering this issue might want to try a similar account check with Comcast. Since it was corrected all has been good and no recurrent channel drops.


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## billbillw (Aug 15, 2005)

Still no resolution. I didn't have the time to swap cablecards last week. I did post this at Xfinity's help forum as mentioned above. No response yet.


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## slowbiscuit (Sep 19, 2006)

Been working with Comcast Advanced Repair on this and have found that it seems to be another Tivo h.264 issue - we verified that the channel getting the V53 error here (743 Oxygen HD) is on the correct QAM freq for the cablecard mapping. And it's not a signal or card pairing issue, all other channels including premiums are fine and my signals are good. Hard reboot of Tivo does not fix the problem.

Tivo please work with Comcast on this, will also report this on the Xfinity thread I started. I gave Comcast my TSN and can PM TSN to Tivo rep if needed.


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## TivoJD (Feb 8, 2005)

I've lost some channels here and there and I stumbled on a fix that worked for me. Something really easy to try ... I've always resolved by loosening the coax and re-tightening. Not sure why that works. As soon as I turn the coax connector even slightly, the picture comes back and I just re-tighten. It's always happened on the base roamio with cablecard, never on the roamio plus.


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## billbillw (Aug 15, 2005)

Finally heard from Tier 3 support. They are sure its a signal interference problem. Truck roll on Friday to troubleshoot my feed.


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## JohnnyO (Nov 3, 2002)

I just noticed that I'm receiving V52 on a few channels.I haven't started troubleshooting yet, but Minneapolis/St. Paul is slated for MPEG4 changes in the near future. Looking at my cable modem stats, I see it restarted about two weeks ago. I'll start troubleshooting tomorrow. Such a hassle...


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## schatham (Mar 17, 2007)

JohnnyO said:


> I just noticed that I'm receiving V52 on a few channels.I haven't started troubleshooting yet, but Minneapolis/St. Paul is slated for MPEG4 changes in the near future. Looking at my cable modem stats, I see it restarted about two weeks ago. I'll start troubleshooting tomorrow. Such a hassle...


If it's Comcast go online and select trouble shoot and go through the process until it re-sends the signal. This should get your channels back. I lost all my channels and this fixed it. It was mpeg4 related.


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## mattyro7878 (Nov 27, 2014)

I agree with the coax cable theory. I was missing channels after months of pure chocalate goodness and went through every posible fix. Cox came out and rewired my boxes and tuning adaptors for free. No problems since then. Of course the audio dropouts exclusive to the bolt


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## JohnnyO (Nov 3, 2002)

schatham said:


> If it's Comcast go online and select trouble shoot and go through the process until it re-sends the signal. This should get your channels back. I lost all my channels and this fixed it. It was mpeg4 related.


Pretty sure animal-chewed coax is my issue...

Of course, Comcast changed their external connection/grounding practices since this was originally installed 28 years ago. I may now have to take this into the house near their grounding connection, but that would mean a fair bit of new outside wiring, and another hole in the house. 

Longer term, it would reduce the risk of more animal teething issues...

John


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## wco81 (Dec 28, 2001)

I tried to pull out the CableCard out of the back of my Roamio but couldn't do it.

But my TiVo made a beeping kind of song, like a cheap old flip phone.

Then the screen said something about being in sleep and not detecting signal.

So I tried to push it back in, in case I loosened it.

Then I started getting the signal. For me it was HBO and MSNBC which I couldn't get and now they're fine.


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## billbillw (Aug 15, 2005)

My problem was finally solved last Friday. I had a truck roll and the technician tried several things to no avail. The LAST thing he checked was to see if there were any filters installed on the other end of the feed line. Sure enough, there was a pair of old inline filters on my feed line. These have been filtering my feed for the last 4 years with no issues, but I guess Comcast moved these 5 channels to a frequency that was being filtered. 

That explains why nobody else was having this issue. 

Glad to have the issue solved finally.


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## JohnnyO (Nov 3, 2002)

JohnnyO said:


> Pretty sure animal-chewed coax is my issue...


Yep -- new coax cleared up my issue.

I wonder if TiVo could add some intelligent troubleshooting, and check adjacent channels (by frequency) if some start to have issues. It can be very confusing to the end-user as the channels with issues are not necessarily close to each other in the channel map.


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## duncan7 (Sep 17, 2004)

JohnnyO said:


> Yep -- new coax cleared up my issue.
> 
> I wonder if TiVo could add some intelligent troubleshooting, and check adjacent channels (by frequency) if some start to have issues. It can be very confusing to the end-user as the channels with issues are not necessarily close to each other in the channel map.


This. I just had Charter out to troubleshoot the loss of (as far as I could tell) a single channel. Their tech, after the obligatory "Oh, you have a TiVo? Um... OK..." had me pull up the info from the tuner to see what frequency the missing channel was on, and it was (IIRC) 99 MHZ, way out at the end of their band. He said he'd check for other channels up there, but it would have been handy to have a way to do this myself.

Anyway, the issue was a bad connector out in the panel where the service enters the house- a half-twist and a jiggle brought the signal back, but he clipped it off and crimped on a new collar there and before the main splitter near my Roamio and TA.


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