Sky+ Box Frozen

Squiggly_Diddly

Hi all,

My sky+ box has decided to just "freeze" this afternoon - all it is doing is showing the red standby light (which if you look closely is flickering very slightly). I have tried unplugging it from the mains for a while - no change. Then removing sky card & unplugging. Still no good. So then I unplugged every lead from the back of it, removed the card, unplugged from the mains again, left it for an hour or more, and still nothing is working.

Does anyone have any suggestion of anything else I could try before I phone Sky (at which point I'll just tell them I'm cancelling my package due to a box that keeps freezing - as I'm out of contract).

Thanks.

thomas01155

Phone them up they should give you a new box there was alot of faults with the amstrad ones. Should tell you the make somewhere on the box.

Reluctant_spender

Ours did this the other day. I turned it off at the mains and left it for a good ten mins and then turned turned on the power and left it in standby for another ten mins.

Pressed the switch and all was back to normal. May not work for you but it sorted mine out.

jackieb

Mine wasn't recording for about a week. I turned it off at the wall overnight and it's worked fine since.

thomas01155

You can try a full reset in the secret menu . You will lose all recordings.
Services
4
0
1
Select

Full System Reset

Lorian

Can't do a reset if it won't come out of standby.

Good chance its power supply capcitors failing. You can repair this if you can solder, but as someone said ring sky and tell them. If they try to charge you to repair then you can play brinkmanship and threaten to cancel your sub. You should be able to get the (replacement) box for free.

Squiggly_Diddly

Thanks for all suggestions.

It still doesn't want to come out of standby or do anything at all so I'm going to leave it unplugged all night, just in case it needs a bit longer, but sounds like it could have died a death... Luckily normal sky upstairs is working so I can watch something, and I'll give them a call tomorrow if no luck.

Squiggly_Diddly

Leopard wrote: »

After re-booting it (by reconnecting it to mains power) you do need to wait a few minutes without doing anything, to let it sort itself out, before you try to switch it on. If you interrupt that process it will get confused and then it won't start up. (Obliging you to go through the whole routine again.)

Also, use the power button on the box itself, rather than the handset, to try to wake it up.

thank you - usually when it's first plugged back in (if it's been off) I can hear it "whirring" and setting itself up again. This time the red light just comes back on but no sounds of any internal workings..... Nothing happens when I press the power button directly on the box or the remote.

I think it's dead, lol!!

S0litaire

I've had the red flicker problem.. Had sky out and they played about with the remote for 5 mins then the box came back to life. They forced a software update 20 mins later they said it was working, next day the red flicker returned and we held out for a new box!! Been fine since

DatabaseError

Leopard wrote: »

(The fan only switches on if it gets hot.)

I wish you'd tell my box that! (thompson 160)
fan on 100% of the time.....yes...that can be annoying...

I read somewhere about fitting a 160ohm (i think) capacator inline with the fan....if Tandy hadn't closed down 15 years ago I'd be getting one! (I have the soldering iron, crimping tool, heatshrink etc...)


...but as it only cost me about £4...

madforIT

Damn got the same problem on my box,started last night.
I wonder if sky have messed up with updating or something,left it off all night hope it works later forthe footie.mines just a normal sky box,but it is a dreaded amstrad.