Nextbox 4K PVR...Incomplete/Partial Recordings

[JLG1956]

Hi,

Lately, for some reason, whenever I try to record TV shows using my Nextbox 4K, it only records portions of shows (i.e. records 20 minutes of a one hour show). For example, last Friday I scheduled to record 2 shows at the same time (Dateline and 20/20), but instead of recording the full 2 hours, the PVR only recorded 33 minutes of each show.

I've rebooted the box countless times and the problem still persists. What's strange is that the red "record" light on the PVR shows it's recording, but when I play it back, that's when I see it didn't record the complete show.
Does anyone have any ideas on how to fix this? This is my third (3rd) box which I got last June after the first two crapped out.
Thank you 🙂 

***Edited Labels***

[57]

Signal issues can be intermittent. Also, more signal may be required if the box is doing more, or if tuned to a different channel.  Signal issues are the cause of the vast majority of issues. This is especially true for people who have gone through a number of boxes, because the box was not the issue.  

I'm not saying signal is always the issue, but it is the first that should be looked at based on over 20 years of HD forum experience.  Check the signal on a variety of channels at a variety of times over a day or more.

https://www.digitalhome.ca/threads/57-faq-tips-for-sa-cisco-stbs-also-pace.17719/

Of course it could be a hard drive issue, or another issue like a loose connection inside the box or the RF Cable.  A poor connection to the home may also manifest itself intermittently if the temperature changes causing contraction of the metals or if a strong wind blows to cause a poor connection.

What happens if you pause live TV by hitting the record button? 

[JLG1956]

Nothing wrong when I watch live TV. Problem is with recording and saving recordings in their entirety. I've gone through 3 boxes in 18 months. It just doesn't save recording in their entirety.  They all work well for a few months and then they stop working and fail 😞
Done with Rogers.  Switching to Bell Fibe. Both my brothers have it (long-time Rogers customers) and say it's wayyy better than Rogers for TV. They both killed their Rogers accounts and services.

[57]

I asked what happens if you pause live TV by hitting the record button.   After a while you can then REW to the point you started the recording and then FF again to the "live" point.  This may show if the HDD is the issue.

What you describe in your first paragraph is exactly what others report who have a poor signal. The new box works for a while, then doesn't.  If you think about it, it's highly unlikely to have 3 boxes fail.

Each provider has plusses and minuses.  Fibe is only 720P for HD programming and doesn't have some of the features of IgniteTV.  You can't compare Fibe to Legacy Digital Cable on Rogers.  IgniteTV recordings are in the cloud, but again, there are plusses and minuses for each provider and switching to Bell may be going from the frying pan into the fire.  Do your research.

[JLG1956]

Perhaps you didn't read what I said before. A gazillion Rogers techies, both online and in person, have checked my signal. It is 100% .
Anyway, I'm done with this mess of having to replace boxes every 6 months. I'm dealing with someone really high up at Rogers right now - the guy that replaced 3 boxes free of charge. 
Bottom line, hard drives fail and you guys keep sending refurbished boxes. I want NEW. But I know you don't provide NEW Nextbox 4K boxes anymore. You are forcing everyone to Ignite.

[57]

I read what you said, but you didn't do the two tests I asked.  You didn't pause live TV and you didn't check the signal yourself over a variety of channels at a variety of times.  Good luck with Fibe.

[JLG1956]

What are you talking about?

I've done a gazillion tests in ever combination and permutations. Rebooted, reset to default, and on and one and one. I did BOTH the friggin' tests you asked.
Anyway, I'm done here. Goodbye

[57]

Bye.  PS. Signals are never 100% there is a signal level of a certain number and a S/N ratio of another number.  Both of which need to be within certain tolerances.   So 100% means nothing as signals can go above certain tolerances and below certain tolerances which would be equivalent to 120% or 80% say.  Too high a signal is just as bad as too low.  S/N ratio usually just gets too low.

[57]

If you did the signal level and S/N ratio test, what were the numbers?

[mebe]

I know we didn't get a chance to improve anything, however, based on the oddity of that first post by the OP (I certainly can't reproduce frequent partial recordings that actually finish - even while the red recording light is still on - and can be played back without skips or black screens), that's a good magic trick that my box luckily can't do. Something's obviously rotten in Denmark or in that box.
If my box was made in 2018, and the OP's was made in 2017, I'm going to assume that my box will fail sometime in 2023. I set recordings every day, so the daily wear and tear is bound to kill it sooner rather than later. However, a cheap repair might be able to bring it back to life (without having to buy or rent another one).
On the bright side, I just reached the 11 day mark of not having any reboot done by Rogers or myself (according to Diagnostics screen - Scroll down one spot from Summary to Manufacturer Diag at top left of Diag screen, then Press the OK/Select button to see Clocks/System Up Time in Days/Hours/Minutes).
Nothing wrong with doing at least one reboot a week, but I'm curious to see how much longer I can go without one. I still see fresh Nov 24 content in On Demand that plays fine (so 2-way still works), and the guide has been updated to Thursday Dec 1.
The reboots by Rogers are usually done at 3am or 4am in my area, but a handy countdown option screen pops up, giving the option to delay the reboot (good if I'm recording or watching something). 🕓

[jimsteryow]

I own that box too and am a VIP member. My box has done the same thing where it just stopped recording and freezes on last frame and forward controls and such don't work and see a number bottom right 192:..It is a recent thing over last 4 months if to guess. It is a very intermittent thing and not channel dependent.

[mebe]

I believe that 192 is referring to the minutes of the recording, that is obviously wrong and thus the recording won't play back properly.
I used to occasionally see that happen to my box, but not in a long while (knock on wood).
Not sure what caused it, but hopefully your box will also recover from its Covid-192 virus.

[jimsteryow]

Me too..thing is I hv 2 4k box...record on both same show....same box gets this issue...sometimes I can FF thru after restarting show again...hmm

[mebe]

• This problem is related to your Partial-recordings problem that you mentioned in your other Nextbox recent post.
  
  The fact that you have the same problem on BOTH of your 4K Pvrs, does not surprise me. My guess is that even if your hard drives are less than 50% full, you probably used to record many shows that were longer than 2 hours. But even if you didn't make many long recordings, something (or many things) you previously recorded, has confused your 4K boxes. I had the same problems about 2 years ago (several times), but they haven't returned since I reduced the number of long recordings, and making sure to reboot my box, two or three times in a row, if something didn't delete properly.
  
  Although the Partial-recordings problem is not related to actual available hard drive space, most of the other PVR problems are (especially after 98% full).
  
  To fix your boxes, first make sure that they are less than 98% full.
  
  Then start withe box that has the most space available on its hard drive and watch and delete content that you recorded around the time that you first noticed the problematic recordings. You are trying to find and delete the recordings that are messing with your boxes ability to know the correct amount of hard drive space left.
  
  I am assuming that the most important thing is to reboot the box at least two consecutive times after deleting problematic content, and Before recording anything else.
  
  If my theory is correct, once the problematic recordings are successfully deleted, you can then record as many long recordings as you want (I have at least ten still saved, and they play perfectly).
  
  My 4k box stays on for many hours each day, and is currently 97% full. It takes a licking, but keeps on ticking!

[jimsteryow]

To be clear...I have 2 distinct 4 k boxes ..one in bedroom and 1 in family room....when I have recorded the same show same channel same time on both......if I had isolated issue on freezing and such in family room box...always this one......I checked the bedroom recording and it is fine......now I also know the bedroom box has had the hard drive replaced as bought off Kijji and had initial issue of connectivity of hdmi port and opened box to resolve....FYI...box was made in 2020 but the HD had a 2022 year on it so seems replaced...

[RogersCorey]

Good morning!

If you're having recording issues with your Nextbox, our suggestion would be to migrate to Ignite TV. I know that it can be frustrating when you discover incomplete recordings but with Ignite TV recording into the cloud rather than locally, you shouldn't encounter potential hardware problems like this.

Please feel free to send a private message to @CommunityHelps so we can assist you with the migration process. For more information on how our Private Messaging system works, you can find out more here.  

Regards,

RogersCorey