Dead MultiSwitch?

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tylerlaw

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Hi there,

After Friday's storm in Southern Ontario (Kitchener-Waterloo specifically), I'm no longer getting a satellite signal. My dish doesn't appear to have moved. I've got a 9200 in one room and a SD PVR in another. When I run check switch, it isn't finding a switch, nor a signal. What's the best place to start looking for the problem? I was thinking of connecting direct to the SD PVR (by passing the switch) to see if I can get a signal. If I get one doing that, does that definitively point to a dead switch?

Thanks,
Tyler
 
If it works receiver to LNB direct, but does not work receiver to switch to LNB, then yes, it is pretty much a no-brainer that the switch is the problem :)

Try it without, then try it with the switch back in. Assuming you have a SW44 with the 9200, you can test the power supply as well with a voltmeter. Try switching ports, try the SD PVR on the SW44,....lots of things to try.
 
Thanks! That's what I figured, and it seemed to be a no-brainer, but thought I'd verify in case I was missing something obvious.

How robust are the SW44 switches? I've got it hanging, unsecured off the roof. It's open to the elements, and also free to blow around and potentially into the outside wall of the house. I've been meaning to secure it a little better, but it's been put off for well over a year now.

Tyler
 
If you are renting, just call Express Vu.

I would start by checking that the Power Inserter is still plugged in, you would be amazed how many calls we get to just re-connect it.

Nimiq 1
 
Whether he rents or bought the receiver if he is over 3 months after the original installation, which seems to be the case, he would have to pay for the tech
 
check the power inserter, like nimiq suggested
take it out, and then push it in tight, and turn
not the most innovative invention (turn 90 degrees???)
they are very picky
more often than not, it is a bad connection to the power inserter, hopefully
g/l
 
Thanks for the advice! I bypassed the switch and went direct to the SD PVR. Great signal, so the dish hasn't moved. I haven't tried turning the plug on the power inserter 90 degrees. I will do that once Hell's Kitchen is done recording.

It's a purchased receiver/switch, so I'm on my own fixing it. I went to a brick and mortar Bell store to see what they could do for me. I asked for an SW44, and they showed me "what I needed". It's nothing like the SW44 that I currently have, but she was insistant that it was the same. I asked why there were only 2 LNB inputs, and one antenna input, when I run 4 cables from my dish. She said I should just turn it around and put the cables from the dish into the receiver output side, and the cables to the receiver on the satellite input side. Any thoughts on if this will work, or if she was misinformed? Either way, I'll try the power inserter before I try installing this one.
 
Oh trust me she is very, very misinformed........

This is not the first time and will most defiantly the last time that I hear horror stories like this from a Bell World Store.

It will NOT work. You do need the SW44.

Please Pm me, if you are local I can get you a bracket to secure the SW44 to the Dish, or better yet, mount it to the wall, under the eaves, or even better, if you already have 3 lines into the House, run a forth and bring the SW44 inside.

Nimiq 1
 
But if the switch was hanging and he is Renting, then it should be covered under the warranty as the installation was flawed.....

Is a faulty switch not replaced Free Of Charge for Rental Customers.?

Nimiq 1
 
Personally, I don't understnad why rental units "must be professionally installed". 30 seconds after the installer exits the premises the owner could reaarrange everything.

I do agree though that the SW44, if supplied as part of the rental equipment, should also be covered.
 
Tried the power inserter connection, with no success. The switch seems to be dead.

The replacement I bought last night will be going back. I didn't bother trying it, as it's pretty obvious that it's the wrong one. I don't know why I bothered taking it home, as I was pretty sure it was not the right one. The sales person was so sure it was right though. Oh well.

Do Bell World stores usually carry the SW44? She said that was the only switch they carried.

As for the installation, I purchased the 9200, and did the install myself. I didn't bother to properly mount the switch at that time. Lesson learned!
 
Bell Worlds should carry SW44's.

They are around $150 but as with everything Bell, prices vary depending on who you speak to.

Nimiq 1
 
Dosborne, you have got that right......lol

So many of the "Warranty" calls we receive have equipment moved or re-wired after the initial installation. We are trying to convince ALL our Technicians to take digital photographs of each location and the full installation as a precaution against this issue.

Just for the record, every "Warranty" Service call is charged back to the Installation Company, which in turn will charge back the original Technician after an investigation to determine his fault liability. If he has pictures of how he left the installation and these do not match the findings of the next Tech, then we have a case to go back to Express Vu and chase the money for the Service Call.

It should be easy to have the original Tech go back on his own Installations when a Service Call is generated but Express Vu do not and will not apply this simple logic, its up to the Installation Companies to try to catch them and then re-arrange the workload for the Techs involved.

As the Installation Company only has any real visibility to the NEXT DAYS work at around 4pm, the day before, it does not give them much time. Also Express Vu do not want Installation Companies moving calls around because it creates more work for them.....

As for the Installation of RENTAL receivers, I am told that the reason for Professional Installation is that these units do not belong to Express Vu but to BCE, or it could be the other way around.

When the Rental option began, there was talk of having separate supplies of Switch's, Upgrade Kits etc for Installers to carry that could ONLY be used for Renal installations. Double the stock in the vehicle, double the stock of receivers and everything, it was yet another ludicrous idea.

Nimiq 1
 
Hey all, I haven't been able to find a new SW44 at any of the Bell Stores. Did some searching online and found one out of a FTA store in Alberta for much much cheaper. Anyone have any experience dealing with these types of stores? It seems to good to be true.

Tyler
 
They are very overpriced at Bell so do be surprised if you can find them for $40-$75 elsewhere.

Some are marginally lower quality, but in most cases it doesn't matter. I always prefer installing them inside the house regardless of whether or not they are rated for outdoor use, even more so for lower quality ones as it is typically the seals and weather proofing that is lower quality rather than the electronics.
 
New SW44s typically sell for about $100-$125 retail (even from companies other than Bell.) As Q said, best to look on eBay. There is lots of surplus legacy Dish equipment in the US.
 
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