Is my Sony A3 DSS receiver going bad? (1 Viewer)

[Eric_R_C]

Help!
My Sony A3 shows a signal strength of 70%, while my back-up RCA shows 90% (from the same dish.) I just re-did all the cables and connections with RG-6 and gold connectors, but it didn't help. I love my Sony's features. Any suggestions. BTW, the RCA's cable run is actually a little longer, with a few more interconnects, but it still has a better connection :frowning:

 

[Guy Usher]

Put the RCAs cable on the Sony and vice versa then check your strength.
Are you having picture problems with the Sony? More rain fade than the RCA?Do they share the same LNB? I think your key word is "connection".
BTW there is "RG6" and there is "RG6".

 

[Jim Tressler]

Has the signal stregnth always been at 70ish.. What is it for other transponders? Like Guy said.. are there other issues with the Sony? or do things work fine?

Reason being.. signal strength (the level reported in setup)varies from machine to machine.. I have found the sony to sensitive.. versus the hughes.. in a rain storm.. the hughes level will drop several points, while the sony is solid or only drops a few points.

Hope that helps

Jim

 

[Eric_R_C]

BTW there is "RG6" and there is "RG6".

While this statement is true, it doesn't change my situation. I noticed my Sony was showing 70% a while back and figured it was the cable. When I hooked up the RCA, I bought a 100 foot RG6 cable, cut it in half, and spliced 2 50 footers. They are connected to the same dish (dual LNB), and I get 91% on the RCA. I've switched the cables between the boxes and get the same numbers, so the cable is not the problem. This is during good, clear weather.
I'm just worried that my Sony is slowly dying. I'm not sure when the signal started degrading, or whether it's been doing so slowly or rapidly. I was just wondring if anyone else was having a similar problem.
Guess I should start looking for a replacement A3 on E-bay.

 

[Jim Tressler]

Good luck finding a replacement.. i just bought a sony a65 for $200 with a new card and no contract.. I also have a sony b2 that works like a champ.. never missed a beat. It is in the upstairs bedroom. BTW.. does that A3 do dolby digital

 

[Eric_R_C]

Nope, no AC3. That started with the next model. I'm just so used to the menu (35 channel presets, 5-channel loop) that I'd hate to give it up. Besides, my Kenwood 1080 only has 2 digital ins, and those are taken up by my DVD and LD (Star Wars sounds SO good in PCM )

 

[Guy Usher]

It is not dieing,these Sonys can be repaired easily if need be.
Many people would like to have a signal strength of 70, if your performance is good then ignore the signal strength.
I have had several Sonys in the early days ( lightning gets the phone modems) I prefered the Sony to the others at the time . Several times all I would do is pull one box out put in a new one (same model) not touch anything and get big swings in signal strength.

 

[Eric_R_C]

But I used to have signal strength in the high 80's before (guess I should have mentioned that. ) I just don't want to lose my Sony! :frowning: