DodgyRog Posted May 9, 2009 Share Posted May 9, 2009 Been having lots of problems with our Sky HD box again, think we have had 6 in about 2 and 1/2 years. The usaul problems, things not playing when the planner says they have recorded, things coming up as clashed even though nothing else is recording, coming up technical fault power interuption when we have not had a power issue, etc etc. So I rang Sky last week to inform them the box was crashing again and to be honest had no problems setting up a free engineer visit and replacement box + dish if necessary. I think it is proberbly on file now to sort us out without any fuss, as I got trading standards involved last time. Anyway, today was the day that Mitch (yes we are on first name basis with our Sky engineer:rolleyes:) came and replaced all the necessary bits, well everything actually to be on the safe side:blink:, but as soon as he was done we had to go out, rather than wasting the whole day. Well we come home this evening to the Sky Hd box being in standby, so Jen just turns it on and starts to put a few things on to record as our planner is empty due to a replacement box. Within a couple of minutes it shuts down and won't turn back on for a couple of minutes. We kept trying invaine, but to know avail, so Sky's S##T equipment didn't even last 5 hours and to be honest if we had not gone out I wonder if it would of lasted an hour. What a load of F##king crap, Mitch left his mobile which I have called, but goes to answer phone, so I am now going to ring Sky and give them a piece of my mind:mad: I will update after my phone call Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyT Posted May 9, 2009 Share Posted May 9, 2009 You hear of so many that don'y get problems. I couldn't handle this. Sue is on her own too much to be having these problems. Crap. So how do we get the reliabilty in evidence in every other country in Europe? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Bullitt Posted May 9, 2009 Share Posted May 9, 2009 Sky always stop working just outside the 1 year warranty. Get a Humax HD freesat box and use your card in that instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merckx Posted May 9, 2009 Share Posted May 9, 2009 Well we come home this evening to the Sky Hd box being in standby It's a very common, most problems are caused by a faulty power supply board. The Thomson HD digibox used inferior quality capacitors on the power supply board, some others did too. There're repair kits available from satcure, I bought the first kit and fitted 15 new capacitors but it's not quite right so I'm going to get the second kit which will replace all of the likely faulty components. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DodgyRog Posted May 10, 2009 Author Share Posted May 10, 2009 Well I spent about an hour on the phone last night and only got an offer on another reconditioned HD box plus £30 credit to my account for the hassle(they wanted me to ring back again and book another engineer visit, as they couldn't book it there and then:rolleyes:) So that conversation ended with me canceling my Sky Tv, Sky talk and Sky Broadband, as that is what the very unhelpful guy suggested I do as he thought I shouldn't expect a new HD box, even though I said I would pay the £29 they charge the so called new customers. Well while looking on the Virgin HD sight trying to figure out there different packages, Mitch (Sky Engineer) rings me back and can't believe that number 1. the box has gone wrong already and 2. Sky (Scotland call centre) have just let us cancel for the sake of a new box. He suggests we leave it with him and he will speak to his boss and get back to us in the morning. At 9am this morning the phone goes and he will be with us after 2pm with a brand new HD box. I find it unbelievable that the call centre that is there to help customers resolve and sort these sorts of things out can't/won't and our local engineer can. It just goes to show, stay friendly with the people you deal with and you get your rewards. He is also going to speak to Sky customer care tomorrow and get some credit put on our account for all the hassle and put in a complaint about the way we were dealt with, so a big up for Mitch and thank you (just incase he ever comes across this post) ;)Proberbly see you soon;)Well hopefully not, if you know what I mean:p Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyT Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 Sky always stop working just outside the 1 year warranty. Get a Humax HD freesat box and use your card in that instead. That's the make used by BFBS. Quality German gear. Are you saying Sky will work through these. HD etc??????? Cheers Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willson Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 That's the make used by BFBS. Quality German gear. Are you saying Sky will work through these. HD etc??????? Cheers Andy Ditto. Is that the case? We have an HD Thompson Sky box and its crap. Even worse now with the new "HD" epg. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Transfer to Virgin regardless, you won't regret it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazzaGSi Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Having problems with sky too. I just have the Sky+ box and sometimes the picture will freeze for around 10 seconds even though the sound is still playing in the background. Again, get the non recorded programs and clashed programs which is a load of BS. Scott, does virgin have Sky Sports 1 2 & 3? If so it maybe worth a change. Will save me money because I have the xl broadband with them so maybe able to get a package. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Bullitt Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 That's the make used by BFBS. Quality German gear. Are you saying Sky will work through these. HD etc??????? Cheers Andy I'll check later today but from what I remember there is a slot for a Sky card to be fitted. The box takes about 5 mins to set up and automatically upscales what ever you are watching. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Scott, does virgin have Sky Sports 1 2 & 3? If so it maybe worth a change. Will save me money because I have the xl broadband with them so maybe able to get a package. Certainly does buddy. The only one downfall i have found with virgin sports is that it doesn't have the extra sky sports 'extra' games. What i mean is, you can only watch the main game on the sky sports extra channel. You can't press red to see the other games. Its never been an issue for me though as i'm always in the rub a dub for the big champions league games etc. IMO virgin has far far better value for money. If you went for a package you could save a fortune yearly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supra Size Me Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Certainly does buddy. The only one downfall i have found with virgin sports is that it doesn't have the extra sky sports 'extra' games. What i mean is, you can only watch the main game on the sky sports extra channel. You can't press red to see the other games. Its never been an issue for me though as i'm always in the rub a dub for the big champions league games etc. IMO virgin has far far better value for money. If you went for a package you could save a fortune yearly. We had no end of hassle with sky and as per the OP went through 4-5 sky boxes over a short period of time they started wanting to charge us for new boxes etc and callout fee for engineer of 70 quid so we said F**K you lot we're going to Virgin (literally on the phone we were that hacked off) Conversion to Virgin is the best move we have ever made and as per Scott's answer we went for a package deal, We get all the channels from sky except the sports (as there wasn't enough I wanted to watch so junked it) also we get 20 meg broadband and 2 mobile phones with 100mins calls + texts per month. All in price is around 80 quid ! we were paying for all of them seperately about 170 ! and the virgin box hasn't broken down in about 2 years now (touch wood ) oh and with virgin you can watch whole series from the past for free too from their database examples like full seasons of life on mars or open all hours etc (two off the top of my head but theres loads to choose from) I wouldn't go back to those T*ssers at sky if you paid me ! best regards and HTH, Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willson Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Who makes the Virgin Box? Is it nice and responsive when flicking through the menus and programme guide etc? I am going to have a look at the pricing for a similar package to what I have through sky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merckx Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Subscribe to the cheapest Virgin package and buy yourself a Eurovox box and you'll get all of the channels available. They do a HD box too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Subscribe to the cheapest Virgin package and buy yourself a Eurovox box and you'll get all of the channels available. They do a HD box too.I would never ever do such a thing, or suggest it, however.... If you decide to go down this route i recommend the Dreambox model DB600c. I have a 'friend' who knows all these boxes inside out and the dreambox's are by far the best. The 600 allows you to plug in a 2.5" laptop harddrive so that you can record from the TV. There is only one tuner in the box though so you can't simultaneously record and watch another station. For that you require one of the more expensive boxes with dual tuners. HD versions are available but are hardly worth it at the moment as HD channels are very limited. If you have any questions i can pass them onto my friend. I say friend, but he is more of an acquaintance. I don't hang around with that sort Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest willismaximus Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Just thought i'd throw my 2p woth in, personally I haven't had dealings with Sky yet so can't really comment but Virgin are definately not as innocent as you may think. My parents have been with Virgin since Telewest owned the Cable side of things and first launched and they have had to get a replacement box at least once a year (If i recall correctly the year before last they went through 3!) the menu systems are extremely slow and the box's constantly need to be reset so the tv plans show. The only reason my parents continue to throw money at Virgin are because my dad refuses to put a BT line in the house in order to get Sky Broadband (Nothing to do with Sky, he just hates BT that much) and because everytime he has tried to phone them up and kick off/cancel, he's been put on hold and after about 20 minutes he always hangs up in disgust and refuses to try again (For a nother couple of months at least) which leaves my mother to make the constant phone calls to replace boxes left right and centre and she can't bring herself to complain to them and cancel. The pay per view film system is constantly broken at which point you have to sit on hold for 30 minutes just to get a £3.25 refund on your account and don't get me started on the attitudes of the jumped up little snots they have answering the phones.... Suffice to say, not all of their customers have had this sort of treatment and I know plenty of people who think the sun shines out of they're cheap plastic Virgin box but the same can also be said for Sky. Funny how some people seem to get nothing but poor treatment and problems from some companies when other people are treated like royalty by them....... maybe it's like a post-code lottery or something Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willson Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 I like Sky. Its just the boxes and their interface that I don't like. Worse than any freeview I've used. Shame. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RiceRocket Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 No probs for me with HD+ box Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DodgyRog Posted May 11, 2009 Author Share Posted May 11, 2009 Mitch the Sky engineer made a point of going through the back of the van to find a Samsung box as apparently these have been updated recently. He also said he has the Samsung box, so fingers crossed, this one will last:blink:. He also said in his experience they seem to be the most reliable. I am still not happy with the customer service we received, we have been with Sky for over 10 years and they basically told us to sod off when I requested a new box, rather than a re-con. I was looking at Virgin, but in my opinion they are not much better, as a friend has had very similar problems with there system breaking down and getting poor customer service. So while this box still works I guess we will be giving Sky our money, but if a better alternative appears I will be gone in a flash, as the way they have gone about this is the last straw for me and Jen, but unfortunately for program selection, Sky can't be beaten:( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Branners Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Virgin boxes can be problematic too, however my Virgin V+ box has been near faultless. In the 3 years I have had it I have had to reboot it 4 times and mostly because if you dont use the Red Button for a few months it will crash when you try. The on-demand TV is great, most of the weeks best programmes from all the good channels available to be watched when you want. The menu system is a touch slow though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DodgyRog Posted May 11, 2009 Author Share Posted May 11, 2009 Virgin boxes can be problematic too, however my Virgin V+ box has been near faultless. In the 3 years I have had it I have had to reboot it 4 times and mostly because if you dont use the Red Button for a few months it will crash when you try. The on-demand TV is great, most of the weeks best programmes from all the good channels available to be watched when you want. The menu system is a touch slow though. If the new box goes wrong again, I will be getting a new one under the 12 month warranty and selling it. Then getting Virgin for Tv, phone and Broadband. It can't be any worse to be honest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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