# Video feed interruption - Onkyo



## Tarackian (Aug 10, 2011)

Hello all,

Last year I purchased a new TV and an Onkyo HT-S5300. The guys at Geek squad came out to set up the system. 

The problem is that while watching TV or playing on either my Xbox or PS 3 the screen will intermittently (maybe once every 15 minutes to 1/2 hour) give me a blue flash for approx 1 to 2 seconds. I had assumed that this would be a problem from the video/cable feed I was getting from my cable company. 

Geek squad has been out 3 times to determine the problem but has not been able to stop it. 

We last had the cable company out and they looked into the system and suggested we tried unplugging the Onkyo and just running the cable feed directly into the PVR and then to the TV. Since we have done this we have not experienced 1 blue flash. 

Has anyone ever seen this problem. Its pointless to buy a $600 surround system and then by pass it so it doesn't "flash" on the TV screen. :hissyfit: 

We are using all the proper HDMI cables and even went out to replace some as the geek squad advised that they were only OK HDMI cables and not fantastic. 

Hopefully someone has seen this problem and has a solution. If you do I would be most grateful to hear from you. 

Thank you.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

It sounds like a HDMI Handshake problem (not uncommon) The only way to get around this is to make sure that you have the source video set to a different resolution that the display likes.


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## Tarackian (Aug 10, 2011)

Originally we had the TV resolution set to 720P as I was told that Shaw did not/was not abel to broadcast in anything higher. We have now changed the resolution to 1080 but have yet to see if it made a difference when playing it through the Onkyo.

We first wanted to see if the flashing would stop when not played through the Onkyo at all. 

We will next try reconnecting the Onkyo and seeing if the resolution change will help but I was not expecting it to make a difference. Here is hoping.


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## Mike P. (Apr 6, 2007)

Sometimes the proper turn on sequence is required. Turn on the TV first, the Onkyo second, and the source last.


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## Tarackian (Aug 10, 2011)

Hmm interesting. I never gave it any thought as to what was turned on first. Truth be told, I would bet that I would always turn the Onkyo on first the cable second and the TV last. 

I will try the way you have suggested as well as other combos if it does not solve the flash. 

Thanks for the idea.


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## Mike P. (Apr 6, 2007)

Let us know how it goes.


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## Tarackian (Aug 10, 2011)

Mike P. said:


> Let us know how it goes.


Well, after over a week of straight tv, (no flashes of blue) I tried plugging the cable back in to the Onkyo. I would say within 20 minutes we had our first flash. 

So, changing the screen resolution to 1080p didn't help. Turning the system on in a specific configuration didn't help. I suppose I need to get a hold of Onkyo directly. Since the system is about 8 months old, pretty sure Best Buy isn't going to help. 

I guess the thing that bothers me most is the fact that Geek Squad charged us $200 for the install and didn't pick up that there was a problem. When you call them back to fix something, they should figure this out!

Any more thoughts?


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Sadly this is not an uncommon problem some people cant even get any signal at all. Its not just some Onkyo either Yamaha, Denon, Marantz, Sony and even Pioneer have had issues with the handshake. HDMI has had its problems and its all because of the copyright protection.
If the geek squad does not know about this then they need to go back under the rock they just crawled out of.


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## Tarackian (Aug 10, 2011)

tonyvdb said:


> Sadly this is not an uncommon problem some people cant even get any signal at all. Its not just some Onkyo either Yamaha, Denon, Marantz, Sony and even Pioneer have had issues with the handshake. HDMI has had its problems and its all because of the copyright protection.
> If the geek squad does not know about this then they need to go back under the rock they just crawled out of.


Is it normal to have the screen flash whenever? Strangely this will even happen when the picture is paused or when not going through my pvr and just playing on my ps3.

It does all seem to be relevant when using the Onkyo though.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

The HDCPis the biggest reason alot of people resort to going back to sending video over component cables all be it 1080i is the best you get. The Handshake because it passes through a receiver now gets processed and sometimes this causes the protection of the HDCP to get altered and this causes a signal loss. 
I have a Samsung bluray player that did this all the time and finally bought a newer Panasonic and never had the issue again. Its really Hit and Miss as to why this hapends.


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## TypeA (Aug 14, 2010)

HDMI is a scourge of the home theater community. Granted I have 35 and 50 foot cable runs (something easily achieved with component) but hdmi has been only barely reliable for me with those distances. Regardless of resolution or which projector Im using I often have to switch between several differnt inputs, several times, on the onkyo to get the video signal to properly lock-on. Its annoying but is stable once it clears up, guess I should consider myself lucky in that regard. I dont have any of these handshake issues when sources are directly connected to the display, its only when the Onkyo gets involved and even then its only occasionally. As tony mentioned its often a combination of gear, makes models and such that determines reliability. 

Sorry for your issues, I feel your pain.


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