Problems pairing viewing card with Sky+ box

D

Deleted member 79803

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I've just bought an old Pace (PVR3100) Sky+ box from a member on another forum.

I currently only have a single lnb fitted to my dish which I was planning on replacing with a quad lnb/ 2nd cable run at the weekend.

In the meantime I thought I'd give the Sky+ box a quick test with the viewing card from my old digibox. It seems to be working fine as it powers up ok & I'm able to watch non-premium channels etc. I was getting a message along the lines that 'the viewing card does not belong to this box' on the movies/ sports channels but believe this means the card hasn't been paired to the box.

I gave Sky a ring a couple of times today to get the card paired and each times they said they'd send a 'signal' through to the box that'd do this. Waited a few hours each time but I'm still getting the same message. The 2nd guy I spoke to did mention that he kept getting an error on his system when he was trying to set things up but eventually he seemed to think it'd gone through ok.


The box seems to be working fine & is connected to the phone line etc. The only thing missing is the 2nd feed from the dish but not sure if that would be causing the problem?

Not really sure what to do next. Any suggestions/ help would be greatly appreciated:)
 
Not really sure what to do next. Any suggestions/ help would be greatly appreciated:)

I'd leave it overnight and if it hasn't happened by Fri PM give them another ring.
I believe pairing can go through in minutes...but sometimes 48hrs.
 
Thanks guys.

I'll leave it on in the hope that it pairs up eventually. However, I'm slightly sceptical that the guy actually got things to go through.

He kept saying he was getting an error message (although he confirmed the info from the services menu I gave him was valid). He then asked one of the sales team to try & set it up from their end. They claimed they had but when he double checked the system it hadn't been. He put me on hold again for over 10 mins & said he'd finally been able to get it sorted. Not sure if he was just telling me what I wanted to hear by then though as I'd been on for over 30 mins by then.....
 
This can quite easily be a fault with the digibox, seen it before and not been able to get the card paired. You don't really need to wait 48 hours, thats very unusual. If you get the chance, do a software update on the box, and also if possible, do a callback from the box and call Sky again, it might help. If not, the digibox has a fault. The person you bought from is unlikely to have been aware of this though.
 
Thanks Ian:thumbsup:

I didn't really think the signal would come through due to the amount of probs the Sky rep was having. Unfortunately I'm still getting the same problem.

I did a software update before I first contacted Sky. I think I also managed to do a call yesterday back via the installer menu. As far as I can tell the box seems to be working fine (receives a signal, connected to phone line, hdd does some basic recording etc.). The guy who sold me the box is 100% trustworthy so if there's a fault he'll not have been aware of it.

I've tried calling Sky again a couple of times since my last post. Each time they're adamant the card has been paired & all they say they can suggest is resending the signal again :suicide:

I've mentioned that I still get access to the Sky movies/ sports channels when I stick the card in my old digibox. Unfortunately this doesn't illicit any kind of response and they still insist on sending the signal again.

I'm getting to the point that I don't know which way is up and really don't know what to do next tbh. I've signed up for a Sky+ 12 month contract but can't make use of it and Sky don't seem to think there's an issue. I'm starting to worry that as the card isn't paired with the box that they're going to penalise me for breaching the t&c's in the Sky+ contract that's no doubt in the post to me. Hopefully there's a cool-off period (the rep I asked didn't know) and I can tell them to stick it if the worst comes to the worst.

I did spot a thread the other day where a another member was getting the same problem but after he upgraded to a quad lnb his card paired ok. Is there any possibility that Sky+ won't pair with a card unless there are two feeds connected or is just coincidence? Don't really want to go to the hassle of doing this unless it's likely to make a difference.....wasted too much time on this already!

Any help/ advice is genuinely appreciated. If anyone knows of a way I can escalate things with Sky/ talk to someone who understands the issue that'd help too.

Sorry if this is all a bit of a garbled mess!!

Mark:)
 
No chance they wouldn't pair because you don't have a quad, they only use the primary link in to send the signal, they don't need two.

And don't worry, you won't be in breech of any t&c's. Not your fault they can't pair it for you. I'd suggest you make sure they are noting this down, as you'll be able to get a refund on any time you've not been able to utilise all services, such as the Sky+, movies and sports channels.

Also, ask them to do a card scan, thats the next step and will send some stronger signals down to check the card is functioning. If that doesn't work, then i'm afriad its the box.
 
No chance they wouldn't pair because you don't have a quad, they only use the primary link in to send the signal, they don't need two.

And don't worry, you won't be in breech of any t&c's. Not your fault they can't pair it for you. I'd suggest you make sure they are noting this down, as you'll be able to get a refund on any time you've not been able to utilise all services, such as the Sky+, movies and sports channels.

Also, ask them to do a card scan, thats the next step and will send some stronger signals down to check the card is functioning. If that doesn't work, then i'm afriad its the box.

Thanks a million for the quick reply Ian.

Gives me a bit more ammo to go back to Sky with.

I appreciate the reassurance re. not breaching the t&c's. Think I've probably read more threads regarding CLI letters etc. than is good for me!

I'll get onto Sky on Monday (need a day off!) with renewed vigour and ask them to arrange a card scan and to make a note re. loss of movies/ sports. Technically I can still get them on my other box but the refund'll go some way to covering my phone bill;)
Thanks again,
Mark
 
I've seen this fault before - the problem was that the customer's account was set for a standard box and they were trying to pair up to a Sky+ box. I had to ring CC and tell them that the account needed to be changed to the right type and then the box paired within 60secs.

You must tell Sky that it is going into a Sky+ box so that they can activate recording features on your account. You really also need to do a manual callback too.

Cheers, Franc
 
Thanks Franc.

I'm not sure if that's the problem or not. When I initially contacted Sky (chose the Sky+/ general queries option from their automated menu) I explained that I'd recently bought a 2nd hand Sky+ box & wanted to get my card paired to it.

The rep I spoke to pointed in addition to pairing the box I'd also need to take out a Sky+ sub if I wanted to take advantage of the recording features etc. I've double checked my account online via Sky's website and in my Account Details it shows 'Equipment: Sky Plus'. Does that mean that my account has been changed to the 'right type' or is there something else that I need to ask them to change in addition to this?

What's the best way for me to do a callback as I can't see an option in the menu & what does a callback do exactly (sorry I'm very new to all this stuff!). Assuming Sky do need to do something else to my account is it better for me to do the call back before or after I next contact them?

Sorry for all the q's & thanks very much for all your help!

Mark:)
-----------
UPDATE:

Called Sky+ technical support this morning. After a 30 min phone call where the rep went through various check etc. he thought he'd managed to resolve the probs. He told me to do a new install through the Installer Menu and kick off a callback once I was off the phone with him. Did this and my card paired is now paired up nicely & all channels being received/ recording features enabled etc.

Ian / Franc - a million thanks for all the help you've given me! :thumbsup:
 

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