Marantz SR 5008 input problem or Harmony remote problem?

[murl]

I have my harmony 880 remote programmed with a "Watch Blu Ray" activity and "Apple TV." I am using the "Blu Ray" input for the Blu Ray activity and "Media Player" input for the Apple TV activity. If I start either activity they all select the correct inputs and everything works great. If I am on the "Apple TV" activity and switch to the "Watch Blu Ray" activity without shutting everything down the Harmony attempts to switch the TV and Receiver to the correct inputs and it appears that all is working for a few seconds then the TV screen goes black and no video signal is sent to the TV even though the Blu Ray player is playing and the receiver does not play audio. So the question is does this sound like a problem with the Marantz or remote? I have been setting up the remote for years when I switch equipment and feel that I have it set up correctly. When using the remote that comes with the Marantz I tried to switch to the "Blu Ray" input manually and still get no video or audio. Any ideas? I picked this receiver up open box at best buy and got a sweet deal so I don't want to take it back.

 

[MDS]

It's possible that the problem is with the DHCP handshake. The TV most likely needs to be on the correct input *before* the Blu Ray turns on and starts the handshake. Try changing the order of the commands so the TV changes input first, maybe add a pause, then turn on the Blu Ray and start playback.

While not related to DHCP, you also sometimes see problems with switching inputs on a TV right after turning it on because some won't be ready to accept remote commands for a few seconds after it is on. The solution is generally the same: TV power first, then the receiver, other commands or a pause, then lastly issue the TV input command so it will be ready to 'see' it.

 

[TLS Guy]

I have my harmony 880 remote programmed with a "Watch Blu Ray" activity and "Apple TV." I am using the "Blu Ray" input for the Blu Ray activity and "Media Player" input for the Apple TV activity. If I start either activity they all select the correct inputs and everything works great. If I am on the "Apple TV" activity and switch to the "Watch Blu Ray" activity without shutting everything down the Harmony attempts to switch the TV and Receiver to the correct inputs and it appears that all is working for a few seconds then the TV screen goes black and no video signal is sent to the TV even though the Blu Ray player is playing and the receiver does not play audio. So the question is does this sound like a problem with the Marantz or remote? I have been setting up the remote for years when I switch equipment and feel that I have it set up correctly. When using the remote that comes with the Marantz I tried to switch to the "Blu Ray" input manually and still get no video or audio. Any ideas? I picked this receiver up open box at best buy and got a sweet deal so I don't want to take it back.

Does this involve switching from BD player to Apple TV as well? It is not the remote, but is either the BD player or the Marantz. Try something else on that input, and also try another input.

What is your BD player? Have you updated the firmware of the Marantz and BD player.

These HDCP codes are always being updated. New units always come with out of date software and need updating out of the Box.

You have a classic case of failure of repeated handshakes. It is making the initial handshake, but repeated handshakes are being dropped. So either your BD player or Marantz or both are out of compliance.

 

[shootshescores]

I'm experiencing a very similar situation with my SR5008. My problem is with my DirecTV. When I power everything up 50% of the time video works fine, but I have no audio. I have to turn off the AVR and turn it back on for it to work. I also have issues where well after start-up, my TV will go black for 2-3 seconds and come back with very choppy video. Again, I turn off the receiver and turn it back on and it works fine. I don't know that this is an issue across the board because have not had the time to watch any blu rays or DVD's for testing. However, I find this unacceptable becuase this AVR will be used with my DirecTV 85% of the time. I called Marantz support twice on this issue. The first call they told me to power on my components in a specific order. TV, AVR, then DirecTV. Marantz service didn't even try to trouble shoot this issue with me beyond the recommended turn on sequence. They didn't even check the video settings with me. Instead, they just offered to send me a new replacement, which I found surprising and odd.

On another note, I contacted Accessories 4 Less, who I bought this unit from. They said that they have fielded this issue many times and found that low quality HDMI cables are the culprit and recommended I purchase better cables. I found this a bit ridiculous, but they were rather certain.

Once I receive the new AVR I will see if the problem goes away. If not, I guess I'll try new HDMI cables. Does anyone else have any experiences with this sort of issue using a Marantz or other brand of AVR?

 

[rojo]

Can't say I've ever had the issue with my Marantz (also a refurb from A4L). Matter of fact, now that you mention it, I used to have a problem with my cable tuner's video freezing when it was plugged directly into my television before I got my Marantz, and the display looked all glitchy and turbo-tastic. I used to have to unplug the power from the tuner for 30 seconds and plug it back in to restore video. I always assumed my tuner's video chipset was going bad, but now I'm thinking it must've been HDMI handshake issues. I don't recall needing to do that since plugging the tuner into my AVR now that I think about it.

Do you have your receiver connected to the network to pull firmware updates?

 

[shootshescores]

Do you have your receiver connected to the network to pull firmware updates?

I do not have an ethernet input nearby the HT set up so I ran a really long ethernet cable from my router to the AVR upon initial installation to get the latest firmware loaded on the unit. That was approximately 3-4 weeks ago.

 

[rojo]

Yeah, that should be the latest firmware. I don't think a new one has been released since February or so. I'm skeptical that a new HDMI cable will fix your problem. But if it's worth $5 for you to find out, try this one. Or if you want a 4K rated cable, here's a good one for $1.50 more.

If a replacement receiver and a replacement HDMI cable don't fix it, you can always fall back to using YPbPr + optical or digital coax and be done with it. Or you can demand a replacement tuner from DirecTV, but you'll likely lose any DVR auto recording schedules and other settings.

On another note, if you'd like to get your Marantz Internet-connected so you can play with streaming Internet radio or LAN streams over UPnP, Amazon has a ton and a half of wireless bridges for less than $25. Here's an excellent deal on a like-new Cisco / Linksys WES610N wi-fi bridge.