Simple Tests To Do If Your Decoder Is Not Working

It so annoying when you switch on your decoder, and nothing is showing on your TV. If this happens, don't panic, it might just be a small issue that you can solve by yourself. It might not be necessary to call a technician. 

Check the front panel of the decoder. If there is no light at all, the decoder is not receiving power. Confirm if the decoder power cable or adaptor cable is connected to a power source and switched on. Some adaptors have an LED light, mostly red, blue or green. If there is a light, then it's ok. If not, it might be damaged and needs replacement. But if your adaptor nomally doesn't show any light, we do the second check.

Some decoders have a power switch at the back, confirm if its switched on. 

Confirm if the power cable is well connected to the decoder. To be sure, remove and insert again. 

If after these checks still the decoder is not switching on, then its damaged and needs replacement.

Some older versions of DSTV will show a light on the front pannel even if the power adaptor is damaged. If you see your DSTV decoder displaying a still amber light, the power adaptor is damaged. If all the three lights (Red, green and amber) are still or blinking at the same time, then the decoder is damaged mostly due to a liquid short circuiting the decoder.

If you do all these checks (The decoder is receiving power), but still you cant see anything, check your TV connections. Some decoders are connected via HDMI, or RCA/AV. Confirm if they are well connected, and select ther right input on your TV. If the cable is connected to HDMI 1, select that and so on. If still there is nothing, exchange the cables and see if your cable is ok.

If the decoder is stuck on one channel, the the remote might have a problem. Try changing the channels manually on the decoder. If you try and the channels are not changing, hold the power button for 5 seconds, the decoder will reboot. If not, remove the decoder from power for 10 seconds and switch it on again, it should work. 

If you try changing the channels manually and it works, test the remote. Navigate your phone to camera, hold the remote signal emitter (the glass front of the remote), near your phone camera lens and press any button. You should see a white flash on your screen. If you don't, the remote batteries are spent or the remote is damaged.

If after all these you still can't watch your favourite channels, then its time for you to call your technician.