Incapatibility Uverse-Sharp Aquos

[SomeJoe7777 ACE - Geek]

The 3-wire cables are for video only.  You have to use another cable, such as a 2x RCA (red/white) for audio or use a TosLink optical cable for audio.  The Toslink optical cable can carry the audio digitally, which is higher fidelity, and also supports surround sound with 5.1 speakers instead of 2 speakers.

If you don't already have a separate audio connection then a 5x RCA cable gives you the 3x necessary for video plus the 2x necessary for audio all in one cable.

Yes, the cable you linked to on Amazon will work properly for the video only (since it is 3x RCA connectors).  You will need a separate cable for audio.

[JASKO_1]

thanks. I ordered one with the 5 cables. So anyway, I've just been warm setting the RD to watch TV until my component cables come in the mail.

Today I came home from work, did this, and was watching a movie. Midway through the movie, my Uverse froze, but didn't. The movie I was watching froze and I went to the guide and all the channel previews were black. This didn't go away so I reset my RG again. This time, my internet died and Uverse TV didn't work. The Service light at the bottom would blink green then red. I reset it like a good 10 times and no results. I called AT&T to see if there was an outage and they said nope but would send a tech out to my house tomorrow. After an hour and a half of frustration, I rebooted it and unplugged my TV from the box and actually just unplugged the uverse channel box. This time the service kicked on. One big headache due to this TV, or should I say, due to AT&T's lack of being with today's technology. Grrr. I will wait for the component cables to come tomorrow and i HOPE it relieves all problems..

[Hasenfeffer]

The U-Verse service guy came out today.   Unfortunately I was still at work so my wife had to deal with the service rep.

The first issue is that the service rep. was 20 minutes late for the 4 hour time window.  

The second issue is that he replaced my DVR with the same hardware revision, 2.2.01, which has the component video issue that he was sent out to correct.  The ticket was very specific in that I was suppose to be getting the latest hardware revision of the DVR.  On the plus side it only took ten minutes for the service itself.  So my wife got to sit around all afternoon on a nice day waiting for the ATT folks to not do what I requested them to do.

Now for the upshot.  On a lark I tried a different HDMI input on the TV.  This seems to have fixed my HDMI issue.  The HDMI port I was using has the Audio Return Channel (ARC) support.  I switched to a plain 'ol HDMI port and it now seems to behave correctly!   I swore I tried this when I first encountered the issue, but it seems that I didn't.

I am still pissed off about the service guy being late and not actually doing anything useful, but I'll have to take that up with AT&T.

[JASKO_1]

What model Aquos do you have? I got my component cables today and the TV color doesn't look as crisp as it did for my HDMI. Or maybe it's just my settings..

[Hasenfeffer]

I have the LC-60LE810UN.  I agree that the HDMI looks better than the component video.  I am guessing that the TV does a better job of processing the digital HDMI data than the analog component inputs.

I have the uVerse box connected to INPUT 5 on the TV.  INPUT 4 has the ARC support which seems to confuse the U-Verse DVR.

[mibrnsurg ACE - Geek]

Interesting, I've stayed out of this thread, but have to comment all you guys w/Sharp TV problems, try all the different HDMI inputs and very possibly it will work okay like Hasenfelter found out.   Generally I will tell users having HDMI problems first to try all the different HDMI TV inputs to see if it would work correctly, such as this case it did.

I believe that the HDMI problem is the TV's in this case, the Sharps are not sending the 'see ya later' signal ending communication, so the DVR/STB keeps sending signals, not getting anything back from the TVs, gets very confused causing the problems.

Chris

_______________________________________________________________________

Please NO SD stretch-o-vision or 480 SD HD Channels
1-866-465-1496 for direct TS to avoid Mr. Voice recognition
Your Results May Vary, In My Humble Opinion
I Call It Like I See It, Simply a U-verse user, nothing more

[jesmith15]

I've had several issues with my Sharp Aquos 810 46". I was experiencing the problem with the 'handshake' as well, no matter what HDMI input I had it in. Eventually I called AT&T and they replace the DVR but that didn't solve the problem. So I went out and bot an extra HDMI cable and instead of having all the HDMI cables running to the TV, I simply have them going into my Sony A/V Receiver and then out to my TV. This solved the 'handshake' problem completely.

However, the other problem I've been having has only gotten worse. I have a serious audio sync issue that only gets worse depending on my picture settings (i.e. Motion Enhancer and Film Mode). Disabling all the advanced pictures settings lessens the problem from severely noticable to only slightly noticeable. I've tried disabline one feature at a time to see which may be the culprit but the effect is minimal. Only when I disable them all do I see a result.

I like the way the picture looks when those settings are enabled so I'm hoping there's another solution. I've delayed the audio a bit through the settings on my Sony receiver but it still is a bit out of sync. I'm hoping someone else has had this issue and has solved it.

[Vanakatherock]

I don't see the issue being Sharp's problem, rather, AT&T's problem. I purchased my Sharp Aquos LED television a few months before I made the jump from Bumcast to AT&T. My two year old Comcast box never once gave a single issue in HD/HDMI mode.

When the AT&T box was installed, I made sure the technician used the HDMI cable I already had connected to the television. When initially powered in, the box didn't prove a single issue. Cut it off, went to work, came home a few hours later and the problem arose and only went away with component cables. Again, to me personally, HDMI cables do look better. Especially when watching a baseball game. Without changing a single setting if you watch a baseball game in HDMI and then switch over to component, the field grass appears as green as if you were live at the game on HDMI compared to component. Certain colors/combinations appear slightly blurry, but this is not an issue to me as it is very minimal.

I have been in contact with Sharp via their Facebook page and they are well aware of the issue. If I get a better answer than the last one, I will let you guys know. I just requested info on any firmware updates released that may correct the HDMI/UVerse issues.

[SomeJoe7777 ACE - Geek]

It is not correct to blame either Sharp or AT&T for the issue.  Neither of those companies manufactured the HDMI link chip inside either of the units.  They bought them from Texas Instruments, Fairchild Semiconductor, Fujitsu, Intersil, Maxim, Motorola, NEC, Siemens, SGS-Thomson, or any of a host of other semiconductor manufacturers that make an HDMI link chip.

Each of these manufacturers implements their silicon differently, and with their own interpretation of the HDMI specs.  Sometimes, incompatibilities will arise.

Hypothetically, pair a Texas Instruments chip with each of the other manufacturers and they all work fine except version B of Thomson's chip.  But turn around and pair Thomson's version B chip with other manufacturers and it works fine too.  So who's at fault -- TI or Thomson?  Neither.  It's just how it shook out.  Thomson probably has a version C chip that works just fine, but there's already 50,000 devices on the market with the version B chip installed.  See where I'm going with this?

Sharp uses one manufacturer in their TVs and AT&T (actually Motorola & Cisco, basing their designs on Sigma Electronic's reference board) uses a different one.  They happen to have some compatibility issues.

Ya, Comcast's box probably works perfectly with the Sharp because it uses a different chip.  But I guarantee you there is some TV out there somewhere that won't work with Comcast's box no matter how hard you try.

[rvacs]

SomeJoe - wish I would have known these issues before I just dumped nearly $2k on a TV.

Actually I do blame AT&T as my DirecTV unit works fine with the TV (yes I have DTV for channels I can't get on UVerse) and HDMI works with my Xbox360 / Apple TV / LG BluRay -  so why do all these work with the TV but not Uverse.  I will have to do the COMPONENT CABLE..

But as others have noticed the picture is NOT as good - and If I pay this much a month for HD it makes me re-think the U-Verse decision.  (After having it for over a year).

[SomeJoe7777 ACE - Geek]

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rvacs wrote:

Actually I do blame AT&T as my DirecTV unit works fine with the TV (yes I have DTV for channels I can't get on UVerse) and HDMI works with my Xbox360 / Apple TV / LG BluRay -  so why do all these work with the TV but not Uverse.  I will have to do the COMPONENT CABLE..

But as others have noticed the picture is NOT as good - and If I pay this much a month for HD it makes me re-think the U-Verse decision.  (After having it for over a year).

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Well, you have 4 other units that work fine with your Sharp, and the AT&T box doesn't.  This leads you to believe the problem is with AT&T.  But look at it from the other direction.  You can line up 25 TVs and 24 of them work perfectly with the AT&T box, and one (the Sharp) doesn't.  So from that perspective, where is the problem?

If you have good component cables and are not getting interference, the picture from component should be as good or possible slightly better than what you get from HDMI when the U-Verse box is the source.  The picture quality from U-Verse (or any other provider) is not really high enough to be in the realm where HDMI can show its higher performance.  Only when you get to Blu-Ray does HDMI begin to outperform component.

If you're getting interference (ghosting, herringbone lines, etc.) try a better set of component cables.  These from Monoprice.com are their standard component cables for only $5.14, and these are a premium set for $15.62.

Also remember that U-Verse's black levels on the HDMI connection are incorrect whereas on component they're correct.  This is the primary reason I use component because blacks are crushed on HDMI.  See the link in my signature that says "HDTV Calibration" for more information.

[flyingdutchman]

I purchased the LC-60LE81OUN the 60 inch and when it was hooked up by H & H Gregg and they used the component cables and not the HMDI cable. So I decided I wanted the HMDI cable to be used for better quality. After I switch to the HMDI cable everytime I turned the TV off I would have to reboot the U-Verse box to bring the picture up. It didn't matter if I just turned the TV off or turned both the TV and U-Verse box off if had to be rebooted to watch TV. So I had AT&T out two times to resolve the problem. They swiched that box with the two other boxes that are connected to my other two TV's and the problem remained the same with the Sharp TV.They then hooked a new box to the Sharp TV and no change. AT&T did not know what to do so they hooked the component cables back up so that the TV could be watched. I went back to H&H Gregg and told them that something was wrong with the TV and they said that it was not the TV but it was due to AT&T U-Verse box. It sure seems funny that my Samsung and Sanyo HDTV's are hooked up with HDMI cables and work just fine. with U-Verse boxes. Don't know what else to do!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[mibrnsurg ACE - Geek]

As you see above the others with the problems on HDMI w/those TVs.  My bet is the TV never sends the 'see ya later' signal to the Uverse STB/DVR, so it doesn't know the TV is off and continues to send all the control/security signals and gets totally confused as to why the TV is not responding and requires a reboot to stop it.

Chris

________________________________________________________________________

Please NO SD stretch-o-vision or 480 SD HD Channels
1-866-465-1496 for direct TS to avoid Mr. Voice recognition
Your Results May Vary, In My Humble Opinion
I Call It Like I See It, Simply a U-verse user, nothing more

[ahwayzcool]

I found a very simple solutioin to your problem which should work with anybody that has a new 2010 Sharp Aquos LCD. I recently bought a LC60e88un during that black Friday sale. I have Att Uverse, when i hooked up a HDMI cable to the TV everything worked fine until I turned off the TV. The blue HD Light in front of the cable box will start to blink on an off, after a few minutes it would stop. Then when I turn the TV back on, nothing...no signal at all, I need to reset the Uverse box for it to work again. After a week of researching this problem online, someone mentioned using a simple and cheap HDMI 2 way or 3 way switch. I figured, why not...I tried everything else. luckily I had a PS3 2-Way Quick Switch that I Bought from Best Buy 2 years ago to connect my Xbox 360 and PS3 together. 20 dollars I think I paid for it. Basically its 2 HDMI in and 1 HDMI out. I connected that between the Uverse box and the Sharp LCD TV. I crossed my fingers and turned off the TV...the blue HD light stayed on! I waited 5 minutes and turned on the TV, everything worked fine! Turned off TV again and waited an hour, turned TV back on and it still was working! Thank goodness because I was really close to returning the TV for another brand. So to everyone reading this, I believe this is a simple and cheap solution to your Sharp Aquos and Att Uverse Incompatibility problem.

[wademac]

ahwayz...

Thanks for your post!  I was experiencing the same handshake issue between my new 40" Sharp Aquos LED and my Uverse Motorola DVR box...AT&T came out and replaced my DVR 2 times which didn't help...after reading here and discovering that there were issues with the Sharp tv, I changed to component cables but wanted to find a way to use the HDMI...

After trying some of the suggestions here I was able to solve the HDMI handshake issue by adding an HDMI connector between the TV and my Uverse DVR box.....HDMI is now connected and no more issues with the DVR box not turning on...

For anyone interested, here is a link to the HDMI connector I purchased for $13.99 on Amazon - 

HDMI Connector

I appreciate everyone's help in getting this worked out.  Luckily this fix was inexpensive enough....picture quality does not appear to be degraded by adding the additional connection...

[RCSMG ACE - Master]

Thanks for posting the link.

[1basilparmesan2]

I purchased a similar Sharp Aquos (40") last November (replacing an older 26" Sharp Aquos model) in the same location (bedroom).  Almost immediately, the response of the converter box to the ATT remote was extremely sluggish, sometimes no response.  Couldn't call up the Guide, Info or change channels.  Volume control worked fine (of course, it was keyed to the TV code)

Then I noticed that the converter box controls (guide, channel up/down) did work.  Looked on the Internet for descriptions of this issue (no help from Uverse or Sharp tech support).  It seems that newer, larger LED TVs throw off more InfraRed radiation, which obviously interferes with the ATT remote IR signal.

After much experimentation, I found the right separation distance (30") and ANGLE (turned the converter box IR receiver AWAY from the TV).  Now the box receives the ATT remote signal and it has worked without problems for two months.

[ahwayzcool]

Hey wademac! I'm glad that hdmi connector worked for you too! Not sure why the Sharp Tv's have this "handshake" issue with hdmi, but at least there's a simple inexpensive fix for it. Enjoy! :-p

[Chandlerbing124]

I had this same problem, and I must say that my experience with the at&t employees has been so awful that I am seriously contemplating returning to the evil comcast. When I started having this problem, I had a tech come out to fix it and he put a note down that it was our fault (it obviously was not, he just didn't know what the real problem was). He got it working for a minute or two, then left, even though we told him it was doing the same thing that it had always done, and would start acting up soon. Sure enough, an hour after he left we had no TV again, and I had a $55 repair fee on my bill. I managed to fix the problem myself thanks to this post, but the lovely people in the billing department essentially refused to reverse that fee until I escalated the issue - and even then, they only reversed it as a "favor." I felt like I was dealing with monkeys.

[erazoner]

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Chandlerbing124 wrote:

I had this same problem, and I must say that my experience with the at&t employees has been so awful that I am seriously contemplating returning to the evil comcast. When I started having this problem, I had a tech come out to fix it and he put a note down that it was our fault (it obviously was not, he just didn't know what the real problem was). He got it working for a minute or two, then left, even though we told him it was doing the same thing that it had always done, and would start acting up soon. Sure enough, an hour after he left we had no TV again, and I had a $55 repair fee on my bill. I managed to fix the problem myself thanks to this post, but the lovely people in the billing department essentially refused to reverse that fee until I escalated the issue - and even then, they only reversed it as a "favor." I felt like I was dealing with monkeys.

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So if I am to understand your post: (a) you experienced an HDMI problem between U-verse and your Sharp Aquos TV, which (b) a service call was unable to resolve, but (c) you found a solution in this excellent and informative thread, while (d) you were able to get the charge for your service call reversed.

And you're still mad?

[Becca1010 · Accepted solution]

After several calls to ATT and Sharp our issue was resolved today.  Sharp sent a local vendor to install a part on our TV which resolved the handshake issue for free.  A simple call to Sharp Customer Service resolved this ongoing issue for us and did nothing to diminish the quality of our picture. 

ETA: The part number is DKEYMF452FM11 (Main Unit) and VRS-CZ1JF102JY (Resistor)

[Becca1010]

Forgot to add the Sharp number to call:  1-800-237-4277  (1-800-BE-SHARP)

[erazoner]

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Becca1010 wrote:

After several calls to ATT and Sharp our issue was resolved today.  Sharp sent a local vendor to install a part on our TV which resolved the handshake issue for free.  A simple call to Sharp Customer Service resolved this ongoing issue for us and did nothing to diminish the quality of our picture. 

ETA: The part number is DKEYMF452FM11 (Main Unit) and VRS-CZ1JF102JY (Resistor)

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It would be nice if the OP could come back and mark this issue as solved. The Sharp HDMI compatibility with U-verse STBs is a hot topic, mostly peppered with rants against AT&T support or equipment. 

[JefferMC ACE - Wizard]

Agreed.  We can only shower that reply with kudos, and I'm not sure that'll do a whole lot of good in getting it seen.

[Becca1010]

I will say finding this solution was no easy task.  It took many, MANY calls to ATT and finally one persistent tech who came to the house at the end.  After speaking with his tech support he found the internal memo regarding the part upgrade.  It took one call to Sharp customer service to get the new part.  Its not a perfect solution, the tv still takes a few seconds to turn on but its better than the alternative. 

[JohnBoyToo]

I have the sharp 60" aquos 78 series connected via 16 foot hdmi and while it gives some type of quick (too fast to read) warning message like it doesn't want to connect as it boots, works fine after less than a second....

maybe because I have it mounted above fireplace and the long cable allows it to acknowledge ok ????

dunno, just glad the great picture is clear a a bell !!!

[ahorvath01]

Would be very interested in knowing if you located a Cisco stb. I was told they are not available to the Missouri community. I was also told by AT&T tech at 800 number that system was compatible but stbs were not yet available. Just would like to know how to get a Cisco stb to see if issue could be resolved.

[Vanakatherock]

I have an update with my issue for anyone else who had this issue. Sharp released a firmware update for the Television that I downloaded and installed onto the TV via a USB Flash Drive. Now a week into it and I have not had the issue occur anymore. Just an FYI for everyone.

[equake]

Which Aquos Model do you have?  Hopefully I can do the same with mine.

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Vanakatherock wrote:

I have an update with my issue for anyone else who had this issue. Sharp released a firmware update for the Television that I downloaded and installed onto the TV via a USB Flash Drive. Now a week into it and I have not had the issue occur anymore. Just an FYI for everyone.

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[gdominguez48]

It Works, Your steps to Sync the TV with STB Worked the first time!!!!

THANK YOU for the Help!

German