Is your TV in an air conditioned room?
Which remote do you use to control the TV volume?
Does the problem go away if you turn the TV off and back on?
What is the model number of the TV?
Do you have separate cable set top boxes for your two TVs?
Make and model?
If yes, try your TV on the other setup substituting it for your husband's TV and see if works ok.

If it still has the same problem on your other set up you might want to either just grin and bear it until hopefully it works better in cooler weather or think about buying a new TV now.
Getting smaller TVs repaired is usually not worth it.

Hello laat2,

1. No live on ocean in northern California no need for A.C.
2. A Samsung that came with set
3. Hard to say since it usually doesn't last that long and I don't know if I catch it during this spell or during a normal one. I've switched channels and it'll be fine on the new one, until it happens there which it will.
4. I'll have to get back to you on the model number.
5. Sorry, I don't mean to sound stupid, but I don't see a box. There's a cable from the set to outside and think that's it.
6.N/A no box

Yes, time to get a new one anyway, but just thought this was so strange, it might be worth finding out the cause....so sounds like you think it might be an atmospheric condition? Oh, and it seems to happen more during the day than at night.

I'd think maybe it would be a "heat of the day" possibility, but as I said we live in a very cool part of the US and if it gets to be 70 we think we're having a heat wave any time during the year. Heat is not a problem here.

BarbB

That's ok.
What cable company are you with?
Is your internet also with them?
A set top box is basically an optional ($$$) fancy Cisco 1000 channel converter or equivalent with a remote that your cable company supplies for either High Definition or regular definition reception. Since you don't have any that simplifies things quite a bit.

Does the problem also occur when you have the volume set as low as it will go?
Check that the cable connection nut on the two TVs are snug (finger tight).
Is there a splitter inside your home feeding the two TVs? Make sure the nut on the cable from outside is tight on the splitter. You could try swapping over the two cables at the splitter that leave the splitter and go to your TVs.
If you play a DVD movie on your TV does it produce the same problem?

Good Morning laat2,
Our cable company is Comcast, and yes Internet also.

Interesting about the low volume. Let me see-----Yes, I just put the channel on one of the home shopping networks which ia always bad. My volume was as low as it would go, and I noticed the mute prompt came up(although I did not enter "mute") and also the channel number prompt. Also the color on that channel became very off---lime green, pinks, white--I'm not joking.

As far as the splitter---I don't think so. Our two televisions are about 75 feet apart in different rooms. His doesn't do what mine is doing anyway at least as far as no audio. I'm afraid your next suggestions as far as switching cables, etc is beyond my pay grade, and I don't think we have a slitter for the two anyway. May be wrong. I did check for tight connections though, and that's OK.

As far as a DVD that IS a separate unit, and to be honest with you it's been a while since I've used it. This particular TV set is on a pedestal and doesn't touch the DVD player anyway. BTW the model number for this Samsung is LTP2035 and the Model CODE is LTP2035/X/XAA

Thanks laat2

B.

So your TV mutes during commercials?
I don't see a problem.
Wanna sell it?

LOLOLOL--Yeh, hold on, I might be on to something. Yup, mostly during the commercials. I know it's weird--really weird. People think I'm joking.

Right now I'm watching some of the Olympics, some on NBC and tennis on Bravo, and for some strange reason, I'm not having much trouble at all including the commercials. No rhyme or reason to any of this it seems.

B.

Your TV seems to be incorrectly processing information transmitted within the video signal mostly during commercial breaks on certain channels. What components are causing the fault is a good question that could only be answered by someone with more experience than I possess.
Think a new TV is the best option.

Good morning laat2,

Yes, agree. I give up, I just didn't want to get a new TV and have the same thing happen because something "outside" in the wiring or the cable was at fault. Feel like I should check it out locally, but I just didn't know who to call first---cable, TV repair, or maybe an electrician.

You've been very helpful laat2, and I appreciate you taking your time trying to figure this out.

One final episode---late last night around midnight I turned on the Olympics and I'm not kidding, the audio was muting about every 10 seconds, plus the VIDEO was shaking.

Bottom line, I think my TVs possessed. :-)

BarbB

Barb

It sounds like you may be having some signal degradation problems on the incoming cable. While it could be the Comcast feed, I would highly suspect the splitter and coax connectors where the Comcast cable terminates on the outside of your home. The morning fog and salt air on the Coast can really cause corrosion issues on these connections.

The loss of audio is most likely just the television's normal audio muting function that takes place when changing channels or when the signal becomes too weak.

Since you indicated your husbands television had a similar problem last year, but is currently working normally, take your television to the room where his is and try it using his coax connection.

From the model number I see this is an LCD flat panel with an analog tuner only - don't know if your husband has a set top box connected to his television, but if he does, use the coax that goes "into" the STB for your test.

Hello Yosemitebill,

Very interesting. I know a year ago when my husband's TV was acting up with the strange colors on a couple of channels, I remember it was in the summer when that happened, and if I'm not mistaken it cleared up in the winter.

That might also explain why late at night it really goes haywire. I was watching the Olympics again last night around 11 PM and had to laugh because while watching the men's floor exercises it seemed the faster they flew across the floor, the faster the TV would mute until it was literally in mute mode for about 30 seconds. Usually this only happens during commercials, but it was really going crazy last night during the program.

So bottom line does that sound like something I should have Comcast come out to check or perhaps a local TV repair guy? I just want to check potential outside problems before getting a new TV.

Thanks again for your help.

BarbB

P.S. No, husband does not have a box either.

While the television tuner can become intermittent and/or fail, it really is somewhat rare.

I highly recommend connecting your television to your husbands coax feed to see if the problem is still there - just part of the basic troubleshooting process. If it gone you know the television is OK and it is a signal issue.

As far as who to call, there is not a simply answer anymore. Cable companies used to wired the cable to multiple rooms for you. Now they have typically taken the telephone company approach of a demarcation point at your house where their line responsibility ends on the outside of your home and your responsibility begins.

Since your husband's television is working OK, and I'm suspecting your television will work OK on his coax feed - the problem is then on your side of the demarcation point - or simply the wiring which is your responsibility. That should be something your "local TV guy" should be able to address.

One possible reason why the problem may occur more on commercials is that local ads are inserted into the network program stream and slight variations in the signal may occur.

Thanks Yosemitebill,

Guess I'll have to try that although his TV is difficult to get to.

I had to laugh last night things were going pretty well, and I was watching a news program when they decided to show a clip of the floor exercises at the Olympics and I'll be darned if the problem didn't start again during the replay. The faster the girls would run, flip, turn, the longer the audio stayed muted. Finally the clip ended, the news show returned and all was well.

As far as local feed for commercials I assume you mean anything that's not a national commercial? If so, I have to say I haven't noticed any difference. Seems to be an equal opportunity occurrence with no discrimination as to origin. Perhaps I'm not understanding your point.

OK, onward and upward, I'll try you suggestions and we'll see what happens.

As always, thanks for your continued help.

BarbB

i think you can ask for a special person to mend it. personally speaking, the problem is not simple!

Borrow a small portable TV and hook it up to the
same cable and see if it has the same issues.
Or buy a replacement, as TVs are cheap now.
If it's not the set, then you've got a second
TV to watch when your viewing choices don't
coincide with your husband's.

Or, switch the two TV's you already have and see if the problem goes with the TV or stays in the same place. If the TV acts up in both places, it's likely the TV going bad. If the other TV malfunctions when plugged into that cable, there's probably a weak signal or distortion happening. One thing though, if the 'OK' TV is a better quality one, it may work OK on a weak signal in both locations, and the wonky one may misbehave in both places. So it may not prove beyond doubt that it's actually broken, it could just be a cheap TV. Either way though, if it doesn't get the job done, you need something else.