I am new to Tablo and have been running the 4th Gen device directly connected through ethernet cables. I use either the Tablo app on my Samsung TV or through an Amazon Fire TV Cube. I consistently get the “Failed to Decode Video” error when trying to tune into a live channel. Selecting ‘Retry’ doesn’t help.
I usually have to exit the whole app, restart it, and hope for the best. Sometimes switching between the Samsung and Amazon apps can help, but not reliably. The antenna is in an IDEAL location and I am less than 30 miles from the transmission tower. Firmware is current on all devices involved.
Any suggestions other than returning the Tablo as it’s almost unusable for its core function?
Have you tried a reset with the button on the bottom of your Tablo? Just push it quickly and let it go and it takes about a minute to reboot. If you know how to access the app, you can clear the cache or you can reinstall the app after completely uninstalling it. Both of those are troubleshooting steps that I would start with, but support is great if you need more detailed help
When this happens, have you tried a different channel to see if it is just one channel or more widespread?
What kind of antenna are you using? How far are you from the towers? What TV and/or set top box are you using? Are you using an amplifier or not?
Answering these questions might help you debug this problem.
This indicates a weak signal that is not stable enough to record. Believe it or not, sometimes a simple uninstall and reinstall of the app on your phone can fix this, but not always. It’s still worth a try. Assuming this is a 4th generation Tablo here working on.
I have the same issue. I have the exact same antenna connected directly to the TV and another of the same brand connected to Tablo. I can watch a show on “live TV” without a single glitch. No missed parts of the show. Then If I try to watch the version that was taped on Tablo, I’m seeing the failed to decode message constantly. It’s more than one channel. I’ve reset and done everything I can think of . Most of the shows that I want to tape I can watch the next day on a streaming channel so I hardly use the Tablo at all anymore. It just isn’t working like it use to.
Are you using a settop box or is the Tablo app on your tv? How old is your device? If it’s your Tv, the app tends to age out in a couple of years. Each settop box has different problems and solutions.
Is your antenna amplified or not? The Tablo tuners are more sensitive than a TV, so it could be underdriven or overdriven and the TV still works fine.
It is an app on my TV. I will uninstall and reinstall to see if that helps. If not, my Tablo which is just a little over a year old, has just become an expensive paperweight.
What brand of TV and how old is it? TV makers tend to quit updating their software after a couple of years, thus any apps slowly get worse.
Most people tend to get a settop box like Roku, AppleTV or one of the Android boxes.
This page has a list of the different types of settop boxes that are compatible with your Tablo. https://support.tablotv.com/hc/en-us/articles/13954983793940-Tablo-Compatible-Apps-and-Devices
For example I’ve got a fancy OLED, but it’s 2nd gen from LG, and runs a non-supported version of their OS. Just they way it is. Other that that, zero wrong with the TV, so not a fan of feeding landfill just so I can get a better “bad experience” (doesn’t make sense).
My primary TV is less than a year old. It is an Amazon Fire TV. I uninstalled the Tablo app and reinstalled. It did record one show tonight that actually seemed okay. Let’s see how the next few days go
I would give Tablo some time to work out the bugs. Reboot does not work. Reset does not work. Unimstall of the app does not work. Its Tablo. Asian programers will get to it sooner or later.
