I am having issues with mostly pixelation when watching OTA TV and recorded TV (it seems to happen more frequently with OTA live tv). I have a Roku 2, 2 TB WD Elements HD connected to Tablo. They are all connected wirelessly to my Apple AirPort Extreme wireless router. The distance from router is 10 feet through two walls. My Tablo is inside a tv cabinet. My Roku sits on top of cabinet. Sling Tv streams without any problems. OTA tv connected directly to tv works without problems. Seems to be an issue with tablo streaming to roku?? I have set the roku to stream at 3 Mbps instead of auto and it helped get rid of the LPW issue. Apart from hardwiring all devices, any other tips or suggestions?? Greatly appreciate the help!
Pixelation is generally a poor OTA signal issue. If you stream said recording with pixelation on another device such as iPad, computer, Android phone - do you still see the pixelation?
If yes you do, then it has nothing to do with slow WiFi speeds causing the issue. It is poor OTA signal - the Tablo has an internal 1x4 splitter which slightly degrades the signal quality.
The buffering issue may be due to the fact that your Tablo is connected to your router via WiFI. Which band is it connected to? The 2.4 GHz band or 5 GHz band?
Yes, I am seeing pixelation on the iPad, and iMac as well. I have a Mohu Leaf 50 amplified antenna mounted indoors. I am not sure how to find out which band it is connected to? I have opened up airport utility but wasn’t able to find that info out. I have also set the Tablo Max recording quality setting to HD 720-3 mbps which has not helped. My internet speed is 25-27 mbps down consistently.
On your iMac, hold down the option key and then click on the Wifi symbol in the menu bar. There will be a bunch of text under the name of your network. What’s it say on the “Channel:” line?
You will need to improve your OTA signal then if the pixelation is across all 3 devices. Get a bigger antenna, or improve the pointing of your antenna. Maybe put it on a window on the 2nd floor? The higher up the better. Or put it in a window better facing the towers. See TVFool for tower information. Your Internet speed is irrelevant to local streaming from the Tablo to Roku.
http://www.tvfool.com/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29
Channel 1, 2.4 ghz
Improve OTA signal…ok, i will work on that. Thanks for all the input!
That still won’t tell him what band the Tablo is connected to for WiFi, only the iMac.
All of the OTA local channels I want show in GREEN on TVfool website calculations…
- What is the miles away distance?
- Is your Mohu pointed in the correct direction? Aka in line of sight?
It is 10.1 miles away. Mohu isn’t pointed in their direction…
That distance is great for the Mohu. Can you move the Mohu to a window in the right direction? Even if it’s only for testing purposes.
I do not have a window accessible pointing in the right direction.
If you believe it is a WiFi signal issue, hard wire the Tablo to your router with a long ethernet cable. If the problem persists, you know for sure the issue is the OTA signal. Which will then require you to get an outdoor antenna.
Alternatively, you can open a Support Ticket with Tablo Support, they can remote into your Tablo and check your signal levels. This will tell you for sure you need a better antenna.
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Ok. This is where I am ignorant in the operation of the Tablo. How would hardwiring the Tablo to the router help? Does the Tablo send the OTA tv signal to the router and then back to the Roku? Or does the Tablo communicate directly with the Roku? I’m thinking it is the first, not the latter?
OTA signal goes to Tablo via the coaxial cable. Tablo is connected to your router via WiFi or hard wire. Then your Roku is connected to your router via WiFi.
To watch TV the Tablo converts the OTA MPEG2 video to h.264 video, and then the stream goes from Tablo to router via WiFi, then goes from router to Roku via WiFi. This is called engaging in Double WiFi, which can create latency issues or speed issues resulting in buffering issues. Most people hard wire their Tablo to their router.
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However, pixelation issues rather than buffering issues are generally due to poor OTA signal.
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I tried hard wiring my Tablo into the router, but placing the antenna in this room receives no WFAA (8). So moving Tablo into the living room using wifi (i get 55-60 mps), the antenna picks up WFAA easily, even though it’s on the very same wall or side of the house, just in a different room? Watching recorded shows in other rooms besides the living room gets lots of buffering, too much for comfort, any suggestions? Is there a way to hardwire away from the router? I’m sure a long cable can’t be the only solution.
Power Line adapters, like these:
UPDATE
I moved the antenna from the wall behind the flat screen TV to just laying on top of tv cabinet. 99.999% of the pixelation issues have resolved. I am enjoying a good experience now with OTA tv and Tablo. I appreciate all of the input!
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