HDMI Connection Problems in MiTV4 and other Televisions

 8 May 2019

#MiTV,  HDMI cables,  HDMI connection,  HDMI Switchers

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HDMI is a recent technology that simplifies the transferring of video and audio signal from one device to another through the use of a single HDMI cable.  Without HDMI,  one would have to use at least 2 set of cables,  one for video and the other for audio signal.

Nowadays,  HDMI is found in  almost all the audio and visual devices such as TV boxes,  and digital sound bars etc.    The modern TV will have at least one or more HDMI ports and one of them is usually marked with the word,  [ARC],  that will allow transmission of video as well as the true and unmodulated  audio signal. 

Some TVs like  Samsung or SONY TV  have auto HDMI switching facilities in which the TV will determine for the users which HDMI device should be switched on first when starting up.  There have invited lots of complaints when the users other HDMI device could not work properly.

What are the Complaints about?

1)  Got picture no sound or got sound no picture;

2)  HDMI CEC not working or TV switches on and off randomly;

3)  HDMI ARC not working and sound bar have no sound;

4)  TV boxes not able to play Netflix 4k Movies;

5)  Sometimes HDMI device works and other times, it  does not work;

6)  Loss pictures, channels or sound randomly once a while or everyday

Why?

Because the technology is relatively new,  it has some problems associated with competitive use of the HDMI handshaking facilities;  sometimes,    the default parameters such as the HDCP protection codes stored inside the TV’s memory got corrupted;   sometimes,  that default codes store in TVs have been locked for use by one particular device  and the handshaking become not available for use by other devices.      

When all these problem happened,   the users are always quick point a finger at the TV makers  especially when the  device played properly in their other TVs;  some TV and set top box makers were smart to allow only one HDMI port and let the users buy special HDMI switchers if they wanted more HDMI devices to be connected. 

Solutions?

1.  Not Quite Workable Solutions

1.  Turning off the HDMI Auto Switching

Many have resorted to turning off HDMI Auto Switching as a solution but this might not work properly.  First,  many TV does not have a HDMI default for the switch;  even if they have,  it was never properly documented.. Then, one might face problem that the TV is no longer able to play any HDMI devices properly unless they play around with the HDMI switches;

2. Installing  HDMI Switcher

This unit works but not always.   It might have the same problem as many of the auto switching facilities built-in the TVs;  after all,  the competitive use of HDMI devices will be there until the TV or similar receiving devices can register and accept the device during handshaking.  Also,  one would need to find the right type of switcher.

3.  Changing the HDMI cable to better grades

This does not quite work unless one has been using older HDMI cable.   For sound system that use HDMI ARC for connection,  the cable must be one that complies with HDMI version 1.4 because the earlier version does not have the additional ARC audio cables built-in

 2  Workable Solutions

Description	Actions	Remarks
1.  The correct type of HDMI cables	1.  Make sure that the HDMI cable is at least version 1.4 and above	The older version 1.3 will not be able to play 4K video and ARC sound as it does not have the necessary additional cables and bandwidth.   The latest version is HDMI 2.0 that has been certified to support "High Speed" and "High Bandwidth" applications.
2.  Troubleshooting 123	1.  Remove all the HDMI cable either from the HDMI devices or from the TV,  leaving only that  “assumed now to be faulty” HDMI device connected 2.  Reboot the TV and the HDMI device together 3.  Reconnect back the other HDMI one by one and reboot each time when a HDMI is connected	If the HDMI device and cable are compatible and working,   this method should solve the problem.  Those  MiBox S owners should be able to play 4K Netflix movies.  If there is a handshaking problem,   the connected device will not work properly.  One should troubleshoot further to find what's wrong with the device.  If it is the CEC control  problem,  try switching off  the CEC control in the connected device.  If necessary,  switch the HDMI cables around to find if the correct type of cable is being used.
3.  What if Method 1 only allow one HDMI to work properly	1.  Get a manual HDMI switcher to connect all the problematic HDMI  devices one by one to the TV;  reboot when necessary   2.   If everything is working again,  reconnect the other HDMI devices to the HDMI port of the TV or the switcher	This manual HDMI switcher  has almost become extinct and hard to find nowadays.  One would have to settle for an electronic HDMI switchers which this article will elaborate

How to Select Electronic HDMI Switchers

There are many different brands and types of electronic HDMI switchers in the market.  This is because there is a demand as many Television makers provide only one HDMI outlet,   forcing the users to buy HDMI switchers if they wanted to connect more than one HDMI device.  

Generally,  the market has 2 types of electronic HDMI switchers 

1.  The older type that complies with HDMI version 1.4

This type usually can be used to play 4K movies @ 30 fps or HD 1080p.   It would not likely to have HDCP 2.2 certification

2.   The newer type that complies with HDMI 2.0

This type can play 4K movies @ 60 fps and most should have also HDCP 2.2 certification to play 4K movies on YouTube or Netflix

It is always advisable to buy the  newer model that will comply with HDMI version 1.4 or 2.0 that has HDCP 2.2 plus the following additional requirement

a)   100% HDMI pass-through allowing  4K video and digital audio signals to get from playing devices such as a Blu-ray player  to the receiving devices such as Television sets without any alteration of the signal.    The pass-through should also be allowed for

1)  The HDR-encoded and/or 3 D video signal

2)  The digital audio signal such as ARC

b)   If one is using the switcher for switching the advanced audio formats, such as Dolby TrueHD, Atmos, DTS-HD Master Audio, DTS:X, one will have to make sure the switcher is also compatible and usable for such signal transmissions;

The HDMI switcher does not necessary need to have “Standby pass-through” capability as HDMI switcher does not consume lot of power and can be switched on all the time when the TV or receiver device is on