Was there a recent update that caused problem for 4K Sticks?

BruceRPA-

Streaming Stick 4k+ comes with a Roku Voice Remote Pro.

A number of people have reported problems where a Roku Voice Remote intermittently loses ability to send infrared Volume, Mute, and Power commands to the TV.

I've never experienced this problem with any of my Voice Remotes, but it has been reported that updating the remote firmware version can fix the intermittent IR command problem. This can be done via a Roku "secret menu".

Caveat: So-called "secret menus" are not officially supported by Roku. They may not work with all Roku models, and they may be discontinued at any time.

1) Go to the "secret" Platform Menu. To do this, hit the these buttons in sequence: Home five times, FF, Pause, RW, Pause, FF

2) Go to RF Remote Menu

3) Go to Over The Air (OTA) Update Men

4) Go to OTA Firmware Update

5) Update the firmware

6) Exit

Solution source: https://community.roku.com/t5/Remotes/Roku-Voice-Remote-TV-Controls-Stop-Working-Potential-Fix/m-p/833919/highlight/true#M36066

BruceRPA 

I think you may be down to just trying to use different Vizio codes in the Remote setup since power has been verified and CEC settings have all been reset.

Settings/Remotes & Devices/Remotes/Setup Remote for TV Control

-----

Try going past the first one that seems to work for you (just answer falsely to the on-screen prompt).  That should automatically try other programming codes.  This step may take you a bit of time to find one that works for you.

Additionally, some users have indicated that LG codes will work for Vizio TVs . (mostly used when none of the Vizio codes worked during setup, but can also be tried in this instance as well).

Intermittent issues are often the most difficult to track down the underlying culprit.  

Are there any power saving features or low-power modes enabled on the Vizio TV(s) you are using?

Post back with the model numbers of the affected Vizio TV sets.  Might have to broaden the scope of what we are looking at here and see if there are any other reports of similar behaviors with other devices/device remotes.

BruceRPA-

A bunch of people who say their normal Roku software checks indicated they were up to date have reported that the separate "secret menu" remote firmware update procedure outlined earlier fixed their problem. 

Interestingly, the remote firmware version reported before and after the update is reported not to have been changed  (Settings > Remotes and devices > Remotes > [select remote if more than one] > About)

Again, I've not experienced the problem with two Voice Remotes and one Voice Remote Pro.  All I can do is report what others have said worked for them.

I mentioned my growing frustration with ROKUs customer service, or lack thereof.  I have to mention the contrast between ROKU and another unrelated product or service that I just had to request customer support for an unexpected problem.  The other company provided customer service Via a return phone call within five minutes of me submitting a request on the website. I spoke with a VERY knowledgeable agent that listened carefully and was able to resolve my problem within ten minutes on that same phone call.  That company understands how important customer service is to their success. When a customer has a problem and they receive excellent customer service, the problem becomes a positive experience.  It builds confidence and encourages loyalty to the brand.  On the other hand, like ROKU, just the opposite is also true. Happy customers tell a friend about their experience.  Unhappy customers tell ALL their friends. 

As much as I like the product so far (at least the ULTRAs), I am very disappointed in ROKU as a company for their appalling lack of interest in providing service to their customers. 

Actually, I have done that.  In the process of moving the two ROKU sticks around I grabbed a 2 Amp Apple charger from an iPad.  It is not the small one that comes with a phone.  I think those are only 500ma, but not more than 1 amp.  And I needed to charge the radio again. So, it has been running on that larger Apple power supply / charger for several days, since last Thursday if I recall correctly.  I will swap it with another one tomorrow (Monday) just to eliminate it as a possible source of the problem.  

I swapped the iPad power supply for a typical Apple brand iPhone 1 Amp USB power supply / charger from my iPhone 13.  No Joy.  The same problem remains.  

As I mentioned previously, SOMETIMES, but NOT always, after leaving the remote control untouched for five or ten minutes the volume controls will respond, but only briefly for a few commands.  Leaving it alone for a few moments will cause it to stop responding again.  

I have tried each of the four Vizeo codes without success.  The first one is the only one that works at all, if only momentarily.  I will try them again along with LG codes in the next day or so as time permits.  

There are no power saving modes enabled on either TV or on either ROKU stick.

The Vizeo model numbers are:

M261VP, VERSION C7.0.1.0-S  (This is the TV that I am working with the most)

D32F4-J01. 3.520.28.1-2

The Vizeo TV that is working fine with an ULTRA is SV472XVT, VERSION VIZEO_C7.01.0-S

I tried all five LG codes.  No Joy.

I defaulted the 4K+ Roku stick again and tried all four Vizeo codes again.  The only one that worked is the first code, but only for the first minute after starting the device, then the volume, and mute buttons stopped responding.  SOMETIMES the power button would turn the TV off.  Other times, no response.

Toward the end of my testing yesterday, I turned CEC off in the Vizeo TV that I have been working with (in the kitchen).  Voila!  It works! And it has been working almost continuously for 24 hours.  I say almost because there was a brief moment when the remote failed to respond to volume commands again, but it only lasted for 15 seconds or so before returning to normal operation again.  

So, for the moment, the 4K+ Roku stick in the kitchen is working normally (with CEC OFF).  Unfortunately I have absolutely no confidence that this ROKU device will remain working.  Remember, it worked perfectly for five weeks after it was first installed before it suddenly and without any changes it suddenly stopped responding to Volume, mute and power commands only. The identical ROKU 4K+ stick that was purchased and installed at the same time on another Vizeo TV (in the Livingroom), now roughly seven weeks ago, failed in exactly the same way a day or two after the one in the kitchen that I have been working with.  More on that ROKU follows.

Since the ROKU 4K+ stick in the kitchen seems to be working normally at the moment, I spent the day working with the other identical 4K+ stick that is in use with the Living room Vizeo TV.  At startup this morning, it worked fine, but only for a minute or two. The ROKU is powered by an external Apple 1 Amp USB power supply/charger.  The remote showed 78% charge. I turned CEC off on the Vizeo tv (as it is in the kitchen Vizeo TV) and then power-cycled the TV and the ROKU.  At power-up the remote did not respond at all. Turning CEC back on allowed the remote to work again for a minute or two only.  I then spent the next several hours trying various settings, pairing the remote, setting up the remote for TV control, power-cycling the TV and the ROKU, and so on, and so on, and so on. Toward the end of my day the Voice Remote struggled several times to enter the pairing procedure after factory defaulting the Roku or “adding a new remote” procedure.  

At this point, I am done spending any more time on this unless there is some new revelation that I am not aware of.  I have tried every possible thing that I can think of repeatedly withe these two 4K+ Sticks and the two Vizeo TVs.  I hate to think of the number of hours that I wasted researching, reading, and trying everything that I could think of or was was suggested.  

I have an RMA to return the 4K+ stick that is, or was, in use in the Living room. I will wait a few more days before requesting an RMA for the other 4K+ stick that is working at the moment.  I am waiting on a reply to my request to return them so that I can buy two Ultras.  If that is denied or there’re is not another acceptable solution, I will scrap everything and choose different products. I will not tolerate anything that is this unstable and unreliable. We just don’t need the aggravation that they are causing us. I am happy to hear that they work so well for others.  I expected the same, and had the same experience initially.  

Update: 3/23/2023

The 4K+stick that was originally in the living room and was moved to the Kitchen has been working normally for the past week since my previous post.  Note that CEC is set to OFF with the Vizeo TV that it is connected to.  The 4K+ stick is the only device connected to the TV, however I just now reconnected my CCTV system to a different HDMI input on the TV.  The good news is that the 4K+ stick is working normally again. Unfortunately my confidence is very low that it will remain working.  

The bad news is that in spite of ROKU Support two weeks ago (3/9/23) stating that “Once the issue is investigated you will be contacted to the email”, they have not responded to my initial inquiry and request OR to my followup inquiry three days ago (3/20/23). I have not received so much as an automated genuinely insincere response that they are still hard at work investigating.  I am being ignored.  I find that to be very disappointing. It certainly does not reflect well on their commitment to customer service.  I thought that ROKU was better than that. 

I should have mentioned that setting CEC to OFF with the Living room Vizeo TV does not result in the 4K+ stick working. Setting CEC to OFF causes the remote to immediately stop responding. 

BruceRPA 

"I have not received so much as an automated genuinely insincere response that they are still hard at work investigating.  I am being ignored.  I find that to be very disappointing. It certainly does not reflect well on their commitment to customer service.  I thought that ROKU was better than that."

That's standard practice here for Roku. Sometimes I think this community only exists in order to give Roku users the illusion that they have actual support, but in reality nothing is getting done.

The moderators that read and respond on this board for the most part are utterly useless. They just regurgitate the same basic steps from the help script over and over again even though you've already done those basic steps yourself (because they are common sense) and they don't work.

Nobody is rushing to email you back, their 'investigations' of problems isn't a priority to them. I think they don't actually investigate anything at all, or perhaps if they do they simply don't feel like putting in the time and effort to actually correct the problem that their bogus updates cause.

Complain about any issues you have here and most of the time all you will get is them asking for your serial number and other device specific info, then after you provide all they ask for the problem doesn't get solved. You can see someone else complain about the same issue, they will ask for all of the same info from them as well and their problem also won't get solved.

Customer service at Roku leaves a lot to be desired and that's the kindest way to put it.

Ouch!  That is sad to hear. 

Interestingly, I just received this “update” from support.

Roku Customer Support reference #: (#######) <—The hash tags are mine, BR Hi Bruce Russell,   We're following up to let you know we've got an update. To respond, reply to this email.   Sincerely,   Roku Customer Support

 

Thats it.  Nothing more.

It’s a riddle.  

I hate riddles!  Especially in matters like these.  

Is the Secret Menu update procedure different than the update procedure that is performed Via the normal Settings > System > Software update procedure?  If no, I have been sure to keep up with checking for updates each time that I started a day of troubleshooting.

Ahhh!  They did reply with this incredibly helpful information.  No solution, just a typical customer disservice misdirection to go away and start over again.   It’s as if this is a game of Monopoly:  “Go directly to jail; do not pass go, do not collect $200".  Sheesh!  

The reply that I received Via Email was:
”This is a follow-up email regarding your recent conversation with our chat Support.  Unfortunately, the chat got disconnected.  Please reach our Chat Support if you are still having the same issue and if you need any other assistance.  We will be glad to help you.

Regards,

Roku Customer Support”

Gee, what great supp

As to the help and support that I am receiving HERE, I sincerely DO appreciate the help.  It is far better than   Anything that ROKU chat support is doing — or NOT doing!  And, I have to think that the help that I am receiving here is from volunteer community members.  Again, Thank you all.  I do appreciate your time and efforts to help me resolve the problems that I am having with my ROKU 4K+ sticks.  

I tried the update procedure Via the secret menu as you suggested.  Unfortunately, no joy.  

Thank you.

Well, the update to my last post of three weeks ago is — absolutely nothing.  

ROKU commitment to supporting their customers is nonexistent.  Worse yet, they have not done anything that they said that they would do so I have to think that their non-response is intentional.  How on earth ROKU, or any company, thinks that avoiding problems and turning their back on customers is beneficial to them is something that I will never understand.  When a customer has a problem and the company steps up to resolve it, especially above and beyond expectations, they turn a negative situation into a positive situation.  Those customers become the strongest and loudest supporters of the brand.  Just the opposite is also true, as is the case here.

I wish that I had know that before I committed to the ROKU platform and purchased six of their products.  Its too bad too, because I rather like how the others are working so far, but they certainly have taken the joy out of our new relationship.  Alas, it’s not too late for me. I have made bigger mistakes in my life, and have learned valuable lessons from each one of them, that have cost me more than $500 or $600.  Its not too late to switch to one of their competitors.  It is a shame to being coerced into doing to do so however.   

Hello BruceRPA, 

Thanks for your post. 

We apologize to hear this has been your experience. Please be advised that we are currently aware of the issue and our engineering team has been investigating this issue closely. And we have passed along your details to the Roku team for further investigation.

We prioritize resolving this as soon as possible, and we ask that you bear with us as we manage this issue.


Regards, 
Nimfa

I did the "secret menu" update to my 3 and Ultra remotes, and, after 24 hours, it seems to be working for me.  I posted the steps to do this in a separate post, but the mods deleted that post and put in the "official" steps to do an update, which we already know don't work.

I'd started a new thread as I was having issues with my boxes as opposed to your sticks, though you'd ass-u-me the hardware and software would basically be the same.

FWIW, my daughter and son-in-law are having the same issue with their boxes, though they've lost about 4 or 5 different functions, not just volume control.

Lyle

One of my two 4K+ sticks seems to be working now. The four Ultras and the working 4K+ sticks do seem to be unstable occasionally and have to be restarted approximately twice per week.  It’s not a WiFi problem.  Three of the four Ultras are connected via Ethernet to my very robust local area network. Internet service is also robust and stable.  

My issue started two and a half months ago.  I have heard nothing but deflections, delays, and nonsense from ROKU Support.  They are doing one **bleep** of a job!  I have to think that the responses that I have received are actually from poorly programmed BOTS using poorly scripted responses in broken English.  I am growing increasingly dissatisfied with ROKU because of the problems but mostly because of their HORRIBLE non-existent support for customers that have problems.  

Here's the link to my thread: https://community.roku.com/t5/Remotes/Roku-3-and-Roku-Ultra-both-losing-functions/m-p/877578/highlight/false#M40353

I'd replied to myself shortly after the original post and included the instructions to access the "secret menu".  That post was taken down some time after that and the post from "Arjiemar" popped up at that time.

Lyle

I’m having a similar issue. It usually involves the volume buttons not working but last night it was the rewind/play-pause/forward

with all occurrences (volume buttons & last night’s rewind/play-pause/forward) the “fix” seemed to be hitting a different button. The other button works & then magically the problematic buttons start working again

when volume isn’t working I hit rewind or pause & magically the volume starts working again

last night when rewind/pause-play/forward didn’t work I eventually hit the home button & went back to the program to find all buttons working again

I AM WRITING THIS FOR THE ENGINEERS TO HAVE MORE INFORMATION TO FIND A REAL SOLUTION. THIS IS NOT A SOLUTION. THIS IS A TEMPORARY WORK AROUND

PLEASE FIND A REAL SOLUTION 

MG121, I would be willing to be that your remote has a sticking button or is otherwise malfunctioning.  Taking it apart and cleaning it might help or you could try the app as a remote or get a new remote

Roku Mobile App - Free for iOS® or Android™ | Roku

I just sent my troublesome 4K+ stick and remote back to ROKU using an RMA and they were just replaced.  I just installed them and they appear to be working, so far at least.  I have not spent any more time with it yet than it took to install them.  

I am having a new intermittent problem with one of my four Ultras that has to do with the remote.  Occasionally when I press the mute button to mute one of those annoying commercials, instead of simply muting the audio the audio toggles on and off rapidly, about two times per second. The mute icon on the TV follows the audio pattern. Pressing mute again unmutes the audio.  And there is yet another new intermittent problem with the same Ultra.  When I press volume up or down, the volume continues to climb or decrease without any buttons being pushed. That would imply that the volume buttons are also sticking sticking just like the mute button, but they are not.  I looked at them very carefully and cleaned the remote thoroughly.  No change.  It’s a control problem, not a mechanical problem.  Recharge, restart, power cycle, re-pair, etc., all result in no change.  

Note that I have been servicing and repairing electronic equipment for roughly fifty years.  I do have experience with troubleshooting electronic systems and isolating the points of failure.  These problems sure do look like software  problems to me since they worked fine for several months and then suddenly developed problems that come and go for no apparent reason with no discernible pattern to be able to recreate the trouble on demand.  FWIW, I have a very stable and robust Ethernet, WiFi and internet service.  

Lastly, for now, the problem with the audio drifting out of sync on FOX News APP as well as FOX News via Xfinity stream on all five (or will it be six?) of my  ROKU devices remains.  I discussed that in a different thread. 

Well, thats a new one that I have not experienced yet, but the night is still young!  The problems that I have been experiencing are similar but not identical to yours.  

Do you have a Vizeo TV?  What ROKU device(s) are you having the trouble with?  

Just a quick update for anyone reading…the problem magically fixed itself. I did absolutely nothing. Everything has been okay for a few weeks now. Weird

Seems a number of people haven’t been so lucky so my hope is that the engineers that who were apparently going to look into this in the Spring (per an earlier post in this thread) will continue to investigate & troubleshoot

Thank you