Solving playback issues

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Cauliflower
Binge Watcher

My Roku player has started to make my TV screen blink off and on intermittently

My Roku player has started to make my TV screen blink off and on intermittently. So, at first, maybe once every minute, however, tonight, it's about once every 10 seconds. And I realized it was the Roku player because I switched sources and watched OTA television and it did not blink. Additionally, I tried all the various steps of unplugging my television set for 30 seconds and clicking my Roku remote home button 5 times, the up button once, the double-arrow-left-button twice and the double-arrow-right-button twice, but none of that helped. Therefore, now what? Do I get a new Roku players? Plus, I've only had this around maybe 5 or 6 year, so do these things only supposed to last for 5 or 6 years? 😕

Also, I have a Roku Premiere HD 4K HDR model. 

 

18 REPLIES 18
mop_891
Roku Guru

Re: My Roku player has started to make my TV screen blink off and on intermittently

Wild guess, a loose or bad HDMI cable. I'd check, make sure it's in all the way on both ends. That doesn't work, I'd try a different HDMI cable. That doesn't work I'd try another HDMI port on the TV.

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davidjazz
Roku Guru

Re: My Roku player has started to make my TV screen blink off and on intermittently

Same thing happened to me on my Roku Ultra two days ago. I rebooted the Roku and the problem went away.

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renojim
Community Streaming Expert

Re: My Roku player has started to make my TV screen blink off and on intermittently

What's the model number shown under Settings->System->About?  If you have another HDMI cable, give that a try and/or another HDMI input on the TV.  It could also be the power source that's failing, although that would possibly give you other issues.  Either way, if it's a device that uses a USB power adapter try another one from a phone/tablet that can supply at least 1 Amp.

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Cauliflower
Binge Watcher

Re: My Roku player has started to make my TV screen blink off and on intermittently


@mop_891 wrote:

Wild guess, a loose or bad HDMI cable. I'd check, make sure it's in all the way on both ends. T

Check! That wasn't it.


@mop_891 wrote:

That doesn't work, I'd try a different HDMI cable. 


Check! That wasn't it. 


@mop_891 wrote:

 That doesn't work I'd try another HDMI port on the TV.


Check! That wasn't it. But thanks.

 

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Cauliflower
Binge Watcher

Re: My Roku player has started to make my TV screen blink off and on intermittently


@davidjazz wrote:

Same thing happened to me on my Roku Ultra two days ago. I rebooted the Roku and the problem went away.


I tried that already and that's what I meant when I said:

I tried all the various steps of unplugging my television set for 30 seconds and clicking my Roku remote home button 5 times, the up button once, the double-arrow-left-button twice and the double-arrow-right-button twice, but none of that helped.

But then I was wondering if what you meant by reboot was system restart. So, I just went to System and did a System restart, but that didn't help. But thanks anyway. 

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RokuNimfa-C
Retired Moderator

Re: My Roku player has started to make my TV screen blink off and on intermittently

@Cauliflower 

Thanks for keeping us posted. 

Could you tell us how are you powering your Roku device? Is it connected to the USB port of the TV or to a wall outlet? In some cases, the USB power provided by the TV is not sufficient to power the device. Even though your Roku device may appear to be working, running with insufficient power can lead to instability, crashing, and other unpredictable behavior.

Using the included power cord and power adapter, we suggest plugging your Roku into a working power outlet in the wall. Powering it through a power outlet in the wall has the additional advantage that your Roku player will not need to power up every time you turn on your TV. This means your Roku player will be up and running faster than it would be connected to a TV.

If you still see the issue occur, kindly let us know along with the serial number of your Roku device. 


Regards,
Nimfa

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Cauliflower
Binge Watcher

Re: My Roku player has started to make my TV screen blink off and on intermittently


@renojim wrote:

What's the model number shown under Settings->System->About?  


3920X - Premiere So, now what?


@renojim wrote:

If you have another HDMI cable, give that a try and/or another HDMI input on the TV.  It could also be the power source that's failing, although that would possibly give you other issues.  Either way, if it's a device that uses a USB power adapter try another one from a phone/tablet that can supply at least 1 Amp.


Did that already as per mop_891's suggestion. That didn't work. 


@renojim wrote:

It could also be the power source that's failing, although that would possibly give you other issues.  


Oh, no. Because it looks like it could be coming down to that. 


@renojim wrote:

Either way, if it's a device that uses a USB power adapter try another one from a phone/tablet that can supply at least 1 Amp.


No, I'm just using the original Roku device player that you plug the USB cable and the HDMI cable into, which came with the Roku device. 

 

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Cauliflower
Binge Watcher

Re: My Roku player has started to make my TV screen blink off and on intermittently


@RokuNimfa-C wrote:

@Cauliflower 

Thanks for keeping us posted. 

Could you tell us how are you powering your Roku device? Is it connected to the USB port of the TV or to a wall outlet? In some cases, the USB power provided by the TV is not sufficient to power the device. Even though your Roku device may appear to be working, running with insufficient power can lead to instability, crashing, and other unpredictable behavior.

Using the included power cord and power adapter, we suggest plugging your Roku into a working power outlet in the wall. Powering it through a power outlet in the wall has the additional advantage that your Roku player will not need to power up every time you turn on your TV. This means your Roku player will be up and running faster than it would be connected to a TV.

If you still see the issue occur, kindly let us know along with the serial number of your Roku device. 


Regards,
Nimfa


The USB is connected to my television. But I will try your suggestion and will get back with you in a few minutes.

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RokuNimfa-C
Retired Moderator

Re: My Roku player has started to make my TV screen blink off and on intermittently

@Cauliflower 

Thank you for trying that. 

Please observe if there will be any changes and keep us posted on what you find out. 

We will be happy to assist you further.


Regards,
Nimfa

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