Solving playback issues

[mike49erfan]

without warning the roku ultra box shuts off on its own and i have to unplug it and plug it back in to restart it...no specific length of time between power off, just really random...any advice with what's wrong with the box

[DBDukes]

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@mike49erfan wrote:

without warning the roku ultra box shuts off on its own and i have to unplug it and plug it back in to restart it...no specific length of time between power off, just really random...any advice with what's wrong with the box

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That is certainly unexpected behavior. I do have a question, though. You say it "shuts off." The Ultra doesn't have an "off" mode, so I'm curious if power has indeed stopped, or if the system is locking up with a black screen. That might not seem like a difference, but it is. 

If it's the former, that could be the external power supply. If it's the latter, while it could still be the power supply, it could also be the device itself.

Does the situation you describe as "off" involve a truly black screen? Or is it one of those "looks black" screens? You know, almost black, very dark, but not completely black? Like when you reboot your computer, the screen goes black, but not really black? Is it like that?

[mike49erfan]

thanks for getting back to me...it is a total black screen and the text "no signal" appears on the tv screen, but the power light is still on the roku box....it will stay like that until i unplug the power cord and plug it back in from the back of the roku box, then it goes back to the main menu...no length of time between when it cuts off, possibly thought it was an overheat issue but one time it did it barely 5 minutes after i turned it on...very confusing...mike

[renojim · Accepted solution]

Have you tried another HDMI input on your TV?  When this happens can you switch from the Roku's input to another device (or unused input) and back to see if the picture comes back?  Or, try just unplugging the HDMI cable and plugging it back in to see what happens.  Trying a new HDMI cable wouldn't be a bad idea either.

[mike49erfan]

switched hdmi cables and it's working, thanks for the advice @renojim @DBDukes ...mike

[Zazz]

Nope. I’ve tried every suggestion and still, this thing shuts off once I turn off my tv.

I have to unplug and plug back. 

[HDMIGuy]

@Zazz What Roku device is "this thing"?   Are you powering the device from a wall outlet or using a USB port on your TV?