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Gilbertman's avatar
Gilbertman
New Contributor

Cox Contour - Disappointed

I was having issues with On Demand programming and extended cable channels (Epix, IFC, etc) not working.  I was told I needed to swap out my receiver box.  I did that, installed a new Scientific Atlanta Cable Box receiver from the COX store, but still same issues,  Tech came out today and replaced new receiver box with the Contour box. Things now working OK, but I'm VERY disappointed in that the ZOOM function to expand 4:3 shows to 16:9 no longer works.  I watch a lot of non-HD channels, and this is a major step backwards for COX.  What good is having a 55+ inch TV if the display is around half that.

From reading this Forum, looks like this issue has been around for a while, and COX still has not addressed.  This could be the final straw if COX can't address this issue.  May investigate options to get the Scientific Atlanta Cable Box back or start looking for other TV options.

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  • StephanieA's avatar
    StephanieA
    Former Moderator
    Please confirm your video output settings and let us know what options you have selected. What type of cable do you have going from the receiver to the TV?

  • Gilbertman's avatar
    Gilbertman
    New Contributor

    Resolution is set to 1080i wide.  Output format is Sidebar 4:3 Pic.  I'm using a component video cable for the connection (red, blue, green).

  • StephanieA's avatar
    StephanieA
    Former Moderator
    Please change the output to Keep 4:3 image and let us know if you are still getting bars on the screen.

  • Gilbertman's avatar
    Gilbertman
    New Contributor

    OK, I changed the output format to "Preserve 4:3 Pic".  The only thing that does is allow the 4:3 picture to be STRETCHED (distorted, wide people).  It still does not allow "ZOOM" to enlarge the 4:3 picture both HORIZONTALLY and VERTICALLY,  Any other ideas?

  • StephanieA's avatar
    StephanieA
    Former Moderator
    What are all the options you have under Video Output? Also, what mode is the TV on? It could be something like "Normal" or "Cinema".

  • Gilbertman's avatar
    Gilbertman
    New Contributor

    Vidio output options are:

    - Resolution - 1080i wide.  

    - Output format - Preserve 4:3 Pic.

    TV mode is set to "Standard".

  • StephanieA's avatar
    StephanieA
    Former Moderator
    Do you have black bars on the top and bottom or left and right of the screen? What channel numbers are you having this problem on? What other output formats do you have to select?

  • Gilbertman's avatar
    Gilbertman
    New Contributor

    It depends on the channel; some have the black bars just on the left and right, others have the black bars on all four sides (top, bottom, left, right) like a picture frame.  With the old Rovi cable box, I was able zoom the four-sided black framed pictures to full screen.  If I zoomed the pictures with bars just on left and right, they would cut off a bit of the top and bottom, but still fill the left/right side bars (without widening/distorting the picture).

    The issue is with all non-HD channels.  I believe the issue is that the CONTOUR cable box does not have the capability that the old ROVI-compatible boxes had.  Poor planning/marketing on Cox's part to distribute these Contour boxes without the advanced features of the previous cable boxes.  This is a step backwards as far as I'm concerned and would prefer to switch back to the old Rovi-compatible box if possible.

  • StephanieA's avatar
    StephanieA
    Former Moderator
    I will need some channels to send to our Video Team to review. Even though it's on multiple channels, I will need at least one. What problems were you having with the Rovi receiver?

  • Gilbertman's avatar
    Gilbertman
    New Contributor

    Channels 360 - 389 are good examples of the problem.  All show a black border around the picture (left, right, top, bottom).  When you press ZOOM, it widens (distorts) the picture to eliminate the black border on the left and right, but the black border on top and bottom remain,  With the Rovi system, ZOOM would expand the picture both vertically and horizontally, eliminating the black border entirely and not distorting the picture.

    The problem with the Rovi was that all of a sudden the On-Demand features were not working,  Any movie or TV show that was selected for viewing would come up as "not available at this time, call cox support". Per Cox support, I changed out the box at my local Cox store for another Rovi box, but that box had the same problem.  Then cox support said a tech needs to come out.  That tech changed out the Rovi box for the Contour box because he said Cox was moving away from the Rovi systems.  In my opinion, the Rovi system is far superior in function and features to the Contour system for TV viewing (Contour may be better for mobile viewing, but I could care less).