Xbox 360 HDMI and Sony LCD make me want to cry...

amateurhour

So back last Feburary in 2010 I was playing Mass Effect 2 on the 360, hooked up with component cables to my 480p Progressive Scan 27 inch television, which was nice, but it's getting old.

After being unable to clearly read the fun dialogue and play the mini games my wife looked over to me and said, "go get an LCD so we can enjoy this damn game..." and I complied.

I got a Sony Bravia 40 inch LCD, 120hz, with three HDMI inputs, a few component, etc. and everything seemed to work fine.

I got some 6 foot cables from Target with the television for about $30 a piece as well.

So anyway, about a month ago I started noticing a slew of problems with the setup. First off, the volume through HDMI is spotty at best. Sometimes when playing a game the volume just cuts out completely, and I have to reset the Xbox for it to work properly again. This only seemed to be an issue through the xbox as it never happened when I had cable with an HDMI box or when a friend brought over his PS3 for about a week.

So I figured the Xbox HDMI was bad.

Then I started getting an error watching netflix where the audio would play, but the xbox logo would be on screen and an achievement pop up would say "xbox 360 secure hdcp link not found"

I got around this by switching the hdmi cable to a different port and that would usually fix the problem, so I thought maybe it was an issue with the television

Now, sometimes for no reason, the Xbox will go from 1080p HDMI to 640x480 vga with no sound, and when I go into the dashboard the only option is to increase the resolution. Auto detect won't fix the problem and I usually have to turn off the television and the xbox and eventually it'll come back on it's own, but it's happening more frequently.

What the fuck is wrong with my stuff?

Also, does the component cable actually do 1080p or just 1080i? I've heard conflicting reports here, and if switching back to component will solve the problem I'm happy to do that, but I want the full 1080p if I'm gonna go that route.

Thanks H/A.

spool32

You've tried one of the three troubleshooting steps to determine what the problem is:

1) Swap cable, attempt to replicate. (not complete)
2) Swap ports on the input device - the TV in your case. (Complete, problems persist)
3) Swap port on output device - xBox in your case. (not complete)

Try the other two. You'll need a new cable and a spare xBox to complete the steps... borrow a friend's working equipment for extra certainty.

Willeth

Buy a new cheap HDMI cable. A $2 one is fine for this, don't buy into the $200 cable stuff for HDMI - it is entirely unnecessary because it's a digital signal and for home use.

Try running it through component - on a 40" TV the difference between 1080p and 1080i isn't going to be too noticeable in any case. I believe the 360 can do 1080p over component but whether your TV will do it and whether games support it is a different matter.

amateurhour

Yeah, that's where I've heard conflicts is regarding whether or not the TV can do 1080 through component. I know the xbox can.

Spool, I've already tried two different cables. Granted they came from the same place and were bought at the same time, but they are two different cables.

I don't have access to another xbox 360 to test, and I won't be able to get access to one any time soon.

Swapping the cables has caused the same issues.

I want to say the issue is with the television, but that's just a gut feeling.

spool32

Modified for new data, with additional steps:

spool32 wrote: »

You've tried one of the three troubleshooting steps to determine what the problem is:

1) Swap cable, attempt to replicate. (complete, problem persists)
2) Swap ports on the input device - the TV in your case. (Complete, problems persist)
3) Swap port on output device - xBox in your case. (not complete)
4) Run two HDMI devices simultaneously, note behavior [optional]. (not complete)
5) Replicate problem on different input device - someone else's TV in your case. (not complete)

Try the other two. You'll need a new cable and a spare xBox to complete the steps... borrow a friend's working equipment for extra certainty.

As your friend's PS3 didn't cause issues, and your xBox does with any cable you use, I would suspect your xBox and not your TV. You'll definitely need to try a different device, for as long as it takes the xBox to normally freak out. For bonus testing data, try two game systems (any type, HDMI only). Load up a Netflix movie, wait for it to freak out, then switch to the other device, play something, and switch back, etc. Do some experimenting.

I suspect your xBox. Final test would be to take your box to a friend's house and replicate the error.

OnTheLastCastle

Go to your XBOX settings, display and tell me what you have it set to.

amateurhour

Right now it's set to 1080p HDMI

The thing is, from time to time, the screen flickers, it gets set from HDMI to vga (which isn't hooked up at all) at 640x480, and won't let me change back to hdmi unless I turn everything off, and sometimes even that doesn't work right away.

It's very weird.

Spudge

amateurhour wrote: »

Then I started getting an error watching netflix where the audio would play, but the xbox logo would be on screen and an achievement pop up would say "xbox 360 secure hdcp link not found"

I got around this by switching the hdmi cable to a different port and that would usually fix the problem, so I thought maybe it was an issue with the television

Now, sometimes for no reason, the Xbox will go from 1080p HDMI to 640x480 vga with no sound, and when I go into the dashboard the only option is to increase the resolution. Auto detect won't fix the problem and I usually have to turn off the television and the xbox and eventually it'll come back on it's own, but it's happening more frequently.

What the fuck is wrong with my stuff?

Also, does the component cable actually do 1080p or just 1080i? I've heard conflicting reports here, and if switching back to component will solve the problem I'm happy to do that, but I want the full 1080p if I'm gonna go that route.

Thanks H/A.

Puttin my money on the HDMI cables. Had problems just like yours when piping 1080p through my Xbox to my (Panasonic) TV. Had originally owned Target/Walmart/Whatever 30-50 dollar HDMI cables

I threw 'em out, bought a set of HDMI jobbies from monoprice (what 20 bucks total for 6 cables) and I have not seen another hdcp error

illig

spool32 wrote: »

As your friend's PS3 didn't cause issues, and your xBox does with any cable you use, I would suspect your xBox and not your TV. You'll definitely need to try a different device, for as long as it takes the xBox to normally freak out. For bonus testing data, try two game systems (any type, HDMI only). Load up a Netflix movie, wait for it to freak out, then switch to the other device, play something, and switch back, etc. Do some experimenting.

I suspect your xBox. Final test would be to take your box to a friend's house and replicate the error.

In my experience Sony is a whiny little bitch when it comes to hdmi. The ps3 has had issues with various brands of tvs for years, due to hdcp handshake timing problems. So I would not automatically blame the xbox.

Septus

I wouldn't be surprised if it's your TV. I get that message sporadically, and it coincides with my PS3 just not showing any audio/video at all. I have bought better HDMI cords from monoprice as suggested by this forum for this same issue.

I've got an older(2005?) Sony HD TV.

Skeezicks

Not a permanent solution but take a look at post #14 in this forum: http://www.xbox360forum.com/xbox-forum/threads/54461-secure-HDCP-link-lost-Elite-HDMI-cable-problem!/page2

Unplug the TV, let it sit for about 30 seconds. Re-plug it and vuala! problem solved.

Alternatively, you could try shutting off the tv for 30 seconds instead of unplugging it.

Spudge

If they say to unplug it, it's most likely to de-energize the caps, allowing the TV to have a cold boot per se

Just shutting it off and leaving the power cable plugged in will not give the same effect