? about (flaky) auto-switchboxes

[NoahsMyBro]

Background: I never really took a liking to the NES. So, I got my first one a couple of years ago at a garage sale, and never hooked it up until a few weeks ago.

Well, I noticed recently that once I am done using the NES, if I turn it off, my TV doesn't automatically see channel 3 again. Rather, the signal from the game is obviously no longer there, and all the TV displays is static. If I re-enter channel 3, or turn the TV off & on, or to video and back, I can view channel 3 again. Of course, if I change channels the picture returns as well. The TV simply doesn't automatically return to the antenna feed when I turn off the NES.

I lived with this for a little while, as the workaround isn't so awful to begin with, and I don't watch 3 that much anyway, meaning I'm likely going to be changing the channel anyway.

I went ahead and removed the old NES switchbox, and replaced it with the switchbox from my old Genesis. It works exactly the same way as the NES switchbox. Do I just have a flaky tuner on my TV?

Have any of you seen this annoying quirk before?

[CrazyImpmon]

You may have a touchy TV tuner in your TV. Newer TV uses auto fine tuning and they usually lock on specific frequency once it finds the cleanest possible signal. It's possible your TV is not retuning for regular channel 3 broadcast after you shut your NES off.

What you could try is to set your NES to channel 4 (look for the switch on the back next to RF out) and see if that helps you see channel 3 anytime.

[uzplayer]

Honestly, I own a newer TV of which I connect my NES and whatnot to it, and I have not seen the same problem as you. Could be the type of TV you have, or as you said a screwed up tuner. What brand of TV do you have?

[NoahsMyBro]

I've got a JVC 27" I bought in June 1998. Aside from an annoying design flaw I've described in the past, this is the first problem I've ever had with the TV.