Entertainment Center: TVs, Stereos, VCRs and DVDs - Can DVR cause intermittent color loss on TV

I have a TV that has the color going black/white intermittently. The strange thing is the programs recorded on the DVR, even when recorded while the TV was showing black/white are in color. I would think if the problem was in the color tube, then it wouldn't be in color when watching from the DVR recorded shows. When the live TV show goes to black/white we switch to a recorded show, watch a few minutes in color, then switch back to live TV, color is fine again.

Could something with the DVR signal be causing the color to go black/white?

Disconnect the DVR from the set and let something else play on the screen. If nothing happens, then it's not your tubes.

Plug another device such as a DVD player, into the where you would normally have the DVR. If picture is good, then you either have a bad DVR or the DVR cables are the issue.

ICould something with the DVR signal be causing the color to go black/white?

You are getting a weak signal. The structure of a standard analog television signal is backward compatible with the original black and white standard. Color information was added to the signal later. While it is possible that something is interfering with that part of the signal, it is more likely that it is a weak signal and the tuner is unable to lock it in. The DVR tuner is either on the other side of whatever is attenuating the signal or is more sensitive.

Check the connections and the cables. Minimize the number of splitters.

Something you can try at least temporarily is to remove all splitters and hook the cable directly and only to that TV. If that works, you will know your TV is good, the incoming signal is good, and your main cable is good. You can start adding things back until you find a change that causes the problem to recur.

Had the same problem. Was a bad S-video cable.

Yes, I'd check the cables first.