What causes Xumo closed caption size to reset to small?

BrendaH1

My Xumo box seems to reset the closed caption size to small whenever it decides to. After going into Settings and changing the size, the change takes a day or more to take effect. And then all of a sudden resets back to small all by itself. Settings/Accessability/Customized caption style ON/Manage was used to make the size larger.

HT_Greenfield

Just curious if you could share:

1. What size is the reset default
2. What channels within the Spectrum TV app and/or what other app(s) does it seem to go small with

Jilliana_M

Hey @BrendaH1,

Thank you for your question and welcome to our community page! We are sorry to hear that you are experiencing issues with your closed captions, and we would like to help.

For further clarification, can you confirm the following information posted by @HT_Greenfield;

1. What size is the reset default
2. What channels within the Spectrum TV app and/or what other app(s) does it seem to go small with

BrendaH1

It resets to small captions, and appears to be any channel in the Spectrum TV app. If I turn on CC when viewing a recording those are always small, and I thought that that was possibly resetting it. But I have found it just reset when I had not been anywhere near a DVR playback. I had used the Voice Control on the remote to do a program search. Also, CC in a streaming app such as Disney or Peacock are small. It sometimes takes several days before the size returns to medium or large, and I never know when it will happen.

Jaleesa_F

@BrendaH1

Thanks for clarifying! Do you have other devices connected to this TV such as a DVD player, or video game system? Or do you have another TV that you connect our Xumo to, to see if you experience the same issue on that TV? It would help to decipher whether the issue is with the Xumo itself or the CC on the TV.

BrendaH1

I have two old TV sets, neither of which are smart TVs. Both use wifi to connect to their Xumo box, and both exhibit the same CC quirk of reverting back to small captions.

Jaleesa_F

@BrendaH1

Can you try rebooting both your Xumo boxes and the modem and router by unplugging them from the power for 30 seconds then plugging them back in?

BrendaH1

Rebooting the box did reset the closed caption size to large. (I did not reset the modem and router because I cannot easily access them they way they were installed.) Then for a test I went into Xumo Play and selected a program at random. When I returned to Spectrum live TV, the closed captions were back to small. It is not feasable to reboot the Xumo box each time I return from one of the streaming apps.

BrendaH1

Followup on rebooting the box. I rebooted the box again (to get back to large) and this time it did not reset to large. The captions remained small.

BrendaH1

Another reboot of the box did return CC to large. I then toggled CC off and then back on again using the Quick Access remote button (three dots) to bring up the toggle switch. Captions went from large to small without any other action on my part. Why give the option of setting the size if it does not work?

catchtwentytwo

Hi BrendaH1:

If you have a Spectrum Modem and Router, you can remotely reboot them via the My Spectrum App or by logging on to your account at spectrum.net. However, the best way is to disconnect the power at the devices and then restart.

BrendaH1

Hi catchtwentytwo, that is good to know. I know I will have to reboot them at some future date. They are currently crammed into a utility box in the wall of a closet, and if I open the door they will fall out.

HT_Greenfield

@BrendaH1 :

1. 🔗 https://www.spectrum.net/support/internet/slow-wifi-speeds ↳ Modem and WiFi Placement ‼️
2. Not to mention potential thermal runaway with heat-generating equipment crammed into a utility box❗️In any case, if the equipment needs to be in the closet, i'd set it out on a table at or near the utility box and keep the closet door open or replace it with a nice fabric curtain.
3. Chat up Xumo support and share your legit beef with them about how your size preference doesn't persist through closed captions on/off cycles and find out if they can pass that along to the developers:
4. 🔗 https://support.xumo.com/hc/en-us ↳ 🔗 Start Chat

pmaloney3

Rebooting the modem and the router serves no purpose here. The issue has nothing to do with internet speed. The box isn't overheating. You're making an assumption that the apps are respecting the CC settings under Xumo settings.

CC in YouTube works just fine.

William_M

@pmaloney3 Are you having the same issue? Rebooting the modem and router absolutely could fix a problem like this. There could be a connection issue causing the CC setting to not save to the various streaming services and so they revert to the default. It might not cause other noticeable issues if it is affecting upload more than download for example. Looking at @BrendaH1s connection I'm seeing the modem has not been reset in a very long time and both the Xumo are showing severe bit rate drops and various errors typically caused by internet problems. @pmaloney3 Your modem hasn't gone quite as long without a reset but it's still due for one, and your Xumo are reporting an even worse internet connection.

It is not recommend to have the modem and router in a confined space, not only due to overheating but also because it will weaken the WiFi signal coming from the router. The router should be in an open an elevated position for optimal WiFi coverage, and they both should be in a well ventilated and accessible place so they can be rebooted as needed for troubleshooting.

BrendaH1

Willliam_M, I wonder what you consider to be a very long time, as this Spectrum service was just installed early in September of this year. One month does not seem like a long time to me. Anyway, I moved the router and modem out of the metal utility box and rebooted both of them. Then I rebooted the Xumo box and it came up with small CC size (closed caption was turned off at the time of the reboot). I then turned on CC and rebooted Xumo again, and the closed captions came up large. Toggling CC off and back on again caused them to revert to small. Then I changed closed caption size to medium, and they remained small. There is nothing more I can do now to improve the positioning of the router.

William_M

@BrendaH1 Yours was showing 62 days, I would consider anything over a month a long time if you are having a problem the service. A reboot will typically be the first troubleshooting step suggested. Thanks for trying it.

Unfortunately your Xumo is still showing a very poor connection. How far away is the router from the Xumo you are testing? Are you able to reposition the Xumo closer to the router, even if just temporarily? Or can you can use another device to run a speed test right next to the router, and again where the Xumo is, so we can check how much loss there is?

Another thing you could try is a factory reset. To Factory Reset your Xumo:

1. Open Settings.
2. Select System Management.
3. Select Resets & Updates.
4. Select Factory Reset and enter your parental control PIN if necessary.
5. Follow the onscreen prompts until you see the screen go black.
6. Once the factory settings are restored, you will need to go through reactivating your Xumo Stream Box.

BrendaH1

I live in a one bedroom apartment, and cannot reposition the router closer. The farthest Xumo box is only one room and one hallway away from the router. Using Spectrum's speed checker, I get 418 Mbps download and 38 upload speed beside the Xumo box. Next to the router the speeds are 830 and 39 respectively.

William_M

That should be plenty of speed for the Xumo, so it's very unusual they are only getting an average bit rate of 2-3 Mbps, along with the errors. I'd recommend trying the factory reset, and when testing leave the other Xumo completely off in case it's trying to sync settings.

BrendaH1

As you recommended, I left the farthest Xumo off and factory reset the Xumo closest to the router. Unfortunately, it exhibited the same issue of resetting closed caption size back to small when I toggled CC off and back on again.

pmaloney3

If I can WATCH TV, I don't have a connection problem. Chasing nonsense. Bugged firmware/app update.

With me a reboot or two fixes the problem. Changing XUMO CC size to large might affect it too.

BrendaH1

Since starting this thread, I have discovered that it is the simple act of turning off CC that causes the size to revert to small. Additionally, to get the change to larger to take effect, I must turn on CC before rebooting the Xumo box. Rebooting the box with CC off does not reset the size to large. Does anyone have a Xumo box that retains the larger custom CC size after toggling it off and on? Or do all Xumo boxes have this same flaw?

William_M

@BrendaH1 @pmaloney3 We have been testing this on our end but haven't been able to recreate the issue. When we change the closed caption font it updates immediately, and the settings persists even after disabling and re-enabling CC.

Have you always had this issue or did it start suddenly at some point? Can you check for Xumo updates by going to Settings > System Management > Resets & Updates?

BrendaH1

Both my Xumo boxes have always had this issue. I have only had the boxes since the first of August. My neighbor's box also exhibits the same CC behavior, and his was installed at the same time.

Not sure how to see Xumo updates. Settings/System Management/Resets & Updates does not show any update info, all I have are options to Restart device, Factory reset (which I have tried to no avail), Refresh apps, and Clear Locally stored data.

BrendaH1

Logging on to my Spectrum account, I see that both Xumo boxes are model ESST11AEI, did not find info on updates.

Edward_T

Hello @BrendaH1;

Once you are in the Reset and updates section, you can select the Refresh apps link. This will push updates to all the apps on the Xumo including the Spectrum TV app.

BrendaH1

Refreshed apps as suggested, but once again CC reverted from large to small when I turned them off and back on. Then I tried changing the size from large to extra large, but the change did not take effect (they remained small).

BrendaH1

This question was never answered by Spectrum, but I have stumbled across a quirk of my xumo box controls. If I use the Quick Access button (three dots) to toggle CC off, the size resets to small. Always. If I use the up button of the navigator pad to toggle CC off, then it remains large when I toggle it back on. It should not matter which way you toggle CC, but it apparently does.