topic Re: TV screen flashing black then back to sky every second after initial set up in Sky Q

TV screen flashing black then back to sky every second after initial set up

AleFra — Fri, 01 Aug 2025 07:52:25 GMT

Hi all,

Looking for some help or advice.

After many years of solid use, the hard drive on my 2TB Sky Q box packed in. Sky kindly sent out a replacement box, which I installed following the standard setup process.

Initially, everything seemed fine — the box powered on, and I got as far as the Home Screen. However, shortly afterwards, the screen began to flash black intermittently — roughly once every second — and the Home Screen is unable to remain stable. This makes it impossible to complete setup or use the box in any meaningful way.

A few things to note:

My LG OLED TV has worked perfectly with Sky Q for over three years with no previous HDMI handshake or compatibility issues.
I have three Sky Q Mini boxes around the house, all of which were previously connected with no issues.
I suspect this is an issue with the replacement box itself (possibly hardware or firmware related), not the TV or other kit.

Given the age of the Q platform and the growing push towards Sky Stream and pucks, I’m now wondering if it might be better to switch away from Q altogether — especially as I mainly stream content and use the mini boxes for multiroom convenience.

Has anyone else experienced this flashing screen issue with a replacement box? Any tips on resolving it — or thoughts on switching to Stream?

Thanks in advance!

Re: TV screen flashing black then back to sky every second after initial set up

GD1 — Fri, 01 Aug 2025 08:51:42 GMT

@AleFra Power on the Q box using the remote press Home1080Home

This should reset the box output to 1080i

Re: TV screen flashing black then back to sky every second after initial set up

AleFra — Fri, 01 Aug 2025 08:58:42 GMT

Thanks. Tried that last night. Also in between flashes I was able to try all of the different resolutions. Tried different HDMI cables too. All pretty frustrating to be honest.

Re: TV screen flashing black then back to sky every second after initial set up

GD1 — Fri, 01 Aug 2025 10:00:15 GMT

@AleFra Have you been able to test other devices on the HDMI input on your TV such as a Bluray player? This would rule out a TV issue.

On the subject of Sky stream it's important to note that for each puck you need to have at least 25mbps broadband speed as well as a string wifi signal in the other rooms.

I would also check the channel you watch are on Stream too https://www.sky.com/help/articles/tv-channel-list-sky-glass

Re: TV screen flashing black then back to sky every second after initial set up

AleFra — Fri, 01 Aug 2025 09:59:10 GMT

Thanks. Tried that yesterday. Got an engineer coming on the 7th August.

Spoke to Sky about the pucks etc. I have over 900mb of broadband so speed isn't an issue. Cost would be the same but £120 for three pucks - they would give me one for free.

TBH starting to wonder if Sky is worth the money not missed Sky Q that much this week. Although the football season hasn't started...

Re: TV screen flashing black then back to sky every second after initial set up

cus1 — Tue, 05 Aug 2025 20:53:48 GMT

I had this issue earlier in the year and checked settings etc as advised. It seemed to 'fix itself' and has been absolutely fine...until yesterday when it all started again.

I'll progress through checks again and hopefully will be able to sort, but any suggestions welcome.

Thanks