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chromecast can only intermittently find device

castme
Community Member

Hi all -

Am really getting fed up with trying to find cause of this issue with Chromecast (2nd Gen). Have followed all Google support advice to cast from PC to TV but even after all that, Chromecast will only find device after several (up to 10 tries in a row at this point) attempts to cast. Then it will find the device consistently every time while PC screen is up. But after restarting PC the next time it may or may not find the device. Also if I try to reboot from the app on Android, reboot feature is nowhere to be found in the CC settings. Should I just quit using Chromecast? Or is there some magic solution to this? Thanks

 

1 Recommended Answer

castme
Community Member

Hi Jeran --

Thanks for referring me to those links. Lots of suggestions on each. About the only one I haven't tried is setting my gateway to 5Ghz band b/c have read that performance is poor if it has to penetrate walls. As it is, I'm trying to connect from a PC that's about 20 feet away, give or take a foot or two. The only way it does connect almost every time now is if I physically disconnect the power cable of the dongle and then reconnect it to power. Will go through both lists of troubleshooting and see what might work. Thanks!

 

View Recommended Answer in original post

17 REPLIES 17

Gairsy
Community Member

I’d also like to know the answer- I can consistently cast from certain cast enabled apps, but the one I actually bought the chrome cast for (Watch Afl) often only shows “nearby device” rather than my “family room tv” I’ve tried everything I can think of, last time it eventually just showed up but tonight I’ve had no joy. 

hipig
Community Member

use 2.4g wifi to chormecast

castme
Community Member

Thanks for your suggestion hipig. I run Chromecast 2nd gen on 2.4Ghz from distance of 20 feet through a standard wall and one cabinet (no glass) using a Hitron CGN3 gateway. I've also tuned the channel on my router to 1 from previous 3 for less electronic interference (1, 6, and 11 being the recommended channels). I make sure no other devices are draining wifi while trying to cast, clear the Chrome browser cache, reboot browser, and offer the Google Gods anything else they want (short of a first-born) so I can do something as simple as what the CC dongle is specifically designed to do. The *only* solution is to physically reboot Chromecast every time. Also can't set up a bridge b/c it has to be wired to work or a mesh which is too expensive.

 

 

Jeran
Community Specialist
Community Specialist

Hey there castme,

 

I understand the frustration of trying to optimize the Chromecast connection, it seems to work great one day, then drop connection another! There are two articles in particular that I like to use when it comes to making sure the connection is solid. The first article is called troubleshoot your Chromecast connection. It has a step-by-step checklist of items on how to optimize your connection. Then, if the connection is still spotty, I also use the article I can't establish a Wi-Fi connection. Even if you are connected via Wi-Fi, it still has some helpful troubleshooting.

 

Let me know if these articles help you at all, I look forward to your response!

 

Best regards,

Jeran

castme
Community Member

Hi Jeran --

Thanks for referring me to those links. Lots of suggestions on each. About the only one I haven't tried is setting my gateway to 5Ghz band b/c have read that performance is poor if it has to penetrate walls. As it is, I'm trying to connect from a PC that's about 20 feet away, give or take a foot or two. The only way it does connect almost every time now is if I physically disconnect the power cable of the dongle and then reconnect it to power. Will go through both lists of troubleshooting and see what might work. Thanks!

 

Jeran
Community Specialist
Community Specialist

Hey there,

Did you have any more questions or need any additional help?

Thank you,
Jeran
 

Jeran
Community Specialist
Community Specialist

Hey there,

Did you have any more questions or need any additional help? If not, I'll go ahead and lock up this thread in 24 hours.

Just checking up,
Jeran
 

Gairsy
Community Member

Hi sorry for not replying sooner.  I’m afraid the advice hasn’t really helped for this instance.  Some apps can and do fine the device I want to cast to but this one particular app (the one I bought the Chromecast for) doesn’t.  I’ve tried to access help directly from the app (Watch AFL) but have had no response

Jeran
Community Specialist
Community Specialist

Hey there Gairsy,

 

No problem at all! It's a tough issue when every other application works properly, and only one is having issues. In that scenario, I would double-check the following:

  • Make sure the Watch AFL app is up-to-date.
  • Make sure the Google Home app is up-to-date.
  • If you have another device available, such as a phone or tablet, see if you can cast from Watch AFL without issues.

If you can cast from Watch AFL using another device successfully, the issue may be on your original casting device, such as a setting. However, if the issue persists across different devices, the issue most likely lies on Watch AFL's side of things.

 

I hope that helps, and I look forward to your response.

 

Best regards,

Jeran

castme
Community Member

Thanks Jeran, that's a lock. Going to have to live with physically un/plugging CC from power cord every time to get it to work. Tried all suggestions but nothing is really working except that. A shame but that's technology for you.

 

Jeran
Community Specialist
Community Specialist

Hey there castme, 

 

I'm sorry to hear that the Chromecast has been such a headache for you. Just out of curiosity, are you casting from Google Chrome, or are you trying to cast with a third-party application? If you are casting from Google Chrome, I would double-check to make sure the application is up-to-date. You could even try casting from Google Canary to see if the issues persist. 

 

Aside from that, make sure you don't have a VPN or antivirus affecting the connection between the two devices. I look forward to your response!

 

Best regards,

Jeran

castme
Community Member

Yes, casting from Chrome and app up-to-date. Will try Canary to test - not aware of that app. Problem persists whether I have VPN on or disabled. Antivirus allows so not a problem. Am thinking about buying a powerline adapter to set up a second wifi hub near TV in other room so that distance is cut down. Any experience with that kind of device?

 

 

Jeran
Community Specialist
Community Specialist

Hey there castme,

 

I'm sorry to say that I don't have any experience with that set up in particular. I know the Chromecast connection can be spotty if the Chromecast, the casting device (such as a phone or computer), and the router are further than 20 feet from each other, more so if you are using a 5GHz connection and there are a few walls in-between the devices. If adding a second Wi-Fi hub brings all those devices closer to each other, I imagine it would improve the connection quality. 

 

Hopefully that helps you out, if you had any other questions, feel free to let me know!

 

Best regards,

Jeran

Jeran
Community Specialist
Community Specialist

Hey there,

Did you have any more questions or need any additional help?

Thank you,
Jeran
 

Jeran
Community Specialist
Community Specialist

Hey there,

Did you have any more questions or need any additional help? If not, I'll go ahead and lock up this thread in 24 hours.

Just checking up,
Jeran
 

castme
Community Member

Nope, lock it up thanks.

 

Jeran
Community Specialist
Community Specialist

Of course! If you have any more questions or concerns in the future, feel free to create a new thread.

 

Have a good one!

 

Best regards,

Jeran