HD Guide: How to connect and activate your Digital Box

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Learn how to properly connect and activate your Shaw cable box. Digital boxes featuring the Shaw High Definition Guide (including the DCX3200 and DCX3510) require a specific process to be installed and connected correctly. If you have opted for self-installation of your new DCX3200 or DCX3510, please follow these steps to ensure a quick and simple setup of your new Digital Box. Once the Digital Box has been properly connected you will need the following information to activate the box for use:
 
Serial Number: found on the rear of your Digital Box labelled as Host SN or printed below a bar code
Account Number: found at the top your monthly Shaw bill

This article provides insight into:

• How to connect your HD Digital Box
• How to activate your HD Digital Box

Did You Know

If you are activating a box that uses the Shaw Classic Guide, please see: Connecting and Activating Your Digital Box.

                                        

How to connect your HD Digital Box

Please follow these steps to connect your new HD Digital Box. Once connected, please continue with the steps outlined in the following Activating section found below. To allow for the equipment to properly initialize, it is important that the connections described in this section are connected in the order listed below. Remove the new Digital Box from its packaging and note the serial number as listed on the back of the box. The serial number is required for activation of the equipment Connect the Coaxial (screw-on) cable (diagram above) Connect the provided HDMI cable from the back of the cable box to an available HDMI input on the back of your TV Now connect the Power Cable to the digital box (see diagram below)

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How to activate your HD Digital Box

Once your equipment has been connected as described above, please visit activations.shaw.ca to begin activating your new Digital Box. The process for activating your equipment varies depending on how you acquired the Digital Box. You will see the following options on screen, please select the situation that applies. For Boxes Purchased from Shaw If you purchased the box directly from Shaw, please visit activations.shaw.ca and choose the option for I purchased by Digital Hardware directly from Shaw (seen above, right). You will need to confirm that the box has been installed as per the directions listed above and then click YES and proceed to the next step where you will be asked to enter your location, account number and the serial number from the new Digital Box. With the information entered into the fields, please click the Activate Now button as shown above. The activation process takes a few minutes to initialize and is described in greater detail below. Using the online activation service is the fastest way to activate your new HD Guide-enabled Digital Box. If you encounter any problems while using the online activation service, please connect with a Shaw Support Representative via Shaw Customer Chat.     For Boxes Purchased from Authorized Retailers If you have purchased your new Shaw Digital Box from an authorized retailer (such as Best Buy or London Drugs) you will need to connect with a Shaw Support Representative to have the box enabled on your account before activating the box for use. Please visit activations.shaw.ca and choose the option for "I purchased my digital hardware from an authorized retailer" which will give you the opportunity to indicate which box you have purchased, as shown below. With the correct Digital Box selected, please click the green Chat Now button below to launch a Customer Chat session.     After Activation Once your Digital Box has been activated, it will display a functioning TV picture and begin loading the guide information. The setup process does require a series of downloads from the Shaw system to complete the setup. These downloads are done automatically and may cause the picture to freeze and a series of numbers to show on the front panel of the box while the setup is completed. The entire setup process should take no more than 30 minutes, after which the box will reboot and the picture will be restored to your TV. Please do not reboot or power cycle the Digital Box during this time as it will interrupt these final stages of the setup process.

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Related Articles

Shaw Digital Boxes Equipment Guide

Connecting and Activating your Digital Box

Connecting your Digital Box to a TV