Arrrgh! Bl**dy digiboxes!

Tim Downie wrote:
Steven Campbell wrote:


Old model maybe but loads on eBay
http://search.ebay.co.uk/search/sear...title=TU-DSB31
never had a minutes bother.

Might be worth a punt then. I really am sick of the damn things
crashing. We're on our third box and they've all been cr*p (including one
Panasonic one).

Doh, just realised that's a aky digital box. Unless it works with a
terrestrial aerial as well, it's no use to me.

Tim

In message , Steven Campbell
writes

The only drawback is TiVo won't waken up the Panasonic to record from it if
it is turned off. So it has to run 24/7. But on the plus side the menus on
the Panasonic are lightening quick compared to the grundig. They appear
instantaneously whereas the Grundig could take around 6 or 7 seconds to
populate. Plus the TiVo is now the best thing since sliced bread as far as
my wife is concerned ;o)

One of the remote codes on the TiVo for the digibox, will send the "Sky"
button signal immediately before the channel number, so although it
won't switch the digibox back off, it will at least switch it on if it's
turned off or crashed. I can't remember which remote code it is, but it
works for most makes of digibox, certainly my previous Panasonic and now
my Sky HD box.
--
Sean Black

"Dave Farrance" wrote in message
...
"Tim Downie" wrote:

Lastly, as an aside, why won't my Humax digibox pick up 5life? We've
rescanned & rebooted but it won't pick up anything. Picks up 5US fine and
our Sony picks op 5life. (Not that I'm desperate to have it but it's just
odd that it won't pick up one channel).

Sometimes, the Humax PVR gets confused if the content of a mux gets
reshuffled by the broadcasters, and it's best to restore "default
settings" via the "installation" menu. Is the Humax STB similar?

It would seem it is! Thanks for the tip. All working now. I wonder if it
will crash less often now? A man can hope. ;-)

Tim

"Mike Henry" wrote in message
...
In , "Tim Downie"
wrote:
Forgive me, but it sounds like snake oil. How does it work? What does it
do?

It's not snakeoil. Instead of channel changes being done by IR being fired
into the air out of TiVo's IR emitters into the digibox's front window,
they go via a direct cable link into the digibox's RF2 input. The digibox
thinks that you've got a Sky "TV link" and obediently changes channel as
it normally would with one of those devices.

Um... I've not got a Sky digibox, just a standard terrestrial digibox so I
don't imagine it would work with my box.

Tim



The result is that channel changing via TiVo increases in reliability from
99% to 100%. For people with devices which were interfering with
channel-changing before, they would have a lot lower than 99% before so
it's a godsend.

Tim Downie wrote:

Um... I've not got a Sky digibox, just a standard terrestrial digibox
so I don't imagine it would work with my box.

Tim

You are confusing the issue by using the term "digibox" for most people that
means a Sky box as they were the first to use that term.

On Thu, 28 Feb 2008 19:59:05 +0000, Adrian wrote:

Tim Downie wrote:

Um... I've not got a Sky digibox, just a standard terrestrial digibox
so I don't imagine it would work with my box.

Tim

You are confusing the issue by using the term "digibox" for most people
that means a Sky box as they were the first to use that term.

I've noticed that a lot lately (last six months or so).

I think 'Digibox' is coming to mean 'Digital TV box' as freeview becomes
more widely used. I suspect the techies amongst us may have to back down
on that one - it's easier for us to figure out from context which is
meant than for everyone else to change the words they use for something
which for many is only vaguely understood.


The bit about a Sky eye working on other boxes is interesting - I didn't
know about that one. Does anything else apart from TiVo work like that?
Hummy? Topfield? Virgin cable boxes?

"Adrian" wrote in message
...
Tim Downie wrote:

Um... I've not got a Sky digibox, just a standard terrestrial digibox
so I don't imagine it would work with my box.

Tim

You are confusing the issue by using the term "digibox" for most people
that means a Sky box as they were the first to use that term.

Ah, didn't know that. Never had anything to do with Sky and didn't realise
that the term usually applied to Sky boxes. Sorry about the confusion.

Still no nearer an uncrashable freeview box though. :-(

Tim

On Thu, 28 Feb 2008 21:25:36 -0000, "Tim Downie"
wrote:

Still no nearer an uncrashable freeview box though. :-(

No such thing. I've had three TiVo's controlling FreeView
boxes for the last six years and they all crash sooner or
later.

Most reliable is the SetPal which was rebranded under
several guises. Sadly not available anymore but if you
can get a second-hand one then that's the obvious solution.
I also like it because the MHEG engine can be switched off
so there are no "press red" messages on recordings.

Next best brand is Echostar.

Least reliable box was by Virgin, however it's redreaming
feature was that it self-detected that it had crashes and
rebooted back to BBC 1 so it only lost one programme when
making several sucessive recordings.

Second least reliable box was by Durabrand which would
ignore channel changes until power cycled.

Nick.

Nick Austin wrote:
On Thu, 28 Feb 2008 21:25:36 -0000, "Tim Downie"
wrote:

Still no nearer an uncrashable freeview box though. :-(

No such thing. I've had three TiVo's controlling FreeView
boxes for the last six years and they all crash sooner or
later.

Most reliable is the SetPal which was rebranded under
several guises. Sadly not available anymore but if you
can get a second-hand one then that's the obvious solution.
I also like it because the MHEG engine can be switched off
so there are no "press red" messages on recordings.

Next best brand is Echostar.

Least reliable box was by Virgin, however it's redreaming
feature was that it self-detected that it had crashes and
rebooted back to BBC 1 so it only lost one programme when
making several sucessive recordings.

Second least reliable box was by Durabrand which would
ignore channel changes until power cycled.

Nick.


I have a Tivo controlling (I think) a Proline and I haven't had to touch
the thing in a year - it works perfectly. It was £20 from Tesco.

Nick Austin wrote:
No such thing. I've had three TiVo's controlling FreeView
boxes for the last six years and they all crash sooner or
later.

Agreed.

Most reliable is the SetPal which was rebranded under
several guises. Sadly not available anymore but if you
can get a second-hand one then that's the obvious solution.
I also like it because the MHEG engine can be switched off
so there are no "press red" messages on recordings.

That was the least succesful in my case. Not the most reliable for
changing channel, and hung a few times. Got hot and tempered, I gave it
its P45 a few months ago...

My current Argos Wharfedale DV832B is doing well - hasn't skipped a beat
yet. Yes, Make sure the front IR blaster is turned off - and use an IR
wand on the front of the set-top box - I've glued mine on on with hot
melt. Many of the Goodmans GDBx clone boxes seem similary well behaved.

The problems really start when the manufacturer releases a dodgy upgrade
and then goes under. They really should be encoraged to release the
technology into the public domain if they can't make a run with it
commercially. Not leave people in limbo, and potentially add to land fill.

--
Adrian C