thesatelliteguy Posted October 17, 2004 Posted October 17, 2004 Guy's as i'm new to this forum, I am about to get an stu, sort of a first time one to see what the world of FTA digital is like. I don't want to spend too much money and for some that are around the $200-$250 price which one is highly recommended. Thanks satelliteguy
Moby58 Posted October 17, 2004 Posted October 17, 2004 Hi, I got a couple of Topfield 4000s from Good Guys for $215. Includes scart-to-component, and scart-to-svideo/composite cables. Works great, known brand. however, boxes start from around $160 I think.. Guy's as i'm new to this forum, I am about to get an stu, sort of a first time one to see what the world of FTA digital is like. I don't want to spend too much money and for some that are around the $200-$250 price which one is highly recommended. Thanks satelliteguy <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
pneu Posted October 17, 2004 Posted October 17, 2004 Stay away from the Teac DV-B350, it's a certified fault-box. If you see a low price for a Teac DV-B420 (~$170-ish) it might be worth picking up and giving a trial run, however since the Topfield comes with all the supplied cables the prices may even out. The DGTEC is nasty from what I've heard. The Omni is supposed to be quite usable and affordable at around $200.
booffa Posted October 18, 2004 Posted October 18, 2004 Bought a TEAC DV-B420 for a friend and he is pretty happy with the PQ. It was picked up for $175 at JB. 420 only comes with crappy RCA ( composite) cable. If your TV has a SCART input, it is worth spending $15-$20 for a decent SCART cable from JayCar. Hope this helps.
Techie_Mark Posted October 18, 2004 Posted October 18, 2004 I am also looking for a SD STB around $200. My investigations so far have lead me to the Nextwave 3190 since it has component out. http://nextwave-digital.com/content/productdetails.html I am not sure of the quality of this unit though (build quality, picture quality). It seems the market is flooded with CHEAP looking SD boxes.. there is no real "stand out" and if there was, I would cough up $300+ for it, if it existed. Any advice / experience with the 3190 or similar appreciated.. Thanks, Mark (slightly confused)
ijd Posted October 18, 2004 Posted October 18, 2004 I am also looking for a SD STB around $200. My investigations so far have lead me to the Nextwave 3190 since it has component out. http://nextwave-digital.com/content/productdetails.html I am not sure of the quality of this unit though (build quality, picture quality). It seems the market is flooded with CHEAP looking SD boxes.. there is no real "stand out" and if there was, I would cough up $300+ for it, if it existed. Any advice / experience with the 3190 or similar appreciated.. Thanks, Mark (slightly confused) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> You can pick up a good used High Definition box from a forum member here or from me here. I know mine's in top nick and I'm sure George's is too. Why buy a sh1tty new SD box when you can get a good used HD box that is also ideal for poor signal areas? Outputs on both these used HD-STBs include VGA/XGA (RGB), RGsB, RGBS, RGBHV, Component (YPrPb), S-Video, Composite x 2, optical digital audio, coax digital audio and analogue audio. You won't find that flexibility on a new SD-STB!! Good luck with whatever you get, Ian
DigitalObserver Posted October 19, 2004 Posted October 19, 2004 I am also looking for a SD STB around $200. My investigations so far have lead me to the Nextwave 3190 since it has component out. http://nextwave-digital.com/content/productdetails.html I am not sure of the quality of this unit though (build quality, picture quality). It seems the market is flooded with CHEAP looking SD boxes.. there is no real "stand out" and if there was, I would cough up $300+ for it, if it existed. Any advice / experience with the 3190 or similar appreciated.. Thanks, Mark (slightly confused) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Hi, I am a very happy Nextwave user (3100). Crystal clear Digital Tv where Analogue was quite poor. You should learn to do a search on the forum and you will find a lot of positive comments about the Nextwave units. They also offer exellent after sale product support. From my experience you can not go wrong, however it seems that many people find that it is compatability between components that is the ultimate answer. So best advice is that whatever you choose buy it somewhere with a "no questions asked" return policy (even worth a few $ more). Set up with highest available connection, calibrate (adjust brightness, contrast, turn off picture enahancements etc in set), evaluate, choose, enjoy
gclark8 Posted October 19, 2004 Posted October 19, 2004 OK, My suggestions: 1: Homecast eM1150 (Emtech) 2: Nextwave 3200 3: Opentel, when available. 4. Ikusi 5: Old Footys
330p4 Posted October 19, 2004 Posted October 19, 2004 I have had the Nordmende DG 825? SD STB ($169 from Myers stores) for a few weeks now - it is compact, has a good set of output connectors, runs very cool and has not had any problems. It is a much better unit than the Teac 350 that I took back after a couple of weeks (ran very hot and froze). Regards, Chris
Techie_Mark Posted October 19, 2004 Posted October 19, 2004 Nextwave 3190 -vs- 3200 what is the difference anyway?
gclark8 Posted October 19, 2004 Posted October 19, 2004 (edited) Nextwave 3190, from the link in the post below, it is a new box with component out. I will have to ask my installer friend what it is like. For 3100/3200, see: http://www.naspl.com/content/digidtsb.html Edited October 20, 2004 by gclark8
DigitalObserver Posted October 20, 2004 Posted October 20, 2004 3190???? Don't know this thing??? See: http://www.naspl.com/content/digidtsb.html <{POST_SNAPBACK}> which links to here: Nextwave units
andrewfossey Posted October 20, 2004 Posted October 20, 2004 Hi, I am a very happy Nextwave user (3100). Crystal clear Digital Tv where Analogue was quite poor. Has anyone actually been able to update the firmware in a TDR 3120 ? If so what version and how ? I have a TDR(Hotchip)3120 which I have since discovered is a next-wave 3120 which I purchased July last year(2003). I would like to update the firmware if avalible.
DigitalObserver Posted October 20, 2004 Posted October 20, 2004 Hi, I am a very happy Nextwave user (3100). Crystal clear Digital Tv where Analogue was quite poor. Has anyone actually been able to update the firmware in a TDR 3120 ? If so what version and how ? I have a TDR(Hotchip)3120 which I have since discovered is a next-wave 3120 which I purchased July last year(2003). I would like to update the firmware if avalible. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> email or phone the distributor of your box. If hotchip are not still around try Nextwave. Us the link provided in my last post. They have been very helpful with my couple of requests Regards DO
Techie_Mark Posted October 22, 2004 Posted October 22, 2004 <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Why buy a sh1tty new SD box when you can get a good used HD box that is also ideal for poor signal areas? Ian <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Is a HD STB necessarily any better than a SD box for low signal areas? I am sure there are good and bad examples in both categories. I would be interested to hear of anybody's experiences here.
ijd Posted October 22, 2004 Posted October 22, 2004 I was only talking about the DGTec 2000A 'Footy' - there were two used units for sale when I posted that. One of them was mine, and the other is still available from gclark8 (George).
g12345567 Posted October 23, 2004 Posted October 23, 2004 I have had the Nordmende DG 825? SD STB ($169 from Myers stores) for a few weeks now - it is compact, has a good set of output connectors, runs very cool and has not had any problems.Chris <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Its the NORDMENDE KMDG46 and I also paid $169 on special. Megamart in Auburn Sydney. CPU & MEMORIES 32 Bit RISC 2M FLASH 8M SDRAM VIDEO DECODER MPEG-2 VIDEO FORMAT: 4:3, 16:9 AUDIO DECODER MPEG-2 LAYER I & II MONO/STEREO/DUAL CHANNEL AV OUTPUTS COMPOSITE VIDEO TO SCART STANDARD RGB VIDEO TO SCART STANDARD STEREO AUDIO TO SCART STANDARD COAXIAL S/PDIF STANDARD S-VHS COMPOSITE VIDEO & STEREO AUDIO BY PHONO SOFTWARE UPDATE 9 PIN RS-232 CONNECTOR DIMENSION W 280 X D 193 X H 40.5 MM Tuner seems to be more sensative in low signal areas than other SD boxes I've got.
bren-e Posted October 24, 2004 Posted October 24, 2004 The cheapest unit I have seen is the Teac DVB-300 for $110 in Target (Resovoir store in Melbourne). Not a bad price, I have the same unit and have had no problems, unlike many others tho.
thesatelliteguy Posted October 24, 2004 Author Posted October 24, 2004 I'm probably going to go with the topfieldt4000 SD because sounds like it's a great SD STB for a good price. Becsue it's the second highest model I thought the PVR would of been cheap as well seeing the 4000 is only around $200. but really who would pay up to $1000 for a PVR STB that is only SD? Satelliteguy
gclark8 Posted October 24, 2004 Posted October 24, 2004 You can get SD-PVR for a lot less: http://www.opentel-australia.com/
bamboo Posted October 25, 2004 Posted October 25, 2004 Can get Kaon stb or Kaon 80g stb and OPentel Twin Tuner PVR is interested. email me at adnan@oznetics.com.au ak You can get SD-PVR for a lot less: http://www.opentel-australia.com/ <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
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