iamreal2 Posted April 5, 2007 Posted April 5, 2007 Hi all, I've been looking at such devices for a while. And got a WandTV USB stick (AF9015 chipset), it really has overheat problem and I have sent it back for refund. Now I learn more about various chipsets used on such devices. But I can't really make up my mind which one to buy: 1. Leadtek DTV dongle (DibCom7700 chip) Pros:Good package, more expensive, PIP/POP/PAP Cons: MCX connector easily breaks internal connection 2. AVerMedia Volar (DibCom7700) Not cheap as well. Not sure about pros/cons 3. Geniatech T328B/T6010U Conexant chipset. 6010U supports Analog(about $85, 20 more than T328B) No PIP. BTW, is PIP/POP function software implemented or depends on hardware. If software based, I can just use other software(eg, WinfastDTV) 4. Other compatible DibCom7700 based 5. Any built on Phllips chip? In general, which chipset is better? (definitely no Afatech...) Sorry for the lengthy question. Thank you very much for reading. Cheers, Jason
Ian Norman Posted April 6, 2007 Posted April 6, 2007 Hi Jason I can't comment on the brands you mentioned but I bought a "No name" brand off Ebay for about $50.00 and it has a Dibcom 7700 chipset. The supplied app doesn't find all my channels but SageTV and XPMCE work perfectly with it so I am very happy. The tuner sensitivity is not too bad for a semiconductor tuner. One with a can tuner would no doubt be better. Cheers
Alfred Smee Posted April 6, 2007 Posted April 6, 2007 Hi all,I've been looking at such devices for a while. And got a WandTV USB stick (AF9015 chipset), it really has overheat problem and I have sent it back for refund. Now I learn more about various chipsets used on such devices. But I can't really make up my mind which one to buy: 1. Leadtek DTV dongle (DibCom7700 chip) Pros:Good package, more expensive, PIP/POP/PAP Cons: MCX connector easily breaks internal connection 2. AVerMedia Volar (DibCom7700) Not cheap as well. Not sure about pros/cons 3. Geniatech T328B/T6010U Conexant chipset. 6010U supports Analog(about $85, 20 more than T328B) No PIP. BTW, is PIP/POP function software implemented or depends on hardware. If software based, I can just use other software(eg, WinfastDTV) 4. Other compatible DibCom7700 based 5. Any built on Phllips chip? In general, which chipset is better? (definitely no Afatech...) Sorry for the lengthy question. Thank you very much for reading. Cheers, Jason I used the Leadtek version on my laptop for a little while but the tuner's sensitivity was very low. It found all the channels but the frequent dropouts became annoying after a few nights. In stark contrast, the Dvico Fusion PCI card hooked up to to crappy rabbit ears in my study works great. In the end I sold it on eBay for about $5 more than I paid for it at a swap meet.
iamreal2 Posted April 6, 2007 Author Posted April 6, 2007 Hi Jason I can't comment on the brands you mentioned but I bought a "No name" brand off Ebay for about $50.00 and it has a Dibcom 7700 chipset. The supplied app doesn't find all my channels but SageTV and XPMCE work perfectly with it so I am very happy. The tuner sensitivity is not too bad for a semiconductor tuner. One with a can tuner would no doubt be better. Cheers Hi Ian, Good to hear that you've got the DibCom7700 based stick. It won't be wrong with that chip. Actually the WandTV (on AF9015) I tested has given me very good reception (even with the supplied 10cm portable antenna) maybe I live too near to the broadcast site(mt.cootha). The only problem is that all sillicon tuners have tendency of overheat. Some designed properly and the heat won't cause problem, but not that WandTV thing. I used the Leadtek version on my laptop for a little while but the tuner's sensitivity was very low. It found all the channels but the frequent dropouts became annoying after a few nights. In stark contrast, the Dvico Fusion PCI card hooked up to to crappy rabbit ears in my study works great. In the end I sold it on eBay for about $5 more than I paid for it at a swap meet. Hi Alfred, Dvico Fusion is good but expensive:) Now I also found out that Leadtek has not been earning its reputation. I remember it's based on DibCom3000 COFDM... Since I'm looking for a better/proper one, now I'm gonna get a Compro U500 which supports viewing 4 channels at the same time and it has gained great feedbacks. Only problem, not surprisingly, it's getting hot for long time use, but not hot enough to shut it down anyway:D It's on DibCom7700B (not documented on DibCom site) which supports hi-mobility (watch TV when travelling at 130km/h, which is Crazy) Aver Volar is also good. I like the design very much. And the blue flash in its tiny body is just amazing.... Good reception, cool temperature...JUST... No remote control. PIP is also supplied but only 2 channels at the same time. Geniatech T328B is a decent one. using Conexant chip, good reputation. No PIP. Hacks available for linux mythtv and using Winfast DTV software. Those selling at eBay with metal case(holes on it), red/blue coloured ones, are made in china "no name" brands. Some of them are built on Trident TVmaster. Good budget options. They can be hacked to work on Mac. BUT some shipped with AF9015 chips. Also, recently, there's one well advertised stick on eBay is being sold at ridiculous price. It's just a normal "no name" brand with Dibcom chip. This is a successful marketing. I'm really impressed with the guy who put up that ebay bid. Cheers, Jason
Ian Norman Posted May 2, 2007 Posted May 2, 2007 Can't comment on either of those from ebay but this is the one I got from Ebay and it works well Ebay no 200104448034 It has the DibCom 7700 chipset with BDA drivers and works in XPMCE and SageTV. It has a silicon Tuner so you need a good signal strength. If my reception was any lower I would have to go for one with a real tuner like the tinyusb from Digitalnow. Cheers
dazzla Posted May 2, 2007 Posted May 2, 2007 Hey Ian, Thanks for the input. Can you tell me where abouts you are and if you use the portable aerial or connect to your house antennae. cheers mate
Ian Norman Posted May 2, 2007 Posted May 2, 2007 I have the device connected to the house antenna. I don't pick up any stations with the portable antenna. My house is behind a hill. Some nights the signal is not good enough for all channels to work properly whereas my setop box and the PCI DVB-T tuners in the HTPC are working fine. So as you can see the silicon tuners are not as good as real tuners. Cheers
renura Posted May 2, 2007 Posted May 2, 2007 If my reception was any lower I would have to go for one with a real tuner like the tinyusb from Digitalnow.Thank you for the compliment, it is really the only way to go
evil_josh Posted May 3, 2007 Posted May 3, 2007 Thank you for the compliment, it is really the only way to go I use a tiny2 too and I am pretty happy with it. Josh.
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