set top boxes for digital TV

[Casual Looker]

Thinking of getting a set top box to over-come ghosting problem in my area
which is in a valley. Current solution is to use Optus Cable - but their
prices are rising while the content remains crap as far as I'm concerned.

Don't know much about these units. Would the existing antenna be OK - it works
well for non-digital transmission except for the ghosting.

Any recommendation for a budget unit ?? I'm only using an analoque TV.

Do these boxes pick up and "retransmit" all channels, ie can I tape one
channel while watching another ? What is the quqlity like ?

Many thanks,

 

[Rod Speed]

Thinking of getting a set top box to over-come ghosting problem in my
area which is in a valley. Current solution is to use Optus Cable - but their
prices are rising while the content remains crap as far as I'm concerned.

Don't know much about these units. Would the existing antenna be
OK - it works well for non-digital transmission except for the ghosting.

Should be fine and an STB may well fix the ghosting problem fine.

Any recommendation for a budget unit ?? I'm only using an analoque TV.

Do these boxes pick up and "retransmit" all channels,
Nope.

ie can I tape one channel while watching another ?
Nope.

What is the quqlity like ?

Very decent in your situation.

 

[Ross Herbert]

Thinking of getting a set top box to over-come ghosting problem in my area
which is in a valley. Current solution is to use Optus Cable - but their
prices are rising while the content remains crap as far as I'm concerned.

Don't know much about these units. Would the existing antenna be OK - it works
well for non-digital transmission except for the ghosting.

Any recommendation for a budget unit ?? I'm only using an analoque TV.

Do these boxes pick up and "retransmit" all channels, ie can I tape one
channel while watching another ? What is the quqlity like ?

Many thanks,

Depending on what you are prepared to pay David Porter & Assoc might
have a model to suit your purse.
http://www.dpanda.com.au/dpanda/digitalstb.html

Ross Herbert

 

[Alan Rutlidge]

Thinking of getting a set top box to over-come ghosting problem in my area
which is in a valley. Current solution is to use Optus Cable - but their
prices are rising while the content remains crap as far as I'm concerned.

Don't know much about these units. Would the existing antenna be OK - it works
well for non-digital transmission except for the ghosting.

Your existing antenna may not be completely suitable for digital depending
on where you are.
Just about every newer pre-digital TV antenna made for the Australian market
for use in the metro area should cover analogue services from Ch0 or Ch2 to
Ch11 on VHF and UHF (for SBS and Ch31).
Unfortunately in the reshuffle of channel allocations to accommodate digital
and still have analogue services running, the channel frequencies have been
allocated as such ;-

Existing analogue channels remain where they are in the metro areas as 2, 7,
9, 10, 28 and 31.

Digital services for the above are :-
ABC (Ch2) is now Ch12
Seven network (Ch7) is now on Ch6
Nine network (Ch9) is now on Ch8
Ten Network (Ch10) is now on Ch11
SBS (Ch28) is now on Ch29
Community TV (Ch31) - no digital equivalent at this time.

Problem 1
Most existing TV antennae won't pick up ABC Digital on Ch12 adequately.

Problem 2
Really old antennae were cut to receive Ch2, 7, and 9 only. You can usually
identify these oldies but the fact they have very few receiving elements, no
UHF section and are probably fed to the TV on ribbon cable. You might be
getting ch10 with reasonable reception but no UHF services. If it works on
digital it's a miracle.

Problem 3
The existing downlead is most likely standard low loss co-axial cable with a
single aluminium foil shielding, terminated at the antenna end on screw down
terminals and a PAL socket at the wall outlet end.
Digital is sensitive to impulsive noise interference. The download should
be 75 ohm triple or quad shieled co-axial cable. The cable should be
connected to the antenna end and wall outlet using F connectors. Shielding
should be a crimped connection in preference to solder or screw-on clamping.

Problem 4
Seperate VHF and UHF antennae connected together via a diplexer. You could
replace the older VHF antenna with a digital compatible but the existing
diplexer may have too sharp a cut off to pass ch12 (ABC digital) adequately.
You will need to replace the old diplexer with a newer digital one that has
F connectors. (BTW - not all diplexers that have F connectors are suitable
for digital - check before you buy).

Problem 5
Masthead amplifiers. One could write a book on this subject. If you really
have to use one it should be installed as close to the antenna as possible.
check there aren't any trap filters installed and make sure the gain isn't
wound up excessively.

Problem 6
Splitters and cabling to extra outlets should be changed to fully shielded
types that use F connectors and the cabling changed to triple or quad
shielded to reduce interference problems.

Visit the digital TV website at http://www.dba.org.au for more info.

Cheers,
Alan

 

[Casual Looker]

Just a quick note to say thanks to you guys.

Got off my ass and bought the $297 special Teac STB from DSE. Pluged it
together in 5 minutes and all works fine. No ghosting, beautiful picture and
now have wide screen mode as well on existing TV droping from 68cm 4:3 to
approx 63cm on 16:9. No problem, the TV was too big for the room anyway.

No mod whatsoever required - just plug & play on existing cables and antenna.

Gave me great pleasure to inform Optus their expensive connection is no longer
required.

Again, many thanks,

 

[Rob Judd]

CL,

A reasonable on will pick up in a ghosted area using rabbit ears.
Whether they have two tuners (allowing record + watch simultaneously)
depends on the model.

Try ebay.com.au

Rob

 

[Alan Rutlidge]

The sales hype and BS you spewed here is all on the idiot
COMMERCIAL web site you referenced.


.............. Phil

Oh dear, "Phil the oracle" has spoken. We all know from our ancient Greek
history that the "oracle" was so vague in its message that any fantasy could
be interpreted by its word. But Phil of course thinks of himself as a bit
above that. Phil thinks he's the prophet, Phil thinks he's God, Phil thinks
he can walk on water, Phil thinks he is never wrong, and these are just a
few of his talents.

Err excuse me Phil, but which URL (commercial website link) did I quote in
my post? For the record and to prove you aren't the complete fuckwit we all
know you to be - post the evidence. Maybe you you should get your glasses
checked. The last time I checked, and I think most people who read this NG
will agree that http://www.dba.org.au is not a commercial site. It is
amongst other things a DVB forum, where even dickwits like you can join up
and post articles too.

An .org site is an organisation site. .edu are educational institutions
sites .com sites are commercial. Get the drift.....????

Now of course we all know that "Casual Looker's" situation applies to EVERY
digital installation doesn't it? Doesn't matter what the situation is, it
will ALWAYS work perfectly - just remember Phil Allison just told us all so.

Phil, you've been a very naughty boy. Now, unless you can come up with
something other than anecdotal or "I said so" evidence, go stand in the
corner facing the wall and be quiet until the going home bell sounds.

Phil, you've just gotta luv him. Now Phil, bend over and I'll shove a Hills
Telray TL4 up your bum with the elements fully extended. And they would
have to be to touch the sides, gauging by the amount of bullshit you post
here - you couldn't be talking out of anything other than your arse. Oh,
and it's gonna hurt a bit on the account it goes all the way up to Ch12
according to you.

Luv,
Alan

 

[Franc Zabkar]

Just a quick note to say thanks to you guys.

Got off my ass and bought the $297 special Teac STB from DSE.

So you rode your donkey to the DSE store?


- Franc Zabkar

 

[Phil Allison]

The sales hype and BS you spewed here is all on the idiot
COMMERCIAL web site you referenced.

............. Phil

( Snip Rutmanic's shite )

Err excuse me Phil, but which URL (commercial website link) did I quote in
my post? For the record and to prove you aren't the complete fuckwit we all
know you to be - post the evidence. Maybe you you should get your glasses
checked. The last time I checked, and I think most people who read this NG
will agree that http://www.dba.org.au is not a commercial site.

** The site is MOST definitely set up by businesses for their
interests.

An .org site is an organisation site. .edu are educational institutions
sites .com sites are commercial. Get the drift.....????

** Go get stuffed you absolute moron.

See all the logos ?? Looks like a whos who of the TV game.

The site is RUN buy the TV industry - ergo its purpose is
commercial.



** Snip more Rutmanic's shite.

This arsehole works for Telstra in Brisbane.




.............. Phil

 

[Mark Kelepouris]

Hi group,
I'm NOT wishing enter the 'slinging match' side of this topic, though I just
picked up the DV-B300 for similar reasons as the OP.
I can return it if i'm not happy anyway.
Well I am happy, it brought new life to my ageing HMV tx100. I now have
great stereo sound, clean picture, extra channels, pgm info, teletext etc
and a new remote (the original was cactus)
However I have one problem and one question.
The problem is in 4:3 fullscreen the picture is a little compressed and off
side across the screen.
The question is, since I had to go STB Scart to Video/Audio in on a VCR
then RF to TV, am I likely to be losing much in quality?
BTW I upgraded the S/W to 1.02 but it didnt fix the size problem and since
it hasnt rained heavily here yet (Burwood VIC) I dont know how stable it all
is.
I'd be happy to recieve any advice or comments.
Mark K.

 

[Mark Kelepouris]

Thanks for the advice Phil,
I had a feeling I was not going to get the best result having that 'RF' bit
in the chain.
Though the HMV isnt as old as '77 ('85 ish) I know it is time for the old
boy to rest even though it still gives a great picture.
Any ideas why i'm getting the off centered and compressed pic? (across the
screen)
If its the box, I want to sort it out now and not when I finally upgrade the
TV.
Thanks again,
Mark K.

 

[Phil Allison]

Any ideas why i'm getting the off centered and compressed pic? (across the
screen)

** Your descripton is ambiguous. What is compressed??

Do you mean there is a black band on one side ?

Can you get a test pattern from SBS in the morning and verify
details.



.................... Phil

 

[Mark Kelepouris]

Phil,
Yes there is a black band on one side. (sometimes a little on the otherside
too, it varies with channel or content)
The picture is also compressed. A circle appears a bit like a footy standing
on its end, though not 'near' as bad as that, it is noticable all the same.
People seem to have lost a lot of weight.
It is only now that I have the STB that this has happened.
As I said earlier, this is with 4:3 fullscreen mode.
Switching to 4:3 letterbox gives the correct aspect ratio but is not an
option due to the overall smaller size and not all broadcasts are 'wide
screen' anyway. (then the whole screen is scrawny)
I just expect to see the picture as I used to.
The way I see it, is that I need a larger wide screen, but surely I should
at least get a normal aspect ratio in 4:3 full screen on any TV?
I hope you understand what I mean now, thanks again.
Mark K.

 

[Phil Allison]

Phil,
Yes there is a black band on one side. (sometimes a little on the otherside
too, it varies with channel or content)
The picture is also compressed. A circle appears a bit like a footy standing
on its end, though not 'near' as bad as that, it is noticable all the same.
People seem to have lost a lot of weight.
It is only now that I have the STB that this has happened.
As I said earlier, this is with 4:3 fullscreen mode.
Switching to 4:3 letterbox gives the correct aspect ratio but is not an
option due to the overall smaller size and not all broadcasts are 'wide
screen' anyway. (then the whole screen is scrawny)
I just expect to see the picture as I used to.
The way I see it, is that I need a larger wide screen, but surely I should
at least get a normal aspect ratio in 4:3 full screen on any TV?
I hope you understand what I mean now, thanks again.

** If the actual broadcast is in widescreen ( 16:9 ratio ) then it
seems the Teac STB cannot trim it for you to create a 4:3 screen. DVD
players have a similar problem with most movies having black bands top and
bottom - if you try to alter this with the TV settings you end up with lots
of long faces and tall people !!

How much DTV is in wide screen mode ?



............. Phil

 

[Mark Kelepouris]

Hi Phil,
I have'nt touched a thing on the TV.
The TEAC unit has 3 aspect settings.
1) 4:3 full screen
2) 4:3 letterbox
3) 16:9 fullscreen
The third option is Very talll people with Loong faces.
Option 1) is not quite right and letterbox is cool but small.
Mark K.

 

[Alan Rutlidge]

** Snip more Rutmanic's shite.

This arsehole works for Telstra in Brisbane.




............. Phil

Mr. Phil Allison,

This is not the first time you have made this allegation in a public forum
for all to read.

If you are so sure of your facts (and you always claim you are correct in
just about every instance you post to this newsgroup), I'm openly
challenging you in a public forum to back up your claim that I work for
Telstra in Brisbane or anywhere else in the country for that matter.

My $100,000 against your $100,000 says you are wrong on the above statement.
It's an even money bet. You can't get any fairer than that. If I'm
employed by Telstra, (as you claim I am), then I currently would be
expecting a bit more from that company than a telephone bill.
Put your money where your mouth is or shut up. Let's see you weasel out of
this one.

You should be aware that making allegations that you can't substantiate in a
public forum is likely to eventually get you into strife. You never know
who might be reading your posts.

Oh and BTW, you still haven't told us how you are going to make the Hill's
Telray TL4 + TC18 + Dick Smith pre digital diplexer pick up ABC digital
(Ch12) without any problems.

We are all waiting Phil....ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ


Alan

 

[Phil Allison]

Hi Phil,
I have'nt touched a thing on the TV.
The TEAC unit has 3 aspect settings.
1) 4:3 full screen
2) 4:3 letterbox
3) 16:9 fullscreen
The third option is Very talll people with Loong faces.
Option 1) is not quite right and letterbox is cool but small.
Mark K.

** Ring Teac customer support on 1800 656 700



............ Phil

 

[Phil Allison]

Mr. Phil Allison,

This is not the first time you have made this allegation in a public forum
for all to read.

** My God - did I say you worked for Telstra ??

What an AWFUL thing to say.

What *was* I thinking ???????

If you are so sure of your facts (and you always claim you are correct in
just about every instance you post to this newsgroup), I'm openly
challenging you in a public forum to back up your claim that I work for
Telstra in Brisbane or anywhere else in the country for that matter.

But you did post this:

Alan Rutlidge
Senior Technologies Lecturer (Advanced Digital Telecommunications
Technologies and Electronics)
Telstra Learning - Telstra Corporation, Australia
e-mail: [email protected]

********************************************************************
* The views in this posting are my own personal ones and not those *
* of that of my employer - Telstra Corporation. Thank you. *
********************************************************************


** ............... all lies was it ????

My $100,000 against your $100,000 says you are wrong on the above statement.
It's an even money bet. You can't get any fairer than that. If I'm
employed by Telstra, (as you claim I am), then I currently would be
expecting a bit more from that company than a telephone bill.
Put your money where your mouth is or shut up. Let's see you weasel out of
this one.

** So Telstra finally got sick of your putrid smell and gave you the
Royal Order of the Boot ??

You should be aware that making allegations that you can't substantiate in a
public forum is likely to eventually get you into strife. You never know
who might be reading your posts.

** The Rutmanic ought to take that advice himself.

Lots of people have read his bizarre posts.



........... Phil

 

[Alan Rutlidge]

** My God - did I say you worked for Telstra ??

What an AWFUL thing to say.

What *was* I thinking ???????





But you did post this:

Alan Rutlidge
Senior Technologies Lecturer (Advanced Digital Telecommunications
Technologies and Electronics)
Telstra Learning - Telstra Corporation, Australia
e-mail: [email protected]

********************************************************************
* The views in this posting are my own personal ones and not those *
* of that of my employer - Telstra Corporation. Thank you. *
********************************************************************


** ............... all lies was it ????





** So Telstra finally got sick of your putrid smell and gave you the
Royal Order of the Boot ??


in


** The Rutmanic ought to take that advice himself.

Lots of people have read his bizarre posts.



.......... Phil

Phil, once again hasn't got his facts correct. That post must be at least
10 years old (from memory). Your claim is that I work for Telstra. If I
did so 10 years ago is now irrelevant to your post yesterday. Try sending
an e-mail to the address you obviously posted as your evidence. I guess if
it gets re-directed an IT administrator who has worked for Telstra for at
least the past 10 years might extend the courtesy to you (although I doubt
any sane person would) by informing you that that particular mail server was
probably decommissioned some 8 years ago.

Most people who subscribe to this newsgroup (and others eg. aus.hi-fi) will
be completely aware of your false accusations which you continually post to
this and other newsgroups. You continually fail to back up your allegations
with any evidence. I have kindly informed you on several occassions that I
don't work for Telstra, yet you don't seem to be getting the message and act
accordingly. Instead you continuously post mistruths about me, claiming I
work for Telstra amongst other hideous allegations. Perhaps a forwarding of
this entire thread to someone in Telstra Corporate Security may just see the
end to all this. A formal complaint to you internet provider might not go
astray either.

Phil Allison, you have been warned. Any future posts claiming I work for
Telstra Corporation Limited is likely to see legal action from me if not
from Telstra if they so decide.

Alan

 

[Casual Looker]

Hi group,

However I have one problem and one question.
The problem is in 4:3 fullscreen the picture is a little compressed and off
side across the screen.

Same problem with mine (it seems to crop the pic a little), but it's OK, so I
don't worry much about it. Most of the time I leave it on letter box setting
anyway.

The question is, since I had to go STB Scart to Video/Audio in on a VCR
then RF to TV, am I likely to be losing much in quality?

Why not scart to V/A then videoand audio out from video to TV - better pic.