Hi , i was suffering from the jumping issue when recording/watching tv and after googling a bit i found the unoficial vestel site and downloaded the firmware to flash to my techwood aedtr80s7, but i ended up flashing the t825 firmware (only realised this after checking the stick underneith) and now its just stuck on 'starting'.

I can still access the boot loaded via hyperterminal so i can still flash the correct firmeware but the site is down so has anyone got a link to the latest t816 firmware please

Thanks

Ste

Unfortunately I don't have the file handy, but hopefully the site will be back online tomorrow, if not later tonight. Unfortunately, the downtime has been caused by a server hardware failure at my hosting provider .

Ahh, didnt realise you owned the site lol thanks for the reply i'l just wait until you have sorted the problem out

Thanks again

Ste

Hi, is there any eta on when the site will be up mate??

Cheers

Ste

I was told "soon" 24 hours ago, so god knows when . If you want me to mail the file to you, let me know via PM - presumably you're wanting v3.7?

The site is back online now.

Advance warning if you haven't already grabbed the files that you need... There may possibly be some downtime anytime soon - I'm having the site moved from Chicago to a new datacenter in Amsterdam. Download speeds of the firmware files in particular should be much quicker after the move.

Thanks for the warning, and thanks for keeping the site going for us all

parthena

The transition to a new server went smoothly last night with little or no downtime. So, everything should be back to normal now, but faster for us all .

Vestel stuttering is back! Since, it's caused by "garbage" in the mpeg2 information fields ...... I have constant problems on my own Vestels, with stuttering moving around between different channels. Currently, I can't record Yesterday, Film4, or ITV4, although previously it's been Dave, and even BBC channels on 1 weekend.

Note that the T816 firmware wasn't updated. Only the T825. However, I've got the 825 version 13, and it makes no difference at all to the stuttering.

All version 13 does is prevent info access on picture. Nothing else, and it's nothing to do with the Gemstar patents.

The root of the problem is poor power supply regulation on all the vestels, and unusually high disk activity in reponse to mpeg 2 "info garbage". On some devices only, depending on which brand disk it has, and how good the power supply. There's a wire move mod that sometimes works, and running the hard disk from a separate power supply should cmpletely cure the problem.

Are there instructions anywhere for switching to external power supply?

My Hitachi T825 v12.4 has been behaving quite well lately, though it's not been stressed with series records. The Wharfedale T825 v13.0 is "resting" because it was so badly behaved

Can you prove this dubious claims? v13.0 has for more changes in it than you reckon. So you think Vestel sent out engineers a year ago from Turkey to a user's address in Manchester just for fun and completely ignored all the data gained from those tests? There were fixes in v12.8 which were retested at the user's address on the same hardware which resolved the stuttering. I think you'll find the issue is not so simple as you declare - I suspect multiple causes. Sure, something changed between v12.8 and v13.0 which caused the stuttering to not be fixed in as many cases as it did in v12.8, but I'm hoping v13.3 improves this. The Gemstar patents are an issue - if you choose not to believe me or my source, then that's up to you of course.

The stuttering problem "moves around" the different tv channels. The only possible difference is what's in the mpeg info field - since the modulation system doesn't change - so that must be the root cause! EIther particular muxes (or channels) are outputting garbage, or new Freeview "features" are being tested .........

As I pointed out on your Forum, Futaura, it finally got established that running the hard disk from a separate power supply ALWAYS cures the problem! A fact easily verified (indeed, by anyone, by starting up a Vestel with the hard disk removed! It's then impossible to cause stuttering, which in any case requires you to activate "record" .........).

The problem is quite obviously caused by increased disk activity in response to what's in the info fields. It's partly dependent on the rather poor power supply regulation, and which disk is fitted, and "risk of stuttering" will therefore vary across different manufactured batches ......

Futaura, did the Vestel guy ever tell you WHAT he'd done, regarding software changes ?

If you want to try it, then just buy a pc power supply with 3.5 inch IDE power connector, and disconnect the internal disk power connector, but I'm not sure how you'd get the cables into the case with the lid on!

Granted I don't have a T825 box, but I've not experienced this problem on my T816 or T835 yet (no DSO here until November).


Yes, but is that cause or effect? Only Vestel can really know the answer to that. It could be argued that there is nothing wrong with the power supply, but it is the software that is causing the problem to occur in the first place.


Well, for starters there was more than one guy working on it . Vestel are fairly secretive about their software, and no I haven't been told many details regarding the stuttering/jumping DSO issue, and I've promised not to disclose various info that I have been told (some of which I do not understand myself anyway ). However, what I can say is that the power supply was never mentioned regarding this problem, and work is still going on behind the scenes to solve the problem.

The problem is not going to be resolved. Forget it.

1. I originally got into this because my T810 went into "record", then suddenly froze ........ but later got stuttering on my 16 and 25.

2. It's been a long slow path of carefully eliminating various things.

3. Power supply is clearly involved, since, either running off separate - or just removing the disk - cures stutering.

4. The problem does move around different channels. Currently, I can;t record Yesterday/ITV4/film4. Up to a few weeks ago, I could.

One weekend - maybe 3 months back - the BBC channels were suddenly stuttering (on record only) for 2 days, then they stopped again. Very clearly confirming what's now obvious, ie, it's something in the mpeg stream data fields that's causing suddenly increased disk activity, to a point where some units can;t cope.

Where a "start command" is used, then the software is "continually hunting" for that, and then the "stop command". It seems that ambiguous data field gibberish causes to disk access to "go frantic" (undefined outcome), thus interrupting the transactions actually involving recording the mpeg2 streams. Hence, stuttering.

5. It's not Vestel's "fault", but, is a consequence of their cut price design.

6. Freeview being "not defined", we can expect future Vestel problems as new features get added .........

Has one of your tuners "gone"? Those channels are all on the same MUX - which is D in my area but I don't know if they're the same all over the country.

I'm not even going to try to factor in all your other issues, but just thought it might be a clue.

parthena

No. Mine are fine, as I hope are yours.

Do you have any hard evidence of this, or is it just conjecture? Presumably you've recorded the streams and located the error in the data fields? I would like to pass such info onto to Vestel in case it helps them, or at least hear what they have to say about it. That said, you would have thought the DTG would already be aware of this issue.

It's the Sherlock Holmes Principle. Nothing else it can possibly be.

Put that another way: if there's an alternative hypothesis, let's hear it.

By all means tell Vestel, but I rather suspect they know. If they don;t understand how their own machines work, then how did they make them?

That's kinda my point - Vestel should know as they designed and made it. IMHO there are many things that could be causing the problem - I won't even pretend to guess what the problem really is. However, the DTG tested and approved these PVRs - you'd think if it was a stream issue, this would have been found by the DTG, or at least you'd hope so. You can understand if Vestel were not sure what was causing the problem, if the box was built to DTG spec, successfully tested by the DTG, had been working, and all of a sudden stopped working for some reason that was not convered by the specification - conjecture on my part this time.

As I say, Freeview constantly changes. A big problem. That's why there's endless software updates for everyone ......

We're at an impasse, I think, until either Vestel drop their secrecy, or Freeview does.

Why should a publically owned system be effectively secret?

Presumably the DTG also tested the various Freeview boxes that "went suddenly obsolete without advance warning"?

Wouldn't it be great if Vestel went "open source"