Ok, after the changes for the 4G coming in, I had to downgrade to V5.1.7 instead of the dual record firnware I was using for the last 8 years.

Now I have found that my recordings are all stuttering.

Trying to carry out an instant recording today to test out what was wrong, it tell me 'Unable to start instant recording, signal too weak'. I tried a reload of the box, before this test, all signals for my channels are either good or very good, so unsure as to why it *thinks* the signal is weak. I've tried on my other box in the bedroom that only has an internal aerial supplying it and did not get that message

Has anyone experienced this before. Aerial on roof looks fine, is pointing at correct angle, before I try swapping boxes around.

TIA

Have you checked that it is tuned to the correct transmitter? Kilvey Hill and not Wenvoe?

I take it that your Digihome is one of DTR0207, PVR80 or PVR160 and that the software you were using was http://www.vestelpvr.futaura.co.uk/d...win_record.bin

I can't work out why you removed it for 4g though as I thought Kelvey Hill is remaining negative offset free.

It's neither of those, but Carmel - I only know that because of this thread . Might be that one of the tuners is having a signal issue and the other is not - could even be too strong. What happens with PIP open - any break up on the PIP?

The PIP is fine, not that I use it, as I have an 8 in 1 remote and it only controls the basic functions, which is enough for me. I had to dig out the original r/c to test that.

If you think one of the tuners in the box is on the way out, I can swap it for the one in the bedroom which seems OK at the moment, at least it was when I tested it yesterday.

Failing that, Humax HDR Fox T2 here I come.

When PIP is open, one tuner is used for that and the other for the main display, so if both displays are fine with no stuttering, then that tends to rule out a hardware issue with the tuners. Unfortunately, it sounds like a general issue with those boxes that some people experienced, and never could be explained . Lots of theories, but nothing concrete and no real solution. Probably in some different transmitter areas it will work fine.

Argos have a great price on the 1Tb T7650 (Bush Freeview+ HD recorder) at the moment which is on clearance @ £120, soon to disappear, having been replaced by a newer, smaller, more expensive T7655 Hitachi which at this point in time is not as good as the T7650. Not sure how much the Humax HDR Fox T2 is now.

£179. I was going on the name and a quick look at reviews, but will definitely check out that Bush model if you think it is as good if not better. Nit too worries about disk size. I've been getting by with this box, upgraded to 160 from 80GB and the one upstairs is a genuine PVR160. I do like the ability to connect to my network though, as all my music is on a NAS box upstairs and my next TV will be smart and network ready. Strangely enough I am still using a Bush 28 CRT TV.

I'll swap boxes later today and see what entails.

Shame really after going to all that trouble to change f/w.

I noticed that the recordings of late were stuttering or jumping all over the place, which is what led me to try the instant recording option, to see how that was.

Thanks for the info.

Well I swapped the boxes, as I can live with just using the faulty box for display only, but when I had swapped them,I just tried the record option out of curiousity and it now seems to be able to record again, but will leave it as is for the time being.

Thanks for the replies.

Further woes

Seems I was only getting breakup on Com5.

I also forgot I had a booster in the line and removing that stopped the breakup when viewing, but when I go to record, I get partial breakup again.

Would the tuners on the Bush or Humax box be any better being 8 years newer/more advanced.?

Anything interesting on the signal meter on the manual channel screen for the Com5 mux?

I'm not sure it's a matter of the tuners being more modern - it could be argued it's a design fault. There were quite a few complaints regarding jumping/stuttering when recording that manifested on the T810, T816 and T825 in particular, although I never saw any major issues myself, so I think it does depend on the area and the transmitter. I don't recall the T835 was affected and haven't heard of anything on the newer HD models either.

No, the signal is very good.

They all start off poor for a second or so then jump to good or very good.

I don't know what is going on now. I'd swapped the external aerial for an indoor one, the one from the bedroom where all appears fine, and no change. I then swapped it back to the external aerial to give you sigmal strengths and there were no channels at all. Now after a FTI I have my channels back.?

Is it necessary to carry out a FTI any time you swap aerials?

My readings are, well now at least

PSB1 (60) Very Good
PSB2 (53) Very Good
PSB3 (57) None, presumably as my tuners are not HD
COM4 ((54) Good
COM5 (58) Good
COM6 (49) Very Good

I thought the Very Good was because the power for the first 3 is 20,000W and only 10,000W for the rest, but then COM6 comes up Very Good as well.

When you say "no channels" do you mean the channel list is still there, but there is no picture when you change to a channel, or channels have disappeared from the channel list entirely? Also, did changing aerials involve switching the Digihome box off/on at the mains?

Basically, two things spring to mind depending on your answers . I remember that sometimes if you mess around with the aerial connections whilst the box is on, sometimes the software can get confused and fail to display any video/audio - the solution to that is to hold the power button down for 5 seconds to reboot the box. Secondly, the T810 is limited to a maximum of 99 channels in the channel list - after a channel scan they will all be there, but if you reboot the box or turn the box off/on at the mains, some channels will disappear from the channel list leaving you with just 99 (always manually delete unwanted channels to bring the total down to below 100 immediately after a rescan). So, bear these two issues in mind. Otherwise, an FTI certainly shouldn't be required when swapping aerials, unless each aerial happens to be picking up muxes from diferent transmitters of course.

By no channels I mean when you carry out a manual scan no channels appear.

Yes, I was just swapping aerials/leads over with the box on. I did not realise it needed to be switched off.

I've just gone and got that Bush box and have been doing the same thing, trying to get both working for now, swapping leads whilst both boxes are one, trying to daisy chain etc.

Edit: Well I really seem to have a problem with COM5, the Bush box breaks up like crazy, much worse that the Digihome.

Well my setup now is the Bush box for recording and playback and the digihome for playback only until I have viewed all my recordings.

Pick TV seems to be fine after another FTI.

Fingers crossed.

Thank you for your help.

I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that I can connect the Bush to my network if only for iPlayer and the other online viewer. You never know I might well use it.

Plus the remotes seem the same so my 8 in one remote works without any changes.

Perhaps some sort of local RF interference maybe? Wi-fi router nearby, dodgy aerial or HDMI leads, etc, etc.

I've never had any breakup with the Bush, and the minor skipping and jumping on recordings which you may have had on your T810 Digihome box since day one, and gotten used, is not present on the T7650. The Bush is pretty reliable, even more so now that most of the major channels now have proper accurate recording signalling, including Channel 5's channels. I've noticed that Channel 4 have recently started supporting the trailer booking green button feature too, which does unfortunately show up the quirks of the Cabot/Vestel implementation even more than when it was just the BBC using this feature.

And, yes, the remotes are pretty similar - the only real important difference is that the T7650 has a back and an exit button, whereas the T810 just had back. Generally though you can get away with just the back button.

I do have a wifi router next to the TV, but it has been there for years. Admittedly the digihome is on the other side of the TV stand, whilst the Bush is on the same side, mainly due to the colour of the box. I have it on top of my XBOX running XBMC, but that is wired to the router. If it keeps happening, I will move the Bush to the other side.

Had a bit of a heart stopper tonight, Switched it on via the remote and nothing happened except for the light going green. It does take considerably longer to boot up, than the Digihome. Would that be down to the size of the disk at all.?

Enjoying the series record already.

I've never had a problem with my Vestel boxes, but I know my wifi router used to interfere with my Sony TV's tuner if I positioned it too close - lots of breakup on a specific mux, frequency related obviously.

The Digihome was always on, that's why it was quick . You can get the same on the Bush by disabling low power standby mode, although as the HDD is always spinning then even in standby, it might not be such a good idea - it's a shame the HDD doesn't go to sleep in standby like the Digihome does. Boot time from low power standby is directly related to HDD size and how full the recording library is.

I'll stick with the low power mode and just power it up a little while before I need to use it.

Thanks again.

Ok, things not going too well. Tried to record some programs and when I go to view them, they are all blocked up as if the graphics card on a computer has given up.

Right now Pick TV is all chopped up, yet if I switch on the Digihome it is clear as a bell. I've even unplugged the router to see if that was causing it, no difference.

Yesterday it was working fine

The box looked brand new when I got it, so not sure what is going on.

Going to try recording various channels from each mux and see what I get, but that will have to be done over the weekend.

A case of signal too strong perhaps? I'm running out of ideas, but if you happen to have an inline attenuator lying around, it might be worth the try.

12Db or 6Db?, which would be the best to get?

TIA

Unfortunately I have no idea, which is why I would suggest a variable one . You can find them on Amazon or Ebay for £3 or so, although I can't guarantee it will help resolve your problem, but an attenuator would help with troubleshooting.

Just trying a quick few tests and I am now using a splitter hoping that might reduce the signal. On the Digihome Very Good has gone down to Good for mux 60, and from Good to Medium to Good for 58 (Com5).

All other muxes other than Com5 (770Mhx) seem fine. A little frustrating as I seem to watch a good few programs on Pick TV.

I manually scan the mux after any changes of leads.

I also have a powered distribution unit that is meant to supply two TVs from one aerial.

Is it worth getting a signal meter.? Something like this perhaps?


Would a professional be able to sort this out do you think?
By that I mean a person in the house viewing the problem.

I know how hard it is to diagnose stuff remotely.

You might get some better advice by asking in the Technical forum. That said, using a splitter for testing is a good idea - it will reduce the signal like an attenuator would. From your results it would seem an attenuator would not be the answer and the signal quality is weak. I'm not sure how much user the meter would be, but certainly a competent aerial installer should be able to help.

You mention a distribution unit though - is that currently in use? If so, that could be the problem. If at all possible, test with an aerial lead direct from the aerial to your Digihome or Bush - just one device attached, and no amplifiers or distribution units. If the signal is strong from the aerial, the gain from the distribution unit could be too high and is degrading the signal. Or put a splitter in before the input to the distribution unit, so only 50% of the signal is going in.

Thanks,

I just plugged the Distributor unit in to see if it would help/hinder. It used to be inline all the time over the years. I discovered it when I moved the original box. I took it out of the equation when I swapped over the boxes.

I've just carried out a FTI again and currently have Com5 back up amd running. This is puzzling me like hell. I think I need to get some more leads and as I am typing the picture starts to break up.

Now just plugged direct to the wall socket (as I had it before) and 58 starts off Good and then goes and stays at Very Good

I'll give Stargate a record tonight and see what happens then.

Well after my last post Stargate taped fine.

I've gone back to basics now and replaced the lead form the wall to the box and only one device plugged in at a time.

I carried out a FTI after inserting the aerial lead on each box.

Router is off

At present I cannot get Pick TV or Dave.

Mux Signal Quality Signal Strength
Digihome
49 Good 75%
53 Very Good 80%
54 Good 70%
57 None 0%
58 Good 65%
60 Very Good 85%

Bush
49 Very Good 60%
53 Very Good 55%
54 Very Good 55%
57 None/Poor 65%
58 None 45%
60 Good/very Good 60%

I cannot make head or tail as to where the problem lies.