Thoughts appreciated.

[Cachaciero]

First this is what I have followed by what I would like then questions.

Currently using a Technomate 1500 Ci+ with a Diablo cam hooked up to one dish on an H to H motorised dish and a fixed dish on Astra.

For the most part Free to air stuff is adequate for the family needs however there is one channel O Globo on Hotbird which is encrypted with Nagra 2, that''s where the Diablo Cam comes in.

Now the Technomate refuses to drive the H to H and often seems to have some problems with some channels maybe switches but the second box we have handles it all fine, lack of a PVR is also a bit of a problem so time for a new box.

A Linux box is my choice. I use Linux else where pretty exclusively so know my way around it, least ways on a computer.

So question 1 Which Linux box?
Question 2 Do / will the softcams available handle Nagra 2?
Question 3 Would I be better getting a box with a CI slot and keeping the Diablo Cam or are the Softcams so good I can forget about hardware CAMS?

Discuss.



cachaciero

[digicon]

There is only one Tv Globo on 13? east and that is already covered by the Softcam.key file whether its used in a newer technomate or a Linux receiver.

[dick b]

not only that its FTA at the moment

[Cachaciero]

not only that its FTA at the moment

I hadn't even noticed, mind given that at the moment viewing is restricted to the TV on free sat hardly surprising.

So really to watch what I want to watch a hardware CI port is irrelevant, and for anything else that I may care to dick about with to expand my "education" softcams will be good enough ?.


cachaciero

[ramjet]

I hadn't even noticed, mind given that at the moment viewing is restricted to the TV on free sat hardly surprising.

So really to watch what I want to watch a hardware CI port is irrelevant, and for anything else that I may care to dick about with to expand my "education" softcams will be good enough ?.


cachaciero

for a linux based box - yes - good enough

you cannot go wrong with the linux boxes, like vu or dream

[Cachaciero]

for a linux based box - yes - good enough

you cannot go wrong with the linux boxes, like vu or dream

They both seem to have a good rep but a tad expensive IMHO, was thinking about a Technomate TM twin OE.
In part this is because I have been very satisfied with the two boxes I have particularly quality of hardware, one of the few bits of kit I have had in recent years that hasn't had bulging caps after a couple of years and handsets that still work well after five years of hard use.
Though that's about a ?100.00 more than I want to spend :-(

cachaciero

[ramjet]

well, IMHO prices have come down over the last few years and features have gone up at the same time so value for money is better now than its ever been and you get what you pay for too. I paid a lot more money in real terms for my earlier boxes and so the present ones are a bargain in comparison to 5 or 10 years ago

my current box cost about a third in real terms of my first box 10 years ago and is far better equipped so to me its ten times better at a third of the real cost

a tm1500 and diablo cam and cas programmer cost more when new than a new solo2 or a duo

most people buy according to what they think they wish to spend, and its always a lot less than what they really want. sometimes its cheaper in the long run to buy a better box that lasts for longer, like I did with my dreambox

I dont touch clones either, but I believe the tm twin is similar to, or a clone of , the duo

[mdt]

if your after a cheap linux box then a vu+solo clone at ?100 inc p+p or a dm800hdse clone at ?130 inc p+p.. both these clones are well made and have good support with the dm800 having upteen images ect. if you install OscamYmod.T34,Scam 3.60 theres a excellent choice of channels available with softcam/biss keys used in conjunction with a motorised dish without a server in sight.. you can of course add C**am 2.2.1/Mgcamd 1.38 at a later date if you so wished,regards mdt

[Cachaciero]

Ramjet

Your points about improvements and value relative to past times are well made, applies to many things where electronics are involved.

The way I see things is that improved functionality is a given at almost any level as time goes by, improved quality not necessarily so.

Some things become a "fashion item" a "must have" at almost any price although the reality is that often such items are actually little better than much else that is available at a much lower cost, an I Phone is a good example of this. If you buy Apple you are in effect paying for the name, I don't wish to pay for a "name" (for anything!)

So my mental question is, is (for example) Vu the Apple equivalent of Sat boxes is it really worth the extra price over boxes which are functionally equivalent ? Ramjet would appear to believe it is. MDT on the other hand makes the point that a Vu clone is well made is it as well made as the original ? I don't know the answers to any of this yet which is why I am canvassing for and grateful for any opinions, info facts.
One thing that I should make clear is that I do need PVR functionality and I don't like external boxes pluged into USB ports how much problem is a single tuner for those that use PVR a lot? a single tuner would appear to be quite limiting in terms of recording and viewing another channel at the same time or do most people find that they can work around it?

cachaciero

[ramjet]

the whole point of having a dual tuner is that you can either record 2 different channels at the same time, or you can watch one channel whilst recording another , the principle of sly plus and sly plus HD has always been that premise and is why people are changing to multiple tuners from single tuner models

as for a pvr, again like sly plus its preferable to have an internal hdd

as for boxes , its also about the os and the software and apps or addons or plugins as well as the basics of build quality

I know that some images do not work on clones , I know the latest BH and BP images dont run on clone vu`s , I also know that some boxes like the alien or icecrypts run sh4 instead of something different causing problems with certain plugins or that these plugins need tweaking

I have bought boxes that have good build quality, psu`s that do not break or lcd screens that dont fail, but have been let down by the after sales softwares or support. the tm9100 and eagle800 and icecrypt4000 are 3 such boxes where support is almost non-existent and I could list several more examples where this has happened too

you could buy a rolls royce or bentley or ferrari but its useless if you cannot get the parts to have it fixed, or serviced , or if there was a fuel shortage. But I bet you dont drive a trabant or dacia or city rover or some other cheap car on the basis that it gets you from a to b only and ongoing servicing and parts arent an issue

and in my experience the vu boxes have had good support when it comes to different images and plugins and addons, the same as an original dm800 also enjoys several years after its launch date and often these addons work on both, whereas the clones have to pick and choose or have modified files made especially for them and them alone. if other members on here wish to champion clones that is their prerogative but I will never advocate buying a clone due to the reasons I have stated and my own experiences too, never mind those of others as seen or experienced in the vu and dreambox forums here and elsewhere

r+d is almost as important as the equipment and many boxes will fall by the wayside and already have done so with very few standing the test of time. I have tested a few clones and never been satisfied with them compared to their originals, and so I prefer to try to invest wisely and hopefully the choices I make last for years on the hardware side and the r+d continues too, and you see exactly that happen on the vu and dreambox originals

the problem with the apple analogy is you are basically tied to their bespoke os as well as their hardware, but on satellite boxes you are either tied to a single patch maker like on the blade or eagle or tm1500, or you can choose from several images and files when it comes to linux boxes, and NEVER by the manufacturer or distributor

choice, thats what its all about, as well as a good track record and continuous improvements too (as well as build quality)

[Cachaciero]

Ramjet

I understand the points you make. From my perspective I do most of my own car maintenance as it's the only way that I can be sure that things have been done right, generally before buying another car (note another not new ) I try and get a handle on the maintenance issues like availability of data and analysers etc. So it is with Sat boxes which brings me to another question leaving aside the hardware for a minute software. :-
Linux is essentially though not entirely open source so as such the sources for the installable images should be available is this the case?
Assuming that the Linux boxes are running a standard kernel and I suspect many of the standard available utilities this only leaves the question of drivers tied to the hardware of a specific box are these available either in source or compiled kernel modules?, the answer to this may be manufacturer dependant would that be the case for Vu for instance?
As you might guess I am looking at the feasability of doing my own software maintenance / fixes /mods should I need to.

Regards cachaciero

[ramjet]

although the boxes run linux its my understanding that many images are closed source as they dont release the development files. there are probably some exceptions to this but dont believe the hype when it comes to open source as many groups or individuals protect their work effectively making it closed source

I cannot tell you about image or plugin development, I can only help by possibly advising what is available and from which groups. you will see examples of images and plugins etc in the vu and dreambox section, and python and oe development is another side issue here

most of us are users , not developers, so on my duo I have tried blackhole and vix, but not tried blackpole or any other images and I certainly have never tried developing anything for linux or linux boxes nor do I wish to either