I am attracted to the idea of Freesat, and have looked at the Humax
box.
If I get this installed now, will I lose out on any likely
improvements/developments, say over the next year or two?
or to put it another way,
Will the Humax be upgradeable for any predicted changes in the
short/medium term?

In message , 
nemo@definitelyinvalid.net wrote
>I am attracted to the idea of Freesat, and have looked at the Humax
>box.
>If I get this installed now, will I lose out on any likely
>improvements/developments, say over the next year or two?
>or to put it another way,
>Will the Humax be upgradeable for any predicted changes in the
>short/medium term?
>

It depends if the faults on the boxes can be fixed by a 
software/firmware upgrade or not.  It appears that a least one fault on 
the Bush/Goodmans/Grundig SD boxes cannot be fixed in this way. There 
are also some outstanding issues with the Humax HD boxes which may, or 
may not, be fixed.

Consider also if your TV hasn't got HDMI inputs you will not be able to 
see HD content from a Freest box.

If you are that worried just wait a while.

-- 
Alan
news2006 {at} amac {dot} f2s {dot} com

wrote in message 
news:2aop549vumu2u3bo280o4ucgbipu8mvmm4@4ax.com...
>I am attracted to the idea of Freesat, and have looked at the Humax
> box.
> If I get this installed now, will I lose out on any likely
> improvements/developments, say over the next year or two?
> or to put it another way,
> Will the Humax be upgradeable for any predicted changes in the
> short/medium term?
You could always install a DVBS/S2 card in a PC as a cheaper alternative. 
Many already watching the Freesat SD & HD in this way - see www.gbpvr.com
Advantage - you can record. I don't think there are any Freesat PVR's out 
yet.
Disadvantage - No EPG (yet), and no Mheg. People have got round the EPG 
problem by using soemthing like the Radio Times XML downloadable listings - 
but this does cost £10 a year.
If you get an S2 card you should be set for any future changes, as the 
software can easily be updated...

Alan wrote:

>
> Consider also if your TV hasn't got HDMI inputs you will not be able
> to see HD content from a Freest box.
>
> If you are that worried just wait a while.


Is this true?
I was hoping I could output the HD through component as my AV amp does not 
have HDMI.

In message <002122b7$0$2895$c3e8da3@news.astraweb.com>, Des 
 wrote
>Alan wrote:
>
>>
>> Consider also if your TV hasn't got HDMI inputs you will not be able
>> to see HD content from a Freest box.
>>
>> If you are that worried just wait a while.
>
>
>Is this true?

The Humax box did allow HD via component but it appears that Freesat 
rapped their knuckles in a big way and in the last firmware update the 
facility was removed.  HD is only available via HDMI on a Freesat box 
(other free to air boxes may be different).  I believe the issue is to 
do with copy protection and the broadcasters are setting the copy 
protection on all HD content.

It may be worth reading the Digital Spy Freesat forums. In amongst a lot 
of rubbish there is some good information.

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=142

>I was hoping I could output the HD through component as my AV amp does not
>have HDMI.

Could you feed the video directly to a TV with HDMI and the audio via 
the AV amplifier?  I don't currently have a HD capable TV but I do have 
Dolby Digital on the BBC HD via my AV surround sound amp. I have the 
audio connected from my Humax HD box via the SPDIF connections.

[Enhanced audio (surround sound) on the HD channels may only be on HDMI 
and SPDIF].

-- 
Alan
news2006 {at} amac {dot} f2s {dot} com

On Sat, 21 Jun 2008 12:12:35 +0100, nemo@definitelyinvalid.net wrote:

>I am attracted to the idea of Freesat, and have looked at the Humax
>box.
>If I get this installed now, will I lose out on any likely
>improvements/developments, say over the next year or two?
>or to put it another way,
>Will the Humax be upgradeable for any predicted changes in the
>short/medium term?

Thanks for the advice. I'm about to buy a new TV with HDMI and it
seemed a good time to get the freesat box.
Since we get a good terrestrial signal I think I will wait a while.

wrote in message 
news:2aop549vumu2u3bo280o4ucgbipu8mvmm4@4ax.com...
>I am attracted to the idea of Freesat, and have looked at the Humax
> box.
> If I get this installed now, will I lose out on any likely
> improvements/developments, say over the next year or two?
> or to put it another way,
> Will the Humax be upgradeable for any predicted changes in the
> short/medium term?
>
>



recording boxes - an equivalent to a sky + box will appear - i think they 
are well worth waiting for.
once you get used to that kind of system, using a vcr or dvd recorder - or 
watching adverts, suddenly seems very quaint.



-- 
Gareth.

that fly...... is your magic wand....

"Alan"  wrote in message 
news:2X2+phGvGTXIFwUK@amac.f2s.com...
> In message <002122b7$0$2895$c3e8da3@news.astraweb.com>, Des 
>  wrote
>>Alan wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> Consider also if your TV hasn't got HDMI inputs you will not be able
>>> to see HD content from a Freest box.
>>>
>>> If you are that worried just wait a while.
>>
>>
>>Is this true?
>
> The Humax box did allow HD via component but it appears that Freesat 
> rapped their knuckles in a big way and in the last firmware update the 
> facility was removed.

Which means it can be hacked!

> HD is only available via HDMI on a Freesat box (other free to air boxes 
> may be different).  I believe the issue is to do with copy protection and 
> the broadcasters are setting the copy protection on all HD content.
>
> It may be worth reading the Digital Spy Freesat forums. In amongst a lot 
> of rubbish there is some good information.
>

"Alan"  wrote in message 
news:ql9ZVbBAkQXIFwki@amac.f2s.com...
> In message , 
> nemo@definitelyinvalid.net wrote
>>I am attracted to the idea of Freesat, and have looked at the Humax
>>box.
>>If I get this installed now, will I lose out on any likely
>>improvements/developments, say over the next year or two?
>>or to put it another way,
>>Will the Humax be upgradeable for any predicted changes in the
>>short/medium term?
>>
>
> It depends if the faults on the boxes can be fixed by a software/firmware 
> upgrade or not.  It appears that a least one fault on the 
> Bush/Goodmans/Grundig SD boxes cannot be fixed in this way.

Which fault is that?

>>I am attracted to the idea of Freesat, and have looked at the Humax
>>box.
>>If I get this installed now, will I lose out on any likely
>>improvements/developments, say over the next year or two?
>>or to put it another way,
>>Will the Humax be upgradeable for any predicted changes in the
>>short/medium term?
>>
>
> It depends if the faults on the boxes can be fixed by a software/firmware 
> upgrade or not.  It appears that a least one fault on the 
> Bush/Goodmans/Grundig SD boxes cannot be fixed in this way. There are also 
> some outstanding issues with the Humax HD boxes which may, or may not, be 
> fixed.

Exactly what faults are you saying the Humax box has?

Peter Crosland

"slinky"  wrote:

>"Alan"  wrote
>>
>> It depends if the faults on the boxes can be fixed by a software/firmware 
>> upgrade or not.  It appears that a least one fault on the 
>> Bush/Goodmans/Grundig SD boxes cannot be fixed in this way.
>
>Which fault is that?

The luminance and chrominance is slightly misaligned.

So if you look at ITV3, you'll see a red fringe to the left of the
vertical red bar of the DOG that's about half the width of the bar.

The fact that this hasn't been fixed with an OAD suggests that it's not
fixable by putting a new value into a chip control-register.

-- 
Dave Farrance

"Peter Crosland"  wrote:

>Exactly what faults are you saying the Humax box has?

It's said that it blurs the picture significantly when it resizes it.

It's much better, apparently, to output the video via HDMI in unresized
"raw" mode and let the TV do the resizing to fit the native resolution of
its display.  I don't own one, so I don't know how easy that is.

-- 
Dave Farrance

In message <gaudneNPprsDYsDVnZ2dnUVZ8qvinZ2d@posted.plusnet>, Peter 
Crosland  wrote
>>>I am attracted to the idea of Freesat, and have looked at the Humax
>>>box.
>>>If I get this installed now, will I lose out on any likely
>>>improvements/developments, say over the next year or two?
>>>or to put it another way,
>>>Will the Humax be upgradeable for any predicted changes in the
>>>short/medium term?
>>>
>>
>> It depends if the faults on the boxes can be fixed by a software/firmware
>> upgrade or not.  It appears that a least one fault on the
>> Bush/Goodmans/Grundig SD boxes cannot be fixed in this way. There are also
>> some outstanding issues with the Humax HD boxes which may, or may not, be
>> fixed.

>Exactly what faults are you saying the Humax box has?
>

With SD boxes incorrect RGB via SCART and for other problems see the 
news archives for this group.

Humax: Variable lip sync on HD .  This is a problem that I've seen on 
many occasions and sometimes it can be cured by switching channels and 
then switching immediately back.

Some people are complaining about over filtered (soft) HD pictures when 
compared to the output of other Freesat,  Free to Air or Sky boxes.

Although not a fault, one of the biggest annoyances I have with the 
Humax box is the lack of a function to re-order the channel list in the 
7 day EPG to put the channels I watch most at the beginning of the list. 
This functionality is prohibited by Freesat. Apparently the Freesat 
specification also prevents the deleting unwanted channels in the 7 day 
EPG list so presumably on some boxes you will have to wade through 190 
channels of c**p to see the ten channel you want. Although the Humax 
does currently allow deletions in the list firmware upgrades in the near 
past have disabled other useful features!


-- 
Alan
news2006 {at} amac {dot} f2s {dot} com

<uk.tech.digital-tv>
<>
<Sat, 21 Jun 2008 18:41:39 퍝>


> I'm about to buy a new TV with HDMI and it
> seemed a good time to get the freesat box.
> Since we get a good terrestrial signal I think I will wait a while.
> 

You can get freesat supplied and fitted for £150 if you get the cheapo 
bottom of the range box .

So , In about 6 months time when the freesat pvr's come out then it will 
be just a matter of unplugging the old cheapo box and plugging in your 
new pvr box .

Either way your going to have to pay the £80 installation charge and for 
the sake of a poxy £70 your going to have a limited amount of tv 
channels for 6 months .

= silly .


-- 
www.krustov.co.uk

"Dave Farrance"  wrote in message 
news:6b5s541vf2oh8e5lfc0p0lbsaecgn83ge3@4ax.com...
> "Peter Crosland"  wrote:
>
>>Exactly what faults are you saying the Humax box has?
>
> It's said that it blurs the picture significantly when it resizes it.
>
> It's much better, apparently, to output the video via HDMI in unresized
> "raw" mode and let the TV do the resizing to fit the native resolution of
> its display.  I don't own one, so I don't know how easy that is.

I have to say that I've installed three of these by the plug and play 
method, with no problems whatsoever.

Bill

In message , Bill Wright 
 wrote
>
>"Dave Farrance"  wrote in message
>news:6b5s541vf2oh8e5lfc0p0lbsaecgn83ge3@4ax.com...
>> "Peter Crosland"  wrote:
>>
>>>Exactly what faults are you saying the Humax box has?
>>
>> It's said that it blurs the picture significantly when it resizes it.
>>
>> It's much better, apparently, to output the video via HDMI in unresized
>> "raw" mode and let the TV do the resizing to fit the native resolution of
>> its display.  I don't own one, so I don't know how easy that is.
>
>I have to say that I've installed three of these by the plug and play
>method, with no problems whatsoever.
>

But how are you judging the picture quality? Those who are complaining 
about the (inferior) quality of the Humax picture all seem to have other 
sources for the same HD content via another box. While it appears that 
the picture is acceptable to many it could be a lot better.



-- 
Alan
news2006 {at} amac {dot} f2s {dot} com

Or pay £75 in Currys / Dixons for the Freesat from Sky package - this 
includes the installation of a dish AND a standard Sky box.
All you need to do then is buy a Freesat from BBC/ITV box, disconnect the 
Sky box, and connect the new box.
Seems much better value this way, and you will have a spare sky box & sky 
viewing card. I would like to hear that you can run both boxes of the one 
dish, but just don't know...


-- 
www.krustov.co.uk

"Alan"  wrote in message 
news:2X2+phGvGTXIFwUK@amac.f2s.com...
> In message <002122b7$0$2895$c3e8da3@news.astraweb.com>, Des 
>  wrote
>>Alan wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> Consider also if your TV hasn't got HDMI inputs you will not be able
>>> to see HD content from a Freest box.
>>>
>>> If you are that worried just wait a while.
>>
>>
>>Is this true?
>
> The Humax box did allow HD via component but it appears that Freesat 
> rapped their knuckles in a big way and in the last firmware update the 
> facility was removed.  HD is only available via HDMI on a Freesat box 
> (other free to air boxes may be different).  I believe the issue is to do 
> with copy protection and the broadcasters are setting the copy protection 
> on all HD content.
>
> It may be worth reading the Digital Spy Freesat forums. In amongst a lot 
> of rubbish there is some good information.
>
> http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=142
>
>>I was hoping I could output the HD through component as my AV amp does not
>>have HDMI.
>
> Could you feed the video directly to a TV with HDMI and the audio via the 
> AV amplifier?  I don't currently have a HD capable TV but I do have Dolby 
> Digital on the BBC HD via my AV surround sound amp. I have the audio 
> connected from my Humax HD box via the SPDIF connections.
>
> [Enhanced audio (surround sound) on the HD channels may only be on HDMI 
> and SPDIF].
>
> -- 
> Alan
> news2006 {at} amac {dot} f2s {dot} com

Hi Alan,
That's a shame, I had at least hoped it would be like an Xbox 360 and allow 
1080i over component.  I thought the issue with HDCP was only with 1080p. 
Ho hum.

Cheers,
Keith

"Alan"  wrote in message 
news:HSmiopEsVmXIFwih@amac.f2s.com...
> In message , Bill Wright 
>  wrote
>>
>>"Dave Farrance"  wrote in message
>>news:6b5s541vf2oh8e5lfc0p0lbsaecgn83ge3@4ax.com...
>>> "Peter Crosland"  wrote:
>>>
>>>>Exactly what faults are you saying the Humax box has?
>>>
>>> It's said that it blurs the picture significantly when it resizes it.
>>>
>>> It's much better, apparently, to output the video via HDMI in unresized
>>> "raw" mode and let the TV do the resizing to fit the native resolution 
>>> of
>>> its display.  I don't own one, so I don't know how easy that is.
>>
>>I have to say that I've installed three of these by the plug and play
>>method, with no problems whatsoever.
>>
>
> But how are you judging the picture quality? Those who are complaining 
> about the (inferior) quality of the Humax picture all seem to have other 
> sources for the same HD content via another box. While it appears that the 
> picture is acceptable to many it could be a lot better.

I'm judging it by eye on its own merits. I doubt if a direct comparision by 
eye of two sources would prove anything assuming that both pictures were 
basically OK, because of the effects of contrast, brightness, 
edge-enhancement effects, and so forth. When I first started working in 
broadcast premises I found it quite difficult at first to get used to the 
pictures on the monitors. These were in fact first class but to my untutored 
eye appeared pale, washed out, and lacking in 'bite'. Of course I was used 
to the typical 'good' domestic picture, with artifical sharpening of edges, 
solid areas of black, crushed whites, and lotsa colour.

Bill

"GTS" <gts123SPAM-NO!@ntlworld.com> wrote in message 
news:2Qu7k.41371$GF6.40389@newsfe27.ams2...
> Or pay £75 in Currys / Dixons for the Freesat from Sky package - this 
> includes the installation of a dish AND a standard Sky box.
> All you need to do then is buy a Freesat from BBC/ITV box, disconnect the 
> Sky box, and connect the new box.
> Seems much better value this way, and you will have a spare sky box & sky 
> viewing card. I would like to hear that you can run both boxes of the one 
> dish, but just don't know...
> www.krustov.co.uk
Change the LNB for a dual or quad one and have each box in different rooms

Often you can slip the installer a few quid and he'll add it for you,
while you are at it get them to fit a bigger region 2 dish.

Steve Terry

"Steve Terry"  wrote in message 
news:g3mlju$q56$1@news.albasani.net...
>
> Often you can slip the installer a few quid and he'll add it for you,
> while you are at it get them to fit a bigger region 2 dish.

He'll have one size or the other. Not both. He'll also be either singular, 
or they will be plural.

Bill

On 21/06/2008, The dog from that film you saw wrote in message
:
 
> recording boxes - an equivalent to a sky + box will appear - i think
> they  are well worth waiting for.
> once you get used to that kind of system, using a vcr or dvd recorder -
> or  watching adverts, suddenly seems very quaint.

Which doesn't mean you shouldn't buy a non-recording box.  Depending on
your wishes, it might just be a sign that you should buy a /cheap/ non-
recording box: one just good enough to tide you over until a decent
recording one appears.

Simon.
-- 
http://www.hearsay.demon.co.uk

"Simon Slavin"  wrote 
in message news:g3p6h3$hq4$1$8302bc10@news.demon.co.uk...
> On 21/06/2008, The dog from that film you saw wrote in message
> :
>
>> recording boxes - an equivalent to a sky + box will appear - i think
>> they  are well worth waiting for.
>> once you get used to that kind of system, using a vcr or dvd recorder -
>> or  watching adverts, suddenly seems very quaint.
>
> Which doesn't mean you shouldn't buy a non-recording box.  Depending on
> your wishes, it might just be a sign that you should buy a /cheap/ non-
> recording box: one just good enough to tide you over until a decent
> recording one appears.




such as an old second hand sky box!



-- 
Gareth.

that fly...... is your magic wand....