Aha! So I guess I'm not the only one watching the K-Dramas around here, huh? ;)Don't tell me you are a fan of Dae Jo-Yeong.

You know, I'm really not into the historical ones so much myself, but if I were, that would be one I'm sure. I know it's one of the most popular historical ones ever and they've already extended it past it's original planned run quite a bit. I never saw it from the start, so I couldn't get into it when I tried watching it. I did catch a little of it near the end here (it's been over here for awhile now). All I saw were a lot of heads getting chopped off and stabbings and deaths (the final battle for supremacy, I suppose - I won't tell you who gets killed, although if you're into the Philly K-Drama forum you probably know already. I check out that one and the local Chicago one occasionally, mostly for the spoilers, even though I'm already ahead of either of you OTA areas with KBS World on Dish. But the spoilers are even way ahead of me).

29.1 (FOX) is still hovering around the red and the picture is breaking up every few seconds. That may not change for me until the leaves drop and FOX boosts their antenna height and power.


Im in Dover, and channel 29.1 WTXF-DT has been one of my strongest channels on my Insignia box. (Of course, during a hard downpour, I get zip, zero, nada channels. One of the things Ill have to get used to with digital TV. ) What uhf antenna do you have in the attic ? A SBGH or bowtie type is much better at capturing signals thru leaves/trees than a yagi style antenna in my experience.

Im in Dover, and channel 29.1 WTXF-DT has been one of my strongest channels on my Insignia box. (Of course, during a hard downpour, I get zip, zero, nada channels. One of the things Ill have to get used to with digital TV. )You might be getting water in the connections. Make sure they are sealed well with silicone gel. You can buy a good sized tube of it for $3.00 or less at Walmart.

If your signals are normally that strong, but they go completely dead with a hard downpour, that could be your culprit, because that's not normal.

My signals arent that strong to begin with. According to TVFool, my Philly stations range from -81.1 to -115.0 dBm.

Presently Im using low-loss 300ohm, which has been fine for analog, which only just gets a little weaker in a downpour. I may have to try some good RG6.

Try a 300 ohm to 75 ohm transformer from your antenna then RG6 to your setup. Sometimes you would be surprised what a difference going from 300 ohm lead to a coax will make. :(Downside though it may not make any difference because of your location hopefully it would help...You may have some better luck with a preamp on the antenna....Good Luck with your signals

Coax holds up better (breakage wise) in most weather conditions. 300 ohm tends to break easier at antenna due to wind etc.....Leads to the transformer (balun) are generally stronger The reason I changed to coax was I got tried of replacing the 300 ohm end to the rooftop antenna every time I turned around....

Actually 300 ohm twin lead is lowest loss of all if its run right but it has to be run in a straight line with spacers to house, cant run near metal, etc its a pain.. Then the lines physical state degrades over the months and years,
John


The lowest loss spacing material of all is AIR but thats hard to
do in a cable that needs consistent spacing... so modern cable
tends to use foam.. for the encapsulated voids...

Everything else being equal a 300 ohm impedance has a lower loss
than a 75 ohm line.

Unfortunately, twin-lead has VERY high loss in UHF band when it gets wet.
And the excellent low loss "spec" for twin-lead means nothing
when installed in the walls....and as it gets old, dirty & cracked...
It also has no shielding against local interference....

If you don't have any nearby broadcast towers, the "best" approach
is to use a mast-mounted (e.g. low-gain W-G) Preamp so you don't
really care all that much about extra loss in the downlead coax.

...
It (300 ohm twin-lead, ed.) also has no shielding against local interference....
...

And in a digital world, this is more important than signal propagation!

Our DTX9900 has performed well up until a couple of weeks ago. If the box is on for several hours, it will sometimes suddenly shut itself off. The box is somewhat warm when this happens although the box is out in the open by itself without any restricted airflow.

You can turn it back on right away after this happens and it stays on.

Anyone else have this problem?

The lowest loss spacing material of all is AIR but thats hard to
do in a cable that needs consistent spacing... so modern cable
tends to use foam.. for the encapsulated voids...

Heh, that reminded me of the 300ohm I used to get, picture attached. Cant get that stuff or its special standoffs anymore. And I only have about 15 feet left, so Im short by 25 feet. :p

http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/1647/300ohmlowloss408x306ty0.jpg


Yeah, 300ohm suffers in uhf when wet, but when analog viewing in a downpour its just a little decrease in reception. With my digital stations, I get nothing. The signal then shows about 25-35% on most stations, which isnt enough to lock. Yes, its properly installed with 12 inch standoff and not near any metal.

I will try the RG6 and see if it makes a difference for me, without trading better picture in a downpour versus less signal on nice days.

Our DTX9900 has performed well up until a couple of weeks ago. If the box is on for several hours, it will sometimes suddenly shut itself off. The box is somewhat warm when this happens although the box is out in the open by itself without any restricted airflow.

You can turn it back on right away after this happens and it stays on.

Anyone else have this problem?How long was it on? There is a menu timer setting that shuts the unit down at 1 2 4 or 8 hours it also has a selection for the timer to be off i think the default setting is 4 hours. Maybe that's the reason it shut down......I haven't had my on long enough to see it shut down......It does get pretty warm even with the vent holes in it.....

Our DTX9900 has performed well up until a couple of weeks ago. If the box is on for several hours, it will sometimes suddenly shut itself off. The box is somewhat warm when this happens although the box is out in the open by itself without any restricted airflow.

You can turn it back on right away after this happens and it stays on.

Anyone else have this problem?I have the timer menu set to off and I have left my DTX9900 on 24x7 for a week to test it out. It gets a little warm but I don't think overly so. No problems with operation and no self shut-off either.

My DTX9900 was causing the shelf that it is sitting on to get fairly warm, so I am now using two 2x2 pieces of wood under the box for "feet". The box runs cooler and the shelf no longer gets warm. :)

My DTX9900 was causing the shelf that it is sitting on to get fairly warm, so I am now using two 2x2 pieces of wood under the box for "feet". The box runs cooler and the shelf no longer gets warm. :)

Yep, get some space under these units if you can, one could purchase bigger pads/feet from radio shack cheap as well to increase the space between the
bottom of the boxes and the surface it sits on.

Good point.;)

How long was it on? There is a menu timer setting that shuts the unit down at 1 2 4 or 8 hours it also has a selection for the timer to be off i think the default setting is 4 hours. Maybe that's the reason it shut down......I haven't had my on long enough to see it shut down......It does get pretty warm even with the vent holes in it.....

Turns out the Sleep Timer was set "off", but the Power Down timer was not set "off". Odd default to ship the device so it shuts itself off. Must increase their customer support calls. Wonder if it comes as a requirement to get Energy Star classification.

Will check tonight to make sure this solves the problem. Other than this, it's performed well.

Yes, its a requirement that it shuts down in power down mode by default
so its either energy star compliant or compliant with their rules on energy usage.

Yes, its a requirement that it shuts down in power down mode by default
so its either energy star compliant or compliant with their rules on energy usage.

Energy Star can be dumb beyond belief. It would use even less energy if you never allowed it to turn on. I understand where they are coming from, but they crossed the line on this one.

I bought one of these the other day, hooked it up yesterday with the same rabbit ears that were on the TV from before. Picked up all the channels we watch, and seems to be working very well.

I haven't had enough time with it to really see if theres an audio issue, but I'll report back if anything pops up.

Does anyone know what that mysterious Emergency Alert setting is for? Documentation doesn't really say what it's for, just how to set the settings for it. I have no idea what/where it would be looking for alerts.

I bought one of these the other day, hooked it up yesterday with the same rabbit ears that were on the TV from before. Picked up all the channels we watch, and seems to be working very well.

I haven't had enough time with it to really see if theres an audio issue, but I'll report back if anything pops up.

Does anyone know what that mysterious Emergency Alert setting is for? Documentation doesn't really say what it's for, just how to set the settings for it. I have no idea what/where it would be looking for alerts.

I don't have one. So just a guess.

I think in DTV the emergency alert could do something like turn a tv set on. For a converter box it might just flash a LED, like the power indicator, indicating to the people that an emergency alert has been sent.

Just as analog broadcasters in radio and tv are part of emergency alert network and present the alert when the government generates it, DTV broadcasters are part of that network. A DTV device would be in a standby mode (when this emergency alert function was turned on) and respond to it when received, similar to the weather alert feature of weather radios that sound alarm or turn on audio when an alert is received.

It has been noted that all boxes built with the LGDT1111D chipset has a nasty design flaw in regards to the audio, specifically in the left channel and only when the source is DD5.1.

Audio and FFTs of the Zenith have been posted over in the Zenith thread.

Well, on Tuesday I picked up two of the DTX9900 boxes. Had to do something, as the stupid CECB coupons expired on Friday. Forgot that the DS also had the LG chipset.:confused:

Tonight I captured audio and created FFts of said audio. Of the four channels that I captured, not one of them was the same, in regards to the audio problem:

ABC: DD5.1 - Has the problem, above 16k Hz
CBS: DD2.0 - No problem
Fox: DD5.1 - Has the problem, above 16 kHz, but not as pronounced as ABC
PBS: DD5.1 - Has the problem, in the area seen in the Zenith FFTs - 11.2-13.8 kHz

The audio files and the FFT images are available in this zip (http://vidiot.com/DTX9900-080524.zip) file.

I'll be calling the 866 service number next week to get these sent in and replaced with units that have the new LG chipset. I truly expect to get a front-line phone droid that knows not of the problem.

Has anyone called the 866 service number to get their unit(s) replaced?

It has been noted that all boxes built with the LGDT1111D chipset has a nasty design flaw in regards to the audio, specifically in the left channel and only when the source is DD5.1.

Audio and FFTs of the Zenith have been posted over in the Zenith thread.


People are reporting that Zenith units with a build date of April 2008 no longer have the audio problem. My coupons expire soon so was going to get a Zenith and a DS, but with the Zenith audio being fixed, I will probably get 2 of those.

People are reporting that Zenith units with a build date of April 2008 no longer have the audio problem. My coupons expire soon so was going to get a Zenith and a DS, but with the Zenith audio being fixed, I will probably get 2 of those.

Until I see audio captures from said units, I do not believe it is fixed. Here is why:

tvropro posted:

April Build:
Tuner: LG TDVG-8051F
Main Chip: LGDT1111D P40837.00

March Build:
Tuner: Sanyo UBA00AL
Main Chip: LGDT1111D P40834.00

While the tuner is different, the main processing chip isn't.

Until I see audio captures from said units, I do not believe it is fixed. Here is why:

tvropro posted:

April Build:
Tuner: LG TDVG-8051F
Main Chip: LGDT1111D P40837.00

March Build:
Tuner: Sanyo UBA00AL
Main Chip: LGDT1111D P40834.00

While the tuner is different, the main processing chip isn't.

The main processing chip is the same, but the left channel anomaly is not present in the April 2008 Zenith that I brought home from Circuit City last week. In a week's worth of viewing and listening, including channels and programs that were consistent offenders with the previous three converters, no problem has been heard.

LG has corrected the issue. Within 60 seconds of putting the April 2008 converter through its paces last Saturday night, it was obvious that the problem was gone. Channel after channel after channel sounded pristine...and they still do, one week later.

I did post two audio captures here earlier in the week, including one from the infamous NBC Nightly News. For the first time, the left and right channels sounded identical.

I did post two audio captures here earlier in the week, including one from the infamous NBC Nightly News. For the first time, the left and right channels sounded identical.

I'm sorry, but I cannot find them. I found a posting of images, but nothing with links pointing to audio.

You have a post number over in the Zenith thread?

I'm sorry, but I cannot find them. I found a posting of images, but nothing with links pointing to audio.

You have a post number over in the Zenith thread?

I went to mediafire.com to get the download links instead...that was a lot easier, as I'm not even certain where these are on the forum immediately.

Here's the first one, a "Today" excerpt from Sunday, March 18th:
http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?yx1rwwibm3y

Here's the second, "NBC Nightly News" from Monday, March 19th:
http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?2jutdmmkj4z

The "Nightly News" folder, for comparison, also has an analog tuner capture of the same 30 seconds.

I went to mediafire.com to get the download links instead.

Thanks. I'll fetch them later. Right now I'm making web pages for all of the network snipes/clutter that I hate. There is so much material I had to put the stuff into pages of their own.

Thanks. I'll fetch them later. Right now I'm making web pages for all of the network snipes/clutter that I hate. There is so much material I had to put the stuff into pages of their own.

I hope the excerpts will help. The April 2008 version of the Zenith has truly brought this "early adopter" nightmare to a close over here.

I went with the april '08 zenith after hearing the audio glitch on the DS a few months back. Is the manufacture date printed on the DS box? I can't remember.

I went with the april '08 zenith after hearing the audio glitch on the DS a few months back.

A few months back the Zenith had it as well. I'm not sure what your point is.

I hope the excerpts will help. The April 2008 version of the Zenith has truly brought this "early adopter" nightmare to a close over here.

The two Zenith waverform FFTs do indeed look good. What is puzzling is that they drop off shortly after 16 kHz. What is more puzzling is that the analog tuner FFT goes out past 20 kHz a little bit. That is just plain wrong, since analog MTS is 50-15 kHz. Strange

Now that we know the fixed chipset is out there, I can hassle Digital Stream to get these two boxes replaced with fixed units. I prefer the DS boxes for the larger OSD and EPG that goes out farther. It is true that I've giving them away, but I still prefer giving away what DS has for "features."

I'm heading out in 5 minutes to go take a look, but as of right now the DS has the audio problem and no boxes are released that are fixed.

The DS has a better guide, but that seems to affect the tuner performance?

I was waiting for the DTVpal, but I'm tired of the excuses.

The Zenith has the April units fixed.

Is there any advantage of purchasing at Radio Shack versus circuit city? Return policy, etc.

I like that Radio Shack offers both so if I bought 1 of each and preferred one over the other, I could return and get the other.

The two Zenith waverform FFTs do indeed look good. What is puzzling is that they drop off shortly after 16 kHz. What is more puzzling is that the analog tuner FFT goes out past 20 kHz a little bit. That is just plain wrong, since analog MTS is 50-15 kHz. Strange

Now that we know the fixed chipset is out there, I can hassle Digital Stream to get these two boxes replaced with fixed units. I prefer the DS boxes for the larger OSD and EPG that goes out farther. It is true that I've giving them away, but I still prefer giving away what DS has for "features."

I did some audio captures for you over on the Zenith post. I did all the major networks & more.

Here's the link to the files http://www.themusicworkshopchicago.com/special/aprilbuild.zip

If we want to nitpick, there are codes. The remote has an internal database of about 150 codes. If none of them work for you, tough - there's no way to get additional codes into the remote. If one does, great!

It works for me with a Sanyo. Only annoyance is that volume UP is on the LEFT and DOWN is on the RIGHT.......:confused:
I purchased the Digital Stream DTX9900 DTV Converter box from Radio Shack. This box has some good reviews. I also wanted a remote which could control the TV volume, antenna switching for analog signals, and the TV's ON/OFF power.

I just wanted to report on the remote's programming feature. According to the instruction pamphlet, to program the remote to the particular TV set; with the TV ON, the user is supposed to hold down the remote's TV Power button while pressing the UP arrow key. There is a note that says, "If the TV does not respond within 150 trials, this Universal Remote can not control the TV".

I tried it with three different sets and none responded. Bummer!

I then dug out my Quantex Infrared Sensor card Model No. Q-12-R . This credit-card sized plastic card has a special coating which turns IR into visible light. Really Neat!

The card indicated that using the prescribed procedure did not produce IR from the remote. However, pressing both the TV Power Key and the "DOWN" Arrow key, turned off my sets in very short order, producing the control I desired.

If you have a video camera, another trick is to point the remote at the camera. The camera will see the IR signal and convert it to visible light on your display or viewfinder.

If you have a video camera, another trick is to point the remote at the camera. The camera will see the IR signal and convert it to visible light on your display or viewfinder.Any digital camera with an LCD screen will also show the IR signal.

The two Zenith waverform FFTs do indeed look good. What is puzzling is that they drop off shortly after 16 kHz. What is more puzzling is that the analog tuner FFT goes out past 20 kHz a little bit. That is just plain wrong, since analog MTS is 50-15 kHz. Strange

Now that we know the fixed chipset is out there, I can hassle Digital Stream to get these two boxes replaced with fixed units. I prefer the DS boxes for the larger OSD and EPG that goes out farther. It is true that I've giving them away, but I still prefer giving away what DS has for "features."

The analog audio, to my own ears, is vastly inferior to the audio from the Zenith. To me, it sounds much weaker in the high end, and noise is more prevalent. Now that you mention it, though, the spectrum editor display that I captured shows what appears to be a bit of response above 16.5 khz for the Lite-On 1107HC1 DVD recorder's analog tuner, extending to almost 20 khz. The Zenith graph, on the other hand, is completely dead above roughly 16.5 khz. It appears to be purposely cut off above that region. The Lite-On's tuner, by the way, is strictly mono, which I had totally forgotten about at the time of recording.

When checking the spectrum display for the original NBC Nightly News clip that I uploaded here many weeks back, there is a bit of response, even in the right channel, that appears to extend upwards to almost 20 khz...not a lot, but it is there. With the April converter, the graph shows absolutely nothing above roughly 16.5 khz.

This would seem to verify what tvropro has indicated in his own tests--that LG has apparently altered the high end response as at least part of the fix.

Best of luck with Digital Stream customer service--hopefully it will be a bit better than Zenith's.

Just as a point of reference, Sony built a digital audio recorder based on the 8mm tape format and intentionally cut the aduio at 15k to avoid interference from the 15,734 horizontal noise.

When checking the spectrum display for the original NBC Nightly News clip that I uploaded here many weeks back, there is a bit of response, even in the right channel, that appears to extend upwards to almost 20 khz...not a lot, but it is there. With the April converter, the graph shows absolutely nothing above roughly 16.5 khz.

This would seem to verify what tvropro has indicated in his own tests--that LG has apparently altered the high end response as at least part of the fix.



I noticed right away that the April build Zenith was lacking high end since I was rolling off high end in my mod I could tell. Im listening to my Magnavox right now and can notice it's brightness over the Zenith. If it wasn't such a hassle to rip these converters out of my racks and connect them to a pc it would be cool to see what the freq resp falls off on the Magnavox vs the Zenith. Maybe if I get ambitious I'll do it.

Any digital camera with an LCD screen will also show the IR signal.Hey, cool! It works... it's bright, too! Yet totally invisible to my naked eyes. :eek::)

Hey, cool! It works... it's bright, too! Yet totally invisible to my naked eyes. :eek::)

That's why some of the small cameras that have so-called "Nightshot", really is just a couple of high-output IR led's around the lens so that whatever it's looking at is illuminated with IR light and thusly, seen by the camera.

A few months back the Zenith had it as well. I'm not sure what your point is.

His point is that he went with the Zenith because they fixed the audio problem that he heard on the DS.

Has any one yet RMA their DS? I want to do it, but I don't know if DS already has the issue fixed

My Digital Stream DTX9900 detects no digital signal from ABC or Fox affiliates in the Portland, Oregon, area from which I get strong analog signals. I've tried adjusting my (large outdoor) antenna through a full 360 degrees, to no avail. Auto scan fails to detect any signal from these two stations. Their web sites say they are broadcasting both digital and analog signals. Yet my Digital Stream DTX 9900 detects no digital signal from either. Anyone have any suggestions? Thanks.

Have you tried manually entering the channel?

ABC 2.1 digital is broadcasting on 43 real frequency
FOX 12.1 digital on Ch 30 RF [and will return to 12 in Feb.]
MyN 49.1 digital is on Ch 48 [and will move to 30 in Feb.]

I'm too new to OTA to be any help if it's an antenna thing. The main network towers are clustered close together. If you get the other channels, I'm assuming you have a working UHF antenna pointed in the right direction. You could look at TVFool.com to see what you can expect for reception in your exact location. 15 miles away, I get 10 channels, totalling 22 subchannels, with a Zenith CECB and an indoor coathanger antenna. MyN is a bit jumpy on signal, although it's strong.

Thanks for the suggestion, which I will try as soon as I figure out how to add channels manually. I have tried a different TV set (without making any other changes), rescanned on Auto Scan, and now get good reception of the KATU (ABC affiliate) signal. Apparently my Toshiba set does much better on a weak signal than my Sony set. However, both sets get ZERO signal on KPTV (the Fox affiliate). I'll post again after I've tried adding KPTV manually, but I'm skeptical that will work in the absence of any signal at all from KPTV.

Re: Adding channels manually
The Digital Stream Owner's Manual (Owner's Manual - ha! That's a joke!) doesn't mention manual channel addition, and I haven't been able to find that option on stepping through all the on-screen menus. Any suggestions?

Incidentaly, TVFool.com says that KPTV's signal at my address is only minimally weaker than the signals for KOIN, KATU, and KOPB (which come in loud and clear), while it is stronger than the signal for KGW, which also comes in loud and clear.

I found a bunch of ways to enter channels that I didn't see in the Zenith manual. I can enter virtual channel number 12.1, or 121, or just 12, and it looks for virtual channel 12.1. If a signal is weak it says no signal, but I can press the signal button to look for a signal. Zenith has a manual channel add feature in the "Menu...Option" area; it shows all real frequencies from 2-69, with found channels in darker print. If I select an RF channel, the signal monitor shows and I can move the antenna around (slowly, there's a lag) to optimize signal. There were a few surprises about where my indoor antenna did best, it wasn't the same as for analog. If signal strength is -70dBm or better you could hook up rabbit ears/UHF loop (everything's UHF except CW right now), to rule out antenna problems.

Hopefully a DS owner will have some suggestions for you if there is something comparable for DS tuning. Failing that, if you got it at RS, they also have carried Zenith (they go in and out of stock ever few days) so maybe you can exchange for a Zenith -- try for April mfg or later to avoid the audio issues.

Thanks again for your comments. I tried entering 12.1 - when I did it showed 12-1 on the screen, which I imagine is the correct response, but still no picture, and no signal on the signal meter. DS does not have a "Menu...Option" area.
I have a large outdoor antenna, which makes antenna adjustment a bit of a challenge, (and which makes the absent KPTV signal more puzzling) but with my wife watching the signal meter inside, and with me adjusting antenna position outside while we communicated on our cell phones, we still couldn't get a signal. TVFool.com shows that the KPTV transmitter is at 6º E of magnetic N from us, so when I can get hold of a compass, I'll orient the antenna exactly.
Unfortunately, if I take back the DS to RS, I'll lose the $40 credit from the government coupon I used to buy it. However, I can use the second coupon to get a Zenith (April build).

Thanks again for your comments. I tried entering 12.1 - when I did it showed 12-1 on the screen, which I imagine is the correct response, but still no picture, and no signal on the signal meter. DS does not have a "Menu...Option" area.
I have a large outdoor antenna, which makes antenna adjustment a bit of a challenge, (and which makes the absent KPTV signal more puzzling) but with my wife watching the signal meter inside, and with me adjusting antenna position outside while we communicated on our cell phones, we still couldn't get a signal. TVFool.com shows that the KPTV transmitter is at 6º E of magnetic N from us, so when I can get hold of a compass, I'll orient the antenna exactly.
Unfortunately, if I take back the DS to RS, I'll lose the $40 credit from the government coupon I used to buy it. However, I can use the second coupon to get a Zenith (April build).

Try an exchange possibly for this unit, certainly wont hurt. chances re the next box wont be any more sensitive though..

Zenith April build is a good choice for sure though its got a very hot reciever.

Wouldn't RS let you do an even exchange for a Zenith? I know they have them in stock in the area, but it changes daily.

John, your Zenith runs hot? Do you mean just the April one? I have Feb. (with sound problem) and it stays cool.

Wouldn't RS let you do an even exchange for a Zenith? I know they have them in stock in the area, but it changes daily.

John, your Zenith runs hot? Do you mean just the April one? I have Feb. (with sound problem) and it stays cool.

My April build Zenith has been running for a couple of hours, and is barely lukewarm to the touch. My Dish Network receiver runs warmer even in its standby mode.

Dish tuners are real hotboxes. You could fry an egg on my 322.

For the record, the March Zenith I had never seemed hot at all. 'Course, I always kept it out in the open and never up too high in the room.

Dish tuners are real hotboxes. You could fry an egg on my 322.


That's my receiver! You could almost heat up a can of soup on it.

I just purchased a DTX9900 this evening from Radio Shack. This was part of a brand new shipment, so I was hoping that the audio problem would be fixed. Well, it wasn't.

Both my wife and I heard the "scratchy" noise coming from the left channel during CSI on CBS. It was especially bad during Without a Trace.

On the package and the unit itself it says: "DATE: 05A08"
I think it's safe to assume that this means May 2008.

So just as a warning to everyone, the May 2008 DTX9900 boxes have NOT been fixed, and still have the 5.1 audio problem.

Has anyone tried getting their box fixed? I would return it to Radio Shack, but they don't carry the Zenith anymore due to too many problems. I don't want another broken Digital Stream. Is Digital Stream acknowledging the audio problem, and are they repairing them?

I'm sure this has been mentioned, but if you know the physical channel frequency, you can enter it directly by pressing the "." then the physical channel. ie My virtual channels 25.1 and 25.2 are located at physical 40.1 and 40.2, so I press . 4 0 . 1 and it will tune to that channel (and display 25.1, the virtual channel if it is detected)

While I'm not certain, I suspect that if you're trying to tune a channel that won't scan, then you would need to manually select the physical channel, not the virtual one. I my example, if I was trying to set up the antenna, I would have to select 40.1, not 25.1, to adjust the direction.

A lot of broadcasters are still having problems with transmitters so occassional outages are not unusual. (and some just don't care)

Wouldn't RS let you do an even exchange for a Zenith? I know they have them in stock in the area, but it changes daily.

John, your Zenith runs hot? Do you mean just the April one? I have Feb. (with sound problem) and it stays cool.


No you guys I meant Hot as in sensitive "hot" sorry for the confusion :P


John

I Will Be DRM Free
WinXP Will Never Be

This part of your quote confuses me. As much as I do not care for Windblows, XP-SP2 has never given me DRM issues.

What has given you trouble?

Thanks Zaphod7501 for:
"I'm sure this has been mentioned, but if you know the physical channel frequency, you can enter it directly by pressing the "." then the physical channel. ie My virtual channels 25.1 and 25.2 are located at physical 40.1 and 40.2, so I press . 4 0 . 1 and it will tune to that channel (and display 25.1, the virtual channel if it is detected)

"While I'm not certain, I suspect that if you're trying to tune a channel that won't scan, then you would need to manually select the physical channel, not the virtual one. I my example, if I was trying to set up the antenna, I would have to select 40.1, not 25.1, to adjust the direction."

I'll try your suggestions tomorrow and post the results.

I just purchased a DTX9900 this evening from Radio Shack. This was part of a brand new shipment, so I was hoping that the audio problem would be fixed. Well, it wasn't.

On the package and the unit itself it says: "DATE: 05A08"
I think it's safe to assume that this means May 2008.

So just as a warning to everyone, the May 2008 DTX9900 boxes have NOT been fixed, and still have the 5.1 audio problem.



My coupons were about to expire so I went to CC and purchased two Zenith units today. I really wanted to buy one Zenith and one Digital Stream but wasn't sure if the audio problem in the DS was fixed or not. It kind of bugged me today as I wondered whether I did the right thing in buying the two Zenith units or whether I should have taken a chance on a Digital Stream.
Looks like I made the right decision.

This part of your quote confuses me. As much as I do not care for Windblows, XP-SP2 has never given me DRM issues.

What has given you trouble?
It's not exactly a "quote" since It's my own rhyme. :)
1: It rhymes.
2: XP was reported to have the "potential" of adding it's own backdoor DRM by file type/content.
Other than Media Center (which does impose DRM) it doesn't look like the ability was ever put into place. (if the ability was truly present then it could be activated by the Window's Update process at any time)

Since all of my hardware works properly with Win2k, I have had no need to purchase a copy of a newer OS. I build all of my PCs from scratch to perform specific jobs so I have never purchased a prebuilt system other than a white box DX4-100 Windows For Workgroups box. Some of my preferred hardware has no or poor XP/Vista support. I had to use some tricks to get my HVR1600 to work under Win2k and to enable DXVA/hardware acc. on a nVidia 7600GS GPU so I will eventually have to buy a system if I want to be able to play some of the new h264 videos. (unless I go the extender route - but I would need one not tied to Media Center)

To manually tune to an RF frequency, press the Period key first. The tune window pops up and says "RF" in it - then you type the frequency you want. You can then pull up the signal meter and adjust as necessary!

That's part of why I like the box so much.

To manually tune to an RF frequency, press the Period key first. The tune window pops up and says "RF" in it - then you type the frequency you want. You can then pull up the signal meter and adjust as necessary!

That's part of why I like the box so much.

That was the only thing about the DTX9900 that I preferred to the Zenith DTT900.  On the DTT900 you have to go into the manual tuning menu to do that, which I didn't mind, but when you get there you can't enter the desired RF channel with the number keys; rather, you have to scroll with the cursor up and down keys through the channel numbers until you arrive at the desired one.  [There's a way to streamline that a little, but it belongs on a thread for the DTT900.]

For everything other difference between the two units, the DS just plain rubbed me the wrong way.  I hadn't used a coupon for it and ended up returning it.

Final results on my attempts to home in on KPTV (Channel 12, the Fox affiliate in Portland):
1. I lined up my antenna to 6 degrees E of N (as specified for KPTV by TVFool.com at my home address) using a compass.
2. I entered the period (.) on my converter box remote and brought up the RF input window.
3. I entered 30 which is listed by TVFool.com as the "Real Channel" for KPTV.
4. I brought up my converter box's signal meter and got a signal strength of 3-4. This compares with a signal strength of 30-33 for the other broadcast channels.

Conclusion: Despite good analog reception of KPTV, their digital reception sucks at my location. Bad news for my wife, who's a big fan of "Everybody Loves Raymond." But not so bad that I'm willing to fork out big bucks for satellite (no cable where I live).

Final results on my attempts to home in on KPTV (Channel 12, the Fox affiliate in Portland):
1. I lined up my antenna to 6 degrees E of N (as specified for KPTV by TVFool.com at my home address) using a compass.
2. I entered the period (.) on my converter box remote and brought up the RF input window.
3. I entered 30 which is listed by TVFool.com as the "Real Channel" for KPTV.
4. I brought up my converter box's signal meter and got a signal strength of 3-4. This compares with a signal strength of 30-33 for the other broadcast channels.

Conclusion: Despite good analog reception of KPTV, their digital reception sucks at my location. Bad news for my wife, who's a big fan of "Everybody Loves Raymond." But not so bad that I'm willing to fork out big bucks for satellite (no cable where I live).

Hi,

After digging around a bit on rabbit ears http://www.rabbitears.info/market.php website and FCC database KPTV
is indeed on real channel 30 for now but will be going back to channel 12
real in full power digital after Feb. 2009, looks like they will be reducing
power on their analog signal and installing a brand spanking new transmitter
on channel 12 between Oct. and Feb. of 2009. with a power of 27 Kw.
which is about normal for channel 12 in the digital realm as power is not
measure the same for digital as it is for analog.. average versus peak.

Here's a link to the construction permit for the new transmitter info

http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/getattachment_exh.cgi?exhibit_id=642781


John

But the channel problem doesn't go away, because MyN aka Fox49 moves to RF 30 and takes over the same equipment once Fox12 moves to 12. Maybe in the antenna section you can get some help?

I have e-mailed DS regarding audio, we will wait and see if they respond

.....I assume if that pass thru model is DTX9950 there's no guarantee Radio Shack will replace the
9900 with 9950's. they may just continue to sell the 9900's.Sometime during the past week Radio Shack has added the DTX9950 to their website and label it as "New" and it's showing in stock and available at various stores in my area.

About a week ago i bought their DTX9900 and at that time there was no 9950 on their website while the 9900 was widely available at several stores, but now the 9900 is out of stock at the stores that are now carrying the 9950. I'm going to pick one up for my GF soon and play with it.

Hello to all,

I have breaking news. Well not anymore, some one beat me to it while I was registering and waiting for approval to use the forum. Here goes anyway...

The Digital Stream DTX9950 with pass-through is now available (by order for now at least) at Radio Shack. The sales clerk told me he did not even know they were available until he came to work today. The store was out of DTX9900 boxes as usual when he told me of the good news. Being they are not in store yet, it will be shipped to me at no additional charge. And so I purchased one today.

My receipt says: 1500150 DS CONVERTER W/PASS THROU

1500150 (or 150-0150) is the Radio Shack catalog number.

Price, still $59.99

The URL is:

Ookay....I'm not allowed to post URL's until I have made 3 posts....Welp...Go to the radio Shack Website and where it says search, drop in the number 1500150.

The web site has essentially no details, but there it is.

I live smack dab in the middle of Florida. 55 miles from Tampa, and 48 miles from Orlando. I do have a directional antenna (Yagi) with amplifier mounted up at the antenna. This should be a good test as this area has been considered on the 'fringe'.

...And yes I will give a report once the DTX9950 is delivered to my door, READ THE MANUAL, take the covers off, and so on.

Today was my last day for my coupon so I made my purchase. I read about the Zenith and the Digital Stream. I wanted the fixed Zenith box, but March boxes are still here at last check. Also Circuit City is 16 bucks in gas away. I figured it was not worth it. If the audio is bad in the Digital Stream, I can fix it. Or maybe it is fixed in the DTX9950. I don't know if I will be able to hear the screeching audio with my lashup as many have posted, but I do have good hearing.

As for me skipping the Zenith, just you wait, after a while there will be a plethora of converter boxes at garage sales for $2 in time, maybe before the cut-off date in 2009.. I will pick out a good Zenith then hee hee...

Additionally.....

I've been reading the forums regarding the CECB boxes for many months and have enjoyed each visit. It's good to see lots of tech-heavy folks on here getting down to business of finding out who has the best box for the coupon+buck. (Also get a kick out of the Hams doing tropo with their boxes. I thought only a friend and I did DX TV with analog) I hope I fit in. I've been following HDTV and CECB story for years now actually.

I'm not very good at posting in forums and will make mistakes I'm sure. I'm learning about cross-posting of late....Gee I hope the folks on the Zenith forums know to check back with the Digital Stream forum or they will never know there is a CECB box, with hopefully the good LG chip still in it, that has pass through- finally!

Thank you AVS forums for letting us on here to try and help each other make sense of our AV dilemmas!

I just returned my DTX9900 to Radio Shack tonight to see if I could exchange it for the DTX9950.

They wouldn't let me do it. They said that I've already used the coupon, so I can only exchange it for the same model. I tried to plead my case, but he seemed certain that I couldn't exchange for the other model because it had a different catalog number.

So they gave me a brand new DTX9900. Unfortunately it still has the audio problem.

So was this guy full of crap? I may try a different Radio Shack. He didn't even run the exchange through the register -- he simply walked in back and handed me a new box. Maybe he was just being lazy and didn't want to put forth the effort.

Rogee,

I'm not sure of RS clerk was full or not on swapping models. It's like taking a Toyota Corola back and wanting a Camry in direct exchange. To me exchange of same model seems about right.

I would try phoning up another nearby store, ask for the manager and calmly explain your pain, and maybe he/she will sympathize. If not, ask to have the District Manager (DM) call you. I used to work for Radio Shack a long time ago. Reaching the DM usually got things done in the name of 'customer satisfaction'. That's a key word there.

It's a long shot as this involves inventory manipulation. Your coupon is keyed to the box you purchased.

As per the back of the coupon card (anyone actually read the fine print or back of coupons?):

(all in capitols) ONE TIME USE - NO REFUNDS ALLOWED.

So basically they kind of got you....Just hope for a sympathetic ear...

Good luck!

... Does anyone know what that mysterious Emergency Alert setting is for? Documentation doesn't really say what it's for, just how to set the settings for it. I have no idea what/where it would be looking for alerts.

Just a guess, but could be used specifically for Emergency Broadcasting? You know, those BC that interrupt your show with those annoying, this is a test of the emergency broadcasting...

Is this what they mean by Emergency Alerts in the unit?

Dennis

I live in the Detroit area and am able to receive (albeit with a crappy picture) CBET-9 from Windsor on my TV's tuner. CBET doesn't show up at all on my DTX-9900. Is this because the signal is too weak, or does CBET just lack a digital broadcast?

Thank you.

Google & wikipedia are your friends (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CBET)

Channels
Analog: 9 (VHF)
Digital: 35 (UHF) (not yet on air)

edit:

Their own website shows channels 9 & 40 (http://www.cbc.ca/windsor/audio/index.html#frequencies). I would try their contact us page (http://www.cbc.ca/windsor/contact/) and ask aboot the current status of their digital transmission

Hi All,

My Digitalstream DTX9950 arrived today. Unfortunately I only had a quick run through with it so far. IT may be a few days before I really play with it.

I did make a lot of notes and just need to confirm some things before I say a while lot.

I planned to provide a link to the pictures but the forum will not let me still....Supposedly all I need to do is post this and then make another post...Be on the look out for it.

I will try to answer what I can briefly on some of the things folks want to know right away.

-This is my first box and no I did not read the manual. And it's up and running. Menu system must be pretty decent. But I will read the book!

-The Chip is LGD1111D

-The tuner can has no sticker like the Zenith's. It just has 'THOMSON' stamped into the metal.

- It does have analog pass-through, and yes there is signal loss as feared when the unit is in the analog (bypassed) mode. I have not measured the loss, but I can see an analog signal without the box inline with just a hint of snow. With the 9950 inline in the analog mode I see more snow. Depending on how bad your reception was to start with, you might be able to endure the loss. If you want to see a greater signal signal loss leave the box inline and unplug it from the A/C outlet!

- The sound. I will research this more. I need to review a lot of posts to find out all the stations folks have tried to listen for the terrible screeching sound that that might be heard when some says 'special' (the s). So far what I hear is..The audio coming out of the TV set itself is well defined/crisp. There is more punch on the very high's as compared to our old analog TV that we are used to. This did not bother me. I have good hearing. On some S words it may be a tad hot but nothing long and screeching. I was watching our local news and have no idea what dobly audio anything they are using. Again I will do some more checking but it will be a few days before I can do so. (lots of posts to re-read)

-Remote control unit. Feels OK to me. More details if need be on remote control operation later.


-All plastic clam shell housing. Despite the ventilation holes this unit does get hot during operation. Most of the heat is from the Tuner can.

- Live in Central Florida and in between Tampa (55miles away) and Orlando (48 miles) With outdoor yagi, and amplifier, I pick up 19 actual stations between Tampa and Orlando. With all the digital channels the stations are spewing out, the number of channels to watch jumps to 56 for me. I took some signal strength reads and may pass them on later.

-Signal meter. It's still a bar and a number. I don't hear a beep like with the Zeniths. By the time the number hits 30, I can expect audio problems and video glitches. I had a number of stations that were in the lower lower 50's on the meter and they were staying in just fine.

-One interesting thing of note, to me anyway. I had my outdoor antenna pointed towards Orlando (North) and I was still getting all of the Tampa channels (55 miles West) just fine. I check the signal strengths and well..I can just leave my antenna North where I need the most help

-Closed captions. I can see just fine too. I sit 10 feet away form my 27" set (small room) and I noticed the captions are visibly smaller than any of my other devices that can produce closed captioning.

-zoom button on remote. It is used to change the screen size in case part the bottom of the screen has been cut off, etc. One thing I noticed was that, the box tends to remember for each channel, where you left the zoom setting. Handy.

- Event Program Guide (EPG). Works great. Each station is different on how far in advance they want to tell you programs are ahead. Also I noticed there were entries that were still on the list from hours ago...Well, now I know what I missed! On one station I noticed it had entries starting at 3:30PM and the last entry ended at 2 in the morning! Is that enough for you?! Also some but not all of the stations, you can hit a button and it will give you the details for the event that you have highlighted.

Hope this helps. Again may be a few more days before I can play around with the box. But will post what I find here.

John

Here I am again...Hopefully I will now be allowed to post a link :)

My pictures of the new DTX9950, inside and out located here:

http://www.klm-tech.com/9950/

And again, I will post more details here when I get time in a few days.

KLM-TECH:

Thank you for the great review and pictures!

However, you may want to post this in the thread for the DTX9950. This is the DTX9900 thread.

Keep us updated on the sound and if the problem occurs on this model. Local news probably won't be in Dolby. Try watching sports or primetime shows that are broadcast in HD. On my DTX9900, I noticed the distortion during CSI and NBA Finals.

Hi Rogee,

Thanks for letting me know I was in the wrong threat. As I mentioned in my first post, I'm not good at all with forums and make lots of mistakes. I was about to ask where I could find the correct thread for the DTX9950 but I figured it out.

Okay...I'm headed over there and that is where I will post 9950 stuff form now on.

(Also, still working on my review, learned a lot so far on the 9950. Nice box)

John

I plan to get this converter and try it out in a few weeks. I found a set of (4) heat sinks with thermal adhesive tape on ebay, and plan to attach it to the can and cut the top cover to allow them to stick through. I hope it will help the heat problem. Avnet Anodized Aluminum Heatsinks for BGA, with Peel & Stick Adhesive Backing, Part No. 374824B00032. Dimensions are 1.378" x 1.378" x .985."

I plan to get this converter and try it out in a few weeks. I found a set of (4) heat sinks with thermal adhesive tape on ebay, and plan to attach it to the can and cut the top cover to allow them to stick through. I hope it will help the heat problem. Avnet Anodized Aluminum Heatsinks for BGA, with Peel & Stick Adhesive Backing, Part No. 374824B00032. Dimensions are 1.378" x 1.378" x .985."

Please move this item to the DTX-9950 thread, unless you really mean you intend to track down an older DTX-9900 to buy. The 9900 has no reported heat issues, and those of the 9950 have been grossly overstated by some.

Bull! I had to return a 9950 that lit on fire. Call that overstated???

Edit: I took it apart before return, the smell came from the tuner shield holes. The plastic was scorched in relation to the shields holes. Others have reported hot F-Connctors... No other components had overheated indications or smell. I was too discouraged at the time to open the tuner cover before returning it...sorry.

I found this in worst/best vote sticky and thought it important enough to cross-post/paste into the machine specific threads. Hope all don't mind.

gmucklow (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/member.php?u=7616914) Post #67
For me, the best is the Digital Stream 9900/9950. In addition to the features detailed by others here -- The Digital Stream 9900 will scan cable channels for ATSC stations being rebroadcast by community antenna systems. I can receive cable channels between OTA channels six and seven and above OTA channel 13 that are being downconverted and rebroadcast by my condo just like my plasma TV and DVD recorder tuners do. The Zenith CECB that I tested would not do that

WeThePeople (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/member.php?u=7957271) Post #70
That is an exceptionally important task. I used to install those and wondered what would happen to all those people. I'll forward that info to the housing units I installed Mutli-MATV systems in.

Would you be willing to have boxes mailed to you for a quick test? The return postage label would be included in the box to return it to me.

I have a DigitalStream DSP7500T, has the same issue as 9900 since it use the same LG chip.

Anyway, I e-mailed DS and the only reply I got after a month of waiting is

"Please call this number for more information regarding DSP7500T 310-515-9094":mad::confused:

I am hating this stupid CECB program and this crappy DS box right now...:(

I found out over this past week this unit ran circles around my old Hisense DB-2010. I was in Gulf Shores Alabama using rabbit ears to watch tv in my camper, the DTX9900 picked up twice as many stations as the old Hisense and the signals were very steady. I might buy another one of these

2: XP was reported to have the "potential" of adding it's own backdoor DRM by file type/content.
Other than Media Center (which does impose DRM) it doesn't look like the ability was ever put into place. (if the ability was truly present then it could be activated by the Window's Update process at any time)

I do not use Media Center, nor will I ever. Nor do I let the XP box do automatic updates. Sorry, I will never let Bill Grates' minions ever place stuff they want on my computer. I'll install what I want, when I want.

I do not remember for sure, but if someone tries to play an OTA HD capture from CBS on their system, via Media Center, it refuses to play it because the broadcast flag is on. Two things are wrong with that. One is supposed to be able to play copies that it captured directly. The second is that CBS is even using a flag that the court struck down. Having MC honor it is just plain wrong. Again, no MC use on my computers. I use VLC to play the stuff I capture.

Since all of my hardware works properly with Win2k, I have had no need to purchase a copy of a newer OS.

I build all of my computers as well. XP was needed for some firewire stuff, but I ended up not using the firewire feature of going from the computer to a D-VHS deck.

The PeeCee is this particular case can be classified as a HTPC/PVR. The output is still only to a computer monitor until I finally get an HD projector. It is used to capture OTA and DBV-S/S2 HD programming. Some of the MPEG-2 video can have bitrates as high as 37Mbps. I also convert MPEG-2 to H.264, so the 6400+ AMD Athlon dual core was purchased for that purpose. One needs power to push that many bits around. I do zero gaming.

I have a 98SE box, because of software that will never be updated, but I'm slowly moving away from using it. There is also a W2K box. Both the 98SE and W2K boxes are multimedia platforms for creating stuff for my website. DVD authoring is also done on the W2K box. The XP box, as mentioned is a HTPC/PVR box. The last computer is also an AMD 6400+ Athlon dual core, but is has 8 GB of RAM and runs Solaris 10 and is my webserver and main computer. I have a Linux Fedora Core 7 box that I'm taking out of service.

"Please call this number for more information regarding DSP7500T 310-515-9094":mad::confused:

Crap, now I'm going to have to call and fight them over the problem.

Do we need a class-action lawsuit regarding the non-recall of all these faulty products. We have government sponsored faulty products placed into the public hands.

Oh wait. The government buys $300 hammers, so supporting inferior electronics is right up their alley :D

I decided to pick up a Digital Stream box over at Radio Shack last night, they only had 4 left on the shelf, two were resealed. The Radio Shack guy said that was it on supplies from Digital Stream - they used up all of their parts supplies and are out of the DTV box business, anyone else confirm this???

-=Doug=-

I'm bringing this old thread back to ask a question to users of the DTX-9900 boxes.
This may also apply to the newer DTX-9950, I'm not sure.
In my area, Peoria, IL. there are two TV channels that always give "EPG not found" on my DTX-9900s.
I've had these two Digital Stream boxes for about 3 months, and haven't ever gotten EPG info for these two channels.
The channels are:
ch. 25-1 (NBC) RF 57
ch. 39-1 (My59) RF 39
These two channels are related to each other, but I don't think ch. 39 is a sub of ch. 25. They do advertise for each other.

I just recently purchased a Zenith DTT-901.
This box (almost) always has EPG info with descriptions for these 2 channels.
Sometimes the EPG info isn't available, but is almost always available on the Zenith.
Then I go to the other room and view my Digital Stream box & TV, and I cannot get an EPG for either of these channels.

What is "different" about the Digital Stream box, in that it doesn't acquire EPG info for these 2 channels, when the Zenith almost always has full EPG info with descriptions?

In my area, Peoria, IL. there are two TV channels that always give "EPG not found" on my DTX-9900s.My DTX-9950 needs to sit on a channel for thirty seconds or longer before it will show any guide data beyond the title of the current program, and for some stations the delay is worse.

"Clear QAM" - on cable systems, the modulation that cable is using for most digital is QAM. However, most "cable" type channels are encrypted. "Clear" QAM is usually the local digital stations.

OSD - On Screen Display - like of the EPG (Electronic program guide) and other features (like signal meters).

now i want to buy fiber optic cable and i found the two types of connector type ST connector and SX connector. So i want to know about the disadvantage and advantages between these two. So someone know about these things pls answer for me asap.



Thanks,

leo

Hi, new member here. Found you after I finally set up my DTX9900 I bought at Radio Shack last summer. I know I should have tried it out right away but I didn't. I finally opened the box and set it up and, no surprise to me, it doesn't work as great as it's supposed to. I hate this stupid DTV conversion process. Okay so after reading through all the posts in this thread I can't really find my problem which is this: all my local channels work great off a rooftop antenna. But when I plug the antenna into the converter box, it scanned and found every channel (in Los Angeles BTW) except it wouldn't load channel 13. Almost every channel has a weak signal or breaks up! I have moved the antenna cable every which way in that room to try to get a signal to no avail. I finally just unplugged the antenna from the box and reconnected it to the TV set so I can actually WATCH TV in that room. Help!!! Does anyone have a solution before I go to Radio Shack on a fruitless search for answers??? At first it was kind of neat to see extra channels and get info much like my satellite dish in the other rooms... but then the weak signal or no signal problem started. Do I need a new antenna for this box??? Is there an inexpensive solution to this? Thanks for any and all help guys... I'm a girl and am just frustrated with this thing. :)

Patrice

Hi Patrice,

Welcome to the forums! There could be several issues going on here and we need additional information. Can you tell us the brand and model number of your tv? I'm curious if it is receiving analog only or digital and analog tv signal? How old is the antenna and coax? It's possible that you have some bad connections or it simply needs to be replaced. Have you tried you converter box with a different antenna? If it doesn't work well with a second antenna (but the tv does), then it suggests that the converter has a bad/poor tuner.

HTH.

Rick

Okay so after reading through all the posts in this thread I can't really find my problem which is this: all my local channels work great off a rooftop antenna. But when I plug the antenna into the converter box, it scanned and found every channel (in Los Angeles BTW) except it wouldn't load channel 13. Almost every channel has a weak signal or breaks up! I have moved the antenna cable every which way in that room to try to get a signal to no avail. I finally just unplugged the antenna from the box and reconnected it to the TV set so I can actually WATCH TV in that room. Help!!! Does anyone have a solution before I go to Radio Shack on a fruitless search for answers???
Patrice

All HD channels in LA are UHF and broadcast from Mount Wilson. (Same spot as normal TV.) So if you have a VHF antenna that picks up the locals well, it may not be so great for the UHF channels. On the other hand, if you currently get all the UHF analogs crystal clear, they should work perfectly with the box.

I have the box in my office hooked up to a single telescoping antenna and get all the locals perfectly. (On the 18th floor facing Mt Wilson.) Believe it or not, hooking the same antenna to the TV directly, analog reception is pretty crappy on ALL channels..... so in other words, the box does a great job.

So yours might be bad.

Is UHF strong in analog?

All HD channels in LA are UHF and broadcast from Mount Wilson. (Same spot as normal TV.) So if you have a VHF antenna that picks up the locals well, it may not be so great for the UHF channels. On the other hand, if you currently get all the UHF analogs crystal clear, they should work perfectly with the box.

I have the box in my office hooked up to a single telescoping antenna and get all the locals perfectly. (On the 18th floor facing Mt Wilson.) Believe it or not, hooking the same antenna to the TV directly, analog reception is pretty crappy on ALL channels..... so in other words, the box does a great job.

So yours might be bad.

Is UHF strong in analog?

Okay, the VHF would be the network channels and the UHF would be PBS channels, right? So I would say, based on what I've been seeing, my PBS stations were always weak with that rooftop antenna but channels 2 thru 13 always came in fine, and still do. So it seems that if the dtv comes is broadcast over UHF then this must be the problem, right? I need a UHF antenna!

I'm at work and can't remember the tv. It's one of those VCR combo TVs. I think it's a Panasonic. I checked before getting the converter box and know that this TV doesn't have a digital tuner.

Adrain may have nailed it. Your existing antenna may be VHF only which means you will need a new antenna. Post your tvfool.com results. There are some inexpensive small UHF antennas that may work for you. One example is the antenna direct db2 or it's eagle aspen clone (check it out at amazon).

Adrain may have nailed it. Your existing antenna may be VHF only which means you will need a new antenna. Post your tvfool.com results. There are some inexpensive small UHF antennas that may work for you. One example is the antenna direct db2 or it's eagle aspen clone (check it out at amazon).

Yep, analog 28 is a very easy station to get in LA, so if you don't get it, your antenna isn't suited to UHF. Just replace it with a wideband model or a panel type, like the channelmaster from Amazon.

My friend has this on his roof in Miracle Mile, and even with a direct path to Mt Wilson being blocked by big buildings on Wilshire, he still gets great reception. (Full of multipath... but his TivoHD has no issues.)

http://www.amazon.com/Antennas-Direct-DB2-Directional-Antenna/dp/B000EHUE7I/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1231281004&sr=8-2

[QUOTE=adrianblack;15477769]Yep, analog 28 is a very easy station to get in LA, so if you don't get it, your antenna isn't suited to UHF. Just replace it with a wideband model or a panel type, like the channelmaster from Amazon.

My friend has this on his roof in Miracle Mile, and even with a direct path to Mt Wilson being blocked by big buildings on Wilshire, he still gets great reception. (Full of multipath... but his TivoHD has no issues.)


Okay, that looks big. I take it this goes up on the roof? sigh. sounds like a bit of work all to get free TV! Is there a simple UHF that can just be put on the TV itself? I think this TV actually came with a sep UHF antenna now that I think of it... it was a round one. Does that sound right? Guess I have to get my brother over to get up on the roof if I buy this boxy one, huh?

Due to the high density nature of LA, indoor antennas generally don't work well. It's possible, though. My friend live in an apartment and has a little table-top antenna he points out the window (towards Mt Wilson) and it works pretty well. Sometimes breaks up a little, but he generally has no trouble and get all channels properly.

But where I live, I get nothing indoors.... Too many buildings. That antenna at Amazon is pretty big .... about the size of a newspaper if I remember..... Needs to be mounted on the roof but you will get the channels perfectly.

But for me, I don't get any analogs either ... I have found that if you can get analogs with an indoor antenna then all you need is a UHF antenna and you'll be good.

Okay, that looks big. I take it this goes up on the roof? sigh. sounds like a bit of work all to get free TV! Is there a simple UHF that can just be put on the TV itself? I think this TV actually came with a sep UHF antenna now that I think of it... it was a round one. Does that sound right? Guess I have to get my brother over to get up on the roof if I buy this boxy one, huh?

It's not really all that big... My attic antenna is 3 ft by 3ft by 7inches. Now that's big! Should be a very easy mount on your roof using a satellite J mount.

Due to the high density nature of LA, indoor antennas generally don't work well. It's possible, though. My friend live in an apartment and has a little table-top antenna he points out the window (towards Mt Wilson) and it works pretty well. Sometimes breaks up a little, but he generally has no trouble and get all channels properly.

But where I live, I get nothing indoors.... Too many buildings. That antenna at Amazon is pretty big .... about the size of a newspaper if I remember..... Needs to be mounted on the roof but you will get the channels perfectly.

But for me, I don't get any analogs either ... I have found that if you can get analogs with an indoor antenna then all you need is a UHF antenna and you'll be good.

Okay I finally looked at the specs on this and it's not a huge as I first thought.

Product Dimensions: 4 x 19 x 12 inches ; 5 pounds
Shipping Weight: 3 pounds

(Question: how is it that the product is "5 pounds" but the shipping of it is 3? LOL)

I guess I could try it first indoors then on the roof, whatever -- now that I think about it I can get channel 28 okay but most of the other PBS stations are snowy... hey, Adrian, I live in WeHo too!!! Since I"m in a house I may not have the same problem. We'll see. I guess that's the best deal at Amazon, right? and I get free shipping for it... so I'll try it.

Thanks guys for all your help. I had just asked an IT tech guy here at work about this and he has the same problem with his converter.

Will this antenna come with the cable or whatever to hook it up to the converter box? Or do I have to order that separate? Told you, I'm not a techo brain here! TV has always been, open box, plug it in, and watch. :D

I doubt that a coax cable is included... RG-6 coax with solid copper core center is recommended for tv antennas. You can purchase it it prepared lengths with compression connectors. Please note, compression connectors are much better than crimp connectors, particularly if the cable will be outside... Also, the cheaper RG-6 is usually copper clad cable (copper covering over steel in the center) and typically has crimp connectors. It will be pretty simple to set up and you'll love the HD!

Best,

Rick

Uhmm 1 question I installed a QTX-9900 on my neighbor TV but how the heck turn off the Close Caption ?? No matter if I turn it off one Menu- Display-Off it does still show it.. Pressing the CC on the control does nothing. !

This sound like it does need to return it?

Uhmm 1 question I installed a QTX-9900 on my neighbor TV but how the heck turn off the Close Caption ?? No matter if I turn it off one Menu- Display-Off it does still show it.. Pressing the CC on the control does nothing. !

This sound like it does need to return it?

Either you need to go deep into the menu system of the DigitalStream to turn off the captions, or the captions are coming from the TV itself.

The caption button on some remote controls only control analog captions (CC1) but if you had enabled digital captions by digging into the menu, they may not be controlled by the remote control.

BTW, quite some time ago I provided a review of how the captioning features of the DigitalStream work, and was not favorably impressed. The review can be found on another thread at this forum:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=14031577#post14031577



Dana

Hi, update on my digital converter box dilemma. After researching indoor antennas and my location and needs I bought the Terk HDTV indoor Antenna from Amazon at a pretty low price, under $40 as I recall. Just hooked it up and wow what a difference! I rescanned and now get all the channels and more and all of them come in clear with a strong (green) signal strength. No digi breaking up, great reception! Problem solved! It needed a good UHF antenna and this one is unobtrusive, easy to set up and I didn't need any other cables. I took it out of the box, inserted the antenna into the base, plugged in the cable to the digital converter box and voila, all set to go. Don't know if I can add a link to this product but will try:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007MXZB2/ref=cm_cr_mts_prod_img

BTW, thank you all for your help! You guys ROCK!!!

This post is to determine the ability of the Digital Stream 9900 to receive stereo broadcasts.

My TV is a 1999 or so Philips/Magnavox TS3258CI television connected to a Digital Stream 9900 converter box and a DB2 antenna on the roof. I’m extremely pleased about this entire arrangement except that I haven’t been able to listen to any broadcasts in stereo.

I have both the RCA A/V cables and RF cable connected which are running from the DS thru my VCR to the TV. Previously I was able to listen to analog stereo broadcasts with amplified rabbit ears before converting to the DS box and the stereo feature on the TV automatically set itself to the correct Stereo/Mono option from the broadcast signal it was receiving.

Now while watching TV via the DS, the Current Channel Information box feature on the DS indicates HDTV reception on some of the main broadcast channels here in Houston with the stereo indicator lit, however as I understand it none of the sub-channels are HDTV but all show the stereo indicator in the Current Channel Information box highlighted. I have tried both of the Preferred Conn(ection) choices on the DS which are CH 3/4 and Line Out and neither produces a stereo signal in either HD or SDTV modes, or alternatively the DS is putting out a stereo signal but my TV isn’t picking it up for some reason.

The specifications on the DS box says AV Output can be; 1) CH 3/4 Output, 2) CVBS Output, or 3) Stereo Audio Output, and after the Stereo Audio Output is says Connector, RCA, Female Type, which is how I have it connected along with the RF cable. So I’m convinced there is a way to listen in stereo if the DS box is truly stereo capable.

Appreciate any input on this and thanks in advance.

This post is to determine the ability of the Digital Stream 9900 to receive stereo broadcasts.

[...]

Appreciate any input on this and thanks in advance.

All ATSC receivers, be they expensive standalones to the CECBs, must have stereo out, at a minimum, 2-ch stereo via the line output jacks.

You cannot use the RF output of the CECB digital receiver, any digital receiver, as that will be mono only.

If you are not using an amplifier, to get stereo to the TV, using your VCR, you must connect the line outputs, audio and video, into the line inputs of the VCR and you must use the line outputs of the VCR into the line inputs of the TV. You can no longer use the analog tuner on the TV and get stereo. The TV will not indicate that has stereo when using the line inputs, as it has no idea if the audio is mono or stereo.

The VCR must also be set to use the line inputs, as you will no longer be able to use the analog tuner in it either.

If you are using a stereo system for the audio, and the TV has audio line outputs, connect those to the amp. If the TV does not have audio line outputs, connect the audio out of the VCR to the amp, not the TV.

Lastly, if you want to record one channel while watching another, you will need TWO CECB digital receivers, one to feed the TV directly and one to feed the VCR.

If you are still having trouble, please feel free to respond. You can also contact your local TV station and they should be able to put you in touch with someone locally who could come out to your dwelling and help you get things connected, for free.

Ah! Thank you. Your post was most informative and I very much appreciate your prompt reply. First, I didn’t know that all ATSC receivers must have stereo out. Second, I thought my TV would know if the audio was stereo coming through the line inputs. Third, I wasn’t sure if I needed BOTH the line outputs (audio and video) AND the RF output of the CECB to run thru the VCR to the TV, which I do. So, I had all the connections correct and since the TV has relatively small speakers (I probably couldn’t accurately judge whether or not a broadcast was in stereo) I’ll try running everything through my stereo amp to larger speakers (which I had done before prior to the CECB) and that should give me stereo on all the stations which broadcast in stereo. Thanks again.

Ah! Thank you.

You are welcome.

Second, I thought my TV would know if the audio was stereo coming through the line inputs.

While it is technically possible to determine that there is stereo content, it would be a waste of money to put in the electronics to do that. It would be possible for the detector to be fooled. Keep in mind, just because the old analog TV system had a stereo indicator, just like FM radio, doesn't mean that the actual content is stereo. Pretty much everything is stereo these days. Consider it a given that the audio will have stereo content.

BTW, if your stereo system is set up for surround sound, you'll get Dolby Surround stereo for many programs, especially scripted shows.

Postscript: after further futzing I think I stumbled on the answer. To explain it I’ll call the coax connection from my CECB thru the VCR to the TV an “RF connection,” and those through the RCA jacks (R-W-Y) an “A/V connection.” Tests of both resulted in the following:

VCR turned off
A/V = no sound, no picture
RF = mono sound, digital picture
TV Setting = Channel 3/4
TV Menu Stereo/Mono Indicator = mono

VCR turned on
A/V = stereo sound, digital picture
RF = mono sound, digital picture
TV Setting = AV1
TV Menu Stereo/Mono Indicator = stereo

Thus the culprit was my VCR plus my ignorance of its functionality, or lack thereof. What I didn’t know was that my Samsung VR8160 will pass through an RF signal while either turned on or off but it will pass through an A/V signal only when turned on, and then I need to select AV1 on my TV instead of Channel 3/4 if I want to watch a broadcast in stereo.

Thus most of our TV watching will be done in mono with the VCR turned off. Only when watching
over-the-air music or shows w/a good soundtrack will we turn on the VCR to watch in stereo. There may
be a workaround to all of this but I haven’t discovered it yet. Maybe in another postscript.

Thus the culprit was my VCR plus my ignorance of its functionality, or lack thereof. What I didn’t know was that my Samsung VR8160 will pass through an RF signal while either turned on or off but it will pass through an A/V signal only when turned on, and then I need to select AV1 on my TV instead of Channel 3/4 if I want to watch a broadcast in stereo.

All VCRs have antenna passthrough. If you look at the remote and the VCR, you'll find a button caller "TV/VCR". That will toggle the bypass relay to select either the antenna or the VCR and send that RF signal to the TV. If the VCR is off, the antenna is automatically sent to the TV.

Since the AV outputs of the VCR are active signals, the power must be on for them to work. That is the case for ALL electronic devices.

There may be a workaround to all of this but I haven’t discovered it yet. Maybe in another postscript.

You mentioned an AV1 selection on your TV, which tends to make me believe that there is also an AV2 input and selection.

If you indeed have two AV inputs on the TV, you can either split the output of the CECB with simple cables or buy an active AV distribution amp.

For the more expensive method, you need a unit like this:

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103065

You only need a 2-way amp, but it seems 4 is the minimum.

You connect a short AV cable set between the output of the CECB and the input of the Distribution Amp (DA). Then you take the AV cable set that you used to connect the VCR AV input and connect it to one of the DA outputs. You then connect an AV cable set between one of the other DA outputs anf the other AV input on the TV.

Now you can either select the CECB directly on the TV or the VCR on the TV.

The other way is to get three of these:

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103862

The splitter cables take the place of the DA. Plug the three splitter cables into the output of the CECB. Then connect two sets of AV cables to the splitter cables, one set to the TV and one set to the VCR.

You should be able to get away without the DA. But if you see problems with the video, you'll need the DA.

Thanks again.

You mentioned an AV1 selection on your TV, which tends to make me believe that there is also an AV2 input and selection.

If you indeed have two AV inputs on the TV, you can either split the output of the CECB with simple cables or buy an active AV distribution amp.


Yes, our TV does have AV1 and AV2 jacks plus an S-VIDEO port. Currently the VCR occupies the AV1 jacks and our DVD player occupies the AV2 jacks.

Yes, our TV does have AV1 and AV2 jacks plus an S-VIDEO port. Currently the VCR occupies the AV1 jacks and our DVD player occupies the AV2 jacks.

RadShak has AV selection switches :D

There are all kinds of things I could suggest, but we'll stop at that.

Things tend to get simpler once you know how! Hehe, as per my earlier confession, I know little or nothing about electronics, switches and the like, that's why I'm here hat in hand. Thanks for all the info.

We're in the Spring Branch area of Houston & bought a box and put up an antenna before I knew this site existed. Our roof antenna is a DB2 which is on a mast facing south which just clears the top of our single family residence w/no major obstacles other than trees between us and the antenna farm, and about 75' of RG6 Quad bet the antenna and box. We get all the digital stations just fine with one exception KPXB in Conroe, TX, the opposite direction from the antenna farm. Our Digital Stream 9900 picks the signal up most of the time crystal clear but not always (we like channel 49.2 qubo for the children's programming). I tried my friend's Insignia NS-DXA1 on our antenna & while most channels were a tad sharper it didn't pick up 49.2 at all (no signal). Anyway, I'm wondering if moving to a DB-4 antenna would make a big difference in the reception of that channel or if an amplifier would do better or as well. I guess I should look for an antenna thread for this.

Anyway, thanks again for all your help.

Our Digital Stream 9900 picks the signal up most of the time crystal clear but not always (we like channel 49.2 qubo for the children's programming). I tried my friend's Insignia NS-DXA1 on our antenna & while most channels were a tad sharper it didn't pick up 49.2 at all (no signal). Anyway, I'm wondering if moving to a DB-4 antenna would make a big difference in the reception of that channel or if an amplifier would do better or as well. I guess I should look for an antenna thread for this.


Have you gone to tvfool.com and entered your address? What does it predict for the strength of ch49 vs. other channels. Also, is ch 49 at a different compass heading than the other stations? If so, you might angle your antenna more towards 49, if it doesn't hurt reception of others too much.

Both the DTX-9900 and Insignia have signal meter bar displays. I suggest comparing the signal levels between solid stations and ch 49 on each. That might give you an idea of how much poorer your reception of ch 49 is compared to the stronger stations. Also note if the signal level for 49 bounces around more than the other stations.

If 49's strength is in the green area most of the time, switching to a DB-4 might make all the difference. With the DS unit, you're hoping for signals in the 80-100 range. If they are more like 60 - or less, then a better antenna may improve things.

If it is easy enough to do, you might try rotating your DB-2 somewhat and recheck your signal levels. It may or may not make it any better, but it might be worth trying.

Frankly, if you've got lots of trees (pines?) nearby, it may be swaying trees that are causing problems. If so, a different antenna or an amplifier may not solve the problem.

Haven’t gone to tvfool yet. I’m behind & need to get a defensive driving course out of the way as quick as I can (Blockbuster version). Too many irons in the fire plus I need to borrow my neighbor’s ladder to get up to the antenna – it’s a heavy fiberglass job & need to do it at a time when I have help carrying & setting up the darn thing. I’ll try rotating first (cheapest) although 49 is in almost exactly the opposite direction of the antenna farm here where most of our signals are generated from. No swaying pines in either direction from the antenna and I haven’t found any correlation between time of day, weather conditions, etc., and signal strength for channel 49. I think it’s mainly a distance issue as 49 is further in the opposite direction than all the others. All the channels here are in the green most of the time except 49 which is never in the green on my DS9900 but we get it clearly 75% of the time just the same, and as I said, the Insignia doesn’t pull in a viewable picture at all. I’ll post results when I get the time to mess with it further. Thanks.

Have you found the design of the DS remote to be more user friendly than the other remotes? It looks like it is well designed and that buttons lead the user to perform a specific action without having to navigate through various menus, as I have found with the Pal Plus and Zinwell's remotes and program design (they're not bad by any means, but lead a little bit to be desired).

Are there any negatives with the Digital Stream box (the most current version) that would lead me to go to another box? (I don't need an "event timer" or a full EPG, since I already have the Zinwell 950-A and PP for these purposes. Also have an Insignia for reception and overall simplicity of use.)

I am trying to decide whether the DS will give me an easier to use box over the Channel Master. I don't need the S-video feature, and wouldn't mind having a "universal remote" feature, something that the Insignia remote features.

Is the EPG of the Digital Stream useful? (no need to compare to the unique design of that of the PP with its grid display). Is text/cc easy to read, as compared with that of the Channel Master? I find that the onscreen display of information on the PP is very good and very readable.

I find that the 9900 is a good box, with a good remote. If the CC is hard to read, it does have options to change font and color - so you can choose to suit.

The remote I'll give a 9.0/10. There are one or two things that seem awkward: if you press the EPG button, you have to use the "menu" button to exit; and the universal controls put volume UP on the left, and volume DOWN on the right - kind of backwards. Other than that, it's a great remote.

EPG is easy to read and nice to pull up, as long as your stations fill it in...

I find that the 9900 is a good box, with a good remote. If the CC is hard to read, it does have options to change font and color - so you can choose to suit.

The remote I'll give a 9.0/10. There are one or two things that seem awkward: if you press the EPG button, you have to use the "menu" button to exit; and the universal controls put volume UP on the left, and volume DOWN on the right - kind of backwards. Other than that, it's a great remote.

EPG is easy to read and nice to pull up, as long as your stations fill it in...

Those negatives on the remote got me to think of the reasoning/logic used by the programmers in designing the layout of the remote and how processes relate to each other. I like the idea of having a button dedicated just for an "EPG." The PP has this on the remote; it's identified as "Guide." Just as with the DS remote, you cannot back out from the EPG just by pressing the button again like a toggle on/off in/out fashion - rather, you have to press a different button - in the case of the PP, you have two choice - "cancel" or "view tv." So the DS design of requiring the pressing of "menu" does the same thing - backs you out of the EPG, although I don't know where it back you INTO.

With the PP, the "cancel" button leads you back to the previous screen which might contain the "information/channel/data" box for the previous channel, whereas the "view tv" takes the user to the tv station visual with no information. It's nice to have available either option to go to.

Some remotes don't have a "favorite" button (the PP doesn't nor does it have a "favorites" channel option).

What exactly does the DS EPG allow you to see? From what I have seen, it lists the name of the program and/or a program description if available. What I am more interested is the extent it allows the user to see into the future. Does it display this feature in a vertical format by time, and you just scroll down from that time to see what is on other channels, or can you scan across time periods for one station also? Once you see the name of the program, can you see its description by selecting that program even though it has yet to be aired?

Is the reception/sesitivity on the DS good (comparable to the Insignia, PP, and Zinwell CECBs)?

Some message board members didn't like the position of the control buttons being on top of the box. For me, I'd RATHER have those buttons on top of the box, as every box I have is BELOW my viewing level.

In reading back to older posts on this thread I was struck by the thoroughness o fpost #191, by Dana (dmulvany). I was left with the impression that he wouldn't recommend the DS.

I have smaller tv sets (older ones and non-HDTV), and with the exception of one, I normally view them up close.

From what I saw of the remote for the DS, it looked user-friendly. From Dana's review, the remote is poorly designed (paraphrasing).

I wonder if other members have had a similar experience - and if the DS reviewed is the same one that is being sold at Radio Shack with the better placement of ventilation holes.

Dana did not like the cc aspects of the DS CECB. I had posted recently on a negative aspect of the Channel Master CECB having to do with its smaller cc display. That may be true or I may have confused what I read about the DS CECB with the cc display for the Channel Master. I have never seen the cc display for the Channel Master and for some reason, posts I recall did not regard them as stellar, although the box allows for cc modification.

I have found that cc is displayed either for services 1 or 2. The digital cc doesn't work for my tv sets, so I have limited display options for cc. Only one of my tv sets allows me to view cc from the tv set itself (which many times "garbles" letters into indecipherable words for some programming, while on other programs, the cc is accurate). Inorder to see cc from my other tv sets, I can do so only through the cc function of the CECB tuner.

Dana mentioned how the width of the cc for the DS is less than that of Insignia. The only cc that are operational for NBC for example is "service 1" and "cc1." Both display widths that leave considerable space to the left and right margins. The cc1 option displays text that presents itself in a staccatto fashion. Service 1 displays text in a smoother and much easier to read fashion. I turned on the PP cc and noticed that it presents text in a more narrow width, by about 1/4 to 1/2 that of Insignia. (The Zinwell displays cc even wider than the Insignia although its vertical height of text in relationship to horizontal size looks more scrunched. When I switched to cc2 for the Zinwell, the cc for the Tonight Show with Jay Leno displayed cc in Spanish! I had never seen this on any of my CECB cc displays.)

Is the DS cc width more similar to that of the PP?

After a year of use, approximately 6750 hours, our most used DTX9900 died; too early in our opinon. It started intermittently and briefly losing reception saying weak signal on all channels for several minutes and then would not regain any signals on Saturday. I performed a factory reset via the menu which got it working for the rest of the weekend. Today we could not even get it to kick in to see the menu system. The green led just keeps blinking. Hooking it up in another room and using rabbit ears made no difference. We've got one more 9900 and a 9950 left.

Since posting this, I've come across two owner reviews of Digital Stream converter boxes reporting the same issue; one for the dtx9900. Beware continuous blinking of the LED while green.

Since posting this, I've come across two owner reviews of Digital Stream converter boxes reporting the same issue; one for the dtx9900. Beware continuous blinking of the LED while green.

Yep. Mine has done the constant blinking a few different times now. The box seems to get too hot. I unplug it for a while, then plug it back in and that fixes it most times. You cannot even control the channels or any functions when it gets like this. I'm thinking soon of just getting a DVD recorder with a tuner built in for the TV this box is on. I have a DVD recorder already on the set, but it is analog tuner.

my digital stream dtx 9900 box went out just has blinking green light could someone help with problem

I have recently experienced the "blinking light" death of my family's main Digital Stream 9900 after about 2 years of use. This is upsetting because it has been great up until now(other than the green part of the LED blinking due my over use of the signal button in the early days.) About a week ago, it completely died after working for about a week only with 2 boot-up sequences(turn it on, let it finish, turn it off, then back on so it worked correctly).

If I have to buy a new one ever 2 years, it will get annoying quickly.


UPDATE 12-22-10:

I found out that a cap on the power inverter was bad, and after about a month of searching(because the online sources required bulk purchases), I found the capacitor I needed, and after about 5 min of work, my converter box is now working perfectly again(except that bad led that still blinks which is purely cosmetic).