What CECB is the best? And worst. Vote here. Updated tally 7/24/10 - Page 12

I need a converter box for my car, with an in-dash tv as part of an old Pioneer/Nav unit.
I've found three converters that run on 12v and would be interested in people's recommendations regarding most sensitive, best picture, ease of use, etc. My current choice order, based ONLY on reading specs is:
1 - Sunkey sk-801
2 - Access HD 1080D
3 - Artec T3A
Any other recommended units welcome! Thanks!
Mitch

I just ordered an ARTEC T3AP from www.freetvsignal.com

when it gets here i can let you know how it is

RE: Tivax refuses to send me an RMA # as stated in their 90 day warranty, they tell me to return it to Amazon, Amazon says return it to the manufacture.


Amazon is usually pretty good on ease of returning DEFECTIVE items...

(Did you buy thru Amazon, Inc... or was this thru a Vendor on Amazon's site?)

One thing that may put a monkey wrench in the gears so to speak is if a $40 off NTIA coupon was used.. as NTIA rules say NO monies are to be refunded on a RETURN.
(EG=Buying with coupon- returning to get money back)

With the above said- Vendors are supposed to be able to do EXCHANGES for defective CECB's.

I'd contact them again and make it clear that you are wanting a exchange, not a refund making them aware you have contacted the manufacturer.


.
If Amazon's policies are indeed fixed.

Get your credit card company involved.
File complaint with BBB
Post the "details" of your experiences on Amazon's site /and or vendors site.
Ditto " " post details on the manufacters forums- if they have such.
Post details on a site such as Newegg.com if they are selling the product. I've noticed that manufacturers (some) will when NEGATIVE info has been posted with respond to a customer directly...saying in effect to contact them directly and they will take care of the problem...


.

Of those units, the AccessHD 1080-D/1080-U/1050-D/1050-U/1030-D/1030-U/1020A-D/1020A-U (doesn't seem to be any difference between them, other than case color) don't have the ability to update the channel list and would require a complete channel rescan every time you need to get a new channel.

The Sunkey SK-801ASTC is very sensitive and has a sharp PQ. What it doesn't have is a previous channel key. It also has a limited EPG.

I have no comment on the Artec T3A.

here is the user manual and a vid of the artec ta3

http://www.consumerelecgroup.com/Use...ser_Manual.pdf

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SdENLyJmd0

from:

http://www.consumerelecgroup.com/pro...p?prod=DTV-GVT

I am happily to vote for Zenith DTT901 belonging in the best group after using it for about 3 days. The unit is well built and many comments on AVS forum helped me to select it with my first coupon. Cost $21 including tax after coupon at Circuit City before the news of their closure was announced.
1) It's reception is better for me (more channels found) than Funai (Magnavox) TB100MW9 which I had borrowed and used for several weeks.
2) It has 3 controls on the box for when I can't locate the remote: Power On/Off, Channel Up, Channel Down
3) It's remote was also programmable to power off and on my TV.
4) According to the directions a programable remote should be able to operate it.

I was suprised not to first discover in these forums but the "analog pass" thru feature only works when the unit is powered down. Are other CECB's also like this as well?

There are a couple of exceptions (ZAT-970A/ZAT-950A and others), but most do.

Some are, some aren't.

CM-7000 is only very slightly the best (over Zenith dtt901) because it has S-video and slightly higher sensitivity in my setup.

I'm voting for the Apex DT-502. I like the internal power supply, S-Video and a decent, detailed guide. I paid $0.01 each after coupon from Tiger Direct (plus $8.99 s/h each - they would not combine CECB orders into one shipment).

I think the poll should be edited since it only has the brand of the boxes and that leaves a margin for error since some brands have several models. Zenith, Apex, DtvPal, Zinwell, etc. All these brands have different models with different hardware and sometimes software.

I've been thinking along those lines for sometime now.

i vote for the zinwell zat970A. It gets better reception than the TR40cra and it has buttons on the box. It also seems to produce less heat on the box. The only disadvantage i see is that it has a red light when it is turned off.

The RCA DTA800 does nicely for me, but isn't quite as sharp as my Zenith DTT900. The remote and overall functions of the Zenith are better, and especially useful is its signal-strength button, although the RCA has a simple, onscreen bar-graph for it on channel changes. I'm impressed how sharp the image from the Zenith is on my HDTV, even though you'd expect less from a composite connection. I think that the excellent signal filters in my HDTV make an S-Video output unnecessary, as they perform the same function as an S-Video processor would do. I wish my WMC computer tuners would do as well with weaker signals, as both of these CECB boxes. I use the Zenith with an HDD/DVD recorder and the image from its playback from HD down-converted broadcasts, has fooled a few friends into thinking they were actually in HD, even though expanded by the TV to fill the whole, widescreen space.

I have fringe stations that are 50-60 miles away, and that's when the difference between the Zenith, Channel Master, and other boxes become clear. The Zenith receives the same number of signals as the CM, but a lot of those channels are simply displayed as "blank". The CM makes a greater effort to display the stations, even if it's mostly just garbage. For example:

Channel 10-3 - NBC Sports
Zenith == signal received but no image
CM == displays an image that breaks-up but still lets the viewer follow the action; i.e. watchable reception
DTVpal == nada
Zinwell == nada

Our local Fox affiliate tested several boxes using pad attenuators. They found that the digital stream box was more sensitive than the others. For example, macroblocking occured at 3 dB higher with the Zenith than the Digital Stream. Since we have two major locals with spot beams, they recommend a CECB with greater sensitivity.

Clarification: I don't have actual results... For example, macroblocking occured with 20 dB attenuation from Zenith and did not occur until 23 dB with Digital Stream. Thereby making the DS more sensitive to lower signal levels.

I've been debating between CM-7000 and Zenith/Insignia (and must choose today, before my coupon expires) and earlier in this thread (page 8 of 12) Symbios says that, re: deciding what would be allowed, "Funai commented that we feel that it is inappropriate to extend Coupon Program eligibility to devices that support high-definition (HDTV) viewing, i.e., a display with higher-than-standard definition video resolution. [a fuller quote is at http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...1029256&page=8

____A main advantage of CM-7000 is its S-video, but I've been thinking that I don't need this now (my TV is small with no s-video input) and then later (if my situation changes) I can get a box with 480/720/1080 output. But maybe not, since the market for broadcast DTV boxes may be small after the coupon program is over and (after Feb 17) people have made the changeover. Or at least it will be more expensive.
____The decision about what to support with the coupon had big economic consequences for manufacturers/sellers and quality consequences for consumers. It would be nice if CM and Zenith (and others) could have offered better PQ and flexibility, and still be eligible for the coupons. Sigh.

Do all boxes (CM, Zenith,...) let you enter 3-1 or 3-1, 27-1 or 27-2, etc, to let you choose either the main "network channel" or the "extra channel" that typically carries reruns, local shows,...?

YES! At least to all the ones I've tested.

IDRick,

How did you come across the information you have about the CM-7000 and the Zenith/Insignia CECB's? Do you have a link to the information?

Our local Fox engineer told me about their tests. She suggested that I purchase a Digital Stream from RS due to greater sensitivity, citing their tests. I asked about the Zenith and she simply replied "all other boxes were similar in sensitivity". I don't know if CM was included but she did say the Zenith was tested. I'd love to have access her data but she's holding on to it pretty tight...

Even if true, pure sensitivity is only one factor in achieving solid ATSC reception. In my location, ~40 miles from the transmitters, with heavy multipath, my Zenith holds signals better than my Digital Stream, using the same antenna, as the signals rise and fall. A friend's borrowed CM7000 was pretty similar to the Zenith in this signal environment.

Check your current analog UHF stations. Do you have noticable ghosting of the images? If so, multipath may be a factor that will affect solid reception of OTA ATSC at your location.

[Also, I did notice somewhat sharper picture quality with the Zenith over the DS. But that was using a 32" 1080i LCD. Probably couldn't see the difference with, say a 26-inch class CRT. For some people, that might matter.]

good points! I do have four strong analogs which go away in few weeks, yeah! No ghosting with the antenna in the attic or on the roof. My challenge is the 70 degree separation between the two broadcast locations. I have to shoot for the sweet spot to optimize signal strength but lose 5 to 10% relative to aiming directly at the towers. Not sure what I'll do, I'm still deciding... Need to decide soon though as my second coupon expires in two weeks...

How much better do you want? They both have excellent PQ.

The coupon program is only for SD tuners, meant to replace the reception of SD analog signals. Those two tuners have exceptional PQ for SD tuners - especially the CM over s-video.

You really are over-thinking this way too much for a $10.00-$20.00 tuner. Figure out what features you really want - the highest priority features - no box has everything - you'll just have to accept that like everyone else has. These things are cheap, remember? It's not that big of a deal, and shouldn't be that hard of a decision. Both the Zenith and the CM do everything most users would need, and do it well. The biggest obvious difference is that the CM has more to offer in the way of a guide (and it doesn't have pass-through, if that's important to you).

If you are using it on an HD display, then you shouldn't be expecting HD-quality PQ from these CECB's (or the features of those much more expensive tuners) - you should pay up for an HD box, like everyone else has to do. But the thing is, if you're going to buy a new TV in the future, it'll have an ATSC tuner in it already.

For recording to an SD recorder, and displaying it on an HD display, the Channel Master would be the best choice, if your recorder has s-video in. If only component or less, either the CM or the Zenith is equal. But again, remember, if you ever buy a new DVD recorder, you can get one with an ATSC tuner in it, also.

(note: if you're planning on ordering the CM-7000 today online, you can't do it from Solid Signal, because you need to do it 3 full business days in advance of the expiration date when using a coupon.)

I had a similar experience with Tivax STB-T8. The first box lasted only a few hours. Would not power on from standby. It took several email communications to get the promise of an RMA, and then several more days to actually get the RMA. I had to pay the return shipping for the RMA'ed device. It took several weeks to get a replacement device...after I made several inquires relating to status. Communication with Tivax is very, very bad...at best. The replacement box seems to be fine. But if you decide on Tivax--and have any issues/problems with your device--standby for exceptionally bad customer service.

P.S. Note: all of this was well within the warranty period.

Where is everyone getting thier boxes at? I am having a hard time finding decent boxes (tivax STB-T8, Zenith DTT901, Channel Master CM-7000) anywhere! I would prefer to do online (e.g. amazon) to avoid taxes, but that looks like a no go because amazon.com doesnt even have many 'good' boxes left.

Online. You can goto google.com and do a search for "CM-7000" and a bunch of stores will pop up. You can do the same if you're looking for an antenna (like CM-4228HD).
In my experience the difference between Composite Video and Separated-video is the difference between a store-bought VHS tape and a DVD. The former is more blurred.

Using S-video can also make the difference between readable text and unreadable text, since composite video tends to create rainbow effects on white text.

In message #331, PFSouth wrote: "....And when I made my purchases, I knew to rummage through the June, July, August and September Insignia boxes still on the shelf at BB until I found ONE October box...."

What is so special about the Insignia boxes made in October? I bought two Insignia's at BB. One was made in September, and one in October. Worth exchanging the September (it hasn't been opened) for an October, if they have one?

I'm on my second October 08 Insignia NS-DXA1-APT from BB. The audio on the first one either dropped out or distorted intermittently. You could make it do it by tapping on it. The second one hasn't done it on its own but the audio does drops out and the picture pixelates if you tap on it. BB has June and July 08 units left. I may take this one back and get one of those. Have others experienced any problems with the newer date code units? Thanks.

I have a CM7000. It was hard to compare since I didn't have any other box to compare it to. Someone asked me to check their Magnavox TB100MG9... Boy, I have a station that I get mutlipath off of a water tower not too far from me. The CM 7000 might break up once every hour in the wind...the Magnavox makes the channel unwatchable, and it is very calm today, and lots of my fringe station are being picked up by the CM at 50% or better and the Magnavox below 15%.