Post DTV Transition CECB converter boxes availability! - Page 5

If you're in a populated enough area I use Craigslist to do a search for "tv converter" in 'all for sale / wanted' category. Then there's ebay but more of those will require shipping. With the Craigslist search I also read the lower-priced TV ads because some folks throw in a box without listing it in their subject line.

Here's the online retailer post I was referring to although I haven't checked it in awhile:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...0#post18397380

Fry's stinks when it comes to providing a circular/ad on their website but here is the website:

http://www.frys.com/

I did see the CM for $60 with a quick search. One could monitor the site for specials.

Here's what I use for the ad but it's 3rd party and only shows major items from the ad:

http://www.frys-electronics-ads.com/

To see the entire ad one can do a search ("fry's ad xyz" where xyz is your nearest Fry's city) and you'll typically find a newspaper that will provide it on the web such as my example:

http://newspaperads.dfw.com/ROP/ads.aspx?advid=15646

Today's Rite Aid ad has cheeseboxes on sale for $29.95, model varies by store.

Meritline.com lists two:

Zinwell zat970a for $40.00

and

iView 1000STB for $42.99 with free shipping...

tom

My local BestBuy is now selling the Apex DT504. It is also listed on their website, but it is not on the apexdigitalinc.com or kcpi.us site.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1316594

I am considering the KWorld offerings. Have any of you used one of these?

I tried to post a url to the site selling these but as a newbie, I must post three times before I can provide a hyperlink.

If you post a URL with the http://www omitted, we can figure it out.

I have a Kworld connected to a small computer monitor. The tuner is one of the best I've seen for pulling in weak signals, but picture quality on standard def channels sucks, as does the funky menu and remote.

There is more info on HD set top boxes in this thread:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...=179095&page=6

Walmart now has a new CECB: Viore ABT150V

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...ct_id=16207327

Anybody else notice how they spelled Signal on the remote button.......Singal
Looks line a nice remote though(lots of buttons including PIP) spelling aside....

Karaoke button - Sing gal.

Sounds like a REAL u-remote with buttons like my old RCA plus DVD functions. Were any other CECB u-remotes this thorough? The few I've seen are VERY basic.

Rite Aid has converter boxes in today's ad for $29.99..Brands may vary by store...

Saw a stack of RCA DTA800B1s at a Walmart in Ohio

($50 Dayton - Hoke Rd Oct 27 2011).

Is there someplace where I can find a list of discontinued devices? I'd like to know which are still being manufactured/supported - a lot of the manufacturers seem to have moved away from making DTV converters pretty fast.

Pretty much ALL of them..anything you find in stores is most likely NOS (new old stock).

A number of Target's have the RCA STB7766C.

A post back in 6/09 says the RCA STB7766C = RCA DTA800B1

I've also recently seen an RCA model at Walmart, and the Digital Stream at Radio Shack.

They still sell the Zinwell on Amazon, too.

Try http://www.solidsignal.com/ ... they list the Zinwell and Coby as in stock today.

Solidsignal also lists the CM7001 - with HDMI, and SPDIF outputs in addition to the component, composite and S-video. $114.95
http://www.meritline.com/ has the Zinwell for $36.99 and the TIVAX stb t12 for $49.99

tom

I see that Tivax has s-video out. That sounds like it might be worth checking out, because their composite out models were rated at or near the top for PQ.

I believe I tried a Tivax(if they were sold at BB) but returned it because IMO the S-video out was basically the same quality as the composite out(which wasn't as good as the Insignia/Zenith models which only had composite).
I did try a Tivax HD converter box that was really a odd duck and never really took off. Besides being buggy it just had a made in someones garage feel about it. Their CECB didn't have that feel but just wasn't that great for PQ.
I think BB sold 2 different versions so it's possible the version I got wasn't the one people liked, this was several years ago though.

Wow, I'm surprised any of these companies would upgrade these products. 'Michley' Tivax, check out the write-up halfway down the page:

http://www.meritline.com/tivax-stb-t...--p-63656.aspx

Dolby Digital too but I don't know if that's new to this product.

BTW when comparing composite to s-video check your TV to see if it has different picture adjustments for the two input modes. I've heard complaints of color adjustment that appeared to be due to the factory settings of the TVs.

Hewlett and Packard began by making products in their garage.

Good point but in my case I'm running it into a DVDR with S-video and composite inputs and then HDMI to a HDTV. The DVDR does no signal processing

But your DVDR is converting to HDMI (upscaling?) so I dunno.

Maybe what Ramm was referring to, ConsumerReports rated the Tivaxs one notch above the Zeniths but I don't know when Michley took over the Tivax design.

The first (and maybe only?) CR rating that claimed that was back in the earliest days of CECB's, and all the models in the report were "originals", I believe. I think I remember having read elsewhere that it (over composite) was good, too, and there were also a couple of people around here that vouched for it.

I'm pretty sure they didn't have an s-video out model for awhile after the first one. I didn't even know they changed manufacturers somewhere along the line, so that would probably explain it.

Here's the CR rating link I have saved which includes the Zenith, Insignia, and Tivax APT upgrade models as well as the DTV Pal Plus:

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/e...es-ratings.htm

Clicking on a model brings up the descriptions, the 1st pgh of each describes their PQ results.

Yeah, that one lists many more models than the very first one they put out. I do remember that one being posted here as being the "final, official, go-to" ratings list - I just didn't remember it being from CR.

The one I first saw the Tivax (probably the STB-T8) rating in was the very first comparison list released by anyone, and was definitely more stripped down. It had no more than a handful of models listed for each category.

What's weird is they list the T8 with APT and the T9 without it. So either they listed them wrong or Tivax did a model number reversal. I forget which brand but I do remember another company that did their model numbering backwards. I hate it when they do that.

Maybe Apex for one, at least as far as when they were available to buy (DT502 then DT250).

I recently pulled out a bunch of old analog strip amps from a MATV set-up at my sisters' senior citizen apartment building and replaced them with an VHF/UHF distribution amp fed from their roof antenna. The system had been basically abandoned when the building management arranged for Comcast cable to wire the place for cable service. The maintenance guy was surprised that even the CCTV feed from the lobby was still working (the cableco neglected to put the feed on their service), and was impressed with the pristine picture quality of the OTA signals from NYC. I suspect most of the residents there are probably still paying for cable but the freak snow storm we had here in the northeast took out cable service to over half a million subscribers for several days in northern NJ including my sisters' building. The residents have now started asking how to hook-up to the MATV system again! Most of these old folks are still using analog TVs so does anyone know of a really cheap source of converter boxes? I'm interested in 40 to 50 boxes and 75-300 ohm baluns, new or used but in good working condition would be fine. PM me if you are a dealer.

My bad(or whatever the kids say now days) Floydage's post reminded me the model with S-video that I tried from BB was a Apex NOT Tivax. After my experience with the Tivax HD converter box(model 1000 I believe) I just didn't have the stomach to try another Tivax product. In hindsight the Tivax CECB was probably made by a totally different company and certainly could have had good PQ

Yeah I remember the Apexs had some nice bells and whistles, I was interested for the S-video and program guide. I heard to avoid the buggy DT250 though and get a DT502 (I believe the 502 came out before the 250 ).