SIGMATEK DVBR-520 HD Digital TV Receiver

mjsmyth

I saw this whilst trawling through Pixmania.

http://www.pixmania.ie/ie/uk/4258890/art/sigmatek/dvbr-520-hd-digital-tv-re.html

It has the TNT HD logo, so should work here with our DTT. It also has a USB port which allows it to be used as a PVR and also says it supports MKV files.. Only costs €60 also.

mj

scath

mjsmyth wrote: »

I saw this whilst trawling through Pixmania.

http://www.pixmania.ie/ie/uk/4258890/art/sigmatek/dvbr-520-hd-digital-tv-re.html

It has the TNT HD logo, so should work here with our DTT. It also has a USB port which allows it to be used as a PVR and also says it supports MKV files.. Only costs €60 also.

mj

Sounds good MJ..TNT HD unlike TNT indicates MPEG4 as far as I know. So it should work, unless RTÉ NL decide to upspec to DVB-T2. But sounds like they'll leave that for a few years to get return on investment and just let the One Vision and Freeview HD boxes do that for them.

I think you'll find that the UK manufacturers will just submit Freeview HD models with cam slots for certification and the timing by RTÉ will be perfect for future proofing. To my mind, RTÉ NLs delay with the certification process was quite wise and possibly for this reason knowing DVB-T2 UK rollout was imminent back last year.

Freeview HD does DVB-T2 and DVB-T(1) and MPEG4. (launch February 2010)
Freeview does DVB-T(1) and MPEG2 only (August 1998?) (no picture with RTÉ DTT).

STB

Scath,

It is tiring me that people are being influenced by rubbish being posted about DVB-T2.

Ireland have adopted DVB-T and MPEG4 AVC. End of.

Freeview HD boxes will be 3 times the price of DVB-T mpeg4 boxes! The onlny people that should be considering these are those in overflow border areas. Even then its for a couple of HD stations. All the rest of the UK stations REMAIN in MPEG2!

By the way a TNT HD box does not have the MHEG5 middleware that RTE have deployed for EPG. Otherwise it will work fine.

MKV support interseting.....

HumpM

I got one of these today I gotta say they are are great piece of kit for €60 for the money I'm impressed with the amount of features it has and the video formats it can play back get a cheap external hard drive and you have a media center

anyways some screenshots

jammygit

STB wrote: »

Scath,

It is tiring me that people are being influenced by rubbish being posted about DVB-T2.

Ireland have adopted DVB-T and MPEG4 AVC. End of.

Freeview HD boxes will be 3 times the price of DVB-T mpeg4 boxes! The onlny people that should be considering these are those in overflow border areas. Even then its for a couple of HD stations. All the rest of the UK stations REMAIN in MPEG2!

By the way a TNT HD box does not have the MHEG5 middleware that RTE have deployed for EPG. Otherwise it will work fine.

MKV support interseting.....

Actually it would be interesting to know if TNT HD box supports any kind of text - if it does not support MHEG does it support old-fashioned Teletext? Reason I ask is that RTE were until recently transmitting MHEG and Teletext side-by-side.

givecredit

Can you pause or rewind live tv with this box?

HumpM

givecredit wrote: »

Can you pause or rewind live tv with this box?

just record

The Cush

STB wrote: »

Scath,
By the way a TNT HD box does not have the MHEG5 middleware that RTE have deployed for EPG. Otherwise it will work fine.

The Irish EPG does not use MHEG-5, the epg data comes from the DVB-SI stream - EIT (Event Information Table) I believe.

MHEG-5 will be used for interactive features like digital text.

jammygit wrote: »

Actually it would be interesting to know if TNT HD box supports any kind of text - if it does not support MHEG does it support old-fashioned Teletext? Reason I ask is that RTE were until recently transmitting MHEG and Teletext side-by-side.

TNT HD equipment should support standard teletext as the main french channels transmit it on their digital channels, they will use MHP instead of MHEG-5 for features such as digital text. Digital text and standard (VBI) teletext are both part of the Irish Digital standard and continue to be transmitted.

STB

The Cush wrote: »

The Irish EPG does not use MHEG-5, the epg data comes from the DVB-SI stream - EIT (Event Information Table) I believe.

MHEG-5 will be used for interactive features like digital text.



TNT HD equipment should support standard teletext as the main french channels transmit it on their digital channels, they will use MHP instead of MHEG-5 for features such as digital text. Digital text and standard (VBI) teletext are both part of the Irish Digital standard and continue to be transmitted.

Well spotted. Slip of the keys. MHEG5 most certainly for fancy teletext. MHP is in those French boxes. Doesnt matter as you should pick up the "other" text anyhow. Its a nice box the sigmatek for 60euro - especially given the MKV feature.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055537962

podgeandrodge

Anyone know what format does this record in?

mjsmyth

Thanks for the pics, I may purchase one myself soon.

byrnefm

mjsmyth wrote: »

Thanks for the pics, I may purchase one myself soon.

Is there any way for it to put the channel numbering in the correct order? I noticed they're all in the 800s. Is it designed for the UK market then?

Just wondering!

TheDriver

has anyone tried recording something on it using the USB function? Is it a 7 day planner?

danjo

byrnefm wrote: »

Is there any way for it to put the channel numbering in the correct order? I noticed they're all in the 800s. Is it designed for the UK market then?

Just wondering!

This was covered in thread below:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055753077&highlight=danjo

Good luck.

BenEadir

Please please please forgive a really dopey question but does this box need to be connected to an external ariel of some sort to get a signal? I just had a FreeSat system installed (Sagem DTR 94500) so I'm looking for some way to include the Irish channels into the overall mix.

Cheers for the nice responses and shame on you for slagging me off for being such a naive noob if you do slag me

Ben

mjsmyth

It sure does need to be connected to an aerial. Depending on where you are, an indoor aerial might suffice. Failing that, either an aerial in the attic or an external aerial will be required.

mattman

can it recieve BBC 1 HD and ITV1 HD ? for the world cup?

not worrie about rte, cause nottin on it!

If i got those 2 stations..i'd be happy.

thanks.

m.

ps: if not, i see maplin in dublin are doing one for 169 (with record)..but thats not with cables and stuff..not like aldi did the lot for 99 euro.
any ideas?? thanks.

swoofer

get a combo box, will have dtt and sat and then you get bbc hd, itv hd, look at saor tv.

gb--

versc

I got one of those boxes but I dont have an aerial. Theres a satellite dish outside. Will that do?

tooler1

can anybody confirm that this box
does indeed play mkv files?:rolleyes:

jabarrett35

Hi, yes it does play MKV files great quality picture.

Peddyr

Hi,

Can anyone describe how it handles Irish DTT (Saorview). Picture quality, lip synch, time that video stream takes to load, teletext, EPG nos etc?

STB

Well no MHEG5 (It has MHP - which the French use).

Its just a standard MPEG4 box that will decode both HD and SD.

Dont know how it will handle UK and Ireland channel listing wise.
I would imagine it places stations in the 800s but there are ways around that.

Peddy, You should be looking at the Technika STBHDIS2010 Freeview HD. Its on special STG60 at the moment in Tesco (using some £20 discount token off their site). You get the lot in IOM with that as its a Freeview HD box.

Peddyr

STB wrote: »

Well no MHEG5 (It has MHP - which the French use).

Its just a standard MPEG4 box that will decode both HD and SD.

Dont know how it will handle UK and Ireland channel listing wise.
I would imagine it places stations in the 800s but there are ways around that.

Peddy, You should be looking at the Technika STBHDIS2010 Freeview HD. Its on special STG60 at the moment in Tesco (using some £20 discount token off their site). You get the lot in IOM with that as its a Freeview HD box.

Hi STB,

It's actually £80, but reviews are not convincing me to buy one - http://www.avforums.com/forums/freeview/1261927-technika-freeview-hd-box.html

It makes sense to get a T2 box as IOM goes HD in October but has anyone tried these with Saorview yet? If the Sigmatek works fine I might be happy with one of those because afterall, the are only a couple of HD channels on UK DTT and ITV is mostly upscaled SD so not really much of an insentive to shell out a lot of cash on a T2 box yet.

STB

Another French one is the

XORO HRT7510



TNT HD (MPEG4)
USB compatible NTFS et FAT32
plays MP3, WMA HD TS MKV- Time Shift

€49.50

http://www.cdiscount.com/high-tech/lecteurs/xoro-hrt7510/f-106270707-xoro_hrt7510.html

Small and plasticy looking (does not show Thierry Henry handball replays)

tooler1

this box is mpeg2 only
although it does say mpeg4 on the logo
go to the link and
check out the specs on the site



:rolleyes:

STB wrote: »

Another French one is the

XORO HRT7510



TNT HD (MPEG4)
USB compatible NTFS et FAT32
plays MP3, WMA HD TS MKV- Time Shift

€49.50

http://www.cdiscount.com/high-tech/lecteurs/xoro-hrt7510/f-106270707-xoro_hrt7510.html

Small and plasticy looking (does not show Thierry Henry handball replays)

sesswhat

tooler1 wrote: »

this box is mpeg2 only
although it does say mpeg4 on the logo
go to the link and
check out the specs on the site

:rolleyes:

Récepteur TNT HD, AVC / H.264 et SD MPEG-2

AVC / H.264 = MPEG-4
et = and

Look further down:

Norme MPEG4 AVC/H.264 HP@L4

STB

tooler1 wrote: »

this box is mpeg2 only
although it does say mpeg4 on the logo
go to the link and
check out the specs on the site

:rolleyes:

I actually go to the bother of researching stuff before I post it you know. The MPEG4 logo is of no significance by the way (if anything it is the MKV side of it). But the box is full spec MPEG4 for DVB-T.

So you can stick :rolleyes: back in your toolbox Mr Tooler.

tooler1

oops sorry about that,you are indeed right
i'll have to watch my french
Mr tooler? i could have been a Miss tooler for all you know

Peddyr

STB wrote: »

Well no MHEG5 (It has MHP - which the French use).

Its just a standard MPEG4 box that will decode both HD and SD.

Dont know how it will handle UK and Ireland channel listing wise.
I would imagine it places stations in the 800s but there are ways around that.

Peddy, You should be looking at the Technika STBHDIS2010 Freeview HD. Its on special STG60 at the moment in Tesco (using some £20 discount token off their site). You get the lot in IOM with that as its a Freeview HD box.

Technika STBHDV2010 Freeview HD Set Top Box now down to £70 from Tesco Direct - http://direct.tesco.com/q/R.208-0359.aspx

STB

I saw the Advert on Channel 4 today! You should get one and get rid of those Humax boxes.
I am not "allowed" anymore boxes at the moment

tooler1

Sigmatik Dvbr-520hd
i got this box from Pixmania.com
and its really very good,the picture quality is superb
wit very good picture and sound
i live in the liberities area of dublin
and i am picking up the irish digital terrestrial tv stations wit an indoor aerial
i notice there is no mention of this box on the sigmatik site
http://www.sigmatekcomputer.com/index.php?lang=en
i have emailed them regarding this but no reply yet:)

jabarrett35 wrote: »

Hi, yes it does play MKV files great quality picture.

The Cush

tooler1 wrote: »

i notice there is no mention of this box on the sigmatik site
http://www.sigmatekcomputer.com/index.php?lang=en
i have emailed them regarding this but no reply yet:)

Their website is well out of date, it still links to their 2007 catalogue. Go to this part of the site http://www.sigmatekcomputer.com/files/temp/ for link to 2010 catalogue.

tooler1

Thanks a lot For that Link:)

ronsgonawin

hi,

Sorry for this, maybe stupid question, but does this box ie Sigmatek HD520 work with a standard free to air dish? or does it only work with an aerial, just want to find out for sure before i buy.

the mkv, avi play back is a big thing for me.

thanks in advance.

slegs

ronsgonawin wrote: »

hi,

Sorry for this, maybe stupid question, but does this box ie Sigmatek HD520 work with a standard free to air dish? or does it only work with an aerial, just want to find out for sure before i buy.

the mkv, avi play back is a big thing for me.

thanks in advance.

Aerial only

ronsgonawin

Oh right so if I dont have a dish and I have an aerial this will work and get all the channels that a free to air box would? So what is the difference between this one and one that u use a dish for?

watty

About 2,491 channels

ronsgonawin

What does that mean? Do you only get 9 channels or something, is there a list of channels u recieve somewhere?

watty

All explained here http://www.techtir.ie/saortv/saorview

holidaysong

At this point in time you'll get RTÉ 1, RTÉ 2, TG4 and RTÉ News Now, as well as all of the RTÉ Radio stations.

http://www.mpeg4ireland.com/channel-lineup

Drogheda is probably too far away from the border to get overspill from Freeview in the North.

ronsgonawin

Thanks holiday, thats perfect just what I needed! Little of topic but does anyone know of a freesat box that could play avi files? Would like to have it all in the same box!

elsie1b

Does this receiver pick up Irish HD test channel and HD channels from Preselli channel 50 ?

watty

You need a DVB-T2 box to receive UK "Freeview HD" It should have a "Freeview HD" logo. Such a box should mostly work on Saorview (Irish DTT). The exact degree of compatibility is unknown as
1) The UK "Freesat HD" spec is private
2) There is no telling how slavishly or if "extras" added on any particular UK "Freeview HD" box or TV have been done
3) Only official Certification gives full peace of mind.

The Irish Spec *iS* public. Summary here, with links to RTE detail specifications, Teracom and comparison with UK spec

KetchupKid

OK, I want to get a STB for Irish DTT only. Looking for something inexpensive HD\SD with PVR functionality and no Hard Drive that will allow me to record to an external Hard drive. Ideally but not necessary I'd like something that will also play other movie file formats such as avi, mkv, mp4, etc. The only other possible wish is something capable of rewinding live TV, but this is not necessary.

The two cheapest options I see are the two boxes mentioned on this thread, the:
Sigmatek DVBR-520 HD http://www.pixmania.ie/ie/uk/4258890/art/sigmatek/dvbr-520-hd-digital-tv-re.html
XORO HRT7510 http://www.cdiscount.com/high-tech/lecteurs/xoro-hrt7510/f-106270707-xoro_hrt7510.html

My questions are:
Which is better and better value or is there currently anything else of better value?
Would I get any better value in 2 weeks after the official launch, I'd be surprised to see anything much cheaper and that's assuming the launch goes a head on schedule? Alternatively if they are in short supply, prices could go up next month, this is Ireland and stranger things have happened?
Is there a chance one of these won't work down the road because they don't have the Saorview stamp?

watty

Proper quality PVRs have dual tuners and built in Hard Drives. PVRs without a hard drive are to make it seem cheaper.

31st October 2010 is only a start. The Full launch is next year after the info campaign has started. It's not reasonable to expect much in November. I'd wait to March/April.

KetchupKid

Hi Watty,

Thanks for the reply. Yes, I know a proper pvr would probably need it's own hard drive, hence driving up the price. I already have a Humax Foxsat PVR and right now I'm just looking for a cheap way of recording good quality RTE and TNG via DTT, if I could get a pvr for just a bit more I would, otherwise I'll go with the cheap unit and an external Hard drive. I think it's safe in assuming I won't get anything cheaper than 60 euros for a DTT STB that uses an external HD, other than not having the pvr capability I'd actually prefer the external HD.

So for a cheap DTT STB with an external HD is there anything better value than the Sigmatek or Xoro and will they both still work down the road?

watty

The Humax DTT "Freeview HD" seems better value though it's more expensive.

The panasonic boxes with HDD and BD recorder are a nice idea, but way too expensive and such PVR with "archive to BD" and DVD/BD playback are likely to be under €300 maybe next year rather than the €1,100 today.
sz1

KetchupKid

Hi Watty,

Thanks again for the reply. Do you mean the likes of the Humax PVR-9200T will work in Ireland for RTE DTT, I thought all of the current Humax freeview boxes were MPEG 2 only and wouldn't work here? If some of the Humax freeview boxes are MPEG 4, which ones are?

watty

Read what I said carefully. You are confusing different models.
The HUMAX PVR9150T, PVR9200T & PVR9300T FREEVIEW PVR are all only DVB-T. They do NOT do HD! They will not work at all.

Only HD DTT DVB-T2 set-box TVs from UK!
http://www.humaxdigital.com/uk/products/product_stb_terrestrial_hdrfoxt2.aspx
"Freeview HD", not full HDTV or HD Ready TV with only "Freeview"

Freeview will (DVB-T) NOT work
"Freeview HD" (DVB-T2) Will work

Though we use DVB-T. Our DVB-T uses HD & MPEG4, in UK only DVB-T2 boxes use MPEG4 & HD. DVB-T2 boxes/TVs work with DVB-T also.

KetchupKid

Hi Watty,

Thanks for the explanation. Although I love my Humax Foxsat and I'm sure the 500GB Humax Foxsat HD PVR HD-R Freesat receiver is a great piece of kit, at £300 I think it may not be worth it for the poor 2-4 channels we get here in Ireland. For that reason I see the Sigmatek DVBR-520 HD box at €60 and a external 1TB Hard drive for about €90 much better value, despite not being able to pause & rewind live TV. Maybe if the prices come down in the future I can go with a proper DTT PVR like the Humax and then move the Sigmatek to the 2nd TV.

Just one last question for anyone that has the Sigmatek box, does it work with a powerd USB Hard Drive or a USB powered HD and are there any HD size limitations and does it have to be FAT or NTFS?