Cost-Effective, High-Functionality, User-Friendly Replacement for Pay TV

Barr

Thanks Swoofer for the detailed reply : Just to respond to it .

swoofer wrote: »

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3. I forgot to mention when you have flashed are you watching via hdmi or scart?

5. I cant remember whether I used back or front usb but if you tried front then try back.

6. There is one other fix where you could re-load the bootloader.

And finally did the box go belly up and was that the reason you needed to re-flash? Did you load any additional software and can you FTP to box when its showing run alpha etc?

3. hdmi

5. I've only ever used the front , I'll give the back a go.

6. How do I do this / is that complicated, as I would be too tech savy

I kept getting this swirling circle on the top right so done a restart it and its been tits up ever since.

NewClareman

Barr wrote: »

I have tried both the older images numerous times and the box is still stuck:(

The box recognises the USB , all the messages come up saying its flashing , f-roots , D boot , boot, but at the end of the process all I ever get is "Run Alpha+" with the power button flashing.

Is this a sign the box is fooked.

I've put on the same image before without issues.

Whats my best route now to get it going again ... is there some way of resetting it.

I agree with Swoofer’s reply - he covered most of the suggestions I have.


The only way I know to reset the boothloader is to convert back to to Fortis OS. You have to create a user account to download the software.

There is a chance that a corrupted setting is the problem, and that each install of OpenATV picks up the incorrect setting. Before resetting the bootloader I’d try loading OpenVix. You can get it here.

If all this fails it is likely that you have a hardware problem. Most diagnosis require specialised equipment. However, it is worth opening the box and checking the electrolytic capacitors for bulging. (These are like small cylinders.) If any are damaged they can be procured and replaced pretty easily.

Barr

Thanks lads , finally getting somewhere.


After trying all the software above I decided to take the plunge and open it up. Something I was trying to avoid as this is all new to me.


I've seen more than any man should never have to see inside their Tiviar :pac:


Swoofer, you have hit the nail on the head , point 1 seems to be the issue.



My Tiviar came with a 1TB Toshiba hard drive installed . I disconnected the hard drive , then flashed and hey presto , worked first time.


Just to double check , I reconnected the hard drive and flashed again , my original issue came up, so it has something to do with this it seems.


So for now I flashed the box with the hard drive disconnected the reconnected the hard drive afterwards.


Trouble now is now I can't record . When I press the red button I get the message "write error while recording .Disk full?


All my recordings are gone so it can't be full.


Anyone suggest my next step ?

greasepalm

You possible have not setup your hdd as it was disconnected when the box was flashed,DONT FORMAT IT but mount the drive ext4 and then it should work again,you might have a failing hdd is it old or new?

Barr

Its less than a year old so should be fine.

When I go into "storage devices" I dont see anything about mounting it.

There is an option to "convert ext3 filesystem to ext4" Is this what your referring to

I've tried the "initialization" option but it only gets to 47% and nothing after that.

swoofer

Can you say what image you are using? And glad box is ok. You need to access that HDD again and look at the speed on it, it will say either 7200 rpm or 5400rpm.

Its possible its a faulty hdd, faulty sata cable, cable not seated or its 7200rpm and not 5400. Try re-seating the sata cable. Look at this pic, zoom in if needs be. The sata cable unplugs from the board, so you can take it out, look at connectors and see if any bent. Are you using a usb for picons and epg?

http://linux-tv.com/receiver/tiviar-alpha-plus/

reseat cables, cover box but dont fix screws yet. HDD should be 2.5 so check.

NB always power off at back when messing with insides.

Put back cover and power on and it should pick up the HDD but if it was working ok originally then I would say HDD is gone. For a replacement get a western digital or samsung.

greasepalm

There is an option to "convert ext3 filesystem to ext4" Is this what your referring to =YES
Fat 32 is not seen and box has to make it ready for use,if hdd is faulty it should be under warranty.

Barr

swoofer wrote: »

Can you say what image you are using? And glad box is ok. You need to access that HDD again and look at the speed on it, it will say either 7200 rpm or 5400rpm.

Its possible its a faulty hdd, faulty sata cable, cable not seated or its 7200rpm and not 5400. Try re-seating the sata cable. Look at this pic, zoom in if needs be. The sata cable unplugs from the board, so you can take it out, look at connectors and see if any bent. Are you using a usb for picons and epg?

http://linux-tv.com/receiver/tiviar-alpha-plus/

reseat cables, cover box but dont fix screws yet. HDD should be 2.5 so check.

NB always power off at back when messing with insides.

Put back cover and power on and it should pick up the HDD but if it was working ok originally then I would say HDD is gone. For a replacement get a western digital or samsung.

Its a relief that the box is working again , I was thinking about going back to the Q box as my broadband contract is up this month but will park it for now to see if I can get the Tiviar running again. Its been excellent the last 10 months.

I'm using openatv 6.2 with the image from the start of this thread from Jan 19.

Not sure how to answer the question about using a usb for picons and epg.

Cables etc all look ok.

I bought the box a company called Kuul Media with the HDD already installed . It is the correct 2.5 , 5400. HDD was in regular use since Jan 2019 and nearly full before it went bust.

As its less than a year old I'll contact them about the HDD as greasepalm suggests.

If its just a matter of connecting the HDD and it should be picked up then I'll have a go at replacing it myself

NewClareman

Barr wrote: »

I bought the box a company called Kuul Media with the HDD already installed . It is the correct 2.5 , 5400. HDD was in regular use since Jan 2019 and nearly full before it went bust.

As its less than a year old I'll contact them about the HDD as greasepalm suggests.

If its just a matter of connecting the HDD and it should be picked up then I'll have a go at replacing it myself

I always recommend buying an AV Drive, for this build of TiviarAlphaPLus. The hard drive is being written to continuously, for timeshifting (Live Pause and Rewind). AV Drives are specifically designed for this environment and are available from many suppliers, including Amazon. There may be options from other manufacturers, but I am not aware of them.

Standard pc drives are not designed for environments such as PVR's but suppliers use them because they are cheaper than AV drives. It is not an issue of speed, though 5400rpm drives are marginally more reliable than 7200rpm, in this environment.

NewClareman

swoofer wrote: »

Are you using a usb for picons and epg?

Barr wrote: »

Not sure how to answer the question about using a usb for picons and epg.

This build uses the hard drive to store the EPG and Picons, USB storage is not necessary and is not recommended.

swoofer

I got my picons mixed with my epg. Is it not the case when you have the epg stored on the hdd its spins the hdd everytime you access the epg?

NewClareman

swoofer wrote: »

I got my picons mixed with my epg. Is it not the case when you have the epg stored on the hdd its spins the hdd everytime you access the epg?

This thread refers specifically to my image - this topic has been covered previously.

Barr

NewClareman wrote: »

I always recommend buying an AV Drive, for this build of TiviarAlphaPLus. The hard drive is being written to continuously, for timeshifting (Live Pause and Rewind). AV Drives are specifically designed for this environment and are available from many suppliers, including Amazon. There may be options from other manufacturers, but I am not aware of them.

Standard pc drives are not designed for environments such as PVR's but suppliers use them because they are cheaper than AV drives. It is not an issue of speed, though 5400rpm drives are marginally more reliable than 7200rpm, in this environment.

Good to know , I'll try and swap mine out for one of these.

Inviere

Hi folks, I'm about to hit the button on a Tiviar Alpha+ as a Christmas present for a family member who isn't very technical. I'll do all the setup needed etc, but would like to hand it over when set up. I noticed this in the opening post;

"Auto-Managing Satellite Channel Changes.
At the moment these have to be managed manually as the Autobouquetsmaker was messing with the Bouquets I had already configured.
(I know there are solutions for this but don’t have time to pursue, for now. Maybe someone could set this up for me???)"

^^ Is this still the case with the image? One of the main reasons I wanted to switch to a Tiviar is so I didn't have to retune sat channels for said family member. Any info would be appreciated

NewClareman

Inviere wrote: »

Hi folks, I'm about to hit the button on a Tiviar Alpha+ as a Christmas present for a family member who isn't very technical. I'll do all the setup needed etc, but would like to hand it over when set up. I noticed this in the opening post;

"Auto-Managing Satellite Channel Changes.
At the moment these have to be managed manually as the Autobouquetsmaker was messing with the Bouquets I had already configured.
(I know there are solutions for this but don’t have time to pursue, for now. Maybe someone could set this up for me???)"

^^ Is this still the case with the image? One of the main reasons I wanted to switch to a Tiviar is so I didn't have to retune sat channels for said family member. Any info would be appreciated

Once you set it up, as described, it should pick up satellite changes automatically.

Inviere

NewClareman wrote: »

Once you set it up, as described, it should pick up satellite changes automatically.

Sweet, thanks for the reply. I'll hit the button on the order, and study the thread while waiting on arrival. Many thanks for the guides, you're doing divine work

hbab2009

Ok folks I need some help. Got my Tiviar during the week and started the process of setting it up this eve. I attached 2.5" HDD and then inserted the USB with image to the front USB port. Installation came up on the screen. Itseems the USB wasn't read. I then triedthe back USB port same issue.

Anything I'm doing wrong. Should I disconnect the HDD.

greasepalm

Try the back usb port while box is powered off.

hbab2009

Thanks for that but still no luck, I have tried all USB ports and I have also disconnected my HDD, any other thoughts?

greasepalm

Some e2 boxes have issues with usb,can you try another usb stick like 8gb kingston.
Was the stick setup as fat 32 and does the image need extracting to usb stick? i dont use Atv but would be in his setup guides.

hbab2009

Sorted, thanks for the help, the box I got had Fortis OS on it, image loaded now.

hbab2009

Now the next question, how do I get my skins/display not to have the grey open atv in the background?

spaceHopper

Just to add I got an Edision™ PICCOLLINO S2+T2/C Combi Receiver from https://www.freetv.ie/combi-receiver/

It came preprogrammed with the UK channels.

All I had to do was tune in the the Irish ones, for some reason I picked up two different muxes so each channle came in twice. After some digging I was able to delete the extra ones and move them so that they are the first channels in the list. Now you just need to go up and down the list. Very easy to use any older person would have no problem once it's setup.

Johnboy1951

spaceHopper wrote: »

Just to add I got an Edision™ PICCOLLINO S2+T2/C Combi Receiver from https://www.freetv.ie/combi-receiver/

It came preprogrammed with the UK channels.

All I had to do was tune in the the Irish ones, for some reason I picked up two different muxes so each channle came in twice. After some digging I was able to delete the extra ones and move them so that they are the first channels in the list. Now you just need to go up and down the list. Very easy to use any older person would have no problem once it's setup.

This ageism is getting tiresome!

Older than what?

Maybe it is time that ageism is regarded in similar vein as racism, sexism and those other 'isms' that are so abhorred!

NewClareman

hbab2009 wrote: »

Now the next question, how do I get my skins/display not to have the grey open atv in the background?

Hi, fantastic news that you're up and running. This thread is on my specific build, which has the grey background. There are other skins available, but you should ask about them on the main Tiviar thread.

If your asking about picons, the instructions for loading these are in the first few posts.

NCM.

NewClareman

spaceHopper wrote: »

Just to add I got an Edision™ PICCOLLINO S2+T2/C Combi Receiver from https://www.freetv.ie/combi-receiver/

What has this got to do with this thread???

Barr

hbab2009 wrote: »

Sorted, thanks for the help, the box I got had Fortis OS on it, image loaded now.

As a matter of interest does this prevent images being uploaded by USB ?

Just curious for anyone starting out, how do you get around it.

NewClareman

Barr wrote: »

As a matter of interest does this prevent images being uploaded by USB ?

Just curious for anyone starting out, how do you get around it.

It doesn’t, I’ve given instructions on the link in the first post.

The more recent builds of OpenATV, appear to require an online flash. Try as I might, I cannot get it to pick up an image from USB. (This might well be me. )

spaceHopper

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

This ageism is getting tiresome!

Older than what?

Maybe it is time that ageism is regarded in similar vein as racism, sexism and those other 'isms' that are so abhorred!

Sorry saw somebody asking about a box for their parents so it had to be simple to use though it was this thread. By bad, OK boomer

Shefwedfan

https://www.amazon.co.uk/one-Excellent-Performance-Digital-Freeview/dp/B00KV9C8LY/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=tv+aerial&qid=1574447187&sr=8-3

Would this work for Saorview? Thanks