# Heads up for SetPal users in Sutton Coalfield transmitter area



## Fred Smith (Oct 5, 2002)

http://www.freeview.co.uk/help/getting-freeview/q24


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## Sherminator (Nov 24, 2004)

I presume that it will effect all those unreturned ITV/ONdigital boxes aswell?


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## TCM2007 (Dec 25, 2006)

Doesn't look like it from the list they give.


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## Sherminator (Nov 24, 2004)

I know, but those boxes were pre-predigital, and are unsupported? by freeview although they do work with the service.


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## TCM2007 (Dec 25, 2006)

As very early boxes I suspect they were quite flexible as the standards hadn't settled down when they came out.

I was Mr Honest and retuned mine, so I can't check!


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## Sherminator (Nov 24, 2004)

I left the UK the day the ITV Digital went belly up (30/4/2002) and left it with my mother, and when I terminated my contract (I didn't know that they were going out of business that day), I gave instructions for them to collect it there. But no-one came. I since gave it to my brother who AFAIK is still using it.

I don't think that the Elmley Moor Transmitter has been updated yet (Or the Oliver's Mount, Scarborough repeater).


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## terryeden (Nov 2, 2002)

Bugger bugger bugger. This is caused by the switch to 8K (a good thing) but it means that the most reliable Freeview box will stop working (a bad thing).

This should probably go in the FreeView box thread - but does anyone know of a DTT box which...
1) Doesn't have MHEG (or can switch it off)
2) Doesn't do a forced channel scan at any time
3) Recovers from loss of power without going into standby

Or should I just hope that the Aussie box works here?


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## Ashley (Apr 20, 2002)

I've heard that it's due to splitting the list of services into 2 tables (NIT). This is allowed in the spec but some receivers don't like it.

I wonder if other TXs will give the same problem?


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## Pete77 (Aug 1, 2006)

terryeden said:


> but does anyone know of a DTT box which...
> 1) Doesn't have MHEG (or can switch it off)
> 2) Doesn't do a forced channel scan at any time
> 3) Recovers from loss of power without going into standby?


I believe the Netgem or BT IPlayer+ units should meet all of your requirements.


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## Pete77 (Aug 1, 2006)

Sherminator said:


> I presume that it will effect all those unreturned ITV/ONdigital boxes aswell?


I doubt it as there were nearly a million On/ITV Digital set top boxes out there (even if quite a few are now stored or have been thrown away) and only about five different OnDigital box models, so if they had been affected I am sure they would have been put on the list of problem boxes.

The liquidators of ITV Digital never in the end asked for the boxes back as there was eventually a deal struck by Granada and Carlton whereby they paid the liquidators a sume of money and the boxes were gifted to all the customers who had them on loan contracts at the time ITV Digital went belly up. This was done to ensure that DTT in the UK would have a future as this would have been doubt if one million DTT boxes had disappeared from all UK households at that time.

As to the affected boxes it appears to really be misdesign by the manufacturers, given that so few other older model boxes are affected by the problem.

But why is the table (NIT) being split in this way? Is it to do with the plans for MHEG4 and the notorious Sky Picnic proposal or is it just so there can be faster channel changing or more information in the EPG.


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## sprust (Apr 2, 2002)

Is this going to happen in all areas?

I've got a couple of spare Daewoo DS608P boxes that I thought would keep my TIVO going for years to come!


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## staffie2001uk (Apr 1, 2004)

Pete77 said:


> I doubt it as there were nearly a million On/ITV Digital set top boxes out there (even if quite a few are now stored or have been thrown away) and only about five different OnDigital box models, so if they had been affected I am sure they would have been put on the list of problem boxes.


Ex-On-Digital boxes don't appear to work in the recently digitalised areas of Cumbria, so I am not hopeful.


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## Sherminator (Nov 24, 2004)

Pete77 said:


> I doubt it as there were nearly a million On/ITV Digital set top boxes out there (even if quite a few are now stored or have been thrown away) and only about five different OnDigital box models, so if they had been affected I am sure they would have been put on the list of problem boxes.


Because they don't support the ITVdigital boxes, there won't be a software update to make them adapt to the new standard, even if they are capable to observing it. And not officially supporting the boxes, they won't be on their radar for testing or announcing their non-functionality with the new standard.


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## Pete77 (Aug 1, 2006)

Sherminator said:


> Because they don't support the ITVdigital boxes, there won't be a software update to make them adapt to the new standard, even if they are capable to observing it. And not officially supporting the boxes, they won't be on their radar for testing or announcing their non-functionality with the new standard.


Unlike OnDigital days manufacturers now do not have any specific commitment to go on updating the software on DTT boxes. The general philosophy seems to be much the same as with a computer BIOS. That is they are updated for the year or so while that box model is still current and after that the manufacturer doesn't bother any more. Loads of boxes that have been released since OnDigital went bust in Spring 2002 are also not getting firmware updates.

So as there are plenty of Ondigital boxes out there I still say that if they were expected to be made redundant by these changes they would have been on the problem list too.


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