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Another User experience

G

Gnomeface

New Member
Having lost Freesat (a fast-growing tree now wrecks the signal) I bought a decent (I thought) Freeview recorder - the FVP-5000T. After 3 weeks it's going back for a refund.

I have two Humax Freesat recorders and an ordinary Humax Freesat box (all of which are now useless!) plus a Humax Freeview recorder in a holiday caravan, and have had no problems with any of them. The FVP-5000T looked good on paper with its 3 decoders possibly recording 4 programs at once, and with playback of missed programmes integrated into the programme guide.

What I found was a box which compared poorly with the older HDR-1800T that I already have.
  • a delay of 5-7 seconds when selecting a channel from the guide, or changing to another channel by entering the number is quite unacceptable;
  • occasional loss of picture and sound for 1-2 seconds for no apparent reason (doesn't happen when watching using the TV's direct aerial connection); I tried using an attenuator to reduce the signal strength to 80% but it didn't have any effect;
  • scheduled recordings that suddenly stop at random before completion - maybe caused by the signal loss above;
  • Pause TV stops playback when the live program finishes, which is ridiculous because the program has been successfully recorded but just stops playing back! A stupid fault/bug; * Edit * I withdraw this comment, as it only happens if the specific programme is already being recorded (in which case the pre-programmed recording will already contain the "missing" ending. If the programme is not already being recorded then the time-delayed channel will simply continue regardless, as expected, until the delay is cancelled by the user. * End edit *
  • the addition of those garish Netflix and On Demand buttons on the remote control is pointless for me (I have Smart services through a Blueray player) and the resulting loss of the "Information" button and the forward and reverse skip buttons is a real inconvenience;
  • Tuning is a pain, as I have to do it manually and need to specify DVB-T and DVB-T2 in turn to get both normal and HD transmission - if Humax's auto tune looked for both possibilities for each MUX in turn rather than going through all the MUXs for one then repeating the whole process for the other it would make it much easier.
  • the signal pass-through turns off when the box is put into standby (unless you realise that there's an option somewhere to alter this) - although I added a second aerial feed to the TV as a better option);

I'm sure there were more, including the guide being less useable than on older boxes, but I've now bought another HDR-1800T instead. For me, a better and cheaper option.
 
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Gnomeface said:
What I found was a box which compared poorly with the older HDR-1800T that I already have.
  • ...;
  • ...;
  • ...;
  • Pause TV stops playback when the live program finishes, which is ridiculous because the program has been successfully recorded but just stops playing back! A stupid fault/bug;
  • ...;
  • Tuning is a pain, as I have to do it manually and need to specify DVB-T and DVB-T2 in turn to get both normal and HD transmission - if Humax's auto tune looked for both possibilities for each MUX in turn rather than going through all the MUXs for one then repeating the whole process for the other it would make it much easier.
  • the signal pass-through turns off when the box is put into standby (unless you realise that there's an option somewhere to alter this) - although I added a second aerial feed to the TV as a better option);
Click to expand...
Slightly puzzled as those 3 also apply to the HDR-1800T.

The pause when recording the same prgramme feature is due to the way that Humax as optimise the box's functionality by not recording a buffer if you are also recording the current live programme. When the Humax completes recording the programme it switches back to using the live buffer. The solution on both the HDR-5000T and the HDR-1800T is to use chase play (play back the recording from the recording library), instead of timeslip (pausing on a live programme).
 
My mistake, and apologies. I thought that pausing a live programme was the problem (one that was NOT already being recorded), as reported by others, and I had seemingly tested it myself to confirm the issue. However, I've just tested it again and it all works fine! I believe that my earlier test just happened to be based on a programme that was already being recorded by another member of the family, and I quite understand why the Humax box reverts to live broadcast when it has already placed a finished recording of the programme in the library. I've edited my initial post to correct this.

I accept that one or two of the points I raised may also apply to the HDR-1800T (I can't check as it's at my holiday caravan) but that box has never caused me any problem other than in the manual tuning of HD MUXs - which Humax should either improve or make very clear in the set-up instructions. The FVP-5000T however has had adverse comments from all my family because of incomplete recordings and the very slow responses to the remote control, so I still plan to replace it with the older model.
 
Gnomeface said:
... HDR-1800T .. but that box has never caused me any problem other than in the manual tuning of HD MUXs - which Humax should either improve or make very clear in the set-up instructions.
Click to expand...
For some transmitters the channel 'Network Search' does work in that if you do a manual search on an HD frequency it will also search the correct frequencies for the transmitterss SD multiplexies.
My impression though is that is just 1 main transmitter in each area that works. E.g. For London that would be Crystal Palace, E.g. The Anglia transmitter where Network Search covers the correct SD frequencies is Tacolneston.


Gnomeface said:
The FVP-5000T however has had adverse comments from all my family because of ... and the very slow responses to the remote control, so I still plan to replace it with the older model.
Click to expand...
Do you still have the FVP or is it totally replaced?
I very shortly had a Humax FVP but decided it was not for me. It was one of those which also had the very slow responses to the remote control. This could be 'fixed' by using a remote control from another Humax! At one time Humax were replacing FVP remotes that suffered from the slow response issue.
If I recall correctly the exception is if you key in a channel number directly without also pressing 'OK'. This is beacuse without pressing OK it then waits to see if you are going to key in any more digits.
 
I've ordered the replacementbox (HDR-1800T) and will collect it tomorrow when I return the 3-week old FVP for a refund. I need to do manual tuning at both my locations, particularly the one in Devon where I only receive 3 MUXs from a local transmitter but auto tuning will pick up reflected signals from a main transmitter and give me a full program guide - including all the channels that don't actually work!

I was aware that keying a channel number then pressing enter does speed reaction time a bit, although (oddly) keying in all 4 digits including leading zeros doesn't; flipping between two channels using the Return button is also fast.

Two other points, seeing as I'm here. There are many complaints about the status light being on the underside of the FVP (also on some other Humax boxes) and hence difficult to see, but I stuck a couple of small felt pads under the front feet to tilt it a fraction and this improved things. The other thing I forgot to include was that the 1800T programme guide has a small screen embedded which displays what is on the current channel - in my view this should be standard on all such boxes and is far better than the FVP's overlay.
 
We regret ever buying the 5000T, We have had so many issues with it that I wouldn't know where to begin, I've contacted Humax many times and I'm sick of retuning and resetting it, sick of the loud buzzing we get ect ect .....
Worst box we've ever had.
 
poisonivy said:
We regret ever buying the 5000T, We have had so many issues with it that I wouldn't know where to begin, I've contacted Humax many times and I'm sick of retuning and resetting it, sick of the loud buzzing we get ect ect .....
Worst box we've ever had.
Click to expand...
I did return mine as it was within 30 days of purchase - refunded by Curry's without question - and replaced it with the much cheaper previous model, HDR-1800T. Instant responses to the remote control, a far, far better programme guide, and the return of the Information and Skip Forward/Back buttons, so calm has been restored to the household.
 
I wish we had done the same instead of limping along with it and following advice from Humax.
Had it over a year now and it drives us nuts.
 
Luke said:
For some transmitters the channel 'Network Search' does work in that if you do a manual search on an HD frequency it will also search the correct frequencies for the transmitterss SD multiplexies.
Click to expand...
I think I've had a problem with that. From what I recall, I got the HD mux that the search is started on plus all the SD muxes, but not the other HD muxes. I'm sure I've had to manually add the other HD muxes.
 
EEPhil said:
I think I've had a problem with that. From what I recall, I got the HD mux that the search is started on plus all the SD muxes, but not the other HD muxes. I'm sure I've had to manually add the other HD muxes.
Click to expand...
Yes that is what I was describing in the seconfd half of my sentence by stating that for some transmitters "it will also search the correct frequencies for the transmitter's SD multiplexies". I don't consider any of the SD mixes as also being HD muxes!
 
Luke said:
I don't consider any of the SD mixes as also being HD muxes!
Click to expand...
Neither do I. But I would expect the information in the NIT to be available on all transmitters to tell you what other muxes are available. Either there is a problem with the NIT or the Humax. Having looked at the NIT from an SD dongle, it seems as though some information (the HD multiplex frequencies) is missing. Whether this is the case when viewed from an HD mux - I don't know.
 
prpr said:
Presumably you mean COM7 and COM8. They are a separate network.
Click to expand...

EEPhil said:
That'll explain it!
Click to expand...
Even before they were a separate network they were not included in the list, (and neither was BBC B HD). Thus the reason I used an HD mux to start on a manual search with 'Network Search' on if I was manually tuning to Crystal Palace.
 
Gnomeface said:
  • Pause TV stops playback when the live program finishes, which is ridiculous because the program has been successfully recorded but just stops playing back! A stupid fault/bug;
Click to expand...
Of all the awful features of the 5000 this is the one that really annoys me. It used to happen on earlier models but was fixed with the Fox T2. I wish my Fox T2 hadn't broken..... :(
 
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