So, is the azbox any good?

[123soleil]

Hi, I'm very interested in buying the AZBox. I've read almost all the comments on this forum, many negative comments which I must admit have scared me out of buying one (but some are very old, so maybe progress has been made?).
Reasons for me to buy Azbox:
- Cheapest linux hd box on the market (if you don't include DM clones)
- Better hardware quality than dreambox (from what i've gathered)
- No heating problems
Reasons for me not to buy:
- negative comments on this board (which seem to go in every direction and aren't always consistent).

My needs:
I need a good quality stable receiver, and by stable i mean that doesnt reboot every hour. I won't need any of the advanced features (disecq, cardsharing, youtube player etc. not for me) just basic TV watching + basic emu without freeze/reboots.

I currently have the choice between a second hand Azbox premium with 500gb for 250 euros or a new dm800 clone for 150 euros

Should I go for the Azbox?
many thanks

[denton]

I have an Elite - it's look and build quality is unrivalled.
I've never had a reboot.
Box is slightly sluggish to respond to remote.
Before I had a DM 600 which was hopeless - hot, buggy, difficult to load images and cheap feeling.

Biggest problems with this box are the minor bugs which need to be fixed and the lack of commnication by Opensat (firmware developers).

And, at the moment, if you need reliable (timer) recordings, this isn't the box for you.

HTH
Denton

[irishchris]

hi mate personally i would go for a dm 800 hd but that is because of the many features particularly cs. however that said if you wish for just basic tv then azbox is fine. note however it cannot record separate channel than you are watching even by buying second tuner. if you are picking up premium+ released in early december then it will eventually be fine for that. as regards epg azbox has only what is on now and next and no more even though it advertises it has a 7 day epg. the dm800 has many plugins for recieving full 7day epg in a more user friendly presentation.as regards heating azbox doesnt really but then i have a dreambox 600pvr clone on 24/7 that doesnt overheat either.

really its a personal thing but if i had the chance again i would have bought a dm800 - purely as it has the best support around and i reckon azbox support as we have seen in recent months is dwindling fast.

[cosynmr]

azbox pros:

excellent picture quality, 1080p, HDMI
no overheating problems.

azbox cons:

There is no EPG support except for now & next on most channels.
recording is very buggy.
twin tuner was promised, but not delivered.
rubbish community support - no source code, no skins, terrible info for plugin devs
development seems to be getting very slow (new premium+ focus maybe?)


I would not recommend an Azbox at the present time. The dm800 is not perfect either though!

[happyhammer]

150 euro for a dm800 clone? go 4 it and give us the details where we can get it

[eme]

i tried the dm800. not for me i have to say, i do have a dm7000 though. to meny problems for me on dm800, no cam slot, over heating,some have had power supply problems only 1080i etc.
the az premium is 1080p, has good picture even against dm8000. recording can give the odd problem, but even that mostly has been sorted. latest firmware has provided a firmbase to move forward. cs working fine inc cheops.softcam, opens quite a few channels its mostly very stable and most of all its free unlike the spiderbox. the remote control switchs tv on and works well, not cheapo made. overall of the 2 the azbox is the one for me. easy to use,easy to setup. loads of info on this site and there are weekly updates even though we are still in beta stage. the same firmware will work on the elite and the premium and premium + from whats been said. oh and u can install a second tuner like cab** all working fine. but its only u who can make the chioice.:respect-047:

[123soleil]

Thank you so much for the replies. The fact that it doesn't need rebooting is a major relief for me but the buggy recording must be quite annoying which doesn't really help in making my mind...
What's wrong with the DM800? I have a DM500 and although it's not perfect, it is very stable (for my usage anyway)

Edit: @Eme, I just read your post, thanks for the info, helps a lot. I really want to trust the azbox guys because i'm sure the can come up with something really nice... (youtube player alone says a lot about these guys even if the software is not yet perfect)

[raul]

i tried the dm800... only 1080i etc.
the az premium is 1080p

what are you talking about ?

dm800 outputs 1080p just fine , it's then a matter of your lcd/plasma to support 1080p24/25/30 as well .

working perfectly fine here with both 1080p myzen.tv and 1080p movies on my internal hdd which i have no heating
issues with btw :)

[Accord]

Thank you so much for the replies. The fact that it doesn't need rebooting is a major relief for me but the buggy recording must be quite annoying which doesn't really help in making my mind...
What's wrong with the DM800? I have a DM500 and although it's not perfect, it is very stable (for my usage anyway)

If you like youre DM500 than just wait for the DM500HD.

Some specs:

DM800
processor: 300 Mhz Mips (BCM7401) processor
Flash: 64 Mbyte
Ram: 256

DM500HD
processor: 400 Mhz Mips (BCM7405) processor
Flash: 64 Mbyte
Ram: 256

Broadcom Corporation - BCM7405 - Multi-Format HD Digital Video/Audio SOC For Satellite, IP And Cable DVR STBs With Watch-and-Record DVR
The BCM7405 is a high-performance, high definition (HD) satellite, cable, and IP set-top box DVR System-on-Chip solution. It combines a fast 1100-DMIPS MIPS32/MIPS16e-class CPU, high-speed graphics processing, including Video scaling and motion adaptive deinterlacing, a very flexible data transport processor, an MPEG-4/VC-1/MPEG-2/AVS-compliant Video Decoder a programmable Audio decoder, six Video DACs stereo high-fidelity Audio DACs dual Fast Ethernet ports, one with integrated PHY triple USB 2.0, a PCI 2.3/Expansion Bus, a high-speed 400-Mhz DDR2 Memory controller and a peripheral control unit that provides a variety of set-top box control functions. Integrated in 65-nm technology, it offers one of the highest levels of single-chip system performance available for STB applications.
By Broadcom Corp

[raul]

dm500HD doesn't fit internal HDD - thats a no go for me .

[eme]

i may well be wrong on the dm800 about doing 1080p, but i checked a m8s dm8000 and that only goes to 1080i, still only takes a second to check full specs on-line, no need to moan. the azbox recording is working fine on a lot of boxs but it seems to dependent on the firmware and multicam type etc. still trying to find the best for my box but it is nearly their on hd recording via cs. fine on sd using external and internal drives. there is also the dm600 me thinks comeing some time soooooon this centry. just keep reading and looking i say.

[raul]

it's not moaning - it's a matter of understanding what 1080p is .
first you need a progressive source to try it out - i do not understand your claims that dm only goes to 1080i .

https://www.satpimps.co.uk/showthread.php?t=121881

[goran]

AZbox HD Elite has the Power Supply Unit [PSU] inside the box and can be quite "warm" - long term it would be wise to put a fan on top or inside, methinx, by the same logic one needs it in any receiver...

Easy, AZ HD is very easy to setup [partly thanx to yours truly... and the "Alternative Guide..." :D]...

Won't be so easy with ALL the cards, if you use the embedded card reader... You now have various versions of NewCS, Sbox and MPCS as card readers/servers for AZbox HD.

Rebooting? Yes, depending on how much zapping and how quickly... Some say it has to do with the German package but it may well be the case it's happening with other packages, too - maybe depending on the channel list/format/editing....

HW seemed very, very good initially...

Then, we saw the other side to it...

Foo*ed up "support" by Sigma, whose processor/chipset is used in AZ HD but with almost no docs publicly available, no real support from Sigma and no real hacks to speak of, which would bring about a proper, fully functioning driver for it etc.

No "twin tuner" capacity [we still need to see it even in the new and more expensive Premium+ model] - against what Sigma were stating, as it was impossible to deliver the "twin tuner" functionality, state Opensat/Celrun...

No full, high bitrate [W]LAN and USB streaming, as it collapses the processor.

Some problems with tuners - high frequency - but it seems rare, thank fook... No SW-based 'blindscan' as yet, for all models and we still need to see how it functions for Premium+, as that tuner is allegedly capable of HW-based 'blindscan' but...

No CS "full package", i.e. server + client all in one, like GBox used to be or CCcam is...

As Yoda and many of us said: the potential of this box was great...

But as it slowly, very slowly became a decent box - the potential went... well... not really where it should have been by now...:smash:

[goran]

it's not moaning - it's a matter of understanding what 1080p is .
first you need a progressive source to try it out - i do not understand your claims that dm only goes to 1080i .

https://www.satpimps.co.uk/showthread.php?t=121881

They are not exactly bragging about it, interestingly enough...

But they do mention, on the DMM website, the "twin tuner" functionality, for instance... However, I have a problem, seeing where would they put the second tuner - according to their pictures...??

As opposed to DM8000 or AZ HD tuner slots...;)

[heyhey]

You guys whinge about the EPG. It's not the boxes fault it's prob your provider! I have a full EPG here for my provider. I've seen now and next programs displayed for another provider and I know you get the same if using a dreambox!!!

You guys bag the box because of some of Opensats promises ok I'm not happy either but the way you carry on is like it's a complete POC! That's just not the case.

[cosynmr]

You guys whinge about the EPG. It's not the boxes fault it's prob your provider! I have a full EPG here for my provider. I've seen now and next programs displayed for another provider and I know you get the same if using a dreambox!!!

You guys bag the box because of some of Opensats promises ok I'm not happy either but the way you carry on is like it's a complete POC! That's just not the case.

We are talking about 7 day EPG for SlyUK SlyIT etc....

Which provider gives full EPG on Azbox?

[cosynmr]

what are you talking about ?

dm800 outputs 1080p just fine , it's then a matter of your lcd/plasma to support 1080p24/25/30 as well .

working perfectly fine here with both 1080p myzen.tv and 1080p movies on my internal hdd which i have no heating
issues with btw :)

I also have a dm800, it only has the option to output 720p / 1080i by default.

The dm800 is advertised as 1080i.

How are you getting 1080p? (autoresolution?) If it can do 1080p why not advertise 1080p??

[peterb11]

We are talking about 7 day EPG for SlyUK SlyIT etc....

Which provider gives full EPG on Azbox?

cs/film on 23.5 work great
digifilm on 1w working
digialban working
some more

every contry have diffrent epg thats a problem


and guys
all people dont liv in uk
:boxing_smiley:

[peterb11]

more working 7 days epg

platforma hd on 9e
multicanal on 30w :respect-050:

[eme]

just copied this from web.

DM800 AND DM8000 only do 720p or 1080i, the HTPC will do 1080p
you need autoresolution plugin to have 1080i on the HD channels.

at this time it makes no differance what u use as from what i see the highest transmitted is 720. but in the future who knows 1080p or 3d who knows.

[paul01609]

go for the 800hd m8 i wouldnt bother with the azbox

[cosynmr]

more working 7 days epg

platforma hd on 9e
multicanal on 30w :respect-050:

good to hear some 7day EPGs are working, hopefully more soon!

ofc not everyone lives in UK, but 28.2E has very good ENG lang services if you can recieve it!

[peterb11]

yes its good but lots of providers are in english

like the horror cannel its GOOOD
and movies fore men

:iagree:

[goran]

Total TV [Serbia etc.] in N D S has a few days EPG, too.