VU+ Uno to Duo2 upgrade... worthwhile or not? [Archive]

LeeC22

07-12-2014, 01:36 AM

I bought a VU+ Uno with twin tuners as my first Enigma2 box, and have been more than impressed at what it has given me over my SkyHD box. My brother is looking for a cheap entry into Enigma2 and I thought this might be a chance for me to move up in the world and sell my Uno on to him... although that is dependent on it working like his current receiver, but I'll leave that topic out of the equation.

I have been looking at the Solo2 and Duo2 and quite like some of the features shown on the Duo2, like the better tuners (from what I have read in reviews), hardware transcoding, more RAM, faster CPU, LCD screen etc. I'm just wondering if anyone has any thoughts on this being a worthwhile upgrade or not?

The only problems I have encountered with my current system have been software related, the box has worked flawlessly in the 12 months or so that I've had it, so I am happy with VU+ hardware. I'm currently running ViX, but after watching a couple of vids on the Duo2 running BH, I am getting tempted to switch and try that for a while... presuming that I won't lose any functionality from switching. I run a fixed dish + motorised with catseye settings. I use crossepg to get EPG data for 28.2e (Sky channels) and 13.0e (Hotbird for Russian music channels and Korean channels).

So am I looking at spending a lot and getting little in return, or is the Duo2 that much better that it will be money well spent?

Edit: My apologies, I have just realised that this should probably have been posted in the VU+ section. :(

echelon

07-12-2014, 11:23 AM

not used either but have got a duo and used a solo2

so advantages are probably

internal sata hdd connector for either a 2.5 inch or 3.5 inch hdd (solo2 is 2.5 inch only) but duo is either size I believe

faster to boot

faster operation

more internal ram

gigabit lan connection

can be setup similar to a sly box but obviously its not the same

can play any file type you throw at it (or almost any file type) , so mp3 , mp4 , mkv , avi etc

I think its money well spent on either a solo 2 or duo 2 , but as for value for money, thats an opinion only

either way, you wont be disappointed with a solo 2 or a duo 2

CokeAddict

07-12-2014, 12:53 PM

The Duo2 is alot faster to use than the Uno (going from the Uno the Duo2 you only notice minor speed increases here and there, but after a few days with the Duo2 you will find using the Uno a slow process).

As for if it's worth the upgrade, only you can decide that.

The twin tuner in your Uno is the same as used in the Duo2, but the Duo2 will allow you to add another twin tuner card, therefore giving Quad tuners (there is also a twin dvb-c/t2 tuner coming soon so you could have twin sat and twin cable or freeview/ freeview HD).

I rarely use the transcoding on my box, but there are plenty that do and the Duo2 is very good at it due to it being hardware transcoding instead of just software.

The LCD screen is nice and you can customise it until your heart is content, but most tend to spend a bit of time messing with it, get it how they want and then never touch it again.

Value for money wise, the Solo2 is probably the better value, but the Duo2 has dropped in price now, which means you can have a top end enthusiats machine with all the bells and whistles for not a lot extra.

ekko star

07-12-2014, 01:55 PM

There are 4 current VU+ machines - Zero, Solo SE, Solo 2, Duo2

Zero is a very basic entry budget box, the Solo SE is bit of a non-entity. They've been out muscled in the lower end of the market for quite a while now. Neither machine is great and it may have been much better to have one well designed machine than two half way house options.

That leaves the Solo2 or the Duo2.

The Solo2 has been a good machine but is beginning to show it's age in the current market in that it has fixed twin DVB/S2 tuners and many other more costs effective/competitive options have since appeared.

The truth of the matter is the market is very price orientated now more so than ever. A step up alternative to the Solo2 would be the Technomate TM Nano 3T, where you will get 2 x DVB/S2 tuners and a C/T/T2 tuner for £50 less than a Solo2. If Vix is your preferred image then in all honesty you will not know any different.

If you are looking for plug in tuners offering you T2 and cable tuners etc then along with the more flexible hardware on offer the Duo2 is better value than the Solo2.

The Duo2 prices have recently been slashed. Mainly because Dreambox have just released the 7080HD which is probably considered to be the top end flagship receiver now.

For what is now only a little extra in price over the Solo2 you get a lot more machine in the Duo2. The strength of VU machines is/was more at the top end so if you are going for this brand try to get the very best model you can afford.

Ultimately the choice is yours.

LeeC22

08-12-2014, 02:04 AM

Thanks for the opinions and feedback everyone, it is all genuinely very much appreciated.

I only have a twin feed running to my box, so I won't be adding any more tuners than the twin ones that come built in. I do transfer a lot of programmes I record over the network for repeat viewing from my NAS, so the gigabit LAN is a definite plus. I'm a software developer/artist/designer, so the LCD screen is more intriguing than anything... I haven't used picons before, so creating a custom set could be tempting, especially if I can give them a bit of a personalised tweak.

I spend pretty much 24/7 home alone due to personal cir***stances, so it all acts as a time-passer. Anything which helps that along, ends up as good value for money. I probably don't use my system to anywhere near its full potential, but I like to have a system that has potential beyond my current usage, just in case.

I think I'll order the Duo2 this week, it'll give me something to do while this time of year goes away. There are two 'C' words I hate, and the one that involves Santa is one of them. :(

Edit: Just one final question... is Blackhole worth trying? Seeing as I am trying a new box, I am wondering if now is a good time to try a new image. I can always switch back to ViX if I get too lost.

echelon

08-12-2014, 10:31 AM

bear in mind the duo2 will take a terrestrial tuner as well as the twin sat tuner, so I assume you have freeview and probably freeview HD ? so its an addition that could be useful which a solo2 cannot have added internally but will cost extra if you go for it

when you are happy with your vix image , back it up to usb stick

(have a few usb sticks handy - one to keep the picons and epg data on at the rear of the box - permanent) - the other for programming from the front of the box)

then try BH , and maybe any others, backing it up when its complete

then restore the box to whichever you are happy with

as for usb sticks, a miniature 16gb or 32gb in the rear of the box would be ideal and I use black kingston 16gb ones myself (or blue HP ones)

standard size sticks are fine for programming from the front and preferable as you can grip them better
so I would say yes, spend time trying more than one image , as backups and restoration dont take long from usb stick

I would add a 1tb or 2tb internal sata hdd inside too (my duo has a 1tb internal sata hdd I fitted myself)

the picons additions are shown in the banner when you vchange channel or press the ok button , as well as in crossepg if you use the epg buttons or in coolmans epg guide , my picon folder is stored on the rear mounted usb stick , as is the epg data

Jimdefruit

08-12-2014, 01:30 PM

I changed from a Duo to a Duo2 about a year back and it is a huge improvement. I have a 1TB hard hard drive fitted and with several thousand music tracks ( many flac ) and lots of downloaded and recorded films it is still only using 33% of the drive. The gigabit LAN is great for fast transfer of files. In addition to the four sat tuners, I have a usb T2/C stick which gives an extra tuner for when I want to play about.
The speed of rebooting is really fast so again it is good for trying new images.

ekko star

08-12-2014, 01:34 PM

The image is a matter of choice.

Blackhole exclusively work on VU+ machines so they know how to get the very best out of them as their image is based on the original VU image and drivers.

Vix is based on OpenPli.

A lot of people simply switch image because they like a particular stock skin an image comes with. Many don't realise you can chop and change skins within images to something you may like better. It's all very easily done.

It's a buyers market at the moment especially on some particular machines, so don't be afraid to haggle for the best deal. If you don't ask you won't get.

All the best with your purchase.

LeeC22

09-12-2014, 01:39 AM

Thanks for the additional comments everyone. An unexpected expense cropped up today, so the purchase has been stalled for a short while... I'm working to sort that out though. Everything that has been said has made the Duo2 even more tempting.

bear in mind the duo2 will take a terrestrial tuner as well as the twin sat tuner, so I assume you have freeview and probably freeview HD ? so its an addition that could be useful which a solo2 cannot have added internally but will cost extra if you go for it

I have nothing other than what comes through my dish feeds, so I have no access to anything terrestrial like Freeview. There is a roof aerial, but that doesn't work. Before my wife passed away, I re-routed the internal cabling (roof aerial ran into an output plate in the living room) to divert the RF output from my SkyHD box into the bedroom so she could watch TV, so there is no physical connection from the roof aerial to anything.

I've got a tiny 4GB USB in the front for flashing but I currently store all the bouquets and EPG data on the internal HD. I don't know if that's a good or bad way to store that kind of data, I just knew I had to get it out of flash memory. I only have a 500GB internal drive installed in my UNO, but because I transfer things off so quickly, I have never been below 300GB, so a bigger drive would just go unused. I've got a 6TB NAS, so everything gets dumped on there.

Fitting a rear USB for image backups and EPG data sounds like an idea to use though, so I will look into that... got a couple of 4GB USB sticks doing nothing, so one of them could go in there.

I was thinking of having the picons display on the LCD, but not in the on-screen menus if that's possible. I'll investigate when I get my hands on the box.

ekko star: I didn't realise BH was exclusively for VU+ machines... that makes it even more tempting to try, thanks for that info.

echelon

09-12-2014, 09:50 AM

the reason the hdd is not used for epg data or picons is that it has to spin up everytime its required , whereas using a usb stick means its instant access and the hdd can remain in powered down "standby mode" unless it is actually required

redirecting the plugins to usb stick also frees internal ram memory and is instantly available too as the hdd still does not have to spool up (causing freezing whilst waiting for the hdd to spin up if the hdd is used)

the usb stick can also be used as the backup destination for any backups you make too

so a 4gb stick can easily be employed for these roles in a rear usb port, although I recommended sizes that are better and available to buy

even a 16gb stick can be bought for less than £5 from ebuyer , with a 32gb stick for less than a tenner

_http://www.ebuyer.com/399076-lexar-32gb-jumpdrive-s70-usb-flash-drive-ljds70-32gabeu?utm_source=2014-12-09&utm_medium=campaign_email&utm_campaign=B2C_%28Tuesday%29_Al l_FS

if you do ever sort out your aerial feed, my thoughts were that you could make use of it , for freeview channels that are free to view on terrestrial, like dave etc

bigger hdd fitted internally become useful for storing downloaded music and films and tv shows as you are playing them locally from the hdd instead of say streaming from a NAS , they are also cheap to buy too so I would never go below 1 tb in size

so cheap and simple solutions and as you did ask about advantages I pointed some out

good luck

LeeC22

10-12-2014, 12:59 AM

Actually managed to order the Duo2 today, also bought a 16GB USB stick for storage, as like you say, they're not exactly expensive.

I understand what you're saying about the bigger HD, but all my music is stored (ripped from my own CD collection) in FLAC format on my NAS and gets played via my Sonos system, through my Audiolab M-DAC and then into my Marantz SR7005 amp. I never download music, either paid for or otherwise unless I absolutely cannot buy it on CD, and then it has to be lossless... I'm a stickler for quality, so it's physical disc or nothing generally.

I do have my TV shows ripped into VOB format (also from my own DVD collection which you can see in the attachment), but they get played back through my Oppo 103. Films always come straight from disc, either Blu-Ray or DVD... so I've never downloaded a movie either. Like the CDs, it's a quality thing... lossless audio, and as close to zero video compression as possible. I generally watch films on a 95" screen through a HD projector, and at that size, even the smallest amount of compression is just horrible. The perils of being a computer artist, is that you tend to spot anything that affects quality, and it drives you mad. I think it's working in the games industry that caused my affection for physical discs and my dislike for digital downloads. Discs remind me of the hassle and effort involved in creating games, gives me something tangible in return. And while there's space on a wall, there's room for a shelf, so I'll always find somewhere to store them. My wife collected Winnie the Pooh beanies, which all lived on shelves... lots of shelves, so we're used to round-the-house shelving. :D

I've got cabled gigabit LAN across the house, so streaming is (thankfully) not a problem. I've just got used to getting a specific machine for a specific task, and the Duo2 is purely for handling satellite TV.

I'll always listen to a suggestion though, so please don't think that because I won't use all of them, that I just shrug them off. Everyone uses what they have differently, and it's nice to have machines that are flexible enough to give us options. It's also useful for anyone else pondering a similar upgrade, that may find those suggestion very helpful. Using USB sticks is definitely something I will be doing from now on. As I said previously, all input is genuinely appreciated.

echelon

10-12-2014, 01:25 AM

totally agree with you, the purpose of a forum is to disseminate information to all, so anyone reading this thread should have a good appreciation of the whats and whys etc now

by all means do as you please, but bear in mind I have had my duo 2 years and so have had to learn thne best methods for all the above, which I am still learning and always will do too

your alternatives mean you know whats best for you, but never discount what you are being told as you may find it useful in future and we all learn new tricks

good luck with your new toy

Jimdefruit

10-12-2014, 12:30 PM

Lee, most of my music is flac ripped from my cd collection and the DUO2 does a good job of playing the tracks via optical. Also I think you will appreciate the DUO2 1080P output for video.

LeeC22

11-12-2014, 02:24 AM

Well, it arrived... and I have to say, I'm pretty disappointed, and extremely frustrated. :(

The first thing that struck me was the build quality, compared to the Uno, it just felt a much lesser quality machine. All the case screws were tight when they were being unscrewed... like when a thread is crossed, which is usually a sign of bad fitting panels putting pressure on the screws. After removing all the screws, the screw holes weren't in the best positions for all the cutouts in the top panel. The internal hard drive caddy mountings didn't seem as good as in the Uno either, all those screws were equally tight. The USB drive I bought just will not fit into one of the rear USB ports at all, and when I had it in the other rear port, the machine refused to recognise any USB plugged into the front port for flashing. I only realised that it was the rear USB causing the problem after trying five different USB sticks in the front port and was clutching at straws for a solution. At this point, I was having a hard job believing I had bought a genuine box, and I'm still not sure if I have or haven't. I bought it from Goldwafers so I'm sure that isn't the case. But considering this is a premium priced receiver, I was a bit shocked to say the least.

I finally got it working, and ViX installed okay, but doesn't really seem to cater for the LCD screen, although there could be a package I can install to add that. So then I tried BH, which lit the LCD screen up nice and bright, but just seems to be missing things I have got used to. They're all probably in there somewhere, I just have to find them. The EPG seemed way behind the ViX EPG though, especially the multi-EPG. I'll play a round for a day or so, see what I can find.

Maybe things will seem better after some sleep... hopefully.

Echelon: Even after 30 years writing software, there are still old tricks I haven't learned, so I never discount things. I always listen to options, evaluate them based on my criteria and then utilise anything that fits in.

Mickha

11-12-2014, 08:34 AM

Personally I didn't have any problems, with my VU+ Duo 2, also bought from Lee, at Goldwafers.
I should imagine the internal hard drive caddy is different, than your Uno, as it can take a 3.5", or 2.5", hard drive, which I'm not sure the Uno can. I fitted my 3.5" hard drive within a few minutes, and everything has been working perfectly, for the last 8 months.

I have always used Black Hole, as it seems to be designed for the VU+ range, and provides a lot of options, including software, for the LCD screen, so that you can adjust it.

I haven't experienced any problems with any of the USB ports, although my older USB sticks wouldn't work, but the cheap 8GB, and 16GB, Toshiba ones I bought work in all the USB ports.

There seem to be a lot of EPG plugins, you can use, although I've tended to stick to the basic EPG, now/next, on the display, and some channels providing a lot more, when in the channel list, and pressing the EPG button, but that's probably because I tend to use my PC, and the providers website, to search for anything particular I want to view/record.

Hopefully as soon as you've got it fully set up, and working, how you like it, you'll change your mind, and enjoy what the VU+ Duo 2 has to offer.

LeeC22

11-12-2014, 10:55 AM

There is definitely a USB port problem on this box.

I took the USB that I used for flashing and put that in the rear USB port, one of the ports was so tight, that it only just went in. Tried to mount the USB device and got a green screen "oops we're sorry, we're going to have to reboot your box" error. So I thought that maybe it has to be formatted first, so I did that via the USB software in BH, and rebooted the device. That worked, so I was able to mount the USB as media/usb, restarted again and the box hung on booting. Did a reset via power switch and that booted the box into normal mode.

So then I took another USB, put the flash directory on there and put that in the front USB port, then reset the box via the power switch. The box booted into normal mode, with no "Update" prompt. Took the rear USB out, rebooted the box again, and immediately got the "Update" prompt on the screen. So with a USB in the rear port, I cannot flash the box using the front port. It seems like I can have one port in use, and no more than that. That doesn't sound right to me, especially if there are people that are using the rear USB slots for EPG data but can still flash from the Front slot.

Also, interesting to note... when I had a USB in the rear port, that had the flash directory on it, I got the "Update" prompt on booting... I thought that was a front USB port only option.

I'm going to have to contact Goldwafers to try and sort this out... the one other thing I noticed was odd, was the image that was already on there, was shown as "Factory experimental image - September 2013". Seems very odd to sell an item with experimental software on there as factory defaults. Something just doesn't feel right about this box.

Mickha

11-12-2014, 11:27 AM

All USB ports work for flashing, it's just easier to use the front one.
I never have any USB devices attached, when flashing a new image, so can't confirm your problem.
If one of the USB ports is damaged then contact Lee and he will sort it out for you.
You can get the official images from vuplus:

http://code.vuplus.com/

CokeAddict

11-12-2014, 01:32 PM

ekko star

11-12-2014, 01:36 PM

Sorry to hear you're having problems. Goldwafers are normally very good so am sure you will get good support.

The Uno was indeed a well made model and probably the best they physically made. The Duo2 is not too dissimilar a chassis to the Ultimo.

I've been made aware however there is a growing concensus that VU is perhaps not the same brand it once used to be. It seems the direction may now be to produce lower end machines rather than out and out performance models.

If you have 2 USB's simultaneously plugged in, one being for recording and one for flashing then it is normal for that to cause an issue. You will simply have to unplug the recording device temporarily until you have completed the flash procedure.

If the USB slot is too tight then it maybe an alignment issue. This can usually rectify itself over use or alternatively simply speak to Goldwafers about a replacement.

Hopefully it will get sorted for you.

All the best.

LeeC22

11-12-2014, 03:09 PM

Just been having a chat with Lee, and the machine he tested does the same thing. So with that, and the comments on here, it looks like it's normal behaviour for this model... which is reassuring in one way because it means my machine isn't faulty, but worrying in another, because it's strange for a manufacturer to reduce functionality. I say that because I tested the same scenario on my Uno that this is replacing (at Lee's request), and that has no problem with working with multiple USB devices plugged in.

To be honest, given where my box is situated and the rear ports being a pain to get to, I'll probably carry on as I have been doing, and just store everything on the internal hard drive. I never noticed any delays on the Uno from doing that, so I doubt I will notice them on this faster machine. Doing that negates any need for the rear USB ports being used, so it doesn't matter how tight they are.

One thing I will say, is that Lee has gone out of his way to help with this problem, to an extent that I have honestly never seen before. Except for when I bought my home theatre setup from Superfi, and coincidentally, the manager's name was Lee (I seem to have a habit of finding people with the same name as me). It certainly makes me realise that finding this site, and this sponsor was a good move. And to think, I only found this site because I wanted Catseye's settings, that *another* site had banned from their site... fate works in mysterious ways. :D

Now I just need to get autoboquetmaker running in BlackHole, because I really do miss having that for the Sky channel lists.

Thanks again for the comments everyone, hopefully I can repay the help one day... god knows how a satellite noob is going to do that mind you. :D

P.s. sorry for the length of my posts and the constant rambling. I live a reclusive lifestyle because of personal problems, so I tend to waffle on forums... sorry. :blush5:

echelon

11-12-2014, 04:04 PM

autobouquets no longer works in BH , only vix afaik

as for the usb ports, you can buy a cheap usb male to female cable and extend from the rear ports to the side or top of the box, I do this with other boxes and you can buy these cables in different lengths, so I extend my old spiderbox this way so that I can easily plug a usb stick in as required (or remove it) , as it only has rear usb ports

I think that a few other vu models dont allow for rear usb sticks when flashing from the front, so its now considered advisable to remove rear usb sticks when flashing from the front, some people have even had to disconnect the sata lead from the internal hdd, when flashing some boxes, then reconnect the sata lead and usb sticks after flashing is complete , but usually its just remove the rear usb stick so the box isnt confused

I would not worry about the beta factory image, its only there to prove functionality and stay within the law, as mentioned earlier the manufacturers know that owners will be flashing the box upon receipt , although its fair to say that all these linux images are beta as they are constatly changed and faults or bugs fixed, hence why BH comes out so regularly

if using BH, install coolmans epg for a much better coloured epg and long press on the green button

you can use autobouquets in vix if its on your old vu, then use dreamboxedit to load from the vu to pc, then use it again to ftp into your duo2

I did a similar trick but put catseye settings in first, then used autobouquets, then loaded back to pc , see the thread in the duo section for details