Please post your questions here.

Does anyone using the 5000i have it intermittently lock up when changing on to 9 HD (in Brissie, at least)? Mine just stops - I still get picture (very good picture, in fact ), but no sound, the info panel gets stuck on the screen and none of the remote or front panel buttons work. Unplugging from power fixes it, but that's at best a pain ) Changing to anyone else's HD channel doesn't do it, just 9's - and it doesn't seem to matter if they're playing the loop or a real program - same thing happens intermittently.

I have never had any loclup on my 5000I except the SBS lockup. I now have firmware dated August 2003, and it seems to work well. I am in Sydney.

-- Adrian

Well this is very interesting.

Within the last 3 days my Toshiba s23a (similar to 5000i) has developed a problem of losing audio 22 minutes after changing to Ch9 HD here in Perth. The video still displays but without audio. If I change channels - anything - and then back to 9HD it is fine for the next 22 minutes.

Wierd Huh!!

Lindsay

Just plugged in my box for the first time and are a little worried about the amount of heat that the thing produces. Expecially on the Right Hand Side of the box. Its well ventilated.

I can probably leave my had there for about 10 seconds before having to remove it.

Is this normal?

I had a DGTEC 5000i HD/SD box that wouldn't lock channels in properly.
I had 2002 software loaded/ contacted DGTEC in Melbourne 22 December.
That afternoon a courier rang to pick the unit up ( at their expense )- they
did a software update SEPT 2003 version - returned the unit by courier express ( again at their expense) on 6/01/04. ALL digital services are rock solid in pulling the signal in now and look great. I must admit I was VERY impressed by the service. THANKS DGTEC - WELL DONE.

Brad57, I have the DG-5000i connect to a Pioneer 50" plasma and am in Brisbane and all works fine, no lockups at all. Sorry I can't offer anymore help than that.

Widemouth, mine only got very hot when I had another component (plasma media box) on top of it, effectively blocking the top ventilation holes. I now have it all alone and it is fine, even in the hot weather we have had in QLD this week.

KJG

KJG,

Thanks for the reply, I rang the DGTEC support this morning and the person I spoke to wasn't concerned about the heat output even in standby mode. He informs me that even in standby mode it is still receiving the digital signals mainly to display the clock on the front.

I think I still need to install a couple of fans into the cabinet to cool things down.

I wouldn't of though that an electronic device should run that hot. Its hard to judge the actual temperature but I can't leave my hand on the top RHS of the box for any longer than 10 seconds without risking burns!!

Does anyone know of a switched power board or something that can be controlled from a remote? The Set top Box is now another device in the cabinet that uses a s**t load of power when in standby mode. It would be nice to be able to cut the power to these devices somehow without having to get behind the unit and turn them off at the wall.

Thanks in advance.

This afternoon I went over and felched a identical model at the shop and it was now ay near as hot.

Back she goes.

Yeah..I would have thought it would be unusual for any component to run that hot.



..remember, he isn't the one paying for repairs

KJG

I took it back this morning and the sales rep said that they all run hot and you could "fry an egg" on the thing. I told him that you could literally "fry an egg" on mine and he ended up replacing it with a new one.

Took it home and guess what... It runs just as hot as the original, even in standy mode sitting by itself on a open shelf.

I took a trip to another retailer and he had two 5000i units that had been running all morning and they were only slightly warm.

Is it possible I have had two units that are faulty???

Does anyone elses get extremely hot??? I believe that this product poses a fire danger to kids and if my baby daugter touched it she would burn herself.

Also on both the units I have had the sound drop out occasionally and the only way to get it back is to change the channel. I'm More worried about the heat at this stage though.

Just a guess, but maybe the units in the shop just have moving air-flow around them. Doors opening and closing; air-con and a much more ventilated setup where air does flow past a little more than it would in your lounge room, it shouldn't be that much cooler though...

I'm still waiting for a copy of the act from the local Energy Safety Directorate which specify the maximum heat output from a consumer device. One of the inspectors did say to me that a domestic device should not run that hot.

I post it here when I receive it and if its above the allowed temperature it could end up with the whole DGTEC product line being recalled!!

The device does seem to be sensitive to the temperature of the room though. If its below about 25-30 degrees then the unit stays cool. Probably why people with good air conditiong never see the problem. According to the manual the unit is rated to run in temperatured of 5 - 40 degrees.

As soon as the room temperature increases, thats when I begin to have problems with heat and the sound dropping out. I would say that the cabinet just above the power supply would be hitting 60 - 70 degrees.

The retailer has said that they are happy to swap it for a different brand. At least there is decent support from the retailer. DGTEC won't even return my calls.

I suppose you could take your "hot" unit into the shop and see if it runs hot there - this would identify whether it's the unit itself, or the environment.

If they have made the offer to replace it with another brand, why not get a Toshiba S23A. This is the Rolls Royce HD-STB and I don't think anyone has reported any problems at all with it.

I have one and it works flawlessly.

John

Hi All,

I don't know if anyone has mentioned this before but I recently noticed that the 5000i is capable of outputting 576i on the composite and S-Video connectors while simultaneously outputing 1080i to the component connectors. (My 2000A disables the SD outputs when the HD outputs are selected.) I can now watch a HD channel in HD and record it at the same time!

With regard to operating temperature, my 5000i runs warm to the touch.

Regards,
Ian.

Interested to hear if anybody is having similar problems with a DGTEC 5000i

The STB came as a bonus with a Sony KVHR36M31. Ran beautifully for about 30 mins before locking up (couldn't change channels) then lost picture and sound altogether and wouldn't turn off. Rang DGTEC who suggested unplug and wait 30 mins. Did this and worked OK for a short time then repeated problem. Went through same routine a couple of more times, same result. Rang DGTEC again, asked for STB info which was a June 2003 date. Needed firmware update and arranged for a courier to pick up.

Box arrived back with the new firmware installed:
H/W Version: BCM 70Z0RCO 1.3
S/W Version: AUDGOO43M3 DT1r1t1f2F
Release time: Sept 4 2003 09:17:27

However, back to its old tricks again, running for a period then locking up etc., but then ran from about from early evening to about 11 pm without any problems, when it was tuned off with the remote standby button. Next morning noted that the clock was displaying 0204 and wouldn't turn on. Repeated the unplug procedure and then ran for about 2 hours before locking up once again.

Checked temperature during all these stages - slightly above normal body heat but not as hot as some have indicated.

Before ringing DGTEC again, would like to hear from other owners who have been down this path and what their experiences were, and was the problem solved?

Thanks in advance for your time and input.

Kabe

I had the SBS lockup problem that was only invoked when you tried to scan the SBS channel changes (Sydney). Other than that I have had faultless performance for over a year now except for one lockup requiring power down for a few seconds just the other day. It has again performed faultlessly since.

Oh.... I did have a problem where I was getting a verticle red line on all channels. I sent it back for a firmware upgrade and the problem is now fixed,,, but I doubt it was firmware.... It performed faultlessly for months with the same firmware with no line.

I am not going to string words of merit for DGTEC, but it does seem that they do have some very good instances of their products, as well as some very bad of the same product. The inconsistency is terrible. I am just glad that I seem to have gotten a good unit, and I am not experiencing any of the problems other have had here.

-- Adrian

Just to let you know Kabe, I got the same deal as you. TV and STB in November of last year, and the STB has been trouble free, has the same firmware as you mentioned.

Kabe, I have the 5000i connected up to a Pioneer 50" plasma and it all works fine, well except for one of the buttons on the remote sticking every now and then.

Mine also runs quite warm, but not as hot as some have mentioned. I initially had it stacked with other components, which of course prevented an adequate air flow but that is now rectified.

KJG

I've had my DGTEC box for just over a month now and so far have been relatively happy.

The only issue I have had with it is that a red line has appeared twice since I've had it, ie about once every 2 weeks, similar to adrianvos and I simply had to power down the unit from the power point to rectify this. May send it back if it starts occuring more regulalry.

chuckie.

I have the same problem with the box locking up sometimes, but so far it has been a while since it last did that. Hopefully the problem is fixed, but I doubt it.

I also have this problem where sometimes when I watch something through component (I use s-video for normal channels and component through the receiver for HD channels), I see one or two vertical lines coming down the screen. It isn't noticable until certain colours are displayed in that spot. I don't know whether it has to do with the component cables I am using or whether its the box itself that has a problem. Most of the time you won't notice anything, but every now and then you might see it. What can I do to fix this problem?

This is the same problem I had with the lines... they are more visible in certain contents. I use component.

I sent it back for a supposed firmware upgrade to the 9/03 firmware, and have not seen the line since.

-- Adrian

I was having these lines, too, on my 5000i.

I unplugged the STB from the wall for a few minutes and plugged it back in. Had to set up my channels again, but haven't seen the lines since.

But now I seem to be getting slightly different colours - eg the OSD has a slightly lighter shade of blue and other colours look "less natural".

Any ideas?

Mark T

I am about to purchase the DGTEC 5000i and after reading some of the comments in this thread, I am starting to worry whether this is a good idea or not.

Anyway, someone in this thread mentioned the Toshiba as the Rolls Royce of STB's. I was thinking of buying this unit as well but decided to go for the DGTEC because of the digital amber display which I think is a little off putting considering everything else I have, or about to have, is green. I know it sound superficial, but hey, I can be like that some times.

Things seemed to have settled down with the DGTEC DG 5000i problems (not so many posts of late), however, I have a question that somebody with a good knowledge of this STB that might be able to answer for me. SUBTITLES? Do they exist on the DG5000i? Only reference to subtitles appears under Full Teletext/Subtitles on the side of the carton and page 18 in the User's Guide under Teletext/Closed Caption. Can get the teletext up and running on Channel 7 but need some pointers with subtitles.

Many thanks,

Kabe

Kabe,

for Australian analogue tv, subtitles are transmitted on page 800 via teletext. While only 7 network supports full teletext, other networks support closed caption subtitles.

My digital HD STB is still away for repair under warranty, however I believe that for digital tv, subtitles are also transmitted on page 800.

Suggest you give it a try.

regards
Ken

Thank you Ken,

You hit the nail right on the head. Dialed in 800 and nothing happened then for some unknown reason went up a page and suddenly there it was on page 801. First time I ever had equipment to display teletext and was not aware of its benefits.

Kabe

Only problem I've had is the SBS lock up problem. Sent it back to Dgtec, upgraded the firmware and all OK since. My only problem is that we can't upgrade the firmware ourselves. But I did speak to a technician down in Melbourne and I asked him if Dgtec had any plans to upgrade the firmware to enable interactive viewing through the 5000i. His reply was that he "wasn't sure", but they "probably eventually will". Didn't sound real confident, though.

Hi

just installed my 5000i and it seems to be working fine. The display is not, a Sony KVHR32, and I am sitting waiting for a replacement to come out by courier.

I set up the 5000i on my trusty Philips Town and Country 34cm now entering its 21st year of service and all seems well, with a few queries.

1. the unit runs warm with only a 20mm gap at the top after running on the 9 HD loop for the last 4hours so it passes there.

2. signal strength and quality are both 100% with a SNR of 20 or 24dB. If I had that low a SNR on the wireless network at work I would worry. What do other people get. Unplugging the flylead from the wall socket sees signal and quality drop to zero and SNR to 18dB, the STB manfully trying to give a picture but failing. This doesn't mean we are 6dB above the cliff edge necessarily but the STB had a bit of trouble locking Ch 9, fast scan found it. Analogue reception was perfect with the normal mild ghosting on Channel 2

3. Details are HW version BCM 7020RC0 1.3, SW version AUDG0053T8 DT1r1t1f2F, Release date Dec 8 2003

4. What is digital TV like on an old Philips 34cm? This was and still is a very good set. Picture looks a bit better than analogue but no ghosting which is a big bonus. Skin texture looks very natural, one thing that kept me away from Digital was the very smooth skin texture you see on some digital sets. Nobody has skin that smooth so it is not a fault with DTV just some displays.

Will let you know how the 5000i pertforms with a few more hours under its belt

Greg

I have no problems with the 5000i hardware but I think the user manual is verging on pathetic. It looks like a bunch of eight years old did it as school project.

One important thing that is missing is how the types of audio are used.

The on screen display (OSD) says whether the audio is MPEG or Dolby. The audio setup offers a menu on what to use. I live in Canberra so I only have Dolby on ABC which currently works ok. All others seem to be MPEG (is that PCM?). WIN has a test channel for HD and the OSD says Dolby but it appears to be MPEG. the sound does not work until I manually change it to MPEG.

The ABC Dolby lights up the Dolby Digital light on my Sony Receiver but the WIN HD Dobly does not which makes me wonder what the audio really is.

To cut a long rant short, will the DGTEC 5000i automatically output (to my reciever) the correct audio type or do I have to keep changing between MPEG and Dolby in the menu?

The technical support staff at DGTEC have as much knowledge of this particular problem as the eight year olds who wrote the manual.

Also, the WIN HD channel appeared one day without a scan. Is that normal for the new channel(s) to just appear?

Cheers

Stephen

Win HD is a seperate channel.

Technically, channels are on each network. They are also known as sub-channels.

And Win HD was touched sometime in the past few weeks to chance the useless N&N information. Sometimes I don't know why Win bother.

I am saying they changed it from Win HD TV Channel (or similar) to the current title for the N&N informaiton.

I meant to say change not chance

I recently upgraded to a DGTEC 5000i and a Sony KVHR 32. I've been very impressed with this setup, and I've had none of the STB problems mentioned in this forum.
However, I'm now thinking of replacing my old VCR with a Pioneer DVR 310s. The plan is to feed the S-video output of the DGTEC to the DVD recorder. I've read elsewhere that there may be a problem with the DVR seeing the signal as "copyright protected" and therefore unrecordable.
Can anyone please throw some light on this subject before I rush out and buy a 310??

I got my dgtec 5000i free with the KVHR36M31 and whilst I don't really like the box (freezes up on HD channels and is generally unrealiable), I want to get the best out of it, however, it came with no instructions. Didn't really notice until recently when I wanted to upgrade the firmware. Can anyway tell me how I can go about updating the firmware? Where to download the latest version and how to update the box.
Thanks............... brent

Brent seeing as you got the unit for free, ditch it now while you can. the 5000i is a crap box at best, the service from dgtec is just as bad. When it works it's fine, but the unit has so many things go wrong with it, I still do not comprehend how a company can put something like this on the market.
As for the firmware you will need to send it back to dgtec for that.

Buyer Beware!

You unit is FAULTY! and dont let them blame the broadcasters! If you have just bought it, take it back to retailer otherwise you will probably have to run the gauntlet of DGTEC warranty repair.

Nothing to do with firmware revisions etc. I had a Sept 03 unit doing that exact problem from new (in Perth though.) Replaced by the retailer with a new one with the same firmware and that problems gone.

Apart from being able to almost light cigarettes from the temperature of the casing, I am not having any other problems now.

2 Questions,

1. How do you scroll to more text/information on the EPG of a program, when the blue page runs out of space? I've tried the arrow buttons on the remote, but none get me to the next page where the rest of the program info text is.

On my old DGTEC200A, you could use the arrows on the remote to get to the next page of text info.

2. Also, how do you read signal strength on this unit. The coloured segmented bar that comes up at bottom of screen when you press 'info' always seems to be fully "coloured in" to the right.

Craig.

We have a DGTEC 5000I, unable to do much with it until this week, when our building was upgraded for Digital. We evidently point at North Head in Sydney for reception. DBA website advertises current operational UHF frequencies for all broadcasters, however we cannot tune to any of these. DGTEC seem unable to provide an answer and in fact seemed unaware that things have changed since the publication of their 2001 user guide with the VHF frequencies. The latter can be received by us but signal is weak with frequent dropout. UHF 34 SBS freezes the box, requiring hard shut down. DGTEC again seemed unaware of the problem or of a possible resolution - have suggested we send the box to them for s/w upgrade, but again seem unable to explain the purpose of the upgrade. Any answers ?

We have the DGTEC plugged to the RF OUT of the Foxtel box, the latter is chained first, to the wall outlet. Theoretically should be ok .... ?

Theoretically?????? Theoretically, communism works!!

Remove the Foxtel box and connect the DGTEC up directly to the wall. Its the only way to rule it out as the problem.

Just wondering is there a way to get rid of unwanted channels.

Basically I live in Newcastle and pickup all the local stations fine, although for some reason just recently my STB has "decided" to show ABC Sydney in the TV guide section. Although if i try and watch these channels i get weak signal, (what i really would expect!!).

Anyway is there a way for me to remove these stations?

Thought I would add my storey to the liteny of unhappy 5000i owners. I purchased the unit in August 03, worked fine for a while then along came summer and a few lockups. Figured out the hard reset and left the door on the cabinet open even though I had installed a 240 volt computer fan to blow across the 5000i. This seemed to fix it. Then the vertical lines started to appear and became worse. So off to the retailer I went as this was early June. They kindly lent me another (2000A) yuk!

This is when the fun really started. I waited in the store while they rang DGTEC got the repair order number. DGTEC stated they would be a Courier pick it up the next morning and it would take approxiametely two weeks to repair.

Two weeks later I returned to the store, the box was STILL sitting there. (minor euruption ensured) I personally rang DGTEC, expressed my extreme displeasure at the incompatence. Got the feeling I was talking to staff that were accustomed to such talk, one even complemented me on my professional attitude in this matter, given the situation. One buck passer mentioned "isn't yours the one that had been here since february?" My answer to that was for $200 virgin would have had me on there door step dismembering the person responsible long before this. (this is early June, there must be some patient people out there?)

I organised with DGTEC for the box to be picked up the next day, they gave me an order No for McPhee Transport. I rang McPhee, rang the store and that night did some net searching and this is when I found this forum and the other shoe dropped.

Time for a different tack here, as I am not getting stuck with a lemon. Ten days later I went back to the store and asked them to check on things, DGTEC stated that they had LOST it!!! and (several phone calls later) were unable to locate it.

At this stage I figured I needed to apply more pressure on the store owner, as I had spent 15k with him only ten months ago. (the uniform may have helped here) I expressed my frustration and belief that the box was "not fit for Purpose" and furthermore DGTEC were incompetant in the expreme and I had lost all confidance in their product and the company. (The Store owner agreed, his shoulders had sunk as he admitted he didn't sell too many DGTEC anymore)

DGTEC were true to there word and a brand new 5000i turned up at the store two days later. I asked the store owner what would it cost me to change over to a Toshiba 23a? $100, done, and I am a happy camper.

Robert

Hey,
I bought mine off e-bay for 500 bucks and I havent had a prob with it, i have been using it now for nearly a year and it runs like a dream(a weird dream i guess). It does run hot though. And I was havent probs with it losing sound on channel changes, but, it only did that for a week and then fixed itself. The AV yarn is a good idea, bujt if i try to run my xbox thru it, The signal is bad, and barely watchable. I now run a dvd player thru it and it works great.

Anyway thanx for the sounding board.

Jayson

Just wondering if anyone has noticed their dgtec 5000i going green?? Every so often (becoming more frequent), the picture becomes predominantely green. It's 9 months old.
Anyone else experience this?? Should I send it back to Dgtec?

It must be a bit sick!

by the way why is this forum "pinned" ?

yeah possibly!
Anyone got any suggestions of what could be wrong??

brent: is it connected by component cable? maybe one is a bit loose. thats what happens to mine. A bit of a jiggle at the back or even thump on the floor fixes it. I just have to get a round to getting another cable. doesnt happen alot for me.

Thanks Alias,
That fixed it! I've been mucking around the back of my TV too much obviously!
All better now!

Since the power went out in Sydney last night my 5000i has AUH on the display.
If I power it off and back on again (by yanking the power cord) it comes back with the same thing. The clock has been set since the power has come back on but is 6 minutes slow.

I've searched the web (that's how I found this forum) but have found nothing.
Dgtec support is the next place but that doesn't happen until they open tomorrow morning.

Any ideas?

Thanks in advance...

Hmmm, very interesting. The third time I unplugged it then plugged it back in I got the DGTEC screen and I could go back in and perform a new install again.

On the heat question , my 5000i is warm but far from hot.
The right hand side is noticably the warmer side. I've had the box a couple of months and use it every day. I only turn the TV off never bother with the STB or VCR.

--JC

Brad.\I similarly had problems woth the Set Top box. Contacted DGTEC and was advised to reset the box by unplugging - waiting 20 minutes - then plugging back in - which should hard reset the box.

Up shot was it didn't work.

DGTEC advised to return the box which I did. Came back fixed and haven't had any trouble since. That has been 3 months and was still under warranty.

The stated that the tuner was faulty and that was the component that was replaced.

Cheers.