Dreambox 500s

Headshot

Damn box is driving me nuts but it's probably what I get for buying a clone

One minute it could be working and the next bang, no satellite signal
Are the clones that unreliable or somthing?

Like tonight I was playing around with it seeing what the signal is like for Hotbird 8 and I was able to pick it up but couldnt find the station I wanted (RTP international) (bear in mind my dish is pointed at 16e) and my dreambox just gave out on me and cant get DigitalB back going on it
The tuner just wont lock on for me, very frustrating stuff

What are the real dreamboxes like, I know they're expensive but if they work alot better than the clones crap maybe its time to invest in one

Zardoz

The tuners in some clone Dreamboxes can be weak but it doesnt help that you are trying to pick up 13e while pointed at 16e.
You will find it hard to get an original 500s as they are no longer produced and havent been for a few years.Its nearly all clones now,and most of them are very reliable.
You could get an original Dm600s ,they retail at around 150 euro + delivery and are a superb box,far superior to the 500s in almost every regard.

Headshot

See the thing is I cant even get my DigitalB back now

im using L.J.s freq 10758 V
tp 112

DVB
SR 27500
FEC 7/8

and the dreambox doesnt even acknowledge there's anything there

Headshot

for the countless time I had to plug out power and sat cable and bingo its working again

some ****e box

Zardoz

Headshot wrote: »

for the countless time I had to plug out power and sat cable and bingo its working again

some ****e box

There was a widespread issue with some clone 500's which was because of an inadequate lnb volatge.
I encountered it on one specific 500s,it would work fine for 5-10 minutes after power up then I would get no signal.
I eventually figured out the problem .
The solution was to replace one of the transistors ,Q72 on the motherboard ,but by then I had smashed the Dreambox to bits with a hurley out of frustration.:)

cormacl

Might be worth considering a legit box.. yes it will cost more but at least it will work and more reliably.. and if gives trouble, you'll get 24 months warranty.

My DM8000 almost never crashes with uptimes that are usually only interrupted to upgrade to a newer version. Prior to this I had very similar experiences with a 7025 and 5620, all legit receivers.

I upgraded to 5.1 of the Gemini image over a month ago and the box hasn't been rebooted since. Its used every single day to watch TV and record various programmes as well as play existing recordings.

root@dm8000:~# uptime
13:21:34 up 34 days, 3:58, load average: 0.01, 0.06, 0.04
root@dm8000:~#

Why not check out the 500HD or one of the Vuo+ alternatives.

jpsr

I to have a clone, the box always used to freeze on me and i had to unplug it from the mains. Another problem was the remote had a mind of its own and when i pressed the menu button it muted the sound, all the remote buttons were doing different things and not what they were ment to do, so i just couldnt use the box any more.

Headshot

any recommended sites where i can buy a legit dreambox please

IrishKev

I got my Dreambox 500S at DVBMonkey.org, it's lasted me 18months and counting so they're reliable enough.
EDIT: Sorry my box was a clone never saw the 'legit' part But if you're looking for a clone (and you probably will be as legit boxes are very rare) I would recommend DVBMonkey.

cormacl

Headshot wrote: »

any recommended sites where i can buy a legit dreambox please

hm-sat.de or sat-place.de both sell legit dreamboxes. You won't get a 500s any more.. so every 500S you find will definitely be a clone.

You either go for a 600, 500HD or 800.

I'd suggest a 500HD.. it will connect with an external HDD and also do HD satellite. Its also cheaper than the DM800. There is also some experimental support for DVB-T using a USB DTT dongle.

Otherwise, take a look at the VU+ models which are non-DMM receivers but also use Enigma2 (same UI). Highly regarded and above board in terms of being legal and not infringing on DMM copyright.

Headshot

iv decided (with help from above posts and pm) to get this Dreambox DM 500 HD

its a steep price but at least it will work right

Manc-Red

Headshot wrote: »

any recommended sites where i can buy a legit dreambox please

800 HD Clone is superb Headshot.

Headshot

Manc-Red wrote: »

800 HD Clone is superb Headshot.

a clone is superb?

idk manc, the 500s has put me off clones, I take you have a 800 HD clone, Manc. What is it like

fish fingers

Zardoz wrote: »

There was a widespread issue with some clone 500's which was because of an inadequate lnb volatge.
I encountered it on one specific 500s,it would work fine for 5-10 minutes after power up then I would get no signal.
I eventually figured out the problem .
The solution was to replace one of the transistors ,Q72 on the motherboard ,but by then I had smashed the Dreambox to bits with a hurley out of frustration.:)

I have an eagle box which is a dm500 clone. I had it driving my motor. I had loads of problems with it. So now I just use it with my fixed 60cm. It works grand now.

Manc-Red

Headshot wrote: »

a clone is superb?

idk manc, the 500s has put me off clones, I take you have a 800 HD clone, Manc. What is it like

Your right on the ball about those 500s's - pile of tripe.

The 800 HD (clone) is extremely reliable and gives me no trouble at all, I'd highly recommend it, All the guys I know who have one have no complaints at all.

Headshot

Manc-Red wrote: »

Your right on the ball about those 500s's - pile of tripe.

The 800 HD (clone) is extremely reliable and gives me no trouble at all, I'd highly recommend it, All the guys I know who have one have no complaints at all.

im really interested and it would probably save me alot of money

any chance of a link where you bought your one please

Manc-Red

Headshot wrote: »

im really interested and it would probably save me alot of money

any chance of a link where you bought your one please

will pm you when I dig it out m8 later

Zardoz

Manc-Red wrote: »

Your right on the ball about those 500s's - pile of tripe.

The 800 HD (clone) is extremely reliable and gives me no trouble at all, I'd highly recommend it, All the guys I know who have one have no complaints at all.

The clone 800 is hit and miss .I certainly wouldnt regard it as extremely reliable.
Alot of people have tuner issues,overheating issues and various other problems.
Likewise alot of Clone 500's are great receivers ,not all are tripe .
It could be an image issue causing the 500 to lose the signal Headshot,I'd recommend trying the PLi Jade 3 image ,its very solid and see if that improves things before splashing out the cash.

Headshot

has anybody ever use this company
http://www.smartcard24.com/dreambox-dm-500-hd-sat-receiver-pvr-esata-a10849.html

probably one of the cheapest I can find but are they reliable

fish fingers

http://www.hm-sat-shop.de/en/hdd-receiver-hdtv-dreambox/

These seem to have a good reputation

cormacl

Zardoz wrote: »

It could be an image issue causing the 500 to lose the signal Headshot,I'd recommend trying the PLi Jade 3 image ,its very solid and see if that improves things before splashing out the cash.

You almost definitely will see no diffeence with a different image. The tuner drivers of the dreambox images are proprietary and not opensource nor custom compiled by the 3rd party image providers. So the same drivers will be used regardless.

Also bear in mind that the last issued image from DMM for the 500s was in 2006. There was a later tuner driver issued in the CVS repo for Enigma1 that was part of the easter egg initiative to nobble unauthorised clones. But it only included the easter egg code as opposed to actually fixing any tuner-related bugs. The images you can install on these clones usually include older front-loader software and older tuner drivers (prior to the clone nobbling) or the later versions with assembly hacks made to disable the easter egg.

I think you will find here that its just shoddy hardware and shoddy clone manufacturing thats the cause of this issue.. hit and miss.. if you want assurance.. fork out the cash for the real thing.. its legal and its guaranteed.

cormacl

fish fingers wrote: »

http://www.hm-sat-shop.de/en/hdd-receiver-hdtv-dreambox/

These seem to have a good reputation

I've bought all my receivers through HM-Sat. Very reliable as a seller. The one thing that annoys me however is that they use this shipping costing that is based on a base amount and a percentage of the purchase cost.

For an example.. when I bought my DM8000 in early 2009, it was €999. Add to that a couple of cables and a new Quad LNB.. the total order cost was €1054. They calculated shipping as €24 + 4% of the order (€43).. €67 shipping. That IMO was far too high. Its actually an insurance cost on the sale. Sat-place are also using this same mechanism. Probably covers them for full loss scenarios etc.

I noticed here.. http://www.satshop.tv/Shipping.. that they are basing it on a zone and weight calculation. No actual indication of extra insurance costs. I've never used them for a purchase.. so I don't really know if these figures are indeed all the costs you incur. But I would recommend you check into the shipping costs with any of these German sites first before committing.

Headshot

heres a warning for people who are thinking of getting a clone dreambox

as you can see above the nightmare im having with them and the latest problem is, its moving the dish but getting no picture at all

just " Please wait while the motor is turning to 16.0E" on the screen

look some clone dreamboxes work but can you take the chance after spending your hard earned money and then having the box ****ed up?

my advice is stay well clear of them and buy a proper dreambox, it may cost ridiculous money but you wont have headaches and it actually works

Zardoz

Headshot wrote: »

heres a warning for people who are thinking of getting a clone dreambox

as you can see above the nightmare im having with them and the latest problem is, its moving the dish but getting no picture at all

just " Please wait while the motor is turning to 16.0E" on the screen

look some clone dreamboxes work but can you take the chance after spending your hard earned money and then having the box ****ed up?

my advice is stay well clear of them and buy a proper dreambox, it may cost ridiculous money but you wont have headaches and it actually works

Are you sure that the problem is the receiver ?
16E is a notoriously difficult satellite to receive and you need a well aligned dish to receive the Digitalb transponders.
What you are describing " Please wait while the motor is turning to 16.0E" on the screen is typical of no signal lock on a satellite.
Are you receiving other stronger satellites ok ?
Have you setup your dish using Usals or Diseqc ? Diseqc will allow you to manually store motor positions and adjust the motor to tweak the setup.
I'd advise you to use Diseqc on a 500s as I and many others have found Usals to be unreliable on the 500s.
I had a look at the picture of your setup and its not ideal ,the TK brackets are too close together and that pole is very long.
If the 500s is working well on other satellites and not on 16E then its definitely a signal issue and its not the boxes fault.
I hope this is of help to you,stick with it M8,its a tough enough learning curve at first but its worth it.

Headshot

Zardoz wrote: »

Are you sure that the problem is the receiver ?
16E is a notoriously difficult satellite to receive and you need a well aligned dish to receive the Digitalb transponders.
What you are describing " Please wait while the motor is turning to 16.0E" on the screen is typical of no signal lock on a satellite.
Are you receiving other stronger satellites ok ?
Have you setup your dish using Usals or Diseqc ? Diseqc will allow you to manually store motor positions and adjust the motor to tweak the setup.
I'd advise you to use Diseqc on a 500s as I and many others have found Usals to be unreliable on the 500s.
I had a look at the picture of your setup and its not ideal ,the TK brackets are too close together and that pole is very long.
If the 500s is working well on other satellites and not on 16E then its definitely a signal issue and its not the boxes fault.
I hope this is of help to you,stick with it M8,its a tough enough learning curve at first but its worth it.

yes Zardoz im pretty sure its the receiver. Iv had problems with all the satellites today with the same message "Please wait while the motor is turning to ....." but iv fixed it. I had to find 16e by the receiver again and its working now. Its was like like the 500s reset it self or somthing

My setup is Diseqc btw

Im also not happy with my setup and will be changing it, probably getting a fatter and smaller pole

this motorise dish is the biggest pain in the arse iv ever had to experience but I know it will come good for me but my money is drying up

Headshot

fish fingers wrote: »

http://www.hm-sat-shop.de/en/hdd-receiver-hdtv-dreambox/

These seem to have a good reputation

im about to order from that site but it asks for "Street oder Packstation"

what does that mean ?

fish fingers

Headshot wrote: »

im about to order from that site but it asks for "Street oder Packstation"

what does that mean ?

Street or pack station . Thats what google translate is telling me?

Headshot

so i have that ordered

if anyone wants my dreambox 500 just give me a pm, ill give it away for free

carbsy

Headshot wrote: »

so i have that ordered

if anyone wants my dreambox 500 just give me a pm, ill give it away for free

I'll take it for free Heatshot! I could do with a spare one for the mother room!

p.s. I'll pay for postage obviously!