Zgemma H7s Guide

CalamariFritti

Are we talking about zgemmah7 here? Because if we are than the answer is the zgemmah7 isnt really fit to be a kodi box never mind addons. It will work but only just, kodi will always be on the edge with ram and cpu again never mind add ons.

AindrisBro

well that’s better explains it. I simply took the fact it had it preinstalled that it was something that was manageable. In all fairness the cpu is usually low around the 20% (I’m assuming it’s cause of the ssd) just the ram stuck at 87%.. has anyone ever tried upgrading the ram in the box? I wouldn’t mind having it on it just to expand its use further

edit just looked it up and it’s impossible to upgrade the memory as it’s soldered into the motherboard. Just in case in anyone in the future is wondering. Cheers for the replies guys

downwiththatsor

Morning all, I installed the latest Vix version 6.5.003. Having an issue with plugins specifically Crossepg as it did not restore and won't from backups, I also can't find it in "download plugins"

The error is "bad magic number"

Can anyone point me as to where I can source crossepg and install manually?

Thanks in advance

andy1249

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122192123#Comment_122192123

Crossepg does not work with Openvix 6.5.xxx

Its in the release notes and discussed over on the WOS forums.

You use the installed EPG importers instead , which are simplicity itself to set up and work just as well.

Thargor

Can I be really lazy and just ask how in the name of God do you retune a channel on this box when it changes frequency? Ive been through the menus 50 times and there is nothing, whats the easiest way?

For example on my parents Ariva you just add transponder→Scan→move the new channel to its desired position on the channel list and delete the old one. There is nothing like this on the Zgemma…

Thargor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122071547#Comment_122071547

So if I grabbed this USB dongle and plugged it in I could access the box without having to break out the network cable and run it to the router every time?

greasepalm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122216748#Comment_122216748

Setting up ABM autobouquetmaker plugin to run at 1am will remove and rescan your channels and no need to go searching and assume your box is connected to internet.

Or check Kingofsats for channel info to see if it has moved data.

CalamariFritti

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122216756#Comment_122216756

yes, should be plug-n-play

swoofer

" for this "Can I be really lazy and just ask how in the name of God do you retune a channel on this box when it changes frequency? Ive been through the menus 50 times and there is nothing, what/s the easiest way?" If using vix image.

1. menu, setup, tuners & scanning, press ok , now arrow down to signal finder, press ok, arrow down to tune, it will say predefined, arrow right it will say user defined, now enter your new details and press green, more than one channel may appear, select the one you want, press ok, it opens , arrow up, then menu, now see 7 add service , select it and then a list of bouquets appear select the one you want and press ok, It will be added to your bouquet but at the end, so now select it in bouquet, press menu and see red button enable move mode, then highlight the channel you want to move and it turns red, now move it to where you want. NB If enable move mode does not appear come back.

2, You can have same channel in loads of bouquets, Its seems tedious but once you learn it its easy peasy.

Thargor

……

Thargor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122217026#Comment_122217026

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122217625#Comment_122217625

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122219453#Comment_122219453

Great stuff thanks for that all.

ArrBee

after a few weeks with this box I've found a couple of things that I don't like.
Maybe it is particular to my box or config, if so please add your opinion!

1. time shift doesn't seem to have a limit (other than disk space) This filled up a NAS share and crashed the STB.

2. the terristrial tuner seems "weak" for RTE2/TG4 mux. I do have it split nd can probably improve it, but one feed goes to TV and the other goes to the box. Even if I swap the feeds around, the TV has no problem where the STB occasionaly has glithcy reception.

3. it only has 1 terrestrial tuner. it really limits the ability to watch and record local TV or watch on 2 screens.

4. UI is a challange. I'm using the sky-ish one and you can switch from a sub menu to a a different menu branch - you have to go out then back in. eg. from EPG you can't go direct to recorded files. You can probably reconfigure what the buttons do but tthat seems like a massive job.

5. I've had a "random lockup" that required a hard reboot.

6. if the box is showing a menu dialog it doesn't seem possible to go onto standby until you exit back up to the main screen.
eg. if I am watching a different input on the TV, I can't turn the STB off at the end of the night if it was waiting on a submenu dialog.


I'm wondering if the issues I have described are going to be the same on other HW running the same image, or the same if I run a different image on the H7s….

greasepalm

2 I would be rechecking your area provider is correct and your connections are good on your cables and no stray strands.

3 Never had an issue as if i wanted to record on terrestrial on another channel and view other on tv .

4 Most E2 boxes you have to exit out before moving to another job in the menu.

5 I also have had box lock up many times on all images even on ones done fresh and no backups restored.

6 Yes you have to clear any item from menu been showing before box can go into standby or other , all items are the same on other E2 boxes except the Hard reboot.

andy1249

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122221864#Comment_122221864

Point no 4: Ditch the sky copycat skin , they are all rubbish.

Its not a sky box , skins that pretend it is are flaky as hell. I ditched it for the openvix default skin and all my problems went away. Openvix default skin also lets me do whatever I want within all the menus without any fuss , live TV just moves up to a smaller window on the left whilst Im messing around.

Point number 1 , timeshift menu should give you options for start , stop , and amount of space/recording time used , if it doesnt , then again the issue is most likely that dodgy sky skin …… I have timeshift set for 2 hours max , option to save/do not save as recording when exiting.

By default , my setup will delete timeshift recordings after each program if it is left unattended

ArrBee

@andy1249
Thanks, I'll give that a go.
Only reason for the sky skin was to try and get the Mrs comfortable with the change.
The timeshift certainly had options for what to do when exiting, but not to manage the size.

greasepalm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122222582#Comment_122222582

Is that Simple 1080 skin as using that on all boxes?

I have never setup or used timeshift.

Tango One

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122221864#Comment_122221864

Check it tuned to the correct frequency for your location. This drove me nuts for a while. I even went as far as getting an external tuner. I had it aerial pointing in the right location but the wrong frequency. It tuned itself to a transmitter further away.

andy1249

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122223401#Comment_122223401

Yes , " Simple Ten Eighty " as its listed under Menu/Setup/User Interface/Skin Selection

andy1249

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122223172#Comment_122223172

Back at the beginning I had the Blue Skin or whatever it was called , basically it was a clone of the SkyHD box interface , including all the icons , which of course did not do the same things as it does on the Sky box.

It was regularly broken , either by someone in the house trying to enter or use the hidden " Sky" Menus or by timeshifting having a glitch and filling up the hard drive , which it is never supposed to do.

Did a complete re-set of the box with openvix default skin and no problems since.

Its really simple to use , and openvix make it easier by every update. You dont even need a thumb drive anymore to update or flash , it does it over the internet in less than 5 minutes.

Recordings are easy to get too , and once you set up your favourites and ABM you always boot to the favourites menu and if a channel moves/changes its always there somewhere for you to drop back into favourites.

ArrBee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122225303#Comment_122225303

I didn't see any options for limiting the timeshift size/duration with the default skin either….?
In general though the 1080 skin is nicer though.

Still, some of the other "issues" I mention with the UI are still present.

ArrBee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122223846#Comment_122223846

I just checked this and you are spot on!

Not knowing what the frequency should be, I compared what the TV was using and found the STB was on ch42 and the TV was using ch47. Signal strength was 50-ish vs 77-ish.

Now to correct this, I am assuming I just update the transponder somehow and probably re-do the bouquet?

EDIT:

I think I updated the transpoder. In the bouquet editor I have an extra Terrestrial provider with (new) next to it the other has (services). I'm sure there was only 1 before…

in the (services) it looks like everything is doubled up?? there is 2 of everything.
In the (new) one, it looks like it has the updated frequency.

What is the relationship between (new) and (services)

greasepalm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122225587#Comment_122225587

Sounds like your not using the correct source and have 2 listings and doubled up.

I would ask is what area are you in and using what transmitter for Saorview.

ArrBee

I'm in north Offaly

and I am now using the longford transmitter (Well I think I am.) I just updated it from "all Ireland" to Longford.
I think I probably need to do a remove and rescan or something….

edit:

did a tidy up and I think it's all good now.
Possibly the new transponder channels were being added to the old instead of replacing…

Still think the UI and button actions could do with some work, but I will live with that for now.

greasepalm

Cairn Hill ?

ArrBee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122228189#Comment_122228189

yip

swoofer

Arrbee can you say the image and skin you are now using and what features you really need? are you coming from sky?

ArrBee

@swoofer
Yes, I am coming from sky but I am personally not "stuck on Sky" interface. All my comments come from a general UX/UI perspective rather than a "it's not like Sky" one.

Feature wise I think this somes it up:
1. navigate directly to top level menus from any sub menu
-there are a bunch of "top level menues" that you should be able to jump straight to at the push of a button - no matter how deepinto sub menus you are.
eg. file list; tv; menu; epg

2. consistancy around the back/exit/red button
-back doesn't work as a back button, and exit mostly works as a back button but sometimes as an exit. red acts as a back sometimes until it doesn't. :P
-I appreciate, I can probably redefine what the buttons do in various situations, but a well working predefined config would be nice.

3. ability to power off(standby) from any menu.
-some menus will not let you go into standby.

4. stacking of recorded programs
-where all recordings are nested under the parent program name.

5. double terrestrial tuner
-I know this is a HW limitation, but it might have been enough of a reason for me to go with a VU+ (I think they have a twin tunner plug in card?)

I just had something weird happen to the box as I went to collect some of the below info…
-When coming out of standby it didn't show any channel like normal, it was on a openvix splashscreen. No epg, or channel etc.
I'm guessing that it was "outside" of a bouquet as I just jumped back in to one and all was ok again (including surviving restarts). It's little things like that were it behaves inconsistantly that will throw one person in the house….

Here are the image details….
Skin: Simple1080
SystemOE: OE-Alliance 5.3
Firmwareversion: OpenViX 6.4.011 (2024-01-08)
KernelDrivers: 4.10.12 / 20191123

andy1249

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122230485#Comment_122230485

Openvix , and most other flavours of Enigma2 , have context sensitive menus , buttons do different things in different menus.

Something that just has to be gotten used too.

Anyway , point 4 , its very simple to gather recordings together ….. go into recordings , now press menu / settings ….. its in here that you can sort recordings , ( Enable Automatic Collections to "on" saves to folders ) and following on from earlier , set space for recordings , and most importantly , empty network trash …..etc. So if you are recording to a nas for example , you must set this up or timeshift will fill it , its off by default.

Openvix has a manual , one of the reasons I prefer it over the others , most everyday issues are covered in it.

https://www.openvix.co.uk/openvix-builds/Guides%20and%20Tutorials/VIX%20Manual%20Vs%201.1.pdf

swoofer

pvr.JPG

Ardee I read your posts you have to stop… and pause. The sky box came locked so you learnt how to use it. The zgemma H7 is configurable but only if you know what you are doing. With openvix the image is already configured and its easy peasy but you have to learn. You are a trite unlucky in that image 6.4.011 is ….p in that the bit you ask Q 4 has been omitted. See pic above for Ver 6.5 You cant go back and ask for it to be re-installed because its ver 6.5 and they wont entertain you. So you have to update to ver 6.5 but you must do this first.

1. Make sure epg is saved to HDD.
2. Have the network working and a good connection speed.

You can update online.

As for slyk skin you can have it working but it takes a lot of effort and know how. It works fine.

Here is a few pics with Slyk1080 r-19. First one is top picks changes automatically overnight or can be done manually.

second and 3rd self explanatory.

IMG_6166.jpg

IMG_6165.PNG

IMG_6168.jpg

AidenL

Is this box super difficult to set up for someone with average knowledge?

Im trying to ditch Sky Q too, but I need record ability and ideally through a few rooms, is that possible with these boxes? One central hard drive networked to multiple screens?

I imagine id need a separate box for each screen for live tv watching though?

Where is the best place to buy them?

greasepalm

My thoughts are you will have issues not in setting up the box but for having the ability of viewing in all rooms will need 3 feeds of cable 2 for sat and 1 saorview.

You will need a newer lnb with more feeds as the one with sky q is different.

I prefare a box with its own HDD and when full move stuff to a NAS drive from router.

I have never setup a NAS for recording from multiple boxes or if possible at the same time.

andy1249

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122235134#Comment_122235134

Zgemma is a budget box.

For what you describe , Get a Unicable II LNB and a box with FBC tuners.

Gigablue and VU+ do boxes with FBC tuners.

For example , Ive got a VU+ Duo 4K SE box with Twin FBC tuners , and twin DVB-C/T tuner.

I can record 8 satellite stations and 2 terrestrial at the same time.

This can be the main box and any other enigma 2 box or compatible device with an enigma2 plugin/playback capability can playback or record on/from this box. ( Kodi , Plex ( with pass ) etc. )

Cheap , single tuner boxes like Zgemma , Octagon S8008 , etc can be used in client mode with the main box as the server. This can be done over the home network , no need for a cable feed at all if using Wi-fi.

Unicable can be split , so only one feed is required from the satellite dish and one from an aerial for Saorview.

Firesticks , Nvidia Shield , anything running plex( with pass ) or Kodi can connect to the main box to set recordings and use one of its many tuners to view live TV.

https://www.satworld.ie/inverto-unicable-ii-programmable-lnb-with-32ub-en.html

https://www.amazon.de/-/en/dp/B08HJJR6PD?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

swoofer

andy with that twin dtt you can record all of saorview at same time. And that link for vu box is blutooth remote.

AidenL

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122236411#Comment_122236411

Thanks a lot,sounds like just what I need.

I have a hybrid LNB on the Sky dish, so I guess I’d need to change it to the one you linked to. Then use one of the satellite cables to the main box, and I can use the second satellite cable to feed from an aerial to the main box as these are already ran in.

I’d intend to put the new box in a rack, and then hdmi from it to my main tv. Then standard zgemmas or firesticks at the other tvs? Have I got that right?

AidenL

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122235180#Comment_122235180

Thank you for that also. I’ll leave the NAS stand alone then.

andy1249

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122236652#Comment_122236652

Yup , thats correct , I have mine in a cabinet , Octagon S8008 in the kitchen , Zgemma H82h as a client in one of the bedrooms , Firestick 4K max in another , and various Computers / ipads / phones etc. all using either Kodi or Plex as an enigma2 client.

Note: Firestick works much better if you buy the ethernet adaptor , its a bit flaky over wi fi ( but that is going to vary by household , Wi fi is heavily contested in our house ….. )

Kodi has an enigma2 plugin for TV which should work on any computer ,

Plex : you must buy a plex pass , there was a deal on a lifetime pass last year and I bought it. It cannot do TV as an enigma2 client on the free version.

All the clients rely on inputting the IP address of the main box into its settings , so its a good idea to give it a static IP address , otherwise if it changes ( after a powercut or something ) you have to adjust all the devices when it comes back online.

andy1249

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122236489#Comment_122236489

Thats the box I bought from Germany , The DVB C/T tuner has one physical connection , split on the inside to two tuners , so 10 tuners in all.

I have two of these boxes , One from WOS and one from Amazon

There are two physical FBC tuners , but you only need to fix a cable to one of them , and each of those has 3 leaf tuners , so 8 satellite tuners in all.

There are various options on this VU+ box , there are many for sale on amazon with various configurations , for Ireland you want twin FBC and DVB-C/T tuners , they pop up for sale every now and again at varying prices.

The tuners are separate cards that go into slots , a bit like expansion cards in a PC , the tuner cards can be bought separately but are very expensive that way.

The one I linked too is the BT edition , meaning the remote is both IR and Blutooth , handy if you want the box in a cabinet out of line of sight. The Remote is silver and heavier than the ordinary VU+ Duo 4K SE remote.

The box is expensive compared to a Zgemma , but built like a tank and super fast compared to Zgemma or Octagon boxes.

Vu+ vs Zgemma would be like say SkyQ vs Sky HD

( I have a lot of enigma 2 boxes at the moment , a hobby that's getting a bit out of hand , The Octagon S8008 is a real tinkerers dream , 4 image slots and an SD card slot that will extend image slots infinitely depending on size ….. and Define OS as its base system , any image can be downloaded and installed , no USB sticks required, and booting between images is easy and fast )

ArrBee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122234099#Comment_122234099

Thanks @swoofer for taking the time to respond.
With respect though, I don't think this is a case of wanting the E2 software to "work like sky". My observations so far are compared to "all" modern UIs.

I get that the configurability of E2 sets it apart from Sky. I get that there are context sensitive options in menus meaning that remote buttons can do different things and it may be hard to reassign their function without breaking sub menu context etc.
But, so far I have not found a reason why "TV/Fav" or "File List" couldn't be assigned to bring up their respective menus from ANY submenu. They don't seem to have a conext sensitive function anywhere - yet I didn't see a way to do this in the button remapping. On that note. TV and FAV seem to be a complete duplication? is there any difference?

This is not a hangover from having used sky, it is just something that most UIs provide for.


I did have the Skyk skin on previously - just to help the Mrs get used to things, but it was suggested stability or functionality might be better with the default? So far, I've not noticed any improvement.
I do prefer the default myself as there is less temptation on herself to expect it to function like Sky. lol

I've not played with multiple images yet although it was on my mind. I was worried I would bork something and have the long job of setting it back up.
I might try and clone the current image to another slot and then upgrade it…. see what happens.

ArrBee

Deleted due to missing quote…

ArrBee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122236852#Comment_122236852

Can I just ask…
other than replacing the LNB, do you need to swap out coax too?

If I have a sky+ quad LNB with 2 coax feeds currently, and a single terrestrial coax feed….
How many simultaneous channels could I get?

andy1249

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122240604#Comment_122240604

No , Coax is Coax , no need to change it.

FBC tuners will work with " Legacy " LNB's , but they work exactly the same as legacy LNB's in that case.

So two coax feeds will behave exactly the same as an old Sky HD legacy LNB , record one , watch another etc.

Its the addition of the Unicable II LNB that makes the full use of the FBC tuners possible.

If you are going unicable , make sure its a Unicable II with enough User bands. The one I linked has 32 User bands , and each of the tuners used with the LNB must be set to a unique user band.

So for example , with the VU+ box that I have , the FBC tuners have one cable attached to tuner A and is set up in Openvix as follows ….. you might want to copy this next bit and print it out , very useful if you buy unicable …..

Unicable 2 LNB attached to Tuner A

Tuner AConfiguration mode: Advanced
Satellite: 28.2E
LNB: LNB 1
Priority: Auto
Type of LNB/Device: SCR(Unicable/Jess)
SCR (Unicable/JESS) type: LNB
Manufacturer: Inverto
Model: IDLU-32UL42-UNB00-0PP
Position: 1
Channel: User band 1 (1210)
Connected: No
DiSEqC mode: None
Force legacy signal stats: No

Tuner BConfiguration mode: Advanced
Satellite: 28.2E
LNB: LNB 1
Priority: Auto
Type of LNB/Device: SCR(Unicable/Jess)
SCR (Unicable/JESS) type: LNB
Manufacturer: Inverto
Model: IDLU-32UL42-UNB00-0PP
Position: 1
Channel: User band 2 (1420)
Connected: Yes
Connected to: Tuner A (one with wire attached)
DiSEqC mode: None
Force legacy signal stats: No

Tuner CConfiguration mode: Advanced
Satellite: 28.2E
LNB: LNB 1
Priority: Auto
Type of LNB/Device: SCR(Unicable/Jess)
Manufacturer: Inverto
Model: IDLU-32UL42-UNB00-0PP
Position: 1
Channel: User band 3 (1680)
Connected: Yes
Connected to: Tuner A (one with wire attached)
DiSEqC mode: None
Force legacy signal stats: No

Tuner DConfiguration mode: Advanced
Satellite: 28.2E
LNB: LNB 1
Priority: Auto
Type of LNB/Device: SCR(Unicable/Jess)
Manufacturer: Inverto
Model: IDLU-32UL42-UNB00-0PP
Position: 1
Channel: User band 4 (2040)
Connected: Yes
Connected to: Tuner A (one with wire attached)
DiSEqC mode: None
Force legacy signal stats: No

Tuner EConfiguration mode: Advanced
Satellite: 28.2E
LNB: LNB 1
Priority: Auto
Type of LNB/Device: SCR(Unicable/Jess)
Manufacturer: Inverto
Model: IDLU-32UL42-UNB00-0PP
Position: 1
Channel: User band 5(984)
Connected: Yes
Connected to: Tuner A (one with wire attached)
DiSEqC mode: None
Force legacy signal stats: No

Tuner FConfiguration mode: Advanced
Satellite: 28.2E
LNB: LNB 1
Priority: Auto
Type of LNB/Device: SCR(Unicable/Jess)
Manufacturer: Inverto
Model: IDLU-32UL42-UNB00-0PP
Position: 1
Channel: User band 6(1020)
Connected: Yes
Connected to: Tuner A (one with wire attached)
DiSEqC mode: None
Force legacy signal stats: No

Tuner GConfiguration mode: Advanced
Satellite: 28.2E
LNB: LNB 1
Priority: Auto
Type of LNB/Device: SCR(Unicable/Jess)
Manufacturer: Inverto
Model: IDLU-32UL42-UNB00-0PP
Position: 1
Channel: User band 7(1056)
Connected: Yes
Connected to: Tuner A (one with wire attached)
DiSEqC mode: None
Force legacy signal stats: No

Tuner HConfiguration mode: Advanced
Satellite: 28.2E
LNB: LNB 1
Priority: Auto
Type of LNB/Device: SCR(Unicable/Jess)
Manufacturer: Inverto
Model: IDLU-32UL42-UNB00-0PP
Position: 1
Channel: User band 8 (1092)
Connected: Yes
Connected to: Tuner A (one with wire attached)
DiSEqC mode: None
Force legacy signal stats: No

DVB C/T tuners are set up separately as you would with any Terrestrial tuners.

Note that depending on the order the tuner cards were installed , DVB tuners may be A and B or I and J , regardless , follow the general idea above. Each tuner must have a different user band , and each " connected too " the one with the actual cable attached.

Also , you can split unicable , splitters are available for peanuts off amazon , however you cannot have two different boxes using the same user bands. So for example , in my case , I have multiple boxes working off the single cable coming from the LNB , and have crossed off the User bands in use on each box. 1 to 8 on the first VU box , 9 to 18 on the second VU box , 19 on the Zgemma single tuner H82h box , 20 on the single tuner octagon box , and so on ……. still have 12 user bands free …… The user bands are usually either listed on the box or in a downloadable PDF , Im attaching the pdf for unicable II LNB I linked too …… note the list of user bands , very important !!!

5679 SP-IDLU-32UL42-UNBOO-OPP (English V161218).pdf

ArrBee

@andy1249 That all makes sense. Thank you.
I was wondering about coax because of the difference between 50Ohm and 75Ohm but its good to know that it wont be an issue.

WRT the terrestrial tunner that goes into the VU+…
Does it allow both frequencies at the same time? (proper twin tuner, I guess) so could you record both RTE1 and RTE2 at the same time? (you seem to be saying that you can above but wanted to make sure)

As an asside…
With the number of Sat tuners you have in the VU+ box, was using the other boxes as clients instead of splitting the feed from the LNB an option?
I'm guessing that a client box only uses ethernet which will be easier to run for me…
Any operational pros and cons to consider there?

andy1249

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122242261#Comment_122242261

The Terrestrials are separate , no issues recording any Saorview channels at the same time.

You can use the other boxes as clients no problem , but each one takes up a tuner from the main box when in use.

Any client , regardless of how its connected , must have a tuner , and it will always take the next free one on connection , which gets highlighted yellow in openvix when its in use.

So say for example , Im watching something , someone else logs in on the ipad and watches something whilst someone else on one of the other boxes decides to record something and watch something , then thats 4 tuners in use on the main box.

With 10 tuners in all on 1 VU + box , there should be plenty of clients for most , but I can envisage it not being enough , especially this weekend , when the BBC will be showing Glastonbury across all 4 HD channels , I dont want other users taking tuners and leaving me with less than 4 …….

Also , as said , Im enjoying playing with these boxes at the moment , just to see what can or cant be done with some of them.

The single tuner boxes are cheap , Im just toying with them , so far the VU+ boxes are the workhorses , the rest are for tinkering , the octagon S8008 is being used to try other images and see what they can do , so far , nothing beats openvix for me.

The Zgemma H82h was only 50 quid , and it wasnt worth it , its really slow , and high bitrate channels freeze on it , the epg comes up as soon as you press the button , but is blank for a couple of seconds while it loads it , and the same again every time you go to a new page….. I wouldnt recommend it.

To replicate Sky Q with slave boxes , I'd go VU + and Octagons , or Firesticks etc.

ArrBee

Yeah I get that a tuner somewhere will be used for every channel that is being viewed or recorded. I guess I was thinking that with 2 sat feeds in, there would be a possibility of 16 different channels simultaneously? accross recordings and clients, that seems like a lot - unless you have access to more channels than me ;) or your house are heavy users. (I'm basing that on you having one feed and 8 tuners)

And if I have it correct on the terrestrial… There are only 2 frequencies (with all channels split accross both) so a twin tunner can receive both frequencies simultaneously allowing an infinite number of clients to view any terrestrial channel. In theory.

I flashed mine to the latest (last) 6.5 image last night and was able to group the recorded programs finally! Thats a big plus.
But I still can't see anywhere to limit the timeshift…

I might look into 6.6. Or is the 1st release usually a bit flakey?

Are there any additional programs that you run on the Vu+ that make it a better choice than the Zgemma? I'm thinking like Kodi for example, (I heard that the H7s is can run it but isn't really powerful enough?) or maybe stremio.

Schorpio

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122242958#Comment_122242958

I've toyed with going the Unicable route a few times over the years, but with 4 legacy tuners available, I've never really been able to justify needing more.

I'm curious about one thing though. Mu understanding is that a single cable (connected to one FBC tuner) will give you access to all channels from 8 different frequencies at the same time. However, the frequencies have to be on the same polarization and band (horizontal/vertical polarization, high/low band)? So you don't get the full range of channels across the entire spectrum available when one service is tuned? Or am I wrong in that?

Can't say I agree with your experience of Zgemmas though. I've had a H7S in service continuously for over 4 years (probably nearly 5). Serves content to other devices, never an issue. I have 2 single tuner Zgemmas configured as client, no issues any of them. I have no hesitation recommending them based on my own experience.

Leonita

How do you configure a H8 as a client to the H7S please? I have both boxes

Schorpio

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122245323#Comment_122245323

Easiest way is to use OpenVix and select client mode under the tuner setup screen. Overview here.

You can set everything up manually, but that's the easiest method. Ideally both boxes should be on a wired network for best reliability. The 'server' box should also have a static IP address assigned (so that the client box always knows where to look for it on the network). It's been years since I set mine up, so I can't remember if Client mode also sets up access to recordings on the server (I think not), but this can also be set up.

Leonita

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122245490#Comment_122245490

Thank you so much! Will have a go at it when I have time at the weekend :-)

greasepalm

Dont use Kodi on e2 boxes as better off using an android box instead.

ArrBee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122247513#Comment_122247513

Yeah, I'd heard that regarding the H7s, but wasnt sure if some boxes were able