Tiviar Alpha Plus Combo STB

peking97 · 22-03-2019 02:21AM

robbKer wrote: »

Try this:
On the main kodi menu page: Go to System>>>Addons........

Sorry, should have been clearer. I meant I don't get the option of installing Kodi.
When I look at the list of downloadable plugins, Kodi is not in the list?

The high horse brigade · 22-03-2019 08:54AM

basemann wrote: »

Hi HHB, Thanks for the response! I have openvix and the autobouquetmaker is there. I've tried that already and it comes up 'Failed to tune Saoirview (or NL) Terrestial on Tuner C' Please check the following. The tuner is correctly configured. You can receive the specified frequency I have to tune the terrestial manually to get the Irish channels in and it has to be tuned on two different channels (22 and 24). RTE 2 does appear in the 'all channels' bouquet but not RTE 1. The channels seem to be split into two sections. Any thoughts with that extra info?

Saorview channels are split between 2 different frequencies. If you manually tuned them when set to the frequency you would need to scan twice making sure clear before scan wasn't enabled. Check the Saorview coverage checker page for the frequency's or transmitter channels of your nearest transmitter. If you can't manually scan Saorview ABM will never work. Those may not be the frequencies you should be using, on auto scan the box may just go with the first signal it receives while scanning

Did you set your Saorview region in ABM? Are you running the latest version of ABM?

Johnboy1951 · 24-03-2019 03:13PM

http://telesputnik.lv/pic/prodpdf_2724_3.pdf

The user manual for the box which I think was never posted in this thread.

Better later than never? Dated: June 2014

It has interesting features mentioned like this

The remote control can expand its capabilities, allowing users to control a TV
connected to the receiver.
A user can transform the remote control into a universal remote control by entering a 4-digit code for the TV.

The high horse brigade · 24-03-2019 03:14PM

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

http://telesputnik.lv/pic/prodpdf_2724_3.pdf

The user manual for the box which I think was never posted in this thread.

Better later than never? Dated 2014

Interesting, I've never seen the default OS

spooner_j · 24-03-2019 09:33PM

MileHighGuy wrote: »

Just thought I'd write a quick report of my attempts to stream the TA+ situated at the rear of the house, into other rooms around the house.
I had originally thought I would be buying two of the TA+ eventually, once I got the initial one configured, but it's so versatile, I don't think I'll need a second box after all.

The TA+ is wired to the main router via an access point, which is connected to another access point in my main sitting room. Various other PCs scattered around the house will be connected via wifi.

clients I have have tried:
open webif via browser - great tool, and will do in a bind, but not a great user experience. It certainly feels like you are watching TV on a computer. An absolute cinch to set up though, and very fast and responsive. Edit bouquets, set timers, lot's of configuration options. Live pause/timeshifting was spotty to the extent that it was not usable. EPG is utilitarian, but as it matches the TA+ backend, all channels populated the guide.

Nvidia Shield: Dream Player. Fast, easy set up (this will be a pattern!) I wasn't mad about the homescreen with bouquet lists running down the LHS and the ability to go to a quite a nice implementation of an EPG. Capable of setting recordings and auto timers. No pause/Timeshift, although you could record the current program being watched, and access it from recordings folder to as a workaround. This was a clubhouse favourite for a week or so.

NVidia Shield: Live Channels, Android TV native Live TV hub. Ability to set up multiple sources, blazing fast response, a great implementation of an EPG, again, no timeshift and recordings frequently failed, due to a weak signal issue, which did not make sense as the entire thing is ethernet connected. A dealbreaker there then.

Nvidia Shield Plex. I had heard so much about Plex, but had never really dipped my toes in the water, so decided to give it a crack. Absolutely stunning front end, very impressive for this that have a good media collection. By installing the HDHR Plugin on TA+, Plex was able to see it as a supported tuner to add Live TV. You need to pay a premium (PlexPass - maybe try out their month option to see how you like it)to unlock the ability to timeshift and record. Plex has a funny way to create the EPG, it uses a selection of providers and you marry up the channels it receives from the tuner to this preselected list. The result is no one single providers list will contain all of the free channels the TA+ outputs. Not to mention the process is tiresome. As the Plex also seems to fetch channels through their own proprietry connection, the zapping time between channels is 5/6 seconds. Which feels like an eternity. The upside, is again, the way the content is served through their frontend, there is the option of a traditional EPG, but it curates, movies, sports and shows, into what's upcoming, just started etc, and fetched accompanying artwork for the show too. This is by far the best looking of the lot, but the poor response time zapping and the decision you need to make about losing channels made it unsatisfying in the end. Good for show, but would get frustrating in day to day usage. Timeshifting and recording were good, and used a local drive attached to the Shield rather than the TA+ box which confuses things a bit.

Lastly, I fired up old reliable Kodi to see what it could do. I installed the Enigma2 PVR add on, configuration is simple, input the open webif ip address. Kodi has it's own PVR settings which allow independent editing of the TA+ backend bouquets which are imported into Kodi. This allows me to set up bespoke versions depending on who will be watching the TV - handy for kids rooms. The EPG looks great, imports all of the channels with ease, a proper "watching TV" experience on a PC or Shield. Zapping is instantaneous, recordings are made on the backend box, and organised and accessible via kodi. Timeshifting is included for no extra cost, so you can pause rewind etc (this can also be disabled of course) This solution ticked all of the boxes for me, simple to set up, fast, full EPG, recording and timeshifting have been flawless, to the extent that I doubt I will require a second TA+ for the main sitting room. I have implemented this on two WIFI only PC's and it works just as well. I'll see if I can add a few screenshots tomorrow to illustrate some of the points made above.

Once again, this box is insanely versatile, give it two more tuners and it would be perfect I think.

Tried to set this up with Kodi today but it wouldnt work. What did you put into the settings in the Enigma Kodi plugin? What's the web server and stream port for the Tiviar?

MileHighGuy · 25-03-2019 12:16PM

I'm using the enigma2 pvr client in kodi. To configure the add on through my add ons (kodi has a seperate setup within system for pvr). For host name in the connection page just enter the IP address you gave the box. I have a static ip setup, so this never changes. For web interface port try 80. Streaming port is 8001, but i don't think I entered that. That should be it.

A couple of additional settings on other pages , but not necessary... Fetch picons from web interface.... I request it to only fetch a single bouquet.... if you have iptv it can really slow down the epg load, so i don't use kodi for iptv..... For genre mappings I find the sky UK. Xml the most consistent, but not perfect. This is handy if you setup a search for programs between 90-210 minutes and select movies as a genre over the next 3 days, it will return a nice list of movies to browse. Pity you can't save the search, but as the add on is well maintained I might put a request on his forum for this and see how i get on. On the recordings page I have selected to use the DVB current recording path to keep everything in one place. I've enabled time shift on playback only.

Lastly, for channel groupings/management etc, this is done through the aforementioned pvr setup in system.

lots more info here:
https://github.com/kodi-pvr/pvr.vuplus

Sconsey · 27-03-2019 04:38PM

Has anyine else noticed the box making a low frequency sort of buzzing noise?

I have my box about two months now, never put a disk in so that is not the source of the noise. I noticed in the last week or so that i can hear what is (I think) the power supply part of the devices kind of making a humming/buzzing noise. It is fairly low volume, I only notice it when the volume on the telly goes down. The sound is only present when the device is running, it goes away in standby mode. I don't remember seeing a fan when I opend up for a look.

Anyone experienced this? any ideas how to resolve?

thanks

basemann · 28-03-2019 11:37PM

The high horse brigade wrote: »

Saorview channels are split between 2 different frequencies. If you manually tuned them when set to the frequency you would need to scan twice making sure clear before scan wasn't enabled. Check the Saorview coverage checker page for the frequency's or transmitter channels of your nearest transmitter. If you can't manually scan Saorview ABM will never work.

Hi HHB. That worked thanks! Much appreciated. Next question if you don't mind. I have downloaded a skin and put it on a USB. When I plugged it into the box it was recognised and asked to install which it seemed to do successfully. However when I look in the VIX menu under skins it is not there as an option. Where the F is it gone? (I can't do a filezilla FTP by the way) . Thanks.

greasepalm · 28-03-2019 11:44PM

I would assume its not a vix skin as in not in your list but could it be a default skin?,check menu-information and see it it lists a skin.

The high horse brigade · 28-03-2019 11:54PM

basemann wrote: »

Hi HHB. That worked thanks! Much appreciated. Next question if you don't mind. I have downloaded a skin and put it on a USB. When I plugged it into the box it was recognised and asked to install which it seemed to do successfully. However when I look in the VIX menu under skins it is not there as an option. Where the F is it gone? (I can't do a filezilla FTP by the way) . Thanks.

You are better to stick to skins that are officially supported and in the repo available to download in plugins

spooner_j · 29-03-2019 11:13PM

MileHighGuy wrote: »

I'm using the enigma2 pvr client in kodi. To configure the add on through my add ons (kodi has a seperate setup within system for pvr). For host name in the connection page just enter the IP address you gave the box. I have a static ip setup, so this never changes. For web interface port try 80. Streaming port is 8001, but i don't think I entered that. That should be it.

A couple of additional settings on other pages , but not necessary... Fetch picons from web interface.... I request it to only fetch a single bouquet.... if you have iptv it can really slow down the epg load, so i don't use kodi for iptv..... For genre mappings I find the sky UK. Xml the most consistent, but not perfect. This is handy if you setup a search for programs between 90-210 minutes and select movies as a genre over the next 3 days, it will return a nice list of movies to browse. Pity you can't save the search, but as the add on is well maintained I might put a request on his forum for this and see how i get on. On the recordings page I have selected to use the DVB current recording path to keep everything in one place. I've enabled time shift on playback only.

Lastly, for channel groupings/management etc, this is done through the aforementioned pvr setup in system.

lots more info here:
https://github.com/kodi-pvr/pvr.vuplus

Finally got this working. For those using a Raspberry Pi with Kodi like myself you need to install the PVR software from the terminal. Do not search in the Add Ons and install the Enigma add on that pops up. Instead run the following:
sudo apt-get install kodi-pvr-vuplus

Then restart Kodi and go into the PVR settings and add in the server details. Restart again and it worked for me. Runs very well on the Raspberry Pi too, perfect way to extend the TV to another room easily.

vimes · 31-03-2019 07:57PM

Hey up,

Happy user of HHB's thingy.

Unfortunately, today I turned on the box to be greeted with a honking great error message. "Autobouquet reader not present"

Any ideas how I might go about resolving this? I haven't done, well, anything to the box, apart from change the icons from the MK set to much simpler ones.

datcat · 31-03-2019 08:50PM

I have an Amiko Alien2 which reboots itself randomly, so I am thinking of getting a Tiviar. The AA2 is recording to a network drive (A USB drive plugged into my router). Can the Tiviar do this too?

Thanks

greasepalm · 31-03-2019 09:03PM

Usb or hdd are better attached to box for recording and needed for saving epg.

uck51js9zml2yt · 31-03-2019 09:49PM

If buying from WOS, which firmware version do I get? Open Vix or Open ATV? Thanks

greasepalm · 31-03-2019 09:59PM

I just stick with open vix on all my boxes but it can be changed to any supported image if needed.

NewClareman · 31-03-2019 11:28PM

datcat wrote: »

I have an Amiko Alien2 which reboots itself randomly, so I am thinking of getting a Tiviar. The AA2 is recording to a network drive (A USB drive plugged into my router). Can the Tiviar do this too?

Thanks

Yes it can, and many on this forum do exactly that. In my view having network attached storage, ideally with redundancy such as RAID, is the way to go. It is on my to do list, when I get a chance to breathe.

uck51js9zml2yt · 01-04-2019 03:42PM

Wos looks to be out of stock. Where else are people buying from?

greasepalm · 01-04-2019 07:18PM

Box is getting old and maybe no longer coming back into stock and is replaced with this.

Zgemma H7S 4K UHD H.265 HEVC Triple Tuner Combo 2x DVB-S2X + 1x DVB-C/T2 Linux Enigma2 Multi-stream Digital Receiver

i never was fond of the older clone box but the newer ones are sold and supported on wos.

Satworld have a tiviar but its 160 euro.

Zardoz · 02-04-2019 03:18PM

greasepalm wrote: »

Box is getting old and maybe no longer coming back into stock and is replaced with this.

Zgemma H7S 4K UHD H.265 HEVC Triple Tuner Combo 2x DVB-S2X + 1x DVB-C/T2 Linux Enigma2 Multi-stream Digital Receiver

i never was fond of the older clone box but the newer ones are sold and supported on wos.

Satworld have a tiviar but its 160 euro.

The H7s looks like a clone of the Mutant Hd51 but has a third tuner for terrestrial/saorview.
Looks great value ,I'm probably going to get one for my den.

datcat · 02-04-2019 06:35PM

Lads,

Sorry for such a long post, but I have tried everything |I can think of.

I am trying to flash THHB's image onto my brand new Tiviar but I must be doing something wrong somewhere.

What I do is format the thumbdrive as FAT32, copy the tiviaraplus folder to it, plug it into the box and powered it on using the switch at the back.
But for each one it displays "L1.16" then "START1" and then continues to boot the Tiviar firmware.
If I press the front power button while "L1.16" is displayed it just powers off.

The steps in "How to flash a Tiviar Alpha+.pdf" are:
.
.
4) Power the receiver on.
5) When the receiver powers up you will prompted on the receiver’s front display.
6) As soon as you see this press the power button on the front of the receiver to start the flashing process.
7) If successful the receiver will reboot it self after the flashing process has completed.
.
.
When those instructions say "you will prompted on the receiver’s front display" does it mean it prompts "L1.16", or should it display something else?

Here are some other details in case they make a difference:

- There is no hard disk in the Tiviar.
- The Tiviar firmware runs OK.
- The Tiviar interface can see the USB thumbdrive as a FAT32 drive and does a speed test on it OK.

Here are some other things I tried:

Formatting the thumbdrive on the Tiviar as FAT32, then copying the tiviaraplus folder to it on a PC.
I also tried copying the contents of the tiviaraplus to the root of the thumbdrive, but I think this would not work anyway.

Hopefully I am just doing something simple wrong!

The high horse brigade · 02-04-2019 06:41PM

datcat wrote: »

Lads,

Sorry for such a long post, but I have tried everything |I can think of.

I am trying to flash THHB's image onto my brand new Tiviar but I must be doing something wrong somewhere.

What I do is format the thumbdrive as FAT32, copy the tiviaraplus folder to it, plug it into the box and powered it on using the switch at the back.
But for each one it displays "L1.16" then "START1" and then continues to boot the Tiviar firmware.
If I press the front power button while "L1.16" is displayed it just powers off.

The steps in "How to flash a Tiviar Alpha+.pdf" are:
.
.
4) Power the receiver on.
5) When the receiver powers up you will prompted on the receiver’s front display.
6) As soon as you see this press the power button on the front of the receiver to start the flashing process.
7) If successful the receiver will reboot it self after the flashing process has completed.
.
.
When those instructions say "you will prompted on the receiver’s front display" does it mean it prompts "L1.16", or should it display something else?

Here are some other details in case they make a difference:

- There is no hard disk in the Tiviar.
- The Tiviar firmware runs OK.
- The Tiviar interface can see the USB thumbdrive as a FAT32 drive and does a speed test on it OK.

Here are some other things I tried:

Formatting the thumbdrive on the Tiviar as FAT32, then copying the tiviaraplus folder to it on a PC.
I also tried copying the contents of the tiviaraplus to the root of the thumbdrive, but I think this would not work anyway.

Hopefully I am just doing something simple wrong!

Are you sure you're pressing the power button, it's one of the illuminated lights

robbKer · 02-04-2019 06:59PM

The high horse brigade wrote: »

Are you sure you're pressing the power button, it's one of the illuminated lights

Also, not certain on this but isn't the thumb drive to be placed on the front USB socket and not one of the rear sockets?

uponthegad · 02-04-2019 07:32PM

datcat wrote: »

Lads,

Sorry for such a long post, but I have tried everything |I can think of.

I am trying to flash THHB's image onto my brand new Tiviar but I must be doing something wrong somewhere.

What I do is format the thumbdrive as FAT32, copy the tiviaraplus folder to it, plug it into the box and powered it on using the switch at the back.
But for each one it displays "L1.16" then "START1" and then continues to boot the Tiviar firmware.
If I press the front power button while "L1.16" is displayed it just powers off.

The steps in "How to flash a Tiviar Alpha+.pdf" are:
.
.
4) Power the receiver on.
5) When the receiver powers up you will prompted on the receiver’s front display.
6) As soon as you see this press the power button on the front of the receiver to start the flashing process.
7) If successful the receiver will reboot it self after the flashing process has completed.
.
.
When those instructions say "you will prompted on the receiver’s front display" does it mean it prompts "L1.16", or should it display something else?

Here are some other details in case they make a difference:

- There is no hard disk in the Tiviar.
- The Tiviar firmware runs OK.
- The Tiviar interface can see the USB thumbdrive as a FAT32 drive and does a speed test on it OK.

Here are some other things I tried:

Formatting the thumbdrive on the Tiviar as FAT32, then copying the tiviaraplus folder to it on a PC.
I also tried copying the contents of the tiviaraplus to the root of the thumbdrive, but I think this would not work anyway.

Hopefully I am just doing something simple wrong!

I think you are on the original Fortis OS

Have a look at this page and is the first image what you see when you boot up?
https://www.opena.tv/tiviar-alpha-plus/37192-tiviar-alpha-plus-switch-fortis-os-enigma2.html?langid=1

If you are on the Fortis OS you will need to flash a version of OpenATV first before you can follow the instructions on this thread.

basemann · 02-04-2019 08:25PM

The high horse brigade wrote: »

You are better to stick to skins that are officially supported and in the repo available to download in plugins

I got the skin to work. I had to plug in the usb during live TV and it went through the steps. It did cause my epg to keep crashing and had to install a patch to fix it!

basemann · 02-04-2019 08:38PM

MileHighGuy wrote: »

I'm using the enigma2 pvr client in kodi. To configure the add on through my add ons (kodi has a seperate setup within system for pvr). For host name in the connection page just enter the IP address you gave the box. I have a static ip setup, so this never changes. For web interface port try 80. Streaming port is 8001, but i don't think I entered that. That should be it.

Lastly, for channel groupings/management etc, this is done through the aforementioned pvr setup in system.

lots more info here:
https://github.com/kodi-pvr/pvr.vuplus

Hi, I have a Kodi plugin installed on openvix but I get the 'No PVR add on enabled' error but there are PVR options available in 'Add ons' at all which is on all the setup videos I watched so I'm dead in the water. I presume the above fixes the issue by adding the PVR option in the menu? What you wrote is way over my head and when I look at the link it looks like they expect that you understand linux pretty well which I don't at all. Would you mind explaining the Kodi PVR setup in idiot proof steps if you dont mind? I have been searching for a solution for this for days with no proper result so you might have the solution so I hope you can help!

GSRNBP · 05-04-2019 10:35AM

How do I get the Saorview radio channels to be included in the EPG?

MileHighGuy · 05-04-2019 11:29PM

basemann wrote:

Hi, I have a Kodi plugin installed on openvix but I get the 'No PVR add on enabled' error but there are PVR options available in 'Add ons' at all which is on all the setup videos I watched so I'm dead in the water. I presume the above fixes the issue by adding the PVR option in the menu? What you wrote is way over my head and when I look at the link it looks like they expect that you understand linux pretty well which I don't at all. Would you mind explaining the Kodi PVR setup in idiot proof steps if you dont mind? I have been searching for a solution for this for days with no proper result so you might have the solution so I hope you can help!

I think i see the issue you are having. When I'm referring to kodi, I have installed it onto a seperate Nvidia shield in a different room. From your post I think you are installing kodi or xbmc on the openvix/enigma2 box itself?

If that is the case I can't speak to that solution other then to say I couldn't get and kodi or kodi clone to run well on the tiviar myself.. Try installing kodi on a seperate pc or laptop and add the enigma add on (through my add ons)

FastFullBack · 06-04-2019 05:58PM

Basic question about copying files off the box. I'm a networking novice but I'm trying to copy recordings from the box to my android phone over my wireless lan. Just using ES file explorer app.

The speed is brutal slow. Anything I can do to speed it up? I've just a basis home network based on Vodafone fttc broadband and using their standard modem.

The high horse brigade · 06-04-2019 06:23PM

FastFullBack wrote: »

Basic question about copying files off the box. I'm a networking novice but I'm trying to copy recordings from the box to my android phone over my wireless lan. Just using ES file explorer app.

The speed is brutal slow. Anything I can do to speed it up? I've just a basis home network based on Vodafone fttc broadband and using their standard modem.

File transfer when both are on the same wireless band will be very slow as it is all shared using the same medium. Removing one wireless link by plugging the Tiviar in on Ethernet will improve things.

Long answer: file transfer is two way traffic. Packets are sent in batches and must be acknowledged before more are sent. Your wireless router will only send OR receive to one device at a time so both your devices must take turns talking or listening to the router. This makes file transfer on wireless very slow.

Tiviar Alpha Plus Combo STB

Comments