Zindwell 620HD - really slow, crappy, locks up etc

Forums › Freeview (DVB-T/DVB-S) › Zindwell 620HD - really slow, crappy, locks up etc

greminn

170 posts

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Topic # 30906 25-Feb-2009 11:32

Hi There,

I have a Zindwell 620HD decoder, which was puchased shortly after HD was avaialble. The other day i went to friends house where they had another brand/type of decoder installed (cant remember the one)... but it just showed up how crappy mine is!

Mine stays on 24/7 as i cant be bothered waiting for the dam thing to start up... these are the issues im having, am i alone?

- Slow channel changes, and you have to have the remote at the right angle for it to work (unlike everything else i have)
- EPG sometimes does not work (have to restart the decoder)
- Sometimes channel 1 just does not work
- Sometimes you get a . (dot) in the channel info screen rather than the program

Is this becuase of the decoder or is mine stuffed?

Thanks

Simon

ZiglioNZ

194 posts

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Reply # 197964 25-Feb-2009 11:42

What brand was your friend's one? just curious

greminn

170 posts

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Reply # 197966 25-Feb-2009 11:45

ZiglioNZ: What brand was your friend's one? just curious

Sorry - can remember... was a freind of a freinds house and they had all the equiptment in a cabinet behind smoke glass

butlerboy

423 posts

Ultimate Geek
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Reply # 197981 25-Feb-2009 12:56

greminn: Hi There,

I have a Zindwell 620HD decoder, which was puchased shortly after HD was avaialble. The other day i went to friends house where they had another brand/type of decoder installed (cant remember the one)... but it just showed up how crappy mine is!

Mine stays on 24/7 as i cant be bothered waiting for the dam thing to start up... these are the issues im having, am i alone?

- Slow channel changes, and you have to have the remote at the right angle for it to work (unlike everything else i have)
- EPG sometimes does not work (have to restart the decoder)
- Sometimes channel 1 just does not work
- Sometimes you get a . (dot) in the channel info screen rather than the program

Is this becuase of the decoder or is mine stuffed?

Thanks

Simon

I have a Draco HDTV5500 and sometimes get a dot on the info screen, so it may be a freeview transmitting fault.
My channel changes take about 3 seconds if the tv is changing from 1080i to 720p or 576i. (Unlike the Zinwell the Draco can pass the native resolutions of each channel.) If changing from TV1 to TV2, which are both 720p it takes about 1-2 seconds. The ime it takes to change is more to do with the TV changing resolution in my case. The remote needs to be pointed in the general direction of the receiver, but not directly at it.
The Draco takes about 2 seconds to turn on from standby. How long does the Zinwell take?
TV1 not working sounds like a reception issue if all other channels are working. I'd maybe try re tuning the channels into your Zinwell.
Not sure about the EPG not working, I guess if you do have a reception problem it could be related to that.

greminn

170 posts

Master Geek
+1 received by user: 5

Reply # 197984 25-Feb-2009 13:04

butlerboy:
greminn: Hi There,

I have a Zindwell 620HD decoder, which was puchased shortly after HD was avaialble. The other day i went to friends house where they had another brand/type of decoder installed (cant remember the one)... but it just showed up how crappy mine is!

Mine stays on 24/7 as i cant be bothered waiting for the dam thing to start up... these are the issues im having, am i alone?

- Slow channel changes, and you have to have the remote at the right angle for it to work (unlike everything else i have)
- EPG sometimes does not work (have to restart the decoder)
- Sometimes channel 1 just does not work
- Sometimes you get a . (dot) in the channel info screen rather than the program

Is this becuase of the decoder or is mine stuffed?

Thanks

Simon

I have a Draco HDTV5500 and sometimes get a dot on the info screen, so it may be a freeview transmitting fault.
My channel changes take about 3 seconds if the tv is changing from 1080i to 720p or 576i. (Unlike the Zinwell the Draco can pass the native resolutions of each channel.) If changing from TV1 to TV2, which are both 720p it takes about 1-2 seconds. The ime it takes to change is more to do with the TV changing resolution in my case. The remote needs to be pointed in the general direction of the receiver, but not directly at it.
The Draco takes about 2 seconds to turn on from standby. How long does the Zinwell take?
TV1 not working sounds like a reception issue if all other channels are working. I'd maybe try re tuning the channels into your Zinwell.
Not sure about the EPG not working, I guess if you do have a reception problem it could be related to that.

Mine stays in 1080i all the time.. Channel changing is about the same as yours i suppose... i think its more the fact that you have to get the remote just right to make it work (hold off to the right or the left of the couch and it doesnt work) and the fact that it takes a small sec to respond to the remote that is more the pain in the arse.

It takes approx 15 seconds to turn on.. I notice the TV switching from 475p (or something) to 1080i during the process.

Role on PlayTV!

Athlonite

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Reply # 198880 3-Mar-2009 05:06

sounds about the same as my hills hv075 the damn thing locks up all the time when switching between channels taking anywhere from 10 to 30 seconds to come back online itself sometimes it locks up so hard that the only recourse is to unplug the power lead and plug it back in so we took it back and what do know the new one does the same damn thing

greminn

170 posts

Master Geek
+1 received by user: 5

Reply # 198887 3-Mar-2009 08:31

Athlonite: sounds about the same as my hills hv075 the damn thing locks up all the time when switching between channels taking anywhere from 10 to 30 seconds to come back online itself sometimes it locks up so hard that the only recourse is to unplug the power lead and plug it back in so we took it back and what do know the new one does the same damn thing

Yes - mine is pissing the b-jesus out of me. Can anyone confirm that other models dont do this?

butlerboy

423 posts

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Reply # 198891 3-Mar-2009 08:51

greminn:
Athlonite: sounds about the same as my hills hv075 the damn thing locks up all the time when switching between channels taking anywhere from 10 to 30 seconds to come back online itself sometimes it locks up so hard that the only recourse is to unplug the power lead and plug it back in so we took it back and what do know the new one does the same damn thing

Yes - mine is pissing the b-jesus out of me. Can anyone confirm that other models dont do this?

My Draco has only locked up on me once in 4 months requiring me to unplug it. So I'm pretty happy with it considering the problems most the other stb's seem to be having.

Deev8

481 posts

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Reply # 198927 3-Mar-2009 11:25

greminn:
Athlonite: sounds about the same as my hills hv075 the damn thing locks up all the time when switching between channels taking anywhere from 10 to 30 seconds to come back online itself sometimes it locks up so hard that the only recourse is to unplug the power lead and plug it back in so we took it back and what do know the new one does the same damn thing

Yes - mine is pissing the b-jesus out of me. Can anyone confirm that other models dont do this?

I've not seen that behaviour with an eXtra Terrestrial HD box, although others have reported plenty of different issues with that particular receiver.

tonyhughes

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Reply # 198935 3-Mar-2009 11:47

My Zinwell 620 is awful when it comes to the remote (needs to be aimed very well, and buttons often seem unresponsive).

However, using my Logitech Harmony 525, everything is perfect.

Other than that, no issues, no dots, and box, epg etc all perform well, with no hiccups.

Kiwi Pete

48 posts

Geek

Reply # 198951 3-Mar-2009 13:05

My Zinwell 620 performs ok. Remote was a pain but now using a Harmony 785 with no problems. Neighbour was having problems with his Zinwell 620 freezing. On checking his system out discovered that he had a loose connection at the UHF antenna. Re-terminated antenna plus wall outlet and now perfect pictures. Interesting that the faulty terminations did not noticebly affect my neighbour's analogue UHF reception but had a dramatic impact on HD-T reception. Anyway all fixed now and he's very happy with his Zinwell 620. As am I

Kiwi Pete

Green

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Reply # 199521 5-Mar-2009 22:10

I opened up my Zinwell pretty early on and discovered that the IR receiver 'leans' away from the opening in the front. (From memory, the component needed a right angle bend in its legs to work correctly, but they were bent too far, to an acute angle)
It didn't take too much to bend it back a bit, get a better alignment and improve remote responsiveness. Even so, the receiver is still slightly recessed from the hole in the face, so sensitivity from angles will never be the best.

mikerussellnz

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Reply # 199526 5-Mar-2009 22:29

Yes did that on mine when I got it, but instead used a wooden skewer to push the sensor without opening the box up. Improved the remote resposiveness. I think part of the issue is the clear window in the front is frosted with that grain. I think that is reduced the IR light getting through.

Green: I opened up my Zinwell pretty early on and discovered that the IR receiver 'leans' away from the opening in the front. (From memory, the component needed a right angle bend in its legs to work correctly, but they were bent too far, to an acute angle)
It didn't take too much to bend it back a bit, get a better alignment and improve remote responsiveness. Even so, the receiver is still slightly recessed from the hole in the face, so sensitivity from angles will never be the best.