How long will we be able to buy ATSC-NTSC converter boxes?

[jr_tech]

"I'm glad your Insignia ATSC OTA converter box works well for you, as many people have had real problems with these and other off-brand converters"

I have a Zenith DTT901 converter box and it works fine. The Insignia (Best Buy house brand) and Zenith boxes are both made by LG in China and appear identical except for logo. I suspect that there is little difference between the two units. My Channel Master CM-7000, however is made in Bulgaria !

jr

[Ed in Tx]

Originally Posted by jr_tech

"I'm glad your Insignia ATSC OTA converter box works well for you, as many people have had real problems with these and other off-brand converters"

I have a Zenith DTT901 converter box and it works fine. The Insignia (Best Buy house brand) and Zenith boxes are both made by LG in China and appear identical except for logo. I suspect that there is little difference between the two units. My Channel Master CM-7000, however is made in Bulgaria !

jr

I have one of each, Zenith and Insignia, and they are identical, no "off brand" converter box. Only issue I've had is with the cheap-assed remotes. One gets a lot more use than the other and the keys got intermittent less than a year in service. A typical tell-tale sign the remote's key pads and PC board needing to be cleaned. Only problem is, the shell housing of the remote is glued together, no clips or screws! So I had to bust the seams to get it open, and taped the damned thing back together after cleaning, which did restore full key functions.

[Jeffhs]

Ordinarily, I'd suggest you replace that remote with a universal one (so that you could also have control of your TV and VCR or DVD as well as the converter box with a single remote), but I don't think there are many universals available (yet, anyway) that will operate ATSC->NTSC converters. I have an All for One universal remote that will operate a TV and either a DVD or VCR, but not both, and certainly not a converter box (these remotes were made well before the digital transition). The AUX button on this remote cannot be programmed to operate a converter box or DVD either. Perhaps the newer All for One remotes are being made with this capability, but if you have one of the earlier ones (like mine), you must program the DVD/VCR button for one or the other, as the instruction manuals for the older versions of this remote do not have control codes for anything that was made after roughly 1995 or so. The only universal remotes I can think of offhand that will operate today's TV and audio gear are Philips or Logitech Harmony learning remotes, and they are very expensive--$150 and up. I use a GE four-function universal I bought for $5 at Best Buy several years ago; suits my purposes (control of my TV, DVD, VCR) just fine. No problems with the buttons sticking, either. These remotes are made by Jasco Products, which may be an obscure brand but the remotes themselves work great. As I said, mine is several years old, and to date I've had no problems whatsoever with sticking or worn-out buttons.

[site123a]

The volume button on my remote is starting to becoming intermittent. Ed in Tx if you can suggest what not to do when taking the remote apart, that would be helpful...

[Ed in Tx]

Originally Posted by site123a

The volume button on my remote is starting to becoming intermittent. Ed in Tx if you can suggest what not to do when taking the remote apart, that would be helpful...

Don't use a hammer! I was able to get the sucker apart prying on it with a little screwdriver blade along the seam where the two halves of the shell are bonded together. Have patience and take care that you don't stab yourself in the hand with the screwdriver while prying on it. When I got one side broken loose, I was able to open the remote case enough by hinging it on the other side that I had not completely broken loose, and worked the board and keypad out to clean.

Mine had the typical glaze on the most used keys carbon pads, and some on the pc board. Alcohol, q-tips, and paper towels cleaned it up, functionally like new.

[site123a]

Originally Posted by Ed in Tx

Only problem is, the shell housing of the remote is glued together, no clips or screws! So I had to bust the seams to get it open, and taped the damned thing back together after cleaning, which did restore full key functions.

If it's not too much trouble, could you post some photos of the remote's inside casing? I would like to take apart the remote control for my Insignia converter box, but I want to get a good idea where to start prying it apart so I can cause as little damage as possible... Thanks

[Ed in Tx]

Originally Posted by site123a

If it's not too much trouble, could you post some photos of the remote's inside casing? I would like to take apart the remote control for my Insignia converter box, but I want to get a good idea where to start prying it apart so I can cause as little damage as possible... Thanks

Start at the battery-end of the seam. On mine that area was not glued.

Here ya go with the picture ...

[Jeffhs]

I would suggest getting an All for One remote the next time you need to replace one, as I think the newer versions of these remotes have setup codes for ATSC->NTSC converter boxes. I have such a remote (an older one, pre-DTV) that uses one screw (inside the battery compartment) to hold it together; no glue anywhere--however, it will not operate both a VCR and a DVD player, so I haven't used it since getting my Memorex DVD over a year ago. By contrast, my GE universal that I use with my living-room video setup is glued together so well I'd be afraid to even try to pry it apart. Oh well. The thing only cost me $5 at Big Lots a couple years ago; at that price, it doesn't pay to mess with it when it goes bad or the buttons become intermittent.

[Zenith26kc20]

Now it's getting interesting to see how many "dead" OTA digital boxes are showing up. I just made two house calls for dead boxes. One was a Digital Stream and one was an Apex. I replaced them with Digital Stream boxes from "the shack". I took the Digital Stream apart and it is a ball grid array board so no chance of repairing it. Once these run out, ever wonder what next? I could use my 34 inch Sony to provide a signal to an RF modulator but it's OTA tuner is not as hot as most converter boxes.
From what I'm told, the boxes are not made anymore and when they are gone, they are gone. Any thoughts on this?

[Ed in Tx]

A quick search on ebay revealed over 160 DTV converters for sale. I have a couple new in the box. My two Zenith boxes have worked flawlessly so far. Probably a lot of people got one because of the coupon and never hooked it up, like the extra ones I have which were with coupons friends didn't use. After that, when all the remaining functional DTV boxes are selling as collector's items for many times their cost new (yeah right ) I reckon they expect most folks to have bought a TV with an ATSC tuner in it.