Is the Sony D800 U still the best freeview box?
(it can be bought at a few places still)

I don`t need hard drives etc etc...just the best pic and sound quality

laurie

Seems to still be well respected on AVForum. Mine is substantially better than the unit it replaced. However it is not infallible. For some reason, motor scooters driven by the local hoodies seem to cause interference, albeit not as much as the previous cheapo Goodmans.

Ian

thanks for the reply

I have been using the Nokia for the last few years. At the time I bought it it was reviewed as being as good as the Sony, though the Nokia seems to have disappeared off the map, whilst the Sony is still "current"

Perhaps you could help me: The Nokia has stereo RCA (aka phono) sockets for audio out....I use these to feed my Naim system with sound. It is of tolerable quality

Overall I am happy with the sound and picture from my Nokia though it does seem rather prone to "locking up"


I note that the Sony uses a stereo 3.5 mm jackplug for audio out. Do you use this to feed an amp? and if so do you have any tips? (eg is cable quality important etc) I currently use Chord Cobra 2 with my Nokia freeview box and it did seem to benefit the sound somewhat. If necessary I can assemble a lead (3.5 mm plug to 5 pin DIN)using decent cable (eg Chord Cobra 2)

I just wonder what your experience has been

PS The Nokia seems to "freeze" and "lock" quite easiliy...sometimes requiring me to power the unit down and then powering up again to "unlock" it. most annoying especially if I am taping

Thanks again in advance for all your help

laurie

Laurie,

Since, I've had it, the box has not locked up once - something I can't say about its predecessor.

I don't use the 3.5 jack but have a rapidly ageing Panasonic CRT television and take my audio feed from its fixed level audio output phonos. That enables me to play everything (Video/DVD/terrestrial analogue)through the hifi, and not just the digital channels.

BTW there are noises that the Sony may soon be (or may actually already have been) discontinued, so I wouldn't pontificate too much further.

Ian

Procrastinate?

G

quote:

Originally posted by Laurie Saunders:
Is the Sony D800 U still the best freeview box?
(it can be bought at a few places still)

I don`t need hard drives etc etc...just the best pic and sound quality

laurie

i have had the sony /sagem and a few others .i now use the humax f2-fox t .it is the best one i have had .regards munch

quote:

Originally posted by graham55:
Procrastinate?

He'll decide later!

Think too deeply before deciding

If you don't require hard-drive recording, then the Netgem iPlayer is the other one to consider. It has a good quality component video output (as well as RGB) and an optical digital connection for the audio. The Netgem is the one I use.

Allan.

Laurie what model Nokia do you have?

Howard

Howard

quote:

Laurie what model Nokia do you have?

the 221T...the domed shaped one in grey

laurie

I have purchased the Sony and been using it now for about a week

My feelings so far are:

1. The picture quality is probably a tad better than the Nokia..but not by much

2. The sound quality is possibly inferior to the Nokia...this could be down to "burn in " of the Chord Cobra cable I assembled with a 3.5 mm stereo jack

3. It hasn`t "frozen" or pixelllated yet...I know my Nokia was doing it all the time

4. The menu system of the Nokia is better imo though that could be simple familairity

5. Of most importance to me is the ability to expand the picture to fill my 3x4 29 inch CRT Sony TV. I would much rather lose the edges in a widescren picture than have black bars top and bottom and waste about 1/4 of the available screen area of my TV..and subject my poor eyesight to a smaller magnification picture

It seems that the Nokia is much better in this respect and this feature alone is -for me- worth sacrificing a mite of pic and sound quality for. The deciding factor here for me is the immunity to locking of the sony


So really to summarise the differences in sound and picture qulity are not worth worrying about here- imo the sony has the edge in picture and the nokia in sound......the tradeoff is locking vs screen filling

laurie