Thinking of buying an ET8500

[sundancer]

I have been thinking about replacing my old Venton Unibox as its getting on a bit now and is starting to play up.

I am looking for another receiver to suit my needs. It doesn't have to have all the whistles and bells and doesn't need to be the fastest thing on the market as i only watch TV on it, all the other whistle and bells aren't of any interest to me.

The only thing that concerns me are the battery powered security boards that i know Xtrend have used in the past. Battery failure killed my old 9200, and the grief i had getting the seller to have it repaired made me sell it as soon as i got it back. I vowed never to buy another Xtrend ever again, but i really like the ET8500.

I like the spec of the ET8500 as it ticks all the boxes as i can reconfigure the tuners as i please and i can easily swap the HDD out of my Venton into it. The only thing that puts me off is the possibility that it might have that stupid security board in it.

I intend to buy from one from World of Satellite if i can get confirmation that it doesn't have such a security board. Can anyone confirm if it does indeed have one or if it doesn't.

Thanks

[twol]

I have been thinking about replacing my old Venton Unibox as its getting on a bit now and is starting to play up.

I am looking for another receiver to suit my needs. It doesn't have to have all the whistles and bells and doesn't need to be the fastest thing on the market as i only watch TV on it, all the other whistle and bells aren't of any interest to me.

The only thing that concerns me are the battery powered security boards that i know Xtrend have used in the past. Battery failure killed my old 9200, and the grief i had getting the seller to have it repaired made me sell it as soon as i got it back. I vowed never to buy another Xtrend ever again, but i really like the ET8500.

I like the spec of the ET8500 as it ticks all the boxes as i can reconfigure the tuners as i please and i can easily swap the HDD out of my Venton into it. The only thing that puts me off is the possibility that it might have that stupid security board in it.

I intend to buy from one from World of Satellite if i can get confirmation that it doesn't have such a security board. Can anyone confirm if it does indeed have one or if it doesn't.

Thanks

No security board - and an excellent receiver.
Great colour LCD, really easy HDD install and removal (just attach to the caddy that pulls out of the side and push back in) and seconds to remove the knurled nuts to get inside the box.
Just wish some of the new boxes had some of these features.

[sundancer]

Thanks for the quick reply Twol. Dont suppose you know if its the same with the ET10000? I see there is a member selling one in the For Sale section, the white box looks quite smart.

[bluepassat]

i have the et8000 and the et8500 i prefer the et8500 for the looks and has great features especially the LCD screen

[sundancer]

Well i have to say your both right, Finally took the plunge and got an ET8500, and its a fantastic receiver. I only wish i would have had another DVB-S2 tuner fitted along with the 1x DVB-S2 & 1x DVB-C/T2 tuner combo i had purchased it with.

I also picked up an ET9500 and spare DVB-C Tuner for £40 to use in the bedroom. I will in time solder another battery holder into it so i can change the battery when it gets low without cutting the power to the security board. I did read somewhere that Xtrend could possibly eventually release a bootloader which circumnavigates the security board, although i'm not holding my breath on that one.

Fantastic service from WOS with next day delivery and packed with half hundred weight of bubble wrap around the box

[sundancer]

So impressed i managed to get hold of another ET8500, so i now have two of them

Fantastic receiver that i would recommend to anybody