Discussion of the Golden Media Spark TripleX

[el bandido]

If you have already purchased an Alien2 then you probably paid too much money for it because the Golden Media Spark TripleX is about the same as the Alien2.
Currently the GM TripleX is selling in the two hundred and thirty dollar range with shipping included.
The TripleX has the same firmware bugs as the Alien2 because both of these receivers run the same operating system called Spark.

Right now the Alien2 and GM TripleX receivers have a pretty lengthy bug list. This is to be expected when a receiver is first released. Look for things to stabilize in the next couple of months. These two receivers will probably never have the same level of tools, addons, and plugins that Optibox does, but the GM TripleX should end up being a good receiver for somebody that wants to upgrade on a limited budget.

Feel free to post questions or comments about the TripleX in this thread EB

[ViP3R]

Thanks EB.

First question for you since I don't have mine yet..and probably the first thing on members minds is....how fast is the Blind Scan?

[el bandido]

The blind scan is very fast. It will probably scan most of our satellites in three to five minutes. But the scan is buggy.
The TripleX blind scan misses some channels that the Raptor finds. I would expect the blind scan feature to be improved but we will have to wait and see.

[el bandido]

I have not had this TripleX receiver very long, but I will list a few bugs that I have found in Spark.

* The blind scan will create double or duplicate channels occasionally.

* Receiver sensitivity is very poor on some channels. This problem appears to be software related and not a hardware issue

* There is not an easy or good way to edit the satellite degrees or the sat file. This problem is being worked on.

* The receiver will display a signal for the lnb on both tuners when only tuner 1 is connected to a lnb.

Overall, the hardware seems to be OK. I think most of what I am seeing can be corrected with firmware updates. The question is how long will it take and what will they fix?
It is common to see a newly released receiver have problems such as these. Hopefully some of these issues will be corrected soon. EB

[el bandido]

I just timed a blind scan for 97 West ku. Listed below are the results.

Receiver = Golden Media TripleX

Firmware = 1.2.51

Dish = 4ft. 1.2 meter Geosat

Total Blind Scan Time = 1 minute 54 seconds

Total Transponders Found = 25

Total TV Found = 283

Total Radio Found = 150

Normally I do not time blind scan times because they are not real important to me. But I know that speed is important for a lot of people so I spent some extra time with a stopwatch to get this information.

I have been trying to get the processor speed of the TripleX from a reliable source. The processor speeds I have seen posted are faster than the Alien 2, but I do not know how reliable that information is.
Anyway, 1 minute and 54 seconds is the fastest blind scan time I have ever recorded. EB

[ViP3R]

No shit! lol...that is blazing fast...:buttrock:

[Jim S.]

Wow, that's definitely faster than an Alien2. Does it do the spectrum analyzer thing when it scans? I have a feeling that if that could be turned off, the A2 would be faster than it is. (Around 3 minutes on 97W Ku.)

Also, you mentioned duplicate channels. The A2 has been duplicating channels sometimes for me too. What it does is get the symbol rate wrong by 100-300 or so. Is that what the TripleX does?

[ViP3R]

Wow, that's definitely faster than an Alien2. Does it do the spectrum analyzer thing when it scans? I have a feeling that if that could be turned off, the A2 would be faster than it is. (Around 3 minutes on 97W Ku.)

Also, you mentioned duplicate channels. The A2 has been duplicating channels sometimes for me too. What it does is get the symbol rate wrong by 100-300 or so. Is that what the TripleX does?

Jim, I won't have mine till early next week, but speaking with EB I can say that it does do the spectrum analyze scan..

There is some conflicting reports that the Triplex may have a faster processor than the A2..I see 540mhz for the Triplex compared to 450mhz on the A2..
I am waiting on an email back to see just what the clock speed is.

EB can maybe answer your other questions.

[el bandido]

Wow, that's definitely faster than an Alien2. Does it do the spectrum analyzer thing when it scans? I have a feeling that if that could be turned off, the A2 would be faster than it is. (Around 3 minutes on 97W Ku.)

Also, you mentioned duplicate channels. The A2 has been duplicating channels sometimes for me too. What it does is get the symbol rate wrong by 100-300 or so. Is that what the TripleX does?

Congratulations on the A2!! I hope you have found a receiver that will fit your needs.

The TripleX has the same guide and menus as the A2. This means that it also has the same spectrum analyzer or whatever the thing is supposed to be. The TripleX gets updates on the Spark Portal just like the A1 and A2.
Personally, I would not mind if the screen went dark during a blind scan as long as I has some way to know if the receiver was hung up or had any other problems. People like eye candy and that is why they put the spectrum thing in there.

I have not looked at why the channels are being duplicated yet, I only noticed that some channels were being duplicated while other channels are not being scanned in.
The TripleX did an outstanding job on 97 West ku, but i cannot get it to find anything on a blind scan of 72 West
I have had this missing channel problem on some c band satellites too.

At first I thought maybe the tuners were bad or possibly some other hardware issue, but now I think it is all in the firmware. if the tuners were bad or there were other hardware issues, then I doubt that 97 West would scan like it did. EB

[Jim S.]

When I first got my A2, I had it sometimes flake out during scans and refuse to log any channels even though it was finding transponders just fine. After a few resets, it started behaving fine without any further tinkering. I have no idea what the problem might have been. If I had to take a wild guess, I'd say corruption in the satellite list. But I haven't seen anybody else report the problem.

The only real complaint I have with it is that the media player has choked on a few of my movie files. Hopefully this is something that will be worked out in further software updates. At least they issue software updates for Spark fairly often.

[rrob311]

How does this compare to the Raptor? What is it lacking? If I bought a new receiver it looks like it would be in between these two but I would have to save for awhile to get the Raptor.

[el bandido]

The TripleX is not in the same class as the Raptor. I have listed a few differences that I can quickly think of, but I am sure there are more.

The Raptor is made in Korea, so the hardware is better than the XXX
The Raptor supports Esata hard drives both internally and externally. The XXX does not support Esata, or any type of internal hard drive.
The Raptor has the ability to run other reseller firmware. The XXX does not have this capability.
The Raptor has a large variety of plugins that it can run. The XXX has only a few.
The Raptor has an excellent recording capability, including setting timers that overlap, providing they are legal, I.E. they are on the same transponder or on a different tuner.
The Raptor has a better Channel Manager, and more options for moving or deleting channels than the XXX
The Raptor has excellent external Channel Editor Programs. The XXX is difficult to edit and the external editors are poor in design
The Raptor can hold at least 160 satellites. The XXX can only hold 64.
The Raptor has an intelligent blind scan that does not change the name of channels after you have edited them. The XXX has a faster blind scan that misses transponders and channels that the Raptor finds.
The Raptor supports recovery through the RS232 port. The XXX currently has no recovery available through the RS2332 port.
The Raptor allows Channel PIDS to be entered in 2 different ways.


The TripleX is a faster machine than the Raptor. The manufacturer says the processor on the TripleX is running at 600 MHz, but most of the specs show it at 540. Regardless of what processor speed is posted, the TripleX is very fast when given a task such as scanning a transponder or scanning an entire satellite. I think it is the fastest fta receiver I have seen. The Raptor is not a slow machine, but it is not as fast as the TripleX. EB

[rrob311]

Cool so does the XXX do pretty much everything that the Alien 2 does?

[el bandido]

The TripleX runs the same Spark firmware as the Alien2, so it has the same bugs, features, and capabilities.
According to what has been posted, the Alien2 scans slower than the TripleX, and the Alien2 costs more than the TripleX. Processor speed for the Alien2 is listed at 450. Processor speed for the TripleX is listed at 540 MHz.

[rrob311]

Has anyone used the Wifi function on this? Would it allow you to stream channels online through the Wifi?

[rrob311]

Is there any kind of an update on some of the bugs for this? I am still in the market for a better receiver but would really like something that does streaming tv online.

[rrob311]

Any comments on the webtv functions of this receiver? I would like to be able to stream online channels.

[el bandido]

Has anyone used the Wifi function on this? Would it allow you to stream channels online through the Wifi?
I can stream with the TripleX using enigma2 software. Spark is saying that streaming will be possible in the next Spark firmware release, but we will have to wait and see if they actually add this feature.


Is there any kind of an update on some of the bugs for this? I am still in the market for a better receiver but would really like something that does streaming tv online.
All fta receivers have some kind of bugs but I have seen improvements in the spark firmware. There are no major bugs that I know of.
The TripleX blind scan misses channels and transponders that my Raptor finds, and I would compare the blind scan to the Openbox as far as accuracy. The TripleX is the fastest blind scan receiver that i have right now.


Any comments on the webtv functions of this receiver? I would like to be able to stream online channels.

The webtv functions have been tested and they do work. i do not use them because I am on a shared internet service that cannot support the speed that is really needed to support webtv. Streaming with the Spark firmware is not possible right now as mentioned earlier.

The Golden Media ONE has all of the features of the TripleX except for the number of tuners. The ONE is a good receiver to purchase if you only need a single tuner. EB

[rrob311]

I didn't notice a 10750 lnb setting in the menus. Has anyone come up with a workaround for this? It would be nice if you could manually enter the LNB frequency or at least have the 10750 standard setting.

[el bandido]

To manually enter a lnb frequency, select (User) in the lnb frequency list, then key in the lnb frequency you want to use.

[rrob311]

Is there a way to dual boot this receiver with the E2 operating system as well? I downloaded the latest online version of Spark.

[el bandido]

You may want to look in the user manual.
To run E2, you will need to install an image first and then set the boot argument to Enigma. None of this ishadr or difficult to do IF you know how. Some good information should be in the user manual that came with the TripleX

To install an Enigma firmware, download an image, then extract the two files and place them in a folder named Enigma2. The Enigma2 folder should be placed on a clean Kingston USB stick. Turn OFF the receiver using the rocker switch on the rear, insert the prepared usb into the rear receiver port, press & hold the OK button on the front of the receiver while turning the receiver ON. After the receiver gets past boot, press the arrow down button on the front receiver panel, then press the right arrow button. this should cause enigma2 to load.

DO NOT try to boot into enigma2 without loading an image first!

[rrob311]

I skimmed through the manual last night and the processor spec said 450mhz.

[el bandido]

Specs are subject to change. 600MHz is the processor speed.

[el bandido]

Firmware# 1.260 has made the TripleX a bit better. IMO, the blind scan could still be improved but i am very happy to see a web interface added even if it does not work correctly. I expect improvements to be made to the web interface in the future. A good interface will allow channle content to be streamed directly to a pc. This is a feature that some of us have been using to view 4:2:2 video formatted channels in real time.

Here is a cut and paste from Googgi that explains in detail what most of the remaining issues are with the TripleX. EB

[QUOTE]First of all: Big Thanks for your development!


already fixed since 1.2.58:

Weather Forecast is not working
Unicable support!
Recordings should get the name of EPG-Title instead Channel01 aso.
Antenna Setup: Tuner 2 setting "loop" changes automatically to "separate" after reboot!



Bugs in actual Version 1.2.60:

Loop: with Tuner 2 you can switch on other ZF-Bands - with result "no Signal" of course
missing possibility to deactivate the 2nd DVB-S2 (if you want to use only Tuner1)
EPG isnt recorded with record-file
overview in pvr-Folder: wrong displayed Record-Time and File length (it shows you full EPG-time, not the real length)
stopped Playback cant be continued - Stop-bit missing!
pressing FAV or SAT during recording shows a absurd message "dont do it"
If you press Power for Standby during record, the record will be stopped automatically before shutdown!
You get a dialogbox, but default is "YES > Stop record" !!! :(
If you dont want that, you have to press NO + OK during 5 Seconds to stop shutdown!
Please change default to NO > Leave Box on during record, then power off
during record you cannot use Portal and Opera!
FAV-Button is deactivated while hbbtv is activ
If you start Teletext, you have to confirm/choose the Language every time, although you have choosen the prefered teletext-language in Menu
Spindown is not working when HDD is in ext3-Format!
> Spindown is working with NTFS and Fat32!
If a Timer-Record is sheduled in less then 5 Minutes, and you press Deepstandby, the Box dont awakes to record.
"EPG Now" shows wrong EPG-Data & Timeline for channels, if EPG is not up2date for this TP
"EPG Next" shows wrong EPG-Data for channels, if EPG is not up2date for this TP
If you press "TV/Radio" twice, the firmware change into FAV-List "ALL"
If you use "Recall" to zap back to a channel of another FAV-List, the firmware change into Fav-List "ALL"
setting "SPDIF: Auto" > if you have an AC3-Signal in TV mode and then switch to Mediaplayer (also Portal, YouTube, ...) you have no sound with stereo on SPDIF. Only Sound if there is AC3-Signal!
Timer set in EPG with Button "RECORD" is disabled if you use a network-storage (works only with attached USB-Medium).
Miscellanous Settings: Please change point named "Tuner Loop" into the usual term "Loopthrough"
Volume Level ist too loud in general!
Weather Forecast: the weekdays are false displayed
Online-Data cleaning is not working
If recording two HD-Streams the box is getting very slow, hardly to use
Webinterface: if you try to connect, Spark mostly crashes


Wishes

[Only registered and activated users can see links]
Playback of a still recording event should be possible (Timeshift is working also)
Caching and saving of EPG-Data, reload after reboot
Timeline in Infoscreen when zapping (TV-Wall shows Timeline!)
TV-Wall: with the picons it is not necessary to show the channel-name again under the picon > please show "EPG now" under each picon instead the channel!
TV-Wall: possibilty to use E2-Picons in PNG-Format. Jpg dont support transparent picons!
PIP-Function
Playback: Skip-Function forward + back like in Enigma (3 - 6 - 9 skip forward, 1 - 4 - 7 back)
Record should be the default Option in Timer-Menu (if HDD is available)
Support von AAC-Audio (Ending: .aac - .mp4 - .m4a - .3gp)
Possibility of Audio-Delay in Men

[rrob311]

I noticed this receiver takes awhile to load. I am running the latest Spark version. The firmwares seem to be around 60mb. What memory section does the firmware stay in the receiver? What capacity does it have for firmware/files?