Help/advise Needed On New Purchase (Topfield?)

[Guest Shorty_F6]

Hi All

Your advice would be much appreciated. I really want to buy a Topfield for the quad recording BUT I have had bad experience with Topfield in the past.

A few years ago I purchased a TF7100HDPVRt and loved it while it worked but unfortunately, that was not very often. It had numerous problems and just got worse and worse. Then I foolishly purchase a Kogan PVR with twin tuners and quickly realised as bad as my old Topfield was it was great in comparison.

I am really hoping to hear that the Topfield models are now are much better????

I am currently looking at a;

TFR7160

TFR7170

TFR2400/2460

The models are very confusing I don’t know where these models are at compared to my old one, one of them looks like it’s in exactly the same box/case as my old one, so I worry, has anything actually changed, have they improved?

I don’t need bells and whistles, I just need twin tuner (preferably Quad Recording), stable reliable machine, I don’t need Ice TV or wireless support or network connection or any of that stuff.

Any guidance from current owners of these models would be very helpful.

[snorri]

I was in the identical place a month ago (except that for my 7100 was a robust machine and still kicking on well) Just buy the trf2400/60 there is really no other option, your like me i just wanted something that was step up from the 7100 and didnt make more work to do simple core things, I dont need flash stuff....the 2400 failed here with more button presses over the 7100 and some simple things like moving a same named recording to a folder from the default position would be outright denied (you kidding right!!) nope because it has not the logic to add a suffix in the new folder lol...trully an amazing senario for a PVR.

Anyway quad recording is great buit only ever seen tri so far, I would point you toward the Beyond wiz P2for a far fuller machine out of the box than the 4500 could ever be but no quad..not seemless recording either when another tunes starts up, gets some pixelation skip back 4 seconds at these times on the vision you are viewing.

The ease of use the 7100 had over the P2 (i own both) is gone with the 4500....onwards and upwards.

Taps are clunky and largely vile pieces of software compared to well packaged out of the box propietyry offerings but I did find one that allowed the 4500 to more or less (not as well as the 7100) delete a recording whilestill watching it (saved the entire machine from storage/ebay).

oh one more thing....seriously it's hard to believe but a person is forced to watch a large chunk of the end of a recording as the skip forward doesn't advance to the truer end of the recording like the 7100 can so you sit there waiting for the recording to end of it's oven volition or deliberatly chase up the stop button...oh and thats another thing dont expect the 4500 to revert back to the fil/folder you played the recording from you will need to chase it aup again.

cannot do series delete/move/copy either...no joke!!

remote drives my wife crazy it clicks at about 90db with every button press, in the dark each end is identical until one brailes (sp) the buttons...rubbish unit at todays levels.

Yep it's a piece of junk in 80% of all core useabilty over the 7100 but it is faster (but usuer input messier) and does quad/ handles the exterfnal drive 50% better but without series move why bother ...two steps back and one forward is a good way of categorising theis offering LOL! IMO.

cheers

Edited January 24, 2012 by snorri

[Paul55]

As you already know, there is no such animal as a perfect PVR. However, all the models you list are much better than the 7100 which was a 'bit of a dog'.

If you dont want IceTV, get the 7160 - but only because it is the best value if you shop around.

[pgdownload]

I am really hoping to hear that the Topfield models are now are much better????

The short answer there is yes. The 7100 should never have been released - Topfield really canablised a lot of the reputation they got from their early SD PVRs. But the current HD PVRs are based on completely new firmware and hardware. The core functionality (set, fire, record and watch timers) is very reliable. The GUI is reasonable and navigating through shows (ie ad skip works well). TAPs can be added on some models if you like but are less necessary than in the past as PVRs have matured a bit.

Quad recording is of limited value for me. If you watch a lot of shows on the multichannels then it would be handy, although I reckon racking up 4 hours of TV an hour is probably a sign you need to get out more

As mentioned the 7160 is pretty good value at $350. In short I don't think you'll regret it if you buy a current Topfield model.

Regards

Peter Gillespie

[prl]

... I would point you toward the Beyond wiz P2for a far fuller machine out of the box than the 4500 could ever be but no quad..not seemless recording either when another tunes starts up, gets some pixelation skip back 4 seconds at these times on the vision you are viewing.

...

As Paull55 said, there's no perfect PVR, but I can't really identify what sort of problem you're referring to here with the Beyonwiz. I've never noticed any pixellation of live TV when a recording starts. A slightly annoying popup, yes, but not pixellation, and I've never needed to skip back live TV because of pixellation problems when a recording starts. However, I don't have a P2, but I don't recall seeing this mentioned on the Beyonwiz forum as a problem.

[diesel]

I have a P2 and only ever had experiences like you prl (Peter). Just the pop-up message advising which show was being recorded. I actually like the pop-up...probably because it confirms that the timer has fired and it gives me a feeling that the PVR is talking back to me...bit weird I know.

[pgdownload]

What's a "4500" BTW - are you talking about a Digitech?

FWIW I'd recommend a BW Lite for about $400 as a very solid performer too. However it doesn't have quad recording as mentioned, just twin, so didn't bother mentioning it.

Regards

Peter Gillespie

Edited January 25, 2012 by pgdownload

[Paul55]

I echo pgdownload's comment. BW is the most reliable PVR IMO.

[snorri]

Yeah sorry people I was talking about the 2400 not the BW...my bad structure, was in a bit to much of a hurry.

BW now wins hands down over the (topfield) 2400 IMO if one doesn't need quad.

Edited January 25, 2012 by snorri

[Paul55]

BW now wins hands down over the (topfield) 2400 IMO if one doesn't need quad.

I wouldn't support that statement. I have both and they have different strengths and weaknesses that will appeal to different users.

Because the BW range has such mature firmware, the reliability is top notch. However, the hardware is a bit older (less speed/power) and the UI is best described as functional. This is fine for many users. However, I wouldn't like my BWs nearly as much if I didn't have IceTV which adds functionality I require.

I find the Topfield to be reliable, but not as bullet proof as the BW. It has a slicker, attractive and more intuitive UI and the ability to modify/personalise the functionality by installing TAPs. If I weren't an IceTV customer, I would choose Topfield and put up with the extra housekeeping involved.

[Guest Shorty_F6]

Hi

Thank you all for your advice, its food for thought. I am happy to know the Topfields have improved since my bad experiance and I will check out the other brands/models mentioned as well, before making my purchase.

Thanks again for your assistance all.

[CarlR]

The models are very confusing I don’t know where these models are at compared to my old one, one of them looks like it’s in exactly the same box/case as my old one, so I worry, has anything actually changed, have they improved?

Hi Shorty.

Yes the 7100 was terrible for many owners. The models available now are much much better.

I don’t need bells and whistles, I just need twin tuner (preferably Quad Recording), stable reliable machine, I don’t need Ice TV or wireless support or network connection or any of that stuff.

Based on what you've said there, I think the 7160 is the one for you. You don't mention if you want AV Input (which will allow you to record from an analogue source such as Pay TV or a VCR or a DVD player). If you want to be able to record from an analogue source, then you should get the 2400 or the 2460, but otherwise go for the 7160.

You can compare the features on the Topfield website.

Regards,

Carl

[Ps3Tony]

What's the cheapest Topfield being sold now? Price? Model?

[Referee]

What's the cheapest Topfield being sold now? Price? Model?

7160

Asked for lowest price came back with $315 J&B Hi Fi no questions asked. + 1 for the quality of the machine. Found the small keys of remote a little finnicky at first.

TAPS make it an excellent buy if you do not want ICE or Wireless. Wired works great.

Edited February 4, 2012 by Referee