Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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74 of 74 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A DTV Converter box worth the wait, March 4, 2009
This made in Bulgaria DTV converter has a nice metal box which can help survive bumps and drops without cracking the case. I like the "Update" channel feature. Other converter boxes or televisions only allow you to "rescan" so that previously found channels will be dropped if that channel's signal happened to be weak. How stupid. Particularly with digital's signal here today and not found later approach to signal strength. I waited for this box to be available since my television has a remaining S-video input I can use so I do not have to make major cable swapping changes. I have another converter box (Insignia NS-DXA1-APT also coupon eligible) that has a universal remote feature so that the converter's remote can also control my (Sony) television. But that remote is thinner and is not as comfortable in my hand compared to this Channel Master remote. But if you have a universal remote, Channel Master is saying you can set your universal remote to use the code for "Pioneer" to control this converter box.
I think I got an old manual or a quickly photocopied manual included in my box. A different manual (in pdf format) with some more details can be found at Channel Master's web site:
http://www.channelmasterintl.com/documentation/manuals/CM-7000%20USERS%20MANUAL_200809b.pdf
which also includes the default password for the parental control (0000) setting.
The hottest part of this converter is about 113F degrees (about the center top of the box). The auto off power is not turned on by default. I guess this helps prevent some people from calling their help desk and complaining that the box "stops working after a few hours.
The Channel Master CM-7000 has three buttons on the front: power on/off, channel down, and channel up. There is a slide switch on the back so if you use the RF output of the box into the television's antenna in input, you can choose either channel 3 or 4. My Insignia does this through the on-screen menu using the remote. I think the rear switch method is a better way of doing it.
I like the "Guide" feature that downloads the television programs information that the digital stations transmit. While my other converter box has the same feature, the Channel Master lets you scroll by chronological order (up/down) AND scroll left or right to also check out what's on the previous or next channel while still in the Guide mode. Neat!
The Set up menu is not as intuitive as other device set ups. You have to use the Menu button to get out of the present choice. Other than that, it is not too difficult to navigate.
Oh. And the picture quality is great on my 24" Panasonic with just an indoor amplified VHF/UHF set top rabbit ears, especially on the S-Video output. I can definitely tell the difference in picture quality (sharpness and color contrast) compared to the phono video out or the RF video out. I won't be buying a new television just quite yet.
PROS: S-Video output provides great picture quality if you have a television that can accept it.
"Update" channel feature to add new channels instead of a total rescan (where you could lose some previously found channels because of weather conditions). Channel Master also uses this feature so you can rotate your antenna in one direction to get some stations then rotate the antenna to get more stations. I can get 99% of all my channels with my indoor rabbit ears in one position; rotate the antenna to a different position to get that last channel!
The remote control is a nice size that fits the hand comfortably.
CONS: Could have included cheap RCA phono cables like some other units.
Remote does not include universal feature like other converter box remotes (to also control turning off your television).
Instruction manual could include better details. Set up menu slightly less intuitive.
No analog pass through.
The closed captioning font is small and does not appear to be adjustable.
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42 of 42 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best reception out of 5, July 15, 2008
I've tried 4 other boxes, and this Channel Master gets the best reception, by far. Picture is excellent, there is a 12-hour program guide, and one button on the remote changes the view setting, so you can compare them readily.
S-Video, nice remote, all around a really solid unit. I'm going to get an extra.
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35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Happy with this box., July 31, 2008
Got this box for a week now and I definitely made the right choice in purchasing this brand considering there are a lot of choices out there. I could not agree more with the other reviewer emphasizing the importance of having the S-video option to get maximum clarity. Picture sharpness is just a lot better using this connection especially when you are viewing on a large monitor/screen. Installation and setup was easy, at least for me. I must mention that if you want to use the S-video, you have to purchase the cables for it, both S-video and the audio. It only came with the regular antenna cable which you will need in connecting the converter box to your external or indoor antenna. One negative comment about this unit is the small buttons of the remote control that it came with. It is not very easy to use specially the channel and the volume buttons which I use everytime. The good thing is, I have the option of programming the other remote that came with my TV which has bigger buttons for these functions. Of course, my programmable remote does not have all the features that the converter's remote control have. So, I always keep the original remote within my arms reach just in case I need it. This is the only reason why I did not give this converter box a five star rating. Oh, I almost forgot, using this box gave me other channels that I never knew existed and they're a lot.
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