DTC210 help

[mirceani]

I just purchased from ebay a DTC210 direct Tv RCA receiver.
I do NOT have Direct Tv service, and I do want to use this receiver for over the air free digital TV
The box is theoretically capable of connecting to satelite dish, cabletv and antenna (it has 3 separate coax connectors)
However my bos apears to be locked by Direct TV to ve used ONLY with their service
I did call them and asked them to unlock my box, but they declined.

Anybody here has a solution to this problem ?

Thank you

Mircea

 

[Zynergi]

let me see if I understand this.. you bought a subscription based device to get Off Air Channels without subscribing to any subscription? Question back to you.. if you were simply looking for an HD off Air Tuner then all you needed was one of the Digital Tuner Boxes offered at your favorite Walmart for $39.95, why not go that route?

Why wont the DTC210 work? D* actually sends guide data for the Off Air Channels available in your area.. and then doesnt usually get them all. It will generally allow you to choose a local zipcode and scan an alternate zipcode. But the station availability is downloaded not manually scanned. This is where the DTV box that the government has been telling people for 2 and a half years to get does. Without Subbing to D* I am afraid you simply wasted money. Even if D* activated that Box you would get off air locals but as far as HD programming you would be SOL as D* only offers a couple HD channels that that rec will pick up now as they have changed the way HD signals are sent to earth.

 

[mirceani]

Yes, I bought this box based on the description made in its manual that it is able to recive OTA TV
There is no mention there that you need to subscribe to a service frovider for that.
In addition, on ebay (where I purcahased this box for $30) there are other offers for same box which specifically say that their boxes do indeed work with OTA channels without any subscription.
I do recognize that the particular box I purchased does not specifically say that, so my mistake. Now I cannot go back to the seller and claim that the box does not work.

The boxes sold at Wallmart as you suggest do not have HD outputs.
( I do want a box with DVI or HDMI connector) and this model seems to be one of the few which has this feature

So I am positive that there are boxes like this one out there (ebay mostly) which have been "unlocked" - my question is how do you do that.

Besides it does not make any sense (at least to me) to manufacture a box capable of receiving OTA FREE channels, but to be able to use that feature you need to subscribe (and PAY) for a service with Direct TV.

Agree?


Anyway, anybody here on this forum which is able to help me unlock this box?

Thank you again

 

[Zynergi]

Well any hacking or "Unlocking" if even available wouldnt be discussed on this forum.

A quick search on Google for "OTA Tuner HDMI" Returned alot of DTV boxes that support what your trying to do. What you are going to continue to find is further disappointment an probably your next box will simply be a pass through tuner causing you to spend more than a retail box that already does what you you want without hacks that may or may not even exist. Simply put if you order a Subscription Based Tuner expect to have to Subscribe to its service to get it to work.

 

[hdtvtechno]

Now.. im not sure.. but i think when you first bootup (turn on) the Receiver.. it has an option where u can choose to select only (OTA) antenna in the satellite setup menu..

it should be able to select satellite + OTA or satellite only or OTA only..

I know i could do it with the Samsung SIR-TS360 without any problems

 

[boba]

DTC210 OTA only works with a Directv subscription and does not work with MPEG4 services. Definitely a "BUYER BEWARE" situation because it is a boat anchor unless you want SD with OTA.

 

[mirceani]

There is this guy on ebay who sells lots of those boxes and claims they all work OTA and have been tested. He even claims 60 days money back guarantee.
So this makes me thing there must be a way to hack/unlock those boxes.
in my case, "no dish" is not an option on the menu , so it clearelly has a firmware software modified by DitectTV from what the original manufacturer did.

So if this ebayer was able to unlock his boxes (he sells lots of them) the question is how did he do it? (Of course he wouldn;t answer this to me...)

 

[boba]

Are you sure he has unlocked them and isn't just selling them to suckers like you?

 

[mirceani]

Thanks for the compliment, very nice of you
Nothing is sure in life, but I assume that guy does sell unlocked/hacked DTC210s

I'm no specialist and looked for help on this forum, but I certainly cannot believe that this feature (OTA) should be subscription dependant. Makes no sense, and it makes all sense that service providers like DirectTv try to make a buck in all posible ways.
Similar to phone service providers selling locked phones.

 

[Zynergi]

Its a box designed for DirecTV Subscriptions.. makes perfect sense.. Cell Companies locking thier phones to work on thier systems only makes sense as well.. they spent the money to either be the sole service provider or spent money on developing such phone.

If you want a HD OTA Tuner with HD Outputs try these...

w/o HDMI output Tunes through your F Connector... Tivax Electronics - Digital Converter - STBT8

With HDMI Output
CE Labs HD100AQ Digital QAM & OTA Tuner Set Top Box with HDMI output
Samsung DTB-H260F ATSC Over The Air Terrestrial Tuner with HDMI Output
[ame=http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-DTBH260F-HDTV-Terrestrial-Receiver/dp/B000JV6TQY]Amazon.com: Samsung DTBH260F HDTV Terrestrial Receiver: Electronics[/ame]
[ame=http://www.amazon.com/ATSC-QAM-NTSC-Tuner-Receiver/dp/B000V8XR1U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1237224389&sr=1-1]Amazon.com: ATSC / QAM (HD) / NTSC Tuner Receiver Box: Electronics[/ame]

LG DR787T DVD Recorder HDMI HD Upconversion ATSC TUNER - eBay (item 360137491934 end time Apr-07-09 18:50:25 PDT)

Again your looking at doing something under $50 which isnt going to happen for what you want to do.. but this has been stated to you numerous times but you refuse to understand it.

The Sub $50 Digital DTV/HD Tuner will have a Composite output as well as a Coax Output if your looking for one that Component and/or HDMI then your looking +$150 If you have a F Connector on your TV you willl get 720/1080 on your TV with the sub $50 converters.

As far as HACKING or UNLOCKING if it is even possible is NOT discussed here and further asking about it, I am sure, will simply result in your removal.

 

[cedarwood]

I just purchased from ebay a DTC210 direct Tv RCA receiver.
I do NOT have Direct Tv service, and I do want to use this receiver for over the air free digital TV
The box is theoretically capable of connecting to satelite dish, cabletv and antenna (it has 3 separate coax connectors)
However my bos apears to be locked by Direct TV to ve used ONLY with their service
I did call them and asked them to unlock my box, but they declined.

Anybody here has a solution to this problem ?

Thank you

Mircea

What kind of TV do you have?