AMIKO Amiko A3 Owners Thread

[Jim S.]

What ROM? Did you assign your own DiSEqC 1.2 positions or allow the receiver to automatically assign the DiSEqC 1,2 motor position number? Sounds like you allowed the STB to set the DiSEqC 1.2 position rather than assigning a custom position?

In the automatic DiSEqC 1.2 assignment, mode, most receivers assign the position number according to the satellite position in the satellite list. If you delete or add a satellite, the DiSEqC motor assignment changes. If a custom DiSEqC 1.2 motor position is assigned, this is retained if the satellite list is modified.

Like you, I would expect that the full satellite list would still be available unless I physically delete the satellite.

ROM 2.0.61. I let it manually assign positions. (I was a little surprised that the position numbers run contrary to the longitude of the satellites, too!)

It's good to know that if I assign a custom number, it'll stay, but this whole business of only dumping the selected satellites smacks of a serious disconnect between the programmer and the user. (Or maybe I'm just weird -- but you know what? I'm the one paying big money for the box, it should do what I want it to do!)

 

[Jim S.]

It appears that when I updated the spark2 app on my tablet I lost the ability to control my A3.
It worked fine before. Now, not at all. DO NOT UPDATE TO THE NEWEST SPARK2 APP! IT'S BROKEN!!!

That's weird, I'm using the latest version, the one dated October 27, and it works fine (when my box sees fit to respond to the network -- see one of my next posts!) I also have ROM 2.0.61. (The description of the app says it's made for 2.0.62, but I don't see any 2.0.62 yet...)

Oh, by the way, you're not alone in seeing different things in Google Play Store than you do on another device. I had a mad scientist moment and wanted to see if I could get the box to play live 4:2:2 by putting the app on the box. Well, the only version that would show up in Play Store was the version for Spark 1. It didn't matter whether I searched for "Spark" or "Spark 2", it just didn't show up, ever. It showed up on my tablet and my computer.

(Just so everyone knows, I copied the .apk from my tablet and installed it on the A3. It ran, but it wouldn't play live video. I'm not really surprised, but it just HAD to be tried!)

 

[Jim S.]

OK, I'm having some weird problem with parts of the software going inactive at night. It actually may be two problems.

I've been putting it into standby, not deep standby, so that I can access it remotely. The first night I had it, everything was fine. The second night, it wouldn't let me access it from either my browser or my tablet app in the morning. It wasn't crashed, because I could log in by telnet. I went to the TV to turn it on and see what was going on, and it started responding to my tablet as soon as I turned on the TV! Not the box, the TV. I know from posts at the Fridge that there's a problem with the box sending CEC commands even if the CEC menu is set to OFF, but apparently it also LISTENS for commands! So, I shut off CEC on the TV (I didn't use it for anything anyway) and thought OK, that'll fix that.

This morning, once again, it wouldn't respond to the tablet or the browser. I turned the TV on and it still didn't work, so CEC is probably not the issue this time. I turned on the A3, and still no remote access. I started looking around in the menus for anything I might've missed, and I didn't find anything. But suddenly, without me changing anything, the app on my tablet found the A3.

So basically, I have no idea what's going on.

 

[Jim S.]

If anyone is having a problem with the satellite list not populating in the web interface, I seem to have found a workaround: click on the control tab, then click back to the channels tab.

 

[Dee_Ann]

Nothing? I'm quite a bit alarmed that other people are getting different results from the play store when we are using the same STB.
Something is very seriously wrong, someone, somewhere, somehow is trying to restrict me from have full control of this piece of hardware that I own.
I am not skilled enough with android to know how to get control of this and fix it.
Last time I tried I really made a huge mess of things.

At this point I do not trust this device any longer and I'm unplugging it until someone can tell me how to fix this.

 

[Titanium]

OMG!!! Tin foil hat time...

Sounds like you may not be signed into the Google Play store when searching? My tablets and other Android STBs often show different search results if I am not signed-in. Also seems to depend on the hardware configuration, ROM, geo location, VPN, etc. Assumed that if my config or location wasn't compatible to the app, it wouldn't display??? Never gave much thought to it, let alone think something sinister was trying to control what app was available.

Download the app onto your tablet then it will be registered to your Google store account. Then download it to your STB.

 

[Jim S.]

That's weird, I'm using the latest version, the one dated October 27, and it works fine (when my box sees fit to respond to the network -- see one of my next posts!) I also have ROM 2.0.61. (The description of the app says it's made for 2.0.62, but I don't see any 2.0.62 yet...)

Well I guess I spoke too soon, mine just decided to update (it wouldn't let me NOT update, if I clicked "cancel" then it just quit rather than run the old version.) The new version DOES work for me, though.

BTW, the new version says it's designed for Spark 2.0.63. We haven't even got past 2.0.61 yet...

 

[Dee_Ann]

Never mind.

I went to the google play store via the A3 browser and the app DOES APPEAR. But when I try to install it it tells me it's not compatible with my device (the A3)..
So much for that.

On the other hand, I still have lost the ability to control the A3 via the Spark2 app on my tablet.
I can not find anyway to downgrade the app (on my cheap little chinese tablet) to the previous version which was working fine.

 

[KE4EST]

Delete the one you have and then download and install the old version.

 

[Dee_Ann]

And I figured that one out too. I have some highly aggressive ad blocking apps installed on everything. The ad blocking on the little tablet was interfering with the Spark2 app. When I turned off the ad blocker, bingo, it works fine.
That's quite annoying.

Back to the VPN problem. There was actually only one VPN app available to me in the play store. But when I tried to install this "free" app (FinchVPN), it demanded that I allow it to make in app purchases.
So they give you the app but you have to subscribe to their service. That was absolutely unacceptable so I didn't allow the app to install.

What I would like to know about the VPN app that is built in to the A3 is if it's safe from the various heartbleed, poodle and other such bugs that have come to light recently?
There is no information about the app, it just exists so you can enter information into it. I would be nice to know some of the details about how it works.
I'm no computer whiz by any means but I like to read about everything and try to learn about what makes it tick and try to verify through research if it's a security or privacy risk.

 

[mc6809e]

The VPN icon in the A3 Settings only brings up the screen used to enter the information you received from your VPN service provider (server, username, password), at least according to the guide at http://www.amiko-a3.us/guides/A3 VPN NON PIA SETUP.pdf.

Since I use Privateinternetaccess for my VPN, I used the custom PIA app for the A3.

Ernie

 

[Jim S.]

Is anyone else having problems with leaving their A3 in standby mode (NOT deep standby)? The first two nights I had it, it was fine. The third and fourth nights, the web server and the app interface server weren't working in the morning (everything else was fine, and the servers came back up when powering the box on, no reboot needed.) Last night shortly after midnight, I tried logging in again and the user interface worked, but there was no power to the LNB! A reboot fixed that, but then this morning, the box wouldn't do anything at all. Even pushing the power button on the front panel wouldn't bring up anything, just a black screen. I had to pull the power, since no form of remote access was working.

This is a little worrisome, but I hope it's just a software issue and not a hardware one. I think this time I'll just leave it fully "on" overnight and see what happens, I doubt it really uses much less power in hot standby anyway.

 

[Michael Nixon]

Can any on please tell me how to make this thing move the dish? I'm using the digipower motor sg-2100.

 

[mc6809e]

Before anyone can help you'll need to provide more information about your system setup, including switches and receiver settings.

 

[Dee_Ann]

I guess I'm too paranoid to own a non Apple product. I should probably just sell it.
Not that there's anything wrong with it, it's just that I am too incompetent to own it.

 

[Jim S.]

Can any on please tell me how to make this thing move the dish? I'm using the digipower motor sg-2100.

You need to set up your motor under each satellite individually -- there's no way to set it for all of them at once like there was on the Alien1/Alien2.

Also, I was confused at first because having set it for a particular satellite, even if set to USALS, it doesn't move right away -- not even if the next thing you do is tell it to scan that satellite. You have to either use the move command before you scan, or go to another satellite and come back.

 

[Michael Nixon]

Thanks, but are you talking about the blue move button?

 

[Michael Nixon]

Before anyone can help you'll need to provide more information about your system setup, including switches and receiver settings.

I don't know what you mean, the only equipment that's installed is the A3 50 feet rg 6, 39 inch dish with a ku band single LNBF model cGTc111S LO 10.70-12.75 Ghz with a SG 2100 to move the dish. As far as settings im looking for help with that.

 

[Michael Nixon]

You need to set up your motor under each satellite individually -- there's no way to set it for all of them at once like there was on the Alien1/Alien2.

Also, I was confused at first because having set it for a particular satellite, even if set to USALS, it doesn't move right away -- not even if the next thing you do is tell it to scan that satellite. You have to either use the move command before you scan, or go to another satellite and come back.

I've scanned several other satellites and all is doing is duplicating the results from my true South satellite 72w amc 6, it says its moving but it never moves

 

[T134]

Dee Ann,

OpenVPN Connect shows up in Play Store if running NA ROM's. There are only two reasons I can think of why it would not be available to you:

1. You installed the Europe/Spark2 software. Their versions can't get nearly as much from Google Play as North American A3 ROM's can.

2. You are trying to grab/search for it while already using a VPN gateway from outside USA or a foreign play account. I have no idea what the country location restrictions for that App are if any.