HOWTO: Run Euro Firmware on Diamond 9000

[i4tas]

To convert a european firmware into a diamond just take a .stb file from one of the following receivers, and paste the diamond header on top of the old header. The header is the first 4 lines of hex code. You will need a hex editor.

Then upload the file via USB. You can easily go back and fourth. Uploading via usb takes 1-2 minutes... so you can add those S2 transponders via remote or search for the correct FEC in just about 5 minutes.

Differences between diamond firmware and european firmware:

pros:

• complete control of tuner (pilot, fec, 8psk, qspk, dvb-s, dvb-s2)
• satellite settings are not lost
• usals / diseqc 1.2 works great (ability to move dish)
• auto and manual scan
• usb drives still work (no serial cable needed)
• NDF upload and saving by USB
• turn blue light on / off
• channel scrolling on / off
• channel number on / off

cons:

• front display settings are defaulted when going back to diamond firmware
• no audio and bad video
• receiver resets on certain codecs
• you can scan channels and edit transponders but need to go back to diamond firmware to watch tv
• cant scan OTA channels

other hints:

• if you find the receiver rebooting on a channel that has a codec it doesn't like hit menu right when you turn it on
• I use hdmi and it may or may not work via other methods, not sure not expert in NTSC vs PAL stuff
• the 9000 can always be brought back to normal via serial cable upload if LOADER shows up, but that will only happen when if you mess up making your own firmware

Ideally I would like to take the great features in the euro versions and add them to our factory diamond firmware and then it would be one great firmware. But the source code isn't available online, so we can only edit hex. The source code is the same for all hubtech receivers listed below. PM me if you could help me out here.

I attached the MAX225Digital with Diamond header, which is the one I use. So you don't have to make your own.

• 
  Receivers that are compatible with Diamond 9000:
• Max225Combo (same GUI)
• CTech500Combo (ugly GUI)
• Technomate 6900HD (different remote, only front buttons work)

Valid Diamond 9000 Header:
(there seem to be two valid headers for this unit, I use this one)

53 54 42 00 4c 00 00 00 01 00 03 01 00 00 00 00
0e 33 01 00 01 00 01 31 04 01 01 7f 00 00 08 7f
00 00 00 00 e4 c4 4d 00 00 00 63 7f e4 c4 4d 00
74 df 04 00 00 00 6e 7f 58 a4 52 00 8e 4e 0a 00

Please report any new findings... Do this at you own risk (serial cable can always restore your receiver).

 

[stogie5150]

cons:

• front display settings are defaulted when going back to diamond firmware
• no audio and bad video
• receiver resets on certain codecs
• you can scan channels and edit transponders but need to go back to diamond firmware to watch tv
• cant scan OTA channels

The first one I get, if you go back to diamond firmware you will go back to diamond factory settings, correct?

Second one....?

Third one...which codecs? Mpeg 4, DVB...???

Fourth...are you saying I have to load the firmware you provided, then do my channel editing, then reload the diamond firmware? That doesn't sound right...

Fifth..cant scan OTA...will it still display them? Can you still manually scan the frequencies?

 

[i4tas]

The first one I get, if you go back to diamond firmware you will go back to diamond factory settings, correct?

No, only front display settings will go back to default. Example you can permanently turn off the bule light on the MaxDigital, that settings is then lost.

Third one...which codecs? Mpeg 4, DVB...???

It chokes on the h.264, again watching tv isn't logical on the euro firmware. On the h.264 it reboots, on some hd channels it is very skippy, and some play just fine. But once you convert back to a real diamond stb everything plays just fine.

Fourth...are you saying I have to load the firmware you provided, then do my channel editing, then reload the diamond firmware? That doesn't sound right...

Yes thats exactly what you do. You load the Maxdigital to do the editing then reload the diamond to do the watching!

Fifth..cant scan OTA...will it still display them? Can you still manually scan them frequencies?

When you have the euro firmware on it, it acts like the OTA (ATSC) turner doesn't exist. ATSC is a North America thing. Your OTA channels will play fine and not be affected once you go back to the diamond firmware. Just don't expect the channels to work durring you 5 minutes of using the MAxdigital firmware. Again the euro firmware isn't used to do any watching.

 

[stogie5150]

Oh, okay.

Thanks for the info...that might be too much for me to deal with, with as little as I understand about it...

But THANKS!

 

[Lak7]

EDIT: I didn't see I4tas response.

3 things to note...
1 - No Sound
2 - Video is choppy
3 - Will CRASH on some DVB-S2

 

[B.J.]

To convert a european firmware into a diamond just take a .stb file from one of the following receivers, and paste the diamond header on top of the old header. The header is the first 4 lines of hex code. You will need a hex editor.

Then upload the file via USB. You can easily go back and fourth. .......

I'm curious about whether this process might allow a 9000 that has had the bad version of pirate software to be returned to the factory firmware?
Ie I bought my 9000 on ebay, and despite claims to the contrary, it had the pirate firmware on it. From what I have read, if factory firmware is loaded over top of the pirate firmware, then the receiver is crippled, mainly by lack of audio, so I have not tried putting the factory firmware back on the receiver. I have used it as is, and sometimes the thing works perfectly but 75% of the time, it skips badly on satellite HD.
I would really like to get this receiver back to it's factory conditions, and when I read this post, I thought that perhaps if it were first converted to the Euro version, and then back to the factory firmware, that perhaps the factory firmware would work as it's supposed to.
Ie I thought that perhaps whatever was in the pirate firmware that messes up the factory firmware might be over-written by this Euro version???
Is this possible?

Also, I'm curious..... I know I could find out by looking myself, but I use the receiver every day, so I'm too lazy to look.... Does the 9000HD have a battery inside? I've noticed that any time the thing loses power, that the real time clock seems to lose the time. Virtually every time I turn the darn thing on, it's time has reverted to 2007. So any time I record anything, I first have to spend a couple minutes setting the date/time.

Anyway, I really like this receiver, I just wish there was some way to get the darn pirate software off the thing.

 

[Lak7]

I'm curious about whether this process might allow a 9000 that has had the bad version of pirate software to be returned to the factory firmware?

Didn't work. DO NOT try to modify the Euro Version of the "Restore" Firm and load into Diamond, it will Trash the unit with No Chance of recovery.

Does the 9000HD have a battery inside?

Not that I know of. It doesn't even have a Fuse.

One thing I did notice when playing with the Firms, is that there is an additional compressed file inside the Main File, TP List I believe. But on the last "alt" file there is a second hidden file. I wondered if that had something to do with sound, 'cause a Sound Issue was one of the "fixes" in the Euro version where the "alt" Diamond Firms come from. They do not modify the orig. Diamond Firm to make the "alt" Firm.
To explore more, decompress the Firm, then search for "lh5" (LH5)