Any skystar 2 pci card experts here?

kaisersose77

im thinking about getting one of these cards but havent a clue about progdvb and all the other stuff involved with receiving channels. Any help would be great. My email is bl121954@hotmail.com

chernobyl

DVB Network

kaisersose77

ye i was looking at that but theres so many different programs and stuff, so i'd like to know exactly what i need and what to do with it

watty

if you want just data and PC powered TV then SkyStar2. Supplied SW is rubbish. DVDProg is not the best, only if you are pirating. It is same as Hauppage PCI Nova-S and made by Technotrend. You can get SW from www.technotrend.de (english & German). It uses the "Basic" SW, "Premium or Highend won't work.

The Skystar1/Hauppage PCI Nexus-S/Technotrend "premium" is the same tuner head but adds:
Texas DSP chip for MPEG2 decoder etc
Real built in TV out, with OSD
Real built in Audio out
IR Remote eye and handset
Digital Audio out.
Option for a CI board


For data download the Skystar2 is best, the Skystar 2 needs really powerfull PC to watch TV on screen. For TV & Radio the "Premium" model is FAR better it will even run on as little as P166 as it is a complete system. It can be watched on PC screen or TV sets.


Either range can download data (google satatonce and Casablanca for free service), and either can be used illegally to pirate TV. I won't help with that.

Both install (all Digital Satellite does) as a network card. Use a different subnet to an existing networkcard. This is needed EVEN for TV & Radio.

i.e. if NO network card then IP 192.168.1.1 and sub net mask 255.255.255.0

If you have a network card at IP 192.168.x.nnn and subnet 255.255.255.0 then use same settings for Satellite card increasing x by 1.

Disable DHCP for the Satellite card.


If you get either card and get stuck folks here will help. But the Skystar2 is like GDI printer or SW Win modem, cut down to a price and relying on CPU power /SW. The Skystar1 / Premium range is better value in long term, like a PCL/Postscript printer instead of GDI or real DSP modem to continue the analogy.

I might add a Skystar2 to my server as a dedicated "Casablanca" download not for TV at all. After 18 mths I'm more than convinced I took correct decision to get the "premium" rather than the basic. Picture on external TV is better than Digibox and does not rely on CPU power or Graphics card. Features equal or better to a Sky+, except you only get the FTA channels on Sky.

From 3 LNBs on one dish via a £20 "Global" brand 4-way disqec switch I get 600+ Free TV and 500+ Free Radio from Astra19E, Hotbirds13E and Astra/Eurobird 28E

kaisersose77

thanks watty. At the moment all i can afford is the skystar2 so i think i'll still order it. I have a 1.4ghz pc 256MB Ram pc so do u think that would be able to handle satellite TV? Also, does the myTheatre program do the same thing as progdvb, i've downloaded both but myTheatre looks far better.

kaisersose77

thats unless you know where to get very cheap skystar1 cards!

watty

The Hauppage nexus-S PCi is about 180 Euro. Different badge to Skystar1. Comes with SW that works.

SkyStar2:
Your PC will be fine. Just close Satellite apps before trying to burn a CD! You will need at the start to read the Internet and download Mytheater / DVDProg whatever.

Download SatAtOnce Casablanca and set it up first as that will be easiest way to test your card is installed correct. (Dish at 19E).

Actually probabily the Casablanc SW will automatically (and free) download DVBprog as part of the satatonce newsgroup from Satellite. (Casablanca pushes content of about 30 newsgroups to your hard disk and then runs a NewsServer for your newsreader to access the files Outlook, Netscape, Agent, Turnpike etc).

kaisersose77

thanks again for the info. Have DSL, so all im really interesting in is FTA digital tv. Do u know what sort of picture i would get with the skystar2 card? I only have on-board graphics so dont have a proper graphics card but i've heard that doesnt matter- is this true? . Also do you know if i'll be able to receive the BBC digital channels?

kaisersose77

did you hear of www.dvbshop.tv by any chance? , the skystar 2 card is 59euros there which is very cheap compared to some sites.

watty

Originally posted by kaisersose77
thanks again for the info. Have DSL, so all im really interesting in is FTA digital tv. Do u know what sort of picture i would get with the skystar2 card? I only have on-board graphics so dont have a proper graphics card but i've heard that doesnt matter- is this true? . Also do you know if i'll be able to receive the BBC digital channels?

If your screen can run at 1024 x 768 or 800 x 600 @ 16Million colours so the 576 video lines can be 576 PC lines then the picture will be similar to an analog WinTV card.


A graphics card supporting HW overlay with "BOB" mode (typically minimum 16M graphics RAM), will give better pictures if the driver / application supports this. The "premium cards" have built in multimedia bridge to support this. The Skystar2 it depends on SW. It won't be as good (not by a long shot) as S-VHS, DVD, PAL TV, Analog Satellite or Digibox on an Ordinary TV.

3D engine is not relevent or used.


My Graphics Card (Nvida chips) does do HW Overlay with BOB. "Full screen" is slightly lower quality than a perfect size window due to scaling artifacts. (The PC card pixels can't EVER match PAL resolution on any graphics card). A "perfect size" window (576 lines) still has some scaling artifacts as the pixels on a PC screen are square and DVB pixels never are. (720, 704, 574, 544 transmitted pixels etc has to be rescaled to 768 display pixels for 4:3 PAL) .

On 4:3 my old 1976 TV gives a better picture driven from the Satellite Card TV out. My Newer TV has 16:9 mode so it does Satellite WS just as well as DVD or Sky box WS. WS on the PC is much poorer than WS TV as it has normally throw lines away. At high resolution then the problem is less but the picture is about 1/2 the screen hieght, not great on a 17" screen.

watty

Yes you get all the BBC channels

(posted separate to not get lost in verbage of other post!)

P.S. Thanks for the thought Greenman!!!!!!

Greenman

If you press edit you don't have to post twice in as many minutes!!!

watty

Originally posted by kaisersose77
did you hear of www.dvbshop.tv by any chance? , the skystar 2 card is 59euros there which is very cheap compared to some sites.

Looks like they sell it for 79 Euro which is similar to £59 which usually is cheapest.

The cheapest "proper" TV Satellite card is:

DVB-S 1.5 LNB-In (Philips-Tuner)
165.00EUR

This looks a loot dearer than a standalone FTA Digital Receiver, but should be compared with FTA recivers that have hard disk since the PC records.

But I havn't studdied the catlog extensively.