Pace Box dead - Questions/Options....

beer enigma

My Pace Digibox has passed to the great digibox heaven in the sky.....It started playing up a week or so ago & is now stuck on standby (tried powering off from wall overnight & holding backup when switching on, but nothing)

Question I have is this happened shortly after purchasing an indoor aeriel with battery booster. The RF out socket feeds two tv's in the house via a Y-connector. One of them has no terrestrial aeriel access, so I bought booster aeriel & connected via another Y connector into the back of the set. Could this have caused a problem (earthing of some sort) or is it just coincidence. I need to be clear to avoid the same thing happening with the new box.

Second questions is options.....if I stick with a standard sky setup, I'll go for Sky+, can I buy this and set it up myself ?? - hate the thought of being without sky for a few weeks. OR, am I mad to go with sky+ when I have the room to install a motorised setup ?? - is there much of a cost difference.

Sorry for all the questions, but having trawled the dealers over the weekend, I figured you guys would give me an 'honest' opinion. I have to spend the cash, so just want the best option really.

Cheers

Andi

byte

Hmm, I think your adding a booster and the box dying are coincidential. Yes, it is possible to DIY a Sky+ install, as long as you know how to connect F-connectors and how to seal exterior connections properly.

As for a motorised setup, this is a matter of personal preference. Which would you prefer, a vast amount of foreign (some English language) channels, or Sky+? A motorised setup I would recommend you get done by a professional.

beer enigma

Thanks Byte - really appreciate your help.

The booster issue was a major concern to me, especially if I'm to lash out some more cash on a new setup, I was kicking myself that my inventiveness in hooking up the indoor booster aeriel (easily pleased :rolleyes: ) had killed the poor box.

On the options - is it possible to run sky+ through a motorised dish ?? - My wife is Spanish & we have a german Au Pair, so the European channels would be very welcome, although I'm a sky & Discovery channel man myself. Does this just mean two decoders & seperate subs ??

DMC

Andip wrote:

On the options - is it possible to run sky+ through a motorised dish ?? - My wife is Spanish & we have a german Au Pair, so the European channels would be very welcome, although I'm a sky & Discovery channel man myself. Does this just mean two decoders & seperate subs ??

You could have two boxes, and a motorised setup, but only one sub, only for Sky. A lot of european stations are free-to-air (FTA), mainly on Astra 1 at 19ºE (Sky is on Astra 2, 28ºE) and do not require subscription.

beer enigma

Thank you - even a handful of euro channels would put me in the good books

leeroybrown

I'm no expert but I think the Pace boxes generally fail at one known repairable place. Perhaps you might be able to get a replacement part fitted for a lot less than you would otherwise spend.

byte

Yeah, it's usually a fault in Power Supply, or the tuner. Personally, I would probably put my money towards a new box, expecially if it's a Pace 2200/2500 series box.

Greenman

DMC wrote:

You could have two boxes, and a motorised setup, but only one sub, only for Sky. A lot of european stations are free-to-air (FTA), mainly on Astra 1 at 19ºE (Sky is on Astra 2, 28ºE) and do not require subscription.

I'd go with you DMC, I've got 3 boxes in the livingroom and 2 TV's.
$ky box Irish sub and Topfield 3000 2 CI connected to Astra 28 dish,motorised dish Astra 19 and Hotbird 13 for me.

For the good wife Humax 5300 VACI with ART card connected to Arabsat 26,
motorised dish, Astra 19 and Hotbird 13.

All this is connected to the hifi with speakers all over the house including the bathroom.

Thus keeping me in the good books!!!