replacing sky box with sky plus box?

amandac

hi, i am getting a sky hd box for my sitting room and i want to put the sky plus box in the kids room(they have a standard sky box), my question is if i replace the boxes will i still be able to record on the sky plus box with only one cable connected?

ethernet

Both Sky+ boxes, HD or not, need two independent connections to the LNB to work with full functionality, i.e. to enable you to record two programmes simultaneously, watch one thing while recording another and so on. Otherwise, you're stuck watching just one channel at a time.

If you already have Sky+, I guess you have a quad LNB (four outputs), with two feeds running to living room and one to kids' room. If so, just ask the installer to run a fourth feed from the free output of the LNB to the kids' room so that the old Sky+ will have two inputs (if you need it -- like I say, it will still work; just not with full functionality). As this would not be a standard installation, you may be asked to pay for running this extra cable. Get the tea and biscuits out snappily!

amandac

ok, but im not getting an installer in, i bought the hd box from adverts and its due to be delivered tomorow,can i just replace the sky plus box with the new hd box and ring sky to pair my card(i have a hd cable already) are the rest of the connections the same?

if i put the sky plus box in the kids room with just the one connection can they still record to the box, even the channel they are watching? if so what way does it work for setting up a recording automatically? do i have to put the station on or does it automatically change and record? ie wwe raw, its on at 2am so will i need to change to sky sports before the time or will the box change it for me?

byte

amandac wrote: »

ok, but im not getting an installer in, i bought the hd box from adverts and its due to be delivered tomorow,can i just replace the sky plus box with the new hd box and ring sky to pair my card(i have a hd cable already) are the rest of the connections the same?

if i put the sky plus box in the kids room with just the one connection can they still record to the box, even the channel they are watching? if so what way does it work for setting up a recording automatically? do i have to put the station on or does it automatically change and record? ie wwe raw, its on at 2am so will i need to change to sky sports before the time or will the box change it for me?

The HD box will be a straight swapover, and ring Sky to pair card

To the best of my knowledge, if Sky+ box is only using 1 cable it'll only record the channel being viewed. So to set the timer, I think (not 100%) that you'll need to leave the box on teh relevant channel, or put it into standby. Otherwise, it will look ot use the unused tuner, and recording will fail.

steveon

Changing the Skyplus box with a HD box is as simple as ringing sky to re-pair the card but your subscription will go up by an extra €15 a month.

You will need to leave the sky plus box on the channel you wish to record as if you try and change channels whilst recording you will lose signal on other channels.

amandac

thanks for your help, another question, when i get the hd box what way do i pair the cards? ie, sky plus to hd, regular sky to sky plus?can i then sell the standard sky box or do i have to send it back to them(im still in my 12 month contract)

steveon

Usually your primary card will go into the Skyplus or SkyHd box however this is not always the case.. Best option is to ring sky up and tell them your intentions and they will tell you where to put each card.

amandac

ill ring them when i get the box, thanks, any idea if i have to give back the standard box to sky?i know people on here have said in other posts that its your property but as i said im still in my 12 month contract

steveon

I wouldnt imagine you would if you purchase the HD box yourself off an advert

muffler

amandac wrote: »

ill ring them when i get the box, thanks, any idea if i have to give back the standard box to sky?i know people on here have said in other posts that its your property but as i said im still in my 12 month contract

I got a new sub with Sky a couple of months ago with a new standard box. I waited a couple of weeks and then replaced the new standard box with an older sky+ box and rang them to have the card paired with the different box.

During the course of the conversation the lady I was talking to told me that I could sell the new standard box they give me if I wanted to. So long as they got their money every month they weren't worried about the box.

amandac

thanks , nice to hear from someone who has done the same thing

amandac

ok i need some more help now, just set up the new hd box and i have a small problem, the cable going into the second feed on the dish is about 10 inches too small, anyone know if i can buy a small length of the cable and connect it on? would this interfere with the quality of the signal?its kind of the only option i have as my cables and wires have all been buried in the wall under the tv, anything i can do other than ripping the cable out of the wall? please help

ethernet

amandac wrote: »

ok i need some more help now, just set up the new hd box and i have a small problem, the cable going into the second feed on the dish is about 10 inches too small, anyone know if i can buy a small length of the cable and connect it on? would this interfere with the quality of the signal?its kind of the only option i have as my cables and wires have all been buried in the wall under the tv, anything i can do other than ripping the cable out of the wall? please help

Ideally it would be just the one continuous run of cable but if you do add an extension to it, just keep it as short as possible. You'll need high-quality cable with F connectors on both ends as well as a back-to-back female adapter (looks like this).

amandac

great, at lest i can do it without ripping out the wall , would i get these in maplins? what type of cable would be the best?i mean what should i ask for ?

Sam Radford

It's best to match the cable already there. Hopefully, it's the correct double-screened copper braid on copper foil type. If it's air-spaced dielectric you'll need WC100 cable. If foam dielectric, you'll need WF100 (with the 'F' connectors to match whichever you choose).
Pictures here: http://www.glodark.com/cable.htm

How to fit plugs here: http://www.satcure.com/tech/fconn.htm

amandac

ok on the cable it says, 75 OHM COAX W102 CCS , will this code be sufficient to bring with me? will they know what im talking about?

waterdale33

I looking for a sky plus any condition as long its working i give 50 euro for it thanks