See other Satellites/channels?

Andy Baker

If I fit a motor to my Sky+ dish can I use my existing equipment to see other satellites and therefore other digital channels? If so what's out there!?

Tony

Afraid not, you would need a completely separate system to do this

Andy Baker wrote: »

If I fit a motor to my Sky+ dish can I use my existing equipment to see other satellites and therefore other digital channels? If so what's out there!?

biologikal

I'm sure the dish/LNB/cabling can be used (but not at the same time as your Sky+), but you'd need a new receiver. Also, dish is probably a bit small to bring in all satellites viewable from Ireland, but you'd definately get some. 80cm is probably the minimum that would be recommended to you for a motorised set-up.

You can view satellites/channels/footprints at lyngsat.com or flysat.com. I think we can happily get satellites from 42E to 30W in Ireland, but there are exceptions; check the footprints, and different satellite clusters might have different spots, eg, I think Sirius at 4.8E has European and Nordic spots; you can get the European spot easly enough with an 80cm, but would probably need a 2 meter dish to get the Nordic spot (if at all).

watty

Dish is too small and mount does not suit a motor. no simple way to fit the Sky dish on a Motor.

You can get a suitable dish from about 80 Euro and Motor around 120 Euro. You need a different receiver as the SkyDigibox has no motor control software.

With a 80cm to 110cm dish you will get about 12 to 23 satellite positions, depending on exact size of dish, weather, dish quality and how good alignment is.

42E to 45W (actually up to 62E to 70W approx is technically possible on a larger dish, but no suitable footprints) .

Tony

biologikal wrote: »

I'm sure the dish/LNB/cabling can be used (but not at the same time as your Sky+)

Hardly since he has sky+

BustaMove

I'm trying to research some of the options to get set up for free-to-air satellite TV .. been looking at satellite.ie and he's selling a few Ferguson options.
I found this and maybe it's not worth it, paying another €50/60 for the kit off satellite.ie might be a better option.
http://www.lidl.ie/ie/home.nsf/pages/c.o.20080403.p.DigitalSatSystem
What do you guys think? Stay away from it or maybe it's worth it?

Tony

The lidl system is excellent value no doubt about it as you get things like a satfinder and cable included, the only thing I think lets them down is the quality of the dish. The box also has no RF output but this is only an issue if you want to watch the same channel on another tv, most people these days get a box per tv so both can watch different channels. Worse case is you would have to change the dish to a better one at some point in the future

BustaMove

Thanks very much for the response Tony!
If I did want to pipe the signal to another TV, would I need anything else other than another box?
Am I correct in assuming tjhere's probably only one connection on the standard LNB and if I wanted to run it to another box I'd need to upgrade to a LNB with 2 connections?
Thanks once again, things are starting to get a little clearer :-)

biologikal

That particular package from Lidl has a twin LNB, meaning you can use it with 2 receivers, and watch different programmes on each.

I got the last Lidl offer, which included an 80cm dish, but to be honest, I can't fault the dish, it's been outside in our $h!tty weather since September, and hasn't moved unless I've moved it myself, and I get quality above 70% on any channel I've kept on a 3-LNB array. I've only had experience of this dish and an older, rusty Sky dish with wobbly fittings, so my experience is limited in how good/bad the dish is, but it's served me well. If I was to critisise any part of the package, it would be the wall mount - it's only attached to one point on the wall; if there was another piece that stabilised it at the top, it would be better. No problem if location is well sheltered - replace it (or adapt) if you intend using it where it's going to get a lot of wind (unless they've changed it since last time).

homer911

The dish really is terrible quality - the bracket is especially poor and an almost guaranteed failure point. I bought the Lidl system myself some time back and lost the dish in a storm - replaced it with a wire sky dish - very solid. It might be worth holding out until Freesat is up and running in the UK, and paying the extra few quid for a quality system

Tony

As Biologikal points out this package has a twin lnb so you understand correctly that you run a second cable from the dish to your second box.

BustaMove wrote: »

Thanks very much for the response Tony!
If I did want to pipe the signal to another TV, would I need anything else other than another box?
Am I correct in assuming tjhere's probably only one connection on the standard LNB and if I wanted to run it to another box I'd need to upgrade to a LNB with 2 connections?
Thanks once again, things are starting to get a little clearer :-)