Freesat. What should i go for?

fergal28_01

I am interested in installing a system to recieve freesat channels.
I dont know what i need to set up this system.
I have a vague idea from reading various threads and internet research.

My house is located in the midlands. It is a new house and all tv points wired same point in attic.
Any suggestions on what box to go for?
What are the different parts that make up a free sat system?
Dish, set top box.
Is that it?

Randyleprechaun

I would advise you to go for a second hand sky box.

It is essentially the same as a freesat receiver but with the advantage that you can run magic eyes of it to allow you to change channels from other rooms in the house.

Other advantages of the FREESAT and SKY BOXES are:

They auto tune in new channels

They auto tune in channels if lost.(some FTA receivers will lose channels from time to time for different reasons and you will have to re tune.

You will just need a dish and lnb and a receiver

snaps

If you have a UHF aerial, id go for a non freesat combi box. This way you'll get UK FTA channels including BBC HD, ITV HD and the Irish DTT test/service channels. Also you can record as well with a combi box onto a USB drive.

Plenty of threads chatting about combi boxes etc.

Or if you are not looking for Irish channels, get a Humax Freesat PVR, twin tuner and is very much like a sky+ box in the way it functions.

snaps

Randyleprechaun wrote: »

I would advise you to go for a second hand sky box.

It is essentially the same as a freesat receiver but with the advantage that you can run magic eyes of it to allow you to change channels from other rooms in the house.

Other advantages of the FREESAT and SKY BOXES are:

They auto tune in new channels

They auto tune in channels if lost.(some FTA receivers will lose channels from time to time for different reasons and you will have to re tune.

You will just need a dish and lnb and a receiver

You wont get any Irish channels this way and also some channels have to be added to the other channels section on the sky box.

homer911

fergal28_01 wrote: »

I am interested in installing a system to recieve freesat channels.
I dont know what i need to set up this system.
I have a vague idea from reading various threads and internet research.

My house is located in the midlands. It is a new house and all tv points wired same point in attic.
Any suggestions on what box to go for?
What are the different parts that make up a free sat system?
Dish, set top box.
Is that it?

You'll need a HD cable to connect the Freesat (HD?) receiver to the TV and some good quality cable to the dish

If you want PVR functionality with two tuners I'd recommend the Humax Freesat+ box. If you want a single tuner freesat box and the ability to record occasional programs, then there is only one Freesat box which does this currently - I think its the technisat.

If you are also replacing your TV you could consider one with inbuilt Freesat

check out joinfreesat.co.uk for reviews etc

Macy0161

If I was starting from here, I'd go for a Freesat PVR (as mention, like sky+) for UK channels.

Unless you're going to bother getting a Free To View card I wouldn't go for the Sky receiver personally, at least not for the main telly (unless you get given one). A combo receiver will also work, but be aware of the on going maintenance as already stated.

A Standard Definition Freesat box can be got for stg£25 at the moment!

Randyleprechaun

snaps wrote: »

You wont get any Irish channels this way and also some channels have to be added to the other channels section on the sky box.

The OP mentioned getting freesat only but I take your point.

Probably better to go for the combi in that case unless they have MPEG4 TV in which case I'd go for the sky box option.

OP, are you buying a TV or have one already. Good deals at the minute for TV's with MPEG4 tuner and fressat tuner built in.

watty

If you ever want Saorsat (Q2 2011), then go for Freesat HD box as minimum.

Cantona's Collars

Heres a couple of options that should cover most of your needs
http://www.tvtrade.ie/complete-freesat-kits/combined-irish-and-uk-freesat-kits.html http://www.tvtrade.ie/complete-freesat-kits/combined-irish-and-uk-freesat-kits.html

HappyHarry

fergal28_01 wrote: »

all tv points wired same point in attic.

Can your TV(s) play digital TV in Mpeg4 format?

How many points do you want to use?
You may require some sort of distribution system if you want to use several points.

It there only one cable to each TV point? It is Satellite grade cable?
For some of the suggestions above you will need more than one cable, or it may be possible with special combiners.

For Irish channels you may need a terrestrial antenna, either in your attic or outside. Small set-top antennas may do the job. You may need a distribution amp for an attic antenna depending on the quality of the cable to the TV points, how many there are and how long the cable runs are.

Qualitymark

I have a Freesat box, but unfortunately the person who set it up chose a point that was interrupted by a neighbour's tall tree, and now that it's summer, I'm missing most channels.

Can anyone suggest a good installer who can change the site of the dish for me? And tell me where's the best place to site it - garage roof? Wall? What?

watty

Anyplace with clear view to South East at about 22.5 degrees.

Fold a square once on diagonal = 45
twice = 22.5

make one edge horizontal and peer up other edge to see clear sky in South East.

Barack Obama

fergal28_01 wrote: »

I am interested in installing a system to recieve freesat channels.
I dont know what i need to set up this system.
I have a vague idea from reading various threads and internet research.

My house is located in the midlands. It is a new house and all tv points wired same point in attic.
Any suggestions on what box to go for?
What are the different parts that make up a free sat system?
Dish, set top box.
Is that it?

The Humax Freesat box gets a lot of recommendations on here. The advantages over an old Sky Box are HD, dual tuner and built in hard drive for recording.
http://www.humaxdigital.com/uk/products/product_stb_satellite_foxsathdr.aspx

All you need for this is a standard Sky dish and a multi lnb (you need two feeds).

Here's the list of channels you get -
http://www.freesat.co.uk/index.php?page=whatson.Main

heathersonline

What are the advantages of having a free to view card? What additional channels can they receive? Presumably ebay or or the likes are best for these?

watty

eBay a bad idea. They are also illegal on eBay.

It's not a FTV card any more. It's only "freesat from sky". Basically Sky3, Fiver and Five US plus lots of marketing to get Sky sub. You can only legal get it from Sky, as it remains their property. They only post them to a UK postcode address. Basically then you are free to use it in any EU location from a legal criminal point of view, though it may contravene a civil contract between you and Sky. Their only legal remedy is to disable it.

Macy0161

Sky3, Five USA and Fiver (channel Five digital channels) are the extra Free To View channels, plus a few more on the standard epg. imo Five USA is the only real one I miss occasionally (and a PVR would probably get around that).

Advantages apart from the channels are the use of the sky eye for other rooms. And full red button services.

Disadvantages are that it's either trawl through all the sub channels or use the "favourites" option.

I'm not convinced it's worth it (buying a 2nd hand sky receiver and FTV card) for the channels alone.

watty

Sky eye works with no card.

Qualitymark

watty wrote: »

Anyplace with clear view to South East at about 22.5 degrees.

Fold a square once on diagonal = 45
twice = 22.5

make one edge horizontal and peer up other edge to see clear sky in South East.

Horizontal? It's not horizontal now! Mad!

Or wait, am I misunderstanding you? What's this square I have to fold?

RustySpoon

Barack Obama wrote: »

The Humax Freesat box gets a lot of recommendations on here. The advantages over an old Sky Box are HD, dual tuner and built in hard drive for recording.
http://www.humaxdigital.com/uk/products/product_stb_satellite_foxsathdr.aspx

Does this box have series link as that feature is the only thing keeping my basic pack sky sub active?

Roughly how much would it cost to buiy & fit a DTT ariel & would the humax box have the capability to series link programs from that source?

watty

Qualitymark wrote: »

Horizontal? It's not horizontal now! Mad!

Or wait, am I misunderstanding you? What's this square I have to fold?

A piece of paper or card to see the elevation angle. The Dish is offset, so you can't tell actually how high in sky it's pointing.

Qualitymark

There's a page called dishpointer.com that helps you to aim at dishes - but which one does Freesat use? And what's all this 'Azimuth' stuff mean?

smcque

RustySpoon wrote: »

Does this box have series link as that feature is the only thing keeping my basic pack sky sub active?

as a fomer sky+ subscriber (15 yrs) i can fully recommend the humex, it does have series link, the only thing i miss is the sports package:( but the hd, 5live and FREE viewing are a good replacement for skys large subs

watty

Qualitymark wrote: »

There's a page called dishpointer.com that helps you to aim at dishes - but which one does Freesat use? And what's all this 'Azimuth' stuff mean?

28.2E same as Sky. In south west at 22.5 elevation approx.

Azimuth is East / West angle. It's not the same angle as satellite. If you lived near Prague the 28.2E is due south. Due south is an azimuth of 180 degrees.

Ireland is about 5W to 8W. (Greenwich in London is 0)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azimuth

Elevation is up/down. More strictly it's Altitude http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Altitude_%28astronomy%29

If you lived on equator due South of Prague (approximately) the elevation would be 90, the dish on its back pointing straight up (some place in Indian ocean near Africa, or maybe East Africa).

The satellites are all about 22,500 miles / 45,000km every 2 to 5 degrees in orbit above the equator. This unique orbit creates the impression from the ground that the satellites are stationary, even though they are whizzing past taking only 24 hrs to orbit the Earth

Unless you are professionally aligning a very large dish, all you need to know (for Sky/Freesat) is that you need a clear view, approximately to the South East at about 22.5 degrees elevation up in the sky, the angle of a square of paper or card folded twice. Any other satellite is different. The easily received Spanish services come from a Satellite over the Atlantic ocean, thus in South West part of sky.

In fact in the mid morning the Sun in Autumn and Spring "passes" behind the satellite exactly. In Summer above it and in Winter below it.

Qualitymark

Ah, thanks, Watty. Just wondering where to put my dish to keep it from being interrupted by my high back wall (football field on other side) and my neighbour's trees!

watty

what ever the height of the wall/trees..

subtract height the dish will be at.

ensure your dish is x2 distance of the remaining height. That's about 22.5 Degrees.

Qualitymark

watty wrote: »

what ever the height of the wall/trees..

subtract height the dish will be at.

ensure your dish is x2 distance of the remaining height. That's about 22.5 Degrees.

Ah!

Though come to think of it, the dish is much further back than that from the trees, yet still they're interrupting the signal. Wonder if it should be angled further up...

watty

The angle has to be perfect (within 1/2 a degree) or you really get very little. 1 degree out (up/down or east/west) and you get almost nothing.

Maybe it's just poorly aligned and the trees are nothing to do with it. Though there is a pesky thing called Fresnel Zone if something nearly blocks a signal.

Qualitymark

Trees are creeping up year by year; trouble is, my neighbour loves those trees. So do I, actually. But I'd love them a little more if they were five feet shorter.

watty

Anywhere else in garden? The dish only needs to be about 1.5m above ground. You can run cable up to 30m or more usually with no issues.

Qualitymark

watty wrote: »

Anywhere else in garden? The dish only needs to be about 1.5m above ground. You can run cable up to 30m or more usually with no issues.

Trouble is there's this huge high wall at the back.

Kristopherus

Qualitymark wrote: »

Trouble is there's this huge high wall at the back.

Can you not then bolt it to that wall? If its a high wall you can bolt it high up and the tilt angle should get you free of the trees.

Qualitymark

Kristopherus wrote: »

Can you not then bolt it to that wall? If its a high wall you can bolt it high up and the tilt angle should get you free of the trees.

I suppose I could. Two disadvantages: it's 30 feet away down the garden, and on the other side are bold boys playing football, to whom it would be a distinct temptation.

Oh, and the other side of the wall isn't mine; only my side is - it's a border between me and the footie club.

Kristopherus

Dont put it up so high that it can be seen from the other side:eek:. Of course the boyos on the other side would use it for accuracy (target) practice :D:D. As Watty says you should get a good signal from 30m, but with the best quality cable.

Qualitymark

Kristopherus wrote: »

Dont put it up so high that it can be seen from the other side:eek:. Of course the boyos on the other side would use it for accuracy (target) practice :D:D. As Watty says you should get a good signal from 30m, but with the best quality cable.

Ah, to face southeast it would have to *be* on the other side!

dromdrom

Barack Obama wrote: »

The Humax Freesat box gets a lot of recommendations on here. The advantages over an old Sky Box are HD, dual tuner and built in hard drive for recording.
http://www.humaxdigital.com/uk/products/product_stb_satellite_foxsathdr.aspx

All you need for this is a standard Sky dish and a multi lnb (you need two feeds).

Here's the list of channels you get -
http://www.freesat.co.uk/index.php?page=whatson.Main

When you say multi Inb, would I be right in thinking that if already have sky plus installed and just connected up the Humax box to the existing sky plus wires I would be okay?

Reg'stoy

dromdrom wrote: »

When you say multi Inb, would I be right in thinking that if already have sky plus installed and just connected up the Humax box to the existing sky plus wires I would be okay?

You would indeed, I have recently switched over to the Humax after getting fed up with sky and their prices. Wonderful piece of kit and you will soon realise that watching endless repeats of top gear et al was a complete waste of money.

With the imminent arrival (hopefully) of Irish Digital TV, the real reason most of us got sky as in watching Irish TV channels will no longer apply. I currently watch RTE 1, Network 2, TG4 and the new RTE News service on a €9.99 lidl amp powered aerial, fair enough I don't get ITV Ireland TV3 (yet) but I don't really miss it.

If you're worried about losing the ability to sky+ RTE, I use the RTE Player website playing it at near broadcast quality on my TV through my PS3. I would imagine that once the DTT service is up and running PVR set top boxes will come on to the market.

dromdrom

Reg'stoy wrote: »

You would indeed, I have recently switched over to the Humax after getting fed up with sky and their prices. Wonderful piece of kit and you will soon realise that watching endless repeats of top gear et al was a complete waste of money.

With the imminent arrival (hopefully) of Irish Digital TV, the real reason most of us got sky as in watching Irish TV channels will no longer apply. I currently watch RTE 1, Network 2, TG4 and the new RTE News service on a €9.99 lidl amp powered aerial, fair enough I don't get ITV Ireland TV3 (yet) but I don't really miss it.

If you're worried about losing the ability to sky+ RTE, I use the RTE Player website playing it at near broadcast quality on my TV through my PS3. I would imagine that once the DTT service is up and running PVR set top boxes will come on to the market.

Thanks for the info, I'll suppose I can use the VGA cable and the RTE player. When the RTE service goes Digital will the Humax Box be capable of picking up the RTE straight away of will I need another box/sub?

Reg'stoy

I'll hold my hands up here and say I don't know if you can use a VGA cable and link a PC/Laptop to either your TV or Humax (and then to TV) and access the RTE player website. Greater minds than mine on boards should hopefully answer that question for you.

You will need an Irish DTT ready television and just connect an aerial be it roof/attic mounted or a plain cat ears (depending on your location) to get the new digital service. There are plenty of threads in the terrestrial forum re this.

ricman

I THINK you can buy a sat signal finder round 20euro,goes beeb,beep, when it picks up a signal from a satellite,i use that to install sky dishs ,freesat or sky .its very simple to use.strong signal ,beeps get faster. you just plug it in to your lnb,works off a battery.i dont even use a compass.
look at where is your neighbours dish pointed at.

Qualitymark

ricman wrote: »

I THINK you can buy a sat signal finder round 20euro,goes beeb,beep, when it picks up a signal from a satellite,i use that to install sky dishs ,freesat or sky .its very simple to use.strong signal ,beeps get faster. you just plug it in to your lnb,works off a battery.i dont even use a compass.
look at where is your neighbours dish pointed at.

What's a lnb? Where do you buy this signal finder?

ricman

See here , i prefer finders, that work off batterys.
http://satellite.ie/acatalog/Satfinder_satellite_meter.html its in any power city branch, 11euro.this works off power from the reciever.
you plug the cable from the finder into the lnb,tighten it with a pliers.
LNB IS THE rectanglur unit on the end of the dish arm, that picks up the signal sends it to the sky box.
A SKY satellite quad lnb will send signal to 4 sky recievers perfectly.IT has 4 cable outlets ,you need to run cables from the quad to each box, eg 3 recievers need 3 separate cables.
see here http://www.sam-radford.me.uk/install.htm

Qualitymark

Thanks, Ricman, great.

ricman

I installed 5 boxes for a friend,in one house,1 freesat,4 sky, used 1 pliers,sat finder ,1 quad lnb, thats it ,and a portable tv to check picture quality.
I,m sure theres freesat recievers with epgs,program guides ,with digital recorders ,HARDdrive units .I never used em,so i cant give advice on them.
heres one,http://www.satellitetv.ie/shop/index.php?controller=product&product_id=217 ,you can get a skybox round 40euros on buyandsell.net or gumtree if you want fta channels in each bedroom.
Then maybe pay subscription for 1 skybox in the maintv room, use a wireless sender
to send signal to a tv upstairs.
see here http://www.maplin.co.uk/module.aspx?TabID=1&criteria=usb&ModuleNo=217920&C=SO&U=Strat15 this works on a sky or freesat reciever.

irishh_bob

was wondering if this edison box http://www.saortv.com/shop/Digital-TV-Receivers/Combo/Edision-Argus-mini-2-in-1-IP-Combo-HD-Satellite/DTT-Receiver/prod_72.html will deliver rte when connected to a british model panasonic tv ( S20B) , read somewhere that the british models wont decode any irish channells through a digital service , that you could only get them through an old fashioned roof aerial

slegs

irishh_bob wrote: »

was wondering if this edison box http://www.saortv.com/shop/Digital-TV-Receivers/Combo/Edision-Argus-mini-2-in-1-IP-Combo-HD-Satellite/DTT-Receiver/prod_72.html will deliver rte when connected to a british model panasonic tv ( S20B) , read somewhere that the british models wont decode any irish channells through a digital service , that you could only get them through an old fashioned roof aerial

When receiving DTT through the Edision it doesnt matter about the TV tuner as the picture is sent from the Edision to the TV via the HDMI input.

irishh_bob

slegs wrote: »

When receiving DTT through the Edision it doesnt matter about the TV tuner as the picture is sent from the Edision to the TV via the HDMI input.

so rte should be available on the british model providing the edison is used , relieved to hear that , thank you

fergal28_01

I have got my hands on an old sky box now, thanks for all the info. Extremely helpful stuff!

In process of getting a dish and setting it up. I see LNB's advertised with 2 or more outputs, would this allow me to run another tv in a different room and view separate channels there from the same dish?


Will this dish give me the new UK HD Freesat service i hear so much about on web?

watty

You need a HD receiver (which will dwonsample for an non-HD set, but give improved picture on HD channels).

ricman

If you get a double,triple or quad lnb ,that gives you 2,3 or 4 cables ,outputs ,so you can run 4 sky boxes of 1 lnb ,if you run 4 cables.I,M NOT AN EXPERT but for freesat hd,,or sky hd Reciever you,d need a hd box.i,m gonna subscribe for 1 year ,to sky and get a free skyhd box.
or one sky box conn connect to 2 tvs with, sky magic eye. i think you need a sky sub to watch sky tv in hd on a skyhd reciever.

Cantona's Collars

Was just googling free to air satellite providers and found this-http://www.crawfordsat.com/index.php?page=free-to-air .The name sounded familiar so I had a look.The dish is 40cm, surely totally inadequate for decent satellite reception in Ireland,any thoughts? I've seen a few of these dishes on houses,wouldn't like to try and watch tv there in the rain.

St Senan

zerks wrote: »

Was just googling free to air satellite providers and found this-http://www.crawfordsat.com/index.php?page=free-to-air .The name sounded familiar so I had a look.The dish is 40cm, surely totally inadequate for decent satellite reception in Ireland,any thoughts? I've seen a few of these dishes on houses,wouldn't like to try and watch tv there in the rain.

The dish is a Zone1 45cm for the UK market over here we Use Zone2 60cm.
I cant see how this size of dish would work well in Co Cork
Although here in Co Wexford i will say that the dishes do work with some loss to signal but i would prefer to stick with Zone 2 60cm
there is a well known Phone shop in Enniscorthy that uses Zone1 dishes all the time but that's a chance there are taking using this size of dish