Replacing Sky but very confused

molly111

Hi,

I have been looking at getting rid of Sky for a while but always get very confused about it and give up as I am afraid that I will get the wrong equipment and not be able to do what I can do right now with Sky.

Current Set Up
We have 2 TVs and 1 Sky subscription and can watch TV in either room as we have a Magic Eye.

What I think I need to do is
(1) Buy a Humax Foxsat HDR to put in our TV room and this will allow me to receive the BBCs, ITVs, CH4 plus some other satellite channels. I will also be able to record and pause live TV with this box. But wont have any RTEs. Is this all correct so far?

(2) I am also going to buy a Triax SR110 box to watch the RTEs and TV3 channels in our living room.

Questions
(1) Will I be able to watch the Foxsat channels in my living room via a MagicEye type option - this is where I always get confused?
(2) Will this be complicated to set up? We currently have a 4 port LNB on our dish - will this be enough?

Any help greatly aprpeciated as I am tired of paying Sky every month and only watching a handful of channels but dont want to buy the wrong thing and not

Thanks in advance

zg3409

molly111 wrote: »

I am also going to buy a Triax SR110 box to watch the RTEs and TV3 channels in our

This model number is a satellite box. I assume you mean a Saorview approved terrestrial box? For RTE, TV3 you need not a Sat dish but a TV aerial pointed at the nearest mast.

Go to Saorview coverage checker to see if you have Saorview coverage and how far away the mast is from you.

http://www.saorview.ie/make-the-switch/coverage-map/

If you are more than a few miles from the mast you probably need an outdoor aerial.


Then are any of your TV's Saorview compatable? If not then you need a Saorview receiver. The Sky eye is a system mostly used by Sky. It is not built inside the boxes of most other makes. To make another brand act like a Sky box you need such an item:

http://www.tvtrade.ie/triax-trilink-kit.html

This link has videos, user manuals etc.

These allow any box to act similar to a Sky eye.
However this has limitations (which you probably already know)

You would need a second remote for both the humax and the Saorview box (or carry the remote to the 2nd TV)

Also you would need to hookup the tri-link to both the satellite box AND the Saorview box and switch between the two.

What I would actually recommend is not go that route.

For the main TV go for a Freesat+HD box and a seperate Saorview box connected to a TV aerial

For the second TV connect a Freesat HD (non recording box) to that TV. Go for the same brand as the recording box as the remotes/menus will be similar. Also a second Saorview box.

In that way you still have no monthly bill but the option of watching different channels on both TV's. The sky eye system works well with Sky boxes, less so with other brands especially if you have 2 different boxes for BBC and RTE.

If your TV's are over 10 years old then a Saorview box is not good value, instead buy a new TV that is Saorview compatable. It also means less wires etc. However nearly all TV's with built in Saorview do not record, if recording the Irish channels are a priority. In the next year or so a proper Saorview recording box will be launched which allows series link, pause, record one channel while watching another. At that stage then you can add recording of Irish Channels to main TV

molly111

thanks very much for your reply.

Can I check why the Triax SR110 box wont work for me and why I should get a Saorview approved terrestrial box. Wont the Triax box work off my old Sky dish?

Also I don't really want to go change my TVs if I can help it as they work fine....seems that I've more questions than ever!

zg3409

molly111 wrote: »

thanks very much for your reply.

Can I check why the Triax SR110 box wont work for me and why I should get a Saorview approved terrestrial box. Wont the Triax box work off my old Sky dish?

Also I don't really want to go change my TVs if I can help it as they work fine....seems that I've more questions than ever!

On the satellite system RTE is encrypted so you need a Sky box and card to watch it via a dish.

From ground transmitters Saorview is not encrypted so you don't need to pay to watch it. So to "get rid of Sky" you need a TV aerial for the Irish channels. You can use you old Sky box for UK free channels but once you stop paying Sky send a signal to stop your box for working.

If recording is important we recommend getting a Freesat+HD box and connecting it to your dish for the UK channels.

For the Irish channels get a Saorview box and connect it to an aerial on your roof.

It's a pain needing two boxes but the UK and Irish systems are different. It's not as easy to use as the Sky system but it's free saving you a minimum of €25 x 12 per year. The equipment should pay for itself in no time.

3DataModem

Any advantage having a Saorsat / Freesat box in one? Is it even possible?

Gerry Wicklow

The Triax SR110 should work with your old dish but you will not get RTÉ TG4 or TV3 from the sky satellite without a subscription. A Saorview box or Tv with a conventional aerial will give you the Irish channels. It is possible to get the RTÉ and TG4 channels (not TV3 or 3E) from another satellite but that requires a second dish or additional equipment fitted to your existing set up.

zg3409

3DataModem wrote: »

Any advantage having a Saorsat / Freesat box in one? Is it even possible?

As Gerry says it is an option but I did not want to confuse Molly. The recommended route is to get RTE via Saorview and an aerial rather than a dish.

Molly can use her old Sky box and a Saorview box. There is no point buying another Satellite box.

molly111

thanks for all your help - am off to get the stuff now