Saorview & Saorsat/Freesat Question

Shane732

At present we have 6 tvs in the house 3 of which have sky, 3 of which don't.

With the digital switchover coming we need to sort out the other 3 Tvs.... To that I'm looking for some advice.

At present the 3 tvs without sky are just wired up to an aerial outside. I'm told that we could just get 3 saorview boxes and connect them to the aerial connections and then we'd get the RTE saorview service. However I understand that by going for this option we'd lose the uk channels we're currently getting (BBC/UTV/Channel 4) -we don't want to lose them. From what I've been reading I think the best option might be a saorsat of some sort. I'm slightly confused as to what exactly saorsat is! Presumably it's a satellite connected to a box that will give us rte + other various channels.

Would anyone here be able to recommend a setup to go for? Ideally we'd like to be able to record etc... on the boxes too.

I've had all sorts of wonderful ideas before of running the tvs through a computer media centre and having sky on them but unfortunately I don't possess the ability to do what some of you guys have done in the show your setup thread!!

Thanks in advance!

MarkK

Shane732 wrote: »

At present the 3 tvs without sky are just wired up to an aerial outside. I'm told that we could just get 3 saorview boxes and connect them to the aerial connections and then we'd get the RTE saorview service. However I understand that by going for this option we'd lose the uk channels we're currently getting (BBC/UTV/Channel 4) -we don't want to lose them.

Do you mean you are living near the border and are getting BBC/UTV/Channel 4 through your aerial from a transmitter over the border?
If so you should also get BBC/UTV/Channel 4 on a Saorview box from October.

Most Saorview boxes are also compatible with Freeview.
An aerial which currently gets analogue BBC/UTV/Channel 4 from a transmitter over the border should be able to pick up the Freeview channels from October.

Shane732

MarkK wrote: »

Do you mean you are living near the border and are getting BBC/UTV/Channel 4 through your aerial from a transmitter over the border?
If so you should also get BBC/UTV/Channel 4 on a Saorview box from October.

Most Saorview boxes are also compatible with Freeview.
An aerial which currently gets analogue BBC/UTV/Channel 4 from a transmitter over the border should be able to pick up the Freeview channels from October.

Yup we're able to get UK channels through our aerial. We're living in Meath but have no problem getting the channels.

Midnight Sundance

Sorry to bump in on your thread but I'm in the same predicament , I'm in Meath also and currently receive bbc, utv and channel4 through the house arial, we have sky boxes on two tvs, a third has the freeview channels ( I think it's freeview)

In October what will I need in order to keep everything I have now?? (basically , rte, bbc, ch4 and then the free channels like ch5 etc)
Will my freeview box be rendered useless?

Thanks, and again sorry for hijacking your thread

The Cush

Midnight Sundance wrote: »

I'm in Meath also and currently receive bbc, utv and channel4 through the house arial, we have sky boxes on two tvs, a third has the freeview channels ( I think it's freeview)

In October what will I need in order to keep everything I have now?? (basically , rte, bbc, ch4 and then the free channels like ch5 etc)
Will my freeview box be rendered useless?

The Freeview TV (or STB) will continue to work for the Freeview channels after Oct 24th but may or may not be compatible with Saorview. Have you tried tuning in the Saorview channels on it? Saorview epg and audio only, no pictures, would indicate a non-compatible TV. Post the model no. here if you're unsure.

Do you currently receive all 4 Irish analogue channels including TV3?

If it receives both Freeview and Saorview you're sorted for Oct 24th, if not you'll have to upgrade the TV or STB to receive the Saorview channels (and FreeviewHD if required) with a Saorview approved receiver (TV or STB) or FreeviewHD receiver. As said above a Saorview or FreeviewHD receiver will b backwards compatible with the current Freeview channels.

Also there have been some posts here over the last 2 years or so who can get the Irish and UK analogue channels on a single aerial but are unable to receive both digital services on the single aerial, 2 separate aerials may be required in certain circumstances, something to be aware of when looking at your setup.

Ronnie Raygun

Midnight Sundance wrote: »

I'm in Meath also and currently receive bbc, utv and channel4 through the house arial ... Will my freeview box be rendered useless?

Is it a satellite or terrestrial receiver? Satellite won't be affected by switchover.

Freeview (capital F) is the brandname used by the UK digital terrestrial service.

Shane732

Any potential suggestions for my setup?

MarkK

Shane732 wrote: »

Any potential suggestions for my setup?

Get one Saorview box and try it out on all three TVs.

On 10 October the BBC mux starts up and you should be able to get the BBC Freeview channels.

On 24 October, the rest of the Freeview Muxes start broadcasting and you can then see exactly what channels you can and can't get.

If all is well, buy another two Saorview boxes.

The Cush

Shane732 wrote: »

Any potential suggestions for my setup?

MarkK wrote: »

If all is well, buy another two Saorview boxes.

@Shane732

.. or FreeviewHD STBs for the Freeview HD channels which become available from the NI transmitters from Oct 24th (if you can receive the Freeview signal of course).

If you're upgrading TVs in future and can get the Freeview signal look out for a TV with a DVB-T2 (FreeviewHD) tuner.

The UK analogue channels will continue to be available until analogue switchoff even with the Saorview receiver attached - via the TVs analogue tuner.

There are Freeview+HD pvrs available now such as the Humax HDR-FOX T2, which are reported here in the forum to work with both Freeview and Saorview.

Midnight Sundance

Ronnie Raygun wrote: »

Midnight Sundance wrote: »

I'm in Meath also and currently receive bbc, utv and channel4 through the house arial ... Will my freeview box be rendered useless?

Is it a satellite or terrestrial receiver? Satellite won't be affected by switchover.

Freeview (capital F) is the brandname used by the UK digital terrestrial service.

I have a freeview box which I got from B and q. A Ross model, I get some stations through that but I can also receive the usual bbc, rte, utv, tv3 ch4 through the house arial.
If I get a saorview box will I be able to use the freeview box and saorview box on the one tv?

I'm sorry about all the questions, pretty out of touch when it comes to tvs and tv technology.

The Cush

Midnight Sundance wrote: »

I have a freeview box which I got from B and q. A Ross model, I get some stations through that but I can also receive the usual bbc, rte, utv, tv3 ch4 through the house arial.
If I get a saorview box will I be able to use the freeview box and saorview box on the one tv?

I assume the B&Q Ross receiver is a free-to-air satellite receiver connected to a satellite dish, Freeview is the UK digital terrestrial service similar to our Saorview via the aerial.

You can use both on the same TV.