Series Linking British and Irish channels

MuddyDog

Are there any freeview/saorview box out there that you can series link and record both the Irish and British channels? The ones I am looking at it only mentions one or the other.

MuddyDog

Would the below be able to do what I'm after?

http://www.freetv.ie/ferguson-ariva-153/

SteM

The box you linked to says

- 7 Day Electronic Program Guide (Saorview Channels)
- Now/Next (UK Satellite Channels)

so it won't do what you want based on the description.

The box linked to in this thread will do what you want provided you add an external drive and hook it up to a satellite dish and aerial.

https://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057810331

MuddyDog

Cheers. We have a Sky satellite so what optional extras do I need? Do I need the optional 3rd Tuner (the Single DVB-C/T2 tuner) if I just want the satellite and saorview connection (I basically want to get all English and Irish channels). I added OpenATV but no idea really what OpenATV is compared to the other options within the list! There is 0 internet where this will be installed if that matters. Also, I have an existing 320GB HDD in my laptop that is no longer any use to me as I just got an SSD for it, so could I just format that as FAT32/NTFS and use it for this (do I have to install this internally or can a HDD with USB connection do?).

SteM

MuddyDog wrote: »

Cheers. We have a Sky satellite so what optional extras do I need? Do I need the optional 3rd Tuner (the Single DVB-C/T2 tuner) if I just want the satellite and saorview connection (I basically want to get all English and Irish channels). I added OpenATV but no idea really what OpenATV is compared to the other options within the list! There is 0 internet where this will be installed if that matters. Also, I have an existing 320GB HDD in my laptop that is no longer any use to me as I just got an SSD for it, so could I just format that as FAT32/NTFS and use it for this (do I have to install this internally or can a HDD with USB connection do?).

If you have no internet where the box is then you won't be able to get the full 7 day EPG on this box so series linking won't work I'm afraid. Sorry.

MuddyDog

Really? But won't the EPG be coming from the aerial/satellite. The house used to have Sky with 0 internet and could get the 7 day EPG with series linking.

If not, what box can I get to get the English channels only that can series link without internet?

Gerry Wicklow

SteM wrote: »

If you have no internet where the box is then you won't be able to get the full 7 day EPG on this box so series linking won't work I'm afraid. Sorry.

WRONG!
The 7 day EPG comes from the satellite no internet connection is needed.

MuddyDog

Thanks Gerry. Bit worried about Stem's other advice now (sorry Stem!). Can you confirm this Formuler box is the one for me and possibly answer my questions in post #4?!

Gerry Wicklow

MuddyDog wrote: »

Cheers. We have a Sky satellite so what optional extras do I need? Do I need the optional 3rd Tuner (the Single DVB-C/T2 tuner) if I just want the satellite and saorview connection (I basically want to get all English and Irish channels). I added OpenATV but no idea really what OpenATV is compared to the other options within the list! There is 0 internet where this will be installed if that matters. Also, I have an existing 320GB HDD in my laptop that is no longer any use to me as I just got an SSD for it, so could I just format that as FAT32/NTFS and use it for this (do I have to install this internally or can a HDD with USB connection do?).

You will need the third DVB-T tuner for Saorview (the Irish channels) as they are not free on the UK satellite. You will also need some form of conventional aerial. The type depends on your location.
OpenATV is the enigma (linux) operating system that the box uses. There are many different flavours of enigma. Think of it like windows 7, 8, 10. To an extent it is a matter of personal preference but I think openATV is currently the best.
Internet is not essential but would add a huge amount of extra functions including the ability to stream both live and recordings to other device around your home. If you don't have a nearby net cable, you could use homeplugs or add a wifi dongle.
The 320Gb HDD you mention would be ideal when plugged into one of the USB ports. The HDD is formatted to the EXT4, linux format as this is better than FAT32/NTFS.

SteM

Gerry Wicklow wrote: »

WRONG!
The 7 day EPG comes from the satellite no internet connection is needed.

On the Formuler F1 box in the thread linked to? It's an enigma box that downloads the EPG over the internet surely? That's what my Zgemma enigma box does anyway, if my box isn't connected to the internet it doesn’t download the epg as far as I can tell. It's set up to downlaod EPG data once a day at 7am.

If that's not the case I stand corrected but you could be a bit politer with your replies in the future.

Gerry Wicklow

Enigma boxes use a plugin called crossEPG to download the data directly from the satellite.

MuddyDog

Gerry Wicklow wrote: »

Enigma boxes use a plugin called crossEPG to download the data directly from the satellite.

I am assuming that plugin will come pre-installed on the box I'm getting from world of satellite? I'm choosing OpenATV.

Gerry Wicklow

In the interest of clarity and full disclosure
It is possible to get plugins that download EPG data from the web. These were more popular a few years ago. However, like many online things, they were not always reliable or accurate.
These days most systems download the EPG data directly from the satellite feeds so no web access is required. Some flavours of enigma, such as openATV, have the Freesat data built in. Others use a plugin called crossEPG to download the data.

MuddyDog

Last question - I have my own HDD I will connect to this but it's SATA II. Can I just buy a SATA II to USB 2.0 adapter and it'll work just fine?

Turbulent Bill

MuddyDog wrote: »

Last question - I have my own HDD I will connect to this but it's SATA II. Can I just buy a SATA II to USB 2.0 adapter and it'll work just fine?

Think the F1 has a SATA connection at the back, check the specs.