duffer

I bet you were hacked off for a bit! Were you panicking at all? If my UK TV went down I would move house!

Isakat

Yes, I was worried when BBC disappeared, than you could only get it on HD, then zilch.

If my English TV went off I would move country!!!

Domino

that is why almost from the beginning of sat comms it was called "wooding"

ISTR the early installations on warships that the mast got in the way from time to time and suddenly became a tree !

luca123

hi ALL
looking to have freesat or sky in deep deep south Calabria!
what size dish and equipment is required??

sonofjoe

Oh no Lost ITV today! her indoors is going spare, no Emmerdale or Corrie
Has the frequency changed? I'm in Naples and have been getting it on 12.480 for years. All the other channels are ok though. Anyone know why?

The Guy

Yes.
All ITV1 on 12402 frequency are no more.
This afternoon they all moved to 10994 h 22 5/6, which is on Astra 1N satellite, 2ds temporary replacement.

http://www.satandpcguy.com/forum/sho...frequency-soon

So either re-add them to "other channels", and if you get "no signal" when you try, then perhaps your dish is too small to receive them on their new 1n frequency.

sonofjoe

Cheers for that. Looks like we'll have to watch Dave or Discovery now instead

HCChambers

Hi all! I just moved to Northern Italy, and I have a Sky+ box with the card from when I moved from the UK. I have read all through this forum, and to be honest, I am very confused. I don't want everyone to repeat all of the info, because I know how frustrating that is in forums, but could someone give me some one-on-one help on knowing what to buy and how to set it all up? Any help would be VERY much appreciated!!!

klarika

Does any one know where you can buy a large sky dish from?

klarika

I know you install large dishes but do you sell them? We live in Hungary so would need to have it transported somehow.

duffer

Hey HC,

If you've got the Sky+ box and card then all you need is a dish, LNB and high quality cables.

For the LNB I'd get an Invacom Quad QDH-031, I'm using it and compared to the previous LNB, it improved greatly the signal quality. Why a quad and not a single or dual? Not only is this model great for reception but it is also a quad, meaning it can feed 4 cables allowing 4 decoders to be used independently or 2 Sky+ boxes independently. For Sky+ you will need not only 2 cables but also an active Sky subscription (at a UK address). It might not be a consideration now but it's best to future-proof and once bought, you wouldn't need to replace it. I know from experience, it's a bitch changing LNBs, cables, etc. I've changed everything: receiver, dish, cables and LNB. They all make a difference so get it right first time and you will know that you are getting the most out of your equipment. Otherwise you could be severely frustrated when you start losing the signal in the evenings or the picture is blocky and you order a new LNB not knowing if it will improve matters.

As before, you can use any cheap cable that you find in a Brico for example but if you can afford it, go with more expensive, thicker cables for lower loss (not available in Brico), this ensures you get the best possible signal quality. In some cases it could be the difference between seeing a fuzzy white screen and a proper picture

Lastly but most importantly, the dish size. This depends where you are in northern Italy. It could vary from 80cm to 120cm based on location. When you order the dish, make sure the arm and the LNB are compatible (if they are not included with the dish and need to be ordered separately).

Once you have all the equipment, either get a guy to install the dish or DIY. Point it at 28.2E using a satfinder or iphone/android app. Get someone to check the TV screen at the same time if possible.

I might have missed some things but just give us a shout for any other queries.

Just one consideration, the UK channels are moving to a new satellite, Astra 2F at the end of the year or early 2013, and we don't know if this will affect the signal, it might make it harder to obtain in Italy (could be easier). The channels are currently on a temporary satellite, Astra 1N, which is easier to view from than the previous permanent home of the channels, Astra 2D. The signal from Astra 2D was focused on the UK region so the further you were from the UK, the weaker the signal would become, therefore a bigger dish was required.

Isakat

Just one consideration, the UK channels are moving to a new satellite, Astra 2F at the end of the year or early 2013, and we don't know if this will affect the signal, it might make it harder to obtain in Italy (could be easier).


Duffer, you spoiled my day with this information. Will miss the BBC channels when this happens.

The Guy

I do install them... in Spain.
I do not do delivery fo them.
There are a few companies that do, but it may be better to wait until you know what reception is like when the new satellites go up. The firrst Astra 2F, is scheduled for sometime Q4 this year. Only when it is operations will you know what chanenls are on what beam and thus what size dish you need.

famaval make dishes.
channel master do also - better than the famavals but more expensive.

duffer

Don't worry love, put the kettle on and have a nice cuppa instead.

We don't know jack at the moment. I doubt it will be the same as now (Astra 1N), i.e. easier to obtain a signal than it was with Astra 2D. The signal could go back to Astra 2D level or it could get a lot more focused on the UK, in which case all those expats in Spain, Portugal, Italy and to a lesser extent France will be affected. Apparently the Astra 2F satellite is similar to Astra 1N so why move the channels to 1N in the first place if there wasn't another reason, like the way the signal is beamed?

Anyone know anything about something?

HCChambers

Thanks Duffer, much appreciated! Looks like I'm gonna be shopping this weekend! I just got all of my stuff from when I moved from the UK, and anxious to set everything up!!!