EsuriJohn

We have now been here 2 yrs and with your invaluable help have got our TV systems up and running.

We have a Panasonic Freesat TV (TX-P42V10B) with a Pace (3100) SKY + Box.

The box and TV are set to a Milton Keynes post code and we get Anglia (west) local programmes. This all works fine most of the time with the TV tuner exceeding the Pace box when the going gets difficult.

I have now got very ambitious and erected a DVB terrestrial aerial to tune Spanish TV and this has so far given no results. I have set the aerial to the same direction and attitude as those of near by houses.

My questions are:-

1) Do I have to do a factory re-set and give a Spanish post code to the TV and will this mess up my freesat settings?

2) A DVB channel search looks for channels 21-68 are these correct for Spain?

3) Is the TV tuner not the right one for DVB in Spain and should I buy a cheap digibox from Carrefor and try that or is my aerial not set up correctly?

jdr

If the tv has a tuner in it then you need to set the signal to Spain and retune it, your Sky will be on a different input source, AV1, AV2, or whatever it is connected to the TV by.

johnnyone

I take it you do have a digital TV. If you do buy a digibox make sure that it always picks up English as the main language.
I have a couple of TVs in our house and I have to go into the menu every time I change channels to get back to English if available. As a channel hopper this drives me mad.
I also have a digibox that always picks up English even if I change channels. It's so much more convenient.

EsuriJohn

The TV has freesat and freeview tuners built in and is HD with a 600hertz refresh rate so watching Liverpool beat ManU on channel 119 in HD this afternoon was truly magic!

EsuriJohn

The plan is to watch Spanish channels in Spanish to improve our understanding of the language and culture. When we watch Barca beat Madrid we will set the volume very low.

The Guy

You should just have to pop the TV into digital tv mode, and do a channel scan...
but you MAY have to put the country settings to Spain...if they are on there.
There should be need to pop in Spanish postcode. Thats usually for Freesat only to ensure you get your prefered regions on 101, 102, 103, 104, and 105. Most Freeview boxes allocate this from the signals they get for that area - ie london regions only get london programming...

Spain uses 69 also, so you will be missing the Antenna 3 group of channels.
You are missing 69 as your TV is set for UK transmission and not Spanish.
Some UK TVs I have seen have NO ability to scan freq 69.
Or have the ability to pop it into Euro mode and be a bit more flexiable than in UK mode.

Although as the next phase of TDT comes, this will be less of a problem, as the freqs will be reallocated around, and the higher freqs allocated for other uses (mobiles and wifi).

Most TVs with digital terrestrial tuners built in should have no problems, getting channels. However I have been to a few people who have "Freeview" branded Tvs, and one or two of them just refused to scan any channels in, where as a sererate TDT box on the same aerial did.

Of course this is assuming you have the aerial set up correctly, the connections are all Ok, and that you are getting a signal...maybe you need a mast head amplifer and power supply to help boost the signals.

Perhaps borrow a TDT box with the channels loaded from someone and make sure you are getting a signal at least...you could also use it with a portable telly to help aim the aerial for maximum signal.

Its not that simple.
Only two or three Spanish channels actually use the word "English" as a label for the second Audio track. So you can set Audio Preferences to English and it will only work for those few channels. Other channels use a variety of labels for the second audio track - QAA< DOS< MUL< VO..which are not available to select in the audio preferences in the menu. So you have to manually select them each time you change channels. However, some boxes do rememember the settings and use the last selected audio.

EsuriJohn

Many thanks for that prompt and detailed reply I will press on & try a few of your suggestions. I will report back.

johnnyone

I try that when I am over but soon give up. It's a shame you cannot get English subtitles with the Spanish programmes. That would really help.

Lynn R

I never find English subtitles very helpful as I just read them rather than concentrating on what's being said in Spanish!

johnnyone

Can you get them on the TV in Spain?

Lynn R

No, sorry if I raised your hopes, I have just seen them sometimes on English programmes about Spain, or films made in Spanish with English subtitles.

MikeJ

As the set has Freeview (terrestrial) tuner as well can you not get the spanish channels on a terrestrial antenna - I can do this and we're just down the hill from you (although the communal aerial is on top of the block it's still probably lower than you ) This should save you b....g about with you satellite settings.

EsuriJohn

O'h that it was so easy tried that several times yesterday with no luck. Fitted my antenna on a 4m pole on the chimney so as high as I can get it! What I have not tried so far is a factory re-set so that I can tell the TV that it is in Spain. Before we left UK we used to watch freeview with the MK post code and Freesat through the sky dish and both gave us Anglia west as our home local stations. I don't want to lose that on the freesat side.

Those that know tell me that the lump behind us is the problem since Spain went digital and this has caused problems for others on Esuri. I note one or two point towards Portugal and I suspect that we could get a signal in that direction but that would not help the Spanish but we could see lots of football.