The Guy

ITV2,3 and 4 are about the only other channels that are on similar frequencies to the bbc channels that are unable to be received using other channels / regional variations, so loss of "a lot more" channels would not be that severe.

but, as mentioned on another thread (and which you dismissed and still touted a FTA box)if the op is using a sky card then a fta box will not be much good and pointless as it will not be able to use the sky card and they would not be able to access channels that the card accesses.

and some sd fta boxes do not perform as good as a sky 2600 box, or a sky hd box, hd especailly, as the bbc hd channels are on a much stronger reception frequency compared to the sd bbc channels, so this owuld be point less in getting a sd fta box. i have tried a few FTE FTA boxes previously and they have perform just about the same as a good 2600 box., seen some horrible silvercrest FTA receivers that perform worse than the worst sky box! so in the many cases i have seen these "cheap" FTA boxes do not perform as good as you think.

and i have found that even a fergusson HD ariva and "the black box card sharing" iberosat hd box did not perform the same reception for bbc hd channels as a sky hd box.

but then it also depends against which sky box you are comparing reception to - some sky boxes are much better than others - the pace 440 and 445 are terrible for "big dish" systems, yet the 2600 is great. sky thomson hd boxes fail rapidly due to poor components, other sky hd boxes have been fine. the same goes for some of the freesat boxes, some are much better than others.

so it will depends WHICH FTA receiver you get, but so far I have not found a good decent "cheap" SD FTA receiver that performs better than a sky 2600 or Sky HD box. Perhaps this is OK for your dish where you are, where reception is a lot different but other areas have different reception characteristics and so boxes perform differently. but in many cases just getting a cheap FTA receiver, as you suggest, may not mean all channels will come in crystal clear as opposed to no signal using a sky box, receivers are not the only thing in the reception "chain".

edit: just thinking, one of the sd receivers that i have seen perform the same or better than a pace 2600 is the manhatten plaza range, and a techomate, but these were not FTA boxes

licinius

Guy, the blokes neighbour has built a wall & he's wondering if it's blocking his satellite signal. How many times have you known a dish to receive the signal through a brick wall???????????

Why use 10 words when you can use 10,000 eh? I don't read most of your posts for one simple reason. You've never heard the expression "keep it simple stupid" have you m8?

So let's keep it simple, Sky box's are very poor quality, they are designed for use in the UK where the satellite signal is very strong. They do not work well in fringe reception areas FACT. Anybody having trouble with tv breaking up at night or missing channels does not need to pay labour charges, what they need is a DECENT free to air satellite receiver, which are widely available in both the UK and Spain for just €30.

The Guy

The wall is built "some distance" away from the dish. a wall built close enogh to the dish will reduce the signal of the weakest channels - especailly those on astra 2d like bbc and itv2,3,4. however, a 2m wall was built 2m in front of a 2.4m dish, some channels, especially those "south beams" would still be able to be received, as the 2.4m dish, with its elevation, would still "look over" the wall. so not many channels would be lost, just the weaker astra 2d ones.

and as uk satellite signals come from 5 satellites, each with their own reception characteristics, those channel on the "weaker" satellites signals will be more affected by obstructions in the dish line of sight than others.

some people appreciate more information. especailly when correcting people (hows your Sky News on freesat coming along)

not all sky boxes are poor performers - some are good (2600, Sky HD), some are not (440, 450, panasonic).FACT.
not all fta receivers are as good as a sky box. FACT.

silvercrest receicvers are very poor in comparison to a sky box. as are most illusion boxes. sky hd box vs ferguson ariva- sky box wins on reception easily. i could go on listing various fta receivers....(but that would use my 10000 word limit:-))
I have tested many fta receivers, and in many cases not all are as good as some sky boxes - but, true, it depends which sky box you test them against.

as channel reception is based on a number of things (dish alignment, dish size, lnb, lnb skew, cabling, dish warping, line of sight and a dozen other factors), in many cases, simply getting a new receiver is not the solution.

so, keeping it simple, which 30€ fta box do you recommend they get? i will get one and test it against everything i have for a performance comparison. cant say fairer than that?

and, again, keeping it simple, if the user has a sky card, why recommend a FTA receiver over a sky box, when the fta box will not be able to use a sky card?

Countryboy1

Are you seriously saying that a new generic, 'non-Sky' receiver will be able to receive ALL the channels (all your channels you say above)?
Advice like this is somewhat misleading as of course a receiver as described can receive FTA channels but it is of little help if reception of the other FTV & encrypted channels is desired also.
The advice to throw the Sky box in the bin and replace it with a FTA receiver may help with some channels such as BBC1 but what about others which suddenly cannot be received?

anna58

So, I'm game to buy a FTA box for £30 when I go to UK and compare it to my pace 2600. I like to have a spare box. Which FTA boxes would you recommend?

Fred James

Yes, I am sure that most of us do appreciate your frequent, detailed and well informed answers to our UKTV questions particularly when they are based on many years of professional experience.

Every member is entitled to voice his opinions on the subject in a polite and respectful way but personally I prefer to listen to those who have the experience of the subject.

Keep up the good work Guy

licinius

The freesat brand or a free to air receiver that I recommend? Very good thank you, but then all FTA boxes pick up Sky news because that's what it is........... free to air

If you're speaking to engineers Guy then you need details, if you're speaking to Joe Bloggs all that happens is he gets baffled with techno mumbo jumbo. You really should try to explain things in plain English, but then if you're trying to sell services the more complicated it sounds the better..........

Anna58, none of the latest gen FTA boxes I have tested have been bad, I'm a lover of the FTE MAX S93. Easy to operate, super fast tuning & great reception qualities. Get yourself one of these & you'll notice a dramatic improvement in reception during evenings & bad weather. Sky installers will obviously never tell you this for business reasons.

Years of professional experience eh Fred? A recent poster lost BBC channels remember, luckily I posted before she paid call out fees & the channels returned WITHOUT interferance & here we have a poster who is worried about a wall being built in front of his dish affecting his signal. I know there is a recession on & people have to make money but this is a help forum not an advertising medium & I'm not going to stand by when he gets bum advice.

I'm a businessman Fred with fingers in many pots so lets just say from MY years of experience within the satellite industry I'm telling him NOT to pay for expensive & unnecessary call out fees but to purchase a decent satellite receiver such as the FTE Max S93. Let's see then shall we??????????

licinius

Sorry I forgot this bit, what channels do you need a card for???????? You need a card in a sky box to receive FTA channels but if you have a 'proper' FTA receiver then you don't need the card do you???????

Sorry but I thought you claimed to have tested several FTA boxes If this is true then how come you don't know which channels they pick up????? Years of experience eh

p.s. Before you ask, obviously I don't receive the FTA HD channels on an FTE Max. I have a multisat system, (1.3m dish aligned to 28.2 & a 1m dish aligned 26 east) connected with a DiSEqC switch to get those through my Humax 1020. I did try a multi lnb system but when I measured the signal with my FS1 I found that a dedicated dish gave me an extra 4db which as you know makes all the difference during the rain. I'll move the 1m dish this week now that the MBC package is HD on 7w, at least I'll get the JSC sport EPG then as well...............

johnnyone

I am not technical but until I got a sky box I could not pick up certain channels eg ITV 1.
This may be due to my location and dish size but that is the fact of the matter.

guitareth

I need to get all of the Sky Sports channels, all of the BBC and ITV channels (including the HD ones), the FX channels including HD, Sky Atlantic HD..... etc. Are you really saying I could get ALL of the same channels that currently I get on my Sky HD box with a Sky HD subscription, on a 30€ FTA box? (My current box is a PACE HD model TDS850NB, by the way, and has been very good until this recent problem since the wall was built).

licinius - having read your comments, I have to say you do come across as if you have an "agenda". TheGuy is totally correct that the wall has been built several metres from my neighbour's dish and it does indeed just seem to be the weaker BBC and ITV channels that I'm now losing later in the day - so it looks like moving the dish back down the slope of his garden a bit (which there's plenty space to do) will allow the whole of the dish to better pick up these weaker channels. I also find his extended posts extremely helpful, and very easy to understand as a layman, so do not understand you aggressively negative comments. I am in no doubt whose advice I'd trust and it's not yours licinius! You need to get over yourself mate!

guitareth

That's what I thought. What totally bizarre advice

licinius

My apologies....... I thought we were discussing free to air channels!

guitareth

Apology accepted. Guess you're used to keeping it simple as you say Sorry - couldn't resist a wee dig!

guitareth

Phew, just as well I didn't jump in and follow your own "bum advice" and throw out my SKYHD box and replace with your much loved 30€ box! Me thinks your own credibility is in tatters

licinius

As they say guitareth, the proof is in the pudding. The next time you walk around Carrefour/Worten or whatever you'll see these boxes & be intrigued........ For just €30 will you be tempted????????????? I hope so, then just send a thank you message by pm