Can I use my ex-contract sky digital satellite receiver to get Freeview channels
Brian Butterworth published on UK Free TV You can get the following Freeview channels on with an ex-contract digital satellite receiver (once it is connected). Items marked with a star require either a Freesat from Sky (fSfS) card, or a expired Sky subscription card to view.
All questions
In this section
Thursday, 22 January 2015
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MikeB10:50 AM
Laurence Hughes: Sky boxes only have a scart output, so only SD rather than HD, no matter what your TV can show, thats all it can supply. Sky HD boxes have HDMI and scart, but since your seemingly fine with the free channels, why pay them at all?
To be perfectly honest, if you've bought a flat screen TV, it should have a Freeview tuner in it, and hopefully, a Freeview HD tuner (if you can supply the make and model number, we can check). If you have an aerial, just connect it up, and if you have a Freeview HD television, you'll get all the channels, depending on your location.
If you have a TV with Freesat (mid and high level Samsung's and a single Panasonic) or a generic sat tuner (Sony/LG), you can just use that instead of the Sky box. Or you could just replace the Sky box with a Freesat box, which start around the £45 mark (Manhattan) or £75 for the Humax version (which is a decent brand). They even allow you to get Iplayer, etc.
You can of course buy a Freeview or Freesat recorder, which will also allow you to watch the HD channels, and record at the same time - they start about £150 for a decent brand like Humax or Panasonic.
If you can tell us what the make and model of the TV you've bought, we can tell you the easiest and cheapest way of getting HD, plus if you have an aerial, your postcode (which you can just put into the site, it will then supply all the data), so we can find out what you could get with a normal aerial, and how many cables come out of your dish (or how many connections you could have).
To be honest, spending money on Sky when your only using Freeview makes no sense, and if you have to buy another box, upgrade your dish, etc, it will probably save you money in a year or two.
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Laurence Hughes2:01 PM
Ashford
Hi Mike, thanks for the info. I haven't digested it all yet but will answer a few of your questions first. The TV does have freeview (it's a Celcus smart TV), it's connected to a large aerial on our roof but where we are (in the leafy North downs of Kent (TN25 4DF)) our reception from Dover, I believe, is often patchy and we have used freeview from Sky for a much better picture. We have a Freeview recorder too but again many channels break up most of the time. Replacing the Sky box with an alternative (i.e. not sky) box is something I hadn't thought about. I am confident (used to be a sparks) with connecting different things up but less happy about changing dish etc. (only one lead comes out). Thanks again, Laurence
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Laurence's: mapL's Freeview map terrainL's terrain plot wavesL's frequency data L's Freeview Detailed Coverage
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MikeB2:42 PM
Laurence Hughes:
Celcus....so no, you wont have Freeview HD, just a DVB-T tuner (its why it was the price it was). So you going to need another box, either Freeview HD or Freesat.
If you look at the Digital UK link yourself, you can see its not just Dover which is a bit patchy - your basically in an area which is a bit spotty for all the transmitters, although since you are pretty close, check your signal level isn't too high, rather than too low.
Ok - so you have a dish, but with only one lead coming out of it (which makes sense if you've being using Sky for years). You dont need to change the dish, just the bit that sticks out of it. If you have a look at something like Satcure's website, you can get all the stuff from there (Ebay will be cheaper, etc). Every sat. tuner needed to have an LNB at the end of the dish. You've got one tuner (in the Sky box), and so, one LNB. If you have Sky Plus, you'd have two LNB's, and so on.
Best thing would be to buy a Freesat PVR (the Humax would be my choice), and then change over the single LNB for a quad LNB. Add some extra cable, and your away. Yes, you could just get a twin LNB, but since your up the ladder anyway and the difference in cost is marginal, go for the four. That way, you could add an extra feed for another room, or perhaps if you get a TV with Freesat, etc, you then use the PVR for recording two channels at once while watching a third.
Cost? Quad LNB from Satcure - Quad-output universal Sky LNB - 10.99 plus a little bit for an adpater, plus VAT etc. Some extra cable (WF100 or similar) and ends. And a box. The 500gb Humax is £169 Buy Humax HDR-1000S Freetime Smart 500GB Freesat+ HD Digital TV Recorder | John Lewis
That would do you very well, the Humax does all 4 channels on demand (and is of course a one off cost), and there are of course a fair number of HD channels. Hope that helps.
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Laurence Hughes4:59 PM
That sounds like a plan! as they say. However not sure I fancy going up the ladder, even if it's only to the dish, in this weather; so in the short term can I get a FreeSAT HD box or similar to go on the end of my one cable?
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jb386:42 PM
Laurence Hughes: A Freesat twin tuner PVR of the type suggested by MikeB will operate using one input in exactly the same way as a non recording Freesat receiver, the only problem being that you will be restricted in the programmes that you can record, insomuch that the programme you wish to record will have to be on the same transponder as that used by the one you are viewing, although if any attempt is made to record something that isn't, a message will pop up on the screen to the effect of "channel not possible" or a something similar.
If you intend to replace the LNB at some point in time, kits available at around £10.00 or so from e-bay sources, then purchasing a Freesat PVR is a far better bet.
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MikeB6:52 PM
Lawrence Huges: Follow JB38's advice - buy the PVR, and when the weather is better (I know what you mean about ladders), then swap out the LNB's. OK, you spending a bit more money out initially than you need with just a single LNB, but its more cost effective in the long term.
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Laurence Hughes10:45 PM
Thanks for all the impressive advice and information. Regards
Laurence
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Monday, 26 January 2015
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Jan Lloyd6:04 AM
I am a ex sky customer and use my sky box as freeveiw. Will it still work as I am moving to a new property.
Thanks Jan
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jb385:12 PM
Jan Lloyd: A Sky box will work practically anywhere in the UK provided its connected into a satellite dish facing towards the Astra 28.2E satellite. If the new property you are moving into is of the apartment block variety, then it should be fitted with a "communal" dish system, satellite wall sockets being identified by them having a protruding threaded stub exactly the same as the LNB input on the rear of your box.
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Thursday, 19 February 2015
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timothy12:40 PM
we get a message on our sat box( wrong card for this box)
the box is grundig mod. 286_542
version 4e0202
what card can we use?
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