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Advice please on replacing Sky
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-GONZO-
11-07-2014
Originally Posted by NorfolkPoppy:
“ I thought it was just a case of taking the Sky cable out of my TV and replacing it with something else.”

In most cases it is as simple as that, but if your looking at Freesat then you've got to determine if it's the Sky box or the Dish/LNB/Cabling at fault.
If it's the Sky box at fault the just plug in a Freesat box. If it's a problem at the dish end then you'd need to get that looked at first before you can plug in another box as you'll get the same result as you currently have.
For Freeview it's just a case of plugging an aerial into a Freeview box and plugging into the TV.
As for box prices, well for the past 14 years you've been paying £250 each year so IMO paying under £200 for a good Freesat+ or Freeview+ HDR as a one off payment is a bargain compared to what you have been paying.
NorfolkPoppy
11-07-2014
Originally Posted by mac2708:
“So far we have established that.....

the dish/LNB cabling may or may not be faulty
the Sky box may or may not be faulty
the aerial may or may not work
that your budget is "as low as possible." and the Humax Freesat "look good but are too pricey."

If you got any Freesat box the dish etc. would need to be in working order
If you got a Freeview box the aerial would need to be in working order
Failure on either (depending what you decide upon) will incur expenses.

As far as Sky retentions are concerned some people seem to be offered everything others (next to) nothing - luck of the draw I guess.



Which is why I think my comments about paying Sky a call-out charge may well have been the cheaper option - they, at least. offered to send an 'engineer'
At least you would have been left with everything working and still have been able to give 31 days notice of cancellation”

Well I can add to this as my memory has restored itself, my son still has freeview box attached to tv upstairs and that works fine which must mean aerial is ok. Yes?

And yes I think the Humax was too expensive for my needs, I said initially that although I really like the pause and rewind function I would probably have to live without it

Also my question about Sky switching was to ask if they are the only ones who run a satellite system? Whether there is anyone cheaper who installs etc?
TelevisionUser
11-07-2014
Originally Posted by NorfolkPoppy:
“Over the last week I've had interrupted or no signal on TV via Sky. It's become unwatchable.

Have called Sky and they offered to send out engineer at cost to myself so I've cancelled it and now need to replace it.

Any advice on that please?

The thing I most enjoy is the pause and record function but I expect that I'll have to live with it. Kids don't live at home any more so only watch a few channels - hasn't really been worth £23.99 a month for some time.

Any help is good xx”

Is it a dish alignment or cable problem? They might be issues to look at.

As for replacing Sky, perhaps either a Freesat PVR recorder only (one off cost, no subs ever) or a combination of Freesat + Netflix (£6 a month) might meet your needs. Links below:

http://www.freesat.co.uk/channels

http://www.freesat.co.uk/get-freesat...d/freesat-plus

http://www.freesat.co.uk/get-freesat...-with-freetime

https://www.netflix.com/?locale=en-GB
NorfolkPoppy
11-07-2014
Originally Posted by -GONZO-:
“In most cases it is as simple as that, but if your looking at Freesat then you've got to determine if it's the Sky box or the Dish/LNB/Cabling at fault.
If it's the Sky box at fault the just plug in a Freesat box. If it's a problem at the dish end then you'd need to get that looked at first before you can plug in another box as you'll get the same result as you currently have.
For Freeview it's just a case of plugging an aerial into a Freeview box and plugging into the TV.
As for box prices, well for the past 14 years you've been paying £250 each year so IMO paying under £200 for a good Freesat+ or Freeview+ HDR as a one off payment is a bargain compared to what you have been paying.”

I agree. But if you don't have the money it isn't
NorfolkPoppy
11-07-2014
Originally Posted by TelevisionUser:
“Is it a dish alignment or cable problem? They might be issues to look at.

As for replacing Sky, perhaps either a Freesat PVR recorder only (one off cost, no subs ever) or a combination of Freesat + Netflix (£6 a month) might meet your needs. Links below:

http://www.freesat.co.uk/channels

http://www.freesat.co.uk/get-freesat...d/freesat-plus

http://www.freesat.co.uk/get-freesat...-with-freetime

https://www.netflix.com/?locale=en-GB
”


You know, as a woman, I usually don't like to be TOLD what to do. .......there are times when I change my mind about that. Henry Ford's quote springs to mind

So, I know aerial works, but that means no pause etc?

Therefore as I don't know if satellite dish etc are ok it would be stupid to go for another system that uses the dish?

On balance looks like Freeview box ....any recommendations?
mac2708
11-07-2014
Originally Posted by NorfolkPoppy:
“
So, I know aerial works, but that means no pause etc?

On balance looks like Freeview box ....any recommendations?”

HD,pause live TV, record two channels at the same time etc. are all standard features of a Freeview PVR.
Unfortunately price is above your budget e.g. http://humaxdirect.co.uk/Direct/Prod...2-a4480de51271
but remember that's half what you were paying Sky each year.

A standard non-HD box is fairly cheap e.g.http://www.amazon.co.uk/Goodmans-Fre...words=freeview and all boxes in the lower price range are much of a muchness and probably made in the same factory with different name badges stuck on

You will get the channels listed here (not the HD ones)
http://www.freeview.co.uk/whats-on/channels
Winston_1
11-07-2014
Originally Posted by mac2708:
“
Which is why I think my comments about paying Sky a call-out charge may well have been the cheaper option - they, at least. offered to send an 'engineer'”

Which they would not have done as Sky don't use engineers. They use installers.
chrisjr
11-07-2014
Originally Posted by NorfolkPoppy:
“So, I know aerial works,”

Actually all you know is that the aerial point in your son's room works, that has zero relevance to whether the one in the living room works or not. Though if he ahs a Freeview box you can easily test it simply by bringing the box down and plugging it in and seeing if it receives anything.

Originally Posted by NorfolkPoppy:
“but that means no pause etc?”

Not in the slightest.

Most Freview PVRs are ascapable of live pause and rewind as any Sky box.

Originally Posted by NorfolkPoppy:
“Therefore as I don't know if satellite dish etc are ok it would be stupid to go for another system that uses the dish?”

If there is no chance to borrow another satellite receiver (Sky or Freesat) to test the dish then it may not be advisable to buy a Freesat box only to find you incur more expense fixing the dish.

Alternatively try your Sky box elsewhere on a dish known to be working if that is possible. Again that will tell you if the box or dish are the cause of the problem.

All depends on how easy either of those options are to perform and whether you think either is worth it.

Originally Posted by NorfolkPoppy:
“On balance looks like Freeview box ....any recommendations?”

The best box is a Humax. If you can find one the HDR Fox-T2 may be cheaper than the HDR2000 which is the newer model. However both those may be outside your budget.

The cheaper boxes that you can get from the likes of the major supermarkets, Argos or Currys are all much of a muchness. In fact in some cases the only difference between them is the badge the bloke in the factory stuck to the front panel. So whatever you go for is almost going to be as good bad or indifferent as any other.
Winston_1
11-07-2014
From the symptoms it seems the no signal message is coming from the sky box. Probably not the sky box itself as they tend to fail in other ways. So cabling or dish. After 14 years quite likely LNB arm rusted and LNB no longer at focal point.
Sky are running a business, it is unrealistic to expect them to fix your equipment for free any more than say your electricity supplier would fix your cooker just because you had bought electricity from them for 14 years.
NorfolkPoppy
11-07-2014
Originally Posted by mac2708:
“HD,pause live TV, record two channels at the same time etc. are all standard features of a Freeview PVR.
Unfortunately price is above your budget e.g. http://humaxdirect.co.uk/Direct/Prod...2-a4480de51271
but remember that's half what you were paying Sky each year.

A standard non-HD box is fairly cheap e.g.http://www.amazon.co.uk/Goodmans-Fre...words=freeview and all boxes in the lower price range are much of a muchness and probably made in the same factory with different name badges stuck on

You will get the channels listed here (not the HD ones)
http://www.freeview.co.uk/whats-on/channels”

That price isn't quite so bad as £189!

Thanks for those links....I will miss Gold!
NorfolkPoppy
11-07-2014
Originally Posted by chrisjr:
“Actually all you know is that the aerial point in your son's room works, that has zero relevance to whether the one in the living room works or not. Though if he ahs a Freeview box you can easily test it simply by bringing the box down and plugging it in and seeing if it receives anything.


Not in the slightest.

Most Freview PVRs are ascapable of live pause and rewind as any Sky box.


If there is no chance to borrow another satellite receiver (Sky or Freesat) to test the dish then it may not be advisable to buy a Freesat box only to find you incur more expense fixing the dish.

Alternatively try your Sky box elsewhere on a dish known to be working if that is possible. Again that will tell you if the box or dish are the cause of the problem.

All depends on how easy either of those options are to perform and whether you think either is worth it.



The best box is a Humax. If you can find one the HDR Fox-T2 may be cheaper than the HDR2000 which is the newer model. However both those may be outside your budget.

The cheaper boxes that you can get from the likes of the major supermarkets, Argos or Currys are all much of a muchness. In fact in some cases the only difference between them is the badge the bloke in the factory stuck to the front panel. So whatever you go for is almost going to be as good bad or indifferent as any other.”

Actually I can take my box to a friend's house, just not the other way round so I'll try that thanks.

Will also try my TV in aerial in living room, no need to rearrange Freeview, the aerial should work just on TV set surely?
NorfolkPoppy
11-07-2014
Originally Posted by Winston_1:
“From the symptoms it seems the no signal message is coming from the sky box. Probably not the sky box itself as they tend to fail in other ways. So cabling or dish. After 14 years quite likely LNB arm rusted and LNB no longer at focal point.
Sky are running a business, it is unrealistic to expect them to fix your equipment for free any more than say your electricity supplier would fix your cooker just because you had bought electricity from them for 14 years.”

Whilst this is true, I wouldn't expect to have to pay if the electricity failed to reach my cooker because of EON's cables or if the meter was faulty would I want to pay for it to be repaired.
chrisjr
12-07-2014
Originally Posted by NorfolkPoppy:
“Actually I can take my box to a friend's house, just not the other way round so I'll try that thanks.

Will also try my TV in aerial in living room, no need to rearrange Freeview, the aerial should work just on TV set surely?”

You said the TV doesn't have Freeview. If that is the case then it won't receive anything. Or are you using the term "Freeview" to mean an external digital TV recorder and the TV does actually receive Freeview channels?
mac2708
12-07-2014
Originally Posted by Winston_1:
“Which they would not have done as Sky don't use engineers. They use installers.”

I know, which is why I said 'engineer'
It's a term more readily understood in this context and the word that Sky uses.
http://www.sky.com/shop/tv/setup-installation/
Nigel Goodwin
12-07-2014
Originally Posted by NorfolkPoppy:
“Whilst this is true, I wouldn't expect to have to pay if the electricity failed to reach my cooker because of EON's cables or if the meter was faulty would I want to pay for it to be repaired.”

Just as you wouldn't pay for a fault with Sky if it was a fault at their end - but the dish is YOUR end.

To use your cooker example, the dish would be your fusebox in the house - completely 100% YOUR property, and EON certainly wouldn't come out any replace your fusebox for free
-GONZO-
12-07-2014
Originally Posted by NorfolkPoppy:
“Whilst this is true, I wouldn't expect to have to pay if the electricity failed to reach my cooker because of EON's cables or if the meter was faulty would I want to pay for it to be repaired.”

Well actually the only thing EON is responsible for is the actual meter, anything after that including cables comes out of your pocket.

As for your television watching issue, well if you really do want to go cheap then have a look in the Argos catalogue page 577, they have a couple of Bush Freeview+ models that are fairly cheap.
320GB HDD is £89.99 and 500GB HDD is £99.99 (looking online it seems this one is currently £79.99 http://www.argos.co.uk/m/static/Prod...eview+bush.htm ) or a Freeview+HD 500GB for £139.99.
charger21
12-07-2014
Did you try switching it off at wall and leaving it off for a bit? I was getting this message on various channels last week but seems to have sorted now by just switching it off and on
NorfolkPoppy
12-07-2014
Originally Posted by chrisjr:
“You said the TV doesn't have Freeview. If that is the case then it won't receive anything. Or are you using the term "Freeview" to mean an external digital TV recorder and the TV does actually receive Freeview channels?”

Noooo! I thiught I could just plug in aerial to see if reception was ok.
And this is why I came on here.....I just know nothing about it all
mac2708
12-07-2014
Originally Posted by NorfolkPoppy:
“Noooo! I thiught I could just plug in aerial to see if reception was ok.
And this is why I came on here.....I just know nothing about it all”

It seems like you have a fairly old TV set.
Any chance of make and model or , at least how old it is.
Analogue channels were switched off in September 2012

In any event if you decide on a Freeview PVR you get pause live TV/recordig etc. back as you had with Sky.
Also if you get the Humax YouView box I linked to you get a lot of catch-up services when you connect to your broadband.
chrisjr
12-07-2014
Originally Posted by NorfolkPoppy:
“Noooo! I thiught I could just plug in aerial to see if reception was ok.
And this is why I came on here.....I just know nothing about it all”

If the TV only has an analogue tuner then even if you were to manually tune it to a digital UHF frequency it would not tell you anything. What you see on screen would probably not look much different to the random noise you would see if the TV was tuned to an unused channel, or just as crucially had no aerial connection at all.

You need something capable of receiving Freeview broadcasts to check the aerial is working.
NorfolkPoppy
13-07-2014
Originally Posted by mac2708:
“It seems like you have a fairly old TV set.
Any chance of make and model or , at least how old it is.
Analogue channels were switched off in September 2012

In any event if you decide on a Freeview PVR you get pause live TV/recordig etc. back as you had with Sky.
Also if you get the Humax YouView box I linked to you get a lot of catch-up services when you connect to your broadband.”

Originally Posted by chrisjr:
“If the TV only has an analogue tuner then even if you were to manually tune it to a digital UHF frequency it would not tell you anything. What you see on screen would probably not look much different to the random noise you would see if the TV was tuned to an unused channel, or just as crucially had no aerial connection at all.

You need something capable of receiving Freeview broadcasts to check the aerial is working.”

It is a digital TV set. Humax make I was surprised to find..
NorfolkPoppy
13-07-2014
Originally Posted by charger21:
“Did you try switching it off at wall and leaving it off for a bit? I was getting this message on various channels last week but seems to have sorted now by just switching it off and on”

I tried this initially and it made no difference. Then phoned Sky who led me through other stuff but no change.

Having read your message I thought I'd give it another go as it was free!

And it has partly worked. The standard channels now work but on Sky 146 through to 248 (prob more but I don't watch them) it has the big blue notice saying No Signal, turn off for 5 minutes etc.
Nigel Goodwin
13-07-2014
Originally Posted by NorfolkPoppy:
“It is a digital TV set. Humax make I was surprised to find..”

They made a small number of sets for a short time, pretty well a failure for them, and they long since dropped the idea.

They did make some sets with built-in PVR's though, and JVC sold a badged version.

Unfortunately they did the usual Korean thing of fitting seriously sub-standard capacitors in the PSU, causing huge failure rates, and (even worse) killing the HDD's in the sets.

I don't think I've ever seen the PVR working in one?, it's normal to repair the PSU and disconnect the faulty HDD rather than spend the extra money replacing it.
mac2708
13-07-2014
Originally Posted by NorfolkPoppy:
“It is a digital TV set. Humax make I was surprised to find..”

Anything like this?
http://www.trustedreviews.com/Humax-...D-TV_TV_review
NorfolkPoppy
13-07-2014
Originally Posted by mac2708:
“Anything like this?
http://www.trustedreviews.com/Humax-...D-TV_TV_review”

KInd of...

I've just discovered it's only 17inches, prob why I thought my eyesight was going!
It has a silver surround and black screen and sits on a small pedestal. Not square as this image though

http://thumbs3.ebaystatic.com/d/l225...Z1jqc_-Slw.jpg
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