Can I use a dreambox to pick up free-view and S*Y UK on cs

[l0rdlucan]

Hi,
I'm noob to these forums so apologies if this has been answered elsewhere.
I'm based in Dublin and basically I would like to install a dish and use a dreambox to get s*y uk via cs from a friend. I would also like to be able to pick up whatever free-to-air channels are available aswell (as back-up in case I lose cs signal).
my questions are:
1. can i pick up the s*y uk signal and free-to-air signal on the dreambox at the same time? (so if i lose the cs signal I can just switch over to free-view channels)
2. what kind of hardware would I need to facilitate such a set-up? (i.e. would I need multiple LNBs etc)

Many thanks

 

[B16MCC]

Hi welcome to the forum.
Question 1, YES
Question 2, All you need is a standard sly dish and lnb to suite your location, just like the ones you see on neighbours houses. (£40 approx) The Dreambox will receive all channels from 28.2e. Encrypted and FTA.
You would only need a mutli LNB if you are looking at a multi tuner Dreambox, which will allow you to watch one channel and record another.

 

[Analoguesat]

Asking how to defraud the UK's main pay tv service - nice first post!

Answer 1 more accurately answered would be

Yes at the moment. Sky will be rolling out new anti piracy measures in the near future so the exact medium - long future of card sharing is unclear atm. Its quite possible the new procedures will knock house - house c/s'ing on the head.

 

[l0rdlucan]

Thanks for the reply mate, thats great news, exactly what I wanted to hear.
What dreambox would you recommend. I know a lot of people use clone boxes with no problems at all but I'd prefer to stick with the genuine ones. Reliability and stability would probably be my main concerns. I'd like to go for the 800HD but the overheating issue is putting me off a little.
Any advice?

 

[l0rdlucan]

@ analoguesat:
sorry, I hope I wasn't crossing the line asking a question about cs. I saw other threads on these forums discussing this topic so I presumed it was ok.
regarding skys anti-piracy measures, is there a thread discussing this topic that you can point me to? It's the first I've heard of it so I'd like to find out more.
Many thanks.

 

[B16MCC]

Firstly, you should take notice of what Analoguesat is saying. We simply don't know what is coming next from Sly , but its safe to say , it won't help.
As for buying a box, I personally would never buy a clone, you don't get the after sales service and they can sometimes be problematic.

It really depends how much you want to spend. An 800 will cost you £380. An 8000 will cost you £900. These are bare boxes, extras like HDD's or DVD drives will cost further. They are the 2 options for a HD box, the 500 HD is coming soon at around £300 I think, but its not available yet.
The 800 heat issue is ok until you fit a hard disk, then it runs like a furnace !

 

[fintannl]

search anti-piracy or counter measures. Its the search button at the top of the page. just press it

 

[Analoguesat]

regarding skys anti-piracy measures, is there a thread discussing this topic that you can point me to? It's the first I've heard of it so I'd like to find out more.
Many thanks.

Theres not been much official info released (for obvious reasons), however similar info has come from 2 sources both of which have proved to be reliable in the past - one of them was Wotsat magazine 2-3 months ago.

New firmware for the Sky boxes will be released in the near future and this will be the start of the anti piracy measures.

 

[l0rdlucan]

Thanks for the replies lads, it's much appreciated.
Is the DM600PVR a decent box? I'm caught in two minds between having the stable PVR functionality or going for the high def of the 800 without installing the HDD

 

[B16MCC]

Other things to consider there mate. The 600 is an Enigma1 box, the 800 is an Enigma2 box. The performance and features offered by the 800 are in a different world compared to the 600. No question for me, go for the HD box.

 

[l0rdlucan]

You've just made my mind up for me! Thanks for all your help mate.

 

[ralphmagno]

hello to all friends
as far as sky implementing a anti counter measures.
how many of these on the old blue cards have they done in the last 5 years?
if sky had anything it would have knocked the white cards off the air right now and no one would have been able to use the new ones right now.
they can try some small things but more than likley someone will have it back up in days.

as long as the box key is the same as the official box and the card is mated up to the correct card we may see some problems but i dout we have to realy worry much.

if they have not messed things up in the last 4 to 5 years they probaly can't.
if they were able to go to a new encryption system nds 3 or nds4 and they were able to upload to all the old sky boxes and the dreambox could not cope with the new system thats different.
but they will have probaly to change all the sky boxes .

have a good night
ralph

 

[Analoguesat]

how many of these on the old blue cards have they done in the last 5 years?
if sky had anything it would have knocked the white cards off the air right now and no one would have been able to use the new ones right now.
they can try some small things but more than likley someone will have it back up in days.

Its not as simple as that though is it? they cant introduce the new counter measures until the card swap is complete as the blue cards wont work with it.With 10 million cards to swap, and many days of extremly bad weather in the UK early in the year things are running a little late.

The countermeasures are coming, and its my belief its going to make some nasty dents in the c/s community - the little info thats leaked out so far have shown one thing - Sky UK are very worried about c/s'ing and its possible effects on their monthly income.

Whilst it was just a few thousand hobbyists running expensive receivers and needing loads of technical knowledge to set up c/s wasnt a threat. However the knob'ead dealers have made it a 50 quid box with a hard wired c/s that just needs plugging into a router to work.......

 

[fintannl]

Another thing to keep in mind is that UK cable and MMDS systems are now all going to Nagra3 (unbroken encryption system). So these folks who have being able to crack Nagra1 and Nagra2 for the past few years will be looking at what the next alternative is. So an analoguesat says, while the number of satellite cs heads may currently be in the thousands it may likely increase bigtime in 2010 (apologies for the mention of cable/mmds in this forum, but just thought it was relevant to the line of argument) which will of course be a concern to satellite providers

 

[zoro25]

What worries me is how open it all is.

The original post is proof of that. People who are not into the hobby side and are what I would call casual TV watchers who just happen to use a satellite dish to receive a signal.
Hear on the grape vine that you can buy a certain box and get free sky. (which isn't true by the way - Its called sharing for a reason).

I actually look forward to the changes sky will make and I know we will find a way through it, but I hope its not noob friendly which may sound bad but making things too easy is not good for anyone.

To the original poster I'm not sure if anyone has also mentioned to you that the dreambox is not just a plug and play box. It takes a bit of setting up so be prepared to scream at it when it when your sure you've followed all the guides and its still not working. If your willing to learn though the DM800 and the other boxes are all great fun.
Good Luck

 

[fintannl]

True. But what do you do. Do you fragment the forum into sub-forums where you can access as you gain more priveledges based on how many posts of consequence you make. Do you have a basic help section with flashing images or the like that is open to all and then structure the forum on the basis that the more experience you show the more access you get. Not an easy task. Would be some job to administer

 

[WildBit]

I don't think there are doubts that Sky will adopt countermeasures, wouldn't you in their place? The real problem is when our "hobby" becomes a lucretive business. These "pirates" are only in it for the money and the people that use pay servers are almost as guilty as the pirates themselves. If they are willing to spend money to watch tv, why not pay for a regular subscription? It makes no sense to me... also because you have no guarantee on the service. As far as the "boldness" of users on this forum, and other of course, it is in fact very negative. Forums are public communities and we should all refrain from certain types of discussions but certainly you can't expect the admins/mods of forums to control everyones's wording (which they do anyway), it's up to all of us! Let's get back to reality. The majority of us just have fun as a hobby should be so it's a few that ruin it for all others.

 

[fintannl]

Wildbit, I agree. I also have found from this forum that no matter how much i know i need to learn more. However we are blessed that B16MCC has supplied many of the tools that users need. But even with these tools there is a basic knowledge required to use such tools. So while the ordinary user can browse the threads it is really not all that easy to piece it together. I continue to have questions. I admit to never touching my DM800 for a year out of fear but I'm getting past that stage. Initially it was how to flash a box, then it was learning that I had a clone, then finding out what that meant, then living with it, then getting over the fear, then trying new things, then finding what a load of fun this machine really is.

Having said that I still stand by my comments that Dreambox could have put an extra tuner module in the DM800 to allow recording while watching other programs. B16MCC, your comments on a 900 sterling box that does not include a hard disk or DVD drive. Is the price a bit excessive for a barebone device.

In conclusion, unless you do have some basic knowledge and are willing to learn, this forum will be of little help to anyone other than enthuasists. So thats a good thing

 

[WildBit]

Hi fintannl, I agree in part with your statement. B16MCC is very good indeed and his tools a great help to all of us. Those tools are intended for the less experienced users but the part I don't agree with is that you cannot use forums, particularly this one, to get all the required information. Obviously you need to do some reading, lots of it. It's true; it also depends on your unix/linux os expertise. In any case I know of no one, expert or other, that can just pick up a dreambox (or similar) without having to spend months configuring and testing to conclude with a working config suitable for your needs.
The DM800 was designed for 1 tuner
The DM8000 hosts nultiple tuners
Neither come with HDD and/or DVD for the big box. Dream Multimedia sales strategy!

I understand that the DB's are expensive devices, but they are the driving force in our world. As B16MCC stated earlier, I would stay away from the clones but if you want to save a few "dollars" you might want to consider alternatives. Just to give a few examples and in particlular for multituner (as it seems to be a priority for you) possibly azbox, ipbox. There are many more and cheaper than the dreambox. I do think that some time will be needed as any hobby demands.

Finally, users with less experience than yourself have found help on this board. Post your queries in the right sections and someone will help. Just remember, it's not a "job" for everyone and we all pitch in when possible.

Patience is a virtue. Keep dreaming ;-)

 

[fintannl]

Yep, i've learnt the hard way about using clones. In hindsight, if I knew what I know now, I would have made sure to buy the true DM800.