duffer's question

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SeptimusFry

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My Satellite Setup
sky digibox various computers toshiba tv
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france
Hope not too boring a question for experts lurking around here - I have a sky digibox plus pioneer recorder, and want to change to receive and record HD stuff. I am looking at a Panasonic Blu-tooth machine which says it has two tuners. Does this mean I have to have two thingys up on my dish which has one thingy, and does a 'tuner' equate to my digibox, hence I will not need anything else, or does the digibox do more than just receive. I am vaguely techy minded but not in this particular area. Sorry about thingy but I can't remember the name (bolum, golum,...???).
 
SeptimusFry said:
Hope not too boring a question for experts lurking around here - I have a sky digibox plus pioneer recorder, and want to change to receive and record HD stuff. I am looking at a Panasonic Blu-tooth machine which says it has two tuners. Does this mean I have to have two thingys up on my dish which has one thingy, and does a 'tuner' equate to my digibox, hence I will not need anything else, or does the digibox do more than just receive. I am vaguely techy minded but not in this particular area. Sorry about thingy but I can't remember the name (bolum, golum,...???).
Click to expand...


If you already have Sky plus then you should already have an LNB on the dish with more than one output.

In this case, all you would need is a new Sky HD Digibox.

You'll have to pay Sky extra for the privilege of receiving HD.

I'm not familiar with the Panasonic box you mentioned. Is it a Sky Box? Generally you can only use a Sky card in one of their own boxes. (There are exceptions to this rule, but they are not as simple as buying something and plugging it in.).
 
Sorry, plus ambiguous, I have straightforward old-fashioned Pace 2600. Since posting this I have read something which implies that I will need two LNB's effectively (??). Also, the Panasonic DMRBS850 does not seem to have any mention of decoding cards... perhaps you could cast your eyes over the spec _http://tinyurl.com/mk8uwp and advise.

My roof is 4 floors up, so fitting a replacement/supplementary lnb will be costly, need to get it right first time :)
 
You don't need two LNBs just one with at least two outputs, a TWIN LNB.

If you have a Sky subscription then to record the HD channels, the easiest way as already said, is to get a Sky HD receiver, they have twin tuners with a hard disk built in.

The two outputs from the new LNB would go to the two satellite inputs on the Sky receiver.


If you don't subscribe to Sky and just want FTA or Freesat channels then the Panasonic receiver you mentioned will do the job.
 
OK, I think it is getting through my thick skull now. If I want two channels, I will need a dual LNB. Now, it may be that I already have a dual LNB. I actually have two simple Pace Sky Boxes, one upstairs and one downstairs. If I can receive on both of these any channels of non-HD sky, can I assume that I must already have a dual LNB? I read somewhere that one LNB can cover 1/4 of the channel spectrum, and thus cannot be used for tuning two channels from different quarters of the spectrum at once, so I am guessing the guys who fixed me up must have put a dual LNB up. [[ If there is doubt, how can I tell - please bear in mind my aerial is to all intents inaccessible]].

Just because the Panasonic has two tuners, I would only be able to receiver FTA+Freeview? since the thing doesn't seem to have any mention of decoders, only tuners.

I wish there was a book in the ...for Dummies series for duffers like me. But I am getting there I think.

The suggestion of Sky+HD box will not answer for being able to play BluRay discs, which is why I am looking at the Panasonic.

Thanks for keeping an eye on this thread and answering my basic stupid questions.:confused:
 
Not quite - if you want to record on the pvr you need two inputs on the one box! You cant split one input into two - you need to run a seperate cable for the second input.

Do you want to watch HD Sky pay programming? If so get a Sky HD box and find a seperate solution for playing BluRay discs.

If you only want to watch free to air HD (basially the BBC HD channel at the moment) then you can get away with an none Sky high def receiver that does BluRay (if such a thing exists)
 
Analoguesat said:
.....then you can get away with an none Sky high def receiver that does BluRay (if such a thing exists)
Click to expand...

Yes, theres the "Panasonic bluetooth (BlueRay) machine" already mentioned by the OP.

The Panasonic DMR-BS850 I think is the model number, saw one working the other day.
 
Robbo said:
Yes, theres the "Panasonic bluetooth (BlueRay) machine" already mentioned by the OP.

The Panasonic DMR-BS850 I think is the model number, saw one working the other day.
Click to expand...

Do we take it that was an unusual event or just the first you had seen Robbo :cool:
 
LOL, Yes I suppose it was. But only because I didn't know they existed and the first time I had seen one. Expensive to buy though according to the guy who owned it.
 
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