Freesat with Technomate Receiver

B

bjm

Member
My Satellite Setup
I only have an old sky dish and no receiver :(
My Location
Northern Ireland
Hi Guys

I have been looking into buying a Freesat receiver (all because of a tree that keeps growing - yes I know they tend to do that).

From what I've read, if you have a non-freesat branded receiver like one of the Technomates, your EPG is limited to now and next for certain channels.

Is it possible to program the technomates to just start recording at a particular time and channel irrespective of the EPG? Or does the lack of an EPG make it more awkward to record stuff on certain channels?

Are there any issues with pressing the red button etc on a non-Freesat box? Does that work the same?

cheers

Brian.
 
1) With a none Freesat receiver now & next is all you get on ALL uk channels!

2) If its got a timer on it then you should be able to record although you will ahve to remember to manually set the channel beforehand if you are out.

3) You dont get Freesat Red Button functionality on none Freesat boxes.


Sounds like you need a Freesat PVR to me :D
 
A slight concern, looking at your original Post: You are going to Freesat because of tree growth. What is being affected by tree growth? If it's Sky, for example, getting Freesat won't help as it's the same Satellites and substantially the same Channels.

Edit: I see you have an "old Sky dish". How old - ie Is it for 19.2E (Analogue, as was) or 28E (BSkyB Digital/Freesat/FTA)?
 
Ah very true Tivu.

Thats a good point - if the tree growth is interfering with your Sky signals then you need to either get the tree trimmed or relocate the dish.
 
Guys

The tree is blocking my freeview aerial.

The aerial guys are coming back this week to try and fix it, if not, its time to hook up the old rusty dish.

cheers

Brian.
 
Ah, that sounds not too bad then.
 
Without the EPG you can still record anything with the TM using the timer, but its nowhere near as easy as it is with a 'proper' PVR. It will change channel by itself though.

For watching Freesat form 28E, get a branded Fresat box, simple.

For other satellites, then a non Freesat box is better/essential in some instances.
 
Analoguesat said:
With a none Freesat receiver now & next is all you get on ALL uk channels!
Click to expand...

Fortec Passion Boxes give a full 7-day EPG on Freesat and non-Freesat channels. The Passion+ has PVR capability too.
 
So a freesat branded box (even one of the more expensive ones) will only pick up Freesat channels on 28E? Or can it be made to look for other satellites?

Conversely, is it true that the non-freesat boxes will just look for whatever Satellites they can find?
 
bjm said:
So a freesat branded box (even one of the more expensive ones) will only pick up Freesat channels on 28E? Or can it be made to look for other satellites?

Conversely, is it true that the non-freesat boxes will just look for whatever Satellites they can find?
Click to expand...

Humax Freesat Boxes are multi-Satellite capable. As far as I'm aware, they are the only ones that are. I've used my Humax Foxsat to operate a motorised system in the past and now I am using it for multi-Satellite reception using DiSEqC (qv) switches and/or positioning via a remote Receiver.

Non-Freesat (Generic) Receivers are all multi-Satellite capable ............... but they don't "look for whatever Satellites they can find".

They are dumb, so you need to install dish, or dishes, or dish with multiple LNB, or motorised dish to permit alignment to multiple Satellites.

A simple process of setting up the Receiver to correspond with your dish facilities then enables relevant scans to take place.
 
How reliable are the Fortec boxes? How do they stack up against the Technomate from a quality perspective?

Also, if one bought a multi satelite capable freesat box, are there other satellites I could pick up with the sky dish or would I need a movable dish.
 
bjm said:
How reliable are the Fortec boxes? How do they stack up against the Technomate from a quality perspective?

Also, if one bought a multi satelite capable freesat box, are there other satellites I could pick up with the sky dish or would I need a movable dish.
Click to expand...

Please see last two paragraphs of Post #10 ................. A dish/LNB can only pick up Channels from the Satellite cluster it is aligned to: So for additional Satellites you need either:

A movable dish

Several dishes

A medium sized (say 80-100cm) dish with a multi-LNB bracket (A compromise dish alignment is made, and the LNBs are then located accurately on a specially designed bracket in order to receive their target Satellites.

Sky dishes are not good for such adventures, although those with brains equivalent to a sack of ferrets have managed. The problems are: Small size; wrong shape; unique LNB arrangement.

Proper dishes are slightly higher than wide and make use of truly Universal 40mm collar clamped LNBs.
 
Tivù said:
Proper dishes are slightly higher than wide and make use of truly Universal 40mm collar clamped LNBs.
Click to expand...

Not quite true, there are many dishes on the market that use the 'flatter' design, which has the advantage of a narrower beamwidth in the horizontal plane, and therefore improves adjacent satellite rejection.
 
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