UK Freesat advice please

[DanielP]

No not yet. I've tried on my other machine, but have never managed to get a smooth image AND sound at the same time and place. I'm more interested in getting the tidiest possible SD at the mo.

Daniel

[prupert]

Is this a recommended card for DVB-S then?

I just had my Hauppage HTV-3000 clap out on me, and since I bought it from eBay (apparently brand new) I doubt Hauppage will replace it for me.

I am like the initial poster and wanna use my second sky minidish sattelite cable to gain access to the freesat services..

[DanielP]

It seems OK if you are tight, want to play without spending out or just need a secondary card.

Daniel

[martint123]

It seems OK if you are tight,

Well that describes me.

[prupert]

and if you are a spendthrift, what is the recommended card?

[DanielP]

I don't know- I am too tight to even look at someting expensive!

[Dava]

I don't know- I am too tight to even look at someting expensive!

Aha, a wise man.... If you never look at the expensive stuff, you will never need it and your life will be fulfilled.

I put another cable run up to the quad LNB today which tested fine on one of the existing Sky boxes so I am ready as soon as the card arrives.

Will SAT signal level, and therefore cabling, be OK for HD if it is OK for SD?

Should I have waited and gone for some fancy thick stuff rather than using cheap RG59/U cable? (available at FOCUS for a fiver for 10M terminated with Fs)

[martint123]

RG59/U Attenuation @ 1000MHz 36.5dB/m (±5dB)
WF100 Attenuation @ 1000MHz 20dB/m

If 3db loss is halving of the signal......

There again, if it's working then your run should be short enough to be OK.
If the Sky box shows over half way then it's fine. AFAIK signal strength makes no difference SD to HD.

edit: Methinks figures are per 100M

[Dava]

The Sky box shows about 60% strength & 70% quality so I should be fine by your reckoning.

That is good news about SD/HD, the cable sellers seem to imply you need the WF100 for HD.

[martint123]

That is good news about SD/HD, the cable sellers seem to imply you need the WF100 for HD.

Like they try to sell you £50 speaker leads and £150 power cables!


It all depends on the length of the cable. Mine is around 100ft for the sky box and 5ft for the PC when I get my card. So it had to be H100 for the TV.
and as I have some left on the reel, same for the shack.