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carl
Wednesday 1 February 2012 5:38PM
HI,

I need some help please. I have a sky dish with a quad connector on. It has 2 white cables already runnung from it, i assume two as i have sky plus.
So i have two spare, i brought an old sky digi box(still has card) off ebay and connected it all up and put the cable in one of the spare connectors on the quad thingy. But it says no signal.
What am i doing wrong?
thanks
carl
Briantist
Wednesday 1 February 2012 6:14PM
Graeme: I would have a look at Single frequency interference | ukfree.tv - independent free digital TV advice .
Briantist
Wednesday 1 February 2012 6:29PM
Mark Cook: Can you have a look at the Freeview intermittent interference | ukfree.tv - independent free digital TV advice .
jb38
Wednesday 1 February 2012 7:39PM
carl: Basically on the face of it you havent done anything wrong, but the fact of you not getting any signal obviously means that a fault exists somewhere, and considering the source of the latest Sky box I suggest that you test it out by sitting it on top of the Sky+ box (space allowing) and swapping the connections from the Sky+ box over to it, using any one of the two "F" connectors from the Sky+ box as they are exactly the same technically.

If it doesnt work then you need go no further as obviously the box is faulty, but if it does take it back to the original position and unscrew the dish feeds "F" connector to make sure that a single strand of the braiding hasn't accidentally wrapped itself around the middle conductor, then screw it back on again and carry out another test.

If unfortunately it still doesnt work then you will have to check the "F" connector at the LNB end, and whilst you are at it, to save the possibility of another inspection put the "F" plug back into the other spare port, giving an update on results.
Joe Alessi
Wednesday 1 February 2012 10:34PM
Hello
Great site!
My question in brief: I have redisgned my living room and got rid of the old CRT and bought a flat screen which i've hung on the wall. I chased into the wall all the cables - 5:1 set-up, optical cable, four HDMI's (for future use) and the arial coax cable.. BUT, i forgot to factor in the cable to connect the satellite receiver which i only use for the Italian channels, (mainly to keep my dad quiet when he and my mum come and visit) So, quite simply, i need the same satellite receiver but with an HDMI socket.. Does one exist? Many thanks in anticipation.
TIM PESKETT
Wednesday 1 February 2012 10:37PM Billingshurst
Hi
i live in billingshurst rh14 9hb, served from the midhurst xmitter.
i can not get any itv/channel 4 etc signals at all. BBC keeps coming and going. at this moment BBC is perfect, but cant get any itv channels.this has been happening for months now, one week i can get every channel the next week hardly any. could this be a fault with my aerial? or is it the xmitter. i get the same results using my BT vision box or just putting the aerial direct into TV, any advice would be appreciated as its driving me crazy
jb38
Wednesday 1 February 2012 11:36PM
Joe Alessi: I answered this query on the other posting you made under another heading, this being a copy of the reply.

Just out of curiosity I wondered what model of sat box you are using to receive the Italian channels? as depending on what there may be an easy and less costly way out of the problem, as other than that I cant see any way of getting over the problem without either purchasing a scart to HDMI up-scaling converter (approx £50.00) or possibly a Freesat HD receiver as these have an HDMI output socket.

Obviously although a Freesat device it would be used on its non Freesat mode. (other technical aspects permitting)

Maybe you could also mention the model of TV that you have mounted on the wall.
michael
Thursday 2 February 2012 9:50AM
Joe Alessi: If the flatscreen has a SCART socket, use that. If not, follow jB38's recommendations above. You will presumably know that the main RAI channels are at times not free-to-view. For 24/7 you need a Tivu sat-box activated via a codice fiscal - eg a family home address. See earlier postings here. Good to know that being in the EU brings us greater restrictions than before :-)
Joe Alessi
Thursday 2 February 2012 9:54AM
jb38: Thanks so much for your reply. The satellite receiver i was using is a Samsung DSR9400 FTA, a fantastic, little, (with the emphasis firmly on the little)good-looking and very fast machine, i'm loathe to get rid of it, as traditionally sat receivers haven't been blessed with good design, normally big and ugly! So if there's some HDMI to SCART converter on the market, that would be great. The TV is a Samsung UE46D5520 LED HD 1080p TV, 46 Inch with Built-in Freeview HD (bought specifically because it doesn't have stupid 3D!)
I look forward to your reply
Many thanks
Joe Alessi
Thursday 2 February 2012 11:14AM
Michael: Many thanks for your reply. It has got a scart socket but as i said in my original post, i chased what i thought were all the relevant cables into the wall, but completely forgot about the scart cable for the sat receiver, probably because i don't use it that often. By the way, on Euro restrictions, i don't think it's got anything to do with Brussells, more to do with money and private interest! The Tivu bvox would be fine if i used it a lot, but i only use it occasionally and i find that the scrambled programmes are usually new home grown dramas and sport. I'm more interested in the news, although i will certainly look into Tivu for my dad's house, as he's always grumbling about scrambled programmes. Can i buy one here in the UK?
All the best
jb38
Thursday 2 February 2012 3:39PM
Joe Alessi: Thanks for the update, my reason for requesting the model of Sat receiver you are using is because I wanted to check if it had an RF modulator output, as if it had you could have combined that output with the Freeview one through the single cable, however I see that it hasn't got that facility and so the scart to HDMI upscaler is the only answer, albeit a pricey one!

This is the link for the device as sold by Maplin,(mentioned just in case the link doesnt work) of course other sources exist as well like from Amazon etc,etc.

www.maplin.co.uk link icon 
Scart to HDMI Convertor 1080p : SCART Switches : Maplin Electronics
Briantist
Thursday 2 February 2012 8:39PM
TIM PESKETT: Please see www.ukfree.tv link icon Freeview intermittent interference | ukfree.tv - independent free digital TV advice . You should have a perfect signal.
Nigel Cory
Friday 3 February 2012 4:42PM Grantham
In reply to JB38’s comments of Friday 27 January

We are grateful for your clarification. It is some 20 years since I qualified with the CAI and I am no longer active in the trade, thus it could be said that semantics muddied the water.

Nevertheless, I am content that my interjection may have added to the sum of human knowledge on the subject.
don g
Friday 3 February 2012 6:37PM
can i get freeview useing a loft arial
jb38
Friday 3 February 2012 7:49PM
don g: With certain qualifications possibly yes! although its necessary to have knowledge of your location (pref: post code) so that the signal levels expected in your locality can be assessed via the reception predictor.
Joe Alessi
Friday 3 February 2012 10:41PM
jb38: many thanks, problem solved!
roy gregory
Saturday 4 February 2012 4:15PM
dear sir ,i have bought a new humax digi box for my hd ready set when i set it up i find i can not go from hd to normal tv,like i could when i had the scart lead in,now i have to change the input settings is this normal or have i missed something.
jb38
Saturday 4 February 2012 5:11PM
roy gregory: You don't require to alter anything, as I assume that your TV will be connected to the Humax via an HDMI lead (and only!) and so when you change channels on the Humax box between HD and non HD channels the correct signal info is sent to the TV automatically, likewise if you just want to view normal Freeview on the TV you simply select "TV" on the remote control and that takes the TV off its HDMI input.

In other words you do NOT require to alter anything, its done automatically.
Dave
Sunday 5 February 2012 5:38PM
Is there anywhere I can find really detailed information on when my local transmitter, Hutton, will be on/off due to the current engineering work?
Dave
Sunday 5 February 2012 6:28PM
I have already found that - I did specify DETAILED.
Dave
Sunday 5 February 2012 7:00PM
Sorry - got a bit crabby as I have already spent two and a half hours looking - I was thinking more of a place where the actual times the transmitter will be on or off would be available; perhaps the website of the company doing the engineering work?
jb38
Sunday 5 February 2012 7:11PM
Dave: Engineering work does not necessarily have any set times for doing anything and is just really a way of indicating that a station is not operating as normal, as intermittent power reductions or even drop outs take place as and when necessary connected on many occasions to reasons of safety, and is something which is quite impossible to forecast before hand.
Dave
Sunday 5 February 2012 7:50PM
I was afraid that might be the case - thanks for the help anyway.
Briantist
Sunday 5 February 2012 8:09PM
Dave: Arqiva does have internal documentation about the full nature of the work they do.

However, this is highly confidential to the company and not shared with the public.

I automatically collate all available information and display it here on ukfree.tv .

As jb38 says, it is in the nature of a fault that it isn't planned and will only show up on the BBC's system when it has happened.
Briantist
Sunday 5 February 2012 8:17PM
Dave: Just as an example, here is an old Arqiva internal document - ukfree.tv link icon http://ukfree.tv/styles/i….pdf - it is reported by the BBC's system as

Analogue BBC ONE Weak Signal; DSO related from 12:24 today BBC ONE Weak Signal; DSO related from 10:14 today to 12:12 today BBC TWO Weak Signal; DSO related from 12:23 today BBC TWO Weak Signal; DSO related from 10:14 today to 12:12 today

Everyone in the industry would love Arqiva to post all their internal engineering documents online, but as a commercial company, they are not required to do so.
John
Monday 6 February 2012 11:40AM
Can I receive Eurosport (Dutch/English) for free?

barbara hamilton
Tuesday 7 February 2012 10:07AM Christchurch
HI, this is probably a very ignorant question, but the reception on my TV is abominable, my picture is now worse than it was in the 1950 when I had my first TV. Why is my picture breaking up all the time cracking with a gushing sound (like water)etc to the point that I cannot understand what is said. Ariel& TV man says everything is in perfect working order. I have double checked all connections
Briantist
Tuesday 7 February 2012 4:14PM
barbara hamilton: Are you using Freeview or analogue? You are in a perfect reception area for both services.
andy Lowe
Tuesday 7 February 2012 7:42PM
I can no longer get Rai 1, Rai 2, Rai 3
which i used to get. please help?
michael
Wednesday 8 February 2012 9:16AM
RAI is on Hotbird, 13°E, 10.992 GHz, vertical, 27.500. Some broadcasts are no longer free-to-view. For full FTA service you need a Tivu box activated on the basis of a codice fiscal (eg family address in Italy). See other postings on this site. Rete4, Canale5 are similarly affected.
Marie Prescott
Wednesday 8 February 2012 9:34AM
I receive a signal via Digital Tv recorder the last week it keeps displaying the message "Service not running" other TV which has built in freeview works fine.
I am unsure what to try any advice please?
david Gillies
Wednesday 8 February 2012 11:17AM
Use Hannington transmitter. Re-set three TVs today. Two work perfectly. The Humax gives the message No or Bad Signal on BBC 1,2,3,4,News, CBBC and 105. This TV shares the same aerial as another TV which is working fine. These channels appear to be on Multiplex 1 and B. Have followed all instructions etc from this web site but still no joy.
david Gillies
Wednesday 8 February 2012 12:31PM
david Gillies: Managed to get the password to reset Default settings and from here did a new scan. Now have all channels working! I hate technology!!! Thanks Dave
Briantist
Wednesday 8 February 2012 12:36PM
david Gillies: I'm glad to hear that worked. You will need to do it again in two weeks time.
Rubina Pabani
Wednesday 8 February 2012 1:04PM
There is no listing as yet for The Africa Channel UK on Sky 268 which is a free-to-air channel on Sky.

Will there be any listings for this?
Briantist
Wednesday 8 February 2012 1:15PM
Rubina Pabani: The Africa Channel UK is not a free-to-air channel, but part of the Sky subscription package.
Joan Wray
Wednesday 8 February 2012 2:29PM
1994 -in addition to my Sky dish and Digibox I had a separate Satellite dish and Decoder to receive German TV.
With the change from Analogue to Digital for the German programmes from 30.4.2012 does it mean I require a new 'box' etc?
Getting conflicting reports from installers in this area BN21 -Eastbourne East Sussex .
Don't want to go to unnecessary expense!
Briantist
Wednesday 8 February 2012 4:47PM
Joan Wray: If you don't have a digital box for watching your German services, yes, you need a new box. You can use any "generic free satellite" receiver, such as www.maplin.co.uk link icon 
Satellite Receiver for Free Digital TV : SD Free-to-Air Satellite Receivers : Maplin Electronics
.
Maureen Blower
Thursday 9 February 2012 9:31AM
i have done a channel scan on my digi box but it isn't holding any of the channels i have checked all connections they are fine .but no channels are coming up can you please help me
jb38
Thursday 9 February 2012 3:05PM
Maureen Blower: "If" you are simply meaning that when you attempt to view channels you have already stored and they aren't there, then first of all carry out a "factory reset" before carrying out another auto-tune, as this problem is usually always caused by the box having picked up more channels than its memory is capable of storing.

By the way, a "factory re-set" is also called a "default setting" or "first time installation" on some boxes depending on the brand.
Nedbod
Friday 10 February 2012 11:16AM
Brian : RE RED BUTTON SAVINGS Page 2510 display fault on the last two (4th & 5th) items. How do I send a "screen grab" from my TV to a BBC complaints website that will only allow you to complain on a form with a limited number of words with no means of attaching files to your complaint. Why is it beyond them to just turn on their own TV (I'm sure someone at the BBC has one) and realise that the information displayed does not line up with the headings, instead of denying (continually) that the problem exists at all, which they have been doing now for 2 YEARS !!!
Briantist
Friday 10 February 2012 11:39AM
Netbod: Do a photo of the problem screen on your phone, and then tweet it to @bbcredbutton https://twitter.com/#!/bbcredbutton . Use Twitpic - Share photos and videos on Twitter if you don't have the Twitter App on your phone.
Briantist
Friday 10 February 2012 11:50AM
Netbod: Here are the pics grabs if you need them - BBCi page 2510 option 5 page 1 on Twitpic and BBCi page 2510 option 4 page 1 on Twitpic .
toni
Friday 10 February 2012 7:19PM Belfast
hi
i currently have built in freeview and turned my t.v on yesterday to find that i have lost channels 3,4,5,6,8,11,13,14,19,20 etc. and dont get e4 or e4 plus one, please help i cant deal with missing hollyoaks again! lol
sally
Friday 10 February 2012 11:28PM Wellingborough
i have just cancelled my sky.with the i know i can still watch the sky channels but if i buy a freeview box can i have them both connected to the tv at the same time .
sally
Annie
Sunday 12 February 2012 9:09AM
When tuning in my TV in digital mode I get all the freeview channels but it doesn't pick up my Sky subscription channel. Is it meant to find the Sky channel? For instance in the programme lists on Digital it has Sky Sports 2 but says it's engrypted or something. Of course when I put it back to TV I can watch it. An engineer came to install my son's widescreen and it took him ages to find a spare channel and rename it for Sky (the package we pay for). I can't remember how he did it now. Or if I want to watch Sky movies, do I go back to TV mode and use the channel number I have for Sky? Sorry this has all come out back to front.
Mr David Eric Garrard
Sunday 12 February 2012 10:35AM
i have a sky+ box can i still use it to record &play back and frezze programes if i stop subscribing to sky
jb38
Sunday 12 February 2012 11:22AM
Mr David Eric Garrard: No! as Sky permanently retains access permission to the recording side of the box, and this includes playback as well.



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