sky coverage

[eurosatwiz]

Don't worry dave I will be able to fix it for you
There will be a solution

[satellitedave]

Evening all.Very interesting your views on Sky. I envy you all really. We are in the UK and had sky put in last July including Sky Sports 1, 2 and 3 and every month something goes wrong with it. Loss of picture, satellite signal etc etc. 3 weeks ago lost all progs (again) had to wait a week for an engineer, he just swapped the sky box, and said we lost all recording we had made. would you believe had no Sky Sports or channel 4 since last Sunday, Engineer coming again tomorrow, wonder what excuse this time. It really makes me mad, it costs £42.50 a month and as yet we hav'nt had a full months viewing  808 808 808 808

You've been most unfortunate!

However, although 'Sky' is in the post title, I'm not sure how many of us are on 'Sky' as such. Personally I wouldn't voluntarily pay for TV services when all the main TV programmes are anyway free-to-air!

I pay about £23 per month for the Sky variety pack plus Sky Plus and personally I feel it is good value for money for my personal viewing requirements as I get some many more channels to choose from although I have to say that there a lot rubbish there too and I also have to admit that I, on the whole, watch non Sky channels. I'm not interested in movies or sport and would not pay those prices that's for sure.

I wouldn't miss "Sky" channels so much but I would hate to be without the BBC's etc.

Dave

[satellitedave]

Evening all.Very interesting your views on Sky. I envy you all really. We are in the UK and had sky put in last July including Sky Sports 1, 2 and 3 and every month something goes wrong with it. Loss of picture, satellite signal etc etc. 3 weeks ago lost all progs (again) had to wait a week for an engineer, he just swapped the sky box, and said we lost all recording we had made. would you believe had no Sky Sports or channel 4 since last Sunday, Engineer coming again tomorrow, wonder what excuse this time. It really makes me mad, it costs £42.50 a month and as yet we hav'nt had a full months viewing  808 808 808 808

Yes you seem to have been quite unlucky with your Sky experience. Generally, providing you have a good signal, TV via satellite is a stable platform and generally very reliable.

I hope they get to the bottom of your problem and reimburse you.

Dave

[satellitedave]

But if they do zapp it what are we all going to miss...

we only watch emerdale,correi,downtown,news we watch more on you tube and listen to radio 2 through the tinternet,i also like ti try and make out out local ish spanish news.

to us it would be no big loss if it went :tiphat:

For me and my wife it would be a massive loss especially during the winter evenings that can be just as long and cold as the UK.

I love settling down in the evening and watching some news followed by Egg Heads. Also I have Sky Plus so we tend to record everything. We very rarely watch anything in real time.

Currently we are enjoying Strictly Come Dancing and Master Chef-The Professionals, there are also some great drama series on currently too. Personally I am not a great lover of soaps but my wife likes Corry. We do watch the X Factor BUT luckily we can "wind" all the ads and inane waffle on.

Dave

[guest4538]

Evening all.Very interesting your views on Sky. I envy you all really. We are in the UK and had sky put in last July including Sky Sports 1, 2 and 3 and every month something goes wrong with it. Loss of picture, satellite signal etc etc. 3 weeks ago lost all progs (again) had to wait a week for an engineer, he just swapped the sky box, and said we lost all recording we had made. would you believe had no Sky Sports or channel 4 since last Sunday, Engineer coming again tomorrow, wonder what excuse this time. It really makes me mad, it costs £42.50 a month and as yet we hav'nt had a full months viewing  808 808 808 808

You've been most unfortunate!

However, although 'Sky' is in the post title, I'm not sure how many of us are on 'Sky' as such. Personally I wouldn't voluntarily pay for TV services when all the main TV programmes are anyway free-to-air!

[benjaminbennett]

Evening all.Very interesting your views on Sky. I envy you all really. We are in the UK and had sky put in last July including Sky Sports 1, 2 and 3 and every month something goes wrong with it. Loss of picture, satellite signal etc etc. 3 weeks ago lost all progs (again) had to wait a week for an engineer, he just swapped the sky box, and said we lost all recording we had made. would you believe had no Sky Sports or channel 4 since last Sunday, Engineer coming again tomorrow, wonder what excuse this time. It really makes me mad, it costs £42.50 a month and as yet we hav'nt had a full months viewing  808 808 808 808

[Tetley]

But if they do zapp it what are we all going to miss...

we only watch emerdale,correi,downtown,news we watch more on you tube and listen to radio 2 through the tinternet,i also like ti try and make out out local ish spanish news.

to us it would be no big loss if it went :tiphat:

[CT]

Norm: You will switch on your TV one morning soon and find you have no UK programmes. Contact your friendly satellite dish installer who will get out the sellotape and fix it - all you need to know. Don't worry about uplinks and downlinks, upscaling, footprints, ID, Astra, Asda, HD, PAL, Tesco, NTSC, SECAM,  &^^

[Norm2]

I'm really impressed by all this techo posting - if not totally confused, BBC test broadcasts: HDM connections etc -wow!!!. The only thing I recognise is the ITV and I've got one of them for my car. 

[Tetley]

Gus .... TTV 1  ;D

[gus-lopez]

Im going to read all this and try and rigg mi computer up to the telly...i thought DVI  was an STD till i read all this lot  :o

thanks for all the info folks  :tiphat:

Will we be getting broadcasts from the nerve-centre soon ?  :wave

[Tetley]

Im going to read all this and try and rigg mi computer up to the telly...i thought DVI  was an STD till i read all this lot  :o

thanks for all the info folks  :tiphat:

[guest4538]

I have that input option on the TV , one of the HDMI inputs says its the one to be used if you want to conect DVI to HDMI but none of our machines has the DVI output , only either RGBs with a separate audio cable from speaker out or HDMI out . So stuck with SD picture but its good pic and sound is also clear so im gonna have to settle for that until someone is installing the right equipment for regular viewing .

Connectivity restrictions is a common problem with laptops. Whereas most desktops have both digital (DVI & HDMI) and analogue (RGB or VGA) connectors.

Enjoy your viewing anyway.

Bye for now....

[Optomist]

Connect a DVI-HDMI cable + an audio cable: that should give you HD picture as well as the sound. This is a standard option on my TV, but it may not be available on all makes of TV!

I have that input option on the TV , one of the HDMI inputs says its the one to be used if you want to conect DVI to HDMI but none of our machines has the DVI output , only either RGBs with a separate audio cable from speaker out or HDMI out . So stuck with SD picture but its good pic and sound is also clear so im gonna have to settle for that until someone is installing the right equipment for regular viewing .

[guest4538]

Thats what i 1st thought of but you can only select 1 input to the TV at a time and the audio input on the TV operates in conjunction with the RGB ( PC ) input so although i have perfect sound an picture then i dont have HD . Selecting any of the HDMI inputs wont conect the audio in cable .
I would not complain about your replies Chisme , you pointed me in the right direction and saved me a lot of time by narrowing it down to what i now believe to be the problem . Thank you . :tiphat:

Thanks for that.

Then just one more suggestion: that is if it's an option with your TV.

Connect a DVI-HDMI cable + an audio cable: that should give you HD picture as well as the sound. This is a standard option on my TV, but it may not be available on all makes of TV!



This is the cable: http://www.amazon.co.uk/BlueRigger-Speed-Adapter-Cable-Meters/dp/B005LJQO9G/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1354103120&sr=8-10.

[Crystal2]

This all sounds like a foreign language to me.... I haven't a clue what you are talking about !!     When the time comes I will have to get Gary aka Olive 25 to sort me out !!!

[Optomist]

Thanks Chisme , at least i know it will work , only thing i can think of is that my Sony flatscreen TV for some reason although works perfectly with the Humax Freesat box via the HDMI its not compatible with the signal from the Filmon player .

But how do you know whether your HDMI cable supports an 'ethernet channel'?

I took your advice and looked at what was writen on the cable , it said " high speed HDMI cable and Ethernet "

Sorry - yes that makes sense.

I appreciate that you've heard enough from me on this topic, and I wont write again, on the subject, after just one last point.

Why not try connecting a simple audio cable between your PC and your TV, as well as the HDMI cable?

Thats what i 1st thought of but you can only select 1 input to the TV at a time and the audio input on the TV operates in conjunction with the RGB ( PC ) input so although i have perfect sound an picture then i dont have HD . Selecting any of the HDMI inputs wont conect the audio in cable .

I would not complain about your replies Chisme , you pointed me in the right direction and saved me a lot of time by narrowing it down to what i now believe to be the problem . Thank you . :tiphat:

[guest4538]

Thanks Chisme , at least i know it will work , only thing i can think of is that my Sony flatscreen TV for some reason although works perfectly with the Humax Freesat box via the HDMI its not compatible with the signal from the Filmon player .

But how do you know whether your HDMI cable supports an 'ethernet channel'?

I took your advice and looked at what was writen on the cable , it said " high speed HDMI cable and Ethernet "

Sorry - yes that makes sense.

I appreciate that you've heard enough from me on this topic, and I wont write again, on the subject, after just one last point.

Why not try connecting a simple audio cable between your PC and your TV, as well as the HDMI cable?

[Optomist]

Thanks Chisme , at least i know it will work , only thing i can think of is that my Sony flatscreen TV for some reason although works perfectly with the Humax Freesat box via the HDMI its not compatible with the signal from the Filmon player .

But how do you know whether your HDMI cable supports an 'ethernet channel'?

I took your advice and looked at what was writen on the cable , it said " high speed HDMI cable and Ethernet "

[guest4538]

, looks to me that i have HDMI 1.4 , 1.4a or 1.4b as they are the only ones to suport Ethernet also according to the link you sent , the HDMI ones i have also support Volume on other Players , i still have a sneaky feeling its due to the codec

I note your amendment.

But how do you know whether your HDMI cable supports an 'ethernet channel'?

[guest4538]

Thaks Chisme but im not convinced as the HDMI ones i have support Volume on other Players , i still have a sneaky feeling its due to the codec Filmon are using , i think its a codec dedicated to their own player , would be good to hear if anyone has actually managed to get picture AND sound through their HDMI .

Well never mind!

Incidentally, I've just tested Filmon on my computer connected to my TV: it works as anticipated - the sound comes out of my TV system - but the picture is no better than 'Movies for Men'!

My HDMI cable is 1.4. I suggest you look at 'CEC Commands' in this article - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HDMI.

A new observation , using an LCD computer monitor plugged into a laptops RGB port there is sound and picture .

Yes, but presumably the sound is simply coming out of your PC speakers, as one might expect!

[Optomist]

Chisme i have checked it and all it says is High Speed HDMI cable and Ethernet , the last one was bought a couple of months ago . I have volume control on both VLC and the Gom player .
Reading everything on the Filmon site is does say mobile devices and PCs if it were possible to transfer it to the TV imm sure they would have mentioned that also .

Since the version number is not given it is likely that you've been sold an old original HDMI cable! I still suggest that you seek out a version 1.3 or 1.4 and try it - we're only talking a few pence after all, and the symptoms which you describe endorse the 'wrong-HDMI-cable' diagnosis.

Thaks Chisme , looks to me that i have HDMI 1.4 , 1.4a or 1.4b as they are the only ones to suport Ethernet also according to the link you sent , the HDMI ones i have also support Volume on other Players , i still have a sneaky feeling its due to the codec Filmon are using , i think its a codec dedicated to their own player , would be good to hear if anyone has actually managed to get picture AND sound through their HDMI .

A new observation , using an LCD computer monitor plugged into a laptops RGB port there is sound and picture .

SORTED NOW . Not a perfect solution as i cant have HD but other than that sound and picture working perfectly from a computer to the TV using the RGB 15 pin connector and a separate cable fro the sound output headphone socket to the TV and select PC input on the TV . Thank you both for the advice , one Happy Bunny here . :tiphat:

[guest4538]

Reading everything on the Filmon site is does say mobile devices and PCs if it were possible to transfer it to the TV imm sure they would have mentioned that also .

Why would they mention it? By connecting your PC to your TV by HDMI cable, you are simply using your TV as a monitor!

[guest4538]

Chisme i have checked it and all it says is High Speed HDMI cable and Ethernet , the last one was bought a couple of months ago . I have volume control on both VLC and the Gom player .
Reading everything on the Filmon site is does say mobile devices and PCs if it were possible to transfer it to the TV imm sure they would have mentioned that also .

Since the version number is not given it is likely that you've been sold an old original HDMI cable! I still suggest that you seek out a version 1.3 or 1.4 and try it - we're only talking a few pence after all, and the symptoms which you describe endorse the 'wrong-HDMI-cable' diagnosis.

[Optomist]

Filmon is great and works very well but if every ex pat in Spain started using it then it wouldn't work
And I doubt Spain would have the bandwidth the Internet would grind to a standstill

Thats exactly the concern i posted a few days ago , we could end up with many of us having not only no TV to watch but no Internet either .

Thank you for the suggestion on the sound problem , external speakers do supply sound , i can play the sound from the sound card and picture through the HDMI connected to the TV . Thats where i think the problem is , i can watch Fimon.com and listen to music or a film from the laptop at the same time through the TV so sound is being sent through the HDMI but not being played by the TV speakers or the surround sound system connected to it from the Filmon player . There is several ways around this i have now found that is to use 2 laptops or a laptop and Ipod Touch , one with an HDMI to take the picture to the TV and the other taking the sound direct to the surround system  then i can have both sound and picture although a decent set of speakers connected to the Laptop is the simpler way to do it . Roll on the time when we all know what equipment is required to get back to normal viewing , simpler still .

Chisme i have checked it and all it says is High Speed HDMI cable and Ethernet , the last one was bought a couple of months ago . I have volume control on both VLC and the Gom player .

Reading everything on the Filmon site is does say mobile devices and PCs if it were possible to transfer it to the TV imm sure they would have mentioned that also .

[guest4538]

There are a couple of recomendations for Filmon.com which we are tried and found it works well on the laptops and PCs however im wondering is anyone has tried to watch it through the TV using an HDMI lead if so what was your experience .
The laptops and PCs all play it well in either SD and HD with perfect sound however when its connected to the TV there is perfect picture but no sound , it nothing to do with the settings on any of our machines as we can play music , films or anything using VCL or Gom players without any problems , been doing that for a long time but with Filmon.com the moment the HDMI lead is plugged it only the picture is show , no sound at all , possibly their using a Codec only supported by their own player . Bummer . ???  any ideas ?

Another thought: how old is your HDMI cable?

I suggest that you check its version, usually written along the length of the cable.

You will probably need version 1.3 or better in order to control Filmon's volume through your TV.

[eurosatwiz]

Filmon is great and works very well but if every ex pat in Spain started using it then it wouldn't work
And I doubt Spain would have the bandwidth the Internet would grind to a standstill

[satellitedave]

There are a couple of recomendations for Filmon.com which we are tried and found it works well on the laptops and PCs however im wondering is anyone has tried to watch it through the TV using an HDMI lead if so what was your experience .

The laptops and PCs all play it well in either SD and HD with perfect sound however when its connected to the TV there is perfect picture but no sound , it nothing to do with the settings on any of our machines as we can play music , films or anything using VCL or Gom players without any problems , been doing that for a long time but with Filmon.com the moment the HDMI lead is plugged it only the picture is show , no sound at all , possibly their using a Codec only supported by their own player . Bummer . ???  any ideas ?

Hi,

Just found this info. for you and maybe in a similar vein to eurosatwiz's suggestion :-

" Solution

Under Vista, you should go into the Control Panel, select Sound, then select Manage Audio Devices
Rather than selecting the speakers, click on Output and select By Default
It should be OK"

Hope it points you in the right direction.

Dave

[guest4538]

There are a couple of recomendations for Filmon.com which we are tried and found it works well on the laptops and PCs however im wondering is anyone has tried to watch it through the TV using an HDMI lead if so what was your experience .
The laptops and PCs all play it well in either SD and HD with perfect sound however when its connected to the TV there is perfect picture but no sound , it nothing to do with the settings on any of our machines as we can play music , films or anything using VCL or Gom players without any problems , been doing that for a long time but with Filmon.com the moment the HDMI lead is plugged it only the picture is show , no sound at all , possibly their using a Codec only supported by their own player . Bummer . ???  any ideas ?

I agree, if it works with VCL and Gom players you would expect it to work for any media. I gather that you have only tried with Filmon recently: have you tried using VCL or Gom since Filmon failed to work properly?

I am interested to see that you have a perfect picture with Filmon. Presumably you are paying for the HD version? I find the free SD picture unacceptable by today's standards.

[eurosatwiz]

This is a shot in dark but when HDMI lead is in and film is playing
Go to sound settings in control panel and change out put to your sound card
And plug in speakers
I have my PC connected to tv via HDMI and sound comes out separate sound system

[Optomist]

There are a couple of recomendations for Filmon.com which we are tried and found it works well on the laptops and PCs however im wondering is anyone has tried to watch it through the TV using an HDMI lead if so what was your experience .

The laptops and PCs all play it well in either SD and HD with perfect sound however when its connected to the TV there is perfect picture but no sound , it nothing to do with the settings on any of our machines as we can play music , films or anything using VCL or Gom players without any problems , been doing that for a long time but with Filmon.com the moment the HDMI lead is plugged it only the picture is show , no sound at all , possibly their using a Codec only supported by their own player . Bummer . ???  any ideas ?

[CT]

Reports on another site that the whole thing has been put off until next month as they are having problems with the satellite; reception in north Scotland and Ireland also poorer than anticipated.

[guest4538]

With a 60cm dish in the UK, I have 100% signal strength with the 'BBC 1 HD' signal from Astra1N, but only 80% with the 'BBC 1 HD' test signal from Astra2F.

Sky would normally install a 40cm dish in my area and they would expect it to record 100% signal strength. Therefore the test signal strength seems very weak!

Possibly the signal strength from Astra2F may be increased, in comparison with the test signal, once it is fully operational. At least I hope so, otherwise I will need a new bigger dish in Spain!

Fingers crossed...

[eurosatwiz]

I can pick up the 2 test BBC HD channels on a 1.8 dish at present
And have tried to pick up same on a gibertini 1,25 result was no signal

So if signal stays same when the final transfer takes place its going to be a 1.8 minimum To continue to pick up all bbc itv channel 4 and five including radio and tv channels

[jill cockfield]

We've got a better picture!