Quote:
Originally Posted by 1881-A
Ok!, here goes. I have a C-band (big ugly dish) since 1978, and added a 4DTV DSR922 unit. I have only C-band (no Ku yet) and have subscribed to digital programming. I want to add a DVB-MPEG receiver with HD, so I can be ready for it coming this year. I've been reading it may be best to get a DVB-MPEG-2 with HD, and not get the older version, and have to switch later.
What are my choices on the best receiver, and how do I proceed? Would it be to my advantage to install a 6' or 8" dish separate with the DVB receiver, or can I use the DVB unit with my old 10' back yard dish? If I do, I would go with the motorized route, so I can pick up more than one satellite.
Thanks for the information. |
I don't understand the " I want to add a DVB-MPEG receiver with HD, so I can be ready for it coming this year." sentence. What are you talking about that is "coming this year"?
But on to your question, it is pretty easy to slave any DVB receiver to your big dish, just by adding a "T" to the coax, with a DC-block on the coax that goes to the DVB receiver (or get a "T" that only passes DC on one port). I think you are better off using your existing dish. The "T" will reduce your signal a bit, but not enough to cause any problems. You'll have to move the dish, and control polarity with your 4DTV.
Re HD, since
Sadoun only sells Fortec, and Fortec hasn't released their North American HD receiver yet, you'll probably need to go elsewhere. There are several other receiver brands that sell HD receivers. I'm not sure which is best. Besides a set top box HD receiver, another option is to get a PCI computer card type receiver. The only problem is that you need a VERY fast computer to view the HD video on the computer, or to play directly to a TV via your computer's video card outputs (if it has them).
I have a
Twinhan 1020a PCI card receiver, which Sadoun used to sell, but they don't anymore. I think it has been discontinued, but for some reason Sadoun doesn't sell the cards that replaced it anymore either. I have it in a 2GHz computer, which can only display low bitrate HD without it breaking up. You really need a 3 GHz or faster computer. But I stream the raw digital stream over my LAN to a box called a Roku HD1000, which does a very nice job with even relatively high bitrate HD. Unfortunately, the Roku box isn't being made anymore, so that option is going away. I keep hoping that Fortec will come out with their version of a HD STB, but actually using the Twinhan/Roku thing has more capability than a STB does.
What I do is stream the raw digital data to a box
There is a fair amount of HD on C-band right now, but it may not be there for long, since much of this stuff could change at any time to 8PSK that consumer receivers can't receive. So you better get your HD capability quick, but that's also a reason to perhaps not invest too much, which is why I like the PCI card option, as they are very cheap.