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Frequently Asked Questions, Troubleshooting & General Faults - Questions and Answers A large number of faults can be cured by resetting the digibox (turning off, waiting a minute and then turning back on). If you get the message 'there is a technical fault with this channel', this can usually be solved in this way. Note that you need to turn the power off completely - just putting the digibox into standby (ie. pressing the power button on the remote so the light on the front of the box changes from green to red) will not work.
If your digibox has been unused for a long period and/or the EPG software is not one of the latest versions - generally 3.4.4b or 3.5.3 (or 5.03.f for a Sky Plus digibox), then you can generally update the software by forcing a software download. Old EPG software will typically cause problems such as:
Forcing a software update:
General picture quality problems Before doing anything check out the connection between the digibox output and the TV. Scart connections often come loose, with the partial or complete loss of either the picture or sound. If the connection does not appear to be loose, it is worth replacing the scart lead, if only to rule this out as a possible fault. Message appears on screen 'no satellite signal received'. As a first step, power down completely at the mains socket and then power up again and see if this solves the problem. If this does not work, the fault is likely to be caused by either a bad connection (check the F connector coupling on the 'dish input' socket on the digibox), a faulty tuner in the digibox or by poor dish alignment. If you've got a friend or neighbour with Sky, try putting your box on their system to determine where the fault lies. " I've aligned the dish myself and the digibox is stuck in 'searching for listings' ". Go to services - system setup - signal test. The lock indicator should read 'OK', network ID should read '0002' and transport stream should read '07d4'. If you have a different set of figures to this, then you've locked onto the wrong satellite and the dish will need realigning. "A friend and I have a Pace DS430N we find that the default frequency cannot be reset to 12129 which we believe gives a better signal strength and quality given that we live abroad. Are there two versions of this box one for the uk and for abroad?" Resetting the default transponder won't give you a better signal strength. The only reason you would do it would be if you were outside the range of the North beam. Resetting the default transponder would mean that at least the digibox would be able to find something to lock onto. The fact that you can't do it (does it keep reverting to 11.778?) indicates to me that your box can see the North beam OK, in which case there's no point in doing it! There isn't an 'export' box. Pace just made their last two boxes with an low threshold tuner, perhaps with half an eye on the export market. "We live in Southern Spain and have problems getting a strong enough signal. Can I fit a signal amplifier before the digibox and get round the problem this way?" Although this idea might sound feasible, it would not work. Signal amplifiers are only really intended to prevent signal loss on long cable runs. If there isn't a good enough signal present in the first place, amplifying it won't help. On the TV listings, some channels are missing (usually ITV1, Channel 4 and Five). The card is probably not being read properly by the card reader. Check this by going to services - system setup - system details and seeing if your card number is appearing. If it isn't, try taking the card out and wiping the gold contacts with a dry cloth. Then reinsert the card the wrong way a couple of times to clean the card reader. If this fails try re-inserting the card with a little more force. Also check your EPG software version. The latest version as of December 2007 is 3.5.3. If you have something different, then you may need to force a software update (see above).
"I have set up my own digibox and dish using the built in signal tuner on the digibox and by adjusting the dish myself. However, although the signal meter is telling me that the dish is aligned correctly, I'm not receiving BBC and ITV channels."
If your signal meter on the digibox (found in <services> <system setup> <signal test>) is giving all the right figures - 0002 & 07d4 - then try adjusting the LNB skew. To do this, rotate the LNB in its holder slightly. How much depends on where you are, but as a starting point rotate the LNB a few degrees anticlockwise (as viewed from the front of the dish). Adjusting the skew allows the LNB to differentiate between horizontally and vertically polarized signals, and is necessary because the satellite, as we would see it, does not hang at right angles to the ground.
For more information on setting up your own dish, see www.satelliteforcaravans.co.uk
"I have aligned my own dish, but I've noticed on the 'signal test' page that the bars representing signal strength and signal quality are moving up and down. Is this correct? Also, I can't get the signal quality above about 40%."
Do not worry about the movement on the built in signal meter of the digibox - this is normal. You should not pay too much attention to this signal meter - it is very rough and ready. If your signal strength and quality are on about 40%, then this is fine. You would find that if you connected a different digibox of the same type, the readings would be different again.
All the BBC regional variations and ITV London are listed on the programme guide at positions 971 to 993, but I can't see the ITV regions listed. Is it possible to get the ITV regional variations?
Yes, it is possible to get all regional variations, but they have to be programmed in. Follow the procedure below: Press <SERVICES> , <SYSTEM SETUP>, <ADD CHANNELS>. Enter the frequency and polarization (H or V) from the list below.
Note - frequencies may be subject to change.
Scroll down to 'FIND CHANNELS' and press 'select'. From the list that appears, scroll down to the channel you want and press the yellow button on the remote to store it. Press 'select' and at the 'channel line up complete' prompt, press 'select' to continue. To view the channels you have stored, press <SERVICES> followed by <OTHER CHANNELS>.
To make the BBC regional programmes more accessible, add your chosen region to your 'favourites' (see your user guide). Unfortunately, this is not possible for the programmed ITV regions, which have to be accessed through the 'other channels' function.
" I've tried updating the software and everything appears to go OK, but when go to system details, the software version has not changed." Not all digiboxes will update (the Panasonic DSB31 and the Pace 2600C1, as well as many other models have suffered from this fault). If you have a good digibox, such as the Pace 2600C1, we can repair it for £47.00. If you have an older digibox you would be best advised to replace the digibox completely.
" I live outside the UK and lose my satellite signal in the evening around 9pm. Why does this happen?"
In certain parts of Europe the Astra satellite signal (usually Astra 2D & the North beam) is extremely weak and the signal is marginal at the best of times, even with a large dish. In the evening, the strength of the satellite signal generally weakens. If the signal strength during the day is low, then by evening it may well drop below the threshold required by the digibox.
The only way to prevent this from happening is as follows:
We do not know for sure why the signal drops in the evening. 'What Satellite' magazine suggested the following:
"The geostationary orbit of the satellite is not actually stationary - for various reasons the satellite does drift; it is equipped with a propulsion system to correct these movements. While these movements in the orbit may well have some effect on reception at the fringes of the footprint, we believe that this is not significant and that the major effect on evening reception is caused by the loss of solar power at night, when the satellite switches over to battery power"
Nick Kett recently wrote in and commented:
"I think what satellite mag has still not nailed the problem...
A satellite only has around 60 "nights" per year ranging from a few mins to several hours each... it's not an every night thing... so we can ignore that one.. Thermal noise .... maybe, but that should be much worse during the day and better at night. Ionosphere...very little effect on KU band and would be worse some days and almost nothing on others..
Satellite dropping power because another transponder has been turned on is one maybe...
Broadcast satellites maintain downlink power by using an ALC (Automat Level Control) and have a dB or two in reserve for each transponder... new satellites could have even more available power, but the downlink is maintained at the calculated "end of life" figure to allow for solar panel and other degradation. So I suspect the output from the satellite is a constant. I think the most likely cause is Satellite pointing accuracy. Geo satellites are kept in position by burning precious fuel....when the fuel is all gone the satellite has reached the end of it's life. All geo satellites move around, if you use a 3m+ dish for KU then it needs constant tracking. Satellites are pulled by the gravitational pull of the sun and the moon. On a day to day basis they trace a figure of 8 in the sky, mainly north to south movement. The station keeping is about 0.25deg, any better than that and the bird has to burn a lot more fuel and would have a shorter operational life..
As the satellite pitches up and down the pointing of the satellite antenna changes, so the footprint moves up and down a little on the earth. In the beam centre and near the beam edge, it's not too much of a problem, but footprints do not just fade away the further you are away from beam center, outside the main lobe, there are deep nulls and further little peaks... It's the movement of these "nulls" that is most likely causing the losses of signal in southern Europe at night". " I sometimes lose Channel 5 in the evening. Is there any way of overcoming this problem?"
Chris Saul from Absolute Satellites told us about this solution for getting a stronger signal for Channel 5:
Press <SERVICES> followed by <SYSTEM SETUP> then <ADD CHANNELS>. Where the frequency is highlighted, enter '10964'. Arrow down to polarization and use the right/left arrow buttons to set this to horizontal 'H'. Set the symbol rate to 22 and the FEC to 5/6 in the same way. Go down to 'Find Channels' and press select. The digibox will search for new channels and will then display the 'New Channel' page. Use the down arrow to highlight 7505. Press the yellow button on the remote. Check there is a tick next to 7505. Press select. Press Sky button.
You have successfully programmed a new frequency for viewing channel Five. To view this channel you need to press <SERVICES> followed by <OTHER CHANNELS> and then select '7505'. Note that there is no channel or programme information available on this frequency.
" I've bought a TV link device that enables me to watch Sky on a second TV set in my bedroom upstairs, but it's not working"
If you had bought it from this site you would have got a complete set of instructions! The TV link device works as follows - you run a length of coaxial cable out from the RF OUT-2 socket on the back of the digibox to the second TV set. The TV link device connects between the second TV and the coax cable. There is a 'magic eye' connected to the TV link that enables you to change channels from a remote location (ie your bedroom in this case). The TV link needs to be powered and to do this you need to access the hidden installers menu on the digibox. Press <SERVICES> followed by <SYSTEM SETUP> and then 0,1,<SELECT> in quick succession. You should now be on the INSTALLER SETUP menu. Select item 4 - RF OUTLETS - and, using the arrow keys on the remote, turn the 'RF outlet power supply' to ON. Save your new settings. The red LED on the TV link device should now be lit. If no picture is being displayed on your second TV set, you need to tune a spare channel until your TV upstairs displays what's on the TV downstairs. " I've bought a TV link device and I get a picture but no sound" The chances are that you are outside the UK and your second TV set is PAL-G standard and needs to be PAL-I. A scart connection will work OK, but of course you can't connect a scart to the second set, only an RF connection. Either buy an RF modulator (see the Satcure website) or get another TV.
"I installed my digibox correctly and everything is working fine, except the digibox has tuned into my Channel 4 position so I no longer have channel 4 terrestial. I have a feeling it's there but affected by the digibox. Also I have problems with picture quality on RF Out 2 which is cabled around the house, which may be part of the Channel 4 problem. Is there a setting on the digibox that I can adjust to get it on a different channel?"
Access the RF outlets menu via the installers secret menu. Press <SERVICES> followed by <SYSTEM SETUP> and then 0,1,<SELECT> in quick succession. You should now be on the INSTALLER SETUP menu. Select item 4 - RF OUTLETS - and you will be able to change the RF channel number. "I've got an ordinary digibox with a free-to-view card and want to upgrade to Sky Plus. Is this possible?" No, you must have a Sky subscription to be able to use the Sky Plus. Without this, it acts like an ordinary digibox. If you take out a basic subscription - the cheapest is £16.00 a month - you can ask for the card to be upgraded to Sky Plus for no extra monthly charge.
"I live in Switzerland and want three digiboxes so different channels can be watched in different rooms. I want the Family Package on each digibox - can I take advantage of 'Sky Multiroom' to get three cards?"
No, if you take up the Sky Multiroom offer (basically a cheap way of getting extra subscription cards) the contract states that the digiboxes have to be connected to a phone line, making it difficult/impossible to use this offer if you are living outside the UK. "How do I get Dolby Digital surround sound though my digibox?" The only digiboxes that support Dolby Digital are the Sky Plus models. This feature won't work with any other receivers. "Which Sky Digiboxes have SVHS output?" The Grundig models GDS310/2, GDS2000 and GDS3000. "Do Sky Digiboxes support Diseqc switches?" No Sky Digiboxes support Diseqc. "I want to buy a new digibox, but will my existing Sky card have to be 'matched' to the box?"
It depends on what Sky package you have. You will find that most channels except the premium (Movies and Sports) channels come through OK, without any matching required. However, if you have the premium channels you will need to phone Sky and give them the following details from the new digibox - go to services, then system setup then system details. Make a note of all the information on this page. Then phone Sky on 08702 404040 and tell them that you have changed your digibox. They will ask for some of the information from the system details page and will then transfer the card. The whole process only takes a couple of minutes. Read more about this subject...... "The following error message has appeared on my Sky digibox and won't go away: 'There is a technical fault with this channel'. What is going on and how can I correct the fault?" This fault appears to be related to the latest software download - you may have noticed that the colour of your EPG changed recently - and may be a glitch that is eventually sorted out by a further update. However, to clear the fault, turn the power off to the digibox at the mains switch and then power up again. Like rebooting your computer, this simple procedure can cure many such glitches. "My Thomson digibox is making a strange noise - a kind of whining or whistling sound. Can this be fixed?" This is correct. PTV Prime can be received without the need for any kind of card, but only if you have a big enough dish (approx 90cm or the Zone 2 Sky dish) aligned with this satellite. A Sky digibox can be used as a free-to-air receiver, although it is not intended for this purpose, and you would have to programme in the correct frequency settings via the 'add channels' function of the digibox. However, your box may ask for a PIN number when you try to access this channel, so you will need to have a Freesat card, with a known PIN number. In short, don't use a Sky digibox on any satellite except Astra 28.2.
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