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Digibox Guide
Recommended digiboxes for the UK and Europe
In the descriptions below, 'weak signal area' refers to any region or country outside the Astra 2D footprint. Astra 2D provides the signal for BBC and ITV programmes and the footprint is tightly focused on the UK, unlike the footprint for Channel 4 or Sky News, for example. Although it is possible to pick up 2D signals as far away as Africa, to do so successfully requires a very large dish. For a given dish size, using a receiver with a low signal threshold will ensure that you stand the best chance of maintaining a reliable, trouble-free reception.
If you are within the UK, or you are in a good signal area such as central or Northern France, then reliabilty will be a much more important consideration than having a digibox with a low signal threshold. If choosing a new digibox, we generally favour Pace for reliability, whether it's the standard Pace DS445N or the Sky Plus TDS470N.
As a brief guide, I have listed below our recommendations for different European countries and regions. In each case, I have based the choice on the assumption that you are trying to get BBC and ITV channels and are prepared to install a sufficiently large dish.
UK - Pace DS445N (any digibox will suffice - reception is good across the range of digiboxes)
France - Pace DS445N. Any digibox will suffice - reception is good across the range of digiboxes. The Thomson digiboxes make a good choice for a slightly cheaper, refurbished option. However, it may be prudent to choose the Pace DS430N if you are on the far South coast.
Italy - Pace DS430N for Northern Italy. Pace 2600C1 for Southern Italy.
Spain - the Pace DS430N should be used, with the exception of areas around Alicante, the Balearics and the Canaries where the 2600C1 should be used instead. The Thomson DSI4214 could be used in place of the DS430N, but it's not as good as the DS430N.
Portugal - the Pace DS430N is suitable for all areas, as is the Grundig GDS3000 or the Thomson DSI4214.
Netherlands and Belgium - the Pace DS445N works well in this region. Any of the digiboxes on the website are also suitable.
Denmark - the Pace DS445 works well with a 1.2m dish in all regions, as would most other digiboxes.
Germany - choice depends on which part, as there is a great deal of difference in signal strength between West and East. Generally, we recommend the Pace DS430N for all regions.
Austria - only consider the Pace DS430N or the 2600C1.
Switzerland - signal is pretty strong and we have never had any issues with the choice of digibox. Generally, it's best to choose the Thomson DSI4214 if you want a brand new box, with the Pace DS430N as the best refurbished option.
Cyprus - only consider the 2600C1, although the DS430N is often used successfully.
Mobile satellite - if you are in a caravan and moving from country to country, choose the 12V Pace Minibox or the Pace DS430N. We also supply a 12 volt / dual voltage DS430N . If you are travelling only within the UK and Ireland, chose the DS445N - we also supply this as a 12 volt / dual voltage model, if required.
Pace
The digiboxes generally recognised as the best for Europe - especially those parts of Europe well away fom the footprint epicentre - are the Pace 2600C1 (Pace 2600), the Pace DS430N (Pace DS430) and the Pace 1000 Minibox. The Pace 2600C1 and the Pace DS430N both look the same (see photograph below). The 2600C1 and Minibox are generally considered to work marginally better in a weak signal area and this model should be considered for countries such as Cyprus, Greece, Southern Italy, the Canary Islands etc - where the signal from Astra 2D (for BBC and ITV channels) is exceptionally weak. Although most installers in Spain now use the Thomson model DSI4214 because of their availablility, you should buy either a DS430N, or a 2600C1 if you are in a difficult area such as the coastal region around Cartagena and Valencia, or one of the Balearic islands, for example. Do not use the Pace 445 where the reception is marginal - this effectively means that it should only be used for the UK, France, Ireland etc. The Pace 2600C1 is no longer available to buy new - it is available only as a fully refurbished or used digibox. The fully refurbished model is 'as new' comes with a year's guarantee, the used model has a six-month guarantee. The Pace 1000 minibox went out of production several years ago (beware of anyone who claims these are 'brand new') and supplies of fully refurbished models rare. However, we usually have this model in stock as a fully tested pre-used model, with a six month guarantee. The Pace DS430N is available as 'fully refurbished' or used. The latest Pace digibox, the DS445N, has recently been introduced but reports indicate that this model is not quite as good as the Thomson DSI4214 for reception in marginal areas such as Spain or Portugal.
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 Pace 2600C1/ Pace DS430N
A brief note about models numbers - there are only eight basic model types of Sky digibox made by Pace - the Pace 2200, Pace 2300, Pace 2400, Pace 2500, Pace 2600 , Pace DS430N (aka Pace Cobra), Pace DS440N, Pace DS445N and Pace Minibox (aka Pace Javelin or Pace 1000). There is no significant variation within each model, so when someone refers to the Pace 2600, they are talking about the Pace 2600C1. The 2600C1 is not an improved version of the 2600!
Avoid earlier Pace models, such as the 2500, 2400 and 2300, which are now too slow and unreliable.
Pace 2200 Pace Minibox Pace 2500 The Pace Minibox - otherwise known as the Pace Javelin, model no. Pace 1000 and available from our online shop - is a compact, lightweight version of the normal Sky digibox which has just one scart socket and one RF socket. It is often used in caravans, boats and motorhomes etc., although there is no reason why it cannot be used in the home. It runs on a 12V supply, but can be used as a normal digibox with the mains transformer lead, which can be supplied with the digibox. These boxes are great for taking abroad (like the 2600C1 and the DS430N they work well in a weak signal area) and are small enough to fit in a suitcase without taking up too much space. Panasonic Many people mistakenly assume that Panasonic make the best digiboxes, perhaps because it is the only brand apart from Sony that they recognise. Although the DSB30 has a very low signal threshold, making it a good choice for Spain, Portugal etc, it is prone to overheating, causing it to 'drop to standby'. This does not happen on every box, and there are a large number of boxes still going strong, but this is a fault that you should be aware of whenever buying this model. The fault may occur at any time, from a couple of minutes to a couple of days, after being switched online. However, if it does happen, it is likely to get progressively worse. We test all models for at least three days to screen out faulty boxes.
Another problem with the Panasonic DSB30 that occurs in marginal signal areas, is that the digibox 'locks up' whenever you switch to a channel where the signal is not sufficiently strong. This can be correctly by turning the whole receiver off at the mains and then back on again, but this not something that you really want to do several times each evening. If you are in a marginal signal area, it's best to replace the DSB30 with the Pace 2600C1.
Panasonic DSB30 Other Panasonics to avoid are the lamentable DSB31 and the DSB20. The DSB31 is next to useless in a weak signal area and the DSB20 is very slow, unreliable and out-dated - although it does have a low signal threshold. The only Panasonics that can be recommended are the DSB40 and the DSB50, which will work well in areas such as France, Switzerland, Belgium and the Netherlands.
All Panasonics suffer from the fact that spares are not widely available, making many repairs difficult.
Amstrad Of the six Amstrad models available - DRX100, 200, 300, 400, 500 & 550 - it is only the DRX100 and DRX400 that should be considered for use in a weak signal area. The DRX100 (shown below) is now out-dated, fairly unreliable, slow and not particularly attractive when compared to the DRX400. The DRX200 and DRX300 should be avoided. The DRX500 is rare, but appears to function in much the same way as a DRX400. The futuristic looking DRX550 has just been brought out and has been designed to match Sky's new High Definition digiboxes. This digibox has proved to be very reliable and can be used throughout the UK, Ireland, Central and Northern France etc. I would not recommend regions and countries further south of Central France.
Amstrad DRX100 The DRX400 and the DRX550 are the models that we favour. Amstrad's name is not generally synonymous with quality products, but we have found these latter models to be generally as reliable as the Pace DS430N or the Thomson models.
 Amstrad DRX400 Grundigs Avoid the older, black Grundig digiboxes (GDS200, 300) as these are unreliable. The silver digiboxes, such as the GDS310/2, GDS2000 and GDS3000, are very good for weak signal areas such as Spain or Portugal and are generally quite reliable. These models are the only digiboxes available with S-video output, in addition to the normal scart and RF outputs.
Grundig GDS3000 Grundig GDS2000 and GDS310/2 Thomsons Thomson took over Grundig and brought out the DSI4101, DSI4210, DSI4212 and most recently the DSI4214. All models are generally reliable and can be used successfully in countries such as France, Ireland, Western Germany etc. We do not particularly recommend them for use further afield than this. The DSI4214 is generally available both new and used, but the DSI4212 is only available used. Sony Although not recommended for weak signal areas, the two Sony models (VTX-S750u and VTX-S760u) are perhaps the best looking digiboxes ever made. The VTX-S760u was particularly sought after as it is the more attractive of the two models and delivers 2 channel PCM stereo via its optical output. However, these models are becoming dated, although we occasionally have some good used examples available. These are not usually posted on the website, so call us to check if we have stock available.
Reliability estimates In the table below I have tried to give a comparison of the reliability of each model.
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