Astra etc NON-Technical thread

[sid]

I've read all of the postings on the other thread about the impending doom of losing our favourite UK TV channels, and waited with bated breath for a year or more for the picture to flicker off our screen.

so far absolutely nothing has changed. Have all of the satellite changes taken place now? Can I relax? None of this is clear from the other thread, just lots of people saying what they've had to do to retain their picture and how much it's cost them. some of these are further north than me, so I'm very surprised.

Friends in Spain (Denia area, just north of Alicante) are still receiving pictures.

Unless something dramatic is about to happen this feels like an enormous hoax.

Non-technical answers on a postcard, please. Meanwhile the signal is still good (if not better) here in Deux-Sèvres.

 

[Quillan]

[quote user="sid"]

I've read all of the postings on the other thread about the impending doom of losing our favourite UK TV channels, and waited with bated breath for a year or more for the picture to flicker off our screen.

so far absolutely nothing has changed. Have all of the satellite changes taken place now? Can I relax? None of this is clear from the other thread, just lots of people saying what they've had to do to retain their picture and how much it's cost them. some of these are further north than me, so I'm very surprised.

Friends in Spain (Denia area, just north of Alicante) are still receiving pictures.

Unless something dramatic is about to happen this feels like an enormous hoax.

Non-technical answers on a postcard, please. Meanwhile the signal is still good (if not better) here in Deux-Sèvres.

[/quote]

There are still channels on Eutelsat28A, not that important but (CBS Drama, UK religious channels and soft porn channels etc) these still have to move see http://www.lyngsat.com/Eutelsat-28A.html  

Astra 2A (to be relocated) http://www.ses.com/4628782/astra-2a is also still populated although mainly with Sky channels like Sky Sports etc although the Sky channels that have moved to 2E appear to be on the European beam and not the spot beam. It is only an assumption but it is suspected that these channels will also go to 2E and be on the European beam. They may also go to Astra 2G which is waiting to be launched. Only SES knows what channels will be going where. This is why some people who have a subscription to Sky will find that the Sky channels work but they can’t get the FTA channels like BBC, ITV, C5 etc. I have certainly heard of two people where this is the case.

Astra 2E is not complete hence if you look at the same place it does not show what channels are there www.ses.com/4628866/astra-2e  this is because there are still some channels to be moved to it from Eutelsat28A.

What we do know for sure is tht Astra 1N which carried a lot of UK TV is now at 19.2 deg and is waiting to be populated http://www.ses.com/4628614/astra-1n 

So is it all finished, well I don't think so and I can't find any proof anyware that it is. Will there be any 'tweaking' of the spot beam, who knows except SES. I explained it to somebody as a four cylinder car engine, when three of the four are firing the car will go but you would not consider tuning it (supposing it is possible) till all four cylinders are up and running.

As to why some people have lost channels who are further north than you and why some people just needed to 'tweak' their dishes this is down to possibly their dishes not being properly aligned in the first place.

Spain, well most people now get their UK TV via the Internet. I know the area you are talking about as by BIL live very close and they get everything through the Internet supplier.

[PaulT]

Sky Sport 1 HD has gone to 2E on the spot beam so there is debate about which other Sky channels will go to the spot beam (read somewhere that Disney are not happy with UK licensed content being available over Europe.

In 31 with the existing 80cm dish and only very slight movement means the difference between a picture and no picture - i.e. a dish not quite optimally aligned that received channels previously may need to be optimally aligned now.

I am unfamiliar with dishes and am horrified at the crude clamping arrangement of the current dish meaning it is easy to tighten a clamp and move the dish out of position.

[PaulT]

Also do not forget that around 11:00 signals can be lost for a few minutes because of the current position of the sun and satellite

[Quillan]

[quote user="PaulT"]Also do not forget that around 11:00 signals can be lost for a few minutes because of the current position of the sun and satellite[/quote]

Could you expand a bit on that as I am not sure I understand.

[Pierre ZFP]

At this time of year and again in October, the sun is exactly behind the satellites in line with your dish and interferes strongly with the signal, especially if there is sunspot activity.

I have heard about LNBs melting in Spain as the sun's rays are focused by the dish into a hot spot.  Not sure if this is Urban Myth though

[sid]

The technical stuff can go in the other thread, I'm just wondering how many people here have noticed no change at all.

Of course I could still regret posting this, but I suspect not.

I wasn't aware of the internet service in Spain, so presumably we could do the same here? I thought my friends were receiving by satellite, so I'll write and ask very specific questions about that out of curiosity. I know they don't have a particularly high-speed internet connection, so seems to be odd doesn't it?

LNBs and cables all suffer from exposure to UV apparently. 5-year life has been mentioned in several places; mine has been up there about 7 years now, although I added a shotgun cable when I got the Humax 4 years ago so the cable is a bit younger. The signal strength is the same as ever.

I dread the thought of only having French TV as an option.

 

 

[HoneySuckleDreams]

the further north in France you go the less likely you are to see any change (especially if your dish alignment is spot on). Here in Luxembourg I saw no change whatsoever. Back home in France, we lost everything overnight.

 

This is a nifty site, it is a general overview (or you can go to the SES site directly and see the footprints). Chose the satelite at 28.2E and then the 2F spot beam

http://www.satbeams.com/footprints

[sid]

Double post deleted

[sid]

Yes, it shows the towns, and even the roads, of France in detail as you zoom in, even if it is a bit short on explanations. It says that where I am I should have a 65cm dish (recommended). I'll stick with the 60 for now. I'm so glad I didn't rush out last year and buy a load of unnecessary satellite gear!

I take it that you are in Vichy France then? [:-))]

 

[dave21478]

No change here in the Tarn.

There are a lot of very knowledgeable people on this forum about it and I am definitely not one of them. 2a, 2e, 2f, 3s, this moving to that, transponders etc etc etc....may as well be talking Greek to me. I switch the tv on and it works just as before. There was a period of a few days in February I think where some channels didnt work, but they do now....I have no explanations. I rarely watch tv anyway, but when I do it is UK telly as the French offerings are a rancid pile of.....well, you know what I mean. That said, if I lost some of the channels then I doubt I would be bothered, especially if its the God-botherers channels, porn or shopping, none of which I ever watch. Everything is available by internet. If you use Firefox or Chrome, download "Mediahint" which allows region-specific programs like iplayer to work anywhere with no fuss, no messing about and no costs. Failing that, just typing the program name followed by the word "streaming" will probably turn it up online somewhere....ok, its not an ultra high definition, 3d imax style picture quality, but do you need that to watch last weeks Top Gear?

[sid]

Agreed to all of that Dave. I would miss UK TV if it disappeared, mainly for the News and sport, but there are quite a few other programmes that I like. I rarely watch live TV though, as I record those programmes that I think I want to see (and often end up deleting them without viewing).

I also watch football via streaming sites. As you say, streaming quality here (I only have a 2mega internet connection) is quite poor, but it's good enough to see the action live, not on a TV screen, just on the laptop. I NEVER watch Top Gear now, gone right off it; load of idiots.

I've clarified the situation with the Denia region in Spain, and Q was correct, my friends do view TV via the internet, so that's one query (for me) sorted.

I'll have a look at Mediahint.

Meanwhile, Spring has arrived and I can get outside, no need for telly! [:D]

 

 

[Quillan]

I have to say I have learnt a lot from the experts on the forum with regards to all this. There does seem to be a bit of misinformation out there when you read through other forums and I am sure people have bought things that they may possibly have not needed are may not be up to the job in the long run.

Like you Dave I am primarily a user and just watch TV. I know of and read about people with motorised dishes that watch programs from all over the world, bit like the old radio 'hams' and it is a hobby to them. I think computers are much the same as well with people getting excited about different operating systems etc when most people just use them, don't have any idea how they work and don't need to. They simply fulfill a function that they require. Theres an old saying that goes along the lines of "If it ain't broken don't fix it". I am waiting for my Humax box to arrive for few reasons, it is better at recieving programs than the Sky box I have, I will be able to record programs all in one box so my old DVD/HDD recorder will go and thus saving space and I will be able to record stuff that I want to watch that conflicts with what Mrs 'Q' watches. Oh and plus it has ITV player etc built in and  I can listen to music and watch films stored on my PC via my internal network (thats another box that I can get rid of). So apart from the technical fact it gets a better TV signal the rest is just for my use, pleasure and save space.

I remember somebody taking the P out of me because I have an old 38" tube telly, well it works, has a good picture and does what I want. Why should I get ride of a perfectly functioning telly for a modern 3D thin one. I shall wait till it goes 'bang' then buy a new one. I have become that way with my car now, the engine runs and the wheels keep turning, no big bills so why should I buy a new one?