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My in-Laws have just moved house - they had a TV set-up in the old house that just kind of grew organically and they don't know what goes where, why things work, how to set it up etc etc.
They have a Smart TV that (in the old house) they watched Freeview on (so it has in-built decoding capability as there was no external Freeview box) with a separate input signal from an old aerial that (as far as I understand it) went straight into a Humax set-top box - so they would watch something on the TV via the satellite input whist recording something else on the Humax via the aerial input). However, in the new house they don't have a conventional aerial – just a sat. dish with three wires coming out of it (so I assume a quad LMB). In the wall in the main room there are two wires available (the third being in another room). The TV has two satellite inputs (a primary and secondary IIRC).
Am I right in assuming that I should be able to plug both of the wires from the satellite dish into the TV (which will decode the signal) then use the HDMI Arc out to the Humax which will then be able record one satellite channel whist they watch another?
I hope this makes sense and thank you!
Are you mixing up Freeview and Freesat ? Did use Freeview and now use Freesat ?
But it sounds about right.
Possibly - it’s not my set-up and I’m trying to understand it for my elderly in-laws 😬
(All the wires were pulled out by the removal company before they could note what went where).
ARC is Audio Return Channel so you don’t get video going back down the hdmi cable. You won’t be able to record off that.
Sounds like their Humax box is freeview so wouldn’t be able to record Freesat.
Plus what Robola says.
Might be best to buy a twin tuner freesat recording box. Both sat inputs in there, hdmi to tv. Can then watch one channel via freesat box whilst recording another.
I'd concur with most of what's been said here, though what's "best" is dependent on what they want. Streaming has made a lot of recording redundant, though if they're stuck in their ways... ?
Am I right in assuming that I should be able to plug both of the wires from the satellite dish into the TV (which will decode the signal) then use the HDMI Arc out to the Humax which will then be able record one satellite channel whist they watch another?
I'd hazard yes and no respectively. Though this is guesswork.
If they have a satellite feed and no terrestrial aerial, the Humax box is a paperweight. Or at best, it's a playback device for existing recordings.
I wouldn't be 100% confident that the Freesat will Just Work either. One way to find out I suppose.
Will their TV record if you connect a cheap hard drive to the usb port?
Then they could record in one satellite fed whilst watching the other.
Or text then about streaming.
Or have an aerial fitted!
Unfortunately they can’t stream as they don’t have fast enough broadband.
Thanks for the advice - it all makes sense and I agree that a twin-tuner Freesat box will be the way forwards as I know that the current Humax box doesn’t have Freesat (it’s just the old aerial style input).
What Sharkbait said, if you can record via USB it might be really easy for them to use the record button on the tv remote.
Kind of semantic but "Freesat" is a thing manufacturers have to licence, a TV can have a satellite input and receive free-to-air programs but if it's not a "Freesat" TV (our old one wasn't) you don't get any proper TV guide, just a list of channels.
A Freesat-branded recorder is the way to go though if they do want to record stuff.
A Freesat-branded recorder is the way to go though if they do want to record stuff.
Yeah - following the advice on here and fully understanding what equipment they have currently, what they have available at the new house and what they want to be able to do I have just ordered a twin tuner 1TB Freesat box. Guess what I'm doing tomorrow...
Thank you all for your advice and helping me get my head around it – having never had a set-up like this I wasn't sure what to do.
Something to bear in mind if you don't get a signal/picture when it's all connected.
They might need the LNB changing, depending how they view Freesat. The built in Freesat on my LG TV needed a Sky HD Box type LNB. The Sky Q one didn't work.
Having said that, I think the 1TB boxes work with the Q LNB