Types of dishes

[Pablo1956]

Hi. I am a qualified radio electronics engineer but could do with some understanding of Sky Q. I live in a communal enviroment with a dish that supplies 4 people. I have been told that inorder to use a SKY Q box. This has to be upgraded. As this is purlley a dish. What difrences would it need? It still comunicates with the same satellite. Surly it is only the type of box used that is diffrent!

[GD1]

@Pablo1956  It's not actually the dish that get upgraded, it's the electronics that feed the flats.  Our resident expert will be able to shed more light on this.

[Pablo1956]

Okay. My vauge understanding was this was  that this was an areal cable that both sent power up to the LNB electronics in the dish and a signal back down. Clearly I need to rlearn about this subject but what you are saying is that is that it is a re-wiring job.

I thought that the On-Demand was through the broadband service I already have with talk talk. Do I need sky broadband for this?

[GD1]

@Pablo1956  On Demand is via broadband but if you have a Box and connect to a communal dish that hasn't been upgraded for Sky Q then you will not get asatellite signal, thid will render the box useless as it needs a live signal to remain active.

@Godfrey  Is best placed to explain how communal systems are setup and how they are upgraded to cope with Sky Q

[Pablo1956]

Sorry but it would have a live signal anyway. Still receiveing.

Could i take it that a SKY-Q connector in the appartment would not be the AE type conection. Sorry for all this but am a quick learner.

[GD1]

@Pablo1956  As already advised anoth poster if they see this thread will be best placed to provide info on communal systems, i've tagged them in the hope they will respond later today.

[Chrisee]

@Pablo1956 Sky Q boxes have multiple tuners so require a different signal than the older Sky HD+ boxes which had a single tuner on each input. If you order Sky Q the engineer will need to fit an adapter unit near the head end to convert the system to deliver a suitable signal down one cable using a system called scr. This page explains the background.

Sky have a team of enginers who do this work normally at no cost but of course need permisiion from the owner of the system to fit the required kit. This page explains more https://skyhomes.sky.com/sky-homes-hub/managing-agents/

[Pablo1956]

Hi. THanks for that. It is making more sence.

If these upgrades are done to a Communal TV system using a single cable (dSCR), would I lose some of the functionality of Sky-Q? I will probably have an independant system with my own dish in the end.

With Sky Q one cable provides the vertical polarised signals and the other provides the horizontal signal. I don't get that bit. IAre their any articals that explain what this is about. I do know about Vertical and horizontal radio waves.

[nigea99]

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@Pablo1956 wrote:

Hi. THanks for that. It is making more sence.

If these upgrades are done to a Communal TV system using a single cable (dSCR), would I lose some of the functionality of Sky-Q? I will probably have an independant system with my own dish in the end.

With Sky Q one cable provides the vertical polarised signals and the other provides the horizontal signal. I don't get that bit. IAre their any articals that explain what this is about. I do know about Vertical and horizontal radio waves.

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hi @Pablo1956  I may be wrong but I think one limitation of the communal system using dCSR setting may be  the number of channels it can record at the same time 

AFAIK The dSCR feed uses similar methods to the older 'Universal' LNBs of changing voltages & a 22kHZ tone to select diferent the polarisations & group of frequencies  (e.g. low band/high band) all down the same single cable

If you have your own dish rather than fed via a communal system then the feed is different as SKY Q uses a 'wideband' signal from  the LNB  & as mentioned uses both cables one for the horizontal polarised transponders & one for the hoziontal  - they are radio waves just at different frequencies and used so that they can use frequencies near each other but the oposite polarisation to maintain separation     

By using separate feeds for H & V with all frequencies available, rather than having to switch between the polorisations or bands, the SKY Q box can record more channels because all channels are availble at the same time irrespective of the others.

[Pablo1956]

THanks for all your help, will look forward to the instalation. I live in North Yorkshire(UK) and the freeview transmitter in Bilsdale burst into flames on 12th August leavin thousands of people without TV. Sky basic has all of this and more. Thanks again.

[Godfrey]

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@Pablo1956 wrote:...........If these upgrades are done to a Communal TV system using a single cable (dSCR), would I lose some of the functionality of Sky-Q? I will probably have an independant system with my own dish in the end.

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The particular dSCR configuration that Sky have adopted can provide up to 16 requested satellite transponder signals at any one time via individual 'User Band' frequencies that have been requested by the receiver that is connected to each output port.

A Sky Q receiver controls the dSCR / dCSS output port that it is connected to via a string of DiSEqC commands. 

DiSEqC command specification 

Thus either a dSCR or Unitron dCSS-422 Sky Q Plug-In Adaptor will totally meet the functionality requirements of a Sky Q receiver.

Godfrey.

[Pablo1956X]

Further DEvelopments

There is an exsisting SKY-Q dish installed in the flat above. THis is no longer used (over 3 years ago). I am thinking I could use this dish. Could this dish be converted to support 2 SKQ-Q boxes and leave the top flat available if needed?

[bob1234]

@Pablo1956XNo, ignoring ownership problems an legal earthing arrangements it is not technically possible with the kit Sky installers carry as Q LNBs even hybrid ones only have 2 outputs suitable for Q and both are needed for each Q  type of installation.

[GordonTGopher]

You would not be able to reuse an old mini dish to feed multiple apartments for technical and safety reasons.

A communal system that is Sky Q / Sky+ HD compatible out of the bix would consist of the following components:

Dish

Quattro LNB

8 port dSCR switch earth bonded to buildings earth

Two cables to each apartment 

Depending on how the apartments were wired up originally you may some of these components already. 

Do the cables from existing communal dish go via a communal cupboard first?

[Pablo1956X]

There is a 10 year old comunal dish. The council refuse to upgrade to SKQ-Q is not going ahead due to cost issues. The one I am refering to is a 3 year old SKY-Q dish. I can have it re-routed to my apartment but thought it would be nice to link it into a 2 way system.