engineer access

[MissMc]

I am due to upgrade to sky Q

However my housing provider has stated they do not allow access to the communal aerial incase the engineer causes damage to the property of other tenants 

[Godfrey]

@MissMc   If your housing provider has a modern Integrated Reception System (IRS) installation which incorporates dSCR distribution multiswitches, then Sky should, if the signal quality is adequate, be able to install a Sky Q receiver in your flat, without requiring access to the central communal distribution cabinet which feeds your residence.

But,if the communal IRS installation incorporates elderly legacy Universal LNB distribution multiswitches then Sky would not be able to install Sky Q in your flat, without having permission to install a Unitron dCSS-422 Sky Q Plug-In adaptor in the central communal IRS distribution cabinet that feeds your residence.

Godfrey.

[TimmyBGood]

@MissMc 

You can let Sky go ahead and try: as @Godfrey indicates, this might succeed or fail.

In theory your Sky+ service shouldn't cease in the event of an unsuccessful Q installation, but it has been known to happen.

There's also a potential complication that Sky no longer permits reversion from Q to plus.

Your 'housing provider' really should understand that the days of Sky+ as a viable platform are very much coming to an end.

[ion205]

@Godfrey Thank you for the detailed information I have been wondering for years. Every time I ask our housing provider their response is a cookie cutter 'they don't allow any new skyQ installation' so I've been left stuck with Sky+HD. However, during a recent estate inspection I was shown this multiswitch which is placed in a meter room on each floor. I wonder you can tell this is a dSCR distribution multiswitche you mentioned? If that's the case a Sky engineer can access this - so I was told by our property officer. (He had no idea how to access the sky dish at all)

I'd appreciate your expertise!

[Godfrey]

@ion205   Your picture shows an old Legacy Universal LNB four satellite plus Terrestrial TV multiswitch being fed with feeds from three different satellite orbital positions, not a modern dSCR multiswitch.

The basic problem you would encounter, even if the default satellite orbital position A is the Astra 28.2 East cluster, is that each flat would be provided with just 2 feeds and the Sky Unitron dCSS-422 Sky Q adaptor requires 4 input feeds, plus the fact that any future resident would then have been unable to choose to receive a feed from satellite B or C because this adaptor does not pass DiSEqC command signals through it. Thus if four feeds were diverted through the Unitron adaptor at least two residents would have lost the ability to select reception from satellite orbital positions B and C.

Due to the considerable additional complexities that would be involved in supplying a compatible Sky Q feed to residents that are presently being fed from multiple satellite orbital poisition multiswitches, Sky have previously stated that they do not intend to ever install their Unitron dCSS-422 Sky Q adaptor on multiswitch installations that are distributing feeds from more than one satellite orbital position.

As two feeds are presently unused on the multiswitch supplying your floor distribution, your landlord could choose to employ a suitably qualified specialist Integrated Reception System (IRS) installation engineer to supply a Sky Q compatible feed to just two individual residents quite easily if neither required access to satellite orbital positions B and C, without too much cost.

Godfrey.

[ion205]

@Godfrey Thank you for detailed info, it's pretty mouthful for me but I do get that it is not something a resident can do  without the managing companiy's cooperation/approval, which doesn't seem to be coming any day soon. Some lucky residents did managed to upgrade to SkyQ way way back, before the managing company had stopped allowing others due to some 'interference'. I think only thing we can do is to keep petionning as eventually it'll be very difficult to obtain a replacement HD+ box on second hand market. However it seems not many fellow residents are keen now there are Stream and Now to access the Sky contents... Thank you anyway for your reply, it is much apprecited!     

[Daniel0210]

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@ion205 wrote:

it'll be very difficult to obtain a replacement HD+ box on second hand market. 

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@ion205 

On the above comment ~ you can't now pair a viewing card to another Sky+ or HD box that it wasn't paired with at the end of October 2024. 

[Godfrey]

@ion205   It would be interesting to know if cables A-E are already feeding a Unitron dCSS-422 Sky Q Plug-In adaptor or a dSCR for residents requiring Sky Q reception.

So, can you tell us if another device in the distribution cabinet is being fed by coaxial cables A-E

Godfrey.

[ion205]

Hi @Godfrey the access to this room is limited to certain times of the week, but I'll arrange it and take the surrouding photo.

@Daniel0210 Oh no, I had no idea... that means if the exisiting one, which was sourced through eBay following the original's malfunctionning, comes to end of its life (or hard disc) no more replacements. I will really need SkyQ! Thanks very helpful tip. 

[ion205]

Hi @Godfrey , it's been a while but I have just managed to get an access to the utility room. Please see photos below and could you advise? It seems everything (elec meteres, network stuff) has been rearanged in the last couple of months, and I can see some new devices connected to the multiswitch in the original photo.

[Godfrey]

@ion205   Alas the picture in your latest message is not clear enough for me to be able to read the actual identity of what could possibly be a new additional 'Unitron' dSCR device. If this is correct then this would be able to feed Sky Q to 3 more residents.

So, can you identify this device when looking at your personal copy of this photograph.

Godfrey.

[ion205]

@Godfrey Thanks for responding always so quickly. I can see these additional devices are:

1. Unitron dSCR-54 Four Way x 16 User Bands SCR Multiswitch 

https://www.plutodirect.co.uk/products/unitron-dscr-54-four-way-x-16-user-bands-scr-legacy-terrestri... 

2. Johansson 9937 2 way splitter / 4x SAT + 1x TERR.

https://www.plutodirect.co.uk/products/unitron-dscr-54-four-way-x-16-user-bands-scr-legacy-terrestri... 

The product details of 1. above include: '... allow the Sky Q set top boxes to receive all available content via an existing single cable run from the main satellite dish trunk system..' Really hoping this means I can get SkyQ (technically)! If so all I 'll need to do is to persuade and demand my right to the managing company.

[Godfrey]

@ion205  That is good news, the new Unitron dSCR multiswitch which is being fed with the transponder signals from Satellite position 1, has 3 more output ports available for residents who require a suitable SCR feed for their Sky Q receivers.

Should more than 4 residents require a Sky Q compatible feed this 4 port dSCR can easily be upgraded to either an 8, 12 or 16  port device.

Godfrey.