DVB-S2 cards with inbuilt switch? (1 Viewer)

[Benoire]

Hi,

I've currently got 2 TBS 6981s for my TV server but I'm sick of having four satellite cables coming out of the wall, especially if when I want to add more cards.

Are there any internal PCIe that can do a digital switch internally on the card? I.e. If you provider only uses say the H polarity, you would only need one card to feed x number of cards in the system?

Also, does the TBS MOI support mediaportal as a tuner system?

Thanks,

Chris

 

[mm1352000]

Hello Chris

I've currently got 2 TBS 6981s for my TV server but I'm sick of having four satellite cables coming out of the wall, especially if when I want to add more cards.

The standard satellite distribution problem.

Are there any internal PCIe that can do a digital switch internally on the card? I.e. If you provider only uses say the H polarity, you would only need one card to feed x number of cards in the system?

No, tuners don't come with digital switches onboard. It doesn't make sense from a functional perspective.

There are quite a few potential solutions to this problem. They all have their pros and cons and price points.

If your provider only uses horizontal polarity then the cheapest solution is to use a simple passive splitter like this:
http://www.freeviewshop.co.nz/satellite-terrestrial-splitter-p-167.html

However, you're limited to one "band" (polarity + 22 kHz) combination for all tuners. The above splitter would be fine for Sky and Freeview satellite, but it is no good for feeds like the much-missed SBS and Ch 9 on vertical polarity (or integration of Optus C1/D3 and/or D2).

Next step up is some sort of multi-switch. Generally more expensive, but more flexible. There are a few different flavours ranging in cost and number of inputs and outputs.

You can also look at using smarter [and generally much more expensive] LNBs and tuners. For example, using Unicable compatible hardware... but even Unicable is limited by the bandwidth that coax can carry. Off the top of my head I think you can fit 4 or 8 independent transponder streams in the cable.

SAT>IP is the new kid on the block. In my opinion it has a lot of potential but needs some time to mature.

I suggest you do some research on the above options and find out which one suits your needs and price-point the best.

Also, does the TBS MOI support mediaportal as a tuner system?

Think of TBS MOI box as a mini-Linux box. As such, you can only install software which can run on Linux like MythTV and TVHeadend. Since TV Server doesn't run on Linux, the answer is no.

mm

 

[Benoire]

Hey MM,

Yeah I run a multiswitch at present, I just wanted to know whether there was a way to reduce my cable overheads as its bloody annoying!

I thought MOI was like that but given that Silicon Dust do not appear to be bothered about producing a DVB-S/S2 based unit I thought I'd ask

How does unicable actually work? I was under the impression that it was a single cable distribution around a home, but each tuner would still require a cable? Unless I have this wrong (perfectly possible!) I can't see that improving the lots of cables out of the wall issue?

Chris

 

[FreakyJ]

I think this article should answer your questions about Unicable
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_cable_distribution

Basically it does what you want:

Single Cable Distribution is a satellite TV technology that enables the delivery of broadcast programming to multiple users over a single coaxial cable, and eliminates the numerous cables required to support consumer electronics devices such as twin-tuner Digital Video Recorders (DVRs) and high end receivers.

 

[Benoire]

How does TVengine work with Sat>IP? I saw this: http://www.inverto.tv/products/product.php?section=1&id=264&cat=99 and wondered if that would solve my 'problems'?

 

[FreakyJ]

How does TVengine work with Sat>IP? I saw this: http://www.inverto.tv/products/product.php?section=1&id=264&cat=99 and wondered if that would solve my 'problems'?

TVE currently doesn't support SAT>IP and I can't give you an ETA...

 

[Benoire]

I think this article should answer your questions about Unicable
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_cable_distribution

I've read that so many times and it never makes complete sense! Is unicable effectively a modern way of splitting without a multiswitch? I.e. you could run a single cable around the house and then at each room simply have a spur of the main cable? How does that work for say 4 tuners in a system? Would you require 4 spurs, or do compatible card only require 1 connection in a system?

 

[jonm]

Move your TV server closer to the dish and use a client PC to watch TV? Then you'd just have an ethernet cable...

 

[Benoire]

Ah ok fair enough! It will be cool when it does then as that would mean I could lose the internal cards and make my server MUCH smaller![DOUBLEPOST=1382861236][/DOUBLEPOST]

Move your TV server closer to the dish and use a client PC to watch TV? Then you'd just have an ethernet cable...

Jonm; I use a Windows Server to consolidate my connections. I'm just looking at making the whole thing neater... I like things simple and clean

 

[mm1352000]

I thought MOI was like that but given that Silicon Dust do not appear to be bothered about producing a DVB-S/S2 based unit I thought I'd ask

I was talking to them yesterday. It is on their roadmap. It will take time though. They're not a large company and they're more focused on the US market.

How does unicable actually work? I was under the impression that it was a single cable distribution around a home, but each tuner would still require a cable? Unless I have this wrong (perfectly possible!) I can't see that improving the lots of cables out of the wall issue?

No, Unicable is implemented on top of DiSEqC. It sets up dedicated "slots" in the cable bandwidth for each connected tuner. So, you would put a Unicable LNB on the dish, run one cable from the dish to your PC, then a simple passive splitter splits to each tuner. To be clear: you could have one cable out of the wall, but you'd need to split behind the PC.

If you have multiple satellite tuners, you're currently not going to be able to get away from having a splitter somewhere in the system between the dish and the tuner input. The question is where the splitter ends up.