French Channels

Installing French satellite tv in the Uk

Whats on tonight on French TV

Heres a good website to see whats on across the usual French channels TF1, M6, Fr2 etc.

 

TelePoche_sm

 

LINK = http://www.telepoche.fr/listing.html

 

And here is an app. for the iphone….

iphoneFR

 

Once loaded you  can see whats on tonight and set the recorder !

Here is the iTunes link to buy the app>

 

https://itunes.apple.com/app/telepoche/id313699830?mt=8

 

Uk company Pace is to supply BeIN sports receivers

I am posting about this news item, simply to avoid any confusion. Several people have already asked me if they can have the new media boxes for French tv.  This BeIN sports box is ONLY for the middle east.

Well done Pace though, its Uk business has gone from strength to strength supplying Sky with their Uk receivers plus South Africa s satellite boxes and other major contracts.

The BeIN sports broadcaster is owned by Middle Eastern company Al Jazeera, who have their own Al Jaz sports, familiar to many sports clubs and pubs. Currently Al Jazeera customers are using the official boxes, made by Humax. In the middle east Al Jazeera has the rights to Premier League football and more recently added Formula One racing.

The latest offering from Pace is a very sophisticated media server with built in 1 TB hard drive and will enable the users to watch on multiple screens via a network.

Problems with TNT boxes

Over the last few years , there have been a number of small but annoying little problems, easily sorted out, but when it happens, it looks like disaster.

This particular problem has come up several times: TNT box ( mainly the older standard definition types ) loses all channels and will not retune. Keeps going round the loop, apparently tuning but getting no results. There is no indication of signal, so these faults are sometimes reported as “no signal” or “dish faulty”. A quick check with a meter showed the signal was fine.

 

All that is required is to do a factory reset:

Remove the card

Go to main menu

System menu

Choose factory ( Usine) reset  ALL

OK

Afterwards, the box will perform its initialisation and look for software update. Ensure it completes this without any interruption, I cannot emphasise this enough, there is a risk of complete memory corruption if the update process is not completed. A box in that condition is useless, you can send it back to France for repair, but so far the procedure and the download is not available online and the cost to send away is high.

Once complete the box will tune in again and work as normal.

 

 

New Receiver Can Display On Screen Guide for UK, French and German Channels

 

 Electronic Programme Guide For French, German and Uk Channels

As usual no one can agree on a common standard for EPG ( Electronic Programme Guide ) so if you buy a Fransat or TNT box and also have Uk or German channels tuned in, you won’t be able to see whats on!  The same problem occurs with the FreeSat Uk system, because it is a licensed system, if you want the ‘Whats on Guide’, it will only work on the Uk channels, when you  tune the French or German channels, you are then unable to access the full functionality of ANY of the Guides including Freesat.

Amiko Alien 4

For those wanting French Channels, the box is capable of receiving most of the FTA ( Free to Air ) channels, so a dish with multiple LNBs is required.

UK Channels – All available list of Uk channels incl. BBC and ITV

German Channels – All available free German Channels incl ARD and ZDF

French Channels –  A good selection including the main ones  TF1, M6, W9,  France 2,3,5 and o  BFM and Arte

FreeFrenchChannels

Recording

By attaching a simple USB hard drive unit, recordings can be made from any of the channels tuned in. Setting the timer and channel for the recordings is dead simple, with the point and click recording  setup page. You can of course manually extend times or enter all data manually if required.

Twin Tuner Version

If you plan on making a lot of recordings, there is a twin tuner receiver available with the same EPG capability, so you can record from one tuner, whilst watching another channel. The tuners operate completely independently so a German channel , say Das Erste on tuner 1, could be recorded, whilst watching East Enders on tuner 2.

My Solution

 

I can supply a receiver, which downloads the EPG information from your network, totally automatically, once a day. You can program it to download only the languages you want, keeping download time to minimum and set the time of day you want it to download, avoiding having to do it manually.

There is an additional benefit, that once connected, the whole internet can be accessed! You Tube and many other services are pre programmed into this great receiver.

To receive a quote for installation, please include your Address, Telephone and most important MAP LOCATION

 

Problems with clashing TNT remote codes on HUMAX receiver

Tnt viewer using the Humax TN5000 box, who already have the Uk Humax Freesat box will find that both boxes are responding to the remote controls, which makes life very difficult.

Fortunately the remote control , which is exactly the same part for either box, has a trick up its sleeve! You can select different sets of codes for each box, eliminating the clash.

HumaxHD TN5000

HumaxHD TN5000

Heres the full procedure:

To use more than one Humax receiver in the same room you can change the remote control codes so that they don’t conflict.
Switch on your TV set and the Humax product that you want to change the remote code.
Make sure that the other Humax receiver is powered off at the plug
Press and hold the 0 and OK buttons simultaneously for about 5 seconds until the PVR button on the remote stays red.
A message will appear on the TV screen:

“You can change the remote control mode.
Press a Numeric Key (<1> ~ <6>) to select the mode
Current mode: Mode 1.”

6. Press a NUMERIC button (from 1 to 6) to select a different mode.
7. A message confirming the change of Mode will appear on screen.

Download the Fransat Manuals

Considering Fransat, but want to know more about the individual receivers?  Now you can download the manual first and check out the features, menus, connections, remote handset etc . These are the 2 Fransat boxes we supply at the moment ( May 2013 )

Globsat Fran

Globsat GS1001  standard definitionGlobsat GS1001 fran

 

AstonDiva

Aston Diva Premium High Definition manuel-utilisateur-diva-hd-premium

Click on the links to download.

TNT New Channels

Following the recent new HD additions on Fransat ( see new-fransat-channels ) TNT is adding most of the same channels RMC ,23, Cherie 25 and L’equipe 21; but the other two will be missing.

NewHDChannels

NewHDChannels

At least for the time being the channels owned by M6 and TF1 ( 6Ter and HD1) will not be joining the TNT line up.  The TF1_M6 versus CanalSat fight continues…..

I will of course report when the dust settles !

Bis Added to Fransat Card

If you currently have a Fransat box and card, but would like the BIS channels as  well, there is now an option to update your Fransat card with the BIS card ‘rights’. So without a physical BIS card , you can use the Fransat system to get both sets of channels.

This is a big advantage to users with single card slot boxes, no need to update the box, just email me to arrange to add BIS rights to your existing Fransat card.

FransatCard

BIS channels are available from Hotbird ( Eutelsat 13) AND Eutelsat 5w ( ex Atlantic Bird satellite ) so whichever your dish is pointing at, if you have a Fransat or satellite receiver  with a Viaccess decoder, BIS can be available to you.

Our current favourite Fransat box, the Aston Diva Premium HD, has 2 card slots, so you can sign up for BIS, anytime after installation, with a BIS card or with rights transfer.

Andrew

New Fransat channels

Great news for HD Fransat users, simply go to “Auto Tuning” and when its completed its scan, you will have another 6 channels to watch. HD launched in France on December 12: Chérie 25, HD1, L’Équipe 21, Numéro 23, RMC Découverte and 6Ter. The New section of the Satellite operator Eutelsat reported:
Homes already equipped with a FRANSAT HD box will automatically receive the new channels using the channel numbering fixed by France’s national broadcasting authority (the CSA). Homes with a Standard Digital FRANSAT box can upgrade to an HD box to get the full line-up of content. For the 75% of French homes equipped for terrestrial reception, access to the expanded line-up will be possible with a satellite dish and a FRANSAT HD box, available in over 8,000 retail outlets across metropolitan France.

 

NewHDChannels

Have a Joyeux Noel !

If you can’t be in France with Family this Christmas, enjoy a few Christmas programmes on the telly with a French Satellite Installation! Watch the celebrations” Le Réveillon” mass”,  le fête de lumiere”s in Lyon,  “La fête des Rois ” in the new year and hope not to meet Père Fouettard !

Father Christmas

Get French satellite tv for Christmas

I can install many different French tv installations, from only £280 depending on channels required and location, email me with your post code for an estimate or for a quote, go to the main website , get your coordinates and tell me your requirements  – TF1 + M6 or France 2,3,5,0 Arte, TNT, Fransat or All french channels listed on the French Page

EMAIL

info@satellitetveurope.co.uk

TNT Standard Definition sat boxes to be discontinued

Such is the march of progress…. TNT box manufacturers  have decided to stop production of the SD ( Standard Definition ) TNT receivers, to concentrate on HD only.

I have noticed that all orders for the last year have been for HD boxes , in both TNT and Fransat. The trend is also towards recording boxes, or ones which have the ability to connect a recording device directly. USB discs ( the same as can be used on a PC ) , providing they are formatted correctly for the box, can be used to record programmes.  Hd channels do take up quite a few hundreds of  Mb for a one hour show, so  make sure you have a large drive, 500Gb seems to be ideal. The SD french boxes, with one exception did not have this option fitted.

Also , new tvs of course have a multitude of HDMI inputs and very few , usually only one now, scart connections. Scart leads give the older analogue signals, but for  top quality, a HDMI lead will give the best performance, being digital, it is not so easily interfered with, can transfer data at high speed and there is no compromise, as there is with composite video , this is the normal standard for video , which has been with us for the last 30+ years, since video recorders!

The only downside, in the demise of the SD box, is that many of my customers ask if the pictures can be taken to a second room , perhaps a bedroom. Unfortunately this means via aerial cable, which requires a modulator, virtually none of the HD equipment have modulators now, so there is now more expense , for an external modulator , if watching on a second set is essential. Another possibility is of course a second HD TNT box, but that will double  up the price . No doubt the manufacturers have already thought of that !

French Channels from TNTSat with Multisatellite installation

I recently installed a couple of multisatellite systems, both in Peterborough within a few weeks of each other , one done with a Technomate TM5402HD receiver and the other with a Humax TN5000HD  TNT Sat receiver, here is a comparison of the results and problems, which might be of help to anyone deciding which way to go.

My customers were interested in slightly different priorities of channels one Spanish and the other French, but the comparison is useful for anyone wanting French Channels.

95% of French Channels are available free,  but they are spead over different satellites, so needing quite a complex array of LNBs on the dish to get the maximum range of available channels. France4 is the only major channel missing from the free range of channels. The TNT box of course will get all the major channels from the Astra satellite alone, so how good is it when setting up for German, Spanish, Italian, Greek etc as well as its native French channels?

Firstly the Humax is designed to auto set up TNT channels  from Astra1  and order them in the usual TF1, France2, France3 ,…… order, but has options for many other satellites to be included in the antenna setup menu. Our installation included Thor5, Eutelsat W3, Hotbird and Astra 1 with a 4 way diseqc switch. This was very easily accommodated on the Humax menu, simply entering the appropriate number associated with the 4 LNBs.

Triax MultiBlock

Triax manufacture attachments to install up to 4 LNBs on their standard range of dishes.

On exit from the Humax menus, you are prompted to Confirm, this doesnt default to ‘Yes’ so be careful when finished any sorting, or tuning, that the operation is saved. The remote keys are a little quick to repeat if held down, you can easily dismiss this dialogue when hitting the exit key.

Tuning was reasonably quick on the Humax, although much slower than the Technomate HD receiver. Turning the Network search off, helped to speed up the operation. Searches could be done on the TNT channels, A single transponder or Automatically all transponders on a satellite. Strangely the TNT search was very ponderous, taking a long time and not showing any results until the very end.

As with most of my installations, I will put the main channels from each country into a different favourite group, for ease of use. The Technomate has a really easy to use grouping method, grouping can be done in any order, the lists can be shown in number or alphabetical order or CAS or transponder order. By comparison, although not too bad by many standards, the method on the Humax was a little awkward. First you create a new group and name it. Then once in list mode, you can mark required channels using the pause key, then press ‘OPT’ to save channels to your new group . Make sure you confirm on exit from this procedure.

One disappointment is that the Humax will not group channels from different satellites, so for example the Turkish channels of which one is on Astra, the rest of Eutelsat, couldnt all be put into the same group. The Technomate achieved this easily.

The Technomate 5402HD is a great value HD receiver, popular with satellite enthusiasts because of its price and facilities. Its menu system allows all the usual tuning, grouping of channels and other communications setups like the USB memory stick/HDD etc. Once you have the receiver set up as you like, the settings can be stored simply and quickly on a USB memory stick. Go to Menu/system/USB/data transfer and the channels and favourite groups are stored by pressing (red) on the remote. The opposite function, restoring channels etc. is achieved by highlighting the saved .chdf file and pressing ‘OK’ to restore it. After rebooting the operation is complete. The Technomate Software website is full of useful addons which enable more functions on the 54o2 and other models to do streaming to tv and more.

The transponders listed on several satellites on the Humax were unfortunately out of date, although the options were there to enter details and scan for channels on new transponders, this process was tedious and slow. On the Technomate, there is ‘BLIND Search’ which will tune any new transponders quickly and automatically. I wish manufacturers would include the facilities to save settings via USB, use a channel editor to include quickly any missing / changed  transponders and create a backup file, which can be quickly restored , should the worse happen!  Speaking of which… during the installation, I made the mistake of entering the ‘first time’ setup menu, during tuning and ordering of channels, which wiped out all my work! So beware, there is no confirm dialogue on this menu.

The installation for French channels done on the 5402 had to include the satellites Eutelsat 5w, Hotbird, Astra1 and Eutelsat 9a, to get all the channels which are enabled simply with the viewing card on the Humax TNT box. So the Humax scores well here as the other 3 LNbs can be set up on a range of different  satellites.  But at nearly twice the price of the Technomate, is it really a better deal? Certainly the pictures are good on both receivers, no complaints there, each one will tune in most of the same channels , from France and elsewhere, both handling the HD channels well. My experience of the Technomates shows that the tuners are the best on the current market, several times when installing weak satellites ( Czech channels on Astra 3, Nilesat and BADR4) other receivers have shown picture break up or in one case no channels at all, the TM displaying perfect rock steady pictures. I know if I had to choose when installing for French AND say Nilesat, it would have to be the Technomate receiver.

Adding a HDD ( Hard Drive) for recording. Both receivers have USB connections for use with portable PC drives to record programmes.  As long as you use the drives recommended by TM technical, no problems with recordings have ever come up. In the case of the Humax TNT box, I used my usual Western Digital HDD, a 500Gb size drive. Recordings were good, very smooth in playback. Pressing the play key, brought up the list of recordings on screen. Titles, dates and channel were all stored making selection and sorting of recordings very easy. Setting up the drive was easy and automatic, once it was prepared correctly. As with the Technomate receivers , the best method is to use my GUI software, download it here http://www.satellitetveurope.co.uk/HDD.html    it certainly worked with both the installations above. Plug in your new drive to the pc or laptop USB, note the drive letter assigned to it, Download Gui software,  and run it to properly prepare the HDD for the use with a satellite receiver. I found out recently that 500Gb is realistically the largest size that will work properly in the TM receivers, as the 1 TB size drives slow down the operations too much to work correctly, so best to stick to this size with the Humax as well.  With the 5402 receiver dont expect to be able to record from a Guide menu, not all foreign broadcasters have the same format, or even any Guide! ( Spain ) . Germany at least on their main channels has a fully implemented 7 day Guide broadcast.

 

 

New Fransat CAM

For satellite viewers with multi satellite dishes and receivers, a new option to include the standard French channels TF1, M6, France 2,3,4,5 etc , without changing your receiver….Cam for Fransat

This gets around the problem of having to purchase a new receiver just for the main French channels

Update July 2016.

This cam has now been replaced, the current cams do not work in set top boxes

BeIn Sports via BIS

BIS has just added a sports package – the ” Be In ” at a low price you can now keep up to date with the best of French Sports. This is available to existing viewers having the Fransat package and BIS viewers on the Hotbird satellite.

BeIn sports on the Eutelsat 5w and Hotbird Satellites

 

This year the following will be covered by be IN sports

  • FA cup
  • Ligue 1
  • Euro 2012
  • UAFA Europa League
  • Champions League
  • LFP
  • Lega Calcio

Contact me with your requirements for a quote ( info@satellitetveurope.co.uk )

TNT Card Update

For my customers, purchasing a replacement TNT card after its 4 year period has expired just became a whole lot easier. I can now supply the replacements, at £ 25  incl all charges and postage, simply quote the serial number when emailing me to purchase it.

TNT channels over Satellite

All the best of French TV by satellite

info@satellitetveurope.co.uk

The new arrangement makes updating simple for customers in the Uk, previously only customers having a French address, could update online, on the TNT website.