Thread: Recomendations for a first time receiver

Now... I know that you have heard this from a thousand people by now but I am looking for specifics in regards to receivers... I have been looking around the net doing my research in regards to receivers for FTA when I came across a link in dishpointer that takes me to a publication site for Tele-Satellite Magazine. After reading the Mag I was wondering, are any of the receivers shown in the mag available in Canada or the US such as Topfield or Opensat brand receivers?.
Does anyone know of a Canadian distributor? Or, can these receivers be adapted to operate in North America if I was to have one Imported?



If not...

What would you recommend?

The Traxis 3500 is a very nice receiver.

I use a Topfield 4000 PVR that I brought with me from Europe. Nowadays they have PVR models with HD. The reason I like Topfield is there is plenty of manufacturer support both for firmware and legal software. With a subscription the PVR does not record encrypted to its hard drive unlike the receivers supplied by Dish/Direct.
The problem with importing European receivers is they may not have all the US/Canadian sats in the menu but these can easily be added. You can download the channel editing applications form the manufacturer.

Having said all that, there are many good receivers available in NA, why not use our sponsors, they have good retutations for products and support.

Chief,

Everyone will have their own personal recommendations regarding a receiver to use for a first time or initial setup. So I will provide you with mine, too.

I think that a Coolsat 5000 (or 6000) or the Fortec Star Dynamic (or similar model) are really excellent.

These Coolsat Models are no longer in production, but can be purchased for next to nothing on E-Bay (like $30 + shipping). The Fortec Dynamic may have been discontinued, but has been replaced by a very similar model and can be purchased NEW from a Gold Sponsor here at a very nice price.

These receivers do not process HD or DVB-S2 signals, but they are definitely worth having. They are great receivers to get your feet wet with.

They are very easy to navigate through the menus. The motor control functions and setup is a breeze and they blind scan and are just all around great little receivers. They are definitely user friendly.

I have both, a Coolsat 5000 and a Fortec Star Dynamic and I love the heck out of them.

I also have an AZBox Premium that I like very much, but it is probably not a good box to start out with. It is relatively new (sort of still in beta stage when it comes to firmware and supporting software), so it still has a lot of glitches to be overcome. I probably wouldn't recommend this as a place to start. Especially since they are much more expensive and very difficult to obtain right now (always seem to be out of stock).

RADAR

Some good models are Coolsat, Fortec & Pansat

Cant go wrong with any of those

I personally like the Visionsat IV 200 PVR I use it as my main setup/dish alignment receiver. It is discontinued but might be available on E-bay. It is sensitive and when you start to get something in the quality range, the strength meter and the quality meter turn blue.

You can get a used receiver on E-bay for $20 and up shipped. Perhaps it might be better to get a receiver that will decode AC3 and DVB2 and if you can spend more...maybe a HD FTA receiver would be a better investment.

You can buy a complete FTA system (Dish, receiver and LNB) in the $200+ range brand new at many sites.

I agree with the posters above about their recommendations

After looking at some receivers intended for the European market, the numbers did not work out for me. It seems that for a given feature set, the receivers were priced higher. Then to add to that, shipping was prohibitively high.

In addition, European receivers often have Conditional Access slots, which for the most part are useless for North America. This adds cost to the unit.

Having said that, European recievers have a lot of attractive features. If you do think seriously about getting one, be sure to check that your TV / equipment can connect properly. You will find [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scart"]SCART - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia@@AMEPARAM@@/wiki/File:SCART_20050724_002.jpg" class="image"><img alt="SCART 20050724 002.jpg" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/11/SCART_20050724_002.jpg/300px-SCART_20050724_002.jpg"@@AMEPARAM@@commons/thumb/1/11/SCART_20050724_002.jpg/300px-SCART_20050724_002.jpg[/ame] and [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TV_aerial_plug"]TV aerial plug - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia@@AMEPARAM@@/wiki/File:Bellingleeconnector.jpg" class="image"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/73/Bellingleeconnector.jpg/220px-Bellingleeconnector.jpg"@@AMEPARAM@@commons/thumb/7/73/Bellingleeconnector.jpg/220px-Bellingleeconnector.jpg[/ame] Connectors (also called PAL Connectors) on those receivers. However, adapters are available.

It appears that manufacturer advertisements and the Tele-Satellite Magazine equipment reviews of them occur together. So, I would question how objective the reviews are.

C_T, it would be helpful for the people answering your question to know what sort of things you are looking for. This could include blind scanning, PVR, enhanced motor / switch control, Hi Definition support.

Also, have you read through the FAQs and Tip of the Iceberg?

What sort of programming are you interested in?

No matter what brand of satellite receiver you pick. One feature that is an absolute necessity is "Blind Scan" to search out the broadcasts. I love blind scanning a satellite to see what signals are up there on a temporary basis, stuff like sports feeds and news feeds. A receiver without the Blind Scan capability only looks for 'known' frequencies and symbol rates. A blind scan capable receiver can try every frequency and every symbol rate to hunt out the signals.

My first was a Coolsat 6000. Very easy to figure out. Good blind scan. AC3 via digital output.
I would recommend this and it can be had for very cheap.

The only problem I would have is it lacks HD support and I watch a lot of PBS and sports in HD.
I think it would be a good first box and after you get a hang of it, upgrade to a better box, but keep it around for blind scanning or a second t.v., etc.