Can I split my Sky+ signal to feed a freesat TV?

[petegee]

Have recently bought a Panasonic Freesat TV and use Sky+.

If I want to watch a HD channel on freesat I have to manually disconnect the line 2 cable from the sky+ box and feed the TV. But this often causes Sky+ a headache when I reconnect it all (ie have to reset the box) - this is becoming too fiddly to keep on doing.

Am I able to disconnect the line 2 feed from the sky+ box connect it to some sort of splitter / switch box so that I can then feed the Sky+ box and the Freesat tuner on my TV at the same time. I currently use the RF output from the Sky+ box via a 2-Way Compact Amplifer to feed two other tvs so I can imagine a scenario when I would want to watch something on Sky in one room (or record something on sky) and watch the freesat on the main TV.

I realize you couldn't watch one sky channel, record another and watch freesat all at the same time...

Is this possible as connecting a 3rd cable from my LNB will prove difficult...

[gobstopper]

Is this possible as connecting a 3rd cable from my LNB will prove difficult...

Theoretically yes, but it's not much good.

Channels are split into vertical and horizontal polarity and as such while it is possible to split the feed from your LNB between these two devices you won't be able to watch a horizontal polarity channel on one device and a vertical polarity channel on the other.

The only sure-fire way is, alas, to run a separate cable from the LNB to your Panasonic TV.

[petegee]

Thanks but just to clarify when you say you "... you won't be able to watch a horizontal polarity channel on one device and a vertical polarity channel on the other." do you mean you can't watch freesat via line 2 at the same time someone else watches sky on another tv via line 1 (which is what I was planning) or were you assuming I meant watching freesat and sky via the split line 2 at the same time? Thank you

[gobstopper]

With your 'split' LNB connection connected to both your new TV and the 2nd input of your Sky+ box and (as I imagine you will) you want to watch BBC1 on the TV while recording ITV3 on the Sky+ box, success or failure will depend on whether these two channels operate on the same polarity. If they are, it should work. But if one operates on a horizontal polarity and the other vertical, the LNB is going to get confused. This is the reason for the multi-feed LNBs now available. Each feed is separate from it's peers, in order to overcome this exact problem.

Forgive me, but it's the best explanation I can give as while I understand the basic problem I don't necessarily have the appropriate vocabulary to describe it better than I am.

[petegee]

Gobstopper thanks for your continued patience - I think you are saying that because of polarity issues you may not be able to watch BBC HD on freesat and record ITV3 on sky at the same time, which I understand, but is this assuming I would be attempting to use the split LNB connection to try and do both?

I am exploring using a switch box which as I understand it means you can either switch to the feesat tuner on the TV or switch to the sky+ box but it won't let you do both ie its a switch box not a splitter.

What I wanted to confirm was that I could switch the box to freesat so I can watch BBC HD ie via the sky line two cable but at the same time still allow someone else to watch a different channel on sky on another TV via the line one cable still connected directly to the sky+ box (and via the RF output cos the other TV is in another room) or alternatively watch BBC HD on freesat and then record ITV3 on the sky box at the same time.

I appreciate that if I were watching freesat and recording ITV3 I wouldn't be able to watch another sky channel like normal using sky+ because effectively the freesat would be using line 2 in preference to the sky+ box via the switch box.

In terms of polarity one assumes that using freesat on line two can't impact on using sky on line 1?

Many thanks!

[petegee]

...in case anyone was interested, I took a gamble and bought a switch box (MY03D) from Maplin for £7.99 and it seems to work fine which means I can switch between Freesat and Sky+ whilst retaining the ability to watch sky / record sky at the same time....