Guide to Skybox F5 Satellite Receiver

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The Professor
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Guide to Skybox F5 Satellite Receiver

Post by The Professor » Thu Oct 16, 2014 12:47 am

Downloads

SkyBoxEditor.zip
channel_list_Oct_16_2014.abs
guide_to_skyboxF5.JPG
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0: Features

The Skybox F5 is a popular entry level high-definition digital satellite receiver. It can decode DVB-S and DVB-S2 signals, supports both MPEG2 and MPEG4 codecs with bit rates as high as 40Mbps in both the C and Ku bands. Unlike other receivers on the market, the Skybox F5 is completely stable and runs smoothly on every channel currently available in North America. You can literally leave this box running for weeks and it won’t reboot or freeze a single time!

This receiver has a wide screen EPG for displaying channels and uses a USB drive for digital recording and time shifting. Unlike other receivers on the market, the channel guide doesn’t periodically disappear and you will never lose any recordings!

After thoroughly testing this digital receiver, we are convinced that it is one of the best models available for North American TVRO users and it will be supported on this site.
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1: Editing Channels

One of the biggest obstacles encountered by novice TVRO users is obtaining an up-to-date channel listing for their receiver. Some people try to blind scan channels into their receiver for all satellites, but quickly realize that broadcasters use acronyms for channel names which are difficult to remember or don’t name them at all and the receiver simply lists them as “chan-1, chan-2, chan-3” etc. Clearly, nobody can remember so many acronyms and it isn’t much fun spending hours and hours renaming all this channels. The other problem with blind scanning is the fact that multiple services appear for the same video PID and this just adds clutter to the EPG. In the case of occasional feeds, the blind scan function will fail altogether if the signal isn’t currently actively broadcasting.

The solution to this problem is to provide you with an up-to-date channels template complete with correct channel information (including popular feeds) for every satellite over North America! Our channel list is based on our up-to-date satellite charts and is generated automatically by our server whenever new updates are made to the charts.

Simply download the latest channel list and either edit it yourself further or load it directly to your Skybox F5 receiver!

1.1: SkyBox Channel Editor

Download the SkyBox Channel Editor and the latest channel list ending in .abs

Start the SkyBox Channel Editor and click on:

File
Open
Select the channel list .abs file

When prompted to select a Data Base, choose “User Data Base”.
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Click on:

All Services
Satellite Information

You should now see a list of all the satellites available for editing. Each satellite is identified by the longitude and “C” for C-band channels or “ku” for Ku-Band channels. If you click on a satellite you will see the transponder information.

1.2: Editing a Transponder

To edit a transponder:

Right click on the transponder
Select “Edit”

Enter the frequency, polarization and symbol rate.

1.3: Adding a new Transponder

To add a new transponder:

Right click on the satellite
Select “Add information”

Enter the frequency, polarization and symbol rate.

1.4: Editing a Channel

To edit a channel:

Right click on the channel
Select “Edit Channel”

Edit the various fields as required.

1.5: Adding a new Channel

To add a new channel:

Click on the Transponder
Click on “Insert Channel”

1.6: Moving Channels
To move a channel:

Right click the channel
Select “Move Up”, “Move Down” or “Move Channel”

You can move a channel to any location within the list.

1.7: Deleting Channels

To delete a channel:

Right click the channel
Select “Delete Channel”

1.8: Adding Favourites

You can also add channel to a favourites list by doing the following:

Click on the Favourite Group Folder
Right click “Edit Group”
Add channels
Click “OK”

1.9: Saving the channel list

When you are done editing, click on “File”, “Save” and select “User Data Base”.

Your list is now ready to load to your receiver.

2: Upgrading the Receiver

2.1: Upgrading the Channel list

Copy your .abs channel list to a USB memory stick. Insert the memory stick into the Skybox F5.

Click on:

Menu
Tools
Upgrade by USB
Upgrade Mode = Image File (*.abs)
Upgrade File = Select your file
Keeping DBS and Setting = No
Click on Start

It will take about a minute to burn your channel list to the receiver’s flash. Upon reboot, the receiver should contain your channel list in its EPG.
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2.2: Upgrading Firmware

Your receiver contains the latest factory firmware at this time. If new firmware is released, this section will be updated.

3: Antenna Setup

Before using your Skybox F5, you will need to edit the Antenna Setup.

3.1: Antenna Setup

Click on:

Menu
Installation
Antenna Setup
Select the Satellite you want to Edit

The most important section to edit is the LNB Frequency. Make sure this setting is correct or your receiver won’t be able to communicate properly with the LNBF.

For North American C-band reception, the LNB frequency is almost always 5150. For Ku-band reception, the most common setting is Universal (9750-10600). Please check your LNB for your particular setting.

The next most important setting is the DiSEqC1.0 – the setting for your switch, if any. If you are not using a switch, choose “Disable”. Otherwise, select the port on the switch for this particular satellite. The most popular switch is a 4x1.

The DiSEqC1.1 is another switching protocol. Use it if your switch supports it, otherwise disable it.

The 22K setting is for 2x1 tone switches. If you have one of these switches, set the 22k tone on or off to select one or the other port. Tone switches are often used to select between two 4x1 switches and make an 8x1 switch!

Lastly, turn the Motor Type “On” if you plan to control the movement of the antenna with your receiver. Select DiSEqC1.2 for actuator control of a C-Band Dish or USALS for controlling a Ku-Band HH motor.

3.2: Satellite List

Click on:

Menu
Installation
Satellite List

Here you can select which satellites you want visible in the guide. You can also edit, add and delete satellites.
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3.3: TP List

To view the transponders for a particular satellite click on:

Menu
Installation
TP List

You can edit, add, delete or search any transponder.

3.4: Single Satellite Search

To scan a satellite for channels click on:

Menu
Installation
Single Satellite Search

Select the scanning mode: Blind Scan, Preset Scan or Accurate Scan.

4: Motor Setup

Click on:

Menu
Installation
Antenna Setup
Motor Type: DiSEqC1.2

Under motor setting, drive your antenna to the satellite position and save the position name.

It is also advisable to set east/west limits under this menu to prevent your dish from encountering any potential obstacles.

5: EPG Setup

Your receiver can display EPG information when available. It is also possible to download a custom 7-day EPG from the internet. This feature will be discussed at a later date. Check back soon.

THE END
PhD in TVROSat

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