250 replies to this topic

[WanWizard]

Also I don't understand why the Sky Q LNB is being discussed in this thread.

 

Maybe you should read back.

 

We are NOT discussing the LNB (which is indeed a normal wideband LNB), we're discussing the JESS/Unicable II/EN50607 multiswitches which have "special SKY extensions" (Unitron, Teldis, Triax, etc), and we are trying to determine if it is possible for Enigma to understand/work with this mode, so you can mix SKY and non-SKY equipment on a single cable. Which is going to be important in for example apartment blocks where there is only one incoming coax cable. Like mine.

[Huevos]

That is not Sky Q though.

[WanWizard]

Sorry?

 

"SKY Q" is a marketing name for an "environment to watch TV with", sold by SKY Corporation.  One of the components in the environment is a SKY Pro box. This box has two coax inputs, that can either be connected directly to a wideband LNB (for use in standard homes), or to a dSCR multiswitch (for use in for example apartment blocks). All these dSCR switches that are certified for SKY (as far as we have been able to find them) are also compatible with EN50494 and EN50607.

 

The tests by Eragon have already proven that these switches work fine, as long as you dedicate one output to the SKY environment, and one output to a standard Unicable environment.

 

We want to take it one step further, and see if you can mix the two environments (SKY and Enigma) on a single cable. This probably requires Enigma to understand the SKY extensions to the JESS protocol, which we can look into once we know that both can co-exist on the same cable.

[Huevos]

Just sticking an analyser on the cable would show that is impossible.

[WanWizard]

We don't have a switch of that type, and we don't have SKY Pro equipment yet, so for the moment we need help of someone that does. And yes, it would be great if that someone also had an analyzer.

[littlesat]

Indeed some reversed engineering might be required...

Edited by littlesat, 16 December 2016 - 19:04.

[Eragon]

I believe that also the LNB that Sky Italy is actually installing provides a multistandard support for EN50494 and EN50607, it's not a wideband LNB (however please consider that I don't have personal experience with the Sky's LNB):

 

Unitron-Johansson 9721 - Digital SCR LNB

http://unitrongroup....#specifications

 

 

Let me post some information about the Sky+ Pro receiver, which is currently deployed to Sky customers in Germany, Austria, and now also in Italy but only for testing purposes.

 

Note: actually the Italian receiver is slightly better than the others because it has also an integrated DVB-T2 tuner!!!!

 

It's based on the Maxlinear technology:

 

 

Sky Deutschland’s advanced PVR platform, called Sky+ Pro, will enable users to view breathtaking ultra-high definition (UHD) video content broadcasted with a resolution of 3840 x 2160 pixels.  Initially, the new Sky+ Pro will support two tuners and allow customers to watch or record two shows simultaneously. An embedded Wi-Fi receiver will also allow customers to connect the set-top box (STB) to their existing Wi-Fi network, enabling video-on-demand (VoD) with Sky On Demand. Support for eight tuners over a single coax cable will be enabled in a future software update.

 

The Sky+ Pro is designed with a modular architecture that can support either cable or satellite reception. The new set-top box is powered by MaxLinear’s MxL582C single-chip Full-Spectrum Capture (FSC^TM) satellite receiver, which digitizes the complete broadcast satellite band and performs the digital tuning and demodulation of up to eight satellite channels in a very low power, tiny form-factor.  The MxL582C IC also provides built-in immunity to Wi-Fi, LTE and terrestrial interference signals, ensuring that the STBs have excellent HD and UHD reception performance, even in adverse environments.

 

MaxLinear’s innovative FSC technology enhances the user experience with advanced fast channel-change functionality, while also enabling the service provider to remotely monitor and optimize performance in the network.

 

The new set-top box is designed to support a variety of low-noise block (LNB) configurations used by installers, including Unicable (EN50494), Unicable II (EN50607), and digital channel stacking switch (dCSS) LNBs and multiswitches.  The new Sky+ Pro is designed to work seamlessly with LNBs based on MaxLinear’s MxL862 digital channel stacking IC, which supports the latest single cable router technology and stacks up to 24 channels on a single coax cable.  This technology simplifies and reduces installation time for both single family homes and multi-dwelling units (MDUs).

 

http://www.maxlinear...-set-top-boxes/

Edited by Eragon, 16 December 2016 - 19:47.

[Huevos]

Sky Italia use a Unicable or Unicable II LNB.

 

I've got an analyser, if someone wants to send me a switch to test.

[littlesat]

You need also a sky box

[Huevos]

Not if you have an analyser. Sky Q box is passive. It doesn't send commands to the aerial system. The two wideband blocks are permanently arriving at the STB.

The only time you need to send commandsto the aerial system is when what is arriving at the STB is in complete. ie just one sub band, or individual transponders.

Edited by Huevos, 17 December 2016 - 10:10.

[littlesat]

Huevos, not with the sky q thing we're discussies here...

[Huevos]

Ok. I'm talking about the Sky Q receiver used in the UK. Is there another?

[Eragon]

Hi littlesat,

I'm testing what you imagined in this post:

https://forums.openp...ndpost&p=628924

 

So I added the following lines to the unicable.xml file:

<manufacturer name="Unitron-Johansson for Sky">
   <product name="9732 (EN50494)" positions="1" scrs="1210,1420,1680,2040"/>
   <product name="9732 (EN50607)" positions="1" format="jess" scrs=",,,,985,1050,1115,1275,1340,1485,1550,1615,1745,1810,1875,1940"/>
</manufacturer>

After having set the multiswitch to model to "9732 (EN50607)", when moving the "Channel" setting from SCR 5 to SCR 4 the receiver crash (green screen).

 

Attached there is the log

Attached Files

•  enigma2_crash_1482015368_log.zip   3.5KB   1 downloads

[WanWizard]

Woops....

<   383.996>   File "/usr/lib/enigma2/python/Components/NimManager.py", line 1206, in scrListChanged
<   383.997> ValueError: invalid literal for int() with base 10: ''

[Huevos]

 

Woops....

<   383.996>   File "/usr/lib/enigma2/python/Components/NimManager.py", line 1206, in scrListChanged
<   383.997> ValueError: invalid literal for int() with base 10: ''

Yes because there is no code to handle that. You can't just edit the xml file without adding code to understand the empty values.

Edited by Huevos, 18 December 2016 - 13:41.

[littlesat]

THE code is not adapter for that... But what hou this makers also no Sense... In jess THE fout first frequenties are juist those of THE unicable... Somdrive THE switch in jess Will give hou 16 frequencies and in unicable only them first four...

I do not knop a switch were scrs do skip slots... This one is THE same...

[Huevos]

Agreed, a jess capable switch should understand jess diction on all SCRs.

[Eragon]

As I tried to explain earlier, the problem is that the first 4 user bands (1 to 4)  of the 9732 multiswitch are not JESS compatible, but only Unicable I compatible.

Therefore these user bands should not be available for selection when the selected protocol  is JESS (i.e. the string "config.Nims.0.advanced.lnb.1.format=jess" is present in the settings file), otherwise that tuner will not work!

 

Well, but now...

if there shouldn't be a method to skip the 4 scr numbers in the unicable.xml file, the final user will find in the tuner SCR selection:

 

SCR 1 = Frequency 985

 

and so on:

 

SCR 2 = Frequency 1050

 

SCR 3 = Frequency 1115

 

up to SCR 12

 

The above listing is not consistent with the multiswitch specifications (but I don't know... maybe it doesn't matter if SCR numbering is wrong .. )

 

Anyway, IMHO the user should find the available SCRs listed exactly as it's reported in the installation manual about the multiswitch EN50607 compatibility, where the EN50607 numbering starts from SCR 5:

 

SCR 5 = Frequency 985

 

and so on:

 

SCR 6 = Frequency 1050

 

SCR 7 = Frequency 1115

 

up to SCR 16.

 

I hope I've been now able to explain better the possible problem...

[littlesat]

Then trucs rilling in just dummy values instead of ,,,,, try 0,0,0,0 of real freq when this does not work. Als long you do not Use that scr it will not Harm.... In this is THE fact we need to define Some kind of hybrid mode...

[Huevos]

If it is working in OpenATV like he says, why not here? I don't even see this device listed in OpenATV unicable.xml, so how it works in that image is a mystery.