Digital TV: Some Questions.

[Burl Ives]

Am I right in thinking that:

1. if I have CTH and True visions on satellite I will not need yet another set top box for digital TV(DVB)?

2.As and when digital radio finally gets here, CTH and TrueVisions will have to provide it free on their service?

3. If I don't have CTH or TrueVisions I will need either a digital aerial hanging off the roof, or a satellite dish and a set top box, or a table top antennae, or a combination of all 3!!

4. If anyone has got this thing working yet which set top box is any good and how much do they cost (before the coupon).

5. This is all thoeretical as all the new digital channels will be 100% Thai and of no interest to us Farangs (or Aliens as some people would like to call us)

Maybe someone has answered all of these questions but I must have missed them!

[henksteeghsth]

wen you don't need it for a business you can use a " Magic box" to see all the Sport , Movies, live TV channels all over the world.

World cup is coming. F1 all live and in HD

The only thing you need is a strong internet connection cost about 6500 - 7000 THB

P.m for more details .

[yimlitnoy]

why P.m for more details? Why not answer here?

[Neilcnx]

Will this box be able to receive live snooker, american football and Ultimate Fighting Champ. (UFC) with original commentary?

The site I currently use (without a box) can get snooker but the Thai commentary (dee - long lao; mai dee!) leaves a lot to be desired. The Thai commentary for buffalo fights in Isaan seem to be acceptable - of course I have nothing with which to compare.

[NoshowJones]

Will this box be able to receive live snooker, american football and Ultimate Fighting Champ. (UFC) with original commentary?

The site I currently use (without a box) can get snooker but the Thai commentary (dee - long lao; mai dee!) leaves a lot to be desired. The Thai commentary for buffalo fights in Isaan seem to be acceptable - of course I have nothing with which to compare.

Snooker? American football? Is there anything more boring? Well I suppose there is darts.

[gandalf12]

DTV will provide high definition for programs that are transmitted in HDTV format, it wont do anything if it isnt. Are the channels currently available in Thailand being transmitted in HD format? I doubt it as it will mean a change out of the current equipment and buying new.

For myself, yes I would like to see Discovery channel in HD but I doubt if the cost of a HDTV is going to make me want one.

Nice concept but only if the rest of the infrastructure is there to effectively use it

[henksteeghsth]

All the TV channels are live whit live comment

wen you look to a France channel you have France languages

UKTV is live British TV

it has nothing to do with Thailand but also the Thai channels you can see

[henksteeghsth]

Wen you like your sport, even wen its snooker, American Football, Darts Or Goooooolf

everything is live in your langues

Also many channels give you the option to watch your sport on a time convenient for you

[Suradit69]

This is all thoeretical [sic] as all the new digital channels will be 100% Thai and of no interest to us Farangs (or Aliens as some people would like to call us)

After reading your self-important post, "alien" isn't the first word that comes to mind, although "totally alienating" might be an apt description. This will undoubtedly come as a major shock, but some farang do watch some Thai television and some even speak the language.

[Rorri]

OP

1. if I have CTH and True visions on satellite I will not need yet another set top box for digital TV(DVB)?

Ans. I believe True's licence forces them to retransmit the free to air services, so you existing set top box is all you'll need

2.As and when digital radio finally gets here, CTH and TrueVisions will have to provide it free on their service?

Ans. Radio is not TV... at the moment if you receive radio, on a radio, it is from a local radio station, it is up to them to convert to digital, probably will not happen unless forced to.

3. If I don't have CTH or TrueVisions I will need either a digital aerial hanging off the roof, or a satellite dish and a set top box, or a table top antennae, or a combination of all 3!!

Ans. If you currently receive free to air TV with good reception and it is on the UHF band, then another antenna is not required, but if your TV doesn't have a built in digital tuner then you will need a set top box and if you want to watch HD channels your TV needs to be HD capable... 1920x1080. A satellite dish is of no use for free to air.

4. If anyone has got this thing working yet which set top box is any good and how much do they cost (before the coupon).

5. This is all thoeretical as all the new digital channels will be 100% Thai and of no interest to us Farangs (or Aliens as some people would like to call us)

Maybe someone has answered all of these questions but I must have missed them!

I suggest you read this

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/business/Switch-from-analogue-to-digital-TV-starts-with-24--30223290.html

[Burl Ives]

@Rorri

Thank you for your excellent response, at least there is one sensible person out there!

[Rorri]

You're welcome, these forums really go off on a tangent quickly... often going way off from what the OP asks...

[KittenKong]

6. Why wasn't this posted in the AV/Tech sub-forum?

[mathewjg]

post deleted as commercial spam

Is that using XBMC? Do you need to set up a VPN to access Navi x and 1 channel and sportsdevil as in uk? I have heard some people are installing X-finity with some success although the people at XBMC hub have disowned it saying that it can allow some dodgy trojans onto your network. I have seen X-finity working and it does look very good but I am a bit wary of the security implications

[Konini]

I was looking at Android TV boxes last night, as I don't know who has UK rights to the world cup, should have just checked with my mate Google I suppose, but I can't see it not being free to air in UK and I have recently found some great streaming of free to air (as well as not so free). The cheap and nasty boxes about GBP50, better quality GBP60, not much difference in price but some good reviews on the forums for the GBP60 one.

Setting up with XBMC looked very straight forward, so much so that I figured I could do it without much wasted time. Maybe I'll get around to it one day, but I'm content with streaming at the moment though. While trying to find a stable stream for the the Chelsea match (husband said he couldn't find one, I found several as soon as he went out to watch it. More interestingly, but no Chelsea as it was on free to air in UK, I found a site streaming UK premium sports (Sky 1,2,3,5, BT1 &2, ESPN) in HD. Didn't believe it until I started streaming it, but it was totally amazing. HD with no buffering and very smooth vision, motorcross racing so very fast action. I'm not easily impressed, but this was great. Had to test it out (of course) and it was just as good on 50 inch TV as the laptop. We only have the TOT 590baht package.

Don't think I'm allowed to post link for it???? PM me if interested, and I'll send the url.

[Rimmer]

Blatantly commercial post removed:

12) No spamming allowed in any way, shape or form, through mail, PM, forum post, or any other method.

[digitaldivergence]

OK 2nd attempt at answering this ... not sure if answered already

What you are probably refering to is the launch of DVB-T2 which is the digital terrerstrial standard.

CTH and True are either DVB-C/DVB-S/DVB-S2, basically digital services on cable and satellite and carry Free to Air (FTA) and Pay TV services.

GMM is another one with Digital Satellite Services. You can also get IPTV services from the likes of TOT but ok going off on a tangent.

DVB-T is what was launched in Europe over 15 years ago - I was part of the team that launched Digital TV services for the BBC - so digital satellite services in October 1998 and digital terrestrial in November 1998.

What does this mean to you ?

If you want to watch the new digital terrestrial services on your TV from an ariel - you need either a DVB-T2 Set Top Box (STB) or an integrated TV which already has a DVB-T2 tuner in it. I saw the boxes in Big C the other day. All sub 2000 Baht. Interface and EPGs on all look basic.

Don't do what my friend did and ask for a Digital TV box - they gave him a GMM DVB-S2 (Satellite STB) - which he took back to his house to plug into the ariel and of course it didnt work (5555 but worked nicely with my 3 satellite dishes). It will very clearly say DVB-T2 on the box ... dont let anyone sell you a DVB-T box - they are not forward compatible - thats the older standard - so dont buy an old european box ;-)

You can read about what is being offered in thailand on the following wikipedia site : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_television_in_Thailand

It will carry a mix of SD and HD (Standard and High Definition) channels. All MPEG4/H.264. Meant to be a mix of commercial and FTA

If you have CTH and True, I really doubt you will need or want another STB - most of the channels to be broadcast as digital are already carried by the Pay TV operators free anyway. Soon most of the TV's sold here will have integrated tuners so if you really want you can wait till then.

For those in condos etc where the existing ariel feed is probably ancient and split a million times with non compatible amps and splitters you may not be able to get a feed. Seems to be plenty of external DVB-T2 ariels which are being sold as well. I would try it 1st before spending another 500 baht on another piece of plastic.

Digital Radio ... DAB ... In Thailand ... Been a few trials. Again was mentioned by NTBC around licenses - I would not hold your breath. They have been in Australia to look at how it was deployed there. ABU link here

[Burl Ives]

Thankyou for your techicallyt competent answer.

[hyperdimension]

If I already have a satellite dish would I need to install a separate terrestrial antenna and buy a terrestrial digital TV box just to be able to see the new channels in high definition? Or are all of those new channels going to be also broadcast via the Thaicom (or NSS6?) satellite (negating the need to install the terrestrial antenna), in which case I would just need a high definition satellite receiver?

I haven't bought any box for my satellite dish yet.

[RichCor]

If I already have a satellite dish would I need to install a separate terrestrial antenna and buy a terrestrial digital TV box just to be able to see the new channels in high definition? Or are all of those new channels going to be also broadcast via the Thaicom (or NSS6?) satellite (negating the need to install the terrestrial antenna), in which case I would just need a high definition satellite receiver?

I haven't bought any box for my satellite dish yet.

The programming for DVB-T2 will be a small SUBSET of the Free-To-Air programming available on DVB-S2 (Satellite) and possible independent programming not simulcast on satellite.

Suggest you read this Wikipedia Page for more info: Digital television in Thailand

DVB-T2

In October 2013, a present there are six free television channels : 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 and Thai PBS; however, once it is up and running, DVB-T2 will enable Thai audiences to view programs from up to 48 channels. The 48 digital outlets will comprise 12 community channels, 12 public channels, and 20 commercial channels; the remaining four will be high definition television. With more channels available, niche programming such as sports, food, travel and technology channels could be part of the digital bouquet. It is expected that the multichannel environment will open up opportunities for new production companies to provide content giving consumers more choices.^[2]

Digital terrestrial officially began experimental broadcasts on April 1, 2014; the channels are also available to satellite viewers.

[hyperdimension]

If I already have a satellite dish would I need to install a separate terrestrial antenna and buy a terrestrial digital TV box just to be able to see the new channels in high definition? Or are all of those new channels going to be also broadcast via the Thaicom (or NSS6?) satellite (negating the need to install the terrestrial antenna), in which case I would just need a high definition satellite receiver?

The programming for DVB-T2 will be a small SUBSET of the Free-To-Air programming available on DVB-S2 (Satellite) and possible independent programming not simulcast on satellite.

It's the "possible independent programming not simulcast on satellite" that is the concern. If that is the case, then I'd need to install a terrestrial antenna. (I only currently have a satellite dish installed, which can only receive satellite signals, not terrestrial.) I would then need two boxes: a DVB-T2 box and a high definition DVB-S2 box (or a box that has both DVB-T2 and DVB-S2 inputs). Am I correct?

[RichCor]

Hyperdimension

Technically correct. I added that bit in about possible independent programming because we have no idea what will actually happen with Terrestrial in the future. Politics and Big-Business Interests can effect it, and not always to the end-user benefit.

I'm not sure why anyone would want DVB-T2 over DVB-S2. It may have a lower initial cost (1/5) but it will fall far short of the programming options available over Satellite, especially when it comes to bundled subscription packages.

While you could purchase a 'combo' box, this would most likely limit you to viewing only the Free-to-Air channels on both Terrestrial and Satellite, as the Satellite subscription packages require the use of their vendor pre-authenticated box to properly decode the 'scrambled' subscription-only programming.

[Haddo]

Hi

I've got digital terrestrial TV up and working at home in Bangkok - mainly to see the FA Cup Final in HD

I recently bought a Samsung LED large screen TV which has an integrated digital tuner, but also bought an external digi box for an older TV in another room (but it does have HDMI)

There were about 4 or 5 to choose from in Big C, ranging from about 1300 to 2000 Baht.

I went for the snappily named Aconatic AN-2301T2 (about Bt1400) - it has HDMI and composite out, and allows you to pause and record TV to an external USB drive

Aerial wise - I found this one to work better than a conventional 'yagi' type antenna (not sure if you can get them here - got it in the UK)

http://www.oneforall.co.uk/digital-aerials/sv9215-flat-indoor-tv-aerial.html

advantage is you can hide it behind a cupboard or the TV itself.

the mutliplexes (muxes) in bangkok i found were

514 MHz - PRD

594 MHz - ?? (Ch5, 7, TNN24, Workpoint, True4u)

626 MHz - MCOT (various MCOT channels)

658 MHZ - TPBS mux (incl Ch 8, Ch3)

722 MHz - PPTV, new)tv, Bright, Nation, Amarin

some of these are HD, and there are quite a few colour bar channels (ie not yet broadcasting prgramming)

You can select 'VO' - version original on some programmes - and indeed the FA Cup was there last night on Ch 7 HD, with English commentary available by selecting VO.

Hope this is of use to some - I couldn't find a list of the frequencies anywhere.

[ozvenison]

XBMC via Windows, Android or Mac is the way to go..

You can also purchase pre installed boxes from places like http://xunity.tv ... iStreams is fantastic for movies and TV..

Plus you can then add many add-ons for local and international content..

https://www.facebook.com/iClosedz?hc_location=timeline is an example of free add-on which provides links to local TV, Thai, US, Korean, Chinese soaps and movies with subtitles or Thai dubbed content, my girlfriend loves it

There also some pay sites like http://offsidestreams.com/site/more-information/ which for 11 GBP a month you can access some great channels..

All up much cheaper than True Visions which I dumped 3 months ago..