Head to head: Ross 223000 HD-r vs Philex Skyline 28260R by What Satellite & Digital TV

Ross 223000 HD-r vsusphilex skyline 28260R t 2011

Aug

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Ross 223000 HD-R vs Philex Skyline 28260R

head to head

Ross 223000 HD-r vs philex skyline 28260R Thanks to the vast scales of Far East manufacturing you can buy a complete DIY HD satellite kit – for £100 or less EVERYTHING seems to be more expensive with each day that passes. Yet in the world of consumerelectronics price-cutting remains relentless. If you’re happy to indulge in a bit of DIY you can assemble a complete dish-based HD-capable satellite system and pair it with a 26in HD TV for around £300. Given the potential entertainment value on offer, that

represents quite remarkable value for money. With a dish aimed at Astra 2/ Eurobird, both of these systems are capable of tuning into all of the free-to-air HD channels. Among them are BBC One HD, BBC HD, ITV1 HD and Channel 4 HD. Naturally, all of the free-to-air standard-definition channels are available too. We’re pleased to note that both of the receivers can be upgraded into

simple PVRs by plugging in a USB device of suitable capacity. As with more expensive PVRs, the transport streams that carry the channels are recorded so there’s no loss of quality. If you tire of television, both boxes can also play multimedia files of one form or another. Common to both are JPEG and MP3 support, meaning that music and big-screen enjoyment of photo albums are possibilities.

Test critErIa n:Ease of installation: We look for any problems that DIY enthusiasts might encounter n:Sensitivity: If the dish supplied is small, this is important. If the receiver is insensitive, signal dropouts might occur in poor weather n:Ease of use: Systems designed for ‘digital novices’ should be as easy to use as possible

head to head www.philex.com • 01234 263700 • £100

philex skyline 28260r Features LNB inputs: 1 LNB loopthrough: Yes DiSEqC: 1.0/1.1/1.2/ USALS No. channels: 5,000 Selectable FEC: No Symbol rate range: 2000-45000 Blind search: Yes Linux: No CAM: No Common interface: No Teletext: DVB decoded EPG support: DVB now-and-next & 7-day Timer: None Hard drive: None UHF modulator tuning: N/A Software upgrade: USB Data ports: USB SD video out: TV Scart (composite), S-video, composite, component HD video out: HDMI, up to 1080i Audio out: Coaxial S/PDIF (Dolby Digital compatible), analogue stereo Dish: 45cm offset, with 0.3dB LNB

Ratings

PLUS

n Robust and

straightforward to install dish n Compass and signal meter supplied n Blind search is reasonably speedy

Minus

n Search problems and

other bugs n No timer-recording facility or timeshifting n High standby power consumption Build

hhhhhhhhhh Setup

hhhhhhhhhh Searching

hhhhhhhhhh Navigation

hhhhhhhhhh Performance

hhhhhhhhhh Features

hhhhhhhhhh Value

hhhhhhhhhh Overall

63%

Both of the systems featured here furnish you with everything needed, right down to the expanding bolts that attach the dish mount to a convenient wall (remember that you’ll need an unobstructed view of the desired satellite). The £100 Philex system is supplied with a 45cm offset dish and a single universal LNB with claimed 0.3dB noise figure. These will give reliable results with the Astra 2/Eurobird satellites responsible for delivering the UK’s key free-to-air TV services; when conditions are good, you should also be able to access Astra 1 or Hot Bird. If reception of such satellites is important to you the 65cm dish of the £80 Ross system – again, a 0.3dB LNB is specified – will be an even better bet. The larger size gives it more gain, which should guarantee more resilient reception when the traditional British weather returns. The Philex dish is well made and works well, but paint got into the threads of the sample’s metalwork during manufacture. We used one of the kit’s larger screws to ream out the holes before assembly. It’s a pity that its mount won’t take a larger pole – in essence, you’re forced to use the supplied wall bracket.

Boxing clever No such problems with the Ross dish, which can be fitted to a 45mm pole – 55mm if a longer U-bolt is to hand. However, its build quality is inferior to that of the Philex antenna. The very lightweight nature of the dish means it can ‘flex’ during adjustment. In addition, elevation adjustment wasn’t as easy as it could be. In contrast, we could train the Philex dish on a satellite in a few minutes. Another plus is that the Philex is supplied with a compass and elementary signal meter. These ‘extras’, which admittedly aren’t essential, will add to the price of the Ross. In both cases a length of coaxial cable – 10m for the Philex, 12m for the Ross – is provided to link the LNB to the receiver. And so we move to the indoor

hardware, which is remarkably well specified in both cases. Naturally, the receivers incorporate DVB-S/S2 tuners for compatibility with SD and HD channels, as well as satellite radio stations. They can be upgraded to PVR operation by plugging in a USB storage device of appropriate capacity. The Philex box’s recording facilities are extremely limited. You can’t schedule recordings via the seven-day EPG – which displays only one channel at a time and, indeed, you don’t get a recording timer of any kind. As a result, recordings have to be manually invoked. In contrast, the Ross gives you an eight-event timer (which can be programmed via the EPG). It also features a timeshift (chasing playback) mode, which is absent on the Philex.

‘The quality of the Ross dish is inferior to that of the Philex dish’ Both boxes also give you some degree of USB multimedia playback. In this regard the Ross trounces the Philex. On the ‘allowed’ list are JPEG/ BMP images and MP3/WAV/WMA audio. As far as video is concerned the Ross will play DiVX/XviD and x.264/MKV (including 1080p) video files. Pause and cue/review playback

www.diy.com • 0845 609 6688 • £80

head to head

Ross 22300 HD-r Features

functionality is offered; if your MP3 files have ID3 tags these are displayed onscreen. You can also play music while looking at photos. In contrast, the Philex can only handle MP3 audio and JPEG images. Worse still, our sample occasionally crashed when previewing a photo. The only cure here was a power-cycle. In installation terms both receivers are very similar. If multisatellite features in your plans you’ll be pleased to know that DiSEqC 1.0, 1.2 and USALS are all supported. The Ross dish, for all its faults, is better suited to motorisation on account of the larger size and mounting flexibility. A suitable DiSEqC motorised mount will set you back £60 or more; this approaches the

cost of the full packages tested here. The Ross system is more suitable in another way too – the 9,999-channel capability of its receiver is twice that of the Philex.

Working blind We’re impressed to discover that both receivers feature blind search. Here, the Philex scores over the Ross in terms of both speed and channel-finding capability. It sniffs out transponders and then searches

them. But there’s a problem; regardless of the type of scan, searching Astra 1 would halt mid-way through. Even resetting the box and deleting all channels beforehand had no effect. We have alerted Philex to our findings. Both receivers boast signal/quality bars for dish peaking, and cater for conventional single-transponder and full-satellite auto searches too; free and/or encrypted channels can be chosen here. Why these FTA-only boxes even bother with an ‘encrypted’ option is beyond us, as neither receiver makes any provision for conditional access hardware. In both cases channels can be sorted alphabetically, by transponder or encryption status. Both Philex and Ross give you a choice of eight user-definable favourites lists for convenient channel access. Amusingly, the Philex user interface tended to switch between different fonts, giving it a cluttered and untidy appearance. It’s also much slower than the Ross. Channel changing and searches (with the exception of ‘blind’) take longer, and it’s frustratingly easy to shoot past the desired item in a menu or list. On the plus side, it gives you more physical connectivity. However, many would prefer the RGB-compatible Scart of the Ross to the Philex’s S-video and component outlets. The Ross also presents users with front and rear USB sockets, whereas the Philex only has an inconveniently rear-mounted one. Both boxes integrate mains supplies and cannot be powered by low-voltage DC alternatives.

‘The Philex scores over the Ross in terms of speed and channel-finding capability’

LNB inputs: 1 LNB loopthrough: Yes DiSEqC: 1.0-1.2/USALS No. channels: 9,999 Selectable FEC: No Symbol rate range: 2000-45000 Blind search: Yes Linux: No CAM: No Common interface: No Teletext: DVB decoded EPG support: DVB now-and-next and 7-day Timer: 8-event, set from EPG or manually Hard drive: None UHF modulator tuning: N/A Software upgrade: USB Data ports: USB (front and rear) SD video out: TV Scart (RGB/S-video/ composite/component) HD video out: HDMI, up to 1080i Audio out: Optical digital (Dolby Digital compatible) analogue stereo via Scart Dish: 65cm offset, with 0.3dB LNB

Ratings

PLUS

n Unprecedented value

for money n Well featured n Versatile media player

Minus

n Dish construction and

setup could be improved n Minor firmware bugs n No installation or alignment aids supplied Build

hhhhhhhhhh Setup

hhhhhhhhhh Searching

hhhhhhhhhh Navigation

hhhhhhhhhh Performance

hhhhhhhhhh Features

hhhhhhhhhh Value

hhhhhhhhhh Overall

85%

head to head Ross 22300 HD-R vs Philex Skyline 28260R

verdict

http://bit.ly

Tested

UK Free TV

Award

PVR

1.1/1.2

Percentage score

EPG days

200045000

Tinkerer

Blind search

Feedhunter

DiSEqC

Euro Pay TV

Symbol rate

1xDVB-S2

UK Pay TV

CAM

£80

picture quality could be striking even with a modest HD-Ready (as opposed to Full-HD) LCD TV. Standard-definition pics proved to be more than acceptable in both cases too. Driving an audio system from the analogue audio systems demonstrated that the sound departments weren’t lacking n Martin Pipe

Euro Free TV

CI slots

suited to multi-satellite upgrades on account of the 60cm reflector’s extra signal-collecting area and more flexible pole-mounting arrangements. With the Philex dish you are pretty much stuck with the supplied wall mount. As far as AV performance goes, both receivers were capable of similar subjective performance. With HD channels,

Tuners

Ross 22300 HD-R

the only British channel EPG data you’ll have access to is ‘now-andnext’, which is fairly useless as far as timer setting is concerned. That’s not a problem with the Philex box, though, as it doesn’t have a timer. However, the Philex does boast a dish that is easier to install and align than the one supplied with the Ross, though the latter is better

Price

Name

Both systems represent superb value for money, providing everything you need for basic HD reception. However, ‘basic’ is the operative word. The receivers make no provision for pay-TV upgradeability. In addition, they’re not Freesatcertified. As a result, there’s no ‘red button’ digital teletext. Furthermore,

Aug 11

19843

Test And Measurement Idling

In use

5m14s

FTA scan 0

10 minutes

6m01s

Full scan 0

Standby

POWER USAGE Much like that of the Philex with no difference in standby

philex 28260r

£100

1xDVB-S2

200045000

10 minutes

search: 19.2°E No completion issues for the Ross – it gives a fast account of itself 1.0/1.1/ 1.2

10 minutes

MPEG-2 TS

●

AVI

●

DivX

●

XviD

●

9m58s

Blind search 0

Video Formats

7m51s

Full scan 0

9m20s

Blind search

5m15s

FTA scan 0

4m30s

Full scan

search: 28°E The Philex is roundly trounced in the scan of Astra 2/Eurobird

5m57s

Blind search 0

3m34s

FTA scan 0

search: 13°E Chalk up another win to the Ross, especially for blind searching -

MkV

●

mp4

● Aug 11

n/a

Test And Measurement Idling

In use Standby

15m20s

FTA scan 0

30 minutes

17m01s

Full scan 0

POWER USAGE Like the Ross receiver, there’s little powersaving in standby

30 minutes

search: 28°E The Ross is much faster here than our Philex test sample

10 minutes

n/a

Full scan 0

24m27s

Blind search

n/a

FTA scan 0

10 minutes

search: 19.2°E Our sample failed to fully scan Astra 1 using the latest firmware

30 minutes

9m25s

Full scan 0

n/a

Blind search

9m25s

FTA scan 0

16m20s

Blind search 0

30 minutes

search: 13°E A blind search of Hot Bird is especially slow compared to the Ross

Video Formats

MPEG-2 TS

●

AVI

●

DivX

●

XviD

●

Mkv

●

mp4

●

The Winner: ross 22300 HD-r Although the Philex system comes with more accessories, the Ross receiver is, nevertheless, notably superior to the Philex one. It gave us no problems with searching, and was far more responsive in use. It can store many more channels in its memory (a moot point for anyone interested in entry-level multi-satellite), is endowed with a far more powerful

media player and offers recording facilities of practical merit. Overall, then, our preference is for the Ross system.

It’s worth pointing out that the Ross receiver is available separately as the number HDR-8130USB. B&Q stores are selling it for £65,

which might interest readers who want to harness the unused outputs of the quad LNBs fitted to their Sky dishes.