DSC CHECKS OUT THIS GERMAN MADE SINGLE-TUNER PVR, AND DISCOVERS MUCH OF MERIT

An increasing number of digital TV products now include hard disks for 'personal video recording', and the trend shows no sign of slowing down - after all, the cost of these mass storage devices is falling steadily and they provide several key advantages. Recording a channel's datastream as broadcast means that there's no loss of picture or sound quality. Then there's the convenience factor - the ability to pause live TV or start playing a recording that's still in progress is a distinct plus. So too are the user-friendly scheduling of recordings directly from an electronic programme guide and the elimination of the need to find a blank tape (or disk!) at short notice. So attractive are these benefits that we can forsee a time when all but the most basic of receivers will include some kind of storage capability - if only some on-board memory to provide a few seconds of 'time-shifting' a la Fusion DTT box.

Eventually, solid-state storage devices will take over altogether - digital TVs of the future will record complete TV programmes on memory chips. But for now, hard disks are the cheapest route to the many gigabytes (GB) of storage needed to make a practical TV recorder. The 80GB Seagate drive that forms an essential part of the TechniSat DigiCorder S1 free-to-air satellite receiver reviewed here will accommodate up to 1,000 recordings totalling 60 hours or so. The S1 will also record radio programmes to the hard disk - and because the datastreams responsible for audio are a lot 'narrower' than those associated with TV, hundreds of hours of your favourite radio programmes can be archived. Note that the S1 is also available in 40GB, 120GB and 160GB versions - there are reports that the unit will accept hard disks of up to 200GB without problems.

DESCRIPTION
Compact and slimline, the S1 is by any standards an attractive unit. The front panel is dominated by a superb 16-character fluorescent display that displays the name of the current channel (radio or TV). A welcome alternative, it has to be said, to the boring channel numbers of other units! In standby, the display acts as a clock - but it can be turned off altogether. To the left of the front panel is a rather odd control that, despite first appearances, isn't waggled up or down to change channel. It's the standby control; the channel up/down buttons form the areas of panel above and beneath. A long hinged flap that occupies most of the S1 fascia's lower section lowers to reveal a single Common Interface (CI) slot for pay-TV conditional-access modules (CAMs). Most receivers, in contrast, offer two. But the proliferation of multiple-CAM modules means that the S1's single slot is not quite the limitation it once was. If you only intend to view free-to-air channels, such issues are irrelevant.

A view inside reveals that the S1 - built in TechniSat's home country of Germany, apparently - is constructed to a high standard. Readers of a more technical bent may be interested to learn that much of the work is done by a single chip. Amongst other things, LSI Logic's SC2005 decodes MPEG audio and video, generates the analogue audio and video signals and provides an IDE interface for the hard disk. According to the SC2005 datasheet, the chip also includes internal support for the NDS Videoguard CAM as used in the UK by Sky. But this CAM is, of course, not supported by the S1. Still on the subject of CAMs, a Sony chip interfaces the CI slot to the SC2005. Other components are a zero-IF tuner from ALPS, and a Slovakian-made Panasonic UHF modulator. The power supply, meanehile, will generate enough steam for a DiSEqC mount (the S1 supports 1.2 and 1.3/USALS).

Most of the DigiCorder S1’s tasks are carried out by a single chip – the LSI Logi’s SC2005. This decodes MPEG2 transmissions, creates analogue audio and video signals and provides an IDE link for the hard disc drive. The chip also supports NDS Videoguard, but this has been disabled in the S1.

SET-UP AND OPERATION
Installation is made as simple as possible with an auto set-up system that allows you to specify language and dish type/DiSEqC configuration with the solid slab of a remote handset. Up to four fixed dishes, connected via a DiSEqC switch, are catered for - the satellites they're aimed at are selected from four pull-down menus. You can then scan for channels (all or free-to-air) on these satellites; as a quicker alternative, you can rely on the receiver's pre-programmed channel database. The receiver will also seek out new firmware 'over the air', provided that that reception of Astra 1x - the satellite that carries it - is available. A DiSEqC motorised dish has to be installed manually via the setting menu's 'antenna configuration' option; here, 'motor antenna' is specified as one of the four dish choices. After setting the dish limits and LNB type, the satellites can by programmed in one by one - the signal strength and quality of one of the chosen bird's transponders are displayed in bargraph form.

A nice touch is that when attempting to save the position, the receiver will tell you which satellite it is (by analysing multiple transponders in its database). If it's not the one you thought it was (some transponder frequencies are, after all, common to several satellites) you can save it under the correct position. Unusually for a digital receiver, he S1 also features an 'auto-focus' system for automatic 'peaking' of the dish. The system is also compatible with DiSEqC 1.3/USALS - enter your site latitude and longitude, and the the system will calculate the positions of the satellites available to you. With the channel-searching menu, you can search for all or just free-to-air channels on the stored satellites. Here, the dish will automatically move between satellites as required. Searching by specific transponder is also possible; if the transponder isn't in the database (which, like the firmware, can be automatically updated over the air), then you can enter the transponder details - together with PIDs, if required - manually before a search.

Channels found are stored in two main channel lists - one for TV, another for radio. A total of 4000 TV/radio channels can be remembered by the S1. You're also asked whether these channels should be added to a 'favourites' list. Unfortunately, there's only one of these - although it will store as many as 999 channels! Adding and removing channels is fairly straightforward with the 'list organizers', once you get used to the S1's 'fastext-submenu' way of doing things. When choosing channels for viewing (or listening, when the unit is in its radio mode!), a choice of lists - provider (network), favourite or complete - is offered. No search facility is featured; all you can do is to use the left and right arrow keys to jump through long lists page-by-page. The other main set-up functions include AV parameters (RGB or composite via Scart output, aspect ratio, subtitles and UHF channel number, for example), clock settings, parental lock and CAM information.

The best feature of the S1 is, however, its hard disk functionality. Press 'pause' on the remote and the machine jumps into action, the current channel's datastream streaming to the hard disk. You can then pause or wind back or forward at 3 search speeds to your heart's content (unfortunately, there are no slow-motion or frame-advance functions) or even select a previously-recorded programme for playback. Exiting the mode will give you the option of saving the recording permanently. If you decide you don't want all of the recording, the S1 will let you delete unwanted sections thereby reclaiming hard disk space into the bargain! It's certainly the first time we've encountered editing on a satellite PVR. Timed recordings can be programmed via a standard 'now-and-next' EPG, although the DVB 7-day is supported for the benefit of channels using it.

If your tastes in telly tend to the Teutonic, though, another option is available. TechniSat operates a 14-day EPG called SFI - or Sieh Fern ('watch TV') Info. This works on the basis of data downloaded from an Astra 1x transponder. At a user-specified time, the receiver will move the dish to Astra and attempt to download EPG data for the channels you're interested in. Alas, the system didn't work on any of the free-to-air English-language Astra 2x channels we tried. Hopefully, TechniSat will remedy this. Programming the 124-event, 1 year timer can be achieved via SFI, the EPG or manually. Thankfully, timed recordings take precedence over SFI updates.

PERFORMANCE
We were impressed with the visual performance of the S1. With a RGB feed, live studio shots are characterised by crisp detail and accurate colour reproduction. Even heavily-compressed channels like BBC News 24 were handled well, with fewer of the 'feathering' artifacts that we've experienced with cheaper receivers. Sonically, the S1 also shines brightly. Using SFI, we made a timed recording of the long-established 'Space Night' programme broadcast by German channel BR-Alpha via Astra. This intersperses extra-terrestrial artwork, Earthbound scenery and NASA footage against a superb and varied soundtrack - which, when fed into a decent amp and speakers - sounded truly compelling with the S1 as an audio source. The BBC's radio channels were conveyed with similar adeptness. In all, there's much to recommend the S1 if you're looking for a free-to-air equivalent of the Sky+. There are some minor usability issues, but these could be addressed via over-the-air firmware updates (if you have no plans to opt for Astra 1x reception, firmware can be downloaded from the TechniSat website and transferred from a PC via a null-modem cable). We look forward to the forthcoming twin-tuner version.

CONNECTIONS
Around the back is a reasonable sprinkle of connectors that include RGB-compatible TV Scart, S-video, analogue and (Dolby Digital-compatible) digital audio outputs. There's a VCR Scart, but it only caters for composite video. Also present is an RS232 serial port for firmware upgrades, but no networking or USB is offered. A single LNB input is joined by an output for feeding a second receiver. Note that the latter appears to be given priority over LNB polarity selection - as we discovered when we fed the LNB output to a PC-based satellite tuner (ironically, a TechniSat card). Be careful, then, when using this output. Otherwise your TV screen might end up blank, or your recordings null and void! Note that the S1 only has the one tuner, and so you can only record what you're watching. Other PVR receivers, such as the Sky+ and (closer in spirit!) the free-to-air Humax PVR-8000 have two tuners so you can record two different channels simultaneously or watch one while recording another. TechniSat's UK distributor told us that a twin-tuner version will eventually be introduced.

Published January 2005, Digital Satellite Choice