# TV & PVR Connection



## Gemini43 (Jul 14, 2007)

Hi there,

This may seem like a silly question to you experts, but here goes anyway.

We recently bought a new Toshiba HD TV with built in Freeview. It is working perfectly. Then we bought a Sagemcom Freeview TV recorder. I connected it to the TV aerial and although it is working perfectly well, we can no longer watch the TV on its own without the Sagem box being switched on too and it is then necessary to navigate to the correct channel for the box. The old technology of VCRs also had to have the TV aerial connected to it, but there was a further cable which then connected to the TV from the VCR. There is nothing like that with the PVR. It doesn't seem very eco-friendly having to have two appliances switched on merely to watch live TV! Besides, other people in the house find that having to use two remotes all the time, very confusing. Is there anything I can buy to connect the aerial from the PVR back to the TV so that it can be watched on its own? Someone said something about a 'Splitter' for the aerial cable to me the other day. Is this correct?  

Thanks in advance.


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## DoubleHelix (Dec 10, 2004)

If the broadcast signal is being routed through the PVR, then the PVR has to be on to watch TV. If the TV has 2 signal inputs, maybe you can split the signal source to connect it to the TV directly and the PVR simultaneously.


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## etaf (Oct 2, 2003)

PVR often have a aerial through connector - and with the power saving options to comply to various energy saving regs - when those units goto standby the aerial also switches off - certainly the case with humax machines - you have to goto menu settings to change that powersave option

with a splitter you may need an amplifier 
something like this 
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/...m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_r=0ADZ2FSCN3NM73WCK4WT

as you are in the UK
SLX are very good , i have had a six way version in the loft taking the outside aerial cable and distributing around the house


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## Gemini43 (Jul 14, 2007)

How come in the 'Old' days I could have the TV aerial cable going through the VCR and then the RF lead going from that to the TV, which then enabled me to watch the TV with the VCR switched off? I never had to have that switched on all the time when I didn't need to! As to amplifiers, well it just gets more and more complicated! I think I'd better carry on with two appliances switched on and waste power then! Just doesn't seem very 'Green' to me!

NB: Just looked at the amplifier on Amazon. I'm only using one TV - not two, so it could be that using a splitter connection with an additional RF co-axial cable would do the trick?


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## etaf (Oct 2, 2003)

> I think I'd better carry on with two appliances switched on and waste power then! Just doesn't seem very 'Green' to me!


 I agree , when i first got the humax and found that the signal did not go through found it "non Green" but I _think_ that they where trying to meet some EU requirement for less than 1watt consumption on standby


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## DoubleHelix (Dec 10, 2004)

The VCR was never powered off. If you could see the clock on the front, it was on.


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## Gemini43 (Jul 14, 2007)

Actually I've solved it!  I thought - if it could be done with old technology like VCRs, then it must still be possible. So... before actually buying anything, I first hunted out all my old leads from previous VCRs and stuff (it certainly pays to keep these!) and I inserted one of the old RF leads into the socket next to the aerial in the back of the Sagemcom box and then into the aerial socket in the back of the TV. Fingers crossed, I switched the TV back on and it worked! First time! And with the Sagem box set to standby. (I know Double-Helix, what you meant by needing to leave it in standby in order to view through the TV, but that's not what I meant. Even in stand-by, I couldn't watch the TV on its own without the box being - not in standby - but actually being switched on!) So.. as I said - problem solved. 
You see, another problem was, that in order to periodically update the digital channels on the TV, I was going to have to pull out the aerial lead from the Sagem box and plug it back directly into the TV in order to do this. Now I don't have to and also, other members of the family now need only to use the TV remote without having to switch back and forth between the two of them, causing confusion, at least with the elderly one!

Thanks all for trying to help and I'm sorry for any confusion. 
All the best,
Gemini.


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