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almillar

In layman’s terms what can i do to pick up a signal ? Does that mean the cables are no good to me?

You've got a pair of cables with F-connectors on the end? That sounds like a cable that should have a satellite dish at the end of it. It's what a Sky+ or Sky+HD box would have. It looks like your TV only takes an aerial connection (perfectly normal). You could buy a Freesat box and plug these cables into it. You can buy with or without recording ability, and you can also have them with catch-up facilities (called 'FreeTime').

Of course, from here, I can only guess that there's a working satellite dish at the other end of the cables!

lammy82

If you know someone with Sky or Freesat, borrow their box and connect the leads into it to confirm it's connected to a dish at the other end and you are getting a picture. You'll need an HDMI lead (or a SCART lead but that will give inferior picture quality) to connect the Sky box to the TV.

The cheapest way to then get your own box is probably to look for a second-hand Sky box on eBay, Gumtree, or schpock etc. With or without a viewing card you'll be able to pick up all the main free channels on it.

Of course a Freesat box will also do the trick if you can get one for a good price.