Pansat 4500 USB PVR FTA Receiver Review

[Hyper]

OK. Time to do a review of the Pansat 4500 USB PVR FTA Receiver.

Part one. Info, Specs from the manufacturer:




This paragraph below was written by me for my website HyperMegaSat.com, but Features, Specs, etc are all from Pansat's website Pansatusa.com

The Pansat 4500 is a PVR Ready FTA receiver equipped with 2 USB 2.0 Host Interface's (Front and Rear). The Pansat 4500 offers quick and accurate Blind Scanning and is equipped with Component Output. Like all other Pansat receivers before it, the Pansat 4500 receiver is a powerful unit for any FTA enthusiast. Replaces the Legendary 2700 and 3500 models. A great powerhouse receiver with PVR capabilities from a proven manufacturer, at a great price.  2 Year Manufacturer's Warranty.

Features:

    *Fully Compliant of MPEG-2 Digital & DVB broadcasting
    *USB PVR ready (FAT16/FAT32, Format function, Recording, Playback, EPG Time record, Time Shifting
    *USB 2.0 Host 2 Interface(Front and Rear) - JPEG Photo Album, MP3, Firmware Update
    *Integrated 2 USB ports(Front & Back) for PVR and Software Upgrade
    *950 ~ 2150 MHz input Frequency(IF Loop throughout)
    *Variable Input Symbol Rate (1 ~ 45Msps)
    *Very Fast Smart Search
    *Satellite Scan- Simultaneous Scan
    *Manual PID/Satellite & TP/Network Scan
    *5000 Channels TV & Radio program
    *Timer setting supports automatic Turn-ON and OFF daily
    *Flexible reception of SCPC & MCPC from C/KU-Band Satellites
    *Multi language OSD
    *Powerful Channel Editing Function(Favorite,Move,Find,Sort,Delete,Skip,Lock,Edit,Create)
    *Digital S/PDIF (Digital Audio or Dolby AC3 stream out)
    *Automatic PAL/NTSC Conversion
    *5 Favorite List & 100 Programs per each
    *PIG (Picture In Graphic), Multi-Picture, Zoom function
    *256 Colors (Graphic User Interface) Number
    *Software Upgrade via USB and RS-232C (Receiver to Receiver, PC to Receiver)
    *RTC (Real Time Clock)
    *Componet Video out (Y Pb Pr)
    *Diseqc 1.2 & USALS Compatible
    *UHF Ready (U-50 kit Optional)
    *Game

Includes:

    Pansat 4500 Receiver
    Remote Control w/batteries
    Operators Manual
    4x1 Switch
    Update Cable

Technical Details:

TUNER
   1RF Input Connector : F-type,IEC169-24
   1RF output(loop throught out) : F-type,IEC169-24
   Frequency Range : 950MHz to 2150MHz
   Input Level : 65 dBm~-25 dBm
   LNB Power : 14V/19V (500mA Max)
   Symbol Rate : 1 to 45Msps.(SCPC,MCPC)
   DiSEqc : Diseqc 1.2 & USALS Compatible
   Band Switch : 22KHz tone
   Demodulation : QPSK
MPEG TRANSPORT STREAM A/V DECODING
   Demultiplex : MPEG-2 ISO/IEC 13818-1(MPEG-2 system)
   Input stream : Max. 90Mbit/s
   Aspect Ratio : 4:3(default), 16:9 letterbox
   Video Decoding : ISO/IEC 13818-2(MPEG2 vidoe) MP@ML,720 x480(NTSC),720x576(PAL) 
   Audio Decoding : ISO/IEC13818-3(MPEG2 audio/MUSICAM)
   Video Ouput : Component(YPbPr),CVBS
   Audio Mode : Single Channel /Dual Channel, Stereo, Joint Stereo
   Audio Sampling Frequency : 16/22,05/24/32/41,1/48 KHz
MICROPROCESSOR and MEMORIES
   CPU Clock : 216MHz
   Flash Memory : 4 Mbyte
   SDRAM : 32 Mbyte(133MHz)
A/V OUTPUT
   Component Jack : Y, Pb ,Pr
   Video RCA : 1 output
   Audio RCA : 2 output(Reft,Right)
   Digital Audio : 1 coxial output S/PDIF
RF MODULATOR
   Connector : F type,IEC169-24
   Frequency : CH3(61.25MHz) ,CH4(67.25MHz)
   TV Standard : NTSC
   Output Channel : CH3-4
FRONT PANEL
   Display : 4Digits LED
   8 keys : Power,Channel Down/Up, Volume up/down,Menu,Exit,OK
   USB : USB2.0 1 Host
DATA PORT
   Connector : 9 pin D-sub Type
   Protocol : RS232 Asynchronous
   Data Rate : Max. 19.2Kbps
REAR PANEL
   Tuner : 1 input with loop throught out
   UHF : Stereo Jack
   4RCA : Video, Audio L, Audio R, SPDIF
   Component Jack : RCA Jack(Y,Pb,Pr)
   USB : 1 Host
   RF Modulator : IEC 169-24(Ant IN, TV out)
   Data Port : RS 232
   Power Switch : Rocker Type
   Power cord : Fixed type on the body
REMOTE CONTROL
   Type : IR RCU
   Battery : 2x1.5V AAA Type
POWER SUPPLY
   Input Voltage : AC 90-250V, 50/60Hz
   Power Consumption : Max. 15 Watts
   Type : SMPS(Switching mode power supply)
PHYSICAL SPECIFICATION
   Dimension (WxDxH) : 260x150x45mm
   Weight : 1.5kg
   Accessories : RCU,Battery,User manual


To be continued .......

[Hyper]

OK. Now for some of the pics I took of the unit. This is how its packaged, what comes with it, etc...

[Hyper]

OK. First Impressions on the Pansat 4500.

Packaging is fine, as you can see from above. No issues with that whatsoever. One thing different from other receivers it most receivers come with a plastic peel off over the front panel so it arrives scratch free, but this one also has a plastic peel off on the entire outside cover! Top, both sides, front. So this thing will arrive looking perfect.

The Receiver is very compact. If you look at the pics above you can judge the size of it by the remote in the picture. And its very lightweight. This thing is pretty cool as far as the small size if you want a box that doesnt take up much space in your entertainment center, or if you need it to be portable, say for camping, in your rv, tailgating, etc.. Weight is everything when your traveling.

Notice you get the Pansat brand 4x1 Switch and Null Cable. The cable is a nice one, really good quality. Also comes with RCA cables, Batteries for the remote, etc.. Standard stuff really. Does not come with a USB Memory Stick though. You will have to purchase that yourself if you want to recored on it, or you can get an external USB Hard Drive to records lots of shows. A USB stick is good to have for any factory updates so get one anyway, otherwise you will have to hook the receiver to your pc with the Null Cable.

If you look at pic 3 and 4 you will see the front panel in pic 3, and then how it looks folded down in pic 4. Fold it down and you have a 8 button manual interface (in case your remote goes down). This is a great feature to have. Full control over your receiver in case you lose the remote. You can use the receiver while you wait for a new one. You also have the 1st of the 2 USB ports in the front.

The back has LNB IN and LNB out on the left. Then SPDIF, Audio R. Audio L, Video RCA, RS232 Connection, 2nd USB 2.0 port, Component Y Pb Pr, TV in and TV Out, and On/Off Rocker switch.

Having the 3 seperate ways to output to your tv is nice. One thing that is possible is you can use 2 or even 3 tvs with this box. With the Optional UHF Remote Kit from Pansat (DOES NOT come with this unit, must be purchased seperately), you can take your remote to other rooms and run the receiver. So for instance you have the receiver hooked up in the living room with the Component Cables output to the tv. You could run the RCA cable outputs, or the tv out, to a 2nd tv in your bedroom, and if you dont feel like watching tv in the living room, shut it off, go in the bedroom with your remote, and watch your sat in there. But even if you dont do that its nice to have 3 options to connect to your tv.

The 2 USB ports is a great idea too because you can hook an external hard drive into the back USB connection for recording and then if their is a factory update or something you can load it on a USB stick in the front without having to unplug your external hard drive.

Now last thing is the operators manual. As you can see its 8 1/2 x 11. I dont like manuals like that. I would rather have a smaller book style manual. Easier to keep track of for me. Anyway, the manual looks excellent. Its defenitely higher quality than most other receiver manuals i have even seen. Ive seen some that are like 6 pcs of paper. This one is 45 pages long, all in English, with full screen shots all throughout, install diagrams, etc. A++ on the manual defenitely. It even goes over the PVR functions fully even timeshifting.

Overall I am pretty impressed on this product as far as right out of the box. I dont see any problems here, things are pretty impressive at this point.

Next, i will hook this up to the tv and dish and start testing.

To be continued ...........

[Hyper]

OK, quick update.

Initial Testing.

This is a very good and very quick blind scanner. I always like to scan 97.0W, its full of channels and lots of people watch this so its a good sat to measure against other receivers.

My first blind scan with this receiver on 97.0W Ku Band only.

239 tv and 132 radio in 2:10!

Thats 2 minutes, 10 seconds, blind scan

239 tv and 132 radio.

That is very fast and very accurate. I am very impressed already with this receiver.

To be continued .....

[Hyper]

OK. Back to the review:

Software version as received is 1.0.C Rev 12/08/2009

1.0.D is out also but i'm reporting how it is as received out of the box.

There is 10 different languages, EN, FR, De, It, Es, Pr, Ar, Tu, Po.

One thing very nice is there is an option to set 1st and 2nd audio for each channel when available. Very nice for when a channel has more than one language.

There are 68 satellites in the Satellite List.

All are North America/Atlantic Sats

22.0W to 148.0W, 68 sats.

Just about everything you can name C and Ku, seperate entries for C and Ku when they share the same orbital location.

This receiver has the most comprehensive sat list for North and South America I have seen yet, as far as a factory bin/list.

Has almost everything you want for North and South America, nothing else. Curiously missing is AMC 9 83.0W. I had no problem adding that sat in though.


To be continued ......

[SLayers]

Nice review Hyper, thanks. this would be a good fist stb if you don`t have one or i great add on to any

fta setup.