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TEST REPORT

Fortec Star FSIR-5400 NA

TELE-satellite International www.TELE-satellite.com

Power Scan, EmbeddedIrdeto and moreIn the previous issue of TELE-satellite we introduced Fortec Stars new model 5400 NA satel-

lite receiver. But since we only received it a few days before deadline, we did not have time

to thoroughly put it through its paces. But here it is now two months later, and as promised,

wed like to give you a more detailed analysis of this receiver now that we have had some time

to play with it.

on a satellite receiver remote control plus a

set of four colored function buttons at the

bottom of the remote.

Everyday UseThis receiver is essentially ready to go right

out of the box. Simply connect the box to the

antenna, scan a satelli te and watch TV. The

only thing you may need to do is change the

local oscillator frequency (LOF) setting for

Ku-band satellites since the default setting

is universal and most North American Ku-

band systems use a standard Ku-band LOF

(10.750 GHz) as opposed to the 9.750/10.600

combination found in universal LNBs.

If English is not your first choice for menu

language (default setting), you can choose

from six other menu languages (Italian,

Turkish, French, German, Spanish or Greek).

Even more languages are available for the

audio subcarriers and subtitles. The receiver

comes preprogrammed with a very up-to-

date list of 48 North American satellites from

Satellite Receiver

As we mentioned in the previous issue, the

silver-colored receiver has a sleek design and

comes with five chrome-colored buttons on

the left side (On/Off, Channel Up/Down and

Volume Up/Down). The display window takes

up a good portion of the center of the front

panel and includes a number of status LEDs

along with the green four-digit display that

shows either the current channel number orthe time of day. The status LEDs indicate if

the receiver is locked on a signal or if it is in

standby mode.

The fold-down flap takes up a good portion

of the right side of the front panel. Behind

this flap is the SmartCard slot for the embed-

ded Irdeto encryption system. The rear panel

comes with almost everything you need. The

IF input comes with a looped-through output

and theres a terrestrial antenna input with

corresponding modulator output that oper-

ates on either VHF channel 3 or 4. Video and

stereo audio are also available on a set of

three RCA jacks. If you crave even better

quality video and audio, you wont be dis-

appointed thanks to the S-VHS and digital

audio outputs. The RS-232 interface servesto upload new receiver software. And lets

not forget the main power switch. This allows

you to easily disconnect power to the receiver

so that you can avoid having to reach down

behind the TV cabinet to unplug the receiver.

The silver-colored remote control sits com-

fortably in your hand and comes with all of

the standard buttons that would normally be


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Ron RoesselTELE-satellite

Test Center

North America

TEST REPORT


the Echostar satellite at 148 west all the

way to Telstar 12 at 15 west. Theres even

enough room to add 16 more user-defined

satellites. Up to 4800 channels can be stored

in the 5400 NA. Using this box with a motor-

ized antenna is highly recommended so that

you can take full advantage of everything

this receiver has to offer. The receivers sup-

port of the DiSEqC 1.0 and 1.2 protocols as

well as the USALS protocol lets you connect

this box to a wide variety of antenna configu-

rations. For example, you could connect the

receiver to multiple fixed dishes via a DiSEqC

switch or you could go all the way and use a

STAB HH motor.

In the TV Settings submenu the Video

output can be set to NTSC, PAL or MULTI

mode and you can set the picture format to

either Full Screen or Letter Box. Here you

can also turn the S/PDIF digital audio output

on or off.

The automatic channel scan can be set to

search only for FTA channels or ALL chan-

nels and can be performed with the Network

function set on or off. You can also choose to

perform a Power Scan. This is Fortec Stars

version of a Blind Scan. Fortec Stars Power

Scan is a very powerful tool in that you can

customize the scan to your needs. For exam-

ple, not only can you scan for FTA or ALL

channels or scan one or both polarizations,but you can also select the frequency range

you want to scan and also specify the fre-

quency steps the receiver should take during

a scan. We tested the Power Scan feature

on Intelsat Americas 5 at 97 west with the

frequency steps set at 4 MHz. The scan

required about 20 minutes to complete but in

return for your patience the receiver identi-

fied 23 transponders on that satellite.

But how does a standard scan stack up?

A complete automatic scan of the 23 trans-

ponders on the Intelsat Americas 5 satellite

was handled in just one minute and 45 sec-

onds. The time to switch between channels

was a brisk 0.5 seconds. At least with this

receiver you can have some fun channel surf-

ing.

Of course, some form of organization of all

these newly found channels will be needed so

that the task of finding a specific channel will

be much easier. This work is handled by the

Channel Manager. Channels that you intent

to watch more often can be moved into one

of the four Favorites lists so that they are

easier to get to. No doubt there will be chan-

nels that you dont want your kids to get

to. Fortunately, Fortec Star also included a

parental lock feature that lets you pick and

choose what your kids can have access to.

An individual transponder scan can also

be performed. In Manual Scan mode trans-

ponders can be edited if needed, added or

deleted. A Network Search can also be acti-

vated in Manual Scan mode. The PID scan

lets you search for a channel with specific

PID data.

Fortec Star indicates that this receiver can

handle symbolrates anywhere from 2 to 45

Ms/sec. When we tested this box on a 1.279

Ms/sec. signal on Intelsat 805, we were

pleasantly surprised to find that this signal

was recognized and processed by the 5400

NA without any difficulties.

A push of the Info button on the remote

momentarily displays a banner at the bottom

of the screen with the channel name, chan-

nel number, encryption status and currenttime. Pushing the Info button again while

this banner is still on the screen displays a

second banner at the top of the screen with

more details on the channel including satel-

lite name, transponder frequency, symbol-

rate, polarization, PID data as well as a signal

quality bar graph.

The Electronic Program Guide (EPG) can

be accessed with the push of a button. The

weekly programming information for all

the channels on the current transponder is

then shown. Pressing the green button on

the remote displays programming data on

the highlighted channel. The picture of the

current channel is displayed as a picture-in-

graphic (PIG). Pushing the yellow button

brings up detailed programming information

on the current channel. The 5400 NA also

comes with an eight-event timer so that you

wont miss your favorite program if you need

to step out of the house. Simply highlight

the program you want to record in the EPG

and press the blue button on the remote.

The timer function will then turn the receiver

on at that appropriate time.

Should you ever get bored with what is

currently on TV or if you want something

to do while youre waiting for those exceed-

ingly long commercials to come to an end,

you could pass some time with one of the

three available video games (Tetris, Snake or

Sokoban).

While most of the operation of this receiveris self-explanatory, the detailed user-manual

(written in English, French and Spanish) will

help answer any questions that might arise.

Expert conclusion+The Fortec Star 5400 NA is an easy-to-use receiver that would be

perfect for use in anyones living room. It comes with a multitude of

features including Power Scan, embedded Irdeto, fast channel scan-

ning, fast channel switching, etc. Add to that its ability to handle

extremely low symbolrates and you have a receiver that not only

makes a good family receiver, but also one that would make an excel-

lent tool for a DXer.

-Dont lose the remote control! Its five buttons on the front panel do not provide

access to the receivers menu functions.

Satellite Receiver


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TECHNICALDATA

Manufacturer Fortec Star Communications,

Mississauga, Ontario,

Canada L4W 5A7

Fax + 1-905-602-5289

E-Mail [email protected]

Model FSIR-5400 NA

Function Digital Satellite Receiver

with Embedded Irdeto

Channel Memory 4800

SCPC Compatible yes

Symbolrate 2-45 Ms/sec.

(tested to 1.279 Ms/sec.)

DiSEqC 1.0, 1.2

USALS yes

S-VHS Output yes

A/V Outputs yes, 3 x RCA

Digital Audio Output yes, S/PDIF (optical)

Power Supply 90-240VAC, 50-60 Hz

Power Consumption 40W max

TEST REPORT

Fortec Star FSIR-5400 NADigital Satellite Receiver with

Embedded Irdeto

Satellite Receiver Info-Box

SATELLITE

INTERNATIONAL

TELE

TEST

RESULT

Features

Channel Memory

Channel

Scan Speed

Channel

Switching Speed

Video Quality

Audio Quality

Tuner Sensitivity

Channel Info Bars

Main Menu

Channel Manager

Antenna Setup Menu


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