Using a Sky DRX595-C Satellite Receiver Without a Subscription

This blog post is about using a Sky DRX595-C satellite receiver set-top box in the UK without a subscription to watch free to air channels on 28.2 °E.

Introduction
I was strolling around a car boot sale in England and noticed the DRX595-C, having never seen this type of Sky box before. I decided to buy it for £5 GBP. There is no hard disk and I don’t have a Sky subscription, but could I use the satellite receiver to watch free to air satellite channels on 28.2 °E in the UK? The short answer is yes, and the details are below.

Please note I don’t have a Sky subscription and I wasn’t able to watch Sky channels. I didn’t run through all the channels, but I did watch a bit of television and listen to the radio. This isn’t an in-depth review and I was using someone else’s satellite connection to try the box.

Warning: I didn’t test all free to air satellite channels, but the free non-Sky channels I selected were viewable. Perhaps there are some non-Sky package channels that require a viewing card, but I don’t know whether that is true or not. I spent limited time testing this box.

Connecting the box
Other than the power cable, I connected satellite and HDMI cables to the box. I did not connect the box to the internet.

There is a SCART connection, but I didn’t try that.

DRX595-C satellite signal strength and quality

I wasn’t given a remote control with the box, but fortunately had a remote control I had purchased with a different Sky satellite receiver, which worked with this box.

Configuring the DRX595-C
I didn’t bother configuring the satellite box, as I was happy with the settings. However to help others who are considering buying this box, I’ve included some photos.

DRX595-C Add Channels

DRX595-C dolby D sound settings

DRX595-C normal sound settings

DRX595-C picture settings

Turning the box on
When I first turned the box on, it displayed a message “Your Sky box is not connected to the broadband router”. I just selected ‘BACK UP’ on the remote control to continue.

Could I watch TV without a Sky card?
When I purchased the box, the previous owner’s Sky card was still inserted in the box. I tried some free to air satellite channels and the ones I tried, I could watch with or without a Sky card.

I have a Sky card that was not originally used with the box, and when I inserted the card, a message appeared stating “Your Sky viewing card needs to be paired to your SkyHD box“. I’ve got no interest in trying to pair the box with another card, so didn’t try to.

Conclusion
This box is perhaps useful for bedroom or kitchen use, where you might want to just watch a television channel or listen to a radio station during that moment. I’m going to keep the box as I’m thinking about using at my own home.

This isn’t a great blog post and I should have done a bit more testing, but I was using someone else’s satellite dish and didn’t want to take up too much time. I hope you’ve found the blog post helpful.