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Satellite Receiver Arion The AF-4000HDCI comes in piano-lacquered case in standard rack size (43×27.5×6.3 cm) and sports an extremely easy to read 12-digit display as well as two status LEDs to confirm commands sent by the remote control and to identify a locked tuner signal.

The manufacturer has also added two CI slots behind a flap on the right side of the front panel and a total of eight backlit buttons for controlling the hd receiver without a remote control. To provide an even more appealing look of the front panel the Arion AF-4000HDCI features a vertical blue and dimmable LED bar.

Turn the hdtv receiver around and you’ll discover a perfectly equipped rear panel, providing the standard satellite input and loop-through output, HDMI, 2 scart euro connectors, 3 RCA sockets for stereo audio and video, 3 RCA sockets for YPbPr, an optical digital audio output as well as an RS-232 interface for updating the fta receiver  software.

Thanks to the AF-4000HDCI’s extraordinarily silent fan, which is controlled automatically, there is no need for ventilation slots on the upper side of the case. There is even a mechanical power switch to round off the brilliant overall picture of this product.

The remote control takes a bit to get used to, as it is surprisingly big. However, once you get used to its ergonomic design and the layout of all the keys you wouldn’t want to do without it anymore.

What’s more, the remote control can be used to address existing TV sets, VCRs or DVD players and the operating manual lists a multitude of different manufacturers’ codes to program the remote so that after a minute or two we were able to control the LCD TV in our editorial office with the ARION remote control.

Speaking of the operating manual, even absolute beginners should manage to master this HDTV receiver with the help of all the comprehensive and easy-to-understand instructions,complete with useful illustrations.

When we turned it on for the first time, it became evident that our test unit had been designed for the German speaking market, as it features pre-arranged channel lists for use in Germany, Austria or Switzerland. But Arion offers pre-arranged channel lists for other markets as well.

All free-to-air and encrypted HDTV channel which can be received in Europe are saved in a separate favourites list.

In case you’re not entirely happy with some default settings all you need to do is open the easy-to-navigate main menu and personalise the receiver to your liking. Altogether, you can choose from 23 languages for the OSD (English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Finish, Polish, Slavic, Hungarian, Czech, Slovenian, Rumanian, Greek, Turkish and Farsi).

If you prefer not to connect the AF-4000HDCI to your TV using HDMI you can manually select the output signal type (RGB or CVBS) as well as the aspect ratio and the colour system.

When changing between PAL and NTSC the receiver issues a warning stating that there is a risk of no image being displayed anymore if the TV set used cannot process the particular colour system. We appreciate this extra information, as we keep receive voip call from desperate readers who have deliberately or not – made these changes only to be left with a blank screen.

The digital audio signal is available as Dolby Digital or PCM and thus should provide an appropriate signal for every kind of “home theatre system”. In line with other current digital receiver the AF-4000HDCI is able to sync its internal clock with the time signal transmitted via satellite. In addition, it is possible to automatically switch to daylight saving time and even to set the dates on which the switch to DST and back will be performed.

Once all basic settings are completed according to your personal preferences the receiver needs some information regarding the reception setup used. If you live in Europe and use the widely popular ASTRA 19.2° East Dish TV you’re all set because the Arion receiver is pre-configured for exactly that setup.

If your equipment is different, then simply enter the antenna setup menu and change the settings accordingly.
Thankfully, this HDTV receiver is compatible with all DiSEqC protocols, i.e. 1.0, 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3 (USALS), which means it works perfectly with a rotary motor antenna just as well as with a 16-LNB multifeed antenna.

The satellite list comprises 76 European and Asian C and Ku band satellites, each with current transponder data.If that’s not enough, five additional birds may be added manually.

Thanks to the huge variety of pre-programmed or manually selectable LOF values the AF-4000HDCI is a match for virtually any available LNB. Even an S band antenna is possible, if you so desire. The up-to-date transponder list can be edited for each single satellite at the touch of a button, which means that deactivated or newly switched on transponders can be deleted or added in next to no time. So now’s the time to fill the receiver’s transponder list with channels, which is done with an automatic channel search. We tested the unit on an 80-transponder satellite and clocked a little over ten minutes for a complete channel search.

In addition to the standard search mode you can activate the network mode or a manual search, while pros can search for channels using the relevant PID values. The only negative aspect of what is in general a perfect channel search mode is the limited capacity of the channel memory. No more than 4000 TV and radio channels can be stored, which we believe simply isn’t enough when taking into account the two CI slots and the available motor control. Arion should definitely address and solve this issue.

Press the EXIT key now to switch to the first channel on the list, once all initial setting and the channel search are completed. The AF-4000HDCI inserts a well-arranged info bar with information regarding the current and next event as well as additional icons indicating teletext, subtitles, Dolby Digital audio, channel options and the aspect ratio of the currently selected channel.

As with all other HDTV receivers, the AF-4000HDCI is able to put out the video signal via HDMI in 576p, 720p or 1080i.These three modes as well as the aspect ratio can be selected with a dedicated key on the remote control, which we believe to be a very handy solution. Thus it is perfectly possible to watch HDTV channel using 1080i while regular SDTV channels are set at 720p, for example.

Zapping means fun with this Arion receiver, as it takes a little less than a second to switch from one channel to the next. Only when the new channel broadcasts a HDTV signal does it take slightly longer.

We tested the receiver with a Samsung 40’’ LCD screen and were truly impressed with the video quality provided by the HDMI connection. Even SDTV channels were presented with remarkable quality and the scart euro connector also provided a correct picture.It’s a shame that the number of free-to-air HDTV channels in Europe is still rather limited, so it’s all the more important that all standard CI modules can be used with the receiver. While we experienced problems with the pre-installed software at first, company Sat force provided us with an improved version during our test which solved all issues we discovered in the beginning.We were then able to successfully receive and test the HDTV offering of various European providers and in addition, all standard Irdeto,Viaccess, Cryptoworks and Conax modules worked flawlessly with the AF-4000HDCI.

A low-threshold tuner is just as valuable as reliable CI support, so that the weak BBC signals from ASTRA 28.2° East can be received as well. The Arion AF-4000HDCI mastered this task brilliantly, too. While the weak horizontal transponders of NILESAT 7° West came in effortlessly at our test site in Vienna, our Munich test centre was happy to report flawless reception of ASTRA 28.2° East.

Low symbol rates could not upset the Arion receiver, even though the technical specifications published by Arion (DVB 1~45 Ms/s and DVB-S2 10~30 Ms/s) were not fully met in our tests. It was only for symbolrates of 1.6 Ms/s and higher that the tuner was able to lock a signal. However, this is the case for the huge majority of competing models as well and many manufacturers therefore specify 2~45 Ms/s in their datasheets.

By the way, the AF-4000HDCI supports the required modulation types QPSK and 8PSK for both DVB and DVB-S2 reception.

The perfect overall impression of this receiver is complemented by a number of additional features. For instance, you can save the channel list and all settings in the internal memory. If you happen to mess up your channel list or to delete one of your favourite channels at some stage you simple load the existing configuration from the internal memory and undo any damage you may have caused.

Software updates can be loaded through the RS-232 interface from a PC or directly via satellite.We could ask for more.In case your “Dish Television” set at home does not feature teletext simply use the internal decoder of the AF-4000HDCI . In addition, an organiser and a calendar are at your disposal.

Arion has scored a really huge success with the AF-4000HDCI!

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HDTV Satellite Receiver Arion The term HDTV has been on everyone’s mind for quite some time now and the countless plasma and LCD TV owners are patiently waiting for a breakthrough in this new technology. In Europe though the reality still seems to be that only a handful of HD transmissions are available and that most of the channels are still only in SD format. If you want to watch an  hdtv program on a large diameter TV screen, you’ll quickly discover that this may not be the best solution.

The South Korean company Arion thought about ways in which they could help with this problem and came up with the idea to develop a with a built-in pvr receiver Scaler. The Scaler’s  job is to take the incoming signal and increase its resolution by interpolating the missing pixels such that this increased resolution does not contain any raster, some-thing that is unavoidable with a simple increase in resolution.

The cabinet of the Arion AF9400PVR HDMI is simple but elegant. On the front panel you will find an extremely easy to read VFD display as well as a fold-down flap behind whichare a set of eight buttons to control the receiver should the remote control go missing.

This flap also hides two CI slots that can be used with all the typical modules (Irdeto, Seca, Viaccess, Conax, Nagravision, etc.). A pair of LEDs on the left and right side of the housing indicate the receiver’s operational status.

The excitement began to build when we took a look at the rear panel. In addition to a satellite IF input and looped-through output for both of the tuners, we also found two Scart connectors, an S-Video output and naturally an HDMI jack to connect the receiver to a plasma or LCD TV. On top of that there are also three RCA video and stereo audio output jacks, a programmable 0/12V output, an RS-232 interface, a USB 2.0 output to link with a PC, an RF modulator output and, of course, an optical digital audio output. To round out the entire picture, there’s also a main power switch. The included remote control is ergonomically designed and sits nicely in your hand with buttons that are clearly labeled. As a special bonus, Arion also included a second, smaller remote control with limited functions; an interesting idea, because it would make it easier for those less technically inclined family members to use their new receiver.

Especially noteworthy is the detailed user manual; it is logically written and explains every function of this receiver in easy to understand steps.

The new Arion receiver is definitely multilingual in terms of the on-screen menu languages. Next to English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Greek, Hungarian, Dutch, Farsi, Polish and Portuguese, the user can also choose from Romanian, Russian, Swedish, Serbian and Turkish.

The video signal can be delivered via Scart in RGB and CVBS modes. Additionally, multiple modes are available for the 4:3 and 16:9 screen sizes. Along with the PAL standard, the receiver can also handle NTSC signals and can even be set to automatically switch between the two standards.

Since this is a twin tuner PVR both tuners can be operated in three different modes. In Loop Mode, only one satellite signal source is needed since the input signal is looped-through from the first tuner to the second tuner. In this case, while one channel is being recorded, not all of the remaining channels will be available on the second tuner. In Twin Mode, two identically switched satellite signal sources are routed to both tuner inputs so that every channel is available on both tuners at the same time. The T1/T2 Mode tells the AF9400PVR HDMI that both tuner inputs will be occupied but with independent satellite signals. In this mode, not every channel is available on both tuners.

A motorized antenna (DiSEqC 1.2 or 1.3/USALS) can be set up directly in the installation assistant. The next step displays the list of 54 satellites that unfortunately isn’t quite up to date.

During the installation, it is actually quite easy with a single push of a button to set up the LNB and DiSEqC parameters for each individual satellite. In addition to the two motor control protocols, the Arion AF9400PVR HDMI also supports DiSEqC 1.0 and 1.1 and is therefore capable of handling multi-feed reception using up to 16 LNBs. And unlike many HD Receiver from other manufacturers, this new Arion box actually comes with a programmable 0/12V output that can also be set up for each individual satellite.

After a brief push of the red function button, the Arion begins to scan our selected satellites and completed scanning our 110 transponders in a blinding 4 min 20 sec.

The Main Menu is divided into six large areas: in the Channel Search menu, multiple settings for antenna configuration and satellite data can be taken care of. The receiver offers an automatic scan, a manual scan and an expanded search with manual PID entry. Of course, a network scan is also possible as is scanning for only free-to-air  channels.

In the Channel Editing menu, everything is geared towards organizing the channel and transponder lists. As many as 8000 channels can be stored and in this menu they can be deleted, moved, renamed, locked out with a PIN code or transferred into one of four Favorites lists.

For owners of plasma and LCD TV the menu settings become especially interest-ing: here you can, among other things, set up the HDMI output signal to your personal needs. In our tests using a Technisat LCD and a Pioneer plasma TV, it quickly became clear that this step was absolutely necessary in order to get optimal picture quality. Next to brightness, contrast and sharpness, you can set noise suppression to three different levels.

The Scaler works in three different resolution modes: 576p, 720p and 1080i. If you still intend to use the two Scart jacks despite having the HDMI outputs, the same menu also carries all of the necessary setting possibilities.  The receiver provides the video signal through the Scart outputs in CVBS and RGB. An S-Video output for a  projection TV is available on its own output jack; unfortunately, YUV is missing.

The remaining three categories deal with the CI modules, the hard drive and subsequent decryption of previously recorded programs plus, of course, the extra accessories integrated by the manufacturer such as a calculator, calendar and various games.

The importance of the sub-sequent decryption must be stressed. The receiver can at any time take a prerecorded program stored on its hard drive and automatically copy and thereby decrypt it. The disappointment that used to be associated with recorded programs that could no longer be decrypted because the provider changed the encryption codes is now a thing of the past. As long as the CI module supports this function, the receiver can simultaneously take two programs and store them decrypted. In a test with an Alphacrypt CI module, it worked perfectly.

The Arion AF9400PVR HDMI is available from the manufacturer with a pre-installed hard drive or without one so that you can select your own hard drive. Even though the hard drives installed by the manufacturer are specifically designed for home entertainment use and thereby are very quiet, it is also possible for the hard drives to be automatically turned off after a user-settable time. After this extensive journey through the many different settings possibilities of this receiver, we naturally wanted to take a closer look at its operational features. What caught our eye was its ability to record four programs simultaneously.

Since the receiver has only two tuner inputs, the four programs that are to be recorded must naturally be on only two transponders. Based on the number of recordings, the receiver also takes those channels that can no longer be received and deletes them from the channel list. Record program that have already been viewed are marked with their own symbol. The receiver can also identify the spot where a playback was stopped so that a single push of a button is enough to restart the playback from where it was left off.

The detailed channel list can be activated by pushing the OK button. With the help of the function buttons, the list can be arranged by tuner and FTA/CAS and also be sorted alphabetically. Thanks to the multi-picture function, you can get a quick overview of currently running programs on 2,4,9,10,13 or 16 different channels.

When switching between channels, an Info bar appears momentarily and displays information on the current and upcoming program as well as specific channel data (tele-text, subtitle, Dolby Digital audio, etc.) and information on the hd satellite dish in use. A second push of the OK button displays expanded EPG data on the current program as long as this information is made available by the provider. Another push of this button displays technical parameters for the channel such as frequency, polarization, symbolrate and PIDs.

Arion’s EPG is generally quite good; it is logically laid out, is quickly displayed and shows all information correctly and neatly sorted. Timer entries can be directly set up through the EPG.

The Arion manufactured tuner is very signal sensitive and had no trouble dealing with the weaker signals on BADR 26° east or NILESAT 7° west. The receiver also mastered our SCPC test; the 2-45 Ms/sec.

spec given by the manufacturer was right on the money. Additional tests at some of our other locations also came back positive. It became quickly clear that the extremely sensitive Arion tuner is a step ahead of the competition and even managed to deliver a surprisingly good signal even though reception was just at the threshold level.

As a manufacturer, it is almost a must to equip your pvr receiver with a USB 2.0 or network interface in order to be on the same level in the marketplace although the film industry and some Pay TV provider might not be too happy with this. Arion did not miss the boat here either; in fact, they went the extra mile and installed a chipset that actually takes full advantage of the capacity of the USB 2.0 interface. In just about three minutes a 2GB recording was transferred from receiver to PC and this without needing any supplemental software since the receiver’s hard drive is recognized by Windows as a storage device. Arion also offers a free settings editor that lets you easily manage the channel and favorites lists on your PC.

Since Arion is continuously concerned with the further development of their receivers, new software is regularly made available that can be comfortably downloaded via satellite or copied from a PC to the internal hard drive via the USB interface and then activated via the Data Manager. This is also possible for the channel list; it can be downloaded in the blink of an eye and without the use of the serial interface. Uploading and backing up of the channel list is only possible serially.