Virgin media mini box

[Lillybot]

Hello, 

we have recently ordered a virgin media mini box due to moving round the house and switching our living room into a different room in the house, however we are leaving our 360 box in the current living room as will be used as a play room for the kids, what I need to know is does the mini box need a coax cable connected to it?

we have rang virgin media 5 times and every single person said a different thing e.g.

“yes it does need a coax cable” 

“no it doesn’t need a coax cable just a hdmi and wifi connection” 

we are so confused on what it needs because if it does need a coax cable will the virgin media engineer provided me with one and install it? Does this mean they have to go over the house outside? 
please help 

many thanks 

[japitts]

All TV360 boxes, whether they are mini or master, need 3 connections:

1: Coax cable, this carries the live broadcast TV channels

2: Internet connection for OnDemand & streaming - Ethernet to your home-hub or reliable wireless 

3: HDMI to your TV.

The only difference between mini & master boxes is the lack of recording hard drive.

[Tavis75]

Yes, it needs a coax connection, plus an internet connection (ethernet or wi-fi), so you will need a proper installation.

[Lillybot · Accepted solution]

Hello 

thanks for the reply 

now that’s cleared up will the virgin media engineer provide me with a coax cable and install it all for me? 

many thanks 

[japitts]

If you specifically request a manned install and not a self-serve QuickStart, VM will provide all the necessary cabling & connections.

[lsarcher]

If you like being able to pause live TV I'd suggest moving the main 360 box to the room where you watch TV the most. The mini box doesn't have a hard drive so can only pause Live TV for 4 minutes before resuming (a major and stupid flaw in the design IMHO). 

[nodrogd]

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@lsarcher wrote:

If you like being able to pause live TV I'd suggest moving the main 360 box to the room where you watch TV the most. The mini box doesn't have a hard drive so can only pause Live TV for 4 minutes before resuming (a major and stupid flaw in the design IMHO). 

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VMs parent company designed & developed Horizon which drives 360 for cloud recording, which is the way it is used in the rest of mainland Europe. Their boxes therefore have no hard drive at all. However, the broadcasters here won’t permit cloud recording, so VM have had to modify the firmware to work in a way it was never designed too. If you need to pause on a diskless box you have to hit record, then it will record on the main box.

[Ashleigh_C]

Hi there @Lillybot 

Thank you so much for your post and welcome to the community forums. 

Also thank you to all the community members that have been advising here. Are you in need of an appointment booking still or have you been able to arrange this? 

Thank you.

[Lillybot]

I have a virgin media engineer coming out however that isn’t the problem 

I’ve rang up again today multiple times about this situation and yet again being told diffract things each time 

what I want to know is will the mini box need a coax cable? And if so is this connected to the main 360 box or is a separate cable? 

if this is a separate cable are the engineers able to fix one in place for me outside of the house instead of running a cable inside the house through 2 rooms? 
im quite disappointed in virgin media at the moment and have been looking at changing to another company it’s ridiculous at how many times I’ve phoned up and never got a concrete answer! 

hope to see you reply 

many thanks 

[nodrogd]

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@Lillybot wrote:

I have a virgin media engineer coming out however that isn’t the problem 

I’ve rang up again today multiple times about this situation and yet again being told diffract things each time 

what I want to know is will the mini box need a coax cable?

Yes. It is a broadcast receiver so needs coax, the same as a satellite broadcast box needs coax to connect it to a dish.

And if so is this connected to the main 360 box or is a separate cable? 

It is connected separately.

if this is a separate cable are the engineers able to fix one in place for me outside of the house instead of running a cable inside the house through 2 rooms? 

Yes, they can install an additional wall outlet from outside as long as it does not involve working above 1st floor height.

im quite disappointed in virgin media at the moment and have been looking at changing to another company it’s ridiculous at how many times I’ve phoned up and never got a concrete answer! 

hope to see you reply 

many thanks 

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