Bad LNB?

[seussatguy]

I have a Slimline-5 dish and an HR20-700 that's about 7 years old, and I've just recently started to notice some problems with certain channels. The LNB has 4 coax outputs, and I've been running two of those directly to my HR20 (with B-band converters) ever since it was installed many years ago. When I go through the satellite setup process on the receiver, it always ends up showing errors on both the Odd (13V) and Even (18V) channels, primarily in the 103° column. Often it will show errors (red Xs) in the 99° column, too. It also says "Errors found on both tuners" usually. This happens for all combinations of the 4 coax lines I try. I have run through the satellite setup process many, many times using different combinations of the 4 cables in both connections (sat 1 and sat 2) on the back of the HR20, and every time the result is these errors showing up in the 103 and/or 99 column.

I have checked the physical connectors on each cable running from the LNB and they all look to be in pretty good shape. I also took the LNB off and did a quick inspection of the 4 coax connections, which all looked OK. I will probably do a more thorough inspection today or tomorrow.

One other thing I did was borrow my friend's HR20 and ran the same tests with the "satellite setup" process, and I got the same results as with my own HR20. I also switched out the B-band converters, and again same results. This leads me to believe it could be a faulty LNB that is to blame.

I'd appreciate any thoughts, suggestions, or questions anyone might have to help me troubleshoot this issue.

Thanks!

 

[vazhog]

Perhaps your dish needs re-alignment or maybe a B-band convert is bad - I would suggest a service call to get your system checked out or Keep what you have and see about a "Free Genie upgrade"

 

[seussatguy]

Perhaps your dish needs re-alignment or maybe a B-band convert is bad - I would suggest a service call to get your system checked out or Keep what you have and see about a "Free Genie upgrade"

It's not the B-bands since I tested with a different pair of those and got the same results. Also I have made some adjustments to my dish alignment to try to rule that out, but I'm not 100% sure. I neglected to mention in my post above that the main symptom of my problem is severe degradation / pixelation on certain channels, most notably 254 AMCHD. It is very sporadic, though, and is not at all correlated with bad weather. It seems like the channels most affected are on transponder 18 at 99° and also some on transponders 1-3 on 103°. Thanks for the suggestion about the Genie upgrade -- I am considering doing that.

Is there a way I could request a service call and possibly get a new LNB (if that's what the problem is) installed for free, or will I definitely have to pay for all this? I am not under contract right now and haven't had a service call in over 5 years. If I could be sure it was the LNB, I would just order one online for $47 and install it myself.

 

[peds48]

The red X mean that the satellites signals are below DIRECTV® thresholds, while this can be associated with a bad LNB, mosts of the time this is caused by a poorly aligned dish.

 

[Jimbo]

It's not the B-bands since I tested with a different pair of those and got the same results. Also I have made some adjustments to my dish alignment to try to rule that out, but I'm not 100% sure. I neglected to mention in my post above that the main symptom of my problem is severe degradation / pixelation on certain channels, most notably 254 AMCHD. It is very sporadic, though, and is not at all correlated with bad weather. It seems like the channels most affected are on transponder 18 at 99° and also some on transponders 1-3 on 103°. Thanks for the suggestion about the Genie upgrade -- I am considering doing that.

Is there a way I could request a service call and possibly get a new LNB (if that's what the problem is) installed for free, or will I definitely have to pay for all this? I am not under contract right now and haven't had a service call in over 5 years. If I could be sure it was the LNB, I would just order one online for $47 and install it myself.

What are your Signal Strengths on those transponders ?

 

[seussatguy]

What are your Signal Strengths on those transponders ?

The readings below are from the Signal Meters screen. The numbers fluctuate and are slightly different for tuner 1 and 2, so I just put the range of percentages on each line.

99(ca) xpdr 18: 86% - 93%
103(cb) xpdr 1: 91% - 95%
103(cb) xpdr 2: 91% - 94%
103(cb) xpdr 3: 92% - 96%

An odd thing happened just now when viewing the signal strength on 99(cb). The entire first row of transponders, 1-8, all showed up as 0 for the first 5 seconds or so. Then they all filled in with values in the 89 to 95 range. This corresponds to what I sometimes see when checking individual transponders using the signal meter. Sometimes, when I switch to a new transponder, one of the tuners will read "not acquired" for several seconds (or sometimes even longer than that) while the other tuner shows a numeric signal strength.

 

[Jimbo]

The readings below are from the Signal Meters screen. The numbers fluctuate and are slightly different for tuner 1 and 2, so I just put the range of percentages on each line.

99(ca) xpdr 18: 86% - 93%
103(cb) xpdr 1: 91% - 95%
103(cb) xpdr 2: 91% - 94%
103(cb) xpdr 3: 92% - 96%

An odd thing happened just now when viewing the signal strength on 99(cb). The entire first row of transponders, 1-8, all showed up as 0 for the first 5 seconds or so. Then they all filled in with values in the 89 to 95 range. This corresponds to what I sometimes see when checking individual transponders using the signal meter. Sometimes, when I switch to a new transponder, one of the tuners will read "not acquired" for several seconds (or sometimes even longer than that) while the other tuner shows a numeric signal strength.

Your numbers look fine ... hmmm.

Like others have said, the X just means your signal isn't as high as D* would like it.

Is the Pixalation ONLY on AMC ?

I'm gonna guess that you don't have the Protection plan ...

 

[Zashel]

generally when the readings bounce around from 0 to something like that, its sounds like the LNB. to avoid the service call fee, just spring for the upgrade. they'll put in a new LNB usually. if they try to put in a SWM8 or SWM16 tell em you think you've had some LNB issues recently and ask if they could replace it.

 

[seussatguy]

Is the Pixalation ONLY on AMC ?

No, I've noticed it sporadically on several other channels, e.g. 244 SyfyHD. I have also occasionally been getting a message "771 - Signal loss on satellite in 2" and the screen will be black for quite a while when tuning to certain channels, e.g. 254 AMCHD. Sometimes when this happens, I have to tune to another channel and then back to the original channel in order to get rid of the 771 and black screen.

I'm gonna guess that you don't have the Protection plan ...

Nope, no protection plan unfortunately.

Seems like I'll probably need to either buy and install a new LNB myself or do what Zashel suggested and spring for a receiver upgrade and get a new LNB installed in the process.

 

[Jimbo]

No, I've noticed it sporadically on several other channels, e.g. 244 SyfyHD. I have also occasionally been getting a message "771 - Signal loss on satellite in 2" and the screen will be black for quite a while when tuning to certain channels, e.g. 254 AMCHD. Sometimes when this happens, I have to tune to another channel and then back to the original channel in order to get rid of the 771 and black screen.



Nope, no protection plan unfortunately.

Seems like I'll probably need to either buy and install a new LNB myself or do what Zashel suggested and spring for a receiver upgrade and get a new LNB installed in the process.

If your ready for an upgrade, that would be ideal, remember you'll have a 2 yr commitment t if you go that route.

 

[seussatguy]

If your ready for an upgrade, that would be ideal, remember you'll have a 2 yr commitment t if you go that route.

Hmm... lots to think about here. My equipment is definitely getting long in the tooth, so an upgrade is probably needed within the next year or two at most. But I could just buy and install a new LNB myself and continue with the same HR20-700 for a while longer and avoid the 2 yr commitment. I really don't have any burning desire to get a Genie or anything like that right now, but if I could get a good deal on one (including an LNB replacement, of course) then I might be tempted to go that route. Maybe I should just call and see what the current offers look like for receiver upgrades before I make a final decision. With all that in mind, any suggestions on the best course of action?

 

[Jimbo]

Hmm... lots to think about here. My equipment is definitely getting long in the tooth, so an upgrade is probably needed within the next year or two at most. But I could just buy and install a new LNB myself and continue with the same HR20-700 for a while longer and avoid the 2 yr commitment. I really don't have any burning desire to get a Genie or anything like that right now, but if I could get a good deal on one (including an LNB replacement, of course) then I might be tempted to go that route. Maybe I should just call and see what the current offers look like for receiver upgrades before I make a final decision. With all that in mind, any suggestions on the best course of action?

First, pull up your D* account online and look in the recvr area and see what they may be offering online, its possible that they are offering you a genie already, never know till you look.

If the online isn't what you want, call in and see what they can do.

 

[rer2]

A new thread I would start would have the same name as this, so I'll just post here.
Receiver: H25-100
LNB: SL3S4NR2-01
Power Inserter: PI21R3-16

Did thorough scan of range with the dish. Gave the receiver ample time to show signal at each setting. Did voltage test at the "Power To SWM" outlet of the power inserter. Results were spikes of the voltages within range at first contact, but not constant voltage. I don't see any sign of malfunction of the receiver. Installation was properly grounded.

Thanks ahead.
RR

 

[raoul5788]

to Satelliteguys rer2!

If you aren't getting a constant 21 volts, then you need a new power inserter. Either a 21 or 29 volt model will work fine. Did you ever get a 775 error code? That could indicate a bad power inserter.

 

[rer2]

Happy New Year! Thank you for the quick response and welcome.

I'm not getting the error code. I was measuring DC volts. The AC voltage is 44-45 constant. The inserter is rated for 21.

RR

 

[raoul5788]

Where are you getting 44 volts AC? The output of the power inserter is DC. Like I mentioned previously, if you aren't getting a constant 21 volts, then you should replace the power inserter.

 

[b52pooh]

I believe if you are reading 44-45 volts AC on your cable, that you have an improper ground, hot , return wire somewhere in your power plugs in the house.

 

[raoul5788]

Good thought. RR, do you have a basic electric tester?

 

[rer2]

20 volt setting won't show anything over 20. My bad. Found signal. Coordinates, dish, or level about 20° off. Thanks again for your input.

 

[raoul5788]

20 volt setting won't show anything over 20. My bad. Found signal. Coordinates, dish, or level about 20° off. Thanks again for your input.

Glad you got it fixed!