C-Band with Viewsat - Is it worth it?

[mojo101x]

Hi,
I'm pretty new at this and I was wondering if anyone could tell me if there anything available on C-Band from my vantage point?
I live in Newfoundland, Canada - pretty far east for most footprints as well as for what I have.
I was thinking of a system for the cottage.
I have a old Star Choice 4 foot offset dish with a motor, a BSC 621 C/Ku lnbf and a Viewsat VS2000 receiver.

Is there any FTA channels out there that I could get with the above equipment.
I can't really justify paying for a subscription for the cabin as it's a seasonal thing and I'm not a big TV fan anyway! Just looking to get a little local or national news (english language news) and maybe a little comedy.

Thanks
Any insight would be much appreciated.

 

[greg harris]

IMO, The dish you have is too small for reliable C band. The BSC 621 will not work well on a four foot dish. One problem is the ku lnb feed on the BSC 621 is prime focus and your four foot dish is probably offset. another problem is you will have a heck of a time aligning the c and ku bands on a four foot dish using the BSC 621. Get a bigger dish, at least 6 feet in diameter for c band. The area you are in may require a dish that is larger than 6 feet. GregH

 

[brentb636]

You might get some of the stronger C-band channels, but you'd got NO Ku band stuff with that setup. See Greg Harris above for my recommendation.

 

[cracklincrotch]

You might have a shot if you're on the west coast, but I'd say much less than 50/50 of getting a 4 footer to work. If you're on the east coast your chances are just about zero. A small number of sats don't cover the island at all. About the same number that do have footprints that make it to the island drop rapidly after you get past Deer Lake.

If you're going to do this, get a big one - the biggest you can find.

 

[Anole]

Well let me ask this:
What's wrong with a 4 foot offset dish on Ku band up there?
You've got a DVB-s receiver, a motor, and the 4' dish.
All you need is a decent Ku LNBF or LNB with feedhorn to match that dish...

Is the dish round or elliptical?
If elliptical, you probably need the original feed.
And the old StarChoice LNBF may be suitable...??

Also, for the little time you spend there, maybe you could bring a DVB-s2 HD receiver from home...?
That would wring more out of Ku by giving you HD and S2

 

[greg harris]

I think Newfoundland is about 54 North and 58 West. If I remember correctly, This area is out of the good footprint for most ku satellites in North America. 99 West on c band will probably be the best bet for a single satellite.. GregH

 

[Lone Cloud]

I don't think you have the best setup. Where you are, I'd want an eight footer - solid.

I have three Viewsat products and if you have the 9000 HD you have a crappy box. I also have the Ultra and Xtreme and use them for peaking my dish with the "beep on scan function". But other than for aiming, they are ordinary, limited SD boxes.

 

[mojo101x]

Thanks guys,
The info is much appreciated.
The dish I have is elliptical,.. so far I've managed to get 1 channel on C-Band and I couldn't really say for sure what satellite it was.. best guess 101W - some color bars appeared on the screen, not the best picture either.. This was on a clear night, not a cloud in the sky as well!

According to Lyngsat, theres a great number of FTA channels on 87W C-Band but it's mpeg-4 which my viewsat ultra wont get.
But according to satbeams.com, I'm in the footprint provided I have a 8 foot dish (35dBW)
Another search on e-bay turned up an Openbox S9 HD receiver for $36bucks so I guess my final question would be: What would be the receivers of choice these days for C/Ku reception capable of mpeg-4 dvb-s2
If in fact, of course, the list on Lyngsat for 87W is up-to-date and truely FTA.
Thanks
Dave

 

[jsattv]

Thanks guys,
The info is much appreciated.
The dish I have is elliptical,.. so far I've managed to get 1 channel on C-Band and I couldn't really say for sure what satellite it was.. best guess 101W - some color bars appeared on the screen, not the best picture either.. This was on a clear night, not a cloud in the sky as well!

According to Lyngsat, theres a great number of FTA channels on 87W C-Band but it's mpeg-4 which my viewsat ultra wont get.
But according to satbeams.com, I'm in the footprint provided I have a 8 foot dish (35dBW)
Another search on e-bay turned up an Openbox S9 HD receiver for $36bucks so I guess my final question would be: What would be the receivers of choice these days for C/Ku reception capable of mpeg-4 dvb-s2
If in fact, of course, the list on Lyngsat for 87W is up-to-date and truely FTA.
Thanks
Dave

Mojo101x, used a Viewsat 2000 for 4 years for Both C & KU Band till I got a AZbox Premium Plus 6 months ago. The HD reception on the AZbox Rx is spectacular.

 

[greg harris]

Thanks guys,
The info is much appreciated.
The dish I have is elliptical,.. so far I've managed to get 1 channel on C-Band and I couldn't really say for sure what satellite it was.. best guess 101W - some color bars appeared on the screen, not the best picture either.. This was on a clear night, not a cloud in the sky as well!

According to Lyngsat, theres a great number of FTA channels on 87W C-Band but it's mpeg-4 which my viewsat ultra wont get.
But according to satbeams.com, I'm in the footprint provided I have a 8 foot dish (35dBW)
Another search on e-bay turned up an Openbox S9 HD receiver for $36bucks so I guess my final question would be: What would be the receivers of choice these days for C/Ku reception capable of mpeg-4 dvb-s2
If in fact, of course, the list on Lyngsat for 87W is up-to-date and truely FTA.
Thanks
Dave

Most of the time, when Lyngsat, Satbeams, or any other footprint site gives you a dish size, it will be under optimum conditions. In other words, your 8 foot dish could be expected to work for 87West on a crystal clear, perfect day. IMO, It would be better to look at a ten foot dish or bigger if possible. I would expect you to be able to get some c band with an 8 foot dish.
The Openbox is a cheap, basic receiver that works. It will receive the DVB-S2 signals that are on 87West IF you have a dish big enough to capture the weaker S2 transponders. I would suggest getting an Openbox if you are looking for a budget receiver. GregH

 

[rrob311]

Ditto on the Openbox. It is the most sensitive out of the 3 receivers I have tried. I think you should have no problem getting the 125w ku satellite which has good content. I am in New Hampshire and that is one of the strongest birds where I am at. I think if you had a six footer with a c/ku lnb you could catch news on 97w if you had an unobstructed view. 5w would probably come in on C band if you had a dish about the size of the cabin hahaha. If it were me I would try for 125w and 97w on Ku and get an Openbox. How do you get to Newfoundland? Is there a Ferry that runs?