Can't receive certain freqs on certain sats, or...

[kulakovich]

Hello everyone!

I haven't been here for about a year, I had to offline my setup after another ground surge cost me my LNBs. Anyway, I am trying to get everything back in action (and in buried conduit), and ran into a problem that is sort of odd.

Here's the deal.

I have a norsat 20k c-band lnb hooked to a corotor-2, which is up on a 7' unimesh dish. I can home in on AMC-6 just fine. In fact I left the dish parked on AMC-6 and it only took a tiny amount of steering to re-acquire it.

The Norsat LNB I bought new on eBay, and there wasn't a mark on it - not a chip or smudge, label in perfect shape, no marks from having been bolted on to anything.

I am connected to a Pansat 2500A. I scan or blind scan, and only pick up the lower 5 channels, such as the Pennsylvania public access channel. They come in with 80%+ signal strength and 70% quality, so they come in great. On the NASAtv freq the signal strength is 70%, and every so often the quality gives me a 10% flicker or a 99% flash but otherwise stays at flat 0. (my brain tells me that is a giant hint)

On other sats I can pick up 4100 Mhz it would seem just fine.

Am I insane? Could this be my cable shielding? My receiver pooched? I'd like to think the LNB isn't an issue because it is new?

Thanks for your time!

~kulakovich

 

[Mr Tony]

moved to C-band area...it could be NASA right now. I know yesterday when I moved the 6 footer to AMC6 I had the same thing

The 3 CW affiliates...quality 70
Pennsylvania thing...65-70
NASA...10-15 with that spazzy spike to 99

I was using a Pansat 1500 (the little brother to the 2500).
I know it wasnt the LNB because I got stuff on PAS9 (58W) vertical just fine

 

[kulakovich]

Hey! Iceberg! Nice to see you again!

Well that sounds like a relief. I wonder what is up with AMC6 and NASAtv then. I've shot them an email, of course who knows where it will end up.

I'll keep working on it, and thanks!

~kulakovich

 

[Mr Tony]

I'll check tomorrow....its possibly my LNB (621-2 LNB) because I can't get it on AMC7 either

 

[kulakovich]

I did wonder about my Pansat - it hasn't had heavy use and is well ventilated, but it also picks up H in the V and V in the H when I do a blind scan. If that makes any sense? The H and V pick up identical info, and I never seem to get a lot of channels compared to the Lyngsat list.

~kulakovich

 

[truckracer]

Those NASA channels are unpredictable. sometimes my quality is really low and sometimes they boom in. I can't explain it. This is using a 10' dish.

On a 7' or 7.5' I would imagine the smaller reflector would just aggravate the problem.

Don't sweat it. If you want to be totally sure take your receiver outside with a tv and do a little tuning on the F/D and dish elevation and see if it helps.

One reminder......If you are feeding voltage to the Norsat from the free to air receiver - On Vertical it is only sending the Norsat 13V dc. that Norsat needs a minimum of 18V dc I think I can't remember the specs.

If you are using power passing splitter and your analog is powering the lnb you should be good to go.

Norsats sometimes don't like to be underpowered. Your FTA receiver is made to control an lnbf that uses 13/18V coax power to switch polarity.

This does not always agree with Norsats and other c band lnbs.

 

[kulakovich]

I'll have to get a meter on the end of the line I think as well then - after 100' I wonder how much voltage is actually getting out there or am I going to need some sort of amp?

~kulakovich

 

[Lak7]

Your voltage should be fine at 100'.

 

[Mr Tony]

I have a 100 foot cable from my C-band dish to the receiver and no isses