Completely new to FTA, need advice

[drhydro]

If there isn't much available in Analog I might as well not even bother then. I thought the mercury did both analog and digital.

I notice in the review of the receiver, it has problems with Blind Scans. Is the firmware upgradeable?

I think I'll probably go with the Sadoun complete package.

There's a lot of channels that aren't listed on those lists too right?

Again, thanks for the help. I'm feeling much more comfortable with everything. I'm just worried about the installation, the more I read about it the more confused I get.

Hi,
The problems with the Fortec blind scans are not a major issue and should be fixed in a future software update. I really like my Mercury II reciever. to answer another of your questions the Mercury II does do both c and ku band. If you can put up a BUD i would highly recommend it, there is a large amount of programming available on cband.

 

[GMFreak8]

Hi,
The problems with the Fortec blind scans are not a major issue and should be fixed in a future software update. I really like my Mercury II reciever. to answer another of your questions the Mercury II does do both c and ku band. If you can put up a BUD i would highly recommend it, there is a large amount of programming available on cband.

Nah, I can't fit a BUD on my property, I already have to stick a 36" dish right out on the front lawn. Not exactly the prettiest thing to look at. Hopefully I might be able to stick it in the back, but I doubt it. A 10 foot dish wouldn't go over well at all.

If I had the property, I would definitely go with a BUD. What's the smallest dish I can get that will handle C band feeds?

 

[drhydro]

PSB, Iceberg, myself and a few others have 6' dishs and have found that they will work for the majority of channels. While I would not recommend a 6' dish for subscription services, for playing around they work fine. You may find a few channels that you wont be able to "lock" onto due to interference from adjacent satellites.

BTW, I am not that far from you, I am about 45 minutes east of Plattsburg. A 36" dish will work great for KU signals up here.

Instead of planting that dish on the front lawn, why not mount it to the roof / eaves of your house?

 

[GMFreak8]

PSB, Iceberg, myself and a few others have 6' dishs and have found that they will work for the majority of channels. While I would not recommend a 6' dish for subscription services, for playing around they work fine. You may find a few channels that you wont be able to "lock" onto due to interference from adjacent satellites.

BTW, I am not that far from you, I am about 45 minutes east of Plattsburg. A 36" dish will work great for KU signals up here.

Instead of planting that dish on the front lawn, why not mount it to the roof / eaves of your house?

With the combination of size and the price of a moveable C-band setup, I think I might hold off on it for now. If I find an old system somewhere cheap I might jump on it, but for now it looks like the KU-band setup is more in my price range.

I asked about putting it on the roof, that's a no go. I gotta go out and see if I can fit it in the backyard. How wide of a view do I need of the Southern Sky?

You live around Montpelier Vermont?

 

[GMFreak8]

I'm researching installation right now, and I'm trying to see if I'll be able to receive decent signals from the satellites. How do you calculate true north and declination? The more I read, the more confused I get.

 

[drhydro]

From where my main dish is at I have a LOS (year round) from 72 deg to 137 degrees. For KU band you really only need over to 129 degrees, not much on KU west of there. I get most of the sats from here, but there are a few east of where i can see that are definately of interest. Luckily in the winter when the leaves are off the trees (which is when i watch the most tv) I can see over to 53 degrees.

So basically if you can see from 58 degrees to 129 degrees with no high obstructions you should be good to go. The far west sats are kind of hard for us due to the low elevation angles, for example g10 is at an elevation of 18 degrees, while amc 7 at 137 degrees (c band only) is at only 9 degrees of elevation.

I live in Waterville Vermont (05492), its north and east of Montpelier.

 

[drhydro]

I'm researching installation right now, and I'm trying to see if I'll be able to receive decent signals from the satellites. How do you calculate true north and declination? The more I read, the more confused I get.

First you need to check your line of sight. Take a look at this post to get some ideas of how to do that:
http://www.satelliteguys.us/showthread.php?t=33148
After you have determined your line of site, then worry about finding true south and your declination. I would not worry to much about declination at this time.

 

[GMFreak8]

First you need to check your line of sight. Take a look at this post to get some ideas of how to do that:
http://www.satelliteguys.us/showthread.php?t=33148
After you have determined your line of site, then worry about finding true south and your declination. I would not worry to much about declination at this time.

Thanks for the link. According to the BJ HomeSat site, I need to place the dish 156 feet away from the tallest object (a pine tree) to have a clear view. IDK if that's right or not. It's not easy to test this thing before making the setup permanent. I really don't want it on my front lawn, truth be told. And the more I read, the more confused I get about aiming it. Can't I just eyeball everything?

Edit: What's the longest cable run that I can make without loosing the signal or having other problems?

 

[W_Tracy_Parnell]

A cheap compass would be helpful in aiming. Here is a link to some screen shots you might be interested in of news feeds and other stuff:

http://www.pbase.com/wtracyparnell/news_feeds

 

[drhydro]

If you are worried about obstructions, eyeballing is not the way to go lol. If you have the bits and pieces laying around, try building a homemade site survey tool like i did, directions and diagram are in the post i cited. It worked excellant for me.

I took a look at the bj homesat site, you must have a 100 foot pine tree you want to look over.

As for testing your setup, you can temporarily install a post and mount the dish on it to check LOS etc. Many members have posted pics of tripods etc. that they have used.

 

[GMFreak8]

If you are worried about obstructions, eyeballing is not the way to go lol. If you have the bits and pieces laying around, try building a homemade site survey tool like i did, directions and diagram are in the post i cited. It worked excellant for me.

I took a look at the bj homesat site, you must have a 100 foot pine tree you want to look over.

As for testing your setup, you can temporarily install a post and mount the dish on it to check LOS etc. Many members have posted pics of tripods etc. that they have used.

Yeah, it's a fairly large pine tree, that looks like it'll be smack in the way of things. I saw the diagram that you made. It looks like the best way to check. What sats should I be trying to look at to figure out if anything is obstructing the view?

Sorry about all the questions, I'm sure I'm driving you nuts.

 

[GMFreak8]

A cheap compass would be helpful in aiming. Here is a link to some screen shots you might be interested in of news feeds and other stuff:

http://www.pbase.com/wtracyparnell/news_feeds

COOL site, thanks for the link!

 

[drhydro]

I would check the whole arc from 53 degrees to 129 degrees. The main one I would check is 123 degrees which is g10. Also take a look at Mike Kohls list of FTA channels to see just which sats you want to see.

 

[GMFreak8]

I would check the whole arc from 53 degrees to 129 degrees. The main one I would check is 123 degrees which is g10. Also take a look at Mike Kohls list of FTA channels to see just which sats you want to see.

I'm sorry for sounding like a complete idiot. But could you clarify how I measure degrees?

Also, is there a guide or something somewhere on measuring dish sizes. A friend of mine has a mesh dish sitting by his house that has no LNB or mount, but if it's a C-band sized dish, I was thinking I might be able to get a LNB and LNB mount, and a motor cheaper than a whole setup, and still be able to get C-band, or at least be ready for it.

 

[Mr Tony]

C-Band you need at least a 6 footer

 

[drhydro]

I'm sorry for sounding like a complete idiot. But could you clarify how I measure degrees?

Use a compass to check for LOS

Also, is there a guide or something somewhere on measuring dish sizes. A friend of mine has a mesh dish sitting by his house that has no LNB or mount, but if it's a C-band sized dish, I was thinking I might be able to get a LNB and LNB mount, and a motor cheaper than a whole setup, and still be able to get C-band, or at least be ready for it.

I would HIGHLY recommend getting a dish that is still on a pole, with all the parts you need. I see c band dishs all the time in the "free" area of the local papers, if I see a good one I will let you know. I have a 10' dish you could have for free (with polar mount and lnb / lnb mount), but it is fiberglass and might not work for KU.

 

[GMFreak8]

Use a compass to check for LOS

I knew that.

I would HIGHLY recommend getting a dish that is still on a pole, with all the parts you need. I see c band dishs all the time in the "free" area of the local papers, if I see a good one I will let you know. I have a 10' dish you could have for free (with polar mount and lnb / lnb mount), but it is fiberglass and might not work for KU.

I'm thinking he may have the parts scattered around his house. He moved here a year ago, and it was still mounted on the pole, he took it down and it's now resting against the side of his house. I'm pretty sure I could find the parts. It's a mesh dish, does that usually mean it's capable of receiving C-band feeds?

A 6 foot dish is stretching it for my property, I don't think a 10 foot dish would work. I actually haven't looked in the paper for dishes. I'll keep an eye out now. I'm still researching before I buy. I may end up buying the receiver right now, and then hunting for a dish setup, or buying one at a later time. I want motorized, I know that, and I'm thinking it'll be hard to find one of those setups around here that still works, considering the weather and how long a lot of these are sitting around without being used. Can I buy or acquire a stationary and get a motor for it?

What C-band dishes will work for KU-band reception? Will Mesh work? Why wouldn't fiberglass work well?


Again, thank you for taking the time to answer my questions, I truly appreciate it. Everyone here has been such a help.

 

[PSB]

Fiberglass MAY not work as you can't see what size the holes in the mesh are(Yes there is mesh inside the dish to collect/reflect the signal)

With a regular mesh dish as long as the mesh is small enough it will work for Ku signals (If you can fit a pencil through the mesh, forget Ku)

 

[GMFreak8]

Fiberglass MAY not work as you can't see what size the holes in the mesh are(Yes there is mesh inside the dish to collect/reflect the signal)

With a regular mesh dish as long as the mesh is small enough it will work for Ku signals (If you can fit a pencil through the mesh, forget Ku)

Damn, I think that may rule out KU-Band reception with the dish my friend has. I'll have to bring a pencil and check for sure. So the smaller the mesh size the better reception of KU-band, will a smaller mesh size affect C-band reception?

 

[PSB]

Nah! A solid dish is best for C and Ku!