getting ready to setup FTA

[goaliebob99]

Ok guys im getting ready to buy everything for my FTA setup.. Im going with a 30 in dish, Pole mount, and a motor. Possably adding a fta reciver.. havent decided yet. Im going to Put it on the corner of the bulding that allows me to see everything from 61.5 to 148 with the exception of some trees that would be in the way around 101 - 121... From the spot of the pole mount the trees will be around 30 degrees from ground to tree tops... should be allright ? what do you guys think? What do i need to do becides assemble the dish and put that bad boy up... How do i set the limits and all that good stuff on the motor? These are just some basic questions. I want to beable to hook it up with minor problems.. and start scanning away! Whats a good motor to get? and a good dish.. Im taking a serious look at those lnb's there giving away allthough I have heard that there is a DBS/KU lnb on the way.. Is there one on the market now or should i wait?

 

[Shawn95GT]

Grab this software:
http://www.arachnoid.com/satfinder/

It'll give you azmuth, elevation and skew for everything 61.5-148. You should be able to tell of that 30° angle is going to be a problem. If you don't want to grab it post your zipcode and someone will cut/paste the output for ya.

The Sadoun Combo looks decent and is pretty cheap.

For just a little bit more $$ You can get an Invacom LNB, SG2100 and a Winegard dish via this seller on ebay .

You can setup the limits on the motor as per the instructions. On my SG-2100 you take it apart to do so.

My reciever also has a means to set limits.

If you are using USALS it won't really matter unless you need to keep the dish from hitting the rooftop or something.

The Winegard is a tried and true dish. You can't really go wrong with it. Iceberg has a review of the 90cm Fortec dishes coming this weeknd and that should be an interesting read.

So far the Fortec dishes seem to be holding their own. If I could pick it up I think I'd go after a 1.2M Fortec. Since I do have to ship it I'm debating a single 100cm Fortec vs 2x 90cm fortecs with LNBS for about the same money.

Everyone seems to love the SG2100 motor. I have had nothing but great luck with mine.

As for LNBs, the lower the noise figure, the better. Invacom owners are raving about them and some of the results I'm seeing seem to warrent the enthusiasm. I want to get one to compare performance against my 'Big Sat' LNB. My trigger finger is itching to pull the trigger and try and get in on the deal for the QPH-031 at PSBSatellite . This is that combined circular / linear LNB you asked about. I don't think it's quite to market yet but it should be here soon.

 

[PSB]

I use the below to work out if I can clear a tree.

http://www.bjup.com/services/bjhomesat/tech_support/obstacle.html

I still like the SG2100 motor, it has pre-set adjustable limit switches, your satellite positions can be stored using USALS or DiSEqC 1.2

The new cp/lp QPH-031 should be nice when available , its a universal LNBF so for now I would go for a standard LNBF as its always a good idea to have a spare and it can be used to point your dish with a simple satellite meter if you can't see your TV from the dish location.