help...any 5lnb installers ...please answear questions

[HOZ]

did anyone install a 5lnb dish.....did you have to do anything special to get a signal on 103...the directv installation video mentions that you have to fine tune the alignment by checking a number...then another..then dividing by two...etc etc....is all of this really necessary?

 

[Lynskyn]

Wasn't necessary when I did mine. I set the rough elevation and tilt, peaked out elevation and azimuth on 101, then peaked the tilt on 119, and everything else fell into place. I used a cheapie in-line meter. Took only few minutes.

 

[netminder32]

I live in Los Angeles, have the HD package...would I need to swap
out my 3 LNB dish to the 5 LNB dish? Would I gain anything with
the upcoming MPEG-4 channels?

 

[little dish guy]

It’s absolutely necessary and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise! You cannot be sure the Ka is aligned properly without following all the instructions, even if it seems to work ok right now with a simple alignment. Do it right and sleep better at night...
Bob

did anyone install a 5lnb dish.....did you have to do anything special to get a signal on 103...the directv installation video mentions that you have to fine tune the alignment by checking a number...then another..then dividing by two...etc etc....is all of this really necessary?

 

[Lynskyn]

It’s absolutely necessary and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise! You cannot be sure the Ka is aligned properly without following all the instructions, even if it seems to work ok right now with a simple alignment. Do it right and sleep better at night...
Bob

Just because you don't use the exact method in the instructions that come with the dish does not mean the dish is not peaked.

 

[little dish guy]

The reasons for following the instructions are not necessarily for peaking max signal strength, you can certainly get adequate numbers the old way. The specific instructions are for aligning the antenna to reject adjacent satellites which may not be in operation at this time. You can’t possibly know if the antenna is properly aligned for this without following all the steps. The procedure is fairly simple, why would you do anything different?
Bob

 

[Lynskyn]

The reasons for following the instructions are not necessarily for peaking max signal strength, you can certainly get adequate numbers the old way. The specific instructions are for aligning the antenna to reject adjacent satellites which may not be in operation at this time. You can’t possibly know if the antenna is properly aligned for this without following all the steps. The procedure is fairly simple, why would you do anything different?
Bob

Guess I'm just set in my ways and maybe a little lazy
I have good signals on 101, 103, 110, and 119. When Spaceway 2 lights up at 99,
if I have issues, I'll re-peak it then. I'll sleep fine until then

 

[Wafflekyd]

I have good signals on 101, 103, 110, and 119. When Spaceway 2 lights up at 99,
if I have issues, I'll re-peak it then. I'll sleep fine until then

What you're saying makes sense.
The Mastec installer who put my A3 (AT9) dish up had never seen the videos and had no means of following the detailed install procedure. He adjusted for peak signal on 101 and called it a day. The picture quality looked good but I still complained because I thought the prescribed procedure should have been followed more closely.
Mastec then sent their top tech guy out. He checked the install and made some minor adjustments. I did get a slightly higher signal strength on a few transponders on 101 and 103, but nothing drastic and no noticeable change in pq. He explained that the two lnb's on the attached arm are for 110 and 119, and that people like me are not getting much off of those satellites. He said the high def stuff is coming off 101 and 103.
He also said that they really don't know what kind of real-life adjustments will need to be made when 99 comes online. He said that they fully expect that when 99 comes on, they'll have new procedures and may very well be doing a lot of readjustment.
So for now, if you've got good signal on the used transponders on 101, 103, 110 and 119, you've got what you need.

 

[dragon002]

Guess I'm just set in my ways and maybe a little lazy
I have good signals on 101, 103, 110, and 119. When Spaceway 2 lights up at 99,
if I have issues, I'll re-peak it then. I'll sleep fine until then

you are exactly correct., ever see the FINE TUNE adjusters on the old paratodos dishes, sure we really used them and i was hsp then.

5 lnb dish, peak the 101 and 119 and sleep like a baby.