Is there a specification on what you can and cannot get with a 6 feet cband dish?

[Cband55]

I know for a fact that 6 feet cband dishes cannot get S2 or 1.5MB bit rate cband signals but what else are they unable to get.

 

[pedrogarcia]

I don't see why a 6ft dish cannot receive S2, (Other than out of footprint)surely it is down to your receiver capability whether it can interpret 8PSK

 

[Anole]

I agree completely! - :up
But in practice, the larger dish often suppresses adjacent satellites (noise sources), and provides a cleaner signal to decode.
S2 by itself is harder to decode , needing better signal to noise ratio.
On top of that ... outrageous FECs like 9/10 mean few error correcting bits, leaving you with an ugly picture.

So, any of these should enhance your chance of getting a good picture:
- satellites further apart -
- bigger dish
- not S2
- more robust FEC (though absurd, Whitesprings runs FEC=1/2)

 

[Mr Tony]

I know for a fact that 6 feet cband dishes cannot get S2

really?
I guess my azbox must be magical then because I am getting both a feed mux on G16 that is DVB-S2 and yesterday locked the RTV group of channels on AMC3 that are 8PSK DVB-S2

 

[Mr Tony]

But back to the original question

There is no "definite" answer to that question. Too many variables. Here are some examples from my 6 footer

DVB-S2 I dont have issues with as long as the FEC is 3/4 or even 5/6 (the feed I mentioned above is 5/6 FEC). If its 7/8 or 9/10 forget it

DVB I can have issues with if the FEC is 7/8. Also depends on satellite. I just checked 58W for member ikki here and one TP is 7/8 and I had very few issues. But if I try 103W the mux with DW-TV I can't keep it stable. That mux is also 7/8. When Equity was on 95W that mux was also 7/8 FEC and I didnt have an issue with that. 5/6 FEC I have no issues with. I can lock ThisTV with a 78 quality on the Pansat 1500 (45 is threshold on 5/6 FEC....30 for 3/4 FEC)

Satellite footprint is also critical. I am in MN and have issues with the Satmex satellites (mainly Satmex5 116.8) but someone in the southern US or even the midwest doesnt have as many issues.

I can run into issues if there is an adjacent satellite interference. Great example is AMCTV on 97W. They use to be on 3771 V and I didnt have any issues picking it up. Nice strong 50 quality. They moved their TP to 3991 H and now I can't get it at all. I think because next door at 99W is World Harvest at 4000 H that AMGTV cant reject that adjacent interference. Folks with 7 1/2 footers and larger dont have issues.

Satellites that are older can possibly give issues. AMC1 the signals are weaker than other sats but good enough that it is stable (45-50 quality). Some give me great results like G11, G16, AMC6, AnikF1, G23 (121W)

But all and all I can get probably 96% of the DVB channels up there. DVB-S2 I have only tried a few because I have a fixed dish at 99W and one that I ghetto move. If you have a specific channel or group that you want me to try, I most certainly can.

 

[Cband55]

But all and all I can get probably 96% of the DVB channels up there. DVB-S2 I have only tried a few because I have a fixed dish at 99W and one that I ghetto move. If you have a specific channel or group that you want me to try, I most certainly can.

Did you ever try to get the NBCs Telemundo channels on AMC 18

Thanks

 

[Mr Tony]

No but give me a day or so (raining right now) and I'll try and see what I get

 

[Tron]

really?
I guess my azbox must be magical then because I am getting both a feed mux on G16 that is DVB-S2 and yesterday locked the RTV group of channels on AMC3 that are 8PSK DVB-S2

Are you getting a dependable lock on the RTV mux? I had been hesitant to mention those channels, but since you touched on the subject.... I'll be putting one of the new Sadoun 6 footers up this month as a portable install, initially for NASA on 72w until my 7.5' Perfect 10 can get planted ...

 

[Mr Tony]

yes a dependable lock (well dependable until I move the dish to another spot)

Its a pain sometimes to get them to lock in but once they're locked I havent had an issue

 

[bubba108]

really?
I guess my azbox must be magical then because I am getting both a feed mux on G16 that is DVB-S2 and yesterday locked the RTV group of channels on AMC3 that are 8PSK DVB-S2

My Q-box must be self realized cause I am getting a DVB-S2 feed mux on G-16 using a 42"/38" mini-bud.

 

[Mr Tony]

how are you getting DVB-S2 on the Q? The Q can't do DVB-S2.

 

[bubba108]

how are you getting DVB-S2 on the Q? The Q can't do DVB-S2.

I thought DVB-S2 was another way of saying HD or 4:2:2. Grief there are soooooo many-DVB-S2, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, DVB-C2, DVD (MPEG-2), VCD (MPEG-1), SD, HD, etc.
Oh no, what am I missing on G-16 due to my Q-box not getting DVB-S2???

 

[pro96]

ooooooh busted lol

 

[dashaund]

It really depends specifically on exactly what you're looking to receive, there's no really hard and fast rule on what a 6 footer can or can't get. Even on my 10 footer, I have stuff that BOOMS in and stuff that is difficult. I've only been messing around with my AZBox for a week, but I can testify that S2 is more difficult to receive than standard DVB-S. The rule of thumb is that if there is 2 degrees or less of separation between two or more satellites with signals on the same frequency band, you're going to need a larger dish with a tighter focus point to reject interference. I experienced this first hand on Ku when I was setting up my fixed dish for AMC 21 on 125. There are Ku sats on both 123 and 127, and it was a headache, even with my 90cm dish. To make things even more puzzling, 12180V on that satellite BOOMS in with a 90+ quality reading, while on 12140V I get about 75ish. Why? Because 127 has a HughesNet feed at 12140V...the same frequency and polarity. Basically, with my 90cm dish, if I move it an inch in any direction, I lose the signal, even though the 12180V signal comes in even with the dish off slightly. Would a larger dish give me a stronger signal strength? Yes. But I'm not that worried about it because I'm getting a reliable signal.