Update:
Took the plunge today. Ordered the Ivacom, SG2100 and Winegard 2076 from PSB. Bought a Coolsat on Ebay.
Took the plunge today. Ordered the Ivacom, SG2100 and Winegard 2076 from PSB. Bought a Coolsat on Ebay.
My FTA Project
- Thread starter W_Tracy_Parnell
- Start date
- Latest activity Latest activity:
- Replies 80
- Views 10K
- Status
why is it everytime someone pulls out a chainsaw I have the song "Lumberjack" by Jackyl go through my head
best use of a chainsaw in a song
best use of a chainsaw in a song
Update
Got my first shipment of gear today from PSB. I don't have the receiver yet so I can't test anything, but in the speed department he ranks high. I ordered Monday and took delivery today-not bad at all!
Newbie first impressions-I couldn't believe how heavy the motor was and how small the Invacom LNB was. I guess all those closeup photos of the Invacom threw me off. The Winegard is a really nice dish and obviously well-made. Not that heavy either so it will be easy to work alone.
A couple of questions:
I am using the second largest LNB ring that comes with the dish. Does that seem right?
Also, do I HAVE to set motor limits on the motor? What would they be for my zip?
Thanks
Got my first shipment of gear today from PSB. I don't have the receiver yet so I can't test anything, but in the speed department he ranks high. I ordered Monday and took delivery today-not bad at all!
Newbie first impressions-I couldn't believe how heavy the motor was and how small the Invacom LNB was. I guess all those closeup photos of the Invacom threw me off. The Winegard is a really nice dish and obviously well-made. Not that heavy either so it will be easy to work alone.
A couple of questions:
I am using the second largest LNB ring that comes with the dish. Does that seem right?
Also, do I HAVE to set motor limits on the motor? What would they be for my zip?
Thanks
The LNBF has a 40mm neck, 2nd ring sounds about right, you will soon know!
The motor has physical limit switches and the limits can also be set on your receiver.
After setting the dish and motor up its good idea to motor manually east and west to make sure you are not hitting anything. (There is button under the motor)
The motor has physical limit switches and the limits can also be set on your receiver.
After setting the dish and motor up its good idea to motor manually east and west to make sure you are not hitting anything. (There is button under the motor)
I think I'll set them on the receiver first. Taking the motor apart doesn't sound like something I want to do right now.
BTW, thanks again for your fast service! Price is right too.
BTW, thanks again for your fast service! Price is right too.
There's really no need to set limits unless there's something that's physically going to get in the way of the dish movement (as Iceberg's roof situation)...
Day One of FTA
Well day one was an unqualified failure.
Got the Coolsat today. First, I plugged into a Dish 500. As expected, I got lots of channels-most of them scrambled of course. I must of had GOL TV-lots of soccer. After convincing myself that the receiver was working ok I soon got bored and decided to try one of the old poles from previous installs shown in the photos at the beginning of this thread. One was in cement and one was just stuck in the ground (Dish Network-nice install) so I figured try the sturdier of the two.
I noticed a couple of branches that needed to be removed on the famous "Parnell trees" so I got a step ladder which was all I could find. Promptly fell off the ladder and left a nice mark on my arm. Got a rope and threw one end over the branches and then hooked it to my truck-one of the few things that worked. Got rid of the branches ok. Went ahead and started mounting the dish and motor on the pole and got just about done when I realized a tree was going to possibly hit the LNB. So scrap that idea.
Went over to the pole that is just stuck in the ground and setup the dish and motor on that. I had already set the angles on the motor and dish the day before. Went into setup and tried to setup AMC 5 (true south) I got about 70 signal but quality went up and down from 5 to about 45. Decided to run a blind scan on the sat and came up with one channel-"12 News" was the program-they were talking about the economy. But it kept cutting in and out. Went into the "Motorized Setting" screen and had everything setup (I think) but "Antenna Position" and had no concept what to put there. While I was trying to figure it out the system locked up for some reason so I powered off. When I turned it back on I couldn't get a menu or anything.
Decided to take the motor off and aim for some single sats but it got dark and I gave up. I brought the receiver in where I could see something and played around with the remote. I hit the "TV/Sat" button and I was back in business so I must have hit the wrong key in the dark. Try again tomorrow on one sat at a time until I know what I am doing.
Well day one was an unqualified failure.
Got the Coolsat today. First, I plugged into a Dish 500. As expected, I got lots of channels-most of them scrambled of course. I must of had GOL TV-lots of soccer. After convincing myself that the receiver was working ok I soon got bored and decided to try one of the old poles from previous installs shown in the photos at the beginning of this thread. One was in cement and one was just stuck in the ground (Dish Network-nice install) so I figured try the sturdier of the two.
I noticed a couple of branches that needed to be removed on the famous "Parnell trees" so I got a step ladder which was all I could find. Promptly fell off the ladder and left a nice mark on my arm. Got a rope and threw one end over the branches and then hooked it to my truck-one of the few things that worked. Got rid of the branches ok. Went ahead and started mounting the dish and motor on the pole and got just about done when I realized a tree was going to possibly hit the LNB. So scrap that idea.
Went over to the pole that is just stuck in the ground and setup the dish and motor on that. I had already set the angles on the motor and dish the day before. Went into setup and tried to setup AMC 5 (true south) I got about 70 signal but quality went up and down from 5 to about 45. Decided to run a blind scan on the sat and came up with one channel-"12 News" was the program-they were talking about the economy. But it kept cutting in and out. Went into the "Motorized Setting" screen and had everything setup (I think) but "Antenna Position" and had no concept what to put there. While I was trying to figure it out the system locked up for some reason so I powered off. When I turned it back on I couldn't get a menu or anything.
Decided to take the motor off and aim for some single sats but it got dark and I gave up. I brought the receiver in where I could see something and played around with the remote. I hit the "TV/Sat" button and I was back in business so I must have hit the wrong key in the dark. Try again tomorrow on one sat at a time until I know what I am doing.
Things are going along better since I ditched the motor. The pole was too wobbly and this is just a test location anyway.
Tried AMC 3 and hit some international stuff. Went to IA6 and got some great news feeds and CNN. Bunch of encrypted stuff from adjacent Nimiq (as Iceberg pointed out).
Much more testing and learning to do. BTW, major breakthrough last night-got rid of the Coolsat password-wow was that annoying.
Tried AMC 3 and hit some international stuff. Went to IA6 and got some great news feeds and CNN. Bunch of encrypted stuff from adjacent Nimiq (as Iceberg pointed out).
Much more testing and learning to do. BTW, major breakthrough last night-got rid of the Coolsat password-wow was that annoying.
Decided to try for some new sats today (not many news feeds to watch) and finally got on IA5 and got about 80 channels. Saw the SatGuys ad. I decided to try the motor again but no luck-wobbly pole makes it like the whole assembly is doing a dance or something. Even tried to lock on IA6 and couldn't do that.
Big thunderstorms came through so I took a break. Went out later and started to setup a "pallet system" that I can drag around and test near the spot I think will work best for permanent pole mount. Took a break to have dinner and then more thunderstorms so I am probably done today and I am between setups so no FTA tonight unless it clears off quick.
Big thunderstorms came through so I took a break. Went out later and started to setup a "pallet system" that I can drag around and test near the spot I think will work best for permanent pole mount. Took a break to have dinner and then more thunderstorms so I am probably done today and I am between setups so no FTA tonight unless it clears off quick.
The weather is not looking good for you : (
http://www.intellicast.com/Local/USNationalWide.asp?loc=usa&seg=LocalWeather&prodgrp=RadarImagery&product=RadarLoop&prodnav=none
http://www.intellicast.com/Local/USNationalWide.asp?loc=usa&seg=LocalWeather&prodgrp=RadarImagery&product=RadarLoop&prodnav=none
I know.
We have been having a drought and I told my wife, "You want some rain? I'll get an FTA system and I guarantee it will rain for a month since I need a tv and my receiver outside to point the dish". Looks like its coming true. I really shouldn't complain though-we need rain it's just horribly dry here.
We have been having a drought and I told my wife, "You want some rain? I'll get an FTA system and I guarantee it will rain for a month since I need a tv and my receiver outside to point the dish". Looks like its coming true. I really shouldn't complain though-we need rain it's just horribly dry here.
PSB said:
I noticed some channels were breaking up so I was probably not "maxed out" on that sat. Still learning, just not fast enough to suit me.
snathanb said:
Really Need Advice
Went out last night (until 1:30 am) after the rain finally stopped an tried the pallet idea-couldn't get a thing. Went out this morning and hit IA5 by mistake (going for IA6). Spent about 3 hours trying to get IA6 back-no dice. I am very frustrated right now and would kill just to have IA6 back.
Here is what I am wondering. All I am trying to do now is get a couple of birds, have some fun and learn what I am doing while deciding on a final dish loaction and if I want to try the install myself or get a pro. One old pole I have now is stable and it is plum (got my Johnson angle finder and checked it). I could use this as a temporary locale but not permanent because of trees.
Questions:
What if I mount the motor and use that to drive the dish around to try and hit birds? Is there any way to change elevation/azimuth using the Coolsat only (I know about the buttons but they are hard to reach).
What is the best spot for the LNB? I have it as far away from the dish as it will go with the cable connection pointing down.
Also, say I do hit a sat such as IA6 with the motor mounted. Is there anyway at that point to get everything else dialed in even though IA6 is not my true south.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Went out last night (until 1:30 am) after the rain finally stopped an tried the pallet idea-couldn't get a thing. Went out this morning and hit IA5 by mistake (going for IA6). Spent about 3 hours trying to get IA6 back-no dice. I am very frustrated right now and would kill just to have IA6 back.
Here is what I am wondering. All I am trying to do now is get a couple of birds, have some fun and learn what I am doing while deciding on a final dish loaction and if I want to try the install myself or get a pro. One old pole I have now is stable and it is plum (got my Johnson angle finder and checked it). I could use this as a temporary locale but not permanent because of trees.
Questions:
What if I mount the motor and use that to drive the dish around to try and hit birds? Is there any way to change elevation/azimuth using the Coolsat only (I know about the buttons but they are hard to reach).
What is the best spot for the LNB? I have it as far away from the dish as it will go with the cable connection pointing down.
Also, say I do hit a sat such as IA6 with the motor mounted. Is there anyway at that point to get everything else dialed in even though IA6 is not my true south.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
I would still work away without the motor for now, trying different locations logging the satellites you can pick up from each. Then pick the site with the most satellites of interest.
The LNB is usually best as far away from the dish as possible, but try moving it closer and watch the signal quality, if it gets worse move it back. Remember if you are aiming at satellites other than your true south you will also have to rotate the LNB (skew) for each satellite you are on.
Yes you can use another satellite other than a true south, USALS over to the satellite position then aim the motor dish and all until you hit the satellite and get the most signal quality you can get. You may have to move the dish elevation slightly but the motor angle (if set right) should not be moved.
The LNB is usually best as far away from the dish as possible, but try moving it closer and watch the signal quality, if it gets worse move it back. Remember if you are aiming at satellites other than your true south you will also have to rotate the LNB (skew) for each satellite you are on.
Yes you can use another satellite other than a true south, USALS over to the satellite position then aim the motor dish and all until you hit the satellite and get the most signal quality you can get. You may have to move the dish elevation slightly but the motor angle (if set right) should not be moved.
Yeah that was what I figured at first too but 3 hours trying to "ghetto move" got to me. I have it setup with the motor again so I might play around with that for awhile. I have the angle on the motor at 42 and the dish a smidge above 23. Also, when you hit "move to 0 position" what does that do exactly? I just did a system reset so it should be at "ground zero" I would think.
Thanks for your help
Thanks for your help
PSB said:
Here's my current situation and (another) question.
I have IA6 back now using the motor setup. Since I couldn't find my true south (AMC 5) I motored to "0", and pointed the whole assembly near IA6 and then used Diseqc to nudge east and west until I got signal and then adjusted my elevation on the dish slightly.
What I want to know-is there any way I can now hit other sats without "losing my place" on IA6?
My dish elevation is supposed to be 23.5 and it is now at 24 so it is close.
I have IA6 back now using the motor setup. Since I couldn't find my true south (AMC 5) I motored to "0", and pointed the whole assembly near IA6 and then used Diseqc to nudge east and west until I got signal and then adjusted my elevation on the dish slightly.
What I want to know-is there any way I can now hit other sats without "losing my place" on IA6?
My dish elevation is supposed to be 23.5 and it is now at 24 so it is close.
The problem is that your motor is not tracking the arc properly now. The motor will not work properly (hit any other satellites) unless it is on the arc.
If you really want to set the motor up right now, what I would do is move the motor to '0' using the button on the motor itself. Do a factory reset of the receiver to get rid of any settings that might mess you up. After you factory reset the receiver, use a paperclip to reset the motor (there's a hole right next to the LED for this). BE SURE the motor is at EXACTLY '0' before doing this.
Next, go to your receiver and set up IA6. For dish positioner setting, use USALS. Enter your latitude and longitude. SAVE and exit. Select IA6, and the motor should move to it. Then use the same method in my walk-through and slowly pan the entire dish/motor assembly left and right on the pole until you peak signal on IA6. Lock down the U-bolts gently, and you'll have the arc and be set for any other bird you can hit (provided no tree blockage of course...)
It's still best to use your true south satellite for this, since it is directly in the middle of your arc and any errors in peaking will not be amplified to the extreme east or west end of the arc.
If you really want to set the motor up right now, what I would do is move the motor to '0' using the button on the motor itself. Do a factory reset of the receiver to get rid of any settings that might mess you up. After you factory reset the receiver, use a paperclip to reset the motor (there's a hole right next to the LED for this). BE SURE the motor is at EXACTLY '0' before doing this.
Next, go to your receiver and set up IA6. For dish positioner setting, use USALS. Enter your latitude and longitude. SAVE and exit. Select IA6, and the motor should move to it. Then use the same method in my walk-through and slowly pan the entire dish/motor assembly left and right on the pole until you peak signal on IA6. Lock down the U-bolts gently, and you'll have the arc and be set for any other bird you can hit (provided no tree blockage of course...)
It's still best to use your true south satellite for this, since it is directly in the middle of your arc and any errors in peaking will not be amplified to the extreme east or west end of the arc.
- Status
