My New Dish Farm

[iBoston]

Following your lead, today I installed an offset circular LNB on my motorized dish. I have now scanned in 537 TV and 173 radio channels from 31 transponders on 91W Nimiq 6. Likely they are all scrambled but I will go through them now to check. I used 95W to get the dish pointed then used the 4 degree offset to position the circular LNB as you described. Now I will go looking for circular transponders.

When i did my last scan, there is only 1 channel that is ITC with a regular STB. The preview channel. There are a few audio only channels ITC with a Turbo8psk.

 

[iBoston]

Pictures as promised of the finish KU USALS satellite with a Universal KU and Circular KU LNBF.

 

[iBoston]

Well, thanks to some very helpful people on another forum, and a generous user, I am now able to lock and view FTA DirectTV signals. DirectTV signals won't even lock on most Tuners. Then, there are other tuners where you can lock the signal, but you cannot get any DATA from the Tuner. Then there is a combination of software you must use. In another words, there is nothing about this process that is Easy Peezey.

But, once you get it all working properly, then its pretty smooth to check all the transponders and SIDS.

 

[comfortably_numb]

Well, thanks to some very helpful people on another forum, and a generous user, I am now able to lock and view FTA DirectTV signals. DirectTV signals won't even lock on most Tuners. Then, there are other tuners where you can lock the signal, but you cannot get any DATA from the Tuner. Then there is a combination of software you must use. In another words, there is nothing about this process that is Easy Peezey.

But, once you get it all working properly, then its pretty smooth to check all the transponders and SIDS.

View attachment 145583

What's available FTA on Directv's sats currently?

 

[iBoston]

What's available FTA on Directv's sats currently?

Sent PM

 

[iBoston]

I bought two more 99cm KU satellites.

I am going to set up one fixed at 34.5w
The other I'm not sure yet. I bought 2 because it was a savings with shipping multi discount.

I might also add i salvaged a DirecTV dish with LNBF and all. Maybe someone can chime in, how can i verify whether its for the KU signals or the KA signals or are they always for both??? - I thought it would be perfect to fix it at 101w so i can pick up the FTA/ITC direcTV channels.

 

[Mr_Dc2tracker]

I bought two more 99cm KU satellites.

I am going to set up one fixed at 34.5w
The other I'm not sure yet. I bought 2 because it was a savings with shipping multi discount.

I might also add i salvaged a DirecTV dish with LNBF and all. Maybe someone can chime in, how can i verify whether its for the KU signals or the KA signals or are they always for both??? - I thought it would be perfect to fix it at 101w so i can pick up the FTA/ITC direcTV channels.

What is the numbers on your direct TV LNB? That will say it all! All's good iboston.... Well done my friend....

 

[iBoston]

Update. I have two dishes which are out of whack. One is my USALS that i think rotated on the poll, the other is one of my fixed dishes, which is probably a wiring/multi-switch issue. Both, i cannot deal with until spring as its -3F outside, windy and snow up to my eyebrows!

I also have two NEW 99cm dishes i bought last summer and didn't install, because i couldn't decide what satellite to point at.

I'm pretty sure i want one pointed at 34.5w I tried to make a sidecar lnbf work off my 30w fixed, but couldn't get a good enough signal to lock, probably because it's a smaller dish.

Its kinda a double edge sword. I get really into FTA during the winter when I'm locked in the house and cannot make outside changes. But then when its summer and i can work on the outdoor stuff, I'm too busy with other projects that need to get done.

 

[iBoston]

I got up on the storage container today and fixed 95w KU. It was human error, back last October, i disconnected it from the switch to test something else, and never hooked it back up. I had to wait for the snow to melt so i could get to the switches again. Screwed the coax in, and wala, 95w is back in business.. I noticed it in the middle of winter when i wanted to turn to the CGTN Documentary channel... Nice to have it back again.

Looking forward to setting up my 2 99cm dishes probably in the next couple months.

 

[mr_rye89]

I’m surprised you can get 30/34.5w, I might try 30w but I May be too far west and on the wrong side of the mountains.

I pretty well have a dish farm in my front yard now lol

 

[iBoston]

I’m surprised you can get 30/34.5w, I might try 30w but I May be too far west and on the wrong side of the mountains.

I pretty well have a dish farm in my front yard now lol

I'm lucky i can get 34.5w .. Via the Carribean beam, There is this swath of foot print that runs up through north central US touching Canada. Lucky me. I can also get the Chinese Radio Mux on 45w thanks to the US & Europe & Africa beam.... Not worth putting up a dish just for 45w, as there is only one English speaking radio channel... But, i do listen to it here and there via my USALS KU dish.

But, i do plan on putting up a fixed 99cm dish for 34.5w as there are LOTS of channels on that bird, all in Spanish... However, there is Radio Nostalgia which i listen to ALOT that is mostly american music with a little bit of french music. I really like the music that plays on that channel. I figure since my USALS pretty much sat on 34.5w the entire winter, that pretty much guaranteed one of my 2 new dishes being allocated to it.

 

[iBoston]

Okay, i hooked up one of my 99cm dishes today and aligned it to 34.5w. I welded the mount to the storage container and quickly found the satellite and locked the signals and dialed it in. For now, i just quickly stole a diseqc position to test it.

Tomorrow - I will hook up the multi switch so that i can feed 34.5w properly into my cable network.

I am getting good at this.... Once I am all done, ill post picture of the new dish.

I am quite happy with 34.5. It has lots of channels (Spanish) and some good radio music channels and they are all in the low band which is kinda unique on our side of the Hemisphere.

On another note, i attempted to re-lock 101w for DirecTV on my USALS. Not sure why, but i was unable to lock it. I may just hook in a directTV antenna i pulled out of the trash and see if i can get the DirecTV signal on that antenna and take it off the USALS.

Now i need to figure out where my second 99cm will be dedicated too....

 

[iBoston]

Here is an updated pic of my fixed KU/Cband

 

[iBoston]

Here are pics of the new fixed dish for 34.5w - I am within the Caribbean footprint and adds well over 20+ channels and 20+ music channels.

SatMaximum Dish pointed at 34.5 with a Universal KU.

Welded to the storage container.

 

[c-spand]

Wow that is pointed way down. What elevation do you have on that?

 

[iBoston]

Wow that is pointed way down. What elevation do you have on that?

For 30w, the elevation is 12 degrees.
For 34.5w, the elevation is 15 degrees.

 

[iBoston]

I don't know why i never did this before, but i created a new 'bouquet' and named it Fixed Arc, and added one channel from every single fixed LNBF. So, it runs through all the satellites and circular/linear lnbfs. This allows me to quickly run through and see if anything is not working.

It's 17 channels

30 KU
34.5 KU
87 KU
91 Cband
91 KU Linear
91 KU Circular
95 KU
97 Cband
97 KU
99 KU
101 KU
103 KU
110 KU Circular [Signal Lock Only] - Actual Channels Utilized via DCII STB
111 KU Linear [Signal Lock Only] - Actual Channels Utilized via DCII STB
125 CBAND
125 KU
131 CBAND

I haven't done it yet, but i am going to name the channels by the diseqc 1.0/1.1 and 22khz setting. So, something like 34.5w 3:9:OFF

 

[c-spand]

Great set up. From what i read it is very tricky to get anything under 10 elevation.

 

[iBoston]

Great set up. From what i read it is very tricky to get anything under 10 elevation.

I have locked 22w with my Cband which would be an elevation of 7.1 degrees.

 

[c-spand]

wow. are you on a mountain?