New to FTA- have Super Dish 121W

[Elektrobot]

Hey everyone,

I got pretty lucky tonight- my neighbor who I mentioned an interest in FTA to a few days ago, stopped past and asked if I wanted a satellite dish. I said heck yeah, and ran over to his house to pick it up. Apparently, his son used to be a dish installer, and he had a Super Dish 121W sitting in his garage, still in the box.

Being that I am completely new to FTA, I would like to start out with this dish- and use it to its fullest extent- although I realize it will be limited because of its lack of C Band reception. I figured I might as well go ahead and build a mast with a positioner so that I can get the most out of this thing.

I would like to use a PC card and computer as a receiver, just to keep things cheap and compact to get up and going with, but it looks like the pc cards can not position a dish....so maybe I will go with a STB Receiver.

Any suggestions on how to get the most out of this dish would be greatly appreciated. I have used satfinder for my location of 46807, but I can not tell which sats are Ku.

Thanks to everyone for the info contributed here. I have really enjoyed looking through the FTA topics.

 

[digiblur]

PC cards can move a dish but PC cards are hell to point a dish with. Pickup a cheap set top box and slave the PC card behind it if you want.

 

[WyrTwister]

Hey everyone,

I got pretty lucky tonight- my neighbor who I mentioned an interest in FTA to a few days ago, stopped past and asked if I wanted a satellite dish. I said heck yeah, and ran over to his house to pick it up. Apparently, his son used to be a dish installer, and he had a Super Dish 121W sitting in his garage, still in the box.

Being that I am completely new to FTA, I would like to start out with this dish- and use it to its fullest extent- although I realize it will be limited because of its lack of C Band reception. I figured I might as well go ahead and build a mast with a positioner so that I can get the most out of this thing.

I would like to use a PC card and computer as a receiver, just to keep things cheap and compact to get up and going with, but it looks like the pc cards can not position a dish....so maybe I will go with a STB Receiver.

Any suggestions on how to get the most out of this dish would be greatly appreciated. I have used satfinder for my location of 46807, but I can not tell which sats are Ku.

Thanks to everyone for the info contributed here. I have really enjoyed looking through the FTA topics.

The newest version of My Theater has the USALS feature . If you do the PC card , download the free trial version . It will play a channel for 1 hour before it quits .

Then you can decide if you want the full version .

But a Set Top Box is easier . If nothing else , check ebay for a used receiver . Be sure it has USALS support and having blind / smart scan is a bonus .

Also buy a cheap satellite signal meter .

Wyr

 

[Tron]

The Superdish, while capable of receiving linear Ku FTA, has some limitations. Its vertical axis is somewhat undersized, and the stock Ku LNB is stacked, which means that all of the transponders are sent down from the LNB on one polarity (vertical, I think?).... This should present no problem if you are using a blind scan receiver. If not, you'll have to do a lot of math as you edit your transponder lists

If you use this dish for FTA, be sure to connect to the linear LNB, which is the one in the center under the shroud....

 

[Anole]

IvyStonePlace still lists the DMS Traxis 3500 receiver for $70.
It's got blind scan.
Only fault, is that it doesn't get the sound on PBS (Dolby Digital 5.1)
Couple of other models for $80, but I can't comment on them.

Searching around the other day, I did find one other dealer with the same price on the 3500.
He primarily sold RV equipment.
Gave me a good laugh!
Everyone else sells it for substantially more.

One of our supporters (advertizers) has a Fortec Star 5400 for $100.
It has blind scan and working AC3 (Dolby Digital output)
Others will have to comment on this one, as I have a different model by Fortec.


As for buying used receivers, or off eBay, I suggest you proceed with caution.
There's a lot of no-name crap out there, and the unwary can get stung.
If you don't know what you're doing, post back here with what you find and let us offer some feedback.
You might also check the classified postings here (private sales by members) but the same rule applies.

Using a SuperDish 121 isn't what I'd recommend to a beginner, but since you've got one, by all means use it to get started.
Start out with it fixed, not motorized, to gain some experience.
Mounting it chest-high, out in your back yard, will make setup a lot easier.
You want it somewhere you can bring the receiver and a monitor out to it, for initial aiming.

I have to agree with the comments above, that getting a computer-based PCI card or USB receiver going for the first time, it a real up-hill battle.
If you're thinking it'll save money, you'll pay for it in a lot of grief.

I've used MyTheatre in the past, and the trial version is (was) quite unstable and frustrating.
Getting it set up is a real drama - you'll need to do a lot of reading to get familiar with the settings.
And in the end, it's probably worth it. I was able to get it running quite well

DVBdream is the only other software I'd suggest, if you insist on going this way.
It's free, quite sophisticated, and well-liked.
If MyTheatre is the Cadillac of the industry, then DVBdream is probably the Saturn.

If you were thinking of a computer-based card because it might let you record shows or make DVDs, let me suggest another way to go.
Here's a recently reviewed receiver, which has the blind scan, and can use an external USB hard drive, to save your programs.
By hooking the hard drive to your computer, you can make DVDs.
I think one of our supporters has it in packages with dishes and other equipment, or alone.

And as always, a lot of reading of this forum will give you a great education.

_____________________
Invacom SNH-031, SKY Mexico DVB321-3, Fortec 36", Mercury II, Satpros DSR500s, Twinhan 102g & StarBox
Thanks to Sadoun & SatelliteAV for good deals, & SatelliteGuys for good reviews.
quote=brentb636: My wife glares at me when the UPS truck shows up.

 

[Elektrobot]

Thanks for all the great info. The only reason I was thinking of going with a PC card is because I thought it would be easier-...Glad I asked first!

I know this super dish wont be optimum for FTA, but hopefully it will get me up and going.

Tron- Thanks for letting me know which LNB to use, I was concerned that i would have to buy a linear LNB.

I'll report back with any success, but most likely, it will be just more questions for awhile.

 

[WyrTwister]

Thanks for all the great info. The only reason I was thinking of going with a PC card is because I thought it would be easier-...Glad I asked first!

I know this super dish wont be optimum for FTA, but hopefully it will get me up and going.

Tron- Thanks for letting me know which LNB to use, I was concerned that i would have to buy a linear LNB.

I'll report back with any success, but most likely, it will be just more questions for awhile.

I have used a PCI card and MyTheatre for several years . It is a learning experience .

A Set Top Box is easier . I have done that for several years to , just not quite so long .

If you want to play with HD , on the cheap , the PCI card will do it , on a fast PC .

Wyr