Question about installation

[McGuyver]

Well, it seems that the LNB is not bad (I found no shorts and there was different readings from pos-center to neg-side and vice versa).

Sadly, I'm going to start removing everything (including the pole that I had to put in the backyard).

I would like to thank all of you for your patience and guidance, but it just wasn't meant to be. It was too much time invested with no results so my wife has demanded that I cut my loses.

Thanks you for all the help!

Why would you want to give up so easily? after all the investment, you have one last thing to check before throwing in the towel. have you verified that your receiver is working correctly? Receivers can appear to work, they can boot up, navigate the menu, etc., but if the LNB voltage tap on the power supply is smoked then you won't get any signal. This occurs when you've make and break LNB coax connections without turning the stb power off. I have repaired 2 stb's due to this because 2 of my friend's played around with their dishes and then called me to rescue them. If you have another stb or access to one, try it!
EDIT: Most power supplies can be repaired easily. Capacitors blow easily when you don't power off the stb.

 

[Ironsides]

Don't give up!

Yes please don't give up you have so much invested to let the thing beat you. My wife sounds a lot as yours; she gets very unhappy when I try a hobby. I told her that I could mess with my satellite dish in my yard or be like a lot of husbands and do things that took me from home. She dropped the subject because I told her I really enjoyed this hobby although at times it can be flustrating.

Just recently I tried to setup a Primestar dish and dude I was wound like a rubber band over that thing. I knew dang well I had the thing on a Satellite according to my meter. When I would come inside to do a blind scan I got no signal q at all...checked transponders, doubted my settings everything.

I stuck with it and although I landed on a Satellite I did not intend to get on at least I got it on one and felt a huge sense of relief! Sadly though Now I have to go back and move it again! HAhaha to get it on the one I Did intend!

 

[jivv]

Hi Mcguyver,

Would it be possible to have an issue with the receiver if I can still get the DishNetwork Channels (scrambled, but I still get them) with a DirecTV antenna that I have on the roof?.

 

[McGuyver]

Hi Mcguyver,

Would it be possible to have an issue with the receiver if I can still get the DishNetwork Channels (scrambled, but I still get them) with a DirecTV antenna that I have on the roof?.

Not likely, if it works for DSS signals it should work for linear as well. you're comparing 2 different dishes and 2 diff' signal types, DSS are very strong and easy to lock on. chances are it's only a matter of dish alignment especially if it's a motorized setup. It took me about a week to setup my first motor, had a lot to learn and understanding the concept was very crucial. Now it's a breeze, I just setup another motor 2 days ago and it was easy as 123. If you understand what to do and set it right it should be close enough to get some signals to work with. Don't give up, you're too close for that!

 

[ynnedibanez]

if i was you, i would try to point the dish without the motor first.
crawl before you walk, or do addition before you do algebra, so to speak
try removing the motor completely, and point it at a satellite, then scan in your channels, then try another.
this way you can familiarize yourself with this setup before doing the more complicated task of installing the motor.

 

[guapoharry]

The OP needs a little success to build confidence. I wouldn't worry about the motor until you know how to find a satellite.

I suspect the OP needs a little better luck in aiming.

1. With a known good strong transponder set on the receiver.
2. And while being able to see the Signal Strength and Signal Quality while aiming,
3. Start low and raise the dish where the LNBF goes up about a quarter of an inch at a time.

When you get close to the Clarke Belt, the Signal Strength will go up. As you keep aiming farther up, the strength will go back down. I don't know about your receiver. But the increase might be small (2-5 points, but it should be measurable) Don't worry about the quality yet.

Move the dish a little high and temporarily fix the elevation. Use that as a starting point.

Then, I would try the attached search box method.

Make small incremental movements and at some point, the quality will jump. Once you are close, make smaller adjustments.

When you get frustrated, my Macintosh buddy said what works for him is a Coke and a Smoke. That means when he gets frustrated, he takes a break. After he has a Coke and a Smoke, his perspective has changed and he's not so frustrated. With a fresh look on things and a chance to think about the situation, he will have a better outlook to solve the problem.

I don't smoke and I don't drink Coke, but it works for me too.

PS. Some people have success right away. For an hour at a time with lots of breaks in between, I had to try over for a week to aim my first Ku linear polarized satellite dish. (this was after setting up a Dish Network pizza dish, no problem) Now three years later, I have eight dishes approximately, in my back yard.

 

[Gary Z]

Does anyone live close to jivv? Maybe they could go and help him get his setup up and running. :

 

[mikelib]

Does anyone live close to jivv? Maybe they could go and help him get his setup up and running. :

jivv,

Where in Mass are you located???

Mikelib

 

[jivv]

Hi All,

Thank you for all the suggestions. I already took it apart (haven't removed the pole yet) so the wife stops complaining. I may order a new LNB just in case, but if I do any testing it would have to be next weekend (during weekdays is impossible for me).

I was checking the internal LNB diagram and the measurements I got from the Multitester seem accurate (output zener 0.6v forward, open circuit reverse) but that doesn't say to much about the gain stage. That part got me thinking because of the strength level never changed even though I was moving from my True South (AMC6) to Anik F3 and other satellites with strong transponders

I'll check with one of my co-workers to see if he has any comment on how to check if the gain stage of the LNB (he'll probably say that is not worth even waste the time on it and buy a new one).

I will give an update next week if I find anything. Thank you for all the help and support but if this thing is going to work I would have to do it myself (that is the whole purpose of this project) and not have someone else doing it for me.

Thanks!

 

[JerryVT]

Jivv,

I just set up a system this weekend north of you, using AMC6 as my true south. Don't get discouraged, it was not easy, and way harder than the old DirecTV setup I had. I reset to tru south three times and went over all of the settings multiple times before I figured out where I was off, which turned out to be a combination of a mis-setting in the receiver, a slight off on the motor elevation, and a slight off on the dish setting. I was suprised that it is literaly fractions of an inch between no and good signal, I to thought things were broken for a bit. I finally took a whole lot of directional bearings for galaxy 19 and amc 6, and kept working the motor between the two tweaking for four hours. After that I went to AMC21 and was still on the arc. Then I ran cable and moved everything inside.

My two suggestion for a newbie...

#1 Have a TV and receiver right next to the dish so you can see and hear the signal. It was the only way I could make it work.

#2 Don't try and rush it. It is really something you need ALOT of time to do. I have a background in electronics, etc. and my first time this weekend took 6 hours AFTER I had the equipment plumbed and assembled.

Tell the wife to relax, its a cheap hobby, better than drinking

 

[AcWxRadar]

Jivv,

I am confused as to the TPs that you are seeking. If you are searching for satellite 72.0°W AMC 6, I think that you should be utilizing the TPs 11891 H (SR 1666) and 12053 V (SR 6890). These are the KFTL-CA and NBC SAT MUX TPs, respectively.

Your setup and configuration seems correct for a Universal LNBF (9750/10600 for the L.O. frequency on a Universal LNBF).

Try these instead of 12068 V (SR 9755).

RADAR

 

[dougruss]

In this Pic, you have the LNB Skewed?
On a Motorized setup it is to be set at "0" .

 

[jivv]

Hi All,

I just wanted to give you guys an update. I put the whole system back together (day off, no wife in the house) and managed to find someone (from work) who I could borrow a LNB (Single) from. He also gave me one of his satellite finders. I tested his LNB and I was able to find my true South without an issue, then I switched LNBs and when I was moving my dish from west to east and there was practically no difference in tone at all (unlike the single one which was very pronounced). I was able to lock some satellites with his LNB but not with mine (I did the same exercise changing the setting from Universal to Single in the receiver when using mine but still nothing), so I called the vendor and he agreed to send me a replacement (I should have it by next week).

I'll play a little bit more with this thing during the weekend (nice weather finally). But I think now I'm on the right track.

Thank you for all the help and patience!

Ex-frustrated newbie

 

[turbosat]

Bummer, bad parts. At least you know how to do it now. You may want to grab a couple of lnbfs to keep for spares, I always have one or two stand-bys, never know when one might blowup!

 

[mikelib]

Hi All,

I just wanted to give you guys an update. I put the whole system back together (day off, no wife in the house) and managed to find someone (from work) who I could borrow a LNB (Single) from. He also gave me one of his satellite finders. I tested his LNB and I was able to find my true South without an issue, then I switched LNBs and when I was moving my dish from west to east and there was practically no difference in tone at all (unlike the single one which was very pronounced). I was able to lock some satellites with his LNB but not with mine (I did the same exercise changing the setting from Universal to Single in the receiver when using mine but still nothing), so I called the vendor and he agreed to send me a replacement (I should have it by next week).

I'll play a little bit more with this thing during the weekend (nice weather finally). But I think now I'm on the right track.

Thank you for all the help and patience!

Ex-frustrated newbie

Congratulations’, in this hobby patients and determination really count.