Got to recently try out the Sadoun monoblock. If you don't know, a monoblock is 2 LNB's together with an internal switch. This monoblock is normally for 4 degrees difference for LNB's but there has been a 6 degree model in Europe. First thing I noticed is the LNB is very light. Also the 2 LNB's the "eyes" are a little squished to get the 4 degree spacing. Checked everything out and hooked it up. The LNB has a 20mm throat but also has the adapter to use in your normal 40mm LNB holders. It is a Universal so you have to set up your receiver for a Universal if you normally use a Standard LNB.
The first dish I tried was the Primestar dish since it was nearby. The dish was on 91 already so I figured 91/95 or 91/87. One LNB is aimed right down the arm and the 2nd LNB is offset so the thing to remember is the offset may not give as good results as the one that is straight down the arm. Got 91 locked in but 95 wouldn't come in very well. I have a feeling it has to do with the Primestar focal points. (they seem to be closer together than normal)
So then I tired it on my 36" dish at G10. Figured G10/127. Now there isnt anything FTA on 127 but there are some data transponders to lock. Plugged in the LNB and locked on G10...BAM...all TP's just as good as the Sadoun dual I had on there. Then tried 127 and the data TP's all read pretty well. The way to adjust it is to lock on your "main" satellite and then adjust the monoblock up and down to optimize signal on the 2nd satellite
So now lets try a couple satellites that actually have stuff on them
Swung the dish to 97 and went to lock 97 & 101. Since 97 is weaker I used that as the "main" LNB and 101 as the offset. This took some tweaking as I would get 97 in but 101 seemed to be a little weak. Barely moved the dish west and go 101 to respectable numbers and 97 was just fine. All TP's around 60 with a couple near 70. 101 was pretty good too. 3ABN was at 90-93 and the weaker mux (the one with Gospel Music on) was around 60. Swapped the LNB around and now we're working on 93 & 97. Again 97 was fine but 93 was real weak. This is a drawback over 2 separate LNB's and you can't separate them. If the satellites are more than 4 degrees apart due to float you have to compensate. So I moved the dish east and got 93 in real well but 97 was really weak. One TP was non existent and a couple were really weak. So I locked on 97 and took a chance on 93. CBS News was around 50 and Doc Scott was around 45 (but Doc Scott seems to fluctuate greatly. Later in the day it was at 65). Macy's was at 60 which was a little low.
The last pair I tried was 91 & 87. This one was tough as 87 seems to be the weaker one so I put that as the "main" and 91 as the offset. 87 was nice and good with Montana PBS at 65 and the PBS mux around 55. 91 gave decent results as the test cards were at 55 and there was a feed that registered a 68. The same feed on my 30" motorized registered at 72 so its real close. For me this would be where I'll end up keeping it.
Some of the features of the monoblock are
-all in one casing
-internal switch so no exposed switches
-one cable attached to get both LNB's
-lightweight
-will accept both a 20mm and a 40mm LNB
-easy to work with
-.4 noise rating
Couple issues that I ran into
-Its a Universal LNB and has a Diseqc switch internally. This is not good for folks with multiple dish setups. You are limited to just that. Unless you have a receiver that can support Diseqc 1.1 where you can cascade diseqc switches, you're limited on this. Since we don't really need Universals here in the US, hopefully in the future they make a standard version with a 22k switch to switch between the 2 LNB's so it can be used in a multiple dish setup
-you're very limited on adjustments that you can make. And since the satellites in the sky may not be truly at 4 degrees apart, you may have issues where you have to compensate a stronger satellite to get a weaker one. The only issue I had was 97/93. Your mileage may vary but I'm thinking because 93 is my true south, there is a lot of satellites in that vicinity so that may be part of it. Like I said, I got good results on 97/101 & 87/91
All and all this is a really nice LNB and would go great for someone who wants 2 satellites 4 degrees apart and doesn't want to worry about external switches. Sadoun does carry both a single and a Twin version.
The first dish I tried was the Primestar dish since it was nearby. The dish was on 91 already so I figured 91/95 or 91/87. One LNB is aimed right down the arm and the 2nd LNB is offset so the thing to remember is the offset may not give as good results as the one that is straight down the arm. Got 91 locked in but 95 wouldn't come in very well. I have a feeling it has to do with the Primestar focal points. (they seem to be closer together than normal)
So then I tired it on my 36" dish at G10. Figured G10/127. Now there isnt anything FTA on 127 but there are some data transponders to lock. Plugged in the LNB and locked on G10...BAM...all TP's just as good as the Sadoun dual I had on there. Then tried 127 and the data TP's all read pretty well. The way to adjust it is to lock on your "main" satellite and then adjust the monoblock up and down to optimize signal on the 2nd satellite
So now lets try a couple satellites that actually have stuff on them
Swung the dish to 97 and went to lock 97 & 101. Since 97 is weaker I used that as the "main" LNB and 101 as the offset. This took some tweaking as I would get 97 in but 101 seemed to be a little weak. Barely moved the dish west and go 101 to respectable numbers and 97 was just fine. All TP's around 60 with a couple near 70. 101 was pretty good too. 3ABN was at 90-93 and the weaker mux (the one with Gospel Music on) was around 60. Swapped the LNB around and now we're working on 93 & 97. Again 97 was fine but 93 was real weak. This is a drawback over 2 separate LNB's and you can't separate them. If the satellites are more than 4 degrees apart due to float you have to compensate. So I moved the dish east and got 93 in real well but 97 was really weak. One TP was non existent and a couple were really weak. So I locked on 97 and took a chance on 93. CBS News was around 50 and Doc Scott was around 45 (but Doc Scott seems to fluctuate greatly. Later in the day it was at 65). Macy's was at 60 which was a little low.
The last pair I tried was 91 & 87. This one was tough as 87 seems to be the weaker one so I put that as the "main" and 91 as the offset. 87 was nice and good with Montana PBS at 65 and the PBS mux around 55. 91 gave decent results as the test cards were at 55 and there was a feed that registered a 68. The same feed on my 30" motorized registered at 72 so its real close. For me this would be where I'll end up keeping it.
Some of the features of the monoblock are
-all in one casing
-internal switch so no exposed switches
-one cable attached to get both LNB's
-lightweight
-will accept both a 20mm and a 40mm LNB
-easy to work with
-.4 noise rating
Couple issues that I ran into
-Its a Universal LNB and has a Diseqc switch internally. This is not good for folks with multiple dish setups. You are limited to just that. Unless you have a receiver that can support Diseqc 1.1 where you can cascade diseqc switches, you're limited on this. Since we don't really need Universals here in the US, hopefully in the future they make a standard version with a 22k switch to switch between the 2 LNB's so it can be used in a multiple dish setup
-you're very limited on adjustments that you can make. And since the satellites in the sky may not be truly at 4 degrees apart, you may have issues where you have to compensate a stronger satellite to get a weaker one. The only issue I had was 97/93. Your mileage may vary but I'm thinking because 93 is my true south, there is a lot of satellites in that vicinity so that may be part of it. Like I said, I got good results on 97/101 & 87/91
All and all this is a really nice LNB and would go great for someone who wants 2 satellites 4 degrees apart and doesn't want to worry about external switches. Sadoun does carry both a single and a Twin version.
