sathero satellite meter

[gardenman2002]

Hey everyone,
gardenman2002 here.

I just found ,hopefully a good deal on ebay. Sathero sh-200 for 129 plus 9 dollars shipping.

most places have them listed as $159, $169 dollars. Anyone own this meter? I just purchased it and it will be on its way.
Does anyone have any info on the id features the company claims. Such as instant id of Satellite ,and logging of transponders?

 

[KE4EST]

I have one and it works really well, so far that I have used it. Now as far as an instant ID of a satellite, not exactly. It is like have a receiver out at the dish. It comes programmed with most satellites an transponders. However say you are out just randomly swinging the dish around with a cheap analog meter and get a signal and then put this meter in-line it will not just read on the screen AMC-16(would be nice if it did at this price though). You still have to have your dish set up right etc. So say you want to peak in on a bird you can put it in-line tell it what bird you are aiming for(pre-programmed in transponder) and then adjust your dish and watch the meter and then it will lock if you have everything right. It will also scan in S1 channels on a particular Satellite. This feature is "cool" I guess but you can't watch TV.

You can edit it for any Transponder you want on the fly. It has paid for itself as far as I am concerned for the price. Nice that it also works on S2 signals.

If you have any questions about it let me know.

 

[eastof111]

I have one too. Like it very much. Saves me time lugging out the TV, receiver and extension cords every time I need to peek a dish. I also like the software that allows me to create my personalized sat list that I can upload to the meter. Glad I bought it.

 

[gardenman2002]

hey gardenman2002 here.

Thanks for the info. Im using an analog meter right now and its frustrating to tune it all in and get nothing, while installing multi-lnbf setups.

 

[donaldelee]

After purchasing a Sathero - 200, I am not able to find any information on how to connect it to a motorized dish with an Invacom QPH-031, The motor became ruined by wind stripping the gears on a motor with metal gears. And, I will have to replace the plastic which held the LNB on the end of the arm extending out, and pointing back to the dish, which is a 1.2. I have a SG2100 which I believe is capable of holding a dish of that size. My area code is: 62886, in south central Illinois. I was thinking I could simply remove the motor, and replace it. The Sathero - 200 is supposedly quite user friendly. I have watched the professional installer install my motorized dish several times, and believed I could reinstall this system easy enough; however, I am not able to obtain enough information at this time. I would like to thank everybody for all assistance, and consideration at this time.

Thanks!

 

[Stargazer]

I wonder how this compares to the First Strike (FS-1) meter.

 

[donaldelee]

From my research the Sathero - 200 is considerably less expensive. And, I understand that the Sathero is supposedly more user friendly. However, I am having a problem in obtaining enough information to hook it to the motorized dish.

 

[Stargazer]

I compared prices and see them for around $20 cheaper. It's a sleek looking machine.

 

[donaldelee]

Recently, I purchased a Sathero 200. I have a 90cm dish, Invacom QPH-031, and a Azbox Premium Plus. I would like to hook the meter up to peak the quality, and inquire about the capabilities of the meter.

1. Where would I install the meter?

2. Is it allright to have the receiver turned on?

 

[skysurfer]

Hook up the receiver directly to the LNB or LNBF (bypass the diseqc switch if you use one). A 6' piece of coax for a 1.2m or smaller FTA dish works great so you can have enough length to have the meter and do the adjustments at the rear of the dish while hooked up to the LNB/LNBF. Obviously you'd need a longer length if you are using a BUD.

once you've peaked up the dish, you can rehook-up the LNB/LNBF to the diseqc switch or to the receiver.

 

[skysurfer]

I have one and it works really well, so far that I have used it. Now as far as an instant ID of a satellite, not exactly. It is like have a receiver out at the dish.

I like it, too. It will lock anything no matter what format or modulation (not just DVB-S or DVB-S2 signals!). DVB-S2 is disappointing as the lock is "erratic" instead of solid so it's a lot harder to peak a dish using a DVB-S2 signal. Good news is that most sats have DVB-S or another format signal you can lock onto so DVB-S2 can remain a last resort due to the flaw with the sathero meter and dvb-s2 signals.

the satellite ID is horrible - you are at the mercy of the uplinker to have that info correct since the meter reads part of the signal that has the satellite longitude info. If the uplinker has property configured their encoder to put the sat longitude info into their DVB-S signal, you will get an accurate satellite ID on the screen when you get a lock onto a DVB-S signal.

The scan function is also pretty bad as it only works on DVB-S signals (DVB-S2 and other format signals can't be scanned with the scan button).

 

[donaldelee]

Hopefully, the latest firmware has improved issues with the Sathero 200. I wonder how it compares to the Strike First L?

 

[presa58]

I had a Sathero 200 and i like it, but my problem was i had to hold the meter with one hand and adjust the 36" dish with the other hand.I ended up sending it back and i am using my old lacuna that i hang around my neck and that way i can use both hands to adjust the dish.

 

[KE4EST]

I put a strap on mine so I could put it around my neck, then I made a make shift holder with a clamp, so I can clamp it where every I want it. So I could do it either way.

 

[presa58]

I put a strap on mine so I could put it around my neck, then I made a make shift holder with a clamp, so I can clamp it where every I want it. So I could do it either way.

I would't mind paying a little more for this meter if came with one from factory.

 

[skysurfer]

I had a Sathero 200 and i like it, but my problem was i had to hold the meter with one hand and adjust the 36" dish with the other hand.

I set it on something to look/listen to it while I adjust the dish (or use the wrist strap to hang it from something on the dish so I can also look/listen to it while making adjustments).

as for donaldelee, if you are referring to the Nov firmware release, it did nothing to fix the DVB-S2 issues. I should go log-on to the page to see if there is newer firmware yet that may have fixed those issues. It's really no big deal to use DVB-S or non DVB-S/DVB-S2 signals to lock onto to peak up a dish because those signals are plentiful on almost every sat.

 

[donaldelee]

skysurfer,
With the November firmware, and my Latitude: 38.3811 Longitude:-88.5275 Motor Latitude: 38.4 Declination Angle: 6.1 Azimuth (true): 180.0 Azimuth (magn.) 182.3.
Is there a reading on the Sathero to indicate any of this.

I believe the manual that came with the meter leaves much to desire. And, the youtube video on the Sathero does nothing to help.

Thanks!

 

[skysurfer]

Is there a reading on the Sathero to indicate any of this.

the sathero doesn't have any function to calculate a satellite's az and el given your lat and longitude. The sathero just tries to lock onto signals programmed into the meter so if you aren't getting lock, you are probably on the wrong sat or not on the arc and you have to sweep yoru dish across the arc until you find something and go from there.

i like to use my 3 year old portable meter in conjunction with the sathero. My 3 year old meter can ask for my lat and long and give me a az/el to a desired sat and then I can use that 3 year old meter's spectrum analysis function to see if there is any hint of signal where I've pointed the dish.

Once I see a hint of signal, I hook up the sathero to lock onto known signals on the bird and then let me fine peak the dish.

 

[donaldelee]

After some ardous work, I am beginning to understand the Sathero - 200. It would be nice to see a video on youtube. The one on youtube is no help.


SatHero actually does much more than FS-1 such as DVB-S2, T8psk, DCII and DirecTV. FS-1 just does DVB-S. And, it is some cheaper.

 

[sergei]

SatHero actually does much more than FS-1 such as DVB-S2, T8psk, DCII and DirecTV. FS-1 just does DVB-S. And, it is some cheaper

Your wrong and if you would have gone to their web page you would have seen that it can detect other signals.

The FS1 is made for MPEG2 signals but has the ability to detect other signals. See the chart below.

• MPEG2 SD Signal / Quality / Lock
• MPEG2 HD Signal / Quality / Lock
• MPEG4 SD Signal / Quality
• MPEG4 HD Signal / Quality
• Digicipher Signal / Quality
• Digicipher 8psk Signal / Quality