"sparklies" on c band analog

[drhydro]

I am noticing "sparklies" on c-band analog channels. I am seeing these on all of my analog channels, no matter how strong the signal is. Should i be thinking about changing my LNBA to a newer, lower noise, LNB? I do have a splitter with a DC block on that run of cable, could that be the cause?

 

[tdti1]

You can try playing with the offset, if that does not work, hook it up direct and see whats up, It sounds like you Lnb may have done its time, if you get one I would go for a Norsat. Not the ones I have though I would get the 8515 c-band I heard its great, I will be getting some new lnb's also to lock some difficult fta feeds.

 

[drhydro]

Ill try hooking everything up direct when i get home tonight. I am unsure as to what you mean when you say "offset", do you mean declination? If so i wont be playing with that till spring, my BUD is on top of a 9 foot pole and my yard is solid ice, so no climbing up on a ladder for me....

 

[tdti1]

Ill try hooking everything up direct when i get home tonight. I am unsure as to what you mean when you say "offset", do you mean declination? If so i wont be playing with that till spring, my BUD is on top of a 9 foot pole and my yard is solid ice, so no climbing up on a ladder for me....

Sorry no, many IRD's have the skew, finetune and the offset, the offset is for drifting lnbs, you can play with the offset and most of the time it can clear things up. Unless you have had high winds lately I don't think your dish moved although there is a chance, it sometimes is hard to locate the problem, it may even be interference from other equipment, anything new in the house? I would think its the lnb though. Good luck

 

[drhydro]

oh ok, my drake has skew and fine tune, but i havent seen anything for offset yet, guess ill have to look around in the menus some more. I have found where i can set a filter to "wide beam" "narrow beam" and none, could this be their version of offset?

 

[tdti1]

Never had those option on any box I played with, give it a try.

 

[Dave C]

"I am seeing these on all of my analog channels, no matter how strong the signal is." Try adjusting the "Fine tune" but it sounds like its LNB replacement time.

 

[SatelliteAV]

Sparklies on analog can occur for several reasons:

Antenna misalignment - azimuth, elevation and declination correct?

LNB / Feedhorn misalignment - is the f/d correct? Feedhorn centered?

Probe polarity misadjustment - adjust skew

LNB frequency drifting or is the TP frequency assigned to be offset fron the standard mapped frequency?- adjust lnb frequency LO (offset) White sparkies = frequency is high, Black = frequency is low.

Incorrect bandwidth selection- Is the transponder using full TP (36MHz) or less?

RF interference - Usually affects certain TPs when the dish is turned in a certain direction. Use filter to attenuate specific interferring frequency or shield the dish.

Moisture can get into the feedhorn, LNB.

Water can wick into the coax and severely attenuate signals.

 

[tdti1]

Sparklies on analog can occur for several reasons:

Antenna misalignment - azimuth, elevation and declination correct?

LNB / Feedhorn misalignment - is the f/d correct? Feedhorn centered?

Probe polarity misadjustment - adjust skew

LNB frequency drifting or is the TP frequency assigned to be offset fron the standard mapped frequency?- adjust lnb frequency LO (offset) White sparkies = frequency is high, Black = frequency is low.

Incorrect bandwidth selection- Is the transponder using full TP (36MHz) or less?

RF interference - Usually affects certain TPs when the dish is turned in a certain direction. Use filter to attenuate specific interferring frequency or shield the dish.

Moisture can get into the feedhorn, LNB.

Water can wick into the coax and severely attenuate signals.

Yes I love my bud, but when there is a problem, it can be a pain lol.

 

[Midas42]

If you have ice all over your dish, that may be all that is wrong and causing the sparklies on your BUD. Pray for sunshine...don't use a ball-peen hammer like have seen. haha

 

[Diamond Jim]

Try bumping the dish, it works for me. Are you having this problem on every satellite? I was having the same troubles on the even TP's on G5, worked all summer adjusting everything I could think of, with no results. Then I determined that G5 was getting weak, it's been up there since 1992. Low a behold, they replaced G5 with G12 two weeks ago and now everything is perfect.

 

[drhydro]

Thanks for all the replies folks. I went home and hooked up everything direct, no splitters etc in the cable run, and sparklies still there. The dish itself has no ice/snow on it, just everything surrounding it does

Mainly i am seeing this on Galaxy 1r, AMC 11 and on AMC 10. Some of the channels come in good, some are very sparkly. I have the proper elevation/ declination set, i have got skew set and i have tweaked the dish to get maximum signal strength. All of my connections are waterproof, so no water anywhere (actually ice as its way below zero).

Satelliteav, what i am seeing is white sparklies, which leads me to believe i have to play with the LO and adjust it lower for those channels i am having problems with, or buy new LNB's. So i guess i'll first try playing with offset, and if that doesnt work ill have to break down and buy a corotor and new c / ku lnbs. I would not be suprised if the c-band LNBA is the problem, it is at least 12 years old.

Once again, thanks for all the suggestions folks.

 

[Diamond Jim]

Forgot to ask you, how old are your LNBs? Mine have lasted about 10 years a piece. Sparklies on everything is the first sign that they are going. I've had ole BUD over 20 years and I am on my third set, put 'em on last year, not too band, egh?

 

[drhydro]

Well at at least 12 years old, it sure seems it is time to replace my LNBA. I see then fairly cheaply on that auction site, are there any i should look for / stay away from?

 

[tdti1]

Well at at least 12 years old, it sure seems it is time to replace my LNBA. I see then fairly cheaply on that auction site, are there any i should look for / stay away from?

I would get Norsat lnb's they are very high quality, little pricey but well worth it, I will be getting a whole new feedhorn with lnb's this summer.