Welcome,
I am sorry if this topic has been already covered. I am a Canadian living in US in Oregon, and I would like to watch Canadian TV which I am missing so much.
Are there are any tips, dealer contacts, helpful information, tutorials, anything I need to know, to install such system? Where to buy it, what kind, what provider, tips to install, etc...
Any help from people who already have done this?
One more question: I am planning to go to British Columbia for one day to purchase a set. Because I haven't been in Canada for last 10 years, I don't know anymore which retail stores sell satellite systems. Any information?
Thank you

might want to try KUSAT.com

I once used a dealer in the Vancouver area, but he's now out of the biz.

might want to try KUSAT.com

I once used a dealer in the Vancouver area, but he's now out of the biz.

Vancouver BC or Vancouver WA? BC dealers are no help for me as I live in Oregon.
I visited the site you quoted and that is a Canadian service for Canadians living in Canada. I couldn't find there anything for US customers.

Vancouver BC or Vancouver WA? BC dealers are no help for me as I live in Oregon.
I visited the site you quoted and that is a Canadian service for Canadians living in Canada. I couldn't find there anything for US customers.

Give them a call and expain your situation, they are known for helping people in your situation. No one has ever said a bad thing about them here and I had a Shaw Direct dish shippend to me at my US residence from them.

Give them a call and expain your situation, they are known for helping people in your situation. No one has ever said a bad thing about them here and I had a Shaw Direct dish shippend to me at my US residence from them.

Awesome! I will try them! Thanks! :)

I couldn't find there anything for US customers


Technically, from the vantage point of Canaidan Satellite Provders, there is no such thing as an "American Customer". You are delving into the realm of the "grey market". While this isn't necessarily bad, there are some technecalities and possible gotcha's.

I have not done business with the company to which you have been recommended, but I have seen nothing but good reports from those who have.

If you would like more details about "grey market" TV before you make a move, send me a PM.

I purchased my Starchoice system from Kusat and had it shipped to my address in Minneapolis

as joshuals noted there is no thing as an "American Customer"...you are a customer with a Canadian address using it outside of Canada ;)

I purchased my Starchoice system from Kusat and had it shipped to my address in Minneapolis


A little off-topic, but.....

Some time ago I remember you had a quad lnb failure and you stated at the time you could not find a replacement.....doesn't KuSat sell the quad lnb's as a single item?

Yes they do.

Some time ago I remember you had a quad lnb failure and you stated at the time you could not find a replacement.....doesn't KuSat sell the quad lnb's as a single item?

I found out it ended up being the receiver but I did have some issues with the quad getting lower signals on one polarity

I ended up going with a Primestar dish on 107.3 for a while...then I got the 505 and went with a 4 footer for both :)

Lumiere:

If you are planning on going to BC anyway, it may be easier to buy equipment yourself and bring it back. If you have relatives there, use their address. You can pay your bills and do programming on line. I would recommend ShawDirect instead of Bell, but others may disagree.

The other option like everyone else suggested is to go through a broker and have items shipped to you. My supplier is no longer doing it, but my broker is still working and I would recommend her to anyone.

Lumiere:

If you are planning on going to BC anyway, it may be easier to buy equipment yourself and bring it back. If you have relatives there, use their address. You can pay your bills and do programming on line. I would recommend ShawDirect instead of Bell, but others may disagree.

I agree 100%. That is the best way to do it if it all possible.

Thank you all for the advice. The shipment from KUSAT with Star Choice 505 receiver and 75cm antena is on the way. I am surprised how nice, helpful and cooperative those people are.
First, after I contacted them on the phone, a gentleman very nicely informed me of every possible detail I need to know. Then I placed an order, and minutes after that I received a phone call from another person with more help and instructions.
The UPS shipment is already on the way and should be here within several days.

And, of course, I will see how it really works when it arrives. Then I will be able to write my full review. However, so far I have been very satisfied.

Great, thanks for letting us know and please update us. :up

iceberg lets say i got a starchoice system how would i get it installed, i know nothing about installing a dish

hey rabbit dont be scared about instaling a dish! well I haven't done it with a dish that points to two sats, but its pretty easy for one sat. You just look up the place to point on the net and make sure evertyhing is straight first. When you get close the rcvr will make a sound or the bar will move or whatever that rcvr does.

Or maybe you could ask around and find a local installer with a reputatin for not asking questions. :)

I have a 505HD receiver in the mail that I bought from a dealer in Alberta. It's a refurb and was a really good deal. I have a Canadian address. I was going to get one from KUSAT who I have dealt with before and had an excellent experience, but I found this half price deal.

I am getting back on Shaw after a 5 year Hiatus, just in time for the Olympics and the Championship Curling season. (I know, it's not for everybody).

iceberg lets say i got a starchoice system how would i get it installed, i know nothing about installing a dish
It's not that hard to do yourself. I thought it was initially, but it's not. anyhoo, you live in metro detroit. you may want to look on CL for sat installers in Windsor and see if anyone would be willing to come across the river.

The package from KUSAT has arrived. I need to install the dish now. I called many local dish installers in Portland and I haven't found anyone who was willing to install the Canadian dish. They are OK with US dishes, of course, but don't want to touch anything Canadian. Legal issues?
It seems I have to do it myself. I opened the package from the box and tried to figure out the parts, I will see. It tooks quite complicated. I downloaded the angles from the site Satellite look-angle calculator (http://satcalculator.freehostia.com/). The azimuth and elevation should be ok to set, but I am not sure about the skew angle. I couldn't find a way to set it. I will be working on it this weekend...

but don't want to touch anything Canadian. Legal issues?



Possibly, and/or they may not have the experience at doing such an install. If they don't have the experience, you're better off not paying them by the hour to learn......

For help on assembling, mounting and pointing your dish, the Kusat Website has detailed instructions, though I am not 100% sure they are up-to-date. From their Home Page, click on "Install Your System" from the menu bar on the left side and select "Star Choice". There are 2 documents...one for assembly and one for mounting/pointing.

Did you receiver arrive pre-authorized with Shaw, or are you going to have to do this yourself?

Good luck to you....

PS...after re-reading your post, it occurred to me that perhaps you are confusing the "azimuth" with the "skew". The settings on the back of the dish are for "elevation" and "skew". Those you should set while still on the ground. There is no setting for the "azimuth" on the dish itself, but is rather the direction that the dish is pointed once it is mounted on the mast. The azimuth is measured in degrees clockwise from north. Be sure your information for the look angle (azimuth) is referenced to magnetic (compass) north and not "true" north. There's a big difference in your part of the world (about 18 degrees!). In any case, I think the Kusat instructions will make all this clear to you.

One last thing....take the time to make sure you mast is mounted plumb.....check it w/ a carpenter's level in all directions. If you skimp on this step, your elevation and skew will be off, even though you have set them correctly on the back of the dish.

Again...good luck.

I have a 505HD receiver in the mail that I bought from a dealer in Alberta. It's a refurb and was a really good deal. I have a Canadian address. I was going to get one from KUSAT who I have dealt with before and had an excellent experience, but I found this half price deal.

I am getting back on Shaw after a 5 year Hiatus, just in time for the Olympics and the Championship Curling season. (I know, it's not for everybody).


Not the only curling fan on this board!! SWEEEEEEP...HURRY HARD !!!!

I've been curling for nearly 15 years at a club in Omaha, NE.

Lumiere:

I concur with Joshuals, you absolutely HAVE to be sure that your mast is plumb. That is the most important step.

Once you are ready to mount your dish on to the mast, it would behoove you to have your receiver connected to a TV outside that you can see when pointing. It will make that part of the job very easy.

Good luck!

GeneralLumiere,

I had to adjust my Shaw dish at my house in Port McNeil. I also installed a Shaw dish on my boat in Seattle. I completely agree with the advice you've received so far.

I'll add that you need to be patient and make small adjustments. Also, make sure that the dish is going to stay where you place it by giving it a little wiggle to take out any stress before you tighten the bolts.

As far as curling goes - I STILL can't believe that Kevin Martin threw away that shot in the championship in Moncton! It was an an exciting game, though.

HTH

Morris said it best: "This is either the smartest shot of all time or the dumbest"


So far, Team Murdoch is "Martin's Kryptonite"

I installed the dish myself. It took the whole day! First I couldn't find any signal, but then slowly but surely I picked it, and now it is at 83%. Kusat activated the account, gave me my Star Choice account access, I ordered the programming and everything is really good right now.
I really want to thank Kusat a lot. They are incredibly helpful, always available, always answering the phones and emails right away, very respectful and polite.
I really recommend their service to everyone. Very positive experience!

One thing, though. Not having anything to do with Kusat, but with the receiver. I ordered a DSR505 receiver. The problem with it is that it doesn't have HDMI connection. I am not an expert on this, but the HDMI adapter they provide does not carry audio. Or at least it doesn't carry audio on my system, or I didn't configure something. I don't know.
Instead of using DHMI connection to my TV I had to use the composite connection (red, blue and green) for video plus separate red and white audio connection.
It works ok, but it is a hassle because I have several DHMI inputs on my Sony Bravia TV (US cable, Blue Ray DVD, Canadian Dish), so I just hoped to easily switch the inputs.
However, because Canadian satellite cannot connect audio to DHMI I had to connect their audio to my stereo system, and every time I switch to Canadian satellite I have to turn on the stereo. Which is a hassle.
If someone can figure out why the DSR505 DHMI connection doesn't carry sound and how to fix it, I will be grateful.
On the other hand, maybe it is not the receiver's fault after all, as my Sony Bravia TV has random DHMI audio problem with Comcast cable receiver too. Maybe it is TV. I don't know....

DVI does not carry audio period. Check your Sony manual. Usually one of the HDMI ports also has a red and white audio connection.

DVI does not carry audio period. Check your Sony manual. Usually one of the HDMI ports also has a red and white audio connection.

Not true. I have four DHMI inputs on my Sony Bravia. First one is for Comcast, second for Blue Ray DVD. Each of them carries audio.
The third one, the one that has Canadian receiver, is the only one that doesn't.

Not true. I have four DHMI inputs on my Sony Bravia. First one is for Comcast, second for Blue Ray DVD. Each of them carries audio.
The third one, the one that has Canadian receiver, is the only one that doesn't.

easiset solution: use the component cables for both audio and video fromt he 505 to your TV

Peano is correct...DVI is video only. so a DVI-out to HDMI-in will give you a nice picture but no sound.

easiset solution: use the component cables for both audio and video fromt he 505 to your TV

Peano is correct...DVI is video only. so a DVI-out to HDMI-in will give you a nice picture but no sound.

Yes, DVI to HDMI gives only video. I misundersood the post. I don't know why 505 doesn't have HDMI to HDMI, but only DVI to HDMI.

Because Starchoice is using receivers with 6 year old technology. They are very similar to what VOOM offered.

GeneralLumiere,

Compared to my Dish 622 DVR, my StarChoice 530 DVR is very primitive. It's almost painful to use.

You should be grateful that you can at least connect via DVI/HDMI. In my setup, if I try DVI/HDMI, I get a big warning in the middle of my screen complaining about missing copy protection. I don't know if the message is from my receiver or my TV. I have to use the component connection.

My Dish 622 switches HDMI directly with one click on my receiver. My Blu-Ray switches HDMI directly with one click on my receiver.

My StarChoice 530 needs to be video switched on the TV to component, then the audio switched on the receiver.

Plus, there's no name-based recording. I have to keep track of what's on the crummy two day schedule. Then, each event needs to be selected for record.

It's like living in the Dark Ages ... only with curling and CFL.

Now with David Braney buying the Argos (while keeping the Lions) I'm looking forward to a Lions-Argos Grey Cup (as long as the Lions win).