Newbie needs help....

[SatelliteAV]

Can you tell me what satellite and channels that provide HD programs?

Too many satellites and way too many channels are available for listing. The obvious HD channels on KU band are the Pentagon Channels on 101w and the PBS channels on 87w

www.lyngsat.com is a decent resource for seeing what each satellite carries for services and formats.

 

[FaT Air]

You could also look here www.global-cm.net/mpeg2central.html
mpeg2central, lyngsat, dispointer, satbeams are the 4 other 'go to' sites for me, after satelliteguys.

 

[johann12]

Can you tell me what satellite and channels that provide HD programs?

I checked and there should be 5 channels in HD on 97 w which 3 of them are from thailand.

 

[SatelliteAV]

I checked and there should be 5 channels in HD on 97 w which 3 of them are from thailand.

Don't confuse MPEG4 or h.264 with High Definition. On Lyngsat the HD channels are designated with the frame color green.

The channels you mention are not transmitted in HD. They are in SD, but your receiver is not capable of receiving them as it is only capable of MPEG2.

 

[johann12]

Don't confuse MPEG4 or h.264 with High Definition. On Lyngsat the HD channels are designated with the frame color green.

The channels you mention are not transmitted in HD. They are in SD, but your receiver is not capable of receiving them as it is only capable of MPEG2.

I thought that I deleted the comment 1 minute after posting... realizing that it was not HD , but apparently it did not get deleted.
But thank you anyway for pointing this out.

 

[oleleho]

Now that you guys have gone through so many interesting things in regards to satellites and channels let me know as to how to keep up with them. I mean there are 300 plus channels there with galaxy 19, but mostly in foreign languages or of no interest to you guys. How then you keep yourselves up? If you look for more satellites what the good ones that you eventually found and how. Did you use motorized LNBF, add bigger dish(es), or what? I'm trying to get some good reason that canceling the existing cable TV is worth. I don't want my family to start thinking why it's better to subscribe to cable TV.

 

[FaT Air]

Good blind scan receiver is a must. And keep a record of what is there all the time, what shows up and when, Even those that appear now and then. Heck, it becomes almost a ritual. Scan, scan, and scan some more.
It's not about 'what to watch' although there's a lot, but more of 'what you find'.
If the addiction to 'cable' channels isn't removed, FTA won't replace them.
Motorized dishes, many times supplemented with fixed dishes, is quite common.

 

[northgeorgia]

I agree with that -- FTA is no replacement for the "premium channels." My dad is stuck on dish network, although my mom wishes he would do away with it. If you are hooked on certain channels, you might not be able to "cut the cable." A "TV Viewing Diary" could help you identify which channels you're actually watching on cable. I did that for a week, and discovered 80% were free over the antenna, and another 15% were programs (or there were similar shows) that could be viewed online. However, between low cost Internet streaming services such as Netflix/Hulu/Amazon Prime and free reception on both FTA and an over-the-air antenna, I personally wouldn't need cable or (I guess in Canada) Bell satellite. That's why I tell the every day person I'm into "hobby satellite" so they don't get confused. Now, if you had the space for a huge dish, you could get a lot of English programming on C-band -- but you still might not get the channels you want. I know that you probably don't have room for a huge dish on your patio, though

One thing I did for FTA is that I went to each station's link on Lyngsat, tried to find a program schedule if available, and then bookmarked that in my browser. (TitanTV has some listings, but not most of them). I created a special folder called FTA in my bookmarks, so I can find each website quickly. Some, such as KTV-2 (English TV from Kuwait on Galaxy 19), either don't have a schedule published, or when they do, it's outdated. So in those cases, you just kind of have to see about what time a certain program airs and make a note of that. Some of the stations are surprising. Yesterday, I watched a live international martial arts competition on Oman TV. I have seen some BBC, HGTV and Science channel programming on several stations on 97W, including KTV-2, and stations out of Iraq and Afghanistan. Ebru TV is all English, although some stuff is dubbed into English from Turkish or German. Cubana de Television has some shows in English sometimes, too, with Spanish subtitles. There are 4 English news channels with completely different perspectives from your local news: Press TV from Iran, CNC News from China, Russia Today from Russia, and Al-Jazeera from Qatar.

Motorizing the dish can be a nice idea once you can figure out where on the arc different satellites are located (although it's a pain to find the first satellite...slowly it becomes easier and easier to move and point your dish around). Again, only Galaxy 19 has the most TV channels. PBS on 125W is a great choice for English public TV shows. The Pentagon Channel on 101W has some nice programs some times. However, some of the nice things you can find with FTA are the feeds. Some are regular feeds used by networks such as NBC on 72W and 103W, but there are so many other "wild feeds" which can last for hours or just a few minutes -- these include sports, news, business conferences, medical demonstrations, and political events. A good one to try for these wild feeds is 91W, which always has the ABC network feeds, but always has lots of news uplinks and sometimes sports, too (just blind scan around news time at lunch or dinner, and you're bound to find a few).

I think a simple outdoor antenna will bring in a lot of Toronto digital stations for regular viewing, the FTA will supplement that with some additional programming, and a good film or TV show with Netflix using your computer or a Roku box hooked up to your TV might be a good set-up for a family

 

[johann12]

I had cable TV and then later on I had dish network. And because of economic pressure I canceled the paid subscription. But way before I canceled I weight out my option and done a research.

My first setup was an OTA ( over the air= regular outside antenna) and I was able to get 24 channels in the winter. Since My house is located in a hole and surrounded by big trees I have problems with OTA reception especially when the trees have leaves on them and I would loose some channels.

I started with FTA using the stationary dish that dishnetwork left behind with an linear LNBF ( Not recommended for an newbie) and an old receiver that a guy gave me to find out if this FTA thing is for real. This was after I canceled dish network.
Next came a 7 1/2 foot C band that got replaced with an 10 foot C-band which provides a lot of english channels.
Currently I am working to set up a 36 '' geosat pro with an SG 9120 motor.
Of course some things got upgraded in the course and I am the proud owner of the equipment and I do not have to turn it in nor do I have to rent it and I do not have to pay a monthly fee for watching TV and commercials.

I had $260 invested so far until recently when I ordered the Ku dish and motor which added about $160 more with an grand total of about $420.
So that translate to about $35 a month since i started out, but this is way cheaper than a paid subscription and the equipment is still mine.
This should be all I need for the next years to come unless I need to replace some hardware.

I get most the channels with FTA now then what I had with the dishnetwork basic package.
I usually tell newcomers, if they look for HBO, starz etc that this will not happen with FTA...., but there are still plenty of shows. movies etc.
FTA, OTA, hulu and renting/borrowing movies with red box, friends and relatives,.....we have plenty to watch.
There is plenty more streaming on the net.
Detoxification took about 3 month and now my family loves it, because there is more to watch now.
Also since I have problems at times to receive some of the OTA channels, FTA took it's place to receive those channels.

As you may figured out there are many channels on 97w with some english channels.
But pay attention and make notes, for example KTV 2 showing mostly english movies. I watched mythbusters and Die Hard not to long ago on KTV 2
There are other channels that have shows and news etc in english.

Go to lyngsat and see what may be of interest, and go from there.

It is better to find a satellite with 10 channels that interest you , than to receive 200 channels that has no interest for you. Everyone is different.

 

[oleleho]

Good blind scan receiver is a must. And keep a record of what is there all the time, what shows up and when, Even those that appear now and then. Heck, it becomes almost a ritual. Scan, scan, and scan some more.
It's not about 'what to watch' although there's a lot, but more of 'what you find'.
If the addiction to 'cable' channels isn't removed, FTA won't replace them.
Motorized dishes, many times supplemented with fixed dishes, is quite common.

Thanks and OMG!! Are they in the satellite dish exhibition or in your backyard? . Once I read a signature "my hobby keeps me insane and makes my neighbour jealous". I guess these happen to you now

 

[Blindowl1234]

Nice dish setup..Got two of them primestars for Ku. The one is like the one in the middle of pic, and the other is the one on the right.

 

[FaT Air]

The one on the far right is identical to the one on the far left (1.2m). Right side one is mounted sideways to allow aiming at elevation 6.4°. The middle one is an 84e on 125W. Two little ones are 30 inchers, left - fixed on 97, the other(under the 84e) mounted on the BUD for tracking the arc.
And no they are not in the back yard, They are right up front. Across the sidewalk from the fire hydrant. Was dreaming of expanding to the right with another BUD for 53 to 22W, but the city(town) piles snow along the right side from the street. (-:NO HOA or local ordinances banning them
The neighborhood hoodlums don't mess with 'em as they are well aware of the camera overlooking them.

 

[Conky]

three things i'd suggest
1. like everybody else suggested take advantage of being in the city to get as many OTA stations as possible. antennas are cheap and don't have to be big and ugly. you can even make your own(search internet for "Stealth hawk antenna") www.digitalhome.ca is a good resource
2. try to get other satellites(after marking the position of 97w on your dish first of course) namely 125w for PBS or 83w for Retrotv. The butchered dish you have might be a problem on a few of these weaker satellites as your lnb might not be right at the focal point. if you find channels on other satellites worth watching you could consider investing in a motor
3. check dishpointer/google earth to see if it's possible to get 30w from your balcony. They have movies every night in english with spanish subtitles. In the past 2 weeks I've seen Hunger games, Total Recall 2012, Horrible Bosses, Rudy and The Blind Side commercial free

 

[oleleho]

Nice dish setup..Got two of them primestars for Ku. The one is like the one in the middle of pic, and the other is the one on the right.

Aha it was you who annoyed the neighbours

 

[oleleho]

Nice dish setup..Got two of them primestars for Ku. The one is like the one in the middle of pic, and the other is the one on the right.

Aha it was you who annoyed the neighbours

 

[oleleho]

The one on the far right is identical to the one on the far left (1.2m). Right side one is mounted sideways to allow aiming at elevation 6.4°. The middle one is an 84e on 125W. Two little ones are 30 inchers, left - fixed on 97, the other(under the 84e) mounted on the BUD for tracking the arc.
And no they are not in the back yard, They are right up front. Across the sidewalk from the fire hydrant. Was dreaming of expanding to the right with another BUD for 53 to 22W, but the city(town) piles snow along the right side from the street. (-:NO HOA or local ordinances banning them
The neighborhood hoodlums don't mess with 'em as they are well aware of the camera overlooking them.

Right up front? I guess you have inspired me already to do the same . So, North, no... I'm not running out of space, in fact I think I'll have enough, only if Richmond Hill municipal equally has no regulation to ban it.

 

[oleleho]

Guys, from the following link it was shown that the channel is BBC Radio:
http://www.satelliteguys.us/thelist/index.php?page=C+55+Intelsat+805

But from this: http://www.lyngsat.com/Intelsat-805.html
it seems it is a TV channel.

Tp 3936/Tp 23. Please advise. Thanks.

 

[Conky]

Lyngsat has it as an audio only channel . There is no VPID(Video)listed(6th column) only APIDs(Audio PID) listed (7th column 6622,6692etc) These are C-band channels anyway. Did you put up a C-band dish?

BBC World service used to be a shortwave radio station

 

[oleleho]

Lyngsat has it as an audio only channel . There is no VPID(Video)listed(6th column) only APIDs(Audio PID) listed (7th column 6622,6692etc) These are C-band channels anyway. Did you put up a C-band dish?

BBC World service used to be a shortwave radio station

thanks for the reply.
oh that's bbc radio. too bad. i haven't put up a C-band dish as yet, but was thinking about it if I can find some favourite channels, like bbc. for now i guess i'll suffice with what i've got.