Where to Buy Complete C Band Bundle?

[DJH73]

I called Sadoun and they said they were not going to offer the C/Ku band motorized bundle anymore. Then I found another website , called to get shipping info, and all I got was an offer for a cruise, they must be out of business or something.

I am no expert at this, although I did have a Ku system at one time. I would like to have all the parts be compatible thats why I was looking for a "bundle" type system.

Does anyone know of a good place to buy from that offers a motorized C Band system at a good price?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Titanium]

There is a company that sells a bundle, but I wouldn't suggest that it is the best choice for the receiver or most other no-name components. The company is called tek200 and they are in Canada. They list their dishes on Amazon and Ebay.

You would be much better off pulling parts of the system from several vendors. Tell us what you want and I am sure the members will provide some great choices and suggest where they are available.

 

[FTA4PA]

First, welcome to Satellite Guys DJH73! I can understand the desire to purchase one complete package but you will probably find you are better off selecting items from several dealers and putting together a system that best suits your needs. You may also save a good deal of money if you can find an older dish in your area and aquire it for little cost (or often free just for removal). The older dishes, if still in good condition, will perform well. If you simply don't want to go that route then, and I hesitate to mention them because there are mixed feelings regarding them on the site, www.tek2000.com has c band packages available. There have been some issues with damage to dishes during delivery (could be packed better) and poor assembly instructions. I bought just a dish (8' mesh) from them last year. It had some shipping damage but nothing I couldn't deal with (bent mesh). Again, just mentioning them as a possible source, not recommending them. Ask questions and do your research before ordering anything. Good luck!

 

[bpalone]

The above is all good advice. I had bought the 8 foot combo from Tek2000 about 1.25 years ago. The combo C/Ku Lnbf worked OK for C, did not try the Ku side. Later changed out with a C1PLL, by Titanium. The actuator is light but works OK with the light 8 foot dish. Had reed switch issues with it, but replaced that and is currently doing fine. The actuator control box is a cheapie, but may work OK, I have since replaced with an ASC1 from Titanium. The receiver is not what I would recommend for a newbie, but it does do 4.2.2. They stood behind everything with me, so would deal with them again.

With all the above said, I would suggest going the various vendors route. For the C Band dish, see if you can an old one in your area. If in a Big Hurry or can't find one in your area, then Tek2000 is the way to go. For what I paid for it, I am still happy with my 8 footer. As mentioned earlier in this thread, they offer them on ebay and amazon, which might be better for bottom line, as shipping may be cheaper. For receiver, if you currently doing Ku, you can use your existing one. If not, some other members will give some good advice. I would recommend the Titanium C1PLL for the LNB.

Hope this helps a bit and good luck.

 

[. Raine]

There is a running thread on C band and Ku dishes up for grabs on Craigslist here on this site that you can look through to see if anyone has spotted something in your area:

http://www.satelliteguys.us/xen/thr...to-take-a-look-at.327363/page-91#post-3721791

You could check on Craigslist directly yourself too, I've gotten a few good dishes from looking on Craigslist.

Welcome to SatGuys!

 

[Cosmo Blatz]

Agree with A Raine! Try and find a used complete dish. The components can be upgraded (LNBF, actuator). If the dish itself is in good physical condition, with a few cheap upgrades, you can have like-new performance from a 15 year old dish.
Plus, you'll be able to see how all the parts fit together! Much better than trying to figure things out from an assembly manual. Make sure your local building codes allow large dishes before getting a C band dish. Used usable Ku setups are much harder to locate. Best to ask on here before buying.

 

[DJH73]

Ok, so the Tek2000 looks to be a pretty good deal and just what I was looking for. But since some of you mentioned getting an old dish and piecing a system together, I have a couple questions.....Are the positioners compatible? Do the older heavier dishes use a heavier duty motor, and will the new boxes supply enough power to operate them?

I should mention what the set-up is here so you will know what I am doing.......This is going to be for my parents, who live way out in a rural area in the Ozarks here in Missouri. I had made a rhombic antenna on top of a hill and was running a booster with 500 ft of twinlead, and they were getting numerous St.Louis stations 170 miles away fairly consistently. Much better that the 2 TV stations I grew up with there that are 60 miles away. With the switch to UHF and digital, all that stopped and they were then reduced back to 2 local stations......Very clear pictures, but very limiting....and to make matters worse, a couple other stations that could be picked up from time to time in another direction dropped out completely when they reduced their power drastically. Building the Gray-Hoverman antenna was not enough to even pull in Memphis stations 140 miles away. And 300 ohm boosters are not easy to get these days. 500 ft of coax will eat most of the signal at UHF frequencies, even with a booster.



So I gave them my Ku FTA set up and they have been very happy with that. ( Really loved History before they went dark). It is a Fortec Lifetime Classic system. Since the selection is getting kinda limiting with the Ku setup, I mentioned the C-band system, and they are willing to buy it and I will install it.

I just got back from there, and the receiver stopped moving the dish in one direction. It can be manually moved at the positioner, but it doesnt get the signal to move "west". Still works for RT and NBC, however....

So, I will need to get them another receiver while I acquire and install the C-band.....any recommendations on a *cheap* receiver to get them through till I get time to get the BUD up?

Thanks everyone for your knowledgeable comments, as you can see, some aspects of FTA is still new to me.

 

[primestar31]

Right here, great receiver, and this is a good dealer: http://www.ebay.com/itm/AMIKO-MINI-...Auto-Record-/271863923132?hash=item3f4c5a41bc

 

[KE4EST]

The Amiko Mini HD SE is an excellent receiver and no need to use it for temporary.
Continue to use it when the C-Band dish is set up!

 

[Titanium]

The older motors installed on the older used dishes are likely the same great quality actuators that are expensive and still available today from Venture and Von Weise. The other actuator motor brands sold (such as Superjack) are not the same quality and likely will last 5+ years if lucky. The quality actuators, if lubed and adjusted annually will likely outlast all of us!

You will need a controller to move any C-band dish and preferably interface with the receiver to provide automatic aiming. There are several choices out there based on the final dish and feedhorn configuration. Some are almost invisible and move automatically to the satellite selected on the receiver and others are manual selection. Since this is for your parents, you probably want to make this as automatic as possible, so I would avoid the manual controllers that would require them to select a satellite on the controller and then select the channel to coordinate what they want to watch on the receiver. Old school and can be quite confusing and definitely not family or wife friendly!

Most of the older used dishes are much higher quality than the current dishes and I would recommend a drive around "looking" now that you are aware of what is needed for your folks project. It is amazing how many you will see when you are looking for them. Most folks will let them go for free just to get them out of the yard. Others will have the unrealistic opinion that they are still worth the $2,000 - $5,000 they paid 30 years ago. Many just new a bath and some grease. Avoid the junk that has been laying on the ground or damaged panels. There will be another free one likely in much better condition in a week or two. I have found may on Craigslist and just being observant as I drive around.

The electronics on the dish feedhorn may be outdated, but the great news is that they can be updated very inexpensively. You could either keep the original feedhorn and update the LNB or replace the entire feedhorn to a LNBF that is a combined LNB and feedhorn in a single item. These are less expensive and easy to to maintain.

I would also recommend the Amiko mini HD SE. A good, solid, reliable receiver that plays nice with controllers and switches.

Good luck and we are here to assist with your ideas and choices!

 

[. Raine]

On the antenna, you may do better with a 500' run of coax than you think, I run 465' of RG6 quad shield coax from my house to my parents house next door and have no noticeable loss with my antenna setup, they receive all the channels I do here with just as good of a signal. I do have a ap8275 pre-amp on the antenna and also a distribution amp. Actually, the 500' of twin-lead may have been your problem. I know many old timers say twin-lead will work fine nowadays, but it really doesn't.

 

[FTA4PA]

Another vote for the Amiko Mini HD SE! If you happen to come across an old dish in nice shape you will likely find the Titanium ASC1 (apprx $180) to be the mover of choice. Apparently this is a real power house and built like a tank. You will need a mover like this if you find a dish that requires polarity adjustment. If the dish is aluminum (and not too big) you may get by with a Vbox7 mover if cost is a concern (usually under $40) but no polarity adjustment on these and quality has been hit and miss lately so keep that in mind when making your decision.

Amiko Mini HD SE dealers: http://www.amikoalienusa.com/?page_id=998

 

[Titanium]

Is Broadband available? This may seem like sacrilege in a satellite forum, but maybe a Roku, Kodi on an Android box or Sling TV (or combination) might provide the programming choices and value that may fit their needs? Bought my parents a Roku last year and the FTA system has all but retired.

A mixture of happy and sad.....

 

[KE4EST]

I would not waste money on any vbox controller. They have gotten real cheap on the transformers in them. They over heat and die. Not worth the time and frustration.
If you go with an ASC1 your great-great-great-great grand-kid's, grand-kids will still be using it.

 

[DJH73]

Ok, Im about to order the Amiko mini receiver and use it as a start to the C band system, Thanks Primestar, KE4EST, Ti, and FTA4PA!

A Rain, unless I can find a super high gain amp, the DB loss at UHF on 500ft of RG6 is well over 20db. The older amps I used to have had A.C. going up the line to power them. The newer ones use 5vdc, which wont make the 500ft trip very well.

Ti, the folks have really crummy internet, and the phone line is really crackly. And they dont want that monthly bill, they are kind of stubborn that way.

 

[DJH73]

Are you guys saying I will need a separate controller, and the receiver box will not move the C band dish by itself like it does the Ku band dish?

 

[FTA4PA]

Are you guys saying I will need a separate controller, and the receiver box will not move the C band dish by itself like it does the Ku band dish?

Yes, you'll need a controller and an actuator (motor). When a channel is selected the receiver sends commands to the controller which moves the actuator/dish to the right satellite position for that channel.

 

[primestar31]

Many of the old c-band receivers had separate actuator motor controllers devices, and were hooked up to the receiver as a side-car. This is the same thing, only the receiver is much smaller than the old-school analog ones. Too small to contain the transformers capable to moving a motor that turns a 10ft dish.

 

[DJH73]

Okay, much needed info right here.......awesome. Thanks!

 

[DJH73]

Forgot that years ago my brother had bought a 8ft solid aluminum dish. We used buffing compound and tried to get a high polish on it.....The goal was to make steam for a steam engine. After those experiments, I used it with a an audio amp and mic to make a bionic ear.... That dish is still laying there in the woods, but the mount we made was crude.......What type of mount would work with this dish?