Can I get the Locals of CHICAGO while in MINNEAPOLIS?

scooby2

Pub Member / Supporter
Jun 25, 2005
659
0
Chicago, IL
I miss the days when you could call up and "move". Now you need to have a friend or relative in the area and send them a slingbox to get the full games in HD. I was a Sunday Ticket sub for about 7 years until it got too expensive. Nowadays I will go sit at a local Steeler bar or catch what I can on the Redzone channel. Maybe the new CBA will include allowing Sunday ticket on all providers and cheaper prices. A guy can dream. :)
 

kikenovic

SatelliteGuys Pro
Nov 9, 2009
355
1
Somewhere in time
My advice is move the service address back to MN, and hook up with AAD. You may just subscribe to Fox Chicago HD and pay less than $4 / month.

Like Jim pointed out, just don't let you neighbors know...
 

whatchel1

SatelliteGuys Master
Sep 30, 2006
9,098
51
Great High Plains
61.5

So im trying to watch the Chicago Bears this season from my area in Minneapolis, MN and trying to figure out a way that I can watch them. I have parents back in CHICAGO and had Dish Network change my "service address" to that address, while still keeping my dish in Minneapolis, MN. All the channels come in accept for the locals. I have two receivers, a VIP722K and a VIP612. Is there anyway to change what satelite it uses to pick up the locals from Chicago? Error code I get is 120.

I thought it was possible as my grandparents used to live in Chicago, bought a DirectTV dish and traveled all around the US and watched the Chicago White Sox from their Motor home.

Any help would be much appreciated! Thanks!

61.5 may be your answer. Get a large dish for just it. Say .9 meter. and get it pointed to 61.5. It's spotbeam will most likely work w/ that size dish. SatelliteGuys.US_TheList - DISH Network 61.5°W So go EA and add the bigger dish is only possible way I see where you are. Man you guys aren't thinking outside of the box today.
 

jerryd

SatelliteGuys Family
Oct 26, 2005
110
0
Central Wisconsin
I am in the central wisconsin area and was getting the chicago HD channels on satellite 129 until they changed the spot beam, I then reset ny dishs to receive the eastern arc 61.5,72,5 77 and receive all the chicago channels in Hd and SD including channel 26 which has some cub games on. Don't kown if it will work as far east as the twin cities.
 

terpsmandan

SatelliteGuys Pro
Feb 7, 2008
160
0
Somewhere near here
Another alternative is mydistantnetworks.com. They offer Chicago and LA in HD if you provide the "correct" address. All you do is enter your box number, put it on a credit card. I could not get HD on my nets and did this for about a year before dish turned my top dish from 61.5 to 129 and I "moved"
 

Ghpr13

SatelliteGuys Pro
Pub Member / Supporter
Jul 1, 2009
3,212
0
Louisville, KY
Right on, well thanks for saving me agonizing hours trying to figure out if there was a way to get HD Chicago. I guess its better than not getting it! Now is there a way if I wanted to watch the Vikings, while being in MSP would work? Or would I have to change my service address back to MSP. I hear they have a Multi-Sport package.... does that do anything? I tried it last year and seemed like none of the channels came in.

Don't feel too bad. I wanted to try the same thing down here in Louisville, KY, but I can't get the Chicago locals either. I'm just too far out of the beam. It sucks cause I'm Chicago born & raised. I love watching the Bears (lose).:D

Ghpr13:)
 

Bobby

Publican
Supporting Founder
Lifetime Supporter
Sep 7, 2003
69,944
25,560
Rohnert Park, CA
Don't feel too bad. I wanted to try the same thing down here in Louisville, KY, but I can't get the Chicago locals either. I'm just too far out of the beam. It sucks cause I'm Chicago born & raised. I love watching the Bears (lose).:D

Ghpr13:)

Not today! :)
 

gpflepsen

Supporting Founder
Supporting Founder
Sep 8, 2003
3,295
301
SE NE

I don't know about that, or the accuracy of some of the coverage maps.

This spotbeam covers the Omaha NE DMA, and there's barely any of the covered area inside the red line.

E12_SB15.jpg

E12_SB15

I am outside the 61.5 spotbeam 15 and am getting locals from yet a different DMA, Lincoln, NE. I am looking to "move" to St. Louis to get their locals off of 61.5 SB 14, which actually covers where I live!
E12_SB14.jpg
 
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gpflepsen

Supporting Founder
Supporting Founder
Sep 8, 2003
3,295
301
SE NE
How about Atlanta local channels if the dish and box is in the panhandle of Florida? Can i get the local Atlanta channels

Someone correct me if I'm wrong...

You can check your reception. Go to Menu 6-1-1 to check signal strength. Go to Sat 61.5 and transponder 6 and see what your signal strength is. If you are locked "Green", you should be good to go.

See SatelliteGuys.US_TheList - DISH Network 61.5°W
 

Bobby

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Sep 7, 2003
69,944
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Rohnert Park, CA
Someone correct me if I'm wrong...

You can check your reception. Go to Menu 6-1-1 to check signal strength. Go to Sat 61.5 and transponder 6 and see what your signal strength is. If you are locked "Green", you should be good to go.

See SatelliteGuys.US_TheList - DISH Network 61.5°W
That's the same beam I already gave him. But you make a good point. If he can get a signal on the beam, and it's actually on transponder 15, Spotbeam 6, he's good to go.....
 

gpflepsen

Supporting Founder
Supporting Founder
Sep 8, 2003
3,295
301
SE NE
That's the same beam I already gave him. But you make a good point. If he can get a signal on the beam, and it's actually on transponder 15, Spotbeam 6, he's good to go.....

That's right, transponder 15. If he does get transponder 15, is there another spotbeam TS-15 he could be seeing?
 

Bobby

Publican
Supporting Founder
Lifetime Supporter
Sep 7, 2003
69,944
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Rohnert Park, CA
That's right, transponder 15. If he does get transponder 15, is there another spotbeam TS-15 he could be seeing?

It wouldn't seem so. There are spots for New York, NY, Dallas, TX, Norfolk, VA, Des Moines, IA, Grand Rapids, MI and Orlando and Ft Meyers, FL. The latter two are pretty tight and and are unlikely to reach any part of the Panhandle.
 

gpflepsen

Supporting Founder
Supporting Founder
Sep 8, 2003
3,295
301
SE NE
61.5 may be your answer. Get a large dish for just it. Say .9 meter. and get it pointed to 61.5. It's spotbeam will most likely work w/ that size dish. SatelliteGuys.US_TheList - DISH Network 61.5°W So go EA and add the bigger dish is only possible way I see where you are. Man you guys aren't thinking outside of the box today.

I agree with the above. Put a 61.5 dish up and see if you get the 11 transponder.
 

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