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This is a spin-off of the VBox III and accuracy thread and deals with making an extension for the mounting ring to allow for more pulses/counts and better accuracy.
The nasty weather held off long enough for me to get on the roof this afternoon and take a couple of pictures. I have added real measurements for Anole so we can make some predictions about how many counts extending the actuator will produce.
I have also included a picture of the mount with the dish pointing at 43W just to see the break-over point a little more accurately.
I also included a picture of a 10' Perfect 10 mount to show the off-set way they do their mounts. SAMI mounts are the same way.
Here are the pictures to start the discussion:
As you can see when the dish is over to the East, extending the arm out very far might produce problems trying to bring the dish back West.
That's a question that will have to be answered by testing.
The nasty weather held off long enough for me to get on the roof this afternoon and take a couple of pictures. I have added real measurements for Anole so we can make some predictions about how many counts extending the actuator will produce.
I have also included a picture of the mount with the dish pointing at 43W just to see the break-over point a little more accurately.
I also included a picture of a 10' Perfect 10 mount to show the off-set way they do their mounts. SAMI mounts are the same way.
Here are the pictures to start the discussion:
As you can see when the dish is over to the East, extending the arm out very far might produce problems trying to bring the dish back West.
That's a question that will have to be answered by testing.
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Hi Gpat,
Yes, but most of us who have found dishes have taken what was on them and are trying to get the most we can out of them at a minimal cost.
Yes, but most of us who have found dishes have taken what was on them and are trying to get the most we can out of them at a minimal cost.
Interesting pictures. Thanks for posting them.
Some of the geometry or placement of pivot points must be for a reason.
I wish I understood those reasons better.
But one thing that's pretty easy to see, is this.
If you move the attach-point for the end of the motor out one inch from the ring, then at full east, the motor will need to extend one more inch.
Same for the west side - it'd need to retract one more inch.
Assuming the motor can do that, then you'd get about 100 extra counts (roughly 48 + 48) since that motor does 48 clicks per inch.
Two inches would get ya close to 200 more counts.
Three inches would get nearly 300 more counts.
At some point you run out of motor extension, and a new problem arises with the dish all the way west.
But within reason, you should be able to get a few more hundred, if that's a useful goal.
See how the motor attach-point past the ring's edge sticks back (north) in a one inch tab?
Thats for clearance when the dish is all the way east, and you might need to do something similar, so keep that in mind.
That also helps a little if your dish flops all the way left, I think.
I'd stay out of the far-east zone.
So, just based on seat-of-the-pants observation, I'd think you might get two more inches and 200 counts, but doubt you'd get the three inch extension to work.
Feel free to prove me wrong! - :up
If I recall from previous discussions, we're talking about 600 basic counts across the arc, so 200 more would probably be useful.
edit: Oh, it's not 600 from lock-to-lock, so...
...you'd get less than the hundreds of counts predicted ...
... by some percentage, but still . . . more counts is good.
I'm sure there are some clever mechanical people reading along.
What have we missed in this discussion, and what could be done better?
Some of the geometry or placement of pivot points must be for a reason.
I wish I understood those reasons better.
But one thing that's pretty easy to see, is this.
If you move the attach-point for the end of the motor out one inch from the ring, then at full east, the motor will need to extend one more inch.
Same for the west side - it'd need to retract one more inch.
Assuming the motor can do that, then you'd get about 100 extra counts (roughly 48 + 48) since that motor does 48 clicks per inch.
Two inches would get ya close to 200 more counts.
Three inches would get nearly 300 more counts.
At some point you run out of motor extension, and a new problem arises with the dish all the way west.
But within reason, you should be able to get a few more hundred, if that's a useful goal.
See how the motor attach-point past the ring's edge sticks back (north) in a one inch tab?
Thats for clearance when the dish is all the way east, and you might need to do something similar, so keep that in mind.
That also helps a little if your dish flops all the way left, I think.
I'd stay out of the far-east zone.
So, just based on seat-of-the-pants observation, I'd think you might get two more inches and 200 counts, but doubt you'd get the three inch extension to work.
Feel free to prove me wrong! - :up
If I recall from previous discussions, we're talking about 600 basic counts across the arc, so 200 more would probably be useful.
edit: Oh, it's not 600 from lock-to-lock, so...
...you'd get less than the hundreds of counts predicted ...
... by some percentage, but still . . . more counts is good.
I'm sure there are some clever mechanical people reading along.
What have we missed in this discussion, and what could be done better?
I would agree, two inches would be feasible and possibly three.
In the picture above, the entire actuator assembly can be slid in and out through the clamp to allow for more retraction or extension than the motor itself will do.
The counts are not lock to lock. They are from where I have set the East and West limits. Basically all the viewable satellites in my arc. So three inches of extra travel would net 150 counts spread across the arc.
That all depends on how much I can slide the actuator into the clamp and where the dish ends up sitting on the West side in relation to the blocks on the mount.
From Hermitman:
Just looking at it, as long as you don't get carried away (not go over 2 or 3 inches), and with the proper adjustment on the clamp, you should still be able to view all the satellites I currently view.
Only implementing the proposed extension will prove that.
As Anole suggested, it may be necessary to put a tab on the extension to keep out of trouble on the far East.
Even if it is just 100 counts across the arc, that would give in improvement. If you have 50 positions, that is an extra 2 counts per position. Might be just enough.
Well I gave it a shot today.
I made a piece out of 2-1/2" angle steel, got my holes all drilled like I wanted them, warmed up a little, so took it to the roof, and it won't fit.
I need a piece of steel 1-1/4" wide and about 1/4" thick, then I can drill holes in it, and I think it will fit. I'll try and find a piece tomorrow, and hopefully can get it on before it gets real cold again.
I made a piece out of 2-1/2" angle steel, got my holes all drilled like I wanted them, warmed up a little, so took it to the roof, and it won't fit.
I need a piece of steel 1-1/4" wide and about 1/4" thick, then I can drill holes in it, and I think it will fit. I'll try and find a piece tomorrow, and hopefully can get it on before it gets real cold again.
TWiT Tech Podcast Network
Time for another AWESOME video from the TWIT Network!
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZvzVN2MnSs
Direct YouTube Link - This Week in Space 235
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View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZvzVN2MnSs
Direct YouTube Link - This Week in Space 235
TWIT's Website
TWIT Live Feed
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TWiT Tech Podcast Network
Time for another AWESOME video from the TWIT Network!
View: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Yian5I3puiU
Direct YouTube Link - Binance's $6.3 Billion Crypto Heist: Gone in 20 Minutes #shorts
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View: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Yian5I3puiU
Direct YouTube Link - Binance's $6.3 Billion Crypto Heist: Gone in 20 Minutes #shorts
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TWiT Tech Podcast Network
Time for another AWESOME video from the TWIT Network!
View: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/JlKj326jgtI
Direct YouTube Link - Google Making School Opt Into AI Usage, or Lose Access to Search
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View: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/JlKj326jgtI
Direct YouTube Link - Google Making School Opt Into AI Usage, or Lose Access to Search
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'Rockford Files' Reboot Gets NBC Pilot Order
I grow tired of all the reboots. Most I don't bother with but will depend on the actor chosen.
I grow tired of all the reboots. Most I don't bother with but will depend on the actor chosen.
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832 views
I hope they can find enough Pontiac Firebirds to keep the show going.
TFLEV
Time for another AWESOME video from TFL Electric Vehicles!
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRwyPKJclbQ
Direct YouTube Link - Breaking News: The Tesla Cybertruck Is Dead!
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRwyPKJclbQ
Direct YouTube Link - Breaking News: The Tesla Cybertruck Is Dead!
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Thought some might find this encouraging. It turned out good but I still feel a little bad about it.
Had to drop by Walmart on my way to the store this morning, I had enough time but no time to spare either. As I was walking across the parking lot I noticed an older gent pushing his buggy with a confused look on his face. I said hello as I passed but he didn't respond...something was bothering him. I kept walking and then stopped and chided myself for being in too much of a rush. I turned around and asked him if he needed some help. Turned out he had NO idea where he had parked his truck. He told what color and model and looked around...nothing. I asked him if he had tried his key fob, he wasn't sure what I was talking about and got it out and handed it to me. Hit the lock and listened for a horn like my F150 does. Nothing. Finally I hit the panic button and we heard his truck...it was on the complete other side of the parking lot. He thanked me and I went on about my business.
I felt bad however because I almost didn't stop. I was so focused on what I had to pick up that I almost just kept walking without seeing if I could help. Years ago I wouldn't have hesitated. It seems that as we age it is easy to focus more on ourselves and ignore others which is why you'll see footage of these muggings in big cities and people just walk by the wounded victim who is laying on the sidewalk.
Moral to the story: Don't let your humanity die just because so many others have allowed theirs to.
Had to drop by Walmart on my way to the store this morning, I had enough time but no time to spare either. As I was walking across the parking lot I noticed an older gent pushing his buggy with a confused look on his face. I said hello as I passed but he didn't respond...something was bothering him. I kept walking and then stopped and chided myself for being in too much of a rush. I turned around and asked him if he needed some help. Turned out he had NO idea where he had parked his truck. He told what color and model and looked around...nothing. I asked him if he had tried his key fob, he wasn't sure what I was talking about and got it out and handed it to me. Hit the lock and listened for a horn like my F150 does. Nothing. Finally I hit the panic button and we heard his truck...it was on the complete other side of the parking lot. He thanked me and I went on about my business.
I felt bad however because I almost didn't stop. I was so focused on what I had to pick up that I almost just kept walking without seeing if I could help. Years ago I wouldn't have hesitated. It seems that as we age it is easy to focus more on ourselves and ignore others which is why you'll see footage of these muggings in big cities and people just walk by the wounded victim who is laying on the sidewalk.
Moral to the story: Don't let your humanity die just because so many others have allowed theirs to.
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33 views
Staff member
HERE TO HELP YOU!
Cutting Edge
Sometimes a thread gets so many posts in it that is can cause issues for the server so that why today we introduce The Song Name Game Part 3!
So let the game continue!
The last song was added by Bobby who posted...
One Meat Ball - Andrews Sisters
CONTINUE ON AND HAVE FUN! WELCOME HOME TO SATELLITEGUYS.US!
Here are the original rules for the game as posted by WebbyDude back in 2006. http://www.satelliteguys.us/threads/68645-Song-Name-Game
Just name a song title and the band who performed it. The next person does the same thing, but needs to list a song title or band name which includes a word from the previous entry. Pick songs from any genre.
Example:
Long Live Rock and Roll -- Rainbow
Rainbow in the Dark -- Dio
Another example:
Ride the Lightning -- Metallica
Lightning Strikes -- Ozzy Osbourne
Get it?
An additional note: we all know that song titles, sometimes, use profane words. Because this is a family friendly website it is advised that you clean up that title up a bit. This is accomplished by using something like sh!t instead of the real word. Thanks....
So let the game continue!
The last song was added by Bobby who posted...
One Meat Ball - Andrews Sisters
CONTINUE ON AND HAVE FUN! WELCOME HOME TO SATELLITEGUYS.US!
Here are the original rules for the game as posted by WebbyDude back in 2006. http://www.satelliteguys.us/threads/68645-Song-Name-Game
Just name a song title and the band who performed it. The next person does the same thing, but needs to list a song title or band name which includes a word from the previous entry. Pick songs from any genre.
Example:
Long Live Rock and Roll -- Rainbow
Rainbow in the Dark -- Dio
Another example:
Ride the Lightning -- Metallica
Lightning Strikes -- Ozzy Osbourne
Get it?
An additional note: we all know that song titles, sometimes, use profane words. Because this is a family friendly website it is advised that you clean up that title up a bit. This is accomplished by using something like sh!t instead of the real word. Thanks....
68763 Replies
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Supporting Founder
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Comcast is the first to report, with a massive 274,000 loss in video subscribers.
In the 3Q of 2016, Comcast had 21.42 million video subscribers and was the #1 provider, now at 10.39 million and is the #3 Provider, YTTV is #2 ( who also surpassed DirecTV-8 Million and Dish-under 5 Million), Charter/Spectrum is #1.
cordcuttersnews.com
In the 3Q of 2016, Comcast had 21.42 million video subscribers and was the #1 provider, now at 10.39 million and is the #3 Provider, YTTV is #2 ( who also surpassed DirecTV-8 Million and Dish-under 5 Million), Charter/Spectrum is #1.
Comcast Just Lost 274,000 TV Customers & 144,000 Internet Customers In Just Three Months | Cord Cutters News
Comcast Corporation reported its third-quarter 2026 results on October 22, showing continued erosion in its domestic residential broadband internet and video customer bases as competitive pressures intensified across the connectivity market. The company recorded a net loss of 144,000 domestic...
cordcuttersnews.com
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Staff member
Pub Member / Supporter
Cutting Edge
The TPN Map Excel Presents all DIRECTV Channels:
Understanding the TPN Map
Making Sense of the TPN Map Display Conventions
National (50-States or wide/NAT+PR beams)
Local (Local-Into-Local or narrow/Spot beams)
Local (Local-Into-Local or narrow/Spot beams)
Additional tabs provide:
OTA the (Over-The-Air) Database
VOD (Video On_Demand) Records
Offline Records
Engr Records
Net Decoder a graphic presentation of all satellites and transponders
VOD (Video On_Demand) Records
Offline Records
Engr Records
Net Decoder a graphic presentation of all satellites and transponders
Domestic Satellites
@99W...... D11, D14
@101W.... D16
@103W.... D12, D15
@110W.... D5
@119W.... D8
@99W...... D11, D14
@101W.... D16
@103W.... D12, D15
@110W.... D5
@119W.... D8
Understanding the TPN Map
Making Sense of the TPN Map Display Conventions
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Over the past year I have been tracking the changes on Western Arc. The past 3 months have had a lot of changes that I posted in the other MPEG2 Western Arc shutdown thread. Now that 129 is (basically) out of commission, here is where Western Arc stands. This is just a national channel list, (no local channels) based off what I can see and what others have contributed. Thanks to everyone who has helped me come up with the locations of some of the channels – I would try and list all of you out, but I know I would forget someone! As has been suggested in other parts of the forum, it would be great to collect the spotbeam data for those who could contribute!
A couple of pieces of info:
When I talk about number of channels on a transponder, all my numbers are unique channels – for example, channel 101 and 199 are the same channel mapped to two different numbers, but in terms of space, only takes up 1 channel worth of bandwidth on the transponder.
Finally, I have to give Dish a ton of credit. When it was 110/119/129, Dish had 82 transponders they were using – it took a lot to get it down to 50 transponders and figure out where all the pieces were going to go. What are the things they did to get there? Here are the things I saw:
A couple of pieces of info:
- Out of the 64 transponders between 110/119, there are currently 50 transponders that Dish is licensed to use. 22 are Spotbeams, 28 are ConUS transponders (14 transponders are licensed to DirecTV and Dish doesn't have access to them)
- Those 28 ConUS transponders are divided as follows:
- 10 are dedicated to National HD channels (ESPN, CNN, Disney Channel, etc). Dish is maxing out at 16 HD channels per transponder (note – in an earlier post I said there was one transponder with 17 HD channels, that was an error on my part. When I double checked my listings, one channel changed transponders). Before the transition, there was a maximum of 14 HD channels per transponder.
- 1 transponder is dedicated to adult content
- 2 are a mixture HD PPV Movies/4k channels
- 3 are set aside for HD Sports channels that are only on for live games (NBA League Pass, the PAC 12 alternate channels, some PPV events, etc); 3 SD PPV Sports Channels are there as well.
- 7 are for SD and/or music channels. Dish is maxing out at 26 SD channels per transponder thus far on the SD transponders.
- 5 transponders on 110 I have no channels listed but Dish operates. (they are labeled as ConUS on my chart below) There are other things that could be on those transponders, like RV Distant Networks, internal testing channels, etc, that I can't see. They might be able to be used for additional content, but I am not sure exactly what is on those transponders.
When I talk about number of channels on a transponder, all my numbers are unique channels – for example, channel 101 and 199 are the same channel mapped to two different numbers, but in terms of space, only takes up 1 channel worth of bandwidth on the transponder.
Finally, I have to give Dish a ton of credit. When it was 110/119/129, Dish had 82 transponders they were using – it took a lot to get it down to 50 transponders and figure out where all the pieces were going to go. What are the things they did to get there? Here are the things I saw:
- During this migration from 129, Dish converted 7 ConUS transponders on 119 into Spotbeams – that is how they ended up fitting on all the HD locals that used to be on 129. (for those interested, TP 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13 are the ones that used to be ConUS on 119 that are now Spotbeam)
- Removed almost all SD duplicate channels that are offered in HD
- Converted remaining SD channels from MPEG2 to MPEG4
- There are also 2 subtle things that changed from the HD channel perspective
- At the beginning of the transition, Dish decreased the number of PPV Movie channels – prior to this transition the PPV channels HD PPV movies were 502-522; now they are 502-517.
- At the beginning of April when MLB, NBA, and NHL regular seasons were all going on at the same time and this transition began, there were a ton of games "joined in progress" for the HD feeds. That wasn't common since the days before the full time HD RSN's. The reason for that was prior to the transition, Dish had 4 transponders set aside for HD Sports – 2 transponders was the bandwidth set aside from the HD RSN's before Dish dropped the RSN's, then 2 transponders were for alternate channels. Now we are down to 3 transponders for HD sports.
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I ran the Schedule S through ChatGPT to analyze the data quickly, and according to ChatGPT, the 16 transponders currently being used for SpotBeams on 110 is all that has been authorized by the FCC. So Dish might be using TP 01-13 for ConUS on 110 for the foreseeable future. If that is the case, Dish has a ton of space to bring in more HD channels nationally or use that bandwidth for something else.
I know my lists aren't perfect as I can't see all the test channels and behind the scenes channels, but for channels available to subscribers - there are no channels on 119 TP 01-08 and 10; and on 110, TP14 has only 4 channels. With Dish putting 16 HD channels per transponder right now, that is about 145+ slots for HD channels that are available if Dish does keep 110 as ConUS for TP 01-13.
