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Hi all,
so I've taken the plunge into the world of FTA satellite and have come a long way as of a few weeks ago when I didn't know what FTA stood for.
This is my first post here so bear with me. This weekend I got my setup tuned for the very first time and was ecstatic when I was able to receive a few channels. However being somewhat of a newbie I had a few questions around tuning/expanding my setup.
First few words on my current setup. I have a split frontend/backend MythTV (0.21) configuration for receiving OTA ATSC and basic NTSC cable. The BE server runs rather dated but stable CentOS 5.2 with the primary tuner being a Hauppauge HVR-1600 along with an older bt878 (bttv) based NTSC analog only card. The FE runs Minimyth and has enough grunt to play 1080i/720p with no VDPAU being used on the built in GeForce 8200. Ive had this setup working flawlessly for over a year. More details of my setup here.
About 3-4 weeks ago I started investigating about getting Satellite TV. In fact I started by thinking I was going to subscribe to Dish Networks and called their sales line. After holding for 5-10mins and a short conversation later with a not too friendly sales rep it became clear to me that this would be problematic for what I wanted. He gave the game away when he asked me what's FTA? Firstly I wanted the service to fully integrate with my existing MythTV setup,and the options available were RGB/S-video from the settop with irblaster with their closed system. And secondly their dish/lnb setup had limited ability to receive FTA channels.
So I decided to go down the FTA route and not get Dish. After much research I ordered a GEOSATpro 36" Dish, GEOSATpro SL1 Standard Linear LNBF and a Prof 7301 DVB-S2 card. I knew the Linux drivers may be problematic in CentOS 5.2 (2.6.18-92.1.22.el5.centos.plus) kernel, but decided to risk it. After messing around for a week or so, applying some patches I got the V4L to compile both the cx18 for the HVR-1600, and the cx88 drivers for the Prof 7301. For reference I have the kernel log of the driver here.
After much work of getting the dish mounted on my roof, orienting to point correctly to Galaxy 19 with a satellite signal meter I bought off Ebay, I managed to scan for channels and pick some up this weekend, hurray! I did "scan -a 1 -f 0 -d 0 -l 10750 /usr/share/dvb/dvb-s/Galaxy19-97w > /root/.szap/channels.conf" and picked up these channels. After messing around with LNB skew I can lock onto 15-20 channels plus bunch of radio stations. I had to import my channels.conf file manually to MythTV btw as 0.21 tuning in Myth is hit and miss.
So although I'm happy with my progress so far, majority of the video channels listed in the scan don't seem to lock correctly in Mythtv. I've only managed to lock to two English channels, Al Jazeeraa and Russia Today. Saudi TV2 which is English according to ftalist.com is picked up in the scan but doesn't lock. I do have a few light tree branches unfortunately that could be hindering the signal, but cutting them down would be problematic. Why am I able to receive some channels but not all as listed by the scan on a same satellite? Is this a signal strength issue or something else?
Secondly, I was thinking of upgrading to a motorized setup with a SG-2100, anyone have experience driving an SG-2100 with MythTv 0.21 and Prof 7301? I picked the 7301 specifically for DiSEqC 1.2 support. I'm in Bay Area, CA. Dishponter tells me I can get to Galaxy 17, 23 etc, what other birds are worth connecting to? I've scanned Lyngsat, but find the layout so confusing. Would getting a SG-2100 be worth where I am with this setup to pick up more English channels?
Lastly, do I need to install S2API separately to get DVB-S2 or is it included in the latest V4L? I read somewhere I may need to uncomment some header file to enable S2API, anyone got DVB-S2 working on the Prof 7310 with Linux here?
Many thanks for any tips/pointers,
Tony
so I've taken the plunge into the world of FTA satellite and have come a long way as of a few weeks ago when I didn't know what FTA stood for.
This is my first post here so bear with me. This weekend I got my setup tuned for the very first time and was ecstatic when I was able to receive a few channels. However being somewhat of a newbie I had a few questions around tuning/expanding my setup.First few words on my current setup. I have a split frontend/backend MythTV (0.21) configuration for receiving OTA ATSC and basic NTSC cable. The BE server runs rather dated but stable CentOS 5.2 with the primary tuner being a Hauppauge HVR-1600 along with an older bt878 (bttv) based NTSC analog only card. The FE runs Minimyth and has enough grunt to play 1080i/720p with no VDPAU being used on the built in GeForce 8200. Ive had this setup working flawlessly for over a year. More details of my setup here.
About 3-4 weeks ago I started investigating about getting Satellite TV. In fact I started by thinking I was going to subscribe to Dish Networks and called their sales line. After holding for 5-10mins and a short conversation later with a not too friendly sales rep it became clear to me that this would be problematic for what I wanted. He gave the game away when he asked me what's FTA? Firstly I wanted the service to fully integrate with my existing MythTV setup,and the options available were RGB/S-video from the settop with irblaster with their closed system. And secondly their dish/lnb setup had limited ability to receive FTA channels.
So I decided to go down the FTA route and not get Dish. After much research I ordered a GEOSATpro 36" Dish, GEOSATpro SL1 Standard Linear LNBF and a Prof 7301 DVB-S2 card. I knew the Linux drivers may be problematic in CentOS 5.2 (2.6.18-92.1.22.el5.centos.plus) kernel, but decided to risk it. After messing around for a week or so, applying some patches I got the V4L to compile both the cx18 for the HVR-1600, and the cx88 drivers for the Prof 7301. For reference I have the kernel log of the driver here.
After much work of getting the dish mounted on my roof, orienting to point correctly to Galaxy 19 with a satellite signal meter I bought off Ebay, I managed to scan for channels and pick some up this weekend, hurray! I did "scan -a 1 -f 0 -d 0 -l 10750 /usr/share/dvb/dvb-s/Galaxy19-97w > /root/.szap/channels.conf" and picked up these channels. After messing around with LNB skew I can lock onto 15-20 channels plus bunch of radio stations. I had to import my channels.conf file manually to MythTV btw as 0.21 tuning in Myth is hit and miss.
So although I'm happy with my progress so far, majority of the video channels listed in the scan don't seem to lock correctly in Mythtv. I've only managed to lock to two English channels, Al Jazeeraa and Russia Today. Saudi TV2 which is English according to ftalist.com is picked up in the scan but doesn't lock. I do have a few light tree branches unfortunately that could be hindering the signal, but cutting them down would be problematic. Why am I able to receive some channels but not all as listed by the scan on a same satellite? Is this a signal strength issue or something else?
Secondly, I was thinking of upgrading to a motorized setup with a SG-2100, anyone have experience driving an SG-2100 with MythTv 0.21 and Prof 7301? I picked the 7301 specifically for DiSEqC 1.2 support. I'm in Bay Area, CA. Dishponter tells me I can get to Galaxy 17, 23 etc, what other birds are worth connecting to? I've scanned Lyngsat, but find the layout so confusing. Would getting a SG-2100 be worth where I am with this setup to pick up more English channels?
Lastly, do I need to install S2API separately to get DVB-S2 or is it included in the latest V4L? I read somewhere I may need to uncomment some header file to enable S2API, anyone got DVB-S2 working on the Prof 7310 with Linux here?
Many thanks for any tips/pointers,
Tony
9 Replies
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4277 views
M
Thanks much, here's the tuning data file I'm using for the scan, does this look right or is it missing a bunch of stuff for Galaxy 19?
# Galaxy 19 @ 97W
# freq pol sr fec
S 11789000 V 28125000 AUTO
S 11836000 V 20770000 AUTO
S 11867000 V 22000000 AUTO
S 11874000 H 22000000 AUTO
S 11898000 V 22000000 AUTO
S 11936000 H 20000000 AUTO
S 11966000 H 22000000 AUTO
S 11991000 V 22000000 AUTO
S 11999000 H 20000000 AUTO
S 12053000 V 22000000 AUTO
S 12084000 V 22000000 AUTO
S 12090000 H 20000000 AUTO
S 12115000 V 22425000 AUTO
S 12146000 V 22000000 AUTO
S 12152000 H 20000000 AUTO
S 12177000 V 23000000 AUTO
I was trying to use LyngSat to update this but wasn't really getting very far.
Sounds good, I think I will grab a SG-2100 once I get the current setup more operational. I was concerned about Linux/MythTv support for DiSEqC 1.2, but doesn't sound like it's a big issue.
I used the backport V4L tree rather than the s2-liplianin tree because of my older kernel, do you know if the two have merged yet or do I need the s2-liplianin for DVB-S2? I'm also guessing I have to upgrade to MythTv 0.22 to be able to play DVB-S2 as 0.21 BE will be not compatable with 0.22 FE. Perhaps this is a better question for the mythtv-users or linuxtv mailers.
I read elsewhere that you were testing Linux blind scanning on this card. Care to share which tree you're using and appropriate patches? I would be more than happy to test on my setup once it gets more operational.
Thanks
Thanks much, here's the tuning data file I'm using for the scan, does this look right or is it missing a bunch of stuff for Galaxy 19?
# Galaxy 19 @ 97W
# freq pol sr fec
S 11789000 V 28125000 AUTO
S 11836000 V 20770000 AUTO
S 11867000 V 22000000 AUTO
S 11874000 H 22000000 AUTO
S 11898000 V 22000000 AUTO
S 11936000 H 20000000 AUTO
S 11966000 H 22000000 AUTO
S 11991000 V 22000000 AUTO
S 11999000 H 20000000 AUTO
S 12053000 V 22000000 AUTO
S 12084000 V 22000000 AUTO
S 12090000 H 20000000 AUTO
S 12115000 V 22425000 AUTO
S 12146000 V 22000000 AUTO
S 12152000 H 20000000 AUTO
S 12177000 V 23000000 AUTO
I was trying to use LyngSat to update this but wasn't really getting very far.
Sounds good, I think I will grab a SG-2100 once I get the current setup more operational. I was concerned about Linux/MythTv support for DiSEqC 1.2, but doesn't sound like it's a big issue.
I used the backport V4L tree rather than the s2-liplianin tree because of my older kernel, do you know if the two have merged yet or do I need the s2-liplianin for DVB-S2? I'm also guessing I have to upgrade to MythTv 0.22 to be able to play DVB-S2 as 0.21 BE will be not compatable with 0.22 FE. Perhaps this is a better question for the mythtv-users or linuxtv mailers.
I read elsewhere that you were testing Linux blind scanning on this card. Care to share which tree you're using and appropriate patches? I would be more than happy to test on my setup once it gets more operational.
Thanks
P
This looks out of date, although you should still find more than 15-20 channels with it. Lyngsat is a better bet, although it is also often out-of-date.
I haven't tried any back ports so I can't say anything useful about them. Some simple diffs on the STV0903 driver files should answer the question. It may sound strange, but you should not need the S2API or DVB-S2 support in Myth for DVB-S2 to work with the 7301. The way the driver is written, it will lock to the appropriate format automatically no matter what the application requests.
My work has not been made public for the moment. I have blindscanning working on both the 7301 and 7500. However I am not happy with a number of coding choices made in the original driver and the overall Linux DVB design. These cause a number of operational headaches that I can workaround, but are in my mind not acceptable for the masses. I started fixing this back in January, but I'm always trying to juggle too many projects at the same time and had to focus on the higher priorities. Some of these are even more compelling to me than PC blindscanning.
This looks out of date, although you should still find more than 15-20 channels with it. Lyngsat is a better bet, although it is also often out-of-date.
I haven't tried any back ports so I can't say anything useful about them. Some simple diffs on the STV0903 driver files should answer the question. It may sound strange, but you should not need the S2API or DVB-S2 support in Myth for DVB-S2 to work with the 7301. The way the driver is written, it will lock to the appropriate format automatically no matter what the application requests.
I read elsewhere that you were testing Linux blind scanning on this card. Care to share which tree you're using and appropriate patches? I would be more than happy to test on my setup once it gets more operational.
My work has not been made public for the moment. I have blindscanning working on both the 7301 and 7500. However I am not happy with a number of coding choices made in the original driver and the overall Linux DVB design. These cause a number of operational headaches that I can workaround, but are in my mind not acceptable for the masses. I started fixing this back in January, but I'm always trying to juggle too many projects at the same time and had to focus on the higher priorities. Some of these are even more compelling to me than PC blindscanning.
M
Thanks, this is what I thought. Reading through the newer V4L wiki, which is much more readable than the old, I guess I should be using w_scan first to generate this.
No problem, I'll give DVB-S2 a shot once I have DVB-S working reliably, I guess it must fall back to the older multiproto API.
Sounds good, how is this better than the w_scan tool other than perhaps leveraging the hardware more for improved performance? In other words if I run w_scan for long enough time, will I get similar results to your tool? I understand faster blind scanning performance will mean being able to detect transient feeds quicker.
Thanks, this is what I thought. Reading through the newer V4L wiki, which is much more readable than the old, I guess I should be using w_scan first to generate this.
No problem, I'll give DVB-S2 a shot once I have DVB-S working reliably, I guess it must fall back to the older multiproto API.
Sounds good, how is this better than the w_scan tool other than perhaps leveraging the hardware more for improved performance? In other words if I run w_scan for long enough time, will I get similar results to your tool? I understand faster blind scanning performance will mean being able to detect transient feeds quicker.
P
Actually not. This is just a function of the way the driver is written. The application simply sends a tuning request through the existing DVB-S API; neither the API nor the app is aware that DVB-S2 even exists. Although the API only contains the particulars to tune DVB-S signals, the STV0903 driver ignores just about everything other than frequency, although SR factors in if my memory serves. The driver centers the tuner and will attempt to lock any signal it can at that frequency or something closeby, whether it is DVB, DVB-S2 or even DSS (the latter I'm not sure about, it's been awhile), whatever the FEC, pilot and SR. There is no provision to pass what it finds back to the app, but the signal is available for use.
I don't use w_scan, so I can only speculate. I expect w_scan will sort of work with the 7301 and 7500, but it will likely take a very long time and is also likely to keep finding the same TP again and again, because of the way the driver will always look for the closest signal to the frequency supplied. With the existing API there is no way for the driver to send the found parameters back, meaning the results will be meaningless. Most DVB-S drivers will only lock a signal with essentially the supplied parameters, giving w_scan an idea of what is there. These are some of the issues I've already fixed, but there are a number of others. One may be able to get w_scan to crudely work with the 7301/7500, but I wouldn't be surprised if a more traditionally coded DVB driver worked better. The true hardware blindscan I've worked out is both fast and pretty accurate (I'll never be satisfied).
Actually not. This is just a function of the way the driver is written. The application simply sends a tuning request through the existing DVB-S API; neither the API nor the app is aware that DVB-S2 even exists. Although the API only contains the particulars to tune DVB-S signals, the STV0903 driver ignores just about everything other than frequency, although SR factors in if my memory serves. The driver centers the tuner and will attempt to lock any signal it can at that frequency or something closeby, whether it is DVB, DVB-S2 or even DSS (the latter I'm not sure about, it's been awhile), whatever the FEC, pilot and SR. There is no provision to pass what it finds back to the app, but the signal is available for use.
Sounds good, how is this better than the w_scan tool other than perhaps leveraging the hardware more for improved performance? In other words if I run w_scan for long enough time, will I get similar results to your tool? I understand faster blind scanning performance will mean being able to detect transient feeds quicker.
I don't use w_scan, so I can only speculate. I expect w_scan will sort of work with the 7301 and 7500, but it will likely take a very long time and is also likely to keep finding the same TP again and again, because of the way the driver will always look for the closest signal to the frequency supplied. With the existing API there is no way for the driver to send the found parameters back, meaning the results will be meaningless. Most DVB-S drivers will only lock a signal with essentially the supplied parameters, giving w_scan an idea of what is there. These are some of the issues I've already fixed, but there are a number of others. One may be able to get w_scan to crudely work with the 7301/7500, but I wouldn't be surprised if a more traditionally coded DVB driver worked better. The true hardware blindscan I've worked out is both fast and pretty accurate (I'll never be satisfied).
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Some of the channels start next week.
investor.siriusxm.com
SiriusXM Delivers the Soundtrack to the Holidays with Its Festive Lineup of 25 Handcrafted Seasonal Music Channels
Lineup features channels produced and presented by celebrated personalities and iconic brands, including Jimmy Fallon, Hallmark,…...
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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....
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Susan Saint James, Emmy-Winning Star of ‘Kate & Allie’ and ‘McMillan & Wife,’ Dies at 80
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Terrible tragedy. You would think that they would have safe guards in place that would prevent something like this from happening. I guess if you are going to ride in a passenger train it might be best to get a car near the rear.
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At Least 64 Dead After Two High-Speed Trains Collide In Spain<!-- --> | ZeroHedge
ZeroHedge - On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero
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House Passes AM Radio For Every Vehicle Act
(Washington, DC) - The U.S. House has passed the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act, marking a major step forward for broadcasters and listeners who have pushed to keep AM radio available in new cars and
wabcradio.com
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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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Booredatwork.com
Time for another AWESOME video from BoredAtWork!
View: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/wVSqE_URJIo
Direct YouTube Link - Amazon Echo Show 16: Now this is it!
Booredatwork.com Website
Booredatwork on Facebook
View: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/wVSqE_URJIo
Direct YouTube Link - Amazon Echo Show 16: Now this is it!
Booredatwork.com Website
Booredatwork on Facebook
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TFLEV
Time for another AWESOME video from TFL Electric Vehicles!
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-HYgO5Lpa8
Direct YouTube Link - Can You ACTUALLY Use the Mazda CX-90 PHEV As an Electric Commuter? | Baseline Challenge
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-HYgO5Lpa8
Direct YouTube Link - Can You ACTUALLY Use the Mazda CX-90 PHEV As an Electric Commuter? | Baseline Challenge
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TWiT Tech Podcast Network
Time for another AWESOME video from the TWIT Network!
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtLJGwEtyT0
Direct YouTube Link - Apple's All-New iPad mini
TWIT's Website
TWIT Live Feed
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtLJGwEtyT0
Direct YouTube Link - Apple's All-New iPad mini
TWIT's Website
TWIT Live Feed
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I know HipKat said that they were working on conversions but we got the official news yesterday right from Dish that starting next month all DMA's will be on the western arc, and all customers will be assigned to that. That's gonna mean a lot of customers around here aren't gonna get Dish unless there are exceptions. Too many mountains and trees.
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