1000.2 Dish W/Wally problems- signal finder meter advice please

st468

New Member
Original poster
Aug 2, 2020
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Minnesota/Cape Coral, FL
New here, but I’ve done a ton of reading online and can’t seem to find a good, up to date (as in now, the year 2020) answer. I’m looking to buy a digital meter/tester for my dish so I can further dial it in without having a tech come out. I’ve spent countless hours trying to fix my issue, and I’ve finally resigned myself to either getting a good meter, or else calling in a tech, which is a pain, as the property this is needed at is up in northern Minnesota way out in the sticks. Does anyone here have a suggestion for a digital satellite finder/signal meter that works with the newest 1000.2 dish, which shows the specific satellites, signal strength, transponders, etc? Something in the $100 range or less, and comes with some kind of basic instructions? I’ve seen a bunch available online, I just don’t know what will do exactly what I need.



Background- I have 1000.2 Dish W/newest Hopper at home in the Twin Cities, MN, and I finally decided to add Dish Outdoors service and a new Wally so I can use it up north at the cabin, and possibly do the same down at my Florida place later, which is why I’m considering a good tester rather than just a tech visit. I set up the dish on a ground mast, properly set in concrete with a foot. My level shows the mast is plumb. Dishpointer site gave me the proper elevation, azimuth, and sku to set, which is actually very similar to my professionally installed dish in the Twin Cities. I have a good signal (high 50s or better) for 119 and 129, with all channels working well, but for the life of me I can’t get the 110 to see the transponders I need for those channels. Some transponders show a great signal, just not #1, etc. which I really need. The 1000.2 dish is new, I’ve done the tin foil thing on the outer LNBs, countless receiver resets, check switches, etc. All LNBs do work. But I still can’t seem to get it to see the satellites on the correct LNBs. I’m getting 129/119/ConnX in the matrix. Excellent reception/strength on 95% of my channels (55%+ strength even with a 200’ buried RG6 cable run), I just can’t get the 110 correctly and on the correct LNB! And all my testing/aiming is done with a 12’ cable connected to the dish down by the lake with a tv connected down there not using the long cable run at all, so it is NOT the long cable run that is the problem. The long cable run does not seem to change the signal strength I get up in the cabin for 119 and 129, which is impressive. It is a straight from the dish to the receiver cable run, so there’s no splitters, splices, etc. Sorry for the very long post, but any help/suggestions will be greatly appreciated!
 
As far as I know, only an Applied Instruments (Super Buddy 29 or up) will work with a Hybrid LNBF. You sometimes are able to find on on eBay for $300+
 
It could be your 12' cable that has a problem. (damage, bad connector, etc.) Have you tried replacing that with a different cable to do your aiming? After you get it aimed as well as you can with the short cable, and then take the Wally back into the cabin, do you do another check switch after hooking it back up to the long cable, to see what happens?
 
Thanks very much for the replies!

I ended up breaking down and ordering a used Super Buddy off Ebay as was suggested. Hopefully this will solve it. Though my level shows the mast is plumb, I can't help but to think the skew is off somewhat, though it is set exactly as Dishpointer shows for my exact location on the Google Maps interface. Maybe my 8" magnetic level isn't very accurate or something? I will report my findings here once I get back up there this weekend, in the hopes my situation can assist others. Also I will use the SB for a new install of another 1000.2 dish in Florida. It should save me a ton of time!

As for the cabling, I worried about that also. So I actually made a new 12' section out of the same roll of RG6, newly crimped connectors and everything to try, with the same results. The Wally's check switch would show the same thing both at the dish with a short cable, and after the 200' run to the cabin. And the signal strength seems to be about the same also. That surprised me a bit, as I expected some signal loss due to the long run. Due to all the trees, the only location on my property with a clear view to the SW sky is way down by the lake. My long cable was already in and buried, as I had been living with a large OTA antenna for the past several years, pulling in about 6 stations from 66mi away. And not always with the best reception...

I think the biggest pain here was the dang Wally. It is so time consuming and frustrating to use as a pointing aid!
 
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Thanks very much for the replies!

I ended up breaking down and ordering a used Super Buddy off Ebay as was suggested. Hopefully this will solve it. Though my level shows the mast is plumb, I can't help but to think the skew is off somewhat, though it is set exactly as Dishpointer shows for my exact location on the Google Maps interface. Maybe my 8" magnetic level isn't very accurate or something? I will report my findings here once I get back up there this weekend, in the hopes my situation can assist others. Also I will use the SB for a new install of another 1000.2 dish in Florida. It should save me a ton of time!

As for the cabling, I worried about that also. So I actually made a new 12' section out of the same roll of RG6, newly crimped connectors and everything to try, with the same results. The Wally's check switch would show the same thing both at the dish with a short cable, and after the 200' run to the cabin. And the signal strength seems to be about the same also. That surprised me a bit, as I expected some signal loss due to the long run. Due to all the trees, the only location on my property with a clear view to the SW sky is way down by the lake. My long cable was already in and buried, as I had been living with a large OTA antenna for the past several years, pulling in about 6 stations from 66mi away. And not always with the best reception...

I think the biggest pain here was the dang Wally. It is so time consuming and frustrating to use as a pointing aid!
Do yourself a favor and D/L the SSB Software to update your Meter, regularly.
 
HipKat-

I do plan to update the unit as soon as possible. Unfortunately it does not come with the data cable though, and I was waiting to see exactly which one it takes before ordering one for it (serial or USB). It is a hardware version 3.2 unit. Software version 3.04 is installed currently, North American field guide 2.06. I see that Software version 3.17 is the latest, and Field Guide 2.59 respectively. I was hoping it was up to date enough that I can still get the dish dialed in up at the cabin this weekend before getting the data cable for future use.

In your opinion, do you think it is up to date enough based on the above numbers to do what I need for now? (1000.2 WA triple hybrid w/Wally)
 
Update, hoping my experience may help others-

The Super Buddy is one of the best tools I've bought in a long time. For the cost of a couple technician visits (a couple hundred dollars used), this thing is so worth it!

Mine ended up being an older model, so I had to order a $15 serial data cable from the manufacturer in order to update it. Hipkat nailed it though, updating the software made it so I could dial in the dish 100% perfectly. I was able to get it working correctly for the most part with the older software it came with, but the newest software got my signal strength on all three satellites to the levels I get at home at my primary residence, DESPITE the 200' cable run, once I received the new data cable and updated it. I was a lot further off than I originally thought, had to move the dish east quite a bit.

I had zero experience installing and aiming a dish before, only self-taught from reading online. I was able to do ok initially as stated in previous posts, but with the SB I was able to get pro-level results. The manufacturer has clear and easy to understand instructions available on their website, which made it so easy to figure it all out.

Next up- installing another 1000.2 dish in Cape Coral, FL so I can use the same Wally both in northern MN, and at the winter place in FL. Just downloaded the Dish eastern file for that region. I'll report my results upon completion. (feeling quite confident now:))
 
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I would love to afford a Supper Buddy but can't. I have spent hours looking through the ones on Amazon and non-seem to work on the hybrid LNB. Any MUCH cheaper options than a Supper Buddy? The other I have always dreamed of for years hell decades is a Bird dog.
 
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