Antenna alignment issues, need advice!

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tech020

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Jul 14, 2004
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Twin Cities, Minnesota
I recently got back into FTA after a long absence. Resurrected my old 30" Ku dish with STAB motor from storage. Looked fine, not dented or beat up. Installed on combination wood pole/pipe mount set in concrete. Nice and plumb. Set motor to zero, aimed for magnetic south with compass. I am at 93 west and I used G25 for alignment. Got good signal on Mexican Azteca soccer channel. When I did a blind scan, it listed CCTV channels which are on G3c. Reception was also good. When the receiver did a USALS scan on the belt, a similar situation on AMC16/SES 2 was noticed. I get the echostar transponder on AMC16, but also the Louisiana Public TV which are on SES2. When I go to SES2, I get the Public TV transponders listed along with the Muslim TV programs and some hospital channels. Long story short, is my dish not capable of 2 degree spacing or is it somehow distorted? Should I invest in a larger dish? Can the adjacent channels block what I want to see on AMC16?
 
being here in the TC myself and had a 30" dish I've seen the same thing with your examples
Some transponders are very strong so you will get bleedover with the 30" dish (which technically is not 2 degree compliant but works fine for most signals up there)
 
It sounds as if your dish may be pointing slightly off of the intended sats (either west of or maybe just below), just enough that the bleedover Iceberg mentions kicks in. When you swing it to SES2, you may be pointing enough off of it that the LPB signal (which is DVB-S2) is no longer strong enough to lock onto. Do you also get the DVB-S2 CNN signals from 11960/H on SES2?
 
I haven't found CNN but the dish is right on SES2. If I move the edge either way, I lose signal strength. The elevation was right on at 93 and should be okay this close to the top of the arc. I have one of the cheap chinese meters which is great once I found the files for the US satellites and updated the meter. So would a better grade dish like Winegard make any difference? I'm hoping to get wild feeds of Montana football games, my grandson is playing football. Thanks for responding, guys!
 
Can the adjacent channels block what I want to see on AMC16?
You could -try- one of the PLL LNBFs on the market.
As a cheap band-aid, those sometimes help on marginal signals.
(what are you using now?)
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But the smaller dish size sounds more like the problem.
That's a more $erious comittment.
But ever since I joined this forum and read side-by-side reviews of 32" and 36" Fortec dishes, I've always seen 36" a the minimum.
Wasnt recommending the brand, just size.
Today, I'd look at 36" from SatelliteAV, which can be had with their PLL LNBF.
(sure, it's fine to experiment with smaller dishes [I have, too], but never buy one :) )
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What sort of receiver did you pull out of storage ?
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Often, a picture of the dish allows our eagle eye members an opportunity to spot something you overlooked. :up
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What LNB are you using. I get the same sort of bleedover with my Fortec 31" and Stab 90 motor.
The PLL LNB on the dish is the culprit in my case. When I switch over to the Invacom or the GT LNB the bleeding stops.
 
I believe the dish is a old fortec as is the universal LNB. I will try an old basic LNB and see if that helps. I have a old Traxis 2500 and a new X2 that seems to work as advertised. If I upgrade, I will try the winegard 36" dish with a Traxis 6000HD. Anybody know if college games are still fed on AMC16?
 
My local college team will be on AMC16 a bunch this year. The other games will be on Galaxy 17. The first game ia App State here :). I put up a 1.2m in the driveway (Iceberg Special ;) ) and lined it up on AMC 16. I'm ready for some football :)
817 009.JPG
 
Love your parking sign. My grandson is No 82, freshman Tight End Noah Scarver. Hoping he gets to play some this season for the Grizzlies. Met Coach Delaney in Minneapolis when on a recruiting trip.
 
I believe the dish is a old fortec as is the universal LNB. I will try an old basic LNB and see if that helps. I have a old Traxis 2500 and a new X2 that seems to work as advertised. If I upgrade, I will try the winegard 36" dish with a Traxis 6000HD. Anybody know if college games are still fed on AMC16?

If the motor that you are using is a Stab 90HH then beware that there will be an issue adjusting the dish elevation with Winegard dishes. It has something to do with the angle of the motor shaft that fits into the dish sleeve and limits the amount of dish elevation travel. I believe the Winegard web site has info to that effect.
 
Update from Sept 1; I found a 1 degree error in my true South alignment. I rescanned the arc and all satellites are good with no "bleedover" from adjacent birds. Trying several LNB's with no noticeable difference. I found my Montana football feed on AMC16 as hoped for. So for an old fortec 30" dish with a STAB motor, I'm doing okay with a new X2 receiver that does blind scan and HD.
 
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