Anyone have problems with some G19 channels?

[shibby191]

Verify with a voltage tester that 18VDC is present at each LNBF when a horizontal channel is selected and 13VDC for verticals.

Did you use existing coax or new cables? What is the length of the coax cable? Cable type (RG59, RG6, standard/ quad or tri shield? Continuous or barrels? Compression, crimped or screw-on fittings? Tight 90 degree corners or wide curves?

I don't have a voltage tester but I'll get one if needed. It's supposed to "thaw" up into the mid 20s tomorrow and into next week so maybe I'll be able to do some adjustments.

Actually this is the same installation I've had for nearly 2 years. Only thing different I've done is about 6 weeks ago installed the new DVR (made sure everything powered down while disconnecting old and connecting the new). Everything worked fine for about 3 weeks and just in the past 2-3 have these problems occured.

As for cabling, used the 75 footer that came with the kit, buried in the ground and into the house. Goes into a grounding block and then RG6 quad shielded (custom made at home theater shop, higher end) from there to the receiver. Again, all the same cables I've had since installation.

So either this sub zero cold is giving me problems or the dish has become warped due to the cold. Hopefully when it gets near freezing I'll be able to screw/unscrew the screws but I may need to wait until a real thaw to do some better adjustments. I'll post updates as I have them.

 

[Glorystar1]

Definitely test the voltage at the LNBFs. Either LNBF #2 is not receiving 18VDC or the LNBF horizontal polarity may be faulty.

The cable supplied with the Glorystar system is not designed for burial. Any compromise of the PVC jacket will allow moisture to wick into the cable and degrade the signal. This probably is not the cause of the loss of horizontal transponders on one satellite, but underground cables should be flooded or direct burial type.

• Swap back to the original receiver to see if the unit can receive the missing channels.
• Swap the LNBFs to see if the problem follows the LNBF.
• Bypass the switch and barrel through the jumper to see if the switch is faulty (remember to Master Power OFF the receiver).

Loss of only the horizontal channels on one of two satellites has nothing to do with a warped reflector. While it is advised that you perform a string test on the reflector to verify that it is not warped and that the dish is optimized, this is not related to this issue.

 

[shibby191]

Ok, got things back. Those channels I had trouble with are now solid in the mid to upper 40s. Not where they were before but close. The others are in the upper 50s and of course AMC4 channels are really strong.

What I did (after digging a path in 3 feet of snow! and melting the ice on the bolts) was adjusted the LNB tilt which didn't get me much. I adjusted the azimuth which got me some more signal back but I wasn't expecting much since it was solid tight. I pulled the dish off and shook it (as you would to unwarp it) and put it back up and had better numbers. More azimuth tweaking and I'm back up and running as noted above. Those horizontals are a bit lower then they were a month ago but they are solid now and don't drop out.

Very weird. Next time we get a sunny day at least 40 degrees (probably March), I'll pull it all apart and repeak it again.

I'll keep an eye it though and get a voltage tester if the problem comes back and go thru the other suggestions. It's tough when it's this cold so hopefully it holds out until spring. I could get some solid copper core RG6 quad shielded and bury it come summer to replace what is there if I feel up to it.

Thanks!

 

[shibby191]

The H on G19 have been out again. Since it's 50 today and some of the 3 feet of snow have melted I went out and re-tweaked everything. Did a dish unwarp and did some fine tuning.

Everything on AMC4 is great. V on G19 is ok (50s mostly) but H on G19 is out. Strange.

I may be able to do a bit more testing when the wife gets home but I'm going to have to wait until spring to really get in there and do better testing such as swapping LNBs, bypass the switch and so forth. I may just order up a new switch and LNB and be done with it.

 

[shibby191]

Just a bit more detail. Wife got home and tweaked as good as I could. On the G19 H on Al Jazerra for example I get signal 75, but quality bounces from 0-30 and thus won't lock. Same for the others, signal is up there, but no quality. The V is signal in the 70s and solid lock quality up near 60 now (like on Cornerstone or Safe TV).

Again, good enough for now as the channels my wife wants come in. I'll leave it rest until March or so when I can take it all apart and troubleshoot individual LNBs and such.

 

[rv1pop]

Here is a thought, if it is warm enough to do. Run some cross strings on the dish, top to bottom, side to side at the center, then diagonally across over the bolts. See that the strings touch at the center, and then measure from each string to the bolt heads where the dish fastens to the bracket. This is where I was over a quarter inch off, which wiped out one polarity from one bird. I taped the strings to the back of the dish with good duct tape and left them there. It was surprising how much the dish moved!

 

[Glorystar1]

Very unlikely related to a warped dish.

What was the result of the testing suggestions from our 1/17/2009 post?

What was the voltage at LNBF #2?

By pass the switch and direct connect to LNBF #2. Same signal issues?

Swap LNBFs. Does the swapped LNBF have the same issue?

Run a temporary coax between the dish and receiver. Does the temporary cable have the same issue?

 

[shibby191]

Very unlikely related to a warped dish.

What was the result of the testing suggestions from our 1/17/2009 post?

What was the voltage at LNBF #2?

By pass the switch and direct connect to LNBF #2. Same signal issues?

Swap LNBFs. Does the swapped LNBF have the same issue?

Run a temporary coax between the dish and receiver. Does the temporary cable have the same issue?

Sorry. I don't have a voltage tester. Any good place to get a cheap one?

I can't run any of the other tests until things thaw out in March or so. Even though it's above freezing there is still 2 feet of snow on the ground.

 

[SatelliteAV]

Multimeters are inexpensive at Harbor Freight Tools or eBay.

Try:
multimeter, Business Industrial, Home Garden items on eBay.com

 

[ANIMA]

Simply, WHY, is this system so problematic to work with !!!! ? Sure getting tried of running up and down the road messing with it ! .

 

[shibby191]

Simply, WHY, is this system so problematic to work with !!!! ? Sure getting tried of running up and down the road messing with it ! .

I don't think they are all that problematic just because I personally have a problem. It's no different then when I've had technical problems with my DirecTV setup like when I went thru three LNBs to finally get one that could handle temps below 30 degrees. Basically any of this sat stuff can have issues, it's not cable which of course never has problems.

 

[rv1pop]

I don't think they are all that problematic just because I personally have a problem. It's no different then when I've had technical problems with my DirecTV setup like when I went thru three LNBs to finally get one that could handle temps below 30 degrees. Basically any of this sat stuff can have issues, it's not cable which of course never has problems.

Some of us live in areas where there are problems with wind and weather. We are looking for help in solving those challenges. You seldom hear about the many systems that work the first time, everytime.

But then there are those who seem to have constant complaints. for them, nothing seems to work. ith those, I remember what my dad used to say, "He would complain if they hung him with a new rope." After hearing that a few times, I asked dad how someone who was hung, would be alive to complain. "He would not get hurt, but would be so much of a complainer, he would not be grateful to be alive."

Just for a comment on the thread subject, my primestar dishes have not had a channel loss problem even using the same LNBFs. But the metal dishes do seem to have a problem with tempurature extremes and winds over 45 mph.

And just for comparison, a neighbor has been told they can not have telephone service, after the wind and ice took down their 7th phone line! CABLE TV??? The badgers ate over 2 miles of underground cable, so the cable company says they will not replace it! (was still 1 1/2 mile from our place and I would not pay the price anyway!)

For us, the challenges do not deter us for making the effort to keep Satellite TV working!
POP

 

[Glorystar1]

Are you noticing a trend with solving the posted problems? Usually the problems are solved with the same trouble shooting techniques that experienced technicians have used for years with every other satellite system provider.

These threads have a reoccurring theme. I have problem X, Y or Z. What do I do? Usually a problem is resolved by following the suggested testing method. Often the person chooses to develop their own methods to determine the problem and reports that the system continues to exhibit the same problem. Why? Because the issue has not been isolated with signal flow logic or general trouble shooting techniques. A defective coax or switch will not be discovered by reaiming the dish and a dish aiming issue will not be corrected by replacing a switch or coax. Flat tires on a car usually aren't the cause of an engine not starting.....

I would suggest that this issue has not been resolved because the the prime suspect causes for the failure have not been tested.

.

Simply, WHY, is this system so problematic to work with !!!! ? Sure getting tried of running up and down the road messing with it ! .

 

[shibby191]

I would suggest that this issue has not been resolved because the the prime suspect causes for the failure have not been tested.

.

Exactly. I just can't physically do the tests at this time. It is going to be 60 today (whoohooo!) but heavy rain and then back to cold and snow in a couple days. Not a big deal to me, I'll get it troubleshooted down in a month or so once the weather breaks.

Took me 2 weeks to troubleshoot my DirecTV problem last winter in sub freezing weather to figure out it was my LNB. But it was more pressing to me because I'm not missing my Sunday Ticket! I remember bypassing switches, troubleshooting each cable one at a time, replacing the whole dish with an old one I still had laying around and so forth. Fun fun!
With my current problem with Glorystar my wife gets all the channels she wants so there is no urgency other then it bugs me it's not 100%. But I'll get it figured out.

 

[midihead]

Low Signal Quality on G19 Channels

I am using a Mercury II receiver with the dual LNB setup. I am also using all of the original settings that initially came set on my receiver after activating it. The receiver has never been updated since activation.

Ever since G19 became active, my signal quality has dropped by half of what it used to be. I am in western Maryland near the PA line. The highest I used to get on G25 was the mid-40's to low 50's. Now the majority of G19 channels are hovering around the mid-20's which of course isn't good enough. 3ABN on AMC4 has remained great with Signal Level around 97 and Signal Quality around 90 consistently using either of the 2 LNB's when testing. The signal drop occured right after G19 became active.

For the G19 satellite, I have swapped LNB's, changed the switch, installed all new coax (non-crimped ends, of course) and adjusted the LNB's forward and backward with no improvement. The only thing I haven't tried is adjusting the skew on the LNB holder and repointing the dish itself.

If G19 is in exactly the same place as G25 was, I shouldn't have to do any adjustments to my system should I? My dish is locked down solid and has not moved. If it was a warped dish issue, wouldn't that have affected AMC4's reception somewhat?

Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thank you.

 

[shibby191]

Hey, my thread got bumped. Just FYI that we had some great weather last weekend and I completely tore everything down, re-plumbed the mast (it was off just a tad) and repointed everything. AMC4 was rock solid and I got all the vertical on G19 back solid but the horizontal were still out. Tried a direct cable run with new cable and same thing so I think it's a bad LNB or switch. I ordered up a couple new LNBs and a switch and should be here next week so we'll see if that fixes it. I like to have extra parts around anyway.

 

[shibby191]

Problem Solved!

Problem is solved!

And the problem was: Bad LNB

Got my parts today and went right to work. First I replaced the switch because the old one was faded and starting to corrode on the back. Nope, same problem.

So I replaced the LNB for G19 and viola, everything works great. All the Horizontals came back, however weak. So a bit of tweaking and I've got AMC4 at 85+ for the adventist channels, 65+ for the rest.
And G19 I've got 50-70 for most. Even got a solid 53 on Al Jazzera.

I had thought bad LNB at first but didn't want to assume it. I shoulda just ordered up a new LNB months ago. I coulda replaced that even in the snow. Oh well, I've got a spare LNB now just in case (I like to have spare parts like that anyway).