Checking for signal and LOS for new install

[Derwin0]

A friend of mine is looking to switch to Directv from Dish Network.
He wants to upgrade to an HD package.
Problem is that there are trees everywhere around him.

He first had a Dish guy come out to upgrade him. The Dish guy took a look and said there was no way he could get 61.5 so he left. Could be true, as the back end of the house to wooded pretty thoroughly. 129 would be easy, but being Eastern Pennsylvania, we use 61.5 instead.

Next step was to call Directv. The Directv guy came out and said he wouldn't be able to get anything. The installer even told him that the existing Dish 500 wouldn't be able to get 110 & 119, to which my friend called him a liar and told him that he gets a kick ass signal with it (which is true as I helped him install it, as there is a gap in the trees in that direction). The installer still refused to even try, and left.

So I'm going over this afternoon to try to sight in the birds. The equipment I have is:
- Sadoun SF95L Satellite Signal Meter (little analog meter with buzzer).
- Dish 300 with both legacy and dishpro dual lnb's available.
- Directv Phase 3 triple lnb dish with triple lnb (was left at my house when I moved in).

So, we are going to check for LOS at 101, hopefully if 101 is good, then 99 & 103 should be fine as well.

My questions are:

If I use the Phase 3, with either the meter or Dish Receiver be able to help me established signal strength on the 3 birds, particularly 101?

With the Dish Twin/Quad, the outputs are keyed to one particular satellite prior to a switch test so I could reliably test for both satellites, but I don't know if either of the 4 outputs on the Directv Triple are keyed to anything. I know that 110 is mapped to 119(28, 30, 32 to 8, 10, 12), so are the outputs keyed to 101 & 119? If so, which ones?

Can I use the Dish Receiver to check signal strength's with the Phase 3, knowing that it'll see 110 as part of 119, to check strength's on all 3?

Failing that, could I use it with the Dish 300 to check 101 strength's?

thanks,

 

[harshness]

You need to make sure that 101W is very hot and that you make these measurements. If these are leaf-bearing trees, you should wait until they're substantially leafed out. 99W and 103W are particularly wimpy when it comes to penetrating anything.

61.5W is highest above the horizon in your area at 41.2 degrees. 101W is 37.5 degrees.

Because of the sensitivity of the meter, it will be difficult to get a good idea of the relative strength of each slot.

 

[Derwin0]

You need to make sure that 101W is very hot and that you make these measurements. If these are leaf-bearing trees, you should wait until they're substantially leafed out. 99W and 103W are particularly wimpy when it comes to penetrating anything.

61.5W is highest above the horizon in your area at 41.2 degrees. 101W is 37.5 degrees.

Because of the sensitivity of the meter, it will be difficult to get a good idea of the relative strength of each slot.

Yeah, that's why I was wondering about the effectiveness of a Dish Network receiver for checking signal strength.
My preference is to first find the satellite with the meter, get as good a strength as I can, then use the receiver to further peak if nessesary.
If 101 winds up as a marginal signal, we'll probably not go forth and then attempt 61.5, but the current 110 & 119 signals are rock solid, he has a tower that the dish is mounted on, to get over some of the trees.

61.5 is bad, because the biggest trees are in that direction. Most of the trees are evergreens, so later leafiness isn't a concern. Right now though he's leaning towards Directv as they have our locals in HD, and more nationals such as ESPN News.

 

[toober]

If you're going through the trouble of putting up a new dish to check for signal, why not put a D* receiver in to check the signals?

 

[Derwin0]

If you're going through the trouble of putting up a new dish to check for signal, why not put a D* receiver in to check the signals?

If I had access to one I would, but right now me and my friends have dish network.