Completely new to FTA need some advice

[ElLeonBlanco]

Hello All:

I just signed up today as last week I was asked why am I paying so much every month for SKY. We live in Panama City, Panama and recently DirecTV was purchased by SKY. Along with the name we also lost reliable service and several of our channels. As it turns out my wife's ex spent about $300 USD and purchased a dish and receiver and he claims he is getting over 100 channels. As he and I are friends he told me where to buy the gear. However the guys at the Chinese electronics store only sort of speak Spanish and speak no English I can not turn to them for answers. I have looked at what they have to offer but do not know which model of receiver or dish is should select. I also need advice on which LNB I should choose. I am sure there is a section here that helps people like me get off the ground so to speak. If anyone has the time and would willing to help me make good choices from the beginning I and my family would be most grateful.

Also does anyone there know a list of satellites that we have available here and can we get Sony, Warner, Fox, etc over the FTA system?

 

[AcWxRadar]

Hello All

ElLeonBlanco,

Before anything else, Welcome to SatelliteGuys! It is really great that you selected this forum for your satellite information. Here, you have come to the best spot ever for satellite information - FTA, DN, DirecTV and terrestrial OTA, too.

We are very glad to have you join!

RADAR

 

[AcWxRadar]

Hello All:

As it turns out my wife's ex spent about $300 USD and purchased a dish and receiver and he claims he is getting over 100 channels. As he and I are friends he told me where to buy the gear.

I am sure there is a section here that helps people like me get off the ground so to speak. If anyone has the time and would willing to help me make good choices from the beginning I and my family would be most grateful.

Also does anyone there know a list of satellites that we have available here and can we get Sony, Warner, Fox, etc over the FTA system?

ElLeonBlanco,

First off, are you contemplating C-band or just Ku-Band? Or both? Do you have any background with satellite technology (setting stuff up yourself) or are you only familiar with using what someone else has set up for you?

FTA television is not a direct replacement for Dish Network or DirecTV or whatever. FTA is fun, it is free (well, sort of) and it is a good learning experience, but you won't find the same programming as you would on the pay stuff. This is all a DIY endeavor and you pay for the equipment and usually you set it all up yourself. I wouldn't pay someone else to set up your equipment for you, that's just nonsense. If you go that route, it defeats everything and you might as well pay for a subscription service and get a good warranty and guarantee.

Recommending receivers and antennas and LNBFs is a tricky business. There is so much available out there and everyone's opinion varies so much.

Not to sway you, but I started FTA (in the Ku-band) with a Coolsat 5000 receiver, an Invacom QPH-031 LNBF and a Winegard DS-2076 (76cm) antenna. That was five or six years ago and I still use that equipment yet today. I have added more receivers and dishes and LNBFs since then, but my original setup is still working fine.

No one can condense what happened since then into a few short sentences to inform you what you should do, what equipment you should select.

I now have added a GEOSAT pro 1.2 meter antenna, an AZBox Premium receiver and an Invacom QPH-031 LNBF.

Other's have totally different equipment. It will be up to you to judge what you can use and what you wish to pay for the equipment to get started. You can get a lot of stuff via salvage for no money involved or for next to nothing if you have the time and ambition to go scrounging.

For what you can receive in regards to channels, check these resources to help you on your way:

Lyngsat.com

SatcoDX.com

Satbeams.com

Also, check "The List" here on Satelliteguys site.

Most all the information you will need can be found right here on this site. Use the search engine or just ask. Everyone will be happy to answer your questions.

And, remember, you cannot learn all the information in just one night or day, there is a lot of information and subjects to cover and it is an everlasting education.

RADAR

 

[Wescopc]

Edit :: Radar beat me to the reply!
Goto:
FTAList.com - The easy list of North American free-to-air TV channels
You will get an idea of what is available with FTA.
You will NOT be able to get "Sony, Warner, Fox, etc" FTA is not a replacement for subscription TV. But it has some programing that is not available otherwise.
You can also look at "The List" tab at the top of this page.
Welcome and Good Luck.
Bob

 

[ElLeonBlanco]

Thanks for your replies

Hello radar and wescopc:

Thanks for the replies. We have been a little tied up for the holidays with out of town visitors so I am a bit slow on writing back. Over the Christmas weekend I actually had a look at my wife's ex's system. For some reason it is not working at the moment. The equipment we have available here in Panama City comes from a place called MuchoMasTV. They have a website however it is not very informative at muchomastv.com. I will be stopping in their shops in the next couple of days to see what they are recommending. Once I have this info I will get back with you guys for your opinions.

As for my experience level I used to do a bit of cable tv head end engineering a few years ago and we had some earth stations that I helped maintain but we only installed a couple of them. Later I set up my own Dish network in the USA. I also have extensive experience in earth based microwave communication systems for voice and data. I don't think that the satellite stuff should be too much more difficult. Or at least I hope not.

I look forwards to hearing from you again as soon as I have some more info to share.

 

[AcWxRadar]

ElLeonBlanco,

We are definitely happy that you chose SatelliteGuys and we look forward to your specialty inputs and information as well as helping you with what we know. This hobby is relatively easy, but not so simple that you would become bored with it, so at least you can count on some excitement and challenges throughout.

Probably the worst or most difficult part is deciding on what toys you want to play with! You're going to feel like a kid in a candy shop.

Guaranteed, it's a great deal of fun.

RADAR