Dish 1000/Dish 500 Installation Advice

[js6425]

My grandmother's tv died yesterday, and I convinced her to go all out and buy a HDTV for herself. She has a 211 hooked up to a Dish 500 (110/119). I have never installed a satellite dish before, and I'm pretty sure it's not that hard. Should I buy a Dish 1000.2 (for 129), or get another Dish 500 and point it at 61.5? What is the cheapest method? She doesn't want a retailer installing this, so I said I would. How would I go about installing this? Are there any online instruction booklets/guides? Thanks!

 

[CowboyDren]

I have a Dish Pro Plus Twin pointing at 110/119, as installed for my old 625 DVR. By using the "In" port on that LNBF, my installer added a "wing dish" (standard 500 pan, single Dish Pro LNBF) pointing exclusively to the 129 orbital location. By using the proper "I" adapter on the dish arm, I get to use the entire dish to pull the most signal possible out of the 129 satellite, which is a bit weaker than 110 and 119 in my observation.

My only complaint with this setup is the excessive cable run, which was necessary to suit my unique geography/botanical situation. If you can locate the dishes near each other, this won't be a problem for you. One day, I'll buy a switch and cut down on some of the cabling.

 

[boba]

What does she have for electronics on the dish 500? Will you need an external switch? A dish 500 with "I" adapter would be easier to aim for either 61.5 or 129 than a 1000.2. Do you have any line of sight problems for either satellite? Also you could use a 24" dish instead of a dish 500 for even more signal gain.

 

[levibluewa]

Re:129

Dish 500 for the 110/119.
24" dish for the 129, if you really want to go that way
or, a dish 500 at the 61.5 if you can hit it.

1000+ was not quite as good for the 129, close but not quite!

 

[CowboyDren]

In my installation, I have a massive tree that prevents my 110/119 dish from spotting 129, which also prevents spotting 110 from where I *can* spot 129. What I *really* want are three Winegard 76cm dishes, each peaked on it's own bird, feeding into a DP44 switch. Unfortunately, the 129 dish is mounted on the roof, and I'd rather not strain it with anything bigger than a 24" unit.

I'm no pro, but I think that most of the D500 installations have LNBFs with internal switches, just for cases like mine (and hers). The problem with the 1000.2/1000+ systems is that in reality, the three birds are not on the same skew plane. If you peak the dish for 110/119, you lose a little on 129. If you peak for 119/129, you lose a little on 110. A 1000.2 system may be good enough for most people, but in your situation, it's about as easy to "wing it," if you'll pardon the pun.

I just wish that Dish could figure out a way to balance the channel selection on two satellites instead of forcing everybody into complex three-bird configurations. Wish in one hand, want in the other...

 

[js6425]

I'm pretty sure she has a DISH500 with DISHPro Twin LNBF going to her 211. What would be easier for me to install, assuming los is good to either 129 or 61.5? What is the cheapest method, as she is on a fixed income?

 

[boba]

I would use a 24" dish with a Dish Pro dual LNB aimed at 61.5 fed into a DP34 switch and the existing Dish 500 fed into the DP34. The existing single feed for the 211 would be connected to the DP34 output.

 

[boba]

As an afterthought you need 2 lines from the DP Twin to the DP34 switch.

 

[js6425]

Is a switch necessary for this setup?

 

[boba]

If you want 3 satellites a switch is needed it just depends on wether it is built into the dish or standalone. A Dish Pro Plus has the capability of adding a third satellite by connecting to the port on the Twin.

 

[js6425]

Okay, so I can just set up a wing dish and point it at 61.5 and plug the line into the other dish? How much would this cost?

 

[CowboyDren]

That's the way I hit 129W. The switch is built into the DP2 LNBF is sufficient to add one satellite from another DP-compatible LNBF on it's own orbital location, no special stuff needed. Daisy-chain them, peak the wing dish, and you're done.

The cost is easy; a single-sat DP dish with bracket and however many feet of 2GHz wire as you need to connect the two LNBFs to each other. Sadoun or one of the other vendors at the top of this page should have a good price for you. I'd think that you would want a buddy with a push-on F-connector tool to help you out; I never get crimp-on connectors right and twist-on connectors should not be used. Maybe one of the above vendors has a pre-made 6' length of 2GHz cable...

The decision between 61.5 and 129 should come down to which provides the stronger signal, assuming that the HD locals you need are on both or on neither.

 

[levibluewa]

61.5...

couldn't possibly be worse than the 129. No way! Go with 61.5 if you can hit it.

 

[Dgenx321]

If you can hit 61.5 do it.

That is unless your locals are on 129..