Dish indentification

[McGuyver]

The Ku TP's are likely a result of the stb's behavior, a different stb will likely behave differently so don't pay much mind to that. there's many answers to your questions and various approaches you could take, you should first decide on what satellite to park the dish on if you plan on keeping it fixed then add to it. You'll need access to the front of the dish though. I myself would first build the scaffold before anything else unless you've found a way to do it without. In this hobby you'll be probably making changes frequently, nothing is ever finished so to speak. On the other hand you may be better off using a actuator unless you are satisfied with just having a few sats to watch or at least until you've surveyed all the various feeds and then decided to stick with just a few. It's really up to you and your preferences, we see changes all the time, feeds come and go, networks move, etc. so you need to plan ahead. You'll probably end up buying another receiver too and this can open up a whole new world of feed hunting especially if it's a HD stb and it does S2 besides. At this time your hardware is limiting your potential.

As for another C-lnb, there may be plenty to choose from but not all C/Ku lnb's work alike on any dish, I have a DMSI BSC621 combo lnb that never suited my Ku needs so I removed the Ku lnb and placed a aluminum plate over it. The BSC621 has served me well for almost 4 years and still works. Other member's will have suggestions as well but in this hobby, many things are questionable and we find out the hard way sometimes. Hardware compatibilty is a big issue and you will just have to chance many things. What works for one guy may not work for you. Making mods and fitting multiple lnb's is all experimental and will take time and will test your patience but you'll gain a bevy of knowledge as well.

So IMO, I'd replace the LNB with it's matching scalar ring, one that doesn't require a servo and use the actuator to navigate the dish and test, try and see what you like and what to keep then plan from there. Did I leave anything out? I'm sure I have but the ball is in your court now that you've verified the dish is on the arc. Take it from here

 

[McGuyver]

I use the DMX741, with good results, for me at least.

In the Pansat, I believe you need to set the Skew Values for both Horz and Vert.

Just yesterday I replaced one of my new DMX242 lnb's with a cheap Panorama LNB and gained about 8% QS. Results will obviously vary from application to application. This wasn't a fluke IMO, I spent hours tweaking the DMX242 with no luck but after taking 15 minutes to install and tweak the Panorama I had a big improvement, name brands and higher prices don't mean much in this hobby anymore

 

[FLCountryman]

Ok, Then I guess I should buy a gbox and LNB

 

[FLCountryman]

[/QUOTE] You'll probably end up buying another receiver too and this can open up a whole new world of feed hunting especially if it's a HD stb and it does S2 besides. At this time your hardware is limiting your potential.

As for another C-lnb, there may be plenty to choose from but not all C/Ku lnb's work alike on any dish, I have a DMSI BSC621 combo lnb that never suited my Ku needs so I removed the Ku lnb and placed a aluminum plate over it. The BSC621 has served me well for almost 4 years and still works. Other member's will have suggestions as well but in this hobby, many things are questionable and we find out the hard way sometimes. Hardware compatibilty is a big issue and you will just have to chance many things. What works for one guy may not work for you. Making mods and fitting multiple lnb's is all experimental and will take time and will test your patience but you'll gain a bevy of knowledge as well.

So IMO, I'd replace the LNB with it's matching scalar ring, one that doesn't require a servo and use the actuator to navigate the dish and test, try and see what you like and what to keep then plan from there. Did I leave anything out? I'm sure I have but the ball is in your court now that you've verified the dish is on the arc. Take it from here [/QUOTE]


when you say I will probably end up buying another receiver" why ? and how can this open up a whole new world ..

 

[Ironsides]

HD

Countryman, an HD receiver will give you more choices of TV. Several feeds are in HD that your Pansat 2500 just can't get. If you like sports a lot of the sports feeds are in HD. The better the receiver the more channels you can gain or at least this is my experience. You need a good Blind Scan receiver, I think you have a Coolsat 5000 and from my understanding that is one of the best Blind Scan boxes out there. What I do is use my Neusat as a blind scan box and then take the information and enter it into one of my HD boxes that doesn't have a good blind scan. That gives me more options to watch tv.

With my setup as I have mentioned I've had good success using the DMX741 for C-Band and KU-Band. I used my original Scalar as the one that comes with the DMX741 in my opinion is just not worth the trouble to install. My Scalar was better made and gave me better adjustment. Something to note, The DMX741 seems to be very picky as to the receiver and it leaves very little room for simple mistakes. It's picky and it takes time to set up correctly, it's very fine adjustments. I would still recommend it as a replacement lnb due to price and it does a decent job. I did not care for the 22hz section and I did not use it but others have used it with success. If you are looking to get another lnb then you have a lot of choices.

Really as McGuyver pointed out, it's what works best for you. What works well for us might not be good for you. In that case, it's just a matter of finding what works best for you.

Once you get deeper into FTA and see what's up there and what you are missing because your receiver can't see it. Then it's time to invest in a Newer Receiver that will give you HD feeds. I wouldn't spend anything until you decide if FTA is for you. We like it and just because we do, you might not. So give yourself a time of learning and a chance to see if it's worth your investing more money. I think if you give it a chance you will enjoy it and would upgrade but as I say it's better for you to decide...

Peace Bro...
I look forward to reading your progress!

 

[McGuyver]

Thanks Ironsides, you said what I would've... my Internet has been down all afternoon and just got it back. I agree with you about the DMX scalar ring, don't use it if you have another that will work and is better quality, one of my new DMX242 scalars cracked so I used the one from my DMSI BSC621 which has a thicker flange, the DMX flange is almost paper thin, the first one that ever cracked on me.

BTW FLCountryman, I have a Dish Network sub box that gets the TOP 250 package and I hardly ever watch it, I mainly have it for the "Westerns" channel, I prefer my FTA network because I get more watchable channels for FREE and besides the video quality is superior to DishNet and I have more interesting content than all the BS that DN includes in their lineup. And BS does not mean blind scan in this matter.

I would dump DN in a heartbeat if it wasn't for my wife, she has to have her Bravo and those dumb chef shows,,, LOL

 

[FLCountryman]

Thanks guys,,
I will have to check into a new lnb , and yes I am sure I will want a new STB soon too, lol

I have been watching FTA for a few days now and I am really impressed with the picture quality. It is better than my cable provider which btw has been cutting out alot like my old satellite used to in a rain storm .

I only have a sub for cable to get internet.
I wonder how long it will before we can get free internet. lol

Mcguyver,

Now I know what you mean when you said you have tried to post only to end up loosing all your work.. My post started out longer but after loosing it twice I was getting close to not posting at all.