East or West Arc for LOS

[GreeneDish]

If I understand things, I just had a new 1000.4 dish (black) installed to solve loss of signal issues. While I was trying to figure out the wiring changes I came across discussions on Western and Eastern Arc setups. After getting totally confused I thought I would ask for professional help.
I am currently looking at the 110/119/129 birds which I think is Western Arc. While I do not have a lot of issues, I do get dropouts when the winds pick up and storms move in. Using the mapping tool, my LOS is aiming at a stand of pines 76.5 feet away and the map shows they need to be less than 43.2 feet which I thing they are well over. If I plug in the Eastern Arc birds, the nearest stand of trees is 102 feet away and can be up to 103.3 feet.
So, the three questions are:
1. Would it make sense to switch Arcs?
2. If so, can I switch Arcs?
3. Would this fall under a free visit since the dish was just installed Monday?
Steve

 

[boba]

If I understand things, I just had a new 1000.4 dish (black) installed to solve loss of signal issues. While I was trying to figure out the wiring changes I came across discussions on Western and Eastern Arc setups. After getting totally confused I thought I would ask for professional help.
I am currently looking at the 110/119/129 birds which I think is Western Arc. While I do not have a lot of issues, I do get dropouts when the winds pick up and storms move in. Using the mapping tool, my LOS is aiming at a stand of pines 76.5 feet away and the map shows they need to be less than 43.2 feet which I thing they are well over. If I plug in the Eastern Arc birds, the nearest stand of trees is 102 feet away and can be up to 103.3 feet.
So, the three questions are:
1. Would it make sense to switch Arcs?
2. If so, can I switch Arcs?
3. Would this fall under a free visit since the dish was just installed Monday?
Steve

If you were just installed on the Western Arc I would assume your local channels come off 110/119 or 129, which would mean you are on the right arc. You may qualify for a FREE service call if you are losing signal.

 

[GreeneDish]

OK, so the locals are only on one Arc or the other, that makes more sense.
I was under the impression that the two Arcs were exactly the same which is why I could not figure out why the more blocked LOS was being used.
Using the Western Arc, the current location is as good as it will get and, except for windy/stormy conditions, our dropouts are not frequent enough to call them back. I was just looking into the possibility of pointing in a direction that the storms do not usually approach from.
On the positive side, I get a reliable 25 minute warning of approaching T-storms.
Thanks for the clarification.

 

[CK SatGuy]

OK, so the locals are only on one Arc or the other, that makes more sense.
I was under the impression that the two Arcs were exactly the same which is why I could not figure out why the more blocked LOS was being used.
Using the Western Arc, the current location is as good as it will get and, except for windy/stormy conditions, our dropouts are not frequent enough to call them back. I was just looking into the possibility of pointing in a direction that the storms do not usually approach from.
On the positive side, I get a reliable 25 minute warning of approaching T-storms.
Thanks for the clarification.

Hold up a sec... There are DMAs where Dish puts the locals on both arcs. Looking at your location, I see you're in Virginia correct? Chances are your locals are on Eastern Arc as well which I think is a better to have in Virginia. If you can post your zip code, I can take a quick look at this for you (Or you can PM me. It's up to you)

 

[GreeneDish]

My zip code is 22923 but I live near Ruckersville and use my phone number as a basis to get Charlottesville locals instead of Richmond that the zip code tries to give me.

 

[CK SatGuy]

Ok. It looks like that Charlottesville locals are only on Western Arc. SatelliteGuys.US_TheList - Dish Network Charlottesville, VA

 

[GreeneDish]

Well I guess that settles that.
Thanks for checking for me.

 

[TheKrell]

IIRC Charlottesville locals are SD-only. So... If you succeed in getting an Eastern Arc setup, you will not only have a higher elevation angle reducing weather problems, but also get Richmond locals in HD. You could also "move" to Washington and get our locals instead.

 

[GreeneDish]

I know the C-ville locals are SD only but I really like them for local information. Besides, in 10-15 years I am sure Dish will offer them in HD.