Friday FTA Fun Poll...special New Years Eve edition

[Mr Tony]

Well with tomorrow being new years eve and all lets think back to this year. I know we've "met" alot of new folks getting intro FTA and adding on their systems. So lets have some fun

multiple choice

In the past calender year (1-1-08 through 12-31-08) what FTA related item (s) have you done to your system?

got into FTA all together
added C-Band (didnt have C-Band before 1-1-08)
added KU (didnt have KU before 1-1-08)
added a 4DTV/analog receiver to a FTA setup
added a DVB receiver to an exisitng analog/4DTV setup
got a new DVB receiver (SD only)
got a new DVB receiver (HD/SD)
got a Quali-TV for 4:2:2
got a PC card/DVB World box
added another C or KU band dish

To everyone...have a good new years eve. Be safe. And we want to see you here next year Thanks guys!

 

[Mr Tony]

added a 4DTV for the free stuff...much more when there was X4
got a new DVB receiver for SD....about 6 or 7 passed through my house this year
got a new DVB receiver for HD....Pansat 9200 which I sold because
got a Quali-TV for 4:2:2 Best purchase I made

oh and added a few more KU Band dishes

 

[Larobpra]

Got into FTA altogether. Didn't know it existed until we found the forum from a Google search while researching for SkyAngel IPTV back at the beginning of the year (didn't know what we might be getting into there from some of the threads in that forum at the time! We are happy with it, although I still hate paying for TV!). It's been fun and frustrating at times, but I thoroughly enjoy it and there is plenty of TV there for me, and I have barely got started. Spent some time today putting the second dish on a temporary mount to get the NFL playoff games on the main TV. I'm hooked!

 

[meinename]

My first year

I've had a 8.5' C-band all my life.... Never really got to see it in action, at least after 1992?
A Uniden package with an analog Uniden UST-6000. No descamblers or any digital equipment of any kind.

It got setup on a new post this last year or previous (dunno, wasn't there, didn't care at the time)
Got asked by my Grandparents (whose house it's located at) if we could get BYU-TV on it. :up

I searched and searched and searched for Analog feeds, then DVB boxes, and all in all kept ending up back here at Satelliteguys a ton. :

I ordered a Coolsat 5000 at Iceburg's glowing review and others backing.
Got a BSC621 after I found very little DVB with the original 65K feed.

Learned alot of patience for pointing with that big dish since the powersupply for the motor was missing. That and the tiny focal point...

Added 2 Ku dishes to the mix along with a Coolsat 6000, and finally kicked D* out after Grandpa loved RTN far better than anything Charlie would put up on the AT100 package. :up

I love RTN too. Still working on Whitesprings for Grandpa but his LOS is only till 123W, unless I make a long run. Still working on that one...

 

[rv1pop]

I got into FTA in September 2007 and traveled in the motorhome setting up at stops all across the country. Now about 9000 miles carrying FTA and setting up many times. This year I set up a bunch of dishes and have at least 6 receivers working right now at various fixed locations and in the 2 motorhomes. WOW What a year! What can I do next year?

 

[voomvoom]

got a new DVB receiver (HD/SD) = got a Pansat 9200 HD w/S2 card, also got a Coolsat 8000 (2nd hand) but haven't hooked it up yet
got a PC card/DVB World box = Technotrend TT-budget S2-3200 PC card, and a Genpix SkyWalker-1 usb card, also subscribed to TSReader, also got a BLSA card but haven't got the SA to work yet?
added another C or KU band dish = always adding a dish here and there, never seem to have enough......

not included in the above poll:
mostly I've been doing FTA work @ my sister's, moving the dishes off the roof (as per my avatar) and adding a C-Band (driven with 4dtv 922) into her mix with another 90cm dish to complement the T90 and Primestar 1m. I used 8 @ 4x4 multi-switches with 3 @ 8x1 uncommitted diseqc switches and feeding a Pansat 9200 HD and 2 @ Coolsat 5000's. The C-Band dish has a Dual C-Band feedhorn with 2 @ Norsat 8115 lnb's being fed 18v power from the 4dtv, with both lnb's being split with 1x2 one port power pass high frequency splitters, with the power pass sides going to the 4dtv set up as "Dual C-Band LNB's (no polarizer)", while the non-power pass sides goes to a 4x4 multi-switch and the V/H hook-up. I'm only using 7 of the multi-switches at present. I need another dish (or two) and 2 more twin lnbf's to get the last multi-switch into place. The ku lnbf's used are the Primestar original V/H lnb (123.0w) and 12 @ JSC-322's, 10 of the JSC's are on the T90 (72. 74, 79, 83, 87, 89, 93, 97, 101 & 105) and 2 are on the 90cm dish (125.0w & 129.0w).
I even built a weather box for the switches (I have yet to put the doors on it, so I guess it's not complete yet?), and mounted it on the pole (but under) the T90 is on.

Edit: I would also like to note, that when I moved the switches from the attic (where they were previously), I changed the diseqc switches. I was using Emp-Centauri 8x1 committed/uncommitted diseqc switches. I had all kinds of problems keeping a solid connection, especially from the last 4 ports. Sometimes one receiver might get a satellite and another one (or two) wouldn't. Port one always seemed to work with every receiver, the first 4 ports usually worked, but not always. I caught hell with the last 4 ports, of course I may have been setting up the receivers wrong for the set-up of the Emp-Centauri switches. They are complicated at best...?
Anyway, the switches I went to, are Digiwave 8x1 uncommited (all 8 ports are uncommitted). They work perfectly. I would recommend these Digiwave switches to anyone, before I would recommend the Emp-Centauri switches. I realize it could have been (and probably was) something I did, but my results speak loudly to me. And besides, the Digiwave switches cost about half the price of the Emp-Centauri switches.

 

[Cadsulfide]

I've had a Merc II for a couple of years....love it! My array is a evolving sort of thing, as I add more stuff to the system and learn more about the kind of things you can do with FTA. Helps to have an understanding wife.

 

[Inno]

I added a receiver and added more dishes. I'll probably continue to add more dishes........I like the multiple stationary dishes idea for quick channel changes and no moving parts.
Next year? I'll be adding a motorized 10' C-Band and pouring a lot of concrete for an improved way to mount even more Ku dishes.

Cadsulfide where in ND are you? I travel along hwy. 2 quite a bit as my son lives in the north west corner of ND. Your profile pic shows a few trees........doesn't look like any part of ND I've ever seen lol.

 

[Fizbi]

For myself and my family, we actually got into Ku FTA and added an extra Ku FTA receiver.

 

[Tron]

Got another Visionsat, a couple more Digitrans commercial receivers (a 7100 and a 7150), and I got a 7.5' Perfect 10 C-Band dish from Stogie Putting up the BUD is probably my next satellite project, after I find a suitable mount (such as the ones used for 1.8M Prodelin VSAT installs). I need that dish up before the next shuttle mission in February.

 

[Corrado]

For 2008, I voted that I added another dish. Now running 2 C band dishes and 2 4DTV receivers in addition to the FTA Primestar dish for my Pansat.

 

[brentb636]

Added a Technotrend s2-3200 to my tuners.
Added a Coolsat 8000
Added a 1.2M Fortec Dish/DG380 to my collection ( replaced an 80cm dish).
The switch to mostly watching HD has been the biggest thrill of the year.
Happy New Year, guys and gals, and be careful on the roads tonight.

 

[Davage]

Let me see... What satellite stuff did I do this year....

Added a Visionsat IV200 PVR receiver

Gave away a complete FTA dish and 2 receivers to a family who's daughter has a brain tumor (thanks to Iceberg and phlatwound for donating equipment/cash too)

Added a DirecPC dish to my collection

Learned about Digicipher "Generic" satellites - Thanks to TVROPRO

Pulled the plug on my Videocipher Decoder because it was failing - I never replaced it. RIP Analog VC2

------

Plans for 2009

- Get an over-the-air digital tuner. We have our first digital tv station broadcasting here. (It's kinda FTA isn't it )

- Get my hands on a coolsat 8000 or 8100 so that I can tune in DVB-S2.. I'm waiting for the eye-patch crew to start getting rid of their Coolsats for pennies on the dollar.

 

[Keith Brannen]

Added 2 Ku dishes (a 80 cm and a 75E), for a total of 8 dishes (including my subscription SC dish, which also has a FTA LNB on it). I also increased the LNB count from 19 to 22 (actually added 5 LNBs, and no longer have a line into the Star Choice Dual LNB pointed at the Aniks).

 

[photoman76]

I didn't add anything. I have too much stuff already.
Oh, now I remember something, but it's not FTA related.
I got Dish to replace my owned 942 for an owned 622.

 

[DishDigger]

This is my first year. I bought a Coolsat 6000 from a guy that decided he didn't want to fool with it, then ordered a 80cm dish, a linear LNBF and 50' RG6 from Gold sponsor SADOUN and set it for G10R (now g-18) for the wife. I then found SATELLITEGUYS.US and have really enjoyed the sight.........:up

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL

 

[jayelem]

I added the 3ABN 90cm but never got it aimed properly , that's what I get for waiting till November and placing it in a dangerously unsafe PIA to calibrate spot of the house and I still couldn't get a lock on Telstar 12.

I gave the mast a -negative inclination to offset the fact that I can't go very low on the elevation scale of the dish, and I still never figured out if maybe I should've gone lower , will definitely give it another try when the weather gets warmer.

 

[N5XZS]

I had a C-band satellite manly for TV DXing, in the past in the late 1980's at my Dad's place with a 10 foot dish with analog and digtial 4DTV reciever.

Someday I plan get back into C-band TV Dxing one of these days....:

For the time being, I plan on upgrading the H to H motor for my Fortec 90 Cm dish in order to go further east of 61.5*W.

I am waiting for a new reciever that will have all the new codecs DVB-S2 and many other formats.

I hope it will be a good year satellite TV DXing on KU band!!!

 

[DiscoLoveGrapes]

I got....

....a new LNB. It's .2, so it thankfully turned some of the Equity and new PBS channels from "choppy and barely there" to "smooth sailing."

My New Year's resolution for FTA:

- Get a Primestar Dish up and running, and try out the C-Band LNB languishing in the box.
- Look into a HD PVR receiver that will run S2.

 

[ParaclipseCKu]

Busy year with satellite stuff.

Added a Traxis 3500. That was followed by a Pansat 9200 and then I ended the year with a Quali.

I also installed my first Ku FTA antenna. A 90cm that is performing great. Nice to finally have a dish on the ground to play with

Finally I installed a 10 foot dish (again on the ground ) for one of my other hobbies that being weather data feeds via Noaaport.

Happy New Year to all !