Got a C-Band dish...now some questions

[Mr Tony]

Networks on G4-FEC 3/4
Equity Mux on G3-FEC 7/8

So I assume I need a stronger quality to keep the G3 mux stable?

 

[drhydro]

Congrats on your success Iceberg, now I am ready to hook up my 6' small mesh c-band dish and test to see how it does. The only thing I really want off of that dish is the VI mux off of g4, so sounds like I should be good to go. Luckily for me I dont have to worry right off about digging a hole etc. as I have hundreds of tree stumps sitting around that I can mount my pole on for testing purposes (short term only to see how it works before renting a backhoe).

 

[drhydro]

As to the equity mux, I find that comes in with poor sq (around 60) on my 10' dish with 20 degree LNB.

 

[Mr Tony]

As to the equity mux, I find that comes in with poor sq (around 60) on my 10' dish with 20 degree LNB.

This was with the DMSI 15 degree LNB that I got max of 50...mostly 45

The only thing I really want off of that dish is the VI mux off of g4

same here

One other thing that is weird. I got that KCHF (3790 H 3256) but at a 16 quality. Moved the dish west a little bit and BAM 75 quality but the rest of my feeds suffered (nets gone, most of the rest went down to 30).

If they're all on the same dish, how can one signal be better when I move to a different spot versus the rest?

And I still havent got the NBC yet out of Casper

 

[Shawn95GT]

FWIW reading your posts motivated me to swing the dish over to G4.

The Casper NBC is noticably weaker than the VI Mux for me. I was getting an occational beakup on it. I'll edit to add some hard numbers later.

 

[sdoradus]

Size obviously helps since the 4 up Carib mux are coming in steady at SQ 72, Casper at 74 and Salt Lake at 78 here using a 10 ft solid, asc 421, and Traxis 3500.

SD

 

[Mr Tony]

Hey I'm just happy that they came in and are stable. Havent finished fine tuning the skew yet but last night was a temp job until I get something to jack up the dish to clear the roof line (the very bottom may still be blocked.) My skew is only 5 for G4 so its not that much of a difference.

I just like moving the dish across the top of my arc (G11-AMC4) and see all the C-Band analog stuff there

 

[mark_calgary]

One other thing that is weird. I got that KCHF (3790 H 3256) but at a 16 quality. Moved the dish west a little bit and BAM 75 quality but the rest of my feeds suffered (nets gone, most of the rest went down to 30).

If they're all on the same dish, how can one signal be better when I move to a different spot versus the rest?

Could be that you are getting interference from IA-5 (3780 H 29270) and when you move west away from IA-5 it is reduced.

 

[Mr Tony]

very possible. No biggie as its a Spanish channel.

i was just happy to see more than analog

 

[WyrTwister]

I didnt blind scan when I had the dish on the chairs but I have a feeling as long as its up 18 inches or so it should be fine. The table was 30 inches


I live in Minnesota where sandbags are a necessity..I have 4 70# bags handy


how big of a dish?

10' perferated sheet metal . Getting PBS analog on 2 sats .

Presently using a Nexus-S for digital .

Still working on my sat spreadsheet . Used it to find AMC 1 . Got about 20 digital channels on the vertical side . Many in English . Only a handfull on horizontal .

( Would anyone be interested in the spreadsheet ? )

Moving on to Anik F1 getting some channels there ...............................................


Wyr

 

[Mr Tony]

Still working on my sat spreadsheet . Used it to find AMC 1 . Got about 20 digital channels on the vertical side . Many in English . Only a handfull on horizontal .

( Would anyone be interested in the spreadsheet ? )

of course I would
e-mail is iceberg@satelliteguys.us

 

[sdoradus]

Ditto

sdoradus@juno.com

 

[Mr Tony]

Well I think I'm set for a while now

Found a cable spool at the lake cabin. 22 inches high and 30 inches across. Its in a little rough shape but I threw it up on the deck and put some 18" boards around it to keep it pretty stable.

Put the dish up and got the nets back at 32....amazing they stay stable at such a low signal. Fine tuned it and scanned in a few feeds and the nets. Slapped the sandbag up there.

SO right now I can get the 4 nets and about 10 feeds (no NBC Casper yet).

So we're getting there

 

[WyrTwister]

I emailed the spread sheet .

Saw a polar mount today , ripe for the scrounging , owner had removed the dish but the mount was still on the pole . Would have stopped and begged for it ( for you to try on your dish ) except I suspect the freight would cost a fortune . That stuff has a lot of steel in it & steel is HEAVY !



Wyr

Well I think I'm set for a while now

Found a cable spool at the lake cabin. 22 inches high and 30 inches across. Its in a little rough shape but I threw it up on the deck and put some 18" boards around it to keep it pretty stable.

Put the dish up and got the nets back at 32....amazing they stay stable at such a low signal. Fine tuned it and scanned in a few feeds and the nets. Slapped the sandbag up there.

SO right now I can get the 4 nets and about 10 feeds (no NBC Casper yet).

So we're getting there

 

[Mr Tony]

did a little more work tonight

Moved to AMC4 but couldn't get much. A couple of the church feeds and the "Comcast" channels (scramled) came in at a 20 signal so they didnt scan in

Went East to IA6 and got a few analog channels (PBS, couple ball games) and went to G3. Got a boat load of those "Roberts" feeds really strong (up to 90) but alas, the coveted Equity came in at a pixelated 45

Moved it back to G4 and locked it back in. Going to try the LNB with the polorotor tomorrow

 

[Mr Tony]

Well...did a little work

Put the LNB with the polorotor on and put that at 10:30/4:30. Tuned in the H polarity and let the Toshiba auto skew.

same qulaity on some feeds...the others dropped

So now I'm back ot the DMSI one

32 for the nets and they are still stable. Scanned in a few more feeds. Used one of the "holders" for the dish (they give you 3 holders to bolt the dish to a surface. Drilled some screws into the front one and the sandbag is on the back.

 

[Mr Tony]

JACKPOT!!!!

I am so happy right now. Nice WARM day (70+ out) today so in the process of doing my other project (H from G4 and V from G10 into a 3x4 multiswitch...my "is it possible thread" I did some scnning of G4 and got a church channel (I think its living word) at a 16...nets still at 32

so I started working on it. I adjusted skew and it dawned on me.......dumbass, you have skew wrong...you have it to -5 when G4 for you is +5...so I skewed it a little more and it was getting there

Then I remembered what someone said (we're at 24 pages here so I can't remember who did) adjust focal distance.....so I pushed it in a little bit
and a little more...no change
and a little more....and a BIG change....45 quality

OK cool. Now what about the networks (the main reason I got C-Band)

went back there and HOLY CRAP

between a 43-50 quality...a 20 point JUMP!! I cant jump 20 points higher but I was stoked....we're no longer on the threshold. We have a SOLID signal now

so I had to push the LNB in about 3/4 to an inch in from being level with the scaler rings.

So for everyone who has helped me with this little project, I say
THANK YOU :clap :clap

I am really happy now that I have a good SOLID signal.

still cant get Casper but it flickers at a 15 quality...enough to pester me letting me know its there but not enough to scan in

 

[WyrTwister]

JACKPOT!!!!

I am so happy right now. Nice WARM day (70+ out) today so in the process of doing my other project (H from G4 and V from G10 into a 3x4 multiswitch...my "is it possible thread" I did some scnning of G4 and got a church channel (I think its living word) at a 16...nets still at 32

so I started working on it. I adjusted skew and it dawned on me.......dumbass, you have skew wrong...you have it to -5 when G4 for you is +5...so I skewed it a little more and it was getting there

Then I remembered what someone said (we're at 24 pages here so I can't remember who did) adjust focal distance.....so I pushed it in a little bit
and a little more...no change
and a little more....and a BIG change....45 quality

OK cool. Now what about the networks (the main reason I got C-Band)

went back there and HOLY CRAP

between a 43-50 quality...a 20 point JUMP!! I cant jump 20 points higher but I was stoked....we're no longer on the threshold. We have a SOLID signal now

so I had to push the LNB in about 3/4 to an inch in from being level with the scaler rings.

So for everyone who has helped me with this little project, I say
THANK YOU :clap :clap

I am really happy now that I have a good SOLID signal.

still cant get Casper but it flickers at a 15 quality...enough to pester me letting me know its there but not enough to scan in

Casper , did not know you could pick up ghosts on a C band rig ? There is not an old abandoned well in your basement ?

Seriously , congrats ! Keep on tweeking !

Was this with the dish stand on a spool or table , or back on the deck ?

I would put it on Casper & continue tweeking . The weak channels are more sensitive to improvements and are easier to observe improvement .

If you only have a hot TP to twek on , wet a rag and hang it over the nose of the lnb / lnbf .

Wyr

 

[Mr Tony]

Was this with the dish stand on a spool or table , or back on the deck ?

on the spool.....30 across by 22 high.

I would put it on Casper & continue tweeking . The weak channels are more sensitive to improvements and are easier to observe improvement .

I just tried that and now my Nets are back to 32

More work to do but it looks like the clouds are coming in...suppose to rain all day tomorrow

 

[Mr Tony]

dang it...now I'm back to square one

messed around trying to get the NBC from Casper and I screwed up the rest

30-32 for the nets