Hi All I am new and need FTA Help

[sapote]

Ti,
given: Motor/dish elecation? My lat=34.2, long=118.29w, declination=5.5. motor crank angle=45.

I set the motor lat scale to 34.2; and the dish elevation = crank - declination = 45 - 5.5 = 39.5*

commanded motor to 97W, then turn off USALS and manually turn the whole motor assembly/dish around the pole for max signal/quality in order to fine tune azimuth. (using manual button to bump the motor for max signal was fine, except I could not keep the motor at that optimized position as soon as I got out of that menu.
The Stab hh-90 motor shaft has a hole across the shaft, hence when mounting the dish to the shaft a bolt passed through both parts and fixed the dish to the 0* position.

Brian

 

[FTA4PA]

You might find one of these useful: Amazon product ASIN B00004T807 I bought one and used it for both of my motorized installs. Allows you to check if pole is plumb and confirm that your other dish settings are correct.

 

[Titanium]

Remember, when installing using USALS, the motor EAST/WEST button are never used to optimize reception. All aiming using USALS must be done by rotating the motor on the pole or adjusting the dish elevation.

Don't turn off USALS, keep it on for all KU satellites. Try working East or West from 97w and blind scan one satellite at a time. See when the satellite aiming starts failing and document if the dish elevation must be increased or decreased and if the motor must be rotated on the pole east or west. This will help us determine if the declination is correctly set to track the arc.

 

[sapote]

Ti,
Isn't it easier to start from my true south, 118.2W and working east or west from this, instead of from 97w? The problem to this general method is I don't have any sat near 118W to lock on first.

Brian

 

[Titanium]

Doesn't matter with USALS. Enter your Longitude/Latitude, drive to an active satellite, lock the signal then scan. Strong transponder signals near the top of your arc make finding the initial satellite easier, but 97w, 12152 would be hard to miss!

125w and 103w can be more difficult. 103w the skew needs to be rotated -23 degrees from normal due to an abnormal polarity setting and 125w can be a bugger to lock even in perfect conditions as it is DVBS2 and takes a moment to lock on several receivers.

 

[sapote]

I meant easier in troubleshoot what is the issue, motor lat setting error or something else. Say if a sat at 30* east of my long and a sat at 30* west of my long both need to have the dish rise up for max signal, then my motor lat was set too small, and if it needs to be lowered then the motor lat was set too large.

What about the linear LNB position (I set it to zero skew and I once adjusted its axially for a max signal at one sat, but did not try any further adjustment) ?

 

[lamp]

Here is a web page dealing with how to install an FTA motorized system:
http://www.repentnow.com/FTAMOTORINSTALL.htm
There is a page at the bottom that you can print out showing some adjustments for misaligned dish.

 

[sapote]

As I said I was not so sure if the motor lat -- important parameter for tracking satellites -- was set precisely at 34.2, so removed the dish from the crank shaft and used the iPhone app to measure at the crank shaft inclination plane. I suppose to read 34.2 + 45 = 79.2, but I read 80.2*. Obviously the motor lat scale with 1* marking was not easy to set accurately. I corrected this and scanned the satellites and got many satellites with channels. However I still could not get any signal at 125W with Montana PBS. For most sat the signal were good enough, but for a few others I would like to use DISeqc to fine tune. I have a few questions for DISeqc menu:
what is Position 1, 2, 3, ...? SAVE? Recalculation?
I first use USALS to move the dish to the sat, and if the signal qual below 60, I switched to DISeqc, position 1, and the dish still stayed, and did small moves to fine tune, then I SAVE. This worked fine but when I repeated the same on the next sat, then it seemed the previous sat was no longer worked with diseqc. I'm lost here.

Thanks,
Brian

 

[Titanium]

USALS and DiSEqC 1.2 motor control functions are not interchangeable. If you are setting the motor position using USALS, the motor position cannot be optimized using the EAST/WEST motor movement, saved then the system returned to USALS remembering to return to your customized offset position.


The motor position is either automatically calculated via USALS and sent to thst position each time the satellite is selected. (No custom positioning offsets)

or

DiSEqC 1.2 - Where you manually program the motor position, assign to a DiSEqC position number then save. Position 1, 2, 3, etc / Save / Recalculate are all functions associated with DiSEqC 1.2. Each satellite will be assigned a position number (i.e. Satellite Galaxy 19 could be assigned to motor position number 10). The motor then can be driven to the optimized position then the Save button is pressed. Recalculate is used if the DiSEqC 1.2 positions need to be globally resynced.

Some receivers allow each satellite to be independently set to USALS or DiSEqC 1.2 motor control type. Other receivers set the motor control universally for all satellites to use either USALS or DiSEqC 1.2 motor control type..

 

[FTA4PA]

As I said I was not so sure if the motor lat -- important parameter for tracking satellites -- was set precisely at 34.2, so removed the dish from the crank shaft and used the iPhone app to measure at the crank shaft inclination plane. I suppose to read 34.2 + 45 = 79.2, but I read 80.2*. Obviously the motor lat scale with 1* marking was not easy to set accurately. I corrected this and scanned the satellites and got many satellites with channels. However I still could not get any signal at 125W with Montana PBS. For most sat the signal were good enough, but for a few others I would like to use DISeqc to fine tune. I have a few questions for DISeqc menu:
what is Position 1, 2, 3, ...? SAVE? Recalculation?
I first use USALS to move the dish to the sat, and if the signal qual below 60, I switched to DISeqc, position 1, and the dish still stayed, and did small moves to fine tune, then I SAVE. This worked fine but when I repeated the same on the next sat, then it seemed the previous sat was no longer worked with diseqc. I'm lost here.

Thanks,
Brian

Glad to hear that minor adjustment has you hitting the arc better. Are the sats you want to use Diseqc for at the far end of the arc? If not, you might still need a bit of fine tuning as you generally only need to use Diseqc for sats if they are at the far ends of the arc where USALS has some limitations. Each sat you save with Diseqc needs to be saved to an individual position - you can't use the same number for more than one sat. Don't be surprised if you have a little trouble with 125W, that one can be difficult to get and you need to be right on. Making great progress though!

 

[sapote]

Thank you guys, I think my Amiko allow some seats to be controlled by usals while others by Diseqc, globalised by only one method is not the issue. I think I understand how to use position 1,2,3...and save now, but still not sure about Recalculate function. Could you give an example when to use it?
As about 125w sat, I somehow accidentally got it when I was trying to aim for something else on the first day.
Brian

 

[Titanium]

Recalculate is typically used on linear actuator motors and infrequently on HH motors. It allows all satellite positions to be globally shifted. Example: if the linear actuator is replaced or the clamp collar slips or is moved. If the previously programmed satellite positions no longer correct, the DiSEqC motor position would be selected then the motor manually driven to the new corrected (offset) aiming. The recalculate function resets all satellites by this same offset.

 

[sapote]

Ti,
Globally shifted by recalculate - does this affect only the usals or only the Diseqc sats?

 

[Titanium]

When in USALS mode, there is no customization. Recalculate is a DiSEqC 1.2 function.

 

[sapote]

So I managed to get decent signals from 125W sat Montana PBS and 97W galaxy 19 on one setup. However this is marginal, and for 125W dish needs up and 97W needs down for best signals -- if I optimized for one sat then I had no signal on the other. This seems I am off on my true south -- a little too far to the east I think.

As for using Diseqc, it's best that at the beginning before program anything, one should program all channels with Diseqe1.2 with position 1 at true south. This position 1 is for reference, and finally after tuned in, one should save to another position but not 1. I didn't do like this and after I programmed one sat with position 1, then when going into other sats (defaulted with position 1) I lost the reference which was needed in order to step into the right direction during tune in. I't amazing that I could not find any good instruction on how to use the Diseqc.

I have learned a lot and getting better at this new hobby.

Brian

 

[Titanium]

Honestly, a newbie should not use DiSEqC 1.2 or save DiSEqC 1.2 motor positions at all during the initial set-up. DiSEqC 1.2 motor type just adds one more possibility for error. USALS takes the guess work out of locating the first satellite removes the worry about first identifying True South.

Most receivers have a "GoTo 0" or "GoTo Reference" in the case that the motor needs to be returned to the zero position.

 

[sapote]

I was forced to use Diceqc in a rush to watch some channels that I couldn't with usals because minor mis-alignment. Now after I nailed the setting, all Sats can be located with usals alone. I found using the iphone lever free app helped to set the motor lat precisely by measure the motor housing angle (zero lat is vertical plane). One thing I don't like about the STAB HH-90 motor: the serrated locking nuts eat up the bracket metal so fast during locking and unlocking; I added a washer to save from cutting through the bracket plate.

For getting wild feed, do you guys all have a big C band dish?

 

[sapote]

Btw, I was so shocked to see how good the NHK HD channel picture compares to my cable; sharp picture and true color. The cable company must had compressed the hell out of the signals.

 

[FTA4PA]

I was forced to use Diceqc in a rush to watch some channels that I couldn't with usals because minor mis-alignment. Now after I nailed the setting, all Sats can be located with usals alone. I found using the iphone lever free app helped to set the motor lat precisely by measure the motor housing angle (zero lat is vertical plane). One thing I don't like about the STAB HH-90 motor: the serrated locking nuts eat up the bracket metal so fast during locking and unlocking; I added a washer to save from cutting through the bracket plate. For getting wild feed, do you guys all have a big C band dish?

Glad to hear you got it lined up using USALS! A lot of the wild feeds are on C band but there are some on KU too.

 

[sapote]

I was celebrating too soon. I just found out on 97W Galaxy 19, all Horizon frequency were fine but no signals on any Vertical frequencies. Am I still off on the Azimuth or elevation? My guess is azimuth was off.

One other question on the Amiko Mini: when I'm in USALS mode and using step/stop to move the dish in small increment (just want to know I'm at peak signal or not), and at a point when the signal is very week then the dish certainly races back to the original position (before step/stop moves). Why it was doing like that instead of stayed at its new changed position? I was still within the USALS menu.