n00b questions

[jrparrish]

Hey guys. I apologize in advance if any of my questions have been asked a million times. But, I did make a good effort to read the FAQ's section and read previous posts.

Back in the day (1980's-1990's), we used to have a C-Band Dish (I'm not sure how big, it was at least 10-12', and it was a Uniden I believe). However, when Primestar came out, we replaced the Big Dish with that and now have Dish Network.

One question is: How much difference is there between C-Band now-a-days and back then? Note: we did not have 4Dtv or anything like that. Are the channels still all over the place? Does it still take forever for the Dish to move to different satellites?

Another question: In the Faq section or in a post I read, I see that the quality of the picture is much better with a Big Dish because it pulls the 'master signal' rather than the compressed signal that the Little Dish gets. Is there really a big difference? The HD channels I get from Dish are great. But are the digital channels from the Big Dish that much more superior to those of the Little Dish? I also see that Big Dish doesn't have near as many HD channels. Will this change in the future?

I've also visited several Big Dish programming sites (NPS and SPS) and have noticed that channels like ESPN, ESPNEWS, and some other big name networks are not on there (unless I overlooked something). Certainly these are available on Big Dish, right? I'm a huge sports fan and love watching all college and most pro sports. Are the Fox Sports (all regions) available? To you guys that are huge sports fanatics too, how do you like what the Big Dish offers?

Lastly, I'm assuming that, due to the dish having to move to different satellites for different channels, that to watch different channels in another room you would need another Dish??

I appreciate any feedback as it will aid in my decision to purchase a Big Dish again. Thanks in advance everyone.

 

[1ADAM12]

No Reply

I hate to see a post asking for help go unanswered, so i'll throw in my 2 cents.

FTA is a highly technical hobby. You seem to be more interested in watching HDTV.

Lots of sports fans here that use their system to watch sports.

Unless your willing to put in a fair amount of time setting up your system and scanning feeds for sports, it may not be wise to get a C band system.

The subscription sections of the site may be more to your benefit.

 

[gabshere]

I've also visited several Big Dish programming sites (NPS and SPS) and have noticed that channels like ESPN, ESPNEWS, and some other big name networks are not on there (unless I overlooked something). Certainly these are available on Big Dish, right? I'm a huge sports fan and love watching all college and most pro sports. Are the Fox Sports (all regions) available? To you guys that are huge sports fanatics too, how do you like what the Big Dish offers?

being more of a sports fan here as of late, i know you can get a lot of stuff via DN & DTV but those are subs with the dvb receivers you can pick up a fine share of games being broadcasted some as of late have started popping up in other formats that lead the person receiving signals to have to try several methods to receive the signals.

i find a fair share on KU with a smaller dish but a c-band completes the system.. its still the same ole slow moving but there are many options now that weren't available a few years back like the g-box / v-box to move the dish .

i have a sd dvb receiver
hd dvb receiver that able to do dvb-s2
a usb computer type system that can do 4:2:2

main thing about c-band is if you look around you can usually find a big dish not being used and maybe someone will give it away so the cost involved is your time .....
( now a 4dtv receiver might be a bit more costly and second rooms require another receiver and usually you have to watch the same satellite)

last year with all the pay for view i got to see the hogs twice free ... and its a football frenzy here during the season cause you can watch anything from high school ball to pro ( pro is very limited)

I know one of the other guys that has programming via a 4dtv will answer this

But are the digital channels from the Big Dish that much more superior to those of the Little Dish? I also see that Big Dish doesn't have near as many HD channels. Will this change in the future?

but i don't see the market expanding in the 4dtv area unless they ( the providers) are forced to do it.

 

[jrparrish]

I appreciate you guys taking the time to respond to my posts. They were very helpful. This definitely sounds like a hobby that is very interesting. I have access to the dish, but would have to purchase the receiver(s). I just needed a basic (dumbed down version) of how C-Band works today since I have not used it in 15 years or so. I just wanted to know what I was getting into and make sure this was not an option that would soon be extinct.

Thanks again guys for your advice and suggestions!

 

[Cadsulfide]

Jr;

Welcome!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A cheap DVB reciever off of Fleabay like a Coolsat 4k or a Pansat 2700 can be had for less than $50 delivered. Small investment to "test the waters" with. While it won't get you HD, or move the BUD for you, it will get your feet wet, and maybe started into the hobby. Glad to see you have read the FAQ's!

 

[Inno]

Well for starters, yes it is like the old days, the channels are all over the place. The main difference is that now thanks to digital compression, instead of 24 channels per satellite there can be dozens of channels on one satellite. So you will need a digital DVB receiver otherwise known as a FTA (free to air) receiver. If you still have an old analog receiver you will need that to move the dish from satellite to satellite. There are really only a handful of analog channels and the occasional feed left that your old equipment is still capable of picking up.

So in a nutshell, C-band works similarly to the way it used to. There are still multiple satellites to aim at but the main difference is digital compression which adds more channel capacity to the existing satellites.
Hope that helps. It's still as much fun as it ever was to find channels and feeds!

 

[Anole]

background & options:

If someone didn't already suggest the Geo-Orbit site, I will.
It's a good basic reference for all things BUD.
It deals with all the traditional hardware and how to set it up and make it work.

Moving forward a few decades, there are now other options for receiver hardware and configurations.
I mentioned them to Pandhandler in another thread, and they appeared to strike a chord in him.
Not sure you'll appreciate the same advice, nor it would be applicable, but read my comment (maybe the entire thread), and then decide for yourself. - :up

 

[jrparrish]

Thanks a million for the link Anole!

Yeah I was debating on whether purchasing a receiver from EBAY or buying one from a company. I've always been somewhat skeptical of Fleabay, but I will go there and see what they have. I've heard good things about Pansat!

 

[gabshere]

we also have a classified section that you might be able to find something in