Newbie Question

[bluedesert1001]

I've been reading about FTA and want to gather a shopping list.
here's my preliminary list and questions
FTA Receiver: I hear Pansat, Coolsat what's the difference among all of them? I don't need DVR feature, and what's digital audio for? do people actually record digital audio into computer?

FTA Dish:may i use a dishnetwork elliptical dish? what's a sweetest diameter for better reception? 30" is bare minimum but what's too much? where should i buy them? price range?

FTA LNB: I've seem them in different size and shapes, doubles and triples. what should I be looking for? they seem to be all generic without brandnames so what differentiate a good LNB from bad for FTA?

Motor: how do i shop for one?

Cable: what is RG6 cable?are they the regular coxial cable?

 

[PSB]

Hello and WELCOME to the SatelliteGuys.US FTA forum

Check the review area for details on the latest receivers!

You will need at least the 30" preferably a 1m dish (No such thing as TOO big) . Have a look at our Gold sponsors at the top of the page! No better place than to buy from the guys that support us : )

As above for the motor, I use and LOVE the SG2100 motor but there are MANY more!

RG6 cable is specially rated for satellite, its a MUST have, I only use RG6 that is at least 2.2GHz rated!

 

[WyrTwister]

I've been reading about FTA and want to gather a shopping list.
here's my preliminary list and questions
FTA Receiver: I hear Pansat, Coolsat what's the difference among all of them?



Like anything else ; price , features and support . I have 2 Fortec Ultras , almost the same as Pansat 2500A . If I was to buy another , I would consider a CoolSat , but they seem to be a little $$$ more than a Pansat 2700 .



I don't need DVR feature, and what's digital audio for? do people actually record digital audio into computer?

FTA Dish:may i use a dishnetwork elliptical dish? what's a sweetest diameter for better reception? 30" is bare minimum but what's too much? where should i buy them? price range?



30" or bigger up to 1.2 meter . 1.2 meter is as big as the motors seem to support , if you go moterized .




FTA LNB: I've seem them in different size and shapes, doubles and triples. what should I be looking for? they seem to be all generic without brandnames so what differentiate a good LNB from bad for FTA?





I suggest a standard ( as opposed to a universal ) linear Ku LNBF . .6 noise factor is the high end , around .3 the low end , lower is better .




Motor: how do i shop for one?




I have no local supplier of this equipment , I shop Ebay , I get stung once in a while , but I am cheap . All in all , it is OK .

I reccomend the motors made by Stabb in Italy . I have a HH100 ( 100 cm dish ) . They also make HH90 & hh120 , that I know if . I also have a motor made in the far east , it works pretty well , cheaper . I lucked out & got the hh100 on ebay at a prteey good price .




Cable: what is RG6 cable?are they the regular coxial cable?




Nothing else , the good stuff . Tated for sat use .


Wyr

 

[W_Tracy_Parnell]

I've been reading about FTA and want to gather a shopping list.
here's my preliminary list and questions
FTA Receiver: I hear Pansat, Coolsat what's the difference among all of them? I don't need DVR feature, and what's digital audio for? do people actually record digital audio into computer?

FTA Dish:may i use a dishnetwork elliptical dish? what's a sweetest diameter for better reception? 30" is bare minimum but what's too much? where should i buy them? price range?

FTA LNB: I've seem them in different size and shapes, doubles and triples. what should I be looking for? they seem to be all generic without brandnames so what differentiate a good LNB from bad for FTA?

Motor: how do i shop for one?

Cable: what is RG6 cable?are they the regular coxial cable?

Probably the buys right now are the Pansat 3500s and the Fortec Lifetime Ultra and Classic. The Coolsat 4000 Pro is a great receiver but currently overpriced (at least $200). There is a new 5000 coming out too.

Digital audio refers to the ability to receive that format which is currently a concern mostly on the PBS channels on AMC 3. All the receivers I listed support it.

Dish size-I use a 30 with good results. If you are serious about FTA and can afford it, you may want to move up to a 36. I would not try to use Dish Network dish.

LNB-lower noise figure is better. Fortec .4 and Invacom .3 are popular.

Motor-SG2100 is probably the most popular. Good retailers include PSB, FTA Direct, Sadoun and SGAFTA.

 

[bluedesert1001]

why is the coolsat so popular, does it have features that's missing in most other receivers? what's the difference between the standard and universal LNB? Thank you all for the answers..nice to have such great answers to my questions. Here's another important question. I have coxial cable wired inside my house for cable tv, they probably are not be RG 6 cables. If I use RG 6 cable to hook up from the satellite to the existing network of cable inside myhouse that would effect the quality of the signal feeding into the receiver I presume. what do you all recommend me do?

 

[PSB]

Standard LNBF uses a L.O. of 10750

A Universal uses a L.O. of 9750-10600

The universal scans two bands switching between them is done by a 22KHz tone.

No real need for a Universal LNBF in this country, they also take slightly longer to scan a satellite.

People seem to like the Coolsat because it can scan a satellite faster than some receivers out there...... I cab wait!