Primestar LNBF challenge - Questions

[rv1pop]

We have had two days of very light winds so I got a chance to move the 75E mount and put up the 1M Primestar dish on it. I seached with the Fortec Star 4500NA and the "squealer meter" for about 5 hours yesterday and 3 hours today without a peep! I finally gave up for a while and put the 75E back on the mount. I had a whistle in seconds! Still have not found G10R - but getting close.

Since the 1M was a freebe and unknown condition, I am now very suspicious of the LNBF. Do both outputs have to be powered to use this?

What switch can I use to switch between the H and V outputs? And since I have two primestars, presuming I can get this LNBF working, can I hook these up with my other dishes/LNBF's to use my Mercury II with (most) all of the dishes I want to have?

I sure like the way the Mercury II works, a whole lot better than the 4500NA, but once I get the 4500NA programed, it seems to work very well, in fact seems to have a better threshold thta the Merc.

 

[Mr Tony]

Since the 1M was a freebe and unknown condition, I am now very suspicious of the LNBF. Do both outputs have to be powered to use this?

no but one is H and one is V polarity. If you think you're close, do a blind scan

What switch can I use to switch between the H and V outputs? And since I have two primestars, presuming I can get this LNBF working, can I hook these up with my other dishes/LNBF's to use my Mercury II with (most) all of the dishes I want to have?

a DirecTV 3x4 or 2x4 multiswitch will work fine. If you have another dual LNB (Or Primestar LNB) you can get a 4x4 multiswitch. That would allow up to 4 receivers be able to view either satellite

The 4x4 uses 22k switching so one LNB would be 22k set to OFF and one to ON

 

[gabshere]

Do both outputs have to be powered to use this?

if this is the type i think it is one side has a H and the other has a V you can diesqc them together but only one side has to be powered but you will only get one polarity with out some type of switch / 22k or diesqc .....

these big dishes only seem harder to tune the wider dishes ( 37 X 24, 39 X 26) seem to point a bit higher these 1 meter ( or close ) look like they point a bit more towerd the ground . when i tune mine and point at my TS sat and the lnb arms are level then its about 10 degrees too high.

hook up the two primestars using a diesqc switch then you should be able to get them all on one box if you use a multiswitch ( one that feeds several dishes) then you can spread the output to up to 4 receivers at the same time.

 

[rv1pop]

Thanks George and Iceberg. The 4500NA blindscan is slow, and when it is done it drops all the scrambled list so you can not tell where you are. I watched and wrote done the TP's that had signal, and figured I might be looking at 119, but no Circ. LNB so did not even get NASA.

I lined up the 1M with the string that gave me G25 on my other dish and went from 0 to 45 on elevation with nothing on the squealer. The 75E came right up on it. There is a decal that says the H has to be powered to use one meter.
If this LNBF is dead, will the SATav. bullet focus in this holder? It fits, but is the FD correct? The two LNBF's are different.

Thanks for the information on the switches. It looks like a 4X4 multiswitch is going to be my next buy. I think I will be going for Many dishes - Maybe a motor on one to scan...

 

[linuxman]

If this LNBF is dead, will the SATav. bullet focus in this holder? It fits, but is the FD correct?

I have a Universal LNBF in my 1M Primestar dish, and it fits perfectly. I measured the distance from the face of the round Primestar LNBf to the front of the holder and put the Universal at the same distance. I can't tell any difference in the signal strength.

I am pretty sure the Bullet LNBF from SatAV is the same size as the universal with the plastic cover on. 40MM I think and you should be able to do the same thing with it.

 

[Pismire]

The Primestar lnbf that came with my 1.2m appeared to be dead as well. Never could get the thing to work so I put a Samsonic on there that I had laying around here. Works like a charm and fit right in the holder.

 

[rv1pop]

Thanks again for your information. That is what I hoped. I put the Bullet (Universal) on the 1M but did not hook it up. If I can find more of the Primestar dishes and/or LNBs I will certainly use them.

I am looking at what I want to watch, and it looks like 7 or 8 LNB's fixed on KU would be a good idea, maybe 1 or 2 with motors and whatever I can get on C band - I have one 10 foot dish to get up. If I do not go with multi dishes on a pole, or a truss setup, my dish foundation needs to be at least 28 feet long already!

I am trying to get some work done inside today as the wind is picking up and we had snow last night! It is about 35* with wind hitting about 25 MPH. I do not have my wind chill chart - but it is COLD. I may swap my Mercury II for my 'bounce around' 4500NA, today, so I can scan better. The price was right on the 4500's and they do not loose signal quite as fast as the Merc. so I am not unhappy with them.
Thanks again.