Question about wind and digital KU signal

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Hi there!

You are probably right on both counts, but I think I have an idea how to make the adjusting screw actually work with a little more accuracy than it currently has and will try that tomorrow.

Besides the fun part of this hobby is making things work that don't want to work.

All I need is an extra 5% out of the lowest transponder above and this dish and LNB will be fine for what I want to use it for.

If there is one thing I have learned working with these dishes, is that fine tuning is an art. It takes lots of patience, and perseverance. If you don't settle for less, you can get more.

The transponders I was having problems with on AMC6 with the motorized Primestar dish are now at 60%, and Montana PBS is at 43-44%, G10R 11720 channels are at a rock solid 60%, and White Springs TV is at 90-95%, I just scanned in some TP's on 148.0W. Can't watch anything, but they are there with good SQ around 60%. All of the above are done with USALS. Haven't fine tuned with diseqc 1.2 yet.

Now having said all that, you can't put in what God left out. This DirecPC LNB is probably not as good quality as the Primestar LNB, but I am willing to give it the best shot I can to see what it can do. If that fails, I will probably have to do the inevitable and change LNB's and/or dishes.

Thanks, Fred
 
Are the mounting bolt patterns the same dimensions for the 75E and the DirecPC dish?

I could put the 75E on this mount.

Thanks for any suggestions you might have. Fred

The problem is not if the reflector fits but more the F/D they differ from mount to mount.
 
Hi Pete,

I was thinking of swapping the reflector and the attached LNB arm from the 75E to the DPC mounting plate keeping the skewable mount only from the DPC dish. Wouldn't that keep the F/D ratio the same for the 75E?

It would also allow me to skew the whole 75E dish and not just the LNB.
 
i know it looks alike but is the 75e the same length arm for the lnb as the DPC
that would be a go if it is.
you can always build an adaptor to fit the bracket to the pirme* dish if it doesn't work. i've built two brackets one is from a directv phase 3 dish that gave me the tilt/skew
nice results Fred keep up the good work...
 
I guess I am missing something here. :confused:

If all I leave on the mast is the mounting cap, the part of the mount that controls elevation, and skews the dish clockwise and counter-clockwise from the DPC dish, and take the reflector/lnb arm/feedhorn/lnb from the P*Star 75E off of it's mount and bolt them to the DPC mount, how does that interfere with F/D ratio?

Both dishes have their own LNB/Feedhorn arms attached as they are from the factory.

Am I losing it again? :D
 
lol maybe i am Fred
are we intermixing dishes or just removing the mount bracket (back) from one and placing dish & lnb from the other on it. ( this might be easiest)

i was thinking that if the lnb arm from the primestar was the same length that it would work with the DPC without removing the whole dish ( but the DPC dish does have a different shape) so FD might be different.
 
"just removing the mount bracket (back) from one and placing dish & lnb from the other on it. ( this might be easiest)"

That's what I was trying to describe, but you said it in a few short words.

BTW, thanks for the compliment. It only took a week of all my spare time. :D
 
Fred i was wrong on the easiest part .....that would be to remove the DPC lnb arm and replace it with the P* lnb & arm just don't know if the FD will be right
but its worth a try and if its already setup a quick chage out...
 
Well, I think it is on to plan B as dem0nlord suggested above.

It has rained here all day, but I can see the mounting plate on the back of the DirecPC dish, and can tell from the ground that the bolt pattern is much larger than the Primestar 75E.

After thinking it all over and a conversation with Pete, I have come to the conclusion that the DPC dish may not be the proper dish for trying to receive a sat with a 47.2 skew. The dish is only 23" tall which when skewed does not allow for much surface to gather signal. The PrimeStar 75E actually measures 26.5" tall and 35.5" wide.

I ran to town and picked up another 3x4 multiswitch, and another plastic CATV box to put it in to keep everything dry. Got out the 75E, painted it, and put the remaining Rain Shield I have on hand on about 2/3 of the center of the dish with one coat. The skew scale on this P* LNB goes to + or - 40, and I pushed it to the stop which is about -45. I have loosened all the screws, put a drop of oil on the bolts and elevation adjusting bolt, and have it set for 12 degrees elevation to start out.

It is all ready to take up to the roof. It is supposed to stop raining sometime tonight or early morning. I figure to take it to the roof about 11:30AM tomorrow and replace the DPC dish and start tuning the 75E in.

I will try the DPC dish on another satellite that requires less skew in the near future. Maybe G10R. I think Iceberg said he used one for that Sat and had good success with it.

Will let you know my SQ readings on Hispasat tomorrow evening if all goes well.

Thanks, Fred
 
It finally quit raining late morning, so I have completed the switchout.

The Primestar 75E is currently on the job pointing at Hispasat 1C/D 30.0W.

As you can see in the pics, the dish is not skewed, but the LNB is skewed to the max of -45.

Here are the pics:
75e-from-the-front.jpg side-view-75e.jpg rear-view-75e.jpg new-dish-farm.jpg

These are the results using SQ only on my Pansat 3500:
With the DirecPC Dish after massive fine-tuning
12131 - H is at 44-50%
12172 - H is at 45-50%
12052 - V is at 28-32%
12175 - V is at 15-25%
11915 - V is at 55-60% Thought it wasn't listed on Lyngsat, but it is.

With the Primestar 75E with a short fine-tuning and very overcast heavy clouds.

12131 - H is now at 59-63%
12172 - H is now at 58-60%
12052 - V is now at 59-62%
12175 - V is now at 42-45% The weakest TP that I really wanted to work. :D
11915 - V is now at 90%

This is a notable increase in SQ by a dish and LNB that is at least 10 years old, and was in service for at least 5 years, then sat out in the elements for another 5 years. The Primestar/Channel Master dishes along with their NJR LNB's do an outstanding job even if they are rated at .6 or .7Db.

I have brought the DirecPC dish down for a redesign and rework of the elevation bolt. I will try it again on another satellite in the near future.

I am once again really happy.

Fred
 
great shot Fred
i see you added a box , this was to put a switch in and combine the h & v did you use a 22k or a diseqc and what does the "3x4 multiswitch" do

i could probably guess..... i will have to go back to school on my switches lol
 
Hey George,

I used a Direct TV 3x4 box which has a vertical and horizontal input and controls the polarity by voltage rather than using a 22K switch which would make me have to set up 2 satellites in the menu. One for Vertical and one for Horizontal. The output goes into one of the ports of the diseqc switch on the main KU dish setup.

That allows me two more ports on the main diseqc switch for two more stationary dishes if I want.

Thanks, Fred
 
ok i understand that
if you use a 22k switch you have to set up another satellite to catch the on or off part ? and the multiswitch gets you around this part ..

about using a diseqc switch , cause i guess i've been using them but wrong. do you have to address each port or just tell it how many ports ?
thanks
 
In the satellite menu setup on the Pansat, I tell each satellite which port to use on the diseqc switch.

Right now all of the satellites on the motorized dish are set to use port 1 with dish movement on USALS, and the stationary dish on Hispasat is set to use port 2 with dish movement disabled.
 
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