Sattlite Finder

[Foyd Zimmerman]

I would like to purchase a reliable Satellite Finder Meter. Could anyone give me a good choice?
Floyd

 

[webbydude]

You'll probably get as many different answers as there are techs on here. This is the meter I've personally found to be pretty reliable. Not to mention it's capable of aiming at 2 different birds at the same time; perfect for the D1000, D1000+, and D500+. My only issue is the battery life. It usually depletes after 3 installs.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Acutrac-22-Pro-...ryZ32841QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

[MikeD-C05]

You can find a cheap one at the dishstore.net or dishdepot.com. I bought mine at the dishstore and it was about 19.99 I think.

 

[hobojoe]

maybe you should alaberate on what your going to use it for ie;pro installs,fta,camping,seldom,alot ,ease of use, ability to tell you the sat id, the list is too big to go on. if your going to be doing installs a birdog is good if its for you at home every now and then just a cheap $20 will do self powerd.

 

[Kandiru]

Nah, to get a sat finder that displays sat names you will shell out big time.

Go to Wallie's and get the $42 Homeland security camera, a long run of composite cable, hook it up and tied the lil 6 in TV to your pole. Set the positioning screen on then climb to the pole and voila, you are locking in like a pro.

A call to Dish tech support will also reveal which transponder is strongest in your area (+ - one), so you know what to look for. If getting HD always lock on to the 129 bird.

Vegetation in the 60-90 degrees radius relative to the line perpendicular to the center of the reflector can ruin your signal, so trim and cut, i'm talking from experience here (aouch winter install too).

 

[Jared Twomey]

Go to Wallie's and get the $42 Homeland security camera, a long run of composite cable, hook it up and tied the lil 6 in TV to your pole. Set the positioning screen on then climb to the pole and voila, you are locking in like a pro.

another alternative to this idea is to use diplexers and backfeed to tv-out signal back out to the roof, hook up a little tv (i used a battery power 3" lcd tv until it finally died), and you can see your signal in realtime

 

[superbuddy]

Satellite Finder/ Signal Level Meter

As the others mentioned, your intended use should really dictate your choice of sat finder / signal level meter. If this is a one time install, I wouldn't recommend spending a lot of money. However, if you are planning on being an installer long-term, I would look for a reliable, heavy-duty durable meter with good battery life. There are several options, of course:

1) a meter that will only display relative signal strength (such as the Sat Buddy meter line or Accutrac or the cheaper generic Sat Finder).

If you're planning on doing more complicated installs where it's difficult to find the correct satellite, you'll want to consider

2) the meters that are capable of Positive ID and can LOCK on the bird (such as the Super Buddy or Birdog or Sat Hawk). When considering these units, I would look for one that is easy to use, displays signal quality as well as signal strength, is rugged, has good battery life, and has a good large database of satellites to choose from. These meters will be more expensive, obviously, but will save you time and money in the long run.

I hope that helps.

Scott Haywood