Signal 0-4% and Quality jumps from 0-84%

[falafeljack]

Hi all. this is my first post. i am completely new to FTA. I just bought my parents the M-2 Motorized Mercury II Blind Search Choice Set from Sadoun.

So, here is my info:

Glendale, AZ
Lat 33.5
Long 112.1
Motor Elevation is at 33.5
Dish Elevation is at 39.6
True South 168.4

OK, so, with all that, and everything being correct, my signal is about 0-4% and my quality jumps from 0-84% never staying steady on any one figure.

I called Sadoun and spoke with a tech and she had never seen or heard of that before. I am trying to attach to the IA5 Ku 97W Satellite...

I thought it might be the LNBF and she had suggested that I request an RMA and get it replaced. Any other ideas?

Thanks!

 

[Mr Tony]

it isnt the LNB....

what kind of LNB did you get with the setup? Did you get the stock LNB or did you upgrade to the standard?

 

[PSB]

May also be an idea to remove the motor for now and try to find/store the IA-5 satellite first using the below angles.

                      Glendale, AZ 85310
          Latitude 33° 42.282'N Longitude 112° 9.846'W

                       Sat Name Sat Lng Az(t) Az(m)    El  Skew
---------------------------------------------------------------
                               
                       
                               
                           IA-5   97.0W 154.0 141.5  47.6 -21.4
                               


        Satellite Finder is (c) Copyright 2004, P. Lutus

 

[falafeljack]

I got the stock LNB.

Sadoun KUL1

SINGLE DIGITAL STANDARD Linear KU 0.4 dB LNBF

 

[falafeljack]

I also tried setting the dish to the correct position without the motor and I got a signal of 0-4% and quality of 0-4%.

I'm completely out of ideas. It seems like I've read and read and read nothing but forum posts for the past couple days...

 

[Mr Tony]

thats not the stock, that's why I asked

The stock is a Universal LNB...that is a standard

in the menu setup there is a spot that says LNB LO or something like that. It might say "UNI" need to change that to 10750

 

[PSB]

Then if you think you are close to a satellite try a blind scan.

 

[falafeljack]

thats not the stock, that's why I asked

The stock is a Universal LNB...that is a standard

in the menu setup there is a spot that says LNB LO or something like that. It might say "UNI" need to change that to 10750

oh, i thought when you said stock that you mean what came with the "complete system" from Sadoun. Umm, I went back to the TV and set it to 10750 and the signal went from a 0-4% still and the quality went from 0-8%. still nothing drastic. i'm going through the blind scan right now, its about 25% done.


Edit - The scan is complete. nothing found


Anyone know of a local installer in Phoenix??? lol...

 

[mrweather]

You'll need to find a strong TP on that satellite and tweak it from there. Unfortunately I don't know any; perhaps someone else will chime in.

If that fails maybe the coax has a short in it?

 

[PSB]

Yep the blind scan was a shot in the dark. You need to use a LIVE TP. and watch for signal QUALITY. If you had the wrong L.O. in there this is why you never got the dish pointed. Now the L.O. is correct you should start to get somewhere!

 

[Hermitman]

It sounds to me like there's no power to the LNBF. I'd check for voltage at the coax end where it connects to the LNBF. IF there's no voltage there, check your antenna setup.

 

[falafeljack]

It sounds to me like there's no power to the LNBF. I'd check for voltage at the coax end where it connects to the LNBF. IF there's no voltage there, check your antenna setup.

I dont have a multimeter but I did try several coax cables from the LNBF to the motor and directly to the receiver. No change. I'm starting to go nuts. i've been working on this thing since 12:00 today and its already 22:00. ugh. on top of that, its AZ and its about 4,000 degrees outside.


So, now that I am OFFICIALLY stuck... should I shoot myself? lol...

 

[voomvoom]

This is just a thought, but do you have the cable from the dish connected to the proper input. You should have an IF Input as well as a IF Output (Loop-Out), used for an additional receiver. There also should be an ANT In (terrestial antenna input) for TV, along with a TV Out to hook to TV. Maybe you've accidentally hooked it up wrong.

Al

 

[Sadoun]

Here are some instructions to look at and follow:
http://www.sadoun.com/Sat/Products/Fortec-Star/Receivers/Mercury-II-Installation.htm

It seems that your dish is not aligned correctly.

You can check of the motor/lnbf are receiving power by moving the motor using the DiSEqC 1.2 or USALS command. If the motor moves, that means you have power at the motor.

 

[rainmaker]

check to make sure you have the lnb power turned on also if this is a 90 cm dish try adjusting the elevation up or down by about 4 to 5 degrees fhats how far my 90 cm was off in elevation.

 

[falafeljack]

I am completely out of patience.

I tried to install it again today. Spent all day, used all the info you guys gave me, went through every website on Sadoun's page and still no difference in result. I am getting power to the motor, the LNBF is new, the cables are new, the system is plumb. I still cannot get this damn thing to give me a signal past 4%.

Anyone install these in AZ?

 

[falafeljack]

On second thought, since sadoun probably wont accept my return since its over 30 days, anyone wanna buy it from me? $350 for the whole thing, just come get it.


I officially give up. Arizona is tooo damn hot to work on these outside.

 

[PSB]

HEAT is the enemy Last year around this time I got heat stroke when doing an install! Had to stop the install for around an hour to recover, and was ill for a few days after!

Don't give up, start from the beginning again WITHOUT the motor (Like most of us here started.)

DON'T LET IT BEAT YOU!

 

[Stefan]

Do you have one of those little cheap signal meters? While they're generally not that helpful in finding a specifc satellite and doing fine alignment, they are good for helping you at least get the dish pointed at the clarke belt. Also they'll let you know if you LNB is working at all or not. If you don't have more advanced tools, like a spectrum analyzer, those cheap little meters can at least help you get started and are better than nothing. Once you find the clarke belt you can do a blind scan and see what satellite you've hit. Then you'll have an idea as to which way and how much to move the dish to hit the one your aiming for.

 

[sksatellite]

Can you tell us how was your setting the whole system, like cable from lnb to which port on the receiver, etc.