smallest dish size
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Signal strength as reported by the receiver is not on a percentage scale. A "perfect" signal is 125, not 100.gopher2 said:
You may be able to get away with a smaller "volume" of an antenna by using a phased array "dish" instead of a conventional parabolic reflector with an LNB mounted on an arm. The surface area of the main surface though would likely be larger but since it's flat and nothing protruding, is a little easier to conceal.
Some of the travel rv dishes are as small as 13 inches but you may get by with using a dish just a little smaller than that. A phased array is 10 inches by one dimension and I think a little longer by another dimension but is farely small and is flat but expensive compared to our traditional small single slot dish. This only pertains to 119 of course.
I thought I saw a post here, or maybe at the other site, about a year or so ago, that discussed making a dish out of a small wok or other cooking utensil, I think it was somewhere around 8-12 inches.
As long as you weren't worried about rainy days and signal loss, you could make a smaller dish work especially where it is sunny & cloud free most of the time. Detroit isn't one of those places though. AZ might be.
I've seen systems work on ~55% but the channels are slow to change and any rain brings the system to a standstill.
I would like to see a WOK or metal salad bowl dish... LOL
The whole issue of dish size to signal loss is what set standards at 18-22" dishes.
The only reason cable companies have 20+ foot dishes in their business is for capturing more signal during bad weather. Could you imagine how cranky customers would be if every time it rained the CABLE went out.
I've seen systems work on ~55% but the channels are slow to change and any rain brings the system to a standstill.
I would like to see a WOK or metal salad bowl dish... LOL
The whole issue of dish size to signal loss is what set standards at 18-22" dishes.
The only reason cable companies have 20+ foot dishes in their business is for capturing more signal during bad weather. Could you imagine how cranky customers would be if every time it rained the CABLE went out.
Im not worried about clouds or anything
I am going to make a small battery powered reciever that i can take to the beach. Only loking to recieve the music channels for now
I want the smallest but usable size dish for portabality
anyone think a dish this small would work?
http://www.digicams-uk.com/prod243.htm
I am going to make a small battery powered reciever that i can take to the beach. Only loking to recieve the music channels for now
I want the smallest but usable size dish for portabality
anyone think a dish this small would work?
http://www.digicams-uk.com/prod243.htm
It's a 12" dish (11.8")
I would have a whack at torching/sabre sawing an 18" dish down to 12" before I would sink money into something like that first.
I do like the suction cup mount though.
I might even try it myself this weekend(Sunday) to see what would happen. I have several dish 300/500's here collecting dust. It would be neat just to see how small you could go before signal would degrade below 55%.
If you aren't in a hurry.. Gimmie a few days to experiment... *Where's my goggles* (play Monster garage theme music in background)
I would have a whack at torching/sabre sawing an 18" dish down to 12" before I would sink money into something like that first.
I do like the suction cup mount though.
I might even try it myself this weekend(Sunday) to see what would happen. I have several dish 300/500's here collecting dust. It would be neat just to see how small you could go before signal would degrade below 55%.
If you aren't in a hurry.. Gimmie a few days to experiment... *Where's my goggles* (play Monster garage theme music in background)
I also remember seeing a thread where people discussed how small of a dish they can get to work to bring about the minimal signal level. You need 40% maybe a little less to get a signal lock but some transponders might come in while others will not. It is a matter of finding the weakest transponder and making sure the signal is coming in on that.
Are there DBS lnbf's that could bring in a signal stronger on the same size of dish? Isn't that what the 0.5 or less lnbf's do?
Are there DBS lnbf's that could bring in a signal stronger on the same size of dish? Isn't that what the 0.5 or less lnbf's do?
I do not think they can get as much of a signal as the larger dishes but am not sure of that. I only know from what I have read on here.
If you get too small you might as well just point the LNBF up at the satellite!
There is a limit to how little signal one can get away with.
BTW: The cable companies use 20ft dishes because they need to be aimed better than the DBS dishes and pick up lower powered signals than DBS. The "extra" 18ft isn't all overhead.
BTW2: If you want to take Sirius from Dish Network to the beach why not subscribe and get a Sirius radio instead of building your own "small battery operated receiver". It will probably be cheaper in the long run - and be more legit.
JL
There is a limit to how little signal one can get away with.
BTW: The cable companies use 20ft dishes because they need to be aimed better than the DBS dishes and pick up lower powered signals than DBS. The "extra" 18ft isn't all overhead.
BTW2: If you want to take Sirius from Dish Network to the beach why not subscribe and get a Sirius radio instead of building your own "small battery operated receiver". It will probably be cheaper in the long run - and be more legit.
JL
You can't.. The reflector dish acts (like a magnifying glass focusing the sun to burn a blade of grass) to concentrate the weak signal onto the lnb to be usable.
Not enough signal would enter the lnb to be usable if you just pointed it out to 119. Not sure about which one uses circular polarity vs linear. I'm not that smart yet... Trial and error has its disadvantages...
I will destroy an old dish just to see how low I can go before the signal becomes unusable. I have already thought about the focal length and offset to compensate for the smaller dish size using a standard 300/500 Dish/LNB. Will see what happens....
Not enough signal would enter the lnb to be usable if you just pointed it out to 119. Not sure about which one uses circular polarity vs linear. I'm not that smart yet... Trial and error has its disadvantages...
I will destroy an old dish just to see how low I can go before the signal becomes unusable. I have already thought about the focal length and offset to compensate for the smaller dish size using a standard 300/500 Dish/LNB. Will see what happens....
