Switch test questions

[63fury]

I switched to dish network about 10 years ago and I set up my first system myself with little problem. The system was a standard system.

After a few years, a windstorm downed a tree that crushed the disk (and part of my house) so since insurance was fixing everything I upgraded my dish and smart card to the 500. The dish 500 has 2 LNB’s (one for 110 and one for 119 digital running into a switch) I stopped dish network service in 2004 and switched back to cable so I could have high speed internet. I never took the dish down but I did bump it with a latter once that moved it just a bit.

Well I wanted to switch back to dish and a friend of mine just cancelled his service and gave me a DP301 receiver with card to use with my dish 500. So I called Dish Net and transferred all the equipment over to me

I hooked up the receiver and have no signal, I wasn’t surprised. I checked the dish specs in the receiver and for birds 119 and 110 at my zip they are

ZIP CODE 49234:
AZ 226
EL 32
SK 119

I went out and readjusted the dish, still no signal. I double checked all my connections and cleaned them. Still no signal.

I called dish net tech support and went over everything. They had me run “check switch” and it came up with a warning and the tech help said my switch failed and that I should check my connections and replace the switch. Now I HATE just parts swapping to “try” to fix a problem so I asked the tech if I could bypass the switch and connect direct to one of the LNB’s to see if I get a signal. After about 10 seconds of silence the tech said “oh that would be a good way to see if it was the switch”. Anyway that ended the call.

I went back to the dish and ran a NEW cable to the 110 LNB and still no signal.
I then hooked to the 119 LNB….no signal.
I loosened the bolts and rotated the dish about 10 degrees in each direction and still no signal.
I ran check switch connected to the LNB and it failed…….

So my questions are;

• How likely is it that both my LNB’s are bad after sitting for 4 years?
• Does check switch check for a signal or does it run a diagnostic that checks for proper connection of the LNB’s?
• Can I check the switch by splicing it in line to a VCR or something?
• What should my next steps be? Buy a new LNB and look for a signal?

I need some help as the wife is loosing confidence in me…..LOL

 

[Ramy]

It's possible that the dish is bad now. You would want one of the new dishes if you have to buy a new one, for future channels if you decide to upgrade to HD at any time.

 

[iwannarock1]

So my questions are;

• How likely is it that both my LNB’s are bad after sitting for 4 years?
• Does check switch check for a signal or does it run a diagnostic that checks for proper connection of the LNB’s?
• Can I check the switch by splicing it in line to a VCR or something?
• What should my next steps be? Buy a new LNB and look for a signal?

I need some help as the wife is loosing confidence in me…..LOL

1. very unlikely lnb's are bad.
2. With the 301, it should tell you on the details screen what type of switch is attached, and whether it it is 'connected" to the lnb3
3. no
4. if the "details" shows connected to lnb, and lists the type of lnb, then your dish isn't lined up right.

Just sign up for dish as a new customer, they'll do it. They'll just sign up your new account with the same address and call it "apt 1" and then you can get a free install with new equipment. the only downfall is the 24 month contract.

But hey, you'll restore confidence with your wife that, if you can't fix something yourself, you'll get the right person to do it for you. Think how great she'll feel then. lmao

 

[63fury]

2. With the 301, it should tell you on the details screen what type of switch is attached, and whether it it is 'connected" to the lnb3
4. if the "details" shows connected to lnb, and lists the type of lnb, then your dish isn't lined up right.

Will the reciever automatically detect the lnb's or do I have to run check switch?

When I run check switch it shows a warning that states something like "check switch has found that there are less satellites detected that origally setup. To keep the original setting press cancell"

I have selected cancell at this point.

Is check switch checking for the hardware (lnb's) or the satellite signal?

Just sign up for dish as a new customer, they'll do it. They'll just sign up your new account with the same address and call it "apt 1" and then you can get a free install with new equipment. the only downfall is the 24 month contract.

But hey, you'll restore confidence with your wife that, if you can't fix something yourself, you'll get the right person to do it for you. Think how great she'll feel then. lmao

LOL....I already had Dish Network reactivate my account so I can't do the new account deal....I don't really want to anyway...I don't want the 24 mounth contract.

Thanks
John

 

[Mr Tony]

moved to Dish forum

 

[Jared Twomey]

Is check switch checking for the hardware (lnb's) or the satellite signal?

both, it should tell you what kind of switch you have in the line... in your case probably an SW21 switch, and it should also tell you which satellite locations it is lined up to.

Since you said you hooked it directly up to both lnb's and got nothing, i would assume the dish is out of line, or your friend had dish pro equipment and you need to save the new check switch. Here is what I would do.

Unhook everything from the receiver, run the Check Switch... that will clear the switch matrix in the receiver.

Then connect the receiver directly to the 119 lnb, see if you are getting a signal, if not... align the dish using the 119. Once you get the 119 satellite then you can add in the 110 and the switch and hope they both work.

 

[vegassatellite]

If the receiver hasn't been connected in a while, it's software might be so outdated that it can't resolve the switch test. Try hooking it direct to one of the LNBs and then leaving the receiver turned off for 20 minutes. You'll have to have signal on the LNB so this may be chasing your tail.

 

[63fury]

I have an old 500 dish with two seprate LNB's one for 110 and one for 119. Two cables run into a sw21 switch then one cable to the receiver.

Last night I unhooked the reciver and did a test switch to clear out the old data. Then I re plumed my pole and readjusted all the setting aimed the dish due South and started moving it west an inch at a time and I got a 119 signal and a 110 signal (strength 80) after about 5 inches. Then I went in and ran check switch and it gave me results of:

119 odd = green
119 even = green
110 odd = green
110 even = red

So I'm not getting 110.

Then I bypassed the sw21 switch and ran a cable direct to the 110 LNB and did check switch again. and got the same results, no 110 even.

So I think the 110 LNB is bad.

 

[Liquidforce88]

Yes your 110 LNB is bad. Look on ebay for a used DP twin, or you might be able to find some members in the classifed section on this board that have them for sale (hint hint). With the DP twin you wont need the sw-21 switch, just run one cable from the LNB to the receiver.