Whaddya think ?

[crygh]

Howdy y'all, I been a lurkin' here fer some time soakin' in some smarts about this here FTA.

I'm fixin' to pull da trigger on a system from Sadoun (mighty nice folks there by the way), Fortec 80cm, Digipower SG-2100, Invacom Quad, S-DS41C 4-Way switch and Twinhan 102g. I decided to go this route cuz it's less than half what it would cost to go with tv tower/antenna all fer 4 channels... maybe. After studyin' on coax, it hit me, there's a big ol' cell tower on my hill (which they pay me for). This here tower is about 500 yds. givertake from da house and is purdy close to being in my line of sight fer da 148 bird - which I can live without. Already took out most all trees in my way(can't hardly handle that big saw no more). Now I reckon this here tower puts out some purdy strong signals - the cows don't seem to mind, but will it bother my reception in any way ? I know there may be a problem with the 148 bird but what about ambient signals/noise etc. ? Fer the time bein' i'm gonna attach the dish to my porch so coax run will be short, but come spring I'm gonna put the dish up on a barn and that coax run will be roundabout 150 ft.

Any needed things will be comin' from Sadoun (did I mention they are right fine folks ?). So I'd need to know which brand/type of coax that he carries would be best fer me. Been considerin' that 1000 ft. roll of dual shield/copper clad steel Perfect Vision brand. I don't want some big honkin' dish, but i'd be willin' to go 100cm if needed I reckon. I'd really like to let that gal at Sadoun's know what coax I'm gonna be a needin' today.

If i left out any info just sound off.

 

[mastermesh]

Not sure if the cell tower will mess with anything. Might if it's the right frequency. You may want to ask the cell tower people that are paying for more info on all of that... also might want to ask them if it'd be ok if you use their tower to put some antennas up.

I think, could be wrong here, cell phones run on the same frequency or close to the same frequency as wifi, so if you try to set up wireless connections, I'd suspect you'd run in to issues. As far as satellites go, I'm not so sure?

 

[crygh]

Heh, already asked if I could put a tv antenna up there at the last contract signin' with Sprint/Embarq, that went over like a lead balloon. They pay by check quarterly and contracts run fer 4 yrs. The only other time I see anyone is when i call these other folks when a light is out and that fella don't seem too bright if ya ask me - climbin' that thing fer a light bulb. There is an emergency phone number on the gate to the tower they told me to call in case of vandals etc. but ain't nobody gonna bother it unless they can outrun a bullet. I was just hopin' someone knew a lil' somthin' about cell stuff that could advise me.

 

[SatinKzo]

crygh, your posts are fun to read.

 

[brentb636]

Those cell towers are running in 800 MHZ range and shouldn't be an obvious problem. Among other things , I'm the tech and Admin of a 800Mhz trunked radio system ( 10 Transmitters ) in Central Mi, and we're always having problems with Nextel infringing on our freqs. If you want to troubleshoot them, wrap the whole tower in Aluminum foil and see if a service truck comes out.

 

[crygh]

Brent, ya figger quad shield coax be overkill then ? As far as aluminum foil goes, I reckon it be all day cheaper and easier to just shoot out one of them red lights up thar.

Satin, everybody needs a lil hummer now and then... or is it humor

 

[robsadler]

My nomination for.......

^^^^^^^^^^^Poster of the Year^^^^^^^^^^^

 

[Anole]

just the facts

Nextel is in the 800 mhz band.
Cellular is in the 900 mhz range.
PCS is located in the 1900 mhz band (in the USA).

Sprint PCS is, well, PCS (1900mhz), though in your area they may be combined with some other carrier and use the low bands as well.

WiFi is on 2400 mhz , with some rare stuff on 5800 mhz.
All very low power.
Microwave ovens are in the 2400 mhz range, but they shouldn't be a problem as long as you cook with the door closed :

There is nothing on the 148 bird for FTA users.

 

[mrweather]

Those cell towers are running in 800 MHZ range and shouldn't be an obvious problem. Among other things , I'm the tech and Admin of a 800Mhz trunked radio system ( 10 Transmitters ) in Central Mi, and we're always having problems with Nextel infringing on our freqs. If you want to troubleshoot them, wrap the whole tower in Aluminum foil and see if a service truck comes out.

So, is Next-hell paying for your agency to move to 700 MHz?

 

[crygh]

Anole, thanks fer the freq. ranges, I know there ain't any WiFi on da tower. I'm a bit confuzzled looking at Lyngsat, I dunno if freq. listings are khz or mhz, but it don't appear any FTA collides with Sprint PCS range.

Now fer microwave cookin' with the door open, it all depends if the critter fits.

 

[Anole]

shove it 'till it fits !

Though satellite reception may not fully cover these ranges,
here's a rough estimate:

C -band = 3.4ghz to 4.8ghz;
lyngsat example frequency like 3905 (3905mhz or 3.905ghz)

Ku band = 10.7 ghz to 12.75ghz;
lyngsat example frequency like 11966 (11966mhz, or 11.966ghz)

Ka band = 19 ghz to 22ghz,
but not currently of interest to us, so far.

ref material used

 

[crygh]

From what ya say and da link ya posted (lots of info there), I ain't seein' any reason why that cell tower would mess with my reception at all ... 'cept fer blockin' da 148 bird which don't matter none.

So I reckon i'll be gettin' some copper clad dual shield coax like I figgered on doin' to begin with.

Might hafta open a jar of corn squeezins fer this chore, just to keep me warm.

Thanks fer da help.

 

[Pittsville]

How is your TV and broadcast band radio reception? Hopefully there are no paging transmitters on that tower.

On an unrelated note, last weeked I was trying to align a dish at my brother's home. We were using GMRS radios to communicate from the roof to the TV. When I transmitted on the handheld radio from the TV end, the FTA receiver went berserk. The picture went black and white and got all wavy, then the receiver turned it's self off. Also I had an old Ka band radar unit and whenever I drove in the area of a certain tower the radar showed RFI and wouldn't work.

So the quality of construction of the LNB, receiver, and the coax that you use might be a factor. I am not an expert but I would think that you would want the most intense shield you could get on your coax, and of course proper grounding is always a critical safety consideration for any antenna installation and it might be a reception quality issue for you as well.

 

[crygh]

Pittsville, the only tv I get is from a lil 14" that my IR cameras are hooked up to fer coyote/bear etc. - radio is right fine. Reckon i'll be gettin' that quad shield copper clad coax after all. i had figgered on using the lightining rod grounds fer the dish and all. Unless ya see some issue goin' that route.

I really don't expect my dawg or the cows will be usin' any GMRS radio or radar detector, tho my dawg does try to drive now and then.

 

[Pittsville]

Dogs are required by law around here to have a license.

The first day my dog was licensed I sent him out to fetch me a newspaper and he got a ticket for parking in front of a fire hydrant. Said it was an emergency...

 

[rdel]

Good One Pittsville