BajaNomad

Looking for a 1.2 Meter antenna for Dish Network

JESSE - 7-6-2007 at 11:37 AM

If anybody has a spare one, i would gladly take it off your hands.

longlegsinlapaz - 7-6-2007 at 08:26 PM

Jesse, any dish will do, it doesn't have to be a Dish Network dish, but you DO have to have a Dish Network receiver to hook up to it. So if you have the receiver, just look for any satellite dish. And no, I don't have a spare one...sorry! But if nobody on here has an extra one laying around, I can put you in touch with my Dish TV & internet service provider.

Bob and Susan - 7-7-2007 at 06:12 AM

the little radio thing in the middle doesn't have to be a dish unit????

longlegsinlapaz - 7-7-2007 at 06:32 AM

If it does, maybe it's re-programmable....all I know is that I'm using my old Direct TV sat. dish with my Dish Network receiver & it works! To the best of my knowledge, my service provider just hooked the Dish receiver up to the Direct satellite dish....and voila! I think the dish is universal & the receiver carries all the proprietary programming.

woody with a view - 7-7-2007 at 06:33 AM

i don't think it matters. the signal is descrambled at the box. they used to tell you to leave the dish if you moved (so the new people would want to sign up) and they would give you the new equipment at your new place. the money is in the subscription, not a $25 dish.

losfrailes - 7-7-2007 at 07:38 AM

Jesse, you can find an antenna at http://antenas.com.mx/

You would be much happier with a 1.8 meter dish than with a 1.2 meter dish.

You would also need to find an LNB (the eye thingy) that is for DTV, make sure its circular in its use. (As opposed to Linear).

Then you can pick up at least the 119W Satellite for DishNetwork.

LNBF

MrBillM - 7-7-2007 at 09:28 AM

The (Single Satellite) KU-Band LNBF for DirecTV and Dish Network are Useable on either. In fact, if you're only going to focus on ONE satellite, the old Primestar Dish and LNB can also be used. Many people looking for a larger dish have utilized the Primestar. The most recent I'm aware of is last month.

One caveat, though, on the above. although the complete antenna/LNBF unit is interchangeable, the same is not always true of the LNBF alone. The "Face" of the LNB where it goes into the feed arm on DTV and DISH is Slightly different. They do sell LNBs which have a universal configuration on that physical difference.

JESSE - 7-7-2007 at 09:41 AM

Thanks for the responses, i have a Dish Network receiver and Dish network LNBF as well, all i am looking for is a bigger antenna because it seems you lose some channels in southern Baja with the smaller regular sized antenna we use up north.

I am still a little confused, some people say a regular antenna will do, others say it wont, i guess i wont find out until i try it.

Dish 500 ?

MrBillM - 7-7-2007 at 10:32 AM

Another source for Reflectors and LNBs is:

http://www.sadoun.com.

For a single LNB configuration, they offer a wide variety of larger dishes in their FTA section. Probably the most frequent use of the FTAs in Baja is to receive the DISH offerings using a programmable FTA receiver.

IF you want to use a TWIN LNBF or Two Single to receive both the 110 and 119 feeds, the plastic "Y" Connector is available from FutureVision Sat for $5.99.

http://www.futurevisionsat.com/catalog/item/548160/271136.ht...

Although I've never done it, you should be able to adapt ANY oversize dish, including Primestar, by adapting that "Y" to the reflector and duplicating the exact focal distance of the LNB to the center point of the Reflector (technical purists will tell you that the ANTENNA is actually in the LNB).

losfrailes - 7-7-2007 at 10:47 AM

Well Jesse, you are getting the word for sure. The antennas de Jalisco is the best source for you in La Paz for an antenna.

The smaller 1 meter dishes might work, but you will not be happy with them in your part of the world. Go for the BIG.

If you contact Antenas de Jalisco, you will find the 1.8 meter dishes are reasonable, in fact a whole lot less money than those from up north and they are made in Mexico. The builder will ship them to you in La Paz. Just give him a call.

The Y adaptor for both the 110 and the 119 satellites does not work this far south. However, the majority of your programming will be found on the 119 satellite, so its not to worry. The 110 satellite however, does have the majority of the PPV, which you probably cannot get from Mexico anyway. Like I said, not to worry.

110 South ?

MrBillM - 7-7-2007 at 01:55 PM

Speaking of receiving The Dish 110 satellite as far south as La Paz, has anyone tried who CAN or CAN'T receive it ? Other than the 500 "Y" approach ? The only information that I found which did address the footprint implied that the 110 and 119 CONUS footprint was the same. They are farther apart in Azimuth, of course, and slightly different in Elevation at the Lat-Lon of La Paz. South of San Felipe, the Elevation is shown as the same and The difference in Azimuth is17 degrees. The standard Dish 500 with the Y works fine for signal strengths in the high 80s or above.

In La Paz, they are shown as: 110 E=61.9 A=180. 119 E=60.2 A=201.3 for a difference of -1.7 E and 20.1 A.

Just Curious.

Bedman - 7-8-2007 at 12:56 AM

MrBillM,

I receive both 110 and 119 in L.A. Bay but only one at a time, since I use a single lnb. But I can move the Big dish to find and receive the 110. With the large dish, (about 4.5 ft in diameter) signal strength is 80+ with the little dish (about 18") signal strength is about 45.

As mentioned above, the 110 Sat has most of the Pat Per View channels. The 119 has a good/better all around selection.

Bedman

Bedman

MrBillM - 7-8-2007 at 08:01 AM

Thanks for the Firsthand Info. I had wondered to what extent the 110 slot was affected farther South. At a 45 signal strength, it would appear that your Latitude is just below the margins for a standard dish. Although I've locked on at that level, just about any atmospherics are a problem.

It is true that, other than PPVs, there are not a lot of CONUS feeds in the 110 slot since the preponderance of channels are SpotBeam, but if you're buying the Dish 150/180 package those channels include History International, A-E Biography, TMC E/W and a number of Encore Movie channels among others.

If you're hacking, of course, then having the capability to align with it is worthwhile.

When I would travel in the motorhome, I used the single LNB dish and simply rotated the mast 1/4" when I wanted a 110 channel. As in your case, it worked fine.

Bedman - 7-8-2007 at 01:05 PM

MrBillM,

an interesting side note here. In the early evening the reception died off using the smaller dish. No difference in the signal strength, but some channels I would receive an on screen message, telling me I didn't have authorization to view that channel and to change to a different channell. In the AM all was fine and no message. With the larger dish we seldom receive that error message.

On the Pacific side in San Quintin, humidity would cover the motorhome satelite dome and reduce signal strength and reception and we get the same message. In L.A. Bay the humidity seldom if ever gets high enough to coat a dish like it does in S.Q.

Bedman

BCSTech - 8-10-2007 at 10:56 AM

Sorry, missed this thread until now...
Quote:
Speaking of receiving The Dish 110 satellite as far south as La Paz, has anyone tried who CAN or CAN'T receive it ?
You really need two dishes in Southern BCS to pick up the 119 and 110. We experimented with a 6' Channel Master and two LNBs but couldnt get it to play very well. I suspect the narrower beamwidth on a larger dish just makes this too much of a stretch...

For the 110, you really need a dedicated 6' antenna, and especially if you want to pick up the HD channels there. A 4' will work on the 110 but only marginally and some of the HDs won't lock.

The 119 satellite has a little bit of drift to it but this usually shows up most in the morning hours when the signal is weaker. An 18" antenna in LA Bay is probably right at the margin for one or the other satellite. Are you using Dish 500 on the smaller dish, Bedman, or just the 119?

Jesse, call me. The phone number I have did not work.

Two Dishes Here At 17 Degrees Latitude

davidre - 8-10-2007 at 11:11 AM

The 1.8 meter dish is almost mandatory here. I am getting around a 90 signal strength on satellite 119 using transponder 2, and 85 strength on 110 using transponder 19.

Don't forget you will have two coaxial cables running to a single input into your receiver. Therefore you ae going to have to puchase a switch made for the DISH 500 system in oder to input both signals simultaneously.

I regularly lose signal (less than 45) when heavy rain sets in.

Set your post in solid concrete and grease exposed dish hardware that will tend to corrode.

I am going to connect a UPS system to power my system. It seems as though the Dish Network receiver will fail if it encounters voltages less than 80 even for a brief time. UNPLUG your receiver when not in use.

losfrailes - 8-10-2007 at 12:42 PM

Davidre

Wow, That 17 degrees Latitude, if in Mexico, puts you way down by Mexico City.

Are you sure of the lat-lon you are sitting on.

In fact, for info sake only, where are you located?

Also, correct me if I am wrong, but transponder 19 is not available on the 110 bird. Only transponders 1 thru 5, 9, then 22 thru 31.

However, it has been a long time since I could get the 110 bird here at 27N X 112W that I could be wrong.


[Edited on 8-10-2007 by losfrailes]

Bedman - 8-13-2007 at 01:33 AM

BCStech,

I have the Large dish aimed the 119 satellite and the small dish to the 119 as well. I tried for months to get the large dish to work using the LNB that was supplied by an internet company that sells sat. dish kits. I even got that co. to send me a new LNB that was "Made for Dishnetwork". It still didn't work. The collar on the LNB attached to the small dish was a different diameter than the one on the large dish. I tried wrapping electrical tape to match the attaching hardware on the large dish. Couldn't get it to work, ever. Finally I purchased a collar adapter to mount on the LNB attached to the small dish and moved it to the large dish. That did the trick, the LNB really does have to be aimed at the satellite and the dish has to be in alignment too. My Dishnetwork satellite receiver/decoder/descrambler/ (You guys are way out of my league in this subject but I am persistent) box is set to Dish 500. (I think??) I never change that setting and haven't toyed with it for fear of losing the reception. If it ain't broke, don't Monkey with it! Next time I'm in the Motorhome I'll check and let you know.

Bedman

Al G - 8-13-2007 at 04:57 PM

Is there a difference between 500 and 625 receivers for dish network...mine is 625, but there is no setting for it...
Do you know the reason the tech who installed dish network when I switched, bald-face lied to me...he claimed there is no way I could use my roof mounted dish on My RV. He setup a portable 22" and it took me 8 mos. to check his claim...I get very good reception with my 18" DTV antenna.

BCSTech - 8-13-2007 at 07:01 PM

Hey Al, How are you?

Sorry, I'm confusing things by writing "Dish 500" when I should have written "two-satellite system using both the 110 and 119 satellite." The term "Dish 500" is used for a selection inside the Point Dish menu. AFAIK, it's only a convenience feature that works with your ZIP code to give you different Azimuth / Elevation / Skew estimates for pointing systems within the US using the dual-throat feed horn for these two satellites on the smaller antennas.

Other than changing the readout for the Azimuth / Elevation / Skew display, setting the choice to either Dish 300 or Dish 500 has no other effect on the operation of the satellite receiver.

Bedman, you may be able to set up a dual satellite system but that 18" may be a little wimpy for the 119. 45 used to be the breaking point for channels on the old signal display. But DN recently sent out a software upgrade that changed the meter display scale on many receivers, so now somewhere around 25 is the breaking point.

To do a dual-dish, you'll need the right switches, probably two standard SW21s or compatible if you're using standard LNBs.

But that guy might have sold you a DishPro LNB if it has a really skinny metal throat and no plastic cover. In that case, you need to use DishPro compatible switches to make the whole thing work.

BCSTech - 8-13-2007 at 07:11 PM

Al, just curious, where was the guy that sold you the portable 22", in Concord? Where did you tell him you were going to be using it? What reason did he give for why the 18" wouldn't work?

BCSTech - 8-13-2007 at 07:18 PM

Hey Wayne,

We just ran through the 110 transponders on a new install in Cabo San Lucas; using a 4' on the 119, a 6' 0n the 110, and three HD DVR receivers:

01 - 64
02 - 68
03 - 48
04 - 0
05 - 51
06 - 67
07 - 64
08 - 43
09 - 49
10 - 46
11 - 65
12 - 0
13 - 0
14 - 61
15 - 58
16 - 40
17 - 51
18 - 0
19 - 64
20 - 0
21 - 44
22 - 60
23 - 0
24 - 0
25 - 0
26 - 0
27 - 0
29 - 0
31 - 0

Al G - 8-13-2007 at 08:26 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by BCSTech
Al, just curious, where was the guy that sold you the portable 22", in Concord? Where did you tell him you were going to be using it? What reason did he give for why the 18" wouldn't work?

Alan...Yes Concord...I did not tell him I was going to use it in Baja....just wanted it on top of my RV...so when I traveled, it would not be such a hassle. He said 18” would not receive both of Dish's satellites...LBN was wrong frequency...my RV wiring could not carry Dish's more modern signal...
After sometime 45 min. +-, he declared I was in the wrong area (not blocked) and I will not ever receive 110....I now get 110 and 119 with my original equipment (110 at 45 signal weak) single LBN with 2 lead out all the way to receive...using my original wiring...his was dual LBN...one left dangling in the wind, and one lead split behind my receiver. I think he did not want to waste time running 2 new leads...
Since I have switch to my 18” antenna...made two trips and everything works fine. What do you think? I do realize 18" will not work when I am in Baja...I will use a stationary 1.8 when I move back this year. Satellite DSL still up in the air, because Chuck's was really poor...in the afternoon.

Bedman - 8-14-2007 at 12:51 AM

BCSTech,

In reference to the DISH 500 question, Yes, my box is set to that. I also receive the zip code Az /Skew/ Elevation info. Hmmm...What's the zip code for Bahia De Los Angeles? (Just yankin your chains) I have the KVH trac vision in motion system on my coach. For those of you thinking about buying an in motion system, save the $$ and don't bother with the "in motion" model. (unless you have kids traveling with you)

Also, somebody (on the board?) also suggested an in line "Signal Booster" available at Radio Shack. For use on those long coax runs? Mine is about 75 feet. Would such a device require batteries? If So, I'll do without, but I can see where it would help in certain applications.



Bedman

BCSTech - 8-14-2007 at 02:44 AM

Quote:
Also, somebody (on the board?) also suggested an in line "Signal Booster" available at Radio Shack. For use on those long coax runs? Mine is about 75 feet. Would such a device require batteries? If So, I'll do without, but I can see where it would help in certain applications.
You probably don't need it if your run is only 75'. Inline amps are usually only needed for runs over 150' They're powered by the receiver's voltage on the cable.