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TG Twinkie · 06-13-2011, 08:12 PM

I have a Dish Network System in my home. With 2 dishes; One has 2 heads on it, the other has one head. Just recently I was informed by DN that the single head dish is no longer used, that everything (local and cable channels) come thru the dish with 2 heads now.
Is it possible to use the dish with one head for a portable unit? If so; Are there devices out there that can help you to locate the satellite when you are on the road in a campground or other location?

Mr & Mrs S · 06-13-2011, 08:52 PM

I also have DN, and have two recievers. I took the extra reciever out of the house and installed it in the AS. I had a dish with only one head tried to use it to find signal. After hours of NOTHING. I gave up and call my brother in law and he said you have to have the one with two heads on it to work. Ok great I just so happen to have one of those too. So I changed them out and used the one with dual heads.
I did get a signal fairly quick. But I could never get the darned thing over 75% signal strength. After couple hours of trying that Mrs. S give up on me (she was watching the signal strength) and I called it quits and havent tried since.

While I was on an airplane I pick up a Trailer Life magaize and there was a article on 25 must have RV apps for Iphone. One of them is called "Dish for my RV satellite Finder" and it has some really great reviews. Its made for Dish Network only and helps you find the satellite needed to make your dish get signall. I havent used it myself yet but when I return home in July Im gonna give it a shot.
But so far for Mr.S vs Dish Network the score is Dish Network 2- Mr.S 0

Wsmith · 06-13-2011, 08:54 PM

You can probably use the dish but I doubt if the LMB on it will work or only work on some channels because you have to tune two satellites to get all their signals from what I have heard. You can get a complete unit added for an RV. Direct TV is probably easier to use. There are also automatic systems out there that find the satellite by their self.
To set up a dish you enter zip code into the tv input and it will tell you the elevation to set the dish and also give you a magnetic compass heading. The receiver will beep when you get in the range of the signal and you get the beeps as fast as possible to tune it in.

I used to carry Star Band for Internet and also Direct TV. The Internet is a much better dish and easier to fine tune.

Andrew Selking · 06-13-2011, 09:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsmith84

I also have DN, and have two recievers. I took the extra reciever out of the house and installed it in the AS. I had a dish with only one head tried to use it to find signal. After hours of NOTHING. I gave up and call my brother in law and he said you have to have the one with two heads on it to work. Ok great I just so happen to have one of those too. So I changed them out and used the one with dual heads.
I did get a signal fairly quick. But I could never get the darned thing over 75% signal strength. After couple hours of trying that Mrs. S give up on me (she was watching the signal strength) and I called it quits and havent tried since.

While I was on an airplane I pick up a Trailer Life magaize and there was a article on 25 must have RV apps for Iphone. One of them is called "Dish for my RV satellite Finder" and it has some really great reviews. Its made for Dish Network only and helps you find the satellite needed to make your dish get signal. I haven't used it myself yet but when I return home in July Im gonna give it a shot.
But so far for Mr.S vs Dish Network the score is Dish Network 2- Mr.S 0

I also have Dish Network never had been able to get 75 percent. Usually if I can get 35 to 40 percent I let it do its thing and call it good. I have not had a problem loosing the signal always seems to work. I asked a Dish Tech one time and he said higher is always better, but 30 or above will get a good signal most of the time.

Mr & Mrs S · 06-13-2011, 09:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andrew Selking

I also have Dish Network never had been able to get 75 percent. Usually if I can get 35 to 40 percent I let it do its thing and call it good. I have not had a problem loosing the signal always seems to work. I asked a Dish Tech one time and he said higher is always better, but 30 or above will get a good signal most of the time.

Wow really! I was told I had to have 80 % or more for it to work. I tried it at 80% and all I got was a blue screen saying searching!

Andrew Selking · 06-13-2011, 10:03 PM

I don't think you have found any satellites if that is what it says. I can usually get it to lock on at 10 percent. I then start adjusting to get it higher. Sometimes it says scanning for satellites,wait and then start adjusting.

Jim Foster · 06-13-2011, 10:36 PM

We have Dish network. Our programming comes from satellites 110 and 119. For years I used a single LNB dish, pointing to 119, which gave us most of our programming. I now use a double LNB dish and get both 110 and 119, giving us all of our programming. The double LNB dish has two cable connections, one for each receiver. Only one cable is needed unless you have two receivers.
I use a Winegard satellite finder with the receiver "check switch" sat number set for 119. Connect either cable on the dish to the satellite finder, and on to sat 2 input on the receiver box. Find the satellite using the instructions that come with the satellite finder When doing the "check switch", you will get several error messages regarding missing sat inputs. Ignore the messages.

Anything over about 30% will work just fine.

Works just fine. The set up usually takes me under 10 minutes. Sometimes under 5 minutes, but when you have done something 100 times, it does get a little easier.

Oh,,,,, the reason you want to connect to sat #2 on the receiver is that when the receiver updates in the middle of the night, it will leave you with an error on sat#2 if the cable is connected to #1. For some reason, it does not leave an error if no cable is connected to #1, but to #2 only. I don't know why this is so, just know that it is so.

Mr & Mrs S · 06-14-2011, 04:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andrew Selking

I don't think you have found any satellites if that is what it says. I can usually get it to lock on at 10 percent. I then start adjusting to get it higher. Sometimes it says scanning for satellites,wait and then start adjusting.

Sorry I wrote my last post wrong.

What I ment to say is, I was told that I had to have a minimum of 80% signal for it to work properly(From my brother in law that setup up Sattellites in the mid 90's). I tired to get 80% but never got over 75%. You say you never have gotten 75% so can you imagine how hard Im out there tweaking up and down thinking that I have to get 80% or higher for it to work.
I know I had a satellite, at first yes I had the wrong satellite after looking online and finding out that if you have a red signal bar your on the wrong satellite and if you have a green singal bar your on the right satellite.

I prolly had it the entire time and didnt even know it.....The whole time I was doing this process I was looking for 80% or better.

Ill try agian another day....If I dont get it Ill be coming through Dallas mid July and Ill stop by for your expert advise.

mojo · 06-14-2011, 07:43 AM

I got tired of lugging the dish and tripod along and messing with sighting through trees, etc. So now we just bring the DVR receiver along all ready loaded with movies and assorted shows that we like but don't have time to watch at home. That way we're not at the mercy of programing schedules and can zip past the commercials.

Denis4x4 · 06-16-2011, 07:35 PM

Several years ago, DishNet work advised everyone that they were changing the signal strength numbers and anything over 30% was fine.

JFScheck · 06-20-2011, 12:50 AM

Need to setup an antenna for my HD channels at my new forward operating base - anyone know of a good site that has the Direct TV dish packages (dish and stand or pole mount) that are reasonable?

Andrew Selking · 06-20-2011, 07:49 AM

I wait till the neighbors move out and get theirs. No just kidding. If you can find apartment complex they might be willing to give you one from some one that just moved out. I see them in the trash on a regular basis here in Fort Worth. It seems that the dish and direct techs always install a new dish and do reuse them. You may need to move to Fort Worth for a free one.

JFScheck · 06-20-2011, 08:49 AM

That's a good ideal - I'll contact the local contractor for Direct TV and see if they have any old antenna's and horns...

pappy19 · 06-20-2011, 08:55 AM

I switched from Dish to Direct TV for a couple of reasons, mostly as I am a night owl, DN always shuts down to "re-configure" every night. I had an older receiver in the AS and it would not allow me to change the time. Also, I am a Mtn West football fan and DN doesn't carry any Mtn West games. In addition, DTV does not need to shut down every day to do their upgrades. I also got a better deal for the same/better channel selections over DN. We installed a Winegarde dish on the AS and it works like a champ. When I switched from DN to DTV, the RV tech had to do some switch changing inside the dish. Very nice setup.

Pap

thecatsandi · 06-20-2011, 09:52 AM

If you are planning on staying in one place taking your dish with you will work. If you are moving around a lot, you will find that setting it up will become a pain. As Some one suggested pre-recorded content is really the best way to go.

tkasten · 06-20-2011, 10:05 AM

We use DTV and can zero in as high as 96% (a different scale than DNW). My question is does anyone have experience with the Winguard carry out automatic dish?

thecatsandi · 06-20-2011, 10:15 AM

You have to park in the open. That unit is intended for permanent installation on top of your trailer. I like to park in the shade.

tkasten · 06-20-2011, 11:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thecatsandi

You have to park in the open. That unit is intended for permanent installation on top of your trailer. I like to park in the shade.

This is not the roof top model. It is portable and can be placed out in the open up to 100' from the trailer. Ad says it is automatic. Uses 12v power (from truck cig. lighter, trailer or sep. battery. Still wondering if anyone uses this model?

JFScheck · 06-20-2011, 01:26 PM

I need a High Def model which they yet too make for DirectTV....

Silver Goose · 06-20-2011, 01:42 PM

I've used a single LNB antenna with my DISH receiver for a number of years. The receiver is shuttled between the house and the TT. The antenna at home has 3 LNBs and for this reason gets the full compliment of channels. When on the road I suffice with the channels offered by the bird at 119.

From the onscreen setup menu, I enter the zip code of my present location and select the type of antenna (a single LNB is a model 300). It will the display the compass heading (azimuth) and elevation to point the dish. The 2 LNB model 500 and 3 LNB model 1000 have a 3rd angle called skew that needs to be taken into consideration. In the western US you need a spot with a clear view of the sky roughly SSW. Find a level spot (makes pointing easier) and using your trusty Boy Scout compass point the dish at the azimuth indicated. The protractor on the back of the dish mount will assist with the elevation and skew. Then go to the setup page that shows signal strength and select 119. Pan the dish slightly left and right and tilt it up and down to get the best reading. If using a 500 or 1000 and your skew angle is correct, you should now be seeing the other birds correctly. If you were 5-10 degrees off you may lock on the wrong bird but your screen will tell you that.

I use an inline signal strength meter so I can better judge what I'm doing at the antenna itself. Note: Standing behind or beside the antenna, your body may reflect some of the signal into the LNB so as you step away, your readings might vary. The LNB on the DISH antenna are offset from center so the antenna actually points below the line to the satellite. Thus the branch overhead while not seeming in line with the antenna might actually be in the way. Iron pipes under ground and nearby cars can effect your compass also making the process a challenge at times.

The aforementioned iPhone app is really cool. It also works with the 3G iPads. It uses the built-in GPS and camera. You hold it as if you are taking picture and it will display the locations of the DISH satellites in the sky with a realtime image of what's in front of you. You can then easily determine if the neighbor's motorhome or that tree limb is in the way from where you are standing.

Since my receiver gets swapped from house to TT, I must also run Check Switch before everything operates correctly. After some trial and error, the setup became a lot easier and if something isn't skewing the compass I'm normally able to watch TV in under 10 minutes.

I know a couple of folks who have the Winegard Carryout. It's pretty simple to setup once you have the line of sight issue resolved as it is essentially self leveling and self pointing. Out of the box it's setup for Direct. Open the cover and flip a couple switches and it's configured for DISH. If traveling in the Northeast, there is a different switch configuration for it to search for the eastern birds. If connecting the Carroyout to your trailer's external cable port and it is wired through the antenna amplifier, you will need to bypass that connection at the amplifier, else they recommend connecting it directly to the receiver's antenna port. I personally believe this is really dependent on the antenna amplifier model. It will not receive HD programming for Direct but does for DISH. They also get their locals from DISH on it when they are in the spot beam coverage area. It automatically points to the correct satellite when switching channels, but it can point to only 1 bird at a time. That means if you have a 2nd receiver hooked up (or dual tuner) a 2nd channel can be watched or recorded as long as it is on the same satellite that the primary tuner has selected. I believe it comes with a 50' 12v power cable and a 50' coax.