Results 1 to 10 of 10

Thread: Asia Sat 5 - Sat Dish Tuning Issues

  1. #1
    Premium Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    1,558
    Thanks
    65
    Thanked 84 Times in 64 Posts
    Rep Power
    269
    Reputation
    1032

    Default Asia Sat 5 - Sat Dish Tuning Issues

    My father in law's RAI setup coming off Asia Sat 5 C Band has recently played up - the reception level was always a bit touch and go, the gear was relocated from another neighbour in June last year who passed away, a mesh dish setup (min size 2.4m from memory) that has seen a few years but still all in one piece .

    It has been working in current location however about a month ago reception level dropped such that RAI was not receivable, other channels such as Oman TV were "just"receivable ... approx 47 SNR level indicated coming from the Set Top box being used and sometimes pixelating.

    As I had peaked the dish up in the past and after checking and rechecking cable connections I ordered a new LNB anyway thinking this being a likely culprit. When I have tried fixing it last week and then again yesterday I seem t have gone backwards and can no longer find any signal either on the new or old LNB

    I have gone over the basics such as Azimuth & elevation for Mount Waverley, Australia: 301.88° & 26.39° respectively however it is still not a goer. As another point of elimination I have also grabbed an old DM500 with settings to a non MPEG 4 channel however it is still a no go.

    In times like this I have to walk away have a good think as well as a reach out for help or advice on this. I am also contemplating having someone who does this for a living to come and do the retuning for me for a fee.

    If anyone has any recommendations on approach to fix and or a referral to someone in Melbourne SE suburbs that will be most appreciated.

    Many thanks in advance



Look Here ->
  • #2
    Premium Member
    hazman's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Lurking at the teakdoor
    Posts
    2,023
    Thanks
    7,349
    Thanked 12,494 Times in 1,800 Posts
    Rep Power
    5260
    Reputation
    249784

    Default

    Rai Italia asia 3700v 30000 signal quality 72% on Asia sat 5 with a 2.4 mesh in western Australia. I would have thought that you would get similar signal strengths in Victoria going by the footprint.

  • #3
    Administrator
    mtv's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    19,893
    Thanks
    7,508
    Thanked 15,066 Times in 6,761 Posts
    Rep Power
    5647
    Reputation
    239305

    Default

    Has there been any growth of trees etc which may be partly blocking the signal, or new buildings that may have he same effect?

    What are you using to measure signal strength and quality when aligning the dish?

  • #4
    Premium Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    1,558
    Thanks
    65
    Thanked 84 Times in 64 Posts
    Rep Power
    269
    Reputation
    1032

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by mtv View Post
    Has there been any growth of trees etc which may be partly blocking the signal, or new buildings that may have he same effect?

    What are you using to measure signal strength and quality when aligning the dish?
    Good Point...yes we definitely have clear air, no trees or buildings in the way.

    I have used signal strength indicators setup/ sat finder in menus via the MPEG 4 set top box or DM500 (both using PLi images)... also tried with an in line signal meter that has variable attenuation and tone for signal peaking, this has not worked for me here (and i have used these ok in the past) it seemed to me that there is too much noise in line and lots of screaming tone i could not attenuate


    Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

  • #5
    Premium Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    1,558
    Thanks
    65
    Thanked 84 Times in 64 Posts
    Rep Power
    269
    Reputation
    1032

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by hazman View Post
    Rai Italia asia 3700v 30000 signal quality 72% on Asia sat 5 with a 2.4 mesh in western Australia. I would have thought that you would get similar signal strengths in Victoria going by the footprint.
    Thanks Hazman... i remember getting at least 60 % when i set one of these up for my late Dad in Sydney, 7 or so years ago.

    Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

  • #6
    Senior Member
    B52's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    829
    Thanks
    37
    Thanked 402 Times in 224 Posts
    Rep Power
    367
    Reputation
    7116

    Default

    - Check the LNB throat in case any spider or wasp has taken residence.
    - Try to blind scan the channels incase the LNB Local Oscillator has drifted.
    - For correct Elevation and Azimuth from your location use ... Excellent tool
    - Make sure LNB orientation is set for the correct polarization.
    - Check your cable goes straight to the receiver no splitters or joints.

  • #7
    Premium Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    1,558
    Thanks
    65
    Thanked 84 Times in 64 Posts
    Rep Power
    269
    Reputation
    1032

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by B52 View Post
    - Check the LNB throat in case any spider or wasp has taken residence.
    - Try to blind scan the channels incase the LNB Local Oscillator has drifted.
    - For correct Elevation and Azimuth from your location use ... Excellent tool
    - Make sure LNB orientation is set for the correct polarization.
    - Check your cable goes straight to the receiver no splitters or joints.
    Thanks, I have checked the LNB for any material or insects, the LNB is also dual polarity.

    I will have another go at this soon ... I have noticed after installing some new dish finder apps I may have had the LNB skew wrong , it seems it should be moved to the right 42 degrees not left as I may have taken or read wrongly somewhere.

    Also I need to get my hands on a good compass to re check my azimuth, apps I have been using seem to be very sensitive and hard to use, I assume as I am on a flat metal roof close to a large mesh dish .. or may be it is just fat fingers me.

  • #8
    Senior Member
    B52's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    829
    Thanks
    37
    Thanked 402 Times in 224 Posts
    Rep Power
    367
    Reputation
    7116

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by checkitout View Post
    Also I need to get my hands on a good compass to re check my azimuth, apps I have been using seem to be very sensitive and hard to use, I assume as I am on a flat metal roof close to a large mesh dish .. or may be it is just fat fingers me.
    Dishpointer does away with compasses. Print the top view image showing your house, the dish and the green line to the satellite, align the page to the surrounding will give you exact pointing direction of the dish.

    If your dish is actuating type set up for tracking, it can be challenging.
    Last edited by B52; 10-01-19 at 03:35 PM.

  • The Following User Says Thank You to B52 For This Useful Post:

    checkitout (10-01-19)

  • #9
    Premium Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    1,558
    Thanks
    65
    Thanked 84 Times in 64 Posts
    Rep Power
    269
    Reputation
    1032

    Default

    I had another go at this this afternoon and this time had success !

    Using an Openbox S6000HD set top box I now have 62 - 65 % signal on RAI and Oman TV channels - previously Oman TV channel was just working on about a 47% signal. Other non MPEG 4 channels using a DM500 ranged from 80 to 88 % signal strength. I note on the DM500 RAI and Oman TV came in around 60 % signal level.

    Changes that made a difference ...

    1. Going back to using the original LNB with skew adjusted to approx 40 degrees
    2. Changing the coax lead, LNB to my test point, on the roof to one that I had tested and confirmed continuity between both inner conductor end to end as well as coax connector sheath end to end. (I noticed that previous ones used did not have sheath connector continuity end to end... I am not sure if this would have made a difference)
    3. Following feedback here in this forum such as supplied from MTV and B52... the dish finder App as well as an Inclinometer App were crucial to at least to get in range close enough to where he dish needed to be. Once I had this an in line signal meter with tone was my guide to final tuning and peaking the signal... I do not think I would have been able to do the job without this.

    BTW the dish is actually 2.3m ... now that I have a spare LNB I am wondering if is it possible to use it with an offset 1.2m solid dish that I used to use for experimenting on KU band, maybe a project for another day assuming in theory it is possible.

    Thanks so much Hazman, MTV and B52 for your replies, it was a challenge but I got there in the end !

  • The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to checkitout For This Useful Post:

    hazman (12-01-19),mtv (12-01-19)

  • #10
    Administrator
    mtv's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    19,893
    Thanks
    7,508
    Thanked 15,066 Times in 6,761 Posts
    Rep Power
    5647
    Reputation
    239305

    Default

    Pleased you got it sorted.

    You need to be able to see a signal quality scale when adjusting the LNB skew, as very minor adjustments to skew can make a huge difference.

    In regard to LNB's... you need an offset LNB feedhorn to use a prime focus LNB on an offset dish.

  • The Following User Says Thank You to mtv For This Useful Post:

    Softek2 (12-01-19)

  • Bookmarks

    Posting Permissions

    • You may not post new threads
    • You may not post replies
    • You may not post attachments
    • You may not edit your posts
    •