Ultraplus X-1000HD problems with IS19 Ch7 Mux

**xafalcon** · 29-01-23, 06:19 PM

I have been receiving Ch9 mux on IS19 in NZ for about 4 years. It worked well until about 6 months ago. Since then there are several problems, probably all related

1. I used to get perfect reception down to and including 95% quality. Even moderate rain did not cause problems. Then 6 months ago I don't get good reception at 98% and I loose all reception at 96% = light rain

2. The problem seems like the processor is having trouble decoding the picture and sound, like it's running out of memory. The sound stops and / or the picture resolution in one part of the screen drops to squares about 1" square (on a 55" TV screen). The sound and picture defects do not always happen at the same time. It is quite different to low signal pixelation

I have tried the following

1. Fired up an X-cruiser, and got the same results. Interesting that 2 different but related receivers had the same reception problem.

2. Connected a borrowed GT Media box and got perfect reception. The Ultraplus looses reception before the GT Media box does, despite the Ultraplus supposedly having a better tuner

3. All other KU channels on IS19 receive perfectly

4. Checked everything from lnb to STB (several times). Checked dish alignment

My setup is 2.3M Andrews solid spun aluminium broadcast quality microwave dish. Fuji prime focus lnb 70dB gain

Does anyone have any ideas, or even better, the solution.

Rentakill. I see you run an X1000HD. Any help much appreciated

TIA

**Rentakill** · 30-01-23, 11:40 AM

Hi XaFalcon.

I used to have my 3.8m on IS19 and found no problems with the X1000. That was well over 6 Months ago though. The Zgemma and GT Media Box's were also good on that Ch9 Mux.
Since then i have my Dish back on IS19 C Band so my Invacom Ku Feed is no longer installed.

The X1000 i have running on D1 Channel 7 Services and its fine.

I'll keep an eye on IS19 with the Migration of D2 Services over the next month or so - i might just be re-installing the Invacom if theres something to gain.
I did try a Dual C/Ku Feed but found it total Crap.

Cheers

Ren

**hoe** · 30-01-23, 02:03 PM

Some of the 7 channels are 50fps, at least via iptv.

Maybe check the channels that are problematic.

Sent from my SM-X200 using Tapatalk

**xafalcon** · 30-01-23, 03:30 PM

Originally Posted by Rentakill

Hi XaFalcon.

I used to have my 3.8m on IS19 and found no problems with the X1000. That was well over 6 Months ago though. The Zgemma and GT Media Box's were also good on that Ch9 Mux.
Since then i have my Dish back on IS19 C Band so my Invacom Ku Feed is no longer installed.

The X1000 i have running on D1 Channel 7 Services and its fine.

I'll keep an eye on IS19 with the Migration of D2 Services over the next month or so - i might just be re-installing the Invacom if theres something to gain.
I did try a Dual C/Ku Feed but found it total Crap.

Cheers

Ren

Thanks Ren. I am out of ideas to try.

Is there a Ch7 mux hiding on D1? What size dish are you using?

Cheers

**xafalcon** · 30-01-23, 03:32 PM

Originally Posted by hoe

Some of the 7 channels are 50fps, at least via iptv.

Maybe check the channels that are problematic.

Sent from my SM-X200 using Tapatalk

Thanks Hoe. The problem is affecting all channels in the Ch9 mux. Some are HD, others are SD

Cheers

**apsattv** · 30-01-23, 04:42 PM

Over the past 6 months the Signal dropped in the Channel 9 mux from 14+dB to 9 db on remote dish in Perth. Its fec 8/9 so you need 13 or 14 dB to lock it. I expect you no longer have enough signal margin. A slight tweak to your skew MAY bring it up enough

As for Channel 7 on D1 12639 V Sr 15000 Fec 4/5 DVb-S2 16 APSK, its a temp mux but pretty much always available

**xafalcon** · 31-01-23, 08:28 AM

Originally Posted by apsattv

Over the past 6 months the Signal dropped in the Channel 9 mux from 14+dB to 9 db on remote dish in Perth. Its fec 8/9 so you need 13 or 14 dB to lock it. I expect you no longer have enough signal margin. A slight tweak to your skew MAY bring it up enough

As for Channel 7 on D1 12639 V Sr 15000 Fec 4/5 DVb-S2 16 APSK, its a temp mux but pretty much always available

Thanks Craig. The audio and video effects I'm seeing don't align with low signal pixelation. When the Ultraplus has low signal pixelation, it affects both picture and audio at the same time, the audio generally makes a squawking sound, and the picture gets multi-coloured horizontal lines affecting the whole picture and only happens at boardline reception levels

But in my case, the audio and video defects are quite different. They often occur independently (only audio or only picture defects). The audio just momentarily completely stops or skips (misses out) a tiny amount of audio. The picture defect often affects only a small part of the picture while the rest of the picture continues working fine. The picture defect is like 1" pixels. And both effects occur at 98%, 97%, 96% signal strength

The lowered signal transmission strength does align with my reception loss at 95% where it used to be at 94%. I will try adjusting the skew when (if) the weather ever clears up - I am in the Waikato and the rain never seems to end

I am told that the GT Media box has a lower sensitivity tuner than the Ultraplus. However the GT Media box works perfectly (no audio and/or picture defects) while the Ultraplus is at 98%, 97% or 96% signal. And the Ultraplus loses signal lock before the GT Media box does. I did this test with an RJ6 splitter box, running both boxes at the same time on different inputs of the TV. The lnb power pass side was swapped between receivers to check signal pass was the same on both legs (it was)

On the Ch7 mux on D1, which beam is it on? This TP is not reported on Lyngsat, so I have no idea what dish size I need. I have a poorly aligned 76cm on D1 for free view, but have a number of other dishes that could be deployed

Thanks again

**apsattv** · 31-01-23, 09:39 PM

The D1 feed of 7 is on dual beam and needs at least 1M minimum

**xafalcon** · 01-02-23, 06:59 AM

Originally Posted by apsattv

The D1 feed of 7 is on dual beam and needs at least 1M minimum

Thanks Craig. I have a 1.1M offset that is looking for a new application

**Rentakill** · 01-02-23, 05:56 PM

Hi XaFalcon.

Yes Craig is correct. The High FEC rate for the Ch9 Mux off Is19 is the Killer.
Although in saying that i have a mate over in Kerikeri that is receiving it quite well on a 1.2 Prime focus. Quietly i think he's been pulling my Tit.
Ive spent hours on my Solid Andrews 1.2 Prime Focus and cant break the Threshold required to lock it at all.
On my 3.8m i was resolving 19db easily.

With regard to those Ch7 services on D1 - they have been there for quite sometime.
The X1000 Resolves them no problem via a 1.2 offset.
Ch10 was also up for a while as well - but wasn't there on my Last Scan.

Mums the word though about those services.
Last time one of our members let the Cat out of the Bag and had it Published in the NZHerald thinking he was a Hero.. Nek Minite - Pictures Gone.

The replacement for Optus d1 is going to be an interesting one.

Catch ya

Ren

**dookie** · 03-02-23, 12:37 PM

Hey there, im interested to hear how you get on with this. I've had a play with my 1.1m dish today and couldn't find said transponder on D1 for ch7. I tried to align and fine tune using 12443 V, which I can receive.

Was also previously receiving 9 on IS19 but haven't been able to get it for months also.

**apsattv** · 03-02-23, 07:09 PM

Do you mean
Optus D1 12447 Sr 3580 "Alice Springs_1 MP4 HD_SD" DVB-S2 8PSK Fec 3/4, Encrypted

Perhaps your lnbf is off a bit?

The 16 apsk is still there on 12639 V

**dookie** · 03-02-23, 08:18 PM

Sorry I may be looking in the wrong place and not that experienced with satellite. I was using information off lyngsat and found listed on the NANZ beam 12443V and 12445V and used them to align the dish and fine tune skew to make it easier to find 12639V, which I assume is on the dual beam that has been mentioned above. No luck with 12639V but I will try again tomorrow.
Cheers,

**apsattv** · 04-02-23, 12:30 AM

Yes there are 2 low Sr radio muxes, that are sometimes hard to lock on some receivers. But there was also an ABC feed on 12447V earlier which was aroound 9dB vs the 12640V which is around 10 .

**wiilliiss** · 09-02-23, 07:44 AM

s/r for 12639 is....?

**Rentakill** · 11-02-23, 07:10 AM

Gidday Wiilliiss.

Sr for those services is 15000

Cheers:

**NPsatman** · 26-03-23, 07:57 PM

Hi all - Here are my comments re IS19 and channel 9 mux problems.
I am located near New Plymouth - New Zealand and up to recent times have enjoyed channel 9 using an Ultraplus X1000 and it was very consistent in level and quality readings - 98% with skew spot on and loss of signal at 94% during very bad weather only.
I use a 2.4 (4 section solid prime) dish with a diy modified wave guide lnb for optimal prime focus signal .
Over a short period the reception degraded and eventually stopped with the x1000.
Move in an Xcruiser 715 4k.
Reception is back - sort of !
The quality and level metering on the 715 is rubbish- get 100% on both even when the signal is lost or when the receiver is having trouble resolving signal.
Have never struck two stb's giving the same quality reading.
Most mornings reception is good but starts staggering around 10.30am some mornings even when totally sunny sky to the north.
Interesting that when I put a cheaper ( Hellobox 6 ) box on the dish it decodes the signal with no video / audio problems even though the hellobox has a lower sensitivity front end.
It does give a more realistic q reading of 91% and zero when signal is lost which is good.
While I understand the high fec and 16aspk multicast presents a few challenges to reception there does appear to be a wild card here ( don't believe it is entirely level related ) which I can't quite work out yet.
I don't have access to fancy test equipment or even c/n measurements so it can a challenge to work out by trial and error.
The 715 should be a better STB than the hellowbox6 but the hellowbox 6 decodes 16aspk with ease where the 715 fails.
Got to spend some time with the dish focal depth and lnb skew to confirm this is all ok.
I find myself using my 3 meter mesh pointed at IS18 ( c band ) to tune into ABC Australia to get a viewable experience rain or shine.
Anyway my thoughts at this stage for what they are worth.
Good receiving everyone.
John.

**NPsatman** · 26-03-23, 08:07 PM

Typo - should be 16APSK - sorry about that chief.
J

**xafalcon** · 18-11-23, 03:30 PM

Originally Posted by NPsatman

Hi all - Here are my comments re IS19 and channel 9 mux problems.
I am located near New Plymouth - New Zealand and up to recent times have enjoyed channel 9 using an Ultraplus X1000 and it was very consistent in level and quality readings - 98% with skew spot on and loss of signal at 94% during very bad weather only.
I use a 2.4 (4 section solid prime) dish with a diy modified wave guide lnb for optimal prime focus signal .
Over a short period the reception degraded and eventually stopped with the x1000.
Move in an Xcruiser 715 4k.
Reception is back - sort of !
The quality and level metering on the 715 is rubbish- get 100% on both even when the signal is lost or when the receiver is having trouble resolving signal.
Have never struck two stb's giving the same quality reading.
Most mornings reception is good but starts staggering around 10.30am some mornings even when totally sunny sky to the north.
Interesting that when I put a cheaper ( Hellobox 6 ) box on the dish it decodes the signal with no video / audio problems even though the hellobox has a lower sensitivity front end.
It does give a more realistic q reading of 91% and zero when signal is lost which is good.
While I understand the high fec and 16aspk multicast presents a few challenges to reception there does appear to be a wild card here ( don't believe it is entirely level related ) which I can't quite work out yet.
I don't have access to fancy test equipment or even c/n measurements so it can a challenge to work out by trial and error.
The 715 should be a better STB than the hellowbox6 but the hellowbox 6 decodes 16aspk with ease where the 715 fails.
Got to spend some time with the dish focal depth and lnb skew to confirm this is all ok.
I find myself using my 3 meter mesh pointed at IS18 ( c band ) to tune into ABC Australia to get a viewable experience rain or shine.
Anyway my thoughts at this stage for what they are worth.
Good receiving everyone.
John.

Hi NPsatman

I am located near Hamilton, and my experiences exactly mirror yours. My X1000HD gave identical signal quality of 94% signal lock-loss results to yours, and I peaked at 98% with good reception conditions. When my X1000HD failed to receive for a couple of months, I contacted the NZ supplier and asked if there was a firmware update available to fix but nothing was available. I use a GTMedia box, which works better than the X1000HD, despite having an inferior tuner

The X1000HD signal loss is not typical. Audio is the first to show problems, with the audio just going quite for a second at around 97% quality. And the video does not show normal pixelation, in my case a section of the picture just fails to update, again at 97%. It is quite unlike normal low-signal pixelation with multicoloured squares with audio chirps. This makes me believe there is a problem with the signal decoding

So I think the problem is part lower signal strength and part X1000HD related

Recently, the X1000HD has managed slightly better, but requires dry weather or light drizzle at the most

The GT Media works somewhat better, I can get reception in light rain without audio or video issues. My dish is a solid spun aluminium Andrew's 2.2 metre with Fuji prime focus hi gain lnb (that I used to use on the old optus aurora on C1 aussie service)

**NPsatman** · 31-12-23, 10:42 AM

Hi Xafalcon
An update from New Plymouth-
Have found the wild card in my reception of IS19 chan 9 mux - the Xcrusier 715 decoder has an issue !
Other very strong 8psk channels on IS19 indicate sound and video interruptions in a similar way.
When switched to the X1000HD receiver these channels are rock solid and crystal clear.
Have defaulted the Xcruiser and loaded latest software updates but the problem still exists !
To be fair when the signal level is good the Xcruiser does a good job decoding the chan 9 mux !
Will look into a possible replacement in 2024.
The X1000HD is still by far the better receiver for video quality - even the Xcruiser which has a 4k output is ok with HD channels but quite inferior with SD content -real shame that feature set development seems to be more important than the basic sound and picture quality !
Perhaps it is the chip sets being used now !
My X1000 will not lock onto IS19 mux at all now.
Still waiting for the weather to improve so I can tweek the LNB focus- may be able to gain an extra db or so of signal !
If I could find a receiver with the sensitivity of an X1000/ Xcruiser and the ability to decode a16apsk mux that would be ideal.
Hellobox 6 does a good job of decoding but the front end is not sensitive enough for lower signal levels.
Anyway onwards and upwards - good receiving.