Reply With QuoteNo.
Minimum dish size for VAST is 65cm and even that can be a tad small for some areas.
I personally recommend 75cm - 85cm for VAST.
In addition to lower performance, smaller dishes are a little harder to align accurately.
Is this portable satellite dish setup suitable for (mostly) eastern NSW viewing?
My Dad goes travelling a lot in his motorhome and now DTV has come in hes been complaining that a lot of places he goes seem to have bad/no TV, so looking around at alternatives I came across this model of dish:
The dish itself is only 35cm. Reading threads here & there I get anywhere from "too small to possibly work" to "it's OK for lower latitudes but won't be so good in heavy rain". Anyone tried this size dish, and how does it fare receiving VAST? He isn't likely to travel outside of between lower QLD and upper VIC, and as far inland as Dubbo probably. More often he only travels within a small(er) distance of Newcastle, but enough to find DTV cold spots.
Also, from what I've read the kit itself is of European origin, and isn't the best suited for Oz.
For instance, the supplied set-top box is DVB-S, and the new VAST system is DVB-S2 (and also needs a special card).
Since this box is DVB-S only, are there any satellites in the Newcastle region I can point it at and pick up non-encrypted channels?
EDIT: I know I can't receive VAST with the supplied box, just want to be able to pick something up with it while I look at VAST box options.
Last edited by lameboyadvance; 01-07-13 at 04:26 AM.
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No.
Minimum dish size for VAST is 65cm and even that can be a tad small for some areas.
I personally recommend 75cm - 85cm for VAST.
In addition to lower performance, smaller dishes are a little harder to align accurately.
lameboyadvance (01-07-13),OSIRUS (01-07-13)
That advertisement looks very much like one cited in another thread posted recently (sometime this year anyway), in which the poster asked very similar questions to yours. The advertisement referred to a portable TV package for travelers, just as the ad in the link you posted does.
My answer at the time was that the minimum size dish for ku-band reception in Australia is 65cm, preferably larger for reliable reception in most weather conditions and also depending on your location.
The strength of signals from satellites varies. It depends on a number of factors such as your geographical location, weather conditions (light rain, heavy rain, cloud cover (whether light or thick), fog etc.) both locally and at the uplink site. In addition, the various transponders on each satellite will not all be operated at the same power level, which results in varying signal levels received here on earth.
Steer clear of any dish which less than 65 cm in diameter - the larger the better!
lameboyadvance (01-07-13),OSIRUS (01-07-13)
One site you should check is the 'Digitalready' 'Myswitch' site and enter the names of places your Father likes to camp at and see what DTV (if any) is available there.
If you havent used the site before, the easiest way to get details is to enter an address in the town like 10 Railway Street or Parade, Main st etc.
I found too by entering a place name, say like Wollombi 'near' Cessnock and blow up the map to see the street names, put in an address and it will tell whats available.
If he does a 'regular' circuit, you only need to check once but if he's a 'wanderer', then you need to do that in advance fore each trip obviously.
If you do decide to go the VAST route, just ask as there are plenty here using it both permanently and as a 'Traveler.
Setting up the dish is the biggest part but with practise that only takes a few minutes to do.
I stand unequivicably behind everything I say, I just dont ever remember saying it !!
tristen (02-07-13)
double post????
Last edited by gordon_s1942; 01-07-13 at 05:04 PM.
I stand unequivicably behind everything I say
OK thanks. I liked the portability of that setup with its case and suction mounting.
Guess I'll have to go the other route of grabbing an ex-fauxsell dish off a mate and sticking it on a pole. IIRC they're 65-70cm. Might need to change that receiver thing on the tip of the dish though.
Also need to start looking at VAST boxes. That SatKing one looks the best so far...
If it's undamaged that "receiver thing on the tip of the dish" should work fine for VAST.Originally Posted by lameboyadvance
I'm using an ex FoxStar Dish & LNB I got from a mate for VAST.
Cheers, Tiny
"You can lead a person to knowledge, but you can't make them think? If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.
The information is out there; you just have to let it in."
Depends on how old the ex Foxtel dish is.
If it hasn't been used for Foxtel for quite a while, it may have an old 11300 LNB on it, which is not suitable for VAST.
You need to ensure the LNB you intend to use for VAST is a 10700 type.
Yes, you can use an old Foxtel dish, mounted on a tripod for portable use, but they are a bugger to transport with a fixed LNB arm.
You can get dishes that fit portable tripods with removable or folding LNB arms for easier transport, but the simplest and quickest portable dishes are on an integrated base (and have a folding LNB arm as well)
Example:
That's a complete portable kit, including VAST decoder, but you can of course buy items individually.
Sorry but NO suction mounting unless you want to see it sailing off into the sunset.
You really need to consider just how easily a badly secured dish can get either turned or totally blown arse over head in a strong breeze.
You try and hold a 3 foot square of anything solid facing into a wind strong enough the make a flag flap and you'll soon see what I mean and you can bet that in the middle of the night is when a simple gust of wind will come up and launch the dish off like a kite.
Not only will it damage the dish but the dish itself would be a hazard to life,limb and property.
I stand unequivicably behind everything I say
Putting it simply, those 35cm suction-cup dishes are a total waste of money.
They don't work.
As an aside, I notice that the kit has come down in price.
From the website cited in the first post ...
Regular Price: $799.00
Special Price: $299.00
It's still a rip off!
OSIRUS (02-07-13)
Yes I've seen it on another site for the same price.
...Those sites are near identical...
But wait... there's more.... if you order in the next 15 minutes, we'll include a free bottle of snake oil.
Bloody scammers.
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