Circular LNBF worth the money

[sergei]

I've been trying to figure out whether investing the money and time installing a circular KU LNBF is going to be worth it, since I haven't really found a good answer, I've decided to ask the group for feedback on this issue.

 

[Mr Tony]

it really depends on how elaborate your setup is...ie: is adding this LNB going to take 5 minutes of your time or an hour?

Right now there really isnt much on the DBS sats. Last I checked (about 3 weeks ago) it was the Dish 101 channel on 119 and some test cards on 91W (Bell)

I hate to play the "remember when" card but a few years ago there was good reason to have a DBS LNB
-40 audio only channels on 91W
-about 30 radio stations from Canada on 91W
-Dish "home" channel on 110. This was a 6 screen channel that Dish uses for like a "mix" channel so it could be all sports channels or all news. You could select the audio for each one
-the CD and mono audio channels on 119 (Sirius was scrambled)
-Dish 101, Nasa, Angel One, Ion on 119
-a PBS from Ohio on 129

and the ever fun "pirate channel" that Dish forgot to scramble when they upgraded the cards in the Dish receivers so lots of folks who have FTA thought they were stealing because the channel said "if you can see this...you're a satellite pirate"

 

[Pepper]

If it's a circular "Ku band" and not a circular "DBS band" then as far as I know the only satellite using circular Ku would be Dish Network at 118.8W, which would be piracy because it's normally all scrambled.

 

[Keith Brannen]

Sure, why not? Hidden (manual entry) and scanned channels can be found now and again. Right now there are 29 hidden channels on 61.5, mostly foreign language (a few have English subtitles at times) and two 24/7 Cricket channels (English). There are also a few spotbeamed locals ITC on 119.

None of the above are turbo (and there are some of those ITC), the 61.5 channels I get on my Pansat 3500SD (not in the spotbeams of the locals). Naturally, some may not last long, others can be there a while.

 

[xtgold]

and the ever fun "pirate channel" that Dish forgot to scramble when they upgraded the cards in the Dish receivers so lots of folks who have FTA thought they were stealing because the channel said "if you can see this...you're a satellite pirate"

I still have the scary jan 2001 pirate tv message .flv,for those that are old enough to remember.

 

[Mr Tony]

couldnt have been 2001.....Dish didnt do their upgrade until 04 or 05 when it first showed up
The free one was 2008-2009 or so

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

Which one this one...



or this one...

 

[xtgold]

couldnt have been 2001.....Dish didnt do their upgrade until 04 or 05 when it first showed up
The free one was 2008-2009 or so

It was never free,nagra 1 days.
jan 5, 2001 the original was a realmedia file
Brian Olsen was the announcer.
It wouldn't let me attach.

 

[rrob311]

The first FTA channels I stumbled upon was the only channels I could receive for a few days while just getting started. There was a handful of local new stations from Arizona upon scanning the 61w amazonas satellite. This was using the quad lnb I initially bought. Circular seemed to get a better signal with my meter so I used that and was able to get news stations for a couple of weeks. Then the channels vanished and I haven't gotten any channels with the circular mode since, and that was about a year ago.

 

[Mr Tony]

Scott its the 2nd one that was only shown to the hackers
the 1st one was the one that was in the clear

 

[guacharaca]

Invest in a Universal lnb instead. I have six retired circular lnbs that have no value. I guess I could try 61.5, but I am in the west and that means putting a dish in front of my building (east side) instead of with the dish farm on the south side. The one Universal lnb that I bought years ago still pulls in one good channel.

 

[xtgold]

illegal

illegal device message from jan 5, 2001
Lip sync problem due to conversion from .rm

 

[Mr Tony]

bad link...wont play

 

[toucan-man]

The file plays here.

 

[mikekohl]

For the ability to find ITC channels on DBS satellites whenever something is not scrambled, try this...,
Assuming that you have a motorized Ku-band system with linear Ku LNBF...just take a cheap DBS LNBF and attach it left or right of existing Ku LNBF with a hose clamp, making sure the elevation is centered at same level as Ku unit.
Wire it in to a DiSEqC switch or run a separate wire. Just move the dish east or west, and look for DBS signals.

 

[cyberham]

For the ability to find ITC channels on DBS satellites whenever something is not scrambled... and look for DBS signals.

I have a spare circular LNB on the bench, but I have never bothered even duct taping it beside the linear LNB since I see no evidence of any ITC channels on DBS. Why bother?

 

[Mr Tony]

For the ability to find ITC channels on DBS satellites whenever something is not scrambled, try this...,
Assuming that you have a motorized Ku-band system with linear Ku LNBF...just take a cheap DBS LNBF and attach it left or right of existing Ku LNBF with a hose clamp, making sure the elevation is centered at same level as Ku unit.
Wire it in to a DiSEqC switch or run a separate wire. Just move the dish east or west, and look for DBS signals.

thats what I use to do....then I added a fixed dish and wired that into the 4x4 multiswitch instead

 

[Anole]

If the question is whether to invest in an Invacom QPH-031.
Today, I'd say, "no".
However, we all have spare LNBFs...

I have six retired circular lnbs that have no value.

So, I don't think I'd go to any more effort than Mike suggests:

...just take a cheap DBS LNBF and attach it left or right of existing Ku LNBF with a hose clamp, making sure the elevation is centered at same level as Ku unit.

The DBS satellites are pretty powerful, so you should have good results.
Now, finding something in the clear, that you actually want to watch, that would be the challenge!

edit:
If you want to go the fixed-dish route, then depending on how many receivers need to get the signal, you could go with Legacy LNBFs and the 4x4, as Iceberg suggested.

Or, if you used DishPro LNBFs (they're bandstacked), you might just run 'em to a diseqc switch.
(or even a DP-34)

If you use a multi-LNB head, they generally respond to simple diseqc commands, but may take more power than a typical FTA receiver is happy to supply.
(...and that would benefit from more discussion)

 

[emuman100]

Can you still get the Dish CD audio channels in the clear?

 

[Mr Tony]

nope...been gone 2-3 years now