Astra 2E: Scandinavia & Baltics Reports

[Brits in Bergen]

Thanks st1. The Inverto Black Ultra is on its way! I will probably try that before changing to a bigger dish but from the reports I've read it looks like I'm going to have to go to a 150... Still, maybe a decent LNB will do the trick (here's hoping!)

 

[archive10]

Thanks st1. The Inverto Black Ultra is on its way! I will probably try that before changing to a bigger dish but from the reports I've read it looks like I'm going to have to go to a 150... Still, maybe a decent LNB will do the trick (here's hoping!)

My estimate is that with a properly aligned (and well-formed!) dish (no dents and scratches, or bent corners!), you can probably get most things in good weather (no rain). The Black Ultra gives you that little etra dB when it is needed.
But if you need rain-reserve, snow-resilience etc; then go for a large dish.
But first try the well-aligned-non-bent-dish-with-black-ultra approach, you might get enough mileage in that...

 

[4wd]

Newbie here.

Where in Bergen are you 4wd? I'm also in Bergen and am not having anywhere near as much success as you on 2E with a 90cm. Very poor signal first thing in the morning, gets better later on in the day and then starts falling out around 16:00. Admittedly it's still pointing at 2D but I'm assuming that it wouldn't make much difference (although I'm probably wrong about that! ).

I'm toying with the idea of a Gibertini 125 or 150. Obviously I want it to work 100% but don't want it too big (the missus will throw a fit if I get anything bigger!).

Can anyone recommend anywhere to source such a dish in Bergen (or anywhere in Norway for that matter) ? Any advice on size/setup would be great appreciated!

Hello, no trees etc in the path? Have a go at finetuning your dish + lnb skew. Every cm and mm makes the difference between getting 8hours\day or 20-24 h\day. Weather has it's own impact. 2E much stronger than 2F. A larger dish is the only fix to secure 24\24 reception, 2F would probably need a very large dish here. For adjusting to 2E, try getting max out of 11934V (sky intro), that one will show up with a very strong signal (level and quality around 80% here) in any weather and any time of the day, then move on to the UK beams, for example 10906V & 10773H and see how it goes.

Am not into who sells what in Norway, but here's the one I bought > http://www.dreambox.no/main.aspx?page=article&artno=00414 but not up yet, so can't report on reception. Am in vest Bergen, I'd not think there will be any signal variations of any importance vs other Bergen regions (as long as one has a clear view to the sat).

Picture shows typical 2E UK from most of today, but had some dropouts between 20 and 23, generally lower signals at that time and with bad weather on top the 90cm got zero chance. Cutoff here is around level & quality 35%. Turning to filmon.com as reserve if there is anything I must see.

 

[Brits in Bergen]

@st1 - it rains here in Bergen. A LOT! ;-)

@4wd - I have clear line of sight to the satellite, at least according to Satellite AR (does anyone know how reliable it is?). Thanks for the tips on adjusting the dish and for the link. Good shout re. filmon.com! It would be interesting to know how your new dish performs when you have it up.

I'll try fine-tuning the dish when the inverto black ultra arrives and if that fails I suppose it'll time for a bigger dish! :-/

 

[archive10]

Now the (admittedly fantastic) summer has come to and end, it is clear that the CM120 here does not provide ful rain-margin.
Was just zapping a bit, and ended up watching the 10pm BBCnews. After 15 minutes of normal picture, the signal suddneyl pixellated, then disappeared altogether on the FoxSat. A quick check revealed all 2E/2F channels had gone bad.
And sure enough, three minutes later, the rain started pouring down.
Glad I kept the CM180 in the back garden! Time to re-instate, I think...

Darned! Switched to the CM180 with a new Inverto BUQ Quattro, and signal strength and quality went up as expected.
But earlier tonight, an occluded front passed with some very heavy rain, and sure enough I lost the 2E and 2F UK beams.
Of course it all came back after 15 minutes as the front passed, but still...
So, some rain-margin, but not enough for a regular cloudburst.
Nevertheless, it's *still* better than 2D ever was!

 

[Brits in Bergen]

FINALLY got the Black Ultra and set it up. After a little adjusting the SNR went up from what was originally 43% to 52%, then after a little more tinkering to try to squeeze a little more out of it the best I could get was in the low 40's! I gave up after a couple of hours of messing around. That'll teach me to be greedy!

The mount on my Triax 90 doesn't seem to be designed too well, tightening the elevation actually changes the elevation of the dish slightly so it's a bit of a guessing game. This, along with the fact that reports suggest that a 90 won't give much of a weather margin, is making me bite the bullet and invest in a new dish. Favourite at the moment is a Raven (is that Channel Master?) 120. I've also been looking at the Gibertini 125/150 but with the weather we have here and the fact that I'm very close to the sea I'm thinking that the added rigidity and robustness of the Raven would probably give it the edge. I don't think I'm quite ready to go to the CM180 like @st1 has though (the price of that is A LOT of NetFlix!) so it looks like my options are the CM120 or the Gibi 125/150.

Decisions decisions!

 

[archive10]

FINALLY got the Black Ultra and set it up. After a little adjusting the SNR went up from what was originally 43% to 52%, then after a little more tinkering to try to squeeze a little more out of it the best I could get was in the low 40's! I gave up after a couple of hours of messing around. That'll teach me to be greedy!

1. Borrow/steal/buy/hire a proper sat-meter. Connect to LNB. Set to 10773H (BBC mux)
2. Loosen mounting bolts a little. Adjust azimuth (direction around vertical) to maximise signal strength. Tighten mounting bolts well.
3. Loosen elevation bolts. Adjust elevation, tighten screws, measure, move slightly, repeat, until signal stgrength is optimal. Tighten elevation bolts.
4. Loosen LNB, fiddle with in/out (if possible) until max strength.
5. Finally, adjust skew to maximise Signal/Noise or Carrier/Noise ratio (whichever your particular meter shows).
6. Tighten LNB screws.

The mount on my Triax 90 doesn't seem to be designed too well, tightening the elevation actually changes the elevation of the dish slightly so it's a bit of a guessing game. This, along with the fact that reports suggest that a 90 won't give much of a weather margin, is making me bite the bullet and invest in a new dish. Favourite at the moment is a Raven (is that Channel Master?) 120. I've also been looking at the Gibertini 125/150 but with the weather we have here and the fact that I'm very close to the sea I'm thinking that the added rigidity and robustness of the Raven would probably give it the edge. I don't think I'm quite ready to go to the CM180 like @st1 has though (the price of that is A LOT of NetFlix!) so it looks like my options are the CM120 or the Gibi 125/150.

Decisions decisions!

Channel Master == Raven == ASC == Skyware. (See pics below for lastest incarnation)
Same product, different owners at various times.
See if you can find a used one. New ones quite high priced.

The Gibbys are quite nice, though - works well, and better priced. Will last for many years (although not as many as the SMC dishes)

You are absolutely right about coastal weather and corrosion etc.; SMC dishes are good.
Alternative SMC dish is Cahors (formerly Visiosat) 120. Performs almost identical to Channel Master 120, at a lower price (EUR 189 at hm-sat-shop.de). Needs 2.5-3" pipe for mount.
I had a Visiosat 120 in the 2D days, but back then you really needed a 180 in Copenhagen to receive anything watchable, so I sold it.
Have to confess I like the CM120s better, but that's a matter of taste.

The CM180 delivers, but is high price, heavy, often require planning permission, annoys neighbours, use large pipes (4.5") and require VERY sturdy foundations. For practical reasons, you would probably be better off with a 120 (SMC or Gibby).

 

[archive10]

Alternative SMC dish is Cahors (formerly Visiosat) 120. Performs almost identical to Channel Master 120, at a lower price (EUR 189 at hm-sat-shop.de).

Oh, almost forgot, there's the Laminas as well. See recent thread elsewhere on this site discussing best 120 for motorised operation...

 

[Captain Jack]

Interesting - looks like you can get a different LNB arm for the CM dishes. Multi-feed friendly ones! But where...

 

[4wd]

FINALLY got the Black Ultra and set it up. After a little adjusting the SNR went up from what was originally 43% to 52%, then after a little more tinkering to try to squeeze a little more out of it the best I could get was in the low 40's! I gave up after a couple of hours of messing around. That'll teach me to be greedy!
a 90 won't give much of a weather margin, is making me bite the bullet and invest in a new dish.

Hello, low 40 will be close to cutout, not the best starting point! Daytime still works fine here with 90 cm with a fine-tuned dish\lnb, but evenings will be difficult unless good circumstances and adjustment to the last mm. BBC breaks up 1st, ITV 10906 a little stronger and may stay stable even if BBC goes. 2F still much weaker than 2E, my impression is at least 150cm is needed if one wants stable reception from there.

Yes, a larger dish is the only way for 24\24. Not got around to get the 135x125 up, will be done ...soon :O)

Attached picture of today's 90cm daytime signal, rainy weather. Seen figures like this since this spring, with the same evening behavior, getting weaker from around 19 and coming back strong around 24.

 

[Simon Ansell]

Where are you guys in Bergen? Im currently in Frekhaug and have a 150cm prime focus dish with invert ultra black lnb. Im getting all channels except itv hd 24/7.

 

[Captain Jack]

Is the LNB converted to C120 format? Otherwise using an LNB designed for offset dishes on PF ones will result in a signal loss (and maybe costing you ITV HD).

 

[Brits in Bergen]

Where are you guys in Bergen? Im currently in Frekhaug and have a 150cm prime focus dish with invert ultra black lnb. Im getting all channels except itv hd 24/7.

We're in Søreide so not a million miles away but as I understand it reception can vary wildly in the fringe areas. Where did you buy your dish? Any recommendations for good (read "cheap") local sat shops? I think I'm going to have to bite the bullet and go for the 150 over the 120.

 

[4wd]

Hello, Bergen-Vest here. Still not got the new dish up, will be done ...soon, will report when done.

This autumn have had 2E UK reception approx 18-20h pr day on the 90 cm, fading out around 19.00 and coming back around midnight.

2F UK as before, too weak for the 90cm (just a few hours reception now and then in excellent weather conditions). All 2E\2F euro transponders strong and clear 24\24.

Brits in Bergen wrote:

bite the bullet and go for the 150

Should be very good, as reported by Simon Ansell. Especially if 2F UK is on the reception wishlist.

 

[Brits in Bergen]

Getting pretty much the same here. Reception gets sketchy at around 19:00 - just as the kids are going to bed! Don't know what time it comes back as we've usually got into Netflix for the remainder of the evening!

 

[4wd]

Finally got myself together and the 125x135 cm is up an running, no problems, wall fitted at standing height so easy to do the adjustment work. After a few days of use and fine-tuning (every mm counting), a vast improvement from the 90 cm regarding coping with 2E's uk abysmal evening variations.

Night, morning and daytime is excellent, both 2E uk & 2F uk (2F uk was next to non-existant on the 90cm). But not much 2E margin between approx 20 to 22, some bad weather periods = loss of picture\pixelation (and the weaker 2F going black). Might try to squeeze out a little more with some lnb experiments, got a tree that may be interfering a little, and buying a modern HD receiver may improve matters as well (am still on SD with an old receiver). A 150 would have been the ideal size (and probably get 2F uk 24\24 as well), but ftm the 125 is max I can possibly fit.

All in all, lots of improvement for the money & time spent.

 

[timo_w2s]

Great result. A different LNB and receiver could make all the difference on the weaker transponders or then it might not if you happen to have a good setup already.

 

[skomedal]

Astra 2E has a 24 hour periodical wobble.

Have observed this with my 125 gibby and techno 5402 m2 hd box.

Central southern norway astra 2E uk spot beam channels ok from 0700 - 1700 cet even in heavy rain.

Have resorted to the IPTV option to receive these channels in the evening.

2.8M download on adsl copper wire connection

Regards

 

[4wd]

timo_w2s wrote:

Great result. A different LNB and receiver could make all the difference on the weaker transponders

Thanks, will look for a receiver soon (probably Technomate), and of course a black ultra lnb must be tried some day.

skomedal wrote:

Astra 2E has a 24 hour periodical wobble. Have observed this with my 125 gibby and techno 5402 m2 hd box. Central southern norway astra 2E uk spot beam channels ok from 0700 - 1700 cet even in heavy rain.

Same wobble here, but less pronounced (due to location?), difficult period was 19 to 24 on the 90cm. Now with the larger dish, low signal is seemingly only around 20.30-22.30, and have had several days with 24\24 reception. But I don't expect any miracles in bad weather \ snow.

If of any interest, here's some readings from today around midnight.

 

[Brits in Bergen]

Thanks for the update @4wd. 150 now firmly on the shopping list, hope to source one in the next few weeks.

Maybe not appropriate to this thread but I will be getting a new receiver too. Had decided on a Vu+ Duo2 but I see that Technomate receivers have a good following. Does anybody have any recommendations AGAINST the Vu+ ?