Help Required Can't find any satellites (from UK)

[magyar007]

Hello I am new to finding satellite channels. I recently bought an 80cm dish with Inverto 6 degree monoblock lnb. I use a cheap satellite finder which just makes noise and moves from 0 to 9. This is connected between the lnb and the receiver (Openbox V8S).

After 3 days of moving the dish around the garden and looking up directions I managed to get lots of Ukrainian and Turkish channels somehow. For example Dobro tv, Channel 5 Ukraine, Nadya, Belsat, TRT Turk etc. When I looked them up they seemed to be on Astra 4A (4.8e) and Eutelsat 7A (7e).

The openbox receiver showed signal intensity about 90% and signal quality about 50-60%. However when I go through the list of satellites the signal and quality is dead on every satellite. Even choosing satellites at these degrees does not show a signal. The channels I got only came up on a custom satellite I created at 29.2e and only a few transponders would work.

When moving the dish around I often can get a very high signal on some satellites, where the meter is high on very low sensitivity but the receiver never shows anything.

Some of the satellites show a list of transponders, perhaps because I hit them at some point but I've never seen a signal on the receiver. The monobloc lnb is a nightmare because I have to scan though 60 satellites choosing Disenq 1.0 port 1, and then again choosing port 2 which takes ages. Always amounting to nothing.

Is it very hard to tune into satellites? How do you know when it's tuned well enough that the receiver will actually show a signal for the particular satellite? Is there any receiver that shows which satellite you've hit?

 

[Analoguesat]

Welcome to the forum

Well you have found something - thats the hardest bit! You have found 5E & 7E - nice high power birds in the UK.

First principles - what are you trying to set up for?

 

[archive10]

Sorry if this sounds too basic - forgive me if this is all obvious to you.
You can't just point the dish in any general direction.
It has to be somewhere where there's a satellite beaming signal to you.
The ones with TV on them are generally arranged in an arc across the sky ranging from east to west.
They are stationary, meaning that they stay in the same place in the sky regardless of time of day or season. (Other sats like GPS satellites behavesquite differently).
So you have to point somewhere along "the arc", and you need to know what stuff you're after.
If you want, say, German TV, you need to point to a satellite which is at a position called 19.2E.
This means the sat is 19.2 degrees east of the meridian (Greenwhich) compared to the earth's axis.
Practically it means that if you're in London, is about 20-22 degrees east of south (where sun is at 12:00).
You can aim with a compass and simiar tools, but much easier is to use http://www.dishpointer.com
You enter your location, and the satellite you want to point to, and the web-site shows you where to point the dish.
You then set up your dish according to other, more detailed, instructions on this site.
But the general method is:
0) get your pole vertical,
1) Use Dispointer to get appox direction
2) set the approx elevation on dish mount using indication scales on mount
3) set receiver on relevant channel (e.g. BBC1 on 28.2E)
4) get Azimtuh right by swinging dish around pole (veeery slowly) until signal peaks. (and tighthen Az screws)
5) optimise elevation for best reception. (tighten screws)
6) watch TV!

 

[skomedal]

Is this a motorised set up

Regards

 

[Topper]

Is this a motorised set up

Regards

Doubt it would be motorised with a 6 degree monobloc ;)

rather out of date now but this gives you an idea of the arc that is above the UK

 

[skomedal]

Missed that detail.

Regards

 

[magyar007]

Thanks all. I am moving the dish around on a portable wooden stand. No specific target sat but just exploring what's out there. It's very exciting. Today I managed to get 9 east (Hungarian channels etc) and the massive Hotbird 13 east for the first time. When I ran a blind scan it failed on about half of the transponders but got quite a lot of channels. Maybe it's my bad tuning.

Once again while the dish was pointed at hotbird 13, when I select it in the receiver under satellites it showed up no signal and no transponders. This Openbox receiver seems dumb or needs a perfect signal to identify a satellite. I think I will try to get a better satellite finder like a Satlink 6906.

 

[skomedal]

"" Thanks all. I am moving the dish around on a portable wooden stand. ""

Problem might be your not tracking the the sat. arc correctly with that set up

Regards

 

[skomedal]

Ditch the monoblock if you want too go pseudo motorised with your portable wooden stand.

Get a proper el cheapo motorised set up with appropriate single/twin /quad lnb to feed your receiver.

Search this forum for motorised setup, will try too point you in the right direction, but might take time.

Good luck and welcome to this great hobby.

Regards

Try here:-
https://www.satellites.co.uk/forums/dish-setup-guides-information-threads-and-faqs.552/

 

[Analoguesat]

Ah a portable stand is the ideal way to start discovering whats available in the great satellite tv hobby.

I started with an 80cm dish and 3 bricks about 15 years ago. The bricks were replaced with an old tyre after I found the paint was getting chipped off the dish rim & the dish was rusting. (Although not rusting too badly - its still available for use today - stored under the hedge at the bottom of the garden, and pulled out for testing most summers!)

Remember to lower the dish slightly as you swing it eastwards,a dn satellite hop one slot at a time

This thread
https://www.satellites.co.uk/forums/threads/strongest-reference-transponders.15129/

should give you an idea of whats achievable in the UK without too much difficulty - go to the more recent posts & double check that the frequencies listed are still currently on air.

 

[Archived-1]

Also once you find a signal on your sat finder, do a blind scan on the openbox.

 

[skomedal]

I started with an 80cm dish and 3 bricks about 15 years ago

Ah the glorious analogue days when accurate dish pointing was all in the future.

Made my first motorised system between two washing pole uprights, mounted the mesh dish on one upright, acquired a 12v dc car window wiper motor, visited my local workshop to get them to weld a 1 meter length of 10mm studding to the drive bolt and mounted it on the other upright, fixed a rubber grommeted 10mm nut to one side of the dish rear, all controlled by a car battery and a three ( left - neutral - right ) way switch to reverse polarities, could swing the dish between 19E & 13E.

Bush receiver 1995.

Regards