Problems with setting up a goodmans (GFSAT101SD) in france

G

gabrielgrub

Member
My Satellite Setup
Freesat pc
My Location
Burgundy, France
Hi, this is my first post, hope it is OK:

I live in north burgundy, France and would like to receive tv via Freesat, the main reason being that my French canalsat service contract has ended. So I bought a Goodmans box in the uk, realigned my 80cm mesh dish and........ no signal found. My first thought that it was because I had failed to point the dish correctly so I called a local tv/satellite firm with all the technical equipment necessary. The fitter arrived, aligned the dish, and demonstrated that he was able to receive programs from Astra 2, via my dish, using his very complicated looking satellite finder gizmo. Meanwhile the goodmans is still displaying no signal (!) After paying his bill, I thought I'd visit some nearby friends of mine who enjoy the full benefits of freesat, hooked up my goodmans to their dish (smaller diameter) and guess what - it worked perfectly... Brought it home , still no joy. The only difference between my friends setup and mine is that their tv is a flatscreen, whereas mine is an old style Panasonic. If anyone has any ideas I would dearly love to hear them! Many thanks.
 
Welcome to the Forum!

Don't entirely trust that the local guy has actually aligned to 28E, despite the apparent evidence.

We had a similar case only a few weeks ago where a French Expat had similar problems - it turned out the installer had set the dish to 19.2E (Also called Astra .................) - and that was also after using a flashy meter, so don't believe everything you see or are told!

So to prove this, borrow your friend's box and connect it to your dish.

If it doesn't work, case closed.

Then shift your dish 9 degrees further east and a tiny bit down and you'll be cooking with gas.


Edit: I'm assuming that your Canalsat service was for Digital Satellite? Not familiar with that package and its flavours. Just vaguely thinking about LNB types. If the service was Digital, then the same LNB should be perfectly ok for Freesat, but if there is something odd about it then it might not be. But I really suspect the most likely cause is "the wrong Astra".
 
Thankyou Tivu, very helpful - just wondering how I'm going to persuade my friends to give up their box!
 
When he showed you his meter where had he plugged it into?

If it was the end of the cable where you plug it into your satellite receiver then it sounds like the wrong satellite, as Tivu says. If they were up by the satellite dish using their own connecting lead then it's possible that the downlead isn't working properly for some reason.
 
Good point, Paul.

Can't believe he didn't go and try the box as a final check.
 
Thanks for the input - when the 'technician' showed me the meter it was at the end of the cable where it is plugged into the goodmans box. I think it was a nickelodeon or 'nick' channel he received; I have since learnt that these channels are not on freesat, so now I feel sure that it's the dish that is wrongly aligned. I had been trying to point the thing using a 1916 W.D. prismatic compass - now I'm thinking about true north and magnetic north. Actually I've stopped thinking about the whole thing for the moment - too bloody cold outside. Thanks again for posting.
 
I would forget trying to adjust the dish yourself, why should you!

You paid the guy to do it, get him back to do the job properly.

He should be showing you BBC1, BBC2, ITV etc on his meter thigamygig.
 
I'm with Robbo - Installer's error (probably due to a common misunderstanding, but definitely his error).


But if you do want to finish the job yourself, don't use a compass. Very inaccurate, easily deflected by nearby metalwork, and doesn't take into account all the "funnies" you mentioned (and others").

Best self-help tool is the new Forum link to Dishpointer - Under "Quick Links" at the top of the page.

Just edit the location and desired satellite lines to suit (or visit the main site at _dishpointer.com)
 
Unless you can get a refund from the installer don't adjust it yourself.

Get him back and get him to point it at the right satellite location. He needs to to point it at Astra 2 at 28E. Most likely he's set it to Astra 1 at 19E.
 
Thanks to you and other forum members for all the advice and suggestions, all sorted, 98% signal strength....'dishpointer' (what an amazingly good idea)
 
Can you please tell us if you got the installer back or did it under your own steam.

Either way, very glad you got it sorted out in fairly short order.
 
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