SAT System for Hotel or Apartment Building

erik1

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Hi All,

Does anyone have experience in setting up a SAT-TV system for a hotel or a large apartment building? I have experience in setting up systems for individual homes, with maybe a LNB with 4 out-puts at most. But I'd like to know how do hotels with say 30 or 40 rooms do the set up? (With only one dish and one LN:cool:

Is there some kind of distribution box? And is it possible to decrypt the signals before entering the distro box, so only one decryption card would be needed for all 30 or 40 users?

Just curious...

Thanks
 

twag42

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for this you need a quattro LNB,plus a multiswitch box.I did one where they wanted satellite in 17 different rooms.its a pain in the R'se.then you can only watch the channel that the main box is watching.otherwise you need 30 different decoders.

TWAG
 

rolfw

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Yep, as TWAG says, a Quattro LNB, plus a multiswitch or cascaded multiswitches for satellite reception in all rooms with a separate receiver in each.

If you want to send round decrypted channels, then you need a stack of receivers each with their own card and preset to an individual channel. You need one receiver per channel sent around the system.

Here's a picture of a 36 room setup for an integrated system, the headend RF and IF amps are in another place, this is purely the 3 multiswitches, carrying the four satellite polarities/bands and the RF terrestrial UHF/VHF channels.
 

erik1

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Hi, thanks for the input. So to distribute un-encrypted SAT channels and local (ie: areal) channes is ok then, the problem is just with the encrypted channels, eh? Ok.

What's the reason for a Quatro-LNB? Isn't a LNB with one output good enough since it goes into a distro unit anyway?

Regarding amps:
Whats the need for a RF amp? Don't LNBs have them built in? Or are you referring to a case where the LNB is far from the distro box?

By IF amps, are you referring to "repeaters" for long cable hauls from the distro box to the individual rooms?

Thanks!
 

twag42

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the quattro lnb is for the frequencies..low vertical/high vertical and low horizontal/high horizontal.

TWAG
 

rolfw

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The IF amp is only needed if you are cascading the switches for full IF distribution, if you are distributing only rf from a stack of receivers then it would probably not be required, just a switch with as many outputs as receivers fed by a quattro LNB, there is also the opportunity of an octo LNB for eight receivers. (more than eight distributed sat channels would be difficult if also retaining the off air channels, more difficult if there are background digital multiplexes)

The RF amp would be used to launch both sat and off air channels, prior to splitting or switching.
 

erik1

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Ok, this is a bit more complex than I had expected. Does anyone know where I could find some documents regarding this to read up on? I found this "loft box" diagram that seemes kind of simple http://www.satcure.co.uk/tech/loftbox.htm but maybe I don't completely understand it correctly (no mention of quattro LNB..)

In my specific case, there's an apartment building that has a SAT dish (and areal) on the roof and has some kind of distro unit feeding the 20+ apartments with "free" programming, and I was just thinking how it would be possible to include the option of adding the paid/encrypted channels as well (having a SAT-reciever and decryption card in each apartment isn't a problem).

Can someone point me in the right direction?
Thanks again
 

rolfw

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There aren't many places where this sort of information is available, as it isn't really hobby material.

Forget the loftbox for a project on the scale of an apartment building, it is designed for a single satellite input to feed one receiver and a few rooms, for multiple receivers whether they be head end based or in the apartments, you need multiswitching and a quad or multiple LNB/LNBs.
 

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As a matter of interest, I saw a nice switch the other day for retro fitting an apartment building, it has switchable IF, so that you can install apartments on an as and when basis. :)
 

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Thanks Rolf. It's all a bit confusing for me at the moment, but I'm searching the web and finding some info. But in your opinion, is what I am trying to do possibe? I mean the current system is providing each apartment with just a few free channels via a regular cable TV wallplate connector. Can I use this same cable (and set up) to also include encrypted channels so people in the apartments can go buy SAT recievers and decryption cards?

I see Triax has different modules for "FTA" and "CA", so I guess if a FTA system is currently installed it would need to be swapped with a CA module?

http://www.triax.dk/ifs/files/triax/is/presentation/home/Satellite_x_terrestrial/SMATV/Head_End/TCH_600_/sitemap.jsp#TCH%20600%20satellite%20modules
 

rolfw

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The cable in an apartment distribution system will normally be suitable for carrying a satellite IF feed, are you saying that people can already receive a FTA satellite feed in the apartments?
 

erik1

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Yea, theres a dish on the roof and the apartments get some FTA channels, but it's fed to them like regular cable TV (ie: no SAT reciever box is needed in the apartment). I didn't try hooking up a SAT reciever inside the apartment, but if I did, do you think the encrypted channels would be there? It couldn't be that simple, eh? ;-)
 

rolfw

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If there is no sat receiver required in the apartments, then there is no IF feed.

There are loads of possible complications in this, if it is an older system fed by taps on different floors, then it may not lend itself to updating, if it is a star wired system, then it may be possible.

Not being funny, but if it was straightforward, then people like me would be out of business. :)
 

erik1

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Yea, I don't know why I thought this would be simple. But glad it's keeping the food on your table ;-)

Ok, anyway, I'll have to dig deeper into it and check out exactly whats installed there and see what the options are.

Thanks again for all your input!
 

twag42

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when i did that job with the 17 rooms i thought i could just somehow connect the satellite to a multi-splitter that was connected to all the different outlets in all the different rooms.how wrong was i?? still it was a good learning experience.If theres a sat dealer near you,it might be a good idea to go and talk to them and see what advice they can give you.if they know what they are doing they should be very helpful,going to currys or dixons and speaking to a sky salesman wouldnt be a good idea though.

TWAG
 

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Hi,

I am interested in this topic, could you please give me model and make of multiswitches that can be used for this purpose. By the way is it possible to connect 3 lnbs from 3 different dishes to these multiswitch setups?


Thnks
 

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Funny this. I went to a hotel last week to check something like this out. The setup they had was VERY old, and was all analogue based. All the receivers appear to go into splitters to combine the signals, which was then fed into the main hotel cabling. How it worked, I don't know.

Having looked at a digital system in another hotel, they had a big head-end unit, which took a separate feed from each source, be it a Sky digibox or a FTA or encrypted channel. Each channel feed hasd it's own channel (set on the individual feed-in) and the head-end then multiplexed the channels onto a single cable, which then fed into the hotel distribution and amplification.

it's worth taking a look at the labgear web site as they supply all this sort of of equipment. However, it isn't a job for the technically inexperienced or faint hearted (which is why I ran away from the job).
 

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kungpo said:
Funny this. I went to a hotel last week to check something like this out. The setup they had was VERY old, and was all analogue based. All the receivers appear to go into splitters to combine the signals, which was then fed into the main hotel cabling. How it worked, I don't know.

Having looked at a digital system in another hotel, they had a big head-end unit, which took a separate feed from each source, be it a Sky digibox or a FTA or encrypted channel. Each channel feed hasd it's own channel (set on the individual feed-in) and the head-end then multiplexed the channels onto a single cable, which then fed into the hotel distribution and amplification.

it's worth taking a look at the labgear web site as they supply all this sort of of equipment. However, it isn't a job for the technically inexperienced or faint hearted (which is why I ran away from the job).

An excellent series starts this month in Television Magazine by Bill Wright outlining the installation of satellite TV distribution systems.
Domestic systems this month, larger installations to follow.

Llew
 

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technosat-man said:
Hi,
i can give u a good deal on this.
Thanks
I think the member will have acquired his system by now seeing as his post was made last September

I also think you need to read the forum rules!
 
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