Direct TV Antenna Questions

I looked for a more proper group to post this in, but could not find a better group. I figured some folks here would know about Direct TV antennas.

Ok, first I know next to NOTHING about satellite tv and antennas, so please be patient. I live near Atlanta, Ga, and I use Direct TV and it works great. But, I have a fishing cottage on a lake about 30 minutes away, and I would like to take one of my receivers there and get Direct TV when I am there on some weekends.

I picked up a 21 inch by 18 inch dish at a garage sale. It came with an LNB, identified as:

Eagle DTVP3 Triple-Feed, Multi-Satellite LNB Built-in Multi-switch with 4 outputs

This unit has three mushroom looking pods on it (which point into the dish) and FOUR coax connection points.

(I only aim at one satellite, about 215 deg azimuth, and about 40 degrees elevation, if any of that makes a difference.)

I just need to feed one tv receiver at my very small lake cottage. Here are my questions:

  1. Do I just run one RG6 cable, from any one of the 4 ports to the Direct TV receiver ? In other words, is that all there is to it?

  1. How is this LNB powered ??? I would have thought it was powered by the coax-feed, from the receiver ???? Is that right ??

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Thanks for any other tips in helping me get this to work. I want to go up there next weekend, and if I need anything else I would like to know now.

Thanks Again !!

JJ

Reply to
James
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Reply to
jloomis

Ask in sci.electronics.repair. Or one of the satellite groups on Usenet, there are several.

Reply to
PeterD

John, thanks for the reply, but in no way does it address or pretend to answer my two questions. My OP said absolutely nothing about phone lines, and I have no interest in or use for them.

Thanks

JJ

---------------------------------------------- I have mine hooked by a phone line also......? I do know that large Winnebargons do the same with TV dishes and mounting/setup as they cruise the country. On my outside line from Sat. to inside it is one large rounc cable that screws into the surge protector and then from there goes to the TV I think the phone is used to buy movies....... john

Reply to
James

Reply to
jloomis
1 LNB points to one satellite in the sky. 2 LNB's point to two different satellites in the sky. 3 LNB's point to three different satellites in the sky.

For services like Direct TV, each satellite can handle only so many channels. So when they want to add more channels, then need to put another satellite up there.

The basic services will be on 1 satellite. And you can receive the basic services with a dish with just 1 LNB.

(FYI the LBN is the thing at the end of the arm pointing toward the dish.)

Might be easier if you get the same dish with the same numbers of LNB's as at your home. Or you can go through the setup on your receiver and see if you can set it for a 3 LNB dish. Older receivers may not have this capability?

Then find other satellite dishes in your neighborhood and point your dish the same basic direction and height for a ball park setting.

Then you would make the basic aiming adjustment by going into install or setup in your receiver, then selecting just the basic LNB, and pointing that at the correct satellite. This would be a left/right - up/down adjustment. Then for the other two LNB's (if you are using those for additional channels), you would tilt the dish clockwise or counter-clockwise to get those just right (select on of those LNB's for aiming).

The LNB's are typically powered by the coax cable. Different LNB's work differently with different frequencies. So be sure those LNB's and the "box which connects them together at the dish" are compatible with your specific receiver.

Here is where the experts are located on this...

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Reply to
Bill

Very helpful reply and info Bill. Many thanks !!

JJ

Reply to
James

I do that with our lake house.

I'm not familiar wuth that dish nut I think it's pretty old.

Go here and enter your lake cottage address

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If you are attempting to do this with a standard def receiver then I would look for a round 18" direct tv dish with one lnb. This will be the simplest to set up and aim. The muli-lnb dishs are more difficult to aim correctly. HD requires multi-lnb dishes. With Direct TV the standard def all comes from one satelite. Your locals may be on another satelite

You want to mount the mast using a level so it is straight up. With a direct tv receiver you can go to the menu and follow the dish setup instructions. They will tell you how much angle to set the dish at. There will also be signal strength meters. Move the dish back and forth very slowly in the general direction that the dishpointer site tells you it should point. It helps to have a helper inside watching the signal strength meters. Use a couple cell phones.

Reply to
jamesgangnc

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