LNB not set at vertical

[gordonstewart]

Some advice please! I have a motorised dish on a cheap SilverCrest SL65 receiver on which the LNB is set vertical on its mount, at 12.30 (as on the clock). Almost all the Sky installations here in the West of Scotland have their LNB's slightly offset (at 1.35).

Would this improve signal reception and give more channels? I can get Turksat but only with about a third of the FTA channels, Astra 28, Hotbird 13, Astra 19 & Sirius 5, but nothing else. Having read other posts, this may be an installation issue, as I think I set it all up 3 years ago with the dish and motor both set to zero, and did not set it up against 5w my nearest sat. However, it's Winter, and no work on this until the Spring!!

 

[rolfw]

No, on a motorised dish, the motor provides the skew when turning, if you look at your dish (if set up properly on your due South satellite), when pointing at due South it will be vertical, but well skewed when pointing at Turksat.

If you didn't set it up on your Due South satellite, then you will not get it working properly.

 

[gordonstewart]

Thanks, Rolf! I suspect my arc is wrong then, as I set the dish and motor up on a compass bearing of due south (my mounting pole IS vertical),and then found some satellites from the receiver. I know there are more there as sometimes I get a signal from others but can't seem to hold & store them. It looks like after I set the motor & dish centrally with each other (set on 0 degrees). I should have then swung the entire thing find my nearest Satellite, which I recon is 5W, as I am on 4.46W, and locked the assembly at that point.

Your reply seems to confirm that. if that had been done, the nearest sat. to one's location would then be the top of the arc and the motor's programme &/or the receiver would then find all the others, PROVIDING I input my lat. & Longt. BEFORE using USALS to find all the remainder.

I appreciate that, the further North I am, the fewer sats might be available. There may also be limitations with the SL65 Lidl box. Is the Technomate TM5200 a much better box for finding new sats, or could it be that my SL65 just needs re-set up first? I will also check whether strong winds might have moved the dish a fraction, though I would have thought that by receiving 42E Turksat 28E Astra 19 Hotbird 13 Astra & 5E Sirius, but no other East sats (and NO West sats whatsoever) it can't be far away!

I am grateful for any more info on this....Thanks again.

 

[Topper]

Yes I suspect your arc is wrong too, the pic below gives you the permutations that can make you be off the arc, hope this helps

 

[gordonstewart]

Thanks, Topper.. from what you have sent, it probably answers why I am picking up the stronger signals from 5 sats which are close to the tracked arc, and missing all the others.

Am I correct in assuming I have to go back to the initial set-up and point my zero set assembly to 5W (my nearest sat) which, after I get the best signal from it, lock it onto the pole at that point. This should then be the top of the arc, and the others sats, both East AND West, should fall into place without too much more fiddling about??

Wish the weather was better!!! Keen get on with this now!!!

Any thoughts on how good the SL65 is against the Techmate receiver??

 

[rolfw]

Yes that's the way, if you are slightly off of 5W geographically, just set up the USALS coordinates in the receiver and send the dish to 5W before aligning and you'll be spot on.

 

[guest poster]

The SL65 is not a bad little box but it is only about 80-90% as sensitive as the TM5200 so some weaker signals will break up or not be there on the SL65 that would be on the TM5200. You should still get most sats between 45e to 45w even with the SL65 when you get your arc spot on and get the best out of the LNB - dish matching.

 

[gordonstewart]

Great, Guys!! With it now snowing methinks this is a job for MUCH better & drier weather!! Roll on Spring