Motorized dish and a pc

[Eek!]

Hello,

Couple of questions please.

I'm interested to see how much I can get a pc to do. Can it replace a DM800 for example?

First thing is the receiver/tuner card. Why is skystar mentioned so often? Why that one over any other brand?

I've read about the problems with powering a motorized dish. Is it just a question of having a big enough PSU in the PC or is just not possible? Can you get a PC to send the commands to an external, powered positioner ?

Thanks for any thoughts and comments.

 

[Vipersan]

Hi EEk ..
I suspect the Skystar card gets a lot of mentions ..because it was really one of the first to arrive on the hobby scene ..
Its proved to be very versatile and durable..
Many are still in service after a number of years..
Also Skystar2 produced (as far as I know) the only pci card which was capable of true blind scan..
These cards are old ..and highly sought after..

As to driving a motorized dish with a sat card ...its not just about having a big power supply in the pc ..
The fact is that the power to drive the motor has to be passed through the pci cards tuner ...
..So logically drawing any substancial current through the tuner can't be good for the card..
..As a motor is inclined to do this ..it isn't neccessarily a good idea...though some cards 'claim' to be able to do this for 'stab' type motors..
I personally thing anyone doing this is asking for trouble ..in the long run..but many people are happy to use this method anyway..
If you go down this route ...be sure your chosen card is capable of drivng a motor directly.
A better choice is to drive a 36 volt motor with a Vbox positioner ...which can move a dish easily under program control through most pci sat cards..
rgds
VS

 

[Eek!]

That's really good info, thank you.

I was assuming all the fun stuff is done in software - cs etc. So I can go for hauppauge, twinhan... ?

I've got a diseqc motor so would prefer to use that otherwise it would be a vbox and a new 36V motor. Correct?

I've read of people using cards marked as diseqc 1.0 and using different drivers etc. I take your point. If the card isn't built to do 1.2, you can't be suprised if it blows up.



(I was looking for the 'cheers' smilie - wtf is this?)

 

[Vipersan]

That's really good info, thank you.

I was assuming all the fun stuff is done in software - cs etc. So I can go for hauppauge, twinhan... ?

I've got a diseqc motor so would prefer to use that otherwise it would be a vbox and a new 36V motor. Correct?

I've read of people using cards marked as diseqc 1.0 and using different drivers etc. I take your point. If the card isn't built to do 1.2, you can't be suprised if it blows up.



(I was looking for the 'cheers' smilie - wtf is this?)

You have it exactly right Eek..

good luck with your project.
BTW ...never tried CS ...but I see no reason why it wouldn't work..
rgds
VS

 

[Llew]

That's really good info, thank you.

I was assuming all the fun stuff is done in software - cs etc. So I can go for hauppauge, twinhan... ?

I've got a diseqc motor so would prefer to use that otherwise it would be a vbox and a new 36V motor. Correct?

I've read of people using cards marked as diseqc 1.0 and using different drivers etc. I take your point. If the card isn't built to do 1.2, you can't be suprised if it blows up.



(I was looking for the 'cheers' smilie - wtf is this?)

The Skystar HD2 pci card has a Molex connector onboard which will borrow an extra 5V from the PC's power supply, ostensibly to provide extra power for driving Diseqc 1.2 motors. Never used it myself when I had the card, as I drive my dish from a separate positioner in my Echostar receiver, so can't comment on its effectivenesss.

 

[aljaxon]

i use a compro videomate 350 or is it 300? and with the provided software it will move my dish but after storing 2 or 3 satellites it wont retain the info.
i posted this on their website and 2 mnonths later they are still looking into it.
so i tried a version of progdvb and i now get all the sats i get on my stb.
plus i can get hd as well.
i cant get all the hd or s2 feeds so i would advise going for a card that can receive s2 feeds.
mine cost 25 quid and can record to hd and if it wasnt for not being able to get every mpeg 4.2.2 feed or even some mpeg 4.2.0 s2 feeds then i would wholeheartedly recommend it.
btw i have a stab motor and prog dvb does usals all you do is enter your lat lo9ng which you can get by zooming in on google maps. satellite view is best for zooming in closer.


cheers
al