rather cool satellite meter

Manikm909

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hey guys.

as you know ive recently been rethinking \ re-doing my setup.

i finally plucked for one of those satellite meters which are on ebay and amazon - the ones with a TV screen etc.

anyway, the one i got was "GT MEDIA V8 Satellite Finder Meter Digital" from amazon for 90 quid.

it supports usuals, so initially this was great for moving motor during setup...i have now done away with diseq for a 36v system

some of the features which are cool, other than usuals support, its ability to add TP, spectrum analyser - a blind scan (Which isnt really a blind scan) - but it really helped me setup my 36v system today, im not sure if 90 quid is pricey or not, but im sure it will come in handy time and time again.

some pics attached
 

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ozumo

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Is it correct these meters can tune below 10700MHz? If you have a PLL LNB it would be interesting to know if it can tune 10493H 1500 on 26E. Also how quickly does the spectrum update? :)
 

rolfw

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That's the feature which most cheap meters fail on, spectrum refresh, but that one looks quite useful.
 

Manikm909

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took about 1m30 per polarity - 3 mins in total....im not sure what it does, is the idea to scan in all TP on H and then V - and add them to the TP database, thats what it does i think....i did a video but its 700mb
 

Analoguesat

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The prices of those have rocketed - I paid half as much 2 years ago for something very similar. Personally I find mine more or less useless as the screen is unreadable on anything but a completely overcast day.
 

Analoguesat

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Is it correct these meters can tune below 10700MHz? If you have a PLL LNB it would be interesting to know if it can tune 10493H 1500 on 26E. Also how quickly does the spectrum update? :)

Some of them can - it depends on the tuner in them. Some folk use them for tuning the the Eshail 2 amateur channels. Of course mine doesnt go that low - I even tried flashing it with different firmware in case that helped but no.


 

ozumo

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Raven mk2 zone 2 x4, Channel Master: 90cm x3, 1.2m x2, 1.8m PF. CM polar mount x2, Az/El x3.
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South Durham
took about 1m30 per polarity - 3 mins in total....im not sure what it does, is the idea to scan in all TP on H and then V - and add them to the TP database, thats what it does i think....i did a video but its 700mb
Thanks, is it possible to narrow the frequency range on the spectrum analyser to speed it up?

Some of them can - it depends on the tuner in them. Some folk use them for tuning the the Eshail 2 amateur channels. Of course mine doesnt go that low - I even tried flashing it with different firmware in case that helped but no.
I can lock the transponder on my older Satlink WS-6933 with a cheap little PLL LNB, but it's so basic it doesn't play video or even scan transponders. The screen (and battery) are also useless :lol:
 

Channel Hopper

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There is something very wrong with that spectrum result in the first picture.
 

Channel Hopper

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Some of them can - it depends on the tuner in them. Some folk use them for tuning the the Eshail 2 amateur channels. Of course mine doesnt go that low - I even tried flashing it with different firmware in case that helped but no.
It might be worth trying the new batch of meter firmware updates.
 
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Manikm909

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video of it in action here:
the jump halfway is me changing to V after waiting for H
 

Bamboccio

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I am thinking of buying one of these with the added purpose of connecting it to some speakers as a satellite radio source.
Is it a bad idea and if so could you recommend a model?
 

ozumo

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Many of the cheaper range of satellite meters like this are nigh on identical but with different brand names. I don't know if connecting the an AV cable disables the screen. A dedicated internet radio may be a better option.
 

Manikm909

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the av out cable is RCA \ composite, so you could use just the red and white out to any amp \ speaker input - but yes, not ideal for the purpose of internet radio
 

Manikm909

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there are smaller dedicated receivers such as octagon sx88 which would do the job much better im sure
 

Bamboccio

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Thank you - I liked the idea of the small LCD screen but no pint if it is disabled. I will check out the octagon sx88 / one with support for Tivusat card.
Thanks
 

Manikm909

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i wouldnt have thought the screen gets disconnected, that was someones speculation.

i can test later
 

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The battery isn't big, I have the previous model and it's 3000ma and degrading over time so if you have the screen on even with radio it won't last too long.
 

Channel Hopper

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Thank you - I liked the idea of the small LCD screen but no pint if it is disabled. I will check out the octagon sx88 / one with support for Tivusat card.
Thanks
When I checked (a few months ago) the main issue was the on screen graphics of the unit remain the screen , both on the lcd and any monitor connected with rca or HDMI.

It wouldn't take much to alter the firmware to disable things such as the battery level indicator. but then the meter becomes a fully fledged receiver (dual screen as well) which may cause conflict with other machines from the manufacturer.
 

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i have used the v8 sat meter going fishing with a small plastic 35cm dish antenna.
Plus you re-charge with a 12v solar panel dc car battery charger when off grid.
The battery last for 2hours for tv viewing.
 
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