Portable Satellite Dish

[Tmaul]

I was thinking of getting one of the Dish Tailgaters but wanted to get some opinions first. I would not want to put out the $400 to $500 then find out it either doesn't work or there are too many places that it won't pick up a signal.

Thanks in advance.
Tony

[Lanny1763]

Tony:

I have now the X1 Pathway and the Tailgater. I use the tripod baseplate to sit on top of my FW's ladder and the X1 'locks' onto the baseplate. Keeps it out of the way. The Tailgater just sits on the back of the RV pad. I've only had them since Sept, but have found they work quite well. Of the two, I'd have to give the nod to the X1, but that's just my opinion.

Prior to these, I had a motorhome that had the Directv Wingard Travler mounted on the roof. That was a quality setup, however, then you have to worry about where the rig will be positioned in order to not be blocked by trees. I wanted to be able to place my domes somewhere other than where the FW was, if required. Again these are just my observations, others probably will have a different opinion.

[Bigd9]

We use the Winegard Pathway X2 portable dish for Dish Network.
Winegard Pathway X2 PA-6002 Portable Automatic Satellite Antenna for DISH

It will pick up either the eastern or the western satellites. The dish sets up easy, its realistically quick to obtain the satellites but once it is set up it is very fast and quiet changing from one station to another.

or there are too many places that it won't pick up a signal

This is solely dependent on trees and buildings that block the view of those satellites that are stationary orbit 22,000 miles above the earth. The X2 is larger and has a better chance of seeing the satellites. However, with a portable you can move it to an area that is clear to the southern sky. Currently I have mine set out almost 75 feet away from the coach. I use a free APP that lets you see the satellites and any trees or buildings that might be in the way.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...der.lite&hl=en

[Walt Bennett]

It's really more about what you want - Dish does have a month to month plan that won't cost you when you don't need it. Our newer model Tailgater works well. Problems come with the cg you're at, if you can get good sky views (and that varies depending on where in the country you are) and what channels you want. We used ours on our last cross country ten week trip, from VA all the way to the CA coast & back. Most times it was at least good (much better than typical cg cable), but there were only a few times when we had all the HD satellites and could watch anything we wanted. (They split HD channels between two or more satellites.) The nice thing with a Tailgater and the right receiver is that it tries to go to an HD satellite and will default to SD when it has to without you having to do anything.

An issue that irritated me continually was trying to change our 'service area' in order to get local channels. Only about half of the Dish people have a clue about RVs and that we move around. I found the best thing was to use online chat over our hot spot and not call.

Don't remember exactly what I paid for our new model Tailgater and receiver, but it was around $300. Got each from different sources. Shop around on the Internet and you'll find deals.

[Dasmoeturhead]

Originally Posted by Bigd9

We use the Winegard Pathway X2 portable dish for Dish Network.
Winegard Pathway X2 PA-6002 Portable Automatic Satellite Antenna for DISH

It will pick up either the eastern or the western satellites. The dish sets up easy, its realistically quick to obtain the satellites but once it is set up it is very fast and quiet changing from one station to another.


This is solely dependent on trees and buildings that block the view of those satellites that are stationary orbit 22,000 miles above the earth. The X2 is larger and has a better chance of seeing the satellites. However, with a portable you can move it to an area that is clear to the southern sky. Currently I have mine set out almost 75 feet away from the coach. I use a free APP that lets you see the satellites and any trees or buildings that might be in the way.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...der.lite&hl=en

I agree with you. Our X2 is great.

[Bigd9]

Originally Posted by Walt Bennett

It's really more about what you want - Dish does have a month to month plan that won't cost you when you don't need it. ...

...An issue that irritated me continually was trying to change our 'service area' in order to get local channels. Only about half of the Dish people have a clue about RVs and that we move around. I found the best thing was to use online chat over our hot spot and not call.

We use Dish Network at home and for around $5 to $7 per month we have a receiver in the coach. The good thing about this is all of the channels you are used to at home are right there in the coach. Even the remote is the same.

I spoke to a Dish Network development manager at a RV show earlier this year. He asked me what I thought about the Dish Network while traveling. I told him everything was great EXCEPT for trying to get locals. I said exactly the same thing you just said "Only about half of the Dish people have a clue about RVs and that we move around." He told me hopefully sometime early next year there would be a modification to the system where we could change to a new service address from our computers to change the locals ourselves and not have to call/text them. I'm hopeful.

[vsheetz]

Have used a Tailgater for a few years. Has worked well. First with Dish pay as you go, then put Dish in the studs and stucco with the RV added for $7/mo.

[rugersdad]

Pathway x2 all the way. I had a Tailgater and sent it back.

[JDT]

I have a Tailgater that I used for 3 seasons. The advantage is it's portability. I had a ladder mount but if trees were blocking the signal I could set it elsewhere. The disadvantage is if you use 2 TV's and receivers you are limited to watching shows on the same satellite. Dish uses 3 satellites for it's broadcasting.

This spring I bought a Winegard Trav'ler for Dish and installed it myself. It is a home sized dish so it is able to lock on all 3 satellites at once, just like at home. Now I am able watch my sports and science channels while the wife watches HGTV. The disadvantage is the lack of portability which so far has not been a problem. I held on to the Tailgater for those times when I could not get an open shot for the Trav'ler but so far that has not happened. I've about decided I need to sell the Tailgater and open up some more storage area.

For local channels I bought a couple of Dish over the air tuners that attach to the back of my 2 211z receivers. They let me download the over the air local channels into the program guide (they highlight in yellow) which makes it seamless when changing from local to Dish programming. So far we have not had a need to call Dish and change our address to get their local broadcast stations as we get the same ones on our over the air antenna. The advantage for my sports is no matter where I am I still get Fox Sports Oklahoma and can watch the Thunder or Big 12 games as the system still thinks I am at home. If I change addresses I would only get the regional programming for wherever I am.

[Cumminsfan]

I have the X2. Just got it in Sept. I don't think it's a matter of which one's the best as it is where you're setting up. They all work well enough to pick up sats when a clear view of them is possible. All will have some trouble if you're in a tree'd area.
I think having a good App for the cell phone to see exactly where the sats are is more important. I have DishPointer. Cost $19.99 since I have a Droid. I think it's almost free with an iphone.
As to getting locals, I've only had to call Dish one time and it was hassle free. So I got lucky I guess.
The X2 is kinda bulky but it's light weight. I also bought the tripod for it.
I have Dish at home and just purchased an extra receiver to use for the 5th wheel that stays in the 5th wheel.
You can only use a VP211 type receiver with the X2. That means if you want to DVR anything you have to add an external hard drive. Dish charges a one time fee of around $45 to activated the hard drive. Hard drives run around $50-70.00 or so.
As far as getting the same channels as home, that's mostly true. I have the Pac12 network at home and have 9 sub channels for Pac12 games. With the X2 I only have one Pac12 channel available.
One reason I got the X2 is that the dish part is bigger than most. That helps with picking up channels and holding them better in inclement weather.

[oldbeek]

I use the tailgator. Lightweight. I store it in the shower when traveling. Easy and quick to set up. Local channels.? When calling ALWAYS ask for a senior teck. Bought mine on E-bay for 250.00

[schrod]

Originally Posted by JDT

I have a Tailgater that I used for 3 seasons. The advantage is it's portability. I had a ladder mount but if trees were blocking the signal I could set it elsewhere. The disadvantage is if you use 2 TV's and receivers you are limited to watching shows on the same satellite. Dish uses 3 satellites for it's broadcasting.

This spring I bought a Winegard Trav'ler for Dish and installed it myself. It is a home sized dish so it is able to lock on all 3 satellites at once, just like at home. Now I am able watch my sports and science channels while the wife watches HGTV. The disadvantage is the lack of portability which so far has not been a problem. I held on to the Tailgater for those times when I could not get an open shot for the Trav'ler but so far that has not happened. I've about decided I need to sell the Tailgater and open up some more storage area.

For local channels I bought a couple of Dish over the air tuners that attach to the back of my 2 211z receivers. They let me download the over the air local channels into the program guide (they highlight in yellow) which makes it seamless when changing from local to Dish programming. So far we have not had a need to call Dish and change our address to get their local broadcast stations as we get the same ones on our over the air antenna. The advantage for my sports is no matter where I am I still get Fox Sports Oklahoma and can watch the Thunder or Big 12 games as the system still thinks I am at home. If I change addresses I would only get the regional programming for wherever I am.

I definitely disagree with this statement. I have traveled all over using the Tailgater and I get the exact same programming that I have subscribed to at home. I get my home locals and my Big 10 channel and all the Big 12 games if they are not blacked out for one reason or another. You have to enter which state you are in when you set up the Tailgater for it to lock onto the satellites correctly for the strongest signal.

[Kro1957]

I asked a sales person about them at CW and they wanted to up sell me to the new models saying the older ones from a few years ago were no good and they had lots of returns on them.

Funny, I must have asked nearly 1/2 dozen rvers last year who were had these older ones set up at the CG's we were in and not one complaint.

Think I will invest in one this year. The e-bay idea is a nice tip... Thanks

[raineman]

Love my tailgater!