Dish 500 portable setup

[AFChap]

I have a Dish 322 dual receiver. I have a portable Dish 500 antenna we used to use with the MH until we had a rooftop Motosat MD500 installed. We are in a location where the rooftop dish cannot see the satellites, so today I got out the portable dish. I was unable to make it work, and cannot figure out why. It has been a couple of years since I used the portable, but I have notes telling me what to do to make it work.

I swapped the 2 input coax on the back of the receiver from the rooftop controller to the portable hookup coming through the coach catv input (as we ran it for over two years). I hooked up the portable dish to the catv input, set the skew, elevation & azimuth as indicated on the setup screen, and with my satellite finder in line got a strong indication that I had it aimed properly. But there was no signal indication at all on the dish aiming screen on the TV. I checked both TVs, and had the same lack of indications.

According to my notes, the rooftop Motosat must be set up as a DP Twin (Dish Plus) and the portable dish has to be set up as a DPP Twin (Dish Plus Pro). That setting has to be changed via "check switch." I went to the check switch screen and found no option to change to DPP, only "Superdish" and "Alternative." I ran Check Switch hoping it would give me the DPP option, but when it finally finished all it indicated was that I had fewer satellites than previous so I chose not to save and returned to the previous setting.

Can anyone give me a clue what I am missing?? Is my portable dish possibly obsolete?? ...no DPP option anymore??

[Robert Rice]

Paul

I had to get a new LNB from dish network that allows a single coax input to the reciever and then set up everything from scratch including the "Check Switch" option. I also had to re-boot the reciever by disconnecting it for 30 sec. It all works great now, including watching different programs on the different TVs.

[Bill Adams]

Quote:

Originally Posted by AFChap I have a Dish 322 dual receiver. I have a portable Dish 500 antenna we used to use with the MH until we had a rooftop Motosat MD500 installed. We are in a location where the rooftop dish cannot see the satellites, so today I got out the portable dish. I was unable to make it work, and cannot figure out why. It has been a couple of years since I used the portable, but I have notes telling me what to do to make it work. I swapped the 2 input coax on the back of the receiver from the rooftop controller to the portable hookup coming through the coach catv input (as we ran it for over two years). I hooked up the portable dish to the catv input, set the skew, elevation & azimuth as indicated on the setup screen, and with my satellite finder in line got a strong indication that I had it aimed properly. But there was no signal indication at all on the dish aiming screen on the TV. I checked both TVs, and had the same lack of indications. According to my notes, the rooftop Motosat must be set up as a DP Twin (Dish Plus) and the portable dish has to be set up as a DPP Twin (Dish Plus Pro). That setting has to be changed via "check switch." I went to the check switch screen and found no option to change to DPP, only "Superdish" and "Alternative." I ran Check Switch hoping it would give me the DPP option, but when it finally finished all it indicated was that I had fewer satellites than previous so I chose not to save and returned to the previous setting. Can anyone give me a clue what I am missing?? Is my portable dish possibly obsolete?? ...no DPP option anymore??

I sounds like you do not have your ground dish properly pointed. You say you had less satellites when only 2 satellites are involved so I have to assume that you had 2 satellite and now only one is listed. That means you have the antenna pointed incorrectly. You are going to have to run a check switch to let the receiver know what kind of a switch you are using but you may have to get the antenna pointed properly first.

[Harry B]

Paul,

When you go to the "Check Switch" screen, you have to select the "Test" option. The receiver then runs its checkout routine and will select the proper setting. Upon completion of running "test" you should see the DPP Twin setting where it says "Switch" just below the "Status" line. When you align the dish, make sure you do so for the 119 satellite. If you skew is set up correctly the 110 satellite will fall right in place.

Also if you buy a splitter, you can attach it to the receiver inputs 1&2 and run a single cable from the LNB back to the splitter. No need to run two cables back from the LNB this way. However you can to it with dual coaxes as you are doing as well without a splitter. To me, less is better.

[Wayne M]

The problem with the satellite finder is that unless it is a Birdog, it will find all satellites so I agree that you most likely are not pointed at the right satellite. I typically use a downloaded PDF file that gives me all the proper degree settings but even then it is just ball park. Remember that there is true North and magnetic North. You have to know what the magnetic declination is to set to true North. Magnetic declination in the U.S. can be up to -15 degrees to +15 degrees. If you draw a line through the middle of Mississippe and to the left extreem top of Lake Superior, then anything to the East is minus and anything to the West is plus, starting at 0 in the center.

Paul, I just looked and I'm preaching to a HAM Radio operator. Geesh! But I'm going to post it for others. I really believe that you are off of your satellite. Once you get 110, or 119. locked in the other should be just a little bit more one way or the other. If you are East of the Mississippi, turn the antenna a little more Westerly, and vise versa.

I fought for 3 hours one day trying to line up my portable. Finally I just said forget it. Well, I needed to move it out of the path of any incoming MH so I just picked it up and set it down behind my MH. Went inside and both satellites were locked in. Go Figure.

[RoadRohrers]

Wierd isn't it. I can't tell you the number of times I've gotten frustated, just parked the dish, got a beer and there was the signal. Slightly different topic, but I changed to Directv from dish so I only had to hit one satellite. That skew angle was the bane of my existence. Now usually takes less than five minutes. I have no roof unit so get lots of practice with the portable.

[FLYTYER]

I would add that I have found that low tree limbs maybe 15 to 20 feet away towards the direction you are aiming can interfere with one of the satellite signals. In that case a 3 foot move to the left or right usually corrects the problem.

Lastly I always do the check switch test first and every time to make sure everything is working and the cable connections are OK.

[K-Star]

this might help find the proper pointing angles:


http://www.dishpointer.com/

when i was setting up my portable 1000.4 dish I had my signal reading for satellite 72 but when i ran the check switch 72.5 was on position 3, not 1. i moved the dish a little to right (if I remember correctly) and then got 72.5 in the #2 spot and 77 #3. I tweaked a little more and finally got 61.5, 72 and 77. What does this have to do with aligning a 500 series dish? nothing. just making a point that you may have to tweak a bit.

When I had my 500 dish, many times i could get the 110 bird right away. Then a little to the right and up wold find 119. Another time i had 119 but I just could not get 110. My skew was off by just 2 degrees.

I would also add to check your LNB to insure the cable is connected to the 119 port and you are not on 110. if your cable is plugged into the 110 port and you are aligning on 119, you'll never get it.

[ronharp]

You only point at "one" sat with Dish. That sat is 119 if you want to set up correctly(you can point at the 110 instead but that brings up a totally different conversation). Those who write about pointing the Dish at more than one sat simply are grossly mistaken. Direc is the same way. In fact, recently, Direc has begun putting out their Dish with an adjustable skew(tilt, actually, for Direc). With Dish you can have 1,2 or 3 LNBs. With Direc you can have 1,2,3,4 or 5 LNBs depending on your particular programming. With both you still only point at "one" sat to set up. Tweaks after that are optional.

Ron

[AFChap]

Some clarification:
-The portable setup is setup to use a single coax into the MH, and then a Dish Plus Separator splits the one into two inputs to the receiver -- no different that as we used it for a couple of years before buying the automatic rooftop dish.
- I ran the Check Switch test function several times with no success, and never had any indication of the DPP option.

The only conclusion I can make is what several have suggested -- in spite of the good indication from the satellite finder and the indications on my tripod that it was pointed the right direction (it has azimuth readings on the base that I set up using a compass), I must not have been pointed at the right satellites. There are lots of trees (which is why the rooftop dish won't work), but it looked like I should have been in a good place for it to work.

We are in Western ID just off I-90 -- we'll be moving on in about 10 days so we'll just deal with the local cable until then. We have become spoiled with the dish program menu, and the local cable has no program guide channel -- just the handout the RV park gave us that tells us which channel is at which number. I used to be pretty fast at getting the portable dish up and running, guess I have lost my touch since I haven't had to use it for a few years!!

[ronharp]

Your problems are a bit of a relief for me. I'm not alone. I'm the fellow that helps neighbors with their Dish setup 'cause I'm such and "?expert?". lol
I can only remember one other time that I've had such trouble aiming for a good signal. In fact, I haven't done it very well yet and the picture problems are increasing again. I have a decent clear sky to the sat and I have re cabled and checked the LNBs so am thinking the next trick is to try a new reflector.

Ron

[Wayne M]

Something that is very expensive, but works, is the Birdog Satellite finder. I was in Tupper Lake, NY, the Adirondacks, and the angle is darn near flat for a satellite orientation. I just could not get correct. A neighbor said that when "so and so" get's home I'll have him come over. I was out walking th dog and when I returned he was there with his Birdog and had it hooked up to the dish. The screen showed the sattelite number and the signal strenght. He tweaked the azimuth, elevation and skew, unhooked it and said, "you're ready." I walked in, turned the tv on and had 110, 119 and 129.

Do I ever want one of those Birdog's. However, in excess of $500. Someday, just someday.

[RoadRohrers]

Birdog may be cheap compared to an installed dome. As well as transportable to the next unit. And, if you charge your fellow man, say $5.00, it be paid for in many years.