Domain: lyngsat.com
Stories and comments across the archive that link to lyngsat.com.
Comments · 73
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C Band (3.7-4.2 GHz) Satellite Interference
It's very likely that this decision will cause interference with C Band satellite signals which down-link in the 3.7 - 4.2 GHz band. These satellites provide video feeds to television stations and cable systems world wide. Strong ground based signals in the same band will overload the low noise LNBF on C Band satellite TVRO dishes.
This is very disturbing since I recently pulled the plug on cable and rely heavily on Free To Air (FTA) video feeds from C Band domestic satellites in the USA. https://www.lyngsat.com/freetv...
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Re:Disingenuous Comparison
A "couple" of channels? There are tons of free channels...
https://www.lyngsat.com/freetv...
https://www.lyngsat.com/freetv...or just start digging into the full list of sat's you have available where you live.
http://en.kingofsat.net/satell...Mix it up with terrestrial broadcast TV and you will have a shitload of channels.
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Re:Disingenuous Comparison
A "couple" of channels? There are tons of free channels...
https://www.lyngsat.com/freetv...
https://www.lyngsat.com/freetv...or just start digging into the full list of sat's you have available where you live.
http://en.kingofsat.net/satell...Mix it up with terrestrial broadcast TV and you will have a shitload of channels.
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Re:Are you in the USA?
Lyngsat is the best place I have seen to get information about what programming is available. However, its organization takes some getting used to.
The page linked above shows the programming that originates from the US but is broadcast around the world. Similar pages can be used to find programming originating from other countries. However, you need to understand what satellites are viewable from your location.
Other pages are those that show what's available from satellites you can see, such as: http://www.lyngsat.com/america...
This page shows the satellites that broadcast to the US, ranging from 61.5 W way over toward the east to 139 W way over toward the west. If you are located on the east coast, you may have trouble receiving 139 W unless you have a clear line of site toward the west and a perhaps larger-than-typical dish. Similarly, if you are located on the west coast, you may have trouble receiving 61.5 W. Satellites that are more directly overhead your particular longitude will typically be easier to receive. You can find your own longitude very easily by googling your zip code plus "longitude".Once you're looking at a particular satellite, say Galaxy 19: http://www.lyngsat.com/Galaxy-...
then you need to understand the information that's presented. The first table lists frequencies in the ~4000 range, which corresponds to C-band. To receive these, you need a "BUD" (big ugly dish) of size 6-12 feet (2-4m). The next table lists frequencies in the ~12000 range, which corresponds to Ku-band. These can be received with a 30" (0.75m) dish.The next columns to pay attention to are the provider name and the system encryption. Look for the "F" icon in the encryption column, indicating that the channel is FTA. Also confirm that the first entry for the transponder in question shows "DVB-S" (or "DVB-S2") and that this is compatible with the receiver you have. The first entry provides info about the multiplexed stream, whereas the subsequent entries provide info about each individual channel within the stream. A decent receiver will be able to figure out all these details itself, but older hardware requires programming in some details.
There's really a couple of ways to use FTA. One is to just set up a system locked to a given satellite and stick with a channel or small set of channels that are stable. The other way is to hop around different satellites and see what's available, since programming does change over time. For this, it's important that your receiver has "blind search" capability (which should be pretty common by now, but you should verify). Having the ability to program the channels easily with a computer program is another nice feature that many receivers offer. This can be a lot better than fiddling with the remote and endless menu layers. And, of course, a motorized dish mount makes it easier to change satellites.
A final word before you embark on this: Lots of these channels have online viewing options, which can be much less frustrating to view (or they can offer a different type of frustration). At least you won't have to fiddle outside with dish alignment on a rainy day to peak the signal. You can instead learn about proxies from the comfort of your desktop.
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Re:Are you in the USA?
Lyngsat is the best place I have seen to get information about what programming is available. However, its organization takes some getting used to.
The page linked above shows the programming that originates from the US but is broadcast around the world. Similar pages can be used to find programming originating from other countries. However, you need to understand what satellites are viewable from your location.
Other pages are those that show what's available from satellites you can see, such as: http://www.lyngsat.com/america...
This page shows the satellites that broadcast to the US, ranging from 61.5 W way over toward the east to 139 W way over toward the west. If you are located on the east coast, you may have trouble receiving 139 W unless you have a clear line of site toward the west and a perhaps larger-than-typical dish. Similarly, if you are located on the west coast, you may have trouble receiving 61.5 W. Satellites that are more directly overhead your particular longitude will typically be easier to receive. You can find your own longitude very easily by googling your zip code plus "longitude".Once you're looking at a particular satellite, say Galaxy 19: http://www.lyngsat.com/Galaxy-...
then you need to understand the information that's presented. The first table lists frequencies in the ~4000 range, which corresponds to C-band. To receive these, you need a "BUD" (big ugly dish) of size 6-12 feet (2-4m). The next table lists frequencies in the ~12000 range, which corresponds to Ku-band. These can be received with a 30" (0.75m) dish.The next columns to pay attention to are the provider name and the system encryption. Look for the "F" icon in the encryption column, indicating that the channel is FTA. Also confirm that the first entry for the transponder in question shows "DVB-S" (or "DVB-S2") and that this is compatible with the receiver you have. The first entry provides info about the multiplexed stream, whereas the subsequent entries provide info about each individual channel within the stream. A decent receiver will be able to figure out all these details itself, but older hardware requires programming in some details.
There's really a couple of ways to use FTA. One is to just set up a system locked to a given satellite and stick with a channel or small set of channels that are stable. The other way is to hop around different satellites and see what's available, since programming does change over time. For this, it's important that your receiver has "blind search" capability (which should be pretty common by now, but you should verify). Having the ability to program the channels easily with a computer program is another nice feature that many receivers offer. This can be a lot better than fiddling with the remote and endless menu layers. And, of course, a motorized dish mount makes it easier to change satellites.
A final word before you embark on this: Lots of these channels have online viewing options, which can be much less frustrating to view (or they can offer a different type of frustration). At least you won't have to fiddle outside with dish alignment on a rainy day to peak the signal. You can instead learn about proxies from the comfort of your desktop.
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You need to consult Lyngsat
Years ago I used to be infatuated with the BUD, so much so that when I visited my uncle, he'd save me the program guides and channel lists he used to get in the mail. Then along came Lyngsat, which tells you all of that. http://lyngsat.com/
But more importantly for you, they will tell you if a channel is encrypted or not on whatever satellite. So the *best* way to tell if FTA TV is going to be worth it to you. It's largely a joke in the US, but a slightly more serious deal in other countries. Lyngsat also has a precompiled list of Free TV in the "US", although it still shows satellites you can't see over here. Still, it's a good way of having some idea of what you'd get. TL;DR: if you're not an immigrant that speaks a foreign language or a very religious person, there's next to nothing worth watching on FTA satellite in the US; I do not know for sure if the "local" channels that are uplinked to satellites are actually FTA or not; since they control the distribution of them I'd have to say the list is incorrect. Maybe it's not. -
Great hobby, essential to get ethnic programmingI've been running FTA receiver setups in the US for about a decade, so my data comes from that. My own setup uses 3 dishes (one with multiple satellites), and I operate two others at different locations. I have relatives in Europe who've been doing this for longer, and it's very easy and common over there. It's pretty rare in the US. I started because some family members wanted to receive ethnic programming in their own languages and I love to experiment. It requires some practice to set up and aim, but is very doable and doesn't have to be expensive. You can get started under $300US. Take a look at Sadoun in Texas. He also has a lot of information for beginners.
You'll need a dish (typically 90cm), somewhere with a view of your selected satellites to plant it, an LNB to go on the dish (Low Noise Block Amplifier, the actual "antenna"; the dish is just a reflector), a bunch of RG6 cable leading to your TV, and a receiver.
Before buying all this, take a look at the various satellites and channels available to you, and pick a starting satellite. You'll need to be sure that you have a clear line of sight to the "bird". A great site for this is lyngsat. In the US I suggest starting with Galaxy 19, which has several hundred channels on it.
Summarizing the rest, plant the dish, aim, and scan with your receiver to program the channels. You can get all sorts of things regularly, and occasional "wild feeds" that aren't intended for public consumption. There's also encrypted video, which is either pay TV, private company channels (like Ford, etc.) or network backhauls.
Later on you can get into multiple satellites, either with multiple LNB's on one dish, multiple dishes and a switch, or a motorized (!) dish. They're all fun.
It's a lot of fun, and can be a great intro for kids to electronics, radio reception, satellites, orbital mechanics, space, etc.
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Great hobby, essential to get ethnic programmingI've been running FTA receiver setups in the US for about a decade, so my data comes from that. My own setup uses 3 dishes (one with multiple satellites), and I operate two others at different locations. I have relatives in Europe who've been doing this for longer, and it's very easy and common over there. It's pretty rare in the US. I started because some family members wanted to receive ethnic programming in their own languages and I love to experiment. It requires some practice to set up and aim, but is very doable and doesn't have to be expensive. You can get started under $300US. Take a look at Sadoun in Texas. He also has a lot of information for beginners.
You'll need a dish (typically 90cm), somewhere with a view of your selected satellites to plant it, an LNB to go on the dish (Low Noise Block Amplifier, the actual "antenna"; the dish is just a reflector), a bunch of RG6 cable leading to your TV, and a receiver.
Before buying all this, take a look at the various satellites and channels available to you, and pick a starting satellite. You'll need to be sure that you have a clear line of sight to the "bird". A great site for this is lyngsat. In the US I suggest starting with Galaxy 19, which has several hundred channels on it.
Summarizing the rest, plant the dish, aim, and scan with your receiver to program the channels. You can get all sorts of things regularly, and occasional "wild feeds" that aren't intended for public consumption. There's also encrypted video, which is either pay TV, private company channels (like Ford, etc.) or network backhauls.
Later on you can get into multiple satellites, either with multiple LNB's on one dish, multiple dishes and a switch, or a motorized (!) dish. They're all fun.
It's a lot of fun, and can be a great intro for kids to electronics, radio reception, satellites, orbital mechanics, space, etc.
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You can use it for TV if you want...
It's been awhile since I've worked in satellite communications but you can use it to pick up free Satellite TV.
Most satellites that broadcast TV have a few stations broadcasting in the clear i.e no encryption but you need a few things. A basic guide for sat TV here http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/satellite-tv.htm needs to be read. You will need an LMB (Low Noise Block) to filter out background noise. It's my understanding that mos satellite receivers now days already come with LMBs built in these days so check specs. The predominately used receiver is most likely a Scientific Atlanta DSR. Some of transponders still broadcast on VCII but I doubt you'll find much in North America. With Digital satellite TV you can fit 12 channels on a signal transponder while analog it's one transponder one channel. You'll probably be using analog signal to start with since it's just easier.
Now you need a list of satellites for North America (or wherever you're from) can be found here http://www.lyngsat.com/ which has a complete listing would over. They will also detail type of feed channels and transponders of the satellites as well as type of encryption encoding etc. Again check specs on potential receivers.
Next you need to point it at a bird. 5 seconds on Google gave me this guide. http://searchwarp.com/swa40134.htm one thing we used to do is look up a channel broadcasting in the clear on the satellite we were aiming at on the Lyngsat site and then tune the satellite receiver to that transponder, channel and polarity so we could see how close we were getting to it by looking at clairty of signal on a TV.
In other words it's a big pain in the ass. You are probably better off using it as a bird feeder.
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FTA & Wildfeeds
Free-To-Air (FTA) feeds and Wildfeeds are plentiful. Do some reading on http://www.satforums.com/ see if you can steer the dish, and if it's possible to enable it for Ku as well a C band (I'm guessing it's C because of the size). You can often refit a C band mesh dish to work on Ku by laying metal window screening on the surface of the reflector. Then you have to mount a KU feed at the focal point, usually offset next to the C feedhorn. Great site to find out what you can view FTA from your location: Lyngsat, for the central US try this page. To see if you can view a satellite from your location there are simple calculators on Lyngsat.
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FTA & Wildfeeds
Free-To-Air (FTA) feeds and Wildfeeds are plentiful. Do some reading on http://www.satforums.com/ see if you can steer the dish, and if it's possible to enable it for Ku as well a C band (I'm guessing it's C because of the size). You can often refit a C band mesh dish to work on Ku by laying metal window screening on the surface of the reflector. Then you have to mount a KU feed at the focal point, usually offset next to the C feedhorn. Great site to find out what you can view FTA from your location: Lyngsat, for the central US try this page. To see if you can view a satellite from your location there are simple calculators on Lyngsat.
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C-band dish
What you have is a C-band dish. You can use it with a Ku band LNB.
You can see here what is in your range. With Ku band LNB that would be a lot. I don't know for sure about C-band LNB.
Disclaimer: I am from Europe, where Ku band is used for satellite dish tv and radio.
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lyngsatThe website with all the satellites, all the transponders and all the frequencies
You'll need some sort of receiver (lots are linux based), aim for a Dreambox, or equivalent. It's likely yo'll need to replace the LNB and cabling if it's been neglected for any length of time. You should also check to see if the dish is steerable (doubtful for that large size - too hard to stop it moving in the wind) and also get a satellite alignment meter and a compass to point to whichever satellite takes your fancy. Reckon on less than $1000, maybe even less than $500.
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Lyngsat & Azbox HD
Just buy an Azbox HD and check the feeds on Lyngsat, its all you need.
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OK, if you don't like MTV and VH1...
You might care about Discovery and History.
There are quite a few channels on AMC11 that you might care about... -
AMC 11
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Re:Demographics
List of tenants on the threatened bird, as I mentioned yesterday.
While this is going to take out almost all of the East Coast feeds of MTV Networks... it's also going to down Discovery Networks and C-SPAN too.
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Where'd my cable channels go?
Here's a list of what AMC-11 is used for on Lyngsat.
Basically, if this wayward sat gets in the way, the average cable/DBS subscriber in the USA is going to wonder where half their digital channels went.
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Re:A thought
you can't use a BUD C-band for Ku-band reception
True for a C band LNB, but assuming you have a dual (C and Ku) band LNB the problem then is not resonance, it's selectivity. Most C band dishes have a fine enough mesh to reflect Ku band signals, but at Ku frequencies BUDs are not always directional enough to keep signals from adjacent satellites from interfering. You'll still get most of the Ku channels, but every once in a while you'll find one that you know you should be able to receive but can't. I had this problem with ktwo. I knew it was there, Lyngsat told me so, but I just couldn't pick it up until I installed a dedicated Ku band dish.
A 36-inch Ku-band dish will get anything you need
I agree - if you're in the continental US and don't have anything getting in the way like tree branches, a 36 inch dish is all you need for Ku. -
C band
Get a C band LNB and point to the next C band sat that is out there.
Plenty of C band channels out there. A good list is here.
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keep it
Go over to lyngsat.com and see what you can see. Satellite TV is far more than what the media companies are willing to sell you.
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Re:i remember the spirit landing
That's not hardcore - the true space geek will get it free. Scroll down to NASA, it says "F" (free) for "video encryption".
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Re:You mention cellphones
Is this a big hill ? Because satellites can be up to 15 degress above the horizon for that matter. He also should check satellite coverage, as they are from 61.5W to 148W in America, as it can be seen here. http://www.lyngsat.com/america.html
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Re:Good.
A similar, complimentary option is FTA satellite. It's not high-power pay satellite, and you need a rotator to get a nice variety of programming, but it was worth it for my family.
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Re:what about receiving BBC through Sat abroad?
I was able to find this info page, hope it helps.
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Re:Why Worry?
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Re:Why Worry?
a good place to start is http://www.lyngsat.com/
then maybe http://happysat.org/ -
Re:Um, why should it be saved?
And for some specific data on why this is bad, consider that WAAS depends on line of sight view to the satellite. In Portland Oregon, hardly the end of the earth, that line of sight is 7 degrees above the horizon when I last checked. If you are behind even a modest hill, the signal is unavailable. WAAS works great for planes, but is less than perfect by far for ground based use. In cities, it's basically unusable. You can get the stats from http://www.lyngsat.com/tracker/inmar3f4.html
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just got my Free-To-Air Satellite system up...
More and more folks are turning FTA because quite frankly cable, satellite and stuff like Netflix have been ripping people off... (that's why Netflix now is trying to appeal to those they've ripped off before by offering almost half price of what they used to offer the same people). Guess this idea is to replace the Disney idea of a dvd that will chemically kill itself after 24 hours or whatever that they came up with a year or so ago. Pretty dumb, especially since it rellies on an outdated phone system that more and more folks are turning away from in exchange for cell phones, etc. (DSL being the only thing that keeps me and a lot of other folks having a POTS line - Pretty soon that need will dissappear as more and more city-wide wifi projects start up nationwide).
DSL prices recently went down, so give me DSL + FTA for now for entertainment.
If you don't know what Free-To-Air is, it's basically using a satellite dish to pick up unencrypted satellite signals - of which there are quite a few around the world... you don't have to pay a subscription for it, just the up front cost to get a dish, receiver, and possibly a motor to move the dish from satellite to satellite... No big time movie channels like HBO, etc. since those are encrypted, but there's still plenty up there... Visit http://www.satelliteguys.us/ and http://www.lyngsat.com/ for more info on FTA. (Sorry for the fta hype in this post - but I just got my system up and running about 48 hours ago, and it's still pretty dang exciting) -
How long...
How long until someone screws up and blows away Anik F1 http://www.lyngsat.com/anik107.html and I'm without TV?
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FTA is fun, cheap and interesting!I've been itching to get into FTA for years, but only got around to doing so a couple months ago. The simplest possible setup you'll need is:
- A dish
- An LNB (low noise block downconverter, which sits at the focal point of the dish)
- A receiver
Because I wasn't really sure about FTA I wanted to get into it as cheaply as possible. I bought a cheap 0.3dB LNB and a truly crappy receiver on eBay, used an old Primestar 40" x 30" dish (which turns out to be one of the best dishes you can get for FTA), hooked it all up, got it aimed at Intelsat Americas 5 and started watching! I think my total equipment investment was in the neighborhood of $100. I did replace my craptastic receiver with a more expensive ($150 at the time) Fortec Lifetime Classic, but it was worth it. You can, as others have said, go with PC-based solutions, too - PCI or USB satellite receivers - but I wanted a standalone receiver just to start.
Yes, as others have pointed out, most of what's available via FTA in North America is religious programming or bizarre foreign channels, but don't let that discourage you! First of all, that stuff ranges from entertaining to totally weird (like the old animated Star Trek series dubbed in Armenian, or some damned thing). If you're sick of the crap on American TV, this'll definitely give you something more interesting to check out. Second, there are some American channels up there, especially PBS and the like, but some network affiliates as well. And if you're really determined, you can find network feeds, where the networks send their shows to their affiliate stations in the clear, before they officially air. You can also find news crews out in the field, often doing flattering things like swearing and picking their noses before as they set up and test their equipment before a remote report.
FTA is like the Wild West of television. It's not always easy to find the good stuff, but it's worth the effort.
Check out the SatelliteGuys forum if you want more information. The people there are extremely friendly, helpful and knowledgeable. I'm just a user there, not an admin or owner, so I'm not trying to shill for the site or anything. I just love it. -
list of free tv available
i have found this link invaluable when trying to show off what free tv has to offer, http://lyngsat.com/freetv/index.html , simpley select a region next to "Free TV:" and then a country so see what is broadcast from there.
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Re:no goodSo - if I understand you correctly, you are saying that your complex essentially wants to be a "downlink" station from the satellites, right? In other words, you have a large dish (10-12 foot) K or C-Band (or something else newer, probably), pointed at some general bird in the sky with the channels you want from a higher tier provider (ie, the people who provide the access to DishTV), you pay them and get it cheap, then wire everyone to the dish with repeaters, amps, etc - and give each one a "custom" "cable" box, right?
I can share some of the research we did.
Here is an example of ala-cart service, for individuals. If you have a large block that buys as one collective, you can negotiate a better price:
http://skyvision.com/programming/alacarte.html
Even as an idividual, there are pleanty of $1 a month channels- Sci-Fi, Comedy Central, E!TV, and others. They even have a $12.49 per month package of 21 channels including CNN, Sci-Fi, Fox News, Disney, and lots of others. There is good choice.
Just so people don't accuse me of selling a service, here is another one:
They have a HDTV package for $19 a month, including ESPN, Fox News, lots of popular stations. The only problem is they are in three areas in the USA (Arizona I believe).
Back to our research. We then discovered all the free channels with a large C-band dish-
http://www.lyngsat.com/freetv/United-States.html
Many of them are stations I never heard of, but there is Animal Planet, 7 channels of Bloomberg which I had in college and remember as a headline news type channel, 3 channels of C-Span for the government junkies (I love C-Span for book tv), CBS HDTV east and west, 5 CNBC's, 4 CNN's, 6 Discovery tv (including one that is HDTV and one that is spanish), 7 MTV's although none are from the USA but I have seen MTV from Russia and it was almost all USA music videos the only differance was the DJ's spoke russian, 7 PBS and one of them is HDTV. I am not going to list them all, but those are some good channels and they are all FREE.
If that is what I think you are doing, that is pretty sweet - talk about screwing the "man" and telling him where to stick it!
We don't think we are screwing the man at all. It is more like stopping Comcast from screwing us. We've all lived with bad service, and an overpriced product. If there were 10 different cable companies, and they had to compete, prices would be 25% of what they are today. But there is a monopoly.
All in all, kudos to you and your (hopefully) merry group - I hope it works out for you, and you get what *you* want (hmm - alternatively - have you thought about mixing the two - get the sat feed, turn each channel into
.torrents, then give each unit a box to view the .torrents, and other 'net video offerrings - combine it with cheap T1 service from Speakeasy or similar - so sweet)...That would require more work than we are willing to do. Since we are an association, we pay dues, and we want to minimize our fees. For example, they decided to open the swimming pool 3 hours later this summer than last (1pm instead of 10am on weekdays). Why? To save a few bucks of cost- pool attendant being the largest.
We just want to get a large sattelite or two, and run cable to everyones home.
We have also talked with a lawyer. There is a state law where we live that says any cable a cable company lays down on private property is the property of the land owner and not the cable company. We are trying to find out if we can cut off the feed from comcast and run our own over the existing cables.
What I do know is we will find a solution that is better than comcast!! I'll also say another thing. If I did not live in an association, I would talk to my next
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Re:In the year 2000... (and 9)
a parallel,if I may.
In England, we currently have 3G (based on CDMA) which is gaining ground on the well established and saturated market of GSM (at 1800 and 900MHz). GSM took over from the old analogue TACS system (which was based on the US amps system), and although most subscribers were migrated across, the TACS system was maintained for quite a while.
It was only when someone discovered that the TACS system had failed over a wide area, and noone noticed and complained, that the cellular operators realised that the system could be truly killed off.
Likewise, the analogue TV system will simply probably be allowed to decay; its power can be reduced to save money and the decreasing quality of the signal will persuade consumers to move. Here in the UK that's particularly significant because digital and analogue share the same frequency bands, with the digital signals being put in the gaps (at a lower power), so when the analogue system is shut down we can have more digital channels.
There have been similar parallels with analogue satellite TV. A quick look at http://www.lyngsat.com/ will reveal that it's shifted from perhaps 90% analogue in 1997 to 90% digital in 2005.
From a providers point of view, digital communications channels, be it for mobile phone or media streams, are superior for access control and protection of revenue. -
A barrel of fun - do it.
I took the plunge into DVB FTA about 6 months ago, and have enjoyed almost every minute of it. $300 is indeed reasonable, but for another $100 you can get combinations of a bigger dish, better motor and/or better LNBF(s).
My comments below refer to Ku band only. Perhaps 65-70% of the FTA channels on Ku-band. I see most expansion occurring there too. C-band is certainly not dead but also does not seem to be growing like Ku.
PROS:
. A truly eclectic mix of full-time channels available. Maybe 200 TV and 300 radio (audio only) are in my receiver's memory. Yes, are many as 1/2 are foreign language - mainly Chinese, Spanish, Arabic. A few of those have additional English audio channels.
. No subscription fees. Spend you $300 or $400 and enjoy.
. If you like news, monitor the direct feeds from the news truck. Transient in nature but are plentiful and especially easy to find during major events, e.g., new pope, volcano, weather, political. See what the reporters say when they think no one's watching. :-)
. Incredible selection of music/audio channels.
. The DiSH network satellites have most of their audio, and a few TV channels in the clear, e.g., NASA TV. There is also a pair of Canadian commercial satellites (Nimiq) with similar programming.
. If you also get a computer card like a Twinhan 1022, on Linux you can easily record any channel's MPEG stream direct to HD, and burn that to a non-standard but playable DVD. You can do similar things on Windows with $$ software and not as much flexibility. Perfect recordings though, exactly as they came over the air.
CONS:
. Not for folks who gotta have their Discovery Channel, MTV or other commercial channels. More appeals to the "DXer" type personality, who appreciates unusual programming.
. Getting a motorized Ku band setup aligned can be a challenge for the best installer. A perfectly plumb, stable mounting post is the first step.
. No guarantees today's programming will still be there tomorrow. Then again, if it's not, chances are some new channel has popped up elsewhere.
. You have to dig (search) for new programming; more hands-on than viewing channels on a commercial service.
Advice:
. Get at least a 90cm dish, 1m is even better. Smaller (75-80cm) can work but you will miss some weaker channels and lose more signals during rain.
. Get a motor and be prepared to spend a couple hours aligning it. There's no other way to cost effectively see the 20 or so satellites carrying FTA programming. Get help if available.
. Be sure your receiver has 'blind search' capability, e.g., Fortec Lifetime Ultra.
. If you get a 90cm+ dish, a cheap LNBF is fine. An expensive LNBF helps only with fringe signals or on smaller-than-they-should-be dishes.
. If you get a new combo circular/linear LNBF or use two or more LNBFs, put a 2 or 4 way DiSEqC switch out at the dish and let the receiver electronically select between them.
I have two LNBFs mounted on a 90cm motorized dish - an Invacom linear in the middle, and an original DiSH circular on a small bracket to the side. Works beautifully because the circularly polarized satellites are so strong. When receiving a circularly polarized satellite, I just program the motor to move +5 degrees of the true satellite position.
Some sources I've used:
http://adventistsat.com/ - equipment
http://sadoun.com/ - equipment and user forums
http://lyngsat.com/ - for programming. Not always 100% correct but usually current. I am also a contributor.
The guy who runs Adventistsat is courteous, really knows his stuff and posts on a lot of DVB/sat boards. -
some answers
You have two fronts to look into first is the box: Even though there are readymade boxes that you can buy to recieve the feeds, I would say that you should look into buying a DVB card and puting together a dedicated comp for this. Now about the computer software: You have choice of going complex or simple, if you want to go simple just pick a distro of your choice and use vlan, however Mythtv has just started adding DVB support, I would say that you should look into that for a full fledged media center PC. Now Hardware: you have to decide whether to get a Hardware (expensive) driven card or a cheaper card that leaves the decoding to the CPU, obviously if you have a card that does the decoding you dont need a teribly fast cpu.
now for the dish, obviously as you know the bigger the better, with the bigger dishes you have the ability to recieve both C & ku band. Now attempting to recieve both into one dish is ok as long as you get a feedhorn. I could go into details but this site shows a lot more
Now as far as channels go nothing beats lyngsat. they have crazy ass searches for example all the free satelite channels in the US. -
some answers
You have two fronts to look into first is the box: Even though there are readymade boxes that you can buy to recieve the feeds, I would say that you should look into buying a DVB card and puting together a dedicated comp for this. Now about the computer software: You have choice of going complex or simple, if you want to go simple just pick a distro of your choice and use vlan, however Mythtv has just started adding DVB support, I would say that you should look into that for a full fledged media center PC. Now Hardware: you have to decide whether to get a Hardware (expensive) driven card or a cheaper card that leaves the decoding to the CPU, obviously if you have a card that does the decoding you dont need a teribly fast cpu.
now for the dish, obviously as you know the bigger the better, with the bigger dishes you have the ability to recieve both C & ku band. Now attempting to recieve both into one dish is ok as long as you get a feedhorn. I could go into details but this site shows a lot more
Now as far as channels go nothing beats lyngsat. they have crazy ass searches for example all the free satelite channels in the US. -
DVB-S card for a fair price, and finding channels
For those of you shopping around for the DVB-S card by Hauppauge, check Froogle, and for those of you looking to find free (as in beer, and legit) channels, check LyngSat. There are literally thousands of channels that you can get freely, depending on where you live (search "Free to Air" in google). The downside is that lots of channels are from non-English speaking countries -- why do you think lots of Arabic speaking households here in the US have satellite dishes?
-
Re:What do you do?
I really don't know. Check out http://www.lyngsat.com/ for more information about the various communications satellites and what they are carrying.
-
Re:TV License in the UK
>Is it possible to see any other satellites from the UK??
Heh. Plenty of them, of course.
>I think here in the US it's possible to see some European satellites
Almost, with a very large dish (oh, say 25 - 50 feet) and a home on the eastern coastline with a perfect view to the eastern horizon (elevation is going to be 5 degrees or lower). Otherwise, good luck. Generally, satellites available to the US are placed over the atlantic or pacific ocean, or (obviously) over the US.
If you'd like to check if it's physically possible to see the satellite (never mind if it's EIRP covers you), click your location on your favourite satellite. Our pesky ball of dirt tends to get in the way. :-) -
Re:Compression
Actually, Dish Network has 7 satellites, and the largest selection of channels. The satellites are at 61.5, 105, 110, 119, 121, 148, and 157 W longitude. However, some satellites have only a few active Dish transponders, and some are low power Ku FSS satellites (105 and 121).
It is true that they try to squeeze most of their popular programming into their main satellites at 110 & 119.
For a listing of all Dish channels, see http://www.dishchannelchart.com/.
For a per-satellite listing of all US digital satellite broadcasters, see http://www.lyngsat.com/packages/america.html. Clicking in the third column will show the channels on that satellite. -
Re:Not available in the US.
>Streaming internet video,
>---not available in the US.
It's actually ironic, considering that for the longest time, the UK had such a screwed up set of laws enacted for the benefit of BT (*) that the idea of streaming *anything* took far longer to materialize in the UK than many other places.
>Free-to-Air DVB satellite
>---not available in the US
There's plenty available in the US. Here's a few popular DVB satellites (yellow = FTA DVB signal):
Intelsat Americas 5 (was: Telstar 5)
Galaxy 11
Galaxy 10R
AMC 3
AMC 4
AMC 1
Satmex 5
Intelsat Americas 7 (was: Telstar 7)
There's more, but that should do. :)
It's just that there's nothing particularly *interesting* to most people there. Now, if you happen to speak arabic or spanish, you're in luck.
As far as pay DVB goes, you'd be surprised to hear it, but DishNetwork is a DVB system (although they hate to admit it). Point a dish at it and hook up a DVB receiver and you can download a list of channels, and watch the unencrypted ones (not many).
>Cheap Broadband
>---not available in the US
I hear of all sorts of deals. That being said, you have to expect a small (by area) country like the UK to be able to better provide cheaper internet to its citizens. They're so close together, wiring things is dirt cheap.
>DMCA chip free inkjet cartridges
>---not available in the US
LOL :-) Also not available in a lot of other countries. Well, there's no DMCA, but the chip is still there.
>Region code free DVD players
>---not available in the US
That's a case of supply and demand. I'm in Canada and I'd offer them in my store, but there's about zero interest in them. I sell specialty products like what you've mentioned (Ex: DVB satellite systems), and if there were more than a couple of hundred people in Canada that *REALLY* wanted a region-free DVD player, *and* didn't want to go to the hassle of DIYing one, I'd have heard about it by now, and I'd be selling them [nothing beats Value Add services for good profit margins].
That being said, oddly enough, I *have* had people come to my store with PAL games they want to play on NTSC PS2s, and PAL PS2s that they want to play NTSC games. -
Re:Not available in the US.
>Streaming internet video,
>---not available in the US.
It's actually ironic, considering that for the longest time, the UK had such a screwed up set of laws enacted for the benefit of BT (*) that the idea of streaming *anything* took far longer to materialize in the UK than many other places.
>Free-to-Air DVB satellite
>---not available in the US
There's plenty available in the US. Here's a few popular DVB satellites (yellow = FTA DVB signal):
Intelsat Americas 5 (was: Telstar 5)
Galaxy 11
Galaxy 10R
AMC 3
AMC 4
AMC 1
Satmex 5
Intelsat Americas 7 (was: Telstar 7)
There's more, but that should do. :)
It's just that there's nothing particularly *interesting* to most people there. Now, if you happen to speak arabic or spanish, you're in luck.
As far as pay DVB goes, you'd be surprised to hear it, but DishNetwork is a DVB system (although they hate to admit it). Point a dish at it and hook up a DVB receiver and you can download a list of channels, and watch the unencrypted ones (not many).
>Cheap Broadband
>---not available in the US
I hear of all sorts of deals. That being said, you have to expect a small (by area) country like the UK to be able to better provide cheaper internet to its citizens. They're so close together, wiring things is dirt cheap.
>DMCA chip free inkjet cartridges
>---not available in the US
LOL :-) Also not available in a lot of other countries. Well, there's no DMCA, but the chip is still there.
>Region code free DVD players
>---not available in the US
That's a case of supply and demand. I'm in Canada and I'd offer them in my store, but there's about zero interest in them. I sell specialty products like what you've mentioned (Ex: DVB satellite systems), and if there were more than a couple of hundred people in Canada that *REALLY* wanted a region-free DVD player, *and* didn't want to go to the hassle of DIYing one, I'd have heard about it by now, and I'd be selling them [nothing beats Value Add services for good profit margins].
That being said, oddly enough, I *have* had people come to my store with PAL games they want to play on NTSC PS2s, and PAL PS2s that they want to play NTSC games. -
Re:Not available in the US.
>Streaming internet video,
>---not available in the US.
It's actually ironic, considering that for the longest time, the UK had such a screwed up set of laws enacted for the benefit of BT (*) that the idea of streaming *anything* took far longer to materialize in the UK than many other places.
>Free-to-Air DVB satellite
>---not available in the US
There's plenty available in the US. Here's a few popular DVB satellites (yellow = FTA DVB signal):
Intelsat Americas 5 (was: Telstar 5)
Galaxy 11
Galaxy 10R
AMC 3
AMC 4
AMC 1
Satmex 5
Intelsat Americas 7 (was: Telstar 7)
There's more, but that should do. :)
It's just that there's nothing particularly *interesting* to most people there. Now, if you happen to speak arabic or spanish, you're in luck.
As far as pay DVB goes, you'd be surprised to hear it, but DishNetwork is a DVB system (although they hate to admit it). Point a dish at it and hook up a DVB receiver and you can download a list of channels, and watch the unencrypted ones (not many).
>Cheap Broadband
>---not available in the US
I hear of all sorts of deals. That being said, you have to expect a small (by area) country like the UK to be able to better provide cheaper internet to its citizens. They're so close together, wiring things is dirt cheap.
>DMCA chip free inkjet cartridges
>---not available in the US
LOL :-) Also not available in a lot of other countries. Well, there's no DMCA, but the chip is still there.
>Region code free DVD players
>---not available in the US
That's a case of supply and demand. I'm in Canada and I'd offer them in my store, but there's about zero interest in them. I sell specialty products like what you've mentioned (Ex: DVB satellite systems), and if there were more than a couple of hundred people in Canada that *REALLY* wanted a region-free DVD player, *and* didn't want to go to the hassle of DIYing one, I'd have heard about it by now, and I'd be selling them [nothing beats Value Add services for good profit margins].
That being said, oddly enough, I *have* had people come to my store with PAL games they want to play on NTSC PS2s, and PAL PS2s that they want to play NTSC games. -
Re:Not available in the US.
>Streaming internet video,
>---not available in the US.
It's actually ironic, considering that for the longest time, the UK had such a screwed up set of laws enacted for the benefit of BT (*) that the idea of streaming *anything* took far longer to materialize in the UK than many other places.
>Free-to-Air DVB satellite
>---not available in the US
There's plenty available in the US. Here's a few popular DVB satellites (yellow = FTA DVB signal):
Intelsat Americas 5 (was: Telstar 5)
Galaxy 11
Galaxy 10R
AMC 3
AMC 4
AMC 1
Satmex 5
Intelsat Americas 7 (was: Telstar 7)
There's more, but that should do. :)
It's just that there's nothing particularly *interesting* to most people there. Now, if you happen to speak arabic or spanish, you're in luck.
As far as pay DVB goes, you'd be surprised to hear it, but DishNetwork is a DVB system (although they hate to admit it). Point a dish at it and hook up a DVB receiver and you can download a list of channels, and watch the unencrypted ones (not many).
>Cheap Broadband
>---not available in the US
I hear of all sorts of deals. That being said, you have to expect a small (by area) country like the UK to be able to better provide cheaper internet to its citizens. They're so close together, wiring things is dirt cheap.
>DMCA chip free inkjet cartridges
>---not available in the US
LOL :-) Also not available in a lot of other countries. Well, there's no DMCA, but the chip is still there.
>Region code free DVD players
>---not available in the US
That's a case of supply and demand. I'm in Canada and I'd offer them in my store, but there's about zero interest in them. I sell specialty products like what you've mentioned (Ex: DVB satellite systems), and if there were more than a couple of hundred people in Canada that *REALLY* wanted a region-free DVD player, *and* didn't want to go to the hassle of DIYing one, I'd have heard about it by now, and I'd be selling them [nothing beats Value Add services for good profit margins].
That being said, oddly enough, I *have* had people come to my store with PAL games they want to play on NTSC PS2s, and PAL PS2s that they want to play NTSC games. -
Re:Not available in the US.
>Streaming internet video,
>---not available in the US.
It's actually ironic, considering that for the longest time, the UK had such a screwed up set of laws enacted for the benefit of BT (*) that the idea of streaming *anything* took far longer to materialize in the UK than many other places.
>Free-to-Air DVB satellite
>---not available in the US
There's plenty available in the US. Here's a few popular DVB satellites (yellow = FTA DVB signal):
Intelsat Americas 5 (was: Telstar 5)
Galaxy 11
Galaxy 10R
AMC 3
AMC 4
AMC 1
Satmex 5
Intelsat Americas 7 (was: Telstar 7)
There's more, but that should do. :)
It's just that there's nothing particularly *interesting* to most people there. Now, if you happen to speak arabic or spanish, you're in luck.
As far as pay DVB goes, you'd be surprised to hear it, but DishNetwork is a DVB system (although they hate to admit it). Point a dish at it and hook up a DVB receiver and you can download a list of channels, and watch the unencrypted ones (not many).
>Cheap Broadband
>---not available in the US
I hear of all sorts of deals. That being said, you have to expect a small (by area) country like the UK to be able to better provide cheaper internet to its citizens. They're so close together, wiring things is dirt cheap.
>DMCA chip free inkjet cartridges
>---not available in the US
LOL :-) Also not available in a lot of other countries. Well, there's no DMCA, but the chip is still there.
>Region code free DVD players
>---not available in the US
That's a case of supply and demand. I'm in Canada and I'd offer them in my store, but there's about zero interest in them. I sell specialty products like what you've mentioned (Ex: DVB satellite systems), and if there were more than a couple of hundred people in Canada that *REALLY* wanted a region-free DVD player, *and* didn't want to go to the hassle of DIYing one, I'd have heard about it by now, and I'd be selling them [nothing beats Value Add services for good profit margins].
That being said, oddly enough, I *have* had people come to my store with PAL games they want to play on NTSC PS2s, and PAL PS2s that they want to play NTSC games. -
Re:Not available in the US.
>Streaming internet video,
>---not available in the US.
It's actually ironic, considering that for the longest time, the UK had such a screwed up set of laws enacted for the benefit of BT (*) that the idea of streaming *anything* took far longer to materialize in the UK than many other places.
>Free-to-Air DVB satellite
>---not available in the US
There's plenty available in the US. Here's a few popular DVB satellites (yellow = FTA DVB signal):
Intelsat Americas 5 (was: Telstar 5)
Galaxy 11
Galaxy 10R
AMC 3
AMC 4
AMC 1
Satmex 5
Intelsat Americas 7 (was: Telstar 7)
There's more, but that should do. :)
It's just that there's nothing particularly *interesting* to most people there. Now, if you happen to speak arabic or spanish, you're in luck.
As far as pay DVB goes, you'd be surprised to hear it, but DishNetwork is a DVB system (although they hate to admit it). Point a dish at it and hook up a DVB receiver and you can download a list of channels, and watch the unencrypted ones (not many).
>Cheap Broadband
>---not available in the US
I hear of all sorts of deals. That being said, you have to expect a small (by area) country like the UK to be able to better provide cheaper internet to its citizens. They're so close together, wiring things is dirt cheap.
>DMCA chip free inkjet cartridges
>---not available in the US
LOL :-) Also not available in a lot of other countries. Well, there's no DMCA, but the chip is still there.
>Region code free DVD players
>---not available in the US
That's a case of supply and demand. I'm in Canada and I'd offer them in my store, but there's about zero interest in them. I sell specialty products like what you've mentioned (Ex: DVB satellite systems), and if there were more than a couple of hundred people in Canada that *REALLY* wanted a region-free DVD player, *and* didn't want to go to the hassle of DIYing one, I'd have heard about it by now, and I'd be selling them [nothing beats Value Add services for good profit margins].
That being said, oddly enough, I *have* had people come to my store with PAL games they want to play on NTSC PS2s, and PAL PS2s that they want to play NTSC games. -
Re:Not available in the US.
>Streaming internet video,
>---not available in the US.
It's actually ironic, considering that for the longest time, the UK had such a screwed up set of laws enacted for the benefit of BT (*) that the idea of streaming *anything* took far longer to materialize in the UK than many other places.
>Free-to-Air DVB satellite
>---not available in the US
There's plenty available in the US. Here's a few popular DVB satellites (yellow = FTA DVB signal):
Intelsat Americas 5 (was: Telstar 5)
Galaxy 11
Galaxy 10R
AMC 3
AMC 4
AMC 1
Satmex 5
Intelsat Americas 7 (was: Telstar 7)
There's more, but that should do. :)
It's just that there's nothing particularly *interesting* to most people there. Now, if you happen to speak arabic or spanish, you're in luck.
As far as pay DVB goes, you'd be surprised to hear it, but DishNetwork is a DVB system (although they hate to admit it). Point a dish at it and hook up a DVB receiver and you can download a list of channels, and watch the unencrypted ones (not many).
>Cheap Broadband
>---not available in the US
I hear of all sorts of deals. That being said, you have to expect a small (by area) country like the UK to be able to better provide cheaper internet to its citizens. They're so close together, wiring things is dirt cheap.
>DMCA chip free inkjet cartridges
>---not available in the US
LOL :-) Also not available in a lot of other countries. Well, there's no DMCA, but the chip is still there.
>Region code free DVD players
>---not available in the US
That's a case of supply and demand. I'm in Canada and I'd offer them in my store, but there's about zero interest in them. I sell specialty products like what you've mentioned (Ex: DVB satellite systems), and if there were more than a couple of hundred people in Canada that *REALLY* wanted a region-free DVD player, *and* didn't want to go to the hassle of DIYing one, I'd have heard about it by now, and I'd be selling them [nothing beats Value Add services for good profit margins].
That being said, oddly enough, I *have* had people come to my store with PAL games they want to play on NTSC PS2s, and PAL PS2s that they want to play NTSC games. -
Re:Not available in the US.
>Streaming internet video,
>---not available in the US.
It's actually ironic, considering that for the longest time, the UK had such a screwed up set of laws enacted for the benefit of BT (*) that the idea of streaming *anything* took far longer to materialize in the UK than many other places.
>Free-to-Air DVB satellite
>---not available in the US
There's plenty available in the US. Here's a few popular DVB satellites (yellow = FTA DVB signal):
Intelsat Americas 5 (was: Telstar 5)
Galaxy 11
Galaxy 10R
AMC 3
AMC 4
AMC 1
Satmex 5
Intelsat Americas 7 (was: Telstar 7)
There's more, but that should do. :)
It's just that there's nothing particularly *interesting* to most people there. Now, if you happen to speak arabic or spanish, you're in luck.
As far as pay DVB goes, you'd be surprised to hear it, but DishNetwork is a DVB system (although they hate to admit it). Point a dish at it and hook up a DVB receiver and you can download a list of channels, and watch the unencrypted ones (not many).
>Cheap Broadband
>---not available in the US
I hear of all sorts of deals. That being said, you have to expect a small (by area) country like the UK to be able to better provide cheaper internet to its citizens. They're so close together, wiring things is dirt cheap.
>DMCA chip free inkjet cartridges
>---not available in the US
LOL :-) Also not available in a lot of other countries. Well, there's no DMCA, but the chip is still there.
>Region code free DVD players
>---not available in the US
That's a case of supply and demand. I'm in Canada and I'd offer them in my store, but there's about zero interest in them. I sell specialty products like what you've mentioned (Ex: DVB satellite systems), and if there were more than a couple of hundred people in Canada that *REALLY* wanted a region-free DVD player, *and* didn't want to go to the hassle of DIYing one, I'd have heard about it by now, and I'd be selling them [nothing beats Value Add services for good profit margins].
That being said, oddly enough, I *have* had people come to my store with PAL games they want to play on NTSC PS2s, and PAL PS2s that they want to play NTSC games. -
Re:Subscriber service available?