Satellite dish alignment

[Norman Verona]

I've had to move the satellite dish.

 

I have a signal strength meter plugged into the decoder/ariel lead.

 

Two questions.

 

1) will the meter work at the dish end?

 

2) when I move the dish through an arc will the meter rise gradually or just jump from say, 2 to 4 and then go back to 2?

 

 

At the moment I have 2 showing and the TV says "No or Bad signal". If I move the dish right and left HM says it will jump to 4 and then back again.

 

Thanks.

 

[martyblues]

1) yes

2)it's quite sensitive,and is easier if your finder has an audio output

[WestyNottm]

If it is a signal strength meter specifically for satellite, it will work at the dish end as it will either power the LNB itself, or let the feed through from the receiver. if it is just a general RF (aerial) signal strength meter, you will have to rely on HM shouting up to you, or use a long lead so you can see it where the dish is.

 

Bearing in mind that the transmitting satellite is about 22,000 miles away, even a one degree error will miss it by some distance so setting is fairly critical. It will take a little time to home in on the signal - you can often see it vary when tightening the dish bolts for example.

[Norman Verona]

OK, thanks for that. I've got a picture but the signal strength still says it's 2. I'll take the meter up tomorrow and see if I can fine tune it.

 

It is a satellite finder meter. It has a knob marked Db. Do I need to turn that to a value? It screeches when turned all the way to the right.It's scaled from +6 one way to -6 the other. 0 in the middle. It also has a socket marked  "power 13-18v". Do I need to find a supply  for this?

 

Again, thanks for the advice.

[martyblues]

Should get it's power from your Lnb/ box as Westy Nottm explained above (if its making a noise, it has power)

 

Turn the db pot down to a  reasonable sound level , and as you adjust the dish it should change in pitch as you tune in to the transmitted signal.

[WestyNottm]

Just keep fine tuning the dB setting so that the needle on the meter is about mid-scale. In that way you can peak the setting to the highest level possible

[Norman Verona]

OK, it does screech if the knob is turned fully. When you say turn it to the minus side (is that what you mean by "down").

 

The scale goes from 0-10 so I should be aiming for 5, Correct?

 

Once again thanks.

[WestyNottm]

Yes, the idea is to 'peak' the meter to get the maximum possible signal. The adjusting knob enables you to keep the metre needle somewhere near the centre of the movement. This means you can avoid full scale deflection.

[Norman Verona]

OK, I'll give it a go tomorrow, as long as it's not raining!

[WestyNottm]

Good luck. If it's any consolation, we also have rain forecast here in Nottingham tomorrow.

[Norman Verona]

We have rain forecast overnight and local thunderstorms in the morning. Seeing as it's been over 30 c all week we need a bit of a cooling off.

[s2rrr]

Norman please try not to fall off the roof. Fine tuning can be a bit fiddly as just tightening the clamps can move the dish a little, just trial an error.

 

Good luck

 

Bob  

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman]

Don't do a Rod Hull....

[Norman Verona]

No problem chaps and thanks for your concerns. There's scaffolding up at the moment as the roof is being replaced. In fact it was because the dish was knocked that I decided to fit the proper wall bracket I've had for 5 years and realign it. We had a picture before but would lose it during heavy rain.

 

It started to rain at 06:45 and had stopped by 08:00. It's overcast and chilly at the moment. I'm thinking I may have a day off but I'll probably be bored in an hour and find something to do.

[s2rrr]

Hand up an Emus ar*e ?? or falling off the roof. Don't fancy either.

 

Bob