Set/align dish with 4 LNB?

[Sat-Watcher]

I'm helping a friend to set/align his dish, but I would need some help.


His dish has 4 LNBs, and he wants to get as many Bulgarian channels as possible.
How do I resolve this in the best AND easiest way?
I have not worked with 4 LNBs before.

I'm not even sure if all LNB is ok. Does it matter if one LNB is defective and is connected to the same switch as the others?


I need to know all this, because I find it very difficult to pick the dish and check this out later. It sits very high up on a house, and I will be on a slightly unstable wooden stand.



I have no expensive, fine instruments for this, just an old fashioned compass and a satbeeper.
I am grateful for all the help I can get as soon as possible.

Best regards from Sweden...

[Zanny24]

Hi. You have a number of issues really. Why dont you put a motor on the dish ?? You will get more channels from more satellites. I personally would not recommend doing any work on a dish high on a house with an unstable ladder or wooden stand. IT CAN BE DANGEROUS, DONT TAKE CHANCES. Can you not put the dish further down the house to make it safer to work on? If you are thinking of putting 4 LNB's on a dish what satellites are you hoping to get?. Remember to get satellites you need the right dish size for your location. Also you will need to make sure that the LNB's are positioned correctly. To put four LNB's on a dish is not that difficult and you dont need expensive instruments or sat finder etc. You need a four way Diseqc switch (has 5 connections 4 for LNB's and one for receiver). What receiver do you have as you will need to go into receiver to set the switch up.

Regards

[Sat-Watcher]

A big thank you for your concern, but I have already promised to help him with this.
There's already 4 LNB on the dish, and they are connected to a switch.

I'm not quite sure which satellites to use (hence my question for help), but he wants Bulgarian channels.
It's a new digital receiver. (Can not remember the brand or model.)

[Zanny24]

Hi. At least you are aware of the risks involved. If you already have 4 LNB's connected to a switch basically this is how it should work. The four LNB's are connected to the switch via 4 separate short cables and you have one long cable from switch to receiver LNB input. The switch can be left near the dish so you dont need long cables going into the house apart from the receiver cable. The switch has four connections usually marked A, B, C, D or 1,2,3,4 depending on model.Each connection then has to be setup in receiver menu for each satellite. To be honest you really need to know which satellites these 4 LNB's are connected to and also look in your receiver for DISEQC 1.1 protocol to set up the switch. When you say Bulgarian channels which one in particular. Remember a lot of channels you need to pay for unless your receiver can be patched to view certain channels. As i dont know which receiver you have its difficult to advise at this stage. Please let me know if you need further help and i may be able to help. I will not be able to respond until later today.

Regards

[Sat-Watcher]

Yes, I am fully aware of all the risks. Thank you again.
I'm waiting for a response from my friend about what he has for digital receiver.


I think he wants all the Bulgarian channels that are open / free. ;)
I am grateful for advice on the appropriate satellites for this.

EDIT: The receiver is a Pace DS250NV.

[Zanny24]

Hi. To be honest i think its going to be difficult to get a lot of Bulgarian channels with this receiver as it cannot be patched to open channels. According to info within this forum there are no patches available. There are Bulgarian channels opened with patches at the moment on satellite HELLASAT at 39 east. This is for the BULSAT channels like Diema, NOVASPORT etc. There are a number of free Bulgarian channels available on this satellite but for you to receive them depends on the size of the dish your friend has. I dont know how your friend is going to setup 4 LNB's when there is going to be very few channels opened. Is the receiver working at the moment and which satellite is it picking up???. Your best bet is to go onto a website like KINGOFSAT and look for Bulgarian channels listed and make a note of the satellite name/position,frequency etc. Your other option is to connect an LNB direct to your receiver (forget the switch for the moment) and look for satellite HELLASAT at 39 east. Make sure your receiver is set to frequency 11054 VERTCAL s/r 30000 for free channel TELEASTY. Then move dish with your hand slowly left and right and up and down until you get a picture on your tv or signal in receiver installation menu. When you get a picture or signal tighten the dish up and do a scan. I think you are going to struggle to get 4 LNB's working just for Bulgarian channels. Your friend will be better off getting a receiver that is patchable to watch channels from BULSAT etc or just google your receiver model to see if it can be patched. To setup 4 LNB's is not difficult but you need to know which satellites you want and if your dish is big enough to spread the 4 LNB's correctly. Hopefully KINGOFSAT will help you to identify any satellites you may need. Hope this makes sense.

Regards

[Sat-Watcher]

Many thanks for all the help so far.

If it is as you say/write, that there are only a few open Bulgarian channels, then I do not understand why there should be 4 LNBs.
The dish is relatively large (and heavy).

I don't understand what you mean by the digital receiver can not take in open channels.
He claims to have received Bulgarian open channels before with this box, when he lived in another city. (He could be wrong, I don't know.)

I think he will be more than satisfied if he can see on ANY Bulgarian channel.
I almost begin to get a little anxious about this "problem", as I have promised to fix this for him.

His receiver is relatively new, and I can not see that there should be any major problems with getting 2-3 open Bulgarian channels.
But I'm still a bit unsure of which satellite is the best choice.

I usually don't have major problems installing/align satellite dishes to Sirius (Viasat), or Thor (Canal Digital).
But this with 4 LNB and Bulgarian channels, are new to me.

[Andrushenka]

Many thanks for all the help so far.

I don't understand what you mean by the digital receiver can not take in open channels.
He claims to have received Bulgarian open channels before with this box, when he lived in another city. (He could be wrong, I don't know.)

Well I think you misunderstood what zanny24 wrote: He wrote "with this receiver as it cannot be patched to open channels". That means that it is not possible to program this receiver to open encrypted channels. Of course, it is possible to get open (not encrypted) channels.

For the rest I have nothing to add to Zanny's explanations which seem to me very clear.

[Sat-Watcher]

Ok! So there is no problem getting free/open channels with this box then?
Is Bulsat the best choice here?

[Zanny24]

Hi. I think you are misunderstanding what has been said. If your friend wants only ONE Bulgarian channel what is the point of 4 LNB's.?? You need to understand that MOST channels today are not opened without a) Paying for them or 2) Having proper receiver which can be modified( or patched) to open channels like BULSAT. Even BULSAT will not last forever. You really need to sit down with your friend and decide what you are able to receive with your size dish and receiver. I always say it is better to have a motor on a dish rather than 4, 6 or 8 LNB's etc. I understand why people may want more than 1 LNB( for example if they have two receivers etc). Problem you have is receiver is not patchable and your friend only wants Bulgarian channels. Aks your your friend to Google in Bulgarian for more info. What is the point of you risking your safety on a dodgy ladder for the sake of one Bulgarian channel.

Take care.