(Use these tips for other satellites too! Get the
transponder information you need at
http://www.lyngsat.com/america.shtml )
1. From your computer, download the satellite finder
program from the Q&A page of our site at
http://www.americansatellitedistributors.com/main/qa.html . Look for
‘Satellite Finder Program Download’.
2. Open the program after installing, and enter your
zip code and then click COMPUTE. Your coordinates for
the major US satellites will appear on the right of the
page. “Azimuth” refers to the compass setting or
direction the satellite dish needs to face to receive
programming from the satellite listed. “Elevation” is
the angle the dish needs to be pointed toward the sky.
The elevation reading is on the side of the satellite
dish mount. Move the dish mount to the elevation
required and then tighten. Do this before placing the
satellite dish on the satellite mast.
3. Unpack your receiver and place near the television.
Connect the cable from the satellite dish to the
connection on the satellite receiver that says “LNB in”
or “Satellite In” or “Digital In”. The cable from the
receiver to the TV or VCR should come from the port
marked “TV Out”, or “Out to TV”.
Select either channel 3 or 4 on the back of the
receiver. Turn your TV to the channel you selected.
You should have an on-screen menu, and you may address
it with your remote control.
4. Go to DISH SETUP. The same category may be called
ANTENNA SETTING in some receiver menus. For the LNB
type, most of the LNBFs we send out are not UNIVERSAL.
(NOTICE!!! This is where most self-installers drop the
ball. Your LNB may be a standard LNBF. Look at the
label to be sure! If the LO frequency says 10.75 GHz,
then your LNBF is a standard LNBF, not universal! Make
sure that your menu reflects the settings below:
Satellite
Galaxy 10R
Dish Type Fixed
(If you are installing a motor, change this to DISEQC later.)
LNB Type use
'UNIVERSAL' if your LNBF has an upper limit other than
12.2
use 'STANDARD' or 'NORMAL'
if the LNBF label lists an upper limit of 12.2
LO
Freq 10750 (5150 if you are looking for
C-Band signals)
22Khz OFF
DiSeqC OFF
0/12V 0 or
none
14/18V NONE
FTA Only NO
LNB Power ON
5. Go to TRANSPONDER SETUP (might say TRANSPONDER
SETTING or EDIT TRANSPONDER). Make sure you are looking
at Galaxy 10R. If Galaxy 10R is not loaded into the
receiver, you will have to load it. There should be
one transponder with the following settings:
FREQUENCY- 11800
SYMBOL RATE- 26657
POLARITY- Vertical
*Scroll through the list of transponders. If you don't
see one with the settings listed above, add it manually.
After you have the transponder loaded, look for a signal
meter (it may say 0% at this point) on the screen. This
is the meter you should use while aiming for the
signal. If you don’t have a signal meter, you can call
on the telephone from the dish to someone who is sitting
in front of the TV watching the signal quality meter.
6. Back to the dish! Make sure your dish is level.
The only way your dish will be level (plum) is to
install the dish mast without the dish on it and make
sure it is level.
Hold a level vertically against the up-and-down portion
of the mast (the little bubble in the level should be in
the middle between the lines). If you don't have a
level, you will have a tough time.
7. Set the elevation adjustment on the side of the
dish to the elevation you need for your area. Now drop
the dish on the mast that you just leveled. Hook up the
cable line to the LNBF on the end of the dish and run it
directly to the receiver LNB IN (might say FROM LNB).
Eliminate all signal splitters and splices in the line
for now. Run the cable through a window for now if you
must, but get your signal first. After you acquire the
signal, then you can hook it to the existing cable in
your house. If your signal goes away, you know not to
use your existing cable, but don't waste hours and hours
only to find out that you ran your line through some old
washed out cable or a splitter that was under the floor.
8. Where are you aiming? Is your azimuth 180? 220?
Do you know what the numbers mean? Do you have a
compass? If you do, try this method:
Put your compass on the ground. Wait until the arrow
stops. See the point on the arrow? It’s pointing at
ZERO, or true North. Now if true North is ZERO, it only
makes sense that true South is 180 degrees. It then
follows that true East is 90 degrees and true West is
270. So draw a visual line from the middle of the
compass to the azimuth you have figured for the
satellite you are aiming for. That is your aiming
vector. Simple, huh?
Now, one last adjustment: If your azimuth is around
180, your LNB should be set straight up and down. If
your azimuth is a number higher than 180, your LNB
should be tilted slightly counterclockwise in the collar
(looking at the front of the dish). Only slightly,
unless your azimuth is more to the west. If so, you
might turn your LNB to 11 o’clock or even 10 o’clock to
get better signal quality. (Why are there two meters on
the on-screen menu?) One is for signal strength and one
is for signal quality. Strength may be high, but if
your quality reading is less than 55 or so, you will not
scan any channels into memory when you search. If you
have a high signal strength number, you may still be
aiming at another satellite. Only when you see the
quality reading rise, do you know when you are aiming at
the satellite that you are looking for.)
Conversely, if your azimuth is less than 180, the LNB
should be tilted clockwise. See the diagrams below.
9. Move the dish slowly from far left to right.
SLOWLY! Either use a satellite finder or use a cell
phone to call a buddy who is patiently sitting in your
living room looking at the transponder signal screen.
(If you never get ANY signal quality, adjust your
elevation up or down a degree or two and try again.
Remember, SLOWLY!)
10. When you get high signal strength AND quality
readings, scan the transponder. You will need to do it
twice to get the receiver to recognize ALL of the
transponders (channel bunches). The second time around,
change the scan mode from 'SCAN 1 TP' to 'SCAN 1 SAT'
or 'ALL SAT'. If you think you are missing one, go to
http://www.lyngsat.com/america.shtml and click
on and scroll down to see if all of the transponders
loaded for you automatically. If not, manually add the
ones that were missed. At lyngsat.com, the transponder
frequency is located in the first column, along with the
polarization. A little ‘V’ underneath the frequency
means Vertical. A little ‘H’ stands for Horizontal.
The symbol rate is located in the sixth column. The
symbol rate is always given in the top row of each
transponder listing. It’s usually 5 digits, but
sometimes it’s only 4.
11. If you don't get signal, here are the problems in
order of popularity:
a. Dish is not level (no amount of faking it will work
here)
b. Cabling is compromised somehow by a splice, signal
splitter or bad connector
c. Aiming at wrong place because of lack of compass
(should have purchased an install kit)
d. A tree or roof overhang is blocking the path (the
dish receives signal from a higher angle than you think)
e. Satellite receiver on-screen menu settings are
incorrect (see above hints)
f. No voltage from the receiver through the cable
leading to the dish (may be checked, see below)
g. LNB is bad (may have been dropped creating
shock-loss)
h. Dish is assembled incorrectly
*-Checking voltage- A voltmeter is $6-$10 for a low-end
unit at Home Depot or Lowes. Unscrew the cable from the
LNB. Take one lead (black) and hold it against the
outside of the cable connector. Take the other lead
(red) and touch it against the center wire of the
cable. Make sure these leads do not touch each other,
as it will ground out your circuit. (Make sure the
voltmeter is turned two clicks to the left from the off
position. There should be a reading of 13V or 18V. If
so, the receiver is sending voltage and the unit is
probably OK. If you can't find the voltage, try all of
the voltmeter settings before giving up. Your voltmeter
may be set up differently. If you ever see 13V or 18V,
your voltage is OK.
After checking all of these items, you might need to
consider a professional installer. *Suggestion- Finish
the installation of your satellite system. Tidy up
before the installer comes, as he is likely to charge
you only for a service call if he thinks that most of
the work has been done. We can refer you to an
installer in your area should you need one. E-mail us
at
technical@americansatellitedistributors.com to make a request
for a local installer.
If at any time, the installer or yourself determines
that the receiver or LNBF is faulty, send an e-mail to
technical support and tell them you would like a
replacement and detail your findings. You will be
issued an RMA (return merchandise authorization). All
returned items must have the RMA number inside the box
and written on the outside of the box.
Send the item to us in its original box. Make sure to
track it, either with UPS, FEDEX or US Post Office.
Send another e-mail to
technical@americansatellitedistributors.com stating the cost of
the shipping. If our bench test determines that the
unit is faulty, you will not be charged for shipping of
the replacement. Should our bench test determine that
the unit is functional, your shipping charges will not
be eligible for refund. A charge of $15 plus shipping
will be assessed for all items that are found functional
and then returned to the customer
If you return an item that is not faulty you will
possibly be charged a restocking fee if the item is not
in perfect condition.
Thanks for your patronage. Happy channel surfing!
American Satellite Distributors
