New Member Free-to-Air Satellite Discussion Thread - Page 24 - Canadian TV, Computing and Home Theatre Forums

birdwatcher · 2012-06-12, 10:47 PM

please excuse the msg if it falls into a different thread. I'm super new to the FTA game. Decided on FTA purely to get as much TV as I can get without having to get screwed by a subscriber service every month. I also do OTA as well.

I would say I'm patient as It's taken me a month so far to slowly acquire stuff I need to get up and running. First mistake. I should have grabbed a Coolsat 8100 as I've read it does both FTA and OTA. I bought an Openbox S10.

Anyways, my S10 is one of the ones with a crappy power board. So I'm patiently awaiting a new Yojia S10 power board. Let's hope it's not the same old garbage.

Here's my setup. ******** 90 dish, Stab HH90 motor, 100 ft of quad shield coax, Openbox S10.

Is my expectation for the receiver to push enough power to move the dish too much? Sadly I am somewhat limited to a 100 foot run to the dish.

I would welcome any suggestions/insights on this, and especially anyone who has had success/failures with replacing the Openbox S10 power board.

Thanks a lot!!

HDTV101 · 2012-06-13, 03:26 AM

fortyninersfan You need an HU card... and a 911 programmer

DrSat · 2012-06-13, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fortyninersfan

Hi... I used to have FTA .. years ago... a viewsat reciever.... we stopped using because we had problems with it. I am really eager to learn about new FTAs.. and which are best etc... and how they are programmed now... any help would be greatly appreciated...
Thanks

You are most likely referring about satellite piracy as FTA receivers don't have to be "programmed" on a regular basis in order to maintain service. However, you may still use your existing Viewsat receiver in order to receive FTA satellite simply by installing a 33 inch or larger dish with a linear LNBF for Ku-band FTA or a 4 ft. or larger dish for some C-band channels as well.

Kraven · 2012-06-13, 11:03 AM

LOL! Good one HDTV

HDTV101 · 2012-06-14, 06:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kraven

LOL! Good one HDTV

They use to also call the HU the "Football Card" later it became known as the OJ card..

The joke was "OJ hacked his wife and got away with it... but when he hacked Direct TV he got convicted"

birdwatcher · 2012-06-15, 08:14 AM

was able to resolve my Openbox S10 issues with the new Yojia power board. Appropriate dish alignment took a couple of days, but everything is working fantastic now.

does anyone have any leads where to buy the proper size RG6 Quad Shield Compression Connectors? The "Ideal" RG6 ones I have don't slide all the way deep into the coax.

Some great info on this forum.. thanks everyone.

linuxguru · 2012-06-25, 07:29 PM

I know a store in Mississauga that has most parts you might need but don't know locations near you.

The store is called GTA Electronics and you can google the website - they may ship to you.

i use the same S10 and it works very well as a blind scan receiver.

louarnold · 2012-06-30, 03:34 PM

I am in Ottawa, Canada. Entirely new to FTA by satellite.

Channels: I have looked a the Dr Sat website and I am still confused. When I do a channel search, and pick the language as English. I get a long list of channels from many countries. How do I know which I can actually receive where I am with a small dish?

I assume those that do not say "FTA" are by subscription only. Is that correct?

On the lyngsat.com website:
What do the small squares with letters A, F, S and U mean?
If I select a satellite - Galaxy 19, does the "F" under system encryption mean that its FTA?

DrSat · 2012-06-30, 10:04 PM

When doing a channel search on our site, choose "KU band FTA" under source and click on search again. This will now show you the FTA (i.e. free non-subscription channels) that you may receive on KU band which requires an 85 cm (36 inch) dish for optimal reception. There are also FTA channels on C-band as well which requires at least a 180 cm (6 ft.) dish to receive most channels. All channels listed on our channels database are receivable here in Oakville, ON and the same channels would also be receivable in Ottawa as well.

Regards,

Dr. Sat

louarnold · 2012-07-01, 08:03 AM

Dr Sat,
So it seems that I may well need a large dish as opposed to the small 18-24" ones that I see on people's homes.

Installer · 2012-07-01, 08:43 AM

correct 18"-24" dishes are of no value for fta.

missiletom · 2012-07-01, 10:13 AM

Hello,
Newbie here north of T.O. with only Bell experience.
I've aquired a Coolsat 5000 for fta. This particular unit has been used to pirate signals in the past and has not been used for years. I have noticed that 83W and 125W are missing from the sat list...these are the ones I want...
Will a "factory reset " as accessed from the menu, reset this list ? or do I need to now manually update? Are there any software or firmware flashes that I should consider to get this stb working optimally for fta? Also, as it is not an HD unit what will the picture look like if it scans in an HD signal?
Here are the stb deets as visible on-screen
HW 1.10
SW NORW VER 2.04
Boot 2.14 (09:14)
CH version Nov 10 08
Any direction is greatly appreciated.
T

majortom · 2012-07-01, 11:31 AM

not familiar with coolsat, but factory reset usually means wiping out any saved channel lists, and restoring the original list of satellites, yes. The original is usually old, outdated and most of the time has a bunch of useless satellites like from europe in them.

Probably best that you get familiar with how to customise to your liking and do it manually.

You may be able to scan in HD signals that are DVB compliant, the receiver won't be able to play them though. Not sure but will probably just be a black screen.
What's the point though?
Why not just get a newer STB that is capable of DVB-S2, H264, HD?
Or even a PC based Satellite card if ya just wanna get ur feet wet.

DrSat · 2012-07-01, 04:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by louarnold

Dr Sat,
So it seems that I may well need a large dish as opposed to the small 18-24" ones that I see on people's homes.

You need either a medium sized 85 cm dish to receive all of Ku band or a large sized 180cm or larger dish to receive C-band as well.

The small 18-24" dishes you claim to have seen on people's homes are too small to receive FTA channels.

DrSat · 2012-07-01, 04:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by missiletom

Hello, Newbie here north of T.O. with only Bell experience. I've aquired a Coolsat 5000 for fta. This particular unit has been used to pirate signals in the past...

You currently have piracy firmware installed on your receiver so it is recommended to install non-piracy firmware from http://ftafirmware.freehostia.com for optimal operation.

Please note that your receiver does not support HD or DVB-S2 so you won't be able to tune in anything from 125W now that the PBS services on that satellite have transitioned to DVB-S2. No issues with the services on 83W as these are DVB-S in SD.

It's an OK receiver to get your feet wet as it does have a fairly good blind scan. However, you will quickly want to get a new HD receiver that supports DVB-S2 such as AzBox, Openbox or the new upcoming HD models from Traxis and GEOSATpro.

2012-06-12, 10:47 PM	#346
birdwatcher Rookie Join Date: May 2012 Location: Almonte, Ontario Posts: 2	a very patient newbie.. :) please excuse the msg if it falls into a different thread. I'm super new to the FTA game. Decided on FTA purely to get as much TV as I can get without having to get screwed by a subscriber service every month. I also do OTA as well. I would say I'm patient as It's taken me a month so far to slowly acquire stuff I need to get up and running. First mistake. I should have grabbed a Coolsat 8100 as I've read it does both FTA and OTA. I bought an Openbox S10. Anyways, my S10 is one of the ones with a crappy power board. So I'm patiently awaiting a new Yojia S10 power board. Let's hope it's not the same old garbage. Here's my setup. ******** 90 dish, Stab HH90 motor, 100 ft of quad shield coax, Openbox S10. Is my expectation for the receiver to push enough power to move the dish too much? Sadly I am somewhat limited to a 100 foot run to the dish. I would welcome any suggestions/insights on this, and especially anyone who has had success/failures with replacing the Openbox S10 power board. Thanks a lot!!

2012-06-13, 11:03 AM	#349
Kraven Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: South Shore, QC Posts: 530	LOL! Good one HDTV __________________ 6 ft BUD, motorized 39" KU, S10, Viewsat Ultra, CM 4228, home made SBGH

2012-06-30, 03:34 PM	#353
louarnold Rookie Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Bell's Corners, Ontario, Canada Posts: 16	Receivers, satellites and channels? I am in Ottawa, Canada. Entirely new to FTA by satellite. Channels: I have looked a the Dr Sat website and I am still confused. When I do a channel search, and pick the language as English. I get a long list of channels from many countries. How do I know which I can actually receive where I am with a small dish? I assume those that do not say "FTA" are by subscription only. Is that correct? On the lyngsat.com website: What do the small squares with letters A, F, S and U mean? If I select a satellite - Galaxy 19, does the "F" under system encryption mean that its FTA?

2012-06-30, 10:04 PM	#354
DrSat Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Oakville, ON Posts: 762	When doing a channel search on our site, choose "KU band FTA" under source and click on search again. This will now show you the FTA (i.e. free non-subscription channels) that you may receive on KU band which requires an 85 cm (36 inch) dish for optimal reception. There are also FTA channels on C-band as well which requires at least a 180 cm (6 ft.) dish to receive most channels. All channels listed on our channels database are receivable here in Oakville, ON and the same channels would also be receivable in Ottawa as well. Regards, Dr. Sat __________________ Proud sponsor of the FTA satellite forum Fier commanditaire du forum FTA

2012-07-01, 08:43 AM	#356
Installer Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 292	correct 18"-24" dishes are of no value for fta. __________________ "The quality of your question will directly effect the quality of your answer"

2012-06-13, 03:26 AM	#347
HDTV101 Veteran Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 2,000	fortyninersfan You need an HU card... and a 911 programmer

2012-06-15, 08:14 AM	#351
birdwatcher Rookie Join Date: May 2012 Location: Almonte, Ontario Posts: 2	was able to resolve my Openbox S10 issues with the new Yojia power board. Appropriate dish alignment took a couple of days, but everything is working fantastic now. does anyone have any leads where to buy the proper size RG6 Quad Shield Compression Connectors? The "Ideal" RG6 ones I have don't slide all the way deep into the coax. Some great info on this forum.. thanks everyone.

2012-06-25, 07:29 PM	#352
linuxguru Rookie Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 10	I know a store in Mississauga that has most parts you might need but don't know locations near you. The store is called GTA Electronics and you can google the website - they may ship to you. i use the same S10 and it works very well as a blind scan receiver.

2012-07-01, 08:03 AM	#355
louarnold Rookie Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Bell's Corners, Ontario, Canada Posts: 16	Dr Sat, So it seems that I may well need a large dish as opposed to the small 18-24" ones that I see on people's homes.

2012-07-01, 10:13 AM	#357
missiletom Rookie Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Bradford Ontario Posts: 1	New Guy Hello, Newbie here north of T.O. with only Bell experience. I've aquired a Coolsat 5000 for fta. This particular unit has been used to pirate signals in the past and has not been used for years. I have noticed that 83W and 125W are missing from the sat list...these are the ones I want... Will a "factory reset " as accessed from the menu, reset this list ? or do I need to now manually update? Are there any software or firmware flashes that I should consider to get this stb working optimally for fta? Also, as it is not an HD unit what will the picture look like if it scans in an HD signal? Here are the stb deets as visible on-screen HW 1.10 SW NORW VER 2.04 Boot 2.14 (09:14) CH version Nov 10 08 Any direction is greatly appreciated. T

2012-07-01, 11:31 AM	#358
majortom Veteran Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 2,618	not familiar with coolsat, but factory reset usually means wiping out any saved channel lists, and restoring the original list of satellites, yes. The original is usually old, outdated and most of the time has a bunch of useless satellites like from europe in them. Probably best that you get familiar with how to customise to your liking and do it manually. You may be able to scan in HD signals that are DVB compliant, the receiver won't be able to play them though. Not sure but will probably just be a black screen. What's the point though? Why not just get a newer STB that is capable of DVB-S2, H264, HD? Or even a PC based Satellite card if ya just wanna get ur feet wet. __________________ uhf/vhf combo rotor chimney mount homebrew vhf hi hpf ap-8700 preamp 4way split lg lcd dtt901 pctuner mythtv

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