New Member Free-to-Air Satellite Discussion Thread

[Kranberry]

I have a question and am a complete newbie to satellites. I've been on the Lyngsat site, but have a question. It says "Channels from <location>". Does it mean I can only get channels from North America? I live in the GTA and Canada's pickings are very slim, and the U.S. doesn't have that much I want to watch either. Can I receive signals from other countries (assuming they use NTSC, like Japan)?

Sorry if this is in a FAQ, but I didn't find it anywhere.

[Arthur Dent]

The "channels from ..." pages on Lyngsat are pretty much useless, because they show channels by country of origin and not what is actually available in your area. In NA you can only get NA satellites. Look in the Satellite section - Frequencies->America.

[tdti1]

I am in Montreal, I can get from bellow AMC-7 (but there is trees in the way) to past INT-805 I would be able to catch some feeds off of NSS-806 but I would need a wideband feedhorn, and the fact that my house is in the way don't help much

[Kojack]

very new to satelite, need any info you have on pointing the dish for BEV or Dishnet

[ken0042]

You do realize that pretty much the only FTA on Dish is NASA, and Bell has nothing.

(Other than the respective company's promo channels showing how to hook up a receiver.)

[Arthur Dent]

Originally Posted by ken0042

You do realize that pretty much the only FTA on Dish is NASA, and Bell has nothing.

(Other than the respective company's promo channels showing how to hook up a receiver.)

That is not correct. On Dish GolTV is FTA - heaven for soccer fans. Also 30 music audio channels.
On BEV the radio channels are FTA, as well as the HD Demo loop.

[VanDiezel]

So to get it right, if I have a FTA receiver for 110 and 119 all I would get for free is the NASA and Goaltv and the 30 music channels? Its better then nothing but its not much

[alex04]

I have been interested in FTA satellite for quite a while now and I was wondering what is involved in order to be able to receive these signals. I know that most people use large 10 ft. dishes in their backyards but is it in any way possible to use a standard DBS dish receive a satellite signal? I realize that the reason people use large dishes with rotators is so that they are able to obtain feeds from many different satellites but is that just for accuracy or is it completely neccesary. Because this would be a hobby for me, I wouldn't really care about having everything automated so I wouldn't mind having to go and reallign the dish.

Next, what hardware is required and what outputs do the various receivers have? What standard is the programming broadcast in (resolution)? What programming is available and is it possible to pay/hack to receive more channels from other non-FreeToAir (ie. encrypted feeds like Fox)?

-Alex

[Faz]

If you can find one of the older, 24" round, StarChoice dishes you would be able to pick up some stuff. I have one myself. The small dishes used these days by ExpressVu and StarChoice would most likely be too small to pick up anything other than, well, ExpressVu or StarChoice.

Something else to note: there are two satellite bands: C band (3,700 to 4,200 MHz) and Ku (11,700 to 12,700 MHz). Note that C band frequencies are much lower than Ku band, so a much larger dish is needed. Those 10-ft dishes that you see can pick up C band signals. The smaller dishes (anything less than 6-ft.) can only receive Ku band signals.

A good website to check out is www.lyngsat.com. It has charts of what channels are on what frequencies on what satellites. It may look confusing at first, but surf the net and learn what it's all about!

For equipment (in the GTA at least), a number of computer stores are starting to include FTA satellite equipment. Check out ads in Hub magazine.

With regard to hacking encrypted channels: forget it. It is illegal.

[tricky]

I was researching dishes for FTA today. I was told that if I wanted to get C band, I would need to use at least a 120 centimeter dish. Their dish came with a Ku LNB so I would need to buy a C band LNB if I wanted to get both signals. The motor I wash shown was capable of moving upto a 120 CM dish. I havnt shopped around yet but was quoted about $100 for the C band LNB, $140 for the 120 CM dish and $119 for their Top motor. Like I said I have to shop around yet.

[Bunkhouse]

For a list of all Free-To-Air channels available on KU check out this: http://www.global-cm.net/MPEGlistKuBandUS.html

KU is the way to go, unless you already have a massive 6+ footer cband one.
To get most out of KU you'll need a 1 meter dish (the smaller you go, the less you'll be able to pick up). For receivers i recently purchased a COOLSAT 4000 PRO off ebay for $170. Excellent receiver with an eye pleasing interface. Plus i'd recommend getting a satillite finder SF-95 (got one off ebay for $20 and it is very handy)

If you just want FOX, ABC WB UPN, then 123.0 West (Galaxy 10-R) is the one you'll want to point at.
--------------
Partial list of networks on 123W
Fox
WMQF-Marquette, MI
KPBI-Ft Smith, AR

UPN
WBIF-Panama City, FL
KTVC-Oregon
KQUP-Spokane, WA
WGMU-Vermont

CBS
WVXF-Puerto Rico

ABC
KWTO-Casper, WY
KTTU-Cheyenne, WY
WPRU-Puerto Rico

WB
KWBF-Little Rock
KWFT-WB feed
KWBM-FT Smith

PAX
KYPX-LIttle Rock
--------------------

I currently am pointed at AMC4 101W for RTPi (Portuguese TV), which also has a FOX channel and the quality is close to that of bell i find.

[hugh]

In an effort to reduce spammers and to deal with one off questions, Digital Home Canada restricts new members from posting new threads until they have been with us for 91 days and or have achieved a pre-specified post count.

New members are welcome to post their questions into existing threads, however, if you have a question or comment that doesn't fit neatly into any existing thread then please post your question in this thread and you'll be sure to get the assistance you need.

If you're having any problems with using the forums or don't understand then please check out our Digital Home Canada Help forum where we answer Frequently Asked questions.

In the Help Forum, you will also find the Rules of the Forum. You are required to know and abide by them prior to posting.

Also be sure to check out the stickied threads at the top of this forum. Stickied threads generally answer many of the common questions or discuss popular issues.

We welcome all new members and hope that once you get your questions answered, you'll give back to others by answering their questions.

[blueorrfan]

I'm not new to the satellite scene but am to FTA. I live in south-central Ontario and was wondering....A) What is needed for a basic start-up and....B) What can I expect out of my FTA experience in this area....any help is appreciated

[hugh]

my advice is to search the threads here as the questions have been asked before.

[mimi]

would you please be able to help me find where i can but a free to air satellite combo (dish & receiver). i livein edmonton area ? i am looking for satcruiser dsr 101 plus..thanks a lot