4-receivers, minimal wiring - DishPro?

[GnatGoSplat]

My DP301 receiver came with what I believe to be a Legacy Twin LNBF (no big black "dp" label on the back).
I have read that there is absolutely NO WAY with switches to support any more than 2 IRD's with this LNBF.

It was a big enough pain running RG6 into the house while keeping it relatively invisible. If I buy a Legacy Quad LNBF, I'd have to run 3 more RG6 cables into the house to support 4 receivers.

If I get a DishPro Twin LNBF with the black label on the back, it only has 2 outputs like my current Legacy Twin, but is it true that I could take those 2 outputs, run them into the house, then use a DP34 to split it into 4 to work with 4 IRD's?

What's this I've read about needing to change RG6, groundblock, etc. to 2.2GHz compliant in order to use the DishPro LNBF? I'm using the regular stuff that Lowe's carries. Is anyone using an LNBF with standard issue RG6 and grounding block?

Thanks.

[Sandman]

I'm using plain ole RG6 with a standard issue grounding block with a Dish Pro Lnb on a 301, no problems, cable run is less than 75 ft.

Bob

[BobaBird]

Originally posted by GnatGoSplat
If I get a DishPro Twin LNBF with the black label on the back, it only has 2 outputs like my current Legacy Twin, but is it true that I could take those 2 outputs, run them into the house, then use a DP34 to split it into 4 to work with 4 IRD's?Correct, and it illustrates another advantage of DishPro - fewer holes in your exterior walls.

[Jacob S]

Or you can get a dishpro quad but a 34 switch would be better I would think in a way because you could run two into the house then split it from there but if you did not want an external switch then a quad would be better. An external switch would have the disadvantge of being something else to deal with connecting wires up to it and so forth. The good thing is that you could use it with any twin lnbf, so if the twin would go bad it would not cost as much as a quad piece would.

[hojni]

Shawn,

I recently traded out my original Dish500 Legacy Twin LNBF (4 wires from the LNBF into 2 SW21 switches on the dish) and replaced it with a DishPro Twin. Now have only 2 wires running from my dish (original dish BTW) to a SW34 in my basement. I then connected my PVR501 and PVR721 to the SW34 right in my basement.

The beauty is that I can add one more receiver by simply plugging into the SW34. I can also all up to 8 more receivers by daisy-chaining 2 more SW34's right there in the basement. I never have to touch the dish again.

A couple of caveats:

1.) The installers don't all yet understand how the DishPro Twin LNBF and the SW34 work. Mine tried to convince me that I NEEDED a DishPro Quad . Although the Quad would have worked, the Twin with the SW34 is more flexible and doesn't need as many wires coming out of the dish.

2.) I have read that some people are experiencing wierd behavior when they daisy-chain multiple SW34's together (search this site if concerned). I don't expect to ever need more than 4 receivers since I RF modulate my two receivers throughout the house.

3.) If you are used to the SW21's, beware that the SW34 is huge. The size caught me off guard, but mounted real nicely to the side of a 2x12 joist in my basement.

Jim

[GnatGoSplat]

Thanks for all the replies! It certainly seems like a DishPro Twin LNBF is exactly what I want. I just hope it'll be as tolerant of my non-ideal wiring situation as the Legacy LNBF is!

[BobaBird]

Originally posted by hojni
I recently traded out my original Dish500 Legacy Twin LNBF (4 wires from the LNBF into 2 SW21 switches on the dish) and replaced it with a DishPro Twin. Now have only 2 wires running from my dish (original dish BTW)That wasn't a legacy Twin, it's 2 dual output LNBFs, sometimes called a "double dual" setup. See the pictures at http://ekb.echostar.swiki.net/82. The legacy Twin looks the same as the DP Twin minus the dp logo.... to a SW34 ...In the photos I've seen it's called a DP34. This one (http://www.dishretailer.com/ts2002/Disk3/MVC-019S.JPG) is clear.

I agree with your point 1 but as others have suggested, a DP Quad + DP34 is a way to get 6 outputs without paying for 8. You were right to hold your ground.

[hojni]

BobaBird - Thanks for the corrections.

GnatGoSplat - I wouldn't worry too much about the wiring if you used RG6 for your original install. When I upgraded to the DishPro Twin LNBF, I had the installer reuse the two RG6 cables from my original 3 year old Dish500 installation. These cables were from the 500 foot spool of regular RG6 cable that I had purchased from Home Depot almost 4 years ago. They're working fine.

[jgoggan]

This is all provided that all of your IRDs are DishPro-compliant, right? Otherwise, it might be cheaper to go with a Legacy Quad -- although, yes, you'll have to run 4 wires into the house.

I currently have the Dish500 setup with the 2 dual output LNBFs. This allows only two IRDs and needs two SW21s. I want to go to 3 IRDs eventually -- two of which are not DishPro units (one being a 6000 for HDTV, so it isn't like I can just replace the non-DishPro IRDs). Therefore, it was much cheaper for me to just buy a Legacy Quad from EBay than to try to go to a DishPro setup and have to buy the legacy adapter (or two)...

- John...

[GnatGoSplat]

So far my only receiver is a DP-301 so it will work. When I decide to get the other receivers, they will also be DP-301's. I had no idea the 6000 wasn't DishPro, I was thinking about upgrading to that at some point.

[PATECO]

Dish Pro should work with almost all rg6 as long as the fittings are of decent quality , "no screw ons" .

You will have very poor results with RG59 of any type, so don't even try it.