Newbie - help required with Equipement

[satish]

I used to have dish network service but cancelled because I needed regular, local as well as international channels and I cannot have a superdish installed in my apartment.

I now need to have a subscription with only an international programming. Since I am no longer eligible for any dish network deals, I was planning on buying the equipment cheaply online. Here is what I think I need. Can anyone help me confirm this ?

- A dish (I still have a dish 500 with the cabling in place - never removed it)
- A receiver and card
- A single LNB (I was told that if I use a twin LNB with only intl channels it will try to keep locating the other satellite)
- The receiver and LNB should both be legacy or Dishpro. I cannot have one of them as legacy and one of them as dishpro. Is that correct ?

Is it possible for me to do the install myself instead of paying for the professional install ?

Is there anything else I need to know ?

Thanks !

[nsafreak]

Looks good except you can do just fine with a twin LNB. It won't keep looking for the other satellite, it'll just pick up whatever satellite it's pointed towards. The receiver can be DishPro and the LNB can be either DishPro or legacy. It's only with a Legacy receiver that you'd need to have a legacy LNB unless you're using a DishPro adapter with a DishPro LNBF. Cheapest parts are probably going to be a 301/311 receiver along with a DishPro twin LNBF. Quick search on eBay nets a LNB at $15 or less and a receiver at as low as $10.

[satish]

Thanks for the clarifications !
I saw on ebay that some of the receivers do not specify if a smartcard is included.
Is that something I can get from Dish Network at low cost or should I only look for a receiver with a card included ? Does the type of card matter ?

[geobernd]

Check what satellite the programming you want is on. If it's 121 then the Dish 500 won't work. You will need a larger dish and an linear Ku LNB (I am subscribed to only one international channel - and that channel is only on 121)...

[satish]

The programming is Sun TV and it is on multiple satellites as follows :
Satellite: 148 121 61.5
Channel: 610 795 610
Transponder: 11 15 18

If this is the only programming I will use, I was told the Dish 500 will work. Is that not valid ?

Thanks.

[SimpleSimon]

You can NOT use a D300 or D500 for 121. If you can see 148 or 61.5 from where the dish is, then you're OK for that - for as long as E* continues to waste bandwidth on duplicating the feed on 3 birds.

Note when trying to aim a D500 to a wing, you'll only be able to get numbers for a 300 and have to manually adjust the azimuth by 4.5 degrees. If you're getting an old D500 it might have a pair of single or dual LNBFs - you'll only need to hook up one of them.

[boba]

Make sure you get a receiver with a card! The receiver and card must have a $zero balance and no unreported pay per views. If there is an outstanding balance YOU must pay it before DISH will activate that receiver. It also must be released from it's old account before DISH can activate.

[larrystotler]

The programming is Sun TV and it is on multiple satellites as follows :
Satellite: 148 121 61.5
Channel: 610 795 610
Transponder: 11 15 18

If this is the only programming I will use, I was told the Dish 500 will work. Is that not valid ?

You have to make sure that E* will allow you to use the wings, since they are trying to activate all new international subs on the 121. The are also supposed to be planning to move the internationals off the wings eventually, so you may end up with the same problem. You can get a 30" FSS dish with FSS LNB to get the 121, which is smaller than the SD as well.

[satish]

Thank you all for your responses. You helped me understand the full picture.
I got a 311 receiver and a dishpro LNB off of ebay pretty cheaply - I already have a Dish 500. The 311 is supposed to have an builtin smartcard and I am told it does not have a balance.

I will try to get Dish Network to activate me on 61.5. If they force me to 121, I may have to get a new dish as you suggest.

Simon - I am not sure I fully understand this. "Note when trying to aim a D500 to a wing, you'll only be able to get numbers for a 300 and have to manually adjust the azimuth by 4.5 degrees."

Is there someplace I can read up on the steps for installation (especially the dish alignment) before I waste anyone's time on it here ? Also, is there any tool I can buy or rent that will help me with the alignment ?

Also, is there any way to get to Dish Network's tech support directly. It's hard to get any decent info from their customer service reps and they seem very reluctant to pass me on to Tech support.

Thanks !

[SimpleSimon]

... Simon - I am not sure I fully understand this. "Note when trying to aim a D500 to a wing, you'll only be able to get numbers for a 300 and have to manually adjust the azimuth by 4.5 degrees."The LNBFs on a Dish500 are offset from the center of the dish. You can only get Dish300 numbers for a wing satellite. the 300 is a straight-on dish, so you have to compensate for the 500's offset LNBFs.Is there someplace I can read up on the steps for installation (especially the dish alignment) before I waste anyone's time on it here ? Also, is there any tool I can buy or rent that will help me with the alignment ? ...Dish aiming is both a science and an art. The hookups are generally easy enough. Aiming can be easier with a meter near at hand, but it's expensive for one-time use.

The receiver Dish Pointing screen will give you tones for the aiming - but it's got a delay that takes getting used to. Nudge the dish, wait 2 seconds for the tone to change. Repeat until done.

Patience is required, and having an interest in the technology is helpful. If all you want to do is get your TV on, you may become frustrated. If you think it's really cool to be able to catch microwaves from 22,300 miles away, you'll do fine.

[larrystotler]

In other words, when using a Dish500 for only 1 sat location with a twin LNB, cover 1 side of the twin LNB with aluminum foil and set the dish to a 90 skew on the back. Set the elevation to the wing's setting, and slowly rotate the dish left to right. Good luck.

[SimpleSimon]

Larry - thanks for catching me on the skew/elevation - forgot to tell him to 90 it. :up:

[finniganps]

Make sure you get a receiver with a card! The receiver and card must have a $zero balance and no unreported pay per views. If there is an outstanding balance YOU must pay it before DISH will activate that receiver. It also must be released from it's old account before DISH can activate.

This is CRUCIAL BEFORE bidding on a receiver on E-bay. The last time I checked, Dish charge $50 for a smartcard if yours was missing - you can't simply "get" another card - they have to be "matched" - Dish does the matching. Simply request the Receiver and smartcard numbers from the seller before bidding. The receiver # starts R00, smartcard # starts S00. Once you have the numbers call Dish at 1-800-333-3474 and tell them you're verifying that a receiver you're thinking of buying has a zero balance AND can be transferred to you. If you don't receive a "Yes" to those questions, or if the seller won't give you the numbers, than move on to the next unit and repeat the process.

I had to call on several units before I found one that met that criteria. A lot of sellers buy these units at estate sales and then sell them on e-bay.

[satish]

Thanks for all your help, everyone ! I got it setup in less than 10 minutes thanks to your help.

It did take longer to get it working since Dish had not provisioned it correctly. But, that was just a phone call. After that, it was up and running smoothly.