TJL
11-18-05, 07:40 PM
Hi, this is my first post to this forum. I have been a happy D* subscriber for 2 years now, and am even happier now that D* has XM Satellite Radio. Anyway, I live in Maryland and am wondering why I am now getting weaker than normal signal strength on my DBS system. I frequently check the signal strength on my Hughes HBH-SA receiver. I have an unusual (non-standard) dish installation--an 18" single LNB D* dish installed on ground level. This was done because the installation was supposed to be temporary, and because the home owner still does not want a dish installed on the house. Anyway, my optimal signal strength (which has not been very good), is when Transponder 1 is in the 85-90 range (sometimes a little lower), Transponder 2 is in the 75-82 range, and Transponder 18 (which is really strong here) is no less than 100. Other transponders are rarely less than 70, except Transponder 28 which is supposed to have almost no signal in this part of the country. Right now, Transponder 2 has a signal strength of about 68, Transponder 1 has a signal strength of 80, and Transponder 18 is at 97. All transponders are weaker than normal. I have seen this small decrease in signal strength happen before and appear to correct itself--possibly caused by atmospheric conditions. The biggest clue I have is that right before I noticed the problem, we had that storm go through that brought in the big cold front, with a lot of rain and some wind. I have already tried moving the dish a bit, but this has not corrected the problem, hence I am convinced that the problem wasn't the wind, but I'm not entirely sure. My feeling is that the problem could be eroding cabling/connectors--rust is visible on the coaxial connector near the grounding rod. I also am worried about the LNB--from what I've read a bad LNB won't cause this problem. However, the plastic on the LNB is cracked, maybe this could cause a problem with moisture? I still think this problem could be external to my equipment (caused by atmospheric conditions, or changes made by D*), as these signal strength problems usually corrected themselves before. One other clue: large temperature fluctuation: it went from 76 in the afternoon before the storm to the 30s after the storm, and the temperature has not gotten above the 40s since then. Any other ideas? I know this is a slight signal fluctuation, however, I have just barely even signal as it is--any less signal would make me too vulnerable to rain fade. Speaking of rain fade, I haven't seen an excessive amount of that lately--even during that strong rain storm, I didn't lose picture/sound more than about 30 seconds.