[JeffL]

My brother just got DirecTV. He wanted HD. When the installer came out he found a good signal for the standard 101 location (I assume that would be where the dish would be pointing for the Seattle area). He said he would not be able to receive the HD sat's though. I thought all the other DirecTV sat. locations were further west of 101. When I look at the dish it's perfectly clear for a good distance west of 101. It does have a lot of trees further east of where it's pointing though. It should be noted though that when the installer came out he did not have anything for HD with him! No dish, receiver, etc. I know how to look up the sat. directions for our area, but I'm not sure what sat's are need for HD in Seattle. Thanks for you input.

 

[Grentz]

Installers will want a clear view for all satellites on the slimline 5 (HD) dish.

This includes 99, 101, 103, 110, and 119

Usually 99 and 103 are easy to get if you get 101 as they are all pretty close, but 110 and 119 can cause issues as they are quite a bit more spread out from the rest.

 

[Mertzen]

At this point you'll need all five sats.

Take a look at http://www.dishpointer.com/. Also call the HSP for a second opinion from a tech supervisor.

 

[OverThereTooMuch]

I live in the Seattle area. HD must be on 99 or 103, since I'm not getting them. I only have a 3LNB dish. The installer was out just about an hour ago to put up the new dish, and said he couldn't get LOS to the other satellites without installing it on the roof. I live in a condo, so there was much :icon_cry: :icon_cry: :icon_cry:, since I couldn't approve that.

 

[JeffL]

You can get 101 (basic DirecTV) ok but not 99 or 103? Boy, you must have a very tight hole your looking through! Wouldn't that be like holding your hand out and it being about a thumb or two away?

 

[OverThereTooMuch]

You can get 101 (basic DirecTV) ok but not 99 or 103? Boy, you must have a very tight hole your looking through! Wouldn't that be like holding your hand out and it being about a thumb or two away?

I didn't think it would be a problem either. But Dishpointer.com shows a 10 degree azimuth difference.

 

[evan_s]

The 3lnb dish is centered on 110 not 101 which is why they point different directions but the LOS to 101 is exactly the same for both. Since you get 101 to 119 99 and 103 shouldn't be much of a problem. 103 is inbetween 101 and 110 so unless you are shooting through holes in trees or something that is almost a sure thing.

In the Pacific northwest you need from about straight south for 119 to se or there abouts for 99.

www.dishpointer.com is great for showing potential LOS issues.

 

[OverThereTooMuch]

My current dish is pointing back towards the building a little bit. I think his concern was that with the bigger dish, a good portion of it was going to be blocked.

Maybe this is a stupid question, but is there any way that I can use my current 3 LNB dish to verify whether or not I can pick up the 99 sat? I don't know if it would be as "simple" as re-aiming it, or if there's something different about the LNB module itself.

 

[harsh]

I didn't think it would be a problem either. But Dishpointer.com shows a 10 degree azimuth difference.

From the top of the Space Needle, the difference between 99W and 103W is 5 degrees. More importantly, 99W is only 2.7 degrees left of 101W and 103W is only 2.3 degrees to the right. Unless you are shooting through a window, there shouldn't be any problem. IIRC, you have Ironwood up there and they're pretty stinky about not wanting to mount dishes on other than a ground pole. How is your current dish mounted?

I'd suggest contacting a local DIRECTV dealer and have them set you up. It will cost you, but it will get done without you having to spend lots of time arguing between DIRECTV and your appointed installer.

99W = 149.4 degrees (true North)
101W = 152.1 degrees (true North)
103W = 154.4 degrees (true North)

 

[harsh]

Maybe this is a stupid question, but is there any way that I can use my current 3 LNB dish to verify whether or not I can pick up the 99 sat?

No, the Phase III's feedhorn literally can't tune to the frequency used by 99W or 103W.

 

[kevinm34232]

But if you get 101 and 110 now, you will almost surely have no problem with 99 and 103.

 

[OverThereTooMuch]

But if you get 101 and 110 now, you will almost surely have no problem with 99 and 103.

"almost surely" being the key words there

Since I have a clear view for 101 and 110, I assume that 103 won't be a problem. 99 is the one I'm worried about.

Thanks for the help folks, and sorry for the threadjack.