Setting up the Maplin's sat in a suitcase. Forums

SidT

This afternoon I put the suitcase out on a table at the back of the house, following C7Ken's instructions I immediately got quite a good picture on Satellite Astra 28.2E, there was 265 channels but no Channel 4 or 5, can anyone help bearing in mind that this is my first foray into satellite TV.
Cheers Sid

Fatalhud

I think 4 and five can only be viewed if you have a sky box connected
some thing to do with them being tied into a contract with sky
I am sure someone with more knowledge will soon confirm this
Alan H

drcotts

Hi sid
No your quite correct you wont get ch 4 or 5 wioth those recievers. Saying that i find the little reciever much better to set up than the sky box and probally wont take it with me.
You can get bbc3 in the evening as it apears on one of the bbc channels used for bbcb (or cbeebees) when that finishes. I only started using my set up in earnest last weekend but got the sat in less than a minute.

Good luck with yours
Phill

ps if you need a tripod why not loon out for the laser level kit from LIDL at £9.99 and use the rotaingb head to hold the square shaft that the dish fits on. Makes swinging the dish round much easier.

Now dont get swinging it a little to the right for hotbird now will you especially if your a vicar

Hope the MH owner who posted this last month dont mind me using it

Phill

Snelly · Eastern Rally Co-ordinator

Phill, I agree, Sly digiboxes are pants for mobile use... mainly because of the delay in locking onto a signal is not ideal when trying to align a dish by hand.

christopherobin

Freesat from BBC/ITV due out March 2008.

Channel 4 & 5 are due to move over then.

SidT

Thanks for the input guys, as I say I am new to satellites so was unaware you can't get 4 & 5, very disappointing.
I have aa dreambox for when I upgrade to a crankup, would that be better than the box supplied?
Cheers Sid

C7KEN

Hi Sid
Does this mean I have been some use at last Laughing

I am using my small lidle set in the aire I am in at the moment. I have just sat it on the ground and used the sucker as a base. Set up almost instant. I am surrounded with fancy automatic systems most looking at exactly the same as me. There is an englishman here with a superb auto setup with auto tracking sat dish and solar panel. He is going down to Mojacer so I asked him if he will let us know how well it works down there as the dish is similar size to a Maxview Crankup. He managed to just get some sky channels but I think he may have had them drop out on him now its night time. This area is a bad reception black hole but down on the south coast it is usually better. I have been experimenting and have CNN, euronews, sky news, Al Jezeera, BBC world, France 24hr news in english, CNBC europe, Eurosport in german but its football so watchable. MTV similar as the music is english These are all the usefull ones available here and should be obtainable all over spain as they are on astra 1 and hotbird

SidT

Hi Ken. Your instructions were great but I must say I think I was also very lucky. Maybe you could tell me how do i get other satellites, is it just a case of moving it round a bit, if so how far are they apart or do you need a sat finder?
Thanks again Sid

C7KEN

Hi Sid
Bear in mind that there is a knack to this but once you get the feel for it you will seek out your chosen satellite almost instantly. I guess you had the dish vertical and you were getting the sat at 28deg east of south. So I am about 1500 miles south and settle for Astra 19.2deg east of south. However without moving the dish I can also pull in Hotbird at 13degE and hispassat. This is easier with a small dish. If you want to experiment tune in again then go into the menu and select auto scan on astra 1b 19.2 E scan for all free TV progs and see what you get. I expect you will get some then you can look at them and save some to your favourites by pressing button 1. If you then travelled down here you would then tune in to one of these on sat 1B (look at the tilt back of dishes around you then copy)and do another scan to pick up any new stations or any you had missed back in the UK. Dont worry about a sat finder I have tried cheap ones and they are hopeless. Use the box supplied press info button 1 then turn the volume up on TV and sat box so you can hear it from outside. I have marked the carry case slider with the inclination for here ,france, and south scotland. so I can instantly see how to tilt the dish when its out of the box.I will be going home soon but will take a photo of my dish as it is sat on a railway sleeper and post it on here later. Incidentally even if you got a motorised system you will still find the little set handy because you can move it around to get a clear line of sight Smile