I would recommend you invest in a SAT finder. It is a small device that you connect inline with the LNB on the dish. When a Sat is detected it whistles. Nex step is to identify which satellite you are pointing at. Astra 1 and Astra 2 are very close together. You need Astra 2. Best to practice when you are in sight of other dishes so that you can start in roughly the smae direction,

guy

 

Satellite

Do you have a satellite finder?
These can be picked up quite cheaply from maplins etc..

There are two Astra satellites a digital and an analog one you need the digital astra 2 which appears as a weaker signal than astra 1.

I used a satellite finder then placed my Silva compass on satellite arm and marked it.

Now when I am on site it is relativly quick to lock onto correct satellite.

Good Luck

 

The usual problem with the Lidl dish is that users set the dish angle too low, the dish should be almost vertical for Astra 2.

PS: Don't bother with a "finder", the signal meter included with the Lidl receiver is just as good as any (non-professional) satellite finder on the market.

 

Thanks people , I have a sat finder although the receiver has it's own one inbuilt , when you say Astra 2 is this 19 point something or 28 point something :? sorry in advance but I am going mad trying .

 

Astra1 = 19deg. East
Astra2 = 28 deg East

 

lidl

It could also be the sat box. I bought one of these albeit the Maplin version. They both use the same sat box a Comag I believe.

When I tried it the first time following the instructions and lining the dish up you are supposed to find the astra2 satellite.

Well mine wouldn't all it would find is Hotbird. It turned out to be a faulty sat box and I sent mine back.

Pete

 

Thanks people , I have a sat finder although the receiver has it's own one inbuilt , when you say Astra 2 is this 19 point something or 28 point something :? sorry in advance but I am going mad trying .

Hi Carpus,

28.2 degrees. If starting from the East to South, Astra 2 will be the first satellite that you come across, if at the correct elevation. My dish is manual, (but not a Lidl's), and I can get a signal within seconds, sometimes, but I do use the sat finder . When set at an elevation of 22 degrees, my dish is almost vertical too. The guy pitched next to me in his ARV, has an oyster system, and his dish (locked onto Astra 2D) is almost vertical also.

Hope this helps,

Jock.

 

Lidl sat. system

I too have a Lidl sat. system which I used on my recent holiday to Brittany, with mixed results.
As Gaspode says the Lidl signal strenth indicator is fine, but you also need a compass initially to point in the correct direction . Where I was the tables give a heading of 140 degrees & once set up got Astra 2 within a few minutes.
However, the further west & south I travelled I had increased difficulty & in the end could only get Astra 1 :?
This was when I had it set up as usual for astra 2-one instance I got both 1&2 without altering the dish, but could not get the English channels :x
Forrester

 

Satellite TV

Hi

I have recently set up quite a few manual dishes and find that if I start with the dish pointing East and move it slowly towards the South, you find ASTRA2. If you start at the South and turn the dish East, other satellites get in the way!

Russell

 

Very much agree with Rapide, start East and head South - Astra 2 is first to find BUT vertical alignment is important, dish must look almost vertical, the receiver (LNB) is angled slightly below the mid-line and from O level Physics (back in predecimal days) angle of incidence = angle of reflection so it picks up the satellite even when you think it's way too low.

Beware, trees and other MH do interfere with the signal. We started by setting ours up in a very open area with clear view of the horizon so nothing could get in the way, initially I spent hours (and got very frustrated), but it now takes much less time and is fairly straightforward (says he with fingers crossed).

Good luck, persevere and it will eventually work!

 

This system is so simple to set up. If you have got Hotbird only it means that you need to turn the dish slightly towards east because the spread of these dishes normally will pull in several sats without moving the dish. So if on Hotbird just turn it slightly more towards east but leave the angle of the dish as it is or alternatively go into the menu and scan for channels on 28deg if you pick some up then for sure some will have a picture such as Sky News. You cannot do any harm by scanning I do it all the time on all the different satellites. I have the knack of this system so sorted that I now don't need any sat finder or box sounder I just sit it down , move it slightly left or right and there is Sky news on 19deg Astra one so from there I would just move slightly east for 28deg or slightly south for Hotbird Hispasat etc. but usually when I have Sky News on 19deg I also can pick it up on 28deg or 13deg depending whether it is more to east or south. Do not believe that these are difficult you only need to get the knack of doing it. Notice the little dish on the ground picking up as much as any other dish can in our area of Spain. Click to enlarge the photo

 

I agree with a lot of what C7Ken has to say, my only point is that the vertical angle does differ as you go North or South. I believe his photograph was taken in Spain the elevation is 32.9 degrees whereas in London it is 25.4 degrees and in Glasgow 20.1 degrees.

The following link may well be of benefit to you;

http://www.dishpointer.com/

BUT beware also, how accurate are your elevation scales on a satellite dish, how level is the base tripod - these will alter the elevation without you being aware of it!

It is worth remembering that you are pointing at a satellite that is stationary above the equator, the further South you go the higher the satellite will be in the sky until if you were absolutely below the satellite you would have to point vertically upwards - but don't try it- all satellites have a distinct "footprint" - the signal can only be picked up in a certain area due to how it is beamed out from the satellite in the same way as a car headlight is focussed to cover a certain area only - you may be able to see it's "on" from outside that area but the amount of light would be useless to read the instruction manual by! Same goes for satellites, you may be able to detect it but is won't have enough signal to make it useable, that is why if you are going near the edge of the footprint a larger dish is required - to try to pick up more signal for the receiver (LNB).

 

hotbird

wahts wrong with Hotbird anyway!!!

 

No english channels and mostly filth on the others :x

 

I have a skybox and a 60cm (?) oval sky dish mounted on my tripod and it works fine. I bought a signal finder originally and used it once. I can find Astra 2 quicker than I can connect the signal finder!

Was in France last year with friends who have one of these camping/suitcase jobbies and that was hopeless. As my LNB is for Skyplus it has 4 outputs and they were able to connect to my dish and watch TV in their own van.

My tripod was £27, the rest of the gear was free, including all the cable as my brother in law was moving house he gave it to me.

 

Hi Penguin
I have only just noticed your reply to the original post. Can I just say that its absolutely useless looking at elevation angles on the web or Degrees east of south or any other info that suggests that you need to be so precise in setting up a Satellite dish. I have already said that these small dishes have amazing spread so just hit 19deg east for Astra 1 ( guess 19deg its nearly half way to east) then slightly move in whatever direction you need for Hotbird 13deg or Astra 2 28 deg. Elevations change slightly from northern Spain to Alicante but its no problem because again you move it slightly more to the vertical when up north. At Belpuig I used a tripod and packed one leg with a small piece of tile. In England I would set it vertically As I did say I can sit this dish down and get a picture almost instantly and certainly consistantly faster than any motorised or other system. However I intend to fit a roof mounted system basically for extra gain and for the odd wet day but I will always retain the small lidle set for areas when I am parked under a tree. If I lived in the UK I would just add a Maxview crankup dish and use the same Lidle box. I think I need to come over to the UK and do a demo preferably with others showing different systems then members can look at the options and buy what they like and what the budget will allow. This would make a good theme for a meet

 

Hi Ken sounds like a bit of a plan .

 

My new camper has many extras but not Air Suspension, Auto Satellite or a Solar Panel therefore I will probably come and get these in the UK. I am waiting to hear from Andy at Roadpro regarding his test with various dishes in Spain. Is the Kathrein Cap 900 the best or will it make absolutely no difference regarding pulling in Channels in Alicante? I know what the Oyster and Alden systems can and can not do but I need the info on the Kathrein. If I come over I will try to attend a meet preferably one where someone has one of Snellys dreamboxes and if someone has a Cap900 there that would be excellent. If the MH is only used occcasionally the Lidl system should be enough for most people, if a lot of use or fulltiming then it is worth investing a bit more