Mini BUD setup-advice please!

[Thun]

Hi all,

Need some help with setting up my mini BUD. Got the 1.2 m dish up, got the motor locked on 97, 95 and 101 ect and getting those birds just fine on a Ku lnb. Got the conical scalar ring and a BSC 621-2D on the dish and I tried 97 but got nothing on C. I'm wondering how to handle the c-lnb and the scalar ring as I'm still kinda of new at this kind of thing.

Thanks.

[satchick]

Try 121 first, the C-band side of that satellite is quite strong and lots of mini-BUD users have had excellent luck with it.

You weren't trying for any of the DVB-S2 channels on 97w, right? There's nooooo way you'd pull those in on a mini-bud. Try TP 3964 H, 3970 H, 3978 H. Those three carry DVB-S SD programming and should be easier to pick up.

Do you have the LNB connected properly, and your settings correct? Those LNB's have one output for C, and another for Ku, so you need to run them both into a switch if you haven't done so already.

[chifut]

.91W have also strong transponders .Depends where are you .
Idid experiment with my 4' pointed stationary at 97W KU and just added Cband LNB on the side .Found very easy TP's on 91w C with pretty good Q
Check " mini bud" discusions.There is very helpfull info.
BTW I use flat scalar ring ,couse Idon't have a conical one

[Thun]

Try 121 first, the C-band side of that satellite is quite strong and lots of mini-BUD users have had excellent luck with it.

I should clarify. My arc is terrible, have line-of-sight issues and so my range is limited to about 82 W to 101 W. I can physically move the dish fairly easily but in the meantime would 91 W be a suitable substitute for 121 W so I can get this thing working?

I'm just trying to get c-band for now as my (hopefully incorrect) assumption is that you can't get both ku and C as those dual lnb's don't work on a mini BUD. I'm presuming the c band connector is the one in the middle, not the one in the back?

[Costactc]

The back part of your lnbf is for ku. Try tp 3920 H 26000 on Galaxy17 at 91w, a very strong tp that other mini bud users scan in with good signal quality.

[Thun]

Okay, so I got some C channels on 91, 99, 97 & 95. I'm missing a few but I got a bigger issue now. Now I'm missing channels on Ku. Completely lost History, Pentagon and RTV, HOWEVER, I'm getting 11.716 on 87 W and some Ku channels on 89W which I was never able to get using a regular Ku LNB--but I'm only getting 11.716 on 87 W, nothing else. I can still get CCTV (95 W 10.780) and about 1/3 of the Galaxy 19 channels. Need some insight before I potentially mess things up by fiddling with the LNB!

[DSSRUEL]

Combo feedhorns C+Ku pose a compromise,
when you tune the Ku band, almost always
the CBand side does not fit, then you try
fixing that C-feeds, and Ku gets a strike.

There is no easy way to tune on both signals
ang get good reception at the same time.

Tried that with BSC621 on BUD 10-footer,
with mixed results.

Finally opt for a Ku only LNB, which I can
fine tune focus for some birds.

There are many variables to take care of,
proper mast vertical alignment, proper
true-south alignment, true-north skew=0
on LNB, polar declination, local declination
for geo-latitude, focus centered ring+feedhorn,
and of course, LNB quality+sensitivity,
thats the noise factor.

Enjoy the ride

[Thun]

Combo feedhorns C+Ku pose a compromise,
when you tune the Ku band, almost always
the CBand side does not fit, then you try
fixing that C-feeds, and Ku gets a strike.


Yeah I noticed that on my BUD. C comes in fine but Ku, not so much!

Does this mean I'll have to stick a regular Ku LNB next to the scalar ring setup if I want to get both?

[chifut]

Yeah I noticed that on my BUD. C comes in fine but Ku, not so much!

Does this mean I'll have to stick a regular Ku LNB next to the scalar ring setup if I want to get both?

That is good question .I already have 97 KU/on the main arm/ & 91 C /on the side /on stationary dish ,but never tryed on the motor .How the signal go on act on different sats /c&ku band/ when the dish is rotate ?
Xillbus report in another tread good results

[Terryl]

As an H to H motor (horizon to horizon) rotates, it automatically skews the dish (and LNB) to line up correctly with the satellites in the arc, that is why it is very important to accurately line up the LNB to the 90 (or 0) degree axis on the dish.

Also some "C" band satellites have different output levels on their transponders, the "C" band signal is also lower in level then some of the "Ku" band transponders, this is also one reason why you need a bigger dish for "C" band then the "Ku" band.

If you go to satbeams.com and select the satellite your trying for, it will give you the "C" and "Ku" band foot prints for that bird, see what size dish is required for normal reception on that bird for "C" band, if it says you need a bigger dish then a 6 footer, you may be out of luck with the mini BUD.

I have been playing with a micro mini BUD (37") for several months now, I can get some "C" band TP's on 91W and 121W but not all, I don't have a combination C/Ku band LNB to find some of the others, I have to change out the LNB for ether a circular or linear "Ku" band LNB then switch to the "C" band, and most of the time I don't have any luck finding the "C" band TP's on that bird, as they are too low in level at my location to be useful.

[Terryl]

One other thing is the type of mini-BUD dish your trying to use, a prime focus dish (round with the LNB directly in the middle of it) can have problems with "C" band as your putting a big chunk of metal out in front and could be blocking quite a bit of signal.

This is why they went with an offset focal point design for the "Ku" band dishes, you can use a smaller dish, the LNB is down at the bottom of the dish and out of the way, that is why I selected an old WildBlue internet dish for my micro-mini BUD experiments, the big bulky "C" band LNB and SCALAR ring is down and out of the way, allowing for more signal to play with.

If you look at the WB dish you will see that it has a ton of hardware hanging down there, but it is down and out of the way for the signal from the satellite.

[DSSRUEL]

That maybe a good choice, requires some tweaking (patience) <br />
a friend of mine did that on his 10-footer charged with feedhorn <br />
Invacon QPF-031 plus ADF-120 adapter, CBand at 9am, <br />
for about 3-4...

[Thun]

One other thing is the type of mini-BUD dish your trying to use, a prime focus dish (round with the LNB directly in the middle of it) can have problems with "C" band as your putting a big chunk of metal out in front and could be blocking quite a bit of signal.

I've got an offset dish. I'm enjoying the Wyoming NBC and those GDMX channels but would really like to have the History channel back! Has anyone been able to get This and Me TV on 87 on a Mini BUD? I'm not having any luck with them so far. Those are my two fav channels on my regular BUD and it would be nice to know that they are receivable on something a little smaller.

[Terryl]

Check satbeams or lyingsat for your location, see what the dBW contours are for the "C" band, I find that if they are in the 35 to 40 dBW range then they are a bit too low for some mini BUDS. At least mine.

[Thun]

I dug out a multi-LNB bracket and attached it next to the main LNB with a Ku only LNB. Other than the fact that I'm shocked that I got a signal on the first shot (!!!) but I also got my History channel back and the Galaxy 97 channels, however, the signal strength is down about 20-30%

I'm wondering if the present position of the Ku LNB is good or should it be moved closer or elsewhere to the dish? Where it is now it's somewhat blocked by the scalar ring, and I don't know if I'm going to be getting all the Ku channels back because of this position.

1263112632

[Terryl]

I think they use to make a ring with a cutout for a side by side LNB setup, the ring with the cutout didn't block the signal that way.

Anyway the side by side LNB mounting method might not work that good on a prime focus dish. (round dish, round focal area, less signal to a side mounted LNB)

[Thun]

Anyway the side by side LNB mounting method might not work that good on a prime focus dish. (round dish, round focal area, less signal to a side mounted LNB)

What about putting the LNB on top of the scalar ring?

[Terryl]

It's still a round focal area, no matter where you mount the "Ku" band LNB, it will still be outside the prime area of signal.

That is why they use an elliptical shaped dish for more then 2 satellites, the focal area is oval shaped to get the LNB's inside the focal area for maximum signal.

The "C" "Ku" combo LNB would work the best with a prime focus dish, they are all in the same plane for the signal.

[Thun]

Last question: Can I use a regular switch, ie, the diseqc kind used for Dish Ntwork to switch between the C/Ku LNB's when using a diseqc motor?

[chifut]

Yep .4X1 Diseq switch work fine for C&KU & motor

[jvvh5897]

Has anyone been able to get This and Me TV on 87 on a Mini BUD? I'm not having any luck with them so far. Those are my two fav channels on my regular BUD and it would be nice to know that they are receivable on something a little smaller.

No luck on those 87 degree signals with my mini-bud.

From my playing with ray-tracing of offset feed and off-axis use of LNBs I think the spot you picked for your Ku LNB is likely the best you will get. Don't try mounitng the LNB anywhere but on the side of center of the scaler as close to scaler as you can with as clear a view of dish as possible--the further you get from focal point the more the signal bounced from the dish get "blured" or out of focus (it is called a coma in optical parabolic terms)

[Thun]

No luck on those 87 degree signals with my mini-bud.

Merde.

Why's all the good stuff always only on the huge BUD? It's like a plot or somthin'.....

[jvvh5897]

I once used an 18 inch dish to pick up channels from 101 bird with linear LNB--could only get the bible channels not History--when you use an undersized dish you get what you can and count it good.