Checking if the dish is working?

none

Hi,
I have a dish on the roof and the antenna outlet socket in the room. The outlet seems to be standard so I connect it to RF IN rather than LNB IN in my receiver. Now, I suspect the dish is a Sky legacy so I supposedly can only get free Astra 2 channels if the dish is working. That's OK but how do I know the dish is actually working? I checked the Sky site and there's nothing on configuring the receiver for their dishes, they can only do it alone but give no information for those who don't need their installation technicians. With the default settings in the receiver I wasn't able to get any channels on Astra 2 or any other satellites but that's probably their (default settings) are wrong as the device was bought on the continent.
I don't have access to the dish so if I'm sure it's not functioning, I'll forget about this idea.
Any suggestions would be highly appreciated.

watty

LNB on Dish --> coax ---> LNB in on Receiver

"RF IN" is only to loop a TV aerial.

If it is a "Not Sky Digibox" the default LNB settings are OK, but you must select 28.2E as the satellite and do a "SCAN". Any exsisting channels (typically Astra 19E) need deleted.

The coax from dish is not normally on an outlet and should never be on a TV connector.

none

Thank you, watty, I was somehow hoping for your contribution:) My main problem is that I have no access to the dish and so the outlet (like here http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=30772) is all I have. Do you suggest I have to buy an adaptor to connect it to LNB IN? As I said, for now I just stuck it in the usual RF IN. The receiver is TF 5000 CI so I presume I do need to create a new entry for Astra 28.2E because the current Astra 2 seems not working. What other settings should I modify except for the position (28.2E )? As I said, what I want to find our now is if the dish is connected and functioning properly. If I can't get any signal from the existing outlet I may think of mounting a new dish in some other place which I can access/control.

SRB

It's very unlikely that the outlet is coming from the dish - do you have access to your attic, can you trace the cable from the point on the wall ? I would not connect it to the "LNB in" without finding where it's going and what, if anything, is on the other end, you may damage your receiver if you do. Plugging the outlet into your receivers "RF in" wouldn't give you anything even if the dish was connected, as Watty says the RF in is for your TV aerial. Might be a silly question, but have you tried a normal TV on the outlet ? That socket should be should/could be connected to a TV aerial.

none

Thanks, SRB:) I'm in the basement and there are several flooors of offices above me and I never actually bothered to check how difficult it is to get through to the roof. But I don't really want to bother them anyway, honestly. Sure, I tried just plugging in the TV but got nothing at all so I suppose it must be digital. So I got a receiver to check it. But now I see I also need some kind of adaptor (maybe like this one '090-4333 TV to F adapter' http://www.satcure.co.uk/accs/page7.htm?) to be able to plug it into LNB IN.
Sorry for silly questions and thanks for all your help:)

SRB

Hummmm, chances are it isn't going anywhere now, possibly having been part of an old TV distribution system, even if it was for DTT (Digital Television and only being tested/on trial from 2 sites in Ireland) you'd still get analogue pictures. I really wouldn't plug it into the "LNB In" without knowning where it's going, it could easily short the box and you'll possibly damage it. I'd ask the offices above if they have similar sockets. Is it an old building ? If it's not, then it's possible the cable run goes to an intended head end for a distribution system which was never installed.

none

The building is apparently quite old indeed. The landlord mentioned some counts/dukes/whatever living there at some stage. He also said there was some TV before and this is the reason why I started all this. Just want to find out as much as possible myself and avoid bothering the landlord or the office staff (well, I hope you don't feel bothered by answering here ) As the in-house antenna gets a very poor signal, I suppose the only way the previous tennants could get the TV was from that mysterious wall outlet. Also, I'm quite sure the office isn't using any TV so it's useless to ask them. For now, I'm going to play with it for a bit longer and see what can I get out of it. Cheers!

watty

The dish cable likely comming down outside of building. See if you can spot which window it comes in at.

While "joins" are to be avoided on new installs, you may have to fit a double ened female (barrel F-Socket) to connect an extension cable from wherever the sat cable gets to now, to your satellite receiver.

The wall socket could be anything. Not likely cable TV or Satellite though.

none

There's absolutely nothing coming out of the wall outside! Seems like a very solid design as the cable must be running inside the walls. There was definitely TV here before and there is definitely a dish on the roof so I'll try an assumption the suspected outlet is indeed going to the dish:rolleyes: I might be wrong but that's too late to stop it. I'll probabaly end up buying a new dish and mounting it somewhere on the wall;) But for now, I still want to continue experimenting with the existing one. Any ideas where can I get those adapters in the City Centre near the Merrion Square or Stephen's Green? Am I wrong to think this is what I need http://www.donberg.ie/descript/c/connf023.htm? Thanks!:)

SRB

What Watty means is that the dish cable will come down the wall somewhere, the socket you have will be (hopefully) fed via cable in a conduit. The chances of the dish feeding that socket are virtually nill, no installer in their right mind would have used that kind of socket for a Sat multi distribution outlet.
Again, I must stress I really wouldn't connect any receiver to an outlet of which the source can't be identifed.
That plug you've linked to is a BNC to F plug converter, not the "TV outlet" (which you linked to earlier) to F plug converter.

watty

Your Sat receiver generates 14V to 19V DC at nearly 1/2 Amp to power and control the LNB on the dish arm.

It should definately NOT be experimentally connected to an ordinary TV socket, which in anycase is very unlikely to connect to dish.

You could damage something elsewhere in the building or your own receiver.

JHMEG

Is that socket not most likely to be a now-disconnected ntl service?

none

Thanks Guys! The landlord confirmed its from the Sky dish so let's believe him for a while:) My question now is where to get that TV to LNB adaptor locally? I suppose the almighty eBay has it but what about Central or South Dublin - is it available to purchase somewhere around here?

none

Can you please confirm that I've identified the right thing? It's here http://www.donberg.ie/descript/c/connf029.htm or here http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=29533&&worldid=-4&source=14&doy=15m2? Cheers!:)

SRB

That will connect that socket to your receiver ok, but I still don't think I would do it !

watty

Warning Will Robinson

Don't do it!

none

Why not?;) It worked well:) Just wondering if I can get Irish channels this way? They're all in the list but showing no picture. The dish is apparently aligned for Sky as there's a lot of their entries on the list:)

watty

Replace the wall plate. It will give trouble.


You need Sky sub and Sky box for Irish TV. 22 Euro per month.

none

What's wrong with the plate, tell me please? Now that I have the adaptor I have a good signal from it. The same type is used by other people without problems so what you think is wrong with this approach? Thanks:)

watty

The LNB can be damaged by intermittant connection. It does not connect DC reliably. Also only really good up to 700MHz for signal. The Satellite IF is 950MHz to 2100MHz.

The same type is not used for Satellite by other people without problems

SRB

Not only that, but if it had been the "proper plate" in the first place, this thread would never have started as you would have known straight away what kind of outlet it was !

none

Thank you, guys!:) I really appreciate your input here but please understand that I don't have much choice. If that would be my place, I would definitely do everything as you say as I do respect experts' advice. But that's not my place and all I can do is either use what's in there or not use it. If the landlord says the output was used by people before me, I tend to believe him. If he says the same socket is used by other tenants now, why would I question it too? I mean, I see no reason to suspect him lying. Also, I don't understand why would he fit the incompatible socket in the first instance? I can agree that would probably like to save so he chose not the most expensive equipment but such equipment not always means poor quality. Anyway, I just tried to explain that if I want a signal, I can now only get it from the old-fashioned socket. You say it's not perfect and I totally agree but could you please elaborate in what scenarios my receiver can risk exploding? I'm not sure I understand those signal ranges well

Rippy

Ok, In an ideal world no one would ever connect a sat dish to a standard belling -lee tv socket like you have. In practice I find it is often done by lazy Sky installers using cable and socket already installed by an electrician.
What I usually do when I come across it is
1/ remove socket from wall
2/ Detach cable from socket
3/ unscrew inner metal or pcb material part of of socket leaving just the plastic face plate.
4/ reattach faceplate to wall, poking cable end through hole in plate.
5/ Attach f conn to cable end. Screw f barrell (f conn joiner) to f conn.
6/ Attach flylead to f barell.
7/ Attach flylead to receiver.

Whole procedure takes about 10 minutes .
Because this is simple and cheap, I advise you to do it ASAP. Some people do seem to get away with it done wrong, but many have problems!

SRB

It's not that the socket is old fashioned, it's just not a sat outlet socket. At a guess I'd say there was probably a "normal" wired analogue VHF/UHF distribution system in the building and at some stage this was replaced with a sat signal distribution system, the cables which carried the analogue TV signals have just been plugged into it. Yes, on the surface it will work, but for all sorts of reasons it's not ideal. At the very least a little sticker on the outlet would have been a good idea. Anyhow, I'm glad it is working for you and yes, the above will make the connections more secure. (At your end anyway)

watty

The cable may not even be satellite cable and may be interfered with by a close mobile or DECT phone or cause interference to a Mobile or DECT.

ANY grade of coax will give a picture/ reception on Digital Satellite, but a shoddy install with wrong connector and wrong cable can cause interference, be sensitive and be interfered and be unreliable, even causin LNB or Digibox failure.