Sky signal strength

Discodog

I have installed a new standard 60 cm Sky dish near Galway. I can't get the signal strength, on the box, above about 1/3 to 1/2. I can get the signal quality up to 3/4.

I have a good picture but rain affects certain channels like Sky News. Apart from a bigger dish is there anything else that might increase the signal strength. I could reduce the cable length by rerouting it but I don't want to bother if it has no effect.

Thurston?

How long is the cable? What type of cable? (Thin 'shotgun' type has high signal loss.)

Discodog

Thurston? wrote: »

How long is the cable? What type of cable? (Thin 'shotgun' type has high signal loss.)

The cable is the original cable fitted by Sky around 6 years ago. It doesn't seem overly thin.

Avns1s

Have you checked the skew of the LNB?

Look here if you don't know what I mean.

Thurston?

Discodog wrote: »

The cable is the original cable fitted by Sky around 6 years ago.

Did this installation always have problems with rain fade? Did you compare the old & new dish for size? (Presumably they're both zone 2, the 60cm you mention in your OP measured from top-to-bottom.)

Are you relying solely on the Sky box display & do you have it in view of the dish while carrying out adjustments?

Galway

Discodog wrote: »

I have installed a new standard 60 cm Sky dish near Galway. I can't get the signal strength, on the box, above about 1/3 to 1/2. I can get the signal quality up to 3/4.

I have a good picture but rain affects certain channels like Sky News. Apart from a bigger dish is there anything else that might increase the signal strength. I could reduce the cable length by rerouting it but I don't want to bother if it has no effect.

You need a proper meter to avoid rain fade when aligning a dish.

Thurston?

Galway wrote: »

You need a proper meter to avoid rain fade when aligning a dish.

Plenty of dishes have been satisfactorily aligned without professional equipment. No problems getting the signal margin to combat rain fade.

Discodog

I used a proper meter & I adjusted the focus & the skew.

Thurston?

Are you a professional installer? Just so I know who I'm trying to advise. (I'm no pro.)

What 'focus' can you adjust on a Sky dish? And the skew is just numbered presets. Is this an actual zone 2 Sky dish we're dealing with, or what?

Discodog

Thurston? wrote: »

Are you a professional installer? Just so I know who I'm trying to advise. (I'm no pro.)

What 'focus' can you adjust on a Sky dish? And the skew is just numbered presets. Is this an actual zone 2 Sky dish we're dealing with, or what?

I am not a pro installer. It's a standard Zone 2 dish. The focus is adjusted by the forward & back adjustment of the LNB. The skew doesn't have presets. In any event I have adjusted both to get the best signal.

I was trying to find out what the typical signal strength would be.

Thurston?

Discodog wrote: »

It's a standard Zone 2 dish. The focus is adjusted by the forward & back adjustment of the LNB. The skew doesn't have presets.

I haven't come across a Sky LNB that wasn't basically locked in place apart from the skew 'clicks'.

If you have a mismatched LNB (elliptical Sky dish, LNB for circular dish) that could be the root of your problem but I don't know how you'd end up with this unless you deliberately chose not to use the Sky LNB.

Maybe post a pic. of what you have.