• What are the posting rules for this forum?
• How do I start a new topic?
• How do I submit a news article?

(back)1. This is a moderated forum.

2. Keep all related questions/problems in one thread.

3. Do not post your questions regarding your problems in someone else's thread. Start a new one instead.

4. Provide as much detail as you can when posting.

5. If you directly link an image, limit the width to 450 pixels and in JPEG or GIF format to avoid "page stretch".

6. Absolutely no flaming!

7. Do not respond to flames.

8. Report flamers to the forum host or to a moderator online using the Hey Mods link at the bottom of the post.

9. This forum may not be used for free advertising or spam of any kind. If you are in the Cable TV or Satellite TV business, your comments and help are welcome, your self promotion is not.

10. Please review DSLR rules explained in several locations such as Terms of use , Privacy Policy and Rules of posting.

11. Moderator decisions are final and are NOT open for discussion.

12. If you are posting a complaint about your provider's service, explain the details of the problem(s). However, if you are posting a rant, please stick to the facts and keep it civil.

13. Requests for, information about, offering of hacked decoder boxes or any other forms of stealing cable or satellite service will not be tolerated. Violators may be banned from further posting.

14. Do not correct the spelling or grammar of other members posts.

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by Red Baron edited by nozero
last modified: 2004-04-09 17:50:11

(back)Press the "New Topic" button in the upper right hand side of the forum. Please do not press the "Got News" button. Questions posted in the news section are promptly deleted.

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by Red Baron edited by nozero
last modified: 2004-02-29 15:07:43

(back)If you spot a news article related to Satellite or Cable TV, please submit it for inclusion in our news section by pressing the "got news" button. If your submission is accepted, you will get credit for it much like you get credit for helpful postings. Please keep these rules in mind to make sure your news article is accepted:

1. It must be news. PR pieces will not be accepted. If the article says "press release" on it it is probably just company PR that will be rejected.

2. It must be specifically related to Satellite or Cable TV. Articles about satellite communications, or satellite launches not related to TV will be promptly deleted.

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by Red Baron edited by nozero
last modified: 2004-02-29 15:07:55

• Do I need a phoneline with satellite TV ??
• I have a 2-tuner receiver, but only 1 line available. What can I do?
• What are polarities?
• What is a multiswitch? Why do I need one?
• How do Dual-Tuner Receivers feed the 2nd TV?

(back)No, there are no satellite receivers that fail to function when a phone is not connected.

You can even order pay-per-view movies without a phone line connected though the receiver will "fill up" with PPV purchases eventually and no longer allow you to order more until it dials out and reports your PPV purchases.

Some DirecTiVos are said to require a phone line to receive software updates.
( ** need confirmation on this ** )

Dish Network advertises that they will charge an additional $4.95/month for each receiver after the first one. It is waived though if you connect it to a phone line.

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by Hall edited by nozero
last modified: 2004-12-27 09:08:56

(back)You have 3 options depending on how much money and time you have and what provider you subscribe to.

For any subscriber, the obvious solution is that you run a second line. Just run a new piece of coax from the multiswitch to the receiver. Sounds easy right? Many installations just have the cable ran on the outside of the house. If this is the case you likely can just run the second line parallel to it. Use zip ties to secure the two lines together.

However, this isn't always the cleanest looking job. If your current lines utilize in-wall wiring or for whatever reason you can't run a 2nd line, this obviously won't work.

The second option is only available if you subscribe to Dish Network. Dish Network has the DP+44 (or DPP44) switch. This switch will "stack" two different polarities onto the same piece of coax by frequency shifting one polarity up compared to the other. At the other end of the coax, you will use a separator that will un-shift the polarity back to the normal frequency. This will only work with dual tuner DishPro receivers; it will not work with 2 single tuners or non-DishPro (legacy) receivers.

The third option is similar to the second but only works for a single satellite with a dual lnb. DirecTV has the majority of it's programming available via a single satellite, so this is primarily for DirecTV users that don't use a Phase II/III dish. Dish has most of the "basic" channels on a single satellite as well, but all packages use at least a Dish500 for all channels so this option is not available if you want to receive all channels that you are entitled to. Locals/Internationals on a 2nd dish fall also into the same category as Dish users. This method also is significantly more expensive and is not technically supported by any of the major networks. There are aftermarket stackers available but they will cost a minimum of $350 just for a single dual-tuner receiver. You can read more about them here.

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by cdru edited by nozero
last modified: 2004-06-16 23:25:42

(back)Broadcasting a signal by bouncing it off of a satellite is expensive. Satellite providers try to squeeze every ounce of usable bandwidth from a satellite by polarizing the signal. By polarizing it, they can reuse a frequency a 2nd time.

Older satellites, such as the one Primestar use to use and the 2 Dish network currently use at 105° and 121° use orthogonal polarity, typically referred as horizontal and vertical polarity. Newer DBS satellites use a circular polarity, commonly referred to as left hand (clockwise) and right hand (counterclockwise) polarity.

All even transponders on a satellite correspond to a given polarity while all odd transponders correspond to the opposite polarity.

**Additional input for this FAQ was provided by drjim

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by cdru edited by nozero
last modified: 2004-10-05 21:36:08

(back)A single LNB can only see a single polarity at a time. This is fine as long as you only have a single tuner receiver. It has full control as to what polarity it tunes. However, once you have two tuners or multiple satellites, you need a multiswitch and a dual lnb(s).

Each dual lnb has two outputs, one for each polarity. These lines connect into the multiswitch's satellite inputs while each receiver connects into the multiswitch's receiver outputs. A multiswitch acts like an old fashion telephone switchboard. The receiver requests to be connected to a certain satellite/polarity combination. Either through relays or solid-state switches, the correct satellite's signal is routed to the receiver based on how the receiver signals the multiswitch.

By having each satellite/polarity combination available at the multiswitch, any receiver can receive any satellite polarity. Multiple receivers can use the same satellite/polarity, or they can use different ones as needed.

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by cdru edited by nozero
last modified: 2004-06-16 23:24:18

(back)Seems like standard practice is to use the existing in-house cable TV distribution network. Dish's receivers have an output for the 2nd TV called "agile modulated output". What this means is that you can choose the channel frequency the TV output goes out on over coaxial cable. Push this over the existing cable TV cable back down to where you have your main cable TV splitter, plug the output from that piece of coax where you used to connect the 'drop' from the cable TV co, and then any TV in the house connected to the cable TV network can tune the channel you chose - say channel 21 - and receive the output from the 2nd tuner on the digital receiver box.

The remote that works with the 2nd tuner operates via radio frequency (RF - 200 foot range) rather than infra-red (IR - line-of-sight only) as the first tuner remote control uses. Eventually you may even learn that you no longer need to aim the remote at the TV for digital satellite functions - what it is controlling is the receiver box out of sight in another room.

Then if you have a second dual-tuner box, choose a different output channel (say 41) for the 2nd TV output and use a 2:1 cable splitter to join the coax from box 1 with the coax from box 2 into a single feed, plug that in place of the cable from the pole, and any TV in the house connected to the cable distribution network can then tune the 2nd output from box one (cable channel 21) or the 2nd output from box 2 (cable channel 41). If you can identify the correct remote control ;) you should be able to control those two "second" channels from anywhere in the house.

Here's a pdf of the dish 522 receiver: »www.dishnetwork.com/downloads/pd···_522.pdf
Here's a pdf of the dish 322 receiver: »www.dishnetwork.com/downloads/pd···_322.pdf

This is probably why they all offer "free" professional installation. ;) Probably WAAAAY cheaper than trying explain the above via a phone support staff. Not to mention the minor matter of trying to successfully lock on to a satellite.

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by oOOOo edited by nozero
last modified: 2005-01-27 11:26:19

• But I can get cable service for free - why should I not do that?
• Understanding Coxial Cable
• Getting High-Definition TV Over the Air (OTA)
• How do I tell the difference between RG59 and RG6 ??

(back)Because it is not legal to do so.

"Cable television theft is the illegal interception of cable programming services without the express authorization of, or payment to, a cable television system. There are two types of cable theft, passive and active. Passive theft occurs when a consumer receives services due to faulty cable operator procedures. Active theft occurs when someone knowingly and willfully makes an illegal physical connection to the cable system and/or attaches or tampers with equipment to allow the receipt of unauthorized services. Active theft can occur at both a consumer or commercial level. Commercial theft usually happens in an environment where the proprietor receives financial gains from the illegal services (i.e. a bar or restaurant)."

That covers why, or more accurately, why not.

"Sentences in federal and state theft of service cases have ranged from probation to 16 years in prison. Fines and restitution have ranged from several hundred dollars to $2.7 million. Civil judgments have run as high as $245 million."

The above and more information available here:

• »www.ncta.com
  
• »www.usdoj.gov/criminal/cybercrim···c553.htm
  

A few members share their view on this subject in this thread.

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by nozero
last modified: 2008-06-12 17:02:08

(back)Ever wondered how a Cable TV infrastructure works? This information may help that is contained in the following link: »www.phptr.com/articles/article.a···seqNum=4

Keep in mind that the information is copyrighted in the articles by Walter Chen at phptr, and should follow all copyright information as posted by the author in the articles.

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by Greg_Z edited by nozero
last modified: 2004-05-16 21:46:44

(back)Over half the people in the United States can receive HDTV broadcasts for free, though many may not know it (or what it is). This is intended to be an easy how-to on getting HDTV broadcasts.

You can find more information at this website: http://bbauer.gomen.org/ota.htm

*The views expressed are solely by the writer and owner of the website mentioned, and all copyrights apply to all links posted in said website.

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by Greg_Z edited by nozero
last modified: 2004-09-15 20:26:55

(back)RG59 and RG6 are both 75 Ohm cables. The difference is the gauge (girth) of the copper wire center. RG59 is most often 22 AWG (american wire gauge) and RG6 is 18 AWG. RG6 is generally a solid copper core and RG59 can be solid or several smaller gauge copper wires braided together.

Another difference is quality. RG6 is insulated (shielded) with an aluminum foil sheath as opposed to a braided copper wire shield used in RG59.

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by nozero
last modified: 2004-12-27 09:19:39