Digibox signal quality

[hugh]

At the second attempt the local TV shop has managed to get our dish pointing in the right direction but we are still having problems with reception. The digibox is showing signal strength at a consistent 100% but the quality is at best around 25-30% and sometimes even worse which leads to break up of picture (even at 25-30%) (reminds me of the early days of On Digital!). We can never get decent BBC1 on 101 but it's usually OK on 951.

Whilst most of the cabling is new, some of it is the old cables that the previous owner had. I've read that our problem maybe because the dish is pointing at the wrong satellite(s), but could it also be because some of the cable is not up to standard and should be replaced?

[suein56]

Hi Hugh

When the man from our local video shop erected our dish we had the same problem as you for a few minutes until I mentioned to him what I had been told about on here and then read on BigDishSat about the LNB needing to be at five past one instead of at 12 noon as they do here for the French satellite(s). He had not heard about that so was very grateful. As he has a fair number of customers who come from the UK he was already aware of the need to angle the dish differently as the satellite(s) we need to access are lower in the sky than the French ones.

We have good reception and re very pleased in general - the only trouble is watching UK TV does not improve one's French at all. I now make a point of watching French news etc when at all possible to conteract this.

Sue

 

[Mpprh]

Hi

I'm at the extreme South of the "footprint". I always have a good picture, even when it is raining.

The dish was sorted out by http://www.skyinfrance.co.uk/

Peter

 

 

[Anton Redman]

[quote user="hugh"]At the second attempt the local TV shop has managed to get our dish pointing in the right direction but we are still having problems with reception. The digibox is showing signal strength at a consistent 100% but the quality is at best around 25-30% and sometimes even worse which leads to break up of picture (even at 25-30%) (reminds me of the early days of On Digital!). We can never get decent BBC1 on 101 but it's usually OK on 951.
Whilst most of the cabling is new, some of it is the old cables that the previous owner had. I've read that our problem maybe because the dish is pointing at the wrong satellite(s), but could it also be because some of the cable is not up to standard and should be replaced?
[/quote]

It is not a 'big' ( pointed at the wrong satellite) alignment problem if you are receiving BBC1.

Start point if the lengths of you cable runs are above 10 metres and you have joints the first thing I would do is replace the cable with one run from the LNB/Dish all the way to the digibox. ( without even a joint at the wallplate )

Alternatively rotate the LNB by small say 3 degree amounts( slacken the screw and twist it in its housing - do not move the dish itself) count to 20 and see if this improves the quality.

If neither of the above improve the signal quality. Mark the exact salignment and elevation of the dish by paint or a scribe to scratch the position and then move the dish by minute amounts. Minute = the thicknes of a cigarette paper or Euro note.

You normally need at least 75% signal quality for reliable all weather reception. But this can be acheived anywhere in mainland France withan 80 cm dish.