directv 36" international dish for fta?

[dcbag]

Has anyone used a directv international dish for fta? If so, how good is it. Thanks

 

[Mr Tony]

I havent personally used one but I heard they work pretty good. The dish can be skewed which is a plus (when you skew just the LNB you lose a little bit of signal whereas the whole dish being skewed you keep the same amount of signal)

 

[Morbius]

Great little dish for G10. I have one at my cottage and Iceberg is right. Skew the dish and it works better than skewing the lnb. I spent an hour doing both and the skewed dish is the way to go. Only problem was 11720 was sort of weak (35-40) quality when cloudy ,but it didn't "break" up ,so I guess its all good.

 

[techno935]

I'm a nightly user of that dish. G10 is where it is aimed. EXCELLENT quality on my end but results differ in many areas and situations. I have the stock (Eagle Aspen) LNB on it right now but I plan on upgrading to an Invacom QPF-*** model, not a QPH. QPF models have the flange that supposedly fit the existing Eagle Aspen feedhorn assembly.


Just wait, I'll report back when I end up shelling out the $80 for one of those suckers. Although, signal has been stable so far, (for the last 3 weeks or so) and I've been debating on whether or not it's worth it to upgrade.

If you decide you wanna go with this dish, it's very stable but it MUST be mounted with the supporting arms. They ARE required. Not just a pipe mount, you need the whole thing.

The spacing on degrees between both LNBS is 6. So, if you choose to use the "95 west" LNB for G10, your "101" LNB will be set for 129 West which is an Echostar bird. Once in a blue moon they will FTE a channel or two on that bird. I may even upgrade that LNB to linear as well. Still undecided. Need to re-aim the motorized dish before anything else goes on around here.

 

[dcbag]

Thanks for info, if I add this type dish to my system, it will be pole mounted. Price on ebay for this type dish seems to be a good deal.

 

[Anole]

price / value ratio

I see people come here asking this question from time to time.

I was of the opinion that if you found it somewhere for free, it'd work, and be a heck of a bargain.
However, to buy it for $60..$80..$100 or more, I don't think so.

Maybe some of the members who have this dish will comment what it cost them and how it performs, compared to something more traditional.

Personally, I love the molded construction, compared to stamped steel dishes.
. . . I assume this is the molded dish, not a stamped one . . .
It's the size I have a problem with: [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] 36" x 24"[/FONT]
Is this the size of the 75e Primestars?
Is this the size of the StarChoice dishes?
(if so, I'll shut up)
At least it's not 36 x 18 or whatever that tiny model is.

...but then again, how many Primestar or StarChoice dish users, bought those dishes??

 

[dcbag]

I believe the dish under consideration is 36 X 24 or so. I don't think you can purchase another dish with 2 lnbs for $60 to $80 shipped. I could be wrong, I'm by no means an expert. The 36 X 18 dish you mentioned may be the size of the current 5 lnb directv dish, not their international dish.

 

[Mr Tony]

Is this the size of the 75e Primestars?

nope. Primestar 75e is 37x27

Is this the size of the StarChoice dishes?

nope. The 60e is 36x20 and the 75e is 37x27

At least it's not 36 x 18 or whatever that tiny model is.

I have one of those DirecPC dishes that is 36x18

...but then again, how many Primestar or StarChoice dish users, bought those dishes??

bought my SC dish when I got the system

 

[Anole]

Here's another thread that spoke favorably of the dish:
http://www.satelliteguys.us/free-air-fta-discussion/97500-directv-dtv36eds-fta-review.html

Someone recently posted a complete list of sizes for this series of elliptical dishes, but after quite a bit of searching, I can't seem to locate it.
edit: http://www.satelliteguys.us/free-air-fta-discussion/101343-primestar-found-bushes.html

I don't think you can purchase another dish with 2 lnbs for $60 to $80 shipped.

I guess I'll have to grudgingly give you that one.
I forgot the LNB.

But, I tend to think "larger dish" and "Invacom LNB", and only consider recycled Dish/Direct dishes for secondary purposes.