HD question

2oldman wrote:

Dutch_12078 wrote:
The photo shows my Dish 1000.4 dish that's a bit larger than the DTV Slimline. The tripod is a modded standard roof mount that sells for around $30.

I'm glad you got by cheap.

The Slimline is finicky, and needs a strong, stable and LEVEL pad to mount. I think I would find it difficult to adjust your style of tripod to be plumb and stay there. My dish won't stand 50mph gusts. That's a bit of a stretch.

I did say the tripod was modified. I just stick a bubble level on top of the post and screw the three 6" levelers in or out as needed. On very rare occasions I've needed to use a block under one of the legs when the only available hole through the trees required setting up on a steep slope. And those 50 mph wind gusts were recorded by the park office weather station and were consistent with the area TV weather reports. The two screw anchors were in good holding ground.

Dutch_12078 wrote:
The photo shows my Dish 1000.4 dish that's a bit larger than the DTV Slimline. The tripod is a modded standard roof mount that sells for around $30.

I'm glad you got by cheap.

The Slimline is finicky, and needs a strong, stable and LEVEL pad to mount. I think I would find it difficult to adjust your style of tripod to be plumb and stay there. My dish won't stand 50mph gusts. That's a bit of a stretch.

2oldman wrote:
I'm sure it can be done cheaper. I just wanted a setup that wouldn't blow over in wind and would stay aimed where I aimed it. I don't want it on the roof.

The photo shows my Dish 1000.4 dish that's a bit larger than the DTV Slimline. The tripod is a modded standard roof mount that sells for around $30. This setup has held fast in 50 mph wind gusts with no loss of signal.

I'm sure it can be done cheaper. I just wanted a setup that wouldn't blow over in wind and would stay aimed where I aimed it. I don't want it on the roof.

2oldman wrote:
I guess you'll have to cough up a couple C-notes and learn to aim a Slimline.

"...a couple C-notes...? An aiming app on a smartphone and a $10 sat signal meter will do just fine. A standard roof mount tripod can be modded for portable use for under $50.

I guess you'll have to cough up a couple C-notes and learn to aim a Slimline.

RRinNFla wrote:

tarnold wrote:
So cannot Winegard for example, not put the KA LNB under a dome?

At an RV show, I asked the Winegard representative when they were coming out with a portable for DirecTV? His answer: NEVER

I assume you mean an HD portable for DTV, since of course they do have SD portables.

tarnold wrote:
So cannot Winegard for example, not put the KA LNB under a dome?

At an RV show, I asked the Winegard representative when they were coming out with a portable for DirecTV? His answer: NEVER

You can get a dome for the DirecTV HD satellites but the price and size may not be to your liking. I believe the price is in excess of $12,000 and the size is something like 8' in diameter and 10' tall. They are rated for marine use, however.

While not quite that big....(1.2 m x 1.4 m (48.8" x 57.3") /
90.7 kg (200 lbs)) they are big and heavy and expensive.

The KA band that DirecTV uses requires a large antenna as well as the signal is even more flaky than the KU band and is even more sensitive to weather related issues. You would also need to install 2 or 3 LNB's instead of the current 1 (KU an KA). Just another road block.
Just trust us.....it's not even on the drawing board of any manufacturer that I am aware of to even give it a try! You woul

tarnold wrote:
Got that. But why cannot they make a portable to do that? Would it be size restrictive? I'm just a little squmish about investing in a portable with this "talk" about Direct SD maybe going away when I have Direct in two stick houses.

You can get a dome for the DirecTV HD satellites but the price and size may not be to your liking. I believe the price is in excess of $12,000 and the size is something like 8' in diameter and 10' tall. They are rated for marine use, however.

Obviously your best bet is to get a Winegard Trav'ler for either Dish or DirecTV. They work, they give you HD on DirecTV, and they work with all flavors of Dish Hoppers.