Satalite dishes

dahkota wrote:

texasAUtiger wrote:

http://www.winegard.com/pathway/pathway-x2

Reading above, does this mean that if I am watching on a single tv with the pathway x2, on say, Dish, will I be able to access all channels on my Dish subscription WITHOUT the x2 having to switch between satellites?

If the answer to that is "no", and if I want to switch from channel x (on say the western arc satellite) to channel y (on say the eastern arc satellite), this will likely take several minutes (for the x2 to recalibrate and find the new satellite). If that's the case, this product is useless, IMO.

Am I understanding the x2 correctly?

We have also owned a Pathway X2. When changing to channels located on a different satellite, it will take about 30 seconds for the dish to move into position and lock onto the signal. Sometimes it takes longer, sometimes shorter. It never took several minutes unless we were under a lot of tree cover or there was a storm.

If I had to pick either a roof top dome or a pathway X2, having owned and used both, I would choose the pathway X2 hands down. The dish is larger and tuned in satellites quicker and with a stronger signal. We put our X2 right next to our dome and tested them against each other. The X2 always won. It was faster, had less rain fade, and was not nearly as loud.

On edit: Most channels are on one satellite. But some channels are on a different satellite. Changing satellites is dependent on what you watch.

Changing from western arc to eastern arc takes a bit longer - you have to reprogram the dish to look for the different arc. Typically, one would either tune in the eastern arc (3 satellites) or the western arc (3 satellites) not bounce between the different arcs.

Thank you! This is very helpful information.

Do you have an opinion on roof mounting it vs just carrying it out while camping? I guess I'd be worried about securing it if left on the ground, so no one stole it.