Shaw Direct for Canadians.

[robatthelake]

Well we have had the pleasure of travelling half way across Canada from West to East and are now returning via the USA!
Naturally we brought along our Shaw Direct Receiver and have been enjoying watching our favorite shows from home!
We expected to lose some of the HD channels and so far have been surprised at how many still work here in South Dakota!
For those of us that come to Sturgis fort the Motorcycles and this weekend Ford Mustangs , I just wanted to confirm that our portable Dish is functioning quite well!
No we do not get all the HD Stations that we receive at home ,but there are SD Alternatives that are booming in here so no worries!

[myredracer]

😄

Bill.Satellite wrote:
I hope that's a joke and others understand that as well!

[Bill_Satellite]

I hope that's a joke and others understand that as well!

[myredracer]

Bill.Satellite wrote:
I you take a look at the footprint 82 and 91 you will see why OR is a Yes but much South of that is a No. The line drawing would need to be inside the 49 ring.
Bell US Coverage

That would explain it. I've long forgotten how far Ontario dips below the 49th parallel. I see that the coverage map shows that Bell's coverage extends somewhat farther south below Ont. compared to us in the west.

I just got a 10' C-band dish. Maybe I could take that on a trip to CA and see how far I can get, lol.

[Bill_Satellite]

I you take a look at the footprint 82 and 91 you will see why OR is a Yes but much South of that is a No. The line drawing would need to be inside the 49 ring.
Bell US Coverage

[Fizz]

Bend OR is on the same latitude as Southern Ontario. Hardly half way south.

[myredracer]

Bill.Satellite wrote:

myredracer wrote:
I don't know much about Shaw sat TV service but you may find a larger dish will help. We use a PVR from home for our Telus (Bell) sat TV. Have been able to get reception as far south as Bend OR so far and will have to wait for another season to see how far south it will work. A larger dish (like our 36") will have better gain. We also use a better LNB made by Invacom. Some say you can't get Bell reception very far into the US but it works for us.

If using a larger dish to get a weaker signal, you need to be more accurate with aiming and be able to peak the signal. I bought a Birdog meter for more accurate aiming. I also use the Dishpointer.com sat finder app which really helps a lot, esp. when there's trees in the way. Bell has 2 sats, one for HD and the other for SD and the schedule. I've been using the HD sat only so I don't have to bother with skew but can't get the schedule past one hour ahead.

Telus no longer offers sat service for new customers and have been thinking about switching to Shaw and may look into Dish or DirecTV for RV-ing. If Shaw doesn't work very far into the US, it'll be one of the others.

There are some forums that may help for Can. sat info. like satelliteguys.us and digitalhome.ca.

No matter the size of the dish, you are not going to get very far South in the US with Bell. They have already setup their satellites to cover all of Canada and as little of the US as possible. Shaw has only done this with their newest satellite and the other 2 still give great coverage into Mexico.

Okay, but we just spent 2 weeks in Bend OR which is about 1/2 way south through Oregon and had Bell 82 just fine!

[Bill_Satellite]

myredracer wrote:
I don't know much about Shaw sat TV service but you may find a larger dish will help. We use a PVR from home for our Telus (Bell) sat TV. Have been able to get reception as far south as Bend OR so far and will have to wait for another season to see how far south it will work. A larger dish (like our 36") will have better gain. We also use a better LNB made by Invacom. Some say you can't get Bell reception very far into the US but it works for us.

If using a larger dish to get a weaker signal, you need to be more accurate with aiming and be able to peak the signal. I bought a Birdog meter for more accurate aiming. I also use the Dishpointer.com sat finder app which really helps a lot, esp. when there's trees in the way. Bell has 2 sats, one for HD and the other for SD and the schedule. I've been using the HD sat only so I don't have to bother with skew but can't get the schedule past one hour ahead.

Telus no longer offers sat service for new customers and have been thinking about switching to Shaw and may look into Dish or DirecTV for RV-ing. If Shaw doesn't work very far into the US, it'll be one of the others.

There are some forums that may help for Can. sat info. like satelliteguys.us and digitalhome.ca.

No matter the size of the dish, you are not going to get very far South in the US with Bell. They have already setup their satellites to cover all of Canada and as little of the US as possible. Shaw has only done this with their newest satellite and the other 2 still give great coverage into Mexico.

[myredracer]

I don't know much about Shaw sat TV service but you may find a larger dish will help. We use a PVR from home for our Telus (Bell) sat TV. Have been able to get reception as far south as Bend OR so far and will have to wait for another season to see how far south it will work. A larger dish (like our 36") will have better gain. We also use a better LNB made by Invacom. Some say you can't get Bell reception very far into the US but it works for us.

If using a larger dish to get a weaker signal, you need to be more accurate with aiming and be able to peak the signal. I bought a Birdog meter for more accurate aiming. I also use the Dishpointer.com sat finder app which really helps a lot, esp. when there's trees in the way. Bell has 2 sats, one for HD and the other for SD and the schedule. I've been using the HD sat only so I don't have to bother with skew but can't get the schedule past one hour ahead.

Telus no longer offers sat service for new customers and have been thinking about switching to Shaw and may look into Dish or DirecTV for RV-ing. If Shaw doesn't work very far into the US, it'll be one of the others.

There are some forums that may help for Can. sat info. like satelliteguys.us and digitalhome.ca.

[roy67ss]

If you choose to go with a US service, there will be absolutely zero canadian content as opposed to Shaw which has all the canadian content you could ask as well as US networks and the specialty channels you like. Check out the programming options and I think you will find Shaw has most all the channels you want. And, there is no local channel bs like the US providers insist on. Yes, the Anik F1/F2 birds will eventually be finished but, that is still a long ways off and until then, enjoy. Even without the G1 channels, while in the far south, I still find lots to watch with several SD & HD channels available on the F1/F2 birds. And everything is available while in Canada the rest of the time.

[MDKMDK]

I haven't watched NHL hockey since Bettman added the shootout about 15 years ago.
Most "Canadian TV" or Cancon which they produce up here doesn't interest me, and I tend to watch US based stuff over Canadian anyways, living on the border. I occasionally tune in a basic Canadian news ticker channel to get caught up on how our NAFTA negotiators are screwing things up, and check the Canadian stock market, to see how badly we're doing compared to the US markets. :E :S
Frankly, there is no 49th parallel for me when it comes to televised entertainment, as I prefer the NFL, MLB and EPL, and international soccer over the "good 'ol hockey game". Most of the best prime time stuff we get up here is US based/produced as far as I know, but I don't watch it. I'm more into news and current events, finance, history, science, and NatGeo type stuff.
I also prefer Starbucks to Tim Hortons. OMG, blasphemy!!!!:B

[Bill_Satellite]

If you are a US resident then you can setup a DISH or DirecTV account. How are you going to watch Canadian hockey (everyday?) as a DirecTV subscriber? Both Shaw and Bell "used to be" the perfect answer. The reality is that Canadian TV is designed for reception in Canada for Canadian residents and US TV is designed for reception in the US for US residents.

[MDKMDK]

May be time to seek other satellite options.
Dish or Direct TV might be better options for someone who wants sat TV at home and on the road. I guess you'd need a US address to make that happen, for billing. Think of the market possibilities and the money they could make if it weren't for the mutual exclusion rules they all seem to follow now.
Shaw used to be the perfect answer for a Canadian with this in mind. Now, they're no better than Bell XpressVu.
Pity.

[Bill_Satellite]

MDKMDK wrote:
I've got the HDDSR 600 receiver, we currently get SD and HD channels at home. I assume I have the triple LNB (changed it out at home a few years ago, in prep for the new bird) if we're getting HD?
The question really is, if I were to get a Winegard Traveler mounted up top, would it come with whatever I need to see all 3 Shaw Direct birds as they currently are configured in space?
Another option we've considered is using Shaw's online streaming and just getting a cheap VPN to access it when we're away.

EDIT: If the Anik F1/F2 birds are being retired eventually, and the G1 coverage is targeted to above the 49th, I guess there's no point in getting an automatic dish mounted up top.

Shaw Direct used to be a cheaper better alternative to cable, but in the last 2-3 years they've caught up in price, and now it's pretty much a saw off for which one is better value. Their customer service was better, but even that's changing. I still like the mobility of being able to take a tripod/dish rig along and using it when we stop for a day or two, but it's hard to justify adding something that costs several thousand dollars up here to buy and install, if it won't work where I want it to work.
Thanks for your input roy/Bill. 🙂

Yes, the correct LNB. So anywhere you go in Canada you will be able to pick up all 3 satellites. However, the new satellite only has a spot beam that covers Canada and a bit of the N. US. So, whether you use a portable or a Trav'ler you will have the exact same success (or lack thereof).

[MDKMDK]

I've got the HDDSR 600 receiver, we currently get SD and HD channels at home. I assume I have the triple LNB (changed it out at home a few years ago, in prep for the new bird) if we're getting HD?
The question really is, if I were to get a Winegard Traveler mounted up top, would it come with whatever I need to see all 3 Shaw Direct birds as they currently are configured in space?
Another option we've considered is using Shaw's online streaming and just getting a cheap VPN to access it when we're away.

EDIT: If the Anik F1/F2 birds are being retired eventually, and the G1 coverage is targeted to above the 49th, I guess there's no point in getting an automatic dish mounted up top.

Shaw Direct used to be a cheaper better alternative to cable, but in the last 2-3 years they've caught up in price, and now it's pretty much a saw off for which one is better value. Their customer service was better, but even that's changing. I still like the mobility of being able to take a tripod/dish rig along and using it when we stop for a day or two, but it's hard to justify adding something that costs several thousand dollars up here to buy and install, if it won't work where I want it to work.
Thanks for your input roy/Bill. 🙂