Satellite hook up...what am I doing wrong?

mds47588 wrote:
Modded mine as such...

http://www.tv4rv.com/wiring.pdf

Thanks for posting that link, I knew I had seen it before, but couldn't find it.

Had the same problem. I ended up buying a cable tester. My connections were wired wrong.
Then the pathways cable can only be so long. The distance must include the length of inside wiring. The cable that came with my Pathway wouldn't work. So I added a quality length of coax with quality connectors and it works now. The connections must be tight as the pathway is a little picky at times. Sometimes I have to connect and reconnect the cable before I get the correct screen to come up for zip and satellites I want to connect to. That being said the Pathway is really awesome, the ability to use other sats has saved us a few times already.

Modded mine as such...

http://www.tv4rv.com/wiring.pdf

Had the same problem and I have a dedicated sat and cable inputs on the outside. I finally got our to work by running it through the input labeled "cable" from the outside and had to take the coax output off the wall on the inside. The middle of the three inputs was removed and run directly to my receiver, this is the only way I could get it to work.

Just run a new coax to the nearest/easiest outside storage locker.

Some RV's have two cable connections on the service side, One labled SAT and one labled CABLE.. I will assume yours, like mine, does not.

IF that is the case then the CABLE connection goes to a SWITCH inside the RV.. This is often a wall plate (it is the middle of 3 connections behind the wall plate) and it can not be used, as connected for SAT TV.

Two solutions

Poor choice but easier:
Remove wall plate, disconnect center cable, extend using a double female connector (Barrell connector) to sat receiver LNB IN,, Connect sat TO TV (if exist) to port on wall plat just vacated....

To watch Sat TV, Turn off wall plate switch.. To watch OTA TV, Turn wall plate on.> To watch park cable: Restore original wiring and turn off wall plate.


BETTER OPTION:

Leave the wall plate alone

Run a brand new RG-6 from the Sat Receiver to a handy connection point outside the RV,, perhaps a basement compartment.. Put a GROUND BLOCK there bolted to a metal frame part, and connect the Sat antenna there.

If sat receivewr has RF out (not all do) Extend the wall plate center cable to OTA-ANT IN on sat receiver and extend RF out back to wall plate as above

Now the new truth table

Wall plate on: OTA antenna (rooftop antenna0
Wall plate off, Sat receiver off: Cable TV
Wall Plat Off, Sat receiver ON: Sat TV

This is the hookup I recommend.

Use quality RG-6.. Many reasons to do that.

There in lies the problem, works fine connected directly, but nothing when using the exterior coax input. Most newer rigs have multiple dedicated exterior coax inputs and if your Jayco contains this feature you should be seeing success utilizing the exterior satellite port unless it is incorrectly wired.

If your Whitehawk does indeed have a single exterior coax input like our TT does you will have difficulty getting sat signal to reach receiver since that input usually runs into splitter situated behind or near the tv antenna amp. We performed this simple mod to rectify the dilemma. We love us some sat tv when RVing!

You must have a straight thru cable from the outside connection to the inside connection for the sat. If you only have a single outside connection, that will be set up for cable and will go thru the ant/cable switch box.

Mine was like that. But fortunately the outside connection came into a dual coax wall plate just below the TV. A short coax cable was used as a jumper between the two wall plate connectors. By removing that jumper and connecting a longer coax from the wall plate to the sat receiver box it would work fine.

The above worked fine. But if I did want to use park cable I had to disconnect the receiver and put the jumper back in place. Solved the problem by adding an additional outside coax connector with a new coax cable run inside to a new single wall plate for the sat receiver.

If your TT is pre-wired for sat., you could install new co-ax inside the TT and connect to the existing exterior co-ax inlet connector and abandon existing sat. co-ax. If it isn't prewired, you'll need a new exterior co-ax inlet and will need to run co-ax to where the receiver will be. As mentioned, you can't use the cable intended for CG cable TV. What model Greyhawk is it and where would you have the receiver? The dish needs power for aiming from the receiver via the co-ax and a splitter will disrupt that.

If it is pre-wired, this is what I found and did. Our TT came pre-cabled for satellite but there is no info. on how the cable is installed. There are 3 co-ax sat. connections inside and 2 outside. The plate at one TV with 2 co-ax connectors says "to satellite" on one and "from satellite" on the other and the bedroom TV just has one co-ax connection for sat. The outside co-ax connections just say "sat". Makes no sense. And even though the TT is pre-wired for sat., there is no place whatsoever to place a receiver. Seems like it is more of a marketing gimmick and the manufacturer can claim the TT is pre-wired for sat.

I decided to abandon what's already inside and ran a new co-ax (good quality one) from the outside satellite co-ax connect up to where I put the receiver and then an HDMI cable through the ceiling to the TV. I was able to access the outside co-ax connector at the rear of our kitchen cabinets. It works great. The only issue I'm having is getting used to aiming the dish to get the satellite I need - the Winegard Pathway X2 sounds like a good idea.

phxchica wrote:
connect it through the outdoor cable hookup on the RV, nothing!.

Outdoor cable hookups will NOT work for satellite TV. Cable hookups pass through the splitter and the OTA power adapter. Those prevent the satellite receiver from having a two-way conversation with the satellite antenna.

You must have a Satellite and a Cable outdoor hookup. Two separate hookup connectors.

If your rig does not have one, you have to install a new one through the external wall of the rig.