Modifying a stationary DirecTV dish.

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belter-one
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Modifying a stationary DirecTV dish.

Post by belter-one » Wed Apr 29, 2020 1:21 am

Hello,

There is a stationary DirecTV dish we no longer use on our roof. DirecTV never picked it up, so I would like to swap out the lnb(s) with Ku lnbs that will pass on FTA signals to a receiver. The dish's lnbs point at 99W, 101W and 103W. I am most interested in 103W. Any suggestions as to what lnbs would work for this? Anyone else do this already? Any information on this would be appreciated.

Sounds like fun,

belter-one

dishcrank
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Re: Modifying a stationary DirecTV dish.

Post by dishcrank » Wed Apr 29, 2020 2:30 am

Since those directv feed horns are well matched to the reflector, I would keep them if possible. To convert from circular to linear polarization, look inside the OEM feed horns and you should see a small, metallic "bump". It's that bump that makes it a circular lnbf. If you can grind down that bump, you'll have a linear lnbf. The only problem is the directv reflector tends to be too small for linear ku FTA signals. You may be able to lock the CGTN mux on 103w, but I doubt if you can lock anything from NBC. Ideally, you need a 48 inch reflector to get the job done.

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Re: Modifying a stationary DirecTV dish.

Post by william » Wed Apr 29, 2020 7:32 am

belter-one wrote:
Wed Apr 29, 2020 1:21 am
Hello,

There is a stationary DirecTV dish we no longer use on our roof. DirecTV never picked it up, so I would like to swap out the lnb(s) with Ku lnbs that will pass on FTA signals to a receiver. The dish's lnbs point at 99W, 101W and 103W. I am most interested in 103W. Any suggestions as to what lnbs would work for this? Anyone else do this already? Any information on this would be appreciated.

Sounds like fun,

belter-one
i have 3 ku dish/direct tv dishes i put cheap ($8) lnbs/mounts on with just bent up 3/4" flat iron stock to put the lnb at the focal point. results, except for rain/snow attenuation, are are good for several years now. i get 87, 97,103west. i have a 30", i bought, on 125w also.

belter-one
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Re: Modifying a stationary DirecTV dish.

Post by belter-one » Wed Apr 29, 2020 12:54 pm

Thank you Dishcrank and William,

Very useful information. I will remove the DirecTV dish and replace it with a 48 inch reflector that has rods for an offset lnb (focus point). Can I assume that an offset lnb will be better than modifying this dish to use a prime focus Ku lnb?

offset-dish.png
offset-dish.png (43.36 KiB) Viewed 7878 times

Thank you,

belter-one

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