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Old 02-06-2017, 05:03 PM   #1
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Satellite TV

I've always carried a dish and tripod to set up with much cussing involved finding the satellites. So, I'm in the market for a portable sat finder/antennae and could use some buying advice (we have Dish and an older model, VIP 622, dual DVD receiver). I suppose I would like one that I could also use if I decided to switch to Direct TV, and I don't want to buy the real expensive ones and I would like to NOT have to buy a newer receiver box. I see there are several options under $400. Advice?

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Old 02-06-2017, 05:10 PM   #2
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I know you don't want to buy another receiver, and I'm not sure if you can get one for both Dish and Direct tv, but wanted to pass this along. I posted this on another thread this morning:

If you have Dish satellite at home, you can get service on the road for $7 a month. You can even suspend service for no additional fee for the months you don't need it. You do have to purchase an antenna and satellite box to begin with. I use the King satellite antenna and the VIP 211 box. You pretty much point it south and the antenna makes the adjustment. You can buy them in a package for about $350. You will get all your channels you do at home, as long as there are no obstructions. Sometimes you will not have HD on all channels, or may be missing some channels. The good thing with the portable antenna is that you can move it around to overcome tree obstructions, etc.
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Old 02-06-2017, 05:48 PM   #3
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Steve, I've always just taken my receiver from home and a portable dish antennae, changed the skew, elevation, and azmith angles and "voila" without paying the $7/month. Over the 12 years we've been traveling, we have also suspended our service several times since the campground had free cable (a nice service, but not available with the new, cheaper plan where you select only the channels you want to view). Thanks for the info about the King satellite and VIP 211 combo. Purchaced through Dish, or somewhere like Camping World?


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Old 02-06-2017, 05:52 PM   #4
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Since you said the set up involved much cussing, I thought you would benefit from the antenna that fine tuned itself. I purchased mine from Dish. They met the price of another retailer, which I think was King Tailgater themselves.
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Old 02-06-2017, 06:59 PM   #5
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I might be confused by your set up, but I use an app that locates the satellites for my Dish Tailgater. Shows the horizon, and you will see if there are tree obstructions through the screen. I point my phone to the SE, and it shows the satellites in the sky. Then place the dish antennae where it will have a clear view of the satellites. Works every time, and i believe other companies have similar apps.
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Old 02-06-2017, 07:17 PM   #6
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Kingfish, I'm not sure if your response was for me or the Op, but yes I realize there are apps out there to point you in the right position, but I guess I'm either too lazy or to tech illiterate to figure out how to use them that helps me LOL. I tried using a couple times, and they always seemed to point south, or just a bit S/E, so I use my phone compass, and set it in that direction trying to avoid the tress, buildings, large motorhoms next door, etc. Once I set the antenna down, I hear the inner workings of the King Tailgater adjusting to locate the satellites. If I get a poor reading on my menu from the receiver, then I move the antenna.
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Old 02-06-2017, 07:48 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve7 View Post
Since you said the set up involved much cussing, I thought you would benefit from the antenna that fine tuned itself. I purchased mine from Dish. They met the price of another retailer, which I think was King Tailgater themselves.
You are correct, Steve; that will benefit me. I'll call Dish when I get home so I can stop filling up the "cuss jar" with coins

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Old 02-06-2017, 07:54 PM   #8
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Originally Posted by Kingfish58 View Post
I might be confused by your set up, but I use an app that locates the satellites for my Dish Tailgater. Shows the horizon, and you will see if there are tree obstructions through the screen. I point my phone to the SE, and it shows the satellites in the sky. Then place the dish antennae where it will have a clear view of the satellites. Works every time, and i believe other companies have similar apps.
I'll find that obstruction app. I did use the phone compass and an app that is supposed to point the dish in the right direction but evidently I'm doing something else wrong with the dish wiring hook up. I've never had this problem before except the time I worked for two days trying to get it set up before calling a Dish tech. The LC?? on the nose of the dish was bad

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Old 02-07-2017, 09:13 AM   #9
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I use the King Tailgater and a Wally receiver. The Wally comes with a RF (not IR) remote which allows me to change channels outside or in the bedroom of my RV. It is a $7 a month add on to my Dish home account.

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Old 02-08-2017, 09:09 PM   #10
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That's what I do, set with the app, then let the receiver itself fine tune.
One other thing I discovered is that you must use good quality RG6 coax or it will not work. No more than 50 ft. From trailer to dish, then as short as possible of an RG6 connection inside from the jack to the receiver.
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