# Minimum Acceptable Signal Strength.



## fumunda (Aug 22, 2006)

Hello Folks, 

We just got upgraded to the VIP622 receiver. I asked the install tech to show me what the signal strength was for each of the 3 satellites. It was something like 90, 70, 65. I asked him what the lowest acceptable signal was since we were upgrading to HD and he said 60. I’ve searched the FAQ’s and the forums here for about 45 minutes and didn’t find any recommendations on the subject. Was this guy pulling my leg? 

Also are there any FAQ’s regarding best set up tips for the 622? I noticed that some of the HD channels are blurry compared to the ones I get with my 942. 
Thanks again for any input.
-Rick


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## Mark Lamutt (Mar 24, 2002)

Welcome to DBSTalk, fumunda! :hi:

I'd actually say less than 60 would be an absolute minimum signal strength - you'll get picture with a SS of about 45 or so, but obviously the higher the better to combat rain fade problems. 90, 70 and 65 is pretty standard signal strength numbers for a Dish1000 in SoCal.

As for FAQs, I'd start in the 622 forum here. When you say blurry HD channels, I would hazard a guess that you're watching an HD channel that is showing a program upconverted from SD, rather than a HD program. There will be just about no difference in how the HD channels look between the 942 and the 622.


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## harsh (Jun 15, 2003)

fumunda said:


> I asked him what the lowest acceptable signal was since we were upgrading to HD and he said 60.


The minimum acceptable is whatever the receiver needs to produce a picture. I'm a little suspicious of your readings with the reading for 110 being so much greater than the 119 signal. The instructions say that you're supposed to peak for 119 and conventional wisdom says that you should peak for 129. Your reading for 119 (assuming that you're reading from East to West) is lower than what I would expect.

Up here at the 45th parallel, I get about the same number on 110 as 119 and 129 runs about 28% less (discounting the periodic "wobble fade"). I use a 921, so my actual numbers probably don't mean much.


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## fumunda (Aug 22, 2006)

Thanks, Ive been poing aroudn the FAQ area quite abit. Very usefull stuff here. Hope i can contribute once i learn a bit more =) 

-fu


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## BobaBird (Mar 31, 2002)

fumunda said:


> Also are there any FAQ's regarding best set up tips for the 622? I noticed that some of the HD channels are blurry compared to the ones I get with my 942.


Have you set your TV type to 1080i from the default 480p yet?

See http://ekb.dbstalk.com/622tips.htm for more tips gleaned from the boards.


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## fumunda (Aug 22, 2006)

Yup sure did. I think what I’m noticing is the difference between mpeg2 and mpeg4 stuff. 

thanks again!


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## DiscoverPlatinum (Aug 23, 2006)

808


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## orenr (Jun 10, 2004)

Hi,

I have about the same question, but for Sunnyvale, CA.

I just switched from D* to E* and I got a Dish1000 and ViP622 installed yesterday. I'm trying to verify if my dish is properly aligned, but I'm not sure what to expect. I've been searching through the messages, but some are a little vague because they talk about strength without specifying the transponder.

Can someone tell me what strength is normal for this area, on each satellite, and on which transponder should I check?

-- Thanks

P.S. One weird thing is that there is no Dish1000 in the setup menu, it's set to Dish500 (but everything works fine). And _something_ in there knows it's a Dish1000, because I get a "Congratulations, you have a Dish1000" on channel 101 or whatever...


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## Mark Lamutt (Mar 24, 2002)

Welcome to DBSTalk, orenr! :hi:

I don't really know where Sunnyvale CA is, but in general, you should see signal strength's of at least 80 and probably closer to 100 for most transponders on 119, at least 80, and some well over 100 for most transponders on 110, and at least 60 (with some hopefully over 70) for transponders on 129. There may be a couple that are in the 50 range.

Dish1000 isn't listed in the point dish screen, and isn't needed. Your 622 thinks it's connected to a Dish1000 because it sees the 129 satellite location.


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## orenr (Jun 10, 2004)

Mark Lamutt said:


> Welcome to DBSTalk, orenr! :hi:
> 
> I don't really know where Sunnyvale CA is, but in general, you should see signal strength's of at least 80 and probably closer to 100 for most transponders on 119, at least 80, and some well over 100 for most transponders on 110, and at least 60 (with some hopefully over 70) for transponders on 129. There may be a couple that are in the 50 range.
> 
> Dish1000 isn't listed in the point dish screen, and isn't needed. Your 622 thinks it's connected to a Dish1000 because it sees the 129 satellite location.


Mark,

Thanks for the info. Sunnyvale is in the Silicon Valley.

I finally got around to write all of them down:

On 110, I'm getting mostly low-80, with 66 on TP 3 and 68 on TP10. A few in the high-70s too, and a few in the 90s. The highest is TP25, at 99
On 119, I'm getting most of them between 75 and 87, with 93 on TP7 and an odd 124 on TP5
On 129, I'm getting most of them in the 60-67 range, with about 5 in the 50s and six of them above 70 (TP19 is at 80)

I get the feeling that the installer didn't do a very good job. The dish is on the roof, with perfect view and no obstructions, so there are no excuses.

I called the tech support yesterday and they told me that they don't do preventive work and if I want a better alignment I can either pay for it myself or wait until the winter comes and I start losing the signal.


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## harsh (Jun 15, 2003)

orenr said:


> I get the feeling that the installer didn't do a very good job. The dish is on the roof, with perfect view and no obstructions, so there are no excuses.


I live a little over 600 miles North and I generally get better numbers. I would guess that like many installers, your's was chasing after the best 129 numbers. The documentation instructs to peak on 119, but since 129 is the real problem, some have modified their techniques.

I installed my Dish1000 and found that the elevation number was a couple of degrees low. I was getting numbers similar to yours before I bumped it up.

Only time will tell, but you could easily make it through the cloudy period (you can't call it Winter) with only the 129 weaknesses that happen on clear days. I'm not sure what the grace period is for re-peaking. You might consider DHPP for a few months either side of year-end.

Here's some real numbers from my 921 recorded on 2006-09-03 around 10:00PDT (the extremes):

110 T02 105
110 T03 75
110 S25 0 (I'm guessing that this is a spotbeam as you get a reading and I don't)
110 T06 107
110 T13 76
110 T22 105
110 S27 108

119 S01 125
119 T02 103
119 S05 73
119 T06 103
119 S07 0 (this is probably a spotbeam also)
119 T12 105
119 T15 98
119 T17 97

129 T01 61
129 T08 62
129 T10 78
129 T15 78
129 T16 78
129 T19 78

It is notable that my 508 reads about 5-6 points lower across the board and it doesn't read some transponders that the 921 does.


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## orenr (Jun 10, 2004)

What's DHPP?


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## Mark Lamutt (Mar 24, 2002)

Digital Home Protection Plan - extended warranty that Dish sells for $5.99 a month (or $1.99 a month if you bought it way back when in the beginning).


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## orenr (Jun 10, 2004)

Oh, that. I have it, they have this promotion by which they waive the $49.99 activation fee and they give you the DHPP for 18 months, if you sign an 18 months commitment. But that doesn't help me right now, if they say that there is no problem...


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## BobaBird (Mar 31, 2002)

harsh said:


> It is notable that my 508 reads about 5-6 points lower across the board and it doesn't read some transponders that the 921 does.


The 50x line doesn't have an 8PSK tuner so it can't read the transponders that carry the HDTV channels. And you're right about the spotbeams.


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## Torn10 (Sep 4, 2006)

fumunda said:


> Hello Folks,
> 
> We just got upgraded to the VIP622 receiver. I asked the install tech to show me what the signal strength was for each of the 3 satellites. It was something like 90, 70, 65. I asked him what the lowest acceptable signal was since we were upgrading to HD and he said 60. I've searched the FAQ's and the forums here for about 45 minutes and didn't find any recommendations on the subject. Was this guy pulling my leg?
> 
> ...


I just upgraded to the ViP211-HD receiver and I am having the same problem as you are with the blurry HD Channels. I have my receiver set on 1080i. I cannot remember what my previous model number was but it was over 1.5 years old. I know that it is a HD program because Sunrise Earth is one of them where I can see the pixels which make it look blurry. My previous receiver was awesome. I am very unhappy with the quality of the new one.


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## Mark Lamutt (Mar 24, 2002)

Torn10 - make sure that your receiver is set to 1080i. What you describe sounds very much like it's set to 480p (yes, I know that you said you have it set to 1080i...) 

If you can see the individual pixels, then you either have a huge television, are right up next to the screen, or aren't watching at 1080i. Sunrise Earth from my 622 is crystal clear. I'm watching on a 51" Sony rear projection set via component video.


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## Torn10 (Sep 4, 2006)

Mark Lamutt said:


> Torn10 - make sure that your receiver is set to 1080i. What you describe sounds very much like it's set to 480p (yes, I know that you said you have it set to 1080i...)
> 
> If you can see the individual pixels, then you either have a huge television, are right up next to the screen, or aren't watching at 1080i. Sunrise Earth from my 622 is crystal clear. I'm watching on a 51" Sony rear projection set via component video.


I have a 50" Pioneer Plasma set via HDMI. I know its on 1080i because my tv will show in the upper right hand corner that it is 1080i. I also checked on the 211 and yes it was set on 1080i. My previous receiver was 811, I called Dish and they told me what I had before. That receiver was crystal clear on Sunrise Earth. I can't figure out why the 211 would be different. I have engineering trying to help. I haven't heard from them in about 3 days though. Maybe I will try the 622. Any other thoughts on helping me?


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