# Symptoms of a bad LNB?



## igator99 (Jul 28, 2006)

What are the symptoms of a bad LNB. 119 goes from 35 to 70 for me without wind or rain. I've moved the dish several times. Nothing seems to work. I get 85 on 103, 95 on 110 and 101. I have the slimline 5lnb dish.


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## texasbrit (Aug 9, 2006)

igator99 said:


> What are the symptoms of a bad LNB. 119 goes from 35 to 70 for me without wind or rain. I've moved the dish several times. Nothing seems to work. I get 85 on 103, 95 on 110 and 101. I have the slimline 5lnb dish.


Are you sure there is nothing in the line of sight to 119? The symptoms you mention are those you might get if there were trees partly blocking the signal, and 119 is the lowest satellite in the sky for you.


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## igator99 (Jul 28, 2006)

texasbrit said:


> Are you sure there is nothing in the line of sight to 119? The symptoms you mention are those you might get if there were trees partly blocking the signal, and 119 is the lowest satellite in the sky for you.


I live in south louisiana which from what I understand makes 119 about as high as 101. My western view is less obstructed than the eastern view. Right now there is no wind or rain and it is bouncing around from 35 to 70. Sometimes it will come in strong at 70 for a day then drop back down.


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## lwilli201 (Dec 22, 2006)

Check every connection. See if any cables are next to anything that may move. Sign up for the protection plan and call D* in about 3 weeks and tell them about your problem. Make sure you tell them that you loose the picture completely. They will be out to check it out.


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## davring (Jan 13, 2007)

A bad LNB made me and several techs crazy. Had good signal strenght and would lose only the HD locals. Not weather related or any pattern to the picture loss at all. By the time I could check the signal they would return. Changed the LNB 6 months ago, great ever since.


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## Nick (Apr 23, 2002)

> Symptoms of a bad LNB?


stays out past bedtime...
leaves yard littered with empty beer cans and cigarette butts...
loud music wakes the neighbors...
knocked up the girl next door...
smells of burning weed...
talks back to mom...
lazy, good for noth...

Oops, sorry. Got confused with teenagers.

My bad. :lol:


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## igator99 (Jul 28, 2006)

Nick said:


> stays out past bedtime...
> leaves yard littered with empty beer cans and cigarette butts...
> loud music wakes the neighbors...
> knocked up the girl next door...
> ...


LOL that was a good one. If I decide to change LNB's where do you buy them for the slimline?:lol:


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## Drew2k (Aug 16, 2006)

davring said:


> A bad LNB made me and several techs crazy. Had good signal strenght and would lose only the HD locals. Not weather related or any pattern to the picture loss at all. By the time I could check the signal they would return. Changed the LNB 6 months ago, great ever since.


I think this is an issue I've been having. I really need to convince the techs to simply change the LNBs on my slimline.


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## Skip Towne (Dec 20, 2003)

A bad LNB can do just about anything.


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## davring (Jan 13, 2007)

Drew2k said:


> I think this is an issue I've been having. I really need to convince the techs to simply change the LNBs on my slimline.


D* changed out the HR20, multi-switch and new cables. They wanted to replace the receiver again and I told them NO, the first one was not bad. Please change the LNB, they told me they never go bad and I asked them to humor me. Been great since.


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## capecodsooner (Jan 20, 2007)

Bad LNBs in the past have given me these symptoms:

Pixilated picture at varrying times of day but usually correlating to temperature changes as sun hits the dish or during sustained periods of cold (below freezing). AT-9 had issues with their LNBs that D was reluctant to admit. More than a few northern tier posters had "cold soak" issues in 2006 from my observations and personal expirience.

Loss of signal or minor pixilization during stable temps but happening more than 1x per hour with CLEAN LINE OF SIGHT.

Total loss of signal or pixilization on ONLY HD channels with CLEAR LINE OF SIGHT.

I can understand some of the logic used by D in thinking most problems are inside the home (Hx-20) or in front of the box (customer) but in my 18 years of DBS use here in the states and in Germany (ASTRA, THOR, SKY, etc...) I have needed to replace no more than 4 LNBs.

But they do occasionally fail and sometimes right out of the box.

BTW I use the protection plan now.....after my AT-9 and H20 issues. Last tech that came out to my current address told me all AT-9 failures will now be replaced with an AU-9 (slimline). No parts available for the older 5lnb system. I was able to find one from an local installer that he had left on the shop shelf. It did the trick in 2006 with my cold soak issue.

IMHO, the built in reciever signal strength menus do not sample the signal often enough or long enough to troubleshoot a minor voltage variation....minor enough to cause intermittant picture degradation but not major enough to give a clear failure. Especially when the problem occurs when changing channels.

LNBs are sensitive minor voltage changes by design, so dirty power to the reciever can also be a culprit. A "Monster" type power filter/protection device can also be a good investment, not only for the D system but for the audio and picture quality you get from the set/home theatre setup.

I'm not an expert but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.


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## dothdewman (Feb 26, 2007)

dont know about other places but here in louisiana techs are not provided with replacement 5lnbs


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## igator99 (Jul 28, 2006)

dothdewman said:


> dont know about other places but here in louisiana techs are not provided with replacement 5lnbs


Where would you go to purchase one without having to buy a new dish?


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## ddrumman2004 (Mar 28, 2007)

When our 5LNB dish was installed last year, the one for the HD channels failed right after the installer left. I called DTV and the installer( he gave me his cell number ) and he came out that afternoon and changed it.

So they can fail right out of the box.


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## CobraGuy (Apr 23, 2007)

A bad LNB can cause such weird issues that if I were a tech, I would carry a known good one at all times on my truck. That's just smart and saves a ton of screwing around replacing other stuff.


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## igator99 (Jul 28, 2006)

CobraGuy said:


> A bad LNB can cause such weird issues that if I were a tech, I would carry a known good one at all times on my truck. That's just smart and saves a ton of screwing around replacing other stuff.


Would the 99,101,103,110 be okay and the 119 be bad? Is that possible?


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## LI-SVT (May 18, 2006)

igator99 said:


> Would the 99,101,103,110 be okay and the 119 be bad? Is that possible?


Yes, the 119 usues its own LNB.


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