# When is 110 being turned off?



## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

I'm new to Direct, and unfortunately I'm having the 771 on tuner #2 on satellite 110 that is showing up pretty regularly here and in the HR20/21 areas.

I have a HR20, and frankly am very dissatisfied with it.

But there are only 13 channels on 110, is there a place to move them? That seems like it would get rid of the issue altogether. I'd love to see that happen as 110 has a lot of channels that I happen to enjoy and will soon be paying a premium to not see them consistently.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

110 is not being turned off.

IIRC.. there are more then 13 channels on 110, but... anyway.

110 is not going anywhere.

The MPEG-2 HD content... that is an entirely different discussion.


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

According to Lyngsat, there are only 13 channels that Direct uses.


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## kevinturcotte (Dec 19, 2006)

Earl-any idea what they'll use the additional space on 110 and 119 for?


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## Mavrick (Feb 1, 2006)

I think I had herd on here before that they plan to use some of the room to move the locals off of 72.5 and then whatever is left would be used for new sd channels.


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## fluffybear (Jun 19, 2004)

Mavrick said:


> I think I had herd on here before that they plan to use some of the room to move the locals off of 72.5 and then whatever is left would be used for new sd channels.


There has been several stories about what will happen with the space at 110.

Another story which I have seen was the 72.5 locals would go to 101 once the MPEG-2 DNS channels go away and the international offerings would go to 110.

I think my favorite though was circulating many years ago which had DirecTV and Dish exchanging the 3 transponders at 110 for 3 (to as many as 6 depending on how you were speaking with) transponders at 119.


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

lparsons21 said:


> I'm new to Direct, and unfortunately I'm having the 771 on tuner #2 on satellite 110 that is showing up pretty regularly here and in the HR20/21 areas.
> 
> I have a HR20, and frankly am very dissatisfied with it.


#1 - Shouldn't be getting that, call D* and have them fix it.

#2 - Why not let folks know why you're very dissatisfied with your HR20 and maybe we can help maye you satisfied?


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## Directvlover (Aug 27, 2007)

I'd prefer with the extra bandwidth that rather then add anymore SD, that they improve the general PQ on the current SD stuff.


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

RAD said:


> #1 - Shouldn't be getting that, call D* and have them fix it.
> 
> #2 - Why not let folks know why you're very dissatisfied with your HR20 and maybe we can help maye you satisfied?


Well there is a thread or three that I'm involved in. Here's a synopsis.

Tuner 2/110 w/bbc - no signal

Changed so far:
All LNBs
Cable ends
(6) BBCs
(2) receivers

Installation is one slimline dish, one HR20, 2 cables


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

lparsons21 said:


> Well there is a thread or three that I'm involved in. Here's a synopsis.
> 
> Tuner 2/110 w/bbc - no signal
> 
> ...


Since you have a HR20 that means an OTA tuner. Did you not hook up a cable for an over the air antenna which would mean 3 cable runs?


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

RAD said:


> Since you have a HR20 that means an OTA tuner. Did you not hook up a cable for an over the air antenna which would mean 3 cable runs?


Well, I guess you could count that 6' cable from the glorified rabbit ears to the sat receiver a cable...


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

lparsons21 said:


> Well, I guess you could count that 6' cable from the glorified rabbit ears to the sat receiver a cable...


OK, just trying to find out if you were using a diplexor for an OTA, which can cause problems.

When D* comes out to do all these replacements does it work while they're on site and then crap out when they're gone (like does it do it only at certain times)?

Also, how do the tests on channels 490-494 work, especially 494 which is the sat C/110 test?


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## Greg Bimson (May 5, 2003)

fluffybear said:


> There has been several stories about what will happen with the space at 110.
> 
> Another story which I have seen was the 72.5 locals would go to 101 once the MPEG-2 DNS channels go away and the international offerings would go to 110.


That is one of my favorites.

The 72.5 slot holds 29 markets spread over 16 transponders, and somehow people believe that DirecTV can cram those channels into something less than 4 transponders on the other birds

Besides, not all of the HD DNS channels are on 101.


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

Greg Bimson said:


> That is one of my favorites.
> 
> The 72.5 slot holds 29 markets spread over 16 transponders, and somehow people believe that DirecTV can cram those channels into something less than 4 transponders on the other birds
> 
> Besides, not all of the HD DNS channels are on 101.


Are there any unused spot beam capabilities on 119? If yes could the move some of the CONUS on 119 to 110/101 and then use those spot beams for some of the 72.5 markets?


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## lwilli201 (Dec 22, 2006)

Greg Bimson said:


> That is one of my favorites.
> 
> The 72.5 slot holds 29 markets spread over 16 transponders, and somehow people believe that DirecTV can cram those channels into something less than 4 transponders on the other birds
> 
> Besides, not all of the HD DNS channels are on 101.


I agree that that is not possible. I do see the locals on 72.5 moving more then once before they get a permanent home on the same transponders that carry the HD locals. The move to the 99/103 sat position is being held up by the requirement for MPEG4 upgrade. Some markets that are just getting SD LIL are being provided in MPEG4.


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## Greg Bimson (May 5, 2003)

RAD said:



> Are there any unused spot beam capabilities on 119? If yes could the move some of the CONUS on 119 to 110/101 and then use those spot beams for some of the 72.5 markets?


Not enough to help. There may be "space", but the last market given their locals on a spot-beam satellite was Laredo, because there was enough space on the two spot-transponders that hold Corpus Christi and the Rio Grande Valley locals.


lwilli201 said:


> I do see the locals on 72.5 moving more then once before they get a permanent home on the same transponders that carry the HD locals.


They won't have to move more than once. There truly isn't enough space for them to move more than once.

At some point, DirecTV may abandon the 72.5 slot, but I don't believe it will be anytime soon.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

Greg Bimson said:


> At some point, DirecTV may abandon the 72.5 slot, but I don't believe it will be anytime soon.


Abandon is not the correct word.... Their lease/contract on the rented space at 72.5 will end. 72.5 is definently not in the long term picture any longer.


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## Greg Bimson (May 5, 2003)

I recall there is a license from the FCC for using the 72.5 slot until September of this year. However, like any other license, it can be extended.

With the amount of time since the launch of HD locals and the fact that the DNS MPEG2 HD locals are still there, I wouldn't suspect anything to move off of 72.5 until 2010.


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

RAD said:


> OK, just trying to find out if you were using a diplexor for an OTA, which can cause problems.
> 
> When D* comes out to do all these replacements does it work while they're on site and then crap out when they're gone (like does it do it only at certain times)?
> 
> Also, how do the tests on channels 490-494 work, especially 494 which is the sat C/110 test?


Here's the thread that has all the answers to your questions. Except about the test channels. 490-491 give blank screen with a box telling which test, 494 gives 771 error. And the problem is reproducible at will.

http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=120405


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

I think Tom found a link on where it has been extended...

The LA DNS MPEG-2 HD's have already started their transistion, to those can/may be turned off much sooner then later.


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

Earl,

I noticed on Lyngsat's website that it shows Showtime East (537) on both 110 and 103, which seems strange. And after testing, I know that my receiver is pulling 537 off of 110. So what's up with that??


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

Greg Bimson said:


> Not enough to help. There may be "space", but the last market given their locals on a spot-beam satellite was Laredo, because there was enough space on the two spot-transponders that hold Corpus Christi and the Rio Grande Valley locals.They won't have to move more than once. There truly isn't enough space for them to move more than once.
> 
> At some point, DirecTV may abandon the 72.5 slot, but I don't believe it will be anytime soon.


Greg, I guess I should have been clearer. Are there any unused/spare transponders at 119 now that could take the place of a CONUS if they could free some of them up by moving those CONUS to 110 (take TP 1 for example and use it for spot beams vs. CONUS)?


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

lparsons21 said:


> Here's the thread that has all the answers to your questions. Except about the test channels. 490-491 give blank screen with a box telling which test, 494 gives 771 error. And the problem is reproducible at will.
> 
> http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=120405


Sorry, didn't know that you already had started a thread on the issue. Looks like you're in good hands over there.


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## Greg Bimson (May 5, 2003)

RAD said:


> Greg, I guess I should have been clearer. Are there any unused/spare transponders at 119 now that could take the place of a CONUS if they could free some of them up by moving those CONUS to 110 (take TP 1 for example and use it for spot beams vs. CONUS)?


I think I am misinterpreting your question, but here should be the answer you require:

DirecTV has 11 transponders licensed to them at 119, and DirecTV is using all 11 licenses, and they are generally full.


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

Greg Bimson said:


> I think I am misinterpreting your question, but here should be the answer you require:
> 
> DirecTV has 11 transponders licensed to them at 119, and DirecTV is using all 11 licenses, and they are generally full.


Yes you are.

- D* transistions the HD channels on 110 to MPEG4 service on D10/D11, that frees up 3 CONUS transponders on 110.

- D* moves the channels on 3 CONUS transponders from 119 DirecTV 7S to 110 DirecTV 5, freeing up 3 transponder licenses at 119.

- Now here's the question does DirecTV 7S have any spare/unallocted spot beam transponders that could be used in place of the 3 freed up CONUS transponders which would allow for movment of some of the 72.5 markets to 119?


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## litzdog911 (Jun 23, 2004)

lparsons21 said:


> Earl,
> 
> I noticed on Lyngsat's website that it shows Showtime East (537) on both 110 and 103, which seems strange. And after testing, I know that my receiver is pulling 537 off of 110. So what's up with that??


It's a mistake on LyngSat. Showtime East is still only beamed from 110-deg W.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

Greg Bimson said:


> I recall there is a license from the FCC for using the 72.5 slot until September of this year. However, like any other license, it can be extended.
> 
> With the amount of time since the launch of HD locals and the fact that the DNS MPEG2 HD locals are still there, I wouldn't suspect anything to move off of 72.5 until 2010.


Earl is correct, I had found FCC documents that the license has been extended with the renegotiation of the lease of the satellite from DIRECTV to Telesat Canada when the first satellite reached its end of life. IIRC, the license lease to DIRECTV continues until 2010 and has a clause for month to month after that--but the FCC would likely frown upon extending very much more.

As the spotbeams and locals all shift with D11's (soon to be successful) launch, we'll likely see more changes that will result in 72.5 reverting back to Canada.

Cheers,
Tom


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## curt8403 (Dec 27, 2007)

litzdog911 said:


> It's a mistake on LyngSat. Showtime East is still only beamed from 110-deg W.


could be migrating to 103. just not there yet


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## curt8403 (Dec 27, 2007)

let us hope that the navy does not make a mistake and shoot down the 110 sat.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

That would be one heck of a mistake--22,000 miles or so.


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## curt8403 (Dec 27, 2007)

Tom Robertson said:


> That would be one heck of a mistake--22,000 miles or so.


ya, but with bad weather and cloud cover, possible.


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## Greg Bimson (May 5, 2003)

RAD said:


> - D* transistions the HD channels on 110 to MPEG4 service on D10/D11, that frees up 3 CONUS transponders on 110.
> 
> - D* moves the channels on 3 CONUS transponders from 119 DirecTV 7S to 110 DirecTV 5, freeing up 3 transponder licenses at 119.
> 
> - Now here's the question does DirecTV 7S have any spare/unallocted spot beam transponders that could be used in place of the 3 freed up CONUS transponders which would allow for movment of some of the 72.5 markets to 119?


Now I think I get your question. However, in order to get to the premise, we must work backwards, where the answer starts with no.

The SHORT story

DirecTV doesn't have much transponder space on the MPEG2 spot-beam payload. And because the spot-beam satellites at 101 (DirecTV 9S) and 119 (DirecTV 7S) have a static configuration, and because all available spot-transponders are being used (except one), then there is no way to add additional capacity unless another spot-beam satellite is launched.

That isn't to say that there isn't room for a couple of stations here or there, but there isn't enough room for all of the 72.5 markets.

The LONG story

The DirecTV 7S satellite at the 119 slot is being used for quite a few local markets and some international programming, such as what used to be called Para Todos.

DirecTV 7S has two different configurations. Configured one way, the way it is at 119, it can transmit 44 transponders over 30 beams. To transmit 44 transponders, there must be four ground stations/uplink centers, each retransmitting from the 11 licenses DirecTV holds. There are four uplink centers: Castle Rock, LABC, Winchester VA and Oakdale MN.

There are seven CONUS transponders and at least 37 spot-beam transponders in use, which totals the 44 uplinks into 44 downlinks. There is nothing more that can be added.

One wide open transponder is aimed at western Colorado, and is unused. Every other transponder is being used, and most of them are full.


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## curt8403 (Dec 27, 2007)

Greg Bimson said:


> Now I think I get your question. However, in order to get to the premise, we must work backwards, where the answer starts with no.
> 
> The SHORT story
> 
> ...


one point. one channel does not equal 1 transponder (Conus or Spotbeam)


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## lwilli201 (Dec 22, 2006)

curt8403 said:


> one point. one channel does not equal 1 transponder (Conus or Spotbeam)


With 516 separate channels being transmitted from 119 on 44 transponders, I would say it it pretty full.
(Assuming the number is correct on Lyngsat)


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## curt8403 (Dec 27, 2007)

lwilli201 said:


> With 516 separate channels being transmitted from 119 on 44 transponders, I would say it it pretty full.
> (Assuming the number is correct on Lyngsat)


and of those, about 50- 55 are conus


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## chuckg (Sep 15, 2007)

curt8403 said:


> ya, but with bad weather and cloud cover, possible.


ABM missiles are used against ICBMs and IRBMs. Apogee around 200 miles.


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## curt8403 (Dec 27, 2007)

chuckg said:


> ABM missiles are used against ICBMs and IRBMs. Apogee around 200 miles.


It's a joke around Directv that someone is going to make a mistake and shoot down one of our satellites, normally the 101. only a joke


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## Davenlr (Sep 16, 2006)

I have a AT9 not slimline, but if you can cover (with masking tape or something that won't permanantly get glue on the lnb, cover the 119 lnb to block it out. Then run your 110 tests. I've had problems (using separate dishes and custom installs) with 110 dropping out or being very low in strength if the signal from 119 is very strong. I've actually had to mis-aim 119 to reduce the signal a bit. The more I reduced 119, the stronger 110 became. I belive, at least in the cases I was playing with, had to do with a Sat C splitter, which I believe is intergral to the LNB now. If covering 119 fixes 110, let me know.


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## inkahauts (Nov 13, 2006)

I believe there are 17 HD MPEG-2 channels still up, all of which I suspect will be gone by September. How many SD channels does that really equate to? You can do a lot with that kind of bandwidth....


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## Greg Bimson (May 5, 2003)

curt8403 said:


> one point. one channel does not equal 1 transponder (Conus or Spotbeam)


I never said it did.

For national channels, DirecTV is carrying in the neighborhood of 12 channels per transponder. For some of the spot-beam local channels, it is 13 channels per transponder.


inkahauts said:


> I believe there are 17 HD MPEG-2 channels still up, all of which I suspect will be gone by September. How many SD channels does that really equate to? You can do a lot with that kind of bandwidth....


Assume about 3 channels per transponder. That would make it around 6 transponders total. Give some breakage, and I'll even say 8.

That still doesn't solve the problem of 16 transponders being in use over at 72.5. There isn't enough space between spot-beams and CONUS transponders at 101, 110 and 119 to migrate everything from 72.5. Now if it were some combination of moving those locals to the MPEG4 birds, you may have something. However, like I said before, why would you do that when there doesn't even appear to be a migration plan at this time? I suspect things will be moved off of 72.5 over the next couple of years.


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## newsposter (Nov 13, 2003)

for the record, a 100% solution to the 110 tuner 2 issue is get an HDtivo! (or keep the ones you already have like i did)


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## Greg Bimson (May 5, 2003)

I found the pertinent information...


inkahauts said:


> I believe there are 17 HD MPEG-2 channels still up, all of which I suspect will be gone by September. How many SD channels does that really equate to? You can do a lot with that kind of bandwidth....





Greg Bimson said:


> Assume about 3 channels per transponder. That would make it around 6 transponders total. Give some breakage, and I'll even say 8.


DirecTV HD channels, by transponder:

101xp29 - ABCW, FOXW
110xp28 - TNT, HDTH
110xp30 - HBO, SHO, HDNetMovies
110xp32 - ESPN, Universal
119xp22 - CBSE, ABCE
119xp24 - NBCE, FOXE
119xp28 - HDNet, ESPN2
119xp32 - CBSW, NBCW

It's eight transponders. Yes, there is a lot that can be done with eight transponders. But until more and more people have a dish to receive all three of these satellites, it will be a moot point. There are many installs where two 18-inch dishes are being used: one for 101 and another for 72.5 only. DirecTV would literally have to upgrade everyone in the 72.5 markets with the slimline in order to accomplish these goals, as seven of the eight transponders being cleared off are not on 101.

We've heard for years about DirecTV planning to remove the distant network service in HD for the west for a couple of years. Now they are finally pulling the trigger. Now how long is it going to take for the eastern HD DNS to be migrated?


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## HoTat2 (Nov 16, 2005)

Greg Bimson said:


> Now I think I get your question. However, in order to get to the premise, we must work backwards, where the answer starts with no.
> 
> The SHORT story
> 
> ...


Hey thanks Greg;

This is all pretty informative stuff. Call me stupid, but I was always confused as to how the spot beam birds could receive on multiple sets of transponders all using the same uplink frequencies. So I take it the key is that the spot beam satellites' receiving antennas are responsive only on spatially isolated uplink beams from the four main DirecTV broadcast centers. All of which transmit in whole or part, on the same D* licensed transponder frequencies for a given orbital slot?


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## Greg Bimson (May 5, 2003)

How did I miss this:


HoTat2 said:


> Call me stupid, but I was always confused as to how the spot beam birds could receive on multiple sets of transponders all using the same uplink frequencies. So I take it the key is that the spot beam satellites' receiving antennas are responsive only on spatially isolated uplink beams from the four main DirecTV broadcast centers. All of which transmit in whole or part, on the same D* licensed transponder frequencies for a given orbital slot?


Okay, stupid, you are correct! 

I just read in another forum (one that Earl frequents) that DirecTV is not simply removing the Los Angeles HD DNS channels on 31 March. DirecTV is removing the MPEG2 HD locals, then adding them back in as MPEG4 channels until late August. So the space will not be cleared off until late summer.


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## Cobra (Aug 9, 2006)

lparsons21 said:


> Well there is a thread or three that I'm involved in. Here's a synopsis.
> 
> Tuner 2/110 w/bbc - no signal
> 
> ...


having the exact same problem, tech is coming again tomorrow, sure is weird always tuner 2 no matter when I switch the cables, still tuner 2


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## Cobra (Aug 9, 2006)

after reading some other posts about power supplies in the receivers and having the 110 tuner 2 issues with 771 and showing 0 on the 3 transponders. I decided to unplug the receiver from the surge protector which also had my yamaha surround sound and subwoofer plugged in and the dvd player, and plugged it directly into the wall socket and I am getting the same signal strengths for both tuners on all sats. I did this because I started to think of the surround system using a lot of juice, so I tried this. Will report back after time, keeping my fingers crossed. Could be the surge protector being weak also, just trouble shooting and hoping


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## gfrang (Aug 30, 2007)

I also have tuner 2 problems tuner 1 reads in 90's 2 65 to 70's. What i noticed
when bad weather comes in and other sat sigs go down the 110 tuner 2 sometimes goes up.
This hasn't caused me much grief a occasional quick breakup on channels on 110.
I have a hr20-100.


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## gfrang (Aug 30, 2007)

Davenlr said:


> I have a AT9 not slimline, but if you can cover (with masking tape or something that won't permanantly get glue on the lnb, cover the 119 lnb to block it out. Then run your 110 tests. I've had problems (using separate dishes and custom installs) with 110 dropping out or being very low in strength if the signal from 119 is very strong. I've actually had to mis-aim 119 to reduce the signal a bit. The more I reduced 119, the stronger 110 became. I belive, at least in the cases I was playing with, had to do with a Sat C splitter, which I believe is intergral to the LNB now. If covering 119 fixes 110, let me know.


I wonder if changing the tilt would make a difference I cant get to mt dish now 
too much snow to try it.


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## HoTat2 (Nov 16, 2005)

Greg Bimson said:


> How did I miss this:Okay, stupid, you are correct!
> 
> I just read in another forum (one that Earl frequents) that DirecTV is not simply removing the Los Angeles HD DNS channels on 31 March. DirecTV is removing the MPEG2 HD locals, then adding them back in as MPEG4 channels until late August. So the space will not be cleared off until late summer.


Thanks Greg;

And BTW (or some other knowledgeable individual who may know)

You stated earlier that D* has four broadcast center uplink facilities located at Castle Rock, Colorado; Los Angeles; Winchester, VA.; and Oakdale, MN. However the official Boeing fact sheet here at http://www.boeing.com/defense-space/space/bss/factsheets/702/dtv10-11-12_factsheet.pdf

for the D10/11/12 Ka band series satellites mentions "six" uplink sites. Do these two additional sites currently exists? Or does this mean that the D10-12's uplink receiving antenna array can accommodate the Ka band beams from up to six uplink stations?

From the fact sheet:

"Two Boeing 702 satellites, called DIRECTV 10 and
DIRECTV 11, an on-ground spare spacecraft, *and six
Ka-band uplink sites *will enable DIRECTV to significantly
expand broadcasting to its customers across the continental
United States, Hawaii, and Alaska. In addition to
expanding national HDTV broadcasting, DIRECTV 10
and DIRECTV 11 will allow DIRECTV to broadcast local
HDTV to 90 percent of its customers."


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## Greg Bimson (May 5, 2003)

I was able to obtain the DBS information because the frequencies in question are managed by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU). I found the spot-beam information there (with a little help from someone on this board), and DirecTV at one time stated what their uplink centers were for the DirecTV 7S satellite.

I can't find the Ka band information. I don't know where DirecTV built the uplink sites for their Ka band transmissions.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

slightly off topic, but wanted to point out that there is no reason why some of the channels currently on 72.5 couldn't be moved to D11 when it launches. Yes, folks in those areas would need an MPEG4 capable receiver and the larger dish, but it is doable. MPEG4 does not mean HD, so these SD channels on 72.5 could move and still be available.


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## Greg Bimson (May 5, 2003)

Doug, agreed. However, I still believe DirecTV is interested in getting 90-plus percent of the HH in the US locals in HD, so at some point the markets on 72.5 would be available on the Ka-band, in HD.

And my biggest point is how long DirecTV has dragged their feet regarding the Western distant network service. They've been fighting to get everyone moved to the MPEG4 receivers and dishes so they could remove the MPEG2 HD Los Angeles feeds. That has been going on for what, a couple of years?

Now we find out the MPEG2 feeds for LA will be turned off, and MPEG4 feeds will be turned on at 101 and 119 where the MPEG2 feeds were simply to make sure those without the correct dish still have access. The bandwidth on the DBS frequencies will not be reclaimed until August, and that is basically less than two transponders. And DirecTV has yet to start moving Eastern DNS folks to MPEG4 equipment.


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## beakor (May 29, 2007)

Greg Bimson said:


> And DirecTV has yet to start moving Eastern DNS folks to MPEG4 equipment.


NFL ST will be in KA only correct? I know that ST was a big part of the customerbase at one time, if its still the case the equpment exchange would have to happen between now and September. That would be a big chunk right there. And throw in the people that have eastern distants. I could see it happening before fall. Like always probably laying low until D11 is successful, and then bring it on.


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## HoTat2 (Nov 16, 2005)

Greg Bimson said:


> I was able to obtain the DBS information because the frequencies in question are managed by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU). I found the spot-beam information there (with a little help from someone on this board), and DirecTV at one time stated what their uplink centers were for the DirecTV 7S satellite.
> 
> I can't find the Ka band information. I don't know where DirecTV built the uplink sites for their Ka band transmissions.


OK;

I naturally assumed that the same D* uplink broadcast center locations are used to process and transmit both SD and HD signals for the Ka and Ku bands. Since it would obviously be very expensive and most inefficient to build separate ground stations for the two different bands.


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## Greg Bimson (May 5, 2003)

HoTat2, two that were a given were LABC (Los Angeles) and CRBC (Castle Rock). It would make sense to me that there could be one in the south and one in the northwest, along with Oakdale and Winchester.


beakor said:


> NFL ST will be in KA only correct?


I think it NFL Sunday Ticket *in HD* will only be using the Ka band. That says nothing of the SD feeds, which will probably remain on 101.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

Greg Bimson said:


> I think it NFL Sunday Ticket *in HD* will only be using the Ka band. That says nothing of the SD feeds, which will probably remain on 101.


Agreed. There will still be the SD broadcast of NFLST .. the HR10-250 will not be able to get the HD broadcasts this fall, but all of the newer HD receivers/DVRs should have access. All legacy receivers will just have access to the SD broadcasts.


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## Cobra (Aug 9, 2006)

Cobra said:


> after reading some other posts about power supplies in the receivers and having the 110 tuner 2 issues with 771 and showing 0 on the 3 transponders. I decided to unplug the receiver from the surge protector which also had my yamaha surround sound and subwoofer plugged in and the dvd player, and plugged it directly into the wall socket and I am getting the same signal strengths for both tuners on all sats. I did this because I started to think of the surround system using a lot of juice, so I tried this. Will report back after time, keeping my fingers crossed. Could be the surge protector being weak also, just trouble shooting and hoping


well another receiver replaced, had all the cables rerun by the tech, new bbc, after an hour the tech left, now getting the 771 signal, 110 sat has all 0's on tuner 2, and 95-96 on tuner 1, 119 has low readings also on tuner 2, but tuner 1 is all 90s


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## Dirac (Apr 24, 2007)

Is LyngSat a good up-to-date source on what channels are being sent from each satellite/orbital slot? I saw earlier there was an inconsistency with one of the SHO channels.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

LyngSat isn't bad, but there are better, more local sources: http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=121279 

Cheers,
Tom


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## V'ger (Oct 4, 2007)

lparsons21 said:


> Here's the thread that has all the answers to your questions. Except about the test channels. 490-491 give blank screen with a box telling which test, 494 gives 771 error. And the problem is reproducible at will.
> 
> http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=120405


I also had a problem with my HR20-100 and Tuner2/Sat110. It comes and goes with the BBC connected directly to the HR20. The other sats are fine all the time on tuner 2, 95+.

What fixed it was to make a three foot length of RG6 and connect it between the HR20 and the BBC. I had to use an F female to F female adapter so the BBC could connect to the end of the extension cable.

I have two theories. One is that the BBC does not fit the Female connector on the back of the HR20 very well. I can only get one and a half turns with the collar on the cable connected to the BBC, but I can get at least 5 turns with a normal RG6 cable connector.

Second is that there is transmission line reflection causing sufficient interference to cause 110 to fail. I have tried one, two and three feet cables and only the three foot cable worked for me. I actually used a piece of left over cable that was three foot long and later tried smaller ones with less success.

With the 3 foot cable extending the distance the BBC is from the Tuner 2 jack, I don't have loss or signal nor dramatic fluctuations in signal level that I experienced with the BBC connected directly to the HR20-100.


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## blc (Sep 30, 2007)

I have also noticed that the BBC on tuner 2 will not tighten on nearly as far as tuner 1. I had thought about trying to cut the end off the BBC and put a new compression end on it--not sure if this would work or not. Has anyone tried changing ends on the BBCs? However, according to your troubleshooting, the BBC needs some distance between it and the receiver. Not sure why 3 feet seems to be the magic distance though. Do you think it is a temperature issue with tuner 2 causing that BBC to overheat when fastened directly to tuner 2? Do you think moving the BBC 3 feet downline may make it stay a little cooler? Regardless, if it works, its an easy enough fix for this Tuner 1 Sat 110 issue. Thanks for the info.

Edit: On second thought, I don't think its a temperature issue with the BBCs, though they do run warm to the touch sometimes. If it were an overheating issue, the tuner 2 signal drop should not occur immediately even after the system has been unplugged and rebooted with a significant cool-down period. Also, I remembered that I took my receivers out to the dish and was able to repeat the tuner 2 signal drops one Saturday morning when the temps were well below freezing. With those outdoor temps so cold, I'm sure those BBCs did not warm up at all.


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## LameLefty (Sep 29, 2006)

blc said:


> I have also noticed that the BBC on tuner 2 will not tighten on nearly as far as tuner 1. I had thought about trying to cut the end off the BBC and put a new compression end on it.


Why? Just order new ones here: http://directv.qrs1.net/bbc/bbcForm.jsp


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## blc (Sep 30, 2007)

LameLefty said:


> Why? Just order new ones here: http://directv.qrs1.net/bbc/bbcForm.jsp


I dont' think the problem is with an individual BBC. Rather, it is the male coax end on tuner 2 or the female ends of just about all BBCs. For some reason either the threading on tuner 2 male coax fitting does not allow the BBC's (regardless of how many I obtain from Dtv) to screw on very far (just as the prior poster noted), or the female ends on the BBC's are woefully short. Either way, I have ordered several and they all just barely screw on compared to the compression ends of the coax lines. Tuner 1 seems to allow the BBCs to screw on just a little more than tuner 2. The prior poster's fix of using a short coax cable in between is a simple fix that I hope will cure the issue.


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## LameLefty (Sep 29, 2006)

blc said:


> I dont' think the problem is with an individual BBC. Rather, it is the male coax end on tuner 2 or the female ends of just about all BBCs. For some reason either the threading on tuner 2 male coax fitting does not allow the BBC's (regardless of how many I obtain from Dtv) to screw on very far (just as the prior poster noted), or the female ends on the BBC's are woefully short. Either way, I have ordered several and they all just barely screw on compared to the compression ends of the coax lines. Tuner 1 seems to allow the BBCs to screw on just a little more than tuner 2. The prior poster's fix of using a short coax cable in between is a simple fix that I hope will cure the issue.


Sounds like the connector on your receiver is out of spec.  Never had that problem with any of my boxes and never heard of it before this thread.


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## Satchaser (Sep 23, 2006)

blc said:


> I have also noticed that the BBC on tuner 2 will not tighten on nearly as far as tuner 1. I had thought about trying to cut the end off the BBC and put a new compression end on it--not sure if this would work or not. Has anyone tried changing ends on the BBCs?
> 
> 
> > I have cut off the ends of two version 2 BBC's and replaced them with compression fittings with great results. Just have to cut as close to the fitting as possible to allow room for the compression tool. It solved most of my "searching for satellite signal" issues.


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## gfrang (Aug 30, 2007)

Satchaser said:


> blc said:
> 
> 
> > I have also noticed that the BBC on tuner 2 will not tighten on nearly as far as tuner 1. I had thought about trying to cut the end off the BBC and put a new compression end on it--not sure if this would work or not. Has anyone tried changing ends on the BBCs?
> ...


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## inkahauts (Nov 13, 2006)

Greg Bimson said:


> Doug, agreed. However, I still believe DirecTV is interested in getting 90-plus percent of the HH in the US locals in HD, so at some point the markets on 72.5 would be available on the Ka-band, in HD.


Actually, moving those markets now in SD MPEG-4 means they will have HD when the switch is flipped next year and NTSC broadcasts are ended. Directv can simply switch to the ATSC feeds, and the customer will not have any interruptions, and be receiving an HD feed without making a single change to their Directv equipment, because they already would have done it. Why do you think Directv has only been launch LIL in MPEG-4 for the last year or so. All those MPEG-4 markets will suddenly become HD markets next Feb. And I am sure Directv will be boasting the most LIL HD coverage in the country the day that hits.



Greg Bimson said:


> And my biggest point is how long DirecTV has dragged their feet regarding the Western distant network service. They've been fighting to get everyone moved to the MPEG4 receivers and dishes so they could remove the MPEG2 HD Los Angeles feeds. That has been going on for what, a couple of years?


Actually, I believe that Directv only started actively trying to move customers receiving HD DNS feeds to MPEG-4 equipment this last fall after D10 was up and running. (free upgrades, etc)



Greg Bimson said:


> Now we find out the MPEG2 feeds for LA will be turned off, and MPEG4 feeds will be turned on at 101 and 119 where the MPEG2 feeds were simply to make sure those without the correct dish still have access. The bandwidth on the DBS frequencies will not be reclaimed until August, and that is basically less than two transponders. And DirecTV has yet to start moving Eastern DNS folks to MPEG4 equipment.


From Directv's standpoint, why not? The reality is that I believe all MPEG-2 HD will be shut off no later than Nov 1, 2008. Yeah, it is funny that they will be broadcasting the LA DNS from 103 and 101/119, but in the interest of customer service, it won't be that big a deal for them. I imagine that within the next month, or shortly after D11 is up and running, we will see them actively switching NY DNS customers to MPEG-4 equipment. And after all the sports plans have fully migrated to MPEG-4 HD, (NBA will be the last to air MPEG-2 HD feeds ever, I believe) all the customers will have been upgraded as the new seasons start, and there for they will be able to switch off all the MPEG-2 feeds.

:backtotop

With all that said, in order to keep this post on topic... I have noticed that my BBC's don't screw on very far on my receivers either, and I think I will try ordering some new ones and seeing if that will make a difference. If not, then I may put compression ends on them and try that. I wonder if that may be part of the problem with people getting pixilization on their MPEG-4 HD channels? I do not really think this is a defect of the boxes, because if I screw the cable with a compression fitting onto the unit without the bbcs, it screws on much further... I'll report my results... ( I will find this extremely funning by the way if this is causing a problem, considering how much emphasis Directv has put on people using good compression fittings in order to receive proper signals, and then their bbc's caused a deficiency in signals...):lol:


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## Cobra (Aug 9, 2006)

still getting tuner 2 issues, 771 error


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## Canis Lupus (Oct 16, 2006)

Hmmm. Could be a bad LNB assembly?


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## Dirac (Apr 24, 2007)

Tom Robertson said:


> LyngSat isn't bad, but there are better, more local sources: http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=121279
> 
> Cheers,
> Tom


I ALWAYS miss those... why do they have to be stickied at the top so everyone can find them easily. 

Thanks, Tom.


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## anleva (Nov 14, 2007)

V'ger;1485192 said:


> I also had a problem with my HR20-100 and Tuner2/Sat110. It comes and goes with the BBC connected directly to the HR20. The other sats are fine all the time on tuner 2, 95+.
> 
> What fixed it was to make a three foot length of RG6 and connect it between the HR20 and the BBC. I had to use an F female to F female adapter so the BBC could connect to the end of the extension cable.
> 
> ...


Thanks V'gr. I had the same issue and tried your solution. It also worked for me and so far has eliminated the signal drop I was seeing on tuner 2/satellite 110 that was causing 771 issues. I am now seeing similar signal readings between the two tuners and all satellites.

Here is my post on this in another thread where others are also discussing this issue.

http://www.dbstalk.com/showpost.php?p=1486701&postcount=151


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## Greg Bimson (May 5, 2003)

Greg Bimson said:


> Doug, agreed. However, I still believe DirecTV is interested in getting 90-plus percent of the HH in the US locals in HD, so at some point the markets on 72.5 would be available on the Ka-band, in HD.





inkahauts said:


> Actually, moving those markets now in SD MPEG-4 means they will have HD when the switch is flipped next year and NTSC broadcasts are ended. Directv can simply switch to the ATSC feeds, and the customer will not have any interruptions, and be receiving an HD feed without making a single change to their Directv equipment, because they already would have done it. Why do you think Directv has only been launch LIL in MPEG-4 for the last year or so. All those MPEG-4 markets will suddenly become HD markets next Feb. And I am sure Directv will be boasting the most LIL HD coverage in the country the day that hits.


I think that is as far from the facts as possible. If DirecTV was interested in showing Palm Springs in HD, you'd think they'd have done so already. Instead, these stations were put up in SD requiring MPEG4 equipment. And there isn't anything that says when the analog stations are shut off so are the analog rebroadcasts on DirecTV. DirecTV intends on showing SD locals in MPEG2 for a long time. Just because DirecTV added a few markets in SD requiring MPEG4 does not mean DirecTV will make those stations HD when the analog cut-off occurs.


inkahauts said:


> From Directv's standpoint, why not? The reality is that I believe all MPEG-2 HD will be shut off no later than Nov 1, 2008. Yeah, it is funny that they will be broadcasting the LA DNS from 103 and 101/119, but in the interest of customer service, it won't be that big a deal for them. I imagine that within the next month, or shortly after D11 is up and running, we will see them actively switching NY DNS customers to MPEG-4 equipment. And after all the sports plans have fully migrated to MPEG-4 HD, (NBA will be the last to air MPEG-2 HD feeds ever, I believe) all the customers will have been upgraded as the new seasons start, and there for they will be able to switch off all the MPEG-2 feeds.


Well, considering there hasn't been a plan for the East Coast DNS/NY HD locals, I don't think they'll be fully migrated by year's end.


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## V'ger (Oct 4, 2007)

anleva said:


> Thanks V'gr. I had the same issue and tried your solution. It also worked for me and so far has eliminated the signal drop I was seeing on tuner 2/satellite 110 that was causing 771 issues. I am now seeing similar signal readings between the two tuners and all satellites.
> 
> Here is my post on this in another thread where others are also discussing this issue.
> 
> http://www.dbstalk.com/showpost.php?p=1486701&postcount=151


Glad to hear that it worked for you. As I stated above, I think it is a combinaton of the two problems. The following is simplified somewhat so more people can get the gist of the issue.

Transmission line problems are caused when the cable is not a constant 75 ohms impeadance. This can occur if the cable has bends, bad connectors, bad layout of the circuit boards inside the HR20-100 or other issues that cause a spot to not be a near perfect 75 ohms all the way from the dish to the tuner. These spots can cause positive or negative reflections of a portion of the electronic signal in the cable. If the magniture and timing of the reflections are just right, they can cause the tuner to not be able to lock onto the true signal. It is often frequency specific, so could affect just one of several satellites.

Adding a length of cable delays the reflected signals by aproximately 1.2 nanoseconds per foot. This can change the timing such that for a particular frequency (or narrow band, say that used for Sat 110), then the signals all get to the tuner in proper phase and the tuner can properly decode the data stream.

I also believe that the mechanical connection problem with the BBC to the Tuner 2 F connector is cutting down on the available current available to the BBC and dish. The cable extension fixes both problems.

I have swapped BBCs, and cables between tuners and the problem always remained with Tuner 2. In my opinion, the problem is at the F connector or internal to the Tuner 2 circuitry of the HR20-100.


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## inkahauts (Nov 13, 2006)

Greg Bimson said:


> I think that is as far from the facts as possible. If DirecTV was interested in showing Palm Springs in HD, you'd think they'd have done so already. Instead, these stations were put up in SD requiring MPEG4 equipment. And there isn't anything that says when the analog stations are shut off so are the analog rebroadcasts on DirecTV. DirecTV intends on showing SD locals in MPEG2 for a long time. Just because DirecTV added a few markets in SD requiring MPEG4 does not mean DirecTV will make those stations HD when the analog cut-off occurs.


Really? Think about it... Why would you even leave yourself open to the chance of having to do an installation twice. If they had launched SD locals and the install got done with a 3 lnb dish and MPEG-2 only equipment, then when they wanted to switch those markets over to HD only they would again have to go out and do a second install before they could turn off the sd locals. Also, this would cause them to use more bandwidth because they would end up with an SD feed and an HD feed for all of these markets. They are already stuck with that issue in other markets, and I think they saw a way to limit this future waste of bandwidth. And which is easier, to make people upgrade to get a new service, or make them mad by making them change their equipment to receive a service they had been receiving for only a year? And by the way, Directv would kill off all MPEG-2 channels tomorrow if they could in favor of MPEG-2. They will be supplying MPEG-2 SD locals for a while simply because they have to due to equipment that is already in their customers homes, which is a waste of bandwidth in markets where they also carry HD feeds. Flipping a switch at the broadcast station in palm springs next year will allow them to send a signal to all their subs in the area that will work on any HD or SD TV. I believe that the only reason they don't just broadcast the HD signal right now is because of contractual issues with the stations. Most stations are still more secure and consider their analogue signals as their primary station rather than their digital signal right now. But times are changing. KCAL9 in LA now uses a down converted signal from their Digital station to supply a signal to their sd signals, at least some of the time. Directv has already announced that they will only be making MPEG-4 capable equipment by the end of this year. Also, it gets people that are already in the Palm springs area to upgrade, that will be one less service call later on.



Greg Bimson said:


> Well, considering there hasn't been a plan for the East Coast DNS/NY HD locals, I don't think they'll be fully migrated by year's end.


Directv is taking no more than what, 3 to 4 months to move everyone off of LA's MPEG-2 HD's. Why do you think they couldn't do East in the same amount of time... And they didn't announce it until they started the upgrades.


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## HoTat2 (Nov 16, 2005)

inkahauts said:


> Really? Think about it... Why would you even leave yourself open to the chance of having to do an installation twice. If they had launched SD locals and the install got done with a 3 lnb dish and MPEG-2 only equipment, then when they wanted to switch those markets over to HD only they would again have to go out and do a second install before they could turn off the sd locals. Also, this would cause them to use more bandwidth because they would end up with an SD feed and an HD feed for all of these markets. They are already stuck with that issue in other markets, and I think they saw a way to limit this future waste of bandwidth. And which is easier, to make people upgrade to get a new service, or make them mad by making them change their equipment to receive a service they had been receiving for only a year? And by the way, Directv would kill off all MPEG-2 channels tomorrow if they could in favor of MPEG-2. They will be supplying MPEG-2 SD locals for a while simply because they have to due to equipment that is already in their customers homes, which is a waste of bandwidth in markets where they also carry HD feeds. Flipping a switch at the broadcast station in palm springs next year will allow them to send a signal to all their subs in the area that will work on any HD or SD TV. I believe that the only reason they don't just broadcast the HD signal right now is because of contractual issues with the stations. Most stations are still more secure and consider their analogue signals as their primary station rather than their digital signal right now. But times are changing. KCAL9 in LA now uses a down converted signal from their Digital station to supply a signal to their sd signals, at least some of the time. Directv has already announced that they will only be making MPEG-4 capable equipment by the end of this year. Also, it gets people that are already in the Palm springs area to upgrade, that will be one less service call later on.
> 
> Directv is taking no more than what, 3 to 4 months to move everyone off of LA's MPEG-2 HD's. Why do you think they couldn't do East in the same amount of time... And they didn't announce it until they started the upgrades.


I'm still a little confused inkahauts;

Why is it necessary for D* to temporarily continue to simulcast the west DNS HD locals on the Ku band in MPEG-4 at 101 and 119 in addition to their newly assigned location on the Ka band at 103?

And can you expand somewhat on your statement about local channel KCAL9 (and I assume others who are now natively broadcasting live HD) using their down-converted HD signal at times to supply their SD one? Given that I have not really been inside a modern TV studio since the early '80s, when everything was of course largely analog technology in all their signal processing, distribution, and transmission. I can only guess at certain techniques they may use. I therefore thought they had two separate, usually microwave STL (Studio to transmitter), feeds to Mt. Wilson. One for their DTV and another for their analog SD. And would simply up convert and pillar-box any SD broadcast material at the studio for transmission on the DTV link. So I assume that this can also work in the reverse as well, in that native HD sources in the studio such as their local news is down converted, cropped to 4:3 and converted to analog for transmission on the SD STL link? Or is the conversion process typically handled on the transmitter site if you know?


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## harsh (Jun 15, 2003)

HoTat2 said:


> Why is it necessary for D* to temporarily continue to simulcast the west DNS HD locals on the Ku band in MPEG-4 at 101 and 119 in addition to their newly assigned location on the Ka band at 103?


This one is easy: there are still quite a few Ku only MPEG2 only HD receivers out there. Until most of those are gone or a very public announcement of a deadline for abandoning those receivers is made, the legacy signals must be maintained. Remember that MPEG2 users cannot receive HD LIL (other than if they live in markets where HD DNS feeds originate from).


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## Greg Bimson (May 5, 2003)

I think HoTat2 understands this better than anyone else:

DirecTV will be turning off the Los Angeles MPEG2 HD feeds on 101 and 119 at the end of the month, and will then replace them with MPEG4 versions. From what harsh just said, yes, the legacy signals for LA HD are going away. The only reason to then start broadcasting MPEG4 versions where the MPEG2 versions were is because there are customers without 5-LNB dishes, but with MPEG4 receivers. And supposedly it is because DirecTV has been a bit lax getting their MDU installations outfitted with the newer dishes.


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## HoTat2 (Nov 16, 2005)

harsh said:


> This one is easy: there are still quite a few Ku only MPEG2 only HD receivers out there. Until most of those are gone or a very public announcement of a deadline for abandoning those receivers is made, the legacy signals must be maintained. Remember that MPEG2 users cannot receive HD LIL (other than if they live in markets where HD DNS feeds originate from).


No harsh;

As Greg noted I was asking why was it necessary for the soon to be eliminated west HD DNS MPEG-2 signals on 101 and 119 to be replaced with *MPEG-4* signals for a time instead of simply turning them off. While transmitting the same west HD DNS channels from their new location on the Ka band D10 satellite at 103.


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## HoTat2 (Nov 16, 2005)

Greg Bimson said:


> I think HoTat2 understands this better than anyone else:
> 
> DirecTV will be turning off the Los Angeles MPEG2 HD feeds on 101 and 119 at the end of the month, and will then replace them with MPEG4 versions. From what harsh just said, yes, the legacy signals for LA HD are going away. The only reason to then start broadcasting MPEG4 versions where the MPEG2 versions were is because there are customers without 5-LNB dishes, but with MPEG4 receivers. And supposedly it is because DirecTV has been a bit lax getting their MDU installations outfitted with the newer dishes.


Oh I see. I thought that the implication of DirecTV's admonition on ch. 85 to HD DNS users to "upgrade their equipment" to continue to receive these channels would naturally include the five LNB dish for any initial installation of an MPEG-4 receiver.


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## thegurujim (Jan 21, 2008)

I just had a HD install about 2 weeks ago. When talking with the tech he said that D* would be moving their programming from 110 and 119 onto the other sats. They then would not broadcast from either of those two anymore (he said they were leased transponders?)

This would effectively allow them to go back to a 3lnb setup (he noted it would not be compatible with the old 3lnb setup)

Of course he was a contracted HSP so who knows if what he said was believeable.


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## harsh (Jun 15, 2003)

thegurujim said:


> Of course he was a contracted HSP so who knows if what he said was believeable.


Installers are very close to CSRs on the food chain when it comes to being authoritatively informed on topics such a future satellite plans. After all, most of the information of this kind comes from customers. not DIRECTV.

For HoTat2: You may recall speculation that the HR20 was released in the L.A. market was because DIRECTV was going to cut off MPEG2 HD in that market quickly. That may be fine for the L.A. market, but that doesn't help those who get DNS from L.A..

You also seem to assume that they will be doing away with any unique or desirable SD programming coming from those slots.


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## jbraden (Mar 23, 2004)

Greg Bimson said:


> The only reason to then start broadcasting MPEG4 versions where the MPEG2 versions were is because there are customers without 5-LNB dishes, but with MPEG4 receivers. And supposedly it is because DirecTV has been a bit lax getting their MDU installations outfitted with the newer dishes.


So this means the old transponders on 101 and 119 can transmit MPEG4 HD? Will this allow more stations to share these transponders now?


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## Greg Bimson (May 5, 2003)

thegurujim said:


> I just had a HD install about 2 weeks ago. When talking with the tech he said that D* would be moving their programming from 110 and 119 onto the other sats. They then would not broadcast from either of those two anymore (he said they were leased transponders?)


Combine this with harsh's response about CSR's and how well contractors and employees are informed...

DirecTV OWNS the satellites and the licenses at 110 and 119.


jbraden said:


> So this means the old transponders on 101 and 119 can transmit MPEG4 HD? Will this allow more stations to share these transponders now?


Sure they can. And DirecTV would be lucky to have 25 percent of their subscribers with HD equipment. Which means the other 75 percent will still need MPEG2, for the 101 and the peripheral 110 and 119 slots.

Making the LA HD channels to MPEG4 will save a little space. Currently the four MPEG2 HD channels take up two transponders. It is unknown if they will take up the better part of one and a half transponders after the MPEG4 versions are live.

The issue is freeing up two transponders after the removal of the LA HD feeds.


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## HoTat2 (Nov 16, 2005)

harsh said:


> Installers are very close to CSRs on the food chain when it comes to being authoritatively informed on topics such a future satellite plans. After all, most of the information of this kind comes from customers. not DIRECTV.


Correct; while I generally find the field supervisors to be more knowledgeable in this area, the front line installation techs. are usually little better than CSRs in awareness of such things as D*s current or future planned satellite configurations and transponder assignments. D* does not lease, but owns the satellites DirecTV 5 at 110 with three Tp. licenses and DirecTV 7S at 119 with 11 licenses.



> For HoTat2: You may recall speculation that the HR20 was released in the L.A. market was because DIRECTV was going to cut off MPEG2 HD in that market quickly. That may be fine for the L.A. market, but that doesn't help those who get DNS from L.A..


I fully understand this harsh, but that was not my initial question at all, which Greg Bimson correctly understood and answered. I had asked at the time why it was necessary to replace the current MPEG-2 signals for the HD DNS west feed at 101 and 119 with MPEG-4 ones after the MPEG-2 cutoff on 3/31/08. Which would mean that, at least temporarily, after the cutoff D* will simulcast two separate MPEG-4 HD DNS west feeds. One from the new Ka band location on a D10 CONUS beam as 103(c). And another from Ku CONUS beams at 101 and 119.

Please carefully re-read my earlier posts on this thread.



> You also seem to assume that they will be doing away with any unique or desirable SD programming coming from those slots.


That may your perception of it harsh, but I can assure you I made no such assumption. As this would be frankly preposterous. Why would I assume that there is nothing of value to be offered in SD at 101 and 119? From its inception 101 is D*s core group for the great majority of their SD programming on both national and spot beams.

In fact I happen to be looking at "Bonanza" on "TV Land" right now, which is quite obviously on 101. 

And even though DirecTV 7S at 119 may eventually have much of its national HD programming transferred to the Ka band birds. It is still a vitally important satellite for supplying almost 40 markets with SD LiLs on spot beams.


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