Help re: FTA Indonesian TV via Palapa C2 Satellite

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ahmad

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#56464 14-Jan-2010 08:12

Please excuse my ignorance on this issue and thanks for your patience.

I am currently out of town and unable to make local enquiries but would like some general info/advice about the logistics of receiving Indonesian FTA TV via satellite.

From what I have found out so far:

I can receive selected channels in NZ via the Palapa C2 satellite. I would need a 1.8-2.1m dish.

Some questions:

1. From Dunedin, will I receive the same channels as available to Aucklanders?

2. Is a 2.1m dish huge and are the logistics of finding a home for it going to be difficult? What is a ballpark price for a dish and/or install?

3. I presume I will need a receiver also. Can this double as a Freeview receiver? Are HDD recorder receivers available (if so do you know what sort of price ball park?)?

4. Once a dish has been installed can I simutaneously receive other TV channels or can I only receive channels on the Palapa C2 satellite?

Any other thoughts and comments would be apprciated. Also it would be great (and probably unlikely!) to hear from anyone who receives Indonesian TV via satellite :)

Jaxson

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#289900 14-Jan-2010 09:40

I'll chip in where I can.

ahmad:1. From Dunedin, will I receive the same channels as available to Aucklanders?

You'd need to check the satellite coverage maps. Given it's aimed at Mid Pacific/Indonesia areas then the further you go from this, the weaker the signal will be and the larger the dish you will need.

ahmad:2. Is a 2.1m dish huge and are the logistics of finding a home for it going to be difficult? What is a ballpark price for a dish and/or install?

I have had it confirmed that it will work in Auckland on a 1.8m dish PROVIDED you use a good quality C band LNB. For reliability you'd want to go bigger if possible in your location.

ahmad:3. I presume I will need a receiver also. Can this double as a Freeview receiver? Are HDD recorder receivers available (if so do you know what sort of price ball park?)?

4. Once a dish has been installed can I simutaneously receive other TV channels or can I only receive channels on the Palapa C2 satellite?

These are basically the same questions. One satellite receiver can be used with multiple satellites. For two satellite lnbs a simple 22khz tone switch can select the appropriate one cheaply and easily. Any more than two lnbs and the gear required and price goes up.

Therefore, if you have one dish pointed at Optus D1 then you can feed this into the tone switch and off to the receiver. The receiver will decide what dish to take the signal from for the channel you have selected.

Dish can cost anywhere from $200 for a cheap 1.8m off trademe but quickly goes up to some quite high dollars if you want a better quality one with good quality components and there's also freight to factor in too if you're not in Auckland/Christchurch etc. Check local council requirements first, some larger dishes may not be allowed in some areas of towns. Also 2m across is a great big sail shape, so it needs a massive mounting block of concrete if it's windy where you are.

Receiver costs are up to you. Check out www.freeviewshop.co.nz for a selection of receivers. Yes you'll find PVR hard drive recorder options there too.

I looked at this for getting Formula One coverage off the Global TV channel on Palapa. The angle to the satellite is quite low to the horizon so you really do need a clear line of sight in the first stage to even make this possible. The costs associated got a bit out of hand really for me, but that's not to say it can't be done. I may look at it when I sell my house and see where I buy next. At the time though the costs were similar to getting sky for a whole year and there were no gaurantees the Formula One would continue on that channel or that it wouldn't be encrypted for big parts of the season whilst they showed football championships or something.

ahmad

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#289961 14-Jan-2010 12:28

Cheers!

So to *also* receive Optus D1 am I correct in saying a second dish would be required which then connects simultaneously to the receiver with the first dish?

Our house is on the crest of a hill so I am not sure LOS will be possible :/ LOS would be achieved on the roof but I presume that is incompatible with 2.1m...

How far can the satellite be from the house? Are there limitations on how far the wiring can run from the dish?

Thanks again.

ahmad

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#289964 14-Jan-2010 12:33

Also just re-read your comment about F1.

What do you mean "no guarantee F1 wouln't be encrypted for parts of the season while they showed [something else]?"

Doesn't it either just broadcast or not? Where does encryption come in? I am confused as to why encryption would only be an issue when other programming took precedence.

wellygary

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#289980 14-Jan-2010 13:25

ahmad: Also just re-read your comment about F1.

What do you mean "no guarantee F1 wouln't be encrypted for parts of the season while they showed [something else]?"

Doesn't it either just broadcast or not? Where does encryption come in? I am confused as to why encryption would only be an issue when other programming took precedence.

My read of jaxson's comments are:

Would not go to all the trouble in able to watch the sports channel of Palapa C2, because

a) The F1 might not remain on that channel
and
b) Other large portions of time it might get encrypted on a PPV basis for Football or other big$$$ sports coverage.

Jaxson

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#289989 14-Jan-2010 13:54

wellygary:My read of jaxson's comments are:

Would not go to all the trouble in able to watch the sports channel of Palapa C2, because

a) The F1 might not remain on that channel
and
b) Other large portions of time it might get encrypted on a PPV basis for Football or other big$$$ sports coverage.

Spot on, cheers Wellygary.

For me the cost/effort/uncertainty of continuation of coverage put the brakes on this for me. I was coming at this purely from a Formula One viewing point of view. If you have an interest in other free to air channels on this satellite then I can't comment on that.

Cyril will know maximum lengths of cable run, thought common sense dictates the closer the better. Will depend on coax cable losses and the original strength of the signal your c band lnb is able to put out (hence earlier comment on using a quality lnb).

You would have big balls to mount a 1.8m or bigger dish on a standard roof without giving some serious thought to how it was braced/supported.

Palapa has a very low angle in the sky, so line of sight is very important as it is a weak signal you're aiming to get in the first place.

kiwisat

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#290081 14-Jan-2010 18:34

It is interesting to note that the difference between Auckland and Dunedin with respect to Palapa is minimal.

Angle of elevation is 13.5 deg. versus 13.7 for Auckland, and the distance to the satellite is 40,214 Kms versus 40,195 kms from Auckland, so I would expect a 1.8 mtr dish to work as well in Dunedin as it does for me in Panmure.

It would be prudent however to install a 2.2 mtr dish on a motorized mount to allow the reception of Telstar 18 which also has Indo services.

Paul

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Shop now for Dyson appliances (affiliate link).

ahmad

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#290149 14-Jan-2010 23:24

I am unsure that I have a suitable location for the satellite if LOS to horizon is required.

Please kindly elaborate on "motorized mount"?

Jaxson

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#290204 15-Jan-2010 09:21

Yes I just saw a coverage graph for Palapa C2 and can confirm kiwisats comments. Coverage is pretty strong across all of NZ. See http://www.freeviewshop.co.nz/forum/index.php/topic,1241.0.html

Has got me thinking again.....

ahmad

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#291344 20-Jan-2010 00:00

Have been told that Palapa C2 has been replaced by D2. Apparently some major f-up means the serviceable life of the satellite will be reduced from 12 to 8 years.

The good news is that is apparently easier to pick up in New Zealand.

Can anypne add to this information?

And what exactly is a motorized mount? I couldn't find any Indonesian stations on one site listing Telstar 18 either?

kiwisat

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#291360 20-Jan-2010 07:37

This is the result when you search for "motorized mount" in this forum: http://www.vetrun.net/forums/search.php?searchid=665788 and for info on Telstar 18 you can look at this link http://www.lyngsat.com/t18.html and check Metro TV (Indonesia)

Hope this helps.

Paul

ahmad

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#291543 20-Jan-2010 15:07

Thanks. Sorry I am overseas at the moment and only accessing the geekzone mobile site.

I will look at that info next time I am on a real computer.

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ahmad

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#291545 20-Jan-2010 15:13

Ok I checked the Lyngsat site - this was the site I checked myself and found little of interest on Telstar (over and above Palapa). Indeed all the Telstar stations appear to also be on Palapa? Including MetroTV?

So what would the point of installing the larger satellite to receive Telstar 18?

Also is there any point in picking up a receiver while overseas given potential problems down the track? Or perhaps these are only perceived problems?