Hello everyone,
First of all, I’m quite new to amateur radio and satellite pointing, and I’ve been facing some challenges that I hope more experienced members here can help me with.
Poor reception skills : I’ve been using a Bullseye LNB and a coax cable of less than 5m with a Dreamcatcher 2301 orientated to Astra 3B (I am leaving in EU) at the default frequency of 1907 MHz. The best RSSI I’ve managed was between 100-99 and the SNR was around -12/-13, but I haven’t been able to reproduce these results consistently.
I’m considering whether using a 35cm camping dish could potentially improve my reception or assist with better orientation. Currently, I’m using a satellite app finder for alignment. Has anyone had experience with a setup similar to this, and could a smaller dish be effective?
Today, I’ve tried to download files, especially during better weather conditions (it was mildly cloudy today), but with no success. Is there a specific time that broadcasts of new files occur, or should I be able to receive data any time? Also, how frequently are the news or files refreshed? During my first attempt I was able to download 1 week old news.
For those interested, I’ve documented my attempts and setup in a YouTube video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8H49Vyqkftg). This isn’t promotional; rather, I believe that sharing experiences can benefit others in the community. Any feedback or suggestions would be greatly appreciated as I feel the project deserves more exposure.
I’m eager to learn and improve my setup based on your advice and feedback. Thank you in advance for your help!
Sam
