Dreamcatcher v3.02: Feedback Thread

@Syed actually, pointing did take a little longer/more manipulating to get it right, but the sat wasn’t hard to find.

@kenbarbi, that definitely looks good. Would it work as well if it were a light plastic covered with the foil tape? I also wonder if fine window screen would be a good material over a light frame of plastic or fiberglass rods? Has any success been attained with carbon fiber material in this area?

@zoltan
@Syed
@kenbarbi

Have we discovered, or is there known a set of length (maximum/minimum) of the feed horn and diameter of the ends measurements that should be optimal in this area, or specific to our particular LNB’s feed area that will help us to get the best results of this testing?

I suspect trapezoidal plastic sides cover with aluminum duct tape would just as well, but be heavier than my 1.6 oz all aluminum approach. I’ve thought about screen wire, but am not sure it would be stiff enough to hold up.

Another cone I tried last week was 4" high (half the height of my original test cone) and worked about 1 dB poorer (3 dB improvement vice 4 dB), so it’s becoming a balancing act. I’d like to see what @Konrad_Roeder Konrad might be able to achieve as he is in the more disadvantaged signal area of North America.

Jim’s @ac8dg approach with an outdoor light casting is also a good approach for a permanent mount where weight might not be a concern. Ken

did anyone had the chance to test the mesh material in the extenders? might the best for real outdoor use

@kenbarbi the pyramid design looks excellent with the ease of reproduction (no shaker needed :slight_smile: ) and the 4dB improvement looks like winner so far.

I plan to, but I have to find it. Not sure screen material is stiff enough.Ken

I’m going to use the “rule of powers” - - 2 x 1 = 2"; 2 x 2 = 4"; and 2 x 2 x 2 = 8" with a standard hardware store chicken wire (or garden mesh) galvanized fence material which is typically 1/2 " squares which is readily available. Ken

With Syed’s suggested pyramid horn as I have initially rendered it (2"x4"x8") with aluminum flashing, I’m finding it much easier to “eyeball” point the LNB, then slowly slew the horn to maximize the SNR. Without the horn, slewing isn’t all that easy, and with my obstructed view - - not possible. Ken

By slew do you mean adjust skew?

That’s a new twist on the pointing, Has an experiment been done on the polarization sensitivity or “skew” of the lnbf ?

No - - I’m referring to adjusting the look (angle and azimuth) to a particular point in the sky as astronomers do with telescopes. Perhaps “wiggling the horn” makes more sense. Ken

Yes, polarization has a huge impact. You should twist the LNB ninety degrees and check the SNR.

Is the Dreamcatcher able to toggle a V / H bias voltage ie 13 vs 19 vdc applied ? Maybe as part of the tuner setting ? or is the voltage multiplier limited to a single ~ +14vdc ?

Or better yet, could it automatically check both and select the best bias voltage based on SNR.

Has anyone thought of trying this? Everytime I walk into my chicken coop I keep thinking this will work.

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It’s interesting how the Stainless Steel cone performs. I just need to find a way to mount it more permanently.

Busy with the yard and dogs this weekend. Ohh and Morfeus.

–Konrad, WA4OSH

Ken,
My martini shaker/mixer cup works. I just need to find a good way to align it and the LNB together on my tripod. It’s a mechanical issue, no more.

–Konrad

Noted - - but my skew was set precisely to 12.7 CW for Washington (or as closely as possible) :rofl: and; yes, varying the skew (matching the linearity of the LNB to that of the satellite) makes a significant difference.

What I’m talking about is the ease with which I could tune a low SNR by slewing the horn (moving it with respect to the sky in a 2 degree sweeping arc) without moving the “eyeball” pointed LNB on my tripod mounted LNB.

I’ll have a picture of a modified Alpha Lantern unit with embedded LNB and attached horn assembly later this week which will be my portable unit. Ken

I came up with a new problem. My unmodified bare lnbf mounting can work with lot’s of pointing difficulties and tweaking when on a pole about five feet away from my home.

However, move the the exact same setup to a mount bolted on my home results in an inability to get a satisfactory reception. Exact same coax/connectors/skyview.

Possible causes.
1 Reflections of the direct broadcast signal off the structure causing a multipath into the lnbf. either directly into the face or as a side signal into the “unshielded” lnb.

2 More local signal interference from my access point, other ism devices, other emi/rfi from the structure. I don’t have a spectrum analyzer that can directly see 11.7 Ghz. Mine only directly can look at frequencies up to 2.7 Ghz.

3 Something in the routing of the coax since it is moved a little. I am using good quality quad shield rg-6 but changing the bending/looping could introduce some unintended swr or other feedline issues.

What does this all mean for my installation… more remediation to address the above issues… maybe the shielding ideas being discussed… maybe just acknowledge the fact that I can’t place the antenna on the south west or south east walls of my home…

Has anyone used a FTA receiver to aid in aligning and pointing to SES-2. I’m getting one un-encoded called service 1 washington Hearst TV on 12194 Horiz transponder … But I’m not too familiar with the various satellites. Maybe I am locked into the wrong bird. The satellite finder meters fool me regularly with a strong signal that maybe not the one I’m looking for.

I am really just try to use the signal strength meters on the finder/receiver which give the tone when I am close.

Yes - - I use an FTA receiver to set my dish/LNB to SES-2. At any one time there are about 5 linearly polarized Ku-band unencrypted news channels mostly feeds or static cameras. Then I connect the cable to my Dreamcatcher. Ken

By the way, I can only get my signal strength meter to aid me in ponting when I use an FTA receiver tuned to a video channel. It won’t work with the Maverick looking at the Outernet channel.

Ken, this might just be the reason for me to break down and use a dish.

Your Ku-band tuner of course can’t see the Outernet signal. It’s below the noise.

–Konrad, WA4OSH