problem with satellite reception

March 12th, 2010
  • I am having problems with one of my satellite receivers - we have two, which are both on all the time - however, the one downstairs refuses to pick up the satellite signal unless the tv upstairs is turned on and the receiver tuned to the same channel. After that, the channel downstairs can be changed and they work independently. We have a dual feed satellite dish so they should be independant. Also, if I change any of my porgramming choices online, then the receiver works fine for a day or two with no problems. Why does it do this?


  • That was going to be my next step, to request a new card. Can I switch the cards between the two if they're different kinds of receivers? I wasn't real sure how the cards work, and if i'd end up invalidating one or both. I tried to reset it by unplugging it for 15mins at a time and that didn't work. Is there another method for resetting it? The receiver is the RCA DRD450RG. Thanks for the help:)


  • You may have a bad card in your downstairs receiver. Have you tried taking your downstairs card upstairs an inserting it in your upstairs receiver to see if you get any programming that way? If your downstairs card doesn't work with the upstairs receiver, you may need to get a new card or go through a resetting procedure. This procedure differs slightly from one model to another. It might also help to know the model numbers on your dish and both your receivers so you can try that as well. Regards; tutuzdad-ga


  • I also tried switching the cables from the satellite between the two, and still had problems with the one. I would also like to know how to fix it.


  • I don't think it's a cable issue, since they were both working fine for the past two years, and we only recently started having problems. Perhaps I used the wrong term in saying it was a dual feed, it's a dish that has two outputs for two receivers. We even tried switching the cables at the dish, between the two receivers, and we still had the same problem with the downstairs receiver. I also checked the cables coming into the receiver having problems, and there are no loose cables. I have no idea what else to try, other than to buy a new receiver, which I really don't want to have to do. I think we are using a standard coax cable from the roof of the house (2 story). When the receiver works, it says the signal strength is at least 94 on every transponder, when it's not working, it says there is no signal on every even transponder number, and the odd transponders have a signal range from 94-96. The one upstairs, hooked into the same dish, has a 96% signal strength at all times, although the receiver is much more basic, so I'm not sure about the different transponders because it doesn't have an option to check it. However, we don't have a problem with that one.


  • thomas4567-ga, What kind of cable are you using to connect the two receivers? It sounds very likely that this is an amplification problem (signal strength) of some sort - I say that because a change of programming would force a "addressing" of the receivers - can you provide some specs as to the length of the cable? Or would this serve as an answer? Are the two units connected in series or directly? Generally "dual feed" satellite dishes are used to pick up signals from two different satellites, not running the same signal to two different receivers. But dishes are typically in a position where they can pick up both satellites - I think what's actually happening here is a combination of the above two issues. Let me know if this works out so I can post it as an answer. Best regards, arimathea-ga Researcher







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