USALS or True South Satellite

[wejones]

I've been meaning to ask this for years, but WHY does your web site seem to be suggesting to new users to align their dishes using G25 anyway? Virtually everyone else who has aligned a dish recommends finding your true south satellite first, and then finding a satellite at one of the extremes, either east or west. But starting with G25 just seems like a really poor way to align a dish to me. There are so many things that can go wrong when you don't start on your true south satellite, that I can understand why a lot of people get confused.

[ayelvington]

Correct me if I'm wrong ,but I don't think that they were talking about using G25 for the initial dish installation, only that the default transponder was making it hard for people to find G25 at all.

You're absolutely right that an initial dish install should start with the bird closest to true south.

a

[wejones]

Originally Posted by ayelvington

Correct me if I'm wrong ,but I don't think that they were talking about using G25 for the initial dish installation, only that the default transponder was making it hard for people to find G25 at all.

You're absolutely right that an initial dish install should start with the bird closest to true south.

a

I'm not sure if I'm reading it wrong or not, but what the page says is:

Originally Posted by sadoun-web-page

• In the USALS (or DiSEqC 1.3) menu, enter your Latitude (##.# N) and your Longitude (###.# W)
• Select one of the FTA satellites such as IA5 KU at 97W
• Select MOVE
• The Motor will now move the dish to where the satellite is.
• When the motor stops, check the signal meter on your TV screen.

FS Ultra Screen

FS CLASSIC Screen

• If you don't see Quality bar, then the your dish/motor alignment is off.

  1. With the dish aimed at IA5 KU, start by adjusting your TRUE South as shown on picture 8 above. Move the whole assembly East/West a few degrees very very slowly.
  2. If you still don't see a Quality bar, adjust the dish elevation 1 degree up/down at a time, and sweep East/West again as on #1 above.
  3. Do not change the motor elevation.
  4. When you get the maximum quality, tighten the motor on the mast.
  5. Scan the satellite for channels. When the scan is completed, move the dish (using USALS) to another satellite and verify that YOU ARE GETTING A GOOD SIGNAL AS WELL. If not, your TRUE SOUTH must be off.

No mention of finding true south sat, or anything like that. (The reference to finding true south is by using a compass.)
He seems to be saying that any sat will do, and suggests G25. Plus I have read help posts from several people saying they tried doing this sat instead of their due south sat, so I know that it is confusing people.

Actually, the above method will work, if the sat isn't too far from due south, AND, if the scales on the dish and motor are set accurately, AND if the motor's zero is calibrated properly, however each of these is not true more often than not, so I think it is not a very good method myself.

[Sadoun]

Hi

Most of our stationary system customers use their system for Galaxy 25 satellite.

For motorized system installation, we recommend using USALS to align the dish. With USALS, you don't need to use a True South satellite to align the dish.

If someone wants to use DiSEqC 1.2 to align the motorized dish instead of USALS, then using a True South Satellite is helpful.

[wejones]

Originally Posted by Sadoun

...

For motorized system installation, we recommend using USALS to align the dish. With USALS, you don't need to use a True South satellite to align the dish.
...

This is only true if the elevation scale on the dish is accurate, and only if the zero is calibrated properly on the motor, both of which are not true more often than not. Basically this method completely relies on you being able to set the motor elevation and dish elevation accurately, and as many have observed here, the scales on the dishes you sell are often off by considerable amounts.
I really think this is not a very reliable method in general.

[datacom]

Agreed as to the scales on the sadoun dishes being off. I spent lots of hours in vain till I decided to assume the calibration figures were not accurate. My best calibration tools were my wife and my 20 dollar signal meter.