Unwatchable Sky picture with 60% signal quality

ScoobieGirl

Hi,

Would you expect to have any problems with viewing Sky channels with a 60% signal quality & strength? I can't watch any of the Five (Five US etc) channels or Sky 3. The Five channels are unwatchably blocky with no sound. Sky 3 sometimes says technical fault, at other times it says no signal. I've tried a software update, two different boxes & cards, and LNB reset, & realigning the dish. Is there anything else to try before buying a new LNB?

Thanks.

weegie.geek

Quality nope. Strength yes. You need to find out why it's so bad. Try a box with someone else's dish. Chances are the LNB's on its way out though.

ScoobieGirl

Thanks. Better start looking on ebay for a new one then

weegie.geek

You'll only be spending £15 so it's not too bad. Get an LNB with more outputs than you need if you think you'll ever want to add more boxes, or replace non-sky plus/hd ones with sky plus/hd, since they need two lnb inputs.

kev_min

Not strictly money saving but maybe its time to seek expert advice.
You have already excluded the sky box itself so there is not much left, but I would never advise just changing bits blindly.
You say the dish was realigned, was this by an installer with a pro meter or by mark one eyeball?
There are so many things that can cause this, the coax may be damaged, the dish may be bent, or even signal blocking from a nearby building or tree.

ScoobieGirl

Thanks you both for your replies. The dish was aligned with a £20 meter from Maplins (bought 2nd hand for £4 - lucky find) which increased the signal strength/quality from 50/40 to 55-60/60 (I've checked that it's pointing at the right satellite!). I was toying with the idea of getting someone in, but was struggling to think what they could do apart from replacing the dish and or LNB. So comparing the cost I am tempted to gamble with buying the LNB, but also a little tempted to get the whole thing replaced. I was quoted £20+ £50 installation for an LNB installation from a locally respected firm (if I called them in I would describe the problem rather than ask them to replace it, I was just getting an idea of prices). However there was an offer for Sky for 3 months plus dish for £75.

The co-ax is not obviously damaged - but I've not removed the connector from the LNB to check for water damage as it looks well sealed - The dish doesn't look bent, but the surface looks a little rough - so may be absorbing/scattering some of the signal. There is nothing in the way tree wise etc. as the dish is pointing towards a playing field.

There is a long run from the dish to the box (5m) but it's been fine for 5 years, and has only recently been a problem.

One thing I have read is that switching the power of at the mains (which I do during the day, but not overnight) stops the power to the LNB (it's still powered in standby) making it more prone to humidity etc. It was replaced about 5 years ago - the dish is older, not sure by how much - it came with the house...