installing satellite dish

[accumack]

Hi, we are buying a new 2011 berkshire 390rb. how hard is it to install a satellite dish on this unit. Is it something an owner can do? I'm pretty handy. camping world wants to rewire the cable runs for about $360 i feel this is a ripoff the 390rb is already wired. They say the cables are always pierced by staples and won't work. I feel I can test the cables.Also how is the wineguard traveller 1000 dish for a good satellite dish?

[tncruiser]

Originally Posted by accumack

Hi, we are buying a new 2011 berkshire 390rb. how hard is it to install a satellite dish on this unit. Is it something an owner can do? I'm pretty handy. camping world wants to rewire the cable runs for about $360 i feel this is a ripoff the 390rb is already wired. They say the cables are always pierced by staples and won't work. I feel I can test the cables.Also how is the wineguard traveller 1000 dish for a good satellite dish?

if the cables were pierced(which i am sure they are NOT) then that would be a warranty issue per others i have heard there should be a vent cap on the roof above the pass/driver area it has the necessary connection available ,i use a portable dish with my receiver from my stixnbrix and the cable connection in my basement compartment and it serves both tv's (same station)
i find it despicable when companies have to lie to get your business
brianj

[jimh]

i have a winguard that finds the sats and works well. i don't know the model number though.
it doesn't track in motion.
if ur looking for one that sets up itself but doesn't track (in motion), why not take a look at the dish network tailgator? receiver and dish run $500. i paid over $200 more than that for the winguard w/o receiver.

looks like u could check for pierced cables by disconnecting both ends then checking between the center conductor and shield with an ohm meter. the tv wiring may be difficult because of splitters but i don't think there are any other than the winguard switch box.
sat should be dc pass thru and shouldn't show a path to ground from the center connector.

[Superchief]

Originally Posted by tncruiser

if the cables were pierced(which i am sure they are NOT) then that would be a warranty issue per others i have heard there should be a vent cap on the roof above the pass/driver area it has the necessary connection available ,i use a portable dish with my receiver from my stixnbrix and the cable connection in my basement compartment and it serves both tv's (same station)
i find it despicable when companies have to lie to get your business
brianj

Brian, I wonder if you can help me with hooking up my portable dish and receiver to my unit? I am familiar with hooking it up in general, but when I tried to hook it up to my new Berkshire, I found a confusing setup. I found the input in the rear compartment. What I can't figure out is where to hook up the receiver in the unit. In looking under the entertainment unit, I find one input wire marked satellite in. I also found the splitter with two wires on one side and three on the other side. I also found the tv antenna booster with a male input. I also located the tv input on the back of the tv. How did you hook yours up? Hopefully you can help me out and save me some time. Thanks.

[TURBS]

Not that I have the same unit but maybe I can help.
I plugged my sat coax into the sat connector located outside of camper .
Then on the inside where it said sat I plugged coax from that to my receiver then used the standard red white yellow rca from reciever to the tv. Then changed tv to aux 1 or 2 or input 1 or 2 . Works fine

[Superchief]

Originally Posted by f1100turbo

Not that I have the same unit but maybe I can help.
I plugged my sat coax into the sat connector located outside of camper .
Then on the inside where it said sat I plugged coax from that to my receiver then used the standard red white yellow rca from reciever to the tv. Then changed tv to aux 1 or 2 or input 1 or 2 . Works fine

Thanks, I will try that. Didn't think about using the "stereo" plugs. That's what happens when your trying to do difficult things and miss the easy way.

[TURBS]

Originally Posted by Superchief

Thanks, I will try that. Didn't think about using the "stereo" plugs. That's what happens when your trying to do difficult things and miss the easy way.

No problem let us know if it worked

[Superchief]

Originally Posted by f1100turbo

No problem let us know if it worked

I finally got it to work, but not as easy as I first thought. I didn't want to climb up on top of the unit to expose the satellite connection, but wanted to use the input connection in the power bay. After several tests and hunting out connections in the TV cabinet, I finally found where the lead comes in from that bay. There are three coax cables that are attached to the back of the antenna boost plate. One is an out to the splitter to allow all of the TV connections to receive a signal from the onboard antenna. Another one is the single in from the antenna that is being boosted. The third one (the lower black one on the left side) is the input from the bay. I ended up disconnecting this coax cable, hooking it to an A/B switch and reconnecting one output to the prior connection and the other to the satellite receiver. I then connected the receiver to the TV by using the three "stereo plugs" labeled AUX. I then chose Video input on the TV, and selected AUX on the Smart Box, and success. I can now easily switch from my portable satellite external dish to the antenna input by just choosing the input on the remote. The only thing I had to make a note about was if I happen to hook up to a cable TV input, I will need to move the A/B switch to the opposite side. After all this, it probably would have been easier to put a satellite dish on the roof, but a lot more expensive. Good for now.

[ernest917]

FYI: Just finished using Superchief's method and it worked perfectly. Thank you... Thank you... Thank you... Really easy to fix when someone figures it out for you...