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Old 09-25-2014, 01:09 AM   #1
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Best Portable Satellite Receiver?

Looking at the Cube, but just would like to hear what others use. Would like one without a separate power supply line, just not sure where I could easily get 12 power to dish.

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Old 09-25-2014, 01:13 AM   #2
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Oops called dish tailgater not cube!
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Old 09-25-2014, 01:52 AM   #3
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If you have DISH or DIRECTV in your home you can easily get by with an additional receiver in your hauler.

I share a subscription with a friend and simply set up the antenna and connect it to the extra receiver. I have many satellite channels and get the local OTA networks with the hauler antenna.

The antenna LNBs gets their power from the coax so additional power is not needed. However, if you chose a portable system that automatically searches for the satellites the unit needs the power to the unit but the voltage comes from the included AC adapter.

There are simple and advanced ways to watch TV, it depends on how much you want to spend to watch TV.

Where I'm parked I have an antenna bolted to the power pole, when I leave I use a tripod with an extra antenna that I will set up if I will be there more than one night.

Some lesser portable systems only get one satellite at a time, they have to be realigned for each satellite. With the system I have I can get both satellites and don't have to move the antenna. The more expensive portable systems automatically change to the proper satellite but need the AC adapter to do so.

OTA is HD whereas my basic receiver isn't HD. There is a difference but not worth the price and I don't have to lug around the dome.
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Old 09-25-2014, 02:06 AM   #4
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We have Dish at home and we have the Tailgater and love it. We just take our receiver out of our bedroom at home and use it in the camper.
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Old 09-25-2014, 12:17 PM   #5
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I have a tailgater and it's great. We have issues from time to time with placement depending on how heavily wooded the campsite is, etc.

The statement about about needing power for the auto units, specifically the tailgater, is not completely true. Mine automatically positions the dish inside the unit and I don't have a separate power source. The power comes from the receiver and is carried through the coax cable.
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Old 09-25-2014, 01:59 PM   #6
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Originally Posted by soonernation View Post
I have a tailgater and it's great. We have issues from time to time with placement depending on how heavily wooded the campsite is, etc.

The statement about about needing power for the auto units, specifically the tailgater, is not completely true. Mine automatically positions the dish inside the unit and I don't have a separate power source. The power comes from the receiver and is carried through the coax cable.
The last automatic I saw used the AC adapter. I'm really sure of this because I had to repair the DC connector on it. Brand new out of the box but the retailer fixed him up with a new cable and didn't want the broken one back.

It makes sense to use the coax voltage to power the motor but I expect that probably means the Tailgater thing has its own power supply.

I'll have to research that probability, not that it makes any difference but yet another useless fact floating around in head
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Old 09-25-2014, 03:06 PM   #7
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Your provider is going to have a lot to do with which satellite dish you buy.

If you have DISH, there is no question that the Tailgater is the way to go. As mentioned "The power comes from the receiver and is carried through the coax cable."

With DIRECT TV you'll probably need to look at the Winegard line. A word of caution, DO NOT get the GM-5000 Carryout Anser Hybrid Automatic Portable Satellite Antenna, it is advertised as an automatic but you have to set the elevation, and then the dish finds the signal (azimuth). You are right back to the issues of pointing a manual tripod style. Check out the Carryout models that are FULLY automatic.

I wouldn't worry about getting 12V power to these models. I simply would used a battery booster to point the dish during set up and once you have a signal the 12V power is no longer needed.

On my new trailer I went with a roof mount, because I live just down the road from No Trees, Texas!!!
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Old 09-27-2014, 11:31 PM   #8
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I have DISH in my sticks & bricks home in Maine. When the DW & I go to campgrounds in Maine & NH we've zeroed in on the ones that have cable. When in Florida the park that we're in doesn't have cable. My trailer mainly stays in one location during our stay in Florida. I have a Dish 1000HD on a tripod that pretty much stays permanent during the Winter months. I actually leave it in storage down there when we leave and head home.
I had initially wanted to mount a dome on top of my roof. Any of the domes, that I looked at, wanted to be mounted level and my roof has no level areas. I would have needed to shim on the lower side to level it off.
How did you mount your dome Hornedtoad? Just curious.
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Old 09-28-2014, 04:06 PM   #9
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Last question on this I hope, hooked the tailgater to cable in, then it comes to a junction box with jump over where antennae amplifier is located, So how do I connect so I can choose between satellite or antennae because when directly connected to receiver now radio not working and also we would like the choice to watch TV over antenna or satellite. Please someone help I have worked on this all weekend and feeling frustrated.............
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Old 09-28-2014, 04:13 PM   #10
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LakeBuster,
We have the Dish Tailgater and have been very pleased with it. Since it is a "portable" unit with 50' of cable you can move it around to get a good signal. If you go with one that mounts on the RV you may find some campsites that won't give the unit a a clear line of sight. I bought a wire cable that I lock to the unit and to the trailer for security when I have it out.
Since we have Dish at home it only cost $7 a month for the RV service.
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Old 09-28-2014, 04:20 PM   #11
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Thanks Texmac, but trying to figure out how to run wiring in cabinet by jump over line with push button power with green light.
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Old 09-28-2014, 04:22 PM   #12
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I wish I could go out and look at my set up but the rig is in Tulsa at the dealer.
I went through this thing myself so I know your frustration. What I did do, because I used a fixed antenna, was to connect the antenna and receiver directly to the TV to make sure I had the antenna aligned and all was well.
Then I think, through process of elemination was to remove the jumper and start connecting the receiver to each of the coax ports until I had TV. One thing I did was to connect the OTA antenna to the receiver as well. I can watch satellite TV but if I want to watch OTA TV I have to turn off the receiver to allow the OTA signal to pass through the receiver.
Some members here have done it differently I believe but this works for me. I just have to remember to have the sat receiver on channel three, or four, to watch sat TV.
I know this doesn't help a bunch but it can be done. As far as getting the sat signal to all the other TVs is a different animal altogether and since I only watch sat TV in the livingroom I didn't even attempt that other configuration.
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Old 09-28-2014, 06:39 PM   #13
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I use a portable dish on tripod. Cheap and it works great. We use the Directv box from home. Never did feel good about having one of those fancy and expensive portable units that might sprout legs and walk away.
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Old 09-28-2014, 09:25 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Infinityrver View Post
How did you mount your dome Hornedtoad? Just curious.
Infinity,

I had the dealer install my satellite dish as part of the deal.

If I had replied yesterday before I took these pictures I would have said it wasn't level, but you can see from the photos it appears to be on a fairly level spot on the roof. I don't think that had anything to do with the location as it is installed directly above the entertainment center.

Lakebuster, on my install the DIRECT TV box has a satellite IN & an antenna IN with a TV OUT to a splitter that feeds all the TV's. I can only set the box to watch one satellite program at a time on channel 3 to any or all the TV's. At the same time I can switch any one or several of the TV's to watch over the air channels that are controlled by the TV. As I move locations I'll have to run the channel set up on each TV to pick up these over the air channels.
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Old 09-28-2014, 11:10 PM   #15
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Maybe I should have went the direct tv route. On the 211Z receiver it only has coax in and hdmi out or component, so no way to supply signal to all TV's except living room. Unless someone chimes in with more expertise!
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Old 09-29-2014, 12:37 AM   #16
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Thank you Mike (Hornedtoad) for your input & picture of your dome.

David (Lakebuster), I have a 211 (no suffix). It's the same as yours just a first generation. I have two TV's in my trailer. One in the bedroom and one in the living room with the entertainment center.
I have chose not to pay extra to have a Joey or a second box. So, I have installed a splitter and my 211 operates both TV's. Down side is, whoever is in the bedroom better like what the person in the living room is watching.
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Old 09-29-2014, 02:49 AM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Infinityrver View Post
Thank you Mike (Hornedtoad) for your input & picture of your dome.

David (Lakebuster), I have a 211 (no suffix). It's the same as yours just a first generation. I have two TV's in my trailer. One in the bedroom and one in the living room with the entertainment center.
I have chose not to pay extra to have a Joey or a second box. So, I have installed a splitter and my 211 operates both TV's. Down side is, whoever is in the bedroom better like what the person in the living room is watching.
How did you connect the outlet from receiver? I have only HDMI and component, there is no coax outlet where I could do something like this.
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Old 09-29-2014, 09:55 AM   #18
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How did you connect the outlet from receiver? I have only HDMI and component, there is no coax outlet where I could do something like this.
I'll take a look later in the day.
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Old 09-29-2014, 06:29 PM   #19
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Some versions of the Dish receiver have different connections on the back.

My tailgater came with the 211k receiver. This version has antenna in (coax), TV out (coax), component out, and HDMI out. This set up allowed me to take the TV out line to the splitter going to all the trailer TV's. Then the living room TV is connected via HDMI.

A friend has the 211z and he used a component to coax converter to do the same set-up as what I have. He has to do this because the 211z does not have a coax out connection.
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Old 09-29-2014, 06:32 PM   #20
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BTW, both of us had to upgrade our splitters to something more capable. I think it was one listed for 2300 or 2500Mhz.
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