Using only one Sat B Input on 4x4 Multiswitch

[Murdock]

Does anybody know if I can connect both Sat A inputs on a Channel Master 4x4 Multi-Switch (6904IFD) to one Dual LNB which is pointed at the 101 and only one of the Sat B inputs to one side of a Dual LNB pointed at the 119 and run 3 IRDs only one of which is a 5th gen plus unit? The other side of the 119 LNB is being used for Dishnetwork, I know that I can run one side of this LNB to Dish and one to DTV and it does work, I could invest in a multiswitch with an external power supply to give me 4 outputs on the 119 dual LNB,but I thought since I only plan to point one of my DTV boxes at the 119 I might be able to get away with this. My other option is to run the second output from the 119 directly to the plus box and use it exclusivley for the 119 but it would be nice to be able to get the channels from the 101 on it as well.

Thanks,
Murdock

[smack]

You'll need to run a dual LNB for the 119, and connect both sides of the dual LNB to both Sat "B" connectors on the 4X4 multiswitch.

Anything less won't get all the channels.

Good Luck

Scott

[eaglhead]

I've been using a 4X4 multiswitch with two 18' dishes w/Dual LNB's on 101 and 119 on my DSS receivers for some weeks now.

I am borrowing a friends Dishnetwork box (3700) which supports the Dish500 and multiswitch in the firmware. If I add this receiver to the open port on my SMS-44 Multiswitch and tell the E* to test the multiswitch it fails.

I am getting service now by just dropping the Spanish programming leg of my 119 dish out of the SMS-44 and running it directly into the E* receiver.

From the E* setup menu with the "X's" it seems that it polls all the multiswitch ports and finds out which feed is on which port. The DSS requires that ports "A" be 101, and the 22Khz ports "B" are 119.

What has Charlie done differently with his Multiswitch over DirecTV's? I use a second SMS-44 on my Free To Air MPEG-2 receivers so it seems to be following a "standard protocol". Strange to see that DSS adhered to a standard that Charlie didn't for a change!!

[Murdock]

I ended up picking up a 2 in 4 out powered multiswitch and running my dual lnb for the 119 into it and then 2 outputs to the 4x4 DTV switch and one to my SW-21 for Dish. This allows me to watch DTV plus and Dish at the same time and get all channels from the 119 on one dual lnb. There is a link to a website showing a schematic for this configuration posted in several threads in this forum.

[eaglhead]

Ah. I just read that Dish Network uses an X-10 "modem" style addressing rather than the dumb 22KHz tone...

From: http://www.geocities.com/dbs_tech/mdsinfo/

Dish Network Switches
The current lineup of Dish Network multi-dish switches - SW21, SW42, and SW64 - use a low bit rate (125 bps) serial protocol to control switching. The LNB control voltage is used to encode the logic level. Communication is unidirectional, from IRD to switch. The use of a serial protocol allows switches to be addressable. Each type of switch can be given a unique address that only it will respond to. The switch type can be identified and un-like switches (with different addresses) may be cascaded. The IRD must be aware of the possible types and arrangements of switches that could be connected - this requires a firmware update when new switch models are released. The IRD can identify what switches are present by sending a command to any possible switch address and detecting if the signal from the LNB changes. A change in signal indicates that a switch of the addressed type is present.