Hacking Portable Satellite Dishes (Part 2)

Some further experiments with self-contained portable satellite dishes. These are the type you'd find on the roof of an RV, a boat, or at a tailgate party. In this video I'm checking out two similar units, the Dish Tailgater and VuQube VQ1000.
The VuQube model is interesting because you can manually aim it with a wireless remote. This makes it easy to point at different satellites.
The Tailgater is one I've played with before, but this time I found a way to aim it via computer. This is something that will return in a future video, since computer control gives me a lot more options to do cool stuff like radio astronomy!
I also tried receiving some things like Starlink beacons using a B-Band adapter (I'm still not sure why that works) and L-Band signals with a modified GPS antenna.
There will definitely be more updates on this stuff, since I'm having a lot of fun snooping around on space signals! I might have to build a dedicated computer for some of the satellite things I mess with, so that's a possible future video as well! Stay tuned (ha!) for those...
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Stopped the video at about half. I can"t stand it anymore, I'm heading to the flea market and get myself one of those.

[@asn413]

maybe you could convert them into passive radar sets?

[@ashishnanta6575]

I'm watching you from india please make FM radio antenna for good quantity signal

[@miilotheminer]

You said the most true statement about linux ever, “if something doesn’t work just try again as root”

[@saveitforparts]

Ha, I think I ticked off some other commenters who said that's the wrong way to fix problems... but it's the way that works in 5 seconds instead of 5 hours :-P

[@oscodains]

This can turn into a neat little radio telescope.

[@luminousfractal420]

I was looking at the $400 tracking mounts for a telescope...seems much the same to me

[@PBnFlash]

Full sky signal strength scan would be cool

[@Atchalong]

This would be a really cool project to see!

[@donovanhill7367]

There's a few problems that you've got trying to receive galaxy 19 or AMC21 with that system. DBS satellites operate between 12.2 and 12.7GHz downlink and use circular polarization, whereas, FTA will be between 11.7 and 12.2GHz and use linear polarization. The other issue is that the reflector is way too small to recover the FTA signal which is lower power than the DBS signals are.

[@zyxwvutsrqponmlkh]

When receiving a circularly polarized signal with a linear (any orientation) antenna you only loose 3db of signal. And even if he lacks the sensitivity or signal to noise required to perfectly decode the fta stuff he should still be able to see it on a power meter.

[@innercityprepper]

It's insane how much engineering and software development was done in order to supply literally dozens of people with these instantly-throw-away-able pieces of hardware.

[@saveitforparts]

I've never actually heard of anyone using one of these... but then again I don't do tailgating at sportsball games, so maybe everyone in the parking lot has one 😛

[@innercityprepper]

@@saveitforparts I think the resale value of an un-opened one tells quite the story :)

[@innercityprepper]

@@saveitforparts spoiler alert: they do not. DirecTV and Dish Network were never really all that popular, and the market for extremely portable dishes, even for RV's, has never been all that great. That's why I'm amazed at the amount of engineering and software dev that had to go into *anything* to make it work. I had DirecTV for many years in Minnesota and the only reason it worked consistently during the winter is because I'm tall and play hockey. May not make much sense, but that's what it took for me to be able to consistently knock the snow off the dish to get any reception at all during winter weather (reaching up and whacking the dish with a hockey stick) Now try and do that while the position isn't even fixed, and you're not gonna have a good time, even for the few people that bothered to shell out the hundreds of dollars for rigs like this.

[@brucebaxter6923]

Perhaps it’s used en mass for non consumer applications?

[@cuoops]

I rarely comment of videos, but i always enjoy you using crap for more crap lol.

[@Grim0954]

HERE HERE!!! 💖💖💖

[@CandyGramForMongo_]

Damn it, I,don’t need another hobby! Good for you, this looks like fun.

[@TinyHouseHomestead]

One day we are gonna see a video of the men in black suits showing up, and then we will be like "where did he go"! 🤣🤪😱😁👍👍🇺🇸

[@luminousfractal420]

Into the teleporter/breadbin

[@joey3785]

Sir, you are wearing a black suit 😂

[@SamuelTyree1]

You have a good start on making Sandland's own VLA radio telescope.

[@SamuelTyree1]

Following up on my last post, SETI had a volunteer program done years back where they wanted to repurpose the old lawn-killer satellite dishes into a nation-wide array hooked together by the internet. It was an interesting idea.

[@palomino11]

What would they be able to do with it?

[@SamuelTyree1]

@@palomino11 Use them to scan the night sky for signals that would indicate alien life by creating what is essentially a continent sized radio antenna array.

[@palomino11]

@@SamuelTyree1 awesome. thank you for the reply

[@crunchybones2528]

SETI is a waste of time and resources that will never go away. there's no case that you can disprove it, and so it will go on in pseudo-scientific perpetuity

[@mikejones-vd3fg]

Cool, i wonder if thousands of people hooked up and it was pointed at proxima B, what would it pick up? Apparently James Webb found artifical lights comming from the dark side of the planet, not sure if its true or just clickbait but seems plausible and a definate signature for any civlization. Maybe this array idea could be helpful in finding out more about proxima b?

[@AdamosDad]

Nice little gizmo, and cool hobby. As a ham radio guy this follows right along with my hobby. I would use the controls and drive to search for and work amature FM sats.

[@TimbervilleJim]

Love your channel! Especially how close to chaos you are working. Keep it up! Remember that out of chaos comes order...

[@qwertyuiop2994]

I am addicted to your videos. They go best with hot chocolate

[@JxH]

I'm not sure that you'll get much L-band down the waveguide that runs from the dish's focal point to the rear of the assembly. Waveguide has a cut-off frequency, and if it's designed for Satellite TV then it'll be too small for the much lower frequency of L-band.

[@mesochace]

Cool stuff, some things to consider...the lnb switches h/v using 13v and 18v depending on the intended polarity using the supplief lnbf. Your handheld receiver is cutting out because current draw too much, I ran into the same issue.

[@bigme75201]

I didn't know what AX Man was and now after a quick search I think I'm happy that there are no locations near me as I am pretty sure I'd spend too much time there! Got a kick out of the pointer you used to while showing the gps chip on the board was a screwdriver that had gone BOOM at some point, I certainly don't have any such devices near my workbench (looks around hiding the guilt on my face /s).

[@404DisasterNotFound]

I'd love such a motorised dish! 50 $ you said? I'd pay that in a jiffy, even double... Wish i could find them for such prises in Belgium. I'm starting my sattelite expierence after being licensed for over 10 year. thanks to your videos :) Cheers 'nd 73's, de SO5GT/ON9GT

[@stanleybest8833]

You got more out of the camping satellite finders than I thought. Most devices are overdesigned, these days. A linear LNB, instead of a circular, would pick up Free To Air. The obvious use is ham radio satellites. Not being able to talk back is a bummer. When I use a Dish or DirecTv dish for FTA, I only get transponders. The dish is too small for most TV channels.

[@patchvonbraun]

A couple of comments. The "feed stub" that goes through the middle of your dish is a circular waveguide. It will be *VERY* poor at supporting L-band propagation, since it was designed for Ku-band. Additionally, dielectric-supported patch antennas are very very narrowband -- the GPS-band filter you pulled out is *barely* necessary for a patch antenna, since a patch antenna basically forms a low-order filter by itself. Not criticizing--love your inventiveness. But having a bit more knowledge of RF could help your projects be more successful.

[@nickbernhardt]

I wonder if these work with Hamlib as a rotator; if so, you could use gPredict to drive them and automatically orient and track satellites. NOAA's new high-resolution HRPT satellites are in the L-band and would make a neat moving target.

[@mattjohnson1775]

Man lve probably watched every movie thats ever been on HBO CINEMAX ETC ,. From tne cband days. Then we added ku to the cband but you could pick up any networks uplink so you could just intercept it because it wasnt scrambled but we had the big modules we had to hack when tney did start scrabling. Now the cards. Have fun buddy

[@ibishupessima_]

Can we get a video all about the magical axe man?

[@dinkc64]

Love this kinda hacking-about video, glad I found your channel 🙂

[@DeltaModz]

open the v8 finder meter thing you have there and figure out what voltage it runs on then use an RC battery that is bigger mah to power the unit to fix the constant powering off issue

[@magnussorensen2565]

Try to convert a disk to a Starlink disk so you can receive internet from the disk. Hard project but it would be worth it. =)

[@saveitforparts]

I'd have to track the satellites a lot faster, and switch between them when the signal gets weak. Not sure these little dishes would do it fast enough!

[@magnussorensen2565]

@@saveitforparts Completely fair point. Thanks for the answer. =)

[@TinyHouseHomestead]

Soooooo, .... are we gonna be able to talk to, the man in the moon, aliens, martians, or jesus, .... can we at least control an ICBM with it! 😁😱🤪🤣👍👍🇺🇸

[@Jacob-og9pz]

Lol I miss having a big sat dish amongs my piles of crap

[@chase_h.01]

I would love more videos on this

[@saveitforparts]

I'll be doing more with it, I just want to redo my control / programming computer setup first. The briefcase full of broken laptop and loose parts is getting a little old :-P

[@michaelquinones-lx6ks]

@@saveitforparts I noticed the operating system you have on your dell computer is a Linux just like mine. (I'm using Linux Mint BTW)

[@snojetsst9420]

It's called "glamping" bro...

[@dr.zarkhov9753]

Bored? no way! Nice to see someone exploring what can be done with tech like this. Keep hacking away! 👍

[@DavidGalich77]

Still more hacks...great ideas.

[@JojoJoseph11]

It is a USB to Serial Converter . It usually used to programme and debug the microcontroller

[@Yume-x9v]

Hacking is beautiful satellite.

[@coreybabcock2023]

Anyone ever see the arrival with Charlie sheen ?

[@Administrator_O-5]

I have no clue how to do it, but would love to learn! Anyways, it would be awesome to convert one into a SATCOM for voice & data. Then you can make, calls or get 9nline from anywhere in the world.

[@Real_pic]

Try DTS for n100 perfect

[@prottentogo]

the usb terminal action blew my mind. amazing what you can do without like actual software provided by the brand.

[@saveitforparts]

It would be really cool to see what software they have for techs and developers, but I'm sure it's all proprietary and secret!

[@jamesscott1932]

Dear Saint Paul, thank you your videos are always a breath of fresh air. That Parabolic bowl is a natural for conversion to a solar oven. Just cover the dish with aluminum foil and stick a hotdog on that axis post in the middle.🎉 Yes, keep half of that carry case underneath to catch the grease err juice from the roasting dogs. The only thing close to your sense of humor is that nutty couple from Finland that keeps blowing up Ponds in the winter. Speaking of funny, how about doing the video on running an air boat over the ice of the Mississippi River in January? love and kisses, ex pat.

[@saveitforparts]

I've got more airboat ice trips on the list, it's a little buried under junk in the garage right now and the stupid illegal Tuggy is occupying the trailer, so I'll have to move some stuff around :-)

[@zelloToiletsTalk]

Got one from Ebay $155 , will be here Friday 10/13/23

[@saveitforparts]

Cool! A bit more than I try to pay, but hopefully worth it! They're really fun to mess with, I have another one on the to-do pile that I'm hoping to get to this fall/winter.

[@Ratchet-strap-Garage]

Where did you find one at that was new in box ? The scrappers and junkers in my area want $25-$50 for a used beat up dish they've picked up off the side of the road .

[@saveitforparts]

Mixture of Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, and surplus sales. FB seems to have more / cheaper stuff than CL these days, but also crazier people 😂

[@ntmedia2415]

FROM BANGLADESH

[@lusher00]

The algorithm sent me. Your channel name is almost my mantra. I tell people I’m saving it for the apocalypse. I peruse Facebook market looking for anything that looks fun to take apart. Right now I have an HP plotter, treadmill, dishwasher and a powered wheelchair that looks like a spaceship. I paid $100 for the chair last year and have never seen anything like it since then for less than $2k. I’m always interested in finding new sources of free or cheap parts so I’m anxious to see what you get in the future. I have a Dish satellite on my roof I’d like to do something with. Only thing I’ve thought of is a parabolic dish microphone on a platform that allows me to point it in any direction. When I was in high school I had a police scanner that picked up cordless phone calls. I put an antenna on the roof and I could hear the whole neighborhood.

[@gurugo666]

Really want to see how useful these would be for amsats.

[@saveitforparts]

I'm trying to figure that out right now actually! I think the motors in these wouldn't hold up a heavy Yagi antenna, but I have some other stuff around that might work in the same way.

[@renekaspersen9429]

just wanted to say,cool content du put up,and i like your style,im also save everything...

[@ocsrc]

I have a Kenwood VHF two-way radio and I tried installing the keypad and the circuit board has a ribbon strip that apparently has lost the contacts on the end when the plastic strip at the end pulled off Do you know anyone that can take a look at this and see if they can figure out if it can be fixed ? The circuit board is only about 3 in by 2 in and about a quarter inch thick I would be most appreciative if someone who knows how to fix these ribbons strips could glue a new plastic strip on and put new traces on Thanks Bill KC2OVX

[@saveitforparts]

Ha, I don't know how my comments section became tech support! I have no idea on that, you might need to find a replacement on eBay or find someone who's good at soldering?

[@ocsrc]

The part is no longer made. Radio is from the late 80s. The upgrade kit is KDM-7, the kit has 2 parts and I need the 2 parts duplicated. The keypad is plastic and I think it can be 3D printed. It has 16 plastic square buttons and the plate that the buttons go through. The back of the buttons have little fingers that press the surface mounted pressure pads on the PC board. The PC board has traces and 16 little circular copper pressure pads that when pushed complete the circuit The circuit board has a part number of J82-0031 I can find no reference to this part number anywhere But the upgrade box has KDM-7 written on it along with Kenwood I don't see any IC chips in the circuit board and I think all of the eye sees are on the board inside the radio and this board just allows for the circuits to be closed when the buttons are pressed. The circuit board has a thin film strip that comes off the board with 9 contact traces and pushes into the connector. I have not seen a connector like this before It has no locking mechanism. The strip just pushes in and is held in by the pressure of the connector. The width of the connector is thicker than the strip and there was a piece of plastic originally glued to the strip to add thickness and to provide a rigidness for inserting the strip. The strip won't stay in the connector because it doesn't have the extra thickness of the plastic strip that was originally glued to it. It seems like the traces pulled off the strip with the plastic piece, as I get no connection from the PC board and the buttons do not produce any DTMF sounds like it is supposed to do. It used to work. I am hoping it is just the traces and not a short in the radio or worse a bad IC chip caused when the strip separated from the connector. If anyone watching knows if someone who can make the PC board I described, please let me know. The film has the button contacts as part of it. I don't know how these are made. They are not like a regular plastic board that has parts soldered to it. It is like a membrane keyboard. Thanks again Bill KC2OVX

[@benclark7239]

have you ever thought about trying to use one of your power banks to power it

[@saveitforparts]

Not yet, although I do plan on some off-grid radio scans this summer when I get a chance!

[@michaellichter4091]

I know that from my V8 finder 2, the battery is also low or about to run out when I need the device. Linux is such a powerful tool, you could almost turn it into an automatically tracking satellite antenna. 👍

[@Superkuh2]

Pretty cool that you can control alt-az over serial console. I don't think that waveguide is big enough for L band to propagate within it though? I'd bet the waveguide is attenuating so much the gain from the dish (and sub-optimal for 1500 MHz subreflector) is washed out. Probably better to put the feed in front and remove the ku band optics completely.

[@jdlives8992]

that’s pretty cool dude

[@zyxwvutsrqponmlkh]

The USB outputs the upper side band signal :D

[@saveitforparts]

Ha! Now I just need an LSB port :-P

[@mike97525]

Could you track weather balloons??

[@saveitforparts]

I'm not sure! I keep forgetting that the weather service still uses those, they seem like such a 1950s tech but they're still around! I'll look into it.

[@mesochace]

@@saveitforpartsNWS Chanhassen switched to 400Mhz radiosondes so dishes not needed anymore. A simple 70cm uhf antenna will pick them up for 50 miles or more. I use radiosonde auto_rx and works like a champ.

[@saveitforparts]

@@mesochace Cool thanks for the tip!

[@pete3897]

What do you mean no great use yet! I already suggested a solar chicken cooker... Ot at the very least a way to warm your coffee :)

[@pan2aja]

Great, now we can call the dropship from USS Sulaco

[@christophertadeo6120]

Now I know I'm out his league... 😳. Hacking a satellite? Aren't those for cable guys... 🤔

[@deemitchell4603]

I love it!

[@chinchan9]

I havent found a great use for them yet is the bane of my existence

[@dominicweston8837]

Has anyone found other tailgate dishes with the USB connector? Anyone gone looking for other types of signals on the Dish and DirectTV satellites? I miss my old C-band dish days from forty years ago, searching for signals other than video with a weather radio or Icom R7000 on the I.F. signal or a SW radio on the BB connector.

[@saveitforparts]

So far I've had 6 different tailgater / RV dishes (yes, I have a problem). I've found 1 Tailgater with USB A, and one with USB Mini (but it has some water damage and doesn't seem to fully work). I've also found a Winegard Playmaker with a USB port, but also couldn't get that one to show up on the computer. I had a King "dome" that had pins for a serial port but I didn't feel comfortable soldering one on. I traded the latter two away for an interesting C-band dish, maybe the new owner will find something interesting with them! I have more videos coming up on the USB-port Tailgater and that C-Band setup :-)

[@chipymunk1]

You are a rock star. I want you on my apocalypse team.

[@Offgridhomestead77]

That dish will be too small for any FTA satellite you need a minimum of a 36 in dish and the lnb is circular you will need a linear lnb for FTAsatellite.

[@saveitforparts]

Yeah, I probably won't bother with FTA much, or at least not KU band any more. I'll probably use these little RV dishes for radio telescope or Wifi experiments.

[@Offgridhomestead77]

What size is the c band dish you got? For there the nasa channels on 127west and some free in the clear subscription channels. You will need to upgrade the old lnb on the c band dish with a new digital one . They can be bought on ebay or Amazon

[@saveitforparts]

I think it's 7 or 8 feet, whatever I could legally get on my car roof without needing to cut apart rusted bolts. I might just slap a tin can feedhorn on there and use it for GOES weather satellites.

[@guruoo]

@@saveitforparts Every time I see a sat dish, I think wifi antenna. I use a snow disk with a usb wifi dongle placed at the focal point as a back up for my existing cable. The setup provides literally hundreds of AP's in range, with plenty of open-public APs to choose from. The elevation here helps, though.

[@coreybabcock2023]

You was charging the portable sat thing off a tiny power bank you need to use a actual power brick

[@yuwanjai6767]

im looking for portable satellite celphone signal sir how can avail that item sir

[@itrstt66]

Can you do it with windoes cmd prompt or powershell?

[@frack4oil16]

Have you figured out how to use it to track amateur radio sats? Swap the dish for vhf/uhf Yagi?

[@saveitforparts]

I think a yagi would be too heavy for these little motors, but I have that on the list to try with my bigger PTZ mount.

[@jiangzhao1142]

guy, you are doing amazing!

[@garagemancave666]

Axman! a 7 minute commute for me :)

[@lIlIIlIllIIIllIIllIlIllIllI]

God I love this channel

[@paulcdb]

I was at a talk about POTA (Parks on the Air) so now i'm wondering how you could modify that to point a Wireless PtMP dish so you could have decent internet while at some of the local parks and possibly connect into AREDN. Still need money so who knows when it'll happen but Internet, Satellite TV... Might be more comfortable at the park than at home! 🥴

[@saveitforparts]

I have it on my list to try Wifi on some of these!

[@paulcdb]

@@saveitforparts Fun, I was thinking if you had a local server that you could push a GPS to coordinates to that could calculate the correct azimuth and angle, it'd be super cool to be up in some mountains, push the location to the home antenna and then just point the 2nd antenna and instant'ish wifi link. Wouldn't need the dish for TV then, you'd have internet from up to 30 miles away depending on los. :) I was looking though and there's none for a resonable price in the UK so I guess it'll be a while before I can mess with one.

[@catalinalb1722]

Where did you find that? Ebay? That was really cheap! Great

[@saveitforparts]

I think this one was either Craigslist or Facebook marketplace.

[@markaz2kk]

The other dish has a port down the bottom. That could be a serial connection also.. just check where the traces goto.

[@saveitforparts]

There's one spot that definitely looks like a blank solder area for a 9-pin jack. I need to find a connector and stick it on there to see what happens. Was thinking of getting rid of the older King Dome dish to free up garage space.

[@zelloToiletsTalk]

I just planted a 4ft. fiberglas dish in my backyard that has an adjustable mount. I have 2 LNB's Ku and C, butt the C has 2 outputs ? And also what can I use for 240-290mhz ?

[@saveitforparts]

I think the 2 outputs are usually for two receiver boxes. Sometimes I'll use one to feed power to the LNB if I'm using an SDR instead of a satellite box. For 240-290 (Satcom pirates I assume?) I've used a DIY Yagi. I keep meaning to build something like this but haven't had time yet: hackaday.com/2023/06/30/a-quick-and-easy-tape-measure-turnstile-antenna-for-milsat-snooping/

[@michaelfrazier9900]

How much to build on for my RV??$$$$. Satellite system. Michael Frazier . Kentucky

[@saveitforparts]

You can find the dish domes on Craigslist / Facebook Marketplace, I usually look for the $20 ones but sometimes you can find the whole system with receiver and cables etc for $100-$200. I don't actually watch TV so I don't know which receiver / set top box is the latest model.

[@moonlightsoldier8443]

You find a way to get to to transrecive

[@AaronzDad]

Those commands remind me of old text-based computer games from the early days of the digital age. Have you tried "Open Door" or "Use Laser"? Maybe "Talk Alien"?

[@saveitforparts]

Would you like to play a game? >Chess >Poker >Global Thermonuclear War

[@AaronzDad]

A strange game. The only winning move is not to play. How about a nice game of chess?

[@jayjay6804]

Nice video! Is L band H/V or circular? GPS?

[@pete3897]

I don't think the band necessarily determines the polarity; it's application-specific. Of course there will be standards that are adhered to, but I think you could technically use H, V, RHS circular or LHS circular in any band. GPS would be circular I would think because H can skew to V over distance and GPS is meant to be used by non-fixed earth stations so circular seems more suitable for that application (but I'm just a layman, so take my 2c as only being worth 2c :)

[@homeinspace9116]

Hi, Are you sending power to the GPS antenna after the modification? Best regards :)

[@saveitforparts]

You know, I don't actually remember. I think I probably had the BIAS-T on the SDR switched on (provides 5v back up the antenna wire).

[@jaisonjose8256]

Tht was cool

[@TravisL-r7w]

Are you moving the satellite with the v8 finder 2? If so how?

[@saveitforparts]

I didn't find a way to move this with the V8 finder. There's some standard antenna motor protocol called DisQec or Bisquick or something that the V8 can do, but tech companies hate standards so I've never found a dish that actually uses it.

[@vinnyc365]

Love this.

[@lordhexon]

Lol space stuff lol 😂

[@kristiangronberg3150]

great stuff, I dont know too much, mut I think if you modify the disk to het the pick up antenna in the senter off the disck in sted off thet reflektor type feed you might gain berret reflection and use wider freqvency ranges on the disk

[@joettewhite4940]

I found your video trying to learn how many volts goes through the coaxial on a dish Tailgater 16 to 18 thank you, but the reason is I'm not getting that little red light inside on the circuit board when the dome is off, which would indicate no power I would think?, I've changed boxes and cables three times a peace in my effort, So I just thought I would leave the comment in case you see it asking if there's something simple or common about that situation that I might be able to look at or correct thanks. Cuz I'm about another 15 minutes more of playing with it before it goes in the trash.

[@saveitforparts]

The set top box should supply either 13v or 18v DC, depending on polarity for the particular satellite and transponder. If you're not getting anything then it's possible something's burned out on the tailgater brain. Throw it on Craigslist for $20 before you trash it, or heck I'd pay for shipping if it's not too much :-)

[@joettewhite4940]

@@saveitforparts thank you so much for answering that, , I was on my wife's account and just remembered I'd ask so I didn't check her account until today, thank you, I tried 3 different boxes one was brand new changed cables t ect. I keep thinking I might run across someone who can check it but I'll contact you before I decide to toss it, im thinking it's the board so it is junk to me, i think i can get a used one reasonable on marketplace, sometimes I see them. I'll be in touch.

[@DRNEGOLICIS]

what was the device hanging from the string at the end of the vijeo?

[@saveitforparts]

An model satellite I put together out of junk parts. It doesn't do anything, just garage decoration.

[@TruthDoesNotExist]

will you ever do a video on the software side of radio and satellite programs your using on ubuntu? like a tutorial on setting up a laptop with all the programs you use? I noticed it been kind of difficult to figure out how to install some software or I don't know what programs you use. Its a pretty cool niche you've done and I'm getting into it myself, I set up a little laptop with ubuntu and have a satellite dish and rtl sdr and the necessary adapters to get things connected and am looking forward to installing the software so I can use the hardware I have

[@saveitforparts]

I could try to do something like that. Some of the main ones I use are GQRX for the software defined radio stuff, and WXtoIMG for the weather satellites. Actually, I don't do those manually as much any more, I have a Raspberry Pi running RaspberryNOAA that gets them automatically. For poking at serial port stuff I'm mostly using the Linux tty / screen commands, or CoolTerm on Windows.

[@iamgriff]

I will happily send you a Dish Tailgater.

[@saveitforparts]

I won't turn down another one, but I do have a pile going and can't promise I'd use it right away! If you want to shoot me an email it's gabe (at) saveitforparts (dot com).

[@QuantumTech4]

Can you sell 2 of this for me. For a project

[@saveitforparts]

I don't usually sell my projects, sorry! I've also started taking two of them apart to see if I can make one work better.

[@archloy]

can you imagine using this kind of array as motion detector ? (useless idea, I assume :p)

[@saveitforparts]

That might be popular, I think there are some microwave / radar based security systems. I haven't tried it myself, but I've seen kits online for Raspberry Pi and Arduino that do similar things.

[@archloy]

@@saveitforparts Could be fun. But with home equipment it will be as tricky as a laser ray detector ;) Who need simple solution to a problem ? :D

[@rabbijosiah9237]

Where do you get these rv dishes?

[@saveitforparts]

Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, local estate sales, etc. I keep an eye out for any under $100 and usually I can talk people down under $50 for older ones.

[@christerwilliger7290]

What USB A to A cable are you using?

[@saveitforparts]

Not sure, probably just some random one from Amazon

[@itrstt66]

what is that thingy at the start of the video?

[@saveitforparts]

Just a model satellite I made out of random junk.

[@itrstt66]

@@saveitforparts nice vision, does it work or is it just looks?

[@joels7605]

This is great work. Do you have any more details about connecting to the USB port? Also that GPS bandpass hack is amazing. Well done.

[@mansoaptheif]

Another project that achieves nothing

[@Doubleelforbes]

Ball game beats fishing for sure, do you think they were watching ....... the ball game? You are getting these for great prices! New sub here to watch your adventures until our 2nd hand market comes down. Effectively the linux commands you worked through simply listed connected USB, then on plug in you see the change. What you found next was RS232 (Old Serial port) emulated on a USB Wire. This is why you then grepped for TTY sessions available to linux, which by design the RS232 port will appear. By searching for this TTY device you correctly found the advice to tap into that serial console on the other end of the USB (correctly ID'd by you) with your screen command executed on that device as it appears in linux. After this command you were talking to the OS on the mainboard of the dish itself. - If all of this was obvious or relatively intuitive to you already, then your googling of random linux commands is good and your risk is more 90% break the OS and need re-install and maybe 10% brick the PC, and even then the overall risk is minimal. I would recommend seeing if you can get a dump of the NVRAM with that "nvread" command. As well as seeing if you can get a closer look / serial no. from the actual mainboard or the ROM chip itself. (If you can't find all this information from the Dish Model googled as-is). This will give you a sort of "Image of C drive" stored on the board which boots into that console on power-up. Just in case it's not obvious - Do NOT mess with nvwrite until you've got the existing ROM dumped. If I were in your shoes, I'd be looking to have multi or switchable band / LNB, ideally automated like the dish position. I'm weaker on the RF stuff, so maybe range available might be more limited than I thought. I like the idea that the base-LNB, your L band mod and any other ranges could be moved in and out of position. Perhaps on a carousel on a servo motor. How many of the other ones have USB? I love your Array idea and with scripted TTY session to each dish, you could focus all satellites and then likely use that nudge feature per-dish to help with some of the interference / noise issues you saw.

[@Jirayu.Kaewprateep]

📺💬 I Google and find the command ttyl on the internet that is because it is the second time trying. 🐐💬 That is because it is remote connection try the second time, the first time it replies but that is the communication way they are working with people in fields. 📺💬 That is because it is good work with old people. 📺💬 Radiofrequency working status 🐐💬 Target response you need to filter out television and wideband. 📺💬 That is depends on what you are seeking for 🥺💬 Reading and find some jobs when those they are trying to make break habits. 📺💬 That is electronics equipment B-Band power 🥺💬 You need to read it up side down, for the true reason I watch your program for study and entertain. 📺💬 By removed the diodes and direct connect of the signals 🥺💬 It does not work that way removed the diodes mean you need to create your own amplifiers I see from the VDO too. ( 📺💬 You must understand they do not select you 🥺💬 I am working in different fields but I do not think that is the problem and these people try to make money from me or make any lies news I telling them to stop but they keep trying on their subject with out listening anyone. 🥺💬 I am not to reply them because they are trying to make yelling back conversation I say the same sentence that they do not listen. )

[@saveitforparts]

I enjoy your comments, I'm never sure what you're saying, but they're still interesting :-)

[@billybobbooboo1975]

Maybe get a usb sat receiver for the laptop ?