What TV channels can I get on Satellite? This is a very broad question. Reception varies depending on the equipment you have. There are 2 main bands in which satellite TV is transmitted. C band which is in the 3.4 to 4.2 GHz frequency band And KU band which covers 11 to 12.75 GHz. At these frequencies, the signal is micro-wave. Generally C band requires a larger dish and KU band a smaller dish. A C band dish is usually 2m or larger in diameter, and KU band dishes vary from 65cm to 2m. C band dishes are usually mesh as the surface accuracy does not have to be as accurate as it needs to be for KU band. Therefore KU band dishes are usually solid with a smooth surface as they need to be accurately made to focus the small KU band waves into the feed horn on the LNB. The LNBs (Low Noise Block down-converter) sits in the front or centre of the dish, and collects all the reflected micro-waves from the dish. The micro-waves are very weak, and are not harmful. The LNBF has an integrated feed horn, and the waves travel along the feed horn, and enter the LNB where they are converted and transferred to the satellite receiver via the coax cable.

C band contains many free channels, most of which are foreign language. There are 10 satellites accessible from the East and West Coast of Australia. Your C band dish can be a fixed type system, with 2.4m mesh dish, C band LNBF, coax cable and digital satellite receiver, or it can be motorized to point to all of the C band satellites in your region. A fixed C band dish system is usually installed on the ground, and points to one of the 10 satellites in your region. Free-to-air channels from this one satellite can be viewed. A Satellite channel list link is available on our site at courtesy of Lyngsat. The average cost of a 2.4m fixed C band system is under $1500 installed. Motorizing your system can allow it to point to all (providing you have no obstructions such as trees etc) satellites in your region and you can move the dish remotely as you require. To motorize your dish you firstly need a special type of pivoting mount on the dish. This is called a polar mount and comes standard on most larger dishes. Other additional items required are an actuator and positioner, and connecting cable. The actuator is the ‘ram’ like unit which fits on your dish and does the moving, and the positioner is the inside unit that controls the actuator and ‘remembers’ the satellite positions. The positioner usually comes with a remote control for the user. There are also other types of positioners that interface with most modern digital satellite receivers using a protocol called DisEQc 1.2. These are called V-BOX, and use the existing Digital receiver remote control to control the satellite dish position. The average cost of a 2.4m motorized C band system is under $2500 installed.

KU band contains few  free-to-air channels. Other channels on KU band are PAY TV channels and Aurora remote area channels and require a Digital satellite receiver with card slot, and an authorized smart card and subscription (for Pay TV) to view them. The Pay TV receiver and card are supplied by the PAY TV provider when you take up a subscription. Other digital satellite receivers such as the HUMAX IR5410Z, the eMTech eM200 Digital CI receiver and Irdeto CI cam v2.09 and the new eMTech eM150IR with embedded Irdeto will work with the original smart card, however the PAY TV providers do not like you using their card in any other receiver other than the one they supply with the installation.

Aurora is a platform on Optus C1 satellite that has a group of channels that contain free-to-air Television such as ABC and SBS, and a choice of 2 commercial channels either GWN and WIN West for WA or Imparja and Seven Central for other areas. SBS and ABC are available to anyone within Australia. The Commercial channels are available only* to anyone in Australia that is outside the footprint of terrestrial transmitters. An Irdeto embedded satellite receiver and Optus Aurora smart card are required and these can be purchased from a satellite outlet. Dish sizes required are a minimum of 90cm Australia wide and Northern areas such as the NT and Cape York need larger sizes up to 1.2m. Once the equipment is obtained and installed, Optus need to be contacted to have the card ‘turned on’. Once turned on, there are no further on-going fees. The Aurora service is only for use within Australia. Other Countries such as Papua New Guinea and New Zealand may receive the signal, but are not entitled to view the programming. *There is a provision for viewers with poor TV reception within the terrestrial viewing area, to receive the Aurora commercial channel via satellite. A site survey needs to be done, and if approved by the Television stations involved, the channels can be activated. For more information go to the Broadcasters’ sites.. eg http://www.sevencentral.com.au / and www.imparja.com.au

Can C and KU band be integrated into the one system? Theoretically yes, however this requires a dual band feed horn, a C band LNB and a KU band LNB, plus some sort of switching to select between feed horns, and servo motor control to change polarity on both bands. The performance is compromised when a dual band feed horn is used, and using a mesh dish for KU band is about 30% less efficient than using a solid dish. The preferred method to receive C and KU band is to have 2 separate dishes. Say a 2.4m mesh motorized dish for C band, and a fixed 90cm to 1.2m solid dish for KU band, with some electronic switching to select between the 2 dishes. So you can receive about 140 free-to-air channels with a motorized C band dish, 130 of which are foreign language, German, French, Italian, Portuguese, Hindi, Tamil, Cantonese, Mandarin, Thai, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Japanese, and about 10 English.

On the KU band system you can receive a few free channels, and if you have a PAY TV card, you can receive the channels you pay for e.g.. Selectv. If you have an Aurora system, you can receive ABC and SBS for your region, and If you live in a NON Terrestrial reception area in WA, GWN and WIN West, or areas other than WA, Imparja and Seven Central.

For more questions send us an Email:info@sunlandtvservice.com

Optus Satellite coverage and dish size recommended 

TV Stations and Frequency available in Digital and Analogue from our office in Maroochydore