Satellite wiring - Montana Owners Club

skyviewman · 07-02-2007, 04:33 PM

I tried to setup a tripod satellite system this weekend and gave up in frustration. Can someone explain to me how the 3400RL is wired for satellite/cable. Above the entertainment center there is a receptacle that has 2 connectors with one short cable connected to both. Below this there is another cable that I think comes from the bedroom and is connected to the roof antenna. Of course the documentation that came with the 5th wheel is totally useless. Can someone tell me how to hook it up. Thanks in advance.

bsmeaton · 07-02-2007, 04:46 PM

Skyviewman -

That jumper is the key. Remove it for satellite and hook up your reciever to the (ok, I'll say the bottom one but won't guarantee it's not the top

- depends on the factory's mood that day).

You'll be in business! The jumper is used to route cable TV from the park to your front TV, as both TVs are cable ready and don't require a separate receiver. Satellite doesn't work that way, so you have to remove the jumper. You can actually run an output from your satellite receiver into the other jack to receive it on the bedroom TV as well.

With the exception of the new basement TV jack, here is the wiring schematic:

Countryfolks · 07-02-2007, 04:48 PM

I figured this out a long time ago and can't find the post and can't remember all the details. The short jumper is between the outside connector and the stuff inside. You need to determine which is the direct connection to the outside and connect it to the sat receiver inside. That should give you a start. The sat line must go directly from the antenna to the receiver, no splitters in the line. There are one or two splitters in the wall by the TV.

skip

judyuk · 07-02-2007, 05:17 PM

Thanks....I'm sure I would have been asking this question in about a month when we get our Big Sky.

hookman · 07-02-2007, 05:30 PM

Mine was the top outlet but like Brad said it is what ever way the person feels like on that day. I have two receivers so I had the dealer run a second lead from the convenience centre to the TV cabinet in the bedroom so we can watch separate channels on both TV's

richfaa · 07-02-2007, 05:47 PM

On my 3400...Top face plate with two outputs... Top is Tv in..Bottom is Sat in.. Bottom out put to sat in on your receiver..Top output to out to tv on your sat receiver. Use RG-6 from sat bottom output to the sat receiver, sat in. Use RG-6 from your lnb to the sat/cable input in the docking station( no matter what anyone says use RG-6) Make sure the TV amp switch in the bedroom closet is off.

01RAMer · 07-10-2007, 07:54 AM

I was playing with the connectors over the weekend, because the bedroom TV was receiving interference from something. I pulled the jumper and of course, both TVs went dead (no signal). I pulled the connector on the other plate (Plate only has one) and only the main TV went dead. This makes me believe that the bedroom TV is T'ed in somewhere in the wall. Can anyone confirm this? The DVD is T'ed into the main TV cable. I turned off the A/C, which I thought was causing the interference and there was no change. I was on shore power. Has anyone else had this problem? Was there a resolve? It's probably a wiring routing problem, being next to something that's sending the interference, but I don't have a clue where to start looking.

richfaa · 07-10-2007, 11:42 AM

01ramer..are you receiving interference on ALL channels or maybe just channels 2,3,4????

boylanag · 07-10-2007, 12:47 PM

Thanks, all, for the info. We have Dish and have had no luck in getting it hooked up with our rig. We are going to change to DirectTV because it just seems simpler. Also, the dish is much smaller than the monster we were told to get for Dish.

01RAMer · 07-16-2007, 06:47 AM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by richfaa

01ramer..are you receiving interference on ALL channels or maybe just channels 2,3,4????

All channels, some are better than others but still have horizontal lines of interference.

Charlie · 07-16-2007, 09:24 AM

Art-
This not to say that your problem is the same as what I experienced. I had vertical lines of interference on all channels and found a connector on the jumper that I was using between the trailer's connection and the receiver causing the problem.

01RAMer · 07-17-2007, 06:53 AM

Charlie, Are you talking about the cable between the trailer and the post at the campground? I'm only getting interference on the front TV. The back or main TV is fine. If you were talking about the hook-up cable, I would think both would be effected. Can you clearify please?

Charlie · 07-17-2007, 03:26 PM

The cable I was referring to is a 2' section that I had made up. It is connected from the bottom connection on the sat/cable connector to the satellite receiver in the entertainment center. I have the older Dish receivers and only hook up one in the LR. I think the newer types can run multi TV's from one receiver. I have run a separate coax to the BR TV and use a second receiver for it. There was connector that was grounding itself and causing the lines. You might check resistance on the wire going to the BR TV. The picture that Brad posted below your original post is the setup that has been used. The link below is the same picture but is expandable so that you can get a better view. I think it might be a loose connector somewhere.

http://pic3.picturetrail.com/VOL19/1.../111212066.jpg

01RAMer · 07-18-2007, 06:44 AM

Thanks Charlie! I'll do some cable readings and look for a bad connection. This is a good place to start.

snfexpress · 07-18-2007, 12:49 PM

You might want to take the antenna booster apart - real easy to do, just remove the two screws and then check the 3 cable connections in the back of it. Be sure to be careful as the 12v wire is hot. I found that 2 of the 3 cable crimps were loose. I replaced the F-connectors with new ones and all is good.

old turbo · 07-19-2007, 01:30 AM

I had a lot of problems with the crimp on style connectors that were put on by a lcal radio shck store. I had problems from the get go. While in Texas last winter it really was a problem. A fellow winter texan across from me was a cable installer, retired and replaced a lot of the crimp on connectors with compression fittings, what a difference. The crimp on style would come loose and you would get terrible reception or no reception. It was hard to find out what was messing up. I learned a lot from this guy and have since purchased a compression tool off ebay. Can purchase fittings at Lowes when needed. I have since helped other folks with connector problems.

01RAMer · 07-19-2007, 07:17 AM

I have a hexigon compression tool so I guess the next stop is to change out all the connectors. Sounds like the way to go. It will certainly eliminate the amount of possibilities. Thanks again!

Bill and Lisa · 07-27-2007, 04:16 AM

I will be doing some work on my entertainment system this weekend and am thankful for the diagram. Question I have is when you are connected to park cable can you still tune in local channels off of the antenna? It looks like the one cable is carrying both signals at the same time. Does this cause interference?

Bill

bncinwv · 07-27-2007, 04:21 AM

Bill,
When we were using Directv recently (should be the same as park cable) I found that if you hit the antenna booster, that the local air stations were watchable. When we went back to Directv, we simply turned the antenna booster off. I guess the only thing to do is simply try it to see if it works the same, but I think it will.
Bingo

hookman · 07-27-2007, 03:02 PM

Bill I just bought a coax cable compression tool it came with 100 ends and wire strippers for $38.00 on Ebay. It works great and then you can help your friends fix their cables.
this is what I entered to find it.
COMPRESSION TOOL RG6 COAXIAL CRIMP CABLE CONNECTORS

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