Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
 

Go Back   Montana Owners Club - Keystone Montana 5th Wheel Forum > GENERAL DISCUSSIONS > General Discussions about our Montanas
Click Here to Login

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 04-30-2022, 05:19 AM   #1
Brian S
Seasoned Camper
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Location: Lakewood Ranch
Posts: 92
M.O.C. #27692
Dish satellite not working through pre installed wiring

This is my 2nd HC with this problem. When I connect the satellite via the outside equipment closet it does not work. It urns but doesn’t find satellites. If I connect it direct to the Wally everything is fine. Something is wrong inside the trailer.

So my two questions are: are others having this problem, and are there any better solutions? I don’t want a coaxial running under my front door and across the kitchen floor where it is a tripping hazard and unsightly.

Thanks!
 
__________________
2022 High Country 295RL
2020 F350
Brian S is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-30-2022, 05:48 AM   #2
DadsHemi
Montana Master
 
DadsHemi's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Florence
Posts: 945
M.O.C. #20472
It’s going to be the cable splitters, I change all of mine out to get my dish to work. It take a better quality and a higher MHz.
__________________

2018 Ram 3500 MegaCab 4x4 Aisin, 4:10 Gears
Titan 50 Gal Tank, Air Lift Wireless Bags
2017 3160 RL
DadsHemi is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-30-2022, 06:06 AM   #3
Brian S
Seasoned Camper
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Location: Lakewood Ranch
Posts: 92
M.O.C. #27692
Quote:
Originally Posted by DadsHemi View Post
It’s going to be the cable splitters, I change all of mine out to get my dish to work. It take a better quality and a higher MHz.
Where do I find those and what do you swap them with? Is this difficult?
__________________
2022 High Country 295RL
2020 F350
Brian S is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-30-2022, 06:20 AM   #4
DutchmenSport
Montana Master
 
DutchmenSport's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2018
Location: Anderson
Posts: 2,544
M.O.C. #22835
It's been several years since we had Dish TV. We quit using Dish TV because they kept jacking prices up on us and there was never anything new, just the same movies, shows, reruns, and commercials, commercial, commercials. We went back to over-the-air television, and a few years later discovered streaming video, which has been great!

But, to get back to your question. We had problems whenever we attempted to connect our Tailgater to the trailer, (Spiringdale and then an Outback, both Keystone trailers) and then the connection inside the trailers to the receiver. It basically was a very short connection, maybe 6 inches from the outside to the inside. It was a separate connection from the over-the-air coax connection or cable coax connection.

I contacted Dish TV and they said it was probably the wire itself or the connections in the trailer. Dish TV evidently uses a higher quality, or a better coax cable, and the connections are somehow different than the normal run-of-the-mill Wall Mart stuff.

I never did get Dish TV to work as expected in the camper. I had to use the original 50 foot of wire that came when it was originally installed (at home, and the Tailgater for the camper), and I always had to feed the wire through the window.

Just an FYI, we have a Visible Phone plan ($40 a month), truly unlimited, and purchased a portable router that hard wires into the phone. The WIFI router allows multiple devices to run at the same time, flawless! We stream everything now on our Roku televisions. We pay the penance price for Prime Video and combined, that is still far cheaper than what we were paying for Dish TV.

AND... No headaches, no problem with trees blocking the signal, and looking for a clear South West sky, no haggling with wires, connections, or dragging equipment around either. Just a small cell phone, and a router about 2 inches square, and we have WIFI anywhere we get a phone signal. I suppose, if you dry camp in some of the Western states in deserted areas, you will not have phone service though. But, if you are camping somewhere like that ... who wants television anyway!
__________________
Who you are right now is a sum total off all you use to be.
2019 Montana High Country 375FL
2014 Chevy Silverado Duramax, 6.6L Dually
DutchmenSport is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-30-2022, 06:26 AM   #5
DadsHemi
Montana Master
 
DadsHemi's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Florence
Posts: 945
M.O.C. #20472
I had 3 locations in mine, behind the convenience center and at both TV’s. It’s a pain to get to our bedroom tv, our living room tv splitter was behind the fire place. I had to go with a 5-5000 MHz splitter’s. I ordered mine from Amazon several years ago, the Dish guys told me I needed to change them and it did the trick. Haven’t had any issues since.
__________________

2018 Ram 3500 MegaCab 4x4 Aisin, 4:10 Gears
Titan 50 Gal Tank, Air Lift Wireless Bags
2017 3160 RL
DadsHemi is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-30-2022, 07:11 AM   #6
Mikendebbie
Montana Master
 
Mikendebbie's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Austin
Posts: 2,390
M.O.C. #21044
DadsHemi - just curious...I tried to search amazon, then google for "5-5000 MHz coax splitters" - and got nothing. However There are tons of "2500 MHz" splitters...see screen shot below. Where did you find a "5000 MHz" splitter?
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	2022-04-30_8-07-42.jpg
Views:	35
Size:	273.6 KB
ID:	11827  
__________________
MikenDebbie Aggie ‘77 in the sticks near Austin TX
2019 Chevy 3500 High Country DRW
2018 Montana 3921FB
Aussie Gus + Texas Heeler Jimmy
Mikendebbie is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-30-2022, 08:16 AM   #7
rames14
Montana Master
 
rames14's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Livermore
Posts: 5,135
M.O.C. #1920
I know everyone wants to blame Keystone and KeyTV and the splitters, but the Winegard portables just don’t have enough power going through the wire to complete the job. To prove this, I had multiple G3 units from my dealer. If I run the 25’ cable directly to my power inserter (G3 has a power inserter ahead of the receiver) it works every time. When I add a short cable to the convenience center and a female connector it is hit or miss. We have our G3 mounted on the roof. After much troubleshooting, having technician out to the RV, conversations with Winegard, many days at our dealer and swapping satellite units and components it has become clear. If you want it to work every time, without fail, run your cable directly from the dish to your receiver. I know others who have gotten them to work, but it is not guaranteed. I know this works.
__________________
Ron and Terrie Ames - MOC #1920/KF0NTA
2021Montana 3230CK Super Solar Legacy Package
2021 Ram 3500 Laramie Longhorn, BIM Charging
4x4, SRW, LB, Crew Cab, Pullrite 3900 Hitch
rames14 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-02-2022, 09:16 AM   #8
Wisconsin Retiree
Montana Fan
 
Wisconsin Retiree's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2021
Location: Coloma, Wisconsin
Posts: 200
M.O.C. #28036
You may want to actually check each cable/sat feed to and from said connectors/splitters. I just spent this past weekend doing just that because the outside feed connections in convenience center were non functional from day 1. I actually found cable run from LR was wired backwards and was actually put as feed into the splitter and one port the wire was not even connected. It is worth the time to trace everything down because apparently someone at the factory is clueless...
__________________
Chuck
2019 3121RL 35 ft., 2020 3500 Dodge Ram SRW, Cummins 6.7 HO, Air Bags - Air Lift BT Wireless Compressor, Coloma, Wisconsin
Wisconsin Retiree is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-02-2022, 01:13 PM   #9
Brian S
Seasoned Camper
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Location: Lakewood Ranch
Posts: 92
M.O.C. #27692
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wisconsin Retiree View Post
You may want to actually check each cable/sat feed to and from said connectors/splitters. I just spent this past weekend doing just that because the outside feed connections in convenience center were non functional from day 1. I actually found cable run from LR was wired backwards and was actually put as feed into the splitter and one port the wire was not even connected. It is worth the time to trace everything down because apparently someone at the factory is clueless...
...or lazy. Regardless, where did you find these splitters and cable runs? What do I need to remove to find them?
__________________
2022 High Country 295RL
2020 F350
Brian S is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-02-2022, 02:20 PM   #10
dieselguy
Montana Master
 
dieselguy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Haysville
Posts: 4,261
M.O.C. #3085
This issue has been long running with about any larger model of RV. As mentioned it usually boils down to the splitters or a bad coax cable end. We have a pathway X2 and installed a weatherproof through the wall coax connector right behind the tv. Satellite hooks directly to the coax connector on the outer wall, short cable from the connector on the inner wall to the receiver. Once I did this, I have never had an issue with not finding the satellites. We don't full-time, so not having every TV hooked to the satellite is of no issue to us. We just watch OTA on the bedroom TV.
dieselguy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-02-2022, 04:01 PM   #11
AZ Traveler
Site Team
 
AZ Traveler's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Oro Valley
Posts: 3,898
M.O.C. #20477
I use the same approach as Dieselguy.
__________________
Zack and Donna plus Millie and Ranger
2018 3160RL

"Life is too short to stay indoors, enjoy the ride!"
AZ Traveler is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-02-2022, 04:14 PM   #12
shovelhead86
Montana Master
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Sioux Falls
Posts: 663
M.O.C. #10985
Dish coax routing

The only way I know to solve this is to route the coax into rv through the slideout gasket. That way you can connect directly to reciever from carryout. I havent a clue where the factory wiring goes from the convenience center.
shovelhead86 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-02-2022, 04:26 PM   #13
dieselguy
Montana Master
 
dieselguy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Haysville
Posts: 4,261
M.O.C. #3085
shovelhead86 .... Just do like I mentioned earlier, install a weatherproof through the wall coax connector. It's permanently mounted to your exterior wall and all you have to do is run a cable from your satellite sitting on the ground or tripod to the connector. That way you do not have to jack with feeding it through the side seal every setup.
dieselguy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-02-2022, 04:29 PM   #14
rames14
Montana Master
 
rames14's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Livermore
Posts: 5,135
M.O.C. #1920
I tried the approach mentioned. With my G3, even that didn’t work. It only works with the 25’ cable straight to the inserter.
__________________
Ron and Terrie Ames - MOC #1920/KF0NTA
2021Montana 3230CK Super Solar Legacy Package
2021 Ram 3500 Laramie Longhorn, BIM Charging
4x4, SRW, LB, Crew Cab, Pullrite 3900 Hitch
rames14 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-02-2022, 04:37 PM   #15
dieselguy
Montana Master
 
dieselguy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Haysville
Posts: 4,261
M.O.C. #3085
G3 must have a weaker power supply than our pathway X2. I have two 25 ft cables and a coax connector. I usually use the 25-footer, but I have coupled both of them together when needed with no issue. If you measure the voltage at the end of the cable going into the satellite, you should have around 13 and 1/2 volts.
dieselguy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-02-2022, 06:03 PM   #16
Mikendebbie
Montana Master
 
Mikendebbie's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Austin
Posts: 2,390
M.O.C. #21044
I ran a short piece of coax from the living room TV Wally out thru the back paneling behind the TV and down thru the slideout wire loom. A coax pigtail hangs down and I hook the Dish Tailgater’s 50’ lg coax to the pigtail. I can locate the Tailgater in a spot with clear view to the satellites using iPhone app. Works like a charm. I have Dish at S&B so I have to call customer service to change channels to locals for my location. Sometimes I have placed the Tailgater on the roof to of the RV to clear trees. The campground cable TV connections work great with the OEM coax and splitters, as does my over the air antenna signals. Since I have solved the Dish Tailgater connection issue - I don’t want to mess with the OEM cabling or splitters because it all works for me.

Edit: DW did not want me drilling thru the exterior skin to install waterproof connection.
__________________
MikenDebbie Aggie ‘77 in the sticks near Austin TX
2019 Chevy 3500 High Country DRW
2018 Montana 3921FB
Aussie Gus + Texas Heeler Jimmy
Mikendebbie is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-03-2022, 07:30 AM   #17
Montana Man
Montana Master
 
Montana Man's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: Carson City
Posts: 2,017
M.O.C. #21963
The satellite connection in the convenience center looks good on the showroom floor. In reality the distance from that connection to the sat box is too long. Then add numerous splitters plus the cable from the antenna. That is too much for most systems to handle. The shortest, most direct cable works best. I had to install a connector in the slide wall close to the sat box to fix ours.
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	IMG_0301.jpg
Views:	46
Size:	97.8 KB
ID:	11854  
__________________
2016 3160, Legacy, Sailuns, Splendide 2100 xc vented, 1 1/2" axle lift blocks, disk brakes. 2014 Ram 3500 SRW SWB 4X4 6.7 Aisin Mega Cab, EBC slotted disks and brakes, Titan fuel tank.
Montana Man is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-03-2022, 07:33 AM   #18
Wisconsin Retiree
Montana Fan
 
Wisconsin Retiree's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2021
Location: Coloma, Wisconsin
Posts: 200
M.O.C. #28036
I like that!!!
__________________
Chuck
2019 3121RL 35 ft., 2020 3500 Dodge Ram SRW, Cummins 6.7 HO, Air Bags - Air Lift BT Wireless Compressor, Coloma, Wisconsin
Wisconsin Retiree is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-04-2022, 12:38 PM   #19
Chief Brown
Seasoned Camper
 
Chief Brown's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2021
Location: Cumming
Posts: 81
M.O.C. #27901
We must be the exception to all this. We setup the Tailgater using the satellite finder app, connect the coax to the port in the convenience bay and we are up and running. We have not had any issues. We do call Dish and have them reset the receiver if we have changed zip codes, but that's about it.
__________________
2020 Ram 3500 CC, SWB, 4WD with Curt Q20 hitch 2021 High Country 331RL
Chief Brown is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-04-2022, 06:19 PM   #20
Wisconsin Retiree
Montana Fan
 
Wisconsin Retiree's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2021
Location: Coloma, Wisconsin
Posts: 200
M.O.C. #28036
You should go buy a lottery ticket!!!
__________________
Chuck
2019 3121RL 35 ft., 2020 3500 Dodge Ram SRW, Cummins 6.7 HO, Air Bags - Air Lift BT Wireless Compressor, Coloma, Wisconsin
Wisconsin Retiree is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3
Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Montana RV, Keystone RV Company or any of its affiliates. This is an independent, unofficial site.


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 02:35 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.