Satellite antenna (1 Viewer)

[BobT]

Which is better, a "pop-up" automatic antenna or a "dome" antenna?
All information gratefully received.

 

[slobadoberbob]

everyone will claim there one is best

Everyone will claim there one is best as you wold suspect.

I purchased a dome as I was aware of the fold down type getting snagged in trees ... as far as I know they both do the same job.

Mine is a NETA and works just fine.... right down tot he South of France.


Bob

 

[Jaws]

Both have advantages and disadvantages ..
I was going to go for a dome until I found out the size I wanted gave a BIG windage figure.. I was a bit shocked because you would think being that shape it would be pretty good and not affect economy... Wrong !! And the figures came from one of the dome manufacturers so were proly a little on the lean side too !

As we also travel all over Europe on our jollies we also wanted a decent sized dish.. bigger in fact than you can get in a dome

So in the end went for an Oyster system .. and have been VERY pleased with it ( in fact just recently upgraded it to the latest controller system which was not cheap.. but again, in my opinion, lolly well spent

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[aba]

really depends on if you got young ones that want to watch it whilst traveling.

if you need to have satellite tv working whilst on the move it has to be a dome.
also domes dont suffer in high winds where the pop up type have to be lowered.

cheapest option is just a dish and a pole or tripod. that way you can get a bigger dish as and when you need it and upgrading to sky plus is cheaper too.

 

[Phill D]

My 5p worth....

Roof top wind ups are sensitive to high winds and
A. may need to be wound down when really bad weather, probably when you wish you had TV..:shout:
B. you need to have the roof of the van in line of site of Satellite. so not under the shade, often a problem on some sites.

Dome does not suffer from the poor weather problem but still needs line of site...

I currently use a "Cassegrain" arcon dish on a tripod. not as swish or costly as the 2 above; and takes about 10 / 15 mins to set up and 5 mins to put away; and you have to stow it. although this type of dish can be smaller i.e. a 57 cm dish performs like an 80 cm std dish so ok in south of france for uk SKY tv.
as already mentioned its what suits you and your pocket..:thumb:

 

[JeanLuc]

Both have advantages and limitations. Domes have smaller dishes in than is possible with an exposed dish, but because the system is enclosed and protected, the smaller dish can be aligned with great accuracy. Domes tend to work better than an equivalent sized exposed dish. e.g. a Roadpro / Camos style 40cm dome has a dish 46cm wide by 35cm high but this will work as well as a 60cm exposed dish (generally). Domes have the benefit of being unaffected by wind. If you regularly tour windy places (e.g. the Highlands) this can be a great advantage. If you want to get reception whilst travelling, it has to be an in-motion dome but these tend to work best on motorways - not on twisty country roads with tree cover. Domes will pick up Astra 2D channels (UK stations) throughout France, Benelux and western Germany and into Scandinavia. Also into northern Spain and northern Italy. Beyond that, they will fail to get 2D but will, of course get Astra 2S, Astra 1, Hotbird etc.depending on where you are. This is true of any system unless you have a really large dish.
Exposed dishes can be larger and these will pull in UK channels at the fringes of coverage areas. Realistically, to get a significant range improvement over a dome, you need an 85cm dish (or larger), or a Kathrein CAP 910 (77cm) but that has some clever GPS systems in it and is regarded as probably the best automatic system - at £2,500.
If you are well within the chosen satellite's footprint, almost any decent dish will get a good signal; it's at the fringes that size and quality matters.

Hope this helps.

p.s. I have a Camos 40cm static and am very happy with it. I don't mind the 'bump' on the roof - it provides a talking point with the uninitiated.

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