DirecTV offers its customers access to television signals broadcast from a group of satellites in low earth orbit. To receive these signals, you must have a DirectTV dish and receiver. Many television programs and movies are now broadcast in high-definition (HD), and many televisions can use these signals to produce very high quality audio and video. DirecTV offers HD service through its satellite network. Installing a DirecTV HD system is a complex job that can still be done without help with some time and tools. However, If you are at all unsure about your ability to complete the task, hire a professional to do it.
Instructions
Getting the Antenna Coordinates
1. Connect your receiver to your television using the included cables. You can connect it with coaxial or composite (red/white/yellow) cables.
2. Turn on the receiver and the TV. Choose the input on the TV that corresponds to the jacks the receiver is connected to.
3. Select your antenna type on the main screen using your remote control.
4. Enter your ZIP code at the antenna-pointing screen that pops up. Write down the figures for azimuth, tilt, and elevation that appear on the screen. These are how you need to orient your dish.
Choose an Antenna Site
5. Find a spot that has an unobstructed view of the southern sky. DirecTV satellites orbit above the equator in the south. The spot must also be no more than 100 feet of cable away from your receiver.
6. Compensate for your east-west location. If you are on or near the West Coast, the satellites are to the south-southeast. From the East Coast, they are to the south-southwest. From the plains, they are straight south.
7. Ensure that your site is safely accessible. Antennas can be mounted on roofs, walls, chimneys, or the ground. Choose the one that minimizes the amount of work you need to do on a ladder.
8. Buy mounting hardware for your chosen site. Since each possible site has different requirements, dishes do not ship with this hardware.
Installing the Dish
9. Install and level the antenna mast. The base must be securely attached to your chosen surface with four bolts. Drill holes in the surface, insert the bolts, then ensure the mast is sitting level (using its built-in bubble level) before tightening it down with a wrench.
10. Assemble the antenna on the ground. Using the included screws and instruction manual, connect the dish, tilt assembly and receiver arm. In the tilt assembly, set the elevation nuts to match the numbers you wrote down from your receiver for tilt, azimuth, and elevation. Nuts on the tilt gauge may be tightened down, as it will not need fine tuning, while the other two may.
11. Attach the antenna to the mast. Slide it onto the top of the mast until it sits on the pivot bolt, then tighten the mast clamps with a wrench until it can only move from side to side (allowing further adjustment).
12. Mount a cable grounding block (that came with the kit) near the cable's point of entry to the house using screws.
13. Drill through the house walls if necessary to provide a path for the cable.
14. Snake the coaxial cable from the "Sat In" jack on the receiver through the walls to the grounding block and then up the antenna mast to the antenna.
15. Ground the antenna by connecting a bare copper wire to the ground screw on the antenna at one end and a cold-water pipe (not gas or oil) running into the outside of your home.
16. Attach the antenna receiver assembly using the screws provided. Connect the coaxial cable that you brought up by running it through the antenna's arm. Use cable wraps or clamps to keep the cable tight to the antenna and walls.
Aiming and Fine Tuning
17.Turn on the receiver and select the on-screen signal strength meter.
18. Have a friend yell instructions to you as you adjust the antenna to register maximum strength on the meter. (This is optional, but strongly recommended.)
19. Go out to the antenna, loosen the bolts on the tilt assembly as needed, and adjust it in small increments until you find maximum signal strength. Tighten the bolts and your installation is complete. You will now receive HD signals.
Tags: antenna mast, tilt assembly, your receiver, Attach antenna, coaxial cable
