Newsgroups: rec.video.satellite
Date:         Thu, 19 Nov 1992 11:22:33 CST
From:         Barry Chalcroft <barryc@DEVNULL.MPD.TANDEM.COM>
Subject: Re: Regency receiver?

>       Got a chance to buy a complete setup 8ft motr, mount, controller &
>       reciever. Asked what brand and the guy said Regency never heard of
>       it. Anyone out there heard of it or have one? Is it Junk or should
>       I go with it for a starter. How long before I can't view anything withou
t
>       a VCII or VCII+ , and how much is that gonna cost.

>       Any help appreciated
>       Thanks
>       -Bob


Bob,

I bought a Regency receiver with downconverter at a Hamfest for $30 new. That
 was paying too
much for a 70 Mhz receiver. Buy a block receiver at the least, I have seen ones
 with remotes
starting at $80 and up with a free 50 degree lna and feed.

Four years ago:

I started my system with a 70 mhz receiver and converter (Amplica), a 100 degree
 LNA, Polarotor I
(all for $30) and a 6 foot fixed mount dish (with no mounting for the feed) for
 $50 (too much).
I upgraded to a 60 degree LNA ($100 new) and then bought the Regency.

My next move was a bigger dish which in the past 2 months has led to the
 following:

A 10' Paraclipse for $100, a Chapparrel Cheyenne Receiver  for $100 and the same
 model IRD for
$275 (without decoder), a new 35 degree LNA for $50, a free feed, a new Drake
 18" actuator ($89
new / too short) and about $20 worth of cable. I also have on order a Janiel
 Stereo Processor
for $39. I keep a free 50 degree Drake LNB and a Houston Tracker I for backup
 use.

I will be upgrading with a special feed from Hoosier that covers S,C and Ku
 band, and a .7 lnb so
I can get Ku. I also plan to get a 24" Drake or Von Weisse actuator. Also in the
 future is a VC2RS
for Comedy Central, Playboy and The Movie Channel. These latter upgrades will be
 new equipment.

My suggestion is get a good Dish (10 foot and Ku compatable), and  a new or very
 good condition
actuator. That is a good base which you can start with cheap stuff and slowly
 upgrade to a
VC2RS. You can buy receivers without the descrambler which can be added later.
 Try to start
with a standard block system (unless the 70 mhz is free :-> ), its alot easier
 to upgrade
and cheaper. Check Hamfests, look in your paper, and check your local usenet
 feed (got my
Paraclipse that way).

Get ahold of some of the catalogs form dealers like Satellite City, Hoosier and
 SATMAN.
They will give you a good idea of pricing when you decide to upgrade.

The big reasons that I have my 2 dishes (yes I still use  my 6 footer/70 mhz for
 the SCIFI
channel which I broadcast on 900 mhz with a Gemini) are for wild feeds, PBS
 (multiple zones)
FOX National, multiple network time zone feeds, sports feeds, and all of the
 great news feeds
(the election coverage was really neat). None of these require a descrambler -
 yet.

I will admit that I also have cable and pay for all the premium services, with 3
 kids, 4 TVs
and 3 VCR`s it's cheaper than having 4 IRDs with separate subscriptions. I do
 plan to delete
some things like HBO and Showtime that we normally watch on one set though.
 These I'll subscribe
to via satellite as they offer multiple channels with more choices for less $$$.

CUL,
-barryc
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