KVH problems

jdaniel · 09-17-2009, 05:59 PM

My 1991 has the KVH motion satelite on top and has always worked well. Sometimes it would lose programming and wouldnt lock on to a satelite and I could take it in to the local RV shop. They would use a laptop and somehow reprogram it and it would work perfectly again until I stored it indoors for the winter. There is no RV shop in town anymore and I can hear the unit spinning and "hunting" but when it locks on, about 90% of the time, I get no signal. I can turn it off and on again and hear it search again but usually with the same results. I have to carry a tripod with a dish now.
When I called KVH they just told me my unit was old and I needed a new one. They were NO help.
Any suggestions? I have Directv.

chockwald · 09-17-2009, 06:29 PM

Do you keep the DirecTV receiver in the coach when in storage? I use a manual crank up Winegard dish, so that part is not an issue for me, but if I leave the DirecTV receiver unplugged for more than a week it loses its programming, and I have to call DirecTV and have them send a new signal to it to reprogram it. To avoid that issue I remove my receiver from the coach when we finish a trip and keep it plugged in when not in use. My son has a system similar to yours, and he continually has issues with it finding and locking on to the signal.

I can usually have the crank up dish locked on to the signal and be watching TV in less than 5 minutes. Sometimes the high tech stuff is more trouble than it's worth.

tuga · 09-17-2009, 09:06 PM

If you want a good in motion satellite system buy a TracStar SV360. No problems for 2 years (except when I hit a tree limb and broke the dish inside the dome).

I had KVH and it was nothing but trouble: wouldn't lock onto the satellite or it had to be reprogramed every 3 months. I would call DirecTV and after about 30 minutes of holding on, pressing 1 for English etc. I would talk to a human being and they would re-send the signal and it would work for a while. Then next month same thing over again.

I paid $2400 for the TracStar SV360 and it is worth every penney. I do turn the satellite and the receiver OFF when I park the coach in the garage. It just keeps it from searching unnecessarily.

TracStar, great customer support and a good product!

GORDON HUMMEL · 09-17-2009, 09:50 PM

Just thought I add my 2 cents on this post.
I have a Winegard SK-1000 for Dish TV. It in NOT inmotion, but it's only me so no problem.
It has a triple LNB& I get 110,119 & 129 which is HD. This was the only unit, reasonably priced that I could get multible satilites at the same time. Up & down +/- 100 in the last 6 months & no problem. Takes 3-4 minutes to lock in. $1200 including freight.
I have the Dish 722 which supports two TV's with 2 remotes. It will not transmitt HD to to the second tv, but this is not a problem for me
This summer I dropped the Winegard box, & somehow it landed on the AC adapter input jack & broke it off th PC board. I called around & it looked like weeks to get one from a local dealer. The next day I was leaving Indy for a race in Knoxville, IA. Winegard is in Iowa. Unbelievable, I was going right past their factory. I called & while this is there home office, they really don't do retail there. Long story short, they had one waiting for me in the lobby, set me up as a customer & $200 later I was on the road in 5 minutes.

jdaniel · 09-18-2009, 01:07 AM

Gordon,
I may look at that unit. I dont need (or want to pay extra for) motion. I just need it to lock on once I get parked. The directv lost signal is a separate issue. When my coach is stored indoors and directv sends the signal that my bill has been paid, obviously I dont get that signal. Sometimes when getting it out of storage I have to call directv (and wait!!) while they resend a signal.
My KVH problem is it searches and locks onto something but most of the time I get no tv. Its old and must be locking onto a satelite but not the basic directv satelite I need. Every now and then when I set it to search I get lucky and hit the right one but not very often. I'm going to replace it with something like Gordan has. Its also time to upgrade to an HD reciever and I'm trying to decide between Dish and Directv.

encantotom · 09-18-2009, 01:15 AM

i have an in motion dish that was on the coach when i got it. a T2 Automation. it is sometimes flakey as well, but works most of the time.

quite honestly, other than to try it, we have never cared about watching tv while driving. if the grandkids are with us, they watch movies.

so i am not sure it is worth the extra money.

tom

tuga · 09-18-2009, 01:08 PM

While driving we watch the movie channel, Turner Classic movies, weather channel, Fox, but best of all we listen to the Sirius music channels. I don't sing as well as Clark, but we give it a try! I sound better when the volume is turned up!

I think that in motion satellite is the nicest amenity on the coach. It sure seems to make the hours on the road pass quickly. We love it!

GORDON HUMMEL · 09-18-2009, 01:35 PM

Tuga brings up a good point regarding satalite radio that is included on direct & dish. I had planned on getting XM for traveling, but @ $12-15 a month, I couldn't justify if when I already got it for free. I like the oldies, so I recorded 40-50 hours on the DVR & play it as I go down the road. I have a seperate setup on the surround sound speakers for driving, because it is quite different than used with the TV.
I went with Dish because of the dual tuner DVR & I did not have room in the bedroom for another box.
When I signed up, they wanted $5.00 PER MONTH, because I did not have a landline connected to the box. I told them to shove it & don't bother with my order. Obviously I don't pay the $5.00.
Another issue with Dish is local channels. You have to call (india) & give them your new service address if you want the local channels. This was a real pain in the beginning. Now with the digital changeover complete, I get HD on my OTA antenna in most places.

express1 · 09-19-2009, 02:45 AM

Do your homework, I have the latest greatest KVH HD inmotion. To my knowledge this is the ONLY inmotion HD sat. on the market.....If you want real TV HD inmotion.
But you must use Dishnetwork for now. I had this install a few months ago and no issues...But I only watch HD!!!

Ron Skeen · 09-19-2009, 11:13 AM

I have direct tv using a King Dome InMotion 9762 LP with a HD converter which track Sat 101, 110, and 119. I also have a Wineguard SK 3005 which i use when parked. These are all wired going through A/B switches. This system has worked good for me and I have 3 HD TVs- 40" LED Front, 17 LCD BR, 32 LCD Basement.