RVLimey

Chemanius, British Columbia

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Hi,
We recently bought a 2003 Pace Arrow. It has the dome satellite on the roof, but no receiver in the coach. I am now thinking of buying a satellite system. Here in Canada I believe we have Star Choice and Bell Express Vue. If this is correct; Can you use this system while traveling in the USA or is it restricted to Canada? Also can I use the Bell system for internet access?
Cheers for now
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djevans

Tennessee

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RV Lifer 1952 . . .
Well, I know for a fact I can easily pick up Bell Express Vue signals here in Tennesseee. I'm sure if I had an authorized receiver, it would work. (politics aside)
* This post was
edited 03/08/09 07:32pm by djevans *
Don . . . near 36.171N 086.784W, TN near here
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GeeksRUs

Sundre Alberta

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Star Choice is RV friendly... also works well across southern USA.
Express Vue is not RV friendly... also has dead spots in the south.
No WiFi with either.
Do a search above & you'll get a TON of info.
Eh!
GeeksRUs
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Jack_Diane_Freedom

Toronto Ontario

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We have Bell Expressvu and use it flawlessly from Naples Florida through to Thunder Bay Ontario. Works just fine. You cannot get internet through Bell Expressvu. We have a Hughes.net system that receives Bell Expressvu and is used for internet communications. This also works flawlessly everywhere.
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Hamops

Oshawa, ON, CA

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Bell ExpressVu will work fairly well in the lower southeastern states but as you go west it deteriorates. As previously mentioned Bell is not RV friendly and if they get an inkling that you are in the U.S. they will shutdown your receiver. Star Choice is quite RV friendly and will help you set up where ever you are. In my opinion, as long as I'm paying for the service legally, then I have the right watch it, no matter where I'm located. Star Choice appears to have that opinion; Bell definitely does NOT!
Cheers
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lhamblin

Surrey BC

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I used to have Bell and cancelled and moved to Star Choice when a friend in Yuma called Bell for support and they immediately shut service off to his receiver when he told the tech support that he was in Yuma.
I have called Star Choice a number of times while down south and they were extremely helpful. They even changed the time on my receiver when I called when I moved from Pacific Standard Time to Mountain Standard Time and then changed back when I came back the other direction.
Star Choice does not have attitude, ignorance and arrogance like Bell does. Make sure you choose Star Choice.
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balvert

Windsor, Ontario

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Your dome will not work with Star Choice. It should work with Bell Express View. Like other have mentioned, Star Choice is RV friendly, but not an option for your dome. If you want a roof mounted system for Star Choice, they have a couple of system on their website.
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RVLimey

Chemanius, British Columbia

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Can I subscribe to an american provider and receive their signal here in Canada. it would be a shame not to use the dome dish already on the unit?
Cheers
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pulsar

Lewisville, NC

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RV Lifer 1952 wrote: Can I subscribe to an american provider and receive their signal here in Canada. it would be a shame not to use the dome dish already on the unit?
Cheers
Canada’s Radiocommunication Act prohibits the sell of equipment to receive satellite signals from outside Canada. Other than having a US address, I do not know if there is a work-around.
Tom
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RamblinFever

Ontario, Canada

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We are in south Texas (RGV) have used ExpressVu for the past 4 years with our Bounder. We lose a few channels this far south but have generally good reception. I thought of switching to Star Choice but we have the round dish on the roof and SC requires an oval dish.
I can't think of any reason why I would want to call Bell, but as others stated, just don't call Bell.
As for using ExpressVu outside of Canada, there are several programs that give the pointing coordinates. I use a program called SatFinder. It is a free program that you download to your computer. You can input either Lat/Long coordinates from your GPS, ZIP code or city & state and it will give the pointing coordinates for all satellites. All you need to know is the name of your satellite. (Mine is Telesat Nimiq 1 at 91 W). Best part is that it is free and works great. I use a compass to find the general direction, set the elevation and then rotate the dish back & forth until I find the signal. Sometimes I have to change the elevation a little and try again.
04 Bounder 35E, W-22
05 Honda CR-V, SMI brake
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