Satellite TV From September 1997

Drake ESR 1824 Receiver, Random Channel Change from September 1997, It turns out that this is from Monday September 1st 1997 the Day after the Death of Princess Diana as can be seen in some of the news wild feeds.

[@markaz2kk]

This is C-Band television broadcasting to local tv channels across America. Having C band back in the day was awesome. I had friends who could pick up C band tv from America satellites to New Zealand and Australia. The dish span was over 8 meters plus. But rain and storms knocked out the channels.

[@bradybrapples]

Was always jealous of the rich farm kids who had one of these growing up. Got to mess around with one of the big rotating setups once or twice as a kid - before internet video, and when you could only get 2 tv channels over the air, being able to see international TV was mind-blowing

[@MadameSomnambule]

I remember having a huge satellite dish in my early childhood, but I barely remember what it was actually like. My family mostly used antenna then.
Seems satellite tv tech was already somewhat sophisticated by the time I was young, as far as channel selection and info screens are concerned.

[@mattcintosh2]

My grandparents got one in '84 and for me, that only got like 3 channels, was amazing. So many cartoons at any time of the day. The receivers were pretty basic back then. There was a box with red numbers that you had to hold down a button to move the dish, and the receiver just had a large knob to change the channels. (it was a Ma-com M1 - I wish someone could show me a picture of that model) They passed away in '89, so I didn't get to see much more of them after that, until I got a house in 2003, found a used one an installed it. My system is from 1989, and used a single receiver to move the dish, memorize the locations, and hold a descrambler unit.
Analog was gone by 2010, other than C-span and a couple feeds. Subscription digital was pretty much gone then too. Back in 2003, you could go online, see a website with all the channels available, click the boxes for the ones you wanted (mostly $1-$2/mo each), pay with your credit card, and the channels would come in a couple seconds later
Check my videos of some stuff from the dish, and a video of moving the dish back and forth.
Even in 2020, I still use the dish, but the receivers have gotten much smaller. Look up the "TBS 5520Se ". Its about the size of a deck of cards, and you can get some 4K content with it

[@jbetnar]

@@mattcintosh2 I have a 10ft dish and receive 75% of the US cable networks free with a $55 receiver and $40 LNBF. Crazy how low the prices on equipment is now.

[@ashleeshaw820]

@@mattcintosh2 e

[@hakc97again]

3:40 You are the weakest link, goodbye

[@erikpridemore3174]

We used to have a satellite dish and satellite receiver then, but not anymore as it is now obsolete. And we do miss what we were missing in news feeds and syndication feeds and all the rest, and now it is all digital.

[@JHollowayNetwork]

this was just 8 months before I was born, my parents had DirecTV before they switched back to cable.

[@matthewtorok-smith1967]

1997 looks like the late 70s in 2021

[@mcribs7811]

Wow, seamless.

[@directrix101]

This was September 1st 1997

[@JHollowayNetwork]

what was the channel listing on Ku Band Satellite TV like back then? (4DTV was only beginning)

[@625line]

There are alot Channels Scrambled in the US over Satellite?

[@Touchgrassplz]

wait its satellite TV but it seems to me its actually analog signals? arent satellite TVs digitized?

[@moelester7527]

satellite TV used to be analog back then.

[@JHollowayNetwork]

This was during the time in which cable was becoming too expensive and Satellite TV was affordable. You've got any more of this? because that was when TV was the best, unlike the talentless crap of today (2015).

[@rem145]

Kwadwo Holloway and you didn't have just 2 direct to home satellite companies controlling all satellite. You bought the channels you wanted straight from providers.

[@donbest5024]

Comcast killed cband pay tv,all greed,I believe Motorola sold out to Comcast cable and cband pay tv was over.

[@donbest5024]

I found you went passed adult channels fast,I saw 4 ten,erotica, American exxticy and tuxedo tvn ppv,all gone now.

[@JHollowayNetwork]

was this from a VideoCipher box.

[@brandonbert]

It was from a VideoCipher II+. Sometimes written at VCRS or VC2+. The old VideoCipher II boards were still out there but were only good for getting video. Most all audio 'data streams' were shut down by this point (due to widespread piracy of the VCII) with the exception of some sports channels and perhaps a service here or there like The Weather Channel. A lot of people kept their VCII boards for many years after the VideoCipher II piracy wars to enjoy video only of the adult entertainment services.

[@NiteGrooves]

3:12 Fox News before it was launched

[@moelester7527]

3:26 Fox before it was laun- oh wait

[@DXingSlovenija]

What SAT receiver was that?

[@directrix101]

Drake ESR1524

[@DXingSlovenija]

@@directrix101 do you still have it?
Does it still work?
I was always wondering how the expansion bay on theese things worked, could ypu swap videocipher decoder for something else (Nagravision or VideoCrypt maybe) if u wanted? Or maybe digital tuner
As it looked like the videocipher box had its own overlay separate from the main receiver

[@juststreaming012]

Anyone know what movie or show is at the start of this?

[@moelester7527]

it's "Heatwave", the name of it also showed up in the program info.

[@markgenner1747]

4:21

[@jareddicarlo7816]

Future NBC Nightly News anchor Jose-Diaz Belart is seen at 2:21

[@moelester7527]

he sounds totally different yet looks almost if not exactly the same.