Right up front, I want to give a shout out to some really hard working volunteers. I won’t publish their names because I didn’t get permission first. But let me tell you, the world of DIRECTV Satellite owes them quite a debt.
The Edgecutters
I’m talking about the folks at iamanedgecutter.com, a site that’s been around and testing DIRECTV software for a while. In the 2000s and 2010s, DIRECTV ran a public beta program that was responsible for finding and busting hundreds of bugs. The DIRECTV software’s stable now, so finding bugs is rare. That’s allowed some of these folks to focus on something else.
Using homebrewed software and some hardware you just can’t find anymore, they’ve been slowly building and maintaining a database of what’s going on in the DIRECTV Satellite world. There’s barely been a single major event or even a minor change to a channel lineup that’s gone unnoticed.
And folks, these are all volunteers. They’re doing it for the love of the game.
Tumbleweeds
DIRECTV’s satellite fleet has, since 2010, had the ability to broadcast on the “reverse band.” Using sophisticated trickery, they’ve repurposed a part of the spectrum that was originally only licensed for broadcasts from DIRECTV’s broadcast centers on Earth up to the satellites themselves. Using these frequencies opened up the possibility of a thousand or more 4K channels beamed down from the sky.
Of course, there are not a thousand 4K channels, at least not yet. DIRECTV’s three satellite locations all have the ability to carry them, though. These massive communications satellites currently have all of DIRECTV’s standard definition and HD channels, even the international ones.
But… as reported by the Edgecutters, the reverse band has nothing but a few test channels. I expect that may change at some point, but right now that capacity is just being held in reserve.
Does this mean you don’t need a reverse band dish?
I’ve been telling you for about five years that you should get a reverse band dish. And now, there’s nothing on the reverse band. Wiring up a reverse band dish for commercial use takes a lot of cable and it’s not easy to do. However, I’m still saying you should do it.
First of all, DIRECTV hasn’t made a commercial non-reverse band LNB for some time. If you were to get one, it would be old stock. Second, if you’re talking about wiring for home, you’re using a single-wire LNB anyway. There’s no reason you wouldn’t use a reverse band LNB.
Besides, this reverse band capacity will eventually be used at some point. There’s always the possibility that 4K over-the-air TV will take off, despite my having doubts. This extra capacity could allow DIRECTV to drastically improve picture quality on all their channels, and that would benefit everyone. I personally believe that we’ll see a lot more 4K sports in the coming year and that will take a lot more capacity than is currently being used.
So in short, keep installing the reverse band dish.
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