Starlink has a feature for when you want to STOW your dish and you don't have your phone on you or you can't connect to your dish. You lay the dish on the floor face down, exactly like you had it, and plug in the power. In 30 seconds it will move to the STOW'd position.
Millions didn't but I had total faith in your abilities to not screw this mod up and no benzodiazepine was used by this remote observer. Nice upload and download speeds that'll certainly do everything you need from rock solid streaming, video conferencing, downloading movies and fast twice weekly video uploads, 4K would be a nice touch.... Have a great week U2!
Very interesting and thank you for sharing. Currently, I use TMobile wireless home internet on my Navigator for both TV and internet. My Roku plugs into the TMobile router. I like it fine but I've not been far offshore.
We love how Shaun removed the motors all together. We’re contemplating where it would make the most sense on our hardtop with the same approach. We’ll spend some time monkeying with it this season and see if the come out with a ‘marinized’ dish in the next six months. If they don’t we’ll definitely go that way.
Yeah, now they want to point WEST! At least on the west coast. Have you had any issues with this since Musk pointed us all west? I did. I topped some trees for $2,000 and then he pointed the dish into another couple of trees. BIG TREES. So I am thinking about this mod. Of course, that will be it for returning the dish if it stops working due to Starlink.
I have the EXACT same issue but on the east coast. Considering this mod for the same reason. I can't afford to timber my whole yard, already dumped thousands into making it work before they decided to point it out over the ocean because they can't get enough sats into orbit.
Hey! Thanks for this nice video! What about the automatic heating of the dish when it´s freezing outside? Does this deactivation of the antenna motor also disable this heating system?
Thanks for the video guys. Just got my dishy on a sail boat. I am in an unsupported area but seeing a lot of drop outs. So long as I can source that drill bit I think you persuaded me to do the mod. Love Seattle btw - I’m from the Uk but worked for msft for twenty years and therefore spent some time there. I hope to sail in one day on our ⛵️👍
For those doing this with a hole saw. 51/2 “ from edge, 5” from bottom. To stop too much penetration place a hose clamp on the bit. A fee mm up from the teeth.
Great vid. Where about were you when you got the speeds shown in this video? The download speeds were great, but that upload is insane for SL. Especially on RV service.
Hmmm... Interesting! I am reluctant to drill, etc. I am in a pine forest of 50+ foot trees but even with 'Expect dropouts every 60sec' SL is still fabulous. compared the options available for the last 35yrs. (Hughes was shut off in 24hrs!) I kept Direct TV for live programming, but Netflicks and Amazon Prime seem to buffer ...our cell phones work better, so I am pleased as punch. BUT... I think I will make a box cradle with a picture frame type support allowing the mast connector to dangle free ..allowing the mast to assume whatever position SL thinks it needs for this area. If someone has their v2 dish (rectangle) handy... measure the L & W for me... Mine is at the end of an 8' mast up on the roof. Thanks/a good one. Jim/Maryland
12” x 20” edge to edge. I had a friend in a similar situation at his home, made the motor disablement change and has eliminated dropouts. They’re in the San Juan area for lat/longitude context. Your workaround might be perfect!
Well, that took some courage! Well done. I’m curious as to how you have your WIFI set up, do you hard wired to your TV/computer? Also do you have any other back up system like a pep wave?
Thank you and great questions. Right now we’re going just run it via Wi-Fi and either bypass the router with the Ethernet adapter or hack the wiring and use a Power over Ethernet injector into our Pepwave MAX BR1 Pro 5G router setup. Unfortunately, the BR2 came out too late for our install this summer so we’re running two BR1’s for redundancy + Wi-Fi as WAN Starlink.
In the marine environment I most definitely would Not expect that rubber plug to seal completely. Which means the circuit board with all the phased array antenna bits on it will be ruined by corrosion in a year are two. At the very least you should put some tape over the plug, or better yet goop over it with sealant. BTW, That is the wrong kinda drill bit for that job, it is really only suitable for woodworking. A Hole Saw of the same size would be a much better choice, requiring much less pressure on the bit, and much safer (way less stressful) controlled drilling
We’re coming up in a year with zero corrosion issues. (Using a scope to inspect). The vent holes in the back of the dish create a greater risk of salt water intrusion than the plug. As to the bit, I would have rather used a hole saw. However, the guide bit length created greater risk to the Eboard than the Forster bit.
@@ElliYacht1 I'm going to drill mine today The 1/4" pilot hole bits come in different lengths, and/or can be shortened, Or what I often do is drill the the pilot hole with a regular bit , and then use a piece of 1/4" steel rod in the holesaw instead of the bit, because sometimes the pilot bit will cut sideways and it will lose it's center guide hole location. I'm going to use a 1.25" expandable rubber plug, that are often used/sold as freeze plug replacements on cars, or for blocking off plumbing pipes BTW, are you aware that the sat. signal goes right thru fiberglass? I'm putting my dish inside my Super-tall Sprinter van up against the ceiling in the far back corner, so that it is out of the weather, set up 24/7, and not visible on the outside. Only the Super-Talls have the fiberglass roof extension (7' stand-up height inside, I'm 6'5") but many boats have fiberglass ceiling/deck
Dang ! Why did it bug me that you would not clean the plastic off of that forstner bit in between drilling attempts, your final push would have been more controlled without popping through like you did.😂 The "plug" is a grommet.
We’ll give that a try when we add our second dishy. The manufacturer lists the it as a plug. A grommet would have a hole in it. Definitely not the way I’d go.
Nice video as usual 🙂. How long did you test your Starlink at anchor? We have anchored out a few times with it on a short pole on the arch with no modification with very few signal drops in a day. Actuality about the same as when we are tied to the dock. I have no real data (yet) to proof it but the farther we are from a dense population center the less drops we experience. Technically you're not supposed to be connected while underway but in the few cases we have forgot 🙂 it stayed connected 90 percent of the time. Also, I have no real data (yet) to proof it but the farther we are from a dense population center (Seattle to Everett) we get fewer drops. We are headed to Canada and North so I expect it really will be an asset compared to cellular.
There is a really good Facebook page called ‘Starlink on Boats’. There have been a few folks that diligently tested two side by side units (one with motors activated and one disabled) they did find much higher reliability with the disabled motors. Also, it looks like Starlink is going to move to a flat mounted dish for the high end maritime offering. In the end, if you don’t swing on the hook a lot or anchor in tight areas with high cliffs or trees, keeping the motors going is probably not going to have a major degradation vs keeping it flat.
Thanks for the video wish I would've seen this earlier as I sent my dish back because of my Starlink going into WTF mode at my house. The dish worked fine pointing straight up or tilted slightly north, but would go into WTF mode and move around like a bobble head. I'm confused by you referring to V3 dishy? I thought there was only V1 and V2. I had the one like you drilled a hole in. Thanks. Wishing I had mine back now.
Sorry to hear about the wobble bug hitting you! One the version comment… there was a V1 and V2 that were round. Technically the rectangle dishy is V3 but, it would be logical to call it V2 since it was the second redesign. 😊
Have you looked to see what location the IP address uses when establishing a connection? (i.e. if you are away from U.S. shores, does it still register a U.S. IP address?
How did you get the pole to the vertical position? what is the process to get it to do that? Also, if It doesn't need to auto rotate, why does starlink add the feature? wouldn't it would be much cheaper for them to just provide it fixed?
Great question. If you ever had the experience of trying to install a satellite tv dish, it was quite an ordeal going back and forth to your tv to see if you had the right alignment. I can only imagine the volume of customer service calls it generated too. It was so bad that businesses popped up to do installations. Fast forward to Starlink. By having self alignment for installation, all of that pain and cost is wiped out. Remember that most of these will be attached to a home and never touched again. Boats are an edge case installation scenario. The dish was never intended to have to realign mechanically constantly since the signal aligns electronically. Last thought, Starlink for Maritime ($10k) will be shipping fixed flat mount dishes by the end of the year, for these very reasons. Take care!
@@ElliYacht1 Interesting. Then we should remove the pole entirely and mount it flat and flush with the deck. How does the base come apart? I saw what MV freedom did, but there has to be an easier way...
Not that I’m aware of but, I have a buddy that’s doing the mod this week at his house that has minor obstructions causing drop outs. Should work but, time will tell…
I'm looking to leave my molex style plug connected, and install a switch on the backside of the shell... to turn the motors on/off when needed. Any idea which wire to break, for the switch? (White, red or blue wire?) Can't seem to find the info anywhere, but I've seen people do it.
No argument. Old man behaviors coming through. Thank can’t tell you how many asbestos drum breaks I replaced and chemistry labs I did before basic protection evolved. We’ll try to better as an example!
Starlink has a feature for when you want to STOW your dish and you don't have your phone on you or you can't connect to your dish. You lay the dish on the floor face down, exactly like you had it, and plug in the power. In 30 seconds it will move to the STOW'd position.
Can you use it as a coffee table? Looks nice.
Nice to see the Space Needle through the mist !
He gave a Emmy winning speech at the end 😂
WOW! Nice job. You get better speeds than I do in Texas on land!
Good to see this works flat at more northerly latitudes
Millions didn't but I had total faith in your abilities to not screw this mod up and no benzodiazepine was used by this remote observer. Nice upload and download speeds that'll certainly do everything you need from rock solid streaming, video conferencing, downloading movies and fast twice weekly video uploads, 4K would be a nice touch.... Have a great week U2!
That ‘breakthrough’ moment stopped my heart a second 😂 If we can get 15% of those speeds, we should be good. We’ll know soon.
Happy Fathers Day!
Very interesting and thank you for sharing. Currently, I use TMobile wireless home internet on my Navigator for both TV and internet. My Roku plugs into the TMobile router. I like it fine but I've not been far offshore.
Thanks for your video ! I followed the mesures and it was exactly over the plug ! In metric, it's 12.7cm.
Safiria.sailboat crew.
It’s like digging for treasure… right over a mother board. What could go wrong?!
That's awesome and you guys have some good upload speed. Shaun on mv freedom cut the back off and flat mounted it to the top of their pilot house
We love how Shaun removed the motors all together. We’re contemplating where it would make the most sense on our hardtop with the same approach. We’ll spend some time monkeying with it this season and see if the come out with a ‘marinized’ dish in the next six months. If they don’t we’ll definitely go that way.
Thanks so much. Just bought the bit and plug. Will play operation this weekend. Very helpful that you provided the Amazon links. Fingers crossed!
Yeah, now they want to point WEST! At least on the west coast. Have you had any issues with this since Musk pointed us all west? I did. I topped some trees for $2,000 and then he pointed the dish into another couple of trees. BIG TREES. So I am thinking about this mod. Of course, that will be it for returning the dish if it stops working due to Starlink.
I have the EXACT same issue but on the east coast. Considering this mod for the same reason. I can't afford to timber my whole yard, already dumped thousands into making it work before they decided to point it out over the ocean because they can't get enough sats into orbit.
Hey! Thanks for this nice video! What about the automatic heating of the dish when it´s freezing outside? Does this deactivation of the antenna motor also disable this heating system?
Thanks for the video guys. Just got my dishy on a sail boat. I am in an unsupported area but seeing a lot of drop outs. So long as I can source that drill bit I think you persuaded me to do the mod. Love Seattle btw - I’m from the Uk but worked for msft for twenty years and therefore spent some time there. I hope to sail in one day on our ⛵️👍
where do you mount it on sail boat?
For those doing this with a hole saw. 51/2 “ from edge, 5” from bottom. To stop too much penetration place a hose clamp on the bit. A fee mm up from the teeth.
I’m thinking about doing this but installing a waterproof switch to toggle on an off.
What corner do you measure the 5 inches from?
7:13 what about installing a switch on that wire so you can turn on the motors when/if needed?
The switch is a great idea. Did you end up doing it ?
@@BrandtLovell , I just got mine, and if I do the switch I'll post on the starlink facebook groups
Great vid. Where about were you when you got the speeds shown in this video? The download speeds were great, but that upload is insane for SL. Especially on RV service.
We were in Seattle, Washington. It was pretty early in the RV plan rollout
@@ElliYacht1 Based on what I see on FB forum and Reddit, I don't think many ppl are seeing those numbers.
what are the measurement's ???? I carnt find them anywhere online
Facebook has a Starlink on Boats page that has those and so much more…
Hmmm... Interesting! I am reluctant to drill, etc. I am in a pine forest of 50+ foot trees but even with 'Expect dropouts every 60sec' SL is still fabulous. compared the options available for the last 35yrs. (Hughes was shut off in 24hrs!) I kept Direct TV for live programming, but Netflicks and Amazon Prime seem to buffer ...our cell phones work better, so I am pleased as punch.
BUT... I think I will make a box cradle with a picture frame type support allowing the mast connector to dangle free ..allowing the mast to assume whatever position SL thinks it needs for this area. If someone has their v2 dish (rectangle) handy... measure the L & W for me... Mine is at the end of an 8' mast up on the roof. Thanks/a good one. Jim/Maryland
12” x 20” edge to edge. I had a friend in a similar situation at his home, made the motor disablement change and has eliminated dropouts. They’re in the San Juan area for lat/longitude context. Your workaround might be perfect!
Well, that took some courage! Well done. I’m curious as to how you have your WIFI set up, do you hard wired to your TV/computer? Also do you have any other back up system like a pep wave?
Thank you and great questions. Right now we’re going just run it via Wi-Fi and either bypass the router with the Ethernet adapter or hack the wiring and use a Power over Ethernet injector into our Pepwave MAX BR1 Pro 5G router setup. Unfortunately, the BR2 came out too late for our install this summer so we’re running two BR1’s for redundancy + Wi-Fi as WAN Starlink.
Thanks for the vid. Any chance you could share the link for the instructions?
2:46 where you got that plug? is a standard thing we can just buy at amazon?
There is a link in the description for Amazon 👍
Good video, thanks
Thanks!
In the marine environment I most definitely would Not expect that rubber plug to seal completely. Which means the circuit board with all the phased array antenna bits on it will be ruined by corrosion in a year are two. At the very least you should put some tape over the plug, or better yet goop over it with sealant.
BTW, That is the wrong kinda drill bit for that job, it is really only suitable for woodworking. A Hole Saw of the same size would be a much better choice, requiring much less pressure on the bit, and much safer (way less stressful) controlled drilling
We’re coming up in a year with zero corrosion issues. (Using a scope to inspect). The vent holes in the back of the dish create a greater risk of salt water intrusion than the plug.
As to the bit, I would have rather used a hole saw. However, the guide bit length created greater risk to the Eboard than the Forster bit.
@@ElliYacht1 I'm going to drill mine today
The 1/4" pilot hole bits come in different lengths, and/or can be shortened,
Or what I often do is drill the the pilot hole with a regular bit , and then use a piece of 1/4" steel rod in the holesaw instead of the bit, because sometimes the pilot bit will cut sideways and it will lose it's center guide hole location.
I'm going to use a 1.25" expandable rubber plug, that are often used/sold as freeze plug replacements on cars, or for blocking off plumbing pipes
BTW, are you aware that the sat. signal goes right thru fiberglass?
I'm putting my dish inside my Super-tall Sprinter van up against the ceiling in the far back corner, so that it is out of the weather, set up 24/7, and not visible on the outside.
Only the Super-Talls have the fiberglass roof extension (7' stand-up height inside, I'm 6'5") but many boats have fiberglass ceiling/deck
Dang ! Why did it bug me that you would not clean the plastic off of that forstner bit in between drilling attempts, your final push would have been more controlled without popping through like you did.😂 The "plug" is a grommet.
We’ll give that a try when we add our second dishy. The manufacturer lists the it as a plug. A grommet would have a hole in it. Definitely not the way I’d go.
Great video
Nice video as usual 🙂. How long did you test your Starlink at anchor? We have anchored out a few times with it on a short pole on the arch with no modification with very few signal drops in a day. Actuality about the same as when we are tied to the dock. I have no real data (yet) to proof it but the farther we are from a dense population center the less drops we experience. Technically you're not supposed to be connected while underway but in the few cases we have forgot 🙂 it stayed connected 90 percent of the time. Also, I have no real data (yet) to proof it but the farther we are from a dense population center (Seattle to Everett) we get fewer drops. We are headed to Canada and North so I expect it really will be an asset compared to cellular.
There is a really good Facebook page called ‘Starlink on Boats’. There have been a few folks that diligently tested two side by side units (one with motors activated and one disabled) they did find much higher reliability with the disabled motors. Also, it looks like Starlink is going to move to a flat mounted dish for the high end maritime offering.
In the end, if you don’t swing on the hook a lot or anchor in tight areas with high cliffs or trees, keeping the motors going is probably not going to have a major degradation vs keeping it flat.
@@ElliYacht1 Has anyone noticed the dish goes to a flat position when the boat is in motion? I think this started a month or so back.
Thanks for the video wish I would've seen this earlier as I sent my dish back because of my Starlink going into WTF mode at my house. The dish worked fine pointing straight up or tilted slightly north, but would go into WTF mode and move around like a bobble head. I'm confused by you referring to V3 dishy? I thought there was only V1 and V2. I had the one like you drilled a hole in. Thanks. Wishing I had mine back now.
Sorry to hear about the wobble bug hitting you! One the version comment… there was a V1 and V2 that were round. Technically the rectangle dishy is V3 but, it would be logical to call it V2 since it was the second redesign. 😊
Have you looked to see what location the IP address uses when establishing a connection? (i.e. if you are away from U.S. shores, does it still register a U.S. IP address?
How did you get the pole to the vertical position? what is the process to get it to do that? Also, if It doesn't need to auto rotate, why does starlink add the feature? wouldn't it would be much cheaper for them to just provide it fixed?
Great question. If you ever had the experience of trying to install a satellite tv dish, it was quite an ordeal going back and forth to your tv to see if you had the right alignment. I can only imagine the volume of customer service calls it generated too. It was so bad that businesses popped up to do installations.
Fast forward to Starlink. By having self alignment for installation, all of that pain and cost is wiped out. Remember that most of these will be attached to a home and never touched again. Boats are an edge case installation scenario. The dish was never intended to have to realign mechanically constantly since the signal aligns electronically.
Last thought, Starlink for Maritime ($10k) will be shipping fixed flat mount dishes by the end of the year, for these very reasons.
Take care!
@@ElliYacht1 Interesting. Then we should remove the pole entirely and mount it flat and flush with the deck. How does the base come apart? I saw what MV freedom did, but there has to be an easier way...
Nice work! Has anyone done the mod for residential?
Not that I’m aware of but, I have a buddy that’s doing the mod this week at his house that has minor obstructions causing drop outs. Should work but, time will tell…
Hi Elli was wondering did ur friend do the mob on his residential Starlink
Is that on the right side of the dish face down when the mast is in storage mode?
Yes lower right hand corner when in storage mode. Good clarification.
I thought you got the RV unit without the motor ?
We did. This was an earlier dish we modified, before the In Motion RV came out.
Are you using Starlink for RVs or Marine?
RV.
@@ElliYacht1 if the RV one works on boat, who would get the marine version. It is way more expensive.
I'm looking to leave my molex style plug connected, and install a switch on the backside of the shell... to turn the motors on/off when needed.
Any idea which wire to break, for the switch?
(White, red or blue wire?)
Can't seem to find the info anywhere, but I've seen people do it.
Cut the red one… No- the blue!
Actually found the info long ago.
The wires are 2 pair.
White/Black and Red/Blue
I cut the black and red, and put in a DPST switch. Worked perfectly.
@@JohnnyJ50f This is exactly what I want to do, do you have any photos of how you mounted the switch.
Where is your eye protection, basic rule of thumb???
Never underestimate safety squints.
No argument. Old man behaviors coming through. Thank can’t tell you how many asbestos drum breaks I replaced and chemistry labs I did before basic protection evolved. We’ll try to better as an example!