Bell ExpressVu/Carryout

[Railbuff]

A few questions about the Carryout unit.
1) What are the DC power requirements for the unit?
2) Does it have enough sensitivity to pick up the Nimiq1 satellite signal at 91 degrees, in AZ?
3) How does it know which satellite I want it to search for?
4) Can it be secured to say, a picnic table, to minimise the chances of theft?
5) If the support base is not level, will the elevation control compensate for this?
6) If one has to dial in the azimuth and elevation requirements, does one have to compensate for magnetic variation.

Sounds like a great unit. If I get positive answers to the above questions, you will have another customer.

[Winegard-Mobiletech]

A few questions about the Carryout unit.
1) What are the DC power requirements for the unit?

The Carryout runs off of 12VDC. I have listed the complete specifications below:

Power Supply Specifications:
Typical DC Voltage range 13 -15 VDC
DC Voltage tolerance 2 – 5% over 0% to 100% of rated load
Typical Min. Current Range 5 -6 amps
Ripple and Noise Max. 100mV p-p
AC Input Voltage Range 100 – 120VAC
Frequency 50-60 Hz
Operating Temp. 0C to 50C
Integrated Cigarette Receptacle

2) Does it have enough sensitivity to pick up the Nimiq1 satellite signal at 91 degrees, in AZ?

BELL strongly discourages using their receivers outside of Canada and has moved tweaked the foot prints for their satellites to cover less of the US. However, based on our experience, the Carryout is likely to work better in the Northern half of the Arizona than in the Southern half.

3) How does it know which satellite I want it to search for?

Under the dome there is a set of toggle switches. This is covered in the manual I have posted below:

http://www.winegard.com/kbase/upload/2452172.pdf

4) Can it be secured to say, a picnic table, to minimise the chances of theft?

The Carryout's handle is screwed into the base closeing a loop that can be chained/stacked/tied down.

5) If the support base is not level, will the elevation control compensate for this?

As long as the antenna is within 5 degrees of level it will find the signal. With a unit this size, 5 degrees is a pretty serious slope.

6) If one has to dial in the azimuth and elevation requirements, does one have to compensate for magnetic variation.

There is no user input once you tell the Carryout which satellite you want to find. You plug it in and it does goes to work, finding the satellite while you get other things set up.