TEST REPORT                   Ku-Band LNB




Technomate TM-1’s
Colorful Family of Single LNBs
We all know that Technomate is one of the manufacturers                               Technomate’s single LNBs
                                                                                   are designated as TM-1. We
of classy digital satellite and terrestrial receivers. Recently,                   have got 5 different versions:
Technomate have decided to expand their products lines                             TM-1 0.2 dB (black color),
with Ku-Band LNBs. The choice is really wide: from the                             TM-1 0.2 dB (grey color), TM-
                                                                                   1 Super 0.2 dB (blue color),
single models to octo and even the monoblocks. Are they all                        TM-1 Super High Gain (black
as good as the receivers they are supposed to match? Their                         & gold color) and TM-1 Super
noise figures (0.2 dB and 0.1 dB) are very promising but                            High Gain (gold color). The
                                                                                   last 2 ones except for having
we know that only a test with real world signals can prove                         better noise figure, had their
the value of an LNB. We started with the universal single                          F connectors plated with
models. We will present the other models in                                        gold. Short form data sheets
                                                                                   we found in the packages
separate reports.                                                                  contained only the specifica-
                                                                                   tion of the basic TM-1 model.
                                                                                   Our test was to reveal
                                                                                   what exactly the difference
                                                                                   between the versions was.




                                                                                                            10-1
                                                                                                               1/2009
                                                                                           TECHNOMATE TM-1’S
                                                                                     Top performer and probably the best
                                                                                             LNB we ever tested




30 TELE-satellite — Broadband & Fiber-Optic — 10-1
                                                 1/2009 — www.TELE-satellite.com
The noise figures printed on         grey model was at par being
TM-1 packages promise very             sometimes above and some-                   TELE-satelliteother languageswww.TELE-satellite.com/...
                                                                                   Download this report in
                                                                                                           World from the Internet:
good performance. However,             times below our reference                   Arabic       ‫ﺍﻟﻌﺮﺑﻴﺔ‬          www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/ara/technomate.pdf
                                                                                   Indonesian   Indonesia        www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/bid/technomate.pdf
it is not a secret that some           LNB. Only the black TM-1                    Bulgarian    Български        www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/bul/technomate.pdf
manufacturers      over-spec-          looked slightly worse.                      Czech        Česky            www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/ces/technomate.pdf
                                                                                   German       Deutsch          www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/deu/technomate.pdf
ify their products to gain a                                                       English      English          www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/eng/technomate.pdf
                                                                                   Spanish      Español          www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/esp/technomate.pdf
market advantage over com-               The higher the gain of the                Farsi        ‫ﻓﺎﺭﺳﻲ‬            www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/far/technomate.pdf
                                                                                   French       Français         www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/fra/technomate.pdf
petition. Did Technomate               LNB the higher its output                   Greek        Ελληνικά         www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/hel/technomate.pdf
                                                                                   Croatian     Hrvatski         www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/hrv/technomate.pdf
follow this trend? Or perhaps          power should be for the                     Italian      Italiano         www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/ita/technomate.pdf
                                                                                   Hungarian    Magyar           www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/mag/technomate.pdf
their products are really the          given signal. The results for               Mandarin     中文               www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/man/technomate.pdf
state of the art LNBs? We              the 0.2 dB TM-1 versions are                Dutch        Nederlands       www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/ned/technomate.pdf
                                                                                   Polish       Polski           www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/pol/technomate.pdf
decided to submit them to              shown in figures 3 and 4.                    Portuguese   Português        www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/por/technomate.pdf
                                                                                   Romanian     Românesc         www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/rom/technomate.pdf
a really hard test. We took                                                        Russian      Русский          www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/rus/technomate.pdf
                                                                                   Swedish      Svenska          www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/sve/technomate.pdf
probably the best LNB we                 And again the blue model                  Turkish      Türkçe           www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/tur/technomate.pdf
had - the one that had out-            (Super TM-1) was the leader.                                          Available online starting from 2 October 2009
performed many other 0.3               Our reference LNB was no
dB and 0.2 dB models in our            match for it. The basic TM-            presented in figures 1 and                          2. TM-1 Super 0.2 dB (blue
previous tests. At the same            1 models had lower gain but            2, they are practically the                      color)
time this reference LNB had            still sufficient enough for the         same.                                              3. TM-1 Super High Gain
a high gain (high signal level         regular reception systems                                                               0.1 dB (black and gold
at the output). Could TM-1’s           (except for the ones using               And what about the gain?                       color)
match it?                              really long cables or a lot of         The output power related                           4. TM-1 0.2 dB (grey
                                       distribution devices). Super           directly to the gain is pre-                     color)
   We chose the Hotbird                TM-1 was really a top per-             sented in figure 7 and 8. Also                      5. TM-1 0.2 dB (black
satellite fleet on 13° E as             former.                                here, the 0.1 dB Super High                      color)
our signal source. That’s                                                     Gain TM-1’s were better than
because their transponders               Having so perfect results            our reference. The golden                          However keep in mind that
are spread all over the whole          with 0.2 dB Super TM-1, we             model was visibly better                         while the golden model is an
Ku-Band in both polariza-              doubted if the 0.1 dB Super            than the black & gold one                        absolute top performer and
tions. The noise performance           High Gain version could                but only slightly better than                    probably the best LNB we
of the 0.2 dB versions of TM-          deliver anything better. As            the 0.2 dB Super TM-1.                           ever tested, even the black
1’s is shown in figure 1 and            you can see in figures 5 and                                                             one version is in the high
2. TM-1 0.2 dB Super model             6, the noise performance of              If we were to order the                        class among the modern
(the blue one) is surprisingly         both models was better than            TM-1 versions starting from                      today’s devices.
good. It defeated our refer-           our reference. However, if             the best one, it would be:
ence device in almost every            you compare them with the                1. TM-1 Super High Gain                           You won’t regret the money
point of the Ku-Band! The              Super TM-1 (the blue one)              0.1 dB (gold color)                              if you buy one of them!




32 TELE-satellite — Broadband & Fiber-Optic — 10-1
                                                 1/2009 — www.TELE-satellite.com
■ Fig. 1. Noise performance of the 0.2 dB models – vertical polarization.




                                                                                    Expert
                                                                                   Opinion
■ Fig. 2. Noise performance of the 0.2 dB models – horizontal polarization.           +
                                                                                      TM-1’s        are
                                                                                   very           high
                                                                                   p e r f o r m a n c e Jacek Pawlowski
                                                                                                             TELE-satellite
                                                                                   LNBs.          They         Test Center
                                                                                                                    Poland
                                                                                   provide        very
                                                                                   good C/N ratio what enables
                                                                                   the user to receive weak
                                                                                   transponders with high bad
                                                                                   weather margin. The “Super
                                                                                   High Gain” and “Super” ver-
                                                                                   sions additionally give high
                                                                                   level of output signal what is
                                                                                   important in those antenna
                                                                                   installations in which long
                                                                                   cables or signal distribution
                                                                                   devices are used. Additionally,
■ Fig. 3. Output power of the 0.2 dB models – vertical polarization.               the “Super High Gain” devices
                                                                                   have gold plated F connec-
                                                                                   tors. This is an extra protec-
                                                                                   tion from the environmental
                                                                                   factors – even after a long time
                                                                                   the quality of the connection
                                                                                   should not degrade due to oxi-
                                                                                   dation. Of course, one should
                                                                                   also take care of the F con-
                                                                                   nector attached to the cable.
                                                                                   A rubber sleeve is yet another
                                                                                   protection for the connection.
                                                                                      Workmanship of all units is
                                                                                   very good.

                                                                                      -
                                                                                      none
■ Fig. 4. Output power of the 0.2 dB models – horizontal polarization.

34 TELE-satellite — Broadband & Fiber-Optic — 10-1
                                                 1/2009 — www.TELE-satellite.com
■ Fig. 5. Noise performance of the 0.1 dB models – vertical polarization.




■ Fig. 6. Noise performance of the 0.1 dB models – horizontal polarization.




■ Fig. 7. Output power of the 0.1 dB models – vertical polarization.




■ Fig. 8. Output power of the 0.1 dB models – horizontal polarization.

                                                                            www.TELE-satellite.com — 10-1
                                                                                                        1/2009 — TELE-satellite — Broadband & Fiber-Optic   35

Technomate

  • 1.
    TEST REPORT Ku-Band LNB Technomate TM-1’s Colorful Family of Single LNBs We all know that Technomate is one of the manufacturers Technomate’s single LNBs are designated as TM-1. We of classy digital satellite and terrestrial receivers. Recently, have got 5 different versions: Technomate have decided to expand their products lines TM-1 0.2 dB (black color), with Ku-Band LNBs. The choice is really wide: from the TM-1 0.2 dB (grey color), TM- 1 Super 0.2 dB (blue color), single models to octo and even the monoblocks. Are they all TM-1 Super High Gain (black as good as the receivers they are supposed to match? Their & gold color) and TM-1 Super noise figures (0.2 dB and 0.1 dB) are very promising but High Gain (gold color). The last 2 ones except for having we know that only a test with real world signals can prove better noise figure, had their the value of an LNB. We started with the universal single F connectors plated with models. We will present the other models in gold. Short form data sheets we found in the packages separate reports. contained only the specifica- tion of the basic TM-1 model. Our test was to reveal what exactly the difference between the versions was. 10-1 1/2009 TECHNOMATE TM-1’S Top performer and probably the best LNB we ever tested 30 TELE-satellite — Broadband & Fiber-Optic — 10-1 1/2009 — www.TELE-satellite.com
  • 2.
    The noise figuresprinted on grey model was at par being TM-1 packages promise very sometimes above and some- TELE-satelliteother languageswww.TELE-satellite.com/... Download this report in World from the Internet: good performance. However, times below our reference Arabic ‫ﺍﻟﻌﺮﺑﻴﺔ‬ www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/ara/technomate.pdf Indonesian Indonesia www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/bid/technomate.pdf it is not a secret that some LNB. Only the black TM-1 Bulgarian Български www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/bul/technomate.pdf manufacturers over-spec- looked slightly worse. Czech Česky www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/ces/technomate.pdf German Deutsch www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/deu/technomate.pdf ify their products to gain a English English www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/eng/technomate.pdf Spanish Español www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/esp/technomate.pdf market advantage over com- The higher the gain of the Farsi ‫ﻓﺎﺭﺳﻲ‬ www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/far/technomate.pdf French Français www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/fra/technomate.pdf petition. Did Technomate LNB the higher its output Greek Ελληνικά www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/hel/technomate.pdf Croatian Hrvatski www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/hrv/technomate.pdf follow this trend? Or perhaps power should be for the Italian Italiano www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/ita/technomate.pdf Hungarian Magyar www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/mag/technomate.pdf their products are really the given signal. The results for Mandarin 中文 www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/man/technomate.pdf state of the art LNBs? We the 0.2 dB TM-1 versions are Dutch Nederlands www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/ned/technomate.pdf Polish Polski www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/pol/technomate.pdf decided to submit them to shown in figures 3 and 4. Portuguese Português www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/por/technomate.pdf Romanian Românesc www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/rom/technomate.pdf a really hard test. We took Russian Русский www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/rus/technomate.pdf Swedish Svenska www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/sve/technomate.pdf probably the best LNB we And again the blue model Turkish Türkçe www.TELE-satellite.com/TELE-satellite-0911/tur/technomate.pdf had - the one that had out- (Super TM-1) was the leader. Available online starting from 2 October 2009 performed many other 0.3 Our reference LNB was no dB and 0.2 dB models in our match for it. The basic TM- presented in figures 1 and 2. TM-1 Super 0.2 dB (blue previous tests. At the same 1 models had lower gain but 2, they are practically the color) time this reference LNB had still sufficient enough for the same. 3. TM-1 Super High Gain a high gain (high signal level regular reception systems 0.1 dB (black and gold at the output). Could TM-1’s (except for the ones using And what about the gain? color) match it? really long cables or a lot of The output power related 4. TM-1 0.2 dB (grey distribution devices). Super directly to the gain is pre- color) We chose the Hotbird TM-1 was really a top per- sented in figure 7 and 8. Also 5. TM-1 0.2 dB (black satellite fleet on 13° E as former. here, the 0.1 dB Super High color) our signal source. That’s Gain TM-1’s were better than because their transponders Having so perfect results our reference. The golden However keep in mind that are spread all over the whole with 0.2 dB Super TM-1, we model was visibly better while the golden model is an Ku-Band in both polariza- doubted if the 0.1 dB Super than the black & gold one absolute top performer and tions. The noise performance High Gain version could but only slightly better than probably the best LNB we of the 0.2 dB versions of TM- deliver anything better. As the 0.2 dB Super TM-1. ever tested, even the black 1’s is shown in figure 1 and you can see in figures 5 and one version is in the high 2. TM-1 0.2 dB Super model 6, the noise performance of If we were to order the class among the modern (the blue one) is surprisingly both models was better than TM-1 versions starting from today’s devices. good. It defeated our refer- our reference. However, if the best one, it would be: ence device in almost every you compare them with the 1. TM-1 Super High Gain You won’t regret the money point of the Ku-Band! The Super TM-1 (the blue one) 0.1 dB (gold color) if you buy one of them! 32 TELE-satellite — Broadband & Fiber-Optic — 10-1 1/2009 — www.TELE-satellite.com
  • 3.
    ■ Fig. 1.Noise performance of the 0.2 dB models – vertical polarization. Expert Opinion ■ Fig. 2. Noise performance of the 0.2 dB models – horizontal polarization. + TM-1’s are very high p e r f o r m a n c e Jacek Pawlowski TELE-satellite LNBs. They Test Center Poland provide very good C/N ratio what enables the user to receive weak transponders with high bad weather margin. The “Super High Gain” and “Super” ver- sions additionally give high level of output signal what is important in those antenna installations in which long cables or signal distribution devices are used. Additionally, ■ Fig. 3. Output power of the 0.2 dB models – vertical polarization. the “Super High Gain” devices have gold plated F connec- tors. This is an extra protec- tion from the environmental factors – even after a long time the quality of the connection should not degrade due to oxi- dation. Of course, one should also take care of the F con- nector attached to the cable. A rubber sleeve is yet another protection for the connection. Workmanship of all units is very good. - none ■ Fig. 4. Output power of the 0.2 dB models – horizontal polarization. 34 TELE-satellite — Broadband & Fiber-Optic — 10-1 1/2009 — www.TELE-satellite.com
  • 4.
    ■ Fig. 5.Noise performance of the 0.1 dB models – vertical polarization. ■ Fig. 6. Noise performance of the 0.1 dB models – horizontal polarization. ■ Fig. 7. Output power of the 0.1 dB models – vertical polarization. ■ Fig. 8. Output power of the 0.1 dB models – horizontal polarization. www.TELE-satellite.com — 10-1 1/2009 — TELE-satellite — Broadband & Fiber-Optic 35