The Saudi block is the most instructive entry in our whole channel list, because it is carried twice — and the two copies are not configured identically.
Our list holds 44 entries across 2 carriers (12149 H, 12284 V). Run down the two groups below and you will see substantially the same lineup in each: the same national channels, the same sports channels, the same radio services. Spellings differ between the two, which is normal — the names come from the transport stream, and the two multiplexes were populated separately.
The detail almost every list misses
The two carriers do not share their FEC ratio. One runs 5/6, the other 3/4. Because they carry the same services, that gives you something genuinely useful: two versions of the same channel with different robustness.
FEC is the fraction of the carrier spent on error correction. At 5/6, one bit in six is overhead. At 3/4, one in four. The heavier ratio carries less but tolerates a worse signal, so the 3/4 carrier will still be locked after the 5/6 one has dropped out.
That inverts the usual instinct. The obvious move is to store the HD copies and delete the rest as duplicates. On a marginal install — an undersized dish, a long cable run, a rainy climate — keeping both is the better decision, because the second copy is a working fallback at exactly the moment the first one fails.
Both carriers, side by side
Grouped by transponder so the mirroring is visible. Compare the two lists rather than reading them separately — the overlap is the point.
12149 MHz · Horizontal · 27500 3/4
| # | Channel |
|---|---|
| 1 | Al Ekhbaria |
| 2 | Bengali |
| 3 | Ekhbaria |
| 4 | European Radio |
| 5 | French |
| 6 | Holy Quran Radio |
| 7 | Houna alazm |
| 8 | Khozama |
| 9 | KSA SPORTS 1 |
| 10 | KSA SPORTS 2 |
| 11 | KSA SPORTS 3 |
| 12 | Mowajahat |
| 13 | Nedaa El Islam |
| 14 | Pishto |
| 15 | Saudi CH For Quran |
| 16 | Saudi CH For Sunnah |
| 17 | Saudi Radio 1 |
| 18 | Saudi Radio 2 |
| 19 | Saudi TV |
| 20 | Saudia Alaan TV |
| 21 | SBC |
| 22 | Thikrayatt |
12284 MHz · Vertical · 27500 5/6
| # | Channel |
|---|---|
| 1 | Al Ekhbaria HD |
| 2 | Bangali |
| 3 | Ekhbaria |
| 4 | Eurpean Radio |
| 5 | French |
| 6 | Holly Quran |
| 7 | Hona AlAzim |
| 8 | Jedda Radio |
| 9 | khozama |
| 10 | KSA SPORT1 HD |
| 11 | KSA SPORT2 HD |
| 12 | KSA SPORTS 3 HD |
| 13 | Mowajhat |
| 14 | Nedaa El Islam |
| 15 | Pishto |
| 16 | Riyad Radio |
| 17 | SAUDI CH For Quran HD |
| 18 | SAUDI CH For Sunnah HD |
| 19 | SAUDI TV HD |
| 20 | Saudia Alaan TV HD |
| 21 | SBC HD |
| 22 | Thikrayat HD |
Why the same channel appears twice in your receiver
After scanning both carriers you will have two entries for many of these channels, and receivers vary in how they present that. Some append a number. Some show two identical names. Some deduplicate by service name and silently discard one, which is the least helpful behaviour of the three, because it throws away the fallback without telling you.
If your receiver has a "skip duplicates" or "unique channels only" option in its scan settings, this is a case for turning it off.
Sorting the two copies deliberately
- Scan both frequencies from the table, in either order.
- Identify which stored entry came from which carrier — most receivers show the frequency in a channel-information panel.
- Put the copies you normally watch in your favourites list.
- Keep the other copy rather than deleting it, and note which is which. In bad weather, that is the list you switch to.
One caution on interpreting a difference between the two: a gap in one group in the table means our list does not currently name that service on that carrier. It does not prove the service is absent from the multiplex. Blind scanning the single frequency is the way to settle it.
