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The Difference Between C band & Ku Band

A satellite frequency type is important to the selection of your LNBf and dish. Many Free-to-Air satellite TV beginners may have difficulties knowing the difference between C-band & Ku-band wavebands. Here I will share some differences between the C band and the Ku band.

1. What the C band & Ku Band mean?

According to Wikipedia, the C band is a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in the microwave range of frequencies ranging from 4.0 to 8.0 GHz while the Ku band frequency is ranging from 12.0 to 18.0 GHz. The designation is made by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

2. Difference between C band & Ku band

Based on the meaning of the C band and Ku band, the first obvious difference is the frequency. And The frequency of a wave is inversely proportional to its wavelength. As we all know, the low frequency has longer wavelength while the waves with a high  frequency has a short wavelength. Generally, the Ku band comes with much higher singal strength in area of spot beams. It means that the signal can be received on much smaller dish antennas. And the C band system uses bigger antennas because of the longer wavelength.

The second difference is the dish antenna that receives the frequencies. Prime focus dishes are used to receive C band frequencies, and the smallest commercially available prime focus dish is 1.8 meters. Offset dishes are used to receive Ku band and the smallest offset dishes are only 60cm in diameter. Due to the diameter of antenna, the installation area is also different. The C band with the focus dish requires enough area.

When to use the C band & Ku band is another difference. C-band is preferred in some locations where rainfalls are heavy such as some districts in Africa. From a commercial standpoint, C-band is more suitable for satellite applications that require greater bandwidth while the Ku band is more suitable for satellite applications that require smaller bandwidths.

Both C band and Ku band could be used in satellite applications. Because of the higher frequencies, higher data transfer rates & smaller antenna, the Ku band is used widely now. And Ku band is less susceptible to variations in weather and interference caused by the leaves of trees and other terrestrial interferences, therefore the signal received by Ku band is more stable.

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