Thinking of switching to Dish Network (VA/DC area) from DirecTV

[smackldog]

Hi all,

I'm new to dbstalk.com and hope you guys can clarify some questions about Dish Network for a newbie.

I've been a DirecTV customer for several years and having recently moved (from Fairfax, VA to South Riding, VA), I am now presented with 3 choices as far as TV goes: try Adelphia (the local cable franchise), stick with DirecTV (under their "Movers Connection") or switch over to Dish Network. As far as programming goes, we had DirecTV's Total Choice and aren't really into sports but the one package that probably will interest my wife is the chinese language programming choices that Dish offers.

1. Based on my understanding, with DirecTV, the way it's hooked up is that it's 1 TV per receiver but for Dish, you actually connect 2 TVs to 1 receiver and the remote will work through different floors of the house? We presently have 2 TVs; one is in the family room and another in the master bedroom and will probably get a third TV (plasma) around Christmas. As the house is a new construction, all the rooms are pre-wired with two video drops, so we could conceivably have up to 3 TV's total in the house.

2. What's the best deal out there right now for a new customer, through a reseller or retailer? (Fee free to send me a link to a website). I have come across ads for deals for up to 4 rooms installed for free; since I have 2 TVs but plan to get a third one soon, should I order for a 2 TV or 3 TV install (but not hooked up the "third" TV yet)? I am also considering DVR as well.

3. For those of you who are in the Northern VA area (specifically South Riding), how is your experience been with the Dish Network installers/contractors? Any issues or problems? Horror stories?

4. I see discussions of "Dish 500", "Super Dish", "Dish 1000" ... I had a 3 LNB dish with DirecTV which was hi-def ready. If I were to sign up with Dish, which dish would I be getting? I am assuming it would depend on the programming package?

Thanks.

Regards,
David

[airpolgas]

Only you can decide what's the best for your situation. Given that, I will briefly discuss the capabilities of Dish's receivers, so you may use the info on your decision.

Like DirecTV, Dish has some basic receivers and some PVRs. On top of that, Dish has single tuner receivers and dual-tuner receivers. Dual-tuners can carry two simultaneous signals, so it's like having two boxes.

The difference is that on most dish dual-tuners (DT from here on out), you have an option of connecting one or two TV sets to it. On top of that, some Dish receivers have multiple outputs in the back, and all those are active.

Sample: ViP622, HDTV receiver, with dual tuners, PVR capability, Single TV or Dual Mode

Outputs for TV1: HDMI, Component+Optical, S-Video+Composite Audio
Outputs for TV2: Composite AV

With the example above, you can connect three TVs just on the first tuner alone, provided your cables will reach the TVs. Since the receivers also use UHF remotes, you can basically stuff this in a closet and just worry about the wirings.

If you are planning on getting an HDTV by Christmas, I say spring for the 622. The cost will be steep initially, but it will benefit your setup come Christmas.

For now, put it on the family room, then run a long composite cable from there to the master bedroom (my 508 has a 50 foot composite cable going to the kids' room). For later, you will be using either HDMI or component for the plasma, so you can use another run of 50 foot composite to go to the 3rd TV, or get an extra receiver.

[SummitAdvantageRetailer]

Originally Posted by smackldog

Hi all,

I'm new to dbstalk.com and hope you guys can clarify some questions about Dish Network for a newbie.

I've been a DirecTV customer for several years and having recently moved (from Fairfax, VA to South Riding, VA), I am now presented with 3 choices as far as TV goes: try Adelphia (the local cable franchise), stick with DirecTV (under their "Movers Connection") or switch over to Dish Network. As far as programming goes, we had DirecTV's Total Choice and aren't really into sports but the one package that probably will interest my wife is the chinese language programming choices that Dish offers.

1. Based on my understanding, with DirecTV, the way it's hooked up is that it's 1 TV per receiver but for Dish, you actually connect 2 TVs to 1 receiver and the remote will work through different floors of the house? We presently have 2 TVs; one is in the family room and another in the master bedroom and will probably get a third TV (plasma) around Christmas. As the house is a new construction, all the rooms are pre-wired with two video drops, so we could conceivably have up to 3 TV's total in the house.

2. What's the best deal out there right now for a new customer, through a reseller or retailer? (Fee free to send me a link to a website). I have come across ads for deals for up to 4 rooms installed for free; since I have 2 TVs but plan to get a third one soon, should I order for a 2 TV or 3 TV install (but not hooked up the "third" TV yet)? I am also considering DVR as well.

3. For those of you who are in the Northern VA area (specifically South Riding), how is your experience been with the Dish Network installers/contractors? Any issues or problems? Horror stories?

4. I see discussions of "Dish 500", "Super Dish", "Dish 1000" ... I had a 3 LNB dish with DirecTV which was hi-def ready. If I were to sign up with Dish, which dish would I be getting? I am assuming it would depend on the programming package?

Thanks.

Regards,
David

Let me guess, you had the 3-phase LNB elliptical dish for JadeWorld? If so, I'm not sure if your wife will like DISH's Great Wall package. I hear JadeWorld has more Cantonese programming which DISH doesn't do a good job. Well, that's what our Chinese programming sales person tells us when we have a prospect that requests such programming. But assuming your wife picks or wants a Chinese programming from DISH, let's talk about hardware differences.

If your wife needs a SUPERDISH121 for the Chinese programming, you'll have about 2 lines going to your dual-tuner receiver of which one can be diplexed to carry the video signal to your other room. Now the problem can arise if you need to put high-speed cable in one of the rooms that you want this dual-tuner receiver in. Other than that, only other 2 issues are how many lines you have going from your home's media box to the outside. You'll need at least 2 to make for a clean install unless if you have an unfinished basement an installer can penetrate through. If you have 3 lines, then it gives options to the installer to put the switch in your home or outside of your home. If you need cable internet, the tech. can use 2 lines to your dual-tuner receiver and leave one for Adelphia. If you have 4 lines out, you should be fine for anything. Hope your foundation isn't one of those super concrete if you need more lines in. A jack hammer might be needed on those foundations where you'll end up with a 8 inch gaping hole.

By the way, that's about the only thing I'd get from Adelphia as their cable TV is one of the worst I've ever seen in terms of picture quality and selection/$. Believe me, I have quite a few customers that jumped ship from cable in Loudon, Fauquier, Stafford, Orange, and Louisa counties. Cable in these counties are mediocre at best. Just use their cable internet if you don't have DSL available.

Now, you may run into a problem with your installation IF you have a 3-story townhome without a deck. In the N. VA area, not many installers carry 40-ft ladders needed to install on 3-story townhomes where the line of sight is on the roof and nowhere else. You might get rescheduled a few times before someone may show with the tall enough ladder. That's the same in our company if the customer fails to tell us if their home is 3-stories as we always pre-call on equipment and ladder use prior to truck roll.

That's my personal small take on it. If you'd like to use our services, please PM me. We can install within a day or so.

[smackldog]

Originally Posted by SummitAdvantageRetailer

Let me guess, you had the 3-phase LNB elliptical dish for JadeWorld? If so, I'm not sure if your wife will like DISH's Great Wall package. I hear JadeWorld has more Cantonese programming which DISH doesn't do a good job. Well, that's what our Chinese programming sales person tells us when we have a prospect that requests such programming. But assuming your wife picks or wants a Chinese programming from DISH, let's talk about hardware differences.

When I first started out with DirecTV years ago, I had a single 18" 1 LNB dish and later did an upgrade to the 2LNB (I think it was called Para Todos?) to receive a single chinese programming channel, to see how it was. I think I stayed with it for just a few months and then dropped that channel. Years later, when they came out with additional programming channels, I upgraded again to the 3LNB dish (you should hear the horror installation stories that I had!).

Right now, with a 8 week old newborn and having recently moved and still unpacking and trying to settle down, I don't think we'll have that much free time to watch TV but I wouldn't mind trying out Dish's chinese offerings to see what it is like. Hence, my inquiry about making sure the hardware (dish) will support it. I can always drop that particular programming channel anytime, right?

Originally Posted by SummitAdvantageRetailer

If your wife needs a SUPERDISH121 for the Chinese programming, you'll have about 2 lines going to your dual-tuner receiver of which one can be diplexed to carry the video signal to your other room. Now the problem can arise if you need to put high-speed cable in one of the rooms that you want this dual-tuner receiver in. Other than that, only other 2 issues are how many lines you have going from your home's media box to the outside. You'll need at least 2 to make for a clean install unless if you have an unfinished basement an installer can penetrate through. If you have 3 lines, then it gives options to the installer to put the switch in your home or outside of your home. If you need cable internet, the tech. can use 2 lines to your dual-tuner receiver and leave one for Adelphia. If you have 4 lines out, you should be fine for anything. Hope your foundation isn't one of those super concrete if you need more lines in. A jack hammer might be needed on those foundations where you'll end up with a 8 inch gaping hole.

Since the house is a new construction, it came with a On-Q Legrand/Greyfox structured wiring panel in the basement that has telecom, network, and video runs. From the outside, there are 2 lines coming into the panel. There are also 2 runs to the rooms that have TV designated (family, master, and basement's rec room) and a single video run to the study in the first floor.

That said, I assume that no additional cable runs are needed inside the house, since all the cable runs are fed from the outside to a distribution panel and it's two runs to each drop from the panel?

Originally Posted by SummitAdvantageRetailer

Now, you may run into a problem with your installation IF you have a 3-story townhome without a deck. In the N. VA area, not many installers carry 40-ft ladders needed to install on 3-story townhomes where the line of sight is on the roof and nowhere else. You might get rescheduled a few times before someone may show with the tall enough ladder. That's the same in our company if the customer fails to tell us if their home is 3-stories as we always pre-call on equipment and ladder use prior to truck roll.

Re the 40-ft ladders, tell me about it! Coming from a 3-level townhome and now in a single family, I can tell you some of the stories (some of them humorous ) about installers back when I had DirecTV at the old house. One of them even got scared while climbing up the ladder halfway and refused to continue and came back down.

Originally Posted by SummitAdvantageRetailer

That's my personal small take on it. If you'd like to use our services, please PM me. We can install within a day or so.

Check your PM.

Thanks,
David

[smackldog]

Originally Posted by airpolgas

Only you can decide what's the best for your situation. Given that, I will briefly discuss the capabilities of Dish's receivers, so you may use the info on your decision.

Like DirecTV, Dish has some basic receivers and some PVRs. On top of that, Dish has single tuner receivers and dual-tuner receivers. Dual-tuners can carry two simultaneous signals, so it's like having two boxes.

The difference is that on most dish dual-tuners (DT from here on out), you have an option of connecting one or two TV sets to it. On top of that, some Dish receivers have multiple outputs in the back, and all those are active.

In other words, a dual-tuner mitigates the need to have a tuner for each TV? That's pretty neat. In my particular situation, since I have dual RG6 video lines each room where the TV was designated (during construction) that originates from a distribution panel, would I still need to run an RG6 coax from the tuner to each TV or can it feed from the wall outlet where ther are already connections?

Thanks,
David

[LtMunst]

Originally Posted by smackldog

would I still need to run an RG6 coax from the tuner to each TV or can it feed from the wall outlet where ther are already connections?

You can pump the TV2 output into your home distro and send to as many TVs as you want.

[aegrotatio]

Half of my family is Chinese. Some of them have DirecTV's Jadeworld package and the other half has DiSH Network's Great Wall package. My father-in-law was very impressed with DiSH Networks' Great Wall package since it has channels from several provinces from mainland China. I also added the "Super Pack" which has the ETTV channels, produced in Taiwan but are very good nonetheless.

I have to warn you though-- some people really like Jadeworld, and it costs $35 for only 5 channels. I pay about $60/month and I have about 27 Chinese channels and none of them are Jadeworld. Some people cannot live without the Jadeworld. DirecTV made a smart move by purchasing exclusive rights to that service. Still, economically, Jadeworld is not competitive to DiSH Network's extensive collection of Chinese channels.

Move to DiSH Network. You'll be glad you did, except the SuperDiSH 121 they will install for you is rather offensively large... I'm a dish afficianado so I don't mind it so much. I also live in Northern VA and there are hundreds of SuperDiSH 121 systems around here.

[smackldog]

Originally Posted by aegrotatio

Move to DiSH Network. You'll be glad you did, except the SuperDiSH 121 they will install for you is rather offensively large... I'm a dish afficianado so I don't mind it so much. I also live in Northern VA and there are hundreds of SuperDiSH 121 systems around here.

Dumb question: is the SuperDISH 121 the same as Dish 1000? What I'm trying to get is to minimize the physical number of dishes that will need to be installed and have a single dish that can pull in all the satellites out there (if possible) including the high-def channels in the future when I get a high-def TV.

As for the chinese programming, basically they'd be only for either my parents or the in-laws when they come to visit (usually once a year) but on a day-to-day basis, probably just the regular English programming channels (we had Total Choice with DirecTV) will suffice for us.

Thanks,
David

[harsh]

Originally Posted by smackldog

Dumb question: is the SuperDISH 121 the same as Dish 1000?

No, it is a different dish for a different set of birds.

What I'm trying to get is to minimize the physical number of dishes that will need to be installed and have a single dish that can pull in all the satellites out there (if possible) including the high-def channels in the future when I get a high-def TV.

At the moment, the International stuff is still stuck at 121 which will require a SuperDish121. The high definition stuff will come from a second standard dish pointed towards a slot appropriate for where your HD locals might eventually come from.

Any idea what the possibilities of OTA reception are? This is important because if you can get OTA reception, you can DVR as many as three simultaneous programs (one from OTA and two from satellite).

[gego]

Not in your area.....I'm Dallas. Had SD with Dish for several years with no problem but if you are going HD I would not recommend them. I've had HD for 3 months and have had nothing but problems. I'm switching to Direct

[airpolgas]

I know it's a different opinion, and that is healthy, but it will be much helpful if you tell him your reasons why. It might help him with his decision.

Smackldog, I would visit both Dish and DirecTV's HDTV section in this board for some thorough reading.

[smackldog]

Originally Posted by harsh

No, it is a different dish for a different set of birds.At the moment, the International stuff is still stuck at 121 which will require a SuperDish121. The high definition stuff will come from a second standard dish pointed towards a slot appropriate for where your HD locals might eventually come from.

Any idea what the possibilities of OTA reception are? This is important because if you can get OTA reception, you can DVR as many as three simultaneous programs (one from OTA and two from satellite).

Here's where I'm confused -- or maybe I'm just making this more confusing than it sounds, coming from DirecTV. On DISH's website, it says:

"An additional dish antenna or a single SuperDISH antenna is required to receive American and International programming. Please contact our customer service center for complete details at 1-888-284-7116."

By this, I'm guessing that the "regular" porgramming such as America's Top Choice packages and the international programming can be pulled in from a single SuperDish (121?) and the high-def. programming requires a second dish (500? 1000?), right?

As for OTA reception, over the weekend, I went out and bought a Terk TV5 to connect to my regular TV (non high-def) to see what kind of reception I could pull in locals wise, and it was pretty spotty. Lots of snow/noise. I guess living close to the airport (IAD) and over 25 miles out of DC resulted in the spotty reception.

Regards,
David

[aegrotatio]

Originally Posted by smackldog

"An additional dish antenna or a single SuperDISH antenna is required to receive American and International programming. Please contact our customer service center for complete details at 1-888-284-7116."

Currently your HD locals are either going to be on 129-degrees or 61.5-degrees. Here in the Washington DC area HD locals are on 61.5-degrees so you will require a SuperDiSH 121 and a separate second dish that points to 61.5-degrees. If your HD locals are on 129-degrees then you also have a SuperDiSH 121 but your wing dish is pointed to 129-degrees.

DiSH has been shuffling around the international programming and nobody is sure where we international customers are going to end up with next year. The running theory is that SuperDiSH is going away. International moves to 61.5-degrees so that people who want both international and HD locals will just have a DiSH 500 or 1000 and a second wing dish (and SuperDiSH 121 goes away).