Are the powerline adaptors on the Directv website any good?

[james2006]

I've got an HR23 that needs to be networked now, and in the future a second HD DVR (and maybe more) for MRV.

Wiring the receiver with a ethernet line directly is not an option. Also, I've got a wireless G network at the moment, so going wireless would cost $80 per receiver and would also require a new N router, so that is not very tempting.

The powerline adaptors on Directv's site seem like a pretty good price, but I think they are only 85 megabit. I suspect that there are people that would recommend that I go with gigabit powerline adaptors to basically future proof them, but I have yet to see any of those in my price range (I'm looking for two adaptors for no more than 75 bucks, so $60 from D* is a pretty tempting).

So I'm wondering if anyone has used the D* adaptors, and what your thoughts are. I assume they are fast enough for MRV, as the receivers only have 100 megabit ethernet ports anyway.

Recommendations welcome.

[Grentz]

Pretty much all powerline adapters are based on the same chipset besides a few.

The directv ones should be just as good as any other 85mbps ones, the only issue with powerline is your power lines and the performance will vary as such. Getting the full 85mbps is usually not going to happen.

I have used some other ones and getting 10-20 is more realistic. Still not bad though because remember you dont get the full 100mbps on wired either.

[njblackberry]

I just installed the Netgear XAV101 Powerline adapters. According to the software that came with them, the pair are transmitting between 122 and 145mbps, obviously faster than the 100mbps on the DVR. I had previously used a wireless bridge, which did not work well.

These new Powerline adapters are working really well.

[litzdog911]

I've had no issues with the DirecTV 85Mbps Powerline Network Adapters.

[VegasDen]

I've used the Powerlines (one with the surge protector and one wall unit) for quite a while now and they've worked very well. I stream Netflix with them and always get a solid signal.

[RegGeek]

I have had very good luck with the adapters sold by DirecTV. Their price was better than any of the local big box stores and they shipped quickly.

[WestDC]

The power line adapters will work better for streaming and D* Vod than wireless. 85 mps will run about 10 mps- 20mps- when going across different circuit breakers, Which is good as it gets since the DVR buffer is max 19 mps.

So it will get the job done.

To get the full 85 mps - ID the breaker that the dvr is connected to then Half tap the breaker at the Service pannel and install a plug hook that adapter to that plug and connect to your router and you will now be on the same circuit breaker.

[ATARI]

The power line adapters will work better for streaming and D* Vod than wireless. 85 mps will run about 10 mps- 20mps- when going across different circuit breakers, Which is good as it gets since the DVR buffer is max 19 mps.

So it will get the job done.

To get the full 85 mps - ID the breaker that the dvr is connected to then Half tap the breaker at the Service pannel and install a plug hook that adapter to that plug and connect to your router and you will now be on the same circuit breaker.

If this were slashdot, I would mod you +5 Informative.

[mpar1]

I have had very good luck with the adapters sold by DirecTV. Their price was better than any of the local big box stores and they shipped quickly.

Ditto.

[Mike Bertelson]

This may help....

First Look: Directv HD DVR Networking Kit
http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=117074

DBSTalk.com First Look: Cisco/Linksys WGA600N
http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=143300

Mike

[WestDC]

If this were slashdot, I would mod you +5 Informative.

Thank you? I think :)

[owine]

I just had these installed when I got DirecTV service over the weekend for my HR-22 and they seem to work great. Mine aren't traveling a great distance, maybe 10 feet or so, but it saves having to put a wire across the room.

[chris vesuvio]

I have been using the Netgear for about 6 months with no real issues.
I have 3 HDDVRs downstairs with the wireless router upstairs and I just remove
the unit it from the wall outlet and move it to another outlet/DVR and fire up the On Demand and they all work just great.

[t_h]

Since you mentioned "for MRV", I'll strongly recommend against the 85Mb/s adapters. They may work fine for you if they dont experience any problems with your home wiring or interference, and they may work just great for others who are working under conditions close to ideal.

You're going to need up to 15-18Mb/s of throughput for each HD stream. I've tested a number of powerline products in several homes and found out quite a bit. For starters the throughput measurement is under ideal conditions and using a low overhead protocol that streaming video doesnt use. In ideal conditions the actual maximum throughput of one of the 85Mb/s adapters is around 30-40. In real world conditions you might have a hard time topping 10Mb/s.

You can see a decent test here on the 200Mb/s adapters, which look to be able to handle one mpeg2 1080i stream, but probably not two.
http://www.tomsguide.com/us/Powerline-Networking-Test,review-1333.html

I've never seen a test where the 85Mb/s products equaled or exceeded the 200Mb/s products, so if the latter are barely acceptable the former may not cut it.

Worth trying, but I'd make sure I could return the products for a refund if they didnt make it. Otherwise for non wired apps I recommend wireless N if you dont experience a lot of problems with wireless interference, and 200Mb/s powerline AV if wireless wont work.

Heres a way to get the 200Mb/s powerline stuff for cheap:

http://www.google.com/products?q=zyxel+nbg-318s&oe=utf-8&scoring=p

Zyxels NBG-318S wireless router incorporates built in 200Mb/s powerline AV through its power cord. You can disable the wireless AP if you dont want it and end up with a four port switch with a 200Mb/s powerline connection. Two of them and you're good to go.

For some reason people werent figuring this out for the longest time and as a result zyxel suppliers had to price the router down with the other wireless G routers, at around $35-40 a pop. In recent months the demand for 200Mb/s powerline went through the roof and people figured out that they could use the cheap router and either use or disable the extra features. The price has gone back up to $100 a router but as you can see a couple of places still have it for under $40.

If you dont mind playing with configurations, 2-4 of these spread over your house could give you a wired four port switch in each location for hardwire internet and a distributed wireless network, all backboned by a 200Mb/s powerline network between the routers.

[Mike Bertelson]

I just had these installed when I got DirecTV service over the weekend for my HR-22 and they seem to work great. Mine aren't traveling a great distance, maybe 10 feet or so, but it saves having to put a wire across the room.Welcome to DBSTalk. :welcome_s

And, welcome to DirecTV. :)

Mike

[drewba]

I've been using one of the surge protector models and one of the wall plugs for ~1 year now. They arrived quickly and both have worked flawlessly. Per the included utility, connection speeds are around 40-50Mbps depending on how far apart the units are in the house (downstairs vs. down the hall).

I haven't tried MRV, but they work great for downloading PPV, on demand and with my XBOX 360.

[dhhaines]

I've had no issues with my powerline adapters from DirecTV. I purchased them from DirecTV because they had the best price and so far after 8 months they've been working without a hitch.

[Athlon646464]

I have 3 installed here, and they work great for me. I have a 7 room cape, and 2 of them are as far apart physically as they can be in my home, and I use those two to watch stuff on my PC using DirecTV2PC all the time.

I also have an extensive X-10 system in my house, and the two technologies do not seem to interfere with each other as I thought they might. For the X-10 system I installed a 'bridge' at the house plug at my clothes dryer, to bridge the 2 110 circuits in my home.

I have no idea if the 'bridge' is helping my powerline adapters or not, but as I said - they work great.

:D

[Doom878]

How can I test before buying these if the connections will work? D* has replied to my inquiry that these are not refundable no matter what.

[shamus46]

Yes, they work very well.

[Athlon646464]

How can I test before buying these if the connections will work?
You can't.

The odds are in your favor that they will work, especially if your home is wired normally, and you do not have any unusual electrical devices running. But there is no guarantee.

If you are worried, you may want to try and get the equivalent locally so that they can be returned if they do not work.

For me, I borrowed a couple from my office (although they were a different brand), and found that I had no issues. So I ordered the D* ones, because of the price.

[rob316]

Can someone post a link to DTV website for the powerlines, I cannot fimd them.:)

[Athlon646464]

Can someone post a link to DTV website for the powerlines, I cannot fimd them.:)
From the D* home page:

Click on 'My Account'

(You may need to log in.)

Click on 'Add Kits & Equipment'

If you have supporting equipment, you should see them listed..........

:)

[DavidR]

I tried the powerline adapters from D* and could not achieve high enough bandwidth to consistently view HD content over DirecTV2PC. I then switched to a wireless-N router and the LinkSys WGA600N game adapter and have had no problems since. Although most people seem to have had better luck with the powerline adapters, in my case a wireless-N solution worked much better.

...David

[EricJRW]

The power line adapters will work better for streaming and D* Vod than wireless. 85 mps will run about 10 mps- 20mps- when going across different circuit breakers, Which is good as it gets since the DVR buffer is max 19 mps.

So it will get the job done.

To get the full 85 mps - ID the breaker that the dvr is connected to then Half tap the breaker at the Service pannel and install a plug hook that adapter to that plug and connect to your router and you will now be on the same circuit breaker.

I would love to see a picture of that... I understand the idea, based on how these devices work, but I can't quite picture the process you describe.

[WestDC]

I would love to see a picture of that... I understand the idea, based on how these devices work, but I can't quite picture the process you describe.


EXAMPLE based on my local network & Cable modem which is located in my basement close to my Electrical pannel (YOU KNOW) where the circuit breakers are located.

Locate the Electrical Circuit breaker in the pannel that your HDDVR and Powerline adapter is plug into. TURN OFF THAT BREAKER-Check to see if the Power at the TV is off.

REMOVE-the Electrical pannel cover use 14/3 (15 AMP) or 12/3 (20 AMP) Gauge wire, Mount a Electrical BOX and install a Receptical and run the wire (rated above) to the Circuit breaker and HAlf tap the Breaker. Close the panel and reset the Circuit breaker to on.

Now Plug the other Powerline adapter into your NEW receptical and wire it to your router. YOU ARE NOW ON THE same Circuit Breaker within the pannel there by increasing your Speed, because you are no longer crossing other circuit breakers.


PLEASE NOTE: These instructions are for Trained Pro's If you DO not Understand this DO NOT DO IT YOURSELF! Call THE MAN!

[james2006]

Thanks for all the replies. I ended up purchasing the Directv adaptors, but I'm a bit concerned at this point. They are working, but the powerline adaptor on the DVR has only one light on (the powerline activity light). The adaptor at the router has both lights on. The Directv documentation says that both lights should be on, but yet I'm getting internet on the DVR. Any ideas what is going on?

I downloaded a 28 minute HD show from Showtime On Demand in 55 minutes. I have Comcast cable internet, so the continuous download rate is around 6 megabit. Should it be taking about that long to download HD?

With respect to MRV, I'm worried after reading some of the posts. I guess the next step is to try Directv2pc. It sounds, however, like there is a good chance I will have trouble with HD MRV, which is not good news because that is what I plan on using most. (when it becomes available on national release).

So I'm not sure what to do at this point. Should I buy a third powerline adaptor from Directv and try it with the second HD DVR? (Which I'll probably get soon, because the second HDTV is in the mail). Can I buy a one faster powerline adaptor (from Netgear or something) and put that at the router using the assumption that all MRV data has to go through the powerline adaptor at the router, so that would be the bottleneck? Do adaptors at different speeds and from different companies play nice together like wireless devices do? (Somehow I doubt it).

Thanks

[bobnielsen]

Powerline adapters which use the same specification (Homeplug 1.0, Homeplug 1.0 Turbo, Homeplug AV) should be compatible (most if not all use the same chips), but mixing the specs (different speeds) probably won't work.

[DavidR]

If MRV is really the most important feature for you, then I would not waste any more $$ on the powerline adapters that D* sells. Based on my experience and other posts I've read, you'll almost certainly have trouble viewing HD video on DirecTV2PC with the D* PAs. As I said, I have had great results with LinkSys Wireless-N products. If you go this route be sure to use the LinkSys WGA600N game adaptor at the DVR end, as DirecTV2PC actually supports that specific adapter and will set it up automatically for you on the DVR.

Your download time for HD On Demand content sounds about right for your connection speed.

Good luck! ...David

[wrodie]

Thanks for the info folks!

This is a great read!

WR

[dhhaines]

If MRV is really the most important feature for you, then I would not waste any more $$ on the powerline adapters that D* sells. Based on my experience and other posts I've read, you'll almost certainly have trouble viewing HD video on DirecTV2PC with the D* PAs. As I said, I have had great results with LinkSys Wireless-N products. If you go this route be sure to use the LinkSys WGA600N game adaptor at the DVR end, as DirecTV2PC actually supports that specific adapter and will set it up automatically for you on the DVR.

Your download time for HD On Demand content sounds about right for your connection speed.

Good luck! ...David

As is usually the case your results may vary. I've had the opposite, wireless N doesn't stream well for me but the DirectV powerline adapters work without a problem.

[BlackHitachi]

As is usually the case your results may vary. I've had the opposite, wireless N doesn't stream well for me but the DirectV powerline adapters work without a problem.Same with my setup also! I am in a newer house so power lines are working great!

[james2006]

If MRV is really the most important feature for you, then I would not waste any more $$ on the powerline adapters that D* sells. Based on my experience and other posts I've read, you'll almost certainly have trouble viewing HD video on DirecTV2PC with the D* PAs. As I said, I have had great results with LinkSys Wireless-N products. If you go this route be sure to use the LinkSys WGA600N game adaptor at the DVR end, as DirecTV2PC actually supports that specific adapter and will set it up automatically for you on the DVR.

Your download time for HD On Demand content sounds about right for your connection speed.

Good luck! ...David

So I switched from DSL to Comacast internet recently, and one of the side effects is that my wireless coverage has taken a big hit. I only have one location still active with cable (b/c Directv uses the existing wiring) and it happens to be in the downstairs corner of the house. I got an N router, but even wireless N is not making it upstairs to the other corner of the house (where the main HD DVR is). Ironically I was able to place the router in the center of the house with DSL, and so was able to get good coverage every where in the house with both b and g.

So given these circumstances I'm almost certain wireless N will not work for MRV. I may need to get an additional access point and plug it in at the powerline adaptor just to restore decent wireless to the upstairs of the house.

At this point I'm still wondering if the Directv powerline adaptors will be enough for MRV, or if I should have spent more to get 200 megabit or even gigabit adaptors. Part me wants to believe that Directv wouldn't sell something that will be insufficient for MRV, but I guess it is far enough away they are not concerned about it.

[Athlon646464]

I'm using 3 of D*'s units with great success. I use DirecTV2PC (latest version) all the time, without a hitch. I can even watch a recorded show while my wife watches another on the same DVR.

I too am on opposite corners of a two story house, and I also have an X-10 system installed.

My guess is some that are reporting problems with DirecTV2PC have 'weak' computers, and their problems may not be related to their PLC's.

[Zellio]

Personally I hate powerline networking.

I recently got a couple Netgears. They worked excellently, no problems with any other device, except:

1. You can't escape AM radio interference. Even with new wire installations.
2. Powerline network cards must be plugged into the wall socket WITHOUT surge protection.

The second is a really bad thing. For one, if a major surge hit you can't go on. And you have no real method of protecting your cards from surges.

Two, couldn't a powerline network card, if hit with a strong enough surge, send a surge into devices connected to it?

Personally, I would either wire the house for ethernet or use wireless.

Btw, my two cards are dead now. Died when a major surge came thru, while all my other stuff was saved due to my ups devices.

[james2006]

So I finally got around to testing Directv2PC with the powerline adaptors, and I don't like what I found.

Basically SD streams just fine, but HD is constantly stuttering. I believe the longest amount of clean HD I got was about 30 seconds.

I have the computer plugged directly into the router, so I am not relying on any wireless. I know the computer is not the problem, because I have used Directv2PC without issue at my own house (I'm trying to set this up for my uncle). The computer is a Macbook Pro Core2Duo 2.2 GHz with 4 GB if ram (but only 3 GB accessible in windows XP).

One of the interesting things that I noted in a prior post is that the powerline adapter upstairs only has the powerline link light on, while the ethernet link is off. I originally thought this might be due to the wiring in the house, but when I unplugged the DVR and plugged in my computer the ethernet light did come on. So, for some reason when the DVR is plugged in the ethernet light is off, but the internet still works (albeit not fast enough for HD streaming with Directv2PC). Could this be a problem with the dvr, or is this normal for these powerline adapters?