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HR20, International, OTA install

1124 Views 2 Replies 2 Participants Last post by  bigloo, 
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Guys,

I have a question and I cannot find an exact answer in the forums. I am having and HR20 installed (actually, I am on the wait list, they are sending out an H20 in the interim). I am a new install, no previous dish mast or coax. This order comes with the 5LNB. I am also having the international dish installed for cricket. Furthermore, I am having them chuck up their $50 antenna for OTA (I believe a batwing which should be great for me as the antennas are 9 miles from my place). Please see below the questions for the info from my order confirm email. My questions are this (I only need 1 TV installed):

1) How many coax lines will they be running (2 for 5LNB, 1 for international, 1 for OTa = 4 total?)
2) Will the installer know the HR20 is on the way, or should I make sure he installs the coax now for the HR20 (I believe a 2nd coax is needed for the dual tuner). I dont want to have to wait at home for a 2nd install.
3) I live in a townhome and the HOA might not like the 2 dishes + antenna, but hey, they can screw themselves, although, that being said, I need a clean install. Do these installers do a good job, what tips do you have for me to get these guys to do a clean install with most wires hidden and run in the crawl space (especially if I have multiple coax lines running).
4) Being 9 miles from the antennas, do I even ned the antenna on the roof? I have time to cancel that.

Thanks in advance.

Lu

PS if you are wondering about the Hype TV below, they would not install the international dish unless I ordered international programming, so I ordered hype for $10 and will cancel in one month. This way when cricket ticket 2007 comes about I dont have to have another install. Well worth the $10 in IMHO.:D

Qty. Description Each

1 36" Antenna $0.00
1 Caribbean - Hype TV $0.00
1 Carribean $0.00
1 DIRECTV® 5-LNB Multi-Satellite Dish $0.00
1 DIRECTV® HD Rec. (Expanded HD Prog. Capable) $0.00
1 DIRECTV® Multi-Satellite Dish System $0.00
1 High Definition Off-Air Antenna $49.00
1 Setanta Sports R000005653000000001 $0.00
Installation Included $0.00
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litzdog911
1) You'll need 6 coax lines .... 4 from the 5-LNB dish and 1 from the international dish and 1 from the OTA antenna. The 5 satellite dish cables will run to a Zinwell WB68 multiswitch that will provide 8-outputs for your various DVRs and Receivers.

2) The might know, but just be sure they run two coax lines from the multiswitch so that you can use both DVR tuners.

3) Highly dependent on the installer. Be there when they're doing their work.

4) Yes, it's always best to have an antenna on the roof. If Portland is anything like Seattle, multipath can be messy, so antenna height and location are important.
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I had my install today. I would rate it 5/10. The installer was a nice guy, but he refused to go high up onto my roof and would only install the dishes on the roof of the garage. The dishes hang over my balcony but its not that bad, he was relatively neat. He talked me out of the OTA. He told me that the wire mesh antenna they are giving out is flaky in my area and recommended and indoor (which I picked up tonight and am getting 60-80% signal for all channels so it works fine, I just need to hide it behind the tv or something). The strange thing is, I am on the wait list for the HR20. The installer said he could run a 2nd line but would have to charge me. I called directv and they agreed it would cost me, unless I waited for the HR20 and then they would take care of it. I went ballistic and threatened to cancel the install (I took off a day of work for this). D* said they would reimburse in credits and to go ahead and pay the installer. The stupid thing here is that he used a 2 coax line (2 coax fused together). It was maybe 3 minutes of extra work. I had to help the installer pull the cables into my room from the crawl space which I did not mind until I ripped half the skin off the side of my hand reaching into the wall to grab the cable snake. I decided today to also have fios installed (kill 2 birds with one day off). Comparing the verizon installers (who are not contractors) to the setup directv has is pathetic. Verizon is well above directv when it comes to installation. If the verizon guy was not here on the same day I would have rated the install 7/10 but once you see how verizon takes care of business, oh well. The installer admitted to me he needed better tools but directv does not supply those and he would have to buy them himself and they are expensive. This shocked me, although he had already borrowed a few of my tools at this point. Directv should be ashamed (I cannot hold it against the installer but I have the horrible feeling directv screws these guys over). Now I know why so many of you do your own installs. I also hope he did not speak me out of the OTA because he could not be bothered, if thats the case, the install gets a 2/10!
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