[Snydley]

I would like to replace my current hardware,(lease if possible), with the new Hopper/Joey system but I don't know what I need, or the cost.
Right now I have 1 VIP 722k, that I own, 2 VIP 622s, 1 I own, 1 I rent, a Sling Adapter and an EHD . I'd like to replace them with the Hopper/Joey system, if the price is right. I don't know what I need or how much it will cost, can anyone help? This is how my system is currently wired:

VIP722k - in living room, HDMI to HDTV, TV2 coax to main bedroom HDTV,(signal not split)
VIP622 - in 2nd bedroom, HDMI to HDTV, TV2 coax SPLIT to kitchen CRT & living room HDTV
VIP622 - in family room, HDMI to HDTV, TV2 coax to garage, SPLIT to 2 CRTs.

We have a total of 4 HDTVs and 3 CRTS. I would like to be able to get HD on all HDTVs,(currently some are connected to TV2s,(SD)). We usually have at least 2 people watching live TV at the same time, most of the time,(we're retired), We both record a lot of TV too.
Currently we record daily on the 722k and one of the 662s, with the 2nd 622 used to record on nights when there are a lot of good shows. Most nights both of us will watch live TV on 2 of the receivers and record on the 2nd tuner of those receivers. If it's a good night with lots of good shows we will use the 3rd receiver to record anything else.

I really like the idea of getting rid of 3 DVRs to a whole house DVR. Having 3 DVRs can be a P.I.T.A. most of the time.
What Hopper/Joey equipment do I need to be able to accomplish the above scenario?
I would like to be able to have HD on all HDTVs all the time.
What will all of this cost?
Will I have to sign a contract?
Thanks for any help offered,
Snyde

 

[James Long]

You have seven TVs ... unless you get creative Hopper/Joey won't cover that.

But based on your current usage you might be able to share a Joey between two TVs currently sharing a TV2 output. If you're willing to accept the same limitation that you have today of not being able to watch a different program on the sets sharing a TV2.

Your 722k and first 622 both go to your Living Room HDTV. If you're doing this for PIP or to give you a second tuner when the Kitchen doesn't need it the Hopper will take care of that. Your two CRTs currently sharing the second 622's TV2 can share a Joey. (Add an RF modulator to the Joey outputs.)

As far as tuners ... your current setup has six tuners, one dedicated to each TV output. A 2 Hopper / 4 Joey setup would have six tuners. If all sets are in use at the same time you're basically where you are today - but during times when a set is not in use you will be able to use that tuner to record programming for any of the six outputs (once DISH makes it possible for two hoppers to work together).

The monthly cost will be $10 for the DVR/Whole House DVR fees plus $35 for the 2nd Hopper and four Joeys ($7 each). You should be currently paying a $6 DVR fee and $34 for the two extra DVRs. So your bill goes up $5 monthly. Not bad for the extra flexibility.

 

[tampa8]

Remember, you are upgrading to HD at all locations. You have to compare what it would cost to have an HD receiver for each TV compared to using a Hopper. I say that because using a 722, you get two TV's but one in SD. To supply two TV's with the hopper it costs $11 more than your present set-up with a Hopper. BUT remember, to provide two TV's in HD with separate receivers would cost you $10 more than the HD/SD set-up would, so the Hopper is only $1 more than that.
The cost actually goes down using a Hopper in most scenarios after the second TV.

1. The Hopper only supplies an HD signal, so you get HD at each TV. That does not mean an SD TV can't be hooked up just as now. A hopper can support up to 3 TV's using a Joey at each TV. Joeys have no tuners, they simply show what the Hopper has, which is three tuners, four when the OTA comes out. Each Joey can see any tuner or live. But you will only see live if no more than two tuners are recording at the same time.

2. The actual Hopper on it's own only supplies one TV unlike a 722 that can supply two.

3. You can not continue to use any receiver you currently have with the Hopper, and you can not even use them separately. Your account can only have the Hopper and Joeys. The fact that you own or rent has no bearing with dish prices, which is why owning really does not make alot of sense unless you need more than Dish will rent you at one time.

4. It appears you need/want 7 TV's connected? If so here's the breakdown;
You need two hoppers. (You are allowed up to two) Each Hopper can have up to three Joeys.
You need 5 Joeys. Two Hoppers and five Joeys = 7 TV's in HD.

5. Fees - The account will have a $4 whole house fee, and a $6 DVR fee. ($11)
An additional Hopper or a Joey costs $7 each.
So with the first Hopper not costing a fee that leaves 6 TV's that will have a fee of $7.
6X$7= $42 + $11 account fees = $53.

As a comparison, to do 7 TV's with current VIP receivers all in HD, would cost $66. ($10 each after the first and a $6 DVR account fee)

6. All Joeys can see both Hoppers, so you get 6 tuners, either 7 or 8 when OTA becomes available. Right now you have to tell the Joey which Hopper to see, but Dish is coming out with an update that will allow each Joey to see both Hoppers at the same time, without picking each one.

You may be able to do what James suggested above, not have a Joey at a couple of TV's but instead have them mirrored to watch what someone else is watching or watch what the Joey is watching that the TV is mirrored to. That will save $7 each TV that does that. And I have to correct one thing James said, as I posted, it's an $11 account fee, not $10 for the Hopper system.

EDIT - my mistake - I combined the original fee Dish said it would be $7 DVR and $4 per account and had $11 in my mind. I stand corrected, it is $10.

 

[BobaBird]

$6 DVR + $4 whole-home = $10

Snydley, you might be able to get by with 1 Hopper, 3 Joeys, and 2 RF modulators. If you need more than 3 tuners in use at a time, either recording or viewing live, consider paying the upgrade for a second Hopper. If a lot of that recording is from the major networks, realize that PTAT gives you the effect of having 6 tuners during prime-time hours (1 tuner recording the 4 networks, 2 tuners available for anything else). Depends what and how much you record while the 2 viewers want to record live.

The RF modulators would mirror any of the boxes to the CRTs as you have now. If you need more independent viewing sites, you will need the 2nd Hopper to add a 4th Joey (current limits are 3 Joeys with 1 Hopper or 4 Joeys with 2 Hoppers).

 

[mikeyjf]

I could've sworn I saw some schematics that showed how Hoppers and VIP receivers were integrated together off of one dish.
When I saw that I thought I would like to get a hopper installed and leave the other 722's and 622's in place for the rest of the house.
Yesterday Dish said no can do.
What gives?
Does Dish just want to do Hopper/Joey installs first and then allow hopper/vip installs down the road?

 

[tampa8]

I will add Dish is allowing you to move a Joey if you want - so you can have two or more rooms wired that aren't used too much, and get one Joey to move around.

 

[James Long]

I could've sworn I saw some schematics that showed how Hoppers and VIP receivers were integrated together off of one dish.
When I saw that I thought I would like to get a hopper installed and leave the other 722's and 622's in place for the rest of the house.
Yesterday Dish said no can do.
What gives?
Does Dish just want to do Hopper/Joey installs first and then allow hopper/vip installs down the road?

I've seen a schematic that shows one ViP receiver and a Duo Node two Hopper system using a DPP44 ... one could follow that suggestion and have two ViPs and a Solo Node one Hopper system. Beyond that you're getting into two DPP44s and theoretically a Duo Node two Hopper system plus up to five ViP or other receivers. But that is a lot of switch equipment. You might be accused of running a small hotel if you needed that much equipment.

 

[P Smith]

I could've sworn I saw some schematics that showed how Hoppers and VIP receivers were integrated together off of one dish.
When I saw that I thought I would like to get a hopper installed and leave the other 722's and 622's in place for the rest of the house.
Yesterday Dish said no can do.
What gives?
Does Dish just want to do Hopper/Joey installs first and then allow hopper/vip installs down the road?

Looking at these diagrams, it's should works OK, but dish established BUSINESS rule - no mix ViP with H/J.
Because they hold your account, you can't avoid it.
Other case if you could afford two accounts and talk with your installer to reuse antenna and the DPP44 switch ...

 

[Snydley]

Thanks for all the help!! It looks like I can replace my setup with 1 Hopper and 4 Joeys, and split the coax signal out of the back of a couple of the Joeys, for the CRT TVs and be able to get a signal to all the sets. I think I might save a few bucks too, (if I figured right). We don't need to watch the CRTs and the HD TVs at the same time so sharing the Joeys works out ok.
Snyde

 

[Snydley]

If 4 of the 6 programs that can be recorded at 1 time are the 4 major networks, leaving 2 to either record or watch live TV with, it looks like I'll need 2 Hoppers and 2 Joeys. I'm hoping I can split the coax signal from the back of a Joey and a Hopper to feed the 3 CRTs that we have since we don't watch them that much, and we either watch the HDs OR the CRTs, never at the same time. Can a Hopper "feed" a TV or do I need a Joey on EVERY TV, even the ones in the same room with the Hopper? If a Hopper will "feed" a signal to a TV then I think this scenario will work:

Hopper 1 feeds the living room TV, connect Joey 1 to this and the HD TV in the main bedroom, connect Joey 2 to this Hopper and the family room HD TV. Also, connect the coax out of Joey 2 to feed the 2 CRTs in the garage.

Hopper 2 feeds the 2nd bedroom, connect and split the coax out of this Hopper to feed the CRT in the kitchen, and feed the living room TV so the wife can watch her recordings from the 2nd Hopper in the living room when she wants. Even if the signal here is SD,(which is how we do it now), that's ok, though it would be nice if the signal coming from Hopper 2 to the living room HD TV was in HD.

If that's correct then the fees would be:
Americas 250 - 69.99
Hopper 2 - 7.
2 Joeys - 14
DVR fee - 10
HD fee - 10
Protection Plan - 6
Total - 106.

This would feed the 4 HD TVs we have, if I can connect and use the coax connection on the back of Joey 2 to feed the 2 CRTs in the garage, and connect and split the coax from Hopper 2 to the kitchen CRT and the living room TV then I've covered everything.

Does this look right, will it work? I don't mean to sound like a dummy but I haven't seen a Hopper or Joey yet and I don't know what connections are on them, or if we can use the HDMI out and the coax out at the same time, though having to view the same programming.
Oh, one last thing, we currently have the remote controls' antenna connections on all 3 DVRs connected with splitters to the TV 2 out coax cable so they work better, also so the remote in the garage will control a receiver in the house. Can you connect these remotes that way?
Thanks,
Snyde

Remember, you are upgrading to HD at all locations. You have to compare what it would cost to have an HD receiver for each TV compared to using a Hopper. I say that because using a 722, you get two TV's but one in SD. To supply two TV's with the hopper it costs $11 more than your present set-up with a Hopper. BUT remember, to provide two TV's in HD with separate receivers would cost you $10 more than the HD/SD set-up would, so the Hopper is only $1 more than that.
The cost actually goes down using a Hopper in most scenarios after the second TV.

1. The Hopper only supplies an HD signal, so you get HD at each TV. That does not mean an SD TV can't be hooked up just as now. A hopper can support up to 3 TV's using a Joey at each TV. Joeys have no tuners, they simply show what the Hopper has, which is three tuners, four when the OTA comes out. Each Joey can see any tuner or live. But you will only see live if no more than two tuners are recording at the same time.

2. The actual Hopper on it's own only supplies one TV unlike a 722 that can supply two.

3. You can not continue to use any receiver you currently have with the Hopper, and you can not even use them separately. Your account can only have the Hopper and Joeys. The fact that you own or rent has no bearing with dish prices, which is why owning really does not make alot of sense unless you need more than Dish will rent you at one time.

4. It appears you need/want 7 TV's connected? If so here's the breakdown;
You need two hoppers. (You are allowed up to two) Each Hopper can have up to three Joeys.
You need 5 Joeys. Two Hoppers and five Joeys = 7 TV's in HD.

5. Fees - The account will have a $4 whole house fee, and a $6 DVR fee. ($11)
An additional Hopper or a Joey costs $7 each.
So with the first Hopper not costing a fee that leaves 6 TV's that will have a fee of $7.
6X$7= $42 + $11 account fees = $53.

As a comparison, to do 7 TV's with current VIP receivers all in HD, would cost $66. ($10 each after the first and a $6 DVR account fee)

6. All Joeys can see both Hoppers, so you get 6 tuners, either 7 or 8 when OTA becomes available. Right now you have to tell the Joey which Hopper to see, but Dish is coming out with an update that will allow each Joey to see both Hoppers at the same time, without picking each one.

You may be able to do what James suggested above, not have a Joey at a couple of TV's but instead have them mirrored to watch what someone else is watching or watch what the Joey is watching that the TV is mirrored to. That will save $7 each TV that does that. And I have to correct one thing James said, as I posted, it's an $11 account fee, not $10 for the Hopper system.

EDIT - my mistake - I combined the original fee Dish said it would be $7 DVR and $4 per account and had $11 in my mind. I stand corrected, it is $10.

 

[n0qcu]

There is no coax out on any Hopper/Joey other than the sat/MOCA connection.
You would need a RF modulator and a separate coax (could split)

 

[Snydley]

How do you connect the an RF modulator to the system? Where do I get those?
Thanks,
Snyde

 

[clotter]

Remember, you are upgrading to HD at all locations. You have to compare what it would cost to have an HD receiver for each TV compared to using a Hopper. I say that because using a 722, you get two TV's but one in SD. To supply two TV's with the hopper it costs $11 more than your present set-up with a Hopper. BUT remember, to provide two TV's in HD with separate receivers would cost you $10 more than the HD/SD set-up would, so the Hopper is only $1 more than that.
The cost actually goes down using a Hopper in most scenarios after the second TV.

1. The Hopper only supplies an HD signal, so you get HD at each TV. That does not mean an SD TV can't be hooked up just as now. A hopper can support up to 3 TV's using a Joey at each TV. Joeys have no tuners, they simply show what the Hopper has, which is three tuners, four when the OTA comes out. Each Joey can see any tuner or live. But you will only see live if no more than two tuners are recording at the same time.

2. The actual Hopper on it's own only supplies one TV unlike a 722 that can supply two.

3. You can not continue to use any receiver you currently have with the Hopper, and you can not even use them separately. Your account can only have the Hopper and Joeys. The fact that you own or rent has no bearing with dish prices, which is why owning really does not make alot of sense unless you need more than Dish will rent you at one time.

4. It appears you need/want 7 TV's connected? If so here's the breakdown;
You need two hoppers. (You are allowed up to two) Each Hopper can have up to three Joeys.
You need 5 Joeys. Two Hoppers and five Joeys = 7 TV's in HD.

5. Fees - The account will have a $4 whole house fee, and a $6 DVR fee. ($11)
An additional Hopper or a Joey costs $7 each.
So with the first Hopper not costing a fee that leaves 6 TV's that will have a fee of $7.
6X$7= $42 + $11 account fees = $53.

As a comparison, to do 7 TV's with current VIP receivers all in HD, would cost $66. ($10 each after the first and a $6 DVR account fee)

6. All Joeys can see both Hoppers, so you get 6 tuners, either 7 or 8 when OTA becomes available. Right now you have to tell the Joey which Hopper to see, but Dish is coming out with an update that will allow each Joey to see both Hoppers at the same time, without picking each one.

You may be able to do what James suggested above, not have a Joey at a couple of TV's but instead have them mirrored to watch what someone else is watching or watch what the Joey is watching that the TV is mirrored to. That will save $7 each TV that does that. And I have to correct one thing James said, as I posted, it's an $11 account fee, not $10 for the Hopper system.

EDIT - my mistake - I combined the original fee Dish said it would be $7 DVR and $4 per account and had $11 in my mind. I stand corrected, it is $10.

Good breakdown on the costs. Curious though. If a person were to want a single hopper with three joeys and the cost of each joey (or an additional hopper) is $7.00 why wouldn't everyone just be better off getting two hoppers and two joeys?

 

[BobaBird]

Hopper 1 feeds the living room TV, connect Joey 1 to this and the HD TV in the main bedroom, connect Joey 2 to this Hopper and the family room HD TV. Also, connect the coax out of Joey 2 to feed the 2 CRTs in the garage.

Hopper 2 feeds the 2nd bedroom, connect and split the coax out of this Hopper to feed the CRT in the kitchen, and feed the living room TV so the wife can watch her recordings from the 2nd Hopper in the living room when she wants. Even if the signal here is SD,(which is how we do it now), that's ok, though it would be nice if the signal coming from Hopper 2 to the living room HD TV was in HD.

If you want the living room TV to be able to see either Hopper, put Hopper 1 in the family room with the living room instead having a Joey. You can go into the Joey's menu to pair it with either Hopper. The software will later be updated to combine the events of both Hoppers on one list.

Hopper pictures are at http://www.dishuser.org/hopper.php and you can follow the link there to /joey.php.

 

[mdavej]

How do you connect the an RF modulator to the system? Where do I get those?
Thanks,
Snyde

I've had good success with THIS one. I got mine at walmart years ago. Don't know if they still sell them. They're also pretty cheap on ebay. You'll also need a pair of diplexers. But it's not clear whether this is compatible with MOCA used by the Joeys.

Hopefully an expert will chime in to tell us exactly where to put the diplexers and if they will work at all on a Hopper system.

 

[tampa8]

If 4 of the 6 programs that can be recorded at 1 time are the 4 major networks, leaving 2 to either record or watch live TV with, it looks like I'll need 2 Hoppers and 2 Joeys. I'm hoping I can split the coax signal from the back of a Joey and a Hopper to feed the 3 CRTs that we have since we don't watch them that much, and we either watch the HDs OR the CRTs, never at the same time. Can a Hopper "feed" a TV or do I need a Joey on EVERY TV, even the ones in the same room with the Hopper? If a Hopper will "feed" a signal to a TV then I think this scenario will work:

Hopper 1 feeds the living room TV, connect Joey 1 to this and the HD TV in the main bedroom, connect Joey 2 to this Hopper and the family room HD TV. Also, connect the coax out of Joey 2 to feed the 2 CRTs in the garage.

Hopper 2 feeds the 2nd bedroom, connect and split the coax out of this Hopper to feed the CRT in the kitchen, and feed the living room TV so the wife can watch her recordings from the 2nd Hopper in the living room when she wants. Even if the signal here is SD,(which is how we do it now), that's ok, though it would be nice if the signal coming from Hopper 2 to the living room HD TV was in HD.

If that's correct then the fees would be:
Americas 250 - 69.99
Hopper 2 - 7.
2 Joeys - 14
DVR fee - 10
HD fee - 10
Protection Plan - 6
Total - 106.

This would feed the 4 HD TVs we have, if I can connect and use the coax connection on the back of Joey 2 to feed the 2 CRTs in the garage, and connect and split the coax from Hopper 2 to the kitchen CRT and the living room TV then I've covered everything.

Does this look right, will it work? I don't mean to sound like a dummy but I haven't seen a Hopper or Joey yet and I don't know what connections are on them, or if we can use the HDMI out and the coax out at the same time, though having to view the same programming.
Oh, one last thing, we currently have the remote controls' antenna connections on all 3 DVRs connected with splitters to the TV 2 out coax cable so they work better, also so the remote in the garage will control a receiver in the house. Can you connect these remotes that way?
Thanks,
Snyde

No HD fee, you can get that for free with Dish. The $10 DVR fee is two fees, but your amount is correct. $6 DVR fee, $4 Whole house fee.
So you can deduct $10 from your total cost!

I do not think you can do the antenna/garage remote through the Hopper cable. It's a completely different system and other signals can not be introduced as I understand it. For the antenna, when they come out with the OTA antenna module/usb you will need to connect a separate cable from the antenna to the hopper. But all Joeys will also see that connection.

 

[James Long]

Curious though. If a person were to want a single hopper with three joeys and the cost of each joey (or an additional hopper) is $7.00 why wouldn't everyone just be better off getting two hoppers and two joeys?

The $7 is the monthly cost per Hopper or Joey, with the first Hopper "free".

New customer equipment price for a Hopper and up to three Joeys is $zero. The upgrade cost for a second Hopper would be $199. While people may be better off getting two Hoppers and two Joeys, they may not want to pay the initial price.

 

[James Long]

Snydley, as long as you can get that third Joey free (equipment upgrade) I would not turn it down. I can understand not wanting to pay $99 for a fourth Joey and trying to combine things to avoid that expense, but you should be able to do two Hoppers and three Joeys for the same initial price as two Hoppers and two Joeys. The $7 you're saving you are giving up in flexibility.

As noted by others, there is no coax out on the Hopper or Joey units but RF modulators are available. I would keep the cabling out of the modulators separate from the DISH system. It might work but if you ever have any problems with your DISH system the "improvisations" will be the first items to blame.

Also note that the remotes all talk to the Hoppers ... so your more distant TVs need to be in range of the Hopper hosting their Joey, not the Joey feeding the signal.

 

[n0qcu]

Also note that the remotes all talk to the Hoppers ... so your more distant TVs need to be in range of the Hopper hosting their Joey, not the Joey feeding the signal.

The remote for the Joey links to the Joey not the Hopper. the remote antenna is built internal on the Joeys.

 

[James Long]

The remote for the Joey links to the Joey not the Hopper. the remote antenna is built internal on the Joeys.

Wow ... that must reduce the range. But you are right ... I pulled the antenna off of my Hopper and the Hopper remote stopped working from across the room but the Joey remotes kept working.

Thank you for the correction.