[Firefighter]

I have been with D* for over 5 years. I'm really considering switching to Dish. It's costing me too much per month.

I know D* throws alot of stuff at you to get you to sign up, will Dish give me anything for coming over?

Online, I went through the program set up and this is where I'm at.

AT100 + locals + Bronze HD + DVR service + Free HBO and Starz for 3 months + Cinemax for 1 year for .01 + leased Recr.

My total comes to $62.97 per month. Plus $149 out of pocket for 3 DVRs. One HD Dual Tuner and 2 SDTV DVR's.

Do I need the dual tuner HD DVR? I want to be able to record 1 show and watch another or record 2 shows at the same time on the HDTV. The same with the SDTV's.

Does that pricing and everything seem fair, or should I work for something better?

 

[lostman72]

Well as a new sub, you should get the best deals. You will have to learn all the new channel numbers and so on. I think its a great to jump ship and go back, you save a lot of money jumping around. I had Directv for over 12 years and I am still happy with them. I just never had the guts to jump ship. Also for me a have the NFL ticket so for now I will stay and keep paying the big bucks to Directv. One last note Dish does not have Locals in my area in HD.

Good luck on the other side.

 

[clyde sauls]

How many tvs and people are in your household that you need 3 dvrs,1hd tuner and 2 sdtv dvrs? Remember unlike Directv or any cable company with Dish receivers has a sec output which allows to use 2 tvs and watch different programming with 1 receiver.So you might not need all that equipment. Since you state that you need l Hd tuner you must have 1 hd set. Get a vip 622 or vip 722. You can hook up two tvs to that receiver . Connect the tv1(output1) to the hd set and tv2(output2) to any other tv in your house. The Tv2 uses a uhf frequency so you control the tv with tv 2 remote from any room with out having to be in the room where the receiver is located. If you have 6 tvs to hookup to dish receivers and have only 1 hd set. The cheapest way might be to get 1hd set and 2 sd dvrs. I would call dish and talk to csr when ordering instead of online. That way you might be able to get better deals. Also when ordering mention the cinemax for 1 cent for a yr deal in case the csr doesnt mention it.

 

[garys]

Dish will not give you more than two dual tuner receivers, HD or otherwise. The limit the leased equipment at 4 tuners. You should be able to get away with that for what you want unless you do alot of recording on all three of your tv's. Anything recorded on either tuner is available on the other. Note all three Dish's HD dvr's are dual tuners but one of the only has an output to one tv, the other two outputs to two tv's,

 

[dandirk]

Connect the tv1(output1) to the hd set and tv2(output2) to any other tv in your house. The Tv2 uses a uhf frequency so you control the tv with tv 2 remote from any room with out having to be in the room where the receiver is located.

Just curious, how do you connect the 2nd TV if its in another room/floor?

From the 722 pdf on Dish's site it looks like TV2 is run off of RCA composite cables, Do you have to run RCA jacks to the other room?

 

[Ken984]

Don't forget about the per DVR fee that Dish will tack on, 5.99 per month per dvr. Oh and the extra $5 for having no phone line connected on a dual output receiver. The savings you THINK you are getting could vanish before the ink is dry.

 

[clyde sauls]

Just curious, how do you connect the 2nd TV if its in another room/floor?

From the 722 pdf on Dish's site it looks like TV2 is run off of RCA composite cables, Do you have to run RCA jacks to the other room?

no you dont need to run rca jacks just composite cable.As far the phone line fee just keep a phone line connected to the receiver. Or connect the ethernet port to the router on your pc or mac will also count toward not being charged for the tv 2 as an additional receiver.

 

[Firefighter]

I have a total of 3 Tv's. One is HD. I want to be able to record and watch at the same time on that TV. The other 2 are in my living room and bedroom. So you guys think I can get away with one DVR for the living room and bedroom, and the the separate HD DVR for the HD TV?

I like D* but $95 a month is high. And that's without any HBO, Showtime, etc....

The football package doesn't bother me...

As far as locals... that's another thing, I don't think they have them in HD in Indianapolis. But D* doesn't carry CBS either. I use an OTA to watch the Colts games.

 

[Jason Nipp]

Don't forget about the per DVR fee that Dish will tack on, 5.99 per month per dvr. Oh and the extra $5 for having no phone line connected on a dual output receiver. The savings you THINK you are getting could vanish before the ink is dry.

Not true if you go with a DVR Advantage plan.

Oh and the extra $5 for having no phone line connected on a dual output receiver. The savings you THINK you are getting could vanish before the ink is dry.

You can connect it to a phone line or a broadband connection. Surely you have one or the other. If not, sure you'll pay an extra $5.

God I hate D* trolling.

 

[dahenny]

If you're not worried about independent viewing on 3 TV's, one DVR will do, with the TV2 output distributed to the 2 other TV's. If you need independent DVR functionality on your sets, get 2 DVR's. Keep the DVR that's connected to your HDTV set to single mode.

 

[Jason Nipp]

Dish will not give you more than two dual tuner receivers, HD or otherwise. The limit the leased equipment at 4 tuners. You should be able to get away with that for what you want unless you do alot of recording on all three of your tv's. Anything recorded on either tuner is available on the other. Note all three Dish's HD dvr's are dual tuners but one of the only has an output to one tv, the other two outputs to two tv's,

True, but you can buy additional units if you need more than 4 tuners.

I currently have 7 tuners in my house.

 

[Jason Nipp]

no you dont need to run rca jacks just composite cable.

Actually composite cables are RCA.

From the 722 pdf on Dish's site it looks like TV2 is run off of RCA composite cables, Do you have to run RCA jacks to the other room?

No you are not limited to Composite, there is also an amplified agile modulator built in with an F-connector to distribute via coax.

 

[rahchgo]

I have a total of 3 Tv's. One is HD. I want to be able to record and watch at the same time on that TV. The other 2 are in my living room and bedroom. So you guys think I can get away with one DVR for the living room and bedroom, and the the separate HD DVR for the HD TV?

I like D* but $95 a month is high. And that's without any HBO, Showtime, etc....

The football package doesn't bother me...

As far as locals... that's another thing, I don't think they have them in HD in Indianapolis. But D* doesn't carry CBS either. I use an OTA to watch the Colts games.

$95/month for D* sounds high for what you describe. I have 3 receivers, HD service, HBO and sports package. I pay 105/month. HBO & sports = $25. So you should be around $80/month. Are you paying for something that you aren't using.

 

[Firefighter]

If you're not worried about independent viewing on 3 TV's, one DVR will do, with the TV2 output distributed to the 2 other TV's. If you need independent DVR functionality on your sets, get 2 DVR's. Keep the DVR that's connected to your HDTV set to single mode.

I do want independent viewing on each TV. The HDTV is my main TV for viewing.

The kids watch the one in the living room alot while we may be watching something on the HDTV.

The TV in the bedroom, is mainly used once the kids go to bed, and we watch something for a little bit. It doesn't get used a whole lot. Sometimes the one of the kids will watch TV in the bedroom and another kid in the living room at the same time.

So.... all that being said.... what do you guys suggest would be the best setup.
I definately need to be able to watch and record at the same time on the HDTV though.

 

[dahenny]

HDDVR in single mode for the HDTV.
HDDVR in dual mode in your bedroom, with TV2 output to the kids' tv.
IMHO

 

[jsk]

Just some clarification (since I only have a two tuner DVR w/o OTA, please verify that my understanding of the OTA tuner is correct):

• Single Mode (same picture on TV1 & TV2)
  
  [*]If you are recording one program, you can watch another program live or a recorded program
  [*]If you are recording two programs on Sat., you can watch OTA live or a recorded program
  [*]If you are recording three programs (one OTA and two SAT), you can watch a recorded program
  [*]If you not recording any programs, you can use PIP and swap between the tuners​
• Dual Mode
  
  [*]If you are not recording any programs, you can watch two separate programs (live or recorded) on TV1 & TV2
  [*]If you are recording a Sat program, it records on TV2. You can watch a live or recorded program on TV1 and you can watch a recorded program on TV2
  [*]If you are recording two programs on SAT you can watch live OTA or a recorded program on TV1 & a different recorded program on TV2
  [*]If you are recording two programs on SAT and one OTA, you can watch different recorded programs on TV2
  ​

I hope this clears things up for you.

 

[dandirk]

No you are not limited to Composite, there is also an amplified agile modulator built in with an F-connector to distribute via coax.

hmmm though you still would need to have a direct connection from 1 room to another right? Or can the TV2 coaxial connection coexist with main dish signal? Assuming you have a central distribution hub wiring system that is common for newer homes.

Seems fairly limited, I would assume that most would just get a second receiver...

 

[drjake]

hmmm though you still would need to have a direct connection from 1 room to another right? Or can the TV2 coaxial connection coexist with main dish signal? Assuming you have a central distribution hub wiring system that is common for newer homes.

Seems fairly limited, I would assume that most would just get a second receiver...

You do not a direct run, the TV2 coaxial connection can coexist with the main dish signal using Diplexers which installers should have.

 

[Jason Nipp]

Assuming you have a central distribution hub wiring system that is common for newer homes.

Yes, I have a central distribution system.

I have no issues distributing the TV2 of my 3 dual tuner receivers to any room in my house over the same distrbution block. I do however run OTA and Sat on seperate feeds to block noise. But it can be done with a di-plexor.

 

[dbrakob]

Yes, I have a central distribution system.

I have no issues distributing the TV2 of my 3 dual tuner receivers to any room in my house over the same distrbution block. I do however run OTA and Sat on seperate feeds to block noise. But it can be done with a DC block di-plexor.

Wow! I'm impressed!