[daytoday]

I'm a new member and have spent serveral hours on this site reading posts. I need to update my Home with HDTV. I am interested in purchacing a new HDTV, AMP and DVD Player that will allow me to view Direct TV in 4 diiferent rooms. I currently have had both Cable TV and Direct TV for the past 10 years. I will be calling Direct TV to request help in upgrading my Direct TV. Please suggest what Direct TV equipment I should ask for? I also am interested in upgrading my Televisions, DVD and Amp in my family room. Thanks for your help!

Permanent home - Note: I would like to be able to view Direct TV from 4 different rooms without paying for 4 Direct TV recievers. Currently I can only watch Direct TV from the family room.
Family Room
Sony SAT-HD100 Receiver
- I plan on asking Direct TV to upgrade me to the HR20-700 receiver. Is this what I need?
Direct TV Dish (Older Style, Purchaced in 2001?)
- I plan on asking Direct TV to upgrade me to the 5 LNB Dish. Is this the Dish that I need so that I can view Direct TV from 4 other rooms?
Sony TV (KV-36FS100)
- Please suggest a quality (Large HD TV Flatscreen) and recommend a store that I should purchace it from?
Sony AVD-C70ES Amp/DVD/Tuner
- Please suggest a quality AMP and recommend a store that I should Purchace it from?
Motorola Cable TV Box
- This Box was installed my my Cable Service and was wondering if there would be any benifit to upgrading or purchacing something better?

Vacation Home I have simular equipment at this home and was told from Direct TV that the dish and Direct TV Receivers will not allow me to receive local TV stations.
Family Room
Sony SAT-HD100 Receiver
- I plan on asking Direct TV to upgrade me to the HR20-700 receiver. Is this what I need?
Direct TV Dish (Older Style, Purchaced in 2001?)
- I plan on asking Direct TV to upgrade me to the 5 LNB Dish. Is this the Dish that I need so that I can view Direct TV from 4 other rooms?

The following is a list of items I plan to negotiate when calling Direct TV. Please sugesst any other Items that I will need from Direct TV to accomplish my upgrade.
Qty 2-4 - Free HR20-700 receiver (2 for each home)
Qty 2 - Free 5 LNB Satellite Dish (1 for each home)
Qty 2 - Free Multiswitch (6 X 8), if I need them?
Qty 2 - Free Installation at both homes.
6 Months free Showtime
4 Months free HDTV
$120 off my bill for one year ($10 / month for a year)

Thanks again for any help!!!

 

[JLucPicard]

And what pictures of which exec in compromising positions do you have that you expect to be able to get 2 to 4 free HR20 DVRs?

To have that set up in two different places will also require two separate, full accounts with D*.

If you are serious, I apologize. I just don't know which threads you read that gave you the impression that you could get all of that stuff for free. Best of luck with that.

If you are planning on four room viewing in your main home you should expect to pay for more than one receiver.

I'm sorry - I have to stop here. I believe you are serious, but I would really think about lowering your expectations about what you will be able to get from D* Good Luck with your upgrade - let us know how it turns out!

 

[daytoday]

Sorry, If my post was laughable. I'm uneducated at D* even though I have had it for 10 years. We don't use it much since we also have cable. I was thinking about canceling D* and then found a thread on Fatwallet that listed what customers where getting. Fatwallet also had a link to this site. A fatwallet member had posted the following comments....

Called customer rentention at 800-824-9081 and here was what I got:

Called only once... I worked my negotiation skills and got this:

Free HR-20 receiver ($216 charged on my CC, but a $216 credit on my bill, which has already been applied)
Free 5 LNB Satellite Dish
Free Multiswitch (6 X 8)
Free Installation
6 Months free Showtime
4 Months free HDTV
$120 off my bill for one year ($10 / month for a year).

The rep initially offered only $100 for the receiver (making it $199), but before he finished reading the offer, I interrupted him by saying "A free HD DVR is only the STARTING point of negotiations. All of your competitors are giving me the same thing, so I'm looking for what ELSE you can do"...

The rep qucikly realized what he needed to do, which got me my deal.

I thought I would ask D* for what I needed and see what they could offer? Sorry once again if I have waisted anyones time.

 

[carl6]

By all means call and see what you can negotiate. You will probably have to pay for the HD DVR's - but then people have reported success with not having to so no one can predict for sure what your experience will be.

The dish and SD receivers, along with installation, should be do-able.

In order to have simultaneous service at both locations, you will need two accounts.

Good luck. Let us know how you make out if you decide to pursue this.

And you haven't wasted anyone's time. Questions are always welcome. Your expectations are high, and you may not be able to achieve them. But there is nothing wrong with trying. You've got to start from someplace.

Carl

 

[Blitz68]

The following is a list of items I plan to negotiate when calling Direct TV. Please sugesst any other Items that I will need from Direct TV to accomplish my upgrade.
Qty 2-4 - Free HR20-700 receiver (2 for each home)
Qty 2 - Free 5 LNB Satellite Dish (1 for each home)
Qty 2 - Free Multiswitch (6 X 8), if I need them?
Qty 2 - Free Installation at both homes.
6 Months free Showtime
4 Months free HDTV
$120 off my bill for one year ($10 / month for a year)

Nice shopping list, Tis the Season. Good luck with that.

Also, JLucPicard is correct. For 2 different locations you need 2 seperate accounts.

 

[Milominderbinder2]

I'm a new member and have spent serveral hours on this site reading posts. I need to update my Home with HDTV. I am interested in purchacing a new HDTV, AMP and DVD Player that will allow me to view Direct TV in 4 diiferent rooms.

You did great! Wow!

As you do these new installs there are several key facts to consider:
+ Have D* run 4 new RG6 cables for you. Try the old and new cables to see which gives better signal strength. Your old cables may have oxidation, less shielding, moisture, kinks, tight bends, a floating ground, or be rated for lower frequency. You may have a crack in the cable skin allowing raw naked electrons to spill out on the floor. You can end up with an Ohmic connection that may not have been much of a problem at lower frequencies but will be with the HR20.

+ D* will replace your old switch for free. Let them. An Attic may be a hot or cold place for a switch.

+ Make sure D* alligns the AT9 dish using a meter.

+ Use component outputs instead of HDMI. No one has Component problems that HDMI sovled. Many have HDMI problems that conponent helped.

+ Turn Native Off. This has solved many problems.

+ Use a good Uninterruptable Power Supply (UPS: 500+ Joules, 500+ V-A). The HR20 seems to be fussy about power dips and spikes. It doesn't have a loud manly power supply. The power in your house dips and sags all day. You may only see the sag with a digial scope. But it is not the sag that gets you. It is the following spike. You may not know it because it waits until you leave. Power is sneaky like that.

See the Installation tips links below for a lot more.

- Craig

 

[JLucPicard]

The following is a list of items I plan to negotiate when calling Direct TV. Please sugesst any other Items that I will need from Direct TV to accomplish my upgrade.
Qty 2-4 - Free HR20-700 receiver (2 for each home)
Qty 2 - Free 5 LNB Satellite Dish (1 for each home)
Qty 2 - Free Multiswitch (6 X 8), if I need them?
Qty 2 - Free Installation at both homes.
6 Months free Showtime
4 Months free HDTV
$120 off my bill for one year ($10 / month for a year)

Thanks again for any help!!!

daytoday,

I should have said in my last post, "Welcome to DBSTalk!!!" :welcome_s

And I also want to apologize - your post was certainly not laughable. I give you tons of credit for the research you've done before asking your questions as a lot of people don't even do that.

The free 5LNB dish, free multi-switch and free installation (free standard installation) are a given when you purchase an HR20 from DirecTv. The free programming and bill credits are something you need to be able to negotiate with D*.

If you've been a good, long-standing customer it may be possible to negotiate to get a free HR20, but more likely maybe an HR20 for $99 with some credits or free programming to essentially make it free. I would not expect that you could do that for more than one HR20 however. And you would need a second account for your vacation home. I wouldn't expect you would be able to get many freebies for that account, other than the installation, dish, and maybe switch needed to get that one set up equipment-wise.

Which brings up another point - with the free installation, you would only get a free multi-switch if the equipment configuration required it. There are four cables coming off the 5 LNB dish. If your equipment configuration requires only four or less than four input feeds, you most likely would not get a multi-switch thrown in.

 

[jaywdetroit]

I'm a new member and have spent serveral hours on this site reading posts. I need to update my Home with HDTV. I am interested in purchacing a new HDTV, AMP and DVD Player that will allow me to view Direct TV in 4 diiferent rooms. I currently have had both Cable TV and Direct TV for the past 10 years. I will be calling Direct TV to request help in upgrading my Direct TV. Please suggest what Direct TV equipment I should ask for? I also am interested in upgrading my Televisions, DVD and Amp in my family room. Thanks for your help!

Permanent home - Note: I would like to be able to view Direct TV from 4 different rooms without paying for 4 Direct TV recievers. Currently I can only watch Direct TV from the family room.
Family Room
Sony SAT-HD100 Receiver
- I plan on asking Direct TV to upgrade me to the HR20-700 receiver. Is this what I need?
Direct TV Dish (Older Style, Purchaced in 2001?)
- I plan on asking Direct TV to upgrade me to the 5 LNB Dish. Is this the Dish that I need so that I can view Direct TV from 4 other rooms?
Sony TV (KV-36FS100)
- Please suggest a quality (Large HD TV Flatscreen) and recommend a store that I should purchace it from?
Sony AVD-C70ES Amp/DVD/Tuner
- Please suggest a quality AMP and recommend a store that I should Purchace it from?
Motorola Cable TV Box
- This Box was installed my my Cable Service and was wondering if there would be any benifit to upgrading or purchacing something better?

Vacation Home I have simular equipment at this home and was told from Direct TV that the dish and Direct TV Receivers will not allow me to receive local TV stations.
Family Room
Sony SAT-HD100 Receiver
- I plan on asking Direct TV to upgrade me to the HR20-700 receiver. Is this what I need?
Direct TV Dish (Older Style, Purchaced in 2001?)
- I plan on asking Direct TV to upgrade me to the 5 LNB Dish. Is this the Dish that I need so that I can view Direct TV from 4 other rooms?

The following is a list of items I plan to negotiate when calling Direct TV. Please sugesst any other Items that I will need from Direct TV to accomplish my upgrade.
Qty 2-4 - Free HR20-700 receiver (2 for each home)
Qty 2 - Free 5 LNB Satellite Dish (1 for each home)
Qty 2 - Free Multiswitch (6 X 8), if I need them?
Qty 2 - Free Installation at both homes.
6 Months free Showtime
4 Months free HDTV
$120 off my bill for one year ($10 / month for a year)

Thanks again for any help!!!

Daytoday-

It's true that in September people were getting great deals on these boxes. I got the best deal I could have asked for. One thing to note, I had a GREAT and knowledgeable CSR who was aware of this forum. I told him (honestly) that I did not want to relinquish my TIVO, and I got the "great" deal. If you go into your negotiation expecting it (the "great" deal) though, I can almost guarantee you will not get it.

Another thing to note: I got the deal BEFORE D* realized what the demand was for these new units. I called almost the exact day they were released. Now that demand is so high, I am not so sure you will get such a deal.

Welcome to the board, and good luck!

 

[daytoday]

Thanks to everyone for the advice. I really appreciate the comments.

Even though I have been a D* customer since 1998. At my permanent home I currently have only (1) receiver a Sony HD SAT100. I bought the unit because it was a Sony and it had a RF remote. I never understood HD and never took the time to try to understand it until I found this site. (Note: I had problems with my signal at home last spring and could not get a picture. I contacted a CSR and after he had me do several things including adjusting the dish, we could not resolve the issue. The CSR never did offer to send a Tech out, so I just turned the receiver off. I rarely used D* at home since I also have Digital Cable. The Main reason I still have D* is because I have D* at my vacation home and on a boat.

My vacation home has had D* since 2001 so I'm grandfathered in on this and only have to may (1) subscribtion fee and $5 for each receiver that I have.

 

[daytoday]

I called D*and here is what they offered. I told them I would have to think about it? I wanted to charge me extra for the HR20-700 receiver. I told them I was going to think about it.

Home
1- Round Dish 18" Dual LNB Dish (for local stations)
1- 18 Inch x 20 Inch Triple LNB DIRECTV Multi-SatelliteDish Antenna (5x4 Multiswitch)
1 - HD 20 Receivers

Vacation Home
1- 18 Inch x 20 Inch Triple LNB DIRECTV Multi-SatelliteDish Antenna (5x4 Multiswitch)