So I'm about sick of Time Warner and I am looking into other options (aka satellite Dish). I always hear the "Dishes suck when it is cloudy" and "Dishes suck when it rains" etc. How have your experiences been with this? Does the signal go out on a cloudy/rainy day? How about satellite internet? Any experiences with that? Thanks!!
I had DishNetwork for a few years, no real issues other than when it rained REALLY hard you would loose signal for a few minutes. Usually you knew the rian was coming because it would flutter a but then go out before it really rained hard, then with in a few minutes it was back.
I bought the system at a box store and installed it myself, once I aimed the dish correctly the only issues were with hard rain.
Alas, I now have TW, as that was the only way to get off dial-up. haven't had any real issues yet.
Direct TV for about 3 years, no issues, not even when it rains. Used to have Dish Network, bad customer service, box broke within a year and they wanted to charge way more then I paid for it to repair it.
direct dv was not all that, we had it posted on the side of the house and when it was rainy/ clouded we would lose signal. I DVRed alot of stuff, and the rain knocked it out so I missed a few shows (I am soooooo glad they have internet TV, I would be so lost!!)
We have had Direct for about 10 years now. My first box was as big as a VCR and lasted about 8 years before it went bad. If it rains REALLY hard we lose the signal but that doesnt happen to often. Another nice thing about Direct is its easy to move and set up. We take ours camping takes about 10 min. to aim and hook up. I cant say any thing about their internet. Last time I checked it was about $75 a month. To much $$$ for me so I'm stuck on dial up.
So those of you who have direct tv who do you use for your internet service. Do you use your local phone companies DSL. or do you use TW Road Runner and just pay for that service. Also those of you who have Direct TV and have DVR do you have to have a phone line hooked up to get the device to work correctly?
So those of you who have direct tv who do you use for your internet service. Do you use your local phone companies DSL. or do you use TW Road Runner and just pay for that service. Also those of you who have Direct TV and have DVR do you have to have a phone line hooked up to get the device to work correctly?
I use charter, the DVR was the main reason I went with Direct, Charter Cable wouldn't offer a DVR for my area. Yes, I have a phone line, but it doesn't get used much.
I was really thinking about going to Direct TV also but when they said that they require a telephone line I was like it is cheaper for me to just stay with TW even though I can get more channels. But if the telephone was not really required then I would really want to switch because I am tired of TW.
I was really thinking about going to Direct TV also but when they said that they require a telephone line I was like it is cheaper for me to just stay with TW even though I can get more channels. But if the telephone was not really required then I would really want to switch because I am tired of TW.
you can buy movies via cell phone or internet (internet is EASY) and for the first few movies you can order with no phone cord and get them free (until you eventually plug the box in)
as for troubleshooting... nothing about the phone has anything to do with it if you know how to read your signal levels in the menu.
after being a directv tech for 4 years, a dish network tech for a year, a c/ku band (BIG dish) tech for most all of those years, and a current cable tech i can tell you that each has it's pros and cons... charter SUCKS. time warner is pretty good assuming you have a good install.... smae goes to satellite... it's ALL in the installation... half-assed install=unsatisfied customer 100% of the time
One question about the install they could not answer me on the phone if I get one of the new DVR boxes it says that it requires two connection, can they use the stackers so that I can use the one connection that I have and they don't have to run a another line because I don't want then drilling thru my walls from the outside.
I had the Direct DVR put a couple months ago and he had to run a second line for the DVR. For internet I use good ol dial up. Phone company says DSL is 4-5 years away for me.
One question about the install they could not answer me on the phone if I get one of the new DVR boxes it says that it requires two connection, can they use the stackers so that I can use the one connection that I have and they don't have to run a another line because I don't want then drilling thru my walls from the outside.
Mine is a stacker Josh, just two cables together, they just ran the line into the same wall that my cable came in, and did it much cleaner then the cable people did.
I was a DirecTV customer for 11 years. They aggrivated me when they went to the setup where you lease your equipment rather than own it. I thought that might be a benifit, til I had a DVR unit go bad and they wanted me to pay for replacement AND extend my contract. We couldn't come to an agreement, so I left them and went with Time Warner for about 3 months. We went with Dish when we moved into our new place.
DirecTV used to be awesome, with their customer service, but things have changed over the years. That's not to say I deceive myself into thinking Dish's customer service is any better, but I hate Time Warner, so I'll either use Dish or DTV (whichever one has the better deal when my contract comes up) until a better satellite service comes around.
As far as reception goes, if the dish is tuned correctly, you should never see a reception problem, except for the heaviest rain or snow storms. If you see your signal breaking up on a regular basis call the installers out and tell them they have work to do.
I've had DVRs with all three services (I wouldn't have a service without one now). Other than Tivo, I don't think any of them are worlds better than the others. I do think both Dish's and DTV's implementations are much better than the TWC unit I had.
For internet, I use DSL. I keep a very basic land line anyway (mainly for 911 service), so that worked out best for me where I am.
One caveat, my experience is almost exclusively with standard TV with these services. I don't have a HDTV yet, so have not seriously shopped that aspect of any of the services yet.
Mine is a stacker Josh, just two cables together, they just ran the line into the same wall that my cable came in, and did it much cleaner then the cable people did.
The concern that I have is my house is on a slab, and the room where I want the HD DVR to go is on the lower level. That side of my house is against the street and I don't want a ugly cable coming out of my wall and going down the side of my house. So that is why I was looking around and I see they sell this box that can stack the signals into one cable line that is already there so they would not have to run any cable except to the dish.
A good installer should be able to install the cable where you want it, how you want it. They won't want to, but they can. They should be able to install it in back, run the wire through your attic, and down the wall you want.
Anyone that is looking if you order online today they will give you $20.00 off a month for 12 months and you get all premium channels free for 3 months.
One question about the install they could not answer me on the phone if I get one of the new DVR boxes it says that it requires two connection, can they use the stackers so that I can use the one connection that I have and they don't have to run a another line because I don't want then drilling thru my walls from the outside.
if you only have one wire going to your DVR you can only use one of the DVR's tuners at a time so if you are recording something you can't watching anything else in the meantime. the best bet would be to replace that single run of rg6 with a run of dual rg6...
as long as the single line isn't stapled to a stud in the wall (if it's just one shitty staple you can get it to pop out usually, if the installer went nuts with electrical nail-in cable staples then it's near impossible)
depending what your home is sided with you can usually find a good way to get through the wall and cover everything up if you take your time.... usually a real big pain though unless you can cover it witha nice lil azalea bush or something
The concern that I have is my house is on a slab, and the room where I want the HD DVR to go is on the lower level. That side of my house is against the street and I don't want a ugly cable coming out of my wall and going down the side of my house. So that is why I was looking around and I see they sell this box that can stack the signals into one cable line that is already there so they would not have to run any cable except to the dish.
they didn't have those when i was a tech so i don't know anything about them BUT i was at a customer's house today that had a little gray box on his line behind his HD DVR and i guess that's what it was.... i was wondering the whole time but didn't think to ask since i was there to install cable.....
hey satellite guys... how are you getting the superbowl in high def? isn't it blacked out on the national feeds since it's being broadcast local? if that's the case you are stuck watching it in standard definition aren't ya?
if you only have one wire going to your DVR you can only use one of the DVR's tuners at a time so if you are recording something you can't watching anything else in the meantime. the best bet would be to replace that single run of rg6 with a run of dual rg6...
as long as the single line isn't stapled to a stud in the wall (if it's just one shitty staple you can get it to pop out usually, if the installer went nuts with electrical nail-in cable staples then it's near impossible)
depending what your home is sided with you can usually find a good way to get through the wall and cover everything up if you take your time.... usually a real big pain though unless you can cover it witha nice lil azalea bush or something
isn't it blacked out on the national feeds since it's being broadcast local? if that's the case you are stuck watching it in standard definition aren't ya?
isn't it blacked out on the national feeds since it's being broadcast local? if that's the case you are stuck watching it in standard definition aren't ya?
I had a Sat. setup and went with TWC when they finally pulled it into my area. I should have stuck with the Dish. It was and still is cheaper. I lost my Sat. connection once - during a tropical storm. I lost my cable so many times counting became useless. I've since moved and will switch to Sat. if a deal comes to my mailbox - and they can get through the tree around my new house.
I went to TWC the other day - I wanted to add a new box for a second TV. The line at the office was way to long. I decided then that if that's the service they want to provide for me to make them more money - then my money was better spent elsewhere.
