DirecTV vs. Dish Network

[Chris D]

Well, as I mentioned in the other thread, I'm about to sign up for some sort of Satellite TV service. I've had DirecTV in the past, but since I moved and don't have service in my new house yet, I'm willing to consider Dish Network, and hopefully leverage the two companies against each other in a bidding war, to get the best deal.

Would be interested to hear people's impressions and experiences with the two companies. DirecTV supposedly is much better for HD content now, but I'm hearing that Dish Network has slightly better equipment. Dunno. I'll be getting two HD capable DVR receivers, with either company. With DirecTV, it would be two HR-21 receivers, and with Dish Network, two ViP 722 receivers.

With DirecTV, it would really be cool to get two HR-21 PROFESSIONAL models, but not sure if I could swing the cost. Those things have some really cool stuff.

Go here:

http://www.solidsignal.com/prod_display.asp?PROD=HR21PRO&xzoom=Large#xview

Or here:

http://www.fsiwebs.com/shopcart3/SC_ProdView.asp?LinkID=Re2rV5qFYM8KX_pQelYtsrE0lM2Q5yWi:5tMocL0JKfdbwcs0s:RwSL_DJP6Welwry0pQeygLu0-

Or download this:

http://www.valueelectronics.com/images/pdf/HR21%20pro_SpecSheet.pdf

It's got some cool stuff, like optical HDMI over fiber optics for long runs. Just big $$$, especially after you add on some more of the fiber optics equipment.

[Kevin D]

Well to make it easy for you, you can't receive the Dish Network feed that has all the new MPEG4 HD channels (and all the ones they plan to add). There's a problem with that sat and fringe areas have problems picking it up. Dish Network currently only offers a basic HD package for Alaska. You could go with dish and hope all goes well with the other launches this year (the first one to replace the HD sat on the eastern coast didn't fully make it up), but I would probably just go with Direct where you can get all the channels now.

Kevin D.

[littlesaint]

Also, I read that DISH's new satellite launch may have failed, while DirecTVs launch was successful.

[Hdale85]

Direct TV hasn't sent there's up yet from what I've read.

[littlesaint]

Direct TV hasn't sent there's up yet from what I've read.

http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2008/q1/080320a_nr.html

It isn't expected to start delivering until the fall (~50 HD channels), but if rumors of DISH's failure are true, it definitely puts them a step ahead. DirecTV plans to launch D12 sometime next year providing another 200 HD channels.

[David Meek]

The stories are true. Dish didn't have a successful launch. Story

[David Meek]

Chris,

On the subject of Dish vs. Direct, I'm a Dish subscriber and can verify that the HD package offered here in the far northwest suffers from dropouts. These aren't weather related either. They are due to the fact that we are on the edge of the broadcast footprint for the satellite used to transmit the Dish HD feed. I like the PQ from Dish over the PQ offered by Direct, but the dropouts are frustrating. I had the standard-def Dish setup for over a year and did not have a single dropout. With the HD it's almost a nightly thing.

When I record a show it's just to timeshift it. I'm not keeping anything permanently on the hard drive. If I like it that much I'll buy the high-def DVD, so the drops are annoying to me but not fatally so. I was hoping the new satellite was going to give some relief on this, but it isn't going to happen now. . . .

[Chris D]

Ah, very interesting to read. Yeah, didn't know that.

All in all, I am leaning towards DirecTV, for several reasons. Probably going to make it official on Monday.

[Chris D]

FWIW, I did have DirecTV installed on Tuesday. Went good, 99% done. I have to buy a Single Wire Module (SWM) switch that will take a few days to get here. DirecTV doesn't offer it in my area, so I have to buy it under the table 3rd party. But, I'll be the only private owner of a SWM in the entire state of Alaska! That will be pretty cool, I guess. Cutting edge?

So far, the programming and product is pretty good. I'm getting some signal dropout on a couple of the channels, I think on the high-def channels from one particular satellite. I'll see if I can tweak those a bit better. Since I'm here in Alaska, I actually had to install ***TWO*** dishes, and they're both 4-foot dishes!

I'll see how this goes.

[Hdale85]

....what is a single wire module?

[Chris D]

It's a new "Beta" product for DirecTV. Normally, you need one dedicated RG-6 coax line per DirecTV satellite tuner. So if you have a DVR, you actually need two coax cables input to it, for the two different tuners. Since I got two DVR's, I need four cables. Problem is, the guy who built my house did a great job of pre-wiring it, but only ran two RG-6 lines from the satellite dish house entry point to the main house equipment room.

So... the SWM combines, (the techies say "stacks") the satellite signals on top of each other, on just one RG-6 coax cable, and then you're able to use splitters down the line. So for a SWM-8, you can hook up as many as 8 tuners to just one coax line. This is a pretty hush-hush thing for D*, and only a few national markets are being tested on it right now. I found a source to buy one.

Apparently, the technology behind the D* broadcasting makes it different from Dish. With Dish, they can use their own products of combiners and splitters which are already mass produced.

[Hdale85]

Well those aren't really splitters but are called Multiswitches. I was wondering if maybe thats what you were talking about but sounds a bit different.

[Chris D]

Yeah, apparently the products are different with different technologies for Dish's tech setup or DirecTV's. You can't use one with the other.

[Kevin D]

Well those aren't really splitters but are called Multiswitches. I was wondering if maybe thats what you were talking about but sounds a bit different.

Yeah it's actually completely different. Pretty cool technology designed for houses only wired for standard cable. Once you go through the SWM switch you can run up to 8 Directv tuners and cable over one coax using standard cable splitters to divide it up.

We have several houses waiting for those pieces to go wide spread. We were fine with the old dish, diplexing in cable over one wire. Now everyone has 2 tuner DVR's (needed two coax's) and the new 5-lnb dish signal occupies the frequencies where cable normally goes so we can't even diplex cable/OTA in anymore. Definitely can't wait until SWM goes widespread. Only works with the new receivers though.

Dish has had a similar tech for a while now. You can run 2 sat tuners and diplexed cable over one coax. Not as cool as 8 tuners, but still makes it easy.

Kevin D.

[Lex]

other than freezing sometimes, DTV is ok. I am not sure how much of that is broadcast or how much the DVR. No Dish experience.