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DIRECTV uses one satellite fleet. DISH uses two. Why is that?

If you’re a DISH customer who’s moved from one place to another, you might have heard the term “Western Arc” and “Eastern Arc.” DISH has two complete satellite fleets and there is quite a bit of overlap in them. Both have all the national channels and there are even local channels that are on both actually as well. This would seem a little wasteful. Let’s take a look at how the two US providers handle their satellite fleets and why you would choose one or the other. First, a little bit about satellite orbits. All communication satellites orbit the earth at about 22,000 miles. above the equator. They use a trick called “geostationary orbit.” I wrote a whole lot about this a while back, but to put it simply, stuff orbits the earth...
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THROWBACK THURSDAY: 2012-The Year in Signals

Back in 2012, this blog had just relaunched. I didn’t know exactly what kind of content was going to really work. So all year I worked to bring tutorials, support articles, and occasional laughter to my audience. It wasn’t a very big audience back then but you have to start somewhere. The blog had been largely ignored for about two years and people moved on. In December I had the idea to recap the year, something I’ve done at the end of every year. I called the first one, “The Year in Signals.” You can check it out if you want, I’ll wait. Something that’s stayed with us: sports fees The first ever regional sports fee was levied by DIRECTV in 2012, when the company agreed to pick up “The Lakers Channel” (TWC SportsNet, as it was known...
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Is it worth it to keep an old DISH ViP series receiver?

DISH launched its satellite service in 1996, close to 30 years ago. That’s long enough that there have been several generations of receivers out there. One of the most popular were the ViP series of receivers and DVRs which were available in the 2000s. Even though most ViP hardware is coming on 20 years old, it’s proven incredibly reliable out there in the field. That means a lot of people are out there still wondering if they should keep their old hardware or upgrade to new hardware. What is the DISH ViP series? The DISH ViP series were receivers and DVRs capable of high-definition reception. The DVRs had something that made them unique in the marketplace: one DVR could feed two TVs. That made them beloved among thrifty satellite...
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HOW TO DO IT: Set record defaults for DIRECTV

There’s a neat feature on all DIRECTV DVRs that lets you record a series quickly and easily. You’ve probably heard about it. All you have to do is press the record button twice on a program in the guide, and that’s it. The trick is making sure that the recording is set your way. You need to make sure that everything works the way you want. Luckily, this handy guide will help. If you have a pre-Genie DVR The feature you’re looking for is called “Record Defaults.” Here’s a step by step guide for finding it. Press MENU. Arrow down to Recordings. Press SELECT. Arrow down to Record Defaults. Press SELECT. You’ll see a screen like this. It affects how all new series recordings act. In this case, I’m saying that I only want to record...
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Ken Reid and Erin & Jason Brant

May 25-31, 1991 This week Ken welcomes author Jason Brant and his wife and co-host of the EXCELLENT YouTube show, “So Bad It’s Good”, Erin Brant to the show. Ken, Jason and Erin discuss the risk of Erin and Jason wrecking the show forever, loving bad movies, how horrible a person Steven Segal is, vanity project, Neil Breen, how 1991 was the hangover of the 1980s, being barred from watching South Park, growing up in rural Western PA, Hershey, Pittsburgh, cigarettes, Robin Hood Prince of Thieves, Kevin Costner, Waterworld, T2, Transformers, childhood movie trauma, Space Camp, National Geographic, Boston mobsters, vomit bags, how amazing Steven Webber is, Wings, the wonder of Roy Biggins, America’s Funniest People, Kidney Magazine...
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BUYER’S GUIDE 2024: Choosing the right cell phone signal booster for car, truck, SUV, or RV

Over 90% of people experience bad cell service at some point in the day. That’s because almost every modern building is constructed to block cell phone signals! That’s right, all the same energy-efficient upgrades that keep heat and cold out also block cell phone signals. Luckily there’s a way to bring great cell service into your home, office, or vehicle. It’s easy to install, has no monthly fee, works with all phones, and is futureproof. It’s called a cell phone signal booster, or cell booster for short. How a cell booster works Courtesy of weBoost Cell boosters use three parts which, when working together, give you great service inside your home, office, or vehicle. There’s an outside antenna which is mounted up as high as...
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Should I buy an SD or CFast card from Temu or AliExpress?

The other day I was looking through some old stuff on YouTube and I was reminded that it wasn’t that long ago that 256GB of flash memory cost about $500. Today, you can find that same amount of memory on some large shopping sites for about $7. But generally, the stuff you see on sites like Amazon from brands you’ve heard of cost about $20. These are the prices for MicroSD. If you look for CFast cards, which is what our Blackmagic cameras use, they’re about $50 on those other sites and $250 on Amazon. Does it really make a difference? Simple answer: yes CFast cards, MicroSD cards, even solid state drives (SSDs) and flash drives are essentially the same thing. They are a form of computer chip that has two unique qualities. The first is...
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What is the best cell booster for long trips with the kids?

It’s summertime and you’ve decided to pile everyone into the family truckster for a road trip. When you were a kid, you got through the long drives by counting Volkswagens or playing “I Spy.” You probably know your kids well enough to know that’s not going to quite do it. You’ll be lucky to get them to look up from their phones when you actually get to Mount Rushmore, never mind getting them to look out the window before that. No, the family’s going to want to be on their phones, that’s just life in 2018. And it’s your job as the parent to make sure that happens, because the last thing you want while you’re on the road are cranky kids. You want this to be the kind of trip that everyone will look on fondly for years to come. Here’s how...
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Podcast #573: Dissecting the Curb Your Enthusiasm finale

We take a look at the lasting impact of Larry David on culture, and it’s pretty, pretty, pretty big. Want great service? Shop Solid Signal - Signal Solutions including HDTV Antennas, DIRECTV and DISH Network satellite equipment and home entertainment supplies and accessories or call us at 888-233-7563. Listen to the podcast your way! Just choose one of the following: Option 1: Click on the image above to stream the podcast in your browser. If you use the YouTube player above, be sure to subscribe to get future videos delivered to you! Option 2: The Solid Signal Podcast is available on several podcast aggregators. Search for us, or tap on the links below on your mobile device. If you want us to add another aggregator leave a comment...
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BUYER’S GUIDE 2024: Choosing the right cell phone signal booster for business

Over 90% of people experience bad cell service at some point in the day. That’s because almost every modern building is constructed to block cell phone signals! That’s right, all the same energy-efficient upgrades that keep heat and cold out also block cell phone signals. Luckily there’s a way to bring great cell service into your home, office, or vehicle. It’s easy to install, has no monthly fee, works with all phones, and is futureproof. It’s called a cell phone signal booster, or cell booster for short. How a cell booster works Courtesy of weBoost Cell boosters use three parts which, when working together, give you great service inside your home, office, or vehicle. There’s an outside antenna which is mounted up as high as...
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What’s the difference between having a watch party at home and having a watch party in a bar?

This question came to me the other day, and it took me a while to figure out the right way to answer it on this blog. The first thing I needed to do was write a title for this article, and that was one of the hardest parts! Here are some of the other ones I thought of: Why does a bar owner pay more to show baseball than a person at home? Why can’t you stream movies at at bar or restaurant? Why can you watch MLB.TV on your phone in a bar, but they can’t put MLB.TV up on the bar TVs? Why is sports programming treated differently in bars than other kinds of programs? These all might seem like different questions, but they’re not. Why? Because the answer to all of them is really the same. It comes down to some basic parts of the law...
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DIRECTV is starting to offer packages without locals. Will they bring back the AM21 or LCC to let you record off antenna?

According to several sources, DIRECTV will start offering customers the option to opt out of local channels in their satellite packages. It looks like you could save $12 a month by opting out, and you might have that option as soon as this summer. I don’t know how popular this option will be. I will say that you can get a lot of prime-time programs through Hulu, Peacock, and Paramount+. But not every city has local news and sports available over streaming. I’m a big believer in local media whether it’s TV, local web sites or even newspapers. There’s an old saying that “all politics is local politics” and I think that it’s never been more important to watch what’s going on in your community. But, it’s great that you’ll have a choice...
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Can you use a DIRECTV or DISH box as a gaming console?

A customer asked this recently. It’s really not that weird of a question! After all, we’re in the age when it seems like every box in your home theatre is trying to be “the only one you need.” Your TV has streaming apps built in. So does your satellite TV box. Your streaming box has ways to give you live content as if it were a traditional cable box. And, if you have a dedicated gaming console, it probably lets you use the major streaming apps. Before I answer, there’s a surprising history here. DIRECTV Game Lounge As further proof that you can find literally everything on YouTube, here’s a short history of DIRECTV’s Game Lounge: Game Lounge was an interactive service that ran on DIRECTV satellite receivers in the late ’00s and...
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BUYER’S GUIDE 2024: Choosing the right cell phone signal booster for home

Over 90% of people experience bad cell service at some point in the day. That’s because almost every modern building is constructed to block cell phone signals! That’s right, all the same energy-efficient upgrades that keep heat and cold out also block cell phone signals. Luckily there’s a way to bring great cell service into your home, office, or vehicle. It’s easy to install, has no monthly fee, works with all phones, and is futureproof. It’s called a cell phone signal booster, or cell booster for short. How a cell booster works courtesy of weBoost Cell boosters use three parts which, when working together, give you great service inside your home, office, or vehicle. There’s an outside antenna which is mounted up as high as...
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