Dish Network Impression so far..

[saturk]

I've had Dish for a few months now. The only thing that I'm satisfied with is that i pay a lot less than I did with Adelphia cable and the DVR. Other than that the lack of channels that you get on the basic of basic package from Adelphia ie. NFL Network, MSG- is very unsatisfying. The Dish DOES go out more than cable ever did. And the DVR has been a little buggy(but not as bad as most of the stories I hear on this site.)

The price is what got me to switch and will keep me for now. But, they really need to research local markets and offer what is wanted. I can't believe they would not have the local professional sport team channel included in there most basic of packages. To pay $5 more just for one channel is nuts. If I add that I'll be at $42 and that's getting close to why I left Adelphia.

 

[JPointerWI]

if you are loosing signal that often, call your installer back and have them realign the dish. The only time you should ever loose signal is during very heavy storms in the immediate area, or coming out of the southwest. IF your installer wont do anything, or wants to charge you, call dish and complain, they will find another installer to do it correctly.

 

[sprintcarcrazy]

Ditto on the signal issue

 

[Mr Tony]

I've had Dish for a few months now. The only thing that I'm satisfied with is that i pay a lot less than I did with Adelphia cable and the DVR. Other than that the lack of channels that you get on the basic of basic package from Adelphia ie. NFL Network, MSG- is very unsatisfying. The Dish DOES go out more than cable ever did. And the DVR has been a little buggy(but not as bad as most of the stories I hear on this site.)

Dish shouldnt go out that much. What are your signal strengths for satellite 119 & 110 transponders 11 & 12?

menu 6-1-1 to get into that screen and you can switch transponders by using channel up & down. Please post them. they should all be around 100 or more. I've lost signal only in heavy downpours and Ive had Dish for 5 years

The price is what got me to switch and will keep me for now. But, they really need to research local markets and offer what is wanted. I can't believe they would not have the local professional sport team channel included in there most basic of packages. To pay $5 more just for one channel is nuts. If I add that I'll be at $42 and that's getting close to why I left Adelphia.

So you got Dish without reading What you were getting? Shame on you : )

They have their packages. If you don’t want your local RSN or a couple other channels, AT60 is the best option for people. Some want it all…

Look on the bright side, you say “the most basic of packages”. Most cable companies “basic package” is your locals and public access stuff for $12-$15. If you want anything more, you jump to $45+

 

[saturk]

I should clarify- I've been through snow, wind and rain with no problem. The only outs are in thunder storms and heavy rain. Still it has gone out more than I remember cable going out. Still not a big deal. I will check my signal strength and post.

As for the RSN- I thought that was included. I would think Dish would drop some other channel and add that to the 60 pack. You pay $5 for locals as it is and that RSN should be in there.

And like I said, I switched to save money. So, if I add the RSN, I'll be at $42 and some change. I was paying $49 when I left cable. I know I'm getting DVR with this but also less channels, less TV's.

I'm not really complaining just giving my impressions. Unless the Sabres are on the verge of a Stanley Cup, I probably will not add the RSN!

 

[JPointerWI]

In that case you have been very lucky with cable. Almost everyone I know that has cable for whatever reason has problems with the quality of the analog channels (2-99) getting much worse for a few days every time it rains. For those of us in the northern states, it's common for lines to break as the temp drops below zero, causing outages for entire neighborhoods that can last up to 2 days while repair crews try to run new lines in the freezing cold. Cable goes out, and when it does, it's usually for much longer then satellite.

 

[Mr Tony]

For those of us in the northern states, it's common for lines to break as the temp drops below zero, causing outages for entire neighborhoods that can last up to 2 days while repair crews try to run new lines in the freezing cold. Cable goes out, and when it does, it's usually for much longer then satellite.

yep. When I had cable, once or twice a year we'd lose it for a couple days while they repaired the snapped lines. Guess those cable lines don't like -30 in the good ol Northern MN

 

[JPointerWI]

The problem isnt so much the cold temps, but the huge temp swings from summer to winter. There arent too many plastic/rubber/vinyl compounds that really have a working rage of 100+ degrees. Over time it breaks down the outer jacket, water gets in and the cbale goes bad. It's gotten a bit better now that the trunklines are mostly fiber optic, but that has it's own issues.

 

[miguelaqui]

I should clarify- I've been through snow, wind and rain with no problem. The only outs are in thunder storms and heavy rain. Still it has gone out more than I remember cable going out. Still not a big deal. I will check my signal strength and post.

As for the RSN- I thought that was included. I would think Dish would drop some other channel and add that to the 60 pack. You pay $5 for locals as it is and that RSN should be in there.

And like I said, I switched to save money. So, if I add the RSN, I'll be at $42 and some change. I was paying $49 when I left cable. I know I'm getting DVR with this but also less channels, less TV's.

I'm not really complaining just giving my impressions. Unless the Sabres are on the verge of a Stanley Cup, I probably will not add the RSN!

Why can't you get the AT60 plus? http://www.dishnetwork.com/content/programming/packages/at_50plus/index.asp?viewby=1&packid=10414&sortby=1

That's probably what the CSR recommended $36.00 + $4.98 (DVR fee)
$36.99 gets you your AT60, locals and RSN.

As far as the RSN should be in with the locals, the RSN is a satellite channel, which they have to pay for per subscriber. Lots of times, they make very little profit from sports channels b/c they charge them so much per customer.
I wish all service providers could make all sports channels a-la-carte b/c there are many who care very little about any sports who have to pay for them.

 

[texas16309]

I'm not impressed with Dish's signal rain resiliency. My 119 and 110 numbers are in the high 90s and when ever it rains moderately hard, the signal is lost. DirecTV would only go out on strong thunderstorms and Time Warner cable never went out (here in Texas unless a line was cut). Oh well.

 

[lvkewlkid]

i always had signal lost with D* when it rained. Today, it rained hard here and with E* signal was lost, but only for 5 minutes, with D*, it took hours after the rain ended.

 

[miguelaqui]

I'm not impressed with Dish's signal rain resiliency. My 119 and 110 numbers are in the high 90s and when ever it rains moderately hard, the signal is lost. DirecTV would only go out on strong thunderstorms and Time Warner cable never went out (here in Texas unless a line was cut). Oh well.

I have heard many people say that. But, they would also say that they had signal in the 90's with D* and have E* in the 90's, but, it is my understanding, 90's on D* is much higher than 90's with E* b/c the signal strength screen only goes up to 100 with D* and 125 with E*.
I have between 110-124 on all transponders, except for the spot beams, on sat 119. I have about the same on 110.
I only lose signal if it is training so hard that I cannot see the house across the street.

 

[boba]

I'm not impressed with Dish's signal rain resiliency. My 119 and 110 numbers are in the high 90s and when ever it rains moderately hard, the signal is lost. DirecTV would only go out on strong thunderstorms and Time Warner cable never went out (here in Texas unless a line was cut). Oh well.

You should check your signal strength if your only getting 90's you probably need your dish aligned. Dish has a maximum of 125% DirecTV has a Max of 100% so 90 on DirecTV is higher than on DISH.

 

[Martianman68]

I think I need to call Dish as well...

I first got Dish installed in 1998, because they had locals at the time, and DirectTV didn't. At that time, you had to have a separate "local" dish, which pointed in another direction than the main dish. So, once the whole Dish 500 thing came along, I had someone come out and re-align the dish that was for locals. So, long story short, I have 2 dishes instead of one. Well, the main dish (pointed at 119), is actually on the ground on a pole. So I have to keep the area around that perfectly clear of any trees and growth--which is hard, because the guy put it in a natural area of my property. So when it gets the slightest bit rainy outside, the 119 dish is the first to crap out on me. Think I could convince Dish to send someone out to either replace the 2 dishes with 1 Dish500, or at least move the 2nd dish to my roof (where the other one is)?