Dish-TiVo question

[ruefrex@sbcglobal.net]

This is my first post. I currently have analog cable. I've split the cable and have two TiVos going into my TV. I want to switch to Dish but I can't figure out if I can still do this. I know; get the Dish DVR! I will eventually, but I still love my Tivos. Does anyone know if there's any way to use both of my TiVos with Dish, on one TV, where I can record two different channels at once? I know there's a regular Dish box that says it's for two TVs; does that mean there are two tuners? I can't figure it out.

Thanks for any help...

 

[stone phillips420]

This is my first post. I currently have analog cable. I've split the cable and have two TiVos going into my TV. I want to switch to Dish but I can't figure out if I can still do this. I know; get the Dish DVR! I will eventually, but I still love my Tivos. Does anyone know if there's any way to use both of my TiVos with Dish, on one TV, where I can record two different channels at once? I know there's a regular Dish box that says it's for two TVs; does that mean there are two tuners? I can't figure it out.

Thanks for any help...

to Satguys
no you can only use 1 tivo with dish which will record only 1 channel at a time
dish boxes that do 2 tv's are dual tuners so if you hook it up to 1 tv only you can record two things at once with dish 522 625 942 and 622
hopefully this answers your questions

 

[ruefrex@sbcglobal.net]

to Satguys
no you can only use 1 tivo with dish which will record only 1 channel at a time
dish boxes that do 2 tv's are dual tuners so if you hook it up to 1 tv only you can record two things at once with dish 522 625 942 and 622
hopefully this answers your questions

Thanks for the welcome, and the quick reply! What about the Dish 322 standard receiver? It claims to have two tuners. It's not a DVR, but from the looks of it, it's got two RCA hookups on the back. I just want to make sure that I can use my TiVos with this and I trust you forum people more than the folks at Dish.

Thanks!!!

 

[abricko]

i believe the 322 (dual tuner receiver) operates on one UHF and one IR remote... so you can hook up one tivo to control the IR receiver. Hooking up the second tivo to the second receiver output will not do you any good because the second receiver uses UHF to control (which tivo doesn't support).

As a former tivo sub (two tivos just like you) dump that crap (sell it on ebay) dump the high fees you pay for two tivos and put that towards bumping up your programming package or just save the money, the 622 is a GREAT receiver.

You'll have 3 tuners (if you hook up an OTA antenna and get signal in your area) and HD (if you care) and you'll somewhat be future proof because of the support of MPEG4... and while the UI of the 622/Dish DVR is not as child like as the tivo (doesn't make those lame noises) it works very similar and you'll be happy that you're not taking an allready over compressed SD picture from dish network and then recompressing it with your tivo.

 

[ruefrex@sbcglobal.net]

i believe the 322 (dual tuner receiver) operates on one UHF and one IR remote... so you can hook up one tivo to control the IR receiver. Hooking up the second tivo to the second receiver output will not do you any good because the second receiver uses UHF to control (which tivo doesn't support).

As a former tivo sub (two tivos just like you) dump that crap (sell it on ebay) dump the high fees you pay for two tivos and put that towards bumping up your programming package or just save the money, the 622 is a GREAT receiver.

You'll have 3 tuners (if you hook up an OTA antenna and get signal in your area) and HD (if you care) and you'll somewhat be future proof because of the support of MPEG4... and while the UI of the 622/Dish DVR is not as child like as the tivo (doesn't make those lame noises) it works very similar and you'll be happy that you're not taking an allready over compressed SD picture from dish network and then recompressing it with your tivo.

I understand the TiVo thing now, thanks! I just have a few more questions, if you don't mind. I can handle another interface but a few things I rely on most with Tivo are season passes, being able to pad/clip recordings, recording by keywords, actors, directors, that sort of thing, and burning shows to a DVD recorder. Can I do these things with the Dish receiver? Is there any way to download directly to a computer? That's not a deal-breaker; it's not like Tivo To Go worked all that well. Also, I can't do HD right now because my home theatre receiver doesn't have HDMI, but would it be better to get the 622 rather than the standard DVR?

I really appreciate this!

 

[TNGTony]

The biggest advantage of a Dish DVR to a TiVo is that the Dish DVR records the bit-stream coming from the satellite. It is not encoding and compressing a signal that has already been compressed and decompressed. IOW you lose no pq from "live".

So to answer questions: A 622 (and I think the 522 and 625 regular dual tuner DVRs) can find program by program name. Has a "Dish Pass" and "record new episodes" feature. You can search by any key word, but TiVos are much better at this.

There is no way to dump a Dish DVR program to a computer. The option is to play it back and capture it off the best hook-up you can.

The 622 is really not much better in PQ than standard DVRs on regular channels. If you do not plan to get the HD channels for a while (months and months and months) then a standard DVR will do the trick. However the PQ on the HD channels is excellent. If you plan to upgrade soon or already have a 16x9 TV it is well worth it especially with the current new customer discounts where they essentially PAY you to get a 622 installed. The PQ out of the S-Video jack on the TV 1 side is as good as S-Video can possibly be! The composite and component outs all look great too, though there is a difference.

See ya
Tony

 

[pip]

I still have my TiVos because their software makes the 622 interface look antiquated. There is just no comparison on the features. Some of the season pass features can be done on the Dish DVRs but it is less intuitive. The search by keyword feature is not as good either.

Having said that, the 622 has multiple HD receivers and I can record 2 HD shows whilst watching another pre-recorded show. SD content is good quality too. The interface takes some getting used to though and I miss the TiVo ease of use combined with its powerful features. No 'togo' functionality on dish DVRs either.

So, I still have one TiVo hooked up to a single tuner SD receiver upstairs and I currently have the other TiVo hooked up to the 622. However this is going to have to change because:

1) I wanted to hook up the TiVo to the second 622 SD output & have it control the second tuner....but it cant baucause this would need UHF control.

2) Then I hooked it up so it could control in single mode using IR....however then it just started recording Dish's screen saver all the time. There is no way to turn off the screen saver, I even tried setting the 622 to auto tune every few hours. Doesn't work.

My solution, just get a single tuner SD receiver for each TiVo, and get the 622 for watching/recording HD. You can pick up single tuner SD receivers pretty cheap.

 

[ruefrex@sbcglobal.net]

I still have my TiVos because their software makes the 622 interface look antiquated. There is just no comparison on the features. Some of the season pass features can be done on the Dish DVRs but it is less intuitive. The search by keyword feature is not as good either.

Having said that, the 622 has multiple HD receivers and I can record 2 HD shows whilst watching another pre-recorded show. SD content is good quality too. The interface takes some getting used to though and I miss the TiVo ease of use combined with its powerful features. No 'togo' functionality on dish DVRs either.

So, I still have one TiVo hooked up to a single tuner SD receiver upstairs and I currently have the other TiVo hooked up to the 622. However this is going to have to change because:

1) I wanted to hook up the TiVo to the second 622 SD output & have it control the second tuner....but it cant baucause this would need UHF control.

2) Then I hooked it up so it could control in single mode using IR....however then it just started recording Dish's screen saver all the time. There is no way to turn off the screen saver, I even tried setting the 622 to auto tune every few hours. Doesn't work.

My solution, just get a single tuner SD receiver for each TiVo, and get the 622 for watching/recording HD. You can pick up single tuner SD receivers pretty cheap.

OK. I do only have one TV, though; can I do that with only one TV?

I'm still not sure if I'll dump TiVo or not. Tony makes a good case for it, especially regarding the video compression. But I still have my series 1 TiVo and it's gonna be a hard habit to break. I don't mind if the interface of the Dish DVR is clunkier, or not as intuitive, as long as I can get pretty much what TiVo gives me.

 

[abricko]

I still think the deal breaker (for me was) the cost of tivo's monthly services... how can ANYONE justify paying that much just for freaking guide data and the ability to re-encode analog video... I don't get what they are selling?

There is an adjustment period going from Tivo to Dish and the Tivo does have better scheduling features than E* DVRs, but the other benefits outweigh the better scheduling of the Tivo.

 

[pip]

Sure, if it has two inputs...no problem.

OK. I do only have one TV, though; can I do that with only one TV?

I'm still not sure if I'll dump TiVo or not. Tony makes a good case for it, especially regarding the video compression. But I still have my series 1 TiVo and it's gonna be a hard habit to break. I don't mind if the interface of the Dish DVR is clunkier, or not as intuitive, as long as I can get pretty much what TiVo gives me.