Have a VIP622, want to add an additional receiver. Advice?

[Sicemdawgs]

Right now we have a VIP622 feeding our main TV (52" HDTV) and bedroom TV (40" HDTV) on the 2nd tuner.

What I want is HD on the bedroom TV. Should I get an additional receiver, like a VIP 211k and hook it to the bedroom TV?

The 2nd tuner output of the VIP622 could then be directed to the guest room TV which is rarely used.

Our other option is to wait for Hopper/Joeys.

Can anyone provide some advice as to which option I should do? The 622 we have is leased, but I don't mind paying for the cheaper 211 if that is the best way to go.

 

[kevinsickles]

My recommendation depends on whether you want the living room HDTV to watch a different channel at the same time as the living room. What I do is use an HDMI splitter and run an HDMI cable from the living room to the HD tv in the bedroom. This means the HD content is "mirrored" between both TV's (same thong shows on both) You could still watch TV2 in SD if wanted. . If you can't run the cable I also use a wifeless hdmi extender for a TV I could not run the cable to. It works well. If you want both HD's to be watched at the same time and different channels/recordings. I would go with the Hopper

 

[boba]

Lease a 211K and add a hard drive for the bedroom, the Hopper will have tons of bugs till 2013 so why ask for problems. Get a proven product for $7 more on your bill, it may require a 24 mo. commitment but it should be free except the monthly.

 

[chrisn]

I also decided against a box for the bedroom and just ran hdmi there. The other nice thing about that, and maybe this won't apply to you, is I can play 360 in either room... and, if I ever get blu-ray, could watch that in either room as well. I guess it really comes down to a decision between the money spent on duplicate tech for the bedroom versus having to walk to the LR to change discs etc...

 

[Sicemdawgs]

If I went with a 211k, should I buy or lease? Looks like they are going for around $120 on ebay.

And would the $7 be all that's added? Would there be a DVR fee if I added an EHD to the 211k?

 

[Teehar]

If I went with a 211k, should I buy or lease? Looks like they are going for around $120 on ebay.

And would the $7 be all that's added? Would there be a DVR fee if I added an EHD to the 211k?

Buy or lease totally up to you.Lease would be fine imo though.Yes $7 is all that would be added per month.Now to make it a dvr you would have to buy ehd and pay a one time $40 activation fee.

 

[boba]

If I went with a 211k, should I buy or lease? Looks like they are going for around $120 on ebay.

And would the $7 be all that's added? Would there be a DVR fee if I added an EHD to the 211k?

LEASE!!!!! the only advantage to purchasing is your wallet will go on a diet. Monthly costs are the same lease or owned. 211 costs $40 to add the hard drive but no monthly DVR fees.

 

[dwarren2]

Once you pay the $40 for the ehd activation, there are no further fees.

 

[Sicemdawgs]

What is the benefit of buying? So you don't have to sign a 2-year contract?

 

[steve4810]

Lease a 211K and add a hard drive for the bedroom, the Hopper will have tons of bugs till 2013 so why ask for problems. Get a proven product for $7 more on your bill, it may require a 24 mo. commitment but it should be free except the monthly.

In my house that wouldn't work because both of us want access to our common DVR recordings (and my wife makes me take turns on who has to stay up in the living room to watch night time TV).

 

[Sicemdawgs]

It would if you add an external hard drive. Move the recording to the EHD and take it upstairs.

That's the trade off I am willing to make to have HD upstairs.

 

[kevinsickles]

If you decide on the 211. You can still cross connect the receivers to the Tv's. By using component for one tv and running hdmi to the other. That is better then moving the ehd. I alao thought you could only move the ehd so many times?

 

[nsafreak]

If you decide on the 211. You can still cross connect the receivers to the Tv's. By using component for one tv and running hdmi to the other. That is better then moving the ehd. I alao thought you could only move the ehd so many times?

He won't be able to move the EHD between the 211k and 622 and be able to keep the recordings. The two receivers use the EHD in totally different ways. If he takes a receiver that's been formatted by the 211k to the 622 it'll ask if he wants to format the disk and not present an option to view it's contents, same goes in reverse.

 

[Aliens]

[FONT=&amp]I have a 622 in my basement and was using it to get TV2 in my bedroom. I recently bought new HD plasma and moved my older HD plasma to my bedroom. Because SD looked so bad and I wasn't taking advantage of a HDTV on TV2, I decided I wanted to upgrade that room to HD. I looked at my options with E* & D* and started my negotiations with both. In the end, E* gave me a 612 (HD DVR) with a $10 credit per month for 2 years. Of course I had to commit for 2 more years, but for me that wasn’t a big deal. I can now record 4 shows at once while watching OTA at the same time. [/FONT]

 

[Sicemdawgs]

Now I'm confused. Which HD receivers can share EHD recordings with a VIP622?

 

[KAB]

Now I'm confused. Which HD receivers can share EHD recordings with a VIP622?

VIP 612, 722, 722k, 922.