Hopper Duo and OTA

[N4UFO]

Am probably about to make the jump back into dish. (have local cable now in a rental, had OTA and Tivo before cross country - was Dish before that) There is a Dish Network satellite dish already on the house, should be easy for the installer to put on LNB, etc. I used to own my own equipment, (722k with OTA) but I see there is little to no advantage to that any more. So in researching current models, etc. I came up with a few questions.

With my old setup, I could record two things off the sat dish and two things off the OTA at the same time. I just asked the CS rep about this on the phone and after 'checking with his supervisor' he said 'No, the Duo can record only TWO channels... period. Adding the OTA dongle did not allow two OTA to be recorded at the same time.' I could have sworn I read otherwise, but now I cannot find that anywhere. So my questions are:

- Does the Hopper Duo support 2 dish and 2 OTA dongle recordings at the same time? (contrary to what the CS rep said)

- Can you add TWO OTA dongles (to any model Hopper) and get 4 OTA channels? (a person can dream)

- Is the Hopper 3 really worth it if I am likely to only have 1-2 TVs and why?

- Any reason to get the Dish dongle from them over the AirTV dongle?

Thanks in advance! Glad you guys are still here after all these years.

 

[pattykay]

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With my old setup, I could record two things off the sat dish and two things off the OTA at the same time. I just asked the CS rep about this on the phone and after 'checking with his supervisor' he said 'No, the Duo can record only TWO channels... period. Adding the OTA dongle did not allow two OTA to be recorded at the same time.' I could have sworn I read otherwise, but now I cannot find that anywhere. So my questions are:

- Does the Hopper Duo support 2 dish and 2 OTA dongle recordings at the same time? (contrary to what the CS rep said)
...

You probably read that in one of my posts.
Yes, the Hopper Duo can record two satellite channels and two OTA channels at the same time. I used to do exactly that all of the time. Also, if you subscribe to the satellite-delivered locals, the Hopper Duo uses a single tuner to record all four of the major broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox) at the same time if you set separate timers for each channel. (There is no automatic Prime Time Anytime recording or AutoHop like other Hopper models, though.) So, if you are recording the four major networks from satellite, you could also be recording two other OTA channels plus one additional satellite channel, for a total of seven things recording at the same time. (I have never recorded that many things at once. However, I have successfully recorded more than one of the four major networks plus one other satellite channel plus two OTA channels all at the same time with a Hopper Duo, so I can confirm that this feature does work.)

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- Can you add TWO OTA dongles (to any model Hopper) and get 4 OTA channels? (a person can dream)
...

No, that would not work with any Hopper. You would need two Hoppers for that.

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- Is the Hopper 3 really worth it if I am likely to only have 1-2 TVs and why?
...

Maybe hold off on the Hopper 3 if you have two TV's. Many members here have been reporting really bad pixilation problems on their Joeys (any model Joey) with the Hopper 3. Although there have also been some reports of this same problem with the Hopper Duo, those reports are much more rare. Hopper 3 has a $15 DVR fee compared to the Hopper Duo's $10 DVR fee. So, I see no reason to pay $5 more per month for DVR service if you are not going to use it that much.

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- Any reason to get the Dish dongle from them over the AirTV dongle?
...

The main reason to get the Dish dongle would be because the case is black, if you want all of your accessories to match the same color. Seriously though, the AirTV dongle is cheaper, and it has the exact same internal components as the black Dish-branded one. So, if you don't mind it having a white case, get the AirTV model. It is the one that many members here prefer.

 

[N4UFO]

the Hopper Duo uses a single tuner to record all four of the major broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox) at the same time if you set separate timers for each channel.

Do WHAT?! I had no idea! The main reason I am looking at the OTA setup is to add 'local' recordings and usually from the main ones. It may not always be network programming though, might be local news, etc., so is this feature on ALL the time, or just during primetime? (Currently my Tivo DVR has four tuners that have spoiled me nicely; three stay tuned to the ABC NBC CBS affiliates... I just swap between the tuners and can back up up to 30 minutes.)

There is no automatic Prime Time Anytime recording or AutoHop like other Hopper models, though.

Well, the Prime Time Anytime would be nice, but I was completely unaware. The AutoHop I will likely miss much more as my Tivo has 'Skip', but you have to push a button at each break. So does the dish remote have 'skip ahead 30 seconds' and 'rewind 10 seconds' buttons like the Tivo does? Those will be HARD to get used to not having.

compared to the Hopper Duo's $10 DVR fee.

Um, the quote I just got off the Dish website says "$5.00 Monthly DVR Fee" and then "$5.00 Monthly Receiver Fee" for the Joey. Has that changed, or were you including the Joey fee? (And before you ask, if I change it to one TV, it drops the equipment fee to just $5.00 and if I change it to more TVs the Hopper3 is listed as having a $10 DVR fee.) A second TV for me is not an immediate thing for me, but if I change my mind later the CS rep said I would have to 'renegotiate my contract', meaning probably start the 2 years over. (Unless someone knows a way around that. Buy my own Joey?) So here I am trying to decide if it's worth it to spend $5 a month on a Joey for a TV I may seldom to never watch.(If the OTA works well, might add a splitter amp and just use the old Tivo with a second TV.)


So, thanks for all the info... what I asked for and what I didn't! After reading your comments, there appears to be NO rush in getting the OTA antenna up now if I know I can record the 4 major networks plus one. (Prefer not to work on the roof in the cold; be at least a month or more.) It will just be nice to have OTA later on especially if I start recording series off of one of the 'sub channels' of my local OTA stations. (There are three I likely won't get on OTA, but Dish carries them - H&I, Cozi and MeTV. In addition I won't get local CW or PBS. All too weak.)

Sure glad I remembered this forum... thanks again!

 

[pattykay]

Do WHAT?! I had no idea! The main reason I am looking at the OTA setup is to add 'local' recordings and usually from the main ones. It may not always be network programming though, might be local news, etc., so is this feature on ALL the time, or just during primetime? (Currently my Tivo DVR has four tuners that have spoiled me nicely; three stay tuned to the ABC NBC CBS affiliates... I just swap between the tuners and can back up up to 30 minutes.)
...

Yes, this feature works all of the time. (So does Prime Time Anytime on the other Hoppers, for that matter. Either way, separate timers are required for other times of the day. The only difference with the other Hoppers is the automatic recording of PTAT.) In fact, for Hopper Duos, Dish named this feature "24/7." (Apparently, they could not come up with a catchy name for the Hopper Duo's version of this feature, which is probably why they do not advertise it.) As long as you stay tuned to one of the four major networks, you can do the same thing with the Hopper Duo as far as swapping the tuners. Just press the Options button on the remote, go to TV Activity, and select one of the other networks from that screen.

...
Well, the Prime Time Anytime would be nice, but I was completely unaware. The AutoHop I will likely miss much more as my Tivo has 'Skip', but you have to push a button at each break. So does the dish remote have 'skip ahead 30 seconds' and 'rewind 10 seconds' buttons like the Tivo does? Those will be HARD to get used to not having.
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Yes, those buttons are right next to the combined Play/Pause button on the 54.0 remote control.

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Um, the quote I just got off the Dish website says "$5.00 Monthly DVR Fee" and then "$5.00 Monthly Receiver Fee" for the Joey. Has that changed, or were you including the Joey fee? (And before you ask, if I change it to one TV, it drops the equipment fee to just $5.00 and if I change it to more TVs the Hopper3 is listed as having a $10 DVR fee.) A second TV for me is not an immediate thing for me, but if I change my mind later the CS rep said I would have to 'renegotiate my contract', meaning probably start the 2 years over. (Unless someone knows a way around that. Buy my own Joey?) So here I am trying to decide if it's worth it to spend $5 a month on a Joey for a TV I may seldom to never watch.(If the OTA works well, might add a splitter amp and just use the old Tivo with a second TV.)
...

You are correct. I forgot about the introductory new customer pricing, so I quoted the regular rates for existing customers. Either way, it is a $5 price difference between the Hopper Duo and any other DVR that Dish currently offers. If you purchase that Joey later, you may not get that $5 per month rate. In that case, the Joey fee would be $7 per month. The advantage of a purchased Joey, of course, is that you can deactivate it whenever you are not using it, to save that entire monthly Joey fee. There would be no new contract if you add a purchased Joey.

 

[N4UFO]

I forgot about the introductory new customer pricing, so I quoted the regular rates for existing customers.

Oh, so I guess that is something to look forward to... a price bump in two years.

The advantage of a purchased Joey, of course, is that you can deactivate it whenever you are not using it, to save that entire monthly Joey fee. There would be no new contract if you add a purchased Joey.

Well, at $70 plus shipping, I could let a contract Joey sit there unused for 16 months... net cost would be for 8 months at $5 per. Plus not have to split the OTA cable or possibly pay for a distribution amp. Guess I need to figure out if I want it at all or just stick with OTA only.

Stuff to think about... Thanks!

 

[HipKat]

If you record a lot and have 2 TV's, you want a Hopper 3. Period. Yes, it's a little more per month, but the options, the tuners, the Hard Drive size are all well worth it. Not having Dish Anywhere on the Duo is worth getting a Hopper 3 in itself

 

[pattykay]

If you record a lot and have 2 TV's, you want a Hopper 3. Period. Yes, it's a little more per month, but the options, the tuners, the Hard Drive size ...

... the really bad Joey pixilation issues ...

... are all well worth it. Not having Dish Anywhere on the Duo is worth getting a Hopper 3 in itself

People with Hopper 3's have also been reporting the same pixilation issues with Dish Anywhere, for what it's worth. I have a Hopper Duo, and I still find that there is plenty of On Demand content available through Dish Anywhere, as well as many channels that stream directly from the Dish Anywhere website. So, for me at least, there is no real need to have Dish Anywhere integrated with the Hopper for access to DVR recordings and Live Streaming channels.

 

[HipKat]

... the really bad Joey pixilation issues ...

People with Hopper 3's have also been reporting the same pixilation issues with Dish Anywhere, for what it's worth. I have a Hopper Duo, and I still find that there is plenty of On Demand content available through Dish Anywhere, as well as many channels that stream directly from the Dish Anywhere website. So, for me at least, there is no real need to have Dish Anywhere integrated with the Hopper for access to DVR recordings and Live Streaming channels.

That pixelation isn't as widespread as it may appear. I haven't had a single instance of it. I know a few guys that have seen it, but not many.

 

[Jim5506]

Just rebooted by H3 because DA on FireTvStick was garbled pixellating and jerky.

 

[TheKrell]

That pixelation isn't as widespread as it may appear. I haven't had a single instance of it. I know a few guys that have seen it, but not many.

I believe that. I have an H3 and 2 J3's and I rarely have to reboot the Hopper to clear the problem. I'd guess maybe once/week. And the issue on my equipment is less about pixelization and more about stuttering. Badly. The pixelated picture and sound spends maybe 1/4 of the time playing, and 3/4 of the time frozen.

Now the trick play malfeasance is every darn day!