I like my Va Va Voom

[tdillon]

I've read all the posts and have seen that there really are only a handful consistently negative posters about the Voom service. Yes, this new company has some issues, but they really do seem to be getting better on each count. I am just as impatient as the next guy waiting for the DVR and whole-house network system, but I would rather wait for Voom to get it all working before I put the new devices in each room in the house.

My wife has started checking through the Voom originals and every once in a while will catch some movie that she has never seen and she likes the transfers to HD.

I have been catching a lot of the Rave concerts and enjoyed the day-old Olympic coverage (NBC to blame for this one). Voom's signal and audio were much better than the OTA Olympics here in Los Angeles. Channel 4.1 doesn't have any sub channels, but somehow the quality was not as good as what was coming down on channel 321 from Voom.

My kids like seeing everything clearer from the satellite, even a handful of SD channels that they watch. They have been using the east coast / west coast time shift to catch their favorites several hours earlier.

I am still maintaining my Adelphia cable service until Voom adds enough capacity and content for my family's entertainment. But I think that by February or so we should be able to move away from the cable and be happy with Voom.

Continue making progress Voom, some of us do appreciate your efforts.

 

[Dvlos]

Agreed, I would prefer Voom to make a splash and have 2-3 million subs by next year and make a statement that premier HD services have a good market here, and then watch all the other providers scramble to "catch up". Voom don't stop until you can influence local news channels to broadcast in HD.

 

[vinnyv07]

Yes...I have Directv with VOOM mainly for my family and what they want to watch. Im hoping that VOOM could add some of those ch's for my wife and the kids and then I could get rid of Directv and sub to the Va Va Voom pack. But one never knows what the future holds.

 

[txcruiser]

I've read all the posts and have seen that there really are only a handful consistently negative posters about the Voom service.

While there might only be a handful of gloom and doom posters, have you noticed that there are really only a handful of cheerleader posters as well?

When you only have 25K subscribers, there just aren't that many as a whole.

I would love to see VOOM survive since competition is good for us consumers,
but an HD-DVR has got to be priority #1 else even the cheerleader poster number will fizzle (as clearly indicated in another thread started today)

 

[Dvlos]

an HD-DVR has got to be priority #1

I remember when the "GIVE ME FIRMWARE" fever threads where the only things to be seen on this forum, it seems that has died down a bit, with some people having some issues but not as many as before.

I see the "GIVE ME DVR" fever starting up, again, the fall HD heavy(er) schedule is going to increase this.. Voom could do much to appease the (35,000?) masses by spreading information and updates on the DVR I think. I guess if the DVR releases in January that would be a bit of a wait, but that wait would be easier on me as a customer if I would read and see stuff like:

"We are still working on the PG for the DVR, here have some screenshots"
- 9/14/04

"We are still testing the dual tuner, it's giving us lockups."
-10/4/2004

"External beta testing has commenced, we have sent a couple of DVRs to Sat Guys for testing, feedback appreciated"
-11/5/2004

"Hard Drive exploded sending fragments of disc in every direction, Susan our inhouse technician was nearly blinded. Obviously this Pic-and-Pay hard drive won't cut it, looking for a new manufacturer and the DVR is almost ready for mass roll out"
-12/24/2004

I think with a good lease plan, almost all 35,000 Voom subs will have the DVR home house solution, not to mention that judging from the AVS forum, if Voom had a good DVR there would be many converts, and some previous Voom abandoners would head back.

 

[DarrellP]

The only gripe I have with Voom is the PQ and I am holding out until the WM9 upgrade, if they can't fix it with that (or refuse to) then I will leave Voom (or buy a smaller TV). Don't get me wrong, I love Voom and seriously want them to succeed, so I am not a Voom basher, I am just pointing out their (very few) flaws.

I can live with a crappy EPG or a Program Planner that is from 1959, but I can't live with "just good enough" PQ.

 

[Dvlos]

How small are you going DarrellP at 60" I see mosquito noise and pixelation at times, granted it's better but b/w is still the issue. I hear the 30-40" around are real happy.

 

[DarrellP]

I'm seriously looking at a 34" Toshiba or Sony tube for the Family Room and a 23" widescreen LCD for the Living Room. Currently in my Living Room I have my PJ with a 13" monitor that I use for viewing DVD recordings or browsing other channels and it sits right next to me. I've been thinking about a 23" widescreen LCD to replace it, I think that would give me excellent PQ but it would also turn my HT into a 1 man operation. Maybe I'll wait until the 42" Plasmas come down under $3k and have true blacks (the blacks are coming now).

It's a shame because I find myself watching less and less TV as the bandwidth comes tumbling down around me. I know it's hard for some people to grasp my opinion on this, but I've had HD for close to 4 years now and I have seen a drastic decrease in PQ over the years from every source, including OTA.

Maybe I'll start sticking to my DTheater collection and DVD's, at least with DVD I know what to expect with PQ. I watched True Lies on DTheater last night and after watching the soft PQ on HDNET, I was blown away by the clarity and colors of this movie. Can you say "WOW"?

 

[smasuch]

Can you tell any difference between sd and hd on a 30" set?

 

[ram1220]

The only gripe I have with Voom is the PQ and I am holding out until the WM9 upgrade, if they can't fix it with that (or refuse to) then I will leave Voom (or buy a smaller TV). Don't get me wrong, I love Voom and seriously want them to succeed, so I am not a Voom basher, I am just pointing out their (very few) flaws.

I can live with a crappy EPG or a Program Planner that is from 1959, but I can't live with "just good enough" PQ.

AMEN!! Now that my billing problems seem to be solved I couldn't agree with you more. For now I'm using my old reliable Replay 2020 upgraded to 80hrs with Voom. I know it's not HD but I can wait on the PVR. I want better PQ now!


Bob

 

[1080iBeVuMin]

Can you tell any difference between sd and hd on a 30" set?

We have a 34" set, and HECK YEA!! Huge difference between HD and SD.

We be VaVaVum cheerleaders! Happy with Voom as it is now, and excited about the future plans!

 

[DarrellP]

Can you tell any difference between sd and hd on a 30" set?

I can tell a difference between HD and SD on my old 27" analog set. In fact, I can usually distinguish between True HD and an upconvert as well.

 

[smasuch]

I was thinking of buying another smaller HDTV for the Family room. I was debating on a 34"-36" direct view tube or maybe another smaller rptv 47"-57".

On my 65" wide-screen I can tell a big difference between SD, DVD progressive, and HD. I just wasn't sure if you could see much of a difference on a 30" - 32" screen.

 

[DarrellP]

You're pretty safe going with a 34" tube set, that's what I'm going to get for my Family Room.