Looking to get Dish - DVR questions

[vp911]

Hi - sorry about my noob questions. I currently have DirecTV with three Tivo's (from DTV).

I want to switch to Dish - but I am wondering if this is possible.

1. Have a seperate DVR for each TV.
2a. Be able to record 2 channels at once on each tivo
2b. Or record one and watch another live channel
2c. Orrecord 2 channels at once and watch a previously recorded program.
3. According to the chart from DTV if the time of the show or the channel changes - Dish's DVR will not automatically change the recording schedule for shows that are set as a "Season Pass." (http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/imagine/DVR_advantage.dsp)
4. Does the dish DVR require a phone line? I ask because I don't have phone lines in all the rooms - and with DTV it does not matter.
5. How much different is the Dish DVR from the DirecTV dvd?

 

[dishrich]

First question is - why ARE you wanting to switch? (locals, ethnic prog, etc)

I will tell you this much - if you are planning on signing up under DHA, they will only give you ONE 522, which is a dual-tuner DVR. You can get 2 510 DVR's, but they are ONLY single-tuner units. (which will NOT allow you to record 2 shows at once) Or, you outright buy 2 522 units, but they will cost you at least around $200+ each, but there is also a small hassle getting purchased ones activated.
Also, are you aware that E* charges a DVR fee PER receiver & NOT per account like D*, unless you have the everything pak. So, switching to E* will cost you $10 MORE per month just in DVR fees alone.

As far as the phone line question, if you do NOT have a phone line hooked up to the 522's, you WILL also get hit with another $5 second-tuner fee. So, you could potentially pay another $15 a month for that as well.

All I will tell you is, that if you have 3 D-Tivo's now, you are NOT going to be happy with your switch - just start reading the 522 posts on this site & you can judge for yourself.

 

[vp911]

I am looking to switch mainly because my mother wants one of the foreign channels.

I was going to get the Everything Pak.. but basically you are telling me that it is really not worth switching..? I won't be able to have three of the dual-tuner DVRs? Thanks for your help.

 

[Stargazer]

If you go with the AEP (America's Everything Package) then the DVR fee will be waived.

The difference between the 510 and the 522 is that the 510 had one tuner and one tv output while the 522 had two tuners and two tv outputs. With the 522 you save $5 a month if you connect it to the phone line. The 501 and 508 receivers do not have a DVR fee although the 501 had 30 hours or recording, the 508 has 60 hours of recording, and the 510 and 522 has 100 hours of recording.

Something else that you should know about is that since the 522 has a total of 100 hours of recording that is like having 50 hours per tuner whereas the 510 has 100 hours per receiver for the one tuner that it has.

Also for what the additional outlet fee is on the 501 or 508 having no DVR fee would make up for it if you do not plan on getting the AEP package. The prices of the 501 and 508 receivers have been reduced lately.

With the 522 receiver you can put it into single user mode where you can have it in PIP mode or switch tuners as you please with the push of a button and rewind the show back on the second tuner or if you had it on pause you can unpause. This is great for watching two shows that comes on at the same time that you want to watch right now and still be able to skip the commercials.

 

[SimpleSimon]

My first take is that you might want to consider ADDING E* to your existing D* setup.

It MAY be possible to get the one desired channel ala carte. You might have to play CSR roulette to make it happen.

Big question is which channel(s) we talking about? As long as it's NOT only on the 121 bird, you can hang a little dish for one receiver for cheap.

If you lved near me, I could sell you a used box (301=$50, 501=$125) and Dish300 ($25). I'd charge you $75 to install it - if there's no hitches like wall fishes, pole mounts, concrete walls, etc.

 

[Stargazer]

You would get charge a $5 per month access fee for not taking a basic package but the 501 that Simon mentions does not have a DVR fee so that makes up for that. If you like DirecTv then the 301 or 501 would make a great choice for getting the international channel ala carte. DirecTv does not allow you to get channels ala carte like Dish Network does. There might even be a few others that you like such as superstations that you might want to add to the mix if you dont get locals that have them in your area. If you get the 501 you can just tell it when you want it to record your shows and go back and watch them anytime you want when you dont see anything on with DirecTv that you like to watch.

 

[maximum]

Corrections to the chart (if you have a 522):
Watch one live show while recording another - Yes.
Automatically record shows even if time of day changes - Yes.

The main advantage Dish's 522 has over D* Tivo is that is has dual outputs. This allows you to connect multiple TVs and watch what was recorded (by either tuner) from multiple locations.

 

[vp911]

My first take is that you might want to consider ADDING E* to your existing D* setup.

It MAY be possible to get the one desired channel ala carte. You might have to play CSR roulette to make it happen.

Big question is which channel(s) we talking about? As long as it's NOT only on the 121 bird, you can hang a little dish for one receiver for cheap.

If you lved near me, I could sell you a used box (301=$50, 501=$125) and Dish300 ($25). I'd charge you $75 to install it - if there's no hitches like wall fishes, pole mounts, concrete walls, etc.

Well - I live in Michigan - but specifically Zee TV and Sony Ent. are the channels she will watch. How small is the additional dish I would need to get? I would be more than happy using only one rcvr. as its only one person who watches the channels....

If only DTV would get the channel and save my time

 

[geobernd]

I was in exactly the same boat.
I continue have D* for my 'main' programming
and signed up with E* for two international channels (using a 508).

I could not part with having a bunch of two tuner DirecTivos that never crash and always record what they are supposed and trading them in for 522's (which I would need to buy since you can't lease more than one) which are anything but stable and error free at this point....

So now I have D* and E* and am a happy camper...

I am looking to switch mainly because my mother wants one of the foreign channels.

I was going to get the Everything Pak.. but basically you are telling me that it is really not worth switching..? I won't be able to have three of the dual-tuner DVRs? Thanks for your help.

 

[dishrich]

Well - I live in Michigan - but specifically Zee TV and Sony Ent. are the channels she will watch. How small is the additional dish I would need to get? I would be more than happy using only one rcvr. as its only one person who watches the channels....

Both of those channels are on the 61.5 bird, so any standard 18" dish/LNB will work just fine. (assuming you can see the sat with no obstructions like trees, etc. on your property, of course) Pair it up with any E* receiver of your choice as SS suggested above & you're good to go. If you installed your D* system, this would be a piece of cake for you to do yourself as well.

E* will add $5 to the bill for not having a basic package, but you would obviously spend much more than that overall if you totally switched to E*. (not to mention the peace of mind of keeping DVR's that actually work... )