Questions before dumping mediacom

[builder75]

I have enjoyed reading this forum for a long while now and have been on the fence about switching to dish or directv. That being said...

My wife and i are about to move into a new house. We currently have mediacom cable, what a joke, to the tune of $143 a month. And thats tv alone!!! We have had both dish and directv in the past and i have always done my own installs. I like to bounce around for the best deals. But at this time, I really like the season ticket package offering. I would need to purchase a new 5 lnb dish for the possible upcoming hd stuff. I see plenty of them on ebay, but the shipping cost is ridiculous. Do i need the new slimline or can i use the previous ka/ku dish? I know its big and clunky but i like the look. Plus i can get one from the local satellite dealers junk pile for free. Will i need the wb68 switchor can i use the 6x8 i have from before? And does the wb68 support the 72.5 sat via flex port? And finally if i purchase my receivers elsewhere will i have a two year contract? I plan on purchasing one hr20, one h20, and one r15.

So to make a long story short...
1. What configuration of dish can i use or need?
2. Should I purchase receivers on ebay like i have in the past?
3. Will the contract be inevitable even if i do.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Jimbo]

I have enjoyed reading this forum for a long while now and have been on the fence about switching to dish or directv. That being said...

My wife and i are about to move into a new house. We currently have mediacom cable, what a joke, to the tune of $143 a month. And thats tv alone!!! We have had both dish and directv in the past and i have always done my own installs. I like to bounce around for the best deals. But at this time, I really like the season ticket package offering. I would need to purchase a new 5 lnb dish for the possible upcoming hd stuff. I see plenty of them on ebay, but the shipping cost is ridiculous. Do i need the new slimline or can i use the previous ka/ku dish? I know its big and clunky but i like the look. Plus i can get one from the local satellite dealers junk pile for free. Will i need the wb68 switchor can i use the 6x8 i have from before? And does the wb68 support the 72.5 sat via flex port? And finally if i purchase my receivers elsewhere will i have a two year contract? I plan on purchasing one hr20, one h20, and one r15.

So to make a long story short...
1. What configuration of dish can i use or need?
2. Should I purchase receivers on ebay like i have in the past?
3. Will the contract be inevitable even if i do.

Thanks in advance.

OK, we'll try to give some ideas !
Seeing you are going HD, you will definatly need the 5 lnb set up, so you get the new channels. AT-9 or AU-9 (Slimline) doesn't matter.
Seeing you are moving I would call D* 's Movers line and have them do your set up, they should give you the new dish for free and do the install as well.
I would recommend getting 2 HD DVR's (Hr20-700,-100 either) and skip the R-15, you'll be happier in the long run, the reviews on the R-15 are not very good.
IF you cannot do 2 HR20-'s then get the HR20 and the H-20 and get the other HR20 later.

I think you can gwet a better deal from D* than Ebay, remember that if you buy from Ebay, you still lease it.
As for the dish from the junk pile, skip it, let D* do it , it's free.
The 2 ka/ku dishes are the ones I mentioned above, the old 3 lnb 's set up will not get you the new channels .
Do you need a wb68 switch, if your recievers end up being the ones you listed, yes you should get the switch, it's $100 if you buy it new, D* will probably give it to you with your set up, if they set it up, let them know you need it when ordering.

Yes, all three rec.'s are advanced rec's so there is a 2 year commitment, and you are leasing them .... the HR20-700 is about $800 outright.

The contract goes with the activation of the rec's, not the rec's themselves.

Jimbo

 

[Brewer4]

I concur with Jimbo. Go with HR20's as much as your budget can sustain. You can even add an external drive to those to increase HD recording space. I get my first drive next week and cant wait to test. The HR20 is maturing into a very nice DVR.

 

[Teronzhul]

If you are intent on doing the install yourself then I'll try to help with a few of those points.

AT9 vs AU9 slimline doesn't matter. Both dishes perform nearly identically and have the same function.

wb68 will be required to pass low frequency satellite transmissions from D10 and D11, the new ka band satellites. The older zinwell 6802 6x8 is not designed to pass these frequencies.

The wb68 flexports should operate identically to those of the older 6x8. They support both 72.5 and 95.

Yes, the contract is nearly unavoidable.

 

[Jimbo]

If you are intent on doing the install yourself then I'll try to help with a few of those points.

AT9 vs AU9 slimline doesn't matter. Both dishes perform nearly identically and have the same function.

wb68 will be required to pass low frequency satellite transmissions from D10 and D11, the new ka band satellites. The older zinwell 6802 6x8 is not designed to pass these frequencies.

The wb68 flexports should operate identically to those of the older 6x8. They support both 72.5 and 95.

Yes, the contract is nearly unavoidable.

Good points Teronzhul,
I was only pointing out what I did because if D* does it, the install is free and could potentially save him a lot of money.
Dish $ 100, Multiswitch up to $100, both which he can probably get for free.
That said, don't be afraid to do it yourself if you want.
I have set up single, duals , triples and the AT-9 now, but I let D* do the first AT-9 so I could watch and learn ...
I found out it's not a big deal if you have done others, just need to be more accurate with the KA being added.

The instructions made it sound harder than it was, but I figured I could watch the installation video just like the installers did, so I did and then went at it and found if you have a solid LOS it's NO Problem.

Only difference between the one the installer set up for me and the ones I have done since is, the installer had a meter and I did not.

Jimbo

 

[iwc5893]

Seeing you are moving I would call D* 's Movers line and have them do your set up, they should give you the new dish for free and do the install as well.
I would recommend getting 2 HD DVR's (Hr20-700,-100 either) and skip the R-15, you'll be happier in the long run, the reviews on the R-15 are not very good.
IF you cannot do 2 HR20-'s then get the HR20 and the H-20 and get the other HR20 later.

Jimbo

I thought Movers Connects were only for existing customers. Depending upon how long ago the OP had D*, he is probably eligible for better deals as a new customer.