Some questions from a prospective switcher

[x5ray]

I'm thinking of switching to dish from directv. I'm looking for a recommendation for a good installer in the Atlanta area.


This is what I'm looking at:

I think I'm gonna need a dish 500 and another dish for the extended local channels in Atlanta. A superdish will not work. Also, I plan to add an international package later. So, the two dish system should work.

I'm planning to go w/ the digital advantage plan which includes a 4 tv install: 2 hd receivers and one dvr receiver to 2 tv's. In addition, i'm wanting to install a 5th tv. My understanding is that I will be charged extra for the "switch" and will have to buy the additional receiver. Does that sound right? What kind of switch will I need?

Any experiences w/ OTA's and the install process? I know that Terk makes a 5x8 multiswitch for directv that would probably work. But, don't know if it's compatible w/ dish.

Anything else I should be aware of?

Most importantly, I would really like to have a number for a good installer in Atlanta.

Thanks in advance.

 

[rad]

I'm thinking of switching to dish from directv. I'm looking for a recommendation for a good installer in the Atlanta area.

This is what I'm looking at:

I'm planning to go w/ the digital advantage plan which includes a 4 tv install: 2 hd receivers and one dvr receiver to 2 tv's.

Since this is your first post I don't know how much you've been following things. You might want to review the Dish 811 receiver section of this site to see if any of the issue/concerns/bugs matter to you in your decision on what to do. The forum is at: http://www.satelliteguys.us/forumdisplay.php?f=46

It also looks like you might be considering the 522 since you mention one DVR to two TV's. If that's the case then you should also check out those forums: http://www.satelliteguys.us/forumdisplay.php?f=47 and http://www.satelliteguys.us/forumdisplay.php?f=19

You may have already done that but it's better to go into your decision knowing what issues you might run into then get all this installed and find out that it doesn't meet your expectations. Good luck - RAD

 

[boba]

You also need to call Directv and discuss with their customer retention department what is available to you to keep you as a customer. You also need to learn as much as you can about the DHA lease promotion especially the warranty. After the first 90 days you need to purchase the DHPP to service the equipment DISH retains ownership of. http://www,.dishnetwork.com/content/products/warranty/index.shtml Yes you will have to purchse the switch and 5th receiver and pay for installation of that unit. DHA only covers the lease of four tuners(not receivers). Directv switches are not compatible with DISH but they are much cheaper.

 

[SimpleSimon]

The 5th receiver (tuner) is where it gets expensive. Are you sure you need to watch 5 different channels at once? Or is it just that you have 5 TVs? There's a BIG difference!

If your maximum number of tuners can be kept to 4, a standard DP34 switch will do the trick (so far as I know the Terk will NOT work). You can feed the RF outputs of some/all of your receivers to pretty much as many TVs as you want - you have to be careful if you're using OTA or cable and sharing the feed line - combiners would be needed to prevent broadcasting to the neighborhood, or interfering with the cable.

 

[haertig]

After the first 90 days you need to purchase the DHPP to service the equipment DISH retains ownership of.

Before going with Dish, I called their customer service and grilled them on the actual utility of the DHPP. I might have been lied to, but I came away having been told that this really doesn't offer much. The rep said the she herself does not pay for this addition. It covers techs coming out to your house for less money than usual, but this is probably seldom needed. I asked specifically "What if my 522 dies 2 years down the road after all warrantees have expired? Will you ship me a replacement?" [YES] "What are my obligations to Dish if it dies, you won't fix it, and I decide to cancel my service? Can I ship you a non-functional unit and be done with it ... no charge to me?" [YES]

Now if the above is actually true, and i was told it is, then I fail to see much benefit for the DHPP plan. I'd like to hear specifically what others have been told in this regard. It wouldn't be the first time that a company lied to make a sale (or lease, in this case).

 

[cameron119]

You stated they told you the plan was to lower the costs of service calls. I don't see how they lied to you.

Please don't hijack threads.

 

[GaryPen]

You stated they told you the plan was to lower the costs of service calls. I don't see how they lied to you.

Please don't hijack threads.

He was saying that they might have been lying to him about the various reasons the DHPP is not worth the $5.99.

So, now that you understand what he meant, maybe you want to say that they were lying, in order to provide the standard knee-jerk defense of Dish.

 

[SimpleSimon]

And oh yeah cameron119 - I don't see how this is a hijack - the thread starter left an open-ended question about what he should know. Discussion of DHPP sure fits that so far as I'm concerned.