Stoopid Newb - Basic Satellite Questions (DirecTV)

[jzambon]

Sorry for a plethora of dumb newb questions, I promise to "pay it forward" as much as I can elsewheres on the internet (where my technical expertise in other areas may be of use)...

I live in Raleigh, North Carolina and have no interest in North Carolina television. My roommate and I hail from New York (Albany and Buffalo respectively). We enjoy watching TV mainly for sports - he's a Yankees/Jets fan and I'm a Sabres/Bills fan. Over the last year we have amassed approximately $400 in out of market sports packages to cover our various vices - not including the many dollars I have spent watching Bills games at a local Buffalo bar. It seems to me that its a bit of a waste.

Throw in there my animosity towards the local cable company (TWC), which I'm sure more than a few of you in here have also felt.

I consider myself pretty technically savvy, at least savvy enough to get into trouble , and what I am proposing as a possible solution is this...
1) Purchase D* equipment from eBay (so as to avoid committments and my desire to OWN the equipment)
2) Set up an account using my home address in Buffalo (where I spend a fair amount of time irregardless)
3) Install equipment down here in NC, activate with a minimal contract and no equipment cost to D*
4) Get SD/HD channels and locals available in the Buffalo, NY area

Please let me know if I am missing something.

Furthermore, is 1) a viable option - or does it make more sense to buy from D* and request that they don't install it and ship it to me in NC (that would seem a little suspicious). Something like this is what I would be after: "ALL NEW "DIRECTV HR21 HD/DVR + AU9S SLIMLINE SAT. DISH - eBay (item 330247990338 end time Jul-07-08 22:41:57 PDT)

Will I be missing out on any rebates? Will I still have to commit to a long-term (>6 months) lease just to activate the hardware?

From what I have understood from techs before 2) doesn't really matter, they want an address to send a bill, but I will be paying over the interwebs. My family still lives in Buffalo and I have a permanent address there. How hard is 3) to do? Can it be done using the receiver to aim the antenna? Please forgive me for what I am sure are basic questions as I have never owned a satellite dish. But, I'm guessing its not as simple as pointing southwest. Will the HD channels in my Buffalo market (WGRZ, WIBV, WKBW, WUTV) be picked up south of the Mason-Dixon?

Being in the employ of the federal government, moving around is constantly a problem. I would like to have a receiver/dish that I can just pick up, move around the country with, and keep the same channels (and along with it, some of my sanity). Is this possible with satellite, or am I asking too much? Please help me break free of TWC and outrageously priced sports packages. I feel pretty confident in this setup from reading other threads, but I wanted to run my particualrs by the forum first. I greatly appreciate any input! I'll respond to any questions you may have regarding this setup ASAP.

 

[joed32]

1. It will still be leased and require a commitment to activate.
2. You could get away with that.
3. If you have more than one active receiver there will be a leasing fee on each additional one.
4.All of the HD locals are on spot beams and the Buffalo beam isn't wide enough to reach North Carolina.

 

[jzambon]

If I purchase the equipment from D* directly, can I ask to install it myself and activate when I want to? Or do they require someone to come out and install it themselves and then activate on-site? Can I make up some crap about me driving the equip up to Buffalo and installing on my own schedule to "surprise" my father with a new Sat Dish when he's out of town?

If the HD locals are local spot beams, does the same go for all the programming - specifically regional sports networks MSN and FSN-NY (i.e. Sabres broadcasts)? If the Bills games are broadcast on CBS, will I be able to settle for SD or are those part of the local beams?

What would the scenario that makes the most sense be? Should I call D* and have them ship me the equip? Should I just run over to BestBuy in NC at some point and pick up all the equipment, sign the lease, and activate it using my Buffalo address? Or would I have to drive to Buffalo, get the equip there and drive it back?

Thanks!

 

[NutFlush920]

I think that if you order from DirecTV directly they will instist on an installer doing the job and will not ship the equipment to you. Keep in mind, if you go with the Best Buy route, you will also need a Slimline dish for the new HD. That will cost extra.

I don't think they accept your story to surpise your father as their response will be "what if he doesn't want the new equipment?".

 

[jzambon]

Is there a list of channels being broadcast CONUS? Specifically are FSN-NY, MSG, and YES a part of those?

 

[atp1313]

The RSN's are CONUS, so no worries about spot beams. You would only be missing out on locals.

 

[joed32]

You will get any nationally broadcast games with no problem. For other professional sports you need a subscription for that sport. Sunday Ticket for the Bills, Center Ice for hockey, etc.

 

[tomcat76]

The best thing for you to do is go see a local retailer to sign up tell him what you are planing to do, he can set up the acct. with the buffalo address and install it proper at your house. You shouldn't have much of a problem finding a dealer who will do it since you are such a low risk of canceling.

 

[Mr_Movie_Dog]

You can definately install it yourself if you wish too, D* may want to but I've installed all of my own gear for over a decade now and I'm about to finally upgrade to the MPEG4 C system now installing it myself and NOT giving them my old owned gear back like they also try to do. Glad to see DTV11 Ka SAT finally is flying and in position. It is a bit more difficault to allign the new 5 LNB dish so you might want a pro to do it for but if you are technically sharp then I'd do it yourself.

You can buy a HR21 Pro and it is yours, no lease!, but they aren't cheap at $580 to $600 each. You can also buy gear from one of the sponsors of this site WeaKnees and get by the lease issue plus have more storage capacity.

 

[Ronnie-]

You can get it installed in NC and wait a week or so. Then call and say you are "moving". Shouldnt be a problem Now what channels are on conus that you have to have, I do not know without looking, but most of the RSNs are.

The epuipment would still be a lease though unless you pay alot, which it sounds like you dont want to(i dont blame you).

 

[jzambon]

Do you believe that having the dish installed and then "moving" would work? Would they require another appointment at my house in Buffalo to get it to work or could I claim that I had it professionally installed by someone?

Thanks for all your suggestions! I spent 6 1/2 hours waiting for TW Cable to transfer my cable. I had set up all the equipment, but they needed to come over to flip the cable on. I REALLY want to ditch them. Thanks!

 

[atp1313]

You could claim that there was already a dish on the roof at that new location. I doubt they would go back into their records to see if there was ever a customer at that previous address. But the professional install approach might be better.

 

[Zynergi]

Like other have Said getting Buffalo Locals wont happen, although you can reject Raleigh/Durham locals and get national networks which are out of NYC/LA Which would give you the NY games since that is a broadcast market.

As far as Subs in Raleigh there is Stans and Carolina Wireless but hating to talk bad about it you would be better off getting a In-house tech from Mastec. There may be some retailers in the area but you are probably looking to head towards Smithfield or Littleton for one as its hard for a small shop to survive in the triangle.

Overall your best bet is to place the order via D* and have a tech install the system (RD is not a SWM Market either, but if you purchase the SWM Equipment they will send me down there to install it) Insist on National Networks (ABC/CBS/NBC/FOX) and you will get them, and more than likely still get the RD locals (nice to have weather reports). If you want a known Competent Installer and you do not plan to buy SWM equipment ask for Reggie Clark to be the tech (I usually work 1 1/2 north of RD) There is no easy way to "get over" and in fact it will end up costing you more for what D* gives you free. I don't know your tree situation but the RD area seems to discourage removing them, Cary on the other hand hates trees. If you place your Order via D* also request a KA/KU Tripod mount, 80% chance they wont charge extra for it.

 

[jzambon]

What is the advantage to getting a SWM if i only plan on having one receiver connected to the dish?

Thanks for the EXTREMELY helpful information!

-Joe

EDIT: I just did some reading and came across "Allows any transponder from any satellite input to be independently selected and distributed via one of eight designated SWM output frequency channels."

http://www.satelliteguys.us/attachment.php?attachmentid=24901&d=1211229056

I'm still reading along the forums, but is this something that I would need with only one HD-DVR connected to the dish? Would there be any other benefits? (Sorry for being a newb and thanks!)

 

[Zynergi]

Not for $150+ it would cost you, the HDDVR will need 2 lines to function right, so the most a tech would charge is $50ish to fish the line if it cant come up through the floor or through to an outside wall. A SWM in this case would allow you to run 1 line, but it is equipment you would have to purchase on your own for the RD market.