Which dish? 1000.4, 500, 1000 Plus, etc?

[rufwork]

I'm on the east coast. I only want SD (I'm doing Flex, not a commitment, so no HD is cheaper). I'm buying a 211K receiver, as that's apparently the cheapest that works with Flex. (Fwiw, Flex is a pay-as-you-go option that I've been assured has no cancellation/restart fee. We'll see.) I don't need locals. I'm installing myself.

Can I use *any* 500 dish?
What should I know about 500 LNBs?
Should I get a 1000.4?

It looks like if I buy an 1000.4, I'm golden. Would I point a 1000.4 towards 61.5W or do a multi-LNB setup at 61.5, 72.7, and 77W? I'm using dishpointer.com to get an idea of where I'm shooting. Just fyi, I have a much better LOS towards 61.5 than the multi-LNB setup.

It also sounds like I'd be fine with a 500, but there are two or three 500s, and I can't tell which *wouldn't* work with the 211K in my zip. And would I point it towards 61.5W? It seems there's a 500+ which uses western arc sats -- 110, 118.7, and 119W. That seems like The Wrong Thing.

I vaguely understand that SD, non-local channels in the eastern arc come from a single satellite, right? That is, 1000.4 or 500 would both shoot just at 61.5W, right? Or is the LNB set up in a 1000.4 so that I still need to point to the multi-LNB position, though it's only *using* Echostar 12 at 61.5W?

I feel like this is a bit more complicated than it should be. What's the bottom line here?

Thanks!

EDIT: Ooops. Looks like the east coast uses the western arc.
Link for finding out: Dish retailer lookup by zip

Western Arc DMA, You may use both MPEG2 and MPEG 4 Equipment.[/blockquote]

Wish this was in a chart somewhere. For SD on East Coast get receiver X & dish Y or receiver Z and dishes A, B, etc.

 

[Dah-Henny]

61.5/72/77 have the highest look angle for the east coast. Easy LOS. IMO, just use the 1000.4. It has 3 LNB's, and you peak on 72.

 

[rufwork]

61.5/72/77 have the highest look angle for the east coast. Easy LOS. IMO, just use the 1000.4. It has 3 LNB's, and you peak on 72.

500's are lots cheaper. Can I use that, or will I be kicking myself later?

Thanks for the info.

 

[jerryez]

You can get a 100.4 on eBay for $80. with free shipping.

Brand New HDTV Eastern Arc Dish 1000.4 Satellite Dish - eBay (item 250691893361 end time Sep-10-10 11:13:10 PDT)

 

[Hemi 6.1]

You can use a Dish 500 with a Pro Plus LNB for single wire use.

But I wouldn't bother since those 1000.4 Dishes are fairly inexpensive and offer 3 orbital locations, as well as the option to run a 4th.

Plus the 1000.4 LNBF also support 3 dual tuner receivers with single wire.

But if your not Eastern Arc, then you need the 1000.2, But it still offers the same features as the 1000.4

 

[harshness]

I'd go with the conventional DISH 500. They are much easier to set up and give as good or better SD performance than the 1000 series dishes.

The only reasons I would consider an EA setup is if you don't want to screw yourself out of LIL (satellite delivered locals) or you can't get LOS to the 110W-119W slots. Come to think of it, you might even be able to live with a DISH 500 pointed at 61.5W and 72W.

 

[rufwork]

I'd go with the conventional DISH 500. They are much easier to set up and give as good or better SD performance than the 1000 series dishes.

The only reasons I would consider an EA setup is if you don't want to screw yourself out of LIL (satellite delivered locals) or you can't get LOS to the 110W-119W slots. Come to think of it, you might even be able to live with a DISH 500 pointed at 61.5W and 72W.

I guess that's my question -- I have no idea how to gauge any of this stuff before buying. I have a difficult time getting LOS to 119 and 110, and a very easy time getting 61.5 or the 1000.4 triple, at least as it's presented on dishpointer.com.

Everyone that's already got Dish in the neighborhood is pointing in the 1000.4 direction, fwiw.

Of course I'm just looking to be cheap. If I can point a 500 towards 61.5 and 72, I'm golden. And you can grab 500s for $45 (sometimes less!) shipped on eBay, and even cheaper locally.

Thanks again. Usually I'm able to Google up info for my wacky plans, but I haven't had much luck on this one.

 

[harshness]

Thanks again. Usually I'm able to Google up info for my wacky plans, but I haven't had much luck on this one.

This may be because so few subscribe to the Flex plan. IIRC, it is intended to enable those with impossible credit and/or unpredictable income to have an in.

In the short term Flex probably costs quite a bit more than a regular AT plan as you aren't eligible for promotional discounts on installation, equipment and programming.

Paying a few hundred dollars up front to get out of a worst case $405 ETF represents a pretty serious commitment.