Typical tech support from Dish (and anyone else)
For the useful bits, skip to the bottom, but here's my story:
I work with satellite service providers, so I know a few things about uplinks, birds, and receivers. In fact, I've been to Echostar's main uplink and HQ, as I worked their account. If anyone has a reason to love Echostar and Dish, I do. That said, their customer service still pisses me off.
So I wanted to add Voom to my existing Dish services. The installer came today (Oct. 30) and said I couldn't get Voom because I couldn't "see" Rainbow 1 (at 61.5W), because of trees that were at 90deg (from north). Nevermind that Rainbow 1 requires an azimuth of 110deg and not 90deg, but I didn't want 61.5 anyway (due to the low elevation). I asked him to direct it to 129W instead, but he wouldn't, since there is officially no programming on 129W. I should have had him leave the junk for me to install, but I need the warranty (condo, HOA, and California crap).
So I called Dish tech support. Initially, they said Voom wasn't on 129. Then they conceded I could use a Dish 1000 to get 129 (I have a Dish 500). Then they conceded I could use a Dish 300 for just 129, but I wouldn't be able to get Voom. Then they finally admitted (after telling them what can easily be found in this forum) that Voom *is* available on 129 and I *could* just use a Dish 300, but that I *should* wait for the Dish 1000 to get a better deal. Then they wouldn't tell me what the deal was or what programming is on 129. A**holes.
The only reason I joined Dish at all was because Voom imploded and sold their stuff to Echostar. I still rely on OTA for my HD content, and I have an 811 HD receiver. Go figure.
To summarize, the Dish 1000 and the Voom on 129W are not officially supported until Nov. 3, 2005. There is no pricing, programming list, or anything else that a reasonable person would ask for before subscribing. So those of us who insist on (or need to) playing by the rules must wait till Nov. 3 to call and ask. I was also told that the Dish website would be updated on Nov. 3 to reflect the Dish 1000 and satellite 129.