Possible switcher E* to D*

[cparker]

Not trolling. I actually do comparison shopping at least once a year.

This year DirecTV has surprised me. The startup costs have always made any promotional savings kind of a wash. I just went through DirecTV's web site and was pleasantly surprised, but I think I have questions. First, the proposed setup:

Choice Ultimate
HD Access
DVR service
Whole Home DVR service
(2) HD DVR (one for living room, one for bedroom. We DVR a lot so having 4 tuners is a pretty big deal)

With fees I'm seeing $54.99 a month for the first year and then $83.99 a month when the promos wear off the second year. $124 one-time start up cost.

The HR24 and whole house DVR service make this special for me as well because of the way we DVR stuff.

Questions:
#1) I currently have a pair of RG6 QS from the satellite mount on the roof with a single coax to each (E*) satellite receiver. Can this be used by DirecTV as is or will I have to add/change the wiring?

#2) I also have an OTA coax to each TV and a pair of RJ-45 jacks. One of the RJ45 is used for phone and the other for ethernet. They could be both patched as ethernet at the patch panel.

Does it REALLY require a technician AND the $25 fee to connect the receiver to my network? Is that something I can do myself? I ran all my cat5 and have 4 computers, a network printer, my current E* receivers, all on the network without needing a technician.

#3) Anyone in Buffalo, NY area that can tell me what they are seeing for taxes on their bill? Anything unusual besides sales tax? Trying to make sure I'm seeing the whole picture here.

#4) I now have THREE dish mount feet on my roof. 2 of them are from when we need a 2-dish solution. Now I've been moved to eastern arc and that dish required yet another new foot. Will switching to DirecTV mean ANOTHER dish mount? (I'm gonna have a lot of holes in my garage roof)

Right now, switching would actually save me about $400+ over the course of 2 years, with most of that being in the first year due to promotional discounts.

#5) Any ADDITIONAL discounts I should be looking for? Does DirecTV pay referral fees? Someone in my area want to refer me? (not yet... gotta make sure I'm actually proceeding with this based on answers to all my dumb questions)

Will check back later. At work and have to actually get something done.

Thanks!

[mdram]

im looking at the same thing, i dont know how your cost is so low, mines higher

are you getting the hd free for life?

also you get 10 a month for 10 moths with a friends account number, he also get a the same for bringing you over

[RandallA]

I'll answer some of the questions.

With their new SWM technology, all they need is one single run from the dish to a splitter inside to feed up to 8 tuners. Each DVR is 2 tuners and other receivers is one tuner. They could probably remove one of the E* dishes and install the D* dish there.

For $25 they setup MRV for you. Just the adapters cost more than that. Ethernet networking works but it's not officially supported by D*.

You get $10 discount for 10 months for friend referral. Ask one of the staff members for their account # or a friend.

There is a AAA discount but I don't know if it's still available.

[royrdsjr]

I currently have a pair of RG6 QS from the satellite mount on the roof with a single coax to each (E*) satellite receiver. Can this be used by DirecTV as is or will I have to add/change the wiring?

I believe that the coax cable for D* has to be 3ghz rated,E*'s coax cable is 2200ghz rated.

[RandallA]

I believe that the coax cable for D* has to be 3ghz rated,E*'s coax cable is 2200ghz rated.

It should work ok. Satellite signals go up to 2150 Mhz. It's up to the installer if he wants to use it though.

[cparker]

im looking at the same thing, i dont know how your cost is so low, mines higher

are you getting the hd free for life?

also you get 10 a month for 10 moths with a friends account number, he also get a the same for bringing you over

Not sure I'll be able to paste this in here without it screwing up, but here's a try...


CHOICE ULTIMATE $68.99
$24 Bill Credit for Months 1-12 ( -$24)
$5 Bill Credit for Months 1-12 (-$5)
HD Access $10
FREE HD for Life -$10
DIRECTV DVR Service $7
Whole-Home DVR Service $3
Receiver Lease Fee (2 receivers) $10
Lease Fee Discount (1st receiver) - $5
----------
$54.99 <--- This is what shows as my monthly fee for the first 12 months

One-Time Fees:
HD DVR Receiver(1) $199
FREE HD DVR Receiver Upgrade -$199
HD DVR Receiver(2) $199
$100 OFF HD DVR Receiver Upgrade -$100
TV Internet Connection Service $ 25
---------
$124

Does that look right? Am I missing something?

Thanks,

[cparker]

I believe that the coax cable for D* has to be 3ghz rated,E*'s coax cable is 2200ghz rated.

My coax is 3GHz rated

[RandallA]

Not sure I'll be able to paste this in here without it screwing up, but here's a try...


CHOICE ULTIMATE $68.99
$24 Bill Credit for Months 1-12 ( -$24)
$5 Bill Credit for Months 1-12 (-$5)
HD Access $10
FREE HD for Life -$10
DIRECTV DVR Service $7
Whole-Home DVR Service $3
Receiver Lease Fee (2 receivers) $10
Lease Fee Discount (1st receiver) - $5
----------
$54.99 <--- This is what shows as my monthly fee for the first 12 months

One-Time Fees:
HD DVR Receiver(1) $199
FREE HD DVR Receiver Upgrade -$199
HD DVR Receiver(2) $199
$100 OFF HD DVR Receiver Upgrade -$100
TV Internet Connection Service $ 25
---------
$124

Does that look right? Am I missing something?

Thanks,

That looks about right. You already have the 2 HD-DVRs so that's good. I always tell people to get 2 HD-DVRs in the initial installation.

[harshness]

Does that look right? Am I missing something?

You may be missing the up front charge for "installing" the Whole Home DVR Service. The $25 fee is typically just for connecting the DIRECTV DECA network to your LAN.

You would probably be better off asking DIRECTV how they intend to treat you.

[harshness]

They could probably remove one of the E* dishes and install the D* dish there.

Chances are that they won't remove anything. They may reuse the cable, but the masts and mounting feet are incompatible due to the tubing size differential.