Recent content by ActionAl

As I prep my house for a Dish install, I'd like to have the mounting area prepared so the installer has no issues and I won't have any issues with access in the winter if I need to clear snow/ice. The pictures below show the area I'd like locate the dish. I'd prefer that the dish be below the...

Thanks for the additional information. I may get a few accessories, but I no plans to own the equipment. I'm not sure that SAT, Cable, or OTA TV is long for this world as broadband gets faster. Everything will be live or on-demand through the Internet. I couldn't guess on how many years with any...

Dang... I can barely stand the 90's but over a 100 is unimaginable to me. Mid 80's today (uncomfortable) with 60's tonight (perfect).

So am I to assume that this combo provides a stronger signal which helps during weather issues that would have taken out the stock install?

I pretty much expect there will be some outages. The problem with my TWC outages is that many were for hours and that I had no TV, no Internet, no phone, and I couldn't watch anything previously recorded on the DVR's. My guess is that by going with Dish for TV and TWC for Internet, I'll still...

Yeah, I've been pissed at TWC for DVR's not working during their frequent outages. That's why I got a used Tivo to try out other options. The only problem is the box TWC gave me to use with the Tivo (because they don't have 2-way Cable CARDs) also has required rebooting several times so I lost...

Wow. Both sites provided awesome information. Based on your comments, I'm going to start with the antenna I already have in the garage attic, but now I know the exact direction to point it. If it doesn't work, the most I'll have to pay is about $100 for a high end antenna with an amplifier. I'm...

All the towers should be mostly in the same direction (NE). I have an antenna in my garage I've been using for FM. Not sure if a HDTV antenna will work, but I could give it try.

Do you think that'll actually work being 30 or more miles from the towers?

Yep. I'm 30 minutes SW of Milwaukee. I just found an app for my Android phone that works like Google Sky to locate satellites that's pretty cool.

My problem has been with TWC going out for many hours, even in good weather. And when cable is out, I can't watch anything on the TWC DVR's (Tivo is okay). At my house, the power has only been out for a couple hours once in 12 years, with the other times being just a few minutes.

I'm hopeful that the location I've picked out is somewhat shielded from snow blowing at the dish (I was told SE is the direction it'll have to face) and the backside of the dish would be covered. I've noticed some sat dishes mounted on other houses with a cloth cover, is this how to keep snow off?

I really appreciate the multiple and very quick replies! It's making the jump a lot easier. The biggest problem probably will be getting the wife use to the change. But she is the biggest complainer of our TWC issues.

Yes, your very detailed response helped a lot! Thanks!

I've been a TWC customer for decades, currently have Signature service. I'm sick of their crap DVR's, limited channel choices, frequent outages (including many during nice days). None of neighbors have DISH, only TWC, TDS, or DTV. So I need some advice from current DISH subscribers. DISH...