New HIT Channels on SES1 and AMC18

[Kb Cool]

My wife wanted to know if we get the "Hallmark Channel", so that she could watch "I Love Lucy" this weekend. I had to say no and then realized that we have 9 dishes (2' to 8') and 2 OTA antennas installed in our backyard, a dedicated communications room containing over 60 satellite receivers and we still don't receive the channels we want to watch.

You can always upgrade your Charlie package for a month. Then downgrade the next.

 

[tvropro]

I agree and I'm sorry if I sounded anti C-band / HITS/ 4DTV. I enjoy C-band satellite and the HITS service as much as you and I certainly appreciate all that you are doing to help keep this service alive.

I think the best thing for me to do is to have a subscription to both HITS and Dish Network to keep everyone in my family happy.

I just don't want to see the 4D discussion area here turn into what happened at Satforums. The trolls and the idiots all came out of the woodwork and made it turn into a totally lynch the 4DTV crowd. We need to promote and push what we have that is the ONLY way things will get better. It cost's money to improve things. The money comes from subscribers. When people thinking about it see negative press they will probably not become a sub. There has been way too much destruction done to c band for years, we need to turn that around.

I truly believe that if I and Davage didn't get involved with Skyvision last year that we would no longer have a movable 4DTV box with our old maps maintained. I pushed hard for it! And used my knowledge of the DC to try things that made it happen. Motorola could care less about our use of anything beyond a cash flow source, that's why we assembled the Map Master Team. If Motorola won't allow us the functions of the receiver that should have been in there from the factory we will do it ourselves.

I am a big C band advocate but still have Direct. It fills those voids of missing channels I really like for now. While we build the C band system up. It's okay to have both since they both have good and bad points. If my dream ever comes true we won't need pizza anymore for those other channels we want.

 

[trinidex]

I just don't want to see the 4D discussion area here turn into what happened at Satforums. The trolls and the idiots all came out of the woodwork and made it turn into a totally lynch the 4DTV crowd. We need to promote and push what we have that is the ONLY way things will get better. It cost's money to improve things. The money comes from subscribers. When people thinking about it see negative press they will probably not become a sub. There has been way too much destruction done to c band for years, we need to turn that around.

First off - lots & lots of people are grateful to you, TVROPRO, and the rest that have helped keep 4DTV, DCII, Big Dish, whatever you want to call it, alive for enduser subscriber.

Second - I agree 100% with your post, this isn't the place for who has better channels, that is 100% subjective, there are simple (simple being the word) polls for that. Some like Dish, some like Direct, some like Cable, some like 4DTV, some like OTA - there's enough to go around.

I too 'supplement' my DSR sub with pizza for the odd channel we don't get that we like.

I'm an insomniac, as a result I'm awake in the early hours, for this I like VH1, it's about the only time they play music videos.

Unfortunately, the only way I can get VH1 is with pizza.

 

[NotTy]

I just don't want to see the 4D discussion area here turn into what happened at Satforums. The trolls and the idiots all came out of the woodwork and made it turn into a totally lynch the 4DTV crowd.

Thanks.
IMO, I think this thread should be terminated because it originally had nothing to do with trashing or comparing 4D to Pizza & now it seems that some of us are on the "Charlie Sheen" kick. As a troll & an idiot, because I too am guilty of comparing the two, would like to assure that no animals were harmed in this thread.

 

[eurosport]

....& now it seems that some of us are on the "Charlie Sheen" kick....

 

[dhj]

I too am glad to have this option still available. Been a subscriber to C band since the 1980's, and always liked being able to buy what I want without too many unwanted channels pushed on me. Will be watching as long as it or I am here.

 

[Corrado]

My wife wanted to know if we get the "Hallmark Channel", so that she could watch "I Love Lucy" this weekend....

MeTV airs "I Love Lucy" also on the weekends if that's the only program you're looking for.

 

[PopcornNMore]

Ok, perhaps I made a mistake...

Due to pressure from my family to gain access to channels such as "Hallmark", "AMC", "Oxygen", etc and to continue receiving "Nickelodeon", "Disney", "ABC Family" and others I upgraded our Dish Network account today from the America's Top 120 to the America's Top 200 package. So, instead of reducing monthly expenses like I had wanted, we are now spending approx. $72 a month for Dish Network and $25 a month for HITS.

So, tonight I'm here looking through the guide on Dish Network and I see so many of the following channels:
NEW - Shark Vacuum
ICTV - Wesley Snipes Total Gym
MALL - Coin Show
BEST - Dog Training Secrets
IDEA - Quit Your Job
ALIVE - America's Auction Network
LSHOP - Marvin's Gem Shop
SHOP - Knives Live
C&T - Coin Vault

This is what I'm paying $72 a month for? I then turn on "Hallmark HD" and all the shows are displayed in 4:3 format with a HD on the right hand side of the screen. Switching to "TCM HD" I see the exact same thing with a 4:3 screen and black borders on the sides.

With America's Top 200 I thought I was going to receive "ESPN Classics" which I enjoy watchng retro pro wrestling on the weekend's. Tonight I find out that this channel is now only available within the Sports Package which would cost me even more money per month.

I then turn off Dish Network and turn on HITS instead. There might not be as many channels, but almost every channel had something on that was interesting enough to watch and the video looks great. There was "The HUB", "National Geographic", "Cooking Channel", "Biography", "Planet Green", "Discovery Science" and many other channels that are only available in Dish Network's highest channel tier that costs $70 a month. Plus even my $24 HITS channel package includes "ESPN Classics" at no additional cost.

I also enjoy having the west coast feeds of "HGTV", "Bravo" and "History".

So, I guess I'll continue my HITS subscription for another month and remain part of this "410 club".

 

[tvropro]

You are finding out that pizza is nothing but a rip off. They have the packages structured to make the most money by putting certain channels in high tiers. With 4DTV/410 the high tier channels cost the same as a low tier channel and you can get small packs with them too. I always loved C band back in the day because we could pick what we wanted and payed nickles & dimes compared to pizza and cable. I would always tell people spending 60+ dollars a month that I was spending 4~5 dollars a month for what I wanted on C band. What you need to do is trim the fat with pizza and get a low tier pack for basics and add the high tiers with the 410 even if you loose a channel or two. Believe it or not a channel you think you can't do without you can and find others to take the place. Been there done that.

Have you thought about dumping Dish Network (I figure your out of contract) and get DirecTV for your family basics? You would start as a new sub and get the teaser rate for a year. I get ChoiceXtra for $29.99 a month and it has everything you mentioned I believe that your paying dish $72 for. Then do like I'm doing with year two downgrade to the family pack $29.99 a month (Directs family pack is better than dish IMHO) and pick up the slack with Hits2Home. May be something to look into. Plus if you wanted to go with Direct. I could actually get you an extra $100 off the first year if you wanted. PM me for details.

 

[trinidex]

I then turn on "Hallmark HD" and all the shows are displayed in 4:3 format with a HD on the right hand side of the screen. Switching to "TCM HD" I see the exact same thing with a 4:3 screen and black borders on the sides.

OH YES! - Isn't that a HUGE p!ss off!!!

I then turn off Dish Network and turn on HITS instead. There might not be as many channels, but almost every channel had something on that was interesting enough to watch and the video looks great. There was "The HUB", "National Geographic", "Cooking Channel", "Biography", "Planet Green", "Discovery Science" and many other channels that are only available in Dish Network's highest channel tier that costs $70 a month. Plus even my $24 HITS channel package includes "ESPN Classics" at no additional cost.

AMEN! This is my biggest argument in favour of HITS

I also enjoy having the west coast feeds of "HGTV", "Bravo" and "History".

YUP!

So, I guess I'll continue my HITS subscription for another month and remain part of this "410 club".

WooHoo!

 

[Dishman Dan]

Hey Popcorn,

This thread is more entertaining than what you are paying for on Dish!!!...

 

[Kb Cool]

Ok, perhaps I made a mistake...

Due to pressure from my family to gain access to channels such as "Hallmark", "AMC", "Oxygen", etc and to continue receiving "Nickelodeon", "Disney", "ABC Family" and others I upgraded our Dish Network account today from the America's Top 120 to the America's Top 200 package. So, instead of reducing monthly expenses like I had wanted, we are now spending approx. $72 a month for Dish Network and $25 a month for HITS.

So, tonight I'm here looking through the guide on Dish Network and I see so many of the following channels:
NEW - Shark Vacuum
ICTV - Wesley Snipes Total Gym
MALL - Coin Show
BEST - Dog Training Secrets
IDEA - Quit Your Job
ALIVE - America's Auction Network
LSHOP - Marvin's Gem Shop
SHOP - Knives Live
C&T - Coin Vault

This is what I'm paying $72 a month for? I then turn on "Hallmark HD" and all the shows are displayed in 4:3 format with a HD on the right hand side of the screen. Switching to "TCM HD" I see the exact same thing with a 4:3 screen and black borders on the sides.

With America's Top 200 I thought I was going to receive "ESPN Classics" which I enjoy watchng retro pro wrestling on the weekend's. Tonight I find out that this channel is now only available within the Sports Package which would cost me even more money per month.

I then turn off Dish Network and turn on HITS instead. There might not be as many channels, but almost every channel had something on that was interesting enough to watch and the video looks great. There was "The HUB", "National Geographic", "Cooking Channel", "Biography", "Planet Green", "Discovery Science" and many other channels that are only available in Dish Network's highest channel tier that costs $70 a month. Plus even my $24 HITS channel package includes "ESPN Classics" at no additional cost.

I also enjoy having the west coast feeds of "HGTV", "Bravo" and "History".

So, I guess I'll continue my HITS subscription for another month and remain part of this "410 club".

I would up it one more time and go with the AT 250. Whats another 10 bucks when your already paying $70.

 

[lonewolf454]

That's why I went with Direct, they offer all "upper tier" channels in regular package for less than $70/mo, I have two HD receivers, DVR whole house service, and ran 2nd box on coax to kids rooms, everyone is happy. I have all channels except movie channels and add-on HD package.

Dish network is a ripoff and the $29.99 is a teaser rate that don't offer many good channels. If you must switch, go with Direct, and if interested contact one of us directv users on how to save $100 off your bill the first 10 months ($10 month) it's free money on the table if you want it, email or PM for more info.

I have had Direct since November and the family loves it. I enjoy convenience of the dvr since I get up at 3:00 AM to go to work and all the good shows come on at 8:00-10:00 PM.

I still however love my c-band/4dtv/fta setup and ain't givin' it up for nothing.

 

[tvropro]

Besides not being happy with Ergan and his games. I looked and compared Direct to Dish and the channel lineup vs price etc before I got Direct. Direct did offer more I wanted. I'm not saying Direct is an angel either, There are a few things I don't like about them, rain fade, contracts, picture quality (like all pizza) Plus in all honesty Direct started the demise of C band when they started in 1994 but didn't aggressively go after buyouts of c band programming subscribers like Dish did. They more or less allowed people to make there own decisions vs force feeding the sky is falling to us and killing our programming for the masters. So they are the lessor of 2 evils at least in my book. If your forced with needing those staple channels to keep the ball & chain and kids happy Direct is the better choice I think.

Not to show my age here but I was lucky to even have a tv in my bedroom with a handful of OTA channels when I was a kid. I had no computer, cell phone, DVR etc that has spoiled these kids IMHO. We were happy to have a baseball mitt and a bat and to be able to ride our bikes when we were young.

 

[TheTechGuru]

I got HD Cable yesterday. Have to say, not very impressed. I'll write a full review in the cable section of the forum sometime soon. Will say, probably not going to keep it very long, not worth the price.

 

[PopcornNMore]

You are finding out that pizza is nothing but a rip off. They have the packages structured to make the most money by putting certain channels in high tiers. With 4DTV/410 the high tier channels cost the same as a low tier channel and you can get small packs with them too. I always loved C band back in the day because we could pick what we wanted and payed nickles & dimes compared to pizza and cable. I would always tell people spending 60+ dollars a month that I was spending 4~5 dollars a month for what I wanted on C band. What you need to do is trim the fat with pizza and get a low tier pack for basics and add the high tiers with the 410 even if you loose a channel or two. Believe it or not a channel you think you can't do without you can and find others to take the place. Been there done that.

Yes, this is what Dish Network is doing. One of my favorite channels is DIY and I need to pay $70 plus DVR and extra fees just to get it.

I too had videocipher subscriptions on C band and only paid a few dollars a month for programming back in the day. It was nice to be able to not only pick what channels you wanted, but who you where going to buy them from.

I was a Dish Network / DirecTV subscriber now for 15-20 years flipping back and forth between services as we moved from apartment to apartment and house to house.

 

[PopcornNMore]

Not to show my age here but I was lucky to even have a tv in my bedroom with a handful of OTA channels when I was a kid. I had no computer, cell phone, DVR etc that has spoiled these kids IMHO. We were happy to have a baseball mitt and a bat and to be able to ride our bikes when we were young.

Same here! I had a 12" B&W TV with about a dozen OTA channels and I was a happy camper. Today with all the technology available I don't even see my daughter some nights, because she's hibernating in her room.

 

[PopcornNMore]

That's why I went with Direct, they offer all "upper tier" channels in regular package for less than $70/mo, I have two HD receivers, DVR whole house service, and ran 2nd box on coax to kids rooms, everyone is happy. I have all channels except movie channels and add-on HD package.

Dish network is a ripoff and the $29.99 is a teaser rate that don't offer many good channels. If you must switch, go with Direct, and if interested contact one of us directv users on how to save $100 off your bill the first 10 months ($10 month) it's free money on the table if you want it, email or PM for more info.

I have had Direct since November and the family loves it. I enjoy convenience of the dvr since I get up at 3:00 AM to go to work and all the good shows come on at 8:00-10:00 PM.

I still however love my c-band/4dtv/fta setup and ain't givin' it up for nothing.

I have to wonder why all these anti pizza pro 4DTV supporters like tvropro and yourself are promoting and selling subscriptions to DirecTV when you are fighting to keep C band subscriptions alive? Are you sleeping with the enemy?

If I was single I would only have a HITS subscription, OTA and FTA satellite. Everytime I have HITS on my wife comes into the room and wants to watch something on Dish Network.

 

[Mr Tony]

Because until 4DTV gets some of the more basic channels out there folks will need to go with cable or DBS too.
Would I like to get a W5 setup? heck yeah. But the channel selection they offer and the price doesn't make it feasible for me. Right now I am on year 2 of my Directv setup and while the base price went up $14 after the 1st year promo rate (was $29 off now $14) the credits I got right now more than make up for it. And they have the channels I want. Something that 4DTV doesn't. I guess the ones who have motorized C-Band setups are lucky as some of you have said you dont watch a lot of ESPN as example. I know lots of the ESPN feeds are on C-Band while the ESPNU feeds are mainly on KU. The issue I ran into when I didnt have either US DBS system (I had Shaw) was the game I wanted to watch was not able to be picked up on C-Band because it was either fibre or worse required a 10 foot minimum dish. I dont have that issue now
As for the rain fade, some folks must live in a monsoon area because in 14 months I have lost signal 3 times..once was due to a freak snowstorm and the others were due to heavy dark cloud cover.

On a side note, its interesting how some posters in this thread here say "now dont bash 4DTV" and are calling people who talk about other options trolls yet you are doing the same thing.

 

[PopcornNMore]

Ice, I'm finding that the channel selection HITS currently offers isn't that bad. In fact, I usually find more things to watch on HITS than DN. If a few other upper tier channels would be added such as "DIY" I would be a happy camper. You could always use one of your 6' dishes for HITS like I am just to help support the cause. I'm thinking of adding an additional feed this spring onto the dish to gain access to an additional nearby satellite in order to get more use out of the dish.