Official - I have a Hopper 3 Thread!

We want to hear how about your ordering experience!
Although I got in early on the upgrade list (#34, I think), I ended up using Chat on Sunday, 1/31, to do the upgrade. I had two months left on my contract, but was able to upgrade (Hopper 3 plus two Joeys) at no charge, adding the Protection Plan to waive the $95 tech fee. There was one minor glitch in the process. The chat rep said they could do the install on Monday, 2/1, but I requested Wednesday, 2/3, instead so I could be home at the time. We confirmed an install for Wednesday afternoon. Later in the day, I received an email confirming my appointment for Monday. I was able to fix it easily online - but the scheduling tool wasn't working right, either.

We want to hear about your install how did it go?
The tech arrived right on time. I gave him a tour of the house, showing him where everything was, after which time he informed me that he would have to put up a new dish. Company policy (Galaxy One) does not allow the installer to get on the roof; he can only install the dish at a location he can reach while still on the ladder. Apparently, the company that Dish previously contracted with in our area - the one that put a dish higher on my roof and out of reach of the ladder - was bought out. So now I have a dish on the front edge of my roof, another (non-functioning) dish, complete with LNB, higher up on the back side of my roof, and a mast on a gable where my original dish was. That dish was removed by the tech on a previous upgrade, but he didn't bother to remove the mast. To top it off, because of obstacles at the location of the new dish, the latest tech was unable to attach the cable to the side of the house; it's just hanging loose and, frankly, looks horrible.

When he got ready to assemble the dish, he asked me if there was a hardware store around because he'd lost his 1/2-inch socket. I rustled up a couple sockets for him (a 1/4" and a 3/8" drive). I live in a town of 2,000 with no hardware store. It would have taken him 45 minutes to run to the next town to get one. After he left, I realized that he did not give them back. Fortunately, I did not give him my good ones. We also found a 2-foot length of RG-6 with an F-connector on the ground next to the driveway after he left, along with the installation instruction book for the 1000.2 dish. Pretty sloppy and careless, if you ask me.

He left one Joey box, with the cables inside, in the bedroom. He took the other boxes, along with the new HDMI and composite cables. I don't really need them, but I wish he had left them as he should have. He did leave my old 40.0 remotes in all three locations without me having to ask.

We want to hear what the Techs did and upgraded at your house!
The tech installed a new 1000.2 dish with hybrid LNB, hub, Hopper 3 and two Joey 2.0s. He removed the old node/splitter(s), Hopper w/Sling, Joey 1.0, and Super Joey.

I didn't time the download, but it took quite a while. Despite his sloppiness, the tech was very polite and even asked for permission to sit down in the living room during the download.

We want to hear your thoughts on the Hopper 3!

Love the Hopper 3 - especially the speed. The GUI looks great. Surprisingly, I do not find the banner at the bottom distracting at all. One of the first things I found was the setting to hide duplicate SD channels, something that a lot of people have seemed to complain about. Picture quality is great, but I can't say I can really tell a difference between this and the HWS. I find myself using the old 40.0 remote most of the time. I'll probably get used to the 52.0, but I'm not sure it's really a step forward (more on that below).

We want to hear what you would change about the Hopper 3?
It's such a simple thing, but I really do miss the red recording LED on the front. I'm still learning my way around the new interface, but I'm not sure I'd change anything there. My biggest beef is with the new remote. The buttons are very hard to differentiate, especially the top two rows. Removing so many buttons in favor of menu-driven commands was not a step forward. I'd prefer to perform functions like PIP, CC, and - for Pete's sake - stop playback, of all things, using a single button on the remote. After building so much funtionality into the color buttons, removing them makes no sense. (It's awesome that the functionality is still there with the 40.0 remote. Great job on that one.) I will say this - the feel of the new remote is fantastic. It is well constructed, feels good in the hand, and has very responsive buttons. If Dish wants to build the perfect remote, they should combine the feel of the 52.0 remote with the layout of the 40.0.
 
Is anyone else having trouble with the remotes. My wife and I sit about 10 - 15 feet from our hopper and it seems like we have to repeat commands on both the old and new remotes all the time. If we point it exactly at the hopper then we can get it to work but we never had to do this with the old hopper 2. I am thinking we got a hopper with a bad RF receiver.
I'm having no problem with the new remote here. It works from all over the living room and into the dining room - about 17 feet and you don't have to point it at the Hopper. It's the same as the Hopper with Sling with the old remote. Did they install the antenna on the back of the DVR?
 
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I had mine installed on Friday and was quick and painless. I notice one thing now is that the icons are for the networks and not for the programs themselves as was in the previous version. I really liked the program icons instead. Is this a new "feature" or a glitch?
Mine started out with the network logos, but over the past couple of days the program icons have been showing up. Just give it a few days and you'll be happy again. :)
 
Is anyone else having trouble with the remotes. My wife and I sit about 10 - 15 feet from our hopper and it seems like we have to repeat commands on both the old and new remotes all the time. If we point it exactly at the hopper then we can get it to work but we never had to do this with the old hopper 2. I am thinking we got a hopper with a bad RF receiver.
Does your Hopper have the UHF antenna installed in back?
 
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Hmmm, slight fly in the OTA-ntment. I go to watch SNL last night so I punch in my local NBC affiliate "016-01" on my 4K Joey and the station is breaking up, bad pixelation every five seconds or so. I switch back to the feed from the dish and it's perfectly fine. I switch my TV to its internal tuner and 16.1 is coming in great (same antenna for all receivers in the house).

So I check some of the other local stations and they're all doing the same thing, breaking-up or pixelation every few seconds. Sounds like I have a bum OTA module, doesn't it? Either that, or a problem with the Hopper 3 software, but I think are enough people here with OTA modules and this would have been reported if that were the case.

Time to contact the seller, I guess. Or do I contact Dish and use my DHPP to get a replacement?
 
Hmmm, slight fly in the OTA-ntment. I go to watch SNL last night so I punch in my local NBC affiliate "016-01" on my 4K Joey and the station is breaking up, bad pixelation every five seconds or so. I switch back to the feed from the dish and it's perfectly fine. I switch my TV to its internal tuner and 16.1 is coming in great (same antenna for all receivers in the house).

So I check some of the other local stations and they're all doing the same thing, breaking-up or pixelation every few seconds. Sounds like I have a bum OTA module, doesn't it? Either that, or a problem with the Hopper 3 software, but I think are enough people here with OTA modules and this would have been reported if that were the case.

Time to contact the seller, I guess. Or do I contact Dish and use my DHPP to get a replacement?
I'd check your splitters and make sure your connections are good.

It has been my experience that the Hopper OTA module is the most finicky tuner in my house.

Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Tapatalk
 
Well, I thought it might be self-inflicted, too, as I used a longer USB cable than the 10" cable that comes with the dongle. Since it has the choke built in to the cable and the 3' cable I used didn't, I figured I can't complain yet until I use everything that Dish provides. After I rebooted the Hopper the OTA tuner seems to be working now, but I'll let it "cook" for a few hours and check to see how it's doing then.

I thought the OTA module would be hot, or at least warm, but it wasn't. So it isn't overheating.
I'd check your splitters and make sure your connections are good.
I did notice that at some point in the past I installed a 3-way splitter in my entertainment center. I should replace it with a 2-way since the only receivers are the HDTV and the Hopper's OTA dongle.

Edit: It's starting to break up again. Funny, the 722k's tuner never had issues with this feed. Your observation that the OTA Dongle is picky may be right...

Edit 2: Ah, OTA locals, your commercials are so entertaining! "Angry Mama" Microwave cleaner. Who knew?
Screen Shot 2016-02-07 at 11.39.10 AM.jpg
 
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Well, I thought it might be self-inflicted, too, as I used a longer USB cable than the 10" cable that comes with the dongle. Since it has the choke built in to the cable and the 3' cable I used didn't, I figured I can't complain yet until I use everything that Dish provides. After I rebooted the Hopper the OTA tuner seems to be working now, but I'll let it "cook" for a few hours and check to see how it's doing then.

I thought the OTA module would be hot, or at least warm, but it wasn't. So it isn't overheating.I did notice that at some point in the past I installed a 3-way splitter in my entertainment center. I should replace it with a 2-way since the only receivers are the HDTV and the Hopper's OTA dongle.

Edit: It's starting to break up again. Funny, the 722k's tuner never had issues with this feed. Your observation that the OTA Dongle is picky may be right...

Edit 2: Ah, OTA locals, your commercials are so entertaining! "Angry Mama" Microwave cleaner. Who knew?
View attachment 113694

http://www.satelliteguys.us/xen/threads/anyone-having-ota-reception-problems-with-h3.357631/
 
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I just noticed on the TV activity screen you can scroll to an active tuner press select and turn of the receiver that is using that tuner. No more going all over the house.
Just an FYI, that ability has been around for a long time with the Hoppers.
 
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“select” button not working.

Wireless Joey questions

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