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I thought I'd post about my DirecTV install experience for anyone interested in hearing about it.

Background
I had DirecTV 6mo ago for 3 years. I only got a couple HD channels because I was on MPEG-2 technology and could only see the 101 satellite. I moved for work and was only able to get an apartment on short notice. Unfortunately it faced the wrong way. I had been waiting to get an HDTV for over 3 years and finally decided to switch apartments for the sole purpose of getting a satellite signal.

Pole Install
The installer showed up at 12:45, the scheduled time was 12-4. The guy looked like he was in his late 60's but if he can still go around doing jobs, good for him. My apartment management does not allow drilling or attachment to anything, however I drove around and saw that all the people with satellite had their dishes clamped to their balcony railing so I instructed the installer to do that. He told me the pole would cost $75, that sounded reasonable from what you guys have told me. The pole had two L plates with clamps around the pole. At first he tried the clamp to the top and bottom of the railing. That didnt make much sense to me. I mentioned to him how the other apartments installed, with the pole against the railings and the plate on the other side. Anyways, he tried in vain for about 45, getting all kinds of random bolts and bending them to force fit them. Finally he gave up and attached it the way I suggested. He only put on U clamp on each plate, however I grabbed the pole and it seemed very stable. I noticed there is no locking washer so I hope it holds. So overall this took about an hour.

DVR box install
When he first showed up, he was concerned about how to get the cabling in. He said that usually, flat wire would be used but it can't be used for HD. I asked him where it usually comes in, and he said the window. So I told him to just feed the cable through the window, I'll get some insulation foam and it should be fine. Anyways, he hooked up the box, and I was happy to see I was getting 85-100% signals. Then it got to some "12V/18V" test and failed. He had mentioned he was worried about this. He said that this always happens with DVR boxes and it is due to some sort of software bug when the box is too close to the dish. He said that when the voltage is too high, it cuts it in half, but then it is too low. He told me the directv rep told him to go in his truck and get 75ft of cable, and put it in line inorder to lower the voltage. He tried that, then several different LNB's, then moving the dish slightly out of alignment. Anyways, finally after 2 hours, he got the right cable and LNB combination to get it to pass. I was suspect about this but I am getting a good signal so I was happy.

Later, after he left, I went out and checked the dish to see how sturdy it was. I noticed it was rocking around a bit if I grabbed it. I looked more carefully and he forgot to tighten the bolts for the azimuth and elevation. The threaded adjustment screws were basically all that was holding it in place. I manually tightened them and now my dish is rock solid.


I've posted several photos of the install.