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dishdog

Last reply Jul 2, 2010 · posted in DIRECTV General Forum

directTV do i believe the bad hype

I apologize if I'm in the wrong forum I am new to this board.

I have just moved into a new apartment. Deciding between Time-Warner and DirectTV.

I would like to give DirectTV a go. It's cheaper and offers Sunday Ticket.

However the customer reviews I've found digging around the web are pretty bad.

An example of one site I found...

DirecTV Inc - Satellite TV Reviews and Complaints

Since this will be my first experience with satellite I am looking for some reassurance from folks who have DirectTV that they have had a good experience with their service.

Thanks for your help...

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cfb

Jul 1, 2010

Major things to watch out for:

- 2 year contract with directv with an early termination fee. Probably not with the cable option
- Directv has more channels and more sports
- You might get double and triple plays with cable from internet, phone, television, etc. Not on directv unless you do billing through some 3rd party that bundles directv
- Directv customer support isnt as good as it used to be and you sometimes have to call 3 or 4 times to get something done
- Read the directv contracts carefully and make sure you understand them, because they have an "F" rating with the BBB, primarily for stickling customers about what was on page 9, paragraph 3, section M.
- Directv may not have all of your local channels, while cable probably will
- The directv DVR, for a heavy dvr user, has some performance issues and some things that dont work well or work like you'd expect, on the cable end you can use the cable company's dvr (which usually stink as well) or use a tivo. At least its more than one option
- Directv likes to stick premium channel and pay per view stuff up your nose on every occasion. Even if you dont subscribe to the premium channels and arent interested in pay per views, when searching for shows or autorecording keywords on your dvr, you'll have to flip through 30 pages of pay per views and stuff on channels you dont get. It makes the search function rather useless in my opinion
- Reliability wise, I had great reliability with my directv receivers and reception in the SD days. Since getting the HD dish and HD DVR equipment, I get a lot more rain fade and even lose signal on real cloudy days. I have perfect line of sight and perfect dish alignment, and great brand new cabling, so thats not the problem. Having had cable a few years ago and being able to compare that to current directv reliability, I think they're about even.
- System control at directv has been a bit problematic for the last two years. A couple of times they've sent out new software releases before their time because they were being driven by an advertised date, hosed some people up with bugs and then had to do emergency releases soon after to fix them. A couple of times they've also sent bad guide data and blown up everyones dvr's for 4-6 hours. The release control and error checking need some work.
- Directv's HD picture quality seems a little better to me than what I've seen on cable, but I think after watching either one exclusively for a couple of days, you wont notice.

I think this is about the time someone puts on the Dr. McCoy and yells "dammit cfb! its only tv!!"

cave1376

Jul 1, 2010

We have Time Warner here in El Paso, TX and know your horror problems. I have never regreded droping them and getting D*.

As far as product complaints, every one gets them. It does not matter what kind of product it is, new cars, home builders, fast food, what ever. More people will complain about bad products or services and the good goes less heard.

Had D* sense 98 and have nothing big to complain about. And before I moved into a rental, I asked the property mngr if I could have D*. He said it was ok as long as the Dish wasn't going to be installed on the roof or wall and "When you go, the dish goes too". I told him the dish would be attached to the rail post and I would take it with me when I leave. The mngr was fine with the post mount and gave me premision for the mount.

Be sure you get written authorization from the property mngr. or land lord and any dish mounting restrictions they may have. The D* installer will want to see it because of the mounting restrictions and los before he starts the install.

johns70

Jul 2, 2010

I've been real happy with DIRECTV. I've had it for 13 years.

I've never had direc or direc tv like one of the other people replying did so I can't comment on that service.

In 13 years I've never had my service go out on real cloudy days. The person that said that does have an equipment problem.

I've never had to call DIRECTV 3 or 4 times to get something done.

markfp-1

Jul 2, 2010

I've had DirecTV since 1999 and I've always been pleased. Keep in mind that any online forum tend to have more negative comments than positive ones. People with valid complaints or those with just an ax to grind are very vocal, but most the folks who are satisfied with the service don't bother to write in. That's just the way it is.

People are like that. A person goes to a restaurant and gets a horrible meal and terrible service, they'll tell everybody they know about how bad it was, but when everything was good they don't tell anybody.

I think you'd get a better idea of the service by asking DirecTV customers in your own neighborhood.

cfb

Jul 2, 2010

johns70 said:
In 13 years I've never had my service go out on real cloudy days. The person that said that does have an equipment problem.

I do not have any sort of equipment problem. When its sunny and clear for 8 months a year, I get signals in the 89-96 range on all transponders. When the heavy weather comes in and we have highly saturated clouds or rain, the signal drops down below 40 and I get 771's.

Of course, since we probably dont live in the same place, my weather just might be a bit different from yours.

This has only been an issue since the HD upgrade. I rarely had rain problems in the old days. The equipment and cabling has been checked twice by directv and found to be 100%.

When I had cable, it went out 2-3 times a year for 2-4 hours. With directv, I get a signal loss 3-4 times a year for 15 minutes to 3-4 hours. Then once a year I've had my boxes blown out of the water for ~4 hours due to bad guide data, and twice I've had software updates that were bug ridden that caused me signal problems and loss of recordings.

I've never had to call DIRECTV 3 or 4 times to get something done.

I never used to have CS problems, but there are some now. The BBB ratings of "F" and the fast slide downhill in customer service ratings appear to support my observations and conclusions.

I will remind all of you that I've been a customer for ~15 years, and was directv's biggest fanboy for about 12 of those years. They are not now what they used to be.

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Scott Greczkowski

Staff member HERE TO HELP YOU! Cutting Edge

Last reply A moment ago · posted in The Chit Chat Club

Song Name Game Part 3!

Sometimes a thread gets so many posts in it that is can cause issues for the server so that why today we introduce The Song Name Game Part 3!

So let the game continue!

The last song was added by Bobby who posted...

One Meat Ball - Andrews Sisters

CONTINUE ON AND HAVE FUN! WELCOME HOME TO SATELLITEGUYS.US!

Here are the original rules for the game as posted by WebbyDude back in 2006. http://www.satelliteguys.us/threads/68645-Song-Name-Game

Just name a song title and the band who performed it. The next person does the same thing, but needs to list a song title or band name which includes a word from the previous entry. Pick songs from any genre.

Example:

Long Live Rock and Roll -- Rainbow

Rainbow in the Dark -- Dio

Another example:

Ride the Lightning -- Metallica

Lightning Strikes -- Ozzy Osbourne

Get it?

An additional note: we all know that song titles, sometimes, use profane words. Because this is a family friendly website it is advised that you clean up that title up a bit. This is accomplished by using something like sh!t instead of the real word. Thanks....

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long_time_Dish

Today at 12:54 AM

With A Little Luck - Wings

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hwkn

Today at 2:44 AM

LITTLE Willy-Sweet

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ClarkGable

Today at 5:59 AM

Little Deuce Coupe - The Beach Boys

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gms49ers

Today at 8:59 AM

The Boys of Summer - Don Henley

FTA4PA

A moment ago

Summer In The City - The Lovin' Spoonful

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Booredatwork.com

22 minutes ago · posted in BooredAtWork.COM

Alexa Tablet 12 Pro Review: This Isn't A Fire Tablet!

Time for another AWESOME video from BoredAtWork!

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxeUBPus6bc

Direct YouTube Link - Alexa Tablet 12 Pro Review: This Isn't A Fire Tablet!
Booredatwork.com Website
Booredatwork on Facebook

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meStevo

Lifetime Supporter

Last reply 52 minutes ago · posted in The Sports Section

NFL 2026-2027 Season

Schedule drops tomorrow. Mandatory mini camps in June. Hall of Fame game August 6th.

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Foxbat

Yesterday at 6:19 PM

I guess even the patience of us laid-back Hoosiers has its limits:

Colts relieve general manager Chris Ballard of his duties

Colts Owner & CEO Carlie Irsay-Gordon released a statement Monday announcing the news.

www.colts.com

Reactions: Mike0616 and rvvaquero

rvvaquero

Yesterday at 9:00 PM

Foxbat said:
I guess even the patience of us laid-back Hoosiers has its limits:

Colts relieve general manager Chris Ballard of his duties

Colts Owner & CEO Carlie Irsay-Gordon released a statement Monday announcing the news.

www.colts.com

Be nice to see a Cowboy headline like that.

Reactions: dfergie, Mike0616 and osu1991

Mike0616

Yesterday at 9:35 PM

Foxbat said:
I guess even the patience of us laid-back Hoosiers has its limits:

Colts relieve general manager Chris Ballard of his duties

Colts Owner & CEO Carlie Irsay-Gordon released a statement Monday announcing the news.

www.colts.com

Can we expect to see a new coach if we say "pretty please?"

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Foxbat

Yesterday at 11:25 PM

Jeeez, Week 6, no lead is safe…

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b4pjoe

52 minutes ago

rvvaquero said:
Be nice to see a Cowboy headline like that.

Yes the Cowboys owner needs to fire the general manager (himself), co-owner, Chief Operating Officer (COO), Executive Vice President, Director of Player Personnel, and President of AT&T Stadium (his son) and then he should jump off of a cliff. Only then can they recover.

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Therm

Last reply Today at 8:46 AM · posted in DISH Network Support Forum

Am I the only one that hates what Dish did to their mobile app?

I thought I would come here and find lots of complaints about the update to the dish anywhere mobile app, but am not seeing any. It used to look just like the desktop webpage. Now you can no longer filter by sports channels or movie channels. Plus that they made it look like a big button telephone and you see fewer channels in the screen which requires more scrolling. Yes I realize you can look at sports then select which sport you want to look at, I just liked being able to see all sporting events in the guide with all other channels being filtered out. Am I alone in the wilderness on this?

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dishdude

Friday at 2:51 PM

I like the new look, it's a lot cleaner. I'm using it on one of those Onn streaming devices when I travel.

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Therm

Friday at 3:39 PM

dishdude said:
I like the new look, it's a lot cleaner. I'm using it on one of those Onn streaming devices when I travel.

Yes a lot cleaner, glossier, and less functional. Someone trying to justify why they are making a big salary. "See look shiny"

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navychop

Friday at 3:53 PM

"Big salary." Charlie. "?Big?"

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Tampa8

Friday at 4:01 PM

Seems in some ways better. Nicer layout, as others said maybe cleaner. Moving ahead in the guide is better.

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scoob83

Today at 8:46 AM

Therm said:
I thought I would come here and find lots of complaints about the update to the dish anywhere mobile app, but am not seeing any. It used to look just like the desktop webpage. Now you can no longer filter by sports channels or movie channels. Plus that they made it look like a big button telephone and you see fewer channels in the screen which requires more scrolling. Yes I realize you can look at sports then select which sport you want to look at, I just liked being able to see all sporting events in the guide with all other channels being filtered out. Am I alone in the wilderness on this?

I think most are using it on a firestick or other device as an extra receiver, rather than their phone. Just a guess based on how I use it. 99% thru my firestick, 1% phone.

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dfergie

Staff member HERE TO HELP YOU!

Last reply Today at 7:35 AM · posted in TV Shows

Stargate SG-1 Discussion

Stargate SG-1 cancelled, Atlantis renewed

Monday - August 21, 2006 | by Darren Sumner

The future of Stargate is in question today, as SCI FI Channel has cancelled the long-running Stargate SG-1, Multichannel News reported today and a GateWorld source has confirmed. The news regrettably follows the airing of the show's milestone two-hundredth episode on Friday.

Stargate Atlantis, meanwhile, has been renewed for a fourth season, with the network hoping to see that the spin-off series can stand alone, according to a source.
Source Gateworld

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reubenray

Yesterday at 1:30 PM

I have gotten back into watching SG-1 and I have recorded most of the episodes to binge watch. What episodes are about the Antarctic or was this a movie? Also where could I watch the SG-1 movies?

osu1991

Yesterday at 2:00 PM

Watch Stargate SG-1 for Free Online | Pluto TV

Stargate SG-1 picks up where the blockbuster film left off as the SG-1 team sets out to explore the mysteries of the Stargate and the worlds beyond it in the pulse-pounding series which became a worldwide phenomenon and a science fiction classic. Stream Stargate SG-1 for free on Pluto TV.

pluto.tv

long_time_Dish

Yesterday at 3:47 PM

reubenray said:
I have gotten back into watching SG-1 and I have recorded most of the episodes to binge watch. What episodes are about the Antarctic or was this a movie? Also where could I watch the SG-1 movies?

Well, there are a couple involving the Antarctic. "Solitudes", S1 E17 (one of my favorites), Then, "Lost City', S7 E21 and E22. Then, in the SGA pilot, "Rising", S1 E1 and E2, it starts out in the Antarctic for about the first 20 minutes or so.

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reubenray

Yesterday at 3:54 PM

long_time_Dish said:
Well, there are a couple involving the Antarctic. "Solitudes", S1 E17 (one of my favorites), Then, "Lost City', S7 E21 and E22. Then, in the SGA pilot, "Rising", S1 E1 and E2, it starts out in the Antarctic for about the first 20 minutes or so.

Which one has O'Neil being Ancients? I am at the end of Season 8 now.

long_time_Dish

Yesterday at 8:36 PM

reubenray said:
Which one has O'Neil being Ancients? I am at the end of Season 8 now.

If I understand your question, O'Neill had the Ancient's knowledge in the "Lost City" two-part episode. That was when Anubis attacked Earth and there was a big battle over Antarctica.

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reubenray

Today at 7:35 AM

long_time_Dish said:
If I understand your question, O'Neill had the Ancient's knowledge in the "Lost City" two-part episode. That was when Anubis attacked Earth and there was a big battle over Antarctica.

Those are the episodes I am looking for. They are referred to a lot in the episodes I just recently watched.

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TFLEV

Today at 7:22 AM · posted in TFLEV

2027 BMW iX5 Walkaround & Review // They Have To Get This One Right!

Time for another AWESOME video from TFL Electric Vehicles!

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Ca9w7HnuXg

Direct YouTube Link - 2027 BMW iX5 Walkaround & Review // They Have To Get This One Right!

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TVHabit

Last reply Today at 6:42 AM · posted in Free To Air (FTA) Discussion

Hybrid Dish setup

Picked up a sweet directv dish, mount, twin lnbs and a short cable.
Has anyone converted one to FTA? A Frankenstein of sorts...

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Brct203

Oct 13, 2026

would probably also work well for NHK on 101W and possibly for PBS on 99W. I used one for a while on 30W. Just keep in mind that because it's undersized for those satellites, it might work fine in clear weather but won't have much margin to account for signal degradation during rain/snow

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one_db_compression

Oct 13, 2026

If you can find one, the Shaw / Star Choice 75e ellipticals are great for use on 97, 99, and 101W. They are really just rebranded ChannelMaster 75 cm reflectors and use linear LNBFs by default out of the box.

Everyone else's mileage may vary.

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TVHabit

Sunday at 10:12 AM

I have read that some have converted this type dish but after giving it a good look, it's the lnb conversion that is the bottleneck. Does anyone have a picture of their attempt to configure the lnb? I watched a video on youtube from the save it for parts guy and he used duct tape! Guess it worked but I'm thinking something a bit more permanent!
Thanks to all for your interest and replies...

Titanium

Sunday at 3:38 PM

Many of us have used a universal LNBF mount (or get creative with L brackets and plumbers tape - perforated metal strapping). Use a few inches of aluminum tube (or a piece of 1x2" lumber) to extend the support arm (replacing the plastic mount used by DirecTV and Dish) to place the LNBF throat opening at the correct distance from the reflector, the correct height and at the correct angle. Nothing magical... simply place the new linear LNBF in the center at the same distance, height and angle as the current combo.
www.amazon.com/Universal-Single-Bracket-Holder-FTA-US/dp/B074L85WK2

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k4otl

Today at 6:42 AM

To add: 101W Ku seems to be (one of if not the) strongest for me, and if I only had Ku I definitely want 101W for the music mux, it's robust FEC and strong signal help a lot. I've thought about using a used Dish/DirectTV dish at my Dads to supplement his OTA (mainly for my benefit when I visit

)

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Peter Parker

Supporting Founder Lifetime Supporter

Last reply Yesterday at 10:34 PM · posted in DISH Network Support Forum

DISH Hopper 3 Software Version 713 Is Out

No idea what improvements might be involved.

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naptime

Sunday at 1:05 AM

I'm getting fabulous picture on Ch. 148 4k, but zero audio with H713. This is with a recorded show (Notre Dame game). Anyone else have this? Audio is fine on every other channel.

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jsmit86

Yesterday at 9:57 AM

naptime said:
I'm getting fabulous picture on Ch. 148 4k, but zero audio with H713. This is with a recorded show (Notre Dame game). Anyone else have this? Audio is fine on every other channel.

It's a known issue.
For a temporary fix, go into the menu, Audio, and turn Dolby Audio "OFF". You will have PCM stereo audio.

I was able to give the tech ops team some data logs so they could diagnose the problem, and they rolled me back to H708 temporarily. It fixed that issue.

They let me know that they understand what caused the issue, and it will be fixed within a few weeks in a new update.

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long_time_Dish

Yesterday at 3:57 PM

jsmit86 said:
They let me know that they understand what caused the issue, and it will be fixed within a few weeks in a new update.

Oh, you mean "soon"? :biggrin

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Almighty1

Yesterday at 4:07 PM

jsmit86 said:
It's a known issue.
For a temporary fix, go into the menu, Audio, and turn Dolby Audio "OFF". You will have PCM stereo audio.

I was able to give the tech ops team some data logs so they could diagnose the problem, and they rolled me back to H708 temporarily. It fixed that issue.

They let me know that they understand what caused the issue, and it will be fixed within a few weeks in a new update.

I guess they will be busy when lots of people start asking for rollbacks to H708 now that you mention that downgrades of software does exist because it will likely fix the OTA Single Tuner and the IR Remote problems in H710-H713.