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Last reply · posted in DISH Network Support Forum
Im so confused. I just returned a new 65" Hisense do to a terrible picture. Then I bought a $1000 TCL 65" instead. Brought it home and the same thing, the picture is worse then on my plasma. I have the Hopper with Sling. Called Dish and said I needed to upgrade to a Hopper 3. I dont understand why my picture right now is worse on the 65" TCL then on my 51" plasma. Why is my 4K not upscaling. And how could the Hopper 3 make it any better at upscaling 1080 to close to 4K. Im so dissapointed. I dont want to have to take this one back too, but the picture I cant handle its like its SD instead of even HD. The entire picture just looks off, faces in the crowd during a baseball game looked like anything but faces. Are 4Ks wastes or would the Hopper 3 at least bring me back to my Plasma level. Also whats a good satellite signal strength. Mine is around 70. Is that a strong signal?
143 Replies · 27013 views
Radioguy41
I really wish people would stop pointing a finger at Dish's "compression" every time someone complains about their picture. That's hogwash. I have dish and when I can read the lettering on a golfball on a Sunday afternoon on my 56" Vizio believe me Dish's compression is not an issue and never has been. With any of these modern 4K TV's if you have a bad picture it's one of two things; a bad TV or incorrect settings. Did my Vizio have a great picture right out of the box? Uh, no, I had to spend some time tweaking the settings to achieve the best image and Dish's compression had/has nothing to do with it.
P
I disagree 100 percent. The difference between an OTA local and dish local is very obvious to me. Major additional compression. It may look ok on static images but motion causes lots of problems. Static black backgrounds on TV shows are also a mess.

In the end everyone sees things differently and values different aspects of picture quality.
I really wish people would stop pointing a finger at Dish's "compression" every time someone complains about their picture. That's hogwash. I have dish and when I can read the lettering on a golfball on a Sunday afternoon on my 56" Vizio believe me Dish's compression is not an issue and never has been. With any of these modern 4K TV's if you have a bad picture it's one of two things; a bad TV or incorrect settings. Did my Vizio have a great picture right out of the box? Uh, no, I had to spend some time tweaking the settings to achieve the best image and Dish's compression had/has nothing to do with it.

Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk
Radioguy41
I disagree 100 percent. The difference between an OTA local and dish local is very obvious to me. Major additional compression. It may look ok on static images but motion causes lots of problems. Static black backgrounds on TV shows are also a mess.
Motion issues and black background issues are a function of the TV. Scan rate, the ability to handle judder and the ability to handle black backgrounds are all issues controlled by the TV. If static black backgrounds are a mess on your TV then the TV is the problem. As for the locals, you have no idea what the signal looks like that Dish starts with so you can't say it's a Dish issue.

The vast, and I mean vast, percentages of issues people have with PQ is because the TV isn't calibrated correctly, if at all.
J
Motion issues and black background issues are a function of the TV. Scan rate, the ability to handle judder and the ability to handle black backgrounds are all issues controlled by the TV. If static black backgrounds are a mess on your TV then the TV is the problem. As for the locals, you have no idea what the signal looks like that Dish starts with so you can't say it's a Dish issue.

The vast, and I mean vast, percentages of issues people have with PQ is because the TV isn't calibrated correctly, if at all.
I have seen what I would have called a Moiré pattern, although that is probably not the correct term, in backgrounds of heavily compressed videos.
I am thinking of inside shots with out much motion on something like Law & Order reruns on USA or TNT.. i.e. What should be a solid gray wall will show up as splotches of different shades of gray. Same thing if you take a jpeg photo and heavily compress it. I never see it in sporting events or programs with a lot of movement. Same for watching CBS programs I have recorded. I just recently started capturing HD Video off my portable HD, originally recorded from DISH, to my computer for editing out commercials from concerts or saving just certain songs and did a lot of reading from folks doing this. If you reduce the bitrate, you can over compress and have a poor quality HD image. Also, the norm appears to be to select a high maximum bitrate and set the capture mode to "variable", so in scenes with less motion the program can increase the compression. Currently, my settings eat up about 1 GB per 12 minutes. That would work out to 5 GB per hour. My 1 hour OTA recordings using DISH take 3.5 to 4 GB. Same program recorded off sat using DISH will run 1.6 to 2 GB.
S
I just recently started capturing HD Video off my portable HD, originally recorded from DISH, to my computer for editing out commercials from concerts or saving just certain songs and did a lot of reading from folks doing this.
I didn't think it was possible to get Dish recorded content on a PC. :smash
dare2be
I didn't think it was possible to get Dish recorded content on a PC. :smash
Hauppauge PVR Rocket is one way.
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HipKat
This question came up on the tech portal this week and one of the Dish Admins replied more advanced TV's often have worse looking SD channels. How true that is, I have no clue
patmurphey
This question came up on the tech portal this week and one of the Dish Admins replied more advanced TV's often have worse looking SD channels. How true that is, I have no clue

Not true. SD channels on my 4k TV with its upscaling is actually more watchable than ever. I run them in zoom mode as most of them are letterboxed.
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E
Not true. SD channels on my 4k TV with its upscaling is actually more watchable than ever. I run them in zoom mode as most of them are letterboxed.
Agreed. The SD channels are indeed more watchable on my 4k TV as well. Additionally, many SD programs, and especially those on Me TV are being shown through an anamorphic lens which has the ability to stretch the 4:3 format into something like a 14:9, hence, the smaller bars on the left and right of the screen, no zoom required. I don't know much about anamorphic lenses but it does seem to make SD much more watchable.
dare2be
Agreed. The SD channels are indeed more watchable on my 4k TV as well. Additionally, many SD programs, and especially those on Me TV are being shown through an anamorphic lens which has the ability to stretch the 4:3 format into something like a 14:9, hence, the smaller bars on the left and right of the screen, no zoom required. I don't know much about anamorphic lenses but it does seem to make SD much more watchable.
If you like fattened, distorted 4x3 content.
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E
If you like fattened, distorted 4x3 content.
That is not true. If you were to view the ME TV content with the screen format set at normal, you would see large black bars and the people/images would look squished. Set the screen format to stretch and you would then see normal aspect people/images and a picture with the smaller black bars (14:9) aspect ratio. Technically as I understand it, the anamorphic lens compresses the picture horizontally while leaving the vertical alone. I suppose it isn't perfect but it's a darn sight better than zooming and stretching to fill the screen.
J
Hauppauge PVR Rocket is one way.
I use the Hauppauge PVR1512. BUT, I am going from my portable hard drive, through a VIP612 receiver. Using HDMI cables. I say BUT, because I have recently seen the HDCP protection error message twice the other day just trying to playback a sports event on my VIP722. I could play another recorded event for a few seconds, stop it and go back to the sports event and then it would play. Due to having a single HDMI cable in the wall, I use a HDMI switcher and had just gone from my BluRay player back to my 722 and the 722 may have been unhappy with the handshake routine. So, a newer receiver like a Hopper may or may not be happy with a Hauppauge product. One of the Forums listed a particular HDMI splitter that would split the feed from the receiver to the tv and the PVR and avoid the HDCP issue.
dare2be
That is not true. If you were to view the ME TV content with the screen format set at normal, you would see large black bars and the people/images would look squished. Set the screen format to stretch and you would then see normal aspect people/images and a picture with the smaller black bars (14:9) aspect ratio. Technically as I understand it, the anamorphic lens compresses the picture horizontally while leaving the vertical alone. I suppose it isn't perfect but it's a darn sight better than zooming and stretching to fill the screen.
As promised, here are screenshots of a DVD source material and MeTV of the same episode. Tell me the MeTV transmission isn't butchered. Cropped, zoomed, and stretched.

vlcsnap-00001.jpg
vlcsnap-00002.jpg
Scott Greczkowski
The Me TV feed on satellite is stretched like that as well.


Sent from my iPhone using the SatelliteGuys app!
Jim5506
These channels could not care less if you're a videophile and are annoyed by the way they mess with the picture, whether it be video quality or aspect ratio.

They play to the masses who don't even notice the picture is fuzzy or stretched - you are a minority so you don't count.
dare2be
They play to the masses who don't even notice the picture is fuzzy or stretched
Problem is they DO notice, which is why they complain about the black bars on their TV. There would be no other reason for any channel to mess with the picture aspect. It would be easier for the station to leave the image alone.

It's not that they don't notice, it's that they're idiotic, and the stations are for catering to the stupidity.
SuperDish_Fan23
· posted in DISH Network Support Forum
Why are ViP922s So rare? like its crazy how ebay has none, i checked everywhere, also, i got a ViP222k now, which is actually activated!
0 Replies · 2 views
Former member 208119
Last reply · posted in SiriusXM Satellite Radio
My year was almost up and we got the new bill for a year of service for $ 360.00 insane sat radio is becoming like cable!!! i logged into my acct and hopped onto chat and told the rep that i wanted to cancel. she understood my concern and went quiet for a few minutes. i figured that she was canceling my service. she comes back and said that she seen that i have been a sub since 07 and then offers me the same package for a year for 120.00 with taxes and fee's!!! i grabbed it. after almost having a stroke :biggrin
237 Replies · 10978 views
B
What i noticed with my last renewal XM is now billing me $4.99 monthly instead of one time yearly payment.
Jimbo
What i noticed with my last renewal XM is now billing me $.99 monthly instead of one time yearly payment.
Did you accidentally get on the wrong plan ?
I still do the once a year plans.
B
Did you accidentally get on the wrong plan ?
I still do the once a year plans.
I have to think maybe more people dont keep track of the monthly XM bill. Every time i renew i put a reminder on my calendar week before its time to renew. My wife told me the other day not to renew her and then i told her you are not going to be able to listen to XM at home. Then she changed her mind...!!
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TRG
TRG
I have to think maybe more people dont keep track of the monthly XM bill. Every time i renew i put a reminder on my calendar week before its time to renew. My wife told me the other day not to renew her and then i told her you are not going to be able to listen to XM at home. Then she changed her mind...!!
I get an e-mail every month reminding me that X amount will be charged to my credit card. If I see it go up I get on chat or pick up the phone. But I also remember that my year is up in December.
B
I get an e-mail every month reminding me that X amount will be charged to my credit card. If I see it go up I get on chat or pick up the phone. But I also remember that my year is up in December.
yea i don't understand WHY, like you I get a notice each month. Mine is also up in December.
Jimbo
yea i don't understand WHY, like you I get a notice each month. Mine is also up in December.
You get an email every month to let you know they are billing you for the next month.
Foxbat
Mrs. Foxbat reminded me it's that time of the year to do the Cancel Tango💃🏽

The A.I. agent appears to be better than in the past. It got to the acceptable price quicker than previous years, no human operator involved. $5/mo and I still have over $50 in SiriusXM credit from my FordPartner benefits.
Scott Greczkowski
Staff member HERE TO HELP YOU! Cutting Edge
Last reply · posted in The Chit Chat Club
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....
68527 Replies · 2672588 views
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dishstaller
Can't You See - Marshall Tucker Band
sdfntx
See You in September - The Happenings
long_time_Dish
You Look Like You Love Me - Ella Langley
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dishstaller
See Me Feel Me - The Who
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long_time_Dish
Take It Easy On Me - Little River Band
Peter Parker
Supporting Founder Lifetime Supporter
Last reply · posted in DISH Network Support Forum
No idea what improvements might be involved.
19 Replies · 803 views
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bookworm370
Has anyone noticed an FF stutter with 713? I used to be able to hit FF a few times and skip smoothly. After 713 (maybe 712), when I skip forward, there is a definite stutter for as many times as I have pressed FF.

Can anyone check on this and report back? Recorded programs and then press skip forward a few times to see if it's smooth? Normally, it just jumps to the right place after the skips.
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N
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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R
Has anyone noticed an FF stutter with 713? I used to be able to hit FF a few times and skip smoothly. After 713 (maybe 712), when I skip forward, there is a definite stutter for as many times as I have pressed FF.

Can anyone check on this and report back? Recorded programs and then press skip forward a few times to see if it's smooth? Normally, it just jumps to the right place after the skips.
My wife mentioned that her remote is acting strange this morning. She hit FF and it went to 15x FF.
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Bobby
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.
This has been an ongoing issue. A fix is coming, probably in the next software version.
Foxbat
Wife bought me a t-shirt that has "have you tried turning it off and on again?"
Here's the one I need:
1792365258110.webp
dishstaller
Here's the one I need:
Just ordered one....that's great.
dfergie
Staff member HERE TO HELP YOU!
Last reply · posted in The Chit Chat Club
Stumbled across this ... http://www.gaspricewatch.com/USGas_ZipSearch.asp
I found no local prices, although it did show stations at my location...
Added these to this post...
USA National Gas Temperature Map
State By State Gasoline Taxes
Gas Buddy

Ethanol Free Stations

5552 Replies · 460615 views
Bobby
Regular$5.999​
Premium$6.399​
Diesel$7.999​
at Costco, Rohnert Park.​
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harshness
I wonder if California is getting into the Winter formula.
dishstaller
Regular$5.999​
Premium$6.399​
Odd that out there, Prem is only 40 cents higher. Here it's a full dollar more.

Last night it was about $4.17 gas, $6,19 diesel.
harshness
Odd that out there, Prem is only 40 cents higher. Here it's a full dollar more.
On the West Coast, a 40-cent differential is common. It used to be 30 cents before the prices rose above $3.

A "full dollar more" sounds like it may be boat gas (non-alcoholic), which is a whole different discussion.
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Foxbat
Here in Indiana, the difference between Regular and Premium is usually a dollar, but some charge even more:
1792374072446.webp
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dishstaller
A "full dollar more" sounds like it may be boat gas (non-alcoholic),
Both non-ethanol and prem run about the same....buck more. When we were up in TN it was a buck more up there as well.
jokeworm
Last reply · posted in What's Cooking?
Ok, I'm bored .... actually - to be more precise - I'm bored of eating the same rotation of 9 or 10 meals that are currently my "go-to" meals. My wife works the long hours - I work from home as and when i feel like it ... which means i generally do most of the cooking ... and so by default - i also make out the shopping list ...

We cook at home 5 or even 6 nights a week - but we always seem to fall back on the same old tried and tested "quick and easy but tastes ok" meals. Week in week out.

Pot Roast - mash and Peas.
Spaghetti
Chicken Pasta in cheese sauce.
Curry & rice
(these are some of mine)

Now it's not that I'm not adventurous in the kitchen ... I'll try anything once or twice ... but we all do it. Unless your name is Martha Stewart or Rachel Ray .. we all eventually fall back on our 8-10 favorite "meals"

So i thought - if we shared some of our own go-to meals with each other ... we might be able to add a few "new" ones to our own arsenal of meals.

So again - I ask you ...

What's for dinner tonight ?

Please give me something new to add to my rotation ... its our weekly shop tomorrow - so i want to pull together a few idea's and try and eat a meal each day next week that I've never had before .. or at least something that is not on my current "go-to" meal plan.

What meal do you always seem to fall back on in your house ? Maybe its something that I've never tried or not had in a while. I need inspiration !! I've got a blank shopping list in front of me - and nothing sounds good .. HELP !
4332 Replies · 331154 views
TRG
TRG
Beef and vegetable stew with buttermilk biscuits. Water.
It seemed appropriate on an unusually cold and wet evening in New Mexico.
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Bobby
Chili Cheesebugers, Tater Tots.
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TRG
TRG
I made shrimp parmesan with spaghetti and a salad.
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S
venison lasagna
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dishstaller
Smoked some salmon on the grill while enjoying some Blue Moon beer. Kinda cool tonight so I fired up the heaters. Here in FL, we fire up heaters once the temps get below 60 :cool As for the salmon, I seared them first, then flipped them off to the side not over the coals and brushed on some lemon pepper marinade followed by some salmon seasoning. Threw some hickory chips on the coals and then closed the vents to about 10% airflow. Yum.
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osu1991
Pub Member / Supporter
Last reply · posted in The Chit Chat Club

The number-one US state for EV growth, according to the June 22 Yardi report?
Oklahoma.


:eek


It has no ZEV mandates and "minimal" incentives, Yardi says, but also has cheap electricity, high multi-car household rates (so, for example, a non-Lightning Ford F-150 pulls their trailers), and a consumer base willing to switch.
112 Replies · 901 views
navychop
Servant's problem.
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meStevo

Never realized that Tesla is losing to BYD at manufacturing too, which IMO is Tesla's biggest accomplishment and area of innovation. Nice writeup about the state of play and how we got here though. I have no faith that we're moving any productive direction though sadly, most changes and efforts feel reactionary rather than rooted in making use of the time being bought by tariffs, with few exceptions.

So: how are the cars so cheap, and what is being cut to get there? The best public accounting comes from the Rhodium Group, which compared BYD, Geely, and Leapmotor against Tesla's Chinese operation, a fair comparison because it removes labor costs and shipping from the equation entirely. Their estimate is that BYD builds a car for about $4,700 less than Tesla builds a Model 3 in Shanghai, roughly 15 percent of the Model 3's price. The breakdown is the interesting part. Direct government grants account for about $292 per vehicle, which is 5 percent of the gap. The biggest single factor is vertical integration: BYD makes about 80 percent of its top-tier components in-house, against 37 percent for Tesla, and that eliminates roughly $2,369 per vehicle in supplier markups. Lower overhead, meaning cheaper engineering talent and administrative cost spread across enormous volume, accounts for another $1,719. And BYD pays its suppliers on 155-day terms, against Tesla's 60, which is worth about $214 per car in float. When people say the Chinese advantage is subsidies, the per-vehicle number says otherwise. When people say it is slave wages, the Tesla Shanghai comparison says otherwise too. The advantage is mostly that BYD decided, twenty years ago, to make its own batteries, its own motors, its own power electronics, and its own semiconductors, and Western automakers decided the opposite.​
harshness
The EV company to watch out for is SAIC. They seem likely to take over Government Motors at some point.

GM originally struck a JV deal with SAIC to gain access to China. Now SAIC has taken China back with the substantial library of technology GM shared and they're looking to export to Mexico, South America, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific.
osu1991
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TWiT Tech Podcast Network
· posted in TWiT Tech Podcast Network
0 Replies · 17 views
Ham Radio 2.0
· posted in Ham Radio 2.0
0 Replies · 13 views
Ramy
Supporting Founder
Last reply · posted in The Sports Section
Really excited for this season with Kentucky having a new coach and some really exciting recruits. Probably won't last long, but here's hoping this season is great.
148 Replies · 1742 views
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Foxbat
They ought to have fun with this… :devilish
osu1991
They ought to have fun with this… :devilish
Was thinking same thing. It should be a good week for sec shorts and roll call
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R
A lot of upsets yesterday, but my LSU Tigers won.
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Foxbat
Best fan sign I saw during the ND-BYU game: "Bear ate your Lucky Charms!" (Bear being the Cougars' QB). I was going to suggest, "Have you or your team been involved in a Carr crash?"
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