NYRDiehardfan said:
Hey guys,
I want some of your input on my upgrading to High Def programming.
I currently am a Directv and Patriot Media subscriber in Branchburg, NJ. I have just the basic cable ( No stb) for cable and I have Directv w/ Tivo as well. I am am an avid sports viewer and subscribe to NFL, MLB, and NHL packages. Now my dilema is what to do to upgrade cause I have an interest in high def. Should I upgrade to the h20, cause I am eligible for the HD locals out of NY, or should I get one of the h10's instead? I have heard and read the NUMEROUS complaints about the locals on the h20 as far as the sound delay and picture going out. Is this was others mostly find?
Also, I have some large trees in the backyard and am worried that even thouh I get signal strenght of mostly 90's on my dish, that the 5lnb has to be able to get other signals from other directions as well. This might be a problem as my current dish is pointed at the southern sky, but right right between two large trees where there is an opening. I also am concerned about the future launching of the Directv Sat's and if all of their future HD programming will be on the MPEG4 Sat's. Please note that I also have an OTA antenna mounted on the roof of my house from previous owners that I havent taken down yet. It is disconnected, but it still is up there. And from what I remember of it, it pulled in the local Ny stations very well. ( Im about 42 miles from NYC). It also has a clear view of the Northern Direction where the NY channels are at. (No trees in front of my house and clear view with a slightly down angle of the Horizon.)
I also have not purchased the TV, yet. Im leaning towards the Sony 50a10.
So, I am just looking for input from you experts as far as what direction I should go in. (One more question, If I decide to hook up the antennea, can it be hooked up to the h20 receiver for the OTA Ny locals? I read somewhere that this cause the h20 receivers to reboot all the time.)
Thanks in advance.
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NYRDiehardfan,
Ok, I would definatly go with the H-20, of the receivers you mentioned, (I have the H-10 and like it very well, except for the occasional "Service temperarly unavailable" message I get from time to time, not as often anymore).
The H-20 has a better OTA tuner than the H-10 and is MPEG4 compatable, H-10 only MPEG2.....
I would not worry about getting the locals thru D*, save your money, use your antenna , already up there, UHF/VHF works good, keep it...
D* only covers the big 4 channels, nothing else, PBS, UPN, WB whatever you have available, also no sub channels from D*, you should get all this for free with your antenna.
As for your signal, if you aye in the 90's now, with a 3 LNB set up and you want to go to the 5 LNB, not sure how much of a benifit it will be at this time, in the future it will be, but they will have other dishes out by then, they seem to change them every couple years.
If you do not need the LNB for locals, (you don't), no need for 5 LNB at this time.
If you do decide to go with the 5 LNB they should be able to get a signal regardless, the other 2 sats are only 2* from the ones you are already pointed at.
As for TV's, you budget has a lot to do with it, Personally I stick with SONY, I have a Sony 60" HD LCD (60XBR950) I love it.
See if you can get one with a HD tuner built into the TV.
Advantage, My TV tuner is better than my D* tuner, of course OTA only.
Many people will try to persuade you away from Sony, saying you pay too much...
Too each his own, everyonee has thier own opinions.
In my bedroom I still use my old Sony 27" XBR, that is 16 years old and looks just as good as it did the day I got it.
That is one reason I stick with Sony.
That said, there are a lot of very nice TV's out there and prices are dropping.
As for TV's go with what you like, your eyes are the ones looking at it, make sure it fits you budget and does what you want.
Jimbo