522 from Ebay -bad idea?

[Tom_T.]

bigdan, okay, here's the next question. Is your plan to keep the two 301's connected in addition to the 522? In other words, 4 different tuners pulling in different signals at the same time?

In that case, the twin LNB on the dish won't do it. You'll probably have to get some new hardware on the feedhorn, like a quad LNB. If you still have the Dish 500 installation booklet, there are easy to understand diagrams in there for different configurations as more receivers are added.

If there's a friendly DishNetwork retailer in your area, you might be able to get some free advice + purchase whatever extras you need for a do-it-yourself job. Or, bite the bullet and invite an installer over for a house call. (If you're not sure who the retailers are, call DishNet customer service at the standard 800- number. They keep a current list.)

 

[iceondsom]

DVR Fee

I've seen a couple questions about the E* DVR fee. So to clarify....

- The fee is $4.98 per month. The 98 cents part is so that their fee is 1 cent less that D*, allowing E* to advertise that they have the lowest DVR fees.

- Regardless of whether you lease or own your DVR receiver, you will still pay the DVR fee each month

- The only way you can get out of paying the DVR fee is if you subscribe to the AEP (America's Everything Pak) which is the AT180 plus all four movie paks and NBA TV for $87 per month.

- The DVR fee is per receiver, not per tuner (thank goodnes). That's another reason that 522's rock.

 

[mudder1310]

If you have a dishpro plus lnb you can use a dish network separator, no splitters.

If you have a regular dishpro or legacy lnb you need to run a second cable to your dual tuner location, one for each tuner.

 

[Stargazer]

There is another way of getting out of paying the DVR Fee. You can order the AT180 annual and the mega movie package (all four movie packages) annual for a greater discount (only charged 11 months) and still get the DVR Fees waived. If it were not for that I would probably downgrade to AT180 as I save $10 a month plus another $10 on not being charged for additional tuners.

 

[e.saunder]

522 from EBAY vs LEASE

And if I did have to pay the fee and activate why would I do this when the 522 is free to lease anyway ?

*************
Not free.. I called two weeks ago and they wanted $198 up front plus monthly lease. I had to go with Ebay....

 

[Stargazer]

The only advantage of a lease is if they replacement free of charge. Why pay this much to lease a reciever when you can own it and sell it later on and get some of your investment back?

 

[Tom_T.]

522 from eBay -- bad idea?

Of course, the advantage to leasing from dishnet is that you know for $198 you'll be getting a receiver that will in fact be activated, added to your account, and is under warranty. If you don't ask the right questions when buying online, at a yard sale, or where ever, there's the risk DishNet will refuse to add the receiver to your account.

Worth repeating: Before buying any used or "new in box" DishNet receiver, get the receiver ## (R00 _________) and card ## (S00 ______) from the seller, then call DishNet customer service to confirm:

1. ... there is no balance due on the receiver
2. ... the previous owner closed the account
3. ... dishnet will activate this receiver to your account

 

[e.saunder]

Worth repeating: Before buying any used or "new in box" DishNet receiver, get the receiver ## (R00 _________) and card ## (S00 ______) from the seller, then call DishNet customer service to confirm:

1. ... there is no balance due on the receiver
2. ... the previous owner closed the account
3. ... dishnet will activate this receiver to your account

Some CSR will refuse to activate your "new" Ebay 522 no matter what. People need to be aware of this.

 

[Stargazer]

They are not supposed to refuse to. If they do then hang up and try again.