I had a tech here today changing some equipment around. I called Dish and deactivated a hopper 3 and He said my account qualified for a Free OTA Antenna install so I could possibly cancel my local channels with them and save $12 a month. I'm about 50 Miles from Charlotte NC and Columbia SC.. anyone know what kind of antennas they install? Thanks.
Dish offered Me Free OTA antenna Install
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50 miles in that area could be tough.
If you put your address in here, it'll give you a decent idea of what to expect. These are considered Medium Directional Antennas
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I just had mine done in flat Chicago today. 38 miles away. DVR captured 70 of 88 channels, but NBC and a local PBS I watch didnt receive well . Finally, the PQ of the OTA signal was less than the satellite (softer and dimmer). That blew me away as the standard used to be that OTA was supposed to be the the highest quality
Stations are adding multiple sub-channels, bit starving the main HD channels a bit, plus some sub channels are terrible PQ.
I agree. The picture quality is so bad some of the sub channels are not even worth watching.
It still surprises me because even if an MVPD is getting a direct fiber feed, I'd expect it to come out of the encoder, which would match what they're putting out OTA. PP also said the OTA was "dimmer" which shouldn't be affected by compression.
They need to offer more than two tuners if they expect to be taken seriously.
Dish installed a Televes Diginova Boss 60 Mile Antenna intended for the Purple Zone.. It works well but not as well as my old Winegard Sensar Amplified antenna. I am sure the Televes Antenna works well for most people but here we are surrounded by lots of big trees and a good 40 Miles from Columbia SC or Charlotte NC..
that's great! Sounds like a great combo! I may try that after I see how everything works after channel repack this summer.
I have a CM 4228 in my attic that I use with my TV when the weather stops my Dish signal. If I was to connect this to the Hopper 3 via an OTA adapter will I still loose the signal in storms? Also would this void my contract if I cancel the local channels and use the adapter instead?
No, you will not lose the signal in storms. If you lose satellite signal during a storm you just go into the DISH guide and select a local OTA channel (listed in yellow). And no will not void your contract if you cancel locals.
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One more question. Will I still be able to record as many shows as I want using the dual OTA adapter or will I be limited to only two at a time? If I am limited to only two OTA shows at a time using the adapter instead of the Dish locals is a deal breaker for me. As it is now I may record 4 or 5 locals channels at a time.
With the OTA adapter connected to your Hopper 3 you can record two OTA channels at the same time. You can also still record 16 satellite channels. If you have the four PTAT channels enabled you will be able to record 21 channels at the same time. I use my OTA channels as a backup if I lose the Hopper's satellite locals during severe weather.
Dish installed an OTA yesterday I now get locals from Baltimore and D.C. a lot of the channels are paid programming and older tv shows. I have a hopper 3 with 3 TVs and and I can only view 2 shows at a time is there a workaround or is it best to wait for co rent to become available on demand. Picture quality is about the same also
Given your comment about paid programming and older shows, I'm surprised you can even find 3 shows at once to watch!
BTW - I hope you mean 3 shows to record at once... If you are trying to watch live, then there is no problem. You can simply split the antenna lead and feed it directly to your TVs for viewing sans Hopper/Joey.
The limitation of only being able to record two OTA channels at a time with the OTA adapter means I will never drop my locals.
