Initial Hopper Setup?

[sparc]

Initial Hopper Setup

After you get the node setup and whatever changes your installer may need to take care of at the dish, this is the unofficial setup guide i put together for the Hopper:

(please edit where i'm missing or have incorrect info. It's mostly sourced from the week 4 activation video on their tech portal.)

1) Do not unbox Joeys until all Hoppers show live TV.
2) Start by connecting coax from wall outlet to the first Hopper and power up.
3) If message 015 shows up first then go into the menu and reset to factory defaults using the troubleshooting guide info that Scott posted HERE.
4) Wait for Receiver Setup Wizard to show up.
5) Pair Remote by pressing sat button and then press pair button.
6) Name Location of Hopper.
7) Click Next to get Hopper to start software download.
8) After Software Download, receiver will reboot showing starting up screen.
9) If you have a second hopper, you can set it up at this time.
10) Setup resolutions of Hopper.
11) Now the whole system including Joeys can be activated by the installer.
12) You should now see live TV on all hoppers.
13) If you encounter any other problems or the Hopper appears to get stuck in any step, follow the troubleshooting guide that Scott posted HERE.
14) Now that all Hoppers are successfully showing live TV, you can unbox and setup one Joey at a time.​

Printable PDF Version of the Initial Hopper Setup and Troubleshooting Guide Uploaded Below

 

[Scherrman]

After you get the node setup and whatever changes your installer may need to take care of at the dish, is this the initial setup process for the Hopper?

(please edit where i'm missing or have incorrect info)

1) Do not unbox Joeys until all Hoppers show live TV.
2) Start by connecting coax from wall outlet to the first Hopper and power up.
If message 015 shows up first then go into the menu and reset to factory defaults.
3) Wait for Receiver Setup Wizard to show up.
4) Pair Remote by pressing sat button and then press pair button.
5) Name Location of Hopper.
6) Click Next to get Hopper to start software download.
7) After Software Download, receiver will reboot showing starting up screen.
8) If you have a second hopper, you can set it up at this time.
9) Setup resolutions of Hopper.
10) Now the whole system including Joeys can be activated by the installer.
11) You should now see live TV on all hoppers.
12) If you encounter any problems like the 015 error or the Hopper appears to get stuck in any step, follow the troubleshooting guide that Scott posted HERE.
13) Now that all Hoppers are successfully showing live TV, you can unbox and setup one Joey at a time.​

.

 

[sparc]

edited in

 

[sparc]

For my install today, the tech said that he's pretty much had to factory reset every hopper. I'm starting to think it might be a good idea to do that for pretty much every install at this point. Factory reset as soon as it loads and maybe it will save some time.

My tech had zero issues with a 2 hopper/2 joey install. The ridiculously long download times for the hopper system is pretty sad. My tech probably wasted an hour of my three hour install just waiting for everything to download and reboot between the hoppers and joeys (and that's without any errors). All the time saving with nodes/taps/splitters/etc is lost with this ridiculously long download system.

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[BearHuntr]

For my install today, the tech said that he's pretty much had to factory reset every hopper. I'm starting to think it might be a good idea to do that for pretty much every install at this point. Factory reset as soon as it loads and maybe it will save some time.

My tech had zero issues with a 2 hopper/2 joey install. The ridiculously long download times for the hopper system is pretty sad. My tech probably wasted an hour of my three hour install just waiting for everything to download and reboot between the hoppers and joeys (and that's without any errors). All the time saving with nodes/taps/splitters/etc is lost with this ridiculously long download system.

.

Yeah, wouldn't it be nice if you could connect the Hopper to the Internet to download all of the software and configuration and then connect it to the coax afterwards?

 

[Scherrman]

My thought was to get the software downloaded at our store before we went to the customer's home to save time. We haven't tried it yet but I think it could work and save a ton of time. This way we just bring the equipment to the customers home, install it and call Dish to activate it. Once activated we can connect the Joeys. The download times on the Joeys are actually pretty quick.

 

[sparc]

My thought was to get the software downloaded at our store before we went to the customer's home to save time. We haven't tried it yet but I think it could work and save a ton of time.

If it's possible, i'd consider doing that every time. Basically take delivery of the hoppers and have someone in the office run through the screens. Then package back up the box and voila... instant setup. Even waiting on the joeys wouldn't be a big deal at that point.

In fact, i think customers would be FAR more impressed by not having to see the download system for the hoppers at all. Plus, the techs won't be in an insane rush to get everything done in a reasonable time and start skipping steps/cutting corners.

One reason my install went so well besides the tech's experience and knowledge was the fact that i was there all along answering their questions and helping them speed up the process for various parts. For example, i was watching for the prompts to come up on the hoppers while they were finishing up the other work. They saved enough time with my help to make sure the job quality for the penetrations and wiring was perfect.

Do you think all newly manufactured hoppers will be forced to take the initial downloads right away? You would think they could load a stable version of the software on the new one's being made in China and then do the downloads overnight while they are being unused on the first day.

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[Scherrman]

I think it's a great idea as long as there are no issues with unplugging the receiver while it's waiting for activation. The Joeys only take about 10 minutes to download so it's painless.

 

[sparc]

I think it's a great idea as long as there are no issues with unplugging the receiver while it's waiting for activation. The Joeys only take about 10 minutes to download so it's painless.

worth at least experimenting on one box since Dish seems to have dropped the ball.

 

[stimpson]

One reason my install went so well besides the tech's experience and knowledge was the fact that i was there all along answering their questions and helping them speed up the process for various parts. For example, i was watching for the prompts to come up on the hoppers while they were finishing up the other work. They saved enough time with my help to make sure the job quality for the penetrations and wiring was perfect.

Yep. Same here.

 

[sparc]

I just realized two down sides with that idea.... setting up the resolution and the name of the hopper

it probably only adds another minute to change that, but we're kind of moving steps out of order by having the box ready right away. (Tech just has to remember that it might need to be changed)

 

[stimpson]

I just realized two down sides with that idea.... setting up the resolution and the name of the hopper

it probably only adds another minute to change that, but we're kind of moving steps out of order by having the box ready right away. (Tech just has to remember that it might need to be changed)

Also, I would be skeptical of the installers bringing in a buch of unsealed boxes. As a matter of fact, one of my Joey boxes was open. He said it was ok, that he just wanted to see what all was in the box. I had the himr get me an another off the truck that wasn't opened.

 

[sparc]

Also, I would be skeptical of the installers bringing in a buch of unsealed boxes. As a matter of fact, one of my Joey boxes was open. He said it was ok, that he just wanted to see what all was in the box. I had the himr get me an another off the truck that wasn't opened.

Maybe down the road when they get refurbs it might matter, but hopefully by then Dish find some way to cut this down.

I doubt any boxes that are being opened now are anything but new.

Worst case they can throw some packing tape over it and make the customer feel good. Just get a nice tape dispenser and it takes two seconds. Or even tell the customer that you updated the software at the office so they can save the customer an hour of their time. I'm sure most customers will be ok with that. lol

 

[stimpson]

Maybe down the road when they get refurbs it might matter, but hopefully by then Dish find some way to cut this down.

I doubt any boxes that are being opened now are anything but new.

Worst case they can throw some packing tape over it and make the customer feel good. Just get a nice tape dispenser and it takes two seconds.

New yes. Didn't work at last install?? Wouldn't activte at last install??? Let's try it at the next one we do. My system was installed 3 days after initial launch, so I know there were units that either didn't work out of the box, or the installers bricked them by not following the install procedures. I didn't want to take the chance.

 

[sparc]

New yes. Didn't work at last install?? Wouldn't activte at last install??? Let's try it at the next one we do. My system was installed 3 days after initial launch, so I know there were units that either didn't work out of the box, or the installers bricked them by not following the install procedures. I didn't want to take the chance.

with the hopper working though, the troubleshooting will very narrowed down. They just have to systematically go through each joey one at a time and all will be well. Worst case they come back the next day to drop off an extra joey that takes a few minutes to setup.

Plus, this site will always be a magnet for worst cases. My tech had zero major issues with all of his installs over two days. Time management/incorrect equipment were the biggest problems. He was able to troubleshoot everything and all he did was in-house training.

(of course this is all speculation. We don't even know if the hopper is ok with being turned off before activation yet and still be able to boot right up without having to download something or freeze again.)

 

[stimpson]

with the hopper working though, the troubleshooting will very narrowed down. They just have to systematically go through each joey one at a time and all will be well. Worst case they come back the next day to drop off an extra joey that takes a few minutes to setup.

Plus, this site will always be a magnet for worst cases. My tech had zero major issues with all of his installs over two days. Time management was the biggest problem. He was able to troubleshoot everything and all he did was in-house training.

(of course this is all speculation. We don't even know if the hopper is ok with being turned off before activation yet and still be able to boot right up without having to download something or freeze again.)

I agree that it would make the installs go quicker. Most folks wouldn't care if the boxes were already open if that reason was explaned to them. Me. I'm a great big snob when it comes to used, or appears to be used electronics. I don't want them. You bring a box in my house that looks like it has already been opened, used, and repackaged, forget it. As the other fella stated, it would be great if the download could be over the internet. Lets take that a bit further, and make it an option to do it via internet, or satellite, depending on if a broadband connection is available at the location.

 

[sparc]

I agree that it would make the installs go quicker. Most folks wouldn't care if the boxes were already open if that reason was explaned to them. Me. I'm a great big snob when it comes to used, or appears to be used electronics. I don't want them. You bring a box in my house that looks like it has already been opened, used, and repackaged, forget it. As the other fella stated, it would be great if the download could be over the internet. Lets take that a bit further, and make it an option to do it via internet, or satellite, depending on if a broadband connection is available at the location.

i'm a great big snob for not having an 8 hour install

 

[stimpson]

i'm a great big snob for not having an 8 hour install

LOL!!! Agreed.