Installation questions....what will the installer do?

derralict

Member
Original poster
Mar 19, 2004
10
0
Buffalo,NY
I have never had the dish before. When the guy comes to install it, would he use the same coax cable that I already have that connected my cable TV's? Also, if I have a satellite splitter, would he hook that up for me, or do they frown on that kind of thing? I bought a DVR 522, and have 3 TV's. I wanted to use the splitter so that I could hook up the 3rd TV to one of the recievers. (the one with the remote that goes through walls, etc....not sure if that is UHF, or RF, or whatever. ) Thanks for the help.
 
Most splitters won't work with satellite. If you want to mirror one TV, you use the splitter after the reciever, like from the TV output, split to two TV's, that will work just fine.

With the 522, you're controlling two televisions independantly, to hook up a third with the UHF remote, split the TV2 output to your second room. You might want to ask the tech if he has a spare UHF remote, see if you can get one cheaper that Dish's ripoff prices. Don't know about EBay... Dish has many types of remotes, I'd buy one off EBay after you get the right part number (or if someone here can furnish it).

A tech 'could' use the same wire as your cable.. depends on if it's up to specifications. 9 times out of 10, if you don't want him to, he won't. I would let the tech know if you're running a cable modem, so he doesn't cut off your lifeline.

Hope this helps.
 
I have been installing for years and typically the installer is going to do exactly what it says on the work order, so if it says to hook up 3 televisions, he is going to hook up only 3 televisions.

Its really going to depend on how you treat the installer when he walks in your home if he will include any additional work as part of the install. To me the worst thing you can do is to try to get me to wire up additional televisions or do additional work for FREE or try to argue with me on the price.

I have seen hundreds of customers, and its bad enough we are constantly getting screwed by DISH and Directv I absolutly refuse to put up with it when dealing with customers. If I come into your house and tell me you want something done for FREE, then im going to quote you full price and if your not willing to pay for it then I'll go by whats on the work order.

Another thing that will piss off an installer is customers who insist that we run all new cable when there is nouthing wrong with the old cable, or will rip out all the old cable the night before just so the installer will have to run everything new. I don't have a problem running new cable if a customer requests it since afterall its part of a standard installation. But the time the installer spent running new cable, could have a been running a line to another room that you didn't have to pay for!

In addition do not ask or expect a discount if the installer uses the existing Cable, because thats no worse than telling the installer they have to run all new cable. I have had people tell me that and we will just run everything brand new.

My advice is that when the installer shows up, tell him you need some additional work done and offer to pay for it. In addition, treat him right, offer him something to drink and offer to help him out, chances are that he won't charge you for it when it comes time for him to leave!
 
I bought one of those special satellite cable splitters to use from RadioShack. That should work....I hope. Is it up to him if he wants to put in all new cable lines? I am sure the old ones would work, but I might want to start a new. I do not want him to leave and have the picture not be %100 of what it should be because my cable is old. If the install is costing me no money, that would be sweet to get new cables. I would help the guy so I can see what he is doing. I always do this when I am getting something new put in or getting something fixed. I will also offer him a beer which is my custom.....I am sure he will just want a Pepsi though! Being a little bit cool will go a long way when it comes to dealing with most people. Thanks for the feedback...
 
Claude Greiner said:
Another thing that will piss off an installer is customers who insist that we run all new cable when there is nouthing wrong with the old cable, or will rip out all the old cable the night before just so the installer will have to run everything new.

I'm getting installed on Sunday, and I have the same question... does this mean that he can use existing cable wire? I have a brand new house (built 2002) that was pre-wired for cable. The Dish should be mountable right over the place where the cable comes into the house and then splits among the five rooms. (Of course, the dish will only be going to two of those rooms, through a 522).

I'm assuming the cable I already have will be OK. I understand that Sat uses a slightly better coax than normal cable TV. I don't have one of those plasma/HD/superhuge TVs, so I'm not worried much about superfine picture quality or stereo sound (if that's the only issue involved).

You know *dish* really should have a FAQ about this.

Also, how much noise does the 522 hard drive make when running? I'm considering have the box installed in my bedroom.
 
jabels said:
I'm assuming the cable I already have will be OK. I understand that Sat uses a slightly better coax than normal cable TV. I don't have one of those plasma/HD/superhuge TVs, so I'm not worried much about superfine picture quality or stereo sound (if that's the only issue involved).
The cable that you already have might be RG-59. This style of wire is used for cable TV. Satellite TV uses RG-6 cable which is better suited for satellite TV (better shielding and a larger diameter center conductor).

If your existing wire is RG-59, I would ask the installer to install new wiring (using RG-6).

BTW, the reason for using RG-6 is that the satellite receivers send a DC voltage to the LNB for switching between odd and even transponders. If you have a long cable run, the smaller center conductor of the RG-59 wire might cause too much voltage drop at the LNB. For shorter runs RG-59 will work OK, but it is not recommended. Since this is a new install, I would insist that they use the proper cable.
 
The cable will be stamped with RG-6/RG-59 on it... should be at least.

BTW, when Comcast hooked up my cable modem, they used RG-11 Quad. Maybe with their newer digital service they've upgraded their cable finally... or maybe they need it in such a badly rural area.

I'd just let the tech do what he needs to do... Claude is right, a little courtesy goes a long long way.
 
In the Eastern Upper Penninsula our local cable company, Charter uses Rg6 and they have for several years. We sometimes use existing wire if it is Rg6 but we will run new wire if the customer requests it.
 
Tony S said:
The cable that you already have might be RG-59. This style of wire is used for cable TV. Satellite TV uses RG-6 cable which is better suited for satellite TV (better shielding and a larger diameter center conductor).

If your existing wire is RG-59, I would ask the installer to install new wiring (using RG-6).

How is an installer going to be able to put new wire in if I'm only allowed on wall punch-through? (Which I assume is to bring the cable to the box?)

I already know the installer will need new cable to go to the receiver. I had hoped it wouldn't be necessary, since as I've said, it's pre-wired for cable, and I don't feature having a nasty cable running down my living room wall.

However, for the Receivers' connection to the *second* TV, I was under the understanding that this could use existing housing wire (since power for the Dish isn't an issue for the second TV). Is a nasty cable going to be running up my stairs as well? If so, i need to.

I will check my cabling tonight... hopefully it's all RG-6 already. Like I said, this wouldn't be such an issue if they gave some details install info at dishnetwork!

And my final question is, when I signed up for install, I requested the HBO/Cinemax movie pack. I want to change to HBO/Showtime. Do I need to change this before the installer comes, or can I just do it when I activate? Just want to make sure everything is ready. I've already marked which cables go to which room of the house, in case that's useful for the installer.
 
Teh 522 and 322 model receivers are a little different from teh older 311 and 508 models in that they require TWO lines coming from the dish to the receiver, whereas the 311/508 only needed one. So, on a new installation the installer will definitely be running new line from the dish to wherever the receiver is located. From that point(the receiver) using the lines already in teh home will be fine, so long as your installer has a pocket toner to trace the lines back and get them connected properly.

An additional note worth mentioning is the NECESSITY of a phone line with the 322/522. By keeping your receiver connected to the phone line, you avoid a charge of 4.98 a month from dish for that receiver. If you have a phone jack near where the receiver will be located, great! If not, your installer should be able to install one for you for a nominal fee. Just bear in mind that, if the phone compnay were to come run that line for you, you would be looking at $100 minimum for them to come to your house just to run one line.

You can also save both yourself and your installer a lot of headaches if you make a walk through with him. Go outside so he can show you exactly where he wants to put your dish, where the cable will be run, where he will be grounding to, where the cable will enter the home, etc, etc.

I had a guy who just told me he wanted it on his roof. He didn't want to go put on his coat and botos to look, so I put it on his roof as requested. An hour later, I got a call from the boss because the customer went to goto the store, saw where on the roof I put it, and called in to complain because that did not meet the neighborhood association code.

Bottom line, if you take care of the installer, by being courteous, showing interest in what he's doing for you, and not arguing about prices for extra labor that are more than generous, your installer will take care of you. Mean people suck, and get charged more!!!
 
jabels said:
How is an installer going to be able to put new wire in if I'm only allowed on wall punch-through? (Which I assume is to bring the cable to the box?)

I already know the installer will need new cable to go to the receiver. I had hoped it wouldn't be necessary, since as I've said, it's pre-wired for cable, and I don't feature having a nasty cable running down my living room wall.

However, for the Receivers' connection to the *second* TV, I was under the understanding that this could use existing housing wire (since power for the Dish isn't an issue for the second TV). Is a nasty cable going to be running up my stairs as well? If so, i need to.

I will check my cabling tonight... hopefully it's all RG-6 already. Like I said, this wouldn't be such an issue if they gave some details install info at dishnetwork!

And my final question is, when I signed up for install, I requested the HBO/Cinemax movie pack. I want to change to HBO/Showtime. Do I need to change this before the installer comes, or can I just do it when I activate? Just want to make sure everything is ready. I've already marked which cables go to which room of the house, in case that's useful for the installer.
If your house was just recently built then more than likely rg-6 cable was used in the pre-wire.The 522 rcvr requires that 2 cables be run in from the dish to the rcvr.2 tuners....2 lines.After the line gets in to the rcvr then the installer can use the existing prewire to finish up svc.to your other tvs.Most installers will work with you on cable runs to avoid minimal outside line exposure.My guys will not hook up mirror outlets for free.Even if the cable is existing and new.My guys have to guarantee all of their work for one year after they leave the job site.If the cable goes bad within that year they have to roll back for free when they could have been making money elsewhere.Make sure that your installer will back up his work.Also;you can change your programming at the point of install if you wish.When they do their disclaimers over the phone with you they will confirm your programming before they activate.Hope this helps.If you have any questions you can e-mail me.
 
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