OTA only question.

[dr0doom]

Hello,
I was thinking of picking up an H20 or DST3000 receiver cheap on
eBay to use for OTA only. Will this work, or do you have to activate the
receiver through DirecTV just to use the OTA part. I do not care about
any Guide info or anything, I just want to receive OTA HD/Digital (ATSC)
signals with an antenna, and not have to pay for activation or any
monthly fees.

 

[raoul5788]

Hello,
I was thinking of picking up an H20 or DST3000 receiver cheap on
eBay to use for OTA only. Will this work, or do you have to activate the
receiver through DirecTV just to use the OTA part. I do not care about
any Guide info or anything, I just want to receive OTA HD/Digital (ATSC)
signals with an antenna, and not have to pay for activation or any
monthly fees.

I don't know about the DST3000, but the H20 must be activated in order for the ota tuner to work. Bummer, huh?

 

[sksatellite]

Hello,
I was thinking of picking up an H20 or DST3000 receiver cheap on
eBay to use for OTA only. Will this work, or do you have to activate the
receiver through DirecTV just to use the OTA part. I do not care about
any Guide info or anything, I just want to receive OTA HD/Digital (ATSC)
signals with an antenna, and not have to pay for activation or any
monthly fees.

As long as you has the HDTV, you can do so with off air antenna.

 

[osu1991]

I believe the h20 and newer models have to be activated. The older models don't. I have old hughes e8 and htl's from directv that I have given to family members as I have upgraded and they all work fine for OTA digital without directv subscription.

 

[boba]

I think the DST3000 was the same circuit board as the E86 and would work without activation but they had a heat problem that shortened life of receiver. The best receivers I have found at a reasonable price on Ebay are the Hughes HTL-HD, Samsung TS360 and U S Digital TV Hisense DB2010 (also sold as USDTV) usually available between $50 & 100.

 

[raoul5788]

I think the DST3000 was the same circuit board as the E86 and would work without activation but they had a heat problem that shortened life of receiver. The best receivers I have found at a reasonable price on Ebay are the Hughes HTL-HD, Samsung TS360 and U S Digital TV Hisense DB2010 (also sold as USDTV) usually available between $50 & 100.

An LG3200a just sold on ebay for under $100. It's about the best box out there that you can get. It's too bad they aren't made like this one anymore.

 

[charper1]

An LG3200a just sold on ebay for under $100. It's about the best box out there that you can get. It's too bad they aren't made like this one anymore.

Amen! I have that in the den and its little cousin the Zenith HD-SAT520 in the bedroom. These are rock solid and if you don't have to have MPEG4 or interactive these are true top of the line.

 

[raoul5788]

Amen! I have that in the den and its little cousin the Zenith HD-SAT520 in the bedroom. These are rock solid and if you don't have to have MPEG4 or interactive these are true top of the line.

Yup. I have an LG and it's "other" little cousins the Sony HD 200.

 

[boba]

Yup. I have an LG and it's "other" little cousins the Sony HD 200.

Well the Hughes HTL-HD is another LG produced receiver and has been produced in larger volumes which means more available at lower prices.