Questions for a Newguy

[joecap1946]

Hi gang,

To say I'm new to all of this would be an under statement.

Can you help me with some questions I have to as to better understand some of the lingo used on this site. I have 2 dishes, is one for 110 and 120. The other must be for HD on 61.5?

I have a 722 DVR receiver, you talk of smart cards, mine has a slot but no card.

I am assuming there are 3 satellites that we get signals from, 120, 110, and 61.5.

What is the Eastern Arc everyone is talking about. My locals are on 110 and the reception is awful, is that my local channels fault or dish.? I live in Panama City Florida, and I don't imagine it's a priority of dish to improve the signal. Also will this clear up when everyone goes digital in Feb.?

I get my CBS from distant networks, the Atlanta feed is ok, but the SF feed is really sharp. Does anyone think they may become HD down the road?

Are all HD channels on 61.5?

Finally I read of Dish at some point providing more HD content, I'm assuming thats what everyone is talking about. What is Voom and is this what we are waiting for?

I love the site, I think I'd appreciate it more if I understood some of the tech stuff.

Thanks in advance

Joe

 

[garys]

The sat locations are 119 (close to 120), 110 and 61.5. The HD is split on 110 and 61.5. The Eastern Arc is for new customer with only mpeg4 receivers and include 61.5 along with 72 and 77, 77 was just turned on but nothing is available on that sat yet. The picture quality is really not that much better than what you have now, but if you switch you will lose the locals from Atlanta and SF. That will change when/if your HD locals become available, the pq on the HD ones will be a lot better than what you have now, most of the fault is probably from your locals as Dish sends out what is supplied to them, the analog shut off will not effect what you get now as most of what Dish gets is from currently is the digital feeds already in most areas.
The 722 comes with the smart card built into the unit, the slot is there for when Dish needs to change it's security when the current cards become hackable, not sure if the 722's will be getting new cards yet. Only know for sure the current cards are being replaced.
Voom was a grouping of HD channels Dish had but they did not improve the programing choices and Dish dropped them (if you search under Voom, there is a lot of info on that whole mess.)

 

[kstuart]

If you have a receiver installed recently, it has the new smartcard already.

HD can come from either 61.5 or a combination of 110 and 129.

SD can come from 110 and 119 or else 72.5 and 77 (the latter two are "eastern arc").

Voom were a company providing HD - they were ahead of their time, and were dropped by Dish a few months ago - many members miss those channels.

Dish is currently missing HD channels corresponding to those provided by:

- News Corp (Fox News, FX, etc.)
- Viacom (Nickolodeon, MTV)
- Rainbow (AMC, IFC)

Negotiations are ongoing, and we may see some of them on December 1st.

 

[joecap1946]

Thanks to GaryS and KStuart for taking the time to help me clear up some facts. So you think that my locals from Panama City Florida supply the feed that I get? Even though Dish carries those locals for me.

I'm thinking this is the quality of picture I will be getting unless my locals go HD. I mean the shows I watch on ABC and NBC on prime time are all in HD. I don't get them because of the local broadcast or because my locals aren't in HD from dish.?

I guess I should be happy I have locals at all, let alone in HD.

Again I want to thank you for you quick response, and answering me.

Joe

 

[garys]

You may want to try hooking up an off air anatenna into the input of your 722 and scan to see if you can pick up your locals in HD. They get incorporated into your existing guide and you can use the dvr features with them. Go to AntennaWeb or TV Fool - Home, put in your info and see what they give you for the type of antenna you need.

 

[TNGTony]

joecap1946,

Keep in mind that Dish Network is a digital broadcast. You either get the picture exactly the way it's being broadcast from Dish or you get nothing (error screen). So the PQ from your locals is the way Dish is sending them to you.

You can send SPECIFIC reception issues (ghosting, low chroma/color, grain/snow/picture shift, audio) to dishquality@echostar.com. They WILL respond to specific verifiable issues. I have used this e-mail a couple of times before and fixed a couple of issues with my locals. But remember, they need specifics. "My locals look bad" is not going to get results. "Channel X has a soft picture with low color/chroma levels" is more what you need to send.

Just so you know , SD local channels, in general, look softer in comparison to national SD channels.

See ya
Tony

 

[joecap1946]

Thanks everyone,

I have written Dish about the locals. An antenna might work but I'd have to deal with trees and my locals are about 35 miles away. Cost is an issue right now.

But thanks again, I appreciate the input.

Joe

 

[joecap1946]

joecap1946,

Keep in mind that Dish Network is a digital broadcast. You either get the picture exactly the way it's being broadcast from Dish or you get nothing (error screen). So the PQ from your locals is the way Dish is sending them to you.

You can send SPECIFIC reception issues (ghosting, low chroma/color, grain/snow/picture shift, audio) to dishquality@echostar.com. They WILL respond to specific verifiable issues. I have used this e-mail a couple of times before and fixed a couple of issues with my locals. But remember, they need specifics. "My locals look bad" is not going to get results. "Channel X has a soft picture with low color/chroma levels" is more what you need to send.

Just so you know , SD local channels, in general, look softer in comparison to national SD channels.

See ya
Tony

Tony just heard back from Dish on my locals.

I copied the letter below. Do think this is a form type response or is it legit. Just curious. Thanks again

Joe

The response:


Dear Mr. Capuano,
Thank you for expressing your concerns and interest in DISH Network. Customer input is an important tool in our efforts to continuously improve the quality of the DISH Network service.
I have done some investigating into the problems you are having with your local channels. I wanted to let you knowwe do have some work planned on these stations for the first part of January 09. From what I understand this should clear up the issues. If this does not clear up the problems please email us again so we can look into another possible solution.

We appreciate the time DISH Network customers take to email their audio/video quality concerns. Thank you for your patience and for being a valued customer.
EchoStar Broadcasting Corporation
Quality Assurance Department
dishquality@echostar.com