Thinking about going back to Dish (live in Denver) - questions

[thaar]

Been lurking here on and off for the past few years and finally had some questions.

I had Dish a few years back and really liked it. However, Comcast came around and gave me an offer that I would have been crazy to pass up. Now Comcast is a little too expensive and I liked the PQ better on Dish.

This is what I am considering through E*:

HD package - either silver or gold
VIP 622 receiver to hook my HD TV up as well as an SD TV in my bedroom
one additional standard receiver for spare bedroom

Are there any reputable retailers/installers in the Denver area? I really don't want to pay for installation, but at the same time I don't want a crappy installer since some cable will have to be run for the 622 (only one cable is run right now). And do any installers run wiring for phone jacks? I don't have one behind my TV. Will I have to get a different Dish than the one I currently have on my house, rather should I? Will it be provided? Is there any other information I should know?

Plus, I saw a decent deal on the net for $10 off your bill each month for 10 months as well as a lease of $199 for the 622. Are there any better deals out there? Is this deal available through any dealer?

Thanks.

Edit: Oh yeah, forgot to ask one more thing: Is it worth paying the extra $5 to get the HD locals, or just to use an OTA? I've read that if you use the OTA, you don't get the guide lineup for those channels.

 

[boba]

If you left on good terms DISH will welcome you back. You should qualify for the same promotions as a new customer except the $49.99 credit on your first bill. If you live in Denver DISH should be your best installer. If they mess up just drive over and punchout Charlie.

 

[JH1949]

.......Edit: Oh yeah, forgot to ask one more thing: Is it worth paying the extra $5 to get the HD locals, or just to use an OTA?

If you watch alot of TV, then the 622 with the above would give you 3 simultaneous tuners to use for:
(a) record 3 shows and watch a 4th pre-recorded or
(b) record 2 shows and watch the 3rd show live or
(c) record PBS HD OTA or CW HD OTA while watching an E* HD LIL on another tuner.

Here's a preiminary Fall 2006 Schedule to see whether you might ever be trying to watch/record mulitple HD locals at the same time. Tuesday and Friday are when I will need the 3 tuners.

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/12993295/

 

[SmityWhity]

I live in a multi-tennant building in Aurora and can not pick up any Analog TV stations, so I subscribe to locals.

While surfing Dish's web pages, there is a link to see if locals are available in your area. If you click on it and put in your address, it will come back with a list of available stations, about 15. I think at least one is from Colorado Springs and/or other locations. Although you may not be interested in all of them, it may be worth the $5 for some you can not get.

Although you can pick up HD on 61.5 instead of 129, the 4 Denver HD locals are only on 129, and I think Denver SD are split between 119 and 110.

If the spare bedroom is not used much, the 622 can provide output on two different channels through your home cable systems, which may be suitable for you. So if no one is watching the main TV, each bedroom could watch a separate program, and control it using a UHF PRO remote.

EDIT: If the one cable is RG6 rated for 2150MHZ or higher, that could possibly work with a DP Separator. However, I suspect you will be needing another dish, and depending on how old your dish is, maybe new LNBF.

 

[jayn_j]

Are there any reputable retailers/installers in the Denver area? I really don't want to pay for installation, but at the same time I don't want a crappy installer since some cable will have to be run for the 622 (only one cable is run right now). And do any installers run wiring for phone jacks? I don't have one behind my TV. Will I have to get a different Dish than the one I currently have on my house, rather should I? Will it be provided? Is there any other information I should know?

Although you can pick up HD on 61.5 instead of 129, the 4 Denver HD locals are only on 129, and I think Denver SD are split between 119 and 110.

Actually, the Denver must carry stations are on 129 as well as on 148. I asked to get KBDI added as must carry and was given a Dish 1000 for a single dish solution. This should be a no brainer for anyone getting a new install, as it sets up the dish for future HD.

If you get the Dish 1000, you also shouldn't need the extra cable run. The LNBs on the 1000 are the new DPPPlus type that can handle the 2 channel diplexer. Thus you would just need a special "splitter" at the 622 end of the cable and be ready to go.

Best solution for the phone is probably a wireless phone jack.