TWC or Directv. Questions

[frkingz]

I really really want to drop TWC except for the internet. Terrible company to deal with, old outdated equipment, channels and guide constantly freezing up or moving incredibly slowly. But I am nervous about moving to a satellite dish. Have had cable basically all our lives. Just looking for some advice.

Have four tv's total in the house. Two big screens in family room and living room, another in a bedroom and a normal tv in another bedroom. Was looking at Directv's Genie system. Seems like it would be perfect for us if it works well.

We watch almost nothing except what is on HD channels. We do not watch sports much.

We have tall trees next to the house to our south but from what I can determine with a couple of Android phone apps I downloaded they shouldn't be in the way from the second story. We do get a lot of snow in the winter and I am worried about its effect on the picture.

We do not have a landline.

What is generally included in the free installation of the Genie system? Do all the tv's connected to it have the ability to pause/rewind/record/playback?

I realize no one can say what is right for another family but any helpful advice would be appreciated. It is a big change/commitment to make.

Thank you for any help.

 

[Jimbo]

I really really want to drop TWC except for the internet. Terrible company to deal with, old outdated equipment, channels and guide constantly freezing up or moving incredibly slowly. But I am nervous about moving to a satellite dish. Have had cable basically all our lives. Just looking for some advice.

Have four tv's total in the house. Two big screens in family room and living room, another in a bedroom and a normal tv in another bedroom. Was looking at Directv's Genie system. Seems like it would be perfect for us if it works well.

We watch almost nothing except what is on HD channels. We do not watch sports much.

We have tall trees next to the house to our south but from what I can determine with a couple of Android phone apps I downloaded they shouldn't be in the way from the second story. We do get a lot of snow in the winter and I am worried about its effect on the picture.

We do not have a landline.

What is generally included in the free installation of the Genie system? Do all the tv's connected to it have the ability to pause/rewind/record/playback?

I realize no one can say what is right for another family but any helpful advice would be appreciated. It is a big change/commitment to make.

Thank you for any help.

to the site !

Chances are, if you do go to D*, you won't look back.

Suggestion, if your Dish has to be on the roof, put a Dish Heater on it.

If you can manage to get signal while being on the ground, thats all the better, you can occasionally go out and brush it off when needed.

How far away is the end of the tree line ?

 

[qcjoe]

I used to work for TWC. I used to laugh at people because they said they would go to a dish. I have dtv now and my god its night and day in terms of what it used to be. Ive only had the signal go out once because of bad ice. I had gotten a new tv and with TWC my picture looked worse. I thought it was the tv. When i switched I saw a lot better picture.

 

[Jimbo]

I used to work for TWC. I used to laugh at people because they said they would go to a dish. I have dtv now and my god its night and day in terms of what it used to be. Ive only had the signal go out once because of bad ice. I had gotten a new tv and with TWC my picture looked worse. I thought it was the tv. When i switched I saw a lot better picture.

QC, where are you in Ohio ?

Just curious.

 

[frkingz]

We are in Chardon.

The trees are only about 50ft from the house. But the house is 60 ft long so the north end is about 100 feet from the trees.

Thanks for everyone's replies so far.

 

[Jimbo]

We are in Chardon.

The trees are only about 50ft from the house. But the house is 60 ft long so the north end is about 100 feet from the trees.

Thanks for everyone's replies so far.

No clearing from the trees ?

 

[directv newb]

Hey, I live in Columbus. I had Time Warner Cable for over 20 years. I was always scared to switch to Directv, but once I did I felt like a total FOOL for not switching sooner. Directv is absolutely INCREDIBLE. Some members on the forum here that have had Directv for a long time may not get as excited as me, BUT when you first come from cable you will be astounded. My dish was installed on the roof and we had a good bit of snow this winter and I never had one problem the whole winter. I have had the picture go out during heavy rains and once in a while a little pixalation when there is super heavy cloud cover(but that is very short and rare). The Genie dvr is absolutely incredible, the guide is incredible, the hd picture is incredible. You can't even make your own custom guide with Time Warner. They didn't even have folders, so if I recorded 75 episodes of Seinfeld it showed up as 75 different recordings, instead of one folder with 75 Seinfelds. The Time Warner dvr's are an absolute JOKE!! Time Warner customers are so blind as to what that company is doing to them, it is a real shame, and the funniest part is that Time Warner couldn't care less. They will make you use the sa 8300 dvr for the next 50 years!!!!
Directv is ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE!

 

[TheTechGuru]

Ya, once you've had DirecTV you'll never want to use cable again, now FIOS would be a different story and possibly UVerse but HFC (Hybrid Fiber-Coaxal) cable is good for nothing but internet.

 

[frkingz]

No clearing from the trees ?

No. Solid wall of trees to the south. I would guess 35-45 feet high. But that is just a guess.

 

[TheTechGuru]

No. Solid wall of trees to the south. I would guess 35-45 feet high. But that is just a guess.

Are they your trees? Get out the chainsaw, lol.

I would use the dish pointer app from the highest point on the roof of your house to check.

 

[jdspencer]

Any chance you could pole mount the dish on the other side of the trees?

 

[dishfan82]

I have dish now but probably will go back to directv. Is the genie fast? I've heard others say it is slow and sluggish ?

 

[qcjoe]

QC, where are you in Ohio ?

Just curious.

Cincinnati.

 

[qcjoe]

I have dish now but probably will go back to directv. Is the genie fast? I've heard others say it is slow and sluggish ?

Its weird. Mine is kinda so so. My grandmother in laws is super speedy. The only thing thats not the same is she has wireless hooked up to it and I have a cat 5 hooked up.

 

[twizt3dsist3r]

Its weird. Mine is kinda so so. My grandmother in laws is super speedy. The only thing thats not the same is she has wireless hooked up to it and I have a cat 5 hooked up.

In theory that should only affect download speed of dod. However the more content saved on the hard drive (the more % full it gets) the slower it will navigate.

 

[qcjoe]

In theory that should only affect download speed of dod. However the more content saved on the hard drive (the more % full it gets) the slower it will navigate.

Whats weird is it was slow when we first got it with nothing on the HD. A month ago I deleted alot on the hard drive and got rid off all the scheduled recordings. I did a reset and it works a little faster, but nothing like my grandmother inlaw.

 

[twizt3dsist3r]

Whats weird is it was slow when we first got it with nothing on the HD. A month ago I deleted alot on the hard drive and got rid off all the scheduled recordings. I did a reset and it works a little faster, but nothing like my grandmother inlaw.

Force a download maybe? Do you participate in CE software, this could cause it as well, it could also be a different manufacturer, when you flip the door down and it says rid, you will see hr34-x00 probably 700, check if your grandmothers differs.

Sent from my PG06100 using Tapatalk 2

 

[qcjoe]

Force a download maybe? Do you participate in CE software, this could cause it as well, it could also be a different manufacturer, when you flip the door down and it says rid, you will see hr34-x00 probably 700, check if your grandmothers differs.

Sent from my PG06100 using Tapatalk 2

I dont do CE. Ill check on her hr34.

 

[robertk328]

Ya, once you've had DirecTV you'll never want to use cable again, now FIOS would be a different story and possibly UVerse but HFC (Hybrid Fiber-Coaxal) cable is good for nothing but internet.

Have had fios and even considered switching back when we moved but couldn't do it. DTV is great!

 

[satinstallerguy]

No. Solid wall of trees to the south. I would guess 35-45 feet high. But that is just a guess.

frkingz, I live in Cleveland I am a dealer/installer.. I can set you up and verify that you have line of site.................