What dish would we get?

[Mr Tony]

quick question

My sister is looking to sign up with D* (Comcast screwed her over) and I had a question about what dish she would get. It would be 4 SD only receivers (no HD in the house). Minneapolis SD locals are on 101.

I assume she wouldnt get the slimline since no HD is involved?
Would she get a Phase III or a simple 18" dish and a 3x4 multiswitch?

 

[webbydude]

More than likely the 18" round and 3X4 multiswitch combo.

The only time I've seen other is if it's a MPEG4 market or international channels mixing things.

 

[Mr Tony]

no it wouldn't be that. I know Mpls is on 101 as my neighbor has an old 18" dish set up.

So really if I felt like it I could get everything set up sans recievers. The guy who rented before my sister did had D* and ran all the cabling to different rooms. Other than it looking pretty ghetto it worked (when she moved in I hooked up an old D* receiver to see which outlets were for sat and which were for cable). I took the dish off the roof and the switch out when she got cable

 

[webbydude]

Sounds like it's just merely a matter of re-installing a dish and switch.

If all the cabling is home ran, I'd say it shouldn't take more than 2 1/2 hours to install; start to finish. Depending on the technician, maybe only 90 minutes. Regardless, it sounds like it should be a fairly easy affair.

 

[Mr Tony]

The guy who lived there did some weird install.

positives...he ran a bunch of lines
2 in the living room
1 in each bedroom

negative...did put the 4x8 multiswitch outside and plugged it in outside to the outlet by the patio....uh this is MN. When my sister moved in I saw that and was like WTF?? Damn power cable for the multiswitch was buried in snow
I took the switch and cleaned up the cabling

Thinking outloud the only things that would need to be done is
-put up the dish
-run 2 cables down side of house
-put 3x4 switch there where the 4x8 was
-run one cable to the one bedroom. That cable fell off a while back.
-hook up the rest of the cables

 

[webbydude]

Yep. Pretty much sums up the bulk of the 4-room 18" installs I generally run into.

 

[sddtvtech]

Id say if non-hd, then yes 18 or a triple sat would do the trick.

what kind of recievers? D12s? if so, you CAN get a slimline for that and still work. before we switched from 18 inch dishes, we were told to install Slimlines in all installs regardless the reciever and i had D11s at the time. ONE d11 with a slimline does NOT work. if you had 4 D11s.. then it will work. something to do with voltage being too much and frying the reciever.

Ive still gone to Former Installs that still have D12s and still install SL3s and they still work good. however, still need the local dish (18 round) since D12s wont pick up HD locals.

 

[Mr Tony]

receivers would probably be just the "stock" SD non DVR receivers

 

[yorktown]

If you're putting the dish up for her, get a slimline because she'll probably get HD someday, ya never know, even if now she says NO HD, things change.

 

[Mr Tony]

all I have here is a 18" and a Phase III

I aint got a slimline around here

 

[jcrandall]

Berg, you're going to make some installer's day.

What you described should be fine. If she ever did want HD Directv would always come out and switch it over. SWM would overkill for that simple setup, and the locals are on 101.

Good to go.

 

[Mr Tony]

I looked tonight and I might do some "help" this weekend. The old renter took the dish and mast but left the foot but its buried under snow right now. I'm gonna clear out the snow around it so the installer can use the same foot.

He needs to run 4 lines (2 from the dish to the multiswitch and 2 lines up to the master bedroom and one other BR)...the living room and 3rd BR already has the cables run from the previous install. There's wallplates already there. the cables from the 2 BR were crappily installed so they flapped around so I took them down off the house

I'm thinking a 90 minute job...hopefully
(since I have to sit there I want this to be quick)

 

[sddtvtech]

so that sounds like an 18 inch dish job... right?

 

[Mr Tony]

yeppers

she got the receivers today via UPS but she cant open the box until Monday when they come to install

 

[Islandguy43]

On a side note, Can a Direct Dish be installed on a old existing Dish foot on the roof?

 

[sddtvtech]

if its a 18 inch directv or multi sat can be used on Dish Network's mast or other way around. dish can use Directv mast only if its a multi sat or 18inch dish..

however SlimLine can not. they require a bigger mast to support it's weight.

 

[Mr Tony]

On a side note, Can a Direct Dish be installed on a old existing Dish foot on the roof?

should have mentioned the former renter had a 18" dish setup. He took the dish but there were 2 lines from the roof down to the powered 4x8 multiswitch (that he mounted outside and ran the a/c power to the outlet on the patio....when I removed the switch the power cabling was buried under 6 inches of snow). I guess the guy must have had a DVR in one room because in the living room there is a dual coax outlet there.

 

[Mr Tony]

well it sounds like she got the 18" dish

The tech called her tonight and said he'd be there tomorrow morning between 9-10. There was some confusion as to how many receivers. Tech said his WO said 2 but my sister said 4. She got the bundled deal through Qwest for phone/internet/D* so Friday UPS delivered the equipment. The tech asked her to open the box (even though she was told by D* not to until the tech was there) and she said there are 4 receivers, a multiswitch and the dish

so its a 18" dish and a 2x4 multiswitch

 

[Jimbo]

well it sounds like she got the 18" dish

The tech called her tonight and said he'd be there tomorrow morning between 9-10. There was some confusion as to how many receivers. Tech said his WO said 2 but my sister said 4. She got the bundled deal through Qwest for phone/internet/D* so Friday UPS delivered the equipment. The tech asked her to open the box (even though she was told by D* not to until the tech was there) and she said there are 4 receivers, a multiswitch and the dish

so its a 18" dish and a 2x4 multiswitch

I would still run 4 lines from the dish, this will prevent having to do it potentially in the future.
Also, don't forget the ground block gas to be in there as well.

 

[Mr Tony]

I would still run 4 lines from the dish, this will prevent having to do it potentially in the future.
Also, don't forget the ground block gas to be in there as well.

I kinda wish it was a Phase III because the two rooms that no sat cable runs to are right where the dish will go (if the tech uses the same foot that is already there).