Dishnetwork Questions (1 Viewer)

[Damian]

Hello All!
Recently my wife and I got a Dishnetwork system and so far, we love it. I've been following some of the posts in here and have come across several things I don't understand. I see you guys talking about different connectors like multiplexors, LNB connectors..etc. It's all kinda confusing me. I know our main reciever is the 500 but we just got an HDTV television and are in need of the HD receiver. Regular broadcast television looks abolutly horrid. (Mitsubishi Diamond 65" It formats the 4x3 picture to 16x9)
I also noticed on one of the web sites there are several anntena's that can be connected to either the receiver or the dish. How do those work? I need to get UPN back so I can watch the end of Voyager.
Any help is appreciated.
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-Damian

 

[Bob Dycus]

The Dish HD6000 would give you high definition capability with the addition of a dish pointing at the 61.5 satellite. By adding the OTA cartridge to the 6000 you can pick up digital over the air broadcasts. The antenna would plug into the OTA cartridge.

 

[Damian]

So I also have to re-direct my dish? I understand I'll gain the HD broadcast but will I loose anything when I re-direct it?
Also...would it be easier for me to just pay somebody at dish to come do that, or is it pretty easy to do?
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-Damian

 

[Mike I]

You can not receive all 3 sats off the dish 500..If you redirect the 500 to the 61.5 bird you will lose site of the 110 and 119 bird
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[Steve Tannehill]

Damian, to get HD with Dish Network in the most cost-effective manner, you need the following:
- The Dish 6000 receiver.
- A second dish that points to the 61.5 satellite.
- The switch/switches to marry the two dishes.
To add off-the-air HD reception, you need Dish's plug-in 8VSB OTA module, which plugs into a slot on the back of the Dish 6000 receiver. You will also need either an over-the-air antenna, or a cable system that transmits the HD stations that are in your area. You will also, of course, have to live in an area with broadcast HD signals.
- Steve

 

[Damian]

UGH!
What did I get myself into. (By the way Steve. I miss your website)
So now I'm looking at ANOTHER dish PLUS the 6000 reciever with the module.
Funny...the salesmen that sold us the TV didn't mention all this. (Big surprise) I thought I only had to switch the receiver and that would be it.
What other advantage do I get by going with two dishes pointed at two different satalites?
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-Damian

 

[Steve Tannehill]

Advantages? You can keep getting the Dish 500 channels. If you point exclusively to 61.5, you don't get much but subscription-based international channels.
- Steve

 

[Mike I]

The advantage is dish has the bandwidth to support hd on it's 61.5 bird which is the reason they have 4 hd channels and has said will add more as they become available....
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[Jim Benard]

Damian, be aware that many in Calif. report you cannot get 61.5 because it's too low in the sky. Be sure to check this out before you buy the 6000 receiver. A new HDTV satellite for the west coast is on hold for who knows how long.

 

[Dave IW]

Further on this subject, does anyone have info on new sattelite content. 4 channels is not that much really. Like Damien I am wanting HD content (got the TV a few months ago) and there will be no OTA content in Nashville for 2 years. It looks like Dish is the way to go, any comments?
Also, a little concerned that I see comments that the non-HD sattelite doesn't look as good as cable.

 

[CRyan]

Well, I have recently gone with the Dish 6000 and love it. I also have the 8VSB module but no local HD yet! UGh. Anyway, a current subscriber can get the 6000 system with 2 dishes and switches (the 6023) at Sears right for the deal of a lifetime . They will pricematch online prices and that includes any new subscriber deals that you can find. I got the 6023 system as a current subscriber for $398. This is a really good deal as you can't do any better as a new subscriber!
Anyway, the Dish 6000 does a pretty good job of presenting SD content when in SD mode. When upconverting, it can look bad, but depends on the programming.
Dave, I am from Nashville and feel your pain in regards to OTA HD. I am hoping to get some Arkansaw stations this summer.
C. Ryan

 

[HiHoStevo]

I also got my 6000 set up this week. I already had an elliptical dish up (had been using DTV) receiving 101 & 119, so I added the 110 LNB to the elliptical and set up a second dish for 61.5. In my area (Las Vegas) you have to point the 61.5 dish at 99 degree's azimuth and twenty degree's elevation. I was a bit concerned with the elevation being that low so Mark at Dish Depot sent along a 24" dish for me to point at 61.5. I am hitting 61.5 with about a 95 signal strength ( on their weird scale of 0 - 125). I also set up an OTA antenna for the 8VSB module even though I only have one local digital channel (CBS). I put the antenna in the attic (to keep the neighborhood complaints down). I discussed the various antenna choices with Stark Electronics and they pointed me to a Winegard GS2000 powered wing looking thing. It seems to work as the one digital channel comes in with signal strength in the mid to high 80's.
These are my observations to this point...
1. Even though I have ShowtimeHD & HBOHD their is actually not that much being shown in 1080i. Much of what is supposed to be HD looks like it is 480 or 720 that is being upconverted to 1080i. Example, tonight I watched China Moon on ShowTimeHD. It looked great, but was not native 1080i.
2. The Demo Channel is Dazzling, but I have already watched it far too many times.
3. My DDP-2 reports that much of the "Dolby Digital" broadcasts are 2 channel Dolby Digital, not 5.1.
4. I jumped on the HDTV bandwagon a bit too early. My Toshiba TP71H95, while being "HDTV ready" cannot control the aspect ratio on it's own and expects the receiver to do this... so far the 6000 has not activated this feature set, however I am told that it should be coming out in an update... perhaps in March. This causes some strange behavior that I do not completely understand. I have read up on the "anamorphic squeeze" detailed on the Keohi HDTV website and am hoping to find a trained Toshiba Service Tech that will do this for me. One of the strange things about this problem I do not understand is... when I look at the HD programing on HBO or the Demo channel, when I am in the SD mode they are in a 16:9 format... when I switch to HD mode they are displayed in a 4:3 format by pushing the sides toward the middle, making everything a bit tall and thin. OK, the squeeze trick should fix that. However, when I look at the ShowTimeHD channel it's non-HD material is in a 4:3 format within my 4:3 TV with black or grey bars on the side, sort of turning my 71" TV into a 63" TV. BUT when an actual HD program in broadcast on ShowTimeHD it pops into 16:9 format with the proper aspect ratio when displayed in the normal mode.... Why is ShowtimeHD doing this when HBOHD and the DemoHD channel do not????
5. My meager advice is..... If I had it to do all over again... I would stick with a non HD Television until next year or so. Use the S-video from either Satellite company combined with a good DVD and a good Dolby Digital Surround System and an iScan Pro, if I could swing it. You will still be very happy and have a much better quality experience than is available from either cable or standard broadcasts. Please don't flame me... I absolutely love the picture I have now... but there is a price to being an early adopter. You wind up with pieces that may not all "play nice" with each other, if they work at all. You must chew your fingers waiting for content because the content providers are waiting for an installed base..., but why should there be an installed base if there is no content, and on and on. You would think I would have learned by now.... I had the original Beta Max player, it was the size of a suitcase and could only tape for one hour, then came the Apple Computer, then the Commodore 64, then the Amiga, then the Macintosh...... I guess I am just a sucker for the new stuff!
Thanks for letting me rant,
Steve A
Ps. If anyone understands why the difference between the HBO and Showtime HD broadcasts and why they are reacting differently on my TV I would love to hear about it.

 

[HiHoStevo]

As if that epistle was not long enough I forgot a couple of things....
6. The OTA HD content on CBS also seems to have the same formatting as the ShowTimeHD channel. Plus this content seems to have a definite "green" tint to it. (Yes I have set up the set with both AVIA and VE). Does anyone know if you need to make the same type of adjustments to the HD mode? I have found no indication of being able to do this in any of Toshiba's literature.
7. If I decided that I just could not live without an HDTV this year..... I would look for one that does 720p in addition to 480i, 480P, & 1080i. I have discovered that very few of the RPTV's support this.
Steve

 

[Timmy]

2. The Demo Channel is Dazzling, but I have already watched it far too many times.

Oh Gosh! do I know what you mean. The sports and outdoor shots on the demo channel are simply incredible; but how long can one get enjoyment from a demo "loop" withoug going "loopy" ?
But I don't think the Star Trek Insurrection or Ronin clips look any better than progressive DVD.
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[Ken Winders]

I bought the 65" Panasonic for its 720P native capability and that mated to the HD6000 in 720P is pretty awsome. Now I just need more content.
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Ken Winders

 

[HiHoStevo]

Timmy....... precisely my point. The Star Trek and Ronin clips look good...., but not really much better than SD satellite. I believe they are 480 images that have been upconverted. The sports stuff on the "loop" and the brook and meadow scene's just knock your socks off.
Now how do we get more content like the "good" stuff is my question. That is why I think I have jumped in a little to early.......again.
Steve

 

[Jim Benard]

Even though the Movie itself wasn't great, "The Whole Nine Yards" was very very nice on HD HBO last night. To me it was just as good as the better demo loop scenes. Seems like when they have alot of outdoor scenes, HDTV really shines. More the reason for Discovery to hurry up and give us a HD channel.