[mythtv-users] Dish gotchas?
Jesse Guardiani
jesse at wingnet.net
Mon Apr 10 18:53:26 UTC 2006
Michael Tiller wrote:
> I'm seriously considering a move to Dish Network in my attempt to get
> a better picture than I currently get with analog cable. I thought
> about digital cable but it is really just analog cable for the
> channels I watch.
>
> Are there any "gotchas" for Dish Network? Is there a preferred
> receiver? Obviously, I don't want a DVR unit but are there any
> important differences in terms of channel changing, firewire
> potential, etc?
>
> The main "downsides" I'm considering at the moment are:
> 1) Need for receiver on every TV
> 2) The fact that I'll still have to capture in analog mode with my
> PVR-150 (firewire?)
> 3) Hassles with getting program guide data?
> 4) Need to deal with IR blaster issues (both for MythTV and my mom's
> TiVo).
>
> If I'm missing something (vs. analog cable), let me know.
>
> Thanks for any assistance.
My take:
My Dish 322 locks up frequently, shuts down at 3am for maintenance, and
misses
IR blaster channel change commands frequently enough to be annoying. For
this
reason and because I can't get HDTV from Dish for MythTV, I've gone the
other
direction and moved from Dish to cable. Things are much simpler using a real
tuner device rather than an IR blaster.
Program guide data was easy to get, but problematic because channels I
didn't pay
for would cause the 322 to lock and require a channel up or channel down
command
from the IR remote. So when my mother in law came over and tried to
change the channel
to a channel we didn't have it would screw up any future recordings
until I came home and
fixed it, OR she found the Dish remote and pressed channel up or down.
I could remove those channels I didn't pay for from the datadirect
lineup, but Dish
adds and changes channels on almost a daily basis, so it's an uphill battle.
Tuners become more expensive because you need a separate IR blaster and RCA
jack/card for each receiver.
No firewire available, AFAIK.
I say stick with cable.
--
Jesse Guardiani
Programmer/Sys Admin
jesse at wingnet.net
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