[mythtv-users] DirectTV vs Dish for myth compatibility (serial ports, etc)

[John Goerzen]

On Thu, Jul 08, 2004 at 02:15:35PM -0700, Chris Petersen wrote:
> goes through the myth box, I'm wondering what those of you out there in 
> mythtv-land have to say about the services.

In general, I've been a happy Dish customer for several years.  They
originally were cheaper than DirecTV, though I believe that gap has
narrowed.  There are some things about DirecTV that irked me.  For
instance, when I moved into my current house, the previous owners had
left behind their entire DirecTV setup.  I figured I'd just use that
rather than switch it over to Dish.  DirecTV told me that I'd have to
pay $50 for a new smart card per receiver (refusing to let me use the
still-valid smart cards already present), and then later told me that
I'm in NRTC territory and would have to call them.  NRTC told me it
would be *$70* per receiver for a new smart card.  I still had my Dish
equipment, so I put it up and saved myself the $140.

> How reliable is the IR blaster (eg. does it ever "miss" and not change a 
> channel, etc)?  Is there a way I can make sure to get a 
> serial-controlled box?  Etc....

I have a fairly old JVC Dish Network receiver, but it works like a
champ.  I built the blaster with about $5 of Radio Shack parts.  There
are some sites out there that list the exact catalog numbers for the
parts you'll need.  I have never had a problem with it missing a
channel, except the one time the transmitter slipped and started
pointing at the floor :-)

Yes, a serial cable would be more convenient, but not *that* much more.
I'd suggest: decide on DirecTV vs. Dish on their own merits, and then
hook up whatever you choose to MythTV.

-- John