Hi-tech-tv.com: Television technology news & answers

They finally forced one on me. (At least the HDMI and OTA antenna issues have been resolved.) There are two tuners, but is it possible to actually switch back and forth as I always could with the HR 10/Tivo unit? As far as I can figure, the only way to use both tuners at once is if you are recording. Am I missing something? (The 90 minute buffer isn’t worth the trade-off, as I mostly use my buffer when I’m watching two things at once.)

I’ve already seen some synch issues after pausing live TV. Is the only way to address this by FF’ing to Live again?

Finally, is there anyway around having to push Guide twice to get my Favorites list? Going through the filter everytime is a wasted step. Not a big deal, just annoying.

I know some of you have dealt with this box for awhile. Thanks in advance for sharing the knowledge. Actually, I didn’t want to upgrade. The woman said they’d send me an HR10, but this is what arrived last night. I called back and, long story short, the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing. I never got the same information twice.

Answer 1: you do not have to have active buffers like you had on the old Tivo unit.. thats one reason I refuse to upgrade

Answer 2: I use to love my old Direct TV tivo with dual buffers. I still have the unit but not DTV- it was a sad day when my new dual tuner couldn’t dual buffer.

Answer 3: Bottom line, though, is that we need these for the big HD rollout. Well, the box plus two B Band Convertors I had to hook on (between the wall and the HR20), which really junks things up.

On the positive side, the interface isn’t terrible, and there are some cool bells and whistles that the old box didn’t offer. It’s also true I’d had three HR10’s crap out in two years.

Mostly, I want my two tuners back. Anyone know if this is something they could fix with software, or it’s a hardware issue we need to be resigned to?

Answer 4: Call back and demand a TIVO unit.. they have them.. refurbished, but they have them

Answer 5: The HR20 is getting better reviews. It moves a lot faster than the HR10 (and apparently the 15). Recording and setting up Season Passes is virtually instananeous (the HR10 always made me wait and wouldn’t let me watch TV while setting up a Season Pass).
I don’t blame you for feeling burned. I think it was, mostly, a case of getting in on the technology before it was ready. While not having the dual tuner is a big negative, in truth, most of what this unit offers does feel like a significant upgrade. (Not changing my tune, just offering a fuller evaluation.)

Answer 6: The e-mail I got from DTV this morning. I am writing you as promised in response to your request to have your HR10-250 HD DVR replaced with the same model. I emailed our warehouse today and was told that we no longer have the HR10-250 in stock, which is why it was replaced with an HR20. If you would like to speak with advanced technical support, please call which is good for 5 days. A specialist will be happy to discuss with you all options. Again, my apologies that we couldn’t replace your HD receiver with the same type.

So I’m going to buy my first HDTV this July 4th (when the sales begin). I already know what model and size TV I want but I have questions about other things:

1) I live in a cablevision home but I bought Direct TV for the YES Network/NFL pckage a few years back. What box offers better channels? How much does it cost to upgrade to an HD cable/direct box?

2) Besides the HDTV adaptor, what else do I need?

Answer 1: Direct TV is ~$10 more a month for HDTV. You also have to have a different type satellite installed, and also purchase a new convertor box (~$100.) You can get a HD/DVR Direct TV convertor box for ~$250. It’s a freaking pain but it’s worth it.

Answer 2: You will need to get HDMI cables. What about the existing cables? For the HD signal can you use the existing coax cable from the dish to the receiver? I understand you need an HDMI cable from the receiver to the TV.

Answer 3: If you have cablevision and you get a TV with a QAM tuner, you should be able to just plug the cablewire into the wall to get the network HD channels (fox, cbs, nbc, pbs, abc). Also, if you get a cablecard ready TV you can rent a cablecard from cablevision instead of a cable box (cablecard is only $1.95/month) you can get the fully io HD lineup. You can’t get on-demand stuff with the cablecard though.

Answer 4: The RG-6 you already have is what they use for HD installs. If you upgrade to HD, Directv will upgrade the dish and run any additional cabling for you. You need component or hdmi cables to connect HD to your new tv. Go to monoprice.com to buy these for a few bucks. DO NOT waste money on so-called “high-end” cables.

Yes — you can run on coax, component or S-video just fine until you pick up your HDMI’s.

Answer 5: Well if you are going the satellite way, they will need to install a new HD satellite on your roof and will wire it up to the box for you. I’m getting DirectTV satellite. I am trying to avoid any more holes drilled into the house so I want to know if they can use the existing RG6 coax which is already buried in the walls.

I have a Direct TV installation question because I moved into a new apartment and I’m getting my NFL Ticket installed. Can’t wait! When they come to install it how long does it usually take for them to set it up? I know it’s most likely different each time but I’d like a rough estimate. They are installing it on a 2nd floor balcony (basically attaching the dish to a pole and securing it). I’d like to know how much work I will have to miss when they said they’ll be there 8am-10am.

On a side note, I signed up and created an account on the 15th, the told be origonally that they couldn’t set it up until Nov 22nd. Which is rediculous in my opinion. I called up and bitched and got them to set it up next thursday. Did this happen to anyone else who got it installed recently?

Answer #1: It depends on how far they have to run the cable and where; through walls, floor, the roof? You might need to take 1/2 a day off.

Answer #2: In my case, I’d have to say my balcony is approximately 10-20 feet from the HD tuner. I was home when the Direct TV guy came. He took about half an hour for the install, then I had to talk to the woman about NFL Sunday ticket and movie channels. NFL Sunday ticket is good, but the Giants are always on Fox. It doesn’t seem worth the money. My Sunday ticket runs out at the end of this month. I’m not renewing, but I’m getting Starz and a Sport’s package for the same dough.

Answer #3: It usually doesn’t take them very long. I’ve given them some craziness to work with before and the guy is usually in and out within an hour.

Do you tip the DirectTV installation guy? I would be guessing no, because it’s like tipping your plumber. But what do I know, never had a satellite dish installed before.

Answer #1: No.

Answer #2: No, you don’t tip. I always offer the guy a drink though.

Answer #3: My installation guy was good and I offered him 10 bucks but he refused.

Need help re: HDMI cables for super DirecTV deal - Though I’m an existing DirecTV customer, I was able to get the HD/DVR system for a net $18.00. Now I need the HDMI cables before Saturday when they come to install it. I’ve checked HDMI cables out and they’re anywhere from $50-$200. What’s the story? Any suggestions on what to or what not to get? Monster cables the best? Thanks.

By the way, the cables they are bringing are “standard” cables not HDMI. The deal was basically this: I’m getting a HD/DVR, regularly priced at $299 or $199 and the HD dish free with everything installed at no charge. The first 4 months of HD programming at $9.99/mo. is free. $10/mo off my bill for tweleve months - no reason - just being nice. The delivery charge of $19.99 is being waived, too. $100 + $40 + $120 + $20 is roughly $280 minus $299 is $19.00 give or take.

Answer #1: From personal experience, monster cables are definitely the best, but the difference in quality isn’t worth the extra 100 bucks you’d pay at a retail store.

If you really want a monster cable, get one online. I recently got one from an amazon retailer, 50 bucks, 125 dollar retail value. That was with shipping.

Answer #2: MarkerTek sells a high quality HDMI cable made by canare for 40% less than Monster and it’s just as good.

Answer #3: I paid a crap load for my HDMI cable and $200 would have been a bargain. But I needed a lot of it as I was stretching it across a room and hiding it in the wall. Consider how much you invested in your entire system, how much it means to you and go from there.

Answer #4: Any HDMI cable should provide the same results so Monster cables are a rip off. HD is a digital signal, either it comes in or it doesn’t. Cables used to make a difference with analog signals, but you should see absolutely no difference in HD or digital cable/dish channels.

Answer #5: Crutchfield offers multiple brands and lengths so you can actually buy a decent cable for an affordable price. The retail stores screw you with minimal selection including cable lengths that are twice what you need. Order today and you will have the cords in two days.

Answer #6: Monoprice cables are great. I got them for nothing compared to what Monster costs with great results.

Answer #7: Mine came w/ an HDMI cable. You might want to look up the model that they are bringing and see what the box contains. I was ready to go out and buy the cable after the guy came to install it, but the HDMI cable came w/ the HD/Tivo unit

Answer #8: I’m not sure of the quality of the cable but the D* installer did hook up an HDMI cable, as part of the installation, when I went HD recently.

Answer #9: Monster Cables look so cool…they really do. That said, I only used Monster where others weren’t available. Buy another brand if you can. I also needed 12′ cables and the cost difference is huge.

Answer #10: I hope the receiver works with an HDMI. The receiver I just got from Directv doesn’t and the replacement they sent didn’t either. They said the software upgrade might be coming next month sometime. They were not DVR. I also got the cables from Monoprice. Came in 2 days.

Guys, help me understand all of this. I am buying an HD capable TV in the very near future and am totally lost on all of this stuff. I currently have Direct TV w/ TiVo. Works great no problems at all. What will my options be when I get the new set?

Answer #1: I upgraded Direct TV TiVo to Direct TV DVR. I fell for Direct TV’s ‘free’ DVR since it cost nothing and provided a 100 GB HD which was 3 times the HD I already had. Big Mistake!

It is probably the worst electronic device ever assembled. It freezes, dropping shows already taped, doesn’t tape shows it was supposed to, is slow as sh!t, etc. etc, etc.

So I bit the bullet and took my old DirectTV TiVo in to get a larger HD (250GB) with 220 hours of space. Pure heaven!

Now most of you have HD DVR and that is the next step for me, but for those with reg. Direct TV, stay away from their DVR!

Answer #2: I upgraded a month or so ago from DirecTV’s standard def DVR to the new HD DVR you are talking about.
The standard def DVR definitely worked much better, it was basically flawless. The new HD unit definitely has software issues. It will miss or corrupt recordings probably about once a week for me which is a big pain in the butt. They seem to download software patches to it about once every two weeks so far. Performance has gotten better, but still nowhere near the original unit.

All that said, I am actually glad I made the switch. I have had a HD TV for awhile now and was waiting to make the switch to HD programming until they released a HD DVR that would pick up HD locals without an antenna. The difference between standard def and the HD is obviously pretty huge.

When this unit works (about 95% of the time) it is amazing; when it doesn’t it’s obviously annoying. I still have my old DVR sitting around and if push came to shove, I could switch back. Hopefully they will get all of the issues resolved in the next software fix or two in the coming weeks.

Answer #3: If you have an R10, it’s still a TiVo. Don’t let it go unless you want to give it to me. If it’s not TIVO then it’s an R15.

I had the R15 hooked up for less than 4 hours. It’s total crap. I disconnected it and re-hooked up my TiVo. I sent that POS back to DTV. Its horrible. I then bought a 3rd Directivo on Ebay. Next I’ll upgrade the Hard disks. DTV has a Major problem with their lack of TiVo. It’s a downgrade in technology. I even have an R15 in my garage, brand new in the box that DTV didn’t want back. If NFL sunday Ticket gets onto Cable, I’ll drop DTV.

Answer #4: I’ve had the DirecTV HD DVR for a couple of years now. It was slow as shyte until the recent software upgrade (which also enabled folders, which are great). It gets a little hinky now (dropped a couple of shows, failed to record others), but overall it’s a better piece of equipment. I’ll happily stick with it a while longer.

But I’d also say to the early adopters, you guys probably know it’s always like this with the first few generations of just about any sophisticated new technology. A year from now, the R15 may well be a different story. I’m sure they’re anxious to get their boxes into our houses and this kind of word of mouth should get them working pretty hard.

Answer #5: the R15 gave me a headache after 3-4 hours. I disconnected it and boxed it up, and reactivated my TiVo. My big fear is that DTV will cut off TiVo support and I’ll be stuck with their POS DVR. I think DTV signed a deal with TiVo this year to support the units for 3 more years. After that I guess everyone will have to make the switch to DirecTV new DVRs and receivers to receive HD. Hopefully they will have all the kinks worked out by then.

Answer #6: I’ve had the new DVR for 2 months, and have had no issues (knock on wood). I really like it, outside of the missing dual buffers. I ordered the HD TiVo unit and was pretty pissed they sent this one istead, but it’s been pretty good so far - specially since I’m too far from the TV tower and need this box to get local channels in HD.

However, because it’s missing the dual buffers I am not able to record two programs at once. I hate that. It sounds like they rushed it out and/or are hoping that because the HD universe is still relatively small, newcomers won’t know what they’re missing.

I have Directv and want to know what experience anyone has had in getting an LCD or rear projection LCd and using directv. I know I will need to upgrade my directv box. I do have an updated antenna with 3 LNB’s and a local antenna to use if I can’t get the local channels over Directv. Will the wrap around antenna on the dish give me HDTV capability? I know if I had cable I could get a tv with a cable card slot. What else do I need to be aware of to maximize viewing HDTV (I am thinking Sony Wega 42″)? Thanks!

Answer 1: I have a plasma, DirecTV, and HD. I needed only a seperate, off-air antenna to get the local channels in HD. Generally, DirecTV is supposed to be upgrading their HD package. I paid $10.99 for fewer than 10 channels. Other than the Sunday Ticket, and ESPN, the local channels are about all I watch in HD right now.

Answer 2: At the moment I don’t get local HD channels on DTV, although that will change imminently in many markets (within 90 days I believe). If your current setup gets local OTA that’s fine, other than that if you’re in one of DTV’s HD local markets you’ll have a choice. Personally, my OTA HD works wonderfully 50% of the time, but that’s not good enough for me when football is on the line (and it seems to work best at night). That aside, DTV’s HD lineup is a joke. ESPN HD which is actually in HD about 20% of the time, Discovery channel (awesome), and a couple useless channels.

Answer 3: I went with the Panasonic 43″ rear projector LCD and I have DTV with the HD. I get CBS NBC ABC and Fox in HD. I get ESPN and ESPN2, HBO and SHOWTIME, HDNet and HDNet Movies, Discover HD, and so on. I love it. I can’t watch a baseball or football game thats not in HD; it’s ruined me for life.

Please leave your answers or questions in the comments section below.