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| Originally posted by RebelRam What is special about it, from what I understand, is that HD content can not be flagged and down converted. That is great for those of us that plan to use a CRT projector to veiw HD content. |
| Originally posted by M NEWMAN Cary, Dish network is not in the same league, pic quality-wise as direcTV. Also, the 6000 receiver is not very special. Personally, I can't stand it. You have no remote option to turn on/off the high def output - it's a switch on the front panel. There's also no discrete on/off for control system programming. Although it does an admirable job of converting 1080i to 720P if you choose that res, it's a lousy NTSC scaler. Channel changing is dreadfully slow, the menus are lousy, and Dish network receivers make you press multiple buttons to escape a channel you don't have a subscription to if you accidentally land on one. No DirecTV receiver does this nonsense. Also, Dish network seems to use far more compression than does DirecTV (only decent explanation I have for the inferior, side by side image). Change at your own risk.... As for your DirecTV upgrade, I'd suggest the Samsung - all outputs on all the time, and they seem to have finally sorted out locking up problems. Still no discrete on/off though.... |
| Originally posted by Saxon Violins Directv compresses their HD channels, Dish does not. |
| Originally posted by Saxon Violins The 6000 can change from HD output to standard output from the remote simply by pressing the TV/Video button. |
| Originally posted by Matt_Stevens OK. Here is some serious info I was able to obtain from a very high level employee of Echostar. He is not a CSR or a Supervisor. Saying exactly who he is will kill any trust he has with me, so I'm not going to give any more details. But the info I got from him is completely legit. And this guy is a higher level E* guy than my other source. We talked for over and hour last night and here is what I can say in public... 1. The Superdish upgrade will include everything you need. Switches, power adaptors, RG6 cable runs (no receiver, of course). But it is required you have a professional install. No exceptions. Address "brokers" , who are receiving CBS-HD, are ship out of luck, unless you can find a professional who will play along. Anyone know one such installer in CT?! 2. The 61.5 and 148 birds will have ALL HD moved to the 105 bird within 6 months of November 15. That is the current plan. DISH wants to have every HD user upgraded to the Superdish by May 2004. Then, bye-bye 5000 HD Modulator. Note: this move could happen earlier than May. 3. It was confirmed that the 6000 receiver cannot downconvert HD and therefore will always output full 1080i or 720p via component and RGB. Period. That is set in stone. One more reason to hold onto it. The analog RGB is perfect for non-DVI equipped projectors. The 6000 is currently just $199 (w/8PSK but no 8VSB). 4. The 211 receiver is still on, but delayed due to Mitsubishi hemming and hawing. E* is ready to go with it, but Mitsubishi seems to be having issues. Situation developing. 5. The PVR921 is "Very buggy." It will be launched in a limited fashion. Don't expect it to be available at your local Sears until Spring, unless the bugs can be ironed out, of course. The biggest problem is crashing from doing too many things simultaneously. Those of you who went through hell with the 6000 or 721 receivers when they were first launched will understand what I mean. 6. The Firewire is not turned on because of serious software issues. They are only supporting the JVC30K and cannot get that to work "reliably" with it right now. They are working 24/7 to fix this and "it has nothing to do with Hollywood." I am concerned about this, because I could not get any ETA on when the Firewire could be turned on. It could be delayed for a very long time. But I was told flat out this is not a Hollywood issue. Hollywood seems to think tape isn't a factor anyway. (This info contradicts what I have been told by a lower level E* guy) 7. HD capacity for the PVR921 will be over 20 hours, but it is not recommended you go over 20 hours to avoid bug issues. That's about 10 movies. 8. 5C won't be used by anyone in 2004, except maybe PPV, which is not decided. HBO and Showtime don't even have it on the drawing board. Told ya! 9. E*'s cost for the PVR921, which has an MSRP of $999, is just over $1400! They are taking a loss on every single one they sell. Hence the monthly fee. Dealer cost is going to be $950. Yup. You read that right. Dealers will make only $50 on each unit they sell. Ouch. 10. The 811 was originally supposed to have Firewire. It was removed for a variety of reasons, including bugs that couldn't be fixed on time. Don't expect future models to have it. So there you have it. That is what I know. All interesting news. Keep in mind that thing change, so a lot of the info above can be out of date down the road. By the way, a useless statistic: There are currently 2,400 active DISH 5000 users. |
| Originally posted by M NEWMAN Really!!?? That's news to me! Last I checked, NOBODY passed native 1080i except C band and terrestrial. But then, I wasn't referring to the HD channels, but rather the SD stuff - should have made that more clear. |
| Well that's good to hear - must've been a software update within about the past year or so, 'cause the last time I messed with that particular feature was about that long ago. At least that's no longer a problem. There's also no discrete on/off for control system programming. |
