# Leaving DirecTV...yes, you read that correctly



## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

No, this isn't another "I hate DirecTV so I'm leaving" threads.  But I've had a few inquiries of where I have been lately as my posts have dropped off a lot and I didn't blog the latest conference call. So here is the explanation.

I have been with DirecTV since 1996. Sunday Ticket every year since 1999. I have enjoyed DirecTV a lot. Been with the CE program here at DBSTalk since the begining. I've made more then a few online friends thru DBSTalk.

But costs have gotten out of hand. When I add it up I'm paying $85 a month, not counting Sunday Ticket, for 5-6 channels that I can get free OTA. And now the DVR fee is going up, yet another rate hike and a charge for MRV looks to be good. And Sunday Ticket looking like it'll be pushing $450 with Superfan. It's just getting out of hand. So I've been thinking for a while now about cutting back or going OTA only. I've also recently lost my job so that lit a fire under my rear to finally do something.

My first thought was to get a PS3 for Netflix/BluRay and Internet streaming. Cost about $350 or so with remote. Then get a stand alone DVR (Tivo most likely) for OTA HD. Another $300 PLUS a monthly Tivo fee. But for the cost of that I could try my hand at a HTPC (Home Theater PC) to do all that and more.

So I've built a HTPC in hopes of replacing most of what I get from DirecTV. Other then some live sports I have now replaced 98% of what we paid DirecTV for free.

HTPC has a BluRay/DVD player, streams Internet content from Hulu, Boxee, Justin TV and pretty much any other source under the sun. I already had a Netflix subscription and now can stream directly into Win7 Media Center (very sweet I might add). And I've got dual tuner OTA HD and can record 150+ hours of HD.

OTA covers about 80% of our shows, the rest are covered by Hulu and Netflix (yea it's not HD but I can wait for the DVD if it's really bad).

I can't replace Sunday Ticket but I'll live. Stop by a buddies place or hit the bar once in a while. Or get the Uverse low end package and get Red Zone Channel for $5 bucks a month for the 4 months of the season.

So with the money savings from DirecTV ($120 a month) the HTPC will pay for itself in short order. My total monthly costs now: $10.99 for Netflix w/BluRay.

I've had this thing going for a few days and let me tell you, it's sweet. Windows 7 Media Center really is amazing just like the reviews said. And it's free and has a ton of open source plugins. I would rate it as one of the best DVR solutions on the market, and it's free with no monthly fees. Just last night we sat down and watched 3 hours of Chuck via Hulu, caught a CSI via CBS streaming thru 7MC since our recording via DirecTV had the blurps and watched two OTA shows via the 7MC DVR. All from one device. And I haven't even messed with a bunch of plugins and such yet.  Wife loves it so WAF isn't a problem. Even when I get a job again, I will not go back to pay TV, just not worth it.

Anyway, this post was just to say that I've enjoyed my years with DirecTV and this community especially. I won't be leaving DBSTalk and will make helpful posts when I can but as time goes on I'll know less and less about DirecTV and have less to post about. But I'll check in a few times a week and you can find me more on AVS now in the HTPC forums.

See ya around!


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## JeffBowser (Dec 21, 2006)

Thanks for that feedback, and sorry to hear of your job loss. I have been considering going OTA only myself for over a year now, especially since I can grab two major markets with a small antenna in my area. I'll be curious to see how you like this longer term.


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## TANK (Feb 16, 2003)

Sorry about your job loss. Thanks for the info over the years.


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## BubblePuppy (Nov 3, 2006)

Bonscott87, I'm sorry about your job loss. I'm also sorry that your DBSTALK will be limited. There are a handful of posters, that when I see their screen names on a post, I make it a point to read the posts, yours are one. You will be missed. Thank you for all the contributions that you have made here. Good luck in your future endeavors and job hunting.


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## nitty316 (Aug 27, 2008)

The streaming on PS3 via Netflix is the real deal. I've been streaming the office to get caught up and same with Brotherhood and it is all in HD. Fantastic stuff. 

I'd like to hear more about streaming Hulu on PS3 though, I tried and it won't allow me to. Do I need a disc or something?

Thanks and Good luck. Sorry about your job, that's a tough deal.


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## Davenlr (Sep 16, 2006)

Really sorry to hear about your unemployment. I would like you hear the details on your HTPC setup. I am using Windows 7 on a HTPC, with a Hauppauge HDPVR to record PBS HD programming. Its got SageTV on it. Havent tried WMC7 yet, even though its there. How do you hook it up, or what do you buy, to get it to work with the remote, or do you use a cordless mouse? Please post the specs, which video card you are using, etc. I need to upgrade mine, and would be curious, as I dont know if I should stick with SageTV (and their remote HD Media extender) or try WMC7.

Thanks and good luck. BTW, if you have room for a 10' satellite dish and money for a $400 receiver, you can get all the CBS NFL games, and almost all the ESPN live sports free on C band. Could probably find someone with an old dish in their yard, long unused for free if you look around.


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## Ed Campbell (Feb 17, 2006)

Works for some folks. I follow a couple of Euro-based sports and they're locked down tight against legal online streaming/recording; so, that alone leaves me out.

We use our Apple TV for 8-12 hours/week of programming. Again, that's limited to legal downloads.

OTA network programming? That's about 4 shows/week for us. We watch more than that on HGTV and Planet Green.

As news junkies, we're not going to go without up-to-date offerings from non-network sources. Especially with a good shot at BBCA [maybe even BBC World] coming up. I have my fingers crossed for Aljazeera; meanwhile, they only stream via Real and I won't let that crap on my computers.

Been with D* since their 2nd or 3rd month in 1994 and we haven't an urban area in the whole state that offers anything close to the content. So, we keep paying for what we want.


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## harsh (Jun 15, 2003)

I bought the PS3 Blu-ray remote at Amazon.com for under $20 delivered.

The PS3 turns out to be a excellent value and perhaps one of the most full-featured Blu-ray player/media extenders.


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## joed32 (Jul 27, 2006)

Goodbye and the best of luck to you. I hope everything works out well.


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## TheRatPatrol (Oct 1, 2003)

Davenlr said:


> Thanks and good luck. BTW, if you have room for a 10' satellite dish and money for a $400 receiver, you can get all the CBS NFL games, and almost all the ESPN live sports free on C band. Could probably find someone with an old dish in their yard, long unused for free if you look around.


I thought all of those feeds were scrambled?


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## mdavej (Jan 31, 2007)

We'll miss you bonscott. But I'm glad you found a great solution.

FWIW, I've picked up a couple of insignia netflix streaming blu-ray players on ebay for $30 shipped. Superior to HTPC because standalones can stream HD netflix and PC's can't. For this low price, these presumed broken players, are, as I suspected, usually fine. I go for the one's that say "network doesn't work". That usually means previous owner didn't know what he/she was doing. YMMV, of course. 

Best of luck on your job search. Don't watch TOO much tv ;-)


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Thanks guys. I'm not too worried on the job front. Being in Michigan I can be on unemployment for over a year.  I'll get something, even if it's a greeter at Wally world.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

nitty316 said:


> The streaming on PS3 via Netflix is the real deal. I've been streaming the office to get caught up and same with Brotherhood and it is all in HD. Fantastic stuff.
> 
> I'd like to hear more about streaming Hulu on PS3 though, I tried and it won't allow me to. Do I need a disc or something?


Netflix streaming is built into 7MC and is fantastic. Can actually FFW and RRW unlike with PlayOn thru the HR2x.

As for Hulu, you can stream it to any DLNA complaint device like the PS3 or HR2x using PlayOn which runs on your computer. Since this is a HTPC I just run Hulu Desktop. Hulu Desktop is actually pretty slick. Full transport controls as well.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Ed Campbell said:


> As news junkies, we're not going to go without up-to-date offerings from non-network sources. Especially with a good shot at BBCA [maybe even BBC World] coming up. I have my fingers crossed for Aljazeera;


I've got a FTA sat dish (1 meter) and with that I get all kinds of news channels for free like Aljazeera, Russia Today and a few others. No BBC though.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Davenlr said:


> Havent tried WMC7 yet, even though its there. How do you hook it up, or what do you buy, to get it to work with the remote, or do you use a cordless mouse?


There is nothing to buy, 7MC (Win 7 Media Center) is all built into Windows 7 for free. Any media center remote will work with it by default. So any $20 MCE remote off NewEgg is all you need. You can of course go more expensive if you wish. I also have a wireless keyboard which has a trackball built in for the few times I need it.



> Please post the specs, which video card you are using, etc. I need to upgrade mine, and would be curious, as I dont know if I should stick with SageTV (and their remote HD Media extender) or try WMC7.


Here are my hardware specs. It's a new Core i3 based system which has only been on the market for just over a week. The graphics are all integrated with the CPU. Intel made these Clarksdale processors just for HTPC's in mind. Work great.

*Case:* SILVERSTONE GRANDIA GD04B
*PSU: *Antec BP550 Plus 550W
*MB:* ASUS P7H55-M PRO LGA 1156 Intel H55
*CPU:* Intel Core i3-540 Clarkdale 3.06GHz
*Memory:* G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
*Hard Drive:* Western Digital Caviar Green 1.5 TB
*Graphics:* On board MB
*Sound:* On board MB
*Blu-Ray:* LG Black 8X BD-ROM

My OTA tuner is a SilconDust HD Homerun which is a digtal dual OTA tuner and also supports clear QAM. You just plug it into your network and any computer on your network (PC, MAC or Linux) can access any available tuner. Need 4 tuners? Just add a second box on the network. I *really* like this solution because there is no card to plug into your HTPC and if you upgrade you don't have to do anything about your OTA tuners, they are still there on the network ready for use.

The AVS forums have a HTPC dedicated forum for tons more options and details. For builds with my specific mobo there is this thread: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1216503


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## jaywdetroit (Sep 21, 2006)

Bonscott:

Sorry to hear about your situation. 

I've been tempted to go OTA for awhile now too. As a big Tiger fan in the Detroit Market though, I would have no way of getting the games that I know of. 

To go OTA, does anyone have suggestions to address the loss of:

History/Science Channel Programming
News programming, CNN/FOX/MSNBC
Local MLB Games

Report back to us if you find things you are missing from Pay TV service.


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## longrider (Apr 21, 2007)

Sorry about the job situation, Bonscott. I have to admit I have been thinking about this myself, basically doing just what you did. I can get everything I watch except motorcycle racing online, this summer I am going to see what the live streams of MotoGP and WSBK look like on a 50" screen and decide from there. (Commitment is up in December)


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## TITAN_53 (Jul 23, 2007)

harsh said:


> I bought the PS3 Blu-ray remote at Amazon.com for under $20 delivered.
> 
> The PS3 turns out to be a excellent value and perhaps one of the most full-featured Blu-ray player/media extenders.


What remote did you get? I have been looking at the Blu Link remote with the built in blue tooth and it is a learning remote.


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## dpeters11 (May 30, 2007)

The interesting thing is that we have all these options now. It used to be either OTA only, or sat/cable.

Of course some Internet providers are doing what they can to prevent this option. Download caps, and it's only a matter of time before Hulu is a paid service.


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## jaywdetroit (Sep 21, 2006)

You know, Bonscott, you really have me thinking.

I had completely dumped TV YEARS ago. In the early 90s I stopped watching, and save for the occassional football game, didn't watch for about 10-12 YEARS. (Never saw an episode of Seinfeld until about 2002.)

I didn't miss it. I had DirecTV basic service for my Ex wife, and the sports. 

Then I had to go and get a DirecTIVO. Suddenly I could watch TV without watching the commercials. Suddenly I found myself interested in TV shows again. 

Now I find myself paying over $100 bucks a month?????

Really - all I "NEED" from Sat/Cable channels are my Tiger Games. 

Thanks for putting me on a mission, Bonscott. 

Can someone recommend a KICK A** OTA Tuner card for my Brand new DELL PC?


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## Lord Vader (Sep 20, 2004)

I *WISH * I was able to get OTA--all of them. I'm ~ 33 miles west/southwest (as the crow flies) of downtown Chicago, from where the OTA signals originate. Worse, my unit faces southwest, the opposite direction from Chicago. I'm on the 2nd floor of a 3-story building.

I can receive only a handful of the OTA channels. I received more before last June when the digital conversion occurred, but several of my strongest signals then, WLS ABC7 for example, are now totally unavailable. I've tried every antenna I can think of, but there's just no way I can get all the OTA signals. I'm lucky if I can get half of them. So, going OTA isn't the route for me.

I just wish there was some way I could obtain their signals.


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## houskamp (Sep 14, 2006)

definately getting harder to pay that bill every month.. 80+ just to get scifi,usa,fx,bbc and a couple dvrs.. I'd hate to even run the numbers but I think I'm paying over a $1 an episode by now


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## Davenlr (Sep 16, 2006)

TheRatPatrol said:


> I thought all of those feeds were scrambled?


Nope. Fox is, but not ABC, NBC, CBS, CW, ESPN, SPEED, NASA, AlJazeera English, MSNBC. These are the uplink feeds to the networks, not the actual cable channel. All New York network stations are also available (ABC in HD, rest in SD).


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## Davenlr (Sep 16, 2006)

bonscott87 said:


> There is nothing to buy, 7MC (Win 7 Media Center) is all built into Windows 7 for free. Any media center remote will work with it by default. [/url]


Doesnt the PC need a IR receiver? I have no clue if mine has one. Guess Ill have to check.


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## gfrang (Aug 30, 2007)

Thanks for helping me with Playon a wile ago i put it on hold for a wile put now using it with good results.

I am thinking about leaving D* myself the only program i care about is History, watch a few others but can live without. 

The last i checked it is on AMC4 101 slot so fta might be a option.
On my bang for the buck scale i give D* about a 3 in my case.

But thanks again and good luck.


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## joe diamond (Feb 28, 2007)

Bonscott87,
We have a friend that left Holland MI. Her words were that she planned to march south with a snow shovel on her shoulder and not stop until somebody asked what that thing was on her shoulder.
She reports little or no snow in SC and better money.

Hang in there!
And yes, it is only TV.
You could become a media consultant....run an ad offering to get people off pay TV and just set them up with the eq you described in your post. You are not alone. As Saint Red Green promised us...."were all in this together"...........

Joe


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## JoeTheDragon (Jul 21, 2008)

bonscott87 said:


> There is nothing to buy, 7MC (Win 7 Media Center) is all built into Windows 7 for free. Any media center remote will work with it by default. So any $20 MCE remote off NewEgg is all you need. You can of course go more expensive if you wish. I also have a wireless keyboard which has a trackball built in for the few times I need it.
> 
> Here are my hardware specs. It's a new Core i3 based system which has only been on the market for just over a week. The graphics are all integrated with the CPU. Intel made these Clarksdale processors just for HTPC's in mind. Work great.
> 
> ...


Built in intel video is carp it's only as fast as 1-2 year old on board nvidia / ati video and that is the high end i7 cpu.

Get a $50 video card that is way faster.


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## bakerfall (Aug 23, 2006)

Lord Vader said:


> I *WISH * I was able to get OTA--all of them. I'm ~ 33 miles west/southwest (as the crow flies) of downtown Chicago, from where the OTA signals originate. Worse, my unit faces southwest, the opposite direction from Chicago. I'm on the 2nd floor of a 3-story building.
> 
> I can receive only a handful of the OTA channels. I received more before last June when the digital conversion occurred, but several of my strongest signals then, WLS ABC7 for example, are now totally unavailable. I've tried every antenna I can think of, but there's just no way I can get all the OTA signals. I'm lucky if I can get half of them. So, going OTA isn't the route for me.
> 
> I just wish there was some way I could obtain their signals.


If you subscribe to your cable provider for internet, you will get the OTA channels over QAM for free. I have a hard time getting some channels OTA as well, but the free QAM serves as a nice backup.

I would switch to 7mc in a heartbeat if there was a way to get Comcast Sports Net Cubs games. It is the only thing keeping me on pay TV.


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## Sharkie_Fan (Sep 26, 2006)

If there was a way to get my Sharks games in HD besides pay TV, I'd be all over that option. 80% of our programming is OTA. The few shows that we do watch on "pay channels" (food network, discovery, disney, etc) could easily be done away with - often times we're watching those programs/series only because we've watched all our network shows for the week...

Fortunately I don't do Sunday ticket, so I don't have those extra costs, and I can handle $100/month for TV. But at the rate things are going... another few rate hikes, and I may have to consider doing something drastic like this.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

jaywdetroit said:


> To go OTA, does anyone have suggestions to address the loss of:
> 
> History/Science Channel Programming
> News programming, CNN/FOX/MSNBC
> Local MLB Games


Other then MLB most of that is available streaming via Hulu or Boxee or direct from the websites.

Boxee does have MLB Extra Innings online, but my guess is that local teams would be blacked out.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

jaywdetroit said:


> Can someone recommend a KICK A** OTA Tuner card for my Brand new DELL PC?


SilconDust HDHomerun. Just slap it on your network, install drivers on your PC and you're done. No need for an internal tuner card.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815327005


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Davenlr said:


> Doesnt the PC need a IR receiver? I have no clue if mine has one. Guess Ill have to check.


You get one with any MCE remote you buy. Just plugs into the USB and it's installed. Remote just works at that point.

In fact many just get the cheapest MCE remote they can find just for the IR receiver and then use a Harmony or some other universal remote.


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## Davenlr (Sep 16, 2006)

OK THANKS, thats what I needed to know. I have two Harmonys, a 880 and a 700.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

JoeTheDragon said:


> Built in intel video is carp it's only as fast as 1-2 year old on board nvidia / ati video and that is the high end i7 cpu.
> 
> Get a $50 video card that is way faster.


Nope. Need to educate yourself on the new Clarksdale platform. 

Clarksdale with the new H55 or H57 motherboards has all the video performance you need for an HTPC. Any other Intel video is as you say, crap. But this is not. Check all the technical reviews if you don't believe me. This does full 1080p BluRay perfectly and what enthusiasts are loving about this platform is that it does full HD audio bitstreaming. All built in.

You do not need a separate video card unless you are doing massive video encoding or for gaming (of course).

The thing I had to realize when I started researching this is that what you need horsepower wise for HTPC is way lower then what you need for gaming. Heck, my 4 yr old PC is plenty good enough for a HTPC. It's just really loud and was built for gaming back in the day. HTPC you want to be quiet and cool as a cucumber. The Core i3 runs only 40C-45C under full load of recording two HD streams and playing back a BluRay. All at perfect quality.

Intel finally did it right this time.


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## tonyd79 (Jul 24, 2006)

bonscott87 said:


> Other then MLB most of that is available streaming via Hulu or Boxee or direct from the websites.
> 
> Boxee does have MLB Extra Innings online, but my guess is that local teams would be blacked out.


Yes, local games are blacked out live on MLB.TV whether you do it via PC, Roku, iPhone or any other app. They are available archived once the game is over.

If you are out of market, you can get them all through on line means.


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## kevinwmsn (Aug 19, 2006)

bonscott,

I'm going to miss reading your posts and your recaps of the D* calls. Continue let us know how your FTA and HTPC solution works out.


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## FHSPSU67 (Jan 12, 2007)

Wow, Scott, You've been one of the good ones here.
Sorry to hear about your job situation. I know a lot of others are in the same Boat. As for me, I'm retired, and good for now, but I'm sure inflation will soon be taking it's toll on my pension, healthcare, and sociial security benefits. Thanks for the low-cost solution you've figured out for yourself.

Inevitably I will have to make such a choice, and an HTPC solution is looking very good. Good Luck

Fred


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## BKC (Dec 12, 2007)

I would go OTA but one channel just isn't enough....... lol


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## TheRatPatrol (Oct 1, 2003)

Davenlr said:


> Nope. Fox is, but not ABC, NBC, CBS, CW, ESPN, SPEED, NASA, AlJazeera English, MSNBC. These are the uplink feeds to the networks, not the actual cable channel. All New York network stations are also available (ABC in HD, rest in SD).


Interesting, I thought all of those would be encrypted by now. If the dish wasn't so big it might be something to consider. I wish we could go back to the "C-Band" days with smaller D* size dishes and get rid of the middle man (D*, E*, C*) altogether, then we could order only the channels we wanted.



bonscott87 said:


> SilconDust HDHomerun. Just slap it on your network, install drivers on your PC and you're done. No need for an internal tuner card.
> 
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815327005


That looks pretty cool, it has a QAM tuner too. I take it your computer has to have a HDMI output?

Hmmm......


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## Davenlr (Sep 16, 2006)

I use the VGA output for my HTPC. Does 1080i, but wont do 1080p. Im just lazy, because my box has a DVI output, I just havent bought a DVI-HDMI cable for it. VGA looks just fine.


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## Tom Servo (Mar 7, 2007)

Sorry to see you leave the fold, bonscott, you're one of the posters that I always make a point to read. I'd go OTA but I only get a few channels and only use them for news and Fox animated shows anyway. With a 5GB daily cap on my cable modem, Netflix HD just ain't an option.


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## paragon (Nov 15, 2007)

I've been seriously thinking about doing something similar as well. I've already got a Blu-ray player with Netflix. I get basic cable with my Comcast internet so I have access to clear-QAM HD locals (I can not get anything but PBS reliably OTA). The big things keeping me from switching to something like this are HBO original programming and college football and basketball (mainly Penn State). If ESPN were to make ESPN360 have good quality HD streaming and I could come up with a way to get Big Ten Network I'd switch in a second.


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## armophob (Nov 13, 2006)

bonscott87 said:


> OTA covers about 80% of our shows, the rest are covered by Hulu and Netflix (yea it's not HD but I can wait for the DVD if it's really bad).


I would be right behind you on this except for 2 problems. I am in an OTA dead zone right in between Orlando and West Palm and that statement above. I am too spoiled on HD to watch my HBO, Showtime and other channels in SD on Hulu.
If that ever changes, I could be swayed to put up a tall expensive tower for OTA.
I am inspired though. This is worthy of some thought here. With no sports packages, I am $140 a month and that is with a $10 discount.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

armophob said:


> I would be right behind you on this except for 2 problems. I am in an OTA dead zone right in between Orlando and West Palm and that statement above. I am too spoiled on HD to watch my HBO, Showtime and other channels in SD on Hulu.
> If that ever changes, I could be swayed to put up a tall expensive tower for OTA.
> I am inspired though. This is worthy of some thought here. With no sports packages, I am $140 a month and that is with a $10 discount.


For HBO and Showtime (and other shows for that matter) just wait 6 months and you can get them on DVD to Blu via Netflix. Save $140 a month that way. Honestly that's what I came down to....is $100+ a month worth having those shows now vs. 6 months from now? For me the answer is no.

Good luck!


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## mdavej (Jan 31, 2007)

Davenlr said:


> I use the VGA output for my HTPC. Does 1080i, but wont do 1080p. Im just lazy, because my box has a DVI output, I just havent bought a DVI-HDMI cable for it. VGA looks just fine.


No more excuses:

http://www.meritline.com/dvi-male-hdmi-female-adapter-464---p-30315.aspx


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## armophob (Nov 13, 2006)

bonscott87 said:


> For HBO and Showtime (and other shows for that matter) just wait 6 months and you can get them on DVD to Blu via Netflix. Save $140 a month that way. Honestly that's what I came down to....is $100+ a month worth having those shows now vs. 6 months from now? For me the answer is no.
> 
> Good luck!


It's really true. I do not work in a water cooler environment. If I steer clear of these threads until I watch them, it really doesn't matter.
But still, is there any speculation to these online Hulu's and such going HD anytime soon?


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## bidger (Nov 19, 2005)

Davenlr said:


> I use the VGA output for my HTPC. Does 1080i, but wont do 1080p. Im just lazy, because my box has a DVI output, I just havent bought a DVI-HDMI cable for it. VGA looks just fine.


I used a DVI-to-HDMI cable that came with my HR10-250. Made a world of difference. Better black level, depth of color, and 1080p display. You don't need to worry about picking up a cable because a Male DVI/Female HDMI adapter, like the one mdavej linked to, will do the trick with a regular HDMI cable. I don't even use a DVD player now.

Scott, can completely understand where you're coming from, both in wanting to cut costs and the enthusiasm for Windows MC Interface. I think it's a shame all the folks that have that capability in their machine, but don't make use of it. Those of us who do wouldn't want to give it up. Unfortunately for me, lack of CBS and FOX in HD over-the-air keep me from going without pay TV. Well, that and the fact that I do actually watch a lot of the cable/satellite channels.

I do think there is a shift occurring in the TV landscape, both multichannel and broadcast. The fact that one of the stalwarts is departing is proof of that.


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## Movieman (May 9, 2009)

Thanks for your contributions. I know that I have learned plenty by reading your posts. I did the math and will be removing all the Premiums within the next week. I have found that I watch the movies prior to them even getting to HBO so that will save me some. If Netflix offered more streaming I would just get the most basic since Im not close enough to get OTA. I watch much more than just OTA and havent found a good enough streaming solution for FXHD, SyFyHD, TNTHD, etc which is what I mostly watch. But you gave me some homework to do.

Just one question. After the cost of everything you invested for these new mediums are you saving a justifiable amount over a basic sub to paid tv? Just curious. I did the math of what I would need to come close to what I watch (without the premiums) and the cost is not worth it at this point. I dont sub to any sports channels either. 

I do wish you the best of luck with your job situation. I know its not easy out there.


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## Scott Kocourek (Jun 13, 2009)

I wish you the best of luck.


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## armophob (Nov 13, 2006)

One other question. I now have in the neighborhood of 70 series links between the 2 dvrs. If I had to remember to set up Hulu downloads for all that it would make me crazy.
Have you got a solution for that, or do you not have a complicated amount of shows to keep up with?


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## Davenlr (Sep 16, 2006)

mdavej said:


> No more excuses:
> 
> http://www.meritline.com/dvi-male-hdmi-female-adapter-464---p-30315.aspx


I had to laugh at myself. Ive been doing so many upgrades and other stuff for other people and friends lately, I forgot I DID order a DVI-HDMI cable for my HTPC, because when I turned it on tonight, the TV said HDMI 1080p  Doh!


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## jaywdetroit (Sep 21, 2006)

So in response to the rusty gears Bonscott got turning in my head with this post, I am going to save $40.00 bucks a month.

I am going to buy the device he suggests and see if I can ween myself off Pay TV instead of going full steam.

(As I write this, Sunrise Earth plays in the background -needed? G*d no. But its nice...)

My remaining issues continue to be sports. Baseball, and the World Cup this Summer. Also - HD programming in general, though I think Blu-Ray, as suggested earlier, may fill that gap. 

One last thing to think about... Bonscott, did you know that at CES the company that designed the device you bought, previewed a version with a Cable Card slot? Available to consumers sooooon.... Add Basic cable to that device, and wow... Who needs a cable box/sat receiver? 

Too bad D* can't make that technology work for them.


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## Davenlr (Sep 16, 2006)

Basic cable around here is still analog. Only thing a cablecard slot would do here would be to get what my antenna already picks up...unless I subbed to digital cable which costs more than Directv here, with 1/8th of the HD channels. Dont see any cost saving there. Lots of sports on FTA satellite, and it is free, if you have room for the dish and the initial investment, and the time to figure out where your game is gonna be transmitter


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## wmj5 (Aug 26, 2007)

I've been with D* this sept. 15 years and I just put a antenna up and I am going to get a rota and pre-amp next week, I don't watch sports and don't watch but about 5 channels and 2 of them are local, the way D* has the locals slipped in your package you can't do away with them, its not the money as much as they just keep nickel and dime you to death, ever since I've been on hd I have not had a receiver that something was wrong with it, and you have to stay right on them or they will put that comitment back on you, so you might say I have had enough, 15 yrs. is long enough!


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## Brennok (Dec 23, 2005)

jaywdetroit said:


> One last thing to think about... Bonscott, did you know that at CES the company that designed the device you bought, previewed a version with a Cable Card slot? Available to consumers sooooon.... Add Basic cable to that device, and wow... Who needs a cable box/sat receiver?
> 
> Too bad D* can't make that technology work for them.


This is one of the reasons I am happy I left for Fios because I never would have been able to fully utilize my cable on my PC. This along with getting Tivo HDs which I bought on clearance at Sears for cheap. After playing with Windows 7 RC with 4 clearqam/ota tuners and then retail, I can't wait for the Ceton card with 4 cable card tuners. It is rumored to be currently in cable labs hands as we speak.


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## Grydlok (Mar 31, 2007)

Brennok said:


> This is one of the reasons I am happy I left for Fios because I never would have been able to fully utilize my cable on my PC. This along with getting Tivo HDs which I bought on clearance at Sears for cheap. After playing with Windows 7 RC with 4 clearqam/ota tuners and then retail, I can't wait for the Ceton card with 4 cable card tuners. It is rumored to be currently in cable labs hands as we speak.


That is what I am waiting on also the 4 tuner Centon card. Once I get that I'm ghost. All my 360's will be media extenders I have tv in 3 rooms for the price of one with the ability to share recordings, plus stream netflix across WMC7.


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

Scott...

Of course many of us will be sad to see you depart frequent participation here on the DirecTV side, but we also understand that you are one of many who have been hit hard by the current economic downturn. Your long-time "friends" here wish you the best on the job front, and hopefully, you can return some time down the road - best wishes.

As for the cost issue Scott raised - this is certainly not unique to DirecTV, as Dish, Comcast, and others also are about to raise prices again as well, but all this always affects alot of folks. I'm anticipating that all HDTV service providers are going to have to repackage their wares in the future, in order to avoid becoming limited in their market appeal based on price alone. Time will tell.


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## davidatl14 (Mar 24, 2006)

Sorry to hear about the Job bscott.

Best of luck, your efforts in this forum were/are greatly appreciated.

Stay in touch.


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## joed32 (Jul 27, 2006)

Davenlr said:


> Nope. Fox is, but not ABC, NBC, CBS, CW, ESPN, SPEED, NASA, AlJazeera English, MSNBC. These are the uplink feeds to the networks, not the actual cable channel. All New York network stations are also available (ABC in HD, rest in SD).


I have C-band and can not get the NFL games. Can't even buy them anymore.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Movieman said:


> I watch much more than just OTA and havent found a good enough streaming solution for FXHD, SyFyHD, TNTHD, etc which is what I mostly watch. But you gave me some homework to do.


SyFy is available on Hulu. TNT only streams from their web site and it's broken up into each "segment" but I can still watch Leverage. FX being owned by Fox is probably also on Hulu but I'm not sure. It's not HD but it works. Or wait for the DVD.



> Just one question. After the cost of everything you invested for these new mediums are you saving a justifiable amount over a basic sub to paid tv? Just curious. I


I didn't do the numbers on the most basic sub to paid TV because they include nothing in terms of channels beyond locals. So since I get my locals for free what do I gain with a basic sub? DirecTV's family plan is $30 a month but wait, $7 for DVR service. Want that in HD? $10. So You're looking at nearly $50 a month for the most basic. Charter's most basic is the "broadcast" basic which runs $15 a month and it's just OTA channels. Then next up package costs as much as DirecTV. Uverse uFamily plan is $50 a month.

So even going $50 a month the HTCP will pay for itself in about a year and a half. But I'm going off saving $120 a month which is what I was paying for Choice Xtra HDDVR and Sunday Ticket. Even not counting ST it pays for itself in year. In total I paid just over $1000 including tax and shipping for all my parts and that included Windows 7 and the OTA tuner. If you go cheaper parts or go AMD you can easily build one for $500-$600.

So for me it's more then paying for itself already. And I'm getting more content with the whole Netflix and other streaming world opened up to us. But part of the cost analysis is that we needed a BluRay player anyway so that's part of the cost.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

jaywdetroit said:


> One last thing to think about... Bonscott, did you know that at CES the company that designed the device you bought, previewed a version with a Cable Card slot? Available to consumers sooooon.... Add Basic cable to that device, and wow... Who needs a cable box/sat receiver?


Yep, it's a dual cable card model and I think will be out in the spring/summer. Interesting although many cable companies are moving away from cable cards now. But it'll take a while probably.

The OTA model that I got is also Clear QAM capable. 
*What this means for those of you without OTA options*: Most cable systems have their locals including HD locals on Clear QAM which means unencrypted. So if you have say high speed Internet from the cable company you most likely can plug in a line to your TV (if Clear QAM capable) or to this box you'll get HD locals for free.


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## Bob Coxner (Dec 28, 2005)

bonscott87 said:


> Other then MLB most of that is available streaming via Hulu or Boxee or direct from the websites.
> 
> Boxee does have MLB Extra Innings online, but my guess is that local teams would be blacked out.


If you can live with tape delay then you can watch local games.

What is MLB.com's blackout policy?

1. United States (Including the Territories of Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands) and Canada
1. Regular Season Local Live Blackout:

All live games on MLB.TV and available through MLB.com At Bat 2009 are subject to local blackouts. Such live games will be blacked out in each applicable Club's home television territory, regardless of whether that Club is playing at home or away. If a game is blacked out in an area, it is not available for live game viewing. If you are an MLB.TV Premium subscriber and not within either Club's home television territory, the applicable game will be available as an archived game as soon as possible after the conclusion of the game. If you are an MLB.TV Premium subscriber within either Club's home television territory or an MLB.TV subscriber in any territory, the applicable game will be available as an archived game approximately 90 minutes after the conclusion of the game. Archived games are not available through MLB.com At Bat 2009.
In addition, note:
* These blackout restrictions apply regardless of whether a Club is home or away and regardless of whether or not a game is televised in a Club's home television territory.
* All live Toronto Blue Jays games are blacked out throughout the entire country of Canada.
* Additional teams may also be subject to blackout in parts of Canada based on their region.
* All live games will be blacked out in the U.S. territories of Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands during the MLB regular season.
2. Regular Season Weekend U.S. National Live Blackout:

Due to Major League Baseball exclusivities, live games occurring each Saturday with a scheduled start time after 1:10 PM ET or before 7:05 PM ET and each Sunday with a scheduled start time after 5:00 PM ET, will be blacked out in the United States (including the territories of Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands). If you are an MLB.TV Premium subscriber outside of the United States, each of these games will be available as an archived game as soon as possible after the conclusion of the applicable game. If you are an MLB.TV Premium Subscriber within the United States or an MLB.TV subscriber in any territory, each of these games will be available as an archived game approximately 90 minutes after the conclusion of the applicable game. Archived games are not available through MLB.com At Bat 2009.
3. Postseason Live Blackout:

Due to Major League Baseball exclusivities, during the MLB Postseason, all live games will be blacked out in the United States (including the territories of Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands) and Canada. If you are an MLB.TV Premium Subscriber outside of the United States and Canada, each of these games will be available as an archived game as soon as possible after the conclusion of the applicable game. If you are an MLB.TV Premium Subscriber within the United States or Canada or an MLB.TV subscriber in any territory, each of these games will be available as an archived game approximately 90 minutes after the conclusion of the applicable game. Archived games are not available through MLB.com At Bat 2009.

Live Audio of those games subject to the blackout restrictions reflected above is available as part of any MLB.TV subscription, as part of the MLB.com Gameday Audio Package or as part of MLB.com At Bat 2009.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

armophob said:


> One other question. I now have in the neighborhood of 70 series links between the 2 dvrs. If I had to remember to set up Hulu downloads for all that it would make me crazy.
> Have you got a solution for that, or do you not have a complicated amount of shows to keep up with?


Hulu has a subscription service. It's basically a season pass manager although you don't have to worry about priorities. So I spent about 10 minutes going thru Hulu and subscribing to all the cable shows. When a new episode is available it will automatically put it in your queue and you can have Hulu email you when it has been added. Then all you have to do is just fire up Hulu Desktop, go to your queue (your "My Playlist") and there are all your shows.

So on Saturday I got an email that the latest Sanctuary on SyFy from Friday was added to my queue. I also get emails when things will expire. So for example I am about 5 episodes behind on Legend of the Seeker. I just got an email today telling me the latest episode was added to my queue and to remind me that episode 3 will expire in a week so I had better watch it this week.

It's all pretty cool actually. The new Boxee beta also has a similar setup with subscriptions and such, although it is *very* beta right now.

One other thing I found really neat was it's "smart". We had missed the first 3 episodes of Chuck so we watched them on Hulu. It played all 3 in a row. After the 3rd one it actually played the preview clip for episode 4. Kinda cool.


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## jaywdetroit (Sep 21, 2006)

hdtvfan0001 said:


> Scott...
> 
> ....
> As for the cost issue Scott raised - this is certainly not unique to DirecTV, as Dish, Comcast, and others also are about to raise prices again as well, but all this always affects alot of folks. I'm anticipating that all HDTV service providers are going to have to repackage their wares in the future, in order to avoid becoming limited in their market appeal based on price alone. Time will tell.


Point well taken. Let's not Single out D*, as all Pay TV services have gotten out of hand on price. This is why I stated, I want to wean myself from PAY TV. However, if I'm going to pay, I prefer D*. I just wish I could use other devices with it. I.E. cable card tech. Windows MC, etc.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

jaywdetroit said:


> Point well taken. Let's not Single out D*, as all Pay TV services have gotten out of hand on price. This is why I stated, I want to wean myself from PAY TV. However, if I'm going to pay, I prefer D*. I just wish I could use other devices with it. I.E. cable card tech. Windows MC, etc.


Oh definitely. I'm not singling out DirecTV at all. Pay TV everywhere from anyone has gotten out of hand for me, job or no job. Even the most "basic" cable packages from anyone will still run you near $50. At least for me I can replace just about everything from the cable channels via streaming or Netflix rentals. And I know that this just isn't an option for some people, especially those with families (I have no kids, just the wife). Although most kids today look to the Internet first for their entertainment so they may not be as big a problem as you think in dumping pay TV.

But even for those who say they keep things just for HBO and Showtime because they can't live without Dexter, just think how much that is really costing you and could you wait a few months to get it on DVD. That's the analysis I've been doing for nearly a year. Sunday Ticket pushing $450 was also the last straw. The job thing just kicked me in the butt to finally do something about it.


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## psweig (Feb 4, 2006)

Sorry to see an old and valued member leave, but what you say is true. I have DirecTV because of all the old stuff. I don't know if I could get "Homicide:Life on the street" or "The Golden Girls" elsewhere, but for what I'm paying I might be able to buy the DVDs. Maybe keep a basic package; I'll have to research it.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

psweig said:


> Sorry to see an old and valued member leave, but what you say is true. I have DirecTV because of all the old stuff. I don't know if I could get "Homicide:Life on the street" or "The Golden Girls" elsewhere, but for what I'm paying I might be able to buy the DVDs. Maybe keep a basic package; I'll have to research it.


Actually I know where you are coming from. My wife is the same way with CSI. Always there were 10 episodes on the DVR and she's just watch them as background. I swear she's seen them all a dozen times. They are all available via Netflix. I won't say what I'll do with them as that will probably get the thread closed.


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## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

Bonscott87, I've said this to you elsewhere but I'll say it publicly here. You're always welcome at DBSTalk, and it's been a pleasure having you here for the last 7 years.


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## MikeW (May 16, 2002)

I have considered this a time or two. Having kids in the house, it isn't feasible to pull the trigger yet. I have noticed that most of what we record is OTA and there is plenty of filler TV on Hulu and Netflix. A major stumbling block for me is MLB. The DBacks are only available on FSN AZ and watching recorded games doesn't seem too appealing.

Just wondering...on the networked tuners...Are you running this on a gigabit switch?


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## jaywdetroit (Sep 21, 2006)

MikeW said:


> I have considered this a time or two. Having kids in the house, it isn't feasible to pull the trigger yet. I have noticed that most of what we record is OTA and there is plenty of filler TV on Hulu and Netflix. A major stumbling block for me is MLB. The DBacks are only available on FSN AZ and watching recorded games doesn't seem too appealing.
> 
> Just wondering...on the networked tuners...Are you running this on a gigabit switch?


I'm thinking of trying to convince myself that baseball is better followed on the Radio. Though, while we have great broadcasters in Detroit, without Ernie, it isn't quite the same.

You can always catch the highlights later.


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## Lord Vader (Sep 20, 2004)

Bonscott, just out of curiosity, did DirecTV do anything to try and keep you when you told them to cancel your service?


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## Lord Vader (Sep 20, 2004)

jaywdetroit said:


> I'm thinking of trying to convince myself that baseball is better followed on the Radio. Though, while we have great broadcasters in Detroit, without Ernie, it isn't quite the same.
> 
> You can always catch the highlights later.


NO sport lends itself to radio better than does baseball. I can occasionally listen to football, which I love, on the radio, but baseball is the best sport for radio if one is unable to watch on TV.


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## dpeters11 (May 30, 2007)

Lord Vader said:


> NO sport lends itself to radio better than does baseball. I can occasionally listen to football, which I love, on the radio, but baseball is the best sport for radio if one is unable to watch on TV.


This is why I want cell phones to start putting AM tuners in. They've talked about putting FM in iPhone, but if they put in an AM tuner, they can't prevent me from listening to the game on WLW.


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## jaywdetroit (Sep 21, 2006)

Tiger games are simulcast on FM in our market. Much better!


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Stuart Sweet said:


> Bonscott87, I've said this to you elsewhere but I'll say it publicly here. You're always welcome at DBSTalk, and it's been a pleasure having you here for the last 7 years.


Thanks! I gotta somehow get to 10,000 posts.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

MikeW said:


> Just wondering...on the networked tuners...Are you running this on a gigabit switch?


No, the device is only 100 mb. But that's all that's needed anyway since a full HD channel is only 19 mb anyway and with most OTA stations having subchannels the best I've seen is 15 or 16.

So "worst case" senario you have 40 of the 100 dedicated to dual OTA HD (if they are both recording). That still leaves you a lot of headroom for other stuff.


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## Fabuloso (Jun 14, 2009)

to watch HULU via ps3 you have to setup media streaming via your PC. the program i use is TVERSITY just google it and you will find it. its a couple extra steps to watch via PS3 but now you can where before you couldnt.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Lord Vader said:


> Bonscott, just out of curiosity, did DirecTV do anything to try and keep you when you told them to cancel your service?


Haven't yet actually. My initial plan was to suspend for 6 months to see how it goes. But now I see how well it's working I planned to just cancel DirecTV at the end of the month and run them side by side. But I may just call this week and get it over with since I'm going to cancel no matter what anyway. If someday I decide to get PayTV again I'll just do Uverse since their base level package isn't much more then DirecTV and has a lot more channels in it. Plus I can get Red Zone Channel for $5 bucks a month.


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## Movieman (May 9, 2009)

bonscott87 said:


> SyFy is available on Hulu. TNT only streams from their web site and it's broken up into each "segment" but I can still watch Leverage. FX being owned by Fox is probably also on Hulu but I'm not sure. It's not HD but it works. Or wait for the DVD.
> 
> I didn't do the numbers on the most basic sub to paid TV because they include nothing in terms of channels beyond locals. So since I get my locals for free what do I gain with a basic sub? DirecTV's family plan is $30 a month but wait, $7 for DVR service. Want that in HD? $10. So You're looking at nearly $50 a month for the most basic. Charter's most basic is the "broadcast" basic which runs $15 a month and it's just OTA channels. Then next up package costs as much as DirecTV. Uverse uFamily plan is $50 a month.
> 
> ...


Thanks for the reply. I tried to find BattleStar Galactica on Hulu and was never able to find an episode. I dont sub to Hulu but when I did the search for BG, Dark Blue, etc. none of the episodes were not available either on main sites or on Hulu. I though Hulu only broadcast what is OTA already. I will look again.


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## Lord Vader (Sep 20, 2004)

bonscott87 said:


> Haven't yet actually. My initial plan was to suspend for 6 months to see how it goes. But now I see how well it's working I planned to just cancel DirecTV at the end of the month and run them side by side. But I may just call this week and get it over with since I'm going to cancel no matter what anyway. If someday I decide to get PayTV again I'll just do Uverse since their base level package isn't much more then DirecTV and has a lot more channels in it. Plus I can get Red Zone Channel for $5 bucks a month.


If you remember, be sure to let us know just what they might do to try and keep you.

BTW, your eyes would bug out of your sockets if you knew how much I paid per month to DirecTV! 

Let's just say it's a LOT more than you (unfortunately).


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Movieman said:


> Thanks for the reply. I tried to find BattleStar Galactica on Hulu and was never able to find an episode. I dont sub to Hulu but when I did the search for BG, Dark Blue, etc. none of the episodes were not available either on main sites or on Hulu. I though Hulu only broadcast what is OTA already. I will look again.


A lot of Hulu is just the last 5 episodes of the latest seasons. Some older shows are on there if their contracts allow but for current stuff it's all just the most recent. For example, Stargate SG1 has almost all 10 seasons full episodes on Hulu. Battlestar Galactica however is not anymore (you can watch the classic series though). So it really depends on the show and the networks.

Hulu is a partnership with NBC Universal, Fox and ABC/Disney. So you'll never find a CBS or Turner network show (like Dark Blue) on Hulu. But you will find recent episodes of the various NBC properties (NBC network, USA, SyFy, etc) for example. It's not the end all/be all by any means.

For TNT their most recent episodes are available on the TNT website (like for Leverage) but that obviously is a bit more of a pain. From what I can tell Turner networks has a deal with iTunes for it's shows and I refuse to install iTunes or pay per episode for anything. So the web site is what I deal with. Or just wait for the DVD to come via Netflix.


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## jaywdetroit (Sep 21, 2006)

bonscott87 said:


> .....
> 
> For TNT their most recent episodes are available on the TNT website (like for Leverage) but that obviously is a bit more of a pain. From what I can tell Turner networks has a deal with iTunes for it's shows and I refuse to install iTunes or pay per episode for anything. So the web site is what I deal with. Or just wait for the DVD to come via Netflix.


FWIW, I used to share the same sentiment, but I decided to use iTunes to catch up on Lost. It is great quality, and now I use iTunes quite a bit for my kids (mostly movies, but some TV).

In light of this thread, I would think 30 or so dollars for an entire season of a show (Is that 3 or 4 months of pay TV programming?) is actually a pretty fair deal. If you were to add up all the First run shows you watch regularly, and purchased them from iTunes instead of DirecTV, I wonder how the cost per episode would compare. (Yes - I do understand that the point is NOT to pay, but in my situation, the only upcoming show(s) I would miss in HD are Stargate Universe (If I continue to battle through this awful excuse of a SG show) and Caprica. I think I could justify buying those to get them in HD if all I had was OTA.


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## idigg (May 8, 2008)

Once the 4 tuner Ceton card comes out, I'll be going to cable and windows media center 7.


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## gregjones (Sep 20, 2007)

For non-DVR functions, you might want to consider XBMC. It is multi-platform and exceptionally customizable.


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## beagle4546 (Dec 10, 2009)

I was with DTV for 12 years. I was so excited about my first dish I spent all night installing it finally getting a signal at 4 am (the neighbors probably wondered what was going on). I upgraded to HD in 2000 and spent an entire afternoon installing the oval dish and DTC-100 receiver for two HD channels (HBO and a test loop). In 2004 I paid $999 for the HD Tivo and was more excited about it than any other AV equipment before or since.

Costs have escalated over the years though and I suspended my account last year to see if I could survive with just OTA on WMC7 and internet streaming. A modest $400 investment in a capable HTPC and I'm perfectly happy with the results. I recently cancelled DTV and accepted the ETF since it wasn't much more than one month of service. I can do a lot with that nearly $1,000/year savings. Rent DVDs, add Netflix, or devote it to something entirely different than television. 

In the medium to long term I think the traditional pay television model the satellite, cable companies, and content providers have been relying on is in real trouble. As more subscribers leave the system entirely the fixed costs need to be covered by the remaining subscribers resulting in even higher monthly bills and in turn more subscribers leaving.


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## Bob Coxner (Dec 28, 2005)

I understand and I'm tempted to go OTA and net but what happens when the cablecos begin putting in cap limits? Time Warner already has them in a few markets and almost did it in my market until we fought back. Still, I see it in the future. Cablecos aren't stupid and they know more and more people want the streaming option and drop cable tv.

Here are the details on what Time Warner is doing (in the Beaumont, TX market) and what they wanted to do to me:

"in the case of Time Warner Cable, customers will be charged from $29.95 to $54.90 a month, based on data consumption and desired connection speed. Customers will be charged $1 for each gigabyte (GB) over their plan's cap. Time Warner Cable offers four cap levels of 5, 10, 20, and 40 GB."

http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/mar2009/tc20090331_726397.htm

Try living on Netflix and Hulu streaming when you're limited to a max of 40gb per month. Comcrap also has limits but currently they're at a more livable 250gb. However, since they've already established the principle of limits they can easily lower that.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Caps do suck indeed. Could wait for the TV shows to come out on DVD, no need to stream then. But obviously you're "behind" at that point. Something else to think about, how important is it to be watching shows as they are aired. Put a cost amount on that when thinking of your options.


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## JeffBowser (Dec 21, 2006)

How important is TV, period, for that matter.


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## vurbano (May 15, 2004)

All of these sat providers have hit a wall with pricing IMO.


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

Only to be outdone by the cable folks, who hit that wall years ago, and keep banging their heads up against it each year.


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## BubblePuppy (Nov 3, 2006)

bonscott87 said:


> Caps do suck indeed. Could wait for the TV shows to come out on DVD, no need to stream then. But obviously you're "behind" at that point. Something else to think about, *how important is it to be watching shows as they are aired. * Put a cost amount on that when thinking of your options.


Obviously not very.....or else most of us wouldn't have a dvr, a To Do List or a Play List.


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## bidger (Nov 19, 2005)

hdtvfan0001 said:


> Only to be outdone by the cable folks, who hit that wall years ago, and keep banging their heads up against it each year.


You won't hear that from someone who's been "liberated by FIOS". Anyone who's objective knows all providers do this dance.


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## Special Ed (Oct 26, 2007)

Hello fellow Michigander. Sorry to hear about your job but being from Michigan it is a fairly common story. I don't think the rest of the country realizes how bad it is here - and even if family's situation allows a move, it is about impossible to sell a home here but for a fraction of the price of what it is worth and what most of us still owe.

Anyway, you give great food for thought. I am finding my self paying well over $100 per month for TV now. Of course I get all the movie channels, but with Netflix, is it even worth it? The problem is HBO and Showtime suck you in with their high quality series. Could I wait for the blu ray version and rent, or watch a poor quality downloads? Hard to say.

I might not quit Direct TV but I should look at moving to their more basic package and trim some of the fat out of my DTV bill. We have the money but now does not seem like a good time to waste money.



bonscott87 said:


> No, this isn't another "I hate DirecTV so I'm leaving" threads.  But I've had a few inquiries of where I have been lately as my posts have dropped off a lot and I didn't blog the latest conference call. So here is the explanation.
> 
> I have been with DirecTV since 1996. Sunday Ticket every year since 1999. I have enjoyed DirecTV a lot. Been with the CE program here at DBSTalk since the begining. I've made more then a few online friends thru DBSTalk.
> 
> ...


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## Satelliteracer (Dec 6, 2006)

dpeters11 said:


> The interesting thing is that we have all these options now. It used to be either OTA only, or sat/cable.
> 
> Of course some Internet providers are doing what they can to prevent this option. Download caps, and it's only a matter of time before Hulu is a paid service.


It's only a matter of time before they're all paid services. Every forum \ conference \ etc we go to says the same thing. Ad revenue cannot support the industry alone like it used to.

The Wall Street Journal and NY Times will be charging for content for their newspapers. The content providers for video will be as well. The reason is simple, if they are charging cable and satellite huge amounts of money to carry this programming but providing it for free directly, well you can imagine that the cable and satellite folks are asking what they are paying for.

Not a matter of if anymore, but a matter of when. When is fast approaching it seems.


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## jaywdetroit (Sep 21, 2006)

Bob Coxner said:


> I understand and I'm tempted to go OTA and net but what happens when the cablecos begin putting in cap limits? Time Warner already has them in a few markets and almost did it in my market until we fought back. Still, I see it in the future. Cablecos aren't stupid and they know more and more people want the streaming option and drop cable tv.
> 
> Here are the details on what Time Warner is doing (in the Beaumont, TX market) and what they wanted to do to me:
> 
> ...


I think the old economics of supply and demand will have a big impact on this. I think a consumer backlash is pretty possible with this model.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

I've read rumors of Hulu going pay sometime this year. If Hulu were say $10 a month or something I would pay that. They could do a tiered model. Free access has a limited catalog while paid access gets the full catalog and perhaps higher quality. Something like that.

I'd much rather pay $10-15 a month for the 6 non-OTA channels I watch vs. $80 minimum.


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## jaywdetroit (Sep 21, 2006)

beagle4546 said:


> I was with DTV for 12 years. I was so excited about my first dish I spent all night installing it finally getting a signal at 4 am (the neighbors probably wondered what was going on). I upgraded to HD in 2000 and spent an entire afternoon installing the oval dish and DTC-100 receiver for two HD channels (HBO and a test loop). In 2004 I paid $999 for the HD Tivo and was more excited about it than any other AV equipment before or since.
> 
> Costs have escalated over the years though and I suspended my account last year to see if I could survive with just OTA on WMC7 and internet streaming. A modest $400 investment in a capable HTPC and I'm perfectly happy with the results. I recently cancelled DTV and accepted the ETF since it wasn't much more than one month of service. I can do a lot with that nearly $1,000/year savings. Rent DVDs, add Netflix, or devote it to something entirely different than television.
> 
> In the medium to long term I think the traditional pay television model the satellite, cable companies, and content providers have been relying on is in real trouble. As more subscribers leave the system entirely the fixed costs need to be covered by the remaining subscribers resulting in even higher monthly bills and in turn more subscribers leaving.


Have you found many HD internet sources? Where? Can you list where you are getting various programming? Sports? News? HD?


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## armophob (Nov 13, 2006)

JeffBowser said:


> How important is TV, period, for that matter.


Besides occupying my every moment home from work, replacing all social contact, and really fulfilling my most basic of needs, not very.


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## cartrivision (Jul 25, 2007)

Can't say that I blame you if you can get most of what you watch OTA. Your $120/month savings will more than pay for a few beers at your local sports bar as you alleviate your NFL-ST withdrawal and a netflix subscription to supplement your OTA choices.


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## Bob Coxner (Dec 28, 2005)

jaywdetroit said:


> I think the old economics of supply and demand will have a big impact on this. I think a consumer backlash is pretty possible with this model.


I can backlash all I want but in my rural area TW RoadRunner is my sole broadband option. Other than satellite broadband, which isn't a realistic option. Supply and demand doesn't work when there's a monopoly.


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## jaywdetroit (Sep 21, 2006)

Bob Coxner said:


> I can backlash all I want but in my rural area TW RoadRunner is my sole broadband option. Other than satellite broadband, which isn't a realistic option. Supply and demand doesn't work when there's a monopoly.


I can see that if they do move to this model, I would imagine there would be a more expensive, "unlimited" option, much like you see with the Cellular providers. Basically, you'll still be able to get it, it just won't be cheap. I think if people start getting stuck with the kinds of bills people use to get slammed with on mobile phones, another alternative will present itself. Someone will figure out a way to undercut the market, and take those customers who are 'angry' at their ISP.

There is going to be a sharp reaction, monopoly or not, if people start getting smacked with hundreds of dollars in ISP bills because they stream all of their content.

If the market doesn't fix it, then someone looking for votes will.


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## Blitz68 (Apr 19, 2006)

Davenlr said:


> Nope. Fox is, but not ABC, NBC, CBS, CW, ESPN, SPEED, NASA, AlJazeera English, MSNBC. These are the uplink feeds to the networks, not the actual cable channel. All New York network stations are also available (ABC in HD, rest in SD).


I tend to disagree. Please someone else respond to this if you have other information stating otherwise.

*ALL* games are scrambled period. This started when the NFL went to Sunday Ticket.


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## jaywdetroit (Sep 21, 2006)

Scott- Seems your tuning device is hard to find, since you posted this thread. Maybe you could go into sales?


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

jaywdetroit said:


> Scott- Seems your tuning device is hard to find, since you posted this thread. Maybe you could go into sales?


LOL. Well, they did get a ton of press out of CES for their upcoming dual cable card model. I can't take all the credit. 

Still available on NewEgg. I've never seen it out of stock there.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815327005


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## Steveo369 (Dec 12, 2007)

A 3-4 combination punch has put me in a similar situation.

Windows 7 release, and it's ability to get clear QAM tuning. (I've kept my limited basic $12 cable subscription because otherwise Comcast would raise my internet charge by $10 - close enough to a wash for me).
DTV's annual price increase
DTV's forthcoming MRV charge
The announcement of Ceton's cablecard tuner release

These four items have left me seriously evaluating my relationship with DTV, and I intend to cancel prior to the rate increase in February. I've run an HTPC in my living room since sometime in 2005, mainly for music, photos and video. It's been largely useless for television since the digital switchover. WinXPMCE was quite simply awesome for analog cable at the time, but digital delivery, HDTV, content protection and CableLabs has royally screwed all that up for the past few years. My personal options are re-opening somewhat for lower-cost TV, and really using my already deployed all-in-one HTPC solution to it's fullest capability. I've already got an extender and an Xbox360 that I use for serving content to two other rooms; I believe the only item I 'need' is a second 2-tuner clearQAM card to get to 4 tuners.

We're going to go with clear QAM only for the next few months until I get some feedback on the Ceton card, and chat with the cable company to determine what kind of deal they might throw my way to upgrade from limited basic to expanded basic with NONE of their equipment except a single cablecard. I'm still not sold on spending more money on pay TV, and am thinking that between clear QAM (major networks), Netflix, Hulu, iTunes,etc, we may not make the choice to purchase a cablecard tuner and increase our TV subscription.

It will be a tough transition for the wife, infant and I, but $90+/month goes a long way toward picking up additional DVD's & content.

Just thought I'd throw my experiences out there, I've been mulling over many of the same decisions that bonscott has for a few months as well. The shaky economy has also made my profession (construction related) much more unstable, and I'm doing a bit of preemptive belt-tightening as well.


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## RACJ2 (Aug 2, 2008)

Steveo369 said:


> A 3-4 combination punch has put me in a similar situation.
> 
> Windows 7 release, and it's ability to get clear QAM tuning. (I've kept my limited basic $12 cable subscription because otherwise Comcast would raise my internet charge by $10 - close enough to a wash for me).
> DTV's annual price increase
> ...


Sounds like a good plan, but the Ceton cablecard is a bit expensive at $399. I suppose if you can save $30/mo by switching from D* to C*, it will only take about 13 mo's to recoup.


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## TheRatPatrol (Oct 1, 2003)

*Hulu's subscription service might run $5 for access to select shows*


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## jaywdetroit (Sep 21, 2006)

To those following this thread... 

I've just installed this homerun device on my network. This is an excellent product! And using Windows Media Center for TV on a primary display, is really quite impressive. Trick play just plain works! Its hard to recommend something I have not really used more than a few hours, but so far so good! As good as any set top box I've used.


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## 1dersky (Oct 9, 2007)

I too am planning to leave DirecTV after hockey season (I've been a customer since 1995 - TC+ with NHL Center Ice) due to a "cost-vs-benefit" assessment I made when my H20-600 bit the dust and I was out of service for a week (that's how long it took to convince them my receiver was dead due to known issues and to send a replacement...don't EVEN get me started on that story) and realized I didn't actually miss having it.

I get most of the OTA channels just fine with rabbit ears.

The thing is, I CAN afford it. It's just not WORTH it.


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## zamzickles (Sep 21, 2007)

Just to show more options and better prices. I would probably go the PCI route mainly because you never know when some web surfing might be stepping on your HDHomeRun's bandwidth requirements. You know how we all hate artifacts and breakups.

http://www.digitalconnection.com/products/video/fusion7dex.asp

http://www.digitalconnection.com/Products/Video/hdhomerun.asp


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

zamzickles said:


> Just to show more options and better prices. I would probably go the PCI route mainly because you never know when some web surfing might be stepping on your HDHomeRun's bandwidth requirements. You know how we all hate artifacts and breakups.
> 
> http://www.digitalconnection.com/products/video/fusion7dex.asp
> 
> http://www.digitalconnection.com/Products/Video/hdhomerun.asp


Couple comments: Many motherboards for HTPCs don't even come with a PCI slot anymore.

Second, I wouldn't be worrying much about web surfing taking up your local network bandwidth. Your highest web speeds don't even come close to your local bandwidth. For example, the fastest speed I could get is 18mbs. Local network is 100. Even if you had some crazy fast 30 mbs speed, you're still only using a third of your total network bandwidth *and* that is assuming you're actually downloading something at that full 30 which is rarely the case (the server on the other end will cap you much slower then that most times).

So unless you have insane high speed cap and bit torrent 24x7 you don't have to worry about stomping on your network OTA tuners. 

The other main advantage in my mind is threefold: You don't add heat to your HTPC, you don't have to worry about upgrading and pulling the card and the HDHomerun's tuners are available to any PC on the network, not just your main HTPC.

I know it's not for everyone but I'm going to champion it because it makes so much sense to have it external and on the network and most people don't even know such a thing is available.


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## syphix (Jun 23, 2004)

If faster internet was available in my neck of the woods, I'd leave DirecTV, too (or at least drop my package to the lowest available. OTA isn't quite an option out here, either).


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## pfp (Apr 28, 2009)

This looks like a very, very, very tempting way to go. I can definitely get OTA reception and most of what i watch it OTA. I've got Netflix and for the savings I could wait for seasons of shows on Showtime, USA, TNT, etc. I've never really tried hulu or the networks streaming options so I don't know how easy it is or more importantly how the qualty is (HD quality is a MUST for me!!!)

The really big question I have is how can I watch Center Ice?


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## richlife (Dec 4, 2006)

Scott, I've been in and out of DBSTalk the last few months because of other activities, but seeing your title, I had to read. As with the others, sorry to hear about the job. Being retired, the impact of tv cost is somewhat less, but it continues to grow as those costs mount. DirecTV is convenient (best attribute), with the cost, I definitely know how you feel and tremendously appreciate that you've taken the time to help show us all the way. It's costing me $95/mo for SelectChoice/DVR/HD and two extra receivers/DVRs and I've also been trying to find options. 

My problem is we have 3 adults in the family with totally different viewing habits. I could probably find a way to do without ESPN, but my wife is a total tv junkie in a separate room and my mother has a separate apartment and is incapable of learning anything new or managing anything beyond changing channels. Your solution sounds good for me, but I don't know if it could take care of the wife and mother. 

I also figure that all the "free" services will soon (within a couple of years) be charging some fee and it's hard to predict longer term what is best. I'll be watching and searching to find my own way (perhaps your way) around these costs as time goes on. Best of luck to you and I'll be watching you and AVSTalk for guidance.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Quick update: Things going very well with the HTPC. I gotta say this about Windows 7 Media Center (7MC). It is very slick, especially with the ability to add any of hundreds of 3rd party plugins. And the DVR is very advanced. I've read many reviews that place 7MC as the top DVR option above Tivo. And frankly I have to agree. The new searching features in the DirecTV DVR appear to have been copied right from 7MC. And 7MC even has wishlist capability like Tivo. Some of these things are a bit buried in the UI but once you know they are there it's easy enough to find. My wife picked up the UI very quickly (she did the DirecTV UI as well though).

And being able to watch Live TV, recorded TV, DVDs, BluRays, videos/pictures/music, video podcasts, Internet radio, Hulu all from one easy to use interface is top notch and very cool. And the number of plugins available boggles the mind. Want to stream Pandora? There's a plugin for that? Shoutcast radio? No problem. It seems endless really.



pfp said:


> This looks like a very, very, very tempting way to go. I can definitely get OTA reception and most of what i watch it OTA. I've got Netflix and for the savings I could wait for seasons of shows on Showtime, USA, TNT, etc. I've never really tried hulu or the networks streaming options so I don't know how easy it is or more importantly how the qualty is (HD quality is a MUST for me!!!)


Well, most streaming isn't in HD. Hulu's high quality option isn't bad though and the Netflix streaming has a very high quality of things we've tried. Most new programs have high quality but older ones not so much. My wife has been hope sick these past 2 days and so this has actually been a big test with someone home watching TV all day. She said she's having a blast watching her old favorite 80s TV shows off Hulu (21 Jump Street, Fame and others she mentioned). So far she's not missing paid TV at all. She of course knows that for the money we are saving there is a bit of a downside but so far it hasn't been an issue.

I'm also having a ton of fun ripping all our DVDs and TV series to hard drive so that instead of having to put in the DVD to watching something you just play it directly. That is a very cool feature I didn't think we'd use much.



> The really big question I have is how can I watch Center Ice?


Unfortunately you don't. As far as I know the NHL doesn't have an online option like MLB or the NBA. You can get "wild feeds" of Justin TV or other online places but they are often taken down quickly due to copyright issues.


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## RACJ2 (Aug 2, 2008)

bonscott87 said:


> Quick update: Things going very well with the HTPC. I gotta say this about Windows 7 Media Center (7MC). .....
> 
> Unfortunately you don't. As far as I know the NHL doesn't have an online option like MLB or the NBA. You can get "wild feeds" of Justin TV or other online places but they are often taken down quickly due to copyright issues.


Actually, you can watch NHL Games on line with an "NHL GameCenter" subscription [Link]. They have some pretty nice features and some of the games are supposed to be at HD quality. And they even have a free 1 day trial today.

NHL GameCenter LIVE™ Features:
- Live streaming HD-quality games (when available)
- DVR Functionality
- Picture-in-Picture
- Multigame View to Watch up to 4 Games at Once
- Access to the Replay Archive


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## pfp (Apr 28, 2009)

Scott,

Can you recommend a good place for info on 7MC? My laptop has Windows 7 and MC installed (used for video's, pics and music only once in a while - never TV or streaming). The NHL does have an online option and it just so happens to be free tonight - https://gamecenter.nhl.com/nhlgc/secure/registerform?free=true&intcmpid=nhl.com:gcl:fptphd

I'd like to figure out how i could test this tonight but don;t know of any good resources.

Thanks


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## syphix (Jun 23, 2004)

Hey, bonscott87...can you post the specs/part list of your HTPC on here? I'd be very interested to hear what you built and the costs.

Nevermind...found your post!


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## Tom_S (Apr 9, 2002)

How is the blu-ray loading time? My stand alone Blu-ray player takes forever.


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## Bob Coxner (Dec 28, 2005)

The selection is limited but Netflix does have HD available for streaming. It's 720p. If you have good broadband (1.5gb or higher) then you should be able to handle it. I find the quality very good.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

pfp said:


> Scott,
> 
> Can you recommend a good place for info on 7MC? My laptop has Windows 7 and MC installed (used for video's, pics and music only once in a while - never TV or streaming). The NHL does have an online option and it just so happens to be free tonight - https://gamecenter.nhl.com/nhlgc/secure/registerform?free=true&intcmpid=nhl.com:gcl:fptphd
> 
> ...


Nice call guys on the NHL Online, never knew they had that. Unfortunately they follow blackout rules so my Red Wings would be blacked out. But I'm not that into hockey lately so no biggy. I can hit the bar for the playoffs/finals if needed (which I would probably do anyway).

As for 7MC sites, here are a few I've found:
http://www.hack7mc.com/
http://www.missingremote.com/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1
http://www.thehtpc.net/

Media Browser Plugin and plugins for it:
http://www.mediabrowser.tv/
http://themetabrowser.com/

And frankly the AVS Forums have a whole forum dedicated to HTPC's and it's a fantastic resource for 7MC, hardware, other software, etc. http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=26/


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Tom_S said:


> How is the blu-ray loading time? My stand alone Blu-ray player takes forever.


I don't know how long "long" is but the few blu-rays I've tried take about 10-20 seconds to load up.


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## Brennok (Dec 23, 2005)

Another site I would recommend also is www.thegreenbutton.com. The guys from Ceton post over there since it is the official Media Center forum. The forum software sucks, but I have found it helpful in the past when I was looking into various features.


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## Tom_S (Apr 9, 2002)

bonscott87 said:


> I don't know how long "long" is but the few blu-rays I've tried take about 10-20 seconds to load up.


Well, the last blu-ray I watched "Gamer" which sucked by the way, took about 5 minutes until I saw any video.


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## SThacker (May 24, 2005)

good information here thanks


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Brennok said:


> Another site I would recommend also is www.thegreenbutton.com. The guys from Ceton post over there since it is the official Media Center forum. The forum software sucks, but I have found it helpful in the past when I was looking into various features.


Nice site, thanks for the link. I had come across that one but it seemed more of an aggregator of other sites but now I see the forums is where it's at there.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Tom_S said:


> Well, the last blu-ray I watched "Gamer" which sucked by the way, took about 5 minutes until I saw any video.


OUCH. I've tried 3 movies (Monsters v Aliens, Night at the Museum 2, can't remember the other) and CSI season 1 and they all loaded up very quickly.


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## BubblePuppy (Nov 3, 2006)

bonscott87 said:


> OUCH. I've tried 3 movies (Monsters v Aliens, Night at the Museum 2, can't remember the other) and CSI season 1 and they all loaded up very quickly.


Load speed might depend on the model, firmware versions. 
I bought the top of the line Sony model when it first came out ($$$ OUCH!). It is very slow in loading. I'm sure the newer and cheaper models load a lot faster.


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## Beerstalker (Feb 9, 2009)

Load time also depends a lot on the disc itself. If it uses a lot of Java, or wants to download a bunch of BD-Live stuff, it will take a lot longer to load.


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## HersheyBud (Dec 18, 2006)

Best of luck to you Bonscott. Thanks for all of your postings and insight. Good luck with your job search.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

BubblePuppy said:


> Load speed might depend on the model, firmware versions.
> I bought the top of the line Sony model when it first came out ($$$ OUCH!). It is very slow in loading. I'm sure the newer and cheaper models load a lot faster.


Yep. In this case one must also remember that it's a whole computer with tons of horsepower and memory loading up that Bluray vs. a consumer device with very limited processor and memory available. I'd say that also will make a big difference.


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## doritoofdeath (Oct 20, 2007)

bonscott87 said:


> SyFy is available on Hulu. TNT only streams from their web site and it's broken up into each "segment" but I can still watch Leverage. FX being owned by Fox is probably also on Hulu but I'm not sure. It's not HD but it works. Or wait for the DVD.


Don't know if I can stand watching non-HD again... may have to test it out on my PC first and see how it is. After the announcements of higher prices + more charges for various things, I too am considering alternatives... and this looks like a good one if I can satisfy what I'd like ..similar to how you have.

You did say Hulu is not HD right?


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

doritoofdeath said:


> Don't know if I can stand watching non-HD again... may have to test it out on my PC first and see how it is. After the announcements of higher prices + more charges for various things, I too am considering alternatives... and this looks like a good one if I can satisfy what I'd like ..similar to how you have.
> 
> You did say Hulu is not HD right?


That is correct, Hulu is not in HD. They do have many shows in "high quality" which is 480p.

Now having said that I just checked their web site FAQ and it says they do have 720p stuff in their "HD Gallery". I haven't noticed that before so maybe they are going to start doing some HD.


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## BenJF3 (Sep 12, 2008)

I don't know if anyone mentioned this to you, but Dish makes an OTA DVR that has no monthly fee that I'm aware of.

http://www.echostar.com/DTVPalDVR/DTVPal_DVR.pdf

http://www.echostar.com/DTVPalDVR/DTVPal_DVR_UG.pdf


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

BenJF3 said:


> I don't know if anyone mentioned this to you, but Dish makes an OTA DVR that has no monthly fee that I'm aware of.
> 
> http://www.echostar.com/DTVPalDVR/DTVPal_DVR.pdf
> 
> http://www.echostar.com/DTVPalDVR/DTVPal_DVR_UG.pdf


Yep, that might work for some people that are looking for OTA only. I think it's got some good reviews. For me though I needed an "all in one" box in that I didn't want to spend money on a PS3 to do BluRay and streaming and then still have to buy an OTA DVR. For not much more a HTPC gives a lot more flexability and power.

But it all depends on exactly what you need and what you're looking for. Good post.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

So I just made "the call" and actually canceled. I've had a few people ask me what DirecTV would do so here is my story.

I will say it was actually hard to do. I've been with DirecTV since 1996, Sunday Ticket since 1999.

Talked with a nice guy in retention. Asked me why I wanted to cancel and told him the costs were too much and I just lost my job.
He tried a couple things to keep me.
Offered a couple different discounts and also offered to suspend my account. He pushed for the suspension because of my long tenure. He kinda did a "wow" when he saw I had been with DirecTV since 1996. He chucked that he was still in grade school back then. We laughed.

But I was firm that I wanted to cancel because even when I had a job, paying 80 bucks a month for 5 channels was just too much. I noted I had an antenna and got most of my shows for free thru that.

He didn't push anymore and went ahead and canceled it. Recovery kit coming for my HR20-700 which I got first week available in 2006. I noted that the hard drive seems flaky on it and they may want to replace it before sending it out to someone else.

All in all just 5 minutes on the phone, quick and painless, I was nice and so was he.

And thus ends a chapter in my life with DirecTV. Kinda sad.  But I am enjoying saving a lot of money per month.


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## CJTE (Sep 18, 2007)

bonscott87 said:


> And thus ends a chapter in my life with DirecTV. Kinda sad.  But I am enjoying saving a lot of money per month.


Glad you're happy 
If you decide to come back, you can go with a new sub offer and go through the whole ordeal again, or you could turn your old account back on (and either order new equipment for get owned equipment).

But for now, keep on enjoying what you got


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## HerntDawg (Oct 6, 2008)

CJTE said:


> Glad you're happy
> If you decide to come back, you can go with a new sub offer and go through the whole ordeal again, or you could turn your old account back on (and either order new equipment for get owned equipment).
> 
> But for now, keep on enjoying what you got


Yup.


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## Jon J (Apr 22, 2002)

CJTE said:


> If you decide to come back, you can go with a new sub offer and go through the whole ordeal again...


Howzat? How often can you be a "new customer"?


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## rkish (May 8, 2008)

BEST OF LUCK SCOTT!!! 

I wish I had the OTA option as well. I'm only 60 miles north of NYC (as the crow flies), but I have the Hudson River 1 mile to the west of me and am surrounded by mountains that follow the river and Mt. Beacon a mile to the east of me as well. I get absolutely NO OTA and went from local cable to DirecTV in the last 16 years that I've lived in Dutchess County.

I, like you Scott, have been with DirecTV for a while, having signed on with Pegasus back in 1997 and then directly with DirecTV about 5 or so years ago. I am grandfathered in my "Total Choice Plus" package and only pay for HD Access and the HD Extra package. NO premiums, sport packages, etc. Other than a second HD receiver in my bedroom (and the protection plan), I have a pretty light package...only paying about $80.00 or so a month (but I get some discounts from Verizon for bundling phone, Internet (DSL) and DirecTV.

I'm very happy with DirecTV and would only consider FIOS if and when it's available in my area and/or if my costs with D-TV got out of hand as well.

Take care and stay in touch with us! 

Rich


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## TheRatPatrol (Oct 1, 2003)

bonscott87 said:


> And thus ends a chapter in my life with DirecTV. Kinda sad.


*sniff*


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## GregLee (Dec 28, 2005)

rkish said:


> I get absolutely NO OTA and went from local cable to DirecTV ...


Me, too. No OTA due to 700 ft high cliffs between me and local broadcast towers. So it's cable (which I had 1994-2007), Dish, or DirecTV, for me. I keep touch with the alternatives, but DirecTV seems best, so far, by a narrow margin.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Well yesterday afternoon the desperate calls from retention started. I noticed that I actually hadn't been disconnected yet as well.

Twice I got calls basically begging me to come back. Obviously there wasn't anything they could offer me but the best deal they tried was 12 months of Family Pack for $15 a month and $300 cash back for staying (which they guy said you could use to pay for Sunday Ticket). While that is a fantastic deal I was not interested and just wanted to cut the cord. 

This morning I see I'm finally disconnected so they were hoping to get me to reup before they actually disconnected it. LOL 

Hopefully I don't get any more calls because that will sure get annoying. I'll probably have to ask them to put me on their do not call list.

So they tried really hard to keep me, most likely because of being with them nearly from the beginning and ST forever.


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## Chuck W (Mar 26, 2002)

Sorry to hear about your plight Bonscott87. You've been around a long time and it's sad to see you go. I was in your shoes in late 08 when I lost my job. I managed to find another within about 4 months, but it is quite a distance further than I was traveling and for less money. 

I too have really become fed up with Directv's nickel and diming and rate hikes, something they touted as NOT doing years ago when they tried to match against cable. While I'm not ready to complete sever the ties with Directv(been with them since 1999) since my cable company is not up to par around me(and there is no way I can do OTA where I live), my monthly cost has really gotten outta hand over the last couple years. I think after The Pacific airs on HBO, I will probably start dropping the premium channels and go your route of Netflix(I have an LG BluRay player and a PS3 that can do the streaming).

Anyway, good luck with the job hunt and don't get down. There's a job out there for you.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Man, retention won't stop calling. I finally had to tell them to put me on the no call list.

I'll tell you this much: If you really want some sweet deals and you've been with them a long time all you have to do is really cancel. :lol:


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## Brennok (Dec 23, 2005)

Yeah they call my mom every day since she canceled.

They didn't call me though which was funny since I had been with them longer and spent more per month. I guess the reasons were enough for them to know I wouldn't sign back up. I told them I was tired of waiting for the new Tivo unit, that I wanted HD but didn't want to pay anymore just to get the same channels I already have, and switching to Fios was much much cheaper which gave me the other two.


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## Steveo369 (Dec 12, 2007)

I called DTV today to 'suspend' service until July 1st. All I can say is "Wow". If I choose to go PayTV again and restart my service, I must say that DTV's service was great.

I didn't even have to speak to a CS to suspend my service. Simply say "suspend service" and enter the month/date on my phone keypad. COULD NOT have been easier.

I've only been with DTV a little over 2 years, I don't think they'll try to win me back as aggressively as bonscott, but it's interesting to see how much in terms of retention deals they're putting out there.

We're gonna give the ClearQAM/Networks only/internet/Netflix thing a shot for a few months, running Win7 in the living room and 2 extenders. If we're still happy, I'll cancel DTV at the end of June. 

One cool thing is that I just ADDED HDTV to my guest bedroom for a savings of $90/month. Heh. I had an HDTV, but only an SD receiver down there. (it could be argued that the programming is much more limited...)


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## Shades228 (Mar 18, 2008)

Brennok said:


> Yeah they call my mom every day since she canceled.
> 
> They didn't call me though which was funny since I had been with them longer and spent more per month. I guess the reasons were enough for them to know I wouldn't sign back up. I told them I was tired of waiting for the new Tivo unit, that I wanted HD but didn't want to pay anymore just to get the same channels I already have, and switching to Fios was much much cheaper which gave me the other two.


Your reasons for leaving have nothing to do with it. You were probably on their DNC list for sales offers.


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## Brennok (Dec 23, 2005)

No they called me all the time prior to leaving. They would call with Sunday Ticket offers, automated PPV ads, or the occasional attempt to get me to upgrade to HD.


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## harsh (Jun 15, 2003)

Be careful to differentiate between suspending service and discontinuing service. They are not the same animal.


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## fredandbetty (Jan 28, 2007)

rkish said:


> BEST OF LUCK SCOTT!!!
> 
> I am grandfathered in my "Total Choice Plus" package and only pay for HD Access and the HD Extra package. NO premiums, sport packages, etc.


Ditto, I too am grandfathered in on the Total Choice Plus pkg and wish you the best of luck Scott!


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

I'm going on 6 months now without DirecTV or any pay TV service and it's been great. The only thing I have missed is some live sports but not enough to justify $100+ a month. I built a HTPC which has already paid for itself in the monthly savings.

What I get for content:
1) OTA HD which accounts for about 70% of our viewing. Dual tuner DVR (could very easily add 2 more tuners). Win 7 Media Center is frankly better then either Tivo or the HR series.

2) Netflix. For all of $11 a month I get stunning Bluray's of movies well before they hit any premium movie channel. Also I can get TV shows that aren't available via streaming yet usually 6-9 months behind, no biggy.

3) Netflix Streaming (and now much of it in HD). It's actually pretty good quality on my 50" Plasma. Not bad. And the selection is getting better and better. Watched the last season of Leverage from TNT via Netflix streaming the day after the episode aired. Unfortunately haven't seen it available yet for season 3 which just started but no biggy, I'll get the DVD in 6 months if that's the case. I can wait.

4) Hulu. It's amazing how much we actually watch off Hulu. Almost all our cable shows are available on Hulu within a week of airdate. Shows like Burn Notice and Royal Pains which just started their new seasons are available streaming the day after airdate. Quality depends on the show but it's not bad at all, at least not to us. Again, not worth $100 a month for better quality and if it's really that bad....wait for the DVD/Blu on Netflix.

5) Boxee. Lots of content here too.

6) PlayOn. This fills the gap for networks like Food, HGTV, DIY, Discovery, NatGeo since it pulls full episodes right from their web sites. Not everything is there (like Mythbusters isn't) but it gives a nice variety available at any time of hundreds of shows not available via Hulu, Netflix or Boxee.

By the way, Hulu , PlayOn and Boxee can be integrated right into Win 7 Media Center just like Netflix and you can use them all with your remote. No keyboard or mouse needed.

And of course since it actually is a PC you can go to any website and watch shows.

All in all for us we have replaced 98% of our viewing that we paid over $100 a month for just $11 a month Netflix subscription and everything else is free. That won't be the case for everyone *and* if you are someone that just can't wait to see a show then maybe it's not for you. But it really is becoming a viable alternative for many.


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## BubblePuppy (Nov 3, 2006)

Does your internet provider have a usage cap? If so do you come close to it or go over? Seems that some providers have caps that might limit how much "tv" can be watched before paying extra.


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## JeffBowser (Dec 21, 2006)

One concern is bandwidth caps - how do internet providers bandwidth caps play into this?



bonscott87 said:


> I'm going on 6 months now without DirecTV or any pay TV service and it's been great. The only thing I have missed is some live sports but not enough to justify $100+ a month. I built a HTPC which has already paid for itself in the monthly savings.
> 
> What I get for content:
> 1) OTA HD which accounts for about 70% of our viewing. Dual tuner DVR (could very easily add 2 more tuners). Win 7 Media Center is frankly better then either Tivo or the HR series.
> ...


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## armophob (Nov 13, 2006)

bonscott87 said:


> I'm going on 6 months now without DirecTV or any pay TV service and it's been great. The only thing I have missed is some live sports but not enough to justify $100+ a month. I built a HTPC which has already paid for itself in the monthly savings.


I have spoken with a couple people explaining what you have done. The same question keeps getting asked. What about Discover, TLC, AMC, History, Scyfy, ect ect ect


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## paulman182 (Aug 4, 2006)

No way this would work for me, but to each his own.


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## Kevin F (May 9, 2010)

get a Moxi box. Trust me their really fast and have a huge hard drive. And there is no monthly fee with them.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

BubblePuppy said:


> Does your internet provider have a usage cap? If so do you come close to it or go over? Seems that some providers have caps that might limit how much "tv" can be watched before paying extra.


AT&T Uverse. No bandwidth cap that I know of.

If you have a bandwidth cap, first of all that sucks, second then you'd have to be careful what you stream. Most of our viewing still comes off OTA.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

armophob said:


> I have spoken with a couple people explaining what you have done. The same question keeps getting asked. What about Discover, TLC, AMC, History, Scyfy, ect ect ect


SyFy along with all other NBC Universal channels like USA all are on Hulu within a week of airdate. Can also stream directly from their web site with PlayOn.

Discovery, TLC, NatGeo, History, etc. can be streamed thru PlayOn. Depends on what each channel makes available on their web site of course.

Or just wait for the DVD/Blu and get full quality plus no commercials.

If you are a "TV junkie" and have to be watching TV all the time with "whatever is on" then dumping cable probably isn't going to work for you. But honestly there isn't a TV show out there on any cable network I can't get either streaming or via DVD/Blu at some point. So you just have to ask yourself is it worth it to pay $80-$130 bucks a month or not.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

By the way, I posted this update because someone in another thread asked me to.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

chilibball said:


> get a Moxi box. Trust me their really fast and have a huge hard drive. And there is no monthly fee with them.


Problem with the Moxi box is that you have to use PlayOn for everything including Netflix and Hulu and it's frankly not as great as the dedicated applications. But it does work. PlayOn is also no longer free and has gone to a fee based service so there is some cost to it now.

Other issue is that it's not as flexible as a full blown HTPC (plus the HTPC is also a BluRay player which I didn't have yet).

But certainly an alternative. I looked at both Moxi and Tivo before deciding on just building an HTPC (for not really all that much more once you figure cost of stand alone Bluray player or PS3 and with Tivo, the crazy subscription fee).


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## bidger (Nov 19, 2005)

chilibball said:


> get a Moxi box. Trust me their really fast and have a huge hard drive. And there is no monthly fee with them.


And no access to over-the-air feeds either (for Cable only), which limits one's move away from pay TV tremendously.


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## tonyd79 (Jul 24, 2006)

Scott, happy it is working out for you. It is just too much mix and match for my tastes. And for sure too much effort for the vast majority of folks who are either technically challenged or just want one stop shopping. 

Of course I bank on tons of live sports...


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

tonyd79 said:


> Scott, happy it is working out for you. It is just too much mix and match for my tastes. And for sure too much effort for the vast majority of folks who are either technically challenged or just want one stop shopping.
> 
> Of course I bank on tons of live sports...


Yea, if you live for live sports it's a tough one and probably not the answer.

As for mix and match, it's not too bad. It's all done right from Media Center with the same interface and remote so very WAF (at least here). I guess if the wife can't be bothered to remember to go to Hulu for certain programs and Netflix for others then that's a problem. 

Give things another 5 years or so and I think pay TV will start to get a run for their money.


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## St Louis Cardinals Fan (Oct 22, 2006)

Best of luck in the future. You are always a good source for information.
(P.S. I'll leave the light on for you)


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## Matt9876 (Oct 11, 2007)

bonscott87, I've been seriously under employed for over a year and a half now and had to make some of the same moves you did.

Drop DirecTV at $80 a mo ,OTA and Windows media on cable Internet,about 5 months ago added Dishnetwork and single 211k unit on eastern arc,within weeks added external hard drive for a one time fee of $40.

I'm OK with the results and saving $50 a month,also dropped AT&T and using MagicJack VoIP phone service, have prepaid $69 for the next 5 years.


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## armophob (Nov 13, 2006)

bonscott87 said:


> SyFy along with all other NBC Universal channels like USA all are on Hulu within a week of airdate. Can also stream directly from their web site with PlayOn.
> 
> Discovery, TLC, NatGeo, History, etc. can be streamed thru PlayOn. Depends on what each channel makes available on their web site of course.
> 
> Or just wait for the DVD/Blu and get full quality plus no commercials.


Keep on posting, like an ex-smoker, it will take someone like you to finally get through to someone like me.
I am not a water cooler kind of guy, so I can see myself waiting for the blu-ray disc. But if I wanted to view these using Hulu or Playon, I assume they are not HD quality? So I would almost have to keep a list of the programs or series to order on disc.


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## klambert (Feb 8, 2008)

The big question that I see is that a lot of the viability of this comes from streaming Hulu's huge library. They seem to be happy with college students who otherwise wouldn't be watching TV at all streaming Hulu onto laptops, but not quite so happy about middle aged families streaming it to their HDTV. It seems to me that they are relying on technological issues to keep their tv revenue stream, but use Hulu to groom new users.

Here comes Boxee. It's incredible and with the box, it will be available to the masses. Hulu's already played games with Boxee trying to keep their stuff from working with it and Boxee has programmed workarounds. But that's Boxee as a computer program running on a full PC. 

When the Boxee Box comes out, which would make this kind of internet television pretty transparent and mainstream, is Hulu going to step up and try to block Boxee again?


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

klambert said:


> When the Boxee Box comes out, which would make this kind of internet television pretty transparent and mainstream, is Hulu going to step up and try to block Boxee again?


Maybe. They haven't recently. But Hulu is rolling out their new paid service soon so at that point Boxee can probably just pay a license fee and be done with it and not worry.

And yea, Hulu has been trying to keep off the HDTV in the living room (mainly because of pressure from the owners (NBC, FOX, ABC) but that pressure has lessened recently as they start to realize that they can really target ads at people. And I personally would pay $10 a month no problem to Hulu if I get access to all back catalog episodes (usually it's only the last 5 on current running seasons) AND they get CBS, Comcast and Time Warner on board as rumored.

But it is pretty easy to bypass all the Hulu blocking stuff by just using an HTPC with Hulu Desktop (plugin for WMC available) and/or use Hulu thru PlayOn. Because at that point you are actually on a PC so nothing to "block".


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

armophob said:


> Keep on posting, like an ex-smoker, it will take someone like you to finally get through to someone like me.
> I am not a water cooler kind of guy, so I can see myself waiting for the blu-ray disc. But if I wanted to view these using Hulu or Playon, I assume they are not HD quality? So I would almost have to keep a list of the programs or series to order on disc.


Nope, they are not true HD. But Hulu high quality is pretty nice, better then SD so I'd say halfway between SD and HD....maybe DVD quality? Same for Netflix HD.

Do I notice that it's not in HD at times? Sure. But again the money I'm saving is well worth it to me.

With Hulu you can setup "season passes" they call subscriptions. And you can have it email you when a new episode is added to your queue. Thus just yesterday I got an email that the latest "In Plain Sight" episode was added to my queue. So I have subscriptions to all my fav cable shows that are available on Hulu and the episodes "just show up" for me to watch. For new shows sure, I have to search for them. But no different then having to setup a new season pass on a DVR.

Netflix is a bit different but here is what I do: Every couple week or two I take a look at the box office numbers for any new movies in the theater and add any movies that interest me to my Netflix queue. 9 months later they show up at my door and I don't even remember adding them to my queue. Also I'll look into the future for any upcoming movies that interest me and add them to my queue as well.

Same for TV series. I recently added Leverage Season 3 to my queue. If it ends up not being available streaming then the DVDs will show up at my house eventually.

It's not for everyone but since I pay for Netflix anyway why pay $80 a month just to watch Leverage when it airs instead of 6-9 months later.

At this point, even when I get a job again we don't plan to go back to pay TV. We can do much better things with that money. 

Keep the questions coming, I've got no problem answering them.


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## ElVee (Nov 28, 2006)

I am also leaving DirecTv after 12+ years. I too, am not bashing DirecTv. Although I am still employed, money is getting tighter. When I first signed up for DirecTv (the USSB days!), I was single, renting and had no problem paying the bills. I've since married and we have a child, bought a house and things are a bit tighter. 

I truly enjoyed the service over the years, However, I cannot justtify the $160.06/month I was spending DirecTv. The monthly bill breakdown is:

$114.99 - Premier package
$5.99 - Protection plan
$4.99 - HD Extra
$10.00 - HD Access
$7.00 - DVR service
$20.00 - 4 Leased receivers 
-$5.00 - Credit for the Primary receiver
$2.09 - Tax

I am not going the route of BonScott87. I am switching to FIOS. I've looked over the channel lineup, and for our tastes, it's pretty much a wash (unless the Knicks sign Lebron! Then I will REALLY miss MSGHD!) Our tastes are pretty much network shows, movie channels and basic cable. In those cases FIOS matches or exceeds DirecTv's HD offering. While I am a sports fan, I really only care about my local teams (Mets, Giants, Islanders and Knicks), so I don't need the other RSN's. FIOS also has a much more diverse On Demand library, 

Also, I've already been a Verizon customer for years. I've been a Verizon Wireless and DSL customer since the late 1990's and switched to FIOS for home phone and internet in 2006. My total Verizon bill now is $280/month. Add in DirecTv and my total balloons to $440/month. 

With their latest triple play offer, I get their Ultimate HD package, multi-room HD DVR, 2 additional HD DVR's, SD receiver. Now, my total Verizon bill will be $350/month, a $90/month savings. No contract required.

I am scheduled for the install tomorrow, and have 30 days to test drive it, with no cancellation fee. I have yet to call DirecTv to cancel my service and I expect that they will make some pretty serious offers to keep me, but nothing would match $90/month.

As a guy who lives within walking distance of Cablevision headquarters, I've taken great pride in having my DirecTv dish peering off my roof at them. Many times I've delighted in chatting with the Cablevision door-to-door solicitors. I've always told them if I left DirecTv it would be for FIOS, not them. I always enjoyed watching them leave, shaking their heads after I told them precisely why I would never use their product (James Dolan!). Unless, of course I could get an IT job with them and be able to walk to work!  

Again, this is not to bash DirecTv. Strictly a comparison, and for my needs, the right time to make the switch. DirecTv has certainly been a leader in providing HD content and has forced the cable companies to try to follow suit.


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## AMike (Nov 21, 2005)

I have been in a similar position where I lost my job earlier this year (fortunately I just got a new one about a month ago). We were prepared financially for that to occur as best one could be since my former employer reorganized our group and of course we thought it would trickle down to me. After I was let go, I told my wife that we would have to evaluate our DirecTV services since at that time we were getting Premier and virtually every sports package available. I downgraded our service, added Netflix, enabled PlayOn streaming to all receivers, and dropped Extra Innings (added MLB.TV for $100 less than EI). I considered dropping D* completely and going the HTPC route, but my ETF nixed that idea. I have not missed the Premier package and now that I am working again, I have no intentions of having it reactivated.

One item that I would bring up is the bandwidth cap issue. After making the changes mentioned above, we began burning through some bandwidth for streaming especially during the time that I was not working. And, yes, I do have an internet provider, Comcast, that has a cap on usage. I did some research on this issue and discovered a way around this issue. I switched to a Business Class Account. This gives me uncapped bandwidth at the same price I was paying for home internet service as well as much better and responsive technical support from Comcast (that's almost an oxymoron  ).


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## atmvoice (Nov 4, 2003)

Called and canceled today -- exactly, to the day, 12 years after getting Directv for the first time.

Guy did not ask why, did not ask if I would consider staying, or anything. Just said "OK", told me I would be off by midnight and read a disclaimer about outstanding bills, PPV, etc. No thank you, no good bye, nothing. Took all of two minutes.

Canceling was my intent, and no offer was going to keep me. But seems like a 12 year customer with a 100% on time payment record would at least get asked "why?", "what are you not happy with?", "or call us if you change your mind".

I'm so glad to know that Directv did not value my business. 

**Cool Update** Just noticed after I posted that I've been a member at DBStalk.com for almost 7 years. It's really been longer than that; I remember re-registering years ago after I forgot my username. Never did post much, but I sure have enjoyed reading the forums over the years. Thanks for the memories. **sniff, sniff**


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## JBernardK (Aug 16, 2006)

atmvoice said:


> Canceling was my intent, and no offer was going to keep me. But seems like a 12 year customer with a 100% on time payment record would at least get asked "why?", "what are you not happy with?", "or call us if you change your mind".


Don't worry, you will get lots of calls and mail from them in the next few months.


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## JeffBowser (Dec 21, 2006)

Another example of their incoherent front line strategy.



atmvoice said:


> Called and canceled today -- exactly, to the day, 12 years after getting Directv for the first time.
> 
> Guy did not ask why, did not ask if I would consider staying, or anything. Just said "OK", told me I would be off by midnight and read a disclaimer about outstanding bills, PPV, etc. No thank you, no good bye, nothing. Took all of two minutes.
> 
> ...


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## CTJon (Feb 5, 2007)

I too have just left after almost 12 years. Lost my job a year ago and could no longer afford the big house so just moved into a condo. Unfortunately I have no clear view of the southern sky from my condo. The condo comes with U-Verse so I have been using that for a couple of weeks.
Folks you get what you pay for. Yes my U-Verse bill(TV, internet, and phone) is smaller than my DirecTV bill was but I'd trade back in a minute. Anyone who complains about the DirecTV DVR should try the U-Verse one - you'd stop complaining in a minute. I can't think of a thing about the U-Verse TV service that is equal to the DirecTV service.
Sorry to leave but it couldn't be helped.

One of the worst parts is that I can't find a forum as helpful and with anywhere as useful as this forum is.


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## Brennok (Dec 23, 2005)

JBernardK said:


> Don't worry, you will get lots of calls and mail from them in the next few months.


Yeah they still call me. I always listen to their offers, but they never help their cause with the lies they tell. I always get a kick out of it though.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

CTJon said:


> One of the worst parts is that I can't find a forum as helpful and with anywhere as useful as this forum is.


There are some good Uverse forums out there. Nothing is as good as DBSTalk but here are a couple:

http://utalk.att.com/utalk/
http://www.uverseusers.com/index.php


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Totally living on Hulu right now.

Burn Notice
Royal Pains
In Plain Sight
Covert Ops
White Collar
Eureka
Wharehouse 13
Haven

All new episodes within a week of broadcast.

Who needs cable? LOL


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## Barcthespark (Dec 16, 2007)

bonscott87 said:


> Totally living on Hulu right now.
> 
> Burn Notice
> Royal Pains
> ...


Are you watching them on a PC or through a connection to an HDTV? If connected to a TV, how is the quality?


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Barcthespark said:


> Are you watching them on a PC or through a connection to an HDTV? If connected to a TV, how is the quality?


An HTPC directly to the HDTV. As noted at the beginning of this thread the HTPC is everything for our entertainment from OTA, Bluray, Netflix and Hulu streaming and more.

The Hulu quality isn't all that bad at all. It's not HD but not bad. Since they launched Hulu Plus a couple weeks ago the quality has gone up. My guess is that since Hulu Plus will stream 720p HD the source material is better which helps PQ across the board. I don't have Hulu Plus (yet) but I do have a rock solid 6mb connection and get the best streaming quality possible. Netflix HD streaming is even better.

I do have "only" a 50" HDTV. If you have a much larger screen it may look worse. You'll never know until you try. But as I've mentioned before, $100+ a month just isn't worth the little extra PQ. If I'm that concerned about PQ I'll way for the DVD/Bluray to arrive.


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## sandiegojoe (Oct 2, 2006)

I cut back, but didn't go all out the way bonscott did (I like the concept, just not practical right now, as we may be moving in a year, and I want sunday ticket again.

But for now I have:

SELECT Monthly 39.99 

HD Access Monthly 10.00 

DIRECTV DVR Service Monthly 7.00 

Leased Receiver 5.00

Free HD for 24 months -$10

-----------------------------------

Total $52 a month (plus I have a few other deals going on at any time 3 mos of hbo/cinemax/showtime for another $2 a month for 3 months right now)

Only two hdtvs with HD DVRs though, but a third tv in the kitchen runs off RCA cables from the living room dvr, and a 4th hdtv upstairs is OTA only, with a $20 dvd player attached.

I think there is some middle ground for people looking to save a few bucks with D* and make up the difference streaming netflix for $11 or going online for hulu and other free options.


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