# DBSTalk Second Look: HR24-100 and H24-700 Receivers



## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

The coming of the 24 series was *huge* news this year. And, it's no secret that DIRECTV likes to spread manufacturing among multiple companies.

We're proud to enter the next phase in the First Look Series... the DBSTalk Second Look. Here, you can get the facts on the next two members of the Hx24 family... *the HR24-100 and H24-700.*










24 Series Second Look

I'd like to thank the entire test team, especially Doug Brott, tfederov, Milkman, and HDTVfan0001 for the photos for this second look.

_Please note that some DBSTalk.com testers and staff members may have received free equipment from DIRECTV or its partners for the purpose of evaluation and testing._


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## rahlquist (Jul 24, 2007)

Nice work guys! Thanks for keeping us on top of things!


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## rahlquist (Jul 24, 2007)

How do the temps compare between the HR24-100 and the HR24-500 with the different fan locations?


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## TheRatPatrol (Oct 1, 2003)

So besides manufacturers, I'm guessing theres not much difference between the two?


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## jake14mw (Oct 5, 2007)

Hi all,

I used to watch these forums closely and was up to date with everything, but in the past couple of years, I've lost track. I have a set-up where I have an HR-20-100 (I think), and two DirecTivos, and I'm thinking of upgrading for things like MRV, and seeing this "second look" makes me realize that I don't know the differences between the receiver models, and what's even available. Can anyone give me any advice on how to catch up. Is there something here that at least points out the differences between receivers models?


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## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

I'd say, look at the first looks in this thread: http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=117744


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## hilmar2k (Mar 18, 2007)

TheRatPatrol said:


> So besides manufacturers, I'm guessing theres not much difference between the two?


Basically identical.


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## Carl Spock (Sep 3, 2004)

Thanks for the great work, everyone! 

When is the last time DirecTV had three manufacturers of one model? Was it with the HR20-100, -600 & -700?


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## RunnerFL (Jan 5, 2006)

Carl Spock said:


> Thanks for the great work, everyone!
> 
> When is the last time DirecTV had three manufacturers of one model? Was it with the HR20-100, -600 & -700?


HR21-100, -200 and -700. And so far only 2 HR24's (500 & 100) and 2 H24's (100 & 700).


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## HDTVsportsfan (Nov 29, 2005)

These HR24's are sweet boxes. Very fast.


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## Mike Greer (Jan 20, 2004)

Has anyone checked to see if the HR24-100 has the same Dolby Digital and Caller ID troubles as the HR24-500?


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## Dave DFW (Jun 11, 2008)

Nice job as always. I love the smaller size of the H24.


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## carlsbad_bolt_fan (May 18, 2004)

Nice!

Looks like the only way to be guaranteed to get a specific DVR is to become a tester.


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## Groundhog45 (Nov 10, 2005)

It's good to see that DirecTV is continuing to release more models in the Hx24 line. Good job, guys.


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## The Merg (Jun 24, 2007)

Great job on the Second Look Stuart!

- Merg


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## GallifreyRebel (Feb 12, 2009)

Maybe someone will help me here, but since you cannot get these at Best Buy anymore, and you cannot call DirecTV and order from them, how do you manage to get the devices? I find companies that sell them when I Google for the device, but who do you trust, I don't know these companies. Recommendations Please??

It strikes me funny that DTV would put out this new device and then give you no way to buy it from them. They wanted me to enter a new 2 year contract to have my dish and switch upgraded (and $150) but not upgrade my HR21/H21's. I told them no thanks, wasn't going to start a 2 year agreement on 3 generation old equipment. I realize that with the DECA devices my 21 series receivers will work. I even offered to pay them the $400 to get the new equipment and they have no way of ordering it.

Is it just me or does this seem a little crazy? LOL 

Guess I will eventually break down and pay the $150 to get MRV, but will wait and see what they do in the near future.


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## hilmar2k (Mar 18, 2007)

GallifreyRebel said:


> Maybe someone will help me here, but since you cannot get these at Best Buy anymore, and you cannot call DirecTV and order from them, how do you manage to get the devices? I find companies that sell them when I Google for the device, but who do you trust, I don't know these companies. Recommendations Please??
> 
> It strikes me funny that DTV would put out this new device and then give you no way to buy it from them. They wanted me to enter a new 2 year contract to have my dish and switch upgraded (and $150) but not upgrade my HR21/H21's. I told them no thanks, wasn't going to start a 2 year agreement on 3 generation old equipment. I realize that with the DECA devices my 21 series receivers will work. I even offered to pay them the $400 to get the new equipment and they have no way of ordering it.
> 
> ...


SolidSignal.com is a [generally] reputable dealer.


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## gator1234 (Jul 21, 2007)

I'm confused. Is there an HR24-100; HR24-500 and HR24-700?

All three are bascially the same except for what, the size of the hard drive?


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## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

There is no HR24-700. There is an H24-700. There is no functional difference between HR24-100 and HR24-500; the last three numbers simply denote the manufacturer.

Here is the current list: 
-100 = [strike]Thomson/Audiovox/RCA[/strike] Technicolor 
-200 = Samsung
-250 = Tivo (inactive)
-300 = [strike]Philips[/strike] Pace Micro Technology
-400 = Hughes (inactive)
-500 = Humax
-600 = LG
-700 = Pace Micro Technology
-800 = NEC
-900 = Unused​


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## JACKIEGAGA (Dec 11, 2006)

Great job guys


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## Draconis (Mar 16, 2007)

Looks great guys.



HDTVsportsfan said:


> These HR24's are sweet boxes. Very fast.


Agreed, I'm finding myself wishing I could replace all my HR's with 24's. Oh well.


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## dave29 (Feb 18, 2007)

Nice job, as usual.


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## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

And the core of the models is ? BCM7400 ?


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## Jason Whiddon (Aug 17, 2006)

I thought it was NXP.


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## smiddy (Apr 5, 2006)

Excellent work, as usual from the moderators to the field trail personnel. Thanks!


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## am7crew (Jun 6, 2009)

nice one, thanks!


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

The Second Look was a collaborative effort by the test team.

As briefly mentioned earlier - the HR24-100 is very, very similar to the HR24-500 which was previously released. Other than the location of the rear panel connections, and the cooling fan setup- which cools side to side (on the -100) instead of out the rear (on the -500) - they're twins.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

P Smith said:


> And the core of the models is ? BCM7400 ?





elwaylite said:


> I thought it was NXP.


These use NXP processors .. not exactly sure of which model.


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## SteveHas (Feb 7, 2007)

great job again guys

Its getting very frustrating though as a long time subscriber to see this great new equipment, with no known way of procuring one.


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

Doug Brott said:


> These use NXP processors .. not exactly sure of which model.


...and before anyone asks....finding out any model# won't likely happen easily, as from the Second Look photos, you can see that there is a firm heat sink on top of the CPU - rendering visibility/access tough.

Once nice side effect of the completion of this test group (HR24-100)...they'll start to show up in inventories, and more HR24's will be there to bolster the overall supply. Since the -500 and -100 versions are virtually the same...more is a good thing.


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## rahlquist (Jul 24, 2007)

SteveHas said:


> great job again guys
> 
> Its getting very frustrating though as a long time subscriber to see this great new equipment, with no known way of procuring one.


You can always hit one of the many threads which tell you where to 'purchase' one like solidsignal amazon 6thave and get one that way. Sometimes if you're a good customer and haven't gotten anything free for a bit you can call DirecTV and they will reimburse you via credits for some or all of the purchase.


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## LameLefty (Sep 29, 2006)

Excellent work on the document, folks. And good job by the entire Field Test team.


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## georgeorwell (Jun 21, 2007)

hilmar2k said:


> SolidSignal.com is a [generally] reputable dealer.


I'm a little confused by the lease/commitment disclaimer. If I don't have DirectTV and purchase the receiver, I'm locked into a 2 year commitment. If I am a current DirectTV customer, and purchase the receiver, it's a lease and technically DirectTV owns it, but I don't start a new 2 year commitment?


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## DogLover (Mar 19, 2007)

georgeorwell said:


> I'm a little confused by the lease/commitment disclaimer. If I don't have DirectTV and purchase the receiver, I'm locked into a 2 year commitment. If I am a current DirectTV customer, and purchase the receiver, it's a lease and technically DirectTV owns it, but I don't start a new 2 year commitment?


Any time you activate a leased receiver there is a new commitment. (The only exception would be if you are replacing a defective receiver.)


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## georgeorwell (Jun 21, 2007)

So if I buy an HR24, and send DirecTV my HR20 because it quit working, no commitment?


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## RobertE (Jun 10, 2006)

H24-700s are now in the wild.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

georgeorwell said:


> So if I buy an HR24, and send DirecTV my HR20 because it quit working, no commitment?


You may be able to work something out with DIRECTV, but don't count on it being a guarantee. You would certainly need to work with DIRECTV and even then it's not certain.


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## gulfwarvet (Mar 7, 2007)

Awesome job


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## NR4P (Jan 16, 2007)

georgeorwell said:


> So if I buy an HR24, and send DirecTV my HR20 because it quit working, no commitment?


If the RID is listed in the database as leased, in general, a contract extension is added.

I recently got approval to give a friend an H20-600 (warned him it gets hot). Now the H20-600 was leased but Directv didn't want it back. They said "do with it as you wish" when I stopped using it. I said "I wish to give it to my friend".

I was then transfered to a data team that had to change the RID in the database from leased to owned. They said, you know, you can now sell it on ebay as an owned receiver.

My friend took it home, activated it and CSR said no committment because it was owned.

The only other time I know when leases do not kick in is when Directv ships you the replacement for a defective receiver.

If you can buy a leased unit and make it without a commitment, please report back.

PS: Nice job on the second look folks! Glad more are coming.


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## David MacLeod (Jan 29, 2008)

rahlquist said:


> How do the temps compare between the HR24-100 and the HR24-500 with the different fan locations?


been averaging 108f on my hr24-100


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## Richierich (Jan 10, 2008)

Great Job Guys as you can't beat the HR24 Series for Responsiveness due to the Better and Faster CPU and More RAM!!!


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## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

Could you please share CPU info and RAM size from a system log file of a drive ?


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## ptrubey (Jan 23, 2006)

GallifreyRebel said:


> Maybe someone will help me here, but since you cannot get these at Best Buy anymore, and you cannot call DirecTV and order from them, how do you manage to get the devices? I find companies that sell them when I Google for the device, but who do you trust, I don't know these companies. Recommendations Please?


I've used weaknees a few times. I like them as they ship fast and they will sell you hard drive upgraded hr24s.


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## Richierich (Jan 10, 2008)

P Smith said:


> Could you please share CPU info and RAM size from a system log file of a drive ?


That information is all over the place here if you choose to use The Search Function!!!


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## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

I'd like to see a LOG, not what was - I did read all speculations.


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## rmbausa (Jun 15, 2009)

6th Avenue Electronics good deals fast, free delivery.


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

Glad folks are enjoying the information on the new units.

The added plus, of course, is that having another model out there improves the inventory. With the reported high demand of HR24 units, for example, having more than one model increases the probability they would be available.


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## 1dersky (Oct 9, 2007)

I just replaced my defective H20-100 that I was going to cancel service over (long story in another thread), but since that bastard Conan had to go and sign with TBS, and I'd REALLY miss college football and hockey, I picked up an H24 from a reseller.

One thing to note about the new receivers...I was surprised to find DirecTV put an HDMI cable in the box...but NOT a B-Band converter. (The reseller knew this and stuck one in the box they shipped the DTV box in, which was nice.)

Advice for calling DTV...tell them you're changing equipment, and if they don't ask where you got it from, don't volunteer. My CSR assumed THEY shipped it and didn't question why I didn't get a return label for the old receiver, which she is sending a recovery box for. Meaning...I didn't get stuck with a new 2-year commitment. So DirecTV keeps their 100 percent record with me for screwing up on every call...but for once it was in my favor. 

My opinion...If you're happy with your H20-100, I don't see a reason to upgrade from a functionality standpoint. Guide and channel change speed aren't all that different. Satellite acquisition is, but how often do you read the signal meters? Functionally, they're pretty much identical.

Cosmetically, on the other hand...I can't get over how much smaller this unit is. Pictures don't do the size difference justice. It looks SO much better in the space where the obnoxiously huge silver H20-100 was. The touch buttons are nice, as is the piano black face.

Surprisingly, I'm not missing the OTA tuner (which was really only necessary for convenience sake in my case). I have a Harmony remote that makes switching to the TV tuner easy, and unless I'm flipping between a satellite channel and an OTA channel, it all works pretty seamless. On the rare occasion where I might be frequently flipping between satellite and OTA, I'll probably just watch the DTV-fed OTA channel instead.


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## Steve (Aug 22, 2006)

1dersky said:


> [...] Cosmetically, on the other hand...I can't get over how much smaller this unit is. Pictures don't do the size difference justice [...]


+1. It's about 9x12x1, give or take 1/4" in each dimension.

Ours stands up vertically behind our kitchen LCD, sandwiched between the display and the wall and completely hidden.


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## cosmo (Mar 3, 2005)

the h 24 is about the size of the Apple i pad. hr 24 a little thicker.

and both need to use a b band converter unless you have a SWM lnb.

dtv also offers a ota ird that will sit on top of the hrxx so you can still use ota channels


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

cosmo said:


> the h 24 is about the size of the Apple i pad. hr 24 a little thicker.
> 
> and both need to use a b band converter unless you have a SWM lnb.
> 
> dtv also offers a ota ird that will sit on top of the hrxx so you can still use ota channels


Some "refinement" to your post.

1) The H24 footprint is about the size of an iPad, but several times "thicker.

2) The HR24 has both a larger footprint and even "thicker", or "taller", as I would call it.

3) You can have a SWiM LNB Dish, a SWiM, *or* SWiM16 to operate an H24 and/or HR24 without a BBC.


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## finaldiet (Jun 13, 2006)

They replaced my HR20 with a HR24-100. Just asked the DTV guy if he had any on truck and he said yes, so he gave it to me.


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## finaldiet (Jun 13, 2006)

Tech replaced my antenna with one that had one cone attached to a square like receiver. Is that a new type? I have an HR24-100 and VOD works great. IT's also very fast.


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## Mike Bertelson (Jan 24, 2007)

finaldiet said:


> Tech replaced my antenna with one that had one cone attached to a square like receiver. Is that a new type? I have an HR24-100 and VOD works great. IT's also very fast.


Never heard of such an antenna. Can you give some more info?

Mike


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## finaldiet (Jun 13, 2006)

He took down original antenna and replaced with one that had three cones attached to receiver end. One of the cones had what looked like two round cones inside. Must not have worked( had SWM written on it). Took it down and put another antenna that had a squarest end with one cone on it. It also had SWM insignia on it. All my meters showed in the 90's. When it stops raining, I'll check antenna for any number. Sorry that I'm not much help. Is there any place here that shows antenna types?


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## marquitos2 (Jan 10, 2004)

What a difference like night and day, I love my HR24-100. It is fast and nice looking.


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## jnelaine (Jun 8, 2008)

Here's a question for those of you who have called DirecTV and upgraded to an HR24. DirecTV offered me a free upgrade of my HR10-250. They said they couldn't guarantee that I'd get an HR24 from the install company, so they told me I could purchase one on my own from SolidSignal and they'd give me a $199 credit. Sweet! But as I expected, this deal comes with a new 2 year commitment. That's fine, but if it's possible to avoid the new commitment, that would be even better. Someone mentioned earlier in this thread that you can avoid the new commitment if you are replacing a dead receiver. Well as luck would have it (I guess), the hard drive just died in the HR10-250 (and it's a leased unit). Does this mean I can avoid the new 2 year commitment? I never told them that the unit was dead when I called to upgrade because I was worried that they wouldn't give me a free upgrade on a dead receiver. What do you think - should I call them back?


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## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

No harm in calling them I suppose but they probably won't have a lot of sympathy. The EOL date for HR10 was about 18 months ago.


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## erict (Jan 30, 2008)

I am out of contract and would really like this new HR24. I don't have a problem starting a new 2yr but want to know if the HR24 is a big difference over my current HR21-100? I have two lines going into my current receiver with the b-band converters. Can I just use the same ones on the HR24? I also want to find out if Directv will give me a $199 credit if I buy it from Solid Signal since they are right around the corner from me.


Does any have a size comparison between the HR21 and HR24?


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## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

You can use all the same wires. The big differences are speed and the self-configuring remote.


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## erict (Jan 30, 2008)

Stuart Sweet said:


> You can use all the same wires. The big differences are speed and the self-configuring remote.


The speed is why I'm looking into this, so that's good to know. As far as the self-configuring remote I do use a Harmony so I'm not sure if this is a bonus but would like to know more about it. What does it mean?


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## Steve (Aug 22, 2006)

erict said:


> The speed is why I'm looking into this, so that's good to know. As far as the self-configuring remote I do use a Harmony so I'm not sure if this is a bonus but would like to know more about it. What does it mean?


It's not for macros, just easier remote device set-up.

They have created a pretty large database of TV/AV/DVD player model #'s, so when you're programming your TV and you select Panasonic model 42xyz, e.g., from the list, the HR sends the correct set-up code directly to the remote. This is in lieu of listing 6-7 codes that _might _work with your display and you having to punch them in until you find one that works.


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## RB Service Tech (Apr 11, 2010)

If you upgrade to MRV you won't be disappointed. The new H24 and HR24's have a lot faster response time in relation to the remote and bigger hard drive than your old Tivo and HR20.


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## cloudy (Aug 15, 2010)

Am I seeing that picture correctly, the H24-700 has NO optical digital output?


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## Steve (Aug 22, 2006)

cloudy said:


> Am I seeing that picture correctly, the H24-700 has NO optical digital output?


Correct. Supports digital audio via COAX and HDMI, but not TOSLINK.


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## Mike Bertelson (Jan 24, 2007)

cloudy said:


> Am I seeing that picture correctly, the H24-700 has NO optical digital output?


I'm not sure why it's not on the H24 but is on the HR24. :shrug:

Toslink is pretty old though (pushing 30 years I think) and that may have something to do with it.

I had to get a toslink to coax adapter to connect it to my HDMI/Toslink switch. I think it was about $17. I could have used the coax connection on my AVR but I wanted to my universal remote macros the same.

Mike


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## cloudy (Aug 15, 2010)

Oh well. I did recently heard a pro stereophile say he preferred Coax or Optical always. So I guess I should go out and pick up some Coax digital cable.


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## Steve (Aug 22, 2006)

cloudy said:


> Oh well. I did recently heard a pro stereophile say he preferred Coax or Optical always. So I guess I should go out and pick up some Coax digital cable.


No need to get anything fancy. Monoprice has lots of inexpensive, but high quailty, cables here.


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## flashfast (Dec 12, 2006)

After leaving DTV last December because of the hr20's poor performance, I returned just 3 weeks ago and was given a hr24 and I have to say I'm very impressed with the improvement in speed. I use my in-laws old hr20 at their home and the speed difference is very exciting. Job well done DTV!


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