# Who likes/enjoys their 921?



## Jon Spackman (Feb 7, 2005)

With the overwhealming majority of negative posts, i thought we should start a thread or poll if mark likes, to see out of the many many readers here, who acutally likes and does indeed enjoy their 921.

I like mine alot and it performs well about 90-95% of the time.

Who else likes their 921?

PS if you think it a big POS, please refrain from telling us how much a hunk you think it is.


Jon


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## Todd G. (Jan 21, 2003)

I am very happy with my 921. I just wish they would implement guide data for adjacent ota DMA's. Even with the bugs, I am still very happy with it.

Todd


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## Rotryrkt (Dec 11, 2004)

I am mostly happy with mine, especially since I dropped the DISH locals! While I no longer have the OTA guide data, mine is more stable than before. It still has issues with underscanned DVI output on my particular TV along with most all other RCA DLP's, but I switched back to the component output till the next SW release, and the picture once again fills the screen. I have never had a ZSR, only a few stretch mode lockups, and it never misses a timer recording. I turn it off every night, and keep old recordings cleaned off.

All in all, I am fairly happy. I paid the reduced price ($525) and it has been my primary receiver since I got it in early Dec. 2004. If I had paid full price, though, my attitude would probably be different. I feel for you early adopters.:nono2: 

Bill


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## ntexasdude (Jan 23, 2005)

I've posted my satisfaction many times before in this forum. My has been near perfect and I am VERY happy with.


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## bryan92 (Oct 30, 2003)

Ive been very satisfied with mine. Ive had trouble just like most but all in all very happy. It doesnt hurt to mention that this forum and some others made it easier.


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## Slordak (Dec 17, 2003)

I'm mostly okay with mine, although my significant other can't talk about it without resorting to cursing. It's bitten me with a number of bugs during the time I've owned it, but it basically functions as designed.

I am a little jealous that the 942 is the receiver that "the 921 should have been", though. Of course without MPEG-4 supported, it's going to be in the exact same position as the 921 when Dish carries out their MPEG-4 plans.


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## Jim Parker (Aug 12, 2003)

I was happy with the performance of the 921 until V212 was issued. Since then, I have had ZSRs, missed timers, timers stop part way thru the recording and box lock ups. This software is the most unstable for me since before 1.80. Dish promised (on the last Charlie Chat) a software upgrade in early April that they say will fix many of the bugs. I am in a 'wait and see' mode on that promise.

When it works right, the 921 is a very cool toy. The DVR is a time efficient way to watch TV and the HD picture is a tremendous improvement over SD. I don't want to give up either the DVR or HD. 

What I am really burned about is that there will not be anymore HD channels for the 921. Charlie said no more MPEG2 HD at all, and no MPEG4 HD until this fall. I don't believe that any new HD MPEG4 channels will be on the satellite until there is a box that handles MPEG4, and I don't see that for at least a year.

I can get more HD channels from the local cable company, but their box will only record 6 to 8 hours of HD :barf: I can't see the Voom satellite from here. The bottom line is that there are no better options for me now. So, I will keep the 921 for the time being, and see what my future options are, either a better cable box, an upgrade offer from Dish for the 921 to an MPEG4 box or an unlikely addition of another satellite for Voom.

I don't want anybody to think that I am bashing Dish, because I am not. My 501 and 510 have been rock solid, and I have gotten a lot of use out of them. I feel that my money was well spent on those two boxes. I am upset over how Dish has handled this one item; providing HD to those of us that bought the 921 expecting Dish to be the HD leader that they promised.

So, Mark please don't close this thread on account of 'bashing', at least from me.  I think that I have a very valid point.


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## kmcnamara (Jan 30, 2004)

I'm generally OK with my 921 right now. Part of it is that I really only use it for watching PVR recorded events. It's not my main receiver (which is a 721). I'm still a little irritated that I spent $1000 for a box that was nearly unusable for the 1st 9 months of its existence but I'm starting to get over that.

Actually, I wouldn't be posting this at all if I had had a decent path to an HDTivo. The HDTivo doesn't have RGB output so there was an additional expense to convert the Component to RGB to connect it to my projector. I was so mad at one point that I was nearly ready to spend the extra money just to make it work.


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## pkeenan (Feb 21, 2005)

Like Rotryrkt, I purchased my box in Dec. 2004. I had been eyeballing the unit since it came on the market but couldn't justify the money to my lovely first wife. I haven't had to deal with the ZSR issue's but I still get the distorted picture in the analog out mode. The HDTV portion is solid both in Live view as well as playback. I haven't gone down the OTA mode yet but probably will by this Summer. All in all I'm satisfied with the 921 but wish that the future software upgrades bring some relief to the poor folks who've had to deal with all the bugs.


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## rstaples (Sep 17, 2004)

j5races said:


> With the overwhealming majority of negative posts, i thought we should start a thread or poll if mark likes, to see out of the many many readers here, who acutally likes and does indeed enjoy their 921.
> 
> I like mine alot and it performs well about 90-95% of the time.
> 
> ...


I like my 921 very much when it is working correctly. I would guess mine works about 85% to 90% of the time without some difficulties.

Trying not to be too negative here, but for $1000 it has far too many bugs, crashes far too often and is basically an unfinished product. I can not think of another product I have owned that has this many bugs and missing features that was not replaced with something functional or recalled. 
Other than that, it is GREAT!


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## invaliduser88 (Apr 23, 2002)

It's given me a whole lot more flexiblity in how and when I watch TV.

If Dish can just get the current bugs squashed, I would be VERY SATISFIED with it.


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## Rovingbar (Jan 25, 2005)

Our 921 is great. Very few problems. it records and reproduces HD very well. The up-conversion of Sat SD material to 480p looks very good on my Pioneer. I'm also impressed at how well it handels SD material from OTA Digital channels. I use the 921's Zoom mode to up-convert the SD to 1080i. The picture is very smooth and surprisingly free of video artifacts.

I do have Vonage and the bad connection issue. However it does not seem to affect our service at all. I've had very few ZSRs, and the ones we had seem to be related to a local OTA hardware change.

Overall, the 921 is a great device for us. The video reproduction and recording features are excellent and we are fortunate that few of the bugs affect us.

Life is good,
Jeff


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## Raymond Simonian (Nov 22, 2002)

I have been very happy with my 921. I purchased it about two months after its initial release. I had caller ID problems caused by the second or third download but it was fixed. The only other problem I remember was the aspect ratio problem that occurred after a recording was erased. I also remember for about six months it was recommended to unplug it for a few minutes every day. But other than that the Dish DVR's changed my whole viewing habits. I very rarely watch television "real time". I can't tolerate commercials any longer. I use it to make anamorphic DVD's. The new 942 does not interest me. I like the S-video of the 921 because I use it to go to my DVD recorder and then use the component output to go to the television. I also have an 811, 301, 311 and the DVR 501. The next DVR I purchase will be compliant with the new compression.


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## bnam (Nov 25, 2004)

I've had it since Dec and have only had to power off reboot once. That's it. No other major issues to report -- so pretty happy.
B


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## cpufixer1 (Jun 10, 2003)

I have happy with mine. With every release of new software the box gets more and more stable. I do not have most of the problems people post here.


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## allenwoodruff (Feb 3, 2004)

I am also very happy with mine. I have had it since Jan. 04. To me getting the OTA guide was a big deal. Since I am able to pickup all of my local OTA channels, the wife was happy to finally get guide data. I have had very few problems with mine every since I got it and have not missed a recording in many months. Yeah, I am a little disappointed that I paid $1,000 and now they are $500, but the same thing happened with my HDTV, it has dropped in price almost half since I bought it also. 

I sometimes wonder if some people here try to think up ways to make it crash so they can complain about it.


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## Avillant (May 21, 2004)

I love my 921!! I can't tell you how much it has added to my TV viewing pleasure. I have never lost any recordings and the recordings are beautiful. Sure it has bugs, and I think it is a disgrace that it has taken DISH over a year to get it working somewhat properly. However, the bugs are usually annoyances that I can live with. I got mine for $550 and suppose I would not be as happy if I had paid $1000 for it. My big complaint with DISH is the lack of HD programing, and the fact that it has taken so long to get problems ironed out and they still have a ways to go.

The BIG change that I wish DISH would make is to add a total of two OTA tuners! I am furtunate that I live in the Miami/Ft Lauderdale area and get great reception of all the major networks. Many times, I find that I have conflicts where there are programs opposite each other that I would like to see. If I watch one in HD, I have to record the other on my other SD DVR and watch it in SD (Ugh!)

With the exception of the search on TIVO, I think the DISH user interface is GROSSLY superior to D*. The guide on the D* TIVO is rediculously slow and annoying. With all the howling about NBR, I still don't feel it is really that great an improvement that I feel I have to have.

I really hope DISH gets their act together in the future and supplies us with a competitive amount of HD and gets more stable DVRs. If DISH does not keep up with D* as far as HD programming is concerned, I may be tempted to go to D* to get 2 OTA tuners and more HD, although I will definitely miss the superior DISH user interface.

I agree, that it seems that many of the complaints on this site seem to come from the same chronic complainers. Not to poo poo their experience, but it does hold up for me. Maybe I am just lucky.

Tony


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## gregmisc (Jan 10, 2005)

Mine worked about 85% to 90% of the time without some difficulties (I was happy with it then) until about 3 weeks ago. It's bitten me with a number of bugs during the last 3 weeks. Of course it caused many problems when I had in-laws visiting for 5 days and when I had friends over for March madness. We missed some key plays due to freeze ups and pixel problems so nobody wants to come back for the final four, I'm going to see the final 4 on Direct TV at my friends house because I CAN'T TRUST the 921.  

I am also mad that there will not be anymore HD channels for the 921. When it works right, the 921 is a very cool toy. The DVR is a time efficient way to watch TV and the HD picture is a tremendous improvement over SD.


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## Eagles (Dec 31, 2003)

I've been very happy with my 921. The first couple of months were very difficult with constant crashes (12/03- 03/04), but since then it has basically functioned as advertized with some minoe bugs, most of which I found can be worked around. The OTA side has been superb. I pull stations from three different cities, and no problems. I do wish they would somehow allow us to use PSIP if available for that purpose. I think that may be in the works. My one major complaint has been the 720P/ Closed Captioning Bug. This is also being fixed. If they get the 720P/CC bug fixed in the next release, I'll be sitting pretty.


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## DonLandis (Dec 17, 2003)

Observation-
Neither Mark, Simple Simon, nor I have posted an opinion in this thread. By the title, we don't belong.


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## BobMurdoch (Apr 24, 2002)

99% of the time it works fine for me. Occasional ZSR recordings when I have multiple timers active, but I have backups in place from west coast feeds in case one of them hiccups.

Great picture, 2 tuners, and I can record E*'s HD channels to a hard drive. I like the speed of the guide and the fonts are easy to see on my 57" screen and they aren't muddy (unless I have it on SD mode for archiving to DVD). I just wsh they could lock down the bugs and then I would be happy until the MPeg4 HD PVRs come out.......


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## Skates (Apr 15, 2004)

This is the only way I know how to say it:

I like it, except when I hate it (luckily, that's only about 10-20% of the time)


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## Michael P (Oct 27, 2004)

I'm happy with my 921 for the most part. I'm using it in SD mode only for now, so I guess I have missed some of the bugs that affect the HD output only.

I probably use the OTA feature the most - downconverted locals (HD and SD) look superb on my Sony Triniton 27". Even the SD satellite channels look better than they did on my old 4000.

I only wish I could get OTA guide data without having to subscribe to those overcompressed LIL's :barf: 
I will not subscribe to the dish locals just to get the data.


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## SimpleSimon (Jan 15, 2004)

DonLandis said:


> Observation-
> Neither Mark, Simple Simon, nor I have posted an opinion in this thread. By the title, we don't belong.


 You are correct.

It's not just the 921, it's how we are treated by E* that really sucks.


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## tech_head (Dec 8, 2004)

Hi,

Since 212 mine has become more unstable.
Remote won't change zoom modes unless I reboot.
Timers not firing.
Zero Lenght Recordings.

Too expensive to be this buggy.

Tech


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## tnsprin (Mar 16, 2003)

In general, I love my two 921's. BUt of course I could live without some of the nasty bugs that exist. Still I general record 25 hours a week on my primary 921. 3 or 4 hours on my secondary. Almost never get to watch anything live.


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## boylehome (Jul 16, 2004)

Yes I like/enjoy my 921's, kinda like a rollercoaster ride. They also keep me on the edge of my seat at times because of the suspense. I like them especially when they glitch, as this gives me other options in lieu of relaxation. Putting those items aside, the 921's have the potential of being magnificent units that I really look forward to enjoying more, once perfected.


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## sampatterson (Aug 27, 2002)

I was mostly OK with my 921s until just before 212. Now I am unhappy, mostly because my wife is unhappy because of missed recordings, 0 length recordings, etc. I am ready to switch them out to the next beta project from dish (the 942) and will be doing that hopefully starting next week.


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## Mark Lamutt (Mar 24, 2002)

I haven't posted in this thread for 2 reasons...been pretty sick for the last 4 days, and haven't really felt like posting much, and don't really have much to say about this other than I like my 921 this week better than I liked it last week. Still don't like it as much as I like the 942, though.


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## ckgrick (Oct 25, 2004)

I'm 95% happy which is pretty good compared to some other high tech stuff I have. The 5% is due to ZS R's. All my DVHS & SVHS recorders have not been used once since the 921. I should mention OTA isn't an issue where I live though.

I'm leaving for a week tomorrow and try doing advance recording setup during the changeover to DST. NBR would sure be nice. Told my wife we're not travelling again the first weekend of April or the last weekend of October.


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## JM Anthony (Nov 16, 2003)

Boy! This is the first time this question has been asked!!!

Had mine for the better part of 10 months. We're not the most demanding consumers (we use our 921 to watch TV and occassionally will record programs, but rarely need to record multiple programs at the same time) and the 921 works pretty well for us. No it's not perfect. Yes it's a little noisy (but I've got some replacement fans I'll be installing soon).

Since most of our HDTV viewing will be OTA for the foreseeable future, my technology investments are going into a home theater PC which we've just installed and is very easy to upgrade. Sound and PQ that will knock your socks off.


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## Mark Lamutt (Mar 24, 2002)

JM Anthony said:


> Boy! This is the first time this question has been asked!!!


Are you being serious, or did you forget the ?

This same thread gets posted about every 3-4 weeks. All that has to happen for the new one to be posted is for this one to fall off the first 3 or 4 pages.


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## Jim Parker (Aug 12, 2003)

Mark Lamutt said:


> I haven't posted in this thread for 2 reasons...been pretty sick for the last 4 days, and haven't really felt like posting much, and don't really have much to say about this other than I like my 921 this week better than I liked it last week. Still don't like it as much as I like the 942, though.


Hope you are feeling better soon :balloons:

I'm glad to hear that you like it better this week. I think that they called it 2.12 because it makes people boiling mad. :lol: (Reading between the lines.)


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## jergenf (Mar 31, 2005)

My previous receiver was the 5000 and the guide info would take many minutes to update.
And to my surprise it became obsolete without any notice.

Despite the quirks the 921 is my best receiver. Like the DVR feature, dual tuners, 9 day EPG and most important the ability to get HD off the air as well as satellite.


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## dfergie (Feb 28, 2003)

Had mine since Nov... Still liking it...


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## Parp (Jun 19, 2004)

Anyone else see the Time Warner Cable commercial with the guy smashing his dish with a hockey stick (because satellite make it too difficult to get HDTV)?

That is how I'm starting to feel about my 921 and Echostar.

The latest "daylight savings time" timer issue is a good example of how ridiculous this has become... But I continue with it, cuz I spent 1000 bucks, and keep hoping it will get better...


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## UT_Texan (Dec 9, 2004)

For me I am about 85% satisfied. Only real problems I have is aspect button, jitter/distortion video. I think what is most annoying is we have know way to know what to avoid doing so as to not have problems. I mean 2-3 weeks ago for at least a week I was having to reboot my box everyday because of aspect problem but now for the last week or so no need to reboot except for sw install.
The only other problem is the mpg4 solution. I mean why is so hard for them to tell us what their plans are. We keep hearing from Dish that they are going to go to mpg4 and are trying to sell everyone on it but yet they refuse to tell us how we will get it. It is like mastercard saying we are going to a card you don't have to swipe anymore but yet the retailers/customers don't have any idea/means to use the new tech.


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## guruka (Dec 27, 2003)

Of course, I don't own a 942 with which to compare it.

I've had my 921 for 15 months and it's very reliable. I use it for both sat and OTA recording and viewing. The only anomaly I am experiencing now is the "locked stretch aspect ratio" issue where the # button fails to change aspect ratio - when this happens, a SD/HD mode switch usually unlocks it, but sometimes the SD/HD mode switch button freezes as well. In this case, a power button soft boot always fixes it.

.....G


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## HarryS (Mar 6, 2005)

I am happy so far with our 921. We've had it since Feb 05, and I've only seen a couple of the glitches I've read about here.


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## joebird (Sep 15, 2003)

I was pretty happy, actually, until L213. I did not have any ZSRs, video issues, etc. But since L213 the unit has locked up a couple of times, I've had to re-do all of my timers, and it's generally 'sluggish' now compared to L212 which was working great (never had to re-boot with that version).


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## BobMurdoch (Apr 24, 2002)

Mine has been sluggish as well. It seems like we are moving backwards with each new release over the last 4-6 months.....


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## Ke.ster (Apr 7, 2005)

Love Mine, but over the last month or so It's been buggy. It's been locking up and responding slowly. It will start recording and then not stop unless I pull the plug. I even turned the unit off once (no lights illuminated on the front Panel) and had the program continue to play on the TV for another 3 or 4 minutes and the sound continued for another 2 minutes after that. All and all I'm happy with it, I can live with a few bugs


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## langlin (Apr 8, 2005)

I have only had 921 since 1/10/05 and I have only had to deal with one real bug, the "stretch" problem. I have never lost any recordings and the recordings are beautiful. Since I live over 70 miles from a digital OTA, I was not expecting to have OTA service but to my surprise I receive three stations with 10 signal streams OTA and that is a bonus. But I only have guide data for one stream out of 10. If I had FULL OTA guides like other receivers have and the stretch was fixed, my experience would be perfect, I don't have the problems others are listing (YET???) So I'm Happy
Leon


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## capa (Feb 25, 2005)

Except ocassional stuck in the zoom mode. My has been near perfect and I am VERY happy with.


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## Bradtothebone (Aug 11, 2003)

You know, really, the 921 has been a pretty good machine for us. Sure, there have been some issues with audio dropouts (which mostly have stopped, for some reason), and the locked stretch mode. For the most part, though, it has been utterly reliable. It's our first experience with a DVR, and even with the awkward interface for recording OTA with no program guide, it really has changed the way we use our time in the evenings.

Here's an example of the 921 doing something right: A couple of nights ago, we had it recording "Desperate Housewives" and "Grey's Anatomy" on ABC OTA. We started watching (from the beginning) while the programs were still recording. A thunderstorm blew in, and a lightning strike knocked out the power for a couple of seconds - long enough to cause the 921 to reboot. We figured that we would lose the rest of "Grey's Anatomy," so went to another TV to watch on the analog channel. A few minutes later, I went back downstairs to check on the 921, and there it was, recording away. When we went into the DVR menu, we discovered that it had broken the recording into two: pre-lightning strike and post-lightning strike. The only part missing was a few minutes during the reboot! Now, you might say, "Sure, that's just the way it's supposed to work." And you're right, of course, but the point is IT DID WORK. And most of the time, it DOES work right.

The bad news is the OTA program guide not working without subscribing to E* locals. This is just one more example of E* not giving a second thought to keeping their "best" customers happy. It is absoultely ridiculous to have to purchase unwatchable, over-compressed SD channels when you can receive them in pristine HDTV glory OTA, and I WON'T DO IT! That is part of what the DVR fee should be for, perhaps. Or, even better, let it get PSIP info from the stations that are providing it.  

Brad


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## Jon Spackman (Feb 7, 2005)

"Here's an example of the 921 doing something right: A couple of nights ago, we had it recording "Desperate Housewives" and "Grey's Anatomy" on ABC OTA. We started watching (from the beginning) while the programs were still recording. A thunderstorm blew in, and a lightning strike knocked out the power for a couple of seconds - long enough to cause the 921 to reboot."

Do yourself a favor and get an inexpensive battery backup (like APC or?) they are only about 30-40 dollars and you would have had your whole show waiting for you.

Jon


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## Bradtothebone (Aug 11, 2003)

j5races said:


> "Here's an example of the 921 doing something right: A couple of nights ago, we had it recording "Desperate Housewives" and "Grey's Anatomy" on ABC OTA. We started watching (from the beginning) while the programs were still recording. A thunderstorm blew in, and a lightning strike knocked out the power for a couple of seconds - long enough to cause the 921 to reboot."
> 
> Do yourself a favor and get an inexpensive battery backup (like APC or?) they are only about 30-40 dollars and you would have had your whole show waiting for you.
> 
> Jon


Yeah, that's the first thing I said to my wife - "Now we're going to have to go buy a UPS for this thing!" :lol:

Brad


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## welchwarlock (Jan 5, 2005)

Mark Lamutt said:


> I haven't posted in this thread for 2 reasons...been pretty sick for the last 4 days, and haven't really felt like posting much, and don't really have much to say about this other than I like my 921 this week better than I liked it last week. Still don't like it as much as I like the 942, though.


I'll bite...what did you like better about it that week? An insite into fixes or features to come?


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