# Watching Recordings while Service Suspended



## DavidsonDuke (Sep 5, 2007)

We're going to suspend DirecTV for the beginning of the school year for 2 or more months. However, we have a number of recordings on our HR22 that we'd like to watch during that period. Is that possible, or is the HR20 unusable? 

Will the OTR antenna wouldn't work either if we needed to watch during bad weather or the like (I assume not)?

Thanks so much.


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

You're going to be "dead in the water".


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## Shades228 (Mar 18, 2008)

You could always drop to family instead of suspending if it's economics or you could setup locks and limits if it's due to wanting kids to focus on school and not watch tv while they get into a school routine.


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## cowart (Aug 27, 2007)

DavidsonDuke said:


> Will the OTR antenna wouldn't work either if we needed to watch during bad weather or the like (I assume not)?


You could connect the OTA antenna directly to the TV for viewing at any time. That's the way we used to do it back in the day...


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## DavidsonDuke (Sep 5, 2007)

Our DTV doesn't have an HD tuner, it requires a box of some sort.


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## joshjr (Aug 2, 2008)

DavidsonDuke said:


> Our DTV doesn't have an HD tuner, it requires a box of some sort.


If its a HR20 then it has the ATSC tuners for an OTA antenna to hook to it.


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## DavidsonDuke (Sep 5, 2007)

joshjr said:


> If its a HR20 then it has the ATSC tuners for an OTA antenna to hook to it.


Right. That was the point of the question. Can I use the ATSC tuner when I have the service suspended in case we want to watch local channels at some point.


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

DavidsonDuke said:


> Right. That was the point of the question. Can I use the ATSC tuner when I have the service suspended in case we want to watch local channels at some point.


 nope


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## Garyunc (Oct 8, 2006)

veryoldschool said:


> nope





DavidsonDuke said:


> Right. That was the point of the question. Can I use the ATSC tuner when I have the service suspended in case we want to watch local channels at some point.


This is why I got a coupon for the converter box when the government was passing them out. It only cost me $10 for a converter from Best Buy and I now have an option for over the air if my receiver is dead in the water.

The little converter box works good for those without ASTC tuners...


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## joshjr (Aug 2, 2008)

It probably wouldnt work without the guide working. I doubt the guide would work without an active account. Sounds like a converter box is needed. I got one even though I have a HR20. I looked at it this way. When I need the 3rd tuner this year I will just hook my antenna to the converter box and then use the DVR for the other shows. Should work just fine except for the pausing and the rewinding I am accustomed to. I for one really want a DVR with 4 tuners built into it.


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## Mike Bertelson (Jan 24, 2007)

DavidsonDuke said:


> Right. That was the point of the question. Can I use the ATSC tuner when I have the service suspended in case we want to watch local channels at some point.


When an account is suspended the receiver won't work at all. I have heard that if the DVR is disconnected from satellite before service is suspended you may be able to watch what's already recorded. However, that doesn't last and if the DVR is restarted for any reason that capability may go away.

I'm making an assumption here but it seems you're limited to using Parental Controls to limit viewing times or connect an antenna to the tuner on your TV. You could set it so that it won't output anything without unlocking it.

Hope this helps. If not feel free to ask. 

Mike


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## RACJ2 (Aug 2, 2008)

This doesn't help with your question about watching programs on a suspended account, but is an option while your account is suspended. 

If you want to watch OTA and have HD DVR capability, you could purchase the DTVPal HD DVR. It cost $250 upfront, but you own it and there are no monthlies. As far as I know, its the only HD DVR that records OTA. The only drawbacks are that it only has a 3 mo warranty and its still being refined.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

joshjr said:


> It probably wouldnt work without the guide working. I doubt the guide would work without an active account. Sounds like a converter box is needed. I got one even though I have a HR20. I looked at it this way. When I need the 3rd tuner this year I will just hook my antenna to the converter box and then use the DVR for the other shows. Should work just fine except for the pausing and the rewinding I am accustomed to. I for one really want a DVR with 4 tuners built into it.


There's no probably about it. No service .. No OTA. Best/cheapest route is a converter box (preferably one with ATSC out, but those likely cost more) or if you happen to have a stack of DVDs and a player, you may end up just watching movies for a couple of months.


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## whitepelican (May 9, 2007)

You could probably pick up an HR10-250 pretty cheap on ebay. You can use the OTA tuner on those just fine without a subscription, plus you'll actually get the signal in HD, whereas with a digital converter box you'd only get an SD signal. You'll also have dual live buffers available, allowing you to pause/rewind/ffwd live TV. You would need to hook up your satellite inputs to it to get the guide data, though.


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## RoyGBiv (Jul 24, 2007)

There are a couple of older D* receivers (not DVRs) that will also work without sat service and might be available cheaply on E-bay: Samsung's 160 and 360, and the RCA DTC-100. There may be others, but I've owned these three. All work for OTA without connection to a satellite. 

SMK


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## BAHitman (Oct 24, 2007)

i can confirm what does not work on HR20 unactivated... Everything except media share... 

I have a deactivated one at home right now and only thing it can do is media share


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## MrAP (Aug 5, 2009)

I have a SD-DVR (HDVR2 -- the DirecTV TiVo) and it was disconnected from the sat and phone before cancelling service last week. It is still working for playing previously recorded shows.

Do the comments in this thread mean that the HR22/23's will not work in that way (although that day is two years away for me!)?

Thanks.


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## Mike Bertelson (Jan 24, 2007)

MrAP said:


> I have a SD-DVR (HDVR2 -- the DirecTV TiVo) and it was disconnected from the sat and phone before cancelling service last week. It is still working for playing previously recorded shows.
> 
> Do the comments in this thread mean that the HR22/23's will not work in that way (although that day is two years away for me!)?
> 
> Thanks.


If it were disconnected from the satellite and phone/internet you may be able to watch previously recorded programs. How long is the question.

Not to mention that if you don't return the deactivated leased receiver in a timely manner you get whacked with a $470 non-returned HD DVR fee...unless you own it, then it's not a problem. :grin:

Mike


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## The Merg (Jun 24, 2007)

MrAP said:


> I have a SD-DVR (HDVR2 -- the DirecTV TiVo) and it was disconnected from the sat and phone before cancelling service last week. It is still working for playing previously recorded shows.
> 
> Do the comments in this thread mean that the HR22/23's will not work in that way (although that day is two years away for me!)?
> 
> Thanks.


Correct. All of the non-DirecTV branded DVR's will work without service in that you can watch old recorded content. The HR10's also allow you use of the OTA tuner without service. The DirecTV branded DVR's have software built-in that prevent the use of the DVR when service is cut off. This can sometimes be prevented for a short time by disconnecting the satellite input cables to the DVR prior to having service shut-off.

- Merg


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## RCY (Nov 17, 2005)

D* decided not to allow folks to watch recorded content without an active account to prevent exactly what you're doing. Unfortunately, there's no way to solve the current dilemma, but aside from what has been suggested in the thread so far, you have two other options for the future.

1) If you can use an antenna to get local TV, you could spend ~$250 for a DTVpal DVR that records OTA programming without a monthly service fee. There is a discussion group over at AVSforum that you can peruse to get the lowdown on that option. Any recordings you make are yours to watch whenever you want without a monthly fee. Unfortunately, if there are programs on USA, SyFy, <name your fav cable channel>, you won't be able to get those programs using this method.

2) If you have a PC with enough horsepower, you could dump the HR2x for a simple D* HD receiver and use a Happaugue HD PVR to record the HD component output onto your PC, using some PC application like BeyondTV, SageTV, etc. Then you also have access to the recordings to watch at your convience. Discontinue D* whenever you want, you still have the recordings. Requires that you have a PC with the horsepower and buying a HD PVR capture device. (a little less than $200) I'm considering this once my last surviving SD DVR dies. (but at least I can discontinue D* and still watch the recordings)

Between this and ink cartridges that disable the printer with smart chips after an "expiration date", I'm getting pretty disgusted with where the consumer electronics industry is going. :nono2:


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## MrAP (Aug 5, 2009)

The Merg said:


> Correct. All of the non-DirecTV branded DVR's will work without service in that you can watch old recorded content. The HR10's also allow you use of the OTA tuner without service. The DirecTV branded DVR's have software built-in that prevent the use of the DVR when service is cut off. This can sometimes be prevented for a short time by disconnecting the satellite input cables to the DVR prior to having service shut-off.
> 
> - Merg





MicroBeta said:


> If it were disconnected from the satellite and phone/internet you may be able to watch previously recorded programs. How long is the question.
> 
> Mike


Darn. I better watch all the shows from the DTV Tivo soon!!!


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## Mike Bertelson (Jan 24, 2007)

MrAP said:


> Darn. I better watch all the shows from the DTV Tivo soon!!!


Your HDVR2 should be fine. It's the DVR+ receivers that you will have a problem with.

Mike


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## TomCat (Aug 31, 2002)

MicroBeta said:


> If it were disconnected from the satellite and phone/internet you may be able to watch previously recorded programs. How long is the question...


Another thread here answered that question, and the answer was 13 hours. I have no idea if that is a _correct _answer, however.

Of course this means if your dish gets misaligned in a storm, that you have 13 hours to watch shows before you can't watch anything, which is pretty annoying, but maybe that's also what DTV wants, which is to get folks to fix their misaligned dishes rather than limping by and complaining to their friends for days on end about bad DTV service.

Were there really people filling up the HDD and then disconnecting service for months at a time?


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## MrAP (Aug 5, 2009)

MicroBeta said:


> Your HDVR2 should be fine. It's the DVR+ receivers that you will have a problem with.
> 
> Mike


Thanks! I thought so based on all the posts, but I wasn't certain, so was going to err on the side of caution. Now, I'll let it sit  but will have to remember I won't be able to do this in 2 years for the HR23


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## CCarncross (Jul 19, 2005)

TomCat said:


> Were there really people filling up the HDD and then disconnecting service for months at a time?


I wouldnt doubt that there were a ton of people that did this....


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## bootsy (Sep 26, 2007)

MicroBeta said:


> Your HDVR2 should be fine. *It's the DVR+ receivers that you will have a problem with.
> *
> Mike


I just took my DVR+ with me on vacation and was able to watch shows on there with no problem. My account is still active of course, but it wasn't hooked up to a dish at all, just to the tv.


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## Mike Bertelson (Jan 24, 2007)

bootsy said:


> I just took my DVR+ with me on vacation and was able to watch shows on there with no problem. My account is still active of course, but it wasn't hooked up to a dish at all, just to the tv.


How long did that last?

There will come a point where, if it doesn't see the satellite, it will not play recordings any more...I have no idea where that point is.

Mike


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## bdcottle (Mar 28, 2008)

MrAP said:


> Darn. I better watch all the shows from the DTV Tivo soon!!!


I have a HDVR2 that was disconnected 34 months ago and it still lets me watch the recorded shows.


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## dreadlk (Sep 18, 2007)

I dont think this kind of conversation is to anybody's benefit, the one thing I dont want to see D* do is go back to that horrible every 30 minute reboot software, which might happen if this thread gets to much attention. I think the OP should either do the Hauppauge recordings or deal with OTA with another tuner.


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## Shades228 (Mar 18, 2008)

dreadlk said:


> I dont think this kind of conversation is to anybody's benefit, the one thing I dont want to see D* do is go back to that horrible every 30 minute reboot software, which might happen if this thread gets to much attention. I think the OP should either do the Hauppauge recordings or deal with OTA with another tuner.


I'm not aware of them ever putting in a 30 minute reboot update intentionally.

99% of people have all leased equipment anyways so they're not going to hold onto it for months on end to watch stuff. If they disconnect it they'll send it back shortly, or should yes I'm aware some people have waited months for a recovery kit, and with all the other online options right now to watch series on TV I doubt that many people will go to this much extreme.

I may have missed it but the OP didn't even state why he wanted to suspend service. It could be due to financial or just lack of use. Depending on the scenario there could be better alternatives.


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## bootsy (Sep 26, 2007)

MicroBeta said:


> How long did that last?
> 
> There will come a point where, if it doesn't see the satellite, it will not play recordings any more...I have no idea where that point is.
> 
> Mike


At least a week. It didn't let me see them at first, but then i did a soft reset and after it loads back i just hit exit when searching for satellite comes up. After that i hit list, and voila, i could watch my shows....


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## dreadlk (Sep 18, 2007)

Yes, they did do that, at first there was no time limit then when people started posting about this kind of thing they changed it to 5-30 Minutes to try and stop those people from watching shows after a Sub is up or on suspension. Only recently did they extend the period to 13 hours.



Shades228 said:


> I'm not aware of them ever putting in a 30 minute reboot update intentionally.


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## MONSTERMAN (Aug 18, 2007)

I had my DVR unhooked from the sat lines for 5 months and was still able to view all the previously recorded programs I had on it.

The main thing you have to remember is to unhook your sat cable lines before you suspend your service, otherwise you will have to unsuspend, unhook, then suspend again (I made this mistake).

As for OTA, like others have said get yourself a free $50 rebate check, I did this about 2 months ago and got 2 rebate checks in a week. I'm still on the hunt for a ZENITH converter box (best ones). Kmarts and Sears are supposed to carry them but no luck here so far.


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## dreadlk (Sep 18, 2007)

I really doubt this is true, in my case I have a 1.5TB drive that is almost 50% full and almost all of it is stuff that I have either watched already or recorded for use on a bad TV night. The stuff that I typicaly don't watch within a few days of recording usualy gets left on the drive so long that I end up deleting it because frankly it was never all that important to me!
Even if a person does fill a typical 500gb drive with HD shows, what they have will not last all that long if it ends up being there main source of TV and if they even hoard it chances are months down the line its not even worth watching.
It's kind of like my collection of DVD's that are covered in dust.



CCarncross said:


> I wouldnt doubt that there were a ton of people that did this....


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## MONSTERMAN (Aug 18, 2007)

dreadlk said:


> I really doubt this is true


Don't know about your specific case, but I know for certain it is true of mine. I do this every year, so there is no doubt whatsoever that it does work.

I have two homes (1 primary and 1 vacation), so whenever I go on vacation I put the primary on suspension and take the DVR with me. Same as for the vacation home, I split time 6 months for each house and take the DVR's with me to watch the shows I never got a chance to watch (instead of killing myself trying to watch everything fast).

If you leave the cable(s) attached, sure 13 hours only. But how hard is it to remove your cable(s)?


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## stewdog1 (Sep 6, 2007)

BAHitman said:


> i can confirm what does not work on HR20 unactivated... Everything except media share...
> 
> I have a deactivated one at home right now and only thing it can do is media share


Heck, I have an active one and I can't even get media share to work.


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## EVAC41 (Jun 27, 2006)

BAHitman said:


> i can confirm what does not work on HR20 unactivated... Everything except media share...
> 
> I have a deactivated one at home right now and only thing it can do is media share


When I got into my serious accident to where I spend three months in the hospital and rehab for being hit by a car while working the Great Fargo Flood of 2009 I had to suspend my service. While being approved for weekend leave I went to my house and turned on the TV and I was not able to watch anything even my recorded shows. I also tried Media Share and I was locked out of that too. The whole HD DVR was dead...

Shawn


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