# Dish Network HD Receiver Upgrade - Mandatory



## oldsmoboat

1st post, hopefully right forum.

Has anyone called to get or gotten their new receiver?
I have wanted the ViP722 but they wanted me to pay so I kept my 942. 
My 942 does TV1/TV2 as does the ViP722. The ViP622 only does TV1. 
Are they offering the 722 for the 942? Are they requiring a contract for the upgrade?
I don't want to call till I have my ducks in a row.
TIA

Email I received.

Dear Valued Customer,
We want to notify you of very important information regarding your DISH Network HD receiver(s) and programming. Due to improvements in our HD technology, it is necessary to upgrade one or more of your high-definition receivers. We need to make sure that you can take advantage of our next generation of HD by upgrading your older model HD receiver(s) for FREE*. Please note that if you do not upgrade your older model HD receiver(s), you will lose your HD programming.

For only a penny more per month, we can upgrade your HD programming so you can start enjoying at least 23 more of the best HD national channels, like Disney HD, ABC Family HD, Discovery HD, Travel Channel HD and The Weather Channel HD. These are just some of the many channels that we are adding to our lineup, with 100+ national HD channels available by the end of the year!

Check out The Weather Channel's brand new studio with the latest in HD graphic technology as well as vivid, on-the-scene reporting where major weather stories break.

Plus, you have the opportunity to add 10 exciting HD movie channels like Starz HD**. Starz HD welcomes you to the world of high-definition where hit movies like Spiderman 3 and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End and Starz original programming are enjoyed with a picture that is 5 times sharper than standard TV!

Call DISH Network today at 1-888-383-3727 to schedule your FREE HD receiver upgrade and get the most out of your HD experience!

State-of-the-art HD equipment
100+ national HD channels available this year, like The Weather Channel HD!
100 local HD markets this year
The best sports and movies in HD
Ask for Starz HD and get access to great HD movies!

YOU MUST TAKE ACTION NOW TO PREVENT INTERRUPTION OF YOUR SERVICE. Please call
1-888-383-3727 so we may schedule your FREE receiver upgrade today! We thank you for your business and for continuing to be a valued DISH Network customer.

Sincerely,
DISH Network


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## puckwithahalo

> The ViP622 only does TV1.


this is incorrect. the 622 is (operations-wise) a 722 with a smaller hard drive.


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## oldsmoboat

puckwithahalo said:


> this is incorrect. the 622 is (operations-wise) a 722 with a smaller hard drive.


Hmm, I missed that in the brochure. Thanks for clearing that up. I guess I was confused because the 622 only comes with one remote.


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## TulsaOK

oldsmoboat said:


> Hmm, I missed that in the brochure. Thanks for clearing that up. I guess I was confused because the 622 only comes with one remote.


No, the 622 comes with two remote controls. One IR and one UHF.


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## CABill

The 622 comes with two remotes (5.3 and 6.3), but your 5.2 and 6.2 remotes will work fine on a 622/722. I have NOT yet upgraded my 942s, so this is only based on my conversation when they called me. The only a penny more may, and may not, be correct - it depends on what other receivers you might have (if you are going to keep them active).

Eventhough you might be able to disconnect the 942 and reconnect a 622, they will schedule an Install. As long as the guy has a 622 on his truck, that is probably what you'll get. If he happens to only have 722s, I think you'd get a 722. I don't believe there is any way to pay DISH and instead get a 722. 622/722, it will be a leased receiver. If you own the 942, they will give you $10 for it, but you DON'T have to sell it back to them and you could use it as a Digital Transition device (with recording, but no Guide) on some TV w/o an active DISH subscription. I'm not clear if you could leave it active on the account - you could ask if it matters to you.

There is no commit required, and you don't have to put up any money. If you end up with two or more ViP receivers, they will be $2/month more than the older receivers. If you only have a single ViP receiver replacing a single 942, nothing should change except the $10 instead of $9.99 (assumes you sub to the old HD Pak). I think I'll go for the upgrade for one of my 942s and get a leased 622 (722 if REAL lucky) and finally RMA (HDMI for at least two years) the other owned 942 to get an owned 622 replacement.

If you do upgrade to a ViP, there is a subtle "commit" of sorts. All non-ViP receivers after the 1st have a $5/month fee (either a lease fee or Addl Rec if owned). In Feb, ViPs increased from $6 to $7, as did the HD Enable fee (waived if you subscribe to HD programming package). You are somewhat commited to whatever increase DISH picks for ViP receivers (you can always return the leased receiver and not have to pay). They won't, but next Feb DISH could increase the HD Enable to $10 and the minimum HD package to $15 and add a buck to the ViP receiver fee to $8. You'd have to pay the $10/$15, plus the $8 if it isn't the 1st receiver, or use a non-ViP receiver. They could also increase the non-ViP receivers in Feb - nobody knows. All I'm saying is that it might cost you more than a penny right now, and possibly even more down the road. But there is NO term commit from the upgrade.

HTH.


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## garys

oldsmoboat said:


> Hmm, I missed that in the brochure. Thanks for clearing that up. I guess I was confused because the 622 only comes with one remote.


I think you have confused the 622 with the 612 which only does one tv and has the one remote.


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## snowcat

This is encouraging. My parents have a 942, and I have been wanting them to upgrade to a newer model so that they can get the local channels in HD.

I don't know if they have received that email yet, but I will get them to call that number.


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## oldsmoboat

I see my issue.
I clicked the link for the 622 brochure. The url and title bar both say 622. But the brochure is for the 612.
Thanks for the help.
http://www.dishnetwork.com/downloads/pdf/product_brochures/ViP622_ProductSheet_HighRes.pdf


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## Hunter844

I got the email today and called...an hour later I finally was setup with a tech coming out next weekend to install. I was able to somehow shave some money off what I'm currently paying and I'm getting more channels in HD so it's a win win situation it appears.

I was going to get my other receiver upgraded to a 722/622 but the girl on the other line was already so confused enough as it was. I figured I would just get along for now with the 211 they are sending out to replace my 811 and then buy a HD DVR to replace my 511 here in the next few months.


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## phrelin

Ah, the web site managed by Darryl and his other brother Darryl.

The link: http://www.dishnetwork.com/downloads/pdf/product_brochures/ViP622_ProductSheet_HighRes.pdf gives you a nice brochure for "the high-definition ViP612™ DVR, our advanced receiver that is an ideal solution for the HD home.":eek2:


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## zapata

Hunter844 said:


> I got the email today and called...an hour later I finally was setup with a tech coming out next weekend to install. I was able to somehow shave some money off what I'm currently paying and I'm getting more channels in HD so it's a win win situation it appears.
> 
> I was going to get my other receiver upgraded to a 722/622 but the girl on the other line was already so confused enough as it was. I figured I would just get along for now with the 211 they are sending out to replace my 811 and then buy a HD DVR to replace my 511 here in the next few months.


How were you able to shave off some money? Can you please share? I am about to call them. May be our accounts are similar and I could get the same savings you got. . I have 1 HD, 1 SD receiver with their 100 channel lineup and 9.99 HD package.


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## oldsmoboat

Called them. I lease the equipment.
942 - 622, no cost. Will be installed on Tuesday and they have to replace the LNB and possibly the dish, the CSR wasn't sure.

She did say the 942 would not work at all after 8/01/08. That's bad as I wanted to use the 942 to replace the 510 in the bedroom. I hate the guide on the 510.

They would upgrade to the 722 but I stopped her when she mentioned a new 24 month commitment so I don't know the cost. We may be moving in a couple of months so I want my options open as far as TV signal.

$.01 per month increase in bill for the new HD package.

If you sign up for automatic bill pay they will waive the $5.98 monthly charge (lease I believe) and offer you Cinemax for $.01 a month for 12 months. It has 8 channels: 5 SD and 3 HD. They also have a new release every Saturday.


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## scoobyxj

CABill said:


> As long as the guy has a 622 on his truck, that is probably what you'll get. *If he happens to only have 722s*, I think you'd get a 722.


Thats the way I roll. Even so just ask him for a 722. (If he has one.) It can't hurt.


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## Hunter844

zapata said:


> How were you able to shave off some money? Can you please share? I am about to call them. May be our accounts are similar and I could get the same savings you got. . I have 1 HD, 1 SD receiver with their 100 channel lineup and 9.99 HD package.


Well they signed me up for auto bill pay even though I was already doing it. And that saved me $5.98. I believe they may call that the Dish Home Advantage...

I dumped the Multi-Sports package which is virtually useless and that's another $6 bucks or so.

She talked me into some kind of insurance deal which I suppose covers the receiver if it quits. I still have to pay if someone has to come out though.

I think that's about it. Seems like there might have been something else but I can't remember now.

All in all I went from 92/month bucks to around 80 bucks.


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## CABill

oldsmoboat said:


> Called them. I lease the equipment.
> 942 - 622, no cost. Will be installed on Tuesday and they have to replace the LNB and possibly the dish, the CSR wasn't sure.
> 
> She did say the 942 would not work at all after 8/01/08. That's bad as I wanted to use the 942 to replace the 510 in the bedroom. I hate the guide on the 510.
> 
> They would upgrade to the 722 but I stopped her when she mentioned a new 24 month commitment so I don't know the cost. We may be moving in a couple of months so I want my options open as far as TV signal.
> 
> $.01 per month increase in bill for the new HD package.
> 
> If you sign up for automatic bill pay they will waive the $5.98 monthly charge (lease I believe) and offer you Cinemax for $.01 a month for 12 months. It has 8 channels: 5 SD and 3 HD. They also have a new release every Saturday.


I can't make out if you're saying "I lease the equipment now" (some 942s were leased, but not many), or "the new equipment will be leased". If you do own the 942 and 510, ignore what the CSR said about it not working after August and drop the 510 from the account - cost is the same (assumes a phone connection for the 942 in the 510 room). Certainly shouldn't return an owned 942 to DISH for the $10 they'd give you.

Saving $5.98 doesn't have anything to do with this upgrade. Someone with AT200 or AT250 could have switched to Dish DVR Advantage (Auto Pay / paperless billing) and saved the $5.98 with their current DVR that has a fee. CSR was just helping you save $. Someone already using Dish DVR Advantage wouldn't be "saving anything".

scoobyxj is right that it can't hurt to ask the guy about a 722 instead of a 622 - it would certainly be worth a good tip!


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## CABill

Hunter844 said:


> All in all I went from 92/month bucks to around 80 bucks.


$5.98 is Dish DVR Advantage and the Multi-sport would get you to $12 in savings, but there must be something else since adding DHPP (Home Protection Plan insurance / extended warantee) @ $5.99 would cut the savings back to $6.


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## oldsmoboat

CABill said:


> I can't make out if you're saying "I lease the equipment now" (some 942s were leased, but not many), or "the new equipment will be leased". If you do own the 942 and 510, ignore what the CSR said about it not working after August and drop the 510 from the account - cost is the same (assumes a phone connection for the 942 in the 510 room). Certainly shouldn't return an owned 942 to DISH for the $10 they'd give you.
> 
> Saving $5.98 doesn't have anything to do with this upgrade. Someone with AT200 or AT250 could have switched to Dish DVR Advantage (Auto Pay / paperless billing) and saved the $5.98 with their current DVR that has a fee. CSR was just helping you save $. Someone already using Dish DVR Advantage wouldn't be "saving anything".
> 
> scoobyxj is right that it can't hurt to ask the guy about a 722 instead of a 622 - it would certainly be worth a good tip!


I meant the equipment I have now, 942 and 510, is leased. I wasn't sure if I owned it or not. Wife pays the bills so I don't see it.
What would be considered a good tip? When the system was originally installed, the installer wouldn't take a tip but I could think of at least 20 reasons I'd rather have the 722.


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## Jim5506

Hunter844 said:


> She talked me into some kind of insurance deal which I suppose covers the receiver if it quits. I still have to pay if someone has to come out though.


Sounds like they gave Dish DVR Advantage, it saves you 3 bucks or so a month.

You don't need the DHA (Insurance).

If your receiver or LNB or whatever fails, call and sign up for DHA - hang up and call back to report the problem.

When it's fixed, drop the DHA again.


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## TulsaOK

Jim5506 said:


> Sounds like they gave Dish DVR Advantage, it saves you 3 bucks or so a month.
> 
> You don't need the DHA (Insurance).
> 
> If your receiver or LNB or whatever fails, call and sign up for DHA - hang up and call back to report the problem.
> 
> When it's fixed, drop the DHA again.


The insurance is Dish Home Protection Plan (DHPP).


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## 4HiMarks

I have a 921 (owned) that I removed from my account when I got a 622. Should I reactivate it to get this upgrade or can I just call them and ask for a replacement? I don't really care if I get a 622 or 722, as long as I own it instead of leasing. I paid $1000 for that thing and I was not going to sell it back to them for $25 when it still worked perfectly well as an OTA DVR. 

-Chris


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## CABill

If you were to reactivate (dunno if you can or can't, just IF) the 921, this Upgrade does NOT get you an owned 622, it gets you a leased receiver for no $, and no commit. If you were to RA the active 921 because it didn't work, you would get an owned receiver for an owned 921/942.

Insult to injury, they only offer $10 now if you turn the owned 921 in for a leased 622. But, turning in the owned receiver isn't required to get the leased 622. I haven't done it, but that's how it was explained to me. The more I type about it, the more I'm tempted to go for one owned, one leased ViP, but haven't pulled the trigger.


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## dbrakob

4HiMarks said:


> I have a 921 (owned) that I removed from my account when I got a 622. Should I reactivate it to get this upgrade or can I just call them and ask for a replacement? I don't really care if I get a 622 or 722, as long as I own it instead of leasing. I paid $1000 for that thing and I was not going to sell it back to them for $25 when it still worked perfectly well as an OTA DVR.
> 
> -Chris


As I am a "lease" kind of person when it comes to technology as things change so fast I was just wondering why you are so adamant about buying rather than leasing. If you had "leased" the 921 in Jan 2004 you would have spent $288 in lease fees over the last 4 years instead of $975 ($1000 purchase + trade-in). Not trying to criticize as I know everyone has different situations and needs but just seeing if I need to rethink my reasoning when it comes to Dish tech products as I have only had Dish for a year and you have had them a lot longer. I am the same way about cars as I have owned many Hondas and bought and sold them in 3 years and paid far less than if I would have leased them. Of course a 3 year old Civic is worth about 70% of purchase value where it seems your 921 retained only 2.5% of purchase value.


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## 4HiMarks

dbrakob said:


> As I am a "lease" kind of person when it comes to technology as things change so fast I was just wondering why you are so adamant about buying rather than leasing. If you had "leased" the 921 in Jan 2004 you would have spent $288 in lease fees over the last 4 years instead of $975 ($1000 purchase + trade-in). Not trying to criticize as I know everyone has different situations and needs but just seeing if I need to rethink my reasoning when it comes to Dish tech products as I have only had Dish for a year and you have had them a lot longer. I am the same way about cars as I have owned many Hondas and bought and sold them in 3 years and paid far less than if I would have leased them. Of course a 3 year old Civic is worth about 70% of purchase value where it seems your 921 retained only 2.5% of purchase value.


In Jan 2004, purchasing a 921 from E* for $1000 was the only HD DVR option available anywhere. And you were lucky to get one then. I had to email Charlie about it. Since I have already spent the money, why would I want to give it up unless I absolutely have to? If I can get them to replace my owned 921 with an owned 622, isn't that preferable to replacing it with a leased one?

-Chris


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## Hunter844

4HiMarks said:


> In Jan 2004, purchasing a 921 from E* for $1000 was the only HD DVR option available anywhere. And you were lucky to get one then. I had to email Charlie about it. Since I have already spent the money, why would I want to give it up unless I absolutely have to? If I can get them to replace my owned 921 with an owned 622, isn't that preferable to replacing it with a leased one?
> 
> -Chris


It's certainly worth trying. I don't see them doing anything for you though.


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## Nick

Jim5506 said:


> Sounds like they gave Dish DVR Advantage, it saves you 3 bucks or so a month.
> 
> You don't need the DHA (Insurance).
> 
> If your receiver or LNB or whatever fails, call and sign up for DHA - hang up and call back to report the problem.
> 
> When it's fixed, drop the DHA again.


What ever happened to ethics? :shrug:


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## 4HiMarks

Hunter844 said:


> It's certainly worth trying. I don't see them doing anything for you though.


They did. I re-activated yesterday evening, then when I check a couple of hours later, all I could get was the medallion. I called tech support, and was eventually escalated to level 2. He tried to get me to accept a leased box, but I stood firm, pointing out that mine was still the original box and other people on this forum were on their 9th or tenth replacement, which they still owned. I have also kept a 501 on my account even though I never watch it, simply because it carries the DHP warrenty (or whatever they call it) so I can get a replacement and free service call. I know there is a new plan for $6 a month, but the 501 is only $5, so why change?

He put me on hold, but eventually came back on and they are sending me a replacement for free. I asked if I will own it, and he said yes.

Interestingly, even the level 2 tech said he "was unfamiliar with the medallion". (I don't think the first guy I spoke to had ever even seen a 921).

-Chris


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## koji68

phrelin said:


> Ah, the web site managed by Darryl and his other brother Darryl.


Blood Hound Gang! Yeah! :icon_hroc


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## Jim5506

Actually, a Dish CSR recommendation.


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## Donp

I just got my 811 replaced by a VIP-211 and I told the installer that I wanted to keep my 811 and apply it to a second TV. When the installer was talking to the Dish guy he told hin that and then the installer handed his phone to me and the Dish guy told me that the 811 would not be supported after and "do dark" at the end of July. "That was why they (Dish) were offering the free upgrade." That was what the Dish guy on the phone said. So I turned in my old 811 for $10.00 off my first bill.

I posted this on the 811 etc forum too

So if you have a soon to be out dated reciever you had best upgrade.


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## James Long

I wonder about that ... because it is a special deal asking for the 811 in exchange makes sense - but I don't see DISH bricking the 811's. They will be bricks as far as satellite HD goes (no MPEG4) but they are still capable of receiving OTA and could be set up as an SD only receiver with an OTA tuner.

MPEG2 HD will "go dark" at the end of July ... but the 811/921/942/6000's? I don't think so.


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## oldsmoboat

Donp said:


> ... When the installer was talking to the Dish guy he told hin that and then the installer handed his phone to me and the Dish guy told me that the 811 would not be supported after and "do dark" at the end of July. ...


I hope they are wrong.. :lol: 
On the phone the CSR said my 942 wouldn't work at all after 8/1/08. The installer said that it would get SD but not HD. He replaced my 510 (in a second room) with the 942 and took the 510. 

I will say this. I ran the 942 to my 50" plasma via components as the plasma only has one HDMI port and my HDDVD was using it. The difference between the 942 on components and the 622 on HDMI is night a day. WAY better PQ.


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## Donp

James Long said:


> I wonder about that ... because it is a special deal asking for the 811 in exchange makes sense - but I don't see DISH bricking the 811's. They will be bricks as far as satellite HD goes (no MPEG4) but they are still capable of receiving OTA and could be set up as an SD only receiver with an OTA tuner.
> 
> MPEG2 HD will "go dark" at the end of July ... but the 811/921/942/6000's? I don't think so.


The Dish guy just said that I could keep my 811 as a second unit but he didn't want me to get any rude surprises. I said like what and he did say that the 811 and other recievers would not just loose their HD programming but they will be totally unsupported, no software updates or anything after July 2008. I said then the 811 will be a door stop and he said yes. That is why I turned it in eventhough it was mine, not a lease. My installer didn't know which way it was going to go with my 811 until he had to make his call to Dish after the install. I questioned the SD reception too for my old 811 and I was told that would cease at the end of July.

James you sould be able to check on this too


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## CABill

oldsmoboat said:


> I hope they are wrong.. :lol:


No matter what the topic, CSR being wrong is a safe bet.  Last night at 8PM, it was 3AM GMT and the box thought it would be a good time to restart. Since I said I canceled it, she asked if I'd entered my zipcode correctly. Politely ended the call and activated the receiver on the website.

I'm with James and don't think they will become useless. Only one out of 6 CSRs agree though. The other 5 have all been trained that my 942 will "cease to work". They have also been recently trained on the Old HD receiver upgrade, where you will get a leased receiver, and don't HAVE to return the 811/921/942. After I phoned to RA my 942 and had the RA number was when that CSR said I'd be getting a leased receiver and not an owned receiver to replace it under RA. I was pretty sure it would be owned, from CSR posts here (thanks puckwithahalo!). CSR said it was too late to cancel the RA, or I would have. Repeated calls all said it would be leased, and I didn't have to return my owned 942.

I phoned this morning to get a DTVPal and at the end asked if Owned or Leased from looking at the account and he said it showed as Owned. That went well enough that I phoned back 6 hours later to finally schedule the other 942 to be upgraded (this time to a leased uint) and to upgrade from HD Pak to Essentials. Odd assortment of channels that I didn't get on the 942 appeared on the 622 while enabled with HD Pak, but a lot more show up for the extra penny. The guy also thought the RA'd unit would be leased, but also said the screen shows it as purchased. He was the 1st CSR to say that I should return the RA'd 942 that everybody else says I can keep. He then mentioned that they really do stick to the "only a penny more" thing. There is some flag on his screen that says my receivers are $5/month, and the ViP receivers won't be $7 after the 1st one.

Strangest part of all of this is there is no Recent Activity for any of this, except for a <$40> "Payment" on 26-Jun. That was most likely the $40 Govt coupon for the DTVPal, that the CSR said would be put on my account (I didn't give a CC for it).


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## bartendress

CABill said:


> $5.98 is Dish DVR Advantage and the Multi-sport would get you to $12 in savings, but there must be something else since adding DHPP (Home Protection Plan insurance / extended warantee) @ $5.99 would cut the savings back to $6.


Perhaps they offered the DHPP for free for the first 12 months? It would be similar to what they offer new subs.


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## oldsmoboat

I just noticed something. I was told I was getting a 622 for the 942. I actually got a 722.


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## Hunter844

bartendress said:


> Perhaps they offered the DHPP for free for the first 12 months? It would be similar to what they offer new subs.


They came out and hooked everything up. Near as I can tell they didn't change a thing on my account. I still have the multi-sports pack. The tech had to call and get them to add the Essentials package.

I emailed Dish to make an inquiry as to why multi-sport pack wasn't dropped and if I'm getting the quote I was quoted along with the insurance and DVR advantage. I'm real sure the CSR that put in the work order mucked it all up. I logged into my account and they hadn't made any changes to my bill but that might be a bit too early.

***EDIT****

They got me taken care of. Monthly is $80.98


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## ksquared

Hi all, I need to tap the collective intelligence of the group.

I was 921 #1 from DishDepot and a Dish 4000 and DishPlayer 7200 beta from way back when. I just got the voicemail about a mandatory upgrade. I am well schooled in old dish technology but have not been keeping close track since the Dish 1000 dish and DishPro LNBFs and switches. Before I am forced to play CSR Roulette, can anyone fill me in on what the current requirements of this upgrade really is? My physical plant is Dish 500 with the old Twin LNBF feeding into SW21's with a dual LNBF Dish 300 pointing at 148. Particularly:

- contract extension

- required upgrade of switches LNBF paid for by me

- Dish 1000 antenna installation (free or not)

All of the above are deal killers and I'll just drop my HD package. My mount will not support a Dish 1000 and I will not pay for a new installation nor allow the local installer to touch my house. I am moving in 4 months and was just hoping that my flaky beta-test-quality "production" 921 will last until then. If I was in for the long haul, I'd buy my own equipment from Mark at DishDepot (who I highly recommend to you do-it-yourselfer's out there!) but it's not worth it to me. Dish is impossible at my new home (10K feet of volcano between me and the bird at 148).

From my read of this thread, it sounds that if I ignore dish or drop the HD packages I'll be fine with my other packages, although many of the CSRs think 921's will drop dead.

Cheers,
KSquared


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## 4HiMarks

My replacement 622 arrived Friday. I got it hooked up, but it kept failing a switch check. Sometime Sat. morning I finally got the idea to check if there was even a Sat output going to that cable. Oops! I have 5 cables coming off my roof, and four are diplexed with a POS Terk clip-on. The other one is diplexed with the output of my other 622 to distribute TV2 to the whole house. The last time I swapped some cable I got two mixed up.

Anyway, once I got that fixed, I got the box authorized, and started to set preferences, etc. when it suddenly shut itself down and rebooted. I'd seen that before, but I thought it had been part of the initialization process as a new box "came online". At the same time it shut down, a noisy cooling fan came on. After a while I got the "Acquiring satellite signal" dialog box and it came back up. Five minutes later, it happened again! It took longer to come back up this time. Then it shut down again almost immediately.

Of course I considered heat, but it was barely warm. I was going to put it in a closed TV cart, but at the time it was on the pull-out shelf, sticjing out into the middle of the room.

When I called CS, I was told to unplug it from the surge protector and plug it directly into the wall. This is the second time I have been told this in relation to a piece of electronics (last time was an external WD hard drive). The reason the E* CSR gave is that "sometimes surge protectors send too much power to the unit." WTF? This is really interesting because WD tech support said pretty much the opposite - it isn't getting enough power. That sort of makes a little sense, but if you have a good quality surge protector, I don't think it should be an issue. For really important components, I use a UPS, anyway.

But *too much* power? If that's the case, I should hook all my electrical appliances to a series of surge protectors and maybe I won't have to pay for any electricity at all!

Seriously, is there something I'm missing here, or was she just blowing smoke up my a$$?

Anyway, she finally agreed it was defective and is sending me another replacement.

-Chris


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## CABill

ksquared said:


> - contract extension
> 
> - required upgrade of switches LNBF paid for by me
> 
> - Dish 1000 antenna installation (free or not)
> 
> All of the above are deal killers and I'll just drop my HD package. My mount will not support a Dish 1000 and I will not pay for a new installation nor allow the local installer to touch my house.


No contract extension required or money outlay required (other than the penny to go from $9.99 to $10). A ViP can use the same legacy switch and LNBs used by the 921. Most of the HD channels that are added with HD Essentials need 61.5 or 129. Some areas of the country can't see 129 so a 1000 is out for them and they use a separate dish for 61.5. If you are using 148 for AK locals, or the volcano will be in HI, you need to mention that - it matters!

I had two 942s. I called one in for a RA, and it came as an owned 622, self install allowed (no mention at all of having someone install for me). The other 942 is to be upgraded tomorrow, but it will be under the "discontinued receiver upgrade" so the replacement will be leased, not owned, but I can keep that owned 942 (other 942 has to be returned). They couldn't do the 2nd as a user install - it MUST be done by DISH installer. I already have a 1000.2 dish so it should be pretty easy for him.

Vast majority of CSRs I've talked to recently do say "cease to function 1-Aug", but the automated phone calls all say "to continue to receive HD, ...". I really don't believe that you can't continue to receive what you get now, less the HD Pack channels after 1-Aug on a 921/942.

On the plus side of the upgrade, my account is flagged so that the ViP receivers remain $5/month and not the increased $7/month, and the $10 Essentials package includes a LOT more channels for the penny.

I was surprised that I lost HDNet Movies (9423), but it seems to be in the $20 package instead. I'm not sure what happens on 1-Aug, but I guess they will just swap the 9420s to MPEG-4.

There was a special 888 number for the upgrade that is probabaly better to call than the regular number.


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## ksquared

CABill said:


> No contract extension required or money outlay required (other than the penny to go from $9.99 to $10). A ViP can use the same legacy switch and LNBs used by the 921. Most of the HD channels that are added with HD Essentials need 61.5 or 129. Some areas of the country can't see 129 so a 1000 is out for them and they use a separate dish for 61.5. If you are using 148 for AK locals, or the volcano will be in HI, you need to mention that - it matters!


CABill - Beautiful! That's exactly what I needed to know. I'm currently in Santa Cruz, CA
(Salinas DMA) but am moving to Kona, HI end of October. Anything I do is only amortized over the next 4 months (Hualalai between me and any Echostar bird) and my ancient Toshiba blew it's HD inputs years ago so I am just trying to limp by until Nov. Sounds like going for the ViP swap should be safe enough. I no longer care about HD content.

Thanks!
K^2


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## CABill

ksquared said:


> nor allow the local installer to touch my house.


He WILL probably have to aim the 148 dish to 129. It seems likely that he couldn't complete his work w/o leaving you able to view the added HD channels.


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## ksquared

CABill said:


> He WILL probably have to aim the 148 dish to 129. It seems likely that he couldn't complete his work w/o leaving you able to view the added HD channels.


Bummer, ain't gonna happen. I have installed and maintained everything personally for 10 years. The local Dish installers are worse idiots than the cable guys which is why I said installer touching my house was a deal breaker. I was hoping for just a receiver swap via UPS like I did for my 4000/dish 300, 7200/Dish 500, 501, 508, and 921. Oh well, now I'm leaning toward just keeping my 921 and see if it gets bricked. If it does, I leave Dish 3 months earlier than planned.

Thanks again CABill for the info!
K^2


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## Hunter844

I know one thing...if it even sprinkles now with my new setup up...it goes down. I don't think boy genius zeroed me in very well.


EDIT:

Stopped raining, here is my point dish signal

Software: L451

DISH: Signal Strength
110: 59

119: 66

126: 35


My zip code is 72176

No trees to speak of or anything obstructing a dish from getting a good signal. What should a good signal look like?


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## Jim5506

Which TP's are you quoting, signal strength varies from TP to TP without a reference your data is useless.

I have several TP's on 129 that are in the upper 50's others in the mid 30's.

Dish ViP211 - Software ver - L439.

Dish 1000.


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## Paul Secic

CABill said:


> I can't make out if you're saying "I lease the equipment now" (some 942s were leased, but not many), or "the new equipment will be leased". If you do own the 942 and 510, ignore what the CSR said about it not working after August and drop the 510 from the account - cost is the same (assumes a phone connection for the 942 in the 510 room). Certainly shouldn't return an owned 942 to DISH for the $10 they'd give you.
> 
> Saving $5.98 doesn't have anything to do with this upgrade. Someone with AT200 or AT250 could have switched to Dish DVR Advantage (Auto Pay / paperless billing) and saved the $5.98 with their current DVR that has a fee. CSR was just helping you save $. Someone already using Dish DVR Advantage wouldn't be "saving anything".
> 
> scoobyxj is right that it can't hurt to ask the guy about a 722 instead of a 622 - it would certainly be worth a good tip!


Back in December when I went HD I asked for a VIP722 and got a 622. When I reup DVR Advantage in a year or so I'll ask for the top of the line by then.


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## Hunter844

Jim5506 said:


> Which TP's are you quoting, signal strength varies from TP to TP without a reference your data is useless.
> 
> I have several TP's on 129 that are in the upper 50's others in the mid 30's.
> 
> Dish ViP211 - Software ver - L439.
> 
> Dish 1000.


What's TP?:grin:

Seriously I have no idea.

EDIT: Transponder 19

Will it lock in on the strongest transponder or will I have to find the magic number?


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## Stewart Vernon

Hunter844 said:


> Will it lock in on the strongest transponder or will I have to find the magic number?


Different channels are usually on different transponders. Transponders have multiple channels (usually 3-4 HD or 10-12 SD channels for example). You don't control the transponders, the receiver tunes to the proper one when you select a channel... but you can check the strength of various transponders from the point-dish screen and you will see that some are lower than others.


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## scoobyxj

Hunter844 said:


> What's TP?:grin:
> 
> Seriously I have no idea.
> 
> EDIT: Transponder 19
> 
> Will it lock in on the strongest transponder or will I have to find the magic number?


We use

Sat Trans Strength 
119-T19 ....... 80
110-T21 ....... 72
129-T21 ....... 52
but others may use different transponders

and you have to select them.


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## jgarrard

I have been out of touch for a while but received notice from Dish today. Apparently I have to upgrade 921. Currently have dish 500 with good signal strength on 110 and 119 but lots of trees on lot. Not sure if 61.5 is option. Will this be a problem.


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## worldtrvlr

Before you do the "free" upgrade from a DVR 942 to a VIP622 or VIP722, be aware that it's not actually "free". If you own your 942, you will now be charged the $7.00 lease fee for the new receiver. Following is my experience so far with this situation:

I was the owner of a DVR 942. I received a post card from Dish telling me I needed to call 1-888-383-3727 to do a FREE* HD receiver upgrade, due to changes to the HD programming, and that if I did not participate, I would lose my HD programming. No where on the card did it say I would be charged a lease fee for the new DVR.

I called the number and spoke with a representative who assured me I would not be charged the lease fee, since my 942 was an owned, and not leased, receiver. She also said I would get a VIP622 and a new dish to pick up the new channels, and assured me I could keep my 942 to use as a standard DVR.

Well, today the installer came and installed all of the equipment and I actually got a VIP722 rather then the 622. Before he left, I asked him where my DVR 942 was. He said it was in his truck. I told him I was supposed to be able to keep it, but he showed me his work order which stated that he is to take it with him and that I would need to contact Dish to discuss that with them. He also stated that it would stop working altogether once the change is made to the programming. I figured since I was getting a much better receiver and no lease fee, and if it won't work later, I'd let him keep it.

Well, I called Dish to change my HD package and was told my bill was going up by $7 per motnh. The change was due to the lease fee on the new receiver. Fortunately, I had the name and rep ID of the representative who signed me up for the upgrade, and stated that I was told there would be no lease fee since I had an owned receiver. He called another department and apparently got approval to credit the charge for a year.

After reading some of these posts, it looks like others have also been told they can continue to use their old equipment as a standard DVR as well, so I called tech support about my 942. The first time, I was disconnected while the rep read through my notes. I called back and got a very nice person who was willing to double check on whether the 942 can continue to be used as a standard DVR. After verifying the information, he came back and said that in fact I can use it at a standard defenition DVR. I asked him how to get my owned 942 back, since the installer insisted on taking it with him. The rep called the "hub" department, who was supposed to call the installer so I could get my dish back. Three hours later, I still haven't heard anything back from the installer. I called dish back and got another rep who said that my 942 wouldn't function, but agreed that I should be able to keep it since I own it. She checked and as it turns out, it WILL still receive standard def channels. She called the Hub department and was told that an e-mail was sent and it takes up to 3 days to find the receiver in the warehouse.

Finally, I decided to check caller ID, remembering that the installer called me to tell me he would be late. I told him that I verified with Dish that I can keep the 942 receiver and it WILL receive standard def channels. He said he would bring it back to me, and hung up on me. Somehow, I'm sure he won't return it an I'll end up having to escalate further with Dish to get my receiver back.

Let this be a warning.....DO NOT give the installer your old DVR if you own it, cause you'll only get $10 from Dish for it, and be prepared for the new lease fee on the "free" upgrade.


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## CABill

worldtrvlr said:


> Before you do the "free" upgrade from a DVR 942 to a VIP622 or VIP722, be aware that it's not actually "free". If you own your 942, you will now be charged the $7.00 lease fee for the new receiver.


I hope you get your 942 back - that just plain wrong for him to have taken it. I would have told him to return it and take his 722 back, and HE could straighten it out on his time.

You are a little premature in saying "you will now be charged the $7.00 lease fee for the new receiver". You should never assume that what a CSR tells you will match reality. Login to you account online and check / post Recent Activity a day after changes. You may not be able to check everything. Like the promise to credit it for a year - that may not appear until the next bill gets generated. If you actually see a $7 credit, you may be coming out way ahead.

If you already have a ViP (MPEG-4) receiver of some sort, getting a 2nd one will produce a $7/month charge for it, but it will produce that same $ amount whether it appears as a $7 lease fee or a $7 additional receiver fee. If this is your first ViP receiver on the account, there shouldn't be either a lease or Addl Rec fee of $7 on the bill. If you have another non-ViP receiver active and it happens to be considered the Primary and that produces the $7 fee for the 722 (instead of a $5 fee for the non-ViP), you should be able to get that resolved with a few phone calls.

I was told that I would get a leased HD DVR to get the programming that the 942 won't be able to get after 1-Aug. I too got a 722, but that's because of what the guy had on his vehicle. His paperwork showed my 942 as owned and he didn't want to take it (as CSRs had told me would be the case). The installer also led me to believe the 722 would be a lease. The day after the install, there was no $7 lease fee on the account, but there was a prorated $7 Addl Rec fee (I already had an owned 622 I received from an RA of another 942). On all calls after the install, CSRs have told me all my active receivers are owned, not leased. The upgrade was never presented to me as "free", but as "only a penny a month" to go from $9.99 to $10. Someone told me they would credit me the $2 difference between the $7/month and the $5/month I'd pay for the 942 that isn't the Primary receiver. It will be another 4 days before I can see a bill generated to know if that happens. What actually will appear on your bill is anybody's guess, but there is a very good chance that you WON'T be billed $7/month more than you were paying, the 722 isn't leased after all, and/or there won't be a monthly credit for the $2 difference between a ViP (owned or leased) and a non-ViP receiver after the 1st receiver on the account.

Concentrate on getting your 942 back while you wait for them to generate the next bill. Good luck!


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## dojoman

Is there a deadline to upgrade before I loose the HD channels? I heard 8/1. Seems too soon.


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## phrelin

dojoman said:


> Is there a deadline to upgrade before I loose the HD channels? I heard 8/1. Seems too soon.


Your guess is as good as anyone's. For complete confusion scroll through this thread.


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## James Long

The HD channels you will lose are the old "HD Pack" ... five channels for $9.99 (IIRC).

Upgrade and you'll get a lot more than five channels for $10.


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## hcopter

CABill said:


> ..... If this is your first ViP receiver on the account, there shouldn't be either a lease or Addl Rec fee of $7 on the bill. ....


I wish this were the case. I did the "Free" upgrade just over a month ago from a owned 921 and got a 722. The CSR assured me that my monthly charges would not change and even mentioned that it showed "lease waived". The 722 is my only receiver, as was the 921.

Well I got my bill today and there's the $7 lease charge. I called and he said sorry but that's correct. He said they would waive the fee for two months since I was given wrong information but that's all he could do.

Later I went and looked at the fees page on the Dish site and it says: "Leased Receiver Fee - $5.00 / $7.00 - Charged monthly when a customer has more than one leased receiver on their account. A $5.00 fee is charged for Standard Definition (SD) receivers and $7.00 for High Definition receivers."

I called CSR again and pointed this out and was told that only applies to the first SD receiver not HD. That's not how it's written!! I wrote a email to Dish stating the same argument, we'll see what I get, I'm not too hopeful. 

Mike


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## worldtrvlr

hcopter said:


> I wish this were the case. I did the "Free" upgrade just over a month ago from a owned 921 and got a 722. The CSR assured me that my monthly charges would not change and even mentioned that it showed "lease waived". The 722 is my only receiver, as was the 921.
> 
> Well I got my bill today and there's the $7 lease charge. I called and he said sorry but that's correct. He said they would waive the fee for two months since I was given wrong information but that's all he could do.
> 
> Later I went and looked at the fees page on the Dish site and it says: "Leased Receiver Fee - $5.00 / $7.00 - Charged monthly when a customer has more than one leased receiver on their account. A $5.00 fee is charged for Standard Definition (SD) receivers and $7.00 for High Definition receivers."
> 
> I called CSR again and pointed this out and was told that only applies to the first SD receiver not HD. That's not how it's written!! I wrote a email to Dish stating the same argument, we'll see what I get, I'm not too hopeful.
> 
> Mike


I would check the Denver BBB website. They state that they are concerned about how the number of complaints has risen. Probably due to the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing. Any way, they list a phone number where you can contact someone in Dish's "Executive" department. I called it and finally had my issue resolved, with a very friendly, apologetic, caring person who actually knew what they were doing. Apparently, Dish doesn't effectively train their CSRs or communicate changes to them.


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## ctorg

hcopter said:


> I wish this were the case. I did the "Free" upgrade just over a month ago from a owned 921 and got a 722. The CSR assured me that my monthly charges would not change and even mentioned that it showed "lease waived". The 722 is my only receiver, as was the 921.
> 
> Well I got my bill today and there's the $7 lease charge. I called and he said sorry but that's correct. He said they would waive the fee for two months since I was given wrong information but that's all he could do.
> 
> Later I went and looked at the fees page on the Dish site and it says: "Leased Receiver Fee - $5.00 / $7.00 - Charged monthly when a customer has more than one leased receiver on their account. A $5.00 fee is charged for Standard Definition (SD) receivers and $7.00 for High Definition receivers."
> 
> I called CSR again and pointed this out and was told that only applies to the first SD receiver not HD. That's not how it's written!! I wrote a email to Dish stating the same argument, we'll see what I get, I'm not too hopeful.
> 
> Mike


I just called yesterday to have my $7/month charged removed. When I signed up (when 622 first came out), the charge was standard. It since has changed to what you quoted off of their own website. I let the rep know this and he asked his sup and it has already been removed. He said that even though it was valid when I signed up, they would remove it now to reflect current terms (probably because I'm out of contract and they know it). Anyways, for your case, I would suggest calling a few times until you get a native English speaker. I called four times and hung up as soon as I heard the rep not being able to pronounce the company name. The 'local' reps seem to care about helping out. $7/month isn't big, but it always help. Just keep calling until you get resolution - took me about 15 minutes (that I wasting anyways).


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## hcopter

Thanks for the additional info. I will continue to pursue this with a renewed hope.


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## killzone

Any chance you post a link to the Dish page that has the exact text?


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## hcopter

It's the fees & disclosures page, at the bottom under "other fees" I can't post links because I have under 5 posts, so I'll try writing the first part out and you will have to edit and paste:

www.dishnetwork.com/content/customer_service/billing/fees/index.shtml

I just submitted another email request to clarify this fee policy since my first one has gone unanswered for 5 days. If I haven't heard back from them by Friday afternoon I will call the number listed on the Denver BBB site.


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## hcopter

Ok, I got the following explanation in response to my last email to Dish:

"Thank you for your email. DISH Network charges this fee for each receiver leased through the DISH’n It Up promotion. This fee helps cover the costs associated with broadcasting programming to you through the additional receiver."

I replied that I was not aware I was participating in the DISH’n It Up promotion and got this:

"Thank you for your reply. Upon reviewing your account one more time, our records indicate that you have participate in the Dish ‘n IT Up promotion on 6/11/08 when you upgraded to HD package."


1. I didn't upgrade to the HD package I had subscribed to the same HD package for over two years, I only upgraded my receiver.

2. The first reply states "the additional receiver". I only have one receiver, unless they mean the fact that the 722 has two tuners.

Looks like I'm doomed to pay an extra $7/mo from here on out.


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## James Long

Dish'n It Up applies to receiver upgrades ... I upgraded a 301 to a 211 a couple years ago via the program (and got a good deal ... a leased 211 for $6 per month instead of $6 per month "additional receiver fee" for an owned 211 and a $25 trade in credit on the 301 - such deals are not always available). The 301 was paid for by DISH (programming credits) when I first got it so going from "owned" to "leased" fro $25 wasn't a bad deal.

The $7 "HD" fee shouldn't be charged unless you didn't actually subscribe to a HD package. If you upgraded to Essentials or Ultimate you should not be charged the "HD" fee ... only a receiver lease fee (which replaces the extra receiver fee if the leased receiver isn't your only receiver), a DVR Service Fee (for a DVR like the 722) and the $5 "Additional Outlet Programming Access Fee" if you don't have your 722 connected to a phone line or Internet.

BTW: The DIU paperwork (Dish'n It Up) should have been in the box when you received your 722 or given to you by the installer. Regardless of if you knew the name of the program you used to upgrade your receiver that's how you got the good deal.


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## hcopter

I got further explanation back from Dish saying that the 722 is considered as TWO receivers since it will serve two TVs at once. So, I guess I'm lucky I'm not paying a $14 lease fee for it.

Oh well, at least I got a new receiver with better options etc than the old 921 for no upfront money and a dish 1000 installed for free.

Rant end:


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## jsfisher

Here's my free upgrade experience. Ten days ago I upgraded an owned 6000 to leased VIP211k. I also switched from the old HDpack to HD Essentials "for a penny per month", and I added the Cinemax for a penny special deal.

Here's the result:


I was forced to paperless billing. (No big deal, but it was an undisclosed requirement for the Cinemax deal.)
They added locals to my account without my permission.
My annual AT250 subscription was converted to monthly, than back to annual along with a $6.26 charge.
My annual HDpack was converteed to monthly with a net loss of value of $2.60.
I get to pay $7.00 per month lease fee for the VIP-211k.
They still wanted the $5.00 per month additional receiver fee.
They deactivated one of my other receivers not once but twice.
I've lost count of the number of CSRs and supervisors I've spoken to, and how many times they gave incorrect information, nor how may times calls were dropped or mis-transfered.

I have been assured, however, that everything will be corrected by tomorrow.


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