# DirecTV Here I Come!



## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

Well guys, this is my first public announcement. By this time next week, I should have 2 DirecTivo's installed along with a triple LNB dish (for future HDTV using the HD DirecTivo). No, I am not completely dumping Dish Network. I will keep my 508 and the superstations but that's pretty much it. I have been thinking about switching over to DirecTV for a long time but the straw that broke the camel's back was the Superdish and the 921. That is just way too much hassle and expense.

So, here I am. I'm really jazzed about getting DirecTivo. I've heard so much about them. I'm really looking forward to having name based recording and season pass. Those are the 2 main reasons why I'm getting them along with the fact that the DirecTivo is much more stable (and upgradeable, Yipee!). I fully intend to get the HD DirecTivo when it's release. That should be a great product and much better than the 921 (and $200 cheaper).

You will see me in this forum and the DirecTV DVR forum more often because I'm sure I will have some questions. Thanks!


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## MedMech (Sep 21, 2003)

Welcome, Chris I's a recent convert as well. I too got sick of waiting and crumby upgrades rendering my tivo useless ect. Direct Tivo is awesome I can't believe my loyalty to E* blinded me like that.


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## Bob Haller (Mar 24, 2002)

CONGRAGULATIONS! While I prepare for our big move I am excited to see your first impressions and experiences! Are you doiing a self install or letting D do it for you?

On a sad note I too have tentively decided once I get D to keep E for a month for a side by side comparison then keep it for the supers. This way I can still rant about E problems

Actually our LILs are up, which may elmonate the need for supers....


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## MedMech (Sep 21, 2003)

It may seem very weird but i am actually having dreams about the HD Tivo, I'm not using a metaphor I am really dreaming about it.

The thought of having my Satellite, OTA, HD, and Tivo in one box will not only clear 4 spaces on my shelf but will save 15 remote strokes as well, seamless change over from hd to sd, seamless ota and satellite seamless tivo recording, 

It's almost too good to be true.


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## Phil T (Mar 25, 2002)

Way to go!

I am doing my 2-Direct-Tivo install today. I am keeping Dish for HD only, but may keep the super stations for a while. I will report back later, if my hands don't freeze!!


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

Phil T said:


> Way to go!
> 
> I am doing my 2-Direct-Tivo install today. I am keeping Dish for HD only, but may keep the super stations for a while. I will report back later, if my hands don't freeze!!


Way cool Phil! Let us know how it goes and how you like your new setup.


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## valand_krisban (Oct 23, 2003)

Welcome to D*. I too just switched last Sat to D* after being a customer since ~1998.

I grew extremely tired of waiting on stable and functional exquipment for HD, and lack of low cost Dolby Digital SD receivers.
I have the HDTV the extra 61.5 dish and everything, but nothing decent from E* to receive. 

I watched/am watching the 6000 users go through the pain of continuous E* snap design change decisions and the constant, ~oh, for another $99 you can get HD from us~, ~oh, buy this other adapater and then you can get HD~, ~oh yah, you should buy this new dish and new switches an you'll have HD~, ~ just wait till the next software release, and it will work~, rant.....

So, far, I'm really pleased with D*. The product availibility for D* hardware is great. I guess my original theory of why E* was better "they make their own hardware thus have better designs and control" is severely flawed.


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## valand_krisban (Oct 23, 2003)

valand_krisban said:


> I guess my original theory of why E* was better "they make their own hardware thus have better designs and control" is severely flawed.


Forgot E*'s lack of execution for its hardware that, even when finally released, still falls short of consumer functionality and cost desires.


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

valand_krisban said:


> Welcome to D*. I too just switched last Sat to D* after being a customer since ~1998.
> 
> I grew extremely tired of waiting on stable and functional exquipment for HD, and lack of low cost Dolby Digital SD receivers.
> I have the HDTV the extra 61.5 dish and everything, but nothing decent from E* to receive.
> ...


I agree. I also have been an E* customer since 1998 but with recent Dish Network events in hardware and software, D* is just too hard to ignore with their simple no-nonsense approach.

I don't plan on bad-mouthing E* because they still have some good qualities and are obviously thriving. I guess I finally got to a point where enough is enough and I'm sure others will feel the same especially after the 921 and Superdish start hitting the market.

OMG, I almost sound like Bob. Help me! :bonk1:


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## boba (May 23, 2003)

Welcome to the better service Chris. I switched in July and am now up to 3 basic receivers and two TiVos. Functionality of Directv just leaves DISH in the dust the only problem is remembering which channel # is which system. Is 230 WTBS or DIY? Too bad Charlie hasn't gotten the message that people are sick and tired of half functional products.


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## SlicerMDM (Feb 12, 2003)

I too am seriously considering a switch to D*. The main reason, for me, is their consistently buggy software.

The only reason I haven't switched yet is because I want the best picture quality for SD and especially HD. It appears that, with SuperDish, E* will have a huge advantage in bandwidth, meaning better picture quality and the ability to add tons of HD content (with no compression).

Does anyone else worry that D* picture quality will just not cut it (or doesn't cut it right now)? Certainly that has to be an issue for HD, better picture quality is the whole purpose of HD.

Those of you that have switched, what do you think of the current PQ for SD and HD compared to E*?? 

(Note that I'm viewing on a 65" RPTV so bad video looks REALLY bad to me!!)


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## bills976 (Jun 30, 2002)

Welcome to Directv, Chris!

I too had Echostar and honestly there's no comparison in terms of the DVRs. TiVo outshines the 50X in every category, from dual-tuners to name based recording to stable software. The biggest difference for me was that other than power outages my D* receivers have yet to need a reset (since March 2003). No annoying switch checks every other day either. Just reliable software that doesn't need a babysitter to pull the smartcard if it acts up.

Feel the joy, Chris!


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## Marcus S (Apr 23, 2002)

I just took advantage of the *D $399 HD receiver offer and completed self-installation simply by re-pointing the old 61.5 dish to 101 and replacing the 110 LNB on the Dish 500 with a Sat-C LNB. Upon activation this morning, I even got *D to waive the annual requirement because I performed the installation.

I would probably have done this sooner, but I had a BUD that just needed a little dusting off when I left E* a year ago. I also wanted the merger dust to settle, and to see what directions the two DBS providers where actually headed.


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## HarryD (Mar 24, 2002)

Chris,

Welcome and "Feel the joy"!


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## pez2002 (Dec 13, 2002)

chris what package did you go with ???


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

pez2002 said:


> chris what package did you go with ???


 If you are talking about programming, I'm going with the Total Choice Plus


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## sorahl (Oct 24, 2002)

chris, how much did keeping the superstations cost you, and have you kept that up or just decided to drop it.


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

sorahl said:


> chris, how much did keeping the superstations cost you, and have you kept that up or just decided to drop it.


I called Dish about that and the superstations are $5.99 plus a $5 access fee since I'm not subscribing to any basic package.


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## Phil T (Mar 25, 2002)

I am up and running on my 2 new DirecTivos. Installation was not fun when I discovered that my back yard pole mount could not see the 101 sat (##**XXX tree). I had to totally redo my set up. I went ahead and took down my 61.5 and 148 dishes. I cut back my Dish programming to HD only and left my Dish 500 on the pole looking at 110 only. Hd and the $5.00 access fee will cost me $14.99 a month.

Activating the DirecTivos was easy and no problem getting through to the CSR's. The on line activation wouldn't work for me. The triple LNB dish is tough to aim. The family acceptance factor is high and they like some of the different channels (Trio, free concerts, and some of the AT 150 channels that I dropped about a year ago).

All and all 24 hours into this: :joy: :joy: :joy:


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## MedMech (Sep 21, 2003)

My wife and I are so glad we switched it crazy. The Tivo in the bedroom is a very nice luxury, theres always something to watch in the morning and before bed without commercials. I have also noticed a better picture, not a ton but there is definitely a difference. The program guide on the standard equipment is much faster that E* as well.

We have an RCA ATSC100 OTA hd box so I think we can get by until the Dtv tivo comes out. My friend has a Hughes E86 that I messed around with today and the OTA tuner seems to be very good and set up is simple, plus the program guide is seamless between OTA and Satellite like tivo so that eliminates hassle. If for some reason the new season of Soprano's starts before the release of HD tivo I will likely purchase another ox until tivo comes out.


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## Mark Holtz (Mar 23, 2002)

Well, my stress level has gone down since I installed the larger hard drive on my HDVR2. Now, just waiting for prices to go down again.


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## pez2002 (Dec 13, 2002)

you did not take any premium channels with that Or did you get the new special free hbo For 2 months


Welcome to directv Chris and good luck my friend


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

Phil T said:


> I am up and running on my 2 new DirecTivos. Installation was not fun when I discovered that my back yard pole mount could not see the 101 sat (##**XXX tree). I had to totally redo my set up. I went ahead and took down my 61.5 and 148 dishes. I cut back my Dish programming to HD only and left my Dish 500 on the pole looking at 110 only. Hd and the $5.00 access fee will cost me $14.99 a month.


Thanks for the info Phil. I forgot about Trio. I remember looking at that channel while visiting my parents who have cable. It's going to be cool watching the old "Laugh-in" again. 

Now you have me really excited. After so many years with Dish it's going to be nice playing with some new toys. Once everything is setup though, I hope I don't get too bored. From what I hear, the DirecTivo simply works. I guess now I will have to go find some other equipment to babysit.


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## Phil T (Mar 25, 2002)

Chris, Again this is all new for me, but the DirectTivo is really quite a complex machine. Much more so than the 501 or 6000. I have read the manuals several times and am still learning all of the settings/options.

First thing we did was turn the sounds off. Family did not like all of the beeps and boops when doing different functions. 

We opted for the TIVO style guide (wow you have a choice!). 

It is wierd to see the TIVO recording programs it thinks you would like. I saw a concert was recording last night and I figured my daughter set it up. It was a TIVO suggestion. I know you can turn that option off but I want to give it a chance and see if I like, what I tells me I like.

I noticed this morning I have Showcases. I didn't have time to see what they were. I will check that out tonight.

I noticed that my pending dial out times are in the evening, 7:00 P.M. It seems it would be better if they are late at night or early morning.
I have teenagers and the phone is always busy.

I guess if it dosen't get through it will keep trying.

Starting to learn the channel numbers (the biggest challange). HBO in the 500's, PPV 100's, cable stuff in the 200's. 

I want to get the season passes set up tonight.

Anyway so far so good, and I don' t seem to be missing rebooting my Dishplayer 7100 or 501 at all!


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## GreyGhost00 (Aug 12, 2003)

Chris:

Welcome! I made the switch in early Sept. after over 6 years with E* - and haven't regretted it one bit. I never thought I'd leave E*, but I just got fed up.

As others have said, the PVR functionality of the DirecTivo blows any E* machine away. I didn't realize how REAL timeshifting worked until I got a DTivo. Not to mention that the machine is stable as a rock - something I never got with E* (can you say Dishplayer?).

I lost distant nets and superstations by switching, but to be honest, I haven't missed them. The Tivo makes timeshifting easier, so it's not that big of a deal.


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## shalverson (Oct 28, 2003)

Doesn't D* offer distant nets or Superstations? If not why is that?

I am getting very close to switching also.


Thanks


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## DCSholtis (Aug 7, 2002)

D* does not offer Supers...and you need waivers for distant nets......or you can always "move" to a white area in order to receive them.


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## Bob Haller (Mar 24, 2002)

Originally supers carried sports programming that D wanted you to pay extra for. The sports lefft the supers but D never added the channels.


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## W1CPO (Aug 17, 2002)

I too, have decided to move from E* after three years to D* and installation is scheduled for this week. I will be installing a DirecTivo in the living room and a regular receiver in the bedroom. I will get the HD receiver when it becomes available early next year and move the DirecTivo to the bedroom. 

My reasons for switching are much the same as everyone else here. I currently have a 721 and a 501 and am looking forward to the technology that Tivo offers. Of course the prospects of installing a SuperDish and additional expense of the 921 is not very comforting either.

I can't complain about either the 721 or the 501. Both receivers have given me great service. Perhaps I am just lucky, but I have never had a problem with either receiver... and I was one of the first to have a 721!

All in all, I just think that the D* is the way to go... now and in the future.


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## DBSPaul (Mar 26, 2002)

Chris:

I'm not going to say the learning curve on the DirecTiVo is steep, but even a couple of months in you'll find yourself learning different ways of doing things. For me, I've got 2 D*Tivos and one standalone (all series 1 boxes, upgraded and networked), and with Season Passes set up the only things I have to manually muck with are This Old House and Hometime, because they never mark as first-run or repeat, so I just set those to First-Run Only and then use "Vue Upcoming Episodes" once a week. (Hint: VUE is your friend.)

As for auto-recording suggestions, I turned that off eons ago, since between 3 machines I've three different sets of thumbs up/down. On my primary D*TiVo, I do make an effort to thumb up and down shows (if you select a show to record that you've never recorded before, by default you give it 1 thumb-up, btw) so that during the slow months I can go to suggestions and pick out some shows to record if I'm running low on DVDs. Others use suggestions heavily - just goes to show how much flexibility the TiVo software allows.

Bring on the questions when you've got them. You'll get at least 10 different answers, but none of them will be "wait for the next software upgrade"..


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## Jacob S (Apr 14, 2002)

Some people that have been with Dish for so long find it hard to switch providers because they are so comfortable with what they have even though DirecTv has some advantages such as more reliable software, hardware, and in the future a smaller dish solution for locals (and maybe for HD unless they also have ot use a lower power satellite for that). The receivers are also smaller and have better graphics, and the hardware is cheaper. The DVR functionality, from what I hear, is better than what Dish Network's is. 

It seems like some of Dish Network's advantages are wearing thing or done wore away.


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## Marcus S (Apr 23, 2002)

$1 per pak increase, Dallas distant nets gone, receivers that where "hinted" on Charlie Chat to receive feature upgrades but never did, new product delays, buggy software that E* never totaly fixes, side dish required to receive additional local nets, and now SuperMess. An early adopter 97 and pom pom waiver for E*, left Nov 2002, switched back to BUD, but didn't want to sign up for *D to have it acquired by E*. Still have BUD with HD Pak only, but may drop it once D7S is up.


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## MedMech (Sep 21, 2003)

Marcus S said:


> $1 per pak increase, Dallas distant nets gone, receivers that where "hinted" on Charlie Chat to receive feature upgrades but never did, new product delays, buggy software that E* never totaly fixes, side dish required to receive additional local nets, and now SuperMess. An early adopter 97 and pom pom waiver for E*, left Nov 2002, switched back to BUD, but didn't want to sign up for *D to have it acquired by E*. Still have BUD with HD Pak only, but may drop it once D7S is up.


LMAO!!!


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## shalverson (Oct 28, 2003)

Chris,

What hardware did you choose. I'm still researching the receivers. Is it worth the extra money to upgrade to the Executive Director receivers? I will definitely be going with at least one Tivo unit. I'm not sure what to do about the High Def receiver yet (the E86 or wait for the new unit)? I will for sure go with the triple LNB dish.

Tivo Smart - Thanks for all your info you sent me. I really appreciate it.


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## markh (Mar 24, 2002)

Shalverson, you should get the Phase 3 triple LNB dish for no extra cost because Madison locals will be on the 119 sat.


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## DChristmann (Dec 17, 2002)

I once owned a Dish 6000, a Dish 4900, and a standalone TiVO hooked to SD output of the 6000.

I now own a DirecTiVo. The 6000 has been sold (and got a nice price on eBay) and the 4900 will be soon heading out the door. I'm not sure with what to do with SA TiVo, but I've got it hooked to the antenna and it's still got a few programs on it that I want to watch.

For me, the move to DirecTV was driven completely by TiVo. I came to the conclusion that the TiVo was the most important part of my TV viewing experience and was way more important than who provided the satellite service, since both cost more or less the same amount and have all the channels that I'm interested in. But since DirecTV was the only one that offered receivers with integrated TiVo and since the DirecTiVos can do two programs at once, the decision was pretty easy.

I don't bear any ill will towards DISH. If they had offered a DISHTiVo, I would've bought one and stuck with DISH. But their PVR offerings are noticeably inferior to TiVo. Sorry, Charlie.

After a few days with the DirecTiVo and having migrated all my Season Passes and Wishlists over from the SA TiVo, I'm liking life with a DirecTiVo. First, I like being able to watch something else while one of my wife's programs is recording. Second, I like the fact that I don't ever have to worry about channel change errors through the IR blaster.


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## DChristmann (Dec 17, 2002)

Phil T said:


> It is wierd to see the TIVO recording programs it thinks you would like. I saw a concert was recording last night and I figured my daughter set it up. It was a TIVO suggestion. I know you can turn that option off but I want to give it a chance and see if I like, what I tells me I like.


Well, as someone who's had TiVo for a while, let me reassure you that if you are pretty diligent about given "thumbs up" and "thumbs down," it'll start getting pretty good at guessing your tastes. The SA TiVo that I've had for a while does a decent job with suggestions.

Even if you're not diligent, whenever you record something, TiVo automatically gives it a "thumbs up" if it doesn't already have a rating, so it'll still learn.


> I noticed that my pending dial out times are in the evening, 7:00 P.M. It seems it would be better if they are late at night or early morning.
> I have teenagers and the phone is always busy.
> 
> I guess if it dosen't get through it will keep trying.


It should dial out at a different time every time it dials out. Sometimes mine dial out at seven at night, sometimes at two in the morning.


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## Bob Haller (Mar 24, 2002)

how long does dial out take? I need to decide which phone line to put it on...


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## DChristmann (Dec 17, 2002)

Bob Haller said:


> how long does dial out take? I need to decide which phone line to put it on...


Just a couple of minutes.

We've only got one line at home, and it's never caused us any problems.


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## Phil T (Mar 25, 2002)

I notice now it is dialing out early morning. 

I did end up turning off the recording of the TIVO suggestions. I guess I am more comfortable managing my hard drive then having TIVO do it (must be a Dish Network thing). I noticed that you can still see what it is suggesting so I will watch it for a while and turn it back on if I think it is worth while.


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## cnsf (Jun 6, 2002)

Chris,

I am also a long time E* sub that converted to D* (primarily because of YES - gave them a year and a half to add it), but have now found the added benefits of Tivo and slightly improved PQ - I don't see 1/2 as much compression.

Some things you will notice in time is that 90% of Tivo is better. What you will miss in the other 10% is the Caller ID onscreen, the Manage Files function and the Tivo guides are much slower than the DishPVRs. Also, I find the Tivos sometimes are VERY slow after some deletions or "especially" after Season Pass priority changes.

Pluses are I've had 1 reboot in the past two years on the HDVR2s. I NEVER miss a show. Upgrading is VERY easy. Wish lists are nice. And it's just an easy unit to use. The peanut remote is great!

I don't use the Suggestions and turned off the sounds. You can still look at recommendations based on your thumbs ups/downs and record what you want. Dual tuner is nice if you only had the 50X before, I can't imagine being w/o it. 

Weird thing is getting used to not turning it off. I find if the unit is in your "quiet" bedroom, putting it into standby quiets it as it stops buffering.

Welcome to the DARK SIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

shalverson said:


> Chris,
> 
> What hardware did you choose. I'm still researching the receivers. Is it worth the extra money to upgrade to the Executive Director receivers? I will definitely be going with at least one Tivo unit. I'm not sure what to do about the High Def receiver yet (the E86 or wait for the new unit)? I will for sure go with the triple LNB dish.


I went with the Hughes 35 hour and the Samsung 100 hour. It would have been the same price if I had gone with 2 of the Hughes receivers and upgraded one of them with a bigger hard drive. This way, I don't void any warranties.

There is one thing that I will miss that nobody has mentioned. THE RF REMOTES!!! I use them all the time on the Dish receivers to control them from other rooms. Oh well, we all know there are ways around that.

Installation is tomorrow morning. Will report back after I've had time to play with everything.


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## Mark Holtz (Mar 23, 2002)

Just remember.... it takes a call or two and at least 48 hours before the database on the DirecTivo to be completely built.


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## pez2002 (Dec 13, 2002)

i know how chris is going to feel tomarrow he will feel like a kid in a candy store With so many channels he wont know what to watch I love my dtv And next month is a year Wow time flew by


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## shalverson (Oct 28, 2003)

Good luck with the install Chris!

You mentioned some options around the RF remote that E* has. What do you think is the best way? Are the remote cones the best choice?

Anyone else out there have any other suggestions?


Thanks all!


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## tivosmart (Sep 14, 2003)

shalverson said:


> Good luck with the install Chris!
> 
> You mentioned some options around the RF remote that E* has. What do you think is the best way? Are the remote cones the best choice?
> 
> ...


I don't like the remote cones/piramids mostly because you have to bring the transmitter with you anywhere the remote goes. Then I saw the light for this problem: there is one such RF transmitter/receiver pairs where the transmitter is actually located in the battery compartiment of the remote, a very clever solution if you ask me. Take a look on it:

Transmitter/receiver package:

link

Extra tranmitters:

link

Transmitter/receiver package with additional PVR/Tivo remote:

link

Enjoy, this is an amazing product, I hope you like it.


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## Phil T (Mar 25, 2002)

Yea Chris!

I am one week into my 2 new DirecTivos and still feel good about making the switch.

The UHF remote was not a big deal for me. I needed it on dish, but the 2 tuners keep me from having to hook up 2 receivers to my TV's. The IR remote seems strong and seems to give me better response then my universal remotes.

I got the new software downloads on both receivers this week with no problems (makes them HDVR3).

I do miss the on screen caller ID.

I did enable the 30 second skip ahead code. It takes a while to get used to the DVR functions after coming over from Dish.

I wish the channels I receive list would populate automatically. I don't like having to set it manually.

Picture quality - Its hard to say. Some channels look better then Dish . Some not.

I do notice more pixelization at times, usually during fast movement.

I did get all of my season passes set up. I is going to be nice not having to remember to record the shows each week.

Showcases: Getting the movie trailer for ELF was nice. The rest of what is in there didn't do much for me. It kind of reminds me of Dish Interactive, which didn't do much for me either.

Twice this week the family room unit ask me if I wanted to cancel a recording to switch channels. My kids had two shows recording at the same time! Something they couldn't do with Dish. (Two tuners isn't enough?)

When I use my 6000 for HDTV it seems like driving a Model T compared to the DirecTivo.

I may consider selling my 6000 and my other Dish receivers and purchase a DirecTIVO when they come out.


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

Got everything installed today. Everything works like a charm! Pointing the dish turned out to be very easy. Caught all three satellites within just a few minutes. What really helped was the pole mount that came with the dish. It has a bubble level built into the pole making it very easy to plumb. 

After getting the dish setup I called DirecTV and activated both DirecTivos. Went fairly quick. They did NOT require taking my social security number but they did need at least a credit card. No big deal. The lady told me that they would rather have the SSN to keep anyone else from activating under my name. 

I started fumbling through the menus and playing with some of the features. I must say that's it's going to be interesting getting used to the DirecTivo menus. Navigation is so much different but pretty easy.

There are a few things that I have noticed right off the bat. The grid style guide is pretty darn slow. It's almost as slow as the Dishplayer guide. Also, I'm going to miss being able to jump ahead 24 hours with one push of a button. It seems too cumbersome having to go into the menus just to skip ahead a few days in the guide (unless there is a shortcut I don't know about). I guess I'm spoiled with the way the 508 and 721 handle the guide. 

With that said though, I am very impressed so far. There is much more functionality in what you can do. It's also very easy to find what you want using the "DirecTV Central" screen. Very nice.

I've only had the thing up and running for a few hours so I'm sure I have much more to learn.

A couple of initial questions:

1. Is there an easy way to put the receiver in standby besides using the "DirecTV central" menu?

2. My signal strengths are about 83. Is that good?

3. What is the difference between 1, 2, or 3 thumbs up or down?

Attached to this message is my old Dish 500 sitting next to the new DirecTV dish. I was expecting the new dish to be larger. Boy, this beats the hell out of installing a superdish. The pole even fits on the same mount.

I would like to thank everyone who replied to this thread. It's been a big help. 

Phil - I know what you mean about the caller ID. It will be missed but it's really not a deal buster.

Tivosmart - Those remote extenders are very cool! Thanks for listing them. Will probably get one. Right now I'm using the cones which work fine at least for now. I must say paying $50 for the cones is a ripoff but I needed something quickly so I can watch TV in the kitchen and be able to control the DirecTivo in the living room. I will probably get those remote extenders you listed though for the other DirecTivo in the bedroom.

Bob H - Quit screwing around and get your DirecTivo. You will love it!

Thanks again everyone and now back to playing with the new toys.


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## timf (Apr 21, 2002)

1. Push the Standby button on the front of the receiver.

2. That should be fine. Anything over 80 is good, anything over 70 is acceptable. Sometimes it's hard to get strong signals on all 3 satellites simultaneously.

3. The more thumbs up or down, the more you're telling TiVo you like or hate that show. 3 thumbs up means it will give that show or others very similar to it top priority in Suggestions. 3 thumbs down means it will never record that show or anything like it. Typically you should never have to give it more than 1 or 2 thumbs for it to find things you like and avoid things you hate.


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## jdspencer (Nov 8, 2003)

Hi, I just discovered this forum from a mention in a TiVo Community forum thread. This is my first post here, but I've been around the Tivo Forum for a couple of years.

For those new to the DirecTV DVR (ie: DTiVo, might I suggest a vist to the above mentioned forum, if you haven't already. 

Here's a few suggestions. Use the TiVo style guide and you will be much happier in your searches, it's faster. With either guide displayed, hit the info button and you can then change the day and time to be displayed up to about 12 days in advance.

Although the Channels I Receive list isn't automatically set to what you have subscribed to, it is important that you remove all channels you don't receive. This is because the CIR list is used by Season Passes and Wishlists when finding your selections. 

It won't be long before you'll want to upgrade the hard drive in your unit. The Upgrade Center part of the TiVo forum has a lot of info. I have two DirecTV DVRs, as they are now called, both are series 1 units. One is an unmodified Philips DSR6000 and the other is a Sony SAT-T60 upgraded to 146 hours.

And, turning off the automatic recording of suggestions doesn't prevent the unit from making suggestions. Just go to the TiVo Suggestions screen and see what's there.

I have recently had to add a Dish 301 receiver in order to get the Superstation Pack. My locals from DirecTV are a long ways off.

From what little I've read here on this forum I will be looking in often.


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

Hi JD and welcome to DBSTalk! :welcome_s

Everyone here is well aware of the Tivo Community. It's a great place to visit. 

Thanks for the suggestions. I still can't believe there is no "standby" button on the remote. I know the receiver is never really off in the first place but it would be nice to have an easy way to place the receiver in standby without having to do 4 or 5 keystrokes on the remote. Really weird.


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## Bill R (Dec 20, 2002)

Chris Blount said:


> I know the receiver is never really off in the first place but it would be nice to have an easy way to place the receiver in standby without having to do 4 or 5 keystrokes on the remote. Really weird.


Chris,

When I first got my TiVo I thought it was strange too but after a while you get used to it.

You can go to standby in three keystrokes, Press the DirecTV button, the channel page down button, and then press select.


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## yomama (Nov 3, 2003)

Well I thought I was going to have my new Direct system installed yesterday, but the stuff is "resting" at the local UPS center..got there @ 4:45 pm Friday...I guess they couldnt deliver it before quiting time  so hopefully it will happen Monday and can get it installed soon...as the installer had called twice last week wanting to do it Saturday...I'm anxious to try out the Tivo as well as all that Direct has to offer as I am new to DBS service, and soon to drop Charter cable :jump3:


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## yomama (Nov 3, 2003)

Chris Blount said:


> Got everything installed today. Everything works like a charm! Pointing the dish turned out to be very easy. Caught all three satellites within just a few minutes. What really helped was the pole mount that came with the dish. It has a bubble level built into the pole making it very easy to plumb.
> 
> After getting the dish setup I called DirecTV and activated both DirecTivos. Went fairly quick. They did NOT require taking my social security number but they did need at least a credit card. No big deal. The lady told me that they would rather have the SSN to keep anyone else from activating under my name.
> 
> ...


Nice pix of the dishes...does the post come with the dish ? I would like to install mine very similar to yours, and not on the side of the house.


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

yomama said:


> Nice pix of the dishes...does the post come with the dish ? I would like to install mine very similar to yours, and not on the side of the house.


Yes, you get the entire mounting arm and base.


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

Bill R said:


> Chris,
> 
> When I first got my TiVo I thought it was strange too but after a while you get used to it.
> 
> You can go to standby in three keystrokes, Press the DirecTV button, the channel page down button, and then press select.


 Great idea! Thanks!


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## John Corn (Mar 21, 2002)

Chris, I'd be intrested to hear your thoughts on the DirecTivo, regarding season pass, name based recordings, stability.....etc.


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## cnsf (Jun 6, 2002)

There was a list of Tivo shortcuts on TivCommunity. I'll try and find them to post here too.


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

John Corn said:


> Chris, I'd be intrested to hear your thoughts on the DirecTivo, regarding season pass, name based recordings, stability.....etc.


 Give me a few weeks and I will try a work up a detailed "review".

cnsf - That would be great! Thanks!


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## John Corn (Mar 21, 2002)

You need more time to play with it.  

Can a season Pass be used for sports? As in recording my BlueJacket and CAVS games. It gets old searching all the time for these games, constantly setting timers.


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## cnsf (Jun 6, 2002)

From TivoCommunity.com
-----------------------------------------------------------

This list was borrowed from a more recent list posted by Otto over at dbsforums.com
-----------------------------------------------------------

The Almost Complete TiVo Codes List

Last Updated: 07-11-03 (4.0 codes section added)
Posted to this forum: 03-05-03

Warning: 
Use of any of these codes may cause unknown amounts of harm to your TiVo's data (setup parameters, recorded or scheduled programs, preferences, guide data, etc.). They could conceivably cause your TiVo to act in some way that might upset TiVo Inc. and cause them to terminate your service. Who knows!? Try these codes entirely AT YOUR OWN RISK! They will void your warrenty, turn your hair white, make your friends spit at you, and cause your parents to claim they have no idea who you are anymore. But hey, if you're okay with it, so are we.

Some of these codes WILL damage your unit if you do not read this entire document for the warnings. Read everything here before going and actually doing any of this crazy stuff, okay?

Most of this information comes from the TiVo Hack FAQ and from various postings to the TiVo forums. There are no guarantees that any of these will work on any particular system now or in the future. I try to keep up with version numbers, but I'm not perfect. Okay?

Index: 
1. Enabling Backdoor Mode 
2. Select-Play-Select Codes 
3. Clear-Enter-Clear Codes 
4. Enter-Enter codes 
5. Clear-Clear-Enter-Enter codes 
6. Triple Thumb codes 
7. AutoTest mode 
8. Dialing codes 
9. Sorting the Now Playing List 
10. Shortcuts 
11. Outdated Codes 
12. 4.0 codes

1. Enabling Backdoor Mode 
The Backdoor mode can be entered using the remote. This is done by doing a "Browse By Name" or "Search by Title" or wherever you can get to the Ouija screen... Currently, the only easy way to exit backdoor mode is to reboot the Tivo. After entering this code, you will see "Backdoors Enabled!" appear briefly, and it will return to Tivo Central. You can verify that backdoors are on in the System Information screen.

1.3 US and 1.5.0 or 1.51 UK systems: Enter "0V1T" and press Thumbs Up.

1.5.2 UK systems: Enter "10J0M" and press Thumbs Up.

2.0 systems: Enter "2 0 TCD" and press Thumbs Up.

2.5 US and 2.5.5 UK systems: Enter "B D 2 5" and press Thumbs Up.

2.5.2 systems (DirecTivo Only): Enter "B M U S 1" and press Thumbs Up.

3.0 systems: Enter "3 0 BC" and press Thumbs Up.

3.2 / 4.0 systems: Not known at this time. Nevertheless, not all of the codes in this list require backdoor mode to be turned on, notably, all the SPS codes as well as a few others.

If you know of any other codes, it would be appreciated if you could tell me so I can add them.

It should be noted that simply enabling backdoors turns on many new things: 
- More info in System Information (including Uptime) 
- More info in program detail screens 
- 3.0 boxes will have View Upcoming Episodes enabled in Tivolution Magazine and Showcase entries 
- And so on...

2. Select-Play-Select Codes 
These codes take the format of "Select Play Select Something Select". These do not require backdoors to be enabled for them to work. The best way to do this type of code is to start playing a recorded program and do them while the recorded program is playing. They can be done from LiveTV as well, but people generally have a hard time getting them to work when trying to do that.

S-P-S-9-S - Toggles the Clock display in the bottom right corner. When you are watching LiveTV or a recording, this will show the time and where you are at in the recording. It's a toggle, so do it again to turn it off. However, when you turn it off, it doesn't disappear, you must go into a Tivo menu and return for it to go away. The Elapsed Time Indicator was removed in 3.0, to the general groan of everyone (it was very handy). They appear to have added it back to 3.2 on Series 2 boxes, but whether this becomes generally true is anybody's guess.

S-P-S-InstantReplay-S - Toggles a Status display in the bottom right corner. This displays what the Tivo is currently doing. Bit useless, really. Do it again to toggle it back off. Like the clock code, it doesn't disappear when you turn it off, you must go into a menu to make it disappear.

S-P-S-Pause-S - Toggles the fast disappear of the Play bar. Appears to have no other major effect, but who knows?

S-P-S-3-0-S (1.3, also 2.5, not 2.0 or 2.01) - Toggles 30 second skip mode. This turns the Skip to End button into a 30 second skip button. This was removed in 2.0x, but added back in 2.5.

3. Clear-Enter-Clear Codes 
C-E-C stands for "Clear Enter Clear". Note: the claim is that all "C-E-C something" combinations will make the same confirmation tones, but they may or may not do anything. Here are the known codes.

C-E-C Thumbs-Up - Will allow you to access the TiVo's log files on your TV screen. Page up and page down allow you to move through the log information and the right arrow you to move through the log files. Use the left arrow key to get back out to the normal TiVo menus. Thumbs up and Thumbs down will take you to the top of bottom of whatever log is on screen.

C-E-C Thumbs-Down - Will shut down the myworld program on a TiVo. The myworld program is the brain of the TiVo. Shutting it down is not advisable since the only thing you can do with the TiVo at that point is use the BASH shell if you activated one. If you do have a BASH prompt you can rerun the myworld program to get the TiVo running fully again. If not you need to power down and up the TiVo to get it fully functional again.

C-E-C-0 (2.0) - This turns off the display of "scheduled suggestions" in the ToDo List. Also makes the clock (see SPS9S) NOT have a black bar behind it.

C-E-C-1 (2.0) - This turns off the display of "scheduled suggestions" in the ToDo List. Also makes the clock (see SPS9S) have a black bar behind it.

C-E-C-2 (2.0) - This turns on the display of "scheduled suggestions" in the ToDo List. A "scheduled suggestion" is a suggestion the Tivo is planning on recording. It doesn't take effect until something changes in the ToDo List. To cancel a scheduled suggestion, see this post.

C-E-C-3 (2.0) - Appears to do the exact same thing as CEC2. I'm pretty certain there's more to this than we are aware of right now.

**2.5 note**: C-E-C 0-3 (the above 4 codes) do not appear to work in 2.5, but they do still affect the "black background" of the clock. They just don't do anything for the suggestions in the ToDo List. To put suggestions in the ToDo list, see the "thumbs thumbs" code below.

C-E-C 4 - This forces suggestions to be rebuilt (same as 'sendkey dumpState'?).

C-E-C 5 - Toggles the overshoot correction during fast forwarding on and off.

C-E-C Fast-Forward - This resets (reboots) the TiVo

C-E-C Skip-to-end - Turns on "Boat-Anchor" mode. This convinces the TiVo that it should behave as if it has no guide data. Boat Anchor mode is automatic when the unit runs out of guide data, so this is probably only for testing purposes. A bit useless, really.

C-E-C 6 - Go into the Node Navigator. The Node Navigator is a trick to let you access menus directly. This is extremely dangerous, even to play with. Please do not go into any of the numbered nodes on this screen, you can (and will) break your unit beyond repair, requiring a full restore from a backup, even just by looking at these nodes. The reason is simple: When you enter certain menus or "nodes", changes can take place. For example, if you found the node to set the zipcode (in the Guided Setup routine), and then exited without changing anything, your zipcode would be erased, and would ruin your lineup on the next daily call, causing the unit to reboot when you go to LiveTV. Several things like this can happen, so just don't even do this. If you accidently get here, press the Tivo button to exit back out, and do NOT go into any of the numbered nodes. Even if you have a clue as to what you are doing, you can do damage just by looking around, so don't.

However, there are two extremely cool things here you can adjust in 3.0 software. Thanks goes to gleffler for letting me know about them.

WARNING: Very dangerous! Have a bit of caution, 'kay? If they don't work, they'll likely break your Tivo, and you're very attached to your Tivo, aren't you? THESE ONLY WORK IN 3.0! Have a backup ready to go.

First trick: Node 1 in 3.0. This node lets you adjust the exact timing of the auto-correction jumpback. Forget the offset/delay method listed below, and get precise. Note that entering this node will stop any recording you might have going at the time. This change will stay in effect after a reboot.

Second trick: Advanced Wishlists! Go to Node 30, and turn on advanced wishlists. Now, go to the Create a Wishlist screen and scroll PAST the bottom to find "Advanced Wishlist". From here, you can create a wishlist that is any combination of actors/directors/keywords/and genres. Nice, isn't it? Be as specific as you wanna be. This will stay enabled after a reboot.

Non-3.0 Users (2.5 only?): Appearantly, you can access Advanced Wishlists as well. Just hit 0 (zero) when creating a wishlist instead of picking the type of wishlist. You do need backdoors enabled. This also will work on 3.0 boxes. There may be a node to activate this as well on 2.0 and up boxes, but why muck about with the dangerous Node Navigator if you don't have to?

C-E-C-Slow - same as 'SendKey dumpState', creates a /tmp/mwstate

4. Enter-Enter codes 
E-E stands for "Enter Enter". The following codes must be entered in the "Search by Title"screen. These codes are generally used to set values on the Tivo. You enter the code, and the prompt will appear, along with the red recording light coming on. You then enter the value. You then enter the code again to set the value in, and the recording light will go off. It doesn't actually stop recording if you happen to be recording something, however. Entering invalid values (non-numeric) will cause your Tivo to reboot, so be careful.

E-E-1 - Gives you Speed1: prompt. Turns the record LED on (indicating the backdoor is open and can be changed?). Enter a number for how fast you want the first scan speed to run at, and then press E-E-1 again. The record LED will go out.

The last two digits of the number must be 00 for an integer multiple speed. The digits to the left of the 00 indicate how many times normal playing speed the scan is running. 300 (which is 3x) is the default Speed1 scan speed, but you can't see that, you can only enter a number. A value of "1" is super slow motion (.01x speed) Unit will revert back to default speed when rebooted.

Does not appear to work in 2.0, although the prompt is still there.

E-E-2 - Gives you Speed2: prompt. Default is 2000. See Speed1 above. Does not appear to work in 2.0, although the prompt is still there.

E-E-3 - Gives you Speed3: prompt. Default is 6000. See Speed1 above. Does not appear to work in 2.0, although the prompt is still there.

E-E-4 - Gives you Rate1: prompt. Function unknown.

E-E-5 - Gives you Rate2: prompt. Function unknown.

E-E-6 - Gives you Rate3: prompt. Function unknown.

E-E-7 - Gives you Inter: prompt. Function unknown. Same as TIVO_INTERSTITIAL_INTERVAL environment variable (?). Interstitials were removed a long time ago, so this is probably useless.

E-E-8 - Gives you Open: prompt. Function unknown. Same as TIVO_LONGOPEN_INTERVAL environment variable. (?)

E-E-9 - Gives you Int.disabled, or int.enabled prompt. Toggles "interstitials". Intersititials were little TiVo guy animations that occurred between each menu screen. Most of them were deleted as being too annoying, but the initial boot one remains. Setting the TIVO_DISABLE_INTERSTITIALS environment variable to 1 disables it. Toggling "Int." from the remote causes the animation to play every time you hit the TiVo button. (Reported, may not work for everyone).

E-E-Tivo - If in Debug mode (see C-C-E-E 2 below), lets you set the TiVo's clock. Warning: setting this value may cause all of your Guide data to get "expired". If you want to play with this, keep in mind that TiVo may get mad at you for downloading several copies of your Guide data over the course of a couple of days. The best way to fix a messed up clock without reloading all the Guide data is to do the "Make a Test Call" option. The format of the time entry you use is the same as the format for the settime command. (?)

E-E-Rewind - Lets you set the "Offset:". Defaults to 2000.

E-E-FastForward - Lets you set the "Delay:". Defaults to 957.

The Offset and Delay control the overshoot correction. When you set them, go to any recorded program, play it, pause it, and press FF to do a frame advance. This makes the new values you put in take effect. For 1.3 like correction, use Offset of 1000 and Delay of 750.

5. Clear Clear Enter Enter codes 
C-C-E-E stands for "Clear Clear Enter Enter". The following codes must be entered in the "System Information" screen.

C-C-E-E 2 - Turns on or off "Special Mode: DEBUG" (Note: you have to leave the "System Information" screen and re-enter it to see this flag turned on.) Starts sending debugging output to the /var/log/tvdebuglog file. This setting will STAY ON after a reboot. Not advised to leave this on for long periods of time.

C-C-E-E 3 - Seems to initiate a call. (a special one?)

C-C-E-E 7 [works even without Backdoors enabled] - Causes a message to be written to /var/log/tven saying: SetupDebugContext:OnNumber[94]: USER PROBLEM LOGSTAMP .

I'm guessing that Customer Support tells customers who are having problems to do CCEE7 around the time that the problem occurs, and then when they upload the logs, they can help locate what was going on when the problem happened.

C-C-E-E 8 - Takes you to the "Channels You Watch" page with NONE OF THE CHANNELS SELECTED! I guess this might be a quick way to clear your channel list. Fortunately you can just back out of it without losing your current channel list. I didn't try going forward from that screen... AVS Forum member "android" warns that this doesn't work ... and that it just hangs his machine..

C-C-E-E 0 [works even without Backdoors enabled] - It allows you to enter your own "Dial-in configuration code"! It does not appear to let you directly change the TFA value.

TFA stands for Toll Free Authorization. 
Possible values: 
0=[Access] denied ["you probably didn't ask, but you used a local, so QED"] 
1=No decision [made yet] (you got time) 
2=Oh you requested (we'll get back to ya) 
3=Yeah, I guess so 
4=Researched and you are out of luck 
5=You had your chance but did nothing

The Dial In Access code (the 000 part) can be changed via some special key sequences.... Anyway, when Tivo CS gets a really unusual problem that needs files downloaded to the unit, they can tell the customer to change the access code and it'll then download certain types of files.. These may be predefined debugging type things or may be files the guy just then put on the server.

Best case scenario: Your daily call fails. Worst case scenario: Your Tivo breaks by downloading and running some weird debug thing and is unrepairable without a whole drive backup.

6. Triple Thumb codes (new to 2.5 and up) 
New codes, it seems like. There's only a few of these, and they are still being found. Consider them experimental.

- Thumbs Down, Thumbs Down, Thumbs Up, Instant Replay - 
:: If done in the ToDo List, it will turn on "Scheduled Suggestions" (See above). 
:: If done in the Now Playing List, it will display the "hidden" recordings, like the Teleworld Paid Program. These recordings are those in reserved space.

- Thumbs Down, Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down, Instant Replay 
:: If done in Now Playing, it will take you to a new menu called "Clips on Disk". This menu has the same content as the hidden recordings, but broken up into clips like they are in the Showcases. If you don't have any clips for whatever reason (haven't gotten any yet, your cable operator pre-empts the clips program, etc), this will reboot the machine.

- Thumbs Down, Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down, Record 
:: Do it from the Tivo Central main menu to get the "MenuItem Back Door". It shows the current date in both the number of days since Jan. 1st, 1970 (an internal date format) and also in the normal style. If there is a menu item at the bottom (ad) then it will show the expiration date. 
:: Do it from the Showcases screen to show all the hidden showcases, if there are any. It's a toggle. Do it again to remove them. Hidden showcases are simply the latest showcases that haven't had anything added to them, and have thus expired.

- Thumbs Down, Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down, Clear (3.0) 
:: Do it in Tivo Central to change all the fonts to italic.

- Thumbs Down, Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down, Enter 
:: Dumps debug messages in /var/log/tvlog

7. AutoTest mode (3.0) 
Go into Now Playing, view a description and hit 1,2,3 followed by Channel Down (the logs will now report "***** Auto_test mode unlocked! ***** ").

Hit 4 to start the auto test (it presses random keys to simulate someone using the Tivo.. quite annoying in fact) 
Hit 5 to change the test 
Hit 7 or 8 to change the delay between simulated keys 
Hit 4 again to stop .. might have to reboot to avoid triggering it next time you hit 4

8. Dialing codes 
Want to change the way your Tivo calls home? Read on. All these codes are inserted into the dialing prefix space in the Phone Setup stuff.

,#034 - DirecTivo only - This will limit the speed of the modem to v.34 (28.8k) which may improve your connections if you have poor lines. If you have a lot of failed calls, this might help. Makes the call take about twice as long, in theory.

,#019 - DirecTivo only - Same concept as above, but slower. If the above won't work, try this. But beware that it will seriously slow down the connection and make the call that much longer. Like 4 times longer than normal, approximately.

,#2xx - 3.0 only - Use PPP over Serial for the daily call. 
xx stands for the port speed. The first two digits of the port speed are what you put in here. So: 
96 = 9600 
38 = 38,400 
57 = 57,600 
11 = 115,200 
And so on.. 
The ,#2xx code will make the unit try to connect to a computer attached to the serial port using PPP. For more info, search the Underground forums.

,#3xx - 3.0 only - Use PPP over serial for the daily call. This is the same as with ,#2xx, but in this mode, it does a "modem emulation". That is, it will send AT type commands over the serial port as if a modem was there. Some third party PPP servers support exactly this kind of mode. Also, this can allow you to connect an external modem to the serial port and having it really dial and complete a call using that modem. Some sites sell preconfigured external modems for this purpose, and it has even been done on TechTV. Search around.

,#401 - 3.0 only - This sets up the Tivo to use ethernet for the daily calls. On Series 1 boxes, this means TivoNet or TurboNet. On Series 2, this means a USB->Ethernet dongle. Not all dongles will work, do a search for more info.

9. Sorting the Now Playing List (3.0) 
In Now Playing, Enter: 
(S)low (0)Zero (R)ecord (T)humbsUp

Press enter to switch sorting options.

short cut keys are 
1 for normal 
2 for experation date 
3 for alphabetical

10. Shortcuts 
Backdoor mode not required, listed here for completeness.

TiVo 0 - Plays the TiVo guy boot movie 
TiVo 1 - Goes to the Now Playing list. (in 2.5, goes to the Season Pass Manager) 
TiVo 2 - Goes to the To Do list. 
TiVo 3 - Goes to Wishlists (in 2.x+) 
TiVo 4 - Goes to the "Browse By Name" screen. 
TiVo 5 - Goes to the "Browse By Channel" screen in 1.3, and to "LiveTV" in 2.0. No, nobody knows why they changed it. They changed it back to "Browse by Channel" for 2.5 though. 
TiVo 6 - Goes to the "Browse By Time" screen. 
TiVo 7 - Goes to the "Record Time/Channel" screen (manual record). 
TiVo 8 - Goes to the "TiVo's Suggestions" screen. 
TiVo 9 - Goes to the "Network Showcases" screen. 
TiVo TiVo - Goes to the Now Playing List (in 2.x+) 
TiVo Slow (4.0 only) - Goes to "Messages and Setup"

11. Outdated Codes

Teach Tivo (2.0 only) 
To activate Teach Tivo, turn on Backdoors, then go to the suggestions list. Special codes here:

1,2, or 3 - Goes directly to different sections in Teach Tivo. 
4 - Turns on the "Teach Tivo" menu item in the suggestions list. This won't be immediately visible until the list rebuilds or you change the list in some way (thumb down a program and move the cursor will do it).

DirecTivo trick (2.0 only?) 
When it's "Acquiring Satellite Data", you can press thumbs up to get a couple of lines of status messages at the bottom of the screen. I'm not sure what most of them mean, but TX: shows the transponder it's looking at. This can be done whenever it's acquiring, as far as I can tell. No backdoor code required.

12. 4.0 Codes
While the backdoor code for 4.0 has not been found, it's possible to enable the codes if you want to take the drive out and change the hash in MFS (ResourceItem 176 of the second ResourceGroup). I recommend searching around on how to do this if you don't know how. Frankly, if you don't know how, you probably shouldn't even try, as you can break things really badly if you're not careful.

But, if you do it, and thus get the backdoors working, here's some 4.0 only codes:

Disk Usage Space
Go to Pick Programs to Record and press ZERO-THUMBSUP. You'll get a screen detailing disk space used, in both megabytes, percentages, and hours in Basic mode. However, the math used on the screen is some of that "new math" appearantly, as the numbers simply don't add up. Take the numbers with a grain of salt, in other words.

Home Media Option Info
Go to Now Playing and press ZERO-THUMBSDOWN. You'll get a screen that tells you about the Home Media Options activated on your machine. It also shows the various boxes on your network, and you can select them to get different additional info about them.


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

Actually the Tivo has a nice very nice feature I discovered last night. It's call the Wishlist. Just punch something in there like the title of a movie or something and the next time it's on, it will automatically record the program even if it's not on the guide yet. I don't know if that will work for sports though. Has anyone used this feature? Does the entry into the wishlist have to match the actual title of the show exactly?


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## pez2002 (Dec 13, 2002)

your so lucky to have a tivo I want a tivo


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## cnsf (Jun 6, 2002)

Chris Blount said:


> Actually the Tivo has a nice very nice feature I discovered last night. It's call the Wishlist. Just punch something in there like the title of a movie or something and the next time it's on, it will automatically record the program even if it's not on the guide yet. I don't know if that will work for sports though. Has anyone used this feature? Does the entry into the wishlist have to match the actual title of the show exactly?


I've found that wishlists tend to slow down the Tivo, but are worth it.

I have had success with recording all Syracuse sports events, but record too much for Yankees. i.e. I got the Yankees games, but also all the repeats and any sports show with Yankees (eg History of the Yankees, Pride of the Yankees, Yankees Postgame, etc.). When you need to extend the recording by 1.5-3.0 hours, it tends to cripple your available space.

Just keep in mind the Wishlists will slow down the Tivo, so keep them to a minimum. It is a really great feature.

Now we've got to get you to upgrade your space.....


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## cnsf (Jun 6, 2002)

pez2002 said:


> your so lucky to have a tivo I want a tivo


LUKE! COME TO THE DARK SIDE..................[coh-shhhh.....coh-shhhhh]


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## John Corn (Mar 21, 2002)

cnsf, why would the wishlist slow it down?


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## cnsf (Jun 6, 2002)

Not sure. Probably constant scanning for shows, checking conflicts, etc.

I seem to remember this is a common thing. When I got rid of my Wishlists, all except one, it sped up.


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## John Corn (Mar 21, 2002)

cnsf said:


> Not sure. Probably constant scanning for shows, checking conflicts, etc.
> 
> I seem to remember this is a common thing. When I got rid of my Wishlists, all except one, it sped up.


Thanks, that makes sense.


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## spanishannouncetable (Apr 23, 2002)

Chris Blount said:


> Hi JD and welcome to DBSTalk! :welcome_s
> 
> Everyone here is well aware of the Tivo Community. It's a great place to visit.
> 
> Thanks for the suggestions. I still can't believe there is no "standby" button on the remote. I know the receiver is never really off in the first place but it would be nice to have an easy way to place the receiver in standby without having to do 4 or 5 keystrokes on the remote. Really weird.


Unless you have the receiver connected to the TV via the RF output, you don't need to use the standby anyway. The unit is always on, and the only thing standby does is shut off the outgoing audio & video signals and suspend the buffers.

I've left mine on for over 2 years now (except for power losses and the drive upgrade) with no problems. Having both tuners constantly buffering something which I could scan through the last 30 minutes of has come in handy more than once.


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## Marcus S (Apr 23, 2002)

Watched Charlie Chat tonight for kicks and grins. Oh my, how absolutely pitifull was that. It only confirms my fear from a year ago, they still don't get it, new equipment is late again, and new bugs introduced to existing equipment. So nothing has changed in 2 years except, Charlie has quit promissing anything.

I would say looking at the Charlie Chat Questions post, even loyal followers are now reaching Alert Orange. Unfortunate, E* could pull it together, they just continue to choose not too... Still laughing over, "and tonight a DirecTV subscriber who wishes they switched to Dish long ago." Also insert Comcast, Adelphia, Charter, etc.. That was a really lame shot. 

On topic. I am interested in HD Tivo, but the fee has to go. I am hoping that Rupert will live up to that promise. Otherwise, integrated DVD-recordable and 120G Hard Drive is. My Panasonic is DVD-recorder only, but the Hard Drive integration brings home the best of both worlds. I suspect DVR's are going to lag behind for awhile.


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## Curtis0620 (Apr 22, 2002)

John Corn said:


> You need more time to play with it.
> 
> Can a season Pass be used for sports? As in recording my BlueJacket and CAVS games. It gets old searching all the time for these games, constantly setting timers.


I do an auto-record keyword wishlist for Sports/Hockey and "Pittsburgh Penguins". Gets all the Penguin games for me without any manual intervention from me.


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## BrettStah (Feb 7, 2003)

I have two first-generation DirecTivos, each with 50+ auto-record wishlists. Rearranging the priorities of my recurring recordings (in Season Pass Manager, which can be accessed by pressing the TiVo (or DirecTV) button on your remote to get to the main menu, and then the number 1 on the remote) can take quite awhile (15-25 minutes probably). I don't mind, since I just make sure I have something I want to watch on the other DirecTivo, or I rearrange them before I'm heading to bed.

For sports, it can be a little tricky. Keep a few things in mind:

There is a way to limit wishlists by category (e.g, Sports/Football). Or you can limit by the type of broadcast (e.g., "Live"). Unfortunately you cannot combine these two, so you may have to experiment with a few different variations of wishlists.

For football, you can skip the category or other methods and usually just use a Title Wishlist... the catch is you'll probably want two for your favorite team - one will pick up home games and the other will pick up away games:

"NEW ORLEANS SAINTS AT"
"AT NEW ORLEANS SAINTS"

I tend to record anywhere from 3-10 football games a weekend (doesn't mean I watch them all, though!), and I don't rely on auto-record wishlists to record any of them. Here's what I do... I have a non-auto-record wishlist for Sports/Football. Once a week, usually Monday or Tuesday, I'll bring up the results from this wishlist, and scan through all of the matching shows, and then choose which ones I want to record. This takes me 5-10 minutes at most each week, but I don't mind it because except for two teams (LSU and the Saints) I'm not sure what games I want to watch. This week I may want to watch USC versus UCLA, while next week I may not care about that game. Plus I can decide for each game if I need to pad it, and by how much. Some networks allocate 3 hours, some 3.5 hours per game. Sometimes I want to record two games that are on back-to-back, so I can skip padding the first game completely, and only pad the second one, allowing me to use the second tuner for a third game.

Wow, that explanation took longer than it does for me to schedule a week's worth of games!


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Chris Blount said:


> Actually the Tivo has a nice very nice feature I discovered last night. It's call the Wishlist. Just punch something in there like the title of a movie or something and the next time it's on, it will automatically record the program even if it's not on the guide yet. I don't know if that will work for sports though. Has anyone used this feature? Does the entry into the wishlist have to match the actual title of the show exactly?


Think of Wishlists as canned searches or queries. If you use a keyword search it will search for that string in the titile or description.

You can choose to have your wishlist autorecord or not. Setting to autorecord will put it in your season pass manager (which you can then order the priority). This is what slows a Tivo down, the autorecord wishlist. A regular wishlist does not. Wishlists also are not channel specific.

Example of what I have:
Category: Music
Keyword: "hair"
Will find any shows that have to do with music (such as on VH1) that have to do with hair bands (or that's the plan).

Keyword: "Red Wings"
Will pick up all the Red Wings games, pre/post game shows as well as anything else that has to do with the Red Wings. Shanny on David Letterman? It will pick it up most likely as the description will probably be something like "Brendan Shannahan of the Red Wings".

Keyword: "Sex in the City"
Will pick up episodes of Sex in the City on any of the HBO's. This will help a lot if you have a lot of season passes with conflicts. It will pick up this show on any of the 7 HBO's when it is available. Might also pick up talk show appearances.

How do I use Wishlists? Mainly as canned searches that I check once a week or so and pick and choose what to record out of them. Rarely do I make one autorecord unless I'm doing it to replace a season pass for a particular program for one reason or another. Many people do a wishlist for Survivor so that it will pick up any specials that have to deal with the show (like wrap up shows) as they will not be recorded with any season pass typically.

Wishlists are also the way to go to record sports as your favorite team will be on several different channels usually, especially with something like one of the sport packages like Extra Innings. Wishlists are not channel specific so it's perfect for these types of things.


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## BrettStah (Feb 7, 2003)

Some wishlist tips:

1) If you're going to use quotes (and you probably will), use quotes (inserted with the Pause button) for everything. This makes the alphabetic sort of your wishlists more consistent. So, if you wanted to make a wishlist for a single word, such as TIVO, just put quotes around it ("TIVO") and it will find the same stuff, but it'll be sorted along with your other wishlists more logically (in my opinion).

2) If you have a show that airs on multiple channels (The Sopranos, etc.) then make an auto-record wishlist for it. Use a title wishlist if the title text is enough to probably be unique enough to accuratly match only that show. Otherwise, use a keyword wishlist and add in the name of a main actor. For example, *"ALIAS" GARNER*.


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## BrettStah (Feb 7, 2003)

To contrast to bonscott87, we use the auto-record wishlists for the majority of recordings, since we have the NY and LA network feeds for the 4 big networks. So I have mostly auto-record title or keyword wishlists for shows, with season passes relegated to only stuff on Sci-Fi, CNN, Fox News, and other networks with only a single channel available to me.

Be careful with relying on auto-record wishlists to always record your favorite team's sporting events too, because you wind up having your DirecTivo try to record from a channel that is blacked out for a particular game. I don't recall the exact rules the DirecTivos use to pick a channel to record from if the same thing is listed in the guide at the same time, but it's NOT always smart enough to realize that a game is blacked out.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

Good point Brett. There is really no way for the DirecTivo to know if the game is blacked out or not. Heck, you won't know until you tune in most times. I *think* if a game is on multiple channels it will choose the lower channel number and record that. At least that's the way it used to be under the 2.5 software way back when. Not sure if that behavior has changed or not. You'll have to test it I think to see what it does.


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## BrettStah (Feb 7, 2003)

Actually, now that I think about it the behavior with the current software is exactly opposite of what you noted... (the higher channel "wins" over the lower channel). I know this because a wishlist for a network show will record from the NY channel (38x) instead of the New Orleans channel (all of which are below 55) if they come on at the same time.


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

Wow! Great info guys. Thanks. The more I use the DirecTivo, the more I'm starting to really like it. After rating a bunch of shows, I can already tell the Tivo Suggestion function is starting to properly do the job. It's picking out shows I never knew existed that are right up my line of interests. This thing is awesome!

BOB HALLER - Again, forget about the 721 and Dish. Switch now!


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## spanishannouncetable (Apr 23, 2002)

BrettStah said:


> Actually, now that I think about it the behavior with the current software is exactly opposite of what you noted... (the higher channel "wins" over the lower channel). I know this because a wishlist for a network show will record from the NY channel (38x) instead of the New Orleans channel (all of which are below 55) if they come on at the same time.


Brett, the lower channel # wins.

NY & LA distant nets (380-390) are actually lower channel numbers than your New Orleans locals. Their actual channel #'s are still in the 800-900 channel range (which is what the DirecTiVo software sees), then they are remapped to their OTA channel #'s (the channels you see) *after* the guide data is indexed.

My own tactic for recording primetime network shows on distants doesn't use processor-draining WL's. I set up 2 regular SP's for each network show I want - one on the east feed (NY), one on the west (LA). On the NY SP, each show is set to record First Run Only, then the LA SP for the same show is set for ALL (with duplicates). Why 2 SP's instead of a single WL ?

For a show like Law & Order, my method ignores all the TNT reruns completely that a WL still has to sort through. It also allows a backup recording for each weeks' episode in case a storm passes by, something a single First Run Only WL wouldn't fix. Cold Case, whose east coast run is always ruined by late-running football games, is still recorded properly on the west feed. And single shot recordings which might bump a single WL on your Priority List are much less likely to bump 2 seperate recordings 3 hours apart on 2 different channels.

Granted, having 212 hours recording capacity between my 2 DirecTiVos helps out a lot, since every primetime show has 2 entries on the Priority List. After they are recorded I give each episode a quick check to make sure it was recorded in its entirety, then keep the one with the better PQ (SUID) and delete the extra one.

Ah, Tivo. How did I watch anything before I got it ? :lol:


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## MedMech (Sep 21, 2003)

Chris Blount said:


> BOB HALLER - Again, forget about the 721 and Dish. Switch now!


How long have you been with Dish? I'm not sure how anyone could make the case for Dish against Dtv.


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## BrettStah (Feb 7, 2003)

spanishannouncetable said:


> *Brett, the lower channel # wins.
> 
> NY & LA distant nets (380-390) are actually lower channel numbers than your New Orleans locals. Their actual channel #'s are still in the 800-900 channel range (which is what the DirecTiVo software sees), then they are remapped to their OTA channel #'s (the channels you see) after the guide data is indexed.*


I hadn't known that... I recall vaguely some discussion of channel remapping, but I never connected the dots before to explain the wishlist behavior!


> *My own tactic for recording primetime network shows on distants doesn't use processor-draining WL's. I set up 2 regular SP's for each network show I want - one on the east feed (NY), one on the west (LA). On the NY SP, each show is set to record First Run Only, then the LA SP for the same show is set for ALL (with duplicates). Why 2 SP's instead of a single WL ?
> 
> For a show like Law & Order, my method ignores all the TNT reruns completely that a WL still has to sort through. It also allows a backup recording for each weeks' episode in case a storm passes by, something a single First Run Only WL wouldn't fix. Cold Case, whose east coast run is always ruined by late-running football games, is still recorded properly on the west feed. And single shot recordings which might bump a single WL on your Priority List are much less likely to bump 2 seperate recordings 3 hours apart on 2 different channels.*


I actually have started doing something similar, just for FOX and CBS shows on Sundays, precisely because of late-running football games that delay some shows. I just created a season pass for them on the LA feed, and placed them one position higher than the existing wishlists. So any FOX or CBS show on Sundays will always record from the LA station, and after football I'll move it below the wishlist. When you mention the "processor-draining" wishlists, are you referring to the length of time it takes to re-arrange the priorities in Season Pass Manager? Or do you find that it noticably slows things down when it's processing the guide data in the background? Because we've noticed that our two main DirecTivos (both upgraded to 126 hours, both first generation, with lots of auto-record wishlists) are sluggish in bringing up the Now Playing list, and re-prioritizing shows, but otherwise we find the performance acceptable. However, I'll consider your method you listed with the dual season passes if they get slower!


> *Granted, having 212 hours recording capacity between my 2 DirecTiVos helps out a lot, since every primetime show has 2 entries on the Priority List. After they are recorded I give each episode a quick check to make sure it was recorded in its entirety, then keep the one with the better PQ (SUID) and delete the extra one.
> 
> Ah, Tivo. How did I watch anything before I got it ? :lol:*


That's what I wonder too! I even remember getting into arguments with my wife about my channel surfing "problem"... she was always nervous that I wouldn't switch back to the show we were watching, when I would flip around during commercial breaks.


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## spanishannouncetable (Apr 23, 2002)

BrettStah said:


> When you mention the "processor-draining" wishlists, are you referring to the length of time it takes to re-arrange the priorities in Season Pass Manager? Or do you find that it noticably slows things down when it's processing the guide data in the background? Because we've noticed that our two main DirecTivos (both upgraded to 126 hours, both first generation, with lots of auto-record wishlists) are sluggish in bringing up the Now Playing list, and re-prioritizing shows, but otherwise we find the performance acceptable. However, I'll consider your method you listed with the dual season passes if they get slower!


I truly believe that the more WL's you have, the more the system bogs down. Background indexing uses more resources, display of NP list takes longer, and especially re-arranging the Season Pass priority list.

Every time you move an item on the SP priority list, it forces the software to rebuild the entire thing. Since SP's are channel-specific a rebuild only sorts info for the channels that are necessary, where a WL orders a search for WL criteria across every channel.
The more WL's on the list = much more sorting of guide data.

Try the SP method and use WL's sparingly, like for a hard-to-find movie or episode of a show. Also, when you re-arrange the SP priority list, change everything you're going to change in one shot to get the most out of the automatic rebuild. We might see an improvement in this area when/if Directv gives us a real software upgrade (FOLDERS !) but until then it's up to us to do everything we can to get some speed out of these boxes.


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## geneb11 (Mar 24, 2002)

Hey Chris,
Glad to see you trying out the DTivo. Don't worry about the standby. I have had 2 HDVR2's since last January and I keep them on. The Tivo live guide is much better,it lista shows up to 7 or 8 hours on the right side and you can scroll through it. 

I use only 1 thumb up or no thumb. once you get all your season passes and tivo suggestions going you won't watch much live tv. I use wishlist's as a search also (I record off of season pass) If I want to record something in wishlist I will scan through and select 1 time recordings. Sports/Football catagory wishlist will show all upcoming football. 

At least once a week go through your tivo suggestions and get rid of stuff you don't want to keep it tuned up. Go into your "Channels I receive" list and take out the channels that you don't get including the PPV,because that's the list that tivo uses for it's service. If you don't it will record a nothing channel and waiste space. 
30 second skip is (select,play,select,30,select) this needs to be done after every restart or major download or power outage.

Enjoy


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## geneb11 (Mar 24, 2002)

I also wanted to add that up here in Rhode Island the signal strengths are:

101°=83
110°=95
119°=95

I would tweek that dish if you are getting 80's in all of them. Down there in San Antonio you should be stronger.


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## BrettStah (Feb 7, 2003)

Here in New Orleans, my signal strengths on all three satellites are typically range from the low to high 90's.


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## shalverson (Oct 28, 2003)

Hello again,

If I do my own install on a new D* system, will I need to purchase any switches or anything? What surprises should I expect? I should have enough cable so that really isn't an issue. This is what I am planning for hardware: 

2 Tivo Receiver's
1 Standard Receiver
1 Triple LNB Dish
Future High Def. Receiver

Also, are there two styles of dishes? I was in Circuit City today and he told me the one on display was the brand new style and that he just put it up. It was not an oval style.

When I drop E*, can I keep my Distant Network's and Super Station's? 

Thanks,
Scott


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## jdspencer (Nov 8, 2003)

DirecTV doesn't offer the Superstations, unless you can get your locals for WB and UPN. DirecTV's website has a place where you can enter your zipcode to see if you qualify for the Distant nets.

Dish type depends on what sat you get your locals, if you can get them that is.


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## tivosmart (Sep 14, 2003)

shalverson said:


> Hello again,
> 
> If I do my own install on a new D* system, will I need to purchase any switches or anything? What surprises should I expect? I should have enough cable so that really isn't an issue. This is what I am planning for hardware:
> 
> ...


The dishs out there are wither 2-LNB or 3-LNB (oval). The 2-LNB has, I believe, 2 outputs and the 3-LNB has 4 outputs. The new 2-LNB style, I believe, includes a 2x2 multi-switch inside it while the old doesn't. Of course, the number of LNBs dictates how many satellites you can lock to. With the configuration you mentioned above you will need an external (powered) 4x8 multi-switch. Also, if you plan to mix OTA channels you're better of getting a 5x8 instead (also powered) so you have 1 additional input for the OTA coaxial cable. I don't know if CC will include it in your package, I know if you buy from reputable online dealers like expertsatellite they include a 4x8 switch (the 5x8 would be included only if you bought a HD package upfront). It's worthwhile to ask them about that, if they don't include you could have a better option by buying somewhere else, these things don't come cheap.


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