# Whole Home. What's the story



## rbpeirce (Feb 24, 2006)

I was talking to a DTV CSR and commented that I have an HD DVR upstairs and an SD DVR downstairs. When I am trying to record more than two shows I put the spill-over on the SD DVR, transfer it to tape and watch it upstairs.

She suggested Whole Home and indicated I could have an HD DVR upstairs and down and directly access the downstairs from upstairs, or vice versa. However, the information she mailed me said I could only record two shows at a time, although I could watch two previously recorded shows. That's worse than the current situation.

Another option is the HR34, which ought to cover me for everything upstairs. However, as others have mentioned, losing that DVR could wipe out a lot of recorded material, and there is no backup capability of which I am aware.

I would rather have the two DVRs interconnected but not at the cost of only being able to record two shows. So, what is the actual story on this?


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## dennisj00 (Sep 27, 2007)

If you get a second HD dvr you'll be able to record 2 programs on each at the same time.

The CSR was probably suggesting just an Hd receiver at your current SD location. I'd certainly recommend a second dvr.


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## Richierich (Jan 10, 2008)

Yes, and you would have 100 Series Link Capabilities. I just Love my WHDVR Service and so does my wife as many times we have finished watching something upstairs in the bedroom.

Go For It!!!


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## allenn (Nov 19, 2005)

Richierich said:


> ........ I just Love my WHDVR Service and so does my wife as many times we have finished watching something upstairs in the bedroom. Go For It!!!


You got that correct!

MVR is one of the best things D* has done in the 18 years I have had D* service. I started with a legacy MRV setup which got me hooked. I now have SWiM LNB / DECA / Wireless CCK. I could not be without it.

I set up one HR24 for my shows, and the wife has the other HR24 for her stuff. The wireless CCK has greatly improved the download speed for video on demand, and Media Share is really useable. Oh, IMHO the best thing D* introduced was the HR10-250 DVR with HD, DD-5.1, and TIVO.

Don't hesitate for a momemt on this one. To quote Larry the Cable Guy,"Get-R-Done". Best wishes!


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## rbpeirce (Feb 24, 2006)

Thanks, all. The CSR actually said two DVRs but the stuff she sent suggested one DVR and one receiver, which confused me. Two DVRs sounds like the way to go.

What are the additional costs? On the one hand I see $3/mo, which is very reasonable, but somewhere else I saw $20/mo, which I guess is $10/mo more than I am currently paying, or is it $13/mo?


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## makaiguy (Sep 24, 2007)

You are already paying the monthly dvr fee. This applies no matter how many dvrs you have on your account, so there should be no change there.

With HD on the one dvr now, you're already paying the HD access fee (or maybe having it waived if you're using autopay). This also applies per account, not per receiver, so there should be no change there.

If you just replace the downstairs unit with a new one you won't increase the number of units, so there's no change there.

The only increase in monthly fee should be the $3 monthly fee for Whole Home.


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## BAHitman (Oct 24, 2007)

Yes WHDVR is the way to go... get the 2nd HDDVR. when you deactivate the SDDVR and activate the HDDVR you will find a $3 increase in your bill for WHDVR service. 

only other costs will be the installation...


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## dpeters11 (May 30, 2007)

Just remember if you do two DVRs with MRV, you cant manage one from another, other than deleting. So organization is key. I set two networks prime time on one box, the other two on the other and tried to keep the cable channels organized.


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## allenn (Nov 19, 2005)

I use an iPhone, Nook Tablet, or PC to access DirecTV.com / MYDIRECTV / The Guide to program episodes, series, and VOD recordings for my two HR24s. As mentioned, one can delete programs from either DVR. So you have remote management of sorts. It works for me anyway. Best wishes!


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## rbpeirce (Feb 24, 2006)

makaiguy said:


> You are already paying the monthly dvr fee. This applies no matter how many dvrs you have on your account, so there should be no change there.
> 
> With HD on the one dvr now, you're already paying the HD access fee (or maybe having it waived if you're using autopay). This also applies per account, not per receiver, so there should be no change there.
> 
> ...


Why the heck can't DTV explain it that simply?


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## rbpeirce (Feb 24, 2006)

BAHitman said:


> Yes WHDVR is the way to go... get the 2nd HDDVR. when you deactivate the SDDVR and activate the HDDVR you will find a $3 increase in your bill for WHDVR service.
> 
> only other costs will be the installation...


That raises another issue. What do I do with the stuff already on the SD unit?

I understand there is no way to transfer it. Do I just keep two units active until I finish watching everything?

How long will the old SD unit run without being connected to the dish? I tested and it will runs for a while, but I seem to recall there is some kind of time limit. It is a Tivo unit, if that matters.


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## dennisj00 (Sep 27, 2007)

I would search for any programs that matter and see if they're available in HD. If they are, they're much better in HD even on an SD TV.


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## DolphinGirl (Jun 10, 2006)

makaiguy said:


> You are already paying the monthly dvr fee. This applies no matter how many dvrs you have on your account, so there should be no change there.
> 
> With HD on the one dvr now, you're already paying the HD access fee (or maybe having it waived if you're using autopay). This also applies per account, not per receiver, so there should be no change there.
> 
> The only increase in monthly fee should be the $3 monthly fee for Whole Home.


So, if I have three HD DVRs I should only be paying two fees? (one for DVRs and one for HD). Also, by auto pay I should be getting one waived?

I'm sure I'm paying more than one fee. Is that correct?


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## trh (Nov 3, 2007)

DolphinGirl said:


> So, if I have three HD DVRs I should only be paying two fees? (one for DVRs and one for HD). Also, by auto pay I should be getting one waived?
> 
> I'm sure I'm paying more than one fee. Is that correct?


Depends. First you have your package fee. Then your HD Monthly (which you may be able to get a $10/month credit for two years by signing up to autopay), there is an Advance Receiver-DVR Monthly fee, there is a fee for each Additional receiver (now called Additional TV) (but your primary TV is given back to you in a credit) and if you have Whole-Home you have a $3/month fee. Then any extras (e.g. premium channels). However, if you're a new customer (after Feb 9??), they've combined many of the fees I listed above into one line item on your bill.

Go to their website and look at your statement online. post here if you have a specific question.


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## spartanstew (Nov 16, 2005)

DolphinGirl said:


> So, if I have three HD DVRs I should only be paying two fees? (one for DVRs and one for HD). Also, by auto pay I should be getting one waived?
> 
> I'm sure I'm paying more than one fee. Is that correct?


You'll pay ONE DVR fee and ONE HD fee.

You'll also pay a fee for each receiver, except for the first one (so, in your case, two receiver fees).

If you call in, you should be able to get the HD fee waived for 24 months if using auto-pay (if they're still doing that).


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## joed32 (Jul 27, 2006)

rbpeirce said:


> That raises another issue. What do I do with the stuff already on the SD unit?
> 
> I understand there is no way to transfer it. Do I just keep two units active until I finish watching everything?
> 
> How long will the old SD unit run without being connected to the dish? I tested and it will runs for a while, but I seem to recall there is some kind of time limit. It is a Tivo unit, if that matters.


Another option is to keep it on your account until you finish watching what you want to, it's $6 per month until you deactivate it and send it back. Having it connected to the same TV that an HD unit is connected to will cause some problems with the new guide though.


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## The Merg (Jun 24, 2007)

joed32 said:


> Another option is to keep it on your account until you finish watching what you want to, it's $6 per month until you deactivate it and send it back. Having it connected to the same TV that an HD unit is connected to will cause some problems with the new guide though.


That shouldn't be an issue. The SD receiver will still have the old Guide so it will be no different than it was before.

The one issue with keeping the old receiver active is if it is not SWM compatible. I don't believe the OP mentioned if they have a SWM setup or not. If not, then the old SD-DVR will not work after the LNB is upgraded to a SWM-LNB. The R15 is not SWM compatible, while the R16 is. All other legacy SD-DVRs are not SWM compatible as well.

- Merg


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## Sunner73 (Feb 29, 2012)

joed32 said:


> Another option is to keep it on your account until you finish watching what you want to, it's $6 per month until you deactivate it and send it back.


 DTV has both told and emailed me that "all" legacy receivers are now considered "owned" and as such do NOT have to be returned... so keep it as long as you're willing to pay for it.... provided you're using a SWM8, 16, etc. via the legacy ports.

However, if a subscriber happened to need a replacement due to failure for one of those units they do apparently want you to send the "old" unit back. Remember SD for SD, otherwise if upgrading the unit to HD it seems like most people get a new commitment....

F.Y.I. The email has all of my receiver ID#'s listed as well except the DSR7000 which is a non-Rid unit which can not be activated by "anyone else" ever again.


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## joed32 (Jul 27, 2006)

The Merg said:


> That shouldn't be an issue. The SD receiver will still have the old Guide so it will be no different than it was before.
> 
> The one issue with keeping the old receiver active is if it is not SWM compatible. I don't believe the OP mentioned if they have a SWM setup or not. If not, then the old SD-DVR will not work after the LNB is upgraded to a SWM-LNB. The R15 is not SWM compatible, while the R16 is. All other legacy SD-DVRs are not SWM compatible as well.
> 
> - Merg


That's right, it wouldn't be connected to the HD receiver so no problems.


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## AlbaTiVo (May 26, 2007)

Also, if you just want to watch the content you already have on your SDDVR then you don't even need to keep it activated - just hook it up to a TV without any satellite connections and all of your recordings will still be there.


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## The Merg (Jun 24, 2007)

"AlbaTiVo" said:


> Also, if you just want to watch the content you already have on your SDDVR then you don't even need to keep it activated - just hook it up to a TV without any satellite connections and all of your recordings will still be there.


Just be sure to disconnect the receiver from the satellite connection prior to having it deactivated.

- Merg


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## rbpeirce (Feb 24, 2006)

The Merg said:


> Just be sure to disconnect the receiver from the satellite connection prior to having it deactivated.
> 
> - Merg


OK. Now I am starting to get confused. What I intended to do was to disconnect the SD Tivo from the dish but keep it activated until I was finished with it. Are you saying I can disconnect it, get it deactivated and still use it to watch the stuff that is still on it? If so, how long will it allow me to do that? I had an HR10-250 that pretty much worked forever after it was deactivated. Can I do the same with an SD Tivo?


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## Richierich (Jan 10, 2008)

If you deactivate it with the DVR still hooked up Directv will send a Signal to it which will not allow you to watch your Recordings.

If you disconnect your DVR then when Directv deactivates the DVR, it will not be able to receive the signal therefore your Recordings will still be Viewable as long as you do not reconnect it to Directv.


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## cater (Nov 10, 2006)

I have whole home service. I have HR34 and hr20-700.
My hr34 gets very slow at times and then locks up. I reboot to correct problem.
This is my second HR34. Anyone else having issues similar to this?

Cater


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