how many of you switched form cable hd to satalite hd?

[one028]

im still debating on canceling comcast hd cable and going with dishnetwork hd. has anyone here made the switch and if so, was it a good move? my main gripe with comcast is the sd channels are horrible, i wont even watch them. the other thing i hate is on the hdtv local channels, when not broadcasting in hd, you cant stretch the picture. you end up watching the the local digital channels with the bars on the side. my brother has the 811 reciever with dish and i notice he can stretch the image on all channels. again, any input would be appreciated for people who converted from cable hd to satalite hd.

[hawks066]

Go get a good two way splitter and split the incoming signal.. ONe to box, and one straight to TV. The motorola 5100 has known analog broadcast issues. Bypassing the box for SD looks wonderful on mine. There's formation that Comcast willl start offering Scientific Atlanta HD boxes because Motorola has had adequate time to fix these issues in there box, but still have not come through.

Have you calibrated your set with AVIA or DVE? My 5100 picture quality on my 55 inch looks pretty darn good. Some channels look better then others, but it's fine by me.

[mikehbkwm]

wouldnt switch from cable to small dish if you paid me... man im telling you all and as 57 has stated many times cable will have so much more to offer in the future but all i can do is tell you this and youll just have to wait and see yourself....

[kevinw]

Lets look at this subjectively.
Majority of HD is network. DISH requires an antenna. Good or bad sometimes getting a digital signal can be a pain when weather is bad, multipath and other things. When Good it is really good.

SD programming is horrible when stretched using the 811 Untill they get the dark SD picture issue taken care of so one can use the stretch modes of the TV, I leave it unstretched. Now using my 508 in addition is a different story. PQ is fantastic compared to what I had with Adelphia.

Following Hawks066 idea is a great one. It should improve your SD picture and you then do not have to mess with an antenna.

Me personally I prefer DISH over Adelphia cable. Adelphia does not offer any HD in my area, the service was out at least once a month for hours. Any major storm and Adelphia was down unlike DISH. With Dish I have had 3 -5minute outages in a year and a half.

Programming choices are about even between SAT and cable. Prices are about the same. Regardless of what Mike " I work for COX " says cable is not all that but neither is satelite. Both have pros and cons.
So switching probaly will not gain you anything, but you do not lose anything either.

[mikehbkwm]

oh man kev ya nailed me:bow: im sorry guys i should have stated it this way IF YOUR CABLE CO. SUCKS ass like Adelphia obviously does then dont go with cable and get small dish... if your cable co. rocks then go with cable.... LOL Kev you know i luv ya man you and i could go on allll day long about both views... hey just wanted to know what is wrong with the new 811's ive heard they have different issues.... are you happy with it or so so...

[mech]

For me the choice is easy. Why would I want to buy a box for about 300.00 and still pay a monthly HD rate for sat? I pay 9.99 for everything with COX. It was a clear no brainer for me.

[kevinw]

Originally posted by mech
For me the choice is easy. Why would I want to buy a box for about 300.00 and still pay a month HD rate for sat? I pay 9.99 for everything with COX. It was a clear no brainer for me.

All depends on what you get . With my cable I get nothing so I have to have a tuner. I sold my OTA only tuner and bought the DISH 811($150). I still get my OTA hd - all nine local digital channels plus now I get the 9.99 DISH HD Pack of DiscoverHD,HDnet,Hdnet Movies and access to a HDPPV. I could also have the HBO/Showtime etc if I subscribed. Now if the cable Co offers 2 channels and not much else what do you do?

Mike,
I do like the 811 for PQ through the HD outs. Not SD through the Svid or Composite. It is the rest of the issues that need to be fixed. See my review in the reviews section.

[mech]

I get all the main networks except Fox, I also get HBO, INHD1, and INHD2. Now if I paid another 9.99 I would get discovery and ESPNHD. Discovery would be cool, but INHD1,2 have a ton of that type of programing for free. To be honest those are my two favorite channels because of the random programing. Its like leaving the Dentists office and reaching into the treasure chest of candy and toys!

I also heard and I don't know if its true or not, but I hear that SAT has a ton of audio popping if you change channels. That would blow if you listen on a AV receiver!

[kevinw]

Oh yeah I have ESPNHD also..
Audio pops are one of the issues also. I only have it with my HD tuner and not the others:( Don't know why

[D-Rock0030]

I currently have TWC with the SA3250 STB. The PQ on analog stations looks aweful. They only offer ABC and CBS in HD no NBC or FOX digital. They do have HDNET, HDNET Movies, INHD1 & 2, Discovery HD Theater, and the local ETV in HD. But I can't get NBC or Fox locals in HD with out going out and buying a $299 OTA receiver and who wants to spend that for 2 channels. TWC has not idea when they will be getting ESPN-HD just "we are negotiating" they also have no intention of getting the NFL channel, and you cant get the NFL Sunday Ticket. I am planning on switching to D* with the new Hughes receiver. That way I can get all my locals OTA and get the rest on satellite, have the best of both worlds. I would have done that in the beginning except I didnt realize that the D* receivers were also OTA receivers, but I do now and its a no-brainer to me now. Any new HD channel that comes out on cable with be available with D* and I believe that probably more with satellite as not all cable companies will get new stations, just like TWC doesnt offer the NFL network, the YES network, MSG, NESN, or any other of the local sports networks like you can get with D* in the sports tier.

[mech]

This will all be a moot point in about 12-24 months. I will bet both cable and Sat will have way more programing. I still say the popping must suck though. I listen to my tv through a AV receiver most of the time though. I am also the type of person that once I notice something like that I lock on to it and it ruins the experience for me. I am the same way with the "Chroma bug" also! I see it every time.....

[kevinw]

BTW the popping is during channel change not while viewing.

[sto22]

I've never experienced the popping.

I had a RCA DRD450RG for over a year before the Sony I have now. Hardly ever listened to the RCA without the receiver. (Optical Digital Audio).

My current setup is through the receiver only. (Again, Optical)

Never had a pop.

My biggest audio complaint is the volume differences between channels.

sto22

[mech]

The volume complaint is huge with me, for instance if you listen to a non DD channel it will blow your ears off! I have always thought that was a bummer, but I don't see anyway around it.

[mech]

Update! I came home and CoX Comm just added Fox to my HD line up! WooHoo! It blows! What are they using for their broadcasts? 480p? They can't be using 720p or 1080i the quality is better then normal tv, but nowhere near up to par with the other HD channels.

[D-Rock0030]

Yes Fox has no HD broadcasts, only digital widescreen is their top of the line and it is 480P which should be DVD quality. Don't be complaining, where I live we dont even get that, FOX and NBC are analog only and look like sh*t on my HDTV.

[mech]

HeHE,

Well I just got it yesterday and thought wow that looks like crap compared to the other HD channels!

[D-Rock0030]

Well I suppose if you compare the 480P Fox broadcast to a 1080i Discovery HD or CBS broadcast it wouldnt look as good. But a lot of Fox's stuff is still only 480i. I think just some primetime shows and the NFC football games are in 480P. So what you may have been watching was really 480i just being broadcast in the Fox Digital station, then I guess it really wouldnt look as good and "real" HD. Fox is supposed to be going full HD at 720P in the fall on their new shows, so then it will look as good as ABC's 720P broadcast. I'm just hoping that by then our cable co. and our local affiliates can work out their differences and let us get all of them through cable. I'm not in a situation where I can mount an antenna on my apartment building so I'm stuck with just ABC and CBS for now. At least I'll get the superbowl in HD although our local CBS affiliate is too cheap to buy the Dolby Encoder equipment so they only broadcast in Dolby 2.0 so I'll miss the DD 5.1 sound, although Dolby Pro Logic on my receiver is pretty decent but there is a big difference between that and ABC's real DD 5.1 audio.

[mech]

I will almost bet that you will have FOX soon. I called my cable company right before Christmas and asked about Fox and they said they were in negotiations, but it will be there soon after the New Year and BAM is was there.

[Goddahavit]

Do not forget, some people only have a choice of OTA or a dish for HD, some backwards**** cable companys do not offer any HD at all..

besides, what are the downsides of switching??

get the best deals when you can, and you can always switch back when these companys get thier heads out of the sand....

bottom line, do what benifets you, they companys have no loyality, why should you?????

O yea, forgot the other option, you can always go get a new tv that can stretch HD.... just a thought.