satellite domes and service

[magna 6882]

I am confused by the in motion dishes they put on boats. With our rv we went through 3 motion domes and they became obsolete due to programing changes. When direct tv went digital we had to go to a fixed dish which works fine on an rv.
I see domes that are picking up hd on both dish and direct tv but there specs say they are only capable to pick up Ku bands. Direct tv uses both Ku and Ka so i am confused as to which dome. I use direct tv in the rv but it seems it might be a better choice the dish network.
Can you guys tell me is working for hd channels. The manufacture is talking an inttelion I5.
Thanks

 

[tiltrider1]

First, no one really knows what the future of DirectTV is. Dish says they are here for the long run but there is supposedly some competition in the pipe line for Satellite internet that could make Dish obsolete.

What satellite receiver to go with? That depends on what you want. The Intellian I3 will pick up HD Dish but will not pick up Ka band so no HD from DirectTV. I don’t believe the I5 does anything more than the I3 other than it’s bigger and will pick up reception farther North than an I3 or I4. Both Intellian and KVH make a satellite receiver That picks up both Ku and Ka bands. With these satellite receivers you can get HD fr9m DirectTV with the added benefit of being able to see all the satellites at the same time. This allows you to record multiple programs at the same time. With Dish you can only see one satellite at a time. If all your programs are on the same satellite then you can record multiple programs at one but if they are on different satellites then you can’t record them.

If you are tied to a dock the new tailgater models work well. If you want to watch TV while under way or at anchor, you will need a full motion receiver like an Intellian or KVH.

How far north do you want to watch HD TV?

Satellite receivers go obsolete faster than any other piece of boat equipment.

You need to do your research carefully as the market changes and what used to work might not work any more. There might be something new as well. I haven’t researched satellite receivers for some time now.

 

[magna 6882]

where im stuck is direct tv which i use now uses the Ka band and the only dish that both is kvh 7 at $11,000. It seems is i switch to dish network who only uses Ku i would be safe and a lot cheaper. Was hoping those that have it working could share there setup.

 

[catalinajack]

We have had an Intellian I4 for three years. Yes, when changing to a channel that resides on another of the three Dish TV satellites there is a short delay while the eqipment refocuses on the source satellite. And, there is the DVR recording limitation. However, with Dish TV a subsciber will get the local stations from whatever market one happens to be. Switching locals is done thru an app and is quick and easy. With Direct TV, no locals unless one uses a New York address and then the subscriber is stuck with New York City network stations. We are quite happy with the Intellian dish. I recommend at least the I4 for the size of the dish. The larger diameter makes it easier and faster to acquire a satellite and extends the range further north and east to further into the Bahamas, but more important is the signal acquisition. The I4 is also easily configured for two televisions. Also, no dedicated power supply cable is required. Power to rotate the dish is supplied through the coax cable which also transmits the TV signal.

As for how long Dish TV will be with us, who knows? The indication is for quite awhile. It's not something I worry about.

where im stuck is direct tv which i use now uses the Ka band and the only dish that both is kvh 7 at $11,000. It seems is i switch to dish network who only uses Ku i would be safe and a lot cheaper. Was hoping those that have it working could share there setup.

 

[tiltrider1]

I have been using an I3 With Dish for 4 years. It has always worked for me. I only use it during the summer months. The rest of the year I use YouTube TV, because of the multiple recordings issue. I lose The HD channels north of Blind Channel BC. I never gone far enough to lose the standard channels.

The I5 makes some pretty big claims for a 20 inch dish. I can see why it was recommended
to you. For me the jury is still out on what I would do if I was starting from scratch.

The I6hds also does Ka and Ku bands but it isn’t much cheaper than the KVH7

If you could share more about your TV needs and were you plan to cruise, I might be able to give you more guidance.

 

[MYTraveler]

My memory of the specifics is hazy, but in case this might help avoid an expensive mistake, here is what I remember with certainty:
1. I commissioned by boat with a KVH M7, and installed a directTv receiver, as if it were an extra receiver at my house (all 100% above board) at a cost of something like $5 per month (since I owned the equipment there was no rental fee).

2. Within 2 years, I became aware that Direct was moving its HD programming entirely to Ka band, which the KVH could not handle. (I was not and am not interested in non-HD programming.) There was no immediate problem though because DirectTV made the transition over several years, and moved the least watched (at least by us) channels first.

3. Within about 5 years, the KVH because unwatchable (ie, SD only) on US DirectTv. When the boat was south of Cabo, I could use DirectTV - latin America and receive everything I wanted in HD.

4. The easiest solution was to switch to Dish while in the US. It cost a little more (both the monthly fee and new receiver purchase), but I could get all the HD I wanted.

5. For reasons I cannot recall, Dish became unsatisfactory, so about 5 years ago, I dumped the KVH (after confirming with KVH for the 10th time that there was no upgrade path for my KVH M7, even though they advertised it as an HD receiver and sold it at a time that it was commonly known that it was not compatible with Direct's intended conversion to Ku broadcasts), and bought an Intellian. I don't remember the model, but it is essentially the same size as the M7 was and it was HD capable.

6. I switched back to Direct and have been receiving flawless HD ever since.