Satelite Tv Fulltiming

[owomp]

Selling the home and getting ready to go full time in our class A.Really getting a lot of differing answers on how to get satellite tv.
Would prefer the dish hopper,want dvr capability and HD.Dish says to call winegard or other option is camping world.neither have dvr.
direct tv has something called the Traveler,which has dvr but the receiver is like $1700!
Can anyone share what kind of set up they are using if something else is available.Thought about going streaming but most campgrounds really frown on this and don't have the resources to even handle it.Mifi or anything like that is really limited on data.
I have talked to dish and they said they couldn't help,that i would have to call winegard,which seemed odd to me.Is there something in their antennae that makes it a propietary system?

[Dutch_12078]

Could the difference be just a matter of semantics? I know Dish, and at least some dealers, will not do or support a Hopper RV installation, but I had no problem getting a self installed purchased Hopper and Joey activated on my existing 211k account for my coach via a DIRT representative. So it seems that while they do not support the installation and will not supply the equipment free with a contract, they don't object to activating subscriber owned equipment installed in RV's on a month to month account.

[Bill_Satellite]

Techwriter, Dish specifically states that the Hopper should not be moved while plugged in. That's where the Dish resistance comes in when being used in an RV. If it's powered off the hard drive will park itself and it's safe. That does not necessarily change the Dish policy. If you want to use an online chat with someone who may or may not know what they are talking about, please feel free to do so. However, if your hard drive crashes and you have them come do a service call in your RV please let me know how that goes.
For the sake of argument, let's say I am giving the wrong info. I like to stay on the safe side.

[kakampers]

We have a DTV Genie system with HD DVR in our unit, and it was installed by a Direct TV installer...if I'm not mistaken it is basically the same system as the Dish Hopper system...no problem in several years of dragging it around the country.

[TechWriter]

Bill.Satellite wrote:
Winegard does not want to sell something specifically listed as not to be used by RVers. If you look at a Hopper as it comes out of the box it says "Do not move while plugged in".

That's why we disconnect power to it when driving -- as with any hard-drive based DVR. This does not say that you should not use a Hopper in an RV.

Bill.Satellite wrote:

They are talking about not moving the box in your house, much less driving down the road and beating the bejesus out of the box. Dish does not want the hard drive to break. If you don't believe me, call Dish and tell them you want to have a Hopper installed in your RV. Let me know how that goes.

Here you go, Bill. This is a saved DISH Customer Support conversation I just had. DISH would like you to use the 211 receivers, but they're ok with Hoppers.

Again, who told you that DISH does not support using a Hopper in an RV?

[Bill_Satellite]

Winegard does not want to sell something specifically listed as not to be used by RVers. If you look at a Hopper as it comes out of the box it says "Do not move while plugged in". They are talking about not moving the box in your house, much less driving down the road and beating the bejesus out of the box. Dish does not want the hard drive to break. If you don't believe me, call Dish and tell them you want to have a Hopper installed in your RV. Let me know how that goes.
The only thing needed to make a Hopper work in an RV is a Trav'ler (or home DPP LNB antenna) and a Solo Node. The Solo Node is the thing that Winegard does not sell but it's readily available most anywhere.

[TechWriter]

Bill.Satellite wrote:

Dish also specifically states that they do not recommend and will not support a Hopper in an RV (the reason Winegard has that policy related to the Hopper).

Where does DISH say this, Bill?

Also, the only thing I could find on Winegard's site about using Hoppers was this quote:

The new DISH Hopper and Joey receivers require the use of DISH Pro Plus equipment and other accessories not provided with Winegard satellite systems. Winegard recommends the 211z receiver for use in an RV or Mobile environment.

So since Winegard doesn't sell those "other accessories", Winegard recommends using a different receiver. How convenient.

[Bill_Satellite]

Keep in mind that certain receivers require specific antenna equipment. If you want to be a Dish Network customer and use a Hopper, you must use a Trav'ler or a standard home style triple LNB antenna mounted on a tripod which you assemble/disassemble and point at each new location.
Dish also specifically states that they do not recommend and will not support a Hopper in an RV (the reason Winegard has that policy related to the Hopper). That does not mean it won't work but they appear to be concerned that movement in an RV while the 2TB hard drive is moving could cause damage.
For DirecTV, the comparable unit to the Hopper would be the Genie. The Genie will work with just about anything but requires the DirecTV SWM technology. The Trav'ler has this built in as does a ground mounted manual home TV antenna. The DirecTV technology does not allow the reception of their HDTV programming by any other style antenna so you could use a dome style antenna, add the SWM hardware and use the Genie but all of the programming will be in SD only.

[square_dancers]

Direct TV Slim Line Dish, Tripod, 50' Coax cable, hand compass, and computer. Go on Direct TV site and input your location to get your coordinates, adjust your dish and point it to the South by South East. Put your TV on Cable and navigate to setup and signal strength and then rotate your dish to get the highest % of signal strength you can get. After you do this as stated above a few times it takes you about 15 to 30 minutes and only gets easier over time.

[Bumpyroad]

oh the $1700 was for an automatic dish. walmart sells a $452 combination with 212??? receiver.
bumpy
probably the 211 per later posts.

[TechWriter]

sdianel wrote:
Winegard's website says Hopper requires Pro equipment that is not compatible with RV's.

Really? Myself and several other people on this forum have Hoppers installed in our RVs. My Hopper was installed in 2012 and I now have two of them in my RV. Both of them are still working fine, but I do make sure the units are powered off while driving my Class A.

owomp wrote:
Selling the home and getting ready to go full time in our class A.Really getting a lot of differing answers on how to get satellite tv.
Would prefer the dish hopper,want dvr capability and HD.Dish says to call winegard or other option is camping world.neither have dvr.

First, from my experience and from others, contact a local sat installer -- not DISH or Winegard. You may have to contact more than one local installer because some installers do not like working in RVs.

For fulltimers, like myself, I recommend purchasing a Winegard Travler for either a DISH or DirecTV system because of the Travler's push-button ease of use and because the Travler can give you everything that a home system has.

A DISH Travler can be had for about $1200 and a DirecTV Travler for about $1500.

However, you can certainly use a much less expensive portable tripod with a Hopper. In fact, in addition to my DISH Travler, I carry a tripod for those times when we're parked under trees.

In the end, however, you have plenty of choices. Probably more than you want.

To make this whole selection process easier, I added a DISH RV Selection Guide to our RV travel blog.

[owomp]

Thanks everyone for the assist,sdianel,that looks like what i am looking for,thanks for the link,not sure how i missed that on my google search

[sdianel_-acct_c]

PS.. if you want someone great to do the install, we use Sats2Go in Spring TX (near Houston). He is the RV satellite "guru" and we drive from Florida to have him work on our dome satellite.

[sdianel_-acct_c]

http://www.winegard.com/dishnetwork/set-top.php
Winegard Carryout Dish $649
DISH VIP 211Z satellite receiver DISH Network recommends for RV's is on sale at Camping World $74.99
the info above on the DISH Network website says you can add DVR to the receiver.
DVR Ready – Add your own external hard drive to turn this set-top into a DVR for a one-time fee of $40. No monthly DVR fees.
Their website says Hopper requires Pro equipment that is not compatible with RV's.

[2oldman]

owomp wrote:
Can anyone share what kind of set up they are using if something else is available.

The cheapest and best (like home) is a portable dish on a tripod. Hard to set up your first 10 times, after that it's a piece of pie.