Switching To DISH

[JEBar]

when the fellow came to locate the dish for our home system he took out his phone, turned on the app and pointed the phone's camera at the sky .... he showed me how the app placed dots on his camera screen where the DISH satellites are located .... for one who travels, having that app could certainly eliminate a great deal of frustration in knowing if the site does have a clear view of a satellite .... a friend sent me an email that led me to the "Dish - My Rv Satellite Finder" >>> https://www.dishformyrv.com/dish-for-my ... te-finder/ <<< which took me to the this link >>> https://apps.apple.com/us/app/dish-for- ... mpt=uo%3D4 <<< where the screen shows pretty much what I saw above .... my wife has downloaded it on her phone .... I hope to be able to play with it try to figure out how to use it tomorrow

[Mags]

.
That is a really helpful app!

DFMRVAppGraphics_mockup__85204.1424464052.1280.1280.png (386.3 KiB) Viewed 3521 times

[JEBar]

messed around with the DISH RV Satellite Finder app today .... picture below isn't great .... glare and reflection of my camera didn't help .... you can still see 3 DISH satellites .... basically its showing the same thing as seen in the promotional DISH picture Mags posted above .... remove the labels in the promotional picture and it does accurately reflect what the actual picture looks like .... during our morning walk I tried it on several different sites where trees would be a definite issue ... in seconds it confirmed that there was no clear signal or that one was indeed available through an opening in the leaves .... further, it quickly told me that a given location may or may not be a good one .... color me impressed .... I recommend it without reservation for anyone with a camper who uses DISH's service with a portable satellite dish

[Mags]

.
It has good reviews too.
Those that had problems figured out that a magnet near the phone messes up the direction of the phone's compass and of course the app then gives misleading satellite info. Apparently some phone case/fold over phone wallets have a magnet in them to keep the case closed.

.... color me impressed .... I recommend it without reservation for anyone with a camper who uses DISH's service with a portable satellite dish

[JEBar]

we just received an unexpected bill from AT&T for our former service from Direct TV :

Your new AT&T bill is available now at myAT&T.

Account ending in: 2035
Payment due: 10/29/2019
Bill total: $0.00

guess I can live with it

[cooperhawk]

My younger brother died in 2003. We are still getting his Direct TV bill after all these years.
We have advised them may times of his demise.

[JEBar]

fascinating .... doesn't speak well for their accounting department(s)

[JEBar]

while sitting in the shade of our campers awing while looking at the sky over the camper on the next site, I was able to get a much better picture of the screen on my wife's phone showing the DISH Satellite finder .... I found it reassuring to know that we would be able to lock onto a signal with our portable Carryout antenna placed only a few feet from an obstruction like the fiver shown in the picture

[JEBar]

it has rained since early morning and we have been pleasantly surprised / impressed by the lack of interruptions due to losing signal lock .... our camper's roof mounted satellite antenna is the same one we used with Direct .... without a doubt, our reception from DISH is stronger/better than that we received from Direct

[Mags]

.

it has rained since early morning and we have been pleasantly surprised / impressed by the lack of interruptions due to losing signal lock .... our camper's roof mounted satellite antenna is the same one we used with Direct .... without a doubt, our reception from DISH is stronger/better than that we received from Direct

[JEBar]

while sitting in the shade of our campers awing while looking at the sky over the camper on the next site, I was able to get a much better picture of the screen on my wife's phone showing the DISH Satellite finder .... I found it reassuring to know that we would be able to lock onto a signal with our portable Carryout antenna placed only a few feet from an obstruction like the fiver shown in the picture

a little while ago we drove back in from spending two weeks at Chesapeake Thousand Trails .... prior to parking our camper in the back yard I walked around a bit holding my wife's phone with the DISH satellite locator app ... it didn't take but a a few seconds to find a place a few feet from our normal parking spot where it looked like it might be possible to lock onto a satellite .... danged if it didn't work .... historically we have to put out a portable dish when parked in the area bordered by a line of tall trees .... granted it isn't a super strong signal but it is locked on and I was able to watch the race while we were in and out unloading the camper ....this is exactly the type of use we wanted and are delighted that it can make a positive difference

[JEBar]

in our pile of mail that accumulated during our 2 weeks at Chesapeake we found an interesting mailer from DISH .... in it they outline their referral program .... for the most part they are offering a few dollars a month off our the referring customer's bill or some free movie rentals, etc .... in looking at the benefits they will extend to the new customer, I don't see anything that we didn't get without being referred .. .. so, if anyone is interested in being referred, let me know and I'll PM a number ...

[JEBar]

FIRST EQUIPMENT ISSUE :

earlier this morning I opened up our camper and setup our new CarryOut portable antenna .... my intent was to play around with various coax cables to determine which ones worked best and just how many feet of coax could be used .... a second goal was to set it up to record some movies .... beastly hot and humid .... much to my surprise, some things worked, some didn't .... when I got to the "Directory" I found it wasn't updating and still showing a screen from 5 days ago .... I rebooted the Wally receiver and everything else I knew to do .... knowing that with the volume of calls they are getting about their contract conflict with FOX Sports, I finally broke down and called DISH .... after being on hold for just under an hour my call was answered by a lady who I later learned is in the Philippines .... let me say right up front, she was a pleasure to work with .... for most of an hour she had me go to some screens that I didn't know existed, so from that point I did learn some things .... bottom line, our Wally (receiver) is bad .... when she told me she'd have one shipped right out and should be here in 4 to 5 business days, I told her that wouldn't do because we would be on the road in our camper .... she said she could have it to us in two business days but that would involve an extra charge ... I told her to go and check with the supervisor who'd she put me on hold to speak with several times and suggest that with week old equipment and a customer not happy with them for losing FOX Sports that the wave the $20+ fee.... she did and they did .... should be be here Tuesday and I have every intention of hooking it up and thoroughly testing .... with the campgrounds we will be visiting, I don't anticipate needing it on this trip but one never knows

bottom line, the replacement Wally receiver arrived as promised, has been installed, and is working properly ..... after three calls to DISH customer support (one of which was to activate the Wally) I have come to realize that all DISH customer service folks do not possess equal knowledge/skill ..... the advantage of having spoken with so many different folks during this process is I learned a bit from each of them .... when trouble shooting one issue with the new Wally ended in the rep recommended me taking it to a local DISH authorized service facility and went on to try and send me to a Camping World .. ... in retrospect, I could of handled my reaction better but after spending well over a decade working in the RV industry, I don't want anything to do with them .. ... my only recourse was to end the call and start trouble shooting the issue from the basic install .... the solution turned out to be a Transponder setting .... back when we I was working with a support rep when we were setting up our home service, she told me how to handle this type of setting .... made a change and all's working as it should ... I now believe that there wasn't anything wrong with the Wally that I just UPS'd back to them this morning ....

SECOND EQUIPMENT ISSUE :

We haven't turned on the TV/Wally receiver in a couple of weeks or so .... shortly after arriving at our current campground we turned on our system .... the roof mounted antenna locked onto 3 satellites and we had a good picture .... a few minutes later, much to my surprise, some things worked, some didn't .... when I got to the "Directory" I found it wasn't updating and still showing a screen from 5 days ago....yep exactly the same failure a outlined in the first quote above .... tried the transponder change as mentioned in the second quote but this time it didn't work .... after spending a while on the phone with DISH customer service, a replacement Wally is once again on its way .... should be to the house early next week .... the good news is, all other functions are working .... right now watching the scene in The Good. The Bad, and The Ugly where they blow the bridge ....

[markiver54]

Huh!
Tell me that again... JK Jim, hope Ya get it right!

[cooperhawk]

I think I mentioned this before but if you make a request to only speak with techs in the US you will be flagged and that is what will happen from then on.
Of course the problem with that may be a longer wait.
I called Dish a while back and asked what it would take for a customer of many years to get upgraded equipment. Within a week I had all new Hopper
and Wally. There was no increase in my monthly cost but I did pay a shipping charge. The new Hopper is fantastic.

[JEBar]

you most certainly did and I promptly forgot it .... hopefully I won't next time

[JEBar]

still learning .... I knew that Dish has what they call eastern arc satellites known as 77, 72.7, & 67.5 and western arc satellites known as 110, 119, & 129 .... there is also one named 118.7 that I still have no clue where it fits in .... as I understand it, the eastern arc satellites are need mostly by folks in the New England states ... the rest of the country is covered by the western arc satellites .... I've just learned that our Winegard Carryout G2 & G2+ antennas will only lock onto western arc satellites .... if the western arc satellites are blocked, it will not switch over to the eastern arc .... there are a couple of automatic antennas out there that can be reprogrammed to lock onto eastern arc satellites .... Dish does provide maps showing areas covered by the western arc satellites ===> https://www.manualslib.com/manual/11859 ... e=2#manual .... those maps indicate to us that the western arc satellites have good coverage in the area we travel .... that said, its unfortunate that should reception from those satellites be blocked, we do not have the option to lock onto the ones eastern arc

[cooperhawk]

We haven't been to Maine yet but we have traveled the East Coast from Florida to New York and have never had a problem picking up the Western Arc. We were up in Canada one time and couldn't get the satellites unless we put the dish on top of the Motorhome. Sometimes just a little elevation makes a big difference. Now of course the Dish is built on top.

[JEBar]

while there certainly may be others, the Winegard PA-6002 Company PA6002 Pathway Satellite Antenna ====> https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00G1XB8RO/ref=emc_b_5_t?th=1 <==== is the only RV automatic portable satellite antenna that is capable of picking up both the Eastern and Western Arcs .... if we planned to spend more time in Maine, we might have gone this route instead of selecting a Carryout G2+ as our portable antenna .... in looking at the signal coverage maps provided by Dish ===> https://www.manualslib.com/manual/11859 ... e=2#manual <=== and from talking to several of their customer service folks, Dish has made a strong effort to increase their signal in New England .... where the Pathway antenna could really come in handy is for use in settings where a clear view of the Western Arc's satellites is blocked but there is a clear view of the ones in the Eastern Arc

[JEBar]

as noted, still learning .... our home Dish service antenna is a stationary, old style dish that's mounted on a pole in our back yard .... our camper is parked in the back yard and its automatic dome dish is mounted on it roof .... the home service is locked onto Eastern Arc satellites 61.5 & 72, the signal meter reads a very strong 71 .... our camper is locked onto Western Arc satellites 110. 119, & 129, the signal meter reads what is considered to be a good 35 .... when camping with a clear view we have seen readings as high as 60