Tuning In To Satellite TV
By Michael Perry
Satellite TV is still a somewhat new concept to many, while most people have been subscribed to cable service. Gone are the days of poor reception and antenna feeds, which were once both a part of the television watching experience. Satellite TV is very similar to the concept of pay-per-view television. In exchange for a membership fee, you receive specific programming but, whereas pay-per-view relates to only one channel, satellite TV offers a broad range of channels with each viewing package.
Satellite TV companies operate with the use of rights to air certain content, including everything that is found on cable television and more. Membership fees range from several dollars per month to several hundred dollars depending on the channel package that the homeowner chooses for their viewing pleasure. Most customers pay a monthly bill, but others opt to pay for their service in one lump sum as a yearly payment. In most instances, customers can cancel their service at any time providing their account is up-to-date.
With the concept of satellite TV growing in popularity, there are several main players in the dish industry that are actively competing against one another for the title of most popular. As such, they each try to entice customers with promotional packages, free months of service or channels, low pricing, etc.
In order to have satellite TV, the homeowner must call a local dish installer and have a satellite dish brought to their home and installed outside. The installation team will then come inside the home to set up and program the receiver, explain how it works and provide the homeowner with a user manual and remote control. Before leaving the home, the installation team will confirm that the satellite is working properly and that all paid channels are accessible by the homeowner. In addition, they will likely require that a contract of service be signed prior to leaving. The homeowner should keep a copy of all signed contracts, documents and any warranties that accompany their new satellite.
Satellite TV was once a new trend that has since become a permanent fixture in the industry. With technology making new advancements at every turn, more and more people will look to satellite TV for their viewing pleasure. With costs that nearly match that of cable, but with so many more channels, homeowners are beginning to see a whole new world when it comes to television.
For more information about satellite tv, click the link to visit our website at http://www.onlinesatellitetvguide.info We have some great free articles and resources about satellite tv.
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By Kevin Lynch
When a customer receives Direct TV programming, he or she has a number of choice as to what kind of Direct TV receiver that they can use. Hughes manufactures a variety of Direct TV receivers for consumers to choose from depending on their entertainment needs. Most new customers will receive a Hughes Direct TV receiver for free with installation and a new programming agreement. If a customer prefers to upgrade their Direct TV receiver, they can choose from at least five different receivers.
The Hughes Director Direct TV receiver is designed with offering the customer everything that he or she will need in order to have the best experience with their satellite television reception. It is one of the most popular and affordable Direct TV receivers and offers up to 225 channels of digital programming. The Hughes Director Direct TV receiver is most commonly the kind of receiver that is included in a free equipment and free installation offer from Direct TV.
The Hughes Executive Direct TV receiver boasts all of the practicality that is presented in the Director receiver with additional features. Some of the features customers might be interested in include progressive picture adjustments, single-touch recording abilities, digital sound technology and a menu that can be customized to fit each individual’s needs. Another choice is the DVR powered by TiVo Direct TV receiver that allows a person to immediately replay live television, pause, rewind or even view the program in slow motion. The need for timers and VCR’s no longer exist with the sleek design and technology in this particular Direct TV receiver.
The Hughes HDTV DVR with TiVo Direct TV receiver provides new or existing customers with high-definition satellite television from Direct TV. Programming is viewed with up to 1080i lines of resolution for high-definition televisions, HDMI and component video output and an optical output for complete Dolby Digital 5.1. If a customer doesn’t want to take advantage of a Direct TV receiver with DVR but still wants to get the most out of his or her high-definition television, then the Hughes HDTV Direct TV receiver would make an excellent choice. The Platinum HD provides Dolby Digital sound capabilities and up to 1080i lines of resolution is a wide 16.9 movie format or 4.3 standard format that lets the viewer choose his or her preferred viewing experience.
About The Author: Kevin Lynch is the owner of nu Satellite TV and Direct TV Center websites, which have tons of resources with a variety of information, news and more.
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10 Tips for Satellite TV Systems
By Jen Wilson
Here are 10 tips about satellite tv systems. As always, reference your owner’s manual for all safety precautions.
1) Surge protection - Do not attempt to run your satellite tv system without a surge protector. Get a good one. We recommend a high end one from Radio Shack. Make sure the surge protector has inputs for the coax cable and telephone jack as well. Do not forget to protect any antenna inputs you might have coming in to your receiver. Do not think that you can get by without this. Sooner or later it will come back to haunt you and cost you money that will not be covered under warranty.
2) Sudden Shock!- With DVR receivers, think about where you put the unit. Make sure it is stable and will not get wet, hit, knocked off, etc. DVR systems have hard drives in them, which must be handled with extreme care.
3) Ventilation - Just like computers, the newer DVR receivers has fans and need to maintain certain temperatures. Be careful when placing them in cabinets. Receivers must have proper ventilation.
4) Moving a DVR - If you have to move a DVR, unplug it and wait for at least 30 seconds. This gives unit time for a proper shutdown.
5) Cleaning - Keep all electronics CLEAN! Get a can of air duster (made for electronics) to blow your receiver out periodically. Do this at least once a month. More if you live in a dusty area. Remember that dust is electronics worst enemy. Unplug the receiver before cleaning.
6) Pointing the dish - How the dish is pointed is one of the most critical elements of how your home dish satellite TV will work. Just 1/8 of an inch out of proper alignment can cause problems. YOU MUST USE A COMPASS if you are going to point the dish correctly. Do not even attempt if you do not have a compass or do not understand how to shoot an azimuth. Check and make sure nothing is obstructing the view of the sky (i.e. – power lines, tree limbs) before adjusting. It takes very little movement of the dish to make minor adjustments. Make very small adjustments (movements) while you or someone else is watching your signal strength screen. Do not try to make large adjustments. After making an adjustments, give the system a few seconds to respond on the signal strength. Refer to your owner’s manual for the specifics of your particular system and observe all safety precautions.
7) System doing weird things - Most issues can be resolved by simply resetting the system (screen freeze, channels not listed). Hold the power button on the receiver for a few seconds or unplug the unit from the wall (if unplugging from the wall, wait 30 seconds). Sounds too easy, but you will be surprised at how many times this will do the trick.
8) Cold dangers - Do not store your receiver in a cold environment (below 40° F). When it warms back up, moisture can form inside and damage the electronics inside (applies to most electronics) If it is cold to the touch, let it set at room temperature UNPLUGGED for at least 45 minutes. If there is apparent moisture buildup, let the system dry out at room temperature before plugging back in.
9) Coax Cables- Use only RG-6 cables! Do not use cable company TV cables (RG-59). Using RG-59 cables can cause signal loss. Always use a small wrench or pliers to tighten cable connections. Do so GENTLY! Just enough force so the cable connections cannot be loosened by hand. Overtightening connections can cause them to break or damage expensive equipment. Connections being too loose can cause loss of signal and / or moisture buildup inside of connections. All connections must be watertight!
10) Grounding – The outside components of your system must be grounded (i.e. - dish, cable splitters). The step is often neglected by installers. There should be some type of ground wire running from the outside components to a ground stake (a piece of metal driven into dirt or concrete). If you are about to purchase a system, make sure your installer does this very important step.
Jen Wilson maintains the website Wilsons Electronics Electronics information and tips. Online Electronics Dictionary Satellite TV and Internet Satellite Systems available
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Why Satellite TV is better than Cable TV
By Dale Lawrence
Satellite TV is Making the Cable Companies Run Scared
Satellite TV holds a great advantage over the cable TV companies. Not only is the picture and sound quality superior, but there’s more choice in what to watch. If you said to yourself ‘there’s nothing on TV’, switch to satellite. The differences couldn’t be more obvious.
Cable quality vs. Satellite quality
With the limited bandwidth that cable offers, it’s no wonder the quality is poor. First, the cable wire comes from a hub transmission system somewhere near your home. At source, the signal is passable, but by the time it runs through your community, splitting to each house, the signal has degraded. As the cable is RF (radio frequency) based, it has converted from an audio/video signal (at source) to RF and then needs to re-convert back into audio/video for your television. Along the way, anything broadcasting through the air has tried to get into the cable line and will appear as noise on your TV screen.
Unfortunately, we are our worst enemy as well. Look at your cables and splitters inside your house. Poor quality RG6 or RF cable can cause great loss of signal too. Turn on your TV and have someone bend your cable in half and watch for ghosting on your picture. If it is ghosting, you have unshielded cables! Replace them with something better like Monster Cable. RF cable has a tough time producing stereo sound too, so don’t expect great audio. Another culprit of poor cable quality is the cable splitter. Most splitters have just a positive and negative wire inside (it’s a noise box). Throw it out and again replace with a good splitter (Monster Cable makes quality ones).
Satellite signals stay digital until the receiver. That means better picture and audio. The picture can be 2-3 times better resolution from your cable picture. The sound from the satellite receiver is true stereo and can be Dolby Digital surround depending on the program you are watching. Plus there are many more channels to choose from.
By the way, if you have a digital box from the cable company, you have only a handful of digital channels, the rest are the same if you remove the cable box.
Satellite companies like Direct TV (or DirecTV) and Dish Network, provide national satellite service with hundreds of digital stations. The picture is clear and crisp, especially if you spring for a high definition receiver to match your HD ready TV. While most cable signals are below 150 lines of interlaced resolution, standard satellite can approach DVD quality (480i) and HD content will be sent at either 1080i or 720p (progressive). A regular 27” TV has the capability of no more than 500i while a HD television can produce the full range.
What are interlaced and progressive signals? Interlaced broadcast was developed from the old NTSC format where the designers in the 1920’s and 30’s couldn’t get the TV to scan every line from the top of the screen to the bottom fast enough. They needed to cheat by having the TV scan all the odd lines; 1, 3, 5 etc. then go back and scan the even lines; 2, 4, 6 etc. The result is thick black lines running horizontally across your screen and only half the picture appearing. These flickering lines prevented you from sitting close to the television without getting eye strain. As the TVs got bigger, you sat farther away.
The new HD televisions scan all the lines progressively and refresh the screen much quicker. It is like looking through your front window with horizontal blinds. Turn the rod so the blinds are half open. The street outside is now half covered like interlaced pictures and you only see half the picture at one time. Now pull the cord to fully open the blinds. You now see the entire window unobstructed or like a progressive signal.
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Guide to Mounting Your Satellite Dish
By Adam Maywald
The Dish Network satellite dish is only about 2 feet in diameter. Very much a space saver when it comes to mounting the satellite dish on a wall, fence or garage!
Since the satellite dish is small, it is also light and not bulky in size, this also makes it easier to mount.
Satellite dishes have two antennae's which are pointing back to the dish and shooting off into the blue sky.
These 2 receiver antennas help bring in a signal to your dish and display the signals they receive on your television.
If you purchase a satellite dish brand new, you won't have to worry about mounting it, because your local satellite installation crew will do all the installing for you. They don't want you trying to climb up a 10 foot ladder to mount their dish, so they'll do it for you, which is usually free anyways.
But if you do have to mount your dish yourself, make sure you have the Dish Network satellite pointing directly into the sky away from trees, little children and buildings.
By following this step, you will be able to receive the most premium possible signal from your satellite dish. This will also provide quality viewing on your television screen!
If you wish to not mount the dish on your home you can also go another route. Most satellite dish providers have tripod stands for you. This is a great alternative if your apartment or condo complex doesn't allow you to nail anything to their exterior walls.
One downfall with the tripod is it can be very finicky. Make sure you put the tripod and satellite dish in an area away from people and dogs or any animal of either species for that matter.
I have had some problems with guests bumping and every so gently tapping the tripod and the TV goes blank..."Looking for signal" is what you'll see on your television. Even the slightest nudge could result in you jumping out of bed in your pajamas and slightly tapping the satellite dish until the signal is received again.
What's funny about that is the slightest tap can effect the signal its receiving, but rain, snow nor wind won't usually effect the signal...go figure?
About The Author
Adam Maywald
For more great information on a satellite dish and providers of the services mentioned, go to http://www.DishNetwork-vs-DirectTv.com for more information.
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