The installer arrived around 12:15PM after being delayed from previous installs. When I first showed him where downstairs I wanted the receiver to be located within my communications room he seemed hesitant and kept asking where the coax from the DirecTV dish entered the house. After explaining several times that I wanted all equipment to be located within the communications room and not the living room he agreed to at least try. On his way back outside I heard him say "This is going to take several hours".
He then walked around outside and didn't think that he would be able to clear the trees to get all the satellites. Since I already have numerous satellite dishes and installed them all myself, I suggested that he try a space on the roof that had a good LOS in-between two trees. He went up onto the roof and took measurements and then said "yes this spot would work". He then asked if he had to remove the DirecTV dish and I said I would like to keep it installed if possible. He said "good it would save him some time".
The worst part of the install was trying to get the coax into the basement. He wasn't sure where to drill, so I showed him where I thought he should drill to get to where I want the cables to enter the communications room. He kept asking "Are you sure?" and I said "yes, drill here".
He did and the drill bit came through exactly where I wanted the cables to enter the room. He then had such a hard time trying to get a single coax into the hole he drilled into the basement that I wasn't about to ask him about running all 4 coax lines. He mounted the DPP44 switch outside near the coax entrance. I figured at some point I can always redo the installation and have the coax coming from all the dishes running through a conduit that would enter the communications room downstairs.
Since I don't yet have the 25' HDMI cable that I ordered to go from the communications room to the projector, he told me that he really isn't allowed to perform this installation, but he would anyways because he felt I knew alot about satellite systems and equipment.
For now I just have the receiver hooked up using coax (home connection) to the upstairs TV in the living room. I must say the picture is awesome! The whites are so white and the colors and detail really stand out. It even looks better than DirecTV.
Things I am happy about:
1) I received all the correct equipment (Dish 1000 plus, DPP44 switch and VIP722 HD DVR).
2) Picture is fantastic.
3) I got to keep my DirecTV dish and receivers to allow me to do testing on DirecTV receivers.
4) Install went ok and high signal strength was received.
5) Excellent graphics and receiver features.
Things that I am a little upset about:
1) As the installer stripped the coax in the communications room he dropped his strippers, pliers and DP44 power inserter onto the VIP722 receiver. He even filled out the paperwork on top of the receiver. I don't know about you, but I treat all my audio / video equipment with tender care (even when being leased) and hate when even a single scratch appears.
2) When I called Dish last month about the Cinemax for a penny a year deal they told me that since my equipment was not actually installed yet that I could simply subsitute the 3 free months of HBO / Cinemax for the Cinemax for a penny for 2 years. They just asked that I call once the equipment had been installed. Today after the equipment was installed I called and they told me that I wasn't allowed this deal. I even tried calling again and talked to another person, but they weren't able to help. They did say I could still get this deal once I had Dish for about 6 months. So, I guess I am ok with this.
3) Just like my DirecTV dish the Dish Network dish did not get grounded. Why don't installers ground these dishes anymore? Several years ago I know they did when I lived at different locations.
4) Tonight after going to channel 100 and entering the buzz trivia game the sound had disappeared. After trying menu options and everything under the sun I finally had to reset the receiver to gain back the sound. I hope this doesn't happen again.
