Good installation!
Hi, all. Since I got so much great info from this site, I thought I'd post a good experience.
I am in the process of testing Voom, and hoping to drop Comcast after I give Voom about a month or so to prove itself. I was debating for quite a while, when someone in HomeTheaterSpot (who also posts in this forum) pointed out that with no installation fee and no cancellation fee, there's really not much to lose by trying Voom, and moving on from there.
After a few scheduling hiccups, my installation was completed last night. I did have to be assertive initially, as the first installation sub-contractor did a big no-show on my install date, and then claimed that the installer had an accident and could not show up, but made no efforts to send anyone else and expected me to wait another 2 weeks for an installation date. To this, I called Installs, Inc, and insisted on using one of their premier installation companies. They connected me with Emerald.
I noticed that someone else from this list complained that Emerald would not remove their empty boxes, and I had the same experience. But on the other hand the installers...
- were courteous
- called to give me a smaller window of time when they thought they'd be by (rather than the 5-hour window that you get when you first make the appointment)
- did not try to make off with any of the equipment (cables, etc)
- seemed to me to be very competent
- came when they said they would come!
- answer their phones when you call, so you are not imprisoned waiting for them to arrive!
There were a couple of glitches - the first attempt to install was thwarted by the installer bringing a box of "extras" that he thought was the dish, and as a result had to reschedule. D'oh!
The second attempt was also doomed - we swapped out two of the Motorola boxes, which both failed some sort of hardware test. But the third try was the charm - the installer brought a new box, and it seems to be working well.
My reception in non-rainy weather so far has been terrific. I watched World Sports last night - Real Madrid looked awesome in HD.
My box got whatever update it needed last night, and now I see some OTA channels, but don't have much experience with them yet.
I do have a couple of questions, if you've made it this far through my post:
- The signal is listed at around 55 out of 99. The installer claims that the bar used to only go to 60, and that's why so many people reported >90% when they were also getting a signal strength of 55. My picture looked great last night. Should I be concerned over the number? Will that mean that if the weather goes bad, I'll have problems?
- Flipping through my OTA, I see CBS, Fox, NBC, ABC, and WB. I don't see any UPN. I also don't seem to get any of the PBS stations - got a little one and may need access to teletubbies (ugh.) I live right in DC, and very close to a tower, so I should see absolutely everything. Anyone else have any trouble with UPN or PBS coming from DC?
- Do the OTA stations come in as HD if the station broadcasts HD? Is that the deal? Is there no NBC/CBS/ABC coming in over the satellite? I couldn't find it in my listings.
Thanks for any tips!
