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Archive through September 24, 2004

The TVClubHouse: General Discussions: 2004 Aug - Oct: Tivo or DVD recorder?: Archive through September 24, 2004 users admin

Author Message
Surealityjunkie
Member

02-01-2003

Saturday, July 10, 2004 - 8:25 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Hi All! I just joined the DirecTV Tivo bandwagon and I am in hog heaven! I am taping the JoJo's Circus marathon in Disney 1&2 and will be transferring it to VHS and DVD at a later date! (my daughter will thank me later...LOL!)

Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks for all the helpful advice I have found here. I have been able to take care of a few annoyances without breaking out my 300 page book(let)!

I do have one question though... Is there a guide/menu that is set up like the non-Tivo DirecTV receivers? I'm wanting to set reminders to remind me that a show is coming on so it will switch to that channel or show a pop-up like it did with our cable TV... Any suggestions?

TIA!

Bob2112
Member

06-12-2002

Saturday, July 10, 2004 - 10:13 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Surealityjunkie: Good call with the DirecTivo. You can't beat the dual tuner and the lower Tivo fee.

I don't know of a reminder feature on the DirecTivo.

The main design philosophy behind Tivo is for the user to specify the content they want to record, so you can ignore the time, channel and length of the show. Most of the features are designed to time shift your TV viewing and overall, most people enjoy their Tivo more when they get used to using it this way. There is the old fashioned manual method where you can specify a channel, time and duration, but I have found only one show (Saturday Night Live) that I use this feature on.

The 2 key features that you want to get familiar with are the Season Pass and Wishlists.

Season Passes are a little easier to use and a great place to start. Just use the guide to find an upcoming episode of a show you want to record, select it and then choose create season pass. The defaults are usually good enough if you are keeping up with viewing on a weekly basis. Otherwise you can fine tune how many shows to keep, how long to wait before Tivo can automatically delete them, record either first runs, repeats or every episode, start recording early and stop recording later (padding), etc...
The season pass will then record that show on that channel regardless of changes to start time, day or length. The padding is always applied to the guide data, so it will still work when a show starts a few minutes early or changes from 30 to 40 minutes for one week.

Wishlists are more powerful, but take a little playing with to learn how to filter out unwanted matches. A wishlist lets you specify keywords for things like show title, show description, actor's name, etc... and also allows you to limit the search with many categories like: Reality, Comedy, Drama, Premiere and dozens more. You may set up many different wishlists for all the different shows you watch during the year and the wishlists will find them regardless of what channel, day or time they are showing. There is an option to view everything a wishlist is matching and then you can fine tune your keywords if you are picking up extra shows. Once it all looks good, you can select the option to automatically record a wishlist.

Now you just monitor your To Do list and you can see what will record for the next 2 weeks. I have been set up for Big Brother, The Amazing Race and several other shows since February and they automatically popped onto the To Do list about 2-3 weeks ago.

After you start using Season Passes and Wishlists, you'll want to go into the Season Pass Manager and adjust the priorities of your various shows. You have 2 tuners, but many times 3 shows will be on the same night (or if you pad to run longer you will overlap with a 3rd following show) and the lowest priority will not record. Another great feature is that if a show is not recorded due to 2 other shows recording at the same time, the Tivo will automatically look for any replays of that episode and record it at another time. You can view all upcoming episodes for a season pass or wishlist and the check marks will show you which episode is planned for recording.

One final note. If you or someone you know is comfortable with installing a hard drive and opening up a PC, I can tell you how to increase your recording time from 35 hours to around 140 hours for $100 or up to 210 hours for around $180. I've upgrade all 3 of my DirecTivos to 70, 140 and 210 hours and it took a total of around 4-5 hours (with the first one taking about 3 hours with the learning curve).


Surealityjunkie
Member

02-01-2003

Saturday, July 10, 2004 - 12:38 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Thanks Bob! I feel like I just read half of my book(let) in a language that was easy to understand! I am going to play with my Season Pass to set up my Big Brother viewing... Guess I need to get used to the fact that this TV won't remind me when a show is on. I just have to remember that it has been taped for me to watch! Yikes!

Thanks again!

PS I will let you know if we decided to upgrade the memory... My B-I-L is the computer guy in the family!

Not1worry
Member

07-30-2002

Tuesday, August 03, 2004 - 10:24 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Well, we've moved into our rural home and the cable company does come out here. I got their DVR and it just stinks. Nowhere near as good as the one we had with Time Warner and cost more as well.

So right now DH is outside in the 105 degree GA heat rigging up a big antenna so we can see how well the local channels will come in. If they have good reception, I think we are going to go with the DirectTV with Tivo.

When you pull up the channel guides with Tivo, does it take up the entire screen? Our TWC DVR used to leave the program you were watching in the top quarter of the screen, so you wouldn't really miss you show while you searched the guide. This new cheapo DVR takes up the whole screen and it has advertisements on the margins.

If we don't have a cable modem hooked up (we are planning on keeping dial up for a little while, cable access is quite expensive here), will we need another phone line for the Tivo? If I want to get a Tivo for the bedroom TV, will I need to get extra equipment?

TIA!

Draheid
Moderator

09-09-2001

Tuesday, August 03, 2004 - 11:06 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Not1worry: You can see exactly what happens by visiting the Tivo Demo here

Basically, when you press 'Guide', the guide comes onscreen over the dimmed programming. It is full screen, however you can still see and hear what is being shown on the screen.

Hope this helps.

Colordeagua
Member

10-25-2003

Tuesday, August 03, 2004 - 2:28 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Not1worry, I have dial-up internet connection. My computer is connected all my waking hours (app. 8:00 a.m. - 11:00 p.m.). Even previous to getting TiVo, I had two phone lines. My internet and TiVo connections work on the same phone line. TiVo dials in during the night when the computer is not on. I believe it dials in for only a short time every two or three nights. It works fine. If you're only planning on one phone line, that should be OK if you generally don't expect to be on the internet or talking on the phone during the night.

Teachmichigan
Member

07-22-2001

Tuesday, August 03, 2004 - 9:17 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Not1...Depending on where you live, you can probably even get your local channels through DirecTV. We live at least an hour away from where the "local" channels air, but they're part of our Total Choice w/ Locals plan. I highly recommend the Tivo/DirecTV combo! It's fabulous!

Not1worry
Member

07-30-2002

Wednesday, August 04, 2004 - 6:56 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Thanks, Teach and Color. I am usually not on the phone or online after midnight, so hopefully that will work. Another phone line will cost about $23, so I'd rather not do that. I am hoping that as our area grows, we'll get more service providers out here for internet and TV. We can't get the local channels with DirectTV, apparently we are too close. I think we're about 25 miles from the stations.

We got a big roof antenna last night and DH (after getting pretty aggravated with the whole system) managed to get us pretty good reception for CBS, ABC, and PBS. They come in fairly clear, but it's definitely not as good as cable. You can see the channel, but there's intermittent static and some wavy shadows. NBC is very fuzzy and I can't get UPN or WB at all. But I guess it is going to have to do. I can't see paying MediaCom $17 a month just to give us local channels, plus having DirectTV for the good channels.

Okay, here's my next question. Who should I get to install DirectTV? Best Buy, Circuit City and Sams all offer it, plus there's people in the phone book and ads in the newspaper. They all seem to be offering the same deals. Should I go through the DirectTV website? Who will they send?

Thanks to everyone!! I can't wait to get Tivoing.

Teachmichigan
Member

07-22-2001

Wednesday, August 04, 2004 - 12:11 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
We installed it ourselves the first time...pretty easy to do. However, if installation is free, I'd go w/ DirecTV. They'll use a local "authorized" person and it's easier if you have problems to get them fixed if they installed it. We did have our newest line installed by DTV because they gave us free locals w/ a new dual-line satellite dish as part of an upgrade. Way cool, and not a single problem.

Not1worry
Member

07-30-2002

Wednesday, August 04, 2004 - 1:05 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Another thing, the person at DirectTv said that if I want to have an additional Tivo, such as for our bedroom, I have to purchase it on my own. They only "give" you one Tivo per customer. Has anyone found good deals on them?

Sasman
Member

07-08-2003

Wednesday, August 04, 2004 - 1:11 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
I purchased my Directv through a local store and the people who installed it were horrible.

About a year later I upgraded to Directv/TIVO directly from Directv. The man who did the installation was from Directv and was terrific. He even gave me a new dish and moved it to a better location on the roof. So, I would recommend purchasing from Directv.

BTW, I couldn't be happier with TIVO. Last night the Yankees were on CBS in NYC and TIVO recorded BB at about 2 in the morning without me having to do anything.

And DW loves it also. She never learned to program a VCR but she is fully authorized to work the TIVO.

Draheid
Moderator

09-09-2001

Wednesday, August 04, 2004 - 1:31 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Paging BOB2112 - your needed in the DirecTivo department - Mr Sponge Bob, please report to the DirecTivo deparment as soon as possible.

<Sorry, Bob is IMO the resident expert on DirecTivo topics>

Not1worry
Member

07-30-2002

Wednesday, August 04, 2004 - 4:11 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Bob! We need your help. The antenna will only pick up 3 out of 7 broadcast channels. DH is rapidly losing enthusiasm and I'm going to find myself with nothing but basic cable soon.

Bob2112
Member

06-12-2002

Wednesday, August 04, 2004 - 4:59 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
I'm just checking in and don't have long to reply tonight. I can post more in the morning. If you look back in this thread (check the first archive) I have a couple of posts that promote getting DirecTV and specifically the DirecTivo units. If you are trying to sell your husband, those might help.

Most installs go bad when cable needs to be fished though inside walls. Some installers will even try to charge more for simply running the cable from a basement to the first floor family room. If you need something like a 5x8 switch (which you would need with 3 DirecTivos), they will charge too much for the switch and an extra $100-200 for the install.

How many receivers will you need?
Can all the wiring be centralized (like in a basement)?
Can you or DH fish cable through walls?

Extra DirecTivos should cost no more than $99 a piece and many places will sell and install them all at once. I have all 3 receivers as DirecTivos and would highly recommend it if you can afford the extra cost of the hardware and a 5x8 switch. The switch would cost you about $80 to buy and install yourself or $150 plus installation to have it done for you.

Make sure to get the newest triple LNB dish, so you will receive all 3 satellites and be ready if you want to go the HDTV route.

I can answer any specific questions you have about installs. Just let me know the above information and how much (if any) of the install you would do yourself.


Not1worry
Member

07-30-2002

Thursday, August 05, 2004 - 5:40 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Thanks, Bob. Right now DirectTV is not going to work for us. They won't give us local channels, or a waiver for the NY/LA broadcasts. Our antenna won't pick up the local channels. So for local channels we are stuck with our cable people.

The latest plan is to stay with Mediacom cable for all the channels, but not use their awful single tuner DVR. I think we'll buy and use the Tivo on our own. The money we get back on the antenna should pay for one Tivo! We'll get another for the bedroom later when we can afford it.

Yes, DH can fish cable through walls. What is a 5 x 8 switch? Since we won't be using DirectTV, the Tivo hook up shouldn't be too complicated, I hope.

Our area is growing, and I hope DirectTV will offer local channels here soon. But it might be a while. I have to get something working in the next few days for DH's sanity. (Put the antenna up, honey. Put it up higher. Move it left. No, now right. Get another 3 ft. pole for it. Okay, never mind, take it down and put it back in the box and take it back to the store....this man really loves me.)

Bob2112
Member

06-12-2002

Thursday, August 05, 2004 - 7:23 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Bummer about the local channels. Both Dish and DirecTV have gotten much better in the past few years about offer locals around the major metropolitan areas that I forgot that there are still areas that can't get them.

The 5x8 switch is only need with a satellite setup if your receivers require more than a total of 4 input lines. It won't be an issue with your cable setup.

How much would it be to get basic cable for your local service?
I have heard of some cable companies that offer locals only for a reduced fee. I have heard it called "Lifeline" or something like that.

With our cable modem connection at home, I am able to split the signal and can get all the analog channels (about 60 of them) just by plugging the cable directly into the TV. If you were considering a cable modem (assuming it is available), you would likely be able to get the locals off that. If there is already an old cable hook up, you could plug that into a Tv to see if the basic service is connected.

That's all my random thoughts for now.

Since it sounds like you are heading toward a stand-alone Tivo, I'll have to transfer you back to Draheid. He is the resident expert on the stand-alone Tivo side.

Please hold.

<...plays Muzak while waiting for Draheid to pick-up...>


Not1worry
Member

07-30-2002

Friday, August 13, 2004 - 10:26 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
I just bought the 40 hr. Series 2 from Circuit City ($199 with $100 rebate, yay!). We have a cable box, and I see that we can watch one channel and record another. But...while we can record on any channel, we can only watch the analog channels while the recorder is going. This sounds very complicated. I can see some frustration ahead as we try and figure out what channel to record and what to watch.

So I guess there isn't a Tivo that lets you record 2 channels and watch something from your pre-recorded list all at once? Our Time Warner box did that, I really miss that thing.

Draheid
Moderator

09-09-2001

Friday, August 13, 2004 - 11:11 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Not1worry, you can watch pre-recorded programs from the 'Now Playing' list while recording one other program. Only the DirecTivo units have the ability to record two programs at one time and you could still watch a now playing selection on there as well.

The Tivo website has many options on how to connect and configure your Tivo with a cable box, or you can go around the box and hook it directly to cable. There are many pros and cons to both methods of connecting and they can become confusing if you let them. lol. If you would like any help, I would be happy to work with you on helping to decide what is best for you and then how to actually connect everything. Just let me know.

Not1worry
Member

07-30-2002

Friday, August 13, 2004 - 11:49 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Draheid, I am sure I will have more questions soon. DH has promised to hook it up tonight and we'll see how it goes. I'm going to the Tivo website now to do the subscription. Thanks.

Not1worry
Member

07-30-2002

Friday, August 13, 2004 - 6:05 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Sheesh...I'm embarrassed to admit that now I've got yet another plan. I met one of my neighbors and she has a different style of antenna that fits over the actual satellite dish. She claims she gets all the local channels pretty well, except UPN. (DH will be thrilled to be spared Top Model, I'm going to have to watch it, even with static.)

So I called back DirectTV and ordered the set up for 2 rooms, with one of them the DirectTivo. But we won't be able to judge how well the antenna works until they get the system going, so I had to confirm that we get 7 days to try it out.

I really hope it works. DirectTv with Tivo is going to run me about $45 a month, AND I'll get more channels than I'm getting with cable. Cable is costing me about $61 per month. But mostly I want the better Tivo that can record 2 things at once.

They didn't have any appointments till the 30th, so I'll probably be back to this thread around then. If this doesn't work...well, I was going to say I'd swear off TV and DVRs forever, but I know that's not true. But I'll be really, really upset!

Wendo
Member

08-07-2000

Saturday, August 14, 2004 - 9:18 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Good luck with the DirectTV with Tivo Not1. It is digital so it'll be great. Plus, with the two tuners, you can record two shows at once. You'll love it!

I love my Tivo. Can't remember what watching tv without it was like anymore. LOL!

Craven
Member

05-23-2004

Monday, August 23, 2004 - 4:24 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Hi all,
Well after begging and pleading for a long long time Craven finally bought DeeDee a Tivo Series 2 yesterday (ok, ok, DeeDee bought it for Craven, but that's beside the point!! ).

Got it dialed in the first time then hooked up the wireless adapter and it works great!! Have fallen in love with this thing in 1 night!!

Hmmm, 2nd Tivo, home networking... HMMMMMMM

Craven

Meggieprice
Member

07-09-2001

Friday, September 24, 2004 - 7:24 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Calling Draheid Calling Draheid

We got a second Tivo -the 140 hr- (the first having replaced our Raply that was a lemon) and we need guidance for networking them. What I know: It only needs to be hooked to the phone line once to set up. Then we can attach it to a router for our internet, with the other one. Is that about right? Can they then access each others programs? The second one is going on the other digital cable box in our bedroom, so we know our challenge will be running the line to the router, as well as the one from the living room.

Any tips, ideas, instructions?

love from your fan club pres, meggie

Wendo
Member

08-07-2000

Friday, September 24, 2004 - 7:29 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Meggie, I'm writing up an email and will send it to you on how to network your Tivo's together. I'll send it off in a few.

Meggieprice
Member

07-09-2001

Friday, September 24, 2004 - 7:48 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Soon as I posted that I figured you would see it and remembered you offered to help anyhoo- cool!