HD Provider

[DCC2MSU]

Maybe someone can help me with this - I think Alpha had maybe posted in the past but couldn't find that thread.

Which provider (Direct, Dish, Cable) provides the best quality of HD programming? Is there any difference in the picture quality?

Thanks.

[AlphaGriz1]

DirecTV by far has better signal from beginning to end and the equipment they use to encode and decode data is the best on the market. DirecTV is true HD 1920x1280 not the upconverted 480p or 720 p stuff Dish Network pawns off on 95% of their channels. Sure there are some older programs that DirecTV upconverts to an HD compatible signal but they have more true HD channels than anyone out there on cable or sat.

The home receivers or DVRs also have the Faroudja encoders and decoders which are the best on the market. (True professional broadcast quality) The equipment is industrial strength and the signal quality is unparalleled.

DirecTV also has most of the local channels now too so there is really no reason to have Dish especially if you like sports.

[DCC2MSU]

Thanks.

If I have had the same receiver for 4+ years, has anything changed where I should get a new one?

[CapitalCityCat]

DirecTV by far has better signal from beginning to end and the equipment they use to encode and decode data is the best on the market. DirecTV is true HD 1920x1280 not the upconverted 480p or 720 p stuff Dish Network pawns off on 95% of their channels. Sure there are some older programs that DirecTV upconverts to an HD compatible signal but they have more true HD channels than anyone out there on cable or sat.

The home receivers or DVRs also have the Faroudja encoders and decoders which are the best on the market. (True professional broadcast quality) The equipment is industrial strength and the signal quality is unparalleled.

DirecTV also has most of the local channels now too so there is really no reason to have Dish especially if you like sports.

My Dish is great and at 30% less than DirecTV for the same package/channels. Plus, I've not had one service issue with Dish in 5+ years. I used to have 2-3 a year with DirecTV.

And I love the sentence DirecTV uses to describe their phenomenally superior sports package.

The most NASCAR coverage, the most PGA golf coverage, the most USTA tennis coverage, the most soccer—only DIRECTV offers all of these.

[ilovethecats]

directv is far better anyways but i'd say it's worth getting for the nfl ticket alone.

[ddlalum]

I had DirectTv for a number of years, and now have Dish.

DirectTv definitely has more to offer. It has a few more HD channels, and has more sports options (while expensive, the NFL package was very nice to have). I haven’t noticed a big difference in the quality of the HD, but I have an older plasma, so it just may be I’m not going to notice a difference with my old plasma anyway.

I dropped DirectTv because of price and poor customer support. I was paying $70/month with DirectTv, and am now paying $40/month with Dish for a similar package (would be $35, but an extra $5 for the regional sports package).

For the price, I have been happy with Dish. While I know DirectTv is a better system, for what I’m willing to pay for TV, I am happy with Dish.