First, what are your issues with Comcast? If it's just the bill, then you need to redo your plan. Price-wise, for what you get, there's usually little difference between DirecTV and Comcast, once you factor in the cost of high speed internet and phone. Right now, in the Shoals, getting your TV, Phone, and Internet as a bundle through Comcast is the cheapest option available.
Second, there are some advantages, and disadvantages, to satellite. I've had all manner of TV service, and DirecTV is probably my favorite provider, but what I get with Comcast makes it much more desirable. No one can touch the internet speed I'm getting with Comcast. One of the big advantages with DirecTV is the NFL Sunday Ticket, especially right now since it's free, but there's a catch. From reading about it online, it looks like agreeing to it for free this season locks you into paying for it next season. So, if you're a big NFL guy and would have bought it anyway, then it's a great deal, otherwise not so much.
As for the installation, remember where the dish is pointing - at a satellite. I've seen a bunch of people with overhang problems pay hundreds of dollars to have trees cut only to have it not help because they had the wrong tree cut. The tree that was interfering with the signal was the one behind the dish, blowing over above the satellite. Check your azimith and elevation settings, and then go outside around the northern side of your house and figure out what that angle is. Odds are that you can mount the dish somewhere along the northern edge of your house without a problem. Those dishes look a lot higher up than most people think.
As for the reception issues, there is a legitimate problem there. It seemed to me that, when we had satellite, the only time we lost the signal was when we needed it to monitor the weather situation. However, it's not as bad as a lot of people make it out to be. If you lose your signal in northern Alabama more than once a month, then you've got installation issues. Most installers don't work for DirecTV; they're independent contractors. And a surprisingly large number of them do an acceptabe job at best. Try to find someone who will give you references for their installations, and don't be afraid to pay for installation. You can get it free, but sometimes you do really get what you pay for. If you've got the room, you can build protection for your satellite, protecting it from wind and rain from the west, north, and east which will pretty much guarantee that the only time you lose signal is from dense storm interference.
Like I said, though, the time you lose the signal is usually when you're watching the TV to keep an eye on the weather. However, there is a way, or two, around this. The first way, obviously, is to use an antenna for backup for local channels. There is another way, though. I can't survive on satellite internet, not the way I use it. So, even if I'm using satellite for TV, I'm wired for internet. If I could do distributed A/V with satellite the way I can with cable, then here is what I would be doing: Cable for Internet, Phone, and basic TV (like 10 channels) with DirecTV for main TV. The last time I chekced, having Comcast internet access gets you basic cable for free, which is basically your local channels and PBS, more or less.
So, the question there is, what are you going to use for your internet if you move your TV service to DirecTV?
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Second, there are some advantages, and disadvantages, to satellite. I've had all manner of TV service, and DirecTV is probably my favorite provider, but what I get with Comcast makes it much more desirable. No one can touch the internet speed I'm getting with Comcast. One of the big advantages with DirecTV is the NFL Sunday Ticket, especially right now since it's free, but there's a catch. From reading about it online, it looks like agreeing to it for free this season locks you into paying for it next season. So, if you're a big NFL guy and would have bought it anyway, then it's a great deal, otherwise not so much.
As for the installation, remember where the dish is pointing - at a satellite. I've seen a bunch of people with overhang problems pay hundreds of dollars to have trees cut only to have it not help because they had the wrong tree cut. The tree that was interfering with the signal was the one behind the dish, blowing over above the satellite. Check your azimith and elevation settings, and then go outside around the northern side of your house and figure out what that angle is. Odds are that you can mount the dish somewhere along the northern edge of your house without a problem. Those dishes look a lot higher up than most people think.
As for the reception issues, there is a legitimate problem there. It seemed to me that, when we had satellite, the only time we lost the signal was when we needed it to monitor the weather situation. However, it's not as bad as a lot of people make it out to be. If you lose your signal in northern Alabama more than once a month, then you've got installation issues. Most installers don't work for DirecTV; they're independent contractors. And a surprisingly large number of them do an acceptabe job at best. Try to find someone who will give you references for their installations, and don't be afraid to pay for installation. You can get it free, but sometimes you do really get what you pay for. If you've got the room, you can build protection for your satellite, protecting it from wind and rain from the west, north, and east which will pretty much guarantee that the only time you lose signal is from dense storm interference.
Like I said, though, the time you lose the signal is usually when you're watching the TV to keep an eye on the weather. However, there is a way, or two, around this. The first way, obviously, is to use an antenna for backup for local channels. There is another way, though. I can't survive on satellite internet, not the way I use it. So, even if I'm using satellite for TV, I'm wired for internet. If I could do distributed A/V with satellite the way I can with cable, then here is what I would be doing: Cable for Internet, Phone, and basic TV (like 10 channels) with DirecTV for main TV. The last time I chekced, having Comcast internet access gets you basic cable for free, which is basically your local channels and PBS, more or less.
So, the question there is, what are you going to use for your internet if you move your TV service to DirecTV?
Sent from my Asus Transformer using Tapatalk.