Boy, I'm glad I have my dish on a balcony and can run the 2nd wire myself. Already installed and ready to go... now I just need the Brick to phone me and tell me to come pick up a box.

My upgrade was $49 when I had my DSR 500 installed.

Perhaps you weren't clear to the CSR or didn't understand the website.......any install for the 530 is $99, regardless of what is required. Multiswitch, 2 cable runs, dish, activation, labour.

The upgrade is a simple dish swap and allignment. On the 530 2 cable runs aren't to the cable box outside......it has to be run inside, to the unit directly....more work for an installer, and if from what I understand, those switches aren't cheap if you need one.
It was crystal clear, we went over it about three times. Even if I didn't have the 530, the $49 that he claimed, would be for the dish upgrade, pointing, and stringing of one new line. Well, I already have one of the lines I need already run into the room where the 530 is, so the one line they run for $49 would be all that was required for the 530. I explained that then there is already another line strung to another room in the house from where the dish is, and I can run the fourth line myself. So if I didn't own the 530, I could get them to replace the dish, point it, run a new line where I want (which would be into the same room I would be planning on putting the 530 if I didn't own it before hand), for $49.
But because I own the 530 now, it's $99. I explained I didn't need any switches, just the dish, pointing, and one new line installed. Nope..because I own the 530 now it's $99. It just does not make sense. I can see it if like you say, you need more then one line installed, and a multiswitch etc... but for what I need, I would have been better off not buying the 530, let them do their thing for $49, then buy the 530. They have to build some common sense into their business model. Plus the fact it was their technical support the other day that told me it was $49 while he was commenting on the new 530 in my account. Well, enough ragging...blood pressure is boiling :)

I don't think your looking at the whole picture.

It's not a matter of what you may or may not need, its plain and simple I thought as stated on their website or if you talk to a CSR.

ANY install on the 530 is for existing subs is $99.

If you're that bitter that its making your blood boil....why not contact your local dealer or installer, and just buy a dish from them?? Once these guys all know it's $49 for a simple upgrade, they'll be selling their dishes at or below that price.

Pornstar Choice:

What is not "plain and simple" is when you talk to one CSR and it's $49, and another it's $99, both whom are talking about the same thing, just a different price.

The installer was suppose to call me last week and set up a time for today.
No call. I waited until this afternoon, called SC, CSR said yes, they will be there today. Well, it's almost 7:30PM and no installer, no phone call. I called SC again, they said they don't know who the installer is.?? If they don't know who it is, then how did they notify the company? The CSR's suggestion, just see if they show up tomorrow. Great communication system they have with their installers.

Best of luck, I suspect things are good now.

Even when it's off, it's actually ON, just no video to the TV.
The dish has been working great since the 4th or 5th visit - I’ve lost count. I don't want to get too comfy because the second repair lasted about two weeks. But we’ll see what happens once we get a downpour of rain….

I have been a *C customer for about five years now and have been quite happy with the service. My parents have been with Bell Express Vu for 8 years now, and my dad gets the worst customer service from them! They have long wait times, they don't return your calls, emails take a three day turnaround. I have found that when I call *C, 9.9 times out of 10, I get a customer service rep. right away. My emails have been answered within hours. Overall, I am quite pleased.

My best experience with *C was when I was having problems with my DSR 530 not recording. The customer service agent was on the phone with me for a full hour, trying to troubleshoot the problem. The entire time he was pleasant and upbeat. He did not talk down to me once (which often happens to females when males are trying to instruct them with electronics. Sorry, but that has been my experience, and I work with computers all day!) As we were working through the problems, he said that we would have to perform a factory reset and, when I was upset that I would lose the two PPV movies that I had recorded but not watched yet, he said that he would credit my account for two more! That was really nice. At the end of the call, when we were still unable to resolve the problem, he promised to contact me within three days and said he wouldn't forget about me. He called me back less than 24 hours later. I should be so lucky to get him as a customer service agent again!

My not so good experience with *C dealt with a service call to my home to examine the DSR 530 hookup. An appointment was made for between 8-5 on a Wednesday. I had to take the day off work, which used up one of the ten vacation days I get a year! I waited at home all day and no one showed up and no one called. At 4:30, I called *C and was put through to a dispatcher. The dispatcher said that they may be running late and already on their way. He said that no one at the business was answering the phone, so he left a message for them to call either me or *C and that, if they hadn't called me by 5:30, to call *C back. At 5:30, I called *C back and spoke to another dispatcher. She said, and I quote, "I don't know why he told you to call back, when he had left a message for them to call you. There is nothing that I can do until I speak to them tomorrow morning." While that may be true, it did nothing to make me feel better, and frankly made me feel like I was putting her out! She then told me to call back at 8 a.m., when they opened, and they would have more information on what happened to the service call. I called back at 8 am, was left on hold for 20 minutes, and then spoke to a third dispatcher. She said that there was no information on my account and called the business. She came back on my line, told me that she had spoken to them, that they were aware of the situation and would call me. And? I said. Do I need to call into work again? Are they coming today? I don't know, she said, go into work and they will call you. How soon will they call? I asked. I don't know, she said. I found it very frustrating that I had to work this problem out myself. The second dispatcher had told me the name of the business that handles the *C account in my area, so I hung up and called them direct. They immediately knew who I was. After talking to the operator for a few minutes, I was guaranteed a service call at 3:30 pm that day. None of this was *C fault. They cannot help it if their service call people ignore the order. I appreciate that. However, I do not appreciate having to arrange my own service call and feeling like, when I hung up, that *C had done nothing to help the situation. During this entire ordeal, no one apologized about anything. A simple "I'm sorry this happened" or "We are sorry for the inconvenience" would have gone a long way. I have worked in customer service for 13 years, and I know that attitude always calms people and reassures them that you are working to help them. However, that is not fair to say *C was the problem, their service call technicans were, but those three dispatchers did not, especially the last two, impress me in the least.

However, after all that I have written, the good and the not so good, I still think that I am far ahead of any Bell customers with the good customer service I have received from *C. I would never want to switch over!

Wow! That doesn't say too much for Bell. I do not care for Bell either. They've got their hands into too many pies and they are acting way too arrogant for my liking. I would never deal with that company if at all possible.

I am sorry that you lost en entire vacation day for nothing. That is a shame. Hopefully your machine is working now.

I'll tell you....this company makes no sense at all. The other day when I had my new DSR 530 authorized, the CSR told me that I could have my old round dish upgraded to the new eliptical with quad lnb for $49. He said they just lowered it from $99. I should have jumped at it right then, but I was in a hurry to get off the phone as some company had arrived at the door. So, I call back today...guess what....now I'm told that it's $99. So I explained that just the other day I was told that it had been lowered to $49. He said no, because you own a 530 now, it's $99. So I said, what if I hadn't of bought the 530 unit, and I still just had my two old units? He said "then it would be $49". I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I said because I went out and bought your brand new DVR for $700 +, now I get penalized on a dish upgrade?? He said yup....that's the way it works. I said their marketing department and sales department is totally SCREWED up! I told him what I would do, is sell the 530 to a relative for $1 so he could take it out of my account...then since I still have my two old receivers, I'll upgrade my dish to eliptical, which includes the running of one line for $49, and when that's done, I'll buy the 530 back from my relative for a dollar, and have it reauthorized in my account. He just groaned and said "ok, I'll give it to you for $49". What a complete JOKE!! Someone better give their head a shake out there in Calgary. Their "pre-order" has been nothing short of a disaster in marketing and customer service, and to top it off, they want to double the charge on upgrading your dish because you spent $700 + for a new receiver... DUH!!!!

Most likely the agent was confusing 2 different charges here. The DVR530's, for all current subscribers, have an install charge of $99. This includes anything that is needed for the install of the receiver; dish upgrade, new lnb, multiswitch, and lines run. The $49 is the normal price for just a dish upgrade, it USED to be $99. By the sounds of it, the agent was confusing the 2 charges, unfortunately.

I am sorry that you lost en entire vacation day for nothing. That is a shame. Hopefully your machine is working now.

Yes, thank you DKS! My machine is working now. And the relief probably made up for all of the agony! I have looked forward to buying this machine for the last year now!

Called SC customer service Technical support last night to report a guide error.
No kidding, they answered on the first ring.

Made my 'complaint' and the friendly fellow put me on hold for less than a minute, had confirmed my report and thanked me very much.

Wish my cableco could give me service like that!

Well it only took 2&1/4 business days to get a replacement unit out to me...great service if I must say so.Hooked it up last night & all working fine.Came with .98 as soon as it was authorized.Only thing though thats happening with this unit is sometimes when in options screen when I tried to go into option "6" it would kick me back to tv viewing screen & show as if I was entering a channel 6** on the banner.
Trust this one will work for many months/yrs to come.

Also received a phone call @ work from the regional service/installation manager @ *C just to ask if I wanted immediate installation service to hook-up this 2nd unit.

Cheers to *C for their "GREAT" after purchase concerns

My parent's neighbour has BEV. His satellite dish had been placed too low on his house, however, and when the trees came into bloom, he lost his signal. A technician was called in to move the dish for him. He complained to the technician that he was on hold with BEV for 45 minutes before he even got to talk to a real person! The technician replied that he should switch to *C because the customer service is better and faster! Now I appreciate that this is probably an independent contractor who may work for both BEV and *C, but I thought it was pretty funny that he would speak out against the company that he was working for at the time!

When I had my *choice installed, the installer said pretty much the exact same things!! I assume he has installed for both companies and found BEV to be much more difficult to deal with. :p

Or maybe he gets better pay for doing the *C installations. I will agree though, that *C does answer the phone fast, and they are courteous. Bell, nope. Not at all. If you get a decent person to deal with at Bell you are extremely lucky. It would be like winning the lotto. I have not even looked into what Bell has to offer, and will not be looking.

I got the same lines from the installer that came to install my 530. He said he deals with both but prefers *C. More competant, pays faster, less problems.

This comment is about *C's "head-in-the-sand" treatment of the frequent video dropouts on Channel 284. There is another thread on this, and I can't find anyone who has gotten an acknowledgment from *C that they have a problem. I can't communicate my displeasure directly, as I like in South B.C.
Can anyone comment on this?

As with some of the other folks, I too have been with *C for about 5 years now and have nothing but good things to say. You can submit an email tech support request online and get a response almost always with 24 hours. You can call and it may say 5 min wait or it may say 60 minute wait, but if you actually stay on the line, it's never been more than 10 minutes for me during peak calling time.

If people are frustrated with the new hardware, that's very understandable, but you get the same thing with ANY new product/technology when it first comes out be it a car, mp3 player or computer for that matter. Living on the "bleeding" edge is not for the weak of heart but it's reassuring to know that there is always a medic on the other end of the line, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week including holidays, willing to listen and truly help.

Service like that is what keeps me as a customer and knowing that they are actually interested in trying to help you, albeit nobody's perfect. Whether for phone, internet or satellite, I can't say I've had nearly as 'pleasant' an experience with Bell. Thanks Starchoice and keep up the great work.

That's my $0.02.

*C have had a LOT of problems in the past. They really got better in the last year. I've been with them for several years. At one point 3 years ago, the french side took 2 hours to answer a call. They put a password on my account even if I never did ask it, they lost my account, mixed up my account with someone else's, charged me ppv wich I never saw, etc... I could go like that and fill 2 pages of it.

In the last year or so, they did come back stronger. I can now say I trust the crew and staff. Several times I thought of leaving and had really good reasons to. I'm not stubborn. I gave them a chance and now they prooved to me they want to keep me as a customer. Now, they have to make sure their 530 gets better. Their reputation depends on it. Bev lost it because of bad products and bad customers support. I really hope they will get out of this snag! There has been a lot of work in their business and now, it shows.

I was a *C sub for almost 6 years.I switched to BEV because my system was old and they wanted $170 to get a new one.I got my BEV 3150 with a free power drill for $125.21
Over the first 2-3 years wait times were horrible but the CSR's were always friendly and they speak english (Take a hint Bell) Overall my service was very good and I would have stayed with them if they wanted to give me a deal on a new system.

Hmm yes is BEV customer service center in Quebec?

thanks