9200 Questions for those looking to buy or rent

[santo]

For those who have a 9200, how well does dual TV mode work? I was going to buy a 9200, 6100 and 3100 as a nwe subscriber but if diual mode works well, I could just get two 9200s.

Questions:
1. Does the remote work well if you are in another room? Will it go through floors well?
2. Is the recorded shows/locks/favourites all seperate so that neither TV can see the other?
3. Would you agree that the two "virtual recievers" appear totally separate?

Thanks for any help in advance. I did read the Dish 942 manual and you probably have to play with one to really see it in action so that's why I ask.

[hugh]

Please ask your questions here if you don't own a 9200

but first check for answers in the two following threads since many have already been answered.

• Official: ExpressVu Launches 9200 HD-PVR
• Official: Bell 9200 HD-PVR Owners Thread

[Lumberjack16]

Hey Santo,
Long-time reader, first time poster, so please pardon any screw ups.
Here's my take on your questions...
1. UHF remote works great! My 5100 remote had problems from one end of the house to the other, but the 9200 has had no problems yet (had it since Friday).
2. Recorded shows are common to the "two" receivers. Favorites and Locks are separate.
3. Other than the common list of record shows, the "two" receivers behave independantly, while in dual mode.

Hope that helps!!

[Q]

If you have 2 HDTV's that are too far apart for one to use HDMI and the other to use Component then I would recommend two 9200's.

I have had the 5200 for several months which also has a dual tuner and the only time I had issues with it is when the batteries got low.

As stated above. They share the harddrive and both tuners can see each others events.

[HydrogenCyanide]

I have a question about the 9200. I was a long-time Bell customer before switching back to cable. In September I will be moving to Fort Erie and may make the switch back satellite.

Over the Air really interests me and being so close to Buffalo I should be able to pull in a lot of channels. I will also be right on the lake so Cleveland channels may in fact be possible. How does the over the air HD channels work with the 9200.

- Do the channels populate in the guide?
- Is it a separate guide?
- How is the picture quality compared to the satellite picture quality (Only care about HD)
- Would you be able to customize it where your over-the air HD channels are in the same area of the guide as your satellite HD channels?

If anyone can answer any of these questions is would be great!! Thanks

[trilinearmipmap]

A have had StarChoice for years and years. Because the 9220 reviews have been much better then the 530 reviews, I decided to switch to ExpressVu and get a 9220.

First I looked at the ExpressVu website and phoned ExpressVu to order a system. They told me I was "out of the service area" so they won't sell me a system directly and they told me to buy a system from a local retailer.

I checked with the 3 stores in my town. None of them want to carry Bell ExpressVu products. One store told me they used to do ExpressVu installs, but they had problems receiving payment for their install work.

So I phoned ExpressVu back today to discuss this. I got two people with thick Indian accents, I think I reached a call centre in Bombay or Calcutta. It is hard to communicate with these people so I gave up.

Anyway I am frustrated. I really want a 9220 system, but whenever I try to order one I get the run-around. For what it's worth, I am a good customer, I pay my bills on time, I have the cash to spend, I am ready to order a unit today.

[Digital79]

I assume the 9200 has a fan?

How loud is it, does it always run, does it change speed with temp?

[rob1]

Originally Posted by Digital79

I assume the 9200 has a fan?

How loud is it, does it always run, does it change speed with temp?

Very quite....can't hear it at 8 ft. from the unit....

Quieter then theDsr530 I had last month that I took back....

[jfgagne]

trilinearmipmap,

Check your PM.

[Q]

Originally Posted by rob1

Very quite....can't hear it at 8 ft. from the unit....

Quieter then theDsr530 I had last month that I took back....

Yes it is very quiet. It seems less hot than my 5200 as well.

[BernieLomax]

Hi everyone,

I'm wondering if it's possible to record an event from an HD channel and then watch it on TV2 in SD? Will the receiver automatically down-convert the HD signal to SD or is it not possible to do this?

Also, a related question: Does the TV2 guide show all HD channels and allow you to watch them (obviously converting them into SD) or will all HD channels be hidden on TV2? I'm wondering because it would be useful to be able to initiate an HD recording from TV2 (so I can have the option to watch it on TV1 at a later time). Is this possible?

Thanks in advance!

[vanrobson]

Originally Posted by santo

For those who have a 9200, how well does dual TV mode work? I was going to buy a 9200, 6100 and 3100 as a nwe subscriber but if diual mode works well, I could just get two 9200s.

Questions:
1. Does the remote work well if you are in another room? Will it go through floors well?
2. Is the recorded shows/locks/favourites all seperate so that neither TV can see the other?
3. Would you agree that the two "virtual recievers" appear totally separate?

Thanks for any help in advance. I did read the Dish 942 manual and you probably have to play with one to really see it in action so that's why I ask.

1. My 9200s sits on the main floor and in the basement, and both TV2 outputs distributed throughout the house. The 2 TV2 remotes works in every room, even top floor controlling the basement 9200 which is 3 floors away.
2. It's shared.
3. Not totally separate. TV1 and TV2 share the same tuners and PIP so if theyre both on the same channels and you change channel, it changes on both TVs.

Originally Posted by BernieLomax

Hi everyone,

I'm wondering if it's possible to record an event from an HD channel and then watch it on TV2 in SD? Will the receiver automatically down-convert the HD signal to SD or is it not possible to do this?

Also, a related question: Does the TV2 guide show all HD channels and allow you to watch them (obviously converting them into SD) or will all HD channels be hidden on TV2? I'm wondering because it would be useful to be able to initiate an HD recording from TV2 (so I can have the option to watch it on TV1 at a later time). Is this possible?

Thanks in advance!

Yes, everything in TV2 is just downresed to SD. I can watch all HD channels and HD recordings. In SD mode, all the stretch modes work so it works well for both 16:9 and 4:3 TV's.

[Q]

watching the HD content on TV2 is squished horizontally but as described very well above. The stretch modes work on TV2. It looks how it should with just the stretch initiated.

[vanrobson]

Originally Posted by joedoe

watching the HD content on TV2 is squished horizontally but as described very well above. The stretch modes work on TV2. It looks how it should with just the stretch initiated.

Oh ya, for HD content on TV2, it will only show up properly on 16:9 TVs since there is no stretch modes for HD content.

[supergenius]

Just to clarify on some previous statements, when the 9200 is set to "dual mode" the tuners act completely independent of one another. The only thing shared is the recorded shows. Think of it like two PCs that are connected to a storage server. The PC's are separate entities but they both have access to the shared data on the server.