still on the fence; please help me choose

[wowsers123]

Got my Uverse TV/Internet installed the other day and now need to decide if I stick with ATT or go back to Dish (hopper/joey) system. There are still some nigling things with this system and not sure if it's me or the setup. Here are my issues:

The whole system seems prettty slow. Compared to the Dish it's really slow. I tried unplugging the system to reload the software and no difference. I read since Phase 3 some people have slowdowns.

The remote HAS to be pointed right at the box to work. There's not much of a range. I know I can get the RF remote but don't want to spend $60 extra for that (or $120 for 2). I tried changing the batteries but still has to be within 10 feet and RIGHT at the sensor.

The sound is out for the first 2 seconds of play. This is REALLY annoying. If I need to replay something I need to go back a few seconds earlier or miss the sounds. If I skip commercials I lose the beginning audio when the show comes back. This happens with both Surround Sound on or off.

Surround Sound doesn't work on one of my setups. If I chose Surround Sound on my TV hooked up with HDMI to TV and optical cable to a Panasonic Surround Sound/Blueray player I get no sound. If I chose Stereo I get sound. Played around with a bunch of settings and no Surround Sound. This works with my Dish.

Thanks!

[JefferMC ACE - Wizard]

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wowsers123 wrote:

The whole system seems prettty slow. Compared to the Dish it's really slow. I tried unplugging the system to reload the software and no difference. I read since Phase 3 some people have slowdowns.

I have no experience with Dish, so I can't directly compare.  However, I can tell you that even after Phase 3, it's lightyears ahead of Digital TV offerings from Charter and what I've seen of channel changes on Direct TV.

The remote HAS to be pointed right at the box to work. There's not much of a range. I know I can get the RF remote but don't want to spend $60 extra for that (or $120 for 2). I tried changing the batteries but still has to be within 10 feet and RIGHT at the sensor.

This sounds like a typical problem of IR intererence.  The IR reception in the STB/DVRs can be affected by things from fluorecent light bulbs to your TV.  Especially a TV set for dynamic brightness.  See if you can find such a setting on your TV and turn it off.

The sound is out for the first 2 seconds of play. This is REALLY annoying. If I need to replay something I need to go back a few seconds earlier or miss the sounds. If I skip commercials I lose the beginning audio when the show comes back. This happens with both Surround Sound on or off.

I am suprised this happens with Surround Sound off.  I have seen this complaint from people using Dolby 5.1 because some recievers take a bit to get back in sync with the output from the box, but never with Stereo.  I have Stereo and I've not experienced this at all.

Surround Sound doesn't work on one of my setups. If I chose Surround Sound on my TV hooked up with HDMI to TV and optical cable to a Panasonic Surround Sound/Blueray player I get no sound. If I chose Stereo I get sound. Played around with a bunch of settings and no Surround Sound. This works with my Dish.

Some recievers work better than others.  I have no surround sound experience, so I can't help you here.

Thanks!

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[aviewer ACE - Wizard]

wowsers123 - From my experience every digital box, including TVs themselves takes forever to change channel. Except U-verse - If you are looking at the remote, by the time you shift your eyes to the TV, the new channel is there.

The functions are too slow.

The remote does have a very sensitive IR signal. Check this out - http://www.nilesaudio.com/media/ir.php

In addition to previous suggestion - I think the DVR is worse than the STB. If you can swap it may help. You need to hide the box or bounce the signal off the floor or ceiling. A weak signal is more effective than a strong one.

Your sound problem is with a receiver? See if it is set in an auto detect mode & change it to a fixed stereo or surround. Whichever you are using. It seems U-verse turns off the sound on FF & your receiver needs time to determine the signal when it comes back.

The TV does not support surround. Perhaps the HDMI feedback is turning it off. Try component cables or route the HDMI STB to HT to TV.

[wowsers123]

regarding speed, I was talking about going to the guide, menu, recorded shows, etc. Changing channels IS way faster on Uverse, but since I don't watch too much live TV this isn't a big deal. The reaction of everything else always seems one step behind my fingers. I have a feeling it's more due to the remote not always getting the signal to the DVR (see below)

I am more frustrated by the system in my livingroom. The DVR is in a "media closet" behind the TV. It has the DVR, Uverse modem, Stereo/Blueray, and a wireless router (the builtin ATT wifi router wouldn't broadcast a foot outside the closet; even the installer was surprisded at this). I use an IR signal transmitter to send the signal through the one wall from the remote. This isn't a problem with my other devices. 

Re sound. I am going DVR > OPTICAL CABLE > STEREO and when I chose Surround Sound I get no sound. If I chose STEREO I get sound. Again, the Dish worked fine with this. 

[aviewer ACE - Wizard]

wowsers123 -

p1 - I agree completely.
p2 - Your IR repeater could be not handling the signal well. Did you look at the Niles video?
The U-verse IR is different than the others. Can you try the DVR in the open, just as a test?

P3 - Another - but U-verse is designed different - U-verse is more sensitive to feedback on the HDMI. I am not saying it will fix it - just something to try, We know that TVs that do not support surround will go mute on HDMI with surround. We know that recording devices can blacken pictures if the STB detects them on the HDMI. Try eliminating the HDMI from the equation. You may need to remove the HDMI connection from the DVR. In some cases it turns off the HD aspect setting when watching via component. You can see that the HDMI controls the aspect because the blue light goes out when the TV is not providing feedback.