General Instrument 4DTV 920

rleehamn · #1 (**permalink**) 03-21-2007, 12:08 AM

I have got a GI 4DTV 920 from someone that decided to go with a DishNet and was no longer going to use the unit.

I have google for this unit and went through all kinds of old old post.
Can someone tell me about this unit. Good, bad, outdated anything?

I already have a 8' dish with a vbox2 and I know I got the wrong feed horn (lnb) for this unit and if needed I don't have the c-band ribbon cable from dish to inside of house.

Is this unit worth messing with?
Also I take it that 4DTV can't pick up dvb <-- I haven't research that yet.
I did read where to slave for example my MercuryII off the 4DTV.

Thanks

elgemcdlf · #2 (**permalink**) 03-21-2007, 07:14 AM

The 920 is the predecessor to the 922. You want to verify the battery has been changed. If the battery is dead it is a doorstop. You must maintain power to the unit when changing the battery so if you plan on doing it yourself keep that in mind. Satellite Forums: Part of the ZForums Network. is where to get your 4dtv info.

I have the 922 so I can not speak specifics about the 920 but the 922 is great IMHO. It does not do DVB but is MPEG2 and analog. You have a good receiver as long as the battery is good. Worth investing in converting your big dish back to "normal" big dish setup (feedhorn with lnbs) and wiring it all up. Then slave the DVB receiver off of it.

wejones · #3 (**permalink**) 03-21-2007, 10:08 AM

THe main difference between the 920 and 922 is that the 920 doesn't do as many SR rates as the 922, but it does the main ones (19.51 and 29.27) that are used for most subscription services, so for subscribing there isn't much difference. THe difference would be for picking upu things that aren't subsciption, but these things are getting fewer and fewer anyway. Re the doorstop thing if battery goes dead, there is a company that will replace the battery for one charge, and will fix a unit that has lost it's memory for a higher charge. Question is whether you think that DCII will be around long enough to make the investment worth it. I recently had the battery replaced and another chip replaced on my (non-4dtv) DCII box, but have used it very little since PBS went DVB, so I'm not sure it was worth the investment for me, but a 4DTV is different since it does subscription stuff.

rleehamn · #4 (**permalink**) 03-21-2007, 01:24 PM

Ok thanks guys.

I do know the unit was power on when I got it from him (It was his main tv entainment).
I didn't get to test drive it or anything.

I may invest in setting it up.

Wish there was a way to keep the c-band from going going going...

thanks

elgemcdlf · #5 (**permalink**) 03-21-2007, 01:32 PM

C Band is going nowhere. Analog C Band is going. It is converting to digital. While some have moved over to Ku there is still plenty of C Band programming out there. Just go through any C Band programming providers site. The Ku channels are usually designated as they require the Ku lnb and a DSR receiver.

rleehamn · #6 (**permalink**) 03-26-2007, 09:46 PM

..and I thought it was going down hill.

Thanks for the clearing my head.

elgemcdlf · #7 (**permalink**) 03-27-2007, 07:11 AM

That is a myth told since the beginning of C Band. Cable was going to kill C Band, why pay for TV when it is free from an antenna?, the little dish will finally finish off C Band, regulations will finally do in C Band. C Band was never really intended for home users. It is big dish and the dishes we talk about here are not big dishes

My 8.5's are "kiddie" dishes

tdti1 · #8 (**permalink**) 04-03-2007, 07:17 PM

The 920 will work great, you may want to change the battery though, you can get programming from these places:
NPS - Your One Call Solution - CBAND Satellite Programming C-band
Satellite Receivers C band and 4DTV satellite programming

Programming is cheaper on big dish than on cable and small dish and the picture and sound quality are better if you sub to the distribution feeds.

be236 · #9 (**permalink**) 04-06-2007, 04:03 PM

Kinda related question but...

Why is a 4DTV receiver so expensive ($700?), while you can get an FTA receiver for $100?

Is there that much expensive hardware inside a 4DTV receiver???

rainman · #10 (**permalink**) 04-06-2007, 04:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by be236

Kinda related question but...

Why is a 4DTV receiver so expensive ($700?), while you can get an FTA receiver for $100?

Is there that much expensive hardware inside a 4DTV receiver???

I would say the main reason is that you have got one company making the 4DTV and hundreds of companys making FTA receivers. more competiton means lower price.

be236 · #11 (**permalink**) 04-06-2007, 05:18 PM

Nice... excellent answer.. that makes sense.. d'oh.. I still cant imagine any "new" C-band person to buy a $700 unit.. sheez... for that price, I'd just get a dtv or dish and order some small package deal.. I guess the 4dtv allows you to buy single channels, one-at-a-time, eh?

There's not that much free (in-the-clear) DC-II channels are there?

Bummer that I got my cool C-band dish many years ago and not much is left on Analog...