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Old 04-23-2015, 05:21 PM   #1
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Dish Network Satellite Question

After years of receiving free (or purchasing) cable television from campgrounds, I have decided to get Dish Network for my camper added to my home account. The question I have is which satellite antenna to purchase. The choices are:

1. Winegard PA2000R Pathway X1 Automatic Portable Satellite TV Antenna with DISH ViP 211z Receiver

2. Winegard PA6002R Pathway X2 Automatic Portable Satellite TV Antenna with DISH ViP 211z Receiver

3. DISH Network Tailgater Portable HDTV System Bundle with VIP211Z HD Receiver

I would appreciate any advice the forum has to offer.
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Old 04-23-2015, 05:25 PM   #2
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If you already have DISH at home, I'd go with getting the Tailgater and asking Dish to switch one of the receivers in your house with one that is compatible with the Tailgater. That is what I did. I just take that receiver with me when I go and the Tailgater stays in the RV.

I have a DVR in my living room in the house and had a standard receiver in my bedroom. Called Dish and told them I bought the Tailgater and wanted to switch my bedroom receiver for one that worked with the Tailgater (Vip211 or 211k). That is what the did. Sent me a receiver and a return label and I sent the other one back in the same box. Easy as could be. I can't speak to the other receivers as I have only used Dish. Good luck.
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Old 04-23-2015, 05:33 PM   #3
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If you already have DISH at home, I'd go with getting the Tailgater and asking Dish to switch one of the receivers in your house with one that is compatible with the Tailgater. That is what I did. I just take that receiver with me when I go and the Tailgater stays in the RV.

I have a DVR in my living room in the house and had a standard receiver in my bedroom. Called Dish and told them I bought the Tailgater and wanted to switch my bedroom receiver for one that worked with the Tailgater (Vip211 or 211k). That is what the did. Sent me a receiver and a return label and I sent the other one back in the same box. Easy as could be. I can't speak to the other receivers as I have only used Dish. Good luck.
Thanks for the suggestion BombDoc,
I only have one receiver at home and do not wish to take it with me as I have family that will be watching my house from time to time. I have thought about taking it, but then, what will be available for home.
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Old 04-23-2015, 05:34 PM   #4
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Winegard PA6002R Pathway X2 lets you have 2 receivers in your RV if you desire.

If only one receiver, then the Tailgator works fine.

FYI, you can add a couple things to the VIP211z.
1. An external hard drive to make it a DVR.
2. An OTA module to let you pick up local channels from your antenna and record them to the DVR.
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Old 04-23-2015, 05:41 PM   #5
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Winegard PA6002R Pathway X2 lets you have 2 receivers in your RV if you desire.

If only one receiver, then the Tailgator works fine.

FYI, you can add a couple things to the VIP211z.
1. An external hard drive to make it a DVR.
2. An OTA module to let you pick up local channels from your antenna and record them to the DVR.
Thanks for the info Dan-Nickie,
I'm leaning to the Tailgater myself, but wanted more info from the forum.
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Old 04-23-2015, 05:44 PM   #6
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Originally Posted by cgotto1204 View Post
After years of receiving free (or purchasing) cable television from campgrounds, I have decided to get Dish Network for my camper added to my home account. The question I have is which satellite antenna to purchase. The choices are:

1. Winegard PA2000R Pathway X1 Automatic Portable Satellite TV Antenna with DISH ViP 211z Receiver

2. Winegard PA6002R Pathway X2 Automatic Portable Satellite TV Antenna with DISH ViP 211z Receiver

3. DISH Network Tailgater Portable HDTV System Bundle with VIP211Z HD Receiver

I would appreciate any advice the forum has to offer.

I have Wingard X1 and like it real well. Had the Dish Tailgater first. Didn't like it at all. YMMV

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Old 04-23-2015, 05:49 PM   #7
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I have Wingard X1 and like it real well. Had the Dish Tailgater first. Didn't like it at all. YMMV

Brandi


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Thanks mcbrandi.
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Old 04-23-2015, 06:12 PM   #8
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I've had the Carry out 1st gen. for years. It has never failed to find a satellite. I had to move it a couple of times but it's great. Switched from Dish to Direct because of programming.
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Old 04-24-2015, 12:17 PM   #9
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I'm looking at the Pathway X2, not for the dual receiver, but the fact that it works with both eastern and western arc satellites. We live in the Great Lakes region, and most of our travels are within the western arc, but trips to the Northeast (Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, etc), may be better serviced by the eastern satellites. So, depends on where you plan on going.
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Old 04-24-2015, 12:42 PM   #10
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Thanks for the suggestion BombDoc,
I only have one receiver at home and do not wish to take it with me as I have family that will be watching my house from time to time. I have thought about taking it, but then, what will be available for home.
An extra receiver for the tailgater is only $8.00 a mo.
Just have it turned off if not using it for awhile or over the winter.

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Old 04-24-2015, 12:51 PM   #11
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Tailgater

We have Dish at our home, so we added a Tailgater with the VP211Z receiver for when we travel in the TT. The unit performs very well, is lightweight and will work even sitting on top of the TT roof if a ground spot isn't available. We really like having the same channels as we do at home and if you travel you can give them your current location and the are supposed to be able to hook you up with the local broadcast channels. Nice for keeping up with local weather.
That said, we have found that if we don't connect the satellite up for a couple of weeks it has missed an update or two and will not load up the entire set of programs. I just call the Dish customer service and, (like most IT help it is from somewhere in the middle east) I tell them to send updates to the unit. Once they send out the update the satellite will download the full program schedule and you are good to go. Takes about 20 minutes. Now that we realize this, I am thinking about bringing the VP211Z home and connecting it to the home network so it will stay updated; we will then take it with us and see if this will work quicker, I'll post an update when we find out. We like camping in some areas where there isn't broadcast reception, or cable, so this is good way to watch TV. I would still buy a Tailgater again.
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Old 04-24-2015, 12:55 PM   #12
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We have Dish at our home, so we added a Tailgater with the VP211Z receiver for when we travel in the TT. The unit performs very well, is lightweight and will work even sitting on top of the TT roof if a ground spot isn't available. We really like having the same channels as we do at home and if you travel you can give them your current location and the are supposed to be able to hook you up with the local broadcast channels. Nice for keeping up with local weather.
That said, we have found that if we don't connect the satellite up for a couple of weeks it has missed an update or two and will not load up the entire set of programs. I just call the Dish customer service and, (like most IT help it is from somewhere in the middle east) I tell them to send updates to the unit. Once they send out the update the satellite will download the full program schedule and you are good to go. Takes about 20 minutes. Now that we realize this, I am thinking about bringing the VP211Z home and connecting it to the home network so it will stay updated; we will then take it with us and see if this will work quicker, I'll post an update when we find out. We like camping in some areas where there isn't broadcast reception, or cable, so this is good way to watch TV. I would still buy a Tailgater again.
I some times stick mine on top of the dining room slide out.
Had to in goshen two years ago because the guy to the left of me was obstructing my view and the guy behind and to the right had a big Ole XLR toy hualer.
Slide out worked perfectly.

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Old 04-24-2015, 01:14 PM   #13
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I usually put mine at the top of the ladder so that I can Velcro it in place to the rails. In Texas we have some nasty spring storms (like today's batch) and it keeps it in place. Our satellites here are low on the southern horizon and local low brush is thick in places; so the roof is a pretty good spot to get it up and above.
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Old 04-24-2015, 02:54 PM   #14
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Hi Dish Tailgater easy to set up. All you need is one coax cable to power the tailgater and get the signal from the tailgater. I use a Vip211k receiver for the trailer this unit is SD and HD capable. I have the Dish Hopper at home and can watch all the home channels I subscribe to on the Vip211k receiver. I have also added a 2 gigabit Western Digital desktop hard drive to the Vip211k receiver for a one time fee of $40. to make this a DVR receiver. The good thing about this setup is that you don't have to pay for a DVR rental ever. The set up is easy and is displayed step by step on the television each time you set the system up in a new location. The big thing is you need a clear sky to the south (no trees) or a hole through the trees to the south. tailgater system can be turned off when not in use. When you turn it on your monthly bill will be around $8.00 for the time you have it active if you have a home system. Tailgater dish will not pick up the eastern satellites so if you plan on going to Maine or the Canadian maritime you will need a satellite receiver that has the eastern and western satellites. If you decide to to pull the trigger and buy a tailgater system and you have a good relationship with the company that installed your home system use them to buy. This way you will have a support person to work with if you have questions on setup.

Hope this helps Tim
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Old 04-24-2015, 05:56 PM   #15
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Hi Dish Tailgater easy to set up. All you need is one coax cable to power the tailgater and get the signal from the tailgater. I use a Vip211k receiver for the trailer this unit is SD and HD capable. I have the Dish Hopper at home and can watch all the home channels I subscribe to on the Vip211k receiver. I have also added a 2 gigabit Western Digital desktop hard drive to the Vip211k receiver for a one time fee of $40. to make this a DVR receiver. The good thing about this setup is that you don't have to pay for a DVR rental ever. The set up is easy and is displayed step by step on the television each time you set the system up in a new location. The big thing is you need a clear sky to the south (no trees) or a hole through the trees to the south. tailgater system can be turned off when not in use. When you turn it on your monthly bill will be around $8.00 for the time you have it active if you have a home system. Tailgater dish will not pick up the eastern satellites so if you plan on going to Maine or the Canadian maritime you will need a satellite receiver that has the eastern and western satellites. If you decide to to pull the trigger and buy a tailgater system and you have a good relationship with the company that installed your home system use them to buy. This way you will have a support person to work with if you have questions on setup.

Hope this helps Tim
Thanks Tim,

Your post is the one that made the decision easier for me as I am planning a trip to Maine with-in the next couple of weeks. Purchased the Winegard PA6002R Pathway X2 Automatic Portable Satellite TV Antenna with DISH ViP 211z Receiver through Walmart.com due to that they offer free "pick-up at store" and I didn't want the package sitting out in the open if I'm not home.

Pricing between Amazon.com and Walmart.com were about the same price and the lowest of other on-line suppliers.
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Old 04-24-2015, 08:58 PM   #16
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CampingWorld is now selling a Tailgater that supports 2 receivers, mounts on your roof if you want, and automatically seeks for satellites without having to point the tailgater south. I plan on selling my current tailgater and buying a new one. Currently, the price is 350.00 on sale.
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Old 04-24-2015, 09:40 PM   #17
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CampingWorld is now selling a Tailgater that supports 2 receivers, mounts on your roof if you want, and automatically seeks for satellites without having to point the tailgater south.
Ah, sorry to disappoint but you don't point the old Tailgater any particular direction either, it just has to have a clear field of view of the southern sky (in Texas) so it can "see" the satellite. Just saying...
The new one will also require the same view of the sky in order to see the correct satellite. The idea of two different receivers is nice if your RV has wiring for two separate satellite systems, mine does not, or perhaps you could set up one TV coax for outside viewing and wire the other to the RV system. Pretty tough to string coax in these new bonded wall RVs, I'm not trying it on the Windjammer.

One other thought you might look into ajbaber is connecting one coax to the "Satellite In" on the outside of the RV and the other coax to the "Cable In". It would require some inventive wiring and you may have to turn off the antenna booster on the cable/antenna side. Then connect your receivers to the TVs and see if you get the signal. Others may have tried this already, not sure.
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Old 04-25-2015, 10:47 AM   #18
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king VQ4500 [dish] or king VQ4100 [direct]...brand spanking new version available april 2015....the cable itself carries power to run antenna motors, so you don't have 2 cables running to the dish .. that's mine ... a winegard 1518....make sure which ever you choose that it has only one cable....with mine I had to buy a 12v converter to plug into ac, or if you have a cigarette lighter handy you can do without the converter.. a real pain my setup.
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Old 04-27-2015, 08:59 PM   #19
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I'm with Direct, but I just bought an extra receiver off Amazon and had it added to my home package for 6/month. Direct also can be de-activated during non use months. Be weary of sellers!
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Old 04-27-2015, 10:43 PM   #20
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Thanks D_B_Travelers for the information regarding the Tailgater. I was informed by CampingWorld that I must always point the Tailgater south and have a non obstructed view. I tried pointing the Tailgater north yesterday and sure enough it found all 3 satellites. You saved me 350.00 on a new Tailgater since the only advantage allows 2 receivers and it's roof mountable. We don't have any reason to watch 2 TV's and I can probably figure out something myself to mount it on the roof.
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