#61
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I basically cut the cord as well, comcast still for internet connection/streaming when we want to watch tv, but we also made a conscious effort to cut back watching tv. News comes streaming. Never finished the home theater, put the money into upgraded 2 channel and had plenty left over each month to expand vinyl selection. Several friends did similar de-emphasizing on home theater at same time (and friend with largest dedicated theater room has no outside
connection, purely blueray player only!). Quality of conversations and interaction with s.o. and friends has significantly improved. Forget the $ savings, the quality of life improvement is worth minimizing tv selections on its own. If sports are your thing, go somewhere and watch with friends. If updated news Is a priority, there’s no shortage of websites and streaming services that can be accessed for free. If entertainment is the issue, rediscover your music library and practice conversation skills |
#62
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Quote:
Last edited by Jdsmoke; 02-20-2019 at 09:05 PM. |
#63
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So I’ve been following this thread since Dan posted the topic and I’m in exactly the same boat, my Directv subscription runs me $164 a month, sounds like we have/had the exact same package, service fees etc. I’m dying to get rid of it and use a streaming service. I signed up for a free trial of YouTube TV which is only $49.99 /month and has every channel I need save the Weather Channel, but that’s another story. So here’s the rub, I watched 2 nights worth of programming flipped channels and two Atlanta Braves games. I love the interface etc, but.......I could tell a noticeable “digital” quality to the picture compared to Directv, especially on sports.......almost looked like a bit of macroblocking at times. I was able to switch back and forth easily and A/B the same channels, some better than others. That was on a 65 inch 4K Sony XBR TV, I haven’t tried it on my JVC projector in the theater but I would only assume it would look worse on the 110” screen but maybe I’m wrong. Has anyone ever compared the streaming quality of any of the other players like Hulu, Directv Now or Fubu? I want to switch desperately but being an AA audiophile, I’m afraid a noticeable drop in picture quality would bother me, especially during football season etc. what has been you guys’ experience in quality with the live streaming services?
- Buck
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Library: Speakers: Avalon Acoustics Isis, Subwoofers: (2) REL Acoustics 212SE Amplification: D’agostino Momentum preamplifier, D’agostino S250 stereo amplifier Digital: dCS Rossini CD/SACD transport, dCS Rossini DAC/streamer/master clock. Analog: Brinkmann Taurus table, Lyra Etna Lambda, Audio Research Ref. Phono 3 |
#64
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Buck, my experience has been mixed. We stream Netflix, VUDU, HBO Now, and Amazon Video. We also have an HD Dish Hopper3.
All of them use some type of video compression and the amount and visibility of it varies with service, content, and time of day. Our local ISP and or the streaming service provider’s infrastructure gets overloaded during prime time - weekdays from 7:00P - 9:00P local time. Don’t know which, sometimes I get a good local Speedtest, other times not. So it is probably a combination of both. HBO Now had compression problems during GOT. Still plenty watchable but I expected better. Amazon Video seems the most consistent- we are watching Good Omens and it looks great. They have more bandwidth than God. VUDU always manages to look good - don’t know what special sauce they are using. None of them look as good as a Blu-Ray physical disk spinning in the Oppo. I haven’t streamed any local sports so I can’t say how it would look. Best to try it out and see if you can ditch Direct TV after a season or so.
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Main System: Amati Futura Mains Amati Homage VOX Center, Proac Response 1sc Rears, Three MC2301's for L,C,R MC 602 for the rears C 1100, MX 151, MCD 1100, MR 80 Nottingham Dais with Wave Mechanic Sumiko Palo Santos Presentation SurfacePro 3, RPi 4, ROON, WW Starlight Platinum USB, Schiit Yggdrasil, Benchmark DAC3 HGC MX 151, OppO BDP-95, JVC RS-500 DILA projector, 106" diagonal Stewart Luxus Screenwall Deluxe with Studiotek 130 G3 material. Lake House: Ohm F, MC 275V, C2300, MR 77, Rega P3 OnDeck: McIntosh MAC 4300v |
#65
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We cut the cable with Comcast a while back. We now use a Roku for streaming. The best $30. we ever spent. There is a ton of free stuff to watch. So far we have not felt the need to sign up for any of the pay streaming services.
We use a VPN on our router. The Roku targets ads to your location. So if I change the server location, the commercials also change. Pretty neat to see commercials from different city's and countries. |
#66
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While streaming does not quite match the 4K on physical media, I Have not noticed any video degradation worth talking about with Prime, Roku, Apple TV, amazon fire and even the 4K streaming content is pretty close to true 4K. Then again I have gigabyte service so it better be good.
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#67
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Just cut the DirecTV cord.
Cutting the cord is not necessarily the long term $ saver we might think. The content owners are going to get their pound of flesh from all of us.
I think we can only make the best decision for you at a time and recognize that things are changing pretty quickly. https://apple.news/A3fOF7WmTS1WU2_f3O_S75w
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Main Equipment: Kharma Elegance dB11-S, JL Audio F113v2 X 2, Block Audio Line & Mono SE Amplification, Bricasti M21 DAC, Antipodes Kala K-50 Server, Clearaudio Performance SE. Satisfy tonearm & Maestro Wood MM cartridge. Power: Shunyata Everest 8000, Sigma XC v2, Sigma NR v2, Block Audio PCs, Defender, ADDPowr Wizard Grounding: Shunyata Altaira CGS - 4 X Alpha CGS cables, Network : Supra Cat 8+, Twin (Nenon) Modified Buffalo GS2016 Switches, Keces P3 LPSU, Cables: Wireworld Platinum 8 USB, Wireworld Platinum Eclipse 8 Speaker cables, 6M & 1M Tubulus Concentus ICs, Other:Two PSI Audio AVAA C20, Multiple GIK products, Stillpoint Apertures, Stillpoint Minis and Ultra SS, Three 20 Amp lines, Furutech GTX - Gold outlets, Adona Rack Last edited by crwilli; 06-05-2019 at 08:36 PM. |
#68
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We have Dish and apart from the locals for current events and weather it is totally content-free. 400 channels and nothing on.
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Main System: Amati Futura Mains Amati Homage VOX Center, Proac Response 1sc Rears, Three MC2301's for L,C,R MC 602 for the rears C 1100, MX 151, MCD 1100, MR 80 Nottingham Dais with Wave Mechanic Sumiko Palo Santos Presentation SurfacePro 3, RPi 4, ROON, WW Starlight Platinum USB, Schiit Yggdrasil, Benchmark DAC3 HGC MX 151, OppO BDP-95, JVC RS-500 DILA projector, 106" diagonal Stewart Luxus Screenwall Deluxe with Studiotek 130 G3 material. Lake House: Ohm F, MC 275V, C2300, MR 77, Rega P3 OnDeck: McIntosh MAC 4300v |
#69
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Quote:
- Buck
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Library: Speakers: Avalon Acoustics Isis, Subwoofers: (2) REL Acoustics 212SE Amplification: D’agostino Momentum preamplifier, D’agostino S250 stereo amplifier Digital: dCS Rossini CD/SACD transport, dCS Rossini DAC/streamer/master clock. Analog: Brinkmann Taurus table, Lyra Etna Lambda, Audio Research Ref. Phono 3 |
#70
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Quote:
- Buck
__________________
Library: Speakers: Avalon Acoustics Isis, Subwoofers: (2) REL Acoustics 212SE Amplification: D’agostino Momentum preamplifier, D’agostino S250 stereo amplifier Digital: dCS Rossini CD/SACD transport, dCS Rossini DAC/streamer/master clock. Analog: Brinkmann Taurus table, Lyra Etna Lambda, Audio Research Ref. Phono 3 |
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