So I'm getting a HDTV deliverd to my apartment Wed and need to switch out my DVR box. I don't know if it really makes a difference, but I vaguely remember there being multiple boxes that TWC would give out. I just wanted to see if there was any major difference, and if one is better than another. I did a search because I could swear that this has been posted before, but none of the threads I looked at discussed this. Thanks.

8/20/2006 12:12:32 PM

unless something has changed recently, the best box is the SA8300-HD.

8/20/2006 5:25:19 PM

well first of all you HAVE to get one of their HD boxes...i have the explorer 8300HD from twc

8/20/2006 5:49:11 PM

scientific atlanta 8300HD eh

8/21/2006 12:53:36 AM

just wondering, but in order to get basic DVR from TWC there is really no installation costs...just an additional 6.95 a month right? (I know a basic ? but I didn't see it answered in other threads)

8/21/2006 11:35:16 AM

you have to have the digital tier to get a DVR, so yeah $6.95 plus whatever else they rape you for to get the digital tier.

8/22/2006 8:14:52 PM

actually, when i called today they said that the basic HD package was free, but I got the HD suite (includes ESPN HD) which upped it $7 a month.

8/22/2006 8:36:44 PM

Any word on if they will get ESPN2HD???

8/23/2006 8:34:42 AM

Word, I'm about to upgrade to my box to HD. With digital cable/hd/and hbo my bill is only like $30

8/23/2006 8:57:01 AM

just got the cable guy to come to install my HD box yesterday. It's a Explorer 3250HD.

8/23/2006 9:13:05 AM

^you might want to call them up and check on the box. I asked the guy on the phone yesterday what box would be brought out and he said the 8300 was the latest one they had. Also, what kind of connections does it have? just HDMI and component?

8/23/2006 9:15:52 AM

can someone give me a quick protocol on what to say when i call twc in attempt to get my cable bill lowered?

8/23/2006 9:38:31 AM

mine doesn't even have the HDMI. It just have the DVI, and the components.

8/23/2006 10:07:56 AM

Quote :

"Word, I'm about to upgrade to my box to HD. With digital cable/hd/and hbo my bill is only like $30 "

how the hell is that possible?

8/23/2006 4:19:24 PM

all of the Sci Atlanta boxes I have seen look like complete shit but they coulda been old ones.

8/23/2006 4:22:22 PM

Quote :

"actually, when i called today they said that the basic HD package was free, but I got the HD suite (includes ESPN HD) which upped it $7 a month."

I never said you had to pay to get HD, you just have to have the Digital Tier (not the basic crap). You also have to pay 6.95 to get a DVR, whether it is an HD DVR or standard.

8/23/2006 8:31:24 PM

[...You also have to pay 6.95 to get a DVR, whether it is an HD DVR or standard.]

But thats it...all I have to do is call TWC and tell them I want basic DVR and they bring out the box and up the bill 6.95 a month...correct? sorry I'm just making sure...

8/23/2006 9:40:57 PM

^as was said earlier...its 6.95 for DVR...but the thing is you have to have digital cable to get it. so if you have basic cable at ~45, to get a DVR you must first upgrade to digital cable which may be ~60 (i don't care to look up the numbers), plus 7 for DVR. so its actually gonna be $22 to get DVR if you look at it like that.

however. you might be able to get them to work out a deal for you depending on your situation...

8/24/2006 5:28:01 PM

with hd package and dvr and shit our cable bill w/ RR is like 130

8/24/2006 5:35:12 PM

yeh...see i asked my roomate what kind of cable we had...we ended up not having the digital cable package...so yeah...not too sure if we can swing that ...but we should w/ four freaking roomates...but how would that work with coax. cables in each room...would we all have to get some sort of box or something if we wanted cable in our individual rooms instead of just having it in the living room?

8/25/2006 2:06:24 PM

what happens:

if you get digital cable w/ dvr box in the living room then in each of the bedrooms its still the regular cable (50 channels or whatever cable is)...if you want digital cable in your rooms then you have to rent more boxes...

8/25/2006 2:37:13 PM

^ yep

8/25/2006 2:40:16 PM

thanx guy...ya'll think i could talk em down a lil bit on the digital cable upgrade..or are they pretty firm about that?

8/25/2006 2:56:14 PM

you could try

8/25/2006 3:04:15 PM

shit, the digital cable package with a dvr isnt that much divided 4 ways...like i said we have all that HD shit and dvr and stuff and our bill is split 3 ways at $40+ per person/month so...

8/25/2006 4:53:26 PM

Best TWC HD DVR is the SA8300
Best TWC HD box (non-DVR) is the Pace box
If you need Firewire, you will have to special request it from TWC, and it will be the SA3250.

Quote :

"I never said you had to pay to get HD, you just have to have the Digital Tier (not the basic crap). "

You dont have to have the digital tier to get HD, only if you want the HD Suite or the DVR. If, for example, youre only interested in local HD, you can get a cablecard from TWC to receive these channels, or if you have a QAM tuner you can receive them with even the most basic package.

8/26/2006 10:10:05 AM

Did anyone else have their DVR box purge all their saved shows recently? My roommate was saving the Shatner Roast on his DVR and yesterday we went to go watch it and it was gone along with some other stuff he had saved. Then today I checked my box and everything that I had saved (only like 2-3 hours of stuff) got deleted. Neither one of the DVR boxes were close to full.

This happened to anyone else?

8/27/2006 5:54:02 PM

no one?

8/28/2006 11:54:30 AM

Quote :

"Best TWC HD box (non-DVR) is the Pace box"

Pace? I just got a couple brand new sliver NON-HD DVR boxes..think theyre SA, and I think they are 8300s. Are those not the best?

Quote :

"But thats it...all I have to do is call TWC and tell them I want basic DVR and they bring out the box and up the bill 6.95 a month...correct? sorry I'm just making sure... "

And just for the record, its not simply $6.95 to get DVR service. You have to pay for the box too. If you already have a standard digital cable box, then its just an additional $6.95. But if you just want a DVR in your room and you don't have anything there, then its closer to $15 extra per month for the DVR box.

Oh and lets compare cable bills: I have the Digipic 2000 I think, comes with two premiums both on demand, road runner, 3 DVR boxes (1 HD, but that doesnt affect the price), and 1 standard digi box for $130 per month (+ tax)



[Edited on August 28, 2006 at 12:16 PM. Reason : ]

8/28/2006 12:06:10 PM

Quote :

"This happened to anyone else?"

Ours is fine.

8/28/2006 10:02:01 PM

^^Reread what I said. The Pace is the best non-DVR HD box. The 8300 is the best HD DVR box.

8/29/2006 6:19:46 AM

thought I'd bump this since I'm about to go thru the same swap out (dvr to hd dvr) and was wondering...

for anyone who has gotten the HD DVR box from TWC, which cables (if any) do they include with it? i don't want to buy any extra cables if they're going to give them to me with the box

11/12/2006 7:51:04 PM

they gave me component with mine

11/12/2006 7:54:29 PM

^I figured, so thanks for confirming. I didn't think they'd be generous/stupid enough to provide an HDMI cable...ebay, here I come

[Edited on November 12, 2006 at 8:07 PM. Reason : .]

11/12/2006 8:07:09 PM

i also got a component cable whith mine. also, just so you know, their service was horrible when they came out. gave me a time block of 8-12 and the guy shows up as i am literally dialing twc at 12:10. the guy comes in and starts setting everything up only to realize they he had a non-dvr hd box instead of a dvr box. luckily he had one in his truck. got it set up, or rather i did since i already had a dvi cable and optical cable, and then had to "activate the box" and was here for about 45 minutes to an hour to do literally no work at all as i hooked up my own cables. then i got an install charge on my next bill. they took it off when i called them and bitched about everything. still working on getting the "new customer" rate. i love how companies treat existing customers like shit.

one more thing, there are plenty of sites that have been listed on here that have quality cables that don't cost an arm and a leg (i think a 10-15' hdmi was like $15). might want to look into those as well. not sure what ebay will have on that.

[Edited on November 13, 2006 at 12:36 AM. Reason : because i felt like it dammit]

11/13/2006 12:32:21 AM

monoprice.com

11/13/2006 1:15:56 AM