home theater, cord cutting, video streaming, a/v tech, and more!

Postby **tifosi77** » Tue Jan 21, 2020 4:47 pm

So far the guide is not very good compared to Vue, but what the hey.

Postby **dodint** » Tue Jan 21, 2020 4:53 pm

I consume my TV almost exclusively on FireStick. Going to wait a few more days to switch.

Postby **eddy** » Wed Jan 22, 2020 9:50 am

I know I've asked before and it was discussed by others, but I currently have an XB3 modem/wifi combo from xfinity and it's worked fine in the past, but in the last few weeks my bill has went up and I've been having wifi issues. Can someone give me some suggestions for replacements? Should I buy separate modem and routers or get an all in one combo? What you got?

is this any good?

Postby **NTP66** » Wed Jan 22, 2020 10:05 am

I know I've asked before and it was discussed by others, but I currently have an XB3 modem/wifi combo from xfinity and it's worked fine in the past, but in the last few weeks my bill has went up and I've been having wifi issues. Can someone give me some suggestions for replacements? Should I buy separate modem and routers or get an all in one combo? What you got?

is this any good?

I will always advocate separate cable modems and routers. Depending on your internet speed, check Xfinity's site for supported cable modems here. I've always had Arris Surfboards. As for routers, I still recommend the ASUS RT-AC68U (also branded as the AC1900)

Postby **eddy** » Wed Jan 22, 2020 10:15 am

I know I've asked before and it was discussed by others, but I currently have an XB3 modem/wifi combo from xfinity and it's worked fine in the past, but in the last few weeks my bill has went up and I've been having wifi issues. Can someone give me some suggestions for replacements? Should I buy separate modem and routers or get an all in one combo? What you got?

is this any good?

I will always advocate separate cable modems and routers. Depending on your internet speed, check Xfinity's site for supported cable modems here. I've always had Arris Surfboards. As for routers, I still recommend the ASUS RT-AC68U (also branded as the AC1900)

I think I might have looked into this before and is there an issue with their phones working with these?

Postby **NTP66** » Wed Jan 22, 2020 10:36 am

I know I've asked before and it was discussed by others, but I currently have an XB3 modem/wifi combo from xfinity and it's worked fine in the past, but in the last few weeks my bill has went up and I've been having wifi issues. Can someone give me some suggestions for replacements? Should I buy separate modem and routers or get an all in one combo? What you got?

is this any good?

I will always advocate separate cable modems and routers. Depending on your internet speed, check Xfinity's site for supported cable modems here. I've always had Arris Surfboards. As for routers, I still recommend the ASUS RT-AC68U (also branded as the AC1900)
I think I might have looked into this before and is there an issue with their phones working with these?

Comcast still has a VOIP box for your phones. My parents have a Comcast VOIP box, their own personal SB cable modem, and my old ASUS RT-N66U with their triple play. Your best bet would be to call them and ask what their requirements would be for your phone. Even if you wanted to use their own modem so you didn't have to worry about their phone, if you can disable the wireless on that modem, you should still be able to run your own router.

Postby **eddy** » Wed Jan 22, 2020 11:50 am

any thoughts on this thing?

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07SHK2241/re ... HJ1ZQ&th=1

Postby **NTP66** » Wed Jan 22, 2020 11:53 am

I'm not a Netgear fan, personally. That thing is also crazy expensive.

Postby **eddy** » Wed Jan 22, 2020 11:59 am

I'm not a Netgear fan, personally. That thing is also crazy expensive.

reviews sound pretty great about it and when you put together a modem and router, the price isn't too bade, right? Maybe $100 more. I just wonder if the quality warrants it...

Postby **NTP66** » Wed Jan 22, 2020 1:00 pm

I was never a fan of Netgear's software, if that helps. ASUS is superior in my experience. I also wonder how they handle firmware, since some vendors roll out less firmware on combo devices.

Postby **eddy** » Wed Jan 22, 2020 1:15 pm

Thanks for the help, I'm tired of dealing with comcast, I'm going to finally do something about this within the next month

Postby **NTP66** » Wed Jan 22, 2020 1:16 pm

IIRC, you don't have FiOS available, correct?

Postby **eddy** » Wed Jan 22, 2020 1:51 pm

Xfinity or comcast or whatever they call themselves. I've actually been pretty happy with them, but the last month or so the internet has been in and out

Postby **NTP66** » Wed Jan 22, 2020 1:53 pm

No, I mean you don't have the option of getting FiOS.

Postby **eddy** » Wed Jan 22, 2020 1:56 pm

oh, nope, at least last time I checked. I should look into it again

Postby **AuthorTony** » Sat Jan 25, 2020 8:38 pm

I'm considering dropping my xfinity cable TV and I'm debating between Hulu Live, Sling, etc. Any recommendations or a link where I can get a quick crash course on my options?

Postby **dodint** » Sat Jan 25, 2020 10:13 pm

I'm considering dropping my xfinity cable TV and I'm debating between Hulu Live, Sling, etc. Any recommendations or a link where I can get a quick crash course on my options?

I made this decision last week and found this comparative channel guide very helpful: https://www.cnet.com/news/at-t-now-vs-y ... -compared/

I ultimately determined that PS Vue had the best channel offering for the money. You might want to compare it directly to Youtube TV before making a decision.

From before. Vue is dead in 5 days so I'm making a jump again soon.

Postby **AuthorTony** » Sat Jan 25, 2020 10:21 pm

Many thanks!

Postby **NTP66** » Sun Jan 26, 2020 4:16 am

I’ve been finding myself coming downstairs to watch tv when I can’t sleep - like right now. My receiver doesn’t have Bluetooth built into it, and I don’t like the external options. So now I’m faced with the choice of whether or not to upgrade to the replacement model for my receiver which supports BT transmitting and receiving automatically, along with other things like Dolby Atmos. My receiver does support HDMI 2.0, but not HDCP 2.2, though the latter hasn’t been an issue to date. It’s also a pain to have to go through the entire CEC, Alexa, remote, etc setup again.

Postby **eddy** » Sun Jan 26, 2020 8:34 am

I’ve been finding myself coming downstairs to watch tv when I can’t sleep - like right now. My receiver doesn’t have Bluetooth built into it, and I don’t like the external options. So now I’m faced with the choice of whether or not to upgrade to the replacement model for my receiver which supports BT transmitting and receiving automatically, along with other things like Dolby Atmos. My receiver does support HDMI 2.0, but not HDCP 2.2, though the latter hasn’t been an issue to date. It’s also a pain to have to go through the entire CEC, Alexa, remote, etc setup again.

Yeah, it's a pain. I didn't even setup the universal remote yet and I'm a few years in to my new avr, just went back to having 5 remotes. I have to talk myself out of getting a new avr every year, I want the switch to Atmos, but want to wait and go all in with my current 7.1 setup and throw the 4 above as well. Can you use your headphone jack and run a long cable? Probably sounds better than BT at least

Postby **NTP66** » Sun Jan 26, 2020 8:45 am

Source of the post Can you use your headphone jack and run a long cable? Probably sounds better than BT at least

I can, and I can hide the cord in the same track as my rear speaker cables. This has been an expensive winter for me, so I'm probably going to do just that if it really comes down to it.

Postby **eddy** » Sun Jan 26, 2020 8:47 am

Source of the post Can you use your headphone jack and run a long cable? Probably sounds better than BT at least
I can, and I can hide the cord in the same track as my rear speaker cables. This has been an expensive winter for me, so I'm probably going to do just that if it really comes down to it.

How do you like using headphones for movies?

Postby **NTP66** » Sun Jan 26, 2020 8:58 am

Source of the post Can you use your headphone jack and run a long cable? Probably sounds better than BT at least
I can, and I can hide the cord in the same track as my rear speaker cables. This has been an expensive winter for me, so I'm probably going to do just that if it really comes down to it.
How do you like using headphones for movies?

Never done it, so I don't know what to expect. I just want to be able to turn up the volume enough to hear all of the dialog without waking everyone else up.

Postby **NTP66** » Sun Jan 26, 2020 9:05 am

https://www.crutchfield.com/Product/Com ... |022RXV485

My current receiver is the V477, and I can get the other two for around the same price.

Postby **eddy** » Sun Jan 26, 2020 10:07 am

https://www.crutchfield.com/Product/Com ... |022RXV485

My current receiver is the V477, and I can get the other two for around the same price.

I always try and future proof as much as I can, the 683 has more HDMI ports and 7.1 capable and gets great reviews