HR20 Site Survey Results

[Digital_Guy]

Introduction
From February 2 to February 7, 2007, 777 different respondents took the HR20 Site Survey. All HR20 users were allowed to participate but only their final responses are included.

Purpose
1. Quantify HR20 problem severity.
2. Find the most likely causes of problems.
3. Find possible work-arounds to reduce risks.

Analysis
Potential Causes were grouped into the general areas of Installation, Setup, User & Usage, and Programming. In addition, eight general types of problems were included.

Results
Users Surveyed To Date: 777
Replacement HR20s To Date: 177
Total HR20s: 954
Percentage of HR20s Replaced To Date: 18.6% *
Percentage of HR20s Reformatted To Date: 39.2% *
* These percentages may be lower than actual because respondents to note up to 4 replacements and 4 reformats.

Factors That Increased Probability of Replacement:
Using Native Mode (On) → 60.4%
Using HDMI → 43.9%
30+ Series Links → 41.4%
Using Autorecords → 32.0%
Not leaving HR20 Always On → 19.9%
Using a Multi-Switch → 18.5%
Not All New Cabling → 16.0%

HDMI Increases the Probability of Audio Problems:
Using HDMI Increases the Probability of Audio Problems by 145%

Replacement Analysis:
% of 1st Replacements not HR20 related → 81.4%
% of 2nd Replacements not HR20 related → 96.6%
% of 3rd Replacements not HR20 related → 99.4%

Maps & Histograms:
Histograms & US Map plots for each question are available in the Survey Results.
For Histograms, click the ∆ to the far right of the item.
For US Map Plots, click the total response number to the far right of the item. The maps do not seem to show geographic trends.

To the Subscribers:
There are work-arounds that you can do now to try to reduce your probability of failure. Each involves sacrificing features or utility. No user reported a single replacement if they were taking all of these measures:
- Turn Native Mode Off.
- Use Component Video Output instead of HDMI Output
- Reduce your number of Series Links to Less than 30
- Use Series Links instead Autorecords.
- Leave your HR20 always ON.

There is no guarantee that these steps will prevent future failures. Regardless, you should know the risks.

To DIRECTV:
We appreciate the many updates you have already provided and look forward to continuing our very positive relationship.

Currently the HR20 is unable to provide Key Promised Features. The replacement rate on the HR20 is high. But notice that the replacements often do not help. This would indicate that the problems are often not due to the hardware.

For More Information:
Basic summary: HR20 Site Survey - Analysis Summary
Raw data & calculations: HR20 Site Survey Multivariable Analysis
Source of Survey Questions: Potential Causes of HR20 Problems

Thank you to...
+ brott for developing the survey website.
+ tibber & hasan for your ideas & insight.
+ the Creator of DBSTalk, Chris Blount.
+ the moderators: Clint Lamor, Earl Bonovich, Donnie Byrd, & Mike Lang
+ the hundreds of dbstalk.com for your help.

Analysis Technique:
One Dimensional and Multi-Variable Analysis were conducted to determine factors that might contribute to the failure rate. Once a sample size of approximately 90 was attained, survey trends have remained very steady. To verify accuracy, a reverse analysis was conducted as well.

Disclaimer:
This does not represent the views of DirecTV, dbstalk.com, or any entity or person. All information is presented for discussion only and without warranty or guarantee. While this sampling is large, it does not represent a random sampling of all HR20 users. Actual results may vary.