|
Log in to post
|
Print Thread |
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 7,687
Veteran
|
OP
Veteran
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 7,687 |
I thought about asking this in Zero's thread but figured this is worth it's own discussion. I've been thinking about this because I really don't watch that much DirecTv anymore. I usually watch a lot of "old fart" stuff that a lot of us watch, live news and discussion, Discovery, Military, History, NatGeo, the occasional live pay per view UFC event, very few current live network shows with one big exception. Live sports like the Lakers. That I would have to go to a friends house which I do a lot of anyway or go to a local sports bar. For about $75/month I'm spending now I'm thinking why not do that? There's a lot of stuff online but I don't know all the choices for somebody who's thinking of cutting the cord to regular commercial TV. After reading in Zero's thread about getting a blu ray with wifi and streaming I'm thinking I could subscribe to various online services and get most of what I'm used to, it would be a whole lot less than $1,000 a year even though yeah, I would still be giving up some things that are just not available online. Thoughts and comments?
This is the same idea as me giving up my landline phone. I've had the same number for over 25 years but what does that mean, really? I haven't dumped it yet but I hardly ever use that either, it's all my cell.
Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 7,302
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 7,302 |
I can't be without my sports. I can't watch a game the day after knowing who won. I also watch woodworking, car building shows, cooking... I doubt if I have watched 10 movies in the last 10 years, so Netflix doesn't do it for me. I HAVE streaming stuff (Roku) but don't use it much.
Really, I rarely "watch" TV other than sports. It is on all the time but more as background noise.
I am using the new 1040XTRAEZ form this year. It has just 2 lines.
1. How much did you make in 2023?
2. Send it to us.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 1,122
Expert
|
|
Expert
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 1,122 |
I have only 23 basic cable channels that come free with the complex ammeneties, everything else goes thru HULU and Netflix. I can live without sports, most of the new stuff is garbage as far as network programming, so I miss a few things I'd like to see, but I watch a lot of things I would have never seen had I not made the switch. Saved me about $75 per month and I'm glad I did it.
Yep Yep.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 2,367
Veteran
|
Veteran
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 2,367 |
Bob, my wife and I gave up our land line about 10 years ago and went 100% cellular....have never looked back or missed the land line for one minute. Had been with Spr**t voice only for all this time but have recently dropped them in favor of Str**ght T*lk that has an unlimited do everything plan for $45 a month. While Stra**ght T*lk is only 3G, its plenty fast for me and the reception is no different than Spr**t. As an added bonus, we now get unlimited talk, text, web, GPS etc for no more than the Spr**t line was costing us. Something to consider.
Win11, Intel i7 7700K 4.2Ghz, 32Gb RAM, 2x1Tb HD, 500Gb NVMe, BIAB/RB 2024, MOTU 828MK3 audio, MOTU Midi Express, Yamaha Montage 7, DX7II, TX802, Motif XS Rack, Roland Fantom XR Rack, Oberheim Matrix 1000, VoiceLive3 Extreme, Kontakt 6, SampleTank 4.3
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 7,913
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 7,913 |
I've paid for cable about 1 year in my 20 years of home ownership. And no, I'm not getting it for free. I just don't think there's that much worth watching. I COULD totally get into sports watching (I've watched tons more football with the HD over the air streaming into our 47" VIZIO) but in the end, I have alot of other interests that are worth more than watching TV.
People complain about being broke, but almost everyone I hear say that has a dish on their roof.
$75/month can pay for:
1. going out to eat at a decent restaurant a couple times a month
or
2. Sponsoring 2-3 children at the charity of your choice
or
3. A $900 guitar (with one year of savings) or axe of your choice.
or
4. a couple of iPads (with one year of savings)
or
5. 1 iPad and all the music apps you would have time to have fun with for a year and more
or
6. A halfway decent PA system to gig with
or
well you get the point.
I think cable and DirecTV are THE biggest money pit that the western world has sunk their clams into.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 6,656
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 6,656 |
We dropped television some time ago when we couldn't afford cable any longer. I never bothered to get an adapter for "free" television.
We still watch DVD and VHS, getting most of our movies from the local library. If there's a show we want to see, we can usually find it on line. It's actually a lot more convenient than recording it.
I don't really miss television, because plenty of other things to do.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 7,258
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 7,258 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 3,921
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 3,921 |
Jazmanimal,
Having had a phone line as long as you have, an alternative to getting rid of it entirely would be to incorporate it as a second line on your cell account. Reason is, you don't know who from your past might have that number and suddenly decide they want to contact you. Just a thought.
The thought was prompted by my mother's having given up a number she had had for over 40 years, probably because she didn't know it was portable. As interested as she is in genealogy and acquaintances I was disappointed for her to see her lose the old number.
As far as the OP, cable is supplied where I live along with internet. I literally can't live without high-speed 'Net; I work from home and it's all online. That's apart from what I do for fun or avocationally, but I spend nearly as much time online pursuing my own interests as I do at work. I do love my TV but I'd probably be better off without it. I'm not sure what I'd do if I had to pay for it on my own. Prolly just a matter of whether I could afford it or not.
"My primary musical instrument is the personal computer."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 416
Journeyman
|
|
Journeyman
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 416 |
In South Africa we also have relatively low speeds, i can squeese 2.8mb/s out of my ADSL but thats that ....
Not enough to do even stable youtube viewing ...
I'm doing allright for Country Trash ....
I used to care, but things have changed (Bob Dylan)
BIAB 2022W + RB
M-Audio FastTrack C600, Rode NT2-A
Digitech VoiceLive 4
Epiphone Sheraton, Ibanez 12str, Washburn 6str, Cort 6Str Nylon
Yanagisawa Tenor Sax
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 7,687
Veteran
|
|
OP
Veteran
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 7,687 |
I'm too much of a commercial TV viewer to drop it entirely, what I'm looking for are suggestions as to online replacements and the cost. I know Hulu has a lot of stuff, I've used it a few times to view a replay of a certain show that was broadcast a month or so back but not every network allows Hulu to do that. I was looking for a past episode of Falling Skys and I had to go to the TNT website and log in with my DirecTV account number to pull it up so there's an example of a network controlling their show. Netflix has a lot of movies and apparantly some TV series as well, I'm wondering how well that works.
I know by giving up a commercial cable or sat service I would be losing some things and that's it, it just depends on how much and what I may be able to replace it with. I know that eventually most series become available even if it's a year later. That's ok I don't need to watch everything first run. Later is fine.
Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 1,259
Expert
|
|
Expert
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 1,259 |
Here's where we are, Bob. We still have Dish. I would love to get rid of it, but my wife has come cable channels that she wants so..... I watch the old f--t stuff, too. We buy a lot of stuff from amazon and are Prime members for $79 a year. We love the 2-day free shipping. As part of prime, we get the free streaming movies and tv shows. We watch them via Roku ($50 for the box--hooks into your tv) We watch more old tv shows than movies. It's really nice to watch those show with no commercials. Sometimes we watch a paid movie that hss recently come out, such as "Iron Lady." Even at $3.99 (price varies up from $1.99), it's a bargain to me since going to the regular theater costs a lot more and I don't like the sound that loud there.
We also have our phone on wifi now via obi110, cost = $50 for unit. No monthly cost at all. In summary, our only cost for tv and phones is our dsl via att. We do prepaid for our cell phones which we only use when we are gone. YMMV
Stan
Cornet Curmudgeon
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 1,739
Expert
|
|
Expert
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 1,739 |
Hello Jazzmammal  I have been using the blue ray job LG BP620 for two days now and although I get smart TV I don't feel any smarter ...yet. Is smart TV an oxymoron? or is it just moronic? I am not sure. I have given up both my landline phone and my TV box a year or so ago and feel the better for it though. Over in the UK we have a site called http://www.tvcatchup.com/. There are probably other similar sites too in your parts. My studio is at the bottom of my garden and I have an external TV ariel (must have) I simply rigged to a pole and attched to the outer wall. Using this ariel I purchased a hauppage tv stick: # http://www.hauppauge.co.uk/site/products/data_novatstick.htmlstick This works well too. This way I have all 'freeview' channels (30 or so out of which ten are good) on my PC in my studio and I have things like UTube on my TV in the house too using the LG. For an extra $10 you can get a software update for the hauppage which will stream all your TV channels to all your devices, including phones via your WIFI. I haven't done this yet. Do I want this? Ah this is the question! Answer: not really Yesterday I tried weatching some David Attenborough (aside did you know that David Attenbourogh has no teeth and no detures - just like me) BBC vids on Utube on one of the 'channels' I recommend you get to know what a channel is if you dont already. I found that really in this specific case they were just clips. I switched to Utube's Discovery News and found this was entertaining and mildly informative. I could have surfed the channels for days and days and days - this, is an issue in itself! Sport seems to be a special case on this terrsetial planet. Over in the UK you almost MUST have a SKY subscription to watch the Premiership. You can get the occasional Footbal game on TV but it's something of a rarity. Other sports such as Morris Dancing are more freely available. You can even participate if you wish. Anyway - my solution gives you TV in your internet time and Internet on my TV time, now... if only I could also change my habits... Now back to BIAB where I spend at least four hours a day Zero
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 7,302
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 7,302 |
Everybody who uses any kind of online streaming, please answer this simple question, because I don't know the answer. Is there ANY streaming content that is shown in real time or is everything delayed? For my tastes I couldn't hang with watching a sporting event knowing who won before I watched it. And places like Crackle that run syndicated TV but only change the 10 posted episodes every 60 days... I mean, I loved Seinfeld but I can only watch "The Contest" so many times.
I changed from Time Warner cable to DirecTv JUST for NFL network, so that gives you an idea of how much I enjoy watching overpaid illiterates run with an oblong ball....
I am using the new 1040XTRAEZ form this year. It has just 2 lines.
1. How much did you make in 2023?
2. Send it to us.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 1,739
Expert
|
|
Expert
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 1,739 |
Eddie - here, when watching tv news on the TV then watching streaming on a laptop there is a delay of about two seconds. Not sure if this is universal
Win 11 64, Asus Rog Strix z390 mobo, 64 gig RAM, 8700k
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 7,302
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 7,302 |
Oh no, Zero, not what I meant. What I mean is when the World Series is on, is there a place on the Internet to watch the games as they happen or do the streaming services carry them on a one day delay, or even at all? From what I know of Hulu and Roku none of the content is new. It's all old shows in syndication. And that's great if that's what you want to watch. For me that would be watching just anything on TV just to be watching something on TV. I use my Roku for stuff like techie podcasts, stand up clips.... basically anything that is not on "real" TV.....
I am using the new 1040XTRAEZ form this year. It has just 2 lines.
1. How much did you make in 2023?
2. Send it to us.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 3,311
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 3,311 |
In the UK, Eddie, the only thing which is streamed "live" over the net is the news. Some content is available on catch-up for a limited time from the following day, but copyright issues stop programs such as films from getting onto this service.
ROG.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 7,687
Veteran
|
|
OP
Veteran
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 7,687 |
See Eddie, I just learned something, I've never heard of Crackle but it looks interesting too. I saw the promo pic for an old movie called Hardbodies. That's a pretty funny movie that was shot about 5 blocks from me on the Strand in Hermosa Beach maybe 20 years ago.
As to big league sports, yes that's the biggie that is not and probably never will be available in real time online for free. I used to be a big Rams fan but then they moved to St. Louis and I followed them for a while when Kurt Warner was winning those Super Bowls but I've dropped them since and I no longer follow football. Now I'm a big Lakers fan and they just signed a 20 year 1 BILLION deal with Time Warner. The Lakers have been broadcast live on over the air TV locally for years and could be picked up with an antenna. No more. Good luck on them being online any time soon. If I give up all commercial sat/cable I'll have to watch the games at a friends place or a sports bar.
I've been doing a lot of reading about this lately. The sat/cable companies know they're coming under pressure from people just like me and are trying desperatly to get some locked in exclusive stuff that is only available through them and sports is at the top of the list. The question is is it worth the minimum basic package that's still about $65/month or so? I'm beginning to doubt it, there's sports bars all over the place here. I am a fan but I'm not fanatic about it.
Now I see that virtually any premium show that's on HBO, Showtime etc is available online from Amazon for about $20-24 for an entire season. To get those with DirecTV you have to pay extra for those channels and that ups the bill to about $140 a month. It's worth it to buy a complete season of 2 or 3 shows. Of course if I were a hard core viewer watching every series out there, then no it wouldn't be worth it to buy all those shows separately but I'm not, too busy with my music among other things.
Keep the suggestions coming.
Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 506
Journeyman
|
|
Journeyman
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 506 |
Quote:
Everybody who uses any kind of online streaming, please answer this simple question, because I don't know the answer. Is there ANY streaming content that is shown in real time or is everything delayed?
Just watched the Brewers play the Pirates on MLB.TV live, no delay.
To the OP:
We got rid of our television five or six years ago and have never looked back. There are still plenty of distractions to be found.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 7,687
Veteran
|
|
OP
Veteran
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 7,687 |
That's cool, but...read this from the MLB.TV website:
If a game is blacked out in an area, it is not available for live game viewing. If you are an MLB.TV Premium subscriber and not within either Club's home television territory, the applicable game will be available as an archived game as soon as possible after the conclusion of the game. If you are an MLB.TV Premium subscriber within either Club's home television territory or an MLB.TV subscriber in any territory, the applicable game will be available as an archived game approximately 90 minutes after the conclusion of the game.
90 minutes isn't too bad from my point of view, I'll record games to watch later that evening anyway and I usually don't hear who won. It appears the NBA doesn't have a similar system, you have to buy the League Pass for a minimum of $120 and you can watch 4 teams. Against $1,000 a year even that may be worth it, I would just have to really keep track of these different services, I can see it can easily start to creep up to the same money if I wasn't careful.
Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 484
Journeyman
|
|
Journeyman
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 484 |
Wow, I had no idea more folks have been thinking about this. My family stopped the bleeding in my wallet 9 years ago when satellite was a whopping $35 a month! It was too much then and too much now. I told them if they would do an al a cart I would still pay the $35 a month for the five channels we actually watch versus the 200 we did not.
Because of moral convictions, I could not support giving my money to channels I did not agree with their programming. Sure, you can block those channels. But, it does not stop their revenue how little it may have been.
Anyway, now we have come to al a cart where the programs my family watch on all over the internet for free! We love the classics! The stuff nobody else watches basically.
So, we are 9 years strong and still going! Based on some people comments of what they pay, the savings add up to a nice used car!
A friend mine several years back had MLB.com. He told me then that you could watch the archive games for free.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.
ChatPG's knowledge base includes the full Band-in-a-Box User Manual and sales information from the website.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Update Your PowerTracks Pro Audio 2024 Today!
The Newest RealBand 2024 Update is Here!
The newest RealBand 2024 Build 5 update is now available!
Download and install this to your RealBand 2024 for updated print options, streamlined loading and saving of .SGU & MGU (BB) files, and to add a number of program adjustments that address user-reported bugs and concerns.
This free update is available to all RealBand 2024 users. To learn more about this update and download it, head to www.pgmusic.com/support.realband.htm#20245
The Band-in-a-Box® Flash Drive Backup Option
Today (April 5) is National Flash Drive Day!
Did you know... not only can you download your Band-in-a-Box® Pro, MegaPAK, or PlusPAK purchase - you can also choose to add a flash drive backup copy with the installation files for only $15? It even comes with a Band-in-a-Box® keychain!
For the larger Band-in-a-Box® packages (UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, Audiophile Edition), the hard drive backup copy is available for only $25. This will include a preinstalled and ready to use program, along with your installation files.
Backup copies are offered during the checkout process on our website.
Already purchased your e-delivery version, and now you wish you had a backup copy? It's not too late! If your purchase was for the current version of Band-in-a-Box®, you can still reach out to our team directly to place your backup copy order!
Note: the Band-in-a-Box® keychain is only included with flash drive backup copies, and cannot be purchased separately.
Handy flash drive tip: Always try plugging in a USB device the wrong way first? If your flash drive (or other USB plug) doesn't have a symbol to indicate which way is up, look for the side with a seam on the metal connector (it only has a line across one side) - that's the side that either faces down or to the left, depending on your port placement.
Update your Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows® Today!
Update your Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows for free with build 1111!
With this update, there's more control when saving images from the Print Preview window, we've added defaults to the MultiPicker for sorting and font size, updated printing options, updated RealTracks and other content, and addressed user-reported issues with the StylePicker, MIDI Soloists, key signature changes, and more!
Learn more about this free update for Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows at www.pgmusic.com/support_windowsupdates.htm#1111
Band-in-a-Box® 2024 Review: 4.75 out of 5 Stars!
If you're looking for a in-depth review of the newest Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows version, you'll definitely find it with Sound-Guy's latest review, Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows Review: Incredible new capabilities to experiment, compose, arrange and mix songs.
A few excerpts:
"The Tracks view is possibly the single most powerful addition in 2024 and opens up a new way to edit and generate accompaniments. Combined with the new MultiPicker Library Window, it makes BIAB nearly perfect as an 'intelligent' composer/arranger program."
"MIDI SuperTracks partial generation showing six variations – each time the section is generated it can be instantly auditioned, re-generated or backed out to a previous generation – and you can do this with any track type. This is MAJOR! This takes musical experimentation and honing an arrangement to a new level, and faster than ever."
"Band in a Box continues to be an expansive musical tool-set for both novice and experienced musicians to experiment, compose, arrange and mix songs, as well as an extensive educational resource. It is huge, with hundreds of functions, more than any one person is likely to ever use. Yet, so is any DAW that I have used. BIAB can do some things that no DAW does, and this year BIAB has more DAW-like functions than ever."
Convenient Ways to Listen to Band-in-a-Box® Songs Created by Program Users!
The User Showcase Forum is an excellent place to share your Band-in-a-Box® songs and listen to songs other program users are creating!
There are other places you can listen to these songs too! Visit our User Showcase page to sort by genre, artist (forum name), song title, and date - each listing will direct you to the forum post for that song.
If you'd rather listen to these songs in one place, head to our Band-in-a-Box® Radio, where you'll have the option to select the genre playlist for your listening pleasure. This page has SoundCloud built in, so it won't redirect you. We've also added the link to the Artists SoundCloud page here, and a link to their forum post.
We hope you find some inspiration from this amazing collection of User Showcase Songs!
Congratulations to the 2023 User Showcase Award Winners!
We've just announced the 2023 User Showcase Award Winners!
There are 45 winners, each receiving a Band-in-a-Box 2024 UltraPAK! Read the official announcement to see if you've won.
Our User Showcase Forum receives more than 50 posts per day, with people sharing their Band-in-a-Box songs and providing feedback for other songs posted.
Thank you to everyone who has contributed!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Forums66
Topics81,612
Posts735,111
Members38,516
| |
Most Online2,537
Jan 19th, 2020
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Dansk
Deutsch - Windows
Español
Français - Windows
Italiano - Windows
Nederlands
Polski
Português
Svenskt
русский
Japanese
Simplified Chinese
Traditional Chinese
Korean