I just switched to Direct TV from cable and I found out my reviever doesnt have any digital audio outputs? Is this normal and if not where can I get a reciever that has digital audio outputs?? Thanks.
My Sony SAT-T60 DirecTV Tivo has an optical output on it, I thought they all did. I'm about to sell it on ebay if you're interested. I hacked it and installed a larger hard drive that records 100+ hours, installed network card and 512MB cache which speeds it up. The network card allows me to pull shows off to my PC andthen burn to DVd.. It's a pretty sweet setup!
If you don't have DirecTV Tivo, what are you thinking? Trust me, Tivo will completely change the way you watch TV and you'll never want to be without it once you have it. I would rather not have any TV at all, than go without Tivo! It's that big of a difference! My wife and all my friends/family that have switched all feel the same way.
Directv switched out one of my older receivers when they put in a new 3LNB dish last spring. The new receiver did not have a digital output. So yes, such receivers do exist. However, many, if not most of the newer receivers seem to have an optical (Toslink) output. If you purchase from Directv, tell them you will reject any receiver without a digital output. Otherwise, do your research and choose a receiver that meets your needs. Many internet consumers have found certain Samsung receivers to be unreliable. This may be a brand problem that is not limited to satellite receivers. A recent Consumer Report article indicates that for tvs, Samsumg is on the bottom of the reliability rung.