Hopper 3 in an RV? You bet

DISH’s Hopper 3 is one of the most capable DVRs available for any pay TV platform. At this point, it’s been around for a while, but I can’t imagine a scenario where you’d need more than 16 recording tuners at once. If you do, it’s possible to use two Hopper 3s in a home for a total of 32 recording tuners and 12 rooms. That’s generally enough to satisfy most folks.

But what about using one in your RV? For a while, it seemed like that was impossible. After all, Hopper 3 requires a Hybrid dish, and there are hundreds of thousands of older RVs that don’t have them. Not only that, most newer RV dishes don’t use hybrid technology either. So what can you do if you want one in your RV?

The good news: it can be done

There’s a simple solution here. If you want to use a Hopper 3 in your RV, it works just fine with the DPH42 multiswitch. This multiswitch is specifically designed to add hybrid functionality to any older DISH antenna. It can also be used to provide support for two Hopper 3s or a Hopper 3 and Hopper Duo. Just connect it to your traditional RV dish, just as you would in a stationary application. As long as your Hopper’s running something close to the current software, it will work.

A word about RV-mounted dishes

If you have a Winegard Trav’ler Pro made in the last few years, it probably has the Hybrid technology built in. If you’re not sure what you have and you don’t have your owner’s manual, call us at Solid Signal at 888-233-7563. We may be able to help.

I also feel like I should point out the obvious here. Unless you have an in-motion dish like the Winegard Roadtrip T4, you won’t be able to record or watch while the RV is moving. This generally isn’t a problem as long as you’re aware of it and only set timers for when you plan to be parked.

Or, just use an older Hopper.

If you’re the sort of person who really wants to record 16 things at the same time and support 8 locations all from your RV, my hat’s off to you. some might say it’s a bit of overkill. If you don’t need all that extra capacity and you want to skip the cost of a DPH42 multiswitch, Solid Signal still has a lot of the Hopper with Sling which brings you the Hopper experience without the need for a new multiswitch. No, this isn’t the latest and greatest tech. But it’s going to do what you need for the most part. It’s an easy connection to any older RV dish.

No matter what…

…you can’t go wrong with satellite TV in your RV, and you can’t go wrong with Solid Signal. As the nation’s largest activation specialist for DIRECTV and DISH, we’ll help you get up and running quickly no matter if you installed your equipment yourself or had someone else do it.

We’re also experts in making sure you get the most out of your RV satellite experience. We can help you figure out what you’ll need in order to watch the programs you want. We’re experts in all the different options. If you have an older RV with older satellite equipment, we can help you get upgraded. That way you won’t lose access to any programs, anytime.

It all starts with a call to Signal Connect, the corporate arm of Solid Signal. The number is 888-233-7563 and we have specialists available to help during weekday business hours. Once you get through, you’ll be connected with a specialist. He or she will take you through the whole process and stay with you as long as it takes. Our reps are all about building relationships… so why not get started? Call us, or if it’s after hours just fill out the form below and we’ll get right back to you.

About the Author

Stuart Sweet
Stuart Sweet is the editor-in-chief of The Solid Signal Blog and a "master plumber" at Signal Group, LLC. He is the author of over 10,000 articles and longform tutorials including many posted here. Reach him by clicking on "Contact the Editor" at the bottom of this page.