1. I switched the FM TRAP to "OUT", lost channels 4,5 ch 29 degraded from 42 to 30....FM TRAP "IN" 4,5 returned, ch 29 back to 42 on the TV tuner.

2. I ordered the CM3414 and was told via email today (Mon 8/17) its on back order for 3-4 weeks.

3. Iced water (bottled water quality) is readily available via my Reverse osmosis system.

4. The D/A converter works fine on all channels, but the signal strength on KSAT12 is minimal (12-14). Have a great week!

I guess pointing thru that slew of 100-kw FM stations at the Galm Road tower must have an effect even at your distance. They're c. 9 miles wnw of me so I don't need to beam that way for any of the local DTV. When I do the 88.3 out there chews into that KFLZ-CA-6 raster and Hispanic music. I don't normally have the CM-7777 in line for the NTSC setup.

Yup. There's a thick soup of intermod there, which certainly can inhibit the V reception. I still want to visit the Lake Hills/Bandera/Pipe Creek areas with my little corner reflector and spectrum analyzer to see what else is going on. Maybe next week...

Jerry, happy to have ya visit! I get ready for work (4-12 pm) at 2:30, leave the house by 3.

P.S. Off on Mondays

Has KCWX-DT-5.1 been trying to do something fancy with their audio lately ? On a DTT-901 feeding A/V lines to a mono set using just left audio some of the syndicated programs and local commercials have sounded like they were done in a hollow room. DT-5.2 ("This" network and the local-insert commercials there) was OK. I'm too lazy to hook up my HVR-950 and run TSR-Lite on them to analyze it :)

Has KCWX-DT-5.1 been trying to do something fancy with their audio lately ?

Not that I know of. I checked the station's off-air presence last night and again today (before I saw your email) and heard no discrepancy, but I will check it again at home on different equipment. Here at the studio I heard no anomalies in the OTA delivery earlier today or just now. I tried the same thing you did, feeding only left-channel audio from a DTT-900 to a mono monitor, but I suspect that show had mono audio or stereo with very little separation. The audio phase indications showed very little difference in left and right content - almost a straight vertical line.

As "Smallville" opened just now, everything sounded ok (even with left-channel audio sent to a mono monitor) here at the studio so I am not so sure about what happened to you. What time did you notice the anomaly?

One other thing to keep in mind is that some of the CW HD shows have 5.1 audio. When this is downmixed to deliver stereo or even mono audio through an inexpensive STB, the results are directly proportional to the quality of the Dolby audio solution designed into the demod. Listening to half of a downmix might sound a little strange; I haven't tried that yet, actually. To send one STB output only to a mono monitor I would select mono audio out in the STB setup menu, mixing down all the channels.

Thanks for checking it out. I'd only noticed it on some programming the past 2 days -
today it was Judge Hatchett and Family Court W/Penny but not on the 700 Club. As I mostly concentrate on their sub 2 I can't be sure which other programs may have been behaving similarly. I didn't check to see if the DS DTX9950 was acting likewise. In using CECB's since Apr last year with one A line to mono TV sets I've never come across this sort of audio abberation on any ATSC signals.

That's especially unusual since these are only stereo shows. Keep an ear on them, though; there may be a satellite receiver with audio phase reversal on one channel. That'll play hob with conversion to digital and back.

Macbillybob,

Did you get your cable situation worked out yet? I had a somewhat similar incident last winter. The cable would get so bad I would lose all services but regular cable (HD,Internet,Phone). The rub was that it only happened when the temp was below 50 degrees or so. Well, here in SA, that only happens at night during the winter normally so that is when all my problems occurred. TWC would come out at 9 or 10am and no problem found so they would basically chase a problem they couldn't see. Well after about 5 or 6 house calls, a lot of headaches, totally new cable/outlets/splitters, a month and a half, and a lot of hair lost talking to tech support, I finally convinced them the problem was before my house and they ended up replacing an amp in the node that was malfunctioning with the weather changes.

I am now actually having another problem that is starting to look the same way - but I am prepared! I have a small monitor that I take to the pedestal (just happens to be in my back yard), hook up one of my cable boxes straight to the tap, and read the diagnostic screen. They won't replace one more inch of cable in my house if I have a say, dang it!

Have not had the problem lately. (last couple of weeks) The cable guy told me he had seen this in other areas of the city, not just this neighborhood.

The cold weather problem in San Antonio is more prevalent than you know. Large parts of the network have old technology including nodes and amplifiers that need to be upgraded. Unfortunately, it's easier to replace a defective amplifier than upgrade a subnetwork.

I have experienced the same cold weather problem for at least 10 years. I'm at the end of a network. When the temp falls below 30 degrees, I start getting blocking and pixelization, freezing, and eventually loss of channels. This is d/t signal suck out often d/t a bad amplifier at the node. It's so predictable that I can tell what the outside temp is just by watching HD.

I've been told by TWC engineers that my area needs new network equipment but the amount of business does not justify the cost.

Recently, I've noticed a lot of freezing and unavailable channels on the HD stations. I suspect this is d/t the same problem. Of course, they never find anything with remote access and by the time you get a service guy out the problem is gone. Very frustrating. I am probably switching to satellite when my current agreement expires.

Some updates to the KCWX saga http://home.swbell.net/pjdyer/fred-2.htm#dt5sub

See that KENS-DT-.2 is now with "estrellaTV", but the PSIP and EPG are still showing VIPIR 5 3D for it. Sub 3 has the live radar display.

There was a rush to get the Estrella preview/promotional reels on the air late Monday, and the PSI guide info was neglected. Today you will see "Muy Pronto Estrella TV." We are running a two-hour, 23 minute loop of excerpts from Estrella programming on KENS 5-2. Original debut was scheduled for September 7, but due in part to the Los Angeles fires, the launch has been pushed back by a week to September 14.

Silent Vipir 5 Doppler radar imagery remains on KENS 5-3.

Anyone noticing lip-synch issues with KABB?

Last night on a show or news. Can't remember which. Not watching tonight tho.

KABB lipsynch-- It's really bad tonight on their news broadcast.

Yeah last week I noticed lip sync mismatch during 2 episodes of 2.5 men, both episodes. Couldn't watch anymore after that

Hooked my new toy this afternoon, sadly I got nothing on any channel using the RCA DTA800 D/A converter. Returned to my passive 4 way splitter all's well again....(sigh) Looks like I have to return it

Hooked my new toy this afternoon, sadly I got nothing on any channel using the RCA DTA800 D/A converter. Returned to my passive 4 way splitter all's well again...

Before you return it, let's put an analyzer on your antenna. I have been itching to see what's wrong out there for a while, maybe now's the time. I have another viewer not far from you with another problem, so maybe we'll hit both of you on Monday.

Hello everyone, I am having trouble tuning in channel 2 (CW) from NE San Antonio (near Windsor Park Mall).

I have a Winegard MS-2002 antenna connected to two Hauppauge HVR-1600 cards in a computer. I am using BeyondTV software. Every other channel in the area works just fine, but I get zero signal from the CW.

Any ideas? Anything I should try?

KCWX at almost 50 miles north is the biggest challenge of the "local" DTVs to get. In most cases this far away it might require a directional antenna pointed their way. Also, being the only local DTV on lo-VHF it is more subject to various kinds of interference that could prevent a decode (and an amplified antenna wont "cure" that situation, and in some cases may actually make it worse). Realizing all this, they have applied for a Ch 8 translator in town http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/FMTV-service-area?x=LD1328399.html (the highly-directional pattern is to protect the Ch 8 in Corpus Christi, KIII).

A VERY special thank you to REALTHOUGUE for his time and effort troubleshooting my OTA reception in Elm Creek cove, and on a holiday none the less! With the use of his spectrum analyzer he was able to determine the following:
1. Overall low signal strength as I live in a valley for UHF transmissions, little to none for VHF channels (9,12).
2. Low noise up to the power supply inside the house which powers an amplifier on the OTA antenna mast.
3. Increased noise from a 2nd amplifier to a passive 4-way splitter in house. 2nd amp was bypassed and the signal strength increased on UHF channels on the (plasma) TV tuner, but decreased strength on the RCA D/A box, but was still able to receive them. Still no usable VHF signals for channels 9,12. on either the tv tuner or D/A box.
4. No VHF signal because the amplifier on the antenna mast is UHF only!
This system was installed in spring of 98 by Viking satellite located in Lakehills (now out of business). So far I've removed a signal combiner (not used), a 2nd 25db amplifier which overpowered and distorted the signal/noise, replaced the coax inside and out with Quad shielding due to CB interference received before the digital conversion. Now I need to replace the antenna's amp to bring in channels 9 and 12. It appears my setup was mickey moused from the get go, to include a splice (not a splitter) on the old coax cable!

Jerry you went above and beyond, and hobbiests like myself appreciate you and your expertise both in this forum and in your many travels. Thank you again, I hope KENS5 appreciates valuable asset to their organization, you! ERIN GO BRAGH (or BRAUGH as you wish)!

Hello everyone, I am having trouble tuning in channel 2 (CW) from NE San Antonio (near Windsor Park Mall).

I have a Winegard MS-2002 antenna ... I get zero signal from the CW.

Any ideas? Anything I should try?

Scott,

as WA5IYX points out, you are 50 miles from the KCWX transmitter. That, and the omnidirectional nature of the MS-2002 both work against you in your efforts to receive The CW. In the analog days I never could get a decent signal on channel 2 or channel 5 on MS-2002 antennas installed on our trucks. I think the VHF components in the MetroStar are just too small. To help solve your problem you might try an inexpensive (<$17.00) VHF antenna like the Antenna Craft CS600.

http://www.solidsignal.com/prod_display.asp?prod=CS600

Place it 6 to 10 feet away from the MS-2002 and run a separate coax from it to a combiner. Take the RF out from the Winegard power supply into one side of the combiner and the VHF antenna RF into the other side and try it. You may not even need a preamp if you can get the antenna high enough. Winegard sells inexpensive preamps that can help bring in the signal. The antenna mentioned is only a suggestion; there are others that may work just as well, but your MetroStar probably will not do the job.

At KENS we use a Yagi-style VHF antenna cut for channel 5 aimed northward to pick up KCWX. Without a preamp we get an acceptable signal, but using a 16 dB preamp we pull in great reception - and our channel 5 VHF antenna captures not only KCWX, but also all the San Antonio VHF and UHF stations. Being on the highest point (almost) in San Antonio doesn't hurt, either.

I am assuming that you are in a single-family home with your MS-2002 antenna mounted at or above roof level. If you are in an apartment we need to have another discussion altogether.

Thanks! I am in a single family home and I have the antenna in the attic. I was afraid that simple distance was the problem. I will try the suggestions though. Thanks a million!

How hard is it to modify the EPG for a channel ? It would certainly be useful when the network programming runs long for sporting events and displaces the rest of the evening primetime (and later) schedule.

How hard is it to modify the EPG for a channel ? It would certainly be useful when the network programming runs long for sporting events and displaces the rest of the evening primetime (and later) schedule.

Unfortunately, it is not an automatic process. An operator who is trained on the PSIP software would need to go into the program guide table and manually update at least the first event affected, once the program running long has ended. On weekends in particular, there is usually only one operator who has all he can do to keep up with network changes, running spot breaks (those are not automatic either) and preparing for a newscast. We are always preparing for a newscast. None of the Master Control operators are trained on the PSIP software; the Engineering Supervisor is the primary agent who keeps the program guide information up to date.

A while back the FCC tried to mandate that stations purchase new software that would "automatically" detect program overruns and adjust program guide tables appropriately - to within one minute accuracy. Problem was/is, such software did not actually exist. Updating the guide table remains a manual operation.

WOAI News in HD when?

Nice that KENS had a place (KCWX) to "dump" the Monday CBS US Open Tennis HD feed while they showed their normal syndies and news . In the news their mention of it as "KCWX Cable Channel 4" gives one a hint as to how many they presume are OTA viewers of it. :) Lots of dead air during the local commercial cuts since they were tailored to fit within the regular KCWX programming breaks.

Does anyone have any info about when WOAI will be going HD with their local broadcast news? It's hard to believe it's taking them this long.

DerrikM

Does anyone have any info about when WOAI will be going HD with their local broadcast news? It's hard to believe it's taking them this long.

DerrikMJeanne Jakle said in her last column (http://www.mysanantonio.com/entertainment/columnists/jeanne_jakle/Jeanne_Jakle_High-def_makeover_for_WOAI_KAJA_nominated.html) that it would happen within a week. Apparently WOAI will be the first station in town to convert all of its field cameras to HD.

As for how long it has taken, scroll back a few hundred posts in this thread to where we discussed that this conversion costs each station millions of dollars.

Jeanne Jakle said in her last column (http://www.mysanantonio.com/entertainment/columnists/jeanne_jakle/Jeanne_Jakle_High-def_makeover_for_WOAI_KAJA_nominated.html) that it would happen within a week. Apparently WOAI will be the first station in town to convert all of its field cameras to HD.

As for how long it has taken, scroll back a few hundred posts in this thread to where we discussed that this conversion costs each station millions of dollars.

Buckle your seatbelts -- News 4 WOAI is finally going HD at 5 tonight! We've got a beautiful new set, new editing system, new cameras...new everything.

Danny Trevino
WOAI Engineering\Transmitter

whoo hoo!!

Buckle your seatbelts -- News 4 WOAI is finally going HD at 5 tonight! We've got a beautiful new set, new editing system, new cameras...new everything.
Danny Trevino
WOAI Engineering\Transmitter

I'm happy 'cause the signal strength hangs around 30 db at 100% up here in Kerrville compared to a few months ago when I was lucky to see 22 db.

I'm considering a Channel Master Spartan 3 model #CM0068DSB (~$50) which comes w/a 0747 power supply. This model ALSO comes w/a builtin FM TRAP switch (IN/OUT) inside the plastic case which I'll assume will replace the unit inside the house and needs to be set the same as my FM TRAP box inside. There is another Spartan3 model (CM0265DSB) but has 2 inputs (?) and no power supply. Thoughts/recommendations?

Jerry, do you recall how far to angle up the antenna? I don't recall it being more than 10 deg? I'd like to optimize the signal while I have the unit down to replace the amp. What would be the best way to find the optimum angle w/o a spectrum analyzer?

Live just north of the airport. 2nd story apartment facing north. No view of the south possible.

Getting all OTA digital channels that I "should" be getting except for channel 12-ABC. I don't get CW, but that I expected. All of my channels are coming in with great quality including the 4 PBS channels.

Anything going on with ABC that I should be made aware of, or should I just give it up for dead?

WOAI HD broadcast looked great last night!

Is anyone else just getting stereo from WOAI?

KLRN-9 and KSAT-12 are each currently stuck with comparatively low ERP. KLRN's TL is a bit closer in (Foster Road) vs KSAT's (Elmendorf) which may account for any of their advantage in parts of town as they're both hi-VHF. As an aside, I was going comment on the KBNB-DL-10.1 poor quality video feed vs their 10.2 infomercials, but they're off air at the moment.

I have finally cancelled my DirecTV and have been trying to get all the local channels OTA over the past few days. I have a TERK Outdoor Amplified Antenna (HDTVO model). I originally mounted the antenna on the pole that supported my dish, but only got 35 & 26-1 - 26-4 (acceptable to low reception). Since moving the antenna inside and setting it on a tray table in my living room, I get all the locals (plus some analogs) with great (70% +) reception but no CW, ABC & PBS. This antenna does have an inline amplifier, and I have scanned for channels with the amp on and off, but alas, no VHF channels appeared.
I live in a one story home east of Government Canyon (Silver Oaks subdivision between Culebra and Shaenfield/Galm). Home faces east, and mounting antenna on front porch probably won't fly with HOA and a tree in the direction of the broadcasts.

Is there something I can do for the VHF channels without buying a new antenna and getting on my roof again? I can live without PBS and the CW, but my wife and I watch ABC more than the other locals.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Having to beam thru those several 100-kw FM stations on that Galm Road 1100' tower may be part of the problem. (The KMYS TL is at Lake Hills near Medina Lake while 26's is west of the lake - all very close vs everything else.) An amplified antenna (w/o an FM trap) may be getting overloaded by those FM stations and producing spurious signals that could prevent hi-VHF (i.e., 9 and 12) DTV from decoding. KCWX with their TL up north might require a dedicated antenna beamed at them.

Same thing here for me last night.

Is anyone else just getting stereo from WOAI?

Buckle your seatbelts -- News 4 WOAI is finally going HD at 5 tonight! We've got a beautiful new set, new editing system, new cameras...new everything.

Danny Trevino
WOAI Engineering\Transmitter

TXMAN,

Any update on progress of audio fixes at WOAI?

I'm considering a Channel Master Spartan 3 model #CM0068DSB (~$50) which comes w/a 0747 power supply. This model ALSO comes w/a builtin FM TRAP switch (IN/OUT) inside the plastic case which I'll assume will replace the unit inside the house and needs to be set the same as my FM TRAP box inside. There is another Spartan3 model (CM0265DSB) but has 2 inputs (?) and no power supply. Thoughts/recommendations?
Sure; the CM0265DSB is for folks with a separate UHF and VHF antenna. All you need is the CM0068SDB to capture the VHF's. Do set the FM trap to IN; as WA5IYX points out, you are looking through an RF soup of several 100kW FM stations at 1604 and Galm Road on your way to see the tall towers at Elmendorf.

...do you recall how far to angle up the antenna?
I don't think you need to bother with any inclination of your antenna; no more than 5 degrees up if you want to experiment, though. Too high can cause problems for you when variable-e and tropo ducting conditions are favorable, bringing in distant stations that can block the local ones you want to see!

Having to beam thru those several 100-kw FM stations on that Galm Road 1100' tower may be part of the problem. (The KMYS TL is at Lake Hills near Medina Lake while 26's is west of the lake - all very close vs everything else.) An amplified antenna (w/o an FM trap) may be getting overloaded by those FM stations and producing spurious signals that could prevent hi-VHF (i.e., 9 and 12) DTV from decoding. KCWX with their TL up north might require a dedicated antenna beamed at them.
Would you suggest an FM trap or a dedicated antenna? I am new to this so any advice you give would be invaluable.

You'd need the FM trap on the antenna/pre-amplifier that you're trying to get Ch 9 and 12 with (they're c. 30-35 mi s.e. from out there). A separate hi-VHF antenna would cut down on the FM pickup to a degree (174-216 MHz vs 88-108 MHz). Since the bearing for KCWX from there is almost at a 90-deg angle from them (near north) unless you're using a combination hi-low VHF/UHF antenna with a rotator it would null them. With KCWX (76-82 MHz) at 40-45 miles the best bet for them is a lo-VHF antenna beamed at them. I'll leave it others to suggest best makes/models - I've and ancient (1973) Archer V-100 (hi-low VHF) and a new (2008) CM-4228, each c. 20' AGL on separate rotors since I do TV-DX with them. http://www.qsl.net/wa5iyx/wa5iyx-dtv.txt
http://www.rabbitears.info/dxlocation.php?id=79

I don't think so. I watched the 6 pm news friday night and david was on the scene of some football thing to give away stuff and that wasn't a HD picture. It was a strecthed SD picture. I don't know why when every station switchs something to HD they stretch their standard picture to make it look like HD. The stuff filmed in the studio really in HD looked great.
By the way I sure hope those new ugly HD channel icons in the right hand corner that keep changing ever 10 seconds or so will leave soon. I don't need an Icon to tell me if I have HD or not. It is really distracting when watching a nice picture to have this ugly icon there. You should watch your news brodcast, Those large banners take up to much of the screen. You have a great HD picture, expect when in the field, so why cover must of the bottom half with a huge banner. Your parent network does the same with the Today show. I can understand a thin banner at the bottom the size of the words you are showing but you don't need them surrounded by fancy colors and designs. Thanks for what you do just wanted to give you some viewer feedback.

Hi - I'm looking to drop my DBS system and was planning on installing a TV antenna - I live near DeZavala and I10. I've read through a lot of this thread (maybe 10-20 pages or so) looking for folks that live in my area. I see a bunch of references to the "Radio Shack 85inch" antenna but can't find one with that description on their website.

I've played around with an RCA 800 box, and am planning on building a DVR computer with a Hauppauge QAM tuner.

I had a couple of questions I was hoping someone could help me with-

1) Would this antenna (Channel Master CM 3016) be a good choice for my location? Antennaweb lists me around 28 miles to several UHF stations (some of which I've picked up with makeshift antennas already)

solidsignal.com/pview.asp?p=ANC3016

Or is there another model that would work better and not be very expensive?

2) what kinds of mast/mounts are good for faschia boards? Or do I really need to do a roof mount (if so, which one??) How high above the roof level (as measured from the edge of the roof) is needed?

3) Is there any harm in mounting the antenna within a few feet of a DBS dish, or do I need to space the TV antenna away from the DBS dish or take the dish down?

4) antenna web suggests a medium, directional antenna with preamp,so I was thinking also of adding the Winegard HDP 269 as I think it will not overload when there is a strong signal. Is this worth doing, and if so, is this a good model?

amazon.com/Winegard-HDP-269-Input-Amplifier-Antenna/dp/B001DFS4C2/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1253387747&sr=8-4#moreAboutThisProduct

5) with a makeshift antenna, I've been able to get stations 5(sometimes) 16,17, 29 (Sometimes), 35 and a couple of others. With a 'real' antenna, is it realistic to get all standard SA stations, including 4,9,and 12 from my area(I think yes but...)?

Thanks for any help!!!

I don't think so. I watched the 6 pm news friday night and david was on the scene of some football thing to give away stuff and that wasn't a HD picture. It was a strecthed SD picture. I don't know why when every station switchs something to HD they stretch their standard picture to make it look like HD. The stuff filmed in the studio really in HD looked great.
By the way I sure hope those new ugly HD channel icons in the right hand corner that keep changing ever 10 seconds or so will leave soon. I don't need an Icon to tell me if I have HD or not. It is really distracting when watching a nice picture to have this ugly icon there. You should watch your news brodcast, Those large banners take up to much of the screen. You have a great HD picture, expect when in the field, so why cover must of the bottom half with a huge banner. Your parent network does the same with the Today show. I can understand a thin banner at the bottom the size of the words you are showing but you don't need them surrounded by fancy colors and designs. Thanks for what you do just wanted to give you some viewer feedback.

Our new HD cameras in the field are HD , but some of our live shots will be in SD due to our new JVC HD cameras with defective fire wire ports, which we use for the HD signal, and not having enough ASI-bridge coverters yet. We're working with JVC to get this problem resolved. Most of our ENG packages are in HD though, and will soon have all live shots in HD.
As for all the distracting banners, can't help you there...lol
Thanks for your input, and for watching News 4 WOAI.


Danny Trevino
WOAI Engineering \Transmitter

ARTX99,

Do you know which card you are buying. Only thing don't waste your money on the full kit. By this I mean one with a remote control. Hauppauge no longer includes the USB receiver for them. They include a receiver that doesn't work. I sent them around 15 complaints and they finally sent me want the ad said I would get (the USB receiver) and it works great. But the 2250 card works great. I think you saw my reference to the 85" Radio Shack antenna. They have replaced the one I bought with this one:
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3739594&tab=techSpecs
I use BeyondTV 4 for my DVR software and it works great. I currenty have 5 HDTV receivers in my box. The max you will be able to run in Windows 7 will be 3. Software can be demo for 1 month at www.snapstream.com. If you decide to buy it be sure to ask them to move your account to your paid copy other wise you won't get full functionality.

Still in the process moving all the equipment into our new HD\digital rack room. Lots of fires to put out right now, but should have our 5.1 encoder installed as soon as next week (don't quote me on that...lol).

Danny

Danny,

Thanks for the update, good to know you guys are working on it:)

I don't get Ksat OTA so I can't comment if they do or not.

But really the people from KENS and WOAI need to get their useless CRAP off the screen, why do we need so many things "scrolling, banners, etc) on the screen. Like someone else said who the heck cares that we know we are watching WOAI in HD.....by the way bout time....the last in the local area to pick up HD.

Kudos to all stations Kens, Ksat and WOAI for getting HD.

My other is with WOAI is the "tv's" behind the anchors in the studio do they look "blurry" at times or is it just me??? I hate the "tv thing" background.

I don't get Ksat/ABC over the air.

I have tried 3 things.

First, I tried a regular small TV antenna, didn't work and all I got was WOAI and FOX.

Second, I tried a Digital Converter (My TV has a built in one but it must not be good? I have a LG 42" 2008 model 1080p) and I still can't get KSAT/ABC, KENS (most of the time) or WOAI (some of the time)

Third, I tried and went to Walmart and got a $30 flat antenna by RCA I think. With this antenna I get Kens/CBS CRYSTAL clear and WOAI CRYSTAL clear and FOX CRYSTAL clear but of course NO ABC/Ksat....

What gives with KSAT's poor quality?

I live in Universal City, just northeast of San Antonio.....

I don't get Ksat/ABC over the air.

I have tried 3 things...What gives with KSAT's poor quality?

I live in Universal City, just northeast of San Antonio.....

Saturn,

I have written separately to you in a PM about OTA reception before I read your posts. The RCA antenna you bought is not designed for VHF reception; it is okay for UHF stations as long as you are close to the transmitters - and you are - but you'll need some kind of VHF antenna to get consistent results with KSAT. Here's an example of an inexpensive solution: http://www.solidsignal.com/pview.asp?mc=03&p=CM2016&d=Channel-Master-CM2016-HDTV-VHF-High-Band-and-UHF-Antenna-(CM2016)&c=TV%20Antennas&sku=020572020169. There are others; you may want to choose a style that is more easily concealed or placed in an attic.

KSAT is somewhat limited by power at the moment, but as close as you are you will receive them really well with the right antenna.

If you already have a digital TV, you do not need a digital converter box, unless you want to continue using it with an older analog TV that still works well.

ARTX99,

Do you know which card you are buying. Only thing don't waste your money on the full kit. By this I mean one with a remote control. Hauppauge no longer includes the USB receiver for them. They include a receiver that doesn't work. I sent them around 15 complaints and they finally sent me want the ad said I would get (the USB receiver) and it works great. But the 2250 card works great. I think you saw my reference to the 85" Radio Shack antenna. They have replaced the one I bought with this one:
radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3739594&tab=techSpecs
I use BeyondTV 4 for my DVR software and it works great. I currenty have 5 HDTV receivers in my box. The max you will be able to run in Windows 7 will be 3. Software can be demo for 1 month at snapstream.com. If you decide to buy it be sure to ask them to move your account to your paid copy other wise you won't get full functionality.

socd - thanks for the reply- I was looking at this Hauppauge kit newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815116007 but I will look at possibly finding a different remote source.

How did you mount that antenna? Did you mount to the roof directly or some other method?

Thanks!

Thanks for the tips so far i sent you a PM back. I miss my CSI Miami show! And I can't even get Dancing with The Stars on ABCHD....sucks! =(

ARtX99,

I hooked it up to an old satelite bracket I had already installed at the back highest part of my roof line.

As for capture cards I have the Hauppauge 2250; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815116037
Just make sure you have a PCIe slot available. It is cheaper and free shipping here: http://www.amazon.com/Hauppauge-1229-WinTV-HVR-2250-System-Builders/dp/B001E2T6Y4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1253658173&sr=8-1

Any idea when we are getting any Spanish HD stations here in SA?

I get channel 60 in HD and also 1 other I think (not sure if its HD or not 41 I think) are both spanish.

Still in the process moving all the equipment into our new HD\digital rack room. Lots of fires to put out right now, but should have our 5.1 encoder installed as soon as next week (don't quote me on that...lol).

Danny

What happened to the 5.1? Seems like it was working for a bit, now you're back to 2.0 like you've been forever.

I helped a friend connect a new flat screen to her existing TWC cable. We bypassed the cable box and let the TV scan for available channels. It found about 24 digital channels with numbers such as 110-104. Checking these out revealed that they include the local station digital (HD) broadcasts as well as such channels as ESPNHD. TWC's website indicates that an HD cable box is necessary to receive HD broadcasts. Is there any reason to get an HD box other than eliminating the necessity to punch in 7 digits to tune the HD channels? I don't have TWC, so I'm somewhat ignorant on this.

You said TWC, are you sure you don't have Comcast ?...anyway...

Her new TV has a QAM tuner in it, along side the standard ATSC. You're getting those weird numbers via the QAM.
It's unlikely that it is delivering HD, and most of the channels available are encrypted, which is why you are only getting 24.
You probably won't get any HD unless you use the STB, all those are in the higher ranges like Ch 600+.

...TWC's website indicates that an HD cable box is necessary to receive HD broadcasts. Is there any reason to get an HD box other than eliminating the necessity to punch in 7 digits to tune the HD channels? I don't have TWC, so I'm somewhat ignorant on this.

New ATSC TV sets have a QAM tuner and an ATSC tuner, as our friend from Houston points out. We published a table in this thread that defines the QAM assignments for two different channel plans and compared those numbers to the TW channels on their box. For example, KENS is TW 105, but 112-1 or 112-155, depending on the channel plan of the new set. Adding to the confusion, TW has shuffled their QAM lineup a little, making our original table obselete. I will bring it up to date this week and publish a fresh version.

Meanwhile, the set will receive Local HD channels just fine in the format and rate transmitted by the originating station. Most of us are providing a direct HD fiber feed to TW so you will see about the same signal as OTA viewers. Arguably, if TW adds compression to their QAM lineup, your HD delivery will suffer somewhat - although they have promised not to do that.

I am surprised you captured ESPN-HD; you do need a cable box for all of the "digital tier" channels (except local stations,) unless they have let a few slip through "in the clear."

Thanks, Jerry. I'm not sure it was specifically ESPN-HD, but there were some "cable" channels that did show up HD. And, yes, SWHouston, we were definitely seeing HD.

anyone noticing repeated "digital error" type noise on kabb? heard it a lot during the Cowboys game and tonight on House.

No problem during the Cowboys game OTA.

Jerry/SF

I guess I need to apologize, I am getting HD via my Comcast/QAM.

It's just that it's SO bad, I didn't recognize it as being HD !

I have a OTA into a 1080 LCD, and the clarity of the HD via OTA is vastly superior to what Comcast delivers via QAM or thru their Rental Box. Oh well.

Have a good Day ! :)
S.W.

Jerry/SF

...I am getting HD via my Comcast/QAM.

It's just that it's SO bad, I didn't recognize it as being HD !

S.W., don't worry about it. We've put out some pretty bad OTA in our worst of times; some readers of this Forum may remember the "bad old days."

Nowadays, OTA quality is hard to beat as long as you have the right receiving equipment. The cable companies try their best, but they like to squeeze too much into each QAM.

The only non-broadcast signals that I'm getting in Clear QAM from Time-Warner are two new audio-only music channels that recently popped up on channel 16. To watch any cable networks in HD with Time-Warner in San Antonio requires a set-top box.

anyone noticing repeated "digital error" type noise on kabb? heard it a lot during the Cowboys game and tonight on House.

I can affirm that channel 29 has digi-noise coming over the Direct-TV box and no other stations on DTV seem to have the noise! Channel 29 OTA antenna does not however have the diginoise (new word?), hope this heps ya!

GO GIANTS! GO YANKEES!

You'd need the FM trap on the antenna/pre-amplifier that you're trying to get Ch 9 and 12 with (they're c. 30-35 mi s.e. from out there). A separate hi-VHF antenna would cut down on the FM pickup to a degree (174-216 MHz vs 88-108 MHz). Since the bearing for KCWX from there is almost at a 90-deg angle from them (near north) unless you're using a combination hi-low VHF/UHF antenna with a rotator it would null them. With KCWX (76-82 MHz) at 40-45 miles the best bet for them is a lo-VHF antenna beamed at them. I'll leave it others to suggest best makes/models - I've and ancient (1973) Archer V-100 (hi-low VHF) and a new (2008) CM-4228, each c. 20' AGL on separate rotors since I do TV-DX with them. http://www.qsl.net/wa5iyx/wa5iyx-dtv.txt
http://www.rabbitears.info/dxlocation.php?id=79
So I installed an FM trap (88 - 108 MHz) and I still did not get PBS or KSAT (9 & 12). I only added 5 analog channels (all with very poor reception and no sound). I think I will try the antenna suggested (high-gain VHF/UHF) from this post.

Thanks again!

A problem with ATSC is that so many things can cause a faillure to decode (1) not enough signal, (2) too much multipath, (3) interference on the desired channel - and without more-sophisticated equipment (like a spectrum analyzer) finding the cause (and implementing the correct cure, if possible) can be a challenge. Just a personal example - I have a 7" Haier HLT71 LCD set (in case of outages and for other uses), and when it is on with just A/V cables connected something in it (I suspect the backlight for the LCD) creates wideband interference on low-VHF TV (and FM) which is often strong enough to degrade/kill KCWX (RF5) decodes on the other OTA sets here with outdoor antennas!

new assignments for time horror san antonio

105.1 galavision

110.1 mx canal

110.2 latn

110.3 woai hd

110.4 ksat hd

111.1 klrn hd

111.2 vme

111.3 create

111.4 klrn sd

111.5 kabb hd

112.1 kmys hd

112.2 kens hd

112.3 estrella tv

Jerry,

Last night I watched the 8 Oct 09 episode of The Mentialist. Both times you all displayed the weather warning the video froze for seconds at a time. The audio keep playing.

Just thought I would give you a heads up. Hopefully, this was a fluke.

new assignments for time horror san antonio

105.1 galavision
110.1 mx canal
110.2 latn
110.3 woai hd
110.4 ksat hd
111.1 klrn hd
111.2 vme
111.3 create
111.4 klrn sd
111.5 kabb hd
112.1 kmys hd
112.2 kens hd
112.3 estrella tv

This is true for a lot of sets, but not all. Within this channel plan, found on Samsung, Sony, Sharp and others, some models display KENS on 112.1 and KMYS on 112.2. In the office next to mine, Randy Johnson has a Sanyo that shows Estrella on 112.1, KMYS on 112.2 and KENS on 112.3 and so does the more generic STB on a Sony 38" in our Program Prep area, so there does not seem to be a lot of standardization even within that single channel plan. Rescanning might make some difference. On my Samsung SIR-T451 at home, Galavision turned up on 105.7 after a fresh rescan, Estrella was at 112.1, KMYS on 112.2 and KENS on 112.3. The channel 112 ordering in this plan seems to have become more consistent since last week.

A second channel plan in some sets, notably Philips, Magnavox, RCA and that family, identify the channels differently. Within Time-Warner this noon, their lineup is like this after a fresh re-scan of my Magnavox DTV:

105.6 Galavision
110.8 Mexicanal
110.81 LATV
110.104 WOAI
110.112 KSAT
111.91 KLRN 9-1
111.93 KLRN 9-3 (Vme)
111.94 KLRN 9-4 (Create)
111.108 KLRN 9-2
111.111 KABB
112.79 Estrella
112.107 KMYS
112.155 KENS

You can see that the order of channels is similar but not identical to the "other" plan. New to this lineup is Estrella, which had not been in the channel plan on that set early last week.

The point of it all is that there is little standardization among manufacturers of consumer electronics. One would believe that all clear-QAM tuners would respond in the same way to local channels, as do the majority of ATSC tuners. Clearly they do not. As to standardization, just compare a few TV remote controls from different brands. Are the volume and channel up/down controls in the same place? How easy are they to find?

The experiment continues...

I did a rescan this morning on TWC and found some new 480i SD signals in Clear QAM on Channel 20.

20.25 ESPN2
20.49 TLC
20.51 CMT
20.54 Nick
20.55 Animal Planet
20.57 National Geographic
20.58 Travel
20.77 HGTV

No joy for me on any of the 20.n channels you found, Bars. In fact, Galavision has disappeared from my lineup as well. Instead of 105.6, Gala was on channel "0," which is a temporary location the Magnavox uses for channels it cannot define in a QAM.

There may be no connection, but TW had major problems last night between 7:00pm and 9:00pm; they may have had to do some rearranging.

No joy for me on any of the 20.n channels you found, Bars. In fact, Galavision has disappeared from my lineup as well. Instead of 105.6, Gala was on channel "0," which is a temporary location the Magnavox uses for channels it cannot define in a QAM.

There may be no connection, but TW had major problems last night between 7:00pm and 9:00pm; they may have had to do some rearranging.The 20.n channels are still showing up for me this afternoon, as is Galavision on 105.6.

I'm in North Central SA, about midway between the loops and the interstates. Apparently we're getting a different channel lineup than your part of town.

I had other problems a few weeks ago where certain HD channels would be a black screen and say " THIS CHANNEL IS UNAVAILABLE, PLEASE TRY AGAIN LATER" It would seem to happen on groups of HD channels on both of my boxes at the same time. Five minutes later they would work or it was another group of channels.

Yeah, I noticed this too. ESPN2 would go dark, but regular ESPN worked. or USA HD and Universal HD would go dark, but other HD channels would work fine.

agentalbert,

Fortunately my service has improved. I haven't seen the 'channel unavailable' message in at least a couple of weeks. The last time TWC came by for a service call, the tech stated that the problem was due to bandwidth and server capacity on my local node. According to him, TWC is aware of the problem and they are in the process of upgrading. I wish they would just admit it and say they are working on it, instead of insisting on a service call and wasting everyone's time. Something must have happened though, because I don't seem to be having the issue anymore. Either that or its the cooler weather...

Shot in the dark, but does anyone happen to know the QAM channel lineup for Grande (or if they're even carrying HD channels over QAM?). My parents are moving into an apartment in a couple of weeks and they only have Grade available.