Originally posted by Abner
I'm in Fair Oaks Ranch and am getting 70-80% signal strength on Fox/KABB. Wish they had some HD!

I've got the Sony HD200, which doesn't give numerical signal strength, but I'm about 2/3 strength on the meter. I'm in Deerfield (Bitters-Blanco area). Sunday's football game looked much better than DirecTV Sunday Ticket, but of course sucked compared to CBS, ABC, and ESPN HiDef NFL offerings.

Anyone know what the activity on the existing tower means. It looks like there is another antenna and possibly a small crane in place on the tower.
Larry

WUOT-FM is putting up another antenna. During construction the other users will have to protect tower workers by reducing or shutting down their transmitters completely. I suspect the stations involved will try to keep normal evening schedules but daylight operations may be curtailed. This could effect channels 15 and 8 or RF channels 17 and 30.

I've heard that channel 8 will later move their NTSC channel 8 antenna to this same site.

The other DTV signals in our area are on a different tower and will not be impacted. i.e. DTV for 6, 10, and 43 or RF channels 26, 31, and 34.

Any news on Output Power Levels. Still trying to recieve HD in Crossville, some 60 miles away.

eddiew

What kind of antenna do you have? I don't know about current power levels. I'm surprised that you can't get any digital signals at all. I would have thought it would be a straight shot from where you are to the towers.
Larry

I don't see power levels changing until the FCC requires full power. Minimum daily operating hours increase in April 2004 to 75% of the corresponding analog channel. i.e. if the NTSC is on 24/7 the DTV must be on 18/7 come April.

Channel 6 (RF 26) is about 330kw or one-third of full power, channel 10 (RF 31) is 420kw or one-half of full power, channel 43 (RF 34) is about 460kw or full power. These are from memory but if you want to see what the stations are doing the info is public knowledge from the FCC. If you search on Tennessee you'll get a list of all of the TV stations and then you can click on the stations for more information.

http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/audio2?x=tvq.html

UHF coverage is very terrain dependent. Can you get channel 43 NTSC? Can you get PBS on channel 15 NTSC? How about 6, 8, or 10 NTSC? These signals could give you a clue especially the UHF NTSC signals as to what the problem might be. They all come from the same general area in Knox county.

How about the PAX station's DTV or WBXX? WBXX-DT is RF channel 50. PAX is RF channel 23. These arrive from closer locations and paths then the Knoxville stations.

BTW, it may seem counterintuitive but, going from one-half power to full power does not double coverage area. So it may be that an outside antenna necessary.

I don't see power levels changing until the FCC requires full power. Minimum daily operating hours increase in April 2004 to 75% of the corresponding analog channel. i.e. if the NTSC is on 24/7 the DTV must be on 18/7 come April.

Channel 6 (RF 26) is about 330kw or one-third of full power, channel 10 (RF 31) is 420kw or one-half of full power, channel 43 (RF 34) is about 460kw or full power. These are from memory but if you want to see what the stations are doing the info is public knowledge from the FCC. If you search on Tennessee you'll get a list of all of the TV stations and then you can click on the stations for more information.

http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/audio2?x=tvq.html

UHF coverage is very terrain dependent. Can you get channel 43 NTSC? Can you get PBS on channel 15 NTSC? How about 6, 8, or 10 NTSC? These signals could give you a clue especially the UHF NTSC signals as to what the problem might be. They all come from the same general area in Knox county.

How about the PAX station's DTV or WBXX? WBXX-DT is RF channel 50. PAX is RF channel 23. These arrive from closer locations and paths then the Knoxville stations.

BTW, it may seem counterintuitive but, going from one-half power to full power does not double coverage area. So it may be that an outside antenna is necessary.

Patrick,
Great info. I couldn't figure out why channel 6 signal level was so far below the others if they were all on the same tower.

Dave

Yesterday I tried to tune in WBIR-DT which was mapped in my guide at 10-01. When did, I saw the signal strength, but no picture or sound. I then noticed that WBIR-DT disappeared from my guide on my Dish Network 6000 receiver, and the actual channel number of 31 appeared instead. So, it seems to me that WBIR-DT has their digital tower going, but no information is coming across including the info that tells that the channel is supposed to be re-mapped to 10-01. Am I the only one having this problem, or is everyone having this problem in the last couple of days?

Thanks.

Sean Dudley

Originally posted by seandudley
Am I the only one having this problem, or is everyone having this problem in the last couple of days?

Thanks.

Sean Dudley

I am getting channel 10 on 31 as well over my Samsung t351. I wasn't sure what was different, but I thought something was strange.

Hotshot,

Are you getting a picture and sound on 31? I don't get anything but a black screen.

Thanks.

Sean Dudley

I'm getting NBC back on 10-1 and 10-2 now, and I get a picture and sound again. :)

Sean Dudley

Everything is back to normal today. But I was getting sound and video on 31 which now points back to 10-1.

I noticed a message last night on my program guide stating that HD is now available in the Knoxville area. So, finally, here I come!

I noticed some threads back that Fox would not be sending any sports as HD. Why on earth would they not do that?

Well, I know the reason for NASCAR; it is because the source is not recorded in HD, with no plans in the immed. future to do so. Crimony!

Gerald

A few days ago I noticed I could pick up KRRT which I had failed at previously. My Zenith 1080 reports signal on the low end of NORMAL, but no breakups. RS-190 antenna. 1 1/2 miles out Vance Jackson from 410.

Hello all,
Recently, despite my meter indicating in the 60/70% range on KENS, it's "breakup city" for me and I'm at a loss. I live in Vance Jackson/callaghan area and KABB, WOAI, and KSAT are good with little regular breakup, so I know I'm aimed at Elmendorf OK.. Is anyone else having the same difficulty. It was really irritating to have to watch the Channel 5 version of the 75th anniversary Gala, rather than pristine 480i off the HD feed.

Thanks in advance

Hmm, what kind of receiver do you have? (It could be a PSIP incompatability issue peculiar to your receiver.)

I know KENS-DT was having some trouble with their digital microwave link from the studio to the tower. I though Jerry fixed that about 6 months ago. I'll have to look at CBS tonight.

Jim

Thanks Jim,

The cable feed looks better than ever, but the OTA is really irritating.
Thanks

I use to get WB (Crossville) on 20 very good, but I never get it anymore. Can anyone tell me if anything has changed recently? I live in Alcoa and sometimes 8 (CBS) has a little trouble. ABC and NBC are always fine! PAX (54) also comes in nicely.

Steve

I live in Maryville. I am also experiencing reduced and loss of signal lately. I was getting ABC chnl 26 and CBS chnl 30 at 90 to 100 percent, as of two weeks ago. Now I cannot get either at above 30 percent. Is anyone else experiencing the same. I get PBS at 100% and it is on the same tower as CBS. I get NBC and Fox at 100% and it is on the same tower at ABC. I don't get it. Shouldn't I get CBS and ABC at 100% as well. I have tried moving the direction of the antenna but it does not help. I refuse to pay the cable companies and Directv for what I should get off the air for free. Anyone?

Beginning December 8, WOAI-TV in San Antonio will be carried in high-definition on Grande cable channel 304.

We expect an announcement on Time Warner cable high-definition coverage very soon.

Regards-

I was channel surfing the other day and picked up WRRT-DT channel 32 for the first time. They must be close to full power since my directional antenna is pointed in the opposite direction.

On a related note, does anyone know if or when the local Fox and WB shows will be shown in ED/HD?

JohnR

John,

You've asked the $64,000 question. Dave Ostmos said earlier that the DTV transition at our local Sinclair stations would start at the broadcast tower and work its way back to the studio. Right now they haven't released a timeline for passing through network HD programming.

The FCC's Localism Task Force has a public hearing planned for sometime in December here in San Antonio. They haven't released the date yet, but it could be a good time to ask why our local UPN, PAX and TBN stations aren't even on the air yet. It might also be a fine time to inquire about the audio and video quality of the current 480i signal from KABB-DT and KRRT-DT. I can't imagine that having worse sound and picture quality than the analog over the air signal is a "benefit" of local digital broadcasting.

I plan on attending the public hearing and singing the praises of our local CBS, ABC, NBC and PBS stations. Heck, Univision and Telemundo are on the air and pass through their signal at full quality. Fox, WB and UPN on the other hand...:mad:

Jim

Knology is offering HD service in Knoxville. Found this link on our local HDTV board: http://www.knology.com/news/index.details.cfm?pkey=201

Well I finally made the leap into HDTV... received my LG 3200A monday.. seems to work great to me. I have an 10 year old Radio Shack antenna mounted on my 2 story house in East knox and I get the knox stations fine, as well as WB out of Crossville. I was wondering how other people's luck is on getting PAX out of Jellico or the Greeneville stations? I dont receive either of those, nor do I know if a preamp would help... any suggestions?

You will probably have to point the antenna in another direction to get those channels. See http://www.antennaweb.org

I guess i should mentioned i have a channel master antenna rotator and have tried pointing it in the directions mentioned on anntennaweb.org.

Appreciate the input though.

I've got an even older RS antenna that is on a rotor. The coax is recent as is the balun. I can receive the Knoxville stations with no difficulty; however, I have to move the antenna for WB20 and the aperture where WB20 is receivable is very narrow.

The bulk of the Knoxville stations are not but 7 to 10 miles distant and not quite line of sight.

I've tried to receive Chattanooga and Greenville stations but no success. I've also tried to receive the PBS digital on Short Mountain (Sneedville) but no success.

For what its worth, I get a weak signal from Greenville channel 39 NTSC and I get a very ghosty signal from Short Mt. on channel 2 NTSC. If I watch PBS on NTSC I watch channel 15 which is on Sharp's Ridge.

The PAX station is low power and channel 54 analog is weak even thought they are relatively high power. The PAX digital has shown up as just an occasional frame grab but no moving video or audio.

I haven't researched the Greenville or Chattanooga stations to see if they are operating at their final full power level. They may be still relatively low power.

yeah i put on a new rg-6 coax and balum just 2 weeks ago.. that did help a bit on the analog signals.. before my HDTV tuner arrived.

Thanks for the information... I guess I was really wondering if others could get PAX or Greeneville in knox... least I know i'm not the only one having problems with those.

Beginning December 8, News 4 WOAI's "High Definition" signal will be carried on two local cable systems.

Time Warner channel 104

Grande Cable channel 304

News 4 WOAI / NBC Programming currently available in 1080i High Definition

Law & Order
Law & Order: SVU
Law & Order: Criminal Intent
Happy Family
ER
Las Vegas
Miss Match
The Tracy Morgan Show
Whoopi
Third Watch
Frasier
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
Ed
The West Wing


Happy viewing!

Regards-

Greg,

Congratulations, that's great news! The announcement about Grande Communications was good to begin with; a carriage agreement with Time Warner too is even better. I've been watching your HD signal with a Dish 6000 since you guys went on air last Spring. Nonetheless, this will give local HDTV owners a low cost way to get your HD broadcasts.

Hmm, if TWC San Antonio gets the Scientific Atlantic 8000HD DVR that just launched on TWC Green Bay, I may have to switch over to cable.

Jim

Hi folks,

I'm moving into the area late this month from Maryland, and I'm trying to decide whether to stick with my Dish 6000 or go cable. Does anyone know if the non-premium (in other words, not HBO etc) digital and HD channels on Time-Warner are unscrambled QAM? If they are not scrambled then TWC and one of the new Zenith/LG HD PVRs might be in my future. Any insight would be welcome.

Thanks,

Mike

Mike,

I'd hold onto the Dish 6000 for at least another month. You can try out Time Warner Cable's service in San Antonio for a month or so without a long term commitment. If the local cable is everything you'd hoped for you can always sell the Dish 6000 on eBay or something. If TWC isn't to your liking, you can stick with Dish.

Unfortunately I don't know whether the local QAM channels are scrambled or not. I would speculate that they are scrambled (too much chance for piracy otherwise). The website for the local Time Warner Cable operation is www.twc-sa.com. There's also a competitive cable overbuilder in San Antonio, Grande Communications. You could contact Grande at www.grandecom.com. Best of luck and welcome to the Alamo City! If you need help with anything, just ask.

Jim

Jim,

Thanks for the info. I'd looked at the TWC site but hadn't found the Grande site yet. I may go to Bjorns today (if they are open Sundays), see the TWC demo, and ask some questions. Have you heard any impressions regarding Grande's overall quality and level of service?

Thanks again,

Mike

Jim,

Disregard the Grande question - it doesn't look like they are servicing my area at this time (west side, near Hunt Lane/Military Road).

Mike

Sweet! My NBCHD is working on TWC! I'm ready for the INHD & ESPNHD, c'mon TWC!

Funny I did nt see any HD on this side of town...near RAFB...UPconverted SD but thats all...Maybe it's an incremental upgrade. Biggest change I have noticed at TWC is that The Sports PKG went from $1 to $5 a month. Grrrrr!

Originally posted by JimboG

The FCC's Localism Task Force has a public hearing planned for sometime in December here in San Antonio. They haven't released the date yet, but it could be a good time to ask why our local UPN, PAX and TBN stations aren't even on the air yet. It might also be a fine time to inquire about the audio and video quality of the current 480i signal from KABB-DT and KRRT-DT. I can't imagine that having worse sound and picture quality than the analog over the air signal is a "benefit" of local digital broadcasting.

I plan on attending the public hearing and singing the praises of our local CBS, ABC, NBC and PBS stations. Heck, Univision and Telemundo are on the air and pass through their signal at full quality. Fox, WB and UPN on the other hand...:mad:

Jim

Jim, any word on the public hearing date?

Is anyone else having trouble w/ the sound on this channel? Sometimes it seems ok but other times its *really* full of hiss and tends to be only in the right channel... its kinda like listening to a radio that isnt tuned just quite right.

Which channel has the audio problem? I get 15-1 and 15-2 but I haven't viewed them for a while.

15-1 was 16:9 HDTV travelogue stuff and 15-2 was 4:3 SD of normal programing i.e. same as the analog feed.

I've give a listen.

it was the 15-1.. great PQ though.. doesnt seem to do it all the time . but was sure full of hiss at lunch today

I have been receiving the PBS HD feed on 15.1 from day one and it has had this hiss sound issue from day one. Not sure why but the picture is amazing. Its not you, its the local PBS HD signal

ah well.. thanks!

Has anyone been in contact with channel 2 / 15 and inquired about the problem w/ the audio?

I listened briefly to 15-1 while at home for lunch. The noise I heard was associated with speech and would end just after speech ended. In other words there is a whishing sound associated with audio that is masked when the sound is loud and not present when the sound is quiet. It really sounded more like an FM station with multipath or mistuning then ordinary white noise. At no time was it very loud or very objectionable. Perhaps it varies with program content or program source.

The travelogue stuff had been replaced with Christmas at Branson and other shows so maybe there is hope of good viewing ahead!

PBS SOUND PROBLEMS

I have spoken to the Chief Engineer at PBS for the last four days about the sound issues, both the hissing static sound on channel 17.01 (15.01) and the total lack of sound on channel 17.02 (15.02). The Chief Engineer’s name is Curtis and has been very kind and seemingly interested to help with these issues. However he has been unwilling to acknowledge the problem is on his end. He told me today that they checked these issues on several different tuners and they all were functioning properly. He also told me he hadn't received any other complaints about sound problems. If you are experiencing these problems please call PBS at 865.595.0220 or toll free at 1.800.595.0220 to report these issues. Ask to talk directly to Curtis or leave a detailed message for him regarding these issues with your name and contact number. I don't think these problems will be fixed until more people take the time to report them. Right now I have a feeling Curtis thinks the problem is on my end. Please be nice to him as he has been very nice to me. The poor guy is stretched pretty thin now that he has to manage four towers, two analog and two digital, for ETPTV.

Thanks
Craig

I am on Charter cable in Farragut. A few days ago I tried to take in the Allison Krauss concert on HDNet, but gave up as the sound was screwed up. Echoes and drop outs. I have noticed similar problems on WVLT over the past several weeks (LSU v UGA in particular).

Anyone else?

I run coax to a Klipsch decoder. Any suggestions for troubleshooting?

I am looking for some feedback on WOAI-HD's signal quality through Time Warner (ch 104) and Grande cable (ch 304) systems. What do you think?

Feel free to email me at GregDerkowski@woai.com

Regards-

I spoke to the Chief Engineer at FOX 39 in Johnson City on Monday. His name is Jim and he was very kind and answered all of my questions. He stated that their digital channel 38 is currently not broadcasting due to some transmitter repairs and upgrades to both the analog and digital transmitters. He also stated that the digital channel 38 should be broadcasting by 12/19/03. Jim told me that with a good antenna we in Knoxville should be able to receive their digital broadcast. So we can all look forward to that!

Later
Craig

Think I will put my comments in this forum so everybody can see them. I am sure Greg is interested only in PQ and Sound, cause there's not much that I watch other than New and special events. I will make an extra effort to comment on those that are labled HD in the guide. Right now only the upconverted SD programs are on 104. Its much better than what comes in on CH4. Sound is tolerable just like all the other. Some like Discovery HD are really good a lot of the time with a mild 5.1 (effect?). I am using the new Pace STB via a DVI cable into a Sony 40XBR800. Just got the Pace on Wed so I have not had time to play with it. If there are specific pgms you want us to check let us know.

In response to your query about the quality on TWC, its fair. I've noted a significant dropout in audio that seems to happen at the delegation from network to local switcher between today/cutins and locally originated commercials during network shows. THe picture is good generally, but the audio isn't as consistent as I get on my OTA Samsung ST165. I live near Callaghan/Vance Jackson outside the loop and ususally get a good signal from Elmendorf.

hope this helps.
Chris Wallace

Regarding audio on 15-1 and 15-2.

I checked 15-1 and 15-2 at about 7:05 PM Friday evening and listened to audio on both HD and SD channels. Today, about 2:33PM I checked again and still have audio on 15-1 and on 15-2. I don't know what to suggest; however, I'm not having difficulty.

What little I watched of them today they were both working fine. I haven't experienced the audio out on 15-2 however... just the odd background noise on 15-1 at times.

Curtis got the audio fixed on PBS channel 15.02 on Friday. We should all be able to hear it now. The lack of audio was not effecting everyone indicating it was only a problem with some digital tuners. That was one of the things that made it harder for the problem to be diagnosed.

Nice work PBS.

That program from the Luther sounded terrible sunday...

glad to hear curtis was able to fix 15-2.

Has anyone picked up the HD OTA signal from Johnson city yet? My PBS sound seems a little better as well.


Happy Holidays

I have a Comcast HDTV box (Motorola 5100).

Do any of you lose some of the HD channels, in particular Showtime and HBO during rain? The local broadcast channels are solid so I don't think its a local (near my house) problem but who knows? The symptom on the 5100 is a message "This channel will be available soon" but the channel never appears. I've noticed no problem with the SD digital cable channels.

Does Comcast get Showtime HD and HBO HD from a satellite that is easily subject to rain fade?

I just now looked at the FCC database online.

WEMT, Johnson City, has an STA (special temporary authority) for 3.9 kw which is not much power at all. They also have a construction permit for 1000 kw which is maximum power. WEMT's web site does not mention DTV at all so its unknown to me whether they are very low power or full power.

I would bet on 3.9 kw which will not be easily viewable at a distance.

Now that we have all these HD channels in Knoxville I was thinking of getting my new Mitsubishi WS-65413 professionally ISF calibrated in the spring of 2004. If there are others that might want to have their HD set calibrated in the Knoxville area I will look into for us and get pricing. With enough of us interested we could get a better rate and have someone to do our sets over a weekend or something. If you might be interested let me know and I will begin to gather some information for us.

Troy

Greg Loewen from lionav.com is making a trip here in March. Pricing on the site. I have a FPTV that I may have re-ISF calibrated by another member of the team later in the year. Perhaps another tour opportunity.

Dave

TWC HD Tech dude told me over the weekend that the Explorer 8000HD DVR's are in and the employees are being asked to test them. A rollout seems very close.

Hello Knoxville HD fans,
I live in Corbin, KY and can get WATE, WBIR, WB, PAX but cannot tune
WVLT or WTNZ which are at around half the power of WATE and WBIR.
Anyone out there know if either of these two will eventually increase power? Is WTNZ broadcasting the NFL in widescreen?
Thanks
Charles

What antenna and receiver are you using to receive these signals? Corbin is a pretty good distance from Knoxville. PAX and WB are actually closer to you than Knoxville.

WBIR-DT is operating at 50% of its future full licensed power. WATE has just received permission to go full power but is not able to run full power due to equipment trouble. WVLT is then about the same power level as WBIR at this time.

I thought that WTNZ was roughly the same power level i.e. near 420kw or so and is on the same antenna as WATE (26) and WBIR (31). You might try to tune WTNZ on RF channel 34. If you do then receive them it should remap to 43-1. In a similar manner you might try to tune RF channel 30 (WVLT) which should map to 8-1. Another weaker signal to try for is RF channel 17 (WKOP) PBS Knoxville or RF channel 41 (WSJK) PBS from Sneedville.

I've not seen any wide screen or true HD from FOX.

PatrickT,
I'm using a CM 4228 with a Blonder Tongue Vaulter III plus amp into an
LG 3510a receiver/DVD player. WATE is about 65-70% with no drops while
WBIR is about 60% with really no drops either. I can get a signal from WVLT but only about 20-30% and no picture and it's about the same for
WTNZ. Occ. my receiver will remap to 43-1 with WTNZ but I've never gotten enough signal for that to happen with WVLT at 30-1.

According to the FCC website, WVLT is 390 kw while WTNZ is 460 I think.
WATE is listed as 900 and WBIR around 890kw. I'm hoping WTNZ and WVLT will eventually broadcast at comparable levels and I should be able to
tune those stations.

Are the stations not necessarily broadcasting up to the power listed at the
FCC site? If that's the case I guess only the station can tell you what their
current power level is. I have sent emails to both WVLT and WTNZ but as of yet no response.

Thanks for your help.
Charles

Thanks for the equipment report!

The information on the FCC site will be generally correct; however, you have to look further to see if the station has applied for an STA (Special Temporary Authority). For instance, WBIR is running 420kw by virtue of an STA for 50% power. Also, WVLT appears to have an STA for 230kw. WTNZ is licensed for 460kw and I don't see an STA.

I'm surprised that you can get WBIR and WATE okay but not WTNZ.
I haven't spoken to anyone at WTNZ so I'm assuming they are at full licensed power but maybe they have ongoing problems.

Expect operating hours to increase to 18 or more hours per day starting April 1st. Its unknown when the FCC will require full power (or just let the STA's expire).

PatrickT,
Thanks to you as well for educating me on how to interpret the FCC site.
The way I read it, WATE has STA for 300kw, WBIR for 420kw, and WVLT for
230kw. WVLT just applied for another STA but the specifics are not up yet.
As you said, WTNZ should be at 460kw based on the FCC site and I too am
uncertain as to why I can't receive it if they are truly at this power.

Now it makes more sense as to why I can't get WVLT, though. If I'm receiving WATE, WBIR at those stated powers then I should be able to eventually get all 4 without a problem, it's just a matter of how long it will
take for everyone to crank up the power.

Charles

I realize that Knoxville is not my viewing area, but I cannot help but wonder why it has taken your locals so long to get their digital stations up and going?

I am in Johnson City and have had all my local stations, Johnson City(cbs), Kingsport(abc) and Bristol(nbc), digital channels for quite a few months now. In fact Bristol was first in state. And not only that but they have been passing HD signals through since early summer '03.

Since Knoxville is such a bigger market area why are they lagging behind?

Jerry

I'm currently getting CBS from Hazard, KY 50 kw VHF station pegging my signal meter to 80-85%. OTOH, the NBC station in Lexington (WLEX) has yet to even establish a digital station. The Hazard station provides HD as well. The flip-side can be things like showing the "WYMT Mountain Classic"
(high school basketball) which pre-empted HD NFL football last Saturday.

Charles

WCYB did indeed go on early.

The Knoxville stations were not all that tardy.

WATE and WBIR went on with digital and have passed network HD since June 2002. WTNZ was on a few months later. WVLT was on much later due to tower construction. WKOP (PBS) went on about the same time as WVLT since they share the same newly built tower.

I just wish Charter cable would get things together and provide the rest of the available local channels. All I get is CBS and NBC.

At least I will be watching the Superbowl in HD this year. Finally!

Time Warner is now available in my neighborhood...hopefully with the Pace 550.

I've been a long-time Dish customer and am subscribing to their HDTV package as well as using their 6000 receiver for UHF OTA HD. I'm tempted to switch so that I can get the Fox Sports HD Spurs games and KLRN's digitial transmissions.

Has anyone compared TWC with Dish...SD and HD picture quality?

Thanks for any suggestions, opinion's, etc.

Abner,

I'm a fellow Dish 6000 user in San Antonio. I haven't had a chance to check out TWC's picture quality, but I think you can see it over at Bjorn's. It should be comparable to Dish Network's quality.

I know that Dish Network customers are missing out on the Spurs games on Fox Sports Southwest. I'm just holding out on TWC launching a hi def DVR. At that point, I'll drop my Dish Network subscription down to the bare minimum and enjoy the wonderful world of HD DVR! Hopefully TWC will hurry up with the rollout of the 8000HD in San Antonio.:D

Jim

I received an email from Bob Williams chief engineer at WATE and he confirmed they're currently at 300kw. He said they were beginning testing
on the full power system this weekend and hoped to be on line soon.

I've not received any replies from WVLT, WBIR, or WTNZ yet. I believe WVLT is at 230kw as stated on the FCC site which is too weak for me to receive. WBIR at 420kw makes sense as I can tune that as well. WTNZ must not be at their stated power of 460kw as I can only get a "weak" signal with no picture.

Anyway, just thought this info might be helpful to someone out there.

Charles

WBIR-DT is at 50% or 420 kw with an STA for 50%. Operating hours increase to at least 18 hours per day on April 1st. with the power still at 50%.

PatrickT,

Do you work at WBIR?
Just a hunch.

Charles

Any of you guy's receiving 5.1 audio from WATE?
My receiver shows 5.1 but I only get two channels...was getting true 5.1 until a couple months ago.

All I've received is the front two channels as well. Like you, my pre/pro shows it is a 5.1 signal.
Charles

Thanks JimboG,

I went by Bjorn's today and looked at the TWC pictures. The HDTV and digitial SD seemed the same as Dish. The analogs are of course another story.

Do you know if anyone in SA has tried Voom?

Abner

I received an email from an engineer at WBIR and 420kw is confirmed as the current broadcast power. One reason he suggested for the apparent differences in signal strength is that different parts of the uhf range may attenuate a little more over distance i.e 31 may lose a little more than 26 over long range. The other possibility he offered is that the signals may not necessarily be transmitting in a perfectly uniform pattern even if they are on the same tower. This could explain my inability to receive WTNZ although gives me less hope of receiving it in the future as well.

I'm hoping WTNZ is not actually at 460kw yet and so when they do go to full power I'll be in range.

Hopefully I'll hear from WTNZ, WVLT soon for confirmation.

Charles

Abner,

No, I don't know of anyone in San Antonio who has subscribed to Voom. There are apparently offers for $399 and even $249 installs of Voom in ten states, including Texas. That sounds pretty reasonable.

Unfortunately, at least one AVS Forum member has reported trouble getting Voom to honor their "money back guarentee. That does not sound at all reasonable.:eek:

I think I'll wait on Voom's HD DVR. If Voom is still around then and the price isn't too high I'll subscribe to Voom at that time.

Jim

Ive been using a terk 55 and a dish 6000 for ota for quite some time. I live in stone oak in a "valley" and because of this, my reception of the big three has been in the 70's at best. Recently, my kens reception has been very weak - to the extent where I cant even view the station. My kmol and ksat reception continues to be about 70. Has kens changed the way they are sending the signal? I have tried adjusting my antenna but to no avail. Any help would be much appricated!!

Kevin,

The Terk 55 is a decidedly lackluster antenna.:( At the same time, KENS-DT does seem to be more difficult to receive reliably than WOAI-DT and KSAT-DT. I don't know if this is due to effective radiated power, antenna placement, co-channel interference from a distant station, etc. At one point KENS was having some trouble with a misbehaving digital microwave Studio to Tower Link (STL). I think that problem was resolved in the summer of 2003.

Right now I'm getting 89% on WOAI-DT, 79% on KSAT-DT and about 61-65% on KENS-DT. As a side note, A Bug's Life looks really good in original aspect ratio on ABC tonight.:D

Try out a Channelmaster 4221 four bowtie antenna and see if your reception is any better. It only costs $25, but most folks report better results than with the Terk stick antennae.

Jim

Originally posted by Jerry A
I realize that Knoxville is not my viewing area, but I cannot help but wonder why it has taken your locals so long to get their digital stations up and going?

I am in Johnson City and have had all my local stations, Johnson City(cbs), Kingsport(abc) and Bristol(nbc), digital channels for quite a few months now. In fact Bristol was first in state. And not only that but they have been passing HD signals through since early summer '03.

Since Knoxville is such a bigger market area why are they lagging behind?

Jerry

Knoxville is one of the few places around that can boast ALL of its OTA stations are being broadcast digitally. I can only wish I still lived there... I think they have done a great job considering the state of other even larger markets.

JimboG - I took your advice and ordered a Channelmaster 4221 and went to home depot and bought a basic antenna amp. I put the antenna in the same spot as my terk and without even fine tuning got remarkably better reception. I now get:

WOAI 78-80%
KENS 68-69%
KSAT 73-75%
KABB 74-75%
KLRN 55-56%

Considering I didnt even receive a signal for KENS, KABB, or KLRN, this is a huge improvement. Thanks for the advise - you saved my super bowl party!!

Hello All,
Just curious, Here it is superbowl Sunday, and Can't get squat for KENSDT OTA. KSAT, WOAI, KLRN, KABB, KVDA, KWEX all have good signals. I called the station and of course they said that they're "fine" OTA HD. Any feedback whether this is true. I live near Vance Jackson and Callaghan, and with the others I get good signal. Very odd.
Thanks,
Chris W.

I just watched the second half OTA in Fair Oaks Ranch. No problems at all. Did your's clear up?

No, Unfortunately. I gave up at around halftime. Oh well. Just seems odd. Thanks for the reply.

CL..what are you using to receive HDTV. I'm using a Samsung 150 STB and had some trouble receiving KENS last summer. That problem cleared up and it was rock solid until a few months ago and then it flaked out again. I get a signal but it will block out a lot and is basically unwatchable. Jerry at KENS says they didn't change anything but seems strange. BTW I'm close to Seaworld and get all other channel very well. I understand that KENS is transmitting at a lower power but seems funny that it came in clear as a bell for months and then kaput. This is just FYI.

Sandy,
I think you hit on it that by being at a lower power, since they're on the cable, it's not as good. I used to be in television management, and UHF transmitters are much more expensive to run since they take more energy than VHF. VHF is also better in variable terrain. UHF doesn't do so well in little valleys like we have as we get closer to the hill country. I'm also using a Samsung but the SIR-T165 so I can record it. Was really looking forward to the commercials and the, now infamous, halftime show. Not to mention regular shows.

Bottom line is that I think KENS is trying to save money since the cable penetration is so high, it makes their having to spend the $$ on the UHF digital transmission less.

I sincerely doubt it's a function of the Samsung hard/software.
Thanks for the added insight!!
CLW

For anybody in this area that needs a real good antenna I have a 16 foot Radio Shack antenna brand new in the box for $35. You would have to pick it up from NW SAn Antonio since the box is about 10 feet long. PM me here if interested.

jr

I am new to this whole HDTV thing - so I am trying to quickly get up to speed. However, some questions come to mind ...

1. How is anybody testing OTA signal strength? I don't seem to find that option on my Sony HD 200 DTV box.

2. While I get WOAI (KMOL for us ancient San Antonians) in HD reception very few of there HD offering appear to be in native widescreen, with the exception of an occasional Jay Leno. While the image is quite sharp at 1080i (fixed), I thought the whole HDTV was suppose to be predominantly widescreen with commercials and other exceptions being in the traditional 4:3 NTSC format?

3. Are the big three still airing on UHF, or have the fully converted to the 4.1, 5.1, 5.2, 12.1, and 12.2? I am only recieving the big three on these stations -- not any UHF signals and at that somewhat spotty.

4. I live in the Callaghan / Vance Jackson area, and I got all of the SAT HD 200 for the superbowl, which interestingly I couldn't get KENS reception until afterwards (I personally think the local TWC, which has WAY TOO STRONG of a pull with our council, had something to do with that) -- any thoughts? I am using a crappy Magnovox SCP030 indoor antenna -- I know this has something to do with my spotty HD reception -- any thoughts on "In the attic antennas" , I really don't want an antenna array on my roof?

Thanks in advance for any advice or thoughts.

jsha

Originally posted by jshadams
I am new to this whole HDTV thing - so I am trying to quickly get up to speed. However, some questions come to mind ...

1. How is anybody testing OTA signal strength? I don't seem to find that option on my Sony HD 200 DTV box.

2. While I get WOAI (KMOL for us ancient San Antonians) in HD reception very few of there HD offering appear to be in native widescreen, with the exception of an occasional Jay Leno. While the image is quite sharp at 1080i (fixed), I thought the whole HDTV was suppose to be predominantly widescreen with commercials and other exceptions being in the traditional 4:3 NTSC format?

3. Are the big three still airing on UHF, or have the fully converted to the 4.1, 5.1, 5.2, 12.1, and 12.2? I am only recieving the big three on these stations -- not any UHF signals and at that somewhat spotty.

4. I live in the Callaghan / Vance Jackson area, and I got all of the SAT HD 200 for the superbowl, which interestingly I couldn't get KENS reception until afterwards (I personally think the local TWC, which has WAY TOO STRONG of a pull with our council, had something to do with that) -- any thoughts? I am using a crappy Magnovox SCP030 indoor antenna -- I know this has something to do with my spotty HD reception -- any thoughts on "In the attic antennas" , I really don't want an antenna array on my roof?

Thanks in advance for any advice or thoughts.

jsha

1. Your HD200 remote should have a "signal" button on it. Press that and it gives a bar signal strength indication. No numbers, so you kinda have to estimate how far down the bar it is.

2. I think NBC has less HD shows than the other networks. 4.1 is an upconvert of all non-HD programming and of course, native HD is shown as is. I don't watch much NBC, so I'm not sure what is in HD on their network. I think ER is and I know Leno is. You might want to check TitanTV, although it's not always accurate.

3. I get the big three OTA both at their HD broadcasts and non-HD. E.g., I get CBS at OTA 5 and 5.1 (and the radar at 5.2).

4. I had no problem with the Superbowl on KENS. It was a great picture. I used to live at I-10 and Dezavala and had little problem receiving any of the big 3 there. Now I live in the Bitters/Blanco area and have no problem here either. I use a ChannelMaster "Stealth" antenna that I got at Lowes. I have high signal strength on the big 3. I even get the Fox digital broadcast, but it's not well done.

THX joe,

Are you aware of a way to get to signal strength without the remote? I bought the unit from Bjorns for very cheap as a out-of-the-box deal and no remote. Since I own a Sony KF-60XBR800 my tv remote works with the STB -- but does not have a signal button.

I will probably have to try a different antenna -- I had also tried an old amplified "in the attic" 360 degree antenna with even worse results.

Curiously, you mentioned ER -- when I watch ER it is in letterbox but in the 4:3 format, so I have black on all sides of the image. I don't get this when I watch HD from KENS, KLRN (particularily 9.2), or KSAT -- could something be wrong with my unit?

jsha

I called KENS and they ARE at low power. They plan on 2005 to go up, I suspect it's not only capital but budgetary.

As in an earlier post, there's no motivation on a TV station's part to be at full power on it's secondary channels before they have to if the cable penetration is so high and the signal's going out anyway. I agree it stinks.

I, too, live at Callaghan/Vance Jackson area and this is somewhat lower than other areas around, certainly lower than the I10/callaghan area, and couldn't get KENS at all to record, but only have OTA for HD recording.

Chris W.

Hi All,
I've been lurking around this great site for the past couple of months researching which RPTV to buy.
I didn't originally plan to get an integrated set, but the model I like has other features that force me to get the integrated unit.
Now I have to figure out which antenna to buy that would be the most effective for my area. I live in the IH10/VanceJackson area.
Forgive me if I've missed anything, as I haven't read this entire thread...only the past few posts. I notice someone posted the ChannelMaster 4221 as being a good antenna. Is this a model that most of you would recommend for use here in SA?
BTW, I currently have a DISH 508 and will soon buy the DISH HD 811. I'm not too crazy about putting up an antenna on the roof, but it appears that those clip-on antennas for the DISH aren't effective in this area. Thanks!!

I just purchased the clip-on antenna for my dish tonight with better than expected results -- I recieved all of the channels fairly strong except Channel 5 which I continuously have issues with ... and I not too far away from IH10 and Vance Jackson. I really didn't want an antenna on top of my roof and this was a last ditch effort before I returned the whole HD STB.

Interestingly ... Jay Leno appeared in Widescreen again this evening it looked very nice in the 1080i format. However, ER was presented in LB format via 4:3 framing thus having black edges on all four sides of the image. Was this the same for everybody else -- or is it my HD unit????

Thanks,

jsha

<snip>Originally posted by jshadams
I just purchased the clip-on antenna for my dish tonight with better than expected results -- I recieved all of the channels fairly strong except Channel 5 which I continuously have issues with ... and I not too far away from IH10 and Vance Jackson. I really didn't want an antenna on top of my roof and this was a last ditch effort before I returned the whole HD STB.
Thanks,

jsha <snip>

Thanks jsha.....BTW, which clip-on did you get? I've noticed there are several different types of models.That sounds promising.
I lost the site, but noticed there was one place that sells an omnidirectional antenna that fits over the dish. It's like a thin plastic dish that fits over the dish.

EZ2BME,

I would heartily recommend the Channelmaster 4221 over a clip on antenna. If you're really concerned about aesthetics, try an indoor Silver Sensor or Radioshack double bowtie antenna. You could also try mounting a Channelmaster 4221 or 4228 in your attic. Of course your best reception will be from a traditional metal outdoor antenna mounted on your roof. Have fun with all the wonderful hi def content in the San Antonio area!:D

Jim

Originally posted by JimboG
EZ2BME,

I would heartily recommend the Channelmaster 4221 over a clip on antenna. If you're really concerned about aesthetics, try an indoor Silver Sensor or Radioshack double bowtie antenna. You could also try mounting a Channelmaster 4221 or 4228 in your attic. Of course your best reception will be from a traditional metal outdoor antenna mounted on your roof. Have fun with all the wonderful hi def content in the San Antonio area!:D

Jim

Thanks.....
I'll get the Channelmaster 4221 or 28 and will mount it outside, as I want the best reception. I'll locate a local vendor for this, as I won't be buying my RPTV until I have all of my HT stuff ready....and I'm just about there, thanks to guidance from this site.:)

I wanted to wait a few days to report on the reception with the clip-on ... I seem to get great reception during the evening and primetime events on weekends. The daytime, however, has been lackluster (curious). So if performance 24-7 it the highest priority then probably one of the other antennas are better suited. Fortunately for me, I am mostly concerned with the evening reception since that is the only time I get to watch television. Additionally, aesthetics are extemely important in my small community, and being the president of the HOA, I can't exactly go stick a huge mast antenna -- I would probably hear something about LOL.

Thanks for all of the info.

If anyone knows of a way to get the signal strength off of the Sony HD200 without using the remote, I am most interested in that information.

Much Obliged,

JSHA

Originally posted by JimboG
Abner,

No, I don't know of anyone in San Antonio who has subscribed to Voom. There are apparently offers for $399 and even $249 installs of Voom in ten states, including Texas. That sounds pretty reasonable.

Unfortunately, at least one AVS Forum member has reported trouble getting Voom to honor their "money back guarentee. That does not sound at all reasonable.:eek:

I think I'll wait on Voom's HD DVR. If Voom is still around then and the price isn't too high I'll subscribe to Voom at that time.

Jim

I took the plunge and got Voom's $399 deal with no monthly charge until 3/31. Today they announced that customers signing up prior to 3/20 will get a $300 credit which can be applied to future programming or additional hardware (e.g. their new HD PDR).

The local installer seemed to know what he was doing. At my suggestion, we just reused my existing Channelmaster 4228 and 61.5 dish (not diplexed). We simply "spliced" arround my "dish" switch and swapped the two STB's. After about 30 minutes, I was in the Voom business. We spent another hour checking out the remote, guide, etc.

So far my experience has been as good as with Dish...plus their program guide includes our local digital stations. Their STB local receptions seems just as good or better than my 6000. A few software glitches but nothing I can't live with...the 6000 must have pre-conditioned me to expect problems.

A new software release is expected within a week.

So far so good...with lots more HD!

Anyone have a contact at the Comcast of Knoxville Office?

I am sick and tired of dealing with CSR's that dont have a clue....



Cipro

I was getting WATE in HD all last fall (monday night football) now it doesn't come in at all, I get all the other channels CBS, PBS, PBS HD, NBC, FOX, WB, etc.

I am in Maryville, have they change the wattage or something?

I had a few glitches in my signal tonite. There may be a problem with the transmitter or maybe it's weather related but I still was able to have pretty much a drop-free signal. Their CE told me a few weeks ago that they are now at full power (930kw). Maybe they are performing some sort of adjustment/maintenance. I'm still working on FOX and CBS but have been getting NBC,ABC without problems for several months.

Charles

hotshot. I also live in Maryville and I am getting WATE (ABC) fine (93- 100%) on my Hughes E86. As a matter of fact, WATE is my most consistant signal along with NBC and FOX. CBS somedays good and other times not. CBS has been very good the last couple of weeks with limited dropouts. PBS and the WB are hit or miss depending on the weather here in Maryville.

I live in a pretty low area and am using an amp to get a high capture signal. I have found that signals tend to, at some point, just go away without reason. I have moved the location of the antenna mount twice to regain signal.

I live in a difficult low area next to the bluffs along the Tennessee river. Analog reception is practically impossible with antenna at my house, but I now get perfect reception of CBS, NBC, ABC,PBS, and FOX digital with a deep fringe antenna in the attic. I can't get WB at all. If I get a second fringe antenna and stack it pointed in the appropriate direction will that work if I connect them together or will it ruin the reception I already get on the other locals? For various reasons I don't want to use a rotator. Too difficult to run another wire, and the antenna cannot turn unimipeded because of obstructions.
Larry

The second antenna needs a separate cable to your receiver and as a practical matter you would want a switch to make changing antennas easier. If you summed the two antennas together with a splitter used "backwards" the probability is that you would increase the multipath and make reception worse for the channels you now receive okay. There is also the probability that (depends on cable length and phasing) that some of the signals would cancel instead of adding together.

If you wanted to experiment , you could turn your existing antenna to see if you could pick up WB. It might be that they are not receivable at your location even with a good antenna. That would save you the trouble of a second antenna and coax. If they are receivable, you could then decide whether or not the extra antenna is worth the effort.

Larry,
If you can pick up the WB by rotating the antenna, get a second antenna and use a channelmaster jointenna for the desired channel (have to order the specific jointenna for the channel) to combine your antennas. That saves having to run another wire. See http://www.channelmaster.com/images/CouplerApps.gif and go to the products section under "passives" at channelmaster.com

Charles

That coupler is an interesting device. If you go that route be sure to order the coupler based on the RF channel needed and not the "remapped" channel.

How expensive is the coupler?

I saw it here http://shop.store.yahoo.com/dishplace--dot--com/1355.html for 35.00 but I'm not sure that's the best price out there. Good advice about using the actual RF channel, would be a possible pitfall and source of frustration.

Charles

Hi,

I am getting all of the Knoxville stations on my newly set up antenna except for WVLT (CBS, channel 30). When I look at the FCC sight under the Special Temporary Authority section, it indicates that WVLT is currently running 230. kW ERP. If I look at WKOP (PBS, channel 17), it is listed under the Temporary Authority section as running 100. kW ERP. I get PBS fine, but can't get CBS. As I understand it, they are on the same antenna (I read this earlier in this thread), and if these power levels are right, the station with much lower power off the same anteanna is the one I can receive. I know that CBS has a higher channel number which will cause their signal not to travel as far with the same amount of power, but they have a signifigant amount more power than PBS, so it seems I should be able to receive them fine. I am in Loudon (exit past Lenoir City, Sugar Limb exit). Does anyone have any idea why I can't get CBS?

Thanks.

Sean Dudley

I don't believe they are at 230kw. I've tried on multiple occasions to email their CE Doug Stallard but he won't respond. They have an STA for 230kw and also one for 5kw. I'll bet they are at very low power, especially if you can't get it from there. I've been trying from Corbin, too, but so far with no success. I should be able to get it at 230kw from up here with my antenna setup as it is now, obviously, they are at lower power than that.

Charles

Just wanted to give anyone a heads up that was thinking of getting your HD set calibrated that Eliab from Avical will be in Knoxville mid May. He did my set 2 years ago and it made a night and day difference in my Mits HD 65" set. If you want the most of your set you should get it calibrated, He is flying in from NJ. If anyone might be interested in a calibration or get more inforamtion on it go to www.avical.com and check it out.
Drop me an email and get a better rate for us if there are more of us that need their set done.

Its not everyday a high quality calibrator comes to the Knoxville area.

Troy

Why is NBC 10-1 broadcasting in 4:3? I don't want grey bars on my display.

Originally posted by DaveN
Why is NBC 10-1 broadcasting in 4:3? I don't want grey bars on my display.

ER is apparently the only thing in HD on NBC tonight, so that would probably explain the 4:3.

I got my antenna up this week and I'm getting all the channels with the possible exception of WB? I'm along Alcoa Highway and fortuneatly not right up next or on the wrong side of one of those big ridges along the river. I get the analog WB, badly, but I've yet to see anything but black screen on the digital. Either I don't get it or it's not on lately. I haven't actually checked it today. Actually, for the time being I don't care. Maybe it'll get be worthwhile someday? Mas HD por favor!!!

Unfortunately WB is in or around Crossville, and all of the other Knoxville stations are on or near Sharps Ridge. So, to get all the stations except WB, you point towards Sharps Ridge. Unfortunately for me, there is a big hill between me and Crossville, so it isn't possible for me to pick up WB, but I do get all of the stations transmitting from Knoxville. I wish WB would put up a digital tower on Sharps Ridge!

Sean Dudley

WB is licensed to Crossville but the transmitter is on Windrock mountain. The nearest city is Oliver Springs. I can get the NTSC signal unwatchable with multiple and moving ghosts. If I carefully adjust the antenna (outside with rotor) I can get the digital (no ghosts!) I haven't watched them for some time.

Are they doing any real HD? ie 1080i or 720p at 16:9 aspect ratio?

PatrickT,
I've never seen WB do any HD. I emailed them awhile back though and was told it was in the works. The channel maps as "SD" on my LG tuner which in my experience means they don't have the cabability because they don't upconvert their signal. Interestingly, FOX upconverts to 1080i but obviously they don't do HD yet (I've never seen any widescreen, either).

Since I've been tweaking my antenna setup I can now get the PBS-HD from Sneedville, which is pretty cool. I'm assuming you guys get the Knoxville PBS on ch. 17 which also has PBS-HD?. I've yet to lock on that one or CBS. Still working on it though. Anybody ever get WUNF from Asheville? I can get it intermittently but it's pretty sporadic depending on conditions. It's channel 25 if you want to try.

Charles

I'm not able to see PBS from Sneedville although I know some Knox county people with large antennas have been able to get reception. PBS on RF 17 (maps to channel 15-1 and 15-2) has an HD feed on 15-1 and the regular PBS SD feed on 15-2. (I was hoping the Tesla special would be in HD but it wasn't)

CBS is still relatively low power so you may be able to pick them up when they increase power. They have the same height and are located close to the other Knoxville stations.

I can't see anything from the transmitters on Mt. Pisgah. Channel 13 has been on Mt. Pisgah since the 50's and can be received if you live on top of a good hill in Knox county. I'm well below the ridgetops toward WLOS or WUNF so no NTSC or DTV reception from Pisgah.

If you have ever driven on the Blue Ridge Parkway, Mt. Pisgah is a 2 mile or so hike up to the tower base.

I've also not received anything from Chattanooga where I have a reasonably good shot down the valley.

Comcast Update for Knoxville


Comcast is now installing the DVR, just got mine monday...works great.....


Also

WVLT is going to multicast the Masters on the Digital Station Thursday and Friday....

Whoo-Hooo


Cip

Hello everyone,
I have been visiting here for a while now. I just got my first HDTV in Feb. Panasonic PT-53WXD63. I am using a set of RCA amped rabbit ears and am able to get WATE-DT, WVLT-DT, WBIR-DT, 10NEWS2, WKOP-HD (PBS HD), WKOP-SD (PBS SD), WBXX-DT, and WTNZ-DT. I am not able to get PAX, but have a friend who does with an outside ant. I am thinking of putting one up myself. Our cable co, Communicom, has the HD stations "passing through" but I am unable to get them. I am able to get their digital music channels and pay per view preview channel.

Harold,
You are getting alot of DTV from a set of rabbit ears in New Tazewell.
That's across the state line from Middlesboro, right?
I'm in Corbin and with an outdoor dual antenna array at about 8 ft above my garage and with a relatively unobstructed view toward the south, I can't manage WKOP or WVLT. Jellico Mtn. must be a real obstruction for me.

PAX is transmitting south of Jellico so will be directionally more westerly for you I would think than the others. There may be some terrain issues in between as well, but I'd think you could be successful with a modest outdoor antenna. I'd try simply repositioning your current one first. Welcome to the quest. You can expect some frustration along the way, but it's worth it IMO.

You should try uhf ch. 41 PBS from Sneedville as well as the FOX ch. 38 in Greeneville. It may also be worth it to try the Bristol stations (unless I'm incorrect on where New Tazewell is).

Charles

Yes, right across from Middlesboro. Cumberland Gap. I used to live in Bell Co. Ky. Do you know where Kettle Island is? Anyway, I was also suprised by the amout of HD I was able to get. I understand about Pax, and thats why I was thinking of going with an outdoor ant. The friend I have has picked up some HD out of KY also. Not sure which ones. Nice to here from someone from Corbin. Had an Aunt who lived in Grey ( or is it Gray?) I am sure I will do the outdoor ant, when my wife lets me. LOL. I will let you know what I get. I will also see if I can find out what Tim, the friend, is getting and post it. I wish I could get some Ky HD. I would love to see my Wildcats play in HD or at least SD.

Harold,
It's Gray as far as I know. Depending on your elevation in firing across Cumberland Gap, it might be worth it to try for WUPX ch. 21 from Morehead (PAX) as well as WYMT ch. 12 (VHF) CBS from Hazard. I receive both of these with strong signals in Corbin and they're both at full power. I use a CM Stealthtenna for the VHF. They're available at Lowe's. The CM 7778 equivalent preamp is also available there and is VHF/UHF with combo or seperate inputs. The CM 7777 is what I use and has the same features but with a little higher gain and lower noise. They're available at Solidsignal.com, a sponsor of this site. For an outdoor UHF antenna, you can't go wrong with the CM 4228 of which I happen to have one that I used before I went crazy with horizontal stacking. PM me if you're interested.

Charles

P.S. The CM 7778 equivalent is called the Spartan and the only difference is it has a plastic case while the 7778 is aluminum.

Thanks for the info. I spoke to Tim, he also install Dish, he is getting WYMT. I forgot what ant he is using, but I my try it. I am a little higher in elevation then he is so I should have no problem. He said he could get me everything I need at cost. Thanks again. Who knows I may run into you at the Chicken Fest. I went about 4 years ago and am thinking of going back. LOL.

Anybody called Comcast or Charter and gotten a firewire box yet? According to the FCC, on the 1st of April they are required to supply a firewire box like the motorola 6200.

Originally posted by PatrickT
WB is licensed to Crossville but the transmitter is on Windrock mountain. The nearest city is Oliver Springs. I can get the NTSC signal unwatchable with multiple and moving ghosts. If I carefully adjust the antenna (outside with rotor) I can get the digital (no ghosts!) I haven't watched them for some time.

Are they doing any real HD? ie 1080i or 720p at 16:9 aspect ratio?

Thanks for the info! With this information, I found that I can get WB with another antenna. Unfortunately WB doesn't pass HD yet. I called them and asked when, and the lady that answered the phone said she thinks in 2006! I talked to someone else who said she would double-check and call me back next week with a more percise time. If I hear back, I will post here again. Such a bummer, I'd really like to watch some of those shows on the WB, but hate watching 4x3 standard def stuff.

I just called FOX to see when they are going to start passing widescreen, and was told in September when FOX offers hi-def material. He said they weren't interested in passing along the widescreen unless is was hi-def.

Somebody mentioned that WVLT was going to multicast the masters on Thursday and Friday.

I tried to watch the masters on Thursday and on WVLT-DT all I could get was old reruns of Andy Griffith Show. I tried channel 84 the special events channel on Directv and thank goodness there it was USA HD feed of the masters. Except for the rain delay on Thursday it was glorious HD (same as we had on WVLT on Saturday and Sunday). Thank goodness for Directv.

Also I've noticed that I was unable to get PBS for the last few days. It scanned to 15-1 on my receiver. I tried rescanning it and it now scans to 17-1. Anyone know why?
Larry

I have noticed it is on 17-1 and the sd feed on 17-2. Also The label for the PBS channel does not come up. I had not noticed untill I had to scan for my channels after having a service guy do a little tweaking in the service menu for me. I had been getting some noise on some of the programing on pbs, but they seem to have fixed it now.

PBS is back on 15-1 and 15-2. Not sure what was going on.

Did everyone in San Antonio stop watching HDTV (OTA,cable,dish, VOOM)??

Originally posted by paulbehnke
Did everyone in San Antonio stop watching HDTV (OTA,cable,dish, VOOM)??

No way!!....I'm watching KLRN right now in HD. I don't know about the rest of you here in SA, but I seem to get the best HD picture from KLRN. I'm only using OTA right now for HD, but will soon change my dish svc to HD. I'm moving soon, so I decided to hold up on ordering any changes until the move is complete.

Just thought I'd let everyone know that according to the CE at WTNZ, they'll be ready to go with their HD broadcast by FOX's planned launch date of Sep 12.

Also, I've noticed that WVLT has applied for their DT license to cover at the FCC site. This means that construction is complete on their full power transmitter, right? Hopefully, they'll increase power soon.

Charles

I was able to briefly tune both of these stations this morning at about 8 a.m. I've noticed they've both recently applied for licenses to cover at the FCC site. It could be weather conditions but one can only hope they are readying for full or at least increased power. Anybody else notice any changes?

Charles

Are any of you watching via Comcast in Knoxville? I've noticed WATE is no longer viewable on the Comcast box but is viewable over-the-air.

Is it time to call Comcast and get my digital cable box replaced?

It was off last night but back on now.....

I assumed it was a ABC issue....glad I did not call and scream......


I cant count the number of times I have called CBS and ABC and asked the guys to

Flip the switch

:)

Cip

I finally got an HDTV about a month ago. I live near Babcock and 410. Even though the antenna towers are supposedly south of the city, my antenna pointed north west is the only way I can get signals. I can get ABC, NBC and CBS at about 75% strength with the antenna pointed out the nearby window while on top of my TV. (the reason I get nothing when I point it sound may be because I live in the northmost room of the house and pointing it south probably has problems because there are many brick walls in the way. KLRN and Fox are the hardest to get. I really do not care about Fox because the analog TWC feed looks about just as good as their digital SD channel. When they have a 1080i channel, I might care. I can get KLRN at 50% if I point the antenna in a slightly different direction. 50% seems good enough to get a solid picture without any loss in quality.

So what it all comes down to, is I can get all that is offered but I have a lot of trouble with Fox. As stated, I don't really care, the analog looks fine. However, when they do add a HD channel, it will probably be on the same antenna and I may have a hard time getting a signal. Does anyone know if they are ever going HD in San Antonio? If not, I don't have anything to worry about.

It was a Comcast issue. I have both an off-air and a Comcast box.

I don't know the actual nature of the problem but they are back on cable today.

Is ABC 6-1 off air? I was unable to get it last night or today. May be the wind.

WATE was off of Comcast cable over the weekend but on-the-air otherwise. This morning they were on-air and on cable (at 7:00 AM)

Thanks. They have been on here on my cable, its the HD 6-1 OTA that I am not getting now.

I've not had any problems with WATE up here (OTA of course).
No further luck on WVLT, WKOP. Must have been tropo. I had some more tropo this morning and was able to watch WJHL-DT from Bristol for a bit.
I'm still hopeful, though, as far as WVLT, WKOP are concerned. I'm pretty sure if they've both applied for their licenses and have completed construction that they'll at least use their omnidirectional antennas at lower power soon. Any comments out there? PatrickT, what do you think?

Charles

I have a friend located in Knoxville (zip 37920) that is considering either OTA HD or via COMCAST. Can anyone in this area tell us how easy it will be to receive the network channels via a roof or attic mounted UHF ant. aimed due North to Sharps Ridge. She is down in a valley.

One thing about Comcast is they now have the Mot 6208 PVR that will timeshift HD material.

It only holds about 10 HRs HD material and the interface is nothing compared to TiVo.........but it sure is nice to get to watch HD when you want.



my .02


(Comcast does not advertise this Box yet...but they do have it)

Cip

I just hooked up an attenna in the attic. I am receiving the following:
WATE 6-01D
WBIR 10-01D
10New 10-02D
WKOP 15-01HD
15-02D
WVLT 30-01D
I scanned these stations at appx. 3PM. Will check later in prime time
for HD. I am appx. 5.5 to 6 miles from the antennas on Sharp's Ridge.

Hi there! New to this forum, in fact this is my first post! I live in the NE part of San Antonio....near I-35 and 1604. I want to get HDTV programming. I just dont want to attach an ugly antenna to my house. I currently have direct tv for my programming. How good are the dish clip on antenna's? anybody on here use one??

Most of the Broadcast towers are located in the vicinity of Brauning Lake,SE of town or SSW of your area. A indoor might work depending how sensitive your Tuner is. Sears in Rolling Oaks did have the Silver Sensor in stock...hook it up and give it a try and the will take it back (they can't tell that you have used it. By the way is a antenna that much uglier than a dish?

Citico,
You should be able to receive WTNZ ch 34 (maps to 43) as well.
Charles

cpcat,
Can't receive a strong enough signal to watch WTNZ. I had 43 & 50(not
sure what station that was) but both were only about 43 on the meter.

Urbinat, you might want to check out www.antennaweb.org for some help. Plug in your address and it will give you the magnetic bearings and distance to the stations. The plames at Randolph may cause problems esp with PBS which is Channel 8 and not in the UHF spectrum with the other HDTV broadcasters. That and not wanting to shell out another $500 for HD tuner are the reasons why went with TWC. Besides some sports, ABC & CBS don't offer a lot that I like...besides I would not miss the Sopranos on HBO in HD and 5.1 sound!

I live in Universal City, just off IH 35 and 1604. I had to go with the CM 4222 to get a consistent signal from KENS (75-85% with no breakup). NBC and ABC are no problem, usually in the high 80s low 90s. KABB is in the low 70s but continually tears. Did better in the winter before the leaves came out on nearby trees.

Citico,
50 is WB in Crossville. WTNZ's tower is on Sharp's Ridge as well and they are supposedly at full power (460kw) omnidirectional. WTNZ will occ. breakup for me but mostly it's solid. I'm 65 mi. away in Corbin. You may need to tweek your antenna aim slightly to pick it up. It should be the same bearing as WATE, WBIR while WVLT, WKOP will be slightly west of that. To get the specific bearings to the digitals in your range you can go tohttp://www.2150.com/broadcast/default.asp
and punch in your latitude/longitude per the directions at the site.

Charles

Thanks Charles,
Will give the antenna move a try with your instructions. I am brand new to
this and need all the help I can get. I am using the $12.99 antenna from
Sears(Jensen TV620). I may need to bite the bullet and get a better one.

I bet you'll get WTNZ with a little experimentation. WB may be more difficult because it's off-bearing to the others. If you end up getting another antenna, I'd say consider the CM 4221 for your location. It should have a wide enough beamwidth to pick up all of the channels you're after without the need for a rotor. I think it's around 30 bucks.

Charles

Thanks Again Charles,
Where can I get the CM 4221? Is it multidirectional or directional?

Paul,

Do you have a Scientific Atlanta 8000HD? I switched from Dish Network about a month ago. The HD from the 8000 box is subtlely less sharp than the picture from the Dish 6000, but it is mighty cool to finally be able to timeshift HD programming.:D I kind of miss ESPN, but TWC has everything else that Dish has in HD plus InHD and InHD2. I'll probably stick with cable when I move to Washington, DC this summer.

For the other folks in San Antonio, if you want to receive local stations over the air, try a Radioshack double bowtie, Silver Sensor from Sears or a Channelmaster 4221, 4228 or 4248. There are some other antennae that work, but any of the above choices should work far better than a Terk or a crappy clip-on antenna.

Finally, does anyone know about Sinclair passing HD and/or TWC adding more HD channels any time soon? I'll be out of the local are soon, but I have a feeling my wife and I will be back to San Antonio eventually. It would be good to get some more channels in San Antonio soon. (I know, we're spoiled.)

Jim

Jim, I using a Pace DC 550 supplied by TWC and have it set in the "pass thru" mode so it sends my Sony40XBR800 either the 1080i signal (on the HD stations) or 480i for the others. I only use it to watch HD via the DVI output. Seems to be pretty good since I can easily tell when a program is in true HD or simply a good upconverted 1080i format. It appears to degrade SD signals slightly so i bypass the box for all other programs unless it some other program in TWC channels 200 & up that I want to watch. It's a good way to kill an hour in the middle of the night!

The CM 4221 is available at multiple online retailers. Try Solidsignal, Starkelectronics, Warren Electronics. You can also probably find someone locally as well. Go to the CM website and do a dealer search if you want someone local. Lowes carries CM but I don't think they have the 4221.

It's a directional antenna but has a beamwidth of 30-40 degrees so I believe that should allow you to pick up the locals without having to use a rotor.
The 4228 is highly recc. as well but it's a little more directional, bigger, and a little more expensive. I don't think you could go wrong with either but if you go bigger you'll need to consider space factors in your attic as well as the size of the access door (I've heard that some folks end up actually disassembling their antenna to get it up there). You can compare the relative bearings of the stations you receive with the beamwidth of the antenna to get a rough idea regarding the directionality you need. In general, higher directionality=greater multipath rejection so there is some advantage to that but the disadvantage is a greater chance of needing a rotor for an off-bearing station. Expect more multipath problems if you have obstuction of line-of-site such as buildings, trees, mountains between you and the transmitter.



Charles

Thanks Charles: Will proceed with the 4221. Will let you know how it works out. The price is very reasonable. My stations are located from my house
at an azimuth heading from app. 31 degrees to 39 degrees. I am about
5.5 to 6 miles from the towers on Sharp's ridge. That azimuth heading includes all the OTA stations I wish to receive. Line of sight is fairly good.

Watching CSI on CBS in 4x3. Whats up with that? Is it a local screw up? I thought it switched automatic. Well just as I typed the above, it came back on 16 x 9. But is it automatic?

No, nothing automatic about it. The guy in the control room has to remember to flip a switch and sometimes they forget. I used to have to call my CBS station in Hazard constantly but it's gotten better.

Charles

Originally posted by paulbehnke
Urbinat, you might want to check out for some help. Plug in your address and it will give you the magnetic bearings and distance to the stations. The plames at Randolph may cause problems esp with PBS which is Channel 8 and not in the UHF spectrum with the other HDTV broadcasters. That and not wanting to shell out another $500 for HD tuner are the reasons why went with TWC. Besides some sports, ABC & CBS don't offer a lot that I like...besides I would not miss the Sopranos on HBO in HD and 5.1 sound!

Thanks for the info. I might just decide to go with TWC. Are you satisfied with their HDTV service and choices? I still want to keep my dish because i like the NFL Sunday ticket in the fall.

Thanks, by the way I did get ABC 6-1 back in. I had to re-scan my digital channels. Seems like they could make it automatic somehow. It would take human error out. Anyway it still looked better than on cable. :)

cpcat: Charles: The 4221 did not pull in all my OTA stations. Got a
Zenith ZHD-TVI Digital antenna from Sears and bingo, I now get
all the stations. Where I was getting around 80 on the meter on the
more powerful stations, I am now getting 91 to 93 on the meter.
I am a happy camper. Will change over to VOOM as soon as my Dish
contract expires in a few months.

Thanks for the help. Your referral to BC Television Station Search was most helpful.

My cable co. (Communicomm) says they will be adding UPN HD to their line up soon. Does UPN even have a HD signal yet?

UPN will be added as a second SD channel to channel 8's digital leaving the low power station on channel 32 without a network, AFAIK

That would suggest no HD on UPN yet if that's the only source. For those of you who are close enough to receive WVLT, are they multicasting the UPN yet?

I'm hoping WVLT, WKOP will increase power soon.

Charles

Ok, I get WVLT OTA, should I be able to get UPN when its up then? I also noticed WTNZ moved to ch. 34-1.

If you can get WVLT as 8-1 then you should get UPN when they add it to their program stream. I'm not sure of the startup date but I didn't find any new program channels when I scanned last night.

FYI, WTNZ is RF channel 34 but should map to 43-1 (the same as their NTSC channel). The channel remapping is supposed to help the viewer know who they are watching but when it doesn't work correctly it just causes confusion.

Thanks for the info on UPN. BTW, WTNZ was on 43-1 on mine and changed to 34-1 just on tuesday. They may be working on something, I have noticed that PBS has done this once and went back. It was 43-1 when I turned it on then changed on the screen to 34-1 and has stayed there. I even re-scanned, but still maps to 34-1. No big deal.

Anybody else notice WB has been off of the air (DT) all weekend? I wonder what they are doing. I'm an eternal optimist so I'm obviously wondering if it has something to do with providing HD soon.

Charles

Yes, I have noticed it also. By the way I noticed that WTNZ (Fox) is now 720p instead of 1080i. Am I right, wasn't Fox 1080i before? Wonder why the change if thats right. I don't know why they would change, most HDTV's do 1080i, but not all do 720p. (Mine upconverts real nice:D ). I may be wrong about the change from 1080i to 720p, but I was almost sure of it. Well if I'm wrong someone will correct me I am sure:p .

WB is back on but with no changes that I could tell. If you're right about FOX, it could be part of them gearing up for 720p HD in the fall. Their CE told me via email awhile back that they would be ready by the Sep 12 launch date for FOX HD.

Charles

Has anyone been having audio-video synch issues with WOAI's (NBC) OTA digital broadcast? It was very bad during the kentucky derby and still present for the preakness and last night's Crossing Jordan.

Yes, I have noticed the lip-sync problems here and there on WOAI via TWC. I try to ignore it though. On a positive note, I think the picture quality on the NBC HD primetime shows has been excellent this year.

jr

Well, shortly after posting my audio-video synch issues with WOAI, I emailed them. To their credit, they responded very quickly. They say they are aware of the issue and have ordered new equipment to correct the problem. They expect it to be installed by June 1.

WTNZ (FOX) is now upconverting to 720p according to my LG tuner. Hopefully this means they're gearing up for HDTV.:)

Charles

Does any one know what channel 23 is? I pick it up as a digital channel, but get no information and the signal is very weak.

Ch. 23 is PAX from Jellico. Go to http://www.tvradioworld.com/region1/tn/tv_information.asp?m=kno
for a list of stations in the Knoxville area. You can access any area from this site, for that matter.

I got WJHL from Bristol last night. Must be some Tropo afoot. I also got a blip (mapped to 38-2) from WEMT Greenville for the first time ever.

Charles

Thanks. I just found it on my tunner when I rescaned. I only get about 3-6 signal. I need to go ahead and put up a roof ant.

TWC now has TNT on ch 127. PQ is so so but the upcoming lakers game from LA seems to be in HD with 5.1 sound. Too bad they were not up for the SPURS!

PBS HD 15-1 no sound. Anyone else notice this?

Yes, I can't get WKOP because they're at such low power but WETP in Sneedville has been doing the same thing for the past few days.

Charles

Has anyone compared the picture quality of the OTA broadcasts and the TWC feed? Are they they same bit rate? I was at someone's house today to watch the Wolves and the Laker game on TNT TWC HD. It looked pretty good, better than the shows I get OTA as far as the compression you can see when there is a lot of motion on the screen. Seeing this, I asked him if the compression was very visible on The Tonight Show at the begining when the camera pans through the audience. He said no but then again, he isn't a computer geek like me and probably did not even understand the question. Has anyone compared the two? I use an integrated Zenith HD tuner and I seriously doubt that my tuner decodes the picture any better than the TWC box.

I'll be moving to San Antonio next month, and noticed on Time Warner's San Antonio website that ESPNHD is not one of the HD channels offered. Is this true for all TWC cities? Does anyone know if TWC will be offering ESPNHD in the near future?

Their website www.twc-sa.com does not list ESPNHD. I called the local office 210 244 0500 and qot HUH? They are not too responsive about future plans, they just want to sell services!!

There is a long thread in the HDTV Programming forum here about TWC and ESPNHD. You might want to search for that.

As far as the local TWC here I don't think anyone there ever knows what channels will show up beforehand. There has been speculation that they might be closer to carrying ESPNHD once ESPN gets more HD content. That will be happening on June 7th when Sportscenter goes HD so maybe something will happen after that. Hopefully at least by the time the NFL season rolls around.

jr

I'm new to this OTA HDTV stuff and am confused about frequency assignments. Is KLRN-DT and PBS-DT broadcast on channel 8 frequency or are they on a UHF frequency. Antennaweb.com seems to indicate that KLRN-dt is on channel 8 vhf. I thought all HDTV ota broadcasts were on UHF. The reason I want to know is so I can get the correct outdoor antenna. Do I need a UHF only antenna (channelmaster 4221) or should I get one that receives both VHF/UHF?

On an unrelated subject, I have a metal roof. How does this affect using an attic antenna. I am located near Bitters at hwy 281. I presently have a cheap outdoor antenna up there and it seems to pick up uhf better than vhf. Does this make sense?

I've been getting WVLT pretty consistently over the past 10 days or so. At first I thought it was tropo but I'm beginning to think something has changed down there. It still drops out some but I can consistently at least get the signal. I'd guess they're now using their omnidirectional antenna. Whether they're at the STA of 230 kw yet it's hard to know.

WKOP is still a no-go for me. I've gotten it a few times lately but I'm sure it's just tropo. I don't think they've gone omidirectional yet.

Charles

KLRN is the only VHF broadcaster in SA. I'm pretty sure that the metal roof will be a problem.

Originally posted by Alexmm
So what it all comes down to, is I can get all that is offered but I have a lot of trouble with Fox. As stated, I don't really care, the analog looks fine. However, when they do add a HD channel, it will probably be on the same antenna and I may have a hard time getting a signal. Does anyone know if they are ever going HD in San Antonio? If not, I don't have anything to worry about.

I exchanged emails with KABB (Fox) engineering dept and they state that they hope to be passing all of Fox's HD offerings by the start of the NFL season. They are currently working on necessary equipment changes.

Harold .......I'm located off highway 25-E about 3 miles down Highway 63.....do you think that I could receive the OTA HD channels at all?If so do you think I would be able to get them with an amped RCA attenae from Wal-Mart? What attenae are you using indoor outdoor?

It's worth a try. If I am correct you are in Harrogate, right? Sharps Chappel? You might not get but one or two with "rabbitt ears", but I would give it a shot. A good outside ant. would be best. I am going to get one myself soon. If you need help in putting up an outside ant. you may try TNT Satellite. Talk to Tim. He is a friend of mine and has put up several. He is getting alot of HD OTA. If you need a receiver for HD, I noticed today a Walmart in Middlesboro that they have them for under $200. They may not be the best, but if it does not work you can always return it. If the rabbitt ears don't work, take 'em back.:D Thats what I love about Wally World.

It's worth a try. If I am correct you are in Harrogate, right? Sharps Chappel? You might not get but one or two with "rabbitt ears", but I would give it a shot. A good outside ant. would be best. I am going to get one myself soon. If you need help in putting up an outside ant. you may try TNT Satellite. Talk to Tim. He is a friend of mine and has put up several. He is getting alot of HD OTA. If you need a receiver for HD, I noticed today a Walmart in Middlesboro that they have them for under $200. They may not be the best, but if it does not work you can always return it. If the rabbitt ears don't work, take 'em back.:D Thats what I love about Wally World.

Here is what I am using for now.

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.gsp?product_id=2153142&cat=4536&type=19&dept=3944&path=0%3A3944%3A121791%3A4536

Here is an article about a new HDTV independent station (WMAK) coming to Knoxville on channel 7 in mid-July:

http://www.knoxnews.com/kns/entertainment_columnists/article/0,1406,KNS_360_2945159,00.html

I'm kind of confused about the UPN coming to WVLT thing. Are they going to be multi-casting UPN on digital channel 30 along with CBS? Are both channels going to be HD? If they will both be HD, won't that only be 9.65 mbps per channel and cause loads of pixilation on both channels?

Thanks to anyone who knows the details and can clear this up for me.

Sean Dudley

It's got to be a good thing if one wanted to see Enterprise without gaps and omissions. W-restling Entertainment Every Evening sucks! How much original material does UPN have a week? Can't be much can it? It could be integrated onto WVLT's schedule proably. I have only watched Enterprise on WEEE myself when the signal was actually watchable...!

BUMP

I'm kind of confused about the UPN coming to WVLT thing. Are they going to be multi-casting UPN on digital channel 30 along with CBS? Are both channels going to be HD? If they will both be HD, won't that only be 9.65 mbps per channel and cause loads of pixilation on both channels

I'm wondering the same thing. WCYB in Bristol is supposed to do WB HD on
a subchannel as well. I don't know how this will work unless there's some new compression scheme out there we don't know about.

Charles

Anybody else see what happened on channel 6 last night after the b-ball game. See the thread I started about it....weird!

I didn't, but I have seen them run HD promo's before. Insteed of going off air late at night, I wish they would broadcast HD carts for adjusting our tv's.
http://www.bigsmileys.com/images/default/Smilies-04/32/wink.gif

Originally posted by Harold Southard
I didn't, but I have seen them run HD promo's before. Insteed of going off air late at night, I wish they would broadcast HD carts for adjusting our tv's.
http://www.bigsmileys.com/images/default/Smilies-04/32/wink.gif

Me too, but I understand the need to save on their electric bill, for now...

Originally posted by cpcat
I'm wondering the same thing. WCYB in Bristol is supposed to do WB HD on
a subchannel as well. I don't know how this will work unless there's some new compression scheme out there we don't know about.

Charles

If they could upgrade their compression, then they could upgrade to MPEG4 or WM9 and probably get 2 HD channels running simultaneously without problems, but they can't because of the end user equipment being uncapable of decompressing anything but MPEG2. It's a real bummer that MPEG4 or WM9 wasn't readily available when the HDTV over the air standards were being developed as I think it would have been much better to have one of these included vs. MPEG2.

Will FOX43 WTNZ-DT be ready for the HD programming September 12th?What I'm asking is do they already have the 720p encoder installed?..... and do you think that WTNZ-DT will pass the full 19.3Mbps or will they add sub channels and weaken the HD picture down????Anybody have any info?

Fox is already broadcasting in upconverted 720p as of about 3 wks. ago. Their CE told me via email that they plan to have everything ready to go by Sep. 12 (they may be ready already, I don't know). I don't know about the subchannel thing but they're not multicasting currently. 720p doesn't require as much bandwidth anyway so I'm sure it will be fine.

Charles

I received an email today from the CE at WTNZ comfirming that everything is set to go for HD locally as soon as FOX offers it. They're a little ahead of the curve it seems which is pretty impressive IMO.

Charles

I have been emailing back and forth over the last year or so wondering when Comcast will start carrying the hd feed from Fox......


I may end up getting a tuner just for fox.....:(


Cip

Thats great news cpcat........thanks

Originally posted by Cipro
I have been emailing back and forth over the last year or so wondering when Comcast will start carrying the hd feed from Fox......


I may end up getting a tuner just for fox.....:(


Cip

Maybe they were not carrying it because they wasn't much, if any, HD content...? I don't watch that channel much but I can't say I never turned to it and saw an HD program yet.

You might try the Samsung SIR-T165 OTA tuner. 2 firewires and component switching for one component and analog tuner too. They're on sale at reduced prices lately. They're going for 350-$400 at alot of places. I got mine at J & R... It's my 2nd tuner and I'm well pleased with it. I've made my first 1080i recording through firewire too, yippy-ki-a! :)

WVLT is now broadcasting on 8-2 in SD. The 8-1 HD feed seems unchanged.

What is on 8-2? Is it UPN? I view OTA with a VOOM receiver, and it only lets you view channels it is pre-programmed with, so I can't tune in 8-2 to see what is on it.

Right now they have the same thing on both channels, must be a test? WEEE on channel 8-2 eh?;) Star Trek, Enterprise has got to get better!?! 8-2 would be a giant improvement...?

"I view OTA with a VOOM receiver, and it only lets you view channels it is pre-programmed with"

Are you able "scan" for channels? Just wondering. That just seems "not right" if you cant update.

UPDATE: UPN Knoxville starts monday. Just saw a promo on 8-2.

Originally posted by Harold Southard
"I view OTA with a VOOM receiver, and it only lets you view channels it is pre-programmed with"

Are you able "scan" for channels? Just wondering. That just seems "not right" if you cant update.

No, can't scan for channels. They are supposed to add that capability to the next software update. They didn't go the "scan" method to start with so that they could know what channel you are receiving and provide on-screen program data for your local channels. I like the program data, but don't like not being able to tune in a channel not on the list. Hopefully they will have a good solution in the next software update like they are promising.

I can understand that, so long they update offten. I have been thinking of getting voom myself. (must get permission from the wife).

TTT

UPDATE:
8-2 now is labeled as UPN 30 and is broadcasting a shop at home channel.

JEEE... Jewellery (TV sales) Entertainment Every Evening. I hope this is a glimpse of NOT the future!

Yea realy. That would be such a waste of bandwidth! I hope its just till monday. Monday is when they said it would go "on air".

Anyone have any info as to what they are planning? From what I understand, they are planning both CBS & UPN to be in HD on the same channel number, which I am sure will cause constant pixiliaton on both channels. Anyone know something I don't?

Right now 8-2 is just 480i.

Does UPN have any HD programming?

Just getting interested in HDTV.I live in Knoxville (Cedar Bluff area),so I'm pretty close to the towers.I currently have DirecTV and can get Comcast cable.Problem is:I'd like to get OTA signals for the locals and keep satellite.But our OTA reception is poor.We live in an area behind a large hill with large trees and homes.

I got an RCA set top,amplified antenna(45dB gain in VHF and 35dB in UHF).It got me a signal on CH:6(ABC),8(CBS),10(NBC),15(PBS) and 43(FOX).But the signal is fair to OK(not really that great).Now this is NTSC.

So,is this an indication that I can(or cannot) expect to get a good HDTV signal?Or is there any correlation between ATSC and NTSC?

Is there any way short of buying all the hardware,to tell if I'm able to get good OTA signals for HDTV?
Sorry for all the questions!Thanks for anyone's help. Fred

Originally posted by quickfire
Does UPN have any HD programming?

If there's anything beyond ST ENTERPRISE, I don't know what it might be. I'm gonna record this week's Enterprise on D-VHS. My expectations are high, but not to high. Any degree of quality, even just 480i 16 x 9 would body slam ole WEEE!

Hey, anybody else getting peeved with (PBS) WKOP's hard, unmoving, apparently permament logo? I'm ready to complain to them about it myself. :rolleyes:

Fred, I'd say that your analog reception is a sign that you'll get purr-fect digital reception, proably??? "They" say if you even get the analogs, that be a fair omen of what's to come. Remember, you get the digital purr-fect, or not at all. I'd say your odds are favourable.

Welcum tu Knox-Vegas and the forum! :)

aVOLanche...You either will get the ATSC broadcast or you won't.What I mean by this is you will either get the picture or it will continuously freeze up.There is no snowy or fuzzy HD picture!The Digital broadcast will send the signal a farther distants than the analog signal..........If this is wrong someone correct me on this please........... you should be able to receive the Digital broadcast without any problems........P.S I think that once you begin watching HD programming you will become an HD addict like the rest of here on this site....LOL

Hi guys, I just want to post my experiences from here in Surgoinsville, TN.

I can get WATE-6 about 75% which is 67.34 miles away: WVLT-8 is about 60% could be better: WBIR-10 is about 70%.

I can receive others but thats the ones I really want. All that is with a Silver Sensor and a little Zenith pre-amp. Would a different amp help me out much?

Thanks guys

UPN is up and running! Green Acers is on right now (10:30 am). They are still just 480i. Looks good, signal is strong. Their logo is going to be a problem. Could cause burn in. By the way PBS-HD took the "black box" off.

Banghead11,
A different amp is not likely to help. Preamps function to overcome signal loss over cable runs. At >60 miles a decent outdoor antenna is likely to do wonders for you, though. Then it might be necessary to use a preamp depending on the length of cable run (less than 50 ft. and I doubt you'd need one).

An excellent overall performer for UHF is the CM 4228.

Charles

Well this sux! Was watching startrek on UPN and they cut in and put that stupid shopping crap on. It went back to normal programing after about 10 min, then it does it again. Anyway, anyone know if they plan on going to HD sometime? I hope whatever it is that causes this shopping crap to come on they fix it. It would be nice if they would not show it at all. I like to watch tv late at night sometimes.

I'm disheartened that Enterprise is being shown in 4/3.:rolleyes:

Mine was in 16x9, but it was letter boxed. I used the zoom fuction and it fit the screen perfect with no distortion. I would like to see it in HD. I hope they go to HD.

I saw glimpses of it. It appeared to be window-boxed. I wish WVLT would increase power so I could get it consistently. My guess is that they're using their omni antenna now but still at low power.

Hey Everyone,

I'm going to be moving to the Heiskell area, just outside of Knoxville, close to Norris. I'm debating on what to get, direct tv or comcast? Are the local HD stations better on comcast than over-the-air. I will be getting my first HD tv when I arrive and really have no idea what to do for the best reception, etcs........ What's the best deal?

DirecTv has an HD Deal going for New customers...DirecTv will give you a HD receiver box (Samsung 160 or Hughes) and 2 regular receivers AND 6 MONTHS FREE HBO for $399.00.Thats not a bad cost considering I paid $650.00 for the Samsung 160 HD reciver 10 months ago..as far as locals go you should be able to receive the O.T.A..and the picture quality is super....!

Gummi,Is this your first HD television?????

Yup, my very first. I just feel cable might be best because I would have to spend that much on Direct TV, then another few hundred on a O.T.A. antenna, and then and extra 10.99 a month just to recieve 4 HD channels on direct tv!?!

Are there any good O.T.A that aren't that expensive, my hdtv doesn't have a tuner, so I would have to buy one.

yes,you can pickup a sammy 151 on ebay for $150.00

Gummi, it might be easier at first to get cable and cheaper, proably? Cable HD has alot of potential but having been a Crumcast customer for a number of years, I don't trust them not to mess up a good thing. I left Crumcast for Direc about a year and a half ago, so I haven't had their hi-def service.

I'm real pleased with Direc, atleast all the SD channels look good. When I was with Crumcast, all the channels under a 100 looked poorly. My favourite channel TCM was unwatchable. For the time being I think Direc + locals OTA are better and that includes paying the extra for the hi-def package. It may be small but it's a good package. It seems bigger to me since I also get HBO HD, I suppose?

If Crumcast gets a really great Hardrive box with firewire and more HD channels even I could get tempted to go back. For now Direc has a much better choice of equipment, a big point with me, even thogh I had to buy it.

I'm doubting that cable is gonna quick to embrace all the local subchannels that may, proably will pan out...? I'm real happy with my OTA and I have Firewire from my Samsung SIR-T165 for OTA to my D-VHS deck.

I'm happier and more satisfied with Direc than I was with cable. Think about all the factors. Per months Direc will proably be cheaper unless you have alot of extra outlets, in the long run...? Of course, times change, the pendelum could swing another way??? Someday???

Take a look at equipment and decide what you'd like to use and what you think would jive with your set well. I believe that even if I had cable again, I wouldn't want to give up my OTA reciever. OTA could really heat up or it may end up with too many shopping channels??? It's satisfying in a certain sense to be getting these digital signals without monthly charges, sort'a...

I hope Direc's HD package gets bigger, but the four are purr-dy darn good. Except for ESPN with commercials, the other 3 are like premium channels. Best wishes! :)

P.S. - what does the Joker say, "think about the future..."

When will NBC start showing CONAN O'BRIAN?They sign off after JAY LENO'S show!ABC,CBS air the late late shows,why won't NBC?

Does anyone know if UPN planes on broadcasting in HD instead of SD? If so 1080i or 720p? I hope they do, seeing movies that I would like to watch in HD and StarTrek being "listed" as broadcast in HD, but only in SD is killing me!

PBS HD was on all night last night. Is this a first? It's a trend I hope.

Hi All,

I need help toubleshooting a problem with my HDTV setup. Here is my story. I am using a Samsung SIR T-150 STB and a ChannelMaster 4221 UHF antenna in the attic. I live new Sea World and have a Princeton Graphics HDTV Monitor. I am currently receiving these channels with my setup: 4-1, 4-2, 5-1, 5-2, 12-1, 12-2, 30-1,32-1,41-1,41-2,60-1. I'm listing these channels to demonstrate that there aren't any loose connects or wiring, or signal problems. I was getting KLRN channel 9-1 and 9-1 since they went on the air in May of 2003. I did NOT have a VHF antenna just the UHF and I got a strong picture on 9-1 and 9-2. Then in April of this year channel 9 suddenly disappeared and I have tried everything to get it back. I e-mailed KLRN and they have been nice about replying but said that I'm supposed to have a VHF antenna to get the signal. So is anyone out there getting KLRN with a UHF only antenna? Anyone have a Samsung T-150. I guess I'm trying to find out if anyone else receives KLRN OTA. Thanks for any help.

Sandy1202

Sandy1202,

I am receiving 9-1,2,3,&4 with the 8" circular UHF antenna that came with one of my old TV sets. It's on the second floor of a metal-roofed house about 1 1/2 miles out Vance Jackson from Loop 410. I think I'm about 25 miles from the station. The famous Radio Shack double bow-tie antenna won't get it because in is more selective to UHF only.

Have you tried 8-1, etc? That's the channel KLRN actually uses for digital. If your T-150 isn't translating the channel correctly, you might get it there, instead.

Sherrill

Sherrill,

THanks so much for responding. Can you tell me what model of STB you are using? I'm beginning to think that KLRN did something that is Samsung specific when you are using a UHF antenna. They told me that they have Samsung T-150 using a VHF antenna and are having no problem.

When I quit getting KLRN last April I wrote to KLRN and asked if they had messed with the PSIP settings and here was their response:

"Last week our PSIP inserter quit working (we think
this was related to a software "upgrade" that failed.) Absent a PSIP stream
defining our virtual channels (9.1 and 9.2) your tuner (we have a Samsung
T-150 too) should default to the "real" channel -- 8.1 and 8.2 but keep on
working. We have since resolved the PSIP problem and believe that things
should be back to normal. Whatever that is. Our broadcast activities (except for PSIP) have been pretty solid and we know of no real problems at this time."

Anyone out there using a Samsung T-150 with a UHF antenna that are getting KLRN?

Thanks,

Sandy1202
PS Sherrill...yes I am inputting channel 8. I re-ran 'memorize channels' when I was troubleshooting the problem and lost the 9-1 and 9-2 settings since I was no longer getting a signal. So, I had to manual input channel 8 to try to bring KLRN in. Thanks for the thought though.

Sandy,

I'm using a Zenith DTV-1080 which has been relegated to the bedroom since we got an HD DirecTivo in April. :<} Does the Samsung have separate inputs for UHF and VHF? If so, you would have to feed a signal into the VHF input even if it were from a UHF antenna.

Otherwise, try to think of anything you might have changed in April, even if it *shouldn't* have affected anything.

Also, did any new buildings or water towers go up near you at that time?

Sherrill

Sandy,

I'm at a loss to explain why you have lost KLRN-DT. Only this afternoon we installed a new Samsung SIR-T351 and KLRN was the first station it locked onto. Curiously, we have only a UHF antenna on our DT test bed, monitoring with a Harris ARX-H200 - inside which, by the way, beats the Korean heart of Samsung Electronics! We put a combo antenna on the new Samsung so we could see KLRN and our other DTV brethren all at once.

We had no problems. All the advice you have been given is good, right down to punching in channel 8 in hopes the receiver will lock on. I know you're savvy enough to do all the basics first, and I say you did well. You could try an inexpensive VHF antenna on a combiner with your Channelmaster 4228; there may be a characteristic of the CM that does funny things at the low end of the spectrum, I don't know. There could be local RF interference in your neighborhood causing enough distortion to the KLRN signal to upset the bit error rate and in turn, your chances of receiving it.

By the way, when KLRN's PSIP generator quit, your SIR-T150 should have automatically mapped their channels to 8-1, 8-2, etc., just as the KLRN engineers suggest. I know them and they are competent, honest engineers. They wouldn't try to deceive you. With the knowledge most of us have about PSIP, how to code it and how to deploy it, it is not very likely we could deliberately change something that would affect only one kind of receiver. Several software upgrades ago, there were undocumented features in PSIP that could make a station invisible to viewers, but I thought we had fixed all that stuff over a year ago.

I'm stumped, but I'll make sure the code writers at Harris Broadcast and Triveni Digital have a look at your plight. Maybe they'll have a suggestion.

Anyone else have any ideas?

Jerry,

Has anyone complained about the closed captioning not working correctly on KENS? I'm on TWC using an SA8000hd and the CC comes out scrambled a lot of the time but only on KENS. Most of the words are there but they'll be in a scrambled order. I've had 2 of these boxes and they both do the same thing.

Any suggestions?

jr