Yes,

CBS via WIVB looked AWFUL last night.

They're back to their old Massive Microblocking.

What is UP with that [ anybody from WIVB reading this forum????? ]



My OTA signal for WIVB 4.1 was a solid 10 bars -- on Samsung 165 -- and was not fluctuating.

WGRZ 33.1 was fine -- at 10 bars

WNED 43.1 + 43.2 + 43.3 was fine with 10 bars AND all three channels going

WUTV 29.1 looked good with 6 bars . . until 10 PM when it dropped to 4-5 bars and started microblocking as well.



AND FURTHER RE: WIVB

EVERY time they switched from HD to upconverted SD there was a "glitch"
a one frame or half frame ghost image. EVERY time.

Again, what is up with this.

Anybody else notice the same things?

Looks like it's time to call WIVB and complain again.

Maybe the FCC can get on them for being technically sloppy instead of intimidating stations into NOT airing SAVING PRIVATE RYAN.

I watched CSI on WNLO (32/23) last night, not 39.

No glitches, but there were several "flashes" of bad frames during HD. But it didn't break up. However, my receiver (SIR-T165) has crashed three times when tuning in 32 in the past few days - it has NEVER crashed on 32 before.

NBC, on the other hand, disappeared for me at about 20 minutes into Las Vegas and never came back solidly.

Originally posted by Daniel Tonks
NBC, on the other hand, disappeared for me at about 20 minutes into Las Vegas and never came back solidly.

Same here - had to watch in SD.

But I had a lock on WB49. 7 bars?

Originally posted by dsspredator
Same here - had to watch in SD.

But I had a lock on WB49. 7 bars?


Interesting - and you're a lot closer to NBC's transmitter than I am.

I have never even had a blip on WB (650 watts @ 86 miles ain't gonna happen).

Originally posted by Daniel Tonks
Interesting - and you're a lot closer to NBC's transmitter than I am.

I have never even had a blip on WB (650 watts @ 86 miles ain't gonna happen).

I've always had problems with WGRZ during tropo evenings. On Monday, NBC came back by 11:30 and the WB was gone.

WGRZ has been solid with 8 or 9 bars since then and WB49 has gone back to just a blink. But I did see a WNYO ENG1 test pattern on 14-3 last night? Maybe FOX29 will carry WB49 on their sub-channel till they increase their power on 34.

Anyone notice ABC (analog ch 7) the past few nights?
Looks as I'm watching SD on a Microdisplay on my CRT RRPTV! Cartoon looking smear with the worst outlines that I have ever seen. Local news looks ok.

Originally posted by dsspredator
WGRZ has been solid with 8 or 9 bars since then and WB49 has gone back to just a blink. But I did see a WNYO ENG1 test pattern on 14-3 last night? Maybe FOX29 will carry WB49 on their sub-channel till they increase their power on 34.

I hope FOX29 will ditch 14-2 and replace it with WB49. I don't understand the point of using a sub-channel to show the exact same content as the primary. I have no problem with CBS, ABC or WNED's usage of sub-channels (although 43-1's picture quality has suffered since the addition of content on 43-3), in fact I actually enjoy the extra content. Hopefully, WNLO gets their HD content working so the 2 channels can go back to normal.

I did notice that 32 has a working IPG. I wonder why they haven't mirrored it on 39? Maybe someday, WGRZ will get their call letters on their IPG :D

I just fail to see the logic of broadcasting HD & SD versions of the same thing - Toronto1 on 66 does that as well.

I haven't been watching ABC for the past little while. About all I watch on ABC HD is Lost and Boston Legal, and on Wednesday when forced to pick between Category 6 and Lost, I unfortunantly chose Category 6 and taped Lost in SD.

Where's my dual tuner HD DVR?

Hi Everyone,

I am in maple, ontario. Could anyone recommend an antenna which will enable me to get the buffalo stations? Preferalbly an antenna which goes in the attic. Anyone?

thanks!

Even the largest UHF antenna will fit into a attic.
Can this be turned with a rotaror?
Have you looked here:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=421121&highlight=videobruce

I would still recomend the 4228. It's 4' square, so there isn't a turning circle radius issue.
Can you suspend the antenna from the rafters or a joist? IOW's do a reverse outdoor installation; rotor on top, antenna on bottom.
It does work, I have seen it with a medium size V-U antenna.

VideoBruce,

Will that antenna work even though I am about 100 Miles away?

Thanks

Originally posted by toddest
Hi Everyone,

I am in maple, ontario. Could anyone recommend an antenna which will enable me to get the buffalo stations? Preferalbly an antenna which goes in the attic. Anyone?

thanks!

well, I looked at the map and maple is north of the city, almost on a direct line south to the transmitters well south of buffalo.

You will be aiming thru all the Toronto city concrete to get a signal if you are using antenna at attic level. I think you will have trouble...

Any neighbors using antennas for the Buffalo stations?

No, no one in my area has antenna. They all pay those crook cable companies. I am trying to steer away for paying for HD when it is free. I guess I am stuck?

Let me know.

Best I can offer is that placing it in your attic will noticably reduce its range compared to being outside.

Well if Daniel can get a signal in Markham, you should be able to get one in Maple.

Originally posted by toddest
Will that antenna work even though I am about 100 Miles away? Not a chance in hell...............I doubt even 4 of them stacked outside on a 100' tower unless you lived on a very high hill or ridge would work.
Now if you were talking VHF analog, that would be a different case, but UHF digital, I can't imagine it.Well if Daniel can get a signal in Markham, you should be able to get one in Maple.Signal from where?

Well, from my experience, DTV signals go a lot further with a lot less signal. I am about 50-70 miles from the Buffalo transmitters and I receive them all very reliably with an amplified indoor antenna (I also receive the 2 Toronto channels). The antenna is very small and it is sitting on the floor in my 2-storey house, facing the wall. That said, Maple is quite a bit further and he does have to go through downtown Toronto.

The best advice I can give him is to pick up an amplified analog antenna (I used a pair of rabbit ears) and try to pick up the Buffalo analog channels. If he can receive even a fuzzy picture, then he should receive the digitals fine. He should still consider mounting an antenna on his roof with a tripod if he is capable of receiving DTV.

It all depends where you live.......you must be up in elevation.

I'd say he should be able to get a signal, but most likely NOT from an antenna inside the attic.

I'm about 92 miles away from ABC and get it just fine. Vertical stack of 2 Televes DAT75's on a 44-foot tower. However, I am in a valley with obstructions to the south.

Does anyone know the phone # at WUTV.

They NEED to hit the HD switch!

WUTV Fox 29
(716)773-7531
951 Whitehaven Rd
Grand Island, NY 14072

Originally posted by dsspredator
They NEED to hit the HD switch!

How disappointing, especially after I made hard drive space to record it.

Yup, no HD Spider Man on Fox. CITY did in fact show it in HD, but they don't have 5.1.

hey daredevil23...how do you record HD from your TV to your hard drive?
It sounds like something I'd like to try.

I have a FusionHDTV 2 from Dvico, and it can record to any megagigabyte hard drive. I have recorded several shows for later viewing.

So who wants to take bets that the movie Mr. Deeds on Fox won't be in 16:9 HD?

Looks like Mr. Deeds wasn't HD on Fox.....CITY-TV had it in HD.

Originally posted by daredevil23
So who wants to take bets that the movie Mr. Deeds on Fox won't be in 16:9 HD?

WUTV must have fried their HD equipment or their HD person is on vacation this weekend.

Very disappointing. Fox shows a HD movie marathon, and WUTV is asleep at the switch. No MIB2 tonight, but at least it was on City. Tomorrow's Ice Age, however, will NOT be duplicated by City, and I'm not very hopeful that Fox will have it going by then.

If you can pull in WUHF 31.1 in Rochester they've been showing them all in HD.I had a little breakup last night on MIB II but that could have been a little signal problem

How is it that the Fox football pregame show is in HD, yet movies are not.

I can pull in the analog Rochester stations, but not even 0.1% signal for the digital Rochester stations.

What about UPN? When will they start showing UPN HD shows, I don't care about the non HD stuff, but they should be showing HD shows at least. Perhaps a complaint or two to the FCC will convince them.

Originally posted by daredevil23
Perhaps a complaint or two to the FCC will convince them.

They are not required to show HD, just DT. I read in Rochester that public requests for HD on their NBC station finally helped them to get HD instead of just DT on CH 58.

So maybe if we ask nicely - that would help.

And WUTV looks great now - Thanks FOX 29!

Originally posted by daredevil23
How is it that the Fox football pregame show is in HD, yet movies are not.

I can pull in the analog Rochester stations, but not even 0.1% signal for the digital Rochester stations.

What about UPN? When will they start showing UPN HD shows, I don't care about the non HD stuff, but they should be showing HD shows at least. Perhaps a complaint or two to the FCC will convince them.

Last time I looked, UPN has a grand total of 60 minuted of avaliable HD each week. I wouldn't be too excited to invest in the equipment either.

Do they need equipment? Can't WNLO (local UPN) use WIVB equipment since they're co-owned? I thought they did that already anyway?

As for FOX, it's days like this that make me not want to subscribe to HD via Adelphia. (I realize WUTV isn't offered yet) I'm not going to pay for something that isn't "on" all the time!

That's really unprofessional of WUTV to just let their HD go like that for so many days, holiday weekend or not. And of COURSE they get it up and running for football, though. Heaven forbid sports here in Buffalo suffer. But the movie fans? Not so lucky :(

Originally posted by cwoody222
Do they need equipment? Can't WNLO (local UPN) use WIVB equipment since they're co-owned? I thought they did that already anyway?

As for FOX, it's days like this that make me not want to subscribe to HD via Adelphia. (I realize WUTV isn't offered yet) I'm not going to pay for something that isn't "on" all the time!

That's really unprofessional of WUTV to just let their HD go like that for so many days, holiday weekend or not. And of COURSE they get it up and running for football, though. Heaven forbid sports here in Buffalo suffer. But the movie fans? Not so lucky :(

Last I heard they were waiting for the UPN satellite receiver. Luckily for me, I get both Rochester and Buffalo HD via antenna. Neither city seems to be able to maintain HD 100% yet.

Despite me getting Buffalo @ 93 miles with great signal strength, I've never been able to get more than a blip from Rochester (blip being the digial light flickering, but nothing else). I should try again soon, though.

Originally posted by sprocto4
Last time I looked, UPN has a grand total of 60 minuted of avaliable HD each week. I wouldn't be too excited to invest in the equipment either.

Actually they have Enterprise, Veronica Mars and Kevin Hill, so that's 180 minutes a week of HD. :D

I had MASSIVE problems with WIVB-HD / WNLO-DT last nite - Weds 12/1/04

-- WIVB's HD mapping kept switching between 4-1 and 39-1
-- There was no audio ALL evening on WIVB-HD BUT there was audio on WNLO and ULTIMATELY on the WIVB-HD 11 0'clock news.
-- WNLO appeared on the -1 channel on BOTH stations . . . at least I THINK so but hard to tell with the mapping shifting.

-- frustratingly the picture quality was very good on WIVB-HD -- no CSI micro blocking --
but with no sound . . . . .

-- AND WIVB's analog signal SUCKED but it had sound

AND, last and MOST annoying
-- something in the 23-1 signal caused my Samsung 165 to CRASH and re-boot. . . SEVERAL times.

AND, when I phoned the station I got the "there's nothing wrong" line.

WHAT ARE THOSE GUYS DOING???

I sure hope other people had the same problem or I will be REALLY mystified.

Oh yeah, ALL THE OTHER HD stations were PERFECT.

Anybody???

WHAT UP with WIVB / WNLO; Weds, 12/1/04

I had MASSIVE problems with WIVB-HD / WNLO-DT last nite - Weds 12/1/04

-- WIVB's HD mapping kept switching between 4-1 and 39-1
-- There was no audio ALL evening on WIVB-HD BUT there was audio on WNLO and ULTIMATELY on the WIVB-HD 11 0'clock news.
-- WNLO appeared on the -1 channel on BOTH stations . . . at least I THINK so but hard to tell with the mapping shifting.

-- frustratingly the picture quality was very good on WIVB-HD -- no CSI micro blocking --
but with no sound . . . . .

-- AND WIVB's analog signal SUCKED but it had sound

AND, last and MOST annoying
-- something in the 23-1 signal caused my Samsung 165 to CRASH and re-boot. . . SEVERAL times.

AND, when I phoned the station I got the "there's nothing wrong" line.

WHAT ARE THOSE GUYS DOING???

I sure hope other people had the same problem or I will be REALLY mystified.

Oh yeah, ALL THE OTHER HD stations were PERFECT.

Anybody???






POST #1 | Report this post to a moderator | IP: Logged

Ironic that the first digital station on the air in the WNY area will be the last to get it right! (IF they ever DO get it right).

I get my local via Adelphia cable. No HD yet.

I noticed that my WIVB signal is really bad lately. I first noticed it on a recording of last Friday's Joan of Arcadia and it continued into 2 recordings Tuesday morning. (Early Show and Ellen)

The picture had a faint (but noticable... probably moreso because of me not using the best quality on my TiVo) very wide "bar" that scrolled up thru the picture and kept repeating itself.

Anyone else notice this lately?

Originally posted by GregHoey
AND, last and MOST annoying, something in the 23-1 signal caused my Samsung 165 to CRASH and re-boot. . . SEVERAL times.

Same hear - Samsung 151.

Those were some serious problems last night. And you called and they said everything is OK. Do you think the WIVB employees watch CBS HD at night? Obviously not.

I was unable to watch CSI:NY in HD due to the weird problems with 39 & 32 on Wednesday (no audio, yeah I thought I saw two UPNs for a while too, messed up mapping and so on - just really FUBAR'd). Due to repeats I haven't tuned them in since, so I don't know if anything's been corrected. Tuesday's NCIS was fine, though. And yes, my SIR-T165 has rebooted about a half dozen times in the past few weeks when tuning in 32/23.

Wherever possible I watch 32 instead of 39 since the signals is normally so much more reliable for me (and I don't think that's related to distance and power either).

With newcomers ABC and Fox working pretty well lately it's a bit sad that vetern CBS is still having issues. Even the "botique" channel City has been good lately - Enterprise, Smallville and lots of movies in HD.

Originally posted by Daniel Tonks
Even the "botique" channel City has been good lately - Enterprise, Smallville and lots of movies in HD.

Daniel,

Have you noticed any signal improvements on 53-1. CITY said they will be increasing their power from 600 to 1200 W. And that was over a month ago. I get 'blinks' but no lock since my antenna is fixed towards Buffalo.

Well, that's the thing... I've never had any trouble getting City (only 15 miles away or something). Since my goal was Buffalo from difficult terrain, Toronto-based stuff is extremely strong for me - almost anywhere I aim my antenna I can get 53. I'm pretty sure they went from 600 to 900 to 1300 then back to 1200 watts.

Daniel,
What part of Markham are you in? I'm near Steeles & Bayview and plan on using a CM4228. I ran some lat/long calculations that show 60mi from my location to the furthest location in Buffalo at a bearing of 156 degrees.

It looks like it has about 12 dB gain, with a fairly good pattern to pick the Toronto channels as well as Buffalo. What antenna are you using?

I've got all co-ordinates plotted on a map. Steels & Bayview is actually 90 miles away from ABC's transmitter (and a couple miles less from CBS & NBC). It's roughly 60 miles away from Fox/PBS/UPN. I'm on a similar horizontal line as you, but a couple miles further away from Buffalo and in a valley that blocks my view to the south.

I use a vertical stack of two Televes DAT-75 antennas on a 44' tower, along with a CM 7778 preamp.

intrac; welcome to the forum.

I think this thread should be renamed Buffalo-Toronto............(notice which city was first):D

Recently there was created a seperate thread for Toronto HDTV (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=465187) talk which I think everyone here should also subscribe to as well.

Upstaged again..............:D

Anyone for merging the two threads since we are this close??

Yo,

How about a forum titled GUYS IN TORONTO -- and ONTARIO -- WHO WATCH BUFFALO HD.

I hold no malice being an American / Canadian hybrid my own self.

Actually both forums deal with watching Buffalo OTA and I subscribe to both.

The DAT-75 that Daniel is using looks interesting. It seems to be fairly directional as well.

I have a good view of the CN Tower from my roof, and I'm on relatively high ground, so I think the CM4228 will be fine. I used to be able to get all the Buffalo analog channels before cable and satellite with my chimney mounted VHF/UHF antenna.

I think it's a good idea to keep the threads seperate basically because the Toronto thread will be getting bigger as more and more stations go live, whereas it will be tough for new readers to wade through the 1300 plus post in the Buffalo thread just to pull out the few Toronto posts at the moment.

Now it seems at though WGRZ remapped from 33-1 to 2-1 this week and I am having problems. No picture on Samsung SIR t-151 with green light flickering. WGRZ has always been solid in Mississauga. Anyone else having problems?

I live in Clarence. Absolutely no problen with WGRZ 2-1. Works great. I am using a Sammy T-165 with an old Winegard Wedge outdoor antenna and rotator. I am about 22 miles from the towers. Other than minor dropouts all the local stations come in fine in SD and HDTV.
Bernie

I noticed that my Sammy TS160 had been locking up and rebooting on 2-1 yesterday. All other channels fine, Tivo has no issues.

This is exactly the problem with WGRZ. My Sammy 161 seems to be going crazy on 2-1. I didn't realize it was rebooting but I guess that is what's happening. I wonder if this is a problem with my tuner or is it the station signal that is causing this?

My T165 has been OK since the switch to 2-1 (but a week or two ago was rebooting on 23-1).

My 151 is OK with 2-1.

Watched part of SNL last night - no problems.

what is the actual channel that is broadcasting WUTV HD? i had the virtual channels of 29-1 through 29-3 before, but i cant seem to locate them now. i have SD channel 29-0 in, but it says there are no virtual channels on channel 29. unless my antenna is too far off to detect it.

i have an integra 912s HD box.

i just noticed the switch over when i went to nbc 33-1, it changed to 2-1.

WUTV HD should be on 14.

Anyone trying to receive WGRZ on a Expressvu or Dishnetwork satellite receiver with an digital receiver card? WGRZ locks up on the model 6000. Worked fine before remapping.

Originally posted by tvguy073
Anyone trying to receive WGRZ on a Expressvu or Dishnetwork satellite receiver with an digital receiver card? WGRZ locks up on the model 6000. Worked fine before remapping.
I have the Sammy 165 and since they have remapped, I can't get WGRZ 2-1. My unit keeps rebooting? "What's the deal"!!:( :confused: :mad:

Odd, my 165 hasn't had a problem with NBC.

I had to manually remove WGRZ 33 several times from my receiver's list of channels, and then manually acquire the signal. Now WGRZ is showing up as 2, and coming in quickly. Quite the opposite for WUTV on 14 on the Model 6000.

There seems to be something WUTV is doing that the Dish Network/Expressvu 8VSB card cannot cope with, it takes about 25 seconds to demodulate the signal.

On the Samsung, WUTV demodulates in about 2 seconds.

Go figure.

I have had a problem with ch 14 for months. The MyHD tuner card doesn't see the channel at all.

Did they forget to hit the HD switch for the football game or what?

I Know!! figures when i have relatives over to show off!!!

Seems to be good HD now.

Originally posted by videobruce
I have had a problem with ch 14 for months. The MyHD tuner card doesn't see the channel at all.
I'm watching the Fox game with MyHD on channel 14.2 right now. It's flagged as 720p/dolby5.1. For me the channel has always been there, but often is hidden and does not show up on the subchanel list. By default, the tuner always goes to 14.1, which is a black screen most (but not all) of the time. But the biggest nuisance has been the fact that this channel, and only this one, causes MyHD to randomly go blue screen of death and spontaneously re-boot the PC every few hours.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by daredevil23
Did they forget to hit the HD switch for the football game or what? [/
QUOTE]

Once again someone fell asleep at the wheel;)

Originally posted by MDK
I'm watching the Fox game with MyHD on channel 14.2 right now. It's flagged as 720p/dolby5.1. For me the channel has always been there, but often is hidden and does not show up on the subchanel list. By default, the tuner always goes to 14.1, which is a black screen most (but not all) of the time. But the biggest nuisance has been the fact that this channel, and only this one, causes MyHD to randomly go blue screen of death and spontaneously re-boot the PC every few hours.

Now that's weird... on my standalone receiver 14-1 is Fox HD, 14-2 is Fox SD, and 14-3 is the weird black channel.

Re: Samsung SIR T-151 rebooting on WGRZ 2-1

The Canadian HDTV forums indicates that some Samsung Tuner require a firmware upgrade. They report that the upgrade fixes the problem. This form won't let me past a URL so I have chopped it up

h t t p : / / w w 2 . s a m s u n g s u p p o r t . c o m / b r o a d c a s t f l a g / s t b u p g r a d e . a s p

I currently have a silver sensor in Getzville, NY. Have no problem getting ABC or Fox. CBS is moody, depending on the weather. NBC and PBS are poor.

Considering an outdoor antenna but my wife would not allow me to put anything large or ugly on the roof. I am thinking about two small sized antennas that cover two main directions.

I got lot of trees on the south of my house.

1. Any suggestions?
2. Can anyone recommend someone who can install them for me in this
area.

776 Discovery HD on Adelphia?

Anyone?

It's listed under "Seneca Universal" in the online channel lineup thru zip 14051.

14120 also lists it.

Fall-man - Can I suggest that you need a new wife......LOL
Maybe if you put the antenna at the end of the property??


Rabid

Originally posted by SDB
776 Discovery HD on Adelphia?

Anyone?

It's listed under "Seneca Universal" in the online channel lineup thru zip 14051.

14120 also lists it.

I'm in 14120 I'll check when I get home after work.

my wife would not allow me to put anything large or ugly on the roof. 1. there isn't ANYTHING uglt about an antenna. 2. They aren't large.

Who pays for the house?

Originally posted by pmb1010
I'm in 14120 I'll check when I get home after work.


Yep, Discovery HD is active here in NT on CH 776.

Non-movie HD channels start at 770.
The previous last channel is 774 InHD2, 776 is Discovery HD.

They skipped 775.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm......

Originally posted by videobruce
1. there isn't ANYTHING uglt about an antenna. 2. They aren't large.

Who pays for the house?

Well, I guess I can choose something that is not too long. Beauty lies in the eye of the beholder... I don't think that they look very nice on the roof.

Anyone in the area has a small stealth antenna who can tell me if that would be enough. I am just looking to get Buffalo's locals.

Take a look at the Winegard SquareShooter. It mounts on the side of the house.

http://www.winegard.com/offair/squareshooter.htm

Originally posted by Daniel Tonks
Now that's weird... on my standalone receiver 14-1 is Fox HD, 14-2 is Fox SD, and 14-3 is the weird black channel.

Just did a fresh install of the latest MyHD beta; it defaulted to "virtual channel" mode (which I usually never use) and now I see the same thing as you do. In virtual mode I get 29-1=HD, 29-2=SD and 29-3=EN (weird black channel). But in physical channel mode, it's 14-1=black screen, 14-2=HD and 14-3=SD. Yes - weird indeed

From all I've read it seems the channel 14 bitstream has some "issues" and it may just be that each hardware/software package deals with it differently.

Originally posted by pmb1010
Yep, Discovery HD is active here in NT on CH 776.

Non-movie HD channels start at 770.
The previous last channel is 774 InHD2, 776 is Discovery HD.

They skipped 775.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm......

Our lineup is slightly different, so I wouldn't put too much hope into the # skip:
774 InHD1
775 InHD2

I'm not showing Disco. HD yet so I can't associate a # to it and see if we have a skip too. That is why I asked if any of you guys had it yet or not because we get the same stuff you do, but it takes 2-3 weeks longer for it to show up. (Olean 14760)

SDB

I got 774 InHD1 & 775 InHD2 in my guide but no picture and no Discovery HD.
Customer service says I should have Discovery HD but doesn’t know why InHD is in my guide because it shouldn’t be there.
Plus no HBO on-demand.
Go ahead and tell me how good it is!! lol

OK,

Does anyone know WHY this is happening again . . albeit intermittently.

I surf to 4-1 and my SIR T-165 crashes and re-boots . . . sometimes it keeps happening
sometimes it tunes back in.

What can be done? Is there a Samsung UPGRADE somewhere???

Do newer STB's have less problesm with this?

Does this also happen to people on Adelphia cable? If not why not?

Also, WIVB-HD's audio has been intermittently sucky of late. I seem to recall that they admitted to the problem and were going to fix it.

Any news?

Hi all, I've been reading the AVS fourms for about a month and finally bought a projector . What I'd like to know is what kind OTA HDTV tuners and antennas people are using in my area? I live in Niagara Falls, thanks Rene52.

I live in Williamsville and use sylvaniz srz3000 (STB) with silver sensor (antenna) in my attic. I can get all the HD signals in this area perfectly.

I highly recommend srz3000, if you can find one from your local sears. I bought it back in July for $109 as clearance. My buddy also has it in Clarence and reports no problem. The downside is that it doesn't have DVI output. The best connection would be component.

If you need DVI output, go with LG or Samsung model. It seems LG is slightly more preferrable in this forum.

Thanks everyone.. I am going to try to put something in the attic.. The square shooter appears more appropriate for urban locations where the signal gets deflected from larger buildings. Will let you know how it pans out...

The main thing I will have to figure out is how to run cable from my attic to the family room.

Originally posted by fall-man
The main thing I will have to figure out is how to run cable from my attic to the family room.

Well, the sloppy cable installers run it along the outside of the house along the siding, and drill in at the room thru the wall where you want the TV.

If you can get into your attic, try to find the vent pipe that runs from the roof to the basement that allows air into your toilet waste pipes.
That tube normally runs straight down to the basement.

I snaked the TV coax cable down along that tube into the basement from the attic. There was some extra room between the tube and the hole cut in the top and bottom sill plates for the interior wall, and it was easy for me to run that, and a couple Cat5 cables.

Maybe you can do the same?

I have dish 921, WIVB CBS has been out for me a couple days. I spoke with an engineer at WIVB, who said they changed some software, and had to "fix" things for Adelphia, but should be fine now. Not for me. Anyone else have probs?

I got no signal last night.I didn't know what was wrong so I tried to manually reload the channel and still got no signal.
Using Sony HD-200

All black for me on Adelphia. So much for fixing.

SDB

Happy new year to everyone!

I'm thinking of getting D* HDTIVO and wonder how it integrates OTA. I can get all HD OTA signals flawlessly but lack of program information guide data. Is this going to be a problem with HD TIVO so that I need to manually record shows?

I also heard that D* use zap2it infor to overcome this issue.

So if anyone using D* HD TIVO in WNY area, please share your experience how 2-1, 4-1, 7-1, 29-1 and 43-1 appears in your TIVO guide.

Alternatively, should I "move" to NYC to get all the HD networks since ABC HD is live on D*?

You'll get program info guide data with the DirecTV HD TiVo.

Non-DirecTV TiVo's use zap2it for guide data but DirecTV TiVo's use DirecTV's own data source.

Their program listings should include the HD listings.

You should probably go here:
http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=36

Originally posted by acegolfer
Happy new year to everyone!

I'm thinking of getting D* HDTIVO and wonder how it integrates OTA. I can get all HD OTA signals flawlessly but lack of program information guide data. Is this going to be a problem with HD TIVO so that I need to manually record shows?

I also heard that D* use zap2it infor to overcome this issue.

So if anyone using D* HD TIVO in WNY area, please share your experience how 2-1, 4-1, 7-1, 29-1 and 43-1 appears in your TIVO guide.

Alternatively, should I "move" to NYC to get all the HD networks since ABC HD is live on D*?

Most of them integrate into the guide perfectly. PBS still has a guide issue and UPN is still broadcasting CBS.

Originally posted by mrpergo
I got no signal last night.I didn't know what was wrong so I tried to manually reload the channel and still got no signal.
Using Sony HD-200

With my dish 921, I deleted all OTA channels, did a rescan, and WIVB works fine now. Here's my e -mail to WIVB afterwards:

> With my Dish 921 receiver, Deleting and Rescanning worked fine to get
> the signal back. I also found this solution on a Satellite chat
> forum.
>
> "Stations all over the country will be making changes to their PSIP
> PID's to comply with the new regulations. The 921 will require a
> delete and rescan to recognize the channels again. AND, this assumes
> the station gets it right the first time. Not all receivers use PSIP
> so some will not be affected. The 921 requires it. It is affected.
> Plus, understand that the FCC requirement will not be enforced until
> after Feb 2005 so the changes will be happening throughout January.
> Fun and Games for a month!"
>
> Looks like WIVB is at the forefront of the technology updates (again).
> Thanks for the response. I appreciate all your efforts with HiDef.

Been with DirectTV since October of this year. Have had my RCA DTC 210 (HD) receiver replaced three times, because of it freezing up. The first two boxes were replaced by the company that installed my system and the last was mailed to me by D*. I'm having problems with freeze ups, audio drop outs and pixalization. This is occuring on OA and satellite transmissions. I wondered if anyone else is having similar problems and if they have found a solution. I'm upgrading my power strip with a Monster Theater Power Center in hopes it will make a difference, but I won't put any money on it. I read on one of the other forums some people are suggesting some type of filter that would be placed between the satellite and the receiver. Talked to D* and they acted like I was a space cadet. The filter is supposed to stabilize voltage and frequecy. Totally frustrated with this experience. Install company has checked lines, replaced grounging block, LNB's and can't isolate the problem. Any suggestions?

I have an HD-Tivo from D* and watch the HD channels and OTA mostly. I have never had any lockups in about 8 months.

Once in a while (every 6 hours or so) I get a very short audio drop on HD-SAT, never on SD-SAT

OTA CBS and ABC break ups and audio drops are more frequent, but random.

Any chance a friend with D* could try the receiver for a while to narrow things down?

Never thought about trying it out at someone elses home. Its a great suggestion. The only problem I see is finding someone who has OA hooked up. Everyone I know - right now - is running straight satellite. I'll check around.

OK, I'm lost. I will be buying an antenna for OTA HD reception and have been reading and looking, and reading.........From antennaweb, I have discovered that my zip code (14120) is anywhere form 4-30 miles from the High Def signals I want to obtain with this antenna. A few things that concern me is the color coding. It Looks like I only need a yellow category antenna. No sites I visited that sell antenna's make any reference to what color category they fall into? Also, when looking at the layout of the towers form my zip code, towers span almost a 180degree area, so I don't think a single directional antenna will do the trick. I am trying to avoid a directional unit with a rotor so Tivo will be able to record shows when nobody at home to adjust the rotor.
is anyone currently in the North Tonawanda/Wheatfiled area currently using an antenna to get all Buffalo Area high Def signals? If so, can you let me know what your currently using and what your experiences have been up to this point with OTA in Buffalo area?

I can mount in attic, on roof peak, etc. Just want a stable solution that will work the 1st time.:confused:

I have stations 180 deg. apart as well. I use two 4-bay UHF antennas combined by a splitter. Works great. An omnidirectional may work for you as well where you are.

I'm in Amherst and signals are comming from 160 degrees apart. I just use one silver sensor put in my attic. Works perfect.

Originally posted by acegolfer
I'm in Amherst and signals are coming from 160 degrees apart. I just use one silver sensor put in my attic. Works perfect.

I'm surprised that that Silver Sensor would work good on signals coming from 160degrees apart. One web site review I was reading about it said it is "Highly Directional UHF Antenna". I would think a directional device would have trouble with the signals that far apart?

Or, maybe I just totally misunderstand this stuff, which is all likely possible!!

Silver Sensor is directional but still works. It's available from Sears so why not buy one and try? If it doesn't work, simply return it.

I had to experiment it a little to find the optimal angle to get all the HD signals.

Good luck!

Yeah, think I'll give it a shot.

Thanks!

Hey ABC, turn on your HD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What's the matter with them? No HD. ABC's Detroit station and Seattle station which I get on the dish have beautiful HD coverage. Is it a technical problem or someone just asleep at the switch?

Anyone else lose the HD feed from WIVB after the Colts kicked the extra point???

WIVB on 4-1 did cut out at the end of the first half. Was still broadcasting on 23-1. Problem was rectified quickly.

To my eye the quality of the NFL broadcast on CBS (1080i) appeared to be significantly superior than the picture quality of the second game on Fox (720p). I am not sure if it could be attributable to factors other than the HDTV format.

Or maybe it is only me. Anyone else care to comment?

As of Monday January 10th, Channels 20 and 24 are on the air testing from Toronto. They are transmitting from the CN Tower (or First Canadian Place). Channel 20 is CBC English (CBLT) and Channel 24 is SRC French (CBLFT).

At the present time signals are strong in Toronto but neither transmitter will "lock" into memory of various HDTV receivers which I have.

Thought everyone would like to have a "look" at them.:)

Is anyone seeing a weaker signal from WIVB? As of last Tuesday evening, it was normal, but the last two days, at least here in Rochester, it looks significantly weaker than normal. Anyone know if it's the station, or is it atmospherics?

Thanks,

Ron

Originally posted by tvguy073
At the present time signals are strong in Toronto but neither transmitter will "lock" into memory of various HDTV receivers which I have.


See http://www.dbstalk.com/archive/index.php/t-22545.html for more info about missing PSIP info.

http://www.psip.org/psip_reasons.html

Originally posted by RIppolito
Is anyone seeing a weaker signal from WIVB? As of last Tuesday evening, it was normal, but the last two days, at least here in Rochester, it looks significantly weaker than normal. Anyone know if it's the station, or is it atmospherics?

Thanks,

Ron

Normally low 90's. Tonight it's very marginal at 70. The other Bufflao channels are unchanged.

Ron wivb-dt 38 is running at half power.they had a failure on weekend.This from John Merrill head engineer wivb.He says it be a few days to return to full.

Originally posted by rob50312
Ron wivb-dt 38 is running at half power.they had a failure on weekend.This from John Merrill head engineer wivb.He says it be a few days to return to full.

That should be WIVB -dt 39 :)

Originally posted by SDB
Our lineup is slightly different, so I wouldn't put too much hope into the # skip:
774 InHD1
775 InHD2

I'm not showing Disco. HD yet so I can't associate a # to it and see if we (Olean 14760)


Boy you guys stink! I am in 14094 and have no InHD or Discovery or FOX for that matter on Adelphia! :) I have had it (DVR HD8000) about a month and love the HD that exists, but I have kept my D* Hughes E-86 to get the Canadian Locals and of course FOX for the Superbowl.

I have also noticed a greater output on 66-1 from Toronto, I only got a blip before and now get about 40% using my silver sensor. All other channels come in pretty good including CBC. I am thinking of getting a DB8 though to boost my channels and hopefully get a few more.

Anyone else having trouble locking into WGRZ 2-1?? I used to pick this up even for non-HD programming, but now I can't even get digital programs. All my other Buffalo stations come in.

Originally posted by HDKing
Anyone else having trouble locking into WGRZ 2-1?? I used to pick this up even for non-HD programming, but now I can't even get digital programs. All my other Buffalo stations come in.

Seems fine here. High 80s out of 100 signal.

Rescanned and I'm getting it again. 9 out of 10 bars.

I can only get blips on CBC-20 with my roof attenna from Cheektowaga. I can't get any traces of 66 whatsoever.

I'm thinking of moving a little north!

NFL Network HD?

It just showed up yesterday along with finaly getting Disc. HD on Adelphia.

Anyone else?

Monday night -- 1/17/05 -- all I got on WGRZ-HD was an indication that there was a HD carrier signal -- very strong -- and digital audio . . . BUT NO PICTURE OR SOUND?

Anybody else have this problem?

OBTW SAMSUNG SIR-T 165

Also, WNLO DT is now crashing the 165 . . . . is this a "broadcast flag issue?"

Has anybody done the Samsing 165 firmware upgrade which supposedly fixes this?
I reamin dubious of it's value . . . and of Samsung's customer service.

thanks,

Greg
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If the HD pciture is bad CALL THE STATION AND COMPLAIN !!!!!

Originally posted by SDB
NFL Network HD?

It just showed up yesterday along with finaly getting Disc. HD on Adelphia.

Anyone else?

No got, here in Lancaster :mad:

SDB, where do you live?
Can I come over and watch? lol

Broadcast Flag

WGRZ has not worked for me since they moved to 2-1. Now WKBW is doing the same thing on my Sammy SIR T-151. It indicates a strong signal but no picture and it continuously re-boots. I tried the Samsung site to get the firmware upgrade but Samsung wrote back that they don't ship to Canada. I will have to get a US friend to assist. What a PITA. I don't even know if the firmware upgrade will fix the problem.

Originally posted by clight385
No got, here in Lancaster :mad:

SDB, where do you live?
Can I come over and watch? lol

You mean I got something before someone else!

Hold on...I feel faint...

Olean 14760

The funny thing is, it's still not listed on the Adelphia "line up" guide on the website. Neither is the Disc. HD channel (for my zip at least). Either they are getting lazy or...oh who am I kidding, they are lazy. :)

Now I have:

702 WGRZ HD WGRZ HD Broadcast HD (High Definition)
704 WIVB HD WIVB HD Broadcast HD (High Definition)
707 WKBW HD WKBW HD Broadcast HD (High Definition)
713 WNED HD WNED HD Broadcast HD (High Definition)
750 HD HBO High Definition HBO HBO HD (High Definition)
751 HD SHOWTIME High Definition Showtime Showtime HD (High Definition)
752 HD STARZ Starz High Definition Starz HD (High Definition)
753 HD CINEMAX HD CINEMAX Cinemax HD (High Definition)
770 HD NET HD NET Broadcast HD (High Definition)
771 HDN MOVIES HD NET MOVIES Broadcast HD (High Definition)
772 ESPN HD ESPN High Definition HD PLUS TIER
774 INHD1 iNDemand HD HD PLUS TIER
775 INHD2 iNDemand HD 2 HD PLUS TIER
776 DiscoveryHD Theater<not listed in "line up"
777 NFL Network HD<not listed in "line up"

Originally posted by easternflyer23
Been with DirectTV since October of this year. Have had my RCA DTC 210 (HD) receiver replaced three times, because of it freezing up. The first two boxes were replaced by the company that installed my system and the last was mailed to me by D*. I'm having problems with freeze ups, audio drop outs and pixalization. This is occuring on OA and satellite transmissions. I wondered if anyone else is having similar problems and if they have found a solution. I'm upgrading my power strip with a Monster Theater Power Center in hopes it will make a difference, but I won't put any money on it. I read on one of the other forums some people are suggesting some type of filter that would be placed between the satellite and the receiver. Talked to D* and they acted like I was a space cadet. The filter is supposed to stabilize voltage and frequecy. Totally frustrated with this experience. Install company has checked lines, replaced grounging block, LNB's and can't isolate the problem. Any suggestions?


Sounds to me like you got a bad run of the new RCA receivers. We use to sell Rca but now are only selling Hughes and What Zeniths and sony's we can get. The new Rca's have been plagued with that problem.
I suggest you contact either Directv or the original Dealer and tell them you want to try a different brand Such as Hughes. Or sony or at worst samsung whic I dont like but they srent as flawed as the Rca's

Originally posted by tvguy073
As of Monday January 10th, Channels 20 and 24 are on the air testing from Toronto. They are transmitting from the CN Tower (or First Canadian Place). Channel 20 is CBC English (CBLT) and Channel 24 is SRC French (CBLFT).

At the present time signals are strong in Toronto but neither transmitter will "lock" into memory of various HDTV receivers which I have.

Thought everyone would like to have a "look" at them.:)

Im in Lockport and the 2 new ch's ch 24 and ch 20 are both very strong here. I have the cblft ch a little lower but still 3/4 signal scale.
The other 2 Toronto one on 66 is about 3/4 scale and 53 city tv is about half scale. CITY tv is a bit broken ,but they are running the lowest poer because of U.S. conflict of ch 53 ( suppose to also be occupied by pax tv 51 analog in Batavia) when they come on. Kinda sucks cause CITY tv is a great ch. Im in the far S/E corner of Niagara county in Rapids Area. Im using a 7 ft parabolic at 72 ft. I can however also receive all but 53 on My winegard Pr 9032 Yagi w/amp at 35 ft on roof of house,
Its all in the antenna and amp!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dont settle for those crappy radio shacks or indoor antennas if you expect to get lasting results (EVEN IN INCLIMATE WEATHER)!!!!!!!

Originally posted by theedge
Boy you guys stink! I am in 14094 and have no InHD or Discovery or FOX for that matter on Adelphia! :) I have had it (DVR HD8000) about a month and love the HD that exists, but I have kept my D* Hughes E-86 to get the Canadian Locals and of course FOX for the Superbowl.

I have also noticed a greater output on 66-1 from Toronto, I only got a blip before and now get about 40% using my silver sensor. All other channels come in pretty good including CBC. I am thinking of getting a DB8 though to boost my channels and hopefully get a few more.

Dont need to spend that money on an overpriced antenna! Im in Lockport
And i can sell you a winegard yagi and amp that will kick ass on the Toronto channels!! See my posts about the new To. Channels.
If you like give me a call I'll be glad to help you out with anything you need.
Rich Wertman
R.W. Antenna Svce.
Shop# 716-434-9216

I'n in zip 14120 and have been getting NFL Network HD for about a week...too bad not many of the shows are in HD other than the games themselves. I have also had Discovery HD for a few weeks and at first it was very glitchy but its absolutely perfect now. Hey, does anyone know if Adelphia is getting Fox HD for the SB so I dont have to go "rent" a tuner?

GMA in HD this morning on WKBW!

The views from Washington were amazing!

[QUOTE]Originally posted by clight385
[B]No got, here in Lancaster :mad:


Thank you for using Adelphia's Online Customer Support.

At this time I do not have a time frame for those channels to be added to your services. I apologize for any inconvenience.
You will be notified as to when these changes are going to occur.

Should I have expected anything more than this???
What was I thinking???

Would you expect anything else from Adelphia.

Im in Cheektowaga and i have had DISC and NFL for a few weeks now.

I was told the other day by a service tech that TNT-HD is on its way and I think he said Universal-HD(BRAVO) too.

Originally posted by briless
I was told the other day by a service tech that TNT-HD is on its way and I think he said Universal-HD(BRAVO) too.

At some point, they are going to start charging for this stuff.

SDB,

I noticed earlier this week that we had NFLHD and Discovery HD. They both show up in the guide. I haven't seen either of the INHD channels though, are they in your guide, or do you have to punch in the channel number for them to come up?

Good info on TNTHD, the more channels the better.

I also just heard today that Adelphia is trying to get a deal worked out with Fox before the superbowl. However I also heard that our area may not have enough bandwidth for it to launch. I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

Originally posted by simplyTron
I haven't seen either of the INHD channels though, are they in your guide, or do you have to punch in the channel number for them to come up?

They both show up in my guide. Have you tried to call them to see if you are supposed to have those channels? Sometimes they know what is in the pipeline for your specific area. They told me about ABC right before it showed up, so they are correct at least some of the time :)

FOX would be sweet!

OT: Does anyone else here have the "no play" issue with their DVR too?

Right now I'm trying to find out what type of roll out schedule there is for adelphia HD channels this year. Hopefully I'll get some good info. I have a few contacts who are checking into things for me.

Just saw Rick Jeanerette (sp?) at Wegman's here in Niagara Falls...

I didn't ask if he put some MSG on his sub...that wouldn't be nice...anyway, does anybody know what DirectTV will be doing to replace Empire? I hadn't checked last night to see.

Will MSG carry any Sabres games in HiDef? Will MSG pre-empt Sabres games when the Rangers are playing?

Originally posted by SDB

OT: Does anyone else here have the "no play" issue with their DVR too?

What do you mean? My unit is unable to play any shows pre 1/19/2005! I can play anything afterwords, sux a lot of good shows were basically lost :(

Originally posted by theedge
What do you mean? My unit is unable to play any shows pre 1/19/2005! I can play anything afterwords, sux a lot of good shows were basically lost :(

Mine was fixed I think on Saturday (Friday night). Right before that, my wife was betting me how far she could throw the DVR across the local Adelphia customer center if they didn't get her recorded soaps fixed. :)

I had a $20 on 37 feet 8 inches.

I'm having trouble picking up channel 29 lately. 43 comes in fine, aren't they both on Grand Island? I'm in Lockport, I get 2, 4 and 7 fine. Iused to get 29. Don't know when it might have stopped, I don't use the box much because of cable hd, but I did want to watch the football yesterday, my wife wanted idol and i wanted 24 last week!

Something might be a foot at WUTV-DT 29-1

I live in Holland and my OTA reception is now BETTER than it was -- 8 to 9 bars versus 4 to 5 bars.

This has been consistent all week so atmospherics seem less of a factor.

HOWEVER, the reception does seem to fade around 10 PM . . . . which caused some
freeze-ups in the last part of 24 . . . much to the collective displeasure.

If 29 hasn't changed, did I see something about firmware updates for Samsung receivers? I don't get why I can't get it in now, especially since 43 comes in so good.

Hey briless, I have had INHD1 & 2 in my guide since Aug, but no picture. I flagged down an installer and he said I would be OK if I lived west of Transit Rd. but thinks my box may have been programmed for another area. That’s excellent you get the programming.

SDB, I agree that they will charge for it. I see on the web site that some are listed as HDplus tiers.

Adelphia spelled backwards = Price increase

WUTV tonight aired an overlay advertisement during "24" (in SD) telling viewers that "24" and the Superbowl would be available in HD for free via "over the air" programming.

Something tells me they're playing a little pissing game with Adelphia...

Doesn't look good for WUTV getting on cable soon. Although I hope I'm wrong because having ALL the major stations would be the thing I'm looking for to switch to HD.


PS Not that I have HD but my TiVo's guide got updated last weeking tell me that in 14214 NFL and Disc HD were both added.

Im West of Transit and have had the INHD's for a while now. Your arent missing much with those stations really. I watch DISCHD and ESPNHD mostly.
I know people in the Depew area that dont get those stations and they were told it was a bandwidth issue and Adelphia is working to increase it.

Briless
I live by como park, per the installer, it’s not the bandwidth, it’s the agreement between the locals and cable company. If the government pushed the broadcast stations to transmit in digital, the cable companies should be forced to carry it also.

cwoody222
I used a DTV E86 to get my HD before I switched. What did me in was the HD DVR. At the time I switched it was $999 for satellite equipment vs. $7.95 extra for HD cable, plus they just added ABC. It’s very convenient, it still has a few drop outs now and then, but I feel much easer for the other family members to use. Ask my wife to re-scan and about putting an antenna on the roof, for-get-about-it. Lol She is happy with SD. Go figure.

It's about time.

Tonight, with a little antenna orientation and marginal tropo readings, I was finally able to achieve a 3-bar lock on CBLT-DT, channel 20.

I'm having problems with audio drop-outs on WIVB-HD.

Last night during Letterman I lost audio 4 times in 30 min.
I'm running a Samsung 151. Is any one else still having this problem?

No problems on the other channels.

WIVB CBS has known audio issues. I only watch HD shows during primetime, but it's very common for the audio to drop out during local-inserted commercials (usually the end of a commercial break - you can tell by the slight reduction in picture quality and the fake surround sound they use). Typically it'll come back by the time the HD program returns, but now and again it's continued for 10 or 15 seconds into the show.

This also happens on the UPN rebroadcast, so it's not a transmitter problem.

I'm guessing all Adelphia subs got it, but on the fees and services list in this months bill, it lists the HDTV Plus Tier as a $7.95 fee for some subs. It still lists it as "no charge" for certain valuepacks. I'm in "Bronze" and was not charged. So why would they say "certain" when the lowest one isn't being charged unless they plan on charging for it soon?

So, looks like no FOX-HD on Adelphia for the Superbowl...oh well, glad I kept my D* Hughes HD box to get it OTA.

Here's a story about why WUTV and Adelphia haven't come to a deal yet.

http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20050203/1063632.asp

"WKBW-TV Channel 7 General Manager Bill Ransom said he recently was told that only between 50 and 75 people in the area get HDTV over an antenna."

Uh huh.

Originally posted by Daniel Tonks
"WKBW-TV Channel 7 General Manager Bill Ransom said he recently was told that only between 50 and 75 people in the area get HDTV over an antenna."

Uh huh.

They left out the "... between the hours of 3 AM and 4 AM on Sunday morning ..." part.

I thought the same thing. Are there any other solid stats anywhere to disprove him?

There are three types of lies: Lies, damned lies and statistics. Did you know that 57% of all statistics quoted are simply made up? :) I got a chuckle when I read that there are only like 50 or 75 of us. It makes me feel special.

Over a year ago I bought a Samsung 165 because when I called Adelphia and they told me "many months away" for HD.
I bought the 165 to get OTA hd.

6 weeks later Adelphia had HD.
It's been pretty good with the additions they've made, but boy am I glad I kept the OTA receiver. At least I get to watch the SB this year in HD....

Guess it's 76 people watching OTA now. What a joke.

If his number is true, you should each expect about 15,000 people to show up at your OTA HDTV Superbowl parties! :-)

I would venture to say that at least 76 people registered on this forum who have contributed to our thread.

What a tool. WKBW is dubious. Let us not forget that whole debacle last year when they went live in the nick of time.

Anyone have trouble with channel 4-1 CBS HD yesterday. I was watching CSI at 9PM and had a lot of video and audio breakup especially in the last 30 minutes.
Using a LG LST-3510A which usually is flawless. Watched ER on 2-1 at 10 and worked perfectly.
Thanks
bernie

Same here with Dish Network 811. Because of WIVB's signal compression to squeeze in the absolutely necessary weather radar channel, they do not have the bandwidth to handle the fast scene changes of a show like CSI. The same thing continued and even got worse during Without a Trace.

I was begining to think it was something I was doing. System is connected to an outdoor rotary antenna. I have noticed this before on 4-1, but it was pretty rediculous Thursday night. Thinking of emailing engineering at WIVB.
Bernie

CSI actually died for a couple minutes on me yesterday - the receiver just couldn't lock into anything. After it came back there were a couple further blips as well as a LOT of what I call "misplaced frames" - where the screen will flash quickly with a frame of video that seems out of place. Only happens on CBS and it's usually maybe two or three times an hour, but it was happening a *lot* last night, even during Without a Trace.

Is everyone getting a black screen today from wgrz today 5:30 pm

Blank grey screen here in Burlington at 9:57pm. Lots of signal but missing lock/guide information. Samsung 351

Originally posted by dzt41j
If 29 hasn't changed, did I see something about firmware updates for Samsung receivers? I don't get why I can't get it in now, especially since 43 comes in so good.

Rich here,
try putting it in as 14-1 and 29-1 some receivers esp. the old samsungs are remapping. also try unplugging and plugging back in.
b.t.w. canadian chs are on. ch5 /ch 25/57/52

Just tried WGRZ 2-1 at 10:30PM. No digital signal here either.
Bernie

WGRZ: From 8PM to 10PM I was getting a digital light and good signal strength, but the receiver couldn't seem to find anything to decode - black screen, the "digital audio" light flickered a bit, and the unit was REALLY sluggish to commands. Had to switch from watching MI and taping Numb3rs to the reverse. :-)

I know NBC was working a day or two ago. And that earlier in the week it was causing my receiver to constantly crash and reboot (and then lock up again after rebooting - has never done that before). When I tried somewhere during the 10PM hour I don't think the digital light was locking on.

...And tonight Fox "forgot" to switch back to HD at about 40 minutes into Jonny Zero. And for some reason I couldn't get a lock on ABC (has gone from very reliable to almost non-existant for the past two or three weeks). And that CBS continues to have frequent encoder issues this week and audio dropouts. Ain't HDTV fun?

Just checked channel 2-1 at 10:00AM. Very dead, no signal. Who knows when this will get fixed. They probably are not that worried with the Superbowl on Fox 29-1 anyway.
Bernie

Still getting 9 bars signal strength but no Video or Audio on WGRZ-DT. I sent them an E-mail. Maybe they are not even aware of the problem?? Who knows!

Same problem with my receiver. Good signal strength but black screen on WGRZ since last night. But it doesn't affect HDTV card on my PC. Strange.

Last I checked channel 2-1 was still dead but show very high signal strength. Seems like my stb can't decode whats there or possibly there is nothing there to decode. I am going to try and reset my stb and do a rescan. This may have had something to do with the FCC mandated changes that took place on Feb 3. There is a whole other thread about this at the top of the HDTV reception area.
Bernie

2-1:

Samsung SIR-ts160 won't lock, keeps rebooting.
HR10-250 HD Tivo no lock, no picture.

All other stations in rochester and buffalo work fine on the HR10-250.

Just did a total reset on my LG LST-3510A. Rescanned channels again. Channel 2-1 has strong signal, no picture, no sound. Sent an email yesterday to WGRZ
No response. At least we know that different brand STBs are doing the same thing. Must be at the station. Thank God 29-1 works fine. Unless you get 29-1 over the air, you won't see the super bowl in high def. Some kind of pissing match between Adelphia and channel 29. Last I heard channel 29 on Adelphia is still standard def only.
Bernie

My Samsung T351 is doing the same thing. Did a rescan for WGRZ and it's got 7 bars, but no picture. Not like I watch any programs in HD off of NBC, but it would be good to receive it anyways.

I just lost audio on 29-1 for about a half hour during the Best Damn sports Road show?? I hope that isn't a sign of things to come for later tonight!!

Didn't notice any loss of audio from about 4:30 to the end of the game. The picture was very good, quite impressed with the presentation. Noticed a few artifacts, but that's expected.

Boo to WUTV tho for not working a deal out to put it on Adelphia.

Oh, and the Lay's MC Hammer commercial and Amerivest cat killing commercials were the best! :)

Originally posted by theedge
Boo to WUTV tho for not working a deal out to put it on Adelphia.

WUTV? Don't see it that way. More like Adelphia screwing it's most profitable* customers again. Nothing like getting charged for OTA HD...this is right up there with them charging (cough..renting) $60 cable modems for $5 a month....but only in the suburbs...

*Of all the areas with serviced with Adelphia cable, WNY is their most profitable.

Okay, Friday was an interesting evening, to say the least.

I took the plunge and invested in the Samsung SIR-T451 to replace my ailing T351 so that I could enjoy flicker-free 5.1 audio and hopefully more sensitivity with respect to multipath. Sure enough, the T451 was able to pull in an additional 3 bars on CBLT-DT 20, as well as give me a brief visual of FOX 31 out of Rochester. CBLT-DT is displaying a video loop with classical music in the background. Can't wait for Feb 21st, the eagerly anticipated live unveiling of scheduled content.

I don't know if this is a regular occurrence, but check out FOX 14.3 (29.3) every night about 9:45-10:15pm. This feed has been consistently dormant, but not Friday night. Apparently, WUTV will be showing WB 49's 10pm news, because at roughly 9:55pm, I saw something you don't see everyday; a live reporter preparing to give his report onsite. Steve Barber (WB news) and his camerman were standing outside, ready to give the report on the budget crisis. He just stood there, mostly unanimated but sharing a joke or two, with his cameraman. For the next 15 minutes, I watched as Steve tried to keep his hands warm, get disparaged for not wearing gloves, and using extremely obscene language at times as he awaited his segment. Just for kicks, I put the split screen on analog 49. Sure enough, when the anchor went to him live, the feeds were in perfect synch. Then, when he completed his segment, he simply walked away from the camera and power was cut, resulting in color bars for a minute, then blackness.

I'm not sure how or why this feed was tapped for 29.3, but I hope it happens again. That was most certainly entertaining.

Originally posted by rubblerubble
....but I hope it happens again. That was most certainly entertaining.

This happens 2 or 3 times per week. I always check during commerial breaks. If the FCC heard the language, WUTV would be broke.

The picture and audio on WUTV were very good for the game yesterday :)

Originally posted by rubblerubble
I would venture to say that at least 76 people registered on this forum who have contributed to our thread.


If you go to the forum index page (that lists all the threads) and click on the # of Replies, it will show you how many unique ID's have contributed to this topic.

This topic has 114 unique users.

Not all are from WNY.
Not all have HD (me included).

But I think it blows Ransom's number estimate out of the water.


(thanks to dswallow for showing me that trick)

Originally posted by colossus
WUTV? Don't see it that way. More like Adelphia screwing it's most profitable* customers again. Nothing like getting charged for OTA HD...this is right up there with them charging (cough..renting) $60 cable modems for $5 a month....but only in the suburbs...

*Of all the areas with serviced with Adelphia cable, WNY is their most profitable.

WUTV is demanding that Adelphia pay them for access to their HD feeds.

WGRZ, WIVB (and their sister UPN station) and WKBW did NOT make such demands.

Adelphia is worried (and rightly so) that if they pay one they'd have to pay them all.

WUTV (actually their owners - Sinclair? - who also own the local WB affiliate) are being greedy.

That's the hold up.

Originally posted by cwoody222
WUTV is demanding that Adelphia pay them for access to their HD feeds.

WUTV (actually their owners - Sinclair? - who also own the local WB affiliate) are being greedy.

Adelphia is charging for a HD package, which consists only of 'rebroadcast' OTA channels, unless you get HBO or SHO.

The same OTA channels I- and evidently 113 others- get for free. Adelphia is charging their customers for these free channels and not paying any of those broadcasters for this. If Adelphia carried the game, I would have paid them- for "their" HD package- to see the free OTA signal that WUTV broadcast.

This is akin to reselling free samples. Exactly how is WUTV being greedy here? Because they want money from somebody else profiting from something they're giving away for free? Sounds to me like fair compensation.

Sure, Adelphia is getting it for "free" (the article stated that WGRZ gets free promo ads on Adelphia) but they're still performing a service.

For viewers and for the affiliates (more people will be likely to tune into their HD station on cable than OTA).

There are probably considerably more than 114. That's 114 on this forum alone.

I honestly believe that there are more than 114 HD sets capable of receiving OTA in this area, and that the number is probably more than 10 times that number.

The total consists of sets sold with ATSC tuners, plus those with Direct or Dish receivers with internal HD tuners, those with add-on OTA STBs.

The article claims that there are approx 10,000 HDTV sets in WNY.

But only 50-75 get OTA HD? That's less than 1%. It's crazy!

Obviously they don't know what they're talking about whatsoever regarding the true amount of people getting HD OTA.

If I look out the front and rear windows of my house, I can count at least 7-10 that I know get the over the air High Definition. They do not have a clue. I did not buy mine from a local retailer, I didn't need to register it with anyone local, so as far as they know I don't get their stations. How many more are just like me and get them? I would think there are a few thousand at least pulling in Buffalo High Def stations.

OK.

Is it just ME ? . . or is WIVB-DT having problems AGAIN.

This time it's video ghost images and audio glitches.

On CSI -- Thursday, 10 Feb, I kept getting these GLITCHES where the picture would partially break-up and I could see part of another image . . which was almost always a WIVB logo card.
It was like somebody pushed the wrong button for a second and showed the station break image
in the wrong place.

I would assume everyone else is getting the same glitch . . . yes? no?

ALSO -- AUDIO

again during CSI on Thursday . . EVERY time there was deep and loud bass content -- which is to say OFTEN on CSI -- the picture would freeze and go into micro blocking.

Sometimes the bass hits would happen with a picture flash -- which has historically set off
micro blocking on WIVB -- but much of the time there was no accompanying dramatic picture change . . . just the bass hits.

. . AND, of course, WIVB's famous AUDIO BLACKOUTS were there . . no sound at ALL usually fixed within a minute or so.


The broken record I keep getting from calling ALL the HD stations is that my receiver -- Samsung SIR-T165 -- is "ONLY" first generation and can't handle the new FCC mandated PSIP changes and blah blah.

Anyone else had similar problems.

Do you guys with Adelphia get the same artifacts or is this an OT thang?

Anybody found any fixes for this?

Thanks,

Originally posted by GregHoey
OK.

Is it just ME ? . . or is WIVB-DT having problems AGAIN.

This time it's video ghost images and audio glitches.

On CSI -- Thursday, 10 Feb, I kept getting these GLITCHES where the picture would partially break-up and I could see part of another image . . which was almost always a WIVB logo card.
It was like somebody pushed the wrong button for a second and showed the station break image
in the wrong place.

I would assume everyone else is getting the same glitch . . . yes? no?



I also saw a big WIVB red 4 logo in those glitches on both channel 32 and 39.

Yes, that picture glitch (I call it a "misplaced frame") has been happening for months and months (T165 here as well), however it seems to be getting worse lately in terms of frequency.

The known audio dropouts during local inserted material still happens regularly - lasting from 10 seconds to a minute. Usually restored by the time the program starts again, but not always.

Regarding breakups, try watching the UPN transmitter (32) instead of the CBS transmitter. I rarely get any of the CSI-related breakups on 32 that happen so frequently on 39 (perhaps one reason they're still broadcasting CBS on the UPN transmitter).

Originally posted by GregHoey
Do you guys with Adelphia get the same artifacts or is this an OT thang?

I get them too. I'm glad it is not Adelphia for a change. That way it at least has a chance of getting fixed. :)

I just recently purchased a HDTV and am looking to get an antenna placed on my roof in order to receive the local HD broadcasts. I am not a handy person at all, so I need to find someone to install the antenna for me. I was wondering if anyone has had their antenna installed by a local Buffalo company and if they were happy, etc. Thank you for any input or suggestions. I live in Amherst/Eggertsville area.

I'm sure Rich the Antenna Man would be happy to oblige.

Originally posted by DrJones
I just recently purchased a HDTV and am looking to get an antenna placed on my roof in order to receive the local HD broadcasts. I am not a handy person at all, so I need to find someone to install the antenna for me. I was wondering if anyone has had their antenna installed by a local Buffalo company and if they were happy, etc. Thank you for any input or suggestions. I live in Amherst/Eggertsville area.

Get in touch with R.W. SERVICE INC. @ rwantsat@localnet.com

Although, he does not install the antena anymore..

Originally posted by daredevil23
I'm sure Rich the Antenna Man would be happy to oblige.

He can help you out in deciding what to buy and get them to you. Unfortunately, he has stopped instalations. That is per my last discussion with him couple of months ago. Can still try to see if that has changed.

Let me know if you find anyone good. I am in the same boat.

I just joined the ranks of off air hdtv in the Buffalo area. That must make me number 77. I hooked up my Dish 811 receiver yesterday and I am very happy with the results. Watched , Lost, West Wing and CSI last night and it all looked amazing. One question I have is about the sound. CSI was the only show that came through in 5.1, the others were only Dolby 2.0. Is this what I should expect? A note about hooking up the receiver, I had been using a Terk 50 antenna stick mounted in my attic for receiving analog locals. I just connected it to the new receiver and it appears to work just fine. I receive all the local channels at 85 percent or higher.

You'll be glad to know that our ranks are growing. There are two other people that I work with that have also joined the off air HDTV ranks recently. soon we'll be over 100. Thanks for all your help I've been reading your posts for awhile.
MB

Originally posted by DrJones
I just recently purchased a HDTV and am looking to get an antenna placed on my roof in order to receive the local HD broadcasts. I am not a handy person at all, so I need to find someone to install the antenna for me. I was wondering if anyone has had their antenna installed by a local Buffalo company and if they were happy, etc. Thank you for any input or suggestions. I live in Amherst/Eggertsville area.

Do you have a chimney? I've performed a chimney mount at my home, so I have some experience and could lend an informational hand if you eventually decide to pursue this on your own. It's really not terribly difficult to do.

CBS as a network only recently started broadcasting most programming in Dolby 5.1. Fox is 5.1 as well.

Buffalo's ABC and NBC stations currently only broadcast in 2.0 (although I think the parent networks are 5.1?)

Hey Daniel,

So CBS is actually broadcasting in 5.1 now?

For the past few months, my receiver has shown the signal as 5.1, but when I activate Dolby Surround, I get no sound through the rear channels or the center channel. I am sure Fox is in 5.1, but I thought I read that even though the programming on CBS shows up as 5.1, it is only 2.0.

Have they finally fixed this? I would love to finally be able to watch CSI in 5.1 surround.

Thanks.

WIVB seems to be experimenting with the sound. During CSI last night the 5.1 would come and go when they went to commercial. Sometimes the commercials would be in surround and other times it would be at reduced volume only through the center channel. It made it very exciting when the show came back and nearly knocked you off the couch from the sound. Survivor also sounded really good in 5.1, but why no HD? I also experienced the dreaded sound dropouts and picture freeze occasionally during CSI. From what I've read here previously this is a normal occurance. I hope this improves with time, it seems to be an evolving medium, but the small annoyances are worth it. MB

Originally posted by fall-man
He can help you out in deciding what to buy and get them to you. Unfortunately, he has stopped instalations. That is per my last discussion with him couple of months ago. Can still try to see if that has changed.

Let me know if you find anyone good. I am in the same boat.

Rich here,
just letting everyone on the forum know we are doing installs again. in fact have been for over a month and a half. We were having a problem before the holidays. i lost my antenna man all we were doing was satellite. i have since got my antenna guy back on limited hours thing. but thats plenty for our needs. not everybody wants antennas these days.
So if ya need help call me or if you just need supplies like antennas/amps/rotors/mounts cable and wire etc . e-mail me as well at rwantsat@localnet.com

Rich R.W.Antenna Service inc.

Is it just me and my setup or has Fox 29 been down all week? I'm getting a signal from them - just no picture.

Rabid

Rabid fox 29-dt has been working perfect for me.They are only transmitting at 35kw

WIVB (local CBS) has been broadcasting a 5.1 formatted signal for about a year now. The problem was that the CBS network had no 5.1 programming except for certain live events (such as the Superbowl). And, since WIVB did no advanced ProLogic decoding on that 5.1 signal, if you've been using a digital audio output you've had nothing but plain 2.0 stereo for about a year now with absolutely no surround (I'm not aware of a receiver that will do prologic decoding on a 5.1 signal - or why you would normally ever want to).

According to a CBS New York engineer, the local station should have been (and still be) switching automatically between 2.0 for normal shows (allowing you to do your own surround decoding) and 5.1 for live events, but that isn't happening. And as far as WIVB's engineering dept. is concerned, there's no problem with having 5.1 all the time.

For the past month or so CBS has been gradually starting to broadcast more and more programming in real 5.1 audio (guess they finally bought those 5.1-compatible tape players). I think currently almost every primetime HDTV show is in 5.1, so having WIVB stuck in 5.1 mode is no longer such a bad thing - except for all SD material, which will be broadcast in a 5.1 format but with only stereo content.

WIVB's local inserted programming/commercials have a sort of fakey surround DSP applied that sort of sounds like a "5.1 stereo" effect.

Fox also broadcasts 5.1 all the time, but they do advanced ProLogic decoding on SD material so you'll still get surround sound even if the original program was not actually 5.1.

Seems that the local NBC and ABC affiliates have not yet upgraded their equipment to 5.1 compatibility (and for ABC, who knows if they ever will).

Thanks for the explaination Daniel. It helps make sense out of the confusion of varying sound formats. Turned on the Daytona 500 for a bit today, beautiful picture and the 5.1 soundfield was pretty active. I find myself searching channels looking for HD content just so I can sit and stare at. It's still hard to believe the clarity of the picture. I'm presently using a Sony HS420, 32" TV for display, but plan on adding a front projector in the near future to take full advantage of the HD format. Anyone else using a projector to display? I'm curious as to the state of HD and Home Theater in the Buffalo area. Thanks in advance for any response. MB

Well channel 20 that redirects to 5-1 out of Toronto. Some material is not in HD but I am getting 5.1 surround.

Problems on WGRZ this morning.

I tried to watch the Today show and my Samsung 151 locked up.
I had to remove the antenna to change the channel. What is channel 2 doing? I watched the SNL special Sunday night and it was perfect.

Originally posted by biersy
Survivor also sounded really good in 5.1, but why no HD?

They don't film Survivor in HD because the cameras are too heavy / expensive to take 'to the islands' and run around with.

Ditto w/ most other reality shows.

If Fox could do HD for Rebel Billionaire, then anything can be done. At this stage, what with ultra cheap HDV cameras available, there are fewer and fewer "good excuses" for Survivor still being in SD. And since it's CBS' biggest reality show, money isn't a very good one. :-)

Haven't tried NBC since Friday, but they seem to be messing around with things lately and breaking stuff as they go...

I agree with Daniel Tonks.
If they can carry an IMAX camera up Mount Everest, then why not a HD camera to a cushy tropical island???
Also it’s not CBS to blame for no HD, it is Mark Burnett, or whoever the producing company is. ……
In general, I don’t think we will see the big push to an HD format as we did for B&W to color. Anyone else here remember??

Just curious. I used to check out the NewsNow channel. Now there's nothing. The WKBW website says it is on.

Didn't they switch that to an internet-only broadcast?

Originally posted by cwoody222
They don't film Survivor in HD because the cameras are too heavy / expensive to take 'to the islands' and run around with.

Ditto w/ most other reality shows.

The Sony HDCF905 camera weighs 11 pounds and is $110,000. Not heavy by any stretch of imagination and not exohorbitantly expensive for broadcast equipment.

The HVRZ1U HD camcorder(!) weighs just under 5 pounds and is $6,000. That is even within amateur bidget range.

Both prices are MSRP.

Andre

The ranks of OTA users is back down to 76, at least temporarily. With the change in cable rates, I picked up the Adelphia HD package for $3 extra per month. The package includes DVR free for 30 days. My experience has been good, bad, and ugly.


The Good

The DVR is great. Pause live TV, record shows by highlighting them in the guide, show replays in the middle of sporting events. So simple, my 8 year old was using it like a pro the first day we had it. HD recordings are great.

Also, as I have a 4:3 40 inch TV, there is an aspect button that automatically switches the Scientific Atlanta 8300HD box output to allow me to match my screen size. So rather than watch the news with bars on every side of the picture, with the push of one button the box output goes from 1080i widescreen to 480p 4:3 and fills the screen for non-HD content.


The Bad

The HD picture quality is good, but not as good as it was with my OTA STB (Samsung SIR-T151). Some noticeable compression artifacts are showing up, when I never saw them with OTA reception.

The box has an HDMI output, but the port is not supported, per Adelphia. I would have liked to try and use this hook up if it were available.

I initially did not get all the stations I was supposed to, but a call to Customer service and a reset on the box solved most of the problems. I am still not receiving a pic on INHD.

When ESPNHD became active, I tuned in to see college basketball. But the game was not broadcast in HD!!!!

No FOX, which I am used to getting OTA


The Ugly

Analog channel reception through the box is HORRIBLE (i.e. channels 2-70). I tried it through the HD component hook up, S-video and composite hook ups. All had such a bad picture that even my wife commented on it (and she usually couldn’t care less about this stuff). I was finally able to get a decent picture by using the coax antenna output on the box and hooking it directly into my TV’s antenna input. The TV tuner did a much better job with these stations, but I have to change the TV input for watching different channels, which defeats the purpose of the cable box. The Adelphia guy said he couldn’t understand this, and said I could swap out the box for a new one “at my convenience.” Of course getting a working box in the first place would have been most convenient.



I am curious to see if others have had similar experiences. For me, I am getting ESPNHD and a couple other stations now but have lost FOX. I will see if I watch these stations aenough to make it worth my while.

Hi, does any one know when wnyo-dt will increase their power.Currently their at 650 watts and are most of the time unwatchable for me.

>Analog channel reception through the box is HORRIBLE

and

>The Adelphia guy said he couldn’t understand this

Its a combination of a few things.

My Sony XBR910 does a real crappy job of rendering SD. HD looks great, but SD is worse on this than my older 5 year old 4:3 Sony SD set.
I dont know what HD set you have, but maybe yours is doing the same thing.

I have the non-dvr SA HD box. The DVI does work on this, and the box auto switches between HD and SD resolution outout. THis is nice in the fact I can change channels between HD and SD and the pic automatically goes to wide zoom on SD channels... But the box also does do a lousy job (IMO) on SD as you have noted with your SA DVR HD box.

Wait till you start watching some of the digital channels. You'll see its actually worse due to excessive signal compression. Watch the DIY channel on 145 sometime, check out anything that has brown wood color in the background. Looks horrid.

It's not the box. Changing it wont fix your issues.

I have a Sony KV 40XBR800 TV. The SD from the old box was good, and when I bypass the SA box, the picture is OK too.

I'll have to check out the digital cable channels.

I've never seen a digital cable box that did a good job at analog stations. In some of the markets around here (Toronto) they get around it by duplicating the analog stations in digital.

Hi I live in the buffalo area and can not pull in wnyo dt either

Originally posted by dwilli845
Hi I live in the buffalo area and can not pull in wnyo dt either
Welcome to the forum!
WNYO is a common issue; their broadcast power is comparable to the power of a microwave oven. I do pick it up in Amherst...and can say you're not missing much. Although they are flagged as 1080i I have not seen any actual HD broadcasts on that channel yet.

Originally posted by stjefrey
Well channel 20 that redirects to 5-1 out of Toronto. Some material is not in HD but I am getting 5.1 surround.

Hmmmm...all the way up in north in Youngstown....anybody south of Tonawanda getting 20?? I can't get it, Hughes HTL-HD doesn't even find a signal. I'm using a Silver Sensor sitting right next to my STB....

antennaweb.org does not appear to be listing Canadian channels. Any help? :)

Originally posted by colossus
Hmmmm...all the way up in north in Youngstown....anybody south of Tonawanda getting 20?? I can't get it, Hughes HTL-HD doesn't even find a signal. I'm using a Silver Sensor sitting right next to my STB....

I'm in Niagara Fall, Ontario and I was receiving a 17.2 dB signal from D20 with my VU-190 aerial which is 38 feet in the air on my tower.

Getting UHF from a good distance does require your antenna be up in the air. There's no two ways around that.

See http://www.geocities.com/toddemslie/UHF-TV-DX.html for more details.

I can usually pull in CBLT-DT 30% of the time. I just purchased a Winegard pre-amp with 19db (because the 26db variety was way to powerful and caused overload across the spectrum). It helped pull in the Toronto analogs 5, 9, 41, 47 considerably, but because 20 falls directly between analog 17 and 23, there is still some slight bleeding of these frequencies into 20, which doesn't necessarily boost it's strength for me. At the very least, with or without pre-amp, I get a 2-bar blip. A little tropo and I'm good to go.

Question for the group; is it possible to buy attenuators for specific channels? 17 and 23 are still overriding channels near it, although not as severely as with the stronger pre-amp.

Originally posted by rubblerubble
Question for the group; is it possible to buy attenuators for specific channels? 17 and 23 are still overriding channels near it, although not as severely as with the stronger pre-amp.

Well I installed this Radio Shack variable attenuator (http://www.radioshack.com/product.asp?catalog%5Fname=CTLG&product%5Fid=15-678) because I was getting signal overloads on the closer transmitters but need the 23 dB boost for the distant transmitters and the analogs, and it has help tremendously.

Hello. I recently purchased a US Digital DB-2010 recevier and a Philips Mant410 indoor antenna to try OTA HDTV. While ABC, CBS, NBC, and PBS come in good, I cannot seem to get FOX. Not sure if my antenna is the problem or if I am doing something wrong. Any input would be greatly appreciated. I live in Cheektowaga, NY.

Thank you

Originally posted by GBS1
Hello. I recently purchased a US Digital DB-2010 recevier and a Philips Mant410 indoor antenna to try OTA HDTV. While ABC, CBS, NBC, and PBS come in good, I cannot seem to get FOX. Not sure if my antenna is the problem or if I am doing something wrong. Any input would be greatly appreciated. I live in Cheektowaga, NY.

Thank you

Fellow Cheektawagian checking in. Where exactly in Cheektavegas are you? In order to receive a decent, reliable FOX signal, installing an outdoor or attic antenna is your best option. An indoor antenna simply won't cut the mustard (there are exceptions, of course). FOX's signal is extremely directional, so ensure you have the antenna pointed directly towards GI. You have little room for error on this. Also, make sure you have a decent line of site (ie. no trees, walls, obstacles). Another suggestion would be to elevate the antenna as high as practically possible.

My outlook for you is bleak, but you may have a shot. If you have no viable outdoor or attic mount options, then I suggest the Silvor Sensor, available at Best Buy. I have a friend just down the street who I recommended a SS to and with proper orientation, he can pull in FOX.

Good luck.

daredevil,

Thanks for the reply. I recall purchasing that same attentuator last time when I installed the 26db pre-amp, but it did not succeed in eliminating the excessive bleeding of 17 and 23. Do you think now that I have a lower db gain, it might just do the trick? I'm concerned that consistent attenuation across the dial will cause me to lose the fanstatic gain I've achieved on the other channels.

rubblerubble,

Thank you for your help! I will try the Silver Sensor and see what happens. If I can get FOX it will be worth it...not sure for just the other ABC, CBS, and NBC though. I am in the Union/William area.

I appreciate your advice!

Originally posted by rubblerubble
. Do you think now that I have a lower db gain, it might just do the trick? I'm concerned that consistent attenuation across the dial will cause me to lose the fanstatic gain I've achieved on the other channels.

Well you might try a tighter beam antenna that is up higher, that might just ignore the off axis close transmitters and pull in more the distant transmitters, but I know that's tough to do, because in my case Grand Island's transmitters just kill the signal from channel 49 analog, the best reception I can get is to put my antenna severely off axis.

Daredevil, I might just take your advice on that. I was considering a CM 4248 (although I'm sure Rich will chime in on this).

GBS1, your location will make it extremely difficult, even with the Silver Sensor. Don't get your expectations to high, but at least Best Buy has a decent return policy, so I guess it doesn't hurt to try.

Hello up north (and west), this might be what you are waiting for:

http://www.tvtechnology.com/hd_notebook/one.php?id=137

Originally posted by GBS1
rubblerubble,

Thank you for your help! I will try the Silver Sensor and see what happens. If I can get FOX it will be worth it...not sure for just the other ABC, CBS, and NBC though. I am in the Union/William area.

I appreciate your advice!

If you can I would try the Radio Shack #15-2160. I have one in my attic and I am able to getting all of the channel at 85% to 97% on my Dish 811. Plus it is cheap at $25. I am in the Borden/French Area. Just a note you have to be able to get FOX, they run the NASCAR races in HD. I am not a huge NASCAR fan but it is amazing.

Billmaxpowers,

Thank you for the tip on the Radio Shack antenna. When you say you have it in your attic, do you mean indoors? I too am not a huge fan of NASCAR, but I want to see how it is in surround sound and HD. Hopefully I can get something to work for me.

Yes indoors, it is mounted at the very top of my attic. I have a single story ranch, if that helps you out at all. I also have the antenna pointing right at FOX, but I am still able to get everything else very well. Use antennaweb.org to help you out on where to point the thing. Good Luck.

I was just wondering if anybody else was having problems with ABC & Lost tonight. For about 40 minutes of the show I had a broken up and pixelated picture, and no sound. I'm just glad it was a repeat, or I'd really be upset. I'm using a Dish 811 receiver and had a signal strength of around 85. I'd just like to know if it's my equipment or just a crappy feed from WKBW. I've had interuptions before, but they only lasted a few seconds. This was totally unwatchable. Any response from anybody else with similar problems will be appeciated. Thanks in advance. MB

I currently have OTA HD STB and I love it. I can get all 5 stations available in WNY without any problem.

For a long time, I was waiting for a reasonable priced HD DVR to come up but the waiting is getting too long. HD TIVO is still too expensive and I don't want to deal with bankrupt Adelphia now.

Since I bought a new P4 3.0 Dell 4700 with 80 gig, I was considering the HDTV card route. After a little research, I found the 3 popular models are

ATI HDTV wonder
FusionHD
MyHD.

I already know how it works under XP and MCE but my question is how the program guide works, especially in Buffalo?

I know titantv.com can be used for Fusion and MyHD, which will be convenient. How does the program guide for ATI HDTV wonder work? I heard it uses PSIP data in the OTA digital signal, but my current OTA STB doesn't show all the channel infor because some lame stations are not providing it.

If you use any of these three cards, can you answer the following?

Q1. How friendly is the the program guide? I want to know whether my wife can use it.

Q2. Can you set up something like TIVO's season pass? This is a must for my wife.

Q3. How much hard drive space is required to record 1 hour of HD? I'm not sure 80 gig will be sufficient based on my crude calculation.

Q4. How stable is the card? I'll not run any other program, if I use the PC solely for HDTV.

Q5. Any suggestions?

Thanks for any input.

I didn't watch it last night but when my DVR started recording it, I switched over to it to stop the recording and is was silent and all goofed up. So I suppose it wasn't just you.

Originally posted by acegolfer
I currently have OTA HD STB and I love it. I can get all 5 stations available in WNY without any problem.
...

If you use any of these three cards, can you answer the following?

Q1. How friendly is the the program guide? I want to know whether my wife can use it.

Q2. Can you set up something like TIVO's season pass? This is a must for my wife.

Q3. How much hard drive space is required to record 1 hour of HD? I'm not sure 80 gig will be sufficient based on my crude calculation.

Q4. How stable is the card? I'll not run any other program, if I use the PC solely for HDTV.

Q5. Any suggestions?

Thanks for any input.

Can only give details for MyHD:
1. I use the TitanTV that the software can pull up, I've gotten so used to the PSIP being useless or non-existent.
2. Don't know quite what that is so I can't say, although from what I have read no PC card yet equals TIVO for ease of use.
3. 9 gigabytes per hour. You should have enough to record something and watch it the next day, but don't to expect to archive lots of movies with 80 gig
4.I'm running it right now. Haven't had a crash this year, although I had some when watching Fox last year...I suspect they cleaned up their signal around superbowl time.
5. Wade through the HTPC section of the forum - lots of info and plenty of opinions. My personal experience: MyHD works in any system with little effort, HDTV wonder was a nightmare...fought with graphics cards, wouldn't recognize DirectX...eventually just had to tell the guy I knew who bought one to take it back and order a good card from Digital Connection.

Anyone have problems with channel 4 on Thursday night. Near the end of CSI, picture dropouts, sound dropouts were pretty bad. Momentary problems during the rest of the show. Also had the same problem near the end of Without a Trace. It seems channel 4 is the worst offender out there in regards to picture dropouts. Running a LST 4200A which is generally flawless. Biggest problems seem to be with channel 4. I am assuming this is a bandwidth problem because they are stuffing 3 channels in one signal. I am connected to a Winegard outdoor rotary antenna.
bernie

Originally posted by acegolfer
I currently have OTA HD STB and I love it. I can get all 5 stations available in WNY without any problem.

For a long time, I was waiting for a reasonable priced HD DVR to come up but the waiting is getting too long. HD TIVO is still too expensive and I don't want to deal with bankrupt Adelphia now.



I also have a OTA STB to get stations, but you know what, I am putting it up for sale on eBay this weekend. The only stations I will miss are 29/Fox and 5/CBC, but you know what, there is nothing wrong with Adelphia. They are up for sale, so they are not going anywhere. The HD STB they have is very nice, 160GB of space which holds 25 hours of HD or about 160 hours of Standard TV. No monkeying around with the computer for your wife.

$7.95/month for the box is not bad, and you get a lot of HD content.

Originally posted by berniez
Anyone have problems with channel 4 on Thursday night. Near the end of CSI, picture dropouts, sound dropouts were pretty bad. Momentary problems during the rest of the show. Also had the same problem near the end of Without a Trace. It seems channel 4 is the worst offender out there in regards to picture dropouts. Running a LST 4200A which is generally flawless. Biggest problems seem to be with channel 4. I am assuming this is a bandwidth problem because they are stuffing 3 channels in one signal. I am connected to a Winegard outdoor rotary antenna.
bernie


No problems here (except for the "misplaced frame" issue)... but I was watching the 32 rebroadcast.

Reception was fine for me ,I watched on channel 39.except for brief mis placed frame issue.

Is there anyone in Rochester or Buffalo with a C-band HDTV setup? I just bought an HDD-200 and I'm looking for a way to test it.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by rubblerubble
[B]I can usually pull in CBLT-DT 30% of the time. I just purchased a Winegard pre-amp with 19db (because the 26db variety was way to powerful and caused overload across the spectrum). It helped pull in the Toronto analogs 5, 9, 41, 47 considerably, but because 20 falls directly between analog 17 and 23, there is still some slight bleeding of these frequencies into 20, which doesn't necessarily boost it's strength for me. At the very least, with or without pre-amp, I get a 2-bar blip. A little tropo and I'm good to go.

Question for the group; is it possible to buy attenuators for specific channels? 17 and 23 are still overriding channels near it, although not as severely as with the stronger pre-amp.

Rich from lockport here:
you can buy individual channel traps that will knock down apx 20 db gain. these are 75 ohm and can be put back to back. i also sell winegard tunable uhf traps that can either knock 2 chs down 7 db gain or 15 on 1 ch.
these work quite well.

Originally posted by rubblerubble
Daredevil, I might just take your advice on that. I was considering a CM 4248 (although I'm sure Rich will chime in on this).

Naturally, i just happened to be reading this and actually if you want tighter beamwidth a yagi would be better. i sell both the 4228 8 bay bowties and the winegard yagi's , stay away from c.m. yagis. they are built like crap and dont perform. if ya really wanna tighten things up get a winegard yagi fringe or deep fringe. i have the specs on these and they are stellar. stack 2 side by side and it'll be like looking thru binoculars.
give me a yell if ya need the specs.
rwantennasat@localnet.com

B.T.W. im watching ch 5dt and 25dt out of To. almost full scale on mt zenith 520+420 also getting toronto one and city tv on 53-1
using 7' parascope 70' tower with winegard preamp 19 db gain.
also on house modified( made longer) prostar 9032 w 19 db gain on a 10' tripod.


GBS1, your location will make it extremely difficult, even with the Silver Sensor. Don't get your expectations to high, but at least Best Buy has a decent return policy, so I guess it doesn't hurt to try.

Anyone else notice how stable WIVB has been without the radar channel? Let's hope it's permanent, not just during the NCAA tournament. CSI last night was the best I have ever seen it- not one single digital breakup or audio problem.

I second that. Channel 4 HD has always been an issue for me. The picture quality has been great without that stupid weather radar. No breakups and no audio dropouts since.
Bernie

...now if they'd just get UPN off of 39 and CBS off of 32 and make both full bandwidth HD that would be even better.