At this time there are still 0 stations broadcasting HD in the nations heartland. Does anyone have news/updated timelines for Omaha now that 1 May has come and gone?

John


Thread title edited by AVS admin to include both Lincoln and Omaha.
Purpose: Open discussion of issues pertaining to over the air, satellite and cable HD reception in Omaha and Lincoln.

Somewhere along the lines this Over The Air broadcast thread turned into a Love my Cox thread.

It's been a looong time since I've been to Omaha, but I thought ch. 3 was up, something like ch. 45, as HD.

And I thought I heard that the other stations would be up by the end of the year, but I could be mistaken.

Jolly,

Channel 3, digital 45 is up on Cox cable. I've been scanning (Dish 6000 w/OTA module) several times a week dating back several months hoping for OTA programming and have yet to see anything.

John

I just recently moved from the Omaha area, Bellevue, NE, after 20 years, to Hermon Maine. I was getting frustrated by the slow roll out of HD off air in Omaha too. I searched Internet sites and emailed to the TV stations for status. 1000,000 watts.com and Titantv.com were showing CBS KMTV-DT ch 45 as being on the air over a year ago. I emailed them that unless they new something I didn't that they were in fact not broadcasting. Apparently they are having tower problems. I considered for a short period the COX cable route, aside from being an "anti-cable" I just couldn't justify the cost of the HDD-200 HD decoder required. At the time it was $1600. Even being a BUD owner were the decoder could have been used as well. Thanks to DISH there became an economical HD programming source.

I am happy to say though that since I have arrived in ME two off air signals are being broadcast, the WMEB-DT Ch 9 PBS, and WLBZ-DT Ch 25 NBC. I have watched to testing process of PBS for a two month period and have been graced with some spectalular HD samplings. I am still monitorinr NBS HD fare, which is somewhat linited. Watched Leno, looked darn good. Then a playoff of the Nets and Celtics, but they didn't have enough HD cameras for every shot so It was a mixed bag.

Oh ... Hi John !!

Jay-Bird,

LTNS, nice post by the way. I emailed several local broadcast engineers over the weekend. We'll see what their excuses are this time around.

John

This is from the respective stations engineer's:
WOWT (NBC) 10/1/2002
KMTV (CBS) 11/1/2002
KETV (ABC) 5/1/2002

KETV is delayed because they are ordering a new antenna array to do both the HD and current analog broadcast...

Cox Omaha currently broadcasts 1 HBO, ! Showtime, and CBS in High Definition. No set top box rental here. Motorola High Definition Decoder is available to purchase at Nebraska Furniture Mart for 475-500 dollars. I just purchased one Monday to go with 34XBR800 that just arrived. I spoke with a Cox tech rep two weeks ago and he was under the impression that box rental was coming in near future. I also spoke with a sales rep who stated that plans for box rental were on hold as far as the last meeting he attended. I can really understand the problem for Cox, even with volume purchase, the cost of buying a large quantity of set top boxes to rent out at ten bucks a month does not make economic sense. How many NEW customers is this going to bring in? I am just thrilled to have what I am getting right now. Many people are getting nothing at all. I hope that Cox would offer Discovery HD and I would gladly pay the $ 5 dollars a month. Cox does not offer NBC or PBS in this area. Just my two cents worth..

This just in today from our local ABC affiliate:

""" Good Afternoon Everyone,

Just a quick note to let you know I am replacing my transmission line on
the 72nd street tower. This is to get ready for HDTV. The reason the line
must be replaced is the current line will not handle the combined power of
the channel 7 transmitter, and the channel 20 transmitter.

We are currently broadcasting on our aux transmitter located at the studio.
We will be on that transmitter for at least 10 days, maybe longer if the
weather does not hold.

More to come.

Thanks
Warren Behrens
Chief Engineer KETV """

So with any luck, ABC could begin broadcasting 720P here in a few weeks. However, I'm not holding my breath (it's raining outside!) As long as it's online in time for some HD Football (Superbowl Party) I'll be happy. How about the Indy 500 in HD. ABC are you listening?

A local NBC spokesperson stated in July that they would begin transmission on 1 August. Apparently something has gone astray because their latest statements early-August indicate their pushing their schedule much farther to the right, into early 2003. :(

CBS's current line is November.


Stroker,

Glad to see you popped for a COX capable HD STB. I've heard rumors that COX will be switching over soon to the SA3100, I hope their future programming scheme will remain compatible with your current GI setup.

I'm a DISH customer. I receive HBO, SHO, PPV, DiscoveryHD and CBS (motorhome waiver) via Echostars 61.5 bird. I've been champing at the bit for several years now to receive HD OTA. Receiving CBS-HD from NY channel 2 is nice but I'll know HD has finally arrived when I can view our local CBS news crews in HD. That plus the east coast time shift is irritating, programs are on before were through eating dinner.

Welcome to the HD club of Omaha. There aren't many of us now, but I know the Furniture Mart has sold plenty of HD monitors. Come on locals.

I'll post more when I know more....


John

John--

I got the same message today, but that is only referring to the first step in ABC's HD transmission. Per Warren, they will not have the anntenna in and operational until spring, and are shooting for a 5/1/03 date, but may hit it early if weather permits.

And the chief engineer at WOWT, Jay Nix, stated on 7/23 that they are targetting a live date of 10/1, and KMTV told him they would be live 11/1 (and KETV would be up 5/1/03, which jives with Warren's comments).

Stroker--

What do you think of the quality of HD from COX? I checked into it at NFM, and the HBO HD signal looked worse than the regular HBO! I don't know if it was the set it was on, but it looked very compressed and the artifacts were terrible... I'd love to hear how it looks outside of a showroom floor.

--jeff

Thank you John and Jeffrey.

I feel a bit foolish to admit a lack of experience in the world of HD and high quality television. I have been watching a 27" JVC for the last eight years or so and have looked at the high quality sets available for the last couple of those. I decided a year or so ago that I wanted a very good set and went about looking for it. I shop at the Furniture Mart and spent a fair amount of time looking there and at the other local retailers. I saw some I liked but never any that made me really want to part with the money. I was at the Mart a couple of months ago and saw the 34XBR2 and just loved the look of it. The $ 3700 price tag put it out of my range however.
While looking at websites I heard about the 34XBR800 and knew that was the set I wanted.

I have had Cox Cable since they first arived in Omaha. I changed to Digital when it became available and have been a satisfied customer all along. I use them for my internet connection and am just as satisfied with that.

I have attempted to do as much research as possible to arrive at an intelligent decision regarding a large purchase such as this set. I have made the decision and at this time feel no buyers remorse.

The picture on HBO HD is incredible. I am still ( 3 days) hooking up this thing and learning all the controls and settings. I do not really know what "artifacts" are from experience with high quality TV. Jaggies and wavering lines I do know about. If artifacts in general mean "imperfections" then I saw none watching CSI or HBO HD. I did see some watching my Bruce Springsteen "Live in New York" DVD. I am using a Toshiba SD1700 with component cables. The posts I have read on this board and at Agoraquest would lead me to believe that the setting for the concert and lighting would make this a difficult DVD to show well.

At this early stage and given my lack of experience I can give only a newbie`s rating of the set and Cox HD. I am more than happy, I am thrilled.
Jeffrey, I really believe this set and feed look far better than at the store.
I saw a Panasonic 34" HDTV hooked to Cox HD and a plasma screen with Cox HD at the Mart and think this is the best. I am obviously biased, but would not have shelled out nearly $3000 for the set and decoder box if I didn`t think this was the best I would get for my money. I could be wrong, and have been before, but right now I think it was a good purchase.

All that being said, I do have to admit that the possibility of the GI decoder becoming obsolete does not make me happy. Are the SA and GI incompatible and will I have to change to the SA box?

The Mart is selling a lot of these boxes as they were on back order for a while and they got in nearly a hundred of them a couple of weeks ago.

I will post again after a little practice and careful looking at the picture quality.

Even more news today:

"""Hi John,

The only thing left is to replace the antenna at the top of the tower. My
antenna is not scheduled to ship until February 2003, so that would put me
somewhere in March or April of next year to install that antenna.

But, I am currently working on a low power solution that would place me on
the air at low power to cover city grade by the end of October of this
year.

More to come as I try to pull this off.

Thanks
Warren """



Cross your fingers!

John

Well, my situation is much like Stroker's. I just purchased the Sony KV-34XBR800 two days ago. The set is due to arrive in two days. I'm very excited and can't wait to get the set. However, I am up in the air about purchasing the receiver from NFM for the Cox Cable HD offerings. I wish there was a box up for rent so I could kind of check it out before I jump in.
Of course knowing me, curiousity will take over and I'll probably be purchasing the box by the weekend - we'll see. I'll keep everyone posted on my experiences.

PlumPeach, I am not for one minute sorry that I bought the HD Decoder box. The HD channels are incredible. The xbr gives a magnificent picture on HBO digital, but on HD it is simply awesome. I never would have believed a picture could look that good. I am still working with different settings on the set itself to see what looks best. All the channels above 100 are terrific. The lower channels SEEM to be getting better by the day. I am not sure whether the set is just breaking in, or I am seeing it differently.

The lower channels seemed a bit grainy at first and I rechecked all my cables and hookups. Must have been something cause its mostly grain free now. I do see slight shimmering now and then. The bright background on Jay Leno shimmers some, but not all the time.

DVD`s are truly breathtaking. I can find no faults at all with them. High Definition on CBS and HBO also seem to be fault free. I am going to do more to determine what many refer to as artifacts and compression problems.

I seem to find the zoom setting to work best. The Full mode distorts too bad. the settings on DRC do not seem to be very different at all. I have tried the pallette settings and do not see a lot of change. Maybe its my newbieness. Where theres a will there is a way. I just hope I do not end up always looking for flaws and miss the main experience of the movie/show I am watching. I have only had for a week and am still in the learning stage. I hope to give an intelligent report soon.

JD

Wooohooooo!!!!!!!!!!

WOWT NBC, channel 22 is now broadcasting live.

I'm receiving an 80% signal using a Radio Shack stick antenna mounted in the attic of my two story home. We live about 7 miles due south of the tower in papillion.

Now if NBC would begin broadcasting more HD material. Guess I'll be looking for Leno tonight!

John

Well, I've been watching my new Sony 34XBR800 for about five days now -WOW!! I can't believe the picture. DVDs are truly breathtaking and even cable is outstanding. Personally I am already used to watching cable using the full or stretch mode.
I did not purchase the decoder box yet. I'm going to wait and see if Cox Cable makes any changes in the next couple months. I'm excited about HDTV, but I've got enough to keep me busy as far as playing with this incredible television.

Originally posted by PlumPeach
Well, my situation is much like Stroker's. I just purchased the Sony KV-34XBR800 two days ago. The set is due to arrive in two days. I'm very excited and can't wait to get the set. However, I am up in the air about purchasing the receiver from NFM for the Cox Cable HD offerings. I wish there was a box up for rent so I could kind of check it out before I jump in.
Of course knowing me, curiousity will take over and I'll probably be purchasing the box by the weekend - we'll see. I'll keep everyone posted on my experiences.

The "receiver" is the General Insrument HDD-200. It is a DigiCiper HDTV decoder used by COX for HD cable and with the 4DTV C Band (Big Dish)satellite receivers, so keep in mind that there is a larger base out there for this box that the Omaha COX test market niche. The price has come down significantly since it was first introduced also. So you could always sell it later on ebay. Or get a BUD.

Some links for your perusal.
http://home.earthlink.net/~jireland01/_images/hdd200%20rear.jpg
http://home.earthlink.net/~jireland01/_images/hdd200front.jpg
http://home.earthlink.net/~jireland01/nehdtv/


I now have 3 DTV off air channels, the newest addition is NBC http://home.earthlink.net/~jireland01/hdtv

ENJOY !!!

Jay Ireland, thanks for the info. This will help me in making my decision. It makes me feel better that the decoder box used by Cox will not become obsolete soon after I purchase it.

I chatted with some folks from Auburn NE tonight and when asked what my hobbies are, of course I mentioned HDTV. They replied that some of the local stations are activating or switching to the new digital transmitters this week, and that they were told that reception might be poor in the meantime, as old backup transmitters would be employed during the transition.

Is that information accurate? Are new stations coming online? I have a friend in Papillion who isn't into HDTV, but I'd like to know what's available in order to try to sway her toward modernization.

Thanks in advance for your replies.

Dan Burgess

Supposedly, KLKN ABC is live in Lincoln now. My HD520 is on order, but hasn't arrived yet. Looking forward to pointing a big antenna at Omaha too!

Doug
Lincoln, NE

Dan,

As I pointed out earlier in this thread, NBC is now online. I'd expect that CBS is now scrambling to catchup and meet their latest dealine, 1 Oct, with ABC lagging farther behind possibly coming online sometime in November.

Last week NBC switched to their backup transmitter site while they performed last minute changes to their primary site in preperation for this weeks HD transition.

John

I'm excited that Omaha now has HDTV. My TV is HDTV ready but I need some time of decoder. Any suggestions on what to buy? I have Directv & was thinking of the Hughes receiver that does both Directv HDTV & OTA.

Johnwcookjr, I thought I was getting CBS High Def now through the local CBS station via Cox.

I may be misunderstanding your post RE: CBS being on line by Oct 1.

I certainly hope Cox begins to transmit NBC as well. The Fall NBC schedule looks to have several HD programs available.



Plumpeach, I am glad to hear you like the set. I could not be happier with this set and wish you long and happy hours of watching. The post from Jay Ireland helps to settle my mind on the decoder issue.

I have decided to pass on the extended warranty and rely upon my belief that if anything is going to go wrong, it will be in the first few months. BTW, I am beginning to think that as the set "breaks in", the picture improves.

Now, I want a sound system that matches the quality of the set.

Somehow this reminds me of my youth and a facination with building custom motorcycles. One thing seems to lead to another!!

Stroker,

Yes, you're right, Cox has carried the CBS-HD feed for several years now via a fiber back haul feed. However, CBS Omaha is not currently broadcasting Over The Air (OTA) at this time. I had heard that they could go live from their tower located at 72nd and Crown Point as early as 1 October.

We're currently receiving all local broadcasts, analog and digital, via an attic mounted antenna connected to our 6000 satellite receiver. In addition to the locals we also use our Dishnetwork Echostar 6000HD satellite receiver to receive HBO-HD, SHO-HD, CBS-HD NYC (via camping trailer waiver), DiscoveryHD Theater, HD-PPV and the Dish HD-Demo channel.

John

All,

Last night, Thursday, NBC's signal strength dropped off significantly. The end result was dropouts throughout the evening.

I talked with a WOWT spokesperson today who stated their temporary transmitter gave up the ghost and that a replacement transmitter is scheduled to arrive late next week.

So if you find yourself unable to lock onto NBCs signal over the next week or so don't panic, they're working on it.

Their higher power premanent transmitter isn't slated to be online until 2003.

Enjoy......John

Originally posted by johnwcookjr
All,

Last night, Thursday, NBC's signal strength dropped off significantly. The end result was dropouts throughout the evening.

I talked with a WOWT spokesperson today who stated their temporary transmitter gave up the ghost and that a replacement transmitter is scheduled to arrive late next week.

So if you find yourself unable to lock onto NBCs signal over the next week or so don't panic, they're working on it.

Their higher power premanent transmitter isn't slated to be online until 2003.

Enjoy......John

Well, the very fact that this is up and running and that you can receive the signal way the heck down in Papillion...

This is great news. I guess I need to buy an OTA receiver now as well as a good outdoor antenna I can place on my apartment's balcony. What's the current recommendation? :)

-- Robert

Robert,

You'd need one hell of a big antenna to receive an Omaha station in NY. ;)

John

I just got my SIRT150 this afternoon and hooked it up to my RatShack double bow-tie. I plugged the 150 in and changed to 6-1... holy smokes!

I went through the menus and looked at the signal strength... only 35-40%. But I am getting no drop outs whatsoever.

However, I did notice that the audio is about 0.1s ahead of the video.

-- Robert

Anyone having problems getting sound from KMTV HD on the COX cable feed, channel 805? I get the picture but no sound. I called Cox and they said it's not their problem and for me to take it up with KMTV. Haven't had a chance to call them yet. Thanks.

Robert,

I informed WOWT of the audio sync problem two weeks ago. It does appear better overall compared to the first couple of days. I notice it mainly during local news coverage. The audio delay change is most noticeable when they switch from studio camera to pre-taped news segments.

Call them, maybe more than one consumer complaining about the same issue will get someone's attention.

John

Anybody get any updates on when WOWT will go back to a larger transmitter? I am trying to get them in Lincoln and of course having no luck.

Thanks,
Doug

Doug,

I was told WOWT would not be bringing its permanent full power transmitter online until well into 2003.

John

Originally posted by johnwcookjr
Doug,

I was told WOWT would not be bringing its permanent full power transmitter online until well into 2003.

John

I think he was asking about their current transmitter. Earlier in this thread, you mentioned that their temporary transmitter quit on them and thus low signal strength. You mentioned that they were obtaining a replacement. Is the replacement in? Nobody knows. :)

If it is, I hope full power brings my signal strength up... sure, I am not getting drop-outs -- but 35% feels weird!

-- Robert

Thanks Robert! Thats what I wanted to know. If you see it change, please post so I can resume putting large metal things on my roof!

I also spoke to an engineer at KPTM yesterday. They expect to be up and running late November early December. Hope it includes KXVO as well.

Doug

Got this response the other day:

> Dear Jeff,
>
> KPTM, and KXVO, whice we operate for Mitts Telecasting, intend to begin
> DTV
> broadcasting in December, 2002. The ability to pass HD to Cox Cable,
> or to our transmitters will come at a later time.
>
> We appreciate your interest in digital television.
>
> Rick Graham
> Chief Engineer
> Pappas Telecasting of the Midlands

We currently have all of the solid state amplifiers operational in the transmitter. The unit has been running without faults for a week now.

When notified of the audio delay during our news, we added an additional 30miliseconds to address the issue. Keep me informed if any additional audio delay occurs.

I was informed "Conan" had a delay, but I feel that is Networks problem. The rest of our upconverted signal is good so I will contact NBC.

NBC changed the data delivery scheme on the GE1 satellite (new name is AMC-1) which our HD satellite receiver did not like. From what I have been hearing, multiple NBC stations are in the same boat. I have it working at the moment but my confidence is low during rain-fade situations. I expect NBC to send a revised software scheme to tighten the receivers capabilities.

Viewers may notice a non-switch into HD programming. When that occurs our operators are manually making the hard switch. Our traffic computer is having difficulty communicting with our automation software on the command. The vendor is working on the patch.

Happing viewing!
Jay
WOWT

For those viewers in Lincoln who are experiencing viewing problems, the FOX channel 22 translator (in Lincoln but fed out of Kearney) is interfering. They are planning on re-channelizing to a different frequency.

Jay

Jay,

Any idea when they will re-channelize? 18 is the same feed down here, maybe I'll try a more directional yagi...

Thanks,
Doug

I will give them a call today. They have been expecting this for 2 years so it shouldn't have caught them off-guard.

Jay

Jay,

Thanks for contributing to this thread. You wouldn't by any chance be able to kick the local CBS and ABC affiliates in the butt, would you? ;) If you know any of those folks personally pass on that we're rooting for them and to come on in, the waters fine.

The Tonight Show with Jackie Chan last night was quite enjoyable. Thank you for your efforts in bringing WOWT-D online.

John

For Lincoln viewers,

22 appears to be off the air here in Lincoln. I got my first rock solid WOWT DTV picture last night.

Doug

Doug,

That's amazing and promising. I'm glad to hear that you're able to receive WOWT-D here in Omaha. What type of antenna/amplifiers are you using and how high is it mounted?

Are any of the Lincoln channels up and running yet?

John

John,

I am using a medium sized antenna, VHF and UHF. It also has a pre-amp attached to the antenna, I think 25dB gain.

KLKN-DT which is the ABC afiliate is on the air here. They however do not yet have the equipment to pass HDTV.

As of now, these are two that I get.

Doug

Doug,

Will your ABC affiliate be turning the HD switch on soon?

How high up is your antenna mounted?

John

You seem to be pretty knowledgeable, so will pose this to you, or anyone who views this thread.

I was going to watch CSI-Miami last night (Monday 10/7) I went to Cox KMTV HD channel with my decoder switched on and the picture was in a 4:3 format. The decoder box showed an HD signal, but it failed to fill my screen. I have the 16:9 34XBR 800 and thought something was wrong with the set or decoder. I switched to HBO-HD and the picture filled the screen. I then tried Showtime, and the picture was filling the screen on this channel also. I again switched back to KMTV-HD and still had the black bars on each side. I had this problem one other time when I first got the set, but attributed it to not understanding how it all works.

I do not know if this helps, but will mention it anyway. I will try to be concise and to the point though. I have my Cox digital box hooked to video 1 using an S-Video cable. There is a high speed data link cable that connects from the digital box to the HD-Decoder. The Decoder box is connected with component cables to Video 6. When I watch HD I have to switch to video 6 from video 1. Usually I use the Cox remote to pull up the guide and go to the HD channels. When you hit select, a window pops up telling you to press the exit button to receive HD. I do that and then switch the TV to video 6. Normally, when you hit the exit button, the screen goes black and then I switch to video 6, but before I switch to video 6, I can hear the sound only. Last night, when I hit the exit button, my screen not only went black, but I lost the sound also (on video 1). When I checked HBO-HD and Showtime the sound remained on video 1 till I switched to video 6.
I probably should be posting this question in another forum, but felt that anyone with the Cox system here might be better able to answer this. I really do not know how many people there are in Omaha who use a decoder box, let alone on this thread, but thought I would give it a shot.

Thanks to anyone who might be able to shed some light on this. I have been watching for over a month now, and am still awed by the beauty and clarity of HD.

Originally posted by WOWT
I will give them a call today. They have been expecting this for 2 years so it shouldn't have caught them off-guard.

Jay


Howdy Jay,

Nice to hear from you again. You and I shared some emails about two years ago when you worked for KMTV. I heard you were at WOWT a few months ago. Glad you're still into HD!

WOWT is coming in well, as I've mentioned in previous postings.

Still only getting 30-35% signal in the Millard area, but there are no breakups.

Thanks for all your hard work, Jay! If you don't mind my asking... what happened at KMTV that made you switch?

-- Robert

John,

Sorry for the slow response...

KLKN8 told me that they requested the HDTV equipment for next years capitol budget. Beyond that, I have no idea. I hope either they or KETV make it before the SuperBowl!

My antenna is about 30ft above the ground. Single story ranch house with it mounted about 6-7 ft above the roof line. Fairly high point in Lincoln.

Doug

Mike at KMTV returned my call today and lifted the load quite a bit. He said the problem with CSI-Miami on Monday was a station problem, their decoder did not properly pick up the signal. So, at least it was not an equipment problem on my end.

I am thankful that Cox does as good a job as they do. I know that some knock them quite a bit, but by and large, I have always been happy with their service.

The High Definition programs are SOOOO worth watching.

I wonder how many people in the Omaha area are viewing HD? When I purchased my TV and decoder, the salesman said they had just received a shipment of the HD200`s and had been back ordered for a while. Cox does not actively promote HD and the tech people here are not knowledgeable concerning it.

I guess I should be happy that I am getting it at all!

Does anyone know when COX will pick up local HDTV stations other than KMTV?

Adam

Lincoln-

I talked to Zager Antenna Systems today about getting a UHF to pull in WOWT. They seemed confident I could get it with an attic mounted Antenna Craft MXU59. Come on Omaha, I'm pulling for you guys to ALL be up and running!

Channel 8 (ABC) here seems to be doing just the minimum to qualify as a DTV broadcaster. They are on the air with a weak signal barely covering Lincoln.

KOLN/KGIN 10/11 is in the proccess of beefing their Beaver Crossiing tower for the installation of the heavier equipment. Hopefully they will be up by next fall. When they do go on it wil be full power with all the HDTV passed through from CBS.

I plan on having my system put together by Christmas. I never though I'd see the day when HDTV would be here.

Gerry P
Lincoln

From what I have heard, the race is on between KPTM-KXVO and KMTV in Omaha to be next. Although judging by pushlished dates, KPTM-KXVO should win.

Doug
Lincoln, NE

Doug,

KPTM won't be supporting HD, the best you can expect from them is 480p, unless FOX has changed their marketing scheme. I don't know much about KXVO, do any of the WB affiliates broadcast in1080i or 720p?

Considering the lack of HD from FOX, KMTV is literally the only HD broadcaster getting ready to go online soon.

Crossing my fingers...

John

Originally posted by johnwcookjr

Considering the lack of HD from FOX, KMTV is literally the only HD broadcaster getting ready to go online soon.



John

What about WOWT? I thought they were passing the NBC HD. Granted NBC doesn't have much content....yet.

When will KMTV light the candle?

I don't know about KMTV, the current rumors are Nov1.

Here's an update from KETV:

"Good Morning Everyone,

Just an update on our plan's at KETV.

We have changed our on-air date to November 1, 2002. We will be going on
the air low power with roughly 10Kw ERP.

I have received the low power antenna and will be installing this on the
tower this week. The DTV transmitter will be powered up and proofed by
Harris next week.

We might have some test signals on the air next week sometime if all goes
as planned.

Thanks
Warren
Chief Engineer KETV"

Now that's good news. Could KETV and KMTV both light up their tower on that Friday?

John

John,

Just got the same email from KETV. Not sure if I'll be able to get it at that power level in Lincoln, but I'll try.

As far as KPTM. You are correct FOX doesn't do much. But 480P widescreen football is better than nothing. KXVO, as part of WB, does have several shows in HD. Including Everwood and Smallville. Hopefully they will pass them.

Doug

To paraphrase Warren "We might have some test signals on the air next week sometime if all goes as planned.", well it's now snowing outside, I wonder if Warren planned on it snowing. ;)

Geesh...never a break.

John

That is great to hear about both KMTV and KETV. I can hardly wait to have all three networks pumping out HDTV.

How did you guys get on the KETV email list?

I just bought a HDTV receiver a week ago and have been loving the NBC broadcasts. The picture quality from WOWT is outstanding, and I haven't had andy problems with the signal.

Thanks for the info and the great thread.

Mike

Mike,

I ended up on Warren's list by writing to him via the station manager link provided on KETVs website.


Doug,

If memory serves, when WOWT was having temporary transmitter problems last month, Jay listed those transmitters as being 5kW solid state transmitters with an ERP of 37kW.

Warren is stating 10Kw ERP. Cross your fingers.

John

Well, I can't say that this is good or bad news...

If KETV is broadcasting at that low of power, I really doubt I'll be getting that signal out here in Millard.

I get WOWT at 30-35% with a double double-bow-tie outside.

-- Robert

Robert,

I too have the Rat Shack double bow tie however it doesn't work as well for me as the Rat Shack stick antenna mounted in the attic.

Once KXVO goes online I'll probably to upgrade to some sort of UHF Yagi on a rotor. I suspect my stick antenna will be too directional for me to pick up KXVO on a side lobe while pointing north from Papillion torwards the Crown Point.

Maybe the stick on a rotor would work? Hmm, small incremental steps, $50 bucks at a time.

John

A further update:

"
Good Morning John,

Long story about the co-locate with KMTV. The short version is, we
contacted Dielectric once again to see if we could replace the antenna at
the top of my tower, with a dual band antenna (channel 7 & 20). They just
came out with a new antenna which is two antenna's in the same aperture.
That means the antenna pole itself is two antenna's in one.

Did the structural analysis and the new antenna is the same wind loading
and ice loading as the original, actually a little better. So we jumped
ship and decided to do this on our tower.

That said, I quickly had my DTV transmitter installed and was getting ready
to be on the air next year by May as this new antenna takes 9 months to
manufacture. It will not be ready to ship until February or March of 2003.

Since we were so close to being ready having the DTV transmitter here, we
decided to see if Dielectric had a light weight low power antenna. They do
and I ordered it. We will side mount that antenna on the tower and cover
what is called city grade. We will do low power until lets say June of
next year when we take the channel 7 antenna off the top of my tower, and
install the new 7 & 20 antenna. Once that is installed, I will go to 1/2
my licensed power.

Anyway, the low power antenna is being hung today if the weather
co-operates. Dielectric will be out Friday to sweep the new antenna.
Harris is out next week to proof the DTV transmitter. So if all goes well,
I should have test signals on the air by the end of the week.

I will e-mail you when we test, that is no problem.

By the way, when ABC is giving us programming in HD, we will pass that
through, and have the audio in full Dolby D 5.1 channels of audio.

Thanks
Warren
"


Next week is looking promising.

John

Hi,Omaha area Hi def enthesists, this is my first post on avs, I have been reading this board for a couple of years. I would like to thank Warren from Ketv, he has kept us all informed on Ketv's progress to digital tv. I was finally able to talk to someone from Kmtv reguarding their digital tv status, I was informed that Kmtv will not be going digital until Jan, 2003, I asked him, why is it taking so long? his responce was that Kmtv has been sold twice recently. and they are going to be full power when they sign on in Jan. Ronald

Originally posted by johnwcookjr
Next week is looking promising.

John


Yeah, for people who live two blocks from their tower. :)

-- Robert

John,

Unfortunately, I don't know if I was able to receive a picture during WOWTs low power period. I had a conflicting repeater hear in town to get turned off first. More metal on the roof shouldn't bother the wife though...

Robert,

Your 30-35% seems pretty low for Millard. (I actually grew up there and went to Millard North.) I am getting, by the bar graph on my HD200, 70-80% most of the time from Lincoln.

Doug

Warren sent this out this morning. He's making progress as promised. I watched ABC's Push Neveda last night, it was enjoyable, can't wait to see it in HD.

John




""Hi Everyone,

Just a quick update.

We did get the low power antenna on the tower yesterday, Dielectric was on
site today to sweep it, all checked out OK.

We are now working on the DTV transmitter itself finishing up the RF
plumbing and doing the power up check out.

Might have test signals on the air by the end of next week.

Thanks
Warren
(See attached file: DL-8 Mounting.JPG)""

Originally posted by dehlers
Robert,

Your 30-35% seems pretty low for Millard. (I actually grew up there and went to Millard North.) I am getting, by the bar graph on my HD200, 70-80% most of the time from Lincoln.

Doug

Well, I don't know what kind of antenna you're running. I have dual double bow-ties sitting outside... 30-35 is as good as it gets at 144th and L street. Maybe I should try a pre-amp...

We'll see what I can muster up when KETV goes on-line with test signals next week (crossing fingers).

-- Robert

Robert,

Warren stated this morning that he expected 34 mile radius coverage via his (city wide) temporary low power antenna.

Maybe there's hope for you.

I tried a Radio Shack pre-amp on my double bowtie, it didn't help. I've a better pre-amp (Channelmaster 0062A) coming in the mail. I'll post results once it arrives.

I'd suggest a whole different antenna, my Radio Shack/Terk stick works much better than my dual bow tie, however it is directional and I beleive a true UHF outdoor antenna would probably work even better. I've heard good results from Radio Shack VU-90XR users. I may try a channelmaster 4228 next year depending on test results when all the locals come online.

John

Robert,

I agree with John. I have a fairly standard OTA outside antenna, with a pre-amp, and have good luck with it. Sorry no experience with the Bow-Tie.

Doug

Hey everyone,

I live in Lincoln & I am located very close to the Ch8 station (I am at 27th and Old Cheney) and I get about a 70-75 signal using a powered RCA indoor antenna (ANT200B) in my basement. While the picture is not outstanding, it is a start at least. But it is no HD NET!

Doug-- Would you mind telling me where you are located in Lincoln? Did you say you can pick up WOWT? I think 27th and Old Cheney is at a fairly high point in Lincoln. Do you think I could pickup WOWT if I placed an antenna in my attic?

Thanks! It is great to have a thread going for the Lincoln/Omaha area!

Jeff

Jeff, I live at about 40th and Old Cheney on the hill. I've talked to a guy who lives in Edenton (70th & Old Cheney) an he gets WOWT with a Master Craft yagi style mounted in his attic. The guys at 56th and Old Cheney (Dish dealer) get WOWT. I'm sure they are roof mounted but I don't know the type of antenna they use.

I plan on putting the Master Craft yagi in my attic when I get all my stuff rounded up. I wish Ch 8 would start passing the HDTV ABC feed. I think Omaha is our best bet for ABC -KETV DTV.

Could we get this thread title changed to Omaha/Lincoln DTV .... ? :)

Hey everyone,

Here in DSM we have 3 dtv channels over the air, NBC,CBS and Fox, ABC next month. Nothing over cable. From my understanding you have one channel over cable in DTV, right?

We have none.

I would not have liked seeing our Cyclones in HD today!!!

Thanks

Mark

What blows my mind is how people are picking up WOWT in Lincoln! I am no more than probably 15 miles to the tower and I get crappy signal, even with TWO double-bowties OUTSIDE with directional line of site!

Yeah, the signal is crappy (30% or so) but I don't get any dropouts. The picture is perfect.

Sigh...

-- Rober

Do you think you could be suffering from severe multipath? One has to be careful when combining two antennas as they can cause interference between the two.

Originally posted by gpflepsen
Do you think you could be suffering from severe multipath? One has to be careful when combining two antennas as they can cause interference between the two.

I've actually disconnected the secondary double bowtie from the array, it didn't seem to make any difference whatsoever... good or bad. :)

So I connected it back up...

-- Robert

WOWT, anyone receiving it tonight?

I'm not receiving WOWT-D at the moment, Tuesday 7:08pm, anyone else?

7:46pm - I'm receiving it intermittently. Is it weather related or is WOWT experiencing technical difficulties?

John

I just checked, and the signal's fine at 132nd & Maple. I haven't been watching it tonight, though (Wed is my night for NBC). Won't it be nice when we have 2 HD channels, so we know it isn't a problem w/ the antenna? :)

--jeff

Jeff,

I am at 56th just south of O. I would think you would have no problem getting WOWT if you pointed straight at Omaha with it. I am just using a standard VHF/UHF antenna with a mast mounted preamp. The preamp makes all the difference.

Any news on KETV testing yet?

Doug

I bought a Terk TV55 antenna at best buy, and put it in the attic. All local channels come in pretty well. (The sad part is I ran a coax line to the attic, and after I crimped the ends I plugged it into the receiver and got a great picture, even before I plugged in the antenna!) I don't use the amplifier, as it distorts the analog KETV signal.

As for "pointing at Omaha," the towers for 3, 6, and 7 are to the east (81 deg.). The ones that worry me are KXVO and KPTM (193 deg.). But it'll be a while before I have to deal with those!

Originally posted by dehlers


Any news on KETV testing yet?

Doug

Channel 7 analog. Any word on DTV???

I just hung a modified RS double bowtie up from a plant hook on the ceiling in my living room, I now have WOWT-D coming in solid at 76%.

That Terk/RS stick antenna (TV50) will be coming down as soon as other channels come online. I'd replace it now but it does one heck of a job of picking both up uhf and vhf locals without needing a rotor. When there's no cloud coverage, like we've had the last three days (rain clouds don't do it, only snow clouds), I receive 80% from the attic stick.

Anyone know of any good medium sized UHF/VHF outdoor antenna's that aren't real directional? Sounds like an oxymoron good non-directional antenna...

John

Good Afternoon Everyone,

We are currently doing the FCC proof of the DTV transmitter, we had some issues to work through so I am a little delayed with my on the air test.

I still hope to place the transmitter into the antenna and put some test signals on the air later on this afternoon or evening.

I am currently planning on launching DTV programming Wednesday of next week, more than likely in the afternoon.

More to come.

Welcome aboard Warren!

Can I ask if you will go with enough power to enable the DTVers in Lincoln?

Gerry P

Hi Gerry,

My feeling is the signal will not make it that far, but you never know.

We are still proofing the transmitter at 20Kw, after we save the results we will proof it at my low power operating level so I do not over drive my temp low power antenna.

I still hope to place a test signal on tonight. I will post when I am on the air.

Great news, Warren! Many of us have been waiting years for this... I, myself, at least two.

I anxiously await the moment of truth... will I be able to receive KETV-D in Millard... oy! :)

-- Robert

Hi Robert,

I would think Millard would be fine.

We are still a little bit away from the on the air test, I will let you know when we switch to the antenna.

Make that 1 more person anxiously waiting for KETV to come on line.

Warren, any idea when you will be going high power? How about a high power test say... during the Super Bowl? :)

Warren,

My tuners are up and running, hopefully I'll see life "It lives, It lives" when you flip the switch.

John

The next step in KETV's plan is to replace the antenna at the top of my main tower with a dual band channel 7 & 20 antenna. That is scheduled for June 2003. Once the new antenna is installed, we will increase DTV power to roughly 300Kw ERP. That is 1/2 of full power.

I see a big DT logo on the screen.

John

Originally posted by johnwcookjr
I see a big DT logo on the screen.

John


What? Cripes, I see a nice big "No Signal" logo on the screen. :(

I do see an occasional flicker of a single signal bar... We're looking for UHF 20 right?

-- Robert

Robert,

Yup, channel 20. The signal I saw came and went pretty fast. Nothing now...

John

Originally posted by johnwcookjr
Robert,

Yup, channel 20. The signal I saw came and went pretty fast. Nothing now...

John


Ack... the suspense is killing me!

I went out on my patio and plated with my antenna while watching signal strength from WOWT... I can't get above 40% period with their god forsaken channel. :)

But, at one point, I did have WOWT at only two bars (maybe 10%) and it was coming in smoothly with minimal breakups. A testament to the quality of the Samsung 8VSB decoder and DTV signals in general.

-- Robert

Hi Everyone,

KETV-DT is transmitting an ID at the power level we will be going on the air with next week, format is 720p. :)

Originally posted by KETV
Hi Everyone,

KETV-DT is transmitting an ID at the power level we will be going on the air with next week, format is 720p. :)

Crud. 0% signal in Millard with occasional blip to 5%. :(

-- Robert

Warren,

I'm seeing about 45%, not enough to consistently lock. If this is the power you'll be broadcasting at for the next 6-8 months I'm going to have to revise my antenna system.

I'll keep trying.

John

Please stand by

http://www.alltel.net/~sb32511/smilie/cheers.gif

Here's to KETV-DT and hoping you have little trouble getting up to FULL POWER! :)

Originally posted by johnwcookjr
Warren,

I'm seeing about 45%, not enough to consistently lock. If this is the power you'll be broadcasting at for the next 6-8 months I'm going to have to revise my antenna system.

I'll keep trying.

John

What receiver are you using again? My SIRT-150 locks me on to WOWT with as little as 10-20%... and that's a solid lock without breakups. I watched with two bars for about twenty minutes.

-- Robert

We are up!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Unfortunately I'm not getting any reception either. I was hoping I would get low power reception since I'm only 4 miles north of the towers.

I should'nt have to change my antenna should I? I currently get a 54 signal from WOWT.

You should be seeing KETV/ABC programming.

I spoke too soon. Just as I sent my post the signal came in.

Good reception too - 60%

Great job Warren!!!!

Thank you for the reply............

Anyone else have a signal report they can give me?

Title says it all... GOOD CHRIST

I went and moved my antenna about a foot... and I have a solid lock on to KETV 7 with only ONE BAR on the SIRT-150 Samsung receiver... that one bar is only 5% signal!

I've gotten about one 0.25 second breakup of the audio and a slight pause...

This is damned incredible!

-- Robert

Was watching evening news then the KETV-DT 20 logo popped up... then it went to no signal...

SIRT-150 has a green light on, however.

10:17pm: Now I have zero signal and a red light on the front of the unit. Looks like we've stopped transmission? I get zero bars at this point.

-- Robert

We are off. Thanks to everyone for their patience waiting for this test tonight. I hope to schedule some more test time and will update you as to the times.

Robert,

I have two receivers, a Echostar 6000 and a HiDTV HD PC Tuner card. Neither receiver is locking on currently, chances are what I see as 45% on the HiDTV tuner doesn't correlate to 45% on your receiver.

I bet if my Double Bow tie coax cable were long enough to reach outside I'd lock on to Ketv.

John

John

I will bring up the transmitter once again at roughly 9am Saturday morning. Hopefully this will be a longer test for you.

I have a bitstream analyzer and it was indicating I have some problems with my transport stream. I will be working with the vendor of my encoder on this next week.

Thanks once again for all your responses, they are very helpful.

Originally posted by KETV
I will bring up the transmitter once again at roughly 9am Saturday morning. Hopefully this will be a longer test for you.

I have a bitstream analyzer and it was indicating I have some problems with my transport stream. I will be working with the vendor of my encoder on this next week.

Thanks once again for all your responses, they are very helpful.

I am glad we could help.

Say, will KETV be one-upping WOWT and broadcasting PSIP so we can get programming data? :)

-- Robert

Originally posted by DevoX
I am glad we could help.

Say, will KETV be one-upping WOWT and broadcasting PSIP so we can get programming data? :)

-- Robert

Hi Robert,

Not at the moment, my PSIP server is on order from the vendor currently. I will check next week with them to see what the time frame will be on this, and let you know.

BTW, did you receive us OK last evening, I know you had a very low signal, but did it hang in there? Reviewing my bitstream log, I believe my errors were due to the lack of a PSIP stream.

Originally posted by KETV
Hi Robert,

Not at the moment, my PSIP server is on order from the vendor currently. I will check next week with them to see what the time frame will be on this, and let you know.

BTW, did you receive us OK last evening, I know you had a very low signal, but did it hang in there? Reviewing my bitstream log, I believe my errors were due to the lack of a PSIP stream.

Cool. I know PSIP has been a source of major headache in other cities doing DTV. Seems each encoder is different and few really follow the documented spec very well, and the same can be said for some DTV receivers as well.

As for yesterday evening, I had 5% signal but I *was* receiving okay. I think I saw two very brief "stutters" over the ten minute period. A nuisance, of course, but entirely watchable. It would not distract from my viewing. I am sure a good preamp on my antenna solution would cure it up.

Once you're up and on-line next week for good, I'll be able to reposition my antenna a little better. It's frustrating because in order to get KETV at 5% solid signal, my WOWT reception drops from 40% to 20%... :)

-- Robert

Originally posted by DevoX
Cool. I know PSIP has been a source of major headache in other cities doing DTV. Seems each encoder is different and few really follow the documented spec very well, and the same can be said for some DTV receivers as well.

As for yesterday evening, I had 5% signal but I *was* receiving okay. I think I saw two very brief "stutters" over the ten minute period. A nuisance, of course, but entirely watchable. It would not distract from my viewing. I am sure a good preamp on my antenna solution would cure it up.

Once you're up and on-line next week for good, I'll be able to reposition my antenna a little better. It's frustrating because in order to get KETV at 5% solid signal, my WOWT reception drops from 40% to 20%... :)

-- Robert

Thanks Robert,

That is strange you need to re-position the antenna, KETV, WOWT, and KMTV towers are 750' apart from one another.

We will bring up the DTV transmitter soon, doing some paperwork now.

Hi Warren, I talked to you on the phone in Sept, I 'm interested in seeing what kind of signal I pull in on your test signal, I currently get wowt at 100 and my location is 84th between Pacific and Center. Can you possibly do a test today when college football is on 11:00 - 6:00 today? Thanks

I'm ready to give you a signal report from 156 & Blondo.

Hi Everyone,

Just a few more minutes, we are re-tapping the beam supply to back down the HV to the IOT tube.

Hi Everyone,

We are into the antenna now.

Looks and sounds pretty good from here (138 & Maple). Unfortunately, my Panasonic doesn't give signal strength, so I can only offer qualitative observations, but with that in mind, it KICKS ASS!!

--jeff

Warren,

Signal is coming in great at 60%. I'm about a half mile east of 72nd and HWY 36.

How long are you going to be testing today?

Thanks for keeping us informed.

--Mike

Warren:

My Hughes Directv Receiver is pulling in your digital signal with a signal strength of 65!! Interesting to note that prior to your going online my WOWT signal was locked in at 100. When you went on line it dropped to the 60's also.

Warren, looks good and locked on 100 percent here on 84 th and Walnut.

Hi Everyone,

I will stay up till roughly noon today.

Need to start to work on the transmitter remote control to the studio and some operator training.

Thank you all for the reports, is the closed captioning working?

No CC for me... I don't get it for WOWT's digital either, but I do for HD HBO from DirecTV...

Warren--

Your signal also comes in as channel '20-1'

--jeff

Signal now locked in at 100 at 156 & Blondo

Warren, when will you being running more tests? and what is you estimate for running full time? and will you be able to pass the hd siginal when shown in 720p? Thanks for the updates.

Originally posted by Ronald L M
Warren, when will you being running more tests? and what is you estimate for running full time? and will you be able to pass the hd siginal when shown in 720p? Thanks for the updates.

More test's on maybe Tuesday of next week.

Our operation is not firmed up as of yet, I believe from 4:30pm - Mignight M-F. On Saturday and Sunday maybe from Noon - Midnight, depends on programming. As we move toward April of 2003, more than likely 12 hours per day.

We will pass ABC through in HD when ABC gives us programming in HD, and Dolby D (5.1 channels of audio) when ABC gives this to us as well. Otherwise programming will be upconverted to 720p as it is now on the air.

Thanks everyone for all your comments, we have gone off the air on the HD side.

We had several components in the DTV transmitter fail this weekend. We are currently at 1/4 power until parts arrive.

I just checked our consumer RCA HDTV and we dropped from a 85% to a 65% on the scale. I will keep everyone posted on the repairs.

Jay

Jay,

How much is 1/4 power? Did it fail before 7:00pm on Sunday? I was able to see American Dreams in HD no problem.

Doug

Doug,

The transmitter failed late Friday evening.

We are currently running 1200 watts out of the transmitter. We ran some tests last week while on the phone with a viewer. We dropped to 2,500 watts and still had a nice picture in west Lincoln.

Jay

Hi Everyone,

KETV is now on the air with DTV. Transmitter went on the air @ 11:17am today.
:)

Warren,

That's great news, you're website shows that Newswatch7 at 6 has an announcement to make this evening, I figured it would be official confirmation of channel 20.

Regards,

John

Warren, what power are you running at?

Originally posted by gpflepsen
Warren, what power are you running at?

10Kw ERP right now.

--Warren

Warren,

Happy to finally be back home in Lincoln. I am getting about a 50% signal of KETV with no apparent breakups.

Way to go and thanks!!!!

Lets all say together... Superbowlllllllllllllllll

Doug

Doug, where are you located?

56th and O basically.

Doug

Originally posted by dougehlers
Warren,

Happy to finally be back home in Lincoln. I am getting about a 50% signal of KETV with no apparent breakups.

Way to go and thanks!!!!

Lets all say together... Superbowlllllllllllllllll

Doug

Thanks Doug,

That is great news!!!

--Warren

Originally posted by dougehlers
56th and O basically.

Doug

What are you using for an antenna? I have yet to purchase mine.

Its an Antenna Craft. Very similar to the smaller of the two outdoor antennas sold at Menards. I also have the pre-amp attached right at the 300Ohm terminals of the antenna.

I'll be interested to see the long term stability of the KETV signal here. If I have any problems, I'll probably go to the larger antenna. I think Menards sells them for about $70. That plus the pre-amp should work well I think.

The pre-amp is the key in my experience.

Doug

The transmitter is currently running at 3/4 power. We have convinced the manufacture to send a field engineer to address the problems. Looks like December before we may see the full 5K output.

The Closed-Captioning is now working. We had to update the software in the HDTV encoder.

Jay Nix
Chief Engineer

Jay and Warren,

Any plans in the future to expand your normal signal to fill the 16x9 screens? This is not a big deal, but my HD200 makes me switch from 1080i down to 480i to expand the digital picture to the full dimensions of the screen. Don't want burn in after all. I usually just switch to the analog version if the content is non HD.

Thanks,
Doug

So does this mean that KETV is now passing the HDTV signals from ABC? Does this mean we'll get to watch Gladiator in HD this evening?

-- Robert

Originally posted by DevoX
So does this mean that KETV is now passing the HDTV signals from ABC? Does this mean we'll get to watch Gladiator in HD this evening?

-- Robert

Hi Robert,

Yes, any programming ABC has in HD, we will pass through in HD, if ABC has Dolby D audio (5.1 channels of audio) we will pass that through as well.

Gladiator is coming through pretty good down here. Getting a few minor audio glitches and occasional picture noise.

I mounted a larger antenna because before the sun went down, I really couldn't get a picture at all. Not sure if it is helping. I'll see how it looks during the day tomorrow.

Warren, I don't suppose you could take er up a few more KW????

Doug

Originally posted by dougehlers
Gladiator is coming through pretty good down here. Getting a few minor audio glitches and occasional picture noise.

I mounted a larger antenna because before the sun went down, I really couldn't get a picture at all. Not sure if it is helping. I'll see how it looks during the day tomorrow.

Warren, I don't suppose you could take er up a few more KW????

Doug

Hi Doug,

Interesting you ask. Matter of fact, I do have a little more head room on my temp antenna. I am working with the FCC to increase power a bit, This may take a few weeks to get the revised STA to do so, but I will try. Might give you a little more head room on the receive side.

Gosh darn it, I missed Gladiator! Had to spend the evening with my friends at the real theater. We just walked in and I saw the credits for the Big G. Fair enough, ABC has lots of programming to watch during the week anyway.

Thanks for all the hard work, Warren!

-- Robert

Robert,

Second half of Gladiator is on tomorrow.

Warren,

I just put my old antenna back up. Put it at a slightly different angle and got slightly better readings. For the cost, a larger full spectrum antenna didn't do much. Maybe a 6-7' UHF only Yagi... <grin>

My wife loves me.

Doug

Hi all,

I'm currently receiving both WOWT and KETV via the attic Terk/Stick. Now that the clouds have dissipated signal strength from KETV is adequate. A few more KW's would certainly help.

KETV reception this evening was rock solid on my Dish 6000, WOWT is usually rock solid except during heavy snow coverage. If this keeps up, and the Channel Master 0062A distribution amp (still on back order) works as expected I may be good to go for the long haul.

I had company over tonight, we caught some of the Gladiator broadcast. I was glad to see ABC passing it on in its original aspect ratio and DD5.1. Our friends eyes were glued to the screen.

Looking forward to some HD sports.

Warren, anyway you can persuade ABC/IMS into broadcasting the Indy 500 next year in HD. ;)

Jay and Warren, I'm enjoying your programming, however the constant logo watermark raises concern with CRT burn-in. can you do anything about the watermarks, make them intermittent?

John

Originally posted by johnwcookjr
Hi all,

I'm currently receiving both WOWT and KETV via the attic Terk/Stick. Now that the clouds have dissipated signal strength from KETV is adequate. A few more KW's would certainly help.

KETV reception this evening was rock solid on my Dish 6000, WOWT is usually rock solid except during heavy snow coverage. If this keeps up, and the Channel Master 0062A distribution amp (still on back order) works as expected I may be good to go for the long haul.

I had company over tonight, we caught some of the Gladiator broadcast. I was glad to see ABC passing it on in its original aspect ratio and DD5.1. Our friends eyes were glued to the screen.

Looking forward to some HD sports.

Warren, anyway you can persuade ABC/IMS into broadcasting the Indy 500 next year in HD. ;)

Jay and Warren, I'm enjoying your programming, however the constant logo watermark raises concern with CRT burn-in. can you do anything about the watermarks, make them intermittent?

John

Hi John,

On the watermark logo, that comes down from ABC, they insert it on their end, I unfortunately do not have control of it. I would hope it is at a transparency level which will not burn-in. I will contact ABC and see what they say about taking it in / out so it is not in all the time. Don't think I will have much luck though, but I will try.

Of some interest, if anyone wants to avoid burn-in, use either a LCD or DLP display, you cannot burn those. I know some people like to connect their game systems to the big screens, and that would burn-in. I would choose the DLP as its blacks will be better than the LCD display.

Question for you John, I have not connected my ATSC receiver to a surround sound system, how did Gladiator sound in DD 5.1? I can monitor the audio channels on my decoder at the station, but those are really small speakers.

--Warren

Forgot to mention, this weekend 11/2 & 11/3 operation times are:

Saturday programming noon - 11:30pm.

Sunday programming 1pm - 11pm.

--Warren

Warren,

The digital audio on Gladiator was excellent. The audio imaging and spatial separation were perfect.

I also thought the picture quality was very good, this is one of the cleaner looking films that I have seen in HD.

--Mike

Hi Everyone,

If you had problems receiving KETV last evening at the above time, we had a problem with our Encoder, it dropped out a couple of times.

We have replaced a board in the unit today, and hopefully this has fixed the problem.

Still working on the closed captioning...

Robert:
I talked to my vendor about my PSIP server Friday. The software is ready to go, but they are certifying the Dell Server it will run on first. So, this will be a while yet, maybe 30 or more days.

--Warren

Originally posted by molmstead
Warren,

The digital audio on Gladiator was excellent. The audio imaging and spatial separation were perfect.

I also thought the picture quality was very good, this is one of the cleaner looking films that I have seen in HD.

--Mike

Thank-You Mike!!!

It is nice to know the DD 5.1 is working OK, we spent the extra money to re-encode and broadcast this as part of the HD.

It is really great to have this forum, it lets us know as broadcasters if we have any issues with the different types of receive equipment on the market today. Thanks to everyone for the input.

--Warren

Warren,

Yes, the DD5.1 sound track was coming through clear and discreete.

Thanks for purchasing the prerequisite audio equipment!

John

Warren,

Your audio was very good. I was playing the DVD after the show (DD 5.1 track) and dign't really hear much difference. The opening battle, the scene after he escapes the guards, and a couple of the coleseum scenes really show off the surround.

Does anybody know if the DD5.1 track is EX encoded to sound like the DTS 6.1 Discrete version? My rear centers were active during the broadcast, but without AB comparison between the DD5.1 and the DTS6.1 Discrete, I couldn't tell if there was a difference?

Doug

Originally posted by KETV
Robert:
I talked to my vendor about my PSIP server Friday. The software is ready to go, but they are certifying the Dell Server it will run on first. So, this will be a while yet, maybe 30 or more days.

--Warren

Howdy W,

I hope your PSIP software is not one of the few that creates goofy PSIP info. I've read a few horror stories about PSIP infomation being invalid and causing different 8VSB receivers to have fits...

Will KETV be going 24/7 soon or is that not until next year?

-- Robert

Watching Gladiator on KETV right now...

Reception: 15% signal

One MPEG "burp" which caused some stray artifacts for about 0.1 seconds.

No audio dropouts. Not listening to 5.1 here, however, as I am on a 2-channel tube system.

The picture is absolutely spectacular! I hear ABC's regular HDTV line-up is just as cool. I can't wait to see some of this tomorrow night!

-- Robert

Originally posted by WOWT
We had several components in the DTV transmitter fail this weekend. We are currently at 1/4 power until parts arrive.

I just checked our consumer RCA HDTV and we dropped from a 85% to a 65% on the scale. I will keep everyone posted on the repairs.

Jay

Jay,

Big problems with WOWT lately! For the last few days, something in WOWT's datastream is causing my Samsung SIR-T150 receiver to reboot itself every 1-2 minutes!

I will either hear a burst of static with a black screen or a picture with repeating quarter-second of audio before it reboots.

I can tell is a reboot and not reception because if I happen to have the programming guide up, the small channel preview window displays the channel I am currently watching. It will freeze, the box will reboot (the video circuits of the receiver shut off and then power back on two to three seconds later), and then reports I am watching 6-1 -- just like when I power the receiver up.

Did you change your PSIP data or software at all? This is really unwatchable... :(

-- Robert

Daryl here at 156th and Harrison,

I am likely going to order a projector/screen(nec Lt158) combo tomorrow to replace my 40" mits Standard Def.

The projector is a 4:3 screen ratio, and the resolution when converting to 16:9 is less than if I bought a true 16:9 projector that is at least $1500 more.

My question is that are the hdtv signals in omaha coming in at 4:3 or 16:9 mostly? I can run both modes but if most are 16:9, I may sit out for the full resolution.

Also have a samsung sir-151 on order at mega mart, but am trying to source a sir-ts160 so I can run with my direct tv. I wonder how long till direct tv does nfl sunday ticket in HD, prob forever.

This is awesome having omaha guys here, thanks! I have spent hours upon hours researching this stuff since I found out ota hdtv was real in omaha, thanks to your posts. I did a report on hdtv in high school, 1988, reports said it would be in us in 90, I have been drueling since the report...

BTW I have two attic mount uhf antennas and one vhf attena, get great reception exept 42 has some very slight ghosting, can't wait to optimize the attennas, and get digital locals.


Daryl

Robert, we had to upgrade the software in our Tanberg HD Encoder to address the Closed-Captioning problem. We are also expierencing problems with our T150 receiver. It only shows a signal strength of about 10% and will not provide a signal lock. Our RCA and our Samsung TS-160 are rock solid at 80%. I have read on this AVS Forum that the T-150 has been expierencing problems with PSIP Data. We are not providing PSIP but I have a call into Tandberg for advice.

If I can turn off the closed-captioning to fix your problems I will!

Jay

Robert,

I ran several tests utilizing our Samsung T-150. The receiver was not impacted by the closed-captioning information. I could however impact the receiver with the PSIP data being turned off and on. I currently have the mode "off" so let me know how things look tonight.

Jay

Daryl,

I am helping my brother in law in Bellevue work on a project system as well. Right now, most of KETV and WOWT is upconverted 4x3. However, all the HD stuff is full 16x9. As time goes on, more 16x9 will come to exist, so I say, get the 16x9.

As far as DirecTV, Sunday ticket in HD is unforseeable. MNF announced that next season would be HD however. I have the Sony HD200 and love it. The Sunday tickets games expanded to 1080i and displayed looke much better on it than they did previously on my old RCA standard DirecTV box with the Mits line doubler. Not sure how the TS160 compares. I don't think it has some of the filtering, but has some other modes.

Doug

I have good and bad news on the failures of the Samsung T-150's. Samsung is aware they have a problem with the T-150 units. The manufacture of our HD encoder is also aware of the situation. Tanberg is working on a software fix for the Encoder even though it is a receiver problem and is only impacting the T-150's. (apparently, both companies have agreed it will be much easier to address several hundred HD Encoders than recall thousands of receivers) The software fix was completed last Thursday but Samsung asked Tanberg for a release delay while they verify it works.

I can make the problem go away but this fix creates a whole new set of issues. If I turn the PSIP data stream off in the encoder, the receivers will not continuosly reboot.....great! If I then autoprogram for new channels, WOWT 6.1 will not appear...not great.

I hope that Samsung will allow the release late this week or early next week.

Jay Nix
Chief Engineer
WOWT

Originally posted by WOWT
I can make the problem go away but this fix creates a whole new set of issues. If I turn the PSIP data stream off in the encoder, the receivers will not continuosly reboot.....great! If I then autoprogram for new channels, WOWT 6.1 will not appear...not great.

Jay Nix
Chief Engineer
WOWT


Howdy Jay,

Thanks for being on top of the issue like this! It's great -- of course, back at KMTV you were the same when it came to trouble-shooting Cox's HD feeds. I am glad WOWT lets you take all of this seriously. :)

Glad you've got the contacts to trouble-shoot thing. I did see threads about the problem in this very forum, but I couldn't find the link to the URL. I wish everybody would get their PSIP straight!

Thanks again for all your hard work!

-- Robert

Hi all,

Anyone have an up to date timeline for the KXVO transition? I tried their website, www.kxvo.com, and it sends me to a Fox (KPTM) front end. Aggravating, had I wanted kptm I would've typed kptm. I wonder if this is another Rupert Murdoch scheme. ;)

John

John,

I spoke to KPTM/KXVO a few weeks ago, they were hoping by end of November or early December. Their current FCC filing says Dec 7. (Check titantv.com)

Hope they make it.

Doug

Antenna 101 / Tower Locations
I show the following possible digital channels in the Omaha Area from AntennaWeb.org that should be available now or sometime in the future.

PBS OMAHA 194 Degrees
WB OMAHA 194 Degrees
PBS Lincoln 194 Degrees
Fox Omaha 194 Degrees

ABC OMAHA 35 Degrees (72nd and Military?)
NBC OMAHA 35 Degrees
CBS OMAHA 35 Degrees

PBS CTucky 68 Degrees
PBS RedOak 72 Degrees

Can someone tell me the locations of the 194 degree antenna? If there is no chance to ever recieve them in the foreseable future then I will take them off the list. Is it true that we should be able to recieve all these stations from omaha?

Antenna 101

I need to know what the do's and don'ts are for the digital attennas. When I run my single uhf antenna I get 63% on 35 degree stations.

When I reverse a splitter into two antennas it goes to zero, using a normal splitter. How can you combine the signals?

I think most would be happy with two antennas one at 35 and the other at 194?

Last thing. What are the hours of operation when a signal will come through on these abc,nbc, and cbs stations? Are the other stations live? Maybe we could keep a thread/reference going that summarizes the available channels, their status, projected radius for signal reciept, hours useable, best guess at future channel release dates?

Take it easy,
Thanks for your help.

Daryl

Warren at KETV,

Did you guys up your power in the last few days? I had record signal strength last night. Like 70% full scale. Seemed like a lot to have been atmospheric only.

Doug

I think the problem you are having with using the reversed splitter is creating a multi-path problem The receiver sees so many reflected patterns from the additinal antenna pointed in the reversed direction, that it is just ignoring the data. You need to install "Traps or filters" to eliminate the signal on the opposite antenna.

Jay Nix
WOWT

Originally posted by dehlers
Warren at KETV,

Did you guys up your power in the last few days? I had record signal strength last night. Like 70% full scale. Seemed like a lot to have been atmospheric only.

Doug

Hi Doug,

We have not increased the power as of yet. Still working on the filing.

--Warren

What trap or filter would I need, I assume I would be able to use three? I would want one for the uhf pointing to 35 degrees to only receive the correct signals, 1 for the 198 degrees to recieve those signals, and optionally 1 for my vhf to block all uhf.

Where can I get these and find out what ones I need to accomplish?

Thanks,

Daryl

I hook up my uhf only attenna and I get 63% without fiddling with it. I hook up my large uhf and vhf antenna and I get 20%. CBS is fine but abc is breaking up, sound dying etc... What is the minimum percent that is recommended for channel 7?

Daryl, SIR-TS160

Originally posted by darylrue
I hook up my uhf only attenna and I get 63% without fiddling with it. I hook up my large uhf and vhf antenna and I get 20%. CBS is fine but abc is breaking up, sound dying etc... What is the minimum percent that is recommended for channel 7?

Daryl, SIR-TS160

I have, as I've said, and older Samsung SIR-T150. I receive KETV in Millard with only 15% signal and it works fine.

I am considering trying a pre-amp just to give myself a little more headroom.

-- Robert

I have learned that I can play with bandpass filters and antenna combiners or I can get an omnidirectional antenna to pick up the signals from both directions. Anyone else doing either of these in omaha with any success?
Anyone combining a uhf only and a vhf only? Omni directional seems longer term as it may pick up the "misc" stations as they are tuned in.

"TV Reception Technologies"
Garry Zager
402-464-6995

Garry in Lincoln has been working on solutions to these problems for several weeks. It might be worth a phone call do discuss your situation. I know he has been pulling in WOWT and KETV in west Lincoln reliably.

Jay

Jay, funny you should mention Zager.

http://www.angelfire.com/tn2/thefrontier/sounds/IntheYear2525.asf

In the year 2002, I bought a Yagi too

It is about 100" long, Do you think I can get signal? We will see.:D

I just brought home the MXU59 AntennaCraft from Zager. I just wish my tuner would get here!

The transmitter field engineer is here today and we have found some components that need replacing. We have ordered the parts to arrive early on the 14th. We do not feel comfortable running the system with questionable equipment. If all goes well and no more problems arise, we should be back at full power in less than 24hrs.

Jay

Hi Everyone,

The transmitter failed today.

I hope to have parts on-site by Friday.

I ask this and it may show my ignorance. Both Jay and Warren: Do just these transmitters (DTV) show this level of vulnrability? Or do the analog transmitters fail with the same MTBF? Are you overdriving the equipment just to please us? :) Are the DTV transmitters more of a prototype setup waiting on more robust high powered equipment?

Just wondering.

I appreciate the effort you guys put forth to get Omaha ahead of so many other broadcasters in the DTV transition.

Originally posted by gpflepsen
I ask this and it may show my ignorance. Both Jay and Warren: Do just these transmitters (DTV) show this level of vulnrability? Or do the analog transmitters fail with the same MTBF? Are you overdriving the equipment just to please us? :) Are the DTV transmitters more of a prototype setup waiting on more robust high powered equipment?

Just wondering.

I appreciate the effort you guys put forth to get Omaha ahead of so many other broadcasters in the DTV transition.

In KETV's case, I lost an isolated supply which develops bias and ION pump voltage for the IOT tube in my transmitter. From the meter readings, it appears the supply is working, but the status out of the board back to the IO panel is what is bad. Since this board is in the area of 36Kv, they bring back status via fiber optic cable for safety. I will contact the vendor tomorrow about a replacement board as it was after 5pm when I located the problem, and it was too late to get a replacement overnight.

This same board failed when the transmitter check-out was performed, and it was replaced then. There may be a weak area in the design of that board which may be corrected with a field mod from the vendor. I will discuss this with the vendor, and pursue the option of purchasing a spare board as well.

As far as pushing the transmitter, in my case, I have a 23kw transmitter running at 1.5kw so I do not over drive my temp DTV antenna. The transmitter is basically idling right now.

I hope to have a replacement board Friday. Sorry for the outage!!!

--Warren

Am I correct in saying that tonight (Wednesday 11/13/02), there are no OTA HDTV broadcasts in Omaha?

This will be funny tomorrow, but I just spent the last 3 hours messing with the Samsung SIR-T165 that I just got, trying both the Silver Satin antenna, as well as a Radio Shack Yagi that I bought tonight. I guess I shoulda checked the forums before I started questioning my sanity in trying to get an HDTV signal. Sigh.

Jeff

Just an idea.... Is it possible to have a small logo on the broadcast station's web site indicating if they are broadcasting in HDTV?

Something like a HDTV logo with a green or red light would be neat. That would keep guys like Jeff and I from pulling our hair out trying to tune in a non-existent signal. And I don't have a lot of hair to frivolously pull out :)

Glad I'm out of town this week and next. I had both digital channels stable last week. At the first sign of dopout this week I would have been up in the attic pulling things apart................

Keep plugging away gents. Your efforts are appreciated.

John

To the WOWT and KETV engineers:

Don't get me wrong, I agree with John. Your efforts are GREATLY appreciated! You guys have been great in posting your status on the AVS forum, and it's a lesson to us to check the forums >BEFORE< we start rewiring everything. :)

I am already smiling this morning about how it didn't even occur to me to think about there being no signal to receive. It was frustrating at the time, but probably nothing compared to the frustration you two feel in bringing up and testing this new HDTV gear.

I do really like gpflepsen's idea of an HDTV status light on your web sites tho. Maybe you guys can work on that in your "copious free time." :)

One final thought... how do we go about inviting the other broadcast engineer guys (and gals?) onto AVS so that we can hear about their progress in Omaha? I'm thinking about KPTM, KXVO, KMTV, and KYNE. I wonder if we could coax a Cox engineer on here too...

Keep up the great work!

Jeff

Our DTV transmitter has been experiencing many odd problems lately. We have the "top guy" from the manufacture here to diagnose the problems. The frame was bent when shiped so we are performing a complete mechanical and electrical alignment. We found the combining network (allows the 10 solid state amplifiers to combine into the single transmission line) has been overheating. This burnt the line causing many of the amplifiers to shut down in a self-protect mode.

The analog transmitters are also finicky, but viewers at home rarely see the problems. WOWT, KETV, and KMTV all have dual transmitters at the 72nd street facility. If one transitter experinces problems, the engineers transfer over to the other system. If problems occur with the transmission line or antenna, all three stations also have back-ups at their original towers located downtown. It is extremely nice for stations in Omaha to have three analog transmitters.

I'll look into the web notice for DTV broadcasting.

Jay

Originally posted by WOWT
It is extremely nice for stations in Omaha to have three analog transmitters.

Jay

Howdy Jay,

Any word on the PSIP "bug" yet? Also...

I think back in the mid 90's I took a tour of WOWT's facilities and I believe, if I recall, there is a huge tube based amplifier on the facility that only broadcasts in black and white. It's left over from the old days, but it's still kept at ready "just in case".

True or false? This may have been KETV... not sure.

-- Robert

I am told that the software release will occur on the 18th (Monday) It should only take us a few hours to complete.

The Old transmitter may have been here. We moved our RCA 'E" line (purchased in 1967) from 72nd and Crown Point to the studio location approx 3 years ago. This was to replace the original transmitter (that was shipped to Haiti), to make floor space for the new DTV transmitter.

Jay

Hi Everyone,

Just a quick note to let you know the DTV transmitter is operational again.

I also have the closed captioning running now. I only mention this should there be a problem, that is one change we made. It is in the new 708B format.

--Warren

To keep from being outgunned by Warren, WOWT's transmitter has been repaired and is running at full power again.


Jay

HD-Wars, gotta love it.

What are the long term goals for your stations? Once you stop broadcasting in the analog domain, will you continue broadcasting in the UHF spectrum or will you re-integrate your hardware to broadcast VHF?

John

Originally posted by johnwcookjr
HD-Wars, gotta love it.

What are the long term goals for your stations? Once you stop broadcasting in the analog domain, will you continue broadcasting in the UHF spectrum or will you re-integrate your hardware to broadcast VHF?

John

Excellent question John,

Let me attempt to answer this for you. When analog goes dark, the plan for KETV is to drop back to channel 7. This for a couple of reasons, first, VHF 7 – 13 seems to be the “sweet spot” of the band. The signal travels very well and there is not a great deal of impulse noise in that part of the band. Second, on the expense side of operations, it is less expensive to run a VHF transmitter as compared to a UHF transmitter.

That said, I need to see how channel 20 performs once I reach full power, and couple that with what the market will be broadcasting on. Meaning, if the other stations in the market stay in the UHF spectrum, I need to factor this in to the decision of where I stay. I could be the “odd ball” and be the only VHF station in the market. Plus, no one really knows at this moment in time if the FCC will force all DTV operations in the UHF spectrum once it is all said and done.

The crystal ball is a little foggy at this point.

--Warren

Warren summed it up very well. At this point, no decisions have been made as to where everyone will end up.

Jay Nix
Chief Engineer

We upgraded the software in our DTV encoder to address the issues of the Samsung T-150 receivers. The upgrade did not go smooth. I had to completely reprogram the encoder from scratch twice. I think the system is back to normal but if you experience any problems, please let me know.

Jay Nix
Chief Engineer
WOWT

Well apparantly things are going well with you broadcasters. I've noticed stability in reception lately, and this thread has gone quiet.

Any one have an update for KXVO, are we still looking at mid-December?

I watched Back in the US with Paul McCartney tonight, disappointed it was SD 4:3, wish mainstream programs such as this were in HD or upconverted.

John

Next Friday I should have both Sat and OTA tuning capabilities. :)

I would like help on an e-mail campaign with Cox to let them know that we would really like to see more than the 3 (CBS, HBO, SHO) HD stations on digital cable. It appears as though both HDnet and Discovery HD are readily available to the cable companies, and I would >LOVE< to see HDnet on Cox. All of you Omaha HD heads, could you give me a hand?

Go to: http://www.cox.com/Omaha/ContactUsEmail.asp

Jeff

Just talked to an engineer at KPTM/KXVO. He says the finally have a firm delivery date on the transmitter and expect to be on the air before Christmas. Hope they make it.

Doug

Good news indeed. Do you think we in Lincoln will be able to pick up KPTM/KXVO?

Now we just have to get KMTV 3 nailed down on when they will be up and running.

Does anyone know if Lincoln's ABC is broadcasting the ABC HD feed converted to 480p widescreen? KOLN/KGIN won't be on the air until well into 2003, from what I've heard.

That's great news on KXVO Doug. KXVO would be the halfway point with the local PBS channels and CBS bringing up the rear in 03.

I would think that KXVO would be receivable in Lincoln, that tower would be closer to you than the big three in Omaha.

John

gpflepson,

John should be correct. They are going up on a tower SW of Omaha instead of Northeast. I belive they are also going up at pretty much their expected power levels. Given that we can receive KETV-DT 20 decently, I expect no problems with either 38 or 43. The really great thing about receiving Omaha DTV feeds is that one UHF antenna pointed from Lincoln gets both the NE and SW towers, plus PBS. Omaha people have to deal with multiple directions for their antennas. I personally haven't even bothered with aiming to get the Lincoln stations.

On your question about KLKN-DT in Lincoln. They currently are doing nothing with the HD feed from ABC, only upconverting their standard broadcast. They told me the HD gear was requested in the 2003 budget. Don't know if its approved or anything beyond that.

John,
My brother in law is at 42nd and 370. We are redoing his basement for a 100" front projection. Not sure what we'll do about antennas for receiving both the networks and KXVO/KPTM from his/your location. You done any thinking on this? He may just wait for COX to carry them too. Not sure...

Doug

Doug, so you're saying KLKN isn't passing the HD feed in ED form? I hope they get with the program.

Today my dish 6000U with OTA tuner showed up. Now I'm waiting for the TV, which is being held captive on a truck somewhere between here and K.C.

Doug,

I'm running an amplified Radio Shack stick in the attic (two story house), this in turn feeds a Channel Master 0062A four output amplifier (just installed yesterday). Since the installation I've had rock solid reception on both receivers. Signal strength went up 10 points for KETV.

I beleive I may now be good for the long haul. I may need a rotor but we'll see in a couple more weeks when KXVO begins broadcasting 1080i.

1080i on that 100"er should look great, I've a 106" down in The Pit and although I don't watch much TV down there (mostly movies) local digital programming does look great when it's available.

Regards,

John

Hello Everyone,

I finally got the antenna up in the attic (Channel Master 4221) and I am able to pickup WOWT from Omaha--I am located at 27th and Old Cheney in Lincoln. I get a solid 70-74 signal strength for WOWT but a get a sporadic 20-27 signal strenght for KETV, which results in no signal. I am using the RCA DTC-100 HDTV Receiver. Can anyone explain why, considering they are transmitting from the same location? Is KETV transmitting at a lower power than WOWT?

Dolby Digital: The channel banners show they are transmitting in Dolby Digital, but they never come in at Dolby Digital 5.1. It appears to only be 2 channel. Does anyone know why that is?

Thanks everyone!

Jeff

Jeff,

If you read back earlier in this thread you'll see that KETV is currently broadcasting at less power than WOWT.

Check WOWT during Jay Leno, it should then be DD5.1. During non-hd programming the audio will be DD2.0 because normal NTSC programming is typically 2 channel stereo broadcast as MTS stereo.

I think the acronym for NTSC stereo audio is MTS, memory fade here, anyway that all came about back in the mid-80's. Broadcast the normal mono audio channel and a L-R sub channel. The MTS recovery circuitry would then subtract the two and create the FM quality stereo analog audio channels.

Currently the boradcasters are just passing on the left and right stereo channels as DD2.0, the same stereo audio they use to create the MTS broadcast channel.

Glad your equipment is online and the pieces are starting to fall into place.

Enjoy, Merry XMAS.

John

John,

Thanks for the info!

I watched Leno lastnight but unfortunately it was only coming across in DD2.0. Same thing happens on HDNET but I have read that problem is due to DirecTV and not HDNET.

Thanks again and Merry Xmas to you too.

Jeff

Originally posted by sprnova
Hello Everyone,

Can anyone explain why, considering they are transmitting from the same location? Is KETV transmitting at a lower power than WOWT?

Dolby Digital: The channel banners show they are transmitting in Dolby Digital, but they never come in at Dolby Digital 5.1. It appears to only be 2 channel. Does anyone know why that is?

Thanks everyone!

Jeff

Hi Jeff,

My DTV antenna is roughly 500 feet lower than WOWT's DTV antenna, and my ERP power is lower as well. I am filing to increase power a bit as my temp antenna has a little more head room. Waiting on the authorization to do so.

On the Dolby Digital 5.1, you should see all 5 channels on your surround sound system when we are passing through ABC in HD. You might have your receiver in a DSP mode. You will only see two channels when we are upconverting the analog feed.

Jeff,

I forgot to mention, if you are not using the optical output or digital coax output of your ATSC receiver feeding your surround system, you will not be able to receive the DD 5.1 channels of audio.

Sorry for the mistype above, I meant to type 5.1.

Warren

Currently, NBC is not offering 5.1 on network programming. I read they are working on the issue but unfortunately do not have a delivery date.

Jay Nix
Chief Engineer
WOWT

Good news on the possible power increase on the KETV tower. I live halfway between Lincoln and Omaha. Right now I have a hard time locking on there signal. Sometimes after around 8 oclock I can get it, but the rest of the time the signal bounces up and down and won't lock. I have tried to peak on your signal, but it seems I am just a bit too far out. Will be looking forward to it. What format is KETV in? Wondered if it was 720, doesn't quite look like 1080. Just curious. Thanks..........

Jay, I finally assembled all the components just in time to catch Leno in HDTV last night. I'm close to 40th and Old Cheney in Lincoln. I was pulling in about 81% signal strength with a Dish Model 6000U. I have an Antennacraft MXU59 mounted in my attic. I made a guess in aiming it and haven't fine tuned at all.

I'm also getting Lincoln's KLKN-ABC DTV transmission at about 90 degrees to the side of the antenna. They register about 62%.

I'll have to try getting KETV-DTV next. When is the next KETV DTV transmission?

Originally posted by gpflepsen


When is the next KETV DTV transmission?

KETV-DT operation time this weekend is:

Saturday 12/7/02
12 Noon - Midnight

Sunday 12/8/02
2:30pm - Midnight

Our DTV format is 720p

Originally posted by gpflepsen
Jay, I finally assembled all the components just in time to catch Leno in HDTV last night. I'm close to 40th and Old Cheney in Lincoln. I was pulling in about 81% signal strength with a Dish Model 6000U. I have an Antennacraft MXU59 mounted in my attic. I made a guess in aiming it and haven't fine tuned at all.

I'm also getting Lincoln's KLKN-ABC DTV transmission at about 90 degrees to the side of the antenna. They register about 62%.

I'll have to try getting KETV-DTV next. When is the next KETV DTV transmission?

Gpflepsen, just wondered if you had any luck getting the Ketv-dtv signal. I noticed that you where getting a better signal level on your the Wow-t signal, only get around 71%. I too, am using the Dish 6000, but I have a 8bay uhf antenna mounted on the roof. Just wondered if maybe I need to look at a diff antenna, especially if you have any luck with the KETV feed. I should be about 35 miles closer to it than you if you are at 40th and Old Cheney. Let me know............

This morning WOWT-D was waivering about 75-81% I was not able to get a signal for KETV. They are on channel 20, correct? Today I'll see if I can fine tune the aim of my antenna.

As of now, I'm not too optomistic in getting KETV-DT. How far out are people able to lock on?

Right now I have a Signal Strength of 70 on WOWT. I only have a wavering signal strength of 20-23 on KETV. But lastnight I checked on KETV around 11pm and had a solid signal strenght of 40. Earlier in the day and into the early evening I was getting no signal on KETV. Don't know why this is. My guess is the changing signal may be due to weather conditions?

I have thought about installing a preamp, but I don't want to overpower the WOWT signal. Any thoughts on this?

Thanks
Jeff

Where are you Jeff? What's your equipment? Is KETV watchable?

I am in Lincoln at 27th & Old Cheney. I am using a DTC-100 w/ the latest firmware updates & the Channel Master 4221 in my Attic. When the KETV signal was at 40 lastnight (I started watching it around 10:30 or 11 pm) the picture/sound came in just fine. No problems. But all day today the signal is jumping around 20-25 and I cannot get any picture at all--it just says "weak signal." I need to get a signal strength around 33 to get a picture. I am thinking about getting a preamp to see if that will make any difference.

Jeff,

Try putting a pre-amp, mounted on the antenna, to get the KETV signal. Minimize the number of other components between your antenna and your box. Each connection has losses.

I am at 56th and O and get KETV solid, Alias is a good show for picture and DD5.1. I have one of the newer Sony HD200 boxes. It has a third generation tuner which may be helping too. The DTC and 6000 are first gen essentially. 6000 is a bit newer.

Anyway, the preamp made all the difference. $29.95 at Radio Shack.

Doug

Doug,

Thanks for the info.

Lastnight around 8:45 I was able to get a picture on KETV with occasional breakups. The signal had gradually jumped up from around 23 to 33 by then. The later it got into the evening, the stronger the signal became. By 9:45 the signal was at 40 and the picture was solid. WOWT had jumped up to a signal strength of 80.

Jeff

I live about half way between Omaha and Lincoln. I run into the same sort of thing with the KETV signal. Yesterday most of the day I could not lock on the signal, but watching the signal meter on the Dish 6000 it would jump around from 0 to 45 but never lock. Checked around 8pm and the signal was locked around 53%. I too wondered if this was weather related or maybe some other sort of signal interferance during the day. One of the earlier posts suggested that KETV might be upping there signal output soon, so you might wait on the amp until we see what happens with it.

Hello everyone,
Nice too find a thread related to the Omaha/Lincoln area. Just for some extra info on reception, I live in NE Lincoln(Havelock area). With an attic mounted RS UHF/VHF antenna, RS adjustable preamp, Samsung SIR-T165
I get 60% reception from WOWT and 50% from KETV, 60% from KLKN.
Without preamp unable to receive solid signal from KETV. I was having trouble with reception(KETV) on sunday too, cleared up at nite.

Any word on KPTM or KXVO digital startup?

Just registered here at AVS forum. Spent most of my time at Home Theater Spot.com . Was referred over here. Great to have a thread on Omaha/Lincoln area digital broadcast.

Just thought I would throw in my stats for everyone ( don't hate me ) HAHAHA

I am currently receiving wowt at about 100% and ketv at around 90-95%

I live around the Eagle area ( between Lincoln and Omaha ) on an acreage.
When I bought the place it already had a 40 ft antenna tower. Little did I know at the time that it would come in this handy now. I had Zager's install a HUGE uhf antenna ( not sure what model number ) back in Oct pointed at Omaha. I do not currently receive klkn out of Lincoln because I was more concerned with the Omaha stations. More of them and the fact that KLKN isn't broadcasting HDTV yet. When KLIN starts broadcasting ( soon I hope ) I am going to add a second uhf antenna pointing toward Lincoln. Can't wait.

I currently have a Mits 65909 tv
Mits hdtv/directv receiver

Well just thought I would add my 2 cents.

Thanks
cblake

Thats a great signal that you are getting CBlake. If you have time sometime, could you look up the antenna make and model that you are running? I am only about 10 miles east of you and I get the wowt signal around 70 to 80% and have a hard time getting ketv at all. I would imagine having the antenna up that high has alot to do with it, but would like to compare my antenna's spec's with yours. Thanks

My antenna is a Antenna Craft mxu-59. Zager out of Lincoln installed it about three months ago. I was kind of like their guinee pig at the time , because the technology was still new to them also , and they were still looking at what worked and what didn't in our area.Like I said before , it is uhf only and is pointed toward Omaha towers. So i don't receive KLKN right now. ( no big loss )
When KOLN comes on line ( sounds like they are going to be behind schedule ) I plan on installing a second uhf ( probably not as big ) pointed toward Lincoln.

If you don't mind spending the money , I highly reccomend Zager for antenna related issues. If you have questions about them just e-mail me.

I bought a MXU-59 from Zager also. I have it in my attic pointing towards Omaha. I can get WOWT-DT but can't get a lock on KETV-DT. KETV's signal registers now and then but never locks on. I tried a Radio shack Pre amp last night and think it introduced more noise than helped. By this I mean that channel 8's analog signal turned terrible when it had been good. I think WOWT's DT signal dropped by a few % points. They took it back.

I think I'll wait for KETV to boost the power and then contemplate an outside mount (ick!)

My mxu-59 works flawlessly. But everybody's circumstances are different.
The mxu-59 is a fringe specific antenna and my location is ideal for this. Atleast that is what I was told. I am not being over powered by any one signal. And yes the 40ft tower helps(hehehehehe) Did Zager install it for you? If they did and your not happy with it , call them and I would think that they would help you out.

But if I did still live in town I wouldn't hesitate to put a big old ugly antenna up on my roof. May look ugly outside , but boy does the reception look good on the inside!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And that's all I would be looking at. lol

See ya

I'm happy with it, it gets the Omaha VHF broadcast. Not bad for a UHF antenna :)

I'll put a 50 ft tower on my x-mas list.

I am glad your happy with it . That's all that matters. The specs I have on mxu show it dosen't even support VHF. I do have a question though. I will be the first to say I don't know a whole lot about reception technology. As a matter of fact on a scale of 1-10 I am about a 3. Just two steps above comatose idiot.hahahaha

My question is , what is the point on receiving Omaha VHF broadcast. I mean if you are receiving channel 7 analog but channel 20 is out there and you can't receive it , I wouldn't be too happy. After waiting all this time for digital to come up and knowing it's out their but not being able to receive it would drive me crazy. I mean I haven'twatched wowt in analog in a long time. A few months from now who will care about Omaha VHF. I am not trying to be a smart a@Z , I guess I just don't understand. Maybe I am looking at it all wrong. That's been known to happen. hahahahaha

From some of your other post it sounds like you really now what your talking about , so any info would be appreciated.

Oh, by the way . I would ask for a 60 ft tower. Then you can sell feeds to your neighbors. hahahahahahah

Thanks

I don't use it to tune in 3,6,7 or 8. It is just there. A mental note, I made.

KETV isn't broadcasting with enough power as of now. I hear they are petitioning the FCC to up the wattage. If this happens I expect to get them with my current set-up.

I could also use it to get great FM reception even though it's not designed for it. But I'm not.

Glad you're enjoying great reception. I'm praying something gives before the superbowl.

Do you know if ABC plans on broadcasting the Super Bowl in 720p or will it just be digital. Also did you get the chance to see the Nebraska/ McNeese St game in high def on HDNET. That was AMAZING!!!!! Nothing like football in HD. Some people say that 720p is actually better for football than 1080i because of the quick motion. What's your thought.

I just got my HDTV as the last component last Friday. I have Dish Network so no HDNET for now. Everything I have heard leads me to think SB XXXVII will be 720p. KETV should be relaying the HD feed.

Here's an article to read:

http://espn.go.com/abcsports/pressreleases/s/2002/0925/1436510.html

I just installed the Radioshack Preamp ($60) for testing (using CM 4221 in the attic) and the signal for WOWT jumped from 70 to 82. This was at 2pm today. KETV is not broadcasting until 5pm so I have to wait until then to see if it boosts that signal enough to get a steady picture. Lastnight the signal never jumped above 20-25 for KETV so I could not get a picture.

I hope KETV can up their power soon.

Does anyone know what format WOWT is broadcasting in? 720p? I believe Leno is in 1080i--it looks great.

UPDATE: Just got home and checked signal for KETV. It is jumping between 34-40 but I am getting a steady picture. I am probably going to return the RadioShack preamp and get the CM 7777. I have read that it is better, plus it also does VHF if needed for the future.

Jeff

Originally posted by cblake
Do you know if ABC plans on broadcasting the Super Bowl in 720p or will it just be digital. Also did you get the chance to see the Nebraska/ McNeese St game in high def on HDNET. That was AMAZING!!!!! Nothing like football in HD. Some people say that 720p is actually better for football than 1080i because of the quick motion. What's your thought.

I searched for a half hour or so last night and read that the superbowl was going to be on fox.

My question is when is fox going to be live? Anntennaweb.org said dec 7th now it is under investigation. I have a $3000 hdtv projector that I may hold off on if hdtv is not ready for the superbowl. You know, that is about all that is left to focus on since the huskers in all.

Daryl
156th and Harrison, 40% signal with no defect with a generic attic mount attenna from RS with vhf portion removed.

It was stated here thst KXVO/KPTM would be up before christmas. Since then Zager told me it would likely be the end of the year. I guess we'll know when we know.

If you check the Super Bowl home page it states that ABC will be broadcasting this years Super Bowl.

Thank god it's not FOX , with their funky " FOX Digital Widesreen" that they try to push off as HD.

This is my first Post, but have been reading since Warren put me on to this site. I Live in NW Lincoln in the "New" Highlands. I am currently using the CM4221 pointed toward Omaha in the attic of my Garage. 100% on WOWT, but KETV is between 18 to 56% at most. Using the Mits SRHD400 AND 41% is enough to lock onto any signal. It might just be me, but Friday nights KETV seems to always be strong. I've got a 51% signal tonight, although nothing is on. I'm sure ABC will have the superbowl, but not sure of the Format, I would guess 720P since that is how they did Monday Night Football the 1st season, 2 years ago. They are also going to be doing Monday Night Football next year again. I can't wait. I think I know Cblake, I work at Schaefer's.

Take Care.

Warren, any news on the power increase???

Gents,

I can confirm that KETV has passed on national feeds broadcast 720p in the past. I feel confident that plans for an HD Superbowl party need to commence.

John

st30247,

If this is who I think it is , glad to see you make your first post. Great to work with and really seem to know your stuff. Both about the local situation and new tech issues. Allot better than some of the knuckleheads at BB. I actually had a kid there ask me what the difference was between digital and HD. I was actually sorry to see them get the Mits line, even if it is only the lower end stuff. Anyway for everybody else , I know st30247 knows his stuff and great to work with.

st30247,

Oh yeah , I forgot to ask, anymore word on HDnet's new channels?? Any time frame yet?? Can't wait for more from them

Thanks

Originally posted by st30247


Warren, any news on the power increase???

No word back from the FCC on the power increase as of yet. I will post when I do receive this authorization, and actually increase the power on the transmitter. I am still running at 10Kw ERP.

It is interesting during the night the signal level increases so much. The layers of the ionosphere must be changing and affecting the signal as it travels through "free space".

Originally posted by sprnova
I just installed the Radioshack Preamp ($60) for testing (using CM 4221 in the attic) and the signal for WOWT jumped from 70 to 82. This was at 2pm today. KETV is not broadcasting until 5pm so I have to wait until then to see if it boosts that signal enough to get a steady picture. Lastnight the signal never jumped above 20-25 for KETV so I could not get a picture.

I hope KETV can up their power soon.

Does anyone know what format WOWT is broadcasting in? 720p? I believe Leno is in 1080i--it looks great.

UPDATE: Just got home and checked signal for KETV. It is jumping between 34-40 but I am getting a steady picture. I am probably going to return the RadioShack preamp and get the CM 7777. I have read that it is better, plus it also does VHF if needed for the future.

Jeff



Just wondered if you had ever tried the CM 7777 and how it worked for you, was considering getting one of those to try and help with my KETV signal. Just wondered................Thanks

Unfortunately the CM 7777 is on nationwide backorder from Channel Master so I did not buy one. I placed an order Friday for a few items and got the CM 7775. Should be here sometime next week and will report back if it does any better than the $60 RadioShack preamp I am using now. The 7775 only passes UHF where the 7777 passes both UHF and VHF and I think has an FM trap. Other than that they are the same and have the same DB increase.

Jeff

Thanks, will be curious to know if it does any better than the radio shack one. Hopefully the power increase will come through for KETV and that will help too.

I've emailed HD Net, I'll let you know what they say.

Jay,

Is WOWT-DT OTA tonight? I'm receiving a big fat goose-egg on the tuner sensitivity meter.

John

Edit: It's now 21:49 and WOWT-DT is back online.

Edit2: I'm wrong, it's their digital channle is still not online, I was tuned to the analog channel by mistake.

Its 10:05 and its on for me. Didn't check it at all tonight until I saw your post so I don't know if it had problems earlier or not.

I just ran downstairs and checked reception on our 6000, it's intermittent but there. Apparantly I'm suffering weather related anomolies. My HiDTV card isn't picking up the signal and the 6000 flashes in/out.

Thanks for checking/replying. Time to get serious about a new antenna purchase.

John

Edit: Now not more than a few minutes later I'm receiving WOWT-DT at a signal strength of 85%, go figure.

Warren,

The last two weeks ABC has aired a 007 film and Armagedon in HD yet KETV-DT was broadcasting SD. Others in the HD Programming forum have stated that ABC OTA of these films in their towns were in HD. Are you receiving an HD feed of the Saturday night films? Anyway to pass the Saturday night HD movies on to us?

Thanks, John

I dont recall a 007 movie in the last couple of weeks, but last saturday
Armageddon was broadcast from KETV in HD(except for about 10min early
in the movie somebody forgot to switch back to HD out of a commercial
break :( ). ABC did not broadcast in OAR 2.35 but a zoomed in version
of 1.78, HD.