More info about the Comcast/TW switch.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7953753&&#post7953753

Has anyone noticed the white specs on 5-1? I thought it might just be Wheel of Forture, but its happening during Dateline now too.

(It's 'Murder in Memphis'! We made Dateline!!.... Maybe that's not a good thing.)

It looks as if an overlay setting is wrong, and that we're seeing glimpses of something in the black areas onscreen.

I forgot to Tivo this episode. Luckily my tuner was on it so I only missed the first 15 minutes. Yes I saw the white specs on local commercials. They weren't present on national commercials.

Sorry I'm a HDTV newbie and I have some questions that I think could be specific to Memphis stations. My hardware is the Air2PC tuner card with the Technisat indoor amplified antenna, using DVBViewer Technisat Edition. I'm getting great signal from all HD channels, BUT...

I get audio but no video from WMC, WREG and WLMT HD channels. I do however get video and audio from WMC's Weather and Tube Music video channels. I'm wondering what could be different about those particular channels that would cause me not to be able to receive those stations. It could be a limitation of my 1st gen card or my software.

On the plus side Fox 13 works great. I can't wait to watch the second half of the Nascar season in HD finally.

I'm not familiar with your particular card. :( I'll see if I can find anything...

On a side note, I've just gotta mention this, because as much as I don't like them, this is how you use technology. WREG is holding three televised debates for the Shelby County elections. But instead of preempting CBS programming, they are airing them on NC3A!!

(FYI, They keep mentioning that it's on TWC, but they neglect to mention they are multicasting it. If they aren't going to mention or advertise that it is OTA, then WHY ARE THEY MULTICASTING?! I digress....)

But not only are they airing it on NC3A, they are STREAMING it online.

They're starting to figure this technology thing out. Now if they'd just drop NC3A OTA, we'd be in business....

SmokesLikeaPoet,
I have one of those Air2PC cards, but it has been well over a year since I had it in my PC, maybe close to two years. I wasn't impressed with it's performance when I last tried to use it. I'm using a MyHD card now, and a Dvico Fusion card in another PC, and I don't have any sound problems with any of the Memphis channels with either card. So looks like I don't have any help to offer

According to http://www.dvbviewer.com/en/index.php?page=features you need to have a HDTV-capable MPEG2 decoder , i.e. NVIDIA or WinDVD, because one is not included in the download version. Do you have that covered?

I have several mpeg2 decoders on my computer, Nvidia, Nero, FFmpeg(ffdshow), and Cyberlink's. Unfortunately you cannot choose between them with the crippled limited version of dvbviewer.

However, I did get something to work tonight running tsviewer with vlc (videolan client) I was able to view the stations I wasn't able to with dvbviewer, so apparently this isn't a local problem, it's a software problem. The pro version of TSViewer is out of my price range, but I don't want to drop $19 on the pro version of dvbviewer and have it not work at all.

I found DVBDream today which is feature rich and supports my card however there is absolutely no documentation on getting it up and running with my card. I'm researching now.

I just received the DTV HR10-250 with the OTA ant for the locals. I am getting quite a bit of pixelation on 5-1 and 13-1 is not worth watching due to poor quality. Is the normal or is there something I can do to bring in the PQ better. 3-1 and 24-1 seem to be ok for now. I have been with Time Warner up to now, but I got this HD DVR Free and was hoping I could replace the one from Time Warner. I live in the 38134 Macon\Sycamore View area. Is this normal
Thx for the help
Ted

Those 2 towers would be the extreme opposites of where you are aiming. If you are getting 3-1 and 24-1 then you are close. What kind of antenna are you using? 13-1 & 5-1 are at a higher frequency's than others.

I am not even sure about the ant. It is a small one that DTV brought with them on their install. He did not leave any paperwork for it but it does not look to be very expensive. He split the line from the line running into to sat input to the ant in input and the signal strength is running from the high 60's to low 70's. When I try and change the signal it will not change. If I set it on Transponder 51 it gives a sinal in the 90's but it will not stay on 51. After I select done it reverts back to 53
Thx for the fast response.

I emailed support at Broadband Technologies about their card. The card only works with DVBviewer if I have the Sonic Mpeg2 decoder installed on my computer, which doesn't make much sense because there are alternative free mpeg2 decoders. I had downloaded the driver from the btti website and never thought about inserting the outdated install disc which contains the decoder.

So, long story short, I have a card that work perfectly. I get all the Memphis OTA channels and can record them to my hard drive for less than $100. Now if only I can watch Nascar on Fox again. Next week's race is on TNT HDTV again.

I am not even sure about the ant. It is a small one that DTV brought with them on their install. He did not leave any paperwork for it but it does not look to be very expensive. He split the line from the line running into to sat input to the ant in input and the signal strength is running from the high 60's to low 70's. When I try and change the signal it will not change. If I set it on Transponder 51 it gives a sinal in the 90's but it will not stay on 51. After I select done it reverts back to 53
Thx for the fast response.


The All-Star game came in pretty well tonight on 13-1, only a few blimps here or there. I do see quite a bit of diff in the HD quality in DTV vs Time Warner. Time Warner is crisper and much better from what I can see. I still could not figure out how to change the transponder. It will let me test it but it won't let me change to a better one.
Thx again

The All-Star game came in pretty well tonight on 13-1, only a few blimps here or there. I do see quite a bit of diff in the HD quality in DTV vs Time Warner. Time Warner is crisper and much better from what I can see. I still could not figure out how to change the transponder. It will let me test it but it won't let me change to a better one.
Thx again
Are you saying it looks better on TW compaired to DirecTV (D*)? Or to 13-1? The PQ that you should see ranking them is OTA, TW, D*. I haven't checked on channel 8 thru D* and I do agree it does look pretty good.

When you say transponder are you talking about changing the local digital channel? What stb are you using?

The card only works with DVBviewer if I have the Sonic Mpeg2 decoder installed on my computer.Oh yeah! I had forgotten about that. So that is why I have the sonic decoder on my computer. :o The other day the sonic decoder showed a pop-up asking if I wanted to upgrade to a newer version since the installed on had not been used in a long time, and I couldn't remember why I even had it installed. :rolleyes:

Oh BTW, for you race fans the rest of the Nextel Cup Races this year will be shown on TNT/NBC, I was mistaken to think they would be on Fox. If you have a capture card and are recording Nascar Races please PM me.

The PQ that you should see ranking them is OTA, TW, D*.Ordinarily, yes, but some of the things I've seen recently OTA have looked bloody awful. Admittedly, I haven't watched much, but I was appalled at the Senior Open transmission from WMC Sunday afternoon. It made D* look like VC-1 on HD DVD.

Are we getting worse here locally?

Chase

Ordinarily, yes, but some of the things I've seen recently OTA have looked bloody awful. Admittedly, I haven't watched much, but I was appalled at the Senior Open transmission from WMC Sunday afternoon. It made D* look like VC-1 on HD DVD.
The LPGA US Open and Senior Open's were awful. Those are network problems, not local. That kind of nastiness was seen all over the country.

I do know that the pq on TW for CBS-DT should look worse than OTA. I was told that by the clown engineer there because of the way TW gets the transmission.

To go along with smokes request, is anyone using any software to be able to see how much bandwidth the local channels are giving to their feeds?

The PQ on Time Warner for the All-Star game looked better than OTA last night. I am using the H10-250 HD DTV receiver as my Local HD option for DTV. I do not have DTV locals. I did not think I could sub to them since I can get my locals OTA here. Letterman looked very good last night on 3-1 on my OTA through DTV, but again it was a bit better on Time Warner. I have been watching Time Warner so long I may need more watching to compare. CBS has always been the best HD that TW has had. I also noticed that 5-1 and TW NBC were black last night during SUV and Leno.

I bought a U75-R from Radio Shack over the weekend and replaced the bat wing that came with my HR10-250. The WMC signal was sporadic at best before, now I'm getting 78-85db on 5-1. I live 20 miles from the tower in a fairly wooded area. Check it out.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103088&cp=&pg=2&origkw=antenna&kw=antenna&parentPage=search

It took a bit to convince the sales rep that this was the antenna I wanted as it doesn't do VHF signals, only UHF.

The PQ on Time Warner for the All-Star game looked better than OTA last night. I am using the H10-250 HD DTV receiver as my Local HD option for DTV. I do not have DTV locals. I did not think I could sub to them since I can get my locals OTA here. Letterman looked very good last night on 3-1 on my OTA through DTV, but again it was a bit better on Time Warner. I have been watching Time Warner so long I may need more watching to compare. CBS has always been the best HD that TW has had. I also noticed that 5-1 and TW NBC were black last night during SUV and Leno.


You can get the local Fox channel on D* channel 88.

The LPGA US Open and Senior Open's were awful. Those are network problems, not local. That kind of nastiness was seen all over the country.That's good to know...I guess. :rolleyes: At least it's not a local issue. NBC is trying to fix the problem, I assume?

Could you link me to a thread about it?

Thanks,

Chase

I wonder if our locals have direct feeds to TW before the subchannels kick in. I would doubt that since TW also carries the subchannels. I found the email from WREG:
We feed Time Warner cable directly via fiber optic cable.
They reprocess our signal to conserve bandwidth on their system. You may find the quality to be slightly lower, it is definitely not higher.

I understand what everyone is saying about the local channels on D* and stuff, but I just want to help the other new people in case they get confused because I have also gotten confused.

To get local channels in HD you have 1 provider that carries them. That is TW, channels start in the 800's. If you have D*, you can get them with an antenna thru your D* HD box. You are not subscribing to them. Same with E*. With D*, since our FOX is an O&O (owned and operated by FOX) we can get the national FOX HD feed on channel 88, which is WNYW out of New York, for free.

There has been an announcement that Memphis HD locals will be on D* later this year in mpeg-4 format. You will need to subscribe to those to recieve those from D*.

That's good to know...I guess. :rolleyes: At least it's not a local issue. NBC is trying to fix the problem, I assume?

Could you link me to a thread about it?
I hope they are trying to fix the problem. :p

I asked David at WMC about it and he said he would ask, but he doubts they would admit anything.

Here is the link to the US Open thread, http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=696688

Here is the link to the LGPA Open, http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=693851 (has screencaps)

To go along with smokes request, is anyone using any software to be able to see how much bandwidth the local channels are giving to their feeds?
Here's a list of what I found at 4 PM on the 12th (remember, this is just a single slice of time, and the rates will change based upon program content):

3-1 15.7 Mb/s 1080i
3-2 2.58 Mb/s 480i

5-1 12.8 Mb/s 1080i
5-2 4.2 Mb/s 480i
5-3 2.7 Mb/s 480i

10-1 14.7 Mb/s 720p
10-2 3.8 Mb/s 480i

13-1 18.75Mb/s 720p

24-1 17.8 Mb/s 720p

30-1 15.8 Mb/s 1080i

50-1 10.2 Mb/s 480i
50-2 4.2 Mb/s 480i
50-3 2.5 Mb/s 480i

By the way, WHBQ-DT has been down to half power for about a week due to a burned high voltage connection, but should be back to full power as early as tomorrow.

Good stuff Dave. Can you do that again during HD programming? Or did you do that from work?

I asked David at WMC about it and he said he would ask, but he doubts they would admit anything.Thanks, Dennis. Let us know if he discovers anything. (David, we'd love to hear from you directly if you're still posting.) There wasn't really anything in those threads that explains the problem.

Chase

Here's a list of what I found at 4 PM on the 12th.This is awesome, Dave. Thanks! How are you measuring the bit rate?

Chase

Thx for the info on getting Fox HD on D*. It is turned on now. They are sending waivers to the other networks but I doubt I get the others. Has anyone gotten the other local east coast feeds from D* ?

Thx again

I bought a U75-R from Radio Shack over the weekend and replaced the bat wing that came with my HR10-250. The WMC signal was sporadic at best before, now I'm getting 78-85db on 5-1. I live 20 miles from the tower in a fairly wooded area. Check it out.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103088&cp=&pg=2&origkw=antenna&kw=antenna&parentPage=search

It took a bit to convince the sales rep that this was the antenna I wanted as it doesn't do VHF signals, only UHF.


Did you hook this up and replace the bat wing D* put up or with it, and is it facing the same direction. I am far from an expert on hooking these things up, but if it gets better reception I may give it a try. So far tonight on Law and Order 5-1 is not to Bad. I get pixilation maybe every 20 minutes or so. CBS as been flawless and ABC is almost as good as CBS.

Thx for the info on getting Fox HD on D*. It is turned on now. They are sending waivers to the other networks but I doubt I get the others. Has anyone gotten the other local east coast feeds from D* ?
Great. If you get the others I think you will be the first.

Thx for the info on getting Fox HD on D*.For those of you who get FOX from D* and OTA, how does the PQ compare?

I'm blocked from that satellite by an ancient 100-foot-tall Oak tree that I would never even consider cutting down. It's in my neighbor's yard... :cool:

Chase

This is awesome, Dave. Thanks! How are you measuring the bit rate?

Chase
I'm using a stream analyzer at the studio. Unfortunately, there's no easy way for me do do it during prime unless I'm here. It's possible that the rates change during prime, but I think that's unlikely. They may shut down a sub-channel to leave more data available for the main channel.

One advantage to 720p is that it needs a lower rate than 1080i. Even given that, Fox recommends that stations use no more than two additional 480i sub-channels except for sports programming when it should be reduced to no more than one 480i sub-channel (although there is some entertainment programming that can push the data rate to the edge such as strobes on American Idol - it tears MPEG-2 up!).

If I had a receiver card at home (I'm too cheap - although I do have a birthday coming up...), I would use TSReader from www.coolstf.com to pull the data rates from a captured stream. It can show the raw video rates or the percentage of the stream that each program uses.

After David's comments I went back and looked at the numbers he pulled. a couple of things caught my eye.

1) WKNO is in 720p. PBS should be 1080i.
2) The Tube is given 4 mb and it still looks like crap. (I had to rescan my channels after someone flipped the wrong breaker)
3) What are the stations doing with the leftover bandwidth? 24-1 & 30-1 had the most leftover.

David who do we need to contact at WHBQ to get you some hardware/software to help you analyze WHBQ from home? :) Can't tell anything from the website.

For those of you who get FOX from D* and OTA, how does the PQ compare?

I'm blocked from that satellite by an ancient 100-foot-tall Oak tree that I would never even consider cutting down. It's in my neighbor's yard... :cool:
OTA is a little better. I can tell a difference in the 2. OTA looks a little sharper. But its always nice to have 88 as a backup.

Did you hook this up and replace the bat wing D* put up or with it, and is it facing the same direction. I am far from an expert on hooking these things up, but if it gets better reception I may give it a try. So far tonight on Law and Order 5-1 is not to Bad. I get pixilation maybe every 20 minutes or so. CBS as been flawless and ABC is almost as good as CBS.

I replaced the bat wing. It's in the same direction as the old antenna used to be so it appears to be getting a little better reception. Not sure if you could hook up the antennas in series; maybe someone else could weigh in on this. I had to fiddle around with it quite a bit to find the optimum signal strength for WMC; with most of the other channels I can stick a metallic lampshade on my head and get 90db. So your mileage may vary but I'd recommend giving it a try. I'm still getting between 75-85 solid on WMC.

WHBQ comes in a little sharper than 88 but I've been burned a few times when taping 24 when the signal went out. I use 88.

After David's comments I went back and looked at the numbers he pulled. a couple of things caught my eye.

1) WKNO is in 720p. PBS should be 1080i.
2) The Tube is given 4 mb and it still looks like crap. (I had to rescan my channels after someone flipped the wrong breaker)
3) What are the stations doing with the leftover bandwidth? 24-1 & 30-1 had the most leftover.

David who do we need to contact at WHBQ to get you some hardware/software to help you analyze WHBQ from home? :) Can't tell anything from the website.
1) I double-checked WKNO, and it still shows to be 720p. They may change to 1080i at night.

3) The rest of the bandwidth is made up with null packets, or "stuffing". The problem with taking a snapshot look at data rates is that they vary with the content. Just because a channel isn't using the data doesn't mean that it can't if it needs it (up to a limit). The best way to check it is to chart the bandwidth usage over time, something that my stream analyzer can't do (yet). More than likely, the reason that 24-1 and 30-1 (as well as 13-1) have leftover bandwidth is that with only one channel, the full 19 Mb/s isn't needed, even though it's still available (such as when the strobes hit in American Idol).

I should have a receiver that is compatable with TSReader at home by the end of the month, so I can check out prime then.

with most of the other channels I can stick a metallic lampshade on my head and get 90db.
Could we get a picture of that? :D

1) I double-checked WKNO, and it still shows to be 720p. They may change to 1080i at night.WKNO (10-1) is always 720p when I tune in, regardless of the TOD.

3) The rest of the bandwidth is made up with null packets, or "stuffing". The problem with taking a snapshot look at data rates is that they vary with the content. Just because a channel isn't using the data doesn't mean that it can't if it needs it (up to a limit). The best way to check it is to chart the bandwidth usage over time, something that my stream analyzer can't do (yet). More than likely, the reason that 24-1 and 30-1 (as well as 13-1) have leftover bandwidth is that with only one channel, the full 19 Mb/s isn't needed, even though it's still available (such as when the strobes hit in American Idol).That's an excellent point, Dave. I'm glad someone said it.

I should have a receiver that is compatable with TSReader at home by the end of the month, so I can check out prime then.I'm looking at one myself. Thanks for the lead. Very cool toy. Too bad the free version doesn't display DD DN.

Chase

with most of the other channels I can stick a metallic lampshade on my head and get 90db.But how do you see the picture through it? :D

Chase

ANYONE else having trouble with 5-1. It is not coming in at all right now.
Thx

5-1 still broadcasts? I'd never know....

Seriously, I can't get 5-1, at all. It's just not strong enough. Maybe I need to install an antenna on my roof or something.

What kind of antenna are you using, and where are you located?

Seriously, I can't get 5-1, at all. It's just not strong enough. Maybe I need to install an antenna on my roof or something.I get it OK, but it's the weakest and least consistent of the locals.

What kind of antenna are you using, and where are you located?Same question for you. I am about 1 mile east of the Memphis/Germantown border and 1/4 mile south of Poplar Pike. My antenna is an AD DB4 mounted in an attic with lots of surrounding trees. All stations normally register at least 86% signal strength or stronger on a D* H10, with WMC-DT being the one at 86%. It also drops out during stormy/windy weather when the others do not.

Someone please remind me where (physical location not direction) the WMC-DT transmitter is...

I don't remember where the tower is, but I'm in East Memphis. Right by Sam Cooper Blvd.

I have a dinky little pair or rabbit ears hooked up to my TV..... I get everything but 5-1 fine. I'm fairly certain if I got a larger antenna, it would work.

Then again, I had Radio Shack's biggest antenna once before, and still had issues with 5-1.
If I really wanted it, I could make it work. But, there's basically nothing I want to watch on NBC... (nothing worth the time, money and effort required..) Maybe someday.

Hey guys, just checked (I wasn't watching) and 5.1 is coming in fairly well for me right now, on a CM 4228 from about 71 miles away.

I think some of you are just too close to the tower. Most of the signal must just shoot right over your homes. Either that, or the signal bounces around too much before getting to your antennas, leaving you with poor signal quality (not weak signal). Seems the quality of the signal reaching an antenna is more important the signal strength.

If I really wanted it, I could make it work. But, there's basically nothing I want to watch on NBC... Maybe someday.Sunday Night Football has resurrected my interest in NBC.

Chase

My ant is the Bat ant that DTV installed when they hooked up my HD Dvr last week. It has come in pretty much every night since they installed it except for tonight and one other time. I had Time Warner HD DVR before and it was out on it also, but I do not have TW anymore. I am getting a pretty good signal on all the other locals but 5-1 says serching for signal on: Antenna In 5-2 and 5-3 will not work either.
Can anyone recommend a pro installer and what ant I should get. I live in the Macon Rd Sycamore View area.
Thx

I think some of you are just too close to the tower.I don't think my problem is necessarily distance from the transmitters. The WMC-DT transmitter is 14 miles away according to Antenna Web. It is the same distance and orientation as WPTY-DT and WLMT-DT, which come in perfectly.

Seems the quality of the signal reaching an antenna is more important the signal strength.Very good point, Neil.

Chase

5.1 is coming on now but pretty weak. Looks like I will have to get a better ant if I want to get all the signals. 30.1 is pretty weak for me tonight as well. So far only 3.1 and 24.1 have been consistant enough to record on and not take chances of losing what I record due to a weak signal. If anyone can recommend a company that does good installs please let me know. I may have to go a diff route other than the ant that DTV gave me

WMC-DT transmits from teh same tower as WLMT-DT and WPTY-DT. They are around 5 miles north of the Wolfchase Mall down Germantown.

WMC-DT transmits from teh same tower as WLMT-DT and WPTY-DT. They are around 5 miles north of the Wolfchase Mall down Germantown.Thanks, mx. While we're at it, do you mind telling us where WREG and WKNO are?

Chase

WREG-DT is off of Whitten. It's right around Bumpus Harley Davidson.

WKNO-DT is on the other side of the interstate. I think it's around Macon Rd. It's the only tower on that side of I-40.

WHBQ-DT is on a road off of Whitten. Go North on Whitten from 40, and then take the left at the first light after you cross over the bridge. Just after the bridge on that street you will see the entrance the tower on the right.

PAX-DT, if anyone cares, :) Is North on Appling from 40. Just after you cross over Stage (64) its on the left.

WREG-DT is off of Whitten. It's right around Bumpus Harley Davidson.

WKNO-DT is on the other side of the interstate. I think it's around Macon Rd. It's the only tower on that side of I-40.

WHBQ-DT is on a road off of Whitten. Go North on Whitten from 40, and then take the left at the first light after you cross over the bridge. Just after the bridge on that street you will see the entrance the tower on the right.

PAX-DT, if anyone cares, :) Is North on Appling from 40. Just after you cross over Stage (64) its on the left.You should change your user name to MemphisHDTVEncyclopedia! :)

Chase

Well, I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.

Well, I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.

That's funny right there, I don't care who you are. That's funny. :)

Hmm, 5-1's black tonight... There's audio, though.

Edit: It's clearly a national problem. :( NBC... Video came back for local commercials.

Thanks for the tower info, mx. It's going to help a lot.

Thanks for the tower info, mx. It's going to help a lot.
I drive within a mile of the WHBQ, WREG, and PAX towers on an average day. Usually at night I can see the blinking light from the 3-in-1 tower since I'm 2 1/2 miles from it. For those interested, the 3-in-1 isn't a red/white tall tower just in case you look for it and can't see it on the skyline. It has 3 vertical "post" type things at the top of the tower. Almost like an upside down 3 legged table. I don't know what type of tower it is called.

Did anyone else notice that WKNO is simulcasting their analog feed on 10-3? I don't know how long they have been doing it but just noticed it yesterday.

Please forgive my ignorance but I hope you will indulge me a bit.
My 27" CRT just died and I'm thinking of going digital, but am not going to spend the extra $ now if I am going to end up most of the time watching a crappier SD picture on an LCD set. I have TW. I'm not a videophile and do not watch many DVDs - mostly local channels, Speed, TLC, Discovery, E!, etc. - and this will be a 32" max. How much of my viewing on TW HDTV will be in HD? If you use an OTA antenna, do you have to manually switch back and forth? I gather that OTA actually has a superior PQ to cable? Does HD always come w/ 5-1 sound? See, I don't know crap about this stuff.

Bill
Downtown

Welcome to the forums, Bill!

5.1 is not always included with HD, though it is become more and more common. Currently, WREG, WHBQ, WMC and WPTY broadcast in 5.1. (usually...) WLMT doesn't, and it is unclear whether or not they will be getting a 5.1 setup when they convert to The CW.

Remember though, not all shows are in 5.1, and even if it shows 5.1 on the receiver, many are still only Dolby Surround or Stereo.

Which reminds me, you can get Dolby Surround out of a lot of shows, if you hook up your receiver correctly.

OTA will ALWAYS give you a better picture from the locals. If you do use an antenna, you will have to switch between your Cable Box input and your ATSC tuner (make sure to get a TV with a built in ATSC tuner..)

TWC has a decent amount of HD. Check out http://www.timewarnercable.com/midsouth/products/packages.html for information on their HD packages and the like.

I personally would recommend getting an HD CRT. In my opinion, they currently have the best picture quality for the money. They range from around 500-1000 dollars, and do not take up as much space as they used to. They don't get much larger than 30", 32".

Just don't get a plasma. Whatever you do, don't get a plasma....

Yes, welcome, Bill. I basically echo everything ravma479 said.

Regarding OTA transmissions, a significant percentage of what airs between 7:00 PM and 10:00 PM is HD, especially if you discount news and reality-based programming. Outside of prime time, don't bother looking for HD OTA unless you're watching a sporting event. Most of them (including some rather obscure ones) are HD. Some of us complain about the PQ of our local OTA broadcasts, but don't concern yourself with that unless you want to become a videophile. ;)

By my count, about half of current HD programming actually broadcasts OTA with true 5.1 audio, although all of it is likely mixed for 5.1. We don't receive it because of a breakdown somewhere in the broadcast chain. When true 5.1 actually does come through, though, I have been very pleased with the SQ.

The other guys will have to comment on TWC (still?) because I don't have it. :(

I'd love to hear what ravma479 has against PDPs. :D Like every other type of display technology, they can produce an excellent picture if they are properly designed, implemented and calibrated. Plasma does tend to cost more than other technologies for a given screen size.

If you do decide to get a fixed-pixel TV, the best advice I can give you is to stick with 1280x720 as the native resolution. For a 32" screen, 1920x1080 is not worth the effort. By the time you're ready for your next TV, 1920x1080 will have matured. It's not there yet.

Chase

My main issue with plasmas are the cost, the expected life cycle of the product, and the fact that they tend to be EDTV, not HDTV.

I'm not a big fan of the fact that, eventually, the TV will simply stop working, and you just have to get a new one.... With LCD's or CRT's, you can prolong the TV's lifecycle. (It might not be cheap, but...)

I guess compared to my 26" CRT, I haven't been impressed by the quality on plasmas. Then again, maybe it's just what I've seen at BB or CC. Perhaps if I had one that was properly calibrated, I'd think differently. :)

I just really like CRTs. They are (relatively) inexpensive, look great, and have a full viewing angle. My display is native 1920x1080i, and it looks really great. I upconvert DVDs through my HTPC (homemade), and I sometimes can't tell the difference.

I'd love to hear what Chase has against 1920x1080. :D



If you just want something (usually) pretty to look, or would actually like to learn something ;), WKNO has an HD channel that runs a good portion of the day. (Are they still dark at night? I havent looked recently.)

There's many channels of HD programming on TWC which run 24-7. I've sampled HDNet, and they have a pretty good selection. (And with today's announcement that they've got Arrested Development for 3 years, I'm VERY excited.) TNT HD (when it's not Stretch-o-Rama Upscaled SD) is pretty good.

Regarding 5.1, there are shows like Smallville and Veronica Mars (you better be watching ;)), which broadcast in '5.1', but in reality, it's just a Dolby Surround track upconverted to 5.1. Easiest way to tell is to look at the DVD release.

Want to hear REAL 5.1? Lost, 24, and The CSI's all have 5.1. (Whereas Without a Trace is still Dolby Surround, and I'm not convinced yet that the Law and Orders are true 5.1. Dick Wolf tends to want to stick with low tech... He nixed letterboxed airings of L&O's this past season.)

BTW, I think I might have to get WMC-HD working, cause I am VERY excited about 'Heroes'. It looks like an AWESOME show. (NBC? Have a show I want to watch?. I'm stunned)

Anywho.... I hope we didn't scare Bill off. :)

Please forgive my ignorance but I hope you will indulge me a bit.
My 27" CRT just died and I'm thinking of going digital, but am not going to spend the extra $ now if I am going to end up most of the time watching a crappier SD picture on an LCD set. I have TW. I'm not a videophile and do not watch many DVDs - mostly local channels, Speed, TLC, Discovery, E!, etc. - and this will be a 32" max. How much of my viewing on TW HDTV will be in HD? If you use an OTA antenna, do you have to manually switch back and forth? I gather that OTA actually has a superior PQ to cable? Does HD always come w/ 5-1 sound? See, I don't know crap about this stuff.
Welcome Bill. We were all newbies once. Here's my 2 cents. If I repeat the same info already posted sorry about that.

How much local programming do you watch? All locals except for PAX broadcast HD. PAX is going to be changing to MyNetworkTV, which is reported to have some HD programs. From 7 - 10 pm most shows are in HD. The exceptions are usually reality shows. LAte night Leno, Conan, and Letterman are in HD. On the weekends most sporting events on NBC and CBS are in HD, ABC not so much. FOX is pretty much during football season. SNL is also in HD.

Discovery does have an HD channel, which is on the premium HD tier with TW. It's not simulcast, but it does have a pretty picture. I don't know of HD plans for the other channels your mentioned.

If you use an antenna for local HD channels you wouldn't have to manually switch back and forth if your HD reciever supports them. For example with D* or E*, you would just enter 3-1 for WREG-DT. If you are using HD from TW, it's a channel in the 800's.

I have both LCD's and a CRT and RPTV. If you are looking at price, CRT's would be your way to go.

PAX is going to be changing to MyNetworkTV, which is reported to have some HD programs.

Actually, ALL MNTV programs will be HD. Whether or not we will get them in HD is another story, though...

Does anyone know if WPXX is HD equipped?

PAX changed over to "I" a few months ago, although I still see it referenced as PAX.

PAX changed over to "I" a few months ago, although I still see it referenced as PAX.
Kinda like Memphis State

LOL! That's NEVER going to die....

I'd love to hear what Chase has against 1920x1080. :DAbsolutely nothing. Given the 32" screen size we were discussing, I don't think 1920x1080 provides a significant improvement over 1280x720. Since the 1920x1080 fixed-pixel market is still the wild west, I recommend that most consumers who are in the market for a small HDTV stay away from it. There are too many good 1280x720 sets out there.

I can't speak to CRTs. I'm too young to have any experience with them. ;) I went to ISF hoping to learn more, but lo and behold they didn't cover them! :( I have seen them produce some awfully good pictures...

Chase

My main issue with plasmas are the cost, the expected life cycle of the product, and the fact that they tend to be EDTV, not HDTV.You didn't mention the one that kills plasmas for me as a gamer: burn in. Yes, I know it's not a huge problem like it used to be, but the risk is still there. You never know when a Halo session is going to go all night...and all day...and so on.

Chase

Ah, How did I miss burn in?! I have an HTPC, too. That's another reason I wouldn't get a plasma.

Bill are you looking at getting a widescreen or regular 4x3 tv?

Bill are you looking at getting a widescreen or regular 4x3 tv?

I know there are some 16:9 CRTs and a few 4:3 LCDs but isn't the basic choice between 4:3 CRT and 16:9 LCD? The problem I have is that I built my A-V closet around my dearly departed Mitsu 27," which was a very space-efficient unit. I can only find a Sharp 27" CRT that will fit and even that will require some trimming. I haven't really looked at CRT HDTVs but I doubt any of those 27" will fit either. Other than the Sharp (cheap - $210 open box at BB) I am limited to 24"-26" CRTs and the Westy 27" or smaller LCDs. Now, I could hang the Westy 32" LCD over the opening but it would not be as nice an installation. I'm just not sure I would be content w/ a 27" 16:9 when I am used to a 27" 4:3. As long as the source is 16:9 the difference is only about 10% but a 4:3 picture on a 16:9 screen is 1/3 smaller!

Bill

I know there are some 16:9 CRTs and a few 4:3 LCDs but isn't the basic choice between 4:3 CRT and 16:9 LCD? The problem I have is that I built my A-V closet around my dearly departed Mitsu 27," which was a very space-efficient unit. I can only find a Sharp 27" CRT that will fit and even that will require some trimming. I haven't really looked at CRT HDTVs but I doubt any of those 27" will fit either. Other than the Sharp (cheap - $210 open box at BB) I am limited to 24"-26" CRTs and the Westy 27" or smaller LCDs. Now, I could hang the Westy 32" LCD over the opening but it would not be as nice an installation. I'm just not sure I would be content w/ a 27" 16:9 when I am used to a 27" 4:3. As long as the source is 16:9 the difference is only about 10% but a 4:3 picture on a 16:9 screen is 1/3 smaller!
It also depends on your stb and TV if it can stretch the picture. Non-local SD programming will usually fill up the entire screen on a 16:9 to. Local 4:3 programming, like the news, non-HD shows will be 4:3, but you can stretch them to fit the entire 16:9 screen. Although rare, the SD feed of shows like SNL and Conan will broadcast in 16:9 so even if you have a 4:3 TV, there will be black bars at the top and bottom of the screen.

Not to say that there is anything wrong with not liking black bars on the sides, it does take a little getting used to. When we first got married my wife did not like the bars on the sides for local non-HD programming. She eventually got used to it when she would switch back to the D* feed and the picture wouldn’t look as nice. And honestly, we don’t even watch the local channels from D*. if it wasn’t for our backup Tivo upstairs, we wouldn’t have those at all.

If you do decide to go with a non-HDTV, I wouldn’t buy an HD stb yet.

I personally would recommend getting an HD CRT. In my opinion, they currently have the best picture quality for the money. They range from around 500-1000 dollars, and do not take up as much space as they used to. They don't get much larger than 30", 32".

Just don't get a plasma. Whatever you do, don't get a plasma....

For broadcast quality monitoring, you can't beat a CRT. The problem is going to be finding them. Since they contain a lot of lead, the Europeans have outlawed them, so the manufacturers will be discontinuing them.

My personal preference on tuners is not to have one included in the monitor, but use a set-top box. That way you can take advantage of tuner quality improvements without making your receiver obsolete. It is another box, though!

By the way, the three-pronged tower is what we call a candelabra. Just like the one Liberace used!

I wanted to post this last night but got caught up in something else. The numbers I am seeing right now are about the same as they were last night. Max Mbs shown over a 60 second time frame. I captured these during programming, not commercials.

3-1: 14.66
3-2: 2.47

5-1: 11.35 (most of the time under 11)
5-2: 3.56
5-3: 2.01

10-1: 12.08
10-2: 1.47
10-3: 1.47

13-1: 8.33

24-1: 16.60

30-1: 14.61

I'll try to get some nubmers during HD programming and post those.

I was really surprised to see 5-1 between 11 - 13 Mbs last night. WMC by a HUGE amount has the most continuity errors.

13-1 was low I'm guessing because the FOX feed was that low.

30-1 is sending 3.40 in null packets.

For broadcast quality monitoring, you can't beat a CRT. The problem is going to be finding them. Since they contain a lot of lead, the Europeans have outlawed them, so the manufacturers will be discontinuing them.
No more CRT broadcast monitors? Too bad. The end of an era. What are you guys going to use?

Chase

I wanted to post this last night but got caught up in something else. The numbers I am seeing right now are about the same as they were last night. Max Mbs shown over a 60 second time frame. I captured these during programming, not commercials.Nice, mx. Did you obtain this with the same program Dave used?

Chase

Nice, mx. Did you obtain this with the same program Dave used?

Chase
Yes, TSReader. I'm using an ATI HDTV Wonder as the capture card.

I'm using a Silver Sensor that I had leftover to get the channels. I'm able to pick up WBUY from it on my desk. When I test the signal from my tv, I barely get a blip.

Wow, I'll have to get a new CRT soon, then. I just think that LCDs aren't there yet. (Hopefully, they'll get there quick!) When were they outlawed in Europe?

Dave makes a great point, though. If you are going to be getting Cable or Satellite (with HD options), you shouldn't get an internal tuner. You might be able to save some money.

I recommend getting a 16x9 TV, as everything is shifting toward Widescreen, but if you can't fit it in your center, then I guess it's not an option.
(I'm an OAR freak though, so I'm a bit biased on this issue. :))

Thanks for the numbers, mx. They're all over the place...

WREG is SD tonight.. Odd.

This is really odd, The OTA signal on WHBQ keeps dropping out whenever they splice from national to local commercials. It takes about 30 seconds for my tuner to reset and relock onto the station. It's done it every time so far tonight during That 70's Show.

I was really surprised to see 5-1 between 11 - 13 Mbs last night. WMC by a HUGE amount has the most continuity errors.Continuity errors?

Chase

Continuity errors?

Chase


So, this is what going mad feels like...
I was about to respond to that like *I* posted it. I'm up waaaaay too late... (and yet, I press on)


I think he means that the signal is all over the map. It doesn't have continuity, ie: The bitrate keeps jumping up and down...

I think he means that the signal is all over the map. It doesn't have continuity, ie: The bitrate keeps jumping up and down...
True dat.

I checked it agin later last night and I didn't get any errors and the Mbs was up in the 13 range.

I'll see if there in anything in HD during the day today.

I think he means that the signal is all over the map. It doesn't have continuity, ie: The bitrate keeps jumping up and down...I wonder if that is somehow related to the problem some of us have periodically locking onto 5-1's signal. Was the signal strength fluctuating at the same time?

Chase

I don't recall if it was or not. I was watching some of the video before then and didn't have any problems with stuttering video.

WMC during the Triathalon in HD:
http://img156.imageshack.us/img156/6350/wmc72806bg1.th.jpg (http://img156.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wmc72806bg1.jpg)
This chart shows how much bitrate is given to each channel.

True dat.


DOUBLE TRUE!
(sorry... :D)

Thanks for the graph, mx. So what, WMC tends to be between 12 and 14-14.5?
Why would there be that much variation?!

I didn't think signal strength and bitrate were connected, but perhaps I'm wrong.

Has anyone else has a problem with WHBQ dropping out when they splice from National to Local commercials?

Thanks for the graph, mx. So what, WMC tends to be between 12 and 14-14.5?
Why would there be that much variation?!

I didn't think signal strength and bitrate were connected, but perhaps I'm wrong.

Has anyone else has a problem with WHBQ dropping out when they splice from National to Local commercials?
From what I can tell, for local porgramming they are in the 12 range. For national HD they are around 14. During commercials of HD programming it usually drops below 14. (altho the chart doesn't show it).

I think the chart show both video and audio in the stream, not video only. I'll check it later. I'm still learning the software. There are quite a few different charts on there. One is a pir chart that shows %'s of the fll stream.

I haven't noticed any problems with WHBQ splicing.

Maybe it's just my TV. I lose the signal on WHBQ when they splice, and it takes about 30 seconds for my TV to relock. It acts like it does when it sees a channel for the first time...

A question for guys with TSReader or some other MPEG-2 stream analyzer:

Does it identify 2:3 pulldown flags in MPEG-2 streams?

Chase

I am a true newbie. My old TV died & I was able to find a good deal on an HD set (not my original plan--but happy to join the HD world!) I just figured out how to even receive the local HD channels OTA. I am a D* subscriber (I think I am using the correct abbreviation) but obviously do not have HD sattelite equipment and I am aware that D* does not have our local HD broadcasts. Where can I find a local HD program guide? The guide in the CA only has the SD guide.

Welcome jbk. Use titantv.com. That's usually pretty reliable. It will also display channels from Jackson and in Arkansas that you probably wont be able to get.

Chase-I'll check a little later.

Chase-I'll check a little later.Thanks, man.

Chase

Thanks, mx

Here is the info as to what TSReader will do: http://www.coolstf.com/tsreader/

Are you talking about the broadcast flag? I have seen that on there before.

Here is the info as to what TSReader will do: http://www.coolstf.com/tsreader/

Are you talking about the broadcast flag? I have seen that on there before.After looking at TSReader more closely, I don't think it is designed to read flags in the actual video stream, which is what I was asking about. It appears to focus more on the transport stream -- hence the name "TS" Reader, I suppose.

I am looking for something that can read and display MPEG-2 flags, such as the one that indicates whether an interlaced feed contains 2:3 pulldown.

Chase

Theres some software called mpeg2repair, just do a google search for it. I don't know if that might have it in there.

I am a true newbie. My old TV died & I was able to find a good deal on an HD set (not my original plan--but happy to join the HD world!) I just figured out how to even receive the local HD channels OTA. I am a D* subscriber (I think I am using the correct abbreviation) but obviously do not have HD sattelite equipment and I am aware that D* does not have our local HD broadcasts. Where can I find a local HD program guide? The guide in the CA only has the SD guide.


If you upgrade to HD receiver the guide will show the OTA channels.

I am looking for something that can read and display MPEG-2 flags, such as the one that indicates whether an interlaced feed contains 2:3 pulldown.

Chase
If it's any consolation, our $17,000 stream analyzer can't display the pulldown flag either!

If it's any consolation, our $17,000 stream analyzer can't display the pulldown flag either!Please, please, tell me you are kidding. :eek:

Chase

For that price, it should give it up at the end of the day.

My pc is apparently 2 - 3 minutes fast. Anyways, here's tonight info. (finally glad I could get it). These totals are a little over what I am seeing for the video stream by about .8 Mbs. For Example, WPTY is pretty much stuck at 16.60 for the video stream. I'll have to do some more digging to figure this stuff out. But regardless, this still gives you an idea of how how much is not being used for the main HD signal.

I got these during HD programming.
WREG: http://img414.imageshack.us/img414/9931/wreg73106zj9.th.jpg (http://img414.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wreg73106zj9.jpg)WMC: http://img464.imageshack.us/img464/7127/wmc73106me7.th.jpg (http://img464.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wmc73106me7.jpg)WKNO:http://img410.imageshack.us/img410/741/wkno73106jf6.th.jpg (http://img410.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wkno73106jf6.jpg)WLMT: http://img410.imageshack.us/img410/5175/wlmt73106vt4.th.jpg (http://img410.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wlmt73106vt4.jpg)

This was during widescreen SD
WPTY: http://img325.imageshack.us/img325/4128/wpty73106qg1.th.jpg (http://img325.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wpty73106qg1.jpg)

WHBQ SD going into the news.
http://img414.imageshack.us/img414/6208/whbq73106ub3.th.jpg (http://img414.imageshack.us/my.php?image=whbq73106ub3.jpg) In their defense, whevener local programming is on its most of the time in the high 17's range. FOX national programming is low.

And just for the heck of it:
PAX: http://img428.imageshack.us/img428/3420/pax73106vr1.th.jpg (http://img428.imageshack.us/my.php?image=pax73106vr1.jpg) fyi programs 3 & 4 were the exact same thing. 4 got less than half of what 3 got. 4 & 5 are lines near the bottom.
WBUY: http://img420.imageshack.us/img420/323/wbuy73106bs4.th.jpg (http://img420.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wbuy73106bs4.jpg)

Man I hate blackout rules. Again last night the Cards game on ESPNHD was blacked out because FSMW was showing it.

Ugh, WREG is making me so mad tonight. They insist on interrupting programming every 15 minutes to do pointless 'updates' about the election. Of course, only 1% of the polls have reported, so it DOESN'T MATTER. They haven't provided a single piece of news that matters.

Not only that, but they insist on running the giant voting results update at the bottom of the screen, even on WREG-DT! So no HD for CSI or Without a Trace tonight! 13 isnt running results, 5, 24 and 30 are, but ONLY on the SD channel.

If I want to see results, I'll turn on 3-0, or NC3A. (Which I don't want to right now. It will be HOURS before we have a good sense of who will win.) WHY do they insist on runing the program for HD viewers? They're also going to run long tonight doing a 1-hour election newscast, so Letterman might not be HD.

Pfff, NC3A has NO VOTING RESULTS. They're running parts of their 'updates', but why not run them on there for the digital viewers?!

Just another thing that shows that WREG doesn't care about HD viewers at ALL.

I agree. WREG blows. If I really cared about the results so far I would change the channel to the SD station. WHBQ-DT did show the results during the commercial break, and when they did it nearly blew my speakers. After SYTYCD went to commercial, this loud pop with snow like analog was on. The signal went down to like 18, then I turned to channel 88 then back and it was on again.

It's funny, I told my wife only 1% has reported. Does it matter so early? Can't they wait until like 50% have reported?

I DONT understand them... Now that the polls are nearly almost all reporting, and we can actually see who might win, (not to mention the fact that this is an ELECTION special newscast), they've STOPPED RUNNING THE NUMBERS ON SCREEN.

Why, why, why?! This is when they SHOULD be running them.

Ooh! My 300th post, and my 297th rant! ;)

heh, I told my wife the same thing. It's almost like we are on the same bandwidth tonight. Mine runs at 19.2 mbs with no subchannels. :)

I was wondering, considering they took up like 65% of the screen with the 0 & 1% results during network programming, why even show any network programming at all? Just put a big picture of a screw with the results. Because we are getting screwed by them.

Oh well, I guess when you have a clown running it I don't expect anything better.

WMC also did it, but the results only took up like 50% of the screen.

I know that the polls are important to the city, but you have 2 feeds, use the one that people didn't spend thousands of dollars on. If they can figure out how to screw up the picture running useless subchannels they should be able to figure out how to add graphics to only 1 feed.

I agree, guys. Kudos to WHBQ-DT and WPTY-DT for broadcasting So You Think You Can Dance and Grey's Anatomy in HD without election results. WREG, WMC, if you must run election results on your digital channels, please put them on the subchannels. That's why you have them!

I watch HDTV to see high definition. If I want election results, I'll flip open my laptop.

Chase

I personally don't want to think about the election during primetime programming. I just want to watch my shows. I'll look at the results during the 10pm newscasts. At least by then, the results might actually have some substance.

WHBQ and WPTY/WLMT are pretty good about this kind of stuff.

Pics from the NFL game last night. Was send the game last night anywhere from 13.3 to 14.2 Mbs.

http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/3613/wmc806060dd8.th.jpg (http://img227.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wmc806060dd8.jpg)http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/5059/wmc806061ot9.th.jpg (http://img132.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wmc806061ot9.jpg)http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/4202/wmc806062wc9.th.jpg (http://img227.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wmc806062wc9.jpg)http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/5831/wmc806063uj0.th.jpg (http://img227.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wmc806063uj0.jpg)http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/5046/wmc806064tf7.th.jpg (http://img132.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wmc806064tf7.jpg)

Anyone here use a Philips MANT510 antenna? Just wondering how strong it is as an indoor antenna. I'm in the 38111 zip code. Have the local HDTV programming gotten any better in the last few months?

Have the local HDTV programming gotten any better in the last few months?
If you asking has there been more programming in HD recently, the answer is yes. If you are asking has the quality of HD here in Memphis gotten better, the answer is it depends which channel.

WREG had to rebuild parts of its tower and the pq drastically improved. (Although not what it used to be)
WMC hasn't gotten any better. I still don't recall seeing any program or sporting even that popped out at me. Just looks kinda bland and washed out. Add to the fact that NBC can't do live sporting events, and then take away another 5 mbs from it and you see even more blocking.
WKNO is now at 720p. This has cut down on the amount of blocking I have seen.
WHBQ went live around Christmas and is pretty much leaving the other channels in the dust.
WPTY is still pretty strong.
WLMT is now becoming the CW so we will see the WB shows in HD again. Now, if they could fix the PQ blocking issues that makes their PQ nasty.
i or PAX or whatever is becoming MyNetworkTV which will have 100% HD programming. Of course it is only 2 hours per night. Whether they are setup for HD or not remains to be seen.

So its hit and miss. Sometimes the affiliates will forget to flip the switch, mostly on the weekends. As always, it could be better.

Hey guys. I am missing a few stations. When I turn to a few of the local HD stations and TNTHD, I get a blank screen. It started midway through the football game yesterday. I still get the non-HD versions though. what could be the problem. I have the SA8300 box.

Hey everyone, haven't posted in a while since I haven't been watching much summer tv.

Anyway, I just got a new LCD for my office. It's a Westinghouse, so I know up front it is not the highest quality brand out there, but it was definitely cheap enough with a built in DVD player and a good rebate from Crutchfield with no shipping and no sales tax.

So, my problem with it is that the built in tuner freezes up whenever I get to WMC 5-1. Not only that, but I have to reset the tv by unplugging it and then while it states on the screen "hdtv initializing" I have to rapidly flip down on the channel before it locks onto 5-1 briefly and freezes again.

Initially I thought it might be the tv, so I sent it back and they sent another one. Same deal. I called Westinghouse technical support (which was surprisingly very quick, courteous, and seemed to know what he was talking about). They had never heard any problems of this sort, but the guy said it sounded like it was some setting being sent from the broadcaster, but did not know what it could be to cause the tuner to basically freeze up.

This happens at any time during the day and does not happen with any of the other channels involved. Any wisdom out there of what could be causing this?


Thanks

Pics from the NFL game last night. Was send the game last night anywhere from 13.3 to 14.2 Mbs.

http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/3613/wmc806060dd8.th.jpg (http://img227.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wmc806060dd8.jpg)http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/5059/wmc806061ot9.th.jpg (http://img132.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wmc806061ot9.jpg)http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/4202/wmc806062wc9.th.jpg (http://img227.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wmc806062wc9.jpg)http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/5831/wmc806063uj0.th.jpg (http://img227.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wmc806063uj0.jpg)http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/5046/wmc806064tf7.th.jpg (http://img132.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wmc806064tf7.jpg)


Nice pics. NBC could stand to do a little better next time. Maybe work out some of the bugs. I noticed several times where the image appeared very blurry or soft. Especially the booth cam with Madden and Michaels. Anybody else notice that?

Nice pics. NBC could stand to do a little better next time. Maybe work out some of the bugs. I noticed several times where the image appeared very blurry or soft. Especially the booth cam with Madden and Michaels. Anybody else notice that?
I honestly didn't watch much of the game, just bits and pieces and I didn't see that. It was harder to see the blurring on my pc. I was trying to get some screen caps of those but I couldn't since I had read about it. In the master thread a lot of people saw that from around the nation.

I noticed several times where the image appeared very blurry or soft. Especially the booth cam with Madden and Michaels. Do you really want to see John Madden in HD?

-Robert

NBC could stand to do a little better next time. Maybe work out some of the bugs. I noticed several times where the image appeared very blurry or soft. Especially the booth cam with Madden and Michaels. Anybody else notice that?I watched the whole game. First NFL game of the year, baby! :D

The PQ was great...and then the camera moved. ;) I don't recall a problem with focus pull on the booth camera, but then I don't really remember any of the booth shots. Motion is what continues to kill them. On the bright side, I didn't see any of the dreadful blur and smearing that affected several NBC live sports broadcasts recently.

Chase

Is anyone watching Last Comic Standing? I flipped it on for a minute, and this is the SOFTEST picture I have EVER seen. It looks like someone took a medium resolution video and blew it up to HD. Now granted, this show is SD, but I've seen good looking SD. Treasure Hunters looks pretty good, NBC Nightly News... so I don't get why this looks so bad... It just doesn't have any sharpness..

Hello, Im new to the HDTV stuff and would like to know how to get OTA channels that are clearer than what they are.

I recently purchased an LCD with built-in ATSC tuner but I am still using rabbit-ears antenna. I receive 10 Analog Channels and about 11-12 Digital Channels OTA. My questions are the following:

1. Will the built-in ATSC tuner suffice or would I need an external HDTV tuner? As of now, the only channel that appears the highest quality of all the others is PBS-HD.

2. Does anyone recommend a particular antenna? I have been researching the Channel Master 4228 and it looks promising.

3. Does anyone know of a place around Memphis where I can purchase an antenna? The shipping online is killer.

I currently live within 20 miles of the majority of channels I would like to watch but using rabbit ears antenna seems to make everything I watch look smeared except for PBS-HD. The weather channels for WMC looked so hideous that I had to remove them from my list.

Thanks for your help.

Hello, I'm new to the HDTV stuff and would like to know how to get OTA channels that are clearer than what they are.Welcome to the Memphis HDTV thread!

1. Will the built-in ATSC tuner suffice or would I need an external HDTV tuner? As of now, the only channel that appears the highest quality of all the others is PBS-HD.It depends. Some TVs have excellent ATSC tuners and some don't. For the time being, though, I would assume the TV's tuner is OK. You may want to search AVSF for a thread dedicated to your TV and ask there if it has a good ATSC tuner.

WKNO-DT (our local PBS affiliate) is the only digital station that regularly broadcasts HD during the day. The other stations broadcast upscaled versions of their analog programming. The best time to find HD programming on all our local stations is prime time. A majority of the popular dramas, sitcoms and reality shows are HD.

The general consensus seems to be that WHBQ-DT (FOX 13) has the best HD picture quality in town right now.

2. Does anyone recommend a particular antenna? I have been researching the Channel Master 4228 and it looks promising.I use a DB4 from antennasdirect.com (http://www.antennasdirect.com/DB4_HDTV_antenna.html) with excellent results (93% signal strength for Memphis stations). It is an outdoor antenna, but it works great in my attic. I know the other guys will chime in with their picks, too.

If you have not already done so, visit this link (http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/Address.aspx) to determine what type of antenna you need and where to aim it.

3. Does anyone know of a place around Memphis where I can purchase an antenna? The shipping online is killer.Aside from Radio Shack, no. I've never looked for antennas in Memphis. :o Guys?

The weather channels for WMC looked so hideous that I had to remove them from my list.Ah, another discerning eye! :) The subchannels are broadcast in SD at very low bit rates. In other words, they're supposed to look bad. ;) The problem is, they pull bandwidth -- albeit a very small amount -- away from the main digital channel, which reduces its HD picture quality.

Thanks for your help.My pleasure.

Chase

Pick out the antenna that you want from channelmaster.com and call either Dow Electronics or Bluff City Electronics. I'm not sure if bluff still carries antennas. You will need the model # and call Dow before going. They don't have a display.

www.solidsignal.com and warrenelectronics.com are 2 good online places.

Be aware that channel 5 (digital 52) will be going back to 5 in 2009. Therefore, you will need a vhf and uhf antenna then. The 4228 will not be a good long term choice.

Have you looked at antennaweb.org to determine distance and direction of the towers from your location?

Welcome to the Memphis HDTV thread!

The general consensus seems to be that WHBQ-DT (FOX 13) has the best HD picture quality in town right now.

Aside from Radio Shack, no. I've never looked for antennas in Memphis. :o Guys?
Chase

My, what a difference three years makes! I never thought I'd hear that! :D

Any multiple-element UHF antenna should do for now (until some of us go back to VHF). Don't pay extra for a "Digital" or "HDTV" antenna. There's no difference between them and the antennas they made in the 1950's. RF is still the same, just the modulation method has changed. The placement and pointing is the most critical in getting the antenna to work right. You have to play with it a while to find a place and direction where the reflections are minimized. By the way, with a digital signal, if you get a signal that is stable, the picture quality beyond that is entirely the result of how it was acquired and encoded, not a function of your tuner. It's either horrible or perfect (as perfect as it was originated), but your tuner can't make it look any worse if it is stable. Mostly it's garbage in - garbage out!

Welcome to the Wonderful World of 4:2:0 Color!

My, what a difference three years makes! I never thought I'd hear that! :DWhat I appreciate most of all is your availability to answer questions and tell us what's happening when problems arise.

Keep the transfer rate up and the subchannels at bay! :cool:

Chase

What I appreciate most of all is your availability to answer questions and tell us what's happening when problems arise.

Keep the transfer rate up and the subchannels at bay! :cool:

Chase

AMEN!!!

[QUOTE=Fireshaft]Hello, Im new to the HDTV stuff and would like to know how to get OTA channels that are clearer than what they are.


2. Does anyone recommend a particular antenna? I have been researching the Channel Master 4228 and it looks promising.

Great antenna for now if you can find one. I have a Double Bow Tie from Radio Shack in the attic that gives very good results.

To add to the antenna question. I have a silver sensor on my desk in the office by a window and it gets channel 41 which my main antenna only gets a 6% on. So thats a good one. If you are looking for not a real big antenna, Best Buy and Circuit City have antennas with really good 30 day return policies. :) I had to take advantage of those a few times until I found one that met my needs.

WHBQ, it should be what 1 year makes. At this time last year, and up until after Christmas, WHBQ was so low no one could get it. Today I agree it's the best.

For the past 3-4 days I have not been able to recieve basic audio on the local HD channels 5.1 and 24.1. I can only get sound from the rear channels, nothing from the center and front. The sound is ok on local commercials so it appears to only be on the network feeds. Also no problems on 13.1 and 3.1. Anyone else having this problem. I called WMC last night and they promised to check it out and call me back. Nothing yet.

That's a new one. Chase has the audio expertise, he might be able to answer it.

Does Time Warner have any unscrambled digital channels? My tv has a digital tuner and is supposed to be able to pick up unscrambled QAM channels(whatever that is). I was hoping to find out if this feature is enabled or disabled on my tv(Sanyo HT32744). Are there any other Sanyo HT32744 owners in the area?

Also why is it that PBS can keep great HDTV but we are still having problems with the big 3 networks? If I see Sesame Street in HD I'm gonna revert to a second childhood.

Well thanks for all the advice.

I gave Dow Electronics and Bluff City a call and Dow had the cheapest price for both the CM4228 and CM4221. Good prices.

I am planning to get the CM4221 instead because I don't think the CM4228 will fit up the attic door.

As for the reception, I believe I got digital TV and HD confused. When I hit the info button for my TV it shows for example WMC-DT as 1080i-HD and WREG-DT as 720p. This is what confuses me. Im not sure which shows are broadcast in HD unless I see the HD symbol in the begining of the show. The digital PQ is like a haze around objects. Not sure if its the TV or the signal. The PBS-HD has much less haze but it is noticeable up close.

How do you guys see the % reception you are getting for each channel? Is that from an external tuner or can built-in tuners show that?

Thanks again.

As for the reception, I believe I got digital TV and HD confused. When I hit the info button for my TV it shows for example WMC-DT as 1080i-HD and WREG-DT as 720p. This is what confuses me. Im not sure which shows are broadcast in HD unless I see the HD symbol in the begining of the show. The digital PQ is like a haze around objects. Not sure if its the TV or the signal. The PBS-HD has much less haze but it is noticeable up close.

How do you guys see the % reception you are getting for each channel? Is that from an external tuner or can built-in tuners show that?
HD s actually a digital format. You are really viewing the digital feed. So it a channel shows up as WMC-DT then that is correct. WMC-HD is not entirely correct as a channel because not all programs are in HD. For the most part the easiest way to tell if a channel is HD it will fill up the entire 16x9 screen. Now some shows like FOX's COPS, Saturday MLB, some NFL, So You Think You Can Dance, and their version of Nanny 911 or whatever its called, and ABC's One Ocean view are 16x9 SD, not 4x3. Non-HD shows are upconverted to whichever format the channel is.

Is it showing 1080i-HD as the channel when you change to it, or is it showing as the format? the breakdown is 720p: WHBQ (FOX), WPTY (ABC), and WKNO (PBS, which is supposed to be 1080i) 1080i: WREG (CBS), WMC (NBC), WLMT (CW).

I'm sure the tv you have should have some way to find out how strong a signal you have. I don't know how to do it but it should be in the manual. Look for signal strength in the contents or index.

For the past 3-4 days I have not been able to recieve basic audio on the local HD channels 5.1 and 24.1. I can only get sound from the rear channels, nothing from the center and front. The sound is ok on local commercials so it appears to only be on the network feeds. Also no problems on 13.1 and 3.1. Anyone else having this problem. I called WMC last night and they promised to check it out and call me back. Nothing yet.All the audio broadcasts are currently OK (during the Rams/Colts game on FOX), except for WMC, which is not coming in at all. If you can, check for problems now and note (if you can) whether the DD bitstream is 2.0 or 5.1.

Chase

I read on DirecTv's website that Memphis HD locals will be added in August. Hooray!!!! I have a hard time getting a stable signal on all the channels without fiddling with antenna position for each channel. Now I need the new DVR to roll out so I can take advantage. :rolleyes:

Well lets see, yesterday:
WHBQ snap, crackle, popped and lost the Widescreen feed for the baseball game.
WMC gave us HD with 2.0 audio for most of the Busch race, 5.1 at the end. Began volleyball in HD and then went SD. SNL was SD.

Lets hope that today is better.

I read on DirecTv's website that Memphis HD locals will be added in August.


The site says August, but the reps have told me Sept. at the earliest.

For the first few minutes of the Nacar Race today the commentary audio feed was missing from the HD broadcast. It was actually kind of cool because there weren't people talking over the "Gentlemen, start your engines" part when the starting field comes to life. Now only if they could set that glitch to happen everytime John Madden does color for an NFL game.

Countdown to green was in SD. Yesterday half of the race was 2.0 and again so was the beginning of the race. I thought it was kinda cool also.

PQ was awful, again.

mx, can you tell us what the transfer rate from WMC-DT is for the Redskins/Bengals game tonight?

Thanks!

Chase

mx, can you tell us what the transfer rate from WMC-DT is for the Redskins/Bengals game tonight?
I checked it early in the game and it topped out at 14mbps after 2 minutes. It got down to as little as 12.6 with 85% in the 13 range.I'll try to check it a little later. NASCAR was about the same.

I tried to get screen caps of the game, but there was so much blocking I couldn't find a shot that was 90% clear for a good shot. I watched the first part on my tv and then went back to my pc, and Carson Palmers face was going out of focus when he was speaking and movin his head.

I checked it early in the game and it topped out at 14mbps after 2 minutes. It got down to as little as 12.6 with 85% in the 13 range.I'll try to check it a little later. NASCAR was about the same.

I tried to get screen caps of the game, but there was so much blocking I couldn't find a shot that was 90% clear for a good shot. I watched the first part on my tv and then went back to my pc, and Carson Palmers face was going out of focus when he was speaking and movin his head.Are they still having national issues, or is all this local?

Chase

Are they still having national issues, or is all this local?

Chase
I'm not sure. There are a lot of people complaining about it in the master thread. But most of those are running Weather +. And there are others that said they are seeing very minimal. So there is some national, but removing an additional 23% of the video feed is definately not helping. I'm sure if we were getting as little as 2 mpbs more would make a big difference.

I'm sure if we were getting as little as 2 mpbs more would make a big difference.Well, we know 12-14 Mbps isn't cutting it...

Chase

Well, we know 12-14 Mbps isn't cutting it...

Chase
Definately. If they cut the Tube off completely or even just during HD programs that would free up to 4 mbs of bandwidth for the HD feed. (counting audio and video) That would make a huge difference. Blocking would be less evident, and I'm sure other HD programs would look much better instead of washed out and no depth to them.

If I didn't have these programs on my pc I wouldn't have known they still existed. The only time I watch them on my tv's is when I go to 5-1 and somehow the Tube is on. So I switch to 5-2, then back to 5-1 and everything is fixed.

I don't think the Tube has local commercials so I wonder how they are making money off of it.

I agree the Tube is completely useless. I'm kind of concerned that this Dolby 2.0 to Dolby 5.1 switching is corrupting my captures. This is so aggravating.

BTW, My mother-in-law bought a new HD 16x9 projection television. I told her that she needed to buy the HD package from DirecTV and get the HD box that they offer in order to get HD programming. This started a huge fight. She said that she didn't need HD programming and pay the extra money because her television is all ready High-Definition. I had to leave the room because I didn't want to laugh at her. She would have killed me. I'll let her live in her dellusional state. Oh yeah and she doesn't like the TV now because the picture is alway stretched or there are black bars on either side of the picture, so she watches the old SD television in her bedroom instead.

I agree the Tube is completely useless. I'm kind of concerned that this Dolby 2.0 to Dolby 5.1 switching is corrupting my captures. This is so aggravating.

BTW, My mother-in-law bought a new HD 16x9 projection television. I told her that she needed to buy the HD package from DirecTV and get the HD box that they offer in order to get HD programming. This started a huge fight. She said that she didn't need HD programming and pay the extra money because her television is all ready High-Definition. I had to leave the room because I didn't want to laugh at her. She would have killed me. I'll let her live in her dellusional state. Oh yeah and she doesn't like the TV now because the picture is alway stretched or there are black bars on either side of the picture, so she watches the old SD television in her bedroom instead.
haha, mother in laws. Tell your wife to talk to her.

I think WMC is required by contract to carry The Tube.

Apparently 'Psych', airing right now on WMC, is an SD Upscaled program (Widescreen, however). What's sad is, I couldn't tell the difference between this and a true HD program.

I think WMC is required by contract to carry The Tube.

Apparently 'Psych', airing right now on WMC, is an SD Upscaled program (Widescreen, however). What's sad is, I couldn't tell the difference between this and a true HD program.
I wonder why? It's funny, even the video on the Tube's website has terrible blocking.

Well, their parent company runs The Tube on ALL their stations nationwide, so I am assuming that they just couldn't stop broadcasting it...

Oh. I guess we're screwed then.

Just saw this: http://directv.com/DTVAPP/packProg/channelChart2.jsp?assetId=1100086

Watch local sports, events and your favorite shows in high-definition with your DIRECTV® HD Receiver, an HD television set and an off-air antenna.* DIRECTV currently offers HD local channels in select markets,† but constantly adds new areas. Here's a list of upcoming market launches:

August
Grand Rapids, Memphis, Portland OR, San Antonio

Well, their parent company runs The Tube on ALL their stations nationwide, so I am assuming that they just couldn't stop broadcasting it...
A wise man once told me, "Son, there's three different ways to do every job: the right way, the wrong way, and they way your boss tells you to."

I'll let her live in her dellusional state. Oh yeah and she doesn't like the TV now because the picture is alway stretched or there are black bars on either side of the picture, so she watches the old SD television in her bedroom instead.

My father-in-law who lives with me bought a new wide screen HDTV, he was adamant about setting it up himself, so I let him to it. Lucky my wife near the end came and got me to check things over. He had component, and cable hooked up, he had his dvd hooked up with composit, and component.

He was just going to get a SD television but seen the nice big widescreen, and decided he just had to have it as well. Well after a little explaining, I told him the facts and a little hd 101, we reset up his digital hd box, so he could change the picture format. Now he can get his 4 HD channels in all its glory. My wife was upset at how the SD channels looked, I told her to look at the HDtv in the den, then she finally believed me. I have been telling her for months to use HD, but it's too hard to change the picture format, she says or she doesn't like the bars. So much for widescreen, as we all know it all depends on what we can get from reception, or the cable company. Now he and she is upset that they have to change the video out of the TV to play the dvd player, Now at least I have convinced them about the PQ and the picture format. I finally think my wife knows the difference now I hope.

I would not even bother fighting, just invite her over for dinner sometime and have Discovery HD channel on, then when she asks about how it looks so good tell her it's in True HD. Maybe then she will listen, trust me my wife, and father-in-law think the same way, I used to get yelled at for watching CSI in HD, because to them it was too much of a problem to change picture format, as well as sound. I am sorry but having HD without 5.1 or better sound is just a waste, sure it looks nice but I won't watch a movie on his TV due to the poor sound.

Rthoreau

If they cut the Tube off completely or even just during HD programs that would free up to 4 mbs of bandwidth for the HD feed. (counting audio and video)DTV Dave, I know you guys don't run subchannels, but could you tell us from a broadcaster's perspective how difficult (technically and politically) it would be to turn a subchannel off during a specific program?

Chase

I would not even bother fighting, just invite her over for dinner sometime and have Discovery HD channel on, then when she asks about how it looks so good tell her it's in True HD. Maybe then she will listen, trust me my wife, and father-in-law think the same way, I used to get yelled at for watching CSI in HD, because to them it was too much of a problem to change picture format, as well as sound. I am sorry but having HD without 5.1 or better sound is just a waste, sure it looks nice but I won't watch a movie on his TV due to the poor sound.
Rthoreau

Have her over for dinner to explain HD? You're kidding right? :eek: I'd rather have the Iranian President over to explain international politics to him.

Back on topic, I was wondering if anyone has encountered the field order changing on WMC's HD broadcast of Nascar? The video is about 90% bottom frame first and 10% top field first. Not really a huge issue because I'm re-encoding this capture to DVD by deinterlacing(droping the second field), resizing, reinterlacing. I was wondering if this would be a problem with the Network feed or the affiliate broadcast.

I've got some friends who have cable and they said that TW has been answering the phone as Comcast. I asked if they have seen any changes in channels and they said no.

I've got some friends who have cable and they said that TW has been answering the phone as Comcast. I asked if they have seen any changes in channels and they said no.

Really? Wow. Does this mean this Comcast thing might actually happen in my lifetime?

I'm finally getting cable. I've got an installer coming out tomorrow. Going to get an HD-DVR among other things. I'm very excited! I'm also thinking about ordering an HDTV card to cap shows off-air.

BTW, TheDigitalBits.com is reporting that The West Wing - Season 7 and Smallville - Season 5 will be coming to HD-DVD by the end of the year. We will FINALLY be able to see first hand how much lower the quality is on NBC and The CW (WB/UPN)...

Really? Wow. Does this mean this Comcast thing might actually happen in my lifetime?

I'm finally getting cable. I've got an installer coming out tomorrow. Going to get an HD-DVR among other things. I'm very excited! I'm also thinking about ordering an HDTV card to cap shows off-air.

BTW, TheDigitalBits.com is reporting that The West Wing - Season 7 and Smallville - Season 5 will be coming to HD-DVD by the end of the year. We will FINALLY be able to see first hand how much lower the quality is on NBC and The CW (WB/UPN)...
Let us know how the PQ looks.

I can tell you that Smallville on HDNet looked great a few years ago. It's gone downhill along with D*. But at least it's in HD.

The PQ on HD-DVD or Cable?...

I don't plan on getting them until
A: The HD-DVD Drives come out, at an affordable price.
B: The other 4 seasons of Smallville are announced.
Basically, I probably won't get them for a long while.

I'll keep you updated on it, though it'll probably be a few months..

Sorry, cable

LOL, I'll be glad to let you know about that. :)
I might get a PC HDTV Card with QAM support, so I'll let you know if that pans out.

The PQ on HD-DVD or Cable? Basically, I probably won't get them for a long while.Hmm. This must be cable month. I'm finally getting it, too. I'm tired of D* installers rolling on the ground laughing when they get to my house and look at the roof and the trees. It's really quite annoying... :D

I'll definitely be comparing HD DVD to cable, but cable doesn't stand a chance. MPEG-2 with bandwidth limitations vs. VC-1 on a 30 GB disc is not really even a fair race. Cable vs. BDs could be a bit more interesting.

Chase

The 'them' I was referring to was Smallville and West Wing on DVD.

I wanted a C-Band, then I realized I lived in Memphis......

I got cable today.

I like the HD-DVR. For some reason, the HD-pak isn't on. Maybe we forgot to get it. How much extra is it a month?

And I've got pixelation GALORE on digital, and TONS of static on analog. I can't even lock on to TNT-HD, it's pure black. And a bunch of channels keep crapping out.

So THAT'S why my QAM tuner didnt work right! I've got bad cabling!!!

:-/

DTV Dave, I know you guys don't run subchannels, but could you tell us from a broadcaster's perspective how difficult (technically and politically) it would be to turn a subchannel off during a specific program?

Chase
Politically it might be a problem if there is a contract with someone to carry the subchannel. If it didn't provide for dropping it when the bandwidth was needed you'd be screwed.

As far as the technical aspect, I'm not sure. If I had to do it with our current encoder, it would be a big pain. I would have to get into a front-panel menu and change the data rate by hand when I killed the subchannel (killing the subchannel would be easy, but using the extra bandwidth would be tough). We have a new encoder that isn't in service yet that can do "statistical multiplexing", but I haven't checked out what it takes to make it drop a subchannel. I'll check through the documentation and let you know.

I have been a member for several months but have never posted a message. I have done a lot of reading and learned a great deal on some issues. However, I must admit there is sooo much stuff I can't retain it all. I lost everything in a house fire and I am starting over. Never owned a plasma before so all of this is new to me. I have some very basic questions and I know they have probably been addressed but if you guys/gals could help or point me to the right forum I would be very appreciative.

I have a new Panny TH50PX6U. I just picked up the TWC HD STB but have not hooked it up. I have to get cables first.

1. I need to split the coax signal to my Panny and a cable modem. Read somewhere on this forum I need a splitter with at least 5-1K MHz bandwith/24K gold connector/75 ohm. Where can I get a good quality one? Read that Regal makes a good one but I can't find it on the net.

2. For short runs of 10 to 12 feet would the RG-59 cables be okay or should I go with the RG-6.

Is the 8300HD the only HD box Comcast offers?

BTW, They are OFFICIALLY Comcast now, have been for sometime, according to my installer yesterday. Like MX said, They are answering the phone, "Thank you for calling Comcast, formerly Time Warner Cable."

The installer also said that HUGE changes are coming... but I couldn't get him to tell me what.

[QUOTE=ravma479]Is the 8300HD the only HD box Comcast offers?



The HD box I picked up two days ago from TWC/Comcast is a Pace DC551PF

Is there any way to switch out a box to a different model? I'm not liking this 8300..

I just called TWC and they answered as Comcast. What changes does Comcast bring? New hardware or channels? Espn2?? NFL Network??

Probably just higher costs and less channels...

If they can offer HDNet (or keep) and ESPN2HD I might be game. Depends on costs.

Since Comcast is DSL, and RR is cable, what's going to happen with that? Will we get a 3rd option? RR, Bellsouth, Comcast?

Comcast does Cable Modems.. Where did you get the DSL thing from?

Comcast does Cable Modems.. Where did you get the DSL thing from?
I was thinking of that Slowskis commercial with the turtles. I thought they were DSL, my bad.

They were, see, they're the Slowskis... cause DSL is slow... and Comcast is fast....

Nevermind

I thought it was a rip on dial up.

Did anyone watch the NFL game on FOX last night. I thought it was great looking. The far away shots were still a little soft, but closeups were crisp.

Did anyone watch the NFL game on FOX last night. I thought it was great looking. The far away shots were still a little soft, but closeups were crisp.Yes, and I concur with your assessment. :)

Chase

The weirdest thing just happened, I was fast forwarding through Jeopardy (it was currently being recorded), and I went too far, and it went to the end of the episode, so I hit the 'Live' button to go to the current part of the episode and it went back a few minutes. I flipped over to my OTA Antenna Input, and they were lined up. So this is my question,

HOW did I fast forward to something that HADNT BEEN BROADCAST YET??? Does WREG cache their shows?!

strange. I need to talk to you about my stocks....

UGH, Not only did Comcrap (original, no, but I'm not that happy right now..) miss their appointment today, because they took down the WRONG Phone Number, but they killed my 8300HD when they tried to turn on the HD Tier...... They didn't even make an attempt to come to the house, they just cancelled the appointment. So now I've got a dead box, and they can't come out until Monday...

Where can I go around town to swap a box, and how late are they open?

So far, this has been a disaster...

Swapped the boxes, and this 8300HD is doing the EXACT SAME THING.
Something funky is going on....

Maybe I should call D*? Naw, all they'd do is come out, take 1 look, and be rolling on the ground in laughter... ;)

HOW did I fast forward to something that HADNT BEEN BROADCAST YET??? Does WREG cache their shows?!

WREG screwed up Jeopardy today, and showed final jeopardy twice (double jeopardy was skipped completely).

So yes, today at least, WREG kind of cached the show, so skipping ahead ten minutes would get you back to exactly where you were.

LOL, So I was going crazy? Yay! My box can't see into future? Awwww....

The box is still dead, I took it in the other room and reconnected the other cable box. It worked fine. Then I plugged the SD box's cable into the HD box, and it STILL won't come on. I'm betting there's an authorization problem or something..

Maybe I should call D*? Naw, all they'd do is come out, take 1 look, and be rolling on the ground in laughter... ;)Glad I'm not the only one... :rolleyes:

Chase

So, For those who might have a small shed of interest, here's the scoop.

Time Warner says my signal is slowly degrading, to the point that the boxes can't 'phone home'. This is evidenced by the fact that, when I unplugged my boxes, they BOTH couldn't reconnect to the network. So I'm basically screwed until I can get a tech out here...

FYI, They are probably going to want to charge me for the replacement wiring, because of the age of my house and the design of the attic. I'm looking at hundreds of dollars here... :(

At least I have my good ol' OTA tuner, DVD collection, Computer, and you folks to keep me company. ;) I've survived years without cable, I can make it a few more days. (Though, I REALLY got spoiled on that DVR.....)

FYI, They are probably going to want to charge me for the replacement wiring, because of the age of my house and the design of the attic. I'm looking at hundreds of dollars here... :(I suppose you could always go the DIY route. I am pretty particular about the way wires look and where they run, so I plan to personally install the cable inside my house. It's only two rooms, though, and they both border the garage attic where the cable will come in from the street. :D

Sorry about all the fun you're having. :rolleyes:

Chase

Is there any way to switch out a box to a different model? I'm not liking this 8300..

My father-in-law just got a 3250 hd which is the base model for high definition. It's the one without the harddrive should have hdmi enabled. Guess we will have to see what the cable co offers, I would love to have someone offer FIOS in the memphis area.

Don't care much for Bellsouth, or TW, I hear that Comcast is not much better. They better start to upgrade their infastructure, or if Verizon, or ATT come to town I would switch in a heart beat. If anyone came with fiber to my neighborhood I would switch. That's not going to happen, as the cable co and Bellsouth have their head up their butts. I can't get better then 2 Mps down, and never get more then 128 Kps up. Just too much over subscription in my neck of the woods. Shelby and HacksCross area maybe in a year or two when the new school is built, I might get an upgrade as a side effect of that deal.

Is there any way to switch out a box to a different model? I'm not liking this 8300..After reading the manuals (if you call two page documents manuals) on TWC's site, I requested a Pace DC-550 HD. It's not a DVR, though.

Nothing I've seen has HDMI. :mad:

Chase

I found the problem! My installer many months ago cut the cables 1 Inch TOO SHORT at the splitter. I pushed em in, and it works great.

But now....... I have all the movie channels, and still don't have the HD Tier... Something's funky..

My 8300HD has HDMI.

My 8300HD has HDMI.Looks like I need to find a more up-to-date source for information than TWC's website...

Anyone have a non-DVR box with HDMI?

Chase

Looks like I need to find a more up-to-date source for information than TWC's website...

Anyone have a non-DVR box with HDMI?

Chase
The HD box I picked up several days ago from TWC/Comcast is a Pace DC551PF. It has HDMI. I picked it up at the TW store located in the Kroger's in Southaven.

The HD box I picked up several days ago from TWC/Comcast is a Pace DC551PF. It has HDMI.Thanks, Kenny Weaver. I'll check it out.

Please tell me WREG-DT did not just switch off the HD feed for the PGA in order to show me a severe T-storm warning in Craighead County, AR. Wait...they did. :p

Subchannels, people.

Chase

Thanks, Kenny Weaver. I'll check it out.

Please tell me WREG-DT did not just switch off the HD feed for the PGA in order to show me a severe T-storm warning in Craighead County, AR. Wait...they did. :p

Subchannels, people.

Chase
You didn't mention the best part of it. Altho it said T-storm warning, there was a crawl that said "There is NO WARNING for Craighead Co." This only went on for about 10 minutes. Of course then after that they had to show one for another county. Unbelievable.

Well it seems that my father-in-law went back to SD, he took off his component, and hooked up his dvd player with composite. He is back to watching with just the cat cable in to his TV. Not to mention he just ordered some hdmi cable's from monoprice!

I told him when I hooked it up the first time that with just the cable he wasted his money, at least I did not pay for the cables, or the TV. I won't even bother trying to convince him, as it won't do any good. I even bet he still thinks that he is getting HD cause it says so on his TV. What is funny is he still has a svideo cable hooked up to his dvd, with the composite cable's hooked up as well.

Well it seems that my father-in-law went back to SD, he took off his component, and hooked up his dvd player with composite. He is back to watching with just the cat cable in to his TV. Not to mention he just ordered some hdmi cable's from monoprice!

I told him when I hooked it up the first time that with just the cable he wasted his money, at least I did not pay for the cables, or the TV. I won't even bother trying to convince him, as it won't do any good. I even bet he still thinks that he is getting HD cause it says so on his TV. What is funny is he still has a svideo cable hooked up to his dvd, with the composite cable's hooked up as well.
Might as well take him all the way back. Tell him color doesn't have the correct black/white ratio and he would get a better picture on a 13" b&w tv.

So I'm getting tired of my HD Tivo (HR10-250), it's slow as Christmas and is now "behind the times." I've read the first review of the new DirecTV HD DVR, the HR20, and it seems only mildly impressive.

Which leads me back to the Dish Network DVR that came out a few months back, the ViP622. Anybody in Memphis have this thing? How does it do with Memphis OTA stations? It seems pretty impressive-- can record 3 things at one time, and menu speed is supposed to be blazing fast.

Might as well take him all the way back. Tell him color doesn't have the correct black/white ratio and he would get a better picture on a 13" b&w tv.

And forget about stereo sound. Monaural all the way!

Heck, why do we even need cable? We've got three whole channels! NBC, CBS, and ABC. We don't need no stinkin' DuMont Network!

I just got my brand new HD tv that includes an internal tuner.

Directv will be over tomorrow to install my new HD Tivo, however they told me they don't provide the locals in HD yet.

So I suppose I need some sort of antenna.
I've looked on the antennaweb org site and I'm only 6.9 miles away from the furthest tower. What antenna should I be looking for - will a cheap UHF internal work?

I just got my brand new HD tv that includes an internal tuner.

Directv will be over tomorrow to install my new HD Tivo, however they told me they don't provide the locals in HD yet.

So I suppose I need some sort of antenna.
I've looked on the antennaweb org site and I'm only 6.9 miles away from the furthest tower. What antenna should I be looking for - will a cheap UHF internal work?
Welcome. You must be in the Bartlett area.

D* doesn’t offer HD local’s (LIL) yet for us. They are supposed to soon. If you have an internal tuner, I would run one cable from your multiswitch to the DTV input of your tv and of course the ones to your HDTivo. Just in case the HDTivo is recording 2 things and you want to watch another local HD channel live.

You do need an antenna to get the local’s in HD. Since you are so close, you definitely wouldn’t need a big ole antenna. A cheap indoor antenna might work as long as you can get it set in the right place to receive the signals without breakup.

Anyone heard anything about this?

"Lifetime Television Launches Its First-Ever VOD Service Featuring Full Length Episodes of the Network's Popular Programming Along With Special Featurettes

Programming Available to Approximately 10 Million Comcast Customers with ON DEMAND Beginning Tuesday, August 22"

Welcome. You must be in the Bartlett area.

D* doesn’t offer HD local’s (LIL) yet for us. They are supposed to soon. If you have an internal tuner, I would run one cable from your multiswitch to the DTV input of your tv and of course the ones to your HDTivo. Just in case the HDTivo is recording 2 things and you want to watch another local HD channel live.

You do need an antenna to get the local’s in HD. Since you are so close, you definitely wouldn’t need a big ole antenna. A cheap indoor antenna might work as long as you can get it set in the right place to receive the signals without breakup.

I do have an internal tuner. When you say run a cable from the multiswitch, do you mean the splitter out of the dish? Or is this from the antenna to the DTV input? Any recommendations on a cheap indoor antenna?

So basically I'll have Dish to Tivo to Tv and in addition to, antenna to DTV input..?

Yes, Bartlett (Old Brownsville / G-town road area)

I do have an internal tuner. When you say run a cable from the multiswitch, do you mean the splitter out of the dish? Or is this from the antenna to the DTV input? Any recommendations on a cheap indoor antenna?

So basically I'll have Dish to Tivo to Tv and in addition to, antenna to DTV input..?

Yes, Bartlett (Old Brownsville / G-town road area)
A multiswitch can be called a splitter, but a splitter usually splits 1 cable into 2. I’ll use my setup as an example. I have a 3 lnb dish, and have all 4 runs from it going into a 5x8 multiswitch. (I’m not sure if a new 5-lnb would have the same number of cable runs) the antenna cable goes into the 5th input of the multiswitch. There are 8 outputs which go to various tv’s and stb’s around my house. If you need more than 5 cable runs I would suggest getting a multiswitch. Actually, the installer might have one, so ask.

In your case you would need 1 for your tv, 2 for the sat inputs to the HDTivo and 1 for the antenna in. There’s 4 right there. That leaves 2 cables from the dish to be used and your antenna cable has been used and split already. You could use a splitter to split the antenna cable into more than 2 runs, but you could compromise the pq doing so. And also, you can’t split one dish cable into 2 for the HDTivo. Each tuner inside the HDTivo needs its own cable.

So a multiswitch would be your best choice if you do have quite a few runs now or will in the future. You would need to get a powered switch. It works exactly like the splitter but it won’t lose any power, I guess. I don’t know exactly how to say it but it’s good. :)

Of course, once D* has our locals in HD, if you want to get them from D* you could ditch the antenna and forget everything I just posted. :p

A multiswitch can be called a splitter, but a splitter usually splits 1 cable into 2. I’ll use my setup as an example. I have a 3 lnb dish, and have all 4 runs from it going into a 5x8 multiswitch. (I’m not sure if a new 5-lnb would have the same number of cable runs) the antenna cable goes into the 5th input of the multiswitch. There are 8 outputs which go to various tv’s and stb’s around my house. If you need more than 5 cable runs I would suggest getting a multiswitch. Actually, the installer might have one, so ask.

In your case you would need 1 for your tv, 2 for the sat inputs to the HDTivo and 1 for the antenna in. There’s 4 right there. That leaves 2 cables from the dish to be used and your antenna cable has been used and split already. You could use a splitter to split the antenna cable into more than 2 runs, but you could compromise the pq doing so. And also, you can’t split one dish cable into 2 for the HDTivo. Each tuner inside the HDTivo needs its own cable.

So a multiswitch would be your best choice if you do have quite a few runs now or will in the future. You would need to get a powered switch. It works exactly like the splitter but it won’t lose any power, I guess. I don’t know exactly how to say it but it’s good. :)

Of course, once D* has our locals in HD, if you want to get them from D* you could ditch the antenna and forget everything I just posted. :p

Why do you need to go from your TV back to the multi-switch? If I were just going to have the antenna on top of a book case next to my tv, couldn't I just go from the back of the tv to the antenna, and then have the two dedicated lines into the Tivo... wait does one line or two come out of the Tivo into the TV? Normal Tivo is just one, is this going to mean two? I need a diagram, lol...

Why do you need to go from your TV back to the multi-switch? If I were just going to have the antenna on top of a book case next to my tv, couldn't I just go from the back of the tv to the antenna, and then have the two dedicated lines into the Tivo... wait does one line or two come out of the Tivo into the TV? Normal Tivo is just one, is this going to mean two? I need a diagram, lol...
If you are going to have the antenna near the tv then yeah you could just do it the way you said. To get an HD picture you need to use either component or HDMI or DVI (whichever the HDTivo uses) Do not use composite, s-video or coax.

The installer plugged the antenna into the back of the Tivo so now I can switch to the 5-1, 3-1 channels and for the most part everything comes in. It's gets a bit fuzzy at times so Im sure I just need to do some tweaking. I'm using some 30.00 RCA amped antenna, I'm sure there is better out there for this.

WOW is HD nice!

The installer plugged the antenna into the back of the Tivo so now I can switch to the 5-1, 3-1 channels and for the most part everything comes in. It's gets a bit fuzzy at times so Im sure I just need to do some tweaking. I'm using some 30.00 RCA amped antenna, I'm sure there is better out there for this.

WOW is HD nice!
If the PQ gets fuzzy then its from the source or your tv (more likely the source). Digital is different than analog. For analog you could still have a picture, but it would ghost, get fuzzy, become static. With digital you either have a picture or you don't. around the mid 40% mark is when I have noticed picture freezes or drops. If you are able to get all the stations you want with that antenna that should be sufficient.

Glad you like HD.

PROGRAMMING NOTE.
DeAngelo takes on the Dolphins Thursday night on FOX at 7 pm.

"Fuzzy" may have been the wrong choice of wording, it's more pixilated and freezes for a moment, sorta reminds me of what happens to my directv about the time the sirens are going off.

Sounds like your signal is not stable.

...

PROGRAMMING NOTE.
DeAngelo takes on the Dolphins Thursday night on FOX at 7 pm.

Sure was fun watching him again!

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d178/mollerup/williams.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d178/mollerup/williams2.jpg

From tonights game.
http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/9089/wreg82606lm0.th.jpg (http://img91.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wreg82606lm0.jpg)http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/7629/wreg826061el2.th.jpg (http://img91.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wreg826061el2.jpg)http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/3602/wreg826063aw7.th.jpg (http://img171.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wreg826063aw7.jpg)http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/315/wreg826064ao9.th.jpg (http://img91.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wreg826064ao9.jpg)http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/7627/wreg826065lc3.th.jpg (http://img91.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wreg826065lc3.jpg)http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/632/wreg826066hv3.th.jpg (http://img177.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wreg826066hv3.jpg)http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/7096/wreg826067fq6.th.jpg (http://img177.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wreg826067fq6.jpg)http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/7027/wreg826069xp9.th.jpg (http://img177.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wreg826069xp9.jpg)http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/8870/wreg8260610fm6.th.jpg (http://img177.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wreg8260610fm6.jpg)
And the A/V bitrate during the 2nd quarter: http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/285/snap1ry3.th.jpg (http://img177.imageshack.us/my.php?image=snap1ry3.jpg)

OTA/Comcast/D*?

Chase

Ota

And yet again, NBC screws up. It's the biggest night in TV, and they aren't even broadcasting the Emmys in HD. That's pathetic.

I was at BB today, and they had a clip of Heroes on. It looked SO good, but I was thinking, 'It's not even going to look half as good as this when I watch it on WMC...'

About the emmy's, with NBC's track record, and WMC's, just imagine how bad it would look.

Look at my post about the golf coverage today. While most of the issue was NBC's, check out the 3rd pic with the logo flying in. That's mostly WMC

About the emmy's, with NBC's track record, and WMC's, just imagine how bad it would look.

Yeah, I guess you're right. I guess there's no hope for NBC HD. I wish they'd show more of their shows on UniversalHD.

I wonder if I'll be able to stomach NBC's PQ for Studio 60 and Heroes...


Look at my post about the golf coverage today. While most of the issue was NBC's, check out the 3rd pic with the logo flying in. That's mostly WMC

What post about the golf coverage?...

My bad, here's the link I thought I posted. http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8298579&&#post8298579

I've read some of the post regarding the changeover from TWC to Comcast. I had to call customer service yesterday to activate another 8300HD STB (I now have 3 :rolleyes: ).

I knew the conversion to Comcast has been in the works for a long time, but I was surprised when the rep answered the phone with the "Thank you for calling Comcast...formally TWC' greeting.

Last night, the 2 HDNET channels were fine on all 3 HD setups. This morning they are showing no signal, similar to the GRZHD, channel 856.

I sure hope this isn't one of the first Comcast changes in removing HDNET.

Does anyone have any idea yet of what changes we will see? When will they start using Comcast logos on guides, bills, websites, etc?

More importantly, what about ESPN2HD, and any other new HD channels?

Does anyone have the 5 lnb dish? Our locals should be coming online any day now. My father in law has one but he is over an hour away.

I will be waiting on the new DVR that is due out soon.

I've read some of the post regarding the changeover from TWC to Comcast. I had to call customer service yesterday to activate another 8300HD STB (I now have 3 :rolleyes: ).

I knew the conversion to Comcast has been in the works for a long time, but I was surprised when the rep answered the phone with the "Thank you for calling Comcast...formally TWC' greeting.

Last night, the 2 HDNET channels were fine on all 3 HD setups. This morning they are showing no signal, similar to the GRZHD, channel 856.

I sure hope this isn't one of the first Comcast changes in removing HDNET.

Does anyone have any idea yet of what changes we will see? When will they start using Comcast logos on guides, bills, websites, etc?

More importantly, what about ESPN2HD, and any other new HD channels?
1) How much are you paying for the HD stb's? Are those HD-DVR's?

2) They might be in the works of removing HDNet already. If Comcast would keep HDNet then I'd give more consideration to moving to Comcast. ESPN2HD also.

3) As far as billing changes I wonder what kind of bundled packages they would provide? For those that have both RR and Comcast what type of bundling do you get?

1) How much are you paying for the HD stb's? Are those HD-DVR's?

2) They might be in the works of removing HDNet already. If Comcast would keep HDNet then I'd give more consideration to moving to Comcast. ESPN2HD also.

3) As far as billing changes I wonder what kind of bundled packages they would provide? For those that have both RR and Comcast what type of bundling do you get?


1) $7.95/Month each. They are HD-DVR's

3) RR is $40/month bundled with Digital Cable package. I believe it's a whopping :rolleyes: $10/month discount from someone without any other Comcast services.

I have this dish and h20-100 I have my sd locals thru directv but so far no hd locals thru directv but the ota tuner picks up everything. I too am on a list for the h20-700 can't wait never had a dvr.
jdmac29

can't wait never had a dvr.
Once you get it you will wonder why you never had one.

A little bit of good news. I emailed WLMT about the PQ issues that we complained about last "season" and if they are going to do anything to fix it. I mentioned they are sending 4 mb's of null data. This is the response I recieved.

"CW will have HD. They are providing details this week. We intend to increase bit rate when CW HD starts. The current bit rate of 15mbs is basically default value. We've had problems with our encoder and sent back to tandberg for repairs. Tandberg set the rate this last time and we haven't changed it.

No HD plans for News. We explored it but not in the works for now."

He didn't comment on 5.1.

I have this dish and h20-100 I have my sd locals thru directv but so far no hd locals thru directv but the ota tuner picks up everything. I too am on a list for the h20-700 can't wait never had a dvr.
jdmac29


Once you get the dvr your watching pattern will change. I have two very active teenage boys, without the dvr I would not be able to watch anything.

Hi, all.. first time posting in here. I live way out in Collierville and I have an antenna in my attic and a backup set of rabbit ears with my TV. I've only been watching HD for about a month now, but all of a sudden in the last couple of days my signal level on WMC is dropping out, on both antennas, rendering it unwatchable. Is something up with their transmitter, or perhaps is it atmospheric conditions with all the cloud cover we've had lately?

Hi, all.. first time posting in here.Welcome to the Memphis HDTV thread! :cool:

I live way out in Collierville and I have an antenna in my attic and a backup set of rabbit ears with my TV. I've only been watching HD for about a month now, but all of a sudden in the last couple of days my signal level on WMC is dropping out, on both antennas, rendering it unwatchable. Is something up with their transmitter, or perhaps is it atmospheric conditions with all the cloud cover we've had lately?I haven't watched OTA in about a week, but I can tell you that several of us have trouble with inconsistent signal from WMC-DT. In my location, the signal will sometimes be strong and other times come in and out. WMC-DT is broadcasting at the highest frequency of our locals (as I recall), so that may very well have something to do with it.

Chase

Hi, all.. first time posting in here. I live way out in Collierville and I have an antenna in my attic and a backup set of rabbit ears with my TV. I've only been watching HD for about a month now, but all of a sudden in the last couple of days my signal level on WMC is dropping out, on both antennas, rendering it unwatchable. Is something up with their transmitter, or perhaps is it atmospheric conditions with all the cloud cover we've had lately?

I concur, welcome to the forums.

The best advice I can give for getting WMC-DT is, get a bigger antenna, and keep moving it around until you find that one spot that works perfectly. I could never get it working right...


2) They might be in the works of removing HDNet already. If Comcast would keep HDNet then I'd give more consideration to moving to Comcast.

If HDNet gets dropped, I'll drop Comcast. Plain and simple. I love the channel too much to give it up. Plus, Arrested Development and Enterprise start airing on there in September!

I've noticed HDNet has been dark for some periods, so perhaps it is a signal issue.. It's working fine for me now.

I am out in Gibson County (Dyer). I have a 60 foot tower with a channel master all-band antenna pointed towards Memphis. I also have a CM 4228 pointed towards Paducah, KY. I have had very good luck with digital signals. 99 percent of the time WREG comes in perfectly. I never have any fallout on WMC, WLMT, WJKT (Jackson, TN Fox) and WPTY. Late at night I can get WHBQ. My question, though, is about WPXX. When they switch to My Network TV, do they intend to keep the PAX/i feeds on their subchannels? Thanks for any help.
FYI; I'm around 80 miles away from the Memphis transmitters. I'm around 70 miles away from Paducah and 100 miles away from Cape Gueardeo. I also, at night, can see Nashville just fine. But I have a 60 foot tower in my favor.

Wow. So how many channels are you able to get?

Not sure about WPXX tho.

Wow. So how many channels are you able to get?

Not sure about WPXX tho.


The following DIGITAL signals are stable and watchable at least 99 percent of the time:
WBBJ-7 Jackson
WJKT-16 Jackson
WLJT-11 Lexington
WPSD-6 Paducah
WDKA-49 Paducah
KBSI-23 Cape G.
WMC-5 Memphis
WREG-3 Memphis
WPTY-24 Memphis
WKNO-10 Memphis
WLMT-30 Memphis
WKMU-21 Murray, KY

These signals come in better at night:
WPXX-50 Memphis
WKRN-2 Nashville
WTVF-5 Nashville
WHBQ-13 Memphis
KFVS-12 Cape G.
WSIL-3 Carbondale

18, not bad.

Some interesting news today:
http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/news/article/23775.html


"CBS Paramount Domestic Television has officially announced that they are releasing digitally remastered episodes of Star Trek, with all new special effects and music, to celebrate the groundbreaking series' 40th anniversary.
...
The Star Trek episodes will begin airing on the more than 200 stations that own the rights to the weekend broadcast syndication window starting September 16.
...
The remastered episodes have been converted from the original film into a High-Definition format, which gives viewers a clearer, crisper, more vibrant picture than before, even when viewed in standard definition. Once stations upgrade and start broadcasting HD signals, the episodes will be all ready for viewers to enjoy in HD."


I think this is a great thing, because the original versions are still widely available (and will be for some time) so we have a choice, unlike that other 'Star' movie trilogy... Plus, they have at least 3 longtime Trek staffers on board, so they are going to do this RIGHT.

So the big question is this: HD Syndication, Does anyone know if any our affiliates have the capabilities for it? I know for a fact that Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy are also going HD this season, so I wonder if we will get any of these in HD here.

I'm in Memphs and am looking into buying a USB QAM tuner for my PC. What channels would I get from TW/Comcast in the Memphis area by plugging it into the cable?

Hey, Welcome to the forums!

I've been able to pull all the locals except Fox using a QAM tuner in my TV. Fox used to be there though, so it might be that my TV can't find it.

Which model tuner are you looking into?

the DVICO FusionHDTV Gold USB tuner. I figure I could use it with my laptop over the air at work and via cable at home.

I figured it was the Fusion. That's the only one I know of.

I haven't posted before but I've been lurking here a couple of months. Hello to all!

Anyway, I'm using TW/Comcast with my F5USB.

I get NBC, CBS, PBS, ABC, FOX, UPN in HD and SD.

You should also get EWTN, WKNO-2, The Tube, CSPAN2, and a couple of weather channels.

I usually rescan to see what else pops up based on signal strength. Recently I received a music channel, too. There may be a few other things as well. There is a registry hack that may be needed with the system to find all the channels. I haven't tried that yet. My max scan of encrypted and unencrypted channels is around 350 on the digital side and everything comes in clearly on the analog side,

I tried OTA with the Silver Sensor and it works pretty well. It pulled in everything that it should within our vicinity. (I live in Collierville surrounded by trees.)

I had TW/Comcast come out 3 times over the past 2 months to increase my signal strength. First tech, said nothing could be done, second tech made some new custom cables that made a real difference for all my tvs and he helped boost the signal. The final tech put on the DVR amplifer for the tv and boosted my dedicated DVICO signal. I had moved a dvr that my wife uses to a different location and they had to put an amplifier on it. Anyway, my signal strength used to average a maximum of 80% and db's in the 20's - which is marginal with the Fusion 5 USB. Now I get an average of 92-95% and db's always over 30 - which is what you really need to keep from stuttering with 1080i and DD5.1.

I got my unit from Snapstream with the free antenna. I just upgraded an old computer to play with the DVICO and play with Windows Vista. I view on a crt, my laptop (1920X1200) and sometimes send it to my regular tv.

Bill

I'm confused, can someone let me know which channel news I'm watching? :cool:
http://img105.imageshack.us/img105/9789/95061vn7.th.jpg (http://img105.imageshack.us/my.php?image=95061vn7.jpg) http://img167.imageshack.us/img167/756/95062dj0.th.jpg (http://img167.imageshack.us/my.php?image=95062dj0.jpg)
http://img167.imageshack.us/img167/8907/95063ld7.th.jpg (http://img167.imageshack.us/my.php?image=95063ld7.jpg)

...just not in Memphis. WPTY asleep at the switch. Again.

Hello, I'm lost when it comes to all this but want to receive HDTV. I have an HD ready monitor (RCA Scenium 61" Projection) & Directv w/ a standard DVR. I really can't afford to upgrade to the HD receiver & programming right now. What can I do?

Hello, I'm lost when it comes to all this but want to receive HDTV. I have an HD ready monitor (RCA Scenium 61" Projection) & Directv w/ a standard DVR. I really can't afford to upgrade to the HD receiver & programming right now. What can I do?

If your TV is "HD Ready" then it cannot tune to any HD channels. So your only alternative will be to get an Over the air Tuner and an antenna or upgrade to a DirecTV HD tuner/DVR, which also includes an over the air HD tuner built in. Unfortunately one way or the other you'll have to get some type of tuner for the HD signal.

If your TV is "HD Ready" then it cannot tune to any HD channels. So your only alternative will be to get an Over the air Tuner and an antenna or upgrade to a DirecTV HD tuner/DVR, which also includes an over the air HD tuner built in. Unfortunately one way or the other you'll have to get some type of tuner for the HD signal.
To add to this point, depending on how long you have been with D*, you can find out about getting credits on your account. Since Memphis is supposed to have locals in HD soon, presumably ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, you might be able to get a new mpeg-4 stb that can pick those up.

Or you can get an ota tuner cheap on ebay.

If your TV is "HD Ready" then it cannot tune to any HD channels. So your only alternative will be to get an Over the air Tuner and an antenna or upgrade to a DirecTV HD tuner/DVR, which also includes an over the air HD tuner built in. Unfortunately one way or the other you'll have to get some type of tuner for the HD signal.

Do I need a special HD tuner? The monitor does have a "NTSC 2 -Tuner"?

Do I need a special HD tuner? The monitor does have a "NTSC 2 -Tuner"?
I tried to look up the manual online but couldn't find one. However at this site, http://www.chumbo.com/Info.aspx?id=271385 it says:
Feature - Digital Cable Ready with Integrated High Definition Tuner and Off-Air HD Tuner
Benefits - Delivers cable-ready HD with CableCARD™ slot and off- air HD reception of digital high definition broadcasts without the need for a separate ATSC or digital cable box.

So your tv has an hd tuner built it. You would want to connect an antenna into either an ATSC or Digital in coax connection. For further info check your manual. To find out which way you need to point an antenna go to www.antennaweb.org

I wonder what will happen tonight on channel 50 when MNTV comes on? Will we get HD or will we get SD? If it's HD will they turn off their subchannels or will they leave them on and give the main feed .5 mbs? Du-na-na(Austin Powers music)

I just got off the phone with DTV and seems like only NBC and FOX locals will be available starting Set 6th. CBS and ABC are still working out their deals with them on HD broadcast. That bites. The new HD DVR should be available in Memphis on Sept 6. I for one will not switch until CBS and ABC are both ready. Esp since Fox and NBC have issues in HD most of the time. he also did not say anything about channel 30 which I guess will be the new CW. Cable keeps looking better and better for HD locals.

...but the price was Good Morning America in SD.

If we can only get one in HD, make it GMA!

Of course, ideally, they should BOTH be in HD.

I just got off the phone with DTV and seems like only NBC and FOX locals will be available starting Set 6th. CBS and ABC are still working out their deals with them on HD broadcast. That bites. The new HD DVR should be available in Memphis on Sept 6. I for one will not switch until CBS and ABC are both ready. Esp since Fox and NBC have issues in HD most of the time. he also did not say anything about channel 30 which I guess will be the new CW. Cable keeps looking better and better for HD locals.
Yeah I agree. If only 2 are up then why would you upgrade? Especially since the OTA tuner isn't activated yet on the HD DVR. You would actually be losing channels going from any hd stb to a D* HD DVR. I wonder if WPTY is going slow because of WLMT? They own both so maybe they are working out a deal where unless both will be carried or neither one will.

AAARRRGHHHH!!!!! My antenna situation is driving me crazy. I have a Sony SXRD television and the Directv HD DVR. According to antennaweb I am within 7 miles of every tower and I am supposed to point at 69 for 5,24,30 up to 163 for 13. Is there anyone direction to point the antenna and get all the channels, I would like to use the DVR. I have an antenna in the attic that I have tried to point in an optimal direction but I am not having any luck. I also have a Zenith Silver Sensor that I have been using since March but I still have to move it around. Right now the Silver Sensor is pointed East and tipped up. I am currently using the silver sensor only. My signal strengths are as follows:

3.1 98
5.1 87-89
10.1 breaks up will get as high as 84 and lock a signal and then lose it
13.1 same as 10.1
24.1 98
30.1 84-89
50.1 98

I look at the antennaweb map and understand why 13 and 10 are bad because they are farther from the trio of 5,24,30, but I try to rotate just a little to grab those and it kills 5, 24, 30 either all or one or some combination. It drives me crazy.. does anyone have any suggestions.

Ok, Here's how WPXX is handling MyNetworkTV, as best I can tell since I forgot to check and see if it was on.

There are 2 channels, 50.1 and 50.2. 50.1 is MNT (MyNetworkTV). 50.2 is Pax/I. They show mostly the same things, although MNT has a LOT of 'Paid Programming'. From 7-9 PM, MNT comes on. I don't know whether its HD or not, but I bet it isn't. I'll try and check tonight.

http://www.ionline.tv/stations/default.cfm?sti_id=23&siteid=50643

Here's the listing for the station. FYI, the ONLY way to get Pax/I now is to have an ATSC Tuner or Cable Box. The Analog station is MNT only.

They don’t do HD. I’ve checked the past 2 nights and it has been in SD both nights. I filled out that form Tuesday night and I haven’t gotten a response back yet.

I just called and WPXX doesn't have HD equipment. The guy sounded real confused.

I live in Millington TN, no problems with picking up any of the locals I have Sony lcd 42a10 so tuners should be similar and your signal strengh is about like mine. I am farther out than you are from the towers I use a radio shack antenna uhf only antenna in the attic, model I think 75ur only about $25.00. My point range is from 162-183. Channel 10& 13 are on the high end funny you get 13 but not 10 since it should be in the middle. My antenna is level no angle. I have had tv since dec 05 but had some problems with 13 in July I adjusted antenna a little bit more towards the 183 and now it is clear with no breakups. I would recommend trying the radio shack it is cheap and if it does not work take it back. RS also sells an attic mounting kit to hang it from the rafters which I use which give me more stability. Hope this works out. Bye the way when you said directv hd dvr are you talking about the new hr20-700? If so did you order from directv or best buy?
Thanks
jdmac29


AAARRRGHHHH!!!!! My antenna situation is driving me crazy. I have a Sony SXRD television and the Directv HD DVR. According to antennaweb I am within 7 miles of every tower and I am supposed to point at 69 for 5,24,30 up to 163 for 13. Is there anyone direction to point the antenna and get all the channels, I would like to use the DVR. I have an antenna in the attic that I have tried to point in an optimal direction but I am not having any luck. I also have a Zenith Silver Sensor that I have been using since March but I still have to move it around. Right now the Silver Sensor is pointed East and tipped up. I am currently using the silver sensor only. My signal strengths are as follows:

3.1 98
5.1 87-89
10.1 breaks up will get as high as 84 and lock a signal and then lose it
13.1 same as 10.1
24.1 98
30.1 84-89
50.1 98

I look at the antennaweb map and understand why 13 and 10 are bad because they are farther from the trio of 5,24,30, but I try to rotate just a little to grab those and it kills 5, 24, 30 either all or one or some combination. It drives me crazy.. does anyone have any suggestions.

Bye the way when you said directv hd dvr are you talking about the new hr20-700? If so did you order from directv or best buy? Since he is talking about OTA, it's not the HR20 since the OTA functionality is not turned on.

The HR10-250 is prone to having it's tuner overloaded. A variable attenuator from Radio Shack has solved a lot of problems for people at the Tivo Community (a sub forum of AVS).

-Robert