Rockford, IL - HDTV [Text View] - Page 3

yvralien

10-23-06, 05:16 PM

May I trouble someone for a short answer to a question posed by one not so atuned to this HDTV signal stuff...?
I live on a hilltop out Old Sauk Rd and can see the two towers @ Hwy M & Mineral Point and the one just down the beltline to the East. I have a new Sony HDTV & Charter digital with their HD box/package. I want to watch the World Series in HD. I note Charter does not carry it around here ( something about not wanting to buckup to Fox?). I bought a cheap antenna. It only gets me two channels...3.1 & 3.4???
Am I correct in saying that, notwithstanding my proximity to the two towers, I am unable to get Fox HD because Charter does not carry it? Secondly, I am assuming that the antenna, at best, will only get what I already subscribe to (everything) and my current reception of only two channels is simply a question of improper equipment utilization?
My thanks...

sebenste

10-23-06, 06:00 PM

Hey gang,

The FCC released their proposed, final list of DTV channels and power allocations on Friday.

http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-06-150A2.xls

Notice that after analog shutdown, WREX-DT has requested 5.07 kw on channel 13! What's up with that? They're at 163.9 kw now! Why? Why? Whywhywhy so little power?

Jeff Whitford

10-23-06, 06:51 PM

yvralien

10-23-06, 10:44 PM

It is an RCA " Amplified HDTV Antenna". Are you saying that a VHF antenna, notwithstanding reception, would pick it up?

sebenste

10-23-06, 11:38 PM

It is an RCA " Amplified HDTV Antenna". Are you saying that a VHF antenna, notwithstanding reception, would pick it up?
Hi YVR,

First, welcome to the forum!

OK, I'm from DeKalb, so I am trying to figure out were you are. Beltline...you're up in Madison...and the two TV towers are the ones they use up there, correct?

If so, this is easy. You have *too much* signal. When you turn up your radio to the point of distortion, you can't understand what people are singing. Same thing here in the sense that the TV signals are too strong, and are distorted to your TV.

Try "rabbit ears" with a "loop" UHF antenna. Wal-Mart and other stores have 'em for about $10. If you can see the Madison towers. With some adjusting, those 'ears should work just fine without an amp.

If I have mistaken you, and you're near the Rockford towers, I apologize but there's no changes to the thinking above. Use the same rabbit ears/loop antenna, unamplified.

yvralien

10-24-06, 08:47 AM

sebenste

10-24-06, 11:59 AM

Thanks for the response. I am indeed over on the far west side of Madison. I am still not clear on the FOX HD. Am I correct that Charter does not have/purchase FOX HD here and therefor there would be no signal from one of the towers to try and pick up?
The deal is Fox wants money from Charter to carry them. Charter is saying "no".
So, there it is. It's a standoff. The only way to see FOX HD right now in Madison is via over-the-air.

And most definitely, your amplified antenna is killing you. You are overwhelming your TV with signal, which is why you aren't getting anything. Heck, even a cheap wire hanging out of the input of your TV would probably do the trick!

yvralien

10-25-06, 12:33 PM

Success. Thank you both for the responses.

ruesch37

10-26-06, 06:32 PM

The deal is Fox wants money from Charter to carry them. Charter is saying "no".
So, there it is. It's a standoff. The only way to see FOX HD right now in Madison is via over-the-air.

And most definitely, your amplified antenna is killing you. You are overwhelming your TV with signal, which is why you aren't getting anything. Heck, even a cheap wire hanging out of the input of your TV would probably do the trick!

You can now receive FOX HD from Madison from Directv. I will be leaving Charter!!

Rammitinski

10-26-06, 06:43 PM

You can now receive FOX HD from Madison from Directv. I will be leaving Charter!!Just a suggestion, but you might want to wait until you have Direct installed before you cancel Charter, so you can compare them.

Direct waters down their HD more than cable and their SD doesn't look that great, either.

ruesch37

10-30-06, 05:36 PM

Just a suggestion, but you might want to wait until you have Direct installed before you cancel Charter, so you can compare them.

Direct waters down their HD more than cable and their SD doesn't look that great, either.

Directvs HD is as good as Charters. Plus I now get Fox in HD!!!!

matnlaci

10-30-06, 10:14 PM

Jeff Whitford

10-30-06, 11:57 PM

The CW 13.2 isnt HD. If you can get 57.1 (32.1) out of Madison that is. You will a pretty good antenna and probaly an amp.

sebenste

10-31-06, 12:02 AM

OK, I'm a noob at this so please go easy on me. My local cable company (Mediacom) is no longer carrying the CW so I'm investigating alternative methods to get the channel. From investigating online, it looks like the CW is being transmitted on 13.2 off of WREX's transmission. Is that right? I'm assuming I need a digital tuner to receive this feed? Also, I live about 40 miles west of Rockford, do you think I could get CW from this far away? What type of equipment do you recommed?

Sorry for all of the questions, but I wasn't sure where else to go.

Hello Matnlaci,

You came to the right place! Welcome to the forum. CW is indeed being broadcast on 13.2. You will need a digital tuner to get the feed; a Samsung SIR T-451 is a suggested decent tuner so long as you don't see "ghosts" on analog from your antenna...and I am assuming you only have an analog tuner on your TV at this point. Ebay has them at a decent price, but I have seen them at Circuit City for $225. If you aren't in the "hills" of Jo Daviess county, say 10 miles west of Freeport, and not blocked by any hills, you should be able to get it. Reference:

http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/FMTV-service-area?x=DT1130334.html

As for equipment: how high up will the antenna be? Outdoors or indoors? Either way, I recommend a ChannelMaster 4228 from Warren Electronics in the Quad Cities, roughly $60 with shipping (or drive to Moline and pick it up!). If the antenna HAS to stay in the attic (I recommend not pretty strongly), you'll need something like a ChannelMaster 4228 UHF antenna, also available at warrenelectronics.com, which I use and works great (in DeKalb, I can lock all but one channel from that antenna). It should continue to serve you well when WREX moves (FCC willing) in February 2009 to channel 13 (they broadcast on UHF channel 54 now).

I hope that helps you. You may also want the antenna on a rotor, because you probably will get the Quad Cities stations there as well, with the CM 4228 antenna.

matnlaci

10-31-06, 05:39 PM

sebenste

10-31-06, 11:40 PM

Thanks for the reply.

I'm actually in the hills of Stephenson County, Pearl City to be exact. I happen to be at the top of a hill, which helps.

The house I'm in now has an antenna tripod from a previous owner and the cables are still sitting there. I contacted a local antenna installer and he said it would be $200 for him to install an antenna. I also asked about having a rotor so I would have the ability to get the channels from Rockford as well as the channels from Madison. He said that I have a lot of trees obstructing my view to Rockford and so he would recommend against an antenna with a rotor as it couldn't be placed as high and he thinks I really need the height to be able to get a signal from Rockford. He said I have a clear shot to Madison, but basically I would have to decide between getting the Rockford stations or the Madison stations. I'm really mostly interested in getting a CW feed. He's going to come back out this weekend and he's going to hook it up and see what types of signal we get.

Do you think I'd be better off just trying to get one of the antennas you suggest and hooking it up myself since I already have the tripod mount on the roof and the cable run? It sounds like it would be cheaper. I'm really just interested in getting the most possible channels possible with the best possible signal possible.

Any advise is greatly appreciated.

There's two things here. If all you really want is the CW, Zaphod is correct, you
want Madison's high-def CW feed . But it is farther away, and is therefore more subject to interference from the atmosphere (warm fronts, bad weather, etc).

On the other hand, as a backup, I'd want WREX 13.2 as well. I am with your installer that trees will pose reception problems. So this is my $.02...

Have your installer hook everything up. Then check to see if both Rockford and
Madison comes in. If they do, then go with a rotor. If not, go with the one that comes in...hopefully, Madison.

My guess is this: if I were that installer, I'd warn about the trees hampering reception, particularly in the summer and early fall because leaves attenuate
signal, and even worse, when they're fluttering in the wind, they and the branches they are attached to cause an uneven signal which can result in
breakups or even loss of signal. But, if the signal is strong enough, it will still come in.

My suggestion is to let him try and see what happens. Also, ask him to try to get the Quad City stations, too.

Rammitinski

11-01-06, 01:09 PM

You will need a digital tuner to get the feed; a Samsung SIR T-451 is a suggested decent tuner so long as you don't see "ghosts" on analog from your antenna...and I am assuming you only have an analog tuner on your TV at this point. Ebay has them at a decent price, but I have seen them at Circuit City for $225.

Just to let you know -

Samsung has a newer model that just came out, the DTB-H260F, which retails for around $170,00, but it's not too easy to find as of yet. Some people have had some luck finding them at various Best Buy stores.

There's an ongoing thread on them in the HDTV Reception Hardware section.

sebenste

11-01-06, 01:50 PM

Just to let you know -

Samsung has a newer model that just came out, the DTB-H260F, which retails for around $170,00, but it's not too easy to find as of yet. Some people have had some luck finding them at various Best Buy stores.

There's an ongoing thread on them in the HDTV Reception Hardware section.
Thanks! A serious bug has been reported with it though: it won't display 720p properly. THAT'S not good.

Rammitinski

11-01-06, 02:35 PM

Thanks! A serious bug has been reported with it though: it won't display 720p properly. THAT'S not good.Yes, I was just reading over the thread and I saw that. Oh, well. Maybe a SIR-T451 would be better, as long as he doesn't have multipath issues. The 5th generation chips are supposed to be better at handling that, but there's been some talk that they're not as sensitive as far as distance. Kind of a trade-off, I guess.

The only issues with the T451 I know of are that the QAM tuner's frequency range isn't high enough to get all the channels sometimes. And then there's those infamous gray sidebars, which the newer one apparently doesn't have.

sebenste

11-03-06, 12:09 PM

Yes, I was just reading over the thread and I saw that. Oh, well. Maybe a SIR-T451 would be better, as long as he doesn't have multipath issues. The 5th generation chips are supposed to be better at handling that, but there's been some talk that they're not as sensitive as far as distance. Kind of a trade-off, I guess.

The only issues with the T451 I know of are that the QAM tuner's frequency range isn't high enough to get all the channels sometimes. And then there's those infamous gray sidebars, which the newer one apparently doesn't have.
Actually, it appears that problem was his TV, not the box. Matnlaci, any news?

switchwerks

11-03-06, 08:09 PM

sebenste

11-03-06, 08:45 PM

Hi, I live Poplar Grove, IL and I'm having trouble recieving WIFR-DT (23 analog, 42 digital). I can recieve the other Rockford channels on a Terrestrial Digital SR-15 UHF antenna with ease, but continue to have trouble with 23.1.

I have a two antenna setup, one Terrestrial Digital 91XG with a Winegard AP 8275 pre-amp pointed to Chicago (75 miles) with excellent performance. The 91XG is an awesome antenna, that's why I bought another Terrestrial Digital for the Rockford market.

13.1, 17.1, 39.1 come in good but 23.1 is hit or miss (mostly miss). I was wondering if anyone else has problems with this transmission?

If I could only get CBS from Chicago but that's a lost cause, I really don't want to put up a rotor and use my 91XG for Rockford, but maybe I'll have to.

Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Hello Switch,

Well, given that 39.1 comes in, it's likely not an antenna issue. Can you check 23 analog? How does that come in? If it is snowy, then somehow, some way your signal isn't good. Using an XG91, that's hard to believe. But...

My guess is that WOCH-CA Chicago or WMLW-CA Milwaukee analog low power channel 41 (from both cities) interferes. Proof: tune to channel 41 on an analog TV set hooked up to tht antenna. If you can see even a whisper of a signal on it, then you have analog interference, and I would say...wow. I don't know what would help. A Channelmaster 4228 antenna might help with its better mesh screen on the back.

Check the analog reception first when WIFR-DT is NOT coming in, and see what you can see on 41.

switchwerks

11-04-06, 11:22 AM

Hello Switch,

Well, given that 39.1 comes in, it's likely not an antenna issue. Can you check 23 analog? How does that come in? If it is snowy, then somehow, some way your signal isn't good. Using an XG91, that's hard to believe. But...

My guess is that WOCH-CA Chicago or WMLW-CA Milwaukee analog low power channel 41 (from both cities) interferes. Proof: tune to channel 41 on an analog TV set hooked up to tht antenna. If you can see even a whisper of a signal on it, then you have analog interference, and I would say...wow. I don't know what would help. A Channelmaster 4228 antenna might help with its better mesh screen on the back.

Check the analog reception first when WIFR-DT is NOT coming in, and see what you can see on 41.

Thanks for the advice. Analog 23 does have some slight interference on it. I'm guessing you're write with channel 41 out of Chicago might be causing the problem. My 91XG is only used at Chicago and my smaller SR-15 is pointing toward Rockford on the same mast. I did have to play with the spacing as the closer the two antennas where to each other the more cancellation I was getting. So I moved them apparte as far as I could and it seemed to get better, however 23.1 is still a problem. I know if I disconnect my 91XG Chicago antenna that the smaller Rockford one would probably get 23.1 without problems but I want to keep both up otherwise I have to put a rotor up.

I also did notice that last July when 23.1 was out for about a week due to some transmission problems, I was picking up channel 41 digital Chicago on a channel scan, I can't believe the frequencies are the same!

Jason Nipp

11-04-06, 12:36 PM

jazzjukebox

11-04-06, 02:42 PM

It seems that since Friday evening, 13-1 and 13-2 are broadcasting no video. I checked my antenna signal strength on both channels and it's over 90, just no image on either channel.

All the other local DT stations are fine.

Still no signal as of this writing. Anyone else having this problem?

Thanks,

Blaine

sebenste

11-04-06, 03:33 PM

Thanks for the advice. Analog 23 does have some slight interference on it. I'm guessing you're write with channel 41 out of Chicago might be causing the problem. My 91XG is only used at Chicago and my smaller SR-15 is pointing toward Rockford on the same mast. I did have to play with the spacing as the closer the two antennas where to each other the more cancellation I was getting. So I moved them apparte as far as I could and it seemed to get better, however 23.1 is still a problem. I know if I disconnect my 91XG Chicago antenna that the smaller Rockford one would probably get 23.1 without problems but I want to keep both up otherwise I have to put a rotor up.

I also did notice that last July when 23.1 was out for about a week due to some transmission problems, I was picking up channel 41 digital Chicago on a channel scan, I can't believe the frequencies are the same!

Bingo! You've diagnosed your problem. Yep, WOCH-LP 41 Chicago (analog, actually) got the green light to stomp all over WIFR-DT's signal to the east of Rockford. WOCH is paying $$$ to WIFR for that. Given that WIFR went bankrupt a few years ago, anything to raise cash at this point is worth it to them, since they have so few digital viewers relative to analog, and to the west, they hit their community of license (Freeport) just fine. Your comment about how 41 Chicago came in when they were off the air is the dead-ringer giveaway of your problem.

How to fix? I thought you had an XG-91 pointed at Rockford. If you like the XG, get another for Rockford. That should solve your problem. The smaller antenna you're using now has a lower front-to-back ratio than you want, that is, it picks up signal from the back of the antenna as well stronger than you'd want it to be.

I have the same problem in DeKalb, except worse. I had to put aluminum foil on the back of my attic antenna (ChannelMaster 4228 8-bay mesh screen) to increase the front-to-back even more and block out WOCH. When WIFR-DT was off down here, I was getting WOCH nearly without any snow when I rotated it to point towards Chicago.

sebenste

11-04-06, 03:37 PM

jazzjukebox

11-04-06, 04:46 PM

Hi Blaine,

2:35 PM...13-1 and 13-2 look great, 13-1 in HD. Solid signal from DeeeeKalb.

It looks like it's a problem with my Series 3 TiVo ATSC tuners. Reports are cropping up on the TiVo forum. Ugh! Looks like I gotta make a call to TiVo.

Blaine

jazzjukebox

11-04-06, 06:43 PM

Maybe it's not a problem with my TiVo's tuner.

Maybe some of you engineer types can make some sense out of the following quote from the TiVo Series 3 forum about a similar problem with a local broadcaster in Florida(FOX).

(As mentioned in the post, my TiVo gets a signal lock, but no data lock on 13-1 and 13-2)

I'm more inclined to believe that something has changed on WREX's end than my new S3 TiVo has a faulty tuner, especially since all the other local DT stations are coming in fine. Granted, the TiVo engineer in the post below indicates that a fix will be coming for the TiVo software, but that the broadcaster can fix it on their end in the mean time.

Can anyone shed any more light on this? Anyway, here's the original TiVo post below.

--Blaine

> If you are getting your HD/digital channel OTA, then it
> sounds like you are experiencing same problem I discovered
> last week. I worked with TiVoJerry for several days and TiVo
> Engineering was able to isolate problem to an error in the
> broadcaster's PSIP table. This can be fixed by the
> broadcaster, but TiVo will also include a fix in a future
> software update which will ignore the error.
>
> From TiVoJerry:
>
> The problem is twofold:
>
> 1. The TVCT that FOX is publishing on frequencyIndex 22 does
> not provide a valid channel_TSID for the virtual channel. It
> should not be "0".
>
> 2. We weren't expecting a "0", but the good news is that we
> will fix it in a future software release (unknown ETA).
> Please check when you get the next update and I'll let you
> know if it was included or not. We have a candidate that may
> get pushed out soon, but it could leave the fix for this
> behind.
>
> To fix this, you could wait until we roll the software
> update. Or you could contact your provider and let them
> know.
>
> I originally discovered the problem on a local Fox channel.
> Since then, I've found a local independent channel has same
> problem. One symptom of the problem is that you will get a
> signal lock, but no data lock.

sebenste

11-04-06, 09:40 PM

Maybe it's not a problem with my TiVo's tuner.

Maybe some of you engineer types can make some sense out of the following quote from the TiVo Series 3 forum about a similar problem with a local broadcaster in Florida(FOX).

> I originally discovered the problem on a local Fox channel.
> Since then, I've found a local independent channel has same
> problem. One symptom of the problem is that you will get a
> signal lock, but no data lock.

I'd do 2 things. Since the WREX engineers don't post here, I'd call them up to see if there is a problem, and let them know what you're seeing. Second, I'd push TiVO for that fix. in the next release. If nothing else, one or the other should solve the problem.

mrpuny

11-04-06, 11:44 PM

jazzjukebox

11-05-06, 01:23 AM

Blaine, something definitely happened on WREX's end Friday. (Either that or we've coincidentally had a similar problem.) My HDTV can no longer tune 13-1 or 13-2 any more, but my HDTV Wonder in my PC can. I forwarded your post with TivoJerry's comments to the WREX chief engineer email address.

Sean

I just emailed him too. Hopefully, they can identify and fix the problem soon.

Thanks for your post to confirm a problem.

Blaine

cmunroe

11-05-06, 05:47 PM

I also lost Wrex on one of my TV's
- strong signal no video - a rescan fixed the problem.

jazzjukebox

11-05-06, 10:49 PM

I also lost Wrex on one of my TV's
- strong signal no video - a rescan fixed the problem.

No such luck for me. Still no WREX-DT. :-(

hvs10trk

11-06-06, 07:15 AM

No such luck for me. Still no WREX-DT. :-(
I'll see what I can find out from my inside sources.

jazzjukebox

11-06-06, 12:40 PM

I'll see what I can find out from my inside sources.

I got an email response from WREX Chief Engineer, Gerr Meinders.

> Yes, WREX made a PSIP software upgrade and this has
> generated the digital reception problem. We'll be making
> changes to our PSIP to clear up the problem.

connery58

11-08-06, 07:40 PM

Ast Chf

11-09-06, 06:56 PM

Hey All,

I was wondering if anyone had any information on Insight broadcasting WQRF in HD. I have inquired Insight a couple of times and haven't really gotten a good answer. Any info would be greatly appreciated!!!

Thanks

Insight just this week installed fiber at WQRF for just this. This is a guess but I'd say we'd be on in the next couple of weeks.

I'll post again once we get a firm date.

sebenste

11-11-06, 03:20 AM

Insight just this week installed fiber at WQRF for just this. This is a guess but I'd say we'd be on in the next couple of weeks.

I'll post again once we get a firm date.

Hey Assistant Chief,

Just an FYI---during a program tonight, I noticed that there's a dark blue-colored, solid FOX logo in the far bottom right corner of the screen that is barely 15% on-screen. Just so's you nose... :D

johnnykretentiv

11-11-06, 08:01 AM

I also lost Wrex on one of my TV's
- strong signal no video - a rescan fixed the problem.

I get the same thing from Fox here in Rockton.

Ast Chf

11-11-06, 05:52 PM

Hey Assistant Chief,

Just an FYI---during a program tonight, I noticed that there's a dark blue-colored, solid FOX logo in the far bottom right corner of the screen that is barely 15% on-screen. Just so's you nose... :D

That will be replaced with a WQRF-DT logo in the next day or 2. That is a default logo that Fox triggers remotly and we have no control over

Karrrma

11-13-06, 03:32 AM

connery58

11-13-06, 07:40 PM

Insight just this week installed fiber at WQRF for just this. This is a guess but I'd say we'd be on in the next couple of weeks.

I'll post again once we get a firm date.

Thanks for the info, I can't wait to start getting WQRF in HD over Insight!!

BigCubFan

11-14-06, 01:19 PM

Does anyone know when WQRF-DT will be broadcasting at full strength? I can get all the other local HD channels in Roscoe on an indoor antenna except for Fox and I gotta see Da Bears in Hi-Def! Thanks :)

sebenste

11-14-06, 02:05 PM

Hi all, I am really a newbie in all of this, and wanted to know if I could get some basic info to get my feet wet and then maybe I can get into more technical areas.
I am looking into getting an OTA to go with my DishNetwork and I have had so many people tell me all different things that I just want to throw all that info out and start fresh.

I want to pick up the rockford channels but want to know what extra steps I would have to do to pick up either and both of chicago and madison. I am at candlewick lake if that helps. Please let me know if I can answer anything else to help you help me
Thanks :confused: :o :confused: :)

For just Rockford stations, a rooftop antenna such as this:

http://www.warrenelectronics.com/antennas/pr7037.htm

should work fine. If you put it in an attic, you'll need a preamplifier, such as this:

http://www.warrenelectronics.com/antennas/ap2870.htm

If you want Chicago stations, you need a large ChannelMaster antenna, such as:

http://www.starkelectronic.com/allant.htm

Look at the ChannelMaster 3671. That should do you well, putting it on a rotor.

As for a tuner, try a Samsung SIR T-451 from Ebay. The latest generation is out,
but unless you have an HDTV, the menu won't display. I have seen the T-451
at Best Buy and elsewhere, but it has been discontinued. Ebay has some. I like it!

Rammitinski

11-14-06, 02:39 PM

I noticed that the local BB here in Crystal Lake was still selling the T-451 (along with the newer model) about a week ago, so you might find one near you that has some in stock.

If not, you could always try begging them to have one sent over from here, or just stop by the store here if you happen to be out this way. But I'd definitely call them first to make sure they still have one.

Karrrma

11-14-06, 02:44 PM

Do I need something like the T-451 with the Dishnetwork reciever?

Rammitinski

11-14-06, 02:56 PM

Do I need something like the T-451 with the Dishnetwork reciever?It depends on which Dish receiver you have. If it's an HD-capable one (and it includes an OTA ATSC tuner), you can use it to get the local digital channels. If it's only standard def, then you'll need an additional receiver like the Samsung to get them.

Let us know the model number of your Dish receiver.

sebenste

11-16-06, 12:01 AM

WIFR-TV had a heinous blowout of their Klystron tube in their analog transmitter.
On their website, they note that they probably will be back on the air late Wednesday or tomorrow, and say most cable systems and satellite are having no problems. That's because of fiber, and...ahem...WIFR-DT is still on the air just fine. Why didn't they mention THAT?

C'mon guys, half your station is up and doing fine! :mad:

And in DeKalb, WWME-TV 23 from Chicago is coming in decently...

dline

11-16-06, 03:55 AM

As for a tuner, try a Samsung SIR T-451 from Ebay. The latest generation is out, but unless you have an HDTV, the menu won't display. If the 451 is anything like the 351, which I have, there may be a switch on the back called "Resolution Select," which sets the output resolution. On the T-351, the 480i output (for analog sets) is "always on." But the menu will only appear on a 480i set if this switch is set to the 480i output. If it's set to the 720p or 1080i outputs, the box is still outputting the 480i signal but there will be no menus or anything else superimposed on it.

Ast Chf

11-21-06, 09:03 PM

WQRF-DT is now on Insight cable on channel 908 in HD

Ast Chf

11-21-06, 09:04 PM

WQRF-DT is now on Insight cable on channel 908 in HD

CORRECTION WQRF is on Insight channel # 910. (908 is WTVO-DT)

hvs10trk

11-21-06, 09:16 PM

CORRECTION WQRF is on Insight channel # 910. (908 is WTVO-DT)
I don't have Insight. Can you tell me what channel on RCN??? :p

hvs10trk

11-24-06, 02:15 PM

Boy, tough crowd. :D Hope everyone had a Great Thanksgiving.

Jason Nipp

11-30-06, 09:28 PM

Did anybody else notice WIFR-DT added a new subchannel with accuweather live doppler?

sebenste

11-30-06, 09:44 PM

Did anybody else notice WIFR-DT added a new subchannel with accuweather live doppler?

You beat me to it by 10 minutes! I noticed it about 20 minutes ago.

Jason Nipp

12-01-06, 08:35 AM

Snow day! :D

However since I'm on call today I will eventually have to venture out into the white abyss. :(

Rammitinski

12-02-06, 01:25 AM

Did anybody else notice WIFR-DT added a new subchannel with accuweather live doppler?I thought that Letterman wasn't looking as good as usual the last couple of nights. Now I know why :mad: :( .

Jason Nipp

12-02-06, 10:12 PM

I watch Leno, so couldn't say. :D

hvs10trk

12-04-06, 01:23 PM

I thought that Letterman wasn't looking as good as usual the last couple of nights. Now I know why :mad: :( .
When did Letterman go HD???

Jeff Whitford

12-04-06, 02:58 PM

A year ago

Rammitinski

12-04-06, 05:24 PM

When did Letterman go HD???You really should spend less time working and posting on this website, and actually WATCH the TV a little more often ;) :D .

hvs10trk

12-04-06, 08:09 PM

You really should spend less time working and posting on this website, and actually WATCH the TV a little more often ;) :D .
LOL. It's past my bed time. :eek:

Rammitinski

12-05-06, 01:43 PM

LOL. It's past my bed time. :eek: :D ;) .

I was closely observing Letterman last night to make sure and, I'll be darned - it IS noticibly softer. It just doesn't have that crispness and sparkle like it used to have anymore.

Looks like I'm gonna hafta start back on my quest to receive WBBM-DT again :( :mad: .

I just got a decent uhf antenna on the roof, and was finally able to get WIFR-DT steadily for the first time - now this :rolleyes: :mad: .

Just can't win.

cinemascope

12-05-06, 10:50 PM

The audio on 23.1 is screwed up too... The center is missing from the stereo mixdown.

hvs10trk

12-05-06, 11:13 PM

The audio on 23.1 is screwed up too... The center is missing from the stereo mixdown.
Kinda funny you mention that, so is WBBM's. I smell a conspiracy. :eek:

JKW76

12-15-06, 02:52 PM

I just bought a Toshiba 56HM66 on BF. I don't have a roof antenna so I threw on a pair of rabbit ears just to try out the HD Channels in Rockford. WREX and WTVO's HD channels are coming in perfect but I have a problem with WIFR. 23-1 has perfect picture but no sound. 23-2 has the Doppler radar with the audio that should be with 23-1. Is this a problem that I'm causing or is it WIFR?

Thanks for any help!

Joe
Freeport, IL

hvs10trk

12-15-06, 05:14 PM

Ast Chf

12-17-06, 06:24 PM

That sounds like it could be an encoder problem on their end.
Sounds more like a PSIP problem.

curtm73

12-17-06, 06:36 PM

up here in rockton...have a terk antenna run to my directtv hd-dvr....can pick up rockford locals except fox 39 which makes me mad....any reason why....the antenna is mounted on the side of house but only about 6 feet off ground...should i move it higher....have a 2 story house so i was thinking about it :eek:

Jeff Whitford

12-17-06, 08:10 PM

....any reason why....
Two reasons 39 isnt broadcasting at full power and omni directional antennas are only so good

johnnykretentiv

12-17-06, 09:17 PM

Jeff Whitford

12-18-06, 12:23 AM

When was the last time you rescaned your channels?

sebenste

12-18-06, 01:50 AM

Sounds more like a PSIP problem.

I'm with the Assistant Chief here. I am getting 23-1 audio just fine.

sebenste

12-18-06, 01:53 AM

Two reasons 39 isnt broadcasting at full power and omni directional antennas are only so good

Heh...39 is broadcasting at VERY low power right now, 2,300 watts. They have a construction permit to go to 1,000,000 watts, they hope to build it out early next year. They have to get a Champaign station done first, and an ice storm has slowed them down...

Omni-directional antennas are generally bad news. Directional means signal gain. Terk antennas generally do badly unless you almost have the transmitter tower lights in your view! :eek:

johnnykretentiv

12-18-06, 07:26 AM

When was the last time you rescaned your channels?
Today.

Cyro79

12-20-06, 10:36 AM

sebenste

12-20-06, 03:12 PM

Can anyone tell me if Dish network and/or DirectTV have as good or better picture quality then Insight in Rockford? I am talking about HDTV PQ as well as SD PQ. If I use Insight I would use a cablecard, but I wonder if the pq would suffer if I used their hd dvr box? My tv is a Toshiba 56hm66.

If someone could just rank these for me with reasons why I'd greatly appreciate it.

Direct TV, DishNet, Insight w/ cc, Insight w/ hd dvr box

Ah, an easy question...

DirecTV and Dish don't offer HD channels for Rockford, and won't until late next year at the earliest. As for SD, Dish should be comparable; DirecTV is worse due to compression.

Cyro79

12-20-06, 04:47 PM

Ah, an easy question...

DirecTV and Dish don't offer HD channels for Rockford, and won't until late next year at the earliest. As for SD, Dish should be comparable; DirecTV is worse due to compression.

Well they don't offer local channels in HD but they do offer the HD pack. I would never pay for locals when I can just use an antenna. I hear about this directTV compression but I wonder if with the new satellites next year if this will solve this issue? Also isn't directTV SD better then Insight's analog picture? One more thing, if I bought the antenna DirectTV offers could i then use the dvr from the 622 to record my local stations in HD?

I have Insight right now and the HD picture is great, but man the analog and even the SD channels are horrible looking. If Direct is worse then this they might as well go out of business.

As for Dish i was all set to go with them, then I heard that next year they will get surpassed by DirectTV in HD programming. The "Voom" stations are a joke and I don't want them in the least bit. However Dish does offer NFL Network, Food, and HGTV in HD which my family would use. I do think that Direct will add these next year however.

If I didn't have to committ I would probably go for Dish right now. But in a year I am afraid I will be struggling and regretting my decision. However if DirectTV is going to continue to push "HD Lite" as I read here then they can have 200 HD channels and it would be pointless.

So maybe I should stick with cable and only use the HDTV for HD programming as my Sony Wega analog picture blows away my Toshiba 56inch HDTV SD picture. But then I get no dvr or on screen guide and it just feels cheap.

I am hating this right now.

Cyro79

12-20-06, 05:31 PM

Well nevermind I guess D* likes to charge you $5 per TV even if you own the receiver. I guess it is called a "leasing fee" if you let them bring you one, but its called an "access fee" if you have them hook up a receiver owned by you. This is comical in my opinion. If I own the receiver why the f*** do they charge me to use it. This makes the cost astronomically higher then both dish and cable. At least Dish offers dual tuner receivers cutting that bull crap cost in half. I suppose they also charge you if you own a receiver and try to set up service but still, they give you some kind of help, either way I don't want either now.

Cable all the way for me. I pay $1.99/month for a cable card which even this I feel is bull, I should be able to buy it and be done with it. Yet, at least it isn't $15 a month like D*, or $10 a month like E* for me to use my 4 tvs. I really hope by the time all channels go digital someone steps in and demands that these companies allow you to purchase this equipment, or just build it into tvs for that matter.

Maybe my solution is to get TIVO. Can TIVO work with a cablecard? If so do they record in HD?

Jeff Whitford

12-20-06, 11:19 PM

Cyro79

12-21-06, 12:43 AM

The series 3 Tivo records HD and accepts a cable card. Good luck if you buy one finding someone at the cable co that can figure out how to get card mated with the Tivo and making your channels come in. By the way D* has charged that fee since the beginning.

I understand that if I lease a receiver I would have a monthly fee. I also understand the dvr fee. What I don't understand is why should I pay money to own a receiver if I am getting charged the $5 fee anyways.

Jeff Whitford

12-21-06, 05:28 PM

Well they could charge you and individual package charge for each receiver. I'm not defending them but its the way it has always been and probably the way it will always be.

wisebri

12-22-06, 12:27 AM

I'm a real newbie and am happy I stumbled across this site. My parents juts bought an HDTV and I was told they would just need an RCA HDTV Indoor Amplified Antenna to get HDTV from their house just off of East State Street in Rockford. Great in getting 13,17,and 23, but there is absolutely no signal for 39 in HD. The regular reception of 39 is pretty bad too. I have a regular set of Rabbit ears at my house off of Linden Road and I get 39 crystal clear (not HDTV). Do I need to do something at my folks to get 39 better or in HD? I read some of the other posts and get a feeling that 39 will just be bad for awhile until they crank up the power. Any help would be super appreciated. Thanks.

Rammitinski

12-22-06, 01:46 AM

So maybe I should stick with cable and only use the HDTV for HD programming as my Sony Wega analog picture blows away my Toshiba 56inch HDTV SD picture. But then I get no dvr or on screen guide and it just feels cheap.
The only thing I can tell you is that either D* or E*'s SD is not gonna look very good on that 56" Toshiba. I've got E* SD, and it doesn't even look too good on my 32" analog TV, although some channels do look better than others.

I use the Sony DHG-HDD500 DVR for my digital locals, and it includes TV Guide on Screen (for a guide). Something like the new Samsung ATSC (OTA) tuner will also give you a guide (of sorts), although not on the level of TVGOS, which gives you 8 days worth.

(Just some suggestions.)

Cyro79

12-22-06, 06:06 PM

The only thing I can tell you is that either D* or E*'s SD is not gonna look very good on that 56" Toshiba. I've got E* SD, and it doesn't even look too good on my 32" analog TV, although some channels do look better than others.

I use the Sony DHG-HDD500 DVR for my digital locals, and it includes TV Guide on Screen (for a guide). Something like the new Samsung ATSC (OTA) tuner will also give you a guide (of sorts), although not on the level of TVGOS, which gives you 8 days worth.

(Just some suggestions.)

It has to look better then Insight's analog picture. Plus it will be nice to get the NFL network in Hd in addition to a bunch of other channels that Insight does not offer. Not to mention I now will have dvr and it is still cheaper then cable. Oh and my other tvs get all the channels and an on screen guide, again not with insight.

That Sony thing is $700, ouch. I take it no monthly fees or something? I looked for the Samsung but could not find it, is this around the same price as that Sony?

What i really need is a good antenna for Rockford locals in HD. Can't the dish installers put an ota antenna on the dish for reception?

Rammitinski

12-23-06, 02:38 AM

No fees with the Sony.

I guess the Samsung is pretty hard to find. BB & CC supposedly carry it, but it seems they never replaced their initial stock. Maybe you can get it through theirs (or others) websites. It's $180.00. You can still find their last model, the SIR-T451, at some stores and sites. But I think I remember someone mention here that the newer model's guide surfing was faster than usual (which is pretty slow on most standalone ATSC tuners). That model also costs more ($250.00 new - retail).

The antennas the satellite companies put on the dishes are not usually very good. But if you can get something outside and high up enough, your chances should be a lot better.

There are probably a number of antennas that may work, some even small and light enough to attach to the dish. Just DO NOT bother with that crescent shaped Terk model that "clips on" around the dish itself. That thing is a joke. Maybe an Antennas Direct DB2 or DB4, or maybe even a Winegard Square Shooter would work.

Now that I re-read your original post, you say the RCA model they have is amplified - first off, they shouldn't need an amp, being that close. If you want to try another indoor model, the Philips Silver Sensor UHF one is the best their is. CC sells it for about $25.00. All the Rockford digitals are UHF, so they don't need the VHF capabilities. You're chances are best if you can get the antenna up as high in the room/house as possible. And you have to try moving it around the room to find a "sweet spot".

(I'll take your word that your analog cable looks terrible - but seriously - don't expect much from SD satellite. It may still be an improvement, but it's really gone downhill from just a few years ago.)

sebenste

12-23-06, 02:39 AM

Rammitinski

12-23-06, 02:47 AM

Cyro79

12-23-06, 11:00 AM

No fees with the Sony.

I guess the Samsung is pretty hard to find. BB & CC supposedly carry it, but it seems they never replaced their initial stock. Maybe you can get it through theirs (or others) websites. It's $180.00. You can still find their last model, the SIR-T451, at some stores and sites. But I think I remember someone mention here that the newer model's guide surfing was faster than usual (which is pretty slow on most standalone ATSC tuners). That model also costs more ($250.00 new - retail).

The antennas the satellite companies put on the dishes are not usually very good. But if you can get something outside and high up enough, your chances should be a lot better.

Now that I re-read your original post, you say the RCA model they have is amplified - first off, they shouldn't need an amp, being that close. If you want to try another indoor model, the Philips Silver Sensor UHF one is the best their is. CC sells it for about $25.00. All the Rockford digitals are UHF, so they don't need the VHF capabilities. You're chances are best if you can get the antenna up as high in the room/house as possible. And you have to try moving it around the room to find a "sweet spot".

(I'll take your word that your analog cable looks terrible - but seriously - don't expect much from SD satellite. It may still be an improvement, but it's really gone downhill from just a few years ago.)

That samsung seems to be an enteresting piece of equipment. If the dish HD picture ends up being worse then insight I may go out and buy this to use with my cable card.

I also picked up a $7.50 antenna from walmart to see if that will work, I bet it will. If not I can get the silver sensor. Is it pretty easy to scan those channels into the box for dvr recording?

sebenste

12-23-06, 11:58 AM

Hey, Gibert-

I was trying to find your 8200 on the roof of the church the other day, because I got on and off the train right next to it. The only thing I could see that even vaguely resembled an antenna was in the back, left-hand corner (which would be from the frontal view of the building). Was that it?

Since the 8200p is a large antenna, my guess is no, but I can't be sure. I did my best to hide it, and it looks like I did my job well. :D

It's up on a 6' mast, but near the center of the building, so it is very hard to see. It is impossible to see from the front parking lot, and barely visible as you approach the building from U.S. 12 or whatever that road is (you can tell I don't get up there often). It is more visible looking at it from the east.

Rammitinski

12-24-06, 02:28 AM

Rammitinski

12-24-06, 03:10 AM

That samsung seems to be an enteresting piece of equipment. If the dish HD picture ends up being worse then insight I may go out and buy this to use with my cable card.

I also picked up a $7.50 antenna from walmart to see if that will work, I bet it will. If not I can get the silver sensor. Is it pretty easy to scan those channels into the box for dvr recording?If you get the cable DVR, you won't be able to run the Samsung through it and record from it.

If you want to use OTA with an HD DVR, you'd probably be best off with E*, since HD satellite tuners have built-in ATSC tuners. I'd just get something like the Bronze or Silver package.

Keep in mind though, that if you don't subscribe to Dish's locals, they won't give you the guide data for them (schmucks that they are).

hvs10trk

12-24-06, 09:27 AM

That would be Route 14. It's actually off of Congress Pkwy. I was looking from the east side (from the train station platform), but I couldn't see towards the middle of the roof - so that probably wasn't it.
OK you have my curiosity, now I need to look when I'm at the train on tuesday. Which direction do I need to look from the east side of the station??

Rammitinski

12-24-06, 04:20 PM

OK you have my curiosity, now I need to look when I'm at the train on tuesday. Which direction do I need to look from the east side of the station??It's the big building straight to the west. You really can't miss it, since the area around the Pingree Rd. station's so open and it's the first big building there. I really don't think you'll see the antenna from there, though. I certainly couldn't, and I looked pretty hard. Maybe if you were going southwest from Woodstock, you MIGHT see it from straight behind it. But, even then, I doubt it. The building's too high and big, area-wise.

hvs10trk

12-24-06, 11:13 PM

It's the big building straight to the west. You really can't miss it, since the area around the Pingree Rd. station's so open and it's the first big building there. I really don't think you'll see the antenna from there, though. I certainly couldn't, and I looked pretty hard. Maybe if you were going southwest from Woodstock, you MIGHT see it from straight behind it. But, even then, I doubt it. The building's too high and big, area-wise.
LOL I am reading this forgeting that you are closer to Pingree than Main Street. Silly me. I'll look on tuesday.

Ast Chf

12-25-06, 01:09 AM

LOL I am reading this forgeting that you are closer to Pingree than Main Street. Silly me. I'll look on tuesday.

No wonder you could never get a live shot up on the first try <eg>
Merry Xmas :)

Cyro79

12-25-06, 01:48 AM

Keep in mind though, that if you don't subscribe to Dish's locals, they won't give you the guide data for them (schmucks that they are).

That is why I can't see what the heck is on. I think I might be regretting getting E* hooked up. Not only were they a half an hour past the huge 12-5 window they gave me, but man have I invested in a large amount of money here.

The dual tuner using the 2nd remote is a joke, I have to point it with pinpoint accuracy to get it to work in my bedroom with my 2nd tv. I now have to run phone wire in my basement because they want the receiver hooked up to my voip, and not to mention I had to buy a splitter. The installer only had 25 feet long cordes and was unwiling to install it for me.

So now I need to pay $5 for locals, + $6 for dvr so thats $11. My cable one costs $12 so I am saving a whole dollar, not to mention on the cable one I can record something, and watch different programming on my main tv as well as the others in my house. Also I think Insight has a better picture! ESPN I know is better on cable. I also thought the all digital picture was supposed to be better then analog, well it isn't. i watched the Bulls on Saturday night on WGN and the picture was so bad I was actually lol at it. looked like I was watching double dribble on nintendo. Well i thought, at least I got NFL in HD, but to my dissmay only the live games are hd, everything else has been sd making it pointless for the most part.

I feel ripped off and I want cable back, I hope I can get out of this E* mess and get my $300 I invested back. Insight is owned by comcast, it is a better deal then dish. I have heard that some other cable companies offer less product, but not insight. I am sorry I have doubted them and hope I can get this ugly dish and its 50 wires away, the sooner the better!

bsather

12-25-06, 06:21 AM

The series 3 Tivo records HD and accepts a cable card. Good luck if you buy one finding someone at the cable co that can figure out how to get card mated with the Tivo and making your channels come in. By the way D* has charged that fee since the beginning.

I have Charter cable and the Tivo 3, by the way they use 2 cable cards, and it is working great. I also have 2 Sony HDD500s with cards that work fine also. It really depends on the cable tech you get.

hvs10trk

12-25-06, 06:11 PM

No wonder you could never get a live shot up on the first try <eg>
Merry Xmas :)
FUNNY....... :D Merry Christmas.

sebenste

12-25-06, 11:02 PM

That would be Route 14. It's actually off of Congress Pkwy. I was looking from the east side (from the train station platform), but I couldn't see towards the middle of the roof - so that probably wasn't it.

The official address is 200 Exchange street.

http://www.willowcreek.org/mchenry/files/WCMC_Directions.pdf

So you were there, but again, look from Exchange or you won't see it. You can see it by the tracks and beyond.

Jeff Whitford

12-25-06, 11:23 PM

I have Charter cable and the Tivo 3, by the way they use 2 cable cards, and it is working great. I also have 2 Sony HDD500s with cards that work fine also. It really depends on the cable tech you get.
I had a customer in Lake Forrest that had 3 Tivo 3's and it took 3hours on the phone with technical support to get them (6 cards)activated. :eek:

bsather

12-26-06, 05:37 AM

I had a customer in Lake Forrest that had 3 Tivo 3's and it took 3hours on the phone with technical support to get them (6 cards)activated. :eek:

The tech was here for 1 hour and 45 minutes for my Tivo 3...all mostly on hold to get through to get them activated. He also was sending them messages with his blackberry. I didn't mind, he was friendly & knowledgeable....believe me, most are not.

connery58

12-27-06, 07:27 PM

Hey Everyone,

I was just wondering if anyone had any information about the CW in Rockford going to HD? Any information would be appreciated!

Thanks

Jeff Whitford

12-27-06, 08:39 PM

I doubt it unless its moved to its own transmiter. You really cant get to HD stations from one signal. Or should I say you wouldnt want it from one signal. The picture quality would be horrible.

hvs10trk

12-27-06, 08:57 PM

I agree. Knowing Quincy, they won't be giving CW14 it's own transmitter anytime soon. They could feed cable HD but that's probably going to be the extent of it.

Kevin4092D

12-28-06, 02:42 PM

sebenste

12-28-06, 03:31 PM

We're in DeKalb. My wife bought a little RCA amplified antenna for our tv yesterday. Its small and looks nice but isn't drawing a strong signal. We get 23 in HD crystal clear. 17.1 & 17.2 come in usually but the sound stumbles and the picture breaks up a little. 13 is almost complete snow. NBC channel 5 and 32 WFLD Chicago are trying to come in but they're snowy. 39 isn't that great either and its SD. The coax that came with the antenna is causing problems. Its cheap and there is a lot of interference. I'm going to replace it with something better & shorter.

We'll either pay the small extra amount to Comcast for HD or get a better antenna. Any other suggestions?

Hi Kevin,

As a semi-professional antenna installer "on the side", if you will, here in DeKalb...

If you see "snow", it isn't digital. If you see breakup or no signal at all or a perfect signal, then you probably have digital. I see you get 17.2, so you do have a digital tuner.

With all the taxes the city throws on, it's about $20 a month for basic HD and analog local channels from Comcast. Keep that cost in mind as I suggest the following...

Buy a ChannelMaster 4228 UHF antenna for your attic or roof. And, you'll need a $25 Magnavox preamplifier found at Farm and Fleet to boost the weak signals coming from your attic. The 4228 is available at http://www.warrenelectronics.com/antennas/4228.htm. Put the antenna on a rotor, as I have in my attic, and then you get everything from Chicago (except WBBM/CBS), and you'll get everything from Rockford as well. Yeah, I know, it's about $170 for everything. But Comcast doesn't offer HD from Rockford. And WQRF shows GB Packer football games, if you are a fan, when Chicago does not. You can save $60 if you don't use a rotor and just hang it by kite string from the ceiling, which is what I do with my 4228 for my WLS signal. Just point to one city or the other. You'll still get some Rockford stations (WTVO and possibly WREX) even when pointing to Chicago.

My setup on the northwest side of the city (Bethany Road and 1st street, to the west of that) is a 4228 on a rotor, and a second one used on an A/B switch due to a dead spot I have in my attic for WLS and WPWR on bad weather days.

But, I am low in elevation, and if you are east of the Kish, you probably won't have as much of a problem (a friend who lives by Kishwaukee Hospital gets everything except FOX pointing his 4228 towards Chicago, so there you go). As for me, I get everything but WBBM-DT from Chicago and WYIN-DT from Gary, IN. I also get all Rockford, and frequently, Madison and Milwaukee stations boom in, and occasionally South Bend, IN as well.

For convenience, you could go with Comcast, but you will not get Rockford HD,
as there is no room for them to add those channels.

Kevin4092D

12-28-06, 04:08 PM

Thanks! I'll give that a try...as long I can manuever my way through the attic. :)

I live on the far east side of DeKalb. For about a year we've been subscribed to Comcast Cheap (basic for about $11). We figured the extra $5 (now 7) would be worth it for the HD channels now that we have an HDTV. All we watch mostly is primetime shows from CBS, ABC, and FOX...few NBC shows. Currently our SD is pretty good but can be a bit grainy. 23 comes in perfect and 17 comes in good (4:3).

All we'd really like to do is get a few more HD channels for the shows we watch. CBS and ABC are the more important channels for us. We watch movies with an upconvert DVD player via HDMI. We're 50/50 TV versus DVD. The antenna we have is suprisingly strong for how small it is. I might hook up RG6 cable to limit interference.

mazzq45

12-29-06, 05:35 PM

put an over the air antenna on house and bought dish hd
i get my local [rockford il.] on regular antenna but that digital signal comes thru my dish receiver
the first month i got local channel programming info when i hit guide . Now the local programming channel guide just says "digital service" not the show info for that channel
any way to get this info back on the channel guide?
How do old black and white movies and stuff from the 60's come thru on hd on satellite channels
is hd the way things are filmed or just the way they are broadcast?
thanks
Mazz

inthepyramid

12-29-06, 09:34 PM

has anyone tried the terk indoor amplified antenna from best buy?

Rammitinski

12-31-06, 02:19 AM

sebenste

12-31-06, 04:00 AM

If you do not subscribe to the locals from Dish, they will not give you the guide info for those channels.

Sucks, but that's the way it is.

On an unrelated note...

Ramm, you get your Christmas present. My guess is due to the children's programming for each subchannel law as of 1/1/07, 23-2 has been yanked.

Edit: it's not a guess. That's what happened.

Rammitinski

12-31-06, 08:46 PM

On an unrelated note...

Ramm, you get your Christmas present. My guess is due to the children's programming for each subchannel law as of 1/1/07, 23-2 has been yanked.

Naw, I didn't get what I REALLY wanted - a nice, new 50" plasma ;) :D .

Yes, I noticed the subchannel was gone the other day and I wondered what was up. Now I know why. Pretty ridiculous, this "government control" B.S., huh?

On another note -

I had 13-2 on for a few seconds this afternoon during the "American martial arts" - type flick they were showing, and everytime someone threw a kick or flurry of punches, the picture would macroblock like crazy. It was the worst I've ever seen on there. They should really try to do something about that (like, don't even show those kind of movies :rolleyes: :) .)

sebenste

01-01-07, 03:26 AM

Naw, I didn't get what I REALLY wanted - a nice, new 50" plasma ;) :D .

Yes, I noticed the subchannel was gone the other day and I wondered what was up. Now I know why. Pretty ridiculous, this "government control" B.S., huh?

On another note -

I had 13-2 on for a few seconds this afternoon during the "American martial arts" - type flick they were showing, and everytime someone threw a kick or flurry of punches, the picture would macroblock like crazy. It was the worst I've ever seen on there. They should really try to do something about that (like, don't even show those kind of movies :rolleyes: :) .)

Yeah, 23-2 is gone because of the new kids programs for subchannels rule, as is 6-2 in the Quad Cities, 24-2 in Milwaukee, 47-2 in Madison, and quite a few others around the country.

As for the macroblocking, sounds like they have about 3 mb of bandwidth allocated for 13-2, same as NBC Weather Plus in Chicago. That'll happen...

Edit: 23-2 is back! Looks like they fixed a problem or changed their minds.

hvs10trk

01-02-07, 07:32 AM

Anybody having problems with WTVO during HD programming?? Specifically between HD network and local breaks. I have a neighbor down the street who has a Samsung that keeps turning off and then back on when they make the switch.

sebenste

01-06-07, 01:36 PM

Yep, January 1, 2007. All DTV stations must be at full power, or else when
analog shutdown happens in 2009, they would only be protected from
interference at the power levels they were at on that date. All the
Chicago market stations made it. Milwaukee, Madison, Quad Cities, ditto.
Here in Rockford, WQRF-DT FOX 42 (39.1) didn't make it. They are at 2,300
watts. If a station wanted to broadcast at higher power and interfere
with WQRF, WQRF would have to power down or use a directional antenna to
protect them, insofar as to the signal would go at 2,300 watts in 2009. Hopefully, that won't be a problem for WQRF.

jmdomini

01-06-07, 06:28 PM

sebenste

01-07-07, 02:09 AM

So is anything out of Rockford operating at any higher power now than it was in December? Just wondering if it's worth swinging my antenna in that direction to see if I get anything new, or of this is non news.

Actually, I haven't checked since this summer. The best I could get was lousy analog.

JM,

Nope. But sometime this spring, I'm guessing, is when WQRF goes high power.
Still, WTVO has a killer signal, even at just under 200 kw. WREX doesn't do bad if you have a nice UHF antenna. WIFR gets eaten alive by analog channels on the same channel (41) in Milwaukee and Chicago.

Roadboss

01-07-07, 06:26 PM

sebenste

01-07-07, 07:34 PM

Hi Guys,
I’ve been reading this forum for sometime now. I finally had to join just to voice my opinion about WQRF. This is just despicable they’re still not at full high definition power! As a Chicago Bears fan in Beloit Wisconsin, I put up an outdoor UHF antenna plus amplifier and I still can’t get a signal lock on them. Plus I’ve got charter communications which won’t pay to give me fox 47 from Madison. FOX has really dropped the ball AGAIN in this area for the NFL playoffs! I guess it just sucks to be me and maybe someday FOX will pull its head out of its proverbial butt and get with the HD Picture.

Hey Roadboss,

Welcome to the forum! In somewhat of a defense to WQRF, they haven't been given the $$$ to go high power until now. They are waiting, I presume, for WCIA-DT in Champaign (one of their sister stations) to go full power as well. After that,
it will be WQRF's turn. Local management has had their hands tied on that issue and have been at the mercy of the bosses above. They'll proceed as quickly as possible.

What outdoor UHF antenna do you have (brand/model), and what preamplifier are you using?

hvs10trk

01-07-07, 07:37 PM

Hi Guys,
I’ve been reading this forum for sometime now. I finally had to join just to voice my opinion about WQRF. This is just despicable they’re still not at full high definition power! As a Chicago Bears fan in Beloit Wisconsin, I put up an outdoor UHF antenna plus amplifier and I still can’t get a signal lock on them. Plus I’ve got charter communications which won’t pay to give me fox 47 from Madison. FOX has really dropped the ball AGAIN in this area for the NFL playoffs! I guess it just sucks to be me and maybe someday FOX will pull its head out of its proverbial butt and get with the HD Picture.
Roadboss,
These things take both time and money. Do you know exactly what they have to do in order to bring their DTV signal to full power?? Its not as simple as pushing a button. They have to hang a brand new antenna, new transmission line, and install a new DTV transmitter in a new transmitter room. Tower versatility, heating/cooling, and building structural all have to be evaluated and corrected as needed. It's a carefully planned process full of pot holes and dead ends. Please give them your patience. It will be well worth it when they sign on full power. :D

Jeff Whitford

01-07-07, 07:59 PM

Hi Guys,
As a Chicago Bears fan in Beloit Wisconsin, I put up an outdoor UHF antenna plus amplifier and I still can’t get a signal lock on them. Plus I’ve got charter communications which won’t pay to give me fox 47 from Madison.
What kind of antenna? Omni directional? If your antenna was VHF as well you probably would get 47.1. Of course that wont help you during regular season as 47.1 plays God's team when they are playing at the same time. ;)

Roadboss

01-07-07, 09:25 PM

I’m using the Channel Master Model 4221 with the Channel Master Model 0747 amp. I didn’t buy a rotor because I was aiming to just get Rockford. I couldn’t care less about that team which plays north of here and I’ll just ignore that God comment. As far as being patient goes? I’ve been patient for an entire year! I missed seeing the superbowl last year in high definition and I wanted to be sure and get the games in HD this year. Sadly it appears I’m just on the fringe of pulling in 39’s low power signal.

hvs10trk

01-07-07, 10:12 PM

How close to the river are you?? The river valley up there is murder on RF. :eek:

Jeff Whitford

01-07-07, 10:38 PM

I was only kidding hence the winking smiley. Boy if that sets you off I will avoid Beloit next weekend if Seattle wins. There might be a killer on the loose :D

Roadboss

01-07-07, 11:16 PM

I’m in the area of Shopiere & Cranston roads. Well east of the river valley but near the turtle creek. I’d say my antenna is in the neighborhood of 20’ high.

Grab a seat on the couch and watch the playoffs like your team is doing Jeff. :)

Jeff Whitford

01-08-07, 12:15 AM

I'll be watching. I hope your team doesn't embarass themselves on national TV two games in a row. :D

Jeff Whitford

01-08-07, 12:51 AM

In all seriousness it does suck that WQRF doesnt broadcast at higher power. Maybe you could get a real cheap VHF antenna and point it north and use a UHF/VHF combiner at the location of both antennas and would be able to get 47.1 out of Madison. They broadcast at a pretty strong signal strength.

GregJ60

01-12-07, 09:25 AM

I am going to be moving to Roscoe (About 2 miles west of the river off of Bridge Street) at the end of the month from Gilberts. I previously lived in South Beloit three years ago and was able to receive CBS and ABC from Madison with a CM3677 and a CM 7777 preamp. At that time I never even got a blip on my signal meter for FOX and NBC from Madison. I also had a rotor to tune in the Rockford stations as well. At that time WREX was the only Rockford station doing Digital.

I was thinking of installing a CM 4228 with the 7777 preamp and rotor. to get both Rockford and Madison. (The main reason I use the preamp is because I have an antenna feed in four rooms of the house) My questions are am I going to be able to get good reception from WQRF? Do I have any chance at all of receiving FOX from Madison if I go with a VHF/UHF antenna. 3 years ago they were at very low power. Has anything changed there?

On another note I sure am going to miss All of the Chicago stations I get now OTA. The one thing I will not miss though is audio dropouts and freezing on WBBM when my refrigerator kicks on or my wife adjusts a dimmer somewhere in the house.

hvs10trk

01-12-07, 09:55 AM

sebenste

01-12-07, 10:04 AM

I am going to be moving to Roscoe I was thinking of installing a CM 4228 with the 7777 preamp and rotor. to get both Rockford and Madison. (The main reason I use the preamp is because I have an antenna feed in four rooms of the house) My questions are am I going to be able to get good reception from WQRF? Do I have any chance at all of receiving FOX from Madison if I go with a VHF/UHF antenna. 3 years ago they were at very low power. Has anything changed there?

On another note I sure am going to miss All of the Chicago stations I get now OTA. The one thing I will not miss though is audio dropouts and freezing on WBBM when my refrigerator kicks on or my wife adjusts a dimmer somewhere in the house.

LOL! Yes, a 4228 with a 7777 preamp is the way to go on a rotor. You might have trouble with WTVO if you point the antenna right at it, due to signal overload. But, you'll need all the help you can get to use the 4228 as a VHF antenna to pick up FOX Madison, so this is a great choice. You will also, believe it or not, be able to get Quad Cities and Milwaukee from time to time, and yes, even Green Bay and Wausau on exceptional nights, as I do in DeKalb with my 4228/7777.

HVS says WQRF at full power soon...how soon is soon? I thought the tower guys doing the stuff for WCIA CHampaign needed to finish that off first. I will hope WQRF does a picture update for us, so we can see their progress, like they're doing at wcia.com for their sister station there. Have they started on the power upgrade yet (new tranny, tower reinforcement, etc)? That would be fun to watch!

Ast Chf

01-18-07, 05:22 PM

HVS says WQRF at full power soon...how soon is soon? I thought the tower guys doing the stuff for WCIA CHampaign needed to finish that off first. I will hope WQRF does a picture update for us, so we can see their progress, like they're doing at wcia.com for their sister station there. Have they started on the power upgrade yet (new tranny, tower reinforcement, etc)? That would be fun to watch!

Soon as in "very possibly" by Superbowl Sunday. The tower work is done. The new antenna is hung. Most the transmission line is installed and should be finished in the next 2 days. The Transmitter install is starting tomorrow.

sebenste

01-18-07, 05:34 PM

Soon as in "very possibly" by Superbowl Sunday. The tower work is done. The new antenna is hung. Most the transmission line is installed and should be finished in the next 2 days. The Transmitter install is starting tomorrow.

Cool! Keep us posted. Glad to see you guys got a crew up there before the work downstate was done. I'll know immediately on my tuner, when it pegs the signal meter...

jmdomini

01-18-07, 07:41 PM

Nice, assuming the full power is still 1 Mw this should make for my first Rockford digital. I pick up the analog version right now, so I'd expect the digital to make it this far as well.

Now can we please get the same power and a non conflicting frequency for WIFR? :D

Rammitinski

01-20-07, 02:07 AM

I've actually been receiving WQRF-DT during a couple of the more recent frigid nights. Highly unusual.

Hopefully I'll be able to get it regularly now.

jm - You don't get WTVO-DT? I'm kind of surprised, since Gilbert and I can get them. They really blast in out my way.

LessisNevermore

01-20-07, 05:51 PM

I live in Machesney Park. Can anyone tell me if the pixelation I see on WREX (NBC) and WIFR (CBS) during football games will go away once the stations go full power? It is visible when the camera is zoomed in and they pan at the same time. It looks terrible. This is non-existent on WQRF (FOX).

As a side, while fortunate the Bears are shown on FOX, we are still punished with Joe Buck doing the playoff games......Is there any way we can banish him back to baseball? :cool:

like.no.other.

01-20-07, 07:19 PM

Hi, I have been looking around this forum and heard
the wonderful HD picture of PBS HD. I am from Rockford
Illinois area and my broadcasting station is WHA for PBS
and WHAHD for PBS HD. We recently got PBS HD as a
channel (Insight Cable) and the picture is not what I am
expecting. First off, even the slightest movement of
the picture pixelate bad. Then when watching any type
of show, the picture looks blurry but not as blurry as
SD material. I am wondering if you got any pictures or
opinions on PBS HD, what channel would you compare it
to. I have a Sony KD-34XBR970 via HDMI to Motorola
HD/DVR cable box.

Davinleeds

01-20-07, 07:42 PM

We have noticed pixeling on fast motion and on transition from our local pbs. Both OTA and cable. We haven't contacted them, but it appears they're maxing out their spectrum.

Dark Rain

01-20-07, 07:49 PM

The quality of HD on PBS is very spotty. Some shows like Nova are HD, and it looks pretty good. Nature looks more like upconverted SD.

Davinleeds

01-20-07, 07:51 PM

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=9531532#post9531532
A few posts of the same.

like.no.other.

01-20-07, 08:24 PM

I thought I was alone....

jmdomini

01-21-07, 09:51 AM

I probably could with a different tuner. Presently using a Sony DVR which has an amazing analog tuner, but a not so good digital tuner. I even get WNDU (South Bend) most of the time on the analog side. Digital though it has to be really strong to pick it up.

jm - You don't get WTVO-DT? I'm kind of surprised, since Gilbert and I can get them. They really blast in out my way.

Ast Chf

01-21-07, 01:23 PM

[QUOTE=LessisNevermore]I live in Machesney Park. Can anyone tell me if the pixelation I see on WREX (NBC) and WIFR (CBS) during football games will go away once the stations go full power? It is visible when the camera is zoomed in and they pan at the same time. It looks terrible. This is non-existent on WQRF (FOX).

More than likely 23 forgot to open up their multiplexers bandwidth for their primary stream when they dropped their 2nd stream that had the weather radar on it. Power wouldn't effect this at all.

13 on the other hand will likely be cursed with this unless they compress their 2nd stream (CW)down to 3.5 mbps on their encoder. 720p needs at least 14.5mbps to eliminate that problem. Again neither of these are power related but are bandwidth related.

sebenste

01-21-07, 11:53 PM

Rammitinski

01-22-07, 01:15 PM

I probably could with a different tuner. Presently using a Sony DVR which has an amazing analog tuner, but a not so good digital tuner. I even get WNDU (South Bend) most of the time on the analog side. Digital though it has to be really strong to pick it up.Yeah, even my Accurian is a bit better than the Sony. But I still prefer to use the Sony (for obvious reasons).

I'm almost tempted to try one of those new Samsungs myself, but I'm not sure if it's really any better at distance - just multipath, which isn't really a problem for me. Plus. I'm currently only SD, so that leaves out having the guide (unless you can use component, which my set has, and still set the output of the tuner to 480i and get the guide).

Rammitinski

01-22-07, 01:38 PM

Today I was at a friend's house in Belvidere. He just bought a 50" plasma TV from
Samsung. He had an HD box brought to him yesterday (Saturday) from Insight Communications (cable), who set everything up using component cables. My friend will be upgrading to HDMI cable when he buys it online this week, $200
cheaper than the Monster cables Best Buy tried to sell him.

So, I went over there today to watch the Bears, and he and his neighbor just got it hung up on the wall. Looked nice...I don't know what cable box it was, but it had a DVR on it; the cable guy said it held 70-80 hours of programs, so you folks tell me. We popped on channel...oh, what was it, nine hundred something, and...

It was widescreen, I'll say that much. But it "looked" letterboxed; in reality, the picture appeared to be "crushed", and the resolution was anything BUT high def. I tried to hit the hd zoom button on the remote, to no avail. Anyone have a clue as to why that is happening?

Well, during halftime, I took my little portable, set-top, $10 unamplified rabbit ears and UHF loop and laid it on the floor below the TV; this was at street level and his place is just north of I-90. I learned how to search for over-the-air DTV channels and analog channels during half time, and let it scan. Curiously, it got WIFR-DT, WREX-DT and WTVO-DT...but not surprisingly, no WQRF-DT. Sad, because I wanted to compare it with Insight, which occasionally had some pixellation/macroblocking. I am hoping it was the cables that were used for the temporary method to get the picture from the box to the TV.

Then, after a fun Bears' win, we dropped down a channel and hit WIFR-DT from Insight. And again, it was letterboxed (when I say letterboxed, it is true widescreen, all the way to either end...but why it is unnecessarily squished, I don't know). But then, I manually tune to 23-1. Fills the entire screen with the proper aspect ratio, doesn't appear to be 'squished' like it was from Insight; the colors were sharper and the picture was MUCH crisper.

I hope I just needed to learn how to get the aspect set straight, and I hope component cabling was responsible for the relatively low-def looking signal
(crisper than 23 analog via Insight, but still not as good as OTA digital).
But I also have to believe that OTA still is the best-looking HD; as even if sent uncompressed, processing at the plant has to hurt the picture a bit.

And I wonder why my friend's display is squished vertically via Insight? How can he correct that?

P.S. Noted the macroblocking on WIFR, but it wasn't bad OTA; it was considerably worse on Insight, whereas the WQRF-DT feed showed a little macroblocking, and only
on the cable feed.It sounds like it may have been an aspect issue, but if it wasn't that clear, it may ALSO not be the HD channel - only the digital SD one.

I don't think there's an aspect setting that'll do that to a native 16:9 picture on the display itself (although I could be wrong, and I'm not really familiar at all with Samsung plasmas - mainly just Panny's). But it could've been set that way on the cable box (which I'm also not familiar with). Or, like I said, it could've been the 4:3 SD channel with a cetain aspect programmed.

If it was not crisp and sharp, it very well might not have been the HD version. No matter how the aspect's set, it should still look like HD. You do get BOTH the HD AND the SD versions of the network channels, so first off, make sure it's the HD. Then start checking the aspect modes on the box and the display. For 16:9 on the display, the setting should normally be "full" (or Samsung's equivalent). Then, whatever native setting there is on the cable box should give you the right aspect with 16:9 HD.

To me, it sounds like it was the SD channel with a certain aspect ratio setting causing that look. But maybe someone here more familiar with Samsung's plasmas and/or Insight's cable and their boxes can help you figure it out for sure.

Rammitinski

01-22-07, 01:50 PM

As a side, while fortunate the Bears are shown on FOX, we are still punished with Joe Buck doing the playoff games......Is there any way we can banish him back to baseball? :cool:During the game, he was making it pretty obvious that he was rooting for N.O.

In the middle part, where N.O. came to life, he was gushing and yelling all over the place.

As soon as the momentum swung back in the Bears' favor, he got all subdued and low-key again.

Really was p***in' me off - and not just because of what was happening - although that didn't help. I thought those guys were supposed to remain neutral, at least while they're broadcasting.

jmdomini

01-22-07, 08:12 PM

You read my mind Ramm. I really want to try out one of the Samsungs. I read a technical analysis someone sent me (unforunately I lost it or I'd share) and it sounded like it was great for both distance and multipath.

Unfortunately they are extremely hard to find. I missed my chance to get one before Christmas. I think they lasted in stock for a day and they were gone.

I'm almost tempted to try one of those new Samsungs myself, but I'm not sure if it's really any better at distance - just multipath, which isn't really a problem for me.

Rammitinski

01-23-07, 12:06 AM

Yeah, I saw them ay my local BB before most people here were even buying them, and I was thinking about grabbing one but I didn't. They actually lasted a week or two, but once they were gone, they were gone.

It seems on the Samsung thread they're getting it from J & R and CC, and a couple of other places online. It sounds like they're getting quite a few defective ones, too, and I guess they're pretty flimsily built.

sebenste

01-23-07, 11:59 AM

It sounds like it may have been an aspect issue, but if it wasn't that clear, it may ALSO not be the HD channel - only the digital SD one.

I don't think there's an aspect setting that'll do that to a native 16:9 picture on the display itself (although I could be wrong, and I'm not really familiar at all with Samsung plasmas - mainly just Panny's). But it could've been set that way on the cable box (which I'm also not familiar with). Or, like I said, it could've been the 4:3 SD channel with a cetain aspect programmed.

If it was not crisp and sharp, it very well might not have been the HD version. No matter how the aspect's set, it should still look like HD. You do get BOTH the HD AND the SD versions of the network channels, so first off, make sure it's the HD. Then start checking the aspect modes on the box and the display. For 16:9 on the display, the setting should normally be "full" (or Samsung's equivalent). Then, whatever native setting there is on the cable box should give you the right aspect with 16:9 HD.

To me, it sounds like it was the SD channel with a certain aspect ratio setting causing that look. But maybe someone here more familiar with Samsung's plasmas and/or Insight's cable and their boxes can help you figure it out for sure.

As it turns out, the cable installer set up the box wrong. It was set to output to 480p instead of 720p. We had to go to a "secret" menu to figure that out. An acquaintance in Crystal Lake had the same thing happen to him with Comcast and he figured it out.

With that type of customer service, no wonder why "HD Lite" is tolerable with satellite and why people hate the digital TV revolution...

Jeff Whitford

01-23-07, 01:48 PM

Do you know how to get to the secret menu? If so please share as I used to know how but have forgotten.

sebenste

01-23-07, 03:00 PM

Do you know how to get to the secret menu? If so please share as I used to know how but have forgotten.

Hi Jeff,

First, turn on the TV and the cable box. Then turn off just the cable
box, leaving the TV on. Press the menu button on the front of the cable
box. You should see the secret set-up menu showing basic HD output
settings. Be sure set the box to 16:9 widescreen for TV format, and 720p or 1080i to match your TV's resolution.

jmdomini

01-23-07, 04:41 PM

Sounds familliar Gilbert. When I got my HD box from Comcast they insisted on sending someone out to install it. The guy hooked it up via the SD composite outputs. I had to hook up a component cable after he left and set the box to 1080i. They were utterly clueless about the product they were installing!

As it turns out, the cable installer set up the box wrong. It was set to output to 480p instead of 720p. We had to go to a "secret" menu to figure that out. An acquaintance in Crystal Lake had the same thing happen to him with Comcast and he figured it out.

With that type of customer service, no wonder why "HD Lite" is tolerable with satellite and why people hate the digital TV revolution...

WillieAntenna

01-27-07, 11:48 AM

Any update on when WQRF-DT will go full power ? I know the Antenna and Lines are installed and they will be or just started to put in the new transmitter in the building.

Jeff Whitford

01-27-07, 01:49 PM

Hi Jeff,

First, turn on the TV and the cable box. Then turn off just the cable
box, leaving the TV on. Press the menu button on the front of the cable
box. You should see the secret set-up menu showing basic HD output
settings. Be sure set the box to 16:9 widescreen for TV format, and 720p or 1080i to match your TV's resolution.
Thank you.

Ast Chf

01-28-07, 05:09 PM

Any update on when WQRF-DT will go full power ? I know the Antenna and Lines are installed and they will be or just started to put in the new transmitter in the building.

Could be as early as next weekend (Feb 3rd)

sebenste

01-28-07, 05:32 PM

Could be as early as next weekend (Feb 3rd)
Saw you off the air last night (WTVO-TV/DT, WQRF-DT but NOT WQRF-TV).
Wait. If I saw you, how could you be off the air? :p

Best on getting everything up. With the weather so bad this week and next, it's going to be tough to do anything on a tower.

AV Doogie

01-28-07, 09:33 PM

Anyone here familiar with channel 23 digitals?

I use three different ATSC tuners at my residence. Channel 23-1 sound is correct on two of the units but is always found on 23-2 (weather radar) when that channel is available on the third tuner. I do not have this problem on any other digital channels.

Anyone have insight into this situation.

like.no.other.

01-28-07, 10:06 PM

I have a Motorola 6412 Dual HDTV/DVR and Insight Cable. I know every program is not
Dolby Digital, but my cable box is telling my receiver it is receiving every channel besides
5.1, 2.0 sound. I thought it was suppose to be PCM because it is not Dolby Digital mix.

Ast Chf

01-29-07, 12:30 PM

Saw you off the air last night (WTVO-TV/DT, WQRF-DT but NOT WQRF-TV).
Wait. If I saw you, how could you be off the air? :p

Best on getting everything up. With the weather so bad this week and next, it's going to be tough to do anything on a tower.

We had a schedualed power outage Sunday AM from 1am to 5am to upgrade our main electrical service (partially for the new transmitter)

Rammitinski

01-30-07, 03:24 AM

As it turns out, the cable installer set up the box wrong. It was set to output to 480p instead of 720p. We had to go to a "secret" menu to figure that out.Cheeez... why is something that important hidden in a secret menu that the average person can't get at? Are they just trying to get people to make a service call that they can try and charge them for? :rolleyes:

sebenste

01-30-07, 11:20 AM

Cheeez... why is something that important hidden in a secret menu that the average person can't get at? Are they just trying to get people to make a service call that they can try and charge them for? :rolleyes:
No, because those calls are free. It's called: bad training, bad service.

He just installed component cables on his plasma last night and now all is well...he said the pictures are "spectacular", and you can "really tell the difference between HD and non-HD shows".

Rammitinski

01-30-07, 03:16 PM

No, because those calls are free. It's called: bad training, bad service.

He just installed component cables on his plasma last night and now all is well...he said the pictures are "spectacular", and you can "really tell the difference between HD and non-HD shows".Bad service? Comcast? Surely you jest :rolleyes: .

Glad he got it straightened out, and just in time, I might add ;) .

LessisNevermore

01-30-07, 08:32 PM

LessisNevermore

01-30-07, 08:35 PM

During the game, he was making it pretty obvious that he was rooting for N.O.

In the middle part, where N.O. came to life, he was gushing and yelling all over the place.

As soon as the momentum swung back in the Bears' favor, he got all subdued and low-key again.

Really was p***in' me off - and not just because of what was happening - although that didn't help. I thought those guys were supposed to remain neutral, at least while they're broadcasting.

If it weren't for sync issues, I'd mute the tv, and listen on 780 AM. :D
Jeff Joniak, You are REDICULOUS! LOL

Ast Chf

02-01-07, 08:53 PM

sebenste

02-01-07, 08:59 PM

Looks like WQRF (Fox) Full power will be another 30+ days. There's some FCC paperwork issues and medical facility notifications that have to complete before we can go up. Technicaly were done and ready though.

Hey Ast Chf,

Thanks so much for keeping us posted! Yeah, I've heard those medical facility notifications take time. Hopefully it (and the FCC) will be sooner, rather than later.
Can you power up briefly for a test?

y2j420

02-01-07, 09:58 PM

Thanks for the information...

jmdomini

02-01-07, 10:22 PM

Medical facility notifications?

hvs10trk

02-02-07, 06:22 AM

Medical facility notifications?
I forget what station is was but back when digital was in its early stages a station powered up full power and basically interrupted a hospitals medical equipment. Especially the Cardiac unit.

George Molnar

02-02-07, 08:14 AM

Medical facility notifications?
See special condition 1 on page 2 of the FCC construction permit for WQRF's digital transmitter at

http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/prod/cdbs/pubacc/Auth_Files/575793.pdf

jmdomini

02-02-07, 08:52 AM

Interesting, I would have never even considered that such a thing would be necessary.

Rammitinski

02-02-07, 09:25 AM

Hey, jm!! I'm glad I caught you!

Do you by any chance know if Fry's in Downers Grove still has any of the Sony DHG-DVR's in stock? And which model or models? And lastly, did they ever drop the prices down from retail, yet? (I know people getting them from other Fry's have said they did there.)

My Brother-in-law really wants one now (after seeing mine - and because of the latest Comcast price increases, I'd guess. Plus, I wouldn't mind grabbing anothr one myself if the price is right.)

jmdomini

02-02-07, 11:21 AM

I was last there about two weeks ago, and at least then they had both the 250's and 500's in stock. Unfortunately they were still going for full price though. You'd think they would mark them down to get them out the door.

sebenste

02-02-07, 11:45 AM

I forget what station is was but back when digital was in its early stages a station powered up full power and basically interrupted a hospitals medical equipment. Especially the Cardiac unit.

Yeah, that was WFAA-DT Dallas, I believe. One of the Dallas stations, anyway.
Let's just say it wasn't a good thing(tm).

Ast Chf

02-03-07, 01:08 AM

Hey Ast Chf,

Thanks so much for keeping us posted! Yeah, I've heard those medical facility notifications take time. Hopefully it (and the FCC) will be sooner, rather than later.
Can you power up briefly for a test?

Nope, we cant radiate a thing out of that antenna until the medical notifications come back. Then we can test but only test until the FCC waves us off the STA for the low power.

Dont even get me started about the FCC :mad: lol

hvs10trk

02-03-07, 08:42 AM

Yeah, that was WFAA-DT Dallas, I believe. One of the Dallas stations, anyway.
Let's just say it wasn't a good thing(tm).
Yeah thats it. Perfect example of how imperfect the digital world is.

hvs10trk

02-03-07, 08:43 AM

Dont even get me started about the FCC :mad: lol
AMEN!!

Rammitinski

02-04-07, 01:29 AM

sebenste

02-07-07, 02:07 AM

They launched it tonight. For those of you who can get channel 7-3 in Chicago,
it looks pretty much the same on WIFR-DT 23.2.

WillieAntenna

02-07-07, 10:41 AM

They launched it tonight. For those of you who can get channel 7-3 in Chicago,
it looks pretty much the same on WIFR-DT 23.2.

I saw that last night, not neat as WLS 7-3 but much better than just looking at the radar that show nothing when in fact it snowing like crazy outside but nice when there is a T-storm and track it localy.

Did you check out Winegard antenna website they going to sell HDTV STB tuner in March 07.

sebenste

02-07-07, 12:42 PM

I saw that last night, not neat as WLS 7-3 but much better than just looking at the radar that show nothing when in fact it snowing like crazy outside but nice when there is a T-storm and track it localy.

Did you check out Winegard antenna website they going to sell HDTV STB tuner in March 07.

I saw that! At $200, though, it won't fly. It's got to be les than $100 or people won't buy it en masse. I think Winegard will see that really quickly.

tooskinny

02-18-07, 10:11 AM

I just got my Samsung 4092 that has a QAM tuner built in. From what I read I should be able to get HD locals threw my cable, but I don't. I only subscribe with extended basic threw Charter. Does anyone know if you can get the local HD with basic or do you need to go digital. I did pick up the locals with a indoor antenna, but not all.

Thanks

Jeff Whitford

02-18-07, 01:10 PM

I have set peoples tv's for cable up in Roscoe and the get them. I believe the Madison stations come in the 104.1 to 108.1 range. Another words the wont be listed as 27.1 or 15.1 etc

tooskinny

02-18-07, 02:09 PM

I have set peoples tv's for cable up in Roscoe and the get them. I believe the Madison stations come in the 104.1 to 108.1 range. Another words the wont be listed as 27.1 or 15.1 etc

Are you saying I should get them threw my extended cable with charter. I scanned channels and it did not pick up any threw cable. What format should I scan with the cable?

Jeff Whitford

02-18-07, 02:48 PM

When I scanned they just showed up. The set I set up didnt have cable choices. Just cable or antenna. Are you getting any weird #s like that in your scan?

tooskinny

02-18-07, 03:44 PM

When I scanned they just showed up. The set I set up didnt have cable choices. Just cable or antenna. Are you getting any weird #s like that in your scan?

Well I do get those when I have the indoor antenna hooked up and scan both cable and air, but nothing like that on cable just air. I have like three different scans for cable STD, HRC and IRC and I scanned STD but didn't pick up any HD channels scanning just cable.

tooskinny

02-18-07, 05:26 PM

I checked out charters home page and they state in order to get HD channels you have to order digital first. I have read on other post that people were getting HD locals threw cable just having basic. Guess I will stick to OTA.

Jeff Whitford

02-18-07, 11:07 PM

Does the Samsung have seperate inputs for air and cable on the back?

hvs10trk

02-19-07, 01:10 PM

Does the Samsung have seperate inputs for air and cable on the back?
No, unfortunately. :( I wish they did.

tooskinny

02-19-07, 06:23 PM

Yes mine has one for antenna and one for cable. I have cable hooked to the cable coax input and antenna hooked to the antenna input with coax.

Jeff Whitford

02-19-07, 11:40 PM

Sounds like you did it right. The guy I hooked up did have the digital package elsewhere in the house.

hvs10trk

02-20-07, 06:16 AM

Yes mine has one for antenna and one for cable. I have cable hooked to the cable coax input and antenna hooked to the antenna input with coax.
Good score!!!

tooskinny

02-20-07, 03:34 PM

I guess you have to at least have digital to get HD threw cable with the QAM tuner. Oh well I still get HD locals with antenna.

sebenste

02-21-07, 12:58 AM

I just noticed that WQRF-DT has filed an application to go to 900 kw instead of a full 1 mw. It reduces their coverage to the east and south by (gasp) 1 mile! I assume this is to account for their side-mounted antenna. C'mon, FCC, approve this now. They have been on a tear the last month, and lawyer talk indicates the FCC is trying to clean up stuff that has been backlogged forever...

n9yty

02-25-07, 10:04 PM

Watching the Oscars/Academy Awards tonight on WTVO 17-1... It seemes like almost EVERY commercial break causes my sucky Samsung SIR-TS360 DirecTV receiver to reboot itself.

Not blaming WTVO, but is it likely something incorrect in the data stream, how it's being switched into and out of the Oscars program feed, or just the receiver?

For what it's worth, It's rebooted ocasionally before, but never often enough that I could put a finger on what is going on, and it was happening ALL THE TIME tonight. I finally just started switching it to the analog channel when going to commercials and back to 17-1 when the awards show was on again and the reboots stopped.

Anyone else seeing issues, or just me and my Sammy? :)

[ Off Topic: Any good recommendations on a (cheap-ish) HDTV receiver? The new Dish and DirecTV boxes are rent-only, so if I want to own an OTA box I'll have to buy a standalone it seems ]

Rammitinski

02-26-07, 11:15 PM

The newer Sammy is only about 180 bucks and is supposed to be pretty good, if you can find one. Most people are finding them online. I forget the model number of it offhand, but there's a big thread on it over in the HDTV Hardware section.

Other than that, the only thing I can think of that might not be too expensive would be a PC tuner card.

Jeff Whitford

02-27-07, 12:23 AM

[ Off Topic: Any good recommendations on a (cheap-ish) HDTV receiver? The new Dish and DirecTV boxes are rent-only, so if I want to own an OTA box I'll have to buy a standalone it seems ]
I have two Hughes E86 Directv receivers that will work fine for digtal/HD OTA reception. They dont pick up analog OTA anymore. They can also be used for D* if you want to order a card from D*. I have remotes for them but they dont have the SD/HD buttons on them so you have to change it in the menu. Dont have the instruction books but the PDF file of the manual can be downloaded pretty easy.
$50 each plus shipping or if you want them both $100 shipped or we can hook up somewhere thus no shipping charge

Ast Chf

03-01-07, 04:33 PM

We found a bad BNC connector that feeds a reference signal to the actual switcher. All should be good now.

Watching the Oscars/Academy Awards tonight on WTVO 17-1... It seemes like almost EVERY commercial break causes my sucky Samsung SIR-TS360 DirecTV receiver to reboot itself.

Not blaming WTVO, but is it likely something incorrect in the data stream, how it's being switched into and out of the Oscars program feed, or just the receiver?

For what it's worth, It's rebooted ocasionally before, but never often enough that I could put a finger on what is going on, and it was happening ALL THE TIME tonight. I finally just started switching it to the analog channel when going to commercials and back to 17-1 when the awards show was on again and the reboots stopped.

Anyone else seeing issues, or just me and my Sammy? :)

[ Off Topic: Any good recommendations on a (cheap-ish) HDTV receiver? The new Dish and DirecTV boxes are rent-only, so if I want to own an OTA box I'll have to buy a standalone it seems ]

n9yty

03-01-07, 04:46 PM

We found a bad BNC connector that feeds a reference signal to the actual switcher. All should be good now.WOW! What service! THANKS!! I'll post back if I notice continuing problems, even if it's just my receiver that's at fault, there may be others out in this market running the same box, and it may point at something you guys want to know about. Otherwise, just tell me "all is fine, sorry you have a bad box." :)

Jeff Whitford

03-01-07, 05:53 PM

n9yty check your private messages

WillieAntenna

03-01-07, 08:17 PM

Has anyone notice the time is off by 1 hour ahead in the DT channel guide? It started today The time not to change until the 11th of March, 2007 computer clinch ? Should be 3-11-07 not 3-1-07 ;)

The following station I see is 1 hour ahead.

Chicago WLS 7
Chicago WTTW 11
Rockford WREX 13
Madison WHA 21
Rockford WIFR 23 This also had no Close Caption
Chicago WFLD 32
Chicago WPWR 50

These station show correct time

Chicago WAMQ 5
Chicago WGN 9
Rockford WTVO 17

Check all your channel guide.

If anyone has contact person with the TV engineering dept Please let them know Thanks.

-Willie

Ast Chf

03-02-07, 11:19 AM

We've seen lots of sensitivity issues like this with Samsung in peticular.
I've had lots of quality control problems with their entire brand the last year.
ie..I purchased 6 new LCD flat screens from them and they had ALL burned in within 2 weeks.

WOW! What service! THANKS!! I'll post back if I notice continuing problems, even if it's just my receiver that's at fault, there may be others out in this market running the same box, and it may point at something you guys want to know about. Otherwise, just tell me "all is fine, sorry you have a bad box." :)

jazzjukebox

03-02-07, 11:59 PM

Any news on when WQRF 39.1 will increase its power?

WillieAntenna

03-06-07, 12:34 PM

Any news on when WQRF 39.1 will increase its power?

I am not speaking for Ast Chf. I would have to say it might be awhile yet, because the new daylight saving time on March 11,2007. So I am sure the medical hosptials is more worry about the computers and computer control medical equipments for right now to make sure the paitent don't get double dose of medicine or other medical treatment when the time change. But I am sure it will happen soon after the daylight saving change as long they don't have problems.

-Willie

Ast Chf

03-06-07, 10:41 PM

Actually those issues have nothing to do with the FCC getting the paperwork processed to go to full power and dismiss the low power temporary construction permit.

We just notify the medical facilities basicly by registered mail and they get 30 days to check and re-tune any effected equipment that may be on that frequency. (Which they already had before we went on air low power).
The new notification is just a formality for all practical purposes.

Based on what we are hearing from our communication attorney's in D.C. , it "could" be very soon.

I am not speaking for Ast Chf. I would have to say it might be awhile yet, because the new daylight saving time on March 11,2007. So I am sure the medical hosptials is more worry about the computers and computer control medical equipments for right now to make sure the paitent don't get double dose of medicine or other medical treatment when the time change. But I am sure it will happen soon after the daylight saving change as long they don't have problems.

-Willie

sebenste

03-13-07, 01:13 AM

Based on what we are hearing from our communication attorney's in D.C. , it "could" be very soon.

It indeed was! As of 12:12 AM this morning, WQRF-DT is nearly pegging my signal meter in DeKalb, with my ChannelMaster 4228 antenna pointed at Chicago! :eek: :cool: Welcome to full power at 900 kw, WQRF-DT! I missed your power up this evening, but you are blowing MAJOR smoke with your signal down here now!

Ast Chf

03-13-07, 01:52 AM

Actually you didnt miss it. I had just literally flipped the switch at 12:01am

It indeed was! As of 12:12 AM this morning, WQRF-DT is nearly pegging my signal meter in DeKalb, with my ChannelMaster 4228 antenna pointed at Chicago! :eek: :cool: Welcome to full power at 900 kw, WQRF-DT! I missed your power up this evening, but you are blowing MAJOR smoke with your signal down here now!

jazzjukebox

03-13-07, 01:54 AM

It indeed was! As of 12:12 AM this morning, WQRF-DT is nearly pegging my signal meter in DeKalb, with my ChannelMaster 4228 antenna pointed at Chicago! :eek: :cool: Welcome to full power at 900 kw, WQRF-DT! I missed your power up this evening, but you are blowing MAJOR smoke with your signal down here now!

YES!! I'm getting 91/100 signal strength. Excellent. I used to get between 55-60 at best, which was not watchable due to frequent pixelation and dropped audio. Now WQRF-DT is the strongest of all the Rockford channels.

Awesome, now I can switch my TiVo season passes for 24 and Americal Idol from analog cable channel 6 back to OTA 39-1.

Congratulations, Fox 39 Rockford.

Rammitinski

03-13-07, 01:59 AM

88% signal strength, 27.80 signal-to-noise ratio and solid as a rock all the way out here in Crystal Lake!

Not bad at all!

WillieAntenna

03-13-07, 09:40 AM

ast chf,

Picking up WQRF in Walworth, WI with no problem. I don't have signal meter but no video or audio break up. I will be moving soon to another town and I will post it in couple weeks.

-Willie

TVChief

03-13-07, 10:34 AM

I am interested in seeing how far out our signal gets and the signal strength. If you are quite a distance from Rockford and are picking up 39.1 drop me an e-mail and let me know. Go to wtvo website/about wtvo and reply to TV reception questions.
Thanks and I hope everyone enjoys.

johnnykretentiv

03-13-07, 07:57 PM

I just tuned in 39.1 and got 89% this the first time I ever got a picture out of 39. BTW - I'm in Rockton.

WillieAntenna

03-14-07, 03:52 PM

TVCHIEF,

I notice this morning that I can't get 39-DT anymore :eek: and still out at this time :eek: . I hope it not major breakdown :( . I also notice there was no programing info in the guide/ channel information last night when full power was on also notice there was no CC.

-Willie

hvs10trk

03-14-07, 08:45 PM

TVChief

03-14-07, 09:26 PM

We are back up now. Hopefully thats the last of the gremlins in the new equipment.

WillieAntenna

03-15-07, 12:22 AM

hvs10trk

03-15-07, 09:47 AM

I hope that last of the gremlins too all should be out by the time Packers play again :D OOPPS I bet the engineers going to turn the power down :eek: when the Packers play, so I can't watch them.

But well done to team of engineers to get it up and running quickly. :)

-Willie
They have a rotation control for their antenna. When the packers play they can rotate the signal away from Wisconsin. :D

WillieAntenna

03-15-07, 09:56 AM

They have a rotation control for their antenna. When the packers play they can rotate the signal away from Wisconsin. :D

LOL! I suppose they have a power beam antenna with boosted power pointed to Wisconsin to override all control of TV to force us to watch the Bears :D

-Willie

TVChief

03-15-07, 10:21 AM

hvs10trk

03-15-07, 01:33 PM

WillieAntenna

03-15-07, 05:48 PM

Your lucky the boss is a Packers fan and lives up your way. And when I say fan I mean I think hes painted green and gold under his Packers Jersey I am sure he wears under his suit every day. I am sure you have nothing to worry about.

Well that good :D So anytime I don't get a good signal during the Packer games. So I can just call your boss up ;) LOL ! :D

So far the signal is great !

-Willie

ctsiegf

03-15-07, 08:27 PM

TVChief

03-16-07, 12:32 PM

Just FYI,

With Insight Basic in Rockford (non-digitial), I'm picking up with the QAM tuner (Vizio, p50hdtv10a):

RF69-3 FOXHD (WQRF)
RF70-100 No Signal
RF74-7 PBSHD (WPT)
RF81-1 Insight Digital? (It says they're seeking sales reps?)
RF86-31 NBCHD (WREX)
RF86-32 ABCHD (WTVO)
RF87-1 CBSHD (WIFR)
RF87-2 Weather (WIFR)

-Carter

If you are getting ABCHD you should be getting our second channel on 17.2 MyNetworkTV.

Rammitinski

03-16-07, 01:33 PM

jgags6

03-16-07, 03:16 PM

I love how im trying to watch the tourney in Hd and they roll across the bottom of the screen that in order to give their viewers a constant feed of the WI game w/o cut outs they will not be showing it in hd.

How rediculous is that.

VideoTech

03-17-07, 12:02 AM

There is a possibility that it's just not picking it up. Some QAM tuners can be funny that way. The ones in Panasonic plasmas are famous for this.

I always hear good things about Vizio's tuners, but I'm not sure if people are just referring to anything more than their picture quality and sensitivity.

I'd keep trying, though. Maybe someone else here with Insight and a QAM tuner can chime in and tell you where it maps on theirs.

Vizio's are a low end brand and suffer from inconsistant quality. One batch goes out and has great specs, but the next batch can go out with lousy specs.
The biggest issue with Vizios (and most low end sets [read that as China/WalMart/No Names] ) is that they lack the ability to be upgraded. Specs and technology are constantly changing (even the over the air signal has had changes in the last 2 years). The low end sets are stuck at the time they were created. Most name brands sets have ports which allow the software to be upgraded. Sony, Panasonic, Samsung, etc, have had software upgrades to fix many issues that have been discovered. (Another good reason to register your purchase).

ctsiegf

03-17-07, 05:15 PM

If you are getting ABCHD you should be getting our second channel on 17.2 MyNetworkTV.

What programming is on it? I keep getting one channel in scans that doesn't show up later in the channel list. I'll keep trying to pick it up.

]The low end sets are stuck at the time they were created. Most name brands sets have ports which allow the software to be upgraded. Sony, Panasonic, Samsung, etc, have had software upgrades to fix many issues that have been discovered. (Another good reason to register your purchase).

You may be right about the quality, since I did have some trouble (buzzing) with my set that was repaired in-home. However, the Vizio has 2 service ports (main/DTV) for technicians/firmware upgrade.

-Carter

ctsiegf

03-21-07, 01:32 PM

Updating my previous post a bit...

The buzzing came back on my Vizio, so I returned it for a Panasonic 60u. I liked the Vizio just fine (it had many strong points), but the sweet taste of saving money didn't outweigh the bitterness of buzzing noises. I'm still picking up all the previously listed channels with the new Panasonic's QAM tuner.

-Carter

LessisNevermore

03-21-07, 05:33 PM

Your lucky the boss is a Packers fan and lives up your way. And when I say fan I mean I think hes painted green and gold under his Packers Jersey I am sure he wears under his suit every day. I am sure you have nothing to worry about.

And that's why I thank the NFL, and the ghost of George S. Halas for home market games...... :p

chuckywang

03-25-07, 02:35 AM

Just FYI,

With Insight Basic in Rockford (non-digitial), I'm picking up with the QAM tuner (Vizio, p50hdtv10a):

RF69-3 FOXHD (WQRF)
RF70-100 No Signal
RF74-7 PBSHD (WPT)
RF81-1 Insight Digital? (It says they're seeking sales reps?)
RF86-31 NBCHD (WREX)
RF86-32 ABCHD (WTVO)
RF87-1 CBSHD (WIFR)
RF87-2 Weather (WIFR)

-Carter

I'm getting all of that except 74-7. Grr...and I really want to see PBSHD also.

And why no MyNetwork? I get that channel (17-2) with OTA, but not QAM. (Olevia 237)

Rammitinski

03-26-07, 02:26 AM

And why no MyNetwork? I get that channel (17-2) with OTA, but not QAM.So you're the one who watches that channel ;)?

JB81

03-26-07, 11:01 AM

sebenste

03-26-07, 11:42 AM

Hi, my name is James and I live in the city of Byron IL. I got an RCA SDTV from Walmart for $224 in December and bought an indoor amplified Antenna, which works better than the cheap one I had before. I have a few questions I would like to ask.

1. The Digital Signal gets choppy on windy days, I was wondering if an outdoor antenna would help stop the choppiness?

2. What outdoor antenna would you suggest to get Rockford and Madison and if all possible I would like to get Chicago

3. Does anybody know whats going to happen to the low power stations in the area after feb '09? Like WCFC-CA TV51 or WBKM-LP 46 Chana IL.

4. Is FOX 39 Getting a subchannel anytime soon?

Hi James,

Welcome to the forum!

1. The problem is trees/branches swaying in the wind near or on your property.
An outside directional antenna would help, to be sure...but it isn't foolproof if you have a lot of them.

2. Chicago is impossible unless it is via "tropo ducting", or "skip", because it is below the radio horizon of 65 miles. In other words, when the air is cool near the ground and warmer aloft, signals are reflected by that warm layer and can travel up to 700 miles if conditions are just right (usually its about 200 miles or so). That said, I enthusiastically recommend a ChannelMaster 4228 antenna from Warren Electronics (www.warrenelectronics.com). You can order online, but they also have a store in the Quad Cities and maybe Sterling/Rock Falls. Call their number and ask. Put that antenna on this rotor:

http://www.solidsignal.com/prod_display.asp?prod=MTRTR200

And you should Madison frequently with that antenna on the roof, with a signal preamplifier. Head to Farm and Fleet and get their $25 Magnavox 22 db UHF/29 dB VHF preamplifier, and your system should do what you want it to do.
(Yes, it's not cheap, but your reception will rock. And, you should get the Quad Cities from time to time as well).

3. and 4. : No idea on 4, WBKM is moving to Dixon, will broadcast digitally on channel 21; you might get them with that 4228 antenna when they move their analog and their eventual digital station there. WCFC-CA is heading to channel 28 perhaps...with 2.5 kw of power. I don't know if or when they will sign on.

hvs10trk

03-26-07, 01:16 PM

Rammitinski

03-26-07, 01:27 PM

4. Is FOX 39 Getting a subchannel anytime soon?Be careful what you wish for :eek:.

If they do, you may not notice a decline in quality on 39-1 so much with a smaller SDTV, but I guarantee you that if you should ever decide to go to a larger display like many of us others have, you WILL notice.

And that won't go over too well for the football and baseball games, or anything else with a good amount of movement.

I was actually comparing the hi-def signals between WFLD-DT and WQRF-DT the other day, and, at least on that particular program, WQRF-DT was slightly better.

Now that I can receive 39-1 regularly with no problem, I'd sure hate to see that change :(.

WillieAntenna

03-26-07, 02:59 PM

WillieAntenna

03-26-07, 03:10 PM

Be careful what you wish for :eek:.

If they do, you may not notice a decline in quality on 39-1 so much with a smaller SDTV, but I guarantee you that if you should ever decide to go to a larger display like many of us others have, you WILL notice.

And that won't go over too well for the football and baseball games, or anything else with a good amount of movement.

I was actually comparing the hi-def signals between WFLD-DT and WQRF-DT the other day, and, at least on that particular program, WQRF-DT was slightly better.

Now that I can receive 39-1 regularly with no problem, I'd sure hate to see that change :(.

Hi Rammitinski,

You are right about the picture quality was better with WQRF 39 over WFLD 32. but once awhile it vice-versa. But it was nice since they boosted to full power. But, I notice couple time that they either were off air or reduced power but I hope that the all break-in is done and so We can watch the Packer game in HD ;) .

Has that AirBus A-380 fly over your house yet? I bet you would like that to fly overhead on a daily basic.

-Willie