Providence, RI - HDTV [Text View] - Page 7

GoSlow2GoFast

12-14-06, 03:01 PM

A week or so ago I submitted a question to RI Cox on their website. Didn't really expect too much to come of it, but figured it didn't hurt to take a shot. Basically I wanted to see if they could shed any further light on the LIN situation and availability of a few more HD channels. Here's what I submitted.

I have been a long time customer of Cox cable and internet
services. Thnk you very much for providing this quality service. I have
been using the HD cable offering for the last year or two and waiting
patiently for additional channels on this offering. I am disappointed
that in my RI market several stations that are available in CT are not
available. These include CBS, FOX and WB. Some of these are freely
offered over the air today, so it's hard to understand why these are not
available via Cox's cable service. What are the plans to add these or
other additonal services to the Cox offering. I would prefer not to
invest in an over the air HD TV antenna system, or switch to a satelite
provider that offers these high def channels. But with a significant
investment in a HD television and A/V system I want to enjoy the best
delivery I can. Please put me in touch with someone who can help expand
the HD services on Cox in RI.
To be fair Cox did get to me in about a day and did a decent job responding. At least, better than I was expecting. Doesn't really solve my problem, but not terrible.

Thank you for your inquiry. Cox is committed to providing the best
customer service possible.

We have received your recent e-mail regarding the agreement with LIN
(for CBS and Fox in HD in RI). Please be advised, we believe it is our
responsibility and our customers expectations that we conscientiously
manage our cost increases. Up to this point in the negotiations with
LIN, we have been focused on a price that we believe is reasonable for
our customers. It always has been our strategy to find efficiencies
within our business before passing costs onto our customer. However, as
programming costs continue to exponentially rise, its becoming next to
impossible to avoid increasing our retail prices.

The longer these negotiations drag on, the more challenging it will be
for both companies. That is why we have asked LIN to move up its
proposed negotiation timetable to finally resolve this issue. We are
currently waiting to hear back from them on a date when they will agree
to meet.

We will continue to provide our customers with update on these
negotiations. We thank you for your patience during this long process in
acquiring these HD channels.

We have also sent a request for the CW Channel in HD, on your behalf.

We hope that we have been able to provide you with pertinent
information.

Thank you.
Madelaine
Cox Communications Online Customer Care Team

ransaldi

12-14-06, 04:22 PM

While the response seems genuine it is the same one they have been giving for months if not years. While I believe that LIN has a huge part in this not getting done Cox always leans on the timetable being moved up as its crutch. Each side has had YEARS to work this out - What does moving another meeting up a week going to do? LIN cannot work out a deal with Cox or DTV and will probably not have a deal with FIOS when it arrives. That in itself makes them the guiltier of the parties IMO.

Rhody HD

12-14-06, 04:29 PM

We need to reach out to LIN TV directly, the CEO is Vincent L Sadusky he can be reached at 401-454-2880

toenail

12-14-06, 04:49 PM

It's Thursday night and 30 Rock is in SD again on WJAR-HD. Will they EVER learn?

You must be new here. ;)

Welcome to the "Why don't they flip the HD switch/how come there's no Fox and CBS on Cox" thread.

Joe3

12-15-06, 09:30 AM

Surferdude2000

12-15-06, 10:05 AM

Now why do you think "lin" would need to a hire a PR person!??

December 14, 2006

LIN TV Beefs Up Communications Team
By Michele Greppi

With an eye toward raising its leadership profile, LIN TV has added a corporate communications position and named Courtney Guertin public relations specialist. In the newly created position, Ms. Guertin will develop and implement corporate communications programs for the company, which owns and/or operates 31 TV stations in 18 midsize markets.

Her resume includes PR stints at Rhode Island's Advertising Ventures and Harrah's Entertainment's 2006 political campaign. She is president-elect for the Public Relations Society of America, Southeastern New England Chapter.

"Courtney is a valuable addition to our team as we look to promote our accomplishments and build awareness of our leadership position in the broadcast industry," LIN TV President and CEO Vincent L. Sadusky said in Thursday's announcement of Ms. Guertin's hire.

...Perhaps partially in response to the repeated phone calls and the threat of negative press. Way to go LIN, instead of helping the consumer, hire a PR person to spin your side of the story.

We need a full court press folks.

I have called LIN multiple times and spoken to various people telling the consumer side of the story to anyone who would listen there so they can know what their own company was doing. Most were very surprised and had no idea. I have left VM's for multiple Exec's who have of course never actually called back.

Andy Smith is a reporter at the Providence Journal responsible for TV articles. He is the one who in the past has written about the dispute and how they were going to relent for the Super Bowl. I contacted him and if others do he may run another story. He said he thought maybe it was time to re-examine things again.

From my perspective the things to note that would deserve another story:
-A new development is that Direct (like Cox) was also unable to secure HD Local rights and launched without CBS/Fox. This obviously points the finger in LIN's direction.
-All of these people buying HDTV's in record number this year will be sorely disappointed when they find out that they need to procure additional hardware to get things like CSI and Football in HD (Two of the highest rated things on TV)
-Once you get used to watching HD Channels the SD versions of those channels are unbearable and football like ridiculous.

LIN let go of your stranglehold on the Providence HD Market. This is your hometown for goodness sake!

Joe3

12-15-06, 10:19 AM

" Oh! But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grindstone, LIN! a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner! Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster. The cold within him froze his old features, nipped his pointed nose, shrivelled his cheek, stiffened his gait; made his eyes red, his thin lips blue; and spoke out shrewdly in his grating voice. A frosty rime was on his head, and on his eyebrows, and his wiry chin. He carried his own low temperature always about with him; he iced his office in the dog-days; and didn't thaw it one degree at Christmas.

External heat and cold had little influence on LIN. No warmth could warm, no wintry weather chill him. No wind that blew was bitterer than he, no falling snow was more intent upon its purpose, no pelting rain less open to entreaty. Foul weather didn't know where to have him. The heaviest rain, and snow, and hail, and sleet, could boast of the advantage over him in only one respect. They often came down handsomely, and LIN never did.

Nobody ever stopped him in the street to say, with gladsome looks, "My dear LIN, how are you. When will you come to see me." No beggars implored him to bestow a trifle, no children asked him what it was o'clock, no man or woman ever once in all his life inquired the way to such and such a place, of LIN. Even the blindmen's dogs appeared to know him; and when they saw him coming on, would tug their owners into doorways and up courts; and then would wag their tails as though they said, "No eye at all is better than an evil eye, dark master!"

bcushman

12-15-06, 11:51 AM

Here is a copy of a letter I sent to both LIN, Jay Howell at WPRI with a CC to Paul Cronin at Cox. Needless to say I have received no response from LIN or WPRI:

LIN Television
1 Richmond Square, Suite 330E
Providence, RI 02906

Dear Sir:

Congratulations on the 27% increase in LIN profits for the last quarter. Wouldn't you think this would be sufficient to come to some kind of agreement with Cox Communications so that your stations (Channels 12 and 64) may be carried in high definition? I have been putting equal blame on Cox for not coming to an agreement, but now that DirecTV is carrying local RI HD stations, I find it interesting to see that two stations are not being carried - lo and behold, they happen to be the same LIN stations in the Providence market.

Is it greed, or just plain lack of consideration for your viewers that you continue this shameless behavior. Fortunately I am able to receive the Boston stations over the air, and so watch them instead of the Providence stations. My personal revolt, which makes me feel better, even if it makes no difference in your attitude.

Come on - let's get this ridiculous problem resolved.

Sincerely,

igneous

12-15-06, 04:34 PM

Does anyone know if TNTHD can be picked up with qam? I know that nbc, abc, pbs, and espn are available, but I haven't heard anything about tnt. I'd really like to be able to watch lord of the rings in HD :)

jamesb478

12-16-06, 01:15 AM

............

richof

12-16-06, 10:54 AM

I am strictly an OTA HD viewer. Last couple of days, I have completely lost 2.1,2.2,5.1,28.1. Does anyone know if there is anything up with these towers or it is it just me?

RoyGBiv

12-16-06, 11:11 AM

I am strictly an OTA HD viewer. Last couple of days, I have completely lost 2.1,2.2,5.1,28.1. Does anyone know if there is anything up with these towers or it is it just me?

No problems with any of them now in Pawtucket.

SMK

RYankowitz

12-16-06, 12:28 PM

I am strictly an OTA HD viewer. Last couple of days, I have completely lost 2.1,2.2,5.1,28.1. Does anyone know if there is anything up with these towers or it is it just me?
Channels 2.x and 5.x are on our tower (on a shared antenna) in Needham. There are no problems there I'm aware of. Channel 28.1 is on our tower in East Freetown, where everything is just fine as well.

arnjohn

12-16-06, 01:00 PM

If I go to the web site at 2150/broadcast and enter my location +41.474 north and –071.672 west with a magnetic declination of –14.9 and a distance of 50 miles and press show stations I get a display of all digital TV stations within 50 miles each showing the antenna distance from me, a map of antenna locations, antenna heights, broadcast power and the antenna broadcast patterns with a red line showing my azimuth. From this it’s easy to see why I can not receive WNAC-DT but I don’t understand why I get WLNE-DT pretty well but I don’t get WJAR-DT. Does an 18 ft lower antenna height offset the 650 KW difference in power when the antenna patterns are identical? Is the information at this site current and correct?

arnjohn

12-16-06, 01:09 PM

This forum would not let me enter the complete url which is http://www.2150.com/broadcast/default.asp until I entered five messages.

btgolfer

12-17-06, 08:38 PM

Just picked up Cox dvr and hi def service. Is anyone else dissatisfied with 1. limited number of hi def channels and 2. lousy pq when run thru cox dvr unit.?

btgolfer

12-17-06, 08:39 PM

i have s sony 60" xbr 2 and pq is better on ota hd and regular unscrambled cable channels

btgolfer

12-17-06, 08:42 PM

bcushman

12-18-06, 08:05 AM

I've got a Mits 55 inch TV and find the HD PQ with the Cox DVR better than I did with DirecTV using the HR10-250 (which I still use for OTA)

tmgcomp

12-18-06, 08:36 AM

I agree. I have had both cox and direct. My HD and SD quality is much better then Direct.

btgolfer

12-18-06, 10:03 AM

Allow me to clarify my issue with PQ- I get good results for HD on Cox HD stations. I do think the OTA Hd stations are better than Cox's feed.

My problem is with the digital tier and other unscrambled stations. For channels 2-72, PQ run thru Cox DVR is grainy and fuzzy. Luckily, I had kept an old cable feed active which I run into my Sony's cable input. The picture is much clearer, probably a result on Sony's video scaler.
As for scrambled channels 73-699, my only choice is the DVR. Again, the picture is grainy and fuzzy. Do I have a bad DVR? I checked and it is a Motorola 6412. At present, I am using YBC cables to feed the Sony. Should I invest in a DVI to HDMI cable?

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

bcushman

12-18-06, 10:22 AM

I presently have two 6416s. The old analog channels have now been converted to digital and I have EXCELLENT quality on all channels 1 through 99 on a 27 inch TV. The quality is not as good with the large screen TV.

arnjohn

12-19-06, 10:50 AM

arnjohn

Have you tried www.antennaweb.org to get a handle on your antenna options? I used them to dial in many Boston stations and RI as well. Color coding helps to determine what type of equipment may be required.
The problem with www.antrnnaweb.org is that it does not consider the broadcast antenna pattern. I have a cm4228 uhf antenna, an old 9.5 ft vhf/uhf antenna and a cm7777 antenna amplifier pointed at 45 degrees from my location with no rotor. I don’t receive a watchable digital signal from WJAR-DT or WNAC-DT but I get a good signal from WLNE-DT which is at an azimuth of 45 degrees, 39.33 miles distant with 350KW power on a 932 ft tower. The difference is that it’s antenna broadcasts a pattern in my direction

JamesF in NK

12-19-06, 03:51 PM

RE last Sunday's Patriots-Houston game on Prov. Channel 12 - while I got a good OTA 12-1 signal, the game was not in HD. I checked about a half dozen times and it was only SD. Anyone else not able to get OTA HD for the game? Did LIN forget to switch the switch? Or, are they now jerking our chain in other ways?

bcushman

12-19-06, 03:56 PM

CBS didn't broadcast the game in HD

Benji

12-19-06, 09:16 PM

And for future information, the Tennessee game, though a 4PM start, will not be in HD either. The Pat's inconsistent season has relegated the importance of its games to 4th class status with CBS.

JimG-37

12-20-06, 07:00 AM

And for future information, the Tennessee game, though a 4PM start, will not be in HD either. The Pat's inconsistent season has relegated the importance of its games to 4th class status with CBS.

I agree the Pat's haven't been all that great, but they are still 10 - 4, not bad for an inconsistent team. Too bad that one of the larger markets in the country have to suffer because of this class status. Sad to say, but last Sunday I kept switching over to the Fox game just because it was in HD. Once you go HD you never want to go back.

JamesF in NK

12-20-06, 09:21 PM

... the Pat's inconsistent season has relegated the importance of its games to 4th class status with CBS.
Of course this is a joke, right? LIN is screwed up enough. But are you suggesting that the question of whether a local team wins enough games or not decides on whether we, the viewers, get HD or not? Frankly, that sounds like something that LIN would do. This area really is a third-world country.
Perhaps it's time to let those advertisers on LIN stations know that you will not buy their products until all of this nonsense changes. And COX sucks equally too.

Benji

12-20-06, 09:34 PM

Of course this is a joke, right? LIN is screwed up enough. But are you suggesting that the question of whether a local team wins enough games or not decides on whether we, the viewers, get HD or not? ...
BINGO!!! That's a fact Jack. CBS only does 3 HD games a Sunday. If they have more than 3 on the schedule, they eliminate games based on perceived importance. The Pats currently are not being taken too serious by the powers that be.

gsr

12-20-06, 09:43 PM

Of course this is a joke, right? LIN is screwed up enough. But are you suggesting that the question of whether a local team wins enough games or not decides on whether we, the viewers, get HD or not? Frankly, that sounds like something that LIN would do. This area really is a third-world country.
Perhaps it's time to let those advertisers on LIN stations know that you will not buy their products until all of this nonsense changes. And COX sucks equally too.

This has nothing to do with the local stations. CBS only has so much HD equipment, so they dedicate it to the games they feel will generate the most interest and reward the teams that are playing well. Until they have enough HD equipment to handle all the games, what they're doing seems perfectly reasonable to me, as much as it stinks for us. Think about it from the perspective of fans in other parts of the country - they'd be justified to be pretty mad if their team has the best record and gets shown in SD, but the Patriots are on in HD and not playing all that well. Perhaps the anger is best directed at the team to start playing well so the situation will resolve itself... I'm sure that over the next few years, the broadcasters will eventually get enough HD equipment to broadcast all the games in HD.

Ph8te

12-21-06, 05:47 AM

Well hopefully now it looks like Verizon has been approved we will see some moves by Cox that are actually serious for HD :)

http://www.ripuc.org/utilityinfo/cabletv/2006_C_4ReportOrder.pdf

RoyGBiv

12-21-06, 12:04 PM

Well hopefully now it looks like Verizon has been approved we will see some moves by Cox that are actually serious for HD :)

http://www.ripuc.org/utilityinfo/cabletv/2006_C_4ReportOrder.pdf

Now there's a Christmas present! I have D* but would be very interested in seeing what Verizon does with FIOS in RI.

SMK

DM2006RI

12-21-06, 09:01 PM

That's a fact Jack. CBS only does 3 HD games a Sunday. If they have more than 3 on the schedule, they eliminate games based on perceived importance. The Pats currently are not being taken too serious by the powers that be.

Huh? I'm the biggest Pats fan there is but that is an absurd statement. As far as the non-HD game goes, they were playing the TEXANS -- a game that nobody cared about outside of this region and whatever fans the Texans have in their fair state. Heck, the Pats are in HD nearly EVERY week -- there are some teams that barely have any games televised in HD, and I can count the non-HD Pats games on one hand over the last couple of years. Even the game with the 2-win LIONS team was in HD!!

Like folks who complain about the team not being that great, methinks some of us are fairly spoiled ;)

cheesypoof

12-22-06, 08:20 AM

Huh? I'm the biggest Pats fan there is but that is an absurd statement. As far as the non-HD game goes, they were playing the TEXANS -- a game that nobody cared about outside of this region and whatever fans the Texans have in their fair state. Heck, the Pats are in HD nearly EVERY week -- there are some teams that barely have any games televised in HD, and I can count the non-HD Pats games on one hand over the last couple of years. Even the game with the 2-win LIONS team was in HD!!

Like folks who complain about the team not being that great, methinks some of us are fairly spoiled ;)

Though it is true, anyone who has experienced HD has been spoiled,
but can you blame us?
It just isn't the same when you watch anything in SD, I find myself comparing and judging the picture even though I have DirecTv tivo which in it's defence is still a damn sight better than regular cable, ohhhhh I pray for the day when the "norm" is HD, infact that's what I'm gonna ask Santa for this year ;) and with that I wish everyone a very merry Christmas and a fabulous "HD" new year! Ho Ho Ho

btgolfer

12-22-06, 10:04 AM

Any word from Cox when FSN HD will be available? I notice several other cable companies already have this service.

rampart51

12-22-06, 02:43 PM

steve125

12-22-06, 07:25 PM

Can anyone recommend a antenna installer. I am in the southern part of the state. I need a new HDef antenna put up replacing the old regular one thats already there. I'll buy the stuff.

Thanks in advance!

Not sure if your replacing because it's old and maybe worn, but there is really no special HD type antenna. You probably could just run a new feed line and replace the matching transformer (if it's using one) and see great results.

Ph8te

12-23-06, 01:24 AM

Can anyone tell me if they use a QAM tuner on their sets and what channels they pick up? I jsut got my HLS6188 the other day did a scan today and was able to find a few channels (most surprisingly ESPN HD through a direct connection, I do have a few other channels that were picked up on the "digital side" but was just wondering what other people found and the channels they were mapped to (the TV has a LOT of channels that it picked up but many have no signal or are "scrambled" It was just luck that I found ESPN HD by going up channels 1 by 1 . Hopefully someone out there will have the channels and what they are mapped to :). Thank you for any assistance in this.

Some of the "other channels included HBO, and a STARZ OnDemand Screen, and some others I couldn't Identify but since they are not labeled as of yet in the system I do not know what they are, has anyone been able to get DiscoveryHD? I know I am goign to have to switch out my Boxes for the HD ones but the more I get he better without them :).

rampart51

12-23-06, 07:33 AM

Not sure if your replacing because it's old and maybe worn, but there is really no special HD type antenna. You probably could just run a new feed line and replace the matching transformer (if it's using one) and see great results.

Well....the old one has been up there for more years than I can count. There are a bunch of missing elements due to wind damage. So I figured if I was gonna get a new HighDef TV, I'd put up a new antenna as well.

But I also thought there was something special in the newer antennas. Guess not so its good to know I can use the existing one for a while.

Thx Steve125

meuseman

12-27-06, 09:47 AM

Do we have any idea what (if anything) will be replacing INHD2 when it stops broadcasting on 1/1/07?

cnvrtble98

12-27-06, 12:46 PM

arnjohn

12-27-06, 01:14 PM

I just hooked up my new HDTV with a QAM tuner...I have basic from Cox and after a scan for channels I am getting WGBH HD and ESPN HD (which looks scrambled more often than not) Besides the antenna route (which I am still looking into) is there a way to get any other local HD channels or any recommendation on how to get ESPN HD looking better?
THX!
You should also be getting 6.1 (WLNE-DT) and 10.1 (WJAR-DT). With a basic antenna 12.1 (WPRI-HD) should be easy to get and depending where you live relative to Rehobeth 64.1 (WNAC-HD) is easy to get with a UHF antenna.

igneous

12-27-06, 05:35 PM

Do we have any idea what (if anything) will be replacing INHD2 when it stops broadcasting on 1/1/07?
I know that we're getting espn2 hd around that same time. Ya know what would be real nice to have what we were told we would have a year ago? CBS and FOX in HD :mad:

cnvrtble98

12-27-06, 06:25 PM

You should also be getting 6.1 (WLNE-DT) and 10.1 (WJAR-DT). With a basic antenna 12.1 (WPRI-HD) should be easy to get and depending where you live relative to Rehobeth 64.1 (WNAC-HD) is easy to get with a UHF antenna.

Any idea on how to get ESPN HD without the tile effect I am seeing or on how to get the other 2 (6.1 and 10.1) thru my basic cable connection? I am wondering what may be having a negative effect on the reception. I live in the Centerdale area of North Prov. (where N.P., Johnston and Smitfield all meet) and was hoping someone could recommend an antenna that I could use to get FOX and whatever else is in range.
THX!

rampart51

12-27-06, 07:21 PM

cheesypoof

12-27-06, 07:24 PM

Any idea on how to get ESPN HD without the tile effect I am seeing or on how to get the other 2 (6.1 and 10.1) thru my basic cable connection? I am wondering what may be having a negative effect on the reception. I live in the Centerdale area of North Prov. (where N.P., Johnston and Smitfield all meet) and was hoping someone could recommend an antenna that I could use to get FOX and whatever else is in range.
THX!

I live in Woonsocket pretty much in a valley area with at least 3 trees blocking my antenna, I tried 4 antennas in all from rabbit ears to an rca weird long thingy, anyway I heard great reviews about an "multi-directional" antenna, it's called "DB8" and you can get one on ebay for about $90 and that includes shipping! Well I installed it and searched for channels....and I got found..2.2(pbs hd), 4.1(Boston CBS), 5.1(Boston ABC), 6.1(Prov ABC), 10.1(Prov NBC), 12.1(Prov CBS), 28.1(Prov CW aka UPN), 64.1(Prov FOX) and 10.2(Prov NBC 24hr weather) and 64.2(Prov FOX 24hr weather)
All channels come in clear without drop-out but on occasion when raining hard there is some drop-out on 28.1 and 4.1 but apart from that it's damn fine antenna.

cnvrtble98

12-27-06, 11:07 PM

Ph8te

12-27-06, 11:09 PM

Any idea on how to get ESPN HD without the tile effect I am seeing or on how to get the other 2 (6.1 and 10.1) thru my basic cable connection? I am wondering what may be having a negative effect on the reception. I live in the Centerdale area of North Prov. (where N.P., Johnston and Smitfield all meet) and was hoping someone could recommend an antenna that I could use to get FOX and whatever else is in range.
THX!
It could just be your QAM tuner that is causing the Tiling effect OR it could be the strength of the Signal comming into your home. Do you have any splitters between the main connection and your new TV? If So try a "direct connection"
I just got my new TV last week and was able to get 10.1 6.1, 106.3(WGBH) and 107.1(ESPN) and all come in very clear without pixilation. With a very Basic RadioShak powered antennae I can add 12.1,12.2,6.2,64.1,64.2 to the Mix as well.
I live in Providence Smith Street Area.

The channels though that you are missing should come in automatically when you do a scan of channels. I do have digital service though so that may make a difference (but it shouldnt). Also check out the 84-94 range of channels 1 by 1 various times throughout the day yuou will catch PPV movies and HBO on Demand feeds from other peoples ordering (of course sometimes the FF during it but its "free" so go figure lol!!! Hope this helps a little.

cnvrtble98

12-27-06, 11:35 PM

It could just be your QAM tuner that is causing the Tiling effect OR it could be the strength of the Signal comming into your home. Do you have any splitters between the main connection and your new TV? If So try a "direct connection"
I just got my new TV last week and was able to get 10.1 6.1, 106.3(WGBH) and 107.1(ESPN) and all come in very clear without pixilation. With a very Basic RadioShak powered antennae I can add 12.1,12.2,6.2,64.1,64.2 to the Mix as well.
I live in Providence Smith Street Area.

The channels though that you are missing should come in automatically when you do a scan of channels. I do have digital service though so that may make a difference (but it shouldnt). Also check out the 84-94 range of channels 1 by 1 various times throughout the day yuou will catch PPV movies and HBO on Demand feeds from other peoples ordering (of course sometimes the FF during it but its "free" so go figure lol!!! Hope this helps a little.

Oh thats good news because I live right near you...I am gonna re-wire the connection since I am using a cheap cable amplifier as a splitter and the coax it pretty old...hopefully that helps ( I really hope the tuner in my Olevia 542i isn't crappy) I am also goinna try an antenna once I figure out how to use both when my TV only has one coax input.
Thx for the info!!

cheesypoof

12-28-06, 07:33 AM

ok...my HDTV has only one coaxial input. Is it possible to have a rooftop antenna and cable both running into the one input and have my TV scan both at once? and if its possible what would I need to get to accomplish this...or is there another way to get to use both the antenna and cable without having to re-scan for channels each time I want to switch from cable to the antenna?
Thx!

On my TV it only lets me scan either antenna or cable, not both at the same time, I'm not sure if your TV lets you scan both. The only other way I can think of is if you could get a cable set top box and run the antenna through that.

Benji

12-28-06, 08:32 AM

You can get coaxial cable splitters but unfortunately they work in the opposite direction from what you require...1 input from antenna, 2 or more outputs. I don't believe they are reversible. As the previous poster said, the only other way is to get an OTA set-top box for a second source. This would connect to your Component input.

Joe3

12-28-06, 09:32 AM

Check this out.

http://www.tivolovers.com/Series3-FAQ.html

Note: for Ports

:) Cable In

:) Antenna In

arnjohn

12-28-06, 10:51 AM

ok...my HDTV has only one coaxial input. Is it possible to have a rooftop antenna and cable both running into the one input and have my TV scan both at once? and if its possible what would I need to get to accomplish this...or is there another way to get to use both the antenna and cable without having to re-scan for channels each time I want to switch from cable to the antenna?
Thx!
It's not cheap but another way to combine basic cable and OTA is get a an HD DVR like the Sony DHG-HDD250 which has two coaxial inputs and combines the results from the two scans.

cnvrtble98

12-28-06, 07:55 PM

It could just be your QAM tuner that is causing the Tiling effect OR it could be the strength of the Signal comming into your home. Do you have any splitters between the main connection and your new TV? If So try a "direct connection"
I just got my new TV last week and was able to get 10.1 6.1, 106.3(WGBH) and 107.1(ESPN) and all come in very clear without pixilation. With a very Basic RadioShak powered antennae I can add 12.1,12.2,6.2,64.1,64.2 to the Mix as well.
I live in Providence Smith Street Area.

The channels though that you are missing should come in automatically when you do a scan of channels. I do have digital service though so that may make a difference (but it shouldnt). Also check out the 84-94 range of channels 1 by 1 various times throughout the day yuou will catch PPV movies and HBO on Demand feeds from other peoples ordering (of course sometimes the FF during it but its "free" so go figure lol!!! Hope this helps a little.

I re-routed the cable to make sure that tv got a split of the main feed and not from the amplified 4-out box and now I am able to get 10-1, 6-1, WGBH HD and ESPN HD perfectly...thanks for the info!!

Davesrave

12-28-06, 08:33 PM

ok...my HDTV has only one coaxial input. Is it possible to have a rooftop antenna and cable both running into the one input and have my TV scan both at once? and if its possible what would I need to get to accomplish this...or is there another way to get to use both the antenna and cable without having to re-scan for channels each time I want to switch from cable to the antenna?
Thx!

No!, but why? Tell us about your TV. How old is it? What size is it? How many connections are on the back panel? Sounds like you only need to buy an extra set of cables to get what you're looking for.

steve125

12-28-06, 08:50 PM

OK...so I get a new HiDef TV. Plug it into my existing antenna.......WOW...can't believe all these channels are showing really nice hidef stuff. Anyway....

I'm confused.

I cannot get 10.1 (WJAR) but I can pick up WJAR on 51.1 and 51.2 (Weather Plus).

I get 12.1 (WPRI).

I get 7.1 and 7.2.

I get 6.1 and 6.2

I get 5.1

I cannot get 4.1 but pick up 4 on 30.1

I cannot get 2.1 or 2.2 but do get 19.1, and 19.2 (WGBH).

So....why can't I get 10.1 or 2.1?

I do get lots of other stations (i'm tired of typing) and I live in Newport County (126 ft above sea level).

Any ideas?

Thanks in advanced.

Try re-scanning, your seeing the actual new UHF channels being used. The stations send mapping data that sets the TV to display the stations legacy channel even though your tuned to another channel. Your receiver is missing this either due to an unstable data stream the first time you scanned or an issue between your tuner and the station.

steve125

12-28-06, 08:57 PM

No!, but why? Tell us about your TV. How old is it? What size is it? How many connections are on the back panel? Sounds like you only need to buy an extra set of cables to get what you're looking for.

It would be nice to know the brand of television that only supplies one jack for both the QAM and ATSC tuners. Very poor design.

cnvrtble98

12-28-06, 09:20 PM

It would be nice to know the brand of television that only supplies one jack for both the QAM and ATSC tuners. Very poor design.

The TV is a Syntax Olevia 542i...it has 2 sets of component inputs, 2 composites, 2 s-video, 1 ANT in, I VGA, 1 HDMI. Then it has audio outputs...2 RCA, 1 coaxial, 1 optical, 1 subwoofer, and 1 earphone.

Davesrave

12-28-06, 10:01 PM

The TV is a Syntax Olevia 542i...it has 2 sets of component inputs, 2 composites, 2 s-video, 1 ANT in, I VGA, 1 HDMI. Then it has audio outputs...2 RCA, 1 coaxial, 1 optical, 1 subwoofer, and 1 earphone.

I'm going to go to bed now while others on the site walk you through Television 101. Yawn...

igneous

12-29-06, 12:25 AM

It would be nice to know the brand of television that only supplies one jack for both the QAM and ATSC tuners. Very poor design.
Panasonic plasmas do, and they are some of the most popular tvs out there right now.

cheesypoof

12-29-06, 10:44 AM

Does anybody have any drop-out of digital sound from antenna broadcasts?
I have a hp 42" plasma hd which I use a 10ft moster cable toslink to connect to my yamaha reciever
Thanks in advance

btgolfer

12-29-06, 12:02 PM

The only drop out I see for OTA broadcasts is when they switch to commercials. It returns back to digital when show resumes. I have a Yamaha 2095 receiver.

btgolfer

12-29-06, 12:11 PM

The Pats game vs Titans will be in HD on Sunday per hdsportsguide.com

taugust04

12-30-06, 03:29 AM

Hi Everyone,

Just purchased a Samsung 26" HDTV, model LN-S2652D. Looking for an indoor antenna for the unit, to supplement my limited Cox DVR HDTV programming. My main concern is is HD reception on 12-1 and 64-1 for football, but would love to pickup some of those Boston channels too. From what I have read so far, Samsung includes a better quality/sensitive tuner than some other HDTV brands.

I have a cheapo non-amplified antenna hooked up right now, and I'm not doing too well with reception. Picked up 12-1 for a little while, bit not much luck with other stations. It must be indoors because I live in an apartment complex, on the second floor (Middletown, RI).

Does amplification make that much of a difference? Also, looking for something I can buy around here, rather than online (RadioShack, BestBuy, Circuit City, etc). I'm hoping to make some kind of purchase before Sunday 12/31. I might buy something temporary first if something jumps out at me thats only available online.

Thanks in advance, the amount of information I learned just going 10 pages back is incredible (found this sight by searching google regarding why 12/64 HD aren't available on Cox).

Chrissi1va

12-30-06, 03:31 AM

btgolfer

12-30-06, 10:08 AM

If your TV has a QAM tuner, you can get HDTV thru coaxial. I have the Motorola 6412 DVR from Cox and there is only a coaxial input-no output. Hooked to my Sony XBR2 thru component. Has anyone tried the DVI-HDMI from the Moto 6412 to their TV? Is there a big difference in PQ for SD? for HD?. My OTA reception is incredible using a 15yo antenna. PQ using component cables thru DVR is OK-not great. I wish Cox would add more HD channels.

steve125

12-30-06, 10:38 AM

Panasonic plasmas do, and they are some of the most popular tvs out there right now.

Unfortunately it's popularity is due mostly to it's affordability of it's lower end models.

If your cool with getting behind the TV and swapping the coax line each time you want to switch from a QAM channel to an ATSC channel I guess thats cool. I just prefer using the remote to do this on my Sony which has 1 input for each.

steve125

12-30-06, 10:53 AM

Does amplification make that much of a difference?

With DTV it's best to try to avoid amplifiers. Opposed to regular TV reception more signal is not always going to be better. If it must be indoors then you will have to experiment with as many antenna positions and locations as possible.

Remember, with DTV the picture quality once you have the signal will not improve with increased signal. It's either there in all it's glory or you have nothing. The only benefit to better signal is consistent reception despite weather or other interference.

RoyGBiv

12-30-06, 11:51 AM

cnvrtble98's comment confuses me a little bit. How is it possible to receive a HD signal through a coaxial cable? I thought that the minimum way to connect a hi def source was component cables. Why is the standard way to connect a cox dvr to a high def tv through component if an antenna can receive hi def through coaxial?

You are talking about two different types of signals. When a TV stations transmits any signal SD or HD, the OTA signal is modulated onto a carrier frequency for transmission. This is picked up by your antenna and routed to the antenna input on the TV display or receiver. In there is a circuit which will demodulate the signal and allow transmission of the demodulated HD signal to the display screen. This demodulated signal can be carried one of several ways. One is the three cables of the "component video" type (which are constructed as coaxial cables though they are not usually called that), each carrying part of the signal (Y, Pr, Pb). The second is via VGA or "RGBVH" analog signals, such as used by many computer displays and some early HDTVs. The third is digitally via DVI or HDMI.

You can use three coaxial cables quite well to transmit this analog signal as "component video" to your TV, but it is a completely different signal from the type being sent OTA.

SMK

taugust04

12-30-06, 09:20 PM

With DTV it's best to try to avoid amplifiers. Opposed to regular TV reception more signal is not always going to be better. If it must be indoors then you will have to experiment with as many antenna positions and locations as possible.

Remember, with DTV the picture quality once you have the signal will not improve with increased signal. It's either there in all it's glory or you have nothing. The only benefit to better signal is consistent reception despite weather or other interference.

Thanks Steve. I bought a Philips antenna at Walmart today for $30. It claims to have amplication of up to 30db. So far so good, as 12-1 is coming in crystal clear. 64-1 has some distortion, so I may need to adjust it further. Oddly, I'm picking up ch.4's digital signal crystal clear, so I have a choice for football on CBS if needed.

It doesn't help that my apartment has thick concrete walls, and where my TV is, the only window I have faces west, so it's hard to point it towards Rehoboth where the transmitters are throwing out the signal from.

gsr

12-31-06, 06:56 PM

Unfortunately it's popularity is due mostly to it's affordability of it's lower end models.

If your cool with getting behind the TV and swapping the coax line each time you want to switch from a QAM channel to an ATSC channel I guess thats cool. I just prefer using the remote to do this on my Sony which has 1 input for each.

If there aren't enough antenna inputs, there's always the option of getting an A/B switch and using that - no need to get behind the TV each time. The bigger concern is the need to rescan channels each time you make the switch - that would be a pain.

richof

01-01-07, 02:27 PM

It must be indoors because I live in an apartment complex, on the second floor (Middletown, RI).

I am in Middletown on the Newport Line. Now have rooftop outdoor antenna but started with a Radio Shack indoor amplified. It worked fairly well and got 12 and 64 no problem. I forget the model, but its all plastic, white rectangular, with amplifier. RS has a 30 day return policy so try it out and take it back if not to your satisfaction. It was about $50.

toenail

01-01-07, 02:48 PM

Any other Cox customers lose NFL Network in HD, formerly channel 701?

ransaldi

01-01-07, 02:55 PM

Yes they only added it for the games. The only thing they show in HD on the channel is the game replays. Since the regaler season is over and the network has no more games they dropped it. I am pretty sure most cable providers did the same thing.

Chrissi1va

01-01-07, 04:07 PM

Thanks for the clarification guys. It makes a lot more sense to me now. Is there anyway to find out if Cox is doing the digital simulcast in my area yet? One more thing, like btgolfer asked if I hook the Cox dvr up to my tv with HDMI or DVI will I notice a difference in PQ?

toenail

01-01-07, 04:40 PM

rampart51

01-01-07, 08:47 PM

Try re-scanning, your seeing the actual new UHF channels being used. The stations send mapping data that sets the TV to display the stations legacy channel even though your tuned to another channel. Your receiver is missing this either due to an unstable data stream the first time you scanned or an issue between your tuner and the station.

I've rescanned four or five times. Odd.

Maybe its time I replaced that old antenna.

BUT...the good news is I get LOTS of HIDEF channels...I really don't care what they are being mapped to as long as I can get them.

Bobbarry

01-01-07, 10:02 PM

gsr

01-01-07, 10:22 PM

I have been doing a reasonable amount of research on an OTA (HDTV) antenna and have many questions. But for now I have a simple question.

I have purchased and returned two amplified antennas (18 dB and 35 dB) which had a surface area of approx. 6" X 6". Neither met my requirements. I am looking for an omnidirectional UHF antenna. Simple question: Does size matter? Should I be looking for more surface area first then worry about amplification?

Yes, this is a case where size does tend to matter and directional antennas usually outperform omnidirectional antennas by a pretty wide margin. Perhaps if you explained your requirements, goals, and location (to get an idea of how far you are from the transmitters and what obstructions might be between you and the transmitters), people might be able to recommend something that would work for you.

taugust04

01-03-07, 04:32 AM

I am in Middletown on the Newport Line. Now have rooftop outdoor antenna but started with a Radio Shack indoor amplified. It worked fairly well and got 12 and 64 no problem. I forget the model, but its all plastic, white rectangular, with amplifier. RS has a 30 day return policy so try it out and take it back if not to your satisfaction. It was about $50.

Well, I have been doing alot of research on the Internet, including back posts of this forum, to see what the best options were for an indoor antenna for HDTV, considering I'm stuck in a concrete/stucco apartment complex with no option of a roof or attic antenna. Here's what I came up with to remedy my situation:

1.) Equipment: I started out with plain old rabbit ears with no luck whatsoever. I recently purchased a Philips MANT-510 amplified antenna, and it helped. After more research, I found that the UHF antenna wasn't adequate in most of these set-top antennas, and that in most cases amplification isn't that important... so... I built a home-brew modification to the Philips antenna. I attached two standard bow-tie UHF antenna's to each of the Philips' built-in rabbit ears, which are connected to a 300 ohm to 75 ohm converter. This then gets bridged to the Philips antenna output with a splitter/combiner, and then sent to a TV. So far a dramatic improvement (results below).

2.) Location: I originally tried the antenna on top of the TV, with limited success. Moving it to the adjacent window next to the TV helped, but I wasn't impressed. If there's anything that's stressed when doing research on this its that DTV signals are very directional... so... I invested in 50"ft of coaxial cable, and moved the antenna to a north facing window in my apartment. Since the main goal is only occasional reception of OTA HDTV when needed (for football games, etc, since I already have Cox HD Service), the long cable on the floor every once and a while isn't a huge deal. After moving the antenna the improvement was dramatic, even more so after I modified the antenna as I listed above.

RESULTS: After starting out with spotty reception of one or two channels, here is what I am receiving after running an auto-program of my Samsung tv:

13 (WPRI), 17 (WPXQ), 19 (WGBH), 20 (WCVB), 22 (WLWC), 30 (WBZ), 36 (WSBE), 43 (WGBX) 49 (WLNE), 51 (WJAR), 54 (WNAC).

I'm very happy overall, and wasn't expecting to even get the Boston stations, though what I'm really interested in, is why I'm getting some Boston stations and not others, considering most of them have similar service contours in the FCC database.

This was a long winded post, but I wanted to pass on the info, especially for other newbies like me who are just starting out on researching digital and HDTV.

ritvman

01-03-07, 08:47 AM

LIN TV ANNOUNCES AGREEMENT WITH VERIZON
Resulting in significantly more choice for viewers

PROVIDENCE, RI, January 3, 2006 – LIN TV Corp. (NYSE: TVL) today announced that it has reached an agreement with Verizon for retransmission services of its broadcast stations through Verizon’s FiOS TV to consumers in LIN TV’s markets, providing greater choice for subscription television and on-demand programming via Verizon’s all-digital, fiber-optic network.

“We are pleased to be partnering with an industry leader like Verizon to offer LIN TV station viewers a rich experience and provide households with more choice and competitive pricing,” said Vincent L. Sadusky, president and chief executive officer of LIN TV Corp.

The agreement with Verizon grants the company the right to LIN TV’s locally produced content, including market-leading local newscasts, for Video on Demand (VOD) and to carry both the analog and HDTV signals of all the LIN stations in markets where Verizon provides cable service. WAVY-TV NBC 10 and WVBT-TV Fox Channel 43, both broadcasted out of Norfolk, Virginia, will be the first of LIN TV’s stations to air on Verizon’s FiOS TV.

bcushman

01-03-07, 09:02 AM

But doesn't mention if this includes the HD feeds of CBS & Fox. We can only hope.

Surferdude2000

01-03-07, 09:32 AM

"and to carry both the analog and HDTV signals of all the LIN stations in markets where Verizon provides cable service."

I would say that should cover CBS and Fox.

If that is the case I tip my hat to Verizon for being able to score a deal with LIN, or perhaps I should curse COX for not being able to. ....of course Verizon has much deeper pockets than COX.

bcushman

01-03-07, 09:35 AM

[QUOTE=Surferdude2000]"and to carry both the analog and HDTV signals of all the LIN stations in markets where Verizon provides cable service."

Oops, missed that part. That certainly sounds good - Cox, are you hearing this?

Joe3

01-03-07, 09:50 AM

Rhody HD

01-03-07, 11:17 AM

That's great come April if you live in Cable Zone 6...I forwarded the article to Paul Cronin at Cox (VP of the Northeast region). I recommend all to do the same. Send your message to paul.croinATcox.com

Rhody HD

01-03-07, 12:36 PM

Correction from above the correct place to send a message to Paul Cronin would be paul.croninATcox.com

bcushman

01-03-07, 03:45 PM

FWIW, here's the reply I received from Paul Cronin after forwarding him the article on Verizon:

Over the last few weeks our talks with them have made great strides and I believe considerable progress has been made. I don’t believe that the remaining gaps in the agreement are insurmountable. I remain optimistic that a deal can be reached in the very near future. Thank you for your continued interest.

Paul Cronin

Rhody HD

01-03-07, 03:46 PM

Here is the response I received...I wrote back pointing out that customers typically don't appreciate canned responses.

In the last few weeks our discussions with them have progressed quite well. I personally don’t believe that the gaps remaining are insurmountable with continued good-faith discussions. I remain optimistic that we can get this done in the near future. Thank you for your continued interests.

Paul Cronin

bcushman

01-03-07, 04:08 PM

Well at least he is consistent with his replies :)

DaveG34

01-03-07, 11:22 PM

jamesb478

01-03-07, 11:52 PM

............

Ph8te

01-04-07, 01:30 AM

Just talked to my friend that works at Verizon here in RI and he told me that once FIOS TV rolls out in April/June, FIOS TV will be avaliable to everyone that has FIOS, just not Service Area 6. They have agreements in all of the Service Areas that have/will have FIOS by the time it goes live. I will keep everyone updated on this issue. Also, talked to my uncle at Cox and he told me he will ask around to see when they will reach some agreement with LIN. If Cox doesn;t change their programming by the time FIOS TV rolls around, I and many other will prob be switching, heck why not just switch anyway and not be under Cox;s roof anymore.
Well Right Now FIOS is only in Service Area 6...and Verizon HAS to apply for each service Area separately in order to get TV service in RI. Since they were approved for Service Area 6 it will be MUCH easier to get service to other areas though. Hopefully they will start to rollout RI faster though I know Providnce (where I live) will most likely be last to get the FIOS service :(

I thionk for the price if many people look at it the FIOS service (for RI) is a much better deal then Cox can offer right now. More HD content, and cheaper service will have me awitching as soon as I can period, Cox New England has been very slow with adding new services especially HD service so I will be a convert as soon as I can unless Cox steps it up sometime soon.

taugust04

01-04-07, 02:59 AM

Anyone have any experience with Terk HDTVa Indoor antenna? Bought one today at Best Buy and can only get sporadic 12.1 for reception. Nothing else. I live in Bristol in a condo complex. Any suggestions?

Hi Dave,

Though I don't have specific experience with that antenna, in my research, I have read that the Terk and Zenith indoor antennas, though highly recommended, are very directional. Try putting the antenna near a window, facing North/NorthEast (towards Rehoboth where most of the transmitters for Providence HDTV are) and see if your reception improves.

taugust04

01-04-07, 03:03 AM

Well Right Now FIOS is only in Service Area 6...and Verizon HAS to apply for each service Area separately in order to get TV service in RI. Since they were approved for Service Area 6 it will be MUCH easier to get service to other areas though. Hopefully they will start to rollout RI faster though I know Providnce (where I live) will most likely be last to get the FIOS service :(

I thionk for the price if many people look at it the FIOS service (for RI) is a much better deal then Cox can offer right now. More HD content, and cheaper service will have me awitching as soon as I can period, Cox New England has been very slow with adding new services especially HD service so I will be a convert as soon as I can unless Cox steps it up sometime soon.

I've always been happy with Cox's services, so I'll probably stay with them, but I'm betting that the competition with FIOS will make Cox more aggressive with offering new services and keeping things competitive.

Where things will be most interesting when FIOS-TV is available is in Bristol County, where residents will have the choice of Full Channel, Cox, and Verizon for TV service... insane!

JimG-37

01-04-07, 07:04 AM

Anyone have any experience with Terk HDTVa Indoor antenna? Bought one today at Best Buy and can only get sporadic 12.1 for reception. Nothing else. I live in Bristol in a condo complex. Any suggestions?
I do have the Terk HDTVa antenna. I live in Greenville and had trouble picking up 12.1 as well. Since 12.1 is a VHF signal I had to use the rabbit ears, which was a real pain. But because where I live, I'm able to pick up all the Boston stations, which all are UHF. So I use the antenna strickly for UHF - very directional but a lot easier to "point" versus fumbling with those rabbit ears. Try moving your antenna to another part of your house and see if you can pull in the far superior Boston stations. Also did you make sure the antenna's power supply is plugged in and the power switch on the junction box is in the on position?

GoSlow2GoFast

01-04-07, 08:06 AM

Anyone have any experience with Terk HDTVa Indoor antenna? Bought one today at Best Buy and can only get sporadic 12.1 for reception. Nothing else. I live in Bristol in a condo complex. Any suggestions?I have the HDTVa in East Providence and have pretty good results with it. It allowed me to pull in 12.1 and 64.1 which are not available via Cox. Of course, according to antennaweb.org, the local transmission of those is less than 5 miles from my house, and no tall buildings near me.

Had little to no luck without using it in amplified mode, and the "ears" do have to be fully extended for best results. I point it in the direction of the broadcast source. It does also pull in some of the Boston stuff.

~bill

JimG-37

01-04-07, 08:32 AM

awm68

01-04-07, 08:56 AM

Anyone have any experience with Terk HDTVa Indoor antenna? Bought one today at Best Buy and can only get sporadic 12.1 for reception. Nothing else. I live in Bristol in a condo complex. Any suggestions?

Dave,
I ran into the same issue as you when I tried an indoor antenna in Bristol. I ended up purchasing an outdoor roof antenna and installed it in the attic of my Town House and wall-fished cable. This was well worth the effort because I am now receiving all the RI OTA channels as well as OTA's from Boston. On occasion i have an issue with channels 7.1, 25.1, and 56.1-2 but I can live with this. If you have access to an attic I would definitely give an outdoor antenna a try. The one i used can be purchased from Radioshack for $59.99.

bcushman

01-04-07, 01:57 PM

Another great Cox move...Cox aired 8 NFL Network regular season games in HD on channel 701. But since the NFL's regular season is over, they have dropped this HD channel (even though it's listed in their HD programming guide). So there's no more NFL Network in HD, just in SD...

Which means that instead of adding HD channels, they now have dropped two (although they had no choice on INHD 2). But still...........

GoSlow2GoFast

01-04-07, 02:16 PM

Hello All,

I am going to get a new HDTV 780P plasma soon. My reciever does not support HDMI sadly. My thought is that I have to HDMI inputs on the plasma. I was thinking of running my PS3 and my HD Cox reciever into the tv and then using the digital out of the tv to run to my reciever and get my sorround sound. Does this seem ok considering i am running HDMI into the Tv and optical out? I just don't feel like buying a new HDMI reciever condsidering i just dropped 2000.Depending on the TV, this can be okay, or not. Naturally, the more components a signal travels through the more chance for change and distortion. In addition I think some TVs won't output surround from their audio out, at least under certain combinations, etc.

For the cable box to the TV, if you're like me, you have a mototrola cable box that only has DVI out, not HDMI. In that case you can run the audio directly to the receiver via RCA cables, rather than to the TV first.

I don't have a PS3, but if that's a HDMI, then is there also RCA output of audio from the PS3 that could co directly to the receiver? If not then maybe hopping through the TV would be okay.

~bill

GoSlow2GoFast

01-04-07, 02:32 PM

So having sent an email to COX voicing my interest in their adding the LIN HD programming to COX cable, I figured I'd also share my thoughts with LIN. Unfortunately nothing definitive has come out of any of this, but I figured better to let my voice be heard. I'll share my original email to LIN here, and their reply, for general interest.

My original email to LIN:

From: bill
Sent: Friday, December 15, 2006 3:01 PM
To: Courtney.Guertin@lintv.com
Subject:

A week or so ago I submitted a question to Rhode Island Cox on their website. I didn't really expect too much to come of it, but figured it didn't hurt to take a shot. Basically I wanted to see if they could shed any further light on the LIN negotiations and availability of a few more HD channels. Here's what I submitted:

-----BEGIN PASTE-----

"I have been a long time customer of Cox cable and internet services. Thank you very much for providing this quality service. I have been using the HD cable offering for the last year or two and waiting patiently for additional channels on this offering. I am disappointed that in my RI market several stations that are available in CT are not available. These include CBS, FOX and WB. Some of these are freely offered over the air today, so it's hard to understand why these are not available via Cox's cable service. What are the plans to add these or other additional services to the Cox offering? I would prefer not to invest in an over the air HD TV antenna system, or switch to a satellite provider that offers these high def channels. But with a significant investment in a HD television and A/V system I want to enjoy the best delivery I can. Please put me in touch with someone who can help expand the HD services on Cox in RI."

-----END PASTE-----

To be fair Cox did get to me in about a day and did a decent job responding. At least, better than I was expecting. Doesn't really solve my problem, but not terrible. Here is the reply I received:

-----BEGIN PASTE-----

"Thank you for your inquiry. Cox is committed to providing the best customer service possible.

We have received your recent e-mail regarding the agreement with LIN (for CBS and Fox in HD in RI). Please be advised, we believe it is our responsibility and our customers expectations that we conscientiously manage our cost increases. Up to this point in the negotiations with LIN, we have been focused on a price that we believe is reasonable for our customers. It always has been our strategy to find efficiencies within our business before passing costs onto our customer. However, as programming costs continue to exponentially rise, it's becoming next to impossible to avoid increasing our retail prices.

The longer these negotiations drag on, the more challenging it will be for both companies. That is why we have asked LIN to move up its proposed negotiation timetable to finally resolve this issue. We are currently waiting to hear back from them on a date when they will agree to meet.

We will continue to provide our customers with update on these negotiations. We thank you for your patience during this long process in acquiring these HD channels.

We have also sent a request for the CW Channel in HD, on your behalf.

We hope that we have been able to provide you with pertinent information.

Thank you.
Madelaine
Cox Communications
Online Customer Care Team"

-----END PASTE-----

In a time when more and more HD programming material is becoming available over the air for free I find it troubling that the industry can not work out a mutually beneficial arrangement to provide this content to local cable providers as well. I know of many people in my area that feel penalized because we are using cable for television programming, a service that already costs me over $100 a month for high definition TV plus internet capability.

While I understand that both LIN as well as COX have businesses to run, and bills to pay, I can't help feeling like you have lost sight of the most important things about both your businesses - your customers. I have literally been waiting years for these two channels (WPRI and WNAC) to be provided over the COX cable network and still no agreement has been struck.

Honestly, I was not even aware of LIN before this occurred. And while I have to believe there are plenty of positive things your company is responsible for, for many customers like me, our only perception of LIN is a negative one at this point. I invite you to take a look at one example of these frustrated customers on the following forum, and welcome your feedback there or in an email to me.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=265419

I don't think we're being unrealistic to ask for a timely resolution to this situation, can you please help?

~billAnd the reply I just got back from them (I did get a short response a day or two after the original email that said they would look into it and get back to me).

From: "Courtney Guertin" <courtney.guertin@LINTV.com>
To: bill
Date: Thu, 4 Jan 2007 12:52:12 -0500
Subject: LIN TV and Cox Communications Agreement

Dear Bill,

Thank you very much for your e-mail regarding the expansion of HD services on Cox Cable in RI. LIN TV has been actively negotiating with Cox Communications to secure carriage of our HD channels and we hope to reach an agreement.

But we must emphasize that what is at stake in these negotiations is not just an allocation of cost between cable systems such as Cox and broadcasters such as LIN but the very survival of high quality local stations. LIN TV is fully-committed to providing its viewers with the best local and network programming and the best in HD picture quality. Needless to say, doing so is extremely expensive. We have spent millions of dollars to upgrade our facilities nationwide, including Rhode Island stations, so that we may broadcast a pristine, high-definition signal to households like yours. And either directly, or indirectly through our broadcast network partners, we pay millions of dollars for high-quality entertainment, sports and news programming.

As a broadcaster we rely entirely on advertising revenues to offset those costs. Cable programmers, by contrast, receive substantial fees from cable operators even though they carry even more advertising than we do. The result is that they make far greater profits than broadcasters do even though they have fewer viewers. And those greater profits allow them to outbid broadcasters for marquee sports and entertainment programming. This year, for example, ESPN outbid ABC for Monday Night Football. ESPN could pay the NFL more than ABC and still make a much greater profit even though far more viewers watched MNF on ABC than on ESPN. Why? Because Cox and other cable operators pay ESPN over $3 billion a year while ABC must depend entirely on advertising.

For years, we and other broadcasters allowed cable companies to carry our stations at no cost while they charged viewers a fee and used that fee to pay our cable network competitors. We have made a determination that we cannot make the transition to digital and continue to provide you with the best prime time network and high-quality local news programming unless we get our fair share of those cable revenues. And don't be intimidated by Cox's implicit threat that they will pass on the broadcast payments to their subscribers. Those payments will be less than a penny a day. And at least you will be paying for what you actually watch instead of the dozens of channels you never watch.

We are very excited by the new competition coming into the Rhode Island cable market from Verizon. And yesterday, we announced an agreement with Verizon to retransmit our programming over their fiber optic cables, an agreement you can be sure reflects the value of our stations. We are optimistic that we will achieve a similar result with Cox - and we are committing our resources to getting that deal done sooner rather than later.

Thanks very much for your interest.

Sincerely,

Courtney Guertin
Public Relations Specialist
LIN Television Corporation
4 Richmond Square, Suite 200
Providence, RI 02906
Courtney.Guertin@lintv.com
phone: 401-457-9501 office; 401-368-6655 cell
fax: 401-454-2817As you can see, nothing definite. Hopefully competition from Verizon can only help motivate COX. And who knows, maybe the offering from Verizon will be too attractive to pass up.

~bill

DM2006RI

01-04-07, 04:07 PM

Ph8te

01-04-07, 05:38 PM

Hello All,

I am going to get a new HDTV 780P plasma soon. My reciever does not support HDMI sadly. My thought is that I have to HDMI inputs on the plasma. I was thinking of running my PS3 and my HD Cox reciever into the tv and then using the digital out of the tv to run to my reciever and get my sorround sound. Does this seem ok considering i am running HDMI into the Tv and optical out? I just don't feel like buying a new HDMI reciever condsidering i just dropped 2000.

Well I assume you mean a 720P Plasma and if you want the best possible choice you do not want to run your audio from your TV to your reciever. THis is because your TV may not pass through the 5.1 sound from its optical out.
To get the best possible sound you want to connect your HDMI cables to the TV which will give you your picture and sound for your TV, then what you would do is connect your PS3 and STB via thier digital outs directly to the reciever giving you your surround sound when you want it. As it has been said the more you run your system through the more things that can go wrong, but this is not always the case. Also, dont forget to set the STB to 720P for the best possible picture for your situation. :) I would also suggest picking up a OTA antannae to pick up locals that are not offered by Cox Namely the LIN stations and CW :).

Ph8te

01-04-07, 05:43 PM

I've always been happy with Cox's services, so I'll probably stay with them, but I'm betting that the competition with FIOS will make Cox more aggressive with offering new services and keeping things competitive.

Where things will be most interesting when FIOS-TV is available is in Bristol County, where residents will have the choice of Full Channel, Cox, and Verizon for TV service... insane!
Well Cox has been iffy with me for services\price especially but thats just MHO. I did read though on PROJO that Verizon wants to startoffering TV service by April-June for Service Area 6. They still have 2 more hoops to jump through inorder to actually offer hte service to residents. They also said that they would be starting to deploy service in 2 more service areas in that timeframe, but they did not say which Service Areas.

ctdish

01-04-07, 09:32 PM

I have been doing a reasonable amount of research on an OTA (HDTV) antenna and have many questions. But for now I have a simple question.

I have purchased and returned two amplified antennas (18 dB and 35 dB) which had a surface area of approx. 6" X 6". Neither met my requirements. I am looking for an omnidirectional UHF antenna. Simple question: Does size matter? Should I be looking for more surface area first then worry about amplification?

In general a well designed UHF antenna will have increasing gain in one or a few directions as it gets larger. So a large antenna will not be omni directional. An antenna with a large vertical extant could achieve gain that was all in a horizontal plane this is what is often used at the TV transmitter. Most receiver antennas try to maximize the gain in one direction. This gets a stronger signal when aimed properly has less interfering multipath pick up, both very helpful when receiving DTV.
Also a little amplification may help an indoor antenna but beyond a point it will make reception worse.
John

jamesb478

01-04-07, 11:05 PM

............

Rhody HD

01-05-07, 09:42 AM

If you are talking Foster and Scituate that would be Service Area 3, which also includes Cranston and Johnston, Here's hoping your info is correct!!!

jamesb478

01-05-07, 10:30 AM

If you are talking Foster and Scituate that would be Service Area 3, which also includes Cranston and Johnston, Here's hoping your info is correct!!!

That doesn't mean that Johnston will get FIOS, Verizon is going by the CO Locations and wiring them all up. So if you are connected to one of the CO Locations they are wiring, then you will get FIOS TV once it goes live.

Rhody HD

01-05-07, 11:27 AM

Joe3

01-05-07, 04:26 PM

drummin82

01-05-07, 10:46 PM

I live in Cranston, and there is fios cable going up all around me. Haven't talked to any of the service guys though. 02910 zip.

igneous

01-06-07, 12:28 PM

Anyone else not able to get espn HD over qam anymore? :(

taugust04

01-06-07, 01:39 PM

This year, for example, ESPN outbid ABC for Monday Night Football. ESPN could pay the NFL more than ABC and still make a much greater profit even though far more viewers watched MNF on ABC than on ESPN. Why? Because Cox and other cable operators pay ESPN over $3 billion a year while ABC must depend entirely on advertising.

I know Ms. Guertin is new to her job at LIN, but does she not realize that ESPN and ABC are both owned by Disney! The other thing to keep in mind is that they moved Monday Night Football intentionally to ABC because of poor ratings in that network time slot, not because of "being outbid". If you watched any of the bowl games last week on 6.1 HD, you would have noticed that ABC has "insourced" most of their sports programming to ESPN, as a sort of cross promotion of the network. There were ESPN logos all over the screen.

I understand the need for examples to make a point, but at least come out with a good one to support a statement like that.

On a side note, I think I went to elementary school for a time with Ms. Guertin. If this is the same Ms. Guertin I am thinking of, then she is from RI/East Bay. Perhaps LIN hired someone local to help cool the fires on situations such as this one.

jamesb478

01-06-07, 04:31 PM

Anyone else not able to get espn HD over qam anymore? :(

Yeah, it is gone here now too, noticed it this morning when I did a new scan of channels on my pc.

richof

01-07-07, 04:36 PM

I am in Middletown, and ESPN HD is gone for me too. My LG reports it as scrambled.

Eurovision

01-07-07, 04:51 PM

I am in Middletown, and ESPN HD is gone for me too. My LG reports it as scrambled.

Looks like COX is cracking down on the "forgotten" freebies... not winning the popularity contest!

igneous

01-07-07, 08:32 PM

I guess it might have happened when they added espn2 hd?

kiermcgl

01-07-07, 10:23 PM

Hey there,
I just hooked up my system to a rooftop antenna and am pumped w/ the pq and have scheduled Direct TV for installion next weekend. However, I'm concerned w/ some of what I see on various threads regarding Direct TV and it's picture quality. Would any of you care to comment? Cox is also available, but lacks the NFL pkg. That said, if the pq is significantly better than Direct TV, then logic would point towards Cox or waiting for Verizon. I'd appreciate some input from people w/ Cox or Direct TV. What do you think? Thanks!

scottder

01-08-07, 12:09 AM

Hey all, I own a Samsung LNS3241D and am wondering how I get the HD channels to show on my TV using QAM since the channels are the 700 range on my HD tuner.

igneous

01-08-07, 08:40 AM

Hey all, I own a Samsung LNS3241D and am wondering how I get the HD channels to show on my TV using QAM since the channels are the 700 range on my HD tuner.
The only channels you can get are abc: 6-1, nbc: 10-1, and pbs: 106-3

Ken27

01-08-07, 08:38 PM

Whats up, I cant get 6.1 or 10.1 on either Cox or OTA

- Ken

cheesypoof

01-09-07, 01:19 PM

I watched 6.1 from 8pm to 10pm that night via OTA and had no problems

kdwebsol

01-09-07, 03:53 PM

Just joined. I looked around and could not find any help. I hope this is the place for this question.

I am in South Attleboro MA and using Winegard SharpShooter SS-3000 that I have in my attic. I am less then five miles away for 10.1, 64.1 12.1 and 6.1.

I have the SharpShooter going into my Dish VIP622 OTA. It seems that this tuner does not handle multi-path very well and I thought the SharpShooter would help. But I am having a problem with 64.1 for the past few weeks. My signal (from the 622) goes to from 74-86 then just drops to zero and I lose signal for a second or two then back up to 74-86 for a little while then back to zero.

Anyone else using a 622? If so, what is you OTA setup.

Thanks,
Ken

Joe3

01-09-07, 03:53 PM

LIN CEO,

Talk about being an "Ugly Betty:

www.multichannel.com/article/CA6405168.html?display=Search+Results&text=Comcast

MephistoSan

01-09-07, 05:01 PM

I really think Cox and other cable companies have more to lose in the long run than LIN or Sinclair do. Sinclair's asking for a lot more than LIN is though, as LIN is only concerned with the HD rebroadcast of their stations.

I think Cox should just bite the bullet and agree to a deal with LIN. The longer they wait, the more time people have to think about switching to Verizon once FiOSTV is available.

Ph8te

01-10-07, 01:41 AM

Whats up, I cant get 6.1 or 10.1 on either Cox or OTA

- Ken
Ken there is more info needed does your TV have a QAM TUner? what is your OTA setup? What TV are you using? Ect...... 6.1 and 10.1 come in fine and I ahve had not had a problem with them ever.

Ph8te

01-10-07, 01:42 AM

Rhody HD

01-10-07, 08:31 AM

If you want Cox to change and add LIN's HD programming you need to be vocal speak out to the VP of the Northeast Region at Cox Paul Cronin, he can be reached at paul.croninATcox.com

Tell him you want CBS and Fox in HD now, waiting past the NFL playoffs is unacceptable and really only encourages you the customer to want to switch once Verizon is up and running.

meshanticut

01-10-07, 10:39 AM

I live in Warwick and just bought a Philips MANT510 indoor antenna ($29.99 Walmart) so I could watch the Patriots playoffs as well as the super bowl in HD. I was very surprised that I also pick up the the Boston stations. Well worth the money.

Ken27

01-10-07, 11:50 AM

richof

01-10-07, 09:18 PM

I have a cox cable running into my LG but don't actually subscribe any longer, except for internet. Until recently, I was receiving ESPN HD(107.3),10.1, 6.1,and PBS(106.3). My ESPN disappeared a few days ago as posted earlier in thread. 10.1 and 6.1 disappeared today. Still receiving 106.3. I am OTA anyway but used these for backup when weather, wind, or interference was heavy. Anyone know why Cox has decided to scramble these signals all of a sudden?

Ph8te

01-10-07, 11:08 PM

I used to be able to get 6.1 and 10.1 both OTA from my antenna and also both from the standard Cox cable fed into the HDTV tuner. I just pluged the cox cable into the TV and presto some of the digital feeds worked. Cox just was carrying the signal over the cable

Now I can only get 6.1 OTA. 6.1 is no longer on the Cox cable and 10.1 is not working either on the OTA or the cox cable. All my other OTA from Boston is working fine.

It was pretty much the only reason I was sticking with Cox.

Ken ill check when I get home in the Morning on this and Ill report back i did notice that 107.3 (ESPNHD) was no longer available. I am guessing you have tried rescanning the channels again. Have you tried splitting the cable so that you have the HDSTB going to one input and then the 2nd line going straight from the splitter to the TV itself. THis is how I have it set up at home and it worked for a bit. Ill chck ont he locals though.

jamesb478

01-11-07, 01:23 AM

meshanticut

01-11-07, 06:48 AM

I subsrcibe to cox cable and recently put an antenna on my TV so I could get WPRI 12 and FOX 64 in HD, when I switch back to cable WPRI 12 doesn't come on, I ran an Auto Program but still no 12, can anyone help, thanks.

Ken27

01-11-07, 08:18 AM

I did another rescan. 6.1 , 10.1 now come in on Cox cable. Having problems with 10.1 OTA but I always seem to have problems with that channel. PBS HD also works on 106.3 on cable and 2.2 on OTA

To be honest this whole scanning for channels things is for the birds. My TV takes an hour and a half to do it for the cable channels. I end up finding a whole bunch of digital channels that I never watch and have to switch to hide.

Wishing for the old days of just turning the dial to the channel I want to watch :)

Thanks for the help guys

Ken

Ken27

01-11-07, 08:21 AM

mershanticut,

It really depends on the TV. On my TV you can select to show the 12.1 and hide the 12 or show both or any combination of the two. It may be that on your tv you have a similar settting that you have to change. Also you need to make sure the setting is right for the TV in cable mode vice antenna mode.

ctdish

01-11-07, 12:07 PM

The local news on WLNE-DT has very broken sound on the HD channel. The SD channel sound is OK.
John

MephistoSan

01-11-07, 03:07 PM

I find that the sound on WLNE-DT breaks up fairly often, it's not just the news.

btgolfer

01-11-07, 05:32 PM

I've inquired with the RIPUC to see if in fact Verizon has received permission or has even requested permission for any other Service Area beyond service area 6. Once I have their response I will post it.

Can't wait for Verizon to get approval. Here is sample of pricing and channel lineup filed with RI PUC

http://www.ripuc.state.ri.us/utilityinfo/cabletv/VerizonExhibit%201%20-%20Sample%20Programming%20Packages.pdf

Notice that locals are in HD and HD movies to boot.

Eurovision

01-11-07, 06:17 PM

Can't wait for Verizon to get approval. Here is sample of pricing and channel lineup filed with RI PUC

http://www.ripuc.state.ri.us/utilityinfo/cabletv/VerizonExhibit%201%20-%20Sample%20Programming%20Packages.pdf

Notice that locals are in HD and HD movies to boot.

Not sure if this is such a good deal if I have to rent that damn set top box!
The whole point of getting a TV with built-in QAM tuner is to avoid having that extra piece of hardware and the annoying rental fee every month.
Does anyone know if the local broadcast channels will be provided on the basic service in HD?

btgolfer

01-11-07, 07:14 PM

Eurovision

01-11-07, 07:37 PM

From CNET

Analog TV broadcast switch-off: In December 2005, the Senate passed a budget bill that calls for over-the-air television stations to cease their analog broadcasts by February 17, 2009. After that date, TVs and other gear with old-style NTSC tuners would be unable to receive over-the-air broadcasts. (...)

Cable and satellite: The FCC's plans for ATSC tuners have nothing to do with HDTV over cable and satellite. Subscribers to pay TV services can simply get a set-top box that tunes HDTV channels, plug it into their HDTV-ready sets, and watch HDTV.

Some new HDTVs are digital cable ready (DCR), meaning they can tune digital cable channels, including HDTV if the cable provider has HDTV channels, without needing an external cable box. To use a DCR television, you'll need to get a special access card from your cable provider, called a CableCard. (...)

So-unless you get OTA reception, you are stuck paying cable/phone company for the use of their box.

QAM tuner
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A QAM tuner is present in some new digital televisions and similar devices. It enables direct reception of digital cable channels without the use of a set-top box. QAM stands for "quadrature amplitude modulation," the format by which digital cable channels are encoded and transmitted via cable. QAM tuners can be likened to the cable equivalent of an ATSC tuner which is required to receive over-the-air (OTA) digital channels broadcast by local television stations. Many new digital televisions contain both and are labeled "with ATSC/QAM Tuner". However, unlike the case with ATSC tuners there is no FCC requirement that QAM tuners be included in new television sets.
An integrated QAM tuner allows the free reception of unscrambled digital programming sent "in the clear" by cable providers, which must include local HD channels {FCC regulations} (many metropolitan areas now have 7 or 8 HD local channels); however most digital channels are scrambled because the providers consider them to be extra-cost options and not part of the "basic cable" package. Which channels are scrambled varies greatly from location to location, and can change over time. In the United States a television that is labeled digital cable ready can have a CableCARD installed by the cable provider to unscramble the protected channels, allowing subscribers to tune all authorized digital channels without the use of a set-top box.

So then: If all I am interested in are the local HD channels (currently, as we all know, Cox only carries Channel 6 (ABC), Channel 10 (NBC) and PBS (WGBH)... waiting for Fox and CBS), they must carry them in their regular cable tier and my QAM tuner can actually pick them up, since they cannot be SCRAMBLED. Once LIN has come to an agreement with Cox about Fox and CBS, they should/must carry these channels unscrambled as well, so normal subscribers can pick them up with their QAM tuner.

Verizon, as far as I can tell, should be required to carry the local channels as well without charging for/requiring digital tier subscription. Of course, Cox does not advertise this feature either because they want everybody to pay them extra for the service and the rental of either the box or the CableCard... but since FCC rules state that they must carry the local HD channels for free/unscrambled, this should apply to Verizon (FIOS) as well. :)

destefpr

01-11-07, 10:22 PM

Thanks for that Verizon info Btgolfer.

I did not see NESN HD on the channel lineup. Am I just missing it?

I am not a big fan of COX due to the ongoing CBS/FOX HD fiasco and the ABC-HD audio problems. These two issues are prime examples of Cox's inability or unwillingness to offer acceptable HD service to the region.

Unfortunately I am concerned about Verizon now as well. If they do not offer NESN-HD and also charge extra for NFL Network (Sports tier) it will be a difficult switch for any sports fan.

Does anyone have any info on Verizon and NESN HD?

jamesb478

01-11-07, 10:57 PM

............

Ph8te

01-12-07, 03:00 AM

Not sure if this is such a good deal if I have to rent that damn set top box!
The whole point of getting a TV with built-in QAM tuner is to avoid having that extra piece of hardware and the annoying rental fee every month.
Does anyone know if the local broadcast channels will be provided on the basic service in HD?
The locals "should" be provided in HD especially with the recent agreement with LIN...Also the major reason for the STB is the OnDemand service, or PPV besides that you would not need one and would be able to connect directly from the wall (I think).

jamesb478

01-12-07, 01:02 PM

The locals "should" be provided in HD especially with the recent agreement with LIN...Also the major reason for the STB is the OnDemand service, or PPV besides that you would not need one and would be able to connect directly from the wall (I think).

You need a STB to receive all the channels since 95% of them are broadcasted in digital. The only ones that are still analog are some local channels and varies other local programming.

btgolfer

01-12-07, 01:45 PM

If you are fed up with the lack of competition and the quality of cable thru Cox, you should sign up here to bring more choices to RI

http://ga3.org/ritv/index_ritv.html

arnjohn

01-12-07, 02:04 PM

You need a STB to receive all the channels since 95% of them are broadcasted in digital. The only ones that are still analog are some local channels and varies other local programming.
The idea that you need an STB for digital channels is completely wrong. Most of the Cox channels are not digital, a set top box is mainly used to unscramble channels. If they are not scrambled a QAM tuner will recieve analog or digital channels.

Rhody HD

01-12-07, 02:28 PM

You need to make this issue a thorn in LIN TV's (parent company of 12 and 64 in RI) side...email the CEO Vincent.SaduskyATlintv.com

Here is a sample message to send:

Mr. Sadusky,
I am writing you to express my disappointment in LIN TV and Cox Communication's ability to come to an agreement on the carriage rights for LIN's local RI HD programming. What is most troubling is that LIN has failed to reach an agreement with Cox and Directv. As a consumer in the Rhode Island market the only option I have is to receive the HD signal over the air. The drawback for LIN is that quite frankly I also receive the Boston CBS and FOX affiliates over the air and find the HD picture better than LIN. Ultimately LIN's failure to secure an agreement with Cox or Directv is driving viewers to out of market stations. Ultimately the people being hurt in this 2+ year negotiation are the consumers. Where is LIN at this point with negotiating a deal with Cox? Is there a realistic chance a deal maybe done in time for the remaining NFL playoffs?

Here is the response I got back, keep sending messages, LIN needs to know that we will go away once we have we want:

Dear Paul,

We deeply regret your disappointment regarding the retransmission of LIN TV’s free programming with Cox Communications and DirectTV. Please be aware that we have been attempting to negotiate with both companies for months.

There is a lot at stake in these negotiations and it is important that you understand that it is not just an allocation of cost between cable systems and broadcasters but the very survival of high quality local stations. LIN TV is fully-committed to providing its viewers with the best local and network programming and the best in HD picture quality. Needless to say, doing so is extremely expensive. We have spent millions of dollars to upgrade our facilities nationwide, including WPRI Channel 12 and FOX 64, so that we may broadcast a pristine, high-definition signal to households like yours.

For years, we and other broadcasters allowed cable companies to carry our stations at no cost while they charged viewers a fee. You are paying Cox Communications quite a bit of money every month in order to receive programming. Cox Communications takes that money and uses it to pay the cable channels, such as Comedy Central, MTV and the Animal Planet. We believe, and the ratings certainly support this viewpoint, that the award-winning programming provided by LIN TV Corp., is much more important to you. If that is the case, we suggest that you contact Cox Communications to let them know that they should allocate some of the money you pay them to receive the programming that matters to you. If it were up to us, you would only pay for what you actually watch instead of the dozens of channels you never watch.

It is unfortunate that our viewers are stuck in the middle of this negotiation. It is also unfortunate that Cox Communications doesn’t want to pay an appropriate amount for our stations' signals – which they want to use in order to sell their services to you. Recently, we announced an agreement with Verizon to retransmit our programming over their fiber optic cables, an agreement you can be sure reflects the value of our stations. We are very excited by the new competition coming into the Rhode Island cable market from Verizon. We are optimistic that we will achieve a similar result with Cox and DirectTV - and we are committed to reaching a deal sooner rather than later.

Sincerely,

Courtney Guertin

Public Relations Specialist

LIN Television Corporation

4 Richmond Square, Suite 200

Providence, RI 02906

btgolfer

01-12-07, 04:41 PM

Rhody HD

Why should we write to LIN? :confused:

We should be writing to COX.

DM2006RI

01-12-07, 11:03 PM

Justbel

01-13-07, 12:04 AM

It's actually more work to write these letters day after day than to actually buy and hook up an antenna!

Yes the antenna works great, but the problem is that my Tv only has 1 coax input. If i want to watch the football game (Go pats:D) or watch the office I have to make sure to change the wires out from my box and then rescan the channels which takes 15-20 min. Yes if this is just once a week its no problem but its a real hassle when you have to do it over and over again, especially when you need to scan back again when you reconnect your cable box.

igneous

01-13-07, 12:27 AM

Yes the antenna works great, but the problem is that my Tv only has 1 coax input. If i want to watch the football game (Go pats:D) or watch the office I have to make sure to change the wires out from my box and then rescan the channels which takes 15-20 min. Yes if this is just once a week its no problem but its a real hassle when you have to do it over and over again, especially when you need to scan back again when you reconnect your cable box.
Same here :(

jamesb478

01-13-07, 12:28 AM

The idea that you need an STB for digital channels is completely wrong. Most of the Cox channels are not digital, a set top box is mainly used to unscramble channels. If they are not scrambled a QAM tuner will recieve analog or digital channels.
Can't wait for Verizon to get approval. Here is sample of pricing and channel lineup filed with RI PUC

http://www.ripuc.state.ri.us/utilit...%20Packages.pdf

Notice that locals are in HD and HD movies to boot.
---------------------------
Not sure if this is such a good deal if I have to rent that damn set top box!
The whole point of getting a TV with built-in QAM tuner is to avoid having that extra piece of hardware and the annoying rental fee every month.
Does anyone know if the local broadcast channels will be provided on the basic service in HD?
------------------------------------------------------

Ph8te was talking about Verizon's FIOS-TV service, not Cox's cable service, most of the channels on Cox are still in analog and digitally simulcasted too. FIOS-TV is mostly all digital and only some local programming is still in analog which you can receive with any TV. Also, Verizon does supply cable cards, so if your TV does have a slot, then you can use a cable card which does cost like under half of what a HD STB costs.

Also, all the Digital Channels are scrambled and you need a STB for all of them, this includes any national HD channels. All the local HD Stations are not scrambled and can be received with a QAM tuner on any tv or HD tuner card in your pc. I don't know if Verizon does scramble or doesn't scramble their local HD channels, but we will see in the coming months.

Ph8te

01-13-07, 01:06 AM

I realize for some this is not an option, but how many of you have actually tried using an antenna to access 12 and 64 in HD?

Instead of endless letter writing campaigns, endless complaining about Cox, endless campaigns to Channel 12, etc etc -- why not go out, buy an antenna, hook it up, and watch both channels in high definition? For the amount of time it takes Cox to write back to your emails you could have it up and ready to go for the Pats game Sunday.

I live all the way down in Narragansett have no issue receiving either channel, and I doubt most of you -- unless you live in an apartment complex and it's a major pain -- would have any problem at all.

I apologize if I'm being rude and/or just pointing out the obvious. After reading this board for months, I just can't believe the amount of people who rely on Cox and Cox alone to provide programming when the signal for both stations is widely and readily available over the air and at no charge at all. It's actually more work to write these letters day after day than to actually buy and hook up an antenna!

LOL!!! well i would hope most of here would already have at least an "el cheapo" antennae for OTA HD. This is what I use so that I can get 28, 12, and 64 in HD :) I think it is the matter of "ease" though 1 connection to bring you the channels that you need instead of having to switch inputs in order to get the additional 2-3 channels. Cox has sorta dropped the ball with HD in new England as we do have a "weaker" HD offering then other parts of the Cox domain. Personally I cant wait to get some competition in RI to see how Cox reacts (plus I am getting sick of seeing Digital Max on every cable channel lol!!!)

bcushman

01-13-07, 09:12 AM

Although I do have OTA for both local and Boston HD programming, one of the main drawbacks of this endless battle for Channels 12 and 64 HD on Cox, is the inability to record programming. For many people having an outside antenna to receive OTA is not possible. The lack of an agreement prior to the football playoffs is one more case of putting business ahead of the customer. But what is new, right?

btgolfer

01-13-07, 09:18 AM

DM2006RI

01-13-07, 11:59 AM

I have the antenna set up and get all the Boston channels as well. But I cannot record anything from OTA on my COX DVR.

Cox's DVRs don't let you record over the air?? :mad: That's ridiculous!

Also, btgolfer, I was not signaling you or any specific post out. I agree completely with your sentiments. Just seems that the general tenor of this thread is always Cox centric. Of course competition is good but this should have happened years ago. To me it's kind of "too little, too late" since the state let Cox come in, absorb every other cable outlet and reap the benefits without really caring about the quality of the product to the consumer. This kind of Cox crap has been going on for YEARS so it's not exactly news that they're delivering inferior product to consumers here. For most everyone they have no other choice :(

Any chance I get to take my business away from Cox I do so and I encourage others who carp (legitimately so) at the sound on Channel 6 or the lack of 12/64 to pick up an antenna and enjoy NOW what they can't from the cable company.

jimcx

01-13-07, 01:31 PM

Thanks for that Verizon info Btgolfer.

...
I am not a big fan of COX due to the ongoing CBS/FOX HD fiasco and the ABC-HD audio problems. These two issues are prime examples of Cox's inability or unwillingness to offer acceptable HD service to the region.
...

Not that I'm a huge fan of COX, but you can't put the blame on them for the ABC-HD audio problems. I'm not sure if it's WLNE (most likely) or the national feed (less likely), but these problems exist OTA as well. For a very short time towards the end of the LOST new episodes in the fall, they had gotten much better, but the last couple of months it's almost enough to make me watch the SD feed!

Joe3

01-13-07, 01:54 PM

It almost 3:30pm time for the NFL play off. I just have enough time grab that cheap Radio Shack antenna and the Aluminum Fiol and stick it all in the window. Or I can keep crying in my soup and miss the game.

meshanticut

01-13-07, 04:38 PM

Thanks KEN27.

tep47

01-14-07, 01:24 PM

furrod1

01-14-07, 02:45 PM

Anyone else having problems picking up the HD signal from FOX today? I'm tuning in via OTA, and can't get a signal. I noticed the signal dropped last night during the very end of the football game. I haven't seen an HD signal all day today on FOX.

Saturday (1/13/07) I installed a Samsung H260F and an Antenna Direct DB4 (in the attic, temporarily). I get all the other HD Providence/New Bedford channels fine but the signal from FOX (WNAC-DT) keeps cutting in and out. The signal strength shows 7 bars out of 10, then it will drop to zero for a second or two and then return to 7 for a few minutes before repeating (luckily the Pats game will be on WPRI-DT). I'm new to this OTA HD stuff so I'm wondering what could be causing this?

richof

01-14-07, 02:59 PM

Anyone else having problems picking up the HD signal from FOX today? I'm tuning in via OTA, and can't get a signal. I noticed the signal dropped last night during the very end of the football game. I haven't seen an HD signal all day today on FOX.

I am in Middletown at the Newport line with rooftop antenna. Fox signal strong as always. No interruptions or dropouts.

rampart51

01-14-07, 03:32 PM

Mitch...I'm in Jamestown and 25's signal is good. I'm watching the game right now. 720p. I have no way of measuring its strength.

Do you get 10.1 and 10.2?

I don't. The mapping doesn't seem to work for those channels. I get 10 on 51.1 and 51.2.

arnjohn

01-15-07, 10:49 AM

Chrissi1va

01-15-07, 03:45 PM

I live in Narragansett and have had no luck with the antennas that I have tried. First of all I live in the north end of Narragansett near bonnet. I live at the top of the hill and have tried many antenna options. I've tried a cheap rabbit ears from best buy, a more expensive set-top from joblot... both in my tv room and in my attic, and I have also bought an 80 inch boom antenna from radio shack and positioned it on my roof. I ran rg-6 cable to it (100ft run) and when I did a channel scan the only channels that I got were 10, 6, and barely 12 in std def. I gave up on the antenna idea because I realized that I really enjoy recording my shows and wouldn't be able to with the Cox dvr and an OTA antenna. But not that the playoffs are here, I really cant resist and I really hate watching a std def game. I don't know what other information could help you guys, but any help you could give me would be really great. If you live near by I would even be willing to just copy your setup for myself and see if that works. I am a die hard Pats fan and if you could help me before the big game you have no idea how appreciative I would be.

Also, the game is this sunday so ordering an antenna of the internet would not work because it would never get here in time for the game.

Edit: AnttenaWeb indicates that I would need a Medium Directional w/ Pre-amp for my address

Thanks in advanced,

Chris

rampart51

01-15-07, 03:55 PM

Chris

I'm pretty sure you need that preamp. I'm not far from you in Jamestown and I get a perfect signal from all providence and boston stations with the amp.

tmgcomp

01-15-07, 04:23 PM

Hey chriss,

How are you pointing the antenna? I know this sounds like a noob question but the actually pointing of the antenna at the stations you want to get is key. I love in West Warwick and I can almost pull in NY stations. I just pointed generically northeast and i was fine. I have the 84 inch radio shack antenna with no amps of any kind. Is there any obstructions of any kind? Any pictures you can show us?

richof

01-15-07, 04:55 PM

I am in Middletown at the Newport Line. I have a standard Radio Shack setup. Their VU-90 boom antenna, 5ft mast, tripod stand on roof. I have their 30db mast mount signal amp going to a splitter with signal going to standard def set and then to my HDTV LG 42". On the HDTV, I receive 2.1, 2.2, 4.1, 5.1, 6.1, 6.2, 7.1, 7.2, 10.1, 10.2, 12.1, 27.1 28.1, 36.1, 56.1, 56.2, 64.1, 64.2, 69.1, 69.2, 69.3, 69.4.

All with acceptable signal strength and PQ. I had tried a lesser amp and a smaller indoor/outdoor setup earlier. It worked, but not nearly as well.

beakor33

01-16-07, 12:46 PM

I noticed that 64.2 (weather) has been black for a few days. Is there problems with it or did they take it off the air?

Chris

Ken27

01-16-07, 01:10 PM

Chris,

I live just north of you, probably a block or 2. Antenna is in the attic. I have a pre-amp. Antenna is pointed north-northeast. Channel master 4248 UHF antenna, its a good sized antenna but not huge.

I get 4.1, 5.1, 6.1 10.1 and 12.1 Channel 10.1 has problems sometimes.

No 64.1 By going to http://www.2150.com/broadcast/default.asp you will see why 64.1 is tough.

The antenna patterns clearly show why its tough for folks in South County to get decent reception.

I would guess that with a roof mounted antenna and no-pre amp you would be gettting the same stations I do.

I would suggest you check the direction of the antenna and match it against antenna web. You will see that most are about 30deg compass heading.

If antenna is on the roof I would suggest an antenna rotor to help the reception.

- Ken

ritvman

01-17-07, 01:52 PM

Due to FCC childrens programing rules we have removed the channel from over the air.

I noticed that 64.2 (weather) has been black for a few days. Is there problems with it or did they take it off the air?

Chris

Rhody HD

01-17-07, 02:45 PM

What are the FCC rules on getting a deal done with Cox Cable??? Any word on if a deal will be done at least by the Super Bowl?

Joe3

01-17-07, 03:26 PM

Due to FCC childrens programing rules we have removed the channel from over the air.

So are you now dedicating the full bandwith to HD??!

vfrjim

01-17-07, 07:28 PM

I emailed WPRI 12 a few weeks ago with no response of when they will be carrying Wheel of Fortune and Jeporady in HD. Looks like they give arats as$.

Joe3

01-18-07, 09:22 AM

News

LIN TV Blocks HDTV In New Mexico
The broadcast group denies Comcast from carrying CBS' high-def feed in Albuquerque.
By Phillip Swann

Washington, D.C. (January 17, 2007) -- Comcast subscribers in Albuquerque, New Mexico may not be permitted to watch the Super Bowl in HDTV because of a carriage disagreement with the local CBS affiliate.

That's according to an article in the Albuquerque Journal.

The newspaper reports that KRQE, which is owned by the broadcast group LIN TV, is refusing to let Comcast carry its high-def feed. KRQE is the CBS affiliate in the Albuquerque area; the network will broadcast the 2007 Super Bowl on February 4. By law, a cable operator can not carry a local station's signal without its permission.

Bill Anderson, KRQE's general manager, did not return phone calls to the Journal. However, LIN TV, the station's owner, has ordered its local stations in other cities to withhold their high-def feeds unless they are compensated by the cable operator. (Belo and Sinclair Broadcasting are doing the same thing with their local stations.)

Chris Dunkenson, who heads Comcast's New Mexico division, told the newspaper that he has been in negotiations with LIN TV for more than a year.

"We feel like we're making a good-faith effort," Dunkenson said, adding that the high-def feed is available for free with an off-air antenna. "We don't feel our customers should pay extra to watch free TV."

He added that LIN will not permit him to negotiate directly with KRQE.

Comcast has negotiated the rights to the high-def feeds of the remaining Albuquerque network affiliates.

If the impasse is not settled by February 4, Comcast subscribers there will not be able to watch the 2007 Super Bowl in high-def unless they get an off-air antenna and high-def tuner.

And that's bad news for Albuquerque resident Charlie Cantrell.

"The reason I bought (his HDTV)," Cantrell told the Journal, "is that everything is going that way."

Chrissi1va

01-21-07, 12:12 AM

I just want to say thank you to eveyone that helped me get the Fox and CBS over the air for the up coming games. I think that the pre-amp really made all the difference. I am even picking up Boston channels now. Lets just hope that the antenna doesn't blow down with all this wind and the Pats stick it to the Colts.

Thanks again,

Chris

rampart51

01-21-07, 08:49 AM

I'm still learning about all this HD stuff. I have two questions.

1. Channel 10 (10.1), morning news, the picture does not fill up the whole screen even though it says its broadcasting in 1080iHD. Why is that? Must be the way 10 is filming I would guess.

As soon as it goes to the network news at 7:00am, the screen goes wide. The definition is also much better on the network news.

2. Channel 44.2 I do not get sound. 44.1, 44.3, 44.4 is fine. Any ideas?

Thanks

MephistoSan

01-21-07, 09:31 AM

I'm still learning about all this HD stuff. I have two questions.

1. Channel 10 (10.1), morning news, the picture does not fill up the whole screen even though it says its broadcasting in 1080iHD. Why is that? Must be the way 10 is filming I would guess.

As soon as it goes to the network news at 7:00am, the screen goes wide. The definition is also much better on the network news.

Thanks

Although 10.1 is always broadcasting a 1080i signal, not everything is shot in HD. The local news is still in Standard Def 4:3, but The Today Show at 7AM is shot in HD 16:9.

DM2006RI

01-21-07, 11:09 PM

ngohit

01-22-07, 07:38 PM

If you go to the web site at http://www.2150.com/broadcast/default.asp and follow the directions there one of the things it shows is the broadcast antenna patterns of each station. It shows that WNAC (fox 64) directs its signal to southeast Mass. and makes it very difficult to receive OTA in southwest RI. Supposedly being an RI program station, I don't know why the FCC allows that kind of antenna pattern.

Thanks for the URL. Unfortunately, I can not figure out where I live from the link it gives for determining longitude and latitude.

So, I found a web site that says Foster is: Latitude: 41.85 N, Longitude: 71.76 W

Entering variations of this, I still get nothing. I'm obviously doing something wrong.

BTW, Fox (25 and 64) is a blurry station for me, despite a rotary roof antenna and amplifier (or preamp?). I watch 25 because it is less painful to watch, but the quality is too low to ever consider recording anything from it. Actually, most of the time I do not even get a barely visable 64.

Chrissi1va

01-22-07, 09:43 PM

jforget1

01-23-07, 12:52 AM

Has Cox turned any of the outputs beyond component on in the HD boxes. I was hoping the HDMI is now an active out.

Ph8te

01-23-07, 12:56 AM

Has Cox turned any of the outputs beyond component on in the HD boxes. I was hoping the HDMI is now an active out.
Cox has HDMI out on at least thier HDDVRs (all I can comment on since that is what I have)......

Ph8te

01-23-07, 01:06 AM

Hey everyone,

I've got another question for you all and I am not even sure if this is the proper thread to be posting it in. A friend of a friend has a roommate living with him for the semester and he has been getting HBO, Cinemax, and Showtime for free for the last 3 months. See this friend already had a cox dvr receiver from his parents account. When he moved in with his other friend he just hooked up his old box from his parent's house in the new house so that he would receive the digital channels as well as the guide and other features. His parents pay for and receive all 3 of the above mentioned channels. How is it that he is receiving these premium channels even though the house that he is at is not currently subscribed to them? Also can the owner of the house get in trouble for this even though he is totally unaware(or at least was totally unaware). After all, they both have been stealing premium channels. I just want to know if I should tell them to call Cox and get it straightened out. Also, if his friend brings his box to his roommate's house and receives the channels there is it possible for him to get them at his house as well?

Thanks

You lost me somewhere in there, but I will try to help you out. The box was provisioned for the 3 premium channels and never "unprovisioned", this is why he is still getting the channels, next time he gets a soft "hit" it should go away. Could this friend get in trouble sure, BUT the ONLY way he could get in trouble is if someone told on him, there is no way for Cox to tell that he is getting these channels for free without someone telling them he is. His free channels may not last for long as the current household is not provisioned for them. Also, if they never called to turn them off (you never said if they did or not) then they are paying for them in the bill where ever he had his connection before and got the 3 channels for free, cox provisions boxes and households and if his box is still listed as at the old residence that is why he is getting those channels the box itself doesnt matter where it is could be in Newport, but the provisioning has it set to Providence, all the system sees is the Box itself not the location.

Hope this helps a little....

jamesb478

01-23-07, 01:33 AM

Thanks for the URL. Unfortunately, I can not figure out where I live from the link it gives for determining longitude and latitude.

So, I found a web site that says Foster is: Latitude: 41.85 N, Longitude: 71.76 W

Entering variations of this, I still get nothing. I'm obviously doing something wrong.

BTW, Fox (25 and 64) is a blurry station for me, despite a rotary roof antenna and amplifier (or preamp?). I watch 25 because it is less painful to watch, but the quality is too low to ever consider recording anything from it. Actually, most of the time I do not even get a barely visable 64.

I live in Foster too, around the Foster Center, I can pull in CBS from both Boston and Providence, but can't seem to pull in Fox from either Boston or Providence. Using a cheap $30 tv antenna from Walmart, maybe moving it higher on my house might work, will try it once the snow melts.

toenail

01-23-07, 06:32 AM

Has Cox turned any of the outputs beyond component on in the HD boxes. I was hoping the HDMI is now an active out.

HDMI and firewire are active on my Moto 6416

jforget1

01-23-07, 07:15 AM

Good to know they are active now, appreciate the quick response from both.

taugust04

01-24-07, 02:52 AM

Has Cox turned any of the outputs beyond component on in the HD boxes. I was hoping the HDMI is now an active out.

I have the 6412 and it has a DVI out. I purchased a DVI-HDMI cable to hook it up to my Samsung LN-S2652D.

Supposedly the revision 3 of this box now has HDMI. I'm hoping that the HDMI will carry audio so I can streamline my audio cabling to my surround sound system. Does anyone know if audio is carried over HDMI on the new boxes?

toenail

01-24-07, 06:31 AM

I have the 6412 and it has a DVI out. I purchased a DVI-HDMI cable to hook it up to my Samsung LN-S2652D.

Supposedly the revision 3 of this box now has HDMI. I'm hoping that the HDMI will carry audio so I can streamline my audio cabling to my surround sound system. Does anyone know if audio is carried over HDMI on the new boxes?

The phase III boxes do carry audio on HDMI out but I believe it is limited to DD 2.0. As such, you may only get PLII out of your receiver for TV if you don't have a SPDF or Optical directly from STB to receiver.

MephistoSan

01-25-07, 10:12 AM

I was wondering, does anyone have the equipment necessary to measure how much bandwidth WLNE Channel 6 is dedicating to each of it's digital channels? They have 6.2, which is an SD simulcast. I was wondering if maybe all the audio problems on the HD channel(6.1) are caused by them dedicating too much bandwidth to 6.2, and/or not enough to 6.1?

I know I've seen in other threads during football games, people would post the Mbps for their station, so maybe someone can get this info.

ctdish

01-25-07, 12:09 PM

TSReader results for channel 49: Program 3- video 14.3 MBs, Two Program 3 audio feeds 230 and 197 KBs, Program 4- Video 3.1 MBs, Audio 197KBs, Null data 1.3MBs
I would guess that the audio problem lies elsewhere.
John

rockpharmer

01-25-07, 06:18 PM

supergm

01-26-07, 11:22 AM

Joe3

01-26-07, 12:16 PM

Hey Everybody,

...Since I have nothing to do I called Cox to get their offers...
Bill

I strongly recommend you call DTV and tell them about the Cox offer and see what they say. Make sure you mention you are not too happy with the $300 having been a good customer of theirs.

Then decide...

supergm

01-26-07, 12:34 PM

That ^^^^is as good point I will try that..But it is not necessarily the money but more the PQ if I have to spend a little more I would rather do that than put up with a picture I'm not happy with. Of course saving is always nice..

If anyone has had both Cox & Dtv pros and cons would be great( PQ and HD package)

Thanks

toenail

01-26-07, 02:03 PM

similar to other's questions, just wondering if anyone can help shed some light on the best set up for me. i live in warwick near the bay and have a small multidirectional antenna mounted on the roof with an inline amp (Philips mant940). just like everyone else still tied to COX, i'm really only interested in pulling Fox and CBS OTA. i have no problem with the wpri-dt signal but wnac-dt consistantly breaks up (would've been nice for football, but man, 24's back on!). i've seen the wnac tower pattern on 2150(pointing away from RI?) but there are others i've seen here that can pull down the signal reliably. any suggestions?

thanks
rocky

How many miles from the WNAC tower are you? Have you actually used a compass to get the proper direction or are you aiming with "best guess"? I'm in Cranston and get WNAC-DT consistently with good signal, no pre-amp but that may be my antenna or the fact that I'm possibly closer.

rockpharmer

01-26-07, 05:13 PM

How many miles from the WNAC tower are you? Have you actually used a compass to get the proper direction or are you aiming with "best guess"? I'm in Cranston and get WNAC-DT consistently with good signal, no pre-amp but that may be my antenna or the fact that I'm possibly closer.

only 12 miles per 2150's website and i've got the antenna aimed in with their compass headings (~40 degrees). i can get WPRI (which is literally right next door to WNAC's tower) with no problems though. what kind of antenna are you using?

toenail

01-26-07, 06:10 PM

only 12 miles per 2150's website and i've got the antenna aimed in with their compass headings (~40 degrees). i can get WPRI (which is literally right next door to WNAC's tower) with no problems though. what kind of antenna are you using?

WNAC broadcasts at a lower power level than WPRI and, as you've already observed, points themselves toward the Northeast for reasons unknown. My antenna is a Channel Master 4228. You're only 2 miles farther from the towers than I am. I also get all of the Boston affiliates with the same antenna without rotating it. I just split the difference between 30 degrees and 60 degrees (from my location) and let the antenna do the rest.

rockpharmer

01-26-07, 06:14 PM

WNAC broadcasts at a lower power level than WPRI and, as you've already observed, points themselves toward the Northeast for reasons unknown. My antenna is a Channel Master 4228. You're only 2 miles farther from the towers than I am. I also get all of the Boston affiliates with the same antenna without rotating it. I just split the difference between 30 degrees and 60 degrees (from my location) and let the antenna do the rest.
thanks.. i'm starting to realize that i'm needing a farther reaching, more directional antenna. can't believe it took me this long to figure this out.

RoyGBiv

01-27-07, 11:24 AM

Hey Everybody,

I just jumped into this whole HD thing with a 42'' HP Plasma..

I already have DTV and have made an appointment with them which is 3 weeks away :confused: ..Since I have nothing to do I called Cox to get their offers..I was surprised to hear that they offer all locals in HD( no OTA antenna ) except CBS and that they do have NESNHD.The NESN is big for me for the Sox and Bruins.

To switch to Cox would be cheaper for me because of other services I have thru them.But my main concern is the PQ when not watching HD..Does Cox have as good quality as DTV on the digital channels..Also who has more HD to offer? Also Cox can be here by next week..plus Cox rents the HD-DVR and DTV is charging me around $300

I trust you guys with this decision since you seem to be as obsessed with this whole thing as I am..

Thanks in advance

Bill

You have to sort out what D* customer reps tell you from the truth. First, it is my understanding that neither D* nor COX is offering CBS or FOX in HD at this time. Someone who has D*'s new satellite dish and receiver could correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that is the case, and it is certain COX is not. I also don't believe anyone in RI (or outside the actual Boston DMA) is getting NESN in HD on D*. I think it will happen, probably when the two new D* satellite go up later this year, but it isn't happening now. With those two new satellites, D* plans to offer many more HD channels, essentially any HD version of an existing station (and many have announced they will start such programming this year) will be included as part of their HD plan, which will cost $11 per month.

There is much more about this in the programming forum.

SMK

supergm

01-29-07, 08:14 AM

ngohit

01-29-07, 08:36 AM

I live in Foster too, around the Foster Center, I can pull in CBS from both Boston and Providence, but can't seem to pull in Fox from either Boston or Providence. Using a cheap $30 tv antenna from Walmart, maybe moving it higher on my house might work, will try it once the snow melts.

I am not clear. Is your antenna mounted on the roof and if it is, is it a stationary mount and do you have it connected (inside) to an amplifier before it goes to your TVs? Mine is and being able to turn the antenna and boost the signal makes a *big* difference.

Part of my problem is that some of those flimsy, aluminum tubes that stick out from the body of the antenna are broken off. I had wanted the antenna replaced last year, but at the last minute, the roofer refused to do it (so I returned the new antenna to Radio Shack).

Friends on Mt. Hygeia have an inexpensive roof antenna that has a stationary mount and flat (rather than coax) connection to their TV. Beeeeeeeeeautiful Fox-25. Beacuse of the direction their antenna face, though, ABC/NBC/CBS stations out of Boston come in much better than the ones out of Providence.

Slight elevation differences seem to make a big difference out here.

HongKongPhooey

01-29-07, 09:39 AM

Joe3

01-29-07, 09:41 AM

Will CBS Be Next to Kill Your HD Signals?
The network urges the FCC to butt out of a carriage dispute between Sinclair Broadcasting and Mediacom Cable.
By Phillip Swann

Washington, D.C. (January 25, 2007) -- CBS has reportedly asked the Federal Communications Commission not to intervene in the carriage dispute between Sinclair Broadcast Group and Medicom Cable.

Sinclair pulled 22 local TV stations (standard and High-Definition signals) from Mediacom cable systems this month when talks between the two companies broke down.

The broadcast group wants Mediacom, a mid-size cable operator in the Midwest, to pay for the right to carry their standard and high-def signals. The cable service is refusing because it notes the signals are available for free via off-air antennas.

Mediacom has urged Sinclair to enter a binding arbitration to settle the dispute, but the broadcast group has refused although the FCC's Media Bureau has endorsed the idea.

According to Broadcasting & Cable magazine, CBS is urging the FCC not to order the arbitration. The publication says CBS believes it would set a bad precedent because it would encourage future government intervention in what it considers a simple business negotiation.

Swanni Sez:
Don't buy it, folks. CBS doesn't want the FCC to intervene because it wants to preserve the option of following Sinclair's path and squeezing the cable operators for more money for its HDTV signals.

The network is watching the Sinclair-Mediacom battle closely -- and similar disputes around the country involving broadcast groups LIN TV and Belo, which are also withholding their HDTV channels from local cable operators.

If Sinclair, LIN TV and Belo are successful -- and force the cable ops to cough up more dough -- it's quite possible that CBS will do the same thing with their owned and operated stations.

And that means that millions of cable viewers could suddenly lose their CBS HD signals until the disputes are settled.

The FCC needs to nip this in the bud now before it's too late and order an immediate arbitration in the Mediacom-Sinclair case. That would set the right precedent and discourage CBS and other local station groups from playing these greedy games in the future.

RoyGBiv

01-29-07, 09:44 AM

I don't know if this is true or not but if someone who knows for sure would chime in that would be great..

The DTV Rep told me that because NESN broadcasts in HD 24/7 that it is in HD all the time and if you subscribe to the HD package that is what you will get..I asked why it only was on one channel (623) when all other HD channels are on seperater channels than the digital ones and he told me it was due to them braodcasting in HD all the time..He assured me it was an HD channel

I am a long-time D* subscriber, and I am very interested in getting NESN in HD. I don't currently have the new 5-LNB satellite dish, but as of now from everything I have read here and at other forums, no one outside Boston is actually getting NESN in HD from D*, despite what the CSR's will tell you. NESN HD is not part of the HD package, I can tell you that from personal experience. Yes, NESN HD is in HD 24/7, and yes it is shown on the same channel in Boston (evidently, if you have an MPEG4 capable receiver, it shows up as a second 623 station somehow), but no one outside Boston is getting it. Eventually, it is expected that all the regional sports networks will be in HD in all the areas the SD version is carried. But when that will happen is unknown. It probably has to do with launching the two satellites D* is putting up this year.

SMK

RoyGBiv

01-29-07, 09:59 AM

SuperGM, Also see post #8 in this thread. Three RIers who got the AT-9 dish are not getting NESN HD, and they seem a little pissed off about it.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=796386

SMK

RIKen822

01-29-07, 03:53 PM

I am a month-old DIRECTV customer. ESPN-HD is not available outside the Boston DMA on Direct (See the NESN website). I was also told by a Directv CSR that I would get NESN-HD. I sent NESN an email yesterday asking if they new the status of non-Boston customers getting NESN-HD. If I get a response, I'll post it.

supergm

01-29-07, 05:03 PM

^^^
Did you call DTV and get something in return for their "mistake"..What did they have to say??

DM2006RI

01-30-07, 12:07 PM

^^^
Did you call DTV and get something in return for their "mistake"..What did they have to say??

I tried calling customer retention and using that same story, but all I got was a "sorry about that, we'll pass it on to the appropriate people." No discount or anything.

I would think with DTV's big HD roll-out later this year NESN-HD will be a reality for those of us outside the Boston DMA.

I'm more interested in reading what NESN has to say than DTV on this issue. They were good about emailing me back a year ago when I couldn't figure out why certain BC basketball games were being blacked out on NESN on Directv (yet WERE being shown by Cox on NESN!). Their explanation made no sense, but at least they wrote back!

rockpharmer

01-30-07, 06:03 PM

thanks.. i'm starting to realize that i'm needing a farther reaching, more directional antenna. can't believe it took me this long to figure this out.
and it works! replaced the philips mant940 with a Terk HDTVO outdoor medium-range directional with a small inline amp (J&R ~$80). the digi broadcasts i can receive from warwick with a ~40' compass heading are:

WGBH-DT 2.2 (PBS BOSTON)
WBZ-DT 4.1 (CBS boston)
WCVB-DT 5.1 (ABC boston)
WLNE-DT 6.1 (ABC PROVIDENCE/NEW BEDFORD)
WHDH-DT 7.1 (NBC BOSTON)
WJAR-DT 10.1 (NBC PROVIDENCE)
WPRI-DT 12.1 (CBS PROVIDENCE)
WSBE-DT 36.1 (PBS PROVIDENCE)
WSBK-DT 38.1 (BOSTON)
WLVI-DT 56.1 (CW BOSTON)
WNAC-DT 64.1 (FOX PROVIDENCE)

thanks for everyone's help... now to figure out what i need to do to record OTA!

taugust04

01-30-07, 06:55 PM

bcushman

01-30-07, 07:47 PM

I just upgraded to the DCT 6416 set top box from Cox. It seems to have difficulty recording HD content, despite the bigger hard disk and other hardware revisions. Is anyone else having this issue? I am dropping a lot of frames and loosing the audio, where its almost impossible to watch.

I'm on my fifth box (all of them the 6416). Have had all the problems you are experiencing -on two occasions one of the two boxes I have now has shut off with no recording as a result. One two occasions they have resent the signal which seems to have corrected one of the boxes. I had problems with the 6412 I had before I insisted on the 6416. Not sure if I gained anything. On 3 occasions I have gone to watch a recorded program only to find the message that there was a recording problem. I am not impressed with the Motorolla equipment.

vfrjim

01-30-07, 10:55 PM

I am not impressed with the Motorolla equipment

Nope, that is why I am using the Sony DHG-HDD250 with a cablecard rental, not perfect but pretty close and the monthly bill is more affordable.

rampart51

01-31-07, 07:26 AM

and it works! replaced the philips mant940 with a Terk HDTVO outdoor medium-range directional with a small inline amp (J&R ~$80). the digi broadcasts i can receive from warwick with a ~40' compass heading are:

WGBH-DT 2.2 (PBS BOSTON)
WBZ-DT 4.1 (CBS boston)
WCVB-DT 5.1 (ABC boston)
WLNE-DT 6.1 (ABC PROVIDENCE/NEW BEDFORD)
WHDH-DT 7.1 (NBC BOSTON)
WJAR-DT 10.1 (NBC PROVIDENCE)
WPRI-DT 12.1 (CBS PROVIDENCE)
WSBE-DT 36.1 (PBS PROVIDENCE)
WSBK-DT 38.1 (BOSTON)
WLVI-DT 56.1 (CW BOSTON)
WNAC-DT 64.1 (FOX PROVIDENCE)

thanks for everyone's help... now to figure out what i need to do to record OTA!

Rock...what about 2.1, 44.1, 44.2, 44.3, 44.4, 25.1 ??

If you go here:

http://www.titantv.com/

punch in your zip code....you should see all the digital OTA channels. I think you are missing a bunch.

Billo355

01-31-07, 07:34 AM

Rhody HD

01-31-07, 07:45 AM

Having just moved to Bristol from Boston I'm still new to this whole "cable company doesn't provide all the major stations in HD" thing but I heard (somewhere) that COX & LIN had some sort of agreement where the SuperBowl was available through Cox in HD. Is this true? Any word if it will happen again this year?
This was the response I got back from Cox regarding the Super Bowl:

We are getting very close. Many of the hurdles have been cleared. We have shared with LIN that we want to get this deal done in time for the Super Bowl.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sent: Monday, January 29, 2007 4:07 PM
To: Cronin, Paul (CCI-New England )
Subject: Super Bowl in HD

So will Cox be airing the Super Bowl in HD?

rampart51

01-31-07, 08:27 AM

This was the response I got back from Cox regarding the Super Bowl:

We are getting very close. Many of the hurdles have been cleared. We have shared with LIN that we want to get this deal done in time for the Super Bowl.

Put up an antenna......after that...its all FREE!

Tattoo

01-31-07, 08:45 AM

Rhody HD

01-31-07, 09:36 AM

Put up an antenna......after that...its all FREE!
Sell your car and walk...Get rid of your phone and use two cans with string...Why watch TV when you can read a book...
I subscribe to cable for a reason, the channels I want are not available over the air, I also like to use a DVR so I can either go the antenna route and buy / install an antenna, pay $800 for the TIVO HD DVR or I can put pressure on Cox and / or Direct to get all the locals added. The antenna is a band aid fix and a lame response on the part of LIN, if you are a big time player in the world of TV then you need to be on cable and satelite.

MephistoSan

01-31-07, 01:09 PM

I'm with Rhody on this one. If Cox can't get a deal done by the Superbowl, then there's pretty much nothing they can do to keep my business once FiosTV is available here.

I actually do have an antenna, so I will be watching the Superbowl in High-def regardless, but like others I'd like the ability to use my DVR with this channel.

tmgcomp

01-31-07, 01:57 PM

toenail

01-31-07, 01:57 PM

Taugust - You said you upgraded to the DCT 6416 Rev. 3. How? Did you just call them and tell them you wanted the 6416?

I have the 6412 with the DVI out and no HDMI. I just picked up the DENON AVR 2807 and would like to use HDMI for cable. Lokos like I need the 6416 box. Please tell me that COX does not charge you to switch boxes.

I'm right across the street from COX in Portsmouth, maybe I can just walk in and swap it out?

When I was interested in "upgrading" from the 6412 to the 6416 to get the HDMI out I simply stopped in at the local Cox and inquired. They told me what day of the week new boxes arrived and suggested I bring my old one early that day to request a new one. Worked out well at no additional expense plus a larger hard drive. Be warned, the HDMI out on the 6416 is not guaranteed to play nice with your receiver. That part is trial and error.

gsr

01-31-07, 02:35 PM

I subscribe to cable for a reason, the channels I want are not available over the air,

Nor do they seem to be availabe on DirecTV or cable :rolleyes:.

I also like to use a DVR so I can either go the antenna route and buy / install an antenna, pay $800 for the TIVO HD DVR or I can put pressure on Cox and / or Direct to get all the locals added.

If you can find yourself a DirecTV HD Tivo, you should be able to get a HD Tivo for a lot less than $800. Another option is to use a PC as your DVR - there are numerous options that would give you lots of flexibility (BeyondTV or SageTV in conjunction with 1 or more HD tuner cards will let you do everything a Tivo does with OTA HD - HD options for satellite and cable on the PC aren't really there yet).

The antenna is a band aid fix and a lame response on the part of LIN, if you are a big time player in the world of TV then you need to be on cable and satelite.

I don't see where LIN suggested an antenna. As to it being a band aid fix, I would strongly disagree. If you are located where you can get good reception, the antenna option is an excellent option and a pretty good backup if your cable or satellite feeds go down.

As to being a "big time player in the world of TV", come on. We aren't exactly changing the world by subscribing to cable or satellite. And I suppose if you really do need to be a "big time player" you should have ALL your bases covered and aren't really "there" unless you have an antenna.

I'll go back to working on accessDTV / BeyondTV integration now so that I can contribute my little bit in being a big time player in the world of TV. :D

rockpharmer

01-31-07, 04:07 PM

Rock...what about 2.1, 44.1, 44.2, 44.3, 44.4, 25.1 ??

punch in your zip code....you should see all the digital OTA channels. I think you are missing a bunch.
yeah.. i wondered this too. the 44 PBS stations come in, but poorly. i can receive the SD 25 station, but not the DT 25.1. i did all of this really just to be able to pick up a good CBS and FOX station which i did (to supplement the COX programming). everything is just icing on the cake

Surferdude2000

01-31-07, 05:42 PM

I think everyone needs to calm down about cox and HD. Bottom line, if you want CBS and FOX in hd, get a pair of rabbit ears and for most who live north of Say North Kingstown you have a good shot of getting it. Otherwise, spend a few hours and 100.00 and get OTA HD for free forever. For 100.00 its worth it. You can get a cheap radio shack multi antenna mount it and call it a day.

I am sorry but I have to take issue with this post. This is a big deal for many reasons.

Among them:

Some people (Like myself) live in areas where it is hard to pull in the channels OTA. I would tell you about my saga to pull in the channels but it would take way to long. Suffice to say, I cannot just "throw up some rabbit ears and be done with it." I've already been through 3 indoor antenna's and am now working on trying to do a roof mount on my very high roof in the middle of winter. Not cool.

Also, I was an early adopter of HDTV and for that I am blessed with a TV without an HD Tuner. I had to purchase that separately. Think that was easy to find around here? It was not. Surprisingly this area is low on them, probably because of the dispute.

Also, when you do this you do not have your DVR functionality (which after you have gotten very used to that is a big deal.) I can just image SuperBowl Sunday wanting to watch one of those funny commercials again, but ah nope, we can't rewind.

Furthermore, it is a pain to have to switch inputs on my tv just to watch 2 channels, and I even have a nice Harmony (now logictech) remote. Imagine the folks who don't.

Also, I am maxed out on my digital audio inputs on my receiver because of my Cable, DVD, and Xbox 360.

$250 bucks and still no OTA HD and I as you might be able to tell I am pretty good with tech stuff so it is not me.

So hopefully you can see that for many people there is much more than just "throwing up the rabbit ears."

Come on, pulling in the HDTV OTA is not a viable long term solution in the day of Cable, Direct TV, and their DVRs. People want their content to come from one source.

I'm just very frustrated that this has lagged on for as long as it has especially when 2 years ago Cox told me it should be resolved "soon." If it was easy for you to pull in the HD, I am happy for you because it's not for me.

Rhody HD

01-31-07, 06:25 PM

Nor do they seem to be availabe on DirecTV or cable :rolleyes:.

If you can find yourself a DirecTV HD Tivo, you should be able to get a HD Tivo for a lot less than $800. Another option is to use a PC as your DVR - there are numerous options that would give you lots of flexibility (BeyondTV or SageTV in conjunction with 1 or more HD tuner cards will let you do everything a Tivo does with OTA HD - HD options for satellite and cable on the PC aren't really there yet).

I don't see where LIN suggested an antenna. As to it being a band aid fix, I would strongly disagree. If you are located where you can get good reception, the antenna option is an excellent option and a pretty good backup if your cable or satellite feeds go down.

As to being a "big time player in the world of TV", come on. We aren't exactly changing the world by subscribing to cable or satellite. And I suppose if you really do need to be a "big time player" you should have ALL your bases covered and aren't really "there" unless you have an antenna.

I'll go back to working on accessDTV / BeyondTV integration now so that I can contribute my little bit in being a big time player in the world of TV. :D
This is from the WPRI website (owned by LIN) LIN suggesting an antenna, because without one you can't get their stations in HD:
Eyewitness News
HDTV Answers

Want to see the best in sports and entertainment in high definition- with no monthly fees? Imagine catching the world champion New England Patriots and Boston Red Sox in action in incredible high definition.

Local broadcast history was made when WPRI-TV launched its new digital TV station WPRI-DT. WPRI-DT was the first digital TV station in Providence, Rhode Island. Next came WNAC-DT shortly after the launch of WPRI-DT. Now you can watch all of your favorite CBS and Fox shows, along with countless sporting events (including Patriots football, Red Sox games, and baseball playoffs) in exciting, crystal clear high definition!

With clearer pictures and better sound, WPRI-DT and WNAC-DT allow viewers to watch their favorite shows in picture-perfect detail.

WPRI-DT / WNAC-DT FAQ:

How can I see WPRI-DT or WNAC-DT?

Like traditional broadcast television, digital television is a free over the air broadcast. You do not need a pay cable or dish service to view it. WPRI-DT is now being broadcast on digital channel 13 and WNAC-DT is now being broadcast on digital channel 64-1. You can receive WPRI-DT and WNAC-DT if you have a digital receiver and a UHF/VHF combo antenna.

I'll wire an antenna, setup a PC to act as my DVR, well that sounds like a great idea, very user friendly as well...Cable and satellite are how the overwhelming majority receive TV, ESPN's OTA signal is very strong and HBO's is just plain snowy...LIN needs to recognize how consumers receive LIN programming and its primarily cable and satelite.

All I am asking is that the next time someone asks about the LIN HD signals on Cox or Direct TV the answer isn't get some rabbit ears and a pc. The answer is we the consumer need to go after LIN, Cox and Direct to get a deal which benefits the consumer done.

gsr

01-31-07, 06:46 PM

I'll wire an antenna, setup a PC to act as my DVR, well that sounds like a great idea, very user friendly as well

Actually, once it's setup it is pretty user friendly - and it works :). I'm not about to suggest that it's trivial to get it all setup, but IMHO it's worth the effort.

ESPN's OTA signal is very strong and HBO's is just plain snowy...LIN needs to recognize how consumers receive LIN programming and its primarily cable and satelite.

ESPN and HBO OTA???

All I am asking is that the next time someone asks about the LIN HD signals on Cox or Direct TV the answer isn't get some rabbit ears and a pc. The answer is we the consumer need to go after LIN, Cox and Direct to get a deal which benefits the consumer done.

That's all well and good but until you guys get LIN, Cox, and DirecTV to play nicely together there IS a pretty reasonable option for those with good OTA reception. I don't think anyone is suggesting that you all drop the fight, but if you actually want to watch stuff now, there are options...

vfrjim

01-31-07, 06:49 PM

Do what I do, have your own protest and do NOT ever watch WPRI or WNAC ever again, and to boot, get rid of Cox cable As soon as possible (for me it will be when Fios Video is live with NESN-HD) My antenna has picked up Boston locals since 2002, and very content doing so. I sub to Cox cable ONLY to get NESN-HD, that's it.

That B-S with LIN tv and cox gets me sick and everyone should make a stand.

rockpharmer

01-31-07, 09:49 PM

Kill Your Tv!@#!#

Joe3

02-01-07, 10:00 AM

The fight is on and this war over Pay TV is at a boiling rage across the country and heading for a show down in Congress.

News
New York Viewers May Miss Super Bowl In HDTV
The CBS station in south central New York refuses to let Time Warner carry its high-def signal.
By Phillip Swann

Washington, D.C. (January 31, 2007) -- Thousands of HDTV owners in New York and Pennsylvania may not be able to watch the Super Bowl in high-def this Sunday.

The reason: WBNG-TV, the CBS affiliate which serves the south central part of New York and north central Pennsylvania, is refusing to let Time Warner Cable carry its high-def signal. (CBS will broadcast the 2007 Super Bowl in HD this Sunday from Miami.)

That's according to an article in today's Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin.
By law, a TV provider, such as Time Warner, must get permission from a local station to carry its signals. In the past, local stations and cable operators have reached agreement on carriage of analog channels usually by exchanging promotional considerations.

However, many local stations around the country are now demanding fees from cable ops to carry their high-def channels. In several cities, cable operators have refused the request, which has led to the local stations forcing the cable operators to remove the HD channels from their lineups.

A dispute between Sinclair Broadcasting and Mediacom Cable has grown so heated that the Iowa state legislature is threatening action and the FCC's Media Bureau has recommended a binding arbitration in the matter.

The Press & Sun-Bulletin reports that Time Warner and WBNG are trying to reconcile their differences before the Super Bowl. Both sides say it's not a matter of money, but they refused to explain further. (WBNG is owned by Granite Broadcasting.)

However, the newspaper reports that high-def owners are livid.

"What's the point of spending $2,000 on a TV when you can't even use it for what it's supposed to be used for?" Eric A. Phelan, who recently purchased a 42-inch Plasma HDTV, told the newspaper. "I feel (cheated). Everyone wants to have the nice Super Bowl parties."

David Whalen, vice president of public relations for Time Warner in the south central New York area, says that if the two companies can't reach an agreement by Sunday, he hopes WBNG will let the cable op show the game in high-def.
"WBNG realizes that no one wins if we can't work it out," Whalen told the newspaper, adding that "it's going to be ugly" if it doesn't.

tmgcomp

02-01-07, 11:55 AM

I am sorry but I have to take issue with this post. This is a big deal for many reasons.

Among them:

Some people (Like myself) live in areas where it is hard to pull in the channels OTA. I would tell you about my saga to pull in the channels but it would take way to long. Suffice to say, I cannot just "throw up some rabbit ears and be done with it." I've already been through 3 indoor antenna's and am now working on trying to do a roof mount on my very high roof in the middle of winter. Not cool.

Also, I was an early adopter of HDTV and for that I am blessed with a TV without an HD Tuner. I had to purchase that separately. Think that was easy to find around here? It was not. Surprisingly this area is low on them, probably because of the dispute.

Also, when you do this you do not have your DVR functionality (which after you have gotten very used to that is a big deal.) I can just image SuperBowl Sunday wanting to watch one of those funny commercials again, but ah nope, we can't rewind.

Furthermore, it is a pain to have to switch inputs on my tv just to watch 2 channels, and I even have a nice Harmony (now logictech) remote. Imagine the folks who don't.

Also, I am maxed out on my digital audio inputs on my receiver because of my Cable, DVD, and Xbox 360.

$250 bucks and still no OTA HD and I as you might be able to tell I am pretty good with tech stuff so it is not me.

So hopefully you can see that for many people there is much more than just "throwing up the rabbit ears."

Come on, pulling in the HDTV OTA is not a viable long term solution in the day of Cable, Direct TV, and their DVRs. People want their content to come from one source.

I'm just very frustrated that this has lagged on for as long as it has especially when 2 years ago Cox told me it should be resolved "soon." If it was easy for you to pull in the HD, I am happy for you because it's not for me.

I have to respond,

My post was a generalization. It was not meant to make anyone upset. I do not know where you live, nor how you have the means to pull in signal. Maybe I am lucky, maybe not. I was able to get all OTA stations with rabbit ears and my radio shack external antenna. There are many many things you can do to increase your chances. I read on these forums for over a month and developed a well thought out plan to get my OTA channels. Maybe I can even help you in someway. Where do you live?
As for the LIN/Cable issue. Its very apparent to me Verizon paid whatever they had to to get the channels. Cox will not it seems. I am glad about that. Do we all want our bills to go up? Then we will have 10 posts about that. Is there a perfect solution, no. Will this drag on for the awhile, more then likely. Keep in mind, Verizon has already raised rates on there FIOS video customers in Virginia. Also, if you dig deep into their pricing structure, they are the same when you break it downs as Cox, Direct, or Dish. But that is for another time. Sorry for the response...but in the end I would like to help you get these channels.

Surferdude2000

02-01-07, 12:36 PM

I have to respond,

My post was a generalization. It was not meant to make anyone upset. I do not know where you live, nor how you have the means to pull in signal. Maybe I am lucky, maybe not. I was able to get all OTA stations with rabbit ears and my radio shack external antenna. There are many many things you can do to increase your chances. I read on these forums for over a month and developed a well thought out plan to get my OTA channels. Maybe I can even help you in someway. Where do you live?
As for the LIN/Cable issue. Its very apparent to me Verizon paid whatever they had to to get the channels. Cox will not it seems. I am glad about that. Do we all want our bills to go up? Then we will have 10 posts about that. Is there a perfect solution, no. Will this drag on for the awhile, more then likely. Keep in mind, Verizon has already raised rates on there FIOS video customers in Virginia. Also, if you dig deep into their pricing structure, they are the same when you break it downs as Cox, Direct, or Dish. But that is for another time. Sorry for the response...but in the end I would like to help you get these channels.

Listen friend, I'm not upset. My whole point was taking issue with the thought that this issue is resolved with throwing up rabbit ears. That is the same argument that LIN is trying to use, and that is why it bothers me. It is not true. I was simply pointing out that there are those for whom that is not an option or not easy.

My situation is because of where I live, and that is exactly why cable should be an option for me.

My point for continuing to bring it up to help to force the issue. The more we call and complain, the more we write, the more we contact the FCC the more they know we are serious and it is an issue. Think about it, if no one complained do you think that Cox would ever pay up, or that LIN would ever lower their price, or that the FCC would ever get involved?

Thanks for your offer of help friend, but my only resolution is to go with a roof mount antenna at the very highest point to be able to pull in the signal. However, at the end of the day HDTV through the DVR (Cox, Direct TV, Verizon) is still the most consumer friendly way to go and frankly at this point I would gladly pay a little more to see that happen.

No need to respond and keep this going, my only goal was for you to know it's not that easy for everyone. :)

tmgcomp

02-01-07, 01:21 PM

agreed lol...wait was that a reponse lol? Where do you live? What antenna are you using? My mother and father in law use a 160 inch radio shack model and live in Coventry in a valley with massive tree cover and we worked it through and they can get boston and some Conn. It is not split and points NE in a general direction. They have a preamp and just one tv.

taugust04

02-01-07, 01:46 PM

Taugust - You said you upgraded to the DCT 6416 Rev. 3. How? Did you just call them and tell them you wanted the 6416?

I have the 6412 with the DVI out and no HDMI. I just picked up the DENON AVR 2807 and would like to use HDMI for cable. Lokos like I need the 6416 box. Please tell me that COX does not charge you to switch boxes.

I'm right across the street from COX in Portsmouth, maybe I can just walk in and swap it out?

I e-mailed customer support and explained I was having an existing problem with my 6412 (which I was), and I also asked if they had the 6416 in stock in the Portsmouth office. They e-mailed me back that the only place that they could send me to in confidence to pick up a 6416 was the Warwick Mall office. So I brought the old one back and picked up the 6416 there. Not sure if they have them in the Portsmouth office.

-Ted

taugust04

02-01-07, 02:00 PM

My point for continuing to bring it up to help to force the issue. The more we call and complain, the more we write, the more we contact the FCC the more they know we are serious and it is an issue. Think about it, if no one complained do you think that Cox would ever pay up, or that LIN would ever lower their price, or that the FCC would ever get involved?

Thanks for your offer of help friend, but my only resolution is to go with a roof mount antenna at the very highest point to be able to pull in the signal. However, at the end of the day HDTV through the DVR (Cox, Direct TV, Verizon) is still the most consumer friendly way to go and frankly at this point I would gladly pay a little more to see that happen.

No need to respond and keep this going, my only goal was for you to know it's not that easy for everyone. :)

You have to wonder if the cable companies are waiting until they have the upper hand on these HD feed carrying issues. For now, the station owners can get away with not having their stations carried on Cable and Satellite, since the analogs are there, and the amount of digital/HD capable televisions (though increasing) is still small.

However, there will be a point when the number of cable and satellite customers requesting HD service is so large. that it starts to hurt the local stations. The networks also won't be happy that their affiliates are making it difficult for viewers to watch. With such a vast variety of programming available on cable and satellite, it's more likely that that a cable/satellite customer would stop watching a program on a given channel, then cancel service, because a channel is missing. Plus, other outlets are popping up, such as iTunes, and other Internet based sites, where programming can be viewed and downloaded, as an alternative to the standard broadcast.

I really hope LIN and Cox get their deal done soon. I'd love to see the SuperBowl in HD without having to drag out my antenna contraption. But I'm guessing that the longer this issue continues, it starts to favor Cox more than LIN. Just my two cents :)