Very interesting. Also interesting the WWOR-DT is NOT featured on Time Warner Cable's HD tier. I get it OTA fine, but wondered why TWC is not adding it to their line up. They have NBC Universal HD in the normal 709 channel slot.

WWOR-DT and WNYW-DT (Channel 5) are both owned by Fox/Murdoch. They split up their DT sub channels. Channel 5-2 is WWOR (9) and Channel 9-2 is WNYW (5).
So, does that mean that if you get Channel 5-2, but not 9-1, over-the-air, that you'll get WWOR's HD broadcast of the Yankees?

So, does that mean that if you get Channel 5-2, but not 9-1, over-the-air, that you'll get WWOR's HD broadcast of the Yankees?

No, because 5-2 is WWOR's SD feed and 9-2 is WNYW's SD feed. My understanding is that there isn't enough bandwith to multicast 2 HD signals on the same channel.

Speaking of WWOR, did they change their signal format? Since Cablevision doesn't carry their HD, I use OTA to watch WWOR in HD in lower Westchester. I distinctly remember that my LG said it was 1080i, now it says it is 720p.

I don't know if they changed but I got My9HD today from Cablevision and it's 720p for us.

I don't know if they changed but I got My9HD today from Cablevision and it's 720p for us.

I just checked, and it's showing up on Cablevision. Yesterday when I checked it wasn't there, guess today is its first day.

As previously reported, today is the day for WNBC-TV to go HD for much of its local programming, in tandem with NBC's Today show offering in HD.

I checked out the early "Today in NY" for a few minutes. Looks good in HD, but for the time I had to watch, it was closeups on anchors vs. wide shots of the set.

As you might expect, field reports are still SD camera shots, so they have colored sidebars.

Their time/temperature bug is indented very far on the right side (for 4:3 compatibility). Makes the bottom third look out of proportion, imo.

I was not able to receive WCBS in the past few days. I am in Central NJ. Any insight?

I'm in ocean county and CBS is my strongest signal. 90+ at post time.

I just recently purchased an ATI HDTV wonder for my computer to watch hdtv. Background info i live in manhattan 2.1 miles south of ESB, 3rd flr of a 7 story building facing north. A friend of mine also purchased the same thing and says he can recieve all channels perfectly clear from brooklyn, sunset park. The antenna that came w/ the tuner card did not pick up any signals and only once in awhile did i pick up 7.1. I now purchased a terk tv55 and still nothing. Is there any antenna that would work for my area or am i doing something wrong? i tried to wallk around holding the antenna.

Thanks for the help

Sounds like you're getting serious multipath. I'm awaiting a Winegard Sharpshooter. See here: http://www.winegard.com/offair/sharpshooter/pdf/SharpShooter_12-08.pdf

Terk has rebranded this antenna for their own line.

http://www.audiovox.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10001&productId=14196&langId=-1

I bought the Winegard on Ebay for about $40 after shipping. Awaiting its delivery. But this is specifically supposed to deal with multipath (signals arriving at your destination at different times because of bouncing off buildings, and creating "locking" problems on your TV, even when you are close to the transmitter).

I emailed WWOR and WNYW. My9 apparently does not get an HD feed from YES (who appears to produce the games for My9). Don't expect to see Yankees in HD anytime soon on My9.

As someone who never watches 9 except for Yankee games.. do they even broadcast anything in HD?

Thanks slikkster, i think i'll try it out Is it a different between the winegard and the terk antenna you showed me?

I emailed WWOR and WNYW. My9 apparently does not get an HD feed from YES (who appears to produce the games for My9). Don't expect to see Yankees in HD anytime soon on My9.

As someone who never watches 9 except for Yankee games.. do they even broadcast anything in HD?

Yes, The station's entire myNetwork prime time line-up, Mon.-Sun., 8-10 p.m. -
when not pre-empted for sports.

I emailed WWOR and WNYW. My9 apparently does not get an HD feed from YES (who appears to produce the games for My9). Don't expect to see Yankees in HD anytime soon on My9.

As someone who never watches 9 except for Yankee games.. do they even broadcast anything in HD?


I thought MY9 advertised tonight's Yankees game as being in HD. We'll see.

I thought MY9 advertised tonight's Yankees game as being in HD. We'll see.

It's been advertised during yankee broadcasts all week, although they did throw in that is was "only available on iO channel 709"

It's been advertised during yankee broadcasts all week, although they did throw in that is was "only available on iO channel 709"

That makes no sense to me. How can this be available in HD on cable and not OTA?

That makes no sense to me. How can this be available in HD on cable and not OTA?


You are right... it doesn't make sense...

I just thought I'd mention it... as they did say it...

Nobody ever metions OTA.

The last time a Yankee announcer mentioned OTA was "The Scooter".

The last time a Yankee announcer mentioned OTA was "The Scooter".
:D while scoffing down a canoli in honor of (fill in local name) birthday. :p

Game is rained out....
guess we'll never know...

day-night doubleheaders Saturday and Sunday

Has anyone seen the new NBC local news now in HD. I think is started this week. It looks pretty good. At least the in studio shots. Most of the video news footage is 4:3 with some nice Peacock colored borders. I have seen it mostly at 11pm, but is probably in all the news time slots. Pretty cool though.

Also, maybe tonights Yankee game in HD on my nine OTA?

I doubt it, even though this is near the home of "The Boss", none of these games are listed in HD.

Yes isn't doing their games from Tampa in HD so there is no way My9 will have it in HD. Next Friday's home game vs Toronto is another story.

They said tonite that next week's game is in HD on WWOR-DT and Cablevision ch 709.

Ok guys, I live in New York City lower manhattan and I want to receive HDTV OTA. I live 2.1 miles away from the Empire State building where all the signals are being transmitted. I recently picked up a Zenith ZHDTV1 Silver Sensor after reading all the good reviews. To my surprise, I couldn't pick up any digital channels at all. The vhf analog reception is also horrible.
After some extended research, it seems like my problem is the multipath distortion.

Can someone point me to a quality indoor antenna that will work in my situation? I am looking into the Winegard SS-3000 Sharp shooter right now but I am a little heisitant due to the mixed reviews. Any help would be great. Thanks a lot

The SS is UHF only. It's also pretty widely accepted as the best indoor antenna on the market.

I agree that the Silver Sensor is about the best indoor antenna. I use it - am located in the East 60s in an apartment house surrounded by other, and some taller buildings. You have to walk the SS around your room slowly to determine sweet spots for reception, station by station.

Be careful of amplified antennas. Living so close the Empire State, you don't need stronger signals - your problem, as you mentioned is multipath.

Be patient and keep trying.

The Nats at Mets game on CW is in SD so far. Anyone have contact info for the station?

Nevermind, it's fixed.

Did the I network, formerly PAX, get sold or something? I'm flipping throught the channels and 31-1 is now "ion", 31-2 "qubo" coming in early 2007, 31-3 "ion W" & 31-4 remains worship. Anyone know what's up?

I think it is a mistake to go with more than three subchannels. Every station that I've seen that crams several subchannels into their bandwith, gives a horrible compressed picture.

Did the I network, formerly PAX, get sold or something? I'm flipping throught the channels and 31-1 is now "ion", 31-2 "qubo" coming in early 2007, 31-3 "ion W" & 31-4 remains worship. Anyone know what's up?

I think it is a mistake to go with more than three subchannels. Every station that I've seen that crams several subchannels into their bandwith, gives a horrible compressed picture.

Yes, NBC-Universal, which owns about a third, has taken over management of the "network" and has renamed/branded it as "ion."

There are many contractual obligations made by Paxson that have to be honored/burned-off by NBC.

Let's see how long G.E. will allow things to remain?

Yes, NBC-Universal, which owns about a third, has taken over management of the "network" and has renamed/branded it as "ion."

There are many contractual obligations made by Paxson that have to be honored/burned-off by NBC.

Let's see how long G.E. will allow things to remain?

Thanks for the info. I looked up qubo and found that it's childrens' programming. From what I saw it will also be on NBC, Telemundo and ION channels.

I used to get Ch.13, but now I don't. Signal strength swings between about 65% and 25%. It has been this way for several days now. I'm in northern NJ, about 15 mi. due west of the ESB. I get the other ESB channels okay. Has 13's signal strength dropped recently?

OTOH, I seem to have (suddenly?) started getting Ch.58 quite well, including 58-5, NJN-HD. (I notice, though, that the EPG for 58-5 is really the guide for 58-1.)

Any insights or comments why these changes should have occurred?

TIA
Dave Kristol

I've had issues with many of the OTA stations the past few days. I was actually adjusting my indoor antenna for best reception, when all of the sudden many of the ESB OTA's dropped strength. I figured it was my antenna or cable, and something was amiss there. Still haven't checked that possibility, but the fact that it happened while I was actually adjusting makes me wonder. But it would be a lot more comforting to know other people show reduced signal strengths on the ESB stations currently.

The OTA station that is consistently inconsistent is NBC DT 4. Its signal strength varies from day to day, hour to hour. I've never been able to pick up 13's digital signal, and I'm about 14 miles from the ESB, in Westchester county. CBS, FOX & My9 are the most solid signals I get, while ABC, CW, Univision, channel 31, are fine @ 90% of the time.

Actually, I did an experiment and just had my Panasonic Plasma do another Auto-scan of stations, and it returned the stations to normal signal strength. So, guess in this case it was the TV tuner, itself, that got temporarily hosed.

Channel 13, if I'm not mistaken, is actually licensed to Newark, so it's digital signal is oriented in that direction. I'm east of that, so its problematic to get it and still get all other stations. As a matter of fact, I often get NJ PBS better than Channel 13.

Actually, I did an experiment and just had my Panasonic Plasma do another Auto-scan of stations, and it returned the stations to normal signal strength. So, guess in this case it was the TV tuner, itself, that got temporarily hosed.

Channel 13, if I'm not mistaken, is actually licensed to Newark, so it's digital signal is oriented in that direction. I'm east of that, so its problematic to get it and still get all other stations. As a matter of fact, I often get NJ PBS better than Channel 13.

WNET-DT's signal, since the station moved its transmission to the Empire State Buidling, is no longer directional - toward Newark. As part of the Combiner Project, the signal for this station is omni-directional. The problems are the high frequency - Channel 61 and very low power.

Hey all...I live in manhattan (West side in the 40s) and wondering if anyone knows how the OTA reception is. Considering buying the Panasonic without tuner but if I can get good reception I might opt for the new Pioneer.

Please help!

WNET-DT's signal, since the station moved its transmission to the Empire State Buidling, is no longer directional - toward Newark. As part of the Combiner Project, the signal for this station is omni-directional. The problems are the high frequency - Channel 61 and very low power.

Out of curiosity I checked antennaweb.org to see what they said for Ch.13 for my location. I was surprised to find that WNET-DT is no longer listed for me, although it used to be! (The analog station is there.)

Dave Kristol

Out of curiosity I checked antennaweb.org to see what they said for Ch.13 for my location. I was surprised to find that WNET-DT is no longer listed for me, although it used to be! (The analog station is there.)

Dave Kristol
Knowing a close proximity of your location might help others. Its just a blank statement otherwise :) .
EDIT- Saw local in body of post NOTE wish ppl could put local in signature.

Knowing a close proximity of your location might help others. Its just a blank statement otherwise :) .
EDIT- Saw local in body of post NOTE wish ppl could put local in signature.

Summit, NJ, 20 mi. due west of ESB.

Dave Kristol

Out of curiosity I checked antennaweb.org to see what they said for Ch.13 for my location. I was surprised to find that WNET-DT is no longer listed for me, although it used to be! (The analog station is there.)

Dave Kristol
Acording to antennaweb I don't get no digitals, lot's of analogs. The only major networks I can't get is NBC(28) and PBS(61). I find
http://www.2150.com/broadcast/ to be more reliable. I'm 50 miles south of ESB.

I am approximately 1.5 miles from the Empire State Building and have line of sight to it out my window. I am using Windows Media Center with an HDTV OTA tuner card installed (KWORLD ATSC-110). I had been using an RCA non-directional antenna (ANT585), but recently upgraded to the directional Terk HDTVa. I can reliably get both Fox (1051) and ABC (1071) with both antennas, but I am unable to get picture from either NBC (1041) or CBS (1021) with either antenna.

Does anyone know what the problem might be? I get sound intermittently from both NBC and CBS, but picture from neither. This just doesn't make sense to me given that I am so close to the broadcast tower! Please advise!

[Edit: Updating my video card drivers fixed this problem, picture appears correctly now.]

I had recently complained that I no longer could get Channel 13. Last night it reappeared, even in the rain! Signal strength was around 67% (whatever that means) and seemed reasonably constant.

Dave Kristol

Is the Zenith ZHDTV1 antenna available from any brick & mortar store in Manhattan or do I have to get it from Amazon? Any thoughts on OTA reception in the West 70s or should I take my chances with the ZHDTV1?

Thanks,
Ted

I just took some still caps and also recorded WNET-DT and the video rez is 1440X1088 instead of 1920X1088.

Where did the other 480 horizontal lines go?
http://img162.imagevenue.com/loc486/th_20058_snapshot_20061011_0019_122_486lo.jpg (http://img162.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=20058_snapshot_20061011_0019_122_486lo.jpg)

Is the Zenith ZHDTV1 antenna available from any brick & mortar store in Manhattan or do I have to get it from Amazon? Any thoughts on OTA reception in the West 70s or should I take my chances with the ZHDTV1?

Thanks,
Ted
Circuit City Union Square

I am looking for a little help in getting WNBC NY on my system. I am using a DB-8 (no amp) antenna , upgraded from a DB-4, mounted outside on my roof. Clear view to the east, 1100 feet up, and 38 miles from the tower. Below are some channels that I am getting along with the signal strength:
WCBS 2-01 100
FOX 5-01 88
WABC 7-01 100
WWOR 9-01 91
WNET 13-01 74
I've tried the tuners in my Panasonic plasma and Dishnetwork 942 receiver (the 942 gets higher numbers across the board). From what I can learn all the NYC broadcasts are from the Empire State building so why no signal from WNBC when ABC and CBS are maxed? Any ideas where I went wrong?

Well, I got a Phillips Silver Sensor from CC and all I can get is WCBS. I am on the fourth floor facing south (west 70s in Manhattan). I live in a five story brownstone -- would trying some sort of rooftop antenna (assuming I get get access to the roof) be worth the effort -- there still wouldn't be line of sight to the ESB.

Any suggestions welcome. Thanks!

Sorry -- missed this thread.

Today I stopped receiving any signal at all on 2-1 (WCBS). All the other local stations are coming in at over 90 (meter on my TiVo), but nothing on 2-1.

The tuners seem to be working fine and the antenna seems to be OK. This evening is the first time I've ever seen an OTA channel just disappear.

Over the last few days I have noticed that Telemundo (Analog Ch. 47) is now broadcasting over DTV Ch. 36-3, but without any sound.

Over the last few days I have noticed that Telemundo (Analog Ch. 47) is now broadcasting over DTV Ch. 36-3, but without any sound.

Thanks for the info about Telemundo. I didn't know they had finally gone digital. I just checked it out and it comes in fine on 36-3, sound and all. The signal is steady but doesn't look like they are transmitting it at a high signal strength.

Over the last few days I have noticed that Telemundo (Analog Ch. 47) is now broadcasting over DTV Ch. 36-3, but without any sound.

Thanks for the info about Telemundo. I didn't know they had finally gone digital. I just checked it out and it comes in fine on 36-3, sound and all. The signal is steady but doesn't look like they are transmitting it at a high signal strength.

Circuit City Union Square

Circuit city on west80st. B.WAY :cool:

Circuit city on west80st. B.WAY :cool:

I figured there may be one all the way out there, forgive me I don't venture out of the LES unless warranted ;)

CW 11 has had a test pattern up for a few minutes now on both OTA and Cablevision HD

CW 11 has had a test pattern up for a few minutes now on both OTA and Cablevision HD

Great! Looks like they're finally making an effort to improve their programming and put on something useful.

:p

I'll take Veronica Mars over any CSI/L&O/NBC gameshow or American Idol out there!

Great! Looks like they're finally making an effort to improve their programming and put on something useful.

:p


:p :p :p :p

I'll take Veronica Mars over any CSI/L&O/NBC gameshow or American Idol out there!


hey! L&O rules!

darn trouble maker.

WOW!

ESPNHD looks great on channel 9 (MNTV)

WOW!

ESPNHD looks great on channel 9 (MNTV)


Yes it does! I saw My 9 was showing the game on titantv. I was hoping it might be in HD as it wasn't listed as such. I was pumped when I tuned in and it was in HD. Looks great! Good job My Nine!

Now if everyone dropped their cable subscription, we would get all the games in HD all year long!
I dropped mine, just waiting on the several other million of you out there :)

The above people who saw this game in HD on Channel 9's HD feed....were you watching OTA or via Cable/Satellite? I noticed it was on 9-1 OTA but a friend of mine with TWC in Staten Island said that the HD feed for channel 9 there was showing network programming.

So....was it available on other cable systems? I'm not sure if D* carries "channel 9" in HD on their new satellite local channel programming since I don't have a newer box/dish.

:confused:

It was shown on in HD on WWOR-DT via Cablevision channel 709.

The above people who saw this game in HD on Channel 9's HD feed....were you watching OTA or via Cable/Satellite? I noticed it was on 9-1 OTA but a friend of mine with TWC in Staten Island said that the HD feed for channel 9 there was showing network programming.

So....was it available on other cable systems? I'm not sure if D* carries "channel 9" in HD on their new satellite local channel programming since I don't have a newer box/dish.

:confused:

I was watching 9-1 OTA (as is the title of this thread). It was carrying the ESPN Game feed. Nice!

I was watching it on 9-1 OTA.

I am in Hoboken, direct LOS to the Empire State Building - it's really close.

My NBC digital seems to have vanished over the past couple of days. It's been fine for weeks and now... nothing. I am using Samsung SIR-T451s with a DB-4 antenna. Analog NBC is coming in over some rabbit ears.

Anyone else notice that 5-1 OTA is not carrying tonight's FOX World Series game in HD. I'm getting black pillar boxes...

Anyone else notice that 5-1 OTA is not carrying tonight's FOX World Series game in HD. I'm getting black pillar boxes...

O-T-A, TW Cable and DirecTV feeds all in 4.3 aspect ratio!

Very strange. Must be a huge problem somewhere.

can't even receive 5-1 and 9-1 tonight.

Has anyone been able to get OTA 7-1 ABC???

I live in Manhattan, and I can't get 7-1, 7-2, or 7-3 for the past 2 days.

Has anyone been able to get OTA 7-1 ABC???

I live in Manhattan, and I can't get 7-1, 7-2, or 7-3 for the past 2 days.


I'm out in Suffolk county and got it on the "OTA" cable feed of regular channels - without antenna or special channels (7xx) --no cable box

I also live in Manhattan and WABC-DT is coming in fine with good signal level.

Are the WCBS-DT Gray Pillars gone? Right now the pillar bars are black.

Still black sides during The Late Late Show.

Are the WCBS-DT Gray Pillars gone? Right now the pillar bars are black. Still black sides during The Late Late Show.

My experience is that the sidebars are gray when you're watching the CBS network feed, but black when you are watching WCBS-TV local programming. I think this even applies to commercials too. Anyone else?

My experience is that the sidebars are gray when you're watching the CBS network feed, but black when you are watching WCBS-TV local programming. I think this even applies to commercials too. Anyone else?

Yes, the gray bars are part of the national CBS network, but the local WCBS uses black bars.

I guess the left coast likes grey but the right coast likes black. That's funny they are different. You'd think a good amount of network people are involved at WCBS being the east coast mothership and all....

My son lives in Astoria and will be getting an HDTV for Christmas. He has D* for Sunday Ticket so the question is would a set-top antenna like the SS be enough to gets the locals? If you look out the window of his 3rd floor apt. you can see the Empire State Building.
Thanks in advance.

This is most likely not the answer you had hoped for.

No one knows!!!

Having line-of-sight to the Empire State Building is a definite plus. But with the vagaries of UHF digital reception, especially in a metropolitan area, you really don't know until you try it.

I would recommend that he try the Silver Sensor, especially bought from a place where it can be returned. I use it in Manhattan, in the midst of taller buildings without line-of-sight and I'm amazed how well it does. It is highly directional, and the slightest change in positioning drastically changes its ability to receive stations.

Again, try it. I hope and think he'll be pleasantly surprised.

Is anyone else getting audio drop outs on FOX? This has been happening constantly now for me for the past couple of weeks. Every 10, 15 minutes or so, the sound drops out for maybe 10 to 20 seconds, and then comes back in. It only happens on Fox.

I'm using a DirecTV HR10-250, and I'm not sure if it is the station or the recent firmware upgrade from DirecTV causing it, as it started happening around the same time.

Sorry if this has been discussed already. I did a search, but I didn't come up with anything.

Thanks, Gary. Not too suprised to hear this. Will do as you suggest - worst case is we go to the roof with a huge yagi and a rotor. This will give me an excuse to fly up and help!!

Is anyone else getting audio drop outs on FOX? This has been happening constantly now for me for the past couple of weeks. Every 10, 15 minutes or so, the sound drops out for maybe 10 to 20 seconds, and then comes back in. It only happens on Fox.

I'm using a DirecTV HR10-250, and I'm not sure if it is the station or the recent firmware upgrade from DirecTV causing it, as it started happening around the same time.

Sorry if this has been discussed already. I did a search, but I didn't come up with anything.
Yes! And I'm using the DirecTV HR10-250, too. :mad: They're not as bad on Channel 88 as OTA, but still there. Hopefully, if enough of us call DirecTV and complain, they'll work out a fix. It's been happening ever since D*TV downloaded new software from the satellite. (See discussions in the HDTV recorder forum.)

Yes! And I'm using the DirecTV HR10-250, too. :mad: They're not as bad on Channel 88 as OTA, but still there. Hopefully, if enough of us call DirecTV and complain, they'll work out a fix. It's been happening ever since D*TV downloaded new software from the satellite. (See discussions in the HDTV recorder forum.)

I've experienced this also (on multiple 10-250's)...and only (so far) on OTA stations (FOX, NBC, CBS IIRC) and as you said it is a quirk that seems to have occurred from the latest SW download.

In my case, it's 8-12 seconds of silence followed by a pixelation of the image and then everything goes back to normal.

Quite annoying :mad:

What does "IIRC" stand for?

What does "IIRC" stand for?

If I Remember Correctly.... :D

Quote:
Originally Posted by JSWbBk
My experience is that the sidebars are gray when you're watching the CBS network feed, but black when you are watching WCBS-TV local programming. I think this even applies to commercials too. Anyone else?


Yes, the gray bars are part of the national CBS network, but the local WCBS uses black bars.

It is the opposite. CBS Network feeds do not have gray bars.

WCBS inserted the gray bars into standard definition CBS Network shows (such as 60 Minutes and Price is Right). All locally originated shows (such as CH 2 News) and syndicated shows (such as Judge Judy) also had the gray bars inserted by WCBS.

The gray bar policy for CBS O&O stations may have changed. I see that WBZ, the CBS station in Boston, also no longer has the gray bars (I receive WBZ from Canadian satellite).

I've experienced this also (on multiple 10-250's)...and only (so far) on OTA stations (FOX, NBC, CBS IIRC) and as you said it is a quirk that seems to have occurred from the latest SW download.

In my case, it's 8-12 seconds of silence followed by a pixelation of the image and then everything goes back to normal.

Quite annoying :mad:

Yes, that's it exactly! Only on OTA, and comes back in exactly as you said. I should have been a little more specific. :)

Yes, that's it exactly! Only on OTA, and comes back in exactly as you said. I should have been a little more specific. :)I have seen the same problem.

I am on the Upper West Side in the 70's and Just bought a Silver Sensor and had it pointed in the direction of the ESB....and was unable to get any Digital Channels except for NJN In NJ....Any Suggestions as to what I could do next?.....A different type of antenna maybe..I am at a loss...Thanks For any Help..Hunter

Most likely, you don't have line-of-sight to the ESB, and therefore are receiving multipath signals - that is, signals bouncing off various buildings between your home and the ESB.

What you have to do is to "walk" the antenna around your room. Slowly try different directions and note when you get the best signal.

Thanks I will Try That.....When I did move it towards the window The signal got slightly better but that was getting NJN in NJ and I still was unable to pick up anything off of the ESB...and My SamsungTv will not give me a signal meter to adjust if it doesent find a digital signal....Would you think that if i changed antenna to maybe a Sharpshooter would that work?

In addition.....I am assuming that any antenna I get does not have to be amplified is that correct?

One never knows until you try it!

Make sure you can return it if it doesn't help.

I would think that amplification is not the problem!

Being so close to the various transmission locations,
I'd stay away from amplified antennas. You could
overload the circuits of your receiver.

agreed about the amp- I'm around 40 miles from philly and dont need an amp with a silver sensor to get those. NYC is about 50 miles and that requires an amp. So 30 or 40 blocks should be plenty fine sans amp.

Turned on the TV to watch WNBC-HD and found that, although I've got good signal strength, I get "No Program" on 4-1, 4-2, 4-4. I've gotten them before, and I can watch other HD channels.

Except 13. I haven't gotten Ch.13 for a week or two. That happened once before, but then Ch.13 reappeared.

Anyone receiving WNBC-HD okay?

Dave Kristol

Turned on the TV to watch WNBC-HD and found that, although I've got good signal strength, I get "No Program" on 4-1, 4-2, 4-4. I've gotten them before, and I can watch other HD channels.

Except 13. I haven't gotten Ch.13 for a week or two. That happened once before, but then Ch.13 reappeared.

Anyone receiving WNBC-HD okay?

Dave Kristol

Well I'll chime in and spill some vitrol! :

I sat down to watch The Office on one of my HDTIVO's and lo and behold the *(&#(*&# thing only recorded NINE minutes of the show! IIRC, The Office airs from 8:30 to 9pm....so I'm not sure *exactly* what time the damn thing started/stopped recording.....

When I got home tonight I didn't tune into 4-1 or 13-1.....so I'm not sure WTF happened. I had chalked it up to the damn HDTIVO acting up....until I saw your post.

:mad:

Well I'll chime in and spill some vitrol! :

I sat down to watch The Office on one of my HDTIVO's and lo and behold the *(&#(*&# thing only recorded NINE minutes of the show! IIRC, The Office airs from 8:30 to 9pm....so I'm not sure *exactly* what time the damn thing started/stopped recording.....

When I got home tonight I didn't tune into 4-1 or 13-1.....so I'm not sure WTF happened. I had chalked it up to the damn HDTIVO acting up....until I saw your post.


4-1 returned by the time I was ready to watch ER. I don't know when it reappeared.

I still have no idea what's going on with 13.

Dave Kristol

Did NBC increase they power in the past few days? I finally I'm getting NBC and I have a hard time believing it is due to the foliage dropping. If Gary or George can pop in on this one that would be great.

I have no idea if WNBC-DT has increased its power - but I doubt it.

I, too have been plagued by inconsistent reception on many channels. I'm able to receive local reception over-the-air and by way of DirecTV. Even with Direct, I can't remember more video and audio dropouts. Who knows? With the vagaries of digital, UHF reception - temperature, humidity, trees with leaves, trees without leaves, it's absolutely frustrating.

WNBC-DT, until recently, had been my strongest - most stable signal - not any longer.

It will be interesting to see what happens when many New York metropolitan area stations change channel allocations and power as the analogue cut-off date nears.

As of now the major changes will be:

WCBS-DT will move to Channel 33 - from Channel 56
WABC-DT will move to Channel 7 - from Channel 45
WNET-DT will move to Channel 13 - from Channel 61
WPXN-DT will move to Channel 31 - from Channel 30
WLIW-DT will move to Channel 21 - from Channel 22

Any idea how the CT stations will realign after the shut off? I'm asking because they have a digital channel 33 that I believe is one of the reasons I have problems receiving CW. It would be nice if they'd switch.

It will be interesting to see what happens when many New York metropolitan area stations change channel allocations and power as the analogue cut-off date nears


yeah, I can hardly wait.

Concerning Connecticut:

Bridgeport, Channel 52 will move to Channel 49
New London, Channel 34 will move to Channel 26
Waterbury, Channel 12 will move to Channel 20

In Hartford, Channel 33 will not be moving, so you will continue to have problems receiving
NY's Channel 33. But it will no longer be WPIX-DT/CW, it will be WCBS-DT/CBS.

Does CBS plan on broadcasting a higher power that CW?

currently ABC-DT is the best, strongest station I receive,once it changes to 7,it'll probably be very difficult to get.

I don't know if it was mentioned yet but WMBC-DT (UHF 18) is now multicasting with four channels.
63.1 is Digital version of analog Ch63 UHF feed
63.2 CBS - Korea Broadcast Network
63.3 YTN - Korean Cable News Channel
63.4 Color Bars

My NBC digital seems to have vanished over the past couple of days. It's been fine for weeks and now... nothing. I am using Samsung SIR-T451s with a DB-4 antenna. Analog NBC is coming in over some rabbit ears.

NBC came back for a while, but it seems to have crapped out again. Gone last night and tonight.

This is very strange. As of 11:30 PM all 3 DT locals lost their HD feeds. Letterman and Leno are in SD and ABC's election coverage which was HD prior to the 11 PM news is now SD.

This is very strange. As of 11:30 PM all 3 DT locals lost their HD feeds. Letterman and Leno are in SD and ABC's election coverage which was HD prior to the 11 PM news is now SD.

I noticed that both Leno's AND both Conan's last night were NOT in HD...and it was my assumption that this happened because everything was delayed/pre-empted for 10-15 minutes for extra election coverage by the local news on Channel 4.

If CBS and ABC were also delaying the start of their 11:30-11:40pm shows...does that mean that CBS/NBC local stations don't have the ability to air Leno/Conan/Letterman in HD IF they are time delayed? (I.e. NO recording capabilities for the network feeds of these 3 shows?) This might have already been answered in previous pages, but I've only been recording Conan/Leno in HD on my Tivo for about a month now..... :confused:

I noticed that both Leno's AND both Conan's last night were NOT in HD...and it was my assumption that this happened because everything was delayed/pre-empted for 10-15 minutes for extra election coverage by the local news on Channel 4.

If CBS and ABC were also delaying the start of their 11:30-11:40pm shows...does that mean that CBS/NBC local stations don't have the ability to air Leno/Conan/Letterman in HD IF they are time delayed? (I.e. NO recording capabilities for the network feeds of these 3 shows?) This might have already been answered in previous pages, but I've only been recording Conan/Leno in HD on my Tivo for about a month now..... :confused:


that seems to be the case with HD on many stations.

Same sort of thing happens when football games run long.

Basically, it seems in most cases that if an affiliate misses the start of the HD show off the sat feed they just give up on it and go to SD.

WCBS-DT Reception problems.

I get a signal of 85% from WCBS-DT Ch56 but no audio or video via my tuner card. :confused: I have no problem with the other NYC locals.

Did anyone else notice OTA 4-1 WNBC-DT is now reporting the show's program info? Even the plot/episode synopsis!!!

This is such good news, because AFAIK, WNBC-4 has never before reported program info, much less plot synopsis.

Thank you NBC!!

WCBS-DT Reception problems.

I get a signal of 85% from WCBS-DT Ch56 but no audio or video via my tuner card. :confused: I have no problem with the other NYC locals.

It's an error with my tuner card. I can tune in WCBS-DT but I can't see video.
If I record I do get audio and video on the playback.

It's an error with my tuner card. I can tune in WCBS-DT but I can't see video.
If I record I do get audio and video on the playback.

What tuner card do you have?

Did anyone else notice OTA 4-1 WNBC-DT is now reporting the show's program info? Even the plot/episode synopsis!!!

This is such good news, because AFAIK, WNBC-4 has never before reported program info, much less plot synopsis.

Thank you NBC!!

Yes, I noticed. I think it happened on the day the clocks were turned back.

WABC-DT is annoying because it says "NETWORK" during prime time, and not the names of the shows.

Did anyone notice that WCBS-DT used to give the wrong time, about 8 minutes fast, but then the problem corrected itself when the clocks changed.

What tuner card do you have?

DVICO Fusion III Q.

When is the analog cut off?

Concerning WMBC-DT,
Yeah, I have noticed this digital channel addition about 1 month ago.
A good additition for the Korean crowd.

When is the analog cut off?


February 18, 2009!

February 18, 2009!


so say's the current law.

Time will tell...

I've searched, and maybe I've missed something, but is there a NY northern suburb (westchester Putnam) OTA thread? Just installed an OTA antenna in the attic (terk outdoor/indoor slime profile). Works fantastic for the channels I can receive (2,5,7,9, 41,55,29) but can't seem to pull in 4,11, 13,21. Would love to get 4 and 13. Antennaweb.org says 4,11,and 13 and 25 are on the same 199 degree and same distance 38.2 miles as 2,4,5,9, and 41. Any suggestions or reasoning would be helpful. Thanks

Works fantastic for the channels I can receive (2,5,7,9, 41,55,29) but can't seem to pull in 4,11, 13,21. Would love to get 4 and 13. Antennaweb.org says 4,11,and 13 and 25 are on the same 199 degree and same distance 38.2 miles as 2,4,5,9, and 41. Any suggestions or reasoning would be helpful. Thanks

I'd LOVE to get 4 also, but no way where I live, 46.5 miles EAST from ESB. The other majors come in fine. From what I've gleaned this is related to WNBC-DTV having a low power transmitter due to complications at the age old ESB and/or interference with an NBC affiliate in Wilbes-Barre, PA.

I'd love to see somebody respond if there's supposed to be a fix BEFORE the Freedom Tower is built in who-knows-when.

Sorry, but WNBC-DT transmits from the new Combiner system at the ESB. WNBC-DT's power is not low - it's 200.2kW and transmits at a relatively low frequency, Channel 28.

The station uses the verys same circular pattern from the same antenna as Channels 2, 7, 9, 11 and 13.

Trying to make sense of reception problems will drive you crazy.

13's power is very low and uses a high frequency Channel 61.

Don't expect anything to be done with the ESB facility. Stations will wait until the Freedom tower is up and operating.

You may need a higher gain antenna and/or place it outdoors.

I've searched, and maybe I've missed something, but is there a NY northern suburb (westchester Putnam) OTA thread? Just installed an OTA antenna in the attic (terk outdoor/indoor slime profile). Works fantastic for the channels I can receive (2,5,7,9, 41,55,29) but can't seem to pull in 4,11, 13,21. Would love to get 4 and 13. Antennaweb.org says 4,11,and 13 and 25 are on the same 199 degree and same distance 38.2 miles as 2,4,5,9, and 41. Any suggestions or reasoning would be helpful. Thanks


I live in Mamaroneck, NY and like I just installed a Radioshack antenna outdoor next to my HD and SD Dishes. Like you I can pull 22 channels but the channel I bought the antenna for: Channel 11 CW. Antennaweb.org is telling me that it should be similar to the other 2,4,5,7,9,11,13,31,36,41, but no 11. I am going crazy. Any help would be appreciated.

Sorry, but WNBC-DT transmits from the new Combiner system at the ESB. WNBC-DT's power is not low - it's 200.2kW and transmits at a relatively low frequency, Channel 28.

The station uses the verys same circular pattern from the same antenna as Channels 2, 7, 9, 11 and 13.

Trying to make sense of reception problems will drive you crazy.


You may need a higher gain antenna and/or place it outdoors.

That's interesting. I get only a whisper of a signal (I havean ATI HD wonder and various SW) from WNBC-DT whereas the 2, 5 & 7 DTV come in very well. This agrees with the antennaweb prediction for my area: no WNBC-DT. If I slide my loaction closer to the city, I have to be in western Nassau county before antennaweb predicts I'd be able to receive it.

If WNBC-Dt has the same circular pattern and 200 kW of Tx power, why is it's reception so MUCH worse and how can antennaweb predict that it will be so much worse? What's the difference?

I do have an external high gain yagi and a mast pre-amp...

makan01, what radio shack antenna did you use? You are a lot closer to the city than I am (westchester/putnam line)

does channel 41 offer that much more power. It also comes in.

makan01, what radio shack antenna did you use? You are a lot closer to the city than I am (westchester/putnam line)
HDTV Indoor/Outdoor Directional Antenna Model: 15-2187. As I said, I am getting over 22 stations with this one except CW11 that is in the same direction (235º) and about 18 miles away as a lot of the other stations that give me 80+ signal strength.

I managed to get the signal for a split second after I added it manually and inputted the transmit number of the station (33). I am planning to go up again and start fiddling with the direction of the antenna. Wish me luck :-)

This may be a basic question, but how do you check the signal strength of a station?

It is not basic at all. I wouldn't know what the signal strength is if it wasn't for the Dish Network receiver telling me.

This may be a basic question, but how do you check the signal strength of a station?

Most set top boxes have built in signal meters. I'm sure most new TVs have them too. The real question is how or what do they measure. Some measure total signal level, others signal to noise ratio. The best measure is how reliable the signal appears to you as the viewer.

makan01- thanks for info. Picked up the radio shack indoor/outdoor antenna model 15-2187, connected it up, pointed it in the general direction required, and BINGO! no fine tuning required --channels 2,4,5,7,9,11,13! and all the subs 38+ miles to the ESB.

4and 13 just went out again, but at least 11 is still coming in strong

4and 13 just went out again, but at least 11 is still coming in strong

I spent my Sunday morning lounging on the roof of my house fine tuning the direction of the antenna with my wife on the wireless phone looking at the signal strength of channel 11 as it fades in and out. After about half an hour of playing around and moving the antenna way past the 235° (more like 270°) I managed to get the signal up to 70 and get 5 more channels too. But alas, Channel 11 is not so stable. It comes in for a solid half hour and goes out again for 10-20 secs. I can live with that as long as I get SmallVille in HD.


The lesson of Sunday is not to take everything you read for granted. I think you should fine tune the antenna in order to get the 4 and 13 to the level you want.

I spent my Sunday morning lounging on the roof of my house fine tuning the direction of the antenna with my wife on the wireless phone looking at the signal strength of channel 11 as it fades in and out. After about half an hour of playing around and moving the antenna way past the 235° (more like 270°) I managed to get the signal up to 70 and get 5 more channels too. But alas, Channel 11 is not so stable. It comes in for a solid half hour and goes out again for 10-20 secs. I can live with that as long as I get SmallVille in HD.


The lesson of Sunday is not to take everything you read for granted. I think you should fine tune the antenna in order to get the 4 and 13 to the level you want.

You guys need to get an antenna rotator. Channel master's best unit sells for under $90 for goodness sake.

You guys need to get an antenna rotator. Channel master's best unit sells for under $90 for goodness sake.

He would have spent about two minutes doing this instead of half the day. I have posted dozens of times about this; glad someone else is saying it this time.

He would have spent about two minutes doing this instead of half the day. I have posted dozens of times about this; glad someone else is saying it this time.

Yeah, and this is especially true for people like us, on Long Island, where the towers are spread out a bit. Because without a rotator, you would have to essentially choose which channels you want to receive, point the antenna, and say screw the rest. And this is really relevant, if you have a very high gain, directional (as hell) antenna such as the CM4228 that I use. But it's all well worth it though, because, if the station is less than about 60 miles away, and they're not broadcasting with some piss-ant wattage, I can get usable reception.

Yeah, and this is especially true for people like us, on Long Island, where the towers are spread out a bit. Because without a rotator, you would have to essentially choose which channels you want to receive, point the antenna, and say screw the rest. And this is really relevant, if you have a very high gain, directional (as hell) antenna such as the CM4228 that I use. But it's all well worth it though, because, if the station is less than about 60 miles away, and they're not broadcasting with some piss-ant wattage, I can get usable reception.

Does this on LI, less than 60 miles and useable reception statement apply apply to WNBC-DT??

Multiple towers? Doesn't just about everything come off the Empire State Building? 4, 11 & 13 all are on the ESB combiner.

Does this on LI, less than 60 miles and useable reception statement apply apply to WNBC-DT??

I receive 4-1, 4-2, and 4-3 with at least an 80 on my accurian signal strength meter (at 263 degrees). Anything below a 50 on the meter is not a stable signal. But once in a great while, NBC totally goes into the sh!tter for a short period of time.

Multiple towers? Doesn't just about everything come off the Empire State Building? 4, 11 & 13 all are on the ESB combiner.

Channels 2, 5, 7, 9, 11, and one of the thirteens come from the Empire State building. I receive these stations best at 286 degrees. Now it is shown on the FCC web site that channel 4 also comes from this tower, but I receive 4 best at 261 degrees. So, who knows wtf is going on. The other two channel 13's come from a different tower in Manhattan. Channel 21-1, 21-2, 21-3 come from Garden City, LI at about 315 degrees. Channel 55 comes from Riverhead at 70 degrees. I receive channel 8 from connecticut at 30 degrees. I also pick up some channels from New Jersey between 290-310 degrees. Of course I get some other channels in different languages (how about those three channels in chinese huh?).

Channel 13, WNET-DT (Over-the-Air Channel 61) transmits all of its configurations, 13.1, 13.2, etc. from the Combiner atop the Empire State Building using Channel 2's omnidirectional antenna.

Channels 2, 5, 7, 9, 11, and one of the thirteens come from the Empire State building. I receive these stations best at 286 degrees. Now it is shown on the FCC web site that channel 4 also comes from this tower, but I receive 4 best at 261 degrees. So, who knows wtf is going on. The other two channel 13's come from a different tower in Manhattan. Channel 21-1, 21-2, 21-3 come from Garden City, LI at about 315 degrees. Channel 55 comes from Riverhead at 70 degrees. I receive channel 8 from connecticut at 30 degrees. I also pick up some channels from New Jersey between 290-310 degrees. Of course I get some other channels in different languages (how about those three channels in chinese huh?).

Thanks. How far are you from the ESB? I'm in Lake Ronk and the antenna is mounted on the procerbial 10-ft pole, whch is mounted to a 2nd floor gable. When I did the adjustments via WatchHDTV the WNBC signal was so LOW that I did not attempt any position adjusments using WNBC. I had to rerun the BeyondTV seup wizard over the weekend and BeyondTv actually found what it thought was a useable WNBC signal. So I was able to watch WNBC in HD WITH a lot of drop outs. The differnence might be the lack of leaves.

I'd be more than happy to plunk down the money for a rotator if I had some confidence that it wouldn't be waste of money...

So the only non-ESB channels are 21, 55 and 8 from CT? Just point at ESB and enjoy the HD stations.

So the only non-ESB channels are 21, 55 and 8 from CT? Just point at ESB and enjoy the HD stations.


Correct, but read the post again. If I aim the antenna to receive channel 4, all the other channels on the ESB tower suffer from poor reception. Also, I would rather be able to receive all the stations available to me in my area. And hey, you know sometimes there's a good movie on 55, and other times, my wife likes to watch the cooking shows available on the 21's, in addition to the documentaries that I sometimes find interesting. And let's not forget, that a lot of us on this forum just enjoy dicking around with this stuff for fun.

Channel 13, WNET-DT (Over-the-Air Channel 61) transmits all of its configurations, 13.1, 13.2, etc. from the Combiner atop the Empire State Building using Channel 2's omnidirectional antenna.

You may very well be correct on this point. However, I was referencing the info available from this web site:
http://www.2150.com/broadcast/default.asp?latitude=40%2E737081&longitude=%2D073%2E316246&magnetic_north=%2D13%2E25&range=80&sort=channel&show_expired=False&show_construction=False&show_analog=False&show_low_power=False&action=Show+Stations

This site supposedly uses broadcast info from the FCC circa 2005. On this site, If you look all the way to the right of each channel listing, it shows a map of the tower location for each channel. And as per this info, channel 13 in NYC is broadcast from two different locations (as seen at the bottom of the page). As such, can someone definitively verify or dispute this with first hand information?

Correct, but read the post again. If I aim the antenna to receive channel 4, all the other channels on the ESB tower suffer from poor reception. Also, I would rather be able to receive all the stations available to me in my area. And hey, you know sometimes there's a good movie on 55, and other times, my wife likes to watch the cooking shows available on the 21's, in addition to the documentaries that I sometimes find interesting. And let's not forget, that a lot of us on this forum just enjoy dicking around with this stuff for fun.

OK, I'm assuming you get good signal quality from WNBC-DT, is that correct?

How far are you from the ESB as a point of reference?

I suppose I could work it out by triangulation, but I'm lazy...

Now for OTA reception in NY (Brooklyn with view of lower Manhattan) ... is it best to get an antenna that rotates, as
1) Empire is the place for WNBC< WCBS< WNYW< WWOR< WNET<WNJU
2) 4 Times Sq is for WABC<WXTV
3) Plainview, LI for WLIW (tower betw. exits 46-48 on the LIE)
4) Montclair, NJ for WNJN
Think I am out of the coverage area for all others.
??

You may very well be correct on this point. However, I was referencing the info available from this web site:
http://www.2150.com/broadcast/default.asp?latitude=40%2E737081&longitude=%2D073%2E316246&magnetic_north=%2D13%2E25&range=80&sort=channel&show_expired=False&show_construction=False&show_analog=False&show_low_power=False&action=Show+Stations

This site supposedly uses broadcast info from the FCC circa 2005. On this site, If you look all the way to the right of each channel listing, it shows a map of the tower location for each channel. And as per this info, channel 13 in NYC is broadcast from two different locations (as seen at the bottom of the page). As such, can someone definitively verify or dispute this with first hand information?

That information is terribly out of date. The West 33rd Street location, WNET's offices and studios, is no longer used as a transmission point. The two maps you see, other than the one that shows the Empire State Building, are old and no longer applicable. When a station multi-casts, all signals emanate from the same transmission antenna, not separate ones.

Now for OTA reception in NY (Brooklyn with view of lower Manhattan) ... is it best to get an antenna that rotates, as
1) Empire is the place for WNBC< WCBS< WNYW< WWOR< WNET<WNJU
2) 4 Times Sq is for WABC<WXTV
3) Plainview, LI for WLIW (tower betw. exits 46-48 on the LIE)
4) Montclair, NJ for WNJN
Think I am out of the coverage area for all others.
??

More old information!!!

WABC-DT's main transmission location is on the Combiner atop the Empire State Building using Channel 2's omni-directional antenna. It moved there once the Combiner was operational.

4 Time Square is now a backup facility for WABC-DT.

OK, I'm assuming you get good signal quality from WNBC-DT, is that correct?
How far are you from the ESB as a point of reference?

With my Accurian receiver, I get a pristine output to my video display with a reading of greater than 50 on the signal strength meter. WNBC-DT registers at least an 80 on the signal strength meter, If my antenna is pointed in the optimal direction. And, how far am I from the ESB? Well, I am about 6 miles south of exit 52 on the LIE, so I would guess that the distance would be at least 35-40 miles.

Thanks.I'm in Lake Ronk and the antenna is mounted on the procerbial 10-ft pole, whch is mounted to a 2nd floor gable. When I did the adjustments via WatchHDTV the WNBC signal was so LOW that I did not attempt any position adjusments using WNBC. I had to rerun the BeyondTV seup wizard over the weekend and BeyondTv actually found what it thought was a useable WNBC signal. So I was able to watch WNBC in HD WITH a lot of drop outs. The differnence might be the lack of leaves.

I'd be more than happy to plunk down the money for a rotator if I had some confidence that it wouldn't be waste of money...

Obtaining the best signal reception from any channel is made extremely simple with a rotator such as the Channel Master 9521A. Just tune to the desired channel, activate your receiver's signal strength meter, and then sit on your couch and adjust for the best signal with the rotator's remote. And once you have determined the best direction for (as an example) channel 4: 268 degrees, you program the rotator to go to this position when you press 4 on the remote. In addition, you can change the antenna direction by punching in the direction in degrees on the remote, or you can move the antenna 2 degrees at a time, up or down, with the arrow buttons. All in all, I feel that it's well worth the $85, and the hour to install. Even more, My CM4228 antenna looks like something off the Mars rover. So when my nosey neighbor saw it rotating back and forth one day, he said "What the hell is that". So I told him that it was the new high accuracy doppler radar subscription weather service. Best of all, he believed me, and said "Really? How can I get that?" Boy oh boy, what a pecker head he is.

I'm in Lake Ronk and the antenna is mounted on the procerbial 10-ft pole, whch is mounted to a 2nd floor gable. The differnence might be the lack of leaves.


Water absorbs RF really well, and leaves are full of water. So leaves do make a big difference in reception quality. What antenna are you using?

That information is terribly out of date. The West 33rd Street location, WNET's offices and studios, is no longer used as a transmission point. The two maps you see, other than the one that shows the Empire State Building, are old and no longer applicable. When a station multi-casts, all signals emanate from the same transmission antenna, not separate ones.

Thank you for clarifying this. What is the best site to obtain this up to date tower info?

I don't know of one site that is totally up to date.

I've just collected information, specifically about the Combiner - couldn't wait until
it was operational since I use an indoor antenna.

Maybe others have found a reliable site.

WPIX-DT is not carried on a VHF frequency. I remeber reading that it USED TO be carried on VHF Channel 12, but now it is on UHF channel 33.

Water absorbs RF really well, and leaves are full of water. So leaves do make a big difference in reception quality. What antenna are you using?

Winegard PR-9032.

Channel Master 3041DSB pre-amp on the mast, which I notice is now HALF the price I paid for it a few months ago.

WRT rotators I threw out my old roatator a few years ago, after it fell off the pole. That rotator was purchased 25-30 yrs ago.

This FREE OTA HDTV really is/was a science experiment: I just wanted to see if I could get HDTV content for "free". So far, I've spent $250-300.

I notice Lowes has the CM rotator for $78 + tax.

I guess I could breakdown and spend an extra $95 and buy a rotator and cable, but I'd like to have a warm and fuzzy that I'd be able to get WNBC-DT with a solid signal...

I noticed that your distance to the ESB on your station link was 35 miles. I'm an extra 10 miles according to antennaweb.org. I'm a few miles north of LIE exit 60..

More old information!!!

WABC-DT's main transmission location is on the Combiner atop the Empire State Building using Channel 2's omni-directional antenna. It moved there once the Combiner was operational.

4 Time Square is now a backup facility for WABC-DT.

Thanks for the updated info. It figures, someone at WABC told me that 4 Times Square was primary.

So everyone in NYC is on the ESB. Not bad. I am line of sight to there and to WNJN Montclair.
WLIW and WLNY are over a hill and too far away, though I might get a bounce off the North Shore Towers in Lake Success.

I am planning to go HD shortly, and want a backup to my cable system's offerings.

God, using an antenna to pick up OTA TV is so '60's .. like my dad buying a tall mast to pick up Hartford's Channel 3 and 30 in the old NFL blackout days.

i just bought a RCA Amplified Flat-Panel HDTV Antenna Model: ANT537
it picks up the hd channels great but i live near the train station so everytime a train comes by i lose signal to all hd channels.....i am only capable of using an indoor antenna, is there anything i can do to stop this from happening? or a different antenna i can use that might help? im in brooklyn(11219), any suggestions that can help will be appreciated

I am planning to go HD shortly, and want a backup to my cable system's offerings.


Having used Cablevision's Io and Dish satellite HD services, I would rate OTA HD picture quality -with my Accurian receiver - as equal or better than the cable service, and far superior to Dish network. In my opinion, this observation is especially true with fast moving sports broadcasts. This is probably due to the greater use of compression by the cable system, and especially the satellite service. All in all, it's too bad there isn't more programming available OTA in HD.

Having used Cablevision's Io and Dish satellite HD services, I would rate OTA HD picture quality -with my Accurian receiver - as equal or better than the cable service, and far superior to Dish network. In my opinion, this observation is especially true with fast moving sports broadcasts. This is probably due to the greater use of compression by the cable system, and especially the satellite service. All in all, it's too bad there isn't more programming available OTA in HD.

Yes. I don't have a in-house comparison to say, the DisH HD service, but the OTA DTV transport stream is ~20 Mbps, which allows the OTA broadcasters to use less compression. I also think the OTA SD DTV channels look CONSIDERABLY better than the same channels fed from DishNetwork I've had Dish for years, but have not sprung for the HD rcvr and extra monthly service. I haven't gone back to Cablevision becauue I have a grandfathered Dish DVR for which I pay ZERO dollars/month.

Winegard PR-9032.

I guess I could breakdown and spend an extra $95 and buy a rotator and cable, but I'd like to have a warm and fuzzy that I'd be able to get WNBC-DT with a solid signal...
If your only concern is to receive WNBC reliably, along with the other ESB stations,
then you would probably be best served by spending your $85 on an antenna like the CM4228. If you take a look at the NET gain measurements on the following site, you would get about 4dB additional gain (2 1/2 times your present signal strength) at channel 28.

http://www.hdtvprimer.com/ANTENNAS/comparing.html

Also, are you using any splitters in your coax?

If your only concern is to receive WNBC reliably, along with the other ESB stations,
then you would probably be best served by spending your $85 on an antenna like the CM4228. If you take a look at the NET gain measurements on the following site, you would get about 4dB additional gain (2 1/2 times your present signal strength) at channel 28.

http://www.hdtvprimer.com/ANTENNAS/comparing.html

Also, are you using any splitters in your coax?

Yes ,he CM4228 does have more gain in his simulations. It's probably a good thing to try next. So far I've been able to add the antenna/mast/etc. to the house without negative spousal feedback. I was trying to avoid using the physically imposing antennas, but maybe ther's no choce.

There are no splitters in the feed, just a grounding block on the outside of the house.

Yes ,he CM4228 does have more gain in his simulations. It's probably a good thing to try next. So far I've been able to add the antenna/mast/etc. to the house without negative spousal feedback. I was trying to avoid using the physically imposing antennas, but maybe ther's no choce.

There are no splitters in the feed, just a grounding block on the outside of the house.

I've used four different antennas, and hands down, the 4228 performs the best. And actually, it's not that large. However it is vertically oriented, which can make it more noticeable. But since it looks very different from a standard antenna, it's pretty cool, and makes people ask questions. And it can be found damn cheap here:

http://www.solidsignal.com/prod_display.asp?main_cat=03&CAT=&PROD=ANC4228

As far as the WAF is concerned, just do what I did - put it up when she's not home. She probably won't notice for quite a while, and when she does, just say "hell, thats been up for quite a while now."

WABC-DT found on digital channel 45, is now showing local news in HDTV!

WABC-DT is the second local digital broadcast station to transmit local news in high definition.
WNBC-DT was the first.

Congratulations to both WNBC-DT and WABC-DT for taking such initiative.

So, what's WCBS-DT waiting for? Maybe when they finally get around to local news in HD, and the CBS network becomes the last of the three original major networks to do their early morning news show in HD, we'll get more than three NFL football games a week in HD.

I'm not holding my breath on that!

In a comparison with other HD news broadcasts, the evening news in HD on WNBC, features the best picture quality, I feel. This is especially apparent, when it's being viewed on a screen over 100". Furthermore, in respect to picture quality, I would have to say that the NBC HD news is bettered only by most HD sports broadcasts, and also Letterman. Leno, is probably a tie.

I just moved into the No. tip of Manhattan around 193rd Street into a building that's 23 floors (i'm on 7) high and has a rooftop antenna. There are no buildings right next to us and it is a very windy corner if that matters. I want to buy the Panasonic TC-32LX60 that has an integrated NTSC ATSC and is QAM tuner compatible. I have heard from other tenants that they don't get good reception with the building's antenna but I think they have older tvs.

Is there hope for me up here to get OTA tv - I hate the cable companies. What kind of antenna should I buy? I am trying to sort through some of these posts but I admit I am overwhelmed. :confused:

I just moved into the No. tip of Manhattan around 193rd Street into a building that's 23 floors (i'm on 7) high and has a rooftop antenna. There are no buildings right next to us and it is a very windy corner if that matters. I want to buy the Panasonic TC-32LX60 that has an integrated NTSC ATSC and is QAM tuner compatible. I have heard from other tenants that they don't get good reception with the building's antenna but I think they have older tvs.

Is there hope for me up here to get OTA tv - I hate the cable companies. What kind of antenna should I buy? I am trying to sort through some of these posts but I admit I am overwhelmed. :confused:

Buy a Zenith Silver Sensor for about $25 and point it downtown. If you have a downtown view even better. If you want to go for a roof antenna I use a Channel Master CM4228. Again, point it downtown towards the Empire State Bldg

WABC-DT found on digital channel 45, is now showing local news in HDTV!

WABC-DT is the second local digital broadcast station to transmit local news in high definition.
WNBC-DT was the first.

Congratulations to both WNBC-DT and WABC-DT for taking such initiative.

AFT since those 2 stations make more money than God

Buy a Zenith Silver Sensor for about $25 and point it downtown. If you have a downtown view even better. If you want to go for a roof antenna I use a Channel Master CM4228. Again, point it downtown towards the Empire State Bldg


Thank you for responding. :) I don't have access to the roof. I have a little balcony where an outdoor antenna might go but I'm thinking 7th floor might not be high enough. My windows point East, unfortunately, but this apartment is not exactly huge either. Given this info, do you think the Zenith is the way to go or is there some huge advantage to the outdoor antenna?

From Stamford, near the water, I've had decent reception for years, especially WCBS-DT, using a Winegard 9095 pointed at NYC. But over the last few weeks, the pixellation has made OTA reception unwatchable, even though the weather is fine. Last night, for the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, it happened again, and I ended up watching it on channel 80 from the satellite. Is this happening to anyone else? Is it a problem with the combiner?

I watched the first 15 minutes or so OTA from 2-1. I didn't notice any pixellization. Because WCBS is more subject to weather conditions in my area than other NYC stations, I only watch it on DTV when it's unwatchable from 2-1 direct. Ch 80 on DTV suffers from many more blocking problems than 2-1 OTA.

Could the antenna have been moved in one of the recent storms, or squirrels biting through the cable (I've had to mend mine twice because of the varments)?

C

Is there hope for me up here to get OTA tv - I hate the cable companies. What kind of antenna should I buy? I am trying to sort through some of these posts but I admit I am overwhelmed. :confused:

I'm not in the city but from Northern, NJ I can tune in all NYC Digitals except WNET and WNYC with,
The RadioShack Indoor VHF/UHF/HDTV Antenna with RF Remote Control
$49.99
Model: 15-1892
Catalog #: 15-1892

Thank you for responding. :) I don't have access to the roof. I have a little balcony where an outdoor antenna might go but I'm thinking 7th floor might not be high enough. My windows point East, unfortunately, but this apartment is not exactly huge either. Given this info, do you think the Zenith is the way to go or is there some huge advantage to the outdoor antenna?

Well if you can put it on the balcony and aim it downtown give it a try with the Zenith antenna.

Through reading the thread, many of you have mentioned using a rotator to dial in the specific channels. Does this require that you manually input via remote? Since I have the DirecTivo DVR which can automatically record OTA channels, if you need to be present physically to adjust the rotator, this is may not be a viable option for me.

....that the ticker going across the bottom of the screen during WNBC's AM news tells viewers that the "Weather Plus" channel is available on Comcast channel XXX and Patriot Media channel XXX and TWC channel XXX and Cablevision channel XXX etc....yet it NEVER TELLS viewers that the channel is also available to those with their little old internal digital tuner and trusty antenna via channel 4-2?? :eek:

I thought the whole hubbub, crisis that was supposed to erupt when the analog signals shut down in the year 4000 was that folks without "digital" tv's wouldn't be able to watch TV anymore (i.e those folks without cable/satellite, who only used rabbit ears to watch TV would be out in the cold without the "digital converter box" needed to watch digital signals on an analog TV). Yet here we see a scrolling piece of {IMHO} advertising that directs cable TV viewers as to where the {useless?} Weather Plus channel is available....yet does NOTHING to tell local OTA/"rabbit ear" viewers that their new digital TV (or the TV they MAY be buying in the future) can get that channel RIGHT NOW with an antenna.

I have this conversation with friends/family members WRT local OTA channels...and the multi-casting that goes on WRT to such channels and the availability of them with a rooftop antenna and an internal tuner (or their D* HD receiver). I've even heard the well intentioned/informationally challenged folks at my local CC or BB incorrectly pass along info to potential customers who come in looking to buy a new TV WRT analog tv's vs digital/HD TV's...but I'm sure that's an inquisition for another thread :o

It's amazing not only how much MISINFORMATION there is out there...but also how much information just doesn't even get passed along/conveyed to the masses. Or maybe they just don't care to hear it..... :confused:

Or maybe I'm just alone in my cockeyed view of the whole shituation...... :rolleyes:

It's amazing not only how much MISINFORMATION there is out there...but also how much information just doesn't even get passed along/conveyed to the masses. Or maybe they just don't care to hear it

Some people - like most of us on this forum - have a basic need to know things. Other people, don't really give a sh!t about anything other than watching the latest sitcom. And still others, would like to know things, but unfortunately can't comprehend anything other than the latest sitcom.

[QUOTE=jaypb]....that the ticker going across the bottom of the screen during WNBC's AM news tells viewers that the "Weather Plus" channel is available on Comcast channel XXX and Patriot Media channel XXX and TWC channel XXX and Cablevision channel XXX etc....yet it NEVER TELLS viewers that the channel is also available to those with their little old internal digital tuner and trusty antenna via channel 4-2?? :eek: </QUOTE>

Yep.....Funny, how nowadays nobody expects you to watch television w.o cable/satellite.

Cannot pick up local PBS HDTV in New York.

I live in Astoria Queens (New York City borough). My bedroom faces the Empire State Building with a direct view. Yes, I can even see the colorful lights at night.

I just got my first HDTV with digital tune (Samsung LN-S4096D LCS 1080p), nice set!

I have cable so this is really a basic question.

I purchased a HDTV outdoor antenna from Home Depot which is a flat box type made by Janis? (it has a GE logo on it).

So far so good. The antenna worked great (actually my old rabbit ears worked as good).

I picked up almost everything I think is available with one exception that I'm puzzled over and would like some help or comments.

I can't get PBS which is normally on channel 13 in the older analog signal.

The scanning for channels with the Samsung would not pick up any HDTV signals that contained PBS programming.

As I said I picked up everything else.

Does anyone know if PBS in New York is transmitting from the Empire State Building.

As with everyone else in this thread, all used to come from the World Trade Center before 9/11 and I am wondering if PBS moved to some other location for transmitting in HDTV.

I seem to remember that PBS is located out of New Jersey but I'm not sure about that fact.

Has anyone in NYC been able to pick up the HDTV for PBS and if so did you have to do something special and which way did you point the antenna?

Is PBS transmitting their HDTV signal via 'over the air', maybe their not doing that yet?

Anyway, you get what I'm trying to solve and any info would be appreciated.

Thank Rob

A strange thing happened last night to me and I am wondering if it happened to anyone else or if someone knows what happened.

I subscribe to Cablevision (Basic and family option, not IO) and I have been receiving the HD (+extra subchannel) streams (CBS,NBC, FOX, ABC, 9, 11, 13, 21) as extras w/o paying for them by adding them to my channel options manually since they are coming in and listed when doing a scan.

Last night, CBS 2.1 was non existant. Not available on my remote via 'channel up (from 2)', nor was it listed as a station coming in on the "Channels to be added" when I did a manual scan?

All others (as listed above) were there and available.

?????????
..Mark

Cannot pick up local PBS HDTV in New York.

I picked up almost everything I think is available with one exception that I'm puzzled over and would like some help or comments.

I can't get PBS which is normally on channel 13 in the older analog signal.

The scanning for channels with the Samsung would not pick up any HDTV signals that contained PBS programming.

As I said I picked up everything else.

Does anyone know if PBS in New York is transmitting from the Empire State Building.

As
Is PBS transmitting their HDTV signal via 'over the air', maybe their not doing that yet?

Anyway, you get what I'm trying to solve and any info would be appreciated.

Thank Rob

I live in Brooklyn and have the same problem. I have a rooftop antenna, and I pick up with the Samsung DTB - H260F all the broadcasts with the exception of Channel 13. I receive 2,4,5,7,9,11 and even 51 (PBS in NJ although weakly).

If anyone has any idea of how to pick up PBS 13 I would greatly appreciate hearing about it.

I live in Brooklyn and have the same problem. I have a rooftop antenna, and I pick up with the Samsung DTB - H260F all the broadcasts with the exception of Channel 13. I receive 2,4,5,7,9,11 and even 51 (PBS in NJ although weakly).

If anyone has any idea of how to pick up PBS 13 I would greatly appreciate hearing about it.

BCCISPROF - I live in Prospect Heights and just put up a Radio Shack U-75R ($25) on the roof. There is one tall building between the antenna and Empire but Empire sticks up just enough for me to get a shot at it. Prior to this I had a Silver Sensor in the window and got most channels except PBS. Now with this cheap directional roof antenna I'm getting everything at 90% signal including the elusive PBS HD, PBS World, and PBS Kids. It all depends on your location in relationship to Empire and the type of antenna. As "cheap" as radio shack stuff is the one good thing is that you buy, you try, you don't like it, you bring it back.

Hope this helps - PBS is out there.

BCCISPROF - I live in Prospect Heights and just put up a Radio Shack U-75R ($25) on the roof. There is one tall building between the antenna and Empire but Empire sticks up just enough for me to get a shot at it. Prior to this I had a Silver Sensor in the window and got most channels except PBS. Now with this cheap directional roof antenna I'm getting everything at 90% signal including the elusive PBS HD, PBS World, and PBS Kids. It all depends on your location in relationship to Empire and the type of antenna. As "cheap" as radio shack stuff is the one good thing is that you buy, you try, you don't like it, you bring it back.

Hope this helps - PBS is out there.


Hi!.

But I do have a rooftop antenna! And I do get all the other Broadcast Channels with > 90%... just no PBS :(

Hi!.

But I do have a rooftop antenna! And I do get all the other Broadcast Channels with > 90%... just no PBS :(

I understand your frustration, but you don't say if you have line of sight to Empire or where in Brooklyn you are, you don't say what kind of antenna you have on your roof (directional, MD, brand, model #) these things are more of a factor than your STB. Maybe you should ask in the hardware section for some advice on antennas that would work for you.

In my case, I do have direct line of sight to the Empire State Building.

I'm going to try to just throw the old rabbit ears on it and see if I can get PBS.

It is strange that a number of us have the same issue.

My gut feeling is that PBS is not coming from the Empire State Building.

I guess I should call and see if they know directly.

Rob

My understanding is that DTV 13.1 - 13.3 are being broadcast with very low signal strength (lower than any other ESB broadcaster) and that this fact, together with the relatively high UHF frequency assigned, makes it much more difficult to receive than other channels.

Is that what's going on. So that would mean we really need a good antenna and a perfect aim at the Empire State Building.

Again, are we sure it's coming from that building?

Rob

Is that what's going on. So that would mean we really need a good antenna and a perfect aim at the Empire State Building.

Again, are we sure it's coming from that building?

Rob


yes...it's coming from there. I was getting it off and on using a Zenith Silver Sensor about 25 miles east on Long Island. I now have a CM4228 antenna and I get it 95% of the time

Cannot pick up local PBS HDTV in New York.

I live in Astoria Queens (New York City borough). My bedroom faces the Empire State Building with a direct view. Yes, I can even see the colorful lights at night.



THIRTEEN is OTA on DTV channel 61... This feed is out of Newark, NJ allegedly.

Use the utility at antennaweb org and it lets you put in your address and you will see almost all the stations available in your exact address.

I'm in Brooklyn and like magic started getting the 3 Thirteen channels on Saturday. Maybe they uppped power or just finally got the regular powered indoor antenna in the right position. Even get Telemundo now too.

Antennaweb is out of date. WNET is on ESB.

Antennaweb is out of date. WNET is on ESB.
The FCC's "city of license" for WNET is Newark, NJ.
WNET's ancestor, a commercial station, was physically based in Newark from 1948 until 1962. Channel 13 was put on ESB in the early 50's, when all VHF stations moved there.
WNET-HD was for a time located at their HQ at W. 33rd + 10th Avenue in Manhattan until their move to the ESB.
Other examples:
WLIW is licensed to Garden City, LI, with offices and transmitter just west of exit 48 of the LIE in Plainview, LI.
WLNY is licensed to Riverhead, LI, with its offices actually in Melville, LI and transmitter in Ridge, LI.

Great info!

Now that just means that I have to try getting the signal with a different antenna?

As I said, I'm going to try and rehook up my old rabbit ears.

I purchase this Digital HDTV antenna for about $35 bucks at Home Depot and it's an outdoor version but I have it mounted right now inside right at the window. We are not allowed to put antennas hanging out our windows where I live.

Thanks again.

Rob

OK -

WNET-DT, although licensed to Newark (Linden) New Jersey, has been transmitting from the Empire State Building since the Combiner facility became operational.

It uses WCBS-TV's omnidirectional transmitting antenna - as does WNBC-DT, WABC-DT,
WWOR-DT and WPIX-DT.

WNET-DT transmits at a piddling 12.4kW on an extremely high channel allocation, 61.
Either of the above two - low power and high channel allocation are deadly. WNET-DT
has problems in spades!

The only reason this station will expend any additional money on its transmission facility, before a new stick is erected atop the Freedom Tower, is that come February 2009, when analogue transmission is halted, WNET-DT will stop broadcasting on analogue 13 and move its digital (61) signal to 13. How much power? Who knows? I don't.

Stations are expecting cable and satellite companies to provide the feeds; over-the-air
is not on the top of managements' lists.

Yeah, I got that right too. That's why I have cable. Not allowed to get Satellite here, our builds are wired with TWC. I pretty much am OK with TWC, except for the cost.

Does TWC NYC encrypt local channels? I bought a myhd and cannot pic up any "digital" channels with qam option enabled via catv to ant2 input.

THIRTEEN is OTA on DTV channel 61... This feed is out of Newark, NJ allegedly.

Use the utility at antennaweb org and it lets you put in your address and you will see almost all the stations available in your exact address.

I'm in Brooklyn and like magic started getting the 3 Thirteen channels on Saturday. Maybe they uppped power or just finally got the regular powered indoor antenna in the right position. Even get Telemundo now too.

I also get Telefutura on ch. DT-53 Don't watch it much, but I wonder if Telemundo and Telefutura air soccer in HD.

I also get Telefutura on ch. DT-53 Don't watch it much, but I wonder if Telemundo and Telefutura air soccer in HD.

They don't, and believe me I've been hoping one of the Spanish networks would considering the amount of soccer they show. When I saw this summer's World Cup in HD, in English, I've been hoping it becomes a regular for these channels.

They don't, and believe me I've been hoping one of the Spanish networks would considering the amount of soccer they show. When I saw this summer's World Cup in HD, in English, I've been hoping it becomes a regular for these channels.

Thats a shame. They have plenty of sports airing usually. There is a market for it I'm sure.

Cannot pick up local PBS HDTV in New York.
[...]
Has anyone in NYC been able to pick up the HDTV for PBS and if so did you have to do something special and which way did you point the antenna?


You've already gotten many comments about getting the actual signal. (FWIW, I get it intermittantly in Summit, NJ.)

Let me add another disappointment: Even if you can get the signal, the programming is not Ch.13's listed line-up. Rather, it is a national PBS feed. So you can't consult your favorite TV listings to see what's on. And programs like Mystery!, Masterpiece Theater, Great Performances are not among the programs shown.

Dave Kristol

Dave -

You're absolutely right!

Many think that WNET-DT (13.1) is Channel 13 in digital - and at times High Definition.

As you explain, it is not!

Many people are disappointed and confused about the way the station promotes this channel.

It's merely the PBS digital feed!

Telemundo will broadcast 2 telenovelas in HD in 2007.
One of them is "Zorro, the sword and the Rose" produced by SONY International and Telemundo. Both telenovelas will have English subtitles in CC3.

So you can't consult your favorite TV listings to see what's on.
Dave Kristol

You can look at a number of listings to see what is on. TitanTv for one. While your local favs are not there plenty of good programming is so it is worth getting if you can. Heck, it beats out WLIW who has NO HD programming.

You can look at a number of listings to see what is on. TitanTv for one. While your local favs are not there plenty of good programming is so it is worth getting if you can. Heck, it beats out WLIW who has NO HD programming.

I have no quarrel with the quality of programming on WNET-HD. It's just that I never know what's going to be on, because I'm unwilling to look beyond my usual source(s) of TV listings, and they only give the Ch.13 (analog) lineup. And one of my motivations for getting an HDTV was to be able to watch my Ch.13 favs in HD. :mad:

Dave Kristol

I have no quarrel with the quality of programming on WNET-HD. It's just that I never know what's going to be on, because I'm unwilling to look beyond my usual source(s) of TV listings, and they only give the Ch.13 (analog) lineup. And one of my motivations for getting an HDTV was to be able to watch my Ch.13 favs in HD. :mad:

Dave Kristol

I think the program information is transmitted in the signal. When I hit the Guide button on my remote (Have an LG LCD), I actually can see the programming schedule for all the digital channels. Only problem is 2-1 and 4-1 (I think I have seen it for 4-1 before though) never seem to have their program info, but all the rest do. 7-1 likes to say Network Programming instead of the actual show, but has the accurate info all other times.

Dave,

As ja2bk says the station has guide info for a day or so in the signal and while it is a bit extra work using TitanTV via the web is still pretty easy. It's lots better than not knowing.

You can look at a number of listings to see what is on. TitanTv for one. While your local favs are not there plenty of good programming is so it is worth getting if you can. Heck, it beats out WLIW who has NO HD programming.
My wife has claimed the WLIW Create? channel has high resolution video. She specifically mentioned a sewing show that she promptly erased, so I did not get a chance to analyze it. I notice the BeyondTV EPG lists some WLIW HD shows. However, VideoReDo staes that neither of the two MPG streams in the TP I recorded are HD...It's all so confusing...

My wife has claimed the WLIW Create? channel has high resolution video. She specifically mentioned a sewing show that she promptly erased, so I did not get a chance to analyze it. I notice the BeyondTV EPG lists some WLIW HD shows. However, VideoReDo staes that neither of the two MPG streams in the TP I recorded are HD...It's all so confusing...


WLIW has NO high definition programing.

WLIW has NO high definition programing.
She must have been impressed by the mild compression of the WLIW-DT sewing show compared to our usual Dish network fare. She said she could see the actual stitches for the 1st time.

I am in upper westchester (apptox 38 miles from ESB) and receive WNET on 13.1 very consistantly with a terk slimline antenna (with amplifier) located in the attic. I use receive all the locals 2,4,5,7,9,11,13,41 fairly consistantly. but since I switched from the H20 to the HR20 (which splits the OTA signal internally to two tuners) channel 11 has been intermitant.

Didn't realized that 13-1 is the national PBS feed. PQ is very good. One of my favorite channels for displaying HD, next to discovery HD and HDnet.

This could be a function of which tuner your H20 had. Some units had a 5th-gen tuner, which is superior to just about everything out there, including the built-in in the HR20.

I have no quarrel with the quality of programming on WNET-HD. It's just that I never know what's going to be on, because I'm unwilling to look beyond my usual source(s) of TV listings, and they only give the Ch.13 (analog) lineup. And one of my motivations for getting an HDTV was to be able to watch my Ch.13 favs in HD. :mad:

Dave Kristol


I DO have a quarrel. Why can't WNET "unleash" WLIW in HD? Seeing as how many of us have problems with their terrible signal from the ESB, and WLIW is a better signal for most, why not have an HD channel there? I *believe* they even have the FCC stuff all lined up, because both WLIW-DT channels are on 21-2 and 21-3, with the notable 21-1 missing (wonder why).

:mad:

I'm just happy I can get CPTV from Bridgeport.

WLIW-DT for a while, did broadcast in HD. But then the powers that be at WNET pulled the plug. I imagine it may well have been a financial consideration.

You're right, WNET-DT's signal from the ESB is pitifully poor. It was even worse before the move to the Combiner. One would hope that WNET would be more responsive and responsible.

Why not take one of WLIW-DT's sub-channels and simulcast WNET-DT's PBS High Definition signal??? It would serve the community so well!!!

I live in mid-town NY, and have line of sight to the GE building, where i understand NBC is broadcast. Unfortunately, I get no line of sight to the Empire building. i'm thinking of buying a roof antenna, but am not sure if it will be worth it without line of sight to the Empire. any suggestions?

Also - antennaweb indicates the GE and Empire buildings only 4 degrees from each other. I assume i can interpret this as guidance to get a directional antenna. Is this correct?

Lastly, do you think i'll get a lot of interferance/bounce? I live in an old brownstone apartment and a few large/tall buildings surround it. Anything i can do to minimize this? My line of sight to the GE building is only a sliver of skyline.

WNBC-DT hasn't used the antenna atop the G.E. building since the Combiner became operative.

Yes, more than likely you will have a lot of multi-path. But, even with multi-path, you aim your antenna to receive the "bounce" signals - with digital transmission you won't experience interference - you basically either get a signal or you don't. In my apartment, I use "bounce signals for my indoor Silver Sensor antenna - no line-of-sight to the ESB.

I wish you luck.

WLIW-DT for a while, did broadcast in HD. But then the powers that be at WNET pulled the plug. I imagine it may well have been a financial consideration.

You're right, WNET-DT's signal from the ESB is pitifully poor. It was even worse before the move to the Combiner. One would hope that WNET would be more responsive and responsible.

Why not take one of WLIW-DT's sub-channels and simulcast WNET-DT's PBS High Definition signal??? It would serve the community so well!!!

You know what's really funny about this? Part of the justification for Ch13 buying Ch21 was that they had the financial muscle to bring HD to WLIW......

Its financial muscle has atrophied!

Channel 13 has acted as if it were G.E.!

Just curious if anyone else was up to watch the Conan replay that airs at 3am (???) via NBC-DT OTA....my HDTIVO cut off at exactly the :30 mark....and I wasn't sure if it was a transmission issue or if my Tivo was acting up. Last week I know I didn't get a few Conan/Leno OTA broadcasts because there was some sort of issue with the OTA transmission on Thursday/Friday nights last week (read about it on the Tivo Community board)

Anyone see the same thing overnight with NBC-DT OTA ??? :(

i am almost positive CW was coming in great for me on 2 different boxes (DirecTV HR20-700 and DirecTV HR10-250) last week and now i'm getting a "searching for signal" on both 11-1 and 11-2. anyone else in the ny market seeing the same thing or do i have a problem?

the weird thing is that when i check the signal strength it shows 95+ signal at all times.

i am almost positive CW was coming in great for me on 2 different boxes (DirecTV HR20-700 and DirecTV HR10-250) last week and now i'm getting a "searching for signal" on both 11-1 and 11-2. anyone else in the ny market seeing the same thing or do i have a problem?

the weird thing is that when i check the signal strength it shows 95+ signal at all times.

Is 11-1/2 the only local OTA channel exhibiting this behavior? I only ask because all 3 of my 10-250's this AM were tuned to local OTA channels....and all had a grey screen or a "searching for signal" bar along the bottom and my 4th 10-250 had a snowy screen that I've never seen before.

The 10-250 has a new update coming down the pike (6.3b). I know this now because one of my units actually got the update overnight....and when I turned on the TV this AM I was greeted with sound from my surround sound system....but a "snowy" picture on the DVI/HDMI input of the TV I used....and for a few minutes I thought my unit was toast....but I unplugged it and restarted it and the onscreen message told me that it had received an update...and was updating itself. Within 10 minutes I had a picture back and the unit had indeed upgraded from 6.3a to 6.3b---one of the things the upgrade is supposed to fix/cure is the ANNOYING sound dropouts on OTA channels.

So bottom line: Try a hard boot of the unit and see if 11-1/2 comes back. The oddities that all 4 of my units showed this AM lead me to believe that SOMETHING wacky happened overnight....as 3 of my units (the ones that didn't get the update apparently) were ALL tuned to a local OTA channel....and I was greeted with a grey screen. And the 4th one that DID update had snow...which I've never seen before.

I can't speak for the 20-700 receiver though....

Is 11-1/2 the only local OTA channel exhibiting this behavior? I only ask because all 3 of my 10-250's this AM were tuned to local OTA channels....and all had a grey screen or a "searching for signal" bar along the bottom and my 4th 10-250 had a snowy screen that I've never seen before.

The 10-250 has a new update coming down the pike (6.3b). I know this now because one of my units actually got the update overnight....and when I turned on the TV this AM I was greeted with sound from my surround sound system....but a "snowy" picture on the DVI/HDMI input of the TV I used....and for a few minutes I thought my unit was toast....but I unplugged it and restarted it and the onscreen message told me that it had received an update...and was updating itself. Within 10 minutes I had a picture back and the unit had indeed upgraded from 6.3a to 6.3b---one of the things the upgrade is supposed to fix/cure is the ANNOYING sound dropouts on OTA channels.

So bottom line: Try a hard boot of the unit and see if 11-1/2 comes back. The oddities that all 4 of my units showed this AM lead me to believe that SOMETHING wacky happened overnight....as 3 of my units (the ones that didn't get the update apparently) were ALL tuned to a local OTA channel....and I was greeted with a grey screen. And the 4th one that DID update had snow...which I've never seen before.

I can't speak for the 20-700 receiver though....


unless its a new rev of 6.3, i got that update for my HR10 a couple of months back. all of my OTA channels come in great except for 11.1 and 11.2. Its just odd that when i view the signal meter for 33 (UHF) it shows a near perfect signal, yet i get a searching for signal when i tune to their mapped channels (11.1 and 11.2) and even more odd, up until yesterday 11.2 was working even though 11.1 was showing a searching for signal. same behavior on both boxes.

anyone know a number at CW to call and get confirmation their digital transmitter isn't having issues?

i am almost positive CW was coming in great for me on 2 different boxes (DirecTV HR20-700 and DirecTV HR10-250) last week and now i'm getting a "searching for signal" on both 11-1 and 11-2. anyone else in the ny market seeing the same thing or do i have a problem?

the weird thing is that when i check the signal strength it shows 95+ signal at all times.

I get the same thing with my HR10-250. However, when I use the internal tuner in my TV, I have no problem with 11.1 or 11.2.

thats very odd..... i'm not sure what to do, I mean its not necessarily a directv issue, but it kinda is since they control the software that allows OTA capabilities.

I get the same thing with my HR10-250. However, when I use the internal tuner in my TV, I have no problem with 11.1 or 11.2.


do you by chance have a HR20-700 in addition to your HR10? i do, and these problems seemed to have popped up soon after OTA was enabled on the HR20. i'm wondering if maybe the HR20 is feeding some noise back through the splitter and into the HR10?

i'm going to unhook the HR20 from the antenna when i get home and see what that does to the HR10.

do you by chance have a HR20-700 in addition to your HR10? i do, and these problems seemed to have popped up soon after OTA was enabled on the HR20. i'm wondering if maybe the HR20 is feeding some noise back through the splitter and into the HR10?

i'm going to unhook the HR20 from the antenna when i get home and see what that does to the HR10.

Nope, the HR10 is my only HD sat receiver.

just spoke with someone in engineering at CW11. he suggested doing a rescan for OTA channels. i'll try that and report back.

I just tried tuning to 11-1, then checking the signal strength. Interestingly, the frequency it gave the strength for was 11. (Usually, it would show the strength of the feequency the channel is actually broadcasting on. In this case, that should be 33.)

Rescanning for the channels did add them to the guide as scanned channels. (meaning no program data)

Bizzare!

I just tried tuning to 11-1, then checking the signal strength. Interestingly, the frequency it gave the strength for was 11. (Usually, it would show the strength of the feequency the channel is actually broadcasting on. In this case, that should be 33.)

Rescanning for the channels did add them to the guide as scanned channels. (meaning no program data)

Bizzare!

I'm seeing the exact same behavior with both of my HR10-250s and 11-1. I don't have an HR20 either. If this was just a channel mapping issue I would expect to see something on 33-1, but I just get a black screen (although no "searching for signal" message). After scanning for the channels are you able to see any actual programming?

yup... a rescan fixed my HR10 as well. wish i could say the same for the HR20. it doesn't have the ability to scan for OTA channels, instead it apparently relies on the guide data sent down from D* for a given market.

After the rescan I can also now see 11-1 again. One more piece of the puzzle, the channel now identifies itself as theCW11 instead of WPIX-DT.

i suggest contacting the station and letting them know what you're seeing. the more complaints they get, the more likely they are to fix it.

http://cw11.trb.com/about/station/?track=schedule

Another point: Not sure if this is significant, but the problem only started yesterday for me. I noticed that my HR10 had called in yesterday morning. (Perhaps some bad data in the download???)

Another point: Not sure if this is significant, but the problem only started yesterday for me. I noticed that my HR10 had called in yesterday morning. (Perhaps some bad data in the download???)

Read my post a few notches above WRT the NEW software upgrade that I received (6.3B....6.3A was sent down a few weeks/months ago IIRC). This upgrade is supposed to fix (amongst other things) the ANNOYING audio dropouts (last for 7-9 seconds) which I was INUNDATED with when watching 5-1 OTA.

Bad data is MOST definitely a possibility. AFA the data goes, one of my HR10's didn't record either Leno or Conan (a total of 4 shows last night) because the season passes showed NO shows were on last night....and the SP's also show NO SHOWS on over the next 10-12 days (again, incorrect). Damn strange....and as a sidenote, the HR10 that DID receive the upgrade yesterday AM lost it's season passes a few days before the reboot/upgrade yesterday AM.

So, I'm going to have to check the HR10 that didn't tape Leno/Conan to see if it updates in the next 24 hours now (to see if it matches the behavior that the updated HR10 exhibited).

Confused yet?? :p

I don't have 6.3b yet on either hr10, so I don't think that is it. I've seen behavior like this in the past ("losing" OTA stations) when a local OTA station changes frequencies or something about their signal and doesn't notify D* or D* is slow to update whatever tables they use to keep this info and transmit down to the HR10s. This was rampant for a little while when the NYC stations went up on the combiner. In this case, I think it has something to do with WPIX changing their station identification from WPIX-DT to theCW11. In any case, I have contacted D*, so hopefully they can get together with the CW11 folks and resolve the issue soon.

I don't have 6.3b yet on either hr10, so I don't think that is it. I've seen behavior like this in the past ("losing" OTA stations) when a local OTA station changes frequencies or something about their signal and doesn't notify D* or D* is slow to update whatever tables they use to keep this info and transmit down to the HR10s. This was rampant for a little while when the NYC stations went up on the combiner. In this case, I think it has something to do with WPIX changing their station identification from WPIX-DT to theCW11. In any case, I have contacted D*, so hopefully they can get together with the CW11 folks and resolve the issue soon.

i spoke with someone in engineering at WPIX again yesterday and he said that someone else had called in with the same problem i was reporting. he said that one of his coworkers had an HR10, so they were going to take a look into and then put a call into TMS (Tribune Media Services) and see whats going on with the PSIP data/guide information.

i agree though, either WPIX is accidentally transmitting the wrong PSIP short name, or they changed their shortname (from WPIXDT to TheCW11) and TMS hasn't gotten the change.

I communicated with TMS (a sister Tribune subsidiary) this morning and they verified that their data for WPIX is correct. They have forwarded the issue off to DirecTV.

BTW, once I did a rescan I had duplicate channels on my HR10-250 DirecTV receiver too. We will get this fixed although I suspect the holiday may lengthen the resolution time.

Andy
Tribune Broadcasting (WPIX)

Hi, I'm using an ATSC tuner card on the computer (pcHDTV 3000), and I have this problem of image corruption at the top of 4:3 programs on 720p channles (FOX, ABC).

This noticeable in the first several lines in the image and is very annoying in shows like Family Guy, where it causes the image to shift very slightly back and forth.

This is almost never a problem with 16:9 shows, although I can recall one or two instances where the top few lines were garbled (a mixture of black and gray).

I just wanted to know if anybody has this problem.

BTW, the signal I get is fairly strong, i.e. this is not a problem with corruptted blocks in random places in the picture.

Thanks.

I communicated with TMS (a sister Tribune subsidiary) this morning and they verified that their data for WPIX is correct. They have forwarded the issue off to DirecTV.

BTW, once I did a rescan I had duplicate channels on my HR10-250 DirecTV receiver too. We will get this fixed although I suspect the holiday may lengthen the resolution time.

Andy
Tribune Broadcasting (WPIX)

Thanks for updating us on the situation. Looks like the issue is in the hands of those in the know now.

Hi all I am in the NYC Queens area, about 6 miles away from the Empire State. I have an RCA amplified antenna. ANT301 It also has adjustable gain control (up to 10dB).
However, I just can't seem to get PBS channel 13 in HD! Can you guys tell me if I need something stronger to get HD PBS?

I just got a new ANtenna with 45dB and still can't get 13! I really want to watch Nature/Nova. I have Channels 2 4 5 7 9 and 11 and have very good signal strength on the Samsung plasma...

Thanks for your help!!

I'm also in Queens,never was able to get 13 because it broadcasts with weak power,many people can't receive it.

Santa brought this HD newb a Samsung DTB-H260F this year. I have it connected via component cables to a Syntax Olevia LT26HVX.

I am using a Phillips PHDTV1 Silver Sensor indoor antenna. After a couple of channel scans, I pulled in 22 channels and was blown away with the picture quality. And this is only at about 50% signal strength!! I was able to pull in all the major networks except for NBC.

These are my stats according to antennaweb.org,

DTV Antenna
Type Call Sign Channel Network City State Live
Date Compass
Orientation Miles
From Frequency
Assignment
* yellow - uhf WWOR-DT 9.1 MNT SECAUCUS NJ 324° 16.2 38
* yellow - uhf WCBS-DT 2.1 CBS NEW YORK NY 324° 16.2 56
* yellow - uhf WNYW-DT 5.1 FOX NEW YORK NY 324° 16.2 44
* yellow - uhf WPIX-DT 11.1 CW NEW YORK NY 324° 16.2 33
* yellow - uhf WABC-DT 7.1 ABC NEW YORK NY 325° 16.6 45
* green - uhf WNJU-DT 36 TEL LINDEN NJ 313° 16.0 36
* green - uhf WPXN-DT 31.1 i NEW YORK NY 313° 16.0 30
* red - uhf WNJN-DT 51.1 PBS MONTCLAIR NJ 321° 30.0 51
* red - uhf WNYE-DT 25.1 IND NEW YORK NY 312° 13.5 24
* red - uhf WXTV-DT 41.1 UNI PATERSON NJ 324° 16.2 40
* red - uhf WNET-DT 13.1 PBS NEWARK NJ 324° 16.2 61
* red - uhf WNBC-DT 4.1 NBC NEW YORK NY 326° 16.5 28
* red - uhf WLIW-DT 21.2 PBS GARDEN CITY NY 62° 20.6 22
* blue - uhf WMBC-DT 63.1 IND NEWTON NJ 316° 52.6 18
* blue - uhf WFUT-DT 68.1 TFA NEWARK NJ 325° 16.6 53

Can someone interpret these figures for me as to why I'm not picking up the NBC broadcast? Will another type of indoor antenna (maybe powered) help me achieve this?

My setup is in the second floor of a two-story private home in the 11691 zip code with nary a tall building in the area.

"I was able to pull in all the major networks except for NBC."

I wish you luck with NBC!

I acquired a CM4228 (outdoor) antenna before the holidays, specifically for receiving WNBC-DT. Neither I or Santa's elves have instlled it yet.

I'm out in central Suffolk, however.

Maybe someone needs to check with NBC and have them tell us they have not changed anything in the last few months. Spanky28 can, likely, SEE the ESB from his window but he can't get it on his TV.

Anyway spanky if you look back over the thread you will see a number of people with odd NBC reception issues but you are pretty darn close compared to most of us. I would try moving the antenna around a bit more and see if any spot helps. If I was to suggest an alternate antenna it would be rooftop without a preamp. But you really should get them with the current setup. As for their location, I am beginning to wonder if they had problems (on the ESB) and moved back to their other transmitter (the one antennaweb still lists). Could such a thing be kept secret?! I am grasping here but it is very strange. As I said earlier I have given up on OTA NBC and use only the cablevision feed now.

possibly you can't pick up NBC because the reception,for me,has been f'ed up for the last week or so,(usually no problem receiving it strongly)maybe they're doing some work on the tranmitter or something?

Anyone else in the Northern NJ area having reception problems?

For the last two days I get little or no signal power from just about all ESB stations but Tuesday reception was fine.
The only stations I can tune in with video and audio are WCBS-DT, WABC-DT and WNJU-DT.

Hi, I'm using an ATSC tuner card on the computer (pcHDTV 3000), and I have this problem of image corruption at the top of 4:3 programs on 720p channles (FOX, ABC).

This noticeable in the first several lines in the image and is very annoying in shows like Family Guy, where it causes the image to shift very slightly back and forth.

I believe you are talking about when in underscan, seeing the full video frame, the first few lines of video on FOX 4:3 programs look like they are stretched to 16:9. Yes I see that on WNYW-DT (FOX) also during 4:3 network shows.

Have also noticed this same thing on FOX 28 from Elkhart, Indiana using a RCA DTC-100

Santa brought this HD newb a Samsung DTB-H260F this year. I have it connected via component cables to a Syntax Olevia LT26HVX.

I am using a Phillips PHDTV1 Silver Sensor indoor antenna. After a couple of channel scans, I pulled in 22 channels and was blown away with the picture quality. And this is only at about 50% signal strength!! I was able to pull in all the major networks except for NBC.

These are my stats according to antennaweb.org,

DTV Antenna
Type Call Sign Channel Network City State Live
Date Compass
Orientation Miles
From Frequency
Assignment
* yellow - uhf WWOR-DT 9.1 MNT SECAUCUS NJ 324° 16.2 38
* yellow - uhf WCBS-DT 2.1 CBS NEW YORK NY 324° 16.2 56
* yellow - uhf WNYW-DT 5.1 FOX NEW YORK NY 324° 16.2 44
* yellow - uhf WPIX-DT 11.1 CW NEW YORK NY 324° 16.2 33
* yellow - uhf WABC-DT 7.1 ABC NEW YORK NY 325° 16.6 45
* green - uhf WNJU-DT 36 TEL LINDEN NJ 313° 16.0 36
* green - uhf WPXN-DT 31.1 i NEW YORK NY 313° 16.0 30
* red - uhf WNJN-DT 51.1 PBS MONTCLAIR NJ 321° 30.0 51
* red - uhf WNYE-DT 25.1 IND NEW YORK NY 312° 13.5 24
* red - uhf WXTV-DT 41.1 UNI PATERSON NJ 324° 16.2 40
* red - uhf WNET-DT 13.1 PBS NEWARK NJ 324° 16.2 61
* red - uhf WNBC-DT 4.1 NBC NEW YORK NY 326° 16.5 28
* red - uhf WLIW-DT 21.2 PBS GARDEN CITY NY 62° 20.6 22
* blue - uhf WMBC-DT 63.1 IND NEWTON NJ 316° 52.6 18
* blue - uhf WFUT-DT 68.1 TFA NEWARK NJ 325° 16.6 53

Can someone interpret these figures for me as to why I'm not picking up the NBC broadcast? Will another type of indoor antenna (maybe powered) help me achieve this?

My setup is in the second floor of a two-story private home in the 11691 zip code with nary a tall building in the area.

Just a follow up to my post, I am now able to pull in NBC broadcast, but it's still not perfect.

I ended up elevating my Silver Sensor antenna by propping a shoebox under it on top of my desk. Now it's about 5 feet off the floor.

It improved the signal strength on all my channels. I'm going to have to get a longer length of coax cable to find a more stable place to put my antenna.

Does anyone know when or why WNBC-DT stopped broadcasting guide data? I've had my Samsung TXP3071WH with built in ATSC for about a year now, and I can't remember a time when NBC didn't have guide data... until now. As far as I can remember, I noticed the guide data was gone maybe a week or two ago, and it hasn't returned since.

IS there someone I can contact at WNBC to find out what's going on?

I'm located on the north shore of Staten Island, about 10 miles from ESB, but I have no line of sight and my Philips PHDTV1 antenna is located in the basement. Unfortunately, I don't have the luxury of a better placement for it.