Yinz Guys,

Just got official word from Comcast (a rep and the website) that HDTV will be premiering in Pittsburgh on August 15th. According to the representative I talked to, the lineup is as follows:

WTAE-DT (ABC HD) 720p
WQED-DT (PBS HD) 1080i

Showtime-HD 1080i
ESPN-HD 720p (although he didn't mention it at the time, shortly after our conversation, Comcast announced that ESPN-HD carriage would commence immediately in all markets carrying HD, and that it is not likely that it would be any later than September in any market)

As for Fox, UPN, and WB, the rep said he was wondering why they didn't bother with those stations, but I have to guess that when Sinclair starts actually passing HD at those local affiliates, they may get them. Until then, I don't think anyone really cares...

You may be asking -- are you sure about CBS HD? I thought since we are in a CBS O&O market, we wouldn't be likely to see any CBS from Comcast anytime soon. Well, I asked the rep repeatedly if he was sure it was CBS and not maybe PBS, and he assured me that the documents he'd received from the company clearly stated that the "big three locals, CBS, NBC, and ABC" would be available at launch. I even questioned him regarding the Comcast/Viacom bargaining problem, and he just said that he was sure that he'd been told CBS would indeed be a part of the Pittsburgh package at rollout. I can only conclude from this that the rumors of late regarding some new announcements from Comcast may indeed include the official announcement of a deal with Viacom. (edit: Accodring to our friendly Comcast buddy JWhip, because our previous system was AT&T, it is likely that carriage of CBS in HD would be grandfathered into Comcast's system. Good stuff!)

EDIT: Shoulda known better. Grossly misinformed Comcast rep. PBS, ABC, Showtime, and ESPN are all we get. HBO will no doubt be added very soon, and I have to wonder why on earth they don't have WPXI yet. KDKA... sigh... mabe next year. Who knows. Come on, Comcast and Viacom!

The receiver (Presumably the Motorola DCT-5100. I didn't ask.) will be $5.99 a month.

If anyone has anything constructive to add, anecdotal or otherwise, anything I might've missed would certainly be welcome!


Dan

Good news, MrGonk. Where on the website are you seeing this news?

And, does anyone know, would this include the entire Pittsburgh area, or just the city for now? I'm in Westmoreland County, near Jeannette, and currently have Comcast (formerly AT&T Broadband, formerly TCI) out of Greensburg. Usually whatever Pittsburgh gets, we get too, but I'm not sure about timing.

Although I have had an HD-ready monitor for over two years, I still haven't gotten a STB/antenna. I still may opt for Satellite at some time (for HDNET, etc.) but this would be a quick and easy way to get some good HD content for now, especially if CBS is included and now ESPN-HD too. That would be great for football season. Not having CBS or ESPN would probably make me pass on cable HD.

I'm still skeptical about CBS in O&O markets, regardless of what I was told by the CSR.

A good way to find out if you'll be able to get HD (and the way I found out) would be to go to www.comcast.com and click on "what's in my area?" in the top right of the screen. Put in your address and zip code and see if the "HDTV available August 15" icon is on the page anywhere. I would take that as a good indication that you're on what Comcast considers the Pittsburgh system, and HD would be coming your way. They need to have their fiber laid in your area, so chances are if you are able to get broadband internet access via cable, then HDTV is probably on its way sometime soon too. Keep us posted if you find anything out about Westmoreland county.

By the way, once we finally get hooked up with HD in Pittsburgh, we're going to have to start trying to figure out when we'll be seeing ESPN-HD. Though I doubt it'll be much later than sometime in September.


Dan

Hmm. I typed in zip code 15212 (North Side, where I lived as a child) and I see that message "Available August 15th Experience High Definition TV". But when I put in my Jeannette zip code the message isn't there.

I do have Comcast broadband internet access, and while I only have basic expanded cable, Digital Cable is available in my location. I don't see what else they'd need to deliver HDTV.

I'll give the local office a call sometime to inquire when I get a chance, but they probably won't have a clue.

Hopefully, they would add ESPN-HD right off the bat since it appears to be rolling out already in some of their other markets.

question is that if i got d* 'cause the cable looked bad on my xbr 400. what is this really doing for me except that I cant get channel 4.

so how much is it going to cost me just to see alias in HD?

I currently have the min package due to multiple sets rain fade and the $5 a room hook up plus wiring issues for d*

I just called the Greensburg office customer service and talked to Bonnie, who was very nice. I told her about the August 15 note on the Comcast website. She immediately knew what I was talking about and said that yes, it is her understanding that HDTV service will be rolled out in the entire area. She said I'd need the converter box for HD ($5.99/month) and Digital Cable. I don't think that's entirely true; according to their FAQ on HDTV you can get a box for HDTV without actually subscribing to Digital Cable. But I may go for Digital anyway for Turner Classic Movies.

I asked her about channels. She thought any station broadcasting in HD would be included, plus HBO and Showtime if you subscribe. Again, not sure about that (PBS?). I pressed her about CBS, but it was apparent she really didn't know.

She put a note in my "file" to have somebody contact me when it's ready to go. I'll call them back in mid-August if I don't hear anything before that. Hopefully there will be no delays, but I won't count on it.

I guess I'll need to buy another set of component cables soon. (Hopefully)

This sounds like great news. I have had an HD ready tv for almost two years and have not yet "bit the bullet" and gotten into HDTV yet. I am currently a Directivo user and was thinking of getting a second receiver for HDTV. Can't give up TIVO, haha. I live in Imperial and typed in my zip, 15126. It did come up with the message about HDTV, however, the link gave me an error saying it could not find the page? My only real question is, if anyone really knows if I would have to suscribe to a digital cable package? I don't want to do this. If anyone has any info or suggestions about the best way to go Hi-Def, I'd love to hear it! Thanks...

Hoss

Here is the page (it wasn't actually the FAQ, but in the "press room") that describes what's needed for HDTV.

http://www.cmcsk.com/pressroom/cable_hdtv.cfm

It's a little confusing, but look at the footnote ** at the bottom. Seems to indicate that if you don't subscribe to Digital Cable then they will rent you a box to decode HDTV. But how is that box different from the HD box anybody has to get? I don't know.

Hondo21- Great, thanks for the link, that is exactly what I was looking for. I will be looking forward to Monday Night Football in HDTV this year. And, this is much cheaper right now than buying a new Directv receiver! Hopefully, it won't take too long until they get more HDTV programming, i.e., ESPN. Thanks!

I wonder if I'll be able to just plug in cable to my Sony HD-200?

I don't think so Mark. Cable uses a different DTV modulation system (http://www.avsforum.com/hdtvfaq/HDTV-FAQ.htm) (QAM) vs. Satellite/OTA (8VSB) -- I don't fully understand it, but I think the bottom line is your box decodes 8VSB and the cable signal is QAM, and they aren't compatible.

Hoss28, reading that link I provided a little closer, maybe you *do* need Digital Cable to get ESPN-HD. The ** note says broadcast HD signals. They could mean just the local broadcast channels, not cable ones? I'm not sure. Maybe somebody from another Comcast market already getting HD could answer, but they probably aren't reading this thread.

Hondo21, you just read my mind. I was reading some of the other ESPNHD threads and I was starting to get that feeling. I only suscribe right now to very basic cable, just to be able to get the news in the kitchen and another bedroom as I have Directivo on the bigscreen. As of right now, at least this way I'll be able to get MNF and a couple other football games in HD. Just not the Sunday night games. I will have to see if the price of digital cable would be worth it. I don't have a clue as to how much that will cost, now over to comcast to check on pricing! I am looking forward to seeing HD on my 61" Hitachi. I guess this way I could do away with locals on my Directivo and save that 5 a month. Thanks again for the info, Hondo.

Did ATT Broadband have a carriage agreement with KDKA (CBS) before the Comcast merger which was grandfathered?

Hoss-

Usually digital cable is only a couple bucks more expensive than analog cable. I think companies are marketing it very aggressively in an attempt to push to a full conversion to digital, which would allow the cable company to trounce any dish provider in terms of PQ, channel selection, HD offerings, locals, and just about everything else...

mgpt6-

Considering AT&T Broadband wouldn't have had any HD up and running for roughly another century in Pittsburgh, I seriously doubt they had any kind of digital carriage mapped out before Comcast bought them. However, there may be enough loopholes regarding digital in the current contract that AT&T had for regular CBS carriage so as to not effectively prevent Comcast from putting HD CBS on the air in the burgh. In other words, it's possible that the contract CBS had with AT&T allows Comcast to air CBS HD by virtue of the fact that there is no language forbidding it, and any agreement at all could be taken as implication of consent for digital broadcast. Or I could be wrong. It's just speculation.


Dan

MrGonk-Thanks for the reply. I just was looking into it and it first it seemed like a good thing. However, I currently only suscribe to BASIC cable, whereas the site says digital is only $10 more than STANDARD cable, which is around 40. So, I may just get the box and get the broadcast HDTV stations, so I won't get ESPNHD, better than nothing. Maybe I'll bite the bullet and get the Directv HDTV package and get locals OTA. Anyone know how easy they are to pull in around the Imperial/Oakdale/Robinson area? Thanks again MrGonk, I always appreciate more info as I'm fairly new to all of this.

Hoss- are you on the Pittsburgh side of Mt. Washington or are you on the South Hills side?

From your location, I'd guess that it'd be pretty easy to get KDKA-DT, WPGH-DT, WPXI-DT, and WQED-DT with an OTA antenna, as long as you don't have too much in the way of hills to the north and east to block your reception. Mount a good one on your roof with a rotor so you can swing it around to pick up WTAE-DT, which might be iffy if you're not at a relatively high altitude. The problem with OTA stations in Pittsburgh is that they're in all sorts of different locations, which generally means you want a non-directional antenna, but the varied terrain means lots of obstructions and reflections, which demands a directional antenna. This has got to be the worst city on earth for OTA reception...

MrGonk I am about 5 min East of the Pittsburgh Airport. I was hoping to get away with an indoor antennae, but I guess that won't be possible. Especially since my TV is down in the basement in my game room. What do you think about mounting one in the attic. If I can easily get a cable down to the basement I would consider something like that. I don't really want to have to put a big one up outside if I don't have to. Going with DirecTV HD and OTA I guess I would get that much more programming. The initial cost of setting up is going to be tough to ease past the "accountant" of the household though, haha. I have had an HDTV ready TV now for two years, I'm dying to see what it looks like. I would love to have it calibrated as well, uh oh, a couple hundred more to slip through. :)
Thanks MrGonk

I recently bought an infocus x1 and needed an additional digital decoder for it. Knowing that it was a matter of time until Comcast would have HDTV in the 'burgh, I wanted to find out if they were close to launch.
The comcast rep I talked to on the phone told me that she had just received information that KDKA and Comcast were proud to present the August 16th Steeler game against Philly in HDTV as a promotion for their Aug. 15th launch. I then asked if they had HDTV decoders ready for pickup at their offices, but she wasn't sure.
So I went to the Coraopolis office to find out. Unfortunately they hadn't heard anything about the promo, and didn't have any idea when they would have HDTV decoders, but they "will notify me when HDTV is available" :confused:

Anyone else kind of bothered that WQED-DT isn't in their current plans?

In todays (Fri Aug 1st) paper edition of the Post-Gazette there is an article about the comcast HDTV turn-up on Aug 15th. I can't find the article on the PG's web site, so you'll have to grab a paper edition to read the full article. . The article says that the 4 initial channels will be ABC(WTAE), PBS(WQED), a special ESPN Channel, and select movies on a Showtime channel. The article goes on to quote Chuck Redpath, general manager of the Adelphia South Hills office, stating they plan to launch HDTV sometime this fall.

Info straight from comcast.com. I wonder what the other 2 channels will be. HBOHD and CBS?

Welcome to Comcast of Pittsburgh, PA



High-Definition Television is coming!

Comcast is committed to bringing you a variety of advanced communications products and services. In addition to Digital Cable and High-Speed Internet service, HDTV will soon be available in many areas. Comcast currently offers six channels - WTAE(ABC), WQED (PBS), ESPN and Showtime.

To receive HDTV service you will need a High-Definition TV set. Comcast will provide you a digital box with an integrated HDTV decoder and provide professional standard installation of the equipment.

TV fans and technology enthusiasts know about the most exciting technological advance to hit the industry: HDTV, or High-Definition Television. HDTV is now the new standard of television. The trademark of true HDTV is the rectangular "wide screen" and the high resolution of the display, Dolby® Digital surround sound and better visual and audio quality.



What do I need to get HDTV?

- HD-Capable sets have a High-Definition receiver/decoder built in

- HD-Ready sets are essentially a monitor and require an external receiver/decoder (which Comcast provides)

- A Comcast HDTV decoder is needed for either HD-Capable or HD-Ready sets.







What is Showtime HDTV and how can I get it?

Showtime HDTV provides the ultimate television viewing experience with the best picture resolution (using the highest HDTV format, 1080i) and Dolby® Digital 5.1 enhanced audio. HDTV is available on Showtime East and programming includes theatricals, original pictures, original series and special events. Showtime HDTV has earned a grade "A" from Sound and Vision Magazine in March, 2001: "Showtime's high-def offerings are HDTV the way it's supposed to be."

When you subscribe to Showtime and Comcast Digital Cable you receive at least 10 channels of Showtime. If you would like to receive Showtime HDTV, in addition to at least 10 digital channels, you will need a HDTV set and subscribe to Showtime and Comcast Digital Cable.

For more information on program listings click on www.sho.com and then click on "Schedule".









A step-by-step guide to walk you through the ordering process.




© 2002 Comcast Corporation

The other two channels may be the two INHD (http://www.inhd.com) ones coming in September.

I'm disappointed that CBS-HD isn't offerred, but that is consistent with other Comcast markets. CBS has the SuperBowl this coming season. Not to mention the best primetime TV HD schedule. I sure hope they come to some agreement to carry it soon.

BTW, the Post-Gazette article mentioned above is on page B-11 of today's paper, continuing on B-17 (not B-16 as it says).

Originally posted by MrGonk
A good way to find out if you'll be able to get HD (and the way I found out) would be to go to www.comcast.com and click on "what's in my area?" in the top right of the screen. Put in your address and zip code and see if the "HDTV available August 15" icon is on the page anywhere. I would take that as a good indication that you're on what Comcast considers the Pittsburgh system, and HD would be coming your way. They need to have their fiber laid in your area, so chances are if you are able to get broadband internet access via cable, then HDTV is probably on its way sometime soon too. Keep us posted if you find anything out about Westmoreland county.
Dan

I tried that with my 15317 Canonsburg address and it does not show the HDTV available. But I called Comcast early this morning after reading the PG article, and 15317 was a HD delivery area.

Right now I have HD CBS with Dish and I really hate to give it up with football season approaching. Getting MNF would not be a trade worth making.

Ugh... just got a more "official" summary of the lineup from the CSR I spoke to while I was ordering today. The debeut lineup is four channels: WTAE-DT (ABC), WQED-DT (PBS), ESPN-HD, and Showtime-HD. HBO-HD coming soon. KDKA-DT will do the Steelers/Eagles game in HD, a one-time-only deal... just to tease us. KDKA-DT (CBS)-- no carriage as of yet, except for that one game. Now that's some cruel sh*t... ::sigh::... Of course, I still ordered anyway and (surprise surprise), they're understocked on boxes, it may be a few weeks before they get enough in. They estimate about 500 by the 15th, ideally.


Dan

I live in McCandless next to Allegheny Community Collge. I will be able to get Comcast's HD cable but with the meager offerings in the near future I am swaying towards OTA. Does anyone live this way and is able to reliably get OTA HD or digital channels including fox, wb? Or is reception hit and miss that would justify going cable?
joe

reception is very difficult to predict anywhere in pittsburgh. usually your success comes with pure altitude and size of antenna. outdoor antennas are definitely best. i wouldn't be too concerned with the wb and fox ota stations, as sinclair owns them and it'll be about a million years before they pass through the 720p and 1080i feeds.

It's upsetting to see there won't be much coming from Comcast at the start, especially as far as regular broadscast stations. This may be pushing me further towards getting setup for HD through Directv. I am a bit worried about the difficulty of pulling in the OTA. I guess there is only one way to find out. I'm told Directv will give me the new dish if I call and tell them I'm going to drop them. But that still leaves me with a 500-600 purchase for a new Directv/HD receiver. I need to get MNF, at least I can get that right away through Comcast.

MrGonk, Thanks for your input, guess I'll need to just try it out to know. Actually, if I can even get the standard digital broadcast from fox and wb I'd be happy since I project this onto a 100" 16:9 screen and even with time shifting the analog ota/cable to a DVHS tape which encodes it digitally and scaling it up to 1360x1024 there still is some video noise. I've heard that the digital broadcasts have very little noise(artifacts?) in the signal.
joe

I have done some installs in the Mccandless area, and just like most of the Burg, it can be hit or miss. Outside on top of a roof is better than an attic install.

I currently have a Channel Master Suburban Advantage on a rotor on my roof top. It is has a UHF distance rating of 30 miles/vhf distance of 45 mi. I currently get all the analog pgh stations more clearly than my Comcast cable presents which I only use for cable only stations. I see that there are UHF antennas rated further in miles. Does that seem as though it would be necessary to get the digital locals?
joe

Has anybody heard word of carriage of WPXI-DT NBC from Comcast? I mean, I know they're having trouble with CBS but I never expected not to see NBC on the list too. Of course, it could be one of the two channels not listed on the site. Not that I'll miss that gasbag Leno, but I'd like to be able to get some kind of a signal when they start doing Conan in HD. It'll be bad enough doing acrobatics on my roof with my little antenna trying to receive any CBS NFL this year. God, I hope this CBS NFL deal puts the heat on Comcast to get a contract with CBS and soon...

::AARG!::

By the way, jlanzy-- you don't want the digital WPGH feed. It's worse than the analog one. You're best off with analog OTA WPGH. Can't attest to the quality of the WB, though.



Dan

I guess the grass isn't always greener on the digital side of the spectrum! Maybe more a chartreuse.
joe

Well it's being installed today (Thurs) between 12-4pm. Right now, I have OTA, so I'm curious to see if the picture quality will be comparable.

I have a Mits 65807 w/ RGBHV input and the Mot 5100 has component output for the HDTV hookup which usually requires a transcoder. I asked the CSR about the installation because I didn't want to waste half my day waiting for them to arrive and are unable to install it. I was assured by Comcast that they will have all the connections needed for installation on any TV. We'll see!!

Rich

My installation was scheduled for next Saturday, but they called and then visited my home yesterday to do "game planning." I need a new undergrand drop using a higher grade cable than what is in place. The crew should be here in a day or two. I hope it rains so that my lawn will soften up a bit. :D

I'll be using the dish buy back program worth $400 in credits. Goodbye Charlie, promises of new HD service can only hold me for so long. I sure do hope that Comcast works out completely because this is called burning your bridges!

Rich:

I wouldn't be so sure about that. The box may have VGA out, but I seriously doubt it has RGBHV output. You may want to go out and pick up a transcoder early today to make sure you can get it hooked up, unless your TV also accepts Y Pb Pr component. Let us know how it goes.

My installation is planned for Aug. 15 -- the day I move into the house I'm getting it installed to. That should be... interesting. Somehow I doubt this will go well enough to have me watching ESPN-HD by that evening, and the Steelers game the next night. ::sigh:: Here's hoping.


Dan

Just a tidbit of info. A co-worker had his Motorola 5100 installed yesterday afternoon. He says the HD content is already active now (well ahead of the 15th). He briefly watched the PBS demo loop and some ABC and Showtime last night. Didn't say anything about ESPN. He lives near Churchill and says the HD channels numbers are in the 800 range. He needed to reset some defaults on the box to tell it he had a 16:9 TV, etc.

I wonder how the availability of the boxes is coming along. The CSR told me when I called that the boxes were still coming in, and that they weren't positive they'd have them available for my Aug 15 installation. I guess if people are getting them already then there shouldn't be too much of a problem.

What the heck? Just for kicks I entered my address in Cranberry (16066) and to my surprise it didn't say Comcast wasn't available. 2 cable systems can't use the same physical cable can they?

Agtiny: Um, don't you have Armstrong cable? In which case, you've had HD available to your for about a year now?

Yes, but Armstrong is dragging their feet on ESPN-HD, HDNets, and Discovery. I know there is no cable competition and it's just a bug in Comcast's site, but it would be pretty fun to make an easy switch like that.

yeah, but at least you could have all the locals. cbs-hd with their weekly nfl hd and nbc with conan in hd looming on the horizon are good things to have this fall. i might trade espn-hd for that.

Yeah Armstrong is pretty good, and I don't really need ESPN until October 5, so I still have hope.

Mits made a TV that has component inputs but doesn't support HD on those inputs? What were they smoking when they designed that?!

I had to delete the earlier post because I had brain freeze while I was writing the previous post.

Well the installer just left and he was 2 hours late.

The installer didn't have a clue about this connection. He said it was the first TV he saw with the RGBHV. I cannot agree with that because he went straight for the component hookups and didn't bother looking at all the inputs on the back of the TV which are clearly labeled with 1080i and 480i/480P. So how would he know if he hooked up someone else wrong, I had to mention to him that the connection he made wasn't going to work. I would say they're programmed to go for the component. Blue to blue red to red green to green. If I was clueless about my TV, in which I'm sure there are alot of people that buy HDTV's that don't have a clue will get screwed. So if you have a Mits TV be aware you need to activate the RGBHV inputs in which the H and V are not used. Change the RGBHV(DTV) port to YPrPb not RGB. I asked if he had any training on HDTV and he said they are on the job training.

He did about 40 installs so far this week. They began installing HDTV boxes on Monday. They ran out of remotes, but they're using regular Digital box remotes. The only difference is the color and a few buttons are moved around.

Also they swapped out one of my other Digital boxes instead of adding one and now they can't add it back. I hope this is worth it.

Sorry agtiny, Mits is not smoking crack, I was for a bit.

Rich

Comcast ad in today's Post Gazette touting next weekend's Steelers game in HDTV! Think it was in the sports section, but not sure.

Ugh, we need to get some sort of confirmation on this. Will it be on KDKA or only on some exclusive Comcast channel? I need to know if I should invite some people over for the game or not.

I'm willing to bet it will not be on KDKA. I'm thinking that the only way and reason this is being done in HDTV is because the Philly CSN-HD people have access to the game for an HDTV production. I'd say the overwhelming likelihood is that this will appear on some sort of special event channel when the game comes on and that channel will go back to nothingness when it's over. There may not even be commercials, or the commercials could be from CSN-HD. Either that or it will air as a KDKA production both on a Comcast special event channel and KDKA-DT 25 over the air. I'm just hoping this is for real and that it is an indicator that Comcast intends to bring us either CBS or a whole lot of HD sports, and soon. They can't get away with not having CBS-HD for much longer now that the NFL will be in HD.

Heh after seeing the picture quality of today's KDKA production, I'd be happy if they would broadcast in SD. ;) This looks like weak OTA analog in a bad multipath area. KDKA certainly doesn't have the skills to do an HD broadcast.

Man, you're telling me. I'm only watching the game on my old Sony 27" TV today but I noticed how poor the picture is. Lots of video noise.

Well, now that the starters are about done it's time to cut the grass (before any rain comes) and listen to the radio broadcast...

Guys, I can officially tell you the KDKA feed next Saturday will be in HD OTA and on Comcast (I'm working that show).

Mark, any details about how that's possible? KDKA has never done an HD production before, are they outsourcing it or what?

Yeah, the announcer (Bob Pompeani) mentioned that next week's game will be in High-Def. Curious as to what kind of arrangement that is.

We'll need to figure out what channel on Comcast.

I wasn't really listening but heard him say "like looking out a window", so I instantly came here to see who heard what he said. :) Hope it goes off without a hitch!

I took his comments to mean it would be available to all meaning OTA as well as Comcast.

I'm a new member here and just had my Comcast HDTV installed today. I can't say that I'm all that happy though. Let me explain. Comcast sent out a contracted installer to do the job. He arrived right on time armed with a new Motorola 5100 box, a Comcast "On Demand" universal remote control, and some cheap cables. I planned ahead and picked up some decent cables earlier in the week suspecting that this might happen. The installer told me that he and three other co-workers were doing around 70 to 80 installs per day (total) this week. He said that he didn't think that Comcast thought that HDTV would go over this well. When I asked about future programming he said that he was told that KDKA should be up and running before months end and that WPXI should be onboard next month. He also said that the Steeler game would be on a "separate HDTV channel around the others". I don't know if I take much stock in his word but here's hoping for the best. Anyway back to the install. He really didn't know much about HDTV and confessed that the employees received no training. My gripe is that I had a perfect picture before the install on most channels and after the Motorola HDTV box was installed my picture quality is now poor. Out of the four HDTV channels, only WQED is crystal clear. He said that Comcast was having a lot of problems with the Motorola 5100 boxes(a software problem he thinks) and that all of his installs had poor quality on non-HDTV channels. He said that they are working on it now and will add the new software if that's the case or maybe go to another box if needed. He also advised calling Comcast and arranging a tech to come out and look things over which I just did. Also as part of my gripe, I found out about an hour post install that a second cable box in another room no longer works. It seems that when he switched out the old box, Comcast cut service to both. When I called Comcast, the employee there had me go through the script of re-provisioning to no avail. She also said that employees there were not trained to handle HDTV questions except for the new script that they are to use. Well, a tech will be out on Tuesday and I hope that I can get a better picture. If not, I will need to decide if it is worth having poor picture quality on Non-HDTV channels versus HDTV.
Sorry for the long post, but wanted to tell all of my install and hope to hear from others about theirs.

bert-

are you watching the non-hdtv channels through the same component input as the HDTV channels? if you are, i'd suggest hooking up the s-video connection or composite video connection because from what i've heard, the motorola dct-5100s have notoriously bad scalers. also, you could try splitting the video signal before it reaches the box, and plugging one of the cables into the tuner on your TV and the other into the box. that way it's not involved in regular analog cable channels.

you (and everyone) should know the following: the motorola box is notorious for its poor picture quality on standard def material over the hd component outputs, and that the hdtv channels are known to usually be substantially darker than the rest of the channels. a lot of people reserve a picture setting for hdtv over cable and a different setting for sd material. give some of that a try. also, the firmware on the box could be pretty old for all you know. hopefully comcast will stay on top of the upgrades.


dan

Thanks for the report Bert. A couple things:

Motorola DCT5100 product information (http://www.gi.com/hdtv/dct5100.html)

FAQ (http://cjhengineering.com/5100faq.htm) (includes information on firmware versions, etc. -- maybe check what version yours is vs. what the latest is)

It would be great, but I seriously doubt we will get KDKA-DT or WPXI-DT that soon. I doubt he knows what he's talking about on that subject.

Not all the HD channels are actually broadcasting HD all the time. Maybe only WQED was (demo loop?) when you watched. Watch ESPN-HD on Sunday (baseball) or Monday (football) nights and see how that is.

My install is scheduled for Monday.

How could Comcast not think HDTV would go over well? Circuit City and Best Buy and the like have been selling lots of HD-ready TVs the past few years and lots of them have only been used for DVD till now because (like me) their owners haven't gotten around to the initial investment and trouble to get OTA/Satellite STBs and antennas. But signing up for Comcast HDTV is a relatively painless step, so I'm not surprised that there's a lot of interest out there.

hondo-

they underestimate the appeal of hdtv probably because it just hasn't been a big deal until just recently. also, i think they didn't anticipate the uniqueness of the pittsburgh market in terms of both its financial status and the state of hdtv. for one thing, over the air reception is much much less viable here because of the terrain and weather, not to mention unpleasant scattering of the antennas and wtae's being at half-power. it makes a cable solution particularly attractive.

also, on the city-o-meter, pittsburgh ranks as a very small city in terms of population size, but in terms of businesses, it's still one of the top dozen (give or take) cities in the nation when it comes to business activity. what that amounts to, in a very unscientific construal, is a city that looks (to a cable company) like a medium-small market and spends like a larger one.

of course, that's just my theory. maybe we've just been stuck with at&t so long that we're really eager to take advantage of our new cable company that actually has something real to offer (hehe).

dan

Originally posted by MrGonk


are you watching the non-hdtv channels through the same component input as the HDTV channels? if you are, i'd suggest hooking up the s-video connection or composite video connection because from what i've heard, the motorola dct-5100s have notoriously bad scalers. also, you could try splitting the video signal before it reaches the box, and plugging one of the cables into the tuner on your TV and the other into the box. that way it's not involved in regular analog cable channels.
dan


MrGonk,
I have my install on Tuesday and my game plan was to s-video the SD on a separate input from the HD. That is the way I have my Dish 6000 setup at this time and it works well. But your other idea involving a split before the 5100 is one I had not thought of. Do you believe that a RF input of analog channels would be superior to a s-video input from the 5100?

Bill

depends on how good the comb filter is in your tv versus the one in dtc-5100 box. actually, an RF connection is never better than pretty much any other connection under any circumstance. however, in this case it would give you the benefit of being able to use the TV's tuner instead of the box's tuner. but you'd only get the analog channels. but if that's not something you're after, i'll tell you what i'd do: my loewe has a fantastic comb filter in it. compared to just about anything else, it's better. what i'm probably going to do is hook up the component for HD and hook up a regular old composite video connection for the SD channels. that's right, composite is better than s-video in this case. why? because the sdtv signal itself is composite. therefore, in order for the box to create an s-video signal, it would just be using its chroma filter. which i seriously doubt is anywhere near as good as the one in my tv. this probably holds true for you too, as i'm assuming the chroma filter in the 5100 is el cheapo. in which case, anyone with a good hdtv will want to use the tv's filter instead. component for hd, composite for sd. if you want to be able to use the tv's tuner (if it's faster and you only ever watch non-digital sd or something), then use rf for sd. i hope that all made sense.

dan

I was thinking the same thing Dan. I have a Pioneer Elite 610HD RPTV and I wouldn't be surprised to find its comb filter is better than the 5100's. So I'm going to try a composite connection in addition to experimenting with S-video. It's too bad that the 5100 isn't better with SD material.

Armstrong's HD commercial is now promoting the Steelers game. :)

sweet. i really hope nothing goes wrong with my install. they've run out of boxes at one or two of the locations already. hope by friday they've got one with my name on it...

Agtiny, the game will be produced out of the Comcast Sportsnet HD truck which will be coming in from Philly...most of the crew will be freelancers like myself who specialize in sports television.

Great! Good thing it's not KDKA's first attempt at HD programming, and I'm glad Comcast is letting KDKA broadcast it instead of keeping it all to themselves.

Mark,
Is Philly getting HD also?

Kent, that show is done by the Eagles Preseason Network. They are not in HDTV.

Seems like such a waste....doesn't it?
How many seperate productions of this game are there?

Comcast Sportsnet in Philly won't get to see this in HD and it's their own production? I don't think I will ever understand the broadcast television industry... :(

no, it's not a Comcast production, the Eagles have another company do the shows, sell commercial time, etc.
Kaa, there are 2 separate productions. No, it's not a waste, it keeps people like me working!

Hello everyone... I just got my 5100 today from Comcast... I tried to hook it up via a DVI cable and I got nothing... Is DVI enabled in the Pittsburgh area? Thanks

i didn't even know the dct-5100 had dvi. as i understand it, although the motorola box is offered with a variety of potential features (like usb and firewire), comcast goes the el-cheapo route -- s-vid and composite out, l&r audio outs, coax and optical digital outs, component video outs, and that's all. could be mistaken though. i'd be really, really happy if they did actually have firewire. i'd be able to give my windows media encoder a day in court! or more...

According to the Motorola DCT5100 FAQ (http://www.cjhengineering.com/5100faq.htm), the DVI is not active.

Thought you guys would like to see the User Manuel for the Motorola 5100. It tells you what is active and whats not.




http://www.comcast.com/images/ImageLibrary/ContentManager/PDF/DCT5100%20guide%20April03.pdf

Well: got the Comcast Pittsburgh box. Lots of breakup on ESPN. Locals not much worse than OTA digital antenna but sound not near as good.

Service installer said DVI was enabled. Is said: "Are you sure?" Installer: "Yes" I should have had a clue when he said the component leads need 4 cables and connected up the SVideo. I connected up the component leads after he left.

Well the DVI is not enabled. Bought a $62 Belden and had a black screen. I should have known.

Talked to Comcast service who didn't know whether the DVI was enabled or not. But he was a nice guy and escalated the call (what ever that means.) He just called back and said installer was wrong and it is not DVI enabled.

Comcast and I are dickering of a $62 useless Belden DVI cable. My position is that I relied on the installer and Comcast should either enable the DVI or pay me for the cable which I will be happy to send to them (not that they can use it either)

Can't you just return the cable?

What do you mean the sound is not as good? Dolby Digital is Dolby Digital...

Return cable:
Box is opened and via internet. Also, there is a certain amount of principle involved. Would not have ordered it if Comcast installer had not said DVI was active.

Sound:
Hitachi 65xwx has only LR RCA stereo inputs ..or.. of course the firewire which Comcast hasn't activated either. Cable box seems to be compressing or altering audio compared to same OTA digital signals. Yes I have gone through all the audio settings in the cable box and there is a major difference between the cable box LR audio outputs and that from the 65xwx internal tuner with an OTA signal, particularly with WQED digital. BTW, the only way to get the Dolby into the tv is if you have a coax or optical input which the Hitachi does not. This is definitely something in the Comcast tuner box as the same inferior audio does not exist with an OTA digital signal or with a DVD input going into the same LR RCA jacks

You need to get an audio receiver. :) I know the Moto boxes do some funky stuff to analog audio signals, read the FAQ posted above it has some info about the proper audio compression setting. If you've tried them all and they all suck... then I guess you really need to get a digital receiver. :)

I guess all of you have been waiting with apprehension for my Tues. install that took place on Wed. The "box delivery person" was not prepared for my new cable drop. He had no connectors for such a situation, so he allowed me to connect my own box while he connected lines to my splitter. He left manuals and wished me luck. It took another truck and two visits before the heavy duty drop was properly married to the splitter.

Anyways, I had connected video several ways hoping to have a wide choice of various qualities. I have a direct cable into my RF (only provides analogs of course), the HD component input, an s-video input, and a composite video input. Are you placing your bets yet? It is surprising.

First of all, I had Dish for 2 years and really forgot a lot about cable. I came back for the local HD channels (there had better be more upcoming) but I am getting sidetracked. With Dish, I only used component input for HD. All the other channels were up converted to a soft mush. I used an s-video unput for all but HD. It made for musical remotes, but that was necessary for the optimum Dish picture.

I made all of these same connections on the Motorola 5100 expecting the same results, but they did not occur. The component input provided the best of the choices. The differences among the connections made were so small that I am not sure I ever saw a difference. With that in mind, the component input wins by default, no changes necessary to go from HD to SD. If the 5100 is up converting, it is doing a much better job of it than my Dish 6000 did.

The HD WTAE is very good. I of course did not really have time to evaluate it very much, but Lopez was a visual treat. HD Showtime is just like HD HBO in quality. I'm sure I'll watch it a lot while the free 6 month trial goes on. The HD WQED is just running a demo loop, but the quality was excellent. I guess they will only be showing national productions for quite a while. HD ESPN was not on last night, but the up converted stretched ballgame was. I really have no opinion. Yet!

One unexpected catch. The remote does not do real well through my smoked glass doors. From my Lazyboy all is well, but further back at the sofa, very poor. The door must be left open to get predictable responses from that seating area. My wife, who sits there, routinely is very annoyed for that is really tacky.

I posted a quote from today's P-G in the separate thread. Comcast will have the Steelers-Eagles game Saturday on Channel 775.

http://www.post-gazette.com/tv/20030814owentv2.asp

at last, we have some channel numbers to go on! yay 775!

Finally got installed today.

Watched some stretchy tennis today on ESPN-HD, some bad daytime soap on WTAE, and some of the pretty pictures on WQED. I have to say it does seem recompressed, but not in a way that makes it really significantly worse. It's worth it for the convenience of watching through cable. I have yet to see any HD other than QED. Wish Showtime played something other than crap.

Install went well, the guy seemed to know what he was doing. The drop wasn't a problem, shockingly, considering that everything else in my new house is a problem.

I'm noticing that Showtime HD is much, much quieter than the other HD channels, even the other HD channels. I set the dynamic range compression to "heavy" but it didn't help all that much.

I'm also noticing a wavy form of interference in my picture. It literally looks like little barely-noticeable white dotted horizontal waves across the middle of the screen. Is anybody else seeing this? I'm thinkin the component out on the DCT5100 is not that clean. Or perhaps it's my ratty oakland power. A bit of rearranging with the line conditioner may help.

Overall I'm quite pleased. The 1080i upconversion by the DCT5100 is not as bad as I'd heard, the brightness discrepancy between analog and HD channels is not as great as I heard, and what little I've seen of the HD channels so far appears to be essentially equivalent to my OTA reception. Beats shelling out hundreds for satellite hardware. Wish they'd get some more channels on the way...


Dan

While scanning the guide last night, I was surprised to see 775 KDKA HD was already there. It will no doubt disappear after the game tomorrow, but it sure did look sweet in the lineup.

Wouldn't it be nice if they just kept KDKA-DT on 775 after the game. Hey, what's the big deal, you've already made the connection, right? :)

I won't really be happy with Comcast HD until I see CBS and NBC on there.

Watching live HD picture from Heinz Field without sound OTA on KD. Not much going on but some players warming up. Picture looks good. Check it out if you care.

Sweet!!

Hey, I'm not getting anything on 775 here in Oakland. It's also not showing up in the program guide. My box has been off overnight (not even plugged in) Should I be worried?


Dan

FYI - HBOHD is now active on channel 549!!

Glad I signed up today, installation is backed up till Sept 4th, just in time for opening day in the NFL in HD on ESPN....comcast is of course backed up bc of all of us college students coming back.

Originally posted by macgyver66
FYI - HBOHD is now active on channel 549!!
Yes, I see that it's there, but since I'm not an HBO subscriber I can't see it. They gave me 6 free months of Showtime (including HD) for signing up for Digital Cable -- you think if I call and ask nice they would give me a free trial period of HBO too? :)

I'd be more excited to see them add CBS, and to a lesser extent NBC.

i believe they're doing something like HBO for 3 bucks a month for three months if you get it right now. i took it anticipating a quick HBO HD arrival and am glad i did.

dan

Hi everyone. I got my Comcast HD install last Thursday. Unfortunately, I was on a work-related conference call at the time and so couldn't give the installer my full attention. We managed to swap out the boxes via hand signals and I told him that I would do the rest of the hookup myself. I had already installed my own HDTV setup via the Dish 6000 a couple of years ago, but have been receiving OTA only for the past year due to no line of sight in my new condo. Anyway, after he left and after my call ended, I proceeded to swap cables from my Samsung SIR-T150 and fired up the new Motorola cable box. The bottom line is that I get HBOHD, DWTAE, and DWQED, with some intermittent breakup on HBO. However, both ESPND and SHOWHD display the message "One Moment Please - This channel should be available shortly". But "shortly" never seems to come. I suspect a signal strength problem, but substituting a barrel connector for the 3-way Comcast splitter, which should have raised the signal by 7dB, made no difference. I immediately scheduled a service call for yesterday afternoon (Saturday), but the tech never showed up. I called back and was told that there was nothing in the system explaining why the tech didn't call or show up, but they would schedule another visit. Unfortunately, the first one they had available is next Thursday! The phone rep also sent a bunch of signals to my box and then reset it, to no avail. He also said that they are all still learning about the HD boxes. So, in the meantime, I am turning to the forum. Any ideas?

Thanks,
Sam

sry, I don't have any ideas for you, but it probably is a signal problem. If I connect my coax cable to a surge protector I lose (get the please wait message for) WQED and WTAE but I still have HBO, SHO, and ESPN. Unfortunately, I have a ground loop "hum" when the coax isn't attached to the surge protector so I'm screwed either way. Please post what they (comcast) did if they fix it. thx

Thanks for the info, p0rl1n. I'm starting to believe that it has something to do with the cable distribution equipment in my high-rise condo. Hopefully, the tech will be able to diagnose it. In the meantime, I guess I'll have to miss tonight's HD premier of "Playmakers" on ESPN. I'll keep everyone posted regarding what Comcast says, assuming they decide to show up this time. (sigh..)

-Sam

i hooked up the 5100 myself since i had to split it with the dvd and directv etc and the kids were yelling etc....

ANYWAY.... i have a lot of splits, tv, vcr, replay and a multiplexer to send the replay and directv feed to rest of home. I had to disconnect one hookup to get the hd stuff eventhough it works fine on the digital....

will have to rebalance my load, or use the old B line to feed the room as well...

signal loss does seem to affect the hd channels...

Trouble in Paradise.

I got Comcast HD installed on 8/11 and it's been good. Only a few random pixelizations now and then, nothing to worry about. Until last night.

Sometime before 11 p.m. I noticed that channel 780 (WTAE-DT) and 790 (WQED-DT) were both breaking up badly with large blocky artifacts. This morning they are both completely frozen up, sometimes the screen goes black and says "this channel will be available soon" or something like that. Also this morning, channel 574 (SHO-HD) and 773 (ESPNHD) are breaking up and blocking just like 780 and 790 were last night. All other channels are fine. Only the new "HD" (digital) channels are affected.

Is anybody else seeing this? I'm going to call Comcast about it, but was curious if it's just me, a local issue (Greensburg system) or system-wide.

Apparently the problem is mine alone. They couldn't fix it by sending a signal to my box. A Comcast guy is coming on Tuesday. None of the 4 HD channels is working for me now.

On another note, does anybody know if and when our Comcast system will be adding INHD? See this thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=296025) for a list of those that either already have it (preview) or will soon. According to this thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=295114) in HDTV Programming INHD will be adding 3 MLB games a week!

Just an update on my problem, e.g. not receiving ESPND and SHOHWD....
The tech came on Friday, but had no experience with HDTV. He checked the signal strength and found it to be +6, which he says is way more than adequate. He called the local HD tech specialist in and, while we were waiting for him, I suggested that we run a length of RG56 coax (the *good* stuff) directly from the junction box for my floor (I'm in a highrise) to my HD cable box, to see if the problem might be the old wiring behind the walls in my unit. It made no difference, so we were able to rule that out (thank God!). When the "specialist" arrived, it became apparent that the problem would not be resolved quickly. All I will say is that these guys need some more training. I don't blame them - I blame Comcast. Anyway, he did have another cable box with hiim to use for testing (it had some funny jumpers on the back, etc.), and it exhibited the same problem. So, we ruled out the box. They said that the next step woud be to get "Maintenance" involved, which seemed to mean coming in with equipment to check signal strength on the specific frequencies used by these HD channels, checking for high-frequency interference from machinery or other equipment. (I'm on top of Mt. Washington, where there are numerous radio towers, etc.) One additional caveat....I have been using Comcast's high-speed internet offering for about 4 months, and have had no problems whatsoever with that. In summary, everyone is stumped at this point. I'll post the ultimate resolution is, when it comes. I just hope it comes soon. On the bright side, I happened to tune in HBOHD's showing of "The Fifth Element" on Friday night, and immediately forgot about all my troubles, including lack of SHOWHD and ESPNHD. I own the DVD, and thought I knew every detail of this masterpiece of cinematography and sound production. It is the DVD I use when I want to show off my system. Well, let's just say that I won't ever be able to watch the DVD again without thinking how much better the HD transfer is. Wow!!

(aside to Comcast.... I'm getting very tired of manually switching the component video cables between my cable box and my SIR-T151 every time I want to watch a US Open tennis match in HD on CBS..... hint hint...)

SamY... sorry to hear that. At least they didn't tell you to unplug the receiver from the wall and wait ten minutes and then hang up.

By the way... is anybody receiving the INHD preview? I wasn't too excited for this channel but seeing what they've got coming down the pike I'm getting pretty excited. I'm not seeing it showing up in the program guide yet though. There should be a channel running the preview.

Dan

Well, the Comcast maintenance guy showed up at my building this morning, while I was out, and quickly diagnosed the problem. It seems that the main security camera at the front door of the building is wired into the cable feed via some sort of RF modulator that converts the signal and injects it into the cable on a supposedly unused analog cable channel - in this case, channel 75 - so that residents can see who is at the door before buzzing them in. Of course, nobody ever actually does this.... Apparently, that frequency is at least partially used by the SHOW and ESPN high-def feeds on digital channels 574 and 773. He had them switch the camera feed to analog channel 52 and, voila! Problem solved!

So, many thanks to the Comcast maintenance person, whoever you are, and to those of you here who offered your advice. I have much more faith in Comcast's customer service than I did before, and commend them highly for sticking with the problem until it was resolved. Assuming AT&T even would have implemented HD over cable, I can't help but think that the outcome would not have been so favorable....

Regarding your NBC affiliate, WPXI, which is owned by Cox Television, please see this thread for a discussion about Comcast not carrying it and other Cox-owned stations and when/how that might change:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&postid=2626506

I talked to a CSR at Comcast today who tried her hardest to find information about new channels being added to our HD lineup. She called me back after talking to her boss (who went through all his bulletins) but she came up empty with new information. I was hoping she could at least get me a Sept. 15 confirmation for the IN HD channels.

After that I sent KDKA and WPXI e-mail regarding their programming I wish I could watch in HD but probably won't because I'm watching WTAE instead. :p

I know it is not much and probably one e-mail won't phase them much, but maybe all of you could start a follow-up campaign. If they get enough of these it might get someone's attention. Sure, I know the negotiations are at a higher level, but it just made me feel better to express an opinion.

Meanwhile, I will enjoy MNF in HD tonight!!!

So, today is the official launch of INHD and INHD2, but as of last night I still couldn't find it on our Comcast lineup. It has been on many other Comcast systems for the past few weeks/days already. Should we expect to see it show up soon?

Post here with channel information if you find it.

Now that I have comcast digital cable. what are safe modulation channels to use. I was using 77 and 79 for the directv and replay channel.

Seeing the above that would explain why with the modulator hooked up I wasnt able to get the or some of the HD channels on comcast,

Definitely not seeing INHD 1 or 2 on Comcast as of 1:40 today. There isn't even a blank channel in the program guide corresponding to them.

A lot of people are saying channel 172 or 173 on Comcast, but I think our channels are different, as we don't have any HD in the 100s. And our market is still suffering after effects from being an AT&T system. Uuughh....


Dan

Originally posted by wstanko
I talked to a CSR at Comcast today who tried her hardest to find information about new channels being added to our HD lineup. She called me back after talking to her boss (who went through all his bulletins) but she came up empty with new information. I was hoping she could at least get me a Sept. 15 confirmation for the IN HD channels.

After that I sent KDKA and WPXI e-mail regarding their programming I wish I could watch in HD but probably won't because I'm watching WTAE instead. :p

I know it is not much and probably one e-mail won't phase them much, but maybe all of you could start a follow-up campaign. If they get enough of these it might get someone's attention. Sure, I know the negotiations are at a higher level, but it just made me feel better to express an opinion.

Meanwhile, I will enjoy MNF in HD tonight!!!

I got a reply from WPXI today.

"WPXI is working with Comcast in an effort to get WPXI-HD on their cable system. As I understand it, there are a few issues to be resolved, but we are optimistic that WPXI-DT will be on the Comcast cable system soon."

Glenn Romsos

Director of Engineering

WPXI-TV, Inc.

According to Comcast's director of regional affairs for Pittsburgh, Brian Jeter, they are trying to get INHD and INHD2 on the air as soon as possible. He didn't cite any specific reasons everyone else has them and we don't, but said that they hope to get something going "soon" and are working very hard to have the channels up before "year's end." My guess is that the old crap infrastructure is still somehow standing in their way. Oh well.


Dan

I am looking for a second modulator channel. i will try 52 but i need another. i tried 92 and its not working clearly. thanks

I haven't read any complaints so I am wondering if anyone else is seeing the WTAE HD sync problem in prime time. I saw it on Sunday and then again on Tuesday. Changing back to SD it was in syn. I noticed this not only during the network feed but also with the local news.

Last Tuesday we were shocked to find that the audio was actually in sync for once, but this week it was back to it's normal out-of-sync self. :(

Wow, I was glad to read the last 2 posts! I didn't really notice the sync problems before last week when I coincidently bought a new nad t762 receiver. I thought for sure it was some sort of digital signal problem between the moto5100 and the nad. Now I can blame comcast :rolleyes:
btw, any word on the INHD channels yet?

The root of the problem is ABC I believe. It has always been this way, ever since 2001 when I first started watching. The same problem existed when I was watching OTA on a DTC-100 and now it's the same on a moto 5100 with Armstrong.

So, will comcast block out the ESPN HD feed of the Steelers tonight and force me to watch it on WTAE?

It's not going to be on WTAE. Don't worry.

Originally posted by bolco
So, will comcast block out the ESPN HD feed of the Steelers tonight and force me to watch it on WTAE?
From what I understand ESPN owns the rights to the game. WTAE will receive the SD version only. It will not be blacked out on ESPN or ESPNHD.

Can anyone in Pittsburgh provide an update on the HD channels carried by Comcast? I live in Baltimore and will be moving to Pittsburgh in about six weeks. Thanks

Did anyone else receive a "Comcast Message" yesterday regarding the blocking procedures for the 2 new HD PPV channels? According to the message, they begin on Oct. 28 in the 174 & 175 channel slots and will carry R rated movies that some parents may want to block.

I hope that this is the trickle that soon bursts with an influx of new HD stations.

wstanko,
i'd bet my right arm that those two "ppv" channels are inhd and inhd2. as far as i know, no comcast system carries hd ppv and csrs have a tendency to get the "in" part of "inhd" confused with the "in" in "indemand." can't blame them for their confusion.

jbablak,
get ready for a downgrade. we have abc-hd, pbs-hd, hbo-hd, showtime-hd, espn-hd, and most likely have inhd and inhd2 by the time you get here. it's speculation, but i'd put good money on having cbs-hd before year's end, and it'll basically be the end of time before we see nbc-hd, fox-hd, upn-hd, or wb-hd considering the ownership of our local affiliates. i'd normally taunt you and say that at least you get to have a good football team, but that doesn't seem to apply anymore either....


: (


dan

Originally posted by wstanko
I haven't read any complaints so I am wondering if anyone else is seeing the WTAE HD sync problem in prime time. I saw it on Sunday and then again on Tuesday. Changing back to SD it was in syn. I noticed this not only during the network feed but also with the local news.

I sent this plea to WTAE's Comsumer Action:

My problem is quite unusual for you at WTAE to handle, for the problem is with your sister signal at WTAE HD. Being a Comcast cable subscriber, I receive the High Definition signal of WTAE, but it is always out of sync. At first I thought it was just my equipment, so I wrote about the problem on the HD news boards for the Pittsburgh area. To my surprise everyone else has the same problem, and they have written that it has been this way for years or at least as long as they cam remember.

I wrote a letter to the WTAE programming area but received no reply, and there has been no change. This problem occurs not only during network programming, but also during your local newscasts so it must be a very specific WTAE problem. Of course it is very disconcerting and causes me to not enjoy the benefits of this HD channel. What should be a very rewarding experience is quite frankly, an embarrassment to Comcast and especially to WTAE where the problem originates.

Would you please help us receive the signal broadcast in sync so that we HD viewers can reap the rewards of our early adoption?

In case you did not know, :rolleyes: , IDHD & INHD2 are up and running today. Better to be late than never and they look very good for the few minutes I saw this morning.

Caught a little of IDHD1 and 2 this morning as well before class, and I too welcome the addition better late than never. INHD had some tv show with puppets that looked extremely nice, INHD2 had some older movie which didnt match the description on the guide. The movie on 2 looked TERRIBLE. At least it seemed it was the right aspect (2.35-1), but damn, I swear I've seen prints on TCM look better than this old film. I hope Indemands other prints of other flicks aren't this bad. Can't wait to see hockey in HD tonight on IDHD1.

I can't seem to find InHD anywhere here in Pittsburgh...
I looked everywhere on the guide can't find 'em

INHD is on channel 774
INHD2 is on channel 775

The program guide for INHD2 was totally wrong. Late Tuesday it was saying that "Romancing the Stone" was on, but in reality it was some show about dogs in Manhattan. Don't know what's up with that.

Good to see these finally show up.

Now Comcast, give us CBS and NBC, soon!

INHD and INHD are not coming up on my cable box at all... I tried to unplug it and plug it back in hoping that they would appear but nothing... I don't know what's up with it... I live in Baldwin... Is there anyone else near me that didn't get them yet?

Both INHD1 and 2 show up on the program guide but when I try to watch these channels it says "not authorized..." fwiw, I'm in Oakdale.

If I were you I'd call and tell them you know these channels are appearing but you're not seeing them. They should be able to blast your box or whatever to make it work.

Originally posted by p0rl1n
Both INHD1 and 2 show up on the program guide but when I try to watch these channels it says "not authorized..." fwiw, I'm in Oakdale.

Do you have a digital cable subscription? You will need it to get InHD and InHD2.

At least they are showing up on your guide. They aren't even there on mine... :confused:

Hey Everyone,

First off, as I make my first post, what a great resource this is! Working for an electronics retailer, and wanting to learn as much as I can about HDTV, this site has been a real blessing - especially this thread!

I finally decided to de-lurk and start posting, especially because of what I was told from a Comcast CSR last night. I called up after reading about the InHD launch in the Trib yesterday and wanted to know why my (South Hills) area hadn't seen it yet... the answer I got was confused and muddled and sounded like it had to do more with VOD (don't wanna jump off topic here) than InHD, but what he said is that to prevent overload to the system, they are activating a certain number of "headends", groups of subscribers in the same area, every night. He read off a bunch of them from a memo, and then asked his supervisor about it, who pretty much was running on the same info. So, thought I'd throw my two cents in, if it helps at all. Otherwise, loving the rest of the programming (especially ESPN-HD), just hope to see InHD by the 1st! There's an NBA game scheduled that night, it looks like, on InHD1.

Steve

All I've got so far is the "one moment please" message every single time I've tried to watch since Wednesday.

Last I checked them (Thursday night), both the INHD channels were suffering from some severe pixelization/breakup. There were no problems with any of the other HD channels at the time, although I've often seen several instances of this picture breakup on the other channels too. Usually momentary, but repeats often enough to be a nuisance since it's very jarring when it happens. Seems to me that Comcast either isn't allocating enough bandwidth or something in the pipeline to me isn't up to snuff.

Still no InHD here in the South Hills...

On another note, Comcast posted a public notice in the PG today detailing about 20 channel lineup adds, deletions, and channel moves. Most were about SD channel and tier reassignments but slid in there was the news of two new HD movie channels for the Pittsburgh market...

"Comcast will launch two new channels in High-Definition (HD) format: Cinemax on digital channel 561 and STARZ! on digital channel 532. A subscription to Cinemax or STARZ! will include the corresponding HDTV format of the of the premium movie channel."

The notice states these changes will take place on or after December 3.

Looking good for next Saturday...

Mike Patrick just mentioned that the College Football Saturday trucks are coming to Pittsburgh for Saturday night's game! Another chance for us to see Pittsburgh in all of its' HD glory... well, most of us... I'll be at the game.

The DVD recorder will be running, even though the quality won't nearly be as good. It will still be nice to see the way this crew presents the HD production from Heinz Field.

7:45 PM kickoff.

I'm disappointed that I am still not receiving INHD1 or INHD2 in Penn Hills. The channels do not appear on the guide, nor are they directly accessible.

I talked with a Comcast CSR Saturday night, and was informed that the channels were being rolled out to different areas, but there was no ETA for Penn Hills.

We did have On Demand rolled out in my area. It primarily covers cable channels, and the movie channels. I watched a couple network programs, and they cut out the commercials! An hour long program is about 48 minutes, I would imagine they are trying to minimize the amount of disk space taken up by each program on the servers.

After reading the article in the Post-Gazette yesterday, I will call Comcast again tonight to check on the channels.

I am supposed to have INHD 1 and 2 in Imperial. Today, a Comcast tech came to my house to see why On Demand wasn't working. In the meantime, he looked at 774 and 775. It may actually be a node issue if you are getting a one moment please issue. The tech in my area seemed to think that it was odd he had to do 8 calls for On Demand today that all had the same error code. He also was going to see why I had no INHD, he could see no reason for it and even swapped out my HD box to see, but to no avail. I will say though, this tech I had was very knowledgeable and helpful.

Guys,

Consider yourselves lucky with regards to your INHD and INHD 2 issues. I called a Comcast CSR on Sunday only to get into a long (but at least not hostile) argument about exactly what the hell INHD is. As soon as he politely informed me that they were pay-per-view channels and that I needed to order content, I realized I was in for a painful experience.

After carefully explaining to him that they were normal channels and all the same rules applied to them that apply to ESPN-HD, he went and checked with his supervisor. He came back with the epiphany: "Okay, now I see... they're ONDemand channels... like, they're archived movies on one of our servers and you just need to navigate the ONDemand menu to order. The movie you want to watch will download to your box instantly and you can watch it at your convenience with no late fees!"

Needless to say, it was a rather long conversation. I went so far as to point him to the INHD website, to describe to him the kind of content they offer, to explain to him why the name was similar to the INDemand and ONDemand services, and exactly what tier i needed to have in order to qualify to receive them for free. I even pointed out some of the fixes that had worked with other people's complications. Nothing.

So a tech is coming to my house tomorrow. Can't wait to see what that'll turn up...


Dan

Dan,
What other fixes did people use to correct the problem?

MrGonk,

I feel your pain. :D I too have grown weary of trying to call Comcast or talk to their guys on the street. They are always confused about the similar names and never have accurate information. Being the person who knows the most and then trying to get information from "the uninformed" has ceased to amuse me. Why the gods who name these items chose such similarly is beyond me.

Further confusing is why I learned to tell these similar components apart instantly, while others remain in a fog. I'm really not all that smart.

Bill

No InHD still... at least they finally got InDemand working here...

Is everyone in Pittsburgh area supposed to have OnDemand by now? I've had INHD since its launch here, but still no ondemand

Skerb, what part of town are you from?

Originally posted by skerb
No InHD still... at least they finally got InDemand working here...

Did you mean OnDemand? InDemand PPV has been around for quite a while, while OnDemand (start and stop at will like a DVD) is the new kid in town. See why the people naming these features are lacking creativity and creating a CSR nightmare?

Yeah my bad... OnDemand.... I'm as bad as a Comcast CSR!!! I live in Baldwin PA, right outside PIttsburgh. Still no InHD though. It would be nice since they put a message on our boxes last month that it would start by I think the 28th of October.

What really irked me about the guy I talked to was that even after I informed him as to the nature of the various channels and the differences between them, he still didn't get it. Now that's an accomplishment.

The tech guy they sent was actually pretty good. He was very up-front about the ignorance that pervades Comcast, saying, "they don't tell us ANYTHING." He determined ultimately that the problem was not my box or my wiring, and that the channel wasn't even making it off the street. So he said he'd have maintenance come and fix the node on my block, and then mused about how many of those nodes might be broken and no one would know it. Not bad.

I haven't seen any OnDemand appear either. How do I check to see if I have it?


Dan

Originally posted by MrGonk

I haven't seen any OnDemand appear either. How do I check to see if I have it?


Last night I was watching Joan of Arcadia, using a direct antenna input for a better analog signal, and I noticed my Motorola doing a download. Immediately I knew it was the software upgrade for the OnDemand.

After Joan concluded, I investigated by pressing the Menu command. A new "pop up" menu greeted me with 3 choices, one being OnDemand. Yes, some of the choices are free, but they are not primo, but more like promo, in some cases only several minutes in length, basicly demos.

Yes, I do have full access to Showtime OD, but can only see previews of HBO OD. It is offering to sign me up, though.

My first impression is mixed. It is a novelty play toy right now. I doubt that I will pay to download a movie that is not wide screen, lacks the defintion of DVD, and is not Dolby 5.1. I did not even mention that it is not HD. They have a long ways to go before my buck burns a hole in my remote control.

has anyone else yet to receive InHD? Still waiting for mine...

We are getting just fine in Shadyside.

mds

Originally posted by skerb
has anyone else yet to receive InHD? Still waiting for mine...

receiving INHD here in Brighton Heights on the North Side. No sign of OnDemand though. Sure wish NBC and CBS would follow ABC's lead and start broadcasting, via Comcast, some digital and HD programing

Supposed to be some new channels added by Dec 1st though, so maybe we will get something useful then

Well it's been 2 weeks since the tech came to my house and here in south Oakland I'm still not getting either INHD. I'm sure when new channels come on on Dec. 1st I also wil not get them...

No INHD1 or 2 in the North Hills for me.

Got a note from Comcast in my message box last night saying that on Dec. 3 in some areas there will be 2 new HD channels. Since I was on the leading edge locally for INHD, I just assume that the 3rd will show me something new. I just hope that this is not Cinema MAX and Starz, but KDKA and WPXI.

Hey, it is close to Christmas and I can hope for the impossible!

Originally posted by wstanko
I just hope that this is not Cinema MAX and Starz, but KDKA and WPXI.

Hey, it is close to Christmas and I can hope for the impossible!

Yes, that would be nice! If WTAE can broadcast digital/HD, it's about time for KDKA and WPXI to follow.

I just received my Comcast bill in the mail. The 2 new HD channels are Cinemax HD channel 561 and Starz HD channel 532. Hopefully we'll get CBS by Feb 1, 2004 (Super Bowl).

Got a Comcast flyer today...I am a little concerned about the lack of InHD in the North Hills.

The flyer I received lists all of Comcast's available channels including STARZ!-HD and Cinemax-HD (neither of which have showed up yet). However, it makes no mention of InHD at all. I am concerned that the North Hills isn't going to be getting InHD anytime soon.

The flyer says E. Hills / S. Hills / N. Hills on the top of it.

The non-HD new channels are:
DIY
Fine Living
C-Span3
RTN (Russian - Premium)
TV Asia (Premium)
RAI (Europe - Premium)
Zee TV (South Asian - Premium)

Does anybody in the North Hills have any news on InHD?

Ok folks...I'm droppin' in on yinz. Need a little advice...here's the sitcheashun...LOL.

I live in Cranberry...Armstrong Cable country. Back in '93, I got sick and tired of cable, particularly Armstrong because unlike yinz that were with TSI, I think it was called, they offered far fewer channels and NO PPV.

So I opted for this new thing out then called DirecTV. I paid an arm and a leg but I loved it. A couple of years ago, I bought a Pioneer Elite 610 HDTV. I knew I had to get an HD receiver but...I didn't know I'd have to revert back to caveman technology of putting up a rooftop antenna to pull in the local digital channels. That, my friends, was a nightmare. It took quite a while to find someone of competence but, after mucho dinaro, I found one yet, because my home sits in a valley with hills right behind my home in the direction the towers are located...well, let's say I was/am lucky to get KDKA and WPXI...but no WTAE, which bums me for MNF.

Fast forward to today...

I'm having a new home built in Cranberry. The thought of installing all the receivers, antenna's, etc. in the HOPE that I get the locals OTA and the cost associated with it is causing me to reconsider cable.

So, I investigated Armstrong again...by way of calling them, visiting their website and posting on the Pittsburgh thread with "agtiny" and others. Most claim that Armstrong has made so much progress that they're now ahead of Comcast. Would you Comcast customer's agree? If so, why...if not, why not?

More importantly, I've been told that with respect to picture quality and sound, that cable's "digital" channels are as good or better than DirecTV but that the lower end channels are not as good. Would you folks at Comcast agree/disagree with that assessment?

Bottom line...if you were me and had all most of the equipment, but had to buy a new rooftop antenna, and additional HD receiver for a second HDTV and all the hassles of installation/cost associated with it to get DirecTV or...have the cable plugged in?

Programming/hardware cost appear to be about equal so, for me, it comes down to quality of picture and 5.1 digital sound. Is cable as good/better/worse than DirecTV?

Looking forward to gettin' yinz input...thanks.

Originally posted by Blitzburgh

Most claim that Armstrong has made so much progress that they're now ahead of Comcast. Would you Comcast customer's agree? If so, why...if not, why not?

More importantly, I've been told that with respect to picture quality and sound, that cable's "digital" channels are as good or better than DirecTV but that the lower end channels are not as good. Would you folks at Comcast agree/disagree with that assessment?

Programming/hardware cost appear to be about equal so, for me, it comes down to quality of picture and 5.1 digital sound. Is cable as good/better/worse than DirecTV?



To begin, all of my comparisons will be with my "old cable company, ATT," Dish Network (not Direct TV), and Comcast, (not Armstrong). Also, I will quickly add that all comments are MHO's, and many will no doubt disagree which is their right.

About 4 years ago I wanted more than standard programming and tried the digital technology of ATT. The basic tier was terrible and nothing of value was on the few digital channels. What it did was make me want more and I jumped to Dish. Yes, it was certainly clearer (cleaner is a better term). It seemed like a great deal at the time.

Then I got the Hitachi HD and needed another receiver, more wiring, another dish for HD TV, and more money added to the bill. After several years of this, I became restless. Yes, I had CBS (NY), but not the other networks, with little hope of change. I also grew tired of rain fade, snow removal, and pulling the smart card to hard boot, the cure for all errors on Dish Network. My equipment was becoming quickly obsolete and I no longer had my original serviceman.

Then Comcast said the magic words, "We have HDTV!" It included WTAE which I wanted badly, but not KDKA. Question, are you feeling lucky? I took the chance and have never been happier. First of all, Comcast gave me a heavy duty drop to bring up my signal strength. This group suggested not using the Motorala tuner, but my Hitachi, for the low end analog channels. A smart move for they are now sharper than Dish's. Maybe not quite a "clean" but sharper. There is no doubt about that. Moving into the digital channels, they are also as clean and sharp as Dish, and in many cases sharper!

Now the HD part. I had on Dish, CBS, HBO, and Discovery for my comparison. HBO HD is a draw on picture and DD 5.1. But the non HD HBO channels are sharper than Dish.

Back to HD comparisons. Discovery was the benchmark on Dish that I see on rivaled on PBS. Equal? Tough to say, but I can add that I grew weary of paying $8/month to see insects close-up. PBS will have a greater variety now that the loop is over. WTAE is very sharp and just about all is DD 5.1. Not quite as sharp as CBS NY was, but it is not the same network or the same encoding. Apples vs oranges.

You in Armstrong will have all locals upon connection, not praying like me for more. Is Armstong better than Comcast? As long as you have more HD than I do, yes. Would I say cable HD is better than satellite. Yes, it is generally cleaner and has the same sound quality. MHO

Great reply...MUCH appreciated.

I continue to maintain that analog cable channels paired with a halfway decent comb filter and/or noise reduction look much better than digital cable channels as long as your analog feed isn't in awful shape (crappy cable, old crappy drop, too many splitters, etc).

Also it should be noted that Comcast has the unique advantage of carrying unaltered HDTV bitstreams. They are simply re-modulated from 8VSB to 256QAM, which reduces their bitrate enough to fit a couple per 6mhz channel, but does so without in any way altering the video or audio data (strips the PSIP, header, extraneous garbage from the signal). So not only is Comcast in a position to carry MORE HDTV channels than DirecTV (but not necessarily Dish and definitely not more than Voom), it also does so with better quality.

As for the SD digital channels, I'd say that Comcast's are about on par with DirecTV's at this point, and they both look pretty bad. Some of the more compressed channels seriously look like streaming internet video or something you might get from Kazaa (NOT THAT I EVER INFRINGE ON COPYRIGHTS... PLEASE DO NOT SUE ME, HILARY ROSEN)

Another issue is local channels. Utter pain in the ass to get in Pittsburgh (God bless this terrain... and weather). Comcast doesn't have all of them yet, but I'd be shocked if they let it go to the superbowl without picking up CBS-HD, particularly because their contract with Viacom expires at the end of December and 2 things are for sure: Comcast isn't going to just go without CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, VH1, Spike TV, etc... and Viacom is not going to let them sign a contract that doesn't include paying to CBS-HD carriage along with everything else. As for WPXI... Well, Cox Communications is a bitch but then again... what the hell are we missing not having NBC-HD? Armstrong, of course, already has all of these channels as well as a few others that Comcast subs wish they had. Of course, their HD package'll cost you monthly.

Considering you can get Comcast (and probably Armstrong as well) to buy back your DirecTV box for upwards of a few hundred bucks, I'd suggest that you give cable a try for the time being, and if you don't like it anymore by the time you've got your box paid for by the cable co., just switch to Voom.



Dan

By the way... anybody out there in Comcast Land getting Starz-HD and Cinemax-HD yet?

Originally posted by MrGonk
By the way... anybody out there in Comcast Land getting Starz-HD and Cinemax-HD yet?

Both are in my guide (Canonsburg), but I do not subscribe. I must be the cutting edge for INHD was in my area first too.

yeah I got both starz and cinemax... watching Austin Powers right now... Still waiting for INHD!!! I don't think I'll ever get them...

Skerb

skerb,

just got inhd and inhd 2 and i can say you're not missing much. most (if not all) of the transfers from film are excessively soft, looking little better than a dvd. the video-based material is okay but not nealy as good as pbs's. on all material, the black levels are WAY too high, appearing a medium gray instead of black or even dark gray. not exactly reference quality material. imho, this is no substitute for hdnet and discovery hd.

dan

Originally posted by MrGonk
and if you don't like it anymore by the time you've got your box paid for by the cable co., just switch to Voom.



Dan

I got the info on Voom. Here's my take on it and please feel free to tell me differently...

I think VOOM will be great for all those HD lovers who could care more about getting a 1080 picture than the content of shows.

Voom seems to offer a lot of old movies, off-beat sporting events...not a lot of current stuff.

Since I'm one who likes new releases of movies, NFL games, Boxing, PPV movies...then I don't think Voom is for me.

Or am I missing something here with them?

Did anybody get the new channels 103,104 105(DIY, Fine Living, CSPAN3)? Mine are listed but come up as "not authorized" when I try to watch them. All other changes/switches including the new high def channels are OK.

I can't believe what was secretly broken in the Post-Gazette this morning. I read in total misbelief that KDKA HD is in my menu and did not even know it. What a Christmas present to all of us.

Yeah KDKA!!!

I wish my channel 782 didn't say "not authorized"...

DWQED not showing up anymore in the North Hills.

I don't watch WQED that often, but I usually start there when I want to scroll through my HD channels. I've noticed that for the last couple of days (at least) it has said "One Moment Please...this channel should be available shortly."

Is anybody else seeing this?

Also, am I the only one in Pittsburgh that has yet to get InHD1 and 2? Or are there others out there too/

Scott

Yeah, QED is also dead on Armstrong.

I'm getting Comcast HD Service soon. They said it will be available within a month in Steubenville, OH (30 minutes from Pittsburgh).

How many channels are you getting in Pittsburgh and which ones?

Are most of them in 1080i, ala ESPN and INHD?

How are the STB, do they include DVI?

Thanks cant wait!

Had my first run in with Comcast HD yesterday. Went to do a pre-wire for an additional DTV outlet for my customer in the kitchen, and they had a Motorolla 5100 feeding their Samsung LCD. Couldn't figure out why it was connected with both component and RF from cable box to TV, and then discovered that only HD is passed thru the component, and all standard programing is via RF or composite. What's up with that?:eek:

The 5100 passes everything via component but the analog quality isn't that good. They probably hooked it up over RF so they could use their TV's upconverter which likely has better quality.

Or possibly PIP.

So no DVI on any units?

DVI is enabled on our new 6208's. The cable guy advised me not to use it because the copy protection would prohibit recording of some shows. Not sure if that's true or not, but my TV is component-only so it doesn't matter much anyway. Once Comcast starts rolling out 6208's it should have DVI.

I believe Firewire is also enabled from looking in the service menu, but I haven't gone out yet to buy a 4-to-6 pin adapter so I can test it.

Originally posted by agtiny
I believe Firewire is also enabled from looking in the service menu, but I haven't gone out yet to buy a 4-to-6 pin adapter so I can test it.

Let us know the results. I have SONY KD34XBR2 that is dying for firewire source.

Still no InHD 1 or 2.

I called Comcast to find out what the deal is.... I spoke with a rep named William and he said that if your head-end is in Ross, Castle Shannon, or the East Hills, the InHD channels are not available. He said they would be available *soon* but could not provide any guess as to a date.

Also, and perhaps more importantly, I asked about the availability of the HD DVR and he said (after checking with someone else to see what a DVR was) that it would not be available until LATE SUMMER.

I am fairly disappointed about this information, but I guess there's not too much I can do other than wait.

Scott

DVI is up and running in Pittsburgh!!!

Originally posted by skerb
DVI is up and running in Pittsburgh!!!

Is it that big of a difference in PQ from the component output? I don't have a DVI cable yet, but if it is woth it, I will probably go get on. Anyone cheaper than the $99 at BestBuy?

Originally posted by WRL
Is it that big of a difference in PQ from the component output?

Looks pretty good to me -- just in time for Sunday.

mds

Did you have to do anything for DVI, or is the box just able to do it now?

I did nothing (besides hooking up cable), Once you have the right firmware it will work.

mds

Still no InHD 1 or 2 in the North Hills. At least the people answering their e-mails know that InHD is not an On Demand channel...unlike the telephone rep that I spoke with a month ago...

Here's the response. It almost looks automated.
--------------------------------------------------------------------


Dear Scott,

Thank you for contacting us through our website.

We will be happy to assist you with your programming inquiry.
Unfortunately we do not have a tentative date as to when INHD and INHD2 will broadcast in your area.

Most HDTV markets currently offer ESPN HD, INHD and INHD2 and the services will be added in additional markets in the future.

We apologize for any inconvenience that this may cause you. If you have any other questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us.

We value your business.

Sincerely,

Stacey
Comcast Customer Care Specialist

heard from a pretty knowledgeable CSR that the 6208s are in town, but they won't be releasing them until their people have been through training. he guessed that the beginning of April might be a good time to start requesting one. anyone have any more info on this subject?

just recently came back to cable after a year with D*TV, any word on when DiscoveryHD, HDNET, and WPXIHD might be available?

I live in Greensburg and just had my 6200 Box put in yesterday. When Comcast was out putting it in they told me that the 6208 DVR's will be available on April 15th. I was also told that it will be a single tuner and that the 2 tuner boxes won't be out for quite a while. As for the other channels, they didn't know.

Originally posted by Joeyd27
II was also told that it will be a single tuner and that the 2 tuner boxes won't be out for quite a while.

Wow, that sure does take the level of anticipation down a couple levels. All of the flexibility of watching one while recording another----gone. :eek:

I wonder how much extra a month this is going to be.

Anyone from the Steubenville area have any word on when HD is arriving from Comcast? In Jan. they told me the beginning of Feb.

My girlfriend lives in Greentree and her dad has HD through Comcast, and we were watching WTAE's NHL broadcast and it wasn't in HD anyone else experience this?

I got my 6208 today!

For once, I won't use the list to complain that I don't yet have InHD1 and InHD2.

I called Comcast this morning and somehow got through to the local office (I started by calling 1-800-Comcast, but chose the right menu items to get the local office). Anyway, they said that the 6208 was available and all I had to do was go to the local office and make the exchange.

Well, I have the 6208 now and just got it plugged in. I'm just waiting for all of the channels to filter in.

Originally posted by scott12v
I got my 6208 today!


Scott,
Does that 6208 only have the one tuner? Do you pay $9.95 for the DVR feature?

Just one tuner. The two-tuner version won't be available until late summer or fall (that's in general, not sure about Pittsburgh).

The charge is $9.95 for the DVR feature, but I'm not sure if that includes the box rental or if that is an additional charge (I don't even know if there was a box rental charge for the 5100???) I'll check my bill, but it will probably be a while before I get it.

I have played with the box a little more, and I've got to say that I'm more impressed than I thought I would be. I am a TIVO user, and this can't touch the TIVO's user interface, but it is a lot closer than I thought it would be.

does anyone know if the firewire ports on the 5100 boxes were activated when the dvi ports were? i wanna record!

Originally posted by scott12v
Just one tuner. The two-tuner version won't be available until late summer or fall (that's in general, not sure about Pittsburgh).

The charge is $9.95 for the DVR feature, but I'm not sure if that includes the box rental or if that is an additional charge (I don't even know if there was a box rental charge for the 5100???) I'll check my bill, but it will probably be a while before I get it.

I have played with the box a little more, and I've got to say that I'm more impressed than I thought I would be. I am a TIVO user, and this can't touch the TIVO's user interface, but it is a lot closer than I thought it would be.

I get mine Thursday (Imperial area) - Comcast is charging 39.99 for installation (I don't like that as all they are doing is swapping out my other HD box from them), but I think the 9.95 is a reasonable price for the DVR part.

I was able to pick mine up at their office and skip the $39.99 charge. They are open on Saturdays, so its not a big deal to run up there and get it (it took less than 5 minutes once I got there).

Hmmmmmmmm they told me they HAD to come install, I asked the same thing. I work in TV production, I think I know how to hook up a component source.

Keep the reports coming on your experiences with the 6208. I think I'd like to go swap my 5100 some time, but I may wait a couple months.

They'd better let me swap it and install myself, because it's a trivial thing to do. Failing that they'd better waive the installation fee if they want to get additional monthly revenue from me.

On another topic, what's the likelihood that Sinclair-owned WPGH-53 will start doing HD when Fox throws the switch this summer/fall? What's the chances they would be on Comcast if they did? It's going to get ugly if we get no Fox NFL HD for awhile, and once again the Super Bowl looms.

There is no reason not to upgrade from a 5100 to a 6208. The 6208 has been more stable for me...it never locks up whereas my 5100 would lock up every couple of weeks. And with the DVR features it should be a no brainer. :) About the only thing that would make it worse than a 5100 is the noise level - the 5100 is virtually silent and the 6208 has a fan.

I'm crossing my fingers about Sinclair going HD but it's not very likely at all given their past track record. :(

Thanks for the comments. The only reason I may wait on upgrading is that with vacation and otherwise being busy I may have little use for time-shifting HD for awhile. No sense paying an additional $10 for little or no use of the feature.

It would be nice to get a two-tuner model. I wonder if they will charge more for that when it comes out or just replace the 6208 model at no additional charge.

Originally posted by agtiny
About the only thing that would make it worse than a 5100 is the noise level - the 5100 is virtually silent and the 6208 has a fan.
:(


Agtiny,
Since you mention it, what about that fan. When I was with Dish, all the people who had the receiver with the OTA tuner always complained about the fan noise. Some even tried modifying it. :(

If I have this 6208 behind glass doors, will I still hear it? Of course this is subjective, but how do you feel about this fan?

Well right now we don't have the 6208 enclosed at all, and we have 2 laptops in the same room which tend to produce more noise than the 6208 since they are closer to the couch. I've also got an HTPC next to it but it is quieter. If the 6208 was the only noise source in the room it might be annoying. Some of the time the fan runs at a slower speed at a much lower volume. I'm planning on getting an enclosed component case with glass doors but I don't know how much that will muffle the noise. Noise isn't the reason we're getting one - it's for child proofing - so any noise reduction is just an added bonus.

My wife works at WPGH. It's pretty much set in stone they will be pushing HD by time NFL rolls around, and WCWB will be HD shortly.

!!! Woo, an insider. :)

Well, it's actually pretty common knowledge even though that she works there. I work in TV as well (I freelance in sports), we all knew in December.

Ok, folks...I got my box Thursday. Anyone else think the HD channels are grainy? ESPNHD looked especially bad tonight during Sunday Night Baseball.

It was a painless swap with the 5100 at the Comcast store front. Installation was 2 minutes and I do see improvement in some areas. The channel response is faster and smoked glass does not effect a remote from across the room like before.

The fan is there, but to tell the truth, behind glass it can only be heard when everything is off. Even then it is quite acceptable; I was worried about that.

Has anyone figured out a use for the HD Zoom button?

This is an upgrade that really works. I figure that I'll watch TV with the direct antennae input when I get in a pinch for needing to record one and watch another (unless they are both HD and I'm screwed.

This thread is so quiet it's like a funeral parlor! Can anyone write something about a HD rumor, gossip, or tell an amusing anecdote? Is there nothing going on with Comcast HD in Pittsburgh?

I have sent email to every address I could find for WPXI but I never got any replies. I also notice that Pittsburgh is not on the list of cities already to launch Fox HD. That wasn't much news was it?

The only news that I have is that I STILL don't have InHD 1 or 2. This is driving me crazy. Apparently the Ross headend needs to be upgraded before they will add these channels.

Originally posted by wstanko

This is an upgrade that really works. I figure that I'll watch TV with the direct antennae input when I get in a pinch for needing to record one and watch another (unless they are both HD and I'm screwed.

The 6208 has an OTA antenna input? Are they available in Pittsburgh yet? I may have to call to see what is available

Originally posted by wstanko
This thread is so quiet it's like a funeral parlor! Can anyone write something about a HD rumor, gossip, or tell an amusing anecdote? Is there nothing going on with Comcast HD in Pittsburgh?

I have sent email to every address I could find for WPXI but I never got any replies. I also notice that Pittsburgh is not on the list of cities already to launch Fox HD. That wasn't much news was it?

I got a reply from WPXI when I emailed to gm@wpxi.com I sent my email back in Dec '03. Only reply I got was that HD brodcasting will begin real soon (I guess real soon means a few years??)

Originally posted by WRL
The 6208 has an OTA antenna input? Are they available in Pittsburgh yet? I may have to call to see what is available

No, all you can do is run coax from the RF passthrough out to a TV, but this simply displays the currently tuned channel. It's not a true bypass, i.e. you can't tune to any analog channel. To do that, you need to split the line prior to entering the 6208. The 6208 doesn't have any working inputs aside from the cable line.

Originally posted by WRL
The 6208 has an OTA antenna input? Are they available in Pittsburgh yet? I may have to call to see what is available

The 6208 has been available in Pittsburgh since 4/15. It does not have an OTA antenna input.

Greetings -

Thanks for this informative thread. I'm new to the forum, having just purchased my hd-capable TV 2 days ago. It's a 32" sony - went with that rather than the widescreen because my family watches mostly 4:3 content and I couldn't stand any of the zoom or stretch modes...(The 34" sony would have been great, but it doesn't fit in the cabinet, and the 30" gave smaller 4:3 pictures than my old 27" Wega...so, I picked the 32 hoping as an improvement in both 4:3 and 16:9 for now...will go full widescreen with the next TV in a few years)...ANYWAY, I'm hoping all of you more knowledgable and more experienced folks can help me with a question.

I just picked up my Motorola 6208 HD receiver / DVR yesterday from Comcast (saved the hookup fee and 2-week wait ;-). I also have Comcast for phone and broadband ... hookup was easy EXCEPT...

The picture quality of the signal going through the box then to the TV is not as good as the signal going directly to the TV... Both are fairly grainy and not quite as good as I had hoped, but it's just plain better if i bypass the box altogether. Of course, if I do that, I don't get the channels above 100...and that's not exactly the point... The HD channels look great - really great - by the way. The rest of the channels look crummy, though.

I know that I didn't buy a digital TV to watch analog channels, but I was hoping it'd be a bit better, and I can't figure out why the signal is better if i bypass the box. I'm using component cables from the box to the TV, and, at least for now, I've split the signal before the box so I can have the slightly higher quality analog signals when tuning the lower channels without having to mess with the box.

Does anybody have any thoughts?

Also, I know that the users on the forum are cable customers, but do any of you have input about which system would give better quality in our area...cable vs. directv vs. zoom?

Thanks much! If there's already a thread on this, sorry about that...
Scott

Allison Park

Analog just plain looks like garbage. SD digital channels aren't much better. If you want better quality on the mainstream cable channels (<100) you have to go with satellite. Hopefully cable will go all-digital one of these days. Your TV probably does handle the analog channels better than the 6208, so if it's convenient for you to switch and use the TV's input for those, you should do it. We don't bother because it's a pain and of course we need the DVR feature on every channel. Enjoy the HD channels. :)

Just noticed this from the AVS - Programming moderator. Wonder if we will be getting this new channel soon.

Comcast & Discovery sign HD deal!
I have received word that the deal between Comcast & Discovery is complete.

In some areas, expect to see Discovery HD on Comcast in the next week.

In other areas, it could take up to 30 days, due to local agreements.

Worse case it could take longer, dependent on making bandwidth available.

Also included in the agreement is SD Discovery On Demand.

agtiny - thx much for the quick reply. i've found a bit more info on other forums, etc., stating that the 6208 ends up digitizing everything for the dvr, so that's why we take another quality hit. bummer.

you said that satellite would give us better pictures for the low number channels - i'm willing to make the switch (though I hear it'd be a while before i could get installed...ugh)...but i'm having trouble finding adequate info on the picture quality issues with satellite -- or which companies seem to perform better in our area...can you or others point me in the right direction?

also, i'm new at this...so... just gonna state it one more time to make sure i understood... satellite, like directv or voom, will give better quality picture for the regular (non-HD) channels... provided signal strength is good, etc... of course, then i need an OTA antenna for local channels, etc., and it's not as convenient as my cable box... (Also, it seems that D* doesn't have a DVR-model for the HD receiver, but I may have read that wrong..., and Voom doesn't seem to have a DVR/PVR at all at this point).

Still, but, i bought the HD-capable TV for picture quality, and I do love that clear picture... SO, if quality were my #1 most important criterion, does it seem that I should be looking seriously at a dish?

thanks much - sorry for the newbie Qs...

S

OK, satellite is completely digital, so all channels are MPEG-2 with nothing left as analog. The quality of all non-HD channels on satellite will be comparable to your digital cable channels (on my system it's channels >400). It will of course vary depending on how much bandwidth is assigned to each channel. Also, with satellite you'll have to buy your own DVR box (~$1000 for an HD-Tivo). There are probably deals but I wouldn't know. I am waiting to see what kind of DVR product Voom puts out and the cost, and then I might consider going back to satellite (I used to have DirecTV).

Excellent - thanks much! Just what I needed to know. Decided to start out by checking calibration on the TV (got a calibration disc and service manual, just for fun) and trying a service call on my cable to check strength before abandoning ship (was a relatively easy decision since satellite doesn't seem to be the best option for other reasons). Meanwhile, I do love that HD signal ;-) Thanks again,
Scott

Originally posted by jsyaruss
I just picked up my Motorola 6208 HD receiver / DVR yesterday from Comcast (saved the hookup fee and 2-week wait ;-). I also have Comcast for phone and broadband ... hookup was easy EXCEPT...

Where is the Comcast office located? I'm in Shadyside.

mds

Probably the Corliss office would be closest for you. Get on 51 North to the Corliss Tunnel, it's on your right.

Thank you.

mds

Did anyone read Comcast's one page ad in the Post-Gazette this morning? I usually scan the ad hoping to see something new about HD and today I did.

"HDTV--More HD programming than Directv and Dish Network. Get up to 11 channels of High-Definition programming including the Steelers games on CBS!"

That exclamation mark is not mine, it is in the ad. Now I know that there is an occasional CBS HD game available from time to time. Does this mean that all games are going to be in HD????

I had to call Comcast for information and I was prepared to do some serious complaining that they could not explain their own ad. It took awhile, and the CSR even asked for the page number of the ad before they went into caucus. After 5 minutes she told me that (are you ready for this??) all 13 Steeler games on CBS are HD!!! but if they are on any other channel, they will be SD. That would be two on Fox and one Sunday ESPN. Figure that?

Well I will believe this when I see it on my Hitachi. I also asked her to get an explanation as to why the Olympics are not going to be on Comcast's HD lineup and an update on Fox signing on.

She indicated that WPXI is rushing to make the deadline and be in the lineup before the Olympics begin and there is no word on Fox. How about that sports fans.

That would be awesome, but the fact that she didn't know Fox, ABC, and ESPN would also be HD makes me wonder... I'm sure we'll be seeing a CBS announcement very soon though.

Wstanko, I cannot believe how clueless that CSR was. The only way ALL of the Steelers game will be HD on CBS is if they are the "A" game each week. Not gonna happen.

They wouldn't even be HD every week if they were a FOX team. Gotta love Customer Support.

I have Comcast and live in Greensburg. I was wondering if anyone else has problems with KDKA-HD (782). I get quite a bit of pixelation and audio dropouts with that channel, but not on the others. Since it is only that channel I didn't know if it is a problem with Comcast or CBS or maybe me. I have both INHD's, HBO HD, ABC HD, Discovery HD, PBS HD - Those all work fine with no dropouts at all. When I go to diagnostics on my 6200, the 5 second correctable errors for CBS averages around 400-500. The other channels are 000. (sometimes HBO shows some, but never a problem with the picture.) I had Comcast check the signal strength and they said it was good.

Just wondered if I was the only one with CBS dropouts.

I posted in the general Pittsburgh HDTV thread also about this.

Tonight's and tomorrow's Giants at Pirates games are in HDTV on FSN Bay Area via Comcast in the Bay Area. (InHD2 is pre-empted for these games.)

Are the games being shown in HD in Pittsburgh also? FSN?

I am also curious as to which truck is being used for the HD feed. I assume that FSN Bay Area is borrowing an HD video feed from the Pirates, but could it be that FSN Bay Area is providing its own HD truck?

Here's to hoping you guys can also see these games in HD via Comcast.

No, the game is not in HD on FSN Pittsburgh. Actually, we are doing both shows out of one single truck, Mountain Mobile's 9HDX. The Pittsburgh show does work with HD cameras, tape machines, etc, but we can't clear the games in HD on Comcast as of yet. Basically, FSN Bay Area shares video feeds from us and supplements with their own cameras. They have a small production switcher that is an M/E bank taken from the main switcher.

Thanks, Mark. Interesting stuff!

New Channel Lineup Question...

I received the "we're adding great new channels" flyer in the mail today. In the second paragraph, it says "We are also rearranging our channel lineup. In order to receive these newly added channels, and previously added channels, you will need to move to one of our new digital packages.

Does everyone's flyer say this? The reason that I ask is that I am a former AT&T customer (I guess we all are?) and I am still billed under one of AT&T's plans. I believe that the plan that I currently have is very favorable. I get all of the digital channels, the HD DVR, Starz, HBO, and Cable Internet for $116. I have the digital phone discount (digital phone is on a different bill). I'm not sure that I could even come close to this price if I call mess with my plan. The last couple of times I called, they tried to get me to switch plans but I refused.

So, my question is, does everyone's flyer say that you need to call and change plans, or is this something that was just sent to those of us that are on AT&T's old plan?

Either way, I'm crossing my fingers and hoping that this means that those of us in the North Hills will FINALLY get InHD1, InHD2, and DiscoveryHD. I'm tired of being jealous of people that live 5 miles away for having those channels.

Thanks,
Scott

Scott, I didn't receive the flyer yet, but I did get a message from Comcast on my digital box the other day saying that at the end of August (30th or 31st I think?) The channel line up would change, and to refer to the channel guide when this happens to find your favorite channels. That's all it said though, they didn't mention any new channels on the message.

I live in Glenshaw (Shaler area) not far from the North Hills, and I don't get inHD1, inHD2 or discovery HD either. I sure hope we get them! I'm keeping my fingers crossed. If I hear anything about having to change digital plans I'll post it.

Ed

Mark ---


Do you have any idea what it's going to take for us to be able to see FSN Pittsburgh in HD on Comcast? Or when? I'd love for it to go HD, but it just doesn't seem like anyone is interested in making that happen anytime soon (not Comcast, Fox, etc.) So overall I'm curious about how likely a FSN-Pittsburgh HD channel is.


Dan

No idea, Dan, sorry. I am not involved in any of that decision making. I do not know if discussions are happening, etc. I am just the occasional messenger.

Thanks for the quick reply, Mark. Fox seems to play their cards pretty close to their chest with HD stuff. It's hard to know what's going on, if not impossible. They anounce HD FSN a while back, and then... nothing. At least, not here. But you never know when Fox is going to pull something big out of their hats with HD, too.

It'd be so sweet if all the Pirates home games next year were HD, though! We'd have a solid team AND HD. Wow.


Dan

To Joeyd27

You are NOT the only person experencing the KDKA HD problem. I also live in the Greensburg area (N.Huntingdon). I called Comcast on Fri. and told them about KDKA breaking up and the audio drop outs as well. I was also having Showtime HD breaking up as well. And on Thursday night, several of the HD channels were posting the famous "this channel should be available shortly". So I called Fri. morning. There response was " NO one alse has called, must be a personal problem!!! I have 2 HD boxes, and the exact same thing was happening on BOTH boxes (one in livingroom/one in bedroom). Besides, it didn't take much to realize that signals were NOT available or the transmissions were bad. Bottom line, Comcast never wants to admit it is there system, it must always be the box.

About 8 months ago, they were having a real problem with 4 of the HD channels and discovered after I called and threatened to notify the headquaters in the Philly area about there lack of fixing the problem, that I all of a sudden I actually received an early morning SUNDAY phone call from their lead tech in Greensburg( Brian), that they discovered a failed circuit in the system at Greensburg. He was really very greatful for me pushing it to finally being repaired.

You have to call and be pushy!!!

And guys, here is some other useful info:

1. WPXI is owned by Cox Communications, who has its own cable company. They are holding out for some big money, to allow Comcast to air what are already free OTA signals!!! I actually spoke to the engineer at WPXI about a month ago, hoping to see some of the Olympics in HD. He told me that his station is in NO hurry to allow Comcast to broadcast their signals and screw them up. How about that for a mind set!!!

2. If your analog or HD signals got alittle worst lately, it may be the firmware update to 7.15. If you check other forum sites, you will discover that members in Philly and Atlanta have been complaining about the newer firmware making many of the channels worst than what they were. Members in Atlanta are reporting that Comcast there have gone back to 7.07!!!

3. The lead tech, Brian, from Comcast in Greensburg has also told me that they are having problems with the 6208 box. Analog programming NOT as good, and people using the DVI out have had there boxes shut down!!! Also picture quality on the DVI out, NOT as good as using component out!!! He said he personally returned his 6208 for the 6200 he had upgraded from. I have NOT had the shutdown using the DVI out, but my component out actually is a more coroful and sharper picture. I have kept my 6208, because of the DVR.

4. In late fall or early winter the new 6412 HD box will be available. It will have a 2 tuner setup. Can actually watch a different channel than you are taping.

5. And according to my home theater speciality store, they also highly recommend, spliting the cable signal. One directly to the TV for analog viewing, and one to the cable box. That is what I have done. You get better analog that way, and through the component input we can use the DVR and watch all channels (digital, HD, etc.)

6. And finally, about 2 pages back someone was possibly going to switch to satellite when they finally have TIVO, etc. It just happened: both Direct TV and Dish Network have the boxes that have 2 tuners, OTA input and DVR. They must be purchased from both companies (NO rental on these) for $999.99. There are reviews in Sound and Vision, and you can go to Radio Shack and find out how it all works!!! Good Luck!!!

He told me that his station is in NO hurry to allow Comcast to broadcast their signals and screw them up. How about that for a mind set!!!

Tom,

I saw this posted in a another thread on this forum (I'm not sure if it was you or someone else) so I e-mailed the engineering department at WPXI and this is the response that I got:

"I don’t know the status of the negotiations between WPXI and Comcast at this time, but I can assure you that the issue is not the quality of the signal on Comcast. We are convinced that Comcast can deliver a very good HD signal.

We are as anxious to see WPXI-DT on Comcast Cable as you are; however, there are a few fundamental business issues that still need to be resolved. "

The e-mail was signed from the Director of Engineering (although I'm not sure if that is actually as impressive as it sounds).

Scott

Scott,

I can only tell you what transspired during our phone conversation. I will tell you that I do NOT remember his name, but he announced to me that he was in charge of the engineering department. As he stated to you, he also stated to me that negoiations have been on going for some time. I can then assure you, that he tried very hard to convince me to pick up WPXI by using an OTA. He stated very emphatically that he was not that interested in WPXI going with Comcast!!! If he told you something else, then he is NOT truthful with one of us. He DID state that he has seen Comcast's broadcasts of the other local channels, and that he was not interested in Comcast messing up the signals!!! He expressed very little interest in Pittsburgh consumers getting his HD signal through Comcast.

He and I quickly discussed how WTAE has a weak digital audio signal, and at times KDKA breaks up into pixelation. He did NOT want this happening to WPXI, and having viewers call to complain, which I have done with WTAE's very low digital signal(in which the engineer there explained what the problem was, and they truly are trying to solve it. That was just last week). As you probably know by now, neither cable nor tv station wants to admit that the problems are from their end. WTAE did!!!

I will stand by my factual phone conversation. Have NO reason to distribute falsehoods. I am a teacher by profession for 35 years, and have been a home theater fanatic since its inception. Have one of the first laser discs players ever made by Pioneer. During the summer and other free time, I also install home theaters. Am very much up on latest technology. I can guarantee you that a gentlemen who works for these stations are not always up on how to work the technology. I have been using 2 HD boxes from Comcast since they were available from them. On the initial install, Comcast insisted that they had to install the box and verify you had a HD TV!!! You know what the best part was??? The trained "tech" was going to use standard A/V cables for component!!! I had already purchased Monster component cables, and used them. I ended up installing the entire system to my home theater setup, while he took notes!!!!!!!

Oh well, enough. One last thought: the engineer at WTAE said the real problem at their station, they are not sure how to broadcast the signal. He is worried that if they use their available 5.1 discrete, then all the other viewers who have just Dolby Pro-logic will not be able to the sound as well either. This is exactly how he explained it to me. I tried to make him aware that most new receievers in the last year have PIIc, and that will help those viewers if they know how to use it. This gentlemen, Dave was thankful for my call and info. and promised WTAE would get it solved quickly.

Sorry, Scott, but I forgot one more thing. That fundamental issue he claims they have not resolved yet??? Check out the stations owner. It is Cox Communications (also cable comp.). They really are holding out for big money for free OTA signals. They did the same thing to NBC station in San Francisco!!!

I'm pretty sure it's not the engineer's decision whether or not his channel gets carried by a certain cable company. On Armstrong we have very few problems, and I've never seen any problems on WTAE or KDKA like you describe. I've seen poor picture quality on WPXI during the Olympics but so have many others so it's probably a source issue. Is WPXI still multicasting? If they are, this engineer should be more worried about that screwing up their signal than Comcast.

Tom, I'm not disputing what you said and I am certainly not accusing you of "distributing falsehoods". I absolutely believe that's exactly what he told you.

I am doing nothing more than relaying what the engineer told me. My e-mail was from 8/18. Either their viewpoint has changed since your phone conversation or we are communicating with two different engineers.

Here is the entire e-mail thread that I had with the engineer. I removed his name and e-mail address because I'm not sure it should be posted on a public forum. Obviously my question is at the bottom, so start there and read backwards.

Scott


Scott,

I don’t know the status of the negotiations between WPXI and Comcast at this time, but I can assure you that the issue is not the quality of the signal on Comcast. We are convinced that Comcast can deliver a very good HD signal.

We are as anxious to see WPXI-DT on Comcast Cable as you are; however, there are a few fundamental business issues that still need to be resolved.

Thanks for your note.

[Name Removed]
Director of Engineering

-----Original Message-----
From: [e-mail removed]
Sent: Wednesday, August 18, 2004 3:10 PM
To: engineering@wpxi.com
Subject: [Engineering]: HD Signal over Comcast?


Is there a timeframe for when you will allow the Comcast (Pittsburgh) to broadcast your HD signal?

The rumor is that you are worried that Comcast will mess up the HD signal and will result in unhappy customers. I really hope this is nothing more than a rumor. I get KDKA and WTAE on Comcast and the picture is identical to the same broadcasts over-the-air.

Thank You,

Scott [Name Removed]


BTW, I rarely (if ever) see poor signal quality on KDKA or on WTAE over Comcast.

KDKA signal does breaks up a lot on HD channel, 782 in the Greensburg market. Check the top of this last page, and you will see that another member (joeyd27) in the Greensburg area has stated the same problem. He asks, " is any one else having a problem with KDKA-782"? I responded that I also live in the Greensburg area, and been experiencing the same dropout problems, and that you have to call Comcast and let them know. You can even have your complaint forwarded to the lead tech, Brian (in the Greensburg office), who does try to solve issues quickly as he has done for me before.

As far as WTAE, I never said there was a problem with their PQ, it is their audio being so low that you have to crank up the volume when viewing HD program, and then when they go to advertisements or Channel 4 promos, the volume is exceptionally loud. In this case, the engineer, Dan, not Dave as stated above, did very well acknowledge that this signal problem was taking place. That is why I credit him for stating that they were working on it and thought they would have it solved soon. He also stated that he appreciates viewer phone calls about any problems viewers may experience, HD or otherwise. When calling WTAE, he said all you have to do is ask for Dan in engineering. If he not available at that moment, leave voice mail as I did, and would return calls ASAP. I got a call back in about 20-25 mins.

KDKA and HBO break up very often. KDKA is the worst, by far. I noticed both of those channels are on the same Inbound Frequency (555.0000 MHz). Those are the only HD channels on that frequency.
They are changing all the channels around at the end of the month and I was hoping that might fix it. If not, then that's when I'm going to start calling and complaining.

OK, it's August 31st, my channel numbers have been switched, but I'm missing 205 (Discovery HD), 206 & 207 (INHD & INHD2). Comcast tech support said they sent a signal to my boxes, should reload the channels, but they're still missing. Anyone in the North Hills getting these channels yet?

Originally posted by daverph1
OK, it's August 31st, my channel numbers have been switched, but I'm missing 205 (Discovery HD), 206 & 207 (INHD & INHD2). Comcast tech support said they sent a signal to my boxes, should reload the channels, but they're still missing. Anyone in the North Hills getting these channels yet?

You never got them before right? It looks like we get screwed again. I was really hoping they would come through with the channel re-alignment, but I wasn't holding my breath.

Please post if your call to tech support fixes anything. I'll check the channels when I get home, but I'm pretty sure that Wexford and McCandless are on the same head-ends, so I doubt that I'm getting them either.

Same thing here in Glenshaw. No DiscoveryHD, INHD1 or INHD2. What a bummer. I was really trying not to get my hopes up but I'm still disappointed.

Called again later yesterday afternoon, was told that channels should be on the box by that evening. That CSR said that the new HD channels should be available to my account. This morning, still no channels, called tech support again. They sent a reset signal to the box, still no channels. Scheduled a service call for tomorrow am, so I may not find out anything till then. If this turns out to be the SOS - ie they haven't upgraded their equipment yet - then it will be "I'm mad as hell and I'm not gonna take it anymore" time.

Good luck Dave, please let us know how it turns out.

Its good to see that someone still has the motivation to keep after them (because I certainly don't!)

If you get the opportunity, make sure to mention to them that it is not just you that doesn't have the channels...but that it appears to be everyone in the North Hills.

Well, it turns out the problem was at my end - I had the wrong channel lineup brochure that they sent out to my home. How stupid of me! (This in spite of the fact that the second telephone rep I had called made a point of looking at my account on the system and telling me that yes, I should get those channels). My cable guy, who was quite good, gave me a copy of the correct guide, which is labelled "Castle Shannon/Ross 08/04". In that guide, not only do we not get Discovery HD, INHD & INHD2, we also do not get:
124 Goodlife TV
273 NBA TV
PPV channels
506 Hot Choice
539 Urban X
700 ESPNow
701 - 705 ESPN Game Plan/Full Court
749 NBA TV
750 NBA PC
751-761 NBA Games
771-780 NHL Center Ice/ MLB Extra Innings

The reason we don't get these is "not enough bandwidth". The guy who came to my house was nice enough to call his supervisor, who explained to me that the "amplifiers need to be upgraded". I asked for a HQ number and person that I could call, he couldn't find it, but did give me his service manager's name and number, and told me he would call me back with the HQ number in 10 minutes (which he hasn't done yet). In talking to the guy at my house, he told me that the problem is not at the 'head-end', but with individual amplifiers and taps that need to be replaced and are spaced about every 1000 feet along the fiber network.

I don't know about the rest of you out there, but I'm going to make the follow up calls as high as I can go, and also call the borough people in charge of the contract. In the meantime, if you are missing these channels and want them, putting in a service call to find out why will most likely get you an in-home visit until the telephone people get a clue. If any of you want the phone numbers of the supervisory people I have, PM me, as I couldn't find out by searching the forums if the forum rules prohibit posting names +/- numbers. If anyone has contact numbers for Comcast HQ, please either post them or PM me with them so I can pass them along.

I'm not sure that complaining about missing the 'free' HD and SD channels is going to do much, but I know that I will surely miss the NHL Center Ice and NBA packages, (that I paid for last year on D*) enough to call comcast to ask why I can't purchase them. And gee, I still have my dish on my roof and HD Sat receiver in my theatre (to get WPXI HD, but that's another topic...), and what is DirectTV's number, ma'am?. I'd be willing to bet there are several hundred other people out there who feel the same way, and are probably getting ready to pick up the phone and call comcast to order them, and maybe MLB extra innings as well.

Time to stop ranting and start making phone calls...
Dave

Dave, thanks for doing this. I've never been one to be a squeaky wheel, so I'm very glad that there is somebody out there that is willing to follow up on this.

I think approaching it from the NHL and NBA packages is a good idea. If they see they are losing revenue, then it will make more of an impact.

Scott

Oops, I forgot to mention email methods. I filled out a request here http://www.comcast.com/ContactUs/customerservice.asp with the following:
"I wanted to buy the MLB extra innings that are now showing on my new line-up card, but the channels don't show up on my box. Also, Discovery HD is on the card but won't come up on the box either. When will these be available?"

To which I received a very quick reply from the Pittsburgh Customer Care:

"Thank you for contacting us regarding your Comcast cable service.

MLB Extra Innings and the Discovery Channel in High Definition are not
yet made available in your area. We are working diligently to upgrade
cable lines to present them to you soon. (emphasis mine)

For your convenience, I have attached a current channel line-up card for
your area to this email.

For Your Information: The MLB Extra Innings is a subscription service
that runs annually April 12 thru Sept 5. This year the full season
price was $169.00 and the half season which began July 12 was $119.00.

If you need further assistance, please feel free to respond directly to
this email. We appreciate you taking the time to contact us.

Sincerely,
(name withheld to protect the innocent)
Comcast Customer Care Specialist"

To which I sent:

"(name withheld to protect the innocent),
Thank you for replying so quickly.
I recently switched to comcast from DirecTV, and had purchased the MLB subscription in the past as well as the NFL, NHL and NBA subscriptions. I was excited to see that most of these would be available when i got the channel line-up in the mail before the august 31st channel changes. To hear that they are not available is bad news indeed.

You mention that the upgrade will be available soon. When might i expect this? The reason i am asking is i still have my satellite dish and receivers (mostly because of wpxi hd), and i wouldn't hesitate to switch back to the dish for those subscriptions if comcast will not have them available for me.

Very Sincerely,
Dave"

I can guarantee you that I can't conduct this campaign on my own. Any other wheels out there who can start squeaking?
Dave

PS In case anyone needs it here is the 'correct' line-up in pdf that she sent to me