BoB: thanks for the update,hope Comcast will add UPN-28 in the foreseeable future. mgpt6.

Thanks for the help, Bob. I hope to see an improvement soon. And Happy whatever to you.

SMK

Does anyone get Dolby Digital 5.1 out of WCVB? All I get is DD 2.0 with Pro Logic II.

I tried contacting them through their web site to ask about it, but they don't have an appropriate address to send technical questions to.

Originally Posted by mgpt6
Bob, any word if Comcast is going to pick up UPN 28-DT in Bristol County since we don't have UPN 38-DT here? Thanks.

UPN 28 comes in easily OTA. If you have OTA capability, point your antenna towards Rehoboth.

"Does anyone get Dolby Digital 5.1 out of WCVB? All I get is DD 2.0 with Pro Logic II."

Yes, occasionally, IIRC. But, last night's Pats game wasn't. Also, I was surprised that there were no posts about 64.1 WNAC-DT not showing this afternoon's game between the Giants and Panthers in HD, even though it was listed in the guide as HD and 25.1 WFXT-DT showed it in HD. This is not the first time I've seen this situation, and makes me appreciate the fact that I can get two local OTA stations showing the same programming. If it wasn't the case, I'd be alot more upset about the quality and consistency of HD broadcasting.

I only got HDTV reception in November (via D*TV H10), so I'm relatively new to the experience, but, it seems awfully immature in terms of professionally produced broadcasting like one is used to seeing on the networks and cable stations.

I'm in Westport, and get 17 separate stations (35 total channels) OTA. A couple of years ago the local Circuit City rep told me because of my location I could expect one, WLNE-DT. The D*TV tech installing my H10 forgot to bring the OTA antenna. I asked him what I would get OTA if I had an antenna, and he said only one, WLNE-DT. I put an antenna in the attic over my garage and was amazed at what is actually out there. Having read all the old posts about the U.S. picking the wrong broadcasting scheme (Sinclair's protests and all), together with what these supposedly knowledgable people were telling me, I expected little. How come it's so hard to find good info when you want to explore OTA HD?

That is funny. Last night the pats game had full 5.1 surround for me. The audio was phenomenal!

And now that I am thinking about it, it may have actually been NBC that I have the dolby digital issue with. When Invasion is on on Wednesday, I'll know for sure. :)

That is funny. Last night the pats game had full 5.1 surround for me. The audio was phenomenal!

And now that I am thinking about it, it may have actually been NBC that I have the dolby digital issue with. When Invasion is on on Wednesday, I'll know for sure. :)

Also had great 5.1 for the Pats/Jags but using a cablecard and not OTA.

I am getting no reception of WFXT-DT (Fox 25's HD station). It was working fine over the weekend. All other stations look OK (including all HD stations and Fox 25's SD station). Is anyone else seeing this?

I am getting no reception of WFXT-DT (Fox 25's HD station). It was working fine over the weekend. All other stations look OK (including all HD stations and Fox 25's SD station). Is anyone else seeing this?

It's back now, but it was down for at least 30 minutes (I can't be sure exactly how long, because I kept switching back to it).

From AntennaWeb:
red - uhf WLVI-DT 56.1 WB CAMBRIDGE MA 116° 2.9 41

I'm getting WFXT-DT with some signal drops (they appear to be on the same tower), but I cannot get WLVI (WB). I'm using the RS 15-1880 on my Samsung HLR 42" DLP, and the WB is the only other station that I want, but can't get. Any thoughts? I know I read in this thread that the WB and fox can't use a high enough signal strength as they would like, might this be the reason I can't get the WB?

Thanks.

I have similar issues. Once in a while, I will get both 25 and 56 but often one of them will not come in. I don't quite understand why they seem to be mutually exclusive so often. If I understand correrctly, 56 tower is in Cambridge and 25 tower is in Needham. I have spent umteen hours adjusting my antenna and bazillion trips going from attic to basement. Now I am scared even to go near the anenna!

- Vikas

Many pages ago on this Thread its mentioned that FOX is broadcasting on low power do to FCC issues with some station in Canada. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Many pages ago on this Thread its mentioned that FOX is broadcasting on low power do to FCC issues with some station in Canada. Correct me if I'm wrong.

You are 100% right

My understanding is that WLVI-DT is attenuated somewhat to the NNW so as not to interfere with WVTA (Windsor, VT) - both on channel 41.

_Paul

This sucks. 24 is starting up this weekend and because of the worry of some interference to a station far away, I am stuck watching it on satellite. I can just about get 25 digital, but the signal is just not strong enough. I can get 38 digital on occasion, but I never watch that.

I understand that the FOX station can't go to 1000kw, but why not increase it up to at least 500kw?

I finally broke down and purchased antenna signal boosterform Radio Shack for $35. So now, I have invested $25 (antennae) + $20(mounting hardware) + $35(booster) with the $90 HDTuner. If I had known about this before, I would have just gone for one of the LG QAM tuner :-( I am already paying Comcast lot of money.

With the singal booster, I was able to get both Fox and WB better than before. However, I still had signal dropout on Fox saturday night. Fortunately, yesterday's season 25 was great and I had zero problems with the reception.

Radio Shack has only one in-line powered signal booster for $35. I can suggest you try it and if it does not work, return it for full credit from your local friendly RS store.

- Vikas

:( Had a houseful of people for the football game on Fox followed by season opener of 24. Virtually no signal from Fox and we had t owatch it on analog satellite :( :( .
Fox has never been a problem before - WHDH 7 does have winter dropout issues for us historically but not WFXT.

How long has the low power transmission been taking place? Just trying to eliminate the variables.Thanks for replying.

I'm on the west side of Worcester (31 mi from the antenna), and I had zero issues with 24 coming in last night. 24 had Fox's normal noisy broadcast, but I only saw one blip in the signal all night.


My Channel Master 4228 antenna is in my attic, and I use a Channel Master 7775 UHF 26db amplifier.

This amplifier replaced my Winegard UHF amplifier. The winegard worked very well most of the time. But this Channel Master has been flawless in almost all situations. The one exception was a rainstorm last week during the Invasion broadcast that knocked out my reception.

If you have issues with reception, I would suggest trying a different amplifier. It can make all the difference in the world. And I would suggest getting this CM7775.

If you guys are closer than I am to the antennas, or if you have your antenna mounted outside, I now have a Winegard AP4800 28db amp for sale. :) Like I said, it worked very well most of the time. I had some signal dropouts occasionally. But I was asking a lot from it since the antenna was in my attic (cuts reception in half).

I finally broke down and purchased antenna signal boosterform Radio Shack for $35. So now, I have invested $25 (antennae) + $20(mounting hardware) + $35(booster) with the $90 HDTuner. If I had known about this before, I would have just gone for one of the LG QAM tuner :-( I am already paying Comcast lot of money.

With the singal booster, I was able to get both Fox and WB better than before. However, I still had signal dropout on Fox saturday night. Fortunately, yesterday's season 25 was great and I had zero problems with the reception.

Radio Shack has only one in-line powered signal booster for $35. I can suggest you try it and if it does not work, return it for full credit from your local friendly RS store.

- Vikas

My current setup is a 4228 some 40 feet above ground, with a mast mounted RS preamp. I'm able to get all the other stations out of needham, but FOX continue's to elude me. I don't know if it's worth putting up a 2nd 4228 on top of the first one though.

[QUOTE=vgs86]I have similar issues. Once in a while, I will get both 25 and 56 but often one of them will not come in. I don't quite understand why they seem to be mutually exclusive so often. If I understand correrctly, 56 tower is in Cambridge and 25 tower is in Needham. I have spent umteen hours adjusting my antenna and bazillion trips going from attic to basement. Now I am scared even to go near the anenna!

Both channels are on the UHF candleabra in Needham along with WSBK analog. I believe Cambridge is just the city of license. The lower power on UHF 41 and a higher adjacent on UHF 42 may be giving you some problems.

http://www.bostonradio.org/stations/73238.html

http://www.bostonradio.org/stations/6463.html

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

HI everyone. I was hoping someone could help me with an OTA antenna selection. After looking it up on antennaweb.org I am roughly 13 or so miles from the tower and the antenna type is red. That being said, what antenna do you suggest I get? This is where I am clueless... What antennas would you recommend for outside??

inside??

Thanks alot I really appreciate your help. newbie

Radioshack sells a $25 UHF Yagi. That's what I use here in Lowell. I pull in 2,4,5,7, 9,25,38,44,50 and a few Spanish channels.

Does anyone here have an OTA TVGOS?
I'm trying to determine why my TVGOS is not working and I wonder if it is due to analog channels the data packets are contained within.
FWIW, I pull in PBS 44 analog great, but not ch 2 nor ch 11.

My current setup is a 4228 some 40 feet above ground, with a mast mounted RS preamp. I'm able to get all the other stations out of needham, but FOX continue's to elude me. I don't know if it's worth putting up a 2nd 4228 on top of the first one though.

Make sure you are actually pointed at the transmitter, and that you are not getting a multipath signal. An antenna rotor helps here.

I would dump the RS preamp for a Wineguard or a Channel Master UHF preamp. No guarantees, but if you can afford it, it might help. I have a 4228 on my roof with the Wineguard UHF-only preamp. I also have a CM rotor.

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

Make sure you are actually pointed at the transmitter, and that you are not getting a multipath signal. An antenna rotor helps here.

I would dump the RS preamp for a Wineguard or a Channel Master UHF preamp. No guarantees, but if you can afford it, it might help. I have a 4228 on my roof with the Wineguard UHF-only preamp. I also have a CM rotor.

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

I have swung the antenna in every possible direction (I also have a rotor up there). I just think it's the low power that stopping me.

My current setup is a 4228 some 40 feet above ground, with a mast mounted RS preamp. I'm able to get all the other stations out of needham, but FOX continue's to elude me. I don't know if it's worth putting up a 2nd 4228 on top of the first one though.
YMMV, but I experienced a tremendous improvement replacing the RS amplifier with a channel master. A friend who is an RF engineer with a military contractor termed the RS amplifier "useless junk". I don't know if I'd go that far, but his advice to go with the CM7777 (I needed VHF too) worked very well. That may be worth a try beforef stacking another antenna.

Bob

i'll give that a shot maybe this weekend. I'll post my results

Does anyone know the QAM channel on comcast for channel 38 UPN HD?

I cannot seem to find it with my Fusion card.

Thanks,

Rich

Does anyone know the QAM channel on comcast for channel 38 UPN HD?

I cannot seem to find it with my Fusion card.

Thanks,

Rich
85-5

85-5

Thank you.

I kept looking for 2 channel blocks for HD stations.

-- Rich

So I bought a standard bunny ears and loop antenna at Radio Shack having read reviews that that design worked best in Manhattan. I'm in the thick of Cambridge (south Central Sq), so I've got the same Multipath issues to deal with. Adjusting it was nothing but trouble - I basically found that I could get CBS, Fox, and WB - but only if I pulled the antenna in completely folding it all up inwardly, and blocked one side of it. Anything else and all I could get is WB56 (41). Obviously multipath was winning the day.

So I picked up a Terk HDTVa, and literally all I did was put it down, and NBC came in at 100%. It's not even pointing to where the NBC tower is (so it must be picking up a bounced signal), and I never got 100% no matter what I tried on the old antenna. This thing's a miracle! Highly recommend to any of you in the denser areas of Boston.

Superbowl's coming...

So it's going to be on ABC. This channel has been a serious challenge for me to get - I've got a Humax tuner and it found it one day while I was at work - and that lasted about 24hrs, then it went away, never to be seen again. It appears ABC shares the same tower as CBS, and it sits between Fox and NBC.

Fox and NBC come in super clear; their towers are supposed to be south-southwest of me, but I get them by pointing my Terk due North. I'd expect to get ABC and CBS as they lie between, but no luck so far. I've basically just tried pointing it different ways with the amp on and off. Any tricks?

PS - I can also get NBC, WB, Fox, and the Spanish Channel if I point in the proper direction, but that's much tougher to place in my apartment, and still no ABC so far... .

Hey Guys,
we just bought a summer home in Grafton, NH. Was looking for some info for OTA HD in the area, but I could not find a OTA NH thread. There is a roof antennae on the house, but I haven't had the opportunity to bring my STB up there, since I have been remodeling the place. Anyone have any info? Thanks

Pablo

Hey Guys,
we just bought a summer home in Grafton, NH. Was looking for some info for OTA HD in the area, but I could not find a OTA NH thread. There is a roof antennae on the house, but I haven't had the opportunity to bring my STB up there, since I have been remodeling the place. Anyone have any info? Thanks

Pablo
Do you mean Grafton County...or GRANTHAM (03753)?
In either case...you'll most likely NOT get Boston stations without a super-fringe antenna with a GOOD preamp....most of your OTA signals will come from VT (Channel 31, 41, perhaps 3) and a couple of NH "satellites" (Channel 9 from their 27 or 38 translator) and possibly channel 52 (Channel 11's satellite) from Keene....
This area of NH is still "slim pickin's" when it comes to OTA TV, Im afraid...the "beautiful Granite Hills" don't help reception.....Unless you're on TOP of one!! :D Good luck!!

Does anyone know the QAM channel on comcast for channel 38 UPN HD?

I cannot seem to find it with my Fusion card.

Thanks,

Rich

I have not been able to find any of the QAM channels with my Fusion 5 card. Could you list the channels you are recieving and your setup?

Thanks,
BD

Last year my wife and I moved into a new apartment building. I hadn't been thinking about HD reception until recently.

Antenna web shows most of the stations in Red-UHF (Med-Directional) but don't have a place to mount an outdoor antenna.

Plus we're on the wrong side of the building; my compass shows that going directly out our windows, the bearing is 60 degrees. Antenna web shows most of the stations at 307 degrees, which is strait through the bulk of the building...

Basicly, do I have any hope of using an indoor antenna?

-frank

Anybody have problems with the Olympics Broadcast last night?

Opening Ceremonies were awesome and I had no reception problem but last night while watching the "prime time" coverage the HD signal seemed to have problems. It would freeze or audio drop out from time to time. A few times it dropped down from HD to SD. My antenna reception looked fine so I am guessing either something wrong in Boston or with the network feed.

Anyone else see this problem? I'm surprised that I did not see anything about it this morning.

Anybody have problems with the Olympics Broadcast last night?

Opening Ceremonies were awesome and I had no reception problem but last night while watching the "prime time" coverage the HD signal seemed to have problems. It would freeze or audio drop out from time to time. A few times it dropped down from HD to SD. My antenna reception looked fine so I am guessing either something wrong in Boston or with the network feed.

Anyone else see this problem? I'm surprised that I did not see anything about it this morning.
Yes, it got pretty annoying. Comcast feed thru cablecard in Lynn.

Anybody have problems with the Olympics Broadcast last night?

Opening Ceremonies were awesome and I had no reception problem but last night while watching the "prime time" coverage the HD signal seemed to have problems. (snip)

It seemed to be a national problem, not just a Boston problem...

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=643314&page=7&pp=30

Maybe something to do with the snow in NYC (broadcast uplink)?

-Steve

This was mentioned over in the Boston Comcast thread, and I did a quick search here on the forums - there were reports of dropouts to SD nation-wide. Looks like NBC screwed up bad, and tried down-grading to their SD encoder while they worked things out.

Last year my wife and I moved into a new apartment building. I hadn't been thinking about HD reception until recently.

Antenna web shows most of the stations in Red-UHF (Med-Directional) but don't have a place to mount an outdoor antenna.

Plus we're on the wrong side of the building; my compass shows that going directly out our windows, the bearing is 60 degrees. Antenna web shows most of the stations at 307 degrees, which is strait through the bulk of the building...

Basicly, do I have any hope of using an indoor antenna?

-frank

Hi Frank,

I'm relatively new to this thread on the forum, just moving back to my native New England. I'm originally from S.E. MA but now live north of Boston. I used to field many questions about antenna placement in the job I just retired from at WVEC-TV/DT in the Norfolk, VA area.

I have a couple questions for you. Do you have access to the attic in the apartment building you live in? What floor in the building do you live on? I have a fixed antenna in my attic here in Haverhill on the NH line. I can't turn it, but with a good preamp and a medium sized array, I get super reception on all the Boston stations. Hopefully, we can help! :)

Is anyone else a little angry that WHDH is continuing their snow coverage while NASCAR (in HD I might add) should be on?

It's snow. Whoopie ding. It's New England. It snows here. If this were Washington DC, it would be news. But it's not.

"Oh look, it's snowing out. It's cold. It's going to be cold and snowing for a few more hours. Roads are bad. Stay home if you can."

There. I've said everything that needs to be said about the storm in one sentence, not the hours and hours of coverage that WHDH is giving it instead of broadcasting what they SHOULD be broadcasting.

Sigh. If I'm going to stuck inside, at least put something worth watching on. If it were Olympics coverage that was supposed to start at noon, would they still be showing snow? I doubt it.

-Steve (ticked off)

Antenna web shows most of the stations in Red-UHF (Med-Directional) ... at 307 degrees, which is strait through the bulk of the building
Hey Frank, I'm in a similar situation here in Cambridge (Central Sq). Most of the stations are over in Needham, which happens to be pointing back through the other half of the duplex, then through a massive parking garage.

I found that if I just point it that way anyway, I get a few strong signals - mostly WB56 and the Spanish Channel, sometimes Fox.

However, if I turn it about 120 clockwise from that position, I get a bounced signal with NBC, Fox, WB, Spanish Channel. If I fiddle with the angle and height I get CBS and if I point it sharply downward, ABC.

So, in Quincy, being even closer to Needham (I think), you've got a shot at it. I have to say getting ABC was horribly frustrating, but Fox and 56 are a breeze and NBC is usually pretty easy too. If you want ABC consistently, consider something larger, probably with a rotor so you can have exact rotations to move back to for certain stations, rather than getting it just right, then never being able to find that sweet spot again, as I so often do with ABC.

If it were Olympics coverage that was supposed to start at noon, would they still be showing snow? I doubt it.

As expected, WHDH stopped their snow coverage as soon as the Olympics started. I managed to see SOME of the Daytona qualifying by turning on the analog OTA channel from the Providence NBC affiliate (wait, wasn't it snowing there too?!?!?). It looked lousy though since my antenna is a UHF antenna pointed toward Boston.

Hmph.

-Steve

What stingkin idiots chan 7...

dsanbo,
Thanks for the reply. I was talking about Grafton,which is in Grafton County, just North of Danbury. It is in the valley, between thouse "Granite Hills"! I was searching for some NH OTA stuff, and the only thing that came in was the Boston OTA. I did bring my stb up there this weekend, but couldn't pick up anything. Bummer. Anyway, I am supposed to be going to NH for relaxation, not TV! Thanks.

Pablo

Hi Frank,

I'm relatively new to this thread on the forum, just moving back to my native New England. I'm originally from S.E. MA but now live north of Boston. I used to field many questions about antenna placement in the job I just retired from at WVEC-TV/DT in the Norfolk, VA area.

I have a couple questions for you. Do you have access to the attic in the apartment building you live in? What floor in the building do you live on? I have a fixed antenna in my attic here in Haverhill on the NH line. I can't turn it, but with a good preamp and a medium sized array, I get super reception on all the Boston stations. Hopefully, we can help! :)

I'm on the 3rd of 7 floors.
and as you may guess from that, there is not even an attic to get access to.

-frank

Hey Frank, I'm in a similar situation here in Cambridge (Central Sq). Most of the stations are over in Needham, which happens to be pointing back through the other half of the duplex, then through a massive parking garage.

I found that if I just point it that way anyway, I get a few strong signals - mostly WB56 and the Spanish Channel, sometimes Fox.

However, if I turn it about 120 clockwise from that position, I get a bounced signal with NBC, Fox, WB, Spanish Channel. If I fiddle with the angle and height I get CBS and if I point it sharply downward, ABC.

So, in Quincy, being even closer to Needham (I think), you've got a shot at it. I have to say getting ABC was horribly frustrating, but Fox and 56 are a breeze and NBC is usually pretty easy too. If you want ABC consistently, consider something larger, probably with a rotor so you can have exact rotations to move back to for certain stations, rather than getting it just right, then never being able to find that sweet spot again, as I so often do with ABC.

This is encouraging, maybe I’ll be able to get a signal though the building after all… and I hadn’t even considered bounce; there is another large building just up the street (on the other side) that probably scatters the signal in every direction.



-frank

I have not been able to find any of the QAM channels with my Fusion 5 card. Could you list the channels you are recieving and your setup?

Thanks,
BD

840 = 2.2 PBS
841 = 56.1 WB
855 = 38.1 UPN
860 = 7.1 NBC
861 = 5.1 ABC
870 = 4.1 CBS
871 = 25.1 Fox

These are the Fusion numbering. If you are using another tuner, then consider the last digit as a decimal point.

-- Rich

Frank, I would say definitely pick up a Terk HDTVa from a local store if you can, that way worst case it's easy to return. As for the tall building nearby, I need to warn you it's less scientific than that... more like Mad Scientist. Basically I began the process by wandering slowly around the room aiming this thing and watching for signal. You'll feel pretty ridiculous. But then in some random direction you'll get free Olympics in HD. So it's worth it.

I picked up a pretty basic UHF/VHF antenna that seemed fairly directional (reflector + single bow) at Radioshack to see if I could get any signal. Unfortunaly, all I was able to get a lot of really static filled analoge stations and 1 digital station, WWDP-DT (46.1) home shopping. I probably spend most of the night changing the orientation and location of the antenna, but no luck. The tuner didn't detect any signal from the other digital stations.

There is also the possibility that the apartment is in a dead spot... because we do have problems with our cell phones when we're at home.

I guess I'll wait until the weekend and try the stores for a bettern antenna.


-frank

If you have a look at Google Images for Terk HDTVa (http://images.google.com/images?q=Terk%20HDTVa&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&sa=N&tab=wi), you'll see that that thing is absurdly directional.. a place like yours or mine has so much multipath that you need to be very, very directional with your antenna for digital. The best I could get with a bowtie was 60% after a lot of fiddling - with the Terk I get 90% on most channels and hit 100% if I nail it.

Is there anywhere to buy the CM 4228 (and or 7775) in greater Boston. Through countless searches I only come up with Stark Electronics in Worcester.

Thanks

Is there anywhere to buy the CM 4228 (and or 7775) in greater Boston. Through countless searches I only come up with Stark Electronics in Worcester.

Thanks

Try You-Do-It Electronics in Needham. Not sure if they'll have that model in stock, but they do carry channel master.

Is there anywhere to buy the CM 4228 (and or 7775) in greater Boston. Through countless searches I only come up with Stark Electronics in Worcester.

Thanks

Thanks for the tip (sorry for the repost). I called them, they only carry Winegard.

Success!!

I couldn't find a HDTVi, but I did find a Silver Sensor at Microcenter.
Try as I might, I couldn't get any signal inside. When I was about to give up it occured to me to try the balcony. Right now the Silver Sensor is "Zip-Tied" to the outside of the balcony wall. I get almost every digital station, and most at over 90% :)

-frank

Does anyone get their on-air guide populated? I thought it was suppose to be populated by the OTA digital broadcast? But all I get on mine is "Regular Schedule" (the OTA tuner is an older Hughes model)

-frank

Congrats Frank!! Enjoy the HD!
I don't know about that older tuner, but on my Humax, patience is the key. The first day I set it up I got 1 channel and nothing in the Guide. Within 2 days the thing had scanned and found a mess of channels and filled up the guide. So give it a day or 2... if still nothing... check this forum for posts about your specific tuner.. maybe it's a known issue.

840 = 2.2 PBS
841 = 56.1 WB
855 = 38.1 UPN
860 = 7.1 NBC
861 = 5.1 ABC
870 = 4.1 CBS
871 = 25.1 Fox

These are the Fusion numbering. If you are using another tuner, then consider the last digit as a decimal point.

-- Rich

Thanks Rich,

Got it up a running. Now if I could just the Fusion software to work without crashing.

BD

I can't seem to get 38 or 44 to come in. The signals are pretty weak:
38.1 (frequency 39) runs 15-20%
44.x (frequency 43) runs 21-37%
I get every other station listed on antenna web (the live ones anyway) and the weakest (CBS) is well over 50%

What is strange is that as far as I can tell, both these stations are on the same tower as channel 2 and CBS, both of which come in fine...

does anyone else have trouble with these stations?


-frank

Has anyone else complained to WHDH about the poor picture quality? I believe that their pathetic HD quality for the broadcast of Daytona and the Winter Olympics is the result of splitting bandwidth for their weather feed. Please visit their website to complain:

http://www1.whdh.com/contact/

Has anyone else complained to WHDH about the poor picture quality? I believe that their pathetic HD quality for the broadcast of Daytona and the Winter Olympics is the result of splitting bandwidth for their weather feed. Please visit their website to complain:

http://www1.whdh.com/contact/
Are you sure you're not talking about WCVB's weather feed on 5-2..?
Does 7 even have a weather feed? if so, I wasn't aware and owe you an apology...... :D

Well, according to my playback equipment, WHDH is only streaming about 16mbps on their main channel over Comcast, so there is room for more bits.

Are you sure you're not talking about WCVB's weather feed on 5-2..?
Does 7 even have a weather feed? if so, I wasn't aware and owe you an apology...... :D

My mistake. Now I can't make an excuse for the lousy quality.

My mistake. Now I can't make an excuse for the lousy quality.
If it's any consolation....I noticed the rather poor PQ of the Daytona, too.....But I had to take into account.....the weather at the track appeared to be rather foggy/drizzly; this would account for SOME degrading of the pix....Close-ups looked OK...

Success!!

I couldn't find a HDTVi, but I did find a Silver Sensor at Microcenter.
Try as I might, I couldn't get any signal inside. When I was about to give up it occured to me to try the balcony. Right now the Silver Sensor is "Zip-Tied" to the outside of the balcony wall. I get almost every digital station, and most at over 90% :)

-frank

Congratulations Frank. I'm using a Silver Sensor 31 miles away in Central Ma and get a great signal. Bless the SS.

Tried to get my Dad hooked up yesterday using an RCA ANT585 with little to no luck. He is about the same distance away. Tried to get him a Silver Sensor at Sears but they no longer carry them so I got the RCA to try. I'll be trying my Silver Sensor tonight and I'm also picking up an RS 15-1880 just in case.

Got the last RS 15-1880 at the Stow, Ma store last night. These things are scarce. Pulled off the RCA ANT 585. That antenna was worthless as I later found out from some of the topics here.

The RS worked much better but unfortunately not good enough. Pulled in WHDH 7-1 fine but then lost WGBH 2-1, WBZ 4.1, WCVB 5-1. Could not get WFXT 25-1, WSBK 38-1, or WLVI 56-1 at all.

Dad's project today is to find a coax line in the cellar that feeds an east facing bedroom upstairs. I think all he needs is a little more elevation to get better reception. If this doesn't work we will put a RS yagi outside on an existing mast.

Will NESN be carrying the Spring Trainging games in HD?

Will NESN be carrying the Spring Trainging games in HD?


OTA?? What channel??

Anyone notice fox dropped off the air around 8pm?
Dont know if its where i am (Rockland) but i have never had a problem with 25-1 so far. (only had it ota for about a week now though)

Got the last RS 15-1880 at the Stow, Ma store last night. These things are scarce. Pulled off the RCA ANT 585. That antenna was worthless as I later found out from some of the topics here.

The RS worked much better but unfortunately not good enough. Pulled in WHDH 7-1 fine but then lost WGBH 2-1, WBZ 4.1, WCVB 5-1. Could not get WFXT 25-1, WSBK 38-1, or WLVI 56-1 at all.

Dad's project today is to find a coax line in the cellar that feeds an east facing bedroom upstairs. I think all he needs is a little more elevation to get better reception. If this doesn't work we will put a RS yagi outside on an existing mast.

Moving the antenna upstairs worked much better. He now receives everything with the exception of Fox WFXT 25-1. I hear the Zenith Silver Sensor works better than the RS 15-1880 so maybe he'll get 25 when we try that tomorrow.

Anyone notice fox dropped off the air around 8pm?
Dont know if its where i am (Rockland) but i have never had a problem with 25-1 so far. (only had it ota for about a week now though)
Didn't notice a problem with Fox...But I DID notice WBZ4 (E* Ch. 6319) had audio outage around 6 PM, through the local news and CBS Evening News......then at 7PM, the audio returned, but no pix for several minutes.....I checked back at 8:30PM for CBS network....all was OK, good HD PQ and DD5.1.... :confused: During this timeframe, WCVB, WHDH and WFXT all seemed to be normal on the E* 63--s...

Fox dropped off here in Cambridge, MA, but I don't know if it's just an antenna aiming issue, I haven't spent much time trying to get it since Monday, when it came in clear.

Hey, Just curious if anyone knows, well, if WBZ is going HD news shortly? Read a few articles saying that the new HD XDCAMS are going to wbz first, and that it was possible that they would go HD when they got them.

Anyone have any more info?
Thanks!
CJ

Anyone know why WCVB isn't broadcasting the Oscars in 5.1?

-Steve

5.1(WCVB) Oscars has been in 5.1 since it began.

Had major droputs from Fox last Monday during 24 :( Got so bad that I had to switch to analog DTV :eek:
So hoping for good transmissions tonight - Fox never used to be a problem but has been one during the past month or so. Not sure if it's my end or the transmitting end - or combination of both.
Between FOX and unreliaile NBC I am weighing getting HD satellite from DTV.
Anyone else having any FOX issues??

I have DirecTV with the new 5LNB (AT9) dish and OTA. I havent seen any issues w/FOX.

5.1(WCVB) Oscars has been in 5.1 since it began.
Huh. OTA? I tried other channels and my receiver instantly switched to 5.1 if there was such a signal there. But the Oscars stayed on 2.0 the whole time.

-Steve

Huh. OTA? I tried other channels and my receiver instantly switched to 5.1 if there was such a signal there. But the Oscars stayed on 2.0 the whole time.

-Steve


Thats weird DD 5.1 on my h20

Just some information I thought I should post. We are doing work on the tower yesterday, today and overnight for the next few days.
We will be going to low power at various times on DTV and NTSC will go off the air at midnight over the next few days for a couple of hours. WLVI SD and HD and WSBK SD will be affected as well.

Bill Holbrook
Chief Engineer WFXT-TV

Just some information I thought I should post. We are doing work on the tower yesterday, today and overnight for the next few days.
We will be going to low power at various times on DTV and NTSC will go off the air at midnight over the next few days for a couple of hours. WLVI SD and HD and WSBK SD will be affected as well.

Bill Holbrook
Chief Engineer WFXT-TV

Thanks Bill, the info is much appreciated as I thought it was atmospheric or worse both yesterday and today for 25.1 and 56.1. Please let us know when your work is completed. Will finished work provide more signal strength to those having problems?

Thanks Bill, the info is much appreciated as I thought it was atmospheric or worse both yesterday and today for 25.1 and 56.1. Please let us know when your work is completed. Will finished work provide more signal strength to those having problems?

I think FCC is involved with that station from Canada and WFXT-DT power issues. Bill can explain more I'm sure. :)

Thanks Bill, the info is much appreciated as I thought it was atmospheric or worse both yesterday and today for 25.1 and 56.1. Please let us know when your work is completed. Will finished work provide more signal strength to those having problems?

No this is repair work on hangers for the transmission line, replacing some damaged covers on the antenna as well as some work on the tower itself. The power issue is won't probably change until the Feb. 17 2009 date for the return of the NTSC spectrum.

I'm moving into a house in Nashua this weekend. I've already installed a Winegard 9032 UHF antenna on my chimney, and I am getting no lock on NBC, but, and this is the strange part for me, I am getting FOX most of the time, which according to antennaweb.org should be much weaker than NBC, plus it looks as though the 9032 should have slightly higher gain for NBC's frequency than FOX's. Both of them are within a degree or so of each other too. This has been confirmed with a Dish 411 tuner, an LQ 3510A tuner, and an EyeTV 500 tuner.

The Dish Network installers came by yesterday and put up a large tripod mast on my roof onto which I could move my antenna. How likely would it be that an extra 3-5 feet of height and an ever so slight change of angle would give me NBC?

I am getting ABC, CBS, UPN, and PBS fine. WB is a little iffy, but I don't watch much on WB.

I'm moving into a house in Nashua this weekend. I've already installed a Winegard 9032 UHF antenna on my chimney, and I am getting no lock on NBC, but, and this is the strange part for me, I am getting FOX most of the time, which according to antennaweb.org should be much weaker than NBC, plus it looks as though the 9032 should have slightly higher gain for NBC's frequency than FOX's. Both of them are within a degree or so of each other too. This has been confirmed with a Dish 411 tuner, an LQ 3510A tuner, and an EyeTV 500 tuner.

The Dish Network installers came by yesterday and put up a large tripod mast on my roof onto which I could move my antenna. How likely would it be that an extra 3-5 feet of height and an ever so slight change of angle would give me NBC?

I am getting ABC, CBS, UPN, and PBS fine. WB is a little iffy, but I don't watch much on WB.

Good luck in your new home.

I'm hopeful the installers searched for the "hot spot" on your roof before bolting down the tripod. Location on the roof will most likely give you better reception than on the chimney. Height does mean alot. I am in Manchester and 56.1 is my only problem.

The installers just wanted to find a hole through nearby foliage to see their satellite. If the spot they chose is any better than my chimney it will be random chance. But I will try moving the antenna.

I'm seeing lower power levels for FOX 25 late tonight--24dB instead of the usual 31dB I get with a silver sensor antenna. Picture quality is still fine--I would notice the difference unless I was looking at the signal levels.

I followed the advise and I moved my antenna from the chimney mount to the taller tripod the Dish Network installers had left; had to stand on my tiptoes to get it near the top of the mast, and the tip of the antenna is just barely inside my property (it's a long antenna).

WHDH (NBC) which wouldn't locked is now comfortably generating a 75 signal strength according to the Dish 411 STB and I'm getting all the major network channels antennaweb.org thinks I should be getting with a directional UHF antenna.

Summary:

Location: Southern Nashua, NH 03060 (very near exit 2 on Route 3)

Equipment: Winegard 9032 UHF antenna, Radio Shack Pre-amp, 2-way splitter

Height: perhaps 25 feet

Channels scanned with EyeTV 500:
2-1 WGBH-SD 88%
2-2 PBS-HD 88%
4-1 WBZ-DT (CBS) 88%
5-1 WCVB-DT (ABC) 88%
5-2 WCVB-DT (ABC Radar) 88%
7-1 WHDH HD (NBC) 78%
25-1 WFXT-DT (FOX) 72%
38-1 WSBK-DT (UPN) 77%
44-1 WGBX-DTV (PBS) 78%
44-2 WGBH World (PBS) 78%
44-3 WGBH Create (PBS) 78%
44-4 WGBH Kids (PBS) 78%
56-1 WLVI (WB) 70%
66-1 WUTF DT (Spanish) 79%

The Dish 411 set top box also picked up some religious stations (PAX, etc.).

Anyone here have a set or STB using TVGOS data from WGBH ? My feed, which I get from Comcast, is missing guide data for INHD2 and Universal HD. I realize these are cable channels and this is an OTA thread but I was wondering if the same feed is given to Comcast and sent OTA. What is the best way to contact WGBH about their data feed ?

Anyone here have a set or STB using TVGOS data from WGBH ? My feed, which I get from Comcast, is missing guide data for INHD2 and Universal HD. I realize these are cable channels and this is an OTA thread but I was wondering if the same feed is given to Comcast and sent OTA. What is the best way to contact WGBH about their data feed ?

In almost all areas, when WGBH went ADS for Comcast they had to duplicate an analog version up in the 90s (96 I believe) for the TVGOS data. So you might have to have your STB rescan for it or maybe point it to the analog WGBH up in the 90s.

In almost all areas, when WGBH went ADS for Comcast they had to duplicate an analog version up in the 90s (96 I believe) for the TVGOS data. So you might have to have your STB rescan for it or maybe point it to the analog WGBH up in the 90s.

I get guide on channel 97 (I think) but like I said that data doesn't contain any listing for INHD2 or Universal HD so I am wondering if it not part of the feed and who I need to contact to correct the problem.

I get guide on channel 97 (I think) but like I said that data doesn't contain any listing for INHD2 or Universal HD so I am wondering if it not part of the feed and who I need to contact to correct the problem.

Ahhh I see.... being the impatient half-reader that I am I didn't catch that. :) Might want to contact TV Guide as a start?

Ahhh I see.... being the impatient half-reader that I am I didn't catch that. :) Might want to contact TV Guide as a start?

The TVGOS folks are unreachable and if you know their secret number and how to get to their voicemail their message says they do not support consumers. Calling Sony doesn't help, they say to contact my MSO. Comcast says to contact WGBH. When I called WGBH and got a hold of a technical person he insisted that WGBH only sends guide data for it own channel and the other channels are responsible for their own guide data (sounds like PSIP info). He had no clue about the TVGOS feed. There is just enough redirection that I think most people give up but I am stubborn :)

Anyone have an OTA signal meter around the south shore that can help me align my ota antenna? im having a bitch of a time getting fox and nbc over 75% on my reciever. Ill throw in some nice sam adams white ale for someone that has some time and expertise.
Shoot me an e-mail
djcalvin at yahoo dot com

Bill Holbrook - I apologize if this has been discussed already, its a long thread and been a while since I've been here.....

Is there any way to reduce the brightness of the "FOX25" bug on the DTV feed? I've noticed that this is markedly brighter than most other DTV broadcast feeds locally. I recently reduced my horrendous 11% HD mode overscan to about 4% so its a lot more noticeable now. I'm concerned it might result in some burn-in issues as I tend to watch several programs a week on FOX. Its also particularly distracting during darker scenes in the programming.

Anything you can do? TIA.

Have to agree here with Doug.
I sometimes ignore a particular station's broadcasts if the logo is too distracting.
I am surprised (or maybe not...) that there is no real consensus between stations regarding the size and brightness of these logos. In this case, bigger and brighter is NOT better.

I don't even mind the size so much if it is mostly color-free and translucent.
Having a dark color is just plain inconsiderate of the viewers.
[comments NOT directed at Bill specifically, of course]


Keith

Keith - Thanks for the support on this, glad its not just me!

Most other stations seem to use primarily transparent bugs with just a faint outline around the letters or logos to demarcate them. But as I tuned in to FOX last night a few minutes before House I noted that the Idol broadcast seemed to have a different bug, looked like a national feed one or something? Much dimmer and further down in the corner of the screen, just said "FOX". Still noticeable but not so "in your face" as the current local bug. Even that would be a big improvement.

HI everyone. I am in Melrose, MA, have directv with an h10 box but currently do not have their HD programming. I was going to get an OTA antenna and just run it to the H10 box to pick up locals in HD.

I checked the antennaweb webpage and it stated that I should get an antenna that is in the red zone. Do the antennas they sell like in local Best Buys, Circuit Citys vary in color zone? Also, I checked online and they seem considerably cheaper.

how can I be certain an antenna I purchase online is the right zone if the decription does not indictate what zone it is in?? Do certain types of antennas only come in one zone.. For instance the Sqaure Shooter SS1000 or SS2000 or the Terk slim profile? Online they do not specifi what zone.. How can I be sure it will work in my area?

Any help on this subject would be appreciated. Thank you.

Anyone in the Natick/Framingham area know of two guys I could hire to throw away my old entertainment center and put my HDTV on a shelf? I can't do it (bad back) and the guy in my development who was supposed to do it was a no-show.

Suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Strange problem with WGBX 44.1 today in Sudbury. Active for about a minute, then I get no activity. 44.2, 44.3 and 44.4 seem to work fine. Using Samsung 451 tuner.

Strange problem with WGBX 44.1 today in Sudbury. Active for about a minute, then I get no activity. 44.2, 44.3 and 44.4 seem to work fine. Using Samsung 451 tuner.

Sat morning there was a catastrophic failure of the MPEG encoder responsible for creating the 44-1 program stream. The 44-1 stream was "down" for 8 hours. A standby encoder was configured and patched in place. There are some configuration issues with PSIP that is causing some set tops to not find the virtual channel. This should be corrected tomorrow.

Bill Holbrook - I apologize if this has been discussed already, its a long thread and been a while since I've been here.....

Is there any way to reduce the brightness of the "FOX25" bug on the DTV feed? I've noticed that this is markedly brighter than most other DTV broadcast feeds locally. I recently reduced my horrendous 11% HD mode overscan to about 4% so its a lot more noticeable now. I'm concerned it might result in some burn-in issues as I tend to watch several programs a week on FOX. Its also particularly distracting during darker scenes in the programming.

Anything you can do? TIA.

Is the bug you are talking about on programming or News? And yes when we are on the Fox HD feed it is a different device generating the bug. Both Net and local programming bugs are translucent but the bug during News is part of our graphical look and that is out of my realm. If it is during programming I can check into it but looking right now it seems fine.

Is the bug you are talking about on programming or News? And yes when we are on the Fox HD feed it is a different device generating the bug. Both Net and local programming bugs are translucent but the bug during News is part of our graphical look and that is out of my realm. If it is during programming I can check into it but looking right now it seems fine.

Bill,
Thanks for checking.
It is definitely the DT31-Fox25 bug that is on network shows like '24' and 'House'.
It is not extremely bright, but it is also not translucent. I have my plasma set to theater-like settings, and still the bug really stands out.
Translucent with borders would be a lot better.

Keith

Yes, ditto everything Keith said.

The "FOX 25/WFXT-DT 31 Boston" bug seems more like a logo (opaque) and less like a watermark (transluscent).

Do shows like "House" and "24" originate locally and this is the reason for the different bug from Idol?

What would you say if the best thing to watch on HDTV? Sporting events or regular programs?

What would you say if the best thing to watch on HDTV? Sporting events or regular programs?

Aside from the obvious statement that you should watch what YOU like, when done properly, sports can look absolutely stunning in HD. But shows like CSI, some of the special HD shows on the PBS channels, etc. are also very well done.

Is there a possibility that someone in the AVS membership has a solid connection to the management at WHDH Boston? Outside of the Winter Olympics, WHDH-DT has not broadcast 1 minute in DD5.1. I know for a fact that most NBC dramas and a lot of sports broadcasts are sent out from the network in DD5.1. I see it on KING-DT Seattle and the NBC programs carried by our Canadian HD networks.

I have written emails endlessly and have even phoned them and actually gotten through to the engineering department. They claim that there is no programming coming out of NBC in DD5.1.

Please help the cause and help get them to get with the program. For a station in a major market that has been broadcasting in HD for as long as they have I find this to be absolutely incredible.

I've noticed that most of WHDH's LOCAL programming is using "5.0"...ie., DD5.1 withOUT the LFE.....When the network feed is on, though, my AV receiver shows activation of LFE (....and my subwoofer bears this out!!).
Not having contact with WHDH techs/management, I can't comment further.... :confused:

What I am getting through Bell ExpressVu is ProLogic audio and not 5.1. This is the only channel that does this on this system. My Sony shows all 6 channels active fired by ProLogic. When the Olympics were on the DD5.1 audio was stupendous.

I HOPE HOPE HOPE its just me

BUT, did 7.2 pop up for anyone? Im seeing it right now , its a SD simulcast, but stretched. Havent seen any HD yet to report on quality (DOND is on) , but if so, NOOOOOO!

Yeah, I had 7-2 here also, but when I watched vegas or whatever it is, it wasn't full screen on 7-1... i guess they are still working on it

Hmmmmm....I seem to recall channel 7 experimenting with simulcast a while back, maybe a year or more. But it only appeared for a few days, then reverted back to a single HD stream.

Yeah, I am HOPING it goes away, as a simulcast of there SD channel is just worthless, as its on the analog channel.

Fox is blasting the commercials again on Fox New Sunday.

Guess what, I and others have a mute key. It is not working :rolleyes:

- Rich

Anyone here have a set or STB using TVGOS data from WGBH ? My feed, which I get from Comcast, is missing guide data for INHD2 and Universal HD. I realize these are cable channels and this is an OTA thread but I was wondering if the same feed is given to Comcast and sent OTA. What is the best way to contact WGBH about their data feed ?

I have a generic PVR that I think uses that from wgbh...it's odd because after finally getting it to work I can get listings for analog stations and a chunk of the digital (which I can't record via the tuner, only with some other cables) As of yet I haven't seen any hd or indemand stations...

I'm in the Boston TV area and recently got a Voom box. First I tried in the basement with some little luck but now with a actual antenna I get far better results (granted the antenna is like 20 or so years old) Some stations though I just don't get that well. I think I'll try a amplified antenna. Antenna web lists most of the stations within 30 miles from me. The pax ones seem to come in well, the pbs ones (except 2-2 that creates a lockup with the psid data). Others seem to maybe come in better at night. I just have a few questions on some.

5-11 and 5-12 are these just data? I would think since nothing comes from them..

Is 6-2 WLNE-NW weather? I can't seem to receive it

12-2 WPRI - WX same as above.

My main beef seems to be that it's odd that I end up getting the minor affliates such as Pax, UPN and WB and (also PBS) far better than the larger networks like ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox

Since your even picking up WPRI with the 20 year old antenna, im bettin your near CT/RI.

If so, I think you might need a better antenna

Not to mention 5-11 and 5-12 Ive never seen (5-02 however is there, and its weather, for WCVB out of Boston, tho i suppose your 5-11 and 5-12 could be outta RI/CT)

Id try gettin a newer antenna, and trying again!

I live in Marlborough and use Directv but I got a Squareshooter with the amplifier for my OTA HD locals. But i can't get anything in but 5-1 and thats not even really reliable. I have the antenna on the top of my two story roof but I'm amazed how poor signal I get. My neighbor uses a small rabbit ear antenna on his TV and gets better reception. I borrowed his rabbit ears with no luck either. The tuner i'm using is the Tivo HD/Direct TV box. Any thoughts or ideas?

Thanks

I'm in South End of BOston - roof antenna - the past couple of days, I am unable to watch HD Channel 5 because of constant pixilization and sound problems. CHecked the antenna for problems, moved it around for different signal stregths, but no difference. No problems with any other channel. Called CVB, they said, no problem there. I have a HD TiVO, problem running it thru there but it also does it when direct to HDTV, without the TiVO. Disconneced the antenna completely - signal is strong enough so I get a pic WITHOUT an antenna and it STILL does it. Only on CVB. ANy one with ideas, or could the station just not be aware of the problem???

I'm in South End of BOston - roof antenna - the past couple of days, I am unable to watch HD Channel 5 because of constant pixilization and sound problems. CHecked the antenna for problems, moved it around for different signal stregths, but no difference. No problems with any other channel. Called CVB, they said, no problem there. I have a HD TiVO, problem running it thru there but it also does it when direct to HDTV, without the TiVO. Disconneced the antenna completely - signal is strong enough so I get a pic WITHOUT an antenna and it STILL does it. Only on CVB. ANy one with ideas, or could the station just not be aware of the problem???

I had alot of audio drop last night as well watchin Alias on Comcast's HD channel. I tried watching with my moto stb and with just cablecard. It sounds like a problem at the source, wcvb.

I also use a roof mounted antenna and have also had the exact same problems with WCVB the past day or so. They may simply be unaware of the problem...

Yesterday I spoke to the Chief Engineer at WCVB, who said they had a problem last weekend, but it was fixed. He said he monitors the HD channel, and there was no problem. Obviously, he is wrong. Perhaps he needs a few more people to call and complain. Last night's ALIAS was unwatchable - I swithed to WMUR to watch INVASION. BTW, CVB's phone # is 781 449 0400 and the engineering extension is 4774 - he may not be thrilled at me for giving it out, but hey....I've spent enough time on my roof this morning..

Jeez, I thought it was just me. I couldn't get Invasion to come in clean with my antenna or Cablecard on Charter in Worcester. In fact, the cable was WORSE than the antenna!

I have DirecTV HD TiVO, and it's much worse on TiVO than OTA, altho OTA is bad enough. I hope this forum will convince them they do have a problem...

Glad to see people posting about the problems with Alias on WVCB-DT, I thought for sure it was just my reception challenged area working its magic again. Even though no wind/rain, sometimes just the trees conspire against me. ;) Constant audio and video dropouts = unwatchable. Finally got fed up about 10 minutes in after trying multiple vectors on the rotator, so switched direction to Manchester to pick up WMUR-DT and these problems vanished, so it must have been some local issue at WVCB.

I just received the following from Rick Zack, the CE at WCVB, which should help relieve our minds that we're not all nuts...well, not ALL nuts. I have no idea what any of this means, other than they are now aware of a problem, which hopefully will be fixed before Sydney Bristow finds out she has a double.

We seem to be detecting data issues with our Harris Flexicoder. Our HD data stream is somehow getting slightly corrupted and we are working on the issue. We are working to swap in another encoder to allow us to work on our main encoder.

FOLLOW UP- A more recent email says that the Flexicoder was replaced at 11:52AM.

Altho it's better, I"m still getting some dorp-outs. Maybe they're still working on it. Nothing on ABC appeals to me tonight, so no big deal.

[QUOTE=hybucket]

We seem to be detecting data issues with our Harris Flexicoder. Our HD data stream is somehow getting slightly corrupted and we are working on the issue. We are working to swap in another encoder to allow us to work on our main encoder.

QUOTE]

Definitely sounds like a flux capacitor fetzer valve problem.

As the technical dummy that I am, I'm almost tempted to say, "You're making that up," but I don't dare.

[QUOTE=hybucket]

We seem to be detecting data issues with our Harris Flexicoder. Our HD data stream is somehow getting slightly corrupted and we are working on the issue. We are working to swap in another encoder to allow us to work on our main encoder.

QUOTE]

Definitely sounds like a flux capacitor fetzer valve problem.

Probably need to check the specs on the inline rotary gerter.

CBS not working tonight - 4.1, or is it just my old DTC-100 acting up again?

CBS 4-1 is working fine here - WCVB DT still has some problems but is more watchable than last night. I watched "Boston Legal," which I TiVO'd on Tuesday night, and there were some minor drops then, but was watchable.

CBS not working tonight - 4.1, or is it just my old DTC-100 acting up again?
As we like to say, the trouble is leaving our transmitter just fine!
[Translation: We're not having any problems at WBZ]

i had the same problem with pixelation and sound problems on channel 5 the last few nights during alias, invasion, and lost (which are about the only shows i ever watch on that channel).

i checked the signal strength reported by my tuner (a directivo hr10-250) and it looked like the signal was strong, yet the problem persisted. the problem seemed to happen about every 5 seconds or so. i suspect it was some kind of encoding issue rather than a signal strength problem, but i can't be sure.

i called the station and used the extension listed above to leave voicemail for the chief engineer, so i hope this helps get some attention on the problem.

You pixelation problems could be multiplath.

- Rich

GOOD MORNING AMERICA on 5-1 this morning is unwatchable. Whatever they "replaced" yesterday is obvioulsy not solving their problem.

GOOD MORNING AMERICA on 5-1 this morning is unwatchable. Whatever they "replaced" yesterday is obvioulsy not solving their problem.

I never find GOOD MORNING AMERICA watchable :D

Seriously, It is coming in fine here in Stoneham using a 8' Yagi mounted on my roof.

- Rich

As we like to say, the trouble is leaving our transmitter just fine!
[Translation: We're not having any problems at WBZ]


Thanks Robert. I'll go get my hammer.

I just got a new HD tv and all the Boston stations come in perfect except for Channel 5. It was fine for a day or two, then Tuesday night it started to cut out every few seconds and now it is a little better but very annoying. The store where I bought it came out to look at the setup and said it was the station. My roommate sent an email to Channel 5 asking them to confirm the problem, but haven't heard anything from them yet. If this were regular TV, it would have been fixed in minutes. No wonder ordinary people with no technical expertise are reluctant to buy this new technology. Those of you who have had HD for awhile, is this a common occurrance?

I've had HD for about 8 months - at the beginning, I had problems with a couple of the local stations, but other than that, it's been OK. I have gotten replies to all of my emails from the engineer at 5, and I suspect there are still kinks that need to be worked out.

Boy it is really bad on 5-1 this afternoon. I accidentally went to 5-2 which is usually their weather radar and it is doing the same thing on that channel, only now it has regular programming and not the radar. I hope this is fixed by the weekend.

I was still getting the dropouts & pixelation on 5-1 tonite. Much more noticeable because of the subwoofer I added which thumps on the dropout.

On 5-2 I was just getting a black screen; no radar display.

I watched Desparate Housewives on Sunday and the problems seemed to have cleared up. Both my OTA and Comcast versions had no dropouts.

The thing that was really annoying for me was the audio would drop out for maybe half a second on OTA but would take five seconds to recover on Comcast. So my DVR'd Lost and Alias were useless.

I don't have Comcast, so I can't comment on that one, but the OTA signal on 5-1 now seems to have been resolved Saturday some time. ANything TiVO'd (or, in your case, DVR'd..) on WCVB HD between Tuesday and Saturday probably isn't watchable.

In reply to 7-2, i want to cry, NBC weather plus now, what a waste!

Not to mention the # of people w/ dtv tuners arent amazingly high (or those that have em, but cant/wont/dont know how to use them), but why do i want to see my weather looped, when WHDH shows near 7 hours of news a day (dont get me wrong, its great), and on top of that the '7 news weather plus update'

And on top of that, its cut off (the video), AND the WHDH temps dont match the Weather Plus ones.

But aside from all that, the bandwidth! the bandwidth! the bandwidth!!!

But aside from all that, the bandwidth! the bandwidth! the bandwidth!!!

Yes, and it was obvious on the NHL games Saturday and Sunday.

SMK

On the positive side, WHDH is now doing its HD programming in Dolby 5.1.

I just received the following from Rick Zack, the CE at WCVB, which should help relieve our minds that we're not all nuts...well, not ALL nuts. I have no idea what any of this means, other than they are now aware of a problem, which hopefully will be fixed before Sydney Bristow finds out she has a double.

We seem to be detecting data issues with our Harris Flexicoder. Our HD data stream is somehow getting slightly corrupted and we are working on the issue. We are working to swap in another encoder to allow us to work on our main encoder.

FOLLOW UP- A more recent email says that the Flexicoder was replaced at 11:52AM.

Are the audio dropouts fixed now ? My dvr is set to record on wcvb and I wondering if I need to change it wmur.

I know I may be way off base here....but is there anyway to receive NESN HD OTA? I am a DISH customer and they do not yet carry the NESN HD Feeds!

Thanks
Chris

Everything appears to be working fine on WCVB, as of last night, anyway. To be sure, you just might want to watch if for five or ten minutes just to reassure yourself, but it was fixed on Saturday, according to my viewing habits.
There is no way I know of to get NESN over the air.

I know I may be way off base here....but is there anyway to receive NESN HD OTA? I am a DISH customer and they do not yet carry the NESN HD Feeds!

I believe NESN HD is exclusively carried on Comcast cable currently. There have been some rumblings that D* might eventually add them, but nothing concrete.

I was very disappointed to see Friday Night Baseball on TV38 eliminated, mostly because it was the one game a week I got to see in HD!

I believe NESN HD is exclusively carried on Comcast cable currently. There have been some rumblings that D* might eventually add them, but nothing concrete.

I was very disappointed to see Friday Night Baseball on TV38 eliminated, mostly because it was the one game a week I got to see in HD!
It's not available OTA, but it is carried on other cable systems. RCN, for one, and Adelphia too. A full list is available on NESN's website here (http://www.boston.com/sports/nesn/aboutus/hd/).

Thanks geoff2.....I often forget there are a few non-Comcast towns in eastern MA.... ;)

But that's what I was going for, cable only!

This morning WHDH started doing a non-linear stretch (like TNT-HD) on ALL 4:3 material! BASTARDS!!!! @$%!%!@@# That means you can't even get it to look right if you set it back to 4:3 mode on your TV.

Anyone have their phone number to tell them to quit it?

This morning WHDH started doing a non-linear stretch (like TNT-HD) on ALL 4:3 material! BASTARDS!!!! @$%!%!@@# That means you can't even get it to look right if you set it back to 4:3 mode on your TV.

Anyone have their phone number to tell them to quit it?

Channel 7 - Whdh-Tv, News Department
Boston, MA 02108
617-725-0770

WHDH-TV
7 Bulfinch Place
Boston, MA 02114
617-725-0777

Whdh-Tv - Channel 7, Programming & Information
Boston, MA 02108
617-725-0676

WHDH is back to normal (for now). Hopefully enough people called them up to complain. It could have been just a test.

any one having issues with CBS 4-1 its completely unwatchable here during the day then gets better after 6pm :confused:

any one having issues with CBS 4-1 its completely unwatchable here during the day then gets better after 6pm :confused:
We haven't been having any problems with our transmitter or other equipment, especially on a day vs. night basis.

Where specifically in Massachusetts is "here?"

Andover MA

I'm having problems with WHDH DT today. Anyone else?

early this morning yes, but right now it's fine

Fine for me too.

It's still messed up. It will tune fine with my Fusion software, but not through MCE. What the heck is going on? It's the only station that won't tune. I've made no changes.

have you tried to see if it comes in on 42 and then it may re-map to 7

Not sure what you mean? How would I do that? Do you mean 4.2?

I figured out what you mean, and no, it didn't fix it. Does anyone know the contact person at WHDH who may be able to tell me if it's bad PSIP data?

Question for Bob Yankowitz

Is there any status update in regard to those earlier stories on new Sony equipment and an HD local newscast? I blogged about it before finding out that things had been put on hold, and would be greatful for any info that would allow me to bring the story up to date.

Question for Bob Yankowitz

Is there any status update in regard to those earlier stories on new Sony equipment and an HD local newscast? I blogged about it before finding out that things had been put on hold, and would be greatful for any info that would allow me to bring the story up to date.
No change in the status, I'm afraid. The project is still on hold for the time being. Our station in Chicago looks to be the first in the CBS group to get HD cameras for newsgathering.

It's still messed up. It will tune fine with my Fusion software, but not through MCE. What the heck is going on? It's the only station that won't tune. I've made no changes.

Powdercarrot, thank god I found someone having the same problem I am! At least I know now that it's not my damn computer. The Fusion software and my TV's ATSC tuner can tune WHDH fine, but not MCE. I've left a message with the WHDH transmitter at (617) 527-1966. I'll let you know what I find out.

By the way, when did you start having problems? I noticed on the evening of Thursday, May 11th. I was able to tune Conan fine early Thursday morning though.

Thank you. I sent them an email, but no reply yet. Does anyone know a workaround? I've tried adding a channel with freq. 42 to no avail.

Powdercarrot, thank god I found someone having the same problem I am! At least I know now, that it's not my damn computer. The Fusion software and my TV's ATSC tuner can tune WHDH fine, but not MCE. I've left a message with the WHDH transmitter. I'll let you know what I find out.

Thank you. I sent them an email, but no reply yet. Does anyone know a workaround? I've tried adding a channel with freq. 42 to no avail.

I just got a hold of them (I edited my previous post and put a contact number in there for the WHDH transmitter). He said he didn't know of any changes and suggested that I do a complete rescan of the channels. I'll try that when I get home later this evening. Let me know if this works for you. I'm keeping my fingers crossed...

I just got a hold of them (I edited my previous post and put a contact number in there for the WHDH transmitter). He said he didn't know of any changes and suggested that I do a complete rescan of the channels. I'll try that when I get home later this evening. Let me know if this works for you. I'm keeping my fingers crossed...

I did that last night. Still no joy. WTF?

I did that last night. Still no joy. WTF?

crap. that most likely means it won't work for me either. hmm... you wanna try calling them and see what they tell you?

powdercarrot,

This did not work for me either. I tried restoring to a date when I was sure that I could tune WHDH, but that didn't work either. WTF, indeed.

Anyone else having issues with receiving WHDH using MCE and FusionHDTV cards?

I'm going to try calling them again tomorrow.

I'm having a similar issue with WHDH. I can get the channel fine on my samsung ota box, but on my ati hd wonder it just gives me a blank screen. The ati software shows good signal strength too. I did the rescan as well and it showed up, but I can't view it.

Okay, so that's 3 people so far having this issue. Would it be presumptuous to say that there is an issue with WHDH rather than our computers?

If you have MCE and are able to tune WHDH-DT OTA, please post with some details about your system.

Thanks.

Okay, so that's 3 people so far having this issue. Would it be presumptuous to say that there is an issue with WHDH rather than our computers?

More likely a case of both sides needing to be tweaked....
On the WHDH-DT side, the recent addition of "NBC Weather Plus," has changed the stream, and more-importantly the timing within the stream.
Getting a single feed to play on all the various STBs and tuner cards was tricky enough -- combining two feeds (audio, video, PSIP) into a 6 MHz channel takes it to another level of difficulty.

Let's see if we can do a quick checklist... (other "early adopters" please add your $0.02 and hopefully polish and make a "sticky".) Goal -- troubleshoot with idea of saving the user's sanity as well as properly communicating the issue with the broadcaster.


Broadcaster issues (i.e. are others with different STBs having the same issue?)
One channel or multiple channels?
if multiple channels,
is it the same network [e.g. WHDH & WJAR both are NBC and have NBC Weather Plus on a sub-channel), WGBH & WENH both are PBS and have their SD feeds on a subchannel]
if only one channel,
One program, or all programming?
if one program, may be a bad feed from the network.
if all programming, the broadcaster may need to "reboot"/adjust their encoder/PSIP generator/etc.


Reception issues (if problem is a single channel, all programming)
Is your analog reception ok? "Good Signal" -- not too strong, not too weak.
if not, best to adjust antenna for best possible analog UHF reception.
Does moving the antenna (via rotator or manually) change the behavior?
Do other STBs hooked up to the same antenna have the same issue?
Weather issues?
Has there been rain lately -- connections may not be properly sealed
Seasonal - trees leafing out.
Summer vs winter troposphere issues.
Day vs Night propagation issues.
Is there ever a picture? (i.e. case of doesn't sync vs. breaks-up?)
Multipath... tricky since different STBs/tuner cards have different tolerances. [Macro-blocking, freezing, etc. are the classic signs of multipath.] On an analog TV, check if there are "ghosts" on any of the analog channels.
If ghosting noted on analog channels, try using an attenuator to see if that improves the problem. (Digital reception prefers minimal ghosting over maximum signal.)


STB/tuner card issue... (If reception is ok on another STB on the same antenna)
If issue is with a STB/tuner card issue, do others with the same model (and firmware version) have the same issue?
If yes (or unknown), report the make, model, firmware version to the engineering department of the broadcaster. Based on previous experience, applying factory updates to the broadcaster's encoder usually solves the problem. Why? because the encoder manufacturer is the one who can troubleshoot this kind of issue. The good news is that because this is a "can't sync up" issue, is often experienced by multiple stations, so it does get priority. When you bring the issue to the broadcaster's attention, please give them the make/model/etc. of the STB/tuner card along with the version of the firmware so they can pass it on the the encoder team.

If others not having the problem with the same card:
Does an earlier version of the firmware exhibit the same problem?
For tuner cards, does an earlier/later version/service pack exhibit the same problem?
Re-check for multipath.

=======

When you think you've isolated the problem, search this thread/forum. Many of us have "been there/done that" and posted fixes/workarounds, etc.
We did what we had to do: "Chicken wire", "Voodoo attenuators", "Antenna lifters." We wanted our HDTV!

=======

Lastly, when issue identified and/or resolved, POST!!!

For me it's just a problem with MCE. I can tune them (7.1 and 7.2) perfectly with my STB and DVICO Fusion software. Signal strength 100% with Fusion software and 96% with STB.

Thanks

I'm having a similar issue with WHDH. I can get the channel fine on my samsung ota box, but on my ati hd wonder it just gives me a blank screen. The ati software shows good signal strength too. I did the rescan as well and it showed up, but I can't view it.

I have an ATI HDTV wonder and 7.1 hasn't been working for at least a week now. Same blank/black screen.

Audio out of sync. last night on 25-1 10:00 news. Audio was fine with House somebody forget to throw a switch.

I am not running MCE, btw...regular xp.

I've been communicating with an engineer from WHDH, and he just informed me today that they think they have found the problem and corrected it.

I can now tune WHDH in MCE! Did this do the trick for you?

I've been communicating with an engineer from WHDH, and he just informed me today that they think they have found the problem and corrected it.

I can now tune WHDH in MCE! Did this do the trick for you?


Just tried it and it works....thanks!

Just tried it and it works....thanks!

sweet.

Hi All,
I am new to the world of HD. I am interested in being able to pick up OTA HD channels that are offered in my area, and also what I would need, besides a HD TV in order to get these.
Currently I have the basic Direct TV service.
I think all I need is an antenna, but would it help to upgrade to the HD equipment from Direct TV?

I live out here is East Bridgewater.
What equipment do I need? Any recommendations?

I apologize if this has been answered in one of the other 230 pages. ;)

Thanks,
CaptK

Hi All,
I am new to the world of HD. I am interested in being able to pick up OTA HD channels that are offered in my area, and also what I would need, besides a HD TV in order to get these.
Currently I have the basic Direct TV service.
I think all I need is an antenna, but would it help to upgrade to the HD equipment from Direct TV?

I live out here is East Bridgewater.
What equipment do I need? Any recommendations?

I apologize if this has been answered in one of the other 230 pages. ;)

Thanks,
CaptK

For OTA HD reception you will need a good UHF antenna and an HDTV that has an ATSC tuner for digital reception.

For a more integrated solution you could get the DirecTV HR10-250 TIVO HD receiver/recorder. It will integrate the OTA signal with the DirecTV Sat feed for a seamless solution. I use it and it works great...

Ursa

Last night I noticed 56.2, TUBE TV. No programming but...

Last night I noticed 56.2, TUBE TV. No programming but...

New music video channel. 24/7 From one of the co-founders of MTV

My STB showed CH 27-5 last night. It was broadcasting the same programming as 25-1. Maybe just a STB hiccup or Ch25 goofup...or the dreaded mulitcasting.

ursa

ditto. 27-5 EAST

After the NTSC analog shut-off deadline in 2009, will the Boston-area stations start using their VHF/NTSC bandwidth to broadcast digital (ATSC) signals? I'm wondering whether I should keep the VHF reception capability on my antenna setup.

After the NTSC analog shut-off deadline in 2009, will the Boston-area stations start using their VHF/NTSC bandwidth to broadcast digital (ATSC) signals? I'm wondering whether I should keep the VHF reception capability on my antenna setup.
Speaking just for WBZ-TV, we will be using channel 30, our present ATSC assignment. We will not be using channel 4 after the analog shutoff. Our other stations (WSBK-TV [channel 38] and WLWC-TV [channel 28, New Bedford/Providence] will also use their ATSC assignments [channels 39 and 22, respectively].)

I am in Ipswich . I have a Zenith sensor on the 2nd floor of my house. I get most of the OTA digital stations, except for 25 which comes and goes.

I have a Directv HD HTL connected to my tv and a Dvico fusion HDTV card in my computer. They are both connected to the same Sensor antenna. I have recently noticed that I can receive 56-2 (TheTube) on my computer but it does not show up at all on the HTL connected to my tv. When you scan for staions it is not picked up.

Anyone have any idea why?

Thanks.

Speaking just for WBZ-TV, we will be using channel 30, our present ATSC assignment. We will not be using channel 4 after the analog shutoff. Our other stations (WSBK-TV [channel 38] and WLWC-TV [channel 28, New Bedford/Providence] will also use their ATSC assignments [channels 39 and 22, respectively].)

Bob,

Is there any word that can be shared on what is going to become of WSBK once WB and UPN merge and what sort of HD content we might expect to see on it? From what I can find, it looks like WLVI (56) is going to be the local "CW" affiliate.

I know it won't happen, but it would be WAY cool if 38 become NESN :D. Then those of us who have DirecTV instead of Comcast could see baseball and hockey in HD for the local teams.

Maybe someone here can help me. I live in South Boston Below the High School- Thomas Park. I just got a new HDTV and I wanted to get OTA HD to complement my Directv setup. I first tried an indoor antenna- no luck, I am on the first floor of a three family. This weekend I had the Directv guys put up a roof antenna when they brought over my new receiver. This antenna could barely get two channels. I thought that even if it was a crappy antenna, because of my proximity to the broadcasting towers, if would work fine. Am I missing something? I am willing to buy the best antenna if I can be assured it will work. Any suggestions? Are there services that cater to this, I mean could I hire a pro to install the right antenna?
Thanks in advance for any help!

Hi guys, I posted this in OTA hardware too, but i thought i might get more help here.

I just bought a Philips 37" LCD HDTV and a new receiver and speakers, and my head is spinning from doing alot of research in buying those components. I want to set up an OTA antenna so i can get hd broadcasts on my new tv. I've been looking at this section and antennaweb and all taht, and I'm just so spent from researching the tv and speakers, and there is just sooooo much stuff on OTA antennas--I don't know what to do!

If any kind soul could help an OTA newbie out, I would greatly appreciate it!
I live in Newton, specifically 02459. Looking at antennaweb what could the easiest option be? I live pretty close to towers although i have some tall trees by my house.

Do i put on in the attic? DO i need one on the roof? I really hate fiddling with my indoor antenna now for every channel. Any advice would be nice. Thanks a bunch in advance.

kuizzle, you are so close to the xmitters that i bet you can get the DTV stations with a $3.99 "UHF loop" and $4 300-ohm/F-connector adapter for connecting it to the DTV !

Bob,

Is there any word that can be shared on what is going to become of WSBK once WB and UPN merge and what sort of HD content we might expect to see on it? From what I can find, it looks like WLVI (56) is going to be the local "CW" affiliate.

I know it won't happen, but it would be WAY cool if 38 become NESN :D. Then those of us who have DirecTV instead of Comcast could see baseball and hockey in HD for the local teams.
We won't be turning into NESN, but if they ever release their hold on the Sox we'll be very interested.

You are correct: WLVI will become the CW affiliate. WSBK will be returning to its glory days as an independent station.

In primetime, on weekdays, we'll be carrying Dr. Phil, Jeopardy, a half-hour of local news, and an hour of Frazier. On Saturdays, we'll have a movie and that hour of Frazier. On Sundays, we'll have two hours (count 'em - 2!) of CSI: Miami, "Red Sox This Week," and "Red Sox Stories."

As for hi-def, best I can tell you is Jeopardy might be in HD in the Fall.

I did hear on WAAF on Friday that Creature Double Feature is coming back to 56. It would be sweet if it was in HD.

Ernie Boch Jr. is going to be a sponsor.

I did hear on WAAF on Friday that Creature Double Feature is coming back to 56. It would be sweet if it was in HD.

Ernie Boch Jr. is going to be a sponsor.
"COME ON DOWN!!!!"
(Anybody know if this dude still gives you the car if it doesn't have a 'Boch "Mini-Sticker" price on the windshield'...? His Dad supposedly did..... :D )
"Ask for the keys....it's your CAAAH!"

My 6412 died and I went down to exchange it and they gave me a 3412 in its place. So they are available in the Western burbs now.

Interestingly enough, the Firewire input is still much clearer than the HDMI port, which seems little better than component inputs.

Anyone know where i can purchase a Zenith Silver Sensor in the Boston area, maybe around teh Newton, Brookline, Dedham, Needham area? thanks

Does anyone here live in South Boston? Or know about potential OTA issues in Southie? I am having a very hard time getting OTA and I am unsure if it is a Area problem.

I'm getting wildly fluctuating signal from the digital FOX signal. It goes from the usual level (around 30dB) down to almost zero and back up. I was previously able to just pick up audio without video.

Was there maintenance planned for today?

The FOX analog signal seems fine.

I'm getting wildly fluctuating signal from the digital FOX signal. It goes from the usual level (around 30dB) down to almost zero and back up. I was previously able to just pick up audio without video.

Was there maintenance planned for today?

The FOX analog signal seems fine.

I was watching 25-1 and at about 7:15 the picture started pixelating. I checked the
signal strength and it was at about 93 and steady...

?????

My audio on the world cup game is off by about 10 seconds. Anyone else?

I'm was seeing the same 10 second audio delay on WCVB's HD coverage during the first half, both OTA and on Charter cable. WMUR was okay, but reception is spotty here. Now the half-time show is on and the audio is sync'd up. Let's hope it stays that way for the second half!

My audio on the world cup game is off by about 10 seconds. Anyone else?

Yes, mine too. Seems to have cleared up in the second half.

Yes, mine too. Seems to have cleared up in the second half.

Same problem on the Sweden-Trinidad game. :mad: C'mon Channel 5, get your act together.

What would be the forum for an enquiry about why WGBX Boston Channel 44 cut off the movie Paths of Glory before the end at 11:21pm Saturday 10 June 2006 ?... cut off at a critical moment in the story !

Merged.

I was watching 25-1 and at about 7:15 the picture started pixelating. I checked the
signal strength and it was at about 93 and steady...

?????

I live in Westport, MA 50 miles south/southwest of Boston. Up until a few days or a week ago I recieved 25-1 and 68-1,2,3,4. I don't care about 68 (I still get 69), but I do care about 25. Anyone experiencing the same problem or know of a reason why 25 is no longer available in my area? Any info would be appreciated.
R, Dave

I live right in Downtown Boston, and 25-1 is the weakest of the Boston station signals, IMHO. Perhaps it[s because of the direction my outside antenna is aimed - if I get the strongest signal for 25, I lose a lot of the signal for the other stations, so my signal strength (measured by TiVO) for 25-1 is usually between 70-75%, while the other BOston stations are around 90%. I have a similar problem, tho not as extreme, with 44.

I posted this on my blog (http://sprinkleofcocoa.blogspot.com/2006/06/channel-master-7775-versus-radio-shack.html) over the weekend. I hope this is useful:

Channel Master 7775 versus Radio Shack In-line Amplifier
In my, seemingly, never ending quest for reliable reception of the Boston Fox affiliate, I decided to upgrade my rooftop antenna's (Winegard 9032) pre-amp. I had been using a Radio Shack In-line Amplifier. As people on AVS Forum like Channel Master pre-amps, all my local stations are UHF, and my antenna is UHF only, I purchased a Channel Master 7775 UHF only pre-amp from Solid Signal. The Channel Master pre-amp costs $19 more than the Radio Shack model (plus shipping differences).


My hope was that by substituting a higher quality UHF only pre-amp, I would get somewhat less noise, somewhat more signal and have fewer hours when Fox pixelates.


By the way, this is not a definitive comparison. Atmospheric conditions might have changed significantly between the time I checked signals with the Radio Shack and when I finished installing the 7775. I did mow the lawn in the interim. However, I hope this report will help anyone wondering if the higher priced pre-amp is worth the money.


I receive 9 digital over the air channels. The following are of the form Network channel# (True channel#) Strength

PBS 2 (19) Strong
CBS 4 (30) Strong
ABC 5 (20) Strong
NBC 7 (42) Mediocre
FOX 25 (31) Intermittent
UPN 38 (39) Mediocre
PBS 44 (43) Mediocre
WB 56 (41) Intermittent
TFA 66 (23) Mediocre

According to AntennaWeb.org (http://AntennaWeb.org) these are all UHF stations (higher than channel 13), as 2, 4, 5, 7, are actually broadcasting on UHF channels 19, 30, 29, and 42. I'm about 31 miles away from the antenna farm and all of these transmitters are in the same general direction. I have a three way splitter which sends half the signal to my TV Room and a quarter each to my bedroom and my basement office.


Late this morning, I wrote down the "signal strength" for each of these channels from the Dish Network 411 receiver in my TV room, I then disconnected the Radio Shack in-line amplifier and recorded the signal strength without any pre-amp. And finally, I installed the Channel Master 7775 and recorded the results. I do not know what the receiver means by signal strength; I do know if it drops below 58 it will pixelate, stutter, show a signal loss dialog, and sometimes even crash the receiver making me unplug and restart it. BTW, the Dish Network 411 is an unreliable piece of junk.

The following is of the form Network Channel#: Signal with no pre-amp, Signal with RS in-line, Signal with CM 7775. NS means no signal.
PBS 2: 74, 83, 84
CBS 4: 74, 87, 88
ABC 5: 74, 86, 79
NBC 7: NS, 74, 76
FOX 25: NS, 58, 65
UPN 38: NS, 69, 74
PBS 44: NS, 62, 73
WB 56: NS, 59, 66
TFA 66: NS, 73, 79


From this data, we can see a few things. Without a pre-amp, I would only get 3 stations. The 7775 is not appreciably better than the Radio Shack for the strong UHF stations, and is even a good deal worse on ABC 5 (actually 20). But these channels are more than strong enough either way. More importantly, it is noticeably better at boosting the signal of the marginal and intermittent stations with which I've been having trouble. In particular, it boosted FOX and WB above the magic 58 level. I've been watching the signal on Fox and it oscillates within a range of 60-68 over an hour. I suppose that with the Radio Shack, the range was something like 56-64, resulting in frequent picture loss. At least the current operating range is all good enough, although a little close for comfort. My stronger channels oscillate by a point or two at most.


I've also started getting the Manchester N.H. ABC affiliate with reasonable strength ~65 despite my directional antenna being pointed in the opposite direction. Of course, other than local news, which I do not watch, there is little difference between the programming on ABC Boston versus ABC New Hampshire.


These numbers drift over the course of the year as tree leaves grow to block my angle, and then fall. Hopefully, summer has the worst conditions and this upgrade will be good enough to keep me in tacky reality programming till the leaves fall in autumn.

Does anyone have a line on a good OTA antenna installer? I live in South Boston and I had a Directv installer put a antenna on the roof (I think its a winegard- Directv supplied it) and it picks up nothing. I would like to have a professional check out my situation. I can't imagine it would be too expensive? Any help would be much appreciated.

http://www.newenglandantenna.com/index.html

They have been around for years in S. NH but their website says MA, NH, and ME
The work they did for me a few years back was great.

http://www.newenglandantenna.com/index.html

They have been around for years in S. NH but their website says MA, NH, and ME
The work they did for me a few years back was great.
Here's another "thumbs UP" for New England Antenna.....They've done 5 MAJOR installs for me over the past 25 years....ALL top-notch! C/Ku satellite, VHF/UHF, even an ancient (now defunct) PPV service (Preview)....Good luck!

Here's another "thumbs UP" for New England Antenna.....They've done 5 MAJOR installs for me over the past 25 years....ALL top-notch! C/Ku satellite, VHF/UHF, even an ancient (now defunct) PPV service (Preview)....Good luck!


Thanks I'll give them a call!

For WFXT try calling and ask for Bill Holbrook -Chief Engineer WFXT.

He hasn't been on since 6-2-06 but I'm not sure when the last time he was on this forum.

His ForumID is BHolbrook

Hooray! 25-1 is back. I have no idea why it was out, but, I suspect it was due to the 25-1 transmitter rather than anything on my end. Anyone else getting better results?

P.S. The signal is perfect with no dropouts as I write this.

Well, that was short lived. I'm not getting 25-1 anymore! The strange thing is that I was getting this channel fine for 4 or 5 months. Now, problems. Any ideas?

Posted this here because a lot of people get WCVB-DT on their cable and sattelite feeds.

Chronicle is a nice show about Boston and New England culture and happenings. Don't shoot me if it's not HD, they mentioned it briefly in their commercial.

I think that Chronicle occasionally airs in HD.I saw a piece a few nights ago about
the Vermont countryside.It looked good.

Well, that was short lived. I'm not getting 25-1 anymore! The strange thing is that I was getting this channel fine for 4 or 5 months. Now, problems. Any ideas?

At the time of these posts we were having some work done on the tower and were running on our backup transmitter. Let me know if there still are any other issues.

I apologize I haven't been on much lately but we have had numerous projects going on here that have taken up my time.

Bill Holbrook
Chief Engineer WFXT

I live in Hudson, MA and am using a Wineguard Square Shooter amplified antenna to receive my HD with my Echostar 921 receiver.

The antenna is mounted on the roof of my 2 story house probably 40 feet above the ground.

I am getting signal levels of over 100 (on a scale from zero to 125) for Channels 2, 4, 5, 7, 38, 44, and 56 digital feeds(which includes Digital channel 30). I am getting no signal for 25 and 66 at all (digital channels 31 and 32)..

Could I have interference issues with channel 31 and 32, but not channel 30 or 39, 40, 41, 42?

The real interesting thing is that I can get Channel 25 analog quite well.

Any ideas?

Thanks!

Looks like Bill Holbrook gave some of the 25-x (physical 31) scoop.

66-x is physical 23 not 32, and is broadcast from Marlboro/Northboro, not from the Needham towers.

68-x is physical 32, and broadcasts from the Needham antenna farm. (Their analog on 68-0 is from the Prudential tower.)

I made a mistake. I should have listed 25 and 68 not 25 and 66.

I can get 66 with merely a coat hanger at my house since it is less than five miles from my location. In fact I can see the top of the that tower from my roof.

I am having trouble with digital 31 and 32.

Reedl

Posted this here because a lot of people get WCVB-DT on their cable and sattelite feeds.

Chronicle is a nice show about Boston and New England culture and happenings. Don't shoot me if it's not HD, they mentioned it briefly in their commercial.

The best way to see what on and if it's in HD is to go to their web site.
I believe it's thebostonchannel.com/chronicle.

I check it out on Thursday, and it lists all of the following weeks programming if it is in HD.

Well, my 25 reception "crusade" has been somewhat resolved. I found that someone in my house unplugged the power inserter for the Winegard amplifier for the Square Shooter. It got 25 back at around a 80 or so level which is enough to watch it. The real weird thing though is that it did not change any of the other station's levels though.

Oh well, as long as I could watch the All Star game Tuesday.

Reedl

Well, 2 things to think of. It is possible that they are having some technical issues at WFXT. Having been an engineer before retiring, I know they happen. A lot more often with the DT signal. Take into the consideration, the analog side of the house is paying most of the bills, sometimes, the work on the DT side of the house must wait.

I may be wrong, but it is something to consider. Also.....there is a temperature inversion taking place this evening and will continue into the night most likely which will allow more distant stations on the same channels to cause interference too. Just my 2¢ worth!

Anyone having issues with WHDH-DT today? Namely, last nite I could not get a useable signal, (in and out), and today, not a thing. Figured it was something, but antenna = where it usually is, picks up everything but WHDH (get 0% signal). Did the basic move it around, clear, rescan etc = not a thing.

Just before I go nuts and start flipping out, is it a issue here (ie me - mostlikely), or did something transmitter wise change?

Edit: Also, something nice with WFXT, signal seems stronger for the past week or so (always low 60's, but now about 70)

just did a quick check and whdh-dt is out in s.nh with a 16 reading. maybe they had some problems from the storm last night?

Ok thanks, Good I dont have to worry, bad that its out, WHDH-DT = best looking SD scaler IMHO!

Well, its working now (WHDH), good signal (86-92%), so back to enjoying it!

The grey bars on a SD pict are only about 1/2 as wide as they usually are meaning the pict is larger. I checked a NY CBS station on my TIVO and it has the normal size letterbox grey bars. Anyone else seeing this or know why it's happening???

ursa

The grey bars on a SD pict are only about 1/2 as wide as they usually are meaning the pict is larger. I checked a NY CBS station on my TIVO and it has the normal size letterbox grey bars. Anyone else seeing this or know why it's happening???

ursa
Been like this for 2 days now. Either someone inadvertantly nudged the lever that controls the size of the image, or channel 4 is experimenting again with filling as much of the 16x9 window with a 4x3 image as they can. I hope it returns to normal soon because the image is blurry, and we're actually better off viewing the analog image on analog channel 4.

Been like this for 2 days now. Either someone inadvertantly nudged the lever that controls the size of the image, or channel 4 is experimenting again with filling as much of the 16x9 window with a 4x3 image as they can. I hope it returns to normal soon because the image is blurry, and we're actually better off viewing the analog image on analog channel 4.
Sorry about that -- a little experiment gone awry. We've fixed it, so now things are wry.

Sidebars are now black on WBZ and WSBK.

Sorry about that -- a little experiment gone awry. We've fixed it, so now things are wry.

Sidebars are now black on WBZ and WSBK.

That is too bad. I liked the gray to help preserve my Plasma.

Perhaps you should run a poll.

- Rich

That is too bad. I liked the gray to help preserve my Plasma.

Perhaps you should run a poll.

- Rich

I vote for black bars :D.

Now see here, I like the black (and it helps Im using LCD's here), it does not stick out as much, and the picture (with the black sidebars) appears to be sharper.

Those tiny grey bars = didnt sit well here, looked like the tv started zooming into the picture.

Black has my vote here!

Edit: RichB, if you watch alot of WBZ's local newscasts, and it stays black, hopefully they go 16:9 soon! (though, I'd think we would all like that!)

I have to agree, the black sidebars do appear to make the picture look sharper, but in reality, I know it isn't. It is just an optical illusion. However, gray sidebars are better for the monitors. My HD monitor is a tube, and I surely don't want any burn-in on my screen.

I wonder if any of the Engineers from the local stations are on here often. I know many of us were on in the Norfolk, VA thread when I lived there. We were the first to go 16:9 in that market for our 6:00pm newscast. The Phillips cameras we used in our main studio were only SD, but could go 16:9, so we went with a 16:9 SD picture on DT and just chopped off the side for our 4:3 analog channel. Comments at the time were favorable!

For whatever reason, I still don't get FXT down here in Westport, where I used to get it. Over time I've moved the antenna, but, I get all the other Boston stations so I'm reluctent to move it again. Anyone in this area still getting FXT? I get 2, 4, 5, 7, 36, 38, 44, 56, 66, 68, and 69.

I'm In Revere and use a cheap radio shack $25 uhf outdoor antenna. I could'nt be happier with my reception . Through my h20-600 I pick up all of boston area signals at 90 to 100 percent with no dropoffs ever. I also pick up New bedford and Providence at 80 percent plus. I got no preamp or rotor . Just aimed sw 252 degrees. Antenna is probably 35 ft with no obstructions. :)

Is today's Sox/Angels game really in HD or is it SD upconverted? The red on the Fox logo in the title bar "sings" and long camera shots with fans do not look sharp...not the TV as other HD programming is great(none on at the moment) and it is an ISF calibrated XBR 960...Ch 4 always looks great as does 2, 7 pretty good,5 is iffy and 25 appears soft...haven't watched 25 for much else, but with the NFL coming, will be...also 25's signal is usually spotty whereas 4 and 5 are strong and 7 ok...just wondering...

None of the Fox regular season games are in HD; the game is widescreen 480i or 480p, not upconverted AFAIK.

Thanks,Geoff, was wondering...what is Fox doing, saving "resources" for the NFL?

I've decided to dump Comcast and my analog TV. I'm going HDTV and OTA only. I live about 6 miles west of the Needham antenna farm so receiving Boston stations is not really an issue. If I get a good antenna (I'm thinking about a CM 4221, 4228, or 4248), will it increase my programming? It's all well and good to get something that can receive Springfield, but if the Springfield NBC station is showing the same stuff as the Boston NBC station, I've gained little.

Since I'm primarily interested in DTV, should I get a UHF only antenna? It appears that channels 2,4,5,and 6 are being abandoned. WHDH is so close so even when they do shift their digital programming to channel 7, I should still get it with any antenna.

If I get a highly directional antenna, is it possible for me to pick up channel 34 in Hartford as opposed to channel 34 in Merrimac, NH?

Antennaweb says that I should be able to pick up analog station 59 in New Haven, but that's the same frequency as digital WMUR in Manchester, NH. Can I tune out one or ther other? Won't they interfere with each other?

What about HBO etc.. NESN? You'd gonna miss alot. But it'll be cheap thats for sure! :)

I am getting very quick (but regular) interference on all the channels that I get on my HDTV. I am located about 16-20 miles from all the transmitters involved.

I have a 42XG UHF directional antenna going directly to my TV. The signal meter on the TV shows great reception on all the channels. The interference seems to hit and leave so quickly that it doesn't affect the signal meter. Every few seconds (anywhere between 5-20 seconds) I lose the audio and the picture freezes, but then it's back a half second later.

Could this interference be from lightning? Am I too close to the transmitters with this antenna? Do I need a filter on it? An FM Trap? I'm not sure whats causing it, since it seemed to work ok for a few months and then all of a sudden this stuff cropped up.

I don't think it's multipath since it's a directional antenna. I live in a rural area outside of Boston. There's not a lot between me and the antennas except rolling hills. The antenna is up on top of my roof about 2 feet in front of my chimney.