Originally posted by hookbill
What in the world could you have more important to do with your money then get an HD set? C'mon, Inundated. It reminds me of when I was a kid and all the other kids had Schwinn Stingrays and I had a cheapo imatation.

Inundated, cross the line. You can do it. The time is now.:)

Oh, I'm still thinking about it. Then I look at the thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars of outgoing expenses related to my startup business ventures, with no money coming in yet, and I hold off. :D

But until that time...I can STILL tell the difference between HD feeds and SD feeds on my set with ease. ;)

To the Adelphia issue...I am pulling for TWC to take over. That would finally bring us over here in western/northern Summit County into TWC's Akron system. If TWC takes over all of Adelphia's Northeast Ohio systems, they may also start a 24/7 local news channel like they have in much of North Carolina. That's not as likely as it was about 3 years ago, when they were starting them like weeds, but with critical mass in subscribers in the Cleveland market, they might do it anyway.

Wide Open West hit my SA8000HD with a software update - we're at SARA 1.87.16.1 now.

Some interesting new things appear on the diagnostic menu - an option for Disk 1 and Disk 2.... external USB drives in our future perhaps?

DVI and Firewire options (both of which say "disabled" ....grrrr....)

The IPG now displays an "HD" icon on any programming that is broadcasting in HD.

But no ESPN2HD :rolleyes:

Originally posted by paule123
DVI and Firewire options (both of which say "disabled" ....grrrr....)

The IPG now displays an "HD" icon on any programming that is broadcasting in HD.

But no ESPN2HD :rolleyes:

I've heard that SA is no longer going to activate the DVI on the 8000 with the release of the 8300.

If your looking to use that, was WOW have the 8300 available?

Originally posted by hookbill
I've heard that SA is no longer going to activate the DVI on the 8000 with the release of the 8300.

If your looking to use that, was WOW have the 8300 available?

I am not sure if WOW is supplying the 8300HD yet... I asked a couple months ago and they said they were not, but you know how smart those CSRs can be...

Unrelated to HD, but this morning the clocks on my Adelphia digital boxes were at least 5 minutes fast! As far as I can tell, they're ok now...

Originally posted by jtscherne
Unrelated to HD, but this morning the clocks on my Adelphia digital boxes were at least 5 minutes fast! As far as I can tell, they're ok now...

I'm not sure how they get their time, my VCR picks it up from WVIZ and I kind of assumed that's how the cable box gets it too.

I sent an e-mail to Cleveland's WB affiliate WBNX asking for information about their HDTV progress. I also asked if legal issues about interference cannot be cleared up in time, is there a plan to send a direct HD feed to cable systems. This is the response I got.


Yes, our equipment has arrived. They had to build a new room here to house all the new equipment. It is almost done. Hopefully soon they will begin installing our new equipment.

Now I'm not exactley sure if that means OTA equipment or equipment for a direct feed to cable systems. I have e-mailed them back to clarify and will post if I get any more details.

I E-Mailed WBNX about this about three months ago, and received no response. At least they're doing SOMETHING about this, even if it's still kind of early...

Great news. Smallville is one of my favorite shows. I've been watching it in DVD quality on channel 21-2 from Youngstown but HD will be even better. Can't wait.

Originally posted by SteveC
Great news. Smallville is one of my favorite shows. I've been watching it in DVD quality on channel 21-2 from Youngstown but HD will be even better. Can't wait.
I don't know if your a cable subscriber or not but Smallville earlier episodes are being shown in HD on HDnet.

In regards to WBNX OK Adelphia....how long is it going to take to get this one?

lol....they arn't broadcasting yet and I'm already complaining.:)

Here's a legitamate gripe: What's taking so long with WUAB?

Not specifically HD related:

http://www.timewarner.com/corp/newsroom/pr/0,20812,1052294,00.html

If I read the news release correctly, it looks like Adelphia in Ohio will go to Time Warner.

I think your correct. All along it would seem like Time Warner was the obvious choice for this area. Although they did say Time Warner and Comcast would be exchanging some services, they specifically mention Ohio to TW.

I've got mixed reactions to this. I really wanted TiVo for the DVR, but I've heard that Comcast customer service is as bad as Adelphia's.

TWC has a good reputation around here, and would certainly be more welcome for me than Adelphia has been. Plus, here in the Akron area, that means they'll be able to open up local programming out of Akron to the rest of the area.

The only surprise for me - which it shouldn't have been - is that Comcast is exiting the market entirely. The Cleveland Comcast system is not really all that big, I believe, and the whole exchanging of existing systems between TWC and Comcast was known before.

Ok finally some good news. After a follow-up e-mail from WBNX, I got this response.

When we get operational, we will be broadcasting in HD. Hopefully it won't be too much longer. Please be patient.

My guess is the legal issues have been cleared and once the new equipment has been installed they should be ready. Also if you visit their site, under Station Information, the digital channel no longer says not operational. Looks like WBNX in HD is coming soon!

It's proabably a year before Time Warner takes over. Read this:http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/04/21/news/cable.php

I am not sure of when this will happen , but both the SA 8000HD and the 8300 will get a firmware upgrade shortly. Mainly, the boxes will no longer shut down at night. :) . Regarding the 8300 specifically. the SATA port will be activated, an enhanced recording menu and supposedly an improvement in analog PQ. I'll keep you posted.

Thanks for the heads up, handsworth.

Originally posted by Phoenix2088
My guess is the legal issues have been cleared and once the new equipment has been installed they should be ready. Also if you visit their site, under Station Information, the digital channel no longer says not operational. Looks like WBNX in HD is coming soon!

I'm curious of the status of their allocation. Last I'd heard, they were still fighting with the FCC over the Canadian issues, and were still claiming that their latest proposal should satisfy those issues. If they're building and hoping to go on soon, that might be a good sign.

I E-Mail them myself and ask them, but they never answer me. Maybe they know I've poked fun at the Rev. Ernest! :D

Handsworth, thanks for the firmware update news...it's good news. I just wonder if it might be worth it to be to move to the 8300, given such things as better analog PQ. I HATE the PQ on the 8000HD's analog channels, and recorded, they look even worse.

FWIW, the FCC website does not show a granted Construction Permit for WBNX-DT 30. It only shows the only application still in the system, filed way back in 1999!

However, if you click on that application, it shows as being updated in February, 2004, complete with a massive technical exhibit attached as PDF files:

http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/cdbsmenu.hts?context=25&appn=100985494&formid=301&fac_num=72958

Has anyone heard which digital position WBNX will use for ota? 55?

The PDF attached on the page from the link below shows that WBNX has acted in accordance with Canadian officials but the FCC dropped the ball on this. It is asking the FCC to act quickly to grant permission.

http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/cdbsmenu.hts?context=25&appn=101042555&formid=382&fac_num=72958

WBNX probably knows it will now be approved, which is why the equipment is now there.

Originally posted by Tom in OH
Has anyone heard which digital position WBNX will use for ota? 55?

Do you mean which channel? If so, it will be 30.

WGTE (TOL) is watchable for me on ch 30 on ANY storm free day with
a little tropo. Welcome to the group.

http://home.cogeco.ca/~dxinfo/tropo.html

Dan


Originally posted by Phoenix2088
The PDF attached on the page from the link below shows that WBNX has acted in accordance with Canadian officials but the FCC dropped the ball on this. It is asking the FCC to act quickly to grant permission.

http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/cdbsmenu.hts?context=25&appn=101042555&formid=382&fac_num=72958

WBNX probably knows it will now be approved, which is why the equipment is now there.

If this deal goes through like they said it will then my area would be going from Comcast to Time Warner. Lets hope Time Warner is good because Comcast has been the best cable service we have had. They came in replaced every cable line in our county gave us hsi, more digital cable channels, on demand, and hdtv. My cable has never gone out and has always worked well. We will find out.

Originally posted by oachalon
If this deal goes through like they said it will then my area would be going from Comcast to Time Warner. Lets hope Time Warner is good because Comcast has been the best cable service we have had. They came in replaced every cable line in our county gave us hsi, more digital cable channels, on demand, and hdtv. My cable has never gone out and has always worked well. We will find out.

Well, that's the first positive thing I've heard about Comcast. Other then the fact that they made the deal with TiVo.

I will say this about Adelphia currently. The cable has never gone out since I've had them. It's their customer service department that I don't like.

That and the fact that I seem to have more knowledge on how their HD-DVR operates then their technicians.

TWC usually seems to have a clue.

I have had Comcast in other areas - Northern California to be specific - and it's been very good as well. And even despite Adelphia's pretty horrid CS, I've had few problems with them...at least recently.

(Hookbill? You brought your avatar over here, too!)

Originally posted by Inundated
TWC usually seems to have a clue.

I have had Comcast in other areas - Northern California to be specific - and it's been very good as well. And even despite Adelphia's pretty horrid CS, I've had few problems with them...at least recently.

(Hookbill? You brought your avatar over here, too!)

My "helpful wife" did that. I have removed it as nobody uses it over here.

Maybe this is just a WOW Cable issue, but WEWS's upconvert strech garbage doesn't fill the entire screen. There is about 1 inch on each side that is blank. Does this issue with WEWS also occur OTA, or on other cable systems?

BTW last night WEWS blew it, no Jurassic Park 3 in HD.

Yup, looks like it is time to complain, especially for missing the HD for last night's movie.

Anyone but me feel bummed about this change?

I've been on both TW (Akron / Hudson System) and now on Comcast in Willoughby. Service / performance were about the same.

After a quick look at TW's rates and channel lineup, I feel like I'll be paying more for HD and getting fewer meaningful channels. Comcast doesn't have an "HD Tier" (read: extra charge for these HD channels) and offers Starz HD and Cinemax HD. I already get HDNet & HDNet Movies from Directv and really has all the appeal of InHD 1 & 2 anyway......

I don't think you'll see any reduction in services. I would think most everything should stay the same.

Anyway, it's still going to be about a year and a half before the change occures.

No HD on tonight on Grey's Anatomy. No HD last night on Jurassic Park. No HD on Lost last Wednesday.

There were dropouts off and on on the HD feed earlier this evening before it reverted to SD, so I assume they're having problems. Wonder how long this is going to go on?

I have e-mailed Mr. Stark at WEWS concerning the HD issue and also about their up-converted stretched programming that doesn't fill the entire screen. I will post any information I get.

I received a response in less than an hour, so first I must thank Mr. Stark from WEWS. Here is what he had to say about the HD issues and the weird stretch on non-HD material.

Thank you for writing. We have had some technical problems in receiving ABC's HD feed due to bad weather. We hope that this issue will be resolved today.

The stretch question has a lot to do with the type of receiver you are using. Burn-in is only an issue with CRT and plasma sets and then only with constant viewing of the same signal. We purposely kept a slight margin on the stretched programming to keep the "stretch" less noticeable but we will revisit it. Under normal viewing conditions this should not present a problem and certainly would be no greater a problem than for the stations that do not use a stretch in upconversion.

I e-mailed Mr. Stark back trying to convince him to either do a full stretch or no stretch at all. Maybe it is just me who doesn't like WEWS's current method for stretching, so if I can just get a show of hands, would you prefer WEWS to keep their non-HD material the way it is now which is a "slight" stretch, a full stretch, or no stretch at all? I will let Mr. Stark know.

Originally posted by Phoenix2088
Maybe this is just a WOW Cable issue

Glad to see another Wide Open Wester here. I was beginning to think I was the only WOW customer in the Cleveland metro area :D

Do you have the SA8000HD DVR? If so, do you know what size hard drive you have? I was an early adopter and got the 80GB model -- just wondering what they are giving customers now.

Re WEWS: I say leave it as full stretch, since this is what I've become used to on the the 16:9 plasma. If they are trying to "help people out" and make it look less stretched, then don't stretch at all and let us use our "just" or "stadium" mode on our TV's which does a better job stretching IMHO.

Originally posted by Phoenix2088

I e-mailed Mr. Stark back trying to convince him to either do a full stretch or no stretch at all. Maybe it is just me who doesn't like WEWS's current method for stretching, so if I can just get a show of hands, would you prefer WEWS to keep their non-HD material the way it is now which is a "slight" stretch, a full stretch, or no stretch at all? I will let Mr. Stark know.

I'd like to vote for a ban on all non-HD material.... ^_^

Having all HD might solve the stretch issue but if someone asked, I'd vote for a quality full stretch(the same way most HDTVs handle 480i).

Nice work Phoenix2088.

Originally posted by paule123
Do you have the SA8000HD DVR? If so, do you know what size hard drive you have? I was an early adopter and got the 80GB model -- just wondering what they are giving customers now.

I have the SA 3250 HD, non-DVR. As far as DVR's go, WOW is now also giving out the 160 GB model and I think if you go up to the WOW office (I believe in North Royalton) you can swap out boxes.

Picked this up on one of my forums. I'm nowhere near my OTA tuner right now, but has this monstrosity showed up on WUAB-DT or WOIO-DT yet?


Today (4/25), RAYCOM MEDIA launched a new 24 hour music television network THE TUBE MUSIC NETWORK, in more than 10% of the total US households in 29 markets including CINCINNATI, CLEVELAND, MEMPHIS, ALBUQUERQUE and ALBANY.

THE TUBE MUSIC NETWORK is led by MTV/VH-1, and THE BOX pioneer LES GARLAND, who explained, "THE TUBE features the best artists, the best songs and the best images of all time. Our programming cuts through today's digitized, instant-replay, on-demand, multi-channeled, video-gamed, TIVO world because of the magnetically pure, on-target, music strategy we've developed."

RAYCOM MEDIA CEO PAUL McTEAR said, "RAYCOM's broad national reach, encompassing affiliates of FOX, ABC, NBC, CBS, UPN, and WB, will provide local viewers capable of receiving new digital television signals the most innovative offering of music programming in more than two decades."


EDIT: I'm not sure if this launched today...another source says it would launch "in the second quarter". It's apparently already testing in West Palm Beach, FL.

I just noticed Wide Open West now has WKYC's Weather Plus on channel 130, just below the HD tier in the 200's.

Originally posted by Inundated
Picked this up on one of my forums. I'm nowhere near my OTA tuner right now, but has this monstrosity showed up on WUAB-DT or WOIO-DT yet?

I just did a rescan on my OTA box and nothing new is showing up. This is terrible news for CBS fans. There goes the pristine CBS PQ. I really have to wonder why they would ruin an excellent HD product for yet another music channel nobody is going to watch. Maybe they will choose to mutilate WUAB and leave WOIO alone. That would be my preference...


Looks like PSIP info for WEWS is bad - after the rescan I'm getting "15.1" on my box for ABC.

My guess is that it would be on WUAB.

I noticed on my FusionHD recording of last Friday's "Enterprise" that the file size was no more than 6.5GB per hour, much smaller than previous "Enterprise" recordings from WUAB which ran about 7.8-8.0 GB/hr. I suspect that they are already reserving bandwidth for this new subchannel (hence the smaller HD files), even if they aren't broadcasting it yet. As a point of reference, recordings from WKYC-HD come out to around 5.9-6.0GB/hr.

EDIT: Tonight's NCIS came in at over 8GB/hr, so there is no bandwidth reduction on WOIO, at least not yet.

I'd guess WUAB as well, and it looks like flatiron has nailed it.

I'm glad they apparently aren't gonna drop it on WOIO!

WUAB doesn't have any interesting HD programs IMO. It really is a shame that they didn't carry the Cavs games in HD, then again Cleveland sport teams are second rate.

Comcast News Flash:

My Comcast tech insider told me today that if all goes well, we may have TNTHD added to our HD lineup by the end of this week. Just thought you would like to know.

Ben Music

Originally posted by Ben Music
Comcast News Flash:

My Comcast tech insider told me today that if all goes well, we may have TNTHD added to our HD lineup by the end of this week. Just thought you would like to know.

Ben Music

Someone posted this on the HDTV Programming board a while back...apparently Comcast has come to a systemwide deal with TNT for TNTHD. Glad to see it's filtering down so quickly, tho!

Since we're on the topic of Comcast...what part of this area do they serve? Adelphia, I presume is mostly the city and west side...I thought Cox was on the east side.

Of course, both the Adelphia system and the Cleveland area Comcast systems will be part of TWC in a year or so.

Is there any news for DISH having their locals in HD?? I live in North Olmsted and have an antenna in my attic (was there when we bought the house so i'm guessing it's been there a long time) with the old wires leading to where my TV is. I used a converter to get the old wiring to match up with my coax, and was getting 5, 8 and 43 in HD but that was it. I have a DISH 811. I bought a Terk HDTVi and hooked it up last night putting it on a box behind my TV and got only 8 and 43 in HD...sigh...so I'm wondering if the old wiring for the old antenna might be an issue or what the best plan of action would be at this point...WHICH leads me back to my first question...is DISH going to have locals in HD anytime soon? I guess i've asked too many questions, but i sure do love that HD and want EVERYTHING in HD!!!:D
Thanks for any help...this forum rocks!!!

Hey Italians,
that's good news you're getting something with your old antenna. I'd make sure all the connections are clean & tight and while keeping a close eye on your ota meter, start tweaking the position either right or left a tiny amt(1 cm). just to see if you can increase signal strength and maybe pull in 3 & 10.

Terk has great multiswitches but others report the same poor results with Terk's HD antennas.

Also, make sure your antenna is designed for both UHF(5,8,43) & VHF(3,10).

Let us know and welcome.

Tom,
Could the old wiring be an issue?? I was thinking it might have something to do with it but not sure...but then when the indoor one didn't really pull too much I was thinking my location might not be good.
My next thought was to put the indoor antenna in the attic and running all coax to the bac of my receiver. any thoughts on that?!!?
Thanks again.

Originally posted by Italians
I live in North Olmsted and have an antenna in my attic (was there when we bought the house so i'm guessing it's been there a long time) with the old wires leading to where my TV is. I used a converter to get the old wiring to match up with my coax, and was getting 5, 8 and 43 in HD but that was it.

I am guessing you have old 300-ohm twin lead coming from the antenna. (it's a flat looking cable with two wire "bumps") You want to get rid of that and go with RG/6 75 ohm coax from the antenna to the back of the receiver. Buy a 300-75 ohm transformer (aka "balun") from Radio Shack to put on the wing nuts on the antenna side.

Make sure you buy RG/6 coax and not RG/59 !!

Return the Terk to the store for a refund. Even though it looks a lot like the famed "Silver Sensor", the reports I have read say it's a poor performer.

Edit: after all of this, don't be surprised if you still cannot get WKYC (NBC 3.1), it's on a low-VHF frequency and a big problem to receive reliably.

-- Paul

Originally posted by Italians
...is DISH going to have locals in HD anytime soon?

They will have to convert to MPEG4 first before that is a possibility. Ergen said in one of his Charlie Chats that MPEG4 would not start before the end of 2005. DirecTV is launching a new bird soon to support this. They are planning to offer HD locals for the top 12 markets this summer. Since the Cleveland market is not in that group, it might be late 2006 or 2007 before they are available. In both cases though, the current receivers are not capable of handling MPEG4 so you will need to get a new receiver to be able to get any new HD channels.
Steve

Yo Paule...thank you very very much! I am going to go to Radio Shack very soon to look for this stuff. I guess I will send the antenna back to Amazon after I try one more reposition. Bummer about channel 3 with the NFL coming to NBC this fall....I hope they do something about their weak signal before that!
Steve...glad to see my receiver should be ok for the next couple of years!! Thanks for the info on Dish.

Yeah, the first thing to do is return the Terk antenna, definitely. They have only one antenna that's worth the materials it's built with...and it's a more expensive rebranding of an antenna available elsewhere for $50 less.

Re: D* and Cleveland market locals in HD - it won't be late 2006 or 2007. Last I heard, they'll do the top-12 markets soon (like summer), and the next batch, top 50 or so (including Cleveland) would likely be by about the end of 2005 or early 2006.

I just got an e-mail from the station manager at WBNX and now it seems a digital broadcast is not too likely in the near future. I guess the response I recieved earlier about HD equipment was either not true or for a direct feed to cable companies which is hinted at in the e-mail.

We've been working on interference issues in Canada however a construction permit for our digital facility has not been issued, unfortunately we will not be broadcasting in digital prior to the 05-06 season.

HD carriage will be a major issue when we begin negotiations with the cable companies for must carriage a little later in the year. How we get it to them will factor into that discussion. Appreciate your patience.

While surfing last night I noticed my Mentor Comcast added TNTHD. I'm not a big basketball fan but I did stop and watch some the game. They really push the bass up on the 5.1 audio.

Ray

While looking for a news program this morning I noticed FOX 8 on Adelphia in HD was gray. OTA people, are you receiving a signal?

I'm getting FOX 8 fine both on my OTA box and on Adelphia 708...

After a reposition of my Terk antenna behind the tv, I pulled in 19, but not reliably and not all the time. With that same antenna, I also got a signal on WKYC but it came in on channel 2. On my DISH box 811, channel 2 is reserved for the inputs on the back of the receiver so I'm not sure how to get it to show up. Any help with that would be appreciated...but i am going to try to put the Terk up in the attic and compare the reception with that of the old antenna to see which pulls a signal better. Of course, my wife isn't too excited about me punching holes in the house...and i don't blame her!!! :D

Originally posted by Italians
.but i am going to try to put the Terk up in the attic and compare the reception with that of the old antenna to see which pulls a signal better. Of course, my wife isn't too excited about me punching holes in the house...and i don't blame her!!! :D

Isn't it fun? Most of us have been thru this. Installing, tweaking, repositioning, drilling holes, reassuring the better half and then wondering if a tiny tweak to the right or left will help some more.

WKYC is on digital channel 2. Does your 811 receive analog ota signals also? There might be a mixup between analog 3(NBC) and digital 2. Tell us more about what u mean about the inputs being assigned to channel 2.

Tom,
ok...i'll try....lol...there are INPUTS in the back of my receiver for things like a VCR or a DVD player so most of your stuff can go directly through the receiver instead of using inputs on your TV. so lets say i have my VCR's outputs in my receiver's INPUTS, i could tune the receiver to channel 2 and watch the VCR ...hope that helps!!
Yeah...the things we do for a pretty picture huh?? :rolleyes:

Oh ok, that's a nice feature for simplicity. When you're tuning in WKYC (digital channel 2) make sure you're not tuning in analog 3. For example, the Zenith 520 has an analog and digital tuner. The digital version comes in on channel (3-1) The SD analog version is (3). Maybe this doesn't apply, just wanted to make sure. What happens if u tune your 811 to 3-1?

Originally posted by Italians
Tom,
ok...i'll try....lol...there are INPUTS in the back of my receiver for things like a VCR or a DVD player so most of your stuff can go directly through the receiver instead of using inputs on your TV. so lets say i have my VCR's outputs in my receiver's INPUTS, i could tune the receiver to channel 2 and watch the VCR ...hope that helps!!
Yeah...the things we do for a pretty picture huh?? :rolleyes:

In Chapter 3 of the 811 manual, "Using the program guide", it talks about how the A/V inputs on the back can be viewed as sub channels of channel 1. It says select channel 1 from the guide and select either input 1 or 2.

When u set up the receiver for local digital ota, did all the local HD channels show up in the guide?

just so everyone is aware, or maybe not aware, TNTHD is down on my system here in mogadore, dont know how far this problem is spread but appears that TIME warner is fixing it! dont know how long it will be though

Tom, thanks for the ideas. I broke down and called D* last night and got a knowledgable (believe it or not) rep on the phone and he helped me with the issue. you have to set up the receiver not to pull in the dish locals just the ota locals and then it works...so even though i was pulling a 49% signals strength i couldn't get 3 to show up...or 19 for that matter. more playing with the antenna is needed i'm guessing. thanks again for your help!

Originally posted by Italians
Tom, thanks for the ideas. I broke down and called D* last night and got a knowledgable (believe it or not) rep on the phone and he helped me with the issue. you have to set up the receiver not to pull in the dish locals just the ota locals and then it works...so even though i was pulling a 49% signals strength i couldn't get 3 to show up...or 19 for that matter. more playing with the antenna is needed i'm guessing. thanks again for your help!

I've always thought Direct TV's reps are light years ahead of any cables. I'm not surprised you got some help.

Originally posted by Italians
Tom, thanks for the ideas. I broke down and called D* last night...

I thought you said you had a Dish Network 811 box. Why would you call DirecTV for help? They must be really good if they will help with a competitors box. :D

sorry guys...yeah i called Dish not Direct...and they were extremely helpful with the issue. He guaged pretty quickly that i knew what i was doing (sort of) and understood the concept of HD so he didn't do the step by step thing with me and I appreciated that.

As hansworth predicted, my 8300 had a reboot last night and was upgraded to SARA 1.87.16.1. I have not fooled around with it much to see what the upgrades include.

I forget how to check, but my SA8000 also definitely got an update.

When you change between "Normal/Zoom/Squeeze", it now shows the output resolution on that line. And any shows tagged as HD in the guide now show a BIG "HD" logo on the left hand side of the show's info bar.

Originally posted by Inundated
I forget how to check, but my SA8000 also definitely got an update.

When you change between "Normal/Zoom/Squeeze", it now shows the output resolution on that line. And any shows tagged as HD in the guide now show a BIG "HD" logo on the left hand side of the show's info bar.

Press and hold select until the mailbox flashes. Then push info. That takes you to the diagnostic screen.

Yes, your right about the HD logo, however as far as the output resolution are you referring to 720p etc.? It's always done that.

Originally posted by hookbill
Press and hold select until the mailbox flashes. Then push info. That takes you to the diagnostic screen.

It looks like the SARA version is identical: 1.87.16.1. They must have standardized the version numbers across the 8000/8300 platforms.

The thing I'm talking about is when you press the # on the remote to change between normal, zoom and squeeze modes. As of this update, it now displays the output resolution of the box next to those words ("Normal 480i" in my case) onscreen. It didn't start doing that until this software update...

Originally posted by Inundated
It looks like the SARA version is identical: 1.87.16.1. They must have standardized the version numbers across the 8000/8300 platforms.

The thing I'm talking about is when you press the # on the remote to change between normal, zoom and squeeze modes. As of this update, it now displays the output resolution of the box next to those words ("Normal 480i" in my case) onscreen. It didn't start doing that until this software update...

Yes, that's what handsworth said. Same version for both models.

I had an update a few months ago and that's when I first noticed the displays. They probably just got you caught up with the 8300 users on that feature.

I'll have to go back and find that message about the update... and find out what 8000 users got out of it...

If handsworth is still around...any rumblings about TNT-HD or Universal HD, or whatever else was supposedly on the table at some point? And is all this stuff gonna get added before Adelphia becomes TWC in a few months to a year? :D

Originally posted by Inundated
I'll have to go back and find that message about the update... and find out what 8000 users got out of it...

If handsworth is still around...any rumblings about TNT-HD or Universal HD, or whatever else was supposedly on the table at some point? And is all this stuff gonna get added before Adelphia becomes TWC in a few months to a year? :D

That's just it, I don't think you got that update. I think that was 8300 users only.

I left the rest of your quote there to see if handsworth responds.:)

Not that I'm greedy or anything.........:D

Originally posted by hookbill
That's just it, I don't think you got that update. I think that was 8300 users only.

We got whatever update they pushed out to 8000 users to bring it up to the same version number as your 8300. Presumably, the updates/feature set are different, even if they're keeping the same version numbers. I got my 8000 update a couple of nights ago.

Someone on another board here says the 8300 has better SD quality and faster channel changing...that alone might make it worth a switch for me.

The "live" SD quality isn't awful on the 8000, but the recorded SD quality bites, especially on Adelphia's already notoriously bad analog channels.

And yes, we'll leave that quote up, in case handsworth wishes to address it ;)

Originally posted by Inundated
We got whatever update they pushed out to 8000 users to bring it up to the same version number as your 8300. Presumably, the updates/feature set are different, even if they're keeping the same version numbers. I got my 8000 update a couple of nights ago.

Someone on another board here says the 8300 has better SD quality and faster channel changing...that alone might make it worth a switch for me.

The "live" SD quality isn't awful on the 8000, but the recorded SD quality bites, especially on Adelphia's already notoriously bad analog channels.

And yes, we'll leave that quote up, in case handsworth wishes to address it ;)

I wasn't talking about the one that gave us the same version. I was talking about another update previously. Yes, the update we got last night gave us the same versions. But I believe that the 8300's got an update a couple of months ago that fixed a problem with fast fowarding freezing and also gave us those graphics you talked about seeing for the first time.

Are we on the same page now?

Just noticed this, hopefully it is just not me. I was watching American Idol, and the FOX logo was some what cut off at the bottom. I don't believe this is an issue with my TV, and was wondering if anyone else saw the same thing? All other HD programming on FOX has an affiliate bug, except AI, which shows up in the correct spot.

Originally posted by hookbill
I wasn't talking about the one that gave us the same version. I was talking about another update previously. Yes, the update we got last night gave us the same versions. But I believe that the 8300's got an update a couple of months ago that fixed a problem with fast fowarding freezing and also gave us those graphics you talked about seeing for the first time.

Are we on the same page now?

Oh, OK. I think so. I'm still not sure I wanna swap to the 8300, though. I might hold out with the 8000 until they somehow get a non-SARA box. I HATE SARA! :D

Originally posted by Phoenix2088
Just noticed this, hopefully it is just not me. I was watching American Idol, and the FOX logo was some what cut off at the bottom. I don't believe this is an issue with my TV, and was wondering if anyone else saw the same thing? All other HD programming on FOX has an affiliate bug, except AI, which shows up in the correct spot.

There's actually a thread about this in HDTV Programming.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=536677

Well, maybe not this EXACT problem (about being cut off)...I don't really watch AI so I don't know. But FOX apparently puts up a generic network bug ONLY on that show.

FYI, I'm getting on another thread from a beta tester that the upgrade will help stabalize video and audio glitches. I noticed tonight everything I watched was perfect. Well, I didn't really notice it until after I was informed about what the upgrade did then I thought back and said, yeah, everything was smooth tonight.:)

Originally posted by Inundated
Oh, OK. I think so. I'm still not sure I wanna swap to the 8300, though. I might hold out with the 8000 until they somehow get a non-SARA box. I HATE SARA! :D

Well, the chances of that happening are slim and none now. With TWC taking over they will stay with the 8300 and SARA. Keep in mind you have to use what is compatible with the cable system and Pasport software must not be compatible to Adelphia.

One of the issues is the first run flag, and my understanding is that the first run flag is included with this current software, but the IPG needs to be changed to indicate first run/repeat. If they upgrade the IPG it would be a big help to the 8300/8000.

Originally posted by hookbill
FYI, I'm getting on another thread from a beta tester that the upgrade will help stabalize video and audio glitches. I noticed tonight everything I watched was perfect. Well, I didn't really notice it until after I was informed about what the upgrade did then I thought back and said, yeah, everything was smooth tonight.:)

We got this upgrade (on WOW) a couple weeks ago and I'm not happy with passthrough mode on SA8000HD. It takes an agonizingly long time for the box to change from 720p to 1080i when I jump around the HD channel block in the 200's. Screen goes black, audio stutters, and it sits and "thinks" with a black screen for a few seconds before the next channel kicks in. I may go back to permanent 1080i mode even though the analog 480i stuff is not as good in that mode.

Originally posted by hookbill
Well, the chances of that happening are slim and none now. With TWC taking over they will stay with the 8300 and SARA. Keep in mind you have to use what is compatible with the cable system and Pasport software must not be compatible to Adelphia.

Does TWC use other boxes than SA? Because I could have sworn that my sister's HD box, on TWC, is made by Pioneer.

Wait, let me check...yes, it is a Pioneer, because I have my Pocket PC's remote control program set up to control it. :D It's not a DVR, just a straight HD box, though.

Anyway, I also don't know what'll happen to the system when TWC takes over...if they'll physically take over the Cleveland Adelphia headend and use that, or if they'll run it on the same standards as Akron/Canton... I'll have to talk to my relative at TWC about that.

Originally posted by paule123
We got this upgrade (on WOW) a couple weeks ago and I'm not happy with passthrough mode on SA8000HD. It takes an agonizingly long time for the box to change from 720p to 1080i when I jump around the HD channel block in the 200's. Screen goes black, audio stutters, and it sits and "thinks" with a black screen for a few seconds before the next channel kicks in. I may go back to permanent 1080i mode even though the analog 480i stuff is not as good in that mode.

Are you sure it's the same software version as mentioned above? You may want to check your diagnostic screen.

If it is, does WOW have the 8300? If they do, get one of those.

Originally posted by hookbill
Are you sure it's the same software version as mentioned above? You may want to check your diagnostic screen.

If it is, does WOW have the 8300? If they do, get one of those.

It's definitely SARA 1.87.16.1. I knew the change took place because I started seeing the HD bug. There's also a bunch of new screens in diagnostics related to firewire, copy protection, and external HDD storage, although those features are not implemented on the 8000. I beleive with this software release, those of you with an 8300 should be able to add an external SATA drive for more DVR space.

I dunno if WOW is shipping the 8300 yet, I'll have to ask. I actually think I did ask but forgot what the answer was. :D

Originally posted by paule123
It's definitely SARA 1.87.16.1. I knew the change took place because I started seeing the HD bug. There's also a bunch of new screens in diagnostics related to firewire, copy protection, and external HDD storage, although those features are not implemented on the 8000. I beleive with this software release, those of you with an 8300 should be able to add an external SATA drive for more DVR space.


Wow, I forgot about that part of it, your right it was suppose to activate external SATA drive, and my disk is 72% full now (sweeps).

Does anyone know what I need to hook that up? I want to know what kind of wire connection and any limitations on the SATA drive.

Originally posted by hookbill
Wow, I forgot about that part of it, your right it was suppose to activate external SATA drive, and my disk is 72% full now (sweeps).

Does anyone know what I need to hook that up? I want to know what kind of wire connection and any limitations on the SATA drive.

I would do a search for one of the "official" SA8300HD threads for really in-depth technical info from people who have been playing with this. Actually I remember seeing a thread dedicated to SATA drive on the SA8300HD. As I recall one user just went out and bought an off the shelf Maxtor external SATA drive and it worked. I could be mistaken, but one problem is your recordings can be split across both internal and external drives, so you can't just unplug the drive and use if for something else without screwing up *all* the recordings including the ones on the internal drive. I think the 8300 wants to format the drives as one big partition -- you might even lose your existing shows on the internal drive when you plug it in. Again, check the thread on that, I could be wrong.

Originally posted by paule123
I would do a search for one of the "official" SA8300HD threads for really in-depth technical info from people who have been playing with this. Actually I remember seeing a thread dedicated to SATA drive on the SA8300HD. As I recall one user just went out and bought an off the shelf Maxtor external SATA drive and it worked. I could be mistaken, but one problem is your recordings can be split across both internal and external drives, so you can't just unplug the drive and use if for something else without screwing up *all* the recordings including the ones on the internal drive. I think the 8300 wants to format the drives as one big partition -- you might even lose your existing shows on the internal drive when you plug it in. Again, check the thread on that, I could be wrong.

Geeze, wouldn't want that to happen. I've already asked some questions on another thread and I see there is a response. I'll check there and if I don't get answers I'll search for the SATA thread. Thanks.

WXYZ-DT Detroit (remaps from channel 41 to 7-1,2,3) ABC
7-1 is the main w/ DD 2.0
7-2 is Detroit radar/no audio
7-3 is tower cam/no audio
My Yagi is pointing 314 degs. I saw the sig strenght indicater hit 70 for a few
seconds (which is about as high as it ever goes). As a comparison ch15-1 accross the street only comes in at 64. WXYZ is 115 mi. from the
house.

Originally posted by hookbill
Geeze, wouldn't want that to happen. I've already asked some questions on another thread and I see there is a response. I'll check there and if I don't get answers I'll search for the SATA thread. Thanks.

The forum search function seems seriously broken, but I found it referenced in another thread:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=516559

Yep, someone got that one to me and I've forwarded to my computer genius wife to figure out. Thanks Paule123

I just heard on WOIO that the government has set a date of December 31, 2006 at midnight as the end of analog broadcasting. All stations should be digital by then.

Wow, that is unreal news. I know that it was the original plan, but for years everyone said it would never happen by that date. That means that ALL standard TV's will no longer be able to receive local channels without a digital converter box. Not that I don't believe what you saw, but they are saying that in 18 months, people who don't have cable or digital TV's with a digital tuner, will be forced to buy a new TV or a converter box? Certainly it doesn't seem like things have progressed that quickly.

Seems a bit soon considering the slow start that digital / HDTV had. I'd love to hear an 'offical' source on this one. I'd think it's far more reasonable to think that the date specified is when all stations must have their digital broadcasts live as opposed to when they must turn off their analog. The date for that was already supposed to have happened, but was postponed indefinately for many smaller markets. It would be strange they would just skip that step in the process.

-Todd

Originally posted by hookbill
I just heard on WOIO that the government has set a date of December 31, 2006 at midnight as the end of analog broadcasting. All stations should be digital by then.

If I saw it on "19 Action News", I'd get two confirmations from elsewhere. ;)

Seriously, if that were the case, there'd be at least two threads on "HDTV Programming" here on AVSForum. The closest I can find is this one started yesterday...

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=536655

I'll scout around and see if I can find more. Sometimes 19 puts related AP stories on their website...

Originally posted by hookbill
I just heard on WOIO that the government has set a date of December 31, 2006 at midnight as the end of analog broadcasting. All stations should be digital by then.


That is a proposal by a group of senators. It hasn't been enacted yet.

Ok...that makes more sense. It doesn't effect me, but if I were voting, I'd say delay it until all markets have their digital towers up & working for at least a year. Plus, I'm sure it will be difficult to come up with cheap solutions for those using OTA analog for their TV in such a short time period. People won't pay $100 for a converter box & if they don't want cable, they are screwed. The converter box needs to be under $30 I'd say to be realistic for many people. Keep in mind those that have only analog OTA channels are probably those that don't want to spend much on TV. They may have to go without if analog is shut off too soon.

-T

Originally posted by Inundated
If I saw it on "19 Action News", I'd get two confirmations from elsewhere. ;)


Well, I admit they seem to run at the mouth a bit.:) Your absolutly right I shouldn't take anything they say without double checking.

Sorry if I jumped the gun a bit.

Originally posted by Dweezilz
People won't pay $100 for a converter box & if they don't want cable, they are screwed. The converter box needs to be under $30 I'd say to be realistic for many people.
-T

This is exactly my thought on why they won't shut analog off for quite a while, certainly not in '06/'07. As the impending doom nears, I'm sure we'll see a great debate as congressmen propose government subsidized converter boxes for the "disenfranchised" Or perhaps free basic cable for those under a certain income level. Or better yet, a subsidy for the broadcasters to keep running those expensive analog transmitters. It should be interesting.

Let's put all this social security talk on hold and make sure people can watch TV !! :D

Originally posted by paule123
Let's put all this social security talk on hold and make sure people can watch TV !! :D

Yes, let's make sure our prioritys are correct.:rolleyes: :)

Originally posted by hookbill
Well, I admit they seem to run at the mouth a bit.:) Your absolutly right I shouldn't take anything they say without double checking.

Sorry if I jumped the gun a bit.

Last Sunday night, 19 ran a continuous crawl about construction on I-77, between 480 and 490, not being done until 6 AM Monday.

I saw this after I saw video on Channel 5, showing the re-opened I-77...which had been since about 7 PM that evening.

If "19 Action News" reported that the sun would rise in the morning, I'd check 3, 5 and 8 first. :D

Actually, as far as this "early analog shutoff" proposal, there already HAS been debate about subsidizing converter boxes. I wish I could make stuff like this up, but I'm not making it up (thank you, Dave Barry). They're so eager to shut down the analog TV spectrum - and sell the rights to "advanced data services" companies for billions - that they're weighing how much money to spend to buy TV converter boxes! Oy vey.

But don't forget they are fair, reliable, and evrywhere.:rolleyes:

Originally posted by hookbill
But don't forget they are fair, reliable, and evrywhere.:rolleyes:

My favorite is when the anchor makes a big deal about leading into it...

Anchor: "19 Action News is..."
(pause)
(pause)
(someone in the control room finally gets the tape started)
Female Whisper: "everywhere..."

This actually happened the other day.

:D

And don't get me started about their "Money List" promotion this week. You, too, can try to get sweeps ratings by running the STATE OF OHIO'S UNCLAIMED MONEY LIST on your crawl, and make it sound like you're giving the money away! Lamest. Sweeps. Stunt. Ever.

I occasionally watch, by the way, but solely for the entertainment value.

Although the coveted ratings demograghic is 18 - 49; ch-19 has decided to go for 10 - 19.

They WIN!

Originally posted by hookbill
But don't forget they are fair, reliable, and evrywhere.:rolleyes:

No, I got it wrong. I'ts : "Honest, Fair.....Everywair"

And of course FOX news is "Fair and Balanced"......you have to lean to the right to straighten out the picture.:)

I haven't been able to receive 5.1 OTA for a while now. I punch it in and get a blank screen or a weak signal reading. My signal meter on the other hand shows it at 82.
I also tried punching in 5.2, 5.3 and 15 with no luck.
Have they ever returned the HD signal to the air after the 4/25 problem they had?

PPS
What receiver are you using? I have been having the same problem (Dish 6000). I haven't been able to receive digital 5 for a few weeks. I tried re-scanning and 15-1 shows up (it doesn't remap it to 5-01 like it used to). When I choose 15-1, the receiver shows a signal strength, pauses and then shows no picture. They must have changes something.
Jeff

I rescanned a week or two ago looking for that new WUAB music channel on 43. At that time the receiver mapped WEWS to 15-1. It's coming in fine here OTA. I have a Samsung SIR-T165 receiver. Maybe your receivers are more sensitive to incorrect PSIP information or something...

Originally posted by PPS
I haven't been able to receive 5.1 OTA for a while now. I punch it in and get a blank screen or a weak signal reading. My signal meter on the other hand shows it at 82.
I also tried punching in 5.2, 5.3 and 15 with no luck.
Have they ever returned the HD signal to the air after the 4/25 problem they had?


Try 15-1 It is on the air right now but thier PSIP is screwedup in that
it does not remap to 5-1 good luck.

Dan

Same thing happened to me when I tried rescanning...WEWS-DT showed up at 15-1. The earlier entry stayed in my program guide (5-1), and 5-1 has no picture...15-1 does.

Originally posted by intermod
Try 15-1 It is on the air right now but thier PSIP is screwedup in that
it does not remap to 5-1 good luck.

Dan


I am having similar problems with ABC. It maps to 15.1 on my Disn 921 receiver. My new 942 refuses to recognize the channel altogether. Does any one has similar problems in receiving ABC with Dish 942 receiver.
What does PSIP mean anyway?

Vivek

Originally posted by vinyal
What does PSIP mean anyway?

"Program and System Information Protocol" - it basically is a packet of data that the station transmits that tells your receiver what digital subchannels are available and (I assume) what channel the analog equivalent station can be found on.

Note one of the bullet points on this page:
http://www.psip.org/psip_reasons.html
"Some receivers may not work correctly if you don't do PSIP right"

If we all chip in, we can buy the book on PSIP and send it to WEWS engineering, LOL.

I have a DISH 811 and it also comes in on 15.1, and usually (80%) the info is there and accurate...the problems i have with the info is on channels 50.1 and 50.2...but again for some reason i get these channels in crystal clear with my OTA, but cannot pull in 3, 19 or 25. Go figure....

Don't feel bad Italians, most of us have trouble with those channels. I used to get 50-1 with no prob a few months ago but now it's a no go. It never showed up in the guide. I had to punch it in.

Just noticed abc is coming in on both 5-1 and 15-1(but signal is blocky).

Is the issue with 3 and 19 related to location or their signal?? Anyone know? I get 49% on both but just cannot pull them in.....

Originally posted by Italians
Is the issue with 3 and 19 related to location or their signal?? Anyone know? I get 49% on both but just cannot pull them in.....

3 is always going to be a problem until they move off that low-VHF frequency (the HD channel is actually channel 2). But they won't be moving for 2 or more years from now.

Personally, I don't have a problem with 19 as long as I keep the antenna up high on the 3rd floor of the house.

Yeah NBC & CBS are definately the two weakest for me too. I usually get WOIO though but sometimes it'll break up. WKYC is very low signal strength (60-73), but usually pops in & stays. I can't get 50.1 at all...never have.

WOIO's DT allocation is also on VHF, like WKYC-DT 2, but it's 10...high VHF. In theory, that should be somewhat easier to pick up than 2.

If you don't have a VHF antenna at ALL in your system, it could explain the problem. Though, it's my understanding that even a decent UHF antenna could probably get a high VHF if it's strong enough.

So here's a question...if I have an antenna in my attic (one of the big ones that was there when we bought the house) is that both a VHF and UHF antenna or does it depend on the model of the antenna?? It's pretty big, and that's all i know about the antenna.

Yes, not all antennas are created equal. Some are better than others, some are UHF only & some both. Usually the big 'yagi' type antennas are quite good (although big) & are usually both UHF & VHF. Sounds like that's what you have although without seeing it or knowing the model # it's hard to say for sure. One thing about channel 10 (CBS). Even though it's higher in the VHF band, it conflicts with another channel 10 coming from Detroit or Canada (can't recall which) thus it tends to have some breakup issues for some people. Some have said it's because WOIO must keep their power output down as to not cause a problem for the other channel & others say it's the power of the other channel that is causing the issues. I don't know which it is, but if the channel signal seems strong, yet on some days it has a few breakups each hour, that is the reason. It's not often that this happens for me, but it does happen. My signal strength will be low 80's & it'll freeze & pixelate a few times in an hour show, while NBC will be in the high 60's to low 70's & once it locks in, it's fine.

Either way, I have Adelphia as well, so I watch those channels on cable most of the time now.

Originally posted by Italians
So here's a question...if I have an antenna in my attic (one of the big ones that was there when we bought the house) is that both a VHF and UHF antenna or does it depend on the model of the antenna?? It's pretty big, and that's all i know about the antenna.

You've probably got plenty of antenna, but the problem is your roof is going to block a lot of signal. I tried the big-antenna-in-the-attic when I started playing with HD and it just didn't work for me. Once you move the antenna outside it makes a big difference.

Now I have a small tabletop silver sensor UHF-only antenna sitting in a 3rd floor window facing Parma, and it works fine for me -- I get all the locals including WKYC. (I don't get WVIZ-DT PBS, but they are still at low power...)

I just wanted to pipe in in reference to the questions about the Dish 942 a couple posts back. I have a Winegard HD7082 gigantic rake on my roof in which all digital channels are at about 89-97% signal strength (other than WVIZ-DT which I barely get at 50% (which I understand due to their low power they are running at). WEWS-DT WILL NOT REGISTER AT ALL. Not even 1% (and according to the CEA chart, they are in the 'Yellow' zone. I get WOIO-DT which is in the 'Blue' zone at which I get 96% - so I know it is NOT the antenna) . I have a feeling that it may be a PSIP issue and the 942 OTA.

My Dish 811 has WEWS locked & coming in strong, still mapping to 5.1 (actual channel is 15.1). I won't run the scan for at this point as I don't want to lose it if there is a problem!

So out of curiosity, is the frequency for WEWS-DT at 5 or 15 or both?? When I do a scan, should I try 5? Or will it always be at '15'? I am new at this whole OTA/Digital stuff, so please bear with my naivity.

WEWS-DT is on channel 15. (note the -DT designation for digital)

The traditional call letters WEWS (without the -DT) will be on channel 5 until someday the FCC decides to let the broadcasters turn that off.

Think of them as two separate stations that just happen to be showing the same TV shows.

I think it depends on the receiver whether you can punch in 15 on the remote and get WEWS-DT directly. It sounds like some receivers make you punch "5" for the analog channel first, then make you hit the channel up button for 5.1 to get the DT signal (which the receiver knows is on 15 because it learned that during the channel scan setup process)

I can't recall how the re-mapping works. On my original Dish 6000, for a long time, the channels showed up as the actual frequency such as 31.1, 10.1, 15.1, 2.1, etc... The same goes for the old DTC-100 I had. Then at some point, one or two started showing up as the analog number with .1 on the end (such as 5.1 or 19.1). I'm assuming it's something the station is encoding in the signal to do that since a software update would have done so for all channels if that was the case. I think when I 1st got the 811, it had most but not all mapped to the analog number plus .1 on the end. Of course by going to 5.1, it took me directly to the digital version, not 5 analog.

Now all the channels are mapped to their analog plus the .1. When analog goes away totally (who knows when), they'll obviously have to change it to the actual frequency again since the other numbers will not be relevent anymore.

Originally posted by Dweezilz
Either way, I have Adelphia as well, so I watch those channels on cable most of the time now.

Same here. Though I don't usually have much probably getting a solid lock on WOIO-DT with my OTA box, even with my indoor antenna pointed out the window in northwest Akron. Maybe I'm on the right side of the stick, if there are interference issues out of Detroit or Canada...

I've got an old antenna in my attic, it was there when I got the house. The wiring is old and I think it's just UHF so I haven't even bothered with it.

He's the thing about my reception. I've elevated my HDTVi a few feet higher and it has made an actual difference. I can now get WKYC, but usually only locked in by evening and in the nighttime. By morning it's gone. Is that a solar issue or is that a broadcasting signal strength issue?

Originally posted by yespage
He's the thing about my reception. I've elevated my HDTVi a few feet higher and it has made an actual difference. I can now get WKYC, but usually only locked in by evening and in the nighttime. By morning it's gone. Is that a solar issue or is that a broadcasting signal strength issue?

It's a "WKYC-DT Is On Low VHF Channel 2" issue. :D

The biggest problem with that channel, as with WKYC's analog channel 3, is noise. VHF 2 is SO susceptible to electrical interference. If you wanna see why, just pull out a small analog TV with rabbit ears and look carefully at the reception on 3...it's even worse on 2.

If you're getting locks on WKYC-DT in evening/night and not during the day, perhaps there is nearby industrial electrical interference that only shows up during the workday. Just a guess. It's not that regular for me, but I've usually noticed that my locks on WKYC-DT are at night and on weekends.

Both you and I are using indoor antennas. If you can get VHF wiring out of that old outdoor antenna in the attic (and it has VHF elements), you might have much better luck. There's not a lot of room for error with low VHF and indoor antennas. Getting it outside and facing to Parma may be the only way you can squeeze out WKYC-DT 24/7.

Originally posted by Inundated
Same here. Though I don't usually have much probably getting a solid lock on WOIO-DT with my OTA box, even with my indoor antenna pointed out the window in northwest Akron. Maybe I'm on the right side of the stick, if there are interference issues out of Detroit or Canada...
The interference on WOIO-DT is from CFPL-TV London, Ontario about 110 miles north of Greater Cleveland. I grew up watching CFPL from my home in Euclid. It came in like gangbusters every summer (along with several other Canadian, Detroit , Erie, and Toledo stations). If you live in Lake, Geauga or Ashtabula counties you can count on interference on WOIO-DT (hey this gives a whole new meaning to the "snow belt"). If you live far enough south - like in Mansfield, I'm willing to bet WBNS-10 out of Columbus is also taking a byte out of your WOIO-DT reception.

Out of all the Cleveland DT assignments, WOIO-DT's being ch 10 is one of the worst choices the comittee made (followed by WKYC-DT's being on ch 2). I have nothing against VHF assignments, however when there are stations on nearly every VHF channel within 120 miles of a city VHF DT assignments should not have been considered. The "skip" from neighboring areas (not to mention the problems people in the outlying areas like Sandusky) will cause guarenteed interference problems.

Even the UHF DT's are not immune from the neighbors. About the only Cleveland DT assignment that I have not previously DX'ed an analog station on from my days in Euclid is ch 15 (digital home of WEWS-DT).

Using a highly directional antenna is almost a necessity in order to mitigate the analog interference. Even then if the interfering analog signal is strong enough you still may get pixillation or black screens.

I'm lucky that I now live in the Parma antenna farm. WOIO-DT peggs my 921 at a solid 125. I still cannot get a lock on WVIZ. I found out from their web site that they are on an "STA" (special temporary authority) broadcasting at a paltry 1 kw on a 99' tower located at their Brookpark Rd. studio (which is farther north and down the hill from the rest of the antenna farm tower sites).
So unless you live along I-480 just west of State, you probably won't be getting a lock on ch 26. (HINT: now you know where to aim if you want to try for WVIZ).

Originally posted by Michael P 2341
So unless you live along I-480 just west of State, you probably won't be getting a lock on ch 26. (HINT: now you know where to aim if you want to try for WVIZ).

Welcome to the thread! Some pages back here, we had a discussion of this, and confirmation that WVIZ was working on its permanent DT installation, at the same North Royalton site that houses analog 25. There was a legal battle between WVIZ and Infinity Broadcasting (Viacom), which owns the site also used for one of its FM stations, WNCX/98.5.

The legal stuff was resolved, and WVIZ/ideastream has been doing the planning, and presumably at this point, actual construction of the new full-power DT site. Last I'd heard, the full-power DT 26 should be up sometime this summer. (I can't get the tiny stick at the studios here, either, though Adelphia does put WVIZ-DT's HD feed on its system.)

As far as the interference issues on DT 10 go, I guess I'm too far from London, Ontario for CFPL's analog stick to be a problem, and too far from Columbus for WBNS's analog stick to be a problem. We never really got CFPL down here in Akron, even when I was a kid. (For anyone who cares - CFPL, now known as "The New PL" in a regional network of stations in Ontario, will change again to "The A Channel" this fall.)

anyone have any advice for/against putting my HDTVi in the attic and trying to pull all the locals with it on my 811?? I have it behind my tv now, down low, and pull 8, 15, 43, 50, 50.1 so I'm hoping that maybe having the antenna in the attic will help me pull almost everything from my western North Olmsted home. Any pros or cons would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for all your knowledge and help!!

Originally posted by Italians
anyone have any advice for/against putting my HDTVi in the attic and trying to pull all the locals with it on my 811?? I have it behind my tv now, down low, and pull 8, 15, 43, 50, 50.1 so I'm hoping that maybe having the antenna in the attic will help me pull almost everything from my western North Olmsted home. Any pros or cons would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for all your knowledge and help!!

If you've got RG/6 coax going to the attic, it would be easy to just give it a try, it can't hurt. I really advise putting that antenna in a window though (with no metal screen in front of it). It was a PITA, but I ran RG/6 coax directly from the ground floor TV to a 3rd floor bedroom just so I could put my Silver Sensor on top of a dresser aimed out the window towards Parma.

Hi all! I've been MIA for a while on this board. Directv has just increased the NFL Sunday ticket to $320 per year, which includes the HD games. I'm really not happy about this and I'm considering a move back to Adelphia. Not sure this is the right move, but I hope you guys might be able to help me with my decision.

I'd like to know how Adelphia has been lately...In terms of PQ of SD channels as well as PQ of the HD channels. I would also like to know what HD DVR is being offered and what do I need to know about this box? I've looked through the thread, but I was unable to really understand what's going on with Adelphia version upgrades.

If someone could be kind enough to write a short paragraph about the HD DVR's and HD channels. I would greatly appreciate the help!

Thanks,

JP

I have used Adelphia HD since its introduction. I am satisfied with the overall picture quality. I also think their offerings are great (only missing TNT and Universal (formerly Bravo). I would like to see a PPV channel, but that's a small quibble.

The HD DVR I have is the SA 8300. As far as I know, this is the only HD DVR they currently have available. I find it easy to use, but doesn't offer the features of TiVo (as far as I know, none of the HD boxes come close to TiVo).

Adelphia has a HD PPV channel (799), but as far as I know, it's only been used once...for a boxing match a few weeks or so ago.

Adelphia at least at one time offered the SA 8000...it's the unit I still have today. It's no TiVo, to be sure. It has basically been fairly solid for me, though it did punt once when I had two shows scheduled in a time slot and a third show showed up there from a previous "record all" setting...it didn't record any of the three shows! Other than that, it's gotten everything. You kinda have to keep a better eye on the SA DVRs vs. TiVo...TiVo takes care of its own problems and conflicts better.

PQ of the SD channels is moderate to not bad, though the 8000 records SD channels in worse quality than live (the 8300 is supposed to fix this problem). Adelphia DID something pretty good recently with the SD channels...they are doing the local OTA network affiliates in digital quality (SD) on the lower channels (3, 4/19, 5, 6/43, 8). But all of those except for 43 are available in HD on Adelphia, so it may not matter much to you with an HD box.

The non-digitally delivered SD channels, below 100, still look a bit fuzzy to me. Maybe I'm just too spoiled by the digital and HD channel quality.

This is long-term, but Adelphia will eventually become Time Warner Cable locally, in the next year or so. TWC generally has a decent reputation down here (Akron/Canton/Youngstown).

I mean a PPV channel with movie offerings. Of course I know about the events channel (it was used for a Mike Tyson HD fight over a year ago).

As far as the interference issues on DT 10 go, I guess I'm too far from London, Ontario for CFPL's analog stick to be a problem, and too far from Columbus for WBNS's analog stick to be a problem. We never really got CFPL down here in Akron, even when I was a kid. (For anyone who cares - CFPL, now known as "The New PL" in a regional network of stations in Ontario, will change again to "The A Channel" this fall.) While you may not have been able to get a watchable signal from either distant channel 10 before WOIO-DT went on the air, there still may be artifacts of these analog signals affecting WOIO-DT.

Thanks for the information about "The New Network" becoming the A channel. I have been tempted to "go grey" (i.e. get a fake Canadian address in order to subscribe to a Canadian DBS service). If the Canadian digital OTA's ever get on the air I may be able to grab some of them. I can get a snowy ch-16 which is a New Network station "The New WI" as in CHWI. It's almost 100% the same programming as CFPL except for the local news. WHat I really want is a good feed of the CBC (which is what CFPL used to be). I get CBC on 40 sometimes - but usualy there is another 40 from Pittsburg (Cornerstone). I have Sky Angel so I can flip to SA to identify which ch 40 I'm getting.

BTW: for those of you "aiming at Parma" I live in the antenna farm (Seven Hills for now, moving soon to Parma in the shadow of WJW's tower). I use an omni which works fine for the close stations but gives me squat for WEAO and the rest of the Akron/Canton stations. I bought a Silver Sensor and found a spot where I can get a lock for two stations from A/K (the other one is WDLI with it's 4 subchannels). There is about 200' of terrain between Seven Hills and A/K that I believe is blocking the signal (I never had a decent picture on any of the analogs except for 67 which is Shop-at-Home (big deal). I wish PAX-23 would have moved their stick to where 67 is (Brimfield or Suffield, just South of Kent IIRC). PAX used to own 67 and moved the stick before selling the station to SAH.

Anyone have any news on when PAX and WBNX are going to sign on their DT's?

Originally posted by Phoenix2088
I just got an e-mail from the station manager at WBNX and now it seems a digital broadcast is not too likely in the near future. I guess the response I recieved earlier about HD equipment was either not true or for a direct feed to cable companies which is hinted at in the e-mail.

quote:We've been working on interference issues in Canada however a construction permit for our digital facility has not been issued, unfortunately we will not be broadcasting in digital prior to the 05-06 season.

HD carriage will be a major issue when we begin negotiations with the cable companies for must carriage a little later in the year. How we get it to them will factor into that discussion. Appreciate your patience.

Last edited by Phoenix2088 on 04-29-05 at 06:43 AM
" interference issues in Canada" ? How about interference issues with WGTE in Toledo? I don't know about any ch 30's in "near-by" Canada, the closest one would be ch 31 which is a repeater of CITY-TV (and another 31 in Ann Arbor, MI). Since WJW has been on 31 for some time now I don't see how WBNX's signal would affect Canada. I was wondering about WBNX & WJW being adjacent channels.

There is another Canadian station near-by on 29 which is a Global repeater. Again a DT signal on 30 should not affect either adjacent ananlog station.

WBNX re-submitted an application that corrects the interference issues, but the FCC has been VERY slow with it. I don't know what the deal is, but WBNX should be working very closely with the Canadian officials and the FCC to get this done. Cleveland is a Top 20 market, and it is one of the only stations not broadcasting digitally. Hell even the Univision affiliate is digital, pathetic.

Based on DX reception I received prior to any DT signals signing on or the knowledge of a station in a neighboring market, here is my critique of the Cleveland DT assignments:

WKYC-DT 2: Ch 2 has a high tendency to "skip" like short-wave radio. I once picked up WPBT-2 from Miami and KPRC-2 Houston back in the 80's. Closer to home you have WJBK-2 Detroit (I wonder what channel 2 looks like in Sandusky in either analog or digital), KDKA-2 Pittsburg (ditto my comments about Sandusky, just change the recetion location to points south of Canton).

WEWS-DT 15: The only DT assignment that has no nearby analog station. The closest is Parkersburg, WV which is way beyond the 110 mile limit for any point within the Cleveland DMA. There is something called "land mobile" associated with ch 15. But I've never seen any data regarding the effects of land mobile on DT signals.

WJW-DT: a CITY-TV repeater somewhere in SW Ontario and WPXD-31 Ann Arbor - potential problems anywhere along the south shores of Lake Erie. I've DX'ed both of these on numerous occasions in Euclid.

WOIO-DT 10: CFPL-10 London Ontario used to be viewable as strong as some local channels. The farther you travel northeast along the south shore of Lake Erie the stronger CFPL comes in. I presume similar problems in Ashland and Mansfield with WBNS-10 out of Columbus.

WVPX-DT 59: Not on the air yet. But if/when they do go on the air, 59 is one of the frequencies that the FCC wants to auction off for non TV use. BTW I never DX'ed anything on 59, so the auxction aside, it is otherwise a good channel to use.

WVIZ-DT: There is a 26 in Springfield/Columbus WBDT. Less likely to cause probelms in the southern most regions of the Cleveland DMA due to Springfield being a little bit farther south. So 26 would not be so bad for Cleveland. If only WVIZ could get the full power on the tall tower.

WUAB-DT: WTTE-28 in Columbus might affect the southern region. I once DX'ed this one from Downtown Cleveland.

WBNX-DT: WGTE-30 in Toledo probably would cause the western region problems.

WQHS-DT: WOSU-34 another Columbus analog with potential problems for the southern region of the DMA.

Then there is the reverse problems such as Pittsburg's KDKA-DT's assignment on 25! That one has been reported on other forums as causing problems in a wide area both inside and outside the Pittsburg DMA.

Bottom line the majority of DT assignments are poorly chosen, resulting in the DT transmitters being run on less than full power to try and mitigate interference with nearby DMA's, and leaving the "outskirts" out-of-luck for anything OTA (digital or analog).

This completes my rant. I apologize if this has been addressed before. I did not read all 144 pages of this thread so please forgive this newbie. I hope the information will help some who can't get a lock on some of the Cleveland stations and/or will loose some stations intermittantly as the summer "skip" season approaches. Living "downwind" from the transmitters helps me, however most of you don't live that close.

Originally posted by Phoenix2088
WBNX re-submitted an application that corrects the interference issues, but the FCC has been VERY slow with it. I don't know what the deal is, but WBNX should be working very closely with the Canadian officials and the FCC to get this done. Cleveland is a Top 20 market, and it is one of the only stations not broadcasting digitally. Hell even the Univision affiliate is digital, pathetic.

By the way, the problem station for WBNX-DT is not analog WGTE/30 out of Toledo, but a digital allocation for Paris, Ontario (between Hamilton and London) on 30 itself. I believe this is the digital side of the Global network station on analog 6, which at least one website claims is the original home of Toronto-based CIII-TV (now analog 41 in Toronto itself, I believe).

The Canadians have been dragging their feet getting OTA DT up. Let them move an allocation for once! :D

I have DX'ed the Paris Global staton several times, sometimes on my car radio! I used to cruise listeneing to 87.7 FM, if audio is heard chances the skip is up. One time I heard ESPN's audio!?! It turned out to be a bad Cable TV installation in an apartment building on W.130th St. Back in my Euclid days I used to get WUAB on channel 4 by aiming my rotor at the Americana (too bad they didn't put Showtime on ch 4).

Speaking of the WB, if you are able aim your antenna at Youngstown and try to get a lock on 20. If successful you will receive WFMJ-DT with an HD NBC plus an SD WB! I once got the PSIP data into my guide but the signal was never strong enough to give a picture.

I know it's only SD, but it is digital (one step closer than what we have now). :rolleyes:

Getting the Youngstown signals is a good thing, especially when our locals decide not to show the network programing. WEWS is the worst offender ofthis followed by WKYC. But the true joy of getting the Youngstown stations is during the NFL regular season. Once in a while they will carry a different game than WOIO (forget FOX, that station, WYFX, is LP in Y-town). I hope that WKBN will do a subchanel of WYFX when they finally get their DT running on 41 (I have seen an unlockable signal on 41 from time to time).

We talk about the Youngstown DTV stations here from time to time. One of our regulars, who lives down in Springfield Twp. in Summit County, can pick up WFMJ-DT fine. I'm over on the other side of the Akron area, and doubt I could get it even with a rooftop antenna.

WFMJ's engineer posts occasionally on the Youngstown thread, and I think has even shown up here once or twice. I asked him about future power increases, and he noted I could expect an increase out of WFMJ-DT...in July 2006, when they're legally mandated to do so. No idea on the status of WKBN-DT.

I have some digital screencaps from the market, when I drove over there one day...

http://www.nowbie.net/wfmjid.jpg
http://www.nowbie.net/wfmjnews.jpg
http://www.nowbie.net/wbcbid.jpg
http://www.nowbie.net/wytvid.jpg

FYI - those looking for the PBS HD feed via WVIZ-DT 26 this weekend will be disappointed.

If you're one of the 100 or so people who can pick up their OTA digital signal, or if you get WVIZ-DT via Adelphia cable, they're simulcasting their analog channel most of this weekend to carry the annual WVIZ Auction:

http://www.wviz.org/auction/index.shtml

The auction will repeat next Friday through Sunday.

Those of us in the Akron area can still get PBS HD via WEAO-DT 50.1 Akron.

I only saw a few seconds of WVIZ-DT, and that was a subchannel called OhioLink. I can get 50.1 & 50.2 by aiming my Silver Sensor out my front window.

I can hardly wait to see what I get when I move into Parma. The new house is 100' higher than where I am now (and I'm failly high up already at 1061'). That is why I have been getting 2 of the 3 Youngstown analog statons full time using only an indoor bow-tie.

Thanks for the Y-town pics! If anybody is interested, there is an HD DX page where WFMJ-DT was picked up in Indiana!:eek: They even show a "WBCB coming soon" slate as the pic from WFMJ!

Is 21 & 33 the only Y-town stations your friend can get? I was wondering if WKBN is live yet. I see a signal on 41 but it never locks. They could jut be in test mode for now.

I believe that "OhioLink" thing is the subchannel they use to carry the radio reading service. It's the same service you can hear now on the SAP channel of analog 25.

As far as Y-Town's DT situation, if WKBN-DT is up, it's only testing. I don't believe they have program material up, and I wasn't aware they were even doing anything with the signal...

When I aim my Silver Sensor to the ESE and try for 41, I get a "tease" signal on my 921 that fluctuates from 70 to 0 and back. Same thing happens on 20 and 36.

Originally posted by Michael P 2341

Is 21 & 33 the only Y-town stations your friend can get? I was wondering if WKBN is live yet. I see a signal on 41 but it never locks. They could jut be in test mode for now.

Michael,
I'm the guy down in Springfield Township. I get a very strong signal on 20 and a much weaker signal on 36. 36 does not freeze or pixelate but the picture has a tendency to continually jump ahead as if someone removed several frames. Even stranger, the sound never skips. I've never seen anything like it on any other digital channel. I talked to their head engineer and he thinks I'm just too far away. I wish I could get a better signal since they broadcast in DD 5.1 while WEWS does not. Have you ever had a problem like this while watching something in HD on 36? I've never gotten any signal on 41. I'll try again tonight.
Steve

Originally posted by SteveC
Michael,
I'm the guy down in Springfield Township. I get a very strong signal on 20 and a much weaker signal on 36. 36 does not freeze or pixelate but the picture has a tendency to continually jump ahead as if someone removed several frames. Even stranger, the sound never skips. I've never seen anything like it on any other digital channel. I talked to their head engineer and he thinks I'm just too far away. I wish I could get a better signal since they broadcast in DD 5.1 while WEWS does not. Have you ever had a problem like this while watching something in HD on 36? I've never gotten any signal on 41. I'll try again tonight.
Steve


I can lock in 21 and 33 on rear occasions. 27 I have not got it to lock in either.

Originally posted by firemantom26
I can lock in 21 and 33 on rear occasions. 27 I have not got it to lock in either.

whatever, you're a steeler fan. you're hdtv is probably black and gold. you're not welcome in this forum! :)

Mike_Stuewe your tone is all wrong
:)

Anyone got a phone # to call?

Edit:
Whoops, no HD tonight...
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?postid=5650006#post5650006

Folks in Medina if you do not know Armstrong has gotten CBS HD now. channel 104. It sure took them long enough.

Originally posted by firemantom26
Mike_Stuewe your tone is all wrong
:)

That's just how those Browns fans are, You KNOW that. What's are SOLJA anyway? What's a Brown for that matter?!

Anyone else with Adelphia have sound problems on the HD channels, only? I had it from about 5 tonight...the sound died entirely, but worked on the analog channels.

After I came back home and still found the sound gone on the HD channels, I rebooted the SA8000 and now I have sound again. It must be a glitch that got triggered in the box or something.

Well, since I don't watch anything live other then news I can't help.

Originally posted by hookbill
Well, since I don't watch anything live other then news I can't help.

As mentioned, it's OK now, after a reboot.

But...it wasn't just live. Anything that got recorded in that time frame from the HD channels was also soundless.

I was just wondering if this was a "known bug" with the SA8000, and if I have to worry about it happening in the future...

Originally posted by Inundated
As mentioned, it's OK now, after a reboot.

But...it wasn't just live. Anything that got recorded in that time frame from the HD channels was also soundless.

I was just wondering if this was a "known bug" with the SA8000, and if I have to worry about it happening in the future...

Supposedly the last update was to deal with sound glitches, and while they haven't disappeared completely it does seem to me on the 8300 that sound problems are less frequent.

Inundated, what's keeping you from going to the 8300?

FWIW, I received a form letter in the mail from Adelphia basically saying that the deal with Comcast and Time Warner is done and my cable service is one of the ones to be affected by it. It did not specify which provider, though common sense tells me its TW.

It also mentioned no changes for at least a year.

Hey gang, newbie here; I hope I'm not rehashing old subjects, but I'm finally making the plunge into hdtv..my beat up old 27" magnavox is acting funny so it's time to get a new tv. Anyway, I have to get either digital cable or a dish..I'm in Mentor and see I have some neighbors on avs...anyone have any advice on which is better to get between the dish or digital comcast cable?

I wish picking a new tv was as easy as the dish/cable decision LOL..thanks again for any advice.

Steve

Steve,
If you go the dish route, the only way to get the HD local channels(ABC, CBS, etc) is with an antenna(no dish company yet offers local HD channels via the dish). If you have no problem with that then it's just a matter of comparing price and channels offered. The only other issue is that the dish companies slightly reduce the resolution of the 1080i HD channels(HBO, Discovery, etc) to save bandwidth. Cable does not do that. On the other hand most average people probably would not know the difference or care.
Steve

Hey Steve, thanks for the reply. I guess I'll be going with cable then...I just saw a direct tv commercial that said that cable only shows some of its channels in digital but direct tv shows most of them in digital..But the local channels are the clincher for me...Thanks again for the reply.

Steve

hookbill on either time warners or comcast website i forgot where said that comcast users and adelphia users in ohio are going to time warner.

Hey Steve, thanks for the reply. I guess I'll be going with cable then...I just saw a direct tv commercial that said that cable only shows some of its channels in digital but direct tv shows most of them in digital..But the local channels are the clincher for me...Thanks again for the reply.

Steve
Woah! Don't get digital and High definition confused. They aren't interchangable. Directv does show digital local channels. They just don't show local channels in high def.

Ok, that makes sense. So they do have the local channels on direct tv it's just that they are in sd. So what would be the difference in comcast and direct tv other than the fact that the local channels wouldnt be in hd with direct tv? Thanks again.

Steve

Ok, that makes sense. So they do have the local channels on direct tv it's just that they are in sd. So what would be the difference in comcast and direct tv other than the fact that the local channels wouldnt be in hd with direct tv? Thanks again.

Steve
The difference? Probably $20 a month more for cable. And as I noted, the signal you'll get for local channels on Directv will be better than if you used an antenna for standard definition. Directv and me got along very well, I just got tired of paying to watch Law and Order re-runs, so I'm strictly OTA now. It was cool to watch Attack of the Clones in widescreen and 5.1 over-the-air.

It was cool to watch Attack of the Clones in widescreen and 5.1 over-the-air. I recorded it on my 921 :D

I have Dish Network. I do not pay extra for the locals since I get a lock on all the digital OTA's.
It's the best way to go since you are in control. What you get is only limited by your location and the amount of time & money you want to spend prefecting your OTA set-up.

I recorded it on my 921 :D

I have Dish Network. I do not pay extra for the locals since I get a lock on all the digital OTA's.
It's the best way to go since you are in control. What you get is only limited by your location and the amount of time & money you want to spend prefecting your OTA set-up.
The whole process of the antenna is a pain. I don't think Congress has a clue how much work is required to get a good signal. I've finally found a place for my indoor antenna that fully locks Fox, CBS, UPN, ABC, UNI and probably the WB. I lose any chance of NBC, but then it was only a glitchy reception for that. Time will tell if I decide to get an outdoor antenna. Hopefully NBC moves soon enough.

Ok, that makes sense. So they do have the local channels on direct tv it's just that they are in sd. So what would be the difference in comcast and direct tv other than the fact that the local channels wouldnt be in hd with direct tv? Thanks again.

Steve

Keep in mind, both cable & sat. will have locals in SD. Cable will have locals HD as well & on Sat. you'll need to pull them in via over the air antenna. DirectTV has discussed carrying local HD's, although nothing has been put into motion as of yet. I find that the video quality is a touch better on the HD locals via antenna then on cable. I have both Dish Network & Adelphia. The other HD channels are about the same via Dish/cable, but the locals ota are just a tad better via antenna. I usually don't bother switching to the OTA locals anymore unless I'm watching the Dish HD's already however. The cable local HD's are very close & good enough to not have to bother changing video inputs etc...

There's pro's & con's to either. Sattelite can have issues during heavy snow if the dish gets covered. It has happened to me each winter at least once or twice. Dish network just added the original VOOM! channels so that is a plus there. They also have the VOOM! birds in the air so they have plenty of space for more. Direct may add local HD at some point so that's a plus for them. It's possible Dish might do the same. As of now, Dish Network is the king of HD. With Adelphia I have the DVR, InHD1 & 2, & ease of use. That's the advantage there. I only have the Dish HD & no regular programming.

Good luck.

I'll echo the sentiments of others here regarding satellite v. cable. I live in Medina, and I have had DirecTV since moving here three years ago. I don't have any experience with the local cable outlet, but I've been so happy with DirecTV that I haven't had any reason to switch.

Mostly what others have said is correct; about the only substantive difference you'll see going cable over satellite is that locals are carried HD through the cable while you'll need an antenna for DirecTV. But another difference is the upfront cost. Sure, cable may run you $20 a month more, but DirecTV will require an upfront purchase of some hardware. A normal HD box will set you back a couple of hundred bucks for DirecTV, while cable's will be rolled into the monthly cost of the service.

But if DirecTV moves to MPEG-4 compression later this year in order to deliver our locals in HD (which is a done deal; it's just a matter of time), you'll have some useless hardware on your hands when the switch occurs. None of the current crop of boxes is compatible.

Now DirecTV has a habit of subsidizing the upgrade to new boxes when the new technologies take over, and I'm sure this will be no different. But it will undoubtedly require at least a one-year subscription to a minimum level of service in order to qualify.

And, if you want a PVR for your HD material, cable is arguably the better way to go. DirecTV's HD-TiVO is about $1,000 upfront. And, again, it will be obsolete by the end of the year if you want the locals through the dish in HD.

I'm sure this sounds like an anti-DirecTV post at this point, and that's not entirely untrue. Yes, I'm exceedingly happy with DirecTV, but if I was making the switch *today*, it would be hard to decide for the dish over cable just due to the current costs involved.

But, there's nothing that says you can't go cable now and wait until the dust settles at DirecTV once the new satellites are operational and the locals are being pushed to us. Just remember that either way you go, you still have the option of switching down the road.

EDIT: There are a number of great sticky threads at the top of the HDTV Hardware forum about the current and future status of DirecTV.

Hi Zman, thanks for the info, it's exactly what I was looking for. My plan is to go with cable for now and see what comes down the pike with direct tv. Now I have to find a tv cause mine was really acting up when I was trying to watch some motorcycle racing I recorded Sunday..I know this isn't the proper forum for "which tv" posts, but if you have any recomendations I'd sure appreciate em...looking mostly at dlps...thanks again.

Steve

One of the reasons why I'm so high on OTA is because you get all the free subchannels OTA. As of now there is no guarentee that cable or satellite will ever carry the subchannels. In fact both have been fighting the FCC over forced carriage of the subchannels.

WKYC has "Weather Plus", which is on at least one cable system digital tier. I had access to "WP" since day one, plus I also had access to it's predecessor (a silent feed of WKYC's doppler). For awhile both were available, but they have since pulled 3-3.

I'm sure it's personal preference & to each their own, but the subchannels have never once hit me as a reason why I like OTA better. I'm not saying you are wrong as if you like them that is great, but in my opinion, I could care less about those. They show nothing aside from NBC's Weather Plus, which is info you can get on the internet & with greater detail. I wish those subchannels would go away because if more programming does eventually appear on them, expect our HD picture quality to drop like The Tonight Show did when WKYC split up. Dish Network provides an info channel customized to your zip code which has the same weather info along with other news etc... Adelphia doesn't have anything like that yet, but the weather channel has nearly the same info on the current conditions. Either way, be it on Adelphia, Dish, or OTA, I rarely look at any of those weather channels.

One of the reasons why I'm so high on OTA is because you get all the free subchannels OTA. As of now there is no guarentee that cable or satellite will ever carry the subchannels. In fact both have been fighting the FCC over forced carriage of the subchannels.

WKYC has "Weather Plus", which is on at least one cable system digital tier. I had access to "WP" since day one, plus I also had access to it's predecessor (a silent feed of WKYC's doppler). For awhile both were available, but they have since pulled 3-3.

You can also view "Weather Plus" on line. It wouldn't have any factor in my decision over OTA vs Cable. I just think you can get more HD on cable, plain and simple.

You can also view "Weather Plus" on line. It wouldn't have any factor in my decision over OTA vs Cable. I just think you can get more HD on cable, plain and simple.

Aside from Dish network with 16 HD channels since they added VOOM originals right? ha!

Aside from Dish network with 16 HD channels since they added VOOM originals right? ha!
I think I saw its $57 a month for their 60 channel package and all the HD channels! That doesn't include a DVR, but that seems like a great price.

Yeah that is good. I debated which way to go & in the end, aside from just the HD package that I get from Dish, I went with Adelphia (stayed with). When you combine cable modem which would be $57 alone (I know DSL is only $29.99, but it's considerably slower & I need the full speed of cable), it just doesn't save any money at all & the cable just from pure convenience & ease for TV watching in multiple rooms in the house, is the best route for me.

But I get the best of both worlds...cable for internet, regular channels, & HD as well as Dish Network for their 16 HD channels for another $18 per month total ($8 for HD pack (it was discounted), $5 for not having any programming package & $5 for the VOOM! channels).

I am moving soon to a new home. the cable provider has a miniscule hd programing package. I am thinking of going with a satelite. My problem; I don't have a built in hd tuner for over the air. Can i connect a terestrial antenna to the satelite dish to pass the signal from the antenna to the tv?

I am moving soon to a new home. the cable provider has a miniscule hd programing package. I am thinking of going with a satelite. My problem; I don't have a built in hd tuner for over the air. Can i connect a terestrial antenna to the satelite dish to pass the signal from the antenna to the tv?

In order to receive the satellite signals to begin with, you'll need an external set-top box (STB). As far as I know, the STBs provided by both DirecTV and DishNetwork will accept an antenna input for your local HD channels which will then integrate directly with the channels provided through the satellite provider through the box. In other words, one wire will go from the dish into the STB, and another will go from the antenna into the box. Your TV won't know the difference since it only displays what's coming from the STB.

I hope this helps, but if I misunderstood the question, let me know. By the way, I'm a happy DirecTV HD customer.

I am moving soon to a new home. the cable provider has a miniscule hd programing package. I am thinking of going with a satelite. My problem; I don't have a built in hd tuner for over the air. Can i connect a terestrial antenna to the satelite dish to pass the signal from the antenna to the tv?

While all satellite STB's have an antenna "pass through", only the true HD model STB/IRD's have an OTA tuner.

For DirecTv I know of model DTC-100. There are some newer ones (including an HD TIVO) that I am not aware of the model numbers, as I am a Dish Network Subscriber.

For Dish Network the following IRD's have a built-in HD OTA tuner: 811, 6000 (careful with the 6000, it was an add-on module so not all 6000's have the tuner).
PVR's: 921 and 942.

If you are interested in a PVR the 942 is the latest and greatest, while the 921 was released before the "bugs" were worked out. While they have been working on the bugs with s/w updates, it's takes a hearty soul to deal with it's quirks. :o

Probably your best bet if you don't want to go the PVR route is the 811 - it is the only one to get guide data for the OTA's integrated into the EPG hassle-free (i.e. without having to sub to the SD locals just to get the guide data).

Samsung T-360 as well for Directv does that too

A number of issues:

* I got the Adelphia letter as well. It didn't specifically mention which company would take over...it looked more like a "no matter what you've heard, we'll still be serving you for at least a while...your cable won't go out" letter. It's already been officially announced that Adelphia's local systems - along with Comcast's local systems - go to TWC.

* Why don't I get the 8300? Good question, mostly just not getting off my butt and going to the local Adelphia service center, I guess. ;) That, and letting go of whatever I've got sitting in there as far as recordings go.

* DirecTV IS in the process of setting up the infrastructure for locals in HD. They've already launched the first satellite that'll do so. 12 of the top markets will be doing HD LIL in the next 3-4 months or so. That list doesn't include Cleveland...which will be in the next round (top 30), possibly by the end of the year or thereabouts.

I was just wondering if this was a "known bug" with the SA8000, and if I have to worry about it happening in the future...

The SA8000HD has a lot of bugs and yes you probably have to worry about it happening in the future. Since the latest firmware upgrade I can now pretty reliably get solid black screens on my HD channels if I flip around too fast in Passthrough mode. The box gets seriously confused changing from a 720p to a 1080i channel -- audio pop, screen goes black, kerchunk, kerchunk, thinking, then channel may or may not come on.... Sometimes changing to an SD channel and coming back to the HD tier will work, other times, box needs a reboot. I've set it to output 1080i all the time and the problem is solved.

I too am too lazy to swap for an 8300HD and now I've got about 20 hours of BBQ programming from Food Network recorded on there in preparation for Memorial Day, so I'm stuck with this box :D

Woohooo!! I got me a new sony kdf50we655!! Now I have to order my comcast digital cable; Should I get the cable stand alone box or should I go with cable card? My biggest question is how does the audio go from the card to the audio system? Are there audio outs on the cable card? thanks again.

Steve

I too am too lazy to swap for an 8300HD and now I've got about 20 hours of BBQ programming from Food Network recorded on there in preparation for Memorial Day, so I'm stuck with this box :D


Well, you should be well prepared by the time Memorial Day rolls around if you start watching now. What time should we stop by? :D

I've had problems with wkyc -dt (channel 2-1 and 2-2) the last few days
Nothing has changed at my side.

I've had problems with wkyc -dt (channel 2-1 and 2-2) the last few days
Nothing has changed at my side.

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say it's the trees leafing out (I know, bad pun).

I don't know if it's just me but it seems the trees in my yard and all the garden plants are unusually large this spring.

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say it's the trees leafing out (I know, bad pun).

I don't know if it's just me but it seems the trees in my yard and all the garden plants are unusually large this spring.

This would be true for UHF stations, but not WKYC-DT.

Skip is up, and channel 2 is the most succeptable to interference during this time. I'm willing to be that if you turned on an analog tv you might see some analog station's signal. I live 1.3 miles from the WKYC tower so I can't confirm skip on the VHF band, however I can confirm that skip was up on UHF. Last night for the first time I was able to lock onto and actually watch WFMJ-DT and WYTV-DT from Youngstown.

Thanks, this makes sense since the leaves have been around for a few weeks and it was most noticable saturday and sunday.

Woohooo!! I got me a new sony kdf50we655!! Now I have to order my comcast digital cable; Should I get the cable stand alone box or should I go with cable card? My biggest question is how does the audio go from the card to the audio system? Are there audio outs on the cable card? thanks again.

Steve

I don't have a Cable Card but I found this interesting link: http://forum.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/2/107329.html I don't know how much of it applies to your local Comcast system but it raises some interesting questions to ask your Comcast rep.
Steve

Hi Steve, you know, it seems like the few times I called comcast last week I got 1 guy that actually knew what he was talking about. They made it seem like the only way I would get any hd reception was by going to digital cable, Which is obviously wrong. I hooked up the cable to my tv, did the 50 minute auto program and I get all the locals in hd and some others. At this point I have no reason to upgrade to digital cable. They can keep it. Especially if in the next year or 2 its all going to be hd anyway.

Thanks again for the reply

Steve

So I've been a happy DirecTV customer for a few years, but I'm seriously thinking of delving back into the world of HD cable rather than dropping the coin for a DirecTiVO. Is anybody else here with Armstrong in Medina? If so, I've got a couple of questions:

1) What's your overall opinion of the HD service from Armstrong? Prone to dropouts? Reliability?

2) Does Armstrong carry the subchannels carried OTA?

3) Is it true that CBS was recently added in HD?

4) How's the HD PVR? Does it function well? Can you record one show while watching another? What kind of record time can you get with it?

Thanks in advance!

Anyone in the Mentor area notice that wews/abc hd is gone? It was on 110.10 for about the last week that I've had my tv, lastnight I noticed it was gone. Did a new auto channel find on my tv and abc hd is nowhere to be found. Anyone else in the Mentor area notice this? I was under the impression that the cable companies had to provide the local channels in hd when available, at no extra charge? I have comcast, by the way.

Steve

I noticed last night when I went to watch Lost at 10:00. I wasn't getting anything. I was hoping that it was something temporary but I never saw it come back last night.

Hi Klp, I wonder if you used to get abc on 110.10 (or was it 111.10?) also? I emailed comcast but as usual, they are clueless. I had it up till lastnight sometime. Still hasn't come back.

Steve

I get mine OTA, WEWS-DT has been MIA for a couple of days now. When I did get a signal I lost the channel mapping (i.e. it only comes in as 15-01 on my 921). This is the second time a Cleveland digital station has gone MIA (WUAB-DT was MIA for at least one CAVS game this season).

Don't blame the cable company - call WEWS.

yeah as of now i still dont have wews/abc hd. I am in mentor and get it through comcast.

Hi Klp, I wonder if you used to get abc on 110.10 (or was it 111.10?) also? I emailed comcast but as usual, they are clueless. I had it up till lastnight sometime. Still hasn't come back.

Steve

It's 110.10 I believe, because 111.10 is CBS. Any clue what ESPN and TNT are? Or any other of the HD channels that aren't local? I know NBC is 83.1 I think and Fox is 83.4...and then that Weather plus HD channel is like 83.6. Can't locate any others.

Hi extreme. Well, I don't have digital cable, just basic, so I dont get those channels in hd (espn & tnt), just regular analog. Sorry I can't help you. Don't bother with Comcast because they apparently don't have a clue. They told me that wews hd was on channel 210 LOL.

Steve

After my last post I once again got a signal on WEWS-DT. At first it was total pixillated garbage, but the following day it was fine. There is one difference - before the signal disappeared, the news was broadcast in "stretch", now it's in 4X3. Just as well since it appears that they are not in true HD anyway (WJW's in-studio cameras are HD but not WEWS or WOIO).

So I've been a happy DirecTV customer for a few years, but I'm seriously thinking of delving back into the world of HD cable rather than dropping the coin for a DirecTiVO. Is anybody else here with Armstrong in Medina? If so, I've got a couple of questions:

1) What's your overall opinion of the HD service from Armstrong? Prone to dropouts? Reliability?

Reliablity and picture quality have been very good, with only the infrequent glitch here and there.

2) Does Armstrong carry the subchannels carried OTA?

No subchannels are carried.

3) Is it true that CBS was recently added in HD?

Yes, WOIO-DT is now on channel 104

4) How's the HD PVR? Does it function well? Can you record one show while watching another? What kind of record time can you get with it?

I still have the 6208 because last time I checked they still hadn't enabled dual-tuner operation on the 6412 due to software issues. The 6208 has worked flawlessly, but only records 8-10 hours of HD. Figure 50% more with the 6412. You can't beat the $6 monthly rental fee.

WEWS-DT is now showing up as channel 5.1 on my LG OTA receiver. Previously it was only on 15.1. Apparently they've done something with their mapping signal.

Looks like WEWS listened and fixed that crappy stretch they were using. All the need now is 5.1 DD.

Looks like WEWS listened and fixed that crappy stretch they were using. All the need now is 5.1 DD.
Is it just me or is 3.1 now stretching the standard feed sometimes?

Also, the Indy 500 coverage was uber-disappointing without the 5.1 sound and the needlessly stretched screen.

This isn't HD related, but I'm just curious. Anyone else notice that Adelphia put their on demand station on channel 1? Also I've noticed that every time you shut off your box (I have the 8300) it is starting on channel 3 now.

Also I don't seem to be getting my emails on this thread anymore! There's been about 10 posts since the last time I got an email.

Channel 1 is indeed their "OnDemand" channel here as well. It includes the HBO/Showtime/etc. stuff, along with movie rentals and some free stuff. I think it used to be 200 or something.

Also, they were supposed to move ESPNNews into the non-extra digital tiers, and it still says "Not Authorized" here.

To get your reminder emails,you must check the current postings. Once you do, you will receive notifications

To get your reminder emails,you must check the current postings. Once you do, you will receive notifications

Yes! Don't just read the reply sent in your email. You have to go to the link before you'll get anymore email reminders. i made the same mistake.

Did they "black out" the Indians game on InHD last night? All of the other HD channels seemed to be OK, but that one just gave me a blank screen. If so, why? Fox Sports Ohio carried the game in SD with no blackout. Why would they black out one and not the other?

Did they "black out" the Indians game on InHD last night? All of the other HD channels seemed to be OK, but that one just gave me a blank screen. If so, why? Fox Sports Ohio carried the game in SD with no blackout. Why would they black out one and not the other?

I'm not certain but I'll bet it was blacked out. As your probably aware when INHD does a MLB game they usually "borrow" a feed, and probably it was FSO. When they break for commercial INHD doesn't show their commercials, usually they fill the space with promos for their own program. No commercials=loss of revenue. That's probably why it was only shown on Fox Sports Ohio.

How do you stay up that late? :)

Couldn't have been FSO; Ohio doesn't have HD capabilities. It was the San Diego feed, I'm sure, since they have HD capabilities.

I'm pretty sure that Fox Sports Ohio has exclusive rights in the Cleveland area, except for Saturday afternoon and the ESPN Sunday night game. If the Indians are on ESPN any other day or night, the game is blacked out. I'm guessing this includes inHD.

Anyone notice WEWS is using stretch again? This is really getting annoying.

Couldn't have been FSO; Ohio doesn't have HD capabilities. It was the San Diego feed, I'm sure, since they have HD capabilities.

I'm pretty sure that Fox Sports Ohio has exclusive rights in the Cleveland area, except for Saturday afternoon and the ESPN Sunday night game. If the Indians are on ESPN any other day or night, the game is blacked out. I'm guessing this includes inHD.

Some FOX networks must have HD capability because I know I've seen FOX SPORTS on INHD. I figured they just upgraded the feed somehow, but your right whenever San Diego plays it's usually a local broadcast from San Diego.

I agree that some Fox Sports have HD capability, but your original post specifically mentioned FSO (Fox Sports Ohio). I think you're right that San Diego is from a local broadcast. It's one of the few non-regional HD broadcast that inHD shows.

I'm pretty sure that Fox Sports Ohio has exclusive rights in the Cleveland area, except for Saturday afternoon and the ESPN Sunday night game. If the Indians are on ESPN any other day or night, the game is blacked out. I'm guessing this includes inHD.

D* did not black out the Tribe game Sunday on WGN for whatever reason. Not sure if that was a mistake or an exception for whatever reason. But we watched the WGN feed instead of FSOH.

I'm sure you're right about the inHD blackout though being due to Cleveland broadcast rights. Wish I could get inHD to have that problem!

D* did not black out the Tribe game Sunday on WGN for whatever reason. Not sure if that was a mistake or an exception for whatever reason. But we watched the WGN feed instead of FSOH.

I'm sure you're right about the inHD blackout though being due to Cleveland broadcast rights. Wish I could get inHD to have that problem!

I think there is something special about the WGN and TBS "superstations". I notice they are included in even the very limited basic "lifeline" cable tier, the one that includes ABC, CBS, etc. so maybe there's some special rule that keeps them from getting blacked out.

The whole blackout thing is just silly, all it does is piss off the sports fans. What really irritates me is that Fox Saturday Baseball even blacks out the game on my $79 a year subscription to MLB.TV.

The whole blackout thing is just silly, all it does is piss off the sports fans. What really irritates me is that Fox Saturday Baseball even blacks out the game on my $79 a year subscription to MLB.TV.

While I FULLY agree with you...

It's all about the commercials.

Fox Sports Net Ohio pays for the rights to be the exclusive provider of Indians baseball in Northeast Ohio (outside of the broadcast contract with Fox, and the ESPN contract). To recoup that money and make a profit, they sell commercials...and if you're watching the game on a feed other than theirs, you never see the commercials, their ratings are lower (theoretically) and they can't charge as much for spots.

However, I DO think that some sort of special dispensation should be made if the RSN doesn't do HD (like FSN Ohio), so we can watch the games on inHD. Maybe they can somehow upconvert and splice in the FSN Ohio commercials on the inHD feed? Probably not, but it's an idea...

I live in the Akron area and just got Time Warner Cable HD service. I have a 32" Sony Wega HD TV. When I watch the normal channels my picture has sidebars or I have to stretch the picture into letterbox. I can't get it to fill up the entire screen like it should. The HD channels look great and are letterbox like I would expect. I have played around with all of the aspect ratios with the box and can't get a full screen with normal channels. How do I get this to work. I talked to the Time Warner service line and they told me that is the way it is when you don't have a widescreen TV. I find this hard to believe. No one would get HD service if they have a non-widescreen TV. Its like watching a 27" tv instead of a 32". Is it possible it is my TV doing this? I can't seem to find anything in the menu for the TV that would cause this. I have the HD cable box with the DVR, model Scientific Atlanta. Hopefully somone can help me out before I cancel the service and switch back to Directv.

The solution is pretty easy. Just hook the S-Video output of the cable box to the S-Video input of your TV. When you watch a non-HD channel, just switch over to the S-Video input. I have a 8300 HD DVR and this works on this box. I assume it will work the same on any other box. This simple concept is light years beyond what a TWC CSR could ever possibly hope to comprehend. Very sad.
Steve

I live in the Akron area and just got Time Warner Cable HD service. I have a 32" Sony Wega HD TV. When I watch the normal channels my picture has sidebars or I have to stretch the picture into letterbox. I can't get it to fill up the entire screen like it should. The HD channels look great and are letterbox like I would expect. I have played around with all of the aspect ratios with the box and can't get a full screen with normal channels. How do I get this to work. I talked to the Time Warner service line and they told me that is the way it is when you don't have a widescreen TV. I find this hard to believe. No one would get HD service if they have a non-widescreen TV. Its like watching a 27" tv instead of a 32". Is it possible it is my TV doing this? I can't seem to find anything in the menu for the TV that would cause this. I have the HD cable box with the DVR, model Scientific Atlanta. Hopefully somone can help me out before I cancel the service and switch back to Directv.

Not trying to make you feel bad, but if you had bought the 30" widescreen wega you wouldn't have that problem. :)

[QUOTE=paule123The whole blackout thing is just silly, all it does is piss off the sports fans. What really irritates me is that Fox Saturday Baseball even blacks out the game on my $79 a year subscription to MLB.TV.[/QUOTE]


WHAT???? You mean the MLB TV that they sell for your computer? Don't miss a single game, no black outs?

If that's the case I'd be HIGHLY p.o.'d.

If your talking about MLB through your cable company....$79.00 for a year is a great deal. Quit complaining. Cheapest I ever got it was 129.00 for a year.

Not trying to make you feel bad, but if you had bought the 30" widescreen wega you wouldn't have that problem. :)

Since the 16:9 viewing area is the same on both sets and the 4:3 viewing area on the 30" Sony is only 24.5", I'd say he made the right choice. Then when you see that the 30" is $200 more than the 32", I'd say it's a no brainer. :D His only problem are clueless TWC CSRs that don't know how their own equipment works and give out misinformation.

Since the 16:9 viewing area is the same on both sets and the 4:3 viewing area on the 30" Sony is only 24.5", I'd say he made the right choice. Then when you see that the 30" is $200 more than the 32", I'd say it's a no brainer. :D His only problem are clueless TWC CSRs that don't know how their own equipment works and give out misinformation.

Price wise when I looked at them they were the same.

WHAT???? You mean the MLB TV that they sell for your computer? Don't miss a single game, no black outs?

If that's the case I'd be HIGHLY p.o.'d.

If your talking about MLB through your cable company....$79.00 for a year is a great deal. Quit complaining. Cheapest I ever got it was 129.00 for a year.

I am talking about the internet MLB.TV, streaming video. If you look at the site, they say you'll see "99%" of the games. If you add up ALL the baseball games played ALL year by EVERY team, and subtract the Saturday Fox game once a week, you probably end up with a number like 99%.

The other problem with MLB.TV is they will black out a game if it is available on TV in your local market. i.e., you can only watch "out of market" games on the internet. They have technology that looks at your IP address and figures out geographically where you are, and will prevent you from watching a Cleveland game if you're on a computer in the Cleveland area for example.

Last night I noticed that WUAB was displaying a test pattern on 43-2. Any idea what they are planning on carrying on the subchannel?

Last night I noticed that WUAB was displaying a test pattern on 43-2. Any idea what they are planning on carrying on the subchannel?

Rumor is that it will be a new music network called "The Tube"

http://www.thetubetv.com/raycommediadeal.html

Rumor is that it will be a new music network called "The Tube"

http://www.thetubetv.com/raycommediadeal.html

It's good to know that they're apparently putting this on WUAB, and not WOIO.

Ok, I did what you said. I ran a S-Video cable to one of my Video inputs on my tv. When I switch to that video input on my tv there is no picture. Your idea makes sense, but it doesn't work. Do I need to change some setting in the box to tell it to output the video on the other outputs. I can't find anything in the menu. My box is an Explorer 8000HD.

I forgot to add, I am using Componet Video cables for the HD. Is it possible that it can't output on Component Video and S-Video at the same time? Would it work if I switched the HD to the Digital DVI hookup? I also ran a RCA video cable from the VCR Archive outputs and those don't work either. This is really starting to drive me crazy.

I have my Sony Wega hooked up with an S video cable as well, but I never use it. I do have an HDMI connector, but I don't think that just having component video would stop the S video in the 8000. I know it will stop a cable connection from working.

I know this doesn't answer your question, I'm just trying to compare my hookup to yours.

Anyone have any idea when Comcast will get a box that supports HDMI? I don't feel like spending $150 for a DVI to HDMI cable. I had the Pelican HD switch box, that now has fried from last night's thunderstorm here in Mentor and I have way to many HD inputs (DVD player, XBox, PS2, Cube). And nothing is using my HDMI input currently. Thought of buying a Upscaling DVD player, but it won't really enhance much on my TV (tube). Also thought about just putting the DVD player on S-Video and seeing if my TV (34XBR960) will do as good a job with the progressive scan. Any help!?

Thanks!

Ok, I did what you said. I ran a S-Video cable to one of my Video inputs on my tv. When I switch to that video input on my tv there is no picture. Your idea makes sense, but it doesn't work. Do I need to change some setting in the box to tell it to output the video on the other outputs. I can't find anything in the menu. My box is an Explorer 8000HD.

A friend of mine had that box and had the same problem. I just assumed his 8000 was defective. We could not find a single person at TWC that knew anything about this so it was impossible to tell for sure. He just had them replace the 8000 with the 8300 and he is working fine. I suggest you do the same.
Steve

Last night I noticed that WUAB was displaying a test pattern on 43-2. Any idea what they are planning on carrying on the subchannel?
PSIP data on my STB identifies 43-2 as being "The Tube."

Does anyone know if Adelphia uses transmits full bandwidth on their HD channels?

Thanks,

JP

I forgot to add, I am using Componet Video cables for the HD. Is it possible that it can't output on Component Video and S-Video at the same time? Would it work if I switched the HD to the Digital DVI hookup? I also ran a RCA video cable from the VCR Archive outputs and those don't work either. This is really starting to drive me crazy.

First off, I don't think both component and s-video are live at the same time. More importantly, in the setup wizard you need to tell the SA8000HD that you are a "standard screen HDTV" (as opposed to widescreen HDTV or standard screen SDTV) as per page 5 of the setup pdf/manual. Assuming you did that, and still get sidebars on 4:3, the box is then defective.

Ted

P.S. Paule123 or other WOW users - Any news when WOW cable will add any new HD channels?

I also ran a RCA video cable from the VCR Archive outputs and those don't work either.

On the SA8000HD, to get the VCR archive outputs to work on live TV, you have to turn PIP on with the remote, and then you'll get the PIP channel out on the archive jacks.

P.S. Paule123 or other WOW users - Any news when WOW cable will add any new HD channels?

No news. I keep badgering them about adding ESPN2HD and they keep coming back with the Sgt. Schultz answer "we know nothing" or "please sumbit your request to add a new channel through the website"

I was told by WOW's Cleveland Manager that the HD channel they are considering is TNT-HD.

I was told by WOW's Cleveland Manager that the HD channel they are considering is TNT-HD.

Hey that's great, now that the NBA playoffs are over... Doh.

Does anyone know if Adelphia uses transmits full bandwidth on their HD channels?

JP

I have a tuner that receives both OTA and unencrypted QAM. I think the picture quality from the antenna is slightly better than the cable, at least for the local channels. If I didn't have the antenna, I'd be perfectly happy with the cable signal.

PSIP data on my STB identifies 43-2 as being "The Tube."
Sweet! More free tv. It's not like WUAB is using the bandwidth anyway.

However it's too bad that all "The Tube" programming seems to be centered around the same old rock/pop crap that already saturates the media. There are some of us out here that prefer other kinds of music like jazz, classical, big band, standards etc. How about a channel for us?

I have tried everything. The aspect ratio in the box is set to standard tv and to view HD material as letterbox. I would think that the box would know to show standard shows as full screen?

I have tried everything with cables. I have pulled the component cables and tried it with only the S video. No picture on my tv this way. The only thing that I haven't tried is the coax hookup, but probably wont bother. The tech is coming out tomorrow. If he can't make this work then I am probably going to go back to Directv. My only other option is to drop the HD and just go with a standard box with DVR. The Directv still has a far superior picture to cable though even on the digital channels. I just wont have HD. I don't feel like paying all that money for a box and have to put a antena on my roof.

If anyone has the HD8000 box and can figure out how to make this work let me know.

Tell him to bring an 8300 box for you. That should solve your problem.

Just did a rescan on my OTA box, and sure enough, WUAB has added "43-2", identified as "Tube", the music video network Raycom agreed to carry a while back. The subchannel still has color bars, though.

I'm still trying to figure out how stations in the market are getting away without feeding program info on their PSIP feeds. Right now, the only stations I get that are doing it are WEWS 5-1 (new, after the rescan which moved it out of 15-1), WUAB 43-1, and WQHS 61-1. WDLI 17-1 (and 17-2-4) used to do it, but doesn't anymore. Ditto with WOIO 19-1. WJW 8-1 has never done it. WKYC 3-1 did it last I was able to receive them.

I thought this was all required by the FCC now?

As I mentioned before it seems Adelphia now has the box turn on at channel 3 every time you turn it off. In the morning they usually have news and a couple of times I've gone to rewind a story and it doesn't seem to be recording. I actually have to change the channel or activate pip to make the auto record feature work so you can pause, rewind etc.

Anyone else notice this?

I finally left cable, moving to Dish Network. Unfortunately, I lost the HD locals because of the move. My house has an antenna on the roof from the previous owner, but it isn't currently connected (the line was cut). Before I see about getting it re-connected, what are my chances of getting all the locals with this antenna? I live in South Euclid and there aren't any tall buildings near me. Antennaweb shows that only WOIO might be difficult. Anyone else in this area getting locals? I don't know anything about the antenna itself. Thanks for any opinions...

Don't we have a semi-regular in here from the Euclid area?

Without knowing much about the antenna, I'm guessing you shouldn't have much problem getting the locals from South Euclid with a rooftop antenna. You're not that much farther from Parma than I am, and I'm getting everybody save for WKYC with no problems with an indoor antenna in a second floor loft.

WOIO's a little trickier than the UHF-based local DT stations for me, but as I said, I'm using an indoor antenna. WKYC is tricky for just about everyone in the market due to its awful low-VHF position (DT 2). With a rooftop antenna and no tall buildings around, you should have a better shot than I do.

Everybody else - WEWS, WJW, WUAB - shouldn't be difficult to catch at all. (WVIZ is low-power from Brookpark Road until later this summer.)

WOIO's a little trickier than the UHF-based local DT stations for me, but as I said, I'm using an indoor antenna. WKYC is tricky for just about everyone in the market due to its awful low-VHF position (DT 2). With a rooftop antenna and no tall buildings around, you should have a better shot than I do.Actually I finally get WKYC now since the antenna was placed in the attic. I get five to six bars consistently now. It's a moderate but consistent signal. The key is height... atleast at my location.

Actually I finally get WKYC now since the antenna was placed in the attic. I get five to six bars consistently now. It's a moderate but consistent signal. The key is height... atleast at my location.

For how long? I had a period over a three-day holiday weekend that I got WKYC with a pretty strong, steady signal, but the following Tuesday, it went away. As noted, DT channel 2 is very susceptible to electrical interference, and I often suspect that as businesses/industrial firms power up for the workweek, it hurts the signal.

I also forget what kind of antenna you're using...is it a big outdoor one or indoor? And if I'm remembering right, you're in the Valley...