SD for the night.

TWC drops the ball again!!

It gets worse guys. If you check the program guide on 712 for Wednesday it does not show the Rangers Devils game at the Garden. How can we make any sense of this? We get MSG HD all season and now the first playoff games in 9 years is not carried. Did TWC's MSG HD agreement with Cablevision expire at the end of the regular season?

I guess the only good news for Rangers fans is you only have to worry about missing 2 more games in HD :)

We really need an MSG-HD 24/7 sports channel like SportsNet New York.

I read about concerns with bandwidth and HD channels, but MSG covers two major New York teams. No reason not to have two versions of this channel running 24 hours a day.

YES Network falls into the same boat. I am curious if they run any of their taped shows in HD like SNY does.

Anyone notice in their bill the announcement that Game Show Network will no longer be available as of May 1st? Anyone know why we're losing it? I kinda like GSN, but if it makes room for more HD, I'm all for it.

Anyone notice in their bill the announcement that Game Show Network will no longer be available as of May 1st? Anyone know why we're losing it? I kinda like GSN, but if it makes room for more HD, I'm all for it.
I was curious myself so I just did a google search and found this from mediaweek...

TWC May Drop GSN in N.Y.

Anthony Crupi

MARCH 08, 2006 -

Time Warner Cable has informed subscribers in its New York market that it is dropping GSN on May 1 if it cannot negotiate a new carriage deal with the network.

A spokesperson for the MSO said that Time Warner recently underwent a "periodic review of its packages," and in so doing, decided that GSN did not meet its criteria of "the highest quality [programming] and widest array of choices at reasonable prices."

GSN president Rich Cronin said the network does not anticipate going dark in New York, adding that "negotiations are ongoing." Cronin said that he expects an "amicable conclusion" to be reached before the May 1 deadline. The net has the strength of its ratings in its favor; in 2005, GSN's total-day ratings were up 50 percent over the previous year.

The operator has not determined which network will find a new home on GSN's present slot (channel 117) should it pull the network. Recently, Time Warner moved Fox Sports Net NY from its analog lineup (channel 26) to a digital tier to make room for its new Mets net SportsNet NY.

Time Warner also said it will drop GSN from its Binghamton, N.Y., lineup next week. Meanwhile, other systems are considering moving GSN to a special digital tier.

GSN, which is co-owned by Liberty Media and Sony Pictures Entertainment, reaches 58.3 million households.

We really need an MSG-HD 24/7 sports channel like SportsNet New York.

I read about concerns with bandwidth and HD channels, but MSG covers two major New York teams. No reason not to have two versions of this channel running 24 hours a day.

YES Network falls into the same boat. I am curious if they run any of their taped shows in HD like SNY does.

Hard to believe but aside from the live games MSG and YES do not have any other HD programming. Even the rewind versions of the HD games are shown in SD. Until they have studio shows in HD like SNY does there is no need for a full time HD feed of MSG or YES.

I guess the only good news for Rangers fans is you only have to worry about missing 2 more games in HD :)

And the bad news for Mr. Dolan is that nobody will watch his network for the next 6 months because this is the first summer they will have no live sports team's games to broadcast.

And the bad news for Mr. Dolan is...
Wish nothing but the worst for that incompetent buffoon. I wish he’d get out of the sports and arena (MSG, Radio City) business forever. Give us our teams back!

there was/is a scroll on weather channel about gsn going. lots of channels (sd and hd) have been added over the past few months, this is one of few drops. don't expect to see more hd in the immediate future.


I was curious myself so I just did a google search and found this from mediaweek...

TWC May Drop GSN in N.Y.

Anthony Crupi

MARCH 08, 2006 -

Time Warner Cable has informed subscribers in its New York market that it is dropping GSN on May 1 if it cannot negotiate a new carriage deal with the network.

A spokesperson for the MSO said that Time Warner recently underwent a "periodic review of its packages," and in so doing, decided that GSN did not meet its criteria of "the highest quality [programming] and widest array of choices at reasonable prices."

GSN president Rich Cronin said the network does not anticipate going dark in New York, adding that "negotiations are ongoing." Cronin said that he expects an "amicable conclusion" to be reached before the May 1 deadline. The net has the strength of its ratings in its favor; in 2005, GSN's total-day ratings were up 50 percent over the previous year.

The operator has not determined which network will find a new home on GSN's present slot (channel 117) should it pull the network. Recently, Time Warner moved Fox Sports Net NY from its analog lineup (channel 26) to a digital tier to make room for its new Mets net SportsNet NY.

Time Warner also said it will drop GSN from its Binghamton, N.Y., lineup next week. Meanwhile, other systems are considering moving GSN to a special digital tier.

GSN, which is co-owned by Liberty Media and Sony Pictures Entertainment, reaches 58.3 million households.

I have a TWCNYC cable appointment this a.m. to address the constant pixelation I'm getting on on-demand shows only. I've tried to watch shows for weeks on HBO and Showtime on demand, and for the first 20 minutes they're ok, they start pixelating and then become completely unwatchable. Sometimes rebooting or simply turning it off helps, but after a while, the pixelation always comes back. I've got an SA 8300HD.

When I spoke to Canada (!) they said that they've been getting constant complaints about pixelation, there is no fix "yet", and they can just credit me (exact details TBD).

anybody else have this experience? What kind of service should we be expecting from TWC in this regard?

these are the hardest problem for field techs to troubleshoot since when you order vod it may come on one of four downstream channels and may be different everytime you order something. linear channels (network that is broadcast constantly) are easier to troubleshoot since they are on same channel/frequency consistently. nyc airwaves are crowded and polluted with lots of interference across the cable spectrum which causes these pixelations. when switched broadcasting comes around it will be more of a headache to all

By the way, I would greatly appreciate it if folks here can keep an ear open for any sound discrepancies ( see my posts from yesterday) According to some helpful posters in the STB thread, my center channel problem is not in my equipment.

It appears that even though on some stations my recievier is indicating DD 5.1, 2 channel stereo is actually outputting with no sound in the center channel. All I’m asking here is if people can double check their systems. Check out an ABC show that is supposed to be DD 5.1 and be sure that you’re getting the full 5 channels.

lots of channels (sd and hd) have been added over the past few months
I wouldn't exactly say that "lots" of channels have been added (SD or HD). SNY and UHD are the only ones I can think of. Oh yes, maybe the "Prayer" channel counts in someone's book, but not mine. VOD doesn't count either. Those don't take up any extra bandwidth.

My guess is that TWC is using the threat of cancellation to bully GSN into lowering their fees in contract negotations or something. Can't say I watch much on GSN, but it's good for a late-nite stop for a chuckle at hairstyles or fashions on The Match Game or Press Your Luck. :-)

Relatedly I heard a story on NY1 that Fox News is seeking to double their fees to the cable companies (I think they said something like that most cable networks, including FoxN get about 25 cents per subscriber and they're looking to double their fees -- also noting that sports networks get much more than most networks since their costs are higher to cover the sporting events themselves).

So, watching the Champions League semi-final on the ol' DVR, and it is mentioned that May 17th, the Champions League Final will be in High Definition on ESPN2 'for our audience in the United States,' as Derek is wont to say.

Anyway, any word on if/when we will get ESPN2HD? Last word I read in this thread was many moons ago when some TW person claimed they hoped to have it by 'the start of Baseball.'

Am I the only one convinced that we will NOT be able to see World Cup games on ESPN2 in HD here in TWCNY-land? Is there any point in holding out hope?

Tonite's Nets game on "My9" (SD, whoopee), and also SUPPOSEDLY on the "NBA TV". Now i know in the past we've gotten stuff like that on INHD or something. But i'm not seeing ANY listing on the TWC guide to indicate we're getting the game in HD tonite. :(

Everybody here please email TWC and share your thoughts on new HD channels.
We all have a couple minutes to spare to post here so please Email Corporate.

Fred.Dressler@twcable.com

Let's be civilized.

Tonite's Nets game on "My9" (SD, whoopee), and also SUPPOSEDLY on the "NBA TV". Now i know in the past we've gotten stuff like that on INHD or something. But i'm not seeing ANY listing on the TWC guide to indicate we're getting the game in HD tonite. :(

And, of COURSE, what SHOULD BE the NBA TV slot on our cable for tonite's game...ch 721, INHD..is being blacked out on us. I wouldn't expect it to be any different. :mad:

I have an 8300 DVR, when I try to switch to channel 711 I get just a grey screen, and the box is non-responsive for about 3 minutes, then reboots itself. I've tried soft rebooting, and hard booting by unplugging and the same occurs when switching to channel 711. I connect via HDMI at 720p only if it makes any difference.
Before I call TW, is this a common issue? I've tried to search this thread to no avail....

Thanks

I had exactly the same problem the other night - except that the box did not reboot itself. After a few minutes, it started to respond again normally. I shut it off without rebooting, waited a minute and turned it back on again. So far, so good.

Did anyone have trouble tonight taping 711? Both of my HD Dvrs shut off the recording at 8:25 instead of 9:00.

I had exactly the same problem the other night - except that the box did not reboot itself. After a few minutes, it started to respond again normally. I shut it off without rebooting, waited a minute and turned it back on again. So far, so good.

Did anyone have trouble tonight taping 711? Both of my HD Dvrs shut off the recording at 8:25 instead of 9:00.

Lisa,

I recorded Pepper Dennis from 9 to 10 p.m. and it recorded perfectly.

Cynthia

To Rangers fans on here, lets cross our fingers and hope tonight's game is shown with a turned on HD channel. :(

A thread search ("switched") uncovered this post (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6318053&&#post6318053), with earlier/later posts, from a TWC representative, about switched broadcasting (SB). (One-way Cable Cards won't work with SB, but their current two-way STBs do, with no special action required by subscribers, she wrote.) Austin is another TWC SB test city. SB lets subscribers tune 'live' channels directly from hubs or head ends--akin to video on demand--and vastly expands cable system channel capacity. -- John

By the way, I would greatly appreciate it if folks here can keep an ear open for any sound discrepancies ( see my posts from yesterday) According to some helpful posters in the STB thread, my center channel problem is not in my equipment.

It appears that even though on some stations my recievier is indicating DD 5.1, 2 channel stereo is actually outputting with no sound in the center channel. All I’m asking here is if people can double check their systems. Check out an ABC show that is supposed to be DD 5.1 and be sure that you’re getting the full 5 channels.
FYI, I checked in on WABC-HD last night during a 5.1 show and everything was normal on my system -- center channel and all. I had no issues with any channel that I checked in on (HDNet, Showtime, INHD, etc.)

Scott

Everybody here please email TWC and share your thoughts on new HD channels.
We all have a couple minutes to spare to post here so please Email Corporate.

Fred.Dressler@twcable.com

Let's be civilized.
Done. Made the specific point that if TWC were to offer HD versions of their other premium movie channels (TMC, MAX, Starz) I'd subscribe to them and pay $25+ more per month. How can an executive argue with someone who WANTS to pay them more????

... I checked in on WABC-HD last night during a 5.1 show and everything was normal on my system -- center channel and all. I had no issues with any channel that I checked in on (HDNet, Showtime, INHD, etc.)
Scott
Last nights viewing- I watched TNT and the audio was perfect. I watched YES- also perfect 5.1 DD audio. I watched MY9, which was coming in at Pro Logic as indicated- not DD, but also fine. The only show I watched on ABC was Jeopardy and that indicated DD but it appeared to be 2 channel stereo with no center. By the way, I couldn’t get INHD 1 or 2 at all last night.

For now, when I have this problem, I will switch over to analogue, as Cynthia (thanks) suggested in the other thread and live with the simulated surround.

Thanks Scott, I appreciate your looking into this. It still is a mystery to me. I won’t harp on this anymore unless others post similar problems.

A thread search ("switched") uncovered this post (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6318053&&#post6318053), with earlier/later posts, from a TWC representative, about switched broadcasting (SB). (One-way Cable Cards won't work with SB, but their current two-way STBs do, with no special action required by subscribers, she wrote.) Austin is another TWC SB test city. SB lets subscribers tune 'live' channels directly from hubs or head ends--akin to video on demand--and vastly expands cable system channel capacity. -- John

Thanks for finding that.

I have to say that that really stinks (assuming the S3 has one-way cable cards that aren't updatable via software updates). Seems like a pretty convenient way for the cable cos to not only increase bandwidth but to continue to force customers to rent their $10 a month boxes instead of the $2 a month cable cards.

Anyone know about Mets at Braves this weekend? FRI on SNY, SAT and SUN on WPIX. HD?

To Rangers fans on here, lets cross our fingers and hope tonight's game is shown with a turned on HD channel. :(

I'm holding my breath. But i'm also prepared to be disappointed, as usual. After ALL, in the view of the TWC execs, we're obviously 3rd class citizens. :(

The smart people at TWC have turned off 708 in the 9th inning of a tie game. UNREAL!!!

The smart people at TWC have turned off 708 in the 9th inning of a tie game. UNREAL!!!

that's becoming a very bad habit of them turning off games on the HD specials channels.

Last nights viewing- I watched TNT and the audio was perfect. I watched YES- also perfect 5.1 DD audio. I watched MY9, which was coming in at Pro Logic as indicated- not DD, but also fine. The only show I watched on ABC was Jeopardy and that indicated DD but it appeared to be 2 channel stereo with no center. By the way, I couldn’t get INHD 1 or 2 at all last night.

For now, when I have this problem, I will switch over to analogue, as Cynthia (thanks) suggested in the other thread and live with the simulated surround.

Thanks Scott, I appreciate your looking into this. It still is a mystery to me. I won’t harp on this anymore unless others post similar problems.

See my post here:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7559209&&#post7559209

I think I'm experiencing the exact same problem you are. I primarily watch prime time HD shows on CBS which have proper 5.1 (watch almost nothing on ABC) and I usually fast forward through the commercials, which is probably why I never noticed that the sound was messed up during the commercials. It's probably been happening for a while now.

that's becoming a very bad habit of them turning off games on the HD specials channels.

Absolutely AWFUL...and SENSELESS. It's like no one at either TWC or YES even CARES that there's still a GAME going on (no matter how AWFUL that game is!) and their audience is trying to watch the f'ng thing in hi def! :mad:

At least Saturday's game will be in HD.

Unless TWC has some unforeseen mishap to turn off 704. :eek:

Anyone know about Mets at Braves this weekend? FRI on SNY, SAT and SUN on WPIX. HD?

Nope, nope, and nope.

If by some freakish act of service to customers TWC puts TBS-HD in place in time for it, we could watch Saturday and Sunday's games in HD.

My wife was furious about them shutting off the YES HD feed last night. There has got to be a better way...
-JMP

See my post here:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7559209&&#post7559209

I think I'm experiencing the exact same problem you are. I primarily watch prime time HD shows on CBS which have proper 5.1 (watch almost nothing on ABC) and I usually fast forward through the commercials, which is probably why I never noticed that the sound was messed up during the commercials. It's probably been happening for a while now.
Thanks for verifying this Eric; it’s exactly what I’ve been encountering. I’m sure it’s happening to the rest of the TWNY customers but I guess some people haven’t ‘heard’ the problem or been distracted by this audio anomaly to investigate further.

The ‘problem’ I’ve deduced is happening mostly with ABC. This station has been indicating Dolby Digital 5.1 regardless of what is transmitting. Last night, however, there were no issues during ABC prime time (there were problems with Jeopardy). I checked after 8 pm and the shows were fine but---- the commercials were 2 channel. This is where things have changed. In the past, the show would indicate DD and the commercials would switch to Pro logic, not anymore. And with ABC, it hasn’t only been the commercials- this glitch has happened with some of their ‘shows’ too.

This is a major problem because if you have your system set up via digital audio you will lose audio information. CBS is still functioning correctly- if a show is Dolby Digital 5.1 it indicates this, and the commercial is listed as Pro Logic and the audio is also correct.

The only way to avoid this is to leave it in analog. Not happening with my system.

This is definitely a local problem and it is new and it isn’t an ABC exclusive.

My wife was furious about them shutting off the YES HD feed last night. There has got to be a better way...
-JMP
Unbelievable!
I guess this is done in an automated way-- no one fell asleep at a switch(?).
But how incompetent are they? Why would they not extend the time? If one were to record the game, they would certainly extend the end time. This was beyond infuriating last night.

Nope, nope, and nope.

If by some freakish act of service to customers TWC puts TBS-HD in place in time for it, we could watch Saturday and Sunday's games in HD.

My wife was furious about them shutting off the YES HD feed last night. There has got to be a better way...
-JMP

So what does "select games" mean? Yankee games only?

TBS games are blacked out in NY.

This is a major problem because if you have your system set up via digital audio you will lose audio information. CBS is still functioning correctly- if a show is Dolby Digital 5.1 it indicates this, and the commercial is listed as Pro Logic and the audio is also correct.

The only way to avoid this is to leave it in analog. Not happening with my system.

This is definitely a local problem and it is new and it isn’t an ABC exclusive.

When I tested the Amazing Race yesterday on CBS it seemed to be showing DD5.1 for both the show and commercials, yet sound was only coming from the L/R speakers, nothing from the center channel. It's posible the Amazing Race isn't supposed to be in 5.1 and then CBS gets all messed up for the show as well as commercials. For shows like CSI Miami, which are broadcast 5.1, both the show and commericals work properly (5.1 for the show; DPL II for the commercials).

Agreed - on my system, switching from digital to analog is more of a pain than just leaving it in digital and dealing w/ the problem. Since I rarely watch commericals, most of the CBS shows I do watch work properly and I watch almost nothing on ABC, it doesn't bother me much.

...It's posible the Amazing Race isn't supposed to be in 5.1 and then CBS gets all messed up for the show as well as commercials...
I think you’re right regarding Amazing Race (haven’t seen it, heard it’s good) not being DD 5.1 and CBS screwing it up.

Last week I was watching Without a Trace on CBS. This show, from what I recall, has never been in DD 5.1. It was coming in correctly as Pro Logic. This was the first time that I saw any show listed on my receiver as Pro Logic and then the commercials correctly as DD 5.1 It was basically opposite of what I’ve become accustomed to. I don’t know if it was because the show prior to Without a Trace was CSI a DD 5.1 show.

I think you’re right regarding Amazing Race (haven’t seen it, heard it’s good) not being DD 5.1 and CBS screwing it up.

Last week I was watching Without a Trace on CBS. This show, from what I recall, has never been in DD 5.1. It was coming in correctly as Pro Logic. This was the first time that I saw any show listed on my receiver as Pro Logic and then the commercials correctly as DD 5.1 It was basically opposite of what I’ve become accustomed to. I don’t know if it was because the show prior to Without a Trace was CSI a DD 5.1 show.

Is that right - Without a Trace isn't in 5.1? It's in HD. I've watched it since it came out two years ago and always thought it was in 5.1.

Tonight (or whenever I end up watching the shows) will be a good test. Surivior is definitely not 5.1. CSI definitely is 5.1. Without a Trace I think is 5.1.

There has been discussion on the lack of DD 5.1 on the WOaT thread.
I’ve been keeping an eye out this season and know for sure the last several episodes were not DD 5.1. I don’t recall whether the previous seasons were.
Check out the WOaT thread, I think it was around post 43 or so, it’s not a long thread.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=586181&page=2&pp=30

Interesting.

Unbelievable!
I guess this is done in an automated way-- no one fell asleep at a switch(?).
But how incompetent are they? Why would they not extend the time? If one were to record the game, they would certainly extend the end time. This was beyond infuriating last night.

TOTALLY beyond infuriating, Larry. And this sorta thing happens FAR TOO OFTEN when TWC does a Yankee game that goes either into extra innings, or suffers a later than advertised start due to a RAIN DELAY. Invariably and automatically, three hours after a game starts, it is abruptly REMOVED from our hi def screens! OH, and btw, IIRC, the same thing happens on the Nets games when or if they go into OT. NO ONE at TWC is watching or caring, that much is OBVIOUS. If any of you are old enough to remember the infamous "Heidi game" with the Jets back in '68, it's kinda a similar brain-dead, automated type, customers-be-damned, move. TOTALLY inexcusable, and yet you KNOW it's going to happen OVER and OVER again. :mad: :(

Once AGAIN, we are screwed out of the HD version of tonite's NETS *playoff* game, thanks to TWC. Go to ch721. On the bottom of the screen it says "NBA Basketball". There WAS the NBA TV pre-game show on there, right up till game time. And then the screen went blank. It's still obviously blank. Screwed AGAIN!! :mad: :(

Once AGAIN, we are screwed out of the HD version of tonite's NETS *playoff* game, thanks to TWC. Go to ch721. On the bottom of the screen it says "NBA Basketball". There WAS the NBA TV pre-game show on there, right up till game time. And then the screen went blank. It's still obviously blank. Screwed AGAIN!! :mad: :(


Wow... learn how this **** works...

This is NOT Time Warner's Fault!

The game is NBATV-HD - which gets blacked out locally.

No NY area cable system should be able to get this game on NBA-TV or NBA-TVHD, since it is available thru a local broadcast (even if it isn't HD).

Wow... learn how this **** works...

This is NOT Time Warner's Fault!

The game is NBATV-HD - which gets blacked out locally.

No NY area cable system should be able to get this game on NBA-TV or NBA-TVHD, since it is available thru a local broadcast (even if it isn't HD).

Then =why= does it say "NBA Basketball" on the guide on the bottom of the screen? And =why= does the info portion of the TWC guide indicate Nets vs Indiana at the top left of the screen?? And, if it's going to be blacked out, =why= isn't there some sorta "blackout announcement" on the screen on ch 721 at all times during the game, as it so often is on the TBS station when there's a Mets game being televised on a local NY outlet?

Then =why= does it say "NBA Basketball" on the guide on the bottom of the screen? And =why= does the info portion of the TWC guide indicate Nets vs Indiana at the top left of the screen?? And, if it's going to be blacked out, =why= isn't there some sorta "blackout announcement" on the screen on ch 721 at all times during the game, as it so often is on the TBS station when there's a Mets game being televised on a local NY outlet?


Wow man you have some issues...

Time warner doesn't control the content of the program guide - it comes from tvguide or whereever. If NBA-TV didn't properly include "blackout restrictions apply" in their on screen description, then so be it.

But NBA-TV HD has ALWAYS been blacked out for Knicks and Nets games on Time Warner - and it ends up a gray screen.

Again - Time Warner Cable NYC has no control over this. - They never put up an announcement screen on the HD channels

So just calm the **** down.

Guys' its TNT not TBS,I know they had it for awhile, but come on get with the times already.

Guys' its TNT not TBS,I know they had it for awhile, but come on get with the times already.

ummm..

TNT and TBS are 2 completely separate stations.

He was talking about Mets-Braves games on TBS, not nba playoffs on TNT

I think you’re right regarding Amazing Race (haven’t seen it, heard it’s good) not being DD 5.1 and CBS screwing it up.

Last week I was watching Without a Trace on CBS. This show, from what I recall, has never been in DD 5.1. It was coming in correctly as Pro Logic. This was the first time that I saw any show listed on my receiver as Pro Logic and then the commercials correctly as DD 5.1 It was basically opposite of what I’ve become accustomed to. I don’t know if it was because the show prior to Without a Trace was CSI a DD 5.1 show.

So I recoreded all of the CBS shows last night - I record Survivor on 2 and CSI and WAT on 702. But I was home during Survivor and was able to check it out live on 702 as well. Here is what I found (consistent w/ what we've discussed before):

Survivor (2) - both the show and commercials came in as DPLII on my AVR

Suvivor (702) - both the show and commercials came in as DD5.1 on my AVR but there was no sound from the center channel - not working properly

CSI (702) - the show came in as DD5.1 (and working properly) and commercials were DPLII (the way they should be)

WAT (702) - both the show and the commercials were DPLII, which based on what you said yesterday is correct b/c the show isn't broadcast in 5.1.

So really the only "errors" occured during Suvivor on 702. It's not a 5.1 show but it's flagged as one and the commercials get messed up as well. The other shows all worked properly. Since I usually record non HD shows on the SD channel, I never really noticed the problem.

YES expands road HD broadcasts of Yankees

YES Network
April 26, 2006

NEW YORK — The YES Network (www.yesnetwork.com), the most-watched regional sports network in the country, will provide New York Yankees fans with enhanced coverage during the 2006 season through an expanded schedule of high-definition Yankees telecasts.

The network has added seven away telecasts to its existing hi-def schedule, bringing the total number of away Yankees telecasts presented in hi-def to 34. As was the case last season, all 61 YES telecasts of home Yankees games are presented in hi-def this year. In addition, another 22 away telecasts this season will be presented in “enhanced definition”. YES’ “enhanced definition” coverage is a result of the network’s “up-converting” its standard definition productions, thus providing better audio and video quality than traditional standard definition telecasts.

“Our robust Yankees HD schedule, complemented with the enhanced definition telecasts, is consistent with our efforts to bring our viewers the best experience possible,” said Ray Hopkins, COO, YES Network. “These telecasts, coupled with our interactive telecasts premiering in July and the new YESNetwork.com launching in June with video highlights, are examples of our using the latest technology to bring Yankees fans closer than ever to their favorite team.”

(NOTE: All times are Eastern and subject to change. Stay with YESNetwork.com for updated information, including time, and broadcast teams.)

YANKEES ROAD HIGH DEFINITION TELECASTS (34)
DATE OPPONENT TIME
May 1 Boston Red Sox 7:05 p.m.
May 2 Boston Red Sox 7:05 p.m.
May 22 Boston Red Sox 7:05 p.m.
May 23 Boston Red Sox 7:05 p.m.
May 24 Boston Red Sox 7:05 p.m.
June 2 Baltimore Orioles 7:05 p.m.
June 3 Baltimore Orioles 4:35 p.m.
June 4 Baltimore Orioles 1:35 p.m.
June 18 Washington Nationals 1:05 p.m.
June 21 Philadephia Phillies 7:05 p.m.
June 22 Philadelphia Phillies 7:05 p.m.
July 3 Cleveland Indians 7:05 p.m.
July 4 Cleveland Indians 6:05 p.m.
July 5 Cleveland Indians 7:05 p.m.
July 6 Cleveland Indians 7:05 p.m.
July 7 Tampa Bay Devil Rays 7:15 p.m.
July 8 Tampa Bay Devil Rays 7:15 p.m.
July 9 Tampa Bay Devil Rays 1:15 p.m.
July 20 Toronto Blue Jays 7:05 p.m.
July 22 Toronto Blue Jays 4:05 p.m.
July 23 Toronto Blue Jays 1:05 p.m.
August 4 Baltimore Orioles 7:05 p.m.
August 5 Baltimore Orioles 4:35 p.m.
August 6 Baltimore Orioles 1:35 p.m.
August 8 Chicago White Sox 8:05 p.m.
August 9 Chicago White Sox 8:05 p.m.
August 10 Chicago White Sox 8:05 p.m.
August 21 Boston Red Sox 1:05 p.m.
September 9 Baltimore Orioles 4:35 p.m.
September 10 Baltimore Orioles 1:35 p.m.
September 11 Baltimore Orioles 7:05 p.m.
September 18 Toronto Blue Jays 7:05 p.m.
September 19 Toronto Blue Jays 7:05 p.m.
September 20 Toronto Blue Jays 7:05 p.m.




YANKEES ROAD ENHANCED DEFINITION TELECASTS (22)
DATE OPPONENT TIME
May 3 Tampa Bay Devil Rays 7:15 p.m.
May 4 Tampa Bay Devil Rays 7:15 p.m.
May 5 Texas Rangers 8:05 p.m.
May 6 Texas Rangers 8:05 p.m.
May 7 Texas Rangers 2:05 p.m.
May 29 Detroit Tigers 1:05 p.m.
May 30 Detroit Tigers 7:05 p.m.
May 31 Detroit Tigers 7:05 p.m.
June 1 Detroit Tigers 7:05 p.m.
July 24 Texas Rangers 8:05 p.m.
July 26 Texas Rangers 8:05 p.m.
August 22 Seattle Mariners 10:05 p.m.
August 23 Seattle Mariners 10:05 p.m.
August 24 Seattle Mariners 10:05 p.m.
August 25 L.A. Angels of Anaheim 10:05 p.m.
August 26 L.A. Angels of Anaheim 4:05 p.m.
August 27 L.A. Angels of Anaheim 3:35 p.m.
September 4 Kansas City Royals 8:10 p.m.
September 5 Kansas City Royals 8:10 p.m.
September 6 Kansas City Royals 8:10 p.m.
September 23 Tampa Bay Devil Rays 7:15 p.m.
September 24 Tampa Bay Devil Rays 1:15 p.m.
September 25 Tampa Bay Devil Rays 7:15

YES expands road HD broadcasts of Yankees
Good info, thanks.

I guess if I go with the glass half full approach, :rolleyes: this is one step (baby step) closer to 24/7 HD. I’ll take enhanced over SD any day.

Wow man you have some issues...

Time warner doesn't control the content of the program guide - it comes from tvguide or whereever. If NBA-TV didn't properly include "blackout restrictions apply" in their on screen description, then so be it.

But NBA-TV HD has ALWAYS been blacked out for Knicks and Nets games on Time Warner - and it ends up a gray screen.

Again - Time Warner Cable NYC has no control over this. - They never put up an announcement screen on the HD channels

So just calm the **** down.
I don’t think Mike is overreacting. I don’t know if your explanation is true regarding TW not having anything to do with what’s on their program guide.

Regardless, it’s extremly frustrating to see a show listed on our guide and then to find a gray screen. I fully comprehend the exclusive broadcast rights etc. but hey, get the guide right. What the hell is it there for? That’s inexcusable.

And just to vent (some more), it really is a shame that we’re stuck watching playoff basketball (and hockey) in crappy SD. My9 my ass.

So I recoreded all of the CBS shows last night
Cool, I also recorded CSI and WOT but probably won’t have a chance to watch them until next week. :cool:
If you’re still inclined to continue investigating, :D check out any ABC NBA game this weekend. This is where the audio has been really screwed up.

YES expands road HD broadcasts of Yankees

YES Network
April 26, 2006

NEW YORK — The YES Network (www.yesnetwork.com), the most-watched regional sports network in the country, will provide New York Yankees fans with enhanced coverage during the 2006 season through an expanded schedule of high-definition Yankees telecasts.

The network has added seven away telecasts to its existing hi-def schedule, bringing the total number of away Yankees telecasts presented in hi-def to 34. As was the case last season, all 61 YES telecasts of home Yankees games are presented in hi-def this year. In addition, another 22 away telecasts this season will be presented in “enhanced definition”. YES’ “enhanced definition” coverage is a result of the network’s “up-converting” its standard definition productions, thus providing better audio and video quality than traditional standard definition telecasts.

“Our robust Yankees HD schedule, complemented with the enhanced definition telecasts, is consistent with our efforts to bring our viewers the best experience possible,” said Ray Hopkins, COO, YES Network. “These telecasts, coupled with our interactive telecasts premiering in July and the new YESNetwork.com launching in June with video highlights, are examples of our using the latest technology to bring Yankees fans closer than ever to their favorite team.

I nice step in the right direction, I hope TWC has these enhanced definition games on the YES-HD feed and working.

I also anticipate YES's 24 hour HD channel next april & every game in HD just like NESN currently does.

Everybody here please email TWC and share your thoughts on new HD channels.
We all have a couple minutes to spare to post here so please Email Corporate.

Fred.Dressler@twcable.com

Let's be civilized.

Got a nice response from Mr. Dressler -- no new info, but pleasent:


From : Dressler, Fred <fred.dressler@twcable.com>
Sent : Wednesday, April 26, 2006 8:35 PM
Subject : RE: Time Warner NYC and HD channels

thanks for your thoughful note. we are trying to offer as much HD as we can. we
have technical and economic considerations to worry about, but we are diligently
working on adding more content.


Sent: Wed 4/26/2006 11:50 AM
To: Dressler, Fred
Subject: Time Warner NYC and HD channels

Dear Mr. Dressler,

I am a longtime subscriber (since 1993) of Time Warner Cable and appreciate
the large menu of services that you offer -- both in your Roadrunner High
Speed Internet and your Digital Cable, which I am a subscriber to.

I very much appreciate the selection of High Definition channels that you
offer, as well as the technical superiority of the Hi-Def DVR that I rent
from Time Warner each month -- it has changed my viewing habits
tremendously, allowing me to program television around my life, instead of
the other way around.

The only thing that I wish that you could do for me would be to provide
still more High Definition channels -- once you have a high definition TV
and the right equipment, it is very hard to go back to watching normal
Standard Definition programming.

I appreciate the fact that you've recently added the Universal-HD network
which shows some excellent films and concerts from time-to-time, as well as
WPIX, the local WB network in HD, but what I'd really like more than
anything else are the high definition versions of the other premium movie
channels that are available (we have HBO & Showtime, if you are subscribers
of those channels already). I am a film buff, and the hi-def versions of
the movie channels are the only way to see movies the way that they are
meant to be seen.

According to their websites, the other premium channels that TWC-NYC offers
(Cinemax, The Movie Channel, Starz!) offer high definition versions of their
channels, but they are not currently available to us. If those channels
were offered to me, I'd be more than happy to subscribe to all of those
premium services (yes, and raise my cable bill about $25/month) just to get
the ability to watch more high-def movies, but until then, the only ones
that I can really subscibe to are HBO and Showtime, since they are the only
ones that are offered in HD and it's very hard to go back to watching non-HD
films once you've had a taste of HD.

The only other request that I would have would be for you to please look
into what it would take to get the High Def MTV channel that they are
offering, since I am a big music fan as well!

Thanks for your time and attention,

The enhanced definition feed will probably run over the regular YES channel. I remember a month ago checking out a Mets game after another poster realized that the picture seemed really nice for a SD channel and when I tuned it in, it was an enhanced picture. No stretched image and the picture was a lot cleaner for standard feed. Well noticible over 4:3 SD.

The enhanced definition feed will probably run over the regular YES channel. I remember a month ago checking out a Mets game after another poster realized that the picture seemed really nice for a SD channel and when I tuned it in, it was an enhanced picture. No stretched image and the picture was a lot cleaner for standard feed. Well noticible over 4:3 SD.
It says in the press release that they will be "up-converting" the enhanced definition broadcasts which leads me to believe that they will broadcast them on YES-HD, otherwise what's the point of the up-conversion?

We shall see.

I am no expert by any means. I am just stating what I and another poster remember seeing at the start of this baseball season before HD Channel 11 went live in NYC for TWC.

Regardless if they air it on the HD channel or the SD channel, we are in for some really nice games visually.

Regardless if they air it on the HD channel or the SD channel, we are in for some really nice games visually.
Agreed, definitely good news. Now to see if TWC can remember to flip the switch for these games.

That must have been a WPIX feed. I noticed the same thing during Spring Training.

So far, neither SNY nor WPIX have carried a road game in HD. Comcast produces and carries Philly games so SNY carrying those games ought to be easy.

Any word on Mets road games HD ?

The enhanced definition feed will probably run over the regular YES channel. I remember a month ago checking out a Mets game after another poster realized that the picture seemed really nice for a SD channel and when I tuned it in, it was an enhanced picture. No stretched image and the picture was a lot cleaner for standard feed. Well noticible over 4:3 SD.

It says in the press release that they will be "up-converting" the enhanced definition broadcasts which leads me to believe that they will broadcast them on YES-HD, otherwise what's the point of the up-conversion?
Agree...
If it were on the SD channel (30) then it would have to be 4 X 3… right? So where is the enhancement? I think technically it would have to be in the 700’s with the rest of the HD or up-converted stations. It should look similar to what FOX 705 has been doing for their baseball coverage in past years, not including post season, which was true HD.

Hi all - I don't know about you other folks but down here in Battery Park City the last crop of NBA playoff games in HD (forget which channels specifically but it seems like ALL of them are having probs in some fashion) has suffered from A LOT of pixellation. Is it worth my time to give a call to TWC on this? I just HATE wasting any more time with them (it's been a lot over the years). thx

Agreed, definitely good news. Now to see if TWC can remember to flip the switch for these games.

SO TRUE! :confused:

Got a nice response from Mr. Dressler -- no new info, but pleasent:



The only other request that I would have would be for you to please look
into what it would take to get the High Def MTV channel that they are
offering, since I am a big music fan as well!

Thanks for your time and attention,

Did I miss something? When did MTV start showing music again? All i need is MTV HD with crappy shows and rap 24/7 HD.

BOO, HD should be for sports, nothing else :)

Did I miss something? When did MTV start showing music again? All i need is MTV HD with crappy shows and rap 24/7 HD.

BOO, HD should be for sports, nothing else :)

Not a sports fan....sorry.

MHD does not show the same crap as MTV (all of that reality stuff is only shot in SD video) -- MHD shows only music (videos, concerts, etc.) aggregated from all of its properties -- MTV, VH1, CMT, etc.:

MHD (a.k.a. MTV-HD)
Shows: MTV Unplugged; MTV2 $2 Bill concerts; VH1 Storytellers; CMT Crossroads; MHD Top Ten; MHD Video Stew
Specials: MTV Video Awards; CMT Music Awards; Music with Attitude concert specials

Hi all - I don't know about you other folks but down here in Battery Park City the last crop of NBA playoff games in HD (forget which channels specifically but it seems like ALL of them are having probs in some fashion) has suffered from A LOT of pixellation. Is it worth my time to give a call to TWC on this? I just HATE wasting any more time with them (it's been a lot over the years). thx
It can.

The most common cause of pixellation is a poor signal to your apartment (or it could be a screwy DVR, which you might need to exchange).

The HD-DVR (assuming that's what you have) requires a much cleaner signal than any older cable box. They can test this pretty easily, and sometimes it's as easy as running a new line inside your apartment, or other times they have to go to the drop point in your building (roof? basement? back alley?) and run a new line for you. Oftentimes running a new line from the drop point requires a second appointment with a different kind of tech.

Hello Again,

Haven't really been on AVS or this paticular thread since all my big purchases last Fall/Winter. Was hoping someone in this thread could give me an update on an old HDMI 8300 problem.

Back in late '05 the 8300 was still having trouble passing video through the new breed of HDMI a/v receivers. There was some kind of HDMI hand shake problem, and the solution was either to use component cords when connecting the 8300 to these receivers, or if you wanted to use HDMI you'd have to bypass the receiver and go straight to the Hi-Def panel.

I'm wondering where this stands with TWC and the latest HD boxes? Has there been a new firmware or software solution? Are there new boxes or the hope of one? I should add I use the 8300 HD DVR (can't loose the dvr). Thanks ahead of time for any insight. Also thanks to the person who posted the expanded YES HD ROAD coverage. I was worried about that with the upcoming Sox series.

How BAD does the Yankee game look on my9 tonight?

No, I think the question is how bad will it look tomorrow for the Nets? At least the game will not be blacked out on TNT HD.

Anyone else having the YES HD feed cut off if it goes past 30 min beyond the original ending time? Today's game as well as some other ones have done this annoying thing to me. I was watching the 1 o'clock game and at 4:30 the HD feed ended as if they have it scheduled to go off at the pre determined end of the Post Game show. Yankee games never end on time so this will be a common occurrence if nothing is done about it.

-Jerry C.

Anyone else having the YES HD feed cut off if it goes past 30 min beyond the original ending time? Today's game as well as some other ones have done this annoying thing to me. I was watching the 1 o'clock game and at 4:30 the HD feed ended as if they have it scheduled to go off at the pre determined end of the Post Game show. Yankee games never end on time so this will be a common occurrence if nothing is done about it.

-Jerry C.

Did u call TWC and complain?
Same thing happened to me and I called TWC. CSR said she could see the Yankee game on 708 just fine. Of course they will pass this "problem" to their IT group, so basically nothing will be done to address this problem.
I am in Queens.

PQ of the mets game is terrible. I know it's upconverted SD but it looks jus plain nasty and the video is stretched both on the sides and the top/bottom.

Anyone else having the YES HD feed cut off if it goes past 30 min beyond the original ending time? Today's game as well as some other ones have done this annoying thing to me. I was watching the 1 o'clock game and at 4:30 the HD feed ended as if they have it scheduled to go off at the pre determined end of the Post Game show. Yankee games never end on time so this will be a common occurrence if nothing is done about it.

-Jerry C.

I called TWC and spoke with a "supervisor" about this aggravating absurd annoyance and she seemed to have no clue (what a shock), but of course said that she would bring up the issue with her "manager". I switched from DirecTV to TWC in February and there has been nothing but these kinds of frustrating problems from day 1. In the 5 years that I had DirecTV, the only trouble I ever had is the few instances where cloud cover interrupted my signal (this is nothing compared to the laundry list of problems I've already experienced with TWC). In addition to the game cutting off in the late innings (twice this week already), The HD DVR (SA 8300) doesn't allow you to program it to record the HD feed of the Yankee game in advance. The only way you can "DVR" the game is if you press the record button once it has started. In other words, you must be home to record it!!! Call me crazy, but doesn't this completely defeat the entire point of having a DVR?!? Then again, what's the point of going to the trouble to put the Yankees games on in HD and then have them cut off in the 8th or 9th inning before the game is finished. You mean that nobody at TWC can figure out that someone who has just spent 3 1/2 hours watching a baseball game might want to see how it ends?!?! This is simply moronic and it is the final straw for me. I will be going back to DirecTV the day their new HD DVR boxes come out later this year, until then I will suffer with the abysmal TWC service and it's countless idiotic problems.

I called TWC and spoke with a "supervisor" about this aggravating absurd annoyance and she seemed to have no clue (what a shock), but of course said that she would bring up the issue with her "manager". I switched from DirecTV to TWC in February and there has been nothing but these kinds of frustrating problems from day 1. In the 5 years that I had DirecTV, the only trouble I ever had is the few instances where cloud cover interrupted my signal (this is nothing compared to the laundry list of problems I've already experienced with TWC). In addition to the game cutting off in the late innings (twice this week already), The HD DVR (SA 8300) doesn't allow you to program it to record the HD feed of the Yankee game in advance. The only way you can "DVR" the game is if you press the record button once it has started. In other words, you must be home to record it!!! Call me crazy, but doesn't this completely defeat the entire point of having a DVR?!? Then again, what's the point of going to the trouble to put the Yankees games on in HD and then have them cut off in the 8th or 9th inning before the game is finished. You mean that nobody at TWC can figure out that someone who has just spent 3 1/2 hours watching a baseball game might want to see how it ends?!?! This is simply moronic and it is the final straw for me. I will be going back to DirecTV the day their new HD DVR boxes come out later this year, until then I will suffer with the abysmal TWC service and it's countless idiotic problems.

A side note - you CAN set the box to record 708 in advance - if its showing a game. - For example - during tomorrows game you can set a series recording for the whole season (or just any future game during that week) - (manually updateing the guide yourself during games helps as well)

I called TWC and spoke with a "supervisor" about this aggravating absurd annoyance and she seemed to have no clue (what a shock), but of course said that she would bring up the issue with her "manager". I switched from DirecTV to TWC in February and there has been nothing but these kinds of frustrating problems from day 1. In the 5 years that I had DirecTV, the only trouble I ever had is the few instances where cloud cover interrupted my signal (this is nothing compared to the laundry list of problems I've already experienced with TWC). In addition to the game cutting off in the late innings (twice this week already), The HD DVR (SA 8300) doesn't allow you to program it to record the HD feed of the Yankee game in advance. The only way you can "DVR" the game is if you press the record button once it has started. In other words, you must be home to record it!!! Call me crazy, but doesn't this completely defeat the entire point of having a DVR?!? Then again, what's the point of going to the trouble to put the Yankees games on in HD and then have them cut off in the 8th or 9th inning before the game is finished. You mean that nobody at TWC can figure out that someone who has just spent 3 1/2 hours watching a baseball game might want to see how it ends?!?! This is simply moronic and it is the final straw for me. I will be going back to DirecTV the day their new HD DVR boxes come out later this year, until then I will suffer with the abysmal TWC service and it's countless idiotic problems.

I couldn't have said it any better myself. Matter of fact, i =did= say very much the same thing the other day. And you can add NETS games on YES to that same category of =someone= at TWC pulling the plug, brain-dead-style, on games that go beyond a set time into overtime. Absolutely inexcusable, and totally frustrating! :mad:

A side note - you CAN set the box to record 708 in advance - if its showing a game. - For example - during tomorrows game you can set a series recording for the whole season (or just any future game during that week) - (manually updateing the guide yourself during games helps as well)

unfortunately this method does not always work. sometimes the scheduled recording will record, other times not. it's like playing russian roulette if you won't be home when the program starts...and very upsetting when you come home to find it didn't record. i really hope they get their act together soon. it was one frustrating hockey season...most of the time i had to be home to record a Rangers game on 712, and even when it did record there were several times they would kill the feed before the game ended (i recall at least 1 time the game was in OT and 1 other time the shootout was in progress when the screen went black.) maybe next year MSG-HD will actually get it's own channel.

I'm posting this in case anyone else runs into the same issue.

I've been trying to use HDMI from the 8300HD to my Westinghouse 42w2. I'm a TW customer in NYC. The HD channels were showing up fine, but switching to SD channels caused me to lose video and audio. Both worked over component input.

After trying a brute force search of the options, I was able to determine that 480p output has to be disabled. I was under the impression that only 480i had to be disabled. I'm not sure I understand why it works, but I now have picture and video across all of my channels.

My Email:
Hello Mr. Watson,

I heard about the YES Network Expanding Baseball coverage with Enhanced Definition coverage for away games.

http://admin.yesnetwork.com/network/news.asp?news_id=1623

I don't see these ED games on the guide on channel 708
May 3 Tampa Bay Devil Rays 7:15 p.m.
May 4 Tampa Bay Devil Rays 7:15 p.m.
May 5 Texas Rangers 8:05 p.m.
May 6 Texas Rangers 8:05 p.m.
May 7 Texas Rangers 2:05 p.m.

Will the Guide be populated and/or the games turned on?

thank you, Andy
--
--
--
His Response:
"They were explained to us as SD upconverts. We are waiting for answers for YES to know if the games will appear appreciably different for the SD signal on ch 30."

do you guys think that the splitter the cable guy installs is good or should I spend more money on a gold plated one?

do you guys think that the splitter the cable guy installs is good or should I spend more money on a gold plated one?

if you get a picture it's probably fine. i've never had any problems with their splitters.

I heard about the YES Network Expanding Baseball coverage with Enhanced Definition coverage for away games.

[Waton's response to query]:
"They were explained to us as SD upconverts. We are waiting for answers for YES to know if the games will appear appreciably different for the SD signal on ch 30."
If Enhanced Definition means 480i upconversion to 1080i using a high-end professional upconverter, the results appear noticeably better on my display. Observe this most often with weekday golf delivered by USA, ESPN, etc. as 480i, then on weekends as upconverted 1080i/720p by the networks, including ESPN-HD. They're pillared 4X3, unfortunately, but crisper, with slightly better color, and lacking the bad edge enhancement typical with weekday 480i sports. The upconversions, on the 700-series channels, have ~40/2-3 Mbps available for use compared to ~40/8+ Mbps on standard 480i channels. -- John

... and even when it did record there were several times they would kill the feed before the game ended (i recall at least 1 time the game was in OT and 1 other time the shootout was in progress when the screen went black.) maybe next year MSG-HD will actually get it's own channel.
Anyone catch the Lakers / Suns game on 707 ABC yesterday?
The second after Kobie hit the winning basket the screen went to 4x 3. :confused:
Can someone explain what that’s all about?
Is the world going to end if we have too much HD?
Is it a bandwidth boogy man thing?

At least they have a real person watching and waiting as opposed to TWC and YES or MSG-- where they’re out to lunch and cut the HD signal by looking at their watch.

If Enhanced Definition means 480i upconversion to 1080i using a high-end professional upconverter, the results appear noticeably better on my display. Observe this most often with weekday golf delivered by USA, ESPN, etc. as 480i, then on weekends as upconverted 1080i/720p by the networks, including ESPN-HD. They're pillared 4X3, unfortunately, but crisper, with slightly better color, and lacking the bad edge enhancement typical with weekday 480i sports. The upconversions, on the 700-series channels, have ~40/2-3 Mbps available for use compared to ~40/8+ Mbps on standard 480i channels. -- John
And that doesn't even account for the sound. The audio on the HD versions of most of the "duplicated" channels is head-and-shoulders above the SD versions of those channels. Compare any broadcast network's HD feed to their SD feed and in nearly every case, the difference is night-and-day.

And that's just for 2 channel stereo audio. Not sure if the channel in question broadcasts in DD5.1.....

Although it's a bit late in the day, I'm curious to see if I get a response before tonight's game.

Mr. Watson,
As you know, Time Warner Cable of New York City carries YES-HD only when there is a game being broadcast on that channel in HD. At least twice that my wife and I saw over the last week, YES-HD was cut off before the conclusion of the Yankee game. In both cases, the game ran more than 3 1/2 hours, which is the time allotted for the game and postgame show in the guide. In one of those cases, the signal cut out in the middle of a crucial at bat in the 9th inning.

Tonight, the Yankees begin a three game series in Boston which is being carried in HD on YES-HD. Is Time Warner planning on carrying the HD signal for the duration of the game, or will you once again cut things off if the game runs long? This is especially important tonight, since there is a possibility of rain (and hence a rain delay) in Boston.

If you do not intend to change your procedures, please provide an alternate means of watching these games in their entirety in HD.

Anybody else besides me having extreme crappy reception on SNY HD 741 right now?
Totally unwatchable. However, tonight I will probably (METS fandome aside) watch the Yankee game to see what inventive things the Sox fans bring to Fenway to throw at Damon.

I just got off the phone with TWC phone reps. Took 4 calls to find someone who wouldn't yell at me and demand that I stop explaining what I wanted before they finished telling me what they thought I wanted. I'd complain, but I'm used to the abysmal service from TWC (and most retail stores in NYC for that matter).

I used to be on the "everything package" but dropped down to the DTValue package last year to save a few bucks ... only lost Showtime in HD. Was calling to ask how much it would be to add Showtime, and the response was $7.50 (rediculous for one channel ... or one channel and a package of useless, fuzzy, pillarboxed SD channels).

Turned it down. Guess they abandoned their everything package a while ago.

Does anyone know if there's a good package of channels to ask for? Something other than a-la-carte? Though I'm thinking of switching to RCN as Time Warner has announced plans to charge extra for internet bandwidth (I use a lot).

If I could only switch to DirecTV ...

Was it just me, or did YES-HD not get switched on until 7:06 tonight?

I'm not optimistic about the prospects for TWC keeping this game on if it runs late...
-JMP

Is everyone getting a very jumpy picture on 708 tonight. This is unwatchable and giving me a headache. Is this a TWC problem or YES problem?

Is everyone getting a very jumpy picture on 708 tonight. This is unwatchable and giving me a headache. Is this a TWC problem or YES problem?

Yes. Is this the first road game YES has broadcast in HD?

This is the first road game for YES in HD, so I guess it was expected they'd have some issues, seems to be fixed now, thankfully.

Ok, talked to RCN and I'm pretty sure I'm going to switch. I get faster internet plus Starz HD and Cinemax HD, and only lose TNT, inHD 1 and 2, and Universal HD. I'll miss the NBA games, but can do without all the Law and Order, Knight Rider and Quantum Leap reruns.

Anyone have any RCN horror stories before I switch? I've been insulted/burned by TWC a few too many times.

Ok, talked to RCN and I'm pretty sure I'm going to switch. I get faster internet plus Starz HD and Cinemax HD, and only lose TNT, inHD 1 and 2, and Universal HD. I'll miss the NBA games, but can do without all the Law and Order, Knight Rider and Quantum Leap reruns.

Anyone have any RCN horror stories before I switch? I've been insulted/burned by TWC a few too many times.How do you get to choose your cable provider? Around here it's TWC or nothing.

What, you don't know how to use an antenna?

Ok, talked to RCN and I'm pretty sure I'm going to switch. I get faster internet plus Starz HD and Cinemax HD, and only lose TNT, inHD 1 and 2, and Universal HD. I'll miss the NBA games, but can do without all the Law and Order, Knight Rider and Quantum Leap reruns.

Anyone have any RCN horror stories before I switch? I've been insulted/burned by TWC a few too many times.

If you want an HD DVR, don't get RCN. Their DVR is horrendous - way worse than the 8300. RCN uses Moto boxes w/ this clunky software that has all sorts of annoying ads everywhere. Time Warner's Sci Atlanta boxes are way better IMO. And I had numerous random issues in the 4 years I had RCN. Their customer service is no better than TW, in fact I would argue it is worse. But this was 2 years ago so who knows, maybe things have gotten better.

I strongly prefer TW to RCN though, believe it or not.

Agreed!

I switched from RCN to TWC for this exact same issue. While RCN does offer some channels that neither NYC cable provider offers, you will pay the price when you try their DVR service along with that horrible guide.

Unless RCN overhauls that, I will gladly stick with TWC.

Kept RCN for about a year, along with TWC, just for HD Cinemax and StarZ. Dropped RCN this year, and late in '05 RCN seemed to be developing more MPEG breakups than earlier. The two premiums weren't offering too much HD. Didn't use RCN's Internet service. But an early RCN Motorola STB measurement (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?postid=5175424#post5175424), before I switched to their dual-tuner DVR, indicated it delivered slightly better test pattern resolvable detail than TWC's STBs. I was surprised to get a ~$80 refund check from RCN several months after leaving them. -- John

Apparently there was some kind of software update for the SA 8300 HD-DVR last night. I suspected as much when I woke up this morning and my box was off (I left it on when I went to bed. This only happens when the box reboots). Sure enough when I realized that I wasn't receiving Doby Digital audio on any channels, I went into the settings to check the audio output format...low and behold this setting is no longer there. So now ALL AUDIO IS IN 2 CHANNEL FORMAT (PCM) ONLY. This is totally unacceptable IMO. I didn't invest thousands of dollars in a Home Theater surround system (professionally hard-wired through the floor & walls) so that I can only receive 2 channel audio. I have been having trouble with the Digital Audio frequently dropping in & out since the very first day I got TWC. I know that it is not my set-up since it works fine with my DVD player & my XBOX 360. I also never had any problems with the digital audio when I had DirecTV hooked up in the exact same set-up (to the same input on my receiver). I have had TWC come out to my house 5 times in the last 3 months (changed the box twice) but they could never fix this issue. If they did in fact remove the digital audio option from the settings, this indicates to me that this might be a much larger issue (as I suspected) that they are aware of even though they deny that anyone else has complained about the digital audio dropping out. Just wondering if anyone else has had problems with the digital audio output from the SA 8300 and/or has lost this option from the settings menu like I did. Any info on this would be very helpful, thanks in advance.

is this true what magoo is saying? Others please answer.

I am not rebooting them. I have the SA8300 HD-DVR also with HDMI hooked up for video and optical out for dolby digital audio. It has currently been working without any problems.

If there is no more dolby digital there is going to be hell to pay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Apparently there was some kind of software update for the SA 8300 HD-DVR last night. I suspected as much when I woke up this morning and my box was off (I left it on when I went to bed. This only happens when the box reboots). Sure enough when I realized that I wasn't receiving Doby Digital audio on any channels, I went into the settings to check the audio output format...low and behold this setting is no longer there. So now ALL AUDIO IS IN 2 CHANNEL FORMAT (PCM) ONLY. This is totally unacceptable IMO. I didn't invest thousands of dollars in a Home Theater surround system (professionally hard-wired through the floor & walls) so that I can only receive 2 channel audio. I have been having trouble with the Digital Audio frequently dropping in & out since the very first day I got TWC. I know that it is not my set-up since it works fine with my DVD player & my XBOX 360. I also never had any problems with the digital audio when I had DirecTV hooked up in the exact same set-up (to the same input on my receiver). I have had TWC come out to my house 5 times in the last 3 months (changed the box twice) but they could never fix this issue. If they did in fact remove the digital audio option from the settings, this indicates to me that this might be a much larger issue (as I suspected) that they are aware of even though they deny that anyone else has complained about the digital audio dropping out. Just wondering if anyone else has had problems with the digital audio output from the SA 8300 and/or has lost this option from the settings menu like I did. Any info on this would be very helpful, thanks in advance.
I can’t confirm your findings in Queens until later but last night on YES 708 the Yankees game was coming in as Pro Logic not Dolby Digital 5.1 as per usual. I figured they were having problems since as already noted here the transmission started late. But as I’ve been posting the last several days- there are definite issues with the audio. I don’t know if it’s a station (Network) thing or a TW thing, or if it has anything to do with your disconcerting findings.

i was watching csi miami in hd and audio worked fine

I am heading home in about two hours. I will find out and report back.

TWC-Queens

I am on the Upper West Side. None of my 3 boxes rebooted last night and all are outputting DD.

Apparently there was some kind of software update for the SA 8300 HD-DVR last night.....

This was not a problem for me today -- I was able to bring up the menu and change my audio options from Dolby Digital to PCM and back.

Before you freak out, check the following:
Most TVs have a video input selection on them. If you somehow selected the component input as opposed to the HDMI (or vice-versa) on your TV, some of the audio options may disappear (i.e. your TV may be reporting back to the cable box that it doesn't support Dolby Digital, and the box might be forcing 2 channel PCM).

Make sure your HDMI is securely connected on both ends and that the TV input is selected to the HDMI imput.

Make sure your TV is on.

Unplug the cable box (of course, make sure you're not recording anything).

Wait 30 seconds.

Plug the cable box back in.

Once the correct time appears on the box, press the power button -- you should see a boot-up screen.


ALSO NOTE -- audio skips are generally accompanied by video skips, and are generally either caused by a bad box that needs to be replaced (or is in bad need of a cold [pull the power plug] boot) OR a bad connection inside your home or from the drop in your building. Might be worth having a TWC tech out to your place to check your signal strength/clarity.

AND -- based only on personal and offhand discussions with others, the audio/video skips seem to be much more likely to occur as your DVR gets at or near capacity.

Scott

I am on the Upper West Side. None of my 3 boxes rebooted last night and all are outputting DD.

Ditto All audio setting working :cool:

This was not a problem for me today -- I was able to bring up the menu and change my audio options from Dolby Digital to PCM and back...

Thanks Scott and to all that responded. I did have TWC Tech here today and he couldn't get the Dolby Digital option back either. He didn't have another HD-DVR with him (even though I stressed this a number of times to the phone rep). He confirmed that there was a software update last night (went from Pioneer to Aptiv) and he cold booted my box twice to no avail. He also checked the signal at the pole and at the drop and said that it was fine (they have already checked this a few times before). He told me that sometimes the updates could trigger problems with the boxes and that they get lots of calls every time there is an update. I do not have an HDMI cable (yet) so that's not the issue (I am using the component HD cables straight to the TV and an optical cable to the receiver for digital audio (I have also tried digital coax but still had sound drops). My next step now is to drive over to the nearest TWC Service Center and exchange the box myself (luckily I have one only a couple of miles from my home). I hope that this solves the problem but I am doubtful since this will be my third new box and all have had the sound drop issue. Thank you all again for the advice.

Just to be sure, before I rush home-- the only way to watch the Nets game tonight is on MY9? :mad: Please tell me I’m wrong. :confused:

Had a problem on my wife's TV, non HD but it may be relevant. The audio got all screwed up. Did you try unplugging the TV? That fixed her problem, it wasn't the box but somehow the TV wasn't "reading" the box. Couldn't hurt. Try unplugging the stereo too.

I am confused: I have two channels on the guide that claim to be showing the Yankees at Red Sox game (721 and 708), but both are nothing but grey screens. Wtf?

Rained out.

Just to be sure, before I rush home-- the only way to watch the Nets game tonight is on MY9? :mad: Please tell me I’m wrong. :confused:

i wish i COULD tell you you're wrong Larry, but..as you undoubtably know by now, we get screwed again...NOTHING of importance tonite, in HD. INCLUDING the Yankees, who got rained out tonite in Boston, on YES HD. :(

And regarding the DD 5.1 issue someone else brought up...my machine re-booted at exactly 9PM last nite...and my DD sound is working fine on all the usual Dolby Digital stations, so it wasn't affected, thank GOD. :eek:

I am confused: I have two channels on the guide that claim to be showing the Yankees at Red Sox game (721 and 708), but both are nothing but grey screens. Wtf?

Tonight's rainout did give the answer to a question many of us have been asking: Does TWC actually have someone at the switch to turn off YES-HD, or does it just go automatically when the guide says game coverage ends?

After all, the HD feed was shut off right around the time the game was called...
-JMP

TWC must have a secret plan...but I sure can't figure it out.

Channel surfing at about 11 pm.....and on 721, there is the San Antonio-Sacramento NBA playoff game from NBA-TV in HD. Then, on 722, on a delay is the Philadelphia-Buffalo NHL playoff game from OLN in HD. Neither are listed in the guide....so how are we supposed to have a clue as to what is on.

Maybe they don't have to pay to carry these games if no one watches them!!!

Anybody know a way to find out what is actually on in advance???

Rebooted my DVR and I am still receiving Dolby 5.1.

After hearing about the SA MCP-100 at CES last year, I've heard some chatter through a TWC connection that it might be hitting the NYC market in August '06. Can anyone else validate any truth behind this?

TWC must have a secret plan...but I sure can't figure it out.

Channel surfing at about 11 pm.....and on 721, there is the San Antonio-Sacramento NBA playoff game from NBA-TV in HD. Then, on 722, on a delay is the Philadelphia-Buffalo NHL playoff game from OLN in HD. Neither are listed in the guide....so how are we supposed to have a clue as to what is on.

Maybe they don't have to pay to carry these games if no one watches them!!!

Anybody know a way to find out what is actually on in advance???

I =also= noticed the San Antonio game, quite by accident, as i was just cruising thru the stations...and i missed the Philly-Buff game ENTIRELY. It's just RIDICULOUS that they can't, or WON'T keep a more up to date, more informative Guide thing on our sets. But it's just par for the course for TWC to do that. :(

The yankees pre-game is on 708 so I guess we'll get to see what Yes "Enhanced Definition" looks like.

So far I'm happy with the upconverted SD feed.
Anytime a channel sends upconverted video it's always gonna be better than what our cable box can do.

After hearing about the SA MCP-100 at CES last year, I've heard some chatter through a TWC connection that it might be hitting the NYC market in August '06. Can anyone else validate any truth behind this?
Nothing further on possible NYC TWC introduction, but came across this CNET video clip (http://www.cnet.com/4660-11405_1-6413252.html) from the CES outlining this 160-GB DVD-burner/DVR Scientific Atlanta STB. Seems like a nice DVD feature to archive captured HD/SD programs (in SD), but would hope SA has a BluRay-DVD-burner DVR STB in the works to burn DVDs with both HD and SD.

While Googling, came across this SA press release (http://www.scientificatlanta.com/newscenter/releases/06Apr10-2.htm) from last week's broadcaster's show announcing a new switched-video system. Not sure whether it applies to TWC's current adaption of switched video in some trial cities. Lots of big tech words in the release. :-) -- John

So far I'm happy with the upconverted SD feed.
Anytime a channel sends upconverted video it's always gonna be better than what our cable box can do.

It is definitely an imporvement over the SD broadcast on Ch 30. I was hoping the enhanced definition would be similar to what FOX did before they went HD on baseball and football where they also formatted the picture for 16x9. The YES side bars are a bit annoying. I guess this is similar to watching an SD game on ESPN HD.

I'm a TWC customer in Queens. Anyone watching Lost in HD on ABC experience video and audio problems? There would be a sharp snap and then picture and sound would momentarily drop out.

Trying to figure out what caused it since I have never encountered this problem before and I don't think it's my equipment as I've made no changes to the setup.

I do have a ground loop problem with the cable (a tech is coming over on Sat) and I'm wondering whether the snap/crack problem is an isolated issue or something related to the ground loop.

I'm a TWC customer in Queens. Anyone watching Lost in HD on ABC experience video and audio problems? There would be a sharp snap and then picture and sound would momentarily drop out.

Trying to figure out what caused it since I have never encountered this problem before and I don't think it's my equipment as I've made no changes to the setup.

I do have a ground loop problem with the cable (a tech is coming over on Sat) and I'm wondering whether the snap/crack problem is an isolated issue or something related to the ground loop.

I'm in Manhattan and was experiencing the audio pops on Lost last night. They actually were out of the ordinary. Usually, if there's an audio problem my avr will just mute out for a second or so, where these were coming through as loud ticks with no loss of the digital audio signal. It was only on WABC-HD though. There were no pic issues that I remember (I'm connected via component).

I'm in Manhattan and was experiencing the audio pops on Lost last night. They actually were out of the ordinary. Usually, if there's an audio problem my avr will just mute out for a second or so, where these were coming through as loud ticks with no loss of the digital audio signal. It was only on WABC-HD though. There were no pic issues that I remember (I'm connected via component).
I got the same thing - pops every few mins or so, with a quick black line flicker. I am connected via HDMI to my SA8300. I was watching the recording cuz I started late. The snaps went away later, though.

My wife says the same thing was happening when she was watching a DVR recording of Oprah on HD ABS. I am in Battery Park City. Anyone else?

also occurred on the UES, your not alone

Yay, channel 9 sports :(

WORST ........PICTURE........EVER!

So far I'm happy with the upconverted SD feed.
Anytime a channel sends upconverted video it's always gonna be better than what our cable box can do.

Maybe =I= was asleep at the wheel, but i could swear there was NOTHING on my TV screen last nite when i tuned over to 708 during the Yankee game...just the usual, ANNOYING "Subscription Service" sign. Same as what i'm seeing tonite. PLEASE let me know if you're getting anything on 708 tonite. Because if you ARE, i'm REALLY losing it! :eek:

Yay, channel 9 sports :(

WORST ........PICTURE........EVER!

I agree TOTALLY!! :mad:

I agree TOTALLY!! :mad:

On top of the shoddy picture, they don't even have any graphics! What the heck is the score? How much time left?

Holy crap, this blows


Edit: Just showed up

Maybe =I= was asleep at the wheel, but i could swear there was NOTHING on my TV screen last nite when i tuned over to 708 during the Yankee game...just the usual, ANNOYING "Subscription Service" sign. Same as what i'm seeing tonite. PLEASE let me know if you're getting anything on 708 tonite. Because if you ARE, i'm REALLY losing it! :eek:


yesterday i got the game, today it doesn't seem to be available to us.
Mr. Watson had told me yesterday that they would test it out and see whether or not it was worth it.
Well yesterday they tested it out and tonight it's not on, so I can only believe that we will never get it again.

I'm a TWC customer in Queens. Anyone watching Lost in HD on ABC experience video and audio problems? There would be a sharp snap and then picture and sound would momentarily drop out.

Yes, I was getting the audio "pops" during LOST up here in Newburgh, NY as well. I thought it was just me, since I have been having major problems with my Dolby Digital for months. I even got a follow-up call from TWC today asking if I was still having audio problems, and I said yes because of the LOST issue, but now I realize that this must not be related to my previous audio "drops". Oh well, all I know is that I'm sick of dealing with these seemingly never ending technical issues everytime I try to watch television. Although I was happy that TWC followed up with me on the problem, at least they are trying to help me figure it out (as they should). I just long for the day that I can watch a Yankess game on my 60" SXRD in high def with digital sound without the audio dropping out...and/or the picture tiling up...and/or TWC cutting the HD feed before the game is over...Ahh, to dare to dream (or just to get the services that I am paying good money for to actually work properly!).

I'm in upstate NY and have had nothing but problems since the software update Tuesday.
I have two 8300HD DVRs.
Since Tuesday, the first time I turn each box on for the day they crash.
I called TWC and was told to exchange them for new boxes, so I did so yesterday.
One box crashed within the first hour of use.
This morning I turn everything on go to change the channel and guess what?
Same issue, the 8300 is frozen, so I reboot it and check the other box and it also crashes. I called and they're coming out Tuesday.
Does anyone have the phone # for TWC Corporate Offices?
Has anyone else had a problem with this new Aptiv software update?

I had video shift problems with Lost in the past, and this last broadcast was very bad with video dropouts and pops and a few pixelations. So it's not just me either. I am on an extended credit with TWC because my on-demand broadcasts pixelate to the point where it's unviewable.

Hey, for those with direct connect to your digital tuners, what's going on with WB11? Channel 103-4. It's showing a music video channel called The Tube.

From a user in another forum
viamadeu:

sorry guys, I don't have have good news. This is what Mr. Dresler answered to my email about the possible addition of ESPN2 HD to TWC (email dated 05/05)

" Nobody wants to offer this more than we do. Espn is withholding this
service from us until we agree to pay them for some things that are
totally unrelated. We are working hard to get this for you, but I can't
promise it will happen in time for this world cup. Sorry. "

I guess this means that out hopes are slim...

http://www.hdtvoice.com/voice/showthread.php?t=25478

Has anyone had a problem with the 8300HD DVR crashing?
The problem started after the software update Tuesday.
Before Tuesday I had no such problem.
Now this occurs after the box is off for more than an hour or so.
I turn it on change the channel and it locks up.
I have two 8300s, same issue with both boxes.
I also have two SONY KV34XBR910s via HDMI.
Anyone else?

Has anyone had a problem with the 8300HD DVD crashing?
The problem started after the software update Tuesday.
Before Tuesday I had no such problem.
Now this occurs after the box is off for more than an hour or so.
I turn it on change the channel and it locks up.
I have two 8300s, same issue with both boxes.
I also have two SONY KV34XBR910s via HDMI.
Anyone else?
No updates so no problems.I live on the upper west side. I also have a sony TV 34XBR 960 HDMI from 8300 to TV. No problems so far. I hope it stays that way What dos this update do?? :confused:

Still Passport but now says Aptiv software during boot.
They updated the search feature, removed keyword search, only title seach now.
Added an extra warning when deleting recorded programs.
Updated the channel logos in the guide.
That's all I can see so far except for the crashing for me.
I'm suprised NYC didn't get this update first, you get everything else before we do.

Thanks for the reply.

I'm seriously thinking of dropping TWC and going with Directv.
I'm tired of all the problems.
Anyone have the new D* MPEG4 DVR box?
Do they offer more HD channels than TWC?

I'm seriously thinking of dropping TWC and going with Directv.


Anyone have the new D* MPEG4 DVR box?



ROFLMAO

I'm a TWC customer in Queens. Anyone watching Lost in HD on ABC experience video and audio problems? There would be a sharp snap and then picture and sound would momentarily drop out.

Trying to figure out what caused it since I have never encountered this problem before and I don't think it's my equipment as I've made no changes to the setup.

I do have a ground loop problem with the cable (a tech is coming over on Sat) and I'm wondering whether the snap/crack problem is an isolated issue or something related to the ground loop.

It's not just you. I had this on Alias on Wednesday, which I recorded on both of my HD8300 dvrs. When I tried to watch it yesterday, there were sharp audio pops and video dropouts on both recordings. I thought it was one of my boxes. Apparently the problem is with TWC - not with our equipment. It was so bad that I finally watched it online via ABC. I had this problem the week before on another ABC show that I had also recorded. Is it a coincidence that the problem occurred twice on ABC shows?

Samething happens with the 3250HD box and D-VHS tape they all drop out when recording regardless of what you are using to record it. This is definitely a problem on TWC end because the OTA HD broadcasts record fine.

I'm seriously thinking of dropping TWC and going with Directv.
I'm tired of all the problems.
Anyone have the new D* MPEG4 DVR box?
Do they offer more HD channels than TWC?

ROFLMAO

Can you please explain what is so funny about what eddieb187 said? I too am seriously considering dropping TWC and going back to DirecTV. I switched to TWC when I bought my HDTV in February because a few people told me that their HD service was better, but since getting TWC it has been nothing but endless problems. It seems that I am dealing with technical glitches every single day when I try to watch TV. I have had TWC techs out to my house 6 Times in under 3 months (changed my SA 8300 box 3 times) and they still have no idea how to remedy the issues that I am having (constant audio drops & occasional picture tiling mostly). I had DirecTV w/DVR (non-HD) for 5 years prior with virtually no problems at all, so I ask...why wouldn't I go back? Seriously, I would really appreciate any info on this in case there are valid reasons that I might not be aware of. Thanks.

ROFLMAO

I'd like an answer to that myself, HDTVFanAtic.
Is Directv that bad these days?
Last time I had D* was in 2000.
No HD back then.
MPEG4 sounds good to me.
Is there something we should know?

...

So far, neither SNY nor WPIX have carried a road game in HD. Comcast produces and carries Philly games so SNY carrying those games ought to be easy.

Any word on Mets road games HD ?I was wondering the same thing (post #7243), guess we'll find out on Tues

from what I understand SNY will only do road games from the yankees & red sox in HD,

From a user in another forum
viamadeu:

sorry guys, I don't have have good news. This is what Mr. Dresler answered to my email about the possible addition of ESPN2 HD to TWC (email dated 05/05)

" Nobody wants to offer this more than we do. Espn is withholding this
service from us until we agree to pay them for some things that are
totally unrelated. We are working hard to get this for you, but I can't
promise it will happen in time for this world cup. Sorry. "

I guess this means that out hopes are slim...

http://www.hdtvoice.com/voice/showt...1515#post151515


I guess it's not terribly surprising, but it is pretty miserable. And boy am I extra happy now that one of the US games is on ESPN2. :mad:

Thanks for digging that up.

PS that link is no good

PS that link is no good

link fixed

http://www.hdtvoice.com/voice/showthread.php?t=25478

I'd like an answer to that myself, HDTVFanAtic.
Is Directv that bad these days?
Last time I had D* was in 2000.
No HD back then.
MPEG4 sounds good to me.
Is there something we should know?


Directv is so far and away better than cable it's not even funny, cable is old news, the only reason i have it is because I live in freakin nyc that is 10 years behind the west coast in virtually everything but thats another argument.

West>east

Directv is so far and away better than cable it's not even funny, cable is old news, the only reason i have it is because I live in freakin nyc that is 10 years behind the west coast in virtually everything but thats another argument.

West>eastIs there On Demand with satellite? No. That's very important to me.

Just because something is better for you doesn't mean it's better for everyone.

from what I understand SNY will only do road games from the yankees & red sox in HD,That stinks but as many others have said "Should we expect anything else from TW?"

Has anyone had a problem with the 8300HD DVR crashing?
The problem started after the software update Tuesday.
Before Tuesday I had no such problem.
Now this occurs after the box is off for more than an hour or so.
I turn it on change the channel and it locks up.
I have two 8300s, same issue with both boxes.
I also have two SONY KV34XBR910s via HDMI.
Anyone else?
I didn't get any update in the West Village. Where do you live?

Scott

Still Passport but now says Aptiv software during boot.
They updated the search feature, removed keyword search, only title seach now.
Added an extra warning when deleting recorded programs.

I like the idea of an extra warning when deleting programs -- there have been a couple of instances where I deleted programs by mistake....

I didn't get any update in the West Village. Where do you live?

Scott

Scott
I live in Upstate NY, Sullivan Cty.
Go to channel # 996.
Look more than half way down the list for "Passport Version" on the left.
My says, Passport Echo 2.5.051.
OS Version is: PowerTV 6.14.69.1sp
I doubt we got an update before NYC.
See what yours says on channel 996.
Ed

Scott
I live in Upstate NY, Sullivan Cty.
Go to channel # 996.
Look more than half way down the list for "Passport Version" on the left.
My says, Passport Echo 2.5.051.
OS Version is: PowerTV 6.14.69.1sp
I doubt we got an update before NYC.
See what yours says on channel 996.
Ed

TWCNYC is still on PP 1.8.112 in NYC (which is typically and wisely often the last to receive new software). TWCNYC, of course, despite its name, serves parts of NJ and areas of NY outside NYC, and those are, essentially, separate systems.

TWCNYC is still on PP 1.8.112 in NYC (which is typically and wisely often the last to receive new software). TWCNYC, of course, despite its name, serves parts of NJ and areas of NY outside NYC, and those are, essentially, separate systems.


I didn't know that.
You got the 8300HD DVR before we did.
So did a lot of places.
I thought I was last.
Anyway, I called TWC Coporate today.
I was called back and told the new update has DVI issues.
Guess what my SONY KV34XBR910 has.
I'm going to see if the same thing happens with component.
I was told someone else would calling me to see what's wrong.
I hope they can get this fixed.

Amusing reply..dont know who to believe..

Mr Dressler,

Im a loyal TWCNYC customer, paying $194.00 a month for all the services
Time Warner provides. Premium channels, internet, digital phone etc.
Im somewhat disapointed that you guys do not offer more HD channels, but
that is another story...

Is there any hope, that we will at least have ESPN2HD in time for World
Cup?!. This is an event that only happens every 4 years...Im sure it is
not as simple as pulling the switch and the channels shows up,
negotiations take time and i understand that, but you must agree ESPN2HD
has been on air for a significant period of time where some kind of
deal, even temporary one could of been reached, just for the showing of
World Cup...I just do not understand why in the greatest market in the
US, Time Warner always screws us.. Im hopefull that i will hear from you
regarding this issue.

Respectfully,


I'm glad you are a "loyal" customer and sad that you feel that "time
warner always screws us." it's sad, because we often are trying to do
the right thing for our customers and get blamed, as in this case, for
the greed and abuse of others (like disney/espn).

We are entitled to the espn2hd feed now and want to give it to you at no
additional cost. Short of suing disney/espn, which would take years, we
are trying to negotiate to get it on. Disney is demanding lots of
additional things that will cost you even more money (that's why you
think time warner is screwing you) when all we want is for espn to
delivery what they are already obligated to do.

Still, we are hopeful to add espn2hd this year, regretfully that is
likely to be after the world cup.

Amusing reply..dont know who to believe..


...greed and abuse of others (like disney/espn). ..We are entitled to the espn2hd feed now and want to give it to you at no additional cost. Short of suing disney/espn...
..Disney is demanding lots of additional things that will cost you even more money (that's why you think time warner is screwing you) when all we want is for espn to delivery what they are already obligated to do..
What a crock!
That explanation blows. If TW already receives espn2 there should not be any issues to discuss with Disney regarding the HD feed. If I’m wrong and Disney is making unjustifiable demands with TW then TW should bring this to the attention of the public (specifically their customers) so we can voice our discontent. I don’t believe it for a moment.
Spend a dime, TW, take out an ad and let the world know.
Fat chance.

I believe it is time to go another route.

George.Bodenheimer@ESPN.com
VP of Programming at ESPN

Staten Island TWC customer with a Pace 550 box.

Long story here, hopefully it will help someone out...

I come home today (5/9) to discover no video output from my component connections, but my DVI output is still working.

WTF? I think the component inputs on my display are fried. However, after some painful cable swaps, my component inputs with my DVD player and confirm that they still accept 480i and 480p connections. What about 1080i and 720p signals? Well, my Pace 550 STB is my only source that can generate those signals and nothing was showing on the component outputs.

On the DVI screen, I notice that the channel and help menus are a bit different. Hummm.... I do another hardboot of the STB and noticed output from the component inputs for a sec before they stopped.

WTF? Another reboot watching the DVI output and I see nothing for a few seconds until it picks up and displays the boot process halfway.

WTF?

Now I see that the date on the bootup screen says 2006 (I've had this box since 2004). Dammit, must be a software upgrade!

Long story short, I'm now unable to have the box output a signal over the DVI and component at the same time. Unplug my DVI cable, BAM, component comes back. Don't ask why I want both signals, it's a longer story.

Well at least it wasn't my display that crapped out. Now to figure out all these new aspect ratio settings.

I want the old software BACK!

-Pete

total newb question, but how much HD content should I expect the 8300HD to be able to store? My box seems to max out at about six hours of HD content, which seems unreasonable. I called customer service, and there solution is to bring in the box for a replacement. I also checked the diagnostics, and I notice that with only a single show (the mets game, recording now) the hard drive is already using ~100/150 GB. Tips or pointers are appreciated...

Staten Island TWC customer with a Pace 550 box.

Long story here, hopefully it will help someone out...

I come home today (5/9) to discover no video output from my component connections, but my DVI output is still working.

WTF? I think the component inputs on my display are fried. However, after some painful cable swaps, my component inputs with my DVD player and confirm that they still accept 480i and 480p connections. What about 1080i and 720p signals? Well, my Pace 550 STB is my only source that can generate those signals and nothing was showing on the component outputs.

On the DVI screen, I notice that the channel and help menus are a bit different. Hummm.... I do another hardboot of the STB and noticed output from the component inputs for a sec before they stopped.

WTF? Another reboot watching the DVI output and I see nothing for a few seconds until it picks up and displays the boot process halfway.

WTF?

Now I see that the date on the bootup screen says 2006 (I've had this box since 2004). Dammit, must be a software upgrade!

Long story short, I'm now unable to have the box output a signal over the DVI and component at the same time. Unplug my DVI cable, BAM, component comes back. Don't ask why I want both signals, it's a longer story.

Well at least it wasn't my display that crapped out. Now to figure out all these new aspect ratio settings.

I want the old software BACK!

-Pete
I just checked my Pace box and it was updated to new software as well. It looks like the update makes the Pace behave much more like the SA boxes. It is a shame that they disabled the ability to use DVI and component at the same time. On a positive note, changing the output resolutions can be done through advanced settings, just like the SA boxes. Before it was a pain to set multiple output resolutions with the Pace 550.

Staten Island TWC customer with a Pace 550 box.

Long story here, hopefully it will help someone out...

I come home today (5/9) to discover no video output from my component connections, but my DVI output is still working.

WTF? I think the component inputs on my display are fried. However, after some painful cable swaps, my component inputs with my DVD player and confirm that they still accept 480i and 480p connections. What about 1080i and 720p signals? Well, my Pace 550 STB is my only source that can generate those signals and nothing was showing on the component outputs.

On the DVI screen, I notice that the channel and help menus are a bit different. Hummm.... I do another hardboot of the STB and noticed output from the component inputs for a sec before they stopped.

WTF? Another reboot watching the DVI output and I see nothing for a few seconds until it picks up and displays the boot process halfway.

WTF?

Now I see that the date on the bootup screen says 2006 (I've had this box since 2004). Dammit, must be a software upgrade!

Long story short, I'm now unable to have the box output a signal over the DVI and component at the same time. Unplug my DVI cable, BAM, component comes back. Don't ask why I want both signals, it's a longer story.

Well at least it wasn't my display that crapped out. Now to figure out all these new aspect ratio settings.

I want the old software BACK!

-PeteThey nuked my Pace HD box overnight as well. I have that box hooked up to a 480i tv over component. I had to revert to s-video in order change the settings on the cable box to output 480i instead of 1080i. When I reverted back to 480i over component, the aspect ratio seemed ok, but Dolby Digital output was screwed up. After another reboot, I got that working again. The only positive with the software upgrade is that I can now access diagnostic mode.

Now this box behaves like the SA 8000 HD box in my basement, which I hate more than anything. I've begged TWC to give me another Pace box to replace, the SA, but they wouldn't. Now I guess it doesn't matter anymore.

I still hear that the Pace box is better than the Pioneer box. You guys/gals should be lucky in SI. At least you can get the Pace box, were stuck here with piocrap...

Scott
I live in Upstate NY, Sullivan Cty.
Go to channel # 996.
Look more than half way down the list for "Passport Version" on the left.
My says, Passport Echo 2.5.051.
OS Version is: PowerTV 6.14.69.1sp
I doubt we got an update before NYC.
See what yours says on channel 996.
Ed
Well I have a Pace 550, SA3250HD, and a SA8300HD in my house and ALL received updates last night, and now my Passport version is 2.5.051

Well I have a Pace 550, SA3250HD, and a SA8300HD in my house and ALL received updates last night, and now my Passport version is 2.5.051

Still on 1.8.112 here in Brooklyn. If you're in SI and got the 2.5 update, hopefully the rest of us in NYC aren't far behind. I'm hoping the update will resolve my HDMI issues (black boxes on power on, and crazy front display blinking [causing reboots and missed recordings] on power off).

Still Passport but now says Aptiv software during boot.
They updated the search feature, removed keyword search, only title seach now.
Added an extra warning when deleting recorded programs.
Updated the channel logos in the guide.
That's all I can see so far except for the crashing for me.
I'm suprised NYC didn't get this update first, you get everything else before we do.

Thanks for the reply.
Keyword search still works but there's an extra keypress involved now. Click guide, C, and then C again to bring up the keyword option.

Still on 1.8.112 here in Brooklyn. If you're in SI and got the 2.5 update, hopefully the rest of us in NYC aren't far behind. I'm hoping the update will resolve my HDMI issues (black boxes on power on, and crazy front display blinking [causing reboots and missed recordings] on power off).
Well it looks like the crazy front blinking is gone (I used to get this when I would turn my TV off and leave the cable box on). However, I just turned my cable box on and then the TV, and I was frozen with the HDCP message in front of the picture of the last channel I had on, then after a minute the box rebooted itself.

Well I have a Pace 550, SA3250HD, and a SA8300HD in my house and ALL received updates last night, and now my Passport version is 2.5.051

My Pace HD STB and my SA8300HD were updated on Staten Island. The Pace used to stretch SD output from the S-video output to perfectly fit my 16:9 display which I would set to a non-linear stretch mode. However, the stretch mode has been destroyed! It way over stretches by perhaps 20% to 30% which crops too much of the picture. For me, this was one of the Pace's best features.

In addition, I lost 4 or 5 recent recordings from my 8300 and several recordings that I had erased reappeared! The lost recordings are mostly unrecoverable (network programs).

Cynthia

I still hear that the Pace box is better than the Pioneer box. You guys/gals should be lucky in SI. At least you can get the Pace box, were stuck here with piocrap...We can't get it anymore. I've tried swapping out my SA box and all they'll give me is a replacement SA box.

OK, nice to know I'm not the only Pace user in Staten Island that is unhappy.

I do have two questions.

1. I used to use the pass thru feature of the box to set the HD resolution. 720p stations would be sent as 720p to my display and 1080i will be 1080i. It this still possible? Under the display output of the new menu, I've checked off all 4 resolutions hoping it'll just pick the correct one.

2. What is this new diagnostic mode and how can I access it? Is there anything in there that is useful?

On a related note, channel changes are now slower than before. It takes a bit to output the signal and the sound follows about 1/2 a sec later.

I've also noticed that on 16x9 programming, I can see a thin vertical line where the 4x3 borders would be. I've verified that it is not burn in on my display since I don't see it with my 1080i upconverting DVD or PC input. Note that when changing the channel to a HD one, you'll see a greenish gray background where the 4x3 screen would be, and a lighter gray background where the vertical letterbox bars are. All this happens about 1/2 a sec before the picture appears.

I've also noticed more audio dropouts than in the past. I'm still annoyed with the lack of dual DVI and component output. Maybe I should just upgrade to the SA8300 box and use HDMI? :)

-Pete

Still have 1.81.112 on my 2 8300 in Manhattan.

Although strangely around 9pm last night I thought I was maybe getting an update. Was recording one program and watching it about 15 minutes behind in the buffer. All of sudden I got the HDCP issue (I'm using HDMI/DVI to my Samsung DLP) - static for a second and then a weird looking red screen with a faint HDCP message in the background - recognized it b/c I've seen it many times before. I unplugged the HDMI end of the cable (w/o turning off the box) and when I hooked it back up, I got the weird "L-Shape" block of black towards the right part of the screen. I've heard others describe this but I've never seen it before. Unseated HDMI again and replugged and it appeared to be back to normal. Went back to the recording and everything was fine. Figured I was maybe getting or about to get an update but checked this morning and both boxes are still 112.

What a crock!
That explanation blows. If TW already receives espn2 there should not be any issues to discuss with Disney regarding the HD feed. If I’m wrong and Disney is making unjustifiable demands with TW then TW should bring this to the attention of the public (specifically their customers) so we can voice our discontent. I don’t believe it for a moment.
Spend a dime, TW, take out an ad and let the world know.
Fat chance.
I might add that Mr. Dressler might be correct. While I'm not privvy to the negotiation details, Disney has been known to try to force all kinds of things down the throats of cable operators during negotiations (remember 4 or 5 years ago when we lost WABC for a few days due to a breakdown in negotiations between TWC & Disney? I think it was in relation to fees that Disney wanted to charge for its channels)....

These are the kinds of shady dealings that go on all the time between cable companies and content providers. It's a dirty business for sure.

total newb question, but how much HD content should I expect the 8300HD to be able to store? My box seems to max out at about six hours of HD content, which seems unreasonable. I called customer service, and there solution is to bring in the box for a replacement. I also checked the diagnostics, and I notice that with only a single show (the mets game, recording now) the hard drive is already using ~100/150 GB. Tips or pointers are appreciated...
Cold reboot -- unplug the box (when it's not recording), wait 30 seconds, and plug it back in. This should restore your "lost" hard drive space.

Still on 1.8.112 here in Brooklyn. If you're in SI and got the 2.5 update, hopefully the rest of us in NYC aren't far behind. I'm hoping the update will resolve my HDMI issues (black boxes on power on, and crazy front display blinking [causing reboots and missed recordings] on power off).


The update does fix the black boxes on power up.
It also corrects the audio issue where when a recording started the box would switch from DD to 2-channel audio when you were watching TV.
That was very annoying, the volume would really get cranked up.
Unfortunately, it creates problems for HDTVs with DVI connectors.
Box will lock up when first turned on if it was last on a digital channel.
I did notice that if I put both tuners on an analog channel when you turn it off, it does not lock up when turned bck on (go figure?).
It works well if I put one tuner on channel #1 and the other on channel #2.
I'm waiting to see what happens when a scheduled recording on a digital channel occurs while the box is off and then tuned on again.
Of course this can all be avoided by just leaving the box on all the time.

Keyword search still works but there's an extra keypress involved now. Click guide, C, and then C again to bring up the keyword option.


Hey, thanks a lot for that tip.
I thought the keyword search was gone.

It also corrects the audio issue where when a recording started the box would switch from DD to 2-channel audio when you were watching TV.
This is good news indeed! At least it will cut down on the number of newbies asking questions about this on this thread. ;)

I did notice that if I put both tuners on an analog channel when you turn it off, it does not lock up when turned bck on (go figure?).
Hmm....not many choices for analog channels anymore....I don't think that we have any more analog-tuned channels on our lineup here in Manhattan anymore, do we?

After Fred Dressler replied to my email the other day (see above post in this thread), he must've forwarded my email to Mr. Bob Watson (bob.watson@twcable.com), VP of Programming & New Business Development for TWC NY/NJ, who has responded (with no new information, of course) as follows:

Mr. Bernstein,



I received the email you sent to Fred Dressler and wanted you to know that Time Warner Cable of NY and NJ has been committed to HD since 2000. We currently offer 20 channels of HD programming.



As you noted, we recently added Universal, WPIX and SportsNet NY to your HD selections at no additional cost and hope to add more channels in the future when our capacity permits.



We are looking at all of the available and soon to be available HD channels to determine which channels can provide the most benefit to the greatest number of customers, so that as we make channel space available we are adding highly valued channels first.



We appreciate your business and I hope this explains some of the way we offer HD



Thank you for your email and for being a Time Warner Cable customer.

I think we need to keep up the pressure on these guys -- be respectful and business-like (no need to resort to profanity [i.e. "...getting screwed by Time Warner"], but anyone who cares should email Mr. Dressler & Mr. Watson. They need to know truly how great the demand is for HD programming.....

...we need to keep up the pressure on these guys -- be respectful and business-like, but anyone who cares should email Mr. Dressler & Mr. Watson. They need to know truly how great the demand is for HD programming.....
Agree! ^

Watson quote: We are looking at all of the available and soon to be available HD channels to determine which channels can provide the most benefit to the greatest number of customers, so that as we make channel space available we are adding highly valued channels first.

Ay yi yi!!
I’d like to be a fly on the wall in that meeting.

Geeze, I could only imagine how they'll cook that PC soup knowing the way TW caters to their multi cultural customer base...

“Ok, so we need some other language channels besides these English HD channels--- how about one Bengali, one Hangul, throw in a Hakka, maybe a Urdu…..”

Arrrrrrrgh!
:D

“Ok, so we need some other language channels besides these English HD channels--- how about one Bengali, one Hangul, throw in a Hakka, maybe a Urdu…..”
Or..."We need more religious channels, more 'family' channels, more channels that show 227 & Sanford and Son reruns, a 24 hour 'Law And Order' channel, and certainly more HD channels that show 99% stretched content like TNT-HD"

Makes me shudder just thinking about it!

I posted this in another thread, but seems appropriate for this thread:



I'm sure this [ESPN2-HD and the World Cup Finals not being available on TWC-NYC] is not making the public radar because the percentage of people who are HDTV-knowledgeable, are aware of ESPN2-HD, and also care about the World Cup is very small. (Compared to the number of people who watch Disney Channel or WABC). So we're not making enough waves.

Maybe someone on this board who cares enough about it should contact the newsroom at the Daily News or NY Post to tip them off to the story? Seems like exactly the type of thing they'd love to cover (especially The Post, being owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp which owns Fox, which has their own history of contentious negotiations with TWC -- recall when they had to sue TWC to get them to carry Fox News?).


Just another avenue to attack this front on, for those who are motiviated....

Scott

Or..."We need more religious channels, more 'family' channels, more channels that show 227 & Sanford and Son reruns, and certainly more HD channels that show 99% stretched content like TNT-HD"

Makes me shudder just thinking about it!
Exactly, your guesses are as good as mine.
All one has to do is look at TW’s track record. Their programming choices speak for themselves.

What the heck could make me feel comfortable about Bob Watson saying that he’s going to make a choice for me?!?!?

Exactly, your guesses are as good as mine.
All one has to do is look at TW’s track record. Their programming choices speak for themselves.
Although, to some extent, one must wonder (especially based upon the ongoing "negotiations" for ESPN2HD) which channels they've added by choice, or which ones they've been strongarmed into carrying as part of packages with other channels that they really do want.

Even though it wouldn't seem it, these are very tricky negotiations involving VERY large multimillion-dollar congolmorates that are used to always getting their way (with us, the consumer feeling the pain in the middle).

Why are the YES HD games shown on a channel I can't schedule recordings on in advance?

Why are the YES HD games shown on a channel I can't schedule recordings on in advance?

I think it is because YES is not a full dedicated HD channel like SNY. Hence they show the home games in HD, but the remaining YES content in SD.

I am guessing right now it is not worth it for TWC to give YES HD their own channel. Same for MSG and MSG HD.

I wish they would though. Would make life a lot easier and not have to worry about the HD feed being cut off due to some poorly set timer at the central office.

the HD feed of the game was awful last night, I saw lots of stuttering & artifacts. I even rebooted the machine try & rectify it, but it didn;t work. Eventually it stopped but I haven;t seen it get that bad in a very long time. I hope this isn't something I have to look forward to with this new firmware version.

the HD feed of the game was awful last night, I saw lots of stuttering & artifacts. I even rebooted the machine try & rectify it, but it didn;t work. Eventually it stopped but I haven;t seen it get that bad in a very long time. I hope this isn't something I have to look forward to with this new firmware version.
:confused: The YES HD game looked pretty good last night in Queens, no problems here.

I think it is because YES is not a full dedicated HD channel like SNY. Hence they show the home games in HD, but the remaining YES content in SD.

I am guessing right now it is not worth it for TWC to give YES HD their own channel. Same for MSG and MSG HD.

I wish they would though. Would make life a lot easier and not have to worry about the HD feed being cut off due to some poorly set timer at the central office.

I don't care about a fully dedicated YES HD. All I ask for is to enable the DVR to record the channel they show the games on. It's ridiculous. I can't watch the games in HD half the time b/c I'm at work and can't schedule it in advance. Very frustrating.

All I ask for is to enable the DVR to record the channel they show the games on. It's ridiculous. I can't watch the games in HD half the time b/c I'm at work and can't schedule it in advance. Very frustrating.
Why not drop a (business-like, respectful) letter to Bob Watson whose address is just a few emails back on this thread? Explain to him your issue, and ask if there's any way we can work with his people to get it resolved.

Haven't seen anyone post this yet, but the night of the Boxing match (De La Hoya vs Mayorga) I went to Ch.720 PPV-HD & saw that the boxing match wasn't listed for purchase, but it was available on the reg Non-HD PPV Ch. So I called up TWC that night & was told by the Rep that boxing would no longer be carried in HD on Ch.720 PPV-HD!

Thanks TWC NYC!

Haven't seen anyone post this yet, but the night of the Boxing match (De La Hoya vs Mayorga) I went to Ch.720 PPV-HD & saw that the boxing match wasn't listed for purchase, but it was available on the reg Non-HD PPV Ch. So I called up TWC that night & was told by the Rep that boxing would no longer be carried in HD on Ch.720 PPV-HD!

Thanks TWC NYC!

I hope that they have movies to rent in HD like other TWC Markets.

they would make more $ then the occasional Boxing event

I hope that they have movies to rent in HD like other TWC Markets.

they would make more $ then the occasional Boxing event
My guess is that the supposed maxed-out bandwidth is the issue preventing them from offering HD PPV here in Manhattan. They did give us UHD, SNY-HD & WPIX-HD -- one of which replaced the never-publicly-announced UPN-HD, but the bandwidth for the other two had to come from somewhere -- maybe it was the HD-PPV bandwidth that they repurposed?

I just sent this e-mail to Watson at TWC:

Mr. Watson, I am writing to bring to your attention a problem that I have been having with TWCNYC's HD service. I have emailed the support people several times about this issue and have received no substantive response.

I lease two SA8300HD DVRs from you and pay over $175 a month to TWC. One of the reasons that I ordered the HD boxes was to get Yankees games in HD, and the obvious reason that I have two DVRs is to record programs that I want to watch when I am away from the TV. TWC has, for no reason I have ever heard, nor any reason I can imagine, set up its broadcast of Yankees games on YESHD in such a way that they are impossible to record using TWC's own DVR. In case you are unaware, as many of your employees seem to be, TWC broadcasts Yankees games in HD on channel 708, which is only turned on the moment the broadcast starts and is switched off at a fixed time -- which happens to often occur well before the game is over (it's like nobody over there ever watched a baseball game, or heard of extra innings, or even a 9-inning game that lasts more than three hours). I have had to switch over to channel 30 to watch the conclusion of several games because 708 went off the air.

The equally ridiculous result of this system is that the DVR cannot be set to record these games in advance, even when they appear in the guide. The channel is listed as "unrecordable" and even an attempt to record the game manually is rejected. Therefore, two of the things I am paying for I am not getting: I cannot watch and record Yankees games in HD. So far as I can tell, there is no reason that this set-up is necessary, and I have never received a single explanation for this system. Please contact me at your earliest convenience to let me know when this situation will be corrected.

Thanks in advance for your help.

Nice letter.

Please post and let us know what you receive in response.

Nice letter.

Please post and let us know what you receive in response.

Will do. But I'm not holding my breath...

I just talked to some former co-workers at TWC and they understand the problems that were brought on by the software change. They really don't know when the fixes will all be done, but they are working on it as I write. The DVI and Component issue(it's one or the other now) will be fixed. You will be able to use both eventually. They understand the stretch problem and all the other quirks. AFA the stretch problem, I find that using component out and setting the aspect ratio to 4:3 and the 16:9 set to letterbox will fix the picture in SD, but this fix is only temporary. You will have to reset it when the final patches are inserted into the software fix.

I just talked to some former co-workers at TWC and they understand the problems that were brought on by the software change. They really don't know when the fixes will all be done, but they are working on it as I write. The DVI and Component issue(it's one or the other now) will be fixed. You will be able to use both eventually. They understand the stretch problem and all the other quirks. AFA the stretch problem, I find that using component out and setting the aspect ratio to 4:3 and the 16:9 set to letterbox will fix the picture in SD, but this fix is only temporary. You will have to reset it when the final patches are inserted into the software fix.
For what it's worth, we're still at the old software revision in Manhattan.......

I just sent this e-mail to Watson at TWC:

Mr. Watson, I am writing to bring to your attention a problem that I have been having with TWCNYC's HD service. I have emailed the support people several times about this issue and have received no substantive response.

I lease two SA8300HD DVRs from you and pay over $175 a month to TWC. One of the reasons that I ordered the HD boxes was to get Yankees games in HD, and the obvious reason that I have two DVRs is to record programs that I want to watch when I am away from the TV. TWC has, for no reason I have ever heard, nor any reason I can imagine, set up its broadcast of Yankees games on YESHD in such a way that they are impossible to record using TWC's own DVR. In case you are unaware, as many of your employees seem to be, TWC broadcasts Yankees games in HD on channel 708, which is only turned on the moment the broadcast starts and is switched off at a fixed time -- which happens to often occur well before the game is over (it's like nobody over there ever watched a baseball game, or heard of extra innings, or even a 9-inning game that lasts more than three hours). I have had to switch over to channel 30 to watch the conclusion of several games because 708 went off the air.

The equally ridiculous result of this system is that the DVR cannot be set to record these games in advance, even when they appear in the guide. The channel is listed as "unrecordable" and even an attempt to record the game manually is rejected. Therefore, two of the things I am paying for I am not getting: I cannot watch and record Yankees games in HD. So far as I can tell, there is no reason that this set-up is necessary, and I have never received a single explanation for this system. Please contact me at your earliest convenience to let me know when this situation will be corrected.

Thanks in advance for your help.

The reply:

It is possible that YES has set a no-record limit, which we will check with YES directly.
We have recently opened the window on the HD games are looking at opening the window even further to include before and long after the game.
Sorry for the inconvenience.

Bob Watson
Time Warner Cable

The reply:

It is possible that YES has set a no-record limit, which we will check with YES directly.
We have recently opened the window on the HD games are looking at opening the window even further to include before and long after the game.
Sorry for the inconvenience.

Bob Watson
Time Warner Cable

Well, maybe they don't actually have any clue what's going on. The subsequent exchange:

Me: Thank you for your reply. If it helps you to figure out what's wrong,
you can record the game on 708 when it's actually on. The problem is
that it can't be set in advance to record when you are not in front of
the set.
__
Is there a listing in the guide when you try to schedule a record
session in advance?
Bob Watson
Time Warner Cable
__
Me: Yes, but if I hit the record button it says the channel is
"unrecordable" and if I slect it from the guide, the option to record is
grayed out.
__
Do me a favor and try it in the half hour before the game when the pregame is on chnl 708. If it works then we will look at how the time period outside the open window is classified. Thanks.
Bob Watson
Time Warner Cable
__

I guess that response is better than receiving the standard "we are looking into it". Still does not fully solve the problem though. :(

On a different note. Has anyone using the SA 8300 and the "stretch" mode feature noticed that the picture is overstretched cutting off some image?

I was toying with the 3 modes last week going back and forth between stretch and sidebars and noticed on the YES network that the Yankees game was being reshown. As I was watching with sidebars, I saw MLB scores and recap being displayed in a blue field on the bottom of the screen. When I went back to stretch mode, I could not see them as I could in sidebar mode. I checked to see that my HD was not in "zoom" mode accidentally and it was normal.

Has anyone else noticed on their model HD's that stretch mode overdoes it or is it just me and a unique problem?

To check, just go to a channel that will have a little movement of the camera like NY 1 news and look at the background and switch between the 2 modes and see if you notice more view with the sidebars on. Then go to stretch and see if that same image is stretched from what you viewed in sidebar mode.

I am just curious if anyone else noticed overstretching of a non zoomed picture?

Do me a favor and try it in the half hour before the game when the pregame is on chnl 708. If it works then we will look at how the time period outside the open window is classified. Thanks.
Bob Watson
Time Warner Cable

Nice job! At least a little bit of progress made, and someone who actually has the power to do something about it is aware of the problem.

Bob Watson does indeed seem to be a valuable contact in an otherwise impenetrable company which is hidden behind a sea of clueless "customer service" people.

The reply:


We have recently opened the window on the HD games are looking at opening the window even further to include before and long after the game.
Sorry for the inconvenience.

Bob Watson
Time Warner Cable

I have noticed that the “window” is open longer than it was a few weeks ago when many of us (me, for one) were squawking about this specific problem. This is progress.

I don't know if I have the correct settings on my Plasma or Cable box but aren't you able have the HDTV signal fill the entire screen? For some reason only about four channels fill the screen as of now. Currently NBC and a couple others don't fill and I have grey bars either on the sides or on top. (even my Tvs zoom function doesn't take care of it)

Any help would be appreciated

PS Currently I have my pio set to picture adjust off (cable box I have all selected formats except 480p).

Thanks

SATA now works on TWC-NYC 8300HD!!

Just now I successfully hooked up an external 250GB SATA to my 8300HD. My DVR AVFS diagnostic screen now shows 364.5GB capacity and the drive light is busily flashing away as it records the Yankee Game (kills me to do this…I’m a Met fan but they’re not on for another 15 minutes).

Here are the particulars:

• Passport v2.5.051
• Western Digital 250GB IDE (yes IDE) drive – model WD25000LB
• External IDE to SATA enclosure
• 3 ft. SATA to eSATA cable bought from cooldrives

Some quick observations:

Drive was immediately recognized and DVR asked to format it. Took about 2 minutes. I then started recording the Yankee game. As an experiment I powered off the drive. The DVR immediately sensed it and told me the drive was disconnected. When I reconnected it the DVR asked me to push A on the remote and the DVR rebooted and the drive was back up and recording in about 2 minutes!

WHAT is that annoying noise i'm hearing during tonite's Nets-Mia game on TNT HD??...it's like a low frequency droning noise...it's constant during the game...VERY annoying! :mad:

On a different note. Has anyone using the SA 8300 and the "stretch" mode feature noticed that the picture is overstretched cutting off some image?

I was toying with the 3 modes last week going back and forth between stretch and sidebars and noticed on the YES network that the Yankees game was being reshown. As I was watching with sidebars, I saw MLB scores and recap being displayed in a blue field on the bottom of the screen. When I went back to stretch mode, I could not see them as I could in sidebar mode. I checked to see that my HD was not in "zoom" mode accidentally and it was normal.

Has anyone else noticed on their model HD's that stretch mode overdoes it or is it just me and a unique problem?

To check, just go to a channel that will have a little movement of the camera like NY 1 news and look at the background and switch between the 2 modes and see if you notice more view with the sidebars on. Then go to stretch and see if that same image is stretched from what you viewed in sidebar mode.

I am just curious if anyone else noticed overstretching of a non zoomed picture?

Tony,

See my post #7420 on 5/9/06 on the previous page. This for me is a serious problem.

Cynthia

SATA now works on TWC-NYC 8300HD!!

Just now I successfully hooked up an external 250GB SATA to my 8300HD. My DVR AVFS diagnostic screen now shows 364.5GB capacity and the drive light is busily flashing away as it records the Yankee Game (kills me to do this…I’m a Met fan but they’re not on for another 15 minutes).

Here are the particulars:

• Passport v2.5.051
• Western Digital 250GB IDE (yes IDE) drive – model WD25000LB
• External IDE to SATA enclosure
• 3 ft. SATA to eSATA cable bought from cooldrives

Some quick observations:

Drive was immediately recognized and DVR asked to format it. Took about 2 minutes. I then started recording the Yankee game. As an experiment I powered off the drive. The DVR immediately sensed it and told me the drive was disconnected. When I reconnected it the DVR asked me to push A on the remote and the DVR rebooted and the drive was back up and recording in about 2 minutes!

Interesting. Can you check to see if the trick play features (e.g. pause, rewind, ff) work while watching "live" TV when the SATA drive is connected?

SATA now works on TWC-NYC 8300HD!!

Just now I successfully hooked up an external 250GB SATA to my 8300HD. My DVR AVFS diagnostic screen now shows 364.5GB capacity and the drive light is busily flashing away as it records the Yankee Game (kills me to do this…I’m a Met fan but they’re not on for another 15 minutes).

Here are the particulars:

• Passport v2.5.051
• Western Digital 250GB IDE (yes IDE) drive – model WD25000LB
• External IDE to SATA enclosure
• 3 ft. SATA to eSATA cable bought from cooldrives

Some quick observations:

Drive was immediately recognized and DVR asked to format it. Took about 2 minutes. I then started recording the Yankee game. As an experiment I powered off the drive. The DVR immediately sensed it and told me the drive was disconnected. When I reconnected it the DVR asked me to push A on the remote and the DVR rebooted and the drive was back up and recording in about 2 minutes!


This is HUGE! I'll have to check to see if I have v.2.5.051 on my box. If so I'm definitely going to follow suit. Did you get the enclosure through cooldrives as well?

Is this the cable type that's needed?

http://store.yahoo.com/cooldrives/10satsaexca3.html

Interesting. Can you check to see if the trick play features (e.g. pause, rewind, ff) work while watching "live" TV when the SATA drive is connected?
That is great news....I'm also wondering if these features work or not, as that would be the deciding factor for me at the current (well, as soon as the new version of the OS is pushed to our boxes in Manhattan...) time.

I have the SA 8300 HD DVR box, is there a pass thru option or can we not do that. I have 1080 and 480 enabled for my panasonic 42-px60u plasma. Would like to enable 720 also but hate the exchange each time between a 720 & 1080 channel. Wouldnt pass thru resolve this

For what it's worth, we're still at the old software revision in Manhattan.......
Still no update on the upper west side :rolleyes: Does any one know when we will get update. Thank you

More info on my working SATA:

I'm located on Staten Island

The FF/REW do not work when watching live TV. Interestingly pause does work, but live doesn't bring you up to the present. You can use FF/REW when watching a show from the list as it is being recorded.

Parts:
Sata CablePart # CD-108A3 - cooldrives
IDE to SATA enclosure - part # 17-155-218 - newegg


To broadwayblue - That's the part

Tony,

See my post #7420 on 5/9/06 on the previous page. This for me is a serious problem.

Cynthia

Yes, there seems to be a slight loss of picture in stretch mode between the left and right of the screen.

I shrunk the picture using my HD's control forcing a 4:3 image from the stretch to 16:9 to see if it was my TV and it isn't. Seems however the stretch mode is configured cuts off some of the screen on the sides. When returning to sidebars, you can clearly see some more visual.

Guess we are going to have to wait for a new firmware release.

• Western Digital 250GB IDE (yes IDE) drive – model WD25000LB

Is there any particular reason that you went with a 250GB drive? Do you think there'd be an issue with using a bigger one?

Is there any particular reason that you went with a 250GB drive? Do you think there'd be an issue with using a bigger one?

No reason other than I had it laying around. I had just bought it at the latest wootoff for $50. It's refurbed and only 2MB buffer but seems to work fine.

I believe I've seen posts of people using a larger drive with SARA, not sure about Passport

Does anyone with a decent contact at TWC know when the update will be rolled out in Manhattan? CS is clueless.

does anyone who has received the new software update know if the SA8300HD will now allow HDMI switching?

I would love it if they could finally get their act in gear and I coul have only one wire going to my TV from my receiver.

does anyone who has received the new software update know if the SA8300HD will now allow HDMI switching?

I would love it if they could finally get their act in gear and I coul have only one wire going to my TV from my receiver.
Does any one know when and if this will happen??? :confused:

Any one in Manhattan ???? :(

anybody know if the mets/yankees series will be in high def anywhere??? we have wpix hd but it dont look like its going to be hd, if not what the he77 good is wpix hd!?!?!?

Was the game not in HD on WB last night? So far the home games on WB have been in HD, and look just as good as the SNY games.

This afternoon, it's on Fox, and I must say it looks like crap compared to SNY. I don't remember all Fox sports looking this poor, but maybe my memory is suspect.

Was the game not in HD on WB last night? So far the home games on WB have been in HD, and look just as good as the SNY games.

This afternoon, it's on Fox, and I must say it looks like crap compared to SNY. I don't remember all Fox sports looking this poor, but maybe my memory is suspect.

the game yesterday on WB-11 was in HD.

This afternoon, it's on Fox, and I must say it looks like crap compared to SNY. I don't remember all Fox sports looking this poor, but maybe my memory is suspect.

You're right, the game today DOES look like crap-almost as if it was one of their old 480P games.

You're right, the game today DOES look like crap-almost as if it was one of their old 480P games.

something that bad, it has to be widescreen 480p.

I posted this in another thread, but seems appropriate for this thread:



I'm sure this [ESPN2-HD and the World Cup Finals not being available on TWC-NYC] is not making the public radar because the percentage of people who are HDTV-knowledgeable, are aware of ESPN2-HD, and also care about the World Cup is very small. (Compared to the number of people who watch Disney Channel or WABC). So we're not making enough waves.

Maybe someone on this board who cares enough about it should contact the newsroom at the Daily News or NY Post to tip them off to the story? Seems like exactly the type of thing they'd love to cover (especially The Post, being owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp which owns Fox, which has their own history of contentious negotiations with TWC -- recall when they had to sue TWC to get them to carry Fox News?).


Just another avenue to attack this front on, for those who are motiviated....

Scott

Question: According to the schedule the Finals will be available on ABC, although not on HD(?) How can they not show one of the most globally watched shows in HD? Also, one quarterfinal will only be shown on ESPN2 so therefore unavailable to TWCNYC subscribers. Is this correct?

I'm thinking about getting premium HD just for the World Cup and then cancelling afterwards, since in general I'm not interested in premium HD.

I'm getting bad distortion on all channels in UES circa 8-9 pm, anyone else?

I'm getting bad distortion on all channels in UES circa 8-9 pm, anyone else?


Yes. Getting distortions right now on all channels :( . Im on the u.pper west side

can i replace my pioneer 3510 voyager hdtv for my own bought scientific atlantic? Is there a list of compatible cable boxes that work with TWC in NYC? thanks in advance

This afternoon, it's on Fox, and I must say it looks like crap compared to SNY. I don't remember all Fox sports looking this poor, but maybe my memory is suspect.
It wasn't in HD on Fox -- just widescreen SD. Note that the listings on the guide didn't have it listed as HD.

can i replace my pioneer 3510 voyager hdtv for my own bought scientific atlantic? Is there a list of compatible cable boxes that work with TWC in NYC? thanks in advance
It seems unlikely that you can replace the cable boxes that TWC provides with one of your own choosing.

For you to get any of the "paid" channels, the box must be "authorized" by TWC, and they are not going to authorize a box that they haven't provided.

I am thinking about buying the following receiver: http://www.jr.com/JRProductPage.process?Product=4109401
the SONY HT-DDW900 5.1
Does anyone know if the HDMI switching will work with the 8300? It says HDMI passthru, will this trip up the HDCP?
ANy info or Ideas will be greatly apreciated.
Thanks

I did a search. I did a search. I'm now more confused than ever.

Can I get DD 5.1 output from my 8300HD DVR? There are all these bugs that I read about. My configuration, for what it's worth is:

Video:
[8300HD DVR] -> DVI -> [DVDO IScan HD] -> DVI ->[JVC HX2]
Audio:
[8300HD DVR] -> Toslink -> [DVDO IScan HD] -> Toslink -> [Yamaha HTR 5140]

Thanks to those who know...

Using Passport ****ing OS.

has anyone tried HDMI passthrough since the software update to see if it now works?

I did a search. I did a search. I'm now more confused than ever.

Can I get DD 5.1 output from my 8300HD DVR? There are all these bugs that I read about. My configuration, for what it's worth is:

Video:
[8300HD DVR] -> DVI -> [DVDO IScan HD] -> DVI ->[JVC HX2]
Audio:
[8300HD DVR] -> Toslink -> [DVDO IScan HD] -> Toslink -> [Yamaha HTR 5140]

Thanks to those who know...

Using Passport ****ing OS.
I have 8300HD and no prob with DD 5.1. There were some earlier probs but they seem to have stopped with the software update.

A question for some of the people here who have been watching HD on TWNY for a few years or more-- do you think that the HD quality is not as good as it used to be on our TW system? I realize there are many variables but just in general, do you see a lesser wow factor in HD?

I haven’t done any special testing, as some here- (as John Mason), I only go by what I see. One easy point of reference that I have always used and always has worked for me is, when watching sporting events, I look to the crowds of people. I always make a point to observe the quality of the HD by the magnificent detail in the little faces in the stands. I recall seeing much more detail in years past than I see today. And I’m referring to comparing exact situations-- comparing an indoor or outdoor event with a similar event, Hockey game, Tennis match, Basketball, Football, Golf etc.

While watching this post season basketball, I look into the stands and see a face not as crystal clear as I was able to see several years ago. I don’t need any special testing gear to see that the quality is not the same. Just thought I’d put this out there.

I haven't noticed much difference between the PQ from years ago to now. All I know is that The PQ could be bumped up on TNT & HDNet Movies.

FYI, there is a video running on channel 1892 here in manhattan showing TWC accomplishments, LOL I wonder why HD isn't on their.

The name of the Internally developed set-top box software is MDN, "Mystro Digital Navigator". It will allow for Start Over Technology. Unknown release date.

Just a reminder

Deals for:

ESPN2-HD - on the near horizon
National Geographic-HD - on the near horizon
TMC-HD - is done
CINEMAX-HD – is almost done
STARZ-HD - End of the year at the earliest
Wealth TV-HD - are not in the works
Outdoor Channel 2-HD – are not in the works
MHD (MTV) - will take many months to conclude.
Food Network-HD - Scripps has not yet made us a proposal.
HGTV-HD - Scripps has not yet made us a proposal.
NFL Network-HD - the nfl net is not likely to be on soon.
Sleuth-HD - Late 2006
A&E-HD - No Word

Just a reminder

Deals for:

ESPN2-HD - on the near horizon
Does that mean in time for the beginning of the 2006 baseball season as promised? Oh, wait, they already missed that target. In time for the World Cup?
National Geographic-HD - on the near horizon
And will there be a slot for it when it is done?
TMC-HD - is done
Really? Does that mean it'll be on the air by the end of May? If they can't get the channels they've got contracts for on the air, why are they bothering to work on getting more contracts?
CINEMAX-HD – is almost done
It astonishes me that TWC doesn't more or less automatically have carriage agreements with all of the TW owned channels. There shouldn't be any adversarial negotiations involved here.
STARZ-HD - End of the year at the earliest
Again, does that mean it'll be on the air, or that we'll be told there's a contract but no bandwidth?
Wealth TV-HD - are not in the works
Outdoor Channel 2-HD – are not in the works
I'm inclined to actually take these updates at face value.
MHD (MTV) - will take many months to conclude.
By conclude, do you mean get on the air, or sign a contract?
Food Network-HD - Scripps has not yet made us a proposal.
HGTV-HD - Scripps has not yet made us a proposal.
Does TWC always wait for the channels to come to them?
NFL Network-HD - the nfl net is not likely to be on soon.
Will TWC subscribers be able to see HD feeds of the games that will be exclusively carried on this network in the fall?
Sleuth-HD - Late 2006
I'll expect to be able to tune to it before December 31st...
A&E-HD - No Word

None of this makes me optimistic. TWC has enough of a track record of not putting on channels they've got the right to carry that I no longer care when they secure the rights. If TWC wants to gain my trust on this front, they'll spend more time announcing new channels actually going on the air than they spend making excuses for why we don't have more channels. I expect to be able to see the World Cup in HD. I expect to be able to see the NFL Network games in HD. I expect every TW owned HD station to be carried on TWC.

That last point in particular dictates how little TWC takes advantage of its relationship with their corporate parent. TWC should not have to negotiate for Cinemax or HBO. When Cablevision pulled channels from TWC, all TW channels should have been pulled from Cablevision. It's as if TW doesn't really want to work with TWC...
-JMP

I expect to be able to see the NFL Network games in HD.

I expect you'll be disappointed. And you should be. If you interpret a TW statement of "NFL Network-HD - the nfl net is not likely to be on soon" to mean that you should expect to see that channel by this fall, then I think you have seriously misread their statement. Frankly, it sounds to me like you are reading everything with a bias toward instant solutions.

I'd like some more HD channels too (especially NFL Network-HD), but I actually appreciate it when TW gives us some feedback as to what progress is or isn't made. Based on the sentence I read, I'm _hoping_ to see NFL Net HD in the fall of 2007.

-barry

SNY-HD is very sharp & I'm impressed by their HD presentaion of Mets game seven though I'm not a big fan of Baseball anymore. PQ is outstanding!

I expect you'll be disappointed. And you should be. If you interpret a TW statement of "NFL Network-HD - the nfl net is not likely to be on soon" to mean that you should expect to see that channel by this fall, then I think you have seriously misread their statement. Frankly, it sounds to me like you are reading everything with a bias toward instant solutions.

I'd like some more HD channels too (especially NFL Network-HD), but I actually appreciate it when TW gives us some feedback as to what progress is or isn't made. Based on the sentence I read, I'm _hoping_ to see NFL Net HD in the fall of 2007.

I should have been clearer. I didn't read the statement as TWC promising that the NFL network would be available by the time the channel is airing games. That's what I expect from a cable company that cares to provide their customers with good service. I expect that if TWC wants to maintain a monopoly, they should be forced to provide the kind of service they would have to provide if they had truly viable competition.

Sure, they're trying to manage expectations now, but that's a day late and a dollar short. I've been hearing the same excuses and getting the same shoddy customer service for years. At this point they have to do more than manage expectations to win me over. They have to provide outstanding customer service, and they aren't anywhere close.
-JMP

I saw this on dslreports.com and thought some would be interested.
Also, does anyone know the 3 markets where switched video was already tested and which markets are planned for next year?

http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/74811
"Speaking this week at the CableLabs Financial Analyst Conference in New York, Time Warner Cable CEO Glenn Britt said the company's primary thrust in 2006 has been to employ switched digital video (SDV). The technology frees up bandwidth on cable systems by delivering fewer channels to the cable-box, and keeping the rest waiting at the edge router.

A trial of the technology in Austin resulted in bandwidth savings greater than fifty percent, according to Time Warner execs. Out of the 1,000 homes in that trial, 45 out of 170 channels were being simultaneously viewed. The remaining un-used channels still gobbled up network bandwidth while sitting un-viewed.

Time Warner, the most aggressive MSO on this front, says they've deployed this technology in three markets, with four to six planned next year. When asked about the cost of such an initiative, Britt states the MSO rolled out switched digital, digital simulcast and "Start Over" technology in one recent market for about $16 per home."

... All I know is that The PQ could be bumped up on TNT...
To say the least^
TNT is certainly not an HD showcase channel.

To say the least^
TNT is certainly not an HD showcase channel.
Ha! How can one really even consider it an HD channel at all? It seems like >50% of what they show is S T R E T C H E D in a HORRIBLE way.....

Just a reminder

Deals for:

ESPN2-HD - on the near horizon
National Geographic-HD - on the near horizon
TMC-HD - is done
CINEMAX-HD – is almost done
STARZ-HD - End of the year at the earliest
Wealth TV-HD - are not in the works
Outdoor Channel 2-HD – are not in the works
MHD (MTV) - will take many months to conclude.
Food Network-HD - Scripps has not yet made us a proposal.
HGTV-HD - Scripps has not yet made us a proposal.
NFL Network-HD - the nfl net is not likely to be on soon.
Sleuth-HD - Late 2006
A&E-HD - No Word
It seems to me that these negotiations at the corporate level seem to have little bearing on when or if any channel actually shows up on our system or not (Where is TMC-HD if the deal is done?)

Ha! How can one really even consider it an HD channel at all? It seems like >50% of what they show is S T R E T C H E D in a HORRIBLE way.....
:D Can’t disagree with that....
but I was specifically referring to TNT’s HD broadcasts (is there anything else on that channel in HD besides basketball?). It’s been looking worse than before.

Boy, some thread here... being a TW-NYC customer, I love it!

Lots to talk about, but I have a question I'll start with. I had read a discussion elsewhere about the "black bars/pillars," and their color. Specifically, sometimes these are light gray, some times, dark black (forgetting that some channels like YES in HD put actual images as part of the pillar area). I've tried to follow and see any patterns about when one or the other is used, so far, it appears totally random.

The box is a 8300HD, and I see some "elsewhere" claim one can set "borders" to be all black once you get a SA box into some diagnostic mode. I found 2 things... tuning to channel 996 (seems useful for an easy way to tell the OS version) and a "press/hold Exit/Select on the box, then Exit" (very cool, I can get to a screen that tells me the HD space, used and free). Neither of these two things seem to allow me to change the bars to black only.

Anyone have an idea of how to do this?

Anyone have an idea of how to do this?

Yes. Move to a city where the SARA operating system is used on the 8300HD. Black bars are not an option with the Passport OS used by TWCNYC.

My Email:
Can you tell me when TW will have HD versions of Cinemax, The Movie Channel & Starz?
I know Cablevision carries all of the premiums in HD for their customers. I myself have been waiting patiently for well over a year and have been wasting money in the hopes that I would get these channels.The only premiums that I watch is HBO & Showtime and that's only because they have an HD version for me. I looks like I will be canceling my subscripstions to some premium channels that I can't bare to watch in SD.

Dressler's Response:
"it would appear that with current plant upgrade plans, these HD services will be made available sometime in "07."


OMG. I'm cancelling all my premiums except hbo & Showtime until january 07'. If they have any competence at all it better be up and running by then.

To me, the statement "sometime in 07" means on or before December 31, 2007. I certainly wouldn't expect to see these HD services in January of 2007.