Los Angeles, CA - TWC [Text View] - Page 24

fitprod

09-18-08, 05:41 AM

What was frustrating was seeing the cameras on the screen with big "HD" signs hanging off them. Must be some agreement thing, but KCOP does not play HD Angels games no matter where they are playing. /Dan

We're any of the A's games in HD in LA? I only caught the end of last nights game. If not, I'm pretty sure the HD cameras you noticed we're probably for Comcast Sports Bay Area.

I've worked for the A's and know that their capacity to handle HD is very limited. The Oracle Arena is in pretty good shape, that's why you'll get HD basketball, but McAfee Colusiem, well that's a whole different mess. They're not even investing in upgrading to HD for their in-house (Jumbovision) productions, since they intend to move to Fremont in the next five years.

You can pretty much blame this all on the City of Oakland and the Raiders since they've pretty much relegated the team to 4th class status. The return of the Raiders completely screwed the Oakland and the Athletics. The city bent over backwards for the Raiders thinking the glory days would return. Instead they've just become another victim in the disaster that is the Al Davis ownership.

fitprod

jsyoung

09-19-08, 01:30 AM

Ahh Time-Warner.
Not only can you not decide whether KABC should be in 720p or 1080i, you're still compressing the OTA HD channels

Smallville OTA: 7.6 GB
Smallville Cable: 5.2 GB

Supernatural OTA: 7.7 GB
Supernatural Cable: 5.8 GB

Way to go. :rolleyes:

TRUE2LABLUE

09-19-08, 05:22 PM

Goodbye TWC and your lackluster joke of HD channels

....I just signed up for Verizon FIOS here in Oxnard ,CA

FIOS will have 100 HD channels by October 9th including Sci-Fi and USA and every Premium movie channel plus 50 more by the end of the year

They were going door to door in my complex and signed me up with their FIOS triple play package TV INTERNET AND PHONE for about $120

motoman

09-19-08, 05:53 PM

ghettogreg

09-19-08, 06:56 PM

Man, I would love to have Fios here in Ventura. Alas, we're stuck with TWC!

Video Engineer

09-19-08, 07:47 PM

Mad Mac

09-19-08, 11:25 PM

Why does TW with limited HD channels waste bandwidth with terrible channels like 410 that almost NEVER broadcast in HD. It would be so nice if they would axe it and pop in USA-HD in its place. If only limited channels are available how about having quality channels rather than losers.

This question is easily answered. Look back to when KTLA HD came on to the TW systems. It was around the time that Smackdown moved to CW. It's moving to MNT now, hence the appearance of that HD channel. Whether you like it or not, wrestling gets substantial audiences, and that drives what cable prioritises.

TRUE2LABLUE

09-20-08, 03:26 PM

This question is easily answered. Look back to when KTLA HD came on to the TW systems. It was around the time that Smackdown moved to CW. It's moving to MNT now, hence the appearance of that HD channel. Whether you like it or not, wrestling gets substantial audiences, and that drives what cable prioritizes.

If that was the case then TWC would have had USA HD back in February when WWE went HD because WWE Raw is often the #1 rated cable program in prime time

Just another reason I have joined the FIOS side :)

TRUE2LABLUE

09-20-08, 03:39 PM

What part of Oxnard are you in? I'm still waiting for some word on Fios here.

Thanks,

Jim
I'm in North Oxnard (El Rio area) and when we moved in to our apartment I noticed that the Verizon ONT box was installed in my closet then 2 months later we get a knock at the door and it's Verizon telling me that FIOS is here and ready to expand my HD channel choices and show me what true HD is suppose to look like

They sold me on the triple play bundle (DIGITAL TV, PHONE & 10 MB INTERNET) for $130 a month for 1 Yr

motoman

09-20-08, 03:46 PM

I'm in North Oxnard (El Rio area) and when we moved in to our apartment I noticed that the Verizon ONT box was installed in my closet then 2 months later we get a knock at the door and it's Verizon telling me that FIOS is here and ready to expand my HD channel choices and show me what true HD is suppose to look like

They sold me on the triple play bundle (DIGITAL TV, PHONE & 10 MB INTERNET) for $130 a month for 1 Yr

Thanks.

I'm on the other side of the freeway over by the old Levitz Warehouse. Hopefully they will be getting over here soon.

Jim

TRUE2LABLUE

09-20-08, 04:40 PM

Thanks.

I'm on the other side of the freeway over by the old Levitz Warehouse. Hopefully they will be getting over here soon.

Jim

Ya Jim I would check into it again because it was also installed in my old apartment which was over by the airport (Ventura Rd & Devonshire) but I moved out soon after so I never got the chance to take advantage of it...... until now :D

llabine1

09-20-08, 06:00 PM

If that was the case then TWC would have had USA HD back in February when WWE went HD because WWE Raw is often the #1 rated cable program in prime time

Just another reason I have joined the FIOS side :)

First of all I want to wish you well and I hope FIOS is everything you have hoped for...I also hope you have read the entire FIOS thread before you made your decision...the
DVR's they give you are very problematic...if you are using a router for wireless you will be using theirs which also seems to have problems...they are plagued with the same pixelation and audio drop out problems that we have ...virtually everyone misses the 2 tuner PIP which is missing on their DVR's...the wiring in your house may have to be upgraded so be prepared....

For me my SA8300HD boxes with Passport are heaven...work horses that record what I want ...rarely do they mess up... I know that Passport is temporary and I will decide what to do when there is a change over but for now the picture quality...ease of operation...works for me...also having the option to opt out without being tethered to a contract also is appealing...

I say all of this because FIOS is right outside my door and I still am staying with TW this after reading all the 1,000 posts in the FIOS thread the deciding factor being if and when their DVR's improve (17 hours of recorded HD without availability of an external hard drive) I may change over...but for now I am satisfied....

Please let me know how your FIOS experience goes....I want it to succeed for you...I am curious....thanks...

GizmoDVD

09-20-08, 06:12 PM

Where are you? Appears all mine have gone here too.

Same as you, Moorpark (Peach Hill area)

GizmoDVD

09-20-08, 06:15 PM

Got the new channels...to bad I won't watch any of them

bruce73

09-20-08, 08:35 PM

alaindelon

09-21-08, 05:50 PM

HDNet audio sync

Anyone else noticing the audio being slightly off on HDNet movie channel (421)? I'm seeing it now on "Legends of the Fall" and on the last movie I recorded, "Requiem for a Heavyweight".

And speaking of PQ, HDNet seems to have dropped a few notches on the PQ meter. :rolleyes: Maybe it's the source material lately, but I sure do remember its being a lot better before. Bandwidth used to be higher than other channels (~12-15Mb); doesn't look much over ~8-9 now.

Things getting a little tight with TW's new channel lineup? Robbing Peter to pay Paul?

I don't know if you have read the thread recently but TWC is recompressing ALL channels now to some extent,some more than others.I started to lose my patience when they even ruined the PQ on our local network affiliates.There is now major pixellation and bit starvation even on old stalwarts like KCBS,KTTV and the ESPN's.They clearly didn't have enough bandwith for the latest batch of HD offerings so now they have destroyed the whole lineup.Way to go,TWC :mad::mad::mad:

One of my previous posts on this subject:http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=14662330#post14662330

CaCHooKa Man

09-21-08, 06:50 PM

PQ has been hit or miss the past couple weeks ever since the start of the olympics. plus they still keep going back and forth between 720p and 1080i for ABC, ESPN and FSN HD.

jonathank

09-22-08, 02:55 PM

I have one of the HD Motorola DVRs through TWC. Is it possible to hook up an external hard drive via USB to extend the storage capacity?

If so, is it just plug and play? Do I need to get a special model designed for DVRs, or is it just marketing and any will do? What size is optimal?

DSperber

09-22-08, 04:47 PM

I have one of the HD Motorola DVRs through TWC. Is it possible to hook up an external hard drive via USB to extend the storage capacity?Ixnay.

On the other hand, its firewire [1394] port is fully operational. So if you buy a D-VHS VCR (e.g. JVC DT5U or DT100U or 40K) you can offload content from the Moto box to D-VHS tape (HD) for posterity (because you actually want to keep some HD program forever), or just for temporary time-shifting [to tape] to make room for more recordings on the limited hard drive of the Moto box.

But sorry, no USB or eSata functionality on the Moto boxes that would facilitate expanding the hard drive capacity.

I've gone with the D-VHS VCR approach, allowing me to build a D-VHS HD tape library over the years to share with friends and family. Lots of movies, demos, programs, excerpts, Olympics (commercial-free) in HD, "The Sopranos" in HD, etc.

To each his own.

tvset

09-22-08, 05:29 PM

Ixnay.

On the other hand, its firewire [1394] port is fully operational. So if you buy a D-VHS VCR (e.g. JVC DT5U or DT100U or 40K) you can offload content from the Moto box to D-VHS tape (HD) for posterity (because you actually want to keep some HD program forever), or just for temporary time-shifting [to tape] to make room for more recordings on the limited hard drive of the Moto box.

But sorry, no USB or eSata functionality on the Moto boxes that would facilitate expanding the hard drive capacity.

I've gone with the D-VHS VCR approach, allowing me to build a D-VHS HD tape library over the years to share with friends and family. Lots of movies, demos, programs, excerpts, Olympics (commercial-free) in HD, "The Sopranos" in HD, etc.

To each his own.

What if connecting the firewire port to my PC's firewire port? Will I able to capture or record any video?

DSperber

09-22-08, 05:44 PM

What if connecting the firewire port to my PC's firewire port? Will I able to capture or record any video?Yes, as long as the content you're trying to record on your PC via the firewire connection is not 5C-protected as "copy once" or "copy never". As long as it's free off-air or basic cable content which is marked as "copy always/freely" you can record it to your PC.

This is because no PC firewire implementation is 5C-compliant.

In contrast, the D-VHS VCR's ARE 5C-compliant, meaning for example that they will not allow 2nd-generation copies of D-VHS recordings that are marked as "copy once". The D-VHS copy is that 1st and only generation allowed.

The DVR's recording does not count as a generation at all, which is why you can offload "copy once" content (e.g. premium channels like HBOHD and SHOHD) to the D-VHS tape as the 1st-generation, but you can't copy that 1st-generation tape to a 2nd-generation tape copy.

Of course if you wanted you can make as many 1st-generation offloads from DVR to D-VHS as you would like (as long as you don't erase the DVR recording). But you can't copy that 1st-generation tape copy to a 2nd-generation tape copy, if it says "copy once".

If it says "copy always" then you CAN make multiple-generation D-VHS tape copies, as many times as you want.

But coming back to the PC (which is NOT 5C-compliant), the DVR will only allow recordings of "copy always" programs, like free OTA networks.

Of course you'll need proper firewire drivers installed on your PC, as well as CapDVHS (and/or TSReader Lite), to do what you want... not to mention editing software like VideoReDo and/or VirtualDUB, etc.

There's an extensive thread on "recording via firewire using Windows XP (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=403695)" on the HDTV Recording forum.

jonathank

09-22-08, 06:00 PM

Can I do Firewire offloading to a Mac? Is there a similar How-To on that? I'd be willing to go to that route.

tvset

09-22-08, 06:11 PM

Yes, as long as the content you're trying to record on your PC via the firewire connection is not 5C-protected as "copy once" or "copy never". As long as it's free off-air or basic cable content which is marked as "copy always/freely" you can record it to your PC.

This is because no PC firewire implementation is 5C-compliant.

In contrast, the D-VHS VCR's ARE 5C-compliant, meaning for example that they will not allow 2nd-generation copies of D-VHS recordings that are marked as "copy once". The D-VHS copy is that 1st and only generation allowed.

The DVR's recording does not count as a generation at all, which is why you can offload "copy once" content (e.g. premium channels like HBOHD and SHOHD) to the D-VHS tape as the 1st-generation, but you can't copy that 1st-generation tape to a 2nd-generation tape copy.

Of course if you wanted you can make as many 1st-generation offloads from DVR to D-VHS as you would like (as long as you don't erase the DVR recording). But you can't copy that 1st-generation tape copy to a 2nd-generation tape copy, if it says "copy once".

If it says "copy always" then you CAN make multiple-generation D-VHS tape copies, as many times as you want.

But coming back to the PC (which is NOT 5C-compliant), the DVR will only allow recordings of "copy always" programs, like free OTA networks.

Of course you'll need proper firewire drivers installed on your PC, as well as CapDVHS (and/or TSReader Lite), to do what you want... not to mention editing software like VideoReDo and/or VirtualDUB, etc.

There's an extensive thread on "recording via firewire using Windows XP (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=403695)" on the HDTV Recording forum.

Thanks. :D

danki6x

09-22-08, 06:27 PM

CaCHooKa Man

09-22-08, 06:34 PM

^yet they have an agreement with ESPN for ESPNU HD and AFAIK they have no plans to add it in our area.

DSperber

09-22-08, 06:46 PM

Can I do Firewire offloading to a Mac? Is there a similar How-To on that? I'd be willing to go to that route.Not that I know of, but then I'm not a Mac user. Doesn't seem to be such a thread in the Recording forum.

I would guess it's probably easier for a Mac from what I've heard, with much simpler integration of firewire devices, built-in drivers and capture applications, etc. But I honestly do not know anything firsthand.

In contrast, Windows implementation comes with the usual Microsoft entanglements and complexity.

But I can confirm firsthand that the Windows process as described DOES work just fine under WinXP. You can record from DVR or D-VHS VCR to PC hard drive for editing and/or processing, and you can also write your edited result from PC hard drive back to D-VHS VCR (not to DVR).

Note that other than to experiment and confirm that the whole procedure actually worked as advertised, I do not personally use my PC for recording from TWC source. I use my DVR, and occasionally offload to D-VHS tape. I have a JVC DT100U which in addition to its firewire input option also has a built-in OTA ATSC tuner, so I can also record OTA HD directly to D-VHS tape (from my building's antenna) if I need to.

My PC has a separate HDTV card in it to which I have my building's OTA antenna connected, and I use BeyondTV software (DVR-like), so I can also record OTA to my PC using BeyondTV's DVR-like functionality if I want to go that route. And these recordings (TS format files) can then be edited if I want using VirtualDub or VideoReDo, for permanent retention as TS or MPEG files, or for writing to D-VHS tape via firewire.

One of my two monitors is an Eizo HD2441W (24" 16x9 LCD), connected to my PC's video card via DVI. It also has two independent HDMI inputs (for accepting up to full 1080p input), one of which I have connected to the HDMI output of my JVC DT100U D-VHS VCR (only puts out 1080i output). So I can watch D-VHS HD tapes directly to my monitor at up to full 1920x1080 resolution, just like a real HDTV display device (which it is, of course), while I'm working for real on my other 21" CRT monitor.

Lots and lots of options here, in all directions, to/from multiple devices.

FlatPanelGeek

09-22-08, 09:54 PM

I'm on Time Warner Cable Huntington Beach, CA. Same system as Garden Grove and some other cities in North Orange County.

A couple weeks ago the QAM channel mapping worked fine. ABC HD was mapped to 7.1 etc...

The QAM channel allocations stopped working on both of my Samsung LCDs. I called Time Warner and after talking to 4 different people for over an hour, I've concluded that Time Warner does not train any support personnel on QAM technolgy. Nor does Time Warner have any QAM info on their web site. To date, Time Warner only offers local HD in Clear QAM, no Discover HD etc..

Here are a few of the QAM channels:

KCAL HD 85-6
CBS HD 86-86
KCET HD 86-87
NBC HD 86-88
ABC HD 87-85
KTLA HD 88-56
my13 HD 88-58
KOCE HD 90-53

If you're using a QAM tuner and you're not getting program data or your channel mappings/allocations are not working, file a complaint with the FCC. Tell them your cable company is not sending QAM PSIP data.

https://esupport.fcc.gov/sform2000/formF!input.action?form_page=2000F

CaCHooKa Man

09-22-08, 10:19 PM

when i emailed TWC about QAM channels they acted like they didnt know what i was talking about. they said that since i didnt have digital cable that i wouldnt be able to receive any of those channels (locals in HD, etc) without upgrading. i knew that wasnt the case but i still upgraded to digital cable eventually since in total it only costs me $2 extra a month. thats only because i only have 1 HDTV though so the receiver fees arent that much.

ReidWings

09-22-08, 11:11 PM

Can I do Firewire offloading to a Mac? Is there a similar How-To on that? I'd be willing to go to that route.

Of course you can do that. I love that non-mac people try to answer the question. :)

Here is a tutorial on how to do it:
http://project-tigershark.com/people/rob/blog/2007/01/14/cable-tv-mac-firewire-hd-pvr/

There is also a recent post about this on TUAW (the unofficial apple weblog):
http://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/16/ask-tuaw-mailboxes-on-mobilemac-mac-firewire-hd-dvr-photo-boo/

Hope this helps!

Mad Mac

09-22-08, 11:51 PM

When I emailed TWC about QAM channels they acted like they didnt know what I was talking about. they said that since I didn't have digital cable that I wouldn't be able to receive any of those channels (locals in HD, etc) without upgrading.

Not surprising...there was a reported case (possibly on this forum) of someone calling them and saying they couldn't receive anything on their QAM tuner, and being told that they would need to call QAM :eek:

There was an extensive discussion on this some months ago - there is apparently an FCC ruling that if a cable company carries the HD version of a broadcast (i.e. theoretically receivable by antenna) station, it must do so unencrypted.

slickshoes

09-23-08, 11:04 AM

audiomixer

09-23-08, 12:50 PM

DSperber

09-23-08, 02:50 PM

What is the deal with KABC? Is TWC showing primetime shows in HD downgraded or is that the feed they are getting for KABC? Not very happy!!! "Dancing With The Stars" in HD looked like s**t last night. I was also watching a rerun of "Ugly Betty" last week and it was also downgraded. Yet lead-in shows like "Wheel of Fortune" look great. What's going on?Why not blame ABC? I agree, DWTS looked terribly soft. I even tried to view it in its original 720p resolution, vs. the 1080i upconvert that the DVR does, and it looked just as crappy.

Could it be the way they shot the show... or the cameras/filters used... or the lighting, to hide the flaws of their stars???? Certainly more plausible than TWC's selective processing of selective network-provided digital datastreams to specific shows.

CaCHooKa Man

09-23-08, 06:16 PM

TWC has been upconverting KABC to 1080i off and on for the past couple weeks

videojanitor

09-23-08, 06:25 PM

Why not blame ABC? I agree, DWTS looked terribly soft. I even tried to view it in its original 720p resolution, vs. the 1080i upconvert that the DVR does, and it looked just as crappy.

This is also being discussed in the OTA thread. Check out screen caps I posted in that thread:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=14719743#post14719743

Bottom line: There's a problem with the ABC West coast feed, which not only affects KABC, but also every other ABC affiliate in the Pacific Time Zone. Apparently it's been going on for a few weeks, but I just stumbled into it when I tuned into the Emmys the other night.

DSperber

09-23-08, 11:24 PM

This is also being discussed in the OTA thread. Check out screen caps I posted in that thread:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=14719743#post14719743

Bottom line: There's a problem with the ABC West coast feed, which not only affects KABC, but also every other ABC affiliate in the Pacific Time Zone. Apparently it's been going on for a few weeks, but I just stumbled into it when I tuned into the Emmys the other night.Wow. I had no idea. Your screencaps of that ad on ABC and FOX was certainly the smoking gun for me.

Excellent info. I'll be more attentive to ABC show from now on (e.g. "Boston Legal"), just to be on top of this.

CaCHooKa Man

09-24-08, 01:44 AM

abc is back to 720p right now but im sure theyll start upconverting it in time for football this weekend

jonathank

09-24-08, 10:06 AM

Of course you can do that. I love that non-mac people try to answer the question. :)

Here is a tutorial on how to do it:
http://project-tigershark.com/people/rob/blog/2007/01/14/cable-tv-mac-firewire-hd-pvr/

There is also a recent post about this on TUAW (the unofficial apple weblog):
http://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/16/ask-tuaw-mailboxes-on-mobilemac-mac-firewire-hd-dvr-photo-boo/

Hope this helps!

Excellent, thank you very much, ReidWings.

Does anyone else have a problem with their Motorola HD DVR recording many non-new episodes of programs you have set to a Series Recording (on only record new)? Is there a fix for that? It's driving me nuts. My Scientific Atlanta 8300HD box never had this problem.

EvlAsh

09-24-08, 01:23 PM

Excellent, thank you very much, ReidWings.

Does anyone else have a problem with their Motorola HD DVR recording many non-new episodes of programs you have set to a Series Recording (on only record new)? Is there a fix for that? It's driving me nuts. My Scientific Atlanta 8300HD box never had this problem.
Yup. I think it has some thing to do with the "TV Guide" guide not flagging the older shows (first-run syndication excluded) as a "repeat." The only thing that you can do, as far as I know, is either stop using the "Series Recording" feature or every few days, go through the scheduled recording menu and manually select the "Do Not Record" option on every entry you do not want recorded.

One other thing, be sure to have a few one-minute recordings set to delete as needed. This will help you around the inevitable "DVR Full" bug.

jonathank

09-24-08, 06:21 PM

DVR Full bug?

DSperber

09-25-08, 03:34 AM

NGC (SD) and NGC-HD have now disappeared... "not authorized" message on screen.

Strangely, the two channels have also been removed from the "channel lineups" on the web site.

Hmmm... anybody elese?

Also, all of the 12 new HD channels which were available QAM "in the clear" (direct from coax to HDTV, no cable card) a few weeks ago are no longer available to me. They're still present through my DVR, but not via QAM/ATSC tuner in my HDTV.

Anybody else? Do I need to re-scan? Were the channel assignments changed recently?

CaCHooKa Man

09-25-08, 04:11 AM

no problem with national geo HD for me. im watching it right now.

DSperber

09-25-08, 05:19 AM

no problem with national geo HD for me. im watching it right now.Since it's gone from the web site's channel lineup (showing all tiers) I'm confused.

Was NGC in a non-basic optional tier? I don't subscribe to anything but basic and HD, so if NGC is in one of these other tiers maybe that explains it... if they suddenly "enforced" availability.

But I sure had it until today.

And why is it gone from the TWC web site "channel lineup"? Could it be a problem for my "former Comcast" (Westchester/Hollywood) zipcode area only, which you enter in order to show the channel lineup? Maybe your area is "former Adelphia" and the problem is unique to "former Comcast"?

I'll find out more tomorrow.

EvlAsh

09-25-08, 02:05 PM

DVR Full bug?
Check out this link (http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Bugs#The_DVR_menu_erroneously_states_the_DVR_hard_drive_is_1 00.25_full) for a brief explanation.

danki6x

09-25-08, 03:47 PM

Finally got the new channels in Torrance...only problem is ESPN News and National Geographic are showing subscription required and I have the HD Tier, which according to their site should be included.
NGC is a Choice Tier item and both the SD and HD would be available if you had that. ESPN News is regular Digital Cable, so should be available if you have Digital Cable (not Basic Cable). Having the new HD channels in clear QAM was surprising, but would have been temporary. Only local channels (over-the-air receivable) channels are in clear QAM (not scrambled) basically. /Dan

DSperber

09-25-08, 05:21 PM

hobbs47

09-25-08, 06:29 PM

I'd give most of these new channels back if TWC-Orange County would get back to the PQ it used to consistantly have. PQ is so hit and miss these days,on most channels.

DSperber

09-25-08, 09:00 PM

NGC is a Choice Tier item and both the SD and HD would be available if you had that. ESPN News is regular Digital Cable, so should be available if you have Digital Cable (not Basic Cable). Having the new HD channels in clear QAM was surprising, but would have been temporary. Only local channels (over-the-air receivable) channels are in clear QAM (not scrambled) basically. /DanThanks... didn't see your reply from earlier today (two hours before my own discovery) until now.

Yes, you're right, I certainly was a bit surprised that they'd put those new HD channels out there along with the free local OTA channels in-the-clear QAM. But sure enough, they were discovered by my channel scan.

No longer. They're gone now. Oh well... I really don't use my HDTV's OTA mode (and building antenna) anyway, other than to compare occasionally with TWC's carriage.

CaCHooKa Man

09-25-08, 09:03 PM

Turns out NGC is in the "Choice tier" to which I do NOT subscribe.

Although I had the HD version of the channel last month when the 12 new HD channels finally arrived in my area, they apparently have now gotten around to "enforcing" HD availability to match the SD channels you're entitled to. And since I'm not entitled to NGC-SD, I also do not get NGC-HD.

Case closed, I guess. I will not buy Choice tier just for NGC.

Also, it's their web site which has the bug when "ALL" is selected. NGC-SD and NGC-HD do not show up there if all tier boxes are checked.

However if you clear everything and just check "Choice tier", sure enough NGC-SD and NGC-HD now appear.

I've reported this web site bug.

Case also closed.

im still getting it and i dont subscribe to the choice tier. i subscribe to the variety tier. it still shows up when i go to their website to look at the channel lineups too. ive had the channel for years and it was never part of a package for me. on the channel lineups its under broadcast as well as the regular digital tier.

Mogur2

09-25-08, 11:32 PM

Hi,
I live in Santa Clarita. Channel 413 is the FOX sport HD channel. I cannot get tonight's game with San Diego.

Tech support has no clue.

Has anyone been able to view this game tonight?:(

doc_chiron

09-27-08, 06:24 AM

Greetings:
From the Tujunga headend (mostly the same for ALL of TWC-LA), I have created a spreadsheet file containing all of the virtual channels (as seen on the STB and CableCARD INFO displays) versus the NCTA 6MHz channel numbers (what you see for in the clear QAM tuned channels without a STB or CableCARD).

It includes the recent MAJOR reassignment of virtual channels (including duplicates & triplicates).

I find it interesting to see how many SD digital programs they CRAM into one six MHz channel. (Plus ALL the Music Choice audio and stills AND a few SD foreign programs as well, all on old NCTA channel 75.)

Is anyone interested in learning about the virtual mapping system?

Is there some place that file can be placed for access by those interested?
I'm tempted to post it peacemeal, but there might not be much interest and therefore shouldn't clog the forum.
Doc Chiron

redhatyellow

09-28-08, 05:13 PM

I am unable to pick-up most of the QAM channels anymore in Hermosa Beach.

none of the local networks like nbc 100.2 etc..

It just says 'poor signal'... anyone know why I can sometimes pick-up channels for a few months and then sometimes get nothing but 'poor signal' with no picture? :mad:

redhatyellow

09-28-08, 05:49 PM

LOL, I just did a re-scan and see all of the channels neatly next to each other (e.g., 2.1 for cbs and 4.1 for nbc etc..)

NICE! Yahooooooo :)

CaCHooKa Man

09-28-08, 08:18 PM

i wonder why im still getting universal HD on my box. i wish i was getting a channel that id actually watch instead. :p

redhatyellow

09-29-08, 12:25 AM

I am getting Universal HD as well. I like it :P

tvset

09-29-08, 02:10 AM

I live in Eagle Rock area. I hear voice break up and see video lag on QAM channels on my Vizio SV420XVT. Does any of you have this type of problem with other brand of HDTV?

11-1 video lag
2-1, 4-1, 5-1, 7-1...do have some voice break up problem

Hope it is not my TV :rolleyes:

CaCHooKa Man

09-29-08, 02:21 AM

^NBC had audio skipping during the football game today

RudyG

09-29-08, 12:01 PM

i wonder why im still getting universal HD on my box. i wish i was getting a channel that id actually watch instead. :p
It's a mistake. At every channel reshuffling or free preview, one channel gets fixed and another shows up. They used to have the Encore channel in the clear, then that was "fixed" and FSN HD showed up. Now FSN HD was "fixed" and Universal HD showed up. Soon it too will be "fixed" and something else will show up .....

Rudy

eddy_winds

09-29-08, 02:01 PM

pq is so hit and miss these days,on most channels. +1 :(

jsyoung

10-02-08, 12:03 AM

Pushing Daisies is in 1080i!

God these folks at Time-Warner are geniuses!

mizz07

10-02-08, 01:01 AM

Hi, I live in Santa Monica and have TW and I'm having trouble setting up my PIP. I have a Samsung LA46550 and with the second source I'm getting awful reception when I was under the impression I could even get HD. My setup:

1) Time Warner Cable goes to splitter.
2) From there VHF cables goes to TV, UHF cable goes to cable box which is connected to the TV through an HDMI cable.

The channels on from the cable box look great, however when I do the PIP the channels from the cable look awful and the ones over around channel 40 are borderline unwatchable. I used the STD to auto program, and I don't know if I should have used IRC or HRC. I think I can receive the digital cable through my TV because it has a QAM tuner. Shouldn't some of the channels be coming in with HD?

Is this a problem with my cables or something I did with the TV or should I just call the cable company?

Thanks.

joe221

10-02-08, 11:28 AM

Mad Mac

10-02-08, 08:03 PM

2) From there VHF cables goes to TV, UHF cable goes to cable box which is connected to the TV through an HDMI cable.

Sounds like you've got a diplexer rather than a splitter. It won't pass the frequencies you need to the TV.

WeHoMyke

10-02-08, 08:18 PM

Gianny

10-03-08, 05:38 AM

Video Engineer

10-04-08, 08:09 AM

Mojo Hd getting canceled.

http://www.engadgethd.com/2008/10/02/mojo-hd-gets-canceled-should-vanish-by-months-end/

It states that parent company iN DEMAND "has announced that it will be canceling its MOJO HD regularly scheduled programming by the end of the year, but it will continue to provide OnDEMAND programs."

Maybe Time Warner will be smart and pop in USA-HD in its place.

Kablemodem

10-04-08, 04:23 PM

I would like to purchase an indoor antenna to receive HDTV, unfortunately I've become confuse about the DTV transition and if it will affect the antenna I purchase. Does the DB2 or Silver only get UHF? Will I still get all the channels after the transition? I don't want an antenna that will be good only for a few months. I am in Sherman Oaks, CA.

Any antenna that receives digital channels now should continue to receive them after the analog channels stop broadcasting. I use this Terk antenna (http://www.amazon.com/Terk-Amplified-High-Definition-Antenna-Reception/dp/B0007MXZB2/ref=pd_rhf_p_t_2), but any antenna should work fine.

SPDICKEY

10-04-08, 05:36 PM

Mojo Hd getting canceled.

http://www.engadgethd.com/2008/10/02/mojo-hd-gets-canceled-should-vanish-by-months-end/

It states that parent company iN DEMAND "has announced that it will be canceling its MOJO HD regularly scheduled programming by the end of the year, but it will continue to provide OnDEMAND programs."

http://www.dpuc.state.ct.us/DPUCUndocketed.nsf/88f12116235902e185256a860056babb/85256a63004def96852574d00054533b/$FILE/Cox%20Communications%20New%20England.PDF

CaCHooKa Man

10-04-08, 05:38 PM

Maybe Time Warner will be smart and pop in USA-HD in its place.

or ESPNU HD

SPDICKEY

10-04-08, 05:42 PM

Is there some place that file can be placed for access by those interested?
I'm tempted to post it peacemeal, but there might not be much interest and therefore shouldn't clog the forum.
Doc Chiron

How about putting the whole thing in Google Docs, making it public and posting the link here?

joe221

10-04-08, 06:06 PM

I would like to purchase an indoor antenna to receive HDTV, unfortunately I've become confuse about the DTV transition and if it will affect the antenna I purchase. Does the DB2 or Silver only get UHF? Will I still get all the channels after the transition? I don't want an antenna that will be good only for a few months. I am in Sherman Oaks, CA.

As I understand it, and I could be wrong. Some time after February, a number of the LA stations are going to revert their HD signals to VHF. So if true a combo antenna would be the better choice.

CaCHooKa Man

10-04-08, 07:31 PM

How about putting the whole thing in Google Docs, making it public and posting the link here?

or sharebee.com, sendspace.com, megaupload.com, zshare.net

RudyG

10-05-08, 01:37 AM

Now through October 15th. QAM channels 110.721 - 110.730 all of them in horrid 480i. <sigh> When will the HD revolution come?

Rudy

ghettogreg

10-05-08, 12:28 PM

Now through October 15th. QAM channels 110.721 - 110.730 all of them in horrid 480i. <sigh> When will the HD revolution come?

Rudy

Yup. This is exactly one of the reasons why I dumped TWC last week and went with Dish. I've ordered NBA League Pass every year for the past several years and TW just showed no signs whatsoever of playing any games in HD (besides the ESPN, ABC, & TNT broadcasts, of course) & it just simply looked like garbage. And on top of that, they don't even include NBA TV channel with the package! You have to order the sports tier to get it. Dish, on the other hand, DOES include NBA TV and a minimum of 15 HD games per week with more every week as the year goes on; heck, they even have a dedicated block of 12 HD channels specifically for League Pass games. All for the same price as when I was ordering the package through TW

I now have probably doubled to tripled the number of HD channels I get(which actually are better quality than TWC compressed crap). All for about $40 less/month.

Why didn't I do this sooner?:confused:

RudyG

10-05-08, 02:30 PM

Yup. This is exactly one of the reasons why I dumped TWC last week and went with Dish. I've ordered NBA League Pass every year for the past several years and TW just showed no signs whatsoever of playing any games in HD (besides the ESPN, ABC, & TNT broadcasts, of course) & it just simply looked like garbage. And on top of that, they don't even include NBA TV channel with the package! You have to order the sports tier to get it. Dish, on the other hand, DOES include NBA TV and a minimum of 15 HD games per week with more every week as the year goes on; heck, they even have a dedicated block of 12 HD channels specifically for League Pass games. All for the same price as when I was ordering the package through TW

I now have probably doubled to tripled the number of HD channels I get(which actually are better quality than TWC compressed crap). All for about $40 less/month.

Why didn't I do this sooner?:confused:
Wow that sounds great. Unfortunately I have a four storey building being built right at this moment, directly south of me where the dish would have to point. Since my apartment building is only two storeys high I will lose the line of sight for the dishes in less than a year. And even though Verizon is the phone provider in my area FiOS is nowhere near to be realized for me even though many of the neighboring cities already have it.
Serenity Now ....

Rudy

nomadpass

10-05-08, 02:31 PM

Does anyone else have the problem of Fox 11 in LA sound skipping or going mute for a second then coming back?

Has this been discussed?

niterider31

10-05-08, 05:51 PM

which area are you in? there are like 50+ areas in twcla

joe221

10-05-08, 07:02 PM

Is anyone else noticing popping on KNBC audio? I get it OTA, Cable and D*. Most noticable when going through my amp. It's in SNL that I recorded last night, and still going on.

edwarto

10-05-08, 09:18 PM

Is anyone else noticing popping on KNBC audio? I get it OTA, Cable and D*. Most noticable when going through my amp. It's in SNL that I recorded last night, and still going on.

I notice when ever there is a commercial i have to turn the sound down

joe221

10-05-08, 09:56 PM

I notice when ever there is a commercial i have to turn the sound down

I'm used to that, my new amp even supposedly takes care of it (Dynamic Volume) But, I mean popping noises. They're pretty constant. More of an electronic click type sound.

danki6x

10-06-08, 06:08 PM

Any antenna that receives digital channels now should continue to receive them after the analog channels stop broadcasting. I use this Terk antenna (http://www.amazon.com/Terk-Amplified-High-Definition-Antenna-Reception/dp/B0007MXZB2/ref=pd_rhf_p_t_2), but any antenna should work fine.
Assuming the antenna picks up channels 7-13 analog fairly well. Some of the stations will be moving their digital back to the high VHF region when they shut-down the analogs there. So, all the current digitals will not stay in UHF. /Dan

SPDICKEY

10-06-08, 06:17 PM

Assuming the antenna picks up channels 7-13 analog fairly well. Some of the stations will be moving their digital back to the high VHF region when they shut-down the analogs there. So, all the current digitals will not stay in UHF. /Dan

In February, most of the major LA stations will turn off their UHF digital transmitters and will start transmitting their digital signal back on their original VHF channel. If your antenna does not receive VHF signals well you could loose these channels! Those stations effected by this are:

KABC-7 (ABC). Currently transmits digital on ch 53. On February 18th they will shut down ch 53 digital and start transmitting their digital on ch 7.
KCAL-9 (Ind). Currently transmits digital on ch 43. On February 18th they will shut down ch 43 digital and start transmitting their digital on ch 9.
KTTV-11 (FOX). Currently transmits digital on ch 65. On February 18th they will shut down ch 65 digital and start transmitting their digital on ch 11.
KCOP-13.(My TV). Currently transmits digital on ch 66. On February 18th they will shut down ch 66 digital and start transmitting their digital on ch 13.

What's going to happen with channels 2, 4 and 5? They will continue to transmit in the UHF band. Specifically:

KCBS-2 (CBS). On February 18 they will move their digital signal from channel 60 to ch 43 and turn off their analog transmitter on channel 2.
KNBC-4 (NBC). Will stay on channel 36 for their digital signal. On February 18th they will turn off their analog transmitter on channel 4.
KTLA-5 (WB). Will stay on channel 31 for their digital signal. On February 18th they will turn off their analog transmitter on channel 5.

danki6x

10-06-08, 06:36 PM

Where did you get the information that broadcasters will move their existing digital feeds back to the 7-13 frequencies?

Antennaweb.org can get you the info you're looking for http://www.antennaweb.org
Example for Channel 7 (the lowest frequency):

http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/cdbsmenu.hts?context=25&appn=101234243&formid=387&fac_num=282

See Section II. /Dan

Knepster

10-06-08, 10:45 PM

phenotype

10-06-08, 11:16 PM

Anybody else having massive pixelation problems? I'm in Costa Mesa and both the Angels game and MNF are unwatchable on the HD channels and almost unwatchable on SD channels. Our neighbor called and they claimed sun spots, but wouldn't that be only on the equinox a couple of weeks ago?

Same for me too. I'm in Tustin and the video is super choppy with pixelation. I'm listening to the Angels game on the radio. :mad:

DSperber

10-06-08, 11:42 PM

Same here in MDR for the past hour or so.

Just checked at 8:40PM, and it seems to be fixed now. I'd called TWC about 30 minutes ago and the recording said they were aware of the problem and were working on it.

Looks fine now.

jsyoung

10-07-08, 03:23 AM

Is anyone else noticing popping on KNBC audio? I get it OTA, Cable and D*. Most noticable when going through my amp. It's in SNL that I recorded last night, and still going on.

I noticed this when watching Chuck and Heroes OTA tonight.

It doesn't help that their audio level is lower then everyone else's.

CaCHooKa Man

10-07-08, 03:35 AM

the audio on knbc actually cut out on me a couple times during chuck and heroes

RudyG

10-07-08, 11:29 AM

the audio on knbc actually cut out on me a couple times during chuck and heroes
Same here in WLA. In fact the whole past week I've seen a boatload of audio problems on TWC. On food network the audio was not streaming in synch with video. Like those badly dubbed kung fu movies of the 70s and 80s. :eek:

Rudy

nomadpass

10-08-08, 05:16 PM

i also hear popping from nbc heroes chuck and life

nomadpass

10-08-08, 05:18 PM

which area are you in? there are like 50+ areas in twcla

West Los Angeles 90025

Makavetis

10-09-08, 04:51 PM

im in Encino and still no new channels, you guys know whats goin on?

CaCHooKa Man

10-09-08, 09:12 PM

fox is being upconverted to 1080i right now

Adelmoxi

10-09-08, 09:41 PM

jsyoung

10-09-08, 11:00 PM

fox is being upconverted to 1080i right now

So is KABC again.
:rolleyes:

alaindelon

10-10-08, 01:43 AM

It's been a while since I've posted here (since switching to E* in April). I'm just curios, has "Crime Warner Cable" made any significant changes, like using Scientific Atlantic equipment in all areas, or using a better IPG (for the Motorola boxes)?

Yes,"Crime Warner" is now compressing the living daylights out of all HD channels with heavy pixellation as a result.The Olympics were basically unwatchable and the other local networks are ruined also,KCBS can not handle a simple disolve or a fast scene change anymore without heavy artifacting.They also added a bunch of new HD channels around July.They are also up converting most of the 720p stations to 1080i for some reason.

G30 Fizzle

10-10-08, 09:05 PM

I THINK THAT I CAN EASE YOUR WORRIES!!!

I have the same exact problem from my sony television speakers. I just purchased a new television so i did extensive research on the what was going on. NBC HD has a ticking, popping, clicking type noise every 4 seconds that comes from the left channel. I have determined that this happens only when watching NBC HD. I live in los angeles and i have direct tv.
The problem happens on:
1. Direct TV NBC HD
2. OTA NBC HD
3. Time Warner NBC HD
4. As well as converter box ota nbc

I have heard this sound on different televisions WITH DIFFERENT SERVICE PROVIDERS. THere must be something going on with the signal from the digital version of NBC because it does not happen on the analog.

slickshoes

10-12-08, 01:33 AM

audiomixer

10-12-08, 12:24 PM

im in Encino and still no new channels, you guys know whats goin on?Same here...I call and call and call TWC and can get no answer. :mad:

Mythos

10-12-08, 06:57 PM

Same here...I call and call and call TWC and can get no answer. :mad:

Same here in Reseda. I was told October 8 a few weeks ago but still no extra HD channels and I'm now told "in October" though TW staff see clueless (big surprise).

Hmmm...

beinhorn

10-12-08, 06:59 PM

Same here...I call and call and call TWC and can get no answer. :mad:

It's gonna be February for the areas in west san fernando valley aka time warner rebuild. The lines and the system out here is very old. This is what i heard from Head Tech not some guy in his pickup truck who came to my house

audiomixer

10-13-08, 01:00 PM

It's gonna be February for the areas in west san fernando valley aka time warner rebuild. The lines and the system out here is very old. This is what i heard from Head Tech not some guy in his pickup truck who came to my houseI live on the edge of Sherman Oaks in Encino and I know that the lines are newer. So what gives, I wonder?

zealot9802

10-13-08, 05:58 PM

I jumped ship. Off to D*. Good luck everyone.

alaindelon

10-14-08, 12:57 AM

I'm pretty much alone in harping over and over about the recompression perpetrated by TWC but this is just horrible.Did you guy's see what passes for HD on KTTV's Dodgers game tonight?Just a smeary,pasty,blurry & pixellated mess.

I guess most people just get used to this inferior quality after a while but i suggest for those with older recorded shows(pre July 2008) on your DVR's that you play some of them back for comparison.I just played back this years Grammy Awards from CBS and the difference is very dramatic-it looks the broadcast had twice the resolution compared to now.I even have KNBC HD recordings from 2004 from the then Adelphia cable before they started the multicast crap and they are so beautiful it will almost make you weep when comparing them to the current sad status of KNBC.

I have very bad reception but i hope to go back to OTA on at least the stations switching back to VHF in February.

jsessler

10-15-08, 10:43 AM

New HD channels went live in Fontana yesterday. On the positive side, TWC in this area is not using SDV so my TiVo S3 and HD are happy.

JohninLA

10-15-08, 03:23 PM

Which system does TWC use? My new TV needs to know for both analog and digital. I haven't a clue and am hoping someone here does. Thanks.

Was this ever answered?

I'm trying to Auto-Program my new Samsung LN52A550, and I can only find 2 channels. The setup is asking which system my cable comp uses, and I can't find that anywhere. Is there a list anywhere on TWC's site which shows that and which channels aren't scrambled?

Just for the record, I split the cable as it comes from the wall with a Monster 2 way cable splitter. 1 end goes to the tv's antenna input, and the other to the cable box.

Thanks for any help.

slickshoes

10-15-08, 05:56 PM

eddy_winds

10-15-08, 07:06 PM

Anyone getting "no program data" on Food HD 434 in Torrance on Passport?? Its been that way for awhile now..

alaindelon

10-15-08, 07:59 PM

The Dodger playoff pregame wich is local KTTV-DT is in HD now.The studio shots are in true HD with other clips in SD with the HD wings and remotes in SD widescreen.Hopefully tonights newscast will be HD for the first time.

llabine1

10-15-08, 08:33 PM

Was this ever answered?

I'm trying to Auto-Program my new Samsung LN52A550, and I can only find 2 channels. The setup is asking which system my cable comp uses, and I can't find that anywhere. Is there a list anywhere on TWC's site which shows that and which channels aren't scrambled?

Just for the record, I split the cable as it comes from the wall with a Monster 2 way cable splitter. 1 end goes to the tv's antenna input, and the other to the cable box.

Thanks for any help.

I have autoprogrammed my Mits and get about 15 HD channels and about 40 Digital stations....make sure when you are scanning that you have your non-cablebox input set to Cable not Air...if you don't you will not get the stations you need...as for what system your cable company uses I have never seen that asked before a scan on any of the tv's that I have owned...I have owned 4 HD flat screens all using the set up you have...If it were me I would call a Samsung dealer and ask what this means...maybe it is referring to Cable as opposed to Air which would be a roof antenna....

Mad Mac

10-15-08, 10:17 PM

The manual for this set is at

http://akamaipix.crutchfield.com/Manuals/305/305LN32550.PDF

and it has "Standard", "HRC" or "IRC" options. Start with "Standard" and see how it goes.

Cover

10-16-08, 12:54 AM

Yes,"Crime Warner" is now compressing the living daylights out of all HD channels with heavy pixellation as a result.The Olympics were basically unwatchable and the other local networks are ruined also,KCBS can not handle a simple disolve of fast scene change anymore without heavy artifacting.They also added a bunch of new HD channels around July.They are also up converting most of the 720p stations to 1080i for some reason.
It does appear Time Warner is now trashing the local HD channels. It must be a variable compression. Aside from some pixelization on transitions, the pictures actually go out of focus from one scene to another. It is real bad on dimly lit scenes. KCBS is the worst with KABC second to being the worst. Comparing the off air to cable, it is like night and day. I think I am over cable if this is the future.

alaindelon

10-16-08, 03:19 AM

It does appear Time Warner is now trashing the local HD channels. It must be a variable compression. Aside from some pixelization on transitions, the pictures actually go out of focus from one scene to another. It is real bad on dimly lit scenes. KCBS is the worst with KABC second to being the worst. Comparing the off air to cable, it is like night and day. I think I am over cable if this is the future.

Thank you for confirming this obvious fact.This is of course provable by the size of a recording made from TWC vs. one made OTA.I'm continually amazed about the lack of comments in this thread that TWC have seen fit to ruin even the local network affiliates in their quest to cram ever more HD programming onto their antiquated system.Like i commented before,the quality difference on KCBS before July 2008 and now is startling.

On a more positive note both KTTV & KCOP went HD today with their local newscasts.So now all major local news is in HD in Los Angeles.

CaCHooKa Man

10-16-08, 03:53 AM

i noticed that after transitions during lakers games on KCAL the screen would go out of focus for a few seconds. i dont remember it doing that when i used to watch OTA last season.

RandyWalters

10-16-08, 11:36 AM

We watch Good Day L.A. on FOX in the customer area at my shop on an LCD TV and this morning i noticed that it's now being broadcast in HD. Up till yesterday it was in 4:3 SD with black sidebars, and i don't remember them saying anything about them switching to HD. It's about time !

RandyWalters

10-16-08, 11:42 AM

Anyone getting "no program data" on Food HD 434 in Torrance on Passport?? My in laws across town have Navigator and the program data does come up.

This is a nuisance because I can't even set a recording or anything. Could it be that this is an SDV channel which Passport isn't compatible with??I don't think it's an SDV issue because my Tivo Series 3 with TWC CableCards gets the program data for FOOD HD on channel 434 and it does not support SDV.

But on my SA8300HDs and my GF's SA8300HD (both with Passport and also living in El Segundo) we're both getting No Program Data. All the other new HD channels they added along with FOOD (A&EHD, NATGHD, etc) all have program data - FOOD HD is the only channel that does not have any program data.

jsyoung

10-16-08, 03:23 PM

Thank you for confirming this obvious fact.This is of course provable by the size of a recording made from TWC vs. one made OTA.I'm continually amazed about the lack of comments in this thread that TWC have seen fit to ruin even the local network affiliates in their quest to cram ever more HD programming onto their antiquated system.Like i commented before,the quality difference on KCBS before July 2008 and now is startling.

On a more positive note both KTTV & KCOP went HD today with their local newscasts.So now all major local news is in HD in Los Angeles.

I noticed. (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=14574352&highlight=#post14574352)

At least KABC and KTTV are now back to 720p but who knows for how long?

AVNovicePhil

10-16-08, 03:44 PM

ARGH...haven't checked TWC website in like a month. Previously stated that La Habra/Fullerton/La Palma will have new HD channels in November. Now its not even listed. WTF?

slickshoes

10-16-08, 04:12 PM

As of today, it looks like Food HD now has the program data...

RandyWalters

10-16-08, 05:22 PM

As of today, it looks like Food HD now has the program data...Boy i hope so - my GF keeps calling me to look at my Tivo S3's guide so she knows what times to set her manual recordings for :D

I'll check my two SA8300HDs tonight when i get home from work . . . but i'm on the same TWC network as Torrance/Hawthorne/Gardena so it's probably working in El Segundo.

slickshoes

10-17-08, 04:53 PM

Any sign of the new Cisco boxes in the Socal area???

CaCHooKa Man

10-17-08, 05:33 PM

I noticed. (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=14574352&highlight=#post14574352)

At least KABC and KTTV are now back to 720p but who knows for how long?

ESPN is back to 720p too. i bet theyll start upconverting KABC and KTTV again by tomorrow for college football or by wednesday for the world series.

RandyWalters

10-17-08, 05:37 PM

It does appear Time Warner is now trashing the local HD channels. It must be a variable compression. Aside from some pixelization on transitions, the pictures actually go out of focus from one scene to another. It is real bad on dimly lit scenes. KCBS is the worst with KABC second to being the worst. Comparing the off air to cable, it is like night and day. I think I am over cable if this is the future.Nothing like that appears to be happening in my area, all my local cable HD channels look identical to the equivalent OTA channels when i compared them back to back over the past few days. KCBS and KABC look excellent. But then again my whole town is wired in Fiber Optic right up to the rear of the houses so i presume they have enough bandwidth and don't need to compress it. Yet.

alaindelon

10-18-08, 04:51 AM

Nothing like that appears to be happening in my area, all my local cable HD channels look identical to the equivalent OTA channels when i compared them back to back over the past few days. KCBS and KABC look excellent. But then again my whole town is wired in Fiber Optic right up to the rear of the houses so i presume they have enough bandwidth and don't need to compress it. Yet.

It does not matter if all of El Segundo is wired with Fiber Optic because this is a city wide problem and the compression appears at many different head ends and TWC would not have resources to NOT do recompression for one small city.That would be a huge technological undertaking for TWC.

If you have the ability to record OTA & cable on a computer or on a DVR where you can see the filesizes(Like the LG 3410A),just make a 1hr recording of the same channel OTA & from TW cable and you will see that the cable file size is much smaller thus proving the presence of recompression.

greinstein

10-18-08, 06:10 PM

From today's OC Register:

Next year, the local Time Warner Cable wants to take its 50 least-watched channels, such as some international channels, and turn them into an on-demand service. That, in turn, opens up room to offer channels that more people want — such as HD versions of popular channels. The technology is called ‘Switched Digital.”

But in order to access those channels, subscribers would need a piece of equipment that can communicate back to the cable company and request the programs. In Hawaii, where the two Time Warner offices were cited, subscribers with a non company-issued digital video recorder or a cable card, could not access those channels because those are one-way communication devices. The FCC said that the cable companies should have sought a waiver to the rule, according to MultiChannel News.

According to a report by Dow Jones news service, the FCC ordered $40,000 and $20,000 fines against Time Warner in Hawaii and Cox in Virginia, respectively, for “preventing some subscribers from receiving certain channels.” Plus the cable companies needed to refund customers for the lost channels and any equipment they had to buy to access them.

The FCC also noted that the number of customers affected was a very small percentage of all subscribers. But, the FCC added, “we consider the consumer harm resulting from actions here, which frustrate the commission’s broader goal of achieving a competitive navigation device market, to be significant,” according to the report.

Fred Stefany, president of O.C.’s Time Warner Cable operations, said that his company doesn’t agree with the FCC’s action.

“It was more related to properly notifying (the FCC) what we are doing,” Stefany said.

“So we are moving full speed ahead (in Orange County) and in fact, as I mentioned we have it deployed in many systems already,” he added.

No Time Warner DVR is needed for the ‘Switch’ service. But customers will need one of the company’s digital boxes.

“A customer simply tunes to the channel they want to watch. The box sends a signal to initiate the channel and the video starts. You do not go to ‘On-Demand’ or anything special. It will be totally invisible to the customer. They will never be able to tell if it’s a ’switched channel’ or a regular one,” he said.

Consumers who do watch those other channels would be none the wiser because when they flip to them, the broadcast works just as before — maybe with a minor delay.

Kablemodem

10-18-08, 09:47 PM

From today's OC Register:

They will never be able to tell if it’s a ’switched channel’ or a regular one,” he said.

Except when they can't see the channel because it is switched digital and their cable company hasn't made the necessary tuning resolver available.

I love how he thinks it is okay to violate FCC regulations as long as you give proper notice of the violation.

RandyWalters

10-19-08, 12:28 AM

It does not matter if all of El Segundo is wired with Fiber Optic because this is a city wide problem and the compression appears at many different head ends and TWC would not have resources to NOT do recompression for one small city.That would be a huge technological undertaking for TWC.You obviously don't live in El Segundo because this re-compression you keep ranting about is not happening here. I have seen it in a few Comcast areas and i know what it looks like, but this is not happening here in El Segundo. My local HD channels via TWC look just as perfect as OTA on three of my TVs, and my GF's TV. Which Los Angeles city do you live in? I keep switching back and forth between inputs and i can't tell them apart.

In one of your previous posts you yourself said "They clearly didn't have enough bandwith for the latest batch of HD offerings so now they have destroyed the whole lineup.Way to go,TWC". My TWC affiliate serves ES, Torrance, Hawthorne, and Gardena. I've seen TWC in West L.A. and it didn't look as good as my signal. When a senior TWC technician came to install my Tivo's CableCards last year, we talked about SDV and bandwidth issues and he said my network has enough bandwidth to add dozens of HD channels without compressing them, and they don't plan on implementing SDV anytime soon either. So far that seems to be the case, even after they added all the recent HD channels. All my HD local broadcast channels look fantastic on cable and none of my channels have been switched to SDV.

And DirecTV is headquartered right here in El Segundo and even with the recent improvement in DirecTV's HD quality, TWC's HD quality is still better than theirs is on their own turf (i have DirecTV HD at my workplace). Between my personal and business relationships with key DirecTV personnel in various deparments i could get a really good deal on their equipment and service but so far TWC still has better PQ so i'll continue to pay way more for TWC. But if they do to me what they did to you then i'll just use my Tivo S3 to continue to record OTA, then ditch cable and switch to DirecTV to record all the other SD and HD channels. It's a shame too because i watch a ton of SpeedChannel racing and i'd love to have it in HD at home, but it's not worth giving up my excellent TWC PQ on everything else in order to get it from D*. I do get to watch it at work.

If you have the ability to record OTA & cable on a computer or on a DVR where you can see the filesizes(Like the LG 3410A),just make a 1hr recording of the same channel OTA & from TW cable and you will see that the cable file size is much smaller thus proving the presence of recompression.I don't have any way to measure the bitrates, but if re-compression ruins the picture the way you say it does then it would be obvious if it were happening here, so it can't possibly be happening in El Segundo. There are dozens of individual TWC affiliates serving the various parts of Los Angeles and Los Angeles County each with their own management, policies, and networks so what may be happening in your particular area is not necessarily happening in other areas.

GizmoDVD

10-19-08, 05:46 PM

Anyone notice there was no sound on NBC HD last night? SNL is completely silent.

CaCHooKa Man

10-19-08, 06:11 PM

Anyone notice there was no sound on NBC HD last night? SNL is completely silent.

it was fine for me

alaindelon

10-19-08, 07:52 PM

You obviously don't live in El Segundo because this re-compression you keep ranting about is not happening here. I have seen it in a few Comcast areas and i know what it looks like, but this is not happening here in El Segundo. My local HD channels via TWC look just as perfect as OTA on three of my TVs, and my GF's TV. Which Los Angeles city do you live in? I keep switching back and forth between inputs and i can't tell them apart.

In one of your previous posts you yourself said "They clearly didn't have enough bandwith for the latest batch of HD offerings so now they have destroyed the whole lineup.Way to go,TWC". My TWC affiliate serves ES, Torrance, Hawthorne, and Gardena. I've seen TWC in West L.A. and it didn't look as good as my signal. When a senior TWC technician came to install my Tivo's CableCards last year, we talked about SDV and bandwidth issues and he said my network has enough bandwidth to add dozens of HD channels without compressing them, and they don't plan on implementing SDV anytime soon either. So far that seems to be the case, even after they added all the recent HD channels. All my HD local broadcast channels look fantastic on cable and none of my channels have been switched to SDV.

And DirecTV is headquartered right here in El Segundo and even with the recent improvement in DirecTV's HD quality, TWC's HD quality is still better than theirs is on their own turf (i have DirecTV HD at my workplace). Between my personal and business relationships with key DirecTV personnel in various deparments i could get a really good deal on their equipment and service but so far TWC still has better PQ so i'll continue to pay way more for TWC. But if they do to me what they did to you then i'll just use my Tivo S3 to continue to record OTA, then ditch cable and switch to DirecTV to record all the other SD and HD channels. It's a shame too because i watch a ton of SpeedChannel racing and i'd love to have it in HD at home, but it's not worth giving up my excellent TWC PQ on everything else in order to get it from D*. I do get to watch it at work.

I live in the Hollywood Hills but have PERSONALLY observed recompression in the following areas:North Hollywood,Studio City,Simi Valley,Marina Del Rey,Manhattan Beach and Lakewood.These are friends houses and I can give you the adresses if you like.I have reliable information that recompression occurs in West LA,Santa Monica,Torrance,Carson,Oxnard,Arcadia and various cities in Orange County.These areas are covered my a multitude of different head ends.This would lead most people to beleive that the recompression is done at a central downlink location before all the different head ends receive their signals.Maybe there is someone in the forum with exact knowledge about this.

I guess it is possible that El Segundo somehow stands alone with their own head end but I think it is highly unlikely.There would have to be a separate downlink station and controlroom that sends out their own compression free signals to just that city because many surrounding areas most certainly do not(receive compression free signals).As I understand it,there is a limited amount on quam channels and there is only room for a certain amount of HD channels per quam frequency.TWC are cramming more channels than they should for good quality into the alotted spectrum and this is causing the problems we are experiencing.As far as contact with any representatives from TWC at any level of seniority or experience,I have yet to talk to anyone with technical competence.

I don't have any way to measure the bitrates, but if re-compression ruins the picture the way you say it does then it would be obvious if it were happening here, so it can't possibly be happening in El Segundo. There are dozens of individual TWC affiliates serving the various parts of Los Angeles and Los Angeles County each with their own management, policies, and networks so what may be happening in your particular area is not necessarily happening in other areas.
There are many instances where most people do not notice these kind of problems in casual viewing circumstances,it looks "good enough" to their eyes.I was "ranting" on for weeks and weeks about the soft picture recently on KABC-DT both OTA and on TWC.Most people did not notice anything wrong but it turned out there was a big problem with the whole ABC west coast HD feed and it was corrected eventually.An engineer posted screencaps directly from the feeds in the main HD programming forum here on AVS proving the problem.You can also confirm this with AVS member videojanitor.

Then we have the recent Olympics debacle where because of very poor 50/60hz standardsconversion by NBC(or the host broadcaster),the whole United States of America received blurry,pixellated and pasty looking broadcasts.I was "ranting" about this problem as well.Yet we have many AVS forum members insisting that everything was just fine and they were receiving pristine quality broadcasts.There was just one problem-no one in the whole country could provide a clean capture of the Olympic ring transition to prove their point.

The only way i know of to definitively prove the presence of recompression in El Segundo is the afore mentioned recording tests so maybe there is someone else in that city that can provide the results of such recordings.Otherwise maybe i can lend you my LG machine for testing purposes.

jsyoung

10-19-08, 08:28 PM

I don't have any way to measure the bitrates, but if re-compression ruins the picture the way you say it does then it would be obvious if it were happening here, so it can't possibly be happening in El Segundo. There are dozens of individual TWC affiliates serving the various parts of Los Angeles and Los Angeles County each with their own management, policies, and networks so what may be happening in your particular area is not necessarily happening in other areas.

Actually, since you have a Series 3 TiVo, it's easy enough to check to see if they are compressing the signal.
Simply record an hour's worth program on a channel simultaneously on each tuner. One would record the OTA signal, the other would record the cable QAM signal.
Then check the files sizes of both recordings.

If Time-Warner is compressing in your area, the cable file size recording will be noticeably smaller.

DSperber

10-20-08, 10:22 PM

Just heard from "my source" at TWC...

Although the information isn't on the web site yet (probably will be by the end of the week) Tuesday's "Legal Notices" section of the LA Times will announce the availability of 25 more HD channels, again rolled out by area around the city.

The announcement will list the channels, and the planned availability dates by location.

In particular, I've been told that my area (MDR, former Comcast) will get them by mid-December.

That's the good news.

Now the bad news is that when the list of new channels was read to me, the only one I felt interested in was SCI-HD. Unfortunately that's in the Variety Tier (along with its SD counterpart) which I don't pay for, so no SCI-HD for me. This is the same story as with NGC-HD, which is part of Choice Tier which I also don't pay for.

So for me, with HD Tier only, I don't know if there's anything new. I may have to reconsider the TWC offerings and decide if I need to get another tier to significantly improve my HDTV watching/enjoyment.

Now what would be very useful to me would be HD OnDemand for HBO and SHO, or the "secondary" HBO and SHO channels in HD. The new HD channels include additions for TMC and Starz, but I don't subscribe to them either.

Anyway, YMMV. Check the paper tomorrow, and the TWC web site by the end of the week. Should be there by then.

CaCHooKa Man

10-20-08, 10:42 PM

isnt NGC HD included in the basic/digital cable package? i have the variety tier and i get the channel fine.

eddy_winds

10-21-08, 12:31 AM

NGC HD = Choice Tier

FlatPanelGeek

10-21-08, 02:55 AM

If you're using a QAM tuner and you're not getting program data or your channel mappings/allocations are not working, file a complaint with the FCC. Tell them your cable company is not sending QAM PSIP data.

https://esupport.fcc.gov/sform2000/formF!input.action?form_page=2000F

Mogur2

10-21-08, 06:53 AM

Hi,
I searched the L. A. Times site for "Time Warner Cable" but did not find anything. Do you have a lilnk for this announcement?

slickshoes

10-21-08, 11:59 AM

Here is the announcement posted on the Time Warner site...of course Torrance isn't listed and no Spike HD. BOO!! BUT, it does finally look like TWC is getting with the program and launching a good amound of HD channels thanks to competition...

"Beginning November 19, 2008, through February 2009, Animal Planet HD 451, Travel Channel 452 HD, Planet Green HD 453, The Weather Channel HD 454, FX HD 456, Bio HD 457, Science Channel HD 460, Toon Disney HD 461, Cartoon Network HD 462, Fox News HD 465, Fox Business Network HD 466, ESPNU HD 467, Speed HD 468, NBATV HD 470, NHL Network HD 471, The Tennis Channel HD 473, Lifetime Movie Network HD 475, Hallmark Movie Channel HD 476, HBO East HD 481, Cinemax East HD 482, Showtime East HD 483, The Movie Channel West HD 484, Starz East HD 485, INDemand Sports HD 1 732, and INDemand Sports HD 2 733; will be launched on the same service level as the standard definition version of each respective channel in: Artesia, Athens, Baldwin Hills, Bell Gardens, Bell, Bellflower, California Oaks, Canyon Lake, Carson, Claremont, Compton, Corona, Covina, Cudahy, Culver City, Downey, El Cerito, Glen Ivy, Harbor, Hawaiian Gardens, Hollywood, Homeland, Horsethief Canyon, Inglewood, La Mirada, La Palma, Ladera Heights, Lake Elsinore, Lakewood, Lennox, Lomita, Lynwood, Maywood, Menifee, Murrieta Hot Springs, Paramount, parts of Costa Mesa, parts of Cypress, parts of Los Angeles, parts of Murrieta, Playa Del Rey, Playa Vista, Pomona, Riverside County, Romoland, San Pedro, Santa Fe Springs, South El Monte, South Los Angeles, The Farm, Tustin, parts of West LA, Westchester, Wild Rose, Wilmington, and Wilshire."

edwarto

10-21-08, 12:37 PM

DSperber

10-21-08, 12:48 PM

Hi,
I searched the L. A. Times site for "Time Warner Cable" but did not find anything.It's actually on page 2 of the Classified Ads section.

Apparently they're required to make public announcements when carriage agreements expire or change, where channels may go away or be added.

It's a 3-column, 1/2-page announcement describing the full set of HD and SD channel adjustments, tier structures, etc.

The paragraph relating to the new HD channels is identical to what apparently now exists up on the TWC web site, as quoted in the post above this one.

As far as I'm concerned, only HBO-HD East is of any potential use to me (which doesn't provide additional content, only improved scheduling/recording/watching flexibility).

I would have liked SCI-HD but need to have Variety Tier to get that.

I would like to have NGC-HD (already available in the 12 HD channel additions of a few months ago) but need to have Choice Tier to get that.

I would have liked Tennis-HD but need to have Sports Tier to get that.

Can't find NHL Network SD but I'm going to assume NHL-HD is also going to be part of Sports Tier. I'm assuming NBA-HD is also part of Sports Tier.

Nothing else is of any interest to me.

I would like USA-HD... but that's not listed.

DSperber

10-21-08, 12:54 PM

are these the same places that go the last batch of channels ?? I am in fountain valley and i dont see my town listed?

what has changed? are they Switched Digital ?As I read it these channels are a second group of new HD channels, unrelated to the earlier 12 HD channels that were rolled out starting over the summer.

They obviously are going to be made available in phases throughout the LA area over time, with those shown in the announcement the first to receive them between Nov 19 and Feb 2009.

I was told the CSRs are receiving literature and training on these new channels, so hopefully by the end of the week they might actually be able to answer your questions on the phone. Of course they may also be provided with no more than the web site or Times announcement provides, which would not be terribly enlightening... like for your specific question about availability for Fountain Valley.

Anyway, I guess this is all slow and steady progress. Looks like 24 more HD channels, plus 2 In-Demand Sports HD channels.

eddy_winds

10-21-08, 01:09 PM

Here is the announcement posted on the Time Warner site...of course Torrance isn't listed But Lennox, & Lomita are a stone throws away..
;)

petey1287

10-21-08, 01:29 PM

are these the same places that go the last batch of channels ?? I am in fountain valley and i dont see my town listed?

what has changed? are they Switched Digital ?
Seems like most of those cities listed are former Comcast areas.

Well, I can't wait for these new HD channels to appear.

danki6x

10-21-08, 06:00 PM

CaCHooKa Man

10-21-08, 06:21 PM

darn.. no eagle rock listed

Mogur2

10-21-08, 08:21 PM

I don't see Santa Clarita mentioned. We finally got the previous update last week.

FWIW, I don't see the Sci Fi channel on the list.

DJRobX

10-22-08, 04:00 AM

I don't see Santa Clarita mentioned. We finally got the previous update last week.

FWIW, I don't see the Sci Fi channel on the list.Oh god here we go again. SCV was missing the last time they announced the grand arrival of their 11 new HD channels . You just perfectly summed up the reasons I switched to U-verse a couple months ago. Could not be happier with my decision.

Come on TW, get your act together! Comcast never treated Santa Clarita like second-class citizens and rolled out things to us in a timely manner. TW did NOT roll out SDV to Tujunga and Valencia to get those additional HD channels up. They all work fine with a Series3 CableCard TiVo. So why did these additions take SO long?

And for god sakes, make an agreement with NBC for USA, Bravo, and Scifi-HD already. Sheesh.

Mogur2

10-22-08, 07:42 AM

Does Uverse still limit one HD recording at a time? TWC at least offers two recordings while watching a third.

chuckie59

10-22-08, 12:20 PM

That's great, more channels added. The only problem is that in Upland we still haven't received the last 12 that were added...It's hard being a step-child!

joe221

10-22-08, 06:11 PM

Am I just noticing this or was it already here? KCOP is in QAM as 13.1 my dreams have come true! ;)

slickshoes

10-22-08, 06:20 PM

Am I just noticing this or was it already here? KCOP is in QAM as 13.1 my dreams have come true! ;)

You're real late to the party on that one..;)

As for Uverse, in most parts, you can record 2HD and 2SD at the same time, and they are now rolling out whole home DVR as well. I'm crossing my fingers that Uverse comes to my area sooner than later.

audiomixer

10-22-08, 06:26 PM

That's great, more channels added. The only problem is that in Upland we still haven't received the last 12 that were added...It's hard being a step-child!

And in Encino, too! :mad:

llabine1

10-22-08, 07:53 PM

You're real late to the party on that one..;)

As for Uverse, in most parts, you can record 2HD and 2SD at the same time, and they are now rolling out whole home DVR as well. I'm crossing my fingers that Uverse comes to my area sooner than later.

I don't think the whole house DVR is in HD....

jsyoung

10-22-08, 10:08 PM

So where are they getting the bandwidth for the new channels from?

Cover

10-22-08, 11:20 PM

Watch the current HD channels and it will be obvious where they are gaining the bandwidth. Some of the channels are already looking starved for bits.

jsyoung

10-22-08, 11:56 PM

Watch the current HD channels and it will be obvious where they are gaining the bandwidth. Some of the channels are already looking starved for bits.

It was a rhetorical question.

And KABC is back to 1080i.

gmahn

10-23-08, 11:50 AM

I don't think the whole house DVR is in HD....

Yep, it will stream in HD if you choose.

evil kenevo

10-23-08, 07:27 PM

I just want to give a heads up, I'm in Northridge and finally received the new HD channels.

Mogur2

10-23-08, 11:22 PM

I tried to find the information on the TWC site, but could not. Phone support has no clue. We have newer information then their support people.

Is there a link for the TWC information?

DSperber

10-24-08, 09:04 AM

Is there a link for the TWC information?It's here (http://www.timewarnercable.com/socal/programming/alerts.html).

RandyWalters

10-24-08, 09:09 AM

Actually, since you have a Series 3 TiVo, it's easy enough to check to see if they are compressing the signal.
Simply record an hour's worth program on a channel simultaneously on each tuner. One would record the OTA signal, the other would record the cable QAM signal. Then check the files sizes of both recordings.

If Time-Warner is compressing in your area, the cable file size recording will be noticeably smaller.How do i check the file size of a particular recording on my S3? I've been poking around but can't find a procedure to do this.

jsyoung

10-24-08, 12:25 PM

How do i check the file size of a particular recording on my S3? I've been poking around but can't find a procedure to do this.

I'm at work but:

1. Info screen of the recording.
2. TiVo Desktop Pick Programs to Transfer screen.
3. web interface to the Series 3.

Makavetis

10-24-08, 10:00 PM

new channels are up in tarzana!!!

petey1287

10-25-08, 05:50 AM

Looks like TWC will be rolling SDV in L.A. (as someone mentioned already :) )
http://www.timewarnercable.com/SoCal/Products/Cable/sdv/default.html

I dont know how long they had that page up.

edwarto

10-25-08, 04:49 PM

Looks like TWC will be rolling SDV in L.A. (as someone mentioned already :) )
http://www.timewarnercable.com/SoCal/Products/Cable/sdv/default.html

I dont know how long they had that page up.

I looked at my 92708 zip code and it shows as being SDV but I checked my box and its not? (by holding the Select button down till mail icon appears then hitting channel down)

Also my area does not show up as getting the new channels in November/

CaCHooKa Man

10-25-08, 06:11 PM

im pretty sure eagle rock doesnt have SDV

Gators02

10-25-08, 08:27 PM

Hi all. I have two questions that hopefully someone will know something on...

1. Why are all HD Broadcasts upsampled to 1080i (even Fox World Series that is recorded in 720p gets to my TV at 1080i (is the cable box or Time Warner upsampling)? My TV (ln46a650) probably can upsample better so I would prefer to get it in the original format.

2. I have the DCT 6416 III HDTV DVR. Is this the newest/best TWC LA has to offer?

I live in Playa Vista (Culver City/LA) for the record. Thanks!!

CaCHooKa Man

10-25-08, 08:29 PM

TWC decided to switch FSN HD back to 720p during the colorado-mizzou game. for a few minutes it looked like this:

http://img523.imageshack.us/img523/1678/wtfsnxa5.jpg

then for a few minutes the picture went out and when it came back it was in 720p.

CaCHooKa Man

10-25-08, 10:30 PM

and now its back to 1080i for the usc game

petey1287

10-26-08, 12:46 AM

I looked at my 92708 zip code and it shows as being SDV but I checked my box and its not? (by holding the Select button down till mail icon appears then hitting channel down)

Also my area does not show up as getting the new channels in November/
I dont think SDV is active right now, maybe next month for those cities who are getting those second batch of new HD channels.

fbrito

10-26-08, 12:55 PM

ARGH...haven't checked TWC website in like a month. Previously stated that La Habra/Fullerton/La Palma will have new HD channels in November. Now its not even listed. WTF?

Anybody know what's going on with Fullerton?

Mad Mac

10-26-08, 06:31 PM

I had the chance do do some OTA recording at my office this week - the file size for a typical TWC recording was 83% of that of an OTA one of the same programming. It's most noticeable on stills -I'll post some later.

infinitespecter

10-26-08, 06:53 PM

And in Encino, too! :mad:

Add Claremont to that list, despite being listed as having these channels months ago.

Mogur2

10-26-08, 08:53 PM

Hi,
Lately both my Motorola DVR (6416 & 6412) have been over recording on the SciFi channel (66 in Santa Clarita). I have had recordings for up 8 hours. This seems to limited to this channel.

Anyone else having similar problems.

Mad Mac

10-27-08, 02:03 AM

As promised....

http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l45/MadMac1886/HDTV/Jean102108OTA.jpg

OTA last Tuesday

http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l45/MadMac1886/HDTV/Gina102608TWC.jpg

TWC Clear QAM this morning.

TurkeySandwich

10-27-08, 02:54 PM

As promised....

...

OTA last Tuesday

...

TWC Clear QAM this morning.

Wow. Thanks for posting this. I'm surprised TWC is better. I was afraid that after adding the new HD channels they'd compress everything even more to save on bandwidth.

TurkeySandwich

10-27-08, 03:02 PM

Has anyone recently noticed issues with sound dropping out sporadically?

I'm in the Ventura/Oxnard/Saticoy area and for the last few weeks the sound will drop out for a second every so often. It is most common on Fox (1 - 5 times an hour usually) but I've also had it happen sporadically on other channels as well. I haven't noticed it on any other source, although I haven't had any time to watch movies or play many games in the last few weeks. Its not too big of a deal but definitely annoying.

I'll be swapping out the cable between my STB and receiver, and also trying a different input on the receiver to try and rule out that as a possibility but I was wondering if anyone else has seen a similar problem.

Mad Mac

10-27-08, 05:05 PM

I'm surprised TWC is better. I was afraid that after adding the new HD channels they'd compress everything even more to save on bandwidth.

Actually, if you take a look at the pictures a little more closely, in particular the desk and the background, they appear less well-defined on the TWC one. As I stated earlier, the recording from TWC is about 80% of the size of the off-air one.

danki6x

10-27-08, 05:51 PM

CaCHooKa Man

10-27-08, 09:34 PM

i just did an OTA vs. TWC experiment too. i recorded some of the CBS 2 news for the same length and the resulting file sizes were discouraging. the OTA file size was 5.17 GB and the TWC file was 3.27 GB. 63% compression. the good thing is that you cant really tell the difference between the two unless you look really closely. although the colors are noticeably better on the OTA feed. i was gonna do comparisons with the world series game but TWC is upconverting fox to 1080i so it wouldnt be a fair comparison.

OTA
http://img404.imageshack.us/img404/5271/cbsota1sp9.png

TWC
http://img159.imageshack.us/img159/1510/cbstwc1ey4.png

OTA
http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/7513/cbsota2kd8.png

TWC
http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/3586/cbstwc2tj6.png

OTA
http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/1559/cbsota3rm7.png

TWC
http://img404.imageshack.us/img404/39/cbstwc3zo7.png

jgmiller

10-28-08, 08:49 AM

Woke up this morning in Anaheim and was surprised to find new HD channels on my Moxi. It's kind of a strange combination though. 13: 410, Discovery: 418, VS: 423, ESPNNEWS: 426, CNN: 432, HGTV; 433, Food: 434, Disney: 435, ABC Family:436, TLC: 437, A&E: 438, Hist: 439, NatGeo: 440

Don't get me wrong I'm thrilled to have them but what happened to USA and CNBC? I don't ever remember hearing about VS coming soon in HD.

tracerit

10-28-08, 09:45 AM

I have a Vizio LCD TV and the local HD channels show up on my Vizio as the following:

86-89 CBS2 HD
86-88 KCAL9 HD
87-87 FOX11 HD
...

I thought they were supposed to be like 409 for KCAL9 HD, 411 FOX11 HD, etc... I'm currently connected straight from the coaxial cable to the TV. Will getting my HD DVR installed later today change the channels to something easier to remember?

edwarto

10-28-08, 10:18 AM

Kablemodem

10-28-08, 11:16 AM

Has anyone recently noticed issues with sound dropping out sporadically?

Yes, I've noticed it too. Mostly during the World Series, and it seems like it happens every time someone hits a home run or does something to cause the crowd to cheer. It may just be that that is when I pay attention. If I rewind to see what I missed I see that the picture has also badly pixellated.

joe221

10-28-08, 01:52 PM

Yes, I've noticed it too. Mostly during the World Series, and it seems like it happens every time someone hits a home run or does something to cause the crowd to cheer. It may just be that that is when I pay attention. If I rewind to see what I missed I see that the picture has also badly pixellated.

I'm on D* and I noticed something too. Every big hit or play, I'd lose picture and sound??? It's very strange. I was talking to a friend and it hapened to him once simultaneously so I knew it wasn't just me.

greinstein

10-28-08, 03:28 PM

From the OC Register:

http://gadgetress.freedomblogging.com/2008/10/28/time-warners-upcoming-features-for-oc-cable-tv-customers/4645/

Excerpts:
More HD channels: Stefany says HD is a priority. Most areas should have 50 HD channels by the end of the year. Certain cities, like Costa Mesa, will have 65 and up to 85 next year. The company is aiming for 100 HD channels in every city. I’ll mention specifics on this in a separate post.

“Start Over” and “Look Back”: Coming in mid-2009, these two services that let you watch shows you missed or forgot to record. Start Over lets a viewer who starts watching a TV show after it’s already started to restart the same show. Look Back offers on-demand access to TV shows from the past 24 to 48 hours. Time Warner mentioned this service to us before but it was delayed while they got permission from the TV companies to rebroadcast the shows. Right now, 28 networks have agreed to allow Time Warner to offer this feature but viewers won’t be allowed to fast-forward the shows.

Switched Digital: Since the cable pipe can only hold a limited number of channels, Stefany plans to take the 50 least popular ones and offer them on-demand through a technology called Switched Digital. That opens up space in the pipe for more HD channels and other features. If you’re a fan of one of these unpopular channels, you shouldn’t see any difference. You’ll still go to that channel and the service will instantly contact the on-demand center for the broadcast. While Time Warner customers in other parts of the country have cried foul because this means you can’t use a TiVo with ’switched’ channels, Stefany says that channels in O.C. will be the 50 least popular ones. Switched Digital is expected to go live after the new video-on-demand service is upgraded sometime next year.

dylan24

10-28-08, 04:53 PM

I'm on D* and I noticed something too. Every big hit or play, I'd lose picture and sound??? It's very strange. I was talking to a friend and it hapened to him once simultaneously so I knew it wasn't just me.
It must be a Fox problem. I was all set to curse TW but I guess this time it's not their fault.

llabine1

10-28-08, 05:04 PM

bwb

10-28-08, 05:33 PM

Those where the channels that where dished out a month or so ago USA and CNBC where not on that list back then. I guess you where in an area that got them last.

Last??? I'm in Fullerton and am still waiting for these stations. Originally, Fullerton was scheduled to receive in early October. Then pushed back to November. Now we're not even on the list.:mad:

bwb

petey1287

10-28-08, 06:07 PM

Last??? I'm in Fullerton and am still waiting for these stations. Originally, Fullerton was scheduled to receive in early October. Then pushed back to November. Now we're not even on the list.:mad:

bwb
Fullerton is now listed for November again.
http://www.timewarnercable.com/socal/products/hdtv.html?menu=DigitalCable

TWC updated the HD section on the SoCal website.

bwb

10-28-08, 07:22 PM

Fullerton is now listed for November again.
http://www.timewarnercable.com/socal/products/hdtv.html?menu=DigitalCable

TWC updated the HD section on the SoCal website.

Great news. Thanks!

tracerit

10-29-08, 12:07 AM

edwarto

10-29-08, 10:30 AM

Is anyone else having this issue. I am watching CNN HD and every time there is a commercial break and CNN national commercial is replaced by the local one (local dentist or Time warner add) the picture breaks up the sound stutters.

I have the sound going with a digtital optical cable and i can see on my reciver that its loosing it signal. Also two times over the last two day the digital sound output has gone away. the only way i can get it back is to reboot the box..

RudyG

10-29-08, 11:40 AM

Has anyone recently noticed issues with sound dropping out sporadically?

Yes on the Food Network it happens on a regular basis.

Rudy

edwarto

10-29-08, 01:21 PM

Yes on the Food Network it happens on a regular basis.

Rudy

I recorded on the DVR a NBC show and the sound would cut out every once in a while

danki6x

10-29-08, 05:26 PM

Is there a way to turn my TV off when I turn the HD DVR box off? I'd like to just have one remote control to work with.

Also my HD DVR's remote doesn't control the volume, everything else works though, the actual DVR box does change the volume though.
Look in the manual for the remote. There is a way to set-up the remote to turn on and turn off multiple equipment. I have it set-up that way so I only use the DVR remote. It turns on the TV along with the DVR and the volume works the TV volume. Everything else on the remote runs the DVR. It does take a little time. It turns them on one at a time every second or so. You get in a habit of leaving the remote pointed in the general direction for a little time after pushing the power button. I did not add my sound system, but I suppose you could. I only use the sound system 1% of the time so don't bother. /Dan

CaCHooKa Man

10-29-08, 07:54 PM

espn hd is back to 1080i

jsyoung

10-29-08, 10:44 PM

So is KTTV and KABC

Mad Mac

10-29-08, 11:43 PM

The 409 and 411 that you speak of are cable box channels...you need an HD box to access them...

No you don't...you can get KCAL and FOX 11 in HD with a QAM tuner. They won't show up as 409 and 411.

plateofshrimp

10-30-08, 02:15 AM

So, since Mojo is getting wiped.. am I paying an extra $5 for 3 channels? Is the HD tier just those channels and everything else is included with the HD box?

Brien

10-30-08, 02:43 AM

Great news. Thanks!

Finally! I was worried I'd have to wait until next year. It's good to hear from that article that they actually care about us OC customers though.

FlatPanelGeek

10-30-08, 05:32 AM

Is anyone else having this issue. I am watching CNN HD and every time there is a commercial break and CNN national commercial is replaced by the local one (local dentist or Time warner add) the picture breaks up the sound stutters.

Same problem here. I verified that it is not a problem with the source video by changing to the non-HD CNN channel. The local commercials do not have the issue on the non-HD channel. Kind of annoying. I'm using analog audio, so no need to reboot. EDIT... Just had the issue on CNN and it seems to have caused the box to freeze up. It did not respond to the remote control and audio/vido was frozen. It rebooted on it's own after about 5 minutes. Box was "off" after reboot.

RE: Time Warner OC, CA
I'm happy to report that QAM PSIP data is being sent again after a couple months of down time. DTV channel id's and program info now works. Channel mapping are also working now. Maybe my FCC complaint worked?

edwarto

10-30-08, 09:55 AM

Same problem here. I verified that it is not a problem with the source video by changing to the non-HD CNN channel. The local commercials do not have the issue on the non-HD channel. Kind of annoying. I'm using analog audio, so no need to reboot. EDIT... Just had the issue on CNN and it seems to have caused the box to freeze up. It did not respond to the remote control and audio/vido was frozen. It rebooted on it's own after about 5 minutes. Box was "off" after reboot.

RE: Time Warner OC, CA
I'm happy to report that QAM PSIP data is being sent again after a couple months of down time. DTV channel id's and program info now works. Channel mapping are also working now. Maybe my FCC complaint worked?

I wonder where the Quality control is its been 3 days and its still doing the stuttering and sound break up on local inserted commercials.

joe221

10-30-08, 10:45 AM

So, since Mojo is getting wiped.. am I paying an extra $5 for 3 channels? Is the HD tier just those channels and everything else is included with the HD box?

Such a deal! Yup sounds like it. D* has a simmilar $5 tier with about 6 channels. I think it's all crap when they do this kind of stuff. Your choice is to not pay for it. I don't on mine.

truvoo

10-30-08, 01:27 PM

zapbranighan

10-30-08, 05:06 PM

I'm in Anaheim 92801 and I still get local HD channels via QAM. I also noticed this morning that I finally get the new HD channels. It's about time!

truvoo

10-30-08, 05:12 PM

zapbranighan, which channels are they on? My QAM tuner had the local channels on 93.1 - 94.2, KCAL on 52.2, and KCOP on 52.1

gce

10-30-08, 05:17 PM

Did anyone lose their local HD channels using QAM? I'm in Anaheim 92802. I called TWC and the rep said it was no longer available. I'm pretty sure she doesn't know what she's talking about since she insisted that you need the cable box to get HD. I haven't had time to check the last couple of days so I don't know if it came back yet.

I'm in Anaheim 92808 and also lost the HD channels about 3 days ago. I'm using a DVDR with a QAM tuner. I did a scan this morning and got them back as the right channel numbers...2.1,4.1,7.1 etc. :)

My guess is there changing things around, getting ready for next Feb...I hope! :rolleyes:

danki6x

10-30-08, 05:37 PM

Did anyone lose their local HD channels using QAM? I'm in Anaheim 92802. I called TWC and the rep said it was no longer available. I'm pretty sure she doesn't know what she's talking about since she insisted that you need the cable box to get HD. I haven't had time to check the last couple of days so I don't know if it came back yet.
Read the bottom of message #5977. They are now pointing to the proper place (e.g., 2.1, 4.1, etc.). I noticed that too and was happy. Usually the TV will jump you when it is correct (say you have KNBC-HD on 88.4 and you choose 88.4 it jumps to 4.1). /Dan

infinitespecter

10-30-08, 06:33 PM

Fullerton is now listed for November again.
http://www.timewarnercable.com/socal/products/hdtv.html?menu=DigitalCable

TWC updated the HD section on the SoCal website.

And now my city isn't even listed at ALL. Great. :mad:

llabine1

10-30-08, 09:30 PM

No you don't...you can get KCAL and FOX 11 in HD with a QAM tuner. They won't show up as 409 and 411.

yes I know you can get them in QAM but they will not be on Channel 409 or 411 without a cable box...the original question was that he could get them with QAM on other channels and he was wondering why 409 and 411 would not appear on his QAM list...

tracerit

10-31-08, 01:28 PM

i'm in Huntington Beach 92647 and have noticed that ESPNHD 424 has been out in the mornings for the last two days, haven't had a chance to check it at other times though. Whats up with this? ESPN2HD 425 works though.

jgmiller

11-01-08, 12:04 AM

I've got an interesting new problem happening in Anaheim. First some background I have 2 Moxi's and 1 DCH3416. Periodically the Moxi's don't like to do On Demand, it's not a big deal and usually cures itself, a tech once told me they're kind of borderline with On Demand and TWC infrastructure.

I don't watch much On Demand usually something I missed on HBO, so the other day I tried to watch something and the Moxi's didn't want to do it. I finally got around to trying it on the DCH3416 today and I got a message I've never seen before. The message said "Cable Card Pairing Error" with the box ID and MAC address and telling me to contact support. I called them and they were at a loss as well, after trying different things they decided to send a tech out tomorrow. Has anyone else seen this error?

I have a theory, the other day I dropped Roadrunner and the CSR who did it also dropped my DCH3416 so I had to call in to reactivate it, I'm thinking he also screwed something else up in their database.

tracerit

11-02-08, 12:28 AM

anyone else not getting ESPNHD 424? It's one of the most watched and probably a standard channel, but it's not coming up for me....

edwarto

11-02-08, 11:36 AM

[QUOTE=tracerit;14988744]anyone else not getting ESPNHD 424? It's one of the most watched and probably a standard channel, but it's not coming up for me....[/QUO

Fountain Valley its coming in good

tracerit

11-02-08, 11:49 AM

yeah, i'm picking up the channel now, it's going to go to crap later though. i might look into FIOS, ESPNHD isn't the only channel screwing up.

edwarto

11-02-08, 03:34 PM

yeah, i'm picking up the channel now, it's going to go to crap later though. i might look into FIOS, ESPNHD isn't the only channel screwing up.

I used to have bad picture quality all the time lots of blocks. at one point ESPNHD was unwatchable I remember having to watch a football game on Std DEF.

over the last month things have been pretty good not as much rebooting ( it was happening every day)
the difference I had them put in an amplifier. before you run away give them a call and tell them you need one. I dont think they will do it unless you ask

tracerit

11-02-08, 10:30 PM

i gave them a call and someone is coming out on Tuesday to do some tests.

llabine1

11-03-08, 11:23 PM

edwarto

11-04-08, 01:27 AM

DJRobX

11-04-08, 04:44 PM

Those stills don't really catch the distorting I've noticed the most. Since the "upgrade" for more HD channels, I see a lot of distracting digital noise at scene changes. It's especially bad during previews (rapid scene cuts) or right after commercial breaks.

Seems to do OK once the picture is in place. It's as if they're spreading out the I frames too far apart and they can't manage a full frame change fast enough at times.
Also two times over the last two day the digital sound output has gone away. the only way i can get it back is to reboot the box..Play a recording. If you're already playing a recording, pick a different recording. The sound usually comes back. Stupid bug that's been around for years that TW+Motorola can't or won't fix.

-- Rob

edwarto

11-04-08, 05:21 PM

On the local TW page it says SDV is coming in our area but what clues would we see before it arrives?

do all the boxes in the house have to be Navigator? I still have one Passport and one Navigator.

danki6x

11-04-08, 05:41 PM

Has anyone else experienced this?...everything I recorded last week on my DVR's all started at least 2 minutes late which meant that some shows were cut off and some started with the cast list which is way into the program....this was on everything it's like the clock was not set correctly which is something we have not control over......now I have not noticed whether this is happening this week after the time change...but it was annoying...am I the only one who experienced this?

Yes, the times have been bad. I think the TWC time is off. Was 1 minute off a couple weeks ago and was 2 minutes off Sunday. Also the time on the TV (not on the DVR) is even worse. Check the TV Guide channel or the time when you are in guide mode. Compare that to real time (WWV, Cellphone, etc.) and it will be off a bunch. I normally do not show the time on the DVR, but changed that on and saw it was not correct couple weeks ago. I was close to contacting TWC about their time but thought somehow it could just be me (even though I could not image how since TWC sets the DVR time). Phone call would have been answered "I have no idea what you talking about" and an e-mail would have been "Thanks for your comments we will look into adding it" (Like correct time is not an expected feature!) A mailed letter to the district office is the only thing that works these days. /Dan