Originally posted by tivoyahoo
I guess bpearse's proposal to take the issue to the city council woke up some people up at Comcast. I'll try to test my speed tonight. davisdog, keep us posted on your speedtest results. davisdog, do you have the rca cable modem? would the log in be described in the manual? I think I can find my manual.

I do have an RCA cablemodem, but I doubt it's described in the manual (at least the little one that comes with it)...I'm going to rack my brain and try to remember. On the Admin html page it will tell you what the cap is set at (was 1.8Mb last I checked)

I just tried resetting my modem (unplug, replug) but still at 1.6Mb. I have gotten numerous contacts from Comcast, including their PR department, asking me to hold off until they have a chance to look into this more. Maybe this is having some impact. Not sure.

Originally posted by davisdog
I do have an RCA cablemodem, but I doubt it's described in the manual (at least the little one that comes with it)...I'm going to rack my brain and try to remember. On the Admin html page it will tell you what the cap is set at (was 1.8Mb last I checked)

According to:
http://lackatee.home.comcast.net/

"You can also view the config file on your modem at this address: http://192.168.100.1"

Got a note from the Vice Mayor of Saratoga, Kathleen King, saying that she has informed Comcast of my proposal and that they are trying to find a solution to why Saratoga is always last on any new service. I coincidently today got the message on my 6200 saying my internet speeds were now twice as fast, but after resetting my modem and router twice, still no dice. DSLReports shows me the same as I have always been: 1.6Mb.

I think maybe Comcast is just scrambling to make customers think they are taking action. If they go ahead and rush the 3.0Mb in Saratoga (which my inside sources said just 2 weeks ago was not going to be active until Mid August or even September) they may well blunt some of the criticism I was bringing to the city council. But they still have the issue of only having 1/2 the number of HDTV channels of other cities due to 550 MHz.

Originally posted by TPeterson
Howdy there, Lone Ranger John! Over here in San Carlos we feel your pain. :p I've gone OTA (with MyHD and Fusion boards) but would still pay the $5 for freedom from weather's vagaries and reception of KBWB and KBHK, which are too far down in altitude on Sutro and/or xmitter power for me to catch over the Belmont ridgeline. If you're not nestled into a canyon, you might give OTA some consideration too--except that we're now hearing from Comcast that our HD feed is coming Real Soon Now. ;)

Great to hear from you TPeterson! From my location OTA would make some sense. We are probably in a much better location due to a good 'line of sight' situation. My problem with going OTA has more to do with laziness and no time to due the studying and purchasing the right product. What do you suggest? What would you consider the best HD equiptment that can be used in concert with HD cable when and if it comes available? Thanks for the reply.

Originally posted by tivoyahoo
According to:
http://lackatee.home.comcast.net/

"You can also view the config file on your modem at this address: http://192.168.100.1"

Ah, thanks for finding that site...Interesting out other than Marin, it shows our area as the only one not upgrade to 3Mb..more fuel for the fire Bpearse is building (although I'd much rather see more HD Channels than the speed bum)

I think that IP is what I used before but I may need to plug directly into the modem w/my laptop rather than trying the normal setup through my linksys router. Anyway, I'll check tonight when I get home.

The Download Cap they had in there before is 1.8Mb

Speed reports are showing up at 3mb. See:

Saratoga:
http://www.dslreports.com/archive/comcast.net?zip=95070

Los Gatos:
http://www.dslreports.com/archive/comcast.net?zip=95030
http://www.dslreports.com/archive/comcast.net?zip=95031
http://www.dslreports.com/archive/comcast.net?zip=95032
http://www.dslreports.com/archive/comcast.net?zip=95033

Originally posted by davisdog
Ah, thanks for finding that site...

glad to help. I should be thanking you though. You've helped me quite a bit with your posts. The frequency chart, hd frequencies in use on 550mhz, and the VCM discussion are very useful.

Now that I have the rf modulator situation figured out for now and the future 750 upgrade, now I can shift focus to purchasing a FusionHDTV III Gold Card with QAM tuner:

http://www.digitalconnection.com/Products/Video/fusion3qam.asp

but I still have some questions/concerns due to the 550mhz system.

This post
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?postid=3937280#post3937280

shows the hd channel lineup in Cupertino using the Fusion card as: D79.1, D105.1, D105.2, D116.1, etc. I presume the card is tuning to the actual frequency and showing the actual channel/subchannel equivalent. Whereas the Motorola 5100/6200 tunes to the same frequency but uses a programmed VCM to display on virtual channel numbers.

In Cupertino, it looks like they are putting 2 HD channels on D116 and 5 HD channels on D117. I can't tell you exactly what channels those 5 are, but maybe the original poster can. I can't imagine those channels could be anything other than hd sent in the clear. In other words, they wouldn't be SD encrypted digital channels.

Also, in Cupertino, the comcast analog channel lineup is 2-78 and 81 & 82, so that has to be a 750mhz system I presume since 81 & 82 are above 550mhz. And it's interesting that D79.1 happens to fall right in between the analog hole between 78 & 81. And the highest reported channel is D117.5 which falls at ~750mhz. So this would reinforce my theory that the Fusion card is finding the actual frequency/channel. Also, it's interesting that you report Sarmilgatos is filling in holes lower in the frequency to fit the HD content (like analog 24 and 33). 24 is the only unused analog lower than 79 in Cupertino but it's not being used for HD apparently based on the fusion findings.

But that leaves me wondering what channels the FusionHDTV III would find on a 550mhz system since the Cupertino channel lineup starts at D79.1 and that is above 550mhz. Would the Fusion card find the lower frequency hd on 550mhz systems. This also has me wondering if the 550mhz systems use QAM64 or QAM256 (like the 750mhz systems apparently do based on fusion reports from Berkeley, Fremont, and Cupertino in the other avs thread). The product site for the fusion card says "QAM256 generally has been reported to work, although QAM64 still poses problems with the decoding software". I wonder if QAM256 is what allows 5 subchannels on 117, i.e. better compression.

I'm wondering if anyone has connected the Fusion card to Comcast in Saratoga / Milpitas / LosGatos / Monte Sereno (or even 550mhz Sunnyale), and what channel lineup it found. I presume other devices with a QAM tuner built-in would yield similar results, such as some of the mitsubishi tv's and the LG LST-3510A HD Decoder/DVD combo. Those devices should also be able to find the hd channels on their actual channel/frequency and not the virtual channel. Or maybe the fusion and other QAM-enabled devices don't work with the 550mhz systems in the south bay??

Has anyone has tried a a QAM enabled device with a 550 mhz system. This is something I'd like to know before I buy the fusion card. Otherwise I may just wait until the 750mhz upgrade happens if only we knew when that would be. It sounds like no time soon however based on DCTDictators comments that 330mhz systems are still out there and first priority.

Any feedback/experience on this topic is appreciated.

tivoyahoo,

I don't have time to digest all you said now (gotta get some work done) but in case you didnt know...The DCT5100/62XX diags will tell you the exact freq that the VCM maps a particular channel to along with whether its using QAM64 or 256 (I believe DCT menitioned they were going to start using 256 to free up some more space, I don't remember if any where...)

Anyway, if you didnt know.

Turn on the TV and DCT and from the DCT front panel tune to the channel you want. Power off the DCT, then hit select...That will bring up the diag screen for the DCT on your TV...Then use the down arrow to take you to the d06 menu and hit okay (or select) that will bring up the actual frequency and modulation for that particular channel...unfortunately you have to back out and go through the process again to switch channels and see another one.

btw, I would assume a QAM tuner would work on a 550Mhz system just fine for the channels they arent encrypting...You'd need a cablecard compatible device to view the encrypted ones (assuming you were authorized)

-Steve

Originally posted by davisdog
The DCT5100/62XX diags will tell you the exact freq that the VCM maps a particular channel to along with whether its using QAM64 or 256 (I believe DCT menitioned they were going to start using 256 to free up some more space, I don't remember if any where...)

Thanks. I didn't realize the diags would show whether it the channel was using QAM64 or 256. That appears to be the key determinant of whether the fusion card will work, and not the 550mhz. Yes DCT did mention going to 256 and it sounded like that could increase capacity and happen prior to the 750 upgrade. So I presume we're at 64 now, but I'll check as you suggested.

There's an interesting article in today's Chron that says SBC is going to invest up to $6 billion in upgrading their infrastructure to allow for cable TV. Their plan is to basically run fiber all the way to the junction boxes and then use the existing copper wiring to go the rest of the 3,000 to 5,000 feet into the home. New homes would actually have fiber going directly into the home. They also said this would allow them to get Internet speeds up to 25Mb/s download and 1-3Mb/s upload.

Not sure if this will ever happen but if it does, it probably won't be for a while. Online article can be found here:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/06/23/MNGVR7AI711.DTL&type=tech

yeah, it will happen eventually but it's still a long way off around here


PacBell did something like that on a small scale in a section of San Jose but later abandoned it (and sold the customers to Comcast)...It was too expensive....Palo Alto's been trying to get fiber to the home for ages, also very expensive.

I got a postcard in the mail last week or so, saying "trucks are busy in your neighborhood, HDTV & new features coming soon!", plus I'd heard whispers of possible late-June avail for HDTV in San Mateo county here..

So, I tried (again) ordering HDTV service, via website, just to see what they'd say.
(Last time, got email reply nixing it, saying not available yet.)

This time, IT WENT THRU!
Scheduled to install HD in Foster City, Tues 6/29!

I'll see what actually happens & update that day... cross fingers :-)
and I'll see/ask about DiscoveryHD... (hmm, only real thing on now, during summer...)

I put in comments also, that I wanted 6208/firewire (HD DVR), we'll see what STB they bring...

A bit off topic, but Comcast did indeed increase internet speed to 3Mb today in Saratoga, a month or more ahead of their schedule set just a week ago. I guess escallating this to the city of Saratoga did help. Now, if they could just fix the lack of INHD1 and 2 issue!

DSL reports:
2004-06-23 20:09:39 EST: 3126 / 238
Your download speed : 3201320 bps, or 3126 kbps.
A 390.7 KB/sec transfer rate.
Your upload speed : 244701 bps, or 238 kbps.

Originally posted by fender4645
There's an interesting article in today's Chron that says SBC is going to invest up to $6 billion in upgrading their infrastructure to allow for cable TV. Their plan is to basically run fiber all the way to the junction boxes and then use the existing copper wiring to go the rest of the 3,000 to 5,000 feet into the home. New homes would actually have fiber going directly into the home. They also said this would allow them to get Internet speeds up to 25Mb/s download and 1-3Mb/s upload.

Not sure if this will ever happen but if it does, it probably won't be for a while. Online article can be found here:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/06/23/MNGVR7AI711.DTL&type=tech

I read that too. 25mb/s? On what planet do they think we will ever achieve that? What servers/routers have a pipe that big?

Originally posted by davisdog
Ah, thanks for finding that site...Interesting out other than Marin, it shows our area as the only one not upgrade to 3Mb..more fuel for the fire Bpearse is building (although I'd much rather see more HD Channels than the speed bum)

I think that IP is what I used before but I may need to plug directly into the modem w/my laptop rather than trying the normal setup through my linksys router. Anyway, I'll check tonight when I get home.

The Download Cap they had in there before is 1.8Mb

What are you guys using to clock the modem? Cnet? Something else?

Originally posted by dandrewk
What are you guys using to clock the modem? Cnet? Something else?

http://www.dslreports.com/stest
is fairly accurate

dandrewk:

http://www.dslreports.com/stest

Originally posted by dandrewk
I read that too. 25mb/s? On what planet do they think we will ever achieve that? What servers/routers have a pipe that big?

Aren't OCx lines based on fiber? I know that OC3 does ~125Mb/s so if you could get fiber running directly to the house... I'm not saying that you would have OC3 speeds but if they could essentially bring the "backbone" of the Internet outside your door, acheiving those speeds seems possible.

Originally posted by dandrewk
I read that too. 25mb/s? On what planet do they think we will ever achieve that? What servers/routers have a pipe that big?

Nothing earth shattering about those speeds (although we'd all love to have them)...The Routers/Servers can handle it now..its having big enough pipes and enough servers to handle a ton of folks. It's not all that different that the 1Gb/s LAN I have ...you just have to scale it and be able to travel the distance. Fiber lines can carry many gb/s of data (my last job years ago we had an OC-48 network that was 2.5gb/s over distance...now that ripped and things have gotten better since then)

heck I had 5mb down/1mb up 4 years ago when @home ran the network and it was uncapped ;) (and much cheaper than it is now)


Also remember this SBC thing is a vision several years into the future

Are they talking those speeds regarding internet downloads, or for delivering video over phone lines?

Originally posted by dandrewk
Are they talking those speeds regarding internet downloads, or for delivering video over phone lines?

According to the press release, it's for Internet download:

http://www.sbc.com/gen/press-room?pid=5097&cdvn=news&newsarticleid=21207

Originally posted by cgould
I put in comments also, that I wanted 6208/firewire (HD DVR), we'll see what STB they bring...

Want an 1800? Just kidding. Should get a 6200. Make sure it's not a 5100 - look for the 1394 port.

6208s? Arrrgh.

I have my 2nd 6208, this one functions ok (last one crashed & reloaded evertime the MENU button was pushed) but the fan is awful. Maybe the first one had a bad fan and the whole thing suffered from high temp. Same component stack has a Sony SVR2000 TiVo that runs at 34c with it's stock 80mm fan.

I'm looking toward my PC mod suppliers for something better in the case cooling department. A water cooled DCT6208 with blue LEDs? Watch for it in the gallery.

Originally posted by DCTDictator

I'm looking toward my PC mod suppliers for something better in the case cooling department. A water cooled DCT6208 with blue LEDs? Watch for it in the gallery.

Here's how to build your own watercooling system ;)

http://www6.tomshardware.com/cpu/20020102/watercooling-01.html

Well, the free ride for HDTV movies appears over here in South San Francisco. Lost Starz and Cinemax last night. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.

On an analog note, did anyone try to watch the Giants game last night on channel 77? The PQ on the Fox + channel was horrible. Have a 5100, running 7.10 and the picture was really grainy. Having a hard time deciding what looks worse, the grainy picture on cable or the blurry picture from Dish. I can only hope that Fox Sports HD comes sooner than later.

hmm, not too happy to hear about the high-heat/loud 6208s... I already have my Tivo on top the TV, it's got a nice quiet fan (and quiet HDD, w/ the rubber spacers.) I'll prob put the HD STB next to that, at least no stack/enclosure to increase heat... but it won't hush the noise...

I put the note for HD-DVR, eg 6208, to help ensure I get a disk drive STB... don't care firewire so much, as onboard DVR.
w/ my 2yr old, there's no way I can watch any TV live these days, too much interruption!

BTW, I checked dslreports also, and Foster City is upgraded to 3mbps...

2004-06-24 10:29:55 EST: 3125 / 234
Your download speed : 3200860 bps, or 3125 kbps.
A 390.7 KB/sec transfer rate.
Your upload speed : 240499 bps, or 234 kbps.

guess that also is a good sign re perhaps our headend is 750mhz upgraded now, or?
we'll see come Tues. Hope it has Discovery...

BTW, hey, anybody want a Samsung SIR-T150 for cheap? :) (after tuesday at least ;) )

Originally posted by cgould
I put the note for HD-DVR, eg 6208, to help ensure I get a disk drive STB... don't care firewire so much, as onboard DVR.
'

cgouldl...just in case you havent been watching the thread...you will not be getting an HD-DVR in your area...Comcast is not deploying them yet in Northern California...At least a couple more months away

DCTDictator works for Comcast in the southbay supporting the STBs and even he has trouble getting one to play with in his Comcast Lab in San Jose :(

Originally posted by cgould
...So, I tried (again) ordering HDTV service, via website, just to see what they'd say....This time, IT WENT THRU! Scheduled to install HD in Foster City, Tues 6/29!.... Thus encouraged, I tried again too but got the usual note a day later:

Thank you for your interest in Comcast high definition tv.

Unfortunately, the service(s) you requested are not currently available in your area. However, we are working hard to upgrade our systems to provide our products in your service area.

<sigh>

Originally posted by arachide
Well, the free ride for HDTV movies appears over here in South San Francisco. Lost Starz and Cinemax last night. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.

On an analog note, did anyone try to watch the Giants game last night on channel 77? The PQ on the Fox + channel was horrible. Have a 5100, running 7.10 and the picture was really grainy. Having a hard time deciding what looks worse, the grainy picture on cable or the blurry picture from Dish. I can only hope that Fox Sports HD comes sooner than later.


Tell me about it! Sorry to see them go. I got HDTV service last friday and was pleasantly surprised to find that we got Cinemax and Starz in HD. Too bad my ESPN HD doesn't come in. Great, another appointment i need to setup.

Btw, arachide do you get 247, TV Asia? Do me a favor and check. for some reason we're getting that, plus a ton of other staitions that i bet i'm not supposed to be getting...like Discovery Wings, FSN Pacific/Central/Atlantic, etc.

I have only subsribed to standard cable with the hdtv box.

Originally posted by dandrewk
I read that too. 25mb/s? On what planet do they think we will ever achieve that? What servers/routers have a pipe that big?

In other countries, home residents have 45 meg connections to the internet. Like Japan. Too bad they have to go through a small pipe to get to the US, but it would be cool to have 45 megs download. I have 6megs/608k for upload and download.

I have a friend in Daly City who lost his ESPN HD. When he subscribed, they said all he needed was extended cable and HD. Since he gets ESPN on analog, he would get ESPN in HD. Well, he lost his ESPN HD and when he calls they are saying he has to subscribe to the digital package now. Seems kinda dirty if you ask me. Telling people you will get a channel, then remove the channel and then make them pay for more to get it back again.

Anyone else notice this or knows what he is really supposed to get?

Russ

i have a tech coming on saturday morning to fix my ESPN HD so we'll definately see what's up then. I've called tech support twice about not getting ESPN HD and they've never said that i'm not supposed to receive it. Sounds like your friend in DC is getting BS from Comcast.

Russ,

Since ESPN became available on Comcast, it has always been part of the digital classic tier. Some areas (like mine) got it for free with ANY package for a while, but those times appear over. CSRs never know what is going on, so I do not doubt they got it wrong in communicating to your friend.

Originally posted by Jizzay1
i have a tech coming on saturday morning to fix my ESPN HD so we'll definately see what's up then. I've called tech support twice about not getting ESPN HD and they've never said that i'm not supposed to receive it. Sounds like your friend in DC is getting BS from Comcast.

Let me know how it goes. What package are you subscribed to? Thanks, if you get it back, my friend will thakn you!

Here is my letter to Brian Roberts, the CEO of Comcast, on the situation in Saratoga. It looks like the pressure we (most notably the great folks at the City of Saratoga) have put on Comcast has already paid off with the 3Mb internet service finally being pushed out this week. Now to get the full line up of HDTV channels that the rest of the country has....


Brian,

I have been working with the City Council of Saratoga, California to plan termination of Comcast's franchise agreement at the next contract renewal. There will be a letter to the editor published in next week's Saratoga News on Comcast's poor treatment of Saratoga, and I will be working with the San Jose Mercury News on a Locals section article on Comcast of Saratoga. I also will be bringing a resolution to the city council once we have all our facts confirmed requesting termination of Comcast.

The basis for this action is my understanding that Comcast of Saratoga (along with the cities of Milpitas, Los Gatos, and Monte Serene which are all served by the same head-end) has received service which puts us at the bottom 5% of all your franchises. For example:
- Saratoga had, as of June 20, been one of only a handful of cities where customers who were paying for high speed internet service received only 1/2 the bandwidth of other customers. Saratoga residents paid the same amount for their service as the rest of the country, yet got 1/2 the download speed. My research has shown that Saratoga head end was one of the last in the entire country to be upgraded, which I believe finally occurred this week.
- Saratoga continues to be one of the very few cities in the country which has an HDTV offering which is limited to about 1/2 the number of HDTV channels of other Comcast franchises. Due to failure to upgrade Saratoga's head end, Saratoga residents cannot receive INHD1, INHD2, StarzHD, CinemaxHD, and the soon to be released DiscoveryHD. This gives us less than 1/2 the HDTV offering of other cities. Yet we pay exactly the same or more for this reduced offering. My research has shown that of the Comcast cities which offer HDTV, less than 5% have such channel limitations.

I know that, by definition, someone has to be at the bottom 5% of service by Comcast. But Saratoga should by all accounts be a very profitable city for Comcast. The average home price in Saratoga is $1.1M. Average household income is almost $150,000. We have 30,000 residents in a 10 square mile area. I am sure we can find another provider who would be willing to service this city, and not relegate us to the bottom 5% of customer service.

Because I will be communicating these findings and my planned actions to the community using our local media, I wanted to make sure my basic facts were correct. If you feel I have misrepresented the above findings, I will listen to your input and adjust as necessary. It is not my goal to remove Comcast from Saratoga. My goal is to gain fair treatment from a cable company for the City. The poor treatment by Comcast leads me to believe that brining in another provider would be the best way to improve our service.

Sincerely,




I can't say enough about how great the staff of the City of Saratoga has been here. They are busy with lots of probably more important stuff than this, but they seem to make the time somehow.

i subscribe to:

Standard Cable 43.99
Includes: Limited Basic And Expanded Basic Service


bpearse: Awesome letter. hopefully you get some results.

Jizzay,

I called Comcast recently to stop HBO service, and they offered me free Digital Classic. In fact, they paid me about 30 cents to take it! I was just Limited Basic ($13 per month). They provided me Limited Basic plus Digital Classic for less than $13 per month. They said it was a special they were running. It will last for 6 months. Heck, I went for it since it gave me ESPNHD. I just hope INHD and Discovery will be added by Saratoga so I will get them too.

Bob,

Excellent Letter! I suspect you'll get some sort of response from the executive support staff that Brian has...hopefully they will pick up the pace, or at least be forthright with what their plans are for buildout. Ideally it would be beneficial for both sides if Comcast stayed in place but kept Saramilgatos current in technology....it would take ages for a new vendor to get stuff up from scratch. I glanced at a few documents about Palo Alto's effort to displace or compete with Comcast etc using Fiber to the Home (FFTH) through the city owned utility...Interesting concept...alot of effort and expense though.

http://www.pafiber.net/index.htm
and big comparison report here (I just briefly looked through it)
http://www.pafiber.net/ftth/bizplan-packet (look at Appendix B)

Jizzay1,
As it was mentioned elsewhere (and sometimes overlooked by clueless CSRs)...ESPN-HD is included in the Digital Classic Package (as stated in their Channel lineup cards)...It's not in the Expanded Basic package that ESPN is included in. They probably finally turned on the encryption which is why you lost it (since your packages dont include it)

I bet if you call a CSR and just tell them to sign you up for the Digital Classic Package it will come right up (along with InHD1/2 if available in your area and about 20 SD channels)..Of course the cost is $9.95/mth but you might be able to get the 6mth free package Bpearse just got...and by the end of 6 months you'll enjoy InHd1 & 2, Discovery HD etc on that package you will keep it...otherwise you may be in for an exercise in frustration on Saturday

-Steve

Steve,

Now i'm really confused...when i signed up for the HDTV, i was told i would receive:

ABC HD
CBS HD
NBC HD
PBS HD
ESPN HD
INHD
INHD2

I get all except ESPN HD (says not authorized). Are you saying i'm not supposed to get INHD1/2 either?

Why dont' those idiot CSRs i talk to tell me that i'm not supposed to get it just by looking at my plan? ARGH!

Jizzay1,

Yep...That's what I'm telling you :( others such as Sonomasearcher will confirm it...

When you pay $5 for the HD box you get nothing other than the box...It's not a "channel package"

The HD Locals are included as part of the basic service...you just need to HD capable box to tune them in.

ESPNHD/InHD1/2 are part of the $9.95 Digital Classic Package...you just need the box to tune them in if you subscribe to Digital Classic...(of course comcast has been slow to turn on the encryption (presumably a lack of encryption hardware for the channels the HD Channels that has added to the confusion))

Same with HBOHD (part of HBO Package)...Starz, Showtime, Cinemax are the same.

Presumably DiscoveryHD will be part of Digital classic...possibly Fox Sports Bay Area-HD when it launches later this summer.

Rule #1 (sadly) we post around here (about 1/week) is to remind people that info from CSRs is generally wrong and to validate everything here. Comcast has been moving to a more localized Helpdesk model (Opened a call center in Morgan Hill and Livermore I think)..so hopefull it will get better...ATT had outsourced it all

so basically the CSR lied to me when i ordered the box...saying that i'd get ESPN-HD at a minimum. bastards! now i'm sad :( (that i'm gonna lose INHD)and pissed that they lied :mad:

daviddog and others in Saratoga, Los Gatos, Monte Sereno and Milpitas, I encourage you to also contact your local city councils to let them know how displeased you are with Comcast's poor service in our area. The more pressure we put on Comcast, through our city governments, the more quickly we might see action.

In Fremont, when I first got HD back in January, I got all those channels plus HBOHD and ShowtimeHD. Within 2 weeks I lost INHD and INHD2. A few months later, I got StarZHD and CinemaxHD. Then a couple of weeks ago, I lost ESPN HD, HBOHD, and ShowtimeHD, but gained INHD and INHD2. I don't know what changed last night.

I still only pay the extra $5 on top of my $12.39, so I can't complain.

Originally posted by Jizzay1
Steve,

Now i'm really confused...when i signed up for the HDTV, i was told i would receive:

ABC HD
CBS HD
NBC HD
PBS HD
ESPN HD
INHD
INHD2

I get all except ESPN HD (says not authorized). Are you saying i'm not supposed to get INHD1/2 either?

Comcast appears to be moving things around in preparation for additional channels. According to the CSR that I talked to, they are "moving to a new satellite." That's pretty funny.

I have lost HBOHD,Showtime,Starz and sometimes Cinemax and ESPNHD. A new subchannel popped up on my Fusion card yesterday. I can't believe that they just arbitrarily shut down services (although they did send a message that "new" digital subscribers might experience l-o-s).

If it improves the service, I'll be happy. If it doesn't, I'll dump it.

Originally posted by Jizzay1
Tell me about it! Sorry to see them go. I got HDTV service last friday and was pleasantly surprised to find that we got Cinemax and Starz in HD. Too bad my ESPN HD doesn't come in. Great, another appointment i need to setup.

Btw, arachide do you get 247, TV Asia? Do me a favor and check. for some reason we're getting that, plus a ton of other staitions that i bet i'm not supposed to be getting...like Discovery Wings, FSN Pacific/Central/Atlantic, etc.

I have only subsribed to standard cable with the hdtv box.

Jizzay1-

Just checked and I am receiving 247 too. Also receiving a few other international channels: 244, 247, 251, 252, 256, 257, 259, 260 and 261. Turned on TV5 for a few minutes to brush up on my (very rusty) high school French. I have to say given the PQ, you really have to WANT this channel to pay for it. The compression on this one is huge- it looks like a webcast at times.

Do people really pay $10/month for this channel?

bpearse,

Great letter and thanks for trying to get something done for us in the areas of Saratoga, Los Gatos, Monte Sereno and Milpitas. I've felt like dropping Comcast and going with D* since they've done nothing and know nothing about any upgrades to our area, really frustrating but I'll give it one more try with the Milpitas City Counsel and see what they can do. Again thanks for your efforts.

Originally posted by tivoyahoo
According to:
http://lackatee.home.comcast.net/

"You can also view the config file on your modem at this address: http://192.168.100.1"

I have check the address on my cable modem. It says that my downstream frequency is 705MHz. Does it mean that my area is already upgraded? I got 3Mbps several months ago. I plan to order HDTV. I only have Liminited Basic.

Originally posted by bton
I have check the address on my cable modem. It says that my downstream frequency is 705MHz. Does it mean that my area is already upgraded? I got 3Mbps several months ago. I plan to order HDTV. I only have Liminited Basic.

Yes, you are in the good part of San Jose ;)

Your systems is running at 750Mhz and should have all the HD channels on your system. If you order the HD Box for $5 you will pick up NBC, ABC, CBS, PBS HD channels...For $10 more if you get digital classic you will get InHD1/2 (nice mix of HD Sports, Shows, Movies) and ESPN HD...Probably Discovery HD in a month also. bpearse said there is a special you might get for Digital classic free for 6 months. of course if they screw things up you might get others without paying for them.

The area in SJ without even High Speed Internet is only 330Mhz.

In Saratoga our Downstream Frequency for Internet is 548Mhz and our cable system is only 550Mhz (and missing some HD channels because of lack of bandwidth)

Originally posted by davisdog
In Saratoga our Downstream Frequency for Internet is 548Mhz and our cable system is only 550Mhz

davisdog, were you able to find that out by using http://192.168.100.1
or did you get into the config file another way?
would los gatos have the same downstream frequency?
does the config file show the change/update of cap from 1800 to 3000?
thanks.

TivoYahoo,

Yes, you can get it from that link if you look at the diagnostic submenu.
Signal Acquired at 548.996 MHz (download)
SNR: 34.6 dB Frequency: 22 MHz (upload)
Received Signal Strength: -11.2 dBmV Power Level: 39.0 dBmV
Micro-Reflections: 17 dBc Channel ID: 1
Modulation: 64 QAM Modulation: QPSK

and losgatos would be the same
I havent found the cap value yet in the menus.

by the way...Unfortunately I'm still stuck at 1.8Mb in Saratoga...I've recycled the cable modem and left it unplugged for long periods of time and no luck when I bring it back up.

DCTDictator,
Anyway you can look at it from your end with the serial # or something and see why it doesnt take the cap change?

-Steve

Originally posted by davisdog
by the way...Unfortunately I'm still stuck at 1.8Mb in Saratoga...I've recycled the cable modem and left it unplugged for long periods of time and no luck when I bring it back up.


Now I don't feel completely left out as I tried the reboot/power cycle last night and still got 1.7mbps from dslreports from LG. I tried to see if the modem had downloaded a new config file from the headend which noted the cap change, but couldn't find that parameter. Nor could I figure out if there was a date associated with the config file so that I could see if it was a new one or not that had been pushed down.

Anyone have any insight?

davisdog, did you PM DCT with your mac address, or what no. did you give him? please let us know if that did the trick. I'd like to get onboard at 3mb too. thanks.

Some have said you have to call Comcast and ask them to 'flip a switch' to get you to 3Mb. That is what I did. Even after that, it would not go to 3Mb at first. They said unplug the modem for 15 seconds. Did that several times and no go. I then unplugged both the modem and my router (so that nothing was plugged at all into my modem to give it any type of power) and left them unplugged for 2 minutes. After that, I was getting 3Mb download according to DSLReports.

But apparently you do have to call them to get the increased speed, which seems odd.

Originally posted by davisdog
by the way...Unfortunately I'm still stuck at 1.8Mb in Saratoga...I've recycled the cable modem and left it unplugged for long periods of time and no luck when I bring it back up.

DCTDictator,
Anyway you can look at it from your end with the serial # or something and see why it doesnt take the cap change?

-Steve

Modems are not my technical best, (someone feel free to correct me) but what I understand happens is that the 'bootloader' configuration should be changed to reflect your speed increase, modem powers up and discovers it instructions to run at the prescribed speed. The key is in that sequence. Why would it fail? Error in either in the billing system of the modem controller.

What fixes it? Trouble call or modem swap?

I've been out of the office much of the week for budgets or software training (way to go, Oracle11i!!) . Let me ask someone who knows more about it.

Originally posted by bpearse
Some have said you have to call Comcast and ask them to 'flip a switch' to get you to 3Mb. That is what I did. Even after that, it would not go to 3Mb at first. They said unplug the modem for 15 seconds. Did that several times and no go. I then unplugged both the modem and my router (so that nothing was plugged at all into my modem to give it any type of power) and left them unplugged for 2 minutes. After that, I was getting 3Mb download according to DSLReports.

But apparently you do have to call them to get the increased speed, which seems odd.

bpearse is correct. I had to call Comcast to get 3MBps update when it was available couple months ago. I did unplugged the modem several times before calling them but no success.

Originally posted by davisdog
Yes, you are in the good part of San Jose ;)

Your systems is running at 750Mhz and should have all the HD channels on your system. If you order the HD Box for $5 you will pick up NBC, ABC, CBS, PBS HD channels...For $10 more if you get digital classic you will get InHD1/2 (nice mix of HD Sports, Shows, Movies) and ESPN HD...Probably Discovery HD in a month also. bpearse said there is a special you might get for Digital classic free for 6 months. of course if they screw things up you might get others without paying for them.

The area in SJ without even High Speed Internet is only 330Mhz.

In Saratoga our Downstream Frequency for Internet is 548Mhz and our cable system is only 550Mhz (and missing some HD channels because of lack of bandwidth)

What is the newest HD Box Comcast offering currently? Do I have to request it when I order the HD package?

Try to get the 6208 DVR, but at a minimum get the 6200. Ask for the one with firewire output to avoid getting the older 5100, and make sure they note that if it is not firewire output, you will refuse the box.

Originally posted by davisdog
Here's how to build your own watercooling system ;)

http://www6.tomshardware.com/cpu/20020102/watercooling-01.html

Two most heat producing things are the power supply and the hard drive.

I'm thinking about a fan bank along the lines of a project I did a summer ago - the R.A.L.F. (http://www.barovelli.com/comp/index.html) and a muffler/baffle. Either set it on top of the DCT or to one side.

yes, that whole website (http://www.barovelli.com) is me. :cool: no more hiding.

Originally posted by DCTDictator

yes, that whole website (http://www.barovelli.com) is me. :cool: no more hiding.

Ah...pacific grove...nice town...although the golf course is a little beat up after I hacked my way through the iceplant a couple weeks ago.

Originally posted by bpearse
Try to get the 6208 DVR, but at a minimum get the 6200.

the 6208??? is that possible? I thought only DCT had these

Sacramento has Discover HD!!! Wonder when it will reach in the bay area, sometimes I wish I lived in Sacramento Area so I could get FOXHD, INHD1/2, and now Discovery HD!!! Lets get a move on it, comcast!!!

Originally posted by tivoyahoo
the 6208??? is that possible? I thought only DCT had these

hey you can always ask (but just dont be disappointed when it doesnt come)

Someone in San Ramon just reported in the yahoo group site that he is getting Discovery HD via his own QAM 256 tuner on 78.1. Apparently it is not yet being mapped to a channel for the DCT 5100's/6200's.

I suppose the marketing department has the final say on which channel it gets mapped too. Not too much choice though -- 194 is the only logical choice, unless the whole HD channel mapping plan is redone.

This is a very good news. I can't wait to see it. Looks like in the current scheme of mapping channels, we will be short of channels soon. After DSC-HD is added, there will be only one channel left.

Originally posted by davisdog
hey you can always ask (but just dont be disappointed when it doesnt come)

or when it overheats and dies apparently ...

BTW, today I talked with one of the Can-AM contractors that is upgrading the old San Mateo county system in Redwood City. He told me the upgrade is just about done. The downstream is basically working now, and he was working on aligning the reverse path for 2-way operation in support of high speed data. I asked him if it was a 750 Mhz system, but to my surprise he said it an 860 Mhz system! No wonder the amps looked a little closer that I expected!

He said there were a few issues here and there in the plant that had to be fixed, but by and large the coax was in pretty good shape. They installed all new amps and taps in the system, in addition to the fiber overlay. He said everything should be fully operational in less than a couple weeks.

He gave me a lot more insight into how comcast is rebuilding the area, and it was a great conversation.

With 860 Mhz, they have a ton of digital spectrum, as I think the new lineup has analog up to about 575 Mhz (channel 82), and everything above that is digital. So they have a lot of room for HD and other digital signals. The only problem for me is now that the network goes to 860 Mhz, I have to find a CATV modulator for some internal channels I have that goes above channel 136! Not easy... And a new low pass filter.

Ah, the joys of progress...

Thanks,
Mike

Encryption?

Has anyone else lost channels recently? I subscribe to Digital Silver & HBO. A couple weeks ago, I lost ShowtimeHD and today I just noticed that StarzHD & CinemaxHD are gone. Is this encryption kicking in? Is this happening to everyone?

Sean

smnorton: Same situation in Oakland. I believe they are realigning the HD subchannels---and doing a really slow job of it! I expect things will be re-mapped soon and I don't think we will lose content just yet.

Don't try to get a confirmation from a CSR---waste of time. Maybe DCT can confirm?

Originally posted by Jizzay1
i have a tech coming on saturday morning to fix my ESPN HD so we'll definately see what's up then. I've called tech support twice about not getting ESPN HD and they've never said that i'm not supposed to receive it. Sounds like your friend in DC is getting BS from Comcast.

Any word on your tech support visit? Curious to see what the real answer is....

No go. tech said i had to subscribe to the package that would include it... just like everyone thought. i was so bumbed.

Forum member bmark has reported in one of the Discovery HD - Comcast threads that the Bay Area will see Discovery HD on July 1st on channel 722.

This is very reliable as bmark is one of our Comcast insiders.

Channel number is of course very interesting because it's not in the 184 to 200 range. Hopefully they won't leave Discovery HD up there all by itself, and will move all HD channels into the 700's.

Also, if you are listening Comcast, please put the KQED (PBS) multicast SD channels at one end or the other of the 700's if they are moved also, so that we can surf straight through the HD channels without going through some SD channels.

Also of interest, a seemingly reliable Comcast insider in L.A. has reported that Comcast has agreements with Bravo HD and TNT HD and that both will be added (at least in L.A.) by September. It would appear Comcast is waiting on bandwidth and equipment for these channels in some markets, and so will not launch them anywhere until it can do an en masse launch (assuming the information that agreements have been signed is correct).

No news on Fox, WB or UPN. There is an agreement for UPN HD, so I would expect to see it added by the fall season IF it is planning a significant number of HD hours per week (at least 5, maybe closer to 10).

I would also expect to see WB HD by the fall, based on what I have read and otherwise learned.

Don't expect Fox HD on Comcast Bay Area in time for NFL, unless something unexpected and dramatic happens.

I am editing the first post of this thread to reflect up to date information.

This is great news! Thanks for the update.

So if I currently get ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, INHD1&2, and ESPN in HD with regular cable and the $5 up charge for HD (not Digital classic), I should not expect Discovery HD? And I should count my blessings I even have ESPN and INHD 1&2?

Hmmm....

Intresting news about Bravo and TNT HD. If more and more HD channels become available, then I can see why they built to 860 Mhz instead of 750 in my region. I'm wondering if they will make differnt decisions about HD channel availability on a 750 vs 860 footprint in the market. Over time they can take channels off of analog and convert that bandwidth to digital, but HD is a bandwidth pig, so they may decide to add some lessor HD only where they have room to do so.

Can someone from comcast comment on the differences in how they program 860 vs 750 markets?

Thanks,
Mike

Originally posted by russwong
So if I currently get ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, INHD1&2, and ESPN in HD with regular cable and the $5 up charge for HD (not Digital classic), I should not expect Discovery HD? And I should count my blessings I even have ESPN and INHD 1&2?

Hmmm....

who knows what you should expect..but count yourself as very luck and lie low...;)

Originally posted by MikeSM
Intresting news about Bravo and TNT HD. If more and more HD channels become available, then I can see why they built to 860 Mhz instead of 750 in my region. I'm wondering if they will make differnt decisions about HD channel availability on a 750 vs 860 footprint in the market. Over time they can take channels off of analog and convert that bandwidth to digital, but HD is a bandwidth pig, so they may decide to add some lessor HD only where they have room to do so.

Can someone from comcast comment on the differences in how they program 860 vs 750 markets?

Thanks,
Mike

My understanding is if they need to do a complete rebuild (such as your old area or the 330Mhz area in SJ) where they must replace all the equipment/cable then they make the step to 860Mhz...For those areas where they can get away with a cheaper/faster upgrade (550Mhz area where they can keep the coax on the poles) then they can only take it as far as 750Mhz.

You may already know, but on Cable, 2 HD channels can fit in the space of 1 Analog channel (or 8-10 SD Channels). They may be able to improve modulation etc to fit 3 HD in one Analog slot (without having to due compresssion). Probably 70% of their bandwidth is taken up by the legacy Analog Channels

Originally posted by davisdog
You may already know, but on Cable, 2 HD channels can fit in the space of 1 Analog channel (or 8-10 SD Channels). They may be able to improve modulation etc to fit 3 HD in one Analog slot (without having to due compresssion). Probably 70% of their bandwidth is taken up by the legacy Analog Channels

davisdog, 2 HD (or even 3 HD) on 1 analog makes sense. That's why I don't understand several reports of 5 HD channels carried on channel 117 in several systems in the Bay Area (Fremont, Berkeley, Cupertino) - see thread and posts here:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?postid=3937280#post3937280

I was wondering if this was a result of QAM256 as opposed to QAM64 as I mentioned here:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?postid=3971156#post3971156

Anybody have the details? Can it be confirmed that Comcast is actually putting 5 HD channels on analog 117? If so, maybe some of the new HD channels can be squeezed onto existing 550mhz systems as the new channels appear they will be available prior to the 750mhz upgrade (wishful thinking).

tivoyahoo--

I assumed that those were the 5 subchannels of KQED on 117 (only one of which is HD). Is that incorrect?

Originally posted by TPeterson
tivoyahoo--

I assumed that those were the 5 subchannels of KQED on 117 (only one of which is HD). Is that incorrect?

At looking into this more, I believe now that there only 2 HD channels on analog 117, KGO-HD and KQED-HD and that the rest on 117 are the digital KQED channels that are non-HD.

Originally posted by tivoyahoo
At looking into this more, I believe now that there only 2 HD channels on analog 117, KGO-HD and KQED-HD and that the rest on 117 are the digital KQED channels that are non-HD.

by the way, are the extra KQED's being carried on comcast as 480p? I'm pretty sure they are broadcast OTA as 480p. What is the bandwidth requirement of a comcast digital channel that is 480p/EDTV vs. 480i/SD?

Originally posted by davisdog
'

cgouldl...just in case you havent been watching the thread...you will not be getting an HD-DVR in your area...Comcast is not deploying them yet in Northern California...At least a couple more months away

DCTDictator works for Comcast in the southbay supporting the STBs and even he has trouble getting one to play with in his Comcast Lab in San Jose :(

As suspected, the website order form (and the svc rep who reviewed/approved the order) is wrong.

No HD in Foster City yet, let alone DVR. No tech come today , phbbt. :(
Nice of comcast to let me sit and wait at home for 4hrs instead of just cancel the order (like they did last time.)

Well, as long as they get this stuff going, before Aug & the olympics...
I can't get ch11 NBC w/ OTA antenna. (rest glitch anyway, darn neighbor tree)

Originally posted by cgould
Nice of comcast to let me sit and wait at home for 4hrs instead of just cancel the order (like they did last time.

It doesn't help you with your HD problem but I would call Comcast and demand that they reimburse you for the time you've wasted waiting for them. This happened to me a while back (before my area received HD) and I ended up sitting around for 8 hours. I called Comcast to complain and they ended up sticking me on one of their "new customer deals" where I got Basic + Expanded + Digital Silver for $19.99 for 3 months. It didn't give me HD at the time but it did lower my cable bill for a few months.

Originally posted by SonomaSearcher:
Also, if you are listening Comcast, please put the KQED (PBS) multicast SD channels at one end or the other of the 700's if they are moved also, so that we can surf straight through the HD channels without going through some SD channels.

I programmed the FAVorites button on my Comcast remote to surf through only the HD channels.

For all you Saratoga/Milpitas/Los Gatos folks, still no word at all from Comcast on my efforts to get them to speed up movement to 750MHz or otherwise expand our HD channel offerring. Saratoga City Council has also gone dark. Does not look good for us.

While I twiddle and wait for another delivery of 6200s -

Does anyone know any background of a service called GuidePlus? An on screen guide that was sent in the VBI to certain TVs, nothing to do with the cable - could be from off air or cable.

I think the only subscriber in a town of 14,000 has it and it quit. Any starting point . .

In the meanwhile, another firmware schemo goes out - nothing for DCTs, this one is for Cable Cards.

Lastly - Saramilgatos comment. Careful what you wish for, I don't really want to have one of my systems go 'all digital', and I think most customers don't want a DCT on every TV set and VCR in the house.

SonomaSearcher - great info!!

Originally posted by karlw2000
In Fremont, when I first got HD back in January, I got all those channels plus HBOHD and ShowtimeHD. Within 2 weeks I lost INHD and INHD2. A few months later, I got StarZHD and CinemaxHD. Then a couple of weeks ago, I lost ESPN HD, HBOHD, and ShowtimeHD, but gained INHD and INHD2. I don't know what changed last night.

I still only pay the extra $5 on top of my $12.39, so I can't complain.

I'm in Fremont, and have the (expensive) Digital Gold package (withe HBO and SHO as the premier services), which is legacy from ATT Broadband, and the HD box.

From the beginning I had the following in HD:
ABC
CBS
NBC
PBS
ESPN
INHD1
INHD2
HBO
SHO

Then we got StarZ and Cinemax in HD.

Then there was some sort of management system upgrade and I lost ESPN, HBO and SHO, but still had StarZ and Cinemax.

Then after I complained, I got ESPN, HBO and SHO back, but lost Cinemax.

So - a bit confused, but right now I would say it's what would expect given what I amd supposedly paying for. If I cut back to the Basic+expanded digital will I lose my HBOHD and SHOHD?

Originally posted by bpearse
For all you Saratoga/Milpitas/Los Gatos folks, still no word at all from Comcast on my efforts to get them to speed up movement to 750MHz or otherwise expand our HD channel offerring. Saratoga City Council has also gone dark. Does not look good for us.

bpearse, thanks for the update. I saw some posts that seemed to indicate that comcast is busy & active in Sunnyvale. Maybe they and SJ are ahead of sarmilgatos.

davisdog, did your high speed internet upgrade to 3mb?

Yes, anyone still at a 330MHz system is rightfully ahead of Saratoga. I just hope the pressure we have put on them through the city will get them moving faster.

Originally posted by DCTDictator
Does anyone know any background of a service called GuidePlus? An on screen guide that was sent in the VBI to certain TVs, nothing to do with the cable - could be from off air or cable.


I've used it. RCA & proscan products carried it. Think first iteration was Guide Plus followed by Guide Plus Gold.

It was most useful in their digital media recorder:
http://www.rca.com/product/viewdetail/0,2588,PI700287,00.html?

You could use it to schedule recordings and get program information. It only gets 3 days worth of program guide but not bad since there was no subscription fee vs. say $12.95 for Standalone tivo.

Originally posted by DCTDictator
I think the only subscriber in a town of 14,000 has it and it quit. Any starting point . .

Yes, Guide Plus can be finicky especially if the channel lineup changes. There is an RCA customer service no. you can call if you are not getting the program guide correctly. Then apparently RCA interacts with the cable provider to try to get it up to date. One of my relatives had that problem for quite some time - it was showing the old channel lineup for many of the channels. It's zip code based, so one of the workarounds is to try to use surrounding zip codes that have the same channel lineup. Overnight it supposedly gets an update. I think the tv is supposed to be off too. You can keep trying different zip codes (one per day) until one works. You can get all the zip codes for a city here:

http://www.usps.com/ncsc/lookups/lookup_ctystzip.html

Not sure if that's where your question is directed, but hope it helps.

-tivoyahoo

DCT,

your post reminded me that my relative still has that problem - it was never resolved. This isn't in Roseville is it? maybe the subscriber = my relative.

Here is the interactive troubleshooting page:

http://www.rca.com/service/inference?case_base=tv.cbs&gemstar=true

-tivoyahoo

Originally posted by bweissman
I programmed the FAVorites button on my Comcast remote to surf through only the HD channels. Yes, this is true, however there are a limited number of favorites and if you want to add any SD channels as favorites, in addition to the HD channels, you will run out of favorites quickly.

Also, if you surf using the IPG "bar" to look through program listings, you still have to go through the SD channels (at least I do).

Originally posted by DCTDictator
Lastly - Saramilgatos comment. Careful what you wish for, I don't really want to have one of my systems go 'all digital', and I think most customers don't want a DCT on every TV set and VCR in the house.

With the pressure bpearse is applying, maybe comcast will go digital with 600 channels and provide every subscriber with 4 6208's per household at no extra charge to keep the franchise, at which point kids in Saratoga will ask "what's a vcr?". Keep up the good work bpearse.

I wouldn't mind distributing the 6208's modulated output signals throughout the house if it was all digital input. How many tuners do they have? Of course most customers would be the opposite and what a support headache for comcast to try to support a set top box for every tv.

Originally posted by SonomaSearcher
Forum member bmark has reported in one of the Discovery HD - Comcast threads that the Bay Area will see Discovery HD on July 1st on channel 722.
...
No news on Fox, WB or UPN. There is an agreement for UPN HD, so I would expect to see it added by the fall season IF it is planning a significant number of HD hours per week (at least 5, maybe closer to 10).

I would also expect to see WB HD by the fall, based on what I have read and otherwise learned.

Don't expect Fox HD on Comcast Bay Area in time for NFL, unless something unexpected and dramatic happens.

I am editing the first post of this thread to reflect up to date information.

Great news about Discovery HD.

I don't understand why there is so much delay in adding WB-HD. I don't think there is any hold-up from WB side. It's probably just comcast not adding it because WB doesn't have enough HD programming. Looks like we need to write to FCC and make local digitals must-carry.

Originally posted by tivoyahoo
With the pressure bpearse is applying, maybe comcast will go digital with 600 channels and provide every subscriber with 4 6208's per household at no extra charge to keep the franchise, at which point kids in Saratoga will ask "what's a vcr?". Keep up the good work bpearse.

Then the cash flow will go into the red - or the bills go through the roof.

Must remember here while some think that Saramilgatos is always last, people in the A/B plant have been looking over the fence, and wondering "why do THEY get 550, internet, no phone line for the DCT, etc".


I wouldn't mind distributing the 6208's modulated output signals throughout the house if it was all digital input. How many tuners do they have? Of course most customers would be the opposite and what a support headache for comcast to try to support a set top box for every tv.

6208 is a single tuner box. You can be watching CBS and suddenly get a pop up that says let the box change the channel or Gigli is not going to be recorded like you scheduled it.

You are on the right track with the server/client format. I've seen the propoganda from SA eschewing the wonders of the media server set top that talks to other client set tops in the house - over the existing cable wiring. Better than 6208s or 6412 or whatever the batwing company pushes.

Thanks for all the leads on the GuidePlus.

NOT AUTHORIZED for KNTV. Insteresting, do not know what comcast is trying to do now.

Originally posted by lpaxmember
I don't understand why there is so much delay in adding WB-HD. I don't think there is any hold-up from WB side. It's probably just comcast not adding it because WB doesn't have enough HD programming. It has nothing to do with not enough HD programming on the WB, because many other Comcast areas have WB HD (for the most part, the Comcast areas where the local WB is owned by the Tribune Company).

Our local WB is owned by Granite Broadcasting which also owns the WB station in Detroit and the NBC station in Fresno. Comcast carries the NBC HD signal in Fresno, so Granite appears to be a reasonable negotiator when it comes to HD signals.

It does appear that Comcast has not been on the ball in getting non-Tribune owned WB HD signals carried on the various HD capable systems where those signals could be carried. However, the start of the fall season is a benchmark and based on Granite Broadcasting's generally cooperative nature regarding HD/digital signals, I would expect to see Comcast carrying KBWB's HD/digital signal by then. There is definitely enough bandwidth for it.

Since the customer demand for WB HD is probably not as high as for most other HD channels, it has probably taken a back seat to other things. But the addition of the Tribune owned WB HD signals means that other broadcast groups that negotiate reasonably will not be far off with their WB HD signals.

cgould,

Frustrating...but relief may be in sight. I got a flier in the mail yesterday touting the upgrade to the San Mateo County system. It said that the upgraded system would go live the week of July 27. Still a month away, but better than nothing.

I agree with the poster who recommended demanding some compensation from comcast.

B

Originally posted by lmsyl
NOT AUTHORIZED for KNTV. Insteresting, do not know what comcast is trying to do now.

I had the same problem last night and called the CSR. She reset the box but the problem persisted. Didn't check this morning, but will tonight. Anyone else have this problem? I'm also in Fremont.

Originally posted by pointnshoot
I had the same problem last night and called the CSR. She reset the box but the problem persisted. Didn't check this morning, but will tonight. Anyone else have this problem? I'm also in Fremont.

I saw the same problem. The problem was gone sometime after 10pm, or atleast that's when I checked back and saw Law &Order SVU on.

Same problem here in Saratoga with KNTV showing not authorized. I didn't see if it ever cleared up. So many problems with Comcast, it is hard to keep up with them. And as usual, CSRs know nothing and were of no help.

Hi,
does anyone know what are the resolutions of the different HD broadcast. Like to they all broadcast in 720p or 1080i or depending on what each broadcaster they may change the resolution depending on what they are showing ?

Originally posted by tranle
Hi,
does anyone know what are the resolutions of the different HD broadcast. Like to they all broadcast in 720p or 1080i or depending on what each broadcaster they may change the resolution depending on what they are showing ?

The broadcasters are generally one or the other (ie they do not switch between 720/1080)

Disney Owned Channels (ABC, ESPNHD) are 720P
NBC, CBS, PBS, HDNet, InHD, Bravo are 1080i
I believe Fox will be 720P

Same here in SF

KNTV HD - 185, One Moment please, This channel should be available shortly

ESPN HD - 193, does not come up at all

Called Comcast Tech Support, they suggested unplugging the power, but that did not help.

What is going on?

Watching Discovery now. Looking good.

People using the TitanTV online guide will need to add it manually with the callsign D-HDTV.

Watching it here too on channel 722. PQ is fantastic from what I can tell so far. What a lame channel number...722????? It's mixied with the Spanish-speaking channels for crying out loud. No one in their right mind (except us, of course) will know this even exists.

All the digital Spanish channels here are 600 to 618 (with Gol TV being 618). The digital InDemand PPV channels start at 801 and go to around 835 (then the Adult PPV above that).

So 722 is the only channel between 618 and 801. Hopefully this means that Comcast will move all HD channels to the 700's. And leave the KQED non-HD digital multicast channels where they are (189 to 192), if Comcast is smart (and assuming the contract with KQED allows it).

The contracts for some of the exisiting HD channels might have to be modified to move those channels to the 700's. (Channel number specifications are sometimes contained in the carriage contracts.)

DHDT was up and running on 722 when I checked around 7am this morning (from the Rohnert Park/North Bay head end). Guide data currently only goes through about 3pm today.

Looks great!

Here is my list for remaining HD channels I wish were carried by Comcast, in priority order:

Fox Sports Net Bay Area HD-- contract already in place
KTVU-DT (Fox) -- unforutnately, the least likely to be added
HDNet
Bravo HD+
HDNet Movies
Encore HD
KBWB-DT (WB)
WealthTV HD
TNT HD
KRON-DT (Independent) -- shows old HDNet programming, but only about 12 Mbps bandwidth devoted to it
KBHK-DT (UPN) -- contract already in place; only one HD show per week right now
The Movie Channel HD
East Feeds of Exisiting Premium HD Channels

I can't think of any others right now, besides the VOOM exclusives (some of which Comcast was rumored to be negotiating for).

Will have to check on the DISC-HD channel in the San Jose area. I also started getting INHD 1/2 with my limited basic (previously they've had it blocked). HBO, SHO, ESPN are still blocked. Maybe Comcast has decided to allow INHD as part of the limited package? Anyone else on limited getting or not getting these channels?

Originally posted by YuriLuzr
Will have to check on the DISC-HD channel in the San Jose area. I also started getting INHD 1/2 with my limited basic (previously they've had it blocked). HBO, SHO, ESPN are still blocked. Maybe Comcast has decided to allow INHD as part of the limited package? Anyone else on limited getting or not getting these channels?

I'm certain Comcast does not plan on making INHD part of any limited basic package...They are just playing around with equipment and configs to get it all right...and you are getting a bonus. There goal is to get more revenue per subscriber, not less. Digital stuff is where they make the money.
Also, they are already losing money on the $5/mth rental of the HD box so they are not gonna start throwing in channels with that.

Originally posted by YuriLuzr
Will have to check on the DISC-HD channel in the San Jose area. I also started getting INHD 1/2 with my limited basic (previously they've had it blocked). HBO, SHO, ESPN are still blocked. Maybe Comcast has decided to allow INHD as part of the limited package? Anyone else on limited getting or not getting these channels?

Discovery HD theather is ON in San Jose on channel 722. No Program info yet.

Not surprisingly, Santa Rosa is missing the Discovery HD party. :(

What's really gonna get me is when FSNHD starts showing up in other cities. I want to move.

Anyone getting DISC HD in SF yet?

Originally posted by JasonQG
Not surprisingly, Santa Rosa is missing the Discovery HD party. :(

What's really gonna get me is when FSNHD starts showing up in other cities. I want to move.

Yup, we're at the back of the bus, again!!

Jim

Discovery HD is up and running in Corte Madera on channel 722 - Looks awesome!

Michaelc - thanks for the titantv heads up.

I called a contact I have at Comcast here in Santa Rosa and he said if it was available in the Rohnert Park area it should be up here. He is a service manager and has been relaible in ther past. Said he was going into the office to check it out and would call me back around 3PM.

I hoping in my case that it is not a bandwidth issue as I'm still on a 550mHz system.

Let you know what I find out...

Jim

yes...Let us know what he says...I didnt see it this morning in Saratoga on the 550Mhz system so I'm hoping we don't stay in the back of the bus and they find a way to slip it in (although one would have assume they would have slipped in InHD a long time ago if they had space on a 550Mhz system).

Funny thing is 7 years ago I moved from SJ (330Mhz) to Saratoga (550Mhz) and was elated since I could finally get Internet...Now if SJ goes to 860Mhz while Saratoga stays at 550 Mhz...maybe I'll move back (and then again maybe not :)

of course 9 years ago, the SJ upgrade was going to happen the following summer... :(

davisdog,

I will definitely post what I find out but the fact that you are 550 also and it's not on your system does not bode well for us 550 folks. I was told by my contact that in my area it was looking like up to 2 years before the system was upgraded to 750 or 860. Depressing..

Jim

keenan, jason,

When Comcast finally does upgrade your system, it likely will be to 860 Mhz or even 1 Ghz, since 750 Mhz is no longer a forward looking amount of bandwidth.

A Comcast tech told me only part of Santa Rosa is based off the Rohnert Park head end. I guess most of Santa Rosa has a separate head end, maybe due to the lesser bandwidth (assuming this tech was correct).

Up and running with Discovery HD on 722 in Fremont!

PS - Good list SonomaSearcher. As a Giants baseball and NFL fan, I definitely agree with your rankings.

DiscoveryHD Looks great in Tiburon on722!
thanks for the heads up!
Sam

Originally posted by smnorton
As a Giants baseball and NFL fan, I definitely agree with your rankings.

I wonder how they're going to do the whole "FSN and FSN+" thing. There's been a couple of times this year when the A's and Giants are playing at the same time and one of the games gets shown on the FSN+ channel. Take last night for instance: the A's were home so they would normally be shown in HD. However, they were bumped to the FSN+ channel which means they probably wouldn't have been shown in HD. Maybe they have a plan for this (i.e. the home team is on FSN and the away team is on FSN+) -- I could just myself getting angry though.

I just called Comcast, CSR comfirmed it should be up in SF on channel 722. Can't wait to get home tonight!

Discovery HD on channel 722 in Cupertino too.

Originally posted by TBoyd
Discovery HD on channel 722 in Cupertino too.

Oh bummer ...I was hoping it wasnt up off the Santa Clara Head end yet...I wanted to delay my disappoint when I get home and find out they didnt find a way to squeeze it onto our 550Mhz network in saramilgatos...Oh well maybe I'll be surprised

Originally posted by SonomaSearcher
keenan, jason,

When Comcast finally does upgrade your system, it likely will be to 860 Mhz or even 1 Ghz, since 750 Mhz is no longer a forward looking amount of bandwidth.

A Comcast tech told me only part of Santa Rosa is based off the Rohnert Park head end. I guess most of Santa Rosa has a separate head end, maybe due to the lesser bandwidth (assuming this tech was correct).

Yes, that's probably true, but best estimate I've gotten from my contact is maybe late next year. They're concentrating on areas like Roseland and such that just recently became part of the City of Santa Rosa and rolling out HSI.

That's what he told me also, Santa Rosa gets most of the signals from the dish up here but also has some fibre feeds from down south for some of the signals they were having problems with.

Jim

While we are on the topic of more HD Channels....Has anybody heard about what KQED's plans are for providing 24hr HD to comcast...If I remember right they were talking about doing that mid summer?

My contact called back and the news is not good. He said that there was a plan to squeeze some of the analog stuff into digital to provide room for DiscoveryHD and others but that would require deployment of more STB's to folks that don't need them now to receive the analog cable channels. Evidently the decision came down to not do the above as they are positioning a new tier of HD in the 700's. He said there was still some room to place FOXHD with the rest of the major nets down around 184-200 but pretty much anything else will be in the new channel area.

Which boils down to; we of the 550 club might get FOXHD, if COX plays ball with Comcast but essentially what we have is what we get until infrastructure is upgraded to 860MHz.

I'm going to go hide in the closet and cry now...

JIm

I'm gonna go cry too (even though it was expected...).

Although the message doesnt make complete since the channel numbering doesnt really relate to specific areas or frequency's... They use a virtual channel map so I think once you find space you can name it any channel you want (on the digital side)...I won't doubt they are reserving space for Fox though just in case hell freezed over and Cox allows them to carry it (they reserved space for CBS in the same manner....Saying they were out of space to put InHD, but later put CBS in when it came)

Originally posted by keenan
Evidently the decision came down to not do the above as they are positioning a new tier of HD in the 700's.

Does this indicate to anyone that Comcast is going to move to an 'HD Tier' like D* and Dish where we would pay x amount to have all of the HD channels?

fender4645,

It's funny you should say that because during my conversation with my contact the way he told me about the 700 thing I got exactly the same feeling although I was driving and using a cell phone and did not ask that question specifically. I'm going to try ask him some more questions maybe monday or tuesday, don't want to pester the guy the death. It would seem logical for Comcast to do that with the 4 premium movie channels, the INHD's and DiscHD but I don't think they can charge extra for a HD broadcast of standard network(CBS,ABC, etc) channels.

Jim

Discovery HD up and running in SF on 722

I sent another note to our friends at the City of Saratoga and to Comcast. I have yet to have heard anything back from Comcast on my last letter.



A new HDTV channel was added to the Comcast lineup today. It is the very popular DiscoveryHD, which provides highly educational programming that is exceptionally well photographed and produced. The only city absent from introducing the new channel? You guessed it: Saratoga Comcast. Every other city in the US in which Comcast provides HDTV now has this channel or will in the coming weeks. Saratoga, apparently alone, does not have this channel.

Again, I ask why Saratoga is one of the few, if not only, cities in the United States in which Comcast provides HDTV, yet fails to provide the complete lineup of HDTV channels.

Saratoga deserves better than Comcast.


For those in Saratoga who are tired of always being last with HDTV, here are the emails you need to send your messages of displeasure to:

Brian Robert, CEO of Comcast: brian_roberts@comcast.com
Erika Githens, executive escalations: Erika_Githens@cable.comcast.com
Susan Nichol, Susan_Nichol@cable.comcast.com


The staff at the City of Saratoga have been the most helpful people I have found in dealing with Comcast. They are wonderful and very responsive. They helped me solve the lack of firewire in Saratoga a month ago. They are great friends to have in dealing with Comcast:

Cary Bloomquist, City of Saratoga: cbloomquist@saratoga.ca.us
Kathleen King, City of saratoga: kk2king@comcast.net

The Saratoga situation will not be addressed by Comcast unless enough people voice their displeasure. Let Comcast know.

Confirmed! Discovery HD in San Francisco on Channel 722. Looks awesome!!! Thanks, Comcast

bpearse,
I am sorry but you are shooting yourself in your foot with your "facts, i.e. "Every other city in the US in which Comcast provides HDTV now has this channel or will in the coming weeks. Saratoga, apparently alone, does not have this channel. "

If you will read the DiscoveryHD on Comcast thread you will see that both LA, and Atlanta have heard NOTHING regarding DiscoveryHD on their systems, and in this thread you have heard that Santa Rosa is not getting it anytime soon.

How confident are you in your other "facts" that you have been stating?

Originally posted by fender4645
Does this indicate to anyone that Comcast is going to move to an 'HD Tier' like D* and Dish where we would pay x amount to have all of the HD channels?

I quote 'The Source' (intranet info) Display channels for all HD channels will be moving into the 700's during the month of July.

Hi,

I'm in San Francisco, the Park Merced area. I can tune to 722 but all I get is a Not Authorized Discovery HD Theater, For ordering information .......

Anybody else with this problem? or is it just me?

Originally posted by jisilva
Hi,

I'm in San Francisco, the Park Merced area. I can tune to 722 but all I get is a Not Authorized Discovery HD Theater, For ordering information .......

Anybody else with this problem? or is it just me?

What packages do you subscribe to?

DHDT is part of the Digital Classic Package

What packages do you subscribe to?

I subscribe to the Digital Silver from the old AT&T

Originally posted by DCTDictator
I quote 'The Source' (intranet info) Display channels for all HD channels will be moving into the 700's during the month of July.

So does that mean the HD channels will be on a seperate tier w/ additional fees? I wouldn't mind paying $10-$20 more a month if I recieved all of the HD channels -- including the premium HD channels. I would just drop down to Digital Extended or something. Something tells me that aint going to happen.

Originally posted by jisilva
I subscribe to the Digital Silver from the old AT&T

That may be the problem. In the past Comcast has tried to "freeze" the legacy ATT packages (meaning they dont add the new channels to them) in hopes that people get off of them...They would prefer you move to the Comcast packages (which are similar pricing although I think you lose encore or something? which was free with some of the legacy packages)...the "incentive" they give you is you get the new channels.

Do you get the InHD channels right now? If you do did you have to call and complain to get them?

Best I can say (if others are getting it in your area) is call and maybe get a clueless CSR and talk them into thinking you should have it with your package and maybe they'll manually add it in (if that's what the issue is).

ps...I may be wrong...but that was the case with some folks not getting INHD (and they ended up switching to a comcast package and it popped right up)

Originally posted by davisdog
They would prefer you move to the Comcast packages (which are similar pricing although I think you lose encore or something? which was free with some of the legacy packages)...the "incentive" they give you is you get the new channels.

It was Starz! In the AT&T days, you could pay for one premium (HBO, Showtime, or Cinemax) and you would get Encore and Startz! for free. I had to do the switch when INHD wasn't coming in. Man, I was pissed when I lost Starz!

Originally posted by fender4645
Something tells me that aint going to happen.

yup...I think your right on that...

So they get $18 for just HBO (HD subscriber or not)..same for each of the other premiums...Do you think they'll sell a package with 4 different Premium HD channels (Sho, HBO, Cin, Starz) + DHDT, ESPND, INHD, INHD2 + new HDs for the same price?

(and all you have to give up is the worthless premium SD subchannels)

I don't think so ;)

Although I do like the posters who believe the CSRs that tell them the $5 HD box rental includes all of those HD Channels

Thank you guys again. Discovery HD on 722 here in Fremont. Strangely, ESPNHD is back on again. All the movie channels are off. So I now get:

ABCHD
NBCHD
CBSHD
PBHD
ESPNHD
INHD
INHD2
DISCOVERYHD

Not bad for $5 on top of my $12.39 for Analog.

I wasn't watching the movies anyway.

Originally posted by DCTDictator
I quote 'The Source' (intranet info) Display channels for all HD channels will be moving into the 700's during the month of July.


Does that include 550Mhz systems? With our restricted bandwith? I have nothing in the 700's currently. Goes from 593TMC to 801PPV.

Jim

Originally posted by bpearse
I sent another note to our friends at the City of Saratoga and to Comcast. I have yet to have heard anything back from Comcast on my last letter.


Saratoga is definitely not the only one. Don't have it and probabbly won't have it for quite sometime here in Santa Rosa. I guess we have been pushed off the bus and are now running behind it!!

Got to get back to my sobbing....

Jim

Originally posted by davisdog

Do you get the InHD channels right now? If you do did you have to call and complain to get them?

Best I can say (if others are getting it in your area) is call and maybe get a clueless CSR and talk them into thinking you should have it with your package and maybe they'll manually add it in (if that's what the issue is).

ps...I may be wrong...but that was the case with some folks not getting INHD (and they ended up switching to a comcast package and it popped right up)

I will give it a try tomorrow after work. I got all of the HD channels, except for Showtime and TMC which I'm not subscribed to. I never had a problem with InHD, I always get all the channels as they are release, as long as they are in the Silver Package.

I will never give up Starz for InHD or Discovery HD.

Regards

This is for the people of Saratoga, Milpitas and Los Gatos. I just got off the phone with Comcast and they have no idea when or even if we will ever get all the HD stations that we are missing. After venting for about a half hour with them about having to pay the exact same price that everyone else does but not getting what everyone else gets they finally have agreed to knock off $10 a month for the next 6 months. Everyone needs to contact Comcast and get them to adjust your billing for what you are not getting. If enough people do this I'm sure this might help Comcast expedite getting this system upgraded to the level that is at least even with the rest of the Bay area.

Laters,
Mikef5

Originally posted by keenan
Does that include 550Mhz systems? With our restricted bandwith? I have nothing in the 700's currently. Goes from 593TMC to 801PPV.

Jim

I'd assume it does...Its just virtual channel mapping and has nothing to do with bandwidth. Comcast Bay Area is working to align all of the channels so they are the same throughout the area (although some systems like ours will just be missing channels :(...and some areas will have special interest channels (local government etc...))

That's what I figured but I was curious to see DCTdictator's reply as he mentioned something about getting info from Comcast's intranet.

Still crying in Santa Rosa,

Jim

Originally posted by Mikef5
This is for the people of Saratoga, Milpitas and Los Gatos. I just got off the phone with Comcast and they have no idea when or even if we will ever get all the HD stations that we are missing. After venting for about a half hour with them about having to pay the exact same price that everyone else does but not getting what everyone else gets they finally have agreed to knock off $10 a month for the next 6 months. Everyone needs to contact Comcast and get them to adjust your billing for what you are not getting. If enough people do this I'm sure this might help Comcast expedite getting this system upgraded to the level that is at least even with the rest of the Bay area.

Laters,
Mikef5

I agree, after being screwed on DHDT I plan to bellow loudly about getting a discount also. Sometimes yelling works!!

Jim

Originally posted by Zappcatt
bpearse,
I am sorry but you are shooting yourself in your foot with your "facts, i.e. "Every other city in the US in which Comcast provides HDTV now has this channel or will in the coming weeks. Saratoga, apparently alone, does not have this channel. "

If you will read the DiscoveryHD on Comcast thread you will see that both LA, and Atlanta have heard NOTHING regarding DiscoveryHD on their systems, and in this thread you have heard that Santa Rosa is not getting it anytime soon.



You are correct. I should amend my comments as follows:

"95% of the cities in the US in which Comcast provides HDTV receives INHD1 and 2, and it appears will also be receiving DiscoveryHD. Saratoga is one of the 5% who does not get INHD1 and 2, and appears to be remaining in that small minority who also will not get DiscoveryHD."

I was projecting the outcome of DiscoveryHD based on my findings with INHD1 and 2. You raise a valid point, as this may or may not be reflective of the Discovery HD issue. As for the INHD1 and 2 issue, I have yet to find another city in the US which gets HDTV yet does not get INHD1 and 2. I ran a poll on this, and not a single person outside of Saratoga head end (including Los Gatos, Milpitas and Monte Sereno) replied they do not get them.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=415471

The two 'no' votes came from Saratoga residents. I am sure that there are other cities (maybe Santa Rosa?), but that they represent less than 5% of the cities Comcast serves. That is where my projection of Saratoga being a '5% city' comes from. If you have data indicating that more than 5% of cities are so treated by Comcast, I would sincerely like to get that info from you. Please PM me if so.

As for DiscoveryHD, I am projecting that this will follow the same results as INHD1 and 2. Whether I am right in this projection, time will only tell. But I believe that if the citizens of Saratoga do nothing, they will get nothing from Comcast. We must pressure Comcast to treat Saratoga better.

There's no Discovery HD in Sunnyvale, either.

No INHD1 and 2 in 550 section of Santa Rosa.

Jim

Originally posted by keenan
No INHD1 and 2 in 550 section of Santa Rosa.

Jim

Well, that is Comcast Franchise number two. I wonder how many 550MHz systems are still out there? I know there are even some 330MHz systems, but those do not offer HDTV at all, so they do not get charged for it. I am curious how many peope out there can get HDTV, and pay full price for it, yet get a very limited number of channels such as Saramilgatos and Santa Rosa? I still bet my less than 5% number holds true.

Santa Rosa AND Saramilgatos deserve better than Comcast!

Originally posted by bpearse


Santa Rosa AND Saramilgatos deserve better than Comcast!

When you are in the situation we are in it's natural to take that view. I know that the City of Santa Rosa was a bottleneck as far as upgrades here as they have contracts with some of the old cable companies that have been through here and do not want to relinquish the control/bandwidth that they have/had.

As far as cable cos in general, I have lived here for about 15 yrs and I can say that Comcast blows away all the others we've had in the past, Post, Century, ATT and a few others, their service and their product was garbage. Other than the fact that I'm unlucky enough to live in an area that has yet to be upgraded I have to say that I am very happy with Comcast so far.

I do feel your pain though,

Jim

Originally posted by keenan
He said there was still some room to place FOXHD with the rest of the major nets down around 184-200 but pretty much anything else will be in the new channel area. I hope they use that bandwidth for FSNHD instead, since it doesn't sound like KTVU is coming anytime soon. Besides, FSN will probably be the biggest HD draw in the bay area. Maybe they could even drop ESPN in favor of FSN. I'm sure the majority of people would rather see Giants, A's, Warriors and Sharks in HD. I want all the HD I can get, but if given a choice, FSN is tops.

Yes, that would be nice but I can't see that happening. If they decided not to provide us with a national channel like DHDT on our system I can't see them putting in a regional sports net.

We can hope though..

Jim

Originally posted by bpearse
Well, that is Comcast Franchise number two. I wonder how many 550MHz systems are still out there? I know there are even some 330MHz systems, but those do not offer HDTV at all, so they do not get charged for it. I am curious how many peope out there can get HDTV, and pay full price for it, yet get a very limited number of channels such as Saramilgatos and Santa Rosa? I still bet my less than 5% number holds true.


Much of Sunnyvale is still 550Mhz also (it's out the Santa Clara Headend also, but a different segment then Saramilgatos)...and probably at least 1/2 of SJ is 330Mhz


Like Jim mentioned...I agree Comcast is putting alot more effort and money than Garrett, TCI, ATT ever did...still sucks to be us...I just wish they would share the dates/plans so we could know where we sit in the timelines.

According to an article in CED magazine (and another AVS thread), Comcast will be upgrading the IPG (Interactive Programming Guide) in the next 90 days. Article can be found at: http://www.cedmagazine.com/cedailydirect/2004/0704/cedaily040701.htm

Excerpt:

Comcast plans to upgrade its Motorola-based digital set-tops to iGuide, an IPG developed in partnership with Gemstar-TV Guide, sometime in the next 90 days. Among the improvements: iGuide is 50 to 100 percent faster than the current "Tan" guide, offers a wider grid for an hour-and-a half-view of programming, and provides trick-mode capabilities for boxes with on-board digital video recorders.

Interesting article. At least bpearse you have your answer about upgrade penetration. We are of the 2% club now. Doesn't it make you feel just a little more special knowing we are the last in the nation to be upgraded. Hopefully because we are last we will get the latest and greatest available.

back to crying,

Jim

P.S. If they hadn't mentioned the California bay area then we would really have something to worry about!!

Originally posted by keenan
Interesting article. At least bpearse you have your answer about upgrade penetration. We are of the 2% club now. Doesn't it make you feel just a little more special knowing we are the last in the nation to be upgraded. Hopefully because we are last we will get the latest and greatest available.

back to crying,

Jim

P.S. If they hadn't mentioned the California bay area then we would really have something to worry about!!

Yeah, I was going to mention that part but I didn't want to pour salt your guys' wounds. :) However, it seems that the article implies that the remainder will be upgraded in the next 3 to 6 months. That's a much better estimate then the 'end of 2005'.

Do you guys in Saratoga and other bandwidth restricted areas have the channel 77 free preview channel?

The reason i ask is that, in the past when FSN needed two channels they would use this analog channel for FSN+. Would it be too hard for them to put the FSNHD channel at that frequency when there was a game on in HD.

Just a though. I hate when grown men cry......

Fitzwest,

In Milpitas, FSN+ is on channel 11 and it would be nice if they would take that channel and put FSN-HD in it's place but I won't hold my breathe. :(

Originally posted by fitzwest
Do you guys in Saratoga and other bandwidth restricted areas have the channel 77 free preview channel?

The reason i ask is that, in the past when FSN needed two channels they would use this analog channel for FSN+. Would it be too hard for them to put the FSNHD channel at that frequency when there was a game on in HD.

Just a though. I hate when grown men cry...... We don't have that channel. Here in Santa Rosa, they use channel 6 for FSN+, which is normally a public access channel (usually seems to be a slide show of real estate ads).

I doubt they would split a channel between analog and HDTV, if that's even feasible.

Originally posted by keenan
Interesting article. At least bpearse you have your answer about upgrade penetration. We are of the 2% club now.

Well, after reading that article, and some other materials on the amount of money Comcast is putting into its franchises, I guess I need to cut them some slack. Yes, it hurts being the last 2% in the country for upgrades, but it could be worse. Saratoga could be in the top 20% by having the same service, yet having all other areas with reduced service. That seems to be what people were getting under AT&T and other providers. Still hurts to be in Saratoga, but props to Comcast for their extensive upgrade work everywhere else.

Originally posted by fender4645
According to an article in CED magazine (and another AVS thread), Comcast will be upgrading the IPG (Interactive Programming Guide) in the next 90 days. Article can be found at: http://www.cedmagazine.com/cedailydirect/2004/0704/cedaily040701.htm

Excerpt:

Near-term, Comcast plans to kick off that migration in a couple of markets by simulcasting analog channels in its digital spectrum.

See that one? I mentioned the terem 'All Digital' a few posts ago. After the simulcast, analogs get dropped - there will be no analog channels beyond basic-basic.

Side-note, if one of the employees listed in the bpearse post is reading - HI! I love our customers!!

Side-note two - There's been one Cable Card nibble at a call center. I found out that some consumer group is making calls to see if the service is available and supported, I tested the call center myself and had a nice chat with a rep, she had all the right answers and invited me over to play show n tell with the hardware.

TGIF

Comcast fiasco in San Leandro

Thanks all for the valuable information in this thread. I've been a very satisifed DirecTV customer for quite a few years (Two DTivo SD boxes and a Samsung 160 HD box). But given DirecTV's slow pace to add more HD channels, and with all of the TV ads I've been seeing promoting A's and Giants on Fox Sports HD this summer, as well as the HD Olymics coming up on KNTV (no KNTV OTA signal here in San Leandro), I thought it was a good time to take advantage of Comcast's $400 credit for satellite equipment promotion. I was given a choice of $25 off the bill for 16 months, or Digital Silver w/ HBO at $29.99 for one year. I chose the Digital Silver.

The installer came on time and did a good job running the coax cables, but I was disappointed that he brought the 5100 box, despite me specifically requesting the 6200 when placing the order and calling back twice to confirm that the work order noted the 6200 box was needed. Well, no biggie, I thought, I'd just exchange it the next business day.

I gave the installer a bare-bones Hughes DirecTV box and an old dual LNB dish I had lying around, installed the 5100 box myself, and got ready to enjoy some HD MLB on InHD.

Well, I was seriously disappointed to find that the two InHD channels and KPIX HD were not available. I guess San Leandro is on one of the old 550 MHZ systems mentioned in this thread. After calling a few CSR's to confirm why I was not getting these channels, it became clear I would not get a straight answer as to when all of the HD channels promised on their flyer might be available in this area.

So basically, the only HD channel I was gaining with Comcast vs. DirecTV was KNTV. ESPN HD was a wash, but I was losing the two HDNet's and Discovery HD by switching. And given that I am able to pick up all of the local OTA digitals except KNTV and KBHK for free with the Samsung 160 and a Silver Sensor antenna, I decided at that point that the Digital Silver package was not worth it, even at $29.99. So I tried to negotiate with the CSR's to get the limited basic/Digital Classic package + HBO with the $25 off for 16 months, but no go. They were saying that I had to subscribe to expanded basic to get the $25 credit. Well, the whole reason for switching was to gain more HD channels, so the expanded basic was useless to me.

After getting the runaround trying to exchange the 5100 for the 6200 box, twice showing up at local offices only to be rebuffed, after hearing complaints from other household members about the clunky Comcast programming guide (unbelieveably bad compared to the DirecTivo), and after failing to eliminate a ground loop the cable feed introduced into the sound system, I decided to pull the plug on Comcast and cancelled after only 4 days. What a frustrating experience, and a huge waste of time and effort for all concerned.

I am asking for my old DirecTV equipment back, even though I don't really need it, but have gotten nowhere so far. I will probably contact the local franchise authority if I don't get the equipment back, just on principle.

Despite all this, I might try Comcast limited basic again, once they upgrade the network and more Cable Card PVR hardware becomes available, especially if Comcast is the only way to get Fox Sports HD. Until then, I will hope that the KNTV HD signal migrates to the Sutro tower before the Olympics begin, and pray that DirecTV adds the Fox Sports HD channels when they become available.

Originally posted by DCTDictator
Side-note, if one of the employees listed in the bpearse post is reading - HI! I love our customers!!
Hahahahaha!! That's great!


Side-note two - There's been one Cable Card nibble at a call center. I found out that some consumer group is making calls to see if the service is available and supported, I tested the call center myself and had a nice chat with a rep, she had all the right answers and invited me over to play show n tell with the hardware.

For those who aren't in the 'know' with cable cards, could you explain to us how Comcast plans on using them and how they will benefit us as the consumer? Thanks!

Originally posted by Dick Diablo
Comcast fiasco in San Leandro

no KNTV OTA signal here in San Leandro

Are you certain you can't pick up KNTV's sister station, channel 48? KNTV is simulcasting their digital signal on 48-2. The transmitter is located in Fremont, and I can pick it up fine here in San Rafael.

Originally posted by fender4645
Hahahahaha!! That's great!


For those who aren't in the 'know' with cable cards, could you explain to us how Comcast plans on using them and how they will benefit us as the consumer? Thanks!

CableCard - looks exactly like a PCMCIA card with no dongle - anyone remember memory expansion cards in PCMCIA format? That's it. Click the "Gallery" button above any of my postings and there should be a picture of one to see. I say should because one photo of a High Definition chain link fence in my gallery got yanked without any prior contact.

Certain TV recievers are available that have the capability to tune digital cable - the terminology is a mish-mosh of acronyms that I won't go into - just look for CableCard or DCR - Digital Cable Ready (DCR used to mean Digital Cable Radio, a digital music service offered with digital cable in non-TCI systems).

OK, you know what it looks like and that you need a specific TV to use it, but what does is all do? It let's the TV decode the digital cable channels that the customer subscribes to. You can get all the digital programming without a set top box - digital basic and premium.

The only thing you don't get is any 2-way services - pay per view or video on demand. You don't get that wonderful on screen program guide/advertisement delivery system.

The card remains property of the cable company.

The charges vary - I heard in one system that there is NO lease/rental fee for the first one. When I visit the call center I'll throw some mixtures of service and see what it costs.

Till then - it's foodtv time.

bpearse and folks on 550 systems, instead of grousing about not having the all the HD channels, why not get practical and demand your cable franchise board tell Comcast to get rid of the analog public interest channels that broadcast city counciil and other meetings that NO ONE watches, and use that bandwidth for the additional HD channels until they rebuild the system.

I bet comcast would say yes to that deal!

Thanks,
Mike

Thanks, DCTDictator. I imagine we will see a flood of new retail STB's over the next year or so as cable cards become mandatory. Is it your feeling that Comcast is embrasing the use of the cable card or doing it only because they have to? I would suspect (and correct me if I'm wrong) that Comcast and other cable companies lose money by renting STB's and that they would welcome people to go ahead and shell out their own money for one. It would definitely solve the problem with the HD-DVR's: "If you want one so bad, go out and buy it yourself." And I would suspect that eventually there would be some sort of standardized protocol that would allow 3rd party STB's the ability to handle two-way services. That's probably a long time away. Which leads me to my next question: when will Comcast be offering cable cards and are there any retail boxes that can take them yet? I would imagine that once the cards become widely available, we'll see companies like Tivo make another run at cable customers.

There are some Sony boxes coming out later this year which have CableCard slots.

Also, I am sure that Motorola is making such boxes (not yet being retailed).

If Comcast is losing money on the STB rentals, which it generally does, I believe (tax benefits notwithstanding), I would think it would like the cable cards. That's a bit more money the customer has each month to spend on a PPV movie or a more expensive programming package/tier.

I was getting "Not Authorized..." message last night, but tonight I'm getting Discovery HD on channel 722. Still not getting locals in HD. I need to write someone about that. Not good, since I just switched from Directv to Comcast and thought I was going to be getting locals in HD.

Neo57, I PM'd you about no locals in HD for Fairfield/Suisun. Maybe we can get someone to listen to us. Being in between SF and SAC can really suck sometimes with programming.

Originally posted by karlw2000
Thank you guys again. Discovery HD on 722 here in Fremont. Strangely, ESPNHD is back on again. All the movie channels are off. So I now get:

ABCHD
NBCHD
CBSHD
PBHD
ESPNHD
INHD
INHD2
DISCOVERYHD

Not bad for $5 on top of my $12.39 for Analog.

I wasn't watching the movies anyway.

I'm like you, except I do not get DisocveryHD. I am in San Francisco and I get a Not Authorized. Anyone in San Francisco with analog cable and the HD add on getting Discovery?

Thanks,

Russ

Originally posted by fender4645
when will Comcast be offering cable cards and are there any retail boxes that can take them yet? I would imagine that once the cards become widely available, we'll see companies like Tivo make another run at cable customers.


I'm happy to say that the cards are available - some may recall when I first posted in here when the 1394 issue was new and hot - boy talk about hot. I was very embarrassed having no idea what people were yammering about - I had people calling me and saying that I had to activate the port (that's handled by network genius' not the supply experts). I thought 1394 was just another 'someday it may work' port on the latest box.

I didn't get fooled this time - I aggressively made sure I had them by the due date, and was assured that they will work. Now if I can only find something to test one with . . I've put the word out to my friendly high end TV stores in my area and they say they will call me when the sets arrive. But there is no HD here yet. At least I can see it live. There's a lot of well illustrated materials for CableCard with screen shots and step by step instructions on the intranet.

I suspect that the hardware is ready today half because of FCC deadlines - a perfect CableCard would be Two-Way. Is it the security paranoids that are afraid to open up or the CE manufactures that are afraid to raise the cost of their product by installing an unproven technology? All I have seen ready are some high end TV sets.

In my career, I notice that the lifecycle of a cable box is about 8 years (or stretched out to 12-15 in some sad cases). It's paid off in abut 2-3 years, then the op gets to recoup some of the costs to maintain the boxes. The cable plant has a life of about 30 years, with upgrades. Cable has not progressed as fast as consumer electronics. We used to keep TV sets for 10 years or more, now they are replaced to get one with more bells and whistles.

Two posts recognize that there is little/no profit in renting boxes to customers - that's why I like this group soooo much - you people are smart!! I must say that while I do treasure the staff I employ to provision and refurbish the boxes, and would hate to see them leave, I do not like any kind of inventory that comes back. Logistical PIA. My strategy on boxes is that the company should offer a box that will appeal to 80% of the users - somewhere between a 6200 and a 2500. Line Level outs, Svideo and optical SPDIF - at no charge (incentive to keep it), and offer external security like CCard to the 20% that want the best.

In my real pink cloud dreams, basic would be free - subsidized by the local broadcasters who would get to claim 100% of homes in the area can get their signal, and THEY would support the Local Origination and PEG channels - something they should be doing in exchange for borrowing the public's airwaves, as originally spelled out by the FRC. Currently only cable subscribers see (and pay for) PEG channels, this way everyone can see them (hmm, let's make satellite must carry city council meetings and TV For The Homeless). Everything else gets a box or external security. (Ow. A box on every set - that All Digital phrase again). Then my staff that used to spend time vacuuming cat hair out of DCTs (ick) would work in a cleaner environment, shipping out equipment via UPS like Pac Bell does for DSL.

This plan eliminates techs climbing poles to disconnect & reconnect (sorry, maybe I can hire them to clean out the cat hair), fewer fleet vehicles on the road, more eyeballs seeing your product on a barker channel, higher penetration and lower rates. This is the change I hope to make before I retire a rich man. And get Saramilgatos up to 1.2Ghz (500 mhz more than anyone else for bragging rights).

wOOt. Too much coffee tonight!

I'm glad I checked this thread out tonight. I live in San Jose and am on Comcast HD.

I didn't know the DIscovery HD Theater channel came on today, and probably wouldn't have, if I hadn't checked this thread. It's a shame, though, that they couldn't put it in the 180's-190's next to the other HD channels.

It's frustrating that they send out the stupid messages about dropping some Mexican music channel, or advertising some PPV event, but can't send one out about adding a new HD channel to the lineup...

In case I'm missing something, are there any other HD channels besides what lies between 184 and 196 (besides premium HD)?

Originally posted by DCTDictator
In my real pink cloud dreams...wOOt. Too much coffee tonight!
Great post...the only part you left out was Shannonv dropping off a MS Powered 6412 at our houses too (and really 860Mhz would be fine for now)...

And if you decide to switch careers after all of this let me know...I need somebody experienced in Cat Hair removal...My wife is a Veternarian and I sometimes work on the computers...there's nothing worse than opening up one of the workstations when its fried the power supply after sucking up enough fur and feathers to fill a small trash can (yuck)

Originally posted by keenan
Yup, we're at the back of the bus, again!!

Jim
I want to mention to the Santa Rosa guys that here in Rohnert Park/Cotati, we've been running the same cable infastructure since the 1970s only until recently. We've been watching since the days when the only premium channel was one channel of Showtime, and nothing got better as the CableCo kept switching hands (Multivision, Century Communications, AT&T, etc) and we sat around with the same 40-50 analog channels.

When CableONE came to Santa Rosa, I got to hear friends talk about cable modems while I was on 56K. Only since Comcast has taken control and come into town have we really been getting serious with digital cable, cable modems, HD, etc.

So, in essence, as a resident of this area for decades, you guys aren't really at the "back of the bus." You've just been at the front of the bus for so long you've forgotten what the middle looks like. ;)

Originally posted by davisdog
Great post...the only part you left out was Shannonv dropping off a MS Powered 6412 at our houses too (and really 860Mhz would be fine for now)...

And if you decide to switch careers after all of this let me know...I need somebody experienced in Cat Hair removal...My wife is a Veternarian and I sometimes work on the computers...there's nothing worse than opening up one of the workstations when its fried the power supply after sucking up enough fur and feathers to fill a small trash can (yuck)

Tell me about it. I recently had to replace my mother board - a damn good ASUS. Opening it up and pulling it out almost required the use of a dust mask.

As PC's get more powerful, they generate more heat, which mean more fans are needed to intake more air. Which means more dust in the box. What we need are electrostatic air cleaners with the fans. -WELL SHIELDED- electrostatic cleaners. :)

Check this out (from the "I am really ticked" thread in the rear projection TV area):

Originally posted by alinski
I have Charter in Southern California. Subscribe to their HD package. Box used is a Scientific Atlanta Explorer 3250HD. Currently using component but box has DVI.

HD package was $10 extra with 9 HD channels:

HD Movie
HD Network
ESPN HD
Discovery HD
HBO HD
Showtime HD
Fox HD
NBC HD
ABC HD

Edited to add that the DVI is supposed to work. I just need to get the DVI cable and connect.

Alan...


We have a damn good lineup here as well, runs $5.

HBOHD
SHOHD
TNTHD
Discovery HD Theater
PBSHD
HDNET
HDNET Movies
INHD
INHD2
Fox Sports HD
NBAHD
CBSHD
NBCHD
ABCHD


I'm on my 7th or 8th Moto 6200 box since we switched to Comcast less than 2 months ago, and need to switch out my current one because of the four-eighty-p (my four and five keys on my laptop keyboard don't work, sorry) override DVI snowy picture problem. I'm thinking of calling and really complaining and seeing if they can give me the HBO/Showtime/Cinemax/Starz HD channels for free or something. This is rediculous - both the Moto 7.1 firmware problems, and knowing that other areas get the HD premium channels in their HD packages without having to subscribe to the respective digital channels. I may even threaten to cancel and switch Voom or something...

Originally posted by michaelc
When CableONE came to Santa Rosa, I got to hear friends talk about cable modems while I was on 56K. Actually, CableOne never got past that talking part. A couple months ago, Comcast finally reached an agreement with the city that would allow cable modems here, but I don't think it's up yet (according to the website for my zip code, anyways). I think some areas of SR have 'em and have had 'em for quite some time, but certainly not the whole city. I don't really know; I stopped paying attention at some point. Almost everyone who has any interest in broadband signed up for DSL or "wireless DSL" long ago, so they (both Comcast and the city) can keep being stupid if they want.

For those of you that have INHD is it good? I'm thinking about switching to VOOM since I pay so much more, but I don't even get INHD, Starz, DiscoverHD, FOX or TNT that some people on comcast are able to get. I was going to wait it out, but I've been waiting for a long time and thinking about voom. Appreciate the comments.

There is no is no TNT HD on Comcast anywhere. And there is no FOX Widescreen (soon to be HD) on Comcast anywhere in Northern Callifornia.

I would say it would be worth looking into to find out when the rebuild will be completed in your area. One way to approach it would be to stop in at your local Comcast office and ask to speak to someone who knows the schedule for the rebuild. If that doesn't work for you, email the executive customer specialists whose email addresses are posted earlier in this thread (by bpearse) and have them investigate it for you.

Tell whoever you talk to that you are considering moving to satellite but would consider waiting for Comcast's rebuild depending on the timing, so they can put your request for information in perspective and give it the attention it deserves.

EDIT: And be sure to mention that you are an HDTV customer and that is why you are so concerned with the rebuild-- missing HDTV channels that are available via Comcast elsewhere in the Bay Area.

And finally, let us know what you find out.

Just an FYI, it's not high def, but there is a new digital sports channel for fans of horse racing which has recently shown up on some Bay Area Comcast systems.

The channel is TV Games Network (doesn't really describe the content, does it?), and it's on channel 409. I won't be watching but I would be surprised if we don't have at least one horse racing afficionado out there.

My cable box reset itself four times today (at 2:00, 2:20, 2:40, and 3:00). Anyone else notice this? Any idea why this would happen? I don't see any changes in firmware or channel lineup or anything.

z

Originally posted by TBoyd
To: dailowai

re: Philippians 4:13 -- EXCEPT get the TV channels you want.

To quote Edward G. Robinson in 'The Ten Commandants', "Where's your GOD now, Moses?".

Faith should be PRIVATE.

I appologize if I had offended you in any way.

Originally posted by TBoyd
Faith should be PRIVATE.

Give him a break, TBoyd. There are MANY signatures in this forum that pose both political and religious views. If you don't like something, just ignore it -- no need to flame anyone.

Originally posted by SonomaSearcher
Just an FYI, it's not high def, but there is a new digital sports channel for fans of horse racing which has recently shown up on some Bay Area Comcast systems.

The channel is TV Games Network (doesn't really describe the content, does it?), and it's on channel 409. I won't be watching but I would be surprised if we don't have at least one horse racing afficionado out there.

I've also been getting Gol TV recently. Before, it was part of one of the two Spanish-language tiers that cost extra, and I haven't signed up for them, but I'm seeing it without problem.

Originally posted by TBoyd

Faith should be PRIVATE.

TBoyd, what is your major malfunction? Getting so upset about a simple tag line is silly.

Now back to the topic at hand.

dailowai,

Your tag line does not offend me and I hope you do not change it. Knowing a little bit about something which is important to you is a good thing and should not offend anyone. Thank you for your contributions to this thread and I look forward to your continued participation.

Now, as bpearse very appropriately noted, back to the topic.

Hi all --

Just an FYI here......

Just back from vacation, and found Discovery HD up and running on 722 here in beautiful (not) Cloverdale.

It seems that we get things along the same track as most of the bay area up here.

Hope On Demand and PVR's roll out soon!

JT

Don't sell Cloverdale short. At least you get more house for your money up there than down here. (Easy for me to say.)

DVR's won't be out until October, and that's optimistic. Comcast in the Bay Area is waiting for the dual tuner Motorola 6412 and the software (TV Guide or Microsoft) is still being developed for it. Even after they are ready to load the software, there will be real world beta testing with Comcast employees (assuming Motorola can make enough of the boxes so that the Bay Area gets some of them by late August/early September). I am assuming that employee beta testing will last one to two months.

I am sure that when the first 6412's show up for beta testing in the Bay Area, DCT Dictator will know about it and will let us know.

Well, I'm not authorized for Discovery HD, but I called anyways and they said I had to be subscribed to digital classic package. However, I have friends who are not and get Discovery HD. So am I lucky or unlucky.... Anyone have a solid answer about what someone is supposed to get with the $5 upgrade to HD?

Russ

the five dollars is just the fee for the hd box rental, and that would only give you your local channels in HD. Some areas people have been lucky to get more then that, but like in my area I have to have digital classic to get ESPNHD, and you would need digital classic to get INHD1/2, DiscoveryHD. If you subscribe to comcasts premium package and get HBO channels, you may be able to get HBOHD as well. Hope this helps.

Originally posted by russwong
Well, I'm not authorized for Discovery HD, but I called anyways and they said I had to be subscribed to digital classic package. However, I have friends who are not and get Discovery HD. So am I lucky or unlucky.... Anyone have a solid answer about what someone is supposed to get with the $5 upgrade to HD?

Russ

Russ,

CSR is correct (Inhd, ESPNHD and DiscHD) require Digital Classic. Comcast doesnt have the encryption gear setup in all areas yet so some people are lucky and getting a few of those channels (for now) without a subscription. $5 is for HD Box rental only.

I'm getting DiscoveryHD out in Pinole/East Bay, but it just stutters every few seconds. Impossible to watch, any ideas on how to fix this?

I'm also having a horrible stuttering problem on Discovery HD. It's a constant blur of clipped audio and pixelated swirls within the images.

I have almost no problem in the regular HD content. With glitches typically down to a couple an hour.

Though speaking of HD, while I truly love the picture (and audio) quality when it works; is it just me or does it seem like HD is way more error prone? Obviously there is more signal to interfere with, but still, it's nowhere near as reliable as my 'regular' digital channels.

HDTV looks like EDTV tonight. I'm in the northbay - actually switching the box to 480P and can't see the diff on a 50" set. anyone else noticing this?
jb

Parts of Vacaville are getting switched tomorrow - a bulletin tells me that analog boxes in several areas will no longer work, and advaced services will be available.

This is a bit off topic but I was curious if anyone could give me any insight to my dilemma. I recently moved things around in my house and my cable modem is now in a different room. When I hooked up the modem, I couldn't get an IP address. When I hooked up a TV to that same jack, no problems -- picture came in fine. I went to another jack in a different room and had the same problem: no cable modem access. The only jack it would work in was the one it used to be in.

I called up Comcast and the guy did the standard "power-cycle, shut down, etc." to no avail. So now I have someone coming out on Friday to take a look at it. The tech on the phone did say there may be some filters on the line that could block access to the Internet. At first I thought the guy was taking crazy pills but after hanging up, I was thinking that might make sense. Could it be that if Comcast doesn't put filters on specific lines that the un-used jacks could take up bandwidth? If that's the case then I can understand why the filters are in place. If not then I'm a bit stumped. I guess I'll find out on Friday -- I was just curious if anyone had any info or experienced this same problem.

fender4645

When the tec's installed the splitters and internet connection they did put a filter on the tv feeds but not on the cable modem. I'm not sure if the filter is to protect PQ on the TV's or to stop interference from the TV's affecting the cable modem's ability to talk to the headend.

Older ATT/TCI systems would place a return path filter on all non-data lines. Called a 5/13 trap - it filters 5 to 13 mhz.

Since you have multiple cable outlets, you may go a searching for the splitter point and see if you have the classic Directional Coupler (cable in, cable out - xxdb tapoff) that would be the point of separation for video & data. The leg feeding the video may have a filter on it.

Less likely is that there is an older splitter in the home - 5-300 mhz splitters were in use and some still pass video up to 450 mhz.

Probably the best place to get this kind of information is

http://www.dslreports.com/forum/comcast

This is a great forum that has an area focused on Comcast high speed internet.

I emailed comcast twice about when my system will be upgraded, and they email me back the same garbage! Since they changed their office hours, I can't call them till the weekends. Guess I'll have to call this weekend and see if I can get someone to actually tell me when my area will be upgraded.

regards to the email that you have sent to us, we're very excited
about the potential of HDTV, and while we do not have agreements with
all programmers that would allow us to carry their HDTV programming, we
continue to have discussions with a number of them in the hopes of
reaching an agreement to carry their signals. At this time we do not
have an expected launch date, however when the service is available, we
will make a formal announcement.

I keep on asking them about my system being upgraded, and they send me this same email everytime!

Thanks all. DCTDicator, I'll bet you're right -- the cable modem was installed in the days of AT&T.

I just got ads on my TV Guide for the first time(had Digital Cable for 4 months). Is this the "new" guide, or did they just decide to turn on ads?

I've always had ads on my TVG EPG. Did your software version change?

Really nothing of importance, but tonight around 9:00 PM I'm pretty sure I saw a 16x9 HD commercial for Clorox on ABC. Is this something new(HD commercials) or have I not been paying attention?

Jim

I wonder if anybody in the Solano area, particularly Vallejo are experiencing any pixellation problems with their digital and HD programing? For the past two or three nights digital and HD has been unwatchable! I switched component inputs and even tried coaxial...same deal. Other sources (PS2 and DVD) work fine, so that leads me to believe it's on Comcasts part. BTW, regular cable is fine.

I saw a Target commercial, the one with Lenny Kravitz, in HD the other night. IIRC, it was on 186 (KPIX, CBS).

Originally posted by cyberbri

It's frustrating that they send out the stupid messages about dropping some Mexican music channel, or advertising some PPV event, but can't send one out about adding a new HD channel to the lineup...


that because for the $5 you pay to "rent" that box, YOU ARE SUPPOSE TO BETTING JUST THE LOCAL NETWORK CHANNELS!!!!!!!! nothing else.

right now, 722, 195 and 916 are just flukes that comcast is working to delete when they finally start to encrypt them.

imaging signing up for this service over 8 months ago and for $5, you get HBO, SHO and ESPN for free? then around march, CINEMAX and STARZ show up out of the blue.

you think comcast would send a message to your box saying that?

when i had the box replaced by an actual comcast employee, rather than a contractor, the dude made sure to avoid those channels when testing the box and when he slipped and tuned into ESPN, he had sure to tell that i should NOT be tuning to those channel since it was a mistake...

yeah right...

As long as you are subscribed to the proper digital cable channel tiers (i.e., not just getting standard non-digital cable, but with an HD STB), you should get those channels - 722 (Discovery HD Theater), 195/196 (INHD/INHD2), 193 (ESPNHD), and the local public stations -- on top of the 3 major networks. The premium ones, HBO, Showtime, etc., require you to have a subscription to the regular digital channels as well in order to get them.

So yes, the $5 is for the box. But if you are subscribed to all the digital stuff, besides the premium movie channels, you should be getting all the digital channels to go along with that.

BTW, what's 916? Where I'm at, in San Jose, 901-9?? are the Music Choice music channels...


And you would at least think they would realize that announcing new HD channels like that would get more people interested in HD, knowing the HD line up is growing, and that it includes cool stuff like the Discovery channel.

916 is a typo.

Originally posted by baywaykk
I wonder if anybody in the Solano area, particularly Vallejo are experiencing any pixellation problems with their digital and HD programing? For the past two or three nights digital and HD has been unwatchable! I switched component inputs and even tried coaxial...same deal. Other sources (PS2 and DVD) work fine, so that leads me to believe it's on Comcasts part. BTW, regular cable is fine.

Anyone?

Originally posted by baywaykk
I wonder if anybody in the Solano area, particularly Vallejo are experiencing any pixellation problems with their digital and HD programing? For the past two or three nights digital and HD has been unwatchable! I switched component inputs and even tried coaxial...same deal. Other sources (PS2 and DVD) work fine, so that leads me to believe it's on Comcasts part. BTW, regular cable is fine.

If no one else in your area is seeing this then it could be a line or box issue. Go into your cable diags menu by powering off the STB and immediately press Select. In one of the menus (can't remember which one off the top of my head) it will show you the current connection status. Post the numbers you see and we can see if it's a bandwidth issue.

I'm in the menu but not sure which one to look under...GENERAL, OOB, INBAND STATUS and all the likes. Any idea as to what numbers I'm looking for?

Inband has the diags, and you need it for the channel that is having problems (so it has to be on that channel before you turn power off to go to the menu).

Look at SNR, AGC and correctable and uncorrectable 5 second error counts. The numbers are updated once every 5 seconds.

Weird thing...after exiting the menu, the channels are fine now. I really appreciate the the advice! If it occurs again, I'll know what to look into...thanks guys!

As an update for those in Saratoga, I was initially contacted by Brian Robert's office (Comcast CEO) about the situation in Saratoga/Los Gatos/Milpitas a week or so ago, but nothing since. My guess is that there are no plans for adding INHD1 or INHD2 or Discovery or the other several HD channels which we do not get. Otherwise, they would have come back with something. I have downgraded to the lowest possible service (limited basic) until this is resolved and will return the 6200 next week. Thank god I can still go satellite.

Anybody know when Comcast HD will be coming to Union City???

Has anyone had comcast install one of the new CABLECARDS yet.Iam getting mine installed on tuesday for my xbr960 and was wondering if you encountered any problems,also hows the picture quality compared to a stb. Thanks

Anyone else getting exceptionally poor sound out of KNTV-DT right now?

Sounds like everything was recorded in a fishbowl. Channel 3 is working fine, however.

Originally posted by pt270
Has anyone had comcast install one of the new CABLECARDS yet.Iam getting mine installed on tuesday for my xbr960 and was wondering if you encountered any problems,also hows the picture quality compared to a stb. Thanks

If you don't mind, can you give a general idea of where you are located?

I work in San Jose (and all of South Bay) and have been waiting for the first CableCard install.

I also would like to see any differences in PQ compared to a set top box. If you didn't have a box, I'd bring a one along to see it. And give away some PPV credits or comp service for a month.

Originally posted by michaelc
Anyone else getting exceptionally poor sound out of KNTV-DT right now?

Sounds like everything was recorded in a fishbowl. Channel 3 is working fine, however.

Is that 185? The NBC channel?
I've noticed it too. WHen listening through my stereo, the Dolby Digital only has the front three channels - maybe this is the reason. ABC/CBS have 2-channel DD, which sound fine through the TV, and I switch that to DPLII-Movie when listening in surround.

Yes, 185. It's only started very recently. I first noticed it on Friday night's repeat of "Las Vegas."

I don't have any surround sound systems, and the sound out of the TV speakers stinks.

Originally posted by michaelc
Anyone else getting exceptionally poor sound out of KNTV-DT right now?

Sounds like everything was recorded in a fishbowl. Channel 3 is working fine, however.

Yes, what is the deal with that? Watching the Busch race yesterday in 16x9 up-covert all I could get were the 3 front channels. Would not switch into DD PLx. Thought there was something up with my receiver.

Jim

After noticing it was only coming through in 3 channels to my receiver (and can only switch to Vmax Far/Near or whatever on my H/K receiver), on one show last night, I think Law & Order:CI, I put my head up to the center channel speaker and found there was no audio coming out of it.

Comcast and NBC need to be informed the DD signal on their channel 185 is messed up. If it's only supposed to be 2 channels, like the other two networks, then it should be in 2, not 3, so we can convert it to DPLII. As it is right now, you can only listen in the 3-channel mode, which is basically L & R only.

Hi. I am Dandrewk. I am an Olympics Junkie. <The audience nods in approval, claps, and exclaims: "Hi Dandrewk!">

There, I've admitted it. :)

NBC has announced 24 hour HD coverage (well, 8 hours per day looped) of the major venues. This schedule runs independent of the SD coverage, although there will be obvious overlaps.

This brings the question of what will actually be available to us. NBC itself will only be doing prime-time broadcasts, with the rest of the daily programming available through Bravo, MSNBC, CNBC, USA and Telemundo. Here is the grid:

http://www.nbcolympics.com/sports/5016759/detail.html

So... since we only have KNTV for HDTV, the options (as I see 'em) are:

1. We are stuck watching ONLY what timings/venues KNTV (NBC) will be showing HD-covered events. Which means no HD in non-prime-time, as we don't get Bravo or the others in HD yet.

2. KNTV's HD - via Comcast or 48-2, simulcasts the Olympics in HD 24/7. This would lead to differing schedules for SD and HD.

3. Comcast makes available a special "olympics" channel which gives the HD feed.

Anybody know what the scoop is?

Got one of these today - not for distribution, but just for tinkering.

Box is heavy! Apply power, the power symbol blinks, then 3 LEDs on the front panel flash in sequence - Recording, Remote, Message - red, red, orange respectivley. I hear a hard drive chittering. Applied RF from an advanced lineup cable. No sound, picture is a blank screen. I'll leave it alone, see if it finds a data stream.

http://gallery.avsforum.com/data/507/7451416DSC00647-med.JPG

Will post pictures in gallery.

In other newz, Saramilgatos and Sunnyvale HSI gets 3 meg down starting July 15, it was announced.

On Demand is launching in one headend in San Francisco starting July 20 - (Colma??).

Originally posted by dandrewk



So... since we only have KNTV for HDTV, the options (as I see 'em) are:

1. We are stuck watching ONLY what timings/venues KNTV (NBC) will be showing HD-covered events. Which means no HD in non-prime-time, as we don't get Bravo or the others in HD yet.

2. KNTV's HD - via Comcast or 48-2, simulcasts the Olympics in HD 24/7. This would lead to differing schedules for SD and HD.

3. Comcast makes available a special "olympics" channel which gives the HD feed.

Anybody know what the scoop is?

You might post the questions on the yahoo group "HDTV-in-SFbay"
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HDTV-in-SFbay/

One of the VP's of KNTV posts there regularily and may be able to provide insite.

Originally posted by DCTDictator
Got one of these today - not for distribution, but just for tinkering.

Box is heavy! Will post a picture soon.

Interesting News...

I'm assuming it's loaded with the Moxi Software???
http://www.moxi.com/prodserv/moxi_overview.jsp

oops...just released (after looking at the back panel) that the BMC8000 is the non-HD PVR :(

Oh well..interesting looking beast!

Now if you can just get the BMC90XX (the dual tuner HD version)

I am soooo frustrated with Comcast in the Los Gatos area. It's been almost a year since the DVR was supposed to be available and we are still second class citizens for not getting InHD/InHD2/Discovery in our area. I am on the verge of going back to satellite which I really don't want to do. I feel like Comcast is giving no choice since they will not give out ANY information. I wrote Erika (who has been really responsive in the past) at Comcast and got silence in return.

Does anyone know of any news that would keep me? Anything would be appreciated!

Thanks,
Eric

Originally posted by ethune
I am soooo frustrated with Comcast in the Los Gatos area. It's been almost a year since the DVR was supposed to be available and we are still second class citizens for not getting InHD/InHD2/Discovery in our area. I am on the verge of going back to satellite which I really don't want to do. I feel like Comcast is giving no choice since they will not give out ANY information. I wrote Erika (who has been really responsive in the past) at Comcast and got silence in return.

Does anyone know of any news that would keep me? Anything would be appreciated!

Thanks,
Eric

You're not alone, none of the above in Santa Rosa either, see this link here:

http://www.cedmagazine.com/cedailydirect/2004/0704/cedaily040701.htm
CED Broadband Direct News

Maybe we should get leather jackets with the logo: Comcast Two Percenters on the back!!:D :D

Jim

Well, I talked to comcast today - the San Mateo county rebuild is done, and they are coming out to install a 6200 on wednesday. I am going to have to redo my house headend though because the new plant is 860 Mhz and I can't find modulators that run above that...

Thanks,
Mike

"...the San Mateo county rebuild is done...."

Mike, do I correctly understand that you're talking about unincorporated areas in SMC, and not the whole county?

Originally posted by ethune
I am soooo frustrated with Comcast in the Los Gatos area. It's been almost a year since the DVR was supposed to be available and we are still second class citizens for not getting InHD/InHD2/Discovery in our area. I am on the verge of going back to satellite which I really don't want to do. I feel like Comcast is giving no choice since they will not give out ANY information. I wrote Erika (who has been really responsive in the past) at Comcast and got silence in return.

Does anyone know of any news that would keep me? Anything would be appreciated!

Thanks,
Eric

Look up a page or two and find the contact names at Comcast to email in order to register your frustration. The Comcast people I have talked to continue to claim there are very few people impacted by their failure to upgrade. Also contact your Los Gatos city government number (listed on your Comcast bill) who owns the Comcast contract.

We need a lot of people voicing their displeasure to get this fixed.

Unlike many of you in the Bay Area who receive some channels in HD through Comcast Cable(but not all), no HD service whatsoever is available through cable here in Walnut Creek (zip 94598). However, my discussions with CSRs have led to my hearing that either a) it won't be here anytime soon, or b) it will be here by the end of July.

Anyone know when Comcast HD of any type may make it to Walnut Creek? I just bought my first HDTV, foolishly assuming that I could pay that $5/mo and have a few locals at my disposal in HD. Guess it's waiting time..

Originally posted by Desafinado
Anyone know when Comcast HD of any type may make it to Walnut Creek? I just bought my first HDTV, foolishly assuming that I could pay that $5/mo and have a few locals at my disposal in HD. Guess it's waiting time..

Are you in an area where Astound is available? If so, you may be waiting a while. I've heard that Comcast isn't even touching the area that Astound is a part of because it's so small and not worth the trouble of trying to get people to switch over.

Thanks for the tip- apparently their advertisements haven't reached me, as I had never even heard of Astound. From their online map, it does look as though I live in an area they service.

Does anyone else on this forum currently subscribe to Astound's HD service? It looks like $17/mo gives you EspnHD, Discovery HD, HDNet, and HDNet Movies, which all sound dandy, but they don't list any of the network HD feeds, which I would really like to get.

Hopefully Comcast is indeed working on bringing their service here, because their lineup- for about the same price- seems more attractive.

TPeterson, as far as I know, the "county" system is the system in Emerald Hills that extends up to about San Mateo. It's the unincorporated part of central San Mateo county. I don't know about Pescadero or La Honda, or other more rural parts of the county, but I don't think that's part of the San Mateo county headend.

Where specifically are you interested in?

Thanks,
Mike

I have it on good thirdhand information that there will be some kind of public information announced regarding FSN Bay Area HD in the next 10 days or so. Hopefully, we will then at least find out when the A's/Giants home games start.

A's fan here but love the Giants too. How about another Bay Bridge World Series....

Funny you should mention the A's.

I just had a weird dream, one of those you wake up and wonder "where did THAT come from".

The odd details I won't fill in, but it featured me riding a bus with Barry Zito as its suicidal driver.

What does it mean?

Originally posted by DCTDictator
In other newz, Saramilgatos and Sunnyvale HSI gets 3 meg down starting July 15, it was announced.

On Demand is launching in one headend in San Francisco starting July 20 - (Colma??).

While not announced, I got 3Mb service a couple weeks ago here in Saratoga. Just call Comcast and ask them to update your config, and then unplug your modem and router for at least 1 minute (yes, 1 minute) to reset it.

Now, if Comcast would just upgrade Saramilgatos to 750MHz......

Thanks for the updates, DCTdictator

Does ANYONE know anything about Santa Cruz County? At the headend office in Scotts Valley, I was told March/April, then it was end of May. Now I'm being told it's because they're waiting on the STB's and that it won't be until the end of the year. Oh, but hey, you can get HSI now. Great...:rolleyes:

How about some HD content damnit! I already missed the NHL playoffs, the Olymics appear to be out with no legitimate information in sight. Can someone help me out here??

Richo,

DCTDictator should know quite a bit about the information you seek (especially the reason you were given about the STB's !!!). You should not have to wait too long for his wisdom to shine upon you ...;)

Thanks! In the meantime I'll just keep waiting. http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/4/4_6_109.gif