Is there any chance that this process could be shortened?

Is it a process that just takes a lot of time?

The mask filter is hung from the ceiling and weighs over 5000 pounds.

It must be dismantled in place and the new channel 44 filter (which is about 30% larger) installed in it's place. The Jan 12th date was selected by us to allow enough time to complete the installation to meet the Jan 19th date that was set by the FCC in response to our early transition waver.

The waver was required because crews to accomplish the transition will be performing these changes at 21 ComCorp stations in Texas, Louisiana, and Indiana over a period of a month before the drop dead Feb 17th deadline.

The KYLE transition will be on Feb 17th because the changeover requires only re-tuning the mask filter and transmitter (29 to 28), installing two power amplifiers and switching antenna connections from the analog to the digital transmitter.

This will be accomplished between 12 AM and 6 AM on the morning of Feb 17th.

So KYLE-DT is switching to 28 and then switching back to 29? Was the original plan to operate 29 under STA changed?

- Trip

So KYLE-DT is switching to 28 and then switching back to 29? Was the original plan to operate 29 under STA changed?

- Trip

We must build out our constuction permit on KYLE-DT to 50KW on channel 28 (using the existing 28 antenna) to meet the Feb 17th deadline while we are waiting for the equipment needed to transition to channel 29 at 1 Megawatt.

This includes at the least a channel 29 antenna and mask filter. (At present there is a manufacturer backlog on these)

Our existing channel 29 side mount antenna will only operate up to 5 KW. (And we are pushing it to the max now)

If we locate on the KBTX tower we will also have to update their existing transmission line to allow feeding both the channel 29 and channel 50 antennas at the top of the tower. (There is also a backlog on transmission line)

Either way we will have to replace the antenna. (Our existing channel 28 antenna will not work on digital channel 29)

Thanks for the response.

Wow, so House and Fringe might be watchable tonight?

I can't wait to get home from work and check the DVR! Now I may leave early...

Suddenlink put KYLE-DT back on 705 Monday. Our new switching equipment came in and installation was completed Wednesday (Oct 15th).

My Master Control Operators have reported no switching issues this week.

I am assuming the change from continuous tone to DTMF HD-ON HD-OFF switching has imporved the situation if not fixed it?

Kyle HD has been pixelating and blacking out tonight.Watching on Suddenlink.

its not working at all for me right now.... so the cowboys game is off.

it seems to be switching between 2 tv formats (one widescreen but only showing a black screen and the other a 4x3 window also showing a black screen)

it really sucks not being able to watch the cowboys in hd.... esp since the houston fox isnt showing the game at all.

its not working at all for me right now.... so the cowboys game is off.

it seems to be switching between 2 tv formats (one widescreen but only showing a black screen and the other a 4x3 window also showing a black screen)

it really sucks not being able to watch the cowboys in hd.... esp since the houston fox isnt showing the game at all.

I just talked to my master control operator who is monitoring KYLE from the Suddenlink feed and she says the game has been fine since the beginning.

I just logged into the transmitter site slingbox and the game is in HD right now. I watched for over 10 minutes and saw no problems at all.

There was an issue last night when we lost HD reception during FOX prime. My assistant was in Bryan and went to the site.

Reception from 44 was fading in and out at that time. He switched receivers and it came back solid.

well it is back now but its constantly breaking up.... and the signal quality is pretty low compared to other channels on suddenlink.

it could be an issue locally since you said the guys at suddenlink arent seeing a problem. (but every other local channel but foxhd is fine)

well it is back now but its constantly breaking up.... and the signal quality is pretty low compared to other channels on suddenlink.

it could be an issue locally since you said the guys at suddenlink arent seeing a problem. (but every other local channel but foxhd is fine)

My assistant is at our Bryan Sales office and says that Suddenlink HD cable channel 705 is perfect.

I can connect directly to the transmitter site Slingbox from here at my house and it is fine.

Anybody out there watching the game OTA?

No problems today watching the game today on Suddenlink in Fox HD except there was a popping crackeling sound going on.

I watched the entire Cowboys/Rams game OTA and I had no problems whatsoever (except, once again, for the outcome). It did switch to 4x3 SD about halfway through the postgame show though.

I watched the entire Cowboys/Rams game OTA and I had no problems whatsoever

Wasn't the game over at about the end of the first quarter :confused:

Wasn't the game over at about the end of the first quarter

That's true, it was disappointing, but what can I say? I'm a Cowboys fan and I love my football in HD! :)

That's true, it was disappointing, but what can I say? I'm a Cowboys fan and I love my football in HD! :)

Thanks for the update Jonnyb99:)

I am wondering if the popping is a Suddenlink problem?

Did you hear it at all during the game.

I record the HD Slingbox feed from the HD Suddenlink box in our Bryan office with a MediaView video server and I don't hear any popping issues from there.

ive had the popping pretty much since you started making suddenlink use kyle (ie since the beginning). also sucks that we have stereo sound and not the real 5.1 like the initial waco version we had.

Did you hear it at all during the game.


The only problem I ever have viewing FOX OTA is when it switches from HD to SD due to the atmospheric conditions you explained a couple of weeks ago. I never notice any pops or crackles.

ive had the popping pretty much since you started making suddenlink use kyle (ie since the beginning). also sucks that we have stereo sound and not the real 5.1 like the initial waco version we had.


I actually did a sound comparison between KDFW via D* and KYLE OTA a couple of weeks ago during a Cowboy game. KDFW uses 5.1 and KYLE uses 2.0. I didn't really feel like I was missing any surround effects, but that could be an issue with FOX's football broadcasts. I know I definitely hear surround effects when I watch Sunday Night Football on NBC. They seem to do a good job of capturing surround effects. Nevertheless, I'm sure FOX's primetime lineup uses surround effects much more effectively. I just watch any primetime shows on FOX.

Thanks for the update Jonnyb99:)

I am wondering if the popping is a Suddenlink problem?

Did you hear it at all during the game.

I record the HD Slingbox feed from the HD Suddenlink box in our Bryan office with a MediaView video server and I don't hear any popping issues from there.

There was a popping noise during the game on Sunday and the rest of the evening for us OTA viewers as well for KYLE-DT.

There was a popping noise during the game on Sunday and the rest of the evening for us OTA viewers as well for KYLE-DT.

I watched the game OTA and did not notice any popping noise whatsoever.

What is going on with FOX 44 and dish network? They had the HD signal up-linked, but never made available, now its gone and we are stuck with the SD signal. They made Waco NBC 6 available today in HD. I was watching FOX over the weekend showing the commercials now telling us if we watch FOX over dish we will lose it at the end of the year!

I watched some of the World Series last night and didn't have any problems at all with FOX. There wasn't any popping or crackling and there wasn't any switching from HD to SD. I was watching OTA.

On another note, I received a call from a D* service rep offering me the premier package for $10 more per month (than my current bill) for four months. Also included are the rest of the Sunday Ticket games for the remainder of the season. I've always wanted to check out Sunday Ticket! :)

The world series game wasn't in HD on KYLE tonight.

The World Series was in HD last night, but the post game bonanza switched back to 4:3 SD. Also, I noticed during a commercial break it said I was watching KWKT FOX 44. I was watching OTA.

I noticed today that Discovery HD, TLC HD and Animal Planet HD have been added to the Suddenlink lineup.

Is it safe for me to assume that replacement of our HD receiver, Decoder, and switching at the Bryan transmitter site has improved the KYLE FOX HD situation or is there something wrong with this blog?

i havent had any major issues recently... but i dont watch that much stuff on fox.

Is it safe for me to assume that replacement of our HD receiver, Decoder, and switching at the Bryan transmitter site has improved the KYLE FOX HD situation or is there something wrong with this blog?

I watch a lot of football on FOX and KYLE HD has been great for me the last couple of weeks. I'm watching OTA. Thanks FOX44CE!

So I couldn't help but notice that KWKT-DT filed a petition to relocate from channel 44 to 25...

I wish I knew more than that, but nothing's showed up on the ECFS yet. However:

http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/tvq?call=kwkt

- Trip

So I couldn't help but notice that KWKT-DT filed a petition to relocate from channel 44 to 25...

I wish I knew more than that, but nothing's showed up on the ECFS yet. However:

http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/tvq?call=kwkt

- Trip

The maximum ERP for KWKT-DT (44) was reduced to 32 KW by the FCC.

We filed for a coverage replication waver to increase it to 100KW and it was approved.

Since KXXV is staying on 26, we filed for an allocation on 25 at 1 MW which meets all of the interference criteria in Waco.

I have a question for any of y'all who use/have used a Harmony remote. I have the 880 model and have noticed lately that I really have to mash hard on my Volume Up button. Just curious if anyone else has had trouble with buttons wearing out on these remotes. Thanks in advance!

hey dave or any other verizon dsl users.... i happened to be browsing verizons website this evening to see what they offer and noticed they have a new dsl plan i hadnt seen before. a 7mbit plan.

http://www22.verizon.com/residential/highspeedinternet/Plans/Plans.htm

i checked my address and my parents address but their system was saying we dont live in a verizon service area which i know is wrong but whatever. was wondering if this is a plan we can actually get here? (if any others have tried it).

now that netflix streaming is up and running i am reevaluating providers.... suddenlink is ok but it has far too many slowdowns for me (where im not getting my full rated 8mbit). i know dsl is generally more stable but they just cant get the speeds necessary for netflix streaming. but if this new plan is real it could be the best of both worlds. oddly enough suddenlink has been excellent in terms of my speeds until nxe and netflix streaming launched. guess more people are using it than anybody expected.

if only fios would hurry the hell up and end this stupid debate....

The website says faster service is available in my area. Although when I put in my neighbors phone number, the fastest service is just 3mbit.

Just got done with a chat and they said it's not available here yet. :(

id be interested to know when it does come.... btw you wanna conduct an experiment? (to help in the decision). because the 7mbit dsl will need to run almost at its full 7mbit all the time in order for it to be able to stream the hd stuff from netflix (because of the 40% overhead it needs)

ill do it too but we should both run speedtest's during peak times (which is when i am noticing the slowdowns on suddenlink). i know you only have the 3mbit service now but i would imagine if it can max that out they can do the same for the 7mbit service when it does eventually come.

over the next few weeks run 1 or 2 speedtest's a night (speedtest.net). and i guess seattle since the netflix servers are somewhere on the west coast so thats what will be important for the download speeds.

Yeah, I'll run a few tests to see how 3mbit fares.

Really, the Netflix HD needs that much speed? I can stream the Hulu HD programs with no issues using my lowly 6mpbs connection (hard wired, of course...wireless is a no go)

the streams are 4 mbit (3.8 mbit video plus a bit more for the audio so im assuming 4.0)

and then you have to add 40% for overhead. which is a total of 5.6 mbit that has to stay above 5.6 for it to work. so 7mbit does have a little extra but not much. netflix recommends a minimum of 8mbit.

if you are interested here is a blog about their encoding straight from netflix: http://blog.netflix.com/2008/11/encoding-for-streaming.html

speaking of which dave have you tried to stream any of the sd content? 3mbit should be enough to give you 4 bars for the sd content (just barely). would also be a good test if you can stay at 4 bars watching sd content with verizon.

Just got done with a chat and they said it's not available here yet.

That's interesting. A couple of months ago, I upgraded to the 3mbit, and they offered me the 7mbit. It's really not a bad deal either, at just $10 more than the 3mbit. I've always been very pleased with Verizon DSL.

its about the same price as i am paying for suddenlink cable service.... so if its available i would probably switch but getting the 7mbit service is a requirement for me and verifying it gets its full bw during peak times.

I haven't tried SD Netflix as I only want HD. :)

I did a quick test at lunch:
Down: 2839 kb/s
Up: 692 kb/s

I'll try again this evening.

Just got off the phone with Verizon to confirm. Maybe it's available elsewhere in B/CS, but 7mbit is not an option yet for my area. :(

you really should give the sd stuff a look.... some good older flicks and tv shows that probably never will be hd..... and you have netflix already dont you? its a free addon... not like its costing anything.

plus the hd offerings are pretty crappy atm.

I just did a test from work (live mesh is awesome for this kind of thing):
down: 7525
up: 535

the problem is these speeds dont hold when traffic hits.... which is also when i want to use the service. but whats really odd is the ping times are really good anytime as is the upload. for some reason this only affects my download speed.

also another thing (which is the real reason i am reevaluating providers) is a friend recently had suddenlink come test his line. (netflix is a big priority of his as well) and the sl guy told him that suddenlink considers it good enough if you are getting between 4 and 8 mbit (their quoted speed). that kindof irked me.

EDIT... one other thing I noticed. SL is now offering a 20 mbit plan in "select areas". wonder if that means an upgrade for all the plans because their highest plan until recently was 10 mbit.

a good example of what i am talking about... 5:31 pm my speeds are

down: 4995
up: 526

and 30 mins later its back to 7000/530

Guys, I need some help. I live in College Station and want to be able to receive some HD channels with an OTA antenna. I live in a house so installing an antenna is not a problem...I just need to know what type of antenna to purchase.

I went to HDTVAntennaLabs and got the listing of available stations in my area, but I'm having trouble understanding all the UHF/VHF/compass direction stuff. I essentially want to get KBTX and whatever other HD channels are easy to receive. The listing of available stations shows that the only KBTX tower locations are in Waco (with the only College Station towers being KAMU). However, I'm almost certain this isn't the case.

If necessary, I'm prepared to get whatever kind of antenna I need and even a motorized rotator if it would help. But I'm not sure that this is actually necessary. So...what kind of antenna should I get? Thanks!

Try plugging your location into tvfool.com and see what that gets you. If you post your plot from TV Fool here, someone may be able to give you a hand with it.

- Trip

Guys, I need some help. I live in College Station and want to be able to receive some HD channels with an OTA antenna. I live in a house so installing an antenna is not a problem...I just need to know what type of antenna to purchase.


What area of College Station are you located in? The reason I ask is that the further south you are in College Station, the less likely you are to receive KYLE FOX 28 OTA. You can probably receive KBTX (CBS) and KAMU (PBS) with an indoor antenna. If you want to mount an antenna outside, I recommend a Square Shooter (http://www.winegard.com/offair/squareshooter.htm)or a Sensar III (http://www.winegard.com/offair/sensar.htm), both made by Winegard. I have a Square Shooter mounted on a 25 foot pole and I receive all three stations very well. I actually have a couple of extra Sensars, so let me know if you'd like one. Another antenna that I used at my old house was the Channel Master 4228 (http://www.channelmasterintl.com/4228.html). It is big, but if you can mount it high enough, it works very well (at least it did for me). I was receiving the local channels from Houston. This is probably more info than you wanted, but I hope it helps.

What area are you located? The reason I ask is that the further south you are in College Station, the less likely you are to receive KYLE FOX 28 OTA. You can probably receive KBTX (CBS) and KAMU (PBS) with an indoor antenna. If you want to mount an antenna outside, I recommend a Square Shooter (http://www.winegard.com/offair/squareshooter.htm)or a Sensar III (http://www.winegard.com/offair/sensar.htm), both made by Winegard. I have a Square Shooter mounted on a 25 foot pole and I receive all three stations very well. I actually have a couple of extra Sensars, so let me know if you'd like one. Another antenna that I used at my old house was the Channel Master 4228 (http://www.channelmasterintl.com/4228.html). It is big, but if you can mount it high enough, it works awesome. I was getting the local channels from Houston. This is probably more info than you wanted, but I hope it helps.

I'm in south College Station near Victoria and Eagle. I was thinking about one of the metal wire-looking antennas with the bowtie-shaped pieces, similar to the Channel Master that you linked to. Was thinking about one of the slightly smaller ones though. How high would it need to be? If it would work mounted to the roof of my one story house with a dish bracket, I'd be willing to go for that.

I'm in south College Station near Victoria and Eagle. I was thinking about one of the metal wire-looking antennas with the bowtie-shaped pieces, similar to the Channel Master that you linked to. Was thinking about one of the slightly smaller ones though. How high would it need to be? If it would work mounted to the roof of my one story house with a dish bracket, I'd be willing to go for that.

I'm not familiar with that area. Is it close to Pebble Creek? The further south you are the easier it is to receive the Houston locals. I had my Channel Master 4228 attached to a 20 foot pole mounted in a tripod on my one story roof. It was about 35 feet in the air and it worked great. I don't know what your current elevation is, but if you're up pretty high already, a smaller antenna mounted close to your dish might work. It doesn't hurt to try. If you decide to go with a Channel Master, I also recommend using a 7778 preamp (http://www.channelmasterintl.com/amplifiers.html). Let us know what you finally decide on and how it works out for you.

Antennasdirect.com (http://www.antennasdirect.com/multi-directional.html) has a nice selection of bow-tie style antennae. I used the DB2 from about 40 miles out before, and it was small and worked well. I also used the same preamp as jonny.

I'm in south College Station near Victoria and Eagle. I was thinking about one of the metal wire-looking antennas with the bowtie-shaped pieces, similar to the Channel Master that you linked to. Was thinking about one of the slightly smaller ones though. How high would it need to be? If it would work mounted to the roof of my one story house with a dish bracket, I'd be willing to go for that.

Welcome to the forum, Phil. Looks like you're in the area between Graham and Barron roads. KBTX should not be a problem to get, no matter what direction you point your antenna, unless it is REALLY directional. The main thing I am thinking of is the fact that PBS is broadcast on a VHF channel, whereas the others (CBS and FOX) are on UHF. The "Bow-Tie" antennas are UHF only. Anyway, if you want to get all the local HD channels you will likely need a combo VHF/UHF antenna and point it towards the N/NW from your location. The Square Shooter linked to above would probably do the job. That should get you all three local HD channels. You MAY still be able to get PBS on a UHF only antenna, maybe someone else here can elaborate on that. I have an old VHF/UHF combo antenna and telescoping mast from RadioShack if you want to try it out. You might could get away with putting the antenna in your attic also, some others I know have done that with pretty good luck.

KWBU-PBS, channel 34, is now available in HD on DirecTV as of this morning. 1080i. KNCT-PBS, channel 46, is still in SD.

Glad to see D* adding PBS-HD. Hopefully Houston will be added eventually. I get KAMU, but I'll never turn down another HD channel.

Edit: Checked tonight and KUHT is now in HD. That sure didn't take long.

I'm also enjoying my new Harmony One remote. I love my MX-500, but the H1 is a cinch to program.

I just noticed on the FCC website that KWKT has requested a change of its post-transition DTV channel from 44 to 25. I know that KXXV is staying on DTV 26, but I'm not sure why KWKT would bother moving to 25. Is there another signal that creates a problem with 44's DTV reception? Just curious.

Yes. KWKT-DT 44 is power limited to 100 kW due to KEYE-DT 43 in Austin. On channel 25, KWKT-DT can boost to 1000 kW, on par with KXXV's signal.

- Trip

Yes. KWKT-DT 44 is power limited to 100 kW due to KEYE-DT 43 in Austin. On channel 25, KWKT-DT can boost to 1000 kW, on par with KXXV's signal.

- Trip

Pardon my ignorance: why would a station in Austin on an adjacent channel impact KWKT so much? If KWKT is going to move right next to KXXV's digital signal, it seems that would be a much greater potential conflict. In the DFW area there will be full power DTV stations on 39,40,41,42, and 43. As far as I can tell, they are all allowed to broadcast at the max of 1000kw. (I think KXAS is at a slightly lower wattage on 41, but I'm not sure why)

Digital TV is designed such that if stations are located within a few miles of each other (that is, the signal levels are roughly equivalent), they can co-exist side-by-side.

But if one is much stronger than the other, or they are separated by some distance (thus creating a power inequity), then the signals interfere.

- Trip

I just noticed on the FCC website that KWKT has requested a change of its post-transition DTV channel from 44 to 25. I know that KXXV is staying on DTV 26, but I'm not sure why KWKT would bother moving to 25. Is there another signal that creates a problem with 44's DTV reception? Just curious.

That's good to know, so in February I will be able to pick up consistently a MyNetwork TV that is worth a hoot. (Right now, in Round Rock, I only get KWKT when the weather is just right).

Don't get me going on how bad LIN TV's management is of KNVA (Austin CW and MyNetwork TV). Seems they are about 2 minutes behind on the MyNetwork TV feed and don't have a way to capture HD, so all shows are in SD. (Prime example was Driving Miss Daisy a few nights ago...switching between KNVA and KWKT made me wish the signal was that good all the time)

Pardon my ignorance: why would a station in Austin on an adjacent channel impact KWKT so much? If KWKT is going to move right next to KXXV's digital signal, it seems that would be a much greater potential conflict. In the DFW area there will be full power DTV stations on 39,40,41,42, and 43. As far as I can tell, they are all allowed to broadcast at the max of 1000kw. (I think KXAS is at a slightly lower wattage on 41, but I'm not sure why)

To minimize interference digital stations must be located in close proximity.
If the adjacent signals are of approximate equal strength the receiver distinguishes them easily.

When there is a large distance between them there is a resulting interference at locations between them.

The FCC has an interference criteria that forbids N-1 (44/43) full power stations in adjacent markets.

Thus 43 (Dallas=1 MW) 43 (Austin=1 MW) 44 (Waco=100KW)

To minimize interference digital stations must be located in close proximity.
If the adjacent signals are of approximate equal strength the receiver distinguishes them easily.

When there is a large distance between them there is a resulting interference at locations between them.

The FCC has an interference criteria that forbids N-1 (44/43) full power stations in adjacent markets.

Thus 43 (Dallas=1 MW) 43 (Austin=1 MW) 44 (Waco=100KW)


That is a facinating thing about digital television I had never thought of. It makes perfect sense. Thank you.

KYLE switched from HD to SD for some of the second half of the Eagles/Giants game. I hope we don't lose HD during the Cowboys/Steelers game.

Just thought you'd want to know FOX44CE. And again, thanks for all you do to give us FOX in HD.

That's good to know, so in February I will be able to pick up consistently a MyNetwork TV that is worth a hoot. (Right now, in Round Rock, I only get KWKT when the weather is just right).

Don't get me going on how bad LIN TV's management is of KNVA (Austin CW and MyNetwork TV). Seems they are about 2 minutes behind on the MyNetwork TV feed and don't have a way to capture HD, so all shows are in SD. (Prime example was Driving Miss Daisy a few nights ago...switching between KNVA and KWKT made me wish the signal was that good all the time)

Since we will be building out initially at 100KW on 44, you probably will not be able to receive us at all after the transition.

The allocation of channel 25 is now up for public comment and is not yet approved. (It has been determined to meet technical interference criteria).

Once it is approved, we need to acquire the mask filter and antenna and replace our top-mount antenna. I can give no timeline for that.

KYLE switched from HD to SD for some of the second half of the Eagles/Giants game. I hope we don't lose HD during the Cowboys/Steelers game.

Just thought you'd want to know FOX44CE. And again, thanks for all you do to give us FOX in HD.

We experienced some wind damage to the KWKT-DT (57) transmission line or antenna and had to reduce power to 50% (100KW).

This will result in some signal degradation at the Bryan site and some loss of HD re-broadcast for a time until we can get a tower crew in for repair.

Since this antenna and line will be eliminated Fed 17th, we will attempt a temporary repair once the problem is isolated.

Thanks. The Cowboys/Steelers game was flawless (except for the outcome).

Thanks. The Cowboys/Steelers game was flawless (except for the outcome).

Glad to hear that (The HD signal - not the outcome).
We have a tower crew scheduled in this week and hope to be back up to full power on KWKT-DT by weeks end.

Update: KWKT-DT is back up to 100% power as of 10:30AM today............12/09/08

Update2: KWKT-DT went down again at 12:30am this morning...back up @ 50% at 2am.........12/10/08

Still no word on when KXXV-HD will be available on D*?

Glad to hear that (The HD signal - not the outcome).
We have a tower crew scheduled in this week and hope to be back up to full power on KWKT-DT by weeks end.

Update: KWKT-DT is back up to 100% power as of 10:30AM today............12/09/08

Update2: KWKT-DT went down again at 12:30am this morning...back up @ 50% at 2am.........12/10/08

The tower crew found 350 feet of 4" heliax transmission line seperated from the tower and severely damaged.

Temporary repairs were made and the line was reattached to the tower.
KWKT-DT will continue at 40% power until Feb 9th. (80KW)

This is the transition schedule at this time:

Feb 9th: KWKT-DT will be shut down to replace the mask filter and retune to channel 44.
KWKT-TV will remain on the air at full power until Feb 17th.

Feb 12th: KYLE-DT will be shut down to install power amplifiers and re-tune the mask fiter to channel 28.
KYLE-TV will remain on the air at full power.

Feb 17th: KWKT-TV will shut down and KWKT-DT will return to air at 100KW on channel 44.

Feb 17th: KYLE-TV will shut down and KYLE-DT will return to air at 50KW on channel 28.

Maybe I missed it, but do you have a fibre line or digital microwave link between Waco and Bryan yet? Without a link other than the UHF broadcast of KWKT-DT, I fail to see how KYLE-DT is going to be online between 2/9 and 2/12. If you have gotten a more reliable link installed, that's great news.

I don't mean to criticize -- thank you very much for keeping us informed.

BTW, anybody know what's going on with KBTX? I heard they were turning off analog on December 1st but AFAIK TV-3 is still on the air. Any news on our other channels is welcome too. I'm guessing KMAY and KRHD will continue broadcasting in analog (they can, since they're LP) until further notice?

I think they turned off analogue on December 1st but got too many calls (over 100). Apparently they were receiving calls from cable subscribers who were not receiving KBTX during initial shut-off. People with cable should not be affected at all. I'm guessing that Suddenlink is sending the analogue feed to homes with basic cable instead of the converted analogue feed, though I could be entirely wrong.

Maybe I missed it, but do you have a fibre line or digital microwave link between Waco and Bryan yet? Without a link other than the UHF broadcast of KWKT-DT, I fail to see how KYLE-DT is going to be online between 2/9 and 2/12. If you have gotten a more reliable link installed, that's great news.

I don't mean to criticize -- thank you very much for keeping us informed.

BTW, anybody know what's going on with KBTX? I heard they were turning off analog on December 1st but AFAIK TV-3 is still on the air. Any news on our other channels is welcome too. I'm guessing KMAY and KRHD will continue broadcasting in analog (they can, since they're LP) until further notice?

We have been unable to reach agreement with Suddenlink for a fiber feed.

We still have the analog microwave feeding the SD portions of our broadcast day that is up-converted to 720p in Bryan.

We have ordered the equipment to convert our HD reception from 57 to 44 and will make that switch coincident with the switch of KWKT-DT to 44.

(The signal on 57 has remained very stable even though KWKT-DT is operating at only 80KW)

We will be re-positioning the antenna at 350ft and utilizing the existing KYLE-DT transmission line (2 1/2" heliax) to get the signal to the receiver with virtually no loss. (I plan on using the mask filter from our original 44 low power transmitter to eliminate 43 from Dallas & Austin)

(KYLE-DT is moving to the existing channel 28 antenna and 6" hard line)

High Definition programming being broadcast on KYLE-DT and KWKT-DT at this time:

FOX Network (Prime & weekends)
My Network (10:00PM - 1:00AM)
Mike & Juliet (10:00AM)
Two & 1/2 Men (two eisodes per day)
Everybody Loves Raymond (9:30PM)

We will continue to operate the way we are now until there is room in the budget to purchase the digital microwave.

Wondering the same thing - ABC only network not available HD on D* here in B/CS

If you read further back in the thread you'll see one theory is that KXXV is in the process of being sold and they can't sign any re-transmission contracts until the sale is finalized. I can't swear that's true but it sounds reasonable.

What is going on with FOX 44 and dish network? They had the HD signal up-linked, but never made available, now its gone and we are stuck with the SD signal. They made Waco NBC 6 available today in HD. I was watching FOX over the weekend showing the commercials now telling us if we watch FOX over dish we will lose it at the end of the year!

Id be interested in this as well (and anything anybody knows about the other locals going up on dish network). Or how easy is "moving" to houston to get their locals with dish?

Dunno if people here have heard but the directv media center tuner has been "suspended" (nobody really knows what that means... hopefully we find out at ces). But there are rumors of a dish network tuner for media center now and I think their turbo hd packages look very nice (almost every channel i need is there and its substantially cheaper). My contract with directv is up now so I have no loyalty to them anymore (and i wouldn't mind getting rid of the hr21 forever)

But locals would be an issue.... Since I have cable modem I get all the B/CS locals in media center now anyways but I would rather have them come over the dish since it seems to be more reliable in general.

High Definition broadcasts will be suspended on both KWKT-DT and KYLE-DT from Feb 9th through Feb 17th when both digital stations return to air on their final channel assignments. (KWKT-DT - 44 & KYLE-DT - 28)

Time Warner and Grande Cable are installing direct HD fiber feeds for subscribers in the Waco-Temple-Killeen area.

High Definition broadcasts will be suspended on both KWKT-DT and KYLE-DT from Feb 9th through Feb 17th when both digital stations return to air on their final channel assignments. (KWKT-DT - 44 & KYLE-DT - 28)

Time Warner and Grande Cable are installing direct HD fiber feeds for subscribers in the Waco-Temple-Killeen area.

What about DirecTV? Are they picking up your OTA signal or do you have a fiber feed to them?

and suddenlink....

Since I have cable modem I get all the B/CS locals in media center now...

jagouar,
Would you mind expanding on this for me? I have suddenlink cable modem service, but do not have any TV service from them, not even basic service. Is it possible for me to get the locals through Media Center too?

jagouar,
Would you mind expanding on this for me? I have suddenlink cable modem service, but do not have any TV service from them, not even basic service. Is it possible for me to get the locals through Media Center too?

Sounds like they forgot to put the filter on to block the QAM in the clear channels. They did that for me, too....then I dumped them when they took away all the locals in HD...forced people to rent a box to get the locals in HD (just provided SD) -- TWC Central Texas

as far as i know they dont do any restrictions on the clear qam here.... but we also have suddenlink not twc. but if i remember right they have to legally provide you the clear qam locals as long as you subscribe to any tv package. they could possibly do that on internet only plans but then the filter wont work.

as far as i know they dont do any restrictions on the clear qam here.... but we also have suddenlink not twc. but if i remember right they have to legally provide you the clear qam locals as long as you subscribe to any tv package. they could possibly do that on internet only plans but then the filter wont work.

I don't know about Suddenlink but in Waco TWC and Grande use an internet splitter that only passes the low VHF band where the Internet IP data is placed. (Usually between channel 3 & 4).

This effectively blocks all of the QAM data that is above VHF.

If he subscribes to Basic cable, Suddenlink must deliver local channels in clear QAM.

We have only the basic cable package in our Bryan office + Business class internet.

Our HD Pro Slingbox receives all of the local HD channels in clear QAM.

If he subscribes to Basic cable, Suddenlink must deliver local channels in clear QAM.


What is sad is that TWC (Round Rock/Austin) follows that law, but to its bare minimum. They provide local channels in clear QAM, but SD versions. I knew it was coming for a while when I could get both the local channels in clear QAM in HD on one channel and SD on another....then one day the HD channels went away. To me it is money grab (force you to rent a box for 'free HD') that is unnecessarily using bandwidth that could be used for other channels. (Just another reason I'm OTA only, now)

What is sad is that TWC (Round Rock/Austin) follows that law, but to its bare minimum. They provide local channels in clear QAM, but SD versions. I knew it was coming for a while when I could get both the local channels in clear QAM in HD on one channel and SD on another....then one day the HD channels went away. To me it is money grab (force you to rent a box for 'free HD') that is unnecessarily using bandwidth that could be used for other channels. (Just another reason I'm OTA only, now)

Since the rule states that the OTA stations "must be carried clear QAM without modification", if they downconvert the HD channels and block the clear QAM HD, they are in violation of the rule!

Once again, FOX HD goes out at halftime of the national championship game last night. Nice timing.

Once again, FOX HD goes out at halftime of the national championship game last night. Nice timing.

A combination of atmospheric conditions and the fact that KWKT-DT is operating at reduced power caused the reception of the HD signal to start dropping in and out at 9:05 P.M. last night at the KYLE site.

As instructed, the Master Control operator disabled the HD switching rather that have the signal going to black intermittently.

I don't know if y'all are going to look for a deal at Circuit City's liquidation, but I just wanted to offer a word of caution. I went Saturday before the sale began. Then I went on Sunday once the sale had begun and they had jacked the prices up so much on most items that even with the 10, 20, or 30 percent off, the items were still more expensive than they had been on Saturday. I believe the prices will come down over the next several weeks, but right now, it's not even worth going in there.

HA! We stopped by on Sunday because I was picking some stuff up at Home Depot. What a complete joke. It was PACKED! People get so irrational when a store is "liquidating" it amazed me every time. Most everything in there was 10-20% off the full price. Nobody would ever even consider that to be a big sale under normal circumstances (and regular prices at Amazon and Best Buy are significantly cheaper currently), yet the line to check out was 20 deep.

Fox44CE: your HD signal is off the air on DirecTV this evening. Your SD signal is fine. The problem is with the DirecTV uplink facility since 6, 10 and 34 HD are also off the air while their SD is ok.

Does anyone else have over-amplified sound on ABC (KRHD-DT)? The channel is much louder than the other locals. So much so that the dialogue is distorted and hard to understand.

I noticed this last night when watching "Lost". I did not DVR anything else so I don't know if its just the show or the channel...

its been a problem since they went hd.... one reason i use the houston station for abc stuff..... that and its 5.1 vs 2.0 from krhd.

its been a problem since they went hd.... one reason i use the houston station for abc stuff..... that and its 5.1 vs 2.0 from krhd.
Ah, do you watch it OTA? I suppose I don't have that option since I watch it over clear QAM through Suddenlink cable.

DirectTV TOC says that they never lost the signal.

By the way....Dish Network called to inform me that since they have converted their uplink to digital and no longer have analog uplink capabiliy that KWKT-TV and KWKT-DT will not be available from Feb 9th to Feb 17th while our digital transmitter is off the air to convert it from channel 57 to 44.

Update:

I was just informed by Direct TV that they use the same uplink facility in Waco for KWKT as Dish Network. Same result as above.

Update 02/01/09

KWKT will be installing a low power channel 57 digital transmitter on February 9th to maintain over-the-air delivery of KWKT-DT to DirectTV, Dish Network and Waco area OTA viewers while our full power transmitter is being converted from channel 57 to channel 44.

Unfortunately reception of the interim low power signal will not be possible at the KYLE-DT transmitter site.

All broadcasts on KYLE-DT from February 9th to February 12th will be standard definition only.

KYLE-DT will be off the air from February 12th to February 17th to convert the transmitter to channel 28 and increase power.

KWKT-DT will return to air at full licensed power on February 18th on channel 44.

KYLE-DT will return to air at full licensed power on February 18th on channel 28 and HD programming will resume.

See attachment below for final accurate coverage map for KWKT-DT (44) and KYLE-DT (28)

Update 02/01/09

KWKT will be installing a low power channel 57 digital transmitter on February 9th to maintain over-the-air delivery of KWKT-DT to DirectTV, Dish Network and Waco area OTA viewers while our full power transmitter is being converted from channel 57 to channel 44.

Unfortunately reception of the interim low power signal will not be possible at the KYLE-DT transmitter site.

All broadcasts on KYLE-DT from February 9th to February 12th will be standard definition only.

KYLE-DT will be off the air from February 12th to February 17th to convert the transmitter to channel 28 and increase power.

KWKT-DT will return to air at full licensed power on February 18th on channel 44.

KYLE-DT will return to air at full licensed power on February 18th on channel 28 and HD programming will resume.

See attachment below for final accurate coverage map for KWKT-DT (44) and KYLE-DT (28)

Looks like the coverage area is pulling back further north of me (on the southern end of Williamson county). Too bad, I really like that station. :(

Looks like the coverage area is pulling back further north of me (on the southern end of Williamson county). Too bad, I really like that station. :(

KWKT has a pending request to relocate from channel 44 to channel 25 at some point after the transition. That would boost their power from the current 200 kW (going down to 100 kW on channel 44) up to 1000 kW. :D

- Trip

Update 02/01/09

KWKT will be installing a low power channel 57 digital transmitter on February 9th to maintain over-the-air delivery of KWKT-DT to DirectTV, Dish Network and Waco area OTA viewers while our full power transmitter is being converted from channel 57 to channel 44.

Unfortunately reception of the interim low power signal will not be possible at the KYLE-DT transmitter site.

All broadcasts on KYLE-DT from February 9th to February 12th will be standard definition only.

KYLE-DT will be off the air from February 12th to February 17th to convert the transmitter to channel 28 and increase power.

KWKT-DT will return to air at full licensed power on February 18th on channel 44.

KYLE-DT will return to air at full licensed power on February 18th on channel 28 and HD programming will resume.

See attachment below for final accurate coverage map for KWKT-DT (44) and KYLE-DT (28)
Is this for OTA broadcast only, or is the whole xxxx-DT channel going out?

Sorry for nub question.

Looks like the coverage area is pulling back further north of me (on the southern end of Williamson county). Too bad, I really like that station. :(

KWKT-DT will be broadcasting from the same antenna as pre-transition KWKT-TV on channel 44.

The coverage in Round Rock will be virtually the same. There may be some interference from channel 43 in Austin.

How well you are able to recieve it will depend on the quality of your TV tuner.

Is this for OTA broadcast only, or is the whole xxxx-DT channel going out?

Sorry for nub question.

KWKT-DT (57) will be reduced from 200KW to 20KW from Feb 9th to Feb 17th (OTA) It will remain on Time Warner, Grande, DirectTV and Dish Network.

KYLE-DT (29) will carry no HD Programming from Feb 9th to Feb 12th. (OTA & Suddenlink channel 705)

KYLE-DT (29) will be shut down from Feb 12th to Feb 17th (OTA & Suddenlink channel 705)

On Feb 17th: See coverage map in previous post.

KWKT-DT (44) will return to air at 100KW.
KYLE-DT (28) will return to air at 50KW.

HD programming will resume on KYLE-DT on Feb 17th.

KWKT-DT will be broadcasting from the same antenna as pre-transition KWKT-TV on channel 44.

The coverage in Round Rock will be virtually the same. There may be some interference from channel 43 in Austin.

How well you are able to recieve it will depend on the quality of your TV tuner.

It seemed to come and go with the weather (regardless of tuner). Lately I haven't been able to get it at all. I guess I was hoping for some improvement when the analogs went away...I guess not. Maybe I'll play with my antenna after 2/18.

It seemed to come and go with the weather (regardless of tuner). Lately I haven't been able to get it at all. I guess I was hoping for some improvement when the analogs went away...I guess not. Maybe I'll play with my antenna after 2/18.

We had to lower the power on channel 57 due to wind damage to the 4" heliax at the top of the tower. (40% of rated 200KW = 80KW)

Due to the coax damage we probably aren't even doing that.

Channel 44 will be less inclined to fade but more inclined to interference from 43.

Application on hold pending interferece appeal by KXXV (Digital 26).

I just checked the FCC site to see and it looks like ComCorp withdrew the app due to the economic downturn. Too bad.

- Trip

I just checked the FCC site to see and it looks like ComCorp withdrew the app due to the economic downturn. Too bad.

- Trip

KXXV would not agree to a lease on their tower and filed a petition to deny our application to convert to 25 on our existing tower. (1.2 miles SW)

We could have operated from the same antenna with the existing 25/26 combiner at their site and offered to pay for removal of the analog tranmitter to make room at no cost to KXXV.

To avoid the possibility of losing our channel 44 digital construction permit if 25 was denied, and because of the additional cost to replace our channel 44 antenna, ComCorp decided to withdraw the application. :mad:

That's really sad. =( Hopefully something will work out later on in the future.

- Trip

Looks like the coverage area is pulling back further north of me (on the southern end of Williamson county). Too bad, I really like that station. :(

The outside line showing the larger coverage area on the map represents coverage of digital channel 25 @ 1000 KW.

The two coincident lines are channel 44 analog (4.2 MW) and post transition channel 44 digital (100KW).

KWKT-DT is up on 44 @ 100KW. We have applied to the FCC for an increase in power to 135 KW.
See if you can receive it today and let me know please?

The outside line showing the larger coverage area on the map represents coverage of digital channel 25 @ 1000 KW.

The two coincident lines are channel 44 analog (4.2 MW) and post transition channel 44 digital (100KW).

Thanks for the info. I'm inside the channel 25, but outside the channel 44. (not too far from the Dell Diamond in Round Rock)

Thanks for the info. I'm inside the channel 25, but outside the channel 44. (not too far from the Dell Diamond in Round Rock)

The coverage map doesn't show our existing channel 57 coverage but if you extended the 44 digital by about 3 miles it would be essentially correct.

Of course that doesn't account for the increased interference you may get from digital channel 43 at 1000KW in Austin.

None of the FCC contour map predictions take interference into account. All you can do is try.

By the way, thanks for your comments on the MyNetwork HD delay.

I guess the investment in the HD delay server was worth it. (We did it originally for the WB network before it went away)

The White House wants your opinion on The DTV Delay ACT Bill
President Obama wants to hear what the public has to say, you can comment here

http://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing_room/dtv_delay_act/

The White House wants your opinion on The DTV Delay ACT Bill
President Obama wants to hear what the public has to say, you can comment here

http://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing_room/dtv_delay_act/

Really....come one...the president could care less what we think...once the bill is signed it doesn't matter what we think. Kind of like a car salesperson asking you what you think of the car after you've bought it and totaled it on your way home. What difference does it make, you can't take it back :)

Really....come one...the president could care less what we think...once the bill is signed it doesn't matter what we think. Kind of like a car salesperson asking you what you think of the car after you've bought it and totaled it on your way home. What difference does it make, you can't take it back :)

The application to operate KWKT-DT (44) and KYLE-DT (28) on February 17th was granted by the FCC yesterday.
Application for early termination of KWKT-TV (44) and KYLE-TV (28) were filed soon after that grant was received.

Pending approval of the early termination filing:

KYLE-TV (28) will terminate operation at 12:01 AM 02/17 and KYLE-DT (28) will commence operation at 50 KW ERP soon after.

KWKT-TV (44) will terminate operation at 12:59 PM 02/17 and KWKT-DT (44) Will commence operation at 100 KW ERP soon after.

The application to operate KWKT-DT (44) and KYLE-DT (28) on February 17th was granted by the FCC yesterday.
Application for early termination of KWKT-TV (44) and KYLE-TV (28) were filed soon after that grant was received.

Pending approval of the early termination filing:

KYLE-TV (28) will terminate operation at 12:01 AM 02/17 and KYLE-DT (28) will commence operation at 50 KW ERP soon after.

KWKT-TV (44) will terminate operation at 12:59 PM 02/17 and KWKT-DT (44) Will commence operation at 100 KW ERP soon after.
How soon are we talking?

How soon are we talking?

Soon after means as soon as we can get the digital transmitter channel modifications completed.

Were shooting for 6 AM the morning that we terminate analog service for each :)

The application to operate KWKT-DT (44) and KYLE-DT (28) on February 17th was granted by the FCC yesterday.
Application for early termination of KWKT-TV (44) and KYLE-TV (28) were filed soon after that grant was received.

Pending approval of the early termination filing:

KYLE-TV (28) will terminate operation at 12:01 AM 02/17 and KYLE-DT (28) will commence operation at 50 KW ERP soon after.

KWKT-TV (44) will terminate operation at 12:59 PM 02/17 and KWKT-DT (44) Will commence operation at 100 KW ERP soon after.

Good news, I'll guess a channel scan is in order on 2/18 :)

Good news, I'll guess a channel scan is in order on 2/18 :)


2/17 for KYLE.
2/18 for KWKT.

I see KYLE has also filed with the FCC to retain DT-28 instead of maximizing on DT-29. I'm assuming the reasoning is the same as in the case of KWKT?

Too bad.

- Trip

A new solid state channel 28 digital transmitter is being installed at the KYLE site today.

When the analog transmitter is shut down on the 17th, the new tranmsitter will be connected to the channel 28 antenna.

The existing digital tranmitter will be tuned to channel 28 and configured as a backup after the transition.

This will minimize the time we are off air while we make the switch and improve reliability in the future.

At 10:30 AM this morning (Friday 02/14) KWKT-DT (57) went off the air due to catastrophic failure of the 4" Heliax transmission line just below the side mount antenna 1700' Above Ground Level.

KWKT has filed with the FCC for emergency termination of analog service and permission to commence operation of KWKT-DT (44) immediately.

We are in direct communication with Houston FCC field personnel who are in Waco to assist with the Waco/Bryan digital transition Tuesday the 17th.

There will be no HD service on KYLE-DT until KWKT-DT (44) is approved and operational.

Our consulting engineer is in Bryan and will make the KWKT-DT conversion at Moody as early as tonight pending FCC approval.

At 10:30 AM this morning (Friday 02/14) KWKT-DT (57) went off the air due to catastrophic failure of the 4" Heliax transmission line just below the side mount antenna 1700' Above Ground Level.

KWKT has filed with the FCC for emergency termination of analog service and permission to commence operation of KWKT-DT (44) immediately.

We are in direct communication with Houston FCC field personnel who are in Waco to assist with the Waco/Bryan digital transition Tuesday the 17th.

There will be no HD service on KYLE-DT until KWKT-DT (44) is approved and operational.

Our consulting engineer is in Bryan and will make the KWKT-DT conversion at Moody as early as tonight pending FCC approval.

You're also off the air on DirecTV. Does this mean they pick up your signal OTA?

You're also off the air on DirecTV. Does this mean they pick up your signal OTA?

DirectTV and Dish Network have both converted their Waco uplinks to digital and have no analog reception capability.

I have been in contact with both since the failure with the following results:

DirectTV is bringing an analog receiver from Dallas to restore service until KWKT-DT returns to air.
(They expressed concern about the Daytona 500)

Echo Star/Dish Network says KWKT will remain off of their system until KWKT-DT returns to air.

DirectTV and Dish Network have both converted their Waco uplinks to digital and have no analog reception capability.

I have been in contact with both since the failure with the following results:

DirectTV is bringing an analog receiver from Dallas to restore service until KWKT-DT returns to air.
(They expressed concern about the Daytona 500)

Echo Star/Dish Network says KWKT will remain off of their system until KWKT-DT returns to air.

I was just going to mention the Daytona 500. I will not be a happy camper if you're not hooked up to DirecTV by tomorrow. Not to mention the probably substantial ad dollars KWKT will lose. Except for a Super Bowl, there couldn't be a much worse time for you to be down.

I guess I can live without Cops tonight. :-)

Looks like 44 digital is still off the air and off DirecTV this morning. Unless they pull off a miracle, they're not going to be on for the Daytona 500.

Just a reminder for DirecTV subs...Nascar Hotpass is free on DirecTV this year. That means we'll be able to watch the race in HD on channels 795-798.

http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/global/contentPage.jsp?assetId=P4530008

http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/global/contentPageIF.jsp?assetId=3310002

will fox 44dt allow Direct tv to les us watch the race on another fox feed

Thank you Fox 44 If you are on Direct TV go to channel 399

Any updates for us on Dish Network?

Any updates for us on Dish Network?

The FCC has not responded to our emergency early termination request for KWKT-TV (analog).
We cannot move KWKT-DT (57) to channel 44 and return it to air until the analog is shut down.

I called Dish Network TOC again this morning and they said that KWKT will not be returning to their system until the digtial transmitter is back on air.

At this time it appears that will not be before Tuesday.

Dish Network is broadcasting FOX 44 KWKT, (analog) signal currently. Looks like crap though.

FOX44CE - I greatly appreciate the valuable information that you have posted for your viewers in Central Texas recently. However, I know that there are many less technical viewers who would benefit from having some of this information published on your stations web site. I'm sure that it's not your call, but at least now you can tell "them" that you have seen complaints about the lack of info on the station's web site. Thanks again for all of the updates. Hang in there this week.

FOX44CE

are we going to keep getting 399 on Direct TV until you get the problem fixed?
I don't want to miss 24 tomorrow

FOX44CE - I greatly appreciate the valuable information that you have posted for your viewers in Central Texas recently. However, I know that there are many less technical viewers who would benefit from having some of this information published on your stations web site. I'm sure that it's not your call, but at least now you can tell "them" that you have seen complaints about the lack of info on the station's web site. Thanks again for all of the updates. Hang in there this week.

I will send a note to our corporate webmaster this morning and ask what he can do.
Thanks for the suggestion.
I'm not involved in that so I didn't think of it.

FOX44CE

are we going to keep getting 399 on Direct TV until you get the problem fixed?
I don't want to miss 24 tomorrow

399 is the Fox East channel for Distant Network subscribers (those in areas without local channels available via satellite). DirecTV was the one to turn it on for everyone for the Daytona 500, it had nothing to do with KWKT. We lost access to it as soon as the race was over. Now you get a 721 error (Channel Not Purchased) when you tune to it, which is normal for us in our area. BTW, channel 88 is a mirror of 399.

DirecTV does this for major sporting events. They also did it for the Super Bowl.

399 is the Fox East channel for Distant Network subscribers (those in areas without local channels available via satellite). DirecTV was the one to turn it on for everyone for the Daytona 500, it had nothing to do with KWKT. We lost access to it as soon as the race was over. Now you get a 721 error (Channel Not Purchased) when you tune to it, which is normal for us in our area. BTW, channel 88 is a mirror of 399.

DirecTV does this for major sporting events. They also did it for the Super Bowl.

KWKT-TV (Analog 44) will shut down at 00:01 AM Feb 17th (tonight) and KWKT-DT (Digital 44) will sign on at full power shortly thereafter.
Direct TV and Dish Network have been notified of the switch and should have FOX 44 back on their systems at that time.

KYLE-DT (Digital 29) will shut down sometime in the afternoon of Feb 17th.
KYLE-TV (Analog 28) will shut down at 12:59:50 PM Feb 17th.
KWKT-DT (Digital 28) will sign on at full power shortly thereafter.

Suddenlink cable has switched both channel 705 and 7 to the analog signal for now and will switch to the digital channel as soon as it is on air.

We will be converting our HD receivers at the Bryan site to channel 44 today.
We will resume HD broadcast as soon as KWKT-DT is back on the air on channel 44.

So I wonder...

1. 24 will not be in HD tonight if Suddenlink has already switched to analog? (I have Suddenlink in Bryan and watch KYLE-DT over clear QAM channel 705).

2. When are the other Bryan network stations (e.g. NBC, CBS) planning on going down (and coming back up)?

So I wonder...

1. 24 will not be in HD tonight if Suddenlink has already switched to analog? (I have Suddenlink in Bryan and watch KYLE-DT over clear QAM channel 705).

2. When are the other Bryan network stations (e.g. NBC, CBS) planning on going down (and coming back up)?

24 will probably not be in HD tonight because we have both KWKT-DT and KYLE-DT to switch over.

The timing of these changes is determined by the FCC Public Notice of Feb 9th, not by us.

KBTX (CBS-50), KCEN (NBC-9), & KXXV (ABC-40/HD Fiber) are already carried on Suddenlink cable in HD.
They are not changing their digital channels or feeds so there will be no interuption on Suddenlink cable.

Suddenlink will have KYLE-DT (28) back on 705 as soon as we shut down KYLE analog and bring the digital up on channel 28.

I am in direct contact with their Chief Engineer to coordinate this change.

KWKT-TV (Analog 44) will shut down at 00:01 AM Feb 17th (tonight) and KWKT-DT (Digital 44) will sign on at full power shortly thereafter.

Welcome back. Looks good near Valley Mills. Thanks for the updates. (My family wasn't happy about 24 in SD tonight, but I think they will survive.)

Welcome back. Looks good near Valley Mills. Thanks for the updates. (My family wasn't happy about 24 in SD tonight, but I think they will survive.)

Thanks for the positive reception report teaxaswingdaddy.....:)

KWKT-TV (Channel 44 analog) signed off at 12:01 AM this morning.
KWKT-DT (Channel 44 digital) signed on at 12:55 AM this morning.
Direct TV and Dish Network confirmed that they were receiving good signal.

Sorry about 24 in HD....We switched it over as soon as the FCC would allow.

Any word on Dish Network picking up Fox in HD in the near future?

The picture quality of Fox on Dish right now is very poor. The picture is very bright and washed out and many of the lines around people in particular are blurry.

Forgot to mention that I am in College Station in the previous post.

Thanks for the positive reception report teaxaswingdaddy.....:)

KWKT-TV (Channel 44 analog) signed off at 12:01 AM this morning.
KWKT-DT (Channel 44 digital) signed on at 12:55 AM this morning.
Direct TV and Dish Network confirmed that they were receiving good signal.

Sorry about 24 in HD....We switched it over as soon as the FCC would allow.

Must have been late night for you :)

FOX44CE
I am picking up 44 on my direct tv now but I also have an external directional antenna and was picking up 44HD until last week and it did not pick it back up this morning, did you change the location of the transmitter? I am west of Belton about halfway to Killeen

FOX44CE
I am picking up 44 on my direct tv now but I also have an external directional antenna and was picking up 44HD until last week and it did not pick it back up this morning, did you change the location of the transmitter? I am west of Belton about halfway to Killeen

They moved the frequency...did you try a new channel scan?

FOX44CE
I am picking up 44 on my direct tv now but I also have an external directional antenna and was picking up 44HD until last week and it did not pick it back up this morning, did you change the location of the transmitter? I am west of Belton about halfway to Killeen

Both Dish and Direct reported perfect reception to me last night.

I spoke with Dish Local Depatment to get clarification on a viewer complaint that he couldn't figure out how to re-program his Dish DVR for KWKT-HD antenna reception.

They referred me to 1-800-333-DISH.

L.S. - I have spoken with you a time or two on e-mail. I live between chapel and Van American off of Hewitt Drive, just down from the broadcast tower and receive all signals in town via HD off-air antenna. I also lost the 44-1 off-air digital signal over the past weekend and have not been able to receive it back. I did another scan today on my DTV HR20 DVR unit for local antenna and added all locals channels found. Still no signal strength for 44-1, nor for any 28-x channel which I checked in case the signal had moved. I have received this signal for the better part of the last year and a half or so. The last time this happened, I was told a part had burned out and it would be a few days to replace. I can live with viewing programming on the computer, but my wife is a bit miffed about her American Idol not being on tonight. When you do expect to have the local off-air digital HD signal back up and running? Please contact me via e-mail or other if needed. I am at a loss at this point.

Just to give some feedback on 44-1. I am getting it tonight without issues (well, I don't care for the current programming - American Idol -- yuck, but the signal is fine). I don't have a strength/quality meter on the TV, so I'm not sure how much of a signal I am getting.

I am about 3 miles Southeast of the I-30 / HWY 79 (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=i-30+hwy+79+round+rock+tx+78664&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=30.957823,79.101563&ie=UTF8&ll=30.537425,-97.576447&spn=0.065646,0.154495&z=13) Intersection just north of the Williamson county border. I am using an antenna in my attic and I made no adjustment.

Thanks for keeping us informed.

L.S. - I have spoken with you a time or two on e-mail. I live between chapel and Van American off of Hewitt Drive, just down from the broadcast tower and receive all signals in town via HD off-air antenna. I also lost the 44-1 off-air digital signal over the past weekend and have not been able to receive it back. I did another scan today on my DTV HR20 DVR unit for local antenna and added all locals channels found. Still no signal strength for 44-1, nor for any 28-x channel which I checked in case the signal had moved. I have received this signal for the better part of the last year and a half or so. The last time this happened, I was told a part had burned out and it would be a few days to replace. I can live with viewing programming on the computer, but my wife is a bit miffed about her American Idol not being on tonight. When you do expect to have the local off-air digital HD signal back up and running? Please contact me via e-mail or other if needed. I am at a loss at this point.

KWKT-DT (57) has been operating at severely reduced power since last month due to damaged transmission line at the top of the tower. (300ft)

I explained in an earlier post that it was not practical to repair and we were waiting until Feb 17th to shut down the analog and switch the digital to the top mount channel 44 antenna. (135 KW ERP @ 1750' AGL) On Thursday morning, the line shorted out completely and knocked the station off the air.

We completed the analog shutdown and digital move to 44 last night and you should be able to receive the station now after a rescan. I know that the HR-20 is kind of picky when it comes to getting it to forget the old channel. (You may need to power cycle the HR20)

Since KWTX is moving from 53 to 10 tonight, you might want to power cycle/rescan in the morning.

We received calls all day today from viewers with both Direct TV and Dish Network with similar issues.

KYLE-DT (28) is located in Bryan. We do receive it at our Waco studio since the switch from 29 @ 5 KW to 28 @ 50 KW.

(We have an amplified quad cut channel 28 Yagi mounted at the top of 150 foot tower)

We operate both FOX stations (KWKT FOX44 & KYLE FOX28) from our Waco studios.

OK,

The last two replies (especially the picky part of the HR20) got me thinking. I performed the following and it worked for me to be able to receive the signal.

1) SAT & ANT from menu
2) ANT setup option
3) RESET off-air channels (I only performed the initial setup last time)
4) Initial Setup (all other options are now greyed out)
5) Edit channel list (choose what channels you want on the guide grid)
6) Checked signal strength for 44-1 (keeps bouncing 75% - 90%)

If you do not perform the reset and only the initial setup, it won't "forget" what it already found and you will be receiving the same channels on the same frequency as before.

44-1 is currently showing "Everybody Loves Raymond". It shows it to be in HD, but the pic is grainy and 4:3 format. It's also pixilating a bit - it hasn't done that in over a year and a half. Is the signal still reduced in strength a bit?

Thanks to both of you for your help. Can you explain why not in HD, or if explained earlier in thread, let me know. I'll go digging!

OK,

The last two replies (especially the picky part of the HR20) got me thinking. I performed the following and it worked for me to be able to receive the signal.

1) SAT & ANT from menu
2) ANT setup option
3) RESET off-air channels (I only performed the initial setup last time)
4) Initial Setup (all other options are now greyed out)
5) Edit channel list (choose what channels you want on the guide grid)
6) Checked signal strength for 44-1 (keeps bouncing 75% - 90%)

If you do not perform the reset and only the initial setup, it won't "forget" what it already found and you will be receiving the same channels on the same frequency as before.

44-1 is currently showing "Everybody Loves Raymond". It shows it to be in HD, but the pic is grainy and 4:3 format. It's also pixilating a bit - it hasn't done that in over a year and a half. Is the signal still reduced in strength a bit?

Thanks to both of you for your help. Can you explain why not in HD, or if explained earlier in thread, let me know. I'll go digging!

It was at 80 KW on 57 and is now 135 KW on 44. (It should be better now)
(See the report above from Round Rock)

Everybody loves Raymond is an HD, show but there may have been technical difficulties if it was 4:3.
Our HD Sat Rcvr is very sensitive to fades and some shows have had issues. We're working on improving the dish.

It was at 80 KW on 57 and is now 135 KW on 44. (It should be better now)
(See the report above from Round Rock)

Everybody loves Raymond is an HD, show but there may have been technical difficulties if it was 4:3.
Our HD Sat Rcvr is very sensitive to fades and some shows have had issues. We're working on improving the dish.

OK, I'll perform another reset/setup in the a.m. I'm confused as to the pixalation, though I could care less about "Raymond". LS and Sivartk, thanks for the help. If still no HD, I'll post again.

I too have been able to watch 44-01 HD for well over a year on off air antenna! And it dropped off this past week! I can not get any signal strength on my HDTv tuner or on my dish Sat/DVR. I have no problem with any other channels that I normally get, just FOX 44-01 . I have re-booted, reset, and re-scanned all tuners with no good result! I live in Coryell County near Mother Neff State Park between Moody and McGregor. I don't get it! No signal please HELP!!!!

Any word on Dish Network picking up Fox in HD in the near future?

The picture quality of Fox on Dish right now is very poor. The picture is very bright and washed out and many of the lines around people in particular are blurry.

Dish Network is receiving all Waco stations via their digital signals OTA.
The quality of the video should be good since their entire system is digital now.

Correction: See later post about Echo Star (Dish Network)

When they supply HD is a Dish Network decision. (They say as soon as they have the equipment)

They have HD retransmission agreements in place for all stations in the Waco/Bryan DMA.

Its nice they can turn on CBS and NBC in HD, but not Fox and ABC. Im sure they have a fantastic excuse for why 2 more channels is just too difficult...lol.

Thanks for the info.

The picture quality is still really washed out and bright.

Its nice they can turn on CBS and NBC in HD, but not Fox and ABC. Im sure they have a fantastic excuse for why 2 more channels is just too difficult...lol.

Thanks for the info.

The picture quality is still really washed out and bright.

I just contacted Echo Star (Dish Network) Locals Engineering.
An engineer named Terry told me that they are receiving our signal in analog.
When I informed him that we are not broadcasting in analog, he said that they were receiving their analog feed from a "third party provider".
When I asked who their provider is his response was "I can't give out that information"
When I asked why they were not using our KWKT-DT (44) digital feed from their uplink site in Waco, he responded "I will check on that and get back to you"

I gave him my cell phone number and am now waiting patiently for his call.

Thanks for calling. The signal has been really bad for a long time. A lot of times the sound gets very out of sync or the signal makes a lot of popping noises. This weekend I clicked over to see who was winning the Daytona 500 and you couldnt even make out the cars it was so bright.

Im very upset that Dish is doing this. For the longest time, their FOX feed has been the worst signal of the 4 major networks. Along with the fact that they refuse to pick up the HD feeds that they are obviously receiving, I have almost moved to Direct TV.

Im also assuming that you arent pleased with their evasive responses...

Hers what I am receiving now
Fox 44 Direct tv
Fox 44 Antenna into HR 20 (looks analog not HD)
Fox 44-1 Antenna into HR20 no reception since last thurs Have rebooted still nothing
I live between Belton and Killeen
I have a 91XG uni directional pointing at 40 degrees never had any problems picking up 44-1HD with this set up till last thursday
Can you think of what I need to do to get back 44-1
Russell

Another Question
44DT is just digital not HD
44-1 is HD
Is this correct

Another Question
44DT is just digital not HD
44-1 is HD
Is this correct

Since the analog shutdown Monday night there is only one KWKT-DT (44) over-the-air.

Direct TV carries two versions of FOX 44. HD Down-converted to SD and Full HD. (Derived from the same signal)

Your TV may identify it as 44, 44.1, or 44.01 but the broadcast is the same.

KWKT FOX 44 (OTA) consists of up converted 4:3 SD except during the following programming:

Mike & Juliet - 10-11AM Weekdays
Two 1/2 Men - 6-7PM Weekdays 9-10PM Weekends
FOX Network - 7-9PM Weekdays Live Sports Weekends
E L Raymond - 9:30 Weekdays
MyNetwork - 10-12PM Weekdays

All of the programs listed above are broadcast in 16:9 HD when the Network or Syndicator delivers them in HD.

NOt sure if they did anything, but the signal certainly seems to be much clearer tonight. The picture is at least as crisp as the ABC feed we get in SD now. I would still like to know why they cant manage to get us the HD feed, but at least it doesnt look like Ive been staring into the sun for an hour while Im watching Fox.

NOt sure if they did anything, but the signal certainly seems to be much clearer tonight. The picture is at least as crisp as the ABC feed we get in SD now. I would still like to know why they cant manage to get us the HD feed, but at least it doesnt look like Ive been staring into the sun for an hour while Im watching Fox.

Good News....Glad I could help. If I actually did :)

Even my wife, who isnt too TV savvy, said she noticed a difference. Its honestly hard to explain how poor the picture quality was over the past few weeks especially. Last night was the first night in as long as I can remember that the FOX signal was at least as good as the other SD local channels.

Thanks for calling. I do appreciate it.

hey fox44.... bringing this up again (and i didnt check when there was a hd program on) but will we be getting 5.1 audio back on fox (kyledt) now that the transition is complete?

hey fox44.... bringing this up again (and i didnt check when there was a hd program on) but will we be getting 5.1 audio back on fox (kyledt) now that the transition is complete?

I am testing an AJA HD-SDI switcher-transcoder now that is supposed to pass 5.1 audio. I got sidetracked with getting the digital transition completed on both KWKT & KYLE among other problems.

As soon as I can verify that this will work to switch the 5.1 in and out properly, I will request the 5.1 decoder we need to complete the install.

With the rest of our stations transition being moved to June, we may be able to fit in to the budget now.

Anyone else here using an HR2x HD DVR from DirecTV?

Since the digital switchover I've been unable to get 10.2, 25.2 and 25.3 on the DVR. I can get them with my tv tuner so it's not a signal problem. In fact they show 100% on the signal meter.

On the DBS Talk forums there are a lot of people in other cities that are having similar problems with subchannels and the HR2x series of DVRs. It's likely a guide data issue. It would be helpful if we let the engineers at KWTX and KXXV know about it - assuming you're having the same or similar problems. The guide data comes from the Tribune Media Center but a station engineer has better access to them than we do.

Hi Bob,
I am having the exact same problem, I have reset locals and still no 10.2 or 25.2 or 25.3 Signal strength shows 80-90 on these same as 10.1 and 25.1 I have had my HR200 for 1.5 years
Russell

Hi Bob,
I am having the exact same problem, I have reset locals and still no 10.2 or 25.2 or 25.3 Signal strength shows 80-90 on these same as 10.1 and 25.1 I have had my HR200 for 1.5 years
Russell

I just checked the guide data on the local Waco channels.
I used a Sencore ATSC analyzer and tuned in each station.

Every subchannel is correctly identified in PSIP on all local stations.

Is it in our HR20's
Why can I pickup 9.1 and 9.2 and 46.1,46.2 and 46.3 and pickup 10.1 and not 10.2
and 25.1 not 25.2and 25.3 everything was fine until the conversion
Here is the board Bob mentioned and it seems that the same thing is happening nationwide with both Dish and Direct
Trying to get a tech from DirectTv who is not reading instructions is next to impossible
Signal strength is from 80to 100% on all channels even the ones that don't come in
This is frustrating

I thank you for trying to help
Russell
http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=152685

I just checked the guide data on the local Waco channels.
I used a Sencore ATSC analyzer and tuned in each station.

Every subchannel is correctly identified in PSIP on all local stations.

Yeah, the problem is not local. The educated guess is bad guide data from Tribune Media. The HR2x series of DirecTV DVR can't scan for channels on its own, it's totally dependent on guide data, so the PSIP doesn't matter.

In fact, if you plug in the zip code for another DMA that happens to have the 25.2 and 25.3 subchannels, even if it's in Alaska, those channels will then light up on the DVR. The guide data will be wrong but the channel will work. This tells you the problem is with the guide data rather than the local signal.

I have sort of a related problem with my Vista Media Center.

A channel scan will pick up all of the stations I can tune (using the same antenna connected to my TV to verify) except for 44.

For some reason VMC doesn't know that Fox 44 DT has switched it's digital signal frequency. It is looking for an analog channel on 44 and you can't manually change the frequency to search for a digital channel :(

Luckily I can get Fox 7 in Austin and record my Fox shows that way.

I have sort of a related problem with my Vista Media Center.

A channel scan will pick up all of the stations I can tune (using the same antenna connected to my TV to verify) except for 44.

For some reason VMC doesn't know that Fox 44 DT has switched it's digital signal frequency. It is looking for an analog channel on 44 and you can't manually change the frequency to search for a digital channel :(

Luckily I can get Fox 7 in Austin and record my Fox shows that way.

http://thegreenbutton.com/forums/post/251356.aspx

- Trip

Just got home and Fox44.1 is off the air again
more problems in the last week than in the last year still no 10.2 or 25.2,25.3

Just got off the phone with DirectTV She is reporting to engineering

I also started a post on DirectTv's Tech support Forum here is the link everybody call and post and maybe we can make this a priority

http://forums.directv.com/pe/action/forums/displaythread?channelID=1&portalPageId=1002&rootPostID=10504067

http://thegreenbutton.com/forums/post/251356.aspx

- Trip

Thanks, Trip. That worked great. I hadn't had the time to mess with it (google it) yet.

Thanks, Trip. That worked great. I hadn't had the time to mess with it (google it) yet.

Glad it helped.

Any chance you might be willing to take a couple of minutes and play with TSReader for me? :D

- Trip

Just got home and Fox44.1 is off the air again
more problems in the last week than in the last year still no 10.2 or 25.2,25.3

KWKT-DT has operated continuousely at full power on channel 44 since Tuesday morning 02/17 @ 01:45 AM. It has not been off air since.

KWKT-DT has operated continuousely at full power on channel 44 since Tuesday morning 02/17 @ 01:45 AM. It has not been off air since.

It was working when I left yesterday morning, got home went to watch terminator blank screen until about 7:45 then it came back on Maybe its part of HR 20 glich don't know

KYLE-DT looks great! Before the transition, the only way I could get it was with a roof-mounted antenna and I was only getting 4/10 bars with that in College Station. Now that the power is 50kW, I'm getting 10/10 bars on my HDTV. :D

I am disappointed that I still cannot get KCEN-DT and KXXV-DT with my antenna after the switch. I was hoping that power increases would get me within the digital cliff. I was thinking about installing a preamp, but I'm worried it would mess up the closer signals for KAMU, KBTX, and KYLE. I am trying for the Waco stations as their towers are in the same direction as KAMU-DT, KYLE-DT, KMAY-LP, and KRHD-LP from where I am located (antenna is pointed NW toward Bryan and Waco). Any suggestions? Or will we have to wait a few more years for LP stations to go digital? I want to get ABC and NBC in HD without having to subscribe to our local cable company. :)

I am on dish network and I receive kwkt hd via OA. Is it just me or did everone lose it and the Bryan station again about an hour ago?

I am on dish network and I receive kwkt hd via OA. Is it just me or did everone lose it and the Bryan station again about an hour ago?

AGAIN:
KWKT-DT (44) & KYLE-DT (28) have operated continuousely at full power since Tuesday.
Neither station has been off air since then.

I contacted Tribune this morning and asked them to please verify their channel mapping for all Waco/Bryan stations.

Did they give you an answer or leave you hanging like the rest of us

Did they give you an answer or leave you hanging like the rest of us

I gave them the correct channel mappings for KWKT and KYLE.
I also gave them contact information for the other Waco stations.
I felt I should let the appropriate station give them updates.

As of 5PM I hadn't received an acnwledgment of my e-mail.

Thanks for your help, this is just frustrating.
Another problem has popped up, It seems if you had a program scheduled to record all episodes before the transition you have to go back and delete them and start over or it will record a gray screen even though the program is on air.

FOX44CE
Thank you for your help, you must have got through to the right person
I just checked and 10.2 and 25.2 and 25.3 are now on
HR20-700 76513 between Belton and Killeen

FOX44CE
Thank you for your help, you must have got through to the right person
I just checked and 10.2 and 25.2 and 25.3 are now on
HR20-700 76513 between Belton and Killeen

Glad I could help....Now stop watching those other channels :)

9.1 has been removed from guide and 6.1 has replaced it but back to the searching for signal on 6.1 looks like they would have noticed the problem with 25 and 10 last week and had it fixed before they changed
Russell

9.1 has been removed from guide and 6.1 has replaced it but back to the searching for signal on 6.1 looks like they would have noticed the problem with 25 and 10 last week and had it fixed before they changed
Russell

Interesting. Channel 6 has officially changed all of their branding to KCEN 9.
I'll call Dan Archer and let him know that Tribune screwed it up.

Happiest of happy days!! Dish Network finally turned Fox 44 on in HD!!!!! Now if they could actually show House and Bones instead of 2 hour long American Idol and 24 episodes everything would be great.

Did a reset this morning and 6.1 went away and 9.1 came back, wonder what the next glitch will be?

In other news, I just got through speaking with one of the programming directors at KBTX in Bryan, TX about getting the CW feed in HD.

She said that once they finish the DTV conversion, they are planning on buying the equipment necessary to upgrade the CWTexas transmission to HD. The time frame was sketchy, but probably within 6 to 9 months. This would be beneficial to the OTA and Suddenlink customers.. ;)

Nex

Why in the world is KBTX still promoting channel 3 which no longer exists. I would think they would want to get everyone used to channel 50. BTW, KYLE-DT now comes in great on rabbit ears in College Station. As does KAMU (12.1, 12.2 and 12.3) and KBTX which is still remapped to 3.1 and 3.2. And is there a plan for KRHD to go digital?

Word on the street is that KBTX will be broadcasting at 1MW very soon. They've been broadcasting in low-powered digital for a month now and have had problem after problem after problem with their digital transition. There have been a lot of frustrated people in the Brazos Valley not able to get the signal. The latest news is that they will be testing later today.

I don't know if KBTX is at "full power" yet, but the signal is a lot stronger now than it was before. And it wasn't just for a month -- they've had their "low power" digital signal for about three years now, if now longer. I think it was three years ago this month when they brought their UPN digital subchannel online, only to have the UPN + WB merger announcement drop a couple weeks later.

KBTX still occasionally glitches, but at least it's watchable now with a basic indoor antenna (and by basic I mean the loop-of-wire UHF "antenna" that was originally bolted directly to the back of an old TV + twin lead + balun).

BTW, KYLE has a nice strong signal now, at least here in town. Pre-switchover, trying to view it with an indoor antenna was a losing proposition.

Now if the FCC would just force our local LPTVs to make the switch... although knowing how things go, you'd probably need a massive rooftop antenna to receive whatever puny digital signal they eventually broadcast.

hey fox44... just a heads up i am finally getting around to watching 24 that was on last night and it was stuck in SD mode for the whole 2 hours.

hey fox44... just a heads up i am finally getting around to watching 24 that was on last night and it was stuck in SD mode for the whole 2 hours.

We had a failure in our FOX Splicer which caused it to stop passing the hidden secondary KYLE microwave backup feed.

Our HD switching control tones are placed on the second audio channel of that feed, so we were unable to switch HD Monday and Tuesday.

The FOX-Grass Valley Tech logged into the Splicer and fixed it this morning.
Mike & Juliet aired in HD on KYLE correctly from 10AM to 11AM today.

Also, I issued a Purchase Order to our Tower Crew to come in and raise the receive antenna to the position of the side mount channel 29 (no longer used) antenna (up 150 feet higher) and take the 29 antenna down.

We will use the 2" heliax (no loss) cable from the pre-transition DTV line to feed the signal down to the building which should improve reliability tremendously.

I went to http://www.tvfool.com/ and entered my address. According to that site, I should be able to receive NBC and ABC from Waco with a roof-mounted antenna. How big (and high) of an antenna are we talking about? I've uploaded the results of my query to http://squash.tamu.edu/tvfool.jpg.

Right now, I have a Winegard GS-2200 in my attic pointing northwest. I'd always gotten a watchable picture from KCEN and KWTX (analog) and could catch KBTX off of the back of it. I'm only getting CBS, PBS, and Fox in HD.

I would love to be able to watch NBC and ABC over the air in HD, and I have no faith that anyone is ever going to force KMAY and KHRD to go HD.

This is just my opinion, but I don't think you'll have much luck picking up either of those stations, especially with your antenna in your attic. At my previous house in College Station, I had a CM 4228 mounted about 35 feet in the air and I was able to pick up Houston locals pretty reliably, but whenver I turned it toward Waco, I could never get anything OTA. Granted, that was about 5 years ago, so their signal may be more reliable now, but I doubt it. You'd definitely have to get that GS-2200 up pretty high to have a shot.

I moved into the house in May and tried to have an antenna installed outside. I finally found an installer in Madisonville. I talked to him a couple of times and ordered an antenna through him. I never heard back from the guy, so I called him a few weeks later, and the phone was disconnected. I guess he went out of business.

I'm not remotely qualified to deal with mounting a pole, using concrete, etc, so I got the GS-2200 and mounted it on the roof. I went into the attic and went to the back of the house where the antenna was. It was really cramped, and I couldn't get the cable through, so I took down the antenna and mounted it in the attic.

If I could find an installer, I would be willing to purchase the largest, highest antenna that the Copperfield HOA wouldn't complain about. I would feel like an idiot though if I did that and still couldn't get Waco/Temple. That's why I was curious what I would need for KCEN and KXXV.

My antenna experience: I've got a CM 3020 mounted in my second story attic, pointed nw. I'm at one of the higher points in Emerald Forest. I have gotten KCEN-DT in HD almost without fail for nearly two years. KBTX off the back has been flakey--and still is though it now will peak at 95 signal strength on my Sony SXRD set since they increased power; drop-outs continue. KAMU and KYLE (since power increase) are rock solid at 98 on the meter. Surprisingly, KXXV-DT has just recently made an appearance, along with sub-channels, though it's watchable only when the weather's right (usually after a cold front passes in the evenings), so has been breaking up recently with our summer-like weather. It's usually at 56-62 on the meter, but drops to the 30s often enough to make it impossible to watch reliably. I don't why it starting to show.

I've also got D*, and asked them by email recently about their supplying KXXV in HD; no plans to do so at the moment.

I have not tried pointing the antenna to Houston since I installed it two years ago, but back then I couldn't get anything at all in that direction.

Hope that's somewhat helpful.

Thanks elmina,

I've been using a hand held signal meter to aim my antenna. I just went and used the "IF-AGC %" feature to try to lock in 9.1. I was able to get that number down to 46, but it wasn't enough to receive KCEN. My house is pretty low in Copperfield and is one story.

The house came with a HUGE antenna in the attic. The problem is that it's so big that if I extend the elements, it can only point one direction, and it isn't a good one. I might put some flooring in a different, more open part of the attic and put the big antenna over there.

KBTX was jumping from 72 to 98 on my Sony's signal meter. After trying to get KCEN, KBTX is now locked in at 93. I am wondering if some kind of signal reflection was causing the jumps?

KYLE and KAMU are both solid at 98.

HD out again on KYLE.

HD out again on KYLE.

I noticed that the Fox HD feed went away at about that time as both Fox 7 (Austin) and Fox 44 (Waco) lost the feed at the same time..and regained the feed at the same time.

I noticed that the Fox HD feed went away at about that time as both Fox 7 (Austin) and Fox 44 (Waco) lost the feed at the same time..and regained the feed at the same time.

Sun outages:

Twice a year the Sun is over the geosynchronous satellite orbit as it moves North in Spring and South in Fall.

Reception from each satellite in turn is washed out as the Sun passes directly behind it.

During that short period, all FOX stations have to switch to a backup SD feed until the outage is over.

FOX doesn't have enough bandwidth available on the alternate satellite to allow the HD feeds.

The HD broadcast is lost on FOX 44 (Waco), FOX 28 (Bryan), FOX 7 (Austin) and FOX 11 (Dallas) during this time.

This will happen again for the next two weeks during approximately the same time period each day.

Actually the Sun doesn't move, the Earth does, but you all know that already :)

Does anybody know when KXXV 25 is going to go HD on Direct tv?

Within the last couple of days, I read somewhere where someone had contacted D* about this, and they said that they have no current plans to provide KXXV ABC in HD to our area.

Coincidently, I JUST lost my HD ABC national feed on channel 86 which I have had forever because I have a waiver for ABC. I spent 1 hour and 10 minutes on the phone with D*, and they couldn't tell me why that has been removed. They still show that I should still be getting it, but the CSR couldn't make it work. She escalated my call to the next level, and they said that someone would call me back in 3-4 days!

Sorry...this is more info than you wanted, but I have been waiting to rant about this. I will be very upset if they don't give it back because I just recently upgraded 4 HD receivers in order to continue to get NBC HD on channel 6 (I used to get NBC on the national feed as well). At the time that I upgraded, they assured me that I would not loose my ABC HD feed. :(

Mikey,
I gave DirecTV my sister's Houston address and get their locals. ABC/CBS/NBC/Fox/CW/PBS/MyNetworkTV are all in HD. I've read that DirecTV's HD quality for locals isn't great in smaller markets because they over compress their signals, but the Houston locals look very good.... ALMOST as good as over the air.

Until I can get all networks OTA in HD, I am keeping my address in Houston.

Mikey,
I gave DirecTV my sister's Houston address and get their locals. ABC/CBS/NBC/Fox/CW/PBS/MyNetworkTV are all in HD. I've read that DirecTV's HD quality for locals isn't great in smaller markets because they over compress their signals, but the Houston locals look very good.... ALMOST as good as over the air.

Until I can get all networks OTA in HD, I am keeping my address in Houston.

For D*, that's definitely the way to go. I use an address in Dallas and love having those feeds. I combine them with what I get OTA and it's great, especially during football season. There are Sundays where I get 5 different regional games.

Thanks for the info. However I hesitate to "move" to a Houston address because I would then loose my KBTX local feed for the local news. Unfortunately, my main HDTV is just a 50" plasma monitor with no built in ATSC tuner for OTA. Plus, my HR21 doesn't have an OTA tuner like my old HD Tivo HR10-250 did. I guess that I could rig a way to get KBTX OTA somehow and move my D* address, but at that point I may look into bailing out from D* and going to Suddenlink :( BTW, I have been a D* customer for 12 years.

I believe there's an external box you can add to the HR21 that allows for OTA signals.

That would allow you to "move" to Houston and still pickup KBTX, KAMU, etc.

Yeah...when I asked them about it some time ago, they said that the box cost something like $90-$100. Not sure that I want to go that route at this moment.

Thanks.

I guess you just have to way your options then.

1) "Move" to Houston + OTA box = Enjoy stable HD channels + locals
2) D* w/ Waco/CS locals = Spotty at best due to being a dual-city small market
3) SuddenLink = No Comment... left them many moons ago.

To me $100 for that OTA box is worth it versus hoping that Waco channels will get their sh*t together or going to SL. :)

OK, Dave. Thanks for the info!

I have been a DirecTV customer for 14 years. I paid $700 for my first Sony receiver and 18" dish.

DirecTV has much more HD content than SuddenLink. I am not willing to lose that stuff, so having a Houston address is the only way for me to get ABC college football in HD, and that's my favorite sport. Plus, DirecTV sells a package for March Madness that gives you every game in HD.

HD over the air is always going to look better, so I am not going to stop trying to get NBC and ABC from Temple/Waco in HD. Until then, I will appreciate how much better KPRC and KTRK look in HD as opposed to their analog equivalents KMAY and KHRD.

Mikey, Let me know the results of your dealings with D* on kxxv.

Yeah...when I asked them about it some time ago, they said that the box cost something like $90-$100. Not sure that I want to go that route at this moment.

Thanks.

The external ATSC tuner box is an AM21. The price is $50 but many people have been able to talk DTV into giving it to them for free.

http://www.dbstalk.com/search.php?searchid=4494816

Mikey, Let me know the results of your dealings with D* on kxxv.

If you look back a few months on this thread you'll see a discussion about KXXV. They were being sold by Drewry Communications Group to London Broadcasting. The sale was supposed to be completed by the end of 2008 and they were not signing any contracts, like HD with DirecTV, until the new owners took over.

Bob & Will, thanks for the info. I will call D* and try to get a couple of the AM21s.

Mike

Thanks for the info.

I am approximately 7 miles south of Katy in Fort Bend County and did a re-scan on my Dish VIP 611 receiver and there was KBTX. I get enough signal for a picture with a carefully adjusted $8 pair of wal-mart rabbit ears and 87% signal with a Channel Master CM-3021 in the attic.

I noticed last night that OTA 10-1 was gone - again! As was OTA 10-2 on my HR20 with DirecTV. I reset the antenna info, scanned again and received 10-1, but not 10-2. This is the fourth time this has happened since the transition. Can someone please shed light on why there seems to be so many problems with keeping the signal. Before the transition, I went two years or more without losing the digital HD signal. The problem with this is that everytime this happens, I am forced to delete all series recordings for these channels, reset, rescan and let it sit for 24 hours while it acquires the guide data, then I can add series recordings back in. Otherwise, it merely records the previous frequency and I get a blank screen. What is going on????

Same thing here between Belton and Killeen getting between 80-100% on 9.1-9.2-25.1-25.2-25.3-34.1-34.2-34.3-44.1-46.1-46.2-46.3
but nada-zilch on 10.1 -10.2
have called them and they say they are full power
like fizban11 went 2years with no problem and now with so called advanced signal nothing but problems

Just did a reset and 10.1 came in at 90% signal strength and 10.2 shows 90% but is still searching for signal
Called Tribune and He said He would check into it, still not holding My breath

10.1 and 10.2 are both working ok for me this morning. 10.2 didn't work last night. They've also corrected 20.4 to 34.4. I do still get searching for signal on 34.3 but that's the only remaining problem for me. It's minor since 34.3 is currently just a mirror of 34.1.

Now if they will just leave things alone and not screw them up again.

Fox44 is off the air tonight, recording of Idol was blank
don't know if it was a storm or Tribune again but this is getting old

JrCobb,

Yep, I lost 25-1 and 25-3 and 44-1. The 25's came back, but still no 44-1. My wife missed IDOL - for all you married folk out there, I'm still waiting for how this is my fault ;)

We need to hear from FOX44CE. I don't show he is on, so they may be trying to fix the problem. I hope it's not the same problem of a damaged transmission line or worse, equipment failure. This knocked out the signal for several days before.

Kxxv 25 hd is now avail on Directv!

JrCobb,

My wife missed IDOL - for all you married folk out there, I'm still waiting for how this is my fault ;)



You are alive. You are there. It is your fault. :D

Kxxv 25 hd is now avail on Directv!

Yeah! Well, that is a start in the right direction to get a digital feed from Kxxv. However, it seems that they are not broadcasting true HD yet over that channel. In fact, it appears to be a poorly downconverted HD-to-SD signal that is coming in at 480p. Hopefully, they will have true HD ABC to us very soon. If not, then what is their point of providing the KxxvDT version???

JrCobb,

Yep, I lost 25-1 and 25-3 and 44-1. The 25's came back, but still no 44-1. My wife missed IDOL - for all you married folk out there, I'm still waiting for how this is my fault ;)

We need to hear from FOX44CE. I don't show he is on, so they may be trying to fix the problem. I hope it's not the same problem of a damaged transmission line or worse, equipment failure. This knocked out the signal for several days before.

Power went out at the Moody tower site @ 6:45PM.

Power was restored by McLennan County Coop @ 8:15PM.

KWTX & KXXV have backup generators. KWKT does not.

Tell your wife it's my fault !

(Even though it really isn't, I can take the heat :) )

Yeah! Well, that is a start in the right direction to get a digital feed from Kxxv. However, it seems that they are not broadcasting true HD yet over that channel. In fact, it appears to be a poorly downconverted HD-to-SD signal that is coming in at 480p. Hopefully, they will have true HD ABC to us very soon. If not, then what is their point of providing the KxxvDT version???

This is pure guesswork, but...the only version available to DTV is KXXV-DT. The analog signal is gone. However, maybe they don't yet have a contract for retransmission of the HD signal. So, they are down rezzing it to 480i. At least my HR20 is showing it at 480i rather than 480p.

They came on with a psuedo HD. Supposed HD is letterbox in SD. Other is square box. All resolution is SD. This is on D*

DBS talk posted a confirmed SD Mpeg4 launch for this station.

Well, this is still frustrating that the "new" MPEG-4 channel 25 is still only SD. Hopefully they are just laying the groundwork for transmission of Kxxv in true HD. Currently, my channel guide shows two channel 25's, one showing Kxxv and the other showing Kxxv-DT. This does nothing for me so far because the non-DT channel 25 looks better (but still crappy) than the DT channel does :(

Maybe I will call D* again, and see if they can shed some light on this. Normally, D* customer service has been pretty decent for me, but they seem to know next-to-nothing about issues like these.

BTW, I have fortunately been receiving pretty consistant OTA Kxxv signals from Waco, but my main TV does not have an OTA tuner. Some of my other TVs do have an ATSC receiver. I guess that I might still need to get an AM21 for use in the meantime for my main TV and receiver. This good OTA reception might change though as we get into warmer weather with less tropospheric ducting.

Last Thursday morning (3/19) I somewhat randomly tried 10.1 KWTX, and it came in. Signal strength of 16-20 on my Sony Bravia. I was curious and scanned for more digital channels. I pulled in CBS and PBS from Waco and a Spanish channel (61) from Houston. It also mapped 26.1, but there was no picture.

I then realized that it had picked up KRIV from Houston. Apparently KXXV (transmitter 75.9 miles from my house according to tvfool.com) and KRIV (89.8 miles away) are both going to use 26 permanently?!? Aren't they too close to do this? I have a bi-direction antenna, so this is particularly frustrating.


I feel like we're totally screwed living in Bryan/College Station. The fact that we're part of the Waco market is just crazy. As of 2000 there were 67k people in CS, 65k in Bryan, and there are 47k students at TAMU. How are we not big enough to be our own market?

Meanwhile, I've got a 52" Sony Bravia and can only get NBC and ABC OTA through ridiculously low power 480i repeaters. I get them HD through DirecTV because I gave them a Houston address, but this area is big enough (and growing rapidly) that I should be able to get them OTA.

Last Thursday morning (3/19) I somewhat randomly tried 10.1 KWTX, and it came in. Signal strength of 16-20 on my Sony Bravia. I was curious and scanned for more digital channels. I pulled in CBS and PBS from Waco and a Spanish channel (61) from Houston. It also mapped 26.1, but there was no picture.

I then realized that it had picked up KRIV from Houston. Apparently KXXV (transmitter 75.9 miles from my house according to tvfool.com) and KRIV (89.8 miles away) are both going to use 26 permanently?!? Aren't they too close to do this? I have a bi-direction antenna, so this is particularly frustrating.


I feel like we're totally screwed living in Bryan/College Station. The fact that we're part of the Waco market is just crazy. As of 2000 there were 67k people in CS, 65k in Bryan, and there are 47k students at TAMU. How are we not big enough to be our own market?

Meanwhile, I've got a 52" Sony Bravia and can only get NBC and ABC OTA through ridiculously low power 480i repeaters. I get them HD through DirecTV because I gave them a Houston address, but this area is big enough (and growing rapidly) that I should be able to get them OTA.


KRIV is actually operating at 500KW digital on channel 27 until June 12th. They identify as 26.1. (Their analog channel)
When the analog is shut down, they will move the digital to channel 26 @ 1000KW. (This is the Houston FOX owned station)

At the present time they cause severe interference with KYLE (28) in the Bremond area. In this case a directional antenna doesn't help.

If all of the stations had converted to digital at the same time, this would not have occurred.

Two digital channels can operate on the same channel with the distance between Waco and Houston.
Bryan/College Station is outside of the Grade B coverage area of both stations.
It will require a directional antenna to pick which one you want to receive.
Since they are received in Bryan at approximately the same signal strength, a moderate directional will work.

One example is KCEN (Temple) and WFAA (Dallas) which both operate on channel 9. When WFAA moves to channel 8, another full power station will move onto channel 9.

Viewers in the West/Hillsboro area have been able to pick which one easily with a rotor.

Maybe I will call D* again, and see if they can shed some light on this. Normally, D* customer service has been pretty decent for me, but they seem to know next-to-nothing about issues like these.

Were you able to find out when we will get a true HD picture from KXXV?

Were you able to find out when we will get a true HD picture from KXXV?

Not yet. I haven't yet worked up the incentive to waste another hour of my time on the phone with them to just get more frusterated. But I will call them soon.

They came on with a psuedo HD. Supposed HD is letterbox in SD. Other is square box. All resolution is SD. This is on D*

The news last night looked really bad on the new "HD" channel. It was letterboxed AND cropped. So the picture was on about 1/2 of my screen. Very interesting.

I've back to the old SD feed. It looks better.

Looks like a week is the max for all stations to come in, 10.1 is out tonight

Fox started out out all crackly and went to SD during House and continued through 24, (so 7-9PM). Still no fix for FOX problems?

Oh, and I was blown away by House tonight. God I hope I didn't just make a pun.

Fox started out out all crackly and went to SD during House and continued through 24, (so 7-9PM). Still no fix for FOX problems?

Oh, and I was blown away by House tonight. God I hope I didn't just make a pun.

I have a quote for a 3 hop digital microwave system to replace our existing analog system. ($105,065.00)

This will eliminate the need to receive KWKT OTA in Bryan in order to deliver HD service on KYLE-DT.

It has been added to budget planning for later in the year.

In the meantime, we have made every effort possible to make the system as reliable as possible.

With KWKT-DT being limited only 135KW by the FCC, there isn't more that we can do at this time.

I have a quote for a 3 hop digital microwave system to replace our existing analog system. ($105,065.00)

This will eliminate the need to receive KWKT OTA in Bryan in order to deliver HD service on KYLE-DT.

It has been added to budget planning for later in the year.

In the meantime, we have made every effort possible to make the system as reliable as possible.

With KWKT-DT being limited only 135KW by the FCC, there isn't more that we can do at this time.
Allright, I'll quit bitching. Sadly I'll be moving to Pittsburgh for a new job in the late summer so I probably won't get to see the improvements. :(

Alright, I'll quit bitching. Sadly I'll be moving to Pittsburgh for a new job in the late summer so I probably won't get to see the improvements. :(

In the interest of improving reception of KWKT-DT at the Bryan site, I made a trip down there Saturday morning. We put a spectrum analyzer on the receive antenna and tweaked the filtering and processing to maximize channel 44 while minimizing bandpass distortion and interference from KEYE [43] in Austin.

I did find an issue with the audio processer in the frame synchronizer for the KWKT-DT multiplexer and corrected it.

I had our Master Control Operators monitor it very closely during the baseball game Saturday and FOX Prime Sunday and Monday. I also reviewed our OTA KYLE logging recorder for these times and the 2 & 1/2 Men weekend shows.

They [and the logging recorder] recorded no problems with HD during these times.

In the interest of improving reception of KWKT-DT at the Bryan site, I made a trip down there Saturday morning. We put a spectrum analyzer on the receive antenna and tweaked the filtering and processing to maximize channel 44 while minimizing bandpass distortion and interference from KEYE [43] in Austin.

I did find an issue with the audio processer in the frame synchronizer for the KWKT-DT multiplexer and corrected it.

I had our Master Control Operators monitor it very closely during the baseball game Saturday and FOX Prime Sunday and Monday. I also reviewed our OTA KYLE logging recorder for these times and the 2 & 1/2 Men weekend shows.

They [and the logging recorder] recorded no problems with HD during these times.

Thanks so much for all your hard work... You do an amazing job of keeping us informed as to what's going on. Just wanted you to know that you're appreciated =)

Thanks so much for all your hard work... You do an amazing job of keeping us informed as to what's going on. Just wanted you to know that you're appreciated =)

I second that. We do appreciate all your help!

A heads up warning for DirecTV subs. Apparently we're scheduled to have our locals moved from the 72.5 satellite in about 2 weeks. If you have an older model receiver you won't be able to get locals anymore. The 72.5 sat carries MPEG2 signals, they're now moving to a sat with MPEG4 signals - which older receivers can't handle. If you have an HR2x DVR or R22 standard receiver you're ok. There's going to be an avalanche of installation requests when this hits, so I would recommend calling and getting in line as quickly as possible. 1-800-531-5000 The installation (if you need a DVR) and receiver are free. They replace 1 to 1 - meaning they'll replace a DVR with a DVR and a standard receiver with a standard receiver. If you want to move up, such as SD DVR to HD DVR, that will cost you.

Here's a thread discussing the issue (which impacts many other cities). http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=150603

A heads up warning for DirecTV subs. Apparently we're scheduled to have our locals moved from the 72.5 satellite in about 2 weeks. If you have an older model receiver you won't be able to get locals anymore. The 72.5 sat carries MPEG2 signals, they're now moving to a sat with MPEG4 signals - which older receivers can't handle. If you have an HR2x DVR or R22 standard receiver you're ok. There's going to be an avalanche of installation requests when this hits, so I would recommend calling and getting in line as quickly as possible. 1-800-531-5000 The installation (if you need a DVR) and receiver are free. They replace 1 to 1 - meaning they'll replace a DVR with a DVR and a standard receiver with a standard receiver. If you want to move up, such as SD DVR to HD DVR, that will cost you.

Here's a thread discussing the issue (which impacts many other cities). http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=150603

I'm sure it's on the thread you linked, but are the locals moving onto the main satellite? That is, will I still need two dishes or not?

Were you able to find out when we will get a true HD picture from KXXV?

I spoke with D* last night AGAIN about the fact that I lost my ABC HD national feed. They still can't tell me why, and several reps said that I should still be able to get it. However, their "HD specialist" told me that probably their audit department cut me off because my ABC waiver is for SD only. My recent waiver request for ABC HD has been rejected.

Also they said that they still have no information on when KXXV will be provided in HD via satellite..."there are no current plans". Earlier I was wondering why they added a second channel 25 showing "KXXV-HD", but based upon today's post above, I guess that this is just part of the transition to phase out the 72.5 sat locals...and NOT done to prepare for ABC HD, which I had hoped.

Anyway, they are sending me two AM21 OTA receivers for free for use with my DVRs. Fortunately, I have been getting KXXV HD OTA pretty reliabily since they cut me off.

I'm sure it's on the thread you linked, but are the locals moving onto the main satellite? That is, will I still need two dishes or not?

Right, they're moving to either the main 101 or 103 (can't remember which). No, we won't need the 72.5 dish anymore. However, they won't take it down for you.

Well surprise, surprise. FedEx just delivered two AM21 OTA HD receivers to me. I have just hooked one up and checked it out. I am getting between 76 and 80 signal strength from KXXV-DT from my antenna(s). The AM21's seem to integrate seamlessly with the DVR's program guide, so maybe this will pacify me for now. I'm hoping that the tuner in this box is better than the one that I had in my Tivo HR10-250...I think that it will be.

FYI, the antenna setup is two vertically stacked Telivis DAT-75 antennas at 25 feet, signal combiner plus a Channel Master mast mounted preamp. Then I have a CATV distribution amplifier inside the attic to distribute the OTA signal to about four locations inside the house.

Right, they're moving to either the main 101 or 103 (can't remember which). No, we won't need the 72.5 dish anymore. However, they won't take it down for you.

This is good news for me. We tailgate at A&M games, and I had problems with the local channels at the tailgate location due to the two dishes.

Also they said that they still have no information on when KXXV will be provided in HD via satellite..."there are no current plans". Earlier I was wondering why they added a second channel 25 showing "KXXV-HD", but based upon today's post above, I guess that this is just part of the transition to phase out the 72.5 sat locals...and NOT done to prepare for ABC HD, which I had hoped.

Thanks for the info Mikey.

Is 2 channel Audio on KRHD (ABC) permantly messed up? It always sounds distorted.

Unfortunately we live in the unimportant section (BCS) of the WACO-BCS DMA. KRHD (ABC) cannot make the switch between SD and HD consistently, or deliver a Dolby Digital 5.1 signal with their HD video. Their 2-ch audio distortion is horrible. The audio level of that channel relative to the other channels is excessive. Why anyone would advertise on them is beyond me. Call them up and complain! Ask to speak to the station engineer or the station manager. Let them know this is unacceptable. (Only Waco station not on Directv in HD. Unacceptable.)

KYLE (FOX) cannot deliver a reliable HD signal into this market on a consistent basis and they are also delivering 2 channel sound. At least when they do happen to get the HD signal here, the audio is usually good. Their station engineer regularly posts on the forum and it is greatly appreciated. But, their transmission issues have been going on a long time and they are still not fixed.

KCEN (NBC) audio is on the edge of distortion when in HD. At least it is Dolby Digital 5.1. They have some SD/HD switching issues.

The one station that seems to do everything right is KBTX (CBS). They are switching between SD and HD properly and technically their signal is good. I would spend my advertising dollars with them and ignore the rest until they get it right.


It's a big disappointment to have a home theatre HDTV and have the experience degraded by stations that don't care for their viewing audience. So in summary, let's give them a grade.
KBTX - A - One station can do it right in BCS
KYLE - C - At least communicates via FOX44CE with forum and attempts to fix issues. A - effort and communications, C for results.
KCEN - B - Switching and mild audio distortion issues
KRHD - D - Switching and horrible distortion issues

That's the biggest reason why I "moved" to Houston. I haven't had any of these hassles for years. Plus, I can still pickup KBTX and KAMU with my antenna.

I havent had a krhd problem in quite a while but i will admit i dont watch too much stuff on abc. Also I was under the impression suddenlink has a fiber connection for krhd now so its possible that fixed their feed on suddenlink vs ota (assuming you are talking ota)

kyle still annoys me.... i do appreciate what fox44 does communicating with us but I am very annoyed they dont just give us the native kwkt (or whatever the waco one is) while they fix their stuff between waco and here. we did have that feed for a while and it was perfect with 5.1 audio. and i also have signals from both houston and b/cs so this doesnt annoy me too much in that i usually use the houston fox to watch their shows..... will come back to kyle once they get their equipment working reliably because the houston stations do compress quite a bit more than the waco ones.

ive never had a problem with kcen or kbtx.

All of my issues are via Suddenlink. I had heard KRHD has a fiber link to Suddenlink. If that is true, then there is no excuse for the distortion that is on the audio. There is also no excuse for improper/late switching from SD to HD or in some cases, never switching back to HD after commercials. How long has HD been out now and they still can't get it right? I suspect that the OTA feed of KXXV in Waco is probably better than our KRHD feed but I have no way to compare.

KCEN used to be problem free for me too, but lately you can hear the audio being overdriven on a few shows. Something is not quite right.

KRHD could fix their problems if they put a little effort into it.