Bob Ross,

Thank you for your involvement and feedback. Miami should be ready to roll ahead of the HD college football season. Looks like a good Fall for Florida football fans!

Jim

------------------
Let me get this straight, this show is hi-def and 5.1, but my local affiliate makes it crappy NTSC and mono?!

Bob Ross,
Thanks for keeping us up to date on the progress of the antenna work at WFOR.

No thanks! His info late and very spotty. I will congratulate HBO and Showtime instead!

'Bra,

Since you read this thread daily how could you possibly NOT know of WFOR's tower work?! w4guy stated that it would happen this summer back in April ferchissakes! Pay attention man! (And get a grip. It's only television.)

------------------
HiDefDave

Dave,

I do not speak Dave or CBS. I am a viewer. If i "knew" about this kind of stress, i would have joined the ranks of the RCMP!! You are wrong again. Resolution is life...owning an antenna is one step closer to god....yes, higher is better.

A few thoughts which provide the usual stress. And because i am fair i will use lists to reduce yours....

1) Palm beach county does not count! Period.

2) Since when is tower work done at night?

3) How can anyone get 100 reading on LP signal?

4) HOW CAN ANYONE get 100 with LP/4??? Something fishy(TM).

5) Weird things are going on in Lake Worth but what else is new!! See other thread.

6) Is anyone going to give free lunch to CBS? The guilty parties shall remain nameless for artistic reasons!

7) Why is Bob Ross not answering my ?s. Scratch that. I know why. Everything you say can and will be used against you in AVS court of all. Bob Ross is smart!

8) I complain because i care. I also care because i can record. And i record because i can. Call it Braism!

9) Where is gireesh??? Where are the REAL viewers?

The Broadcasters are hurting Bra's feelings? I get big stress reading this omniponent thread. Instead of asking Bob things like :

1) What about US open tennis?????

2) Is that a picture of the DENVER tower? The skyline does not spell SUNNY FL!

I will do the unthinkable. Take the <u>high road</u> again just like WHDT. I will not post a single thing here. This thread is a disgrace.

I smell a pirate...

------------------
HiDefDave

http://www.animfactory.com/animations/people_m_z/pirates/pirate_with_bottle_of_rum_md_clr.gif

Originally posted by rodmanbra:
I will not post a single thing here.

Thank the Lord!!

Where is the pirate graphic? Hardrock must be busy today.

------------------
You are reading my signature.

WFOR - Please flip the switch. CSI is on and someone is asleep at the wheel.

Bra,

I am alive and kicking... last reading for WFOR was about 48%!!!

Gireesh.

------------------
Stop DFAST

WFOR is broadcasting a test pattern again.

http://www.granitetops.com/CBSNY.jpg

I thought you all liked color bars???

http://www.avsforum.com/ubb/smile.gif

Bob

------------------
CBS New York
rjross@cbs.com

Originally posted by rodmanbra:
Who is this "hardrock"?

Mr. RodmanBocaRaton'sApologetic (Sorry to Bob Ross!!!!!):

The conspiratory mystery was revealed in the Sun-Sentinel article "WPBT, WFOR join ranks of broadcasters with HDTV signals"

"It's a beginning," said Graham Simmons, vice president of engineering at WPBT, which entered the digital age Monday with high-definition documentaries on art in Kansas City and sperm whales off the Azores.

"It was just exquisite," viewer Tim Rappold of Coral Springs said of the whale program. Rappold was first to post news of WPBT's signal at www.avsforum.com, (http://www.avsforum.com) a Web site for HDTV enthusiasts.

Does anyone know if the WB antenna went up?

George,

According to the July 31st article Plugging into HDTV in South Florida (http://tv.broward.com/tvbroward/digdocs/079469.htm) , An HDTV transmitter is being installed during the next couple of weeks and the station expects to be delivering a high-definition signal by December, says Jim Zerwekh, vice president and general manager of WBZL-WB39.

WHDT-DT - Channel 59 - MIG (http://www.whdt.net/index.html)
Phone: (561) 471-9200
Email: info@whdt.net

WFLX-DT - Channel 28 - FOX (http://www.wflxfox29.com/)
September 1, 2001 per TitanTV
Rumored intention to broadcast 480p - a welcome improvement over WSVN's 480i.
Phone: (561) 845-2929
Email: rsanluis@raycommedia.com
Email: bfigurella@raycommedia.com

WTVJ-DT - Channel 31 - NBC (http://www.wtvj.com/)
October 5, 2001 per TitanTV (Same date as FCC Extension)
Phone: (305) 379-6666
Email: WTVJ Feedback Form (http://128.11.160.79/cgi-bin/gx.cgi/AppLogic+FTContentServer?pagename=FutureTense/Apps/Xcelerate/Render&c=NBCArticle&cid=NBCQDEYA2FC&preview=true)

WBZL-DT - Channel 19 - WB39 (http://www.wb39.com/index.html)
December 1, 2001 per TitanTV
July, 2001 per HD Pictures (http://www.hdpictures.com/stations2.htm#FL)
Phone: (954) 925-3939
Email: wbzl@tribune.com

Originally posted by George33027:
Does anyone know if the WB antenna went up?

George,

While I was driving up the turnpike today, I noticed a new DTV antenna directly underneath WFOR's, as well as another smaller DTV antenna further down the tower. I will keep you informed when I get more information.

Originally posted by BobRoss 03-08-2001:
A 60 foot section needs to be added to the top of the tower - to that a boom will be attached - that is what will be used to hoist the CBS DT antenna and the Tribune antenna. If the NBC antenna is ready, it will also be hoisted.

Private Message from w4guy 08-04-2001:
There is a HD antenna for another broadcaster on the tower. (not WTVJ). It is mounted directly above the WFOR temporary array.

I have confirmed that the new DTV antenna directly underneath WFOR's is WBZL's. According to the July 31st article Plugging into HDTV in South Florida (http://tv.broward.com/tvbroward/digdocs/079469.htm) , their HDTV transmitter should already be installed.

The same article says that they don't expect to be delivering a high-definition signal until December which seems very conservative since their antenna and transmitter is already installed.

WBZL-DT - Channel 19 - WB39 (http://www.wb39.com/index.html)
December 1, 2001 per TitanTV
July, 2001 per HD Pictures (http://www.hdpictures.com/stations2.htm#FL)
Phone: (954) 925-3939
Email: wbzl@tribune.com

Just received a return call from the engineer at WB39. He confirmed that the antenna, transmitter and transmission line are all installed. The only thing holding up their testing is a 30 day regulatory notice that just got sent out. They expect to begin testing by the end of September; but, regular programmming will not be available until December.

Thanks again Hardrock for the information.
Do you have any idea what testing they will do?
Like will they put up a loop, or try to put out some shows in HD just for testing?

Will they be transmitting HD in Dec.?

George,

You're very welcome. The gentleman I spoke to didn't have any information about programming.

Hardrock,

When I put 19 into my DTC-100 now, I get an analog signal. What station is that? Will that interfere with the digital signal when it starts?

aviators,

Channel 19 is the WTVJ (NBC6) broadcast from Sunrise W19BJ (http://www.metronet.com/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/~chipk/tvtl?calls=W19BJ&lat=26-5-18&lon=80-24-54&rad=0)

You would think that WTVJ will experience interference from WBZL's digital signal; but, I haven't located any comprehensive info on the subject.

However, I did find some old info about WTVJ's dilemna:

From FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION - MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER ON RECONSIDERATION OF THE SIXTH REPORT AND ORDER - February 23, 1998: (http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Engineering_Technology/Orders/1998/fcc98024.txt)

NBC further states that a new DTV channel may be necessary for its station, WTVJ-TV in Miami, Florida. It states that it intends to move the WTVJ-TV DTV transmitter closer to the center of Miami in order to serve the entire Miami-Ft. Lauderdale market. NBC indicates that WTVJ-TV operates on channel 6 at a transmitter site located south of Miami and that operation from this location is needed because of a co-channel station in Orlando. As a result, WTVJ-TV currently operates two translators, on channel 58 in Hallandale and channel 19 in Sunrise, in order to provide service to the Miami-Ft. Lauderdale metropolitan area. According to NBC, WTVJ-TV was assigned DTV channel 30 in Miami with a maximum ERP of 1000 kW, but because channel 30 is first adjacent to the NTSC channel in West Palm Beach, Florida it may not be able to be moved to a new location without causing interference. NBC states that, if such a move cannot be made, it intends to apply for allotment of a new DTV channel that will permit it to move the station's transmitter site to a location closer to Miami. NBC did not submit a separate supplemental filing.

We note that MSTV's ex parte filing, to which NBC was party, did not recommend any DTV allotment change with regard to WTVJ-TV. We have reviewed the situation, and we confirm that WTVJ-TV's DTV channel 30 allotment cannot be moved closer to the center of Miami without causing additional interference. We do note that channel 58, which is now used by NBC to provide NTSC translator service for WTVJ-TV, could be used to provide complete DTV coverage of the Miami-Ft. Lauderdale area at that location without impacting any other stations. In view of the fact that we have no specific request before us at this time, however, we are not making any changes in the channel 30 DTV allotment for WTVJ-TV.

WFOR forgot to flip the switch for "Family Law"

rodmanbra (aka w4guy) must have been busy watching himself on "Taxi Dreams" - he appeared in a cameo role as "Robert" the antagonistic poet.

I just started picking up a weak sporadic signal (no picture or sound) from DTV Channel 24 which is allocated to WLTV in Miami. According to this news release (http://www2.harris.com/harris/whats_new/harris-diamond-cd.html) they purchased a Harris transmitter in June of last year.

According to the July 31st article Plugging into HDTV in South Florida (http://tv.broward.com/tvbroward/digdocs/079469.htm) , WLTV-Univision 23: Representatives of the Spanish-language station -- which is owned by Univision, also the operator of WAMI-Channel 69 -- did not return calls seeking information. The two Univision (http://www.univision.com/esportal.shtml) stations are not required to begin digital programming until May 1, 2002.

To all fellow South Florida DTV fans, I'll be in Alaska and British Columbia for the next two weeks. Here's hoping WFOR-DT can achieve full power while I'm away and that other good things come your way while I'm gone. Ciao!

------------------
HiDefDave

I just spoke with an engineer at WTVJ in Miami. He indicated that the station is awaiting FCC approval and that there is no know timeframe or estimate. The company is paying for the lease of space at the antenna farm and he estimates 2 months until completion once the approval is secured. He went on to describe the issue of how the initial application was to go up on Channel 30 and then they requested Channel 31. Another station has objected to Channel 31 and this is what the FCC has to address. Apparently this issue has been ongoing with the FCC for more than 18 months already. He was uncertain whether the signal will be in 480i or 480p when not transmitting 1080i material.

It appears that WPLG has finally removed its logo from the black bar to the left of the 4:3 window.

Anyone know how consistently WFOR-DT is leaving upconverted SD material in 4:3? I haven't seen them stretching anything lately.

------------------
HiDefDave

Dave,

They've been doing it consistently since Monday, October 1.

Thanks, hardrock.

I queried their Chief Engineer via email whether they might reconsider their previous policy of stretching 4:3 to 16:9 at the request of a viewer who had sought a CBS-HD/dish network waiver from us here at WPEC. The viewer found the stretching sufficiently annoying that he sought a waiver to avoid it. I never received an email response to my question but I guess I got my answer!http://www.avsforum.com/ubb/smile.gif

------------------
HiDefDave

I guess some pencil pusher at WFOR figured that the since most people have 4:3 TV's that WFOR should cater to the masses.
The dolt doesn't realize that all 350 of us watching WFOR-DT have 16:9 sets.
Unless this is a temporary action for some reason I don't know about, it takes the cake for bonehead decision of the year.

------------------
Mark

Originally posted by mmburke:
I guess some pencil pusher at WFOR figured that the since most people have 4:3 TV's that WFOR should cater to the masses.
The dolt doesn't realize that all 350 of us watching WFOR-DT have 16:9 sets.
Unless this is a temporary action for some reason I don't know about, it takes the cake for bonehead decision of the year.


No, your comment is "boneheaded", as people with 4:3 sets will see a letterbox with black bars on either side. This move is one for 16:9 set owners who don't want to see distorted video with people shortened and fattened.



------------------
See how my home theater (home sports bar) went from:
Standard def: <A HREF="http://www.gumbas.com/house/current/party_photo1.jpg" TARGET=_blank>
http://www.gumbas.com/house/current/party_photo1.jpg</A>
to
High def: http://www.gumbas.com/pan/pan502.jpg

I cannot find it, but I remember a post, possibly by w4guy(?), from when WFOR-DT first went on the air. In it, all the good reasons for using the expand mode were given. What happened?

Those who object to short fat people can watch the 4:3 analog version via OTA, DirecTV local or cable.


------------------

Bill Brenner

I watch all my stuff stretched anyway. I figured wfor did a better job then my dtc-100. Put me down for stretch.

------------------
You are reading my signature.

Anyone know what's up at channel 10 (WPLG)? My signal strength is down more tahtn 20 points since yesterday. Are they doing some work, etc?

As of 10:30, channel 10 is back to 78.

Originally posted by fecund:
I watch all my stuff stretched anyway. I figured wfor did a better job then my dtc-100. Put me down for stretch.



See, it is possible for the end-user to shorten and fatten people at their location. However, it is very difficult
if not impossible for those who like quality video to re-grow and thin them. It doesn't make sense to do it at the source. If you don't care about quality video and your monitor or STB doesn't give you the option to stretch, you can buy a box that will (like a scaler?).

And those who like quality video don't want to watch the analog version, either.


------------------
See how my home theater (home sports bar) went from:
Standard def: <A HREF="http://www.gumbas.com/house/current/party_photo1.jpg" TARGET=_blank>
http://www.gumbas.com/house/current/party_photo1.jpg</A>
to
High def: http://www.gumbas.com/pan/pan502.jpg

Pardon a dumb question....


Is WFOR on DT or not? I can not get didly on my DTC-100. I get WPLG, when Peter Jennings was on about 9/11 we watched 9-1 all day. The picture was so much better than even our DIRECTV feed of 6 or 4. Lately however the 9-1 and 10-1 are spotty at best.

Is 7-1 on the air? Is it just our TREK 55 and our highrise location at work? We face due west right over Biscayne from Miami Beach.

Thanks
Frank

Hi Frank,

You should be able to get WFOR-DT by tuning 4-1 or 22-1. WSVN-DT is 7-1 or 8-1. Have you been able to tune WPBT-DT? They're on 2-1 or 18-1.

Generally if you tune the actual assigned channel of a DTV station for the first time, like 22-1 in WFOR-DT's case, your receiver will "remap" the channel to a mirror of the analog assignment...in WFOR-DT's case, 4-1. And WFOR-TV (analog) would be on 4-0.

Hope this helps.

------------------
HiDefDave

[This message has been edited by David McRoy (edited 10-06-2001).]

Frank,

WFOR DT has been on the air for a while now. We have had viewer reports from Miami Beach since our sign on date, May 1st.

Everything that Dave reported is right on. Try tuning into 22-01 first. That should cause your receiver to remap WFOR-DT to 4-01. WFOR-DT signal strength is similar to WPBT-DT with the edge going to WFOR in most locations.

Good luck
w4

W4GUY

THANK YOU and WFOR for no longer stretching the picture. I have a 16x9 Panasonic 34" HDTV and the stretched picture on non HDTV programming was driving me crazy. I watch your digital signal for all of your shows because it is clearer then my cable signal. I want 4x3 on 4x3 shows and 16x9 only on 16x9 shows.

Originally posted by mmburke:
wforguy:

What about your move to 4:3 SD presentation? Initially you gave, what I thought were, many good reasons for your widescreen presentation.
How many people do you think watch WFOR-DT on 4:3 sets?


Just to reiterate, Mark, their change makes things look much worse on 4:3 sets. The move was for people with 16:9 sets.
People with 4:3 sets will now see a 16:9 letterbox with a 4:3 inside of it.

Again, WFOR, thank you, from those of us with 16:9.


------------------
See how my home theater (home sports bar) went from:
Standard def: <A HREF="http://www.gumbas.com/house/current/party_photo1.jpg" TARGET=_blank>
http://www.gumbas.com/house/current/party_photo1.jpg</A>
to
High def: http://www.gumbas.com/pan/pan502.jpg

Mark,

Our thought is no matter what decision we make with the upconverted format, there will be a good case for doing it another way. The goal is to provide the best quality picture possible.

W4

Originally posted by w4guy:
Mark,

Our thought is no matter what decision we make with the upconverted format, there will be a good case for doing it another way. The goal is to provide the best quality picture possible.

W4

If picture quality is the goal, there is no argument that favors stretching. Clearly that molests the picture horribly.


------------------
See how my home theater (home sports bar) went from:
Standard def: <A HREF="http://www.gumbas.com/house/current/party_photo1.jpg" TARGET=_blank>
http://www.gumbas.com/house/current/party_photo1.jpg</A>
to
High def: http://www.gumbas.com/pan/pan502.jpg

wforguy:

What about your move to 4:3 SD presentation? Initially you gave, what I thought were, many good reasons for your widescreen presentation.
How many people do you think watch WFOR-DT on 4:3 sets?

------------------
Mark

Hello W4,

Back in May we had many discussions on the forum about stretch vs. none, and I think the viewer vote went with stretch and you implemented it.

Did something change to go to non-s?

The main reason I prefer it is that non-s in a 16:9 set could cause burn-in.
Your stretch HW did such a good job that it really became almost unnoticiable.

Anyway, maybe you want to take another vote of the viewers in So Florida?

tks

hooray for mentioning the burn-in problem..the gentleman who complained about the 'stretch' has a direct-view tube set, and from his standpoint (not suggesting he's selfish) it makes sense. However, the majority of HD owners have RP sets, and nothing besides the post-war-start news crawls or logos could possibly induce more phosphor burns than long-running 4x3 pictures. Ch. 10 (WPLG) refuses to adjust this as far as I know, but Ch. 4 (WFOR) was doing a wonderful job until caving-in to the vast minority of owners with at best a 34" screen. The picture and sound were superior. Ch 10, by the way, doesn't transmit center channel audio on non-HD programs; but now that most everything in prime time is HD, that is moot other than the news. Here's one vote to restore Ch. 4 non-HD programming to the prior format...

cheers..

gene inger www.ingerletter.com (http://www.ingerletter.com)

It is now Oct. and I don't see or hear anything about NBC ????????
Is there anyone at NBC hinting that any work is being done?

I believe WB is setting up for Dec.

George,

See this thread - South Fla NBC HD&gt;&gt;Where the hell are ya??? (http://www.avsforum.com/ubb/Forum20/HTML/005416.html)

I have a Plasma, and an expensive one at that! Do not stretch the picture again.

"Almost unnoticeable"??? Geez, have your prescription checked lately? Is everyone in your life short and fat like they used to look on WFOR?


------------------
See how my home theater (home sports bar) went from:
Standard def: <A HREF="http://www.gumbas.com/house/current/party_photo1.jpg" TARGET=_blank>
http://www.gumbas.com/house/current/party_photo1.jpg</A>
to
High def: http://www.gumbas.com/pan/pan502.jpg

" "Almost unnoticeable"??? Geez, have your prescription checked lately? Is everyone
in your life short and fat like they used to look on WFOR? "

No, perharps YOU ARE and are therefore sensitized to the issue.......
I think the WFOR method was a 10%V by 30%H, which was pretty benign.
anyway, here is the vote thread to figure out the target viewer's preference:
http://www.avsforum.com/ubb/Forum20/HTML/005558.html

(note: all e-beam display equipment is subject to burn-in, same for OLED systems, plasma and LCD is supposedly not)

Plasma IS subject to burn-in.

The best solution is to reduce contrast to a level that's correct for accurate display (which will be MUCH lower than the default setting) and to request that the stations transmit gray side panels. These two steps will make burn-in a non-issue. For those who have a serious aversion to gray panels, may I suggest either therapy or black poster paper and VelCro to cover them up while watching 4:3 material.

And thank you very much for establishing the "vote" thread!http://www.avsforum.com/ubb/smile.gif

------------------
HiDefDave

[This message has been edited by David McRoy (edited 10-11-2001).]

Let us try to keep this thread with HDTV Live Schedule.
I believe this was the best thread for the So. Fla. area.
Amazing how much OTA HD is available now vs 6 months ago.

Still waiting on :
NBC to get this FCC snag, so they can START to schedule an antenna installation.
WB to start testing before the end of the year.

Any news on PAX ?
They seem to becoming up with new shows, but will they be in HD ?

WFOR DT will be off the air some time after midnight tonight for the purpose of engineering test. This will allow WFOR engineers to tune the DTV antenna and associated transmission line.

We expect everything to proceeded with out any complications. The expectation is to be back on the air by Monday morning "drive time"

Best regards,

w4

It's fine on my RCA DTC100 but the time over which I have gotten NO audio from WSVN-DT on my Zenith tuner is measurable in weeks. Is anyone else having problems with them?:confused:

hi Dave..

no problem with WSVN audio on either of my HD 100's, or the internal ATSC tuner in a new sony XBR. Only audio problem is the continuing lack of a center channel on WPLG (ABC) other than when they do HD shows...but that's the station's approach I guess. Too bad FOX really sends nothing out in true HD..

cheers..

gene inger
www.ingerletter.com

Changing al little, what antennas are you guys using?
I got the GS -2000 but it will not get here until Monday :(
Will this one work good here it was the recomendation of titan.

WBZL-DT - Channel 19 - WB39 (http://www.wb39.com/index.html)
OTA Debut: December 1, 2001
See WB39 WBZL | Station info | FAQ's | Reception (http://www.wb39.com/about/station/faq/eng.html) (bottom of page)
Phone: (954) 925-3939
Email: wbzl@tribune.com

WHDT-DT - Channel 59 - MIG (http://www.whdt.net/index.html)
OTA Debut: God knows!
Phone: (561) 471-9200
Email: info@whdt.net

WFLX-DT - Channel 28 - FOX (http://www.wflxfox29.com/)
OTA Debut: Winter or early Spring per Butch Figurella - 10/08/01
January 15, 2002 per TitanTV
Rumored intention to broadcast 480p - a welcome improvement over WSVN's 480i.
Phone: (561) 845-2929
Email: rsanluis@raycommedia.com
Email: bfigurella@raycommedia.com

WTVJ-DT - Channel 31 - NBC (http://www.wtvj.com/)
South Fla NBC HD>>Where the hell are ya??? (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=43685&highlight=wtvj)
Phone: (305) 379-6666
Email: WTVJ Feedback Form (http://128.11.160.79/cgi-bin/gx.cgi/AppLogic+FTContentServer?pagename=FutureTense/Apps/Xcelerate/Render&c=NBCArticle&cid=NBCQDEYA2FC&preview=true)

Anybody notice any changes with WFOR-DT???

Bob

Change as of when? Last night I was getting stable signals with a BER meter reading around 92. Any changes to facilities since last night? I'll be at home at around 1 p. m. today and can check things out.

Hi, Bob

As of last night WFOR's signal was strong enough to light up all the bars on the SIR-T150's signal strength meter, but I haven't noticed any other changes.

Originally posted by David McRoy
Change as of when? Last night I was getting stable signals with a BER meter reading around 92. Any changes to facilities since last night? I'll be at home at around 1 p. m. today and can check things out.

Like in the last 2 days.

We are now up at full power 1,000,000 watts ERP

Originally posted by BobRoss


Like in the last 2 days.

We are now up at full power 1,000,000 watts ERP

Great job...thanks to all involved!

Rudy

Weird that I haven't seen a change in Lake Worth. I guess a big he-man antenna and a 26 dB amplifier go a long way at 48 nautical miles distance. I'll bypass the preamp and see what I get.
Congratulations, guys!:D

Hi all..especially Bob...and thanks for the continuity of your posts re: HD in these tough times...

WFOR coming in fine here; at about 98-100 readings (best ever) on Sony HD100 boxes... was always superior to all somewhat; with a near tie for signal strength with the local PBS affiliate. Now only if CBS had more DD 5.1 audio:-}.

As an old TV hand (GM, and had the first translator on the WTC before Ch. 2) I appreciate your efforts and understand what it must be like for you (my old station, 68, is on the ESB these days, along with yours). For those of us using RP sets, it sure would be helpful if your HD programming was as prior to last month; full screen in 1080i mode, when not telecasting HD...helps the old phosphor burn problem, which is more important that loosing a bit of material, versus the non-moveable black bars, given the excellent proportions you transmitted for the non-HD material. In any event, kudo's for the lead in HD, and best wishes.

gene inger
www.ingerletter.com

bob...should have posted that the 98-100 steady (no artifacts) signal is from Fort Lauderdale, on the intracoastal near Las Olas, which is probably 12 miles or so (estimated) from your tower. Sorry not to have included that info., which tells you that I'm still in a 'grade A' pattern presuambly; peanut shaped radius or not. As I presume you hoisted the digital antenna to the top (so as to avoid additional crane trips), the pattern is likely more oval too.

cheers...

gene inger
www.ingerletter.com

We are all concerned with the phosphor burn issue but I have suggested that a better alternative to transmitting 4:3 programming in a stretched mode would be to insert gray side panels to prevent burn, leaving the original 4:3 aspect ratio intact. Many of us object strongly to the stretched picture. Many STBs and displays can insert gray side panels when not receiving 720p and 1080i, but they lock into 16:9 mode and are unable to insert any panels when reciving HD formats. One exception is the dish 6000 STB which can do so even then. But for those of us with receivers that lock into 16:9 with no way of inserting gray side panels it would be helpful for stations to transmit them with 4:3 material. We even held a "vote" on this issue in this thread: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=43876

Well put, Dave. I just want to add: "Excellent proportions"????
Are you kidding me?

gene inger wisely stated, in part:

"For those of us using RP sets, it sure would be helpful if your HD programming was as prior to last month; full screen in 1080i mode, when not telecasting HD...helps the old phosphor burn problem, which is more important that (sic) loosing (sic) a bit of material, versus the non-moveable black bars, given the excellent proportions you transmitted for the non-HD material."

Amen!

WFOr forgot to flip the switch for JAG tonight.

It is now in November.
Is there any new news on NBC (trying to get FCC approval) or UPN status's?
I assume FOX is going to continue to do nothing except SD in wide screen.

It looks like we are getting WB on Dec 1/01 per an e-mail I received from a T. Engineer, They will start the test on 12/1 and go full as schedule for May- Let's hope.. :)

:)

I'm picking up a signal on my Dish 6000 receiver on Channels 99-01, 99-02, 99-03, 99-04, 99-05, 99-06, 99-07, 99-08, 99-09, 99-10, 99-11, 99-12, 99-13 and 99-14.

No picture or sound but the signal is very strong.
Can anyone else duplicate this?

Originally posted by hardrock
I'm picking up a signal on my Dish 6000 receiver on Channels 99-01, 99-02, 99-03, 99-04, 99-05, 99-06, 99-07, 99-08, 99-09, 99-10, 99-11, 99-12, 99-13 and 99-14.

No picture or sound but the signal is very strong.
Can anyone else duplicate this?


I just did a search on all the channesl and only get signal on the 4 channels we have, What were you using to find the signal ? channel 1-2-3 Etc, Maybe the receivers are different in the installation part I have the dst 3000.

My program schedule lost my HBO.
So I did a soft reset and had no local schedules.
Then I added the zip code and got it plus 4-1 !

It seems they must have updated the schedule and it now works with zip codes in South Florida !!!!!!!!

Lost 2-2 but gained 2-3 ????

Can't do cable (tele-media)

George do you have PBS on 2-2 ?, I have always had PBS on 2-3 & 2-1 for some reasons.
4-1 is CBS for me...

Disappointing news about NBC here in South Florida. Apparently the situation is still tied up in court as PAX and the local NBC station are pressing for the same channel. NBC is confident that they will win this, but have indicated to me only moments ago that even after the court ruling is final, we will not see an HD station for another year after the ruling.

As a further indication of how far behind they are, they do not yet know locally whether they will be broadcasting in 720P or 1080i! I think we know it will eventually be in 1080i, but the local engineering group is still awaiting confirmation. Furthermore, The antenna budget has yet to be approved.

Very disapponting.

Wooooooooo
That is not good, who gave you that info in NBC ?

I used to get PBS on 2-2 until I did a soft boot.
I also sometimes got 2-1,2-2,2-3.
Now after a scan, I only get 2-1 and 2-3.
I believe they are always changing.
It depends on what is transmitting when scanned.

I don't know if you can add a digital channel without scanning.
You can add a channel number one by one by clicking on it (remote style) and it will test that channel, but ***** Just thought of something, I guess you can retest channel 17 to see if other digital channels will come in ????

I also believe that NBC is doing a half ass commitment. Just like FOX with the SD wide screen. They just do enough until they see numbers that will give them good ROI.
Believe me if they saw large returns, the antenna would be up in a month and on the air in a few.

What they need is a Neilson rating on HD.
THis attached to advertising dollars is what makes the stations determine HD involvement.

At present, CBS is the God of HDTV.

Still waiting for WB.

George33027 reported:
"It seems they must have updated the schedule and it now works with zip codes in South Florida !!!!!!!!"

Yes. Early last week, I risked inserting the zip code into my replacement receiver for the first time. And there was the local channel program information.

Actually, I do not much use the HD-5 guide, preferring the one on the adjoining DirecTiVo, which I use for viewing non-HD programming. What a wonderful, useful toy it is. And a bargain at that. Circuit City is selling them in-store and on line (search TiVo) for $99.99. with no strings and with availability to current DirecTv subscribers. It is also available from http://www.orbitsat.com The two brands are identical except for the case color; the Phillips (CC) being black and the Hughes (orbitsat) silver.

Just a second note:
Working on getting a DVD before a TIVO.

But, I tried to add local cable which is Telemedia.
The unit downloads the schedule till about 1/2 done, then goes into a reset and starts all over.
It loops like that forever.

So I have to go in and delete cable to get it back.

Also when I scan the cable (with an antenna also attached to the other sat port via a diplexor) I only get a few stations.
Then when I go in manually, I can add them one at a time.

Anyone else with the same problem with the Mits HD5 ?
(of course in the same area)

I took the dive into HDTV today when I picked up a SATHD100. I'll be setting it up tonight and hopefully will not have too many problems especially during the pointing of the dish. Is there any thinigs I should be aware of in order to make my install easy?

Ok I'm hooked up. But I'm getting only channels 2.3 and 2.4 ota. I thought I would be also getting channels 9 and 22 since I did get a antenna signal of 89. Instead the receiver displays the channel number and angl with a blue screen.

What did i do wrong?

You should be getting the following if you're close enough to the transmitters in Miami:

WPBT-DT (PBS) channel 18-1 or 18-3, remapped by your receiver to channel 2-1 or 2-3

WFOR-DT (CBS) channel 22-1, remapped to 4-1

WSVN-DT (Fox) channel 8-1, remapped to 7-1

WPLG-DT (ABC) channel 9-1, remapped to 10-1

Additionally, hardrock has reported receiving occasional test transmissions from WBZL-DT (WB) channel 19-1, remapped to 39-1.

Note that you may find that you receive no audio or intermittent, unusable audio from WSVN-DT. (They don't seem to care about the problem.)

You may also find that WSVN-DT and WPLG-DT signals will have occasional to frequent drop-outs, with freezing pictures and garbled sound from time to time. I'm not sure why this is except to note that they share the same tower location and are both on VHF assignments, which might make them more suceptible to some kinds of interference than WPBT-DT and WFOR-DT, which are on UHF channels. Also, they are not yet operating at the maximum power allocated to them by the FCC, whreas WPBT-DT and WFOR-DT ae at full power.

It is ordinarily necessary to go into the receiver's menu and make it do a DTV channel search to get all the stations locked-in. The receiver will tune in all the stations one at a time and add them to a list, usually "remapping" them to the remapped channel listed above.

Thanks David for this info. I will check it out tonight. How can i get more info about the remapping.
I was not able to get HBO 509 and HD199 from Directv even after speding an hour on the phone. They kept on telling me that I was or should be receiving it but all I kept getting was the message: Program not available in your area. Please check program guide for alternate programming when viewing DTV HD.

This of course was very disappointing. My signal strength were alteast 90.

I found adjusting the oval dish that's needed to receive DirecTV's standard-definition and high-definition channels simultaneously, via two different satellites, to be quite difficult the first time I tried it.

It's necessary that the arm that supports the dish be absolutely plumb in every direction for the elevation, azimuth and tilt numbers that the STB gives you for your particular zip code location to be accurate. Even then some minor fine adjustment may be required.

The goal is to get the signal strength on both the 101-degree satellite and the 119-degree satellite as high as possible. But there will be a tradeoff for signal strength from one bird to the other. Are you getting signal strength in the 90s for BOTH satellites? (The one at 119-degrees carries the HDTV channels.)

Regarding DTV channel remapping, not all STBs do this in exactly the same way. I'm not familiar with how your STB does it. I have an RCA DTC100 and a Zenith ATSC tuner which work slightly differently from each other. Generally what happens is that once you have successfully tuned a DTV station via a channel search of all the stations in your area, the STB will assign a new number for the analog and digital versions of a particular station. For example the STB will initially receive WFOR-TV (analog) as "4" and WFOR-DT (digital) as "22-1" since WFOR-DT actually transmits over channel 22. But for your convenience the STB will then "remap" WFOR-TV (analog) as "4-0" and it will "remap" WFOR-DT (digital) as "4-1." That way you can distinguish between the two signals from he same station by their channel numbers, 4-0 for analog vs. 4-1 for digital.

Some DTV stations, like WPBT-DT will sometimes transmit multiple program streams. These may be identified as , for example in WPBT-DT's case, 2-1, 2-2, 2-3, 2-4, etc. But "2-0" will always be the plain 'ole analog NTSC signal.

Some STBs will call the channels things like "2-01" or "02-01" instead.

I should have also mentioned, in case you were unaware, that you'll need a VHF/UHF antenna...not just UHF...to receive WSVN-DT and WPLG-DT since they are VHF assgnments. When WPEC-DT (CBS) West Palm Bach signs-on next Spring it will be on VHF, too, on channel 13. All other South Florida DTV assignments are UHF.

Originally posted by 3ems
Thanks David for this info. I will check it out tonight. How can i get more info about the remapping.
I was not able to get HBO 509 and HD199 from Directv even after speding an hour on the phone. They kept on telling me that I was or should be receiving it but all I kept getting was the message: Program not available in your area. Please check program guide for alternate programming when viewing DTV HD.

This of course was very disappointing. My signal strength were alteast 90.

I really would doubt that your are getting 90's on the 119 Tbird, That has to be the 101, The highest you ill get that 119 were the Digital Channels are will not be 90 for sure.
See the explanation from Dave he is very clear on it.

Thanks guys for the additional explaination. I will take another go at it tonight. I was on my roof with a flashlight at 10pm lastnight checking the dish. With your help I'm begininig to understand this alot better. I'm going from Err :confused: to OK :cool: very quiclky.:D

Does anyone within the Palm Beach area have the Sony SATHD100? Since I purchased this STB as an open box from CC I hope that the prolblem is not with the box.

Another note b4 you get on top of your house, leave the satellite signal on the TV for the 119 Satellite and tilt the dish until you find a signal, try to play with the tilt first because you already have the 101 locked, remember you need to get them both together..
Good luck it took me 45 minutes do get them both, and the highest signal on 119 is 60 & 101 96, see the difference.
Let us know..

jluzbet opined:
"I really would doubt that your are getting 90's on the 119 Tbird, That has to be the 101, The highest you ill get that 119 were the Digital Channels are will not be 90 for sure." (sic)

My readings range from 90 to 95 on six of the 119° tansponders. The others are in the upper 80's. This is with two 18" dishes.

Originally posted by wjbjr
jluzbet opined:
"I really would doubt that your are getting 90's on the 119 Tbird, That has to be the 101, The highest you ill get that 119 were the Digital Channels are will not be 90 for sure." (sic)

My readings range from 90 to 95 on six of the 119° tansponders. The others are in the upper 80's. This is with two 18" dishes.

I am assuming that he is using a oval dish not 2 round one's

Does anyone else have an Mits HD5 and Telemedia cable ???

I always take the receiver, a small TV set, two RG6 cables and a plugged-in power extension cord with at least two outlets up on the roof with me when adjusting a dish. You can view the signal strength meter from the STB via its F-connector RF output on the TV set without having to consult with someone in the house as to what effect your dish adjustment is having.

Temporarily disconnect the coax from the output of the multiswitch and connect one of the two cables you brought up with you to the multiswitch output and the other end to the STB. Then connect the other cable to the RF output (ch. 3 or 4) of the STB. Plug that into the antenna input of the TV set. In our market, which has a channel 4 TV assignment, set the RF channel switch on the STB to "3" and tune channel 3 on the TV set.

In direct sunlight, bring a big umbrella to keep the receiver and the TV set from overheating and to make it easier to view the screen.

David;
What I do is bought a long cable and added F connectors to it.
Then with a 5 inch portable light weight TV (B&W) I did the same as you. As long as the setup is set, you can then do the same.
Portable is battery powered so it is easy.

3ems:

I have an HD100 and am located in Lake Worth ... I get a signal strength of 92-96 on the one bird and 60s-70s on the other bird (with oval dish).

One thing you may want to look at is the length of your cable runs ... when I first installed I was at the 120 ft mark and I couldn't get anything from the second bird unless I ran a straight cable (bypassing the multiswitch). One way to check this is to tune your IRD to channel 376(NASA) ... if you get NASA then all is well, but if you get something that looks like PBS kids ... then your cable run is too long and the 22 khz tone isn't getting through to the Multiswitch.

For aligning my dish ... I use a satellite signal meter ... they are a little pricey ... but since I take my unit with me in the RV twice a month ... the speed of setup makes it well worth the price for me.

AgilScot

Thanks for all your inputs. Well I'm finally up and running. I got a radio shack attic antenna (out in the back yard on a broom stick):) and can now pickup channels 2.3,4.1,7.1 and 10.1. I'm also listing 98. but no picture. What station is this anyway? Maybe this weekend I'll move the antenna to the attic.

Just wondering if anyone has added a satellite amp. to there unit?
Then depending on distance, how was the performance ?

As with any other amp problem, does it improve or attenuate?

Don't know if overload is a problem with the LNB to the receiver.

Question is has anyone tried this here in So. FL ?
With cable lenghts less than 100 ft?

Don't know where the overload signal strength is, using a RS Sat. amp. ?

I actually bought a dish amp when I installed my original round dish 5 years ago thinking that it would improve my rainfade situation, which it didn't. I was later told by a DirecTV rep that the inline amp is only for overcoming coax loss on cables exceeding 100 ft. My run's only 50 ft.

I am new to this forum, and have found it very helpful. I seem to be loosing lip-sync on WSVN-DT. If I change channels, and comeback to WSVN, it's ok. After a minute or so it goes out of sync. I have noticed that a few times the program on has stayed sync, but when commercials come, it goes out. I am using a Sony SAT-HD100 receiver. I get 97% signals on WPBT, WFOR, and 86% signals on WSVN and WPLG. Is it my receiver or something they are doing wrong at their end? Hope to keep in touch in this great forum.

Dave;
Thanks, but I suppose the amp did nothing, or did DirecTV tell you.

If you set up install on the receiver, and get a avg. transponder signal value, then add the amp. what is the value ????
Did it go down, stay the same, or improve.

Yes, I know that the amp is for cable loss, but an amp is an amp.
And, it needs a certain signal level at the input, and will produce an output signal. If the signal is within the ??? input parameters, it will amplifiy to give you a better signal. But if it is too large, it will do nothing, or can over load and attenuate.

So, was it a did nothing or what ???
Because when cloudy, the signal goes down, and just maybe the amp will bring it up to good levels.

And , yes, if the signal goes to almost zero in rain, Nothing will help.

W2JD,

I get BER numbers similar to yours (slightly lower up here in Lake Worth.) WSVN-DT has has audio problems from Day 1. Usually it's stuttering and dropouts more than floating lip-synce on an RCA DTC100...and no audio at all on Zenith tuners. They don't seem particularly concerned about it.

George,

I didn't see any change to my sat signals with or without the amp on a clear day. I should re-install it during a heavy rainstorm and look for an improvement then.

Has anyone called our friendly WB affiliate to see what's going on? Or did I miss a post about this?

David;
Good idea. The good news is that there is no signal overload so it does not attenuate the signal.
I bought a manual switch to switch between 2 cables. Then I made 3 small RG6 cables (12-18") and put an amp on one. Then you can switch at different times to see how it will work over time. When you start to see a lot of breakups, then switch and see how it improves.

Remember each amp has certain characteristics, and one is the output levels. This will not change. But, if the input signal is the same, you see no difference, and if the input signal goes down, then the amp "should" amplify back to the same output levels. This is probably why you don't see any higher numbers. So the test is if the signals go down, does the amp bring it back for you to get less to no drop outs.

The great news is that you don't have overload, which attenuates the signal.

Just a side note:
Digital signals are a digital representation of the audio analog wave and a pixel representation of the picture. So if you get drop outs (low signals, or multipath) the picture will not update properly and you will see the last picture or parts of it until an update is received. But in audio, the sound wave may be missing components, but you can still hear some of the audio, maybe not in its full fidelity. This is why you can hear audio while the pix is frozen on your screen.
You will hear greater losses if you are in stereo, or surround sound. This is why compression looses some of the fidelity to both audio and pix.

As Hardrock stated a while ago, you can get the same bad results from missing signals as well as multipath.
Multipath corrupts signals, which is almost the same as missing signals.

Receiving WB picture only , NO SOUND
on 39-1 and 19-1.
Ch39 remapped.
pix in 4:3, no sound.

Where is there antenna ?

Now receiveing WB in SD.

Now, does anyone know any new news on NBC ??????

Did they every get the FCC to okay the channel change ?

I know they sometimes transmit in HD, but not down here, yet.

I can't get ABC nor WSVN-DT digital in Coconut Grove with a Zenith Receiver.

Is it transmitting tonight?

I still should get a lock into this VHF signals, right?


Must be all the trees around.

Originally posted by CINERAMAX
I can't get ABC nor WSVN-DT digital in Coconut Grove with a Zenith Receiver.

Is it transmitting tonight?

I still should get a lock into this VHF signals, right?


Must be all the trees around.

The 5 channels are Ok here ...;)

OK here.

Last night whenever I tuned from WFOR-DT to WPBT-DT or WSVN-DT by just using the "channel up/down" buttons on my Zenith the receiver would lock-up, requiring a "reboot".

This has happened in the past...weird PSIP from WFOR-DT, maybe? The only way around it is to tune with the channel number buttons instead of the channel up/down buttons.

Happy new year every one... well I have been getting WB too without problems most nights I look for it!

Any update on NBC ? What about Channel 5 in West Palm, any news on when they might start HDTV transmission ?

Gireesh

No news on either, AFAIK.

HiDefDave

I see you are in Lake Worth. I am visiting my parents in Lake Worth and thought about getting them the Over the air module for the 6000 and an antenna. They wouldn't go for an antenna on the roof but a simple indoor antenna is doable. Do you think we can get any of the Digital channels using only a simple indoor antenna?

Thanx :)

Getting Miami DTV in Lake Worth requires a big outdoor OTA antenna. But when the West Palm Beach DTVs start to sign-on beginning in May an indoor antenna will probably work fine for them.

Thanx Dave

You saved me a lot of time I would have wasted checking this out for myself.

Ya really think the West Palm stations are gonna be on in MAy? I SURE HOPE SO! Im in St Lucie and can get nothing OTA.

I think you'll see the DTV rollout BEGIN in May in WPB. There are likely to be delays for some stations.

Well, today is January 15, 2002! Any news on the West Palm Beach FOX station going live ?

What? You actually expected them to go live today as scheduled?

I spoke with the WFLX engineering dept. today, and they say sometime in February, for the digital channel.

I also got through to John Bok, chief engineer from WSVN. He's really a reasonable guy. He would have liked it if Fox would send HDTV as opposed to 480p. Unfortunately, since they won't, he's got the dilemma of trying to figure out what they will do. His thinking is that they will upconvert 480p to 720p for transmission on WSVN-DT. He is waiting for budget approval for that, and then it will happen. It will definitely not be in time for the Super Bowl. But I would bet that by next fall TV season we will have 480p from Fox in Miami.

Welcome to South Florida...Where the Third World Begins.:rolleyes: (sigh)

I got a call back today from one of the engineers at channel 5 and he says they are still about 6 months out. I also spoke to an engineer at channel 25 yesturday and he says he is shooting for april doing 720P. Hope this might help you guys.. I'm trying to pull a signal from Miami now, my receiver gets in today and I get the analog stations pretty good, but I may end up needing a preamp. Can anybody give some suggestions, I am in Boynton Beach.

-Zer0

Originally posted by David McRoy
Welcome to South Florida...Where the Third World Begins.:rolleyes: (sigh)


Dave,
Its not that bad :)..
Look at West Palm .....

Click on my Profile above left of this post, then read "Your HT Gear" for info on my antenna here in Lake Worth.

FYI, here at WPEC our DTV transmitter is on-site and awaits installation. We have requested April and await a reply from the manufacturer, Harris. Our goal is to be up by May 1. I'm glad to see WFLX, WPBF and WPTV moving ahead, as well!

I continue to look for any signs of activity on "Gunther's Roof" and still see nothing other than the new aviation obstruction marker strobe that replaced the old marker mast atop the Deutche Welle/ WHDT Building in West Palm Beach several months back. You can see the old marker tower here:

www.whdt.net

WHDT-DT's profile at www.fcc.gov (go to "Site Map" then "Station Query - TV" under "Search Tools"; go down to "WHDT-DT, Stuart, FL") shows that their antenna is going to be mounted atop this building. I'll keep you posted if I see anything.

Does anyone know why WB is still broadcasting what little letterboxed programming they air inside a 16:9 frame instead of blowing it up to fill the screen? Granted it's all still upconverted NTSC, but the black frames on all four sides eat up a lot of screen real estate.

WBZL-DT transmits a standard-definition source signal that they upconvert to 720p for air. Most, though not all, ATSC receivers cannot stretch or zoom when receiving a 720p or 1080i signal. If you're getting black framing all around they must be in a letterbox show at the time.

Thanks, Dave. I believe if I configure my Samsung receiver for a 4:3 TV I should be able to zoom the letterboxed image to fill the screen on my 16x9 TV. I'm surprised to learn though that WBZL-DT is transmitting in 720p. Their upconverted images don't seem nearly as crisp and vivid as those from WPLG-DT.

After all the readings it seems nothing changed except for DT WB.

Has anyone got any responses from NBC ????

The last was hardrock saying that NBC still is waiting on FCC approval for a channel change 30 to 31 ???? I think ??

This must be the best stall tactic they have.

Just wondering, because it looks like NBC will have the Olympics and they may get HD. What a great way to test NBC.

Yeah, maybe for the summer Olympics, in 2004. Actually, it seems that the FCC stuff is finished, so it should be approximately 1 year until they are testing.

¿Donde está el señor Hardrock?

El Hardrock el disappearo a la coincidenco par a Rodmanbrero.

What's up with the bright green bar at the top of the screen on WBZL tonight? It appears on both my SIR-T150's, and I just hooked up my RCA DTC100 and it's showing up there as well!

Is DTV/HDTV EVER going to be ready for primetime?:confused:

Hi Guys...
Been lurking awhile and recently went with a Sony KP-57W40. I ordered a Samsung SIR-T150 form Vann's and should have it soon.
From what I have been reading, I would need a BIG antenna to obtain a decent signal from Miami. I'm also located in Lake Worth and know the WPB stations are gearing up for possible May startup.
I really don't wish to place a giant antenna on my roof for aesthetic reasons and the fact that WPB will be up soon. Once the WPB stations are live, I would take the antenna down anyway. I also might have a problem with the Home Owners Assn. although I know the law permits me to have one.
I'm thinking about just getting a long range UHF only antenna (ie RS 15-2160) as a compromise. I realize that I'll miss ABC and FOX with this approach. Since CBS seems to have the most content anyway, is this the best way to go?
Honestly, there is very little I would watch on some of these channels...but I need new toys!
Any suggestions? comments?

Thanks!

WPEC-DT (CBS) West Palm Beach will be on VHF channel 13.

Check out this thread:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=108284&highlight=West+Palm+Beach+DTV

CBS on 13......
What are my options? An indoor antenna should be all that's required for any of the WPB stations.. From previous posts I have determined that I live extremity close to the Lantana Antenna farm (Jog and Hypoluxo)...
So; A long range UHF (of course pointed in the wrong direction for WPB) and an indoor VHF?
I have a 2 story house.. would an attic antenna like the RS VR90 XR do the job?

N.B. Your posts have been very informative and because of your LW location, very relevant.

Thanks

Jeff

WingFat:
In Lake Worth you can use a Winegard PR-8800 for UHF and an Antennacraft ch. 7-13 yagi for WSVN and WPLG (DT ch.8 & 9). Combine them with a RS VHF-UHF combiner and you are in business. You can obtain the antennas from www.starkelectronic.com. I use that same setup in Boca, and works very well, 97% signals. This setup is also smalle than a full size VHF/UHF antenna.

W2JD

Wingfat,

An attic-mounted antenna will probably work fine for you, at least on WPB stations.

Thanks to W2JD for reminding me about an earlier heads-up from him on the Antennacraft 7-13 VHF rig. It'll be just the ticket once I don't need Channel 5 NTSC fo NBC anymore.

Why did WPBT not air this in SD widescreen last night?

I watched the first hour in SD widescreen. Don't know what happened after that.

Got the antenna installers over right now... I'm getting a Winegard HD9095 which will be mounted over my roof- 2 stories up. The mounting pole is huge!- and it telescopes... Why are they digging a hole in the lawn?.....oh my!


Will report back after installation is finished..

Originally posted by Rudy1
I watched the first hour in SD widescreen. Don't know what happened after that.

Hmmm...I had channel 2-3 which had letterboxed, and channel 2-100, which had nothing. Where was the SD widescreen?

Ok...

Installation is complete...
Dansco Services of Lake Worth installed a Winegard HD9095 with Winegard amp (19 DB gain). Its mounted on a 35 foot mast anchored in the ground. This thing goes up the back of my house, mounted about 3 feet above my deeply slanting roof.

Reception of OTA analog signals ie Ch 39 is better than cable. (Adelphia of course) Actually as good as satellite.

My Samsung is still enroute from Vanns so I can't really play yet.

I'm assuming that if I receive a low power station like ch59 nicely, I will have no problem with the digital stations?

Jeff

Originally posted by aviators99


Hmmm...I had channel 2-3 which had letterboxed, and channel 2-100, which had nothing. Where was the SD widescreen?

I don't really know. The INFO banner came up as Channel 2-3 (and 16:9, not Letterbox) when I first turned it on. But I was using my old DTC100, so that may be the reason why I didn't realize it was letterboxed. I haven't used that unit in several months, so it's possible that I made a mistake.

WSVN-Fox will transmit 480p the superbowl in our area ? Last I heard they were trying hard but nothing confirmed yet...

Originally posted by jluzbet
WSVN-Fox will transmit 480p the superbowl in our area ? Last I heard they were trying hard but nothing confirmed yet...

It was since confirmed (in this thread even) that the answer is
no.

Is there something wrong with my equipment or is American Family not on WPBT-DT?

Originally posted by aviators99
Is there something wrong with my equipment or is American Family not on WPBT-DT?

I was only able to catch a few minutes of this, but it was on tonight on WPBT-DT (in DD 2.0). There was a short documentary on following that, then a musical review (in DD 5.1) afterwards. I was busy doing something else so I didn't actually watch the programs, but I did check the HD tuners and the AV receivers for the transmission info.

I still can't receive WPBT 2-1 on my Sony SAT-HD100! I scanned for this channel last night during the HighDef programs and it couldn't find it. This was working about a month ago but ever since I started receiving WBZL I can only receive 2-3. This channel however just shows a blank screen during HighDef broadcasts. I am getting signal strength of over 90.

What could be causing this problem? Do I need some kind of filter on my antenna or something? Is anyone else in So Fla able to receive WPBT 2-1 HighDef broadcasts on their HD100? Thanks in advance.

Will

Originally posted by holtwm
I still can't receive WPBT 2-1 on my Sony SAT-HD100! I scanned for this channel last night during the HighDef programs and it couldn't find it. This was working about a month ago but ever since I started receiving WBZL I can only receive 2-3. This channel however just shows a blank screen during HighDef broadcasts. I am getting signal strength of over 90.

What could be causing this problem? Do I need some kind of filter on my antenna or something? Is anyone else in So Fla able to receive WPBT 2-1 HighDef broadcasts on their HD100? Thanks in advance.

Will

I was not receiving it last night either, on my DTC-100. Apparently others were.

Still not receiving it tonight with DTC-100 and good signal strength. Neither is Propeller....

probably the problem is that anyone re-scanning an HD100 to get all the digital channels, will not get 2.1 unless you scan while an HDTV (rather than 2.3 digital, but not HD) program is on. Surely this is tough unless you check the schedule, or call them to find out when the national feed loop is being carried, or there is a show (such as earlier tonight) in HD. I know it's confusing, both because the HD100 (unlike the integrated sony tuner sets) will only rescan, and can lose a previously scanned channel if not on, and as WPBT is the only local station doing anything approaching multincasting...ie: 2.0, 2.1, 2.3 as they determine...sometimes it's awhile between HD programs, and they have announced some delay in carrying all the national programs...surprised there has not been more complaining about this, as they were doing an awfully lot at the outset. Good luck!

gene
www.ingerletter.com

I am up in Melbourne 180+ miles north and right now I have a rat shack bow tie pointed south with a 20 db amp and have got a steady 45 on WBZL DT 19 using a DTC 100. Great Prop tonight!

I read somewhere that Fox will transmit 480P wide screen superbowl.

Are you sure south florida will not get the same?

Yes, I'm sure. That's why I went and bought the Expressvu equipment and hooked it up yesterday. You are welcome to come to my superbowl party, since you live down the road.

I just got done rescanning, and now pick up 2-1 (but it looks like an analog feed....fuzzy and scrolling scan lines?!?!) 2-3 and 2-100. Both 2-3 and 2-100 have some sort of demo loop running...

FYI - I live about 5 miles from the broadcast tower..

How are you sure Fox wil broadcast it in 480p in South Florida? Did someone call and ask? I would not put it past wsvn to be hairbrained and not broadcast0 the feed.

In addition have they ever broadcast anything other than 480i before to give us at least a hint that they know what they are doing? I would hate to tell my friends to come over for the game just to have egg on my face when all I see on my projector is crappy ntsc.

Yes I called. I spoke with the chief engineer and others. It will definitely not be broadcast in 480p. I've never heard anyone suggest otherwise.

Got my Samsung SIR-T150 today...

I'm speechless...

Just a few programming/Channel questions....

I'm getting a HD loop on PBS while titian.com lists other programming?

WFOR-DT is fine and reprogrammed to channel 4-1

Can't get 19-WBZL-DT... is there a trick to this?

This picture is so fine that I could sit and watch grass grow...

Jeff

Originally posted by WingFat
Got my Samsung SIR-T150 today...


Can't get 19-WBZL-DT... is there a trick to this?


Jeff

WBZL - Is only on air from 5:00-12:00 AM :D :D

Thank for the info on the start time for WBZL-DT...

I have another newbie question...

Tonight I'm watching the HD programs on CBS and while they look good, they do not approach the sample programming on PBS this afternoon. I though both are being transmitted at 1080i.

Why did the PBS programming seem better?

Thanks

Jeff

Anyone interested in coming over to watch the Super Bowl in EDTV via Expressvu on a 50" plasma, send me a PM, so I can gauge interest.

Ron

Originally posted by WingFat
Thank for the info on the start time for WBZL-DT...

I have another newbie question...

Tonight I'm watching the HD programs on CBS and while they look good, they do not approach the sample programming on PBS this afternoon. I though both are being transmitted at 1080i.

Why did the PBS programming seem better?

Thanks

Jeff

You're seeing the difference between film (CBS primetime dramas and sitcoms) and electronic video (PBS demo loop). If you have a chance, see "The Young & the Restless", a CBS soap that's shot on 1080i video.

I live close to Hypoluxo/Haagen Ranch and am using SIRT 150. I kind of hate looking at WFOR 4:3 broadcast with bars. IS there a way in SIRT150 that will allow me to fill the picture while watching WFOR (4:1) 4:3 digital broadcasts that are not HD.

Originally posted by Venkat
I live close to Hypoluxo/Haagen Ranch and am using SIRT 150. I kind of hate looking at WFOR 4:3 broadcast with bars. IS there a way in SIRT150 that will allow me to fill the picture while watching WFOR (4:1) 4:3 digital broadcasts that are not HD.

Go into the SETUP menu, select 4:3 instead of 16:9 as your screen format, and then you'll be able to zoom up the upconverted 4:3 broadcasts from WFOR. Just remember to reverse the procedure when you want to watch actual HD programming on WFOR.

It is much easier on the Dish6000, at the press of button you can toggle between Normal and Full Zoom!


Gireesh
_________________________________
Once in a while I feel the need to visit this thread:)

It is March 2002, and still no information on what is happening to NBC - DT.

I heard that something was going on, and a "hint" of olympics in HD, which turned out to be on HDNET.
But, I know some programming is going on HD, and some is being aired somewhere, but not in So. Florida.

Sooooooooooo,
Does anyone know what the latest excuse is (maybe it is even a reason, but I don't think so)?

NBC - WTVJ's DTV request is hung up with the FCC. I spoke to an FCC manager in Jan and was told it would be approved in one month. This is probably beaurocratese for 6+ months.
After FCC approval somebody heard it would take WTVJ about a year to be ready for DTV transmission.

Originally posted by Venkat
I live close to Hypoluxo/Haagen Ranch and am using SIRT 150. ... WFOR

Question: Do you see occasional retrace lines when watching WFOR?

How many bars show on the "reception meter" when you watch WFOR?

Are you using a pre-amp in the signal path?

Alan
(@ Gateway and Jog)

That is odd.
I remember when WFOR was putting up their antenna, and was waiting for NBC's antenna.
Then there was this FCC application to change channels, which would cause the antenna to be modified because of different frequency. Since the frequencies were so close, I don't buy that too much, but it may be true for high power efficiency and impedance matching.

Anyway, it doesn't appear to take that long, unless they intend to drag their feet.
But, it did take WFOR a good 6 months to go from install antenna to full power.
Question is how long will it take NBC to go from FCC approval to install antenna.

I though I read their goal was May 2002.

On a second note:

Does anyone hear anything about UPN putting any Hi Def transmissions ?

I hope they are not another FOX management intelligence.

I haven't heard anything about the WB or UPN doing HD but the fact that much of the primetime TV production industry is moving into HD for program production (vs. program distribution) would seem to be an incentive for them. In other words, if the programming is AVAILABLE to the network in HD, why not distribute it to the affiliates in HD? And if the networks distribute in HD, why wouldn't the affiliates pass it in HD? The breaking of the HD production gridlock has the potential to help to "mainstream" HD distribution and transmission.

I would tend to hope that CBS-owner Viacom, which also owns UPN, might tend to lean towards HD for UPN sooner than might otherwise be the case since CBS has demonstrated its leadership role in HDTV broadcasting. Contrast this situation with Fox. A lot of Fox primetime programming is currently being shot in HD for distribution in a widescreen standard-definition format because Fox believes that's adequate. I happen to think that they're completely wrong in their assessment and that one day they'll come around.

According to an apparently knowledgeable source at WFOR (w4guy is not there today), they will broadcast in HD all of the games that the network does in HD from Washington, DC on Friday, March 15 (4 games) and Sunday, March 17 (2 games).

More HD games will originate from Lexington, Ky on Thursday, March 21 and Saturday, March 23. And, of course, The Final Four.

The bad news is that, due to the nature of the network feed, there will be no commercials until the Final Four.

See the schedule at:

http://cbs.sportsline.com/u/cbs/sports/news/0311ncaatimes.htm

This thread is in desperate need of intravenous. Where's the DorMantBra?

Fact or Fiction?

Günter Marksteiner from WHDT returned my call this afternoon.

His direct-dial number is (561) 471-9204

http://www.whdt.net/images/GMarkst-51400.jpg

He claims that they are on target for May 1; and, that the bulk of their contracts with programming sources (unnamed) will be executed within the next 15 days.

He indicated that OTA HD would only be broadcast from their Miami antenna on Channel 44 "for now" because Adelphia Cable doesn't have the tuners necessary to distribute an HD signal.

Günter told me that they have been testing their signal since December of last year; they will continue testing regularly over the next few weeks; and, that Channel 44 will be broadcasting 24/7 after May 1.

The bad news is:
Based on their history of false promises, this information is hard to swallow.

The good news is:
Even though their projections have been way too aggressive, they haven't thrown in the towel; and, they appear to be sincere about bringing their unique product to market.

Here's to wishful thinking.

See the following thread for their Miami antenna location; and, other particulars:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&postid=311460&highlight=whdt+miami#post311460

A back door to WHDT's old website:

http://www.whdt.net/entry.tpl

WFLX is broadcasting.

Just called home, since I am out, and had the wife tune in 28 on the DTC-100...it immediately mapped to 29-1, but it's not strong enough to pull-in a stable picture without moving the antenna, which is peaked for WFOR, WPLG, and WPBT -DTs...I'm confident I'll be able to do it and get a better
signal when I get home later, if it's still broadcasting...presently she was getting 30 signal strength from Pembroke Pines, at
25 59' 41.30"
80 22' 49.62"

Am also posting this to the Palm Beach thread.

aviators,

I'm averaging about 84% on WFLX-DT from Coral Springs.

Please check DTV Channel 44 when you can. I received a very brief signal about half an hour ago but was not able to lock on to it. You're closer to WHDT's antenna tower in Hollywood; and, may have better results.

Thanks for the heads-up, guys. I'll be at home in about an hour or so.

Hardrock,

What format is WFLX using? 480p?

Rudy

Rudy,

Until Hardrock replies with the definitive answer, let me just tell you that I've been told that they will upconvert everything to 1080i and PASS 1080i on anything that's already in that format.

I just received another signal spike on DTV channel 44 and was able to lock onto it with my receiver.

WHDT's antenna tower is located at 350 NW 215th Street (County Line Road - Broward, Miami-Dade border) in North Miami (Southwest quadrant of the intersection at County Line Road and State Road 7).

Anyone closer to this location should get better results.

Hardrock,

Any idea on ERP from 44? I can't even find any FCC documentation that they even have a license for a DTV on 44...just a low-power NTSC translator.

Dave,

Günter is a resourceful guy. How he's going to pull this off is anyone's guess. Maybe he will give you more information than he gave me. His direct-dial number is (561) 471-9204.

Rudy,

I just spoke with Butch Figurella. His cell phone is (561) 310-9177. As Dave indicated, all of their standard programming will be NTSC upconverted to 1080i. All widescreen "High Resolution" (480p) that FOX passes will also be upconverted to 1080i.

BTW, Butch advised me that they will be off the air for the next few hours. He is trying to eliminate some interference he noticed from another broadcaster.

Dave & Hardrock,

Thank you both for the info. You guys are an invaluable resource here on the forum.

Rudy

Originally posted by David McRoy
Any idea on ERP from 44? I can't even find any FCC documentation that they even have a license for a DTV on 44...just a low-power NTSC translator.

Dave,

I assume you saw WHDT's Modified Construction Permit (http://gullfoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/cdbsmenu.hts?context=25&appn=100590470&formid=347&fac_num=9614) which was filed on 12/21/01 and approved on 02/04/02 for a UHF Low Power Translator (http://gullfoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/eng_tv.pl?Facility_id=9614)

Originally posted by hardrock
Rudy,

I just spoke with Butch Figurella. His cell phone is (561) 310-9177. As Dave indicated, all of their standard programming will be NTSC upconverted to 1080i. All widescreen "High Resolution" (480p) that FOX passes will also be upconverted to 1080i.

BTW, Butch advised me that they will be off the air for the next few hours. He is trying to eliminate some interference he noticed from another broadcaster.

Did it seem to you that they will be back on in time for prime time tonight? There are 2 shows in 480p tonight, I believe, and I'd like to check them out.

Hardrock,

I can't find anything in the WHDT filings that indicates a digital operation. "WHDT-LP" denotes a low-power NTSC plant.

Rudy,

I spoke to Butch before reading your question. He did not specifically state that they'd be up tonight but he did say that when the Fox programming IS on, it would look considerably better than what we're seeing now.

See my post on the subject on the West Palm Beach, FL DTV thread:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&postid=1000840#post1000840

Originally posted by David McRoy
Hardrock,

I can't find anything in the WHDT filings that indicates a digital operation. "WHDT-LP" denotes a low-power NTSC plant.

Rudy,

I spoke to Butch before reading your question. He did not specifically state that they'd be up tonight but he did say that when the Fox programming IS on, it would look considerably better than what we're seeing now.

See my post on the subject on the West Palm Beach, FL DTV thread:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&postid=1000840#post1000840

Hey David,

I assume you were talking about my question, not Rudy...

Ron

Aviators,

Yes, Butch indicated that they would be broadcasting tonight.

I hadn't thought until now to ask on this thread, but here goes...

I'm having a problem with my big dish. Can someone recommend someone very good who can service B.U.D.s? I've had a cavalcade of know-nothings through my house...

Thanks,

Ron

Yes, Ron. (Sorry)

Which shows on Fox are 16:9 tonight?

Originally posted by David McRoy
Yes, Ron. (Sorry)

Which shows on Fox are 16:9 tonight?

Greg, the Bunny, and Andy Richter CtU...

The best in Miami Dade County is Abraham Antenna. They do a lot of work for the television stations and colleges in the area. They are not cheap but I think they are the best. I use them to service my C-band downlinks at work. They also installed one for me. 305-642-8070. I do not know if they would go to Penbroke Pines. They really know what they are doing.

Thanks, dharding...I'll give them a call...

So, I just got home, and nothing on 29-1, and nothing from 44...I'll keep checking...

Yes, WFLX-DT is off the air right now. Hopefully they'll be back up by 8.

Looking at Masters coverage on WFOR-DT (CBS) right now. Beautiful!
And they're running spots for Mitsubishi HDTVs in HD.

Dave,

What I found most interesting about the Master's broadcast on WFOR-DT was that when I enabled the CC feature on my SIR-T150 I got the text from Channel 4 News. So I didn't have to miss my favorite news show just because I was watching golf. :-)

Rudy

Anybody know what's happened with WSVN-DT. Unable to get their signal for several weeks. No big loss but curious if they will ever at least to 480P. I guess there's always hope Ha Ha.

This thread is getting a little unwieldy maybe we should start a new one.

Happily watching the Masters in HDTV. Don states on air that they will be staying with the HD transmission until all golfers finished.

About two minutes later WFOR rudely cuts away to SD Dan Blather and the evening snews. Thanks WFOR for giving me a few minutes to spend playing with my cats instead of glued to the tube.

Hey, I just read an article about the FCC approval for Telemundo to affiliate all of their owned stations to NBC. I was thinking, perhaps WTVJ-DT could lease the Telemundo-assigned DT frequency to solve their problem? Telemundo could use channel 19 at the Homestead site, or whatever, and by the time the full transition comes about, they could work something out?

The article I read was at
http://tv.zap2it.com/news/tvnewsdaily.html?25180

What actually happened was that the FCC approved NBC's purchase of Telemundo. It doesn't necessarily follow that Telemundo statiions will suddenly carry NBC programming. They'll still carry Telemundo programming. I can imagine a scenario in a market here or there where NBC might want to do a channel swap between an NBC and a Telemundo station but I haven't heard of any such plans.

Channel 19 is the DTV allocation for WBZL-DT. They're already on the air on 19-1, remapped to 39-1. Telemundo NTSC is on 51 and their ATSC will be on 52:

http://100kwatts.tmi.net/tv/MIA.html

Originally posted by David McRoy
What actually happened was that the FCC approved NBC's purchase of Telemundo. It doesn't necessarily follow that Telemundo statiions will suddenly carry NBC programming. They'll still carry Telemundo programming. I can imagine a scenario in a market here or there where NBC might want to do a channel swap between an NBC and a Telemundo station but I haven't heard of any such plans.

Channel 19 is the DTV allocation for WBZL-DT. They're already on the air on 19-1, remapped to 39-1.

Yes, as I mentioned, I was talking about NBC leasing their frequency and do something like a swap....and, Yeah, whatever NBCs frequence is supposed to be, 30, 31, 32, something like that.

In other developments, I think I may have discovered what Hardrock is seeing on channel 44 (from http://100kwatts.tmi.net/tv/PBI.html ) :

WPPB-DT
channel 44
Network Service: new
ID: Boca Raton FL/West Palm Beach FL
Owner: Broward County Schools
Facilities: 1020' 565 kw DA

Transmitter: 25° 59' 34" N 80° 10' 27" W

And from the FCC ( www.fcc.gov , then "Site Map, then "TV Station Query") :


WPPB-TV FL BOCA RATON USA (Digital)

Licensee: THE SCHOOL BOARD OF BROWARD COUNTY, FLORIDA
Service Designation: DT "Full Service" TV Station or Application (digital)

Channel 44 Construction permit
File No.: BPEDT -19991028ACM Facility ID No: 51349
CDBS Application ID No.: 4212950.

Antenna Structure Registration Number (ASRN): 10185850.

25 ° 59' 34.00" Latitude Zone: 2
80 ° 10' 27.00" Longitude (NAD27) Frequency Offset: None
Polarization: Horizontally Polarized (H)
Effective Radiated Power (ERP): 565. kW ERP
Ant. Height Above Average Terrain (HAAT): 311.0 meters HAAT
Ant. Radiation Center Above Mean Sea Level: 311.0 meters RCAMSL
Ant. Radiation Center Above Ground Level: 309. meters RCAGL

Directional Antenna ID: 33483 Pattern Rotation: 000°
Not in a Border Zone
.

I guess while us near Hollywood are watching Gunter read the local news in HD, poor hardrock will be watching school board meetings! ;-)

Can you say "multicasting"? I knew that you could!;)

The point, of course, is that Gunther and Broward Public schools can't BOTH use channel 44. And 100kwatts.com says that his low-power NTSC on channel 59 is dark, with a CP to move to 44:

WHDT-LP
channel 59
Network Service: silent
ID: Miami FL
Facilities: 20 kw DA (STA)

Transmitter: 26° 43' 37" N 80° 4' 48" W
CP: move to channel 44, 1.56 kw DA

Transmitter: 25° 58' 15" N 80° 12' 32" W

Meanwhile, he's supposed to put a DTV on 59 in West {Palm (licensed to Stuart, FL). Also fromm 100kwatts.com:

WHDT-DT
channel 59
Network Service: new
ID: Stuart FL
Web Site: http://www.whdt.net/
Facilities: 262' 1000 kw

Transmitter: 26° 43' 37" N 80° 4' 48" W

Very confusing.

As Pee Wee Herman would say:

"What does it all mean? I HAVE NO IDEA!!!";)

The FCC adopted WPPB's Request for change from DTV Channel 44 to DTV Channel 40 (http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Mass_Media/Notices/2000/da001797.txt) on 08/17/00.

WPPB's CP for DTV Channel 40 (http://gullfoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/cdbsmenu.hts?context=25&appn=100593620&formid=340&fac_num=51349) was accepted for filing on 02/04/02.

Ah, thanks, Hardrock.

So, have you found any documents that indicate anything other than an NTSC low-power facility of 44 for Gunther?

Dave,

No such luck. Call Gunter, get his version and report back.

What's the deal with PEC? romy asked for an explanation of your post. We have all been waiting with baited breath.

Originally posted by David McRoy
WPEC's CBS-HD receive gear is being installed at the studio. We're going to hook-up a multisync PC monitor to the RGBHV HD output of one of the decoders to look at "The Young & the Restless" on the HD feed at 12:30 p. m. They should light-up the transponder a few minutes before the feed starts.

CBS sent us a primary and backup receiver and decoder.


pogo & satpro,

Any updates on PBF, TVX or BFS?

Tuned in WFLX-DT 28 at 7pm tonight. Signal is perfect in Coral Gables. Signal meter on Samsung SIR-T150 same as local Miami Stations. Reception also perfect on Panasonic TUDST51 I use with HD1000 DVHS. GOODBYE WSVN!

WFLX-DT 28 in perfect here in Miami Lakes, Just east of I75

Here I am watching Dark Angle in 480i and in 4 x 3 on my 16 x 9 panny. The picture looks just like WSVN except I am watching WFLX. What happen to 480p and fox widescreen? I am very disappointed. :confused:

I just returned home. I had to climb on the roof to align my antenna towards West Palm, a great moment in DT history, it's been so long since I even considered a West Palm station that my rotor had rusted itself into a permanent southern exposure.

Manually aligned the antenna (a 12 foot RS yagi) due west and am able to pick up WFLX at 80, while still receiving good signals from all Miami DT stations except WPBT 2 which does not even make it to the channel list on my DTC 100.

This is as exciting as receiving my first DT signal:)

now where is 44?

I also wish I could have seen some 480p shows tonight for comparison to other signal types

I hope they get the 480p straightened out in time for 24 at worst...X-files at best...

Originally posted by dharding
Tuned in WFLX-DT 28 at 7pm tonight. Signal is perfect in Coral Gables. Signal meter on Samsung SIR-T150 same as local Miami Stations. Reception also perfect on Panasonic TUDST51 I use with HD1000 DVHS. GOODBYE WSVN!

The signal is also good in my area (Sunset/Maynada) of Coral Gables. Where are you?

Are they going to do FOX widescreen?

I live in the Penthouse of an 8 story building on Douglas Ave. My unit faces north. Because of the parking garage I am 120 feet in the air. I did not have to adjust my antenna to receive the signal. I use a RCA $30 rabbit ear for VHF and a radio shack double bow tie for UHF. My reception has always been perfect on all digital channels. :D

It is my understanding that most of Fox's primetime programs at the following link are broadcast in widescreen format.
http://www.fox.com/schedule/schedule_2001.htm

I know that all of the shows on Saturday are broadcast in 4:3 format.

Does anyone know which of the remaining shows are NOT widescreen?

I know I am still out in left field, but:
What ever happened to PBS Ch 2-3, the Hi Def station ?
And Ch 19 (39-1 UPN) is in the mud and I can't lock on?
And I didn't read anything about NBC doing anything but squat.

George,

WPBT begins broadcasting daily at 11 AM.

WBZL starts at 5 PM.

WFLX is sporadic right now. Their website (http://www.wflx.com/Global/story.asp?S=742001&nav=2JWu8PTq) says from noon to midnight.

WFLX-DT (28) 29-1 is now displaying a full screen test pattern...it looks out of focus to me, and I can't seem to get it in focus no matter what I do. Do others see it out of focus?

WFLX is now showing Futurama in 480p 4:3 format. The FOX logo is outside of the 4:3 frame.

Contrary to the abundance of negative opinions I've read on this forum, the picture quality of "The X-Files" was infinitely better than expected.

Originally posted by hardrock
Contrary to the dirth of negative opinions I've read on this forum, the picture quality of "The X-Files" was infinitely better than expected.

I couldn't agree more , I made the coparison with WSVN and the difference was clear..
So are they transmitting 480p? Let see the improvement on 24 Tuesday..:D

It was much better than I expected...but comparing it with Alias there was no comparison the other way...

By the way, the FOX logo was really annoying...it actually interfered with the show and was not in the least bit subtle. Are all FOX shows like that?

Also thought it interesting that Futurama and that other show had gray side bars, but the commercials during the X-Files had black.

Originally posted by jluzbet
So are they transmitting 480p?

Reportedly, all of Fox's primetime programs are broadcast in 480p and upconverted to 1080i by WFLX. Most are shown in 4:3 format. The following programs are 16x9:

24
Ally McBeal
Bernie Mac
Boston Public
Dark Angel
Greg the Bunny
Malcolm In The Middle
Pasadena
Titus
X-Files

"Andy Richter Controls the Universe" is reportedly zoomed 4:3 to fill the 16:9 window.

Everything from WFLX this evening from 7 to 10 PM was definitely 480p upconverted to 1080i.

Originally posted by aviators99
Also thought it interesting that Futurama and that other show had gray side bars, but the commercials during the X-Files had black.

Talking about commercials, the picture quality of the trailers for Spider-Man and The Scorpion King on WFLX this evening were stunning. They appeared to be much higher resolution than 480p.

I only watched the X-files for a couple of minutes during commercials of Alias but I have to agree with everyone else. I was very surprised at how good it looked. Alias did look a lot better but WFLX looked a lot better then WSVN. THANKS WFLX! I can now start watching FOX again.

Start with a two hour "Ally McBeal" at 8PM Monday, 4/15. That is, if you have finished and submitted your income tax return and if you think that you can handle two hours of Ally.

Ally Mcbeal, Hmmmmmmmmmmmm! I think I will start watching FOX again on tuesday!:eek:

One question guys when receiving channel 7-1 digital why is it that it doest have side bars like regular channel 4-1 or 10-1 and channel 4 and 10 are way clearer. when im tuned in to channel 7-1 i notice that u can play around with the size of the screen u can zoom to cover ur screen unlike channel 10-1 or 4-1 why is that! Also during the day i was unable to get channel 28-1 but last night i was able to lock in channel 28-1 and channel 29-1 till midnight when the signal dropped to 0! I was able to get a 90 signal during primetime from deep south in kendall! whats the deal here! Also when watching ally mcbeal i noticed that it isnt widescreen on 7-1 . my receiver is a hughes which doesnt do 480p but if the signal is sent widescreen shouldnt i get it!

Why is it that the fox digital channel looks different than cbs and abc. For instance i dont get the sidebars like i do with cbs and abc. Also my sattelite receiver doesnt display 480p. Today im watching Ally mcbeal and im not getting the widescreen version. Even though my receiver isnt 480p shouldnt i still get the widescreen version please help! is this normal that i never get nothing on fox widescreen even though it is still a clear picture rather than the analog feed!

One question why doesnt channel 7 do there 480p widescreen through there south florida station through channel 8 digital! Why did they choose to do it through channel 28 which is located in west palm beach! DO they have any plans of doing widescreen 480p through channel 8 any time soon!

I'm getting Andy Richter from WFLX in 480i zoomed to fill the 16:9 frame. Pretty shabby.

I was amazed at how good "24" looked on WFLX-DT last night. The excessive image enhancement seen on "Ally McBeal" the night before was gone and it looked superior to the best DVDs I've seen. Definitely the next-best-thing to real HDTV.

Originally posted by David McRoy
I was amazed at how good "24" looked on WFLX-DT last night. The excessive image enhancement seen on "Ally McBeal" the night before was gone and it looked superior to the best DVDs I've seen. Definitely the next-best-thing to real HDTV.

It was pretty good...however, watching it in widescreen and 480i at the same time, I'm pretty sure I can say that some of the scenes were zoomed...I assume because they didn't correctly protect the whole area and they had to in order to remove extraneous set non-decoration..

Hey Guys.....
I just found this thread. I have an Echo Star 6000 receiver and am trying to locate as much HD as possible. Is there any kind of organized group for the promotion of HDTV in the S.E. FL area?
:D

Well, this is it, I guess!;)

To orient your antenna for the various stations, take a look at www.antennaweb.org . You'll be prompted to plug-in your street address and zip code and you'll get a map centered on your house with radials super-imposed showing the directions of all the transmitters from your location.

As far as actual HD pictures over-the-air locally here, WPBT-DT sends some HD on channel 18-1 (remapped by your receiver to 2-1) just about every night in the 1080i format. They send standard-definition on 18-3 (2-3).

WFOR-DT, channel 22-1 (4-1) carries all the HD that CBS has to offer, including most of the prime time schedule plus "The Young & the Restless" plus occasional sports programming, all in 1080i.

WSVN-DT, channel 8-1 (7-1) just does 480i standard-definition.

WPLG-DT caries everything that ABC has in HD in the 720p format.

WFLX-DT, channel 28-1 (29-1 [my Zenith tuner remaps it to "28-2"...go figure :rolleyes: ] ) carries the stuff that Fox sends as 480p widescreen, upconverted to 1080i for transmission. While not really an HD format, I have been surprised at how good the 480p format can look on some shows...better than DVD usually.

WBZL-DT has only standard-definition programming for now and they upconvert to (I think) 720p for transmission on channel 19-1 (39-1).

That's all the DTV in South Florida for now. Up next will probably be WPBF-DT which will pass the 720p HD programming from ABC. Look for them on channel 16-1 (remapped by your receiver to 25-1) on May 1.

WPEC-DT's electrical and air-conditioning work has been delayed until next week. The plumbing has been attached between the transmitter and a dummy load for testing off the air when the electrical and HVAC is done. We're hoping to get our antenna and feedline up later this month so Harris can test the transmitter on the air in mid May. We will eventually be on the air on channel 13-1 (12-1) and pass CBS HD in 1080i.

The two missing links, the NBC stations, WPTV in West Palm and WTVJ in Miami are both dogged by tower issues and won't be up until at least the Fall. But since all we're missing in HD from NBC is "Leno", "Crossing Jordan" and the occasional sports event it's no big deal. I'm hearing that NBC is planning to ramp-up their HD prime time offerings this Fall so the timing could be right for the locals here.

Will WTVJ be in Homestead or at the County Line? What channel will it be on? Since AT&T Cable has an agreement with NBC and WTVJ is an NBC O&O will it be carried by this agreement?

Thank You in Advance

Link To Agreement Article
http://archives.medialifemagazine.com/news1999/june99/news1614.html

Just which channel WTVJ-DT will be on is still up in the air at the FCC. WTVJ sought to get their DTV allocation changed from 30 to 31 so that they could locate near the Miami-Dade/Broward County line without interfering with WFLX-TV on channel 29. But WPXN and I think one other station are also seeking changes to channels around 30 and 31 so it's a real can of worms right now.

I don't know anything about the AT&T cable situation. However, in general, I would expect cable carriage of all the major local DTV stations, especially those with significant HD content, such as the major network affiliates, on all cable systems that have the capacity...but don't look for this to happen overnight. Some big cable operators just a week or so ago announced that they would begin rolling-out more HDTV on their systems, beginning in the largest markets. This will include not only national services with HD such as HBO, Showtime and the newly announced Discovery HD Theater, but also local affiliates that offer a fair amount of HD programming, according to statements in their press releases. "Big cable" views this as necessary to compete with direct broadcast satellite services for high income households that are among the first to drive demand for HD content.

Until all this takes place, though, you're going to need a terrestrial antenna to receive local DTV stations.

Originally posted by canes_rule
Will WTVJ be in Homestead or at the County Line? What channel will it be on?

According to the following links, the FCC determined that DTV Channel 31 can be substituted for DTV Channel 30 at Miami, Florida, as proposed at coordinates 25-58-07 N 80-13-20 W (http://tiger.census.gov/cgi-bin/mapgen/gif?lon=-80.222221&lat=25.9686107&iwd=750&iht=750&mark=-80.222221,25.9686107,bluestar,WTVJ_MIAMI)

WPXM's petition was dismissed.

http://www.fcc.gov/mb/video/files/dtvchan.html

http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-00-1538A1.pdf

I have read the FCC docs in Hardrocks posting above. What I do not understand is it appears that WTVJ was given channel 31 over a year ago. Why are they still not on the air? Has anyone talked to them?:confused:

But that was just the NPRM...I thought someone was disputing that, and thus the delay, no?

Why doesn't WSVN ch8 remapped to 7-1 put out widescreen 480i ?
Since they are digital, I don't see the problem.
Then being in left field for awhile, I might not see alot.
I believe this has been said, but I'm still a little confused.

Originally posted by mmburke 01/04/02
From Clay Pendarvis of FCC regarding WTVJ petition for channel substitution. The WTVJ petition is pending approval of new channel for Paxson (+PBS channel 17's DTV channel) which had rights to channel that NBC wants. Bottom line is that he said that the approval should be completed in a month. He didn't think there would be any more legal hurdles. Now the question is how long it will take WTVJ to get their DTV tower up and running.
Originally posted by gkouri 09/10/01
I just spoke with an engineer at WTVJ in Miami. He indicated that the station is awaiting FCC approval and that there is no know timeframe or estimate. The company is paying for the lease of space at the antenna farm and he estimates 2 months until completion once the approval is secured. He went on to describe the issue of how the initial application was to go up on Channel 30 and then they requested Channel 31. Another station has objected to Channel 31 and this is what the FCC has to address. Apparently this issue has been ongoing with the FCC for more than 18 months already. He was uncertain whether the signal will be in 480i or 480p when not transmitting 1080i material.

Someone needs to call these people again...Hardrock?

Let's start an e-mail campaign to WTVJ.

Technical Operations techops@nbc6.net

Programming programming@nbc6.net

General general@nbc6.net

Phone: (954) 622-6000

Paul Russell - Director of Operations & Engineering

http://www.broadcast.net/~sbe53/new_images/julymeet9.jpg

WFLX-DT is showing the NASCAR Busch Series 300 LIVE from Talladega in stretched 4:3 to fill the 16:9 frame. Even though it's stretched, the picture quality is very nice. All the commercials are stretched as well.

PQ is indeed very good. Too bad WFOR & WPLG don't transmit their upconverted 4:3 in this manner. That way you can use your STB's screen format menu to "unstretch" the image if you don't like the distortion, or leave it as is to fill your 16:9 screen.

Thank you Thank you Thank you
I now have a better understanding what is going on.
All we ask for is more channels, which will give more shows in widescreen and Hi def. ( I separated wide screen and Hi def, because of FOX!)