I had it on "Still Standing" at 7:00 on KMOV. Awful show.

Anyway, the receiver was coming up at Digital EX but I was getting no sournd at all from the rears. Anyone else notice this on KMOV?

Correction on my post above...

The Faith Hill concert was on KSDK, not KMOV.

Of course, anyone could have figured that out from the fact that the show had NO CENTER and NO REAR CHANNELS!!!!!!! And the picture was 4x3 with black bars on the sides. However, it was a lot sharper than the usual upconverted stuff. And of course Faith was so hot she about melted my TV's picture tube.

Local news in HD.....It is about time....

So KSDK ran a big "cover story" on HDTV tonight.

Lame.

Seems the KSDK audio issue is not unique among NBC affiliates. Maybe NBC is doing something weird that affiliates can't figure out?

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=607558

Multicasting is death as far as HD picture quality goes.

KSDK is a great example of this, and their HD has looked rotten since they added the weather channel. It's quite easy to see pixellation where that was never a problem prior to multicasting. I see it all the time now and it is very distracting. There are also times when there's enough of a drain on the HD bandwidth during prime time that their aircraft-carrier-like NewsChannel 5 logo clearly softens for two or three seconds at a time.

Adding a second or third channel is going to make the NBC HD stuff unwatchable.

It's not really a surprise that terrestrial broadcasters are opting for quantity over quality. The more viewers they can reach, the more money they should receive in the form of advertising dollars. In a similar vein, PBS has a mandate to reach as many viewers/potential contributors as possible, and this focus is only likely to accelerate in an environment where PBS's public funding is cut back.

FWIW, most PBS stations take the 1080i national PBS HD feed and convert it to 720p prior to local delivery. Progressive video compresses much more efficiently than interlaced video, and because PBS is determined to push the edge of the multicasting envelope, this is actually a smart thing to do.

It's fine if broadcasters opt for multicasting, but at that point any suggestion (or promotion) they make about HD picture quality is a lie. These stations are obviously counting on the general public seeing watered-down HD as a massive improvement over the SD crap they've been watching on cable and satellite for the past 20 years.

The sad thing is they're probably right on target. Paraphrasing the old cliche, companies rarely suffer from underestimating the intelligence of the average consumer. It's the only way to explain the number of people buying LCD panels and hanging them over the fireplace...

Well at the beginning of the national coverage of Macys, it said it was broadcast in HD where available.
KSDK has not flipped the switch as of yet.
Fastman

Well at the beginning of the national coverage of Macys, it said it was broadcast in HD where available.
KSDK has not flipped the switch as of yet.
FastmanNow I get it...this has been staring me in the face for more than 3 years now. But I'm not sure why it took me this long to actually see it:

kSDk

ROFLMAO!!!! Doug!!!!
You have a point....
Well they flipped the switch exactly 32 minutes late.
They now have a button on the front page of their site saying newscasts in HD in Feb. Thats it though, they did not elaborate.
Fastman

Classic Doug.

Doug - You hit the nail on the HeaD

I hate to admit it since bashing KSDK is so much fun, but PQ on the parade is pretty good.

However, KSDK seems to have the same audio issue that KPLR does during HD Cardinal baseball games and WB network programs. Volume level during the parade is loooooooow, and then blasts the sheetrock off the walls during SD commercials.

The sad thing is they're probably right on target. Paraphrasing the old cliche, companies rarely suffer from underestimating the intelligence of the average consumer. It's the only way to explain the number of people buying LCD panels and hanging them over the fireplace...

My LCD is the fireplace this time of the year. :)

5.1 cracklin' sound.

I hate to admit it since bashing KSDK is so much fun, but PQ on the parade is pretty good.

However, KSDK seems to have the same audio issue that KPLR does during HD Cardinal baseball games and WB network programs. Volume level during the parade is loooooooow, and then blasts the sheetrock off the walls during SD commercials.

The HD production looked pretty good once they figured out how to kill the audio from the NYC feed. Although it was good to see a local HD production, the Network HD broadcast of the Macy Parade in NYC was awesome and I hated to see it go in favor of a local production that could never compare in scope or quality.

I guess you can't have it all................

My LCD is the fireplace this time of the year. :)

5.1 cracklin' sound.

OK, I'll bite.

What's wrong w/ putting an LCD above hte fireplace? What type of LCD are you referring to?

Are you ripping my Sony LCD? =]

I know people do do this, and it never made sense to me.

OK, I'll bite.

What's wrong w/ putting an LCD above hte fireplace? What type of LCD are you referring to?

Are you ripping my Sony LCD? =]

I know people do do this, and it never made sense to me.

What would be really fun is to have a HD pic of rising smoke on the panel above the fireplace. ;)

There is an ongoing debate about the heat issues but Doug started all this so let him explain. I saw an article in a home theatre mag a couple of years ago saying it was OK to mount a plasma or LCD panel there but first take heat measurements on the wall.

Actually, there are several issues with mounting an LCD or plasma panel above a fireplace:

* First, heat could be an expensive "gotcha." This probably isn't a major issue in many installations, but it could be a factor depending on the size of the fire and room ventilation.

* Second, wiring can be a major hassle and this means that if an LCD or plasma is going to be placed above the fireplace, it really needs to be planned for and executed at the construction stage. Trying to do this after the fact will be a major and expensive pain in the ass. Also, if anything happens to that wiring run, or if you learn that there's a problem with the wiring after you've mounted the panel, there's going to be little scope for repair or replacement.

* Third, LCD panels have terrible off-axis viewing limitations -- many consumers complain about the restricted viewing angles of RPTVs and avoid them for this reason, but LCD panels are considerably more limited. This means that placement of an LCD panel above the mantel is going to result in wretched picture quality.

And the picture quality of LCD panels is already pretty severely limited. You don't have to take my word for it, just watch for the LCD displays discussion on the current run of Industry Insiders on HDNet. One of the manufacturer reps lays out all of the problems in one nifty, 10-minute presentation. Essential viewing for anyone heading to BB, CC, or UE today thinking "LCD flat panel."

* Fourth, mounting a panel -- either LCD or plasma -- above a fireplace is decorator-friendly and viewer-hostile. In a normal seated position, you are forced to tilt your head and/or direct your eyes upward, which is a pretty much an unbeatable recipe for viewing fatigue.


For me, mounting a display over the fireplace falls into the same category as selling 100-pound bags of dog food over the Internet -- just because technology suddenly makes something possible that was previously impossible, that doesn't automatically make that new possibility anything like a good idea.

Now that the Holiday Shopping Season has officially started, I wanted to let everyone here know that I do issue Calibration Gift Certificates.

If you have a home theater lover on your gift list, or you know someone who is going to be receiving a new HDTV as a holiday gift, a calibration would be a perfect gift and an excellent alternative to you standing at the cash register and gift-wrapping queues at the mall.

Gift certificates are available in $100 denominations, or you can purchase a custom certificate that provides an "all-in price" for a complete calibration for a specific display/system.

The 20% discount that I normally provide to existing customers for additional displays can also be applied to the purchase of gift certificates.

Please contact me via phone or eMail if you'd like more details.

And the picture quality of LCD panels is already pretty severely limited. You don't have to take my word for it, just watch for the LCD displays discussion on the current run of Industry Insiders on HDNet. One of the manufacturer reps lays out all of the problems in one nifty, 10-minute presentation. Essential viewing for anyone heading to BB, CC, or UE today thinking "LCD flat panel."

...

For me, mounting a display over the fireplace falls into the same category as selling 100-pound bags of dog food over the Internet -- just because technology suddenly makes something possible that was previously impossible, that doesn't automatically make that new possibility anything like a good idea.

I watched the Industry Insiders discussion on HDNet. It seemed to me the worst issue with LCD panels today is the excessive markup charged by the name brands and retailers! The big brand names better figure that out or they will go the way of the IBM personal computer.

P.S. Don't tell my dog about ordering food over the Internet... :)

Thanks KSDK and Ultimate Electronics

Small (to be expected at this point) technical glitches aside, the HD broadcast of the St. Louis Holiday Parade looked terrific. Appeared that they had coverage from at least 3 cameras. Anyone know if those were rented for the event or if they (KSDK) own them. If so, seems like they might be way up front for local HD news coverage.

They brought in NMT to provide the HD. It was all rented. The big truck was down there unloading and setting up on Wednesday.

...selling 100-pound bags of dog food over the Internet

As the Guinness guys say: "Brilliant!!"

:)

Almost forgot to mention that I was in Theatrical Concepts a couple of weeks ago in Eureka and they are now carrying Tannoy speakers. I listened to some Eyris DC1s in 2 channel mode and they sounded pretty sweet. Just thought I'd mention it as it's a new brand to the St. Louis area (as far as I know anyway!!!).

My backlog of shows to watch finally caught up with me. I was out of town last week and returned last night ready to watch the 3-D Medium from Monday, only to find it had been deleted in order to make room for other shows later in the week. Also lost Grey's Anatomy and Desp. Housewives from Sunday (11/20) :( and CSI Miami from 11/22.

Anyone possibly have any of those that can burn a DVD for me? Please PM me!

Thankfully, Prison Break will be rerun tomorrow so I get a 2nd shot at it.

Mike

Time to head to Weaknees and get an upgrade =]

And the picture quality of LCD panels is already pretty severely limited. You don't have to take my word for it, just watch for the LCD displays discussion on the current run of Industry Insiders on HDNet. One of the manufacturer reps lays out all of the problems in one nifty, 10-minute presentation. Essential viewing for anyone heading to BB, CC, or UE today thinking "LCD flat panel."
.


That said...;)

Doug or anybody out there,

My wife wants a new slim TV for the living room and I'm thinking LCD is the best choice. I still have my Doug-Calibrated RP-CRT for movies and serious HD viewing, but this TV will be in a brightly lit living room and used for SD, Kids DVDs, gaming, and HD in that order. My wife is tired of the aging 32"CRT direct view and wants something less bulky and ugly.

Normally I'd go with a Sony direct view like the 30" or 34" XBRs, but she wants thin. Plasma is out for me since I don't need 42" and we'll watch a lot of SD and don't want to worry about burn-in. Which leads me to the 32" LCD panels that don't cost an arm and a leg.

For anyone with experience with LCD panels- what's the best of the bunch for less than $2K. (Don't mention the Bravia- too much $$$). Don't need a tuner, I've got an extra laying around. DirecTV will be primary source. Which if any of the following are good for my needs"

Sharp Aquos 32"
Panny 32"
Samsung 32"
Sony (non-Bravia) 32"

or one of the no-name brands that everyone says are world-beaters for much less $ than the name brands. Does anyone have an LCD flat panel that they love or hate?

Thanks for any advice.

That said...;)

Doug or anybody out there,

My wife wants a new slim TV for the living room and I'm thinking LCD is the best choice. I still have my Doug-Calibrated RP-CRT for movies and serious HD viewing, but this TV will be in a brightly lit living room and used for SD, Kids DVDs, gaming, and HD in that order. My wife is tired of the aging 32"CRT direct view and wants something less bulky and ugly.

Normally I'd go with a Sony direct view like the 30" or 34" XBRs, but she wants thin. Plasma is out for me since I don't need 42" and we'll watch a lot of SD and don't want to worry about burn-in. Which leads me to the 32" LCD panels that don't cost an arm and a leg.

For anyone with experience with LCD panels- what's the best of the bunch for less than $2K. (Don't mention the Bravia- too much $$$). Don't need a tuner, I've got an extra laying around. DirecTV will be primary source. Which if any of the following are good for my needs"

Sharp Aquos 32"
Panny 32"
Samsung 32"
Sony (non-Bravia) 32"

or one of the no-name brands that everyone says are world-beaters for much less $ than the name brands. Does anyone have an LCD flat panel that they love or hate?

Thanks for any advice.

For the uses you describe I would not go for a name brand and save hundreds. Go for something under $1000. They are made with basically the same panels and processors but the name brands add on a 40% markup. I have been watching the prices plummet for the last year while waiting for a 32" set for my bedroom. I finally bought a no-name brand last week and am so far very happy.

Speaking of calibration, Doug, LCD sets etc....

I was adjusting all the settings on a new LCD set I bought for my bedroom and noticed the usual pre-settings (Warm, Vibrant, etc.) that are built into all the sets I have seen. I always take about a month to come up with a custom setting that I leave the set on from then on. None of the pre-set options seem "natural" to me.

Does anybody use these pre-sets? I assume they are there for people who might want to change them dependent on the movie/show being watched. Are there people out there who never adjust their sets beyond these corporate pre-defined set points?

Redwine,

My family room has nine windows and two skylights.

Therefore when I watch football (or anything else) during the noon to almost dusk time of day, I have to use the VIVID mode on my Sony XBR or the picture is waaaaaaaaaay too dark to see a thing.

Once it gets late enough that room brightness is no longer an issue, I switch to PRO mode (tuned with the Video Essentials).

How 'bout dem Rams coming back to win in overtime? With our THIRD string QB, no less! Now if they could only do that against REAL teams, we'd be SuperBowl bound again.

Since we're on the topic of purchasing new TVs, I think I'll throw this question out to you guys.

I want to buy my fiance a new TV for her birthday, which is in two weeks. This TV will be for her to use right now and then when we're married, it will go in our living room (probably only for awhile) and then eventually into our bedroom.

Here are the requirements: I want it to have be a 16:9 HDTV w/ integrated ATSC tuner. And, I have to spend less than $1000. (Much less would be preferred -- about $500-700.) But, it has to fit in her armoire, which will go in our living room. It has to fit in a space 37'' wide, 25'' tall, and 18'' deep.

I'm looking for any ideas possible. I know many of you have TVs that are in the size range of 25-30 inches and I'd appreciate any help you can give me. I trust you guys here more than in the general TV forums.This Samsung 30;; Slimfit (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7045397&type=product&productCategoryId=pcmcat31800050030&id=1099396990967) is one possibility, but I have read some bad things. Anone with experience?

It seems that most others are too deep, though I can't always find depth on the specs.

I really like this one, but its a little too deep. (http://www.rexstores.com/flexon/site/Video/Televisions/25_to_27_inch/P9Z27NAF8PJ4ESCV7AEA/sku.html)

Redwine,

My family room has nine windows and two skylights.

Therefore when I watch football (or anything else) during the noon to almost dusk time of day, I have to use the VIVID mode on my Sony XBR or the picture is waaaaaaaaaay too dark to see a thing.

Once it gets late enough that room brightness is no longer an issue, I switch to PRO mode (tuned with the Video Essentials).

.

Robert, that makes sense for high light conditions. I assume you adjusted the VIVID mode for your conditions. I was just wondering how many people just used the preset factory settings for these modes and never knew or cared about adjusting them.

I actually leave the vivid mode in its factory state, since it's sooooo far off the ideal settings anyway. One more reason I'm glad to be working during the day 5 times a week.

For anyone with experience with LCD panels- what's the best of the bunch for less than $2K. (Don't mention the Bravia- too much $$$). Don't need a tuner, I've got an extra laying around. DirecTV will be primary source. Which if any of the following are good for my needs"

Sharp Aquos 32"
Panny 32"
Samsung 32"
Sony (non-Bravia) 32"

or one of the no-name brands that everyone says are world-beaters for much less $ than the name brands. Does anyone have an LCD flat panel that they love or hate?

Thanks for any advice.

I have a Samsung 32" LCD and I love it. I haven't had any problems whatsoever.

Check out Sam's Club. They had some really good prices on LCD and Plasma's. If you know what you are doing and what you are looking for, this would be a good option if price is a consideration (but I don't think you can get anything above the manufacturer's warranty)

* Brad, I haven't really seen a lot of LCD panels up close, but I haven't been knocked out by any of those I've worked on. However, they seem perfectly OK for secondary viewing, where picture quality isn't a major concern.

The main issues with direct-view LCD panels that I've seen is that some don't produce a full range of color and fast-motion sequences can leave a trail of artifacts, which means that viewing of sports (other than poker or competitive eating ;)) may be unacceptable. Viewing angle is also a big issue, so if the display is going to be viewed much off-center, you may suffer from a loss of picture brightness and strange colors/posterization.

* Winston, I can't resist recommending the Sony 34-inch XBR direct-view CRT, even though it's outside your price range and probably wouldn't easily fit in your cabinet (I did some research for a client over the summer and these are just a tad over 37 inches wide). But I've worked on a handful of these sets and this is really an excellent display that would probably last close to a lifetime if it's going to be primarily relegated to bedroom duty.

The 30-inch non-XBR Sony CRT would be workable in terms of size, but probably is still a few hundred bucks outside your price range. I've also worked on the Samsung direct-view CRTs and thought they looked decent before calibration and very good afterward. I think these are probably getting closer to your budget, particularly for sizes 30 inches or less. I've also worked on a 30-inch Sanyo direct-view HDTV and while it was poor out of the box, it calibrated nicely.

* In my experience, the majority of consumers do little fiddling with picture settings -- for reasons that are completely baffling to me, they by and large assume that it was set correctly at the factory.

Even among my more savvy customers a small minority seem to have a complete "hands off" approach to the controls. The key thing that's bad about not adjusting the controls is that contrast is routinely pegged at the max and leaving it there will compromise phosphor life and power supplies for CRT sets and the phosphors on plasma displays. With digital sets, the issue is less about possible damage, but rather the possibility that clipping may occur at the top end of the picture range, with a loss of picture detail.

At the same time, I think it's safe to say that the trend is toward user controls intervention, with more and more consumers opting to at least buy a setup disk such as AVIA or Digital Video Essentials, so that user settings are set closer to the ideal. I think there's evidence that professional calibration is becoming more popular.

* Finally, I thought I'd post a "heads up" about a development that may be of interest to others here considering an HDTV purchase over the next few months.

There's a US-based LCoS manufacturer known as Brillian that has previously focused on providing LCoS chipsets to other brands, but now it's planning to enter the market with its own LCoS-based RPTVs.

What's interesting about Brillian's market entry plan is that last week it announced it will bundle an ISF calibration into the purchase price. The way this is expected to work is that a coupon will be included with the set's documentation, along with a number to call where Brillian will explain how to make contact with their nominated local calibrator.

Brillian has worked out a bulk-pricing deal with the ISF, and the ISF is lining up calibrators around the country who would be prepared to take the Brillian business at the compensation level that's been agreed. This free calibration will cover two inputs/signal types.

I haven't seen any of these Brillian sets yet, and I do have some lingering concerns about medium- and long-term reliability of LCoS-based displays, so this shouldn't be considered any sort of endorsement. I'm hoping to find a local dealer who handles Brillian sets and I'm looking forward to getting some hands-on experience with one of them. I am pursuing the handling of local calibration work for Brillian.

Naturally I think the Brillian calibration tactic is very interesting and commendable -- if I had a dollar for every time a prospect or customer suggested that calibration should be included with their TV, I'd have enough money laying around to be the first on my block to own a Brillian. :)

The web site for Brillian can be found here (http://www.brilliancorp.com/home.html) and the press release announcing the calibration policy is here. (http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=146224&p=irol-newsArticle&t=Regular&id=785017&)

Normally I'd go with a Sony direct view like the 30" or 34" XBRs, but she wants thin. Plasma is out for me since I don't need 42" and we'll watch a lot of SD and don't want to worry about burn-in. Which leads me to the 32" LCD panels that don't cost an arm and a leg.

For anyone with experience with LCD panels- what's the best of the bunch for less than $2K. (Don't mention the Bravia- too much $$$). Don't need a tuner, I've got an extra laying around. DirecTV will be primary source. Which if any of the following are good for my needs"

Sharp Aquos 32"
Panny 32"
Samsung 32"
Sony (non-Bravia) 32"

or one of the no-name brands that everyone says are world-beaters for much less $ than the name brands. Does anyone have an LCD flat panel that they love or hate?

Thanks for any advice.
I bought an InFocus 61" DLP for a good price including shipping during a woot.com sale. The 50" has been sold for $2,005 including shipping. They are only 6.85" deep and I have mine mounted on the wall. It's a great set.

They are designed by InFocus and manufactured (and supported) by RCA. InFocus wants to get out of the rear projection business so they are closing them out. Depending on your time frame, it might be a deal.

Wow just looked on my most recent Charter bill and it looks like its the season for price increases. Shows the biggest value package going from 70.99 to 73.99 & the DVR going from a 6.99 fee to 11.98. But don't worry to offset the costs they are willing to provide games(which I already have) and photo viewing..


That dvr increase is hella high . Wonder what the moxi + mate will being going up to. I am about to end a year long promotion of 60.99 for the biggest value package so this is too much of a price increase for me. Going to be time for me to call in and say the 4 letter word dish to get some better pricing offers.

-Josh

Anybody else not receiving an OTA signal for FOX right now? My receiver shows good signal strength, but no show!

Coming in fine in Bridgeton with MYHD

Wow just looked on my most recent Charter bill and it looks like its the season for price increases. Shows the biggest value package going from 70.99 to 73.99 & the DVR going from a 6.99 fee to 11.98. But don't worry to offset the costs they are willing to provide games(which I already have) and photo viewing..


That dvr increase is hella high . Wonder what the moxi + mate will being going up to. I am about to end a year long promotion of 60.99 for the biggest value package so this is too much of a price increase for me. Going to be time for me to call in and say the 4 letter word dish to get some better pricing offers.

-Josh

Yow. If that's the case, I'm waaaaaaay gone when my year contract is up. *crosses fingers and hope D* has Mpeg4 DVRs ready by then.* :D

Anybody else not receiving an OTA signal for FOX right now? My receiver shows good signal strength, but no show!

Same in O'Fallon. No sound or video on FOX. Grr.. I missed 30 minutes of Prison Break. :mad: :mad: :mad:

Fox took a bit of hunting and a couple drop outs here in St. Charles OTA. Only SD for Surface though on NBC 7:00-8:00 :(

Well, at least I'm not the only one....I even reset my receiver in a last ditch effort to receive the signal.

Doug or anyone else... have you ever seen a Samsung SlimFit?

That seems to be the only one in my price range that will fit in her cabinet.

Winston,

I haven't seen this set, so can't give you any opinion.

But there's a dedicated discussion thread here at AVS:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=541592

I am in the city with rabbit ears and had no prob. with Fox during Prison Break

I am in the city with rabbit ears and had no prob. with Fox during Prison Break
Interesting, I wonder what has changed. The signal strength meter showed as high or higher than the other OTA stations, I just couldn't see or hear anything.


Anyway, I did send an email to them last night, but haven't heard anything back yet.

Same in O'Fallon. No sound or video on FOX. Grr.. I missed 30 minutes of Prison Break. :mad: :mad: :mad:
I'm just curious what kind of receiver you have. Mine is a Sony HD-200, D* receiver.

Anybody else not receiving an OTA signal for FOX right now? My receiver shows good signal strength, but no show!

I checked my ToDo list for my HD DirecTivo and it was all set to record. After we finished watching a couple other shows we checked the Now Playing list and no "Prison Break". The history indicated there was no signal and that is why it did not record. It still was a black screen at around 9:30 since that is the time I tried to see what was going on. All other St. Louis OTA was coming in, I'm about 60 miles away from St. Louis.

I did not check signal at that point or restart my box since the damage was done, but there almost had to be something going on at KTVI. If anybody hears what was wrong I would like to know.

This is the last episode of PB for a while isn't it? So I'm sure they will probably repeat it right before it starts back up.

When is Free MPEG-4 Not Free? When it Costs $99

OK, let the grumbling begin in earnest.

The following excerpt is from today's TVPredictions.com. The full story is available via a link at the bottom.
_____________________________________________

If you had a choice, would you pay $99 for DIRECTV's new High-Definition TV system or get it for free?

That may seem like a trick question -- and it is. Let me explain. You might just save $99.

DIRECTV is now offering local HDTV channels in five cities: Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, San Francisco and Atlanta. (Seven more cities will get local HD by year's end -- and many more will be added in 2006.) To receive the local HD channels, however, you must get the new DIRECTV H-20 MPEG4 receiver and the new five LNB dish.

DIRECTV said last September that current HDTV subscribers would get a free upgrade to the new dish and receiver. This was said in response to customer concerns that they would have to buy a brand new system after just shelling out up to $400 for their current one, which can not display the local high-def signals.

However, beginning Saturday, TVPredictions.com began receiving e-mails from readers in the five launch cities complaining that DIRECTV was charging $99 for the new MPEG4 system.

"They (DIRECTV's Customer Service) said they didn't know anything about a free upgrade! But I got an e-mail from them a few months ago that said the upgrade would be free! Can you please help me?!" one reader asked.

DIRECTV confirmed late tonight that it was indeed charging $99 rather than giving it away for free, as expected.

DIRECTV spokesman Robert Mercer said the free upgrade would not happen until the company converted from its current MPEG2 transmission to MPEG4. Mercer said it was unclear when that transfer would happen, but it would likely occur in most cities sometime in 2006. (Although the MPEG4 transition will not occur until later, DIRECTV customers still need the new MPEG4 system to get local HD channels now.)

"We are still planning a free upgrade program, one that will be phased in over time to ensure that customers do not lose their HD programming when the MPEG4 conversions occur," Mercer said. "HD customers who want the new equipment ahead of schedule - before the free upgrade offer in their city is available - can pay a substantially reduced price of $99 for the...dish upgrade and receiver -- including installation - and $99 for each additional receiver."

When asked if the $99 charge was a "bait and switch" because people were led to believe that the upgrade would be free immediately, Mercer said: "We respectfully disagree with those customers (who might say that.)."

So, if you have to pay $99 for the upgrade, how would you get it for free without waiting for the MPEG4 transition?

TVPredictions.com on Monday received several e-mails from readers who said that DIRECTV's Customer Service department waived the $99 charge after they complained and asked to talk to a supervisor.

_____________________________________________

For the full story, click here. (http://www.tvpredictions.com/freeupgrade112805.htm)

No video or audio for FOX 2-1 (Channel 43) last night. SIgnal strength was excellent though.

KSDK 5-1 -- No HD for SURFACE.. HD finally turned on for Vegas.

I don't know if this has any relevance at all to the missing FOX HD signal last night, but I noticed that I was getting hit-and-miss reception on several channels last night.

On KSDK during "Las Vegas" I saw probably a dozen or two dozen momentary breakups. Granted, KSDK is my most difficult station to receive, but since upgrading to the HD-TiVo it's rarely an issue -- I might see one breakup if I'm watching NBC programming for an hour.

More interesting is the fact that I surfed over to the MNF game at one point and was greeted by the "searching for signal" message. The signal eventually locked on, but it was up and down several times in the few minutes that I was watching. KDNL is NEVER a reception problem for me, so maybe this indicates some larger issue that was having an across-the-board effect with several stations.

Sun spot activity?

I don't recall noticing that KTVI was missing last night, but then I didn't specifically check for it.

I'm just curious what kind of receiver you have. Mine is a Sony HD-200, D* receiver.

HD DirectTivo.

DVD in HD Format Gets Murkier as Sony Ditches MPEG-4

CNET is reporting that last week Sony decided to stick with the MPEG-2 codec used in current DVDs when it begins issuing high-definition titles in the Blu-Ray format.

What's probably most interesting about this story, is the statement by Sony that it believes MPEG-2 to be a superior codec to MPEG-4.

An excerpt of the story follows, with a link to the full text at the bottom.

__________________________________________________

As Hollywood readies its new and controversial high-definition DVDs, at least one major studio is leaving some of the most advanced parts of the new disc formats on the table in favor of technology that's more than a decade old.

That could mean disappointment for some of the tech industry's biggest names, particularly if other studios follow suit. Companies such as Microsoft and Apple Computer have been betting that their work on advanced video software formats, called "codecs," will help them sell their own products."

It's a little-known but equally intriguing subchapter in the yearlong fight between Blu-ray and HD DVD, two incompatible hardware technologies for high-definition DVDs, backed, respectively, by consumer-electronics manufacturers Sony and Toshiba.

Video codecs (a contraction of "coder-decoders") are important because they determine what quality of video can be squeezed into a given amount of digital storage space, or can be sent over a DSL or cable television line. The codec is an essential part of a DVD.

Microsoft surprised many two years ago when it submitted its Windows video technology, called VC-1, to technical standards bodies in hopes of seeing it appear on the new DVDs. Other technology giants hold patents in a rival advanced format called MPEG-4 AVC.

Last week, studio giant Sony Pictures quietly voted for "none of the above," and took a swipe at the new codec formats. The new advanced codecs aren't immediately necessary for discs released in Sony's high-capacity Blu-ray format, Sony Pictures executives said in an interview with CNET News.com, and the studio would instead use the 11-year-old MPEG-2 video codec used on today's DVDs.

"Advanced (formats) don't necessarily improve picture quality," said Don Eklund, Sony Pictures' senior vice president of advanced technology. "Our goal is to present the best picture quality for Blu-ray. Right now, and for the foreseeable future, that's with MPEG-2."

None of this alphabet soup of acronyms is likely to mean much to the average consumer. Once the discs come out, it will be a matter of matching a Blu-ray disc with a Blu-ray player, or an HD DVD disc with an HD DVD player. The discs should play as simply as they do today, no matter which underlying video format is being used.

But the studios' decisions could mean a great deal to companies that have invested heavily in creating or supporting the new video technologies. Microsoft has been betting that the adoption of its advanced video format by Hollywood studios, cable networks and satellite TV companies will help Windows-based devices capture a bigger share of the home entertainment market.
__________________________________________________

For the complete story, click here. (http://news.com.com/2102-1025_3-5974348.html?tag=st.util.print)

MyCableNightmare.com

I came across this site from a banner ad on ESPN.com. I almost never click banner ads, but this one, titled MyCableNightmare (with a menacing and blinking jack 'o latern), got the best of my curiosity.

http://www.mycablenightmare.com/

In the interest of fair play, if anyone has a link to a similar site for satellite stories that can be told in hushed tones around a fading campfire, don't hold back and by all means post it here...

In the meantime, here's the reigning top cable horror story:

http://www.mycablenightmare.com/horror_stories/lachania.php

Is fox working yet?
Is it that difficult to flip to HD on NBC?

What is the point of HD equipment if the networks can't get it right?

Is fox working yet?
Is it that difficult to flip to HD on NBC?

What is the point of HD equipment if the networks can't get it right?

FOX seems to be working now. Hopefully they will re-air Prison Break for those of us who missed it. This is the first time I've had problems with them.

There's been a lot of justified complaining about KSDK here recently -- both for tardy or absent switch-flipping and the continually botched Dolby Digital.

But complaining here isn't going to do much good, because as far as I can tell, KSDK does not monitor or care about the discussions involving it here at AVS.

While it might turn out to be just as pointless, the chances of getting KSDK's attention is much better if you write to them directly and let them know that you're not happy.
Granted, it's a long shot, but if it's worth complaining about, it's worth aiming it in the right direction:

jheskett@ksdk.gannett.com
kcreamer@ksdk.gannett.com

I've been thinking it might also be worth targeting some of KSDK's key advertising clients and letting them know that they might want to consider spending their ad dollars where you can reliably watch the HD programming that is scheduled to appear. I think car dealers and banks are probably the best bet. It might also be worth sending eMails to the local ad agencies that are responsible for actually buying advertising slots.

Like radio, television pays more attention to advertisers than listeners/viewers. Viewers are faceless, aggregated numbers, while advertisers regularly send cheques to the finance department.

Advertisers and agencies are always looking for angle to get better rates, and I suspect it would only take a couple of mentions about HD viewer alienation to finally get someone's attention at KSDK.

But I'll be the first to admit these suggested approaches require an awful lot of effort for something that should just happen.

I don't know if anyone else caught it yesterday, but the TV critic who regularly guests on KMOX radio (I believe it's Aaron Barnhart of the Kansas City Star) was talking about some of the major changes that are likely coming to local television across the country.

I'm summarizing here, and because I was in the car I'm recalling all of this from memory; if I get some of this wrong and anyone else heard it, feel free to jump in and correct me where I might be mangling what was said.

The long and short of Barnhart's talk is that local stations are feeling undermined and under threat, because the big networks are slowly but surely loosening the bonds of the network-local relationship.

As a recent example, Barnhart cited the decision by various networks to begin making selected prime-time shows available via iPod or via web downloads for a small fee. In the past, local stations could count on virtually iron-clad exclusivity over viewership for a prime time program, such as "Survivor" or "Lost." But that's no longer the case, and local TV executives are already losing sleep over this.

Barnhart noted that local stations are already fighting back, and one of the ways they're doing this is pre-empting network programming whenever there's an event of immediate local interest, such as severe weather, car chases, kidnappings, etc.

Sound familiar?

According to Barnhart, a local station in KC that recently broke away from "60 Minutes" to cover heavy thunderstorms in the area had ratings that went right through the roof, far beyond what they would have gotten from a normal airing of "60 Minutes."

He also noted that one of the major KC stations had recently purchased the WB affilliate in KC. Barnhart interviewed the station manager of the acquiring station and suggested that in future this would allow the main station to carry on with the prime-time programming while viewers were directed to the WB outlet for the breaking news or weather story.

But to his surprise, the executive told Barnhart that a plan was in motion to buy the cameras and remote units required so that BOTH stations could cover these breaking stories and that they planned to pre-empt network programs for BOTH stations whenever there was something happening that would draw a bigger local audience.

I don't know if that's a deliberate attempt to undermine the networks and their ratings, but it seems like it could turn out that way. But it also seems to me that the more local stations disrupt programs that viewers care about, the more likely those viewers are to seek out the iPod or web downloads of those shows, accelerating the erosion of the local franchise on formerly exclusive programming.

In any event, I think this is a sort of logical breakdown of the network-affilliate system and one that will probably progress toward the disintegration of the system entirely.

In the past, the two main benefits the networks gained from the affilliate system was guaranteed national distribution and access to local news coverage when there was local news of national interest. With cable and satellite in nearly 80% of homes, distribution isn't nearly the hurdle it was 20 years ago. And because of multiple 24-hour news networks, prime-time network news and local coverage is close to irrelevant. In addition, many local stations are doing deals to make real-time breaking news coverage available to one or more of the 24-hour outlets, leaving the networks with retreaded reports.

It seems likely to me that very soon one of the big four networks will completely throw its affilliates under the bus, and convert to national distribution via cable and satellite. The whole basis for local network affilliation is played out, and it seems only a matter of time before the system is thrown overboard for a different sort of model.

That probably means fewer local stations -- and those remaining will probably look a lot more like WRBU than KMOV.

I've been thinking it might also be worth targeting some of KSDK's key advertising clients and letting them know that they might want to consider spending their ad dollars where you can reliably watch the HD programming that is scheduled to appear. I think car dealers and banks are probably the best bet. It might also be worth sending eMails to the local ad agencies that are responsible for actually buying advertising slots.


It seems like the best concentrated effort should go towards Ultimate Electronics. They dump a lot of advertising money in KSDK and promote the hell out of HD when in the end it is one of the worst HD efforts in St. Louis. If we all concentrate on UE as our targeted advertiser, I think we would best be heard going that route. Here are contacts for UE.

Phone: (303)412-2500
Fax: (303)412-2501
Mail: Customer Care
c/o Ultimate Electronics
321 West 84th Ave Suite A
Thornton, CO 80260

Contact Title: Director of Investor Relations
E-mail: shareholder@ulte.com

Rich,

That's a fantastic idea -- I hadn't noticed that UE was advertising regularly on KSDK, but in view of the parade event, that makes perfect sense.

I'll definitely get a note off to the UE contacts.

Anybody else not receiving an OTA signal for FOX right now? My receiver shows good signal strength, but no show!

Watched PRISON BREAK on about a 20 min delay over my MOXI box. There were three times I counted when the picture froze for about 3 seconds, then continued on. Other than that it was great.

I won't spoil the ending. But some friends at work and I were discussing how they would be able to do a second season. New prison? New inmates? They answer that (grrrrrr!) in the final episode.

-Hanjke

I don't know if anyone else caught it yesterday, but the TV critic who regularly guests on KMOX radio (I believe it's Aaron Barnhart of the Kansas City Star) was talking about some of the major changes that are likely coming to local television across the country.

I'm summarizing here, and because I was in the car I'm recalling all of this from memory; if I get some of this wrong and anyone else heard it, feel free to jump in and correct me where I might be mangling what was said.

The long and short of Barnhart's talk is that local stations are feeling undermined and under threat, because the big networks are slowly but surely loosening the bonds of the network-local relationship.

As a recent example, Barnhart cited the decision by various networks to begin making selected prime-time shows available via iPod or via web downloads for a small fee. In the past, local stations could count on virtually iron-clad exclusivity over viewership for a prime time program, such as "Survivor" or "Lost." But that's no longer the case, and local TV executives are already losing sleep over this.

Barnhart noted that local stations are already fighting back, and one of the ways they're doing this is pre-empting network programming whenever there's an event of immediate local interest, such as severe weather, car chases, kidnappings, etc.

Sound familiar?

According to Barnhart, a local station in KC that recently broke away from "60 Minutes" to cover heavy thunderstorms in the area had ratings that went right through the roof, far beyond what they would have gotten from a normal airing of "60 Minutes."

He also noted that one of the major KC stations had recently purchased the WB affilliate in KC. Barnhart interviewed the station manager of the acquiring station and suggested that in future this would allow the main station to carry on with the prime-time programming while viewers were directed to the WB outlet for the breaking news or weather story.

But to his surprise, the executive told Barnhart that a plan was in motion to buy the cameras and remote units required so that BOTH stations could cover these breaking stories and that they planned to pre-empt network programs for BOTH stations whenever there was something happening that would draw a bigger local audience.

I don't know if that's a deliberate attempt to undermine the networks and their ratings, but it seems like it could turn out that way. But it also seems to me that the more local stations disrupt programs that viewers care about, the more likely those viewers are to seek out the iPod or web downloads of those shows, accelerating the erosion of the local franchise on formerly exclusive programming.

In any event, I think this is a sort of logical breakdown of the network-affilliate system and one that will probably progress toward the disintegration of the system entirely.

In the past, the two main benefits the networks gained from the affilliate system was guaranteed national distribution and access to local news coverage when there was local news of national interest. With cable and satellite in nearly 80% of homes, distribution isn't nearly the hurdle it was 20 years ago. And because of multiple 24-hour news networks, prime-time network news and local coverage is close to irrelevant. In addition, many local stations are doing deals to make real-time breaking news coverage available to one or more of the 24-hour outlets, leaving the networks with retreaded reports.

It seems likely to me that very soon one of the big four networks will completely throw its affilliates under the bus, and convert to national distribution via cable and satellite. The whole basis for local network affilliation is played out, and it seems only a matter of time before the system is thrown overboard for a different sort of model.

That probably means fewer local stations -- and those remaining will probably look a lot more like WRBU than KMOV.

Thanks for the info: very interesting.

FWIW, here's the letter that I sent to Ultimate Electronics.

I did this via the web site, as I was trying to find an address for the sales and marketing department, rather than customer service.

In the end, I was only able to come up with a customer service link, but headed my message to the attention of the sales/marketing VP. I'd suggest that we might have a better chance of getting the attention of the right person if anyone else corresponding with UE does the same.
____________________________________________

Attn: Vice President of Sales & Marketing

I'm writing with a two-fold purpose: One, to make you aware of a St. Louis advertising relationship that may not be as beneficial as it could or should be; and two, to enlist your company's assistance in addrssing some deficiencies in how one of the local St. Louis stations handles its HDTV broadcasts.

In fact, these two purposes are tied directly together, so acting on one will effectively address the other as well.

I live in the St. Louis area and have noted recently that Ultimate Electronics has been doing more television advertising. This is a good thing because it brings more attention to the products you're featuring, as well as raising awareness of home theater, which is beneficial to my own business as an ISF video calibrator.

In fact, Ultimate Electronics recently sponsored the first local, live, non-sporting event in high-definition, working with local station KSDK to present the downtown St. Louis Thanksgiving parade in HD. That was a great promotion and I want to thank you for making that effort and underwriting the costs of that presentation.

But there's also a problem here that you should be aware of, namely that KSDK has a very poor reputation in the St. Louis market among early HDTV adopters, due to the lackadaisical way it manages its HDTV broadcasts.

There are really two main issues with KSDK and HD broadcasting:

* First, the station engineers often forget to "flip the switch" between the standard-defintion feed to the HDTV feed, when a program is coming from the NBC network in HD.

For example, just last night the engineer on duty failed to select the HD feed for the episode of of "Surface," though later in the evening it made the switch to HD for "Las Vegas." I would estimate that this happens an average of two to three times a week.

Also, on those occasions where it does provide the HD feed from the beginning of the program, the station abruptly switches away from the HD feed before the end of some of its programs. This usually occurs at the end of prime time, with the last 10 or 20 seconds of the 9 pm program reverting to upconverted NTSC.

* Second, although KSDK has installed the equipment necessary to provide Dolby Digital 5.1 sound when the NBC network provides progrmaming with a DD 5.1 soundtrack, for reasons unknown, 5.1 sound is never passed along to KSDK-DT viewers.

That's bad enough, but sometimes there's no center channel -- and therefore no dialogue.

Repeated eMails to KSDK station management about both of these issues have had no effect. Obviously as an enthusiastic home theater owner, this is extremely frustrating.

But I think this should also be a major concern to Ultimate Electronics as an important advertiser on KSDK.

When KSDK fails to switch to the HD version of a prime-time program, or when they repeatedly drop the ball on the audio side, these are effectively missed opportunities for Ultiamte Electronics to fully showcase the products you're selling.

As you well know, many home theater-related sales originate from neighbors and buddies visiting a home-theater-owning friend and deciding that they need the same sort of home entertainment system in their home. But when an HD program isn't shown when it should be, or the sound is messed up, that translates to a squandered sales lede that will not be easily recaptured.

I think Ultimate Electronics is in a unique position to apply constructive pressure to KSDK and how it manages its HDTV broadcasts. As an advertiser with a vested interest in HD broadcasting, you swing a big hammer -- much, much bigger than one or even a dozen viewer eMails can muster.

Thank you for your time and attention. I'd be happy to speak with you if you need more specific details regarding KSDK's HD broadcast track record. I can be reached on my eMail address or by phone at (314) 495-2993.

Regards,

Douglas R. Weil
2661 North Illinois Street
#153
Swansea, IL 62226
____________________________________________

I just got done checking out the Prison Break recording on the HTPC last night. No problema. And yes, this was the last new episode til MAY.... cause 24 is reclaiming that time slot in January.

I think Prison Break is coming back in March.

I guess whatever FOX changed last night only affected some receivers. Anyway, I guess they reverted back to previous settings. Of course, I doubt I will know for sure as I believe my emails to FOX wil remain unanswered.

Doug: That's a very well written email.

MyCableNightmare.com

I came across this site from a banner ad on ESPN.com. I almost never click banner ads, but this one, titled MyCableNightmare (with a menacing and blinking jack 'o latern), got the best of my curiosity.

http://www.mycablenightmare.com/

In the interest of fair play, if anyone has a link to a similar site for satellite stories that can be told in hushed tones around a fading campfire, don't hold back and by all means post it here...

In the meantime, here's the reigning top cable horror story:

http://www.mycablenightmare.com/horror_stories/lachania.php

I recall seeing a story a few years back about a woman who ordered high speed internet without cable TV, yet got the TV anyway. After some time of reminding the company she only wanted high speed internet, the cable company sued her for stealing their signal. She wound up winning in the end, but you can imagine the time and expense involved.

HD Sports question:

Why is it that I almost never see a NBA game in HD? Every time I flip over to ESPN-HD when there is an NBA game on it always has the ugly side bars and no HD. Every other major sports seems to be embracing HD...why not the NBA?

(I hope posting this here is okay. I posted it in another forum on AVSForum but I got only 29 views and absolutely no responses over several days. This thread has always been full of knowledgeable, helpful people, so here goes!)

I have a Panasonic EDTV, and for the couple of months after I purchased it I used a component cable to connect my cable box/HD receiver to the TV. I had no problems at all with this connection, but once I got my new Xbox 360 (woohoo!) I ran out of component inputs on the TV. To accommodate this change, I bought a DVI-D to HDMI cable to use my TV's HDMI input. This cable now runs from my cable box's DVI-D output to my TV's HDMI input.

Well, soon after I bought this cable I went to my parents' home for several days for Thanksgiving. When I came back to my apartment and turned on my TV and I see a bunch of snow (instead of ESPN, like I expected). It DID still have the sound, however. I turned off the cable box and turned it right back on, and the snow problem disappeared and everything appeared to be back to normal.

Well, today I was watching some more ESPN, and on two occasions, the picture turned into snow. Once again, the audio remained the same, and when the picture turned snowy, it was only snowy for a couple of seconds at a time.

Is this a problem with my DVI-D to HDMI cable? Could it be that I have a loose connection somewhere (doubt it, since I already checked)? Do I just need a BETTER DVI-D to HDMI cable?

And an update: it seems that everytime I watch ESPN, I get the snowy effect at least once for a few seconds. It doesn't seem to be happening on other channels.

goodrev,

From your description, I doubt this is a connection problem, or least it's unlikely that it's a DVI/HDMI problem. Have you tried falling back to your component video connection for cable to determine for certain that the problem only happens with DVI/HDMI?

I'd guess that you are losing cable signal strength somewhere outside/inside your home and need to schedule to have someone come out and test your cable connection.

FWIW, I've worked on a couple of the current model Panasonic plasmas and found that the overscan is a mess when you use HDMI/DVI, with the left edge at 0% and the right at 6%, with no way to get the picture centered. I doubt this has anything to do with your "snow" issue, but it's worth knowing about in the event you see the left side of the picture not filling the entire screen area.

Note this only appears to be an issue with the consumer models and the commercial versions don't have the problem and also have overscan adjustments available.

Doug: That's a very well written email.

Ditto. I know at one point we had a member that was able to get an article written for the Post as well. With TV's being a hot Christmas item, I would think there would be some articles being written mentioning local network content in HD. You'd hope with the right contacts we'd be able to get a sentence or two or a quote in there chastising KSDK.

Every other major sports seems to be embracing HD...why not the NBA?

I have to disagree with your characterization here--there is a NBA TV channel that has a large slate of games in HD, and a lot of the RSNs show NBA games in HD. So the missing link is the national games (although it seems to get better outside of football season). They either wanted to charge ESPN extra or ESPN just doesn't have or doesn't want to expend the resources on it as much as some other sports.

Of course, this is ignoring TNT HD which I don't have, so they really have the national covered as well.

Ditto. I know at one point we had a member that was able to get an article written for the Post as well. With TV's being a hot Christmas item, I would think there would be some articles being written mentioning local network content in HD. You'd hope with the right contacts we'd be able to get a sentence or two or a quote in there chastising KSDK.

You'd think that KSDK doesn't care. At one point I received a response from KSDK promising to forward my complaints about HD audio to engineering. Never happened.

I still have to switch from DD PLIIx processing to DD 5.1 to get center channel audio, and then it decodes as DD 3.0. I've pretty much given up on KSDK and have stopped watching it anyway.

You'd think that KSDK doesn't care. At one point I received a response from KSDK promising to forward my complaints about HD audio to engineering. Never happened.

I still have to switch from DD PLIIx processing to DD 5.1 to get center channel audio, and then it decodes as DD 3.0. I've pretty much given up on KSDK and have stopped watching it anyway.

From what we've seen of ignored e-mails, the complaints were probably forwarded on--and ignored.

Once in a while there is something I'd like to watch on NBC--sports, the parade, Medium in 3D, local news (when/if in HD), the Winter Olympics coming up (although hopefully Universal HD will pick up some of the slack on that). I'd watch it more if the issues were addressed for other things as well. I think there is more we can do before giving up. We haven't had a organized effort yet . . . Doug is definitely on the right track.

On the NBA, I'm not sure why none of the ESPN games are in HD, but as turls suggests this could very well be a contractual issue.

I think it's also possible that there's just not a lot of interest in the NBA until the season moves closer to playoff time. For example, FOX limits its HD baseball coverage to the All-Star Game and the Playoffs, with no regular season games shown in HD.

Of course, ESPN has a couple of HD baseball games on per week (with that number likely to increase in 2006), but as a full-time sports network and not a lot of other competing summer sports available, ESPN needs to do regular season baseball to be able to justify its overall HD effort.

It is interesting that there has been a handful of HD college basketball already this season (including last night's Illinois-North Carolina game), so again there's either a contractual issue/conflict with the NBA/NBA Channel or ESPN has the NBA lower in its overall pecking order.

I would guess that college basketball holds the whip hand over the NBA in terms of ratings.

From what we've seen of ignored e-mails, the complaints were probably forwarded on--and ignored.

Once in a while there is something I'd like to watch on NBC--sports, the parade, Medium in 3D, local news (when/if in HD), the Winter Olympics coming up (although hopefully Universal HD will pick up some of the slack on that). I'd watch it more if the issues were addressed for other things as well. I think there is more we can do before giving up. We haven't had a organized effort yet . . . Doug is definitely on the right track.

Honestly, I've gotten used to not watching KSDK anymore, and find there's nothing on it I miss.

I'd like to watch the Olympics, but coverage for that has gotten so bad previously I feel lucky if I happen to catch any actual competition, other than skating, and it would be a bloddy miracle to get to see an entire event without being cutoff to hear someone drone on about some athelete's poor extended family in Nigeria.

I see KDSK got things straightened out for the Tonight Show last night. It had Dolby audio but SD picture... nice....

HD Sports question:

Why is it that I almost never see a NBA game in HD? Every time I flip over to ESPN-HD when there is an NBA game on it always has the ugly side bars and no HD. Every other major sports seems to be embracing HD...why not the NBA?

My perception is that minimum of 30% of the programming on ESPN HD isn’t HD. Poker, Billiards, Basketball, etc… Did I see it hear that DirectTV was going to start carrying ESPN HD2? Why do they need an additional channel when a significant portion of their programming on the original is SD?

wally,

DirecTV has been carrying ESPN2 HD for a couple of months now on channel 72.

The primary benefit of having two ESPN HD channels is that it allows for simultaneous HD broadcasts. This happens only very occasionally now, most commonly with college football because of the fact that most games are played in a 36-hour weekend window. But this will become more and more beneficial over time.

Another example of this is when the NFL season starts in August and in the past this bumped the Sunday night national baseball game to ESPN2. This year, because DirecTV added ESPN2-HD, these games were available in HD.

Personally, I don't get the widespread criticism ESPN gets for having two HD outlets. Give these guys credit, they're doing MORE HD programming than all other national networks combined.

I think bit of slack is way overdue here...

My perception is that minimum of 30% of the programming on ESPN HD isn’t HD. Poker, Billiards, Basketball, etc… Did I see it hear that DirectTV was going to start carrying ESPN HD2? Why do they need an additional channel when a significant portion of their programming on the original is SD?

D* has had the second HD ESPN for a while now. Can't say whether it's worhwhile. I never watch it, but I hardly watch ESPN HD either. But then I'm mostly a Baseball and Motorsports fan.

I'm waiting for SPEED HD. :)

The problem is that are a limited number of HD trucks available and most of those are busy with college football and college basketball. I'd bet in the next couple of weeks as CFB winds down we'll see the NBA in HD. I remember watching many HD NBA games on ESPN last season.

As for ESPN2HD, D* has been carrying that for a couple of months now. I watch it mainly for some extra CFB in HD. Now an interesting thing I noticed is that ESPN2HD is showing rodeo in HD, the same day (Dec 7) ESPN is showing an NBA game in SD. To me that is baffling.

I want to buy my fiance a new TV for her birthday, which is in two weeks.

(In a Dr. Evil voice) Riiiiiiiiggggghhhhhhhttttttt....

I want to buy my fiance a new Infiniti G35 coupe...which she can use now, but when we get married...it'll be my primary car...until I get something better.

Sorry...I was trying to catch up in the forum and I thought this sounded a little funny. I mean no disrespect. :)

I really do want to get her a TV. We're going to need one in the livnig room. Currently, my big 55'' Sony is going to fine in the famliy room.

The problem is that nothing any good will fit in her damn cabinet.

The problem is that nothing any good will fit in her damn cabinet.

There are SO many comments to be made on that...

Have Moxi w/mate through Charter and, from out of nowhere, the Jukebox, Photo Album and Games were part of my menu as of today. We'll see how long that lasts.

FLASH: Blues in HD on Charter/FSN Midwest Thursday

I just received the following eMail from Geoff Goldman at FOX Sports Midwest:

_________________________________________________

Doug,

I’m happy to report that Fox Sports Net Midwest will (finally) deliver its first HD telecast tomorrow (Thursday, Dec. 1) when the St. Louis Blues host Columbus in NHL action. Tomorrow’s HD telecast will be available on Charter only in the St. Louis area (Charter channel 792). If all goes well tomorrow, we’ll be doing several more Blues games in HD this season. I’ll get the schedule to you once it’s confirmed. More details below.


BLUES IN HD

FSN MIDWEST TELECAST OF BLUES-BLUE JACKETS AVAILABLE IN HD

Charter Communications To Carry HD Telecast In St. Louis Area

FSN Midwest will telecast its first St. Louis Blues game in High-Definition on Thursday, Dec. 1, when the Blues host the Columbus Blue Jackets. It’s FSN Midwest’s first ever HD production.

Sports fans in St. Louis will be able to see FSN Midwest HD telecasts via Charter Communications. FSN Midwest programming, including Thursday’s Blues game, is presented in the Standard Definition format on Charter Communications channel 37. HD telecasts will be simulcast on channel 792, and may be viewed by those customers with an HDTV set and HD digital converter. Customers must also subscribe to Charter's HD service.
_________________________________________________

FLASH: Blues in HD on Charter/FSN Midwest Thursday

That's a good start, I wonder if/when it will reach D* :(

That is great.... but, I won't believe it until I see it. They said the same things with the Cards this spring.

FLASH: Blues in HD on Charter/FSN Midwest Thursday

I just received the following eMail from Geoff Goldman at FOX Sports Midwest:

_________________________________________________

Doug,

I’m happy to report that Fox Sports Net Midwest will (finally) deliver its first HD telecast tomorrow (Thursday, Dec. 1) when the St. Louis Blues host Columbus in NHL action. Tomorrow’s HD telecast will be available on Charter only in the St. Louis area (Charter channel 792). If all goes well tomorrow, we’ll be doing several more Blues games in HD this season. I’ll get the schedule to you once it’s confirmed. More details below.


BLUES IN HD

FSN MIDWEST TELECAST OF BLUES-BLUE JACKETS AVAILABLE IN HD

Charter Communications To Carry HD Telecast In St. Louis Area

FSN Midwest will telecast its first St. Louis Blues game in High-Definition on Thursday, Dec. 1, when the Blues host the Columbus Blue Jackets. It’s FSN Midwest’s first ever HD production.

Sports fans in St. Louis will be able to see FSN Midwest HD telecasts via Charter Communications. FSN Midwest programming, including Thursday’s Blues game, is presented in the Standard Definition format on Charter Communications channel 37. HD telecasts will be simulcast on channel 792, and may be viewed by those customers with an HDTV set and HD digital converter. Customers must also subscribe to Charter's HD service.
_________________________________________________

I wonder if you need the regular HD service or the extended $3.99 HD service (HDnet, HDnetmovies, ESPN, Discovery HD)? This would be the incentive to upgrade if you don't already have it.

That is great.... but, I won't believe it until I see it. They said the same things with the Cards this spring.

I think this may be different - I never saw anything as concrete as this with the Cardinals.

Good news!!!

I think this may be different - I never saw anything as concrete as this with the Cardinals.

Good news!!!

Yeah, I noticed that there was a new channel 792 this morning, but with a "TBA/No Data Available" tag this morning.

Nice to see that it will be FSN-HD!

It's actually been there for quite some time. And, I'm not so sure that it will be dedicated to FSN-HD. I think it is a "catch all" channel for special HD programming. There is no sense in FSN-HD it's own HD channel as it has VERY little HD programming.

Bruce,

If you remember correctly (I think), they had it on their website as well as promoted it during live games.

Tim

It's actually been there for quite some time. And, I'm not so sure that it will be dedicated to FSN-HD. I think it is a "catch all" channel for special HD programming. There is no sense in FSN-HD it's own HD channel as it has VERY little HD programming.

That's actually 791 that's been there for a while. I think 791 is used for PPV HD events.

I had a feeling that dumping Charter might come back to bite me in the butt. Hopefully E* will pick it up soon, but I'm not going to hold my breath. I will be e-mailing them tonight, however.

As Judge Smails once said ..... "DAMN!"

I think I feel worse for Bruce. Having to leave just as the Blues are heading to HD. Crummy hockey is crummy hockey, but at least it'll LOOK good!

FWIW, I think the FSN-HD baseball snafu was a result of the promotion guys getting ahead of the guys who were negotiating for distribution with Charter and others.

I think the fact that this information is coming from the PR side and is based on press release is reason enough to be 98% confident that the Blues will be in HD tomorrow night.

Also (FWIW), I recall sending Geoff a couple of notes toward the middle and end of the baseball season that went unanswered, presumably because he didn't have anything new to tell me from the previous times I had checked in with him. The note I received this afternoon was completely unsolicited, so I think that's a different sort of situation than if I had eMailed him this morning about this and gotten a note back this afternoon that said, "Right -- tomorrow." :D

goodrev05,

FWIW, I was on the phone with Charter today regarding a Pipeline outage. During the recorded message of know issues, I recall hearing of widespread issues with ESPN and snowy picture/no picture with audio issues.
Don't know if it applies to your area, or if you have Charter, I think you said you reset your "cable" box.

BTW, for any interested, the tech told me Pipeline will shortly be available in MO is 5mb. They've completed most of the upgrades in MN and MO is supposed to be next. 3mb is already 49.95, I can just imagine what they'll charge for 5mb.

Personally, I don't get the widespread criticism ESPN gets for having two HD outlets. Give these guys credit, they're doing MORE HD programming than all other national networks combined.

I’m not being critical of the second channel. I can buy into the simultaneous events thing I guess. My issue is that if there is enough programming to warrant ESPN HD2, why not plug SD holes on ESPN HD first.

But then I'm mostly a Baseball and Motorsports fan.

Yup. I didn't have my set in time to catch any of the FOX NASCAR races. How many days till Daytona?!

Yup. I didn't have my set in time to catch any of the FOX NASCAR races. How many days till Daytona?!

Guess I should have been more explicit. I'm a fan of Motorsports that has both kinds of turns. :D I just can't get into watching cars go around in circles for hours on end (i.e. NASCAR, IRL). I've tried and it just doesn't do it for me. I can sit thru a little bit of IRL since I like open wheel racing (F1, Champ, etc) but I really can't stand NASCAR. It bores me to tears and the cars aren't at all interesting to look at.

The Daytona 500 is in February and I know that because it's a few weeks after the Rolex Sports Car Series 24 Hours at Daytona.

Doug, that's exciting news on FSN HD. Your information you bring to this forum is very much appreciated.

I sure hope Directv decides to carry FSN-HD soon. I won't hold my breath though.

goodrev05,

BTW, for any interested, the tech told me Pipeline will shortly be available in MO is 5mb. They've completed most of the upgrades in MN and MO is supposed to be next. 3mb is already 49.95, I can just imagine what they'll charge for 5mb.


Actually I have had 5mb service with Charter since Mid May. It went live May 16. I pay 49.95 for it. I was paying 39.95 for 3mb. They had a deal for 3mb for 29 if you did auto pay and agreed to 12 months of service.

Doug, that's exciting news on FSN HD. Your information you bring to this forum is very much appreciated.

I sure hope Directv decides to carry FSN-HD soon. I won't hold my breath though.

And as much as I hate Charter, if DirecTV cannot offer this, and FSN-HD can offer a slate of all home games (or some significant number of games) in HD, I may have to switch.

The enthusiasm for the Blues here is the only thing good about the Blues this year. Are you guys hockey fans or HD fans. The way the team is headed this year I'd say HD fans.

It is an addiction.....help us....

I work part time at Savvis as a bartender and walk pass where the trucks are parked under the arena. I can't check in here until after the game but will let you know what HD truck is down there.

Hopefully some Blues in HD means a lot of HD Cardinals in 2006 from FSN-MW.

Yes, the Blues suck. Between the strike last year and attendence being down 50% this season, my wallet is taking a beating.

The enthusiasm for the Blues here is the only thing good about the Blues this year. Are you guys hockey fans or HD fans. The way the team is headed this year I'd say HD fans.

It is an addiction.....help us....

LOL, has to be the HD. I'm not a big Blues fan so I don't bleed blue, though I do bleed blue green red so I may check it out.

I think Winston's point about Charter exclusivity is right on the mark.

For this very reason, Charter should have been slobbering all over itself last spring when FSN approached them about the Cardinal baseball games in HD. Having local HD sports content, especially something as focal as the Cardinals are in St. Louis, when your satellite competition does not (and probably won't for some time due to bandwidth issues) is a perfect situation to woo high-revenue satellite customers back to Charter.

Sure, some defectors might bail out again when DISH or DirecTV are in a position to add FSN in HD, but it's an opportunity nonetheless.

I guess it took Charter's new $4 million CEO to figure this out -- several months later...

Looks like the game is going to be on DirecTV channel 95 tonight in HD. Blue Jackets vs. Blues at 7pm in my schedule guide. Sorry Charter! It's nice that DirecTV has an agreement with FSN owned and operated nets to show the game in HD.

Looks like the game is going to be on DirecTV channel 95 tonight in HD. Blue Jackets vs. Blues at 7pm in my schedule guide. Sorry Charter! It's nice that DirecTV has an agreement with FSN owned and operated nets to show the game in HD.Ahhhh, the sweet smell of free market competition...

FSMW-HD / Charter

Channel 792 is now in my Channel List. 791 has always been there for HD Events like boxing, etc. So this appears to possibly be FSMW's exclusive channel. Woohoo!

Looks like the game is going to be on DirecTV channel 95 tonight in HD. Blue Jackets vs. Blues at 7pm in my schedule guide. Sorry Charter! It's nice that DirecTV has an agreement with FSN owned and operated nets to show the game in HD.
That's great news, I can't wait to get home and check it out.

I recall seeing a story a few years back about a woman who ordered high speed internet without cable TV, yet got the TV anyway. After some time of reminding the company she only wanted high speed internet, the cable company sued her for stealing their signal.
You may be remembering the wonderful Get a Cable Modem......Go to Jail site which tells a great story and is still up and running at http://www.geocities.com/flutocracy/cablemodem.htm

wow, HD Blues game tonight, looks like I picked the perfect day to rejoin this thread!

This might be interesting and worth bookmarking:

http://msn.foxsports.com/name/HD

Looks like the game is going to be on DirecTV channel 95 tonight in HD. Blue Jackets vs. Blues at 7pm in my schedule guide. Sorry Charter! It's nice that DirecTV has an agreement with FSN owned and operated nets to show the game in HD.

Methinks it's time to take a serious look at DirecTV. I did send E* an e-mail last night asking when they would start carrying FSMW-HD and letting them know that they've been beaten to the punch by Charter. Having D* carry the games also gives me even more ammo.

Just to clarify, the HD Blues game on D* isn't part of the Center Ice package is it?

From the following link on the Blues official website:
http://stlblues.com/news/0506/051201.html
Blues In HD
FSN Midwest Telecast Of Blues-Blue Jackets Available In HD
Charter Communications To Carry HD Telecast In St. Louis Area

FSN Midwest will telecast its first St. Louis Blues game in High-Definition on Thursday, Dec. 1, when the Blues host the Columbus Blue Jackets. It’s FSN Midwest’s first ever HD production.

Sports fans in St. Louis will be able to see FSN Midwest HD telecasts via Charter Communications. FSN Midwest programming, including Thursday’s Blues game, is presented in the Standard Definition format on Charter Communications channel 37. HD telecasts will be simulcast on channel 792, and may be viewed by those customers with an HDTV set and HD digital converter. Customers must also subscribe to Charter's HD service.


FSN Midwest/Charter Cable
St. Louis Blues HD Games Schedule
Schedule subject to change | Games subject to availability | All times central

Thursday, Dec. 1 7 p.m. Columbus at Blues
Thursday, Dec. 8 6:30 p.m. Blues at Tampa Bay
Tuesday, Dec. 20 8 p.m. Blues at Phoenix
Thursday, Dec. 29 7:30 p.m. Blues at Dallas
Thursday, Jan. 12 6 p.m. Blues at Florida
Thursday, Jan. 26 7 p.m. Phoenix at Blues
Thursday, March 16 9:30 p.m. Blues at San Jose
Friday, March 31 7 p.m. Columbus at Blues

http://www.stlouisblues.com/news/0506/051201.html

Here is a link from the Blues website about future HD televised HD games on FSN-HD.

Guess I should have been more explicit. I'm a fan of Motorsports that has both kinds of turns.

Guess drag racing is just out then :D

I wasn't that into NASCAR until I saw a Busch Series race at Gateway.

Guess drag racing is just out then :D

I wasn't that into NASCAR until I saw a Busch Series race at Gateway.

Yeah, I guess I don't watch that either. Soe of my favorites: Formula 1, WRC, Rolex SC Series, GrandAm, ALMS, LMES, Champ Car.

DirecTV question for those of you that have it. Do any of you have the HD DVR system? Right now, D*'s best offer online is for $499. (E*'s "deal" for their HD-DVR for existing customers is ONLY $798) Has there been speculation as to what the new deal will be when the MPEG4 rollout happens in St. Louis? I had heard that they were already rolling it out in select cities. In both instances, that's a pretty serious outlay of cash.

On another note, I did e-mail E* last night and below is our correspondence so far:

from me:
It is being reported that FSN-HD will debut in St. Louis by broadcasting the Blues-Blue Jackets NHL hockey game tomorrow night in High Def. Locally, it will only be available on Charter Cable. As a long time Dish Network customer, this disappoints me to see a cable outlet outpacing Dish Network in High Def programming. When can we expect to see FSN-HD on the Dish?

Thanks in advance for your time.
____________________________

from them:
Thank you for your email. Specific information regarding your request for FSN Midwest in HD is not currently available. We would like to add that channel, to make viewers like you happy, but we do not know if or when this will happen. We will gladly forward your request to our Programming Department for further consideration.

We thank you for your input as we continually review our options in order to provide a compelling lineup for our viewers. Please stay tuned for consumer Charlie Chats...blah, blah, blah
____________________________

from me:
FYI, I found out today that DirecTV is also going to be carrying FSN Midwest-HD games (on channel 95), which leaves Dish Network as the ONLY outlet not carrying it in the St. Louis market. Again, as a long time Dish Network customer, this is very disappointing and certainly makes those outlets more attractive not just to me, but to the St. Louis HD community.
____________________________

I don't see this going anywhere, but trying at least makes me feel a little better. 100% of the questions you don't ask don't get answered.

Do you need the DirecTV HD package to see Blues in HD? We don't have the 3-LNB dish installed anyway, but I'm curious if I did. :)

Need help. My Moxi's timer seems to be off by about 30 second. I was taping "Lost" when half way through my Moxi decided to reboot it's self. That wasted a good 5 minutes. When I watched the tape later on, I noticed it didn't start right away. On looking at other shows I noticed they were starting late as well. Has anyone had this problem? Is this a Charter problem or a Moxi problem. Also, my Charter bill indicated an increase from 6.99 to 11.99 for December.

I'd love some more info or clarification on the DirecTV issue regarding the Blues in HD.

I could not possibly care less about the Blues, but the possibility of Cardinals games being in HD in the future is very important to me.

What's the deal w/ DirecTV doing this game in HD? A one-tme only deal, or will all Charter games in HD also be in HD on DirecTV? Is this only for Center Ice subscibers?

I assume we won't know many of these answers until the game has aired. But, I'd love to know them for the future.

Thanks!

Anyone else not getting sound on the FSN HD channel?

Winston,

After the All-Star game last year, DirecTV added some HD baseball to the MLB Extra Innings package and the HD broadcasts of these games were slotted into the high 90s channels, in a fashion similar to what's supposedly happening with tonight's Blues game.

Many of these HD baseball games were from the regional FOX Sports Nets that were doing HD at that point, and others were from other regional non-FOX sports outlets, such as YES and NESN.

I'm not entirely clear if these HD games would have been available locally (without a MLB EI subscription) if FSN Midwest had been doing HD Cards games at that point. I would think they would be -- if you were subscribing to the DirecTV HD package and you were receiving the SD FSN Midwest channel. But that's just a guess at this point...

I'm sure that DirecTV is eager to add regional sports in HD, and I would guess that these would be added as MPEG-4 channels, particularly if it's going to happen in time for the 2006 baseball season. But again, that's just another (maybe educated, maybe not) guess.

Sound is back...!!!!!

Anyone else not getting sound on the FSN HD channel?

Ok, fixed now it seems...

I received an eMail this afternoon from Geoff Goldman at FSN Midwest to encourage me to pass along any feedback that I hear about the Blues HD broadcast this evening.

Geoff said he and others at FSN Midwest would also be checking in here at AVS to monitor the reaction of the "HD diehards."

So, I encourage my fellow diehards to post your impressions -- both positive and negative, so that the guys and gals at FSN know what you like and don't like about their inaugural HD broadcast. Try to cut them a little slack if things don't go perfectly, but do point out any problems that you see...

It would probably be helpful for you to note whether you're watching the game on Charter, DirecTV (or both), in the event there are distinct issues on one side or the other.

I get the sense that the guys at FSN are just as eager to see the Blues in HD as we are.

Game On! DirecTV Ch 95

It is nice they fixed the sound before the game actually started. The picture on the goalie zoom before the face off was a little grainy. It would be nice to have all the cameras HD since the face off was definitely not.

Other than a lot of empty seats it looks fine. Hopefully they will build on this. :)

I'm not getting the Blues on DirecTV 95.

Anyone else having that problem?

I'm not getting the Blues on DirecTV 95.

Anyone else having that problem?


No, its coming in fine for me.

I received an eMail this afternoon from Geoff Goldman at FSN Midwest to encourage me to pass along any feedback that I hear about the Blues HD broadcast this evening.

...

I get the sense that the guys at FSN are just as eager to see the Blues in HD as we are.

Tell them it looks great. It was a pleasant surprise. Hopefully the future dates listed will also be on D* as it is tonight.

I received an eMail this afternoon from Geoff Goldman at FSN Midwest to encourage me to pass along any feedback that I hear about the Blues HD broadcast this evening.

Geoff said he and others at FSN Midwest would also be checking in here at AVS to monitor the reaction of the "HD diehards."

So, I encourage my fellow diehards to post your impressions -- both positive and negative, so that the guys and gals at FSN know what you like and don't like about their inaugural HD broadcast. Try to cut them a little slack if things don't go perfectly, but do point out any problems that you see...

It would probably be helpful for you to note whether you're watching the game on Charter, DirecTV (or both), in the event there are distinct issues on one side or the other.

I get the sense that the guys at FSN are just as eager to see the Blues in HD as we are.


Watching on Charter and the picture looks great. They got the sound issue resolved early, and I haven't seen any major glitches since.

Do you know if they will be using this channel as a clearinghouse for other HD programming? Seems like the perfect place to show other high def, considering FSN Midwest probably doesn't have any other HD stuff other than Blues games. I know that the INHD channels are used in San Diego by Cox to show other HD programming, such as stuff from the NFL Network, NBATV, CSTV, etc.

One, I am very thankful to FSMW for adding HD to our Charter lineup. Thanks again.

However, I do have a gripe. Not every camera angle they are using is HD, so when they switch between camera angles during the game the picture is going between HD in Widescreen and SD with bars - its a little irritating.

The picture is definitely making me watch Blues for the first time this year. Keep this up and I will be making an effort to watch.

FWIW, my problem with not receiving the game on DirecTV channel 95 has been resolved.

It required resetting my HD-TiVo...

What I've seen so far looks very good.

Subject: RE: Standard vs HD broadcast of Surface
Date: Tue, 29 Nov 2005 11:15:30 -0600
From: "Hummert, Dave" <DHUMMERT@ksdk.gannett.com>
To: "Not Disclosed" < >
Thank you for your inquiry regarding the HD broadcast of Surface. Last Night November 28, 2005 the network show Surface was not available to NBC affiliates
in High Definition. There was no reason given. Again thank you for your inquiry.


-----Original Message-----
From: Not Disclosed [mailto: ]
Sent: Monday, November 28, 2005 7:17 PM
To: Hummert, Dave
Subject: Standard vs HD broadcast of Surface

Currently Surface is still showing in standard def (letterbox with big black border) instead of HD. Please, can't the magical SD-to-HD switch be flipped on every day at 7pm?

Thanks

Doug,

What is your contact's email at FSMW? I'd like to send him an email with my thoughts of the game.

They are doing a great job. I do agree with Bruce about the camera on mid ice not being HD.

Game looks great here, Charter HDTV .... sweet.

A Blues HD telecast and a Blues win all in one night. I echo the same comment in that the picture was great on Charter tonight. Keep it up!

Blues in HD looked pretty good tonight. Only some minor switching glitches and I didn't care for the SD shots during action, but overall very well done.

Game looked great in stunning Standard Def on Dish Network! :rolleyes:

Ditto on most of the Blues HD comments. Switching camera views between HD, SD and back to HD as play moved from one end of the ice to the other was a little annoying. I think the PQ was pretty good and I only had a couple of pixelization issues near the end of the game, but those may be something with my setup :rolleyes:

Anyway, kudos to FSMW-HD and DirecTV for making this happen!

I was working tonight at the game. The production truck said "Lone Star" on the side and it had serial number "5 HD X".

My girlfriend watched the game on Charter cable channel 792 and said it looked excellent. I told her to check it out and she ended up watching a whole period. (Not really a hockey fan.) She really enjoyed being able to see the puck.

Fired off emails to two buddies with HD rigs to see what they thought: will post their comments when I get them.

Ditto on most of the Blues HD comments. Switching camera views between HD, SD and back to HD as play moved from one end of the ice to the other was a little annoying. I think the PQ was pretty good and I only had a couple of pixelization issues near the end of the game, but those may be something with my setup :rolleyes:

Anyway, kudos to FSMW-HD and DirecTV for making this happen!

At least they put the "Fox Sports Midwest" sidebars on the SD center ice camera so some tv's wouldn't auto re-size the entire game :-)

Free DirecTV DVR Now Available at Retail

The following story was featured in today's TVPredictions.com newsletter:

___________________________________

Look out, TiVo.

DIRECTV announced yesterday that its new Digital Video Recorder is available in retail stores across the country. The set-top, which is DIRECTV's first DVR without longtime marketing partner TiVo, could become a holiday hit, particularly with a price tag of free.

Yes, with a $100 rebate, the $99 DVR is essentially free.

In addition, the DIRECTV Plus DVR offers several features currently unavailable on TiVo, such as:

Record Now/ Pay Later

Users can record all Pay-Per-View (PPV) movies they might be interested in and only pay for shows they actually view.

NBC On Demand

DIRECTV has struck a deal with NBC to provide some primetime shows on demand for 99 cents each. The programs will be available a few hours after they originally air on the network. DIRECTV expects soon to sign up more networks for on-demand programming.

Bookmarks

Viewers can mark favorite scenes in their recordings and jump directly to them.

Interactive TV

NFL Sunday Ticket subscribers can watch up to eight live NFL games on one screen at the same time. In addition, viewers can access financial market summaries, daily horoscopes and lottery results.

DIRECTV says it will continue to offer TiVo to customers who request it. However, despite TiVo's strong brand, it's not hard to envision that future DIRECTV DVR subscribers will opt for the new DIRECTV Plus.
___________________________________

Tim,

You have a PM.

I am in O'Fallon, MO and couldn't find the channel for Fox HD on Charter. Was this system excluded or wasn't I looking in the right place.

Is this a station that is going to broadcast all the time of just the HD games?

I am in O'Fallon, MO and couldn't find the channel for Fox HD on Charter. Was this system excluded or wasn't I looking in the right place.

Is this a station that is going to broadcast all the time of just the HD games?

Channel 792

Thanks to the people at Fox Sports that made the High Definition possible for last night's game. My only gripe is that I was not able to see the game in HD because I am a Dish Subscriber. Please put pressure on Dish Network from your side to carry your station/HD broadcasts...I know the members of the forum, along with our families and friends, will put pressure on them from our side. While I wouldn't like it, I could pay a little extra per month for local HD sports broadcasts.

I too have contacted Dish Network and told them that this could be a significant reason for me to switch to DirectTV. I've been very happy with their service so far, but I have a strong desire to see my local sports in HD. I'm sure that I'm not alone in these thoughts.

Thanks again to FSMW, please keep up the HD efforts!

Adam

Does anyone know if Charter has a HD box with HDMI compatibility? I have DVI on mine presently, and need HDMI for digital audio for my PIP settings. Also, does anyone have luck with Charter cable cards? I have noticed that other cable companies cards have many issues. This is for a Hitachi 55" plasma. Thanks for any input.

Does anyone know if Charter has a HD box with HDMI compatibility? I have DVI on mine presently, and need HDMI for digital audio for my PIP settings. Also, does anyone have luck with Charter cable cards? I have noticed that other cable companies cards have many issues. This is for a Hitachi 55" plasma. Thanks for any input.

So i take it you can't use and DVI - HDMI cable? I don't think any of their boxes are HDMI.

I talked at great length with people about the cable cards. Even someone at Charter told me "the issues we had have been fixed" but for me I decided against one for now. Especially since I'd lose OnDemand features ... plus the Moxi has a DVR. The only downside to the Moxi is the loud fan, which always runs. Can someone tell me why the Moxi box has a power button that doesn't work? There is no way to turn the thing Off to shut the fan down. Oh well, nothing is perfect in this world.

I guess it took Charter's new $4 million CEO to figure this out -- several months later...

From what I remember, our CEO only has a $1.2m salary. (Of course, he's also got 125%-200% bonus room on top of that.)

Imagine being guaranteed, regardless of performance, a 125% bonus at the end of the year...

:-)

So i take it you can't use and DVI - HDMI cable? I don't think any of their boxes are HDMI.

I talked at great length with people about the cable cards. Even someone at Charter told me "the issues we had have been fixed" but for me I decided against one for now. Especially since I'd lose OnDemand features ... plus the Moxi has a DVR. The only downside to the Moxi is the loud fan, which always runs. Can someone tell me why the Moxi box has a power button that doesn't work? There is no way to turn the thing Off to shut the fan down. Oh well, nothing is perfect in this world.

I need the digital audio signal to get to the TV. With DVI, I only get the digital video.

One friend of mine checked in.

Watched the HD Blues game using Charter. Said it looked great except for the SD center ice camera. He's using one of the first generation Sony rear projection CRT HDTVs with a native 1080i.

BTW: I assume FSN used 720p for last night's game?

Tim,

You have a PM.


Thanks

Blues won and it was in HD (Charter).

Looked good but not up to HDnet standards for hockey (yet hopefully).

Does anyone know if this offering is part of the "HD tier" or the standard "HD locals" offering on Charter? I pay for both so can't determine.

I thought the HD looked very good on my plasma display. The only gripe I have is about the scoreboard bug at the top of the screen. I thought it was distracting to have this fixed, thick scoreboard line running about 3 or 4 inches from the top of the picture, almost the entire width of the ice, while the action was moving. Do we really need to see the score the entire time the game is on? The scoreboard line is also too dark and might cause a burn-in problem with some new plasmas. I wish they could move it to a corner and lower the resolution, or like they do on some football games, rotate the location of the scoreboard bug.

Does anyone here have a ballpark on the Directv MPEG-4 rollout here in the STL area? I've had my DTV suspended since I moved here in October. I had been a DTV subscriber for over 5 years but lately was disappointed with their HD-Lite fare and lack of overall HD programming. I've been getting the local digital feeds OTA with my DTV HD receiver so the new setup won't really benefit me too much - except that I have a six month window (4 months now) to get a new dish setup here for free and my service reactivated. It's the movers guide connection. I would definitely consider going back to DTV for free and figure if the MPEG4 rollout happens in the next four months I will have it done by then.
Just holding my cards to see what happens.
Any ideas on an ETA from any DTV installers around here.
Thanks.

I wish they could move it to a corner and lower the resolution, or like they do on some football games, rotate the location of the scoreboard bug.

The problem with moving it to the corner is that it is broadcast in SD as well. If they put it in the corner for SD programming, it is to close to the center in HD and you would be watching part of the game through it.

I think that HDNet does the best job with theirs on hockey and mls, but they don't have to worry about the SD feed.

Tim

I started thinking more on what Doug thought of and my response to go after Ultimate Electronics. I read the article that Mike Bush did on KSDK about HDTV and the news in Feb.

I then thought, I wonder if anyone has tried to email Mike and/or the person from UE (Eric Eckert) that was in the article. I did some digging and can theorize their email addresses. KSDK uses FLast@ksdk.gannett.com so Mike could be mbush@ksdk.gannett.com

I also found the format for UE email. It appears to be first.last@ulte.com so eric.eckert@ulte.com.

Wouldn't hurt to try those addresses. I will be.

I'm going to try this question again since everyone seemed to be so excited about the Blues yesterday. "Need help. My Moxi's timer seems to be off by about 30 second. I was taping "Lost" when half way through my Moxi decided to reboot it's self. That wasted a good 5 minutes. When I watched the tape later on, I missed the first part of the show. While checking other shows I tapeed I noticed they too were starting late as well. Has anyone had this problem? Is this a Charter problem or a Moxi problem. Also, my Charter bill indicated an increase from 6.99 to 11.99 for December."

I got this reply from FSN Midwest about the availability of upcoming Blues games on D* in HD

While we did not produce the Nov. 22 St. Louis
Blues game in HD, last night (Dec. 1) was the first of FSN Midwest's HD
Blues telecasts. FSN Midwest's Blues games in HD will be available in St.
Louis on Charter channel 792. Some but not all HD games will also be
available on DirecTV, and availability on Dish Network has yet to be
determined.

For more information: http://msn.foxsports.com/id/5128016

Let us know if you have additional questions.

Thanks,
FSN Midwest

BTW, I forgot to see if the game was broadcasted in 5.1 or not, anyone have the answer?

Can anyone tell me what the DirecTV "service" requirement was/is to see FSMW-HD on channel 95?? Is the HD package needed, or can you get it as long as you get regular FSMW?

Thanks. :)

Is FSMW HDTV channel 792 on charter just broadcasting when the Blues are in HD and not when they are airing a SD program?

Is FSMW HDTV channel 792 on charter just broadcasting when the Blues are in HD and not when they are airing a SD program?

I was wondering the same thing. For example, last night the Missouri/Arkansas basketball game was on FSMW. But on FSMW-HD nothing was shown. I understand at this point the majority of what they broadcast is not in HD, but why not simulcast everything, like the other local HD channels do?

Can anyone tell me what the DirecTV "service" requirement was/is to see FSMW-HD on channel 95?? Is the HD package needed, or can you get it as long as you get regular FSMW?

Thanks. :)

I believe you have to subscribe to D* HD package to get anytjhing in HD. If not, you should be also getting the east code HD FOX on channel 88.

goodrev,

From your description, I doubt this is a connection problem, or least it's unlikely that it's a DVI/HDMI problem. Have you tried falling back to your component video connection for cable to determine for certain that the problem only happens with DVI/HDMI?

I'd guess that you are losing cable signal strength somewhere outside/inside your home and need to schedule to have someone come out and test your cable connection.

FWIW, I've worked on a couple of the current model Panasonic plasmas and found that the overscan is a mess when you use HDMI/DVI, with the left edge at 0% and the right at 6%, with no way to get the picture centered. I doubt this has anything to do with your "snow" issue, but it's worth knowing about in the event you see the left side of the picture not filling the entire screen area.

Note this only appears to be an issue with the consumer models and the commercial versions don't have the problem and also have overscan adjustments available.
Thank you for your response. I went back and reconnected my component cables. I didn't have the same "snow" problems I was having with the HDMI cables. Seeing as how I have this problem only when using the HDMI connection, do you still think this is a non-HDMI-related issue?

I also flipped back and forth between the two connections and I think I noticed the off-center picture issue you talked about. To me it just looks like the HDMI picture is slightly zoomed in. Unfortunately, even with this slight issue, the picture is still of an obviously higher quality when using HDMI. Otherwise I would have gladly just switched back to component.

goodrev05,

FWIW, I was on the phone with Charter today regarding a Pipeline outage. During the recorded message of know issues, I recall hearing of widespread issues with ESPN and snowy picture/no picture with audio issues.
Don't know if it applies to your area, or if you have Charter, I think you said you reset your "cable" box.

Yes, I am using charter. This makes the issue all that more interesting. Like I said above, I don't have this problem at all using component cables. And as of yesterday (12/2), I was still seeing this problem using HDMI. What's more, I think my roommate said he saw this problem on another channel, not ESPN. Is this widespread problem still going on? Sounds like it's time for a call to Charter. Thanks for the info!

FOX seems to be working now. Hopefully they will re-air Prison Break for those of us who missed it. This is the first time I've had problems with them.

I couldn't get off air 2-1, but thankfully I could see it in HD on Directv channel 88.

Scott

What is it with the local ABC affiliate. There has not been one HD game by the nations #2 team, Texas, all year. They played #3 early in the season but it was not in HD. Now they are playing for the conference championship against Colorado. The game is in HD. HD, that is, everywhere in the country except St. Louis. I sure would have liked to see one of the teams that will be in the BCS championship in HD BEFORE they play in the Rose Bowl. I wonder, UCS/UCLA is in HD but maybe only for the rest of the nation. This is probably the most important game of the day.

Walt

What is it with the local ABC affiliate.

Walt

Hmm... how to put this delicately...

Oh nevermind. Calling them names won't do anyone any good.

Their one big shot at actually having some HD CFB and they blow it. Great work ABC.

KDNL blows it again. Flip the switch idiots!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh well, so much for the local advertisers. I'll watch USC beat UCLA in HD on Directv 86.

Scott

I sent an email to the engineer link at KDNL since I couldn't find a news tip line to call. Unbelievable. How do you get ABC off Directv. I got denied and only get the FOX east HD feed.

I believe you have to subscribe to D* HD package to get anytjhing in HD. If not, you should be also getting the east code HD FOX on channel 88.
Not entirely true. If you subscribe to HBO or Showtime, you wil get their HD channels regardless of whether you subscribe to the HD package. To get the HD Fox feed (channel 88), you must get local channels and the HD package.

I have the HD package and get the Fox East HD feed but that is the only network I get off the satellite. Just wondering how somebody got the Sinclair ABC to sign off on that.

Not entirely true. If you subscribe to HBO or Showtime, you wil get their HD channels regardless of whether you subscribe to the HD package. To get the HD Fox feed (channel 88), you must get local channels and the HD package.

Right. I wasn't thinking about the premium channels, but what I said is basically true. If you want to take advantage of standard HD offerngs from D* you have to subscribe to the HD package for $10. If you have a HD STB and HD monitor it's worth it, IMHO.

Anybody having problems with KETC today (12/3/05)? I got my HD plasma delivered on Thursday, hooked it up to my attic-installed antenna that I've been using for years to get SD tv, and started picking up all the HD stations (except 46 - UPN). KETC had a signal of around 40-50%, but I could watch it with no problems. All the other stations were in the 80-100% range.

Well, I thought I'd experiment with the antenna a bit to see if I could get UPN, so I rotated it slightly to the south, in the direction of UPN (I live in St. Peters). After that, I got UPN (40%), but lost KETC (<15%). All the others were still coming in strong.

I thought, oh well, I guess I won't be able to get both, so I moved the antenna back to its original orientation, but now I can't get KETC (UPN is still showing up, strangely enough). I also did a auto rescan to see if that would help, but to no avail.

What I don't get is that why, if I'm oriented in such a fashion as to pick up UPN to the south and the other stations to the southeast, why am I not able to pick up KETC, which is between them to the south-southeast?

I just got off the phone with KDNL, so when the flip gets switched...YOU ALL OWE ME!!!!

BTW, if you call 314-436-3030 and press 1 you can get in to the company directory...I just
kept dialing numbers until I got to talk to someone and wouldn't you know it, I got someone
with the same last name as WRACER, and I told him all ABC football games today are in HD and he is going to look into it. He is in the Engineering department, too!

I don't want to post his number because that wouldn't be nice.

KDNL blows it again. Flip the switch idiots!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh well, so much for the local advertisers. I'll watch USC beat UCLA in HD on Directv 86.

Scott

I wonder what kind of excuse they will come up with this time!

On another note: What's up with the DD 5.1 sound? We've been hearing for two years now that it will be installed and available soon but nothing seems to happen.

I really appreciate WRACER's interaction with this forum but come on, let's fix these HD issues and get 5.1 going.

Onto my local HD channel rankings/comments:

1. FOX2-KTVI Almost flawless HD coverage, both picture and sound.
2. KMOV-4 Forget to flip the switch every now and them. 5.1 working well. OK.
3. KPLR-11 Small player but good HD coverage. Need to fix loud sounds during commercials.
4. KDNL-30 Switch flip issues/Equipment failure. Sound not always in sync with picture in primetime shows. Working on getting 5.1 for nearly two years.
5. KSDK-5 Absolute worst HD coverage I've seen! Flip switch issues on a daily basis. No idea how to deal with sound, ruin the end of every primetime show, etc...They must have monkeys handling the HD programming and I think that might be an insult to monkeys.

Now in HD!

I wonder what kind of excuse they will come up with this time!



The guy I talked to said that the games weren't in HD, so I am guessing they just didn't know.

Thanks

Silver Sensor Update
--------------------------
While shopping at the W*mart in St Ann's saw the Phillips PHDTV1 which uses the term Silver Sensor/registered. It was the only one left - the cashier said it is not stocked and had been sent in from another store. It did have a item/price sticker on the shelf. Apparently the technology is from a UK firm called Antireference Ltd. Will be hooking it up shortly.

jim

You seldom see this:

KSDK doing a fine job tonight time-shifting SNL in HD. Audio is fine as well.

I sent an email to the engineer link at KDNL since I couldn't find a news tip line to call. Unbelievable. How do you get ABC off Directv. I got denied and only get the FOX east HD feed.

Lucky I guess. I used to get all east/west HD feeds, but now they shut off all west and CBS/NBC east. Thankfully I never have to watch KDNL. I do check it all the time just to make me feel better about writing the fat check to D* every month. God, it's worth every penny.

Scott

I wonder what kind of excuse they will come up with this time!

On another note: What's up with the DD 5.1 sound? We've been hearing for two years now that it will be installed and available soon but nothing seems to happen.

I really appreciate WRACER's interaction with this forum but come on, let's fix these HD issues and get 5.1 going.

Onto my local HD channel rankings/comments:

1. FOX2-KTVI Almost flawless HD coverage, both picture and sound.
2. KMOV-4 Forget to flip the switch every now and them. 5.1 working well. OK.
3. KPLR-11 Small player but good HD coverage. Need to fix loud sounds during commercials.
4. KDNL-30 Switch flip issues/Equipment failure. Sound not always in sync with picture in primetime shows. Working on getting 5.1 for nearly two years.
5. KSDK-5 Absolute worst HD coverage I've seen! Flip switch issues on a daily basis. No idea how to deal with sound, ruin the end of every primetime show, etc...They must have monkeys handling the HD programming and I think that might be an insult to monkeys.


Appreciate your analysis, especially # 4 as I have not been able to get ABC HD programming with sound in sync with the video since making the jump to OTA HDTV 3 months ago. The only exceptions (now there are two!) have been Monday Night Football games and the recently aired Kenny Chesney concert. No problems with these in HD, just EVERY other HD program & sometimes even the commercials in SD! On # 5, KDSK is advertising their news broadcasts to be in HD beginning Feb., '06--hopeful that they will begin to pay more attention to HD overall!

Boy you guys can be cruel sometimes! Yes, the person responsible for scheduling the HD programs screwed up on the Saturday schedule. I was out of town all week getting our ABC affiliate in Springfield, MA on the air in HD and did not see any of the info about the HD games on Saturday. You have my number...if you see a problem call and I'll get it fixed. BTW the Wright you got ahold of is no relation, but was the right person to fix the feed. Hope to work on the 5.1 over Christmas...be out of town every week until then.
Jim

[QUOTE=mikeoates]Go Gators[QUOTE]

Nice to see another Floridian in St. Louis! I'm glad the SEC games are on CBS - we get consistent Gator games in HD - particularly since Urban was there this year.

Chris

Why is the only other NFL game broadcast in STL other than the Rams game today NOT in HD?? Are you telling me that CBS deems the Indy/Ten game as unworthy of HD?

My dislike for CBS seems to grow every day...

Why is the only other NFL game broadcast in STL other than the Rams game today NOT in HD?? Are you telling me that CBS deems the Indy/Ten game as unworthy of HD?

My dislike for CBS seems to grow every day...
CBS only does three NFL games per week in HD. This week's games were Cincinnati at Pittsburgh, Denver at KC and New York at New England. Why KMOV did not carry the Bengals/Steelers game instead of the Indy game is beyond me. Thanks to the Sunday ticket, that was the game I watched.

CBS only does three NFL games per week in HD.

Exactly my point on why I cant stand CBS. Fox has no problem finding more HD trucks than 3...why cant CBS? They find time to show every stupid prime time comedy in HD....too bad they dont put the same importance on the most watched major sport in America...

I turned on the end of hte KC game and it was not in HD, was it?

I had the gray bars on the side....

Now that ABC is doing most of the big bowl games in HD, it looks like St Louis Charter customers will be shut out of seeing them in HD.

Add the Super Bowl too.

Does anyone think it is possible that we might get access to these games by Sinclair Broadcasting??

Just wishing, wishing...

:mad:

I turned on the end of hte KC game and it was not in HD, was it?

I had the gray bars on the side....


I watched the entire KC game in HD on D*...

I watched the entire KC game in HD on D*...

Me too. D* rules!!!!!!!!!!! And, as a die hard Charger's fan, I would like to thank the Chiefs for beating Denver.

Scott

I turned on the end of hte KC game and it was not in HD, was it?

I had the gray bars on the side....
The game was in HD on the NFL Sunday ticket channel on D*. KMOV did not have a late game but apparently was allowed to carry the end of this game since it ran over into the 60 Minutes time slot. Why they did not "flip the switch" and show it in HD is anyone's guess....but the game was in HD.

OK guys... I"ve now expanded the possibilites in terms of what to get my fiance.

I'm now looking at 32'' flat panel LCDs that will fit in that armoire of hers.

Suggestions, please!

Winston,

I'm going to purchase the Sharp 32" LC-32DA5U this week sometime. I've tried to research as much as possible and this is the panel I've settled on. I can report back after I buy it and give you a run-down.

The main reasons I've decided on this particular model is I don't need a built-in tuner and the Sharp is not too expensive. I could save money with a brand like the Syntax or Westinghouse, but I feel more comfortable with a brand like Sharp that has been making quality LCD tvs for a while. If money were no object I'd buy the Sony Bravia XBR 32" LCD. It looks better (from awful store feeds) than any other LCD panel I've seen, but at almost $1K more than the Sharp I can't justify the expense.

I hope this helps.

Hope to work on the 5.1 over Christmas...

Excellent -- please, please, please do!! :cool: :D That would be a GREAT Christmas present. ;)

The Super Bowl is on ABC this year, right? Hopefully it can really be working by then...



I didn't know it's been 2 years, as someone else said, that the 5.1 has been "on the way." :eek: That's not to be cruel Jim, just acknowledging whoever posted that. :)

OK guys... I"ve now expanded the possibilites in terms of what to get my fiance.

I'm now looking at 32'' flat panel LCDs that will fit in that armoire of hers.

Suggestions, please!


I would suggest looking at Sound & Vision Magazine's web page. www.soundandvisionmag.com

They do in depth reviews of all the cool gear. I subscribe to it and I know they recently went over some LCD units but I skimmed it.

Brad, I've looked at the Aquos and I really like the look and I"ve heard some good things about them, though that may be skewed by the advertisements.

My main problem is I need a built-in tuner.

I have a 12% off coupon from Best Buy that runs this weekend. I'd love to use that.

Man that Bravia looks good. (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7393279&type=product&productCategoryId=pcmcat31800050030&id=1122655473780) Sure is expensive though.

I kind of like this Samsung, also. (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7030795&type=product&productCategoryId=cat03002&id=1110265591423)

Is this the Aquos you're getting? (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7311465&type=product&productCategoryId=cat03002&id=1118843354574)

I've never even looked at set-top HDTV boxes, how much do those usually run?

Winston,

Yes that's the Sharp I'm going to buy. They also make models with integrated tuners that are available at different retailers. For some reason (purely subjective) I didn't like the look of the Samsung model. Possibly because of their DNIe or whatever- Doug knows more about what this setting does, but lots of videophiles complain about this and maybe that's what I was seeing. The Bravia is awesome, but that price is just too much for my wallet to stomach.

I've never even looked at set-top HDTV boxes, how much do those usually run?

Radio Shack has had an HD tuner on clearance for a while now. It's an Accuran HTS 6000 (http://http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2104191&cp=2032057.2032180) . It's about $90. I think that's the cheapest you'll find an HD STB.

There was a long thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=577291&highlight=radio+shack) about it on the HDTV Hardware forum.

Winston,

I guess the first question should be what is your budget allowing? That will help narrow the field.

Bad news for those looking for that Accurian tuner at Radio Shack....

radioshack.com itself is sold out, and putting local zip codes into the link for finding a store that has it in stock comes up "no locations found."

This Radio Shack has it.

913-651-5251
LEAVENWORTH PLAZA SHP CTR
3400 S 4TH ST
LEAVENWORTH, KS 66048

Also, my Charter bill indicated an increase from 6.99 to 11.99 for December."


Just got my December bill with the following bit of excellent :rolleyes: news:

DIGITAL BIGGER VALUE: Beginning with your January billing statement, the monthly price for the Digital Bigger Value package will change from $65.99 to $68.99. As a reminder, the Digital Bigger Value package includes access of up to 81 channels of our Basic + Expanded Basic lineup, your choice of one digital programming tier (Family & Information, Sports or Movie Tiers), one premium channel package (HBO/Cinemax or Starz! Superpak), one (1) standard digital receiver with remote and access to 46 digital music channels, pay-per-view and/or Charter OnDemand. Additional digital tiers will now be $5.00 each. If you are currently receiving a promotional offer, this price will not take effect until the promotional period has expired.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Effective on your January billing statement, the monthly price of your Charter DVR service will change from $6.99 to $11.98 each. As an additional benefit to your DVR service, we are now adding Moxi "Games and Photos" to your Moxi menu. "Games" contains a variety of 10 games that you can play directly with your remote. "Photos" allows you to upload and store as many as 3,750 digital photos on your DVR and view them as a slideshow on your TV. Ask one of our customer care representatives for more information about these exciting new features.

IMPORTANT HSI NOTICE: Effective on your January billing statement, the monthly price of your 384 Kbps High-Speed Internet service will change from $29.99 to $34.99. The above rate does not include any applicable modem lease charge. As an added benefit, we have included the Charter High-Speed Security Suite to your 384 Kbps service, which includes anti-virus and firewall protection for your computer. Visit https://update.charter.com to access security keys for your new firewall / anti-spam software. As a reminder, you will continue to receive your Multiple Product Discount because you also receive another Charter service. If you are currently receiving a promotional offer or under contract for High-Speed Internet, this price will not take effect until the promotional period has expired.

So basically, I'm going to be paying an extra $14/month for the same service I have now. Are there any promotional offers on Charter that I'm not aware of, or should I just go ahead and call DirecTV now?

haha and that security suite is useless if you're a Mac user like me. Good thing I just got in on the special that's on the front charter page. Locked in for a year at 64.98.

BTW, Charter's "retention" unit has addressed some of initial concerns. Might want to call them and express your unhappiness, how the "new" features don't benefit you, the low cost of comparable DSL packages, etc. and threaten to leave. They may just keep you at your current rates. If they get enough complaints they'll see the error of their ways.

Does anyone know if Thursday's Blues/Lightning game will be on DirecTv in the 90's HD Channels? It hasn't shown up on my program guide yet...

According to the Fox Sports HD page, there are 3 FSN HD Games slated for Thursday (don't know if # of games makes a difference):

Blues/Lightning, Wild/Penguins, and Hurricanes/Kings


FSN Midwest/Charter Cable
St. Louis Blues HD Games Schedule
Schedule subject to change | Games subject to availability | All times central

Thursday, Dec. 1 7 p.m. Columbus at Blues
Thursday, Dec. 8 6:30 p.m. Blues at Tampa Bay
Tuesday, Dec. 20 8 p.m. Blues at Phoenix
Thursday, Dec. 29 7:30 p.m. Blues at Dallas
Thursday, Jan. 12 6 p.m. Blues at Florida
Thursday, Jan. 26 7 p.m. Phoenix at Blues
Thursday, March 16 9:30 p.m. Blues at San Jose
Friday, March 31 7 p.m. Columbus at Blues

I know its on OLN tonight.

Oh wait, sorry, that's Blues / Islanders.

OK guys... I"ve now expanded the possibilites in terms of what to get my fiance.

I'm now looking at 32'' flat panel LCDs that will fit in that armoire of hers.

Suggestions, please!
For about 3 months now I' ve had the Samsung LNR329D which has one built in ASTC tuner. It's the unit that is rectangular without the 'V' shape on the bottom. Does have a black shiny bezel with silver below it and a circular blue light bottom center when the unit is off. Lots of connections including HDMI. The picture is gorgeous, especially DVDs; and yes--lots of videophiles complain about DNie, but it doesn't bother me. I like sharp images! Internal tuner using a Terk indoor antenna brings in all the local OTA digital and analog stations except UPN. HD is great except the problem that I've had with sound sync and HD ABC taped programs. It may be difficult to find one to look at in STL; I brought my unit in Chicago. Dimensions with stand are 31.65 X 9.84 X 24.50 inches and weighs just less than 45 lbs. I'm pleased with it :)

OK guys... I"ve now expanded the possibilites in terms of what to get my fiance.

I'm now looking at 32'' flat panel LCDs that will fit in that armoire of hers.

Suggestions, please!

Winston, after the marriage will you be watching this set much? Is she is a video-phile? My wife could care less if a set looks good or great and if that is true for your fiance then I would get a cheap set and save the money for the shoes. :) :) :)

Anybody having difficulty receiving KSDK tonight? Ordinarily on my Fusion HDTV tuner card signal strenght is excellent near 100%. Tonight signal strength is all over the place. Saw a low of 19%, generally hovering upper 60s to upper 80s. Audio and video seem to freeze when it drops near 70%. All other channels except for KPLR (no good at all in the mid 30s) are 100%. Maybe they need warmers for the transmitter?

Actually, find myself glued to the signal on 4.1 KMOV which is coming in strong in the 9 pm time period.

jim

Actually, find myself glued to the signal on 4.1 KMOV which is coming in strong in the 9 pm time period.

jim

I meant in general tonight. Had to take a breather. Didn't even notice whether the 5.1 was working or not and didn't care.

Bad news for those looking for that Accurian tuner at Radio Shack....

radioshack.com itself is sold out, and putting local zip codes into the link for finding a store that has it in stock comes up "no locations found."

Link (http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2104191&cp=2032057.2032180)

It get two stores using 63139.

ST LOUIS-BAMBERGER AVE 314-776-2830
01-6622 | 2.54 miles* 3511 BAMBERGER AVE
See a map ST LOUIS, MO 63116
In stock

BRENTWOOD-BRENTWOOD BLVD 314-962-1030
01-6639 | 3.08 miles* 2518 S BRENTWOOD BLVD
See a map BRENTWOOD, MO 63144
In stock

Winston, after the marriage will you be watching this set much? Is she is a video-phile? My wife could care less if a set looks good or great and if that is true for your fiance then I would get a cheap set and save the money for the shoes. :) :) :)

Good question.

Until next July, this is going to go in her house, but when we get married, it will go in our living room. The only TV I currently have is the big 55'' inch Sony in my sig. That's in the family room in the basement. But, we'll have to spend time in hte living room occassionally, and *I* want a decent TV in there, but, of course, it has to be hidden in the armoire =[ Most stuff will be watched on the big screen though.

Maybe you've got a point. Any recommendations on a cheaper 32in?

Winston,I'm going to purchase the Sharp 32" LC-32DA5U this week sometime. I've tried to research as much as possible and this is the panel I've settled on. I can report back after I buy it and give you a run-down.


Brad, did you happen to purchase this yet? I think I'm going to have to make a decision by this Saturday. That's when my 12% off Best Buy coupon expires.

Let me know what you think. I'm definitely considering this, but I'm also looking at the Samsung mentioned a few posts ago and maybe even a cheaper 32'' model such as those you mentioned. However, like you, I'd prefer to go with something that I know has a good track record.

Good question.

Until next July, this is going to go in her house, but when we get married, it will go in our living room. The only TV I currently have is the big 55'' inch Sony in my sig. That's in the family room in the basement. But, we'll have to spend time in hte living room occassionally, and *I* want a decent TV in there, but, of course, it has to be hidden in the armoire =[ Most stuff will be watched on the big screen though.

Maybe you've got a point. Any recommendations on a cheaper 32in?

Winston, in my opinion no company has the experience yet with LCD panels to claim superiority. In fact the computer monitor companies have the most experience and they are usually behind most of the no-name brand LCD sets being sold. I think you can get the same untested quality with a name brand or no-name brand.

The difference with the name brands are the support and some styling. Is that worth the 40% markup that they charge?

If it is not you primary braggin' rights TV I would be just as happy with a Syntax or Hisense or Hyundia and save the $500. They are all made in the same countries anyway and probably with most of the same components. I just bought my son a 27" Syntax for only $550 on Amazon and I'm sure he will be happy.

It all depends on your wife-to-be's perceptions of your intentions....be careful there. :) :)

Winston,

I'll probably going up tomorrow to buy the Sharp, unless I discover some awful truth before then :) I can tell you how it looks tomorrow night or Friday before your coupon runs out.

One caveat, I won't be able to check the HD until after this weekend because I've got to run a new line from my antenna to the new set, but I should be able to give you a review of SD DirecTV and DVD before your deadline.

Sorry for going off topic here, but is there an RSS feed for this thread?

Thanks,
Julie

You'd think that KSDK doesn't care. At one point I received a response from KSDK promising to forward my complaints about HD audio to engineering. Never happened.

I still have to switch from DD PLIIx processing to DD 5.1 to get center channel audio, and then it decodes as DD 3.0. I've pretty much given up on KSDK and have stopped watching it anyway.

As hard as it is to believe, I think KSDK has gotten worse this week. They missed flipping the switch for Vegas, and now ERing. And ERing is have serious picture/audio drop outs (logo is still there) that is making my speakers pop.

We need to do a little brainstorming. I like the targeting advertiser idea. I wonder how much it would cost to put a full page ad in the Post, or if the FCC would care? Would writing local retailers help. It makes it that much harder to sell brand new HDTV's when the broadcasters don't cooperate. Any other ideas?

As hard as it is to believe, I think KSDK has gotten worse this week...

We need to do a little brainstorming. I like the targeting advertiser idea. I wonder how much it would cost to put a full page ad in the Post, or if the FCC would care? Would writing local retailers help. It makes it that much harder to sell brand new HDTV's when the broadcasters don't cooperate. Any other ideas?

To be honest, I'm not watching anything on KSDK now, so I'm not planning to make any further effort to get them to improve their HD broadcast. KMOV has shows I like and they seem to be doing a pretty good job now.

Sent to fccinfo@fcc.gov

I am writing to bring attention to an issue and file a complaint (if possible) against Channel KSDK in St. Louis Missouri. KSDK advertises that they broadcast in High Definition, but in practice fails to switch their programming from regular standard definition to high defintion on a routine basis on channel 35. I feel that this issue is chronic enough to warrant a disservice to their advertisers and consumers.

I am not sure of the extent that the FCC requlates such issues. If this type of complaint is outside FCC regulation I would appreciate any information or guidance you could provide in helping resolve these issues with KSDK. Currently my emails have gone unanswered to their engineering department.

Thank you for your time.

I doubt it'll go anywhere but we'll see. If you guys want to try, maybe it'll trigger some kind of response...

I also sent a letter to the editor of the Post proposing an article about the state of HDTV in St. Louis. I mentioned it might be good for consumers to know some of the complexities and issues with HD in STL, especially in light of this being the Christmas season and one of the hottest items this year are likely to be HDTV's. Things like flipping the switch, what is available on charter/dtv/etc. and pointed them here for more info.

Sorry for going off topic here, but is there an RSS feed for this thread?
Thanks,
Julie
I don't use it, so I'm not sure if this is what you're looking for.
There's an RSS/XML link on the main index page, left corner, above the forum header.
Here's the link:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/external.php?type=RSS2

Wednesday Law & Order not in HD via kSDk. I dont' know if the earlier shows were or not.

If I ran my data networks like they do their broadcast network I probably wouldn't be running said networks anymore.

Brad, thanks! I'm looking forward to reading it.

My only concern with this TV is having to purchase a separate STB to receive OTA HD.

One question.... when I get HD through DirecTV (When they offer locals in HD), I will not need anotehr STB, right? I'll just hook the DirecTV HD-DVR into this Aquos and that's it?

Thanks!

Right, the *D HD STB will tune HD OTA, too. Did I throw in enough alphabet soup there? :D

Brad, thanks! I'm looking forward to reading it.

My only concern with this TV is having to purchase a separate STB to receive OTA HD.

One question.... when I get HD through DirecTV (When they offer locals in HD), I will not need anotehr STB, right? I'll just hook the DirecTV HD-DVR into this Aquos and that's it?

Thanks!

The D* HD-Tivo has an OTA tuner, but when D* starts providing HD locals directly, you'll need new equipment (dish and STB) -- if you want to get it that way -- since the format will be MPEG4. The current equipment only supports MPEG2.

As hard as it is to believe, I think KSDK has gotten worse this week. They missed flipping the switch for Vegas, and now ERing. And ERing is have serious picture/audio drop outs (logo is still there) that is making my speakers pop.

We need to do a little brainstorming. I like the targeting advertiser idea. I wonder how much it would cost to put a full page ad in the Post, or if the FCC would care? Would writing local retailers help. It makes it that much harder to sell brand new HDTV's when the broadcasters don't cooperate. Any other ideas?

As bad as KSDK maybe Vegas was reported in the forum as a national feed problem, no one had the HD feed. Did not see anything on ERing being a problem but that maybe that no one was watching it live. I recorded it and will watch today.

Ron

As bad as KSDK maybe Vegas was reported in the forum as a national feed problem, no one had the HD feed. Did not see anything on ERing being a problem but that maybe that no one was watching it live. I recorded it and will watch today.

Ron
I know that ERing, Law and Order, Leno, and Connan were not in HD last night.
Seems correct, perhaps there was no HD feed for KSDK to switch to :confused:

While we're on the subject, and sorry if this is old news, did anyone else notice that KSDK is advertising that their news is going HD in February 2006?

I suspect this will just be studio shots to begin with, but how long before their remote cams will be replaced with HD capable units?

Cheers,

As bad as KSDK maybe Vegas was reported in the forum as a national feed problem, no one had the HD feed. Did not see anything on ERing being a problem but that maybe that no one was watching it live. I recorded it and will watch today.

Ron

I didn't catch the Vegas post, I did a search on KSDK and read some of the recent messages before sending those emails. I do know they finally managed to throw the switch somewhere into Medium. ERing was really bad in that it was also dropping picture with audio pops, but the logo stayed. It was so unbearable, I just deleted it off of my Tivo.

I try to be understanding when it comes to technical issues, but KSDK's main fault is that they don't respond to emails or post here. Even if they just put outages on their website somewhere. (I looked but all I found was a page praising their HD offerings). In any case, I think HD in our area just isn't yet up to the standards consumers have come to expect out of SD with these types of things going on. There is a big disconnect between what is promised and what is delivered. I hold out hope though with engineers like WRacer on the case.

BTW, I already got a response back from the FCC. They sent me a 1997 press release that basically says a station can do whatever they want as long as it is digital. Thanks FCC! (About what I expected, but it was worth a shot.)

While we're on the subject, and sorry if this is old news, did anyone else notice that KSDK is advertising that their news is going HD in February 2006?

I suspect this will just be studio shots to begin with, but how long before their remote cams will be replaced with HD capable units?

Cheers,

I saw that, too, John. They're advertising it from time to time on KSDK. I wonder, given local budgets, if the introduction of the new HDV format will impact their ability to move to HD for remote footage, too. The whole HDV market is maturing very quickly, even the editing side. I have the new Sony consumer HDV camera and its quality is amazing for the price. I've seen some of the higher end units and they would give a remote crew all the pro features they'd need for local news acquisition.

BTW, I already got a response back from the FCC. They sent me a 1997 press release that basically says a station can do whatever they want as long as it is digital. Thanks FCC! (About what I expected, but it was worth a shot.)

Their hands are tied. The law says nothing about mandating stations to broadcast in high definiton - just digital - even digital 480i meets the requirement. At this point, the only thing that will make the stations clean up their act is the market force of competition. When enough people complain enough and start watching the competition, they'll change.

Joe:

Those Sony cams are about $3500 MSRP if memory serves me correctly which isn't astronomical in price. I have no idea what a station pays for an analog cam, but if it's around the same price, then it becomes a "no brainer" to me to start replacing the cams over time.

Cheers,

The professional grade HD cams are a LOT more expensive. The lowest price on the models that the broadcaster use are $50k. They only go up to $100k. :D The consumer grade are now at $1999 in the Best Buy ad.

The D* HD-Tivo has an OTA tuner, but when D* starts providing HD locals directly, you'll need new equipment (dish and STB) -- if you want to get it that way -- since the format will be MPEG4. The current equipment only supports MPEG2.

I think I'm going to wait and not even get DirecTV HD until they have MPEG4 and provide the locals.

At that point, I won't care about the STB on this TV. (My other Sony big guy has a built-in tuner.)

Joe:

Those Sony cams are about $3500 MSRP if memory serves me correctly which isn't astronomical in price. I have no idea what a station pays for an analog cam, but if it's around the same price, then it becomes a "no brainer" to me to start replacing the cams over time.

Cheers,

I've worked with the expensive SD Betacam units and they do cost an arm and a leg. HDV picture quality blows them all away, as far as I'm concerned. The Sony HDR-HC1 is the model I just got a few weeks ago (although it lacks a lot of pro features that would exclude its use for even local news). The more expensive HDV units, with decent lens options and manual controls, are well under $10,000, within the reach of most local stations. Real-time HDV editing is also becoming affordable. It's the most exciting development in video production since DV.

BTW, I've seen the Sony HC1 for as little as $1,300 online. Anyone thinking about buying a regular DV camera now would be nuts not to look at the Sony. JVC introduced the first consumer HDV camcorder a couple of years ago, but IMO it sucked. I shot footage at the Botanitcal Garden just before we lost all our fall color, and I was floored by how well the little Sony performed. I have trouble even watching my DV footage anymore. I just wish I'd had it on my trip to England in 2000.

I've been away for a week or so, and have been checking in here from time to time but not in a very linear or methodical way.

If anyone has directed any questions or comments specifically my way and you're expecting an answer from me, just drop me a private message.

In the meantime, here's a Washington Post opinion column on the digital tuner subsidy. Sorry if this reagitates the hornet's nest discussion on this topic a bit, but I couldn't help myself:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/07/AR2005120701891.html

This is probably old news now, but the Blues are on in HD tonight on FSN-Midwest HD.

I received a note yesterday from Geoff Goldman at FSN Midwest and he said that it's unlikely that tonight's game is unlikely to be carried in HD via DirecTV or DISH, though that's not the absolute final word.

Charter subscribers, rejoice!

I've been away for a week or so, and have been checking in here from time to time but not in a very linear or methodical way.

If anyone has directed any questions or comments specifically my way and you're expecting an answer from me, just drop me a private message.

In the meantime, here's a Washington Post opinion column on the digital tuner subsidy. Sorry if this reagitates the hornet's nest discussion on this topic a bit, but I couldn't help myself:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/07/AR2005120701891.html
LOL. I was going to link to this article because George Will is so much more eloquent than I am. It figures that Doug has beaten me to it.

I also sent a letter to the editor of the Post proposing an article about the state of HDTV in St. Louis. I mentioned it might be good for consumers to know some of the complexities and issues with HD in STL, especially in light of this being the Christmas season and one of the hottest items this year are likely to be HDTV's. Things like flipping the switch, what is available on charter/dtv/etc. and pointed them here for more info.

I think that is a fabulous idea for an article and I'm kind of surprised they hadn't thought of it already. That would certainly put pressure on the guys that aren't pulling their weight to get it out in public.

Kudos on the thought!

I wonder, given local budgets, if the introduction of the new HDV format will impact their ability to move to HD for remote footage, too.

Sony makes a nice camera on the pro side for around $15k. That's a pretty good price. But changing tape formats is a cumulative issue. Record and playback decks, edit software- they all have to be compatible.

One of the KSDK camera ops was at the Rams Press Conf last Monday. He described how he was shooting behind-the-scenes footage of their HD production of the Thanksgiving parade.

I imagine that remote cameras are available to KSDK camera operators, but not enough for everything. I think we'll still see Betacams running around the city with the peacock on the side for a while yet.

-Hanjke

One issue with HDV is the process in which the signal is encoded onto the tape. The first frame is scanned, then it only looks for differences, and only puts on the tape the parts of the picture that have changed. We see this in the DVD format. The only issue is that if something happens to that first frame, the rest of the sequence is lost.'
Off the top of my head, I want to say it does a rescan of an entire frame every 15 seconds. Which isn't bad if you're showing footage of a snowstorm. But if you have an interview with the President, that would not be a good thing to lose.

Rumors and hearsay that I have heard...

-Hanjke

One issue with HDV is the process in which the signal is encoded onto the tape. The first frame is scanned, then it only looks for differences, and only puts on the tape the parts of the picture that have changed. We see this in the DVD format. The only issue is that if something happens to that first frame, the rest of the sequence is lost.'
Off the top of my head, I want to say it does a rescan of an entire frame every 15 seconds. Which isn't bad if you're showing footage of a snowstorm. But if you have an interview with the President, that would not be a good thing to lose.

Rumors and hearsay that I have heard...

-Hanjke

This depends on the settings in the MPEG encoder. It doesn't have to be 15 seconds, it can be a lot less, depending on the bandwidth they want to use or have available.

Cheers,

One issue with HDV is the process in which the signal is encoded onto the tape. The first frame is scanned, then it only looks for differences, and only puts on the tape the parts of the picture that have changed. We see this in the DVD format. The only issue is that if something happens to that first frame, the rest of the sequence is lost.'
Off the top of my head, I want to say it does a rescan of an entire frame every 15 seconds. Which isn't bad if you're showing footage of a snowstorm. But if you have an interview with the President, that would not be a good thing to lose.

Rumors and hearsay that I have heard...

-Hanjke

That's 15 frames. HDV stores a full frame of video and then stores only the differences for the next 14 frames (half a second) - it's called inter-frame compression. DV, on the other hand, uses intra-frame compression - each frame is compressed seperately. That's why DV is so much easier to edit - each frame can be accessed directly. (That's also why you can get a full hour of HDV on the same tape you use to record an hour of regular DV.)

When HDV hit the market, there was a lot made of this. If that one complete frame is lost due to tape problems, you lose half a second. That's a very big deal for a professional. The error correction on DV is a lot more robust than on HDV.

In practical terms, I've shot several hours of footage and I noticed *maybe* one dropout, where the footage was lost for roughly that amount of time. And this on recycled DV tapes. I've yet to use a brand new tape, and I won't pay the $13 that Sony wants for their "optimized" HDV tape.

Using this format for local acquisition is going to be a lot more expensive, since you have to get it on the air in a format that's compatible with all your other broadcast gear. It's really the last part that I see as the main stumbling block. Editing DV is easy and inexpensive, but the final stage at this point is rendering it to a format that will let you play it back in broadcast decks. That takes time and that's what they don't have a lot of. I'm sure, as we speak, there are lots of companies working on solutions, and some probably already have been announced. I don't follow this stuff as closely as I used to.

For the individual, though, it's a great way of preserving your memories, and it will last a lot longer into the future than any standard definition solution (pro on consumer) that exists now.

I think I'm going to wait and not even get DirecTV HD until they have MPEG4 and provide the locals.

At that point, I won't care about the STB on this TV. (My other Sony big guy has a built-in tuner.)


I think the general consensus on the Tivo forum is they will swap the boxes for free when the time comes, so there is no reason to deprive yourself until then. Of course the downside is you may become addicted to some of the Tivo features and hackability only to be disappointed by the NDS box that DTV replaces it with. :)

I have a friend that had come over and seen me use my tivo many times, it wasn't until he bought one that he was screaming in my face "WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME ABOUT TIVO SOONER!"

I think the general consensus on the Tivo forum is they will swap the boxes for free when the time comes, so there is no reason to deprive yourself until then. Of course the downside is you may become addicted to some of the Tivo features and hackability only to be disappointed by the NDS box that DTV replaces it with. :)

I have a friend that had come over and seen me use my tivo many times, it wasn't until he bought one that he was screaming in my face "WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME ABOUT TIVO SOONER!"


I have heard that too, but I have yet to see any official D* statement to say they'll provide free replacements, other than hearsay.