Does anyone know where WPVN's offices are located? There is a building in Bensenville on Rt 83, next to Dunkin Donuts...it has signs on it (in Polish) that seem to refer to a television station, but the building is dark and empty.

Does anyone know where WPVN's offices are located? There is a building in Bensenville on Rt 83, next to Dunkin Donuts...it has signs on it (in Polish) that seem to refer to a television station, but the building is dark and empty.

They probably have the same address as Elmwood Blues.
1060 W. Addision
Chicago

They probably have the same address as Elmwood Blues.
1060 W. Addision
Chicago

That must mean that the phone number is 588-2300.

There is an application for a microwave filed by WPVN at Transmit Location
Polnet Communications, Ltd. 3656 W. Belmont Ave Chicago, IL
COOK County

Perhaps we should organize a protest march. We could wave signs that say "Free Channel 20", "Use it or Lose it", and "We want our RTV!".

You might want to wait awhile on that, if you plan on doing it in Chicago. There's a possibility that the streets may already be full of protestors, and it might not be safe to even go into there at all.

Too bad this couldn't have been an option for RTV or even other subs like The Cool TV: http://chicagoradioandmedia.com/news/1236-chicago-lptv-station-sold. Even though I have no desire to watch the programming on this station, it will be very interesting to see how it's launch goes. (No doubt better then WPVN.)

That must mean that the phone number is 588-2300.

That would explain why they are having so many problems. The Empire man trying to run a TV station...

Are we that far off base though?

Too bad this couldn't have been an option for RTV or even other subs like The Cool TV: http://chicagoradioandmedia.com/news/1236-chicago-lptv-station-sold. Even though I have no desire to watch the programming on this station, it will be very interesting to see how it's launch goes. (No doubt better then WPVN.)

I love this.... The station is licensed to Palatine but doesn't even cover it! HAHAHA!

http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/tvq?call=WESV&city=&state=

How inept is the FCC in allowing this? This is another one of those highly directional to the SW signals.

I love this.... The station is licensed to Palatine but doesn't even cover it! HAHAHA!

http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/tvq?call=WESV&city=&state=

How inept is the FCC in allowing this? This is another one of those highly directional to the SW signals.

From what I read somewhere, that LPTV stations only have to transmit somewhere in the market, but not necessarily cover the COL. WEDE-CA no longer covers Arlington Heights, thanks to the FCC making the station put a null to the NW, in order to allow WISN's digital allocation to be shoehorned in. Had it not been for WEDE-CA being a Class A, they would have been forced off the air. I don't know when WISN was given their channel allocation for digital. WPVN-LD barely reaches Aurora with their digital dignal in Schaumburg.

There is an application for a microwave filed by WPVN at Transmit Location
Polnet Communications, Ltd. 3656 W. Belmont Ave Chicago, IL
COOK County

I don't know about all of Polnet's operations, but I do know that's the address for where Polvision is located. I've passed by the location on a few occasions. I don't exactly remember which building they're in, but I only know it's on the north side of the street.

I just purchased a new DVR and one of the options for the Clock Setting is to obtain the time signal from a DTV station. Can someone tell me which stations send a time signal and of those stations which one have you found to be the most accurate. Thank you in advance for your help!

I just purchased a new DVR and one of the options for the Clock Setting is to obtain the time signal from a DTV station. Can someone tell me which stations send a time signal and of those stations which one have you found to be the most accurate. Thank you in advance for your help!

They all send the time, it's embedded in the data stream along with the program info (TV show schedules and descriptions).
Does your box let you choose which station to get the time from?

Yes, I have to choose one station in order for this function to work. There sure aren't many models now that have a built in tuner.

I love this.... The station is licensed to Palatine but doesn't even cover it! HAHAHA!

There's a hispanic station that's licensed to Rochelle (20 minutes west of DeKalb) which doesn't have a snowball's chance in hell recieving it OTA, but maybe on cable.

Thanks to the NFL "flexing" the Patriots-Bears to the late slot, there are no games to be gained this week. I am not a happy camper.

CBS Early-
Cinncinnati (2-10) vs Pittsburgh (9-3): All area CBS affiliates EXCEPT
Oakland (6-6) vs Jacksonville (7-5): WSBT-22

FOX Early-
Green Bay (8-4) vs Detroit (2-10): All area FOX affiliates

CBS Late-
New England (10-2) vs Chicago (9-3): All area CBS affiliates

FOX Late-
Not a snowball's chance in Haiti. I would've liked to see St. Louis/New Orleans, which may have been available if they hadn't flexed the Bears game.

Yes, I have to choose one station in order for this function to work.I don't know the answer for sure, but try CBS and PBS.

They all send the time, it's embedded in the data stream along with the program info (TV show schedules and descriptions).
Does your box let you choose which station to get the time from?
They are all supposed to send the date and time, but it's not always accurate, especially around DST changeover. My Zenith DTT901 uses the time of the current channel, and it's fun checking the clock as you change channels...

The DTVPal CECB "locks onto" the CBS time signal and uses that across the board. It's possible his DVR uses the same sort of feature. The Magnavox HDD/DVR's are *supposed* be able to use the digital one now, too.

Otherwise, PBS used to carry the analog time. Those are the reasons I suggested trying those two.

Of course, there's no guarantee that the time is always going to be accurate. But I figure if it's the "official" one, then maybe there's a better chance of them keeping it truer.

I love this.... The station is licensed to Palatine but doesn't even cover it! HAHAHA!

http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/tvq?call=WESV&city=&state=

How inept is the FCC in allowing this? This is another one of those highly directional to the SW signals.

The rules for low power TV stations covering their city of license are much less strict than full power ones, IIRC.

We have a channel line-up change coming next week. See 26-5 for all the details.

We have a channel line-up change coming next week. See 26-5 for all the details.

I checked TitanTV and I'll miss the old ME-TV being only comedy. It looks like the 9am - 5pm will be drama and what is ME-TOO will be drama as well.

The stations will look like

WCIU - 26.1
U-Too - 26.2
ME-TV - 26.3
MeToo - 26.4
ThisTV - 26.5

We have a channel line-up change coming next week. See 26-5 for all the details.

Have you informed Tribune Media/Zap2it? those of us with the DirecTV OTA receivers don't want to be left out. thanks.

The top of the screen is hard to read, but it says to rescan the channels beginning at 5am on what is either the 13th, 15th, 18th, or possibly the 19th of December. If someone can read it better, please correct me.

Just removing my whole post, wanting to leave well enough alone. Everyone here is right, my complaint won't get anywhere anyway so better off just removing the post. Sorry everyone

Also, just a heads up and I'll check it out for myself in the morning but from what I'm hearing WESV has finally launched. Looks like it happened yesterday but wanted to pass that along real quick :) They're broadcasting from the Sear...errr Willis Tower with their signal favoring the Southern suburbs.

No offense intended, but your complaint will go nowhere. Go read the New York thread and you'll find the exact same thing has been happening with RTV being nearly impossible to watch.

The difference is that in New York, it's on physical channel 2. Imagine, RTV with all the problems you associate with it with breakups from the satellite feed, plus constant dropping of color and audio, and it's on the New York equivalent of WOCK-LD without the power increases. It's been this way for months, and unless I missed a post about it being fixed, to my knowledge it is still that way.

- Trip

No offense intended, but your complaint will go nowhere.Not to mention that the engineers have absolutely nothing to do with the decision to boost the power levels or expand the coverage area.

No offense intended, but your complaint will go nowhere.I agree. As long as the station is living up to the terms of their contract (generally paying the license fee) most programmers could not care less if anyone can get the signal. Most programmers are paid for the rights to air programming, not the results.

BTW: As a licensee, this (http://maps.google.com/?q=http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/contourplot.kml?gmap=2%26appid=1359916%26call=WPVN-LD%26freq=0.0%26contour=51%26city=AURORA%26state=IL) is the area WPVN is expected to cover. A complaint from someone 40 miles away might as well be a complaint from someone 100 miles away.

As noted ... it took a while to get ANY station in the Chicago market to get the RTN affiliation. It may be the best that RTN can get.

Have you informed Tribune Media/Zap2it? those of us with the DirecTV OTA receivers don't want to be left out. thanks.

I'm sure they'll leave ya hangin. :(

Schedules for Me-TV and Me-Too can be found (and downloaded in PDF) at:

WCIU (http://www.wciu.com/metv-metoo.php)

Also, just a heads up and I'll check it out for myself in the morning but from what I'm hearing WESV has finally launched. Looks like it happened yesterday but wanted to pass that along real quick :) They're broadcasting from the Sear...errr Willis Tower with their signal favoring the Southern suburbs.

Out in DeKalb, their signal is about as "strong" as channel 33 and even WOCK-LD 4; that is, I "see" them at 25% signal quality on my DTT-900 box, but cannot lock them. Thanks for the update!

I'm sure they'll leave ya hangin. :(

I emailed Tribune Media... hopefully they'll be updated with their TV listings by then. So, what bit rate are you using for each subchannel?

Schedules for Me-TV and Me-Too can be found (and downloaded in PDF) at:

WCIU (http://www.wciu.com/metv-metoo.php)

It looks like the Trek block is still in place...good for me, but I'm sure my wife will groan.

I emailed Tribune Media... hopefully they'll be updated with their TV listings by then. So, what bit rate are you using for each subchannel?

Don't worry, we give them plenty of notice. :D

I checked TitanTV and I'll miss the old ME-TV being only comedy. It looks like the 9am - 5pm will be drama and what is ME-TOO will be drama as well.

The stations will look like

WCIU - 26.1
U-Too - 26.2
ME-TV - 26.3
MeToo - 26.4
ThisTV - 26.5

I read about this last night on another messageboard. This morning, my DTV box picked up 26.5 along with 23.3-23.8 with the guide message. After seeing the new lineup, the lineup won't match the previous stories that U Too would be on 26.5 & 26.6. I wonder if that means MeToo will remain on analog 48.

Also, just a heads up and I'll check it out for myself in the morning but from what I'm hearing WESV has finally launched. Looks like it happened yesterday but wanted to pass that along real quick They're broadcasting from the Sear...errr Willis Tower with their signal favoring the Southern suburbs.

I noticed it myself, & surprised to actually pick it up. This will make the 4rd low power digital station I get (WWME-LD & WDCI-LD on the UHF & WOCK-CD on the VHF). I don't know if I would get WESV-LD without apre-amp or not. WDCI-LD is the only LP station I get without a pre-ampthat I know of.

No offense intended, but your complaint will go nowhere. Go read the New York thread and you'll find the exact same thing has been happening with RTV being nearly impossible to watch.

The difference is that in New York, it's on physical channel 2. Imagine, RTV with all the problems you associate with it with breakups from the satellite feed, plus constant dropping of color and audio, and it's on the New York equivalent of WOCK-LD without the power increases. It's been this way for months, and unless I missed a post about it being fixed, to my knowledge it is still that way.

- TripIt's not an RTV problem. I was watching the network from my mothers home, in Michigan, over the Thanksgiving weekend. The picture was adequate for a SD signal. I seem to have noticed that the broadcast on 24.1 seems to degrade as the day goes on. It is watchable in the morning (with the mesh over the screen look), then later begins to break up and finally goes to black at night.

I know it's not an RTV problem, I'm just saying that if the network cared, it would have been fixed in New York by now.

- Trip

I read about this last night on another messageboard. This morning, my DTV box picked up 26.5 along with 23.3-23.8 with the guide message. After seeing the new lineup, the lineup won't match the previous stories that U Too would be on 26.5 & 26.6. I wonder if that means MeToo will remain on analog 48.
...

Seems to make sense though. They can use it as a marketing thing. You know, "The U" on 26.1 and "U Too" on 26.2 (get it two, too :D)

Since MeToo indicates it's going to be showing shows like Maude, Sanford & Son, The Nanny, All In The Family and a bunch of others that are listed on the AntennaTV site, I wonder if they're gonna share the programming or if AntennaTV will black out duplicate show with others? Hmmm:confused:

The top of the screen is hard to read, but it says to rescan the channels beginning at 5am on what is either the 13th, 15th, 18th, or possibly the 19th of December. If someone can read it better, please correct me.

It's December 15th, next Wednesday, but according to Wikipedia The U Too is going to be launched on 1/5/11. However, there are no sources for this launch date. Not sure who edits that page, but I'm under the impression it's being launched next week.

This teaser is currently being broadcast on 26.5:

http://forums.tannerworld.com/databank/2010/image_wciuchannellist2.jpg

It's December 15th, next Wednesday, but according to Wikipedia The U Too is going to be launched on 1/5/11. However, there are no sources for this launch date. Not sure who edits that page, but I'm under the impression it's being launched next week.

Here's the line up of The U Too from WCIU's website and it says it's launching on 1/5/11 up at the top, so I'm guessing it'll start then, not next week.

The U Too Launch Schedule: http://www.wciu.com/files/TheUTooScheduleWinter2010.pdf

Tonight on WPVN 24.1, we have color. There is the standard pixelization of the digital signal. This is happening even though I have a relatively strong signal.

At my end, their programming guide is on standard time. Weigel Broadcasting is slow to fix their DST, but my DTV box is picking up the programming guide, with the programming, within minutes of the time the program starts. What TV, DTV box, or computer program are you using that WWME-LD 23.2 still shows DST? If DST is turned off (if an option in the menu), that might explain the problem. And yes I am talking about WWME-LD 23.2, as I get the station with a pre-amp

i have two converter boxes on two different tv sets

both the DTT 901 and rca stb7766g1 show WWME 23.2 as having the
time signal sent being an hour fast ... this is when i press the display
button on the remote ... the psip info for the program is correct
it is just the time is wrong .....

and now 23.3 through 23.8 all have the wrong time too ....
whether music is being played on these or not ...
well i am deaf and got to hope the closed caption is there
either the line 21 analog or the digital equivalent
and yeah i miss music horribly ..
those PBS pledge sound of the 60's and 70's are captioned ...
and time /life infomercials for music collection too ....
the brain remembers way too much

kd9fz
comments, criticisms and questions of sanity are always welcome

It's December 15th, next Wednesday, but according to Wikipedia The U Too is going to be launched on 1/5/11. However, there are no sources for this launch date. Not sure who edits that page, but I'm under the impression it's being launched next week.Everybody edits Wikipedia ... although some pages have people who care about them enough to actually watch for errors and fix them and research what is there. Too many Wiki pages have (or need) "citation needed" markups that go unheeded or are removed by "editors" who instead of backing up the claim with a reference just remove the request for a source. (Personally, I prefer to post stuff on a website *I* control and let Wiki editors reference my site as a source. :))

There is some good information there -- but don't trust everything you read.

In this case it appears the date came from WCIU's PDF. Hopefully someone edited in a citation on Wikipedia so people don't have to ask where the info came from.

Out in DeKalb, their signal is about as "strong" as channel 33 and even WOCK-LD 4; that is, I "see" them at 25% signal quality on my DTT-900 box, but cannot lock them. Thanks for the update!

No problem! I did scan today and they definitely did launch. I can get the new WESV perfectly. PQ seems to be very good although I'm not an expert on that stuff and I'm having no trouble with the sound either :) I'm guessing you being unable to lock it probably confirms what I'd heard about their signal favoring the Southwest Suburbs. When I scanned around noon, they were showing some movie in Spanish.

i have two converter boxes on two different tv sets

both the DTT 901 and rca stb7766g1 show WWME 23.2 as having the
time signal sent being an hour fast ... this is when i press the display
button on the remote ... the psip info for the program is correct
it is just the time is wrong .....

and now 23.3 through 23.8 all have the wrong time too ....
whether music is being played on these or not ...
well i am deaf and got to hope the closed caption is there
either the line 21 analog or the digital equivalent
and yeah i miss music horribly ..
those PBS pledge sound of the 60's and 70's are captioned ...
and time /life infomercials for music collection too ....
the brain remembers way too much

kd9fz
comments, criticisms and questions of sanity are always welcome

I have the Magnavox DTV box, model # TB100MW9, & it only displays the program, description of program (if available), & channel number. It doesn't display the time at all. With that box, the program guide only searches 3 hours in advance. It has closed captioning with the ability to customize it, by having different text color, & even eliminating the bars that the text is in (default color being black).

My Aunt Dawn has the Access HD DTV box (model# DTA 1080D), &I like some of th features hers has. Her program guide will search up to 12 - 16 hours in advance what's on TV. It however doesn't give a description of the shows that's on. Hers even allows you to choose to set it up for standard screen or widescreen. Her box however does not accept multiple PSIP channels. With WLS-TV broadcasting on both RF 7 & 44, WLS-TV on RF 44 will show up as WLS-DT 44-1 - 44-3 (as her box displays the channel). Also, at least her box, when I entered 38-3 on her box, instead of going to Ion Life, it tried searching WGBO-DT, & got the No Signal Message. When I entered 38-1, it went to WGB O-DT. I have yet to decide if I want to try & get this DTV box from Meijer, as my local Meijer stores (Merrillville & Highland Indiana) still have this box available. I just hope subchannels aren't counted as separate channels, or if I get it, then I'd have to rescan anytime channels change. That's what I like about my DTV box, as subchannels are tied to the RF channel, and are automatically detected. As long as the station doesn't change RF channels, I don't have to rescan when subchannels change, get added, or get deleted.

Onto the deaf issue; while I'm not deaf myself, I have an idea what you're going through on that, as my Maternal Grandmother is almost totally deaf. She's totally deaf in on ear, & barely hears out of the other ear. She never learned sign language, nor learned to read lips. So it's difficult to talk to her now. She misses being able to hear properly. She relies a lot more on closed captioning on available programming. Her hearing loss was caused by her dad (my great grandpa) beat her over the head with a metal washtub in her teens. That was sometime in the 1930's, and will be 87 this month. So she's dealt with this for at least 70 years. As for her watching closed captioning programming, it's from cable, & not a DTV (though she has one, but no antenna).

No problem! I did scan today and they definitely did launch. I can get the new WESV perfectly. PQ seems to be very good although I'm not an expert on that stuff and I'm having no trouble with the sound either :) I'm guessing you being unable to lock it probably confirms what I'd heard about their signal favoring the Southwest Suburbs. When I scanned around noon, they were showing some movie in Spanish.

... another one of those highly directional to the SW signals only 1/3 of the viewing area can get. It's TBN, so I guess I'm not missing much.

It's Estrella TV. Spanish.

- Trip

Thanks to the NFL "flexing" the Patriots-Bears to the late slot, there are no games to be gained this week. I am not a happy camper.

CBS Early-
Cinncinnati (2-10) vs Pittsburgh (9-3): All area CBS affiliates EXCEPT
Oakland (6-6) vs Jacksonville (7-5): WSBT-22



Update: South Bend has now switched to Cincinnati vs. Pittsburgh.

I'm a happy camper this weekend. I don't have to go out in the cold to watch the Steelers, or watch it on some dismal internet stream.

... another one of those highly directional to the SW signals only 1/3 of the viewing area can get. It's TBN, so I guess I'm not missing much.

You're not missing much, if you don't like a Spanish language station. As Trip stated, it's Estrella TV. TBN sold W40BY (now WESV-LP, as their license lists it) to Liberman Broadcasting Inc. earlier this year. Now that TBN has WWTO on most of Chicago's cable systems, the translator isn't needed. Also, with WWTO getting a big boost in power, they might not need any of their translators in northern Illinois, as their signal will cover most of the Chicago market (including reaching Chicago), but also reach most of the Peoria & Rockford markets.

Update: South Bend has now switched to Cincinnati vs. Pittsburgh.

I'm a happy camper this weekend. I don't have to go out in the cold to watch the Steelers, or watch it on some dismal internet stream.

While Cin/Pit is a dog of a game, you being a Steelhead means that you will take any Pittsburgh game you can get. Beware, Steelers...the Bungles are way overdue for a win.

My Aunt Dawn has the Access HD DTV box (model# DTA 1080D), &I like some of th features hers has. Her program guide will search up to 12 - 16 hours in advance what's on TV. It however doesn't give a description of the shows that's on. Hers even allows you to choose to set it up for standard screen or widescreen. Her box however does not accept multiple PSIP channels. With WLS-TV broadcasting on both RF 7 & 44, WLS-TV on RF 44 will show up as WLS-DT 44-1 - 44-3 (as her box displays the channel). Also, at least her box, when I entered 38-3 on her box, instead of going to Ion Life, it tried searching WGBO-DT, & got the No Signal Message. When I entered 38-1, it went to WGB O-DT. I have yet to decide if I want to try & get this DTV box from Meijer, as my local Meijer stores (Merrillville & Highland Indiana) still have this box available. I just hope subchannels aren't counted as separate channels, or if I get it, then I'd have to rescan anytime channels change. That's what I like about my DTV box, as subchannels are tied to the RF channel, and are automatically detected. As long as the station doesn't change RF channels, I don't have to rescan when subchannels change, get added, or get deleted.

I have that box too. The subchannels are auto-detected, so no rescan is necessary.

You're not missing much, if you don't like a Spanish language station. As Trip stated, it's Estrella TV. TBN sold W40BY (now WESV-LP, as their license lists it) to Liberman Broadcasting Inc. earlier this year. Now that TBN has WWTO on most of Chicago's cable systems, the translator isn't needed. Also, with WWTO getting a big boost in power, they might not need any of their translators in northern Illinois, as their signal will cover most of the Chicago market (including reaching Chicago), but also reach most of the Peoria & Rockford markets.

They've turned off all their analog translators (WWTO/TBN) in northern Illinois, and aren't flash-cutting them to digital. So they definitely believe they won't need them.

While Cin/Pit is a dog of a game, you being a Steelhead means that you will take any Pittsburgh game you can get. Beware, Steelers...the Bungles are way overdue for a win.

Agreed. Classic trap game. Although the Steelers haven't looked overly impressive this year, at least they are beating the teams they are supposed to beat, which was not the case last year.

Finally figured out the exact story with the U Too. The network isn't launching until 1/5/11, but WCIU is making the switch on 12/15/10 in order to launch coverage of the DePaul basketball games, starting next week. http://www.wciu.com/theutoo.php

Is it just me, or do all of the WCIU channels look a bit softer/blurrier and/or noisier than they used to to anybody right now?

That static slide on 26-5 probably isn't helping. I would imagine that it will recover at least slightly when 26-6 goes away.

- Trip

Is it just me, or do all of the WCIU channels look a bit softer/blurrier and/or noisier than they used to to anybody right now?

On my TV (CRT with DTV box), it looks a bit soft & occasional blurriness. I notice it the most on 26.6. So it's not you. They're not any noisier at my end than they are now. I only wish 23.2 were louder. That is the only channel from Weigel that I have to rurn up the volume to hear it. I can hear 23.1 just fine.

Yeah - I'm definitely noticing more blocking on some of the stuff, too.

I only wish 23.2 were louder.I usually keep my volume at 20. For that channel, I have to turn it up to at least 28.

I just purchased a new DVR and one of the options for the Clock Setting is to obtain the time signal from a DTV station. Can someone tell me which stations send a time signal and of those stations which one have you found to be the most accurate. Thank you in advance for your help!

what brand/model dvr do u have?

i have a Magnavox H2160A dvr which has analog and digital tuners...i can program what channel it uses for the time signal....i've been using CBS WBBM (which is rf channel 12, psip ch 2) for several months now and it has been perfect (right down to the second) every time i've compared it to my daily updated atomic clock....

i dont think every broadcast channel sends a time signal....i tried a few others before i found WBBM and it didnt work.....

the Magnavox H2160A automatically syncs itself to the tuner delivered time signal every day....

and btw, i am using an off-air antenna...no cable, satellite or telco pay tv criminals are allowed to commit their evil crimes in my house....

what brand/model dvr do u have?

i have a Magnavox H2160A dvr which has analog and digital tuners...i can program what channel it uses for the time signal....i've been using CBS WBBM (which is rf channel 12, psip ch 2) for several months now and it has been perfect (right down to the second) every time i've compared it to my daily updated atomic clock....

i dont think every broadcast channel sends a time signal....i tried a few others before i found WBBM and it didnt work.....

the Magnavox H2160A automatically syncs itself to the tuner delivered time signal every day....

and btw, i am using an off-air antenna...no cable, satellite or telco pay tv criminals are allowed to commit their evil crimes in my house....

I have a Toshiba DVR model DR570 and have been using WBBM for the past few days as well and the clock seems to be working fine. Thanks for asking. There just seems to be very few DVR's that have a built in tuner. So far I've been able to duplicate discs and do timer recording so I'm very pleased. The discs I've created play back well on other units.

The Maggie is a genuine "DVR" (or "PVR" - meaning it has a hard drive).

Your Toshiba would actually be a "DVD-R" (meaning "DVD recorder"). ;)

Is it just me, or do all of the WCIU channels look a bit softer/blurrier and/or noisier than they used to to anybody right now?

I thought it was just me, it definately has gone downhill since they got rid of FBT on 26.6

I thought it was just me, it definately has gone downhill since they got rid of FBT on 26.6FBT was a 0.70 Mbps 352x480i feed the last time I checked. RabbitEars shows a slightly higher bitrate but that can happen with VBR. It didn't take up much space.

On my TV (CRT with DTV box), it looks a bit soft & occasional blurriness. I notice it the most on 26.6. So it's not you. They're not any noisier at my end than they are now. I only wish 23.2 were louder. That is the only channel from Weigel that I have to rurn up the volume to hear it. I can hear 23.1 just fine.
There is no difference in audio levels between 23.1 and 23.2. They are exactly the same stream.

FBT was a 0.70 Mbps 352x480i feed the last time I checked. RabbitEars shows a slightly higher bitrate but that can happen with VBR. It didn't take up much space.I think he's just pointing out the timeline more than anything else. Even though the actual programming hasn't started up yet, maybe 26.5 is taking more bits from the others now?

FBT was a 0.70 Mbps 352x480i feed the last time I checked. RabbitEars shows a slightly higher bitrate but that can happen with VBR. It didn't take up much space.

FBT was fine for me as well. When the took out FBT and replaced it with 26.6 what bitrate is that at? I'm assuming it took up more space, and that along with 25.5 being static may have caused a bit of an issue.

I noticed virtual channel 23.1 now has 23.2 and channels 23.3 thru and including 23.8 are now notices of the coming changes.

Has bandwidth been taken away from 26.1? I am currently watching the Bulls game on WCIU, and there is more pixelation than I remember.

Has bandwidth been taken away from 26.1? I am currently watching the Bulls game on WCIU, and there is more pixelation than I remember.

I noticed a decrease in picture quality lately on the subchannels. In theory if VBR and statmux is used the bits can come from anywhere as needed. I applaud 26 for all the additions but they are stretching the bandwidth quite thin.

I applaud 26 for all the additions...I did, too - up until the last subchannel or two.

What is going to be shown on this new channel that they couldn't have found room for on the other ones?

Gilbert, could you explain the weather that caused some pretty strong tropo last night and this morning? I didn't do any dxing, but I saw the Hepburn map, and all of the Milwaukees were rockin'. Isn't this very unusual when it's this cold?

Once again, with the Bears and Packers both playing in prime-time, there are no extra games to be had this week. I think the PM'sNFLST strategy works better when the nearby teams are playing poorly, and don't get prime-time or "flex" consideration. Oh well, at least the Bears can wrap up the division, if the Packers lose and the Bears win- that is, if the Vikings can actually provide a place to play the game. TCF Bank stadium is not a done deal, and even if it is, there are going to be some issues (beer sales, stadium preparation, and what to do with the 13,000 ticketholders for whom there are no seats).

CBS Early-
Jacksonville (8-5) vs Indianapolis (7-6): All area CBS affiliates

FOX Early-
Philadelphia (9-4) vs NY Giants (9-4): WFLD-32, WITI-6, WQRF-39, WSJV-28, WMSN-47
Detroit (3-10) vs Tampa Bay (8-5): WXMI-17

CBS Late-
NY Jets (9-4) vs Pittsburgh (10-3): All area CBS affiliates

FOX Late-
Atlanta (11-2) vs Seattle (6-7): WXIN-59 way down in Indy (good luck!)

LithOTA, did you get my e-mail requesting new TSReader from WCIU? Not in a hurry, just making sure I got it to you.

- Trip

LithOTA, did you get my e-mail requesting new TSReader from WCIU? Not in a hurry, just making sure I got it to you.

- Trip

I don't think I did, but I'll get that for you. Do you want a before/after?

Gilbert, could you explain the weather that caused some pretty strong tropo last night and this morning? I didn't do any dxing, but I saw the Hepburn map, and all of the Milwaukees were rockin'. Isn't this very unusual when it's this cold?

I was wondering that too. I rescanned due to the WCIU change-up, and got all of my Madison stations back. Some things work out perfect!

I don't think I did, but I'll get that for you. Do you want a before/after?

Just an after is fine. I already have the before. :)

- Trip

Guys,

I am moving and dont want to move my self-supporting tower of 28ft. It is in poor shape and would only end up being 23+/- feet when installed. I have several neighbors with towers not being used that I could approach but I am looking for an economical solution for ground mount with house stablization at about 12 feet. My wife won't allow guyed wires. I have seen Rohn and Channel Master telescopic. Has any one tried w/o guyed. I have an Winegard 8200HD and want to go approx 30 ft up.

Thanks

Can you help???

Chicago SW burbs here....had Basic Comcast, tech came in the summer to install a 'card' in the TV so that the new TiVo would work. After the tech came we started getting Basic Service AND Expanded Basic because tech did something with a filter?!?!?

Anyways, yesterday morning everything magically switched back to Basic Service. ANY insight on what I can do on my end to get the Expanded back.....other than calling the cable company?

Thanks!

The PSIP channel name for 26.2, which carries UToo, is FBT.  I hope that that will be fixed.

So 23.1, 23.2, and 23.3 are all from RF39 now, and 48.1 is gone, so RF27 is carrying only 26.1 through 26.5, and there aren't any more RF channels in this market spread over two or more virtual major channels; nor are there any more virtual major channels in this market shared by two or more RF channels except for 7.x, which has nothing to do with Weigel.

Can you help???

Chicago SW burbs here....had Basic Comcast, tech came in the summer to install a 'card' in the TV so that the new TiVo would work. After the tech came we started getting Basic Service AND Expanded Basic because tech did something with a filter?!?!?

Anyways, yesterday morning everything magically switched back to Basic Service. ANY insight on what I can do on my end to get the Expanded back.....other than calling the cable company?

Thanks!

There's a Comcast Chicago thread on here, here's the link http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=255885&page=327
This thread is for broadcast TV in the Chicago area. However, my guess is that Comcast finally went digital only in the SW suburbs, which requires a basic level DTA box in order to see the expanded basic channels. I know they were planning on making the transition in the Evergreen Park/Mt. Greenwood/Oak Lawn area for quite some time. The analog filters they use don't regulate digital signals. They are controlled through the pairing of the digital boxes to their head end.

If I were you, I'd just invest in a decent OTA rooftop antenna as well as a preamp and drop the Comcast basic. That way, you get a few more channels, better quality HD, and no monthly fee. It will all work with your TiVo too.

Another change today, this one for WGN: the placeholding test pattern for Antenna TV is now PSIPped to 9.2 instead of its raw channel number 19.4 and it has the PSIP name "Antenna."

And for some reason I'm not getting update notices (for the first new post after each of my visits) for this thread, though it still comes up as already subscribed, and in all my other subscribed threads I'm still receiving them ...

The PSIP channel name for 26.2, which carries UToo, is FBT.* I hope that that will be fixed.

So 23.1, 23.2, and 23.3 are all from RF39 now, and 48.1 is gone, so RF27 is carrying only 26.1 through 26.5, and there aren't any more RF channels in this market spread over two or more virtual major channels; nor are there any more virtual major channels in this market shared by two or more RF channels except for 7.x, which has nothing to do with Weigel.

Dropping those double-mappings of 48.1/23.1 from RF27 was a good idea (as I would just end up deleting them after every channel scan anyway).

Now if they'd just do something useful with RF39. Nobody needs 3 identical copies of what we're already getting on RF27. Running the Me/MeToo programming time-shifted by a few hours -- so there'd be several different shows running at the same time would put RF39 to much better use.

Dropping those double-mappings of 48.1/23.1 from RF27 was a good idea (as I would just end up deleting them after every channel scan anyway).

Now if they'd just do something useful with RF39. Nobody needs 3 identical copies of what we're already getting on RF27. Running the Me/MeToo programming time-shifted by a few hours -- so there'd be several different shows running at the same time would put RF39 to much better use.

Amen to that. The RF39 signal is golden out here at 45 miles, so why not use it like a full-power?

anyone else getting channel 4-2817 ?
it seems to be the same audio feed as 13-2 (WOCH) but with no picture feed..i just get some kind of screen saver

anyone else getting channel 4-2817 ?
it seems to be the same audio feed as 13-2 (WOCH) but with no picture feed..i just get some kind of screen saver

I'm getting it with 13.2's audio and a blank screen.

Has WOCK increased to 810 watts yet? If so, how does it come in at your location in Chicagoland?

When I was last visiting Chicago (Glen Ellyn last summer), I caught WOCK with a Terk HDTVa connected to a DTX-9950 CECB I carry with me when traveling for DXing and to watch local TV. The only area station I didn't get with that setup was WYIN.

Speaking of low power facilities, I got WLFM's 87.7 MHz signal to just beyond the I-55 bridge over the Des Plaines River while driving back to Dallas.

The PSIP channel name for 26.2, which carries UToo, is FBT.* I hope that that will be fixed.

So 23.1, 23.2, and 23.3 are all from RF39 now, and 48.1 is gone, so RF27 is carrying only 26.1 through 26.5, and there aren't any more RF channels in this market spread over two or more virtual major channels; nor are there any more virtual major channels in this market shared by two or more RF channels except for 7.x, which has nothing to do with Weigel.

26.2 will change to U Too once it has officially launched.

Just an after is fine. I already have the before. Isn't it variable?

anyone else getting channel 4-2817 ?
4-2817? Are you talking about ATSC or QAM?

Isn't it variable?

Variable and allocations haven't changed.

Gilbert, could you explain the weather that caused some pretty strong tropo last night and this morning? I didn't do any dxing, but I saw the Hepburn map, and all of the Milwaukees were rockin'. Isn't this very unusual when it's this cold?

Really quick: While signals travel less far in cold, you can still have somewhat significant tropo events if there is warm air aloft. We had temperatures up around 40 degrees, and colder at ground level...allowwing for some tropo to kick in. You won't be getting Detroit or Cedar Rapids with it, but at least "local tropo", if you will, can happen.

Isn't it variable?

Yeah, but it's also nearly impossible to tell what the range of bitrates is without the paid version of TSReader, so I usually wind up with an average value, which is okay.

- Trip

Amen to that. The RF39 signal is golden out here at 45 miles, so why not use it like a full-power?

Because I live three miles from Willis (Sears) Tower and can't get the signal at all. Unless you have an outside antenna, the buildings in Chicago are dense enough to make getting any full power station a challenge.

I can receive analog 23 and 48 nearly perfectly clear. I have never been able to get digital 23 (RF39) even as close as a mile away with a silver sensor pointed directly at the Willis Tower.

This morning I checked analog 23 and it isn't on. It was last night. I still get analog 48

Amen to that. The RF39 signal is golden out here at 45 miles, so why not use it like a full-power?

Or - if they can't timeshift Me/MeToo, how about using it for an HD version of This-TV (That-HD?).

Heck, even using one of the RF39 subchannels to just show a continual weather radar screen would be better than what they're doing with it now.

This morning I checked analog 23 and it isn't on. It was last night. I still get analog 48

Analog 23's transmitter is offline and will be back shortly.

Yeah, but it's also nearly impossible to tell what the range of bitrates is without the paid version of TSReader, so I usually wind up with an average value, which is okay.

- Trip

I could tell you what the range's are, but I'd have to........ummmm......... :D

I could tell you what the range's are, but I'd have to........ummmm......... :D

I'm sure if I really wanted to know, I could spend about $100 and find out. ;)

- Trip

Also, is 26-2 still in 352x480i? Somehow I thought that would get bumped up to 704x480i when the change happened.

- Trip

anyone else getting channel 4-2817 ?
it seems to be the same audio feed as 13-2 (WOCH) but with no picture feed..i just get some kind of screen saver

4-2817? Are you talking about ATSC or QAM?

I get that too when I rescan my tv. It is a ATSC signal. 13.2 audio/ no video. WOCH broadcasts on physical channel 4/virtual 13.

It's probably an erroneous entry in their PMT, and WOCK-CD wouldn't be the only station to have that particular entry. WPSJ-LD near Philadelphia has all six of its subchannels (8-1, 8-2, etc) duplicated as 51-2817, 51-2818, etc.

- Trip

Also, is 26-2 still in 352x480i? Somehow I thought that would get bumped up to 704x480i when the change happened.

- Trip

I don't believe resolution got changed yet.

4-2817? Are you talking about atsc or qam?

atsc

26 is mapping to 27 on my cm-7000 d2a's

26 is mapping to 27 on my cm-7000 d2a's

Yes! - I'm having the same problem on one tuner (Samsung LN46A650). I even did a double rescan (once with no antenna hooked up followed by a second with the antenna hooked up) to no avail; on this TV only, it still comes in as 27.3, 27.4, etc... (with no guide data either).

A different Samsung (LN32B640) maps it to 26 fine; a much older ProBrand DT tuner maps it OK, too.

Could something be slightly off/unexpected in the PSIP data to confuse only certain tuners?

I think that we must be in an intermediate stage of WCIU's changes. Right now, they have made room for UToo, but the guide data on my dish tuner hasn't quite caught up yet. Hopefully after the first of the year, everything will be sorted out.

The U Too formally launches on January 5th, so I'd assume everything will be all caught up by then. Besides, the main reason everything they shifted the channels and all that was because MeTV went national last week and probably wanted to deal with MeTV, MeToo and ThisTV before they work on The U Too.
They can probably only do so much at once.

Oh joy, the OTA simulcast for Monday night's "Freezer Bowl" Bears vs Vikings is on...WLS. I bet it will look better on my ESPN dish feed. It would look better on almost any other Chicago OTA.

A few evenings ago, I rescanned my friends' Dish Network HD receiver. He lives out in Elburn, has a two story house, and has a Radio Shack VU-190 antenna (made by Antennacraft) in his attic, pointed right at Willis Tower. The signal is split 8 ways from a splitter in the basement, 3 in use, with a ChannelMaster 7777 preamplifier before the splitter, and RG-6 quad-shielded cable used throughout the entire house. All jumpers are also at least RG-6 dual-shielded cable.

He hadn't rescanned in a year or more, so here's what I saw that was different from his receiver after I cleared everything out and then rescanned:

1) 13-1 through 13-4 were a solid 60%, good picture on all channels, no breakups. A few channels had only one channel of audio. Think about it: Elburn, 35 miles away, 810 watts (I think) on channel 4. Not bad...the big strength of the VU-190 is it's very good VHF reception.

2) WDCI-LD didn't come in. Not surprising, as WSPY-CA analog channel 30 is pretty closeby, and it severely interferes there.

3) Estrella TV on 40.1 easily locked with 80% signal.

4) WCHU-LD on 33 easily locked with a signal strength of 90%.

5) WPVN-CA easily locked with about 80% signal. Oh, no...the
color issue is back on 24.1. I saw it tonight at my place as well.

He hadn't rescanned in a year or more...Bet he wanted to break out the champaign immediately after he saw what was on all those channels. :)

'Tinski: did you mean "break out the champagne" or "break out for Champaign"?

Buehler...... Buehler

There appears to be some activity on the normally quiet WPVN front. Their website is in the process of being updated.
http://wpvn24.com/

Bet he wanted to break out the champaign immediately after he saw what was on all those channels. :)

Being a U of I fan, he has, but not because of that. :D But he's also a junkie for just seeing foreign language stuff, and trying to figure it out...so needless to say, he's quite curious and happy about his new lineup.

Buehler...... Buehler

There appears to be some activity on the normally quiet WPVN front. Their website is in the process of being updated.
http://wpvn24.com/

I wish them well, but this website is about as complete as the old one. Different look, same old s...tuff.

Oh joy, the OTA simulcast for Monday night's "Freezer Bowl" Bears vs Vikings is on...WLS. I bet it will look better on my ESPN dish feed. It would look better on almost any other Chicago OTA.

Well, at least your ABC station is getting this Monday Night Football game! I sure do miss MNF on ABC; it was always something to look forward to growing up, and I liked the "Are You Ready For Some Football?" theme song!

'Tinski: did you mean "break out the champagne" or "break out for Champaign"?:D That's what you get at 5:44 AM.

Well, at least your ABC station is getting this Monday Night Football game! I sure do miss MNF on ABC; it was always something to look forward to growing up, and I liked the "Are You Ready For Some Football?" theme song!I went to turn it on from Rockford (which isn't that far from me) to compare the PQ, and I found that they weren't even showing it. Kind of surprised, since that's Northern Illinois.

I went to turn it on from Rockford (which isn't that far from me) to compare the PQ, and I found that they weren't even showing it. Kind of surprised, since that's Northern Illinois.

NFL rules are that home market OTA broadcasters only get dibs on their games if playing outside of weekends (ie, on Monday and Thursday night). Chicago is the primary market for our team; every other metro (including Rockford) is not. There are rare exceptions for a team to have two "primary" or home markets: the Packers have Milwaukee as well as Green Bay, so if the Pack play on Monday night, stations in both markets are offered the game. Madison has been trying like heck to become a primary market, but they are shot down as not having any games played IN their market. The Pack, of course, used to play some games in Milwaukee until the 1990s.

Anyway, I saw the game over-the-air from rf 44 (7.1) on a 46" HDTV, and the picture quality was good...not outstanding, but typical ESPN 720p. WLS makes the effort to make it look as good as possible. The source video is 20 mb/sec, so I would expect it to look at least decent. Even with 7.2 and 7.3 humming away, the encoders kept up.

I, too, was glad to see it on 7...brought back memories of having all MNF games on ABC. And BTW, MAJOR props to the production crew for pulling off that "hail mary" production with 8 days warning!

I was also surprised at WLS's PQ on the game (especially after I went out of my way to pre-criticize it). It was better than some of the college games I've watched this year.
But there did seem to be problems with the ESPN feed down to WLS, weird little time shifts and stuff like that.

After 2 weeks of almost nothing, there's some extra games to be had this week. If you live near the periphery of the Chicago market and you like the NFL, you should try this.

CBS Early-
NY Jets (10-4) vs Chicago (10-4): WBBM-2, WDJT-58, WIFR-23, WSBT-22

FOX Early-
San Francisco (5-9) vs St. Louis (6-7): WITI-6, WMSN-47, WQRF-39, WYZZ-43, WCCU-27
Washington (5-9) vs Jacksonville (8-6): WSJV-28
Detroit (4-10) vs Miami (7-7): WXMI-17
(Notice there is no early game on WFLD-32. This is because of the Bears being at home and on CBS, and this is where PMNFLST really pays off.)

CBS Late-
Indianapolis (8-6) vs Oakland (7-7): WLFI-18

FOX Late-
NY Giants (9-5) vs Green Bay (8-6): All area FOX affiliates

Lith, any chance of TSReader from WCIU? Pretty please? :)

- Trip

I noticed that WMAQ NBC5 is starting to use HD from the field live trucks in some parts of the city!

26 is mapping to 27 on my cm-7000 d2a's
Can you do something using the CM-7000 to see the mapping? I didn't think mine could do that.

Can you do something using the CM-7000 to see the mapping? I didn't think mine could do that.

Sometimes when we "burp" our PSIP, we will show up as 27-3 or 27-1 on certain make/model tuners. It's one of those little defects in the digital world. The mapping issue has been corrected anyways.

I love chi town

I like Chicago also, but I sure could do without all the infamous Chicago & Illinois politics that goes on.

It sounded like OTA_GUY could see the mapping by way of something on the CM-7000. Since I can't find it, I was wondering.

I like Chicago also, but I sure could do without all the infamous Chicago & Illinois politics that goes on.I can't imagine you'd be particularly thrilled with the national infusion of it now, either. ;)

Actually, as a whole, I would say I liked Chicago a lot, too - at least before about the last, twenty years. The only thing left that I really like about it now is the food.

Oh, yeah - and our sports teams (minus that national joke of a baseball team on the north side, of course).

WMSN-47 in Madison has changed their FOX-Early game to Detroit vs Miami.

Hey everyone, just wanting to wish everyone here a very Merry Christmas! Despite some of my soap box-y posts at times, I have enjoyed reading through the thread this year. I've learned more about how digital TV and TV in general works this year more than any other year in my life. It's all thanks to the great people who post here :D I've learned far more TV wise here than I could ever hope to learn anywhere else. Looking forward to reading through and learning even more next year. Thank you for baring with me and at times putting up with me! Merry Christmas to all!!

Hello how are you doing today?I just got done talking to Dish Network and they would like to carry WCIU in HD.but you must contact them to do it here here is a conversation that i had with dish a little while ago

Allen Culver: 26-00 WCIU CHICAGO, IL - 8497 SD 110° 31s19 A 8497 SD 61.5° 9s11 A
Allen Culver: can you add these onto Dish Network
Allen Culver: in HD
(04) Tu1P Kristyn P.TJH: I can put in a channel request form.
Allen Culver: that would be allright with me i wanted to let you know about this
(04) Tu1P Kristyn P.TJH: At this time, we only receive the right to broadcast it in SD, the news station would be the ones to contact because we cannot show it unless we have the rights to do so.
(04) Tu1P Kristyn P.TJH: Is there anything else that I can assist you with?
Allen Culver: what would i need to do get in touch with the stations
(04) Tu1P Kristyn P.TJH: One moment.
(04) Tu1P Kristyn P.TJH: The phone number may be listed in the phone book, but we do not have that information. It would be one of your local stations.
Allen Culver: then what should i do i have to contact the tv stations and let them know that Dish would like to carry your channel in HD and would like to do so

(04) Tu1P Kristyn P.TJH: http://www.wciu.com is their website ad they may have a feedback section to suggest that.

04) Tu1P Kristyn P.TJH: At this time, we only receive the right to broadcast it in SD, the news station would be the ones to contact because we cannot show it unless we have the rights to do so.

04) Tu1P Kristyn P.TJH: The stations may be broadcast in HD in your area, but on the Dish Network side, we do not have the contract and cannot show it in HD until we have that contract signed.

if anyone can help me i sure appreciate it very much.

thanks

bluegras

Hey everyone, just wanting to wish everyone here a very Merry Christmas! Despite some of my soap box-y posts at times, I have enjoyed reading through the thread this year. I've learned more about how digital TV and TV in general works this year more than any other year in my life. It's all thanks to the great people who post here :D I've learned far more TV wise here than I could ever hope to learn anywhere else. Looking forward to reading through and learning even more next year. Thank you for baring with me and at times putting up with me! Merry Christmas to all!!

Merry Christmas to you too, BH, and all on AVS Forum Chicago. Thanks for making this a fun thread!

Yes, even to you, Sox fans! ;):D

I can't imagine you'd be particularly thrilled with the national infusion of it now, either. ;)



Hey, it's only fair to share it with the entire U.S.A.....;)

But now Chicago has the Rahmfather back in town, and he's gunning to be the next boss King Mayor of Chicago.


Just seen the ad for the New Years Stooge marathon on MeTV, man is Koz getting FAT!

A somewhat late Merry Christmas to everyone here. And that the New Year is a happy one, and it brings you only good things!




Yes, even to you, Sox fans! ;):D



Hey, just to show you Cubs fans that there is no hard feelings. Us White Sox fans will let you Cubs fans come over and look at our Chicago White Sox 2005 World Series Champions trophy anytime you want...;)

And our 2011 division title, and our...

Cubs. What a joke! :p

Peanuts, get yer peanuts.....;)

http://worldserieschicago.com/images/Chicago_flubs.jpg

In a month or so, we should be hearing the usual, pre-season proclamations from deluded Scrub fans of "We're goin' all the way this year". :p

(04) Tu1P Kristyn P.TJH: At this time, we only receive the right to broadcast it in SD, the news station would be the ones to contact because we cannot show it unless we have the rights to do so.



Good news.. if WCIU had a news station. :p

Anyone get the Bears Jets game currently on CBS? My Tivo's blank.

Sounds like it's a TIVO problem, as my TIVOs were just fine.

Wasn't receiving WBBM with my TiVo HD very well out here in Crystal Lake because of the atmospheric conditions.

Had to watch the game on SD Dish. Ugh.

In a month or so, we should be hearing the usual, pre-season proclamations from deluded Scrub fans of "We're goin' all the way this year". :p

Well, NEXT year, we are! :D

pardon me if this has already been discussed.....but what happened to the analog signal on rf ch 23? it was wwme, i think.... its been gone for several days now...is a digital rf 23 coming?

and the analog (wmeu?) on rf 48 is still there....is this eventually going to become a digital signal as well?

Well, NEXT year, we are! :D
Highly unlikely!

The Ricketts family might be huge Cubs fans, but they also look like they are going to be a just another misguided screw up owner of the Cubs.

Your best chance of the Cubs doing good, was shot down when the rest of the MLB owners basically blackballed Mark Cuban from buying the Cubs.

pardon me if this has already been discussed.....but what happened to the analog signal on rf ch 23? it was wwme, i think.... its been gone for several days now...is a digital rf 23 coming?

and the analog (wmeu?) on rf 48 is still there....is this eventually going to become a digital signal as well?

No. Awaiting parts for Analog 23.

Hey, just to show you Cubs fans that there is no hard feelings. Us White Sox fans will let you Cubs fans come over and look at our Chicago White Sox 2005 World Series Champions trophy anytime you want...;)

Sure thing! Please let us know when you go back to playing real baseball instead of that 4 hr game DH-garbage that's only been around for 25 or 30 years. Maybe you can bring back Jose Canseco to DH... what, he's only 50 now and probably can't run or catch a ball on the run. Perfect for an AL DH.

BTW, Tribune media has updated the WCIU subchannel listings. DirecTV can't be far behind with the AM21 or H20/HR20.

pardon me if this has already been discussed.....but what happened to the analog signal on rf ch 23? it was wwme, i think.... its been gone for several days now...is a digital rf 23 coming?BTW: The digital for 23 is already there ... on RF channel 39. Even if analog 23 were to shut down that RF channel wouldn't become another digital unless a licensed station were to move there.

Highly unlikely!

The Ricketts family might be huge Cubs fans, but they also look like they are going to be a just another misguided screw up owner of the Cubs.

Your best chance of the Cubs doing good, was shot down when the rest of the MLB owners basically blackballed Mark Cuban from buying the Cubs.

I will give you this: I do wish Cuban had bought the Cubs. Love him or hate him, he demands excellence. MLB and the owners did all they could to black ball him because they know he'd shake things up. He not only would have been good for the Cubs, but MLB in general.

Sure thing! Please let us know when you go back to playing real baseball instead of that 4 hr game DH-garbage that's only been around for 25 or 30 years. Maybe you can bring back Jose Canseco to DH... what, he's only 50 now and probably can't run or catch a ball on the run. Perfect for an AL DH.
Probably do no worse than that below-the-Mendoza-Line-hitting first baseman the Cubs just signed.

noticed that 9-2 is now showing up
anyone know what WGN has planned for this ?
also, can someone list out or supply a link to Digital station vs the real channel value
i.e. 2-1 = 14
or something like this

noticed that 9-2 is now showing up
anyone know what WGN has planned for this ?Antenna TV is a new network that is launching.

also, can someone list out or supply a link to Digital station vs the real channel value i.e. 2-1 = 14 or something like thisAll you need to do is go right back to post #2 on page 1 here.

[QUOTE=Johnla;19708676]Peanuts, get yer peanuts.....;)

http://worldserieschicago.com/images/Chicago_flubs.jpg[/QUOTE

zzzzz.....baseball? Really? The Bears are 11-4, the Hawks have won 4 and are getting Kane back, and the Bulls are holding their own even with Noah out. And you guys are talking about baseball?

On a side note, the PQ on WGN for the Bulls/Knicks on Christmas morning looked like frozen reindeer snot. OTA or Dish, it was bad, bad, bad, and with nothing to suck up bandwidth but the "antenna TV" static image. ESPN's version of the same game was light-years ahead.
Why does WGN look worse than a "WGN on the U" game, with all of those subchannels on 26 and none on 9?

Why does WGN look worse than a "WGN on the U" game, with all of those subchannels on 26 and none on 9?It may not be as bad yet, but it isn't really that far behind. I see lots of distracting, annoying artifacts on 26.1 - starting from about the time they added ThisTV. One thing would be that consistent, timed, pulsating blur (the best place to notice it is on sports, and sometimes commercials). More noticable, dirty, mosquito noise, too. It's also not as sharp and detailed as it was at one time to my eyes.

WCIU has newer, more modern and efficient encoders - that's why the difference right now.

On another note, my TiVo has picked up something like 7 or 8 subchannel assignments on 23.1 recently. They should just move all the 26 subchannels over there and leave WCIU-HD to one frequency.

Newbie here with a question for you (and I will also post this on the Peoria HDTV thread too) regarding WWTO LaSalle/Chicago if anyone knows, noticed, or cares.

When I was back home for Christmas (northwest of Peoria--and in reception range of all Peoria/Bloomington and Quad Cities stations plus WWTO), I noticed that all of the four additional WWTO TBN subchannels (Church Channel, JCTV, Enlace, Smile of a Child) had disappeared and there was problems with the picture quality of the signal (reception was still fair--probably a satellite issue?). Does anyone know what is up with WWTO lately?

Also, I thought the WWTO translators in the likes of Peoria, Rockford, Bloomington, Galesburg, etc. were gone, but apparently the one in Galesburg on channel 51 is still operating (it was detected during a re-scan of one of my grandparents' TVs Christmas Eve).

zzzzz.....baseball? Really? The Bears are 11-4, the Hawks have won 4 and are getting Kane back, and the Bulls are holding their own even with Noah out. And you guys are talking about baseball?



I hear you. The 3 hour long, 162 game season is more than enough. I don't need "hot stove league" speculation and next season projections in the dead of winter. I nearly take my fist to my radio when those conversations commence at this time of year on sports talk radio, especially with everything else that is going on now.

Newbie here with a question for you (and I will also post this on the Peoria HDTV thread too) regarding WWTO LaSalle/Chicago if anyone knows, noticed, or cares.

When I was back home for Christmas (northwest of Peoria--and in reception range of all Peoria/Bloomington and Quad Cities stations plus WWTO), I noticed that all of the four additional WWTO TBN subchannels (Church Channel, JCTV, Enlace, Smile of a Child) had disappeared and there was problems with the picture quality of the signal (reception was still fair--probably a satellite issue?). Does anyone know what is up with WWTO lately?

Also, I thought the WWTO translators in the likes of Peoria, Rockford, Bloomington, Galesburg, etc. were gone, but apparently the one in Galesburg on channel 51 is still operating (it was detected during a re-scan of one of my grandparents' TVs Christmas Eve).

As for the subchannels, no...I can't get them, so I don't know what happened there. I saw all 5 channels on last week, so I don't knoww what happened.

The analog translators are being sold, but if they are off the air for a year, the license gets cancelled. So they had to turn the unsold ones back on for a time.

Sure thing! Please let us know when you go back to playing real baseball instead of that 4 hr game DH-garbage that's only been around for 25 or 30 years. Maybe you can bring back Jose Canseco to DH... what, he's only 50 now and probably can't run or catch a ball on the run. Perfect for an AL DH.


Yawn, as opposed to that $136 million Alfonso Soriano which the Cubs just about always remove in later innings so they can have someone in the outfield that actually is a decent defensive outfielder. Hey, and best of all, how about those Cubbies in the 1906 World Series, just WHO was it that they lost the 1906 World Series to..........

Oh my, could it be that it was none other than the Chicago White Sox that BEAT the Cubs in that 1906 World Series!;)

http://www.baseball-almanac.com/ws/yr1906ws.shtml

http://www.baseball-reference.com/postseason/1906_WS.shtml



Besides, we don't need Canseco to try and DH for us. As I'm sure a the recently signed Adam Dunn will do just fine!

zzzzz.....baseball? Really? The Bears are 11-4, the Hawks have won 4 and are getting Kane back, and the Bulls are holding their own even with Noah out. And you guys are talking about baseball?



Not at all a Bears fan, I hope they are one in done in the playoffs..;)

Hawks, that's another story, like them a lot, even used to be a season ticket holder back in the mid 70's when it was still relatively affordable. And I love it now that Hawks game are back on free TV, Rocky Wirtz deserves a LOT of credit! He is one heck of a good owner, he brought the Hawks back to being respectable and a threat in the league, which also resulted in winning the Stanley Cup last year!

Bulls, don't care one way or another as I'm no fan of basketball in general anymore, the game is just not the same as it used to be years ago. If you went by the original rules, other than for free throws, probably 98%-99% of all the other plays today would be called for traveling. It's ridiculous the stuff they get by with doing now in basketball.

On a side note, the PQ on WGN for the Bulls/Knicks on Christmas morning looked like frozen reindeer snot. OTA or Dish, it was bad, bad, bad, and with nothing to suck up bandwidth but the "antenna TV" static image. ESPN's version of the same game was light-years ahead.
Why does WGN look worse than a "WGN on the U" game, with all of those subchannels on 26 and none on 9?

My biggest gripe with any Chicago based channel, goes to the Chicago CBS channel, WBBM! They just had to buck the trend, and go with VHF, when almost everyone else went with UHF.

Bulls, don't care one way or another as I'm no fan of basketball in general anymore, the game is just not the same as it used to be years ago. If you went by the original rules, other than for free throws, probably 98%-99% of all the other plays today would be called for traveling. It's ridiculous the stuff they get by with doing now in basketball.Exactly. Same thing with body contact, especially under the basket. Go back to the old standards for enforcing rules, raise the basket by two feet, stop the showboating and trash talk, cut down on the head, neck and full-body tattoos, and there might be a chance I'd actually start watching again.

(Of course, they'd have to raise the bit-rates on the channels that show the games, too.)

My biggest gripe with any Chicago based channel, goes to the Chicago CBS channel, WBBM! They just had to buck the trend, and go with VHF, when almost everyone else went with UHF.

Well, WLS did the same thing. However, WLS is now spending a very large chunk of change to "fix" that decision.

Keep in mind that WBBM moved to channel 2 or 3 as their pre-transition temporary channel. Seems like they're still, as my long-ago drill sergeant from basic training was fond of saying, "et up with the dumb-ass."

My biggest gripe with any Chicago based channel, goes to the Chicago CBS channel, WBBM! They just had to buck the trend, and go with VHF, when almost everyone else went with UHF.

I used to feel the same way, until I built one of these (see pic). Now WBBM (and WREX on 13 from Rockford) are duck soup, although bad weather can sometimes be an issue.
But the wife got me a Winegard 1713 for Christmas, I asked for it beacuse I really like WMVS (PBS Milwaukee, on RF 8), but the homemade antenna just wasn't good enough. With the 1713, I think it will take a monumental storm to mess with WBBM.
Keep in mind that if the FCC poaches more of the UHF spectrum, VHF-high might become a lot more important, especially in big markets like Chicago. Right now, RF 9 and RF 11 are pretty much available here, and of course RF 7 is redundant and could also be used by another station.

...VHF-high might become a lot more important, especially in big markets like Chicago. Right now, RF 9 and RF 11 are pretty much available here, and of course RF 7 is redundant and could also be used by another station.

I really hope not. High VHF in Chicago is hard to get with just rabbit ears. It works fine with an outside antenna, but in the city of Chicago the buildings are so close and dense it's hard to get and a lot of buildings you can't put up an outside antenna, and even if you could it doesn't work.

I can point my laptop with a DTV tuner and rabbit ears or a silver sensor at the Willis Tower and get all the UHF TV stations, but I cannot get WBBM (CBS) on channel 12 for anything.

As a side note, I noticed WWME-CA analog 23 is off the air. Any reason why WCIU stopped? I noticed channel 48 analog is still on the air.

Markxxx: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=19713224#post19713224

- Trip

I really hope not. High VHF in Chicago is hard to get with just rabbit ears. It works fine with an outside antenna, but in the city of Chicago the buildings are so close and dense it's hard to get and a lot of buildings you can't put up an outside antenna, and even if you could it doesn't work.

I can point my laptop with a DTV tuner and rabbit ears or a silver sensor at the Willis Tower and get all the UHF TV stations, but I cannot get WBBM (CBS) on channel 12 for anything.

As a side note, I noticed WWME-CA analog 23 is off the air. Any reason why WCIU stopped? I noticed channel 48 analog is still on the air.

Analog 23 is now back on the air. Hard to get parts around the holidays.

I used to feel the same way, until I built one of these (see pic). Now WBBM (and WREX on 13 from Rockford) are duck soup, although bad weather can sometimes be an issue.
But the wife got me a Winegard 1713 for Christmas, I asked for it beacuse I really like WMVS (PBS Milwaukee, on RF 8), but the homemade antenna just wasn't good enough. With the 1713, I think it will take a monumental storm to mess with WBBM.......

nice antenna work, LithOTA....that looks like a simple yet effective design...

are u using it in an attic or outdoors? and is there a web link u can share with us that gives specs & general design info for any of us that might want to build one for ourselves?

nice antenna work, LithOTA....that looks like a simple yet effective design...

are u using it in an attic or outdoors? and is there a web link u can share with us that gives specs & general design info for any of us that might want to build one for ourselves?

I have one on my main mast outdoors, and another in the attic (for my kid's bedrooms on thier own system, separate from my living room/rec room/master bedroom system). It works great for WBBM and WREX, but WMVS Milwaukee and WWTO LaSalle are just too far for reliable reception. I used PVC trim lumber (from Menards) and AWG12 straight wire (made for suspended ceilings, from Home Depot). It has held up well despite the wicked weather, and I'll be pulling it down to replace it with the 1713 (probably on Friday, when I'm off work and it will be a little warmer outside).
Here is the link for the design-
http://imageevent.com/holl_ands/yagis/k6sti
There are a lot of homebrew designs here, and I have had good luck with all of them. The Gray-Hovermans are outstanding.

No extra games to be had this week, but at least we have doubleheaders on both networks- so all of us will get 5 games this Sunday.

All of these games are on all area CBS and FOX affiliates.

CBS Early- Pittsburgh (11-4) vs Cleveland (5-10)

FOX Early- Tampa Bay (9-6) vs New Orleans (11-4)

CBS Late- Tennesee (6-9) vs Indianapolis (9-6)

FOX Late- Chicago (11-4) vs Green Bay (9-6)

NBC Pime Time- St. Louis (7-8) vs Seattle (6-9)

Keep in mind that if the FCC poaches more of the UHF spectrum, VHF-high might become a lot more important, especially in big markets like Chicago. Right now, RF 9 and RF 11 are pretty much available here, and of course RF 7 is redundant and could also be used by another station.

RF 9 and 11 are not available at decently full power in Chicago under the current FCC rules. The FCC will claim channel interference will be produced unless the transmitters are co-located, or VERY close to each other. On analog, that was certainly true; with digital, I'm not so sure. In any case...

WBBM is bad because of their 8 kilowatt power. The FCC *way* underdid the power requirements for VHF-LO and HI to match analog. With UHF, a 500 kilowatt digital signal can be as a potent as a 2.5 million watt analog signal, and a 1 mw signal was as potent as a 5 mw digital one. If they gave WBBM 50 or 60 kw, we wouldn't be talking about this issue. If and when WWTO-DT ever goes to 80 kw, they're going to be a blowtorch at 1400' from Ottawa.

But, if the FCC grabs, say, 39-51, and has to find new homes for those displaced stations, they're going to have to rethink proximity and power levels. Even if they double up on some RFs, there won't be enough room.

RF 9 and 11 are not available at decently full power in Chicago under the current FCC rules. The FCC will claim channel interference will be produced unless the transmitters are co-located, or VERY close to each other. On analog, that was certainly true; with digital, I'm not so sure. In any case...

WBBM is bad because of their 8 kilowatt power. The FCC *way* underdid the power requirements for VHF-LO and HI to match analog. With UHF, a 500 kilowatt digital signal can be as a potent as a 2.5 million watt analog signal, and a 1 mw signal was as potent as a 5 mw digital one. If they gave WBBM 50 or 60 kw, we wouldn't be talking about this issue.

9 and 11 could be LD easily, probably without any controversy. You're 100% right about WBBM. I bet even 30 kW would satisfy many of those that are upset with their reception.

I did implement a new trick that I advise some of you to try. I use a cascading amplifier chain. Meaning I have a preamp at the antenna connected coax which runs inside to a 3 dB attenuator at the input of an indoor amplifier and then split to the 2 TVs. It works better than just the preamp or the preamp and indoor amp. My understanding is that the 3 dB pad corrects for any VSWR issues on the feedline and also any possible feedback loop between the amps. It also prevents the 2nd amp from getting too overloaded on the input. You can look it up (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noise_figure) but the added system noise figure from the 2nd amp is rather insignificant. It's not just a straight sum of the two amps. The whole key in this is the 3dB pad between the amps. 6 dB is too much.

Anyway, it helps me pull in WTMJ and WDJT much more consistently than just the Winegard HD7696 and AP-8700 preamp. The indoor amp is some manila colored RCA type, probably 15 dB gain.

Good luck with it.


LAST... WCIU showed FBT as the PSIP for 26-2. Prob need to fix that.

Exactly. Same thing with body contact, especially under the basket. Go back to the old standards for enforcing rules, raise the basket by two feet, stop the showboating and trash talk, cut down on the head, neck and full-body tattoos, and there might be a chance I'd actually start watching again.

(Of course, they'd have to raise the bit-rates on the channels that show the games, too.)

Ok, I think we can arrange for the rules, the 12ft basket, no show-boating, and the tattoo ban. However, I'm afraid the bit-rate expansion will be a show stopper! :D

[QUOTE=Johnla;19708676]Peanuts, get yer peanuts.....;)

http://worldserieschicago.com/images/Chicago_flubs.jpg[/QUOTE

zzzzz.....baseball? Really? The Bears are 11-4, the Hawks have won 4 and are getting Kane back, and the Bulls are holding their own even with Noah out. And you guys are talking about baseball?

On a side note, the PQ on WGN for the Bulls/Knicks on Christmas morning looked like frozen reindeer snot. OTA or Dish, it was bad, bad, bad, and with nothing to suck up bandwidth but the "antenna TV" static image. ESPN's version of the same game was light-years ahead.
Why does WGN look worse than a "WGN on the U" game, with all of those subchannels on 26 and none on 9?

I think WGN is still 1080i, and seems to be using inferior encoding. They have a lot of breakup on all of the live sports, Cubs, Bulls, and Blackhawks.

WCIU is doing a far superior job of delivering a quality product. I think they recently invested in superior encoding equipment. One of our forum members works there. Perhaps he could chime in on the issues at hand.

9 and 11 could be LD easily, probably without any controversy. You're 100% right about WBBM. I bet even 30 kW would satisfy many of those that are upset with their reception.

I did implement a new trick that I advise some of you to try. I use a cascading amplifier chain. Meaning I have a preamp at the antenna connected coax which runs inside to a 3 dB attenuator at the input of an indoor amplifier and then split to the 2 TVs. It works better than just the preamp or the preamp and indoor amp. My understanding is that the 3 dB pad corrects for any VSWR issues on the feedline and also any possible feedback loop between the amps. It also prevents the 2nd amp from getting too overloaded on the input. You can look it up (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noise_figure) but the added system noise figure from the 2nd amp is rather insignificant. It's not just a straight sum of the two amps. The whole key in this is the 3dB pad between the amps. 6 dB is too much.

Anyway, it helps me pull in WTMJ and WDJT much more consistently than just the Winegard HD7696 and AP-8700 preamp. The indoor amp is some manila colored RCA type, probably 15 dB gain.

Good luck with it.


LAST... WCIU showed FBT as the PSIP for 26-2. Prob need to fix that.

Technically is still FBT till next month.

LAST... WCIU showed FBT as the PSIP for 26-2. Prob need to fix that.Technically is still FBT till next month.No need to call it what isn't there yet. :)

Antenna TV on 9.2 is now looping a preview, much as MeToo did in the last days before it went on the air, but it seems to be rather short and thus becomes repetitive quickly if you leave it running while you do something else.

Antenna TV on 9.2 is now looping a preview, much as MeToo did in the last days before it went on the air, but it seems to be rather short and thus becomes repetitive quickly if you leave it running while you do something else.

Yeah, I noticed that. It's kind of odd, because it is only about twenty minutes, not even a half hour. I'm really looking forward to see how it does once launched. As we all know, it will have some pretty stiff competition in town...with the exception of RTV!

BTW, signal quality on both 9.1 and 9.2 seems to have gone in the tank this evening. Maybe it was just the winds, though. Either way, I hope it improves.

From the fringe areas:

1. W40CN, Waubonsee College TV had been delayed signing on due to financial issues. In this report:

https://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/cdbsmenu.hts?context=25&appn=101411565&formid=337&fac_num=71111

They say their new antenna is up on their nearly 200' tower, but the 15 kw transmitter is not ready. However, a lower power one is, and they are awaiting FCC approval to flip the switch on that one, until the "full power" transmitter arrives "within the next month".

2. For the far southern parts of the area, WAND-DT in Decatur is going to move back to channel 17, with 900 kw of power...

http://www.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2010/db1230/DA-10-2426A1.pdf

With good tropo, you might get it stomping on WYIN. That channel may get more interference if this happens later in 2011...

3. For those of you in the far NW burbs, WREX-DT rf 13 (13.1) is now broadcasting their local news in HD as of December 23. After they go off the air late at night, they show a current radar in full 16:9 HD. In that market, only WTVO-DT (ABC) and WQRF-DT (Fox) remain with SD newscasts.

Looks like they finally fixed the RTV broadcast issues in time for the new year on WPVN. Nice to see all the additional options for old programming in 2011. (Now if only they could bring back those legacy Warner Bros shows... Don't know if we really need a third outlet for MASH on MeTV when both the local Fox and Ion still air that show... Also seems to be a fair amount of overlap between MeTV and that new Antenna TV. Thought there used to be some sore of exclusivity on those syndicated programs, oh well.)

Sorry, OTA noob here. My in-laws are trying to get Polvision OTA on an old RCA set. Apparently, that channel has changed recently. Trying to get 24.4, and there is no signal. The digital to analog box is Magnovox, model TB100mw9, RCA TV model is F19205GY. Wondering if anyone has had any experience with Polvision OTA, or that converter box. Not many options with this box as far as tuning.

Sorry, OTA noob here. My in-laws are trying to get Polvision OTA on an old RCA set. Apparently, that channel has changed recently. Trying to get 24.4, and there is no signal. The digital to analog box is Magnovox, model TB100mw9, RCA TV model is F19205GY. Wondering if anyone has had any experience with Polvision OTA, or that converter box. Not many options with this box as far as tuning.

no problems getting Polvision 24-4 in Northbrook. Hope you have an outdoor antenna. A preamp helps too. Have them point the antenna towards Schaumburg.

Thanks for the quick response. My father-in-law does not have an outdoor antenna at this time. He is in West Chicago, and he seems to think the signal comes from Schaumburg now. He's just not getting anything (no signal) from 24.4. I just wonder if it's the limitation of the converter, and even an outdoor antenna wouldn't help.

The Maggie is not really rated all that highly for converter boxes. Something like the Channel Master (Fry's Electronics in Downers Grove, which isn't all that far from him, might still be carrying it - otherwise, online) or Artec (online from Meritline.com) would be a better choice. The CM's rated the most sensitive, and the Artec, which is the same as the LG's (Zenith/Insignia's), is the best with multipath, while the sensitivity is better than the Maggie's, too.

Also, what kind of indoor antenna is he using, and is the placement optimal? There may be room for improvement there, too, but an outdoor antenna should make the biggest difference, barring any unavoidable multipath or insurmountable obstructions.

Another thing - is he getting any other of the 24 subchannels? If so, then 24.4's probably just not currently being used for programming, Or, there could just be some kind of temporary problem with it. They've futzed around with their subchannels more than once since their digital inception (they could've even moved the channel he wants to a different sub).

Haven't had the chance to post on here in a few days, but have a few points to touch on. First off, I too have a home made antenna. Here's (http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2009/01/maker_workshop_pdf_dtv_antenna.html) the link to what I based mine off of. I made mine a bit larger and used some 00 Gauge steel wire. I'd consider it to be an indoor/attic antenna. I'm able to get all of the full powered stations in Chicago and the majority of the low powered stations (and occasionally a few from South Bend in the evenings) as well with only a small preamp and an amplifier I have left from when I had service with Comcast. Though I'm also in luck because I have a very clear and direct shot facing southeast from the second story attic here in Homer Glen, and can even see the Sears Tower from my second story windows on a clear day. I've had better luck with this antenna then my old RCA rooftop, but haven't invested in a higher end antenna since I don't really want to spend the money and am very satisfied with what I'm able to get for being located where I am. I've wanted to post this for a while, incase anybody was interested, but what works for some doesn't always work for others.

Rammitinski, I finally was able to get the chance to see what you mean about digital OTA on a larger LCD TV. My parents recently purchased a 55 inch Mitsubishi. Stations like WBBM and WFLD looked excellent, but all of the others, HD or SD were unbearable with all of the micro-blocking. The HD and SD pictures from their AT&T U-Verse service really showed the TV's potential over what I saw OTA. Though, the built-in tuner in that TV is one of the worst I have ever seen. Yes, the difference has been noticeable on my 42 inch Philips LCD (and barley noticeable on my CRTs), but not by very much as compared to what I saw on the larger display. I'm always in favor of more subs (as long as they are SD and not low-budget "lifestyle" programing), but I completely understand what you mean!

Also, I wonder if the logo for Antenna TV will feature one of WGN's old logos incorporated into their logo. I know WITI in Milwaukee is doing so but I they are a non-Tribune owned station who previously carried RTV. I know that several RTV affiliates have their own customized logo and that the proposed .2 Network had plans to do the same. I personally doubt something like this will happen on a Tribune owned station but you never know but to quote the Doobie Brothers' song Taking To the Streets, "Very soon time will tell." Happy New Year everyone!

I've been offline due to electrical problems at home. Problem still not resolved, but that circuit is off that's causing the problem . I missed a lot on this board. Anyway, thankyou WCIU for eliminating the 23.1/48.1 mapping from RF 27. However, I'm still disappointed that the bandwidth distributed on RF 27 still not up to par. For someone who watches on an analog TV with a Digital to analog converter box seeing fuzziness on certain channels, it's not good. I notice it the most on 26.2. I would have thought I would have noticed it on 26.5. I now see 23.1 being mapped from RF 39, but also have 23.2 & 23.3 simulcasting. I wonder what's planned for 23.2 & 23.3. I say place MeToo on 23.2. I don't know what could be placed on 23.3. Now if only Weigel would get RF 32 on the air in digital.

I forgot when I saw Antenna TV finally being mapped to 9.2. I saw the repetitive loop last night. I'm waiting for the channel to actually sign on at 11pm tonight. Too bad I have to wait until monday to actually watch any part of the program lineup. As for the picture quality of both 9.1 & 9.2, I don't see a problem yet, but that doesn't mean I won't. I never saw any problems when 9.2 carried both The Tube (only used a PC TV tuner card for The Tube) & LATV (plus when there was the simulcast of 9.1 on 9.2)

Now to whoever it was several postings back mentioning that we don't need 3 stations airing Mash; I believe it' only 2 stations. I don't believe Ion Television is airing Mash anymore. WFLD has the Chicago rights to the show, while Weigel has the national rights for MeTV. Weigel has the Chicago rights to much of the overlapping Sony programs that Antenna TV carries nationwide, & they had to move those shows to MeToo, since that's the local MeTV. If Ion Television still carried Mash, then I don't know how that works with 2 different networks carrying a program on a national level. I know on a local level, Weigel & Tribune have some kind of agreement worked out to carry both Andy Griffith & Family Guy on their stations (Andy Griffith on MeToo & WGN-TV, & Family Guy on WGN-TV & WCIU).

Good to have you back, Dave.

I'm glad you tried your hand at homebuilding. It can be a lot of fun.
About your antenna's design, the 4-bay has been extensively modeled and tweaked by a gentleman on this forum named McLapp. He has nailed down the best whisker lengths and spacings for the 14-51 range:
Whiskers at 9", spaced 8.5" apart. You can go 1/2 inch shorter on both to skew towards the 40s, or 1/2 inch longer to improve the teens and 20s.
The 5-6 inch spacing on the design you linked might be holding it's performance back a bit. I think it has to do with the half-wavelength dimensions of RF 14 through 51.

I've been offline due to electrical problems at home. Problem still not resolved, but that circuit is off that's causing the problem . I missed a lot on this board. Anyway, thankyou WCIU for eliminating the 23.1/48.1 mapping from RF 27. However, I'm still disappointed that the bandwidth distributed on RF 27 still not up to par. For someone who watches on an analog TV with a Digital to analog converter box seeing fuzziness on certain channels, it's not good. I notice it the most on 26.2. I would have thought I would have noticed it on 26.5. I now see 23.1 being mapped from RF 39, but also have 23.2 & 23.3 simulcasting. I wonder what's planned for 23.2 & 23.3. I say place MeToo on 23.2. I don't know what could be placed on 23.3. Now if only Weigel would get RF 32 on the air in digital.

I forgot when I saw Antenna TV finally being mapped to 9.2. I saw the repetitive loop last night. I'm waiting for the channel to actually sign on at 11pm tonight. Too bad I have to wait until monday to actually watch any part of the program lineup. As for the picture quality of both 9.1 & 9.2, I don't see a problem yet, but that doesn't mean I won't. I never saw any problems when 9.2 carried both The Tube (only used a PC TV tuner card for The Tube) & LATV (plus when there was the simulcast of 9.1 on 9.2)

Now to whoever it was several postings back mentioning that we don't need 3 stations airing Mash; I believe it' only 2 stations. I don't believe Ion Television is airing Mash anymore. WFLD has the Chicago rights to the show, while Weigel has the national rights for MeTV. Weigel has the Chicago rights to much of the overlapping Sony programs that Antenna TV carries nationwide, & they had to move those shows to MeToo, since that's the local MeTV. If Ion Television still carried Mash, then I don't know how that works with 2 different networks carrying a program on a national level. I know on a local level, Weigel & Tribune have some kind of agreement worked out to carry both Andy Griffith & Family Guy on their stations (Andy Griffith on MeToo & WGN-TV, & Family Guy on WGN-TV & WCIU).

26.2 is still setup for FBT's allocations. Things will get shuffled around and improved once Utoo is launched.

Arrgh... I watched a full hour of Daniel Boone on WPVN this morning, and I was really convinced they got it right. Then I set to record Quincy at 1 PM, and it was back to the choppy sound and almost non-existent video. Fast forward to tonight, I get back and the knife show appeared correct at first. I then turn back to the knife show a half an hour later, and it's lost the color.

It really appalls me that a station which touts a national brand would do such a poor job of going on the air like this. When I saw RTV on a full power affiliate in Knoxville this past summer, I was looking forward to seeing something like that come to Chicago. This obviously ain't it...

Good to have you back, Dave.

I'm glad you tried your hand at homebuilding. It can be a lot of fun.
About your antenna's design, the 4-bay has been extensively modeled and tweaked by a gentleman on this forum named McLapp. He has nailed down the best whisker lengths and spacings for the 14-51 range:
Whiskers at 9", spaced 8.5" apart. You can go 1/2 inch shorter on both to skew towards the 40s, or 1/2 inch longer to improve the teens and 20s.
The 5-6 inch spacing on the design you linked might be holding it's performance back a bit. I think it has to do with the half-wavelength dimensions of RF 14 through 51.

I haven't had any time to work on that homemade antenna yet. I don't have all my supplies. New antennas are back on hold because of the electrical problem. I don't know if it's an outlet, a light switch, a fixture, or the wiring itself going bad. The modem was on the circuit that went bad. My bedroom is on the same circuit, & can't watch any TV in my room. So I had to move the modem to the room where my brother's computer's at. My own PC went out in November. I also just got back to work, which has taken some time away from this site.

I forgot to mention this in my last reply, but has WCIU switched to their new antenna & directional pattern? Before, I could get WCIU with no trouble & no pre-amp. Now, I must have a pre-amp in order to watch WCIU. They're the only full power station in Chicago that I now must have a pre-amp to watch the station. I know that the new pattern weakens the signal in Indiana in order to protect WCWW-LD (also on RF 27), while it's boosted to the north & west. While I can't watch TV in my own room, I can watch TV in the living room, & that TV is much worse than the TV in my bedroom at picture quality.

I haven't had any time to work on that homemade antenna yet. I don't have all my supplies. New antennas are back on hold because of the electrical problem. I don't know if it's an outlet, a light switch, a fixture, or the wiring itself going bad. The modem was on the circuit that went bad. My bedroom is on the same circuit, & can't watch any TV in my room. So I had to move the modem to the room where my brother's computer's at. My own PC went out in November. I also just got back to work, which has taken some time away from this site.

I forgot to mention this in my last reply, but has WCIU switched to their new antenna & directional pattern? Before, I could get WCIU with no trouble & no pre-amp. Now, I must have a pre-amp in order to watch WCIU. They're the only full power station in Chicago that I now must have a pre-amp to watch the station. I know that the new pattern weakens the signal in Indiana in order to protect WCWW-LD (also on RF 27), while it's boosted to the north & west. While I can't watch TV in my own room, I can watch TV in the living room, & that TV is much worse than the TV in my bedroom at picture quality.

No switch yet. We've shut off WCWW-LP (25) in South Bend recently which may have changed the airwaves over Gary.

Arrgh... I watched a full hour of Daniel Boone on WPVN this morning, and I was really convinced they got it right. Then I set to record Quincy at 1 PM, and it was back to the choppy sound and almost non-existent video. Fast forward to tonight, I get back and the knife show appeared correct at first. I then turn back to the knife show a half an hour later, and it's lost the color.
Either way, I still haven't gotten any guide data for it with my TiVo, so I still don't know what's going to be on it ahead of time.

Any from PSIP? How did you know the schedule? Is it online?

Seems WPVN goes mostly by the schedule that RTV posts online. I can't depend on anything to be watchable in that station's current state, though. It's a disgrace.

The station has updated it's website and you can leave comments. I noted the quality that they were providing us with the RTV channel. I would suggest you do so too. If they find that they are actually getting an audience, they will fix it.

WWME 23.1,23.2, 23.3 and 26.3 ...... closed captioning

the dtt-901 detects a captioning signal, but there is no captioning being displayed
neither the line 21 my analog tv is set for
nor the digital format the dtt-901 is enabled are displaying the captioning

it has been like this since the december 15th change -
hawaii 5-0, bonanza, perry mason, brady bunch, green screen .....
have always displayed either format or even both -
even the commercials no longer display the captions

this is a METV only problem on both 23.x and 26.3

maybe some button to be pushed, switch to flip or click on some box

thanks in advance
kd9fz
comments, criticisms and questions of sanity are always welcome

I got my Christmas present from the wife up on the mast Friday. Winegard 1713 was about 40 bucks from Solid Signal. Here's what I can report:
WBBM-2 on 12 is rock-solid, I mean only a couple of dozen bit errors over an hour's time. This is the first time I've been able to have this kind of reliability on WBBM since I was a kid in Arlington Heights back in the 70's.
WREX-13 is also much less prone to dropouts than before, with a couple of hundred bit errors in an hour. Like WBBM, there's a difference between "good enough to watch" and "free from annoying dropouts". Rumor has it this station is supposed to get an RTV subchannel.
WWTO-35 must be undergoing some maintenance or something, as only the first subchannel seems operable. But the signal on RF 10 is all-day watchable now.
WMVS 10 on RF 8 was the one that I really wanted to improve, and it did, but not as much as I had hoped. It's joined a list of stations that I can get okay at night, but not-quite-there during the day (WMSN-47, WBUW-57, WISN-12, WBME-49, WYIN-56). I would probably need to double up on both antennas in order to bring those into the daytime fold.

Anyone in the Chicago fringe who is having problems getting WBBM-2 should give this antenna a try. I'm also looking forward to nabbing some of those Grand Rapids VHF stations when DX season returns.

WCIU 26-5 (THIS) is not accessible in the DirecTV HR20, H20, and AM21.

26-6 is now gone. They got it half right.

I got my Christmas present from the wife up on the mast Friday. Winegard 1713 was about 40 bucks from Solid Signal.

How does your YA-1713 do on WLS's RF-7 facility?

WREX-13 is also much less prone to dropouts than before, with a couple of hundred bit errors in an hour......Rumor has it this station is supposed to get an RTV subchannel.:confused::(

As if their one subchannels isn't bad enough-looking already. What will that do to the two existing ones? I wonder if they're upgrading their encoders?

The station has updated it's website and you can leave comments. I noted the quality that they were providing us with the RTV channel. I would suggest you do so too. If they find that they are actually getting an audience, they will fix it.

I left a comment on their page talking about reception reports myself. I figured that was probably the best place, and most constructive certainly to leave some of the comments I've left here about the station lately :D Quite a few people have left comments on that page and hopefully more comments will show up there soon. People should be giving them a good idea of which areas can recieve their signal easily, with some effort, and those that can't recieve it at all yet. If they see people area-wide are interested in wanting to see the station I agree with Al, they'll do something about it. The best hope those of us in the Southern Suburbs like myself have right now is they'll do a signal boost/increase. Till then I just don't see being able to get it short of a very good antenna. But, I left a constructive, civil comment there. Hopefully they'll see the comments and we'll see the 360 complete turn around that WDCI did.

WPVN's site is asking about reception. They don't seem to grasp that for those who can get the station, the subchannels are stable but it's the main channel that has issues with RTV, and it's Their Issue. They'd be better not to publicize a station launch in that condition.

How does your YA-1713 do on WLS's RF-7 facility?

Not bad, certainly watchable. But nowhere near as reliable as the RF44 version.

:confused::(

As if their one subchannels isn't bad enough-looking already. What will that do to the two existing ones? I wonder if they're upgrading their encoders?

True, the PQ on 13 is very good with only one subchannel (the CW). Adding RTV would probably push it too far, but I doubt it would be as bad as WMAQ has been since Nonstop was added.

True, the PQ on 13 is very good with only one subchannel (the CW).By "their one subchannel" I was actually referring to the CW. That doesn't look too hot. NBC looked good up 'till now, but I wonder if that will be worse now, too? Or both of the pre-existing ones? Or just 13.2?

WPVN's site is asking about reception. They don't seem to grasp that for those who can get the station, the subchannels are stable but it's the main channel that has issues with RTV, and it's Their Issue. They'd be better not to publicize a station launch in that condition.I'm beginning to think that they've never even checked it, and they probably don't even have any way to do so.

We're probably the only ones complaining, so they want to hear if there are any more complaints. The general public probably doesn't even know there's supposed to be an RTV channel there.

By "their one subchannel" I was actually referring to the CW. That doesn't look too hot. NBC looked good up 'till now, but I wonder if that will be worse now, too? Or both of the pre-existing ones? Or just 13.2?

I hardly watch 13.2, even if reception is decent. Most of the times for some reason the audio isnt in sync with the video. Technology at its finest. :rolleyes:

Fox is now showing 5:30 6:00 and 10:30 the Simpsons in HD. To bad there is no DD 5.1.

In all of the hubub over how crappy RTV is on WPVN, I didn't notice until today that Milwaukee has lost it's RTV on WITI-6. They've replaced it with AntennaTV, same schedule as 9.2.

Fox is now showing 5:30 6:00 and 10:30 the Simpsons in HD. To bad there is no DD 5.1.
Those are the episodes from just the past year or so, when The Simpsons went HD.

my zenith dtt-901 guide shows no programing for antenna tv 9-2... i get the channel perfect including audio but the guide only shows" regularly scheduled programing" and not what actually is showing...


how do i get this fixed????

WCIU 26-5 (THIS) is not accessible in the DirecTV HR20, H20, and AM21.

26-6 is now gone. They got it half right.

since when does direct tv show the sub channels for wciu ( i only can get me tv, not mee to, this tv or u too)


am i wrong to say that directv does not show any of the sub channels...

The PSIP channel name for 26.2 is now "U Too."

since when does direct tv show the sub channels for wciu ( i only can get me tv, not mee to, this tv or u too)

am i wrong to say that directv does not show any of the sub channels...

No, DirecTV does not, but some DirecTV boxes have built in OTA tuners and that is what he is using to access WCIU's subchannels.

my zenith dtt-901 guide shows no programing for antenna tv 9-2... i get the channel perfect including audio but the guide only shows" regularly scheduled programing" and not what actually is showing...

how do i get this fixed????

Wait for WGN to get it worked out over time. Everyone is experiencing this. Their engineers will probably start providing the guide data via PSIP once they have everything else up and running perfectly on their end.

Those are the episodes from just the past year or so, when The Simpsons went HD.

At least WFLD and WPWR show their HD sitcoms in actual HD. A lot stations in other markets show HD reruns in SD, and some even show first-run HD programming in yucky standard def (Wheel of Fortune, TMZ). But because we're in the big city, almost all of the stations run in HD whenever the programming is HD.

Anyone near Aurora seeing W40CN-D on the air?

- Trip

since when does direct tv show the sub channels for wciu ( i only can get me tv, not mee to, this tv or u too)


am i wrong to say that directv does not show any of the sub channels...

The H20, HR20, and any other DVR with the AM-21 over the air box allows you to view the subchannels. They currently are not allowing us to see 26-5 THIS. But I called them and hopefully they will have it fixed in a few days.

No, DirecTV does not, but some DirecTV boxes have built in OTA tuners and that is what he is using to access WCIU's subchannels.
You need an H20/HR20 or a newer receiver paired with an AM21 tuner to get OTA. My HR20 isn't getting OTA anymore. I think the tuners for that went bad.

Anyone near Aurora seeing W40CN-D on the air?

- Trip

According to tvfool.com, I am in a very fringe area for that station. I tried both digital and analog signals and I got nothing. My uhf antenna is pointed in the wrong direction tho.

antenna tv 9.2

some time this morning the closed captioning was activated on 9.2

got to watch "picnic" with william holden and kim novak and now behold
the stooges with captioning !!!

thank you antenna tv

kd9fz
comments, criticisms and questions of sanity are always welcome

The H20, HR20, and any other DVR with the AM-21 over the air box allows you to view the subchannels. They currently are not allowing us to see 26-5 THIS. But I called them and hopefully they will have it fixed in a few days.

Why bother? There really aren't any decent movies on This. It's only good for the Pink Panther and the Ardvark shorts.

WPVN's sub-channels 2 and 4 are missing. However, it seems they have been reading their message board. 24.1 (RTV) is coming through clear, for the moment.
Maybe there is more demand for RTV than there is Polivision.

They could also be trying to track down the problem. I could see them trying to swap out satellite receivers for the other feeds if they're satellite fed, etc.

- Trip

Anyone near Aurora seeing W40CN-D on the air?

- Trip

Trip,

Been very busy, and I only have a few seconds here. I am locking W40CN-D, PSIP shown as such, out here in DeKalb. It's breaking up, but I can get it. haven't tried to tweak the antenna, though.

Thanks. :)

- Trip

Anyone near Aurora seeing W40CN-D on the air?

- Trip

Zero lock up here, but I'm not surprised because WPXE-55 is my strongest Milwaukee.
Since I'm aimed south, I looked at WWTO-35, and it comes in fine. But what happened to all of the subchannels? All there is there is 35.1.

I think WWTO had a hardware failure. Looking at SiliconDust, they've got a continuous ID at the top right corner of the screen, very unusual, and they're now on Program Number 2 instead of 3, which is unlike any of the other TBN O&O stations.

- Trip

The January (or maybe February) issue of Popular Mechanics has a DIY project to make a small TV antenna. Looks to be a stacked bow-tie type thing made with some wood and bent wire. I don't have the mag, but read it in the library. I couldn't find the article on-line.

Whenever WMAQ decides to get Mobile TV running, I wonder how much more bandwidth will be taken away for the service. At this rate, they should just go 720p instead of trying to have a 1080i channel.How about 1.83 Mbps for MobileTV?

Their bit rates are variable, but it looks like 13.66 Mbps for 5.1, 1.48 Mbps for 5.2 NonStop, 1.29 for 5.3 Universal Sports. At least it was yesterday.

hvs10trk, I have two questions:

1) WWME-LD doesn't have the correct TSID. Okay, that's less of a question and more of a statement. :) Any chance of that being corrected?

2) Why the wide range of audio bitrates on WCIU's SD subchannels? 26-4 and 26-5 are at 192 kbps, 26-3 is at an amazing 384 kbps, but 26-2 is at 96 kbps. Somehow I'd have expected them all to be at 192 kbps.

- Trip

Remember that 26-2 used to be FBT. They probably haven't updated the settings since rearranging everything. At least it looks like they upped the resolution from 352x480 to 640x480.

hvs10trk, I have two questions:

1) WWME-LD doesn't have the correct TSID. Okay, that's less of a question and more of a statement. :) Any chance of that being corrected?

2) Why the wide range of audio bitrates on WCIU's SD subchannels? 26-4 and 26-5 are at 192 kbps, 26-3 is at an amazing 384 kbps, but 26-2 is at 96 kbps. Somehow I'd have expected them all to be at 192 kbps.

- Trip

1) Transmitter is fed differently than most. Likely the culprit.

2) Will be corrected in the future.

I noticed three feeds of the same content on 23.1, 23.2 and 23.3 ... which gives the best PQ? :D

I noticed three feeds of the same content on 23.1, 23.2 and 23.3 ... which gives the best PQ? :D

it's odd. I don't know why they keep doing that every so often for a few weeks at a time.

just get rid of 23-2 and up. 23-1 should be RF 39, not RF 27. Better to avoid the confusion by assigning it that way.

What's the point of 2 channels of the same MeTV? Maybe you can delay one by 3 hrs... I don't know, or sell/lease time to the owners of W25DW, WOCK, WSPY, or WCHU... or even WBBM since some in the city complain about the main VHF signal. it's pretty much useless as a lower power copy of 26-3.

double post delete

23-1 should be RF 39, not RF 27. Better to avoid the confusion by assigning it that way.23.1 IS on RF 39. The feed also appears on RF 27 as 26.3. (The odd 23.1 and 48.1 on RF 27 are gone.)

I was hoping to see something good come out of "That?" but apparently not.

I noticed three feeds of the same content on 23.1, 23.2 and 23.3 ... which gives the best PQ? :D

I'll take door #4!

Awesome commentary by our friend Trip in VA. Great job, Trip.

http://www.dtvusaforum.com/content/525-empty-boxcars-fcc-s-scale-needs-calibration.html

I have been raking DirecTV over the coals for 3 weeks now for not updating their AM21/HR20 receivers to tune 26-5. I wish WCIU had some inside contact number to make sure all of the providers are getting the updates on the subchannels.

I have been raking DirecTV over the coals for 3 weeks now for not updating their AM21/HR20 receivers to tune 26-5. I wish WCIU had some inside contact number to make sure all of the providers are getting the updates on the subchannels.If they did, there are a couple of issues in South Bend to fix as well (on the DISH side).

does anyone know whom i can contact at direct tv regarding obtaining the subs for all of the chicago stations... my building does not receive them and except for my one tv which is not connected to direct tv my other tv's get that...

is there a direct tv forum or a place or someone to contact regarding the subs...


please help

is there a direct tv forum or a place or someone to contact regarding the subs...http://support.directv.com/app/ask

does anyone know whom i can contact at direct tv regarding obtaining the subs for all of the chicago stations... my building does not receive them and except for my one tv which is not connected to direct tv my other tv's get that...

is there a direct tv forum or a place or someone to contact regarding the subs...


please help

This is probably the most active Direct TV forum on the net. http://www.dbstalk.com/index.php
DTV people do look in to see whats going on.

For the first time, I can finally see RTV on WPVN and it's actually working. I hope that they have solved the problem for good.

But then color programming came on, and it was in black and white. Not quite solved yet.

Last night was the first time I ever saw any video on RTV via WPVN and had clear audio. But, like you said everything was black and white. When color programming was on it was like watching through a screen window and black and white. Progress yes, problems solved.... not quite.

WPVN now has the A-Team running in color the way it should be. If it's still stable after three hours, or by tomorrow, then maybe they finally fixed it...

Has anyone noticed that WBBM's electronic program guide has been missing since late Monday night? They must be doing some maintenance or something. I'm also very grateful that Antenna TV on 9.2 has their EPG up and running. :)

Go Bears!

I think WWTO had a hardware failure. Looking at SiliconDust, they've got a continuous ID at the top right corner of the screen, very unusual, and they're now on Program Number 2 instead of 3, which is unlike any of the other TBN O&O stations.

- Trip

And the colors are like 24.1, way off. Serious issues going on there.

And the colors are like 24.1, way off. Serious issues going on there.

This is about the 3rd time in recent weeks this has happened. They seem to get it fixed for a day or two and get all the channels back up and few days later it happens all over again. Must really be something wrong there.