I currently have an analog standard cable service from Comcast (what they call limited + expanded basic service)

The picture quality of this service has been ok on a small 20" CRT TV, but looked much worse on a 32" CRT. Some channels are much worse than others. Tried to add a signal amplifier, but that did not help. I think it just made the noise in the picture even worse.

So I have been thinking about switching to a standard digital service (non-HDTV). The output from the settop boxes will be fed to the TVs through composite or S-Video (TVs are too old to have component video)

I should expect a much better picture quality for all channels through SD, right? I don't know if I want to go through the hassle of having a settop box for every TV/VCR/PVR though.

Just try it on one set and see what you think!!
The good thing about cable is, you can drop the digital tier at any time.

Just try it on one set and see what you think!!
The good thing about cable is, you can drop the digital tier at any time.
I think I just might do that.

comcast.com in my zip code only shows me a bunch of package deals that I don't need so I was reluctant to sign up, but I found out that I can get a digital cable service & one settop box for $12 on top of my standard service.

One thing I want to verify is that a customer service person led me to believe a settop box can be used to watch a show on TV & record another show on a VCR/PVR. Is this actually possible? Each additional settop box is $7 per month.

I also discovered that watching a live TV through Tivo actually reduces noise in the picture. This is also true with the recorded shows on Tivo. So it is just the direct feed to the TV that looks bad. OK for news, but not so good for live sports.

My other option is to upgrade one of the TVs to a HDTV with ATSC tuner so I can watch some of clear QAM channels in SD/HD. I actually do that with my PC with an HDTV tuner connected to a 24" monitor, but I don't want to be sitting in front of my computer all the time.

My other option is to upgrade one of the TVs to a HDTV with ATSC tuner so I can watch some of clear QAM channels in SD/HD. I actually do that with my PC with an HDTV tuner connected to a 24" monitor, but I don't want to be sitting in front of my computer all the time.
As a life-long analog TV viewer, I was startled to see the PQ difference between my old analog and digital channels on my new LCD, even tho I have basic analog service. Your idea of a new TV seems the best way to go, since you'll probably be like me and get some digital channels in the clear even with basic analog service. This might allow you to NOT spend more with the cableco and invest in your next new TV?

Here's one post on my experience with digital vs. analog... (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=12298395&postcount=9)

and here's another with "General Notes" that might apply to your situation? (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=12298382&postcount=8)

comcast.com in my zip code only shows me a bunch of package deals that I don't need so I was reluctant to sign up, but I found out that I can get a digital cable service & one settop box for $12 on top of my standard service.Don't they have "Digital Starter" where you are? That's basically the expanded basic package (with maybe a couple of other extras thrown in), but in digital form, for only $2.00 or $3.00 more. You usually get free OnDemand with it, and the first cable box is included in the price.

Comcast has it here, and I know from reading here that others have it in their areas.

Don't they have "Digital Starter" where you are? That's basically the expanded basic package (with maybe a couple of other extras thrown in), but in digital form, for only $2.00 or $3.00 more.
This is Silicon Valley area in California. I was not offered such option. Maybe you have a grand-fathered upgrade to the digital service in your area. I need to look into that.

I found out that I don't need to have a settop box for every TV/VCR in the house if I just want to get the standard analog cable service. So I can probably get away with just 1 or 2. The rest will just continue to get analog signal.

I will probably get an HDTV as well. I am afraid once I taste the HD, it will be a slippery slope to upgrade everything to HD.

I've worked in the cable industry now for almost 7 years as an installer and service tech, and have seen and heard almost everything. :eek:

Let me give you some advice. DON'T do anything until you've had a cable service tech at your house to see why your current reception is poor. You'd be surprised what a service call from your cable company could do for the PQ in your home if it's bad, and if the tech isn't able to fix the problem make sure to ask why and what needs to be done to fix the problem, and if the answer isn't to your satisfaction than call the office and demand another tech to fix the problem. Service techs are equiped with the tools needed to fix or at least determine the problem, and if the problem is outside and they can't fix the problem, than they need to notify the people that can fix it. There is no excuse for anything less. :mad:

I love what I do, and will spend a couple of hours sometimes to fix the problems a customer is having and make sure the customer is happy with the results before I leave. Sometimes the problem is beyond my control, and if it's a problem inside the home I will let the customer know what they need to do or who to call to fix the problem. If the problem is outside the home, I will forward the problem to my boss so that he can address it with the person who can fix it. Then, I will let the customer know what the problem is, and that the problem will be scheduled to be fixed in a timely manner (depending on what the problem is).

A lot of people have the wrong impression about what the cable companys analog PQ should look like. They believe that snowy, grainy, or even lines in the pictures is normal. I'm here to tell you that it's not. I've been to a lot of homes that after fixing the problems inside AND OUTSIDE, the picture almost looks as good as digital, and I almost get the same response from the customer every time, "I've never seen it so clear"! :p

Bad reception can be caused by anything (fittings, splitters, amps, wiring, VCR jumpers, and even the TV or VCR itself), but you won't know what's causing the problem unless you have a cable service tech check everything from the telephone pole to your TV. Sometimes it's a simple fix and sometimes it's not. :confused:

When I'm out on a cable modem speed or crashing issue, it's sometimes caused by the same problems that's messing with the PQ, because that noise that you're seeing on your TV is also back feeding into the rest of your homes cable wiring and interfering with the modems signal path (forward and return).

There are some common myths with cable. One myth is that an amp will help improve PQ. This is not always the case. If there's a PQ issue, the amp will most likely make it worse. There are two sides of the cable signal you need to consider: strength and quality. You can have a good signal strength (db), but a poor signal quality (MER or SNR), which is why there are problems with using an amp sometimes. Some amps that are available to purchase in a retail store are junk, and because of their poor quality, the amp can take a clean signal and add noise, etc. to the signal while it's amping, causing a PQ problem. Some amps that are available are also not compatible with a cable modem or set top box, because they don't pass the return signal to the office (headend), and therefore will cause them to fail. Also, an over-amplified signal can look almost as bad on a TV than a low signal would, even if it's a clean signal.

Another myth is that a digital or HD set top will make the analog PQ better if you are currently having problems with the analog service. This is not always the case either. In most cable systems, where a digital and HD set top will add clear and amazing channels it will not up-convert the analog signal to digital or HD, nor make the analog PQ look any better if there is a problem that needs to be fixed, UNLESS it's the TV's tuner that's causing the problem. So when you subscribe to cable's HD package, you will be watching from 3 different formats on your set top: HD, digital, and analog.

The last thing I want to add is that with all the HDTV's that I've seen there are only a few that display the analog signal nicely, and the others have slightly grainy or distorted pictures. I'm not going to use this posting to name these HDTV's, but wanted to simply mention that not all HDTV's are created equal when it comes to analog. Hopefully, after February 2009, it'll be a non-issue anyway. Is there a forum for analog signal on HDTV's? There should be if there's not.

The views of this posting are my own taken from my experiences, and are not approved by the cable industry. I do not claim to have all the answers either, just trying to be helpful. :)

Your point view is very much appreciated but your honesty is the one which is greatly admirable.