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Charlotte, NC - OTA

1M views 17K replies 446 participants last post by  Mark Vidonic 
#1 ·
I'm in zip code 28269 (north side of Charlotte, between 85 & 77). Towers are clustered at 160 degrees and 280 degrees with one (WUNG) at 94 degrees. I have some headend equipment that combines signals from many directions into a single downlead. I'm still tinkering with it, and most recently I had to remove the signal for channel 18 (analog) because it interfered with other channels. Below are my typical readings for digital stations. These measurements come from a "MyHD" tuner card that provides a "percent reception" measurement:


11 PBS Charlotte 58-64%

15 PBS Rock Hill (no signal)

22 NBC 69-75%

23 CBS 58-64%

27 FOX 58-64%

34 ABC 49-53% **

39 WB 58-64%

44 PBS Concord 0-13% (not usable yet, but I'm not giving-up)

47 UPN 58-64%

50 AXN 32-36%


** Recently ABC has been at 32-36%


--Dale--
 
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#41 ·

Quote:
Originally posted by sengsational
Has anyone else noticed that UPN signal has dropped in power? It's been several weeks now since I've been able to get UPN. I used to get a reading of about 60%, now it's down to 10%, which isn't enough to drive a picture or sound. I've made some minor tweaks to my head-end antenna equipment, but nothing that would account for the drop. Anybody else seeing this kind of thing?


--Dale--

I've noticed the same thing. Turned my antenna a bit to aim it more directly in their transmitter direction and the signal was still too weak to lock on. During the brief flashes where I could see something, noticed that ST Enterprise was not HD anyway. Since that's the only thing I watch on UPN, it's not terribly painful (other than the off-topic rant of how the show itself is squandering the franchise), but would still like to know what's going on with them...?
 
#43 ·
Yes the Super Bowl will be in HD. CBS has been showing all their playoff games in HD as well. WBTV has an excellent signal and with the right antenna you should have no problem.
 
#44 ·

Quote:
Originally posted by archiguy
I've noticed the same thing. ...

UPN seems to have come up again for me. And we already covered that ABC is back to normal. Here are my readings from the wet and windy weekend:


11 PBS WTVI Charlotte 40-70% (more jumpy than usual this measurement - usually solid 58%)

15 PBS Rock Hill (no picture - I don't even try this one any more)

22 NBC 69-87%

23 CBS 87-93% (steady)

27 FOX 58-64%

34 ABC 49-53%

39 WB 58%

44 PBS WUNG Concord 0-13% (no picture - I haven't made required changes)

47 UPN 58-69%

50 AXN 53%


So I get 8 fairly reliably. This is all on a single downlead with no rotor, so there have been some compromises.
 
#45 ·
Watching Enterprise tonight, I'm seeing something a bit different. At least I think it's different.


The MyHD tuner reports 1920x1080i, and I see a 16:9 surrounded on all sides by black bars. Usually I see these black bars on all sides on WTVI with a 720 signal. But with UPN tonight, when I move into MyHD's 'zoom' mode it doesn't work well. Normally the picture expands to fill the 16:9 screen (no bars on top or sides). But what happens with UPN tonight, going to zoom leaves the black bars on the sides (just stretches vertically). I'd like to know what this kind of signal is called, and get an idea if it is problematic on other hardware.


--Dale--
 
#46 ·
Dale,


I guess it's been a couple of days since your post, but I haven't been on for awhile. And I don't know if this helps. But basically it appears that WJZY-HD was broadcasting a standard def signal for the first half hour or so of Enterprise last Weds night. Enterprise in SD is broadcast in letterbox anyway, so on a 16:9 display you would get black bars on all sides: on the top due to the letterboxing, and on the sides since the overall signal was 4:3. Don't know why your zoom mode weirded out on your MyHD (I assume that's a PC app), but my zoom mode on my Hitachi HDTV filled the screen nicely, although being a SD signal it looked like crap.


Interesting thing is, I called WJZY during a commercial break, and left a message at the switchboard saying basically, "Hey, I'm trying to watch your show in HD and I'm getting SD. If anyone hears this, could you please 'flip the switch' or something?" Well, I don't know if it was a coincidence or if they actually checked the message, but by the end of the next commercial break (~8:30) the show was in HD, filling up my 65" HDTV quite nicely.


That's my take on things. Did everything show up in HD on your system during the 2nd half hour of Enterprise that night?


Charles
 
#47 ·

Quote:
Originally posted by Charles C
But basically it appears that WJZY-HD was broadcasting a standard def signal for the first half hour or so of Enterprise last Weds night...

Did everything show up in HD on your system during the 2nd half hour of Enterprise that night?

Charles, Thanks for the reply. Actually, I was watching the repeat show on Saturday night. I don't think they had the switch flipped for the whole show.


--Dale--
 
#48 ·
hey guys, whats a good site to find some good info and deals on hdtv antennas/stb's? i've got a friend in huntersville, which is mostly adelphia. adelphia doesnt offer hd and doesnt plan to have it anytime soon. He has a sony HD monitor with no hd! lol He's new to this, so he is going to need some user education as well... any suggestions would be helpful...
 
#49 ·
Buy the Sony SAT-HD300 STB..with a Sony monitor, it offers excellent

integration, as well as seamless blending of satellite and OTA..
 
#50 ·

Quote:
Originally posted by stealthg2000
which is mostly adelphia. adelphia doesnt offer hd and doesnt plan to have it anytime soon.

Are you sure about this? A friend of mine works for Adelphia in their cable modem dept. He told me a month or so ago that they are rigging new antennas on the Mooresville Headend tower to pick up the DTV stations...


I will check with him again...


t123


***Update***


I just talked to the fellow...He said that the headend equipment is in place. They are waiting for settop boxes and permission from stations to carry before they roll out. He said it could be 30 days could be 3 months...
 
#51 ·

Quote:
Originally posted by sengsational
Charles, Thanks for the reply. Actually, I was watching the repeat show on Saturday night. I don't think they had the switch flipped for the whole show.


--Dale--

I don't think the Saturday repeat of Enterprise is sent to the affiliates in HD. There have been reports of this over in the programming forum.


It's a moot point for me since WJZY's digital power output is so low (apparently), I can't even get my DISH 6000 to find the station during a digital channel search, much less lock on solid enough to watch. I live in Pineville and am using a CM 4228 antenna pointed halfway between the two transmitter towers. Can't get WTVI (PBS) digital anymore either; don't know if they're even transmitting the digital signal any longer. Everything else is rock-solid.
 
#52 ·

Quote:
Originally posted by archiguy
I don't think the Saturday repeat of Enterprise is sent to the affiliates in HD. There have been reports of this over in the programming forum.

That would explain it. Last night I recorded it (in HD using MyHD). As usual, I forgot it was being broadcast (Wednesday at 8 is kids' bedtime - we never get to see it 'live'). But the boss and I watched it in HD for the first time - too bad it was a repeat, but we watched it anyway!


The feed may have contained a few 'black spots' (where there was no sound and no picture). Nothing too bad. It wasn't like usual reception problems, which manifest themselves as pixelization and pops in the sound track. These were just places where the whole screen went suddenly black, and no sound, then suddenly full picture again with sound.

Quote:
Originally posted by archiguy
It's a moot point for me since WJZY's digital power output is so low (apparently), I can't even get my DISH 6000 to find the station during a digital channel search, much less lock on solid enough to watch. I live in Pineville and am using a CM 4228 antenna pointed halfway between the two transmitter towers. Can't get WTVI (PBS) digital anymore either; don't know if they're even transmitting the digital signal any longer. Everything else is rock-solid.

In this post I show my recent results. I haven't noticed any change in UPN or TVI lately. I think you are farther from Kings Mountain (UPN 47) than I am. For me 47 is at 279 degrees and 11 is at 138 degrees, so halfway between for me would mean I'd get nothing! I have two antennas and I use bandpass filters so I'm able to have a single downlead. The problem for me is that there is interferance from the super high power analog stations; I've had to pull 18 off of my downlead completely, and I'm thinking of pulling 36.


Do you get WUNG (digital 44?). I'm right near Concord and don't get it.


--Dale--
 
#53 ·

Quote:
Originally posted by Check123
Are you sure about this? A friend of mine works for Adelphia in their cable modem dept. He told me a month or so ago that they are rigging new antennas on the Mooresville Headend tower to pick up the DTV stations...


I will check with him again...


t123


***Update***


I just talked to the fellow...He said that the headend equipment is in place. They are waiting for settop boxes and permission from stations to carry before they roll out. He said it could be 30 days could be 3 months...

cool beans, my friend keeps getting the runaround when he calls in. I went to antennaweb and he would have to get a "red" rated antenna to get most of the channels, which would be too big for his townhome, so he may have to wait on adelphia... is that antennaweb accurate?
 
#54 ·

Quote:
Originally posted by sengsational
In this post I show my recent results. I haven't noticed any change in UPN or TVI lately. I think you are farther from Kings Mountain (UPN 47) than I am. For me 47 is at 279 degrees and 11 is at 138 degrees, so halfway between for me would mean I'd get nothing! I have two antennas and I use bandpass filters so I'm able to have a single downlead. The problem for me is that there is interferance from the super high power analog stations; I've had to pull 18 off of my downlead completely, and I'm thinking of pulling 36.


Do you get WUNG (digital 44?). I'm right near Concord and don't get it.


--Dale--

You have a pretty sophisticated setup there, Dale. I've thought about a rotor, but that would be a lot of work to set up my antenna on a true mast (right now it's hanging off one of my sat dishes) and run a power wire into the house. And I may just chuck it all if TWC comes out with an HD-DVR for this market in the next few months. As I understand it, some areas of the country, including Green Bay, already have them.


At any rate, I've given up on both WTVI and WJZY. I'm pissed off at WTVI anyway for mucking up the Soundstage show in HD (have stopped my annual contribution because of this as well). They refuse to carry it at its scheduled time (Thursdays 10:00 PM) and can't even broadcast it on Saturdays since they seem to have a perpetual fund drive going on and continually pre-emt it for SD concerts that I care nothing about. I do get WUNG strong and reliably (and their 5 subchannels as well - what can you do?). But they don't carry Soundstage in its proper timeslot either.
 
#55 ·
OK, just got my sony we610 hdtv monitor, and time warner can't "install" my hd box for two weeks. the lady on the phone says i can't pick it up either... but i REALLY want to watch the super bowl in HD since i have a bunch of people coming over...


i thought i read that some other people picked their HD boxes up... how did you get away with that? did you already have a HD box and just exchange it for a new one, or do you know a way around the $40 install that i have to wait 2 weeks for?


Question 2... If i borrow an hdtv over the air receiver from a friend, will i be able to get the game (on cbs) with a regular pair of rabbit ears?? or will i need one of those $100 bar hdtv antennas to get good reception? I live in south Charlotte (actually right on the border between Matthews and Charlotte). My neighborhood is pretty wooded if that makes a difference.


What is my best bet to watch the big game in HD this sunday? Thanks in advance o knowledgeable ones.
 
#56 ·

Quote:
Originally posted by archiguy
I do get WUNG strong and reliably (and their 5 subchannels as well - what can you do?). But they don't carry Soundstage in its proper timeslot either.

Well, if you can get it all the way down there, I'm going to have to get busy! There MUST be a way short of a wrecking ball against my neighbor's house.


--Dale--
 
#57 ·

Quote:
Originally posted by chief17
Question 2... If i borrow an hdtv over the air receiver from a friend, will i be able to get the game (on cbs) with a regular pair of rabbit ears?? or will i need one of those $100 bar hdtv antennas to get good reception? I live in south Charlotte (actually right on the border between Matthews and Charlotte). My neighborhood is pretty wooded if that makes a difference.


What is my best bet to watch the big game in HD this sunday? Thanks in advance o knowledgeable ones.

The last guy in Charlotte that knew anything about a TV antenna died 17 years ago ;-)


My advice is to go to antennaweb.org, do the needful, and report back a color.


Without that data, I can still make some wild speculations!! First, a non-speculation: you won't need rabbit ears, you will need a UHF antenna (it's UHF channel 23). If I were you (ie had people thinking they were going to see a high-def game), I'd go to radio shack and pick-up the biggest "bow-tie" antenna I could get (I think it's just an indoor model that they have in stock). I'd also buy a 10 foot coax and a 50 or 100 foot roll of coax and a balun. That would be the minimum I'd buy. Now you start with the 10 footer on top of the TV, connecting the antenna and pointing it west. If it goes well, bring back the 50 footer. If you don't get it, go up as high as you can, and again, go west young man. If you still don't get it, go back to radio shack and buy their mast-mount amplifier (frankly, I think it's a bit noisy, but it's local). Actually, I don't think you'll need to do that. I expect that unless you are in a hole or something, you'll get it with the bow-tie antenna on top of the TV or at least out the window.


--Dale--
 
#58 ·
Dale, you are the man. Thanks a lot for the help, I really appreciate it. I went to CC and got an RCA amplified UHF/VHF antenna and it looks like i get channel 23 pretty well (60-70%). I just hope the weather sunday night won't affect my signal. I had no idea about that antennaweb.org site so thanks for the tip... i am new to the HD scene.


one more question... i get wbtv-dt and wbtv-sd... i assume the sd stands for standard definition, but what is dt? and how do i know if the show i am watchiong is in hd or not? I am watching the handler on cbs right now.. the picture looks great, but i don't think it is hd.


Thanks again for the help Dale... my super bowl guests will not be dissapointed.

GO PANTHERS!!!
 
#59 ·
now my signal seems to come and go quite a bit... i am having a hard time getting a constant picture without moving the antenna every 30 seconds. it seems to go from 60% to 20% instantly. are there any secrets to finding a good spot with constant reception?


from the antennaweb site i got a 'red' for channel 23. is that good or bad?
 
#60 ·

Originally posted by chief17
I just hope the weather sunday night won't affect my signal.


That reminds me of something. During all the "storm of the century" crap we went through last week, it seemed that some of the HD transmissions were substituted with SD signals with all the tickers with closings, delays, etc., presumably as a "public service."


I have a big concern that the "wintery mix" (or is it "wintry"?) predicted for Monday morning will cause WBTV to start those damn crawls during the Super Bowl broadcast, including the HD broadcast. I tell you, there will be a lot of pissed off new HDTV owners if they do that.


I called and left a message with the WBTV station manager to PLEASE not pre-empt the HD broadcast with the SD signal to show the frickin' closings. Now, I'm not one to advocate mass protest, but I'm just saying that I did my little part in trying to ensure that my first HDTV Super Bowl (and hopefully not the last Panthers' Super Bowl!) will be in all it's widescreen, 5.1 DD and 1080i glory.

one more question... i get wbtv-dt and wbtv-sd... i assume the sd stands for standard definition, but what is dt? and how do i know if the show i am watchiong is in hd or not? I am watching the handler on cbs right now.. the picture looks great, but i don't think it is hd.


WBTV-DT is indeed the HD channel. If you're seeing it in widescreen, then you're getting it in HD (that is, if your TV is set up correctly -- the aspect ratio should be set up to something like "16:9 standard"). If you have black bars on the side (and you'll see that on shows like 48 Hours, or Survivor), then the show is not in HD and they're just feeding you the SD signal they get from CBS.


TitanTV.com is a good website to see what's in HD in your area. Be warned, however: The local affilates are still getting the hang of things, and sometimes they don't "flip the switch" to broadcast the HD signal. Like right now, Leno is supposed to be in HD, but the guys at NBC6 are asleep at the helm and we're getting the 4:3 SD feed. AAAARRRGGHHH!
 
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