Cisco DTA170; is this more than just a "tuning adapter"??

That box is Cisco's HD-DTA which is an extremely basic HD box with just RF and HDMI (No EPG, 1 way communications, no CableCARD). It is one of the first HD-DTA's to hit the market as the current one's are Standard def. TWC is in favor of HD-DTA's, but their first DTA rollouts used SD DTA's. Now HD-DTA's are finally available. They do allow TWC to get rid of those bandwidth guzzling analog channels and allow them to use it for other services.
 

Also, these boxes are exempt from the separable security mandate, as the FCC granted these devices waivers when they reformed the CableCARD rules for self install. That was probably one of the conditions the Cableco's had when they were to reform the CableCARD rules. TWC wants to get rid of analog within the next 3 to 5 years, and they have already converted Barstow, CA and a division in Maine to all digital.

 

You can use a DTA with a VCR/DVD recorder/Analog capture device. It does require some creativity, but the Comcast users who use DTA's use them just fine with Tivo's and VCR. It does require manual programming, but they work fine.

DTA's are an one way device, meaning they cannot receive SDV channels. They can get encryption, but it is integrated into the unit. TWC wants to encrypt the expanded basic tier, and I believe that is what they are doing in Maine, so they can get people to get a DTA.

Unless you get creative. I have cable + outside antenna. I feed OTA converters (CECB) into a line input, a DTA into channel 3 coax "combined" with a set-top-box modulated to channel 90. I still have to preset the tuners but the recorder then has an option of three selections for recording. My system is actually a lot more complicated than that with multiple tuners in a PC, multiple recording devices, etc; but you get the idea.

BTW, the "RF" output will be analog ch 3/4.

...and it sounds like they intend to encrypt the basic channels or they would have mentioned that a TV with a digital (QAM) tuner could still receive basic programming without a box.

Your cableco is going 100% digital. You won't be able to change that fact.
Get the HD capable DTA for your TV, get a non-HD capable DTA (which may be free) for your recording needs.

To me, the "active on your node" part is a little bit deceiving. I have 3 TiVo's with Motorola CableCards, and I have the Motorola Tuning Adapters. Due to circumstances beyond my control, I don't always have ALL of the Tuning Adapters hooked up 24/7. However, I would have thought that if ONE Tuning Adapter was hooked up and the associated TiVo tuned to a given channel, that I could tune that same given channel on an adjacent TiVo (with CableCard but no Tuning Adapter) since "the channel was active on my node". But in practice this is not the case. No Tuning Adapter, no Channel.... regardless if another Tuning Adapter has made that channel available to another device in my household. Hope I made sense here . . .

Cisco has nothing?

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/collateral/video/ps8611/ps8612/ps10771/7023333_a.pdf

Haha no there is more than just three analogs affected in Buffalo/Rochester:

On or about October 17 Digital equipment will be needed to continue viewing: WNY Suburban CSPAN Ch 96, EWTN Ch 10, CFTO Ch 15, E! Ch 54 and CNBC Ch 33. City of Buffalo CFTO Ch 12, EWTN Ch 24, E! Ch 64 and CNBC Ch 52. Dunkirk CSPAN Ch 22, CFTO Ch 10, CNN International Ch 8, CSPAN3 Ch 14, EWTN Ch 33, E! Ch 37, OWN Ch 35 and CNBC Ch 53. Westfield CSPAN Ch 17, CFTO Ch 12, WXPJ ION Ch 18, EWTN Ch 48, E! Ch 54 and CNBC Ch 33. Olean/Olean North/Wellsville/Ulysses CSPAN Ch 18, CFTO Ch 20, Discovery Fit and Health Ch 56, EWTN Ch 35, E! Ch 63 and CNBC Ch 30. These channels will remain in their existing packages, and they will continue to be available in a digital format that can be viewed using digital cable equipment, such as a digital cable set-top box or a CableCARD-equipped Unidirectional Digital Cable Product (“UDCP”).

On or about October 17 the following channel will move location and Digital equipment will be needed to continue viewing: City of Buffalo CSPAN from Ch 25 to Ch 71. CSPAN will remain in the existing package, and will continue to be available in a digital format that can be viewed using digital cable equipment, such as a digital cable set-top box or a CableCARD-equipped Unidirectional Digital Cable Product (“UDCP”).

Starting on or about October 10, 2012, digital equipment will be needed to continue viewing: Rochester Central CMT Ch 62, CSPAN Ch 44, EWTN Ch 43, Golf Channel Ch 66. Wayne/Ontario, Steuben/Schuyler, Yates/Ontario, Seneca/Cayuga CMT Ch 36, CSPAN Ch 44, EWTN Ch 43, Golf Channel Ch 69, Lifetime Movie Network Ch 66. Genesee/Wyoming, Orleans/Niagara, Monroe/Livingston, Erie CMT Ch 56, CSPAN Ch 66, EWTN Ch 41, Golf Channel Ch 69, Lifetime Movie Network Ch 31.

Did you try DTA 170? I guess the lame search engine doesn't correct typos.

Just goimg by your last post. Anyway.... I see you now know that "DTA" is "Digital Transport Adapter" (after your edit). That works on cisco.com search.
Actually.... using Google, "cisco dta 170" is the first hit.

Ha Ha. Just wait about a week.. then try searching HERE with the Huddler AVS search engine!

Cant comment on twc as i dont live in a service area, but i am a comcast tech. We did the same thing with most if not all of our network, not sure about hd dtas, but we require sd dtas for any level of programming at all to be received. However, when all this was first rolling out I got a few jobs to install cablecards in tivos. Assuming TWC is at least similiar, the way our system worked is if you traded your main cable box (or dvt) back in, the cable card was free, additional cards for additional tivos wer 1.99/mo. Once paired to the tivo, the cc itself does all the decoding, the tivo unit is capable of showing all B1,B2,D0, and D1 programming, without the need of a dta. Now where it got very confusing and what comcast didnt officially support, was ppl with series2 tivos (ones that dont have a cc slot at all). These boxes had analog tuners not digital. However i have seen this done in person, but failed to set it up for a different customer myself later on. What i saw done was the cm ran the cable feed into a dta, then tv out to the ant in on the tivo, then frm tv to the tv frm the tivo obviously. Somewhere burried in the setup settings of series 2 boxes is a setting that tells the tivo your signal comes from a converter on ch3. There was then some type of an ir eye plugged into the tivo and taped to the front of the dta. The tivo then changed channels through the dtas, the guide data was downloaded off the internet not over the cable network. Good luck all, sorry i couldnt be more help

TWC is not cutting only 3 analogs whatever is listed as to be cut on October 17th will be cut!

TWC is getting ready to deploy more QAM slots for SDV and at the same time taking some of the SDV digital simulcasts off of SDV to allow for DTA's to work.

Look at that system that is moving:

CSPAN3
CNN International

to digital only they are reclaiming 8 QAM slots total!

This is just a very cheap Clear QAM tuner, nothing more and nothing less.

Info re DTA170HD from Cisco website. It's not much different from any other HD Cable Box with the same
RSA based PowerKey security and MINIMALIST on-screen menu for channel selection. Deployment will
allow most/all Analog channels (under about Ch70) to be converted over to more SD/HD Video Channels,
more SDV & VOD channels (incl MPEG4 IPTV) and allow the new 3-wide DOCSIS-3.0 "Channel Bonded"
channels to be added for higher speed Internet offerings [requires upgrade to a DOCSIS-3.0 Cable Modem]:
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/collateral/video/ps8611/ps8612/ps10771/7023333_a.pdf [Data Sheet]
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/video/at_home/Set-Tops/DTA/4040685_C.pdf [Connection Sheet]
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/video/at_home/Set-Tops/DTA/4043356_A.pdf [User Guide]

BTW: All "Analog" channels are ALREADY carried on the Digital Tier...HD OTA channels are down-converted
to Low-Rez SD and packaged onto QAM-256 carriers....typically 13 SD's per 6 MHz channel on our system.
And they are ENCRYPTED, so you can't see them using a Clear QAM tuner....hence the need for DTA170HD.
This is to prevent a neighbor from stealing what was formerly available in the Clear as an "Analog" signal.....

PS: Since there are no more OTA Analog broadcasts, the "Analog" channels are also down-converted from
the HD OTA signals....or from either an HD or SD digital signal received via C-Band satellite.

PPS: If your system is going ALL-DIGITAL, then ALL Analog channels go away....however, some systems
may retain about 20 or so "Analog" channels that will be viewable using JUST an Analog TV set.....for awhile....
Edited by holl_ands - 9/15/12 at 1:21pm

Eh.... are your sure it's "clear QAM" only? I'd check into that.
It's a barebones QAM tuner with an HDMI output for HD. No channel guides, no VOD, no PPV,etc.
Just think of it as the "Yugo" of STB's. IMO.... for the rental fee, it shoudn't be a bad option conpared to $12-15 dollars for a traditional HD STB.

Just meant that it is cheap, it has Power key Security which can be tied into billing and give you encryption, but for the most part you are right about being the Yugo of STB's.

But.... it's not "clear QAM" only. Just trying to help with accuracy for the OP.

NP, when they first power up or go to de-fault( looses billing Key info) the only thing they pick up is Clear QAM streams, just so everyone knows.