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Charleston, SC - HDTV - Page 5

post #121 of 7813
3/11/03 at 8:59am
JeffD: Nice setup, I bet you are glad you are getting the rack as I would be nervious with those components balanced on the TV.

I have my 50H82 in a corner and I built a shelf unit above it to hold my components and attached the speakers to it to keep everything away from my toddler. I will post a picture and update my list asap.

But, I really have a question about your Silver Sensor. I see it there in the pic, just aimed at a wall. And you get good results right. Is that an outside wall, or does it matter. You can't be any closer (as the crow flys) to the antennas than i am in West Ashley. I might use this as an add on, I actually have a window near by i was planning on mounting in? I am curious about your results.

Andy
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post #122 of 7813
3/11/03 at 9:31am
Any one ever see it your stb would out put 1080 to TV and 480 from S jack to a SVHS VCR or std TV at the same time.
Jim
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post #123 of 7813
3/11/03 at 9:54am
Quote:


Originally posted by oljim
Any one ever see it your stb would out put 1080 to TV and 480 from S jack to a SVHS VCR or std TV at the same time.
Jim

Oljim: if I understand your question, the Samsung 160 has all outputs active according to their literature and talk on other forums. The new Zenith/Sony does not.

Andy
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post #124 of 7813
3/11/03 at 10:22am
Oljim,
I concur with AndrewG. My Zenith 420 offers 1080i,720p,480p OR 480i, but only one at the time. It gives a warning before switching to 480i that you will lose video if you do not have the composite/s-video output connected to a monitor.

Have any of you guys found a cost effective way to receive OTA and DirecTv? My concern is that if I go to a combo box (Zenith 520, etc) that the DirecTv subscription is then not available to other TVs while that particular box is being used as an OTA receiver. I currently modulate DirecTV to Ch 30, so any other TV can view it, while the primary "TV" gets the direct video feed from the receiver. If I' m watching OTA, someone else can use the Sat receiver. I hate the idea of an extra $5 for every TV, and really dislike knowing that if one of the receivers is a combo box, then it sits idle at times while I pay yet another $5 for an additional TV.


Is there a way around this that I am missing?

Daryal.
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post #125 of 7813
3/11/03 at 11:18am
Daryal,
I am not sure that I fully understand your question, so if I am way off base here, let me know.

It depends what inputs you have on your TV. For example, I have ANT-DTV (internal OTA HD tuner), and then ANT-A, and ANT-B (for analog OTA SD). If you have this configuration it is easy......but I have a feeling you don't have that.

Let us know what Inputs you have on your TV, and do you have a LOOP OUT on the back of your TV?
Let's just assume that you have atleast one S-video input (we'll call INPUT 1), one component 1080i input (we'll call DTV input), and one analog antenna input (we'll call ANT-A).
I would run the OTA into a splitter (yes you are decreasing the signal strength but by only 3dB....just don't split more than once), run one end of the splitter into the combo STB (for use with OTA HD) and run the other end into the ANT-A of the TV. Then run the Satellite line into the STB, with an S-video (for SD) and component (for HD) coming out of the STB into INPUT 1/DTV respectively. Finally, come out of the STB from SAT OUT with a coax and run to the other rooms (via a splitter system or whatever you have). NOTE: If your STB only allows one output at a time, I hate to say it but I think you are screwed.

This way the only time you need the STB to watch OTA on the main TV is for HD, and if you are not watching HD then the other rooms can watch whatever they want (SAT or OTA). If you want to watch SAT in the main room, the other rooms can watch analog OTA, BUT CANNOT WATCH ANOTHER SAT CHANNEL (you would need 2 STB's for that).

Currently I have 2 STB's for the exact reason that you are discussing (watching other Sat channels in other rooms and MORE IMPORTANTLY to watch 2 different satellite channels on the SPLIT SCREEN. i.e. NFL Sunday Ticket)

Hopefully that helped at least a little...sorry so lengthy.
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post #126 of 7813
3/11/03 at 1:05pm
10137two,

Thanks for the reply. I poorly worded the initial question, so let me try again. Do you know of a set top box that can decode both OTA HD and DirecTV at the same time, to two different outputs. Currently, if I am watching OTA HD, others can use my Hughes DirecTv receiver, which is modulated and sent house wide. If I trade my Zenith 420 OTA-only HD receiver for a 520 (or similar box) that does both OTA and Sat, then I think I will lose this capability. The only answer I know of is an additional DirecTv line. I know it's only $5 a month, but still a waste if the primary line is not being used. Any thoughts?

For what it's worth, my "TV" is a little strange. I use a Sony VPL-VW10HT projector. I tune local analog TV with a VCR, and use a middle of the road Sony A/V receiver for switching. HD receiver video is direct to the projector via one of two DTV inputs. Analog sources are composite or S-video, via the receiver. "Split Screen" is via a cheapo 27" TV.

thanks again for your help.

Daryal
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post #127 of 7813
3/11/03 at 1:27pm
Quote:


Originally posted by 10137two
JeffD - I am assuming that the 'Pioneer vsx811s' AVR is a 6.1ch receiver since you have a rear center speaker. How many DVD's (or other material) is out that broadcasts in 6.1? I am looking at going that route but didn't think there was much to offer in 6.1. I think they even have 7.1 out now (in receivers that is, prob nothing broadcasting 7.1 yet)

Yes it is a 6.1 receiver . You can checkout http://www.dtsonline.com/home/available.shtml for a list of titles that come in DTS 6.1 . Also it has a feaure where it will run in 6.1 all the time , it's just matrix mode . I usually leave it on that it sounds pretty good . But there is still no substitute for actuall discrete 6.1 .


Quote:


Originally posted by AndrewG
JeffD: Nice setup, I bet you are glad you are getting the rack as I would be nervious with those components balanced on the TV.

But, I really have a question about your Silver Sensor. I see it there in the pic, just aimed at a wall. And you get good results right. Is that an outside wall, or does it matter. You can't be any closer (as the crow flys) to the antennas than i am in West Ashley. I might use this as an add on, I actually have a window near by i was planning on mounting in? I am curious about your results.

Andy


Oh my goodness you better believe I am happy to get the rack ! But stacked on the TV makes an interesting conversation piece . And for the antenna it does just fine pointing to the wall ,it is an outside wall and my house is brick . That is the direction towards Awendaw from my house and it's where I get the strongest signal which is good 90% - 95% strength . I can get Fox and UPN if I move the antenna around the little , like putting it in the window but then I lose reception of 5-1 . It's weird I can't get all 3 channels at one time but I can move the natenna to pick them up . A friend of mine bought one also and he gets a great sig from WCSC too .

And also I sent you a PM in regards to doing tweaks on the Toshiba TV's .

Jeff
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post #128 of 7813
3/12/03 at 5:22am
Did find out my Samy T151 will output 1080 and 480 at same time. Did anyone have 5-1 dropout last night just before 10 PM?
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post #129 of 7813
3/12/03 at 5:53am
Daryal
I have not found anything that will put out Both at same time, same thing with duel tuner PVR from Direct and dishnetwork, the new(not out yet) Dish 921 Will be a HD 2 tuner PVR, it will out put 2 Sat ch at same time but not OTA and sat at same time and will not record OTA
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post #130 of 7813
3/12/03 at 6:47am
I watched JAG, only one drop out, which is rather good for my reception area. Was not watching at 10.

Did anyone notice audio sync problems during JAG? I thought it was my receiver, and rebooted, as this usually seems to help. No change this time. I did notice that the commercials seemed to be in-sync. This would indicate to me a possible problem at either WCSC or CBS. Obviously, if no one else had problems, it's probably an issue with my equipment.

Daryal.
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post #131 of 7813
3/12/03 at 7:05am
I am not sure about the sync problem, I went to the Sav CBS when WCSC went out. The Sav station was way off on sync. WCSC seems much better than Sav. WTOC I will compare the 2 tonight and see.
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post #132 of 7813
3/12/03 at 7:16am
Thread Starter 
Did not have audio sync problems during the first 20 minutes of JAG (Had some work to do).

Did have what seemed like a "source" dropout of 5-1 and 5-2 last night during the 10 pm hour. I say source because my signal strength was still good, it was just acting like the transmitter had no "information" to broadcast.
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post #133 of 7813
3/12/03 at 7:43am
That is what I had, must have been something at WCSC, I went to Sav. WTOC and it was ok
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post #134 of 7813
3/12/03 at 3:12pm
Thread Starter 
Well I tell you I don't think it gets any better than this. I find it hard to believe that another station in the country would be so interested in the public. We really owe a lot of thanks to Eldon and staff.

I'm particulary encouraged by the news regarding the HD broadcasts at the end of Eldon's update. I had wondered whether WCSC would be allowed to do this "mulit-casting" (for lack of a better word right now).
Anyway, enough babbling, here's Eldon's update........

"Some of you noticed a problem with our signal last night. One of the computers at the studio that processes the signal locked up and had to be rebooted. Unfortunately, it happened after we had gone home, so one of us had to drive back in to take care of it. The transmitter was still on the air, so there was plenty of signal strength, just no information on the signal. Once we rebooted it, it seems to be working fine, but we'll keep an eye on it. I am sorry it took so long to get it back up, but it took a while to figure out what was wrong.



On another point, the engineer from the transmitter manufacturer is in town to try to get our second amplifier working right. While he is working on it, he will be turning it off and on quite a bit, but we are trying to confine this to daytime. He told me today that he would be here through Friday.



I also have a CBS programming note. CBS will only be sending select NCAA basketball games in HD, and this game may not be the game assigned to us, however, we have been given permission to air whichever game is sent in HD on our digital side regardless of the game we are assigned on the analog side. We may not have the same game on both digital and analog, but we plan to air an HD game on the digital side whenever possible.



You are probably aware that we plan to air the Masters on Saturday, April 12, and Sunday, April 13 in High Definition. It gets better. CBS will send us coverage on Thursday and Friday, the 10th and 11th, and we plan to air this on our digital channel while others can watch the soaps on the analog channel.



Thank you all for the feedback you have given me.



Eldon



WCSC sure is putting the bar way up there.

Think it might be time to start pinging the other stations again.....
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post #135 of 7813
3/12/03 at 5:28pm
I just found out about this forum today and love it!

I just got a Mitsubishi w/integrated tuner and love 5-1. But I can't get DTV 35 or 40. Right now I have a set of RCA rabbit ears on top of the set with and antenna amplifier connected to it.
I get 5-1 and 5-2 pretty much no matter what I do with the rabbit ears; with or without the amplifier.
I have a 18" Directv dish right now and have thought about buying one of those antennas that mount on the dish but have never heard much positive about those antennas. I would mount a good antenna in the attic but my Mitsubishi is on the first floor of my 2 story house and I'm not quite ready to tackle the job running a cable from the attic down to the first floor.
Does anyone have experience with receiving DTV with one of those Directv antennas or does anyone know of a good set-top antenna that might pick up DTV 35 or 40 in Mount Pleasant? And my homeowners assoc. frowns on rooftop or outside antennas, and definitely not on poles.

Thanks!
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post #136 of 7813
3/12/03 at 6:48pm
Thread Starter 
LuvThatHTTV:
Welcome. Not sure what part of Mt. P you live in, but I don't get 35 or 40 either and don't think that even an exterior antenna would help. Their temporary broadcasting tower is so short the signal only goes so far and we're out of luck here in Mt. P for the time being. Conversely, someday all of the signals will originate out of Awendaw so signal strength won't be an issue with us once everyone gets permanent full time installations completed.

Not sure if you saw in earlier threads mention of the tour of WCSC's facility in Awendaw on the 29th, but you are welcome to come. I will be making a map here in the next week or so with directions, don't think it will be that hard to describe.
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post #137 of 7813
3/12/03 at 6:57pm
LUVThat HDTV look at picture on top of this page, Jeffd has one on the right of his TV. The dish clip on are over price junk.
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post #138 of 7813
3/13/03 at 4:17am
LUVTHATHDTV:
When did you get your Mits? Did you get the 55511?
Not sure how familiar you are with an ISF calibration, but I am trying to get one of the country's best (prob THE best) Mits ISF Tech to Charleston, but he needs more business than just myself.
Let me know if you are interested?
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post #139 of 7813
3/13/03 at 6:47am
KTrout:
I'm near Dunes West. I thought I might be out of range because they're only low power, but since the antenna amplfier does so well with analog OTA SD I thought I might have a shot with DTV. But I can wait until they all go high power in Awendaw, especially since WSCS has done such an outstanding job so far. I also saw the threads about the tour. If I'm not working I'd love to check it out.

oljim:
Thanks, that's all I've heard about the clip-ons. I think I'll stick with my rabbit ears for now; especially since all the high power antennas will be nearby.

10137two:
I had the 65611 delevered last Wednesday so I haven't had near the minimum time I should have before getting it calibrated. Plus, so far my live-in girlfriend doesn't think it's worth the money. I've read in Sound and Vision magazine all about ISF calibrating and I've tried explaining what they do and why it's worth it, but she doesn't want to spend the money right now. She thinks the Video Essentials DVD is good enough. I'll keep working on her and let you know if she changes her mind.
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post #140 of 7813
3/13/03 at 8:27am
LuvThatHDTV:
Hope you enjoy the 65611....I heard it was a great TV~!
If you love this site, you will love the *************** even more. It is another site like this, but there are more Mits owners in that forum than anything else (where this site's members generally don't like the Mits.....everyone is entitled to their opinion!!). You can join for only $25 and gain access to the Tweaks section which will tell you how to do manaul/electro focus, geometry, it tells you how to get in the service menus and convergence menus (default) and adjust for "red-push", EVERYTHING!

Here is the link: http://www.***************.com/htsth...reads.php?Cat=

I am not having very good luck with Mits owners and ISF cal in Charleston for bringing Craig here....maybe we can try again next year when you will be ready (keep pushing it on the girl-friend). Just for your reference, this is what he does during an ISF:
http://www.***************.com/htsth...rue#Post310566

If you don't have Netcommand set up yet and have any questions setting it up, let me know.
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post #141 of 7813
3/13/03 at 12:09pm
Have you guys checked the WCSC web site lately? They now mention their upcoming NCAA tournament HD coverage, and THIS FORUM on their home page. They have a link that brings you directly to the beginning of this thread. Just another sign of WCSC and Eldon's commitment to their HD customers.

Daryal.
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post #142 of 7813
3/13/03 at 12:57pm
A friend of mine found that link on the WCSC page when he was checking the weather, and he asked if I was the AndrewG. Eldon is already getting new people interested in local HDTV, we certainly are lucky to have such an person with an interest in HDTV. Great news about the Masters and March Madness. I thought I had a chance at getting a RCA DTC-100 for $200 that I was going to use for OTA until we find out about ESPN-HD and a sat. commitment, but the store seemed to have problems. So I am trying to make a decision about what to do, I will DirectTV would announce their intentions soon.

10137two: Would you be interesting in considering another calibrator who does Mits and Tosh. There may be additional interest in the area then. There are a number of good ones recommended in the Toshiba area of the Spot. I know you are really interested in your guy but it may be worth considering.

Eliab gets good press in the forum and his company:

http://www.avical.com/Director-RPTV.htm

has different packages and I know he does a lot of "tours".

Just something to keep in mind.

Andy
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post #143 of 7813
3/13/03 at 1:02pm
Nice catch Daryal....very interesting.

Maybe we should start 'pinging' the other non-HD broadcasting stations in the area with the WCSC homepage or the link to this forum. I don't think they understand the number of people that are waiting on them, and how WCSC has blown them away in providing for the Charleston public.

On a serious note.....Thanks to KTROUT for starting the Charleston threads and for his dedication to HD. ELDON FOR PREZ and KTROUT FOR VICE!!! Maybe if we just showed Al Queda (and the Iraqis) the wonderful world of HD, they would all come out of their caves! Everyone knows you can't receive UHF in the mountains!!!
(KTROUT - Hollar down to the garage when dinner is ready!!)
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post #144 of 7813
3/13/03 at 4:28pm
Thread Starter 
Kind words don't pay the rent....... and once again.... NO SOUP for YOU!!
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post #145 of 7813
3/13/03 at 8:13pm
I went live tonight with HDTV.

I had wanted to buy a top-of-the-line tuner, the Sony HD200, but neither CC nor Tweeter would sell it without a DirecTV contract. It was priced at $799.

I read user reviews on the internet of alternate units such as Samsung, and found some satisfied users, but also many unsatisfied users who reported inherent technical problems.

I decided to go the simple route to try to reduce potential for technical problems, so Tuesday I ordered a Panasonic TU-DST52 tuner from Crutchfield. It sells for $399 and only has OTA capability, and does not have DVI output, which is a feature that I would have preferred. But I wanted to get something "up and running", and I have been satisfied with Panasonic reliability in the past. All of my other equipment is either Sony or Panasonic.

The Crutchfield website showed the Panasonic was out of stock, and would not be available until March 24. I placed my order around 2 PM, expecting to wait two weeks for the shipment. However, they shipped it the same afternoon, and I received it this afternoon. Slightly more than 48 hours after placing the order, I had the unit set up and running. Setup was relatively easy, and the user manual is well written.

I decided to test a Silver Sensor inside antenna, which I purchased from Circuit City, and I am receiving an average 85 signal strength in West Ashley, so there is no need to install an attic antenna as I had originally planned.

I watched CSI this evening, and am delighted with the sharpness of the picture. I had expected the audio to be Dolby 5.1, but I received Dolby Pro Logic on the CSI program. Is the program supposed to be in Dolby 5.1? I might have a problem somewhere in my receiver settings.
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post #146 of 7813
3/14/03 at 12:28am
rkdavis : Welcome to the wonderful world of HD ! WCSC is not able to broadcast in 5.1 yet , only 2.0 .


Andy : A friend of mine got the Zenith 520 and he loves it ! Plus you know directTV is gonna get ESPN-HD so you mine as well go ahead and break down and buy it !
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post #147 of 7813
3/14/03 at 4:20am
I have only found one station with DD5.1 WSAV NBC Sav. GA and 2 with IPG WSAV and WLTX CBS Columbia SC.
Jim
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post #148 of 7813
3/14/03 at 5:49am
10137two:
Thanks for all the info, I will have to check out all the links. Especially the tweaks section. And I love the 65611. I couldn't justify going all the way for the 711 when the 611 looked so good. And it looks even better in the house.
And thanks for the offer about the Net Command but I got it setup. It took longer than I was ecpecting. But it works great, except it doesn't like my JVC VCR. I can control the VCR with the slider switch at the top but the TV won't turn it on. Then again, JVC has about 7 or 8 different codes, unlike most OEM's which only have 1 or 2 so I'm not surprised. But my girlfriend definitely loves it. Especially since my Sony receiver only has one Coax digital input and it's labelled DVD. And now the TV is connected there.
Thanks again for all the help.
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post #149 of 7813
3/14/03 at 7:08am
I think I read this somewhere else but just wanted to pass on this information since I just witnessed it for myself:
HDNET has a 1080i Test Pattern on at 10:00AM for 3 minutes every morning.

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah.....I don't work Friday's.....so what am I doing?? Playin' with the TV!!
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post #150 of 7813
3/14/03 at 7:19am
10137two
move your ant around and try 3-1/3-2 in Sav Ga. Not a good day for DX, I can not get Jax Fl or Columbia.
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