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Seattle, WA - Comcast - Page 518

post #15511 of 15821
11/27/11 at 9:16am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ken H View Post

Anyone watch CBC HD here?

Frequently. It's 619 with Comcast equipment; 60-2 without.
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post #15512 of 15821
11/27/11 at 11:44am
Quote:
Originally Posted by pastiche View Post

Frequently. It's 619 with Comcast equipment; 60-2 without.

A few questions:

1) Is the channel number grouped with the other HD channels, when you use the box?

2) Have you noticed any difference in HD picture quality in the last month, or so?
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post #15513 of 15821
11/27/11 at 12:04pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ken H View Post

A few questions:

1) Is the channel number grouped with the other HD channels, when you use the box?

It's grouped with all the other "Sports HD" channels, presumably because of the hockey content. It's ch. 619 in the guide, between Fox Soccer 618 and Speed-HD 620.

Quote:


2) Have you noticed any difference in HD picture quality in the last month, or so?

I don't watch it enough to notice one way or the other. Here in the Seattle area, this feed is actually Vancouver affilate CBUT. Presumably you get a different affiliate feed in Michigan?
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post #15514 of 15821
11/27/11 at 12:35pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jimre View Post

I don't watch it enough to notice one way or the other. Here in the Seattle area, this feed is actually Vancouver affilate CBUT. Presumably you get a different affiliate feed in Michigan?

Yes. Since CBC is an over-the-air station, in Detroit we get CBC HD on CBET-DT from Windsor, while you get it from the Vancouver affiliate CBUT-DT.

The reason I'm asking about HD picture quality, is that CBC changed HD formats from 1080i to 720p, and I'd like to know if viewers think it looks as good, better, or worse.

For now I'm getting it with an antenna but Comcast will add it to their Detroit area systems in the very near future, to the Limited Basic tier with the other local HD channels.
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post #15515 of 15821
11/27/11 at 3:43pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ken H View Post

1) Is the channel number grouped with the other HD channels, when you use the box?

With a box, yes, it's with other HD channels, but, no, it's not placed with the other HD OTA channels.

Without a box, it's also completely missing PSIP data (no remap to 2-1; no guide data.)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ken H View Post

2) Have you noticed any difference in HD picture quality in the last month, or so?

I had heard that during the Canadian anlalog shutdown, CBC was converting its feeds from 1080i to 720p, but I haven't noticed any difference on any of the shows I watch.

As a footnote, I believe that Comcast is NOT rate-shaping CBUT. It shares the 60-X MUX with only one other program (though that one's encrypted, so I'm not sure what it is.)

Out of curiousity, what's the selection of cross-border channels like on Comcast in Detroit? Is it CBC-only or do they also carry the relay transmitters of CTV, TVOntario, etc. from across the river?
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post #15516 of 15821
11/27/11 at 6:18pm
Thanks for your helpful reply.

Quote:
Originally Posted by pastiche View Post


Out of curiosity, what's the selection of cross-border channels like on Comcast in Detroit? Is it CBC-only or do they also carry the relay transmitters of CTV, TVOntario, etc. from across the river?

No, Comcast only carries CBC.

Years ago before Comcast was in the Detroit area, the previous cableco's also carried TVO, which now broadcasts from the same location as CBET. Both are generally available in much of the Detroit area via OTA.

The other relatively close Canadian digital stations Global, CTC, CTV2, are generally not available to most Detroit area viewers. They have radiating patterns covering very little of the US.
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post #15517 of 15821
11/28/11 at 4:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ken H View Post

Comcast will provide up to 3 DTA boxes for subscribers that will get all the Limited Basic channels and output analog.

NOT HD boxes though , without incurring a fee.
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post #15518 of 15821
11/28/11 at 4:30pm
way up here is CIVT 32 (4:3; 480i).
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post #15519 of 15821
11/28/11 at 4:35pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by levibluewa View Post

NOT HD boxes though , without incurring a fee.

Of course not. What do you expect for free?

DTA = low cost digital convertor box with RF output only.

Having said that, the monthly fee for an HD box if you subscribe to Limited Basic is $2.50, in most areas. That seems pretty reasonable to me.
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post #15520 of 15821
11/28/11 at 8:45pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by pastiche View Post

Any recently-issued Comcast equiment tunes digitally, only. There are probably still some analog limited basic boxes floating around, but they'd be useless to anyone who has even an analog cable-ready TV.

If you have any equipment with a built-in analog tuner (i.e. most any TV), it'd be telling to see what it picks up, as well. Limited basic on analog includes 2-14, 16-17, 19-24, 26-29, 75-78, and 99. If the line is filtered for HSI-only, most of this would probably be missing, though since digital 79 is working for you, you might see a couple of channels in the upper 70s.


I finally got home and got a chance to try this on an analog tuner (no box). I'm basically seeing exactly what you had predicted.

2-14, 16-17, 19-24, 26-29 and 99 either don't come in at all, or are extremely fuzzy (for instance, on 8 I can get a grainy picture, but it's far from normal).

75-78 come in perfectly clear

99 does not come in at all.

Does this sound like what you expected with a potential HSI filter on the line?
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post #15521 of 15821
11/28/11 at 10:44pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by steve_launch View Post

I finally got home and got a chance to try this on an analog tuner (no box). I'm basically seeing exactly what you had predicted.

2-14, 16-17, 19-24, 26-29 and 99 either don't come in at all, or are extremely fuzzy (for instance, on 8 I can get a grainy picture, but it's far from normal).

75-78 come in perfectly clear

99 does not come in at all.

Does this sound like what you expected with a potential HSI filter on the line?

Sounds to me *exactly* like what you see if someone had filtered out ch. 2-70 - which according to Pastiche, is what a Comcast HSI-only filter does.

The fact that you can NOT get ch. 99 at first seems like it runs counter to this. But for some weird historical reason, analog cable channels 95-99 are actually on frequencies in-between ch. 6 and 7 - so they *would* be removed by a 2-70 filter.
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post #15522 of 15821
11/30/11 at 1:19am
I've got a tech appointment for this coming Saturday. I'm really hoping he'll know what I'm talking about if I ask him to look and see if there is an HSI-only filter.

When I called in to make the appointment the CSR was totally adament that there were "no analog channels left and I shouldn't be expecting to see anything without a DTV converter". I had to argue for at least 5 minutes before they agreed to make the service appointment. Jeesh..
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post #15523 of 15821
11/30/11 at 10:04am
Quote:
Originally Posted by steve_launch View Post

When I called in to make the appointment the CSR was totally adament that there were "no analog channels left and I shouldn't be expecting to see anything without a DTV converter". I had to argue for at least 5 minutes before they agreed to make the service appointment. Jeesh..

Good luck and let us know how it goes. When I called Comcast to have my old analog Limited Basic bandpass filter removed, the CSR seemed confused, but the field tech knew exactly what I was talking about, removed it, came inside to measure signal strength, and was on his way.

I actually thought that Limited Basic customers were still expected to be analog! I've never been offered a DTA to use with my service (though my own QAM-capable equipment makes that a moot point.)
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post #15524 of 15821
12/1/11 at 10:00pm
are burping...audio glitches & some video pixelating. I'd call Comcast Customer Service but have learned that they have no clue what "customer service" means.
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post #15525 of 15821
12/3/11 at 9:22am
Quote:
Originally Posted by pastiche View Post

Good luck and let us know how it goes. When I called Comcast to have my old analog Limited Basic bandpass filter removed, the CSR seemed confused, but the field tech knew exactly what I was talking about, removed it, came inside to measure signal strength, and was on his way.

I actually thought that Limited Basic customers were still expected to be analog! I've never been offered a DTA to use with my service (though my own QAM-capable equipment makes that a moot point.)

FIXED! I had the tech over here today and told him the suspicion about the the HSI-only filter. He agreed that this was quite likely, went outside to the terminal, and guess what he found. Yup, HSI filter!

I'm watching CBUTDT right now, and have all the other channels back (4.1, 5.1, etc).

Thanks a lot for all the help pastiche and others -- you all had really useful suggestions.
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post #15526 of 15821
12/8/11 at 7:49pm
FWIW, I had a Comcast sales team ring my doorbell recently - trying to reclaim me from my happy FiOS customer state - they informed me that my neighborhood qualified for new fiber to the premises service...
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post #15527 of 15821
12/12/11 at 8:44pm
http://www.multichannel.com/article/...Basic_Tier.php



quote from Missing Remote

"It seems our poor cable companies are all suffering terribly from theft of service, hence the FTC is going to let them encrypt all the basic channels as well. For many of us, this already happened for the HD channels and with the prevelance of the Ceton and Colossus, perhaps it's no longer a big deal for HTPC DVR fans but I have to imagine, once they win this battle, then it's on to plugging the analog hole and turning on copy-protection on all broadcasts..."
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post #15528 of 15821
12/16/11 at 8:16pm
Heads up. SyfyHD seems to have switched from an east coast feed to a west coast feed. Your listings may not have caught up.
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post #15529 of 15821
12/16/11 at 10:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by subako View Post

Heads up. SyfyHD seems to have switched from an east coast feed to a west coast feed. Your listings may not have caught up.

Thanks.

Looks like USA HD (672) also changed. TiVo guide data hasn't caught up yet on either one.
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post #15530 of 15821
12/16/11 at 11:23pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by troublebound View Post

Thanks.

Looks like USA HD (672) also changed. TiVo guide data hasn't caught up yet on either one.

Quote:
Originally Posted by subako View Post

Heads up. SyfyHD seems to have switched from an east coast feed to a west coast feed. Your listings may not have caught up.

Damn it, I hated when they did this to tnt and fx, and I hate this even more. I liked having the ability to watch cable shows before primetime shows started coming on the local stations.

Thanks for the heads up though.

ETA: At least AMCHD is still the east coast feed.
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post #15531 of 15821
12/17/11 at 4:57pm
Bravo HD (652) and Oxygen HD (682) also seem to have changed to the west coast feed.

The Comcast Portland thread mentions Nat Geo HD (673) changing, but here in Seattle HD (673) and SD (273) still have different programming so no change there yet.
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post #15532 of 15821
12/17/11 at 9:04pm
Just got word from a CSR that channel changes will be coming in January (or February). These changes include (but aren't limited to) more Digital FM channels (960-963 now empty), and moving the "International Programming" to another area in the lineup to make room for more HD. Plus, some possible changes in the channel lineup.
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post #15533 of 15821
12/18/11 at 10:53pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by thewarm View Post

http://www.multichannel.com/article/...Basic_Tier.php



quote from Missing Remote

"It seems our poor cable companies are all suffering terribly from theft of service, hence the FTC is going to let them encrypt all the basic channels as well. For many of us, this already happened for the HD channels and with the prevelance of the Ceton and Colossus, perhaps it's no longer a big deal for HTPC DVR fans but I have to imagine, once they win this battle, then it's on to plugging the analog hole and turning on copy-protection on all broadcasts..."

So, this post made me think to ask something I've been meaning to inquire about on this thread for a while...who out there is using the HD Homerun Prime ( http://www.silicondust.com/products/hdhomerun/prime/ ) with Comcast here in the PNW? Are you using it with Windows Media Center, Myth TV, or something else? How is it working out? How bad was it to configure with Comcast (many horror stories out there on the Silicon Dust forums)? What's the status of copy flags on content Comcast broadcasts (copy freely for everything but premiums, which are copy once, from what I've read)? Etc...

Any input would be awesome as I'm thinking of taking the plunge and using it with MythTV (Mythbuntu, specifically), and of course we'd all have to do this or something similar (Tivo with CableCard, Ceton, put up with the crappy Comcast boxes, etc...or go to antennas if they do go down the path of encrypting everything...
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post #15534 of 15821
12/18/11 at 11:05pm
I use the first-gen ATI cable card tuner, not the newer Ceton or HDHR Prime. Using it with Win7 media center. Was surprisingly easy to set up & activate over the phone with Comcast here a couple years ago. As you surmise, Premium channels are copy-once which means I can only watch them on the PC that recorded them. Not sure if newer cable card devices can get around this or not. Recordings from other channels are copy-freely & can be watched on any of my PCs.
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post #15535 of 15821
12/18/11 at 11:27pm
I just got a HD Homerun Prime during black Friday and have had it running for almost a month now on Comcast in Portland Oregon here. I use Windows Media Center and it works great. I got lucky at my local office as they gave me a M card and self install kit without any issues though she did say it would cost a extra 8.95 a month for the card even though I've heard first card is supposed to be free. I installed the drivers and stuff from the disk, it self updated to the latest ones and updated the firmware as well. I had to redo some of the media center crap I disabled due to never needing to use it so not wanting to have it taking up valuable resources.
I called their 800 number, told the gal what I needed, and she activated the card without issues in like 5 minutes and was very helpful and nice, just like the lady at the office was.
Once I had everything back up and running the card populated the guide and all my HD and movie channels showed up, before everything was up it just showed the first 39 channels, after, everything worked.
Any of the normal HD channels are copy freely so you can convert and edit them to your hearts content, the one movie channel I have is copy once so you cant edit or do anything with those except watch them on the original machine that did the capture.
You HAVE to use media center or myth TV because of the DRM involved, my copy of CWEPG recognizes the card and can do some QAM channels with 2 of the three tuners, none of the extra HD channels except locals, plus it uses the RF channels and not the virtual numbers the cable co assigns to them.
I have figured out how to make WMC use the file names I want now so been using it a lot to capture season passes and individual programs and then redoing the captures to something my media players can see and watching them after editing on the network to the TV in the front room.
The tuners seem to be much better then the one in my Divco Fusion3 gold with a good LG HD tuner chip. I get better bitrates on my captures now and less errors then before. The gal at my office did say that she might be wrong about the 8.95 a month rental charge for the card seeing how I brought up that I had heard first card is free and was going to research it more after we left and she had free time. If she turns out to be wrong there will not be the extra charge on my bill so we'll see next month.
I do have a nice Motorola HD box with every output known to man on it and that one is not costing me anything and I don't have to return it.
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post #15536 of 15821
12/19/11 at 8:36am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dartman View Post

I just got a HD Homerun Prime during black Friday and have had it running for almost a month now on Comcast in Portland Oregon here. I use Windows Media Center and it works great. I got lucky at my local office as they gave me a M card and self install kit without any issues though she did say it would cost a extra 8.95 a month for the card even though I've heard first card is supposed to be free. I installed the drivers and stuff from the disk, it self updated to the latest ones and updated the firmware as well. I had to redo some of the media center crap I disabled due to never needing to use it so not wanting to have it taking up valuable resources.
I called their 800 number, told the gal what I needed, and she activated the card without issues in like 5 minutes and was very helpful and nice, just like the lady at the office was.
Once I had everything back up and running the card populated the guide and all my HD and movie channels showed up, before everything was up it just showed the first 39 channels, after, everything worked.
Any of the normal HD channels are copy freely so you can convert and edit them to your hearts content, the one movie channel I have is copy once so you cant edit or do anything with those except watch them on the original machine that did the capture.
You HAVE to use media center or myth TV because of the DRM involved, my copy of CWEPG recognizes the card and can do some QAM channels with 2 of the three tuners, none of the extra HD channels except locals, plus it uses the RF channels and not the virtual numbers the cable co assigns to them.
I have figured out how to make WMC use the file names I want now so been using it a lot to capture season passes and individual programs and then redoing the captures to something my media players can see and watching them after editing on the network to the TV in the front room.
The tuners seem to be much better then the one in my Divco Fusion3 gold with a good LG HD tuner chip. I get better bitrates on my captures now and less errors then before. The gal at my office did say that she might be wrong about the 8.95 a month rental charge for the card seeing how I brought up that I had heard first card is free and was going to research it more after we left and she had free time. If she turns out to be wrong there will not be the extra charge on my bill so we'll see next month.
I do have a nice Motorola HD box with every output known to man on it and that one is not costing me anything and I don't have to return it.

The first card is only free if you don't have another cable box. Since you have a cable box, your first card is in that box and you are paying for a second card.
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post #15537 of 15821
12/19/11 at 8:52am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dartman View Post

I just got a HD Homerun Prime during black Friday and have had it running for almost a month now on Comcast in Portland Oregon here. I use Windows Media Center and it works great. I got lucky at my local office as they gave me a M card and self install kit without any issues though she did say it would cost a extra 8.95 a month for the card even though I've heard first card is supposed to be free.

Not sure how different Portland market is from Seattle, but I think the $8.95 is an "Additional Digital Outlet" fee - which you pay regardless of what type of device you're using. That fee includes one "free" cablecard (or standard Comcast receiver box).
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post #15538 of 15821
12/19/11 at 3:19pm
Well she said it was for the card itself and tried to say something about my HD box counting as the first card so if that's the way it is so be it, which is what I told her, I could be wrong and she said she could be and would double check but sounds like I get to pay 9 extra a month which is still 8 bucks less then their crappy DVR that I can't edit or burn anything to disk if I want, or much of anything else easily except watch the captures so I'm OK with it but it is kinda dirty pool to make everyone have to use some kind of box then count it against your free card later when you get smart.
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post #15539 of 15821
12/19/11 at 4:24pm
You should probably be getting a credit for the CableCard as a "Customer-owned Equipment Adjustment". Here in Seattle it's $2.50 each.

I have two TiVo HDs (no cablebox). First TiVo has no charge for the card (part of the digital package). Second TiVo has a Digital Additional Outlet Service fee ($8.00) with the card included with that fee. I get $5 credit (2x$2.50) for the CableCards.
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post #15540 of 15821
12/19/11 at 5:25pm
Well we'll see what shows up on my next bill but sounded like they don't get a lot of these types of boxes in so she wasn't even sure how to code it into her computer or at first what card I needed. Mine was the first Prime she had ever seen so I made sure to bring the whole box n with me in case nobody knew what to do or what would fit and work.
Would be nice to get the card for free or at least get a partial credit but like others have said it sounds like they are dinging me for having the HD box that was part of my package here when they talked me into a full HD upgrade with phone and all that, basically the triple play.
I did it because I now get free long distance, full HD on every channel that offers it, and Stars movie channel for free along with that HD box for free.
I get more and better TV, better phone service, and the net and save 50 bucks a month over what it as costing me for the phone by itself, plus more and better TV so it was a win for me for once.
Too bad they haven't standardized their pricing and offerings a bit better between markets so we could always say this is the way it is, rather then this is the way it is where I live but your area could be completely different.
Plus all many have to do is call or hit their live chat and threaten to cancel or complain about the price and they'll offer a significant discount to stay on. Maybe they should just drop their prices rather then offering promos only if you complain and they'd keep and earn more customers then they have keeping prices high and make even more money in the long run.
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