Rochester, NY - HDTV - Page 4

I have Road Runner Premium which is as of December is 15/1 in Rochester. I pay $69.95 for RR Premium, would be $5 less if I could get Digital Phone.

Fios will never be available in the Rochester area since Frontier is the ILEC not Verizon, but my town is one of five towns served by TW Rochester where the telco is Verizon. But after what about 8 years, DSL just made it here a few months ago, I have my doubts about Fios. These are rural towns with not enough potential lost subscribers to care about I'm sure, why we now have 15/1 broadband well I'm not sure, but I'm lovin it.

I live in Webster and purchased a 60" Sony A2000 in October. At first I tried an indoor antenna (silver sensor from best buy). The only station it picked up with any strength was CBS (8.1).

I purchased the channel master 4228 and had it installed on my roof. It's not at the peak of the roof, instead down towards the bottom. Signal strength is much improved for all OTA stations. On windy days, the signals tend to break up a bit and it can even become too annoying to watch. The CBS signal is still the strongest. I typically have to turn the volume down when switching from another station to 8.1 because the signal is so strong.

Overall, I'm glad I purchased the 4228. Football games this past season were fantastic when they were broadcast in hi-def.

With a digital signal (actually with analog* as well) signal strength will have no bearing on audio volume. You may well be experiencing differences in volumes between stations, but it is more than likely due to some having DD 5.1 and others not. That can particularly be a problem due to how AV receivers handle 5.1 vs 2.0 vs analog.


*Even analog TV audio is pretty much independent of signal strength as the sound is FM.

Has anyone noticed their HD channels pixelating? I have noticed HBOHD gets really bad sometimes. I am having TW service coming out today for a second time in a week to check this out. The last guy said that all my levels were very good and changed the connections inside and outside the house and said to get a new HD box if it persists. That was last Friday. It persisted and I got a new HD box Tuesday. It still persisted so I placed a service call for today, Thursday.

I have SHOHD and I didn't notice anything. Did this happen all the sudden?
Try to change the sharpness on your HDTV and see if that changes anything. Did you change the wiring in your house (eg splitted the line to another TV or something like that)?

Does anybody have a contact in management at WBGT?

If so, please PM me.

Well I just upgraded my old system. Went to a Pansonic 50"plasma, Onkyo SR805, Paradigm speakers, and I'm hanging onto my Pioneer dvd player until I decide to go to a hi def player.

Anyway I call up TW to get the HD package, make an appt. and 2 guys from "cable express" show up with a box and a fist full of cables...So they come in and I ask them what all the cables are for since I was going to use an hdmi hookup. They tell me Time Warner is all out of the new 8300 boxes so they got these old used boxes from New York City to install...The box looked like it was kicked around for a year then dropped out a window..So I told them forget it and called back to get on "the waiting list" for an 8300...What a load of crap. I get a Glossy flyer everyday in the mail, Listen to every other commercial on TV to upgrade to TW Digital and they are out of boxes...Typical Corporate foresight..

In any event I look forward to getting hooked up eventually.

typical TW

From what I understand the inventory issues are due to the new OCAP compliancy requirements from the FCC. New boxes will be available soon from what I was told and are being tested. This is just second-hand info though so I'm not sure if it's accurate.

Also, I've heard that ESPN and ESPN2 are being moved to the "free" HD channels mid-August instead of being part of the HD Tier. I can't wait for that

Close (but no cigar!). Inventory issues are due to the "Integrated Security" ban from the FCC that took place July 1. All NEW cable boxes deployed as of July 1 cannot have built-in security. The only way that the cable companies can meet this now is to use cable boxes that depend on CableCards for the security function. As the FCC was very slow to respond to requests for waivers of this mandate the cable companies were not able to properly plan for 7/1/07. This resulted in shortages (and ultimately increased monthly costs).

OCAP is an entirely different matter. That is part of the cable Open Cable Initiative and will allow consumer purchased devices to use all cable features (PPV, SDV, OnDemand, StartOver, etc.). The FCC has not (yet) mandated anything here - but is considering rulemaking which will. OCAP will likely happen in a year or so with, or without, the FCC ruling.

Ultimately, cable will start using a new security system called DCAS (Downloadable Conditional Access Security). This will likely require cable boxes designed for this function, and will likely depend on the OCAP software for deployment.

So the sequence of deployment of technologies is:
1) CableCards in cable supplied boxes (7/1/07)
2) OCAP (late 2007-mid 2008)
3) DCAS (mid-late 2008)

Thanks for the clarification dave =)

I'm a new TW Digital subscriber myself. I was surprised to learn that the cable box doesn't have HDMI capabilities. The tech told me that the PVR does though. Is that what the 8300 is?

Mike

Yes, the SA 8300 is a DVR/PVR and has HDMI input on it as well as eSata to add an external hard drive to expand the recording space. However the software on it is very poor and misses recordings all the time when I had one. I moved to an S3 TiVo via CableCard's.

Since you left SA8300-land they fixed the missed (or short) recording issue with the 1.89.17.1 update. I used to have this problem and haven't seen it since the update early this year. The software is now very stable, though it lacks some of the search features that TiVo fans seek. But, then it does fully integrate with the cable system.

BTW: The 8300HD/C does have a HDMI OUTPUT, the older SA8000HD has DVI, which works fine (except it doesn't carry sound) via a DVI>HDMI cable. The SA4250HD (non-DVR STB) has HDMI as well.

I'm a new plasma owner and am trying to decide between Dish Network, Direct TV, or Timewarner. Does anyone have a strong opinion on which one is best as far a picture quality goes?

Yes, there are lots of strong opinions- not a lot of facts though. Unless your plasma is a 1080p the odds are that you will see little (if any) difference in PQ. Other factors, such as cost, channel selection, etc. plus the "bundle" deals that various people offer may make a difference. Keep in mind, that the HD channel selection right now is in a state of flux:

• DirecTV has announced scads of new HD channels for this fall
• Dish Network has the most right now and is quietly adding more (but no promises)
• TW typically says nothing in advance and hasn't been too agressive about adding channels
• BUT TW does not require any expense on your part, nor commitment!

Also the dish outfits don't currently have the local HD channels - but their receivers do have OTA tuners, so you can get the local HD channels with an antenna.

Is it safe to assume that the 8300 outputs better through the HDMI out rather than component video out? I want to upgrade my box to get DVR service, but already have the component video cables from my previous setup. In other words, would HDMI give me noticeably better picture and audio quality?

That is an often discussed subject in many of the forums. The bottom line is that it depends more on your set than anything. However, there are some hassles involved with some set-ups on HDMI.

One piece of advice: get your HDMI cables from Monoprice.com (check sponsor box at top of AVS): they are good quality at a VERY reasonable price (less than $15 including shipping).

So does it still have the connection for an external hard drive? If so, are the files saved on that drive in a format that can be easily transferred to a computer?

That could be really convenient.

Thanks for the information.

Mike

Yes for the connection, no for the format (recordings are encoded with a key that is unique to the DVR that made them).

PS: You might want to check out the AVS Forum Thread on the External Drive for the 8300 (the 8300HDC is exactly the same as the 8300HD, except for the use of a CableCard and more memory (allocated to applications, not video).

That is NOT correct. I just found this out last night when I TRIED to watch the Mets-Dodgers game. I called to inquire why my ESPN-HD said I was not authorized when I pay the 4.95 HD Tier. I was told that it was moved to the Digital Tier and I would have to pay 5.50 per month ADDITIONAL to get it. WTF!?!?!!?

Why would they put an HD channel with the hundreds of crap SD Digital channels that I don't want????

I was NEVER notified of this change and see how they do it right before NFL season. Money-grubbing WHORES.

TIME WARNER OF ROCHESTER IS EXTORTING ITS HI DEF CUSTOMERS!!!

You may wish to contact them again to clarify. ESPN HD ch.1052 and ESPN2 HD ch. 1053 are now a part of the free HD channel lineup. ESPN HD was a part of the HD Tier (+$4.95/mo) and was switched to the free HD lineup. ESPN2 HD is a new channel and is part of the free HD lineup right away. This change took effect on Aug14.

I'm in NE Webster about 1/2 mile from Lake Rd. I have tried 3 different antennas inside and have not been able to get a sniff of a signal for PBS or FOX. ABC, NBC, CBS all come in fine. The first antenna is a 10 yr old cheesey Emerson that I used back then to pull local channels before DirecTV made them available. The second antenna was an amplified omnidirectional indoor from Radio Shack, same result. Third was a bigger stronger (but unidirectonal) indoor/outdoor from Radio Shack. I can get 8, 10, 13 with these things sitting on the floor but even if I run a cable out to the deck I can't get 21 or 31. DirecTV is coming this weekend to upgrade my dish and receiver to HD (just got the TV this week). Without OTA Fox I will be a very unhappy camper. I was hoping I did not have to mount an outdoor antenna but if that's what it takes, ok. I just wish I could get a signal while standing outside so I know for sure!

Any replies would be helpful. If you're in the business and have a solution for me, please PM me!

Does anyone in the Rochester area currently record from a STB to their PC via firewire? I'm getting mixed signals as to weather or not its even possible in our area. Note: I'm only at the beginning stages of trying this out, but so far I haven't gotten very far. Any help or ideas is appreciated! My cable box is a SA3250HD, which has 2 firewire ports available on it.

Anyone that watched the football game last week (Buffalo-Denver) on CBS report if it was in SD or HD? If it was in HD, were there any issues/problems?

For kicks and giggles, I turned the house towards Rochester tonight and low and behold, I managed to receive ch 45.1 (WROC) & 58.1 (WHEC). Then to my surprise I wasn't able to get ch 59.1 (WHAM), which surprised me since they are listed as 1,000kW alone with 45.1. 58.1 is listed at half that ERP.
Though it wasn't a surprise that I couldn't get 16.1 (WXXI) or 28.1 (WUHF) because of their lower power and the fact I have both a ch.17 & ch.29 trap in line for the GI problem stations (overload).

On the reverse side;
How is the reception of the Boston Hills stations (NBC, CBS & ABC) IN the city of Rochester or the surrounding suburbs? How about the three on Grand Island (PBS, FOX & CW)?

I recorded the game from an SD channel, but that was before I got my HD tuner card this week. HD reception of the big three have been great where I am. ( I live in Rochester). Although, according to antennaweb.org, I live only 0.5 miles from the tower.

Absolutely, and also on the Steelers/Bills game. I set the damn game to be recorded in my TWC HD-DVR and every once in a while the signal would interrupt, I think when changing to/from commercials, and it would stop recording and start a new recording of the game. I ended up with over 2 dozen 2-3 mins recordings of the game. I don't know if it was the signal of if it is my box. Also I paused the game for about 5 mins to answer the phone and because of the interruptions in the signals it would unpaused the game and go back to live, oh man I was livid, I miss a couple plays because of this. Not that it was a good game if you are a Bills fan, but that is another story...
Anyone else had the same problem??? Should I call TW and complain??? I am thinking on switching to Direct TV, but I need my HD-DVR and I don't want to pay the $200 upfront that Direct TV charges for that box. Right now I have the TWC HD-DVR for free for 3 months. When that expires I will see what I do.

dxCoqui, I just signed up my Grandfather last week to DirecTv and he got the HR-20 DVR for $150 then they thru in the SuperFan ($99) for free. So he will get all the stations for Free for 4 months and pay $69 a month for Sunday Ticket for 4 months (A Wash) and have the SuperFan package (HD) for Free so he really is getting the HD-DVR for $51 if you think about it.

I got 2 HD-DVR's for $19.95 ea in the last 2 months myself, need to talk to a Customer Retension Person. (I've been with them since '94 and just added the Brazilian package to leverage the 2nd DVR, I was getting them from Dish. The first one was easy though)

I just picked up a SA8300HD box, and noticed that on some HD channels, the screen would just stay black. Mainly ABC, WXXIHD, DISCHD stayed black. It would sometimes pick up a signal, but it would be very very jumpy and not watchable. Does anyone know why this is?

My TV is a Samsung LN-T4066F and I'm currently using component cables as I wait for my HDMI cables to come in.

Issue is with the cable signal coming in. You'd best call cable for a service call.