Any recent 5th generation receiver chip news? - Page 6

My divider looks like this one physically:

http://www.radioshack.com/product.as...5Fid=15%2D1234

It has "TV" printed on one input and "FM" printed on the other. It also has printed on it "DLS 322." I may have gotten it from Parts Express, I forget, as I got it many years ago.

It is definitely passing UHF signals through both sides, as I move the Megawave around I can fine tune my reception. All my digital channels are UHF. I point the SS right at the transmitter and the Megawave slightly off to one side. It just seems to increase the size of the antenna so I get a stronger signal. My building has a metal roof and I am sure aluminum foil backed fiberglass insulation all around, and I am on the first floor with three floors about me. That is why I need the antenna amp.

I didn't plan to do it this way. I was just getting nowhere reception wise and hooked it up from parts I already had as a goof. It worked right away and works better than the Silver Sensor alone.

IB

Jeff,

Your right! I disconnected the Megawave and tuned in a strong station just using the Silver Sensor and amp. Then I reconnected through the "FM" side of the combiner-splitter and lost the signal. It makes sense as I was using the Megawave just below the Silver Sensor, so it must have been re-radiating the signal upward to the Silver Sensor. Works sort of like the Select Antenna AM booster sold by C. Crane Company. So I guess I will just keep the Megawave unconnected and use it as a wireless booster. I wonder if anything else I could construct would help in the same way.

http://www.ccrane.com/select-am-antenna.aspx - Select Antenna

I was also worried that as my Silver Sensor is designed for UHF, I would have to get a VHF antenna when my local channels switch back to lower frequencies after they give back their UHF digital air space. The lowest channel will be channel 9, so I tried channel 9 in analogue with the Silver Sensor only and got it very well. So I guess the SS can go at least down to channel 9 OK. The next station up will be 13, then 16, etc, so I guess the SS will be enough, even after the switchover. Hopefully channel 9 is high enough so that it won't have a problem with discharge noise. It looks good in analogue.

I do find I get static on channel 34 analogue and 34.1 digital every day around dinner time, and I wonder if some neighbor's microwave oven is to blame.

Thanks,

IB

Yea, but it does not mention 5th chip technology. LG holds the basic patent for 8-VSB, so we don't know exactly what level of technology they are talking about.

That said, I hope your right and LG will give their 5th chip technology to other companies as well as the proper design for the "front end" of the receiver to makes it work. Apparently, the 5th chip is no good at all without an expensive and specifically designed front end for that chip.

IB

BTW-

Does anyone know if the famed Linx Electronics "Casper" HDTV receiver
chip is dead? It was supposed to be a big improvement because it
synchronized ghost HDTV signals into one stronger signal. Linx claimed
a 85% success rate for it. Not as high as the 94% claimed for the LG
chip, but perhaps with an improved "front end" it could match the LG.
Neither the Linx nor Micronas Web sites mention it anymore. The Linx
site use to feature it. Linx was sold to Micronas last year.

RCA-Thompson was supposed to use the Casper chip in their products in
the Fall of 2005, but according to Bob Miller they will use their own
in-house chip for their stand alone over-the-air receivers.

What gives?

links:

http://www.micronas.com/produc_ts/overview/index.php

http://www.linxelectronics.com_/

IB

Just got this word from Micronas.

"The Casper brand is owned by Disney so we couldn't continue using it. The part will be available in 2H05 in multiple flavors as Micronas DRX 394xH. We will contact you as soon as we have publicly available documentation."

By "2H05," I don't know if he means just 2005, and the "H" was just a typo, or the second quarter of 2005. I am not up to date on all the business slang terms.

This is good news for people who want better tuners.

IB

Do you have a link for this information? I checked out the
ST Microelectronics Web site and could find no mention of it, and a Goggle search turned up nothing as well.

IB

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Here's the blurb. I did not see any reference to Micronas, but it did talk about resistance to multipath. IB
------------------------

Single chip demodulator supports ATSC and cable standards, and integrates OOB tuner for high-end 'cable ready' digital TVs

Geneva, January 6, 2005 - STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM), one of the world's leading suppliers of System-on-Chip (SoC) solutions for digital TV and the largest supplier of silicon chips for set-top boxes*, has introduced a single-chip, fully integrated digital demodulator - the STV0370 - which is designed to be the front-end device in advanced interactive cable-ready digital TV receivers, and in terrestrial and cable set-top boxes (STBs) in the USA.

The new multistandard chip supports ATSC (Advanced Television Systems Committee) standard A/53 Annex D (8VSB2) for use in digital terrestrial receivers, as well as the ITU-T J.83/B (US Cable) specification for cable TV. In addition its support for downstream interactive OOB (Out of Band) QPSK modulation and fully integrated superheterodyne down conversion tuner, which eliminates the need for external OOB tuner circuitry, will allow TV receivers that use the chip to be labeled 'digital cable ready' under FCC (Federal Communications Commission) regulations.

Combining this cost-effective digital demodulator with ST's industry-leading STi7710 STB decoder - a highly-integrated HDTV (High Definition TV) solution which implements HDCP security for its DVI/HDMI display interfaces, and features on-chip AAC audio and a hi-speed USB interface - creates for manufacturers the lowest cost platform available on the market which is able to meet the requirements of multiple high definition (HD) Digital TV standards worldwide.

"The STV0370 is ST market best in class HD demodulator designed for the US HDTV applications, enabling NIM manufacturer and STB makers the ability to cost reduce their system while giving viewers the advanced features they now expect as standard within the new fast growing HD market" said Armando Caltabiano, Retail Multimedia and Satellite Division General Manager. The STV0370 and STi7710 US TV platform is likely to enjoy the same success that the STV0361 plus STi5518 combination have achieved in European DVB-T with current 92 per-cent market share."

The chip is extremely robust against multi-path signals and echoes, offering enhanced indoor and outdoor antenna reception. It supports the CEA Antenna Control Interface Standard (EIA/CEA-909, parts A and B) which allows viewers to use Smart Antenna technology to optimize reception by electronically adjusting the antenna gain, polarization, and beam direction, rather than by physical positional adjustment.

For easy control by system software the STV0370 is managed through a 2-wire I2C interface. Its high level of integration minimizes overall parts and assembly costs for manufacturers; on-chip features include high-performance 10-bit and 8-bit analog to digital converters (ADCs), integrated SRAM for byte interleave processing so that no external memory is required, and dedicated I2C repeaters for tuner control to improve RF performance and increase digital noise immunity.

The new chip is produced using ST's state-of-the-art 90nm process technology, ensuring lower cost through the use of a smaller sized die, and reduced power consumption. It is supplied in a low-cost, small footprint LQFP 128-pin package with exposed paddle, and is available now in sample quantities. Full production of the device, priced at US$8.00 for large volumes, is planned for Q1 2005.

About STMicroelectronics

STMicroelectronics is a global leader in developing and delivering semiconductor solutions across the spectrum of microelectronics applications. An unrivalled combination of silicon and system expertise, manufacturing strength, Intellectual Property (IP) portfolio and strategic partners positions the Company at the forefront of System-on-Chip (SoC) technology and its products play a key role in enabling today's convergence markets. The Company's shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange, on Euronext Paris and on the Milan Stock Exchange. In 2003, the Company's net revenues were $7.24 billion and net earnings were $253 million. Further information on ST can be found at www.st.com.

1 IDC Worldwide Digital Set-Top-Box Semiconductor Vendor Shares - November 2004
2 8VSB: 8-level Vestigial Sideband Modulation, the RF modulation format approved by the FCC for the ATSC HDTV digital television standard.

Tom,

You seem to have been at this a long time. I am curious, what kind of antenna and receiver do you use? Do you get all the digital signals in your area or just some of them? How is your antenna positioned? I gather from previous posts that you do not use a preamp.

IB