Abilene, TX - HDTV - Page 39

FOX is currently being broadcast OTA on analog channel 42.

Probably been happening for a few days and I haven't noticed, but I'm back getting Fox OTA with a signal reading of about 96-97 %.

For those of you with Suddenlink expanded basic (no cable box) and haven't done a rescan lately...they finally made good on their promise of digital duplicates for each channel that you already receive. For example: after your rescan you should have a duplicate of each channel with a "-1" behind it and that is your digital. Digital doesn't mean HD however (you'll still want to use 104-110 for locals)...and there isn't much difference in the picture quality. The biggest difference that I can tell is the sound is better on the digital versus the old analog. It may be a small bump in quality, but I still give Suddenlink kudos for actually doing it.

Does anybody in Abilene get any digital channels besides 9, 12, 15, and 32? Antennaweb shows there's also a 51 but I dont get 51 either analog or digital.

51 is very low power.

Just a word of warning for Suddenlink basic/expanded customers that currently don't have a box. The free "digital" box they are now offering is nothing more than a digital tuner...the same as what you already have in your HDTV and possibly not as good. If you have been using the analog channels (the old numbers) it will slightly improve your picture/sound but at the same time block you from getting the locals in HD. Decline the box and simply do a channel scan...and use 104, 105, 106, and 110 for the locals to get HD, and use the normal channel numbers with a "-1" behind it to get the digital duplicates for all the other channels.

edit- of course to get the locals in HD your tv must have a QAM tuner (for unscrambled digital) but any built in digital tuner should get the digital duplicates for everything else.

I thought they might eventually upgrade and increase power enough to reach Sweetwater with an OTA signal. Still getting "no signal" on 015.1 The KTAB/KRBC tower is right next to theirs, and I get 09.1 and 32.1 just fine, beautiful signal from those two.

I fully expect KXVA to put off doing anything that would cost any money as long as they can get away with it.

I don't know about that. They are sending overly bubbly Cory to Vegas and we get to read all about it on twitter.

Has anybody been watching over the air 12-3 "This TV"? What happened to Telemundo? Most of the movies have been crap except for "The 3 Amigos" that is a decent film.

I like the channel, here is an explanation of what happened to Telemundo


Telemundo giving way to This TV in Abilene
http://www.reporternews.com/news/201...ay-to-this-tv/

A local television station is changing programming Sept. 1.

KTES will switch from carrying Telemundo Spanish-language programming to carrying fledgling network This TV, which airs mostly movies from the MGM movies studio library as well as episodes from older television series. Programming will air 24 hours each day, without infomercials.

“We’re really excited. This is a chance to do real local things,” said Kyle Krebs, vice president and general manager for KTES. The station will air Abilene Christian University football games on tape delay, he said, with plans to pursue other local and regional sports programming and also possibly air local church broadcasts.

KTES is channel 40 in the Abilene area and also is broadcast digitally at channel 12.3. On Suddenlink local cable, This TV will air on channel 126 as part of the digital/HD tier.

The station is part of a group of stations that includes KTXS, KTXE San Angelo and CW Abilene, all of which are owned by New York-based Bonten Media Group.

Krebs said the station had carried Telemundo programming for about 10 years.

“We never had any ratings for Telemundo,” Krebs said. Higher ratings for TV stations can be a selling point to advertisers.

“We had really good success with CW. That made it apparent Telemundo was not going as well,” Krebs said. The group began broadcasting CW Abilene in 2006.

Krebs said that with the station’s contract with Telemundo expiring, it was time to pursue another opportunity. This TV, which launched in 2008, does not demand stations carry all of its programming, a plus that allows the station to pursue more local broadcasts and other programming, Krebs said.

Telemundo will remain available to Suddenlink cable subscribers on channel 15.

Ben Gonzalez, program director for Star 106.3 FM, “The Latino Mix,” said he thought the station change was bad news for many in the Latino community. He said no other Spanish network is available over-the-air for free.

“I hate to see it happen,” said Gonzalez, noting that “there’s a lot of people that can’t afford to have the cable to get Telemundo.” Beyond entertainment, the station offered Spanish-language news and a community calendar, he said.

Gonzalez said sometimes Spanish-speakers can be invisible in ratings systems that rely on audience feedback and participation.

“We, as a radio station, sometimes we don’t get ratings, but we monitor it by the number of people that go to events,” sponsored by the station, Gonzalez said. “That’s how we can tell people are listening.”

Thank you very much "Raydeen" that was very informative. I might have been the only one to not know that, but I don't read Abilene "distorter" News.

I'll have to check that out. I've never watched 12.3 because I don't speak the language.

I am enjoying the early morning tv shows like the original Outer Limits. Also a show I have never heard of Sea Hunt with the great late Lloyd Bridges.

Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit sniffing glue

I grew up watching Sea Hunt and Highway Patrol. This channel is a blast from the past. I like it a lot.

Is the real BIG thing coming to KXVA the 4th of October, a big enough transmitter to get a dang signal further out than 20 miles from the tower? I'm not holding my breath.

We can only hope, but I'm not holding my breath either.

Because KTXS has problems. They often forget to "flip the switch" when coming back from commercials or if there is a weather alert they can't show the alert and HD at the same time.

I saw what the big thing was. This morning they showed San Antonio news in a small screen and on the side was the weather for Abilene and Brownwood. On the bottom was a scroll of Abilene news powered by Abilene distorter news

Abilene now has 6 local HD channels on Direct TV. Requires a few dollars extra if you don't already have HD. Our four locals, a CW channel and a PBS HD channel. I don't believe that the PBS channel is Dallas though, looks like it might be Chicago. Quality appears to me to be very good.

So I'm no longer a Suddenlink customer -- are any of the much-hyped digital basic channels in ClearQAM, like they were when they were temporarily available as dupes of the analog signals, or are they encrypted? I ask because some relatives are asking me to build a DVR for them (MythTV), and since they're on Suddenlink I'm looking at the different tuner options available.

N

Just to be sure I'm clear; you *do* pick up the SD "other channels" you mention in ClearQAM? Because it's the presence or absence of encryption, not the SD/HD, that I was asking about.

Thanks,
n

On cable I get the three you mentioned in HD but I also get Fox 106-1 and it is also HD. I just checked it.

I installed a digi-link box for a friend last week. I'd like to have had more time with the set, but I left thinking all stereo sound is gone for users of the converter box unless it has MTS, which I doubt. Has anyone noticed if there is MTS? Do expanded basic channels have stereo sound on ATSC TVs? Do the remaining basic analog channels have MTS? The clear picture is nice but losing stereo is a big step back.

I have Suddenlink expanded basic (no digital box) and use a QAM tuner built into my tv for digital. Suddenlink would like everyone to believe they need to rent one of their boxes (either standard def digital or HD) to get the best picture but this is not true. Actually what happens is that if you get anything other than an HD box (and all the extra charges that entails) you will be blocked from getting the locals/PBS in HD. Using a QAM tuner you can pull in the HD locals (104.1, 105.1, 106.1, 110.1 and PBS 113.1) and then get the digital dupes for everything else you recieve...for example 55.1 is the History channel. One thing to watch out for is that Suddenlink very cleverly added 2 of each channel (for example 55.1 twice) and made sure the first one is blank with no signal trying to fool people into thinking their QAM tuner no longer works. After a channel scan you will have to go in and manually delete/disable the *first* duplicate in your list of channels as that will be the blank one. If you still haven't done anything yet and have questions just PM me.