Hey Portlanders, and anyone who's interested,
I talked at length yesterday with an engineer (Todd), from ASCN, Paul Allen's new sports network (orginally intended to be all hi-def, but read on). I had many questions concerning ASCN's hi-def broadcasts and its availability in Portland.
First off, he was very receptive to me, well informed, and frank. Right now, ASCN is close to closing a deal with ATT cable, but we all know they WILL NOT be carrying the HD signal. I asked Todd how I'd be able to see the Blazer games, etc. in HD. He said their signal is available using a BUD and KU band, which I've read here before, but doesn't help me much.... I'm tapped for $$, and have the DirectTv set-up.
Next I asked if it was possible to see these HD broadcasts using KGW's RARELY used 46-1 HD channel (for those of you elsewhere, this is our local NBC - demo loop city and Leno!). Well, this seemed like a new idea to him and he was very excited by it. While he can't say whether or not this can really happen, he did say he would take it to his superiors as a solution to this local problem.
Of course, I gave him lots of insight and info about this forum, and invited him to become a participant. He was not aware of AVSforum but said he'll at least drop by for a look, and once he was "less buried" at work, would try and join in some discussions.
Anyhow, at least from Todd's perspective, it seems they are trying to get Portlanders a way to see their channel, if not in HD, at least SEEN. I appreciated Todd's openness and he willingness to hear my ideas.
As a caveat, he pointed out that while they can send the HD truck to any Blazer game they're covering, not ALL facilities across the country can actually handle the cabling necessary for the HD cams. So even if they work out the HD problem here, there will still be some games shown only in SD.
I talked at length yesterday with an engineer (Todd), from ASCN, Paul Allen's new sports network (orginally intended to be all hi-def, but read on). I had many questions concerning ASCN's hi-def broadcasts and its availability in Portland.
First off, he was very receptive to me, well informed, and frank. Right now, ASCN is close to closing a deal with ATT cable, but we all know they WILL NOT be carrying the HD signal. I asked Todd how I'd be able to see the Blazer games, etc. in HD. He said their signal is available using a BUD and KU band, which I've read here before, but doesn't help me much.... I'm tapped for $$, and have the DirectTv set-up.
Next I asked if it was possible to see these HD broadcasts using KGW's RARELY used 46-1 HD channel (for those of you elsewhere, this is our local NBC - demo loop city and Leno!). Well, this seemed like a new idea to him and he was very excited by it. While he can't say whether or not this can really happen, he did say he would take it to his superiors as a solution to this local problem.
Of course, I gave him lots of insight and info about this forum, and invited him to become a participant. He was not aware of AVSforum but said he'll at least drop by for a look, and once he was "less buried" at work, would try and join in some discussions.
Anyhow, at least from Todd's perspective, it seems they are trying to get Portlanders a way to see their channel, if not in HD, at least SEEN. I appreciated Todd's openness and he willingness to hear my ideas.
As a caveat, he pointed out that while they can send the HD truck to any Blazer game they're covering, not ALL facilities across the country can actually handle the cabling necessary for the HD cams. So even if they work out the HD problem here, there will still be some games shown only in SD.
