[seank]

After a less than successful struggle to get OTA to work with my EyeTV 500 (I live 35 miles from Syracuse over bad terrain), I recently discovered the EyeTV update which alllows clear QAM reception. My initial attempt failed because I didn't realize you had to plug the cable into the antenna out connector. Silly me! I assumed my Time Warner was not sending anything out in clear QAM.


Well, after I discovered you have to plug the cable into the out connector, it worked! I now get ABC, CBS, NBC, Discover Channel HD and TNTHD! I also get a Syracuse PBS channel which unfortunately mostly does SD broadcasts.


I am excited about being able to record HD shows with my EyeTV, though I still wish I was able to get OTA.


Does anyone have any idea how likely these channels will remain unencrypted in the future?


-Sean

 

[bruintoo]

Did you have to subscribe to have HD capabilities from your cable company?

-Bruin
Quote:

Originally posted by seank After a less than successful struggle to get OTA to work with my EyeTV 500 (I live 35 miles from Syracuse over bad terrain), I recently discovered the EyeTV update which alllows clear QAM reception. My initial attempt failed because I didn't realize you had to plug the cable into the antenna out connector. Silly me! I assumed my Time Warner was not sending anything out in clear QAM. Well, after I discovered you have to plug the cable into the out connector, it worked! I now get ABC, CBS, NBC, Discover Channel HD and TNTHD! I also get a Syracuse PBS channel which unfortunately mostly does SD broadcasts. I am excited about being able to record HD shows with my EyeTV, though I still wish I was able to get OTA. Does anyone have any idea how likely these channels will remain unencrypted in the future? -Sean

 

[Ladd]

Quote:

Originally posted by bruintoo Did you have to subscribe to have HD capabilities from your cable company?

I get 4 HD channels via clear QAM on my EyeTV 500: ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX.


And no, you don't have to subscribe to any HD package to get these -- I only basic cable.


FWIW: I have a large roof antenna and get close to 40 OTA digital channels with 36 of them being useful programming and I'm more than 50 miles from the closest transmitter. Antenna selection and placement can make a HUGE difference in receiving OTA.

 

[seank]

I am currently subscribed to HD. I am using the SA8000HD right now, but would like to get rid of it. I will probably bring my EyeTV 500 over to a friends house to see if it will work with basic cable here.


I am aware of the complexities of antennas and setup for OTA. I spent quite a long time last fall. I put up a Channel Master 4228 with a rotor and a Channel Master 7777 preamp, etc. In the end only only got a 1 channel from Syracuse (35 miles away) which is a pbs station that does not generally broadcast HD. It still drops out once in a while.


Occasionally I will also receive stations from Rochester (75 miles) or Buffalo (110 miles), but they drop out a lot even when they do come in.


I think my location is just bad, but I might tinker with it more in the Spring.


-Sean

 

[Ted Todorov]

Is getting an EyeTV 500 in Manhattan worth it? Either with Time Warner cable or OTA (3rd floor on an Upper West Side building -- faces South).


Any advice is appreciated.


Thanks,

Ted