Cablecard set up questions Sony 60XS955??????

Archived from groups: alt.tv.tech.hdtv (More info?)

When a cablecard is installed replacing a cable box how does it effect
the following:

With the box you switched to the cable option on the remote. Does the
remote still have to get switched to the cable option when using the
cable card?
If so what is he remote code?

When using an a/v receiver for the television's audio how is that
hooked up?
With the cable box I used the cable box audio out to the receivers
cable audio in.
How would the audio signal to a receiver be handled with the card?

What capability does the card give you to program your "favorite"
stations with the SONY's remote?

Appreciate any hands on experience from any 60XS955 users that have
switched to a cable card. Thanking you in advance

Archived from groups: alt.tv.tech.hdtv (More info?)

<mouln@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1110879283.806415.89250@o13g2000cwo.googlegroups.com...
> When a cablecard is installed replacing a cable box how does it effect
> the following:
>
> With the box you switched to the cable option on the remote. Does the
> remote still have to get switched to the cable option when using the
> cable card?
> If so what is he remote code?

You no longer have a cable box to control, just your own TV (same TV as
mine). The signal from the cable goes directly into the "cable" input, gets
signal-processed by the CableCard and then turned into a TV picture by the
digital tuner inside your TV set. So you just use your TV set's remote to
control the TV, the same as if you were tuning over-the-air signals. The
remote code is whatever controls your TV set, i.e., the factory setting.

>
> When using an a/v receiver for the television's audio how is that
> hooked up?
> With the cable box I used the cable box audio out to the receivers
> cable audio in.
> How would the audio signal to a receiver be handled with the card?

I run optical digital audio OUT from the TV set into an optical digital IN
on the back of my receiver and cut off the TV set's speakers. I run analog
audio OUT from the back of the TV into analog audio IN on the back of my
receiver. I set the TV set audio to "fixed" and control the volume with
your receiver. (Actually, I seldom use the TV set remote -- I use my
Panasonic receiver's remote to control both the receiver and my TV set.)
When I set my receiver to its "TV" input, I get digital audio from the TV
set if the audio is digital. If it is analog audio, then the TV set will
change to sending an analog signal and the receiver kicks down to take the
analog signal. The receiver defaults to digital if there is a digital
signal, analog if not. The TV set will not send analog and digital audio at
the same time.

I don't know if you will find this to be true or not (but I would love to
know, one way or the other) but I find that when I change channels using the
"Favorites" menu via the TV set remote and go from a digital audio channel
to an analog audio channel, my receiver will not drop down to analog. I
have to "JUMP", using the jump button on the remote, back to the digital
channel, then back to the analog to make it drop down and get the analog
signal.

I think this is a flaw in the TV set, so that it does not automatically drop
down to sending analog when using the Favorites menu to change channels from
a digital audio to an analog audio channel. I also find this problem when
using "TwinView". But there is no problem with regular channel-changing,
via channel selector, inputting channel numbers or using JUMP.

>
> What capability does the card give you to program your "favorite"
> stations with the SONY's remote?

You can program stations into the Favorites menu just as you would if you
were using over the air channels. Note what I said above about audio when
changing channels via Favorites, though.

>
> Appreciate any hands on experience from any 60XS955 users that have
> switched to a cable card. Thanking you in advance

Happy to help. I find that CableCard gives us significantly better SD
pictures. (I have also experimented with the TV set's default settings for
fixing SD signals and made some changes.) HD pictures are about the same as
with the cable box, i.e., excellent. My CableCard problems are all with
Time-Warner that has not gotten completely up to speed with the CC
technology, so we do still get occasional dropouts of all our additional HD
channels (HBOHD, INHD, ESPNHD, etc.) that usually last just a few minutes.

We have also gotten "Cable Card Error 161-6" from time to time. Since I did
a firmware upgrade on the set recently, those have been reduced from about 1
per week to just 1 in a month or so. If you get that CableCard error, hit
the remote button to clear the box, then cut off your TV, pop the CableCard
out of the back, reseat it (ALL the way back in so it is flush!) and turn
your set back on. That will bring back your additional CC channels.

Check with whoever does your service to see if there is a Sony firmware
update for your serial #. If so, Sony will send it to you on a Memory Stick
and you can install it yourself -- you don't really need a service call to
do it.

mack
austin
>

Archived from groups: alt.tv.tech.hdtv (More info?)

Just a follow-up; The cable card is just a password (contains algorithm) to
allow your TV to unscramble channels your cable provider offers.

Archived from groups: alt.tv.tech.hdtv (More info?)

Exactly...I had that scenerio here with comcast. But I wanted some extra
channels...so I subscribed.

Don

"Mack McKinnon" <MckinnonRemoveThis@tvadmanDeleteThisAsWell.com> wrote in
message news:U9YZd.4854$8D.4465@tornado.texas.rr.com...
>
> "Jeff Rigby" <jffg2@comcast.net> wrote in message
> news:kfydnfdvgIkRjaXfRVn-gQ@comcast.com...
>>
>> Just a follow-up; The cable card is just a password (contains algorithm)
>> to
>> allow your TV to unscramble channels your cable provider offers.
>
> And if you are only interested in the HD offerings from the TV networks
> and you have a TV with a built-in digital tuner, you may be able to get HD
> with only the most basic cable service. In Austin, you can do that. The
> lowest $12/month cable tier will give you all the network HD because those
> channels are not encrypted by TW Cable. Some have even reported being
> able to pull those channels in from cable only subscribed to Roadrunner
> cable internet.
>
> mack
> austin
>
>