Ditgital TV Over the Air Signal

Archived from groups: alt.video.digital-tv (More info?)

Your TV would need one of the over the air tuner/converter boxes with the
output set for "480i". There are a number of them that can be
configured this way. The least expensive may be a couple from RCA, but a
number of them from Samsung and others are out there now.

You should also know that there are several with built in "Direct TV"
satellite tuners, if that is of any interest to you.

Now...just in general...the "chip sets" that make up the heart of these
tuners are in about their third or forth generation. There have been a
number of problems in metropolitan areas, but I do not know what the
experience has been in fringe areas. Essentially, in the metro areas,
ghosts or "multi-path"/reflected signals have been a problem. Since you
don't have that kind of problem, you may well be in luck. In fact, around
Houston, several of the "fringe" cable companies are picking up KPRC,
Channel 2 (NBC) using a digital tuner. They have them set to a 4:3 picture,
so when a true HD program is on, the sides are simply cropped off. They
find this a much better solution to provide the Ch-2 signal to their
subscribers as opposed to trying to receive the standard, analog, Ch-2 in
varying weather conditions.

So, you may be on the right track, if most of the stations you want to
receive have digital transmitters up and running. Note...occasionally...the
programming can be different. Especially on PBS, most PBS stations cannot
record and "delay" HD/digital programming, so they run whatever PBS is
sending down the HD line, and that's an entirely different schedule than you
can receive on the analog channel. The major networks "simulcast", with
minor exceptions: NBC will be running a special, repeating HD/Olympics
program, which will be different than what's on analog NBC. And, CBS will
occasionally run something different when there are sports events. For
instance...during the college basketball playoffs, they have set up HD from
one regional a week, and that is what is offered to their stations to run on
their HD channel...which may well be a different game than is running on
their analog channel.

OK...that's probably more than you wanted to know. Hope it helps...

Regards from Houston

"WROSIE" <wrosinski@home.com> wrote in message
news:6e1c63a5.0406220648.11da7f03@posting.google.com...
> Hello, I hope this is the correct group to post this request. If not I
> apologize.
>
> I live in a fringe area north of Dallas. By this I mean I can receive
> the analog signals with the largest antenna I can find mounted on the
> roof of a 2 story house. Some of the channels are a little snowy with
> some ghosting depending on the weather.
>
> I have checked http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx and done a
> web search but haven't been able to find an answer to my question.
>
> I have an analog JVC TV purchased a couple years ago. I have also
> noticed that some web sites adverstise "digital antennas". These seem
> to be directional.
>
> Would my analog TV play a digitally received over the air signal
> without a converter box? (I am not asking for HDTV, jut digital TV to
> eliminate snow & ghosting).
>
> If I need a converter box, any recommendations for a good, inexpensive
> (cheap one)?
>
> Would my "regular" antenna receive the digital signal or do I need to
> get a new digital antenna?
>
> I noticed the digital signals are designated channel 13.1 vs. channel
> 13 for the analog signal. Is this what a converter box would do, tune
> to channel 13.1?
>
> Thanks for any assistance you can provide.

Archived from groups: alt.video.digital-tv (More info?)

"WROSIE" <wrosinski@home.com> wrote in message
news:6e1c63a5.0406220648.11da7f03@posting.google.com...


< snip >

> I live in a fringe area north of Dallas. By this I mean I can receive
> the analog signals with the largest antenna I can find mounted on the
> roof of a 2 story house. Some of the channels are a little snowy with
> some ghosting depending on the weather.
>
<

< snip >

> I noticed the digital signals are designated channel 13.1 vs. channel
> 13 for the analog signal. Is this what a converter box would do, tune
> to channel 13.1?

The other things the other posters said were correct.

The 13.1 might be accompanied by a
13.2 or a 13.3, etc, since digital transmissions can carry multiple shows at
the same time. The busiest I know about is KLCS, Los Angeles, with five
simultaneous shows.

With a UHF-only yagi antenna at chimney-top height, I get all the LA
stations (125 miles from San Diego) at least part of the time.

If you can get watchable pictures (they don't have to be great) from
Dallas, you can get some digital.

This page (relax -- it's from the FCC) gives all the Dallas TV stations,
showing their call letters and their channel assignments for analog and
digital.

<http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/tvq?state=TX&call=&arn=&city=Dallas&chan=&cha2=6
9&serv=&type=0&facid=&list=2&dist=&dlat2=&mlat2=&slat2=&dlon2=&mlon2=&slon2>

If you start clicking on links, you'll be kept busy!!! There is a ton of
data,
including power, transmitter maps, patterns. If that link is hosed by line
wrap, go instead to

http://www.fcc.gov/mb/video/tvq.html

and enter the data to bring up Dallas. It's pretty user-friendly. TVQ
means
Television Query; the page has links to AM & FM, too.

I have a $250.00 Samsung SIR-T160 from a local audio-video superstore.
It works well, but it's not the latest-and-greatest. Beware of a limitation
of
a combo Digital TV and DirecTV receivers. I have heard that if you DON'T
have DirectTV subscribed on the box, the display menus won't come up --
a definite disadvantage for trying to set up the DTV-side of the box.

Good luck.

Archived from groups: alt.video.digital-tv (More info?)

"Sal M. Onella" <salmonella@food.poisoning.org> wrote:
> I have a $250.00 Samsung SIR-T160 from a local audio-video
> superstore. It works well, but it's not the latest-and-greatest.
> Beware of a limitation of
> a combo Digital TV and DirecTV receivers. I have heard that if
> you DON'T have DirectTV subscribed on the box, the display menus
> won't come up -- a definite disadvantage for trying to set up the
> DTV-side of the box.

The Samsung SIR-TS160 *will* work for OTA channels without a
subscription to DirecTV. However, you must have a DirecTV access card
inserted in the card slot in order to access the antenna setup menus.
Once the antenna setup is completed, the card may be removed.

I've heard the card doesn't have to be a valid one, but being a D*
subscriber, I've never tried an "expired" card in this STB.... If
buying a used TS160, make sure it comes with an access card.

I've seen OTA-only Samsung SIRT351 STBs lately in the "open box
specials" bin at Best Buy for only $99 + tax. New ones usually go for
~$300
<http://www.google.com/search?q=sirt351&sourceid=firefox>