Anyone else HD quality going down?

Some times it's hard to tell whether the problems are with Dish or the original signal provider. I've noticed that certain networks seem to do HD better than others, especially in regards to live events such as sports or concerts.

It seems like NBC in particular has trouble with macro-blocking during fast motion live events, such as a football game or a musical performance with flashing strobe lights. I see the same problems whether I'm watching OTA or Dish. In a situation like that, where the network is sending out garbage, I could see how it would be easy for somebody to blame their particular carrier.

My experience has been that the 720p networks...ABC, FOX, ESPN, look better for sports and live events. And it's not the interlaced vs progressive thing (which I personally believe is very overhyped, since I've never seen anyone be able to identify whether they're watching 1080i or 1080p). It's just that the 720p networks don't seem to suffer from as much macro-blocking / compression problems. Maybe it's just that the hardware requirements for processing a 1280x720 signal on-the-fly vs a 1920x1080 signal are lower.
 
I've always felt ABC and Fox have the best PQ.

And I always feel ABC, FOX and ESPN look subpar and soft compared to NBC, CBS and other 1080i channels.

But pick your poison I guess, nice detail with some macroblocking or no macroblocking but a softer picture. On close-up shots it is not as noticeable to pre-snap shots in football or other wide shots it is pretty obvious.
 
In 3 different markets, CBS has been king. ABC shows like Lost look awesome, but their football, as with ESPN feeds, can really look like crap.

Fox shows just dont look as good to me, and NFL on Fox is not as good as NFL on CBS.
 
Jets Game

Is it me (or my TV) or does the Jets game on CBS look like it's being filtered with cheese cloth.
 
The glory days of True HD are long behind us (unless you are lucky enough to have FIOS)

For my locals most look better on Dish as they do OTA, this is because the stations here have many subcarriers which eats the OTA HD bandwidth. But Dish is getting these channels via fiber from the stations master feeds so the Dish local HD looks better.

As far as Dish goes, looking at Tsreader there have been no changes that I can see in the HD signals. But since all the HD are now VBR the show on one channel could look terrible in the afternoon but look amazing at night. It all has to do with whats happening on the other channels on that transponder. The action on the other channels may be robbing the channel your waching of some of its bandwidth.

Dish is working to add a huge new wave of HD over the next 4 or so months and will be doing many changes over the next few weeks in getting ready for these rollouts.

Where are they going to put it all? IF we are already seeing the hd quality fading now, then what will it look like when DISH adds a "huge new wave of HD" over the next 4 or so months?
 
syndicated programming

One of my local ABC affiliates has a strange way of brodcasting ever since the digital transition. From 6am to 9am they have great looking HD. Then it goes to a very nasty grainy image till 8PM. Then its full HD again till 11:30PM.
But its not dishes fault with them. Their broadcast looks the same on OTA as it does on dish.

On some of the avs forums a few others have started to notice the same thing.
Some of the more in the know people say its compression and bandwidth rationing.
Most say they never see softening on major sporting events but are starting to see it more and more on other shows.

I am just glad to know it's not my TV.

The times that you are listing is during the station's "local" programming time period. This will be filled with mostly syndicated programming. Right now there is only a little that is offered in HD and the providers are trying to charge extra for that. Most stations don't have the equipment to record and replay in HD as it is pretty expensive. This will be changing over the next few years that is one of the things I'm having to work on at the station where I work.
 
It is probably the gradual continuing transition to crap that I thought that the sat companies would do. Just like they did with the sd channels- they compressed them till they looked God awful , they will now do with the HD channels. By the time everything is in hd it will look as bad as the sd channels do today. The worst part is that most won't notice the difference ,especially if they don't have ota to compare it to.
Funny you should mention comparing to OTA. Last December my locals were doing soft tests so I tuned in to see if anything would happen with my new DLP. Nothing did, but I did notice a severe difference in the OTA direct and the DISH Local and OTA. And everything looks good on my DLP, even ABC's 720p. But NBC and CBS's 1080i is great. That's the beauty of this form factor. So I submitted a trouble ticket and the response was that there were PQ issues with the 722 that would be fixed in the next software update. Well I have yet to see a fix. And from what is being discovered here, it looks like they are going the other direction. Well what do you expect when they try to pass of channels that are supposedly HD and the station still doesn't do HD?

EDIT:
AND I don't get motion blur off OTA Direct as I do with the 722.
 
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If you mean motion blur as in what an LCD does, then you have a problem with the box. But my guess is you mean motion blur as in more pixilation and breakup. And yes, that is what I see as well.....more compression.
Exactly. DLP's reproduce exactly what they are sent. Today's ball games OTA were clean and crisp. From the 722, lots of break up and noise. And that's just with the D.O.G.s.

Right now (just today) I am getting a lot of skipping and drop out. The sky is clear and the signal levels are high. One Spotbeam at 102. OTA supplying a 10 signal.
 
Are you talking to me? If so, things are set up the only way they can be and DISH has acknowledged that there are issues.

All CSRs in all industries are underpaid and under-trained, and have a tendency to say what's needed to get you off the phone. I don't think you'll find corroboration that there are any issues with OTA picture quality with Dish receivers. I'm not saying this to be confrontational, but I think you were given an incorrect or misleading answer.

I don't doubt that you're seeing a problem, but I would investigate your end further instead of waiting for a software update. You might have a bad unit or a bad cable, or maybe a setting is wrong somewhere.

I've had a 622, a 722, and 722K, all with OTA, connected to LCDs and DLPs and they all look as good as a direct OTA connection as well as a TiVO Series 3.
 
Can't belive I'm saying this

Exactly. DLP's reproduce exactly what they are sent. Today's ball games OTA were clean and crisp. From the 722, lots of break up and noise. And that's just with the D.O.G.s.

Right now (just today) I am getting a lot of skipping and drop out. The sky is clear and the signal levels are high. One Spotbeam at 102. OTA supplying a 10 signal.

Hate to sound like hideffjeff but what signal levels are you seeing on your sats?
 
All CSRs in all industries are underpaid and under-trained, and have a tendency to say what's needed to get you off the phone. I don't think you'll find corroboration that there are any issues with OTA picture quality with Dish receivers. I'm not saying this to be confrontational, but I think you were given an incorrect or misleading answer.

I don't doubt that you're seeing a problem, but I would investigate your end further instead of waiting for a software update. You might have a bad unit or a bad cable, or maybe a setting is wrong somewhere.

I've had a 622, a 722, and 722K, all with OTA, connected to LCDs and DLPs and they all look as good as a direct OTA connection as well as a TiVO Series 3.
Believe and say what you want. I used to work for DISH and have back doors and other options to get my TS. I didn't say who told me and it wasn't one of your "under paid under trained generalized" TSA's that you might get. I became a CED&I after I left DISH and have other avenues.

My signal levels are mid 60's to mid 70's. 90 to 100 on OTA.

And since I have made myself a target for those that have to be contrary to everything or have problems with others reality or just have to know better, have fun I'm outta here. I joined a conversation, not a competition.
 
Sandfarmer, Having read all of the above, you are the one who is competing with your know it all attitude. People are trying to help. You act as if they are below you. Get off you high horse.
 

Free HBO and Showtime promo question?

Best EHD for 722

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