DC Local HD quality

[bbrukx]

Isn't most of the stations fed by a fiber link, well they have to pay for that bandwidth. Can you imagine the cost of upgrading all those links to what 19mb, they are probably running much less than that now.

I might be way off on this, but just a thought

They probably encode it at the station, so they would not be sending 19mb across country.

I looked at several shows on the HD LIL last night and came to the conclusion that the channels that broadcast in 720p (Fox and ABC here in DC) look actually pretty good, but the channels in 1080i (NBC and CBS) look horrible. So it looks like Dish (and even DirecTV, see other thread) have some work to do on the MPEG4 coding for 1080i.

I even set the output of the 622 to 1080i and let my tv do the conversion to 720p, didn't make a difference however.

 

[datwell]

They probably encode it at the station, so they would not be sending 19mb across country.

I looked at several shows on the HD LIL last night and came to the conclusion that the channels that broadcast in 720p (Fox and ABC here in DC) look actually pretty good, but the channels in 1080i (NBC and CBS) look horrible. So it looks like Dish (and even DirecTV, see other thread) have some work to do on the MPEG4 coding for 1080i.

I even set the output of the 622 to 1080i and let my tv do the conversion to 720p, didn't make a difference however.

I sure hope they have made some progress on this issue!!

After spending the $ for a 622 (and a 211) both of which should be up this weekend, the PQ on CSI Miami and the NFL (this fall) better be good - or else momma ain't gonna be happy (and when momma's not happy...)!!!

---Doug

 

[riffjim4069]

DC HD LIL improvements?

Ok, I just wanted to report that my HD LIL has improved quite a bit over the past week or so.

WTTG-HD: looks good, even the HD.
WJLA-HD: looks good, haven't watched much but didn't noticed many problems.
WRC-HD: can't say I watched this at all due to their week channel lineup.
WUSA-HD: huge improvement. Checked out a CSI and Criminal minds and the PQ was much better and there were far fewer video problems and no audio problems.

I don't spend a lot of time watching these since I have OTA, but I have noticed big improvements.:up

How about everyone else?

 

[bbrukx]

Ok, I just wanted to report that my HD LIL has improved quite a bit over the past week or so.

WTTG-HD: looks good, even the HD.
WJLA-HD: looks good, haven't watched much but didn't noticed many problems.
WRC-HD: can't say I watched this at all due to their week channel lineup.
WUSA-HD: huge improvement. Checked out a CSI and Criminal minds and the PQ was much better and there were far fewer video problems and no audio problems.

I don't spend a lot of time watching these since I have OTA, but I have noticed big improvements.:up

How about everyone else?

I'm on vacation. I have the DVR set for West Wing (NBC) and CSI: MIAMI (CBS). I'm curious to see if there has been an improvement, which would be excellent news....

 

[datwell]

Good news indeed!

Ok, I just wanted to report that my HD LIL has improved quite a bit over the past week or so.

WTTG-HD: looks good, even the HD.
WJLA-HD: looks good, haven't watched much but didn't noticed many problems.
WRC-HD: can't say I watched this at all due to their week channel lineup.
WUSA-HD: huge improvement. Checked out a CSI and Criminal minds and the PQ was much better and there were far fewer video problems and no audio problems.

I don't spend a lot of time watching these since I have OTA, but I have noticed big improvements.:up

How about everyone else?

riffjim4069: Thanks much!!!! I plan to fire up the 622 this weekend and if the HD PQ on WUSA-DT is terribly weak my better half will be on the warpath - big time! Our OTA is very problematic, but when it works, the PQ on CSI Miami is just outstanding! BTW, the CSI's (paticularly Miami) and Criminal Minds are some of our favorites, so this is very good news indeed! We probably won't watch much on WRC-DT until the NFL starts up this fall.

Guy, this was timely indeed - thanks again!

---Doug

 

[mike528]

DC OTA is better with the 622 also

I agree with Riffjim, the DC HD LIL are looking pretty good, though still not as good as OTA. I like having the HD locals available via satellite though for the program guide, and so I can record more than one local program at a time, but when I have the choice I will watch the OTA broadcast every time

On the subject of DC OTA reception, I must say that the 622 has by far the best OTA tuner I have ever had - much better than the OTA tuner in the Voom box, and light years better than my old 2001-era DirecTV box. (I just got signed up with Dish and got a 622 installed a few weeks ago, so I don't know how it compares to older Dish boxes.) I live close in (Arlington), so signal strength is not a problem for me, but I used to have terrible multipath problems, with signals bouncing off tall buildings nearby. I used to have to rotate the antenna and fine tune it almost every time I changed stations, and I would get audio dropouts, breakup, and sometimes complete loss of reception seemingly based on the temperature, the way the wind was blowing, etc. But the OTA tuner on the 622 is so good that I can just point the antenna in roughly the correct general direction, and it picks up everything, with no dropouts. And I know its definitely the tuner because I have been using the same OTA antenna on my roof, and the same cabling, for the past five years.

So Datwell, if you have not been able to get OTA in the past, it is possible that you will have a pleasant surprise when you hook up the 622. I'll keep my fingers corssed for you!

 

[datwell]

I agree with Riffjim, the DC HD LIL are looking pretty good, though still not as good as OTA. I like having the HD locals available via satellite though for the program guide, and so I can record more than one local program at a time, but when I have the choice I will watch the OTA broadcast every time

On the subject of DC OTA reception, I must say that the 622 has by far the best OTA tuner I have ever had - much better than the OTA tuner in the Voom box, and light years better than my old 2001-era DirecTV box. (I just got signed up with Dish and got a 622 installed a few weeks ago, so I don't know how it compares to older Dish boxes.) I live close in (Arlington), so signal strength is not a problem for me, but I used to have terrible multipath problems, with signals bouncing off tall buildings nearby. I used to have to rotate the antenna and fine tune it almost every time I changed stations, and I would get audio dropouts, breakup, and sometimes complete loss of reception seemingly based on the temperature, the way the wind was blowing, etc. But the OTA tuner on the 622 is so good that I can just point the antenna in roughly the correct general direction, and it picks up everything, with no dropouts. And I know its definitely the tuner because I have been using the same OTA antenna on my roof, and the same cabling, for the past five years.

So Datwell, if you have not been able to get OTA in the past, it is possible that you will have a pleasant surprise when you hook up the 622. I'll keep my fingers corssed for you!

Mike528: Thanks guy! I've caught some noise from my better half - the $ for the CM-4228, pre-amp & rotor started to add up and the results have been less than perfect. We are on the back side of the big hill at Seven Corners - directly in the path of the OTA signals. And when we have some wind, the CM-4228 is useless. We have very good E* reception however and are hoping for big things from the 622. I'll post the results.

--Doug

 

[riffjim4069]

May have spoke too soon...

Ok, I haven't check out the HD LIL in a few days but I just took at look at Law & Order: Criminal Intent on 6361 the video is choppy and their are trailing effects in darker scenes. There's also a little choppiness watching Covert One (6360), but it's not as bad. I can deal with the PQ being a little soft (not a big deal for me since I'm OTA), but I can't deal with the choppy video. ABC and FOX (720p) both look pretty good...

 

[animalhouse]

I had a 61.5 installed last week to pick up the local HD stations out of Washington and they look pretty good to me.

BTW, are the signals for 4,5,7,and 9 mirrored from their counterpart in the 6000 range of channels? The reason I ask is that they both look like they are HD.

 

[riffjim4069]

I noticed a very slight improvement in the 1080i channels (CBS, NBC), but the video jitter/studder would certainly cause a headache if I had to watch these channels.

 

[datwell]

I noticed a very slight improvement in the 1080i channels (CBS, NBC), but the video jitter/studder would certainly cause a headache if I had to watch these channels.

Naturally!! And CBS is the one we watch most! Is there any other way?
At least our beloved Redskins will look good (Fox-5).

---Doug

 

[kpc007]

The DC ABC channel is really bad on the 622. Lots of breaking up with loss of pixels. Is anyone else having that problem?

 

[Sinclair]

BTW, are the signals for 4,5,7,and 9 mirrored from their counterpart in the 6000 range of channels? The reason I ask is that they both look like they are HD.

I've also wanted to know what the difference is between these two sets of channels?

 

[maximo]

I'm thinking about switching and would be really disappointed if DCHD looked really bad. My comcast HD channels are really amazing.

 

[navychop]

"...what the difference is between these two sets of channels?..."

They are the same. The upper level of numbers is "remapped" to the lower set, so you can just press in the channel numbers you are accustomed to.

 

[riffjim4069]

I'm recording World Cup soccer on my 622, so I flipped over to WRC-DT (U.S. Senior Open), channel 6361, and I see the MPEG-4 1080i channels are still having trouble. Examples: the picture looks marginally ok (very soft) while the players are standing stationary on the green, however the grass is blurry while the camera is following them walking on the green; there are trailing images (ghost images) of the ball as it is being putted on the green; less video stutter, but background images are completely out of focus during action scenes...even while players are merely walking on the green.

Washington HD LIL continues to disappoint IMO.

 

[MikeD-C05]

I'm recording World Cup soccer on my 622, so I flipped over to WRC-DT (U.S. Senior Open), channel 6361, and I see the MPEG-4 1080i channels are still having trouble. Examples: the picture looks marginally ok (very soft) while the players are standing stationary on the green, however the grass is blurry while the camera is following them walking on the green; there are trailing images (ghost images) of the ball as it is being putted on the green; less video stutter, but background images are completely out of focus during action scenes...even while players are merely walking on the green.

Washington HD LIL continues to disappoint IMO.

Send all picture quality complaints to : dishquality@echostar.com