Hdtv

[ShaneLinder]

Forgive my ignorance on this. What will happen to the GloryStar system next year when all the broadcasters have to start broadcasting in HDTV? If I buy an HDTV, how will that work with GloryStar?

 

[Mr Tony]

That only affects OTA channels, not satellite/cable. The FCC says the OTA channels in a market (CBS, NBC, ABC, FOX, ETC) have to go digital come Feb 09. They DO NOT have to be High Definition. Many channels right now probably wont be HD ever . Lots of channels arent even digital yet (mainly low powered stations)

anywho...back to satellite. If you get a HDTV the receivers will work fine. You can set it up so the Glorystar (or any other programs) channels fill the screen.

I have a HDTV and its set up as such
-my OTA channels if in HD they fill the screen. If they are SD they also fill the screen. The only time it looks weird is if a channel is in HD but the commercials aren't. Then you get the black bars on the side
-My Pansat 9200 FTA box is both HD & SD. It works the same as the OTA. HD channels are in HD and SD are in SD and fill the screen

Since you have a SD box (Standard Definition) it will fill the screen just fine on the HDTV

Mike Kohl posted a good article on the transition...here is a snippet. The rest can be found at his site global-cm.net

Almost a decade ago, it was decided that our television stations needed to switch from analog transmission to digital. Until the last year or so, progress has been very slow due to the chicken and the egg syndrome. Broadcasters have been reluctant to spend the money needed to upgrade their facilities to digital until a sufficient number of consumers possessed digital televisions. Mandates have been given setting the date for all full-powered broadcast stations to turn off their analog signals by February 18, 2009. TV stations in the largest television markets (big cities) were forced by earlier deadlines to have major network affiliates transmitting digital signals. Smaller market stations slowly followed, with all stations required to turn off their analog transmitters by the February 2009 deadline.

What does all of this mean to the average consumer? Customers of IPTV, cable television, or satellite services DirecTV or DISH Network should see little or no effect. Their television provider will take care of any necessary technical issues in getting new digital signals, so the customers simply do nothing. Those using over-the-air television signals will be directly affected, however. Once analog channels are shut off, existing analog-only tuners will pick nothing off the air, unless an appropriate digital converter is connected to those sets. As of early 2007, all newly produced television sets were mandated to include a digital tuner. One area of confusion has been with monitors. They do not include a TV tuner, and many less than scrupulous merchandisers have in the past sold "HDTV compatible" monitors that will process a digital signal, but only if that digital signal is first picked up by a satellite, cable or off air digital tuner and then patched to the monitor. The Federal Communications Commission has clamped down on merchants that do not fully disclose this situation, after many complaints from consumers that did not know they would need another box to get those digital signals.

 

[elder]

I have an LCD HDTV and it was OK with Sky Angel except that on the Hallmark Channel in particular some slow changes like head nodding showed up a bit strange. This may be an LCD didplay problem, but I only seemed to notice it on Hallmark. My OTA HDTV experience has been good and bad, here is my experience as expressed in an e-mail to CBS:

There is considerable hype on network TV about the transformation to DTV. The gist of the hype is that one only needs a TV set with a DTV receiver or a simple converter box. It goes on to say the government will provide two $40 discount coupons for the converter boxes. Now the truth is that UHF is not as propagation friendly as VHF. UHF signals tend to follow a straight line path rather than following the contours of the earth. Also tall buildings, mountains and other obstructions block UHF signals. What this means is that many of your customers will not be able to receive your DTV signal, especially if they live in the mountains or extreme rural areas.

I will give you my personal experience as an example. Since I am a retired engineer (BSEE) I decided to take the challenge to see what is available for off-the-air viewing. Most of your customers will not be as persistent as I. First I went to antennaweb.org and it didn't show anything for my address. You might have someone try some remote addresses to check this out. Undaunted by the negative I proceeded on to purchase a couple of hundred dollars worth of UHF antennae and an amplifier by Antennas Direct. The bottom line is that I can receive digital signals (though most show no bars on the signal strength) for the other networks but nothing for CBS. Normally I watch WSPA Spartanburg, SC for CBS analog programming, but that azimuth or no amount of antenna rotation or repositioning will bring in a digital signal. The antenna used is an amplifed Antenna Direct 91XG Uni-Directional Antenna their highest gain UHF antenna. So it appears that CBS will fall out of my viewing ability when analog TV becomes history. I have contacted the affiliate but have received no info from them as to whether any radiation pattern changes or additional sites are being contemplated. However, this is not just about me I predict there will be many that are disenfranchised by the mandated move to UHF.

 

[Mr Tony]

elder
Not all stations will stay UHF when they drop analog. Some channels will go back to their "normal" channel slot

Where I live (Minneapolis) the NBC & Fox are going back to their VHF spots once the DTV conversion is complete

 

[elder]

Iceberg, thanks maybe there is light at the end of the tunnel after all. I sure like the HDTV, which our locals all have. Our ABC affiliate has both HDTV and SD on their digital broadcast.

 

[Mr Tony]

elder

It seems like a bunch of the VHF Hi (7-13) stations will go back to that channel number with the DT signal once the transition is complete. Since its on Channel 7 they should go back there. I have a document at home that lists the channels and where they will be once the transition is complete. Let me check on that :0

 

[Mr Tony]

found the file and indeed after the analog sunset, the digital channel for channel 7 WILL be going back to 7

 

[elder]

found the file and indeed after the analog sunset, the digital channel for channel 7 WILL be going back to 7

That's good news for me! Thanks for checking.

 

[ShaneLinder]

This is a bit off topic, but somewhat related. Some of the GloryStar channels have low-powered UHF channels. I am assuming those will have to go digital next year too. Will that cause some of them to go off the air?

 

[Wescopc]

Many of the low powered stations will stay the same as now. But the only requirement for those who change is to go digital NOT HDTV. So no change for Glorystar.
Bob

 

[elder]

The full foliage of 40 or 50 trees in the path has played havoc with my OTA HDTV. Counting down to Glorystar!

 

[skottey]

Forgive my ignorance on this. What will happen to the GloryStar system next year when all the broadcasters have to start broadcasting in HDTV? If I buy an HDTV, how will that work with GloryStar?

There is no mandate on broadcasting in HDTV in the world of OTA. It is a mandate on digital, not necessarily HDTV.