Very confused about HD!

[petard]

Ok, well i have a HDTV that is capable of 1080i and want to get a HD reciever for it.
I was wondering if the H10 is a good reciever. I want to my local cirtuitcity and played around with it, but still have some questions.

1) Does the OTA tuner in it support HD? Will I get my local channels in HD? I looked at the local channels at circuitcity and they were not HD. The salesperson also told me it doesn't recieve HD Broacasts???
2) Can I use the reciever, and not subscribe to any HD packages? I want to get this for the local channels, as im not really interested in the DirecTV channels currently offered.
3) When/If i choose to get DirecTV HD channels, is this reciever good for now and the future? I was reading posts around the board that said it doesn't support MPEG-4. Why does it need MPEG-4 and does it really support or not support it? If it doesn't, can a software update fix it, or does it have hardware decoding?
4) For OTA HD broadcasts, do I need one of those super expensive HD antennas, or will any antenna work fine
5) At the store, there was this wimpy little antenna attatched to it. I dont know what this is for. I read around somewhere that it has a RF remote and this is for the RF remote? Is this true?

Thankyou!

 

[lou_do]

Ok, well i have a HDTV that is capable of 1080i and want to get a HD reciever for it.
I was wondering if the H10 is a good reciever. I want to my local cirtuitcity and played around with it, but still have some questions.
1) Does the OTA tuner in it support HD? Will I get my local channels in HD? I looked at the local channels at circuitcity and they were not HD. The salesperson also told me it doesn't recieve HD Broacasts???

The OTA tuner in the H10 does support HD, if you have it hooked to a good enough TV antenna to receive the signal. Most locals are transmitting HD signals, but much of their program is digital but 4 x 3 format programing with vertical bars on the left and right, to create the 16 x 9 screen. When it comes to prime time there is much more in HD, 16 x 9 format. Check here and put in your zip code to see what channels broadcast digital and HD, in your area. http://www.titantv.com

2) Can I use the reciever, and not subscribe to any HD packages? I want to get this for the local channels, as im not really interested in the DirecTV channels currently offered.

I am not sure on the H10, I used to have an older E8 and you could use it, for OTA HD, without subscribing to any D* package.

3) When/If i choose to get DirecTV HD channels, is this reciever good for now and the future? I was reading posts around the board that said it doesn't support MPEG-4. Why does it need MPEG-4 and does it really support or not support it? If it doesn't, can a software update fix it, or does it have hardware decoding?

MPEG-4 is the new format that D* is going to use for HD broadcasts. They are saying that when it is time for the change out in your area they will replace your receiver with the needed MPEG4 one. Different areas are scheduled in a timetable for change over.

4) For OTA HD broadcasts, do I need one of those super expensive HD antennas, or will any antenna work fine.

That all depends on how far you are from the transmitter. Some people close to them can use rabbit ears and others need stronger antennas. I am about 45 miles from most of my locals and I have an antenna in my attic and get them fine. But there again it depends on signal strength and terrain. This web site helps you locate the transmitter site of your locals stations: http://antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx

5) At the store, there was this wimpy little antenna attatched to it. I dont know what this is for. I read around somewhere that it has a RF remote and this is for the RF remote? Is this true?

Not sure what you are talking about on that one.

 

[petard]

all the channels are 10-11 miles away. Would a normal antenna be fine?

 

[dodge]

h10

If channels are that close an indoor antenna such as the zenith silver sensor should do the trick, The little antenna is for the unf remote, Mpeg 4 refers to directv changing the compression of the video coming off hte satellite, If that receiver is subscribed to directv when mpeg 4 is implemented you should have no problem directv should change it out for a new one with a 1 year commitment.

 

[Jimbo]

petard,

The pevious responses are correct,
1) Does the OTA tuner in it support HD? Will I get my local channels in HD? I looked at the local channels at circuitcity and they were not HD. The salesperson also told me it doesn't recieve HD Broacasts???

Addl info, Don't go by what you see at CC or BB, the H-10 will receiver HD local sifgnals just fine, Usually CC and BB have a DVD loop that they show, although I have seen them hook up a cheapie antenna on Sundays to watch NFL in HD.

2) Can I use the reciever, and not subscribe to any HD packages? I want to get this for the local channels, as im not really interested in the DirecTV channels currently offered.

I am not sure on the H10, I used to have an older E8 and you could use it, for OTA HD, without subscribing to any D* package.

Yes you can use this unit to watch D* , without subbing to HD channels, you need a total choice package or better to get D* programming, but HD package is not required,
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NOT sure if you can use it for only OTA w/o a sub, they like to charge a $ 200. fee for not activating with in a month,
Someone correct this if I am wrong on this....
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5) I read around somewhere that it has a RF remote and this is for the RF remote? Is this true?

Does it have a RF remote ? YES and it works very nice after you get to know the buttons.
There is a setting you need to set up in order to make it RF.

Jimbo

 

[Digital Dude]

The H-10 has an ATSC tuner but no NTSC tuner so it will only receive HD OTA. The box won't tune OTA without AT LEAST seeing at least one DirecTV satellite. Whether or not it will receive OTA without a subscription is something that I don't know. I don't remember getting OTA before activating the box.

 

[petard]

well all that is great!
Now 2 questions still unanswers.
Can i use any old antenna? Whats the cheapest one i could ge that works?
and can anyone confirm i dont need an HD package to watch OTA hd?

 

[Jimbo]

petard,

Can i use any old antenna? Whats the cheapest one i could ge that works?

This answer depends on your situation, everyone is different. Some people do just fine with a $ 30. indoor antenna, others like myself need an outdoor antenna, kinda depends, I use my outdoor and can get my locals and turn the rotor and get another set of locals.

Regardless, in order to get HD signals, all you need is a UHF antenna, in 95 % of the cases
BTW, as mentioned already, the H 10 will not pick up VHF signals, for some reason they did not include the proper tuner. Go figure.

Outdoor antennas generally cost a bit more but are more accurate in picking up your signals, remember with digital, it's all or nothing, either great signal or none.

2) Can I use the reciever, and not subscribe to any HD packages? I want to get this for the local channels, as im not really interested in the DirecTV channels currently offered.

Yes you can use this unit to watch D* , without subbing to HD channels, you need a total choice package or better to get D* programming, but HD package is not required


If you are trying to get OTA signals with the H 10, yes you can, but I do not know about it without a sub to a D* package, I think you need a sub of some kind or they will bill you for not activating service.

If you are looking for JUST OTA w/o any D* service I would look into strictly an OTA receiver.


Jimbo

 

[petard]

hmm there is fox channel 9 vhf and 9.1 uhf. are they the same thing, I want this mainly for 24, which is on Fox.
its like this also for: NBC, CBS, ABC, and PBS.
do they show the same things or different things?
could a software update allow it vhf?

 

[Jimbo]

hmm there is fox channel 9 vhf and 9.1 uhf. are they the same thing, I want this mainly for 24, which is on Fox.
its like this also for: NBC, CBS, ABC, and PBS.
do they show the same things or different things?
could a software update allow it vhf?

petard,
The .1,.2,and .3 portions of the channel are what is called multicasting,
This is where you will find your HD signal.
1 of them will be HD, usually .1,
Some channels will use .2 or .3 for a weather channel, and others for whatever they want.
Sonetimes it's for traffic, music, or a full screen (16x9) stretched version of the analog signal.

all depends on the station

Jimbo

 

[Ricknau]

Quote:

"and can anyone confirm i dont need an HD package to watch OTA hd? "

I installed my Directv system myself. Before I made the phone call to activate it (or subscribe to HD) I scanned for and viewed our local DTV stations. It was mid-day so there was no HD being transmitted but I'd bet my system that the HD would have worked had HD been transmitted.

 

[ArtWIS]

petard,

Can i use any old antenna? Whats the cheapest one i could ge that works?

This answer depends on your situation, everyone is different. Some people do just fine with a $ 30. indoor antenna, others like myself need an outdoor antenna, kinda depends, I use my outdoor and can get my locals and turn the rotor and get another set of locals.

Regardless, in order to get HD signals, all you need is a UHF antenna, in 95 % of the cases
BTW, as mentioned already, the H 10 will not pick up VHF signals, for some reason they did not include the proper tuner. Go figure.

Outdoor antennas generally cost a bit more but are more accurate in picking up your signals, remember with digital, it's all or nothing, either great signal or none.

2) Can I use the reciever, and not subscribe to any HD packages? I want to get this for the local channels, as im not really interested in the DirecTV channels currently offered.

Yes you can use this unit to watch D* , without subbing to HD channels, you need a total choice package or better to get D* programming, but HD package is not required


If you are trying to get OTA signals with the H 10, yes you can, but I do not know about it without a sub to a D* package, I think you need a sub of some kind or they will bill you for not activating service.

If you are looking for JUST OTA w/o any D* service I would look into strictly an OTA receiver.


Jimbo

The H10 will handle VHF HD signals if you have a VHF antenna. My huge Winegard (on a 40 foot tower) is UHF/VHF and picks up and works fine on my local Fox HD station which is 56 miles away and broadcasts on VHF. I get a 85%+ signal. All the rest of my locals are also 56 miles away and I get 100% signal on all of them. I think in most locations all HD is on UHF. I have heard that our Fox station will be moving to UHF sometime in the furture. If your fairly close to your HD stations an indoor antenna should work just get one that works both UHF and VHF if that's what you need. You can check your local stations for UHF or VHF by going to antenna .org (that's probably not the exact url but someone will most likely pop in and give the exact url.

I'm nearly 100% sure you need at least the basic Total Choice programming to get OTA HD on the H10. You can go to Walmart and they have a HD OTA tuner for about $200. From posts on the forums I've seen it seems to work OK. There must be other tuners out there also. Check Valueelectronics by clicking the banner at the top of the page. They can also answer all the questions you've asked.

Good luck with your HDTV! HDTV is awesome and I wish I'd have bought one a long time ago.

 

[Plywodstatebum]

Just get a activated Voom box on ebay for 50 bucks if you just want OTA.

 

[Kentstater72]

I'll sell you my Voom box. After I get my D* installed this Saturday that is.

Also your antenna does not need to be a special "digital" unit. If your present antenna is picking up the analog, there is a good chance it will pick up the digital signal, in HD where available.

 

[petard]

So it does support vhf? good, because if .1 is the HD version, and .1 is VHF, that wouldnt be good because i want my HD 24 (the show). And an indoor antenna would be fine? they are only 10-11 miles away (i checked on antennaweb org[add a . between antennaweb and org]). If its not fine, could i put one in my attic?

all i have is xx and xx.1

EDIT: nevermind, i pressed digital stations only, and all there was was xx.1, and they were all UHF, thats also a relief

 

[Jimbo]

The H-10 will pick up all HD signals, they are all digital, (.1, .2 ect.)
If you have a channel that comes in on the VHF side, still digital, it should pick it up provided you are using a VHF antenna.
However, it will not pick up a VHF analog signal.

Also you CAN get OTA HD without having D*'s HD package.

Jimbo