# It's TODAY! Are you ready? (2.8M homes are not)



## Stuart Sweet

Of course, the people here are really on top of the NTSC shutdown, but since you're all so well-prepared, have you taken the time to help prepare your friends, neighbors and family? 

I have neighbors who rely on OTA. I plan to be available on June12 to help them rescan and use their converter boxes. 

I know some cable companies are shutting down analog cable on June 12. Their customers will have to get set-top boxes. I know some people in that position. 

If you have planned recordings through your DVR for Friday, June 12 on an OTA channel, are you prepared with a backup plan?


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## pfp

I'm actually not as ready as I thouhgt I was. I currently have a UHF only antenna and I discovered yesterday that two channels I care about will be in the VHF band.


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## kenva

pfp said:


> I'm actually not as ready as I thouhgt I was. I currently have a UHF only antenna and I discovered yesterday that two channels I care about will be in the VHF band.


I'm in a very similar situation. I've been wondering for a while how many people out there think they are ready for the switch and are not aware that many digital channels are changing as well.


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## Mike Bertelson

Of Course. 

Mike


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## n3ntj

Stuart Sweet said:


> Of course, the people here are really on top of the NTSC shutdown, but since you're all so well-prepared, have you taken the time to help prepare your friends, neighbors and family?
> 
> I have neighbors who rely on OTA. I plan to be available on June12 to help them rescan and use their converter boxes.
> 
> I know some cable companies are shutting down analog cable on June 12. Their customers will have to get set-top boxes. I know some people in that position.
> 
> If you have planned recordings through your DVR for Friday, June 12 on an OTA channel, are you prepared with a backup plan?


Ready for what? :lol:


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## ChrisPC

I've got a nice big VHF/UHF antenna on my roof, and have been getting great signal strength for years. Only one station has been giving me trouble, and that one's switching to VHF.

Until about a year ago, I worked at an electronics store. I'm extremely glad I don't work there anymore!


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## inkahauts

I have found it interesting that KCAL 9 in LA will be slowly decreasing the signal strength of their analogue broadcast between the 1st and 12th, while leaving their current digital channel 43 at full power.. then on the 12th, they will be moving their digital signal to 9... Its interesting because they are slowly decreasing the signal rather than just flipping the switch.... I know it will be all kinds of fun to rescan.. and I wonder if Directv will have any issues... I kind of want to be tuned in to an analogue station when they flip it off.. I am curios if they just flip it, or if they will have a count down or something... I'd have a clock on screen at all times for the last 3 days, with a message saying rescan after the clock expires...


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## samhevener

Channel 3 in Cleveland is having problems installing it's antenna for their new UHF digital assignment. They may not be ready on June 12th. If that is the case, they will still have to broadcast their digital channel on channel 2. Channel 2 is the worse channel for digital broadcasting because of all the manmade noise on 50 mc that keeps many viewers from receiving their station.


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## dodge boy

samhevener said:


> Channel 3 in Cleveland is having problems installing it's antenna for their new UHF digital assignment. They may not be ready on June 12th. If that is the case, they will still have to broadcast their digital channel on channel 2. Channel 2 is the worse channel for digital broadcasting because of all the manmade noise on 50 mc that keeps many viewers from receiving their station.


Here in the Youngstown-Warren area I am hoping Channel 3.1 and 3.2's signal strenght gets a boost, along with Channel 19.1, also I Record alot of stuff off of 43.2 (THIS) with my AM21....

Oh, did I mention I am ready?


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## ARKDTVfan

I'm ready for the DTV reminders to get off my screen!!!!!!!!!!


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## ziggy29

Yep. Been ready for a while. I'm a D* customer with locals anyway, but I also have the OTA solution ready for a year, just in case I get tired of paying for TV. Got the 91XG and YA-1713 at the ready and all is well. I actually watch my locals OTA most of the time anyway.

Looking forward to just getting this over and done with. And it looks like it's really going to happen this time.


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## Jim5506

All of our Big 4 networks did the change over on 2/17/09 except NBC. If people here didn't notice, they were not paying attention.


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## ibglowin

Have had great OTA HD reception on all locals for almost 5 years. Now with the final switch 2 of our locals are switching back to their old analog station frequency (7 & 13) with their digital signal.....  

Not happy to say the least. I am 45 miles from the towers and have great line of sight but now I have to see if I can pull in High VHF with a UHF only Antenna (Channel Master 4228). They say 13 is quite possible but maybe not 7.

I just ordered a Winegard UHF/VHF pre-amp so I will see if I can pull them in on the big switch day. If I can't, I guess I will be ordering a Ginormous UHF/VHF Combo antenna to go along with the pre-amp.


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## mhayes70

I've been ready for over a year.. I am also ready for those messages at the bottom of the screen to go away.


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## ziggy29

ibglowin said:


> Have had great OTA HD reception on all locals for almost 5 years. Now with the final switch 2 of our locals are switching back to their old analog station frequency (7 & 13) with their digital signal.....


We have only one station in the Austin market that is changing its frequency; the FOX affiliate is moving from 56 to 7. So in reality, that would seem to be the only one that might be a problem -- not so much for my ability to receive the signal (I already have a YA-1713 pointed in the right direction to prepare for it), but because I have a D* HR20 which doesn't allow full channel scanning, so who knows how long until I'll be able to get Fox OTA until they fix their channel mappings.

Everything else is already in its post-transition frequency, so nothing else should be a concern.


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## msmith

Is it midnight between June 11 and 12, or midnight between June 12 and 13?


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## Stuart Sweet

I believe the final cutoff is midnight, June 12, 2009. However, I think stations may cut over anytime on June 12 if that is the day they said they would cut off. I've been trying to nail this down as well, and I think there may be some statement to the FCC as to what time of day they expect to cut over on a station-by-station basis.


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## kocuba

samhevener said:


> Channel 3 in Cleveland is having problems installing it's antenna for their new UHF digital assignment. They may not be ready on June 12th. If that is the case, they will still have to broadcast their digital channel on channel 2. Channel 2 is the worse channel for digital broadcasting because of all the manmade noise on 50 mc that keeps many viewers from receiving their station.


They were just finishing up the new tower that the antenna will be sitting on last week. Hopefully they have begun mounting the new antenna during this week. But not certain as I have not driven past it this week. But it seems like they are on track to be ready for June 12th as WVIZ will also be sitting on that tower and they just finish some FCC filings that allow them to start at full power when ever they are ready. So hopefully Channel 3 is not far behind.



dodge boy said:


> Here in the Youngstown-Warren area I am hoping Channel 3.1 and 3.2's signal strenght gets a boost, along with Channel 19.1, also I Record alot of stuff off of 43.2 (THIS) with my AM21....
> 
> Oh, did I mention I am ready?


Not sure if Channel 3's new tower will help you in that situation, but I wish you luck.

BTW I am also ready as are my parents and in-laws and my camper.


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## n3ntj

Stuart Sweet said:


> I believe the final cutoff is midnight, June 12, 2009....


So, does that mean 12:00 AM 12 June (that is, one minute after 11:59pm 11 June?) I might just have the stay up late that night.


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## Stewart Vernon

I would swear one of my local stations has been running a crawl stating they would do their cutover in the afternoon on the 12th.

I understand why they wouldn't do it late at night... so I'm guessing many stations will try to find a time of the day that is the least disruptive to their local viewers in case there are any problems from the technical side.


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## Tom Robertson

For the earlier cutover date, the local stations were mostly going at the noon hour, if I recall correctly. 

I haven't heard when they currently plan.

Cheers,
Tom


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## Stuart Sweet

Here's what I've dug up.

The last possible moment for full-power analog broadcasting seems to be 11:59:59.999 on Friday, June, 12. In other words, when Friday turns to Saturday, analog will be history.

The attached spreadsheet comes from DTV.gov and seems to show the rough times of day when the switchover will occur for each particular station.

So, my suggestion would be to have a backup plan for every recording scheduled for 6/12/09 on an OTA station* and do a final scan on 6/13 that should take into account all final frequency assignments.

*Some locals provided by cable and satellite get to the provider by way of an OTA antenna. The provider will also have to do a rescan that day, so it might not be a bad idea to have a backup plan for recordings on locals via satellite.


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## scooper

It all depends on the station - they had to file Form 387's at the FCC about their plans.

For the record - the official end of analog is 2359 local time June 12, 2009. Stations can start shutdown at 0000 June 12,2009 unless they have had to earlier.

For me - I know of at least 2 stations that are shutting down analog at 1300, and one of those will commence nightlight operation until the first week of July. Most of the rest of the stations that have to move / shutdown analog will be doing so around midnight.

Your results will vary, depending on your location and stations.


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## Pete K.

I know in the Atlanta TV DMA, WSB-TV, Channel 2 will end its analog service at 12:30 p.m., June 12, during their 1 hour Noon newscast. Other Atlanta stations that have not already ditched analog will do so at 11:59 p.m. on June 12.


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## scooper

Stuart Sweet said:


> Here's what I've dug up.
> 
> The last possible moment for analog broadcasting seems to be 11:59:59.999 on Friday, June, 12. In other words, when Friday turns to Saturday, analog will be history.
> 
> The attached spreadsheet comes from DTV.gov and seems to show the rough times of day when the switchover will occur for each particular station.
> 
> So, my suggestion would be to have a backup plan for every recording scheduled for 6/12/09 on an OTA station* and do a final scan on 6/13 that should take into account all final frequency assignments.
> 
> *Some locals provided by cable and satellite get to the provider by way of an OTA antenna. The provider will also have to do a rescan that day, so it might not be a bad idea to have a backup plan for recordings on locals via satellite.


Did you put that spreadsheet together, because that took ALOT of work to put together...


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## Stuart Sweet

Oh, most certainly I did not. The fine people at the FCC did that for me. They did a fabulous job in my opinion.


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## phrelin

Apparently we're ready to go all the way back to the dark ages.

At least we had one OTA station available, a bankrupt independent Spanish language station from a repeater that was slated to go digital and still appears on the Google mapping site. But the station being "repeated" is reportedly scheduled to go dark according to a Multichannel News article which links to a PDF (of a spreadsheet list that has the most important column on page 2).

Such is rural living....


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## dodge boy

kocuba said:


> Not sure if Channel 3's new tower will help you in that situation, but I wish you luck.


Thanks, 5, 8, 17 45, 49, 43, 61, 67, from Cleveland come in crystal clear, no 3 or 19....


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## inkahauts

Looks like 10 channels will be moving here in la... Should be interesting to see how it all goes down..


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## inkahauts

Also looks like stations are going at kinds of different times, so everyone will be rescanning all day, but I'd say do a scan on Saturday to be sure after all the dust has settled...


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## samhevener

kocuba said:


> They were just finishing up the new tower that the antenna will be sitting on last week. Hopefully they have begun mounting the new antenna during this week. But not certain as I have not driven past it this week. But it seems like they are on track to be ready for June 12th as WVIZ will also be sitting on that tower and they just finish some FCC filings that allow them to start at full power when ever they are ready. So hopefully Channel 3 is not far behind.
> 
> One of the their retired engineers told me the winds have been too high to install the antenna. The new antenna will allow them to operate on UHF channel 17. That should increase the range and inprove the quality over broadcasting on noisy VHF channel 2.


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## hdtvfan0001

Is it me, or does this remind you of another technology deadline we've seen before (Y2K)?

I'm sure they'll be some hiccups, but generally nationwide....much ado about nothing.


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## carl6

hdtvfan0001 said:


> Is it me, or does this remind you of another technology deadline we've seen before (Y2K)?
> 
> I'm sure they'll be some hiccups, but generally nationwide....much ado about nothing.


And, let's not forget...

It's only TV.


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## hdtvfan0001

carl6 said:


> And, let's not forget...
> 
> It's only TV.


Yes...let's not...

:feelbette:rolling:


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## 4HiMarks

I am ready, as I have E*, but my GF's mother is OTA. I have set her up with converter boxes, but I won't be able to get over to help her re-scan until Sunday, since we have a wedding to go to on Sat. If one of "her" programs is on a channel that moves and she can't figure out how to re-scan herself, she'll be SOL for a day.


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## n3ntj

Stuart Sweet said:


> Here's what I've dug up.
> 
> The last possible moment for full-power analog broadcasting seems to be 11:59:59.999 on Friday, June, 12. In other words, when Friday turns to Saturday, analog will be history.
> 
> The attached spreadsheet comes from DTV.gov and seems to show the rough times of day when the switchover will occur for each particular station.
> 
> So, my suggestion would be to have a backup plan for every recording scheduled for 6/12/09 on an OTA station* and do a final scan on 6/13 that should take into account all final frequency assignments.
> 
> *Some locals provided by cable and satellite get to the provider by way of an OTA antenna. The provider will also have to do a rescan that day, so it might not be a bad idea to have a backup plan for recordings on locals via satellite.


Thanks for the list, Stuart.


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## scooper

inkahauts said:


> Looks like 10 channels will be moving here in la... Should be interesting to see how it all goes down..


Welcome to my world.... about 70% of my stations are moving / shutting down analog next friday - and no real coordination on times with each other...


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## sum_random_dork

phrelin said:


> Apparently we're ready to go all the way back to the dark ages.
> 
> At least we had one OTA station available, a bankrupt independent Spanish language station from a repeater that was slated to go digital and still appears on the Google mapping site. But the station being "repeated" is reportedly scheduled to go dark according to a Multichannel News article which links to a PDF (of a spreadsheet list that has the most important column on page 2).
> 
> Such is rural living....


 If you're talking about KTNC (Spanish station from Concord/Mt Diablo). It was reported they were sold and will be staying on the air and joining a new Spanish network being formed. http://sfppc.blogspot.com/2009/05/ktnc-to-remain-spanish-joins-new.html Yet another channel I'd never watch, but I know there is a market for them.


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## jerry downing

ARKDTVfan said:


> I'm ready for the DTV reminders to get off my screen!!!!!!!!!!


What I don't understand is that I am getting these reminders on what is already a digital transmission.


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## Stewart Vernon

jerry downing said:


> What I don't understand is that I am getting these reminders on what is already a digital transmission.


I had that thought too... but then many stations are not only flipping off their analog but also changing digital frequencies too... so even people already watching digital broadcasts might be confused post-transition if they don't rescan their channels to pick up the new/different frequencies.


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## Tom Robertson

And many stations are hoping people who know people who haven't switched will help them prepare.


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## scooper

Stewart Vernon said:


> I had that thought too... but then many stations are not only flipping off their analog but also changing digital frequencies too... so even people already watching digital broadcasts might be confused post-transition if they don't rescan their channels to pick up the new/different frequencies.


Lordy - especially for us !!

WRAL - nightlight on analog 5, moving digital from 53 to 48
WTVD - shutting off analog, moving DTV from 52 to 11
WNCN - shutting off analog, moving DTV from 55 to 17
WLFL - analog off, moving DTV from 57 to 27
WRDC - analog off, moving DTV from 27 to 28
And then there are the WUNC stations...

plus the stations that just have to power off analog because they are already on final DTV

next Friday / Saturday is going to be so much fun in the Raleigh DMA....

Rescan early and often !!!


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## Stewart Vernon

Yeah, it would be hard to imagine more change than in our DMA... I'm hoping nothing is good on at the time they make the full switch of all our locals so I can wait until it's over and rescan once and be done.

I'm kind of afraid, though, that they will all switch at different times during the day and keep me busy.


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## Raymie

We might be the largest market with so many VHF locals it ain't even funny.

People will need high VHF for PBS, Fox, and NBC here (8-10-12). They'll need it down in Tucson for ABC (9).


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## HIPAR

Your time is coming brother TV sinners. Are you ready? Repent now before it's too late! :eek2:

--- CHAS


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## bidger

HIPAR said:


> Your time is coming brother TV sinners. Are you ready? Repent now before it's too late! :eek2:
> 
> --- CHAS


^Appropriate for a Sunday.

One last thing to do, cash in my converter coupon. I'm only doing it for back-up in case I do need to connect it to a legacy device. Otherwise the digital switch-over has been a bit of a disappointment for me. I've been doing over-the-air in earnest for 2 years now after having an outdoor antenna installed, powered indoor just didn't cut it. I received NBC and PBS back then. No additions until a week ago when the local ABC added 2 digital channels. I originally thought they would be ABC and CBS in HD, but no such luck. The CBS is a sub-channel so it's 480i 4:3. Still waiting to find out if I'll pick the local FOX digital feed since I'm on a fringe area. Stopped by their office to see if they'd activate the final feed yet and was told not yet, but I'm not sure the person knew what they were talking about.

I was hoping that all the Network feeds would be available in HD over-the-air in my area, but no way.


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## hdtvfan0001

If folks aren't ready for this after years of publicizing it, subsidizing converter units, pushing back the conversion target date, and now daily repeating the warnings of the date...then personally.....no sympathy here.


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## sum_random_dork

I think the thing that will cause the confusion is the channels that are changing their Digital freq June 12th. In the SF DMA KGO (ABC) is changing back to channel 7, that could confuse people that go to bed Thus night watching ABC and wake up the next day and it's no longer there. In the Sacramento DMA you have KTXL (Fox), KXTV (ABC), and KIVE (PBS) all moving to a new frequency, plus KCRA (NBC) won't be at full power until Sept. I know they keep saying "rescan, rescan" but I would imaigne some people won't have a clue how to do it or have since thrown out the directions to their TV/box. I know my parents wouldn't have a clue how to do it and they are fairly technical.


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## scooper

sum_random_dork said:


> I think the thing that will cause the confusion is the channels that are changing their Digital freq June 12th. In the SF DMA KGO (ABC) is changing back to channel 7, that could confuse people that go to bed Thus night watching ABC and wake up the next day and it's no longer there. In the Sacramento DMA you have KTXL (Fox), KXTV (ABC), and KIVE (PBS) all moving to a new frequency, plus KCRA (NBC) won't be at full power until Sept. I know they keep saying "rescan, rescan" but I would imaigne some people won't have a clue how to do it or have since thrown out the directions to their TV/box. I know my parents wouldn't have a clue how to do it and they are fairly technical.


You might be surprised what your parents can do. My DMA has more than 5 stations turning off/ moving DTV channels on the 12th - rescan early and often...


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## Lee L

I am well ready. In fact, out of 6 TVs we only have one old school tube TV anymore, in the guest room and it is hooked up to a DirecTV SD box, so it is fine also.

My main question will be is DirecTV ready as they will be responsible for updating the mappings for the channels that change frequencies here so I can keep watching on my HR20s.


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## ziggy29

Lee L said:


> My main question will be is DirecTV ready as they will be responsible for updating the mappings for the channels that change frequencies here so I can keep watching on my HR20s.


Yeah -- the OTA implementation stinks on these boxes, IMO. Fortunately we only have one station changing frequency, and we also get that station in HD from satellite, so it would be a minor inconvenience in our case. People in markets where a lot of stations are changing frequencies could be screwed for a while, especially if they don't have locals through D* (or they do but they aren't HD).


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## sum_random_dork

I still think the issue is those channels changing frequencies, with some going back to VHF that could be the issue for people that haven't purchased a "high VHF" antenna. Their favorite channels could be gone from view but they won't understand why/what happened. It's my understanding that digital signals don't travel as well as analog signals for those of us in the west with many hills/mtns in the way between transmission and reception. I guess we'lll see what really happens by next monday when people are back at work and complaining about what they missed/can't see anymore.


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## scooper

I think this going to be such a non-event (think Y2K)...


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## Milkman

What digital TV transition?


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## Stuart Sweet

I think there will be a lot of talk and a lot of confusion on Friday, but by Monday, it will all be over.


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## TBlazer07

I though the FCC was trying to "clear out" the VHF analog TV freqs to be able to sell them. I never understood why some digital channels are remaining on VHF. In NY it's only ABC-7 staying on VHF.


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## TBlazer07

I can see the crawls now:

"IF YOU CANNOT SEE THIS STATION YOU NEED A CONVERTER BOX." :lol:



Stuart Sweet said:


> I think there will be a lot of talk and a lot of confusion on Friday, but by Monday, it will all be over.


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## hobie346

TBlazer07 said:


> I can see the crawls now:
> 
> "IF YOU CANNOT SEE THIS STATION YOU NEED A CONVERTER BOX." :lol:


More so with the local newspapers coming to the aid of local viewers that can't find their favorite programs with help on how to "tune" their new converter boxes. :lol:


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## jamieh1

Ive been ready since 2004. Thats when I got my first OTA HD Digital set top box. Ive had Directv HD for several years now. Im just glad that all the commercials will finally end.

I hope Directv is ready, but I have the feeling that the stations changing channel #s will cause havoc with channels not showing up.


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## ziggy29

TBlazer07 said:


> I though the FCC was trying to "clear out" the VHF analog TV freqs to be able to sell them.


The frequencies they are "clearing out" are on UHF -- channels 52-69.


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## pmalve

Does this mean that after Friday we will get the hd signal downcoverted or will we get our hd pbs channels now for those that haven't had them added yet. And will we get the hd version of the significantly viewed channels from neighboring dma's now. It would be nice for me cause we get a couple of NYC channels here in Ct and they show different football games sometimes and being laid off I cant justify buying sunday ticket this year.


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## Athlon646464

It's funny I saw this post today.

Just this morning while having breakfast (in Boston area), I saw a furniture ad on channel 4 for Bernie & Phyls furnture. They are giving away a free HDTV with the purchase of furniture.

One of the owner's sons in the TV ad said it was a perfect time to buy furniture this week, because after Friday *"You won't need your rabbit ears anymore!"*.

Get a free new HDTV and everything will work just fine!!

I hope there isn't too much confusion out there........ :grin:


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## DiscDoctor2000

Is there a designated time of day that stations have to clear their analog broadcasts? I've read that stations are switching over as late as 11:59PM on the 12th.


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## Tom Robertson

DiscDoctor2000 said:


> Is there a designated time of day that stations have to clear their analog broadcasts? I've read that stations are switching over as late as 11:59PM on the 12th.


By federal law, no. They have the entire 24 hour period to switch.

Some local broadcasting associations have worked together to voluntarily agree to a time when most of the stations will switch in unison.

Cheers,
Tom


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## Rob-NovA

hobie346 said:


> More so with the local newspapers coming to the aid of local viewers that can't find their favorite programs with help on how to "tune" their new converter boxes. :lol:


Newspapers? What are those?


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## Lee L

Tom Robertson said:


> By federal law, no. They have the entire 24 hour period to switch.
> 
> Some local broadcasting associations have worked together to voluntarily agree to a time when most of the stations will switch in unison.
> 
> Cheers,
> Tom


I figured that might be the case. One of the local stations has been running crawls with 12:00 noon on the 12th as the time, but recently has started saying 1:00 PM. I guess they figured they should at least run their news before any remapping confusion starts, plus it gives them the whole hour (the news runs from 12-1) to hammer the coming change into people's heads.


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## Santi360HD

I have direct TV HD so Im pretty well set..however I still have Time Warner Road Runner internet.. Surrendered my Top Set box when i got satellite and just kept the high speed internet, naturally I have the coax line split so 1 feeds the modem the other feeds the coax on my HD, you know incase of heavy rainfall takes out my dish signal

*Anyone know if Time Warner is sunsetting analog? *
and if so do the HD's that you can get via coax without a box (locals only) will that fall victim as well?

I do get some HD channels via the coax *no box needed *like for CBS/NBC/ABC/FOX/ My Network/ CW / PBS all 1080i & some 720p..and poor 480p versions of the spanish stations Univision/Telemundo/Telefutura / some of the other PBS UHF stations in NYC are also resonating a 480p signal. Time Warner NYC is airing Telemundo Channel 47 WNJU in HD 1080, however this needs a box and isnt available with coax straight thru

If Time Warner sunsets regular analog, are these HD's also going away also or is it only confined to analog snowy analog channels which one would never see them as snowy with digital boxes they may pixelate from time to time but would nvr look snowy.

anyone, class anyone
Bueller??
Bueller??


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## FogCutter

Rob-NovA said:


> Newspapers? What are those?


Newspapers are the wrappers used to serve authentic fish and chips.


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## lombar

So I was curious (and I am sure it is somewhere else in the forums but figured I would ask). If I have OTA already set up on my DirecTV reciever will I need to do another antenna setup or should I be good to go?


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## joshjr

samhevener said:


> Channel 3 in Cleveland is having problems installing it's antenna for their new UHF digital assignment. They may not be ready on June 12th. If that is the case, they will still have to broadcast their digital channel on channel 2. Channel 2 is the worse channel for digital broadcasting because of all the manmade noise on 50 mc that keeps many viewers from receiving their station.


KSNF wont be ready here either. They will be broadcasting on12-2 for an additional week but that being said I was able to talk the GM into approving me a HD waiver today cause I been waiting for months already. Decided to try since they are not gonna make the cut off.


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## DF Wavelength

Here in Denver, KMGH 7 and KUSA 9 switched their signals back in March.
When they did their switch, they each shut off their analog carrier. They also moved their digital carriers back to 7 & 9 in the VHF band, and went full power.

Using using DTVPal converters, I haven't had a headend that couldn't receive the channels. Regardless of antenna type (some UHF only), quality, peak....

I have had problems at a few high-def headends. Using Blonder Tongue DHDP converters, the VHF channels wouldn't lock using a UHF antenna, simply not enough signal. 

I am amazed at the input range on many of these digital tuners. 
Low signal levels still result in great pictures.

Conversely, I've been modulating KMGH 7 back onto analog 7 in a few headends, with no picture quality issues.


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## TBlazer07

Yes, you will have to redo OTA setupls because some will/may change frequencies.


lombar said:


> So I was curious (and I am sure it is somewhere else in the forums but figured I would ask). If I have OTA already set up on my DirecTV reciever will I need to do another antenna setup or should I be good to go?


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## ziggy29

lombar said:


> So I was curious (and I am sure it is somewhere else in the forums but figured I would ask). If I have OTA already set up on my DirecTV reciever will I need to do another antenna setup or should I be good to go?


If it's a D* receiver like an HR20 or an AM21, you'll be at the mercy of the channel guide data they provide and where they think the signal can be found. If they don't change the channel mappings for any stations that are changing their digital frequency, you'll get the 771 error until they update it. Sometimes that's taken a LONG, LONG time. Hopefully these transitions are so well known that they'll be processed quickly, though.


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## flyingtigerfan

Guess I am ready. All of our stations are keeping their current digital assignments except for good ol' WIS, headed back to Channel 10 from 41. I have a UHF only antenna (CM 4228) and it seems to do okay with WOLO (who does digital on VHF 8) so I'm hopeful it will work for WIS on 10 as well. The antenna is in the attic, where I would like it to stay, so here's hoping.

My concern is that my HR-20 won't know that WIS has moved from 41 to 10, and we'll have to figure that one out.


----------



## DustoMan

I was born ready. Come Friday, out local ABC channel will switch to a higher frequency and start using a more powerful transmitter. Should be nice.


----------



## joshjr

flyingtigerfan said:


> Guess I am ready. All of our stations are keeping their current digital assignments except for good ol' WIS, headed back to Channel 10 from 41. I have a UHF only antenna (CM 4228) and it seems to do okay with WOLO (who does digital on VHF 8) so I'm hopeful it will work for WIS on 10 as well. The antenna is in the attic, where I would like it to stay, so here's hoping.
> 
> My concern is that my HR-20 won't know that WIS has moved from 41 to 10, and we'll have to figure that one out.


If its not correct then call Tribune and they can correct it fast. They did for me on the last cut off. It was fixed within 24 hours.


----------



## jerry downing

Rob-NovA said:


> Newspapers? What are those?


It's the only industry where an entire days production lines the bottoms of bird cages the following day. :lol:


----------



## xmguy

Since the ONLY DTV station I can get (local PBS station) is already Digital. I'm covered. My locals , ABC, NBC, CBS, etc are already available on my 101 DirecTV feed.


----------



## tnsprin

I've already had to promised a half dozen neighbors to help them rescan their TV's/Converter boxes. In areas that are almost completely dependent on OTA rather than satellite/Cable its going to be a disaster. At least here the other neighbors don't use OTA.


----------



## Tom Robertson

tnsprin said:


> I've already had to promise a half dozen neighbors to help them rescan their TV's/Converter boxes. In areas that area almost completely dependent on OTA rather than satellite/Cable its going to be a disaster.


Only if the channels will need rescanning. Salt Lake won't need to for instance.

And then there are others that will need to rescan several times that day and then again in upcoming months.

Hopefully those areas will have more PSAs on how to rescan.

Cheers,
Tom


----------



## tnsprin

Tom Robertson said:


> Only if the channels will need rescanning. Salt Lake won't need to for instance.
> 
> And then there are others that will need to rescan several times that day and then again in upcoming months.
> 
> Hopefully those areas will have more PSAs on how to rescan.
> 
> Cheers,
> Tom


in NY DMA most of the networks (major and minor) are changing real broadcast channels from their temporary DTV assignments.


----------



## joshjr

I dont think I will need to assist anyone here. DirecTV does not have locals here so hardly anyone has it, Dish has locals and so does Cable somost here and all my neighbors have one or the other. 

Call me crazy but I could not handle Chiefs & Rams another season so D* was the only choice for me. I have one station left to go digital and when they do I already have the guide showing where they will be going to so I should be good to go.


----------



## R0am3r

In the Syracuse DMA we have a very interesting issue starting Tuesday 6-9-09. WSTM will cease transmitting their digital signal on channel 54 and then return to the air on Friday via channel 24. This affects 3.1 WSTM-HD, 3.2 CW6, and 3.3 Accu Weather. The local news folks recommend that viewers watch the analog signal until Friday and then rescan for the new channel. A couple of questions remain:

1. What happens to the Directv and Dish Network signals? Will we get the National NBC channel until Friday?

2. Will Directv and Dish Network be ready for the new channel allocation on Friday?


----------



## joshjr

R0am3r said:


> In the Syracuse DMA we have a very interesting issue starting Tuesday 6-9-09. WSTM will cease transmitting their digital signal on channel 54 and then return to the air on Friday via channel 24. This affects 3.1 WSTM-HD, 3.2 CW6, and 3.3 Accu Weather. The local news folks recommend that viewers watch the analog signal until Friday and then rescan for the new channel. A couple of questions remain:
> 
> 1. What happens to the Directv and Dish Network signals? Will we get the National NBC channel until Friday?
> 
> 2. Will Directv and Dish Network be ready for the new channel allocation on Friday?


I highly doubt that D* will have the DNS stations open for days. One option is what they did here recently. One of the towers came down in a storm so Dish offered another near by market in its place.

Are you really gonna miss anything you normally watch on those channels in that time frame other then maybe news? If you really want to know then call and ask them.


----------



## Tom Robertson

R0am3r said:


> In the Syracuse DMA we have a very interesting issue starting Tuesday 6-9-09. WSTM will cease transmitting their digital signal on channel 54 and then return to the air on Friday via channel 24. This affects 3.1 WSTM-HD, 3.2 CW6, and 3.3 Accu Weather. The local news folks recommend that viewers watch the analog signal until Friday and then rescan for the new channel. A couple of questions remain:
> 
> 1. What happens to the Directv and Dish Network signals? Will we get the National NBC channel until Friday?
> 
> 2. Will Directv and Dish Network be ready for the new channel allocation on Friday?


Since this is a planned transition, I sure hope the station made arrangements with all the sat. and cable providers.

Good luck!
Tom


----------



## R0am3r

joshjr said:


> Are you really gonna miss anything you normally watch on those channels in that time frame other then maybe news? If you really want to know then call and ask them.


Yes, I will miss game 6 (and potentially game 7) of the Penguins vs Red Wings game(s). Maybe I will take your advice and roll the dice with a call to D*. I can't wait for the CSR advice... (i.e. did I reboot it?).


----------



## machavez00

I'm seeing new OTA channels showing up in the EPG of my HR20-700.


----------



## joshjr

R0am3r said:


> Yes, I will miss game 6 (and potentially game 7) of the Penguins vs Red Wings game(s). Maybe I will take your advice and roll the dice with a call to D*. I can't wait for the CSR advice... (i.e. did I reboot it?).


Sorry, I'm not a NHL fan so I really can not relate. Instead of calling DirecTV why dont you call the affiliate and ask them? They would be the better one to ask.


----------



## Dan9

I just hope I can pick up KAIT DT this Friday, cause I only live 15 miles away from their transmitter right now, and still can't pick up the digital channel?


----------



## audiomaster

I have a good book to read Saturday. I'll get up Sunday and see what works and where. In Charlotte, I get signals from about 3-4 directions! Am probably going to need a second antenna to my 8 bowtie with preamp and a combiner. Maybe with luck I can unsubscribe from Dish locals! Or if Charlie doesn't get this DVR thing worked out with Folsom, maybe I'll un-subscribe them all!


----------



## Jim5506

Per Charlie Ergen on the Charlie Chat tonight:

Beginning Saturday, if you have one or more of the big 4 networks missing from your DMA, or that you cannot receive, via Dish, you can contact All American Direct either at 1-800-9790512 or at www.mydistantnetworks.com and you may qualify for distant networks through AAD.

The law for digitals is different than it was for analog.

They also said AAD expects to have Distants in HD available out of LA and Chicago in the near future.


----------



## waynebtx

I was ready the fist time.


----------



## Larry Kenney

For those in the San Francisco Bay Area, Sacramento-Stockton and Monterey-Salinas in California, the following stations will be changing channels early Saturday morning:
2 - KTVU - from 56 to 44 
4 - KRON - from 57 to 38 
6 - KVIE - from 53 to 9 
7 - KGO - from 24 to 7 
8 - KSBW - from 10 to 8 
10 - KXTV - from 61 to 10 
40 - KTXL - from 55 to 40 
42 - KTNC - from 63 to 14 
64 - KTFK - from 62 to 26

Rescan often to make sure you get 'em all. A few will be off the air for a few hours because they have to make some physical changes to their waveguide connecting the right antenna to the right transmitter, and they can't do that until the analog transmitters are shut down. All should be back on the air by early Saturday morning.

Larry
SF


----------



## SayWhat?

Remember when Bobby stepped out of the shower and Pam realized the whole previous season had just been a bad dream? I'm hoping we'll all wake up Saturday morning and this will all have been a bad dream, no digital, all analog just as it has always been.


As far as I know, I only have one station changing from U to V where there are with their analog slot. I don't know about the two adjacent DMAs or if any of them will change or boost their digital signal. I can't just rescan. I have to rotate, scan, rotate, scan, rotate, scan, then go back and try to weed out any duplicates. I know I have two different stations on Ch 3 and two on Ch 7 right now, so I'll have to see if any of them move.


----------



## midwave

Also in the Youngstown-Warren, OH area....
Except for the $99 Special Buy Curtis-brand VCR/DVD Recorder on sale at Kmart this week, I have almost seen no recording devices with built-in ATSC tuners. I have my Dish DVR's and my old VCR, VCR/DVD Home Theater, and a DVD Recorder, but NONE of them have a built-in ATSC tuner, because of their age, and I would rather have the tuner built into the device than separate, mainly because of the many inconveniences, including having to leave the box on while away and you can't set them to change channels. I love that new Cleveland 43.2 ThisTV channel, and wanted to record some of the movies for later viewing, cause the station is too distant for Dish to carry.
I also have to questions about Dish, now that I left DirecTV over not having a lower-tier package...
(1) how come I have to pay to get WPIX-11 NY (CW) when we have a local CW that is part of our NBC station? Plus we get 2 also-not-offered channels from our ABC affiliate (digital-only) that is the MyNetworkTV station and an all-local-weather digital channel.
(2) What ever happened to that bill a few years ago that was going to allow frequently-viewed distant locals to be aired on Dish/DirecTV, such as WUAB-43 Cleveland, and all the other Cleveland stations?


----------



## sarhaynes

We are already digital here in Charlottesville. Everyone switched on the original date with the exception of the local NBC affiliate which was FORCED to keep their analog station running the "How to switch" continuous loop with local news at 6:00PM. Even that was cut off last month.


----------



## Lee L

sarhaynes said:


> We are already digital here in Charlottesville. Everyone switched on the original date with the exception of the local NBC affiliate which was FORCED to keep their analog station running the "How to switch" continuous loop with local news at 6:00PM. Even that was cut off last month.


Hopefully they send a bill to the FCC or their congressman for power. It would depend on the output power and frequency, but at the least it is thousands of $$$$$ per month to run a transmitter.


----------



## Colorado Guy

Good Lord! You sound as old as me! I'm 73 and grew up listening to the radio.


----------



## ziggy29

Lee L said:


> Hopefully they send a bill to the FCC or their congressman for power. It would depend on the output power and frequency, but at the least it is thousands of $$$$$ per month to run a transmitter.


For UHF it's quite a hit. A full-power one-megawatt UHF station running 24/7 consumes 720,000 kilowatt-hours a month. Even at 10 cents per kWh that's a bill of $72,000 a month. That's a good salary plus benefits for what, at least 10 people?


----------



## xmguy

I'm so far out in the boonies that OTA TV isn't really an option. If I knew people in my area. I'd offer to help. But most have basic analog cable if nothing else.


----------



## sarhaynes

Lee L said:


> Hopefully they send a bill to the FCC or their congressman for power. It would depend on the output power and frequency, but at the least it is thousands of $$$$$ per month to run a transmitter.


They claimed in the paper that it would cost them at least $10,000/month to keep the analog transmitter powered.


----------



## xmguy

SayWhat? said:


> _*Remember when Bobby stepped out of the shower and Pam realized the whole previous season had just been a bad dream? I'm hoping we'll all wake up Saturday morning and this will all have been a bad dream, no digital, all analog just as it has always been.*
> _
> 
> As far as I know, I only have one station changing from U to V where there are with their analog slot. I don't know about the two adjacent DMAs or if any of them will change or boost their digital signal. I can't just rescan. I have to rotate, scan, rotate, scan, rotate, scan, then go back and try to weed out any duplicates. I know I have two different stations on Ch 3 and two on Ch 7 right now, so I'll have to see if any of them move.


Dallas! :allthumbs I agree. On analog I got from time to time distant analog tv stations. That was fun. Digital is a bore as far as getting signal from far away.


----------



## n3ntj

Yeah, TV DX-ing will be a bit different from now on with no analog.


----------



## MercurialIN

I thought I was ready for the transition now I'm not so sure.

I have Directv HD DVRs and an attic antenna (I know nothing about what kind of antenna or any particulars, it was professionally installed about seven years ago) I get OTA channels thru the HR20 & HR23 and the locally offered sub channels. Will I lose those on the 12th? 

Thanks for any help. Guess I don't understand this as much as I'd thought.


----------



## slowmoe

For sell very cheap TV Analog Signal Meter. Get em while they last $5.95 ea. Call (123)555-4444 for details. Heck buy five & I will throw in a pair of rabbit ears. !rolling!rolling!rolling


----------



## T_N_T

I cashed in one of my coupons and got a magnavox box and hooked it up to my tv via composite. I hooked up my discone antenna to it and the box is picking up everything except WNPT(PBS, which I can get but have to adjust the antenna but then lose WTVF) but that will change because they are going from UHF to VHF on Friday, I also have a hard time picking up WPGD(but they have a really weak signal and that is not going to change because they have already turned off analog). Almost all of my stations except for WSMV(which has an SD feed on .3) and IONTV are letterboxed because there is no alternative to the HD feed.


----------



## HDTVFreak07

I've been ready since forever! It's about TIME!


----------



## HDTVFreak07

MercurialIN said:


> I thought I was ready for the transition now I'm not so sure.
> 
> I have Directv HD DVRs and an attic antenna (I know nothing about what kind of antenna or any particulars, it was professionally installed about seven years ago) I get OTA channels thru the HR20 & HR23 and the locally offered sub channels. Will I lose those on the 12th?
> 
> Thanks for any help. Guess I don't understand this as much as I'd thought.


NO! You will not lose them because you're receiving them already. You're completely digital.


----------



## ziggy29

MercurialIN said:


> I thought I was ready for the transition now I'm not so sure.
> 
> I have Directv HD DVRs and an attic antenna (I know nothing about what kind of antenna or any particulars, it was professionally installed about seven years ago) I get OTA channels thru the HR20 & HR23 and the locally offered sub channels. Will I lose those on the 12th?


No. The HR20 (and I assume the AM21 with the HR23) already have ATSC tuners and only handle the signals that are already digital. You're ready to go.


----------



## aa9vi

ziggy29 said:


> No. The HR20 (and I assume the AM21 with the HR23) already have ATSC tuners and only handle the signals that are already digital. You're ready to go.


sort of... it all depends if Zap2it/Tribune Media gets the channel mappings correct in time for the transition since the AM21 and HR20 rely on this data. The H20 does not. How many want to bet there are foul ups with the mappings at least 3 weeks from now?


----------



## ziggy29

aa9vi said:


> sort of... it all depends if Zap2it/Tribune Media gets the channel mappings correct in time for the transition since the AM21 and HR20 rely on this data. The H20 does not. How many want to bet there are foul ups with the mappings at least 3 weeks from now?


Well, yeah -- I suspect that's true. I was speaking more in terms of being "DTV-ready," not so much when the brain-dead implementation of OTA in these boxes will be corrected and updated.

I have only one station (local FOX) which is changing its signal frequency. I'm not expecting it to be working OTA on Saturday. I also get it through D*, so hopefully that "Plan B" would work until the channel guide issues are fixed.


----------



## tnsprin

ziggy29 said:


> No. The HR20 (and I assume the AM21 with the HR23) already have ATSC tuners and only handle the signals that are already digital. You're ready to go.


He probably is ready to go but:

1) He may will have to rescan for the channels new frequency. I haven't seen the number nationwide but for many markets some or even all channels will change there DTV (ATSC) channels again.

2) if his antenna is UHF only and any of his stations are going to change to VHF than he is not ready. He will need to add a vhf or a vhf/uhf antenna.


----------



## RAD

ziggy29 said:


> I have only one station (local FOX) which is changing its signal frequency. I'm not expecting it to be working OTA on Saturday. I also get it through D*, so hopefully that "Plan B" would work until the channel guide issues are fixed.


Hopefully DirecTV does get the LRF changed when KTBC-DT moves back to ch 7 since I agree that the AM21/HR20's probably won't be working right away with the new assignment.

Also, does anyone know if the channel mapping changes for the AM21/HR20's can be done on the fly or does a new software release need to be pushed to the STB's?


----------



## Stuart Sweet

Channel mapping changes can be done on the fly, but you may need to redo antenna setup on the DVR to actually implement them.


----------



## RAD

Thanks


----------



## Lee L

aa9vi said:


> sort of... it all depends if Zap2it/Tribune Media gets the channel mappings correct in time for the transition since the AM21 and HR20 rely on this data. The H20 does not. How many want to bet there are foul ups with the mappings at least 3 weeks from now?


You are probably right and while I was against the original delay from February at the time it might end up working to our advantage. While the Congress and FCC were not thinking about this, at least the networks are mostly reruns and they are the channels that are going to be fouled up the most by this remapping. If they had done it in Feb, during the middle of the season it would have really driven calls, even though some of the nets were doing reruns then, there was still a fair amount of new content. Hey, bureaucrats get something right for once, inadvertently.


----------



## tvjay

sarhaynes said:


> They claimed in the paper that it would cost them at least $10,000/month to keep the analog transmitter powered.


I can say that my boss (Chief Engineer at local CBS station) will be happy to stop paying the $7500/month electric bill for our analog transmitter. Add in our change from UHF to VHF and our total electric bill will go from approx. $13,000/month down to approx. $3000/month.


----------



## scooper

tnsprin said:


> He probably is ready to go but:
> 
> 1) He may will have to rescan for the channels new frequency. I haven't seen the number nationwide but for many markets some or even all channels will change there DTV (ATSC) channels again.
> 
> 2) if his antenna is UHF only and any of his stations are going to change to VHF than he is not ready. He will need to add a vhf or a vhf/uhf antenna.


Depends - if it is UPPER VHF that you're trying to get - you may find that your UHF antenna MAY (not guaranteed, of course) work. At least - I'm going to check it first - if it doesn't, I'll hook my VHF antenna back up. Watching the channel 11 analog off the UHF antenna at least gives me hope that it will work. I'll grant the reception wasn't as nice as on the VHF, but it may be possible.


----------



## tvjay

n3ntj said:


> Yeah, TV DX-ing will be a bit different from now on with no analog.


Well if you have a signal meter and a good tuner it should be pretty easy. The other day I was watching several stations from Cleveland (95 miles line of sight) like they were my local stations. I was using a Channel Master 4228 with a 7777 30db amp connected to my Sony Bravia.


----------



## DaveC56

After June 12th, will there be any digital broadcast on the VHF low band (i.e., channels 2-6)? Sorry, if this question has already been asked.

Thanks,
Dave


----------



## Tom Robertson

DaveC56 said:


> After June 12th, will there be any digital broadcast on the VHF low band (i.e., channels 2-6)? Sorry, if this question has already been asked.
> 
> Thanks,
> Dave


Yes, several stations are keeping their VHF low channels. Only channels 52 and up are being sold.

Cheers,
Tom


----------



## flyingtigerfan

I'm actually a little concerned. I'd like to DVR the Penguins-Red Wings game on NBC on Friday night. My local NBC affiliate is keeping their analog assignment on Channel 10, so at 12:30 pm they are moving from Ch 41 digital to Ch 10 digital using a temporary transmitter. They won't go full power digital on 10 for about another 7-10 days while they get the analog crap out of the way.

I have a UHF only antenna in my attic. It reliably receives all Columbia stations including our ABC affiliate broadcasting in digital on VHF 8.

So....will I be able to watch the Penguins on Friday night? Will my CM 4228 work well enough to get VHF 10 as well as 8 (probably). Will the temporary digital signal on 10 be strong enough? AAAAAND....will they have updated the HR-20 data to get Channel 10 on Channel 10 instead of 41? Effective at what time?

Hmmmmm. Stay tuned.

At least I won't have to worry about watching 1/4 of the game in SD because of the crawls about the digital transition. And then someone at WIS forgetting to switch the feed back to HD for about 15 minutes after the crawl was done. And then 2 more crawls.

Let Go Pens.


----------



## scooper

flyingtigerfan said:


> I'm actually a little concerned. I'd like to DVR the Penguins-Red Wings game on NBC on Friday night. My local NBC affiliate is keeping their analog assignment on Channel 10, so at 12:30 pm they are moving from Ch 41 digital to Ch 10 digital using a temporary transmitter. They won't go full power digital on 10 for about another 7-10 days while they get the analog crap out of the way.
> 
> I have a UHF only antenna in my attic. It reliably receives all Columbia stations including our ABC affiliate broadcasting in digital on VHF 8.
> 
> So....will I be able to watch the Penguins on Friday night? Will my CM 4228 work well enough to get VHF 10 as well as 8 (probably). Will the temporary digital signal on 10 be strong enough? AAAAAND....will they have updated the HR-20 data to get Channel 10 on Channel 10 instead of 41? Effective at what time?
> 
> Hmmmmm. Stay tuned.
> 
> At least I won't have to worry about watching 1/4 of the game in SD because of the crawls about the digital transition. And then someone at WIS forgetting to switch the feed back to HD for about 15 minutes after the crawl was done. And then 2 more crawls.
> 
> Let Go Pens.


Try this - see if you can receive ANALOG channel 10 over your 4228 (you should, especially if you're close enough).
If you can, then your only issue is signal strength from digital 10.


----------



## Jim5506

There are a couple of dozen stations in the USA which will jump back to channels 2-6 on June 12.


----------



## MercurialIN

HDTVFreak07 said:


> NO! You will not lose them because you're receiving them already. You're completely digital.


Thank you for the reply. I appreciate it.


----------



## MercurialIN

ziggy29 said:


> No. The HR20 (and I assume the AM21 with the HR23) already have ATSC tuners and only handle the signals that are already digital. You're ready to go.


Thank you for the reply. Good to know.


----------



## Retro

Maybe this Digital TV campaign should have began with:

I Want my DTV as in...........


----------



## VARTV

ibglowin said:


> Have had great OTA HD reception on all locals for almost 5 years. Now with the final switch 2 of our locals are switching back to their old analog station frequency (7 & 13) with their digital signal.....
> 
> Not happy to say the least. I am 45 miles from the towers and have great line of sight but now I have to see if I can pull in High VHF with a UHF only Antenna (Channel Master 4228). They say 13 is quite possible but maybe not 7.
> 
> I just ordered a Winegard UHF/VHF pre-amp so I will see if I can pull them in on the big switch day. If I can't, I guess I will be ordering a Ginormous UHF/VHF Combo antenna to go along with the pre-amp.


Virginia Beach/Norfolk will have three full power stations in the VHF band (13, 9, 7). The station going back to its analog frequency (13) did an overnight test where they were broadcasting on their current UHF (41) and switched their analog signal on 13 to digital. Digital 13 readings were just a smidge lower than UHF41. I was quite surprised... I'm 25 miles out using a CM4228 in my attic (2-story house)...


----------



## VARTV

ziggy29 said:


> We have only one station in the Austin market that is changing its frequency; the FOX affiliate is moving from 56 to 7. So in reality, that would seem to be the only one that might be a problem -- not so much for my ability to receive the signal (I already have a YA-1713 pointed in the right direction to prepare for it), but because I have a D* HR20 which doesn't allow full channel scanning, so who knows how long until I'll be able to get Fox OTA until they fix their channel mappings.
> 
> Everything else is already in its post-transition frequency, so nothing else should be a concern.


We have that problem now in the Virginia Beach/Norfolk market. A station went back to their analog frequency on 4/30. Haven't been able to receive OTA thru the DirecTV STB from them since...


----------



## RobertE

Digital conversions websites and phone numbers:

http://www.directv.com/localsolution DIRECTV's digital transition help website

http://www.dtv.gov/ FCC digital transition help website or 1-888-225-5322 FCC contact number

Contact number for coupons: Get coupon number 1-888-DTV-2009 (1-888-388-2009)

http://www.dtv2009.gov/ apply for coupons online, status of coupons ordered, and information on when coupons are mailed

http://www.ntia.doc.gov/dtvcoupon/ informational websites on the digital transition and coupons

https://www.ntiadtv.gov/cecb_list.cfm list of coupon eligible converter boxes

https://www.dtv2009.gov/VendorSearch.aspx locate a converter box dealer near you

www.antennaweb.org for off-air antenna information, digital stations near you, and pointing compass directions

http://www.fcc.gov/dtv/markets/report2.html and http://www.fcc.gov/dtv/markets/ - show the changes in broadcaster coverage (area maps) from analog to digital. The digital coverage area is smaller than the analog area.

http://www.dtvtransition.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=51&Itemid=94 a database to help viewers determine whether or not their existing TV set is analog or digital on the Coalition's Web site

http://www.dtv.gov/stationlist.htm list of station analog turn off date and digital transition dates by DMA including who has and hasn't transitioned before June 12th.

You local broadcaster's websites will have additional information


----------



## flyingtigerfan

scooper said:


> Try this - see if you can receive ANALOG channel 10 over your 4228 (you should, especially if you're close enough).
> If you can, then your only issue is signal strength from digital 10.


Well now that's an excellent point. I do receive analog 10. It's snowy, but not ridiculously so.


----------



## Mark Holtz

According to SacBee:


> Here are the times local (Sacramento) TV stations are planning to switch to digital-only broadcasting on Friday.
> 
> KCRA (Channel 3): 9 a.m.
> KTXL (Channel 40): 9 a.m.
> KQCA (Channel 58): 9 a.m.
> KOVR (Channel 13): Around 5:25 p.m
> CW 31 (Channel 31): Around 6 p.m.
> KXTV (Channel 10): 11:59:59 p.m.


----------



## rhipps

VARTV said:


> Virginia Beach/Norfolk will have three full power stations in the VHF band (13, 9, 7). The station going back to its analog frequency (13) did an overnight test where they were broadcasting on their current UHF (41) and switched their analog signal on 13 to digital. Digital 13 readings were just a smidge lower than UHF41. I was quite surprised... I'm 25 miles out using a CM4228 in my attic (2-story house)...


Do you know if/when the Norfolk/Virginia Beach sub-channels (3-1, 10-1, 13-1, 15-1 etc) are going to be carried by D*?

Thanks in advance,

Bob H.
Toano, VA


----------



## RobertE

rhipps said:


> Do you know if/when the Norfolk/Virginia Beach sub-channels (3-1, 10-1, 13-1, 15-1 etc) are going to be carried by D*?
> 
> Thanks in advance,
> 
> Bob H.
> Toano, VA


Most likely not for a very long time, if ever.


----------



## ziggy29

rhipps said:


> Do you know if/when the Norfolk/Virginia Beach sub-channels (3-1, 10-1, 13-1, 15-1 etc) are going to be carried by D*?


The "-1" channels are the main channels, so if D* carries locals in your market, when you see 3, 10, 13 and 15 on D*, you're really getting 3-1, 10-1, 13-1 and 15-1. As for any of the other subchannels (X-2, X-3, et cetera), I wouldn't hold my breath. If there are some of those that you want to receive, you'll probably need to rely on OTA.


----------



## Mertzen

COnverted a few people the past few weeks from OTA to D*.


----------



## eckertman

ziggy29 said:


> Well, yeah -- I suspect that's true. I was speaking more in terms of being "DTV-ready," not so much when the brain-dead implementation of OTA in these boxes will be corrected and updated.
> 
> I have only one station (local FOX) which is changing its signal frequency. I'm not expecting it to be working OTA on Saturday. I also get it through D*, so hopefully that "Plan B" would work until the channel guide issues are fixed.





Tom Robertson said:


> Yes, several stations are keeping their VHF low channels. Only channels 52 and up are being sold.
> 
> Cheers,
> Tom


All of the major Chicago national network feed are on those channels, Except fox and mytv. Oh, and Hispanic.


----------



## ibooksrule

I am in De Soto which is part of the Kansas city DMA. We are between lawrence and kansas city. Right now i have a Channel Master CM4221 4-Bay right now sitting on a tripod on the ground in order to get past the house next door. 
I use to have the antenna on the back deck but i face almost directly into the house next door and had issues with everything but 5 and 4.

I get low signal from ABC 9 (about 73) on dish 722 and NBC 41 (64)

I really hope once they go fully digital on friday i will have a better signal once they go full strength.


----------



## SayWhat?

Should be interesting. We have one station that has been running promos saying they will shut down at midnight tonight and switch from U to V, but they haven't said if they will be off the air at all during the transition.


----------



## Tom Robertson

Nielsen's latest report shows 2.5% homes not ready (about 2.8M) and 1.3% of over 55 homes are not ready:  http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire...-still-unready-for-dtv-transition-on-june-12/

Cheers,
Tom


----------



## Stuart Sweet

Those numbers are well below the projected number of 3% that would have made the networks worry.


----------



## SayWhat?

I'm sure that Neilsen's guestimates are well below the actual figures. I also believe that a lot of people who thought they were ready will be in for a nasty surprise.


----------



## slowmoe

I say flip the switch & lets get this behind us. What ever happens with the ones not ready will take care of themselves. My money says its not granny & grandpa holding back, but rather the younger gang. What say you?


----------



## tvjay

Everyone I know is ready for the conversion, so I say bring it on. I know there will be problems and a lot is going to depend on where these people are located that have problems. My guess is that people in the middle of nowhere that have problems are going to have big problems as they are far away from the towers, not located near stores that have tuners or people who can help. People in the city are probably not going to have as many problems because they live in the city that has more resources around to get help if they need it.

As for me, I already have two HDTVs with built-in tuners, two off-air tuners in my DirecTV DVR and a standalone HDTV tuner, so I have five (5) total tuners. I probably have the same number of different antennas from standard rabbit ears to a big 8-bay UHF antenna.

I am however slightly sad that tonight will be the last time I ever use my old VCR. I have my good old VCR (analog) ready to record all of the big four shutoffs tonight.


----------



## Paul Secic

hdtvfan0001 said:


> Is it me, or does this remind you of another technology deadline we've seen before (Y2K)?
> 
> I'm sure they'll be some hiccups, but generally nationwide....much ado about nothing.


My cousin in Buffalo thinks this is hoax!


----------



## Pete K.

Your cousin will be staring at "snow" Friday.


----------



## ziggy29

Pete K. said:


> Your cousin will be staring at "snow" Friday.


They're used to that in Buffalo. Just not in June.


----------



## Paul Secic

phrelin said:


> Apparently we're ready to go all the way back to the dark ages.
> 
> At least we had one OTA station available, a bankrupt independent Spanish language station from a repeater that was slated to go digital and still appears on the Google mapping site. But the station being "repeated" is reportedly scheduled to go dark according to a Multichannel News article which links to a PDF (of a spreadsheet list that has the most important column on page 2).
> 
> Such is rural living....


That wouild be Pappas Broadcasting. Originally in 1964 this station aired some PBS show. Back then a local man owned CH: 42. When my parents visted my uncle in Concord I watched it. In those days UHF stations came on at 4 or 5PM. My how things have changed!


----------



## Scott in FL

Back in February there was a person posting "the switch will never happen, never. Just wait, you'll see..." 

I wonder where he is now.


----------



## n3ntj

I was just reading an article on cnn.com about the digital switch and couldn't believe my eyes..

"The agency (FCC) has enlisted the help of dozens of groups including volunteers from AmeriCorps, civil rights groups, and even *firefighters* to help people purchase and install their converter boxes and antennas."

So, now we're taking fire fighters out to show people how to hook up their converter boxes?


----------



## Stuart Sweet

Heaven forbid something should catch on fire tomorrow.


----------



## phrelin

We American's have our priorities.

They may be screwed up, but we have them.


----------



## pdh0490

i been ready for this since i heard about it its about time bye bye analog i hate analog it was never no good anyways


----------



## homeskillet

All of the Kansas City channels will cease analog at 9:00 AM on Friday, June 12th. They decided to do it all at the same time and early in the day to get people prepared before the weekend.


----------



## ibooksrule

will the power go up on those digital stations that are broadcasting high power analog and very low power digital now? 
Like KSHB here in kansas city our NBC station is broadcasting at 3450 kw on analog and only 450 for digital.
and last i knew KMBC was 316 kW (analog) and 85 kW (digital). 
Compare that to CBS broadcasting 1000 KW on digital.


----------



## Stewart Vernon

One of our local stations might not be ready... Ok, partially in jest here... but truth be told. We lost 17.1 HD OTA the other day... and they had to do some patchwork apparently to get an SD feed.

Will be interesting to see what happens tomorrow.


----------



## xmguy

I was watching a localish, analog TV station that was airing a infomercial and at 12:00:45 the station went to static. 60+ years of analog TV is history! RIP!


----------



## jrmichael

DirecTV's Memphis Channel 5 WMC-TV HD Local went dark when WMC shut off their analog signal at 12:01 am. WMC is one of two local Memphis stations that were also switching their digital channel at conversion time. Funny thing is D*'s SD version of WMC is still operating.


----------



## ChrisPC

jrmichael said:


> DirecTV's Memphis Channel 5 WMC-TV HD Local went dark when WMC shut off their analog signal at 12:01 am. WMC is one of two local Memphis stations that were also switching their digital channel at conversion time. Funny thing is D*'s SD version of WMC is still operating.


D* and E* get most of their locals over fiber optic, not OTA. They're going to keep their SD feeds for the forseeable future.

WTVF 5 and WNPT 8 in Nashville "flash-cut" to their VHF channels at 12:01 AM, too. It looks like D* already updated the channel listings for the HR-20. I updated mine, and all the VHF channels are coming in.


----------



## xmguy

jrmichael said:


> DirecTV's Memphis Channel 5 WMC-TV HD Local went dark when WMC shut off their analog signal at 12:01 am. WMC is one of two local Memphis stations that were also switching their digital channel at conversion time. Funny thing is D*'s SD version of WMC is still operating.


I've wondered if Nashville networks will now change to an 16:9 ratio?


----------



## Tim Petlock

Raymie said:


> We might be the largest market with so many VHF locals it ain't even funny.
> 
> People will need high VHF for PBS, Fox, and NBC here (8-10-12). They'll need it down in Tucson for ABC (9).


Huh. I knew PBS was going to remain VHF but not the others. Ah well, at least its high VHF.

It should be very interesting to see what's receivable from Tucson in our area when they're switched over at full power.


----------



## tvjay

When will our OTA channels that are changing frequencies be working again on DirecTV, any idea? My local ABC station is changing frequencies and currently it does not work (same station works on TV hooked to same antenna so I know it is a problem with my DVR).

I don't think the interruption via satellite was more then five minutes so props to DirecTV on that!


----------



## tvjay

ChrisPC said:


> D* and E* get most of their locals over fiber optic, not OTA.


Not completely accurate. In my market not one (including my station which is located in the same building as the receive site) is fed via fiber.


----------



## samhevener

As of 5:30AM EDT today all of the local Cleveland stations are still broadcasting analog. I'm sure during the day today they will start going dark one at a time. Channel 5 WEWS announced they would be going dark at 10AM EDT.


----------



## wilbur_the_goose

I just wonder why WPVI (ABC O&O) in Philly is going to VHF low (back to VHF channel 6). No way I'll get that with my current antenna.


----------



## ARKDTVfan

some stations obviously aren't 
http://www.fcc.gov/DA-09-1303A2.pdf


----------



## dodge boy

phrelin said:
 

> We American's have our priorities.
> 
> They may be screwed up, but we have them.


None as screwed up as mine....

I am ready to finally see those scrolls disapear....

Think we'll get new scrolls that say, "If you are seeing this you have successfully migrated to digital"? I hope not but you never know.... :lol:


----------



## dodge boy

Should we check zap to it to see if any channels moved?


----------



## GaryPotter

Don't expect any immediate changes from them. They're pretty wonky when it comes to updating their channel lists.


----------



## RobertE

samhevener said:


> As of 5:30AM EDT today all of the local Cleveland stations are still broadcasting analog. I'm sure during the day today they will start going dark one at a time. Channel 5 WEWS announced they would be going dark at 10AM EDT.


Since the big 4 have announce for weeks that they were switching at 10 am local, it's no surprise that they were still on at 5:30.


----------



## Scott in FL

Just listening to the news on the radio this morning, and heard that applications for digital converter coupons spiked during this past week. I guess this caught a few people by surprise!


----------



## msmith

wilbur_the_goose said:


> I just wonder why WPVI (ABC O&O) in Philly is going to VHF low (back to VHF channel 6). No way I'll get that with my current antenna.


By the way - WPVI is cutting over at 12:15pm. That's the only cutover time for Philly that I've been able to find.


----------



## msmith

More Philly info:
CBS 3 - 12:30pm
FOX 29 - they have a countdown that seems to indicate midnight
WHYY 12 - Noon


----------



## oldave

WMAZ in Macon made the switch at 1am... only a couple of Let's Play TV stations left on analog in central GA.


----------



## Stuart Sweet

What has surprised me so far in Los Angeles is that none of the major affiliates' web sites are highlighting that this is the day, none is saying exactly when they intend to cut over, nothing. All of them just have links to DTV.gov or DTVanswers. 

Keep in mind these are the owned-and-operated west coast flagships for ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox. KTLA, Tribune's flagship in the west, didn't have anything on their site either. 

I listened to the news this morning on the radio on KNX-AM, which is one of CBS Radio's Los Angeles stations, and there was a chuckle and a quick mention about "rabbit ears." 

I mean, I'm glad everyone expects it to go well. Maybe a "little" more information might be merited.


----------



## Yes616

Stuart Sweet said:


> What has surprised me so far in Los Angeles is that none of the major affiliates' web sites are highlighting that this is the day, none is saying exactly when they intend to cut over, nothing. All of them just have links to DTV.gov or DTVanswers.
> 
> Keep in mind these are the owned-and-operated west coast flagships for ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox. KTLA, Tribune's flagship in the west, didn't have anything on their site either.
> 
> I listened to the news this morning on the radio on KNX-AM, which is one of CBS Radio's Los Angeles stations, and there was a chuckle and a quick mention about "rabbit ears."
> 
> I mean, I'm glad everyone expects it to go well. Maybe a "little" more information might be merited.


I am guessing that each DMA will make the switch at an agreed time. The reason for this is that in some markets, like the one I am in, some stations are trading channels.

Example in NYC:
WPIX 11 is moving from 33 back to it's analog spot 11 and at the same time WCBS is going from channel 56 to 33. This is supposed to happen at 12:30PM EDT. It should be interesting for New York viewers watching channel 33 at exactly 12:30. 11 will become 2 right before their eyes without doing a thing.

I see that KTLA announced they will make the switch at 10:30PM PDT.

Other people here from different parts of the country are reporting different times as well. Anyone else notice that a channel assignment in their area is swapped like I mentioned above? Go to TV Fool and compare your current all channels to the post transition report.

I also wonder how fast that site gets updated as some people have transitioned already.


----------



## scooper

Stewart Vernon said:


> One of our local stations might not be ready... Ok, partially in jest here... but truth be told. We lost 17.1 HD OTA the other day... and they had to do some patchwork apparently to get an SD feed.
> 
> Will be interesting to see what happens tomorrow.


Looks like they got everything patched up last night - I feel for Russ...


----------



## Lee L

Stewart Vernon said:


> One of our local stations might not be ready... Ok, partially in jest here... but truth be told. We lost 17.1 HD OTA the other day... and they had to do some patchwork apparently to get an SD feed.
> 
> Will be interesting to see what happens tomorrow.


I thought they had gotten it up and running yesterday, but I just checked and I get nothing on 17.1 right now. All the info on their site still says 12:30 PM today so I wonder of lightning killed their transmitter and they just figured they were going to be junking it in 3 days anyway, so they will turn the new one on at 12:30?



ibooksrule said:


> will the power go up on those digital stations that are broadcasting high power analog and very low power digital now?
> Like KSHB here in kansas city our NBC station is broadcasting at 3450 kw on analog and only 450 for digital.
> and last i knew KMBC was 316 kW (analog) and 85 kW (digital).
> Compare that to CBS broadcasting 1000 KW on digital.


SOme will go up right away and some will need to change some more stuff regarding their old analog antennas before they can go to full power.



ChrisPC said:


> D* and E* get most of their locals over fiber optic, not OTA. They're going to keep their SD feeds for the forseeable future.
> 
> WTVF 5 and WNPT 8 in Nashville "flash-cut" to their VHF channels at 12:01 AM, too. It looks like D* already updated the channel listings for the HR-20. I updated mine, and all the VHF channels are coming in.


I thought most of the DirecTV HD was still done via antennas. I know when the NBC I was talking about earlier went out, the DirecTV locals went out also.



Yes616 said:


> I am guessing that each DMA will make the switch at an agreed time. The reason for this is that in some markets, like the one I am in, some stations are trading channels.
> 
> Example in NYC:
> WPIX 11 is moving from 33 back to it's analog spot 11 and at the same time WCBS is going from channel 56 to 33. This is supposed to happen at 12:30PM EDT. It should be interesting for New York viewers watching channel 33 at exactly 12:30. 11 will become 2 right before their eyes without doing a thing.
> 
> I see that KTLA announced they will make the switch at 10:30PM PDT.
> 
> Other people here from different parts of the country are reporting different times as well. Anyone else notice that a channel assignment in their area is swapped like I mentioned above? Go to TV Fool and compare your current all channels to the post transition report.
> 
> I also wonder how fast that site gets updated as some people have transitioned already.


I bet wit would be a pain if channels swaps are involved, but here, the stations are doing it at various times. I know at least one station here depends on another market station changing first, so that may be part of it.


----------



## SayWhat?

KFVS shut down at midnight. WPSD and WSIL are still running. Evansville 7 is still running, 14 is gone, 44 is running a "How To" video loop. Nashville 4 is showing a still screen of a letter saying they are gone. I can't find Nashville 2 or 5 anymore.


----------



## ciurca

I haven't watched an OTA analog signal in a very long time. Man they look like crap. So I've unhooked my OTA feed from my AM 21, and am waiting for the only analog channel in my market to go dark. I don't know why.


----------



## SayWhat?

> I haven't watched an OTA analog signal in a very long time. Man they look like crap.


I haven't noticed any difference. Digital doesn't look any better. It's OK with a good signal, but I think it's worse overall in that weaker signals pixelate and are unwatchable. Analog had some snow, but you could still watch it.


----------



## Zellio

OTA HD looks good. Too bad local station have crap.


----------



## ibooksrule

SayWhat? said:


> I haven't noticed any difference. Digital doesn't look any better. It's OK with a good signal, but I think it's worse overall in that weaker signals pixelate and are unwatchable. Analog had some snow, but you could still watch it.


I notice a huge difference. Try and pick up an analog station here they come and go and are snowy and hard to see whats going on. compare with a HD show is on in primetime analog vs digital oh my its like stone age compared to digital.

I will agree digital has its faults too I dont think digital covers as far as analog but everything has its draw backs.


----------



## ChrisPC

SayWhat? said:


> KFVS shut down at midnight. WPSD and WSIL are still running. Evansville 7 is still running, 14 is gone, 44 is running a "How To" video loop. Nashville 4 is showing a still screen of a letter saying they are gone. I can't find Nashville 2 or 5 anymore.


2 is still on here in Nashville, but skip is hitting it pretty hard. 5 has switched to digital. I can't wait until they turn 2 off, so I can see what the skip is!


----------



## xmguy

ibooksrule said:


> I notice a huge difference. Try and pick up an analog station here they come and go and are snowy and hard to see whats going on. compare with a HD show is on in primetime analog vs digital oh my its like stone age compared to digital.
> 
> I will agree digital has its faults too I dont think digital covers as far as analog but everything has its draw backs.


You are correct. Digital TV signals will NOT go as far as analog. But Digital IS much clearer.


----------



## msmith

So far, so bad. I've lost the digital signal on the two stations that went back to their VHF channel - 6 and 12 in Philadelphia. I was getting them at 70-90 on UHF, and now I'm just getting about 40. I'm using a Terk HDTV-A indoor amplified antenna.


----------



## ziggy29

msmith said:


> So far, so bad. I've lost the digital signal on the two stations that went back to their VHF channel - 6 and 12 in Philadelphia. I was getting them at 70-90 on UHF, and now I'm just getting about 40. I'm using a Terk HDTV-A indoor amplified antenna.


That begs a question: Is there any indoor antenna that's particularly suited to low VHF? There are still a few markets where there are going to be locals in low VHF -- Philly being the largest -- and it might be instructive to hear if any are particularly good with low VHF. Then again, maybe rabbit ears are rabbit ears...


----------



## pfp

Yes616 said:


> I am guessing that each DMA will make the switch at an agreed time. The reason for this is that in some markets, like the one I am in, some stations are trading channels.


*Phoenix, AZ*
The DTV transition happens in several phases on Friday:

KTVK (3)/KASW (61) - 12:01 AM, June 12
KNXV (15) - 12:01 AM, June 12
KSAZ (10)/KUTP (45) - 8:30 AM, June 12
KPNX (12) - 10:12 PM, June 12
KTVW (33) - 10:59 PM (Univision AZ), 10:29 PM (Telefutura AZ), June 12
KPHO (5) - 11:59 PM, June 12
KAZT-TV (7) - _Transition to digital completed on May 15_
KAET (8) - _Transition to digital completed on April 27th
KTAZ (39) - Transition to digital completed on February 17
KMOH (6), Kingman - Transition to digital completed on February 17_


----------



## bobcamp1

R0am3r said:


> In the Syracuse DMA we have a very interesting issue starting Tuesday 6-9-09. WSTM will cease transmitting their digital signal on channel 54 and then return to the air on Friday via channel 24. This affects 3.1 WSTM-HD, 3.2 CW6, and 3.3 Accu Weather. The local news folks recommend that viewers watch the analog signal until Friday and then rescan for the new channel. A couple of questions remain:
> 
> 1. What happens to the Directv and Dish Network signals? Will we get the National NBC channel until Friday?
> 
> 2. Will Directv and Dish Network be ready for the new channel allocation on Friday?


Well....

The switch for WSTM didn't go as planned. NBC is totally off the air today. They are going to turn analog back on tonight night for the hockey game.

For game 7 of the hockey game (if needed), they said they are exploring: 
- Somehow get it running by Sunday night
- Turn analog back on for three hours and hope the FCC doesn't fine them
- Take over one of the other stations to broadcast game 7. The same company also owns the WTVH (CBS affiliate), so maybe whatever is on CBS will get preempted for the game. Or maybe they can put a sub-channel on the CBS affiliate.

Cable and satellite users continue to receive NBC, but are warned that might get disrupted over the next few days as they scramble to fix the OTA problems.


----------



## pfp

bobcamp1 said:


> For game 7 of the hockey game (if needed), they said they are exploring:
> - Somehow get it running by Sunday night


How does that help when the game is tonight, Friday. :scratch:


----------



## DBSJedi

pfp said:


> I'm actually not as ready as I thouhgt I was. I currently have a UHF only antenna and I discovered yesterday that two channels I care about will be in the VHF band.


Throw together a VHF wire loop using these instructions here:
http://www.kyes.com/antenna/rabbitear.html

I built one in 2004 and have used it with great receptivity to pickup WDKY on VHF channel 4 for the last 5 years. Out of pocket cost - about $5. 
WDKY is moving to UHF 31 tonight, so my wire loop investment is soon to become a paperweight or clothesline or something. lol


----------



## ibooksrule

We have lost 38 the spot , 41 NBC and 50 ION here in kansas city since the digital switch. 
Well NBC is just very low signal in the low 50s. Was mid 60s earlier 

ANyone else in KC area having this issue or is it me?


----------



## Raymie

pfp said:


> *Phoenix, AZ*
> The DTV transition happens in several phases on Friday:
> 
> KTVK (3)/KASW (61) - 12:01 AM, June 12
> KNXV (15) - 12:01 AM, June 12
> KSAZ (10)/KUTP (45) - 8:30 AM, June 12
> KPNX (12) - 10:12 PM, June 12
> KTVW (33) - 10:59 PM (Univision AZ), 10:29 PM (Telefutura AZ), June 12
> KPHO (5) - 11:59 PM, June 12
> KAZT-TV (7) - _Transition to digital completed on May 15_
> KAET (8) - _Transition to digital completed on April 27th
> KTAZ (39) - Transition to digital completed on February 17
> KMOH (6), Kingman - Transition to digital completed on February 17_


Yeah. By the way, it seems like KFPH-CA (not the full-power TV station in Flagstaff) is gone (KTVW 33.2 replaced it). 15, 10-45, 61 already gone. (3 is a nightlight no matter how bad its reception is.)

Really lame analog signoffs compared to some I'd seen.

The first analog station in the state might just be the last (5).

And 10 really signed off with a bang. They introduced snow to a commercial, then they cut the carrier.

You need high VHF here because of 8-10-12 actually being 8, 10, and 12.


----------



## Stewart Vernon

I'll have to do some tweaking to get my PBS back... They are always a tough get for me here anyway. Also might have some issues with the local that went back to its VHF frequency since I'm using a makeshift antenna setup and haven't had to worry about VHF until now.

Meanwhile, it looked like 17.1 was back... but no HD during the day to check and see if they fixed that part until tonight (probably NBC Nightly News will be the first chance to check).


----------



## ziggy29

The "main event" has occurred in Austin -- the one station that is changing frequency (KTBC) has done so. A couple of stations haven't turned off analog yet, but they aren't changing digital frequency so people should be able to rescan now and be done with it. Right now 7.1 is a lot weaker than it was pre-transition because they're using a temporary lower-power transmitter until construction of the new antenna for channel 7 is complete. 60 miles from the tower with a YA-1713, I can barely lock on it.


----------



## scooper

Stewart Vernon said:


> I'll have to do some tweaking to get my PBS back... They are always a tough get for me here anyway. Also might have some issues with the local that went back to its VHF frequency since I'm using a makeshift antenna setup and haven't had to worry about VHF until now.
> 
> Meanwhile, it looked like 17.1 was back... but no HD during the day to check and see if they fixed that part until tonight (probably NBC Nightly News will be the first chance to check).


I've got a few OTA ATSC tuners that lost WTVD , but strangely any Echostar DTVPAL boxes are not having any issues with it. Signal strength was greatly reduced - I'll try some tweaking tomorrow to see if I can make things better. I think a VHF preamp is in my future, however.

Any UHF stations that are staying on UHF were just fine with my existing setup.

I don't expect any major changes with WUNP (Roanoke Rapids).


----------



## bobcamp1

pfp said:


> How does that help when the game is tonight, Friday. :scratch:


It doesn't -- NBC has corrected their information (which I copied from their website). And I got 2 hours sleep last night so I don't know what day it is anymore. :eek2:

They shut down the digital transmitter down early because they're switching frequencies. They left analog up for game 6 and up until this morning. They turned it off, then they just turned it back on at 4:30. (Why bother turning it off at all?)

The frequency switch isn't going well for them...

As I thought, they're trying to piggyback as a new subchannel off the CBS affiliate (owned by the same company). It's not HD, but it's not snow, either.

They suggested rescanning several times throughout the weekend. So it's more like an "SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSOSS" than an "SOS".

Of course D* isn't keeping up with any of this. Forget trying to record the hockey game with a DVR. I'll have to record it on VHS.


----------



## inkahauts

Stuart Sweet said:


> What has surprised me so far in Los Angeles is that none of the major affiliates' web sites are highlighting that this is the day, none is saying exactly when they intend to cut over, nothing. All of them just have links to DTV.gov or DTVanswers.
> 
> Keep in mind these are the owned-and-operated west coast flagships for ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox. KTLA, Tribune's flagship in the west, didn't have anything on their site either.
> 
> I listened to the news this morning on the radio on KNX-AM, which is one of CBS Radio's Los Angeles stations, and there was a chuckle and a quick mention about "rabbit ears."
> 
> I mean, I'm glad everyone expects it to go well. Maybe a "little" more information might be merited.


I agree.. LA stations have done a horrible job on their web sites.. I was very disappointed.. However, The la times is very helpful...

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-dtv-infobox12-2009jun12,0,2680126.story?page=1


----------



## Mark Holtz

From KXTV (Sacramento, CA) - The obligatory "We thought they would push the deadline back yet again" story.

Meanwhile, from KOVR-13/KMAX-31....


----------



## scooper

My DTV transition day was about as uneventful as I thought it would be... Need to do some work to improve the reception of the HI-VHF digital, but otherwise...


----------



## Stewart Vernon

scooper said:


> I've got a few OTA ATSC tuners that lost WTVD , but strangely any Echostar DTVPAL boxes are not having any issues with it. Signal strength was greatly reduced - I'll try some tweaking tomorrow to see if I can make things better. I think a VHF preamp is in my future, however.
> 
> Any UHF stations that are staying on UHF were just fine with my existing setup.


That pretty much echos my experience thus far. My channel 11 isn't breaking up, but is at 65 vs the 100 I was getting yesterday... so I'd like to improve upon that for futureproofing from weather.

I already wasn't getting WUNC very well (unrelated to the digital conversion scenario)... but figured there was no point putting much effort into tweaking until after they switch frequencies so I could know for sure whether I was introducing problems or it was them switching.


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## pfp

Mark Holtz said:


> From KXTV (Sacramento, CA) - The obligatory "We thought they would push the deadline back yet again" story.
> 
> Meanwhile, from KOVR-13/KMAX-31....


now that's funny! :lol:


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## ChrisPC

ChrisPC said:


> 2 is still on here in Nashville, but skip is hitting it pretty hard. 5 has switched to digital. I can't wait until they turn 2 off, so I can see what the skip is!


2 turned off at 12:01, but no skip anymore, probably because most east coast Channel 2's are off air.

The new digital VHFs are coming in nicely. I even did a rescan on the break room TV at work. Amazingly, it picks up most DTV stations, with just the coax in the wall.

Meanwhile, I explained to my co-workers what happened today. Most were fascinated that we get so many channels OTA. However, one swore it was satellite, and thought I was lying about OTA.


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## Mark Holtz

Only KVIE-6 is off-air at the moment, but they have to change frequencies.

Funny how, during the one minute on KXTV when they switch transmitters, the guy was saying "You should only be seeing us on Comcast cable." Uhhh.... I'm seeing you on DirecTV.


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## bidger

Went to Wally World yesterday to pick up a new coffee maker and other odds and ends. The guy in front of me was getting a converter, resisted the urge to ask him why he waited. Outside the store I notice the discarded box for another converter as I was throwing away a wrapper in the trash can. It's like it's been said on these boards, some people just have to get slapped in the face before they take action.


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## Lee L

The NC Association of Broadcasters had a phone bank set up at Elon University. According to reports, most of the questions they got were wanting help with setting the converter box up (I guess lots of people had them but figured they would wait until they had to install them). However, they did say they had one call from a woman who had no idea what was going on and had never heard of the DTV transition.


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## Upstream

bidger said:


> Went to Wally World yesterday to pick up a new coffee maker and other odds and ends. The guy in front of me was getting a converter, resisted the urge to ask him why he waited. Outside the store I notice the discarded box for another converter as I was throwing away a wrapper in the trash can. It's like it's been said on these boards, some people just have to get slapped in the face before they take action.


Maybe he just got his coupon. Maybe he forgot about the spare TV in the back room which is not hooked up to cable/sat. Maybe he has a digital TV, but didn't realize that he would need a converter to record OTA on his VCR or DVD recorder.


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## Paul Secic

jrmichael said:


> DirecTV's Memphis Channel 5 WMC-TV HD Local went dark when WMC shut off their analog signal at 12:01 am. WMC is one of two local Memphis stations that were also switching their digital channel at conversion time. Funny thing is D*'s SD version of WMC is still operating.


I've been ready for DTV since 1999.


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## RoboDad

Upstream said:


> Maybe he just got his coupon. Maybe he forgot about the spare TV in the back room which is not hooked up to cable/sat. Maybe he has a digital TV, but didn't realize that he would need a converter to record OTA on his VCR or DVD recorder.


I think you are giving the guy far too much credit.

Yesterday, one of the local stations here in Boise (KTVB 7) ran announcements ALL DAY LONG that they had a phone bank set up to answer questions. When the 10 PM news broadcast began, the anchor was standing behind a table, where 8 people were sitting in front of phones, none of which were ringing. He once again announced that the phone bank was open, and gave out the number. Within 10 seconds of him giving out the number, all 8 of the phones lit up, and stayed that way for the rest of the broadcast.

That station was also the only one to make any kind of fanfare out of the transition. They talked about it throughout most of the newscast, including an interview with a retired station manager who had started with the company in 1956 as a young guy, and worked his way up until he ran the station until 1996. Then, they had one of the oldest surviving emeritus employees do the honors of "pushing the button" at the end of the newscast. After the button had been pressed, the anchor said "if you can still see us, I guess you're OK!"

Ironically, this was the only local station that was changing frequency. About 10 minutes after the newscast ended, they went dark (on both OTA and Dish, both SD and HD) for about an hour while they made the switch, leading me to believe that Dish doesn't get their feeds through fiber optics.

All of the other stations made their transitions very quietly, and I didn't notice any disruptions.


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## tnsprin

NY DMA
It seemed to take longer than they were originally saying. Most of them starting switching at 12:30PM. Many of them share the antenna space on the Empire State Building. NBC and FOX were not changing Digital frequency and stayed on. ABC was back, having moved to its old analog frequncy in about 20 minutes. CBS had to move from its tempoary frequency 56 to a new one at 33, and took over 2 hours when they were saying originally to rescan just after 12:30. PBS station WLIW also took about 2 hours. WPIX, and WNET switched back to there analog frequency, WPIX was back by they time I first checked, and WNET in about 45 minutes. Various other station either didn't switch there digital frequency or did it fairly quickly. 

As of few hours ago (about 9:30AM on Saturday) I still see 8 analog stations up. 2 minor stations seem to have continued. 4 strange stations that I can't identify are up. And surprisingly CBS and NBC have a special analog signal up telling people how to convert. I don't know if the FCC allowed, encouraged, or even forced these conversion channels to stay on here and in other areas of the country.


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## Tom Robertson

Yes, the FCC encouraged stations that would not interfere with new digital assignments to broadcast "nightlight" service letting people know about the conversion.

Glad to see a couple were able to.


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## zman977

Lee L said:


> , they did say they had one call from a woman who had no idea what was going on and had never heard of the DTV transition.


It amazes me that with all the publisity over the last year and especially over the last week that there are people who still claim they never heard of the DTV transition. Do these people just tune this stuff out? Even my parents were ready and they are the most un tech type people you'd ever meet. My mom for example did not want a DVR when they got Dish Network because she though it had something to do with radio (shthoughthe R stood for radio) and she was not going to pay for radio. I had to show her our DVR because explanig it to her did no good yet they were ready for the digital transition. If my tech impared mom can be ready than evryone should be ready. BTW, They have dish network but stil get their locals OTA.


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## ChrisPC

zman977 said:


> It amazes me that with all the publisity over the last year and especially over the last week that there are people who still claim they never heard of the DTV transition. Do these people just tune this stuff out?


I was talking to people at work yesterday about the transition. Most of them knew about it, and were glad it was over. We get a lot more channels on the break room TV now.  Later on, I showed the new channels to a co-worker. She didn't believe me when I said it was OTA. She swore it was Comcast, and thought I was lying. :nono2:


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## SayWhat?

At least for now, I'm getting RTV on 25.2 out of Evansville, but I don't know how dependable the signal is and I'm not wild about having to rotate the antenna every time I want to change stations.

RTV, RTN, RetroTV are all the same thing, right?


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## zman977

Tom Robertson said:


> Yes, the FCC encouraged stations that would not interfere with new digital assignments to broadcast "nightlight" service letting people know about the conversion.
> 
> Glad to see a couple were able to.


That is correct. I beliee in Chicago WFLD TV is running the nightlight service on its anologue signal on channel 32. I think they are the only Chicago station doing this.


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## Dan9

I mainly just have a question, I thought I was ready for yesterday, but I was wondering if I am now? I have an HDTV with an ATSC tuner, and an OTA antenna, but I've scanned my TV about 6 times since yesterday morning, and I don't get anything DT station that I got before the switch? I tried the initial setup again this morning, and nothing happened doing that, is there anything else I could try cause I live in an area where the only way to get locals is either OTA or by getting cable, and I'm never gonna get cable? Thank you very much for any input you can give me, and have a great day, bye.


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## RAD

Has anyone seen anything about how prisons are doing? I saw a story a number of months ago, back before the February date) about how the lack of converters for prisoners could cause problems when they can't watch TV anymore.


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## tnsprin

Dan9 said:


> I mainly just have a question, I thought I was ready for yesterday, but I was wondering if I am now? I have an HDTV with an ATSC tuner, and an OTA antenna, but I've scanned my TV about 6 times since yesterday morning, and I don't get anything DT station that I got before the switch? I tried the initial setup again this morning, and nothing happened doing that, is there anything else I could try cause I live in an area where the only way to get locals is either OTA or by getting cable, and I'm never gonna get cable? Thank you very much for any input you can give me, and have a great day, bye.


Put your location into one of the sites such as Antennaweb.org to see what stations you should be getting. If any of your stations on VHF and your OTA antenna is UHF only that may be your problem.


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## Stuart Sweet

I'm going to close this and open up a new thread on OTA transition issues.


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