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New member Username: Clinton_cPost Number: 1 Registered: Dec-04 | I am new to this, and I hear all this talk about attennas to recieve your HD from your local channels... What if you get your local channels through Dish Network for the $5 dollars a month? Will they be HD quality if the local channel is running HDTV? If so the anntenna is pointless...thoughts? |
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TM Unregistered guest | Dish Network does not carry local HD. They only carry the SD analog channel. And they compress it too. I had Dish and gave it back. |
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Anonymous | I have a true HDTV for which I connected it to an indoor antenna. When I have Voom installed, they also gave me an outdoor antenna. There was only a slight differece in PQ in local HD. The picture thru Voom is a little brighter but my little indoor antenna can pull in more channels than Voom. |
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Bronze Member Username: Kevin_eastmanPost Number: 15 Registered: Aug-04 | Clint, Kind of confusing eh? I'll try to skip the "which satelite provider is better" arguement and answer your antenna question. The Dish offers HBO, ESPN, HDNET, HDMOVIES, DICOVERY, TNT, HD PPV, and SHOWTIME in High Def. To get any other channel, (ex. ABC,NBC,CBS,FOX or any local affiliate) in HD you will need an over the air antenna. The Dish broadcasts your local channels in SD, and as TM implied the picture is not great. Even when you are watching the Dish and the "Broadcast in HD" logo is on the screen it is not in HD unless it is one of the previously listed channels. One last problem. You need to make sure that the local stations in your area broadcast in HD. Go to www.antennaweb.org to check for stations broadcasting in your area, their location and distance from you. Most antennas have a distance rating on them. Also, Your Dish reciever will incorpoorate the O.T.A. (over the air) signals into your Dish menu without changing inputs or menus. Last thing. Remember that not all network programming is HD. And not all HD is created equal. IMO the two jewels of network HD are Monday Night Football and The Tonight Show. Awesome. Hope this helps. Take the leap. You won't regret it......kevin |
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Unregistered guest | The broadcast network HD signal thing via satellite is becoming a pain and after about 50 emails and phones calls I get conflicting info. (let's remove cable/satellite channels like ESPN-HD, HBO, etc., out of the equation since all 3 satellite services offer the basic popular ones...I know Voom offers more, but this is about broadcast channels)..as of today, 12/26/04, Direct TV offers CBS, NBC and FOX in HD ...Voom leaves it for you to get all content via over the air antenna and Dish Network lists only CBS...however if you call Dish Network and I made 3 seperate calls at different times just to check this out...they claim if your local stations broadcast in HD then you would get that channel in HD thru their locals package ??...now i found this unusual since Direct TV claimed they did not offer this and 3 local satellite dealers selling both products claimed the Dish people were nutso or plain lying...I'm about to take Dish on their word buying a base HD setup (preparing to return them if it turns out to be untrue) and will report back my findings either way but if anyone subscribed to Dish Netwrok currently has actually tried this with the 811 HD reciever and a true HD TV set...pass the word on because if they do offer full broadcast HD locally it would tip the scales to us HDTV nuts unable to get over the air HD and not willing to buy into separate sports packages packages. |
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Unregistered guest | The broadcast network HD signal thing via satellite is becoming a pain and after about 50 emails and phones calls I get conflicting info. (let's remove cable/satellite channels like ESPN-HD, HBO, etc., out of the equation since all 3 satellite services offer the basic popular ones...I know Voom offers more, but this is about broadcast channels)..as of today, 12/26/04, Direct TV offers CBS, NBC and FOX in HD ...Voom leaves it for you to get all content via over the air antenna and Dish Network lists only CBS...however if you call Dish Network and I made 3 seperate calls at different times just to check this out...they claim if your local stations broadcast in HD then you would get that channel in HD thru their locals package ??...now i found this unusual since Direct TV claimed they did not offer this and 3 local satellite dealers selling both products claimed the Dish people were nutso or plain lying...I'm about to take Dish on their word buying a base HD setup (preparing to return them if it turns out to be untrue) and will report back my findings either way but if anyone subscribed to Dish Netwrok currently has actually tried this with the 811 HD reciever and a true HD TV set...pass the word on because if they do offer full broadcast HD locally it would tip the scales to us HDTV nuts unable to get over the air HD and not willing to buy into separate sports packages packages. |
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West River Unregistered guest | Dish offers New York HD CBS and Los Angeles HD CBS programing to all their viewers except if you live in a CBS affiliate city. For example I live in Washington DC which is a CBS affiliate so they will not let me receive the NY/LA HD CBS broadcasts. Baltimore DISH viewers are in a city with a direct CBS station and not an affiliate and they would normally be allowed to receive the NY/LA HD CBS from DISH except that they are close to Washington's HD broadcast signal and are not allowed as well. The logic is that the HD CBS broadcast affiliate station would lose viewers and thus ad revenue. |
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Anonymous | Dish does not offer local channels in HD. You will need an outside antenna hooked to your 811 receiver. You can then add the local HD channels. You will then have multiple CBS, NBC etc. channels. |
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Anonymous | I have a Dish 811 HD Receiver and a 57" Sony Widescreen. I purchased a TERK 44 on the web (this is available at Radio Shack for about $70 but I found it on the web by hunting for $45). The Terk 44 is simple to hook up to your existing dish. Once I was done, I was able to pick up ALL my local channels for free (although one was a bit fuzzy in analog) but I was also able to pick up every HD broadcast near me for FREE! Some stations broadcast an analog channel and then 2 or more HD channels that this clip on can pick up! Obviously, your ability to pick up "over the air" channels will depend on how close you are to the towers but the 44 was definitely worth the $44 for FREE local AND local HD broadcasts. |
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New member Username: Thl104Post Number: 1 Registered: Dec-04 | i just purchased a pioneer 5045 plasma and it came with the media receiver. currently i have directv and the box that came with it. my question is, if i have this pioneer media receiver, can i simply hook up the dish cable wire directly into my pioneer media receiver and get rid of the directv box. OR do i need to connect the directv box to my pioneer media receiver? second question, do i need to get a free standing or indoor antenna to get the local hd channel (i.e. cbs, nbc, fox, espn and etc.)??? your insight will be appreciated. thanks |
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New member Username: Thomas_friederStaten Island, New York USA Post Number: 2 Registered: Dec-04 | to the New York area dish network users: how sure are you that the satellite access local channels are not HD? do you have the right equipment / connections to tell? Once again (12/30/04) i pressed dish network support by phone and tried to emphasize that every other site or article i read or visited contradicts what they had assured me and they stated once again "that if a local station broadcasts in HD then I would recieve it that way" ?? at least i have an excuse to return the equipment if dish phone support turns out to be incorrect |
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switching? Unregistered guest | I am not sure if the posts in this forum have answered my questions. It seems that local HD channels is somewhat sparse with satellite. I live in Northern CA and currently have cable. I have been thinking a switching to satellite to see if I can save a few bucks. I have a sony 65" HDTV and really enjoy the fact that I can get NBC, ABC, FOX, ESPN, Discovery, and PBS all in HD...(Still waiting for CBS). My bill for basic cable plus HD ~$60/mo... What I don't like is that I have to pay $5/mo for the HDTV transmission and $5/mo for the HDTV receiver. NO DVR though.. A bit component to me switching to satellite would be ensuring that I get most of the locals in HD.. MNF is fantastic in HD and can't wait to see '24'. Any thoughts about the monthly bill for the services that I am getting? thanks |
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New member Username: Thomas_friederStaten Island, New York USA Post Number: 8 Registered: Dec-04 | well I could not offer that much sympathy ..our cable has been in the $85-95 range and that is without the espn/inhd bonus hdtv package offered by TWC in Staten Island (another $10 for those 5 channels)...we currently get CBS/NBC/FOX/ABC/PBS/HBO/SHO/TNT/Discovery in HD for that cost..unfortunately we get TNT in that crummy "zoomed mode" where we actually get less picture info than via regular TNT since that method cuts off the top and bottom and distorts the width slightly as TNT tries to make all it's shows look HD ??(Turner never got it right with colorization and no letterboxing in the past either)...we also get lotsa digitizing on half of those cable HD channels on any damp days, forcing me to look toward satellite... so far, only Directv seems to be pursuing network HDTV (Zoom offers none and Dish only CBS... Directv now gives you CBS/NBC/Fox national/NY/LA feeds and claim PBS and ABC within another month ? the only nice feature with Directv that helps with the cost is that Directv does not charge extra for any DVR's with their full lineup packages (and offer the most HD storage capacity) and both the HBO/Sho satellite HDTV images are superior, the rest are about the same...one last note: supposedly Dish and directv are launching some new satellites this spring which are supposed to up their HDTV offerings ..we'll have to see...meanwhile I keep offering feedback to directv to keep adding HD in hopes more will be offered.... cheers |
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Bronze Member Username: Thomas_friederStaten Island, New York USA Post Number: 12 Registered: Dec-04 | HDTV via Directv ... to those who may be interested with this info....I recently activated my DirecTV setup with a Samsung TS360 hd reciever and am now recieving Widescreen hi def from the CBSe, NBCe, FOX and ABC channels (not the local feeds) at no extra cost ...the FOX and ABC feeds are only sending signals when a show is in HD else the signal is blank....not only that, i am recieving them with only the 101 satellite signal being recieved thru the dish since i have not fully and permanently tilted and mounted the oval 3LNB dish yet. If there's others like me out there who cannot get Over-the-air HD and are fed up with cable hassles this is the next best thing for those weekend football games in widescreen. |
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Fireball Unregistered guest | It would be helpful if everyone would post their location as I think that has a huge bearing on this issue. I have DISH and had to get an antenna to get CBS, NBC, ABC in HD. Discovery channels are not HD. This is a very frustrating experience. It is a shame people selling the equipment do not know what it will do. I had cable first and got everything in HD but not the best quality. Switched to DISH (DIRECT would not install in my location) and was totally floored when I did not have local or all movie channels in HD channels. Got rid of the HD box. Have now gone back to the HD box and got an indoor $60 rabbit ear type antenna from Best Buy and now at least have local HD channels, still no movies. To pay such high prices for HD TV's, HD Satalite and then not get the HD channels is is a great disappointment. Dallas/Ft Worth, TX |
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New member Username: HreyVegas, NV Post Number: 1 Registered: Jan-05 | I have a HD Ready 51' Hitachi big screen. I bought 2 years ago and at the time had 2 ultimate tv DVR's through DirectV. I was always happy with Directv and the DVR's. The problem was that I couldnt get HD without losing my DVR because I cant afford $1k for the Directv/Tivo HD DVR. Well, Cox cable came out with a HD DVR for $5 a month. I love the HD picture, but I have a couple of problems. I only get ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, FOX, DiscoveryHD, ESPNHD, 2 independent HD channels, Cinemax, HBO, & Starz all HD. This is a good line up from what I have seen, but I cant get HD on TNT, WGN, UPN, FX, SCI FI or other stations that occasionally broadcast in HD. Does anyone have any idea how I can get all the HD channels that are out there? Why would TNT, WGN, FX Etc. broadcast in HD when Directv & cable does not have HD channels for them and these are not broadcast networks that you can get without cable or satelite? Second problem is the bad reception on non HD channels through Cox and even through HD, there is a lot of on and off transmission with the digital sound. It comes on and off making it hard to hear what is going on. There is also lots of pixelating when the sound goes in and out. Obviously a bd transmission. I would love to have satelite again, but I need a satelite company that will give me a HD DVR with the channels I want and a reliable trasmission. I am happy with the nice HD picture, but I miss my directv transmission quality on non HD channels. Does Voom have a HD DVR & can I get all the HD channels there are? Who gives HD on TNT, FX, UPN & SciFi? |
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Bronze Member Username: Thomas_friederStaten Island, New York USA Post Number: 18 Registered: Dec-04 | That's the one advantage cable has in the HD DVR race...most cable systems offer it at just the regular dvr 5-10 dollar monthly fee, whereas with Dish or DirecTV, it involves personally buying the unit ($500 w. Dish, $900 plus w. DirecTV) plus the extra reciever rate of 5 bucks a month (although DirecTV offers that free if you take their premier package). Also, with HD taking up more transmission space, cable and satellites are not ready to give up 4-5 other channels to offer a single HD channel as the satellites are competing with cable to offer local channels from as many regions as possible. Supposedly new satellite launches are going to help this situation later in 2005. Personally, except for a few live basketball and football games, the other cable HD is limited (ESPN-HD, TNT-HD, HDnet, etc.), ie. TNT just rebroadcasts rerun shows in a "zoomed" mode, distorting most of the picture to fill the screen. I will state for a fact that DirecTV is now sending 4 network HD feeds out of NY/LA...other area customers have to get a waiver from their local TV stations as these HD channels shut down when not sending across HD, so as not to compete with the local networks for commercials, etc. (Dish is a little behind in this case). Lastly, these HD channels are on the main 101 satellite, so anyone can get them with the correct HD reciever. FX and SciFi are not offering HD yet as far as I know. |
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Unregistered guest | A year or so ago my dad bought a Direct TV system but never really liked it so he cancelled it a few months ago. So now he has the Direct TV equipment that's just sitting there doing nothing. He just got his first HD capable TV and signed up for our local cable HD package. Right now the lineup is pretty weak, CBS and PBS are the only basic channels offered, for $5/mo extra you get DiscoveryHD and ESPNHD. Also if you already subscribe to the pay movies channels, HBO, MAX and SHO, then you can get those too. My question is, is it possible to use the old Direct TV dish as an antenna to pick up the over the air local HD channels? I don't know anything about the Direct TV dish he has except that it has 2 coaxial connections at the end of the one bracket. |
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Unregistered guest | A year or so ago my dad bought a Direct TV system but never really liked it so he cancelled it a few months ago. So now he has the Direct TV equipment that's just sitting there doing nothing. He just got his first HD capable TV and signed up for our local cable HD package. Right now the lineup is pretty weak, CBS and PBS are the only basic channels offered, for $5/mo extra you get DiscoveryHD and ESPNHD. Also if you already subscribe to the pay movies channels, HBO, MAX and SHO, then you can get those too. My question is, is it possible to use the old Direct TV dish as an antenna to pick up the over the air local HD channels? I don't know anything about the Direct TV dish he has except that it has 2 coaxial connections at the end of the one bracket. |
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Unregistered guest | A year or so ago my dad bought a Direct TV system but never really liked it so he cancelled it a few months ago. So now he has the Direct TV equipment that's just sitting there doing nothing. He just got his first HD capable TV and signed up for our local cable HD package. Right now the lineup is pretty weak, CBS and PBS are the only basic channels offered, for $5/mo extra you get DiscoveryHD and ESPNHD. Also if you already subscribe to the pay movies channels, HBO, MAX and SHO, then you can get those too. My question is, is it possible to use the old Direct TV dish as an antenna to pick up the over the air local HD channels? I don't know anything about the Direct TV dish he has except that it has 2 coaxial connections at the end of the one bracket. |
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Unregistered guest | A year or so ago my dad bought a Direct TV system but never really liked it so he cancelled it a few months ago. So now he has the Direct TV equipment that's just sitting there doing nothing. He just got his first HD capable TV and signed up for our local cable HD package. Right now the lineup is pretty weak, CBS and PBS are the only basic channels offered, for $5/mo extra you get DiscoveryHD and ESPNHD. Also if you already subscribe to the pay movies channels, HBO, MAX and SHO, then you can get those too. My question is, is it possible to use the old Direct TV dish as an antenna to pick up the over the air local HD channels? I don't know anything about the Direct TV dish he has except that it has 2 coaxial connections at the end of the one bracket. |
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Unregistered guest | I AM NEW TO DISH AND HAVE A NEW 40"HD TV I LIKE MY PICTURE ON ALL CHANNELS BUT MY LOCALS WHEN THEY SEND THEM IN HD AT NIGHT? DISH DOES NOT GIVE ME HD ON MY LOCALS YET. |
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Bronze Member Username: Thomas_friederStaten Island, New York USA Post Number: 19 Registered: Dec-04 | Bally, read thru the past postings...this has been covered already...dish network only offers one network HD channel (CBS) ..unless you live in NYC or LA area it may be awhile for you to get HD locals (the NYC and LA HD feeds are available from DirecTV if you get a waiver from your local stations, dish does not even offer those yet...i inquired before choosing which service to subscribe to)... until they have more room on the satellites for the HD channels, you are stuck getting them over the air via regular antennas right now... if you have the appropriate Dish reciever or if an HD tuner is included with your TV, either will pickup over the air HD feeds...most say it's superior to satellite and Cable HDTV if you are able to recieve it...good luck |
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Unregistered guest | THANK YOU, I UNDERSTAND THE PAST POSTINGS BUT ARE OTHERS HAVING A BAD PICTURE ON YOUR LOCALS WHEN NOT AVALIABLE IN HD ONLY DIGITAL ON AN HD TV SET? |
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Still learning Unregistered guest | Let's be straight forward about this! Thomas Frieder is the exception when it comes to network (abc, nbc, cbs, fox, etc.) digital or HD signal (they are different) on Direct TV. Everyone else not living in NY, LA, or not able to get a waiver because digital network signal is available off-air in your area will not, I repeat, will not be receiving network HD on any satelite service. There is simply not enough bandwidth from the satelites yet. Most all SAT subscribers wanting HD are limited to Discovery HD, HD Net and Net Movies, UHD, ESPN HD, one HBO HD, and one Showtime HD. Anyone wanting off-air network HD will need an off-air UHF antenna. Let's be straight about this signal too. Normally, off-air network broadcasts are analog VHF signal, still are as they have been since the tv was invented. Picture quality varies with distance and terrain from the tower. (snowy, hash lines) Digital network off-air signal is UHF and can be received with the same old antennas we all had on our roof tops 20 years ago. The new glorified HD indoor off-air antennas are junk unless you live next to the tower or on a hill. When you receive a local UHF network digital signal it isn't HD, it's digital signal with occasional HD programming. The digital UHF off-air network signal is much better than the old VHF signal in picture quality. (about twice the lines off resolution, never any snow or hash lines) When the digital signal is weak the sound cuts out or the picture fragments or both. This happens to anyone using an indoor HD antenna. I equate them to rabbit ears with that little loop for UHF. They didn't work that well in the past and they don't now. I use an old multi-element VHF/UHF antenna from Radio Shack and it's hanging from a rafter in my attic. I use standard 75 ohm RG-6 coax and no amplifier. My digital off-air network signals are crystal clear and solid. I live 28 miles from the Cedar Hill tower garden east of Dallas, TX. in a low creek bottom area. My 50 inch boom antenna cost me $39.99 and is on the bottom right of the page at the following link. I think the smaller UHF antenna to it's right will work just as well. Hope this helps! http://www.radioshack.com/category.asp?catalog%5Fname=CTLG&category%5Fname=CTLG% 5F003%5F001%5F002%5F000&Page=1 |
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Bronze Member Username: Thomas_friederStaten Island, New York USA Post Number: 20 Registered: Dec-04 | I'll agree with most comments concerning UHF. I'm told the amplified Square Shooter UHF antenna by Winegard is pretty good at OTA UHF pickup (but many might consider it expensive at $90-$140). However, in the NYC area, NBC and the WB station WPIX transmit digital and HD via both VHF and UHF with the UHF versions offering a lightly better picture, you can check your area at the antennaweb.org site. The digital signals do have problems with reflections, in fact, some people get better reception using reflected signals off large buildings/bridges, etc. than directly. UHF signals also do not reach as far as VHF, maybe similar to why AM goes farther than FM (even cross-country) but not as good in quality sound, Now as to the waiver needed for DirecTV and whether a subbscriber can get one, while it was true in the past that local stations were not ready and willing to give up waiver access to their feeds in favor of the NY/LA feeds and loss of viewers, it supposedly is a little easier to get temporary waivers now since the subscriber still gets his or her local channels (not always so in the past) and there's network pressure to allow access to their HD signals at least for the time being till more stations offer it, I know of one relative in the Wash. DC area who got a waiver and someone i bought a CD from on ebay last week who lives in Colorado near Denver said she got one too, personally i wish I could recieve over the air TV since the HD signals are better quality that way and the FOX HD SAT signal has been breaking up often these days. A great compromise would be to just trasmit/allow only HD non local night broadcasts since at the moment only football and "the Young and Restless" soap are the only HD sent during the day by the networks. Meanwhile happy MLK day |
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joejanda Unregistered guest | I live in Philadelphia area and was wondering if I can receive HD programming (NFL on Fox that's broadcast in HD) from DISH Network? They do include the Local Stations in the HD package but I'm not sure if I will receive HD if Fox broadcast 1 program in HD such as NFL games. |
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Unregistered guest | HD,LOCALS ARE NOT AVALIABLE ON MY DISH NETWORK ONLY 5 CHANNELS NOW NO LOCALS.I LIVE IN PHILA. AREA ALSO. COMCAST HAS 13 HD WITH ALL LOCALS IN HD. |
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Sat for me! Unregistered guest | Yea, but cable sucks! What's not digital or HD looks like trash on a big screen. The exception would be if the local cable company does a true analog to digital conversion at the source for transmission through the field to a set top box that converts digital back to analog for the short trip to the set. Not all of them do that. |
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Unregistered guest | I just moved to Dillon Beach, near Bodega Bay. There are hills around and non of the homes at my elevation have antenna. Also there is no cable here. So, I subscribed to Dish last week. Some of the homes on the hills do have antenna and I was wondering if I it would make any sense to get an antenna just for UHF in an attempt to get local HD programs. [I have local stations in SD and the Dish HD package for CBS etc.] |
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New member Username: ObrienajFredonia, NY USA Post Number: 2 Registered: Jan-05 | Stanley, First go to www.antennaweb.org and look up your location. You should get a list of what local stations are currently transmitting HD. If you have some that are active, the next thing is to note their current power levels since many that are new are at temporary low power. Then, assuming those that are active are using transmit sites and antenna heights similar to their existing analog UHF transmitters, you should be able to receive their HDTV signals. The HDTV signals may come in better than the analog signals, so don't automatically assume that a weak snowy analog signal will be equally weak in HDTV. It might be worth a trip to your local radio shack, if your local HDTV stations are all UHF stations get a UHF only antenna (much lighter and smaller than VHF/UHF combinations). Try a temporary installation and return it to Radio Shack for a full refund if you are not able to pull in any HD stations. Alas, my quick check suggests there might not be any HD OTA stations in your location. |
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Unregistered guest | There's less and less Radio Shack stores offering the antenna selections they had in the 80's, usually just a few indoor models (probably a combination of the Satellite services offering local channels and wider cable access), you may have to goto the websites of Channel Master, Winegard or other antenna brands i cannot think of at the moment, and find a local seller thru that site. Most now offer models that match up to the color-coded signal guides offered by the antennaweb site. It's probably easier to swap or return items if you deal locally with maybe some sacrifice in price. There's also this new antenna seller offering this custom strange looking square screen-type uhf antenna with built-in rotator especially designed for HD on ebay that got a good review in one of the video/electronics magazines this past year, I had bookmarked the site but cannot find it at the moment. You generally will get a better HDTV picture over off the air. I will wonder why you went with Dish over DirecTv, since as of the first of January, Directv is currently offering 4 of the broadcast networks in HD whereas Dish only has CBS and could offer no possibility of any others in the near future. It forced my decision, even though Dish network equipment was cheaper. good luck |
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New member Username: ObrienajFredonia, NY USA Post Number: 4 Registered: Jan-05 | True Ziggy. This might interest folks here... DTV Antennas The introduction of broadcast DTV service has prompted some manufacturers to start offering TV antennas, at premium prices, that are being advertised as being designed specifically for reception of DTV broadcasts. In fact, there is nothing truly unique about these antennas that make then more capable of receiving DTV broadcasts as compared to any well designed TV antenna manufactured before the advent of DTV. However, the characteristics of DTV receivers (i.e., TV set or set-top-box) do differ from those of analog TV receivers. With analog receivers the TV video (picture) and audio will slowly degrade as the quality of the input signal degrades. With digital receivers the input TV signal can degrade up to a certain point without any effect on the video or audio but beyond this point any further degradation in the broadcast signal will cause the video and audio to quickly deteriorate, with such symptoms as momentary loss of audio and frozen video images, until the video and audio are totally lost. Generally these differences in the reception characteristics of analogy vs. digital TV signals need not impact the requirements for an antenna system capable of delivering a 'good picture'. However, if your current TV antenna system provides anything less than a good video for analog broadcast reception (i.e., snowy picture or a picture with heavy ghosting) then it will probably not be adequate for DTV reception. The basic requirements for the successful reception of any analog or digital TV broadcast are: adequate signal strength adequate signal to noise ratio freedom from multipath Achieving adequate Signal Strength -- This factor can either be an issue or a non-issue for you depending a several factors. Certain factors must be considered the 'givens' for your specific case (i.e., those factors that are outside of your control). The most obvious of these are the proximity of your location to the transmitter location of each TV station you are attempting to receive, the power of the TV station's transmissions, and the geography/obstructions between your location and the TV station's transmitter. The four factors that are under your control that will influence the signal strength provided to your TV receiver are the type of antenna you use, the location of your antenna, the orientation of your antenna, and your signal distribution system from your antenna to your TV receiver. See the discussion below on each of these factors. Achieving adequate signal to noise ratio -- This factor is best addressed by first selecting, locating, and orienting a TV antenna to provide adequate signal strength at the antenna terminals then using quality, low loss TV cables and amplifiers (as necessary) to keep the signal well above the signal levels of the electrical noise. See the discussions below on selecting, locating and orienting the TV antenna and on designing a signal distribution system. Achieving Freedom from Multipath -- With analog TV multipath shows up as ghosts in the TV picture. As the term 'multipath' implies, this is the condition where you are receiving the TV signal via the most direct path from the TV station's transmitter and you antenna, and you also receiving the TV signal via one or more additional paths where the signal has been reflected off of such things as buildings, airplanes, etc. In some cases multipath can be very difficult, or impossible to totally eliminate. With DTV signals multipath will not show up as ghosts in it video image as it does with analog TV, but can in severe cases prevent DTV reception regardless of the strength of the TV signal. Multipath can best be addressed by use of a directional TV antenna. See the discussion below on the suggested types of antennas that can help reduce multipath. Suggested Antenna Types/Location for DTV Reception -- The type of antenna you select for DTV reception may be limited by the available mounting location. In you live in an apartment or other location that necessitates the use of an indoor antenna located near your TV set then your options are limited. On the other hand if you live in a home or townhouse where outside antennas can be used then you have a more ideal situation. Most DTV broadcast stations are operating on UHF frequencies (see the list of TV stations). In the rare cases were DTV transmissions are occurring on VHF this may be interim situation with the goal of eventually having all DTV broadcasts on UHF still a long term possibility. Thus in most locations in the U.S. you do not need to be concerned about VHF reception for DTV (check the list of DTV stations above to determine if you location has local DTV stations on VHF). For this reason the following discussion is limited to UHF but many of the general ideas also apply to VHF. The use of UHF for DTV provides the maximum flexibility for antenna selection and location as UHF antennas tend to be quite small as compared to VHF antennas. The most basic type of TV antenna is dipole. This is what you have with a simple set-top 'rabbit ears'or UHF 'bow-tie' antenna. These antennas have a signal pickup pattern that resembles the figure 8, where signals are received equally well from the front and the back of the antenna but poorly from the sides. Many of the relatively expensive antennas being sold for DTV are in reality nothing more than a simple dipole with the addition of a built-in amplifier. If you are serious about DTV reception I would advise you to avoid such antennas. Such antennas will, at best be marginally better than the very simple, inexpensive alternatives mentioned above. Moving up the scale in technical capabilities are antennas that provide additional gain in the forward direction and better rejection of signals arriving from the sides and back of the antenna. This provides two positive benefits. First it increases the received signal level from TV stations located toward the front of the antenna (i.e., the antenna has gain in the forward direction) and second it provides rejection of multipath signals and sources of electrical noise arriving from other directions. There are general approaches to designing a high gain UHF antenna. The first is place multiple bow tie elements, one above the other, with a wire grid reflector behind the bow tie elements. The second UHF antenna type is a 'yagi' antenna where the a number of short metal rods (i.e., the elements) are placed horizontally along the length and perpendicular to a pipe support pipe (i.e., the boom). A V-shaped reflector (i.e., corner reflector) is usually placed at the rear of a UHF yagi antenna. The third type of high gain UHF antenna is normally only found in commercial applications is a parabolic disk with pickup (i.e., the feed) placed at the focal point in front of the parabolic reflector dish. The dish is usually not a solid reflector as is typical for satellite dishes. Rather is made of a grid of small tubes or heavy wires. In the UHF antenna configuration with stacked bow ties and a reflector, moderate gain is provided and superior rejection of multipath from nearby aircraft . Yagi antennas can provide moderate to high gain, but can become up to 10 feet in length for the very high gain versions (2 to 4 ft.for moderate gain versions). I feel the stacked bow-tie configuration is superior for most cases except for where the maximum possible gain is necessary to receive weak DTV signals, such as from a distant TV station. Also if your location suffers from severe multipath reflections from nearby structures then a high gain yagi may do a better job of rejecting this type of multipath. Yagi and Stacked Bow Tie UHF TV antennas If possible you should use an outdoor location for your antenna. Ideally it should be mounted at least 20 ft. above ground level and have a clear, unobstructed view in the direction of the TV stations' transmitter locations. Indoor, including attic mounting will normally provide at least a 50% reduction in signal strength as compared to outdoor mounting. Unless all of the DTV stations are located in the same direction from your location you will need an antenna rotator (motor and control unit) to be able to turn the antenna to the proper direction for best reception of each DTV station. Small changes in antenna vertical position can make a big difference in received signal strength. If your location is 'over the horizon' from the TV station's broadcast tower (i.e., antenna) then the received signal will probably have peaks and nulls spaced about 9-to-12 inches apart vertically. Therefore you should try moving the antenna mounting location up and/or down a few inches to find the vertical position that provides the best signal for the DTV station(s) for which reception is most difficult. The stacked bow tie antennas use a configuration that makes them less sensitive to small changes in vertical position. The "Siliver Sensor" antenna, distributed by Zenith, is generally considered the best of the currently available indoor antennas for DTV reception. However, if you can mount the antenna in an attic, then a higher performance outdoor style antenna can generally be used. The Consumer Electronics Association has a web site called AntennaWeb that can help you decide the class of outdoor antenna you will need to receive the TV stations (analog and digital) from your specific location. The major antenna manufacturers have gotten together to use a standard rating system for the reception ability of their antenna's (the antenna gain and directionality). Each antenna is assigned one of 7 color codes based on its performance. The above web site will recommend which rating (color code) you will need for your specific geographic area. The idea is that you match the color code on the antenna box with the color code for your geographic area. I would suggest you view this only as a guideline and for DTV reception go up at least one category and pay the extra few dollars to purchase a higher gain antenna. The following sequence of color codes are with the yellow code corresponding to the lowest performing antennas and thus appropriate to use geographic areas very near the TV stations and at the other extreme the pink code being the a high gain, directional antenna suitable for use in difficult reception areas. ANTENNA COLOR CODES: yellow - dark green - light green - red - blue - violet - pink Signal Distribution - Once have have selected, located, oriented a TV antenna that provides a good quality signal at the antenna's terminals then you will need to design your signal distribution system so as to not seriously degrade this signal. If you are located within a few miles of the TV stations' transmitter and the distance between your TV antenna and your DTV receiver is modest (e.g., up to 100 feet) then you may be able to simply connect a good quality cable between the antenna's terminals and the input to the TV receiver. You should always use a good quality coax (i.e., 75 ohm) cable for the signal distribution with RG-6 being the preferred type of cable. Most antenna's have connection terminals intended for twin-lead (i.e., 300 ohm) cable. You will need to add a 300 to 75 ohm transformer right at the antenna and then connect the coax (i.e., 75 ohm) cable to the transformer. If you are more than a few miles from the DTV stations of interest then you may need to also add an signal amplifier (preferably right at or near the antenna). Many such amplifiers intended for use outside at the antenna will have the 300 to 75 ohm transformer built-in allowing for a short twin-lead (300 ohm) input connection from the antenna terminal and a coax cable output from the amplifier. For outside antenna installations you will also need to add a grounding block just before the antenna enters the dwelling. The grounding block requires that you run a heavy gage wire to a ground rod that is pounded into the ground or to another suitable earth ground. This is a precaution in the case of nearby lighting strike and is require by most local building codes. Once inside the house and if you have an outside mounted amplifier, you will need to run the coax cable to a power supply. From this power supply you run the coax either to a signal splitter (if you need to feed the signal to more than one DTV/TV receiver) or directly to the DTV receiver (if it is the only device using the antenna). If you are looking for a web location to purchase your DTV antenna, amplifier or accessories, I can recommend Stark Electronics. They carry Channel Master and Winegard products, offer substantial discounts off of list prices and excellent customer service. . |
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New member Username: ObrienajFredonia, NY USA Post Number: 5 Registered: Jan-05 | Forgot to mention that I got the info in the previous post from http://www.dtvmax.com/dtv.htm#DTV_Stations |
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Stanley94929 Unregistered guest | Ziggyf, would love to not have any sat... but the area I live in does not get any OTA reception. (I say that 'cuz none of my neighbors have antenna and all use sat. I confirmed this at www.antennaweb.org. BUT antennaweb.org seems to be addressing overall TV reception ie. both VHF and UHF and I was (am) hopeful that I can get an antenna that I can use for DT (UHF) only. I'm going to check the signal strength and maybe get the best Radio Shack has to offer and see what happens. Thanks. |
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Unregistered guest | Ok...just be sure to also check the more well-known TV antenna sites..they offer better product by far... winegard has the amplified square shooter ss2000 (which i ordered recently) and Terk also has this new super-uhf job due to arrive shortly that i read about on the cnet hdtv site...as to that other antenna being sold on ebay i think this is it(see below, it is cheaper than the name brand makers): if you are going to mount onto a roof a rotator is extra nice since you can avoid aiming it so precisely . it never hurts to try to read as much reviews on these products in hopes yo do not buy a lemon ... http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem%26item%3D5747016637%26 |
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Anonymous | Does anyone know if I could hook up a digital STB HD receiver to an antenna AND a DISH satellite tuner output to TV and receive BOTH HDTV OTA and DISH channels in SD on channel 3? |
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Sacramento Dish User Unregistered guest | I have Dish HD. No locals in HD. I've struck out with two Off-Air antennas -- only 3 channels and weak signal strength though antennaweb.org suggested I'd get good reception with the types I used. I haven't tried a Yagi yet. But the Superbowl beckons. Comcast Cable will install basic cable which they say (contrary to their web site) will get me Fox 40 Sacramento in HD. Install is $30, monthly fee is $12 and I have a tv which takes a cable card so I don't need a box. Any insight on Comcast's HD quality? As much as I'd like a better solution that gets me free over the air cable, I've already spent a ton of time on this -- bought 2 antennas that I have to return. |
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Unregistered guest | to the above two: --sacramento dish guy: directv offers CBS/NBC/FOX/ABC in HD? both LA and NYC feeds... you might want to see if you qualify to get those since for the $39.95 total choice fee, you would get access to those and since you have a satellite setup it should be quicker to switchover --to anonymous above: Whaaaa?? are you saying you do not have an HD Television and want to watch those channels broadcast in HD ?? almost anything sent in HD is also available in standard def. already so I'm not understanding your purpose... there are no HD recievers that i'm aware of that have an RF (channel 3 or 4) output...you could use the rca inputs of a VCR in between the tuner and your standard TV, it would display HD channels but it would display the picture in a slightly squished image but it would work...I know this to be true since I use an old VCR rabbit to transmit my Directv Hd reciever to a secondary kitchen tv to watch various sportstalk shows when i'm working in the kitchen and get that squished image ...hope this helps |
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vekmekji Unregistered guest | What are the odds that a Satelite Service provider would start broadcasting Local Channels in HD in the near future. A hill facing my house would obstruct getting HD reception via an Antenna. I have Dish Network currently and CBS is the only one that I get in HD. I wonder if its just a matter of time that all of the other major networks (FOX,NBC,ABC) join the HD via SAT as well. Also, does Antenna Web.org incoroporate the fact that my address is located below a hill? |
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Unregistered guest | We have had DISH for almost a year. We have a Sony 36" HDTV. Mid January we bought a Terk OTA HD antenna. We hooked it up to our DISH 811 receiver. Doing a digital scan, with the antenna pointed in the right direction, we immediately picked up the local HD channels. Superbowl was awesome and March madness started out great in HD. Then, two weeks ago, we totally lost local HD channels. DISH service suggested an amplifier from Radio Shack since (they said) signal strength is compromised at change of seasons. Bought that, no good. Bought a new antenna, still doesn't work. We have reset our box and spent hours on the phone with DISH. Any ideas??? |
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TV Psychic Unregistered guest | Several weeks ago all the digital channels in the nation were remapped. Perhaps a new digital scan with your receiver will help. It is likely that Dish has screwed you if this does not help. TV Psychic |
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New member Username: Rice0209Post Number: 1 Registered: Apr-05 | I hope the answer was not already posted, but i am kinda lazy and just wanted to see if anone knew the answer to my question. I have the Dish Network 921 receiver and hdtv projector. I have read and understand now that my locals, even when they say they are in HD, are truly not, unless I get an over-the-air antenna. My question is, if I do get the antenna, will i still be able to use my on screen guide and dvr to record programs, or will I have to set up timers that are based on time and not program names. In other words, do I have to say record from 8:30 to 9:00 instead of record the "simpsons?" |
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NandoC Unregistered guest | I subscribed to VOOM as soon as it came out and truly loved it. Sadly, they're going out of business and discontinuing service at the end of this month. I used to have Comcast Cable but never liked it. Now I have to switch to another provider and I'm thinking satellite. I live in Los Angeles (Playa del Rey). Can anybody recommend the best satellite service with the most HD channels? |
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Anonymous | I have direct tv and had to get off air antena for locals. They gave me the latest H10 receiver. I went into the receiver audio menu and set up dolby digital. How do I know if I am receiving dolby digital? The H10 receiver has a little picture of a speaker in the upper right corner, sometimes its filled in but I still can't tell. |
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HD Guy Unregistered guest | NandoC, I was in the same boat. I switched to my local cable co. (Charter) not because it has good services or programming. Its limited HD offering actually sucks. It was because I don't have to buy the HDDVR. I am waiting for the technology to improve and HD to be more popular for the price of HDDVR to drop and I will then switch back to satellite. I am glad that I got a HDTV (built-in tuner) so I am not missing any OTA HD. |
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Unregistered guest | I live in St. Louis, MO. Yesterday with much sadness I switched from VOOM to Dish Network. Here are my questions. * What type of antenna did Voom use to receive Local channels in HD (UHF or VHF), my installer removed the Voom dish but I wanted to use the antenna so we hooked it up to the Dish 811 receiver. I did a Digital Search on the receiver and nothing came up. I had several Local HD channels with this antenna just a few days ago via Voom even after they shut down on 4/30/05. I checked the http://www.antennaweb.org site and I am good for local HD channels. Do I need to reposition the antenna? When I did an Analog search I was able to pick my local stations (NON HD) no problem. Tonight I am planning on hooking up my old Voom receiver just to see if I can still receive the local HD channels just to test it out. I will let you all know of my findings. Please advise. |
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HD Guy Unregistered guest | Omer, when the Dish installer removed the Voom dish, did they also remove the OTA HD antenna? It is the ugly UHF antenna under the dish. If it is still there, you may be able to hook up your Voom box and get the local HD channels. I was able to do that after I stopped the Voom service but before it shut down. I tried it just for fun since I have a true HDTV and I got all the OTA channels through my indoor antenna. I don't have DN HD but according to its DVR-921 description, it can integrate with an outdoor antenna and make all the local HD channels available in the program guide as well as recording just like the Voom box except for the recording part. |
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Unregistered guest | HD Guy, I still have the foot and a half (w) 4 1/2 feet (L) antenna on my roof. It was never physically attached to the dish, it is a free standing antenna. I have 2 problems with hooking the antenna back to the Voom receiver. 1. Even though I am pretty sure they will not, Voom may ask for their boxes back. 2. I do not want to occupy one of the inputs behind the TV for 8 channels, as it stands now I am low on inputs right now, plus I would have to move back and forth between 1 component to the next to watch TV. I just don't see a reason why this antenna worked with Voom and not working with DishNet. |
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HD Guy Unregistered guest | Omer, I agree with you that hooking back the Voom box is not a long term solution. As far as if it worked for Voom why shouldn't it work for DishNet, it depends on the receiver you have now. It could be as simple as adding a diplexer. Ask DishNet about it. |
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Unregistered guest | GOOD NEWS!!! It was the installer that made a mistake. He miswired couple of the connections in my basement. My Local HD's are Fantastic!!! I am getting everything I used to get with Voom. Now the only thing left is the lack of Audio. I need to turn the TV volume pretty high to be able to hear what is going on. Any suggestions??? I used various different audio cables. I have no intention to purchase a home theater system as of yet. |
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HD Guy Unregistered guest | Good for you Omer. Are you using the same antenna from Voom or DN gave you a different one? My old antenna from Voom was a piece of junk. It would not get anything above Ch.21 (we have 2 HD stations at 23 and 45) while my little indoor one pulls all the HD stations in my area. |
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Omer Unregistered guest | Hi HD Guy, It is the antenna that I got from Voom. I subscribed to Voom late 04 perhalps that may be the reason why I received a different antenna compared to yours. If you would like I can try and find out what it is and post it here. Omer |
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Anonymous | It may be that the amplifier on the off-the air antenna of voom is not getting voltage. I tried hookinh up the voom antenna sateellite cable to a FTA box(Fortec Ultra) and got good listing on Nimiq2 and on Nimiq1/3. Of course the FTA box needs to have the latest software. The conclusion is that the voom sat and lnb are compatible with Dish or an FTA reciever. As pointed by Voom, the voom dish gets the Nimiq2 sat which is at 82 degrees west and is the DISH sat for international channels. Repointed farther west it should work fine on the other dish sats |
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Gail Saliterman Unregistered guest | Can one buy an indoor antenna to use in a New York City apt that will permit viewing of local stations without HDTV. And, if I have a Sony HDTV capable TV, is there an indoor antenna that will work or must my building have an outdoor antenna? |
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harry mueller3 Unregistered guest | dish RETAILER told me that jan 2006 they will have local channels in hd. anyone else hear that? |
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New member Username: JljorgePost Number: 1 Registered: Oct-05 | Hi, can anyone tell which city in the US will get HD locals from dish network? |
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Unregistered guest | I have Dish, but I also have Basic Cable. Reason: I needed to keep Cable Internet, which by itself cost the same as having it with Basic, plus I didn't want two dishes on my house to get a couple local PBS stations. Originally I wanted to save the local money, but with the DHA I HAD to get locals, even with 180 and the German Language Package. So, can I get HD on my locals over Cable with a TV with built in HD Tuner? |
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harry mueller3 Unregistered guest | i'm in chicago. they said here, but made it sound like everywhere. Also I had a problem with them regarding very weak signal, 40-50 on sat 119 and 50-60 on 110. both Dish and the local retailer wanted to charge for a problem that was theirs. A friend of mine who knows Sat. came over removed the dish, moved it and secured it better {the installer did a terrible job, it was moving} and used a meter to align properly. Now I get a signal up to 115!!! From what he tells me most if not all problems are install problems that may take months to show up. like a loose bolt or mounting on the roof that is not put into a stud. now my tv is what it supposed to be. I almost dumped the boxes off at the retailer. |
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Unregistered guest | I have Dish, but I also have Basic Cable. Reason: I needed to keep Cable Internet, which by itself cost the same as having it with Basic, plus I didn't want two dishes on my house to get a couple local PBS stations. Originally I wanted to save the local money, but with the DHA I HAD to get locals, even with 180 and the German Language Package. |
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Unregistered guest | I have Dish, but I also have Basic Cable. Reason: I needed to keep Cable Internet, which by itself cost the same as having it with Basic, plus I didn't want two dishes on my house to get a couple local PBS stations. Originally I wanted to save the local money, but with the DHA I HAD to get locals, even with 180 and the German Language Package. So, If I have a TV with an HD Tuner, can I get HD on my locals over Basic Cable if that show is broadcast in HD? Or, do you need the special channel like they have on Digital-Cable (eg ABC-D)? |
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Bronze Member Username: D_singhPost Number: 32 Registered: Sep-05 | Bill, I believe you'd need digital cable. Analog channels OTA won't carry HD content, only digital. |
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Bronze Member Username: D_singhPost Number: 33 Registered: Sep-05 | Bill...another word...You probably also need an HD tuner to be able to watch HD content anyway, and if digital cable does not provide local HD programming for no additional cost, then just hook up a roof-top or in-door antenna to the tuner and get your digital HD local content that way. I'm not too familiar with how cable or digital cable works. |
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SPH Unregistered guest | Does anyone know if DISH is truly going to carry local HD programming beginning in Jan 2006? That would be great. Been trying different HD antennas, 3rd one so far, the radio shack "airplane". Does this work well when mounted above the roof line? Thanks. |
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Unregistered guest | Just got a Dish 811 upgrade for my new Samsung 1080p DLP TV. The over the air locals in HD are incredible! But once through the Dish 811 they look more like SD than HD. Definitely not as good as direct from antenna to the TV. It should be pass through for local HD station broadcasts. I double checked by conncecting directly to the antenna which is out in my garage rafters. It is almost perfect. Then again through the 811 HD from Dish and it is degraded. Why???? The Dish HD pack channels like Discovery are pretty good but not as good as straight off the air via regular TV antenna. Yes a regular TV antenna folks! And it is razor sharp. You do not need any special antenna for OTA. |
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Unregistered guest | Just got a Dish 811 upgrade for my new Samsung 1080p DLP TV. The over the air locals in HD are incredible! But once through the Dish 811 they look more like SD than HD. Definitely not as good as direct from antenna to the TV. It should be pass through for local HD station broadcasts. I double checked by conncecting directly to the antenna which is out in my garage rafters. It is almost perfect. Then again through the 811 HD from Dish and it is degraded. Why???? The Dish HD pack channels like Discovery are pretty good but not as good as straight off the air via regular TV antenna. Yes a regular TV antenna folks! And it is razor sharp. You do not need any special antenna for OTA. |
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New member Username: RdblatchPost Number: 3 Registered: May-05 | SPH - I Just had a Dish Network technician at my house. He said that in the Denver market and ~13 others, local channels will be available in HD by the end of this month (December). I didn't even ask, he volunteered the information. So that's great news!! |
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StinkyDad Unregistered guest | Rob and SPH - I live in Dallas, TX (one of the new markets that is broadcasting local channels in HD eff. 12/8/05). I don't know if DISH currently has a comparable receiver , but Directv's brand new H20 receiver allows for the receiving of local HD without an OTA antenna. I am about to have it installed at my house and can hardly wait. I used to have the DISH 811 and the Terk 44 as the OTA antenna and hated having to adjust it in order to pick up local digital channels. The only thing I will miss about DISH is that Directv does not have TNT HD. However, Directv will be offering many more national and local HD channels in the near future to other markets, thanks to 4 new satellites that under construction. |
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Anonymous | Im from just north of Grand Rapids, Michigan and i have Dish Network. we have the hd pack but our locals arent in hd. does anyone know if our locals will be in hd anytime soon? |
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Unregistered guest | Does anyone know what the real truth is regarding DISH Network providing HD for local channels in the Seattle Washington area (or any area for that matter). After spending a ton of money on a new HD Plasma, a DISH DVR 942 Receiver and more than one off-air antenna, I still can't get my locals in HD. Because of the specific area I live in, It appears waiting for DISH or Direct to offer them is my only option. Does anyone out there have the real story on this? |
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Dish_Millionaire Unregistered guest | Ha...ha...ha....ha....ha....ha...ha...ha....you are under my control...ha...ha..NO! No! Don't kill your TV no...no....nooooooooo!!!!! |
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New member Username: Chadm82Post Number: 4 Registered: May-05 | I have been talking to Dish Network about this an they told me to hold of on getting the hd receiver and programming until Q1 of 2006 I called them yesterday and they said it would be available next month i will be calling back then to get it. This is HD channels with local HD as well. |
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Bronze Member Username: D_singhPost Number: 79 Registered: Sep-05 | I don't understand why locals aren't broadcast in HD. I mean, if it's a legal permission problem, Dish already has local packages in SD. Why not digital? Makes no sense. |
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New member Username: NickpadovaniNewnan, GA USA Post Number: 2 Registered: Jan-06 | Dish will always be playing catch up to DirecTV. They are a smaller company, and cant afford to put up new sats like Direct. Direct you can get your locals in HD if you live in certain areas. (I'm from atlanta, and we get them all). You do, however need to get their new 5lnb dish (the 3 lnb + Ka/Ku for the locals) and the new DirecTV H20 receiver. Unfortunately, they dont have a HD DVR that can get the locals (yet). Dish Network has basically no offerings for locals in HD, and it will probably be a while before you see them. |
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New member Username: KanwarPost Number: 4 Registered: Nov-05 | I have viewsat2000 platinum. i do not get discovery channel on echostar7. can anyone help me out. right now it is on 12326 20000 h 5/6 v5154 a5155 p5154. will appreciate |
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Anonymous | I currently have dishnetwork and live in an area that is not allowed to get cbs or abc because of a local affiliat in Salisbury MD. Unfort. Unless I get a very big ant. and a amplifier I can not get local channels. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to get around this? |
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bobiroc Unregistered guest | Dish network is supposed to Launch Local Channels in HD in February, but you will need a new receiver because of the MPEG 4 compression they will be using. http://www.cnet.com/4831-11405_1-6414582.html I can't wait, I was about to cancel and go with DirectTV or Comcast so I could have my local HD channels. |
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midolo Unregistered guest | Dish sent me the new MPEG 4 receiver when I upgraded to HD this month. Does anyone know which markets are going HD on Feb first? |
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Unregistered guest | There are a lot of rumors regarding DISH and locals in HD. Is there any place one can go to find FACTS (i.e. timetables, markets) I live in Miami and would like to take the plunge to HD. My options are Comcast, DirecTV, and DISH |
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soco Unregistered guest | i talked to dish 12/29, csr said they would release list of 50 markets today (2/1) where they would be brodcasting HD locals, their website is not updated as of yet (08:30 CST) |
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Gautam Unregistered guest | Hi, I have a Dish 811 receiver and want to connect my off-air antenna to it. However, the port in the back for the "TV/Antenna Cable in" is being used by the Cable-in feed to the receiver. Can anyone tell me how I would also add the antenna cable to that port? Should I use some sort of a combiner/diplexer? |
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coolguy Unregistered guest | I live in Ontario, CA, and just added a off- air attena to capture HD local channels, So far no regrets picture comes in as good as HDNET provided by DISH-NETWORK. |
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coolguy Unregistered guest | I live in Ontario, CA, and just added a off- air attena to capture HD local channels, So far no regrets picture comes in as good as HDNET provided by DISH-NETWORK. |
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OTA OTTER Unregistered guest | We just put an OTA antenna in our attic. While we were able to get 4 digital PBS stations, we could not achieve any of the local networks. Do you think we need to hang the antenna outside on the roof, would inside the attic make that much difference? Thanks |
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Anonymous | We just installed an OTA antenna in our attic, but were only able to get 4 digital PBS channels. In order to get the local networks from NYC, should we install it on the roof instead? Does hanging it in the attic make that much difference? Thanks. |
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J JACKIE JACKSON Unregistered guest | We just installed an OTA antenna in our attic, but were only able to get 4 digital PBS channels. In order to get the local networks from NYC, should we install it on the roof instead? Does hanging it in the attic make that much difference? Thanks. |
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MB5151 Unregistered guest | Ok, so I live in Dallas and I just connected my OTA antenna to my Dish Network 811 receiver. According to www.antennaweb.org I should be able to receive up to 25 HD channels. My question is how will I receive these. Do I simply tune in to Channel 4, for example, and view Fox HD from there or is there a separate station for Fox HD that I need to tune to? I guess I don't understand how the OTA antenna integrates in to the Dish Network receiver. Any help on the matter would be appreciated. |
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tho Unregistered guest | Jackie, Not really needed for the VHF/UHF antenna to be in the attic, not to say on the roof. Mine is just next to the TV on 2nd floor, right beside the windows, pointing outside toward the stations and I am capable of capturing all HD channesl (CBS, ABC, NBC, Fox, WB, PBS, KERA, ...). HD picture is very nice even though the signal strength is just about 80%. You need a directional one and point it toward the stations. |
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geniusjc Unregistered guest | Dish Network owned by Echostar Communications is a much larger company than DirecTV in terms of offerings and revenue, this is why they were able to buy VOOM and why they just launched a new satellite for locals in HD and will launch another new satellite early next year as well. They launched a new satellite, Echostar 10, in February from Sea Launch. This satellite is currently at 138.5 degrees and will be testing for a little while then moved to 110 degrees orbit alongside the Echostar 6 and 8 satellites. There it will provide 49 spot beams for HD locals covering the U.S. The satellite features 10 uplink spot beams that will be pointed at six locations inside the continental United States and four additional sites in Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and Cuba. The uplinks provide the signal for the HD locals to the satellite. The satellite's 49 downlink spot beams will be pointed at over four dozen locations inside the United States, Puerto Rico, and Cuba. EchoStar 10 will be deemed operational sometime in late April. |
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Coolguy Unregistered guest | In response to the posting on 02/28/06 at 4:56 After hooking up off-air atenna to satellite receiver you MUST program your receiver by doing a local channel scan(digital). This option is found on menu option. 1: bring up menu option. 2: sytem set-up. 3: digital local channel scan. 4: Highlite all digital channels that became available, and last enjoy locals programming in HD. |
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New member Username: GegoDallas, TX USA Post Number: 1 Registered: May-06 | I am wondering how many out there are having the same problem I'm having with Dish and my new HD television. Got it in February and have had problems from day 1. TV just goes black about once a day and the receiver must be reset (which takes about 10-15 minutes). Dish finally acknowledged a "known" software/receiver problem and I have replaced receiver 3 times to no avail. They can't say when the problem will be fixed so I am changing to Direct. |
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New member Username: GegoDallas, TX USA Post Number: 2 Registered: May-06 | I am wondering how many out there are having the same problem I'm having with Dish and my new HD television. Got it in February and have had problems from day 1. TV just goes black about once a day and the receiver must be reset (which takes about 10-15 minutes). Dish finally acknowledged a "known" software/receiver problem and I have replaced receiver 3 times to no avail. They can't say when the problem will be fixed so I am changing to Direct. |
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New member Username: Jwj356San Mateo, California USA Post Number: 7 Registered: Mar-06 | To Beverly Putnam's comment about the TV going black. I've had something similar happening but not from "day 1". Only recently has it been a problem. I left an e-mail to Dish Network on their website asking if there is a known problem. Let's see what their answer is. |
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New member Username: Jwj356San Mateo, California USA Post Number: 10 Registered: Mar-06 | Re my post above; after about a week I got a reply from Dish Network asking for serial number, etc. They said software upgrades usually take care of such problems. Soon after I wrote the original post, the problem went away. So, perhaps there had been an auto- software upgrade. John |
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New member Username: BobgAnch., Ak. Post Number: 3 Registered: Nov-05 | have dish net. live in anch ak. seems whenever we have a rainy day we constantly lose our signal. gets pretty iritating after a while. is this happening all over, or just here? was originaly told this would only happin once in a while.don,t appreciate paying for a pic of lost signal on the screen! |
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New member Username: BobgAnch., Ak. Post Number: 4 Registered: Nov-05 | have dish net. live in anch ak. seems whenever we have a rainy day we constantly lose our signal. gets pretty iritating after a while. is this happening all over, or just here? was originaly told this would only happin once in a while.don,t appreciate paying for a pic of lost signal on the screen! |
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Bronze Member Username: Jwj356San Mateo, California USA Post Number: 36 Registered: Mar-06 | Regarding reception in Anchorage, I suspect that you are getting HD signal off Echostar 4 in the 129 slot (please confirm this). That is an older lower-power satellite that also has a wobble problem. That coupled by it being low on the horizon at your latitude and the heavy overcast during rain probably are the reasons for the spotty reception. |
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Bronze Member Username: Jwj356San Mateo, California USA Post Number: 37 Registered: Mar-06 | Again regarding Anchorage reception, is yours a Dish 1000 (the oval dish that is supposed to receive 3 satellite signals)? It is better to have a separate dish for the 129 satellite. |
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New member Username: ShaheeralisonhotmailcomPost Number: 1 Registered: Jan-07 | hey i need keys i can not find in any site so please can u help me i need dish network keys ,its changing all the time !!! |
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New member Username: Mounir223Dearborn, Michigan Usa Post Number: 1 Registered: Feb-07 | hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh hhhhh |
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New member Username: MmorlinoTexas Post Number: 1 Registered: Apr-08 | Question: We get Austin, TX locals, and until recently Dish has told us that they did not broadcast the Austin, TX locals in HD (even though we pay for them). A few weeks ago I received an e-mail from Dish stating that the Austin, TX locals were now available in HD and to call to receive them. So, I did... they didn't know why I wasn't receiving them already, and took me thru a few steps to try to get them. Eventually they told me to call back if I didn't have them in 15 minutes. We never received them, but I was too busy to call back. Well, a few days later my husband calls, and now they tell him that we need a separate dish to receive just the HD locals, and that the install is $70 on a 2 yr contract or $100 on no contract. So we would have two dishes on our house. Is this true? Or is this BS? Or... even if we were to get a separate dish, would it not really be in HD? I'm just confused. |
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New member Username: MikecaryPost Number: 1 Registered: Dec-08 | I just upgraded my DISH tv from the HD channels I got to include the local HD channels in my area - Jacksonville, Fl. Dish came out, took down a DISH 500 dish and put up a DISH 1000.4 dish - no charge to me. Now I get the HD local channels, as well as all the others. No problem here... |
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New member Username: BrittanybPost Number: 1 Registered: Jul-10 | I was looking on http://www.dishcomparison.com/ and it appears that DISH is running a promotion for free HD for life. Is this true? I read in the fine print that it was for the life of the contract. Does that mean the 24 month contract or as long as you keep DISH Network? |
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Gold Member Username: SamijubalPost Number: 4254 Registered: Jul-04 | As long as the account is active. They lost 4 HD channels recently, Disney Channel, Disney XD, ABC Family and ESPNews. |
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New member Username: NanotechPost Number: 1 Registered: Jul-10 | All HD channels are listing here: |
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New member Username: Markamara2011Post Number: 1 Registered: Mar-11 | @Brittany-B you need minimum 24 months contract with Dish Network for 'HD Free for Life' offer. You may also check the latest Dish Network deals in the year 2011. |