[InHam] TV is bad, Radio is good
Dean, Gregory A SSG RES USAR USARC
greg.dean at us.army.mil
Wed Feb 11 17:07:10 EST 2009
I just purchased a couple of the DTV converters from Best Buy. The APEX
brand has two models, the DT-250 and the DT-502. They are the same price,
$49 (minus the $40 coupon), but the DT-502 is newer (and harder to find)
with a few more features. Both have S-Video and RCA connectors as well as F
connectors. And both have a jack for the new smart antennas.
The Smart Antenna concept is using phased array antennas (like on a radar)
so that the antenna is electronically "rotated". The jack allows the TV to
give feedback and once the station is IDed then the unit stores the
direction so that the next time the station is selected the antenna
automatically points to it.
http://broadcastengineering.com/hdtv/smart_antennas/
The DTA500 from Solid Signal is a very small outside antenna that
automatically points to the station. RCA and others are coming out with
their versions as well. Rabbit ears are "old school".
http://www.solidsignal.com/prod_display.asp?prod=DTA5000
N9NWO
_____
From: inham-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:inham-bounces at mailman.qth.net]
On Behalf Of KB9BVN
Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2009 4:50 PM
To: ka9jwx at yahoo.com; InHams
Subject: [InHam] TV is bad, Radio is good
Maybe people ought to just uplung their TV sets and just forget about it.
500 channels of nothing to watch can be yours for only $89.95 a month.
----- Original Message -----
From: Paul Webster <mailto:ka9jwx at yahoo.com>
To: KA9QJGREPEATERS at yahoogroups.com ; CountryLifeandHomesteading-owner
<mailto:CountryLifeandHomesteading-owner at yahoogroups.com> ; handiham
<mailto:handiham at courage.org> courage.org ; InHams
<mailto:inham at mailman.qth.net> ; ragchewers post
<mailto:ragchewersgroup at yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2009 3:05 AM
Subject: Re: [InHam] [KA9QJGREPEATERS] Digital conversion could be rough
forrural areas
I can't imagine anyone out in the rural areas trying to pick up an analog tv
signal w/rabbit ears, not to mention a digital tv signal.
They need a kick butt fringe tv antenna on a tower feeding a signal into a
kick butt amp that feeds signal into a kick butt converter box or a digital
tv.
I thought that all the tv veiwers out in the country already had towers for
their tv antennas, but now that I think of it, the last time I was out in
the country to visit family who live in rural Renselear, Indiana, I didn't
see a lot of towers at all, & being a ham, I notice towers.
Maybe the gov should give $s/coupons to people to buy antennas, towers,
coax, & amps also.
73/75 de ka9jwx, Paul Lewis Webster
John 3:16
Proud member of the;
ARRL
AARP
NRA
Handihams
LiveFreeUSA
Long:-87.334L (-87*20'3"W)
Lat:41.4967N (41*29'48"N)
EN61HL
Merrillville, Indiana, USA
;-)
--- On Tue, 2/10/09, Don <KA9QJG at WOWWAY.COM> wrote:
From: Don <KA9QJG at WOWWAY.COM>
Subject: [KA9QJGREPEATERS] Digital conversion could be rough for rural areas
To: KA9QJGREPEATERS at yahoogroups.com
Date: Tuesday, February 10, 2009, 7:13 PM
I guess by Now Everyone knows about the deadline for Switching over
has been extended until June 12 09, Well that is fine but I think
most Freqs have already been sold And Most will be Ready or have
already Switched ,
I did get My 2 Coupons but have not used them yet I am trying to find
a converter box with a build in DVR , after reading this article I
have a Question That Maybe Our Member Tom W9SRY In the Business or
Mark KA9OOI can Answer . And that question is,
We know in Ham Radio We have used Converters And Transvertors
,
Built repeaters . Worked UHF . 900 Mhz , Used Preamps Etc. and Every
time We added Coax , Connectors Etc. we got LOSS .
So will a new TV with a Built in Digital tuner out Perform a
Converter Box
73 De Don KA9QJG
Jackson Township resident Wayne Weaver said that if his television
reception during stormy weather is any sign of the troubles to come,
then he is certainly concerned about losing broadcast signal after
the nation's analog to digital conversion.
Even though Weaver has a large antenna mounted on his roof, he says
he still cannot receive a digital signal during bouts of bad weather.
"During a heavy rainstorm, either here or directly south of us, I
will lose signal. I cannot get channel 5 and I have never been able
to get channel 7. My concern is when everything is digital, I'll be
without a signal," Weaver said.
He said he has contacted Chicago
television stations to inquire if
they will increase their output or keep it at the same strength as
analog, but he has been unable to get an answer and fears the answer
will come after conversion.
Toni Falvo, vice president of research programming and press at WMAQ
in Chicago, which owns and operates NBC5, says the signal strength
will not change from what now is being broadcast.
"The digital signal we have replicates the analog, so it's just the
same strength as the analog," Falvo says.
For those in rural areas, like Weaver, and others who may not have
rooftop antennas, this may mean problems.
"It all depends on the individual and the antenna they have," Falvo
said.
Dale Kempf, adjunct professor in Valparaiso University's electrical
and computer engineering department, agrees and said the problem has
to do with the nature of the digital signal versus the analog
signal.
"With digital broadcasting, there is an error-correcting code built
in, so if you receive an error in the signal, but there aren't too
many errors, the picture can correct itself. But too many errors in
the signal and it can't correct itself, so you won't get a picture at
all. With digital broadcast, it's either an all or nothing picture,"
Kempf said.
That means for people like Weaver, they may be left with a black
screen. And Kempf knows what that looks like, since he is not only an
expert in the field, but also a consumer.
"I live about a half mile south of highway (U.S.) 30 in Valparaiso. I
have a pretty good antenna and have a converter box and it still
depends on the weather if I get a signal or not. Sometimes I have
trouble with channel 7's digital broadcast, and have problems with
channels 26 and 62," Kempf says.
And these are the residents who have rooftop or large
digital
antennas. For those residents who have been getting by with a snowy
or fuzzy but acceptable analog signal picture for the past number of
years, chances are slim they will be able to get a digital picture,
said Greg Clark, who is in system design and integration with Omni
Entertainment in Valparaiso.
Although it is difficult for experts to pinpoint who will receive a
quality digital signal and who will not, www.tvfool.com does have a
listing of the regional stations' digital signal strength. While
WMAQ, or channel 5, has a digital broadcast strength of 350
kilowatts, WLS's digital broadcast strength is only 153.6 kilowatts,
so weaker channels may not be picked up in rural, wooded areas,
especially by set top antennas.
"Bottom line is, you have to have good equipment to receive a good
picture on the TV. There's just not enough signal strength to go all
those miles, especially not to
rabbit ears on top of a TV. That will
not be good enough to pull in the signal," Clark said.
What's the solution? Clark said, "They need a bigger external antenna
to pull the signal, and not just an antenna, but an amplifier as
well."
He also says that the quality of the converter box is an issue.
"If it's a digital tuner that costs $40, as much as the coupon, then
it's just not the same as a $60 tuner because you get what you pay
for. A more expensive tuner has better circuitry that captures the
most from the antenna," Clark said.
And there is some hope, Clark said, that the current situation may
not be reflective of what will come.
"Currently broadcasters are sending signals in analog and digital, so
the airwaves are crowded with both digital and analog signals. Once
the transition occurs, the airwaves will become less crowded with
just digital," he said.
Unfortunately,
for most rural television viewers, the real answer may
be to watch and see.
Copyright C 2009 nwi.com
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