I was just wondering, if you have a TV with an analog tuner, would it be possible to put the same digital conversion box between your cable TV input cable and your cable box? Would this improve the quality of your picture and sound? After all, the same cable TV service works for both TV’s with analog and digital tuners.
Switch to Digital TV
- Thread starter elmo16
- Start date
There has been talk about cable TV dropping analog transmission as well. In that case you would need some sort of digital to analog converter for your cable (and dish TV), or you would have to buy a new TV with a digital tuner for your cable and dish TV. It seems that cable internet providers are running out of band width and some of them are starting to cap monthly internet usage.
Cable providers will automatically down convert their signal to work on analog TVs but you need to have a digital cable box installed. And the internet bandwidth caps are usually placed on upload speeds rather than download. Believe it or not the amount of uploading of videos and pictures and music, etc. is a major bandwidth issue. All high speed internet providers including the telcos are charging more for higher speeds. Surprisingly Cablevision is still providing a fast broadband service for their normal charge. Too bad they have to rip you off on your tv charges.
Cablevision's list of analog channels available without a converter box has been steadily dwindling. I converted to Verizon's FIOS and they gave me a small digital converter which allows my TV to get all the non premium channels on my TV's tuner, works great and I can just use the TV's remote as usual. Cablevision's compressed HD drove my crazy. It was like watching stop action at times. I find the non compressed FIOS signal to be a lot better.
See the link below about internet usage capping.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2336939,00.asp
With so many services like Vudu, Hulu, Netflix, Blockbuster, Apple TV and dozens of other web sites that offer content for free, charge a fee, charge a fee plus a charge for each movie or TV show watched, require a box, only work on your TV, etc. (Terk sells a devise called the Leapfrog that allows you to transmit wirelessly from your computer to your TV), your cable usage could go into Terabytes. Also the fact that these services provide content that the cable companies include in their premium packages would seem to imply that internet usage caps will soon be universal.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2336939,00.asp
With so many services like Vudu, Hulu, Netflix, Blockbuster, Apple TV and dozens of other web sites that offer content for free, charge a fee, charge a fee plus a charge for each movie or TV show watched, require a box, only work on your TV, etc. (Terk sells a devise called the Leapfrog that allows you to transmit wirelessly from your computer to your TV), your cable usage could go into Terabytes. Also the fact that these services provide content that the cable companies include in their premium packages would seem to imply that internet usage caps will soon be universal.
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The Government is running out of money for the digital conversion box rebate.
http://apnews.excite.com/article/20090102/D95F7PD86.html
http://apnews.excite.com/article/20090102/D95F7PD86.html
DIGITAL TV
An early challenge could be one for which the next secretary has little time to prepare.
The Government Accountability Office has warned that about 15 percent of U.S. households with analog TV sets could see their screens go black when the country switches to digital television on February 17.
Regulators are offering consumers $40 coupons to help pay for converter boxes, but a Republican on the five-member Federal Communications Commission said in October he expected the transition to be "messy."
SINP from the recent news on the position of the Secretary of Commerce
http://www.utopiaguide.com/forums/showthread.php?t=35426
An early challenge could be one for which the next secretary has little time to prepare.
The Government Accountability Office has warned that about 15 percent of U.S. households with analog TV sets could see their screens go black when the country switches to digital television on February 17.
Regulators are offering consumers $40 coupons to help pay for converter boxes, but a Republican on the five-member Federal Communications Commission said in October he expected the transition to be "messy."
SINP from the recent news on the position of the Secretary of Commerce
http://www.utopiaguide.com/forums/showthread.php?t=35426
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My apt. building changed cable providers, now I have to get Cablevision. I got a digital conversion box, and I was playing with it. Here's what I found:
The problem with the digital conversion box is that it cannot be MANUALLY tuned to a given DTV channel. The only way you can tune to a DTV channel is to have the box do a search and find the active channels. You cannot tune a channel that the box hasn't found on its own.
Here lies the problem: how to you aim your antenna? Although the box has an on-screen signal meter, the meter can't be used unless you are tuned to a DTV channel. You can't tune to a DTV channel unless the box found the channel during an auto-search. But the box won't find a channel during the auto-search unless you already have your antenna aimed! Unless you get lucky and manage to point your antenna very closely to the direction of the station you are seeking, the box won't find anything when it searches for active channels.
In areas where all the local stations transmit from a common location this may not be that big of a problem. If you manage to find one you've found them all. But in areas where each station maintains its own transmitter site - areas where you may have to use a rotor for your antenna - you are left with the Chicken and The Egg.
The problem with the digital conversion box is that it cannot be MANUALLY tuned to a given DTV channel. The only way you can tune to a DTV channel is to have the box do a search and find the active channels. You cannot tune a channel that the box hasn't found on its own.
Here lies the problem: how to you aim your antenna? Although the box has an on-screen signal meter, the meter can't be used unless you are tuned to a DTV channel. You can't tune to a DTV channel unless the box found the channel during an auto-search. But the box won't find a channel during the auto-search unless you already have your antenna aimed! Unless you get lucky and manage to point your antenna very closely to the direction of the station you are seeking, the box won't find anything when it searches for active channels.
In areas where all the local stations transmit from a common location this may not be that big of a problem. If you manage to find one you've found them all. But in areas where each station maintains its own transmitter site - areas where you may have to use a rotor for your antenna - you are left with the Chicken and The Egg.
Here's how behind the times I am, but it also raises an issue someone may be able to help me with:
Before I switched my antenna reception over to digital, I used to run my signal through my old VCR mostly so I could play the audio through my stereo system. When I got the digital converter box, there were instructions on how to wire the system through a VCR, but I couldn't get it to work at all. Very frustrating!
Before I switched my antenna reception over to digital, I used to run my signal through my old VCR mostly so I could play the audio through my stereo system. When I got the digital converter box, there were instructions on how to wire the system through a VCR, but I couldn't get it to work at all. Very frustrating!
As the digital converter boxes are so totally lame that you cannot manually adjust the channels after the converter boxes have scanned the channels, or connect the converter box to your VCR, on can only surmise that the whole converter box was a totally lame-ass political solution to the digital switch over.
Your best bet is to forget all about these silly-ass converter boxes and buy a new digital TV. That way you can connect your sound system directly to your TV.
The same people who fucked up the economy, agreed to this stupid converter box bull-shit. The up side to this is that you can get a large screen TV for fire sale prices.
Your best bet is to forget all about these silly-ass converter boxes and buy a new digital TV. That way you can connect your sound system directly to your TV.
The same people who fucked up the economy, agreed to this stupid converter box bull-shit. The up side to this is that you can get a large screen TV for fire sale prices.
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Come on, the only reason the converter box exists is for people who don't have any money, are stubborn or ornery. We have known about this conversion for years. People have had plenty of time to get their money out of the old CRT analog sets. It was like touch tone phones, I know people to this day have a rotary dial phone because they are too stubborn to get a TT phone. One of the problems was that manufactures had a large quantity of old analog sets to unload, they dumped them at cheap prices to get rid of them and now the people who bought them are pissed because they will become sort of useless. Besides, anyone on this board is supposed to be a monger, if so, you can afford P4P, so quit being cheap and get a new set. Hell, you can buy a compliant set for the price of a session.
The truth is that the converter boxes may be good if you have a roof top antenna that you never have to adjust. If you have rabbit ears that you often have to adjust. You have to wonder if the electronics firm that designed the basic circuit board that all the mfgrs. of these converter boxes use had some sort in influence with the White House. By the way, have you gotten your Bird Flue shot yet?
Obama is now calling for a delay in the switch to digital TV:
http://tvdecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/08/obama-recommends-delay-in-digital-tv-switch/?hp
http://tvdecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/08/obama-recommends-delay-in-digital-tv-switch/?hp
It would probably be better in the long run if the Federal Government would just pay to have local governments install wireless WIFI internet and wireless basic TV. Many cities, towns and municipalities have considered installing free WIFI internet, only they couldn’t afford it on their own. With Federal aid, they could. This would create tens of thousands of new jobs, as well as provide poor inner city kids with access to the internet. Maybe they could throw in a cheap netbook for good measure.
House defeats bill that would have delayed digital TV transition
http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/patterson/34955
http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/patterson/34955
I read that earlier and i'm glad. I'm sorry if i offend anyone, but if you haven't taken the proper steps to be prepared for this, oh well, it's on you. A very small % of households are unprepared, yet had two years to prepare for this.
Just throw the damn switch, see how many people are now willing to shell out $40 to get their shows back.
On another note, i don't think the government should be giving out coupons for this. I've been prepared for years, spent the money on new sets, yet my tax dollars have to go to those who don't have a new tv. gimme a break.
Just throw the damn switch, see how many people are now willing to shell out $40 to get their shows back.
On another note, i don't think the government should be giving out coupons for this. I've been prepared for years, spent the money on new sets, yet my tax dollars have to go to those who don't have a new tv. gimme a break.