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  • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

    Finally, KHET reception is back, clear as a bell (so it must have been a broadcasting problem - my set-up certainly hasn't changed). I bought a converter box that indicates signal strength, so now I can try 'optimize' my rusty rabbit ears.
    May I always be found beneath your contempt.

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    • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

      Michael,
      The conversion will be 12 noon on January 15th.
      Mike

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      • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

        What kind of antenna are you guys running? And can you point out your physical location (general area), too?

        I live in Foster Village and I'm running a Terk amplified indoor antenna.

        http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage....=1051384457031

        I get average results, similar to what is reported in Ewa Beach. KGMB's signal sux. Others are not bad, occasionally dropping out. When my wife runs the microwave oven, the signal drops on the TV.

        I hope Oceanic starts providing the basic OTA digital channels over basic cable (which is what we have). I hope they don't expect me to give them more money to add to receive what I can get over the air for free. (They do have a few now, KHON, KHNL, KHWE, and a bunch of home shopping/garbage stuff.)

        78 home shopping channels on Oceanic Cable don't mean spit to me. I watch the 5 major loca stations via Oceanic. I rarely watch other cable programming, other than the Discovery Channel. I look forward to receiving digital signals from all OTA stations over Oceanic's basic cable, soon.

        If it doesn't happen, I may need to switch on my antenna full-time, discontinue cable, maybe invest in some bigger antenna iron for my home along with distribution amplifier.
        Make trouble, have fun, do good stuffs.

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        • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

          "I hope Oceanic starts providing the basic OTA digital channels over basic cable (which is what we have)."

          They do. Oceanic has been transmitting the local channel's HD signals for over a year already, on basic cable (No digital box needed). However, Oceanic will never tell you that. Your TV's tuner must have the ATSC/QAM digital tuner built in. Hook up the basic cable straight to your TV and have your TV do an auto search for channels. Off the top of my head:

          KHNL-HD 83.3
          KHON-HD 85.3
          CW (KHON)-digital (not HD) 85.4
          KFVE-HD 110.1
          KGMB-HD 113.1
          KITV-HD 114.2
          KHET-HD 120.12

          Recently, Oceanic has put up digital channels (not HD) of KIKU, KWHE, KAAH, KPXO & KWBN, on the basic cable. What I do is a re-map of the channels (auto channel search) on my TV, once a week. Oceanic is always moving things around. KGMB-HD was at 99.1 for a long time, then one day it switched to 113.1. On average, their is about 35 digital channels available with your basic cable, connected straight to your TV.

          Aloha,
          DXer

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          • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

            KGMB is moving it's transmitter to Palehua Ridge as well as increasing it's power output when they move there so reception of their signal will improve.

            FWIW, KHNL and KFVE have also filed with the FCC to increase their power output as well which should impove reception for them as well. KHET will reuse it's channel 11 frequency after the DTV transistion date and should improve reception for them as well.

            As for Oceanic, if your only interested in the local channels you can downgrade to it's "lifeline" service, which they call "Basic", for about $15 a month. Oceanic will install a filter on your cable line that screens out most of the standard cable channels. On the analog side, you will get all the main local stations(KHON, KBFD, etc), the Olelo channels as well as a few other public interest channels and TBS. On the digital side if you TV has a QAM tuner the unencrypted digital channels that DXer mentions.
            Last edited by Ninja; December 30, 2008, 03:03 PM.

            Comment


            • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

              Originally posted by DXer View Post
              On average, their is about 35 digital channels available with your basic cable, connected straight to your TV.
              This is certainly good to know. So I gather if subscribers with digital TV sets have the correct tuners, they won't need to rent a cable card or worse, a digital set-top box?

              Are the OTA digital TV channels all you can get with the basic set-up? If so what is the monthly price for this most basic service?

              I could probably live without most of the cable TV channels. Getting the local news is about the most important thing on TV.

              Cable TV and regular network TV series these days are routinely shown on the web or available as boxed DVD sets not too long after they air. So it seems almost not necessary to get cable.

              The only reason why I need cable in urban HNL is because of degraded OTA signals blocked by buildings and other terrain.
              I'm still here. Are you?

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              • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

                How long need we wait until all the stations reset their DTV time signals? As of yesterday none were accurate.
                May I always be found beneath your contempt.

                Comment


                • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

                  Originally posted by DXer View Post
                  "I hope Oceanic starts providing the basic OTA digital channels over basic cable (which is what we have)."

                  KHNL-HD 83.3
                  KHON-HD 85.3
                  CW (KHON)-digital (not HD) 85.4
                  KFVE-HD 110.1
                  KGMB-HD 113.1
                  KITV-HD 114.2
                  KHET-HD 120.12

                  DXer
                  Followup:

                  I've had 83.3, 85.3, 85.4 all along.

                  I rescanned twice in the past 2 days and discovered that 110.1 was now showing up. But nothing above that. I was getting kgmb when it was 99.1 but have never seen it since. I typically rescan channels 3 times a week.

                  I don't get 113.1, 114.2, 120.12 over Oceanic.

                  I did pick up one additional Japanese/Chinese channel, don't know the station; and I picked up 2 audio program channels which broadcast a quick audio signal, then go silent.

                  Weirdness.
                  Make trouble, have fun, do good stuffs.

                  Comment


                  • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

                    I'm very confused about all these channel numbers you folks are listing - I've never seen any of them. I'm getting a new HDTV tomorrow and am hooked up to Dish TV. Will I be seeing these channel numbers when I do the scanning or will it just stay the same as it is now? I have to admit I'm very ignorant about this stuff. I kind of feel like Jessica Simpson in that commercial last year where she says "I don't know what 1080I is, but I WANT it!"
                    "Democracy is the only system that persists in asking the powers that be whether they are the powers that ought to be."
                    – Sydney J. Harris

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                    • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

                      Originally posted by anapuni808 View Post
                      I'm very confused about all these channel numbers you folks are listing - I've never seen any of them. I'm getting a new HDTV tomorrow and am hooked up to Dish TV. Will I be seeing these channel numbers when I do the scanning or will it just stay the same as it is now? I have to admit I'm very ignorant about this stuff. I kind of feel like Jessica Simpson in that commercial last year where she says "I don't know what 1080I is, but I WANT it!"
                      If you have Dish, the numbers will probably be different, but the channels will all be there. Just set up the TV, plug it in to the Dish cable, then scan for channels. It should find all available digital channels and you'll see them in the Dish channel guide.

                      Whether you understand or not, you will LOVE it when you see that 1080p picture! You'll know, trust me!
                      Make trouble, have fun, do good stuffs.

                      Comment


                      • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

                        Originally posted by anapuni808 View Post
                        I'm very confused about all these channel numbers you folks are listing - I've never seen any of them. I'm getting a new HDTV tomorrow and am hooked up to Dish TV. Will I be seeing these channel numbers when I do the scanning or will it just stay the same as it is now? I have to admit I'm very ignorant about this stuff. I kind of feel like Jessica Simpson in that commercial last year where she says "I don't know what 1080I is, but I WANT it!"
                        What kind of Dish service do you have?
                        Do you know the receiver type?

                        I ask because most people in Hawaii only have a single dish(24 inch) here which is all in SD, not HD. In order to get HD service from Dish in Hawaii you need 2 dishes and an HD receiver.

                        If you live on the south shore from Ewa to the top of Kaimuki you can probably get the local stations over-the-air. You get them by using an old fashioned "rabbit ear" antenna connected to the DTV tuner on the TV.

                        When you scan for channels they will look slightly different then what you are normally use to.

                        For Oahu the DTV channels are the following:

                        2.1 KHON(FOX) HD
                        2.2 KHON (CW Hawaii)
                        4.1 KITV(ABC) HD
                        4.2 Weather Now
                        5.1 KFVE(My Network TV) HD
                        9.1 KGMB(CBS) HD
                        11.1 KHET(PBS Hawaii) HD
                        11.2 PBS Kids
                        13.1 KHNL(NBC) HD
                        14.1 KWHE
                        20.1 KIKU
                        26.1 KAAH (TBN)
                        26.2 The Church Channel
                        26.3 JCTV
                        26.4 Enlace USA
                        26.5 Smile of a Child
                        32.1 KBFD
                        66.1 KPXO(ION)
                        66.2 Qubo
                        66.3 ION Life
                        66.4 The Worship Channel

                        the .1 channels are the main channels which simulcast the same programming as the analog stations. The .2, .3, etc. are subchannels that DT stations can add thanks to the efficiency of broadcasting digitally and are almost always SD.
                        One last thing, when you scan for channels not all the channels may show up since the final transition hasn't occurred yet. Not all the channels are operating at full power or at it's final true channel.

                        If any other questions don't hesitate to ask.
                        Good Luck.

                        Comment


                        • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

                          Thanks for the reply.

                          I should have said I'm hooked up to Dish Network through my landlord. I will ask him tomorrow if I will be able to get the HD channels. His set-up is pretty new so maybe he has the right equipment.

                          Isn't the TV the receiver? right now, I don't use any rabbit ears or other antenna. and Dish Network does get all the local channels.

                          The new TV is to replace an older analog one. Actually, I think the changeover to digital signals is just my excuse to get a newer, bigger TV!
                          Last edited by anapuni808; January 2, 2009, 09:50 PM.
                          "Democracy is the only system that persists in asking the powers that be whether they are the powers that ought to be."
                          – Sydney J. Harris

                          Comment


                          • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

                            The Feds may be running out of funds for the coupon program. According to an article in today's StarBulletin, "Hawaii residents had made 50,206 requests for digital converter coupons as of last week. That is more than double the 23,000 households statewide using over-the-air TVs, Leonard said. Hawaii has 424,000 television households."

                            Well er, I did get 2 coupons in the mail this week and already redeemed one. That box will have to be mailed to my mom since the coupon did not come in time for me to hand carry the box to the Big Island.

                            I'll have my sister install the thing. My Mom is not very up to date with tech.

                            I'll probably get a second box with the other coupon and hold it in storage. Never can tell when I'll quit Oceanic cable (only 10 episodes left of Battlestar Galactica on SciFi).

                            I have to wonder if cable is really necessary even for crappy OTA broadcast receiving areas? Much of the news breaks on the internet, and most TV series and all movies get released to DVD.

                            (Sorry no linking to flash ad infested SB site)
                            Last edited by mel; January 3, 2009, 12:28 PM.
                            I'm still here. Are you?

                            Comment


                            • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

                              Originally posted by mel View Post
                              The Feds may be running out of funds for the coupon program. According to an article in today's StarBulletin, "Hawaii residents had made 50,206 requests for digital converter coupons as of last week. That is more than double the 23,000 households statewide using over-the-air TVs, Leonard said. Hawaii has 424,000 television households."

                              Well er, I did get 2 coupons in the mail this week and already redeemed one. That box will have to be mailed to my mom since the coupon did not come in time for me to hand carry the box to the Big Island.

                              I'll have my sister install the thing. My Mom is not very up to date with tech.

                              I'll probably get a second box with the other coupon and hold it in storage. Never can tell when I'll quit Oceanic cable (only 10 episodes left of Battlestar Galactica on SciFi).

                              I have to wonder if cable is really necessary even for crappy OTA broadcast receiving areas? Much of the news breaks on the internet, and most TV series and all movies get released to DVD.

                              (Sorry no linking to flash ad infested SB site)
                              Already redeemed my two coupons by ordering online. Got myself two RCA DTA800B1's. Can't tell you anything since I'm using a VHF antenna (my dad's, installed back in the early 70's). Already bought a new long-range antenna though.
                              Beijing 8-08-08 to 8-24-08

                              Tiananmen Square 4-15-89 to 6-04-89

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                              • Re: Digital TV Over The Air

                                PSIP time signals from all stations still have not been corrected - maybe they're just not going to bother until some time after the 'transition', eh?

                                I bought the Digital Stream DTX9950 at Radio Shack when it went on sale for $55 ($17 after coupon+tax) and I must say it's better than the tuners in both my HDTV (except it doesn't get HD, of course) and DVR. The signal strength meter is really helpful in determining the best antenna position and it retains all previously found channels when rescanning - both features are not found on my HDTV and DVR. I like that the remote can also power on/off the TV (and adjust volume) and the PSIP info is as good as on my HDTV.
                                Last edited by salmoned; January 7, 2009, 09:15 PM.
                                May I always be found beneath your contempt.

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