Digital TV

[Tony Miklos]

Not sure if I have the proper group, but I'll give this a shot.

I now use an outdoor antenna. Some channels come in perfect and some
not too great and some really bad. Will the DAC (digital to analog
converter) make poor signals come in better, worse, or the same?

When cell phones went digital it was said that calls will come in
clearer, but they will also give less warning when in an area with poor
reception, they basically go from good to dead.

Thanks,
Tony

 

[Eeyore]

Not sure if I have the proper group, but I'll give this a shot.

I now use an outdoor antenna. Some channels come in perfect and some
not too great and some really bad. Will the DAC (digital to analog
converter) make poor signals come in better, worse, or the same?

The DAC itself isn't the issue, the issues are signal strength and receiver
performance.

When cell phones went digital it was said that calls will come in
clearer, but they will also give less warning when in an area with poor
reception, they basically go from good to dead.

This is inherent with digital media, they're mostly fine until they stop
working totally. Digital doesn't do gradual and graceful degradation.

Graham

 

[Jamie]

Not sure if I have the proper group, but I'll give this a shot.

I now use an outdoor antenna. Some channels come in perfect and some
not too great and some really bad. Will the DAC (digital to analog
converter) make poor signals come in better, worse, or the same?

When cell phones went digital it was said that calls will come in
clearer, but they will also give less warning when in an area with poor
reception, they basically go from good to dead.

Thanks,
Tony

Yup, and the same applied to DTV
depending on the receiver , side effects may vary.
image spotty in places etc..

 

[Tony Miklos]

The DAC itself isn't the issue, the issues are signal strength and receiver
performance.

I got my old electronics a bit mixed up. I remember now on some old
(video game) monitors only the 1 IC was referred to as a "DAC". I wrote
the question as if you would call the entire converter box a "DAC".

This is inherent with digital media, they're mostly fine until they stop
working totally. Digital doesn't do gradual and graceful degradation.

Thanks. Now to find the best one on the market. I'll probably wait a
while.

Thanks,
Tony

 

[Tony Miklos]

I just put in a Digital Stream brand converter box. Before switching I had a
good to excellent picture on just about all of my channels. One exception,
was that ch4 was ghosted out beyond all hope. With the converter box, ch4
comes in great. With the analog, a weak signal is still acceptable if you
don't mind the noise in the picture , but with the digital a weak signal
will cause pixelation and loss of audio. You either get a watchable picture
or you don't, there isn't a gradual degradation in picture quality like with
analog. I ended up tweaking the antenna a bit for a better compramise. One
thing I've noticed is that the audio seems to have a really bad volume shift
on all channels. It's like someone at the studio is constantly changing
levels. I don't know if this is due to the nature of the digital broadcast
or the converter box.

Thanks. I suppose soon there will be lots of tests and the different
brand boxes will get rated so we can pick the one best for our conditions.

Tony

 

[Tony Miklos]

Yup, and the same applied to DTV
depending on the receiver , side effects may vary.
image spotty in places etc..

Thanks. There are already some possible tuner problems spotted.

"Microtune Claims Problems with Some DTV Converter Boxes
Tells NTIA Its Testing Found Inteference Issues with DTV-to-Analog
Converter Boxes"

http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6545291.html?rssid=193

Tony

 

[Jim Yanik]

I got my old electronics a bit mixed up. I remember now on some old
(video game) monitors only the 1 IC was referred to as a "DAC". I
wrote the question as if you would call the entire converter box a
"DAC".




Thanks. Now to find the best one on the market. I'll probably wait a
while.

Thanks,
Tony

your $40 coupons are only good for a limited time.
the DTV converter everybody is waiting for is the Echostar TR-40,due out in
June or July,last I heard.

 

[Tony Miklos]

your $40 coupons are only good for a limited time.

I guess I'll wait to order mine.

the DTV converter everybody is waiting for is the Echostar TR-40,due out in
June or July,last I heard.

Is there some place these have been rated already? I'd like to see why
everyone is waiting for them. Any idea if it uses a Microtune brand tuner?

Tony

 

[Tony Miklos]

your $40 coupons are only good for a limited time.
the DTV converter everybody is waiting for is the Echostar TR-40,due out in
June or July,last I heard.

So now that the Echostar TR-40 and others are available, and I have my
coupons, is the Echostar TR-40 still a good choice? I *may* be going
with a rotor and I know certain model DTV converters are.. I forget what
it's called but I think it remembers and turns the antenna automatically?

Thanks,
Tony

 

[Tony Miklos]

your $40 coupons are only good for a limited time.
the DTV converter everybody is waiting for is the Echostar TR-40,due out in
June or July,last I heard.

OK, I finally have my coupons, is the Echostar TR-40 (CRA) still a good
choice? I see different ratings and they go from very poor to very
good. I understand Dish Network bought them and I think added the
analog pass through, not quite sure. It does sound like you can buy the
same item but pay more if Dish Network put their name on it.

The one thing I may want to have is a smart antenna and I don't believe
the TR-40 has that. That is a tough call though, I won't know if I need
a smart antenna until after I get a converter and see how it works. I
suppose I could get 1 of the Magnavox at WalMart and see how it does?

Open to suggestions........

Tony

 

[Rich Webb]

OK, I finally have my coupons, is the Echostar TR-40 (CRA) still a good
choice? I see different ratings and they go from very poor to very
good. I understand Dish Network bought them and I think added the
analog pass through, not quite sure. It does sound like you can buy the
same item but pay more if Dish Network put their name on it.

Analog pass-through is only useful (if at all) for another couple of
months.

The one thing I may want to have is a smart antenna and I don't believe
the TR-40 has that. That is a tough call though, I won't know if I need
a smart antenna until after I get a converter and see how it works.

http://www.tvfool.com has an online tool that, given your street
address, will calculate and display the azimuth and nominal signal
strength of the TV stations in your region. That can give you some
indication as to whether or not you'll need to re-orient the antenna
based on the channel selection.

 

[Mr. Mentor]

Greetings folks..

Since Jim has probably already made his selection, this reply are
for all the folks reading this that would like to see the various
feature options on the Coupon-Eligible Converter Boxes (CECB).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_CECB_units

Keeping in mind that your options are few and the exotic features
are just not to be found on a government subsidized program,
these boxes (in general) perform their conversion function and
not much more.

I have both the Zenith DTT-901 and the Digital Stream DTX-9950
both of which are fine units. The Electronic Program Guide (EPG)
on the 9950 will allow up to 3 days of TV Guide like listings of
upcoming programming while the Zenith only shows 2 hours (now and
next). Beyond that, the aspect ratio on the Zenith is memorized
for each and every channel individually (quite nice!) while
(unfortunately) the 9950 has one (1) aspect ratio setting for ALL
your channel received and memorized. Therefore, you can not set
one channel's aspect ratio and have another with a different
aspect ratio. Not a big deal - just a bit nagging when you come
across a channel where the "zoom" or aspect ratio must be changed
for a 4:3 conventional CRT based television then you later change
channels to another that needs the original aspect ratio.

Cheers,
Mr. Mentor

If within the U.S. the following will get you coupon until which
time the program ceases or funds are extinguished -
https://www.dtv2009.gov/



| Jim Yanik wrote:
| >
| > your $40 coupons are only good for a limited time.
| > the DTV converter everybody is waiting for is the Echostar
TR-40,due out in
| > June or July,last I heard.
|
| OK, I finally have my coupons, is the Echostar TR-40 (CRA)
still a good
| choice? I see different ratings and they go from very poor to
very
| good. I understand Dish Network bought them and I think added
the
| analog pass through, not quite sure. It does sound like you
can buy the
| same item but pay more if Dish Network put their name on it.
|
| The one thing I may want to have is a smart antenna and I don't
believe
| the TR-40 has that. That is a tough call though, I won't know
if I need
| a smart antenna until after I get a converter and see how it
works. I
| suppose I could get 1 of the Magnavox at WalMart and see how it
does?
|
| Open to suggestions........
|
| Tony