Queue up for a digital set top box coupon for CT-100, etc...

[peverett]

I have tried several converters, both coupon compatible and non-coupon compatible. All except the coupon compatible (sold by Wal-Mart) RCA have worked the same-fine in good weather, crappy in bad.

The RCA seems to have poorer reception and has crashed twice, requireing power cycles. (The other brand sold by Wal-Mart, Magnavox, seems ok.).

I wish that some of these trials would occur during windy/rainy/stormy weather. This would be a good test of how things will actually be next year.

[Pete Deksnis]

http://blogs.usatoday.com/technology...ople-call.html

Pete

[Pete Deksnis]

Democrats have urged a delay in the transition, but Republicans have balked, saying it would further confuse consumers. Late last week, the Dems reached a compromise with Republican Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson that calls for the transition to take place on June 12, 2009.

Hutchinson says the bill would allow local stations to switch to digital before June 12, if they wish.

I say, just do it! Let's get it over with. This last minute delay won't change the fact that a handful of technically challenged or disinterested OTA TV viewers will get caught without NTSC broadcasts. Plus, surveys have indicated that millions of TV viewers will choose to not convert and simply allow their NTSC installations to expire.

BTW, I have bought two of the Walmart 'Magnavox' converters. One when they first came out and another a few days ago. Both do the job, but an automatic volume control feature on converter boxes would have been nice as it would save me from making volume adjustments after channel changes or during high-volume commercials.

[richms]

If it wasn't for the crazy subsidy scheme, the boxes would probably be a hell of a lot cheaper. Noone will sell a box below the subsidy value while they are still operating.

[andy]

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[Robert Grant]

Originally Posted by andy

I agree. The $40 coupons have probably added at least $30 to the price of the boxes. If they can sell them in the UK for as little as $25-$30 (even with their higher sales tax), then they shouldn't be $50-$70 here. The coupons are also forcing them to dumb down the boxes by eliminating features like QAM tuning, component video, digital audio, and HD output. For $60 they should be able to output full HD. The chips used in these boxes are already capable of many of those features, but they are turned off in software.

That may be due more to patent royalties than the subsidy.

Supposedly, one Chinese manufacturer complained that the royalty for an American ATSC set was about $20 USD, versus about $2 USD for digital sets sold in the EU.

[cbenham]

Congress delays digital transition until June 12, but I don't think it means that LOTS of stations are going to wait and continue to pay to power two sets of transmitters
for ~ 4 more months.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/media/...ostponed_N.htm

[Dave S]

Well, that means we'll have to postpone our "farewell to NTSC" viewing party too. Dang, and the beer was cooling so nicely! Hmmm, June... Maybe we'll have a picnic.

We were looking forward to watching Jay Leno go to snow in the middle of his program; guess we'll end up watching Conan now.

[wa2ise]

Originally Posted by andy

The chips used in these boxes are already capable of many of those features, but they are turned off in software.

Some of the boxes may be flash memory updatable, and many boxes have marked internal circuit board traces and holes that may be the input port. Be interesting if someone figures out a hack to modify the software...


Look at the lower left corner of the above picture (Which is the board in the Channel Master CM 7000, this picture was from a thread where I mentioned how to make this box be B&W only, for vintage B&W TV sets, http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/sho...d.php?t=174290 )

[Pete Deksnis]

I have been asked what I will be doing for the end of NTSC.
Here's what I wrote to fellow AKer and TV nut Dave Sica.

My plan for tomorrow is to: run the two hi-def sets in picture-in-picture analog
mode for four different channels, the 'modern' 14-in RCA in analog mode (the
fifth channel), the CT-100 (that's six), and finally the Hauppauge card in this
computer running the seventh analog channel, for a glorious ending to NTSC....

Long live NTSC!
Pete

[truetone36]

I've got a VCR hooked to my 15" Zenith B/W and it'll be recording as the picture goes to snow here at 7:00 AM tomorrow, and have a camcorder aimed at some sets in the shop.

[classicradio]

I'm finding it hard to type over the noise of the raster on my CTC-7. I feel like adjusting the channel knob, but I know I won't find much on.

Many (but not all) of Chicago and Milwaukee's TV stations choose 12 noon to shut down analog transmissions today. I was lucky enough to come home for lunch and watch the end of a broadcast era on my CTC-7. I was disappointed to find no real recognition of the change on many Chicago stations. I was however able to pick up WISN 12 out of Milwaukee, which put on a nice compilation of great moments of their broadcast history since 1954. It was somehow fitting because I purchased this TV in Milwaukee and I'm sure that it wasn't the first time some of those historic images were scanned across the screen.

As predicted, at 12 noon, WISN flashed their old WTVW test pattern, displayed a brief message Channel 12 1954-2009, and flipped the switch.

For the many people who are welcoming digital TV today, I was glad to have the opportunity to join the few who chose to look back and say goodbye to an old friend.

[Eric H]

With people scrambling to get a converter box at the last minute I found one at Goodwill today still sealed for $9.99

It's a Funai made Magnavox, I've never even used the Insignia I bought with the coupon but I figured maybe I could hide it inside the cabinet of one of my old sets to make it Digital ready.

[WA3WLJ]

Why did the stations so drastically reduce POWER ?
The one time we had the chance to make things totally different and better the Federal Cookie Cutter government commission ruined things for me !

[andy]

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