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  #46  
Old 06-23-2007, 04:03 PM
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wa2ise wa2ise is offline
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Now if you can get TV modulators that use channels other than 3 or 4, you could build yourself your own "cable head end". You'd need one ATSC reciever box per desired TV station, and a modulator to place its NTSC output onto a selected VHF or UHF TV channel. Then mix everything together by using a multiport cable splitter. You'll probably have to skip alternate channels as the lower sideband supression of TV modulators are likely non-existant. So you'd probably pick channels 2, 4, 6, 7, 9, 11 and 13 (6 and 7 are not adjacent in terms of RF carrier frequency).

Well, that can get expensive quickly.
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  #47  
Old 06-23-2007, 07:33 PM
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  #48  
Old 06-23-2007, 07:38 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ChrisW6ATV View Post
One more thing...

For those who like to collect "early" examples of new technology, such as the RCA CT-100 color TV, you may want to consider buying the equivalent in the ATSC digital-TV tuner world. RCA led the market there, too, with the DTC-100 (notice the similar model number?). It sold for around US$650 in 2000, when other tuners were well over $1000. There is one on Ebay right now for $30.

(Am I going too far to suppose that collectors like "firsts and early examples" of lots of things, as opposed to getting themselves stuck in one specific time period?)

No way... modern digital stuff is stinkin' Chinese robot assembled junk and deserves to get recycled, crushed, landfilled & forgotten forever once obsolete...

Francesco
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  #49  
Old 06-23-2007, 07:44 PM
Bill R Bill R is offline
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Originally Posted by ChrisW6ATV View Post
I have no idea how spending $10-25 as a one-time purchase will be impossible for anyone who has a home and a TV already. You got me there...
To some people with little income even $10 is a hardship. Just because you do not know them doesn't mean they do not exist. I have been there, and it's not fun. Like I said it has been forced on the consumers, it could have been done in a way that would let me chose if I want digital tv or not.

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  #50  
Old 06-23-2007, 07:47 PM
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I started to read this thread but then I started to fell like
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  #51  
Old 06-23-2007, 08:00 PM
Bill R Bill R is offline
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Originally Posted by ChrisW6ATV View Post
US$80 ATSC tuner:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16882107049

US$9 RF modulator:

http://www.beachaudio.com/Video/Acce...r-p-17759.html


Believe it or not some people do not buy from the internet. Neither of these stores are in my area.

US$95 complete digital TV:

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...uct_id=5691091

Yep, a 13 inch durabrand. So I should replace my 52 inch tv with a 13 incher?

If a person is lucky enough to have a home big enough to have seven or eight separate places/rooms to watch TV, then I cannot imagine how $300 is going to be a big financial problem.

I do have a home big enough, wheither it would be a financial problem or not it is not right. By the way luck had nothing to do with my owning a home big enough. It was paid for, with a lot of hard work, and right now paying $300 to $500 would be a big financial problem.

Bill R
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  #52  
Old 06-24-2007, 08:35 PM
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Originally Posted by andy View Post
I have a feeling that professional quality NTSC modulators will be really cheap soon (as cable companies move to digital). I've already seen them start to show up in surplus stores. They let you select any cable channel using dip switches. I even picked up a BTSC (MTS) encoder.
Yeah-- I was actually going to post something wondering if that was starting to happen. A month or two ago I got an agile RF modulator from MCM (www.mcmelectronics.com) on sale for about $32 (item # 33-2740). It has digital sysnthesized tuning (pushbutton channel selection, LED display) from UHF channels 14-69 or CATV channels 65-139. It's designed for inserting into a distribution network, but this low-cost model doesn't have a built-in combiner. So far, I've only informally tried it out, but it seems to work pretty nice and stable.

Anyway, I don't *think* this particular model happens to be in any of the current sale circulars, but I have noticed it (as well as a lot of other-- but higher-end/more expensive-- agile modulators) appearing in a lot of their sale circulars in recent months.
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  #53  
Old 06-24-2007, 08:54 PM
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Originally Posted by Pete Deksnis View Post
Heck no! Am straining to keep myself from ordering that cool $95 ATSC CRT set you found at Walmart.
Funny, I was at Wal*Mart last week and noticed all those new ATSC "SDTV resolution" CRT sets. I've actually been kinda thinking of getting one of the 14" RCAs just because this probably marks about the last generation of small CRT TVs (possibly excepting certain special markets). That 14" RCA flat-tube set costs $119.97. Interestingly for that screen size, it's not only stereo, but has *component* video inputs in addition to composite (but no S-Video input). They've got a similar RCA flat-face CRT set in 20" for $149.96 (or $188 with a built-in DVD player). [BTW, just my opinion, but those three RCA sets are about the nicest looking low-end CRT TV's I've seen in a while. Maybe it's just the fact that the manufacturers have finally started to get away from that cheezy silver-painted plastic look (which I always really disliked)]

Now, considering that you can get a 15" LCD *HDTV* at Wal*Mart for under $200 nowadays, I'd say (and as others here have long pointed out) it won't be long before the end of road for CRT sets, especially in the 19"-and-under category. In addition, it seems like practically all of the new CRT sets with ATSC tuners are "SDTV" resolution. The only CRT HDTV's I can recall seeing in stores recently are the Samsung "SlimFit" sets.
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  #54  
Old 06-24-2007, 09:12 PM
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Pete Deksnis Pete Deksnis is offline
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Originally Posted by Whirled One View Post
...those three RCA sets are about the nicest looking low-end CRT TV's I've seen in a while.
I agree. It was too good to pass up, what with component input and such. Once the little set is adjusted (factory contrast is set at 90 percent!) it reminds me of the similar small-size trinitrons. Bright, contrasty, and impressive. BTW, the sensitivity of the ATSC tuner appears to be superior to earlier RCA HDTV's.

Here's a picture I use to convince myself the $119 was well spent: it completes my RCA COLOR TV collection: CT-100 to first RCA HDTV to this little gem that, as you say, may be among the last of the CRT sets.
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  #55  
Old 06-24-2007, 09:58 PM
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Originally Posted by Pete Deksnis View Post
I agree. It was too good to pass up, what with component input and such. Once the little set is adjusted (factory contrast is set at 90 percent!) it reminds me of the similar small-size trinitrons. Bright, contrasty, and impressive. BTW, the sensitivity of the ATSC tuner appears to be superior to earlier RCA HDTV's.
Of course, when I said "nicest looking" I was thinking in terms of the cabinet styling, but I will say that I did notice that they didn't seem half-bad performance-wise either (for low-end sets), especially the 14" version (though with whatever video distribution system they use in the store, it's hard to tell too much about performance in the store). Glad to hear from someone here that they actually aren't that shabby after all..! Y'know, I think I'm going to have to go pick up one of those cute li'l suckers at that.

Also, regarding that photo, another interesting aspect to that juxtaposition is when you notice that the screen size of that new ATSC digital 14" set is very similar to that of the CT-100.
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  #56  
Old 06-24-2007, 10:41 PM
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Pete Deksnis Pete Deksnis is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Whirled One View Post
Also, regarding that photo, another interesting aspect to that juxtaposition is when you notice that the screen size of that new ATSC digital 14" set is very similar to that of the CT-100.
Nice catch. Actually, they measure the same. Here's what I wrote for that photo on my site:

On the right of this little cell picture, the first RCA color set. Made in Bloomington, Indiana in late March 1954, it cost $1000 1954 dollars. It weighed 165 pounds. It has a "15-in." screen that's actually 8.5 by 11 inches.

On the left is the first RCA high definition television set with its huge and heavy 38-in. wide-screen CRT. It was made June 2002 in Mexico. Cost about two-thousand 2002 dollars. Weighs in at 216 pounds without the stand. Its screen is 19.5 by nearly 34 inches.

And the baby of the bunch running there on the floor is special why? It has a flat screen CRT with both NTSC and ATSC tuners, and it has component (composite too of course) inputs just as its big brother on the left. Made in April 2007 in China, it cost just $119, which is slightly less than the New Jersey sales tax on the hi-def set. It has a "14-in." screen that, coming full circle, is actually 8.5 by 11 inches.
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  #57  
Old 06-24-2007, 11:01 PM
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Thats a nice little set for $119. ATSC, NTSC tuners and Component input? I'm impressed.
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  #58  
Old 06-25-2007, 10:40 AM
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rcaman rcaman is offline
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you know there is no repair on those sets. exchange only under warranty. after warranty. guess what in the dump it goes. no support or parts from rca. steve
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  #59  
Old 06-25-2007, 11:06 AM
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you know there is no repair on those sets. exchange only under warranty. after warranty. guess what in the dump it goes. no support or parts from rca. steve
That's wasteful. I won't buy I set I can't service. I wonder how serviceable the typical LCD set is going to be.
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  #60  
Old 06-25-2007, 12:37 PM
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