tx_2500

Yes, i even complain right here in the middle of DFW. The new TV picks up those "digital" tv signals and they are right..they are very clear. HOWEVER, something ive noticed; it only comes in clear...or it dosent. you either get ALL of the signal, or none, just like a satalite. and there are stations broadcast right here that i have trouble getting in, what does that say about people in rural areas? my parents barley are able to pick up regular signal from wichita falls (50mi away). There will be no more "snowy" stations, and countless people are going to be put in danger when they cant get local tv casts during times of bad weather. gone will be the days of getting down in the cellar with an old portable tv getting updated weather. I spend half my time on the non digital channels because i can get them regardless of where im standing in the room.

and its "gov't mandated" by 2009? why is it "required by law"? maybe its my conspiracy theory side acting up...but why does big brother care how i get my free tv reception? its not like tv broadcasts in their current form cause you to be thrown from your vehicle incase of an accident (seatbelt laws) or kill someone because youve had too much to drink (DWI/DUI)?

Fronty Owner

the mandated digital is for broadcast only. It will not effect cable or satellite. Only the three or four people that use still use rabbit ears.

CowboyDave

Are you with Time Warner?

HOHN

It's called "progress" and sometimes people have to be dragged forward kicking and screaming.

jh

TreeFarm

It frees up a lot of bandwidth for other services. That is one of the prime movers.

A high gain antenna will help people in the boonies. You can ask on http://avsforum.com

Shovelhead

If I change to the "Great" digital cable, I get more channels.
HOWEVER, I will need to rent a cable converter box for EACH tv that I have in the house.
With "Old" analog cable, I can hook up pretty much as many TVs as I want.

Sounds to me more like a money-maker for the Cable providers.
My analog signal is plenty sharp for my old eyes.

AkTallPaul

I don't get the analog signal this far out, but they told us that these will stay active because of all the rural area they cover. If I want local sat. tv I have to BUY another dish thanks to that idiot Stevens.

jthorpe

The first post was completely political. Please don't make your responses as such. Talk about the technicalities if you wish, but move over to all politics if you want to go the other route.

cbtumedic

Your analog cable will still work, it's just for broadcast
TV.

96_12V

Mostly for bandwith, and believe it or not, it costs something for stations to braodcast in analog, that cost will increase as technology continues to move to all digital. It's interesting that each station will actually be able to broadcast more than one signal now, think of it like adding a decimal point to the station, example 15.1 - 15.9, and there are many more programs that can be broadcast. It's true that reception in rural areas will still be an issue for a while. I'm not a big TV watcher, and am one of those four people in the US who still has "rabbit ears" but digital signal stations, (when they work properly) are much sharper and clearer than analog. However in my observation they seem more easily affected by weather conditions in rural areas. We'll see how this works out.

74dart

I am one of those 4 with rabbit ears as well but I have them hooked to my HD digital tv.

patdaly

I made the switch already, and man, am I ever glad to have it!

I went from roughly 5 channels to over 23 at this point, and more will be coming along!

Granted, I have a fringe Wineguard antenna, but have no booster yet, and it is only 35 feet up, and I get Chicago 95 percent of the time, 105 miles away.

I am going to play with a more dedicated setup, since I really only need signals from 2 directions, I am going to work on a 2 antenna setup about 50 feet up, with boosters, and then Y into the house. I could be wrong, but with Digital I should have no ghosting issues, and wouldn't have to curse at the cheap Chinese made rotor any longer....... ( lordy, can't a SINGLE US manufacturer make a rotor? )

I tell you man, play with it a bit, I think you will be impressed.....

Wolfcsm

Black and white to Color

Analog to Digital

Both are about progress in the technology. Most people want a more clear picture and better sound. The way to do that is to use a digital signal rather than an analog one.

Might have to buy a new antenna. There are very good omni directional and directional antenas designed for receiving digital signals. I use Direct TV, but to receive the local stations in HD I had to get them off the air. I put up a high gain simi-omni directional antena and they came through very well - in fact when Direct TV was having problems due to thunderstorms, the antena was able to bring in the local chanels with no problem.

Hal

I PASS GAS

Can anyone recommend a good antenna for HD, preforably something very low maintenance as far as adjusting? Also, is indoor doable, or do I really need to get outdoors with it?

patdaly

Pass, those question all depend greatly on you proximity to the stations you want to get.

How many stations do you want to get, and how far away are they?

There is a good website, antenna.com i think that you can see where the stations are in relation to you.

The short answer is yes, indoor antennas are quite doable, but only if you are within the range of the station. Outdoor antennas though for Digital are quite small and inconspicuous compared to the old Analog variety.