Digital Transition Answers

Does this converter box pass through captioning, used by 30 million Americans who are deaf and hard of hearing?
Does this converter box pass through any video description, used by millions of persons with vision loss?

Jenifer, you are right on the money, good thinking!I do hope that you get a response to your questions. I am sure that there will be many people also waiting for a response. Francis "frank" McVetty.

according to the specs the units will have closed captioning, with Digital CC (Comply with EIA-708-B)

Will a DTA converter box be able to serve multiple analog TVs? Or will a box be required for each analog TV? If one is required for each TV, what is the limiting factor?

The DVS (descriptive video service) and other language audio in the analog service have been until now broadcast in your analog tv's SAP (Secondary Audio Programming) channel that you can select in your television's menu.

With Digital Broadcasting, these services (and possibly many more, only limited by ATSC bandwith) will still be available. It is up to your local stations to determine what audio to offer, and to encode it properly.

Any DTV decoder that is ATSC compliant should be able to decode any alternate audio programming that was encoded by the broadcaster.

That said, I work at a PBS affiliate, and we have yet to offer secondary audio on our digital broadcasts. We do, and have for quite some time, offered on our analog service either DVS or Spanish when it is available from the producers of a show.

As far as captions, that is an FCC requirement. As for whether the box will do the decoding, or will rely on the analog decoder in your tv is unknown to me. (possibly both.)

It is likely that a single box, much like a vcr or cable box, will tune only one channel, therefore only serving one tv.

Hope this helps!

I have now seen some demos by at least four manufacturers of the digital-to-analog signal converter boxes (LG, Thomson-RCA, Samsung and Omnibox?? I might have got the last one wrong). And yes, it looks like you need a converter box for each tv set. These all seemed to pass through captioning.The LG remote control had a CC button on it to make it easier to find the caption menu. All of the converter boxes seem to have ANOTHER remote control!! Finding this menu-- and finding the right remote control! -- is getting harder and harder on any TV. Try finding it on a hotel TV for instance! I can't seem to check any audio description pass through but am asking around on this...

Several questions.

1. in this day and age of ever-increasingly overburdened landfills, what about the tons of discarded televisions, VCRs and other devices now usable with analogue signal broadcast that will be discarded? Is there any governmental program to deal with the volume? Or does this all just get buried, dumped - wasted?

2. digital television broadcast is very different from analogue in terms of threshold signal strength required to maintain a viewable and hearable product. Many broadcsst siganl users undoubtedly have noted the 'blue screen' that appears on current digital tuners now in use when a signal is on the edge of receptibility. Older sets go to the "old-fashioned" grainy fuzzy picture (but still partially viewable)....with audio information being the last to disappear. Thus even in severe weather situations information gets through. The shift to solely digital will cause a total loss of information in times of the greatest need. Is there to be a signal strength boost in the current licensed broadcaster's signal to offset this?

3. the hue and cry within the FCC has been that the freed airwaves will now be able to be used for emergency services. While this is an exact truth, it would be "ABLE" to be used is not a statement that it "WILL" be used in this manner. When is the FCC to admit that corporate pressures to cause all Americans to abandon free television and change to subscriber paid-for-use is the goal? Furthermore, such subscriber television has the ability to monitor the actual viewing usage of any broadcast while standard free usage is unmonitored - what forces have been brought to bear on the FCC to cause this change to a privacy right of all Americans to view without intrusion or scrutiny by vendors?

4. When an inexpensive televison may now be had for $100 or even less (even in the $30 range for some units) whereas the least expensive digital television starts at a minimum of apx. $300 - the question is being begged to be asked - How is this of apx. x10 price increase of economic benefit to Americans? In addtion, the D-to-A converter boxes being touted start at the cheapest in the $60 range; yet, with declared inferior output compared with a digitally tuned televison - the question too then is who is to benefit from this transititon? Certainly not the American citizen.
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5. Finally, as the implementation of this new FCC law takes effect, what will the results be to those many nations and areas be that have not the infrastructure to support at this time digital quality broadcasts? Indeed, the vast majority of the world will not make a changeover. Can any of us imagine some central African viewer, or a person living in a border area to the United States, Free televison broadcast viewers throughout the world - those viewers hustling down to his or her local cable company to plug in? As the current broadcast system is world-wide, what provisions are being made for the rest of the world?....( Most especially those without any financial means to either purchase a vastly more expensive receiver/TV set let alone a cable/digital connection)

Renard

You have asked all the questions I would like answers to. Being retired with Social Security as my main means of support I do not forsee paying for a satalite service.

I look forward to proper response to your comments.

The FCC will be selling the old analog TV frequencies at auction. AT&T, Verizon, Google and others have already indicated they intend to submit bids.

The sale of these frequencies will bring the Government (FCC) billions of dollars at the expense of American taxpayers. AT&T is paying Aloha Partners LP of Providence, RI over $2.5 BILLION for analog frequencies now covering Channels 54 and 59. Just imaging what the other frequencies (channels 2-69) will go for.

Just imagine the pile of "old" TV's, VCR's and other electronics which will go into garbage dumps.

Isn't it interesting the U.S. Government hasn't made any effort to inform the average American citizen of this coming change.

By-the-way, that $40 coupon is valid only for a TV. If you also have an old VCR or DVD recorder with a built-in analog tuner, your out of luck. No coupon for those items.

I predict, when the average person learns of this "scheme", and the BILLIONS they will have to pay out for new TV's, VCR's etc., there will be another "Tea Party" except this time in Washington not Boston.

If you are concerned about this subject, I would strongly suggest you call or write your representatives in Congress....TODAY.

Hey, I was just a reading along and I though Renard Gervais asked some very important questions. So I thought I should add some of my on info to the mix and try and answer them.

1.
The US government wasteful? No, that just can’t be!!! :-)

Although I agree with you about the wasteful part, there will be no real volume increase. That is what the converter boxes are for. The TV, VCR or DVD player will continue to work if plugged in to the new digital converters. Your TV will still get the shows, your VCR will still be able to record the shows and your DVD player will still of course play DVDs. Although is appears that in order to watch and REC shows with your VCR you may have to do it via the input mode, like you have if you are playing a video game.

2.
I understand your concern but luckily a weak digital signal is different then your VCR or TV cutting off an Analog signal. When you are getting a very weak grainy analog signal you will still be getting a completely clear digital signal. When you are getting no analog signal (that means you get chhhhhsssssssssssh) then you should get the blue screen of death from your digital signal. To understand this you need to understand that a digital signal is nothing but 1s and 0s, but an analog signal is waves of varying frequency.

Here is an example to explain what that means. Imagine a guy is standing a long way off and that guy is trying to give you a message. The guy can hold up a sign with writing on it and you can do your best to try and read what he has to say (that is kind of like analog). Now if the guy then gets a white board that he can wave up and down he can then flash you Morse code (that is kind of like digital). Now on a foggy day you may not be able to make out the details of what is written on the board ( a grainy analog signal) but as long as you can see the guy at all, you sure as heck will be able to make out the flashing Morse code (a digital 1s & 0s signal). So a digital signal will last much longer just because the information it is receiving is so specific. Now if you got a stupid guy standing next to you that can’t read Morse code, then that represents an analog TV that can’t understand a digital signal without a box to do the interpreting for it.

3.
That is more of a statement then a question, but you make an interesting point.

4.
Well, many of us poor people have good working Analog TVs, and we are not yet ready to buy a cheap Digital TV to replace a TV that has many good years left. Wouldn’t that just be a waste? Besides with a government coupon I am just spending 20$ instead of around a 100$ for a TV I may not like.

5.
Dude, do you know how far an over the air signal goes. Now if you are taking about signals like the one we are sending to Cuba, then that signal is broadcasted from a plane to that area for propaganda reasons. As far as other nations go, it is up to the individual nation as to when or if they make the switch for their own broadcast. No nation is forced to change. In fact the US is a bit behind other nations when it comes to making a full transition with the new technology.

I thought I should also throw in an answer to a question I have heard elsewhere. The signal that you get through the converter box will not be as good as just having a new digital TV. This is because your analog TV is sucky compared to a Digital TV, and the box can’t magically make your TV set better. But the signal will be as good or better then what you get now. Signal grain is now gone for good.

Well I got to go, hope this was helpful. That's all folks.

The government has deferred to the industry to educate the public about the transition to a new digital TV standard and the industry hasn't stepped up to the plate because they have their own agendas. So there's a lot of misinformation around. That's why I started www.dtvprimer.com in 2005.

The transition really is good for the public and the industry due to the the better picture and sound quality, and the greater efficiencies of digital. Most other countries in the world are going through their own transitions to digital TV; everyone is doing it a little differently.

And here's another question. I hear that the digital broadcast can be subdivided into up to 6 "sub" channels. But that due to interference issues, most tv stations will only use 4 of these subchannels, also referred to as multicasting. Now, what I want to know is what is going to go on all these channels?
Re-runs? more boring talking heads? weather?
sports? ads? games? SOmething interactive? IF so, what???
How about a community use sub channel? after all, don't we own the airwaves?
;-))

I am assuming the converter will convert the signal to analog into the TV and the old analog VCR and DVD will still work....Am I right?

I've now seen demo's of the LG, Thompson (RCA?) and Microprose (micro-prose ?) boxes.

What I've seen - they all seem to work the same, the menu's and guides are just like cable and satellite guides and info's, something I forgot that most people now take for granted, but has never been on old analog tv's

They tested the Microprose box through a VCR and a PVR (Tivo box) and you can record the shows perfectly, so you don't need to chuck the VCR or worry about the PVR investment (of course, if someone can afford a $300 PVR, they can afford a low end 20" or so HDTV too.)

The boxes had Coaxial and Composite AV out, so essentially they'll plug into literally anything.

The LG box was kind of blah and boring, the Thompson box looked like it had some tape over the Zenith logo which was weird, but it was a nice looking box, the Microprose box looked nice too. So they are attractive looking for the most part and are very easy to use.

I've got Direct TV, but not in 2 other rooms in my house, so picking up 2 boxes for those rooms will keep those spare TV's up and running and for under $100 and $40 off each, its a pretty good deal, beats having to go out and buy two more sat receivers and having to pay a $5 per month (lease fee) on each one.

-=DOUG=-

Checked with my cable company about their converter boxes $3.99 for first TV, and $7.99 for second TV. They also mentioned my having to assure the boxes that I might want to buy from any electronic store allows for an insert card for future updates to their cable systems. Whatever I have read so far about the boxes to be sold at different stores, nothing is ever mentioned about insert cards for future updates to my cable service. It leads me to believe I have to pay the $11.98 because if the converter boxes do not include the insert card capability, I would have to purchase new boxes every time the cable company made changes or upgrades to their cable systym. Is that a possability or are they putting the pressure on to rent their boxes?

Dee -

Your cable rep is mis-understanding the situation, all cable companies - under FCC rules, requires them to transmit fee over the air local channels (through what is called OpenCable) and any QAM equipped device can receive TV through a cable connection.

What he is talking about are cable TV reception boxes, that would subscribe to the pay-for programming (cable news, HBO, specialty channels, etc...)

These new Digital TV Converter boxes are for receiving free TV via an antenna or through OpenCable/QAM connections.

The NTIA regulations require that the qualifying boxes do not require in-field firmware upgrades and work correctly through their qualifying program and certification.

This is why you'll set two different classes of converters - the NTIA certified ones, the only ones the retailers are going to carry and then all of the non-qualifying devices (aka - crap) that all have firmware ports on them and are basically "Work in Progress" devices that don't pass the muster.

Stick with the LG, Microprose, Samsung, Panasonic and other Certified devices, don't both with the 2nd rate junk.

-=Doug=-

How will these converters work with Direct satellite TV and old TV's.

whereas the least expensive digital television starts at a minimum of apx. $300

Not true. Here is a list of of ATSC-ready sets starting at $110.

the D-to-A converter boxes being touted start at the cheapest in the $60 range; yet, with declared inferior output compared with a digitally tuned televison

Also not true. The converter boxes will offer access to all digital channels including the multicasted ones, program metadata where available, closed captioning, and the superior reception that goes with digital broadcasting (no more snow, shadows, smeared colors and color shifts). An old analog set won't display in HD, but it will show a very clean SD image on the HD channels.

Indeed, the vast majority of the world will not make a changeover.

Not true.

How will these converters work with Direct satellite TV and old TV's.

With Direct Satellite, not at all. These converters have one purpose, namely to allow older analog TV's to continue to receive over-the-air broadcasts.

Satellite and cable aren't affected by the broadcast changeover. However, over time cable users will see more and more of their channels go to a digital tier, requiring them to either rent a digital receiver box (which is a completely different thing from the over-the-air converter boxes) or get a CableCard, if their TV's are new enough to be able to use them.

Someone on this forum asked if a covrerter would be required for each tv they own.

Yes! with an explaination.

1-If you have a distribution system with a coax wall jack in the room where the 2nd tv is located.

2-But the converter plus a modulator will reqiured.

Here's how:
1-Connect your roof antenna cable into the converter.
2-Then from the converter a short rg6 cable into the modulator.

3-Connect a second short rg6 cable from the modulator to the primary [living room] tv.

4-Finally the cable from your distribution system to a 2nd port on the modulator for tv #2. Some modulators can furnish the signal for more than 2 tv's.

If you do not have a home distribution system,
but you want to have a second tv in another room, you would have to run a cable from the modulator to the room where the 2nd tv is located.

BTW if older 300 ohm [flat twin-lead]cable is still connected to the roof antenna, it should definetely be replaced with high quality rg6 cable. It not only makes connecting everthing easier, but will produce a higher quality picture on your tv.
Rg6 should also be utilized for all the cable runs through out the house if possible.

Who ever asked:
How will these converters work with Direct satellite TV and old TV's

Satellite receivers that Dish and Direct offer do not require a converter. But with Dish Network, you must subscribe to receive the local networks on you tv @ $5.00 per month.

If you live close to the local networks antenna, and you have a late model tv with a converter, you could hook up your roof antenna directly to your tv. You will be amazed with the picture quality. In many cases better than the local network channels you would not have to pay Dish the $500 p/m.

BTW everyone is referring to this set top box as a converter. Which is correct. But it is really an "ATSC" tuner. It displays standard definition [SD]on an older analog tv, and will display high definition [HD] on a new HDTV set.

If you are looking to buy a new HD flat panel tv being offered on some of the recent special low priced sales......make very sure it includes an ATSC tuner. Otherwise you will have to buy what everyone on this forum refers to as a converter, [ATSC tuner] to receive the new digital off the air broadcasts.

Does anyone know if any of the converter boxes have the ability to automatically change channels by some kind of timer?
The reason I am asking is because if a person hooks up one of the converter boxes to a DVDR/VCR and wants to program the DVDR/VCR timer to record from its line input at various times, can the outboard tuner change channels by itself, or am I stuck with a DVDR/VCR timer that will only record from one channel unless I manually change the channel on the digital tuner device?
Thanks

The law says if we have cable or satalite we will not be able to get the coupons towards purchase of converters. This is totaly unfair

With the billions being paid the gov for the broadcast frequences, they should set up a program for a converter at no cost for every analog receiver in the us at no costs to t v owners. I would love to know how much the cable companies have paid the idiots in washington to pass such stupid laws and regs with no regard to the expense to each citizen but to the benefit of the cable companies

Quote:
BUDDIE: The law says if we have cable or satalite we will not be able to get the coupons towards purchase of converters. This is totaly unfair

With the billions being paid the gov for the broadcast frequences, they should set up a program for a converter at no cost for every analog receiver in the us at no costs to t v owners. I would love to know how much the cable companies have paid the idiots in washington to pass such stupid laws and regs with no regard to the expense to each citizen but to the benefit of the cable companies

Bud,
We will have to see what takes place. But did you know that, not all satellite receivers have ota tuners included.
The very latest receiver Directv is offering for big bucks has NO OTA TUNER.
Many people are saying it isn't a big deal not having an ota tuner. I disagree completely. The quality of ota for local networks is far better in many cases than the quality received from satellite providers. Especially if you live near the networks antenna. Also iwhen Dish and Direct encounter rain fade signal loss, you can still watch ota,

my television is 35 years old, will converter box be sufficient

my television is 35 years old, will converter box be sufficient

Who came up with this scheme? I suppose if some checked under the covers, you would find the instigators of this plan are preparing to go to the bank. Massive tranformations of this need to be transpired over a period of many years (many years), bet the greedy will loose some interest in that idea, and the alternative should be still offered to those whom cannot afford it or choose not to change over. I thought we lived in a Democracy in this country. The government should supply each home with at least the first two converters, since most every home in america has at least two tv's This should be front page news on all the tv stations and newspapers.

Personally
I beleive that Digital TV is just pree programed
obsolescence con at its finest hour,and another way to spy on the viewer by subscriber services that sell the info to anyone that has the $$$$.
First digital TV in Europe and the Pacific Rim
still use Analog Europe 1200 scanning lines and above, Japan has had 2500 for many years and the
visual quality is superior to our Digital.
The depth of feild and chaoma color here in the US is inferior
with digital let alone the pixel distortion.
And it does not matter how much you pay for the display unit or Manufacturer.
As far back as six years agao and even today
in the EU market all TV sets or panels display units
what ever type of signal you put in that is what you will put out regardless if it is NTSC, SEACAM,PAL
HD,
Once again it is large corps cornering the market on public property for free,by purchasing
Broadcast frequencys for little or nothing
By the way HD is a dead issue .
Wait until you see the Polymer Nanotube display screens
hit the market then cable companies and Satalite
broadcast and other
communication services are going to fry their
little golden chips.
Otherwise Holography moving display is thirtyfive years over due.
Folks I say just go out an purchase a good quality Digital converter box and save you bucks.
BRUCE M .

My wife and I are living out of really "low budget", and really rely on TV sets for some entertaiment together with our two grandkids; so I really hope that these Digital converter boxes aren't too expensive, and we are expecting getting those boxes with a realllllly good brake from the government. Thanks all.........(-^-)

One of the reasons for disabling the over the air analog signals is to free up the bandwidth for other more advanced uses. not that this only goes for OTA analog, so any wired analog signals will still be allowed as long as they stay on the wire.

One of the reasons for shutting down analog signals is because of the low frequency waves they use are very very good at long range and for going through walls. so if Google or some other internet business buys the bandwidth, they have the ability of making a city-wide wireless internet network using only a few towers to transmit the data (and even without any dead spots). If a cellular phone company gets hold on a few frequencies, they can use their same towers they use currently, add anther frequency, and have almost complete coverage of the entire country. Everyone here seems to be trying to find the negative in this move, but honestly they are only banning over the air analog signals. if they were banning analog altogether, than 95% of computer monitors would need upgrading along with hundreds of other devices that never leave your house.

Renard Gervais: whereas the least expensive digital television starts at a minimum of apx. $300

JimBOB: Not true. Here is a list of of ATSC-ready sets starting at $110.

Sorry, JimBOB - any tv with anything less than 720p is no better than getting a converter box, and is way more expensive.

480i does not provide any better picture resolution than existing analog signals.

The cheapest tube digital tv is list priced at about $450, with likely discounts offered to make the actual cost perhaps 30 percent less. At least it's an 1080i, with a 27 inch screen, made by someone I've heard of (Samsung).

And Best Buy (your link goes there) is not necessarily the cheapest place to do anything except improve sales of Best Buy - but, looking there at tvs under $250, as of 1/1/08 1240 Zulu, the only current 720p digital tv listed there is an Insignia® - 15" 720p Flat-Panel LCD HDTV (Model: NS-LCD15 SKU: 8205417) which is i) on sale, regular list price is $299.99 and b) a 15 inch set.

Since most people have at least 20 inch sets to replace, apples to microshaft comparisons are unacceptable.

Renard Gervais: the D-to-A converter boxes being touted start at the cheapest in the $60 range; yet, with declared inferior output compared with a digitally tuned televison

JimBOB: Also not true. The converter boxes will offer access to all digital channels including the multicasted ones, program metadata where available, closed captioning, and the superior reception that goes with digital broadcasting (no more snow, shadows, smeared colors and color shifts). An old analog set won't display in HD, but it will show a very clean SD image on the HD channels.

Proof for either statement is lacking in my basic research to date - can either of you provide links to back up what you say?

And, JimBOB, given your first answer, I can't believe your second answer more than I can believe that you work for Best Buy, desiring to make all Americans pay $1 million each, directly to Best Buy, under penalty of death by waterboarding (enforced by the US Government), to replace perfectly good TV sets with a 2.4 inch, 720i, mono audio, tv with all the quality of a Ronco product.

If you don't like that, too bad - as I have been told, "In God we trust, all others (including the FCC) pay cash...."

How will i be able to get the coupons,to change my analog tv's.So that i want lose my tv signal in Febuary 11,2009.Please send me the name of the stores to go to.If i don't get these boxes,iwant be able to see tv after this year.

For your coupons, go to the US Government official website: http://www.dtv2009.gov

i have a converter box "zinwell" from ebay i like it a lot helps with out older 27"rca tv the converter does the stations and the volume controls but i bought a newer lite-on dvd recorder "to record and watch scrubs"instead of a vhs and the digital signal is not allowed to be recorded so this may be a issue for others as well so now i have a dvd recorder that plays Barbie movies for the kids. thats just great i hope they get thing to work with each other. think since im a beta tester for the government i should at least get paid a lil for my efforts

im with crappy that is shitty. something i didn't know about. but i have found the best bang for the buck is the VOOM on ebay they avg. about 40.00usd and work great for the over the air high def channels that what we use in the pacific northwest work fine for us

I haven't seen any comments about the antenna that would be required for us way out in the sticks. I read the old VHF/UHF outside antennas are really not suited for the new different UHF frequencies that digital tv will be using. Might have to invest in a deep fringe UHF antenna along with the converter boxes for good reception.

Free/coupons from the government ? ? ?

1. When was the last time the Government was efficient and cost-effective at anything?

2. Where does the government get it's money? Answer: your paycheck and anytime you purchase anything (taxes).

1 + 2 = those $40 coupons are costing you much more than $40.

The dirty little secret is that any time the government 'gives' anything they first take your money, take their cut, then redistribute in a manner that will retain/increase power and wealth for those in charge.

i.e. I will give you a $40 coupon after taking $120 in taxes.

Quote A Tsar: I predict, when the average person learns of this "scheme", and the BILLIONS they will have to pay out for new TV's, VCR's etc., there will be another "Tea Party" except this time in Washington not Boston.

The average person needs to wake up first then the Tea Party will be for more than TV's.

I'm actually looking forward to not being able to watch TV anymore. My IQ might even go up.

I read on a previous comment that if you have Direct tv satellite you can't get the coupons,
well Direct tv doesn't offer local channels in
my zip code 39422, so we're getting screwed again.
Thanks

As far as the antenna goes as a rough rule, if you get a very clear analog signal from a station you should get a clear digital pix from same. Where you will be out of luck is if you are in an area where you get grainy signals from distant stations. Digital is an all or nothing transmission. You will either get first rate reception or nothing. Where a major loss will be is those of us who like to DX, or try to receive distant signals, like we do on shortwave radio, or on AM radio at night. You won't get any on digital TV.Where police and other emergency communications services went to digital they got clear sound but reduced range and had to put up additional repeater sites so the units in the street could broadcast back to dispatch I have a feeling many TV stations in areas where they serve viewers a large distance from the transmitter
may have to go this route eventually.
Within ten years or so AM and FM radio as we know it will also be a thing of the past and radio will be all digital. This is not a big thing for the person with a $20 radio. But for those of us with multi thousand dollar shortwave radios and high end portable sets like my Grundig Eton E1, it is a major expense.
So get ready to dump your radios.
As it is now most of the programs which we used to get via shortwave off the air free we now have to get via Internet (better sound quality-but we have to pay dollars for Internet service).
Another problem is on shortwave no one knows which station we are listening to and the signal is difficult to jam. On Internet big brother can find out what you are listening to. Yet all the major shortwave broadcasters have either dropped beaming to North America or shut down shortwave altogether.
As retired people, my wife and I now have to pay out even more money so I can listen to what used to be free.
Enjoy what "blessings" we will be receiving. And get your cheque book out.

Remember when they took some of the HAM radio (HF) spectrum for CB. Those freqs are lost and who is using CB now? Yes these frequencies have some highly desireable characteristics and powerful interests are willing to pay big bucks to get them but the cost to us is more than the government is getting. For example it has been stated that you can still use your DVR to record a program. What has not been said is that my $500 DVR will no longer allow me to record one program for later viewing while I watch another or be able to record several programs on different channels while I am out. Yes you can hook up a splitter and/or a distribution amp to the analog RF output of the ATSC tuner but since all the sets will get the same channel, why bother?

Has anyone ever considered that the majority of poor people in america will just be left out.
This will allow for thousands of pirate analogue tv stations to spring up as a revolt.
I say lets throw out the TV and listen to Radio.
Screw 'em. All TV's are manufactured in Asia anyway. The Asian market is the only beneficiary to this "upgrade" and when did TV become so darn important to us anyway? This is just another government tool to kill free speech in the USA. Digital TV, Digital Radio, Digital Voting.
Who will be falling of the grid and how many thousands? No need.

OK piople, calm down about the converter boxes just being used on TVs. If you have a vcr that is only analog, merely hook your digital converter box to that, and use it like you always have. the only difference is that you will have to watch what you are recording instead of being able to record something and watch something else. But wiat... you get two coupons so hook one of the boxes up to the vcr and pass it through on channel 3 or 4 and hook the other one up to the line inputs on the TV. Very simple...very easy.

EVERBODY is eligable for 2 coupons no matter what. In an emergency and the cable goes out you will still be able to get the local channels, just be sure to purchase some rabbit ear antennas. My concern is that the battery powered emergency TVs are no longer going to function without the converter and how is the converter going to be powered after a hurricane like Rita or Humberto??? The first thing that I did when I awoke to SURPRISE an 85 MPH hurricane howling outside my bedroom window was grab my $19 battery powered TV off the shelf and find out what the he** was going on outside. I won't be able to do that next time without firing up the generator in the middle of a tropical blast.

For American Joe...
Where do you think the radios are made?????

As usual the government is taking control of everything even your TV.oh heres another thing the coupons that they giving out are only good for 90 days!!but the first approved converters wont be available till early 2009.so that means good luck getting one when you got a million converters and a billion people that want TWO.JUST TYPICAL !!!

Geez take a chill pill d t t! the converter boxes will b avialable in Feb 08. 2008 d t t. That is next month. duh.

This may sound like a stupid question, but why do you need an antenna? Why isn't it built into the decoder box? Obviously they won't be sending out the same signals. These creative geniuses just keep coming up with new ways to steal our money. Only in America! We don't manufacture anything here anymore either. I'm sure the boxes are being manufactured in Asia. We are the brokering nation. The Rich Get Richer!!!! We'll be a third world country pretty soon. That's what Corporate America wants.

A BIG LIE THAT THIS IS FOR PUBLIC SAFETY !!
THERE NEEDS TO BE AN INJUNCTION FILED IN THE INTEREST OF PUBLIC SAFETY BECAUSE OF THE MILLIONS OF SETS THAT WONT BE ABLE TO PROTECT THE CITIZENERY IN TIMES OF TORNADO WARNINGS, EVACAUTION NOTICES FOR WILD FIRES HURRICANES, TIDAL WAVES. AND THE SURE TO COME TERRORIST ATTACKS. THE BILLIONS BEING PAID FOR THE FREQUENCIES SHOULD BE USED TO MAKE SURE THAT NO CURRENTLY OWNED ELECTRONICS ARE MADE OBSELETE BY THE CHANGE.

Thus the canverter box program, BUDDIE. I think that almost anyone who can afford a TV can scrape together $10 along with the coupon to get a converter box.
The new digital channels use the exact same frequencies that the analog channels use. The only difference is that TV stations can, if they so choose, transmit up to 5 "channels" of programming in the same space that they used to only be able to broadcast 1. Here in S E Texas we did not have a CW affilliate, so our longtime CBS station chose to broadcast CBS in Hi-Def on channel 6.1 (which can be received in standard definition with the converter box) and the CW on channel 6.2 . KALB in Alexandria La., a longtime NBC station uses 5.1 for NBC and 5.2 for CBS giving them a local CBS affiliate for the first time.
An internal antenna would not be strong enough to pick up analog or digital channels. If you are getting your TV over the air now, and you get a clear picture, you can continue to use the same antenna you have now. You don't need to go buy a new one. Remember, the frequncies are the same.
Years ago, the TV spectrum went all the way up to channel 83. Channels 70 through 83 were lopped off and auctioned to the original cell phone providers. After the transistion to digital, channels 52 through 69 (with some rare examples) will be lopped off and some of it will be auctioned for expanded digital personal devices and the rest will used for public safety. The auction which will probably provide HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS if not BILLIONS of dollars is where the money for the converter box coupon program will come from.
I want to address another thing that I read in one of the early posts. A new standard definition television set as large as a 20 inch can be had for less than $100. I have seen them as low as $92. The prices have really come down and I do beleive that they will continue to fall. But if you've already got a good TV, just use the box.

per Cat Lady:

The auction which will probably provide HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS if not BILLIONS of dollars is where the money for the converter box coupon program will come from.

Yeah!!! Not a dime will we citizens in this country see. Not one cent will go towards better health care, SS, Roads, Bridges, etc.

It will ALL go to Haliburton/Brown n Root via Iraq.

We are not Americans...We ARE stupid.
Probably from watching too much TV as kids.

I guess I asked for it by name... Meow Mix. Not true! You are going to goet not one but TWO $40 coupons M M! :)

Oh, and M M I think you're right! I think it was too much Beverly Hillbillies and Green Acres that did it when we were kids. No, wait! That was last weekend on TV Land. Oh well.

My home is an average of 45 - 70 miles from current analog television broadcast towers. I have a large 20' analog antenna mounted in the attic of my two story home. Currently, I get very good signals from 9 stations, and acceptable (meaning some snow) from 4 additional stations.

This is all the television I need, and I don't have to pay for it.

I hear conflicting information as to what kind of reception I can expect on my current setup: from "as good, or better" to "you are S.O.L.)

Does anyone here have any definitive information on over-the-air digital reception?

Thank you!

Hey Geewiz.
I won't say that I have definitive info for you, but I will give you an idea from my experiences.
The 45 mile away stations will probably be OK with your set-up after the transistion. However the 70 mile distant stations may need some tweeking. I am going to estimate that your antenna is about 22-24 feet high. I will tell you hthat higher is better. Outside is better than inside. That being said, the first thing I would recomend is a signal booster. Do it now and see if it improves your analog reception. If it does, that would be encouraging. The next thing that I would do is if you have multiple TVs hooked up to the antenna, I would invest in a distribution amp. They usually have an input for the antenna and then 4 outlets to go to different parts of your home. These can be added at different times if cost is a factor. I know you can find them at Radio Shack if you have one nearby.(Or even online if need be)
The next thing that I would do is go ahead and obtain a digital reciever of some kind, be it a digital converter, DVD recorder ASTC tuner, or Digital TV BEFORE the transition so that you will know what it is exactly you will be able to depend on afterwards.
You can also go to the FCC website, click on "Media" on the right-hand side (down just a little bit), when that page comes up, click on "Video Division, Including TV" on the left-hand side and the when the next page comes up, click on "TV Query".
When the TV Query comes up, there is a spot for "Call Sign". Put the call sign for the stations that you recieve in the box (i. e. KHOU). Scroll down to the box with the various formats listed and click on "TV Query (detailed output, including CDBS links)"
Information about the station will come up. Scroll down to the section that has "Digital" to the right of the page, it will be in red. Click on "Sevice Contour Map" and you will get a coverage map of the usable signal for the station. This will give you an idea of how far inside (or, alas, outside) the contour you are and your chances of contuing to recieve the station. You can do this for all of them. Be sure to click on the full power section or you may pull up info on a "Special Temporary Authorization" that does not indicate the final coverage for the station.
Reception also depends on the terrain where you live. I live down on the Gulf Coast where Texas and Louisian and the Gulf Of Mexico come together. It is FLAT. FLAT,flat, flat. We also have a lot of marshy areas which is excellent for TV broadcasting. Mountainous is the worst. Heavy forested land is not so good and desert is not so good.
As for my experiences, i live about 45-50 miles from the Lake Charles, La. full power TV transmitters. I get KPLC Digital TV 7, 24 hours a day. I do not get KLTL DT 18 except occasionally on clear nights. :( However KLTL is owned by the state of La. and is designed not to transmit to us here in Texas. Full power Lake Charles station KVHP is probably 30 miles away. I get the analog clear 24-7. and I have no doubt that once they get their full DT up and running I will get it also. (Right now they are operationg on a very low power STA because after they recieved the digital transmitter, they discovered that it would not fit in the transmitter building with the analog transmitter. LOL)
I am about 100 miles from the Houston antenna farm. I have recieved all of the 16 Houston DTs, but they are not reliable. (Better at night) I watch KHOU DT 11 news frequently at 10PM. Their local news is in HD.
I have a VU-190 Antenna mounted outside with both a mast mounted signal amp and a distribution amp and I am also up about 22 feet. I am seriously considering going up to about 36 feet. My friend and I just put up the same set-up as mine for her brother, and his is up to 36 feet. He lives just west of Beaumont and gets all of the houston stations 24-7. Good luck, and please post back here your results. I will look forward to seeing them.

What about low powered analog tv stations? I understand that low powered stations are not required to change to digital. Does that mean that some college stations etc. may still be around in analog ? These stations are not in my area though but are in the nearby cities only. Does that mean new analog low powered community
access channels could spring up in cities? Cable
companies don't worry about these because they
broadcast only a few miles from their towers.

Roger that!
By going to the FCC web site and doing a TV query, you can input any community to see if there are low power stations pending. There are several in our area that have new construction permits that don't expire until 2010. So, yes, there my be other analog LP stations that come online. Some LP stations have already fired up digital transmitters anyway. A prime example of that is our local KUIL LP ch.64, our local FOX affiliate. They have continued to broadcast on analog channel 64, but have begun broadcasting digital on their "digital companion" channel 36. However, KUMY LP ch.22, will continue to broadcast My Network TV after the transition in analog. LPs will have to transition to the digital format at some time however. I am anxious for KUMY to get their digital up because I get too much interference from full power channel 22 in Houston. Back to KUIL, however, their digital coverage about 3 times what the analog coverage is. They have a really awesome signal going and it is in HD. I will be able to watch the Super Bowl (the only football game I watch a year) in HD. :)
KUIL is on our cable, but KUMY is not.
I was in Gunnison, Colorado last March, and all of there local broadcast stations were low power translators for full power stations in larger cities and I do not know if they are going to transition by Feb. 17 2009 or not. I need to look at the FCC website to see what their status is.

Cat Lady.. thanks for your very helpful insight and sharing of your obviously extensive knowledge on this subject. I think the first step is to get a digital-analog converter and determine how far that gets me, and will point me on the path I'll need to go!

Ditch the dish AND CABLE. Box up your old TV and mail it to the Senate in Washington. Turn on the radio and spend quqlity time with your family. THATS WHAT I"M GOING TO DO!