[Northman]

I recently moved and decided to get satellite for the first time, only to discover the local channels aren't available in HD (I have a Panasonic Viera plasma TV). I was advised to get an antenna capable of receiving the digital signals for the local stations, as these supposedly also provide the HD feed from said stations. Well, they do........but the trouble is I'm only getting 2 stations - FOX and CBS - which appear to be combined on one channel (45). Why am I not getting the NBC or ABC stations? Is it because those towers are further away - Traverse City I think - and they won't reach up here?

Anyone else dealing with or know anything about this?

[Michigansnowflake]

Huh,we have DirecTV and get the local channels, in HD...are you going through a cable/satellite company or trying to get them over the air....that doesnt work anymore does it? Do you have one of those boxes they told everyone to get if they didnt have a service?

[Sparrow_temp]

I'm convinced OTA HDTV is not meant for anybody but the urban areas. The rest of us have to get cable or satellite. Check out the antennaweb.org and tvfool.com websites. You got the station that you can easily get -- anything else will be marginal and require a higher/larger antenna. The antenna also has to be on a rotor because of the signals coming from different directions which creates a headache when you want to seamlessly change channels. You also need 2 different types of antennas -- 1 UHF and 1 VHF. VHF for those channels < 14 (8 abc & 10 cbs) and UHF for those 14+ (17 pbs,24 pbs,29 abc,35 nbc,45 fox). You're getting 45 FOX so you either have a UHF antenna or a UHF/VHF hybrid. 45 must be simulcasting CBS in SDTV on one of the subchannels.

The whole digital transition has made it more difficult for most rural areas to get a tv signal than when things were analog. The broadcast stations have underestimated the power needed to cover their total broadcast area in an effective manner. They also are limited in how much power they can use or they'll cause interference in adjacent markets and things are even more complicated because of the proximity to Canada.

Dish Network still doesn't have the local channels in HD for the Petoskey area (assuming that's the satellite provider you chose). DirecTV has the HD versions of ABC,NBC,CBS, FOX but not PBS. The cable company, Charter, doesn't have PBS either. Unless you have to have internet service via Charter, I'd avoid that option since the DirecTV option would be better.

You might be able to get the HD stations off from Dish Network (assuming you're already committed to a contract with them) by "moving" to a different area within MI like Grand Rapids or Lansing. These are covered by spot beam 14 on 61.5W. I'm just not sure how far that spot beam extends north -- Green Bay, WI seems to be included. The spot beam 15 on 129W includes Marquette, MI and Green Bay, WI but may be too far west to pick up. Hopefully Dish Network will add the HD nets in the future for the northern Michigan DMA.

[Northman]

My plasma has a digital tuner built in, so I don't need a converter box....supposedly. The satellite does not run through the antenna/cable jack, so I'm able to run an antenna through that and switch to TV mode to any local feeds.

I have Dish Network as my satellite provider. I get the local channels through them, but not their HD broadcasts, which means I have to watch all their HD offerings in standard def.

I bought an RCA antenna for 30 bucks at Meier in Gaylord today. There were more expensive ones also, and I'm wondering if those are the ones that will pick up the stations with NBC and ABC. They have amplifiers built in, I guess.

I'm getting the HD broadcasts from both FOX and CBS off of ch. 45. I'm watching the Alabama/LSU game in HD right now, and it looks great. Ch. 45's tower is apparently somewhere off of Thumb Lake Rd. between Boyne Falls and Vanderbilt.

This crap is CONFUSING! I guess if you don't have cable or satellite up here you better like FOX and CBS!

[Sparrow_temp]

Those boxes were worthless which I guess is why the government was subsidizing them. They allow an OTA HD signal to be translated to an SDTV signal. Most people want an HD signal if they're going to go through the bother of making an OTA signal work but the government explicitly forbid the subsidies of a more useful box that could actually output an HD component or HDMI signal. A coupon toward an antenna installation or a new HDTV would have been much more beneficial to most.

I think most that want HDTV will settle for Cable TV or satellite. It's a lot less work. I'd rather install a satellite dish any day versus the work involved in installing an outdoor antenna that will work to my satisfaction in most rural areas.

Originally Posted by Michigansnowflake

Do you have one of those boxes they told everyone to get if they didnt have a service?

[Sparrow_temp]

I've been to the Ch.45 antenna site before while trail biking near Bows Lake. It seemed like it was in the middle of nowhere but assuming it was one of the highest points in the area.

My knowledge might be dated but I think only CBS was in HDTV and FOX was in SDTV. Typically you don't have 2 HD stations on 1 transmitter or both suffer in quality due to the limited bandwidth.

Originally Posted by Northman

I'm getting the HD broadcasts from both FOX and CBS off of ch. 45. I'm watching the Alabama/LSU game in HD right now, and it looks great. Ch. 45's tower is apparently somewhere off of Thumb Lake Rd. between Boyne Falls and Vanderbilt.

[Northman]

Originally Posted by Sparrow_temp

I've been to the Ch.45 antenna site before while trail biking near Bows Lake. It seemed like it was in the middle of nowhere but assuming it was one of the highest points in the area.

My knowledge might be dated but I think only CBS was in HDTV and FOX was in SDTV. Typically you don't have 2 HD stations on 1 transmitter or both suffer in quality due to the limited bandwidth.

Well, I spoke too soon, and you're right Sparrow.........no HD on FOX. So basically I paid 30 bucks to be able to watch CBS' HD broadcasts, and am still without HD on NBC, ABC, and FOX. I'm not very happy. What a GIP!

[Sparrow_temp]

Well, if you have high speed internet -- you can view a lot of the current content from the networks in HD via Hulu or other download sites. Otherwise, jump to DirecTV or lie to Dish and claim you've moved to GR Lansing, etc and see if you can get those networks from your current position if you have an HD receiver. Or get Charter and see if their HD networks are in the clear on their basic lifeline account via your TV's QAM tuner -- they used to be. You didn't have to subscribe to their HD basic tier if you had your own equipment capable of picking up their HD network signals.

Originally Posted by Northman

Well, I spoke too soon, and you're right Sparrow.........no HD on FOX. So basically I paid 30 bucks to be able to watch CBS' HD broadcasts, and am still without HD on NBC, ABC, and FOX. I'm not very happy. What a GIP!

[SeaSideBay]

LOL @ having an antenna hooked up to a plasma TV.

You should like my kind of person!

But really, you have to get satellite if you want channels. We have dish network for TV, land line, & internet as a bundle deal. Can't complain. Never have problems. Good service

[Northman]

Originally Posted by SeaSideBay

LOL @ having an antenna hooked up to a plasma TV.

You should like my kind of person!

But really, you have to get satellite if you want channels. We have dish network for TV, land line, & internet as a bundle deal. Can't complain. Never have problems. Good service

I do have satellite. Did you read the whole thread?