Super bowl rant

[radiosaur]

Since we don't have a Memphis TV board...

I sat down to watch the Super Bowl on my big screen TV and noticed Channel 24 isn't in STEREO? Luckily, my tall antenna up here in extreme N Shelby Co. offered a great picture complete with stereo and hence surround sound from KAIT in Jonesboro.

Why can't a major market CC television station do stereo? It's not like there aren't any receivers...most TV's are stereo nowdays...and if it was broken on Super Bowl Sunday then there are some engineers who need to explain a few things.

<P ID="signature">______________
Never hold a cat and a dustbuster at the same time.</P>

 

[DeadElvis]

> Why can't a major market CC television station do stereo?
> It's not like there aren't any receivers...most TV's are
> stereo nowdays...and if it was broken on Super Bowl Sunday
> then there are some engineers who need to explain a few
> things.

A couple of things...

First, WPTY is in stereo -- Dolby Digital stereo on the digital channel (channel 25). I watched what I saw of the game over the air in HD. It looked breathtaking -- widescreen with great sound. When one flips back and forth between the standard def and the HD, the difference is amazing.

Second, I can't imagine WPTY, or any other station, dumping money into their analogs anymore. After all, that thing will be shut down in just three years. It really makes no sense to spend the money.

I have only had my HDTV -- a fairly modest one -- for a couple of weeks. It really ruins you on standard def.

Hope your team won, 'Saur.

DE

 

[radiosaur]

> First, WPTY is in stereo -- Dolby Digital stereo on the
> digital channel (channel 25). I watched what I saw of the
> game over the air in HD. It looked breathtaking --
> widescreen with great sound. When one flips back and forth
> between the standard def and the HD, the difference is
> amazing.

I agree. But those of us who think it's ridiculous to pay in the thousands for a TV still want our stereo

Seriously, they have been stereo in the past and analog consitutes probably 95% of thier non-cable base. It's still dumb not to fix it. I bet I'm not the only one who noticed, either.



<P ID="signature">______________
Never hold a cat and a dustbuster at the same time.</P>

 

[DeadElvis]

> I agree. But those of us who think it's ridiculous to pay in
> the thousands for a TV still want our stereo

The price is coming down.

Again, mine is pretty modest. Just 30", and not one of those super-thin types one hangs on the wall.

But, it has input/outputs galore... line-level and speaker level out (~20w, I think). HDMI, etc. Nice picture.

Well under $1000.

I'll buy a really big one perhaps later this year.

One aside, though... Clear Channel isn't doing much with secondary channels yet. Most of the other stations have. Channel 3 has two streams, 5 has 3, 10 has 3 (all different than the analog channel), and 50 has 4 (all standard def, though). WPTY, WLMT and WHBQ only rebroadcast their analog; but, it's in HD, when available.

DE

 

[DeltaKing]

Can anyone even GET WHBQ? I thought they were still running the OTA HD at flea-power under temporary authority at their studios. I have a big Channel Master and can still not recieve them. Everything else is rockin'. They need to get the HD on their big stick off I-40 just like WREG...

Also, why isn't WMC's HD at their main stick? They run it off of the Clear Channel candleabra in B.F.E..

> One aside, though... Clear Channel isn't doing much with
> secondary channels yet. Most of the other stations have.
> Channel 3 has two streams, 5 has 3, 10 has 3 (all different
> than the analog channel), and 50 has 4 (all standard def,
> though). WPTY, WLMT and WHBQ only rebroadcast their analog;
> but, it's in HD, when available.
>
> DE
>

 

[DeadElvis]

> Can anyone even GET WHBQ? I thought they were still running
> the OTA HD at flea-power under temporary authority at their
> studios. I have a big Channel Master and can still not
> recieve them. Everything else is rockin'. They need to get
> the HD on their big stick off I-40 just like WREG...

Yeah, WHBQ is on.

You're right... they were only running a couple of kw on their tower on Highland for the longest time. It only carried a couple of miles, if the wind was blowing in the right direction. But, they were required to get on full-power by the end of 2005. They made the deadline with just a couple of days to spare.

I have no trouble with WHBQ on a loop inside the house. WKNO-DT is the only one that gives me any trouble -- occasional freezing.

Of course, WHBQ will have to move DTV to channel 13 when the analogs go down. WMC is in a worse situation; they have to move the DTV to channel 5. It's interesting -- UHF is considered desirable for DTV, and VHF less so. Low-band VHF (2-6) dies not work well, at all.

WBUY-TV is still running low-power. I can't get 'em. And, I'm only 10 miles away, if that.

DE

 

[DeltaKing]

I'll run a new channel search tonight on my reciever to pick them up. Thanks for the heads up. Glad they did it just in time for football season to end on FOX...turkeys.

> Yeah, WHBQ is on.
>
> You're right... they were only running a couple of kw on
> their tower on Highland for the longest time. It only
> carried a couple of miles, if the wind was blowing in the
> right direction. But, they were required to get on
> full-power by the end of 2005. They made the deadline with
> just a couple of days to spare.
>
> I have no trouble with WHBQ on a loop inside the house.
> WKNO-DT is the only one that gives me any trouble --
> occasional freezing.
>
> Of course, WHBQ will have to move DTV to channel 13 when the
> analogs go down. WMC is in a worse situation; they have to
> move the DTV to channel 5. It's interesting -- UHF is
> considered desirable for DTV, and VHF less so. Low-band VHF
> (2-6) dies not work well, at all.
>
> WBUY-TV is still running low-power. I can't get 'em. And,
> I'm only 10 miles away, if that.
>
> DE
>

 

[MikeBratton]

Listen to all this rantin' and ravin' about HD and DT and stereo...

When I was a boy, we had four channels, a TV with a black-and-white screen and a speaker that sounded like a tin can--and we liked it!

We didn't have none of them there fancy things like color picture tubes, ree-mote controls, and Fox! We got up off our backsides to change the channels, squinted to watch a show, and we were grateful!

--Mike

P.S.: Somebody ask me how much a television set cost when I was a boy.