What was it?

[wxctintern]

When I woke up at 6:30 this morning I turned on the TV and began flipping throught the channels. There was something weird on COX Channel 54, which is HGTV. The bottom two thirds of the screen were covered up with a grey box which had the following information on it:

Unit = 000-03134-32641-165 VCH = 400
Firmware = 0000D8 0000D8 VCT ID = 489
Encryption = Subscribed Service # = 4
Auth State = Authorized Eb/No = + 13.0
Signal State = Locked Sat Xponder = G 1/4
Signal Quality = 100 Virtual Network = N/A
Symbol Rate = 19.51 MSPS Polarization = Yes
Frequency = 1370.000 MHz FEC Rate = 3/4

The top third of the screen had the regular HGTV Programming, but the words "Fast Facts 1" was in the middle of it.

By 8:30 I notice things were back to normal. What was this information I saw?<P ID="signature">______________
~Jay Clark~
</P>

 

[TXengineer]

That was

That was the satellite receiver's information screen.
Your cable company might have been doing some work that
needed to check the info on the box.

I couuld get into what each line meant, but that's something to be save
for the same question on the engineering board.


> When I woke up at 6:30 this morning I turned on the TV and
> began flipping throught the channels. There was something
> weird on COX Channel 54, which is HGTV. The bottom two
> thirds of the screen were covered up with a grey box which
> had the following information on it:
>
> Unit = 000-03134-32641-165 VCH = 400
> Firmware = 0000D8 0000D8 VCT ID = 489
> Encryption = Subscribed Service # = 4
> Auth State = Authorized Eb/No = + 13.0
> Signal State = Locked Sat Xponder = G 1/4
> Signal Quality = 100 Virtual Network = N/A
> Symbol Rate = 19.51 MSPS Polarization = Yes
> Frequency = 1370.000 MHz FEC Rate = 3/4
>
> The top third of the screen had the regular HGTV
> Programming, but the words "Fast Facts 1" was in the middle
> of it.
>
> By 8:30 I notice things were back to normal. What was this
> information I saw?
>

 

[RobertAnthony]

Re: That was

> That was the satellite receiver's information screen.
> Your cable company might have been doing some work that
> needed to check the info on the box.
>
> I couuld get into what each line meant, but that's something
> to be save
> for the same question on the engineering board.
>

All that info I see seems greek to me--then again, I'm not much the engineering type!
>
> > When I woke up at 6:30 this morning I turned on the TV and
>
> > began flipping throught the channels. There was something
> > weird on COX Channel 54, which is HGTV. The bottom two
> > thirds of the screen were covered up with a grey box which
>
> > had the following information on it:
> >
> > Unit = 000-03134-32641-165 VCH = 400
> > Firmware = 0000D8 0000D8 VCT ID = 489
> > Encryption = Subscribed Service # = 4
> > Auth State = Authorized Eb/No = + 13.0
> > Signal State = Locked Sat Xponder = G 1/4
> > Signal Quality = 100 Virtual Network = N/A
> > Symbol Rate = 19.51 MSPS Polarization = Yes
> > Frequency = 1370.000 MHz FEC Rate = 3/4
> >
> > The top third of the screen had the regular HGTV
> > Programming, but the words "Fast Facts 1" was in the
> middle
> > of it.
> >
> > By 8:30 I notice things were back to normal. What was this
>
> > information I saw?
> >
>

 

[TXengineer]

OK here is a line by line definition.

> > > Unit = 000-03134-32641-165 || VCH = 400
Unit Serial Number (Addressable) VCH is Virtual Channel

> > > Firmware = 0000D8 0000D8 || VCT ID = 489
Firmware inside the unit version. VCT ID = Virtual Channel Table ID Number

> > > Encryption = Subscribed || Service # = 4
What "program" the receiver is tuned to.
(As it turns out HGTV-East is Program 4)

> > > Auth State = Authorized || Eb/No = + 13.0
Is the unit authorized? Yes. Eb/No = Error Bit Number. Without seeing the Motorola Satellite receiver's manual, I can't tell you for certain WHAT the number is reading (db or another count). But if it is like most, it is in DB and a 13.0db Eb/No is an OK reading.

> > > Signal State = Locked ||Sat Xponder = G 1/4
The unit has a locked satellite signal. It is tuned to Galaxy 1
Transponder 4 (133° W - 3780 mHZ downlink )

> > > Signal Quality = 100 || Virtual Network = N/A
How good is the signal. This is more used as a coarse level check. 100 seems good. Virtual Network, this network isnt using a Virtual Network.

> > > Symbol Rate = 19.51 MSPS || Polarization = Yes
The symbol rate is the amount of symbols per second being received. This number is important for the receiver to lock in on the signal This is the symbol rate for the entire digital transponder, and not the program.
Polarization , I am unsure what this setting changes in the box. If it supplies power to the DC terminals to change the dish polarity.

> > > Frequency = 1370.000 MHz || FEC Rate = 3/4
This is the "L-Band" frequency. The satellite signal is 'down-converted' to a lower frequency before leaving the dish. This is the frequency of RF at the back of the receiver.
The FEC rate is the Forward Error Correction rate. It is a ratio related to the forward error correction in the digital signal.


Now you know...