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Wheel and Jep not in HD on WPRI Providence
- Thread starter Skynet74
- Start date
Skynet74 said:
We see it in HDTV down here in Roanoke on 7.1 its amazing what you can what Vanna really looks like..............
N
necrat123
Guest
There is a lot more to it than "just recording off of satellite".
(For the record, Wheel & Jeopardy aren't recorded off of satellite, they use the Pathfire system to download the shows in their native file formats which are then fed to a server system for playback)
You have to put equipment to handle the HD playback, and storage, the equipment to switch the HD feeds, the equipment to downconvert those feeds not in HD, and transmit the HD feed from the master control to the studios, the equipment to switch back into the transmission path from the HD and SD feeds. It can be done, it's a rather expensive investment.
(For the record, Wheel & Jeopardy aren't recorded off of satellite, they use the Pathfire system to download the shows in their native file formats which are then fed to a server system for playback)
You have to put equipment to handle the HD playback, and storage, the equipment to switch the HD feeds, the equipment to downconvert those feeds not in HD, and transmit the HD feed from the master control to the studios, the equipment to switch back into the transmission path from the HD and SD feeds. It can be done, it's a rather expensive investment.
Skynet74 said:
Capitol budgets are not unlimited.
Do not underestimate the cost of implementing local HD. Supporting HD playback of syndicated programming (or anything but passing through the network) requires essentially rebuilding the station from the ground up. You need playback equipment that supports HD. You need the distribution amplifiers to move that HD video around, and the switchers to select it to the transmitter. You need more storage space. (uncompressed, HD requires 4X the storage space of SD. Luckily MPEG compression reduces that ratio.) You need D=>A converters & monitors. You need HD=>SD downconverters for your analog viewers. You need racks to hold all this equipment and space for the racks and electrical power to run it all. You need to plan to figure out just what you need to do and you need skilled labor to do it. They need to figure out how to do it without taking the station off the air - since after all, you're replacing the core functions of the station. This is not a matter of WPRI being too cheap to spend $10,000 on a new tape machine.
Oh, and if WJAR suddenly decides to buy a helicopter, or a 3D radar, or ???, WPRI still needs to match that.
Stations will need the ability to air syndicated programming in HD eventually. As equipment wears out, it will be replaced with HD-capable gear, and eventually WPRI will be close enough to HD capable to take the last step. (given the poor service life of modern gear, "eventually" will happen rather soon...) It just won't happen this year.
N
necrat123
Guest
Skynet74 said:
Then why couldn't you just say that without the snide little remarks to my post John?
N
necrat123
Guest
All right, that's fair.
I just don't want you to think that it's because WPRI doesn't want to do HD. Believe me, I don't know a single station that doesn't want to. There is a good chance that the station you watched it on in Roanoke did some recent plant upgrade which is why they are doing it in HD all ready, OR they could be faking it, by using a short term work around, which in the long run costs more money. I don't know the situation there.
Oh, and BTW, if you are watching on COX, between 1a-5a the next few nights, there will be SD/HD outages on WPRI, WNAC, and WJAR while COX does work on the plant.
I just don't want you to think that it's because WPRI doesn't want to do HD. Believe me, I don't know a single station that doesn't want to. There is a good chance that the station you watched it on in Roanoke did some recent plant upgrade which is why they are doing it in HD all ready, OR they could be faking it, by using a short term work around, which in the long run costs more money. I don't know the situation there.
Oh, and BTW, if you are watching on COX, between 1a-5a the next few nights, there will be SD/HD outages on WPRI, WNAC, and WJAR while COX does work on the plant.
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