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In article ,
Newps wrote:

I am not aware of any cable system that allows direct hookup of digital
cable right to the back of the TV without first going thru a converter
box. It's certainly possible but I think the hangup is a lack of a
standard. So you're forced to run it thru the box first and the box
simply converts it to channel 3 or 4 if you have an analog TV.

Some cable companies do have some unencrypted digital cable channels,
but apparently they can change that at will.

from a FAQ at www.elgato.com

3) Unencrypted digital cable - ³Clear QAM" is similar to basic cable, but in
digital form. The channels are not scrambled or blocked, but only a small
number of channels are available for viewing. Some channels may be SDTV
(standard), and some may be HDTV (high definition). Typically, networks like
NBC or FOX will be present, along with public access, shopping, local, PBS, and
perhaps some radio channels.

4) Encrypted digital cable - ³Digital Cable" is typically encrypted, or encoded
so that you need a cable box (or CableCARD) to view it. If you have 500 digital
cable channels that you receive with a cable box, then the majority of these
channels will be encrypted. A Clear QAM tuner can¹t receive encrypted digital
cable; HDHomeRun can¹t receive the majority of your digital cable channels.

Therefore, HDHomeRun only receives a few cable channels, those that are Clear
QAM (unencrypted). It cannot use a cable box, and it can¹t receive most of your
channels. The channels it can receive vary city by city, and some channels may
be there one day, and gone in a few months. Essentially, your cable company
reserves the right to encrypt and decrypt channels at will, but usually you¹ll
see the networks, and some other content.

That said, Clear QAM tuners can receive HDTV content, if available. For example,
ABC may start airing HDTV content at 8PM nightly. That may be 720p or 1080i,
depending on the channel.

Clear QAM also sometimes offers more than one channel on the same frequency. In
that case, EyeTV can open up all channels on the same frequency, at the same
time (or any combination of channels on that frequency).

If you use digital cable, please be aware of the strengths and limitations of
Clear QAM tuners before purchasing HDHomeRun. You may want to contact your
cable company, to find out if any of their channels are in Clear QAM format.
You can also search the internet for such information - it¹s common to find an
article or message board post from people in your same city who are already
using Clear QAM content. Unfortunately, no master list of Clear QAM service
providers is available to Elgato.

--
Bob Noel
(goodness, please trim replies!!!)

On Sun, 25 Nov 2007 05:50:19 -0500, "Morgans"
wrote:


"Newps" wrote

I am not aware of any cable system that allows direct hookup of digital
cable right to the back of the TV without first going thru a converter
box. It's certainly possible but I think the hangup is a lack of a
standard. So you're forced to run it thru the box first and the box
simply converts it to channel 3 or 4 if you have an analog TV.

I'll have to tell Charter that they are doing their signal wrong, cause I
can get channels till the cows come home with the cable going right into the
back of my TV's.

Comcast here has digital OTA through the cable without a converter
box. I would only need a converter box for the pay channels, and
that's not so much of a converter box as it is an access module to
descramble the signals.

On Sun, 25 Nov 2007 07:13:36 GMT, in rec.aviation.piloting, Marty Shapiro
wrote:

(Scott) wrote in news:4748e56a.551894267@localhost:
The sensible part of my mind wants to think that if DTV adoption is
not high enough, the television advertising industry (which is the
only bunch of folks with any real stake in this) will subsidize the
devices to whatever degree necessary to retain their audience. The
cynical part of me says that in that circumstance, the ad industry
will cry and whine until the government pays to subsidize them.

I wouldn't hold my breath. OTA (over-the-air)class A channels (high
power) must switch to all digital on February 17, 2009. They do not have
the option of continuing to broadcast in analag after that date. Most

True, but consumers have the alternative to simply *not* upgrade their
equipment. When analog broadcasts stop, people can choose to just turn the
thing off and pick up a book instead. That's the sort of thing that
advertisers don't want to see, and the only real reason that settop digital
tuner equipment might be subsidized.

Cable and satellite are not required to switch to digital. Since

Some of them are already digital, some aren't -- it doesn't matter. An OTA
DTV settop tuner is just catching up with what the cable and sat guys have
been doing for years. Separate the tuner from the video and audio monitors,
you gain a lot of flexibility in the system.

-Scott

On Sun, 25 Nov 2007 05:50:19 -0500, "Morgans"
wrote:


"Newps" wrote

I am not aware of any cable system that allows direct hookup of digital
cable right to the back of the TV without first going thru a converter
box. It's certainly possible but I think the hangup is a lack of a
standard. So you're forced to run it thru the box first and the box
simply converts it to channel 3 or 4 if you have an analog TV.

I'll have to tell Charter that they are doing their signal wrong, cause I
can get channels till the cows come home with the cable going right into the
back of my TV's.

Yup. So far around here Carter uses "at the pole" block filters. If
you look up at the bottom of the connection "up there" you'll see one
or more colored plugs.

Roger (K8RI)

"Roger (K8RI)" wrote

Yup. So far around here Carter uses "at the pole" block filters. If
you look up at the bottom of the connection "up there" you'll see one
or more colored plugs.

Charter around me is much more advanced. They send signals via fiber optics
to powered boxes scattered around, that then feed about ten houses with coax
cables. All of the premium packages are sent via the optics converters that
then send the extra channels out each line. That also enables them to offer
cable internet services.


They can add channels as you order them, and are speaking to them on the
phone.

It's kinda neat. :-)
--
Jim in NC