Digital TVs transition...

[Pantechnicon]

Check out my new Digital Antenna, acquired from Thrift Town for ten bucks:

http://www.geocities.com/pzcortez/DSCN0092.JPG

Works beautifully. Must have something to do with the little Tesla coils.

[TheDomesticInstitution]

Check out my new Digital Antenna, acquired from Thrift Town for ten bucks:


Works beautifully. Must have something to do with the little Tesla coils.


It's a work of art. I'd pay $11 for it.

[jb143]

Works beautifully. Must have something to do with the little Tesla coils.

Looks like something right out a 40's space movie. I almost want to find one of those now to make a jacobs ladder out of.

[retro junkie]

I have dropped my cable service and now have an antenna.
http://star.walagata.com/w/redmoon/DTV.gif

With it pointed in the direction shown, I can recieve 19 channels. I will soon get a rotor. Using a rotor I have a potential of picking up around 30 known digital channels in my area which is sweet. Free digital TV is great! I am within 50 to 60 miles from these stations, not counting the two local stations in my city.

:rocker:

[MarioMania]

Is Digital TV NTSC...I wonder if a PAL RF System will work on it

[MarioMania]

It dosn't...

I have to get a stonger antanna..I only picked up 1 DTV in my area

[jupitersj]

it's not that both old and new TV's alike can't decode analog signals anymore after the switch, it's that nothing but static will appear on all the old analog channels if you try to tune into them, cause everything will be broadcast in digital... what you'll need a converter box for is if you want to receive digital signals through an external antenna... the box will convert the digital signals to analog signals that your old analog TV will be able to decode... but if you have cable, any necessary signal conversion will be done by your provider, thus eliminating the need for a converter box... so the only thing you need a new TV for is if you want to enjoy the higher resolution of the new digital signals... cause your old TV still won't be able to display a higher resolution...

now as for all your old games, here's where you need to be concerned... some new TV's don't support the lower resolutions of older game systems... they can still display them, but not in their native resolutions... so what happens is the display gets stretched out of proportion to fit the higher resolution screen, and the result will depend on the native resolution of your digital TV, as well as its aspect ratio... so if it's a widescreen TV, and you're playing a game that doesn't support widescreen aspect ratios on it, your game display is gonna look like an image captured in silly putty that's been stretched... and it's prolly gonna be either very blurry or very pixelated or both, even if it's not a widescreen TV, because of the lower resolution game display being adjusted to fill the screen of the higher resolution digital TV...

light gun games are also a concern, as they won't work with LCD or plasma displays... so if you have some light gun games that you want to continue to enjoy, you'll need to make sure that you get a digital TV with a CRT display... and the good news about that is, digital TV's with CRT displays are among the cheapest of all digital TV's... so you won't have to spend alot to get one... the bad news is, you'll need alot of space for it, cause you won't be able to get one of those really slim models that hangs on a wall real nice... those models use LCD or plasma displays, which don't support old light guns...

so what's the best thing that you can do to make sure that you can still enjoy all your old games for decades to come, while still enjoying the best display possible? well you should prolly stock up on any RGB monitor that you happen to find, and learn how to play all your old games in RGB... this is prolly gonna become the surest sign of a true hardcore retro gamer... and some may argue that it already is... if you've ever seen a game displayed in RGB, you'll understand why... this is the same display used in most arcade games... which is both good news and bad news... good news because old RGB monitors will be very plentiful to find, but bad news because most of them will have some burn-in from their days of service in arcade cabinets...

how to play games in RGB:

http://nfggames.com/atarilabs/meat/2000/1201_rgbprimer.shtml

My HDTV is a Sony KD-36XS955 ... it's the sister set to the KD-34XBR960N both use superfinepitch tubes. Both are digital CRT's with dual tuners....arguably the two best hdtv crt sets for consumers(non studio monitors that is..).

Both sets do not support oldschool lightgun games (nes, ps2, etc)...because of how the signal is processed. The calibration screens for ps2 guncon's even show this with shows jumping everywhere.

:puppydogeyes::puppydogeyes::puppydogeyes:

[MarioMania]

My area just sucks with getting Digital Station..I bought a Antanna from Radio Shack for $20..I'm only getting Analog Channels

[MarioMania]

Congress what's to delay it til June

http://www.electronichouse.com/article/congress_closer_to_delaying_dtv_deadline/

I think it will piss alot TV stations people because there getting ready to shut analog off at 12am Feb. 17

[CastlevaniaDude]

Congress what's to delay it til June

http://www.electronichouse.com/article/congress_closer_to_delaying_dtv_deadline/

I think it will piss alot TV stations people because there getting ready to shut analog off at 12am Feb. 17

Because the years of warnings and constant barrages of advertising and PSA's werent enough.

[MarioMania]

They been doing the Feb. 17 2009 for a Year now and Now they want to push it back til June

[otoko]

Maybe there's been polls that have shown great dislike for the change and in some backwards way of keeping us happy or something they're trying to push it back.. heh it's not perfect... or correct.. but a theory.

[The 1 2 P]

Theres a few channels I can't get now and I do have cable. But my cable goes into my tv thru a direct cable instead of a cable box. The only channel I really want that I no longer get is G4tv. I wonder if Comcast will fix this for me.

[MarioMania]

Well the day is here now...

Anyone going recored the Final Mins. of Analog??

[NoahsMyBro]

Around 8am I checked out the signals available through my dtv converter, and I still received the same feeds I'd been able to grab back in February. I receive about 19 channels, none of any interest to me.

The channels include some audio-only feeds, including an NOAA service, many Korean channels, a shopping channel, a Catholic channel, and a couple of PBS channels. That's it.

This is with a new RCA antenna, both rods fully extended, sitting on top of the TV, about 6 feet off the floor (the masts touch the ceiling), against an outside wall of a second-floor bedroom in my house. I'm about 15 miles (as the crow flies) from NYC.

According to AntennaWeb, all of the major stations are in digital now, and there are color-coded details for which outdoor antenna I should use. It looks to me like an outdoor antenna is required.

I've been waiting since last year to see what kind of signal I'd get for free, OTA, & I have to admit disappointment.

[Cornelius]

I've been waiting since last year to see what kind of signal I'd get for free, OTA, & I have to admit disappointment.
I may be mistaken, but I think the antenna you have is a VHF antenna, and now you'll need a UHF antenna. I had pretty good luck with one of those directional ones that looks a little like something from Star Trek. Terk was the brand, but there are many similar ones that are similarly rated. That was pretty direction-sensitive, and I had to point it for different stations. Then I got a big antenna in the attic (Channel Master) and everything works with no hassle.

[Haoie]

Hmm, quite a timely revival.

I'm glad this transition isn't happening here for a few more years.

[The 1 2 P]

Hmm, quite a timely revival.

I'm glad this transition isn't happening here for a few more years.

It's really not a big deal if you already have cable and an hdtv. The problem mainly lies with those who still rock an antenna on their old tube tvs. I still plan on getting a tube tv from Goodwill but only to play vhs movies on.

[Sonicwolf]

It's really not a big deal if you already have cable and an hdtv. The problem mainly lies with those who still rock an antenna on their old tube tvs. I still plan on getting a tube tv from Goodwill but only to play vhs movies on.

VHS is always nice on a big classic television. Even better if its a woodgrain console television from the mid 1980s. Those things are awesome. Try and get an RCA Colortrak if possible. They last a very, very long time.

[The 1 2 P]

VHS is always nice on a big classic television. Even better if its a woodgrain console television from the mid 1980s. Those things are awesome. Try and get an RCA Colortrak if possible. They last a very, very long time.

I will never get a "big" tube tv again. When I was in an apartment two years ago and had to carry my 27" tv/dvd/vcr combo to the top(third floor) I promised myself I would have a smaller tv by the time I moved. My flat screen 32" lcd is a cinch to move, requiring very little effort. But that tube tv? I had to call on the power of Greyskull to lift and carry it up three floors, and then help a women carry it back downstairs when I sold it to her.

When I get a tube tv from Goodwill(because they are all cheap there) it won't be any bigger than a 20" one. I don't have a truck and I'm tired of having to level up to SSJ 3 status just to move a freaking tv around. I really wish I didn't need one but I've been trying to watch my old vhs tapes on my 32" tv and they really don't get along. Tracking=fail.

[MarioMania]

That going to hurt your back

I'm trying to look for Pocket TV's 3" for less then $10