HDTV Questions (2 Viewers)

[LawrenceJ]

all i have is standard time warner cable and my newly purchased hdtv is picking up hd channels? how is that possible since i haven't subscribed to any hd or digital package with the cable company?

 

[Matt Stone]

How are you sure it's picking up HD channels?

 

[LawrenceJ]

because it comes up as XX.1, XX.2, XX.3 channels and they are a helluva lot clearer than the other analog channels.

 

[Matt Stone]

Well, you may just be getting digital channels (not necessarily HD)...but I don't think those are presented over standard cable. Could you possibly be getting the XX.1, etc channels over the air?

I had an uncle that swore he was getting our local CBS affiliate in HD because he was getting channel 8.1 and 8.2, but our affiliate doesn't broadcast in HD...480p is as high as they go. As I said before, that was over the air, so I'm not sure if it's applicable in your situation.

 

[Steve Berger]

A cable company can put a standard HDTV feed right into any analog cable signal if they want to. The bandwidth of HDTV (6 mhz) is exactly the same as any broadcast channel , you just can't compress it like you can regular broadcast stations. It has been done before . The spectrum of HDTV was picked at 6 Mhz just for that reason.

The cable companies made a business decision to add compression rather than really expand their systems a few years ago which is why they hate the "must carry" rules. According to a cable engineer I talked to a couple of years ago they were compressing analog broadcast at 5 to 1 , while digital cable runs at 12 to 1 compression. One HDTV broadcast then takes the space of 5 compressed standard stations on their system. The more channels they shift to digital cable the more space to put HDTV stations into the analog space (if they want to). If your cable operator tells you that your TV has to have a built-in ATSC tuner to get HDTV signals then that is exactly what they are doing.

 

[JustinCleveland]

Well stated, Steve! I've got the same benefit with my HDTV, I've been enjoying the unexpected bonus of HDTV programming over my regular cable.

 

[Jesse Blacklow]

Unless you're using a digital cable box with HD outputs (component or DVI), you're almost certainly not getting HD. Cable companies encrypt the HD signal (along with most of their digital tiers), so just having the coaxial cable plugged into the back of the TV doesn't work. The only scenario where I think it would be possible would be if your TV comes with an HD receiver built-in (which is what Steve meant at the end of his post).

 

[LawrenceJ]

I am getting 1080i, 16X9.
There is no digital cable box, just the straight analog cable plugged into the back of the tv and the tv model is kdf-60wf655

 

[JustinCleveland]

Lawrence, you've got the same model I do, mine's the 42" and it's got an HD tuner built-in. I get 4 HD channels, all from Milwaukee, 103.1 103.2 (Fox 6 and CBS 58) and 104.1 104.2 (ABC 12 and NBC). All HD, each looks stellar.

 

[Jesse Blacklow]

Well, that clears it up! Are you guys able to find free but non-local stations, like DiscoveryHD or ESPNHD? I think those are tied to the digital tier, but give it a whirl.

 

[Gene S]

Channels that are broadcast over the air (OTA) and free by a broadcasting station are required per the FCC to be unscrambled and free on your cable system. Free meaning that your cable compnay can't charge you more for the HD version. So if your TV has a digital tuner your going to get whatever local HD your cable company carries without using their set top box.
Now other HD cable channels like InDemand1 & 2, HDnet, HDDiscovery, HDTNT, and so on are scrambled by your cable company and you must pay extra for those.