Red Sox on NESN... HD? HD!! (1 Viewer)

[Rich Malloy]

So, this is the first full season for which I have HD service (got it right before the Series), and was I pleasantly surprised to see the Yanks/Sox game in HD last night!

Formerly, every show I'd seen on NESN over the past few months, including pre-season games, talk, and outdoors stuff was simply upconverted SD... and stretched! Even the Sox home season opener with the ring ceremony was stretched, upconverted SD (even though I believe anyone with ESPN2-HD might have gotten a hi-def feed... my service doesn't offer ESPN2 in their HD package) :frowning:

So, once the surprise of a true HD broadcast on NESN-"HD" last night wore off a bit, I start thinking... ohhhhh, wait a minute, ESPN2 is carrying this game nationally. That must be why we're getting true HD on NESN. Oh well (but what about that home season opener?)

Then Don and Jerry start talking about "Widescreen Wednesdays", selling the aspect ratio for the SD NESN channel as a "taste of HD". (Some good points were made about seeing more of the action, but I suspect most folks watching the regular channel were like "wha? those black bars seem to cover more of the action".) But, to the point, they seemed to suggest that the NESN-"HD" channel would be showing true HD... but how often? Only on Wednesdays? Only for home games?

So, I did a quick search and found this forum: http://www.highdefforum.com/archive/...hp/t-5304.html
Whoah! Is this true? Can it be? Certainly this is too good to be true?

Anybody know the real scoop?

 

[Patrick Sun]

We've had the Braves in HD on TBS since last season via the OTA broadcasts. It's nice.

 

[Andy_Bu]

Rich,

I believe you can also watch the Red Sox in HD on UPN-38 this year.

Andy

 

[Rich Malloy]

Andy, my cable provider (RCN) doesn't offer UPN in HD. Are you getting it OTA?

 

[Jeff Gatie]

Rich, ignore the following if you do not have Comcast. Without Comcast (or some other cable company only available in the western part of state), the NESN games are unavailable in HD.

If you do have Comcast, the NESN HD games are carried on INHD2 (channel 882 in the Boston area). Every home game is in HD and has been since last season. The Season opener at Yankees stadium was in HD on Channel 38 (HD channel 838). If you were watching the normal NESN feed (channel 51), you were not getting HD or even "converted SD". Channel 51 is NTSC only, just like all the other channels under 800.

BTW, the ring ceremony and the opening day game were in HD on INHD2.

Edit - Whoops, I see you have RCN. I believe you are out of luck, unless they have aquired the rights to the INHD2 feed. I would call them and ask. Otherwise, NTSC is all you can get unless you switch to Comcast. I've never had any problems with Comcast and don't pay that much for the HD box ($2 extra a month).

 

[Rich Malloy]

RCN digital cable does offer NESN as part of their HD package, but last night's game was the first "true HD" broadcast I've seen on it. Are you saying that it was a fluke, and that the rest of the games will be the usual "upconverted" SD?

(The NESN-SD channel is 30 on my service; the NESN-"HD" channel is 170.)

I think my building also now has Comcast digital cable, so if this is true I'm definitely switching from RCN to Comcast. Every home game in HD? That's like freakin' heaven!!

 

[Jeff Gatie]

I don't know. I know I've only seen the "Available in HD on channel XXX" announcements for Comcast (and I think Adelphia for western Mass). I'd call RCN to see what's up. I do know that Comcast had an exclusive deal with INHD2 for the feed, but that may have changed.

P.S. I looked it up on the NESN page and it seems they have expanded the HD to other cable companies this year, including RCN. Also says they are going to have 40 road games in HD. Excellent!

NESN-HD

Since RCN is so new at HD, they may have forgotten to turn on the HD feed for opening day. I saw this happen a few times on INHD last year, so maybe that's why it was in SD. It looks like the only thing you'll be missing is the Friday UPN games in HD. Comcast does have UPN-HD on channel 838, but I don't know if it's worth the switch to you.

 

[Daniel Kikin]

YES also has an HD channel for Yankees home games, and road games against the Red Sox and the Mets. Of course, it's being carried by pretty much everyone but Cablevision, who hopefully will get it eventually, but after the original YES fiasco, I'm not expecting it any time soon.

 

[Jeff Gatie]

Rich,

If what I said is true and RCN forgot to turn on the HD feed, I found that when it happens on INHD2, if I call Comcast about it they alert the techs right away and the HD feed comes on a couple minutes after I call. You might want to try this with RCN, being they are so new to HD.

 

[Rich Malloy]

Actually, I mispoke... I didn't get to see the home opener, as it was during work hours. I was thinking of the season opener in NY, which was broadcast on UPN and NESN was pre-empted. I think it was one of the Toronto games that I saw in "upconverted SD". And stretched. I really wish they wouldn't do that.

But this is great news! I love sports in HD, and seeing the Sox at Fenway in all that HD-goodness is almost as good as being at the park. Well, that's an overstatement, but at least my seat's more comfortable!

 

[Jeff Gatie]

Yeah, the Toronto series was one of the away series that was not in HD (see the schedule at NESN, they have a lot of away HD broadcasts compared to none last season). Not that I have a choice, but I prefer to watch the SD games on the regular analog channel, at least I can stretch it the way I want.

 

[Rich Malloy]

Yes -- it's in HD again tonight!!! (Nice stab, Renteria!)

Kinda funny... the SD games are upconverted on NESN-HD and also s t r e t c h e d. But I don't like the stretch. :frowning:

But I do prefer the upconversion to the SD channel! Of course, it doesn't add any detail, but NESN-SD on my system is one of the under-100 analog channels, and it's all smeary and fuzzy (and my monitor's optimized for HD color matrix, so it's also over-saturated).

But tonight's game's in glorious HD... yes! Now, if only the Sox could win a couple... :b

 

[Thomas Reagan]

I have Adelphia which now offers UPN38 and NESN in HD.

I don't like the stretching, either, Rich. It makes Manny look like Cecil Fielder. But was Wednesday's game on NESN in true HD (at least it looked unstretched when I watched it)?

Thos.

 

[Rich Malloy]

Oh yeah, Wednesday's game and last night's game were in true HD!

David Wells... another body not built for stretch modes!