Time Warner Finally Delivers...My HDTV box!!! (1 Viewer)

[Matt Taylor]

I am in Kansas City and have been on Time Warner's waiting list for 6 months and finally got a call tonight that my name has come up on the list.
HBD-HD, two SHOTIME-HD's and PBS is all I will get right now, but that's better than nothing!
My question is, I know Showtime shows their movies in OAR and DD 5.1 whenever possible. How is the picture and sound? I guess this would be for all those who get the signal over their satellite. HBO on the other hand, crops their picture...is this true? What about DD 5.1?
Any answers would be greatly appreciated.
Matt

 

[Frank]

The picture quality of Showtime HDTV showings is excellent. There just aren't very many of them. The sound is excellent and it's DD5.1.
HBO is the pan and scan network and all their transfers of 2.35x1 movies are cropped/panned/scanned, unfortunately. Maybe one of these days they will realize that their HDTV viewers prefer OAR.
HBO has had lots of problems with DD5.1 but lately they seem to be getting that right at least.

 

[CharlesD]

I guess i've been on the list evenlonger than you! I got my box last Friday (I'm in Shawnee). One thing, there is no PBS yet, apparently KCPT was supposed to go HDTV late last year but are still not ready. One of the local 3 major network affiliates is also supposed to go HDTV this spring (not sure which one tho).
Most of what is on the "HD" channels is actually upconverted 480p and on my set (TW40X81) it doesn't look nearly as good as what I get from my Toshiba 5109 DVD player. So far I've only watched The Sopranos in HDTV and it looks really good, makes 480P look like regular TV!
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-- Will Work for Five Million Dollars

 

[Scott_G]

I've had mine here in Raleigh for about three months - got it right before the Super Bowl.
I use Svideo for everything except HD - the upconvert is awful.
We get CBS - Fox - PBS - HBO-HD - SHOW-HD.
Showtime seems to do the best movies - 5.1 sound, better picture. I can't complain for the price
Have had to reboot - turn on and off - the converter three times due to lockups.
Check channel 999 for stats.

 

[MarcS]

Scott_G--stop making me feel so bad that I've only got HBO and Showtime HD here in Wilmington (NC), only 150 miles away--oh wait, but I can be at the beach in 15 minutes--nevermind.... (BTW, it's in the 60s right now...)
I've had my HD box for a few months now and it's definitely worth it. I chose to get only Showtime due to the problems HBO has with understanding HD. Also agree that converter box output generally sucks on anything other than HD--with my Pioneer SD582, I find that cable looks best going directly into the tv, completely bypassing the converter box. Even for the other Showtime channels, I just use the RCA composite output, it's just as good as the S-video...
You don't know how good the HD movies are until you switch back to regular cable viewing... And there are some good ones coming up in April...true HDTV, not upconverts. Check out the Chris Isaak show, produced by two of the people that did Northern Exposure--a wild ride...
Enjoy!!!!!
Also--you can reboot your box by holding in the power button until the display reads "booting"--a little tidbit from someone at TW cable... mine has hung a few times also...
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[Darren_F]

Can you tell me what the model number of your cable box is?
I live in NYC, and have been struggling with TWC to try to figure out when the boxes will be available in the New York market. Most of the customer support people know nothing about it, and all of them are confused between the basic DTV boxes and the more advanced HDTV boxes. I think a model number would help.
Thanks for your help.

 

[Wes Bolton]

Scott (or any Triangle TWC HD customer),
I apologize in advance for all the questions.
I'm in Durham and didn't know PBS was in HD... what channel is that? Also, other people complain about HBO-HD being panned and scanned, but mine doesn't ever seem to be.. Is ours different? Finally, do you see the HD-channels in the on-screen guide? Mine don't show up. I have to manually select each of these channels..
250 FOX-HD
255 CBS-HD
406 HBO-HD
445 SHO-HD
I've pushed TWC on this, but nobody seems to have an answer.
BTW, I have to reboot mine about once every two weeks, but it's a small price to pay for HD. I've had the new box for 4 or 5 months now.
Thanks for your help!
-Wes
[email protected]

 

[MarcS]

TW here uses the Scientific Atlanta 2000HD I believe. Interestingly enough, when booting up, it shows Pioneer software...
In a previous thread, someone posted a "trick" to seeing the HD channels, I think it involved going into the menu system and looking at a list of channels somehow... sorry I can't remember.
You can program your HD channels using the "favorite" feature on your remote, then you can cycle through them by pressing the favorite button...
Double Jeopardy is playing on Showtime April 1 I believe--I watched the DVD and it had stunning scenery of the Pacific Northwest--should be phenomenal in HD--not to mention seeing Ashley Judd in HD!! BTW, she's in town (Wilmington) with Sandra Bullock filming "... Ya Ya Sisterhood"--hope I run into her sometime...
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[Matt Taylor]

My HD box was installed successfully and all I can say is WOW!!! I had no idea HD would look this good. I was watching Double Jeopardy on Showtime and it looks better than anything I've ever seen on DVD. Don't get me wrong, I love the picture from my Pioneer Elite DV-37...which I just got yesterday, but HD is better.
The only local station we get in HD is KCPT and all they show is the same one hour loop of short shots synced up with soft music, but it looks incredible. I have the Pioneer SD-532 and it just shines.
Matt

 

[MarcS]

Wes--here's how you can see the HD channels...
Go into menu mode (for the cable box), then select "additional", can't remember exactly what it says, but press the "A" button on the remote--I think it's a red triangle button?
Then scroll through the choices and go to "favorites" and press enter--it should give you a complete list of all channels, including HD...
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[Wes Bolton]

Thanks Marc!
-w

 

[Bob_Wilson]

Damn Matt but you are lucky. I checked with Time-Warner up here in Riverside and was given the reserve salute (a shoulder shrug and uplifted hands). We didn't get cable where I am until years after everyone around us had been plugged in.