In Newmarket with CM4228 on my deck (for now). I get city at 1690 feet and 1.2kw but not Sun at 1503 an 2.81kw. Any ideas?

Get your antenna higher.

I've experimented, and found I cannot reliably recieve SUNtv here in Ajax (I'm right down by the lake) when my antenna is below the roofline, I found by moving it up at least 2' above the roofline it comes in reliably.

City / CBC / CTV all come in reliably even with the antenna below the rooflne. as for the Buffalo channels - sometimes some of them come in when my antenna is below the roofline, sometimes not.

By positioning my antenna high up, everything comes in reliably.

You'll need to experiment with the position of your antenna to find the "sweet spot", but a rule of thumb is higher is better, but then you have to balance that against loss in the length of cable.

Remember that City is directional and I don't believe that Sun is. That means that, while lower in power, City only aims their signal towards the GTA and doesn't send much over the lake, while Sun heads everywhere. Sun is also higher in frequency which could mean less bang for your watt.

Thanks, makes sense. I did add about 19 feet of coax and not seen Sun TV since. I shall back that out too and see what happens. Any one familiar with RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS 9250 pre amp? Very expensive but looks good.

Never heard of that particular preamp.

19 feet shouldn't make such a big difference... perhaps there is a break or improperly attached connector?

Anyone have problems with WIVB's PSIP yesterday? They showed up as 39-4 and 39-5 instead of 4-1 and 4-3 for a little while.

I've noticed a few PSIP games lately.

I was amazed that last night's thunderstorm didn't affect my reception of Fox at all... usually lighting causes some blips, but it was rock solid.

Looks like CFTO is back where it should be, still no luck with CKXT and if anyone else is receiving Rochester, WUHF has added "The Tube" music videos as a sub-channel.

CFTO seems to come and go almost weekly - honestly, they've fixed the PSIP at least a dozen times and then for no reason it will suddenly break again.

I'll have to check out WUHF (if I'm getting it.)

Daniel - Do you have an update on when WB will move their transmitter to GI? I called and spoke to an engineer and all he said was sometime this summer -(

Hello all, this is my first post.

Just wondering if anyone can tell me the hack for disabling the TV on demand feature for the ATI HDTV wonder?
A couple of days ago I couldn't watch HD because it was too hot in the computer and the TV on Demand feature just made the computer overheat and shut down.

Great forum. It's good to find other people in Toronto that can help with the OTA HD channels.

Thanks

Hello every one, I have some questions about OTA HD broadcasting. I am interested in getting OTA HD, I live in oakville, ontario canada. I am in the US on vacation (Chicago) and am trying to find eqiupment to receive HD OTA. Could some one let me know what I need please? As far as I can figure I need a HD OTA tuner, antenna and TV which I do have (HD ready). This is what I have found: 1: From radio shack (new Model) HDTV indoor/outddor directional antenna M# 15-2187 $79.99 (the box said it was amplified, & reception of up to 50 miles.) 2: from circuit city Samsung HD receiver (SIR-T451) $249.99, Pro Brand HDtv Receiver (HD3150PLUS) $229.99. 1st question is about the antenna, is it any good? What does the directional exactly mean? If it is any good should I get 2 of them, point 1 toward toronto and the other toward Buffalo? Or should I get a rotator(I beleive the guy said a rotator cost the same $79.99?) I am in a new sub-division and would like to put it in the attic. If this antenna is no good could someone pleas suggest something else? 2nd Question is about the tuners. Is the prices normal because someone told me that a couple of months ago they saw tuners at radio shack for $55, and now radio shack does not carry a single tuner? If $250 is average for these tuners could someone suggest which one I should go with, or even suggest a different tuner (I have not checked bestbuy or walmart yet)? Thank you for you help.

Just a couple thoughts...

1) Those dish-style antennas are more form than function, and will probably not do what you need unless you're on a hill and/or have a completely unobscured view to Buffalo. It'll likely work fine for Toronto.

2) You cannot merge two antennas aiming in opposite directions (you can try, but you'll just make a mess of the signal). Since what you're looking to get is in completely opposite directions, go for the rotor (I suggest one that is IR remote controlled for convenience; Channel Master makes one).

3) The Samsung receiver you mention is a good model and would be my choice.

4) Putting an antenna in an attic halves its reception range. And if you plan on getting ABC/NBC/CBS from Buffalo, Oakville is over 80 miles away from those transmitters.

5) For long distance reception or when there's a lot of things that can create ghosts (ie. trees, buildings, towers, hills) you want a highly directional antenna. If you're close to several transmitters (which you aren't), an omnidirectional antenna can work.

6) For antennas, bigger is better. Just a physics thing. I would suggest buying the biggest antenna you can fit into your attic (you can get plenty of antennas in Canada, but not so easy to find OTA HDTV receivers) and then pairing it with a rotor (antenna size may be an issue for things that turn) and a high quality preamplifier (such as a Channel Master 7777 or 7778). From past experience I wouldn't really suggest a Radio Shack preamp, but maybe they've improved over the years.

Television reception, especially long distance, is a sort of "black magic"... it's hard to tell exactly what's going to be needed to get the stations you want without being on-site, and even then a lot of experimentation can be needed.

You should be OK for Toronto reception, and probably stuff like Fox and PBS from the Grand Island transmitters, but south Buffalo could be tricky.

Thanks Daniel for your reply. I will take your suggestions into thought. You said the antennas are easy to find in canada, would I be able to find the channel master in future shop or radio shack? Another thought I had was, I am a starchoice sucsriber with the HD box, I beleive DSR 500 If i were to get the VOOM HD boxes form e-bay and used the chanell receiver from the voom box(the little box on the back) and put it on my box to get OTA HD? Would this work? Thanks.