TWC Milwaukee adds TBS-HD

[LoadStar]

Yippee. Another channel that shows 90% "Stretch-o-vision" up-converted crap. :rolleyes:

Just in time for the Major League Baseball playoffs, Time Warner Cable in southeast Wisconsin is picking up TBS' high definition channel. It should be up around 6 this evening on Channel 534.http://blogs.jsonline.com/cuprisin/archive/2007/10/02/tbs-hd-signs-on-at-time-warner-cable.aspx

[gparris]

Okay, TWC Milwaukee got rid of 3 analogue channels as I count them, maybe more - so where are the other 5-8 HD channels (2-3 HD channels per 1 analogue channel)?
You see, most other TWC locations added TBSHD to their HD channel availability, but SEVERAL MORE were added, too.:confused:

[gb4fan92]

What??? A new HD Channel on TWC??? I didn't know they were allowed to add one unless Tim Cuprisin announced it first! :D

[LoadStar]

What??? A new HD Channel on TWC??? I didn't know they were allowed to add one unless Tim Cuprisin announced it first! :D
You must've missed where the announcement was posted first. :D ;)
Another channel that shows 90% "Stretch-o-vision" up-converted crap.:rolleyes:
And watching it now, it's every bit as stretchy and unwatchable as I expected. Ugh. Hey broadcasters: I DON'T CARE IF I HAVE UNUSED SCREEN SPACE! I DON'T want my picture stretched beyond all recognition to "fill" the screen!

[LuckySe7ens]

534? wtf? Can't they even use a consistent numbering scheme?

[kevbeck122]

Must be SDV.. can't get it on my cablecard TV.

[Tom Snyder]

So TWC adds a single HD channel and it scores a headline in the Journal, but DirecTV rolls out 21 last week (including TBS), another 11 today, and probably another 10-15 in the next few weeks, and there's not even a mention in so much as a blog?

Not accusing anyone of a conspiracy, but it's certainly curious. :huh?:

[klwillis45]

534? wtf? Can't they even use a consistent numbering scheme?

I thought the same thing. 503 is open, so use it.
They still haven't changed ESPN2HD to 529 either.

[gparris]

That is what I thought...503 is like HD for channel 3.
Consistant and TWC are not words to be used together...remember that, folks!:D

[gparris]

So TWC adds a single HD channel and it scores a headline in the Journal, but DirecTV rolls out 21 last week (including TBS), another 11 today, and probably another 10-15 in the next few weeks, and there's not even a mention in so much as a blog?

Not accusing anyone of a conspiracy, but it's certainly curious. :huh?:

Crap, Sci-Fi HD and USAHD including Cinemax HD , part of TWC's corporate are all on DirectvHD today, so all we TWC HD subs get is lousy TBSHD
....I am so not amused.:bang:

I remember back in the 90's when I got rid of TWC for TV service because there was no Sci-Fi Channel available;
-so maybe its time again to figure out how to get it, but in HD this time with Directv...history repeating itself all over again.
Though it is still get the hard-for-me to get CBSHD locally since Directv still does not offer it here, I will revisit the 90's very soon and still get it..:huh?:

[Cheesehead Dave]

I thought the same thing. 503 is open, so use it.
They still haven't changed ESPN2HD to 529 either.

Is there a technical or logistical reason why, since I have an HD box, that the SD channels can't be completely replaced by their HD versions? Why can't WITI-HD be remapped to channel 6 instead of 506?

[gparris]

Is there a technical or logistical reason why, since I have an HD box, that the SD channels can't be completely replaced by their HD versions? Why can't WITI-HD be remapped to channel 6 instead of 506?

This is supposed to happen with a Directv HD box reboot from what I have read in avsforums, but remember, this TWC!:D

[borghe]

I'd imagine that would be possible with the digital channels.. with the analog channels I'm less confident. remember that those channels are called analog for a reason. When you tune to channel 6 it is the same thing as tuning your actual TV into channel 6. it selects the 6Mhz frequency that channel 6 occupies. the box would have to be completely programmed from the ground up to first check and see if a digital channel existed at that spot, otherwise tune to the analog frequency. It could definitely be done, I just don't know if it is as simple as plug in a piece of code to get it working. If it requires an entire reworking of the software.... yeah, I wouldn't hold my breath then.

[gparris]

Thanks for trying to help, borghe, but us "losers" with TWC for HD service just don't know or have the "HD Happiness" you Directv subscribers are feeling today, what with 27 HD national channels recently added, including those from today!
TWC HD National channels total only eleven for full-time subscription channels vs. Directv's 27 and in many other TWC areas, a bit closer to that (or soon will be).
We don't "feel the joy" and probably never will until our local TWC management changes things.

[kevbeck122]

I'd imagine that would be possible with the digital channels.. with the analog channels I'm less confident. remember that those channels are called analog for a reason. When you tune to channel 6 it is the same thing as tuning your actual TV into channel 6. it selects the 6Mhz frequency that channel 6 occupies. the box would have to be completely programmed from the ground up to first check and see if a digital channel existed at that spot, otherwise tune to the analog frequency. It could definitely be done, I just don't know if it is as simple as plug in a piece of code to get it working. If it requires an entire reworking of the software.... yeah, I wouldn't hold my breath then.

I don't see why they couldn't do it now. They do it for channels 4-6... those are SD digital, yet the analog versions still exist. The analog versions are only used on TVs directly connected to the coax.

[mhz40]

I don't see why they couldn't do it now. They do it for channels 4-6... those are SD digital, yet the analog versions still exist. The analog versions are only used on TVs directly connected to the coax.
You are asking the channel map to be driven by hardware type. I don't think any cable op can do that yet. Not even sure if any want to pursue it.. I am surprised that Direct TV can do it, as posted earlier. It would be nice, as Spanish language channels could use the same technology and eliminate the need to select SAP audio on Spanish tiered channels.

[kevbeck122]

I guess I wasn't thinking HD vs. non HD hardware... If all customers had HD boxes it wouldn't be an issue.. right? I know that's way too expensive for the cable cos.. so it won't happen.

[mhz40]

I guess I wasn't thinking HD vs. non HD hardware... If all customers had HD boxes it wouldn't be an issue.. right? I know that's way too expensive for the cable cos.. so it won't happen.
Right. IMO, as long as SD is around, its a nice backup in case something goes wrong with the HD feed during the last inning of something like... the World Series.

[LoadStar]

I think the others are on the right road. Map both the digital and the analog to the same cable channel number (i.e. WITI-DT and WITI-TV would both be channel 6), and either:
- the viewer could set a preference on the cable box which one they want to tune in by default (i.e. "View digital version of channel if available"), or
- the viewer could toggle between the two by using the A-B-C buttons on the TV remote
Or a combination of both would be ideal, I suppose. Say you tune to channel 6, and you have the preference "View digital version of channel if available" set on, you would automatically get WITI-DT... but you could switch back to WITI-TV by pressing the A button, for instance.

When the analog version of the channel goes away, the viewer would just automatically get the digital channel, and they wouldn't be able to toggle.

Those with non-HD boxes could still get this preference on their boxes, but if they select to receive the digital channel, the box would automatically downconvert it to standard resolution and letterbox it if necessary.

[SugarRay]

So how come I can get the other HD ch on my TV with a cablecard but not TBS-HD on TWC?

[kevbeck122]

TBS HD, ESPN2 HD and 5-10 SD digital channels are all switched digital video, meaning that the device has to request the channel in order to view it. In the case of cablecard, it can only receive (1 way), so it can't send a request to view the channel. You will only see a preview channel for on demand. It's a way for them to add more HD channels because they are running out of bandwidth to broadcast all channels.