Just wondering. Great picture and great sound...when they are on the Network, but...when they switch to local news or commericals the DB's on my audio double. Almost blown a couple of speakers a couple of times. I don't ever get to hear the local commericals....so local business is wasting money trying to get my attention.

Just wondering if it's just me. I've e-mailed their Chief Engineer, but he never answered which leads me to believe they have a problem...if they didn't they would say..."no problem at this end". Well, he'd probably say that anyhow, but the silence is deafening...almost as much as their local broadcast.

I hate to either start watchng the WACO CBS and I also hate to pull apart my sound system over just one channel just to see if it's me...anybody else experiencing this problem?

They just want to make sure you hear all of Dwayne's great alliteration.

its the same way on suddenlink and i HATE it.... its even more annoying because i have a pretty good audio setup and it really blasts on local stuff.

they had this problem in the past and some emails to their staff fixed it but it seems its back (and i dont remember who i emailed last time)

I get KBTX-HD OTA. I'm using a DishNetwork 622 HD DVR(I think that's the right model) for the tuner and don't have any problems with the audio levels being up and down.

But, I am using the analog audio output from the DishNetwork receiver because this device is known for having terrible digital audio level fluctuation issues.

I even tried the digital audio again recently when I installed my new TV and I couldn't stand the fluctuation. It wasn't just KBTX or just OTA, it was just about any channel.

Could it be your receiver?

Can you explain this in girl terms? I have dish network and I didn't think I could get KBTX. How do I do this?

I too use an off-air antenna hooked up to a DISH 622 DVR.

The reception on HD programming is exceptional, so is the audio.

The quality on standard def programming is as expected with other standard defintion programming. I have experienced no audio issues.

With the DVR I can record KBTX programming. Dish integrates the off-air antenna into the DVR guide. I also receive the CW and KAMU-PBS programming.

i second the in girl terms for this subject Please

The audio issue may have to do with your a/v receiver. It may automatically switch from surround sound to stereo based on HD coming in or Standard respectfully. Just a thought. in nerdery...someone may know/

If this never happens with any other channel, it isn't a problem with your equipment.

You're likely to get better, more detailed advice from The Nerdery on TexAgs, or the Waco/Bryan HDTV thread at AVS Forum.

Can any of y'all with OTA HD antennas give me some advice on what type of antenna to get and how to install it? I installed all my home theater equipment myself so I'm sure I could handle the job...I just don't know what is a good antenna setup for the different towers that we have here. Any advice would be appreciated.

http://www.hdtvantennalabs.com

So java94 & AgTenGod, what OTA antennas do each of you use?

I would also like more info on this in 'girl' terms. And specifically, with how to make it work with Directv (if possible). Thanks!

It comes in perfect in Brenham even with just an attic antenna.

We used to have one of the giant ones that was about twice as tall as our actual house....When pointed west it could pick up HD feeds on and off from Austin and San Antonio (90 and 120 miles away, respectively).

Purchase a Terk indoor antenna http://www.amazon.com/Terk-Technology-HDTVi-Indoor-Antenna/dp/B0001FV36E

Set the antenna next to the TV and hook it up to the back of 622 DVR with a coax cable. There will be a place marked for external antennas.

KBTX's 003-01 and 003-02 will appear on your channel guide but the show information will not be listed. If you want to record, you need to use a manual timer. The good thing is that you can record on these digital channels and still record on both internal tuners. In other words, you can record three shows at once if one of them is on KBTX or CW.

When CBS is broadcasting national content, it will be in HD, but the local news and programming is standard. Like the posters above, I never have problems with sound spikes.

Kristin, it depends on which HD-DVR you have with DirecTV. Some models come with an antenna connection and some don't. If yours does not (can't recall the exact model), you have to get an addon to pickup OTA feeds.

Dave...thanks for your help. We have the HR20-100...I believe it has an input for an external antenna. I tried to get it to work several weeks ago but had no luck. I'll do some more research and try again this weekend.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure the HR20 has an antenna input. It's the HR21 that doesn't.

I'd try for KBTX (point toward Carlos) or KAMU (point toward campus) first. KBTX comes in really easy once you have it setup. You could get it with a set-top antenna.

I just have a plain ol' UHF/VHF combo antenna in my attic. I actually pointed it South hoping I could pick up Houston HD OTA, but not much luck from in the attic. I pick up KBTX and KAMU well. My receiver can 'see' the FOX and ABC locals enough to add them to my channel list, but cannot lock in the signal.

I guess I'll have to try the digital audio connection again. Hopefully it will work better this time. My AV Receiver does auto-sense the digital signal and it will switch modes from 2-ch to 5.1 or whatever it is getting... Maybe this would be a good excuse to upgrade my Yamaha to a Denon... then I could use HDMI.

Royal gave good DISH DVR 622 over-the-air information and timing.

I purchased a fancy set of rabbit-ears at Best Buy. It is an RCA amplified model which cost around $40 if memory is right.

Really depends on where you live in relation to the signal. Most likely a regular set of rabbit-ears will work. I chose the amp version to help the cause.

Humm...I do indeed have the 622 Dish. Guess I'd better check that out...thanks.

do you have to have a HD DVR or will the regular DVR from Dish Network work?

Molly, you need a receiver (or a TV) that has a HDTV tuner built in. A non-HD receiver won't have an HDTV tuner built in.

I use one of those "saucer" type antennas just above my chimney. Its a Wingard Metrostar and I got it from Midstate Electronics in Bryan. It does really good at picking up all the locals, no it won't get Houston or Waco full time (sometimes at night though). I can pick up kbtx ch 3, kamu ch 15, kmay ch 23, kyle ch 28, krhd ch 40 and one mexican channel #18. All of them come in great with no snow, lines or ghosting. It works significantly better than that long "stick" or "flat bar" antenna that I tried and took back.
I used to have one of those small "rotatable" beam type antennas but I found myself always having to rotate it everytime I changed channels to reduce snow or ghosting (or jerking/pausing/pixelating on digital). However I could though pick up Houston/Waco really good with the beam antenna.

I'm 20 miles NE from town. Will the Terk work at that range? If not, other ideas? Thanks.

quote:

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do you have to have a HD DVR or will the regular DVR from Dish Network work?

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Depending on the particular model you have, it may be able to pick up and record local channels with an OTA antenna, but they will not be in HD unless it is an HD DVR.

[This message has been edited by southcutt (edited 10/17/2008 1:57p).]

Got mine working this weekend with a cheap (less than $20) set-top antenna from Monoprice. What I didn't realize the first time I tried to do it is that I had to go into the Setup menu in Directv and tell it that I had an off-air antenna and type in our zip code. It then is integrated into the Guide like all the other channels...pretty slick actually.

HDTV indoor antenna from Monprice: http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=109&cp_id=10901&cs_id=1090101&p_id=4729&seq=1&format=2

Now that I can get channel 3-1 (KBTX) for local news, I want to change my 'locals' to Houston stations so we can get ABC in HD. Anyone know how to go about doing this?

edit: added url for antenna

[This message has been edited by kristin87ag (edited 10/20/2008 10:41a).]

Kristin, give DirecTV a call and tell them you want to change your service address. You'll need a Houston area address for this to work. I use an empty lot next to my in-laws that they own. No one is ever going to use that address. Then just make sure to tell them to keep the billing address the same (B/CS address).

I've never had any issues doing this even though I was worried about it at first. I even called them to "move" minutes after my install. Just know that you'll have to move back to B/CS if you need a service call.

Thanks dave!!!