Digital Cable/HD Questions

[Incinerator]

Hey everyone, reading the main forum in that HD thread seems like a lot of you have a digital cable box or HD box, my question is how is the quality of plain digital cable (no HD)? I'm on old school cable with no box right now and the CFL looks like crap (blurry) on my new LCD rear projection TV, is digital cable at least decent without HD? Most importantly how is the picture quality with hockey? I'm contemplating on a box but I don't think I'll make the jump to HD since Shaw doesn't have any hockey on HD.

Also if you have 3 rooms and they are all connected to the main source cable with a splitter, one room being internet and the other two are TVs, can you just put the box in one room or do you have to put the box before the splitter?

[BlackArcher101]

I'm getting Shaw Digital this friday. Don't know the answer for quality right now.

However, it's my understanding that the digital box can only run one tv off of it... So you would go Splitter > Internet/Tv/Tv with only one of those TV's getting digital. With shaw you get 4 outlets I believe? One with digital, others with full cable.

[ken0042]

A Shaw digital box will do nothing for you for picture quality as far as the analog channels are concerned. (Channels 2-50) All it does is converts the signal to digital, and then back to analog for a regular TV. If you use the HD box the analog channels get converted to digital, and if you have an HD TV they can stay digital for the trip to the TV.

To give you an example of how going analog to digital won't help you- let's say you have an old cassette tape that is worn, and always plays with a hiss. If you take that tape and burn it to a CD, you won't see an increase in sound quality.

Myself, one of the reasons I went to Bell was the improvement on picture quality. Star Choice and Bell are about the same for quality.

[Bring_Back_Shantz]

Okay, to answer your questions:
Digital cable isn't really that much better than regular cable (at least I haven't noticed, but I've had digital for quite some time, so I don't have much of a frame of reference).

2) if you put the box before the splitter, you'll have to watch the same channel on all of the TVs. So you'll need to hook up a box to each TV, or you can just do it on one and use regluar cable on the other (That's what I do)

And a question.
Why not get an HD box???
You obviously spent a lot of money on your TV, why would you spend all the money on an HDTV and then not get the HD box. That's kinda like buying a Ferrari, and then putting $40 walmart tires on it.

[I-Hate-Hulse]

The Motorola HD boxes Shaw uses are notorious for having crap picture quality when comes to non HD regular cable. I have both the non HD and the HD boxes and the non HD box actually has a better picture with it comes to non HD programming. Move it over to an HD channel and of course, the HD box blows it away.

The box doesn't have to be before the splitter, but you will only have digital cable for the TV it's hooked up to. The other will only have regular cable.

If you're going to get a digital cable terminal, do it right and get the HD version. It'd be a waste to only get the regular one.

[Mike Oxlong]

I was going to get an HD box until I realized there was only 6 HD channels. I am going to keep renting the regular digital box ($10 a month) until they get a few more good channels and especially Flames games in HD. Then I will pick one up for sure.

[Regulator75]

Originally posted by Mike Oxlong@Sep 12 2005, 01:24 PM
I was going to get an HD box until I realized there was only 6 HD channels.

There is actually 7 with Shaw!

[photon]

I have SD (standard definition) Starchoice on my HD LCD TV and to varying degrees all channels look like crap IMO. I can see compression artifacts pretty much all the time on all channels.

[Cheese]

First off...IF your signal is blurry and theres nothing wrong with your TV I would call Rogers or whoever you are dealing with and have them come over and test the signal strength into your home. IF it is their issue it is a free call. (Ask before they come if true in your neighborhood). The test takes 5 minutes to do and is checked from the pedestal on the street into your home.
IF it is true...they will put a signal booster on your line that will/should rectify your blurry issues. I would also make sure that I would do this before having HD TV connected.
ALL Channels should be crystal clear using Cable...if they arent chances are VERY likely that you are not getting the proper signal into your home....you are paying for that signal...so bitch until they fix.

[Phathoe]

[QUOTE] So you'll need to hook up a box to each TV, or you can just do it on one and use regluar cable on the other (That's what I do)

I had the same setup. But found when ordering pay per view I had remove the splitter and hook the digital box right up to my cable outlet or PPV wouldn't work.

[Incinerator]

Thanks everyone, the reason why I don't want to go HD is that Shaw only has 7 channels in HD and no hockey on HD, which is the only reason I got a big TV. I live in a condo and I can't have a dish so I'm stuck with Shaw. It's neither the TV or the signal that has the problem as I have a 27" tube TV in my bedroom and it's perfectly fine. The Grand WEGA looks good on some channels but crappy on Sportsnet and TSN while watching tennis and baseball. Anyhoo I think I'll hold off until October for now and decide then.

And thanks for those who answered my box question, I was worried that my other TV wouldn't work at all if I put the box only on one TV, but now I know it's fine

[mykalberta]

Originally posted by Incinerator@Sep 12 2005, 04:25 PM
Thanks everyone, the reason why I don't want to go HD is that Shaw only has 7 channels in HD and no hockey on HD, which is the only reason I got a big TV. I live in a condo and I can't have a dish so I'm stuck with Shaw.

I wouldnt rag on Satellite just yet.

I was in the same predicament a while ago. If you do a google search online you will find a bunch of Sat options. I assume you living in a condo means no attaching a dish to the wall, normally the leases say nothing else, so it could be put on a tripod etc.

Dont give up so soon, BEV is the best option available if you can do it. Cheaper up front hardware costs, more HD channels etc.

Read you lease carefully, what does it say specifially about dishes - or are you assuming it. When I rented a codno in Ed whil going to the A there was a clause in the lease that says no attaching anything to the balcony, wall etc. Everyone took that to mean no sat dishes, then my roomate and I looked throught the lease and asked the building manager about sat dishes and he said they werent allowed to be conntect to the building.

Nothing about attaching it to a tripod etc. Long story short a shorty hop to a Home Depot and used tire lot and 3 hours later we had a BEV home made tripod that wouldnt blow away. Now yes it caused us some shinguards with the residence association but we didnt violate the lease. It was really funny, this fat chick got so passed at us durring one residence meeting that i swear i thought icing sugar was going to start pouring out. To be honest I was shatting myself cause I didnt want to have to find a new place for beginning of December of the 3rd year screwing up my whole semster. My buddy (with the help of some AV people at the UofA blew up the lease and put it on a CD. We used that with a projection and asked one simple question. Where have we violated the lease?

They can say all they want about violating the "spirit" of the lease but that doesnt hold water in court.

MYK

[I-Hate-Hulse]

Originally posted by mykalberta@Sep 13 2005, 09:50 AM
They can say all they want about violating the "spirit" of the lease but that doesnt hold water in court.

You're talking about a lease, whereas a I think incinerator is in more of an ownership question. Condo by-laws are typically more restrictive than lease agreements, and if it's a new building typically say that no dishes are allowed on the balconies, anywhere.

Even if you rent from an owner, you still have to abide by the bylaws (ie not a pure rental building like a Boardwalk property). Don't follow the bylaws and the Board has the right to fine you until they eventually repo your property.

It's a pain but I live with it, it's all a part of condo life. As a condo owner I appreciate the rules too, incase my neighbor decides to build some monstrosity of a tripod to mount 3 dishes to.

[Reaper]

Man, I'm glad our new condo allows us to have a dish installed on the building as long as it's done by a professional.

[Incinerator]

Originally posted by I-Hate-Hulse+Sep 13 2005, 04:14 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (I-Hate-Hulse @ Sep 13 2005, 04:14 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-mykalberta@Sep 13 2005, 09:50 AM
They can say all they want about violating the "spirit" of the lease but that doesnt hold water in court.

You're talking about a lease, whereas a I think incinerator is in more of an ownership question. Condo by-laws are typically more restrictive than lease agreements, and if it's a new building typically say that no dishes are allowed on the balconies, anywhere.

Even if you rent from an owner, you still have to abide by the bylaws (ie not a pure rental building like a Boardwalk property). Don't follow the bylaws and the Board has the right to fine you until they eventually repo your property.

It's a pain but I live with it, it's all a part of condo life. As a condo owner I appreciate the rules too, incase my neighbor decides to build some monstrosity of a tripod to mount 3 dishes to. [/b][/quote]
Yup, you hit the nail on the head there, I own my condo and it's an 8 year old building, I've read all the bylaws before moving in, I like this place better than my last building because it's a fairly upscale retirement-esque building, the average age of owners are 60+ so there's no late night parties from punka$$ college kids at night. The only downside is that the board is quite anal about every little detail in the bylaw so there's virtually no chance a dish would fly here, oh well...I guess I'm gonna have to stick with the bars for road games