[mythtv-users] VHF, UHF, and digital TV
dennis
deg at outlook.com
Thu Apr 30 22:16:20 UTC 2015
On 04/30/2015 01:27 PM, James Miller wrote:
> Sort of a general query here, answers to which may aid me in the
> future if I will purchase a new antenna. Here is my (admittedly
> technically-deficient) understanding of OTA DTV as it relates to
> traditional VHF/UHF TV broadcasting in the US. The idea of moving to
> DTV is to increase bandwidth availability for other radio frequency
> devices like cellular communications and perhaps wifi. So causing TV
> broadcasting to switch to digital, which makes transmission of the
> signal much more precise and thus has the virtue of freeing up some
> bandwidth, was undertaken.
>
> As I understand it, the ultimate intention is to get all OTA TV
> broadcasting into the UHF range so as, I suppose, to free up the whole
> of the VHF band for other radio frequency services. Is that correct?
> If so, I was told some time ago that, during initial phases of DTV
> implementation, DTV broadcasting will still be done in the VHF range.
> Is this also correct? I believe I determined a year ago or so that, in
> fact, some OTA DTV broadcasting in my area (upper midwest, US) is
> still done in the VHF range.
>
> This becomes a question at this point because, during a recent channel
> scan, I noted that there are some new OTA stations which are
> repetitions of some existing stations. I've been picking up a 10_1,
> 10_2, 10_3, and 10_4 (PBS), but now I see there is a 10_11, 10_12,
> 10_13, and 10_14 that seem to be the same exact stations. I believe
> the 10_1-10_4 stations I've been getting are in the VHF range and I
> suspect that the new 10_11-10_14 stations I see may be the new,
> UHF-band replacements, and that the two sets of stations may exist for
> a time side-by-side, til they phase out VHF-band broadcasting. Then,
> all programming for that station will be provided only through the
> new, 10_11-10_14 channels. So, do my assumptions about this matter
> seem sound?
>
> If it is the case that eventually all OTA TV broadcasting will move to
> the UHF band, that will influence future decisions about what sort of
> antenna I'll need to buy to bring in OTA DTV broadcasting I watch. Any
> corrections, clarifications, or modifications on the above
> topics/statements will be appreciated. Thanks
>
>
In the Chicago area, the CBS affiliate ( WBBM-2.1 ) is broadcasting on
VHF. They did move from the VHF-L (2) to VHF-H (12) a couple years
ago, but it was due to interference and lack of coverage, not
regulations. From what I understand, most stations have moved out of
the VHF-L (2-6) due to poor reception, but VHF-H is still alive and may
be around for a quite awhile. There is talk of extending the FM radio
broadcasting into VHF-L frequencies.
I have a UHF/VHF antenna, and expect to continue to need one ( only for
CBS ). It would be nice if they did move everything to UHF, but that
not the case where I am at.
Dennis
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