Topic 'Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos' in forum 'Comcast Cable TV' - dslreports.com http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-21518134 en Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:49:54 EDT Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:49:54 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22496783 said by dishrich:

said by Franklin4:

but not tape VCRs which are now being made "tuner free"
How about this one that does BOTH - you can record w/the tuner on either the VCR or DVD recorder:

»www2.panasonic.com/consumer-elec···00005702
]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22496783 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 20:18:38 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22497331 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22497331 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 17:37:53 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22496800 said by dishrich:

said by Franklin4:

but not tape VCRs which are now being made "tuner free"
How about this one that does BOTH - you can record w/the tuner on either the VCR or DVD recorder:

»www2.panasonic.com/consumer-elec···00005702
I looked into this machine - Its received some pretty bad reviews - such as buggy software and lockups - plus worst of all - It won't record directly from a digital channel to VHS.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22496800 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 16:05:16 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22496696 said by tvnut :

yeap! Looks like a good one..

As far as VCR goes, Please move into the 21st century!
I will try to find a price for the panasonic model mentioned by dishrich - but I note that it doesn't have S-VHS

As far as moving into the 21st century, I don't consider direct to DVD recorders superior to tape for simple reliable time shifting - However I would be interested in finding a reasonably priced Hard Disk Recorder that didn't require a monthly fee.

Until a few months ago, Magnavox was selling combination 160 GB Hard Disk and DVD recorders for $249.95 - but they have been closed out, apparently because Magnavox is no longer making them, but you can still see the Walmart ad at:

»www.walmart.com/catalog/product.···10104532

Many of Walmart's customers probably don't subscribe to cable - A recorder like this would be almost perfect for such people. - I say almost, because it can't record in high definition. ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22496696 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 15:49:24 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22496247
As far as VCR goes, Please move into the 21st century!]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22496247 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 14:21:58 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22496186 said by Franklin4:

but not tape VCRs which are now being made "tuner free" How about this one that does BOTH - you can record w/the tuner on either the VCR or DVD recorder:

»www2.panasonic.com/consumer-elec···00005702]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22496186 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 14:11:47 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22496010 said by tvnut :

There are MANY DVD-Recorders coming on the market with clear QAM Tuners..I did a search and found several brands that had it. So, that might be the solution to people that bought HDTVs prior to 2008.
Yes - it is possible to find DVD recorders with QAM tuners - but not tape VCRs which are now being made "tuner free" -plus try to find either one that can use a cable card and doesn't require a rental fee like Tivo. - I actually have a DVD recorder and even if it had a QAM tuner I would prefer to use tape because it is simple to use, reliable and easy to erase compared to recordable DVDs.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22496010 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 13:40:46 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22494669
As far as the remote communicating with the STB, consider the STB's remote communicating with the VCR. (Comcast's STB remote *is* a universal model; in fact, Universal used to manufacture them.)]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22494669 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 09:40:00 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22494658 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22494658 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 09:37:08 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22494649 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22494649 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 09:35:36 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22494622 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22494622 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 09:30:11 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22494465 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22494465 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 08:50:28 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22494057 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22494057 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 04:12:10 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22494044
Another solution to the problem of programing a VCR would have been to make it easy for older cable ready VCRs to communicate with set top boxes. I have a cable ready JVC S-VHS VCR that has an infrared output that can change the channel on more than 30 brands of set top boxes. - My problem is that neither Motorola nor Pace is on the list, and I have been unable to program my VCR to communicate with either of the units supplied by Comcast.

I resent having to pay a monthly fee to time shift programs - I am hoping to be able to find a VCR with a QAM digital tuner which will be usable to tune in unencrypted channels directly - at least until Comcast gets a waiver, which I hope it never does.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22494044 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 04:00:44 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22491578
In 2005 there were many more TV's with cablecard slots, and QAM tuners were not as common. ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22491578 Wed, 03 Jun 2009 18:42:34 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22490784
1. The term "digital-cable ready" or iDCR.
2. CableCARD-ready.

Horribly, most LCD HDTVs don't support ClearQAM (at best, they support ATSC in addition to NTSC) for price reasons. (Typically, ClearQAM/iDCR/CableCARD support was confined to the higher end of the price scale - plasma TVs, larger LCD HDTVs, and projection TVs. That was a decision by the CEA, not the cable companies.) I bought my Philips 42PF7320A/37A plasma in 2005 because it was, at the time, the lowest-price in-stock TV that supported CableCARD. (I almost didn't have enough continuous wall to mount it - it is a bedroom TV.)]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22490784 Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:23:03 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22483977 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22483977 Tue, 02 Jun 2009 15:07:19 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22483263 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22483263 Tue, 02 Jun 2009 13:19:33 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22481929 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22481929 Tue, 02 Jun 2009 09:03:59 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22481826 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22481826 Tue, 02 Jun 2009 08:34:34 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22481814 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22481814 Tue, 02 Jun 2009 08:30:47 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22481549 said by eangel88 :

Okay, so the QAM tuner won't make a difference when Comcast starts encrypting these channels. The only thing that will work is either a STB or DTA? Thanks.
A DTA won't even work for encrypted channels. ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22481549 Tue, 02 Jun 2009 05:41:25 EDT Re: Complain Vehemently / Get Help / Ignore... http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Complain-Vehemently-Get-Help-Ignore-22480148
A couple of things happened after the post. First I left a message for someone on another message board, and a Comcast rep must have scanned the message board for complaints, and then emailed me offering assistance. (well appreciated). We even got a phone call from the "executive office". By then, the Comcast technician arrived on the Sunday, and within an hour , had us all hooked up and two tv's working properly. Seems he had to install a digital booster box in our basement. The old booster box was analog and so it no longer worked. Something to that effect. Whatever he did, he took care of the problem perfectly, quickly, and resolved our problem. The boxes work fine now.

My frustration was with the customer service reps in India (the dedicated phone number was provided with the DTA box), that only can tell you how to hook up the box, and then send you a signal to activate it. After doing that four times, and wasting hours of our time, they did not suggest we call for Comcast service. That was their mistake, and they should be retrained to help customers like us who spent 3 days trying to get our system to work. It does no one any good to spend hours trying to activate a box that will not receive a signal due to another problem. All that kind of run around does, is to create unhappy customers. We are inundated with marketing flyers to change cable companies. Dealing with people over the phone that cannot help you and do not know enough to forward your concern to other departments that can help you, makes the entire company look bad. This is simply a training issue and could be addressed for the future. But of course it is cheaper to send everyone to a phone bank in India, where the person, cheerful that they are, basically reads from a script, and after a half hour, just tells the customer to wait until the box gets the signal or it downloads the channels. Neither suggestion worked, nor did the "supervisor" 's suggestions. The delay only mad us angrier and willing to consider changing providers. So if you have any influence with Comcast, tell them to tell their customer reps in India, to pass the caller on to the US Comcast office for service. Dialing the phone number listed with the DTA box will likely lead one to nothing but frustration and delay. ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Complain-Vehemently-Get-Help-Ignore-22480148 Mon, 01 Jun 2009 21:27:33 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22480056 said by bicker:

Again, in many areas expanded basic channels will be encrypted when broadcast as digital. Chances are, that is the reality that you will encounter: Expect that to be the case. A QAM tuner cannot tune in an encrypted channel unless it supports and carries a CableCARD.
Okay, so the QAM tuner won't make a difference when Comcast starts encrypting these channels. The only thing that will work is either a STB or DTA? Thanks.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22480056 Mon, 01 Jun 2009 21:13:45 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22480046 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22480046 Mon, 01 Jun 2009 21:11:49 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22479885 cannot tune in an encrypted channel unless it supports and carries a CableCARD.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22479885 Mon, 01 Jun 2009 20:38:26 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22479664 said by eangel88 :

The Comcast rep told me to tune to Channel 1 on my TV. If I can see something on Channel 1, then I don't need the DTA, but if I can't, I do need it. I can't see anything on Channel 1 on any of my TV's, so I guess none of them have the QAM tuner?
It's so unfair when the folks you ASS-U-ME you can trust don't know WTH they're talking about. :uhh:

Only STBs (i.e. DCT-700) know about things like CH. 1 ('OnDemand'). DTAs (i.e. DC-50X) and Clear QAM tuners (i.e. TVs, DVDRs, etc...) won't be 'mapped' for these 'Special Features'.
--
The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man. --George Bernard Shaw (1856 - 1950) LM]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22479664 Mon, 01 Jun 2009 19:59:30 EDT Complain Vehemently / Get Help / Ignore... http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Complain-Vehemently-Get-Help-Ignore-22479580 said by canalking:

Thank you for your advice. I will let you know what happens after the technician shows up on Sunday. If the technician cannot resolve the problem, then we will look into Fios. Mybe a new service provider will help us out.
I wonder what happened in Scotch Plains, NJ on Sunday, 05/17/09... :huh:

[OPINION]
  • Some folks get SO UPSET when things don't go 'right' (per their own personal perspective of 'right' that is)! :o

  • Some register, some don't - but SO MANY *IMMEDIATELY* develop the need to post 'somewhere' how UNHAPPY they are with 'Fill-in-the-Blank'. :mad:

  • VOLUNTEERS ('Kind Souls') jump in with 'words-of-wisdom' / hints and/or ideas on how to remedy the (perceived) 'problem'. ;)

  • MANY of the 'Original UPSET Folks' never return to update their status. :hmm: (Probably too embarrassed...)

  • SEARCH & READ work well for me, but I guess most UPSET FOLKS just don't have the time... :uhh:

[/OPINION]
--
The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man. --George Bernard Shaw (1856 - 1950) LM]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Complain-Vehemently-Get-Help-Ignore-22479580 Mon, 01 Jun 2009 19:42:30 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22479567 said by bicker:

said by tvnut :

Ok, so long story short. If you have Expanded Comcast Basic(basically you get 60-70 channels). Then if you have a QAM Tuner TV, then you will not need this stupid box, as all 50+ Channels that move from analog to digital the tv will tune in with its QAM Tuner..
That is not necessarily the case. In many (perhaps most) areas that will go down this path, expanded basic channels (say the top half of those 60-70 channels) will be encrypted. These channels are already encrypted on QAM here.
The Comcast rep told me to tune to Channel 1 on my TV. If I can see something on Channel 1, then I don't need the DTA, but if I can't, I do need it. I can't see anything on Channel 1 on any of my TV's, so I guess none of them have the QAM tuner?]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22479567 Mon, 01 Jun 2009 19:39:50 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22479433 said by tvnut :

Ok, so long story short. If you have Expanded Comcast Basic(basically you get 60-70 channels). Then if you have a QAM Tuner TV, then you will not need this stupid box, as all 50+ Channels that move from analog to digital the tv will tune in with its QAM Tuner..That is not necessarily the case. In many (perhaps most) areas that will go down this path, expanded basic channels (say the top half of those 60-70 channels) will be encrypted. These channels are already encrypted on QAM here.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22479433 Mon, 01 Jun 2009 19:15:49 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22479232 said by eangel88 :

...Will the RF modulator still work on Ch. 122 (or any channel for that matter) once the DTA's are connected and activated? I'm guessing that it won't, but I don't know for sure, and I don't know the reasons behind it...
I agree with your answer - NO it won't.

The reason, per my reading of various DTA and QAM threads, is that the DTA does 'mapping'. (NOTE: My examples have FAKE numbers.)

While 'Discovery Digital' (not HD) may be received on 80.1 via Clear QAM, the DTA is instructed via 'mapping' to receive it on 200 (there are no SUB-Channels on my DTA). Thus, since Comcast is unaware of YOUR CH. 122, the DTA will (probably) be unaware of it also.
--
The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man. --George Bernard Shaw (1856 - 1950) LM]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22479232 Mon, 01 Jun 2009 18:36:47 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22478686
So for me, the box is no effect as I have 4 QAM Tuner DTVs in my home...]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22478686 Mon, 01 Jun 2009 16:45:42 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22478405
Will the RF modulator still work on Ch. 122 (or any channel for that matter) once the DTA's are connected and activated? I'm guessing that it won't, but I don't know for sure, and I don't know the reasons behind it. Thanks.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22478405 Mon, 01 Jun 2009 15:57:07 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462364 said by Agent 86 :

"Generally, "those high channels" are encrypted, and DTAs aren't allowed to be used for those channels at this time (due to government [over-]regulation)."

The DTAs aren't designed to receive premium channels. They can do "privacy mode" (weak, used for VOD) decryption, but that would only be used for non-premium channels, if it is ever used.
Yup, so in the range the OP mentioned (100-999), probably 100-299, and 500-799 (at least on my system).]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462364 Fri, 29 May 2009 07:05:03 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462357
»www.silicondust.com/forum/viewto···ight=dta]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462357 Fri, 29 May 2009 07:03:20 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462326
The DTAs aren't designed to receive premium channels. They can do "privacy mode" (weak, used for VOD) decryption, but that would only be used for non-premium channels, if it is ever used.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462326 Fri, 29 May 2009 06:37:02 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462293 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462293 Fri, 29 May 2009 06:07:54 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462285 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462285 Fri, 29 May 2009 05:59:35 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462272 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462272 Fri, 29 May 2009 05:42:46 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462251
For now, think of DTAs as QAM tuners, that can be enabled or disabled en masse, nothing more.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462251 Fri, 29 May 2009 05:20:12 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462171 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22462171 Fri, 29 May 2009 03:56:18 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22398565 said by patspub:

Anyone in Northeast Philly get one of these "DTA's" yet???
I don't think Philly is getting them any time soon.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22398565 Sat, 16 May 2009 14:15:02 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22397668 said by patspub:

Anyone in Northeast Philly get one of these "DTA's" yet???
I have one (in Bucks). ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22397668 Sat, 16 May 2009 08:34:55 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22396414 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22396414 Fri, 15 May 2009 21:37:26 EDT Re: Divide and Conquer! http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Divide-and-Conquer-22396381 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Divide-and-Conquer-22396381 Fri, 15 May 2009 21:29:35 EDT Divide and Conquer! http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Divide-and-Conquer-22395979 said by canalking:

Having problems with the installation of our dta's. One can only get a few channels, the other one gets none. We have called comcast numerous times to report problem. We even returned orignal dta's to their office and got two new ones. Still cannot receive cable picture...
Divide and Conquer!
  • Go to the point where the cable initially enters your home from the pole. DISCONNECT IT from everything else in your home.
  • CONNECT your DTA to your cable at this entry point. You may have to ask Comcast to re-send the 'activate' signal and you may have to wait for the info to download.
  • Does either DTA work now?
  • If yes, add ONE piece of your existing cabling back, move the DTA to the end of the new piece and TEST again.
  • REPEAT until the DTA stops working. You may have a bad cable, a bad splitter, too many splitters, etc...
  • If no, wait until the service tech arrives.
Good Luck! :) Let us know what you discover.
--
The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man. --George Bernard Shaw (1856 - 1950) LM]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Divide-and-Conquer-22395979 Fri, 15 May 2009 19:59:38 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22395915 said by bicker:

...It only gets complicated if you choose to add other devices to your set-up, and in that case it is your decision to do so, and your responsibility to either have or obtain the knowledge necessary. Tech support can help introduce a VCR or DVR into the mix, but only to the extent that you are willing and capable of understanding what they're telling you. If it sounds too complicated, then you either need to learn more, or call on a friend to help you -- or borrow some friends-in-abstentia by presenting your need on an Internet forum, and let the folks there help you understand how to do what you need to. That's why many of us are here in this forum.

It would be great if they did have people standing by at all times to rush out to our homes and hand-hold us through everything. However, we simply don't pay any mass-market supplier enough for any of them to offer that, in any industry. And I don't want to pay one penny extra to support that level of service, since I don't need it. And evidently most customers are like me: They prefer lower prices over lots of extra hand-holding.

One thing that it is very important you understand about DTAs: They take in the multi-channel cable signal, and put out one channel's audio and video. Basically, you lose any features that are provide by your VCR, DVR or television by way of it's tuner. That's not a conspiracy or a crime. There is a federal regulation that specified precisely how to have cable service and still enjoy such features provided by your VCR's, DVR's or television's tuner -- that federal regulation is satisfied by CableCARD. If your VCR, DVR or television doesn't support CableCARD, then you have made a decision to not pay the extra amount necessary to comply with your obligations relevant to the federal regulation, so you won't reap the benefits of the features your VCR's, DVR's or television's tuner offers you, such as watch one channel while recording another. If you have a problem with the law, talk to your Members of Congress. Until the law is changed, however, cable companies have to comply with it, and you have to do your part as well, in order to gain the benefits of the law.
Good explanation bicker.

I'd like to add the following to hopefullly make the last paragraph even clearer for the 'non-techies'.


Technology continues to evolve. Take music. When I was a child, the adults in my family had collections of 78RPM Mono records. As a teen, 45RPM 'Singles' and 33RPM Stereo 'Albums' took over. Then, 8-Tracks, Cassettes, CDs and finally today 'electronic-only' MP3s. You may have a perfectly operating 8-Track in your car, but, it's tough to buy current songs for it.

Onto television. In the USA, television has been using NTSC tuners. When I was a child, our console television tuned only VHF 2-13 and was black & white. When UHF 14-83 came along, you needed to buy an 'adapter' for your VHF-only set - same deal as today - tune the new UHF channel on the adapter and then route it to the old television on VHF Ch 3.

Then came cable. To ease it into our households, the industry came out with 'Cable-Ready' tuners BUILT INTO televisions and VCRs. Maybe the numbers looked the same, but Ch 33 OTA (UHF) was certainly a different frequency than Ch 33 Cable. These 'Cable-Ready' tuners, Ch 2-125, served us a LONG time but now there's DIGITAL and the technology has changed once again.

Only this time, instead of a 'few' VHF-only sets needing to be either 'adapted' or replaced, there are THOUSANDS upon THOUSANDS of NTSC OTA and 'Cable-Ready' tuners in televisions, VCRs, DVDRs, etc... that (suddenly) have become OBSOLETE! :o Everything that you knew PRIOR to ATSC/QAM is now 'out-dated'. And your choices are the same as they were when UHF first appeared - buy an adapter or replace the device. But, due to the advances in technology, what the adapter can accomplish is limited to what the original device anticipated.

My knowledge is limited to ReplayTV and TiVo Series 1, so, that's what I'll explain. Both of those devices came with 'IR Blasters' - simply, the OUTPUT portion of the handheld remote control we've all gotten used to. The BUTTONs are handled by electronics inside the ReplayTV and TiVo. Thus, if I upgrade to Digital Cable and get a Motorola DCT-700 STB, I can tell my ReplayTV 'control the DCT-700 for me'. If your existing NTSC-tuner-equipped device didn't anticipate controlling another SPECIFIC device, YOU have to do it manually (tune your old device to NTSC Ch 3; select the ATSC/QAM channel with the DTA/STB remote control). For example, my ReplayTV DOES NOT know how to control the DC-50X (at this time). Very sad indeed. :(

If that's not satisfactory, well... time to buy a new television, DVDR, etc... ;)
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The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man. --George Bernard Shaw (1856 - 1950) LM]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22395915 Fri, 15 May 2009 19:43:33 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22394845 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22394845 Fri, 15 May 2009 15:18:08 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22392644 said by canalking:

Having problems with the installation of our dta's. One can only get a few channels, the other one gets none. We have called comcast numerous times to report problem. We even returned orignal dta's to their office and got two new ones. Still cannot receive cable picture. Diagnostic review (Thank you for your code info) shows download has failed, and cannot find dsmcc pid whatever that is. We have asked for technician to come to house and they will come in 3 days. In the meantime we have no cable service on these tv's (although we can take the boxes off and have cable service). Dealing with customer service has been horrible. Basically they can only send a signal to the box which does nothing. Can you tell us if you think the problem is with the box, the wiring in the house, or with Comcast's servers/computers? Our cable is working just fine without the boxes. So sorry we ordered these but we have no choice for the older tv's. Thank you in advance for your assistance. Signed, Frustrated.
Sounds like a signal problem. The cause could be almost anything, but I would suspect the wiring in your house first.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22392644 Fri, 15 May 2009 06:24:43 EDT Re: Digital Transport Adapter Unboxing Photos http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22392216 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Digital-Transport-Adapter-Unboxing-Photos-22392216 Fri, 15 May 2009 00:26:40 EDT