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to cypherstream
Re: Blue Ridge Cablesaid by cypherstream:Also found that AMC HD, We HD, IFC HD, and Fuse HD are all on the same QAM. 4:1 compression! And I assume you know that is exactly how EVERY provider gets it from Rainbow prog - hence why everyone bitches about the (HD) pic quality on these channels. (but mostly on AMC...) But by Rainbow doing it this way, it "encourages" their cable affiliates to simply put the entire bouquet from the bird "as is", onto a single 6mhz QAM - w/out any further grooming of the stream. » www.lyngsat.com/Galaxy-14.html(the Rainbow bouquet is on TP 2) |
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said by dishrich:said by cypherstream:Also found that AMC HD, We HD, IFC HD, and Fuse HD are all on the same QAM. 4:1 compression! And I assume you know that is exactly how EVERY provider gets it from Rainbow prog - hence why everyone bitches about the (HD) pic quality on these channels. (but mostly on AMC...) But by Rainbow doing it this way, it "encourages" their cable affiliates to simply put the entire bouquet from the bird "as is", onto a single 6mhz QAM - w/out any further grooming of the stream. » www.lyngsat.com/Galaxy-14.html(the Rainbow bouquet is on TP 2) you do realize Rainbow networks has not existed under that name for a year now right? They are called AMC Networks now and Fuse was spun off to Madison Square Garden so they are now on a different contract set than AMC, IFC, We TV. |
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to dishrich
Hmm, then why is only the AMC channel in HD on directv? |
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4 edits |
to motorola870
said by motorola870:you do realize Rainbow networks has not existed under that name for a year now right? They are called AMC Networks now OK, that's true...then call it the AMC/MSG Networks bouquet...  The point is, when they WERE all Rainbow, Rainbow put all 4 on the same bouquet - which has NOT changed, in spite of all the changes afterwords... and Fuse was spun off to Madison Square Garden so they are now on a different contract set than AMC, IFC, We TV.
Again, they are STILL on 1 bouquet irregardless of who owns what networks - which doesn't change the fact of the 4:1 compression. said by cypherstream:Hmm, then why is only the AMC channel in HD on directv? Well first of all...the provider(s) STILL have to have a contract to carry each network. I did NOT say that EVERY provider did/does carry all 4 services; I was simply explaining to you why you were seeing 4:1 compression on those (same) 4 services. Again, (at least at the time) Rainbow did this to "make things easier" for both themselves & their cable system "partners"- by "cramming" & originating 4 HD channels, into ONE QAM space. (instead of taking part of a 2nd QAM, &/or the cable op being responsible for "re-grooming" those signals)  Also, (both) DirecTV & DISH do NOT take these network feeds directly from the birds & put up on their birds "as is"... First of all, this bouquet is sent up in MPEG2 HD. Since pretty much every cable system still uses MPEG2 HD, the entire bouquet can be simply put on a cable QAM "as is". (ie: it does NOT have to be transcoded to MPEG4) Both DBS providers, since they use ALL MPEG4 compression, can't do this - so they have to transcode & groom these streams to MPEG4. They also are packing more MPEG4 streams to their own x-ponders, hence why they need to transcode/groom individual MPEG2-originated streams. |
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said by dishrich:said by motorola870:you do realize Rainbow networks has not existed under that name for a year now right? They are called AMC Networks now OK, that's true...then call it the AMC/MSG Networks bouquet... The point is, when they WERE all Rainbow, Rainbow put all 4 on the same bouquet - which has NOT changed, in spite of all the changes afterwords... and Fuse was spun off to Madison Square Garden so they are now on a different contract set than AMC, IFC, We TV.
Again, they are STILL on 1 bouquet irregardless of who owns what networks - which doesn't change the fact of the 4:1 compression. I don't even get fuse HD which I wish I could have gotten before MSG trashed the channel I am betting it will die soon if they don't change from a Pop/Hip Hop channels that shows the same dang thing over and over and they pretty much killed the roots of the channel they are pretty much as watered down version of MTV now UH! I only get: IFC HD AMC HD We HD and it took an act of congress to get IFC HD! Just kidding TWC saved it for a 20 HD channel last year. |
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TheWiseGuyDog And Butterfly
MVM
join:2002-07-04
East Stroudsburg, PA
1 edit |
to dishrich
said by dishrich
:First of all, this bouquet is sent up in MPEG2 HD. Since pretty much every cable system still uses MPEG2 HD, the entire bouquet can be simply put on a cable QAM "as is". (ie: it does NOT have to be transcoded to MPEG4)
I had to download the XBox optional media update to use my XBox as an extender with Blue Ridge to receive the premium channels. When I had used the same setup with Cablevision I did not need the update to receive any channel. I suspect that Blue Ridge is using Mpeg4 for the premium channels. |
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to dishrich
Just a side note that those channels are changing over to new satellite feeds in November so picture quality from Rainbow/Fuse/Whoever they are this month should increase as the 4:1 mux won't be such a good idea after that point. |
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to TheWiseGuy
said by TheWiseGuy:I had to download the XBox optional media update to use my XBox as an extender with Blue Ridge to receive the premium channels. When I had used the same setup with Cablevision I did not need the update to receive any channel. I suspect that Blue Ridge is using Mpeg4 for the premium channels. But if those (new) HD premiums can be received with all those old legacy SA HD boxes, then this can't be the case - since those same boxes do NOT do MPEG4. Cypher could maybe answer this question for you...  |
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 ·PenTeleData
ARRIS SB8200
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There are other diagnostics pages that I didn't take a picture of, but all signs point to things being MPEG2. Though the Cisco 8652HDC should be capable of decoding MPEG4 and tuning up to 1 GHz. Though their SD (SA3200 / 2200) are only 870 MHz tuners with MPEG2 compatibility.
But again the premium HD's that rival DirecTV's selection of Premium multi-screens in HD are not yet active in the area where I was at this weekend.
I'm back home so I can't gather any other information. Sounds like we will be up there next year sometime and by then we'll see.
Really nicely run cable system though. The guide is FAST and there's lots of nice interactive features here and there. For being a little company not even close in terms of Comcast, TWC, Charter, Cox, etc... they do have a very nice selection of channels. I just could not figure out if it was possible to do a 30 sec skip on the DVR. Didn't think it was possible, at least I couldn't figure it out.
Too bad AMC couldn't improve their quality BEFORE the new season of Walking Dead. Oh well, it still is far better than the SD version.
Hopefully with DirecTV shuffling channels to different transponders trying to squeeze in that 6th HD per frequency... maybe they will find room to upgrade the other AMC Networks to HD... We, Fuse, IFC would be a very welcome addition. Thought these operators only sold in packs... hence the whole a-la carte battle that claims if they sold things in a-la carte, many channels would go out of business. |
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TheWiseGuyDog And Butterfly
MVM
join:2002-07-04
East Stroudsburg, PA |
said by cypherstream:There are other diagnostics pages that I didn't take a picture of, but all signs point to things being MPEG2. Though the Cisco 8652HDC should be capable of decoding MPEG4 and tuning up to 1 GHz. Though their SD (SA3200 / 2200) are only 870 MHz tuners with MPEG2 compatibility. I have the Cisco 8652HDC and all the multi-screen premiums. For Internet I have 4 bonded downstream channels, channel 1 is at 891MHz I took a quick look at the diag screens but did not find info on whether it was mpeg2/4, I can look again later. said by cypherstream:I just could not figure out if it was possible to do a 30 sec skip on the DVR. Didn't think it was possible, at least I couldn't figure it out. I do not think most cable company DVRs allow 30 sec skip, they do not want problems with the content providers. |
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said by TheWiseGuy:I do not think most cable company DVRs allow 30 sec skip, they do not want problems with the content providers. Actually, many do...while the SA/Cisco DVR's, with either the SARA/Passport, or TWC Navigator do NOT, the following all do: Motorola/I-guide; while it's NOT "hard coded" on the remotes, it's a "hidden feature" that can be enabled, similiar to the Tivo's: » en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Ho ··· ond_SkipThe new Arris Gateway & Player 6-tuner DVR does, that some ops are now deploying: » www.arrisi.com/product_c ··· UN11.pdfVerizon's FiOS & AT&T U-verse DVR's do Both DISH & DirecTV do, of course |
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·PenTeleData
ARRIS SB8200
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to TheWiseGuy
It's under mpeg info I believe.
What system are you on? Your profile says Yonkers, NY. Is that Cablevision or do you also have a place in the Pocono's with Blue Ridge?
I wouldn't be surprised if they were 1GHz. The line gear is newer CCor stuff and all of the documentation online (now through Arris) states 1 GHz. |
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TheWiseGuyDog And Butterfly
MVM
join:2002-07-04
East Stroudsburg, PA |
I just moved to Monroe county and have had Blue Ridge for about 6 months. I still have Cablevision in Yonkers but probably will not for much longer. I attached a jpg of the mpeg screen. I'll look at both my silicon graphics diagnostics and the rest of the DVR diag screens tomorrow. |
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·PenTeleData
ARRIS SB8200
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Ah ok, I was up in Pike County. Interesting how they launch these things by county. I thought all of that region was broadcast from Stroudsburg.
I don't see anything concrete in that screen showing mpeg2 or 4. I swear I saw it somewhere. It might of been in one of the subpages of one of 8 cable card diagnostics screen. Cable card diagnostics are on any box with a cable card (HDC model designation). |
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TheWiseGuyDog And Butterfly
MVM
join:2002-07-04
East Stroudsburg, PA |
Sorry, I went through all the screens including the 9 CableCard screens and could not find anything.
I did notice that the bitrate on HBO and Showtime was well over 10mbps while the bitrate on HBO2 and another of the secondary premiums were below 6mbps with one of them at less than 3mbps. |
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to motorola870
AMC Networks & Fuse are ALL still controlled by the Dolan empiresaid by motorola870:you do realize Rainbow networks has not existed under that name for a year now right? They are called AMC Networks now and Fuse was spun off to Madison Square Garden so they are now on a different contract set than AMC, IFC, We TV. FYI - even though Fuse may have been "spun off" from the AMC Nets, it is STILL part of the Cablevision empire. Proof of this, & how they still have ties with each other, is the fact that Fuse has also now been restored on DISH, (which was dropped almost a year ago!) as part of a settlement with Cablevision - which restored ALL the AMC networks back on DISH. » www.multichannel.com/dis ··· t/139925 |
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to cypherstream
Re: Blue Ridge CableSlight difference in HD locals up in Pike County, at least from Milford, as you get locals from NYC in HD.
Hope NBA TV HD finally gets added in the next few weeks. |
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Yeah they get NYC and Scranton stations. I forget which ones are in HD, but both DMA's are in SD at least.
Thought maybe the office in Hawley injected the NY locals. |
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