W.O.W. → CableCard Nightmare

Hello, I just had my installation with WOW in Dothan, AL today and everything went fine except for a CableCard M-Card installation in a TiVo Premiere XL4.

From what I can tell, the card is paired and validated, however I'm not getting any channels. The tech tried two different cards and called the main office multiple times to have them send "hits" although honestly the tech was clueless about CableCards and said they hardly ever install them.

One major concern is that someone he was talking to on the phone told him that the TiVo Premiere XL4's won't work with WOW because they are digital only, and the cable signal here is analog?? I understand that I would only be able to view the digital channels, but I'm pretty sure a large number of the channels here are digital.

Can someone please tell me what "lingo" I need to use when I talk to a tech rep to get them to activate this thing properly? I understand there are different "types" of "hits" they can send from the office, and they have to be done in a certain order and a certain time apart. Any info would be greatly appreciated. I just bought this TiVo and will be really sad if I have to use the garbage DVR that the cable company offers.

Update: Okay, through some miracle and multiple restarts, I've just discovered that my TiVo is working as intended. Why am I not elated? I just discovered that the Premiere XL4 does not receive analog channels, and therefore in Dothan I'm unable to watch the History Channel and A&E (among others) because they are analog only and not rebroadcast in digital. This absolutely sucks... Mad at WOW for not offering digital/HD versions of these channels, and mad at TiVo for preventing this latest TiVo from picking up analog channels.

If anyone knows whether the lineup in Dothan will expand anytime soon, please let me know...

I'm not in the same area as you and i've since moved over to Comcast but... I did have a Tivo with a cable card with WOW and it worked fine. You need a cable card because the cable networks like WOW have moved from analog to digital, at least they did here in Detroit. I don't believe its possible for you to have both an analog and digital cable TV setup (per channel) at the same time - its only one or the other, from what I understand. Once you are on digital and using a cable card, its just standard or HD channels.

»www.fcc.gov/guides/dtv-t ··· -digital

»www.wowway.com/help-supp ··· cable-tv

Q: Do I need a converter box if I have Basic Cable?

A: Yes, a converter box is needed on all TV's to receive WOW! Basic or Digital Cable. These boxes can be Digital Adapters, standard Digital receivers, HD receivers, DVRs or HD DVRs. customers may have CableCARDs in lieu of converter boxes if they have digital ready televisions or other digital cable ready devices. To receive premium movie channels such as HBO or Showtime, or to be able to watch and order WOW! OnDemand or Pay-Per-View, customers must subscribe to at least a digital receiver and subscribe to a Digital Cable package.

Hey thank you for trying to help but I think I've somewhat "resolved" my issue, and it's primarily a problem between the channel lineup in Dothan, AL and the features of the TiVo Premiere XL4.

TiVo's newest models (the Premiere 4 and XL4 will *only* receive digital channels, they will not receive analog). This is normally fine because in most cities the cable company either simulcasts their analog channels in digital, or there are HD versions which are digital.

What this means, for my area, is the TiVo Premiere XL4 will not display channels under 200 - for some reason in Dothan, there is no digital or HD version of A&E, The History Channel, or AMC (among others). They are *exclusively* broadcast in analog with channel numbers under 100.

I am hoping that WOW (formerly Knology) in Dothan catches up with the rest of the country and begins simulcasting these channels digitally, or better yet gets HD versions. Until then, my workaround was to get an older model TiVo (the Premiere) which *can* display and record analog channels. For the handful of shows I watch/record on those channels, I record them on my Premiere, and for the rest I record them on the XL4.

If/when all the channels I watch are broadcast digitally in Dothan, I'll sell the older TiVo and hook up the TiVo Mini that I originally intended to use with the XL4 for multi-room viewing.

If it's former knology they will have to update and merge stuff. You should eventually get caught up. I can tell you here in Cleveland which has been wow for 10+ years it all works fine. I get HD versions of every channel. At least of all the major ones. There might some odd financial channel or religions channel or something I don't, but history, ane, and amc are all HD here. I'm sure given some time they will get the knology area sorted out. Although given WOW's track record with upgrades, expect it to be a while and there to be a lot of headache along the way.

Thanks, I'm starting to realize that it's more of a Knology issue than a WOW issue. Frankly, if my apartment complex didn't have an exclusivity deal with WOW, I would have gone with Comcast since they're also in town. However, I guess WOW ran the cable through the complex (they're new apartments) so as far as I know, there's no way for me to choose another company even if I wanted to. I do hope they get with the program... it's a bad sign when the installer is badmouthing their own company. Major bummer!