Confused about DTV, now vs. transition

K

ken.a

DTVUSA Rookie
#1
#1
Hello everyone. I am very confused about the DTV transition and need some help please.

I reside in Los Angeles county, California.

1. My TV has an ATSC tuner, so getting a converter box will not help in any way to receive digital channels or more digital channels, right?

2. When I auto program my TV to scan the air, I sometimes get more digital channels, and sometimes less digital channels. Normally, within channels 2-13, I only get 5.1 fine (KTLA). In the upper channels, I get a few Asian/Hispanic ones (e.g. 22.1, 22.2) and Christian church channels (40.1, 40.2, 40.3).

The rest of the major stations like 2 (CBS), 7 (ABC), 11 (Fox) are always in analog -- does that mean I will lose them after the transition or will these analog broadcasts (2.0, 4.0, 7.0, 11.0, etc) convert to digital? In other words, the power used to broadcast in analog will be digital?

A few weeks ago ABC ran a two-minute test and it said I need a converter box... but my TV has a ATSC tuner which I read is like a converter box. :confused:

I should also note that I live in an apartment complex (I think called a "garden apartment") and there is 1 roof antenna shared among 20 units. Perhaps this is somewhat (or entirely?) responsible for my DTV trouble?

Appreciate any advice. Thanks in advance!
 
Thomas G

Thomas G

Contributor
#2
#2
1. The ATSC tuner in your TV is a built-in digital tuner, so you will not need a converter box.

2. Shared Antenna at your apartment complex:

Most community antenna systems are not equipped to handle DTV signals. The cost to upgrade these systems range anywhere from $5,000-$15,000 and even more in some cases which would cause home owner association fees to sky rocket.
Click to expand...
From: http://www.dtvusaforum.com/dtv-reception/998-does-your-condo-apartment-share-antenna.html

I would suggest talking to your apartment complex about what they plan on doing with their roof top antenna for DTV. As is, it's probably not doing anything for you plugged into your television set. If they decide to not upgrade the antenna, I would suggest purchasing a set-top powered antenna, which should easily receive dtv-hdtv channels in LA. You can purchase one for between $25-$45, and I would also recommend purchasing one that can receive UHF-VHF signals.

Hope this helped.
 
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