Old, Analog TV channel use ??'s

[ka5lqj]

In February of 2009, the mandated change-over to digital televison will occur.

Question # 1. : Has anyone heard what the F.C.C. plans to do with the "space" created by this move?

IF the F.C.C. plans to keep these "channels" open for digital, there SHOULD be an abundant place for multiple channels, say "Ch. 3.1", "Ch. 3.2 HD?", "Ch. 3. Music?", etc.

Question # 2. : Is this change-over going to allow commercial, two-way radio users an opening to use "digital voice" (possibly scrambled for privacy) for business comms?

I'm not talking about Hi-fidelity audio, but at least very pleasant to listen too and understand clearly.

No, I'm NOT talking about a complete digital "takeover" of all communications, now within the next 20 to 25 years, possibly, Ha ha. Just wondering.

ANY information that can be proved would be greatfully accepted.

Respectfully,
73 (Best Regard),

Don/KA5-LQJ

 

[kf4lhp]

Channels 2 - 51 will remain allocated for television. Post-transition, some stations will stay on their channel they were originally given for DTV, others will move back to the channel they had for analog. In the case of the station I work for, we operate analog on channel 9 and digital on channel 35. Post-transition, we will operate digital on channel 9 and return our channel 35 authorization to the FCC.

Channels 52 and up are part of the 700 MHz auctions for cellular-type services and the new public safety band.

There really won't be much space left open in the remaining TV spectrum. There are limitations with receivers as to what channels can be used in the markets related to co-channel and adjacent-channel interference issues, as well as intermodulation interference that can occur within the receiver due to specific combinations of channels being used in a market.

 

[ka5lqj]

"Thanks", ;-)

"Thanks" Matthew,

I was just wondering. Here in Shreveport, the local hams have an ATV set-up to transmit the NOAA Wx Radar (10 gHZ) out on one of the UHF TV channels ONLY during Skywarn call-ups. The local TV radars are at 5 gHZ and are not as 'accurate", LOL! The Comcast Cable company's "The Wx Channel" radar is as useless as "tits on a boar hog", LOL! During the Skywarn callups, the Wx Channel radar ONLY comes "on the 8's", which is way too long (10 minutes) for it to come on again. Here storms move rather quickly (up to 40 mph) and are upon you and gone by that time.

There are very few ATV'rs here to get a ATV radar, so they use one of the upper "blank" UHF channels. We have 3 regular UHF TV stations....Ch. 25 PBS, Ch.33 Fox & Ch. 45 UPN?
I don't watch Ch. 45, LOL! These are all on Comcast cable. We have some other UHF stations that are not on cable: Ch. 54 3 Angels Broadcasting (the 7th Day Adventist) and a couple of those "sales" channels, that show everything from jewelry to computer junk.

Don't we have ENOUGH cell phone towers cluttering up our sky now? Geez! LOL!

Again, thanks for the information and listening to me rattle on.

Respectfully,
73,

Don/KA5-LQJ

Grid Square: EM-32
Caddo Parish
10-10 International

 

[loumaag]

...Here in Shreveport, the local hams have an ATV set-up to transmit the NOAA Wx Radar (10 gHZ) out on one of the UHF TV channels...

In which case it is not ATV.

 

[mdulrich]

In which case it is not ATV.

Actually at least some of ATV freqs can be picked up on cable channels by connecting a UHF antenna to the antenna input. This may make some people think they are UHF channels.

The ATV freq for Allen County Ohio is 421.25 which is cable channel 57.

Mike

 

[loumaag]

Actually at least some of ATV freqs can be picked up on cable channels by connecting a UHF antenna to the antenna input. This may make some people think they are UHF channels.

The ATV freq for Allen County Ohio is 421.25 which is cable channel 57.

Mike

Well yes, but cable channels are not TV channels, the quoted ka5lqj post seems to indicate that they are illegally transmitting ATV on a UHF TV Channel. The 70cm ham band is 420-450 MHz and there are no UHF TV channels in that spectrum.

As for your example, indeed it fits right in with the ARRL band plan for ATV (except it is on the control links frequency).

 

[n8emr]

In which case it is not ATV.

The UHF channel in question is a TV channel but its a cable HRC channel. You can use a standard TV set to recevie the ATV signal, just put it in HRC mode. I think its channel 53 or 58.

 

[gmclam]

ATSC aka digital TV in the USA

This topic has been discussed to death here at RR. Do a little searching and you will find a lot more info. If that's not enough, check out NTIA.gov or perhaps AVSFORUM.com.

I have not yet seen a single public service announcement which is accurate. There is a lot of incorrect information out there. First of all, NOT all TV broadcasts in the USA will be digital after 2/17/2009. Low power stations and translators are not required to cease analog broadcasting on that date. Secondly, current high power TV stations have only been "loaned" a 2nd channel to broadcast their digital signal. After 2/17/2009, full power stations must cease analog broadcasts. Some stations will "move" their digital broadcast to their analog channel, some will continue broadcasting on the channel they are currently loaned (which will become their new channel), and some will move their digital broadcast to an entirely new channel. No one will be allowed to be broadcasting on current channels 52 to 69, as those will become the new 700 MHz band.

Also, the channel number displayed on digital channels is not related to the physical channel of a digital TV broadcast. For example; a station which has been broadcasting in analog on channel 6 is "labeled" 6.x (.x refers to each sub channel) regardless of the physical channel of their digital broadcast. They may currently be broadcasting on a loaned channel of 53, but be moving to channel 9 after the transition - BUT will still be called 6.x!!! This is just one of 100s of situations.

In other threads here you can read about the auctioning off of the 700 MHz band. The government is actually making money from all of this. There are many aspects to the entirety of what is going on.​

 

[ridgescan]

Do you think the move will quiet the spectrum a lot in uhf/vhf improving adjacent transmissions?

 

[gmclam]

Atsc

Do you think the move will quiet the spectrum a lot in uhf/vhf improving adjacent transmissions?

No. As a matter of fact the TV spectrum will be more crowded than ever. In the past, with analog broadcasts, 2 stations could not be on adjacent frequencies in the same city. With digital, they will be. We will have at least as many transmissions in a smaller number of channels (2-51). In addition, most stations are opting to not broadcast digitally in channels 2-6, so most stations will be crowded into 7-51.