Newbie Q's..... signal, tuner, antenna, HELP!

[bob-n]

Ok, just shelled out some minor money last night for a Samsung TX-P2670WH (http://www.samsungusa.com/cgi-bin/nabc/product/b2c_product_detail.jsp?eUser=&prod_id=TXP2670WHX/XAA) with built in tuner, etc. Also got new progressive scan DVD and some crummy little indoor Zenith ZHDTVI antenna. Needless to say, after hooking up tv and worthless little antenna, there was no signal at all. A couple fuzzy analog channels and that's it, and only while I was holding it. Aluminum foil would work better. I figured the antenna would be useless since I live way out in the weeds (silver lake, kenosha cty) but stupidly bought it anyway. Promptly hooked it up to my 25 year old rooftop and got all the usual analogs (4,6,10,12, etc) but I don't see how or where it receives the HD signals.

I'm guessing that I need a HD compatible rooftop antenna (looking at picking up RS 15-2154 on the way home from the office) and go from there??? Is there anything alse that is needed? It states that there is a built in HD tuner in the tv, but I see nothing regarding signal strength, etc. as most posts I see here elude to. Will that only appear with proper antenna or do I need another box? Any suggestions? I really don't want to convert to cable service since we don't watch enough programming to justify the cost.

Thanks in advance.
Bob... noob lookin' for my HD

[Gregg Lengling]

There is no such thing as an HD compatible antenna...an antenna for a frequency is an antenna no matter what type of signal you are trying to receive.  I would suggest you look at the owners manual and go through the setup guide for the tuner.  Usually digital tuners have a scan function, where they scan all the channels and look for signals you can receive and  create a list (including the Point to Channel...for example it finds a signal on digital 35 and remaps it to 36-1).  Then the whole analog and digital list is available for you to scroll channels up and down thru them all.  Most tuners also allow you to direct enter the "real Digital" channel number and then they automatically remap and put it into the list.  So try something like channel 26 and you should get remapped to 4-1.  The main page of this website shows all the physical and remap numbers for Milwaukee stations.


Also make sure you have selected the proper antenna input as most units have 2 antenna ports these days and if your looking for signals on antenna input 2 and you only have an antenna on input 1 you really won't receive anything.

Good luck.

[bob-n]

"There is no such thing as an HD compatible antenna"
That's what I thought also.... but not seeing anything digital made me scratch my head.

Went through the "auto setup" or whatever they called it. Many times. There is only 1 antenna input, but a zillion different ones for other video sources. Their manual kinda sucks, leaves a lot of holes and online support only offers up a download of the manual... and that is corrupt. I guess you get what you pay for.
I'll cruise back through it again tonight and see what's been missed. I think I'm looking too deep into this whole HD thing... basically, it's just a UHF signal, but all ones and zeros???

I shouldn't need any other box to go with this unit, should I??

Would the distance have a huge effect? I'm about 50-60 miles from the antennas, but get most analog channels nearly perfect.

[Gregg Lengling]

No you shouldn't need a settop box...I looked at the link you provided for your set and it specifies ATSC and QAM capable tuner...which means it should work for over the air Digital and Digital Cable....(probably has a card slot for the cable portion so you can get encrypted channels if  you opt for cable delivery).

[bob-n]

Seems somebody did the quick-change.... The box said model TX-P2670WH, the unit is a model TXN2668WHF.... no tuner. Funny thing is I pointed out when I picked it up that the box had been resealed and was going to refuse, but there were no others in stock so I took it. After a short conversation with the Exec. mgr of the store... I kept the tv. They made me a deal I couldn't refuse. I'm into it for about $300 now, but still need to get a tuner (which I think they were thinking I'd get there, but decided against it)
They are speculating that an employee swapped product between boxes, then purchased it.
Now I need to find a tuner... which is best bang for the buck?

[Gregg Lengling]

It going to depend on what you want...there are differences on how different manufacturers tuners work.  I'm thinking you just want an OTA tuner (no Satellite), if that is the case there are a lot of Samsungs out there that seem to work just fine.  I personally just love my 2 Sony's but they also include Satellite.

[bob-n]

Thanks for the advice... I was looking toward the samsungs also, but there seems to be a love/hate thing with them. Some people's reviews are great, others really knock 'em. I guess it all plays into personal preference. I just want OTA, and D5.1. I don't watch enough to justify satellite or cable, I would be pouring good money down the drain.
Now all I need to intagrate my pc back into the new system...

[StarvingForHDTV]

I picked up a Samsung SIR-T151 on Ebay for a very reasonable price.  It will do OTA w/ DD 5.1 no problem.  I think it's the SIR-T351's that have audio issues.  This would be a basic HD tuner for anyone.  It pays for itself in no time.  I used to have a fancy Sony tuner, but this practically free Samsung version does everything I need.

Starving

[bob-n]

Starvin'.. thanks for the advice on the SIR-T151... that's the exact unit I've been looking at. Got my eyes on a couple on ebay right now. Saw a couple used ones on amazon for $179, but with no remote... so they're still there. I heard the same about sound issues on some of the samsungs, that's why I'm going cautiously. If anybody's got a spare one just laying around.... I'd be glad to keep the money local!!

[bob-n]

Got it all up and running last night. Picked up a "used" SIR T151 for a song... even got original receipt and warranty card... all for about 1/2 price!! Decided to re-wire my audio components at the same time and realized what a huge mistake that was. All my components are crammed in a 1850's English buffet and the wiring is TIGHT. 3 hours of playing with mirrors to see the connections.... but the end result is great!

Get all the Milwaukee channels clear as a bell, even way out here (Silver Lake) plus get all Chicago also! All those channels and there was still nothing good on, so I rented a DVD. :bang: Maybe Voom in the future??? :confused:

Anyhow, thanks for the advice, plus the good information in general hidden in all the dark corners of the site!! :rock:

[StarvingForHDTV]

Sounds like a good low cost solution.  I'm glad you found a cheap Sammy for yourself.

Starving