Question on Cable Card ready & QAM Cable Tuner

[Den Mayer]

I've never read the details relating to Cable Card ready & QAM cable tuner,

  but:   Do all cable card ready HDTV sets have a QAM cable tuner installed?


     IF so,
 As a follow up:  Is the cable card function 'in front of OR behind' the

 QAM cable tuner?

[MoreTorque99]

There are a limited number of sets out there that have CableCARD, but no QAM tuner.

When the CableCARD is in use, it is in front of everything else.

[Mark Strube]

I find this slightly confusing... if you have CableCARD functionality, why would you ever need a QAM tuner? It receives everything the QAM can and more.

[Joseph S]

I guess it's because the Cable Card costs $ to rent, whereas QAM is "free" if you have the service.

[mhz40]

The QAM tuner simply gives you the ability to tune-in and recieve unencrypted programs on cable systems using QAM modulation technology.  In order to decode encrypted programs, you need a set with a QAM tuner, cablecard slot and a cablecard installed.  The card provides the decryption function, but is not a QAM tuner.

[Mark Strube]

But wouldn't it be kind of stupid to make a TV with a CableCARD slot without a QAM tuner? Am I missing something? I just don't see that happening. :confused:

[kevbeck122]

All of the digital channels use QAM.. so every TV that has a slot must have a QAM tuner to receive the channels.

[mhz40]

But wouldn't it be kind of stupid to make a TV with a CableCARD slot without a QAM tuner? Am I missing something? I just don't see that happening. :confused:

It's the pace of technical evolution.  Cablecard itself was not ready when TV's w/QAM tuners first came out.  The first few years of HD sets were monitors only... requiring external tuners and sources to feed their component inputs.  Then came sets came with 8VSB tuners, followed by units with the QAM tuner.  The last couple of generation TV's now include cablecard slots.  Up next (supposedly) is two-way capability, so cablecard sets can order VoD and be clients to other 2-way functions.

[Mark Strube]

Right... I said it'd be stupid to make a tv with a CableCARD without QAM, not vice-versa.