HDTV tuner confusion

I am trying to google the facts on hdtv tuners and need some help with
clarifications. If I misstate something please let me know.

digital = hdtv = atsc all describe the same tuner.

If I am going to receive hdtv from a cable company I do not need a hdtv
with a tuner at all (I can use a hd monitor) If I ever wanted to receive
OTA hdtv I would have to buy an external clear QAM tuner. In that case
there is zero benefit from buying an hdtv with a turner.

I have seen some specs for hdtvs that have tuners:
ntsc/atsc tuner with clear QAM
Is this one tuner with all 3 functions? What does ntsc add? Isn't ntsc
for analog signals and will be eliminated in the near future?

I have seen some hdtvs that have pip. They will have to have at least 2
atsc tuners.

So the bottom line is if I am going to use a cable tv company I can buy a
hd monitor and have the cable box provide the hdtv and standard tv
signal, or buy an hdtv with atsc tuner (in which case the tuner is
superfluous). The hd dvd players will work equally well with either.

Thanks for any clarification.

Jerry

"jerry" wrote in message
...
|I am trying to google the facts on hdtv tuners and need some help with
| clarifications. If I misstate something please let me know.
|
| digital = hdtv = atsc all describe the same tuner.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There are others more expert than I here...but here's a starter...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

| If I am going to receive hdtv from a cable company I do not need a hdtv
| with a tuner at all (I can use a hd monitor)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Called *HDTV ready* I believe you would be hard pressed to find any HDTV
w/o an ATSC tuner
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If I ever wanted to receive
| OTA hdtv I would have to buy an external clear QAM tuner. In that case
| there is zero benefit from buying an hdtv with a turner.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
QAM is the modulation used by cable companies. gain...hard pressed to find a
new HDTV without it
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
| I have seen some specs for hdtvs that have tuners:
| ntsc/atsc tuner with clear QAM
| Is this one tuner with all 3 functions? What does ntsc add? Isn't ntsc
| for analog signals and will be eliminated in the near future?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Correct on NTSC
ATSC for OTA digital signals
QAM for cable
|
| I have seen some hdtvs that have pip. They will have to have at least 2
| atsc tuners.
|
| So the bottom line is if I am going to use a cable tv company I can buy a
| hd monitor and have the cable box provide the hdtv and standard tv
| signal, or buy an hdtv with atsc tuner (in which case the tuner is
| superfluous). The hd dvd players will work equally well with either.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Again TVs today come with those tuners. Besides, what if you ever moved and
wanted OTA reception??
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
|
| Thanks for any clarification.
|
| Jerry


--
Regards,
Richard Harison

"jerry" wrote in message
...
I am trying to google the facts on hdtv tuners and need some help
with
clarifications. If I misstate something please let me know.

digital = hdtv = atsc all describe the same tuner.

All HDTV is digital, but not all digital TV is HD....


If I am going to receive hdtv from a cable company I do not need a
hdtv
with a tuner at all (I can use a hd monitor) If I ever wanted to
receive
OTA hdtv I would have to buy an external clear QAM tuner. In that
case
there is zero benefit from buying an hdtv with a turner.


If you want to receive OTA, QAM is not needed. Most ATSC tuners are
QAM compatible these days, which is good if you subscribe to cable
without their box as so you can pick up HD stations that are no
scrambled (usually the locals), as QAM is the encoding technology used
by the cable companies.

I have seen some specs for hdtvs that have tuners:
ntsc/atsc tuner with clear QAM
Is this one tuner with all 3 functions? What does ntsc add? Isn't
ntsc
for analog signals and will be eliminated in the near future?

As I mentioned, the QAM is for cable, ATSC is digital (both HD and non
HD digital reception), and yes, NTSC is the soon to be outmoded
technology.

I have seen some hdtvs that have pip. They will have to have at
least 2
atsc tuners.


And 2 input signals (unless cable box is capable of PIP).

So the bottom line is if I am going to use a cable tv company I can
buy a
hd monitor and have the cable box provide the hdtv and standard tv
signal, or buy an hdtv with atsc tuner (in which case the tuner is
superfluous). The hd dvd players will work equally well with either.

That's about it. I have an HD moniter in my bedroom (older plasma)
that has no tuner.....works fine with the cable box and blu-ray
through the HDMI ports.


Thanks for any clarification.

Jerry

jerry wrote:
I am trying to google the facts on hdtv tuners and need some help with
clarifications. If I misstate something please let me know.

digital = hdtv = atsc all describe the same tuner.

Yes.

Just to be clear, not all digital TV is high definition. Some stations
transmit a standard-definition digital signal. (but if you have a
high-definition tuner, it will upconvert for your display) And some TVs
have a standard-definition display. (but the tuner will downconvert, so
you can watch high-definition programs)

If I am going to receive hdtv from a cable company I do not need a hdtv
with a tuner at all (I can use a hd monitor) If I ever wanted to receive
OTA hdtv I would have to buy an external clear QAM tuner. In that case
there is zero benefit from buying an hdtv with a turner.

The cable company's cable box is indeed the tuner, so you don't need a
tuner in the TV. (though I think you're going to have a hard time
finding one with no tuner)

"Clear QAM" is for *cable* reception. In most cases if your TV has a
QAM tuner you can get most free digital channels without a cable box,
but your channel numbers will probably be very wrong... and you
probably won't be getting premium channels like HBO.

To watch OTA DTV (high-definition or standard) you need an ATSC tuner.

For several years, any TV that contains a tuner at all is required by
law to contain an ATSC tuner. (in other words you probably don't need
an external ATSC tuner, it's probably already in the TV.)

I have seen some specs for hdtvs that have tuners:
ntsc/atsc tuner with clear QAM
Is this one tuner with all 3 functions? What does ntsc add? Isn't ntsc
for analog signals and will be eliminated in the near future?

Yes, it's one tuner with all three functions and yes, NTSC is for analog
signals.

There is a separate class of TV stations called "LPTV"; these are not
required to convert to digital yet. This class also contains many
"translators", stations that relay OTA signals into isolated areas
(especially in the West) where the main transmitters don't reach. Many
of these have not yet been "digitalized" yet either.

The NTSC tuner also works with analog cable, for those who may not
subscribe to digital cable.

And, the digital deadline in Canada isn't for another two years, and in
Mexico for years after that. So the same models, if sold in our
neighboring countries, will continue to need NTSC tuners for awhile.

The hd dvd players will work equally well with either.

Yes, as they are connected directly to the monitor, not through a tuner
of any kind.

--
Doug Smith W9WI
Pleasant View, TN EM66

jerry wrote:

I am trying to google the facts on hdtv tuners and need some help with
clarifications. If I misstate something please let me know.

digital = hdtv = atsc all describe the same tuner.

Not necessarily.

If I am going to receive hdtv from a cable company I do not need a hdtv
with a tuner at all (I can use a hd monitor)

If you want to get "Clear QAM" HDTV from your cable company, you'll need
a QAM capable ATSC HD tuner. If you are going to rely on a "cable box",
then true - as long as your "monitor" has HDMI or component inputs.

If I ever wanted to receive
OTA hdtv I would have to buy an external clear QAM tuner.

Wrong. QAM (clear or encoded) is only on cable. OTA uses an 8VSB ATSC tuner.

In that case
there is zero benefit from buying an hdtv with a turner.

An HDTV with a tuner allows you to watch OTA HD and SD transmissions, Clear
QAM cable transmissions (in most cases), and any NTSC signals still present.

I have seen some specs for hdtvs that have tuners:
ntsc/atsc tuner with clear QAM
Is this one tuner with all 3 functions?

Yes.

What does ntsc add? Isn't ntsc
for analog signals and will be eliminated in the near future?

*OTA* analog NTSC signals will from mid and high power broadcasters will
end, but cable boxes still put out NTSC and most cable systems still have
analog (channel 2-99) tiers.

I have seen some hdtvs that have pip. They will have to have at least 2
atsc tuners.

No.

So the bottom line is if I am going to use a cable tv company I can buy a
hd monitor and have the cable box provide the hdtv and standard tv
signal, or buy an hdtv with atsc tuner (in which case the tuner is
superfluous).

If you plan on using a cable box 100% of the time, yes. I *don't* use my
cable box 90% of the time.

The hd dvd players will work equally well with either.

HD-DVD players are dead. Blu-ray won that war. They are BD players, not
HD DVD players (though they *will* play SD DVDs.) They won't play HD DVDs.

L Alpert wrote:

If you want to receive OTA, QAM is not needed. Most ATSC tuners are
QAM compatible these days, which is good if you subscribe to cable
without their box as so you can pick up HD stations that are no
scrambled (usually the locals), as QAM is the encoding technology used
by the cable companies.

QAM is *NOT* an encoding technology. QAM is a modulation technology used
on ATSC signals by cable companies to increase bandwidth. OTA uses 8VSB
modulation of ATSC.

sorry-spammers wrote:

"Clear QAM" is for *cable* reception. In most cases if your TV has a
QAM tuner you can get most free digital channels without a cable box,
but your channel numbers will probably be very wrong... and you
probably won't be getting premium channels like HBO.

To watch OTA DTV (high-definition or standard) you need an ATSC tuner.

Sigh...OTA uses 8VSB modulated ATSC; cable uses QAM modulated ATSC. But they
are both ATSC.

On Sun, 15 Mar 2009 20:49:10 +0000, jerry wrote:

I am trying to google the facts on hdtv tuners and need some help with
clarifications. If I misstate something please let me know.

digital = hdtv = atsc all describe the same tuner.

They could, but not always. 99% of the time you see the tuner advertised
as above, it would be an ATSC 8VSB tuner. Some,but not all tuners as
described above will also receive QAM modulation.

If I am going to receive hdtv from a cable company I do not need a hdtv
with a tuner at all (I can use a hd monitor) If I ever wanted to
receive OTA hdtv I would have to buy an external clear QAM tuner. In
that case there is zero benefit from buying an hdtv with a turner.

OTA uses ATSC 8VSB, not QAM.

I have seen some specs for hdtvs that have tuners: ntsc/atsc tuner with
clear QAM
Is this one tuner with all 3 functions? What does ntsc add? Isn't ntsc
for analog signals and will be eliminated in the near future?

For all practical purposes, yes.

I have seen some hdtvs that have pip. They will have to have at least 2
atsc tuners.

No, they may only have one tuner and require an external source for PIP.

So the bottom line is if I am going to use a cable tv company I can buy
a hd monitor and have the cable box provide the hdtv and standard tv
signal, or buy an hdtv with atsc tuner (in which case the tuner is
superfluous). The hd dvd players will work equally well with either.

Correct, but it's usually minimal extra (if at all) to buy a TV instead of
a monitor when you get into larger sizes.

--
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My Tivo Experience http://wesnewell.no-ip.com/tivo.htm
Tivo HD/S3 compared http://wesnewell.no-ip.com/mythtivo.htm
AMD cpu help http://wesnewell.no-ip.com/cpu.php

jerry wrote:
I am trying to google the facts on hdtv tuners and need some help with
clarifications. If I misstate something please let me know.

digital = hdtv = atsc all describe the same tuner.

If I am going to receive hdtv from a cable company I do not need a hdtv
with a tuner at all (I can use a hd monitor) If I ever wanted to receive
OTA hdtv I would have to buy an external clear QAM tuner. In that case
there is zero benefit from buying an hdtv with a turner.

I have seen some specs for hdtvs that have tuners:
ntsc/atsc tuner with clear QAM
Is this one tuner with all 3 functions? What does ntsc add? Isn't ntsc
for analog signals and will be eliminated in the near future?

I have seen some hdtvs that have pip. They will have to have at least 2
atsc tuners.

So the bottom line is if I am going to use a cable tv company I can buy a
hd monitor and have the cable box provide the hdtv and standard tv
signal, or buy an hdtv with atsc tuner (in which case the tuner is
superfluous). The hd dvd players will work equally well with either.

Thanks for any clarification.

Jerry

My feeling is that all HDTV tuners are NOT equal, be they ASTC or QAM.
The digital processing software guts between TVs vary. Same for Cable
tuner boxes. The best with the best gives a better HDTV picture.

On Mon, 16 Mar 2009 10:14:21 -0500, Dennis Mayer wrote:

jerry wrote:
I am trying to google the facts on hdtv tuners and need some help with
clarifications. If I misstate something please let me know.

digital = hdtv = atsc all describe the same tuner.

If I am going to receive hdtv from a cable company I do not need a hdtv
with a tuner at all (I can use a hd monitor) If I ever wanted to
receive OTA hdtv I would have to buy an external clear QAM tuner. In
that case there is zero benefit from buying an hdtv with a turner.

I have seen some specs for hdtvs that have tuners: ntsc/atsc tuner with
clear QAM
Is this one tuner with all 3 functions? What does ntsc add? Isn't ntsc
for analog signals and will be eliminated in the near future?

I have seen some hdtvs that have pip. They will have to have at least 2
atsc tuners.

So the bottom line is if I am going to use a cable tv company I can buy
a hd monitor and have the cable box provide the hdtv and standard tv
signal, or buy an hdtv with atsc tuner (in which case the tuner is
superfluous). The hd dvd players will work equally well with either.

Thanks for any clarification.

Jerry

My feeling is that all HDTV tuners are NOT equal, be they ASTC or QAM.
The digital processing software guts between TVs vary. Same for Cable
tuner boxes. The best with the best gives a better HDTV picture.

Thanks everyone for clarifying for me the difference between QAM and
ATSC tuners.
I have been searching the web and as several of you have said finding a
hdtv monitor is not easy.
Thanks
Jerry