[paragon]

I understand that there is no way to know when DirecTV will actually launch a particular HD market, but I was just wondering if anybody knew if DirecTV has any carriage agreements with HD locals for Johnstown/Altoona?

I am moving to State College in August from Northern Virginia and would love to keep DirecTV (no commitment here, as the account is in my roommate's name) but I don't think I can deal without HD locals and my understanding is that OTA isn't the greatest in State College.

Thanks for any responses.

 

[dda0002]

I understand that there is no way to know when DirecTV will actually launch a particular HD market, but I was just wondering if anybody knew if DirecTV has any carriage agreements with HD locals for Johnstown/Altoona?

I am moving to State College in August from Northern Virginia and would love to keep DirecTV (no commitment here, as the account is in my roommate's name) but I don't think I can deal without HD locals and my understanding is that OTA isn't the greatest in State College.

Thanks for any responses.

I can't comment on Directv, but I grew up in Altoona (lakemont area) and it was a struggle to get the Johnstown stations there (Fox and NBC), so I would think it would very difficult to get them in State College.

PBS is out of State College, so you will be able to get that OTA with no problem

 

[ExitWound]

I live in State College now and I can tell you that there is no HD coverage on DirecTV but all of the locals are HD on Comcast in town. OTA reception is very low due to the geography and distances to the stations themselves. I thought WPSU actually broadcasts out of Clearfield, but I could be wrong.

The locals have horrible quality in SD, though. FOX has a green push. ABC has ghosting. NBC is not crisp at all. CBS is probably the best of them. But overall, they're very low quality. I'm disappointed to be honest. I spend most of my watching on non-network stations for this reason.

 

[paragon]

I live in State College now and I can tell you that there is no HD coverage on DirecTV but all of the locals are HD on Comcast in town. OTA reception is very low due to the geography and distances to the stations themselves. I thought WPSU actually broadcasts out of Clearfield, but I could be wrong.

The locals have horrible quality in SD, though. FOX has a green push. ABC has ghosting. NBC is not crisp at all. CBS is probably the best of them. But overall, they're very low quality. I'm disappointed to be honest. I spend most of my watching on non-network stations for this reason.

Sorry, I wasn't very clear in my question. I know DirecTV carried locals in SD and does not carry locals in HD. I realize that getting HD OTA is problematic in State College. My question is whether or not DirecTV has HD retransmission agreements in place with the stations (which would HOPEFULLY mean they could light up the market when D11 goes live). I'd hate to have to go with Comcast, but since a good bit of my viewing is local stations, my hand may be forced.

Have you ever attempted to get HD DNS waivers? Did you have any success?

 

[ExitWound]

I haven't tried that, no. It'd be much more work than it's actually worth, since I don't watch the locals anyway. The only times would be the big events like the Stanley Cup or Wimbledon.

And, again, I am sorry. I do not know whether or not they have agreements in place. I HOPE THEY DO THOUGH.

 

[n3ntj]

I know someone with a cabin up near State College and he gets our Harrisburg/Lancaster, PA locals in HD via D*. Not sure exactly where the line cutoff is but that area is b/w the Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, and Buffalo DMAs.

 

[ExitWound]

My brother lives outside town by a good 20 minute drive and he gets the Harrisburg locals for some reason, all in glorious HD.

 

[tinyiota]

I live in State College now and I can tell you that there is no HD coverage on DirecTV but all of the locals are HD on Comcast in town. OTA reception is very low due to the geography and distances to the stations themselves. I thought WPSU actually broadcasts out of Clearfield, but I could be wrong.

The locals have horrible quality in SD, though. FOX has a green push. ABC has ghosting. NBC is not crisp at all. CBS is probably the best of them. But overall, they're very low quality. I'm disappointed to be honest. I spend most of my watching on non-network stations for this reason.

Is CBS in HD on Comcast? I was under the impression they still hadn't negotiated a retransmission agreement for WTAJ in HD. It's a big issue around here, so I assume someone would have said something if Comcast finally closed the deal with the owners of WTAJ.

WPSU broadcasts from Clearfield and uses an on-channel booster in SC. They have a city grade signal across the valley and are easy to pick up.

NBC has a low power DTV translator in town and are also easy to pick up.
CBS and ABC have full power DTV transmitters in Altoona. Most of the SC area can get them with an outdoor antenna and amp. The FOX affiliate has an SD stream as a subchannel on the ABC transmitter and has filed a CP for a DTV translator in State College, presumably for a HD FOX stream.

So, with the right OTA gear and avoiding bad locations, you can get all but FOX in HD OTA today, with FOX and WNEP (ABC) to follow when they do their cutovers.

But, you knew all that, 'cause we had this same conversation on the Johnstown-Altoona HD thread over at AVSforums..

 

[paragon]

So, with the right OTA gear and avoiding bad locations, you can get all but FOX in HD OTA today, with FOX and WNEP (ABC) to follow when they do their cutovers.

Can you recommend a good amp? The house I am moving into fortunately has two very large outdoor OTA antennas coming with it, but I don't know whether or not there's an amp. I would love to get DirecTV instead of Comcast, and if I can get everything but FOX HD OTA, that would be fantastic. Is there really no hope at all for getting FOX until February?

Thanks.

 

[newlions]

Last year, WTAJ the local CBS affiliate told me in email that they have "an agreement in place with DirecTV to air their HD channel." In the same email they rejected my requested for distant market waivers. I had luck with the other networks getting HD waivers a couple years ago, but it seems to vary for people. I was, however, able to get WTAJ using a cheap HD indoor antenna placed in a second floor window. I am in the minority though- most people can't get an HD OTA signal here. Good luck and welcome to Happy Valley!

 

[paragon]

Last year, WTAJ the local CBS affiliate told me in email that they have "an agreement in place with DirecTV to air their HD channel." In the same email they rejected my requested for distant market waivers. I had luck with the other networks getting HD waivers a couple years ago, but it seems to vary for people. I was, however, able to get WTAJ using a cheap HD indoor antenna placed in a second floor window. I am in the minority though- most people can't get an HD OTA signal here. Good luck and welcome to Happy Valley!

The ones that concern me most for OTA are WWCP and WTAJ. Hopefully I'll have similar success to you with regards to WTAJ. Do you know who you talked to at WWCP in order to get their waiver? Thanks for your help.

 

[paragon]

NBC has a low power DTV translator in town and are also easy to pick up.

Are you saying that NBCs digital translator at 42 for State College is up and running? AVSForum's summary post seems to indicate that it hasn't come online yet. Hopefully the post is just outdated.