Chicago install - did they muck it up?

[mib66]

So I had my new HD10-250 installed this am (replacing one of my R10 units) The installer shows up with a new dish and the hd dvr as expected.
I ask him if I'll have any trouble receiving my locals in HD and he answers "no, it should be no problem".


problem 1 - Fast forward 30 minutes later, and the install job is done. I ask about the HD locals again, this time asking if he put an antenna on the dish. He says, NO - they never told me you needed that.
Now, this is completely contrary to my conversation with D* last week, when they assured me my installer would have all of the equipment i need. I even asked specifically about an additional OTA antenna. Now I need to schedule a followup appointment and miss more time from work just to ahve them do the job they were supposed to do in the first place (i know its a free HD HDVR, but I am still a paying monthly subscriber...)

problem 2 - one of my locals (local pbs channel 11) looks siginificantly worse than before. very snowy. The problem doesn;t appear on the R10 running upstairs. Is this something I can expect until the antenna is installed? Is there something I can do to improve the pic quality? I didn't expect WORSE quality with the new receiver.
So, anyone on this really helpful board have advice?

[ebonovic]

If Channel-11 looks THAT much different between the two units.... since both are comming from the SAT feed... something maybe wrong with the HR10-250.

Try taking the R10 from upstairs and hooking it to the TV in the same fashion (or as close as you can)... so you are comparing the PQ on the same TV...

It shouldn't have been any worse (unless you are talking like a 60" in one room, and a 32" in the other)

Where are you in Chicago? Make sure you get the right type of antenna based on your distance.

[mib66]

The tv upstairs is a 25" and the one downstairs is a Samsung 42"DLP. Reception on the old tv is fine - but channel 11 looks awful on the Samsung. Since it didn;t before the install, I can assume its related to the receiver.

I'll try hooking up the active r10 to see if that makes a difference.

I'm in the city, around 5000 north and 3500 west. In fact, i am across the street from WTTW. I've read that the tuner on these HD-DVRs can be very sensitive. Am I experiencing too strong a signal and if so, would an attenuator help?

thanks for your help

[wmschultz]

There isn't "snow" on a digital picture. Are you looking at analog 11 via an antenna?

[mib66]

no - i don't have the antenna yet. Snow may not have been the best term. NOISE might be better. The picture looks more than fuzzy, more like there is something causing interference. I'm going straight from the receiver to the tv by HDMI, so you're right, i shouldn;t be seeing snow...

[wmschultz]

So are you watching DirecTV provided channel 11, which would be a standard def channel,
on your HD TV? If so, the noise you see would be the artifacts of overly compressed standard
definition channels that occurs from DirecTV. These are much more visible on bigger HD TV's.

Perhaps that could explain it?? My channel 11, which is the WB, has a noticeable ghosting on
it some times from DirecTV.

[mib66]

thanks. Yes, i am watching a standard def channel on my hdtv (samsung 42"dlp). I expect a good amount of artifacting, and saw some of this on my r10 connected to the big tv. This isn;t that - its a bad "noisy" picture on one local channel. Not on any others. I didn't have this problem with the r10 connected to the big tv, so my expectation is that shouldn't have it with the hr10-250. but i do.

[mib66]

a follow-up. To get HD locals, can I simply purchase a traditional TV antenna and use it indoors? Something comparable (but a step up) to the rabbit ears, and then keep it inside the house, sort of tucked behind the tv? Does it need to be outside?
your help is appreciated!

[wmschultz]

Sure. It's being done by other people. Just get a good UHF indoor antenna.

[ebonovic]

CBS (WBBM-DT) is on VHF-3

So be sure to get an antenna that can get both.