High gain signal on NBC 5 in Dallas?

[richtate]

For a little over a week I've noticed that the gain on the NBC 5 feed for Dallas has been very hot. It's very bright in fact. Has anyone else noticed this? I check the OTA HD signal on that same HD TiVo and it's fine. I've contacted DTV and NBC via email but I was curious to see if other people have noticed the problem. I haven't seen it on any other channels. It looks like an un-terminated signal.

[JimSpence]

Maybe this thread will help.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=9020200#post9020200

[richtate]

Well, I'm actually only having issues with the local channel being fed from DirecTV. My OTA signal looks fine. The one coming in from DirecTV is the one that is hot. I don't see the problem on any other channel. DirecTV didn't understand at all. Their response is listed below. I never did hear back from NBC 5. I got an automated response and that was it. I responded back to DirecTV but never heard anything. Well, I'll do a restart and see but I'm not so sure about that advice. It seems like an individual channel issue but if no one else is seeing it I have to think it's local to me.

Subject
NBC 5 in Dallas - blownout picture

Discussion Thread
Response (Mary)12/01/2006 11:18 PM
Dear Mr. Tate,

Thanks for letting us know your concern about not getting a clear picture on your local NBC channel 5, and I'm sorry for the inconvenience this may have caused you. Though it's difficult to troubleshoot most technical issues by email, we've found resetting your system often corrects what's wrong.

On some DIRECTV receivers there is a reset button inside of the access card door. If your receiver has a reset button, you can simply press it to reset your receiver. If there is not a button inside the access card door or pressing the button does not correct the problem, try these steps to reset your receiver:

1. Leave the receiver box on.
2. Unplug the receiver from the electrical outlet. (If your receiver's light is still on, you have pulled the wrong plug.)
3. Leave receiver unplugged for 15 seconds.
4. Reconnect it to the electrical outlet and return to normal viewing.

If resetting the receiver doesn't fix the problem, you may find some additional help at DIRECTV.com/troubleshooting. Otherwise, please call our technical support center at 1-800-531-5000 and select the option for technical assistance. Our Technical Support agents are trained to walk you through a number of troubleshooting steps which are too difficult to try to talk through over email. Also, you may find some helpful information at the DIRECTV Technical Help forums. Just visit http://forums.directv.com/pe/index.jsp to find answers to your questions.

We apologize for this inconvenience and appreciate your patience while we work to fix the problem as quickly as possible.

Sincerely,

Mary
100102577
DIRECTV Customer Service

[dtu]

Richtate, I am seeing the exact same thing you describe above. Oddly, a few months ago, NBC 5 Dallas’ DTV signal was significantly darker looking than my OTA NTSC analog signal. Now, the DTV signal is much brighter, almost overblown looking.

[richtate]

Thank you! Exactly. It's blown out. Do you also see a temporary distortion across the center of the screen like you're watching an old VHS tape? I'm going to try to contact DirecTV again. Have you sent in a message at all? Maybe if more than one person complains...

I'm doing a restart now. It is going to fix it. That is not the problem. I'm sure of that. I'm seeing it on two different TiVo's...

The restart just completed. Still blown out and way too much contrast.

[JimSpence]

Complain to the station that their signal to DirecTV is messed up.

[richtate]

Okay, check out this jpeg. I just took a digital photo of my screen. The top pic is the local channel provided by DirecTV. The bottom pic is the OTA signal that I'm picking up with my antenna and sending to my TiVo. Both of these signals are coming from my HR10-250. As you can see, the feed from DirecTV is too hot. It's blown out. The image on the bottom looks "normal". I'm going to try again with DirecTV and see if I get anywhere. If anyone else is seeing this or not seeing this please chime in.

[richtate]

Sorry, here is the attachment.

[richtate]

Jim,

I've done that already and I haven't gotten anywhere with NBC 5. I didn't assume that it was a DTV problem since the feed could be screwed up outbound to Colorado Springs or could be fouled up when it is received by DirecTV. I'm trying both routes and I'm just trying to verify that it's not just me having the problem.

[richtate]

Well, here is the answer, just no solution yet. At least I know that I'm not crazy and that someone is working on it. Below is the message I got from NBC 5.

Rich:

I've been on vacation - sorry I couldn't get back with you sooner.

We are very aware of the Direct TV issue. I'm afraid it is out of our hands. Here's how it works...

We feed Direct TV our plant line to THEIR leased AT&T fiber. Levels are good leaving our station, but bad at your house (and everybody else's.) There is a problem somewhere in the local fiber. We have worked repeatedly with AT&T to find the problem point, but no solution yet. It is especially tough for us because it is not our fiber, but we need it to work for our viewers.

We'll keep trying.

Jim Borden
KXAS Engineering

[JimSpence]

Well, maybe all DirecTV users can complain to AT&T. :)

[richtate]

LOL! I told the engineer that I felt bad for him. Man, if it gets fixed I'll just consider it a miracle...

[dtu]

Richtate, sorry for the later reply to your #5 post above.

Yes, last evening the six o’clock news looked like a fifth generation copy of a VHS tape. Flesh tones looked pasty and leaned toward a muddy yellow gold color. Color shading was sometimes so overblown it looked like false contouring or color banding. Faces looked so smeared that wide angle or distant shots made some faces look like blobs of goo.

My TV is ISF calibrated with a low contrast setting for dim light viewing. Even with my contrast turned all the way down, the picture often looked overblown. No other DTV channel exhibits this problem on my hardware.

I have not contacted anyone yet about this, but I will (even though you already have), now that I know it’s not my hardware’s fault. Both of my D*TiVos (RCA DVR40 - 120 GB HDD upgrade, and DTV R10 - 160 GB HDD upgrade) exhibit the same thing, while my OTA antenna signal looks normal.

[richtate]

It is fixed! Well, for now at least. I noticed that last week the picture was back to normal. I talked to the engineer at NBC 5 and he confirmed that AT&T had gotten the line in order. So, it should hopefully stay corrected. Thanks everybody.