Comcast Changing from Analog to Digital

[BigDog9721]

I know there is probably some thread out there that answers this, but I can't seem to find it, so here goes. Comcast just recently changed all of the signals from analog to digital in my area. I have my tv's and master bedroom tivo box cruising along fine until now. I can't receive HBO or Cinamax on these tv's anymore (only non premuim channels) but my bonus room with a Comcast Set top box gets all premium channels that I subscribe to. I don't want to rent @ $6.95 / tv / month for my 5 tv's throughout the house. I am looking at dgital to converter boxes as an interim for a year or so when I gradually replace my analog tv's with digital tv's. Now the question... does TiVo have anything to help me to continue to use the TiVo box with an analog to digital converter. (sorry for the lengthy requset)? any thoughts or comments would be GREATLY appreciated!

[ewilts]

I know there is probably some thread out there that answers this, but I can't seem to find it, so here goes. Comcast just recently changed all of the signals from analog to digital in my area. I have my tv's and master bedroom tivo box cruising along fine until now. I can't receive HBO or Cinamax on these tv's anymore (only non premuim channels) but my bonus room with a Comcast Set top box gets all premium channels that I subscribe to. I don't want to rent @ $6.95 / tv / month for my 5 tv's throughout the house. I am looking at dgital to converter boxes as an interim for a year or so when I gradually replace my analog tv's with digital tv's. Now the question... does TiVo have anything to help me to continue to use the TiVo box with an analog to digital converter. (sorry for the lengthy requset)? any thoughts or comments would be GREATLY appreciated!
Short answer: you're screwed.

Long answer: It's not just a digital to analog conversion problem - it's the fact that the premium content is encrypted. TiVo does have the Series 3 and TiVO HD products but they both require CableCARDs for accessing premium content, so you'll still have to pay the "additional digital outlet" (ADO) fee. Even next year, when you replace your analog TVs with digital TVs, you'll still get nailed by the ADO fees since the TV by itself won't be able to do the decryption.

Supplementary info: If the cable company moved the premium content to SDV (Switch Digital), then TiVo won't be able to access it at all, even with CableCARDs.

[Stephen Tu]

I think you mean "digital to analog" converter. By itself, a Tivo (non series 3) can pick up only what your old analog TVs can still pick up when you plug a cable straight from the wall into the TV. If that's now really nothing, then you have to rent a box from the cable company to get the channels, there's no way around it. You feed the Tivo with the box & use the IR blaster so Tivo can flip the channels on the box.

The only other way is get Tivo HD/S3 & cablecards which can tune the digital channels directly, unfortunately you still get charged the $6.95/dig. outlet after the first one.

But it sounds like you are still getting non-premiums on analog (so they didn't really change all the signals yet), your Tivos should still be able to get those without a box. Most areas have basic & expanded basic still available on analog. They have added digital simulcast in most areas, but only a few (e.g. parts of Chicago) have taken away the analog. I hadn't heard of this in Tennessee yet. Did you mean that you lost all your signals on the TVs without the box, get zero channels, or only HBO/Cinemax? If the latter you have been lucky, most areas moved premiums to digital-only years ago.

[pdhenry]

Supplementary info: If the cable company moved the premium content to SDV (Switch Digital), then TiVo won't be able to access it at all, even with CableCARDs.I think there's a fix in the works for this (e.g., "Dongle").

[BigDog9721]

Stephen I still get everything EXCEPT HBO / Cinamax.

[BigDog9721]

pdhenry, what about this Dongle... ?

[Stephen Tu]

So your only issue then is that HBO/Cinemax switched to digital? So your statement "Comcast just recently changed all of the signals from analog to digital in my area" is false until you change "all of the signals" to "just HBO/Cinemax"? That's a much less drastic change.

What's the problem then? Set up one Tivo to record from the cable box you do have, set up a wireless or wired network & transfer shows to the other one as needed. What exactly are you wanting to accomplish regarding the Tivos that you can't do now? You obviously won't be able to watch HBO/Cinemax on TVs without a STB of some sort, nor will you be able to record more than one premium channel at a time w/o additional cable boxes. This usually isn't a huge issue since they rerun often and some of the shows are available via the "OnDemand".

[pdhenry]

pdhenry, what about this Dongle... ?
http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=357703&highlight=sdv+dongle

I don't have SDV or an S3/HD so I don't really have a dog in this fight - yet.

[Stephen Tu]

The SDV dongle only affects people with TivoHD/S3 trying to access certain digital channels in some markets, so has no real relevance to BigDog9721's current problem(s), although it's not entirely clear yet what exactly those problem(s) are. He'll have to clarify.

[gastrof]

The SDV dongle only affects people with TivoHD/S3 trying to access certain digital channels in some markets, so has no real relevance to BigDog9721's current problem(s), although it's not entirely clear yet what exactly those problem(s) are. He'll have to clarify.

You misunderstand, since pdhenry was responding to a post by "ewilts"

"Supplementary info: If the cable company moved the premium content to SDV (Switch Digital), then TiVo won't be able to access it at all, even with CableCARDs."

Since he was replying to the above, pdhenry was entirely correct in saying that the "dongle" was on its way, and would solve the problem being discussed.

[gastrof]

Just thought I'd throw in a thought here-

Didn't most cable systems require a box to get channels like HBO even BEFORE digital reared its ugly head?

The OP makes it sound like he had no cable box before, and yet was getting HBO on all his devices.

Without a cable box?

I don't think so...

[BigDog9721]

Stephen, all I'm trying to do is keep what I had before... my TiVo boxes being bale to record HBO/Cinamax w/o a set top box. Yes I still get all of the other channels, just not the premium channels. (yes I made a false statement... sorry) I'm also trying to protect my investment in my current Tivo boxes as well. I'm thinking that a analog to digital converter before the tivo box will fix my problem.... what are your thoughts?

[pdhenry]

If the premium channels are scrambled (the vast majority of cable companies encrypt or scramble premium content) you will need a cable company set-top box as far as I know. This was true here even when HBO was on analog Channel 25.

If you have multiple TiVos an alternate approach would be to have a cable company box on one set and then use MRV to move the recorded premium content to the other TiVos.

[janry]

I'm thinking that a analog to digital converter before the tivo box will fix my problem.... what are your thoughts?

That won't work.

Which TiVo boxes do you have?

[Stormspace]

a digital to analog converter will only work for ATSC over the air broadcasts. What you need will be a QAM tuner for digital cable broadcasts and... I haven't found any standalone QAM tuners and if any were available they aren't support by series 2 TiVo's for remote control.

Why the FCC let different standards exist for over the air and cable I don't know.

[Stephen Tu]

all I'm trying to do is keep what I had before... my TiVo boxes being able to record HBO/Cinemax w/o a set top box

It can't be done. You need the STB to decrypt the channels, besides doing the digital-to-analog conversion (you keep saying analog-to-digital which is backwards). The cable company uses encryption on these channels so that random people can't tune in channels they don't subscribe to, simply using a QAM digital tuner. You absolutely need their STB, or a Cablecard + device that can use one like a TivoHD in order to get them.

In most of this country people haven't been able to do this for ages. You've been lucky to get them analog unscrambled for so long. Hook up the STB to your Tivo, be done with it.