Does Comcast send local HD channels via basic cable?

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rayman2k2

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If i were to hook a HD TV tuner card to just basic cable, would I be able to get the local channels in HD? I know these are supposed to be sent unencrypted, and I believe I read somewhere that this is true but I just wanted to confirm...
 
Actually they are all supposed to be encrypted...and they are.

You maybe thinking OTA HD (over the air) which are sent unencrypted (if they are sent at all). You will need an antenna and an hd tuner card. I always get a kick out of better quality signal through an antenna....what was old is new once again.

The thing about OTA signals is they can be hit or miss...

To get true HDTV on your comp...you'll have to wait for vista and cable card compatible tuner cards (and they are coming)
 
Thats not true some providers transmit HDTV unecrypted over the cable- you just need to have a QAM capable HDTV tuner to decode the signal and software. Cannot use MCE2005.
 
Where I am (Fort Worth, TX)....yes, comcast does send open HDTV signals over basic cable, but the channels change around practicaly weekly and it's not well set. I wouldn't rely on it at all. Your best bet is still OTA.
 
WOw...sending unencrypted HD. That must REALLY piss off hollywood. Isn't QAM the encyption used to encrypt the signal. I didn't think there was anything outthere that was legally able to decode it?
 
hardwarephreak said:
WOw...sending unencrypted HD. That must REALLY piss off hollywood. Isn't QAM the encyption used to encrypt the signal. I didn't think there was anything outthere that was legally able to decode it?
Click to expand...
QAM is equivalent to ATSC which is used for over-the-air broadcasts. It's only the local channels which cable companies send unecrypted. All the premium stuff (HBO, ESPN etc) is locked down.

The encryption stuff varies from region-to-region even within comcast. www.AVSForum.com has a thread for every major metro area which would be a better place to look for answers.

 
In metro Boston MA, Comcast sends a lot of open HDTV/digital signals over basic cable. A lot them are digitized SD channels, but the national networks are usually in HD during prime time. Also there are 4 PBS channels available too ( 1 HD and 3 SD channels). For over 2 years, I can also receive 40+ digital music channels. These channels just disappear recently. Sometimes, I even get someone's movie-on-demand signals.

I use a Sanyo HDTV with a build-in ATSC/QAM tuner to receive these channel. Also on my PC, I use Fusion5 to receive these channels.
 
As part of the FCC's digital tv movement, the major cable companies were supposed to send unencrypted digital Must-Carry channels on their networks. Simply put, the must-carry channels are the channels the customers are able to get via OTA antenna (In reality, it is a lot more complex than this). The deadline was supposed to be in mid 2005. Some cable companies (like Comcast) have gone ahead and met the requirement. The deadline was moved back to y2009. Now you have cable companies are in vary stage of meeting this requirement.

hardwarephreak said:
WOw...sending unencrypted HD. That must REALLY piss off hollywood. Isn't QAM the encyption used to encrypt the signal. I didn't think there was anything outthere that was legally able to decode it?
Click to expand...
 
rayman2k2 said:
If i were to hook a HD TV tuner card to just basic cable, would I be able to get the local channels in HD? I know these are supposed to be sent unencrypted, and I believe I read somewhere that this is true but I just wanted to confirm...
Click to expand...
Short answer... Yes.
Medium answer... Yes, with a QAM tuner.
Long answer.. Too lazy to type it, but check avsforum.com for more info.
 
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