Digital cable questions.

[SuperSix]

I'm thinking of switching over to digital cable, I may be able to arrange the package so it's cheaper than my standard cable, and save a little money each month. WHat I'm wondering is, do I need a digital converter box for each TV? I've heard that regulare boxes will still work with digital cable service. I get one with the service (livingroom) and I will rent 1 additional digital box for my computer room as well. Will the other boxes still work on the other 2 TV (Son/daughter) sets I have?

What are the negatives of digital cable service?

 

[aimn]

The boxes will work, but not fully. You wont get any channels above........I cant remember. Check how high your cable box goes now, thats all the channels you will get. You will not get anything above 200 for sure.

 

[Digobick]

Originally posted by: SuperSix
What are the negatives of digital cable service?

There really aren't any negatives of digital cable, especially compared to regular cable. Compared to satellite though, it's a matter of preference. Here are some negatives that I've found so far with my service:

• One thing that annoys me is that with my provider (Cox Communications), not all the channels are digital; only the channels above 100 are digital, which sucks because 80% of what I watch is not above channel 100. With my old DirecTV dish every channel was digital, which is nice if you have a larger TV (27" or more).
• I also noticed that the remote control response time is extremely slow using my digital cable box. Changing channels takes 2-3 seconds for the channel to "load," which makes channel surfing next to impossible. I'm used to instantaneous response, even with my old satellite.
• Every time the power goes out I lose all my programming guide information, and it usually takes 4-8 hours for everything to load back into the box. My satellite never had that problem; the programming guide was always there, and always up to date.
• Supposedly my cable is not supposed to be affected by storms, while satellite can be. However, I've found the opposite to be true: my satellite would stay on through everything but El Nino like conditions...my digital cable on the other hand (only the channels above 100 mind you) seems to go out about once a week, no matter the conditions.
• Yet another complaint: where's the high-quality video/audio outputs? Most DirecTV receivers come standard with S-Video out anymore, and some even have an optical-out. Where's that on my cable box?

Anyways, sorry about the rant. I moved to a new area where I can't local channels with my satellite, so I figured I would give digital cable a try. Needless to say I'm going back to satellite very soon.

 

[fatbaby]

you will need a digital cable box for each tv (unless you dont already have one)

regular boxes will only go up to channel 99 (thats my boxes max)

While my cable company updated the cable to digital before they replaced my old box, my old box continued to work (but you probably wont get digi cable on them)

You have 4 tv's in your house??

I don't really see any negatives. Surfing from channel 1 - 999 is quite easy because the longer you hold the "+" button, the faster it will accelerate

 

[deftron]

I have digital cable ( Adelphia)

Pretty good.

The cable box has s-video and digital coax out.

Channels above 100 are digital.
You will need a digital cable box to receive the igital channels.

HBO broadcasts in Dobly Digital 5.1 sometimes.

I use the Guide menu to browse whats on instead of flipping through channels.

Sometimes channles will stutter, and pixelate but not often, and it seems like
only a couple certain channels do that.

 

[Digobick]

Originally posted by: deftron
The cable box has s-video and digital coax out.

Must be nice...my box only has one composite audio/video output.

And yes, I know channels above 100 are digital; it's the ones under 100 that aren't digital (at least with my provider).

I use the guide as well to surf channels, but during a commercial when I'm flipping back and forth between two shows it sometimes takes forever to load.

 

[fatbaby]

my box also has a usb port...what for?