Tuning in the HDTV picture

After getting everything connected, you should use the "Auto Scan" function of the TV set or digital tuner to let your set know that our digital signal is out there.

If your digital TV set or converter box does not find us during the auto scan, then the antenna aiming is probably slightly off. Move the antenna slightly and then type in 21 dot 1 (21.1) on the remote control to force the set or digital tuner to our digital station. The "dot 1" tells the set or tuner to look for a digital signal on channel 21 instead of an analog signal.

Note: your remote control may use a dash (-) instead of a dot (.) but the idea is the same.  After selecting channel "21.1", find the signal strength meter on your TV or converter box.  Now turn the antenna slowly until you get the highest reading on the signal strength meter.  It may take your set up to 3 seconds to show a picture after it has found our signal.  Make small adjustments to the antenna position and then pause for a few seconds. After you get 21.1 working, it would be a good idea to perform an "Auto Scan" again.

They build HDTV sets and that do not have a dash or a dot on the remote control.  Instead, they use an "on screen channel guide" to select which channel you want.  If you have one of these sets you will have to move the antenna a little and then do an "Auto Scan" since 6.1 is not yet shown on the channel guide.

Once your HDTV set or converter box has found our signal it will then tell you that it has found channel "6.1".  The Federal Communications Commission has mandated that we call our digital broadcasts on channel 21 as "6.1" (our main HDTV station) and "6.2" (the CW network). This is accomplished by having my digital encoder tell your TV set that it is watching station "6.1" or "6.2" when it is actually tuned to digital TV channel 21. This re-naming of the digital stations is supposed to make your life easier.

However, entering "6.1" works only after your TV set or converter box has found us on TV channel 21. Once it has found my digital signal on channel 21, you can enter 6.1 or 6.2 on your remote control to select our digital channels.

If your set or tuner allows direct channel number entry, you can find the local digital stations without performing an "Auto Scan".  You can type in the actual television channel number that the station occupies, with a "dot 1" or "dash 1" on the end.

The "magic numbers" (TV channels) for the local digital stations are:

21 - KFDM (enter 21.1)
33 - KITU (33.1)
40 - KBTV (40.1)
50 - KBMT (50.1)

Once found, these stations should be called "4.1", "6.1", "12.1", and "34.1".

It is possible that your TV set or converter box will not add channel 6.1 and 6.2 to its channel listing when you use direct number entry.  If this happens with your TV set or converter box, a rescan should fix it.  

Re-Scan required!
Every-so-often, you should perform a rescan on your TV set or converter box.  If your TV set or converter box starts to "act funny", perform a rescan.  This will fix most problems.

Last update: September, 2009

Part Five

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