Hey Cableguy, This might be right up your alley (I hope). Just bought a Sharp Aquos LC-45GD7U and took delivery. I'm a TWC customer (SoCal) and had always just had basic cable. Called and asked for Digital Cable and a Cable Card. First installer could not get it to work, installed a STB and left (closing the ticket). I called back and asked that a lead or a Sup be sent out. A couple of days later 2 guys showed up. The best they could do was an error message (E-202) on the set. They then told me I had to call Sharp and find out what that means. I have called them and they asked if I still had the card (which the last folks took with them when they left). I said no and they asked that I reschedule (again) and have the TWC installer call the Sharp folks upon arrival. Is there any insight you can give me to help me watch the HD service I bought the set ot enjoy? ANY thoughts would be appreciated. . . .
George~ E-202 error message where I work usually requires swapping the cc out and trying a new one. With the Sharp TV's it is required to have both the analog cable RF input connected and the digital RF input connected in order for the cc to function. Make sure both of them are connected, and have them do a channel scan before they insert the cc. The signal levels for the FDC need to be as close to 0 dBmV at the back of the TV as they can get it. Hopefully this will at least get them in the ballpark, once they've connected everything and had the cc married, go to the SA CP info screen and report back everything that is on that screen, we'll see what is going on from there. You can also have them check the cc diagnostic screen to make sure the current date/time is correct, if it's not the card won't work...keep us posted
Cableguy, I really have to hand it to you. The specs and guidance you provided were all the latest installer needed to get the job done. Card is in and I'm watching HDTV. Thanks for your tireless effort. Care to share any tuning secrets for how to best maximize the signal I'm now getting. Must concede. I'm still a bit of a newbie at this so all the controls are still a bit foreign to me.
Currently I have only basic cable with no box. I would like to get digital cable using a cablecard. My tv is a Sharp 32D7U with built-in HD tuner and cablecard slot. You state that on Sharp LCD tvs, both the RF analog and RF digital inputs must be connected in order for the cablecard to work. How do I do this with my dvd recorder? At present, the cable from my wall is plugged into the RF analog input on my dvd recorder. The RF analog output on my dvd recorder is connected to the RF analog input on my Sharp LCD. If I get digital channels and use a cablecard, how do I connect the RF DIGITAL tuner? Does the cable company have to install an additional line coming Out from my wall to the RF digital input on my tv? I want to be able to record all channels both digital and analog, and I want to be able to record one channel while viewing another. Is this possible?
Bridget~ the only way you will be able to record anything would be to have a cable box connected to your equipment. The current versions of cable card tv's don't have audio/video outputs, so there is no way to record from them. Sorry, I don't make them I just work with them.
I'm worried about the coming digital switchover. When the all-digital switchover takes place, will I need a cablebox to view and record my current Expanded Basic lineup with Charter Communications? I don't need a million channels, or HDTV, and I would prefer not to have to be forced to use a cable box just because of this new switchover, which is why I wanted a cablecrd slot to begin with.
I just want to be able to receive decent picture quality, retain my current Expanded Basic cable channel lineup, and be able to view one channel while recording another. Will this be possible to achieve without a cablebox after the all-digital switchover takes effect?
Bridget~ your first post at 09:12 pm, would best be answered by your local provider on what they plan on doing when they switch over to an all digital line-up. Regardless of what they do, at some point you will need to purchase an external digital tuner if you want to record on your VCR. This can be a cable provided cable box, or one you purchase for the sole intention of enabling the viewing of digital channels being broadcast unencrypted. Your second post: No. recording one channel while watching another would require a dual tuner converter or a DVR with a dual tuner. Now, I have heard there is something in the signal that would allow an analog tuner to be able to recognize the digital feed without the need for any external digital tuner, but I'm not holding my breath either. Analog is going bye-bye, and future VCR's may have the ability to tune digital, so I'm not 100% certain as to what you can and can't do in between. Again, it would be best to contact your local provider and ask them what their intentions are when that time comes, and what will you be able to do with your existing equipment, and more importantly what won't you be able to do. Wish I was of more help, but I don't work for Charter so I can't pretend to know what they plan on doing.
Thanks very much for your help. This is all so confusing to me and I'm just trying to decipher what all of these terms mean. I read about the Pioneer DVR-DT70 DVD Recorder which supposedly has a digital tuner that can record high definition, digital tv broadcasts to its hard drive, but I don't see it for sale anywhere, and I don't know if Pioneer is a good brand or not. My sharp tv has a built-in HD tuner. If I were to hook-up this tv to the Pioneer dvd recorder with digital tuner (or one like it), would I then be able to record digital channels while watching another? Could I used a cablecard with this setup?