Where can I buy a Zenith DTV converter?

Guest
I keep reading that the Zenith DTV converter is one of the best.
Because I live in a rural area, I am limited to Walmart with their RCA
and Magnavox brands. However, I'm willing to drive to one of the
larger cities if I can get the Zenith. My problem is what stores
carry that brand? I know the nearest large city has Best Buy, Sears,
Target, Kmart, and a few other possible stores. Does anyone know
which stores carry the Zenith? Also, is there just one Zenith model,
or are there more? If I cant find this brand, are there other really
good converters?

I'm in a fringe (rural) area, and need one that will really pull in
stations. I do have one converter already, an Apex brand. It was one
of the early models. I cant say anything really bad about it, other
than the remote buttons being too small, but I went from getting 8
analog channels to only 4 channels on digital. I'm hoping another
brand will do better.

Thank U

LM
 
On Mon, 09 Feb 2009 07:15:51 -0600, letterman@invalid.com wrote:

I keep reading that the Zenith DTV converter is one of the best.
Because I live in a rural area, I am limited to Walmart with their RCA
and Magnavox brands. However, I'm willing to drive to one of the
larger cities if I can get the Zenith. My problem is what stores
carry that brand? I know the nearest large city has Best Buy,
Click to expand...
Best Buy's Insignia brand converter (at least, the NS-DXA1-APT that I
picked up) is a Zenith on the inside, with some tweaks to the look &
feel of the menus and on-screen displays. Works great, no complaints.

Only downside, for some folks, may be that the schedule only shows now
and next. On the plus side, you can tune to *all* digital channels, not
just ones that are present on an auto-search, so there's the possibility
of tuning to a known but not seen channel and tweaking the antenna to
pull it in.

--
Rich Webb Norfolk, VA
 
On Mon, 09 Feb 2009 08:30:19 -0500, Rich Webb wrote:
On Mon, 09 Feb 2009 07:15:51 -0600, letterman@invalid.com wrote:

........ On the plus side, you can tune to *all* digital channels, not
just ones that are present on an auto-search, so there's the possibility
of tuning to a known but not seen channel and tweaking the antenna to
pull it in.
Click to expand...
Is that really true? I have the Zenith DTT901 -- which is the one I
think we're speaking of here.

After the scan setup, I 'click' to 13.1 and I view the programming
broadcast on TV Chan 24. Then I 'click' to 9.1 (un-assigned -
"No Signal") and what frequency/TV Chan does the unit switch to?
And, if I 'click' to 9.2 - 9.3 -- what?

I believe with tropo propagation, I could (at times) view (some of) the
Denver area stations. But, I'm not confident that 'clicking' up their
assignments would put me on their operating frequency.

Inquiring minds,
Jonesy
--
Marvin L Jones | jonz | W3DHJ | linux
38.24N 104.55W | @ config.com | Jonesy | OS/2
* Killfiling google & XXXXbanter.com: jonz.net/ng.htm
 
On Mon, 09 Feb 2009 14:30:26 +0000, Allodoxaphobia wrote:

On Mon, 09 Feb 2009 08:30:19 -0500, Rich Webb wrote:
On Mon, 09 Feb 2009 07:15:51 -0600, letterman@invalid.com wrote:

........ On the plus side, you can tune to *all* digital channels, not
just ones that are present on an auto-search, so there's the
possibility of tuning to a known but not seen channel and tweaking the
antenna to pull it in.

Is that really true? I have the Zenith DTT901 -- which is the one I
think we're speaking of here.

After the scan setup, I 'click' to 13.1 and I view the programming
broadcast on TV Chan 24. Then I 'click' to 9.1 (un-assigned - "No
Signal") and what frequency/TV Chan does the unit switch to? And, if I
'click' to 9.2 - 9.3 -- what?

I believe with tropo propagation, I could (at times) view (some of) the
Denver area stations. But, I'm not confident that 'clicking' up their
assignments would put me on their operating frequency.

Inquiring minds,
Jonesy
Click to expand...
Each time you click on a new station, your converter box scans the range
of frequencies where 9.1, for example, is supposed to be. Then it locks
in on it when it finds it. That's one reason why changing stations is
slower in digital than in analog which had only one frequency.

Al
 
letter...@invalid.com wrote:
I keep reading that the Zenith DTV converter is one of the best.
Because I live in a rural area, I am limited to Walmart with their RCA
and Magnavox brands. However, I'm willing to drive to one of the
larger cities if I can get the Zenith. My problem is what stores
carry that brand? I know the nearest large city has Best Buy, Sears,
Target, Kmart, and a few other possible stores. Does anyone know
which stores carry the Zenith? Also, is there just one Zenith model,
or are there more? If I cant find this brand, are there other really
good converters?

I'm in a fringe (rural) area, and need one that will really pull in
stations. I do have one converter already, an Apex brand. It was one
of the early models. I cant say anything really bad about it, other
than the remote buttons being too small, but I went from getting 8
analog channels to only 4 channels on digital. I'm hoping another
brand will do better.

Thank U

LM
Click to expand...
Try this mail-order link.
Doc..


http://xrl.us/befi7n
 
On 9 Feb 2009 14:30:26 GMT, Allodoxaphobia <bit-bucket@config.com>
wrote:

On Mon, 09 Feb 2009 08:30:19 -0500, Rich Webb wrote:
On Mon, 09 Feb 2009 07:15:51 -0600, letterman@invalid.com wrote:

........ On the plus side, you can tune to *all* digital channels, not
just ones that are present on an auto-search, so there's the possibility
of tuning to a known but not seen channel and tweaking the antenna to
pull it in.

Is that really true? I have the Zenith DTT901 -- which is the one I
think we're speaking of here.

After the scan setup, I 'click' to 13.1 and I view the programming
broadcast on TV Chan 24. Then I 'click' to 9.1 (un-assigned -
"No Signal") and what frequency/TV Chan does the unit switch to?
And, if I 'click' to 9.2 - 9.3 -- what?
Click to expand...
Good question. There are sites (http://www.tvfool.com is one I've used)
that list the actual and virtual channel information. Try both? My guess
is that the virtual channel number over-rides the actual one but only
after the PCIP data is decoded. Perhaps there are some boxes that allow
selective tuning of one or the other?

--
Rich Webb Norfolk, VA
 
Speaking of all the channel reallocations, has anyone seen the actual
frequencies
assigned to the new band?
I'd like to see such a chart of assignments posted somewhere. (no luck yet)
All I heard is that it's all UHF now.
Thanks for your guidance.

Les
 
On Feb 9, 7:19 am, alchazz <no.s...@wanted.com> wrote:
Each time you click on  a new station, your converter box scans the
range
of frequencies where 9.1, for example, is supposed to be. Then it
locks
in on it when it finds it. That's one reason why changing stations
is
slower in digital than in analog which had only one frequency.

Al
Click to expand...
No it doesn't. It goes to the actual channel number from its lookup
table from when it 'scanned'. It doesn't do a 'new' scan. It has to
wait for the 'sync' data to begin decoding the data stream. Look near
the end for "VSB Modulator"

http://hdtvprimer.com/ISSUES/what_is_ATSC.html

The actual channel list is

http://www.nab.org/AM/ASPCode/DTVStations/DTVStations.asp

G˛
 
On Feb 9, 6:30 am, Allodoxaphobia <bit-buc...@config.com> wrote:
On Mon, 09 Feb 2009 08:30:19 -0500, Rich Webb wrote:
On Mon, 09 Feb 2009 07:15:51 -0600, letter...@invalid.com wrote:

........ On the plus side, you can tune to *all* digital channels, not
just ones that are present on an auto-search, so there's the possibility
of tuning to a known but not seen channel and tweaking the antenna to
pull it in.

Is that really true?  I have the Zenith DTT901 -- which is the one I
think we're speaking of here.  

After the scan setup, I 'click' to 13.1 and I view the programming
broadcast on TV Chan 24.  Then I 'click' to 9.1 (un-assigned -
"No Signal") and what frequency/TV Chan does the unit switch to?  
And, if I 'click' to 9.2 - 9.3 -- what?

I believe with tropo propagation, I could (at times) view (some of) the
Denver area stations.  But, I'm not confident that 'clicking' up their
assignments would put me on their operating frequency.

Inquiring minds,
Jonesy
--
  Marvin L Jones    | jonz          | W3DHJ  | linux
   38.24N  104.55W  |  @ config.com | Jonesy |  OS/2
    * Killfiling google & XXXXbanter.com: jonz.net/ng.htm
Click to expand...
You can often (not all receivers support this) punch in the actual DTV
carrier frequency and the unit will then get the analog channel number
from PSIP. Channel list here.

http://www.nab.org/AM/ASPCode/DTVStations/DTVStations.asp

G˛
 
I got a Zenith DT-901 at RadioShack last year. The current model is the
DT-901A, though I don't know what the difference is.
 
Hi!

Good question. There are sites (http://www.tvfool.com is
one I've used) that list the actual and virtual channel
information. Try both?

My guess is that the virtual channel number over-rides
the actual one
Click to expand...
This is likely to be firmware dependent. I can say for certain that
the Zenith DTT-901 will let you punch in any channel number and it
will try to tune it. If you type in the "real" channel number of a
broadcasting station and it differs from the "virtual" or "commonly
accepted" channel number used by that station, the virtual number is
displayed when the unit locks on and starts playing TV programming.

William
 
Hi!

I keep reading that the Zenith DTV converter is one
of the best.
Click to expand...
It seems to work well and run cool. Reception is more than good
enough. The on screen fonts are legible, and the remote seems to be
usable in the dark.

As to the RCA and Magnavox converters...the RCA I would definitely
avoid. It's far too limited and acts as though it does not have enough
processing power. It also can't accept manual addition of channels
later--a problem if you have a very directional TV antenna that might
need to be rotated so you can get all the stations in your area.

I've put a few of the Magnavox units out so far, and they work
acceptably well. The display text is pretty good quality. My only
concern is that they are made by Funai, whose quality track record
is...shall we say...on the dubious side. Other than that, the only
real drawback is that you can't work the unit from the front panel--it
only offers remote control.

There are two Zenith models that I know of--the DTT900 and the DTT901.
Both are identical in looks, but the DTT901 offers analog passthrough
when it is turned off.

If there is a Radio Shack in your area, they stock the Zenith
converter as well as a Digital Stream branded unit. The Digital Stream
unit is really, really nice. It has a comprehensive program guide,
receives well, can be operated (at least to change channels) from the
front panel and was clearly designed by people who Thought Of Things
That Might Be Good Ideas--for example, the red LED that shows up when
the unit is off but receiving power actually dims...great if you have
the unit in a bedroom.

William
 
In article <jfa0p45jdg2lj5eiciu831qhrcupdpb9fk@4ax.com>,
letterman@invalid.com wrote:

I keep reading that the Zenith DTV converter is one of the best.
Click to expand...
The one I looked at had only a composite output; S-video or component
would offer considerably better quality. Since the decoded MPEG is
component, which must to be converted to whatever format is desired, it
seems odd that practically no converters offer even S-video outputs.

Isaac
 
One of my snail mail computer magazines says to buy a DTV converter that
has analog pass through and S-Video.

I subscribe to DirecTV.I will not need a DTV converter box.But, I wonder
if there would be an advantage, or benefit to hooking up one anyway?
cuhulin
 
cuhulin@webtv.net wrote:

I subscribe to DirecTV.I will not need a DTV converter box.But, I wonder
if there would be an advantage, or benefit to hooking up one anyway?
cuhulin
Click to expand...
If you have enough signal for it receive something, then you have the
ability to watch TV when the satellite is out, your dish is broken,
the "box" stops working, etc.

How much value that is to you is up to you.

If you can still get a coupon for one from the government, I would take it.
You never know when it will be useful.

Geoff.

--
Geoffrey S. Mendelson, Jerusalem, Israel gsm@mendelson.com N3OWJ/4X1GM
 
I subscribe to DirecTV.I will not need a DTV converter box.But, I wonder
if there would be an advantage, or benefit to hooking up one anyway?
Click to expand...
It might, if DirecTV doesn't carry the sub-channels.
 
On Wed, 11 Feb 2009 06:49:02 +0000 (UTC), gsm@mendelson.com (Geoffrey S.
Mendelson) wrote:

cuhulin@webtv.net wrote:

I subscribe to DirecTV.I will not need a DTV converter box.But, I wonder
if there would be an advantage, or benefit to hooking up one anyway?
cuhulin

If you have enough signal for it receive something, then you have the
ability to watch TV when the satellite is out, your dish is broken,
the "box" stops working, etc.

How much value that is to you is up to you.

If you can still get a coupon for one from the government, I would take it.
You never know when it will be useful.
Click to expand...
.... providing the "when" is within 90 days of the date it was mailed.

--
Rich Webb Norfolk, VA
 
Rich Webb wrote:
I wrote:

If you can still get a coupon for one from the government, I would take it.
You never know when it will be useful.

... providing the "when" is within 90 days of the date it was mailed.
Click to expand...
I meant when the converter would be of use. :)

Geoff.

--
Geoffrey S. Mendelson, Jerusalem, Israel gsm@mendelson.com N3OWJ/4X1GM
 
TV Stations Ignore Obama, Congress on Digital TV.
www.tvpredictions.com
cuhulin
 
Article at www.pcworld.com
Viewers Unhappy With DTV Reception, Station Choice.
cuhulin
 
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