And the Next HD Channel Is....

[BasicBlak]

I do not think E* should add any more HD channels until they have enough bandwith to support it. I will really hate them to go the DirecTv way.

Sean, I agree totally. Sure, I too would love to have as many HD channels as the remote in my hand can tune to. But having more HD channels merely for the sake of it--at the expense of picture/sound quality--IMO totally defeats the purpose. As I recall the late '90s, DBS' original intent was to pummel cable with vastly superior picture/sound quality. By and large, I believed they succeeded at the time, especially with the PPV channels, which were damn-near 3D like in clarity. Now, even they have been over-compressed to make room for more channels.

What few HD channels E* does have available (as an SBC Dish customer, we are only allowed to have the standard HD Pak, not the Voom Pak ) unfortunately needs to suffice until such time as E* can get some more birds up in the sky to rectify the horrid over-compression problem they have with what they presently do offer. (Anyone have any idea of E's progress there, or is D* still ahead of them with their planned lift-offs over the next year or so?)

I'm all for new HD channels--bring on Natl Geo HD!--but I want it done right. My television is way too revealing to stomach much more of the visual crap we're presently saddled with.

 

[BFG]

HD not on Dish (Only full 24/7 Channels, not counting Network Distants or RSN HD broadcasts)


Here's What's Available Now:
ESPN2-HD
Universal HD
Wealth TV
Outdoor Channel 2 HD
INHD
INHD2
HBO HDTV West
Cinemax HDTV East
Cinemax HDTV West
Starz HD East
Starz HD West
Showtime HD West
TMC HD

On Deck:
MHD - January 16, 2006
FOX HD - 2006
National Geographic HD - 2006
HGTV HD - Early 2006
Food Network HD - Early 2006

 

[Dog6869]

I am waiting for OLN myself......

 

[Tom Bombadil]

That is TOO LONG of a list of non-carries. Especially, IMHO, not offering major premium channels like Starz & Cinemax.

But once Dish goes to mpeg4, technically they should be able to add all of them.

And I can't believe that Sci-Fi hasn't announced yet.

 

[DarrellP]

Darrell,

there is not much on UHD either.... All repeats, repeats repeats and bad bad bad bandwith.... that makes you throw up...

Thanks, Sean, I didn't realize that as I haven't seen it or checked their schedule since Voom died.

 

[bkushner]

I'd love to see SCI FI CHannel HD. I can't believe a network that was born for HD with their great original shows has NO PLANS for HD.

Brian

 

[Drone35]

The problem with my ota channels is that I only get one in HD, CBS, it's just where I live, the Tx panhandle the rest are just Digital. But you're right about the compression the sd locals suck!

 

[Carl B]

Universal is running a close second. So what the heck is Universal?

 

[BFG]

www.universalhd.com

 

[Carl B]

OK, sort of another HDNET, but mostly reruns of content previously aired. I'll stick w/ my original vote for Starz HD (implied, also CM HD), since it is movie content I'm looking for.

 

[Walter L.]

Not even close to HDNet. I had UniversalHD before (with VOOM) and I have to say that it sucks big time. Basically, the only thing they show is re-runs of Law & Order SVI, Circus Solei, the olympic games and the same movies over and over.
The most anoying thing is that they don't know that DD 5.1 exists.

 

[jimboeau]

Not even close to HDNet. I had UniversalHD before (with VOOM) and I have to say that it sucks big time. Basically, the only thing they show is re-runs of Law & Order SVI, Circus Solei, the olympic games and the same movies over and over.
The most anoying thing is that they don't know that DD 5.1 exists.

I agree. I would rather have 1 or 2 live games a week on ESPN2 in HD than getting a bunch of recycled shows and repeats in Universal....

 

[kb7oeb]

As I recall the late '90s, DBS' original intent was to pummel cable with vastly superior picture/sound quality. By and large, I believed they succeeded at the time, especially with the PPV channels, which were damn-near 3D like in clarity. Now, even they have been over-compressed to make room for more channels.

I wonder if it was as great as you remember. I had USSB back when they had the viacom channels and I thought HBO looked bad. It didn't look decent until USSB lost viacom to directv. I remember the compression on the mtv and vh&1 was bad then too even after going to directv.

 

[BasicBlak]

I wonder if it was as great as you remember. I had USSB back when they had the viacom channels and I thought HBO looked bad. It didn't look decent until USSB lost viacom to directv. I remember the compression on the mtv and vh&1 was bad then too even after going to directv.

Everything's relative, kb7oeb. By its very nature, MPEG is imperfect. The point I was making, however, was that the PQ was superior to any analog cable feed I ever saw at the time (I became a D* subscriber just after its acquisition of USSB). And, although MPEG technology has improved over the years, whatever technological strides made in that endeavor appear for naught today in light of the fact that both D* and E* turn the compression knobs up to what seems like damn-near max, making PQ today even worse, IMO. My applause was directed chiefly at the SD PPV channels back then, which really were phenominal-looking. Alas, today they are highly compressed, too.

 

[BasicBlak]

Universal is running a close second. So what the heck is Universal?

Formerly Bravo's HD feed. NBC, Bravo's owner, acquired Universal Pictures/Television last year and changed the name from Bravo HD to Universal HD.

 

[HeavyC]

Not even close to HDNet. I had UniversalHD before (with VOOM) and I have to say that it sucks big time. Basically, the only thing they show is re-runs of Law & Order SVI, Circus Solei, the olympic games and the same movies over and over.
The most anoying thing is that they don't know that DD 5.1 exists.

It's actually gotten a lot better. I watched the entire first season of Battlestar Galactica replayed on there in HD. It was very nice looking. I'm a former VOOMer myself, and it's nowhwere near as bad as it used to be in it's initial days or when it was still Bravo HD.

 

[BasicBlak]

HD not on Dish (Only full 24/7 Channels, not counting Network Distants or RSN HD broadcasts)


Here's What's Available Now:
ESPN2-HD
Universal HD
Wealth TV
Outdoor Channel 2 HD
INHD
INHD2
HBO HDTV West
Cinemax HDTV East
Cinemax HDTV West
Starz HD East
Starz HD West
Showtime HD West
TMC HD

On Deck:
MHD - January 16, 2006
FOX HD - 2006
National Geographic HD - 2006
HGTV HD - Early 2006
Food Network HD - Early 2006

In reference to the movie channels specifically, regardless of which HD feeds eventually get added, when are they going to wise up and start broadcasting their content in its original aspect ratio?? Near as I can tell, only Showtime and HDNet appear to consistently show Panavision/Scope films properly. Perhaps INHD does as well, I've never viewed those channels. I do know, however, that HBO definitely does not! I've only seen Starz HD/TMC HD on a few occasions, both of which eschewed OAR on programming I viewed at the time. I'm curious to know if anyone has any info to the contrary....

 

[T2k]

IF they'll add it as new capacity, then I'd like to see UniversalHD and the rest of the Vooms.