Fox Sports South .. 420 HD != 420 SD ??

[zim2dive]

Recently switched packages (to Dish America Silver) and we now get Fox Sports South. I immediately added the HD version of the channel, as I do with every other channel where I see an SD and HD version of the channel.

We noticed after a few days, we never saw anything .. only a message to check back. Finalyl when we *knew* a game was only, I had the idea to check the SD version of the channel.. and the game was there.. while the HD version still had a "check back later" placard up....

??? I can understand maybe the games aren't being broadcast in HD.. but I'm used to the HD and non-HD versions of each channel showing the same thing...

so what's the scoop with 420? I'm not sure I've seen anything on it yet.

 

[Dah-Henny]

I'm sure that the UNC vs MD game last night was in HD, but E* prolly deemed it not important enough to broadcast in HD.

 

[jmccurrytech]

Those games are always on the ALT channels, never on the actual channel, go figure.

 

[goaliebob99]

Dish Network feels like they dont have to braudcast the game in HD. The only way to Guarantee that you will get your game in HD is unfortunatly, switch providers. Dish is the ONLY provider out there that doesnt braudcast full time HD RSN's. The game time only stuff is hit or miss, and more misses than hits..

 

[goaliebob99]

Those games are always on the ALT channels, never on the actual channel, go figure.

It wouldnt be hard to mirror them to the actual channel.

 

[Tampa8]

Looking at their website, it was broadcast in HD by Fox South. Dish does not carry every game in HD, though for pro sports it comes close in most markets. There is alot of speculation that Dish is getting ready to broadcast the sports channels in HD 24/7. The reason they don't is because they don't have the bandwidth, or at least the way the satellites are set-up they don't. But they are moving alot of channels around thus the speculation. Dish made the decision, in my opinion to offer most all the national channels in HD, and indeed has more than Direct does. But in that decision, has been selectively using the HD channels for the regional sports, covering many,most, or all pro games in HD but being in SD the rest of the time, while Direct TV has all the games in HD as far as I know and perhaps other shows during the day. (I don't know) It seems to me many or most all Bruins games are in HD on Dish, while virtually every Red Sox game is. But none of the pregame/postgame shows are.

 

[krauser1]

I live in the Atlanta market and receive that channel. Dish does not always put the games on in HD, even if SportSouth or Fox Sport South are broadcasting it. They choose what games to put up. The SD channel is 24/7, so the broadcasted games will always at least be in SD. Generally you won't see the Thrashers in HD on a Friday and the Hawks on Mondays. You can generally catch the games on the HD channels 75% of the time.

*** Or the hurricanes for that matter!

 

[joelwnelson]

If the HD feed of a game is on more than one FSN region/affiliate at a time, then Dish chooses to put it on channel 444 instead of multiple HD locals in each region. They don't mirror it because of local advertising and branding on each FSN regional channel, but at least (most of the time) the national HD games are on 444.