Spotbeams and Local Stations

[Greg Bimson]

shodobe, tell us all the LA local channels you receive. If I am correct, it should be more than just the big four networks, the CW (KTLA), the MyTV (KCOP) and KCAL. If you get them all, then you are under the spot-beam.

 

[spiderman865]

Based on Lyngsat, http://www.lyngsat.com/packages/directvusa101.html, 2,4,5,7,9 and 11 are not spot beamed. If something has changed, I am unaware of it.

 

[Greg Bimson]

Lyngsat is wrong.

 

[shodobe]

According to my wife ALL the LA locals come through. I am going home tomorrow so I will see what is there. She watched the Dodgers last night on KCAL and said KTTV came through OK. I am with Direct.

 

[Greg Bimson]

If you receive all LA local channels, then you are most definitely within the spot-beam.

 

[shodobe]

Then the spotbeams are verrrrrrrrrrrry wide and far reaching.

 

[bjthadj]

So I'm about as close to LA as this guy is, and I'd LOVE to "move" there. What transponder are the LA locals on? I'd love to see if I can catch that spotbeam.

 

[shodobe]

Got home today and sure enough I can pick up the LA locals, but....... the HD locals are not coming through. Are HD locals on spotbeam where SD locals are on Conus? Thanks

 

[Buzzdar]

i think the HD locals are on a smaller spot beam. Please correct me if i am wrong

 

[shodobe]

I have tried everything from resetting the reciever to sacrificing something, but alas nada! I think I read somewhere in the forums that with the 2 new sats going up this year then local HD will be taken off spotbeams and put on Conus. Any truth to this?

 

[texasbrit]

I have tried everything from resetting the reciever to sacrificing something, but alas nada! I think I read somewhere in the forums that with the 2 new sats going up this year then local HD will be taken off spotbeams and put on Conus. Any truth to this?

LA has two sets of local channels. There are the channels in the 80s that are MPEG-2 and are CONUS (because they are delivered to people in the West who are too far from OTA transmitters to receive digital TV). Then there are the MPEG-4 HD locals that are on a spotbeam on the 103 satellite. The 99/103 spotbeams are much narrower than the old SD spotbeams so you can be in the SD spotbeam but not in the HD one. However, if you are authorized for LA locals you will also receive the channels in the 80s which are, as I said, CONUS.

At some time after DirecTV10 and 11 launch, the existing MPEG-2 HD CONUS channels are expected to be replaced by MPEG-4 CONUS LA locals from the 99/103 satellite slots.