Argghhh Help!!! Receiver Questions

[dave420]

Ok I have a 36" RCA HDTV monitor... So I need to buy the Receiver....There is DirecTv HD Receivers........ and OTA HD receivers... but since I live in Wisconsin, in the middle of nowhere... (with no hd programing on our cable company), Would I be able to use an OA Receiver (and how many channels are there)or do I need to get the direcTV receiver?? This is so confusing....:) Oh and for anyone that knows about directv, how many channels are broadcasterd in HD?? Thank you all!!!

[doug m]

You can do a couple things to determine if OTA or DirecTv or both would be good in your situation.

First, determine if you can even receive OTA signals based on your location. Click on the following link. Follow directions under "Choose an antenna". It will show you what digital stations are available in your area, and give you a ballpark size for an antenna.

http://www.antennaweb.org/

Next, determine if anything is being broadcast in HD from the stations near you. Click the next link and sign up (its free, and a great resource). It will give you pragramming schedules for your area. Make sure you look at the "tab" labeled "Digital". Only programs with "HD" next to the title are in true HD.

http://www.titantv.com

As far as DirecTv, I live in New Jersey. My dish points southeast. I am not sure how different the direction would be for you, but one consideration is that you need a pretty clear line of sight from the dish to the satellite. There are currently 2 channels in HD. HBO and HDNet. HBO is movies. HDNet has some sports and other original programming.

[kevinw]

If you are not in range of broadcast HD, you may want to look at Dish also, they suppl HBO, Showtime and a CBS HD feed to those who can get a waiver.

[HokieD]

Thanks Doug for the great info on antennas and OTA signals. It really helped me figure out which channels I could try to tune in. Also, Titantv is great. It tells you which broadcasts are HD. Awesome!