Troubleshooting

Reception problems

Since the June 12 digital transition, some viewers locally and around the country are experiencing reception problems. In some cases, viewers who were receiving WETA's or other local signals just fine prior to June 12, now report that they are having trouble receiving certain television channels.

If you are one of those viewers, what can you do?

• If you are an over-the-air viewer with a converter box, make sure that your antenna can receive both UHF and VHF signals (WETA is on the UHF spectrum). A VHF antenna is the classic "rabbit ears" contraption; a UHF antenna is a circle.
• In addition, rescan and "double-rescan". If you tried rescanning your TV tuner or converter box and it didn't work, the next option, recommended by the FCC, is to double-rescan. How is that done? Disconnect the antenna from the box or TV and rescan. Then, turn off the box or TV and turn it back on. Connect the antenna and scan one more time. This procedure can replace incorrect channel information saved in the box or TV memory.
• You may also want to review information about antenna reception.
• The FCC's DTV Call Center is still available to answer your questions at 1-888-225-5322.

Important scanning information

After hooking up a converter box to your TV set, or installing a new digital TV set, you will need to scan (also known as "auto-tune") for new channels. This will ensure that you receive all of the digital stations broadcasting in your area. While some boxes do this automatically, you may need to select "scan" manually.

Because some digital stations are moving to different channel numbers after the DTV transition, you may need to re-scan again after June 12, 2009.

In general, you should re-scan your converter box or TV set for channels whenever you install equipment for the first time; after repositioning or moving an antenna; after June 12; and periodically after the nationwide digital transition so you will be sure to get all of the digital channels that become available.

Important antenna information

I have a converter box and am now DTV ready. Where do I point my antenna to get the best WETA reception possible?

Viewers in Washington, D.C., and close-in areas such as Arlington, Bethesda, Chevy Chase and McLean may need to reposition antennas to get digital signals. The reason for this is that WETA's analog and digital transmitters are located in different areas in northwest Washington. This should not be an issue for viewers who live further out because they are at a greater distance from the towers. Another way to ensure you receive digital signals is to try a larger antenna. (See this article for a recent review of five outdoor antennas.)

Plug in your street address into the AntennaWeb site and it will give you a drawing that indicates which way to point your antenna to receive WETA Television. The website is sponsored by the Consumer Electronics Association and the National Association of Broadcasters.

How can I get better reception from my antenna?

Digital broadcast towers are often located in different places than their analog counterparts. Often, moving the "rabbit ears" to a different location will clear up the picture. Another option is to try a larger antenna which might receive a stronger signal. (See this article for a recent review of five outdoor antennas.) For further information about the free channels in your area and the best way to receive their broadcasts, visit this website.

You might also want to try an antenna amplifier, which is a device that amplifies signal reception. Antenna amplifiers are also known as signal boosters because of the way they are able to increase the signal reception capability of an antenna. You can buy an antenna amplifier at your local electronics store.

Although not as important as where the antenna is located, you may also want to consider where your TV set is located. Try moving the television to another area of the room, to a higher floor in the house, or close to a window.

If I currently use “rabbit ears” or an indoor antenna on my TV, will I be able to receive digital signals or channels?

Probably. Make sure your antenna receives both VHF (channels 2-13) and UHF (channels 14-51) signals. If you have rabbit ears on your set, make sure you also have a "loop" or a "bowtie" connected to your rabbit ears. Rabbit ears will receive VHF signals and the loop or bowtie will receive UHF signals.

I currently use rabbit ears and can receive analog signals. How will the transition to digital affect my reception? Will I have to get an outdoor antenna instead?

Simple indoor antennas, such as rabbit ears, provide minimal performance that may or may not be suitable for your location. If you are unable to obtain satisfactory reception with your current indoor antenna, you may wish to obtain an indoor antenna that includes features for better reception of UHF signals and/or an amplifier to boost the received signal (often referred to as an active indoor antenna).

An outdoor antenna will get better reception than an indoor antenna. If you already have an outdoor antenna and are getting good quality reception from VHF and UHF channels, your antenna should work fine for digital television.

Audio is now low or in Spanish

Because of necessary WETA changes to our digital channel set-up, some viewers may notice that the audio on their TV sets is now broadcasting in Spanish or is very low or inaudible. If this is the case, please go into your TV menu and change the language to English, which should correct the problem.

Additional tips

The questions and answers below are grouped by type:

• If you're using a converter box and an antenna
• If you're using a built-in digital tuner
• If you're a cable subscriber
• If you're a satellite subscriber
• If you're using a DVD player, VCR, or TiVo or other DVR device

If you're using a converter box and an antenna

I will soon install a DTV converter box to receive digital signals on my existing television. Will I still be able to receive analog signals?

If you wish to continue receiving analog TV broadcasts after your converter box is installed — up until the national transition to all-digital broadcasting on June 12, 2009 — be sure to buy a converter box with an "analog pass-through" or a switch that allows you to turn the box's function off and on. These capabilities tend to be included on the higher-end converter box models, so shop carefully.

The following converter boxes have analog pass-through capabilities:

• Alpha Digital At 2016
• APEX DT250
• CASTi CAX-02
• Digital Stream DSP7700T
• Digital Stream DX8700
• Digital Stream DTX9950
• DISH Network DTVPal
• ECHOSTAR TR-40
• Jiuzhou DTT9001
• Magnovox TB-100MG9
• Philco TB150HH9
• Philco TB100HHP
• RCA DTA800B1
• TATUNG TDB3001
• Venturer STB7766G1

Another option is to buy an antenna splitter with an A/B switch for your digital converter box for less than $20 to receive both the analog and digital signals.

Do you have suggestions for finding over-the-air channels?

After you install a converter box, you may want to go to this website which has an online tool that can analyze your location to help determine what free broadcasts might be available in your neighborhood. The tool can also help answer questions such as:

• Which direction should I point my antenna?
• How strong are the signals in my area?
• What analog and digital channels are available?
• How will things look after the analog shutoff?

Simply enter your street address or zip code.