velu@eneevax.UUCP (Velu Sinha) (02/04/86)
My neigborhood has just been wired for cable, andI am considering whther or not to go with it. The extra channels won't matter, but the reception may get a little better (I am in suburban DC, and the reception is reasonable as it is). My question is a follows. I own a "cable-ready" Toshiba FST "monitor", and a base panasonic "cable-ready" VCR. Will I still need to have an A/B selection box? Will I need to have anything other than a down converter? Since the TV can tune only channels 2-8? in both cable/non-cable modes, where do the extra channels go? WHAT does CABLE-READY mean? Also, on a side note, I own a Technics AM/FM/TV receiver ... however the TV part only picks up VHF (2-13). Why? Is there anyway to get UHF audio? It too claims to be "cable-ready", I believe... Thanks in advance.
fish@ihu1g.UUCP (Bob Fishell) (02/08/86)
> My question is a follows. I own a "cable-ready" Toshiba FST "monitor", and a > base panasonic "cable-ready" VCR. Will I still need to have an A/B selection > box? Will I need to have anything other than a down converter? Since the TV > can tune only channels 2-8? in both cable/non-cable modes, where do the > extra channels go? WHAT does CABLE-READY mean? > "Cable Ready" means that the TV/VCR/Whatever is equipped with an infinitely variable electronic tuner what is cabable of receiving all channels between 2 and 83, including the midband and superband VHF channels used by cable companies. The most common of these are the varactor tuners, which are set with a little twiddle-stick that selects the band (usually VHF Low, VHF High, Superband VHF, and UHF), and a thumbwheel pot that tunes in stations within the band selected. You are usually provided with 12 of these, which limits your channel selections, but allows you to choose any 12 channels that are available on your cable system. Better TVs and VCRs have quartz-synthesized, random-access tuners that you don't have to adjust. Instead, you just punch up a channel on a 10-digit keypad, and fine-tune it in as needed. The latter type gives you virtually unlimited channel selection. In either case, you can plug the cable directly into the device, without using the down-converter provided by the cable company, hence the term, "cable ready." -- __ / \ \__/ Bob Fishell ihnp4!ihu1g!fish