Tuning in the HDTV picture
After getting everything connected, you should use the "Auto Scan" function of the TV set or digital tuner to let your set know that our digital signal is out there.
If your set or digital tuner does not find us during the auto scan, then the antenna aiming is probably slightly off. Move the antenna slightly and then type in 10 dot 1 (10.1) on the remote control to force the set or digital tuner to our digital station. The "dot 1" tells the set or tuner to look for a digital signal on channel 10 instead of an analog signal. (Alternately, check this page:
http://www.ktvl.com/sections/ktvl-in-hdtv/ for the translator in your area and manually enter that number.)
Note: your remote control may use a dash (-) instead of a dot (.) but the idea is the same. After selecting channel "10.1," watch the signal strength meter and turn the antenna slowly. It may take your set up to 3 seconds to show a picture after it has found our signal. Make small adjustments to the antenna position and then pause for a few seconds. After you get 10.1 working, it would be a good idea to perform an "Auto Scan" again.
They build HDTV sets and digital tuners that do not have a dash or a dot on the remote control. Instead, they use an "on screen channel guide" to select which channel you want. If you have one of these sets you will have to do an "Auto Scan" every time you move the antenna. There simply is no way to enter an RF channel number directly.
Once your HDTV set or digital tuner has found our signal it will then tell you that it has found channel "10.1." The Federal Communications Commission has mandated that we call our digital broadcasts on any channel (including other translator channels) as "10.1" (our main HDTV station) and "10.2" (The CW network). This is accomplished by having our digital encoder tell your TV set that it is watching station "10.1" or "10.2" when it may actually be tuned to a different digital translator channel. This re-naming of the digital stations is supposed to make your life easier.
If your set or tuner allows direct channel number entry, you can find the local digital stations without performing an "Auto Scan." You can type in the actual television channel number that the station occupies, with a "dot 1" or "dash 1" on the end.
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Last update: October 2007
Special thanks to Richard Kihn, Chief Engineer of our sister station KFDM-TV/KFDM-DT in Beaumont, Texas, for sharing all his useful research!