Digital TV, cable and MSS

[Upcountry]

I don't know how many readers of this forum get their TV from MSS Cable in Phitsanulok, but I have some news to share.

I found out today that they have segregated all English language channels (except for FOX) to a block that requires a B1,400 digital set top box. From what I could gather via translation, only the box they provide will work; other digital boxes won't. This flies in the face of the Thai digital initiative. Maybe they want to emulate True Visions.

The local Home Pro store, which might not know about their new digital offering, said their boxes would not work with MSS - analog perhaps.

From what I can tell, the local/national Thai TV news channels (3,7, etc.) may not have done a good job of informing people about the coupon offering, because no one in my family is aware of it, even though they watch TV every day. I guess it won't be available in our province until next month anyway.

At least the cable guy said that the 690 coupon will be applicable to their box.

I hope it turns out to be wrong that a digital TV (or adapter) would not work with their service. That would be sad.

Edited October 23, 2014 by Upcountry

[Pib]

I doubt it will work because frequencies/modulations used on cable, satellite, and terrestrial transmissions are different. Now if you cable company is doing nothing more than retransmitting terrestrial signals over cable which covers a small area/X-amount of buildings then maybe it would work....kinda like how you see some big C/KU-band antenna on some condo buildings which are apparently just feeding those signals throughout the building via cable....really no different than a C/KU band antenna on your house with cables running to all the rooms. Then again maybe your cable company is converting the terrestrial signals to cable frequencies/modulation...hard telling with all the little cable companies out there.

The new digital TV transmissions we keep hearing about are related to "Terrestrial" transmissions i.e., reception via outdoor/indoor antenna) although the new digital channels are also being carried on satellite transmissions (which has always been a form of digital transmission)...all/most of the new digital channels are already on TrueVisions Cable and Satellite plus on non-pay C/KU band transmissions.

Additionally, several months ago when the govt was still trying to decide on how much the coupon would be for, what type of devices the coupons could be used to buy, they were considering the coupon to also be used to buy satellite TV boxes but that was not approved. All you can use the coupon for is to buy a DVB-T2 box or a TV with DVB-T2 built-in.

[Upcountry]

Pib, thanks for your response.

This is interesting. I always assumed that digital TV's and fiber cable services would be compatible the way analog cable works with regular TV's. For me, the benefit of cable has been that my DVR can change channels with the recording timer.

But if the cable digital system requires a separate set top box even for digital TV's, then it is the same, in that sense, as satellite. I guess the only difference might be that cable signals are a little more dependable during a rain storm.

If the cable TV box doesn't come with a timer, recording will be more of a pain. It would require a 3rd device to change channels at specified times. Time to dust off the thing that helped me with "UBC" when I had it.