Welcome to the FreeSTLNews St. Louis Digital TV Conversion Guide!

	Welcome to the FREESTLNEWS Digital TV Signal Conversion Guide
	Saturday, July 12, 2008 at 10:54:17 PM
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Converting to the new Digital Television Signal in St. Louis

Click HERE for a simple summary of the conversion.

On February 17, 2009, all TV stations will stop broadcasting analog signals. Reasons for this include reducing the amount of power used to transmit the signals (digital is more efficient) as well as freeing up the allocated analog frequency bands for use in local commercial, public, and emergency communications and new wireless services. If you have Cable-TV (Charter, etc) or Satellite-TV (Dish Network or Direct-TV), you have nothing to worry about - you are already receiving a digital signal and your satellite or cable-converter box is converting the signal to be displayed on your tv. However, if you have any television sets that still use an antenna and only receive the local channels (such as 2, 4, 5, 9, 11, 30, 46) then you will have to either upgrade those televisions or use a set-top converter box to receive the new signal format. The government is providing coupons HERE (2 per household) to purchase these basic converter boxes for a discounted rate. (2 coupons at $40 each). [Click here for information on coupon-eligible converters] This converter box connects between your television and its antenna. The same antenna used for analog TV reception can usually receive all of the major digital TV signals in the St. Louis area. In fact, a small indoor antenna can receive almost all of the signals available across St. Louis. This chart shows the channels available in St. Louis and the antenna type needed to receive that signal: (this is an example chart of 63119 - for an exact chart for your location, click here to visit AntennaWeb and put in your zipcode to get an approximate antenna performance chart for your home)

DTV	Antenna Type	Call Sign	Channel	Network	City, State	Live Date	Compass Heading	Miles From	Frequency Assignment
*	yellow uhf	KPLR-DT	11.1	CW	ST. LOUIS, MO		133°	2.9	26
*	yellow uhf	KDNL-DT	30.1	ABC	ST. LOUIS, MO		127°	2.5	31
*	yellow uhf	KMOV-DT	24.1	CBS	ST. LOUIS, MO	Feb 17, 2009 (post-transition)	145°	6.1	24
*	yellow uhf	KPLR-DT	26.1	CW	ST. LOUIS, MO	Feb 17, 2009 (post-transition)	143°	3.0	26
*	yellow uhf	KSDK-DT	5.1	NBC	ST. LOUIS, MO		143°	3.0	35
*	green uhf	KTVI-DT	2.1	FOX	St. Louis, MO		186°	4.6	43
*	red uhf	KMOV-DT	4.1	CBS	ST. LOUIS, MO		145°	6.1	56
*	blue uhf	KETC-DT	39.1	PBS	ST. LOUIS, MO	Feb 17, 2009 (post-transition)	192°	8.5	39
*	blue uhf	KETC-DT	9.1	PBS	ST. LOUIS, MO		192°	8.5	39
*	violet uhf	KNLC-DT	24.1	FMN	ST. LOUIS, MO		211°	19.3	14
*	violet uhf	WPXS-DT	21	IND	MOUNT VERNON, IL	Feb 17, 2009 (post-transition)	82°	43.8	21

Here are the color coded antenna charts corresponding to this graph: (Click here to see a complete list of antennas)

Color Zone	Antenna Type
Yellow	Small Omni/Multi-directional antenna is required in a yellow zone. Yellow zone is where the reception conditions are the best and the signal level is very high. Typically, the yellow color code area is very close to the transmitting tower. Although the color coding is used to classify outdoor antennas only, if you are in the yellow area there is a good chance that an indoor HDTV antenna (and even better an amplified indoor antenna) will work very well. If you have one, give it a try.
Green	Medium Omni/Multi-directional antenna is required in a green zone. In a green color code area the signal is slightly weaker and a bit larger antenna is required. The signal in a green area may be strong enough to try an amplified indoor HD antenna if you have one. Remember, however, that with an indoor antenna nothing is guaranteed. Only outdoor antennas can be certified for any particular color area.
Red	In vicinity of the reflective structures, Medium Directional antenna type is the best for red, light green, green and yellow color zones. Having a reasonable size yet good ghost reduction, this antenna is claimed to be the most popular rooftop antenna.
Blue	Medium Directional with pre-amplifier or Large Directional can be used in blue areas where the HDTV signal is weak or ghost producing structures are around. High rooftop installation is necessary.
Violet	Large Directional antenna with a pre-amplifier and high rooftop installation can be used in a violet zone. Professional installation recommended. Running cables should be as short as possible.

As you can see, most of the signals can be received with the Yellow-category antenna, but some will require the Red, Green, or Blue category. Overall I think any existing antenna in use to receive your favorite stations over the air today will be sufficient to receive the new signal formats.

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Useful Resources:

The FCC's site on the subject: http://www.dtv.gov/

Free Converter Coupon Program: https://www.dtv2009.gov/

The Fed's FAQ on the subject: http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/digitaltv.html

HDTv Antenna Labs (Good antenna buying guides and useful antenna information): http://www.hdtvantennalabs.com/index.php

AntennaWeb.Org (Nice site to check the signals available at your address): http://www.antennaweb.org/

MyFOX STL site on the subject: http://media.myfoxstl.com/media/dtv/index.html