Having major Tv problems ( channels) wont come in?

  • I went & bought a HDTV converter for my Tv. ( Fox 31 supposedly changed to hdtv In november) instead of febuary. & now matter what I do.. I cant get the channel in.. where It used to work great before. I live In SouthEastern Idaho. ( Mountain Time zone). so what is wrong & what can i do to fix the problem? we have the converter on. & it is hooked up right.. .. So.. a little help is needed.. thanks.


  • First, let's understand that it's not an HDTV converter. It's a digital converter. The two are not the same. You do not get HD from the digital converter under discussion.

    Now, the first thing to do is to ensure that your converter is set up and connected properly. If you are using the antenna output jack instead of the A-V jacks, then you have to set the output channel switch to either 3 or 4. If you have a local analog channel on 3, set the switch to 4, or vice versa.

    Now, you have to set your analog TV to the same channel that you selected in the above step and leave it there permanently. Channel changing is done only with the remote for your converter. You never again change the channel on your analog TV.

    If you've done that, you should not be getting "snow." Snow is a characteristic of a weak or missing analog signal, not digital. You would get it if your analog TV is not set to the right channel (3 or 4).

    If your set has A-V input jacks, you can avoid that channel 3 & 4 business by connecting your converter to the TV via A-V cables and selecting that input on your TV.

    Another problem you may be having (although it's temporary) is if you are trying to still get the existing analog channels and your converter does not have the pass-through analog capability that some of them have (the RCA converter for example). Digital-only converters will receive only the digital channels.

    Another issue is the fact that most digital channels are not operating on their familiar channel numbers. For example, my local digital channel "6" is actually operating on channel 53, and after Feb. 17th it will be on channel 9. But my tuner still displays "6" because that's how the station prefers to be known. They send a special signal along with the digital video to make it happen on my tuner.

    The foregoing can be important if you don't have a very good UHF antenna. Again, your converter may be displaying a VHF channel number like 3.1, 10.1, or 13.1, etc., but in reality the incoming signal is on UHF in most cases. For that reason this digital conversion may compel you to upgrade your antenna.

    Bottom line: with good TV signal strength in your area and with your converter properly set up with a good antenna, and your analog TV set to the right channel, you should have no problem pulling in digital channels.


  • You may have to buy a new amplified antenna. An amplified antenna boosts the signal from the TV station so that the converter box will pick it up. I'm having the same problem with my TV in the bedroom.

    You should get a blue set up screen if your converter box is hooked up correctly.


  • You mean you bought a DTV converter box for your regular antenna TV? Apparently some stations that are simulcasting in Digital and Analog have different channels. If your channel Fox(31) is on 31 in Analog it may be on a different channel in Digital. I have a converter box hooked up to my TV, The one I bought automatically keeps the correct channel number that it is on. You should be able to go into the settings of the converter box and have it do a scan of all the local channels that are broadcasting in Digital. You WILL need to adjust the antenna for a stronger signal to come in, otherwise, you will find no signal or it will come in choppy. Try adjusting the antenna or moving it to another location to see if you get a better signal to the converter box. I know my converter box requires a signal strength of at least 30 to have the channel come in. If you are unsure of how to check what the signal strength is, read the instructions of the converter box. Every box is a little different.

    If that is the DTV box you bought and installed it and you are seeing snow, I think you have it installed incorrectly. The antenna needs to be connected to the converter box (at the in spot on back) then the out spot of the converter box needs to be placed to the TV (in spot) or the VCR(in spot). If it is going to the VCR, the out spot needs to run to the TV(in jack)
    Hope that helps. Good luck!







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    January 08th 2009 Posted to munchsmadonna.com edit