VCR

[love_to_camp]

HELP!!!!
My cable company just went digital,cox cable,now I can't use my old VCR,they tel me it's not compatible. Is thus true ? Or is there a way to make it work,if so,how would I make it work,thanks

[love_to_camp]

Thanks everyone for the info,I.m just to cheap and pissed how the service companies make it so that we have to depend on them for everything,if we all canceled our service for a couple of months we would see a big change in their attitudes ,now how yo listen to my wife *****,thanks again

[Gdetrailer]

1775 writes “I have a VCR with a digital tuner. I connect the cable coming into the house directly to the coax connector on the VCR and its digital tuner gets all of the basic channels - no problem. It is not connected through the cable box. Our cable went digital about years ago. We use this when the cable box decides its time to update itself for a hour. This update (which is a regular occurrence) only effects the cable box and not the cable signal on the line. Works just fine.”

Yeah, I thought the SAME thing when my Dad started to get notices from his cable Co that they were requiring ALL customers to get DTAs from the cable co office.. So I took the wait and see approach, less than one week after the drop dead date I got a phone call from my Dad that the cable was not working. Ran tuner scans on his TVs and NOTHING, NOT ONE CHANNEL came up on the scan.

Since late 2012 ALL CABLE COMPANIES NOW HAVE THE OPTION REQUIRE THE USAGE OF A DTA (Digital Transport Adapter or Cable box if you will) provided the cable Co offers it at a “reasonable price” or “free”.

Prior to late 2012 cable companies were barred from encrypting basic and local OTA channels by the FCC (Analog or QAM), They were only able to encrypt EXPANDED CABLE LEVEL TIERS AND PAID MOVIE CHANNELS..

That means ALL CABLE COMPANIES NOW HAVE THE OPTION TO ENCRYPT ALL CHANNELS INCLUDING BASIC AND LOCAL OTA CHANNELS.

NOT ALL CABLE COMPANIES HAVE TAKEN THIS OPTION AS OF YET.

In a nutshell, the cable co NOW HAS THE OPTION TO ENCRYPT ALL CHANNELS provided they offer all customers a low cost cable box (now days called a DTA), my Dads cable company offers two “free” DTAs and any additional can be rented. Not all cable co offer free DTAs but the fees vary from $2-$6 each per month..

Your cable co has not taken this option as of yet, but in the future they most likely will in order to protect their signals and increase their profits. They are under NO OBLIGATION to “provide” “in the clear” analog or digital channels.

Be glad your cable co hasn’t changed the rules on you.. BUT TIMES ARE CHANGING and cable companies ARE making use of the new relaxed FCC rules and your cable co CAN and most likely will in the not too distant future switch to DTA devices for all channels.

Cable companies never liked the idea that one could connect as many TVs to their system as you want and not pay any additional fees for each TV. With this ruling they now can control the quantity of TVs you place on the system and you will pay for additional TVs (when you get a DTA you MUST call the cable co office and they MUST “hit” your box to “authorize” the DTA).

Here is a FCC advisory concerning cable customers..

FCC ADVISORY TO CABLE SUBSCRIBERS

Advisory for Analog Cable Television Subscribers

This advisory applies to customers of cable television systems that carry both analog and digital channels (called "hybrid" systems). If you subscribe to a hybrid cable system and you watch programming without a cable set-top box or other equipment (that is, you plug the cable feed directly into your TV set), then your cable television service may be affected by a recent FCC rule change. Subscribers to "all analog" or "all digital" cable systems are not affected by this rule change.
Background
Effective December 12, 2012, a hybrid cable system operator may choose to carry some or all local broadcast stations only in digital format (instead of carrying these stations in both a digital and an analog format). This is a business decision made by your cable company and is not required by the federal government. If your cable operator decides to carry certain local broadcast stations only in digital format, FCC rules require that it offer you the necessary equipment (for example, a set-top box, digital transport adaptor (DTA), or a CableCARD) either for free or at an affordable cost. Cable operators must also provide at least 30 days' notice to subscribers and local broadcast stations before carrying a broadcast station only in digital format.
Why did the FCC change this rule?
The FCC recently determined that changes in the television marketplace and technology should permit cable operators more flexibility in meeting their legal obligation to ensure that all broadcast stations are "viewable" to subscribers. Industry statistics show that cable subscribers are rapidly switching to digital service. In addition, cable operators are now making small digital set-top boxes available at low cost (or no cost) to analog customers. Giving cable operators more flexibility regarding the use of their limited capacity will allow them to tailor their offerings more closely to the needs of their subscribers. Operators that transition some or all channels to digital will have more capacity to offer improved services, such as greater broadband speeds and wider HD offerings, to the growing number of cable subscribers receiving digital service. Under the FCC's rules, it is up to the individual cable operator to choose whether to continue to carry some or all local broadcast stations in analog format.
Who Will Be Affected by This Change?
Subscribers to hybrid cable systems who currently watch television without a set-top box or other equipment (that is, they plug the cable feed directly into a TV set) will be affected by this change. This includes, for example, subscribers watching television with an analog TV set or with a digital TV set that does not have a quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) tuner. Most digital TV sets, however, have a QAM tuner that will allow subscribers to watch digital cable channels without a set-top box.
What Does This Mean for Cable Subscribers?
If you are a subscriber to a hybrid cable system, you should be aware:
· If your cable operator chooses to continue carrying all broadcast stations in both digital and analog format, your television service will not be affected by this recent FCC rule change.
· If your cable operator chooses to stop carrying some or all broadcast stations in analog format, you may need a set-top box, DTA or CableCARD to continue viewing these stations on analog TV sets.
o Your cable operator must provide you with advance notice about any change in analog cable service and must offer you a set-top box, DTA or CableCARD at low or no cost.
o Many consumers with newer TV sets (digital TV sets with a QAM tuner) can watch digital cable channels without a set-top box. Try scanning for channels. (See FCC Consumer Guide about Rescanning for Digital TV Channels: www.fcc.gov/guides/rescan-digital-tv-channels.) If scanning does not work, you will need a set-top box.
For More Information
For information about other communications issues, visit the FCC's Consumer website, or contact the FCC's Consumer Center at 1-888-CALL-FCC (1-888-225-5322) voice or 1-888-TELL-FCC (1-888-835-5322) TTY; faxing 1-866-418-0232; or writing to:
Federal Communications Commission
Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau
Consumer Inquiries and Complaints Division
445 12th Street, S.W.
Washington, DC 20554


Here is just a few press releases about some cable companies taking the option to encrypt..

END OF DIRECT PLUG IN CABLE
Posted Dec 16, 2014

It's the end of the cable line for Cox basic-cable customers who plug the coaxial directly into their television.

Starting in January, Cox's move to all-digital service will require every television to use a set-top box or a new-issue mini-box.

The newly available bandwidth, however, should result in noticeable improvements in picture and sound quality on basic-cable's standard-definition channels and, eventually, faster Internet speeds for everyone. The analog service consumes 40 percent of Cox's downstream network bandwidth.

To retain basic-cable service, current subscribers can order as many as two mini-boxes by phone or online at no additional charge, depending on their service tier, for up to two years. (Call 1-855-809-9567 or visit http://www.cox.com

Cox says people who purchase service by April 28, 2015, will receive a no-fee box for 120 days. After that, they will be billed $1.99 a month for each mini-box.

A Federal Communications Commission ruling in late 2012 allows cable providers to shut down unencrypted basic channels — major networks ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and PBS, and public access. Unencrypted analog signals were easily shared (or stolen) by wiring multiple televisions from a single cable feed using a splitter. The encrypted digital signals are unwatchable without a decoder box.

Cable companies, as part of the FCC ruling, must offer basic-cable customers who have no set-top boxes in the house — often the poor or elderly — either a set-top box or, where applicable, a CableCard free for two years. Medicaid recipients get a box at no cost for five years.

"The mini-boxes are available now," says Eric Wagner, a Cox spokesman, "but we will not begin actually transitioning channels until January.''

CHARTER CABLE DROPS ANALOG

Charter Drops Analog Signals

From Issue: Volume XXI - Number 16
8/9/2013

By Steve Propes

Charter Cable is hoping that shakedown problems associated with the now legendary conversion of broadcast TV signals from analog to digital five years ago do not repeat in late August when their Long Beach operation deletes all of its approximately 35 basic analog channels (one through 99).

According to Charter, about two percent of their customer base receives the analog signal, though some homes use both analog and digital signals, according to Charter Director of Regional Communications Southwest, Brian Anderson, “This is a project that will impact several thousand customers.”

When broadcast TV went digital in 2008, Long Beach’s Charter system decided to keep their analog signal while converting most households to digital. Currently, about 98 percent of all Charter customers get the digital service, thus most will not have to do anything. The basic analog customers will have to order and rent a digital converter, which the customer is expected to install. So-called “professional installation” on the part of Charter will cost $29.99.

“What Charter has done as a courtesy to our customers, is provide both analog and digital,” Anderson said. “In many cases, the same program was available in analog and digital. We will remove all analog in the systems, when we reclaim that space dedicated to analog, we can put much more digital signals into that space. We have been watching what the digital acceptance is among our customers. Nationwide, we’re at 90 percent, customers who have at least one digital device in their home. In Long Beach, it’s 98 percent. Less than two percent are analog.”

There is one fly in the ointment. Those customers converting to digital need to acquire a converter box, for which Charter charges a monthly $5.99 fee, an increase from $5 a month when Charter dropped 20 channels, a PBS signal, Headline News and CNBC from their basic service to their digital platform in February 2013. At the time, Charter did not allow converter fees to be waived. With the complete conversion beginning on August 20, that converter fee can be avoided, but only for a limited time.

Anderson explained, “currently customers on basic services are eligible for two free boxes for a two year period and if they qualify for Medicaid, it’s free for five years. The FCC does have a certain qualifiers attached.”

However, those who went digital when HLN, CNBC and other channels were dropped from basic earlier this year can forget about the free box offer. “The offer is not retroactive for boxes already on the customer’s account,” said Anderson, who said customers could contact Charter for “their eligibility for additional box offers in relation to the California All Digital project.”

TIME WARNER DROPS ANALOG IN 5 YRS

July 7, 2011

Time Warner Cable has announced it will cease analog cable television service within five years, as the cable company embarks on a wholesale transition to all-digital cable.

While Time Warner Cable already runs older digital cable systems in New York City and parts of Los Angeles, today’s announcement represents the company’s de-emphasis on Switched Digital Video (SDV), the technology the cable operator initially supported to free up channel space on its systems. SDV allowed Time Warner Cable to maintain analog cable lineups for consumers who detest cable set top boxes. Instead of converting the entire lineup to digital, Time Warner changed the way it delivered certain digital cable channels, only sending their signals to viewers in neighborhoods actually watching them at the time.
“We always said we would supplement switched digital video with going all-digital,” Britt said. “Our plan is to migrate all systems to all-digital over the next five years.”
The decision means Time Warner Cable has opted to follow Comcast’s lead towards all-digital systems, instead of trying to support both analog and digital video.
Britt said the company’s first target city for the all-digital switch is Augusta, Maine. Customers there will be given the choice of taking the cable company’s traditional set top box or new Digital Transport Adapters (DTAs), devices which convert digital signals into standard definition analog video, suitable for televisions where customers may not need or want a full-powered cable box. DTAs have traditionally been given away in small numbers or rented for a nominal fee (usually under $2 a month) by other cable operators like Comcast. But Time Warner has not made any specific announcements about pricing for impacted subscribers just yet.
When complete, every Time Warner cable subscriber will need to have either a cable box, a DTA, or CableCARD for every cable-connected television in the home.

Here is a search for “FCC relaxes rules for unencrypted cable”
LINK

[wa8yxm]

I found it.. (What I was looking for and forgot the name of VCR PLUS

Yes, that is what it was VCR PLUS

VCR Plus new on E-bay decent price.

Now.. I do not know if it will work with your cable company's box but it did back when it was a hot item and TV-Guide (Far as I know) no longer programs VCR plus codes but it still can be used in "VCR" mode where you say "Record cable channel 127 from 3-4 PM"

THey even had a voice operated version at one time (I did not google for that one but was reminded of it while searching for this one)

But that's the box I was looking for

It has to be positioned where both the VCR and the Cable Decoder box can see it.

[bcsdguy]

I have Brighthouse and none of their boxes and I can record on my vcr at least at the present time.I do pay for their basic service so they haven't cut off the analog yet.

[Chris_Bryant]

1775 wrote:
I have a VCR with a digital tuner. I connect the cable coming into the house directly to the coax connector on the VCR and its digital tuner gets all of the basic channels - no problem. It is not connected through the cable box. Our cable went digital about years ago. We use this when the cable box decides its time to update itself for a hour. This update (which is a regular occurrence) only effects the cable box and not the cable signal on the line. Works just fine.

I believe Cox is like Brighthouse- you *must* use their box, as the signal is scrambled- not clear. Makes it a pain, but a lot of it is going to switched digital- they don't send the signal until you tune in.

[austinjenna]

I'm young, whats a VCR? Is that like a phonograph or telegraph or something

[1775]

Gdetrailer wrote:

1775 wrote:
If you VCR does not have a digital tuner you are going to have to put a digital tuner box on it - about $50 - to be able to bring in digital signals though you will only get the basic channels as in the broadcast networks. It can be done. I have one at home set up like this. What you cannot do is get full cable unless your cable company provides a cable decoder box with analog out connections - which I also have set up from my cable company - they charge per box but this is half the monthly charge than for the DVR box. Also you can connect an antenna to the same digital tuner box and bring in bring in a lot more as there are many digital over the air networks - some better than what is on cable - you will need a decent antenna to do that.

ATSC/CLEAR QAM external tuner WILL NOT WORK PERIOD once the cable co flips to all digital.

Ran into this with my Dads cable co last summer.

A FCC ruling preventing cable co from scrambling all channels expired a couple of years ago.

My local cable co REQUIRES a digital set top cable converter in order to get even basic channels. Cable company will provide at no charge the cheapest piece of junk converter you can find. It has NO analog or digital video/audio outputs and only has analog RF 3/4 modulator.

You set your tv to channel 3 or 4 and the converter does all the rest of the work. Very bad for those who are elderly like my Dad and don't have good vision or memory on how to work new things.

The converter isn't compatible with the super sized basic 6 button generic remotes I bought for him 4 yrs ago..

Basically in a nutshell the cable co is merely removing all analog channels and then flipping on the private bit in the QAM data stream. A non cable tuner will see the private data bit in the stream and ignore that stream.

If the OP wishes to use their VCR to record the cable channels they still can. However there will be some sacrifices to do so.

They will need to use RF out of the cable tuner to record.

The cable co converter is first (RF out of the converter goes into the ANT IN of the VCR) then the VCR RF output goes to the TV antenna in.

VCR tuner needs set to channel 3/4 to get the output of the converter.

You will have to set the cable tuner to the channel you want to record then set the VCR tuner for the time you want to record.

You will not be able to multiple record without changing the cable tuner and you will not be able to watch a different cable channel while recording..

Not to mention ALL recordings will be reduced in quality due to the multiple tuner chain..

Now if you wanted to chip in and pay a monthly "rental fee" your cable co may offer a better converter which may analog video outputs but these are also becoming dinosaurs, most likely the step up converters will have HDMI output and that output will be HD copy protection compliant.

I have a VCR with a digital tuner. I connect the cable coming into the house directly to the coax connector on the VCR and its digital tuner gets all of the basic channels - no problem. It is not connected through the cable box. Our cable went digital about years ago. We use this when the cable box decides its time to update itself for a hour. This update (which is a regular occurrence) only effects the cable box and not the cable signal on the line. Works just fine.

[time2roll]

Let TiVo take you to a better place :B

The tubes and magneto in the vcr are no longer compatible. Just wait until you get your new bill increase in 6 to 18 months 😞

[Gene_Ginny]

I am in the same Cox Cable service area (RI) as the OP. They were supposed to drop the analog signals by June 8 but so far they are still there. At some point everything will be scrambled and require some kind of box .... and the monthly fee $$$$ after the first 2 years.

If your VCR has a slot for a cablecard that is one option. I added one to my TIVO series 3 HD. Older VCRs do not have that option.

The other option is the Cox "mini box" which has a channel 3/4 output in SD mode but the VCR would need an IR blaster to control changing channels on the mini box.

The cablecard works well but the mini box I got doesn't work properly. I already exchanged it and the new one doesn't work either, same failure mode.

One sore point with Cox Cable. Their promo material says you get 2 mini boxes free for the first 2 years (as required by the FCC). It also says you can substitute a cablecard for a mini box. When I went to the Cox store to get a mini box and a cable card their computer upchucked and indicated I could get 2 mini boxes OR 2 cablecards but not one of each without the $1.99/month fee.

[Gdetrailer]

1775 wrote:
If you VCR does not have a digital tuner you are going to have to put a digital tuner box on it - about $50 - to be able to bring in digital signals though you will only get the basic channels as in the broadcast networks. It can be done. I have one at home set up like this. What you cannot do is get full cable unless your cable company provides a cable decoder box with analog out connections - which I also have set up from my cable company - they charge per box but this is half the monthly charge than for the DVR box. Also you can connect an antenna to the same digital tuner box and bring in bring in a lot more as there are many digital over the air networks - some better than what is on cable - you will need a decent antenna to do that.

ATSC/CLEAR QAM external tuner WILL NOT WORK PERIOD once the cable co flips to all digital.

Ran into this with my Dads cable co last summer.

A FCC ruling preventing cable co from scrambling all channels expired a couple of years ago.

My local cable co REQUIRES a digital set top cable converter in order to get even basic channels. Cable company will provide at no charge the cheapest piece of junk converter you can find. It has NO analog or digital video/audio outputs and only has analog RF 3/4 modulator.

You set your tv to channel 3 or 4 and the converter does all the rest of the work. Very bad for those who are elderly like my Dad and don't have good vision or memory on how to work new things.

The converter isn't compatible with the super sized basic 6 button generic remotes I bought for him 4 yrs ago..

Basically in a nutshell the cable co is merely removing all analog channels and then flipping on the private bit in the QAM data stream. A non cable tuner will see the private data bit in the stream and ignore that stream.

If the OP wishes to use their VCR to record the cable channels they still can. However there will be some sacrifices to do so.

They will need to use RF out of the cable tuner to record.

The cable co converter is first (RF out of the converter goes into the ANT IN of the VCR) then the VCR RF output goes to the TV antenna in.

VCR tuner needs set to channel 3/4 to get the output of the converter.

You will have to set the cable tuner to the channel you want to record then set the VCR tuner for the time you want to record.

You will not be able to multiple record without changing the cable tuner and you will not be able to watch a different cable channel while recording..

Not to mention ALL recordings will be reduced in quality due to the multiple tuner chain..

Now if you wanted to chip in and pay a monthly "rental fee" your cable co may offer a better converter which may analog video outputs but these are also becoming dinosaurs, most likely the step up converters will have HDMI output and that output will be HD copy protection compliant.

[joebedford]

Your cable box may have red/white/yellow RCA output connectors in which case your VCR probably can record.

[Ron3rd]

We use our VCR for old Disney movies for the grand kids via an old (RCA I believe) input on our AV receiver. You could also do it if your TV has the right input. Doubtful you can plug it into the cable box.

[1775]

If you VCR does not have a digital tuner you are going to have to put a digital tuner box on it - about $50 - to be able to bring in digital signals though you will only get the basic channels as in the broadcast networks. It can be done. I have one at home set up like this. What you cannot do is get full cable unless your cable company provides a cable decoder box with analog out connections - which I also have set up from my cable company - they charge per box but this is half the monthly charge than for the DVR box. Also you can connect an antenna to the same digital tuner box and bring in bring in a lot more as there are many digital over the air networks - some better than what is on cable - you will need a decent antenna to do that.

[bcsdguy]

SCVJeff wrote:
If you are required to use their cable box to see anything, then your VCR is useless unless the cable box has analog outputs and you plan on recording what you watch.

Bcsdguy: You are running on borrowed time with your analog system. The FCC cleared the cable companies to shut down their analog systems and go full digital if they want. TWC quietly killed what analog service they had left on my system about a year ago.

My unit is a combo dvd/vcr recorder and I can record with the vcr or the dvd. Maybe the conversion takes place in my machine.

[wa8yxm]

There used to be a hand held (Remote) Device that would operate both a VCR and a Cable box.. You put it where both could be seen, Left both VCR and Cable box on and it selected the proper cable channel and then told the VCR to start (and stop) recording.

TV Guide (partnered with the manufacturer) had code numbers in their publication which auto-programmed this device or you could do it VCR style.

I do not know if it is still made or if it will work with your box.

SOME Recordrs (Mostly DVR's) can power an I/R Blaster device to control a cable box.. My DVR's can.. But I've never seen a VCR do it.

Time for an Upgrade I think.

Nothing like a VCR with a 1,000 hour tape that has instant access to any show recorded on it.