Cowboys and HDTV question

[lurkercowboy]

I just made the leap to HDTV with directv. Can anyone tell me how many Cowboy games are supposed to be in HD this season? How many were in HDTV last season? Anyone have information?

[pittdawg]

Originally Posted by lurkercowboy

I just made the leap to HDTV with directv. Can anyone tell me how many Cowboy games are supposed to be in HD this season? How many were in HDTV last season? Anyone have information?

i have directv and all games on cbs, fox or espn were broadcast in HD. if you have the nfl package, you have to pay an additional amount to get all the games in HD.

[DA FAN]

It depends on where you live.

Where I live, Fox local station does not broadcast in HD. So even if I have Directv, I will not get any FOX games in HD. The same would apply for any other local channels that do not broadcast in HD.

[RCowboyFan]

In DFW area, all Cowboys games will be HD on Local, which you will get through Directv if you have the local package too.

And as Pittdawg said, NFL Sunday ticket does quite a bit of them in HD, but if you are in local market, I guess you wont need that anyway. Although I believe Directv announced last year that, from this season onwards, they will play even the Local TV games, in their scheduled NFL ticket channels also, instead of blacking them out in the NFL ticket channels.

[silverbear]

Originally Posted by pittdawg

i have directv and all games on cbs, fox or espn were broadcast in HD. if you have the nfl package, you have to pay an additional amount to get all the games in HD.

Well, that seems to be true this year, but it wasn't the case last year... last year, many of the Cowboys games were blacked out on HD in my area, and it was the same the year before, so I put that extra hundred bucks back in my pocket...

But this year, they say there's not gonna be any blackouts, so I'm probably gonna pony up again...

Have you noticed that the HD broadcasts of AFC games were a noticeably higher definition than the NFC games were?? Those broadcasts were just AMAZING...

[silverbear]

Originally Posted by DA FAN

It depends on where you live.

Where I live, Fox local station does not broadcast in HD. So even if I have Directv, I will not get any FOX games in HD. The same would apply for any other local channels that do not broadcast in HD.

If you have the Sunday Ticket, and fork over extra for their HD package, that's not the case... where you live will have absolutely no effect on the availability of the games...

[lurkercowboy]

What is included in the HD package? Is that over and above the Sunday Ticket?

Thanks everyone

[kmd24]

Originally Posted by silverbear

Have you noticed that the HD broadcasts of AFC games were a noticeably higher definition than the NFC games were?? Those broadcasts were just AMAZING...

It somewhat depends on the native resolution of your set, I think. My set is 1080i, so the 720p signal that is broadcast by Fox, ABC, and ESPN don't look as good as the CBS broadcasts, which are in 1080i.

OTOH, the CBS broacasts occasionally look worse (sort of pixelated I guess) when there is a zoomed in action shot with a lot of movement.

[Meat-O-Rama]

I live in the Los Angeles area, and with the Sunday Ticket, I caught every Cowboys game in HD last year. It was a big jump from the year before where probably 50-75% of their games were HD. I'd expect just about every NFL game to be available in HD this year.

[Dallas]

Originally Posted by pittdawg

i have directv and all games on cbs, fox or espn were broadcast in HD. if you have the nfl package, you have to pay an additional amount to get all the games in HD.

Dont you have to have 2 seperate dishes to get the DTV HDTV pkg?

[jazzcat22]

Originally Posted by Dallas

Dont you have to have 2 seperate dishes to the the DTV HDTV pkg?

No, I believe it's just the receiver is different. I have DTV, but never looked into the HDTV. Mostly because I was traveling last year, so had to watch Cowboys games from a sports bar and did not get to check into the HDTV.
This year I may see about it.

[silverbear]

Originally Posted by kmd24

It somewhat depends on the native resolution of your set, I think. My set is 1080i, so the 720p signal that is broadcast by Fox, ABC, and ESPN don't look as good as the CBS broadcasts, which are in 1080i.

I guess mine must be 1080i too...

[silverbear]

Originally Posted by Dallas

Dont you have to have 2 seperate dishes to the the DTV HDTV pkg?

No, one dish, but you will have to get a different LNB for the dish... and of course, you'll need an HD receiver and an HDTV... I got two for one, the 38" RCA I bought (not a plasma) had the HD DirecTV receiver built into it...

[RegiStar]

Originally Posted by jazzcat22

No, I believe it's just the receiver is different. I have DTV, but never looked into the HDTV. Mostly because I was traveling last year, so had to watch Cowboys games from a sports bar and did not get to check into the HDTV.
This year I may see about it.

Actually you need a HDTV, an HD Receiver, and the oval satellite dish.
http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/imagin..._equipment.jsp

For more of your questions answered go here:
http://www.solidsignal.com/tech_faqs_01.asp

That is all!

[lspain1]

HDTV on DirecTV, depending on your location, requires MPEG-2 (triple LNB dish + receiver) or MPEG-4 (5 LNB dish + receiver) equipment (MPEG-4 equipment gets you HD locals without an OTA antenna). Last year, IIRC, all but two or three Cowboys games ended up in HD. Getting the HD signal from DirecTV as a distant fan required the HD package, Sunday Ticket, and the Superfan Package. If you are in the Dallas local broadcast area, you will not need anything beyond the HD package to get the Cowboys. My personal experience was that getting all available football games in HD was worth the money but your mileage may vary.