Might be the huge financial requirements needed to convert their transmitter from VHF to UHF that is holding them back...

I am sure that is true. Installing a new antenna on Saturna Island certainly wouldn't be cheap. I can't imagine the new owners have overly deep pockets. and it is not as if any other broadcaster is using their tower that they can share costs with. Having said that, they do have a great tower location for serving both Vancouver and Victoria and a VHF (preferably HI) allocation might be better for them than one of the stations transmitting from Mt. Seymour.

Might be the huge financial requirements needed to convert their transmitter from VHF to UHF that is holding them back...

Yeah, but we're talking about the last part of the transmission system that they're cheaping out on. The expensive part is from the exciter going up stream to the studio. Down stream of the exciter all you have is the transmitter and the antenna.

CHEK, even if it stays on channel 6, is going to need a digital STL for HD, HD equipment and routing in their master control, they're going to need an HD encoder, they're going to need a PSIP system, they're going to need a transport stream multiplexer, and they're going to need a digital exciter. That's where they're going to be spending the money regardless of whether they stay low VHF or go UHF or high VHF.

There are deals to be had on transmitters right now, especially in the United States. If they looked hard enough they could probably find a UHF or high VHF transmitter and antenna they could have for free. Every American television station that operated a digital companion channel wound-up with an extra transmitter on June 12, 2009. Some of those stations would probably be glad for someone like CHEK to come along and haul that stuff away.

I know only 5% of BC is OTA, but getting a usable HD signal to Vancouver OTA would save CHEK whatever money it would cost to fiber their HD signal to cable headends in the lowermainland, provided that the cable companies could take the digital HD signal off the air.

Plus, 5% of the market is still tens of thousands of homes. It's enough that it could make a difference in ratings.

You know, I could be wrong, but I think I've heard that KVOS-TV in Bellingham may have their old channel 12 transmitter and possibly the antenna kicking around somewhere in storage. If memory serves me, they had a resonably new solid state NEC transmitter. If CHEK isn't going to use its channel 49 allotment, then I'd certainly rather see them use a high band VHF channel like 12 (which is avaliable), than a low band channel like 6.

I'd certainly rather see them use a high band VHF channel like 12 (which is avaliable), than a low band channel like 6.

Where did you hear that it is available? I can't see it listed as one of the available allocations for either Vancouver or Victoria. If it is available to Bellingham, it isn't very easy to get the allocation moved to Canada (it would probably take years of red tape).

A better option might be to use channel 8. I seem to remember hearing that CHAN wants to stay on 22 instead of reverting to 8. It might require a null towards Seattle, but that shouldn't be too difficult. Either way it wouldn't avoid the installation costs though (they would likely have to use a helicopter).

I was thinking that Alex1978 meant that CHEK could buy and transport the old KVOS analogue transmitter that was used on channel 12 all those years. If that's what he meant, unfortunately most of those old transmitters cannot be converted to DTV so I doubt it would be of use.

Personally I hope that CHEK will be able to go with a clean-sheet new DT transmitter, but definitely on a UHF channel if at all possible. IC has allotted them channel 49 post-transitionally, so that would be fine.

Personally I hope that CHEK will be able to go with a clean-sheet new DT transmitter, but definitely on a UHF channel if at all possible. IC has allotted them channel 49 post-transitionally, so that would be fine.

That's what I hope too, but if the problem is that CHEK is so strapped for cash that they can't afford new equipment, I was suggesting that they try to find a used transmitter and/or antenna that someone might let them have for free since there are a bunch of them laying around right now.

They can even get a brand new solid state UHF transmitter on the cheap.
http://www.ptibroadcast.com/

I don't know how good those transmitters are, but I know they're a far sight cheaper than if they bought the transmitter from Harris.

A better option might be to use channel 8. I seem to remember hearing that CHAN wants to stay on 22 instead of reverting to 8.

I think that's a good idea too, I'd rather CHAN stay on 22 and I'd definitely rather see CHEK on channel 8 than channel 6.

http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/archive/2010/2010-714.htm

Link to Application Attachment (http://www.crtc.gc.ca/public/broad/applications/2010/2010-1446-4.zip)
Note that the attachment above is for the Fraser Valley transmitter only.

Based on the proposed coverage map for the Fraser Valley transmitter, coverage will reach near Hope to parts of West Vancouver (does not quite reach Horsehoe Bay) and down to Bellingham.

CHNU also requests the right to request delaying the transition to digital, if CBC is allowed to delay their digital transition.

Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2010-714

PDF version

Ottawa, 27 September 2010

Notice of application received

Victoria and Fraser Valley, British Columbia
Deadline for submission of interventions/comments: 18 October 2010

The Commission has received the following application:

[Broadcasting interventions/comments form]

Applicant and Locality

1. Zoomer Media Inc., on behalf of the Christian Channel Inc.
Victoria and Fraser Valley, British Columbia
Application No. 2010-1446-4

1. Victoria and Fraser Valley, British Columbia
Application No. 2010-1446-4

Application by Zoomer Media Inc., on behalf of the Christian Channel Inc., to amend the broadcasting licences for the conventional television programming undertakings CHNU-TV Fraser Valley and CHNU-TV-1 Victoria.

The licensee proposes to add post-transitional digital transmitters to serve the areas of Fraser Valley and Victoria.

The CHNU-TV transmitter would operate on channel 47 with an average effective radiated power (ERP) of 7,800 watts (maximum ERP of 21,400 watts with an effective height of antenna above average terrain of 335.0 metres).

The CHNU-TV-1 transmitter would operate on channel 21 with an average ERP of 1,600 watts (maximum ERP of 3,500 watts with an effective height of antenna above average terrain of 99.4 metres).

The Commission notes that this application is in compliance with the Department of Industry’s DTV (Digital Television) Post-Transition Allotment Plan – Notice No. SMBR-006-08.

The Commission also notes that this amendment would have an impact on viewership present within the regional service areas.

For CHNU-TV, the population served would increase from 1,089,932 to 2,353,988 (an increase of 115.96%).

For CHNU-TV1, the population served would increase from 286,531 to 348,485 (an increase of 21.62%).

Licensee’s address:

171 East Liberty Street
Suite 230
Toronto, Ontario
M6K 3P6
Fax: 416-368-9774
E-mail: monique.lafontaine@zoomermedia.ca

Examination of application:

204-5668 192 Street
Surrey, British Columbia
Public participation

Deadline for interventions

18 October 2010

Another thing (must be a typo) it says the Licensee for CKXT-TV and CKXT-TV-1 is "The Miracle Channel Association" though for CKXT-DT-2 and CKXT-DT-2 it is "TVA Group Inc."
If Groupe TVA have it their way, they intended to shut down CKXT-TV/DT anyway when they'll become SunTV News in january 2011.

Another thing (must be a typo) it says the Licensee for CKXT-TV and CKXT-TV-1 is "The Miracle Channel Association"

Well...yeah...it is the Miracle Channel. It will be a miracle if they stay on the air (OTA) in 2011 after they become SunTV News :D

I thought VHF lo was going to be phased out, much like UHF 52-69.

I thought VHF lo was going to be phased out
Naaaaah. Analog channels 2 to 6 (low-VHF) are just discouraged by the FCC to be used for digital broadcasting, but they aren't being phased out. About 40 stations in the USA, mostly in small markets, still use low-VHF frequencies.

If you wanna know more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_television_transition_in_the_United_States#Loss_of_s ervice

CHEK using vhf 6 for DTV is short sighted.

mobile dtv on 6? nope.
easy reception on laptop tuner for tv or data casting? nope.
easy reseption for hdtv? nope, needs too big an antenna and prone to fm interfearance. (I already loose audio to CBC Radio 1 at 88.1 mhz). In additon most of hdtv ota users have uhf or uhf optimized antennas and don't want to have to add a big vhf-lo antenna.

CHEK on VHF 6 = FAIL

Further information about using VHF-LO for DTV can be found in the thread Transitioning To A VHF-LO DTV Channel - Unwise and uncaring! (http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=129719).

I looked it up and the CRTC estimates that it would cost CHEK about $730,000 to transition from analog 6 to DTV 49. Not as much as I would have thought, but still a lot of money for a small station.

As a comparison, the CRTC estimates that it will cost CIII-TV (Paris) about $396,000 to stay on channel 6 (though it is difficult to say if the circumstances are exactly the same).

(see Cost Estimate of Digital Television (DTV) Conversion for Canada (http://www.crtc.gc.ca/recherche-search/ViewResult.aspx?result_url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.crtc.gc.ca%2feng %2fpublications%2freports%2fdtv0903.htm&page_index=1&statistics_id=00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000))

If anyone gets a substantive response from CHEK about the VHF-LO issue I'd sure like to see it.

Application for Victoria transmitter has been added to attachment, though no contour maps. CHNU is owned by Zoomermedia.

CHNU is owned by Zoomermedia.

True, Rogers owned CHNU until 2008 when they sold it (along with sister station CIIT) to S-VOX who then sold their broadcasting assets to ZoomerMedia in 2010.

Re: CHNU digital transmitters, application and contour maps for the Victoria transmitter are now posted on the CRTC's website:

http://www.crtc.gc.ca/public/broad/applications/2010/2010-1446-4.zip

The digital contour expands the reception area as compared to analog. New locations within range would include Sooke, Sidney, and Shawnigan Lake.

I wouldn't necessarily trust those contour maps — especially with the terrain west of Victoria.
Why don't you check out Page 22 of the PDF containing their technical briefing. That page has a map that shows *realistic* contours based on terrain. Sooke is outside the expected service area while Sidney and Shawnigan Lake are borderline.

mobile dtv on 6? nope.

Actually, of the VHF channels, 6 is probably the best for mobile DTV. Many mobile devices also have an FM tuner and since channel 6 is adjacent to the FM band, the FM antenna should work well for it as well. Circular polarization of the broadcast would likely be necessary however.