Does anyone have an idea of what Generation chip would be in a Panasonic 42PX75 manufactured in Dec of 2007?

Your best bet would be to ask Panasonic directly, but even then the CSR will likely not know. I would suspect that it would be a 5th Gen chip, but I don't know that for sure.

P.S.

Why does my brand new HDTV have only one coax input? Didn't old TV's have both cable and antenna leads? It forces us to select either an antenna or a cable. Most consumers (myself included) plug in their cable and never know that DTV is free to air. That is why I think we need to push clear-QAM as a way to expose more people to OTA-DT.

Didn't old TV's have both cable and antenna leads?

No. There were/are some high-end models that have dual RF inputs. These were usually there to accommodate cable converters with RF outputs, while allowing unscrambled channels to be tuned directly. Often, subsequent cost-reduced models removed this feature. For example, the first year of Panasonic Gaoo TVs had this feature, but subsequent model years did not.

You're probably thinking of really old models that had both 300-ohm and 75-ohm inputs. This was actually one RF input, with the two input connections wired together through a balun.

There were/are some high-end models that have dual RF inputs.

I think this is what Michael DeAbreu was talking about. Some TVs labeled one input Cable and the other Antenna while others labeled one Analog and the other Digital. I believe on some sets the Antenna input would have both NTSC and ATSC tuners while the Cable input only had an NTSC tuner.

Some TVs labeled one input Cable and the other Antenna while others labeled one Analog and the other Digital.

And pre-ATSC, some just labelled them ANT1 and ANT2, with each connected to the NTSC tuner. A relay controlled by the remote control switched to select the input to the single NTSC tuner.

The Sony SXRD A2000 line has dual inputs (Antenna and CATV). I haven't tried switching them on purpose and running channel scans to see what happens, but I assume the specific frequency scanning tables are geared directly to each of those inputs.

The Antenna input feeds a combined NTSC and ATSC tuner system. The CATV input feeds an analogue and Clear QAM tuner system.

I played with a Viewsonic 4280 and a cheap Daytek from Costco, they both had dual RF IIRC...It is a convenient feature but not a must. I haven't looked back and watch analog cable since I went OTA-HD.

My thoughts are that if you are buying a new TV, if you have any need for a NTSC tuner (analog cable, VCR, older video game console, etc) in the set, then dual RF inputs requires serious consideration.

My in-laws have an HDTV in the basement which sports a single input, but because it is only for use by the grandkids, and they aren't interested in learning how to operate the set beyond [Power On/Off], [Channel +/- ], and [Input](for DVD's), the ATSC tuner is never used. If they didn't have to get off the couch to work the a/b switch, it would be a different story.... maybe :rolleyes:

On a related note, has anyone ever seen a newer HDTV with dual ATSC tuners, capable of PIP? I think with the increase in BDU provided STB's, PIP has become a thing of the past. My old Hitachi 46f500 has dual NTSC tuners, and it was nice to be able to watch two shows at once - e.g. hockey/football etc, via PIP if you're into that sort of thing. The dual NTSC tuners in my set can be set to different frequency tables - one to analog CATV and one to OTA for example.

cheers

PIP is almost forgotten. Unlike displaying 2 analog cable channels in the past that made everyone happy, for some reason the newer HDTV won't display whichever 2 sources (eg. NOT 2 digital sources) you selected but rather whichever one it could do. Definitely not 2 ATSC channels with most current models.

I use plasma so PIP is generally discouraged. There is actually no PIP toggle on the remote of my Sammy A550...it's burried somewhere in the menu.

I played with a Viewsonic 4280 and a cheap Daytek from Costco, they both had dual RF IIRC...It is a convenient feature but not a must. I haven't looked back and watch analog cable since I went OTA-HD.
Speaking of which -- I have a 2-year old 37" Viewsonic from Costco, with dual RF inputs (air + cable), and the built-in ATSC tuner it has smokes the HDHomeRun units I use in my HPTC for weak signals on WPNI-DT (UHF 23).

Cheers

Speaking of which -- I have a 2-year old 37" Viewsonic from Costco, with dual RF inputs (air + cable), and the built-in ATSC tuner it has smokes the HDHomeRun units I use in my HPTC for weak signals on WPNI-DT (UHF 23).

Cheers
When I had the Viewsonic 4280, the menu was different from the other Viewsonics are selling. OTOH, I played around with a 42" Akai plasma and the menu was exactly the same as the Viewsonics. Guess what ? I got NBC more often back then than now LOL! The Akai had a good ATSC tuner with full EPG and everything. I would have kept it but the Dolby Digital 5.1 sound off Canadian OTA channels were all screwed up for some reason and I had no idea why.

We have viewsonic n4285p - it just beats out my HVR-950, maybe by like 5% better signal (i.e. if the signal is too low to lock on the PC, but almost there, maybe like 45% if 50 is required to lock, the TV will pick it up fine.) I'm not sure of the extent of this, but I'd say it's at least 10% better than the HVR-950 (old version) based on the signal numbers reported from HVR-950.

I also found it interesting that the menus (on the Viewsonic) were IDENTICAL to a friend's "big" name TV. (I think it was a SONY? I forget.)
(I consider viewsonic to be a quality name, however. Unlike the noname walmart brands and such, Viewsonic is actually a well established player in the computer monitor sector)
I don't recall dual RF inputs, however.

Does anyone knows whether Sony Bravia KLV-40S200A has a built-in ATSC tuner or not? I cannot get it to recieve digital channel signals from Channel Master 4228 Antenna. There is no analog/digital switches on the setting page of the TV. Please help. Thanks.

Looking around, I see mentions of "HD Ready" and no mention of an ATSC tuner - this leads me to believe it is NTSC-only.
You can still use an external STB to get your HD picture, however.

I just called Sony, they told me there is no ATSC tuner built-in on it, it is bad news for me. Any suggestion what kind of STB box or something else I need to get to make my Sony KLV-40S200A TV to receive digital channels from the antanne? Thanks.

Yes, look up the Samsung model in this thread:

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=42186

You don't want a converter box, just the Sammy STB. :)

I just bought a Samsung 500 LCD TV. Unbelievable thing is that this HDTV has no built-in ATSC/QAM tuner. However, the manual said this TV comes with a built-in HD digital tuner. What does this mean? I assume HD digital tuner equals to ATSC/QAM tuner.

The result is that although I cannot watch any US DTV channels I can still receive three canadian DTV channels (CBC/global/CTV) with HD quality.

Any one can give me a suggestion how can I receive US DTV channels without downgrade the quality.

I highly appreciate your help in advance!

Welcome atongmu,
Unbelievable thing is that this HDTV has no built-in ATSC/QAM tuner.Yes it does, if the manual says this TV comes with a built-in HD digital tuner______________
I assume HD digital tuner equals to ATSC/QAM tuner.
correct you are!
______________
Questions to be answered so we can help you better:

What geographic area are you in?
What is the model number of your TV? Samsung 500 is not a model number.
Are you connected to cable or an antenna? If you are connected to cable, some smaller cable co.'s might still have unencrypted QAM, and that might be the source of the HD Canadian channels you are seeing (you're sure they are HD right???). If you are connected to an antenna then it needs to be pointed to the US broadcast towers to get American DTV, if they are available in your area. If you are connected to satellite, then this is the wrong forum.

Read through this:
OTA Knowledge Base & FAQ (http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=41102)
Your answers are likely there, and then some for questions you haven't yet thought of ;).

cheers.

Thank you very much.

1. I stay in Richmond, BC
2. My model is LN46A500T1F
3. Yes, I am connected to an indoor antenna. I am pretty sure that the three canadian DTV channels I got are HD quality. (My TV info also shows that they are DTV)

an indoor antenna
You likely need an outdoor antenna to get US stations.

Find the relevant reception thread for your location in Richmond in this forum:
OTA Reception Results (http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=129). You will see what type of antennas others in your area have to use to get DTV from the US.

See this thread to see what stations are available in the GVA:
List of Vancouver Area OTA TV Stations (http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=95757)