HD Compresseion

[samsvoc]

Does Cogeco compress their HD channels like Rogers? How's the general quality of HD? Thanks.

[MrWisker]

I just made the switch from Shaw Direct to Cogeco and I have to say I am very impressed with the HD signal from Cogeco. I am experience no compression artifacts or audio drop-outs.

As compared with Shaw Direct I would say the output is very similar in quality and I think (and this is subjective) I would place overall quality higher with Cogeco.

Of course with Cogeco the overall signal will depend on the area you are in and the quality of the signal / lines going into your house. In my case the the installer stated I have an excellent signal to my house. If there are problems you may have a different result in terms of HD signal.

[57]

Based on the recording ability of the PVRs, I would think that Cogeco would be similar to Shaw (and Rogers) with regard to compression, wherein the OTA-type channels (CBC, ABC, etc) are not compressed (2 channels per QAM) while there is compression on the other channels (3 channels per QAM). This could be checked by recording a single channel for a long time - say 5-10 hours, and seeing how much of the HDD space is consumed on various channels.

It's my understanding that Cogeco doesn't use Statistical Multipexing like Rogers, simply either 2 or 3 channels per QAM like Shaw.

Here's the link for the Rogers Thread for background information:

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=104501

[pvrfan]

Hmmm, maybe we're talking about different things, but I think Cogeco puts up to 9 SD channels on a single QAM channel. If you use the tool from SiliconDust, in my area, there are 9 sub-channels of channel 105.

[samsvoc]

Thanks Guys. I'm looking to move into a new house in the Milton area next summer and am lost as to which provider offers the cleanest HD picture.

[57]

I think Cogeco puts up to 9 SD channels on a single QAM channel

Most Cable providers put 8-12 SD channels per QAM, however, this thread is about HD channels, not SD.