[Joe779]

My dad bought a new TV to replace an old tube. I’m trying to help him hook it up over video conferencing. Not going well.

The Rogers box he has only has coxial hookups. I know the box is old.

he’s only getting 8 channels in SD when the tv does its channel search programming.

I know he had a similar problem when he bought his first flat screen a few years ago for the upstairs bedroom. He was only getting SD there too. Not sure what Rogers did to fix this the first time...new box or new cable run

house is approx 40 years old.

can Coax from the 1970s/early 80s carry HD? Or is just a new cable box required? Does Rogers charge for an upgrade to an HD box?

 

[57]

1. What is the exact make/model number of the Rogers Box?
2. The TV shouldn't be doing the channel scan. What is the make/model of the TV? The TV should be set to the output channel of the box if you're using coax. I believe that is usually channel 3. You then use the Rogers box and remote to change the channels, not the TV.
3. The coax should be connected from the wall to the Rogers box and then from the Rogers box to the TV. It should work fine (for SD signals), but it is possible there is a signal problem, but what you're describing is an incorrect configuration, not signal, not box.

 

[Joe779]

1. What is the exact make/model number of the Rogers Box?
2. The TV shouldn't be doing the channel scan. What is the make/model of the TV? The TV should be set to the output channel of the box if you're using coax. I believe that is usually channel 3. You then use the Rogers box and remote to change the channels, not the TV.
3. The coax should be connected from the wall to the Rogers box and then from the Rogers box to the TV. It should work fine, but it is possible there is a signal problem, but what you're describing is an incorrect configuration, not signal, not box.

Ok. I’ll try and get the model #. I’m doing this all remotely with my elderly parents.
TV is a TCL 50S425-CA 4K

 

[JamesK]

My dad bought a new TV to replace an old tube. I’m trying to help him hook it up over video conferencing. Not going well.

The Rogers box he has only has coxial hookups. I know the box is old.

he’s only getting 8 channels in SD when the tv does its channel search programming.

I know he had a similar problem when he bought his first flat screen a few years ago for the upstairs bedroom. He was only getting SD there too. Not sure what Rogers did to fix this the first time...new box or new cable run

house is approx 40 years old.

can Coax from the 1970s/early 80s carry HD? Or is just a new cable box required? Does Rogers charge for an upgrade to an HD box?

I would suspect he had a SD box, which Rogers replaced. The exact same coax is used for SD and HD, as well as the old analog signals. The cable in my home is about 28 years old and has carried all 3.

Also, what type of cable is he connecting to the TV with? If only a single coax cable, then he'd be getting analog from the terminal. HD requires either 3 cable component cables or HDMI.

 

[LONSat]

If they are scanning on the TV and picking up some SD channels it sounds like the cable is connected directly to the TV and they might be picking up some barker channels or any analog channels that Rogers still has if that is possible. Maybe depends on the Rogers are they in. In any case they would typically need at least a digital adaptor or a Next Box or a Ignite Box to get proper service.

 

[ExDilbert]

That model TV has RF, Composite video and HDMI inputs. The only option appears to be RF from the Rogers box to the TV. It requires an RF coax cable from the coax out on the Rogers box to the coax input on the TV. Set the channel on the TV to the RF channel from the Rogers box. That's most likely channel 3. It could be channel 4 or, less likely, another channel. Once the box and TV are connected properly, that can be tuned directly or found with a scan for analog channels. Some TVs may not recognize analog channels unless told to do so.

The Rogers remote will most likely need to be programmed for the new TV to control power and volume.

I'd suggest upgrading the Rogers box to a newer model that hads HDMI. That will simplify hookup and control plus provide a much better picture and better sound. They can be found used on private sale sites such as Kijiji for about $50. A budget HDMI cable is typically about $5-$10.

 

[57]

The Rogers box he has only has coxial hookups. I know the box is old.

By way of further clarification, if the box only has RF-coax output, you cannot get HD signals that way. If you connect from the box to the TV via RF-coax, then you should be able to get roughly the channels from 2-99 (or so on an SD box), but they would be in SD. This is why I asked for the exact make/model of the box. I suspect it's a 940 or a DTA-50.

As stated in the posts above, if you wish to get HD signals to the TV, you will need an HD box and an HD connection like HDMI. I looked at the TV specs and it doesn't appear to have component video connections, so that's not an option.

TCL 50” Class 4-Series 4K UHD HDR Roku Smart TV - 50S425-CA

www.tcl.com

Also, when scanning for channels in order to get channel 3 (or 4) from the Rogers box, you need to be set to scan for analogue (NTSC) signals, not digital (ATSC).

 

[ExDilbert]

It's also possible that the "Rogers box" is one of the digital to analog RF converters that Rogers gave to analog customers when analog was discontinued. In that case, I believe the TV would scan the channels. It would need to be set to use cable channels instead of broadcast channels and then have an analog scan. I've never used of these so I can't be sure of how they work. In that case, I strongly recommend that a newer digital cable box be obtained.

 

[JamesK]

@ExDilbert

I haven't used one of those either, but I believe it puts out a signal on one channel and converts whatever digital it's tuned to, to it.

 

[LONSat]

Yes @JamesK it's a very basic convertor that outputs to one channel. The original poster indicated they are doing a channel scan on the tv itself which leaves me to believe the have connected directly from the wall plate to the tv. Do we know where these people are located. I'm pretty sure Rogers Ontario no longer has any analog channels. Does Rogers Atlantic have any any analog signals that would not require a convertor box and therefore the tv would scan in those channels.

 

[Joe779]

Thank you. Post can be closed.

 

[57]

We do not usually close threads on this forum. Perhaps you could share with us your solution?

 

[Joe779]

We do not usually close threads on this forum. Perhaps you could share with us your solution?

we‘re getting a new HD box from Rogers.

 

[JamesK]

@Joe779

Are you getting Ignite? Or the old system?

I switched to Ignite last month and my Internet connection went from 75/10 to 500/20 and my bill dropped.

 

[ExDilbert]

it's a very basic convertor that outputs to one channel.

The output from that converter will be for SD analog only and it will only tune to SD digital signals. The result will be a very poor picture and sound on an HDTV.