Why do I receive a 'No Signal' message since switching to digital TV?

Tools

Television switches from analog to digital signal in 2009

If you use an antenna to take a television signal over the air you may need to upgrade the antenna when signals switch from analog to digital in 2009. (WSBT photo)

By Beth Boehne

Story Created: Jul 29, 2008 at 3:30 PM EST

Story Updated: Aug 1, 2008 at 12:07 PM EST

We're just over six months away from the switch to digital TV. In February 2009, analog TV signals will disappear.

That means if you don't have cable or a digital TV, you must get a converter box. Many people are buying those boxes right now.

In tonight’s Good Question, Deb from Bremen says: "Since switching my TV to digital, there are many times I receive a ‘No Signal’ message."

The main reason for this is the type of antenna being used. Depending on where you live, something as simple as rabbit ears may not be strong enough.

In fact, there are two models of an antenna you might try: Channel Master CM 4221A 4-Bay Bowtie UHF Antenna, and for areas further away from South Bend, the Channel Master CM 4228 8-Bay Bowtie UHF Antenna

Winegard also makes similar models: Winegard HD 4400 4-Bay UHF Prostar 1000 High Definition TV Antenna and Winegard HD 8800 8-Bay UHF Prostar 1000 High Definition TV Antenna.

You may also need to check your coaxial cable — a newer quad shield coaxial cable with weather-tight connectors is recommended.

For more information, click on Ready, Set, Know: Making the switch to digital television

NOTE: WSBT neither recommends the products in this story nor guarantees they will work for you. Products are suggested only for troubleshooting if you are having problems with your signal.

11:09 AM nathan wrote ...

i live in valparaiso,indiana and I bought a vizio witha digitial turner. guess what didnt work. so I went bought an antenna & the stupid converter box and I get a whopping 6 channels, all of them come in very poorly, except the spanish channel. Am I being forced to spend,spend,spend? I am only 25 yrs. old I think this is crap. If everything is going to digital will we have to buy something for our radio's,cell phones,cb's,onstar ect. to work too

Wednesday, Nov 19 at 10:06 PM Elkhart Area wrote ...

How many channels are we supposed to get? I'm getting 16 (1 and 2), 22 (1,2,3), 46, and 57. So I've lost a few channels. Do I need a new antenna to get more channels, or is that the total list we get?

Wednesday, Nov 19 at 9:11 PM 29 years in Electronics wrote ...

About Digital TV, As with any digital signal you will see it or you will not. With Analog you could see snow or interference and the picture. If the interference is stronger than the signal you will not get a picture. Signal to Noise Ratio. Every little bit helps, change your coax to RG6 for less signal loss, install an amplifer on your antenna for more signal. Dont use twist on coax connectors. The switch from digital to analog is progress, we may not like it but it here.

Sunday, Nov 16 at 10:21 PM jared wrote ...

i think the no signal is just junk i could get all of the analog stations just junk

Monday, Nov 10 at 10:10 AM cindy wrote ...

Hi, has anyone noticed a drop off in their digital channels in the past few months. I attached my converter box in July and was very happy with the selection of local and long range channels, especially at night, but now in November all but the local stations are available less often or not at all. I don't think my antenna is damaged or has moved. I am getting frustrated. Is it related to the weather?

Tuesday, Oct 28 at 1:55 AM william wrote ...

I also believe this whole dtv stuff is crap.

Sunday, Oct 26 at 11:11 PM ed wrote ...

who sells antennas

Friday, Oct 10 at 10:02 PM Barbara wrote ...

I have a Futura TV Antenna for indoors and I am not receiving all the local stations. What can I do?

Monday, Oct 6 at 11:37 PM mish res wrote ...

well i have a dTV HD box and yeah the picture is good but ound sucks there is a constant buzz that will drive you crazy.

Friday, Oct 3 at 3:51 PM Dianne wrote ...

Where can I buy a good outdoor antenna in Elkhart?

Monday, Sep 22 at 10:28 AM Harry Neuhaus wrote ...

I am sorry I am not impressed with digital tv. Now I have to look at little white dots all over the picture plus in the middle of a program I recieve a no signal message. I wish that I never heard of digital tv it sucks

Friday, Sep 19 at 10:43 AM Anon wrote ...

Come on WSBT and get your act together. You tout the advantages of digital on this page and then, when DirectTV finally got around to adding South Bend in HD, you and your other station, WBND were not included. Are you so hard up for cash that you would risk losing viewership to a neighboring DMA? I wonder if your advertisers know about this idiotic decision of yours!

Sunday, Sep 14 at 9:44 AM Sunnymede wrote ...

Why is it that I can watch any channel on my digital TV except for WSBT? Is anyone at WSBT paying attention to all these complaints? You're losing viewership. I wonder if your advertisers realize that the viewership they are quoted is not accurate? The signal is not making it to the population.

Saturday, Sep 13 at 10:13 PM Jason wrote ...

This is kind of a pain. I have a large roof top antenna and I get about an 80% signal rating but my signal is interupted all the time by tains and large trucks going by. Analog was not as clear but there was no problem with signal interuption. why should I be forced to buy a new roof top antenna.

Tuesday, Sep 9 at 5:38 PM Ann wrote ...

I have an HDTV with a new 4 band rooftop antenna. All the local channels come in well except for Channel 22. I, too, am enjoying more Channel 16 local programs ad they come in clearly, without No Signal signs.

Thursday, Sep 4 at 5:47 PM Martha wrote ...

I get No Signal so often that I will be forced to buy cable. What a mess. My antenna cannot be replaced - it is a huge tower belonging to the whole apartment complex. It used to pick up everything!

Monday, Sep 1 at 6:58 PM greg hebert wrote ...

I have basic cable and I also have a digital ready tv.after the changover will have digital reception.

Thursday, Aug 21 at 9:59 AM Dick wrote ...

We like to watch ch 22 at breakfast but to do so we have had to disconect the converter box, signel and sound make it imposible to watch. It was either that or watch ch 16 it has great receiption, by the way we are starting to like ch 16. Come on ch 22 get it together.

Wednesday, Aug 20 at 11:50 PM Anonymous wrote ...

i think that someone should sue the fcc for forceing us into spending alot of money to convert to digital tv . they are probably getting a kickback from all the cable and satalite companys along with the selling of all the tv and convertor box that they say that they are giveing you a coupon to buy them when you can even find one. why did we have to change anyways. have the fcc change there frequnceys to digital and leave the analog tv alone

Wednesday, Aug 20 at 8:45 PM Jerry L wrote ...

I have a tv without an antenna. Have a very good picture on all local channels.I connected a converter box, with rabbit ears antenna and get NOTHING. please explain how, no picture digital is better then good picture analog analog??

Monday, Aug 18 at 8:10 PM Ron Bonczkowski wrote ...

I added a dtv box and lost mt chicago stations like WGN. Will all vhf signals be lost come Feb.and ony uhf will come in.

Sunday, Aug 17 at 8:07 PM DolbyJoe wrote ...

OK,so I made the swith to digital.I have to agree with the person who posted losing chicago stations. I rarely get them on digital now. I had an HD Anntenna installed, I have R-6 cable and an LCD-HDTV. Could it be that stations will strengthen their signal on digital once they can't use analog?

Sunday, Aug 17 at 5:52 PM Marta wrote ...

I correctly set up my converter box to my TV and antennae but kept getting a "No Signal" message on the TV screen. Not just a low-strength signal, but NO SIGNAL whatsoever. After 3 hours of trouble shooting, I figured it out. It turned out that I had to turn my antennae (it's a fancy antennae, not just rabbit ears) to the lowest strength to pick up the highest number of local signals. When I had it set to the highest strength so it would pick up long distance signals, it found NO SIGNAL.

Wednesday, Aug 13 at 10:19 AM Anonymous wrote ...

Actually, R59 can carry a digital signal. I notice very little (if anything) picture difference between using the highend cable and the old style. I use both. Not much of a difference. Though, some of it could attributed to age and exposure. but you do get what you pay form. I notice the diffence between a $60 HDMI cable and $30 HDMI cable. :D

Sunday, Aug 10 at 8:28 PM Mitch wrote ...

Oldway..you are completely out of line and do not know what you are talking about. As an engineer I will tell you the information presented by WSBT is correct. You should use an RG-6 quad shield cable for best results for digital transmission. RG59, which is the old cable was not designed to carry digital. Wire is not just wire, the shielding and thickness of coating makes a huge difference in signal interference. You get what you pay for in other words.

Saturday, Aug 9 at 5:22 PM Anonymous wrote ...

Let me this straight, first I am forced to buy a converter box. Then I get to purchase an antenna to recieve " free TV". What a crock.

Wednesday, Aug 6 at 8:21 AM George wrote ...

It sounds like you have a bunch of hillbillies that just come out of the mountains viewing your station. Really ignorant.DTV is the best step forward since cable. Picture Quality alone is great. Buy a good antenna.

Saturday, Aug 2 at 3:12 PM Oldway wrote ...

All the hype and this digital junk isn't anything close to analog. With my antenna I always got all Chicago stations, even Milwaukee occasionally on a clear night. Now, with this "great" switch we made I can very rarely get any Chicago stations. No Cubs or Bulls on WGN for me anymore. You say it is the antenna and the cables! Why would that make a difference from digital to analog. If one worked, the other should to. WSBT get some facts, then speak with a little intelligence. People wanna knoW!

Friday, Aug 1 at 8:42 PM Anonymous wrote ...

Um, ahem. Hmm... You know. I have an eight year old amplified (you plug it in to the wall) and it picks up digital signals. Oh yeah, also got a roof one that's 30 years old and guess what, it picks up digital signals. WSBT, you might want to check your facts.

Friday, Aug 1 at 12:37 AM helen wrote ...

I hate the converter. It will not stay on long enough to tape anything the next morning. This no signal is really for the birds. The audio is completely different when using it, so you have to figure out what to do. The directions in the booklet were not even listed on how to tape a program. You have to figure that out for yourself. All in all you can tell I am not a happy camper with this. As soon as I can afford to I and going get a tv with what is needed to get the reception that works.

Add a comment

Name:

Comment: 500 Characters Left

Comments are moderated and will not appear on this story until after they have been reviewed and deemed appropriate for posting.

WSBT and its affiliated companies are not responsible for the content of comments posted or for anything arising out of use of the above comments or other interaction among the users. We reserve the right to screen, refuse to post, remove or edit user-generated content at any time and for any or no reason in our absolute and sole discretion without prior notice, although we have no duty to do so or to monitor any Public Forum.
Countdown to Digital TV:

WSBT Weather

icon
Current Temp 25
°
More Weather

On Demand

More On Demand

Stock Quotes
This content requires the latest Adobe Flash Player and a browser with JavaScript enabled. Click here for a free download of the latest Adobe Flash Player.

Tonight On WSBTFull Schedule

7.00
Wheel of Fortune
7.30
Jeopardy!
8.00
Ghost Whisperer
9.00
The Mentalist
10.00
Numb3rs
11.00
WSBT News
11.35
Late Show with David Letterman

Question of The Day

What kind of services would you like to see added at the airport?

E-mail your comments We'll pick some to read during WSBT News @ 5:30.