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Shaw Direct upgrade, will it affect us?


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Well it has started. Shaw Direct channels are being upgraded to a higher level of compression (MPEG-2 to MPEG-4). Up north this just means that you will no longer be able to see this channel on the older 500 series receivers. You will need to upgrade to a 600 series receiver. But up north we get our channels from three different satellites, The third satellite was launched in 2013 and has a much sharper signal pattern and can not be received in Mexico. We get our signals from the two older satellites launched in 2004 and 2005 (if I remember correctly) which are less efficient (thank God) and leak all the way into Mexico and northern Central America.

It has also been suggested by some and denied by others that as the Channels are upgraded they will be moved to the  new satellite that you can not get in Mexico, That's what I heard when I called Shaw, Others were told that the signals would not be moved to the new satellite.

Now there are more than 10 channels have been upgraded. I only know that the two channels, TMN 1 and TMN 2, have been upgraded and THEY WERE NOT MOVED to the new satellite and are still viewable in Mexico no longer on the older 500 series receiver but still on the newer 600 series receiver.  NOW that is fantastic news 

Someone in Mexico who has both a 500 series and 600 series HD receiver, could, go to his  500 receiver and find those that have been upgraded that are no longer receivable on his 500 series receiver (it will say so on your on screen channel guide) and try to get it on the newer 600 receiver. If he can still get it, that's great, it will show that I was wrong, if he can not receive it, that means that at least some of the channels, but not all, are being moved to the third satellite, the one that can not be picked up in Mexico.

Maybe some down there would like to spend a little time checking and find out the GOOD or bad news and share it with us snowbirds. Thanks in advance for your help.

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Darn. I was hoping a techie who had a Shaw Direct account would comment on what is happening to Shaw Direct Lakeside. Are we loosing channels? Or did I understand correctly when I understood that some to many of channels upgraded were move to the 3rd satellite the one we can not receive in Mexico?

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I sure you folks are correct. Where I am up north I only have a 500 series receiver, so I am loosing those programs that are going to MPEG 4. Time to upgrade to the 600 series receivers that get MPEG-4

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Note: This is from my  REPRESENTITIVE  in Canada, asking me if I would check channels for her. I just switched over from the 500 series to the new 600 series receiver.

"Captain I need you to check a few channels for me. They are the HD movie network channels TMN 1,2,3 on channels 147,148,149. Please let me know if they show up on your guide and are working for you."

From myself:  I did check and wrote as follows; AT 10PM I pushed  HBO 147 , 148, and it works fine. There is no149 listed , however on 150 it states that I am not currently a subscriber.

 

Thanks. That helps a lot!!  If you had not upgraded your receiver, as of today you would no longer get those first two channels. Shaw changed their format to MPEG4 today. That is what the CSR at Shaw Direct told me. 

The third number I gave you is on the 3rd satellite and you can't get it in Mexico. That's why it is not on your guide. I was pretty sure of that but wanted to double check.

This is all the info I have on the change over.   Captain Naselli

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Thanks for the great news captnaselli. That suggests that at least so far what I understood Shaw Direct to tell me is wrong. Guess it's time to head north to a Best Buy and pick up a few 600 receivers.

Sadly I have so any orders that I can not bring any more down.

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I had similar information and request to check these 3 channels from my Canadian Shaw rep. We had upgraded to the 600 series several months ago; 147 and 148 are the newly-relocated movie channels in HD (MPEG4 format); 149 is an HD movie channel, but on the third satellite that isn't active here. Given the queries on this board, I emailed to verify what was up.

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so far so good, no channels lost, only the compression was upgraded. What excites me is that they are not moving the MPEG-4 channels to the 3rd satellite that we don't get in Mexico. So just maybe what the Shaw operator told me was wrong or I misunderstood.

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Shaw 500 series boxes will be useable for a while, but once they are taken off an account, they will no longer be capable of reactivation, according to Shaw Direct. So do not consider buying any used boxes below the 600 series.

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I don't know if this is related. Both of my boxes are old. For the last several weeks, I have what seems like intermittent poor reception on some channels. It will click on and off every 30 or 45 seconds. This will last for up to several hours, then the reciprocation is okay for some number of hours. Other channels seem to be fine.

For instance, CNN, ch. 500. is okay, but MSNBC, 511 and Bloomberg, 510, get this weird clicking on both my TVs.

Any ideas? Is this related to what you're talking about with the new boxes? I thought it sounds different, but I'm at a loss.

 

 

 

 

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Does anyone know what is causing this problem that Al Berca and I are having or what the solution is?

The green light stays on all the time at the box. But the TV blinks on an off as if the reception is getting blocked in some way. It's intermittent, sometimes for hours, sometimes for 10 min to a half hour.

It affects more than one station, but I haven't checked them all. For me, the worst is MSNBC because I watch it a lot.

 

 

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Sea - The same thing has started to happen to me too on MSNBC, except that the red light on the box comes on when the signal flickers or cuts off. My solution is to turn off the tv and go do something else. I guess I'll have to upgrade my box sooner rather than later.

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Go to your remote control and using your remote control manual, check your signal strength. Using my old 505 series receiver which does not pick up the new MPEG-4, I was able to watch 510 and 511. These channels have not been upgraded to Mpeg-4

I just went to 500 CNN using the older classic numbering system that we you and I are using and increased the channel numbers through 513 and they all came in very well. The first one that didn't was 514 and that was because I was not subscribed to it.

However I understand that sometime in the future these standard definition signals will no longer be broadcast in both SD and HD and that only  their HD signals will be transmitted For example I get CNN in HD on channel 95

I don't yet have a 600 series here up North, However I ordered one over Amazon and it should arrive soon at my NOB address.

 

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