New test channel?

[InTheSand]

No, not an April Fool joke!

On what used to be "Reserved 8K", which is now listed as "TV 5", a new channel appears, with the word "Test" in blue, and a scrolling white block underneath it.

Any ideas?

- Ali

[Apsattv]

Even more Interesting the domain name Tv5.co.nz has been registered to Mediaworks since

domain_dateregistered: 1997-07-11T00:00:00+12:00
domain_datebilleduntil: 2009-12-11T00:00:00+13:00
domain_datelastmodified: 2008-11-27T15:35:59+13:00



RadioPacific.co.nz
tv4.co.nz

are also registered as hosted on that i.p!

[InTheSand]

Definitely interesting!

So it doesn't look like it's going to be Prime just yet then... Shame!

- Ali

[kiwisteve]

from memory there is 1x Teleconference slot on that Mux :D:D:D:D

[openmedia]

from memory there is 1x Teleconference slot on that Mux :D:D:D:D

There are a number of untagged PIDs on that mux, but this is the first time in a long time anything has come up as a new TV channel.

[kiwisteve]

The HILLS official box did not find it by itself unlike tvnz 6 and 7 and TV3 +1 where it was auto loaded

A manual scan with ( Show Non Freeview channels ) did load the test channel into the 800 channel series :D:D

[openmedia]

The HILLS official box did not find it by itself unlike tvnz 6 and 7 and TV3 +1 where it was auto loaded

A manual scan with ( Show Non Freeview channels ) did load the test channel into the 800 channel series :D:D

It hasn't been tagged as part of the freeview channel list so not a great surprise that it didn't auto load.

[Green]

As reported elsewhere, some of the reserved channels are now beaming copies of TV1 as well (some suggest this is in preparation for regional advertising). Major bummer - by the looks of it, bandwidth from the normal TV1 & 2 is being diverted for this resulting in poorer PQ all round. If I recall correctly, TV1 & 2 were ~6Mbps on average last week and now this has dropped to ~3 (VBR). It looks like TV3 & C4 are being broadcast at ~4Mbps (CBR).

Is TVNZ on the same slippery slope as Sky and trying to jam in as many revenue generating channels - at the expense of PQ?

[sky_satt]

Regionals have been broadcast since freeview started as approved stb are able to pick-up for their area and has noting to do with TV1 current broadcast via x3 on 12483 Reserved channels, if some have taken the time to surf through these to compare with the original TV1 it would be noted that they all contain national ads.
Further channels will be required to be pack in 10-12 per transponder Globcast do this on D2 Quailty is maintained.
no reason why this cannot be maintained on D1 freeview.

[Apsattv]

Regionals have been broadcast since freeview started as approved stb are able to pick-up for their area and has noting to do with TV1 current broadcast via x3 on 12483 Reserved channels, if some have taken the time to surf through these to compare with the original TV1 it would be noted that they all contain national ads.
Further channels will be required to be pack in 10-12 per transponder Globcast do this on D2 Quailty is maintained.
no reason why this cannot be maintained on D1 freeview.

Huh what?

On Freeview Satellite TV1 and TV2 are National based feed. No special region based feed existed in the mux. The 3 FTA TV1 channels added today if not showing different adverts nowm then they will soon be.

Anything more than 8 or 9 TV channels will compromize the quality

Don't make me laugh about the video quality on some of Globecasts D2 channels, not relevent

[sky_satt]

[QUOTE=Apsattv;4266]Huh what?

On Freeview Satellite TV1 and TV2 are National based feed. No special region based feed existed in the mux. The 3 FTA TV1 channels added today if not showing different adverts nowm then they will soon be.

Anything more than 8 or 9 TV channels will compromize the quality

Don't make me laugh about the video quality on some of Globecasts D2 channels, not relevent[/QUOTE

As you agree they are national an has been from day one where previous B1 days testing were regional as aware, from the launch of freeview nationals were made, to compensate
for regional coverage the approved stb were able to be regional set for the area providing adverts local from stb control, noted you also referred this status, The initial drive for Freeview were 10 channels per transponder

transponder value is a consideration one would want to make the most of its investment to provide a return, hence Globecast, quality can be maintained to a reasonable level depending on the uplinking channel quaility (TGN ) springs to mind be refered as some, most are more interested in extra channels, hence the gasp when TV1 national is seen on the three reserves,

The Reserves an the rest of 12483 mux via there pids are identical to those
pids used on 12456 mux the new test channel seen on 12456 pids are when cross referenced to 12483 are the same,

Time will tell should regional TV1 be used on sat, as mentioned by yourself doing this would compromise expansion of freeview sat, freeview current adverts advise more channels to come, patience is virtue, time shall be the teller of all!

[Apsattv]

Yes at one stage TVNZ Had Tv1/2 in Auckland, Wgtn and Chch feeds on Freeview satellite

But all were long gone ditched when Freeview officially started to make way for more channels.

Yes we know regional feeds are a waste of T.P space but TVNZ need the advertising $.

My opinion is anymore than 8 or 9 channels per half t.p and it will start looking like Sky in terms of video quality.

[Green]

However you argue it, picture quality (PQ) on the TVNZ mux is terrible at the moment.

TVNZ streams are encoded with a variable bit rate (VBR) which allocates bandwidth as scenes need it. Simply put, fast moving action scenes get more data than talking heads. This scheme works well with a bouquet where channels have low correlation between each other. The service provider is banking on not all channels requiring peak rates at the same time.

Right now, TV1 is showing the netball, a fast moving sport with lots of crowd action (pretty much a worst case scenario for VBR), so the encoders will be trying to allocate as much bandwidth to it as possible. Unfortunately, it has to do this for 4 streams all requiring peak rates at the same time! It can't do this, so PQ suffers.

Because sports channels typically demand more data than 'talking head' shows (news etc), they are often paired up as the additional channels don't require extra capacity as often. Sports channels then end up being spread around transponders a bit.

Right now, the TVNZ transponder is going through pretty much a 'perfect storm'. TVNZ Sports extra is showing the Hong Kong rugby - which means that a total of 5 sports channels are trying to run on one transponder!

Freeview was touted as having a better picture quality than Sky when it was launched, but right now it's a very close call.

[sky_satt]

Yes at one stage TVNZ Had Tv1/2 in Auckland, Wgtn and Chch feeds on Freeview satellite

But all were long gone ditched when Freeview officially started to make way for more channels.

Yes we know regional feeds are a waste of T.P space but TVNZ need the advertising $.

My opinion is anymore than 8 or 9 channels per half t.p and it will start looking like Sky in terms of video quality.

I would be surprised to see regional variants of TV1 on the freeview mux as of old, it may appear that regional adverts via freeview sat could well combined as on one channel.
Terrestrial freeview is another matter an can be done on land based transmission without the need of the old B1 days.

[sky_satt]

However you argue it, picture quality (PQ) on the TVNZ mux is terrible at the moment.

TVNZ streams are encoded with a variable bit rate (VBR) which allocates bandwidth as scenes need it. Simply put, fast moving action scenes get more data than talking heads. This scheme works well with a bouquet where channels have low correlation between each other. The service provider is banking on not all channels requiring peak rates at the same time.

Right now, TV1 is showing the netball, a fast moving sport with lots of crowd action (pretty much a worst case scenario for VBR), so the encoders will be trying to allocate as much bandwidth to it as possible. Unfortunately, it has to do this for 4 streams all requiring peak rates at the same time! It can't do this, so PQ suffers.

Because sports channels typically demand more data than 'talking head' shows (news etc), they are often paired up as the additional channels don't require extra capacity as often. Sports channels then end up being spread around transponders a bit.

Right now, the TVNZ transponder is going through pretty much a 'perfect storm'. TVNZ Sports extra is showing the Hong Kong rugby - which means that a total of 5 sports channels are trying to run on one transponder!

Freeview was touted as having a better picture quality than Sky when it was launched, but right now it's a very close call.

Freeview is like no other a Digital Platform, it was never going to be set at only 12 or 13 at present new channels have always be touted as to be added.

[Green]

Freeview is like no other a Digital Platform, it was never going to be set at only 12 or 13 at present new channels have always be touted as to be added.

My point is not about number of channels, but the expectation of quality Freeview have set up for themselves. If they can add channels (or regional advertising) while keeping quality up, then I'd have no objection.

http://www.freeviewnz.tv/all_about_freeview/page/benefits_of_freeview

"DVD quality widescreen picture and sound"


This issue would be especially important for those folks outside HD DTT reception areas. Indeed, I initially set up my sat dish to get the main channels in high-quality digital - but I'd almost be inclined to switch back to analog based on what I saw during the netball.

[sky_satt]

Digital Quality regardless of channels testing is by far superior to analogue,
HD Quality again has a higher superiority still, switching back to analogue is an option whilst doing so now the future switch off of analogue will prevent that.

[Apsattv]

DVD Quality? hmm 8 mbitts?

Yeah right..

Sound? Ac3 5.1 443k?

Yeah right.

Not on the satellite service.

[Green]

DVD Quality? hmm 8 mbitts?

Yeah right..

Sound? Ac3 5.1 443k?

Yeah right.

Not on the satellite service.

Although DVDs can get up to 8Mbps, most are encoded around 4-5Mbps. I believe that up until recently TV1 & 2 were up around 6-7Mbps, so I'd say that yes, the image quality was DVD quality (depending on the source material of course).

I'd agree with your point on the AC3 though.

[Green]

Digital Quality regardless of channels testing is by far superior to analogue,
HD Quality again has a higher superiority still, switching back to analogue is an option whilst doing so now the future switch off of analogue will prevent that.

The term 'digital quality' is simply marketing spin - these words are effectively meaningless unless you use an additional term to quantify it. Even though a signal is represented in the digital domain, you can still calculate a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). The more you compress the signal, the lower the SNR becomes. The noise in a compressed signal will exhibit itself in a different fashion, often referred to as artifacts, than analogue noise will - but in the end it is still noise.

A good quality analogue reception can be better than a highly compressed digital signal. Where that crossover point is, is subjective and will vary from viewer to viewer.

Even the term 'HD' isn't really an indicator of quality. Although it does indicate that the signal resolution is probably 720p or better (and yes, even this term is subjective - in Australia, 576p was considered HD, at least initially), if you don't allocate it enough bandwidth it will also end up looking like rubbish.

[kiwisteve]

I def agree with that I would rather watch a good analogue signal any day
than some of those channels on D2 . The quality on some is approaching shocking !! :D:D

[Apsattv]

I've heard that the test signal is for Auckland University, for national broadcasting of study material.

[InTheSand]

Ah! Well that was unexpected! Oh well!

- Ali

[InTheSand]

Hmm... Not sure when it changed, but "Reserved 8K" is now displaying colour bars in place of what was there before.

- Ali