Oddity Archive: Episode 78 - The Death of Analog TV

[@penforprez]

DirecTV phased out the last of their analog receivers earlier this year, forcing a conversion to digital. My Dad, who is 95 and kind of paranoid to begin with, resisted to the end, thinking this was nothing more than a big cash grab, but when his favorite channel was going to be taken off analog, he needed to switch. So I called DirecTV for him, got everything sorted and confirmed there was no extra charge. I had to fly back home a few days later; I called him after that and made sure everything got put in. "Yeah, I can see the picture a lot better now!" No kidding. . . !

[@vwestlife]

Actually, as of April 24th this year, the FCC officially suspended the September 1, 2015 digital conversion deadline for analog low-power TV (LPTV) stations and translators, allowing them to continue transmitting analog signals for as long as they want. This was mainly done due to outcry from analog LPTV stations on channel 6 which found new life serving as FM radio stations, because channel 6's audio signal is on 87.75 MHz and can be received at 87.7 on most FM radios. This quirk does not work with digital TV signals, so LPTV stations on channel 6 would've lost all their radio listeners if they had been forced to convert to digital. The 2009 digital conversion deadline for full-power TV stations was also pushed back due to 9/11. The New York City TV stations had most of their transmitters on top of the World Trade Center. Only WCBS-TV maintained a backup facility (using a 35-year-old vacuum tube transmitter!) at the Empire State Building which they were able to switch to that day, while all the other stations scrambled to rebuild their facilities -- during which time digital TV was the last thing on their minds. It took about two years for everything to get back to normal, so the FCC granted the NYC stations relief by pushing back the digital deadline.

[@Frank5]

+vwestlife ...One of the biggest tragedies of the DTV conversion is that the spectrum for channels 5 & 6 (76-88 MHz) should have simply been re-assigned from TV spectrum FM radio spectrum to increase it to become 76-108. In Japan they tune their FM radios down to 76. New non-proprietary 76-108 MHz tuners would have certainly been adopted quicker than proprietary HD radio did.

[@KRAFTWERK2K6]

@ VWestlife: I wish this was also the case here in Germany. At least PBS stations could do that. But unfortunately they won't because they are invaded by the digital Lobby who even push with all force to switch off FM radio and replace it with DAB+ which replaced DAB that people didn't want either. It's crazy how much corruption is going on here to destroy perfectly fine working and established technology with shortliving crap.

[@michaelmurietta3089]

VWestlife they probably went completely digital signal secretly it's the end of the world of classic analog TV.

[@j7ndominica051]

Why didn't they make FM radios that can be tuned over a wide range? I guess now there is little reason, with TV channels shut down in most areas. I had a chinese radio which could tune down to 65 MHz, the only example I have seen with this capability. It could comfortably receive OIRT channel 3 at 83.4 MHz (overpowering all broadcast FM). On a computer with a Brooktree receiver, before analog channels were shut down, I could in addition receive band III, and low decimeter UHF channels 28 and 31 (noisy), with an antenna tuned to 100 MHz. At 120 MHz there were weak airport weather observations, which were exciting to discover. It seems that standard FM locks the listener into a tight box. This is different from shortwave radios, which came with many bands, most had nothing there locally, but a little above the "AM" band there are tropical broadcasters receivable at night.

[@starfrost6816]

Analog low-power station shutoff has been rescheduled for July 13th, 2021.

[@xWasabiNekoProx]

I miss analog tv so much, everything just felt kind of weird the night that most channels switched to digital for some reason? The sterility of digital channels isn't fun, but I recently found my provider's list of local channels and the low production value and occasional glitches make me feel really cozy.

[@JSSMVCJR2.1]

Why don´t you make an Analog Party?

[@natedash11]

TV as a whole ain't what it used to be. Everything's gone over to politics, reality-TV, 24-hour news cycles, and low-budget live action sitcoms. It seems there's just no point in watching broadcast TV anymore, local or otherwise.

[@JonesMediaMan]

I miss independent stations. KPLR 11 in St. Louis used to be so great before becoming a WB (Later CW) affiliate.

[@Kurzov]

WHKY-TV located in Hickory-Lenoir NC, an independent TV station available on Charlotte (NC) regional cable due to FCC cable carrier requirements. Programs include a 6PM news broadcast reaired at 11PM, some church services (tfw bible belt), and plenty of infomercials. Me and my father often refer to it as "Whiskey News" due to its clear low production budget. (Also due to the callsign lining up - WHisKeY)

[@CrowTRobot-ni7zu]

WTVS Channel 56 really got their final sign-off right. They actually signed off in April 2009, because their old transmitter had been repeatedly failing. They gave their final reminder to get a converter box, and then proceeded to play the national anthems of both Canada and the US, before finally cutting the signal for good. I was disappointed that when the transition in Canada happened, hundreds of CBC and TVO transmitters just shut off entirely, due to budget cuts. I liked watching those stations when I would go camping in Canada.

[@DanknDerpyGamer]

God that WNBC signoff using the 1982-1985 NBC Nightly News theme, is hauntingly beautiful.

[@zacheryjequinto7259]

Update: The US has fully turned off analog. Low power stations were all shut down. Alaska were given a little bit more time due to the weather over there.

[@inny74]

*EDIT: As of the time of this re-post, the State of Alaska has fully complied and shut off their low power analog transmitters by the January 10th, 2022 deadline, officially ending the age of analog and the digital transition in the United States. Goodbye analog. Hello only-digital, and ATSC 3.0* --Update regarding the US's transition to digital television broadcasting: The United States has almost now fully completed its transition to digital broadcasting, citing the end of analog television as we know it. The originally mandated September 1st, 2015 transition for low-powered analog television broadcasting (LPTVs) had been scrapped due to ongoing radio spectrum auctioning that had taken place at that time. That doesnt mean LPTVs were safe, not by a long shot. The final nail on the coffin came from a public notice coming from the FCC published on May 12, 2017. This notice stated in Section VII, paragraphs 36 to 39 that the deadline has been extended and that -*-ALL remaining LPTV and Translator station broadcasts MUST terminate and cease broadcasting in the US and switch to digital broadcasts by 11:59pm on July 13, 2021 regardless if said stations have had digital broadcasting operational by that date.-*- This comes exactly twelve years, one month, and one day after the US's original switch to digital television broadcasting in June 12, 2009.-- --Exactly twelve years, one month, and one day from the initial transition to digital television broadcasting as mandated, all broadcasts from low power analog stations outside of Alaska have ceased on July 13, 2021. With almost no channels remaining broadcasting on obsolete analog televisions in the country, this has nearly finished the United State's transition to digital, and the end of a 60 plus year era of analog broadcasting as we know it. Alaska, due to weather implications, has been given until January 10, 2022 to fully embrace digital.--

[@TeeVeeGames]

Regarding the eWaste of old tube TV's: I still try to hang onto a couple (albeit smaller-sized) tube TV's for those bygone electronics (read: old video games, etc.) that look terrible on modern HD displays. This "perfectly fine CRT free on the curb" age is quite the boon for those who still have a need for them. As for the NBC send-off: I remember watching this and feeling like it has such a unsettling "end of the world" vibe to it.

[@joeorsini6110]

I saw it back in 2009 on WHIO-TV Channel 7; they interrupted Letterman in order to perform it. There was a bit of a delay when the clock struck midnight; I saw static for a split-second and it was done when they came back. They then rejoined Letterman.

[@dcb99filmz]

I'm from Dayton too but I never saw what happened bc we got our box before the initial February deadline

[@JaredWhitham]

I miss the Analog days. I was broadcasting my TV channel 24 /7 to millions for an entire year in New York City in 2008. New Yorkers who were fans of my show kept there analog tv's just to watch my show. Because I was the only one broadcasting in Analog. It was really fun, I became famous to the New Yorkers who held on to Analog. I so miss those days.

[@90sNath]

14:29 looks like they had a separate static screen message ready for the shutdown but changed plans at some point and during the shutdown accidentally activated the one that would have gone unused. Dang.

[@biscuit4524]

This is tear jerker episode. I was in kindergarden in 09 so i dont remeber it that well. I wish i was alive in the 70s to have gotten to see the classic Televison,ShortWave,and Railroads.

[@kingmoisture1179]

damn you're young

[@0111pokemon]

Duncan Burden I was in 2nd grade

[@Windfarmer]

I was in kindergarten in 2010-11, but I very vaguely remember analog TV ending as I was fascinated with that stuff then and now

[@mandolinsara]

Goodness, I remember working for the cable company when the digital transition occurred. So many people didn't understand what was going on and saw it as a ploy by the cable company to coax people to go to cable. It was awful during those days.

[@TheRealPentiumMMX]

millsfreak I remember some people trying to convince me that I'd need to upgrade my TV, not understanding that this only affected those with antennas, and I had satellite.

[@mandolinsara]

TheRealPentiumMMX. I felt so bad about it that at one point, I just told our customers where they could get the coupon for the analog to digital converter and be done with it. Of course, later on, I got into trouble, but I knew I'd saved them some money.

[@DriveInFreak]

millsfreak That's becouse it was a ploy by the cable company to coax people to go to cable. Try using an antenna sometime, and you see how well DTV works. It's almost useless unless you're in very close range of the tower as signal coverage is less than half the range on an analog signal. The FCC knew exactly what they were doing, and you can thank lobbyists for your TV set no longer working for free...if you bother with TV at all anymore. I don't as it's redundant at this point and has been for quite some time now. It's not your fault , though, so I feel for you and what you had to go though.

[@mandolinsara]

DriveInFreak I'm glad you understand. It was awful. I almost got fired for helping the customers instead of locking them into the contracts we were offering them at the time. Sadly, it's no longer about helping people anymore. It's all about the money....smh.

[@Rubycon99]

DTV is practically useless. What would cause a slight barely perceptible fuzz on analog causes stutters and freezing with a jumble of pixels every few seconds. The changeover was pretty much when I stopped watching TV. I wasn't going to pay for cable and it became pretty much impossible to watch broadcast.

[@vivaeljason]

I saw the WNBC sign-off when it happened (because I'm occasionally a luddite). Gave me chills then, gave me chills now.

[@JL-sm6cg]

I think that one was for when the entire analog signal went bye bye, even the night light PSA.

[@MysteryMii]

@@JL-sm6cgI mean, even then they had to do something special considering WNBC was the first commercial-licensed TV station to sign on the air in the US (and the oldest continuously running one at that).

[@blipdrifter]

that wnbc signoff actually (okay, almost) put tears in my eyes, holy shit

[@gircakes]

11:04 It's sad seeing all those wasted TV's (more specifically CRT TVs) because nowadays a lot people who play super smash bros melee or project M competitively are in need of CRTs; this is because, unlike CRTs, flatscreens have a delay between your controller input and what is displayed onscreen.

[@itzspencerr1403]

And it's also sad to see what the CRT grave yard looks like.

[@denelson83]

gircakes Of course, most thrill-seekers like to do away with their old CRT sets by imploding or smashing them.

[@donk2c]

denelson83 along with putting them outside on the curb

[@radicaledwards3449]

simulated white noise is so obviously different from true microwave background radiation

[@Metlhd313]

15:27. It probably made more sense in context, but what a time to go off the air!

[@winterlynn9012]

I strangely don't remember when t.v. switched to digital. At all. I wasn't a big tv watcher but my mom was and still is. I don't recall having to upgrade anything or even remember my mom mentioning anything about it. I was 24 in 2009 so you'd think I would have remembered this. The television sets we had in 09 (and still are using in 2018) we purchased in 1993 and our other set we got as a Christmas present in 1987 . The only tv we own now that is recent and flat screen is the one I got for my 4 year old son. One thing I noticed is that the expression "They don't make them like they used to " is true. Our television sets from 1987 and 1993 are still going strong despite dropping them several times during moves and The 87 set has an amazing surround sound that makes watching tv on it sound like we're in a movie theater. My son has already been through 3 different flat screens because 2 have just stopped working for no apparent reason and one broke and practically shattered even though it barely hit the ground. When I heard that tv switched from analogue to digital I always just assumed that it just happened ..I never knew some channels actually had sign offs. Interesting bit to know. Maybe one day I'll get myself and my mom a flat screen tv but until then will continue to watch on our old school "dinosaur " tv sets

[@kingonduty2825]

My parents have had the same Samsung flat screen from 2009 when we wanted to replace our CRT-Giant. It still works.

[@louiseogden1296]

My husband bought our TV 11 years ago and it's still going. My DVD player is 16 years old and works perfectly, although it's a Sony so it bloody well should do.

[@jstnshea]

It's actually very interesting to re-visit this video and hear what was said about low-power analogue stations. I have recently discovered that there were some stations who were still broadcasting, and were forced to finally switch over this past July (2021).

[@mdoverstreet30]

I remember when Little Rock, AR station KTHV Channel 11 (CBS) was to go digital. We had tornadic weather in the area. They signed off and was off for a few seconds, but then they turned their analog signal back on to cover the weather. As soon as that was done, they signed off again.

[@bethdibartolomeo2042]

I know my grandma (God rest her soul) had a hard time with her converter box and having it work on her 1980s set (2009-2012). I had to come over quite often and help her reset her channels. My parents had a lot of frustration with their converter box too (on a newer TV), because they had to place the box behind the TV and use a signal cord to point the remote at to use the TV. Now they have a new TV and no more converter box, but they still have problems with the HD channels dropping out. LOL

[@videotoblin]

oops

[@jeromeglick]

My parents still watch the same 20" JVC CRT TV that they bought in 1990. It only needed repair twice. In 2006 the tuner malfunctioned. And then in 2018 the picture started jumping intermittently. All it needed was a solder reflow and back to perfect operation. It has a very pleasing picture and better sound quality than you get with many modern flat-screen TVs. (In 2009 they got one of the RCA DTV converter boxes with the $40 gov't coupon and that's still working too.)

[@HumbertoSaabedra]

On your point about early HDTV broadcasts, WFAA-TV in Dallas, TX was one of the first to test HDTV broadcasts as a pilot to ensure the broadcast chain would work in 1997 ahead of the launch of first generation of ATSC HDTV sets and full-time HD broadcasts in 1998. During the tests, they came up against interference complaints from area hospitals, when it was determined that the broadcasts were interfering with medical equipment such as ECG/EKG monitors and hospital intercom systems, since the hospitals ran their equipment off of the same VHF Channel 9 as the HD broadcast, and the test broadcasts didn't take into account sub-bands or guard bands at the time.

[@SunshineOnlineTV]

I remember our regional CBS's analog sign off, it was just a shot of them in the studio pressing a button-then a second later-static. There was commemorative stuff earlier in the newscast but, it seemed like it was thrown together last minute. I miss the PSA's about analog shut off that happened months before the nightlight stuff. They would be shown at least once an hour to explain and remind viewers of the switch. On that day, many people weren't ready despite the advance notices they would watch every night. Procrastination is awesome.

[@missbleach8767]

📺

[@JetScreamer_YT]

I bought a tube HDTV, and an antenna. Being a TV geek, nI was there for the official changeover. Before the official changeover, I could receive tons of HDTV. Some networks streached their SD content. It was awful. At the changeover, it made some of the TV stations accessible to my antenna, while some left unable to pull in. I live in Connecticut. Some days I could get Norfolk Virginia and somewhere in Maine. Often I could pick up New York stations and even Pittsburgh. On a rare occasion I could pull in Boston. It was a fun to experiment with different antennas and placement. My friends thought I was Daft, but it's all part of being a TV nerd. I think advertisers missed out huge. I would have used the black bars on the side to show more ads or Sports plays. Or even a pop-up video type thing but on either side of the video.

[@FoxInferno13]

16:27 Damn, it's nice to see that RTV6 logo again! I've lived in Indiana all my life, and the logo is burned into my memory!

[@otaking3582]

16:45 I was there! I saw WFAA's sign off when they went to digital!

[@fszabika123]

16:44

[@THEWHITEBOY503]

AYYY A DALLAS BRO

[@Skellingtor97]

Guys, don't worry. SyFy will pick him up, this is just a faux finale. Also, a decent finale would have Senses Working Overtime. Copyright be damned.

[@SeanStrife]

Skellingtor I miss that being the theme...

[@olivercuenca4109]

Skellingtor And I've got 1 2 3 4 5!!

[@SeanStrife]

Oliver Cuenca SENSES WORKING OOOOOVERRRRTIIIIIIIME!

[@FragglevisionReturns]

Skellingtor or Max Headroom...

[@CherryPixelBun]

A decent finale would use This World Over as the credits, so the series can begin and end with XTC.

[@ThePeanutRocksta]

This show reminds me of a TV station that's stopped broadcasting for the night - but obviously more interesting. It's nostalgic yet lonely, like the internet has gone to bed and stuck this in video player to drift off to.

[@FlamingoPulse]

WRAL is now NBC, also the local PBS station UNC-TV in Wilmington WUNJ-TV didn't join with the rest of Wilmington to shut down their analog signals early until the big June 12 day.

[@JustJaidenism]

I HATE WUNJ >:(

[@tamacat2001]

15:05 is the most hilarious sign off over!

[@RetroCheater81]

that was my biggest gripe about digital tv. everyone said it would be way better, crystal clear reception and sound but failed to tell everyone that if the signal drops to below about 95% the video or audio or both will cut out or stop altogether. It made me miss the analog tvs that much more because even though it didnt (ever) come in crystal clear, it was watchable.

[@firewalker1372]

Our local GPBS, there sign of was Georgia on my mind and it showed different areas of Georgia. Ended showing the cost line, would end that way every night at midnight. I kind of miss that.

[@johnblood10]

I sorely miss watching UNC-TV (the NC PBS affiliate) on our little rabbit ears set growing up.

[@5speedfatty]

this had better be a season finale, i just got into the archive. im sitting here at the end with a little tear... i really liked this show man

[@blackcitroenlove]

That NBC one was so well done. Lovely, yet sad.

[@mrmatchgame]

You should do an episode of ON/ITV Digital TV debacle from the UK. It's has the classic Over the air pay TV service in the 21st century

[@Bright101Eyes]

mrmatchgame I second this. It's ripe for an episode-the whole thing was just a mess from start to finish. So much money was lost on ON Digital it's not even funny.

[@MarkPentler]

Watch everything he's ever done anyway - great content!

[@KRAFTWERK2K6]

@mrmatchgame: Sounds like what DVB-T2 is in Germany. Nothing but PayTV for Private TV channels that have ads…

[@artistwithouttalent]

I would like to see this as well (I'm an American, so I don't know as much about it.) That being said, Ben is also an American, and the Archive tends to be more America-centric. I wouldn't discount the idea, but it's not especially likely.

[@lordspectre316]

@@KRAFTWERK2K6 it kinda was like that but now dvb t2 is used for standard freeview channels now

[@alexkuhn5078]

I got my first apartment in the fall of 2009. The cheapest cable service I could manage to get was called "Limited Basic Cable," for $8.99 on top of my internet bill. It was awesome, only about 70 channels, but including Cartoon Network, Comedy Central, Discovery, Food, etc, all the stuff I really wanted. So imagine my surprise when I the cable guy told me I didn't even need a cable box for it; Straight up analog, just me and my old 13" CRT from college, tuning in the only channels that millennials need. That stuff'll never come back. Oh well, TV as a whole is on it's way out, anyway.

[@oppok5657]

Analog cable is still ptovided

[@linkskywalker5417]

@@oppok5657 Not in America anymore.

[@90sNath]

@@oppok5657 i don't think so. I think Analog Cable was discontinued around the same time aswell.

[@intergalacticchanel]

Just to illustrate how much of a failure this whole ordeal was. Analog TV was supposed to be switched off in 2009, and majority of Americans still weren't ready for analog TV to be shut off. So the deadline was pushed back. First to 2010, then 2012, 2013, and 2015. Now, eight years, untold amounts of e-waste, and billions of tax payer dollars in converter boxes later, there are still analog TV stations broadcasting. Just another example of what happens when the government tries to "regulate" what private businesses and consumers can pretty much handle on their own.

[@missbleach8767]

🦨

[@denelson83]

Here in my part of Canada, we don't receive any digital TV signals over-the-air at all. The principal, and I mean _the_ principal method of watching TV in Canada is through cable or satellite.

[@ilexgarodan]

What part of Canada are you in? I'm PEI, over here, and we made the switch back in 2012.

[@denelson83]

+Tedmeister Northern Vancouver Island.

[@safetydoge]

denelson83 lol im like half an hour away by alaska air

[@pokemaster2129]

ATSC only allows for 1080i (interlaced instead of progressive scan) not 1080p

[@missbleach8767]

PokeBall

[@PritchardCraftFTW]

Man, I'm not gonna lie, seeing the "Goodbye" at the end of the WNBC New York sign-off made me shed a tear.

[@FooPanda]

I used to live 10 minutes away from WFAA's towers when I lived in Texas up until 2008.

[@LocalAitch]

Nice clip from JHL, in my home market. Love the Archive, Ben. I wish I had your comfortable niche following. Never been disappointed by one of your videos yet.

[@alngdcmbr]

KDKA (CBS, Pittsburgh) had a great analog sign off, with "High Flight" and a montage of clips of the station's history, tracing back to 1949 as a DuMont affiliate, all set to the star-spangled banner. kzbin.info/www/bejne/rZirY5eQZdFgeLs Also, I know this is probably just an analogy for the end of analog TV. But if it is an indication of any hesitation on the future of Archive, just want to add to the chorus here and say: please keep up the videos! And if you need financial justification, I would totally become an Archive supporter on something like Patreon.

[@MY5TCrimson]

Two years later, and we're bashing on Minidiscs. Oddity Archive be a 'thrivin'

[@generalcoon47]

I remember when this happened. Prior to the transition, we had an audio feed of the local news on the radio and that was lost for good in the switchover.

[@missbleach8767]

🦝

[@Mode-7]

I think this is my favorite OA episode. And I’ve watched many of them.

[@Brillemeister]

12:32 Did that guy just moo?

[@somethingiguess9783]

Boop

[@videotoblin]

Moo

[@Gary-Eng]

Finders Keepers! Moo-

[@videotoblin]

@@Gary-Eng i wonder what he found

[@ArchiveofAwesomeness1886]

I don't recommend to throw away a working vintage tv because it's old, use it until it breaks, or preserve it for historical purposes. If it no longer works, then throw it away, or make something out of it.

[@stratoplayer1988]

Can someone tell me where the clip from 22:22 came from? I saw it in Episode 44, but it was just a still image.

[@alexlelel]

You should talk about the second generation Analog signal such as MUSE (Multiple sub-Nyquist sampling encoding) and its brother B-MAC.

[@AttilaSVK]

I'm wondering if the digital transition in the US was completed since the making of this video. In my country, Slovakia, the transition was finished by the 31st of December 2012, but it was not that simple. The Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications and Postal Services (they control the radio frequency spectrum, from radios and TVs to even granting radio amateur licenses) was looking for a nation-wide operator for the transmitter network, which would carry the public TV services, and the other DVB-T multiplexes as well. One of the criteria was to use the MPEG-4 (H.264) standard. The head of the office was fired (by the government) and a new person was chosen instead. He cancelled the public procurement procedure, and started a new one, where the format was not specified, so MPEG-2 could be used as well. After a while a company named Towercom got the job, which was running one of the most popular DVB-S (satellite) services in Czech republic and Slovakia, Skylink. They opted for the MPEG-2 format (what a surprise), and people were told they will be fine with MPEG-2 only set top boxes and TVs. After a year or so, they announced they'd switch to H.264 pissing off quite a bit of people, since they already had a STB/TV with only MPEG-2 decoding capabilities. Recently they've announced that the premium multiplex (available for a subscription fee) is being converted to DVB-T2, so people without a suitable TV or STB are screwed. Again. I'm guessing they will have a go with the H.265 standard as well, in a few years. As for the analog TV, it's still being used by cable TV providers. I work at an internet and cable TV provider, where we also maintain a few analog cable TV networks, along with some digital ones as well. (some of the digital ones are basically wireless, using the MMDS standard)

[@DFWTexan42]

Sounds like a fine mess. Except for some cable systems, we are 99%digital, now. Thankfully, our broadcast standard was set at MPEG2, and has not changed. Probably won't again, until 4k.

[@firstnamelastname5407]

AttilaSVK Analog was shut down in 2009. Low power analog stations can stay on for as long as they want to.

[@1000huzzahs]

DON'T STOP MAKING EPISODES!! I just discovered this show!!

[@bdaddyn678]

Ben, since you did an episode on TV sign offs all the way back in Season 1, Episode 3, could you do an episode on TV sign ons? 🙄😀😉😁😄

[@johnnyklebitzrevenge4793]

22:36 Beautifully done

[@wesleytan6842]

Announcement: Hong Kong's Analog TV had already shut down at 11:59:59 pm on November 30, 2020. The spectrum relocation will take effect in 2021. For Channels 31A and 33A 31 and 33 shut down its analog signal, over multiple multi-frequency networks. The station continued digital broadcasting on its transitional digital channel 62, but will relocate from its pre-transition UHF channel 62 to UHF channel 27 for post-transition operations. Both of the digital channels were among the high band UHF channels (39-62) that were removed from broadcasting use. For Channels 81A and 84A 81 shut down its analog signal, over the multi-frequency network. The station continued digital broadcasting on its transitional digital signals but will relocate from its multi-frequency networks to UHF channel 37 (used by an old television station) for post-transition operations. 84 shut down its analog signal, over a different multi-frequency network. The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 35. Most of the digital channels on the multi-frequency network were among the high band UHF channels (39-62) that were removed from broadcasting use.

[@stratkiller86]

I miss the old days when a good cloud cover can get you stations across lake Michigan with a little play on the fine tuner. Now I can barely pick up PBS on 2 of my 3 TVs. Not exactly living in the fringe area either.

[@fAll3n_exe]

It is a good thing that it's a SEASON finale and not a SERIES finale!

[@astropoug7851]

the analog interference screens look like as if the TV's are talking to you!

[@DrewberTravels]

18:00 That NBC one was super creepy.

[@syxepop]

Actually that was just for their flagship station, WNBC in NYC, not for the whole network (like Ben stated, many station didn't cared...). And that was their 2nd video (both available on YT if you search) after broadcasting 2 weeks of their NAB public service loops and it broadcasted just once for that moment... Still the best seemed to come from KD (KDKA- Pittsburgh, PA) and the Spirit of Texas (WFAA- DFW, TX), the latter mentioned here...

[@MysteryMii]

syxepop WNBC had that special sign-off for a reason though. It was because they were the first ever commercial TV station in the US (and the oldest continuing broadcasting station as well) back when they began commercial broadcasting in 1941.

[@JustJaidenism]

@@MysteryMii No, WRGB In Albany Is The Oldest Station.

[@MysteryMii]

@@JustJaidenism While that station was one of the first stations to do experimental broadcasts back in 1928, it did not start doing commercial broadcasts until 1942.

[@JustJaidenism]

@@MysteryMii "WNBC is the oldest continuing broadcasting station." -._-.

[@mekman4]

They may take my analog TV but I'll be damn if I switch to the metric system.

[@denelson83]

You're stupid.

[@RGG800]

Oh, analog TV... Something that Mexico is still struggling to get rid off, Mexico has tried to get rid off analog since 2009-ish, but due to people eihter do not wanting on get rid of their TVs, on just don't having the money. For the (TWO!!!!) major free TV companies (TV Azteca and Televisa) are still transmitting analog, (Complete with sign-offs!, really! I've woken up at 3 am, and tunned to Channel 7, and I got blasted with a Test Card and in Commodore text XH-QUETV), but in terms on when are we moving on, I don't know... supposedly DTV is replacing analog at the end of 2015, but who knows... (And, If for some reason you have continued to read this long comment, and now you're wondering about the state of Cable TV, don't worry all of the major Cable companies have HD signals for almost all of the pay TV channels (Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Comedy Central, MTV...) albeit, it's kinda expensive, and it's offered as a separate package.

[@THEWHITEBOY503]

I wanna see that XH-QUETV signoff, huge fan of signoffs and Commodore computers

[@catholiccontriversy]

September of 2022 my dad and I went to Sault Saint Marie to pick up an analog Canadian channel. I brought 2 TVs from the 80s, my analog tuner that plugs into a computer monitor, and flat panel with an analog TV tuner and 3 pairs of rabbit ears. Since the hotel we stayed at was also a casino security came to see what we were up to when we checked out (because we had all this TV equipment on the luggage cart).

[@SpikePapp]

Ben has noted on Twitter that this is the season finale.

[@DiskkiHoax]

SpikePapp Proof?

[@themeatynugget4015]

+Diskki Hoax, go look at his Twitter.

[@realevilcorgi]

Carol Ward We don't all use twitter. Don't you have a link?

[@FernieCanto]

realevilcorgi Hear it is: twitter.com/OddityArchive/status/606476762361548800

[@fAll3n_exe]

SpikePapp It is a good thing that it's a SEASON finale and not a SERIES finale.

[@Chrnan6710]

It was an honor being subscribed and a big fan to this channel. Farewell, Mr. Minnotte. *salute*

[@DetectiveBrOkEn]

Chrnan6710 ....... It was a season finale, ya know.

[@MrJasonbreen]

Please god, don't let this be the last archive episode...

[@videotoblin]

BE HAPPY, IT WASN'T!

[@HellhammerSS]

I still remember the national anthem sign offs. Then the loud endless color bar "BEEEEEEEP"

[@k.g.alatore355]

I remember when digital HDTVs were a big deal. I never even had a flat-screen til 2010.

[@Okofo2]

10:24 I definally know the problem with digital TV signal being all or nothing. I got cable and my provider just switched over. However, that also ment I had to replace all my cables, since they were too worn to recieve :(

[@armron94]

Low power TV stations are still on the air doing analog. Until July of 2021 There's quite a few station are still Broadcasting Recently on may 2 2021 I was able to pick up TV station WZPX ch 43 Ion Television affiliate Battle Creek Michigan With no antenna or cable connection Three Rivers MI To Battle Creek MI I have no clue how I picked up the station about 60 miles from me. I use a 1985 RCA

[@Night-Lord]

Am I the only one who teared up a little at the end there? I hope not. See you space cowboy.

[@chronosmusics]

DNIGHTLORD14 It's not over. Just a season finale. Also nice Bebop reference lol.

[@FoxInferno13]

ChronoJustin NOFUNALLOWED.jpeg

[@missbleach8767]

@@FoxInferno13 🦊

[@TheAlasar]

Beautiful. And everyone who is wondering if it's over listen from 19:00.

[@angelpichu1]

hmm, actually i have a " digital television transition notice" by JVC tacked on my cork-board wall when we still had TV and not just netflix. i honestly don't know why i put it up there, to be honest, but good times ^^

[@Tempora158]

ATSC allows for 1080i, not 1080p, of vertical resolution.

[@SuperCartoonist]

But when it come to 3:2 pull down and 29.97fps, it would be 1080p broadcast because TVs are progressive and that means the TV does most of the work when it come to 1080i 59.94fps over the air. The resolution only dips to 540 upper field and 540 lower field of lines when they play something at high frame rate like a Sports Game, the News and/or Commercials etc... TVs have a refresh rate at 59.94Hz and 60Hz which over the air can display 59.94fps at 1920x540 in one of the 540 field of lines while 29.97fps can be displayed at 1920x1080 in both 1080 field of lines, but with 720p you can use both frame rates at 1280x720. But of course TVs now can go up to 120Hz which you can fit both 12fps, 24fps, 30fps and 60fps and get smooth motion everything and display 120fps at 4K with over the air ATSC 3.0. You should Google ATSC 3.0 to learn more.

[@Tempora158]

@@SuperCartoonist "because TVs are progressive" Not for the early adopters they aren't. The first HD TVs were 1080i CRT that don't support 720p.

[@SuperCartoonist]

@@Tempora158 Well if you are talking about CRTs, then yeah.

[@karleber3250]

This is fascinating-- thank you very much

[@wadmodderschalton5763]

In a future Oddity Archive episode, can you do a revised version of the history of Digital TV Transition in the United States, shortly after the state of Alaska ends Analog TV after January 10th 2022? The revised version should also make a few corrections from the episode "The Death of Analog TV" where the adaption and transition of Digital TV in the United States was nearly delayed due to the September 11th 2001 attacks in New York City, as many of the TV stations of NYC had their transmitters on top of the North Tower of the World Trade Center at the time of that day, and the fact that the NYC TV stations had difficulties transitioning in order for them to relocate their transmitters to the Empire State Building. You should also mention the delay of the Digital TV transition for low-power TV stations with the date of July 13th 2021, and the date for the Digital TV Transition for low-power TV stations in the state of Alaska being January 10th 2022, in the revised version of the history of Digital TV transition in the United States. Just wanted to know if this is a topic to cover in a future episode of Oddity Archive.

[@floatingsanvich4819]

Currently the deadline is July 13, 2021. Update: Analog television is gone, so no more NTSC. :(

[@adriandumay4501]

Hey Ben I don't if anyone has told you but @ 23:17 you have KTVU and KICU flipped.

[@ThaRealWildcat]

and now (mostly) all those translator stations and such have been discontinued by the fcc as of the 13th - i guess now the era _has_ ended

[@thekidfromiowa]

KDSM Fox 17 in Des Moines still signed off at the beginning of the decade. Though only on Mondays at 2-3 am. WOI ABC 5 still signed off five years ago. Not only that but they did so on a nightly basis. Even rarer. Their film was simply a worn out tape of the flag waiving set to a lady singing the national anthem.

[@davidmatthewvinotjr8396]

6:50: WRAL is currently an NBC Affiliate. They moved back to NBC in 2016.

[@newstarcadefan]

Yuppers, CBS went to WNCN-TV.

[@syxepop]

Pretty much *A YEAR* after this video was uploaded. They're still innovating, as they additionally now have ERAL broadcasting in ATSC 3.0...

[@soonerterp]

If it was the real honest to goodness end of the Oddity Archive, I sorta think Ben would have done something really mindblowing. Like finally coming out from behind the box. Just sayin'. Enjoy your summer hiatus, sir.

[@videotoblin]

He did come out from behind the box once

[@soonerterp]

@Henrystrikesback I know. It was the first Halloween show. Been watching for years.

[@JosephPratt1986]

Hopefully you'll be able to do more episodes of your program sometime soon.

[@nicolerichwine5767]

+OddityArchive Actually, the FCC 86'd the requirement for LP analog to go to digital. Class A still have to switch. www.fcc.gov/document/media-bureau-reminder-may-29-2015-pre-auction-licensing-deadline

[@remixchild]

Deadline: July 13, 2021

[@collectingonthecheap56353]

Watching this on the day after the 10th Anniversary of the end of Analogue TV in the States. My converter boxes still work.

[@rockvilleraven]

If anyone still needs a converter box, check EBay.

[@j7ndominica051]

Analog TV was a better long-lasting standard with components added on top over time in a backwards compatible fashion: color, stereo, nicam, teletext. A decades old black and white TV remained functional. Digital, in all applications, unfortunately was designed in an era of planned obsolescence in order to sell more disposable devices. In my country in europe, MPEG-2 was first adopted as standard, and within a year, switched to h.264, which required a new set. A similar thing happens on the web where I have to update the browser every year and get a faster computer to run the javascripts, and not just the advertisments. Sad how people embrace all changes in technology that are designed to manipulate them to buy stuff, and update to new formats without sufficient justification. Fortunately, FM radio is still working, albeit in reduced quality for which only the broadcasters and their processors are to blame. Most cable retranslators (internet providers) offer analogue PAL signal, which is the best option for MPEG-2 receivers (which only show the program guide and clock for digital) and perfectly usable on old CRTs. Quite silly to throw out a working TV, which can still be used as a monitor for tape recorders, games consoles and other video sources. I felt that the Japanese MUSE segment didn't fit as an introduction. Its HD resolution couldn't be demonstrated over the bandwidth limited tape recordings and low bitrate. And neither was NTSC/PAL compared to the new system.

[@bruceflashback3877]

I tried to go without cable for the first time since 1986 in 2010.I had an analog tv with a digital converter box (using the $40 coupon) and a digital tv. I could never get the correct antenna for either set so I could not get digital tv to work for free. That was never a problem with analog tv. I made it a year in the battle to see free tv on digital and gave up and went back to cable.

[@bruceflashback3877]

+Bruce flashback Follow up comment. Some people told me I needed to do research to get the right antenna setup. I told them getting free tv shouldn`t be that fu@king involved or complicated.

[@ebru5716]

A way to start the new season.

[@KRAFTWERK2K6]

I always laugh when the governments bring the "we wanna sell these frequencies to Mobile Providers" argument because that is total bulcrap. No mobile service is possible with these low frequencies where analog TV operates. Especially when everyone wants even faster wireless internet which is not possible with the few Megahertz but requires transmissions in the gigagertz spectrum. So just with the analog Radio frequencies for AM and FM, the analog Television frequencies are totally pointless for mobile phones and the governments explaination is a big lie. They just want to shut off everything analog and remove the last analog places. Same reason why now the 3,5mm jack has to go from phones. It's all about control and taking away more rights and freedom.

[@THEWHITEBOY503]

AFAIK they took some of the OTA analog channels and put them in the FM band. I think it might of only been the audio frequencies. Could be wrong.

[@catholiccontriversy]

I watched the WADL sign off on June 12th 2009 and they had a big party at the sign off and counted down like it was new years, and did it at midnight at the very last second. That was a great send off IMO.

[@EmergencyChannel]

WRTV was the local ABC channel in Indianapolis. I live in Southern Indiana in one of the worse spots for watching TV. My family watched all of our TV with static and haze, we got about 5 channels with only one coming in full strength. Where I live cable does not exist and satellite is useless due to the dense forest, we still only have 156k DSL today. Needless to say, after the digital switch we got nothing even with an antenna on a mast attached to our roof. Several tv signal sites list our address as a grey zone where TV does not exist. So for me, the analog switch over is nostalgic to me because that was the last time I watched broadcast TV. My parents moved to Florida soon after and I inherited this land. On the bright side, I can broadcast anolog tv and nobody will ever know!

[@supermariofan772003]

13:40 NO! DON'T SIGN OFF! SEINFELD WAS GOING TO BE ON!!!!!!!!!!! :(

[@CrowTRobot-ni7zu]

Jaden H. I blame Newman!

[@carbonblack1002]

KRAMER NO!!!

[@SPCmuncie]

16:18 OMG, THE INDY CHANNEL, RTV6 IS MY FAVORITE CHANNEL :) IT IS MY LOCAL CHANNEL

[@artistwithouttalent]

SPCmuncie Right on! I also live in the surrounding area and saw all the different stations' sign-offs. They all did something to mark the occasion, but none of them captured the mood like RTV6.

[@RageTVHTX]

No his commentary at the beginning is really a reference to the analog broadcast technology being obsolete

[@cac_deadlyrang]

I heard somewhere that the WNBC final analog sign-off was originally supposed to be used after emergency broadcasts.

[@siouxmoux3]

I am still waiting for uhd and or 4K tv broadcasts to start.

[@WinderBlitz]

as someone who lives in Argentina, at the moment of this comment writing, we have at least one year and a half until analog signals get shouted down here (if they don't delay it again) maybe sometimes living in the middle of the third world has its advantages. heck, some stations here still do sign offs and show testcard patterns during off air hours. but i digress

[@bamos1092]

In Uruguay Still with Analog

[@arnoldnielsenginting6339]

nice intro with take my breath away sax version

[@billbell48]

The WNBC sign-off eerily reminds me of an EoW-type sign-off one would use. Kinda freaky.

[@Alexdude99887]

12:53 okay that is terrifying.