ATSC 3.0 just launched in my area, (Twin Cities, MN).
4 channels:
104.1 WCCO [DRM]
105.1 KSTP (ABC)
109.1 KMSP (MYTVNETWORK) [DRM]
111.1 KARE (NBC) [DRM]
123.1 WUCW (CW)
Sadly, all but 2 of them have DRM and are un-playable. And, chatter on my local form on AVS, those stations, plan to go DRM in the future.
I notice a few things in regards to Channels that could use some work.
- The new channels were NOT auto mapped by the DVR server, even though they are the same call sign as the 1.0 stations. I had to map them manually.
-
Tuning a ATSC3.0 channels takes a LONG time.
15 secs consistently. (ATSC1.0 only takes 2 sec)
Using a hardwired Apple TV 4K 2022
(tuner share off)
On Nvidia Shield Pro, take about 10 secs to tune. -
Audio is VERY low volume compared to the 1.0 version. Like 80% lower. Even in playback or recording.
Overall, not impressed with this, NEXTGEN TV. I am told that the source of the broadcast is really what makes the difference, and in my area, they may just be upsizing the feed.
They did lower the bitrate on the other main ATSC1.0 stations from about 10-12K to 6-7K though, so they look worse than before.
DRM use though, makes this change over useless to me. SD has no updates or timeline on when they will push the new firmware for DRM support (when they do, will those stations then work in Channels DVR?)
Hope 1.0 stays online.
EDIT:
Done a test recording. And it is HEVC. Nice. But, VLC, nor MPV, will play the AC4 audio.
Anyone who been using ATSC3.0, know how to get the audio in the recorded files to play on PC?
Update: So... ffmpeg does not support AC4, nor does pretty much anything. I copied out the ffmpeg.exe from the Channels DVR Server program files, and that is able to convert the AC4 to AC3 fine. Will post about that in other thread i made.