Now that Ottawa starting to get DTV channels OTA, is there a map similar to the Toronto & Buffalo Area HDTV Channel Map for the Ottawa area? What I would especially like is the current status of the stations (especially those that aren't currently transmitting in DTV). I have some information about this, but most of the stations don't seem to want to share this information.

Toronto is actually very fortanate to have someone like Daniel Tonks kind enough to compile a list of all OTA stations and keep it updated regularely.

I've searched for Channel Maps like his for many US cities and found nothing. You would think NYC would have an OTA site like remote central, but i looked and couldn't find one.

a city like Ottawa doesn't have a big enough OTA market anyways. Theres 2 stations right now. Although maybe you could be the one to start up the channel map for Ottawa.

RC isn't actually an OTA site. It's a remote control site, with CI, AV, OTA, and everything else added in.

Sure does show the value of having someone like Daniel around. Thanks for the great site!

I am interested in starting the channel map for Ottawa. Would Remote Central be willing to host it? Where does Daniel get his information about when stations are required to on air? Does he search the CRTC website? Also, what tool did he use to generate the map? Thanks for your help.

I get my information from the CRTC site (mostly "releases"), the FCC site (huge, complex resource there), my own personal reception experience, information given to me by other viewers, those "in the know" and, now and again, station engineers.

The map is plotted using Microsoft MapPoint.

If you can create the page(s) with the information you want on it, I'd be happy to host it.

And thanks for the comments guys! I've been off in Denver at CEDIA for the past week, but I'm looking forward to getting back and seeing if I can finally catch WNYO on the air... :-)

More then 2 stations in Ottawa if you have a good antenna.

CBC is up on 4.1 (English) and 9.1 (French). We also get 18.1 (PBS Watertown) and 57.1 (PBS Plattsburg) and 57.2 a real winner the PBS digital TV channel from Plattsburg... all wide screen all the time....

hopefully then for you guys there are applications in Watertown and Plattsburg for HD channels for the rest of the American networks.

i'm guessing Watertown and Plattsburg have the NBC, ABC, CBS and FOX analog stations right?

They do but we can't receive them here. PBS has repeaters near the Canadian border.

I know a lot of the US HD transmitters are up but only the PBS feeds reach south Ottawa. I expect someone down around Kingston gets a lot more OTA HD then we do up here.

oh ya i see in Norwood theres a PBS transmitter.

actually after looking at that map, it seems Montreal is in a good spot to recieve US digital stations, theres a couple bigger US cities within 60 miles of Montreal.

ie Plattsburg, which is only 55miles

With my omnidirectional antenna in the attic I can sometimes pull in weak analog signals from WWTI[50] (ABC) and WWNY-TV[7] (CBS). With a directional antenna outside this would improve.

Unfortunately WWTI-DT[21] is broadcasting at 25kW and WWNY-DT[35] is broadcasting at 135kW directionally south so there isn't much hope of getting either of these in Ottawa. WWNY-DT[35] has a construction permit to broadcast at 1000kW, but it will still be directional south so I don't know if we will be able to get it then. The cool thing though is it is broadcasting WNYF (FOX) on its second sub channel, so if we ever do pick it up, we will get both channels.

The best hope we have is to wait until after the transition period and see if they go full power digital on their original channels. If we get really lucky they will licence both WWNY and WNYF on separate full power DTV channels.

I believe I saw a posting in the AVS forums for the Watertown market that WWNY would not be implementing their CP for full power on channel 35, but will revert to digital on Channel 7 in Feb. 2009. I beleive that WNYF-CA has applied to broadcast digitally on 35, so that would likely be on low power, or at least with the same null to the north to protect CKWS-TV-3 channel 36 Smiths Falls (actually, between Smiths falls and Franktown).

All the Mount Mansfield stations (which now include WPTZ-DT Plattsburg) broadcast on channels used in Ottawa for Analog or digital stations (13,14,22,32,43), so even tropo reception is unlikely. (Except for WCAX-DT which is on 53 until the U.S. analog shutdown in 2009, when it will switch to WVNY's old analog channel 22)

The only chance for more DTV in the "North Country" would be if WPTZ owner HearstArgyle decides to set up a relay for WPTZ to replace lost coverage west of Massena. I'm not even sure if there is any lost coverage, since Mt Mansfield is higher than Terry Mountain where WPTS analog currently broadcasts from. Considering that the Watertown market makes do with NBC on cable only, even this is unlikely.

William
Nepean, ON

FYI, Daniel and I created an East Ontario & West Quebec HDTV Channel Map. If you have any comments or suggestions, please let me know.

Don't mountains actually block part of that region (the same mountains that have been blocking a better reception from the Burlington/Plattsburgh stations from Ottawa?)

-gmd

good job guys, that list will be of great help to all of those in the Ottawa area wishing to recieve OTA.

my one question, is that one PBS tower actually at 720m ? Thats enormous if it's right. The CN Tower is only like 550m. It surprises me that a smalltown station could afford a tower that tall. actually now i'm thinking it is a typo. that doesn't sound right.

The CN Tower, at 553.33 metres (1,815 feet, 5 inches) tall, is the world's tallest freestanding structure on land.

KVLY-TV in Blanchard North Dakota has the tallest supported structure at 629m (Warsaw Radio Mast @ 645.45m collapsed in 1991)

So it is obviously a typo