OTA here as well...   I checked CITY just after 12am... a "City Line" repeat was airing.... 

I've been having a lot of problems getting both the CityTV and GlobalTV signals on my HD antenna for the last 4 days. Doesn't seem like the signal is that strong lately, while CTV and CBC are fine. 

Wonder if this is related to that CityTV slide.

The issues are related to the repack of various CN Tower stations relocating to Ch 17 (Global)
Ch 18 (CFMT) and Ch. 30 (CITY).  There are applications pending for a channel swap between Citytv and CFMT-DT.   So Global and Citytv will occupy Ch. 17 and 18 and CFMT will occupy Ch. 30.  In any event all of this preparation has to be done for repack changes in 2020. Signals on the "new" channels should be comparable if not better than currently licensed parameters on RF 41, 44, 47 etc.


 

I have often wondered how well the Toronto stations are received down in Ft.Erie/Buffalo. At barely 14K watts I would imagine CFTO would be a significant challenge, especially being on VHF.

Various sources.  Still in the "business" so I have access to a lot of data.  But www.rabbitears.info has a lot of links to FCC database, very accurate repack info, contour maps, etc.   The FCC database is somewhat less reliable than rabbitears.info.  So start with rabbit ears.  Buffalo is now "market 54" on their list of TV markets.   A lot of data is also buried on the CRTC site, but you have to "know" which proceedings are "open", which are "closed" and where those files can be found.  The site frequently malfunctions.
https://www.rabbitears.info/market.php

The FCC has published on its site, the flow-chart of the re-pack phases with "start testing" and "end testing" dates.  

https://www.fcc.gov/about-fcc/fcc-initiatives/incentive-auctions/transition-schedule

Buffalo (and to a large degree Toronto) will be impacted in "Phase 8".

For example, the (future)  use of Ch. 26 Toronto, was predicated by the removal of the Jamestown NY religious broadcaster to VHF channel 5, earlier this year.

For the record, the portion of the ISED site, (Canadian Govt) that is public facing is horrible, out of date, and has erroneous entries.  Much of what I have come to expect from the Cdn Gov't.  Professional Engineers tell me that the portion of the ISED site that is accessible to them, is also unreliable.   Not that this ISED Minister (Navdeep Bains), or the next cabinet minister who follows him, really cares.  Hon. Minster Bains has probably never bothered to search out any data on his department's website.  otherwise he might be outraged, and have the damn thing fixed.

And one last thing.  There is actually still a device known as a "telephone" I have one (a black phone on my desk) connected to a cord.  Yes, it is something of an anachronism.  Sometimes if you look up the phone number for a Buffalo TV station, and call the engineering department, the chief engineer will "answer" his phone and provide data, quite happily regarding tower modifications, power reductions, and target dates.   John Carroll at WIVB/WNLO and Michael Anger at WKBW have been very helpful over the years, providing info on technical changes that have impacted their stations.    Kudos to them for keeping me advised of their  companies' "STA" operations at reduced power during this phase of the repack. As you may know from reading some of my posts, the number of huge structural projects in the U.S. which require hoisting of antennas that weigh many tons, has delayed a lot of tower work.  So what had been projected for WIVB/WNLO as a Fall 2019 tower upgrade, won't take place until spring 2020.   "Skycranes" don't perform too well in Western NY winter conditions so they have delayed the tower work that will permit a major power increase for WNLO/WIVB.

Last edited by tvguy (December 17, 2019 2:40 pm)

I wonder if this had anything to do with it?

CITY-DT Toronto and CFMT-DT Toronto – Technical changes

The Commission approves the applications by Rogers Media Inc. to change the authorized contours of the English-language television programming undertakings CITY-DT Toronto and CFMT-DT Toronto by exchanging the channels on which their respective transmitters are assigned to operate. Going forward, CITY-DT will operate its transmitter on channel 18 and CFMT-DT will operate its transmitter on channel 30. The Commission also approves the request to increase the effective radiated power of CITY-DT Toronto from 16,000 to 49,000 watts.