WQLN TV / DT update
By Tom Lavery
Erie-Meadville: Here is an update on WQLN TV 54 & DT 54-1 (50). Both stations have been off the air since last Monday (September 15th) and have only been available to Erie city and county customers of Time Warner Cable. According to the press release from WQLN, it will take 4-6 weeks for the antenna manufacturer to put together the parts WQLN needs in order to get back on the air with both analog and digital. Meanwhile, WQLN will be renting a temporary antenna in order to get back on the air in the very near future. However, this antenna cannot handle both analog and digital signals. It can either handle analog (TV 54) at 40% of the station's normal operating power or digital (DT 54-1) at 100%. The station has opted to put the digital signal back on the air at 100% so that Dish Network as well as other cable companies in and out of Erie county as well as Canada can pull in a reliable signal for their customers to watch on their systems. Though we hear that most Canadian systems may not convert the digital signal because their digital deadline is a few years away. A good outdoor antenna may be needed for their viewers in order to watch WQLN DT along with a converter box. Those without cable or satellite on this side of Lake Erie who use an indoor or outdoor antenna in WQLN's viewing area will definitely need to purchase a converter box for their existing TV or a digital TV in order to watch WQLN DT. While this is not the way WQLN planned to shut off it's analog station on TV 54, recent events may now make it a real possibility. Still, it will be a good test in the Erie region with the digital deadline when all full powered analog TV stations will be shut off in the U.S. this coming February. Once repairs are made to WQLN's regular antenna, both stations may return to the airwaves around November or December at the latest.
Update 2: A tower crew has been working at the WQLN tower since Monday (September 29th). Unfortunately, the crew has found more problems with the lines than previously thought and it is unclear as to when WQLN DT will return to the air. I'll update this news as more information comes in. (
Disclosure: Tom Lavery is an employee of WQLN TV/DT and FM.)
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