From Norfolk to Omaha Cox Communications customers are up in arms about being forced to add equipment to their televisions in order to view content, any content, regardless whether its 480, 720 or 1080 resolution. Now the transition arrives in the Gainesville and Ocala markets. Analog has been eliminated and high definition signals will now be locked down from viewing. As for 4K transmissions, well that’s another transition issue discussion for a different time! While the mini box confounds many across the country, Cox say’s its ready to help. However their 28 page manual for the 4 wide inch by 3 inch deep by 1.75 tall box with HDMI and optical digital audio outputs doesn’t discuss how the box should integrate with many of Electronics World legacy installations or installations done by other a/v specialty contractors in the Gainesville/Ocala community over the last 20 years.
At this time we urge our past clients and clients of any other a/v installation companies to contact us for assistance during this transition period. We have many options that will allow you to continue to enjoy basic and premium content for television viewing and listening through your audio system with no or minimal disruption to how you presently operate your system. In addition we have options to improve upon Cox’s mini box offering, allowing you to receive much more content without paying any more for cable service and in the case of premium cable TV households, your bill can be reduced.
Business and Home service customers who have closed circuit television camera systems, modulated distributed video and any type of analog video delivery system including systems designed with component video cabling (Pr/Py/Pb or Red, blue, green) prevalent from 1997 to 2007, will soon learn come June 14th their means of accessing their equipment will either not work or require adjustment in order to work. Those with household distributed audio systems may also be effected, as the new Cox mini-box doesn’t feature compatible audio connections with stereo and surround sound receivers featuring analog zone 2 distributed audio outputs.
Those of us who purchased digital televisions in the hope that a televisions internal high definition tuner will provide access to basic high definition cable channels will need to make an adjustment. The FCC ruled in 2014 allowing cable companies like Cox to scramble their digital transmissions, thus requiring the need for a converter box, hence the introduction of the “Cox mini-box”. Terrestrial antenna reception directly from local television stations will not be scrambled and is still free. Electronics World can assist you with the transition to the mini-box or suggest alternatives to the mini-box, you do have more than one or two choices during this transition. But hurry, the June 14th 2016 deadline is fast approaching, stop by or give Electronics World a call today.
