WPCH-TV - Digital Television

Digital Television

Via RF TV channel 20, WPCH-TV digitally transmits its main channel's programming in 1080i high definition on virtual channel 17.1. However until 2011, programs were broadcast in standard definition and were entirely upconverted and shown with pillarboxing, even for movies; the only exceptions were Atlanta Braves and SEC College Football games, which were broadcast in widescreen HD. On April 3, 2011, the movie Forrest Gump was broadcast in 16:9 widescreen without being pillarboxed, and since then much more of the station's programming has been televised in HD.

At the end of January 2009, digital subchannel 17.2 appeared, but as of February 5 it was blank, without audio or video, and soon disappeared. It is possible for TBS to be broadcast over the air along with Peachtree TV, however the station did not release any information on what it planned to do with the new channel.

After the 2009 analog television shutdown on June 12, WPCH-DT continues on its current pre-transition channel number, 20 using PSIP to display as 17.1.

The station's digital antenna is located near North Druid Hills, on a tower shared with several other FM and TV stations. Its analog antenna (aka the Turner Broadcasting tower) was located on a very large tower on the east side of the Downtown Connector, and was dismantled in 2010. This was a condition of its land lease, as it sits on property owned by Comcast, the primary cable TV competitor to Time Warner. This quirk of history is explained by the fact that it was originally the site of a different tower for WAGA-TV, which was owned by Storer Broadcasting. Storer Cable went with a different owner, and eventually was absorbed into Comcast (See the list of Atlanta broadcast stations by location#Towers).

The station's digital signal is at the maximum allowable power (1000 kW ERP), while its original analog signal is not. Its DTV channel 20 is diplexed with WUVG-TV 34 into a master TV antenna at a separate tower, located at 1800 Briarcliff Road NE, in Atlanta's Morningside neighborhood. The station has also applied for an analog backup facility at this location, with a corresponding construction permit dating from its original application in 2003 to transmit from the WATL digital antenna on the same tower. Two subsequent applications in 2006 to increase the power of the backup have not been ruled on as of October 2007. Several other TV stations are on this tower, including WUVM-LP and W45DX-D, and possibly WGCL-TV. WNNX is now located on this tower, sharing the same antenna with WVEE and WZGC. WKHX-FM is slightly lower on the tower, while WRFG has an application for much lower on the tower. According to the FCC database, another tower holding several other stations is located about 110 meters or 350 feet east-northeast.