Closed Captioning - Need advise, please

[JKing]

Until February 2021, I received my television programming directly via Comcast cable (no cable boxes involved). It's important to note that my television sets are all the old-fashioned CRT variety. Close captioning has never been a problem.

This year Comcast upgraded our area to digital, & we were forced to use cable boxes. At the same time I decided to upgrade one of my TVs to the "smart" style.

I became aware of the issues involving CC when I tried to set it up on the new TV, and was unable to do so. Researching online, I found that "if you use a cable or satellite set up box, this decoding is done by the box."

Herein lies the problem: the closed captioning 'generated' by my cable box is barely large enough to read, even though I have it set at 'large'. It is, therefore, useless. I have already contacted Comcast about this issue, but if past experience is any indication, I am not hopeful about resolution.

Closed-captioning is imperative for me, so I do have an important question. With my old TV's (The CRT's), it would seem I'm able to somehow 'override' the cable box, & to adjust the closed captioning through the TV. Is it possible that this would be true simply because they are CRTs? Are ANY of the new TVs ("smart" or not) capable of decoding on their own, even with the presence of the cable box? It seems ludicrous to me that the newer sets give you so many options for closed-captioning (font, style, size, etc.) and then leave it up to the discretion of the cable box to decode!

Thanks so much for any thoughts or suggestions. I need to replace at least ONE of my old sets soon, but am really concerned about the CC issue.

 

[Mosk3609]

I have Comcast and a smart web tv I also up until last year had a led tv that was not smart and did everything through the box. I have been through the CC adventure. Two questions as to your Comcast (now xfinity) boxes. What is your main one? And the other tv you have is it a side smaller box or similar to your large one? Once I know that I can back track.
However there is on your Comcast remote a settings under that there is closed captions and on that there is a size selection.
Also on your new tv and the Comcast box there is a screen size selection. This does change the resolution of the closed caption.
I if none of these suggestions work (and it didn’t with CS over the phone) I did also have a tech come out he pressed the remote in a weird configuration to get into the secret cow lvl (cable techs over ride) to get into the closed caption and for one of my TVs it made the CC larger.
I think you need to spend the usually ‘ more time than I really should have to do this’ and find it sad but true

 

[x1heavy]

Most any televisions sold anywhere today such as the little !.... 100 dollar Vizio 32 inch LED flat, it already has everything needed for digital and closed captioning inside the menugroup for that specific TV

Whatever you hook TO IT from cable, internet in partiuclar or thumbstick or video camera etc. All of that flows through the TV someimtes without Colosed captioning because there is nothing there to close caption from. See how my spelling goes bad when I repeat CC fast?

Congress provided my home with Digital from Analog Converter boxes. Whatever you had to put through between the antenna to the TV ran through that box first. Its all digital now over the air. Someitmes directly from Space. OR from your own smart phone via wireless broacasting etc.

The so called smart TV's demand to be connected to the router always. To be online and call home to the factory that made them and provide that company with your activities on that thing going back years if need be. Its not so smart. And if it was, not always connected to the internet however it will work constantly to connect in any way it can.

Problems begin when say a cable company wants to give my building a cable service, internet and all that whiz bang. The problem is the building is built in 1987 and uses old original cable cable from that era. What we use today with cable TV is actually a form of ethernet now. Everything from your TV goes directly to your cable outfit in town and then beamed to and from space if you are a small town cable user. Most people have learned to not pay for TV anymore. SO no dish, no cable no nothing.

However they will get their TV fix over the smart phone or over the smart TV, whatever it mgiht be. Just not a old fashioned TV TV or a older digital CRT TV stuff anymore. Thas all obsolete and not worth it in terms of wasting electricity. You can run the new stuff on very little power compared to what you were using years ago.

If you want the ultimate in Sound, Video that fills your eyes as a deaf person, the sound that shakes the building you are in etc.. go visit a IMAX Theater. In 1987 the Maryland Science Center built a IMAX inside the place. In modern speak we call that 12K video now. Most all of us struggle to deal with the new 4k stuff. But we have been pushing and enjoying 12K, 16K, 24K and beyond in stadium sized buildings. 4k is so meh.

Enjoy!