Give It New Life

We've been working to organize the basement. I work down there most of the day (Bridget mainly works upstairs). I have been trying to make it nicer so the space will be more conducive to productivity.

My goal is to try and make the dark, cool space more enjoyable.

The basement was finished in the 1970s -- and, as you can imagine, it is a mix of cinderblock walls and wood paneling (that we painted an off-white color when we moved in).

After 12 years, it is a process of organizing and removing accumulated "stuff."

I added a Bose radio a year or so ago, and my niece Julia helped me create this homage to a 1999 computer store. 

I've wanted to add a TV to the space, but would rather not invest in a new set until this whole 4K UHD thing is figured out.

My first LCD flat panel was a Vizio VX37L HDTV I purchased in 2007. We used it until 2012 -- when the digital tuner went bad.

It is a fairly common issue with Vizio's of that era. It wouldn't be an issue if we had cable, we could hook up a box to one of the HDMI ports.

But since we use antennas to pick up over-the-air digital broadcasts, I couldn't pick up anything with the TV.

We've discussed getting rid of the old Vizio for the last few years, but hadn't yet bid the TV farewell.

So, I decided to give the set some new life.

Various companies sell "digital tuner" boxes to pick up OTA signals. They are largely used with old analog sets, early HDTVs without digital tuners, and projectors. 

Some of the models offer the ability to output in HD via an HDMI port on the back.

I picked up a tuner at the store, along with a new HDMI cord. I have several antennas, and placed the TV on a table along the south wall of my work area so I could place the antenna in a small window in the foundation. 

I hooked up the antenna to the tuner, ran the HDMI to the appropriate port on the HDTV, and followed the onscreen instructions to scan the channels. 

I was able to pick up 21 digital channels (which is typical for our house with the small indoor antennas), and includes all the locals. 

By default, the box output to 1080i on my TV (the OTA signals are broadcast in 1080i), but allows you to set various resolutions including 1080p, 720p, and 480p. 

It has a program guide, and gives you DVR abilities if you hook up an external USB memory stick or hard drive. 

(I didn't have a drive available, but might try it at some point down the road). 

The picture looks nice (the TV had a good looking picture for its day), and I used an RCA cable to run the sound from the box to the Bose radio (the TV speakers are fine, but it sounds better via the stereo).

So there ya go. I have a "new" HDTV in my workspace and it cost me ~$50 in supplies.