downtown reception

[brin831]

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3d99005e9c1ea90c

let me preface this with saying this is for a camper and tailgate setup and i can't mount anything to the roof all i have is a small tripod i can set out on the side ...

what i am interested in picking up is just the major networks cbs,nbc,fox,abc ...

ok guys there's my situation ... should be plenty of strong channels but what i am dealing with i think is lots of multipath that is messing up reception ... no chance of raising antenna ... in the past we used antennacraft hdx1000 antenna because we got it for free but i think its overloading tuners ... ??? as we hooked up preamp etc ... signal is lots of times jumpy/choppy



signal is split 5 times ... yes 5 tv's 20 ft rg6 to splitter then maybe 20 more to each tv at most !! can anyone recommend something ... no rotor and nothing large at all as its just not feasible ... i was thinking the smaller omnidirectional Frisbee style antennas without any amps etc ... thoughts ??

[GroundUrMast]

An HDX1000 would not put a tuner at risk of overload with signal levels shown in your report.

Your suspicion re. reflections and multipath seem quite plausible to me. The fix is a more directional antenna. Consider the Antennas Direct CS-2 complete. If you don't care about PBS, then go with the CS-2.

[ADTech]

I'd suspect both multi-path and tuner overload from the built-in amp on your antenna (assuming you have the power inserter installed and plugged into a power outlet. If it isn't plugged in, then that would also explain reception problems.

Try, at least, getting the antenna above the campers.

A lot depends on which station you're trying to watch while tailgating near B of A stadium.

[brin831]

well thats maybe what i thought too because the preamp is in line and plugged in so i'll have to try without that in line ... maybe i'll have to look at putting on the roof somehow i know height would be my friend ...

the biggest one is fox obviously for the nfc games ... no need to get pbs ...

tv fool says if i take it up to 20 feet i can get los ... otherwise even at less than 10 miles away i'm getting 2edge on wccb

wish i got a chance to play with it more before we needed it on game day haha !!

[GroundUrMast]

ADTech is right, I was wrong. I had it in my head that the HDX1000 was non-amplified. As ADTech has pointed out, you have no choice but to power the HDX1000, the built-in amplifier is not going to pass signal without power.

I still think the CS2 will do better, while being small enough to be portable.

[brin831]

ok so i can't use this non amplified ?? well that stinks ... well good thing it works great at the house ... much more coax was going to get a new one for house but looks like camper gets a new one ...

is there anything else you would recommend that is similar to the hdx1000 in that it is in a plastic case or something protecting the actual antenna ??

just worried about the durability of the cs2 ... ??

thanks guys !!

[GroundUrMast]

The CS2 and similar versions spend years out in the weather...

The Winegard SS1000 is an unamplified competitor to the HDX1000. (Which is where head went earlier.) Not a great choice for rejecting multipath... but no power needed and it's got a plastic 'dishy' look.

http://www.winegarddirect.com/viewitem.asp?d=Winegard-SS1000-SquareShooter-UHF-Only-DigitalAnalogHDTV-TV-Antenna-System-%28SS1000%29&p=SS-1000

If it was my tailgate, I'd use an Antennacraft U4000, half the price, much more passive gain, a bit better at dealing with multipath and fairly easy to refold for transport.