Antenna Challenge

[Colorado Springs TV Fool]

I'll be frank. We want to get rid of cable but don't have any idea what we're doing. We live mountainside in Colorado Springs and can't seem to pick up even the five network channels with a basic antenna. What's more, we live in a covenant-protected neighborhood, so we can't have any antennas mounted outside our home. So, it'd have to be an interior or attic antenna. We would appreciate any suggestions you might have for an interior or attic antenna, where/how to mount, etc. for the following diagnosis:

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3d2df91ff6fcc8ab

I don't have the foggiest idea how to interpret this to improve our situation. Many thanks, in advance, for your thoughts!

[GroundUrMast]

Federal rules preempt the HOA rules. http://www.fcc.gov/guides/over-air-reception-devices-rule In essence, you have a protected right to use an antenna to receive OTA television signals.

In your case, a small antenna should be able to get the job done well. Consider an RCA ANT-751 pointed south, (166° per a compass). You should be able to connect as many as four sets without needing an amplifier. http://www.amazon.com/RCA-ANT751R-Outdoor-Optimized-Reception/dp/B0024R4B5C/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1349625361&sr=1-1&keywords=ANT-751r The ANT-751 can be mounted in a variety of locations... roof, wall, attic. An outdoor location with a clear view south is best.

A J-pole is often used. http://www.amazon.com/Antennas-Direct-Universal-Mounting-STM-715/dp/B000WOVD1Y/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1349625265&sr=8-5&keywords=J-pole This can mount on the roof or a wall.

[teleview]

Here is the Federal Antenna Law , http://www.fcc.gov/mb/facts/otard.html.

The Federal Antenna Law Over Rules all Hoa's , housing coven-nuts and etc.

Hoa's , housing coven-nuts and etc. are well aware of this Federal Antenna Law and know that they have to comply.

The Federal Antenna Law says Yes you can , install , use , maintain , a Tv antenna above the roof of your house.

Above the roof of the house install a ANT751 antenna aimed at about 166 degree magnetic compass direction.

Here is how to aim antennas , http://www.kyes.com/antenna/pointing/pointing.html.

As always trees and tree leaves do a real fine job of reducing or blocking Tv reception and so do building or other obstructions.

It is best to install the antenna at a location that has the least amount to no amount of obstructions in the direction of reception , and that includes your own house.

http://www.solidsignal.com , has a ANT751 that comes with a J type antenna mount , low dollars.

For 1 Tv connected use no splitter.

For 2 Tv's connected use a common simple 2 way splitter.

For 3 Tv's connected use a common simple 3 way splitter.

There is no requirement to to use , gold plated , super whiz bang , splitters that cost as an example $50.00 dollars.

Common simple splitters that have no gold plating and make no fantastic claims as to how technicaly great they are will be fine.

[Colorado Springs TV Fool]

So, we did exactly what you advised: got the RCA ANT751r, got a specialist to install it on our roof, point it to 166 degrees, and connect it to 3 tv points. But when we did out channel search, we're still not getting CBS (49), NBC (5.1) or FOX (21.1).

His suggestion is that we may be too close to the broadcast point. (We can see it atop Cheyenne Mountain, about a mile or two from our house.) He said that because of our close location, the signal may be bouncing over our house. His only idea was that an amplified antenna may work to capture those channels.

Any ideas on what might be happening? Would an amplified antenna solve our problem? If so, is there one you can recommend? We can mount it on our roof....

Thanks!

[GroundUrMast]

Are there trees, shrubs or buildings in the way of your antennas' view to the south?

How long is the cable from your antenna to the TV?

How many TVs are connected?

Is the cable and splitter new?

Have you tried adjusting the aim?

I would be very reluctant to 'throw' an amplifier at this problem. The information provided in your TV Fool report indicates that you are quite close to the transmitters and that the signal levels are quite strong. It's possible that the signal from the transmitting antenna is not directed downward as much as predicted. If that's the case, a larger antenna may be needed but let's exhaust the other possibilities first.

[noland77]

Any chance of me picking up any of those signals from the Springs? I am in the Sangre De Cristo Ranches about 10 miles southwest of Fort Garland, right off of Hwy 159. I am only picking up channel 39 analog station, but nothing else. I am going to be ordering either an a Antennacraft UHF/HDTV Antenna Extreme Deep Fringe Areas 100in BOOM/20 WIDTH/38V or an Antennas Direct 91XG, unless someone who knows the area recommends something completely different. I am from Houston and have experience in pulling in signals from flat land from the nation's 4th largest city, so trying to receive long distance channels from weak towers over 100 miles away with complete mountain ranges in between and living on the side of a mountain at 8500 elevation, is a bit of a challenge for me.

I may be closer to New Mexico and should be aiming for those signals. Can you or anyone out there help me? My neighbor has tried most of the Walmart antennas, but even the extreme fringe doesn't do anything for our tv reception.

help

[teleview]

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I do not recommend a antenna system amplifier , the Tv transmissions are strong and close.

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Digital tuners can develop -Digital Glitches-that are not cleared out with simple channel scans.

To clear tuner do Double Rescan.

www.wchstv.com/Double/ReScanAlert.pdf