Need help with Antenna Setup and Aiming- NC 27606 ?

[HDOAinNC]

How should I aim my Outdoor Antenna (Diagram Attached) ?

I am in process of moving my Antenna from my attic to outdoors.
Probably on Front or Backyard.

However need advice on which direction I should point my HD Antenna.

I have attached my house sketch with proper orientation.
Should I point my ANT to Position 1 or 2 , please advice ?

Kindly let me know if I need signal AMP/Booster with this antenna, like this one Link (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00122FCRG/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?ie=UTF8&m=A1SRR0B7QVPEN) ?

Tvfool Report Link (http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3d8d1718f2f10d6b)

Ant.Type & Details :Clearstream4.

Don't have any tall structures (above 3 story high) around me.
I have single row of tall pine tress on the East side with wide gaps between them.


Thanks for your Help.

[GroundUrMast]

Aim toward the E or SE as a start... but take the time to sweep in small steps (5 to 10 degrees) to verify you have what you consider the best aim.

There are a few signals on high-VHF. If you can't get reliable reception of WTVD-ABC, you may need to add a high-VHF antenna.

You have quite a few strong signals close in. I would advise against an amplifier.

[HDOAinNC]

I have good reception of ABC without high-VHF antenna on my MAIN TV.
However other TV are unable to get ABC at all.
So you think adding high-VHF antenna is good idea for long run ?

So I should start from Position #2 and then sweep towards Position # 1 .
Thanks for the feedback, appreciated.

[GroundUrMast]

The CS4 does very well as a UHF antenna however it's not optimized to give great performance in the VHF band.

Before you spend money on a second antenna, try moving the antenna out of the attic. It may have enough VHF capability to do well when it is clear of the reflection and attenuation of the attic construction.

A few questions;

How many TV's are connected?

Do you use more than one splitter?

If you have more than one splitter, can you describe how they are strung together?

[HDOAinNC]

How many TV's are connected?

Right now only 1 TV is connected . Once I have configured correctly I will add connection from this Antenna to my Cable Distribution box with a splitter (one to 12 or 8 splitter).

Do you use more than one splitter?

Just One Splitter

If you have more than one splitter, can you describe how they are strung together?

N/A

The CS4 does very well as a UHF antenna however it's not optimized to give great performance in the VHF band.

Before you spend money on a second antenna, try moving the antenna out of the attic. It may have enough VHF capability to do well when it is clear of the reflection and attenuation of the attic construction.

A few questions;

How many TV's are connected?

Do you use more than one splitter?

If you have more than one splitter, can you describe how they are strung together?

[GroundUrMast]

To avoid the need for a distribution amplifier, use only one splitter. Choose a splitter that has exactly the number of output ports needed if possible, or minimum unused ports. For example, if you have four sets connected, a single 4-way splitter would be ideal. If you have six sets connected, finding a 6-way splitter may be almost impossible so an 8-way splitter would be the best choice and the two unused ports would need to be terminated with 75 ohm resistor caps.

[HDOAinNC]

So , took my antenna outside and installed it on a PVC (1 inch dia) pipe facing E to SE.
Antenna is approx 6 ft high from the ground.
It faces clear sky with nothing blocking in front of it

All channels are good, however ION channels seems to pixelized time to time.

Any suggestions ?


Aim toward the E or SE as a start... but take the time to sweep in small steps (5 to 10 degrees) to verify you have what you consider the best aim.

There are a few signals on high-VHF. If you can't get reliable reception of WTVD-ABC, you may need to add a high-VHF antenna.

You have quite a few strong signals close in. I would advise against an amplifier.

[ADTech]

The C4 is TOO directional to be expected to reliably pick up a UHF-15 station that far off bore-site. A C2v, with its 70* horizontal BW and a simple VHF dipole, would have been my recommendation for a better fit.

Try cheating the aim more northward to see if you can find a spot that makes everything happy. While I'd like to see it happen, but I'm not optimistic. The "classic" solution is to use a separate UHF antenna aimed directly at the ION station combined with combo aimed southeast via a UHF 15 Jointenna. Unfortunately, those products are becoming increasingly hard to get a hold of. The only seller I know of is Warren Electronics.

If you want to experiment, pick up a generic matching transformer, and connect to only 1/2 of the C4 (remove the combiner (carefully!!! first) and split the difference between the main cluster of UHF stations and that ION station. You may find this will correct your reception of the ION station and the rest of the UHF stations but at the expense of your VHF station (no free lunch here). That can be addressed separately.

[HDOAinNC]

In addition to my existing Clearstream4 (Facing E - SE) , I was able t get following antennas also.

My Plan is to mount Channel Master 4220MHD (http://www.amazon.com/Channel-Master-Antenna-Antennas-Hardware/dp/B000VLLJVW) antenna on same pole as my CS 4 and combine them with UHF/VHF splitter/combiner (http://www.amazon.com/Radioshack-75-Ohm-SIGNAL-COMBINER-150-2586/dp/B001VLPQ6K/ref=pd_sim_sbs_e_8) in order to improve my signal for 11-X (ABC) and 47-X Channels (iON)?

Also planning to put a C2 Clear Stream 2 (Facing N-NE approx 120 Degrees) and combine it with rest of the antennas connection ?

Let me know if any of these options makes sense or am I overdoing it ?

Thanks for your feedback

[ADTech]

My Plan is to mount Channel Master 4220MHD antenna on same pole as my CS 4 and combine them with UHF/VHF splitter/combiner in order to improve my signal for 11-X (ABC) and 47-X Channels (iON)?

Also planning to put a C2 Clear Stream 2 (Facing N-NE approx 120 Degrees) and combine it with rest of the antennas connection ?

No and no.

You cannot use a UVSJ to combine a U/V signal with a U signal. They're for combining a U signal with a V signal only. The 4220 is a U antenna.

Adding another U antenna with such a broad beamwidth as the C2 or 4220 to the C4 via a reversed splitter is a disaster waiting to happen. The probability of success is extremely low.

Please see my previous suggestion.

[Dave Loudin]

To back up what @ADTech said, you need only one antenna. What you don't realize is that antennas do pick some signal from the back. Since your signals are so strong, you do not need much antenna gain. What you need is an antenna that has modest gain over a broad range of azimuth. Do what ADTech suggested to accomplish this. I hope you can return the other antennas.

[HDOAinNC]

Let me see if I understand your advice clearly;



Try cheating the aim more northward to see if you can find a spot that makes everything happy. While I'd like to see it happen, but I'm not optimistic. The "classic" solution is to use a separate UHF antenna aimed directly at the ION station combined with combo aimed southeast via a UHF 15 Jointenna. Unfortunately, those products are becoming increasingly hard to get a hold of. The only seller I know of is Warren Electronics.

So should I try aiming my existing C4 towards Position # 3 as marked on the attached sketch drawing ?
Also you mentioned "separate UHF antenna", thats why I got the C2 & CM 4220MHD , so that I can try one of these to point it towards ION separately ?
Are these antenna not the correct UHF Antennas for this purpose ?

If you want to experiment, pick up a generic matching transformer, and connect to only 1/2 of the C4 (remove the combiner (carefully!!! first) and split the difference between the main cluster of UHF stations and that ION station. You may find this will correct your reception of the ION station and the rest of the UHF stations but at the expense of your VHF station (no free lunch here). That can be addressed separately. Can I use C2 antenna rather I dissect my C4 for this setup ?
Can you elaborate on "split the difference between the main cluster of UHF stations and that ION station." ?

I truly appreciate all your help and guidance :)

[ADTech]

Since you now have a C2, substitute it for the C4 and see how it does.

[HDOAinNC]

Sure , will let you know.
Should I position it towards North-ish (Position #3 on my attached sketch) or E-SE (existing C4 orientation ) ?

Thanks

[HDOAinNC]

Update - Nov 2011;
So mounted my C2 antenna facing Position #3 ( see attached sketch - Facing more towards N-NE)
Pic Quality is Same (Very Good)
Signal Strength went from 94% down to 89% for ION
I see more black outs , however rarely I saw any pixelization then before.

When I was using C4 facing W-SW i.e Position # 2, there was some pixelization on all ION Channels. However there was rarely any BLACK OUTS.

Any suggestions, should I stay with C2 in Position # 3 (N-NE) or C4 facing (WS-S) ?

Thanks for your help.

[MisterMe]

It seems to me that with your C4, a UHF-only antenna, or the C2, also a UHF-only antenna, that you should expect poor reception of WTVD (RF-11). You should have the C2 Complete or the C2 with Antenna Direct's VHF dipole retrofitted. Also, the C2 has has a wide gain pattern. You have many strong signals to the east. You also have receivable but weaker signals to the northwest and southeast. It appears that you optimal direction is to or about due west. The strong signals to the east will come in through the back of your antenna. You may have enough gain to the southwest and northwest to pick those signals. You may experiment with either the C4 or C2 pointed due west.

[HDOAinNC]

Installed Channel Master 4220MHD (http://www.amazon.com/Channel-Master-Antenna-Antennas-Hardware/dp/B000VLLJVW) antenna due WEST.
All the channels are coming in CLEAR with no problems.

However looking for solutions in order how to make my antenna pole stiff & sturdy?
Currently using an 3 inch thick (4 ft above ground )PVC pipe dug in (2 ft in ground) my front yard. However when its windy I start getting black outs.

Any suggestion what to use to mount my front yard antenna which could stand winds up to 10 to 20 miles per hour ?

Thanks for your help in advance.

It seems to me that with your C4, a UHF-only antenna, or the C2, also a UHF-only antenna, that you should expect poor reception of WTVD (RF-11). You should have the C2 Complete or the C2 with Antenna Direct's VHF dipole retrofitted. Also, the C2 has has a wide gain pattern. You have many strong signals to the east. You also have receivable but weaker signals to the northwest and southeast. It appears that you optimal direction is to or about due west. The strong signals to the east will come in through the back of your antenna. You may have enough gain to the southwest and northwest to pick those signals. You may experiment with either the C4 or C2 pointed due west.