Whidbey Island Help

[IslandGuy]

Like others we are disconnecting our Comcast cable...all that money and nothing is on...
I have a nice 42" HD Panasonic TV and Denon component system. First off I will need a roof-top antenna. Here is my location:

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3d9fbe1ee01e4488


I am only interested in the channels to the south...
Next will be to find a HDTV Tuner for my system.

Thanks for any help!

Jim

[No static at all]

Unfortunately, your link does not work. :( Can you try it again?

[IslandGuy]

whoops...udpdated the link!
Thanks!

[No static at all]

The Winegard HD7696P (http://www.google.com/search?q=winegard+7696p&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a)looks to be a good choice. If I'm reading the specs right, it shows a wide beam width for VHF, so you should be able to aim the antenna around 130 degrees & receive all the stations to the south. I would try it without a preamp first if you are only powering 1 TV & using less than 100 feet of RG-6 coax.

Hopefully others will chime in if I am misreading the beam width specs (http://www.solidsignal.com/pview.asp?mc=03&p=HD7696P&d=Winegard-HD7696P-High-Definition-VHFUHF-HD7696-Series-TV-Antenna-%28HD7696P%29&c=TV%20Antennas&sku=) or with other suggestions:)

[IslandGuy]

Thanks for the information. We may end up powering another TV as well but the total length of coax will be less than 100 feet.

Jim

[Tigerbangs]

The HD-7696P is a wise choice, but I would skew the aim slightly so the antenna sees KCPQ clearly: try about 150 degrees instead of 130 for your aiming. If you plan to run two or more TV sets, I suggest using a high-input preamplifier like a Winegard HDP-269, which will overcome the line and splittine losses associated with tunning multiple TV sets.

[IslandGuy]

Thanks for your help! Now what HD TV tuner do you recommend?
Jim

[Tigerbangs]

If your Panasonic is less than 3 years old, chances are that it already has an HDTV digital tuner installed: if it is older, then you'll need an outboard tuner. If you provide the model number, I can tell you whether it has an HDTV tuner or not.

[IslandGuy]

TH 42 PHD8
Pretty sure no tuner...
Thanks!

[Tigerbangs]

ftp://ftp.panasonic.com/pub/Panasonic/Drivers/PBTS/brochures/S_TH-42PHD8UK.pdf

No, your TV is a commercial-type monitor, so it has no tuner in it. Bummer!

The set has component and PC-connectors, but does not have HDMI inputs. You will need a tuner that provides component (red, blue and green) connections.

eBay is full of good HDTV digital tuners, however you need a true HDTV TUNER, NOT a converter box. Digital ATSC HDTV tuners will output a true HDTV signal: digital converters will NOT.

The Samsung DTB-260f is one of the best HDTV tuners that was made; they are no longer made, but can be found for about $150.00 on ebay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Samsung-DTB-H260F-Digital-HDTV-Receiver-ATSC-QAM-HDMI-/330417993103?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4cee72758f

http://cgi.ebay.com/Samsung-DTB-H260F-Digital-HDTV-Receiver-ATSC-QAM-HDMI-/280511176016?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item414fc4dd50

[IslandGuy]

Thanks for your help!
Best,
Jim