Sunrise, FL Reception Help

[bentley1900]

I am using two dual TV tuners on my HTPC and my TV Signal Analysis Results:
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3d9fbeabddb224d3
The antenna I'm using is in the following attachment.

Thank You

[coco]

If it were my antenna I would reroute the coaxial. The way you have it just hanging may cause problems down the road. I would at least tape or tie-wrap it to the mast.

[mtownsend]

Wow, your signals are very strong. How long is the cable from the antenna to your tuner? Is the signal being split at all?

With signals this strong, you might have a problem with signal overload. If you have any amps in the setup, remove them since an overloaded amp will make things worse rather than better.

Even with no amplification, it might still be the case that the signal getting into your tuner card is too strong for it to handle. If that is the case, you may need to add an inline attenuator (like this one (http://www.solidsignal.com/pview.asp?mc=03&p=1296F&d=20dB-Variable-Attenuator-for-VHF-UHF-HD-OffAir-Reception-1296F&c=Signal%20Variators&sku=853748001293)) to lower the signal strength before going into your tuner card.

[bentley1900]

Thanks, I'll wrap the coaxial cable. The cable is about twenty five feet long and I have a three way spliter to the two tv tuner cards inside the PC and a tv tuner USB.I want to be able to record two programs and may be able to watch another (Windows media)
I cant read the TV Signal Analysis Results, Do I need two antenna's to get all the channels or are they only repeated channels? My antenna is pointing towards the south now (MAIMI)?
The channels that come in come fine with very little interuption at times.
Thanks For the Help

[mtownsend]

Most of your channels come from the south (around compass heading of 172º). There are a few channels coming from north of you, but you are right that they are mostly just duplicates of network stations you already receive from the south. Unless you have a pressing need to get a particular channel from the north, then I wouldn't bother trying since you already have a pretty good lineup of channels.

Splitting the signal does lower the power reaching each tuner by a little bit. It's still hard to say whether or not you will have overload issues on any of your tuners because you are starting with some seriously strong signals. You might want to try a signal attenuator (like the one mentioned in my previous post) to see if it makes any difference.

BTW, most splitters come in powers of 2 (that is, 2-way, 4-way, or 8-way). If you are using a 4-way splitter to go to your 3 tuners, then please be sure to terminate any unused ports (you can use inexpensive terminators like this (http://www.solidsignal.com/pview.asp?mc=05&p=CP2507-10&d=Channel-Plus-CP250710-75-Ohm-Terminator-%2810-Pack%29-%28CP250710%29&c=Distribution&sku=782644000256)). Open ports on a cable network can cause signals to reflect back into the network, which creates signal "echos" (a form of interference) that can degrade your signal. If your splitter really has only 3 ports, then you don't have to worry about this (most 3-way splitter are really 4-way splitters internally with the extra port terminated inside the case).

If you are daisy-chaining two 2-way splitters, you also don't need to worry about termination (since you have no open ports), but note that one cable path only goes through 1 splitter while the other two paths go through 2 splitters. The path going through just 1 splitter will have a slightly stronger signal than the other paths.

[Dave Loudin]

Quick pointers on your report, as there is a signal analysis FAQ elsewhere.

The "radar" plot, the circular graph, is meant to show you where to aim your antenna and to indicate how strong the signals are. The longer the bar, the stronger the signal. You have two groups of stations, the Miami market almost due south and another market due north. This is actually cool, as antennas often are modestly sensitive in the opposite direction from where they point.

I suggest experimenting with pointing your antenna due north. The data in the table below the circle chart explain why.

The quality factor is the NM column. Without getting too technical, the goal is to have a result of at least +10 at the tuner. Antenna gain adds to NM, losses in cables and splitters subtract from NM. Amps mounted at the antenna are used to overcome losses in really long cable runs and splitters (not an issue for you.)

All your full-power Miami stations have NMs above 50. All you need from an antenna is efficient transfer of whatever signal power it picks up into the coax line. Actual positive gain is not needed, as you probably lose only 7 or so in the coax and splitter. Let's say that your antenna has +9 gain in the forward direction and -15 gain towards the back. Turning the antenna to the north applies the -15 gain towards Miami, so the resulting NMs will be all above 28. Some of the low-power stations might get a little iffy, but you will likely be able to dig up all the stations from the north on your list. Also, if signal overload is your problem, this configuration will fix that.

Good luck!