Need help with finding the right antenna.

[timmyssonoma]

Here is my position http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3d7fb9dcfe22197b I want to be able to get down to wqpx-dt channel 32 the ion station. what antenna and amplifer would be best? I was thinking the Winegard HD7694P or maybe the MS-2000 for the easier installation. I'm up for any another antennas that would suit my area though. thank you in advance... I love this site I just found it. lots of great info. can't wait to cut the cable costs.

[Electron]

The tvfool radar report says , WARNING : address was resolved to street level only and may not accurately represent your reception situation. It is Better to use a Exact address for the tvfool report.

[timmyssonoma]

I tried to enter my address and that's what comes up this is from the map. Sorry I'm new to this.

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3d7fb9fd775ba96f

[Electron]

This recommendation is based on the Pending Applications Included. The Winegard HD7694P antenna is a very good choice. Aim the HD7694P antenna with a Winegard HDP269 preamp at about 332 degree magnetic compass. And receive the tv stations in green and yellow zone and WQPX ION in the red/pink zone. But not WBPH-TV 9 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WBPH-TV in the opposite direction. Mount the antenna above the roof. Here are some antenna mounts , http://www.ronard.com/909911.html , http://www.ronard.com/34424560.html , http://www.ronard.com/ychim.html. Here are places to buy antennas and etc. , http://www.winegarddirect.com , http://www.solidsignal.com , http://www.amazon.com

[timmyssonoma]

I was looking at the items you suggested to me today I really like the chimney mount. I'm wondering about the preamp is there I reason why you think the HDP269 is better than the winegard anwi8700 or the 8275 chromstar is it that the other two maybe to strong for my situation? I figure I'm going to have about 60 to 70 ft of cable with run to two tvs. is their any cable brand or style that is better than the other.... ie double shielded or quad shielded. It will be RG-6. I'm really looking forward to get this all set up. I when to walmart this weekend and bought a cheap 18dB ampilified flat antenna and got 16, 22, 28, and 44 with just on my front porch. I wife likes the idea as long is she can get all the networks abc, nbc, cbs, fox, ion, and cw. thanks so much for you time and knowledge.

[Electron]

For two tv's connected , use a Winegard AP8700 preamplifier. A standard common 2 way splitter will be fine. Use standard RG-6 coax , the kind that has one foil shied and some shield wires. The cheap brands of coax have a outer plastic jacket that allows a loose fit of the inside parts of the coax allowing the inside part to slip and slide inside the jacket. Get the better coax that has a outer jacket snug fit to the inside part.

[timmyssonoma]

Electron

I'm about to pull the trigger on getting everything I need... but i have a couple more questions... I think I'm going to get my stuff from Wingarddirect.com I filled out a request to them with all my info although not my excact location on the the map just zip code... and they suggested the hd7695p antenna and they didn't say anything about a preamp do you think with the bigger antenna the preamp might not be needed? or should i just go ahead and get it. also how much of a difference is a copper center conductor vs copper plated conductor. I got cable from lowes this weekend but now not sure if I should buy something else or not. think it rca rg-6 100ft for 18 bucks.

[Electron]

Not giving an exact address increases the posibilty of not getting a accurate picture of the reception situation. I recommended the HD7694P because the Tv stations to the north and north west are widely spaced , The HD7694P antenna has a wide beam width , the angle the antenna will receive off of front center. Yes use the preamp. Solid copper center coax is better then copper covered steel , However use the coax you have.

[timmyssonoma]

I just want to say thanks for your advice on the antenna selection... I got everything I need on saturday.. in the mail and put it up this weekend... got Everything we want to get.... although 64 the Ion channel is a little choppy it's coming in about 76 -77 percent stength. going to do a little more tweaking on the antenna direction. when it gets a little warmer out. Where should i put the signal injector for the wingard 8700 right now i have it about 20 feet from the tv should put it as close to the tv tuner as possible? or does it matter that much?

[Electron]

It is a balance between the groups of Tv stations at 307 and 356 degree magnetic compass , turn the antenna more toward ION. The preamp part is mounted close to the antenna. The power supply can be installed mostly any where on the same coax line that the preamp is connected to.

[timmyssonoma]

I'm still have problems getting Ion channel channel 64 It comes in good in the morning but in the after noon and evening it's pixelating. I did some checking on the MAPS for antenna heights and close to the ground the signal is better? why would this be? Right now i have it at about 21 feet in the air. here is the numbers at 1 foot http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3d0b86c666baee2a
here's the numbers at 21 foot http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3d0b86c666baee2a what can i try to make the signal a little bit better? one thing i'm wondering is that there is a inn directly in front of me the has a metal roof. it's higher then my antenna is now. would that have anything to do with it?

[MisterMe]

Both of your links are to a TV Fool Radar Plot for 1 foot. Why?

[timmyssonoma]

here's the 21 foot where the antenna is now http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3d0b8677ed045db1

[Electron]

Try a Winegard AP8275 preamp in place of the AP8700 preamp. The the AP8275 preamp might provide the extra signal push from the antenna to the Tv's to get over the hump of the weak ION signal and the motel with the metal roof that is in the way. http://www.amazon.com or http://www.solidsignal.com have good return policies.

[timmyssonoma]

Why are the numbers better the lower the antenna is? would that be in the real world case or just the computer generator. I think i'm going to try to raise 5 more feet to try to get it over the inn roof and if that doesn't work. I think i try to lower it. before i get another preamp. if I do get the 8275 preamp would i have any way of overdriving the tuner in anyway? i used just about a 100 feet of cable for both runs to my tvs. with a two way spliter.

[No static at all]

Have you tried raising/lowering the antenna a few inches. The antenna may be in a dead spot for ION.

Also, the signal coming from ION is weak & will likely require the antenna be aimed directly at it to make it more reliable. The signal from ION (http://transition.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/polarplot?frame=Y&temp=59210&rotate=0.00&p0=0.899&p10=0.900&p20=0.905&p30=0.917&p40=0.936&p50=0.963&p60=0.988&p70=1.000&p80=0.987&p90=0.940&p100=0.854&p110=0.733&p120=0.588&p130=0.437&p140=0.302&p150=0.218&p156=0.204&p160=0.207&p170=0.232&p180=0.245&p190=0.232&p200=0.207&p204=0.204&p210=0.218&p220=0.302&p230=0.437&p240=0.588&p250=0.733&p260=0.854&p270=0.940&p280=0.987&p290=1.000&p300=0.988&p310=0.963&p320=0.936&p330=0.917&p340=0.905&p350=0.900&p360=0.899&)is highly directional & unfortunately not strong in your direction. The majority of their signal is directed to areas north of the transmitter.

[timmyssonoma]

i do have the antenna pointed... i would say 345 degrees or so.. more toward ion and cw's signal I get the cw good...it about 6 to 7 db stronger. and the other channels come it great... around 97 to 98 percent on my tuner graph.

[timmyssonoma]

Does anyone know what the max input can be on the winegard 8275 preamp in dBm? the spec from winegard is 29,000 uV VHF and 30,000 uV UHF. I was trying to figure it out... I think it should be around -19 dBm max input is this correct? If my highest signal on my report is -48 dBm and my antenna has 10 dBm of gain. Would I be safe to say I would have -38 dBm going into the preamp?

[timmyssonoma]

Just an update I raised my antenna up about 2 more feet to about 22 to 23 feet and I now get ION all day now I think I got it above the inn's roof that is in front of me now. the signal strength when from 74-75 percent witch is about the the limit to pick up channels to 80 to 82 percent. it amazing what 2 feet can do. i hope the signal will be as good in the summer when the leaves are on the trees. I'll have to wait and see. thanks everyone.

[Dave Loudin]

Since everything works now, don't touch it! ;) If you're the least bit curious about why small adjustments work, check out this tutorial (http://www.hdtvprimer.com/ANTENNAS/siting.html) on antenna siting. The illustrations help tremendously.

[timmyssonoma]

Great info thanks... how do sign strength metters work? are they worth it?

[GroundUrMast]

In the analog days, the most common signal meter measured the voltage at the output of some type of filter designed to limit the received signal to the channel being measured. This method provides an indication of raw power present, but does not distinguish between desired signal and noise that may be mixed into the signal.

The automatic gain circuit (AGC) in the tuner of most radios and TVs would provide an uncalibrated version of the signal strength measurement as it produces a voltage that is dependent on the strength of the received signal.

In the analog days, you would see interference in the video. Ghosting, herring-bone pattern and snow would be common descriptions of interference.

Successful reception of digital video and audio depends on error free reception. The various types of interference that affect analog signals is quite capable of causing errors, even when the received signal is strong in terms of raw received power. So, the ATSC standard used for OTA digital TV includes 'extra' data to make forward error correction possible. The receiving TV is able to receive a signal that has some errors, but if enough of the 'extra' data makes it through, the TV can determine what errors occurred and correct them before passing the video+audio data to the display and audio decoders.

So, a 'good' ATSC signal meter will provide an indication of the signal power and also report the error rate. The problem still remains that just because a meter can decode the signal error free, your tuner may not... there are various generations of tuner components and variations from vendor to vendor.

The average consumer will have a hard time spending hundreds to thousands of dollars on a signal meter... when what counts is, a reliable signal displayed on the screen.