Tired of Paying DirecTV - Eastern NC Antenna Help Wanted

[mgrover]

Hello All,

First off I wanted to thank the moderators for this forum. It seems that the more "research" I do regarding my antenna needs, the more confused I get. In a rush to get rid of DirecTV I purchased an antenna from homeantenna.org - a very cheaply made all-plastic antenna with a remote-controlled rotator that's about as good as a dead battery. I never mounted it on the roof because I'm afraid it will break in a storm, but I did try it out and was receiving local channels clearly. That being said I am now looking to "do it right."

I have a 3' tripod mount and 5' pole in hand but want to get the right hardware for my location. I ran a report (http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3da36292eda0f9e2) and see that most of my stations are within 60 miles of my residence. There are two distinct locations where I can receive a signal - North East and South West. I do not want a rotator unless it is required and am open to mounting two antennas. I live in a fairly flat location but am surrounded by tall pine trees.

I have taken a look at the EZ-HD from Denny's TV antenna sales, but the more research I do the more I'm second guessing that particular model. I'm no longer under contract to DirecTV and I don't wish to continue paying for TV. I have already purchased a OTA compatible DVR that I really like so I won't miss the DVR feature DirecTV povided once my transition is complete. Any recommendation that can be provided is greatly appreciated!!!

[John Candle]

Because of the Several different locations of the channels/transmitters. NBC , ABC , CBS , PBS , FOX , MyNetwork , CW , ION. . And NM Noise Margins / signal strengths all up and down the scale. The question is -- how many Tv's will be connected? .

[mgrover]

I currently have 1 TV - a 42" Visio in the Family room, but want to plan for another in the Den, so I'm planning on 2 sets.

I was planning on installing a WINEGARD AP-8700 Amplifier and a coupler to tie the two antennas together and branch to a splitter once it was under the house. Any recommendations on this would help as well.

- Mark

[Tower Guy]

I was planning on installing a WINEGARD AP-8700 Amplifier and a coupler to tie the two antennas together and branch to a splitter once it was under the house. Any recommendations on this would help as well.

- Mark

My suggestion would be a DB-2 UHF aimed at 220° for ABC, NBC, FOX, & PBS plus a Y10-7-13 aimed at 24° for CBS. Use a AP-2870 preamp to add them together.

If you want the other stations at 24°, I'd get a second antenna such as a HBU-22 or HD7694P and use an A/B switch at the TV set.

[John Candle]

WILM-LD = Low Power Digital. Is Real Channel 40 CBS. . http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WILM-LD

[mgrover]

My suggestion would be a DB-2 UHF aimed at 220° for ABC, NBC, FOX, & PBS plus a Y10-7-13 aimed at 24° for CBS. Use a AP-2870 preamp to add them together.

If you want the other stations at 24°, I'd get a second antenna such as a HBU-22 or HD7694P and use an A/B switch at the TV set.

I found each of the antennas you referenced at solidsignal.com and the prices are definately within reason. My question is: If you only could have two which two would it be? Since I have a DVR I want to "set it and forget it." I'm most concerned with forgetting to rotate or press an A/B switch and miss something that I would want to record. That leads to one additional question - is it possible to have 3 antennas paired down to 1 antenna input? All I have seen is ones that handle a pair so I was just wondering.

Thanks!

[mtownsend]

If you follow Tower Guy's first suggestion, you would be getting ABC, NBC, Fox, and PBS out of Wilmington and CBS out of Greenville combined onto a single feed (merged inside the AP-2870 amp), so there's no need to worry about A/B switches or rotators.

You only have a problem if you want to simultaneously get all channels from Wilmington and all the channels from Greenville because they both have multiple UHF channels and you can't have your UHF antenna pointed at both markets at the same time.

[mtownsend]

is it possible to have 3 antennas paired down to 1 antenna input?

If these antennas span the same frequency ranges (e.g., all of them cover UHF), then the short answer is no.

When antennas cover non-overlapping bands (e.g., low-VHF, hi-VHF, and UHF), then you can combine those feed efficiently (minimum loss / interference) using devices known as diplexers.

When the antennas cover the same frequency bands, you can no longer rely on diplexers to combine them efficiently. If you connect them through a normal splitter/combiner (also known as a power divider), you can physically get the signals onto a single coax, but you will have a significant loss of signal strength, and you might also be introducing a lot of unwanted signal interference. You cannot achieve the ideal combination that you were hoping for.

[mgrover]

WILM-LD is Real Channel 40 is CBS , I will put my suggestion here soon

Yes, WILM is the CBS affiliate for Wilmington but the tvfool chart does not show a netowrk or virt number so I was wondering if it is possible to get it OTA or do I have to settle for CBS out of greenville (WNCT 9.1)?

[mgrover]

If these antennas span the same frequency ranges (e.g., all of them cover UHF), then the short answer is no.

When antennas cover non-overlapping bands (e.g., low-VHF, hi-VHF, and UHF), then you can combine those feed efficiently (minimum loss / interference) using devices known as diplexers.

When the antennas cover the same frequency bands, you can no longer rely on diplexers to combine them efficiently. If you connect them through a normal splitter/combiner (also known as a power divider), you can physically get the signals onto a single coax, but you will have a significant loss of signal strength, and you might also be introducing a lot of unwanted signal interference. You cannot achieve the ideal combination that you were hoping for.

Thank you... I always wondered and now I know!

[Tower Guy]

Since I have a DVR I want to "set it and forget it."

A DVR can also function as the A/B switch. Use the DB-2 for Greenville, and a HD-7496P aimed at 31. Connect one antenna to the TV set, the other to the DVR. You can watch either city live, (one through the DVR) but record only one of them.

[John Candle]

UHF channel 34 ION Television is the 'situation' transmitter , it's the odd one out. . I recommend a Antennas Direct XG91 pointed at 340 magnetic compass , WLFL 27 CW , WRDC 28 MyNetwork , on the roof in a fixed position. . And a Winegard HD 7695P on the roof on a rotator , ChannelMaster CM 9521A or http://forum.tvfool.com/showthread.php?t=460 . Rotate around to the north east , south east , south west. . And a remote control A/B switch from radio shack , at each Tv. No preamps/amplifiers for the antennas for now. May need a preamp with the XG91 with two Tv's , try with out a preamp with two tv's first. Some places to buy http://www.solidsignal.com , http://www.amazon.com , http://www.starkelectronic.com , http://www.warrenelectronics.com , http://www.summitsource.com

[John Candle]

Or can do it this way. The XG91 on the roof pointed at channels 27 and 28 , fixed position. . And Winegard FV-HD30 indoors , one at each of the two Tv's. The local UHF channels to the south west are Strong , a indoor antenna will receive them. Turn the antenna by hand to watch the local south west group or channel WPXU channel 34. Use A/B switch to switch between indoor antenna and outdoor antenna. . I don't think there is any thing on ION worth watching , so mostly the indoor antenna would be directed at the south west group of channels.

[John Candle]

http://www.titantv.com shows the Tv programs. . The Tv channels are shown as the Virtual Channels Numbers. Titan Tv shows the local Tv transmitter and the distant Parent Tv station , if the local transmitter has a Parent station. Titan Tv also shows distant Tv transmitters/virtual channels , even though the transmitter is too far away to receive. Confusing at first , takes some time to figure out.

[John Candle]

Or can do it this way. The XG91 is the same set up. However no inside antenna or antennas. Install a Winegard-MS 1000 omni directional antenna above the XG91 on the same mounting pole on the roof. The MS 1000 will receive the local stations to the south west and channel 34 ION Tv. And use the remote control A/B switch at the Tv/Tv's. . OR can use the cheap china antenna in the house , fun to watch it rotate wobble around.

[John Candle]

And ROKU/NETFLIX is $ 10.00 a month.