13mi to Towers, Multipath Issues
 

Hello all,

Thanks for hosting and participating in a great group; I've consulted past threads many times in my initial trials at OTA DTV reception and you all have been very helpful.

Unfortunately I haven't had the trouble-free reception I'm hoping for given my proximity to the towers. I'm looking for the usual ABC/NBC/CBS/FOX and PBS and others would be nice too, but have had spotty reception issues ever since installing in the attic (I know, it gets worse) on the 4th floor of my townhome. I get 50ish% showing on my TiVo Premiere for most channels; I have never seen it hit 60 or above. I get complete dropouts about half the time. I'm currently running a Winegard SS-3000 in the attic, and I suspect serious multipath issues as there are a number of 20-30 story buildings about 1 mile away directly in my path to the towers, which are 13 miles away. It's the Houston Medical Center, complete with a helipad or two, and I'm sure it's not great for reception.

The house has an aluminum roof and stucco siding, so it's certainly not radio-signal friendly (told you it got worse) in the attic. So after thinking through some of the safety ramifications of climbing on top of my 50' house, I'm ready to try to put something outside. I would love to minimize my time on the roof (and risk of death by falling) by getting just the right outdoor antenna so I don't have to keep going up there to tweak it.

My current thought is the ANT-751 pointed at 212 deg. true, but I'm here for advice. Here's the TV Fool link:

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...40333607666047

Any thoughts?

That should work fine. It can go on the side of the house facing 212 degrees, saving a trip up a 50' ladder.

Tv Reception with Tv antennas
 

I agree with your ANT.751 aimed at 212 degree magnetic compass. Here is how to aim antennas , http://www.kyes.com/antenna/pointing/pointing.html. Here is a antenna mount that might make it less dangerous , the mounting can be done at the side of the house with a ladder. http://www.ronard.com/34424560.html

Thanks; unfortunately the side of the house is no good as I'm about 5 feet from another house (zero lot line) that blocks the southern view completely. I'll give this antenna a try, but I have had unsatisfactory results with the Clearstream DB2 and CM2016 just placing it outside a high window and aiming it at 212 deg. I'm not sure whether to blame this poor performance on multipath, the obstructions, or the antennas themselves. Any other advice before I pull the trigger on the ANT 751?

South side is blocked eh? Any other neighboring buildings? How about checking for reflected signals coming at the east or west end of your house?
I helped a lady set up an antenna on her apartment porch. The manager said no roof mounts. A direct view to the broadcast towers was blocked but we got a nice signal bouncing off the neighboring building. Your signals are much stronger than hers.

Tv Reception with Tv antennas
 

Here are two more antenna mounts , http://www.ronard.com/909911.html , http://www.ronard.com/ychim.html. Many question askers have reception issues with Tivo , Tivo likes a nice clean signal.

Will try this out with my Winegard just to see what I see. I should clarify that the south side is blocked for mounting on the side of the house, but I can clear the obstruction by mounting on the roof with a small j-mount, even. The surrounding structures are of similar height to mine (3-4 story, tall, skinny townhomes). I can try aiming at them to see what I get, though the geometry of the bounce would not make sense to me if it worked. It seems hard to predict what radio waves do over complex terrain, though, so let me give it a shot this weekend.

Thanks for the mount suggestions, Electron, but I think I will be going with a roof mount if I do have to mount it.

Just to follow up for the good of anyone else who is looking at this, I ended up installing an ANT-751 on my roof, and so far so good after a couple days. TiVo's antenna signal numbers went from in the 40's and 50's to the 60's and 70's (out of 100). This is with no real precise aiming as I chickened out and had a handy-man climb up there and risk his neck for a few bucks rather than mine. I didn't instruct him on the use of the compass since the signals improved so much with just a "point it that way" direction. After all, I am only 13 miles away.

Thanks to the community and everyone who answered my questions! And if anyone wants my old Winegard from the attic, I'll cut you a deal!

Tv antennas and Tv reception
 

Many tv channels received , very good.