TV Fool - 50+ miles from broadcasting stations, antenna selection

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- - 50+ miles from broadcasting stations, antenna selection (http://forum.tvfool.com/showthread.php?t=13491)

Quote:

Originally Posted by ADTech (Post 53976)

Please do a current exact location TVFool plot (use the interactive tool) and include the LINK to the plot, not an image of it. Also, provide a concise summary of how the antenna is mounted, what direction it is aimed, how it is connected, what, if anything, is in front of the antenna as well as a summary by call letters of the stations that are giving issues.

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...b97da22018ea6b

Having particular trouble with channels mentioned in post #20, but all channels are having issues with pixelation recently.

Your link to the report does not work.

Yes, the link is broken in the center.

It looks like l37 did a copy and paste from my post number 19. That link is from an estimated report I did based on his image of a report in post number 1, which puts him in Morris, IL 60450 near the Walmart Supercenter.

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...b97da22018ea6b

as you can see, the last numbers are the same
b97da22018ea6b

So, I don't have a lot of confidence in the report because it probably isn't as accurate as one that he could have done based on his exact address.

And the height is missing

And he hasn't given us all that ADTech asked for other than what I guessed about

Quote:

Also, provide a concise summary of how the antenna is mounted, what direction it is aimed, how it is connected, what, if anything, is in front of the antenna as well as a summary by call letters of the stations that are giving issues.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rabbit73 (Post 53979)

[IMG]
These channels?
2.x, WBBM, CBS, real channel 12
your DB4e isn't designed to get that
5.x, WMAQ, NBC, real channel 29
7.x, WLS, ABC, real channel 44
11.x, WTTW, PBS, real channel 47
20.x, WYCC, PBS, real channel 21

Quote:

Originally Posted by l37 (Post 54118)

Yes, there is a screen door and glass door in front of the antenna. This was not an issue previously when I originally posted though.

Yes, those are the ones that I am having trouble with (5.X+). I am not sure if the issue is the antenna (getting bad?), or that I have too many things downstream from the antenna (RCA preamp, and Channel Master DVR+).

Given the location, should I switch over to a DB8 (not DB8e)?

My apologies. I will run a new report and post it here shortly

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...e6a40b8ceeb24c

This is a fresh report I just ran. I unfortunately have just been more/less dealing with this since I posted this initially. My apologies to everyone for not following up on this earlier.

I was reading about the RCA751 recently - would that be better than the DB4e in my situation? Right now I am debating between the RCA751 (evidently the store I saw this at has a 751 not 751R) and the DB8 (not DB8e)

Antenna would be mounted on the second floor, behind a glass door (screen door removed). Line of sight is pretty clear, thought there are some tree branches in view. There are also some buildings, but they are not directly in the line of sight for the antenna.

Antenna is connected to an RCA preamp (TVPRAMP1R) and then to a Channel Master DVR. Antenna is aimed northeast towards Chicago since those are where the majority of channels come from in this area.

Quote:

Originally Posted by l37 (Post 58909)

No, the RCA ANT751 would not be better than the DB4e; it doesn't have a much gain that you need for WLS ABC, real channel 44, virtual channel 7.1.

None of the antennas that you have mentioned have enough gain for WBBM CBS, real channel 12, virtual channel 2.1.

Based on your report, you should be getting WLS OK with the DB4e and the RCA preamp. Something else must be wrong.

Quote:

Antenna would be mounted on the second floor, behind a glass door (screen door removed). Line of sight is pretty clear, thought there are some tree branches in view. There are also some buildings, but they are not directly in the line of sight for the antenna.

Can you show us a photo looking out that door so that we can see what the antenna sees when aimed at 53 degrees magnetic?

Your other thread for reference:
DB4e vs DB8
http://forum.tvfool.com/showthread.php?t=15990

So something strange is happening - rotating the antenna 180 degrees (such that it faces AWAY from the source) improves the signal. We did this a few weeks ago, and our reception has improved dramatically. Since it is indoor, it is fairly easy to do, and it doesn't look that awkward. Is it possible that the reflector (which is now closer to the source) is acting as a "filter"? I.e. reflecting back the interfering signals.

Quote:

Is it possible that the reflector (which is now closer to the source) is acting as a "filter"? I.e. reflecting back the interfering signals.

That is possible, but we are not able to give you any further accurate advice until we learn more about your location.

At this point, I need to look at an aerial satellite view of your location to see the relationship between the signal lines and the buildings. I would also like to see a photo looking out the window in the direction of 50 degrees to see what your antenna "sees."

Can you give me the exact coordinates of the antenna in a PM? I will also show you some photos in a PM that I found. If they are of your location, maybe you can tell me what is what.

What I am trying to see is what I would see if I were there to help you.

For reference:

Your report:
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...e6a40b8ceeb24c

Your channels:
2.x, WBBM, CBS, real channel 12, NM 14.9 dB, 53.3 mi, 50 deg
5.x, WMAQ, NBC, real channel 29, NM 25.5 dB, 53.3 mi, 50 deg
7.x, WLS, ABC, real channel 44, NM 27.1 dB, 53.3 mi, 50 deg
11.x, WTTW, PBS, real channel 47, NM 21.0 dB, 53.3 mi, 50 deg
20.x, WYCC, PBS, real channel 21, NM 9.0 dB, 2Edge, 54.7 mi, 49 deg