Over the border from NEK VT to Sherbrooke
 

Hi All, I have a nice rig in place for Vt Pub TV broadcast from Burke Mtn (virtual 20.1, et seq); I have an A/B switch in place and would like to change my second rig to pick up the various stations at 7, 11 and 24 (real and virtual) all at 357 degrees magnetic.

Here is location report.

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...46ae61aed2157e

I have some deciduous trees on the norther boundary of the prop and could cut a few if necessary. I could also mount up at the property line (clear of the trees) and that would be about a 75' run to the home and then another 40' or so in the home.

I had a 4 bay bowtie pointing that way, mounted on the gable end home about 20' off the ground that and seemed to work pretty well in the winter. The roof is metal.

Any and all insights appreciated. Thanks in advance. David

Moderate and even long cable runs can be made reliable with the aid of a properly spec'd amplifier. For example, RG-6 cable should have less than 6 dB loss per 100'. that suggests that a preamplifier with 15 dB gain should be able to drive over 200' of RG-6 coax.

Reliable reception of weak / distant signals will generally be easier if the antenna is able to point at a clear horizon, free of obstructions such as vegetation, buildings and terrain. To 'chase down' the signals on azimuth 357° I would upgrade to an Antennas Direct 91XG combined with an Antennacraft Y10713 using the Antennas Direct EU385CF UHF/VHF Antenna Combiner. The Antennas Direct PA-18 preamp would be a good choice, capable of driving all the cable you've mentioned... With gain left over for splitter losses if needed.

So, yeah, I would look at a somewhat remote mounting if it provided a clear path along the antennas aim path.

You could consult with tinlee.com re. an antenna combiner that would allow you to drop the A/B switch. I'm thinking of the AC7 tuned for real channel 18 (WVTB).

Thanks GroundUrMast...as always your insights are spot on and greatly appreciated. Sorry it took me a while to get back as I was on the road and then catching back up.

I am a little perplexed over something with reception at this location. From time to time I get solid reception of New Hampshire Public Television on virtual 11.1 through 11.4.

On the location report, it's showing 11.1, etc, real and virtual, emanating from Sherbrooke Quebec as a CBC channel. I am not understanding at all how I am pulling in NH PTV or why it's sporadic. How can I pull this in reliably and where I am likely pulling this in from?

Many thanks in advance. I like your idea of a 91XG up there as I am happy with the same rig down here in 07083.

Best, David aka Obergeiss

According to Wikipedia, NPTV operates three transmitters. WENH, licensed in Durham, NH operates on real CH-11 and sources several virtual channels 11.1 through 11.4.

When I measure the distance between your approximate location and the WENH tower, using Google Earth, I come up with about 119 miles.

It's clear that you are seeing the signal via a tropospheric path and that's subject to weather / atmospheric conditions. I doubt you'll be able to get reliable reception of their signal. It may be the subject of a DXing hobby though... :) (Do you want to build a really big rhombic array? http://forum.tvfool.com/showthread.php?t=2865)

Really fascinating the NH PTV programming is similar to that offered to VT PTV so don't think the incentive is there to construct a rhombic display for that catch.

I looked into this a bit further and my guess is that my intermittent grab of virtual 11.1, et seq, is by virtue of real channel 34.1 et seq, broadcasted from Pittsburgh NH.
Perhaps I am picking it up off the back of my bowtie pointed to Sherbrooke QC?

http://www.rabbitears.info/market.ph...ility_id=69321

As to real station 26, W26CQ, not sure whether it's broadcasting DTV or analog..here's some interesting history relating to broadcasts from Mt Washington in NH.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WMTW