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Old 11-Oct-2010, 1:34 PM   #15
mtownsend
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Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 632
To get a little better performance than a basic loop and rabbit ears combo in a set-top size form factor, you ought to try the Terk HDTVi. You don't need an amplifier, so you don't need to spend the extra money for the HDTVa amplified version of the same antenna.

The part of the antenna with "wings" handles UHF, and the rabbit ears handle VHF. For the best VHF reception, you need to extend the rabbit ears elements out about half way and then position them so that they are laid out horizontally. Aim the "nose" of the antenna toward the stations you want to receive. This should be good enough to get you most of the stations in the "green" zone at the top of your TV Fool report.

If you need to get stations further down on your list, then you'll need to consider larger antennas and/or a better antenna location (i.e., in the attic, or on the roof). Some of the antennas mentioned so far in this thread are primarily "outdoor" antennas that you could place inside a room if you have enough room and a way to mount them. The "outdoor" antennas are usually designed to attach to a mast that you provide separately, so they do not come with any kind of stand of their own. You will need to create something yourself if you want these to stand somewhere in your room.

Also note that your stations are coming from multiple directions, so you may need to re-position the antenna to pick up each of the stations from different directions.

If you do choose to combine separate UHF and VHF antennas, the proper way to do this is with a "diplexer" (like this one). These are not just standard 2-way splitters. Any of the diplexers mentioned by ADTech can merge UHF and VHF bands with minimal loss of performance from either side.



As a general note, antenna directionality and antenna gain are related to each other. A high gain antenna is going to be very directional and vice versa. An "omni" antenna, by its very nature, cannot be a very high gain antenna. Conversely, a high gain antenna will be directional, and it can do a better job of picking up weaker stations, but it must also be pointed toward the channel you want to receive.

Your TV Fool report shows several strong local stations coming from many directions. The ones in "green" are probably strong enough to be picked up by an indoor set-top size antenna. For anything further down on the list, it's highly recommended that you consider an antenna in the attic or on the roof because the building itself is responsible for scattering/absorbing a lot of signal. On the weaker signals, it's very challenging to get enough clean signal for a reliable channel lock when the antenna is inside, surrounded by people, furniture, walls, neighboring rooms, neighboring buildings, and anything else that can get in the way.
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