Quote:
Originally Posted by madvetos
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I'm a newbie here also, so until I get used to the forum and rules, I won't post any links to my sources.
I live in an area that all retailers said I would also need a deep fringe antenna mounted at least 20 feet over my house. And, I would probably still have unusable reception for the 3 channels I really wanted (CBS, NBC & ABC local).
With the cost of the antenna, rotator, distribution amplifier for 3 TVs, this would have put the initial cost of well over $400.
Amplified indoor/outdoor antennas in the range of $35/$100 were very ineffective, and were quickly returned.
So, I started experimenting with building a fractal antenna, based on the "star shape" elements. My first was with 1 inch per segment. Indoor I was able to get all of the LOS channels in my area. Pwr range at my home from -10dBm to -40dBm.
Without accurate equipment, I relied on the signal strength meter on my TV. The results from my homemade antenna were about 20% higher than the amplified rabbit ear VHF/UHF. And, to top it off, the rabbit ears had a 6 foot coax lead. My homemade antenna used a 50 foot coax.
Only 1 2Edge station (was able to be picked up with the rabbit ears, but I to find the exact placement, and effectively lost signal to the other LOS stations. My homemade antenna was able to receive this station without moving the antenna.
I set my homemade antenna outside on a temporary mount from my abandoned satellite antenna, and was pleased to get decent signal from another 2Edge in the high VHF range.
My next attempt was the same design, but with a 3 inch segment star shape. Indoors, I get every LOS and 2Edge available in my area.
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...67d940ad1928dc
For reference, I'll focus on just one channel for comparison. Based on the Radar Map for an outside antenna mounted at 10 feet, and the signal strength meter in my TV's setup menu.
KAME - Real channel 20, distance 1.9 miles, Pwr(dBm) -10.4
Amplified Rabbit ears - signal strength = 38 - 40
1 inch segment fractal indoors - signal strength = 42 - 48
1 inch segment fractal outdoors - signal strength = 60 - 65
3 inch segment fractal indoors - signal strength = 85 - 88
And I forgot to mention, all of these were without the use of a reflector.
So, after my long winded post, if you can afford to buy less than $20 worth of material and be willing to spend an hour or so building it, this may be the way out. I was lucky enough to have enough scrap material laying around, and only had to buy a matching transformer.
Where I live (Reno area), there's a company that will come to my house and take signal readings and recommend the best antenna, with no guarantee of it actually working, for $100. Needless to say, I didn't try this option.