For the past few years I have struggling with getting a local channel on VHF channel 12 that is not provided on my Dish subscription.
Here is my report:
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...d243ffa853f900
I started with a noname antenna that was similar to a Channel Master CM3016, but the signal kept dropping in and out on my Dish receiver and TVs. About a year ago I upgraded to a Winegard HD 7084P. I get a lot more signal, but the signal still drops in and out.
A couple days ago I was playing around with a salvaged folded dipole I scavenged from an old antenna. It measures out to be about a channel 10 length. I mounted it to a piece of 3/4 PVC pipe about 4 feet long, and took a small tv out to the back yard. It turns out that I actually get a more reliable signal with this little piece of junk than I do the Winegard. I screwed the PVC pipe to a wood post about 5 feet from my Winegard at a height of about 10 feet, and patched the cable into my feed line to the house. The quality meter on my Dish receiver says that I get a quality of about 67 (constant) with the junk antenna, and with the Winegard I get about 85 quality, but it jumps up and down erratically, and causes the signal to be lost frequently.
Why would I get a more reliable signal with a junk piece of aluminum than a $150 antenna?