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Old 29-Nov-2011, 6:48 PM   #1
GroundUrMast
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Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Greater Seattle Area
Posts: 4,773
Indoor Antennas - Non-amplified

This is a thread dedicated to listing and reviewing Indoor, non-amplified antennas... "Rabbit Ears"

If you need help deciding whether an indoor antenna will work for you or not, please read through the Guidelines when asking for help Then, as directed, post your request in the Help With Reception forum.

My reference to specific retailers pricing is not an endorsement of that retailer. Vendors such as solidsignal.com, summitsource.com, amazon.com, 3starinc.com, frys.com, newegg.com, bestbuy.com... and on and on... are all worth considering when shopping.

As a general rule I am inclined to recommend non-amplified indoor antennas. I won't go so far as to say, "Never consider an amplified antenna." However, my opinion is that if signal conditions are strong enough to make an indoor antenna worth your consideration, use of any sort of amplifier is generally not needed. Amplifiers can be overloaded by strong signals, at which point the quality of the received signal will be reduced to the point were reliable reception is affected. Amplified antennas also cost more... but rarely give you any additional benefit that can be observed on the TV screen.

Most rabbit-ear style antennas have adjustable length rods that are intended to receive VHF frequencies. Here is a list of the estimated length for each VHF channel.
For 1/4" diameter dipole rods
Estimated length of each rod
Calculated using 4NEC2

Channel - Rod Length
2 ------- 49 3/8"
3 ------- 44 5/8"
4 ------- 40 3/4"
5 ------- 35 1/2"
6 ------- 33"
7 ------- 15 5/8"
8 ------- 15 3/8"
9 ------- 14 5/8"
10 ------ 14 1/4"
11 ------ 13 3/4"
12 ------ 13 3/8"
13 ------ 13"
Post #2 in http://forum.tvfool.com/showthread.php?t=11 provides additional information about the technical performance of the typical set top antenna.
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If the well is dry and you don't see rain on the horizon, you'll need to dig the hole deeper. (If the antenna can't get the job done, an amp won't fix it.)

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Last edited by GroundUrMast; 15-Apr-2012 at 8:08 PM.
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