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First, antennas:
I used to get ION when I first set up the antenna. To do so I had to point the antenna to about 160 degrees, but then I also got all the Buffalo stations just fine. But nothing from Toronto. So I rotated it to catch Toronto and then of course ION disappeared.
I should also note that I can get some of the other NY stations that are just as "deep" into the hinterland as ION right now. So I'm relatively confident I can get ION again, at least in the summer, with an antenna pointed in that direction. If I lose it in the winter, c'est la vie.
Following your logic I'll stick with the array. The only channel that really requires that is Fox, and that one is kinda marginal right now.
Tuners:
Nice link rabbit! That thread is doing just what I propose, so it's good to see I'm not the only one thinking this way! (BTW I did Google for people doing this, but this did not turn up)
I looked at the SiliconDust machine, but as that thread notes, they removed one of the antenna inputs circa 2010, which kind of ruins it for me. I understand why they did this, but my situation demands the former design and they disappeared from the market pronto.
I also looked at the Tablo, which has the same issue. Being from Canada I had a lengthy conversation with them about this issue, but they seem unconvinced. Which is odd, because I believe both of these boxes are nothing more than MythTV back-end running on a lightweight PC - precisely what I'm hoping to do, but replacing the PC with a Raspberry Pi. So what both of them could do is put a USB port on the back and periodically scan to see if someone plugged in a tuner.
The real problem, as you note, is watching it. As to that, I already watch perhaps 90 to 95% of my time using streamed content on my Apple TV. So what we really want is to have all of these products feed into that. Of course the Apple TV famously does NOT allow this...
Well that's about to change. A new one almost certainly comes out on 9 September, and even more likely is a programming kit. If this comes to pass I suspect MythTV front-end will be on it by the end of the month.
So at that point I'll have everything coming in through the Apple TV, including live and recorded TV. It already works for you Roku users, of course.
Roof:
The only reason with thinking about the tuners right on the roof is line losses. But I do intend to experiment with this - I'm going to find a good position for Buffalo and then test the signal strength at the top and bottom of the coax run I already have. Certainly leaving it in the utility room will offer many advantages once the pointing is complete.
Why bother? Because I noticed that the line loss from the antenna to the TV in the basement was *considerable*. I lost well over half the channels! I added a cheap-o RCA distribution amp in the utility room to address this. So the question remains how much I'm losing on the line that's left, maybe lots, maybe next to nothing.
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