Why am I only getting one channel?

[gkbenji]

I'm just recently trying to get my OTA set up working again, after not using it for years. Old Sony tube Trinitron with a digital Magnavox SDTV converter. When OTA first went digital, I recall getting a bunch of stations, some clear, some not so much. I'm in Fort Collins, CO. Here's my signal report.

So last week I fired things up, and receive exactly ONE channel (well, really three): digital 6.1, 6.2 and 6.3. KRMA-DT comes in just fine, but I get nothing else. I reset everything, did a double-rescan of the converter box, but still just digital channel 6. It comes in nice and clear.

The antenna on the roof appears to be an old VHF unit. It was there when I bought the house almost two decades ago, in the dim pre-cable past. I've never gone up to look at it; it has a flat 2-conductor cable coming off it (see attachment).

My question: I used to get a bunch of channels. Why now do I get only one, just fine, and no others?

Note: you don't need to spend time with antenna recommendations, because it's not worth it to me to spend actual money on this. I'm just trying to understand how I could only get one channel, when there are others that appear to be coming from the same direction with decent strength.

Thanks for any info!

[GroundUrMast]

That antenna and down-lead have obviously seen better days. There are one or more broken elements and I suspect that the cable is well weathered. All this adds up to plenty of reason to expect the antenna to be far from it's original tuned state and any signal picked up, may or may not have a path to the tuner. Just some random bit of wire attached to the tuner can act as a crude antenna, but the results will be unpredictable.

If you don't want to take advantage of the free HD and SD programing available to you, I won't waste your time with an antenna suggestion.

But best regards anyway...

[Stereocraig]

Different frequencies behave differently, depending on distance, height, reflections, etc.

If it's not of that much interest to you to find a solution, you may not care to waste a lot of time worrying about it.

+=>

Your description of the situation provides the answers you seek.

Old antenna , twin lead antenna wire , and other problems that have to do the old defective componets.

You are not interested in doing a Correct Installation so

[gkbenji]

Okay, let me restate things. I don't care about TV (OTA or otherwise) enough to pay hundreds of dollars, but if there's a cheap fix (say less than $50) I'd spend a little.

I know OTA signals can be capricious... is that the only answer? Lucky bounce on channel 6? Still doesn't quite make sense to me... one channel perfectly clear, and not even a sniff of another one? If the only advice here is for buying and aiming antennas, that's okay. I was just hoping there might be something else simple I was missing.

+=>

Here is a Cheap Fix , less then 50 dollars.

At http://www.summitsource.com.

Buy and install a , Channel Master CM4010 indoor antenna.

Summit Source AN4010 indoor antenna.

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The Tv Must Channel Scan for the , ATSC-Digital Broadcast Tv Stations/Channels.

DO NOT Channel Scan For Cable Tv Channels.

DO NOT Channel Scan For Analog Broadcast Tv Channels.

[Flint Ridge]

New coax from inside up to a homemade antenna, should be well under $50. You have plenty of signal. UHF/VHF super simple designs out there. If you can bend a chunk of metal you will be way ahead of what you have now. Try something like the StealthHawk #289 build your own with some scrap add the balun (under $3) and the coax 100' $25. You will be living large. May not get channel 6 as it is low VHF.

General info...

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=140206

Look at post #289, 60" piece of proper aluminum (8' piece at Menards 3/8" is under $12) We are at $40, leaving $10 for misc (drill a couple holes, screws and washers) and cash leftover for a refreshment. Best of luck!

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=123803

[Stereocraig]

Originally Posted by gkbenji

Okay, let me restate things. I don't care about TV (OTA or otherwise) enough to pay hundreds of dollars, but if there's a cheap fix (say less than $50) I'd spend a little.

I know OTA signals can be capricious... is that the only answer? Lucky bounce on channel 6? Still doesn't quite make sense to me... one channel perfectly clear, and not even a sniff of another one? If the only advice here is for buying and aiming antennas, that's okay. I was just hoping there might be something else simple I was missing.

I totally agree, OTA is not for everybody.
I suppose if you want to risk 50.00 to see if you can pick up more than one channel, you won't be out a lot, if it doesn't improve your results.
There's really not any one solution that fits everybody's needs.

I also agree w/ GUM, in that just by sheer coincidence, the lead in wire is capturing some signal and not the antenna itself.

[gkbenji]

Thanks everyone. A home-made StealthHawk sounds like just the ticket... I need a balun, and the rest I can prototype without any outlay at all, and it'll only cost a bit if I need to run it all the way up to the roof. I will give it a shot.

[gkbenji]

Update: thanks to the links here and $20, I now have a Stealth Hawk 289 up on the side of the house, a bit lower than the roof antenna--about 18'--and am pulling in many of the stations in green on my signal report. Apparently, yes, channel 6 previously was a lucky bounce.

But, of course, one station I would like at the hi end of UHF, channel 51 Univision, doesn't come in. It's right at the edge of the red band too, although I get a few channels listed just a bit above it just fine.

Due to a few factors (cable runs, roof pitch) I doubt I'll be putting anything on my old mast for now. But would a different homebrew antenna design (bowtie or GH) give better gain in the high UHF channels?

[Flint Ridge]

Yes there are much stronger antennas to be made. The other site I mentioned previously have links to various models. But it can be addictive.