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Old 26-Oct-2014, 9:05 PM   #1
Zman
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Join Date: Jun 2014
Posts: 2
Weak Signal / dropouts

Hi all,
I am located in central Pennsylvania, and according to my reception report, have pretty solid signal from all the major networks, yet I am constantly struggling to bring in the local Fox signal without it constantly pipeline and dropping out. I have a Clearstream 2 antenna roof-mounted (ranch style home, so about 20-25 ft. off the ground) and aimed just slightly west of due south. There are a fair number of tall trees in both mine and the neighbor's yards. Any advice you might be able to give as to the best steps to take to try to better lock in the Fox signal would be appreciated. Here's the link to my signal report:
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...d243041550c442

Thanks in advance!
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Old 26-Oct-2014, 9:16 PM   #2
rabbit73
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Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: S.E. VA
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Try something simple first. What happens if you rotate your antenna more south to favor FOX?

https://www.antennasdirect.com/clear...ntalplane.html

Trees really mess-up UHF signals.
http://www.hdtvprimer.com/antennas/siting.html

Scroll down to Trees and UHF.

If that doesn't work and FOX is very important, you would need a more exotic (expensive) solution.
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Last edited by rabbit73; 26-Oct-2014 at 9:23 PM.
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Old 26-Oct-2014, 11:08 PM   #3
Zman
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Join Date: Jun 2014
Posts: 2
Thanks for the advice. I've tried (re)pointing the antenna around quite a bit. Right now I've got it facing directly at the Fox signal direction as best I can. Unfortunately that means aiming it right at my neighbor's 30 ft. pine tree too. After reading the description of tree issues on the link you posted, I think that's exactly what my problem is, since it does seem to be worse in the wind. I was thinking about moving the antenna clear to the opposite end of my roof to see if that might help. The only reason I put it on the south end of the roof to begin with is because that's where the existing grounding block is mounted on the side of the house. Do you think moving it all the way over to the North end of the roof would put enough distance between it and the offending tree(s) to make much of a difference in signal, or would I just be wasting my time?
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Old 27-Oct-2014, 2:00 AM   #4
rabbit73
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Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: S.E. VA
Posts: 2,747
Getting further away from the trees always helps, but finding a clear shot thru the trees is even better.

You can always try a temporary test of another antenna location without making it permanent.

If that doesn't work, then maybe the next step would be a separate antenna with a little more gain for FOX like a DB4e or a 91XG with an A/B switch to switch between antennas.

WLYH is probably too strong for you to use a preamp for FOX unless you use a single-channel CH 47 band pass filter between the separate antenna and the preamp.

Your tvfool report doesn't take into consideration the signal loss caused by the trees.

http://www.wrightsaerials.tv/referen...-reception.pdf

Last edited by rabbit73; 27-Oct-2014 at 2:56 AM.
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