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With that said, it seems to me I would need good multi-directional antenna. I have been looking at the Antenna Direct DB8e. Do you have any input on this?
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I have never been impressed with the term "multi-directional antenna." I think it is a term created by a marketing department. It raises your expectations to unrealistic heights.
Based on my experience, the antenna needs to be aimed directly at the transmitter to avoid multipath reflections.
The DB8e is a high quality antenna made by a company with integrity, that will stand by its products. When the two panels are aimed in the same direction, it is hard to beat. But, when the panels are aimed in two different directions, sometimes the results are good and sometimes not. This is because both antennas can pick-up the same signal and when they arrive at the combiner they can interfere with each other if they are not in phase.
ADTech, who works for the manufacturer and is active on this forum giving expert advice has this to say:
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Originally Posted by ADTech
.....The DB8e is pretty much as just described. Customers have been asking us for years to include the flexibility of independent aiming of the panels so we tossed the feature in there. When the antenna gets up in the air and the panels are aimed independently, either it will work or it won't. For those customers for whom it works, everyone's happy. If it doesn't then it will be necessary to fall back to the conventional practices of rotors, A-B switches, and the like. There's nothing magical or otherwise about the combiner - it's a very good two port splitter that is about as efficient as we could produce. If it's been treated with pixie dust or otherwise has "special" characteristics that eliminate signal phasing issues, I didn't get told about that. The coaxial cable's length has been optimized for this application.
As the DB8e is a UHF design, its application is going to be somewhat limited by the presence of VHF channels in many markets. It isn't for everyone (no antenna is) but, for those who need its peak boresite gain for "straight-ahead" locations, it's the best thing this side of a parabolic for UHF performance.
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The advice that I previously gave you was conservative with a high probability of good results with an antenna aimed at Richmond.
If you want two directions, the problem becomes difficult with many possible solutions.
If you are willing to take the risk, why don't you try the two panels in different directions, keeping in mind that the DB8e is a UHF antenna and WWBT is on VHF channel 12. If you can get NBC on WVIR, you don't need WWBT. Add a preamp with its power inserter down near the TV.
If the DB8e aimed in two different directions doesn't work, align the two panels so that they face the same direction and aim them at Richmond at 84 degrees magnetic.
If you still want the Charlottesville channels, add another antenna and preamp, a DB4e aimed at 10 degrees magnetic. Bring the two antenna coax lines down to their power inserters and then to an A/B switch to select which antenna you want to use.
At this point some people combine both with a splitter in reverse instead of the A/B switch, but the same out of phase problem can mess you up here.
If the splitter as a combiner doesn't work, go back to the A/B switch. Your converter box must be able to add a channel after scan or you will need to rescan each time you change antennas.
If you buy a digital TV, get one, like a Sony, that can add a new channel after a scan.
If your converter box can't add a channel after scan, you can add a second converter box for the second antenna and then the A/B switch can select which CH 3/4 output goes to the TV antenna input.
An alternative, if your TV has an A/V input, would be to use the TV input switch to select the other converter box A/V output.
Some people use one antenna and a rotator, but who likes to wait while it changes direction, and who wants to rescan each time you change direction, and who wants to fix a broken rotator in January?
