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Old 26-Dec-2010, 11:36 AM   #1
rew
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WTRF - 7 Wheeling WV

I receive channel 7 from Wheeling WV with my Channel Master 4228 antenna and boosters at a distance of 88 miles and it never shows up on the TV Fool listings. And there are a lot of other channels listed for my location that are supposed to be received by me that i never receive.
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Old 21-Feb-2011, 1:08 AM   #2
mtownsend
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Can you post a link to your TV Fool report?

It just seems unlikely that you'd pick up a VHF channel (WTRF is on channel 7) with a Channel Master 4228 (a UHF-only antenna) from 88 miles away.

It may be possible that you are picking up a signal from a repeater that is closer to you or on a UHF channel. The signal might be using virtual channel mapping to show up as channel 7.1 even though the real broadcast might be on a different channel. If your TV can tell you the real RF channel that you are watching, that might help us identify the transmitter that is giving you this signal.

If there really is a local transmitter on channel 7, then this investigation might help identify which one it is.
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Old 21-Feb-2011, 10:11 AM   #3
rew
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Yes i get channel 7 from Wheeling every day. Just yesterday when the weather was clearing ahead of the approaching storm I was getting all the Pittsburgh stations which i normally only get half of them along with all the stations in Youngstown,Akron,Canton, and even Cleveland. I was getting a stronger signal from Cleveland channel 5 from maybe 200-miles than from Johnstown-30 miles away! The height of my antenna also greatly determines the distance of stations i can receive. I have my antenna pointed at Pittsburgh and i pick up Wheeling from the left and Johnstown from the right side of some taller than my antenna pine trees 100-feet in front of my antenna. Do you know of any repeater that can do this? Or is it just the weather?
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Old 21-Feb-2011, 10:16 AM   #4
rew
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channel 7 reception and other stations

Quote:
Originally Posted by mtownsend View Post
Can you post a link to your TV Fool report?

It just seems unlikely that you'd pick up a VHF channel (WTRF is on channel 7) with a Channel Master 4228 (a UHF-only antenna) from 88 miles away.

It may be possible that you are picking up a signal from a repeater that is closer to you or on a UHF channel. The signal might be using virtual channel mapping to show up as channel 7.1 even though the real broadcast might be on a different channel. If your TV can tell you the real RF channel that you are watching, that might help us identify the transmitter that is giving you this signal.

If there really is a local transmitter on channel 7, then this investigation might help identify which one it is.
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rew
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Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 3

Yes i get channel 7 from Wheeling every day. Just yesterday when the weather was clearing ahead of the approaching storm I was getting all the Pittsburgh stations which i normally only get half of them along with all the stations in Youngstown,Akron,Canton, and even Cleveland. I was getting a stronger signal from Cleveland channel 5 from maybe 200-miles than from Johnstown-30 miles away! The height of my antenna also greatly determines the distance of stations i can receive. I have my antenna pointed at Pittsburgh and i pick up Wheeling from the left and Johnstown from the right side of some taller than my antenna pine trees 100-feet in front of my antenna. Do you know of any repeater that can do this? Or is it just the weather?
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Old 21-Feb-2011, 6:45 PM   #5
mtownsend
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Please generate a TV Fool report for your location and then post the URL for it back here. You can also use the Interactive Maps feature (link) to make sure you are analyzing the correct location for your home. This will tell us how much signal is coming from these distant transmitters and what other repeaters/translators might be nearby.

If your only antenna is a Channel Master 4228, then it should not be possible for you to be picking up VHF stations from so far away. The CM 4228's gain on channel 7 is probably around -2 dBd because it's really designed for UHF reception only. With such low gain, it just seems unlikely to be picking up a signal on channel 7 from 88 miles away.

Reception from 200 miles away is also a rare event (unless you happen to live on a very tall mountain). The curvature of the Earth usually gets in the way beyond 60-80 miles, so signal levels are usually extremely weak at distances of 200 miles.

Cleveland's channel 5 is probably WEWS, which broadcasts on real channel 15 and uses virtual channel mapping to show up as channel 5.1. Long distance reception is sometimes helped by the right atmospheric conditions, with the best opportunities usually happening in the evenings after a clear and sunny day.

Another factor that make long distance reception difficult is that the same channel is used by multiple broadcasters in different cities. It is often difficult to receive a channel from 200 miles away because at that range you are dealing with multiple signals interfering with each other, and you'll need the right combination of circumstances to pick out a clean signal from one of those transmitters while avoiding interference from the others.
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Old 25-Feb-2011, 10:13 AM   #6
rew
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This is a link to my current TVfool profile- http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...c77a4330583c95
It does not show channels 4,7,13,or 19 which i am receiving.
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Old 25-Feb-2011, 7:31 PM   #7
mtownsend
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Well, I can't think of any way to explain how you are receiving the channels you are getting. Channel 19.1 does show up as the third channel in your TV Fool report, but channels 4, 7, and 13 do not appear to be within reach of your location.

I tried to look for repeaters or translators that might make it possible for you to receive these channels, but I couldn't find anything that matched.

I don't really have an explanation for what you're seeing. According to your location analysis, there should not be any OTA signals in your area to give you these channels.

The other possibilities I can think of are:

1) Maybe the address lookup of your location is way off. Have you tried the Interactive Maps to see if the address lookup is analyzing the correct location?

2) There's a chance you are picking up signals from unintended sources. There have been cases where cable network systems have "leaked" enough signal to be picked up by nearby TVs. There's a remote possibility that your antenna is picking up leaked signal that was not intended for OTA broadcast.

Are you getting analog or digital versions of these channels (i.e., do you get 4.1, 7.1, 13.1, and 19.1 sub-channels? do you see any "snow")?

Is your TV input set up for "Air" or for "Cable" reception?
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Old 26-Feb-2011, 11:30 AM   #8
rew
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Thanks for the reply mr townsend- i always guessed that UFO's were responsible, just kidding. I get sub channels on all but 19. The input is set for Air. For some reason the height of my antenna is crucial for receiving 4 and 7. I get 13 WQED very well even though it is probably the lowest powered output of them and is maybe the farthest away except for 7 which my brother about a mile away from me doesn't get except on rare occation. He is using a 91XG antenna so the design of the 4228 that i am using may be bringing in 7 for me. The 2 boosters i think help bring in channel 4. I have tried 3 boosters but it won't work.
The signal also may be bouncing off the tall pine trees 100 feet in front of the antenna.
The trees may even be blocking the signal. I don't know. I don't know why some of the Pittsburgh stations get through and some don't. Is it just the weather conditions all the time that affect my reception?
If you ever come up with any other ideas let me know. Thanks
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Old 27-Feb-2011, 11:05 AM   #9
rew
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I do get digital quality reception on all the stations, but sometimes on channel 7 and 8 their 'in house' programs like their local news and weather programs have a very low quality look to them-no HD. The 'network' shows that they air are usually very high definition.
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