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Old 8-Feb-2010, 1:57 AM   #1
twestwood
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Join Date: Feb 2010
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another newbee

I want to thank all that participate in helping others with the technical difficulties. I looked at my analysis and have come to the conclusion that I live to far to get decent signal. I am probably wrong given my limited knowledge of this field. Anyway here is my link.

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...b32b15e47ceefd

thanks
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Old 8-Feb-2010, 7:48 AM   #2
mtownsend
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Hello and welcome!

Your report does show many channels within reach of a rooftop antenna, but unfortunately, the address lookup was only resolved to a city level. In order to really understand which channels are reachable and which ones are not, it's important to run an analysis for your exact location as best as possible.

If the automatic address lookup is not working for you, you can try using the Interactive Maps feature (link here). After you enter your address, this tool will bring up a map that lets you adjust the location being analyzed. If the automatic lookup came up wrong, you can drag and drop the orange marker to the correct location. You can also switch the map to "satellite" view and zoom in until you can make out the details of individual homes. You can also adjust the value in the antenna height box. Any time you make a change, the list of transmitters below the map will automatically be updated.

When you are satisfied with the location of the orange marker and the antenna height, pressing the "Make Radar Plot" button will create a new radar plot report for you with the current settings. If you post the link for that report back here, we'll get a more accurate reading of your available signals.
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Old 9-Feb-2010, 12:37 AM   #3
twestwood
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I did the map a few times quite a while ago and saved the link, thought that one was more exact. The town is only a couple of miles square and if I remember correctly it didn't change the results. I tried the coat hanger antenna from youtube,I'm on a budget, but left it inside by the tv just to see if I could get any channels. No luck. I have some trees,25 to 30 feet tall, about 75 feet away from the house and I was wanting to put my antenna on my old dish mount which is about 12 feet off the ground. The roof ridge and chimney may cause some interference depending on the direction of signal (Atlanta stations). I was wanting to get this right as close to the first try as I could, not wanting to go back and forth to the store too many times.

I do have a tv that is about 5 years old, and am not sure if it will handle the digital signal. I could track down the user manual if it has the info there.
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Old 9-Feb-2010, 12:47 AM   #4
twestwood
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Updated link. The little orange marker on the satellite map is exactly where the antenna will be.
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...72437df04fee21
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Old 9-Feb-2010, 8:43 PM   #5
mtownsend
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Quote:
Originally Posted by twestwood View Post
I tried the coat hanger antenna from youtube,I'm on a budget, but left it inside by the tv just to see if I could get any channels. No luck. I have some trees,25 to 30 feet tall, about 75 feet away from the house and I was wanting to put my antenna on my old dish mount which is about 12 feet off the ground. The roof ridge and chimney may cause some interference depending on the direction of signal (Atlanta stations).
It looks like you have quite a few channels mostly in the north, but spread over a wide range of directions. Most of the transmitters within range of your location serve the Greenville market. There is one channel on low-VHF (WCES, ch 6), all the other channels are on high-VHF or UHF (ch 7 and higher). The signal strengths are a little weak, but are still strong enough to be easily within reach of a rooftop antenna.

This means the following:

1) If you want to get all of these stations, you will need an antenna rotator to cover such a wide range of directions. I don't think you'll be able to keep the antenna in just one position to get all of the channels at the same time.

2) If you care about WCES, then you'll need a full band antenna (full VHF and UHF). If you are willing to sacrifice WCES, there are channel 7-69 (high-VHF and UHF) antennas available.

3) With the proper rooftop antenna and rotator setup, you should be able to get most of the channels down into the "red" zone on the list. A pre-amp can help you get channels further down into the red zone, and is recommended for a situation like this.



If you are on a limited budget, you need to consider the cost of a roof mount antenna, antenna rotator, and pre-amp. This should give you quite a few channels.

A dish mount (usually a J-mount type arm) is not going to be adequate to support an antenna rotator and antenna together. A separate antenna mast mount of some kind is recommended.

If you go with a lesser setup, then something has got to give. A less capable (i.e., less expensive) setup will still work on some channels, but you'll very likely end up missing out on some of the other channels. Whether you go with a less expensive, fewer channel setup or a more expensive, more channel setup is up to you.

The alternative, of course, is to go with a pay service like cable or satellite, but then over time, that ends up being more expensive than any one-time antenna setup costs. You'll have to decide on which option works best for you.



As for some starter recommendations:

>> Use a chimney mount (like this) or a wall/eave mount (like this) to hold a vertical mast above the roof. It recommended that the antenna end up about 5 feet above the top of the roof.

>> An antenna rotator like the Channel Master 9521A works well.

>> Some good full band antennas (to include WCES) are the Winegard HD7084P or HD8200U, or the Antennacraft HD1200 or HD1800.

>> Some good high-VHF / UHF antennas (does not include WCES) are the Winegard HD7696P, HD7697P, or HD7698P, or the Antennacraft HBU-44 or HBU-55. Since these channels don't support channels 2-6, they can eliminate some of the longer antenna elements and you end up with a slightly narrower, lighter antenna (although they don't really cost any less than the full band antennas).



Hopefully, this is enough to get you started on your research. Feel free to ask questions.



Quote:
I do have a tv that is about 5 years old, and am not sure if it will handle the digital signal. I could track down the user manual if it has the info there.
If your TV is 36" or larger and built after July 1, 2005, it is required to have a built-in DTV tuner.

If your TV is 25" or larger and built after March 1, 2006, it is required to have a built-in DTV tuner.

All TVs, regardless of size, built after March 1, 2007, are required to have a built-in DTV tuner.

Our digital TV broadcast standard is called ATSC. If your manual states that the built-in tuner can receiver ATSC (it's quite common to see something like ATSC/NTSC/QAM in the tuner specs), then it does have ability to tune to DTV broadcasts.

FYI, QAM is the standard for digital cable signals and does not apply to OTA broadcasts. NTSC is the standard for analog TV signals used by both OTA and cable systems.
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Old 10-Feb-2010, 12:14 AM   #6
twestwood
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I am really just looking for a few channels right now. We have ditched the dish a few months ago and the family is about to go nuts. Just a couple of channels will do for now.
I live in a subdivision with certain covenants so certain antennas may cause a fuss. As if I didn't have enough complications with this endeavor. Will a DB-8 style antenna work at all, VHF is not a necessary.

Thank you for all your help. If I can return any favors if you have any auto mechanic questions feel free to email me.
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Old 10-Feb-2010, 6:24 AM   #7
mtownsend
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Quote:
Originally Posted by twestwood View Post
I am really just looking for a few channels right now. We have ditched the dish a few months ago and the family is about to go nuts. Just a couple of channels will do for now.
I'd say that a good compromise would be something like the Channel Master 4221 4-bay bowtie antenna on the roof, pointed at a compass heading of about 34 degrees (north-east). The 4221 has fairly high gain to pick up more channels further out, yet has a wide beam width (about 50 degrees) so that it can pick up channels that are spread out a bit without requiring a rotator.

This would be a UHF-only setup, so you will be missing out on WNTV (PBS), WSPA (CBS), WLOS (ABC), WCES (PBS), and WGTV (PBS).

If you want to get the VHF stations too, then the antennas mentioned in the earlier post are good ones to consider.



Quote:
I live in a subdivision with certain covenants so certain antennas may cause a fuss. As if I didn't have enough complications with this endeavor.
I understand.

Just FYI, if you didn't already know, the FCC has an over-the-air reception devices rule (http://www.fcc.gov/mb/facts/otard.html). This is a federal law that states that everyone has the right to install a reasonable OTA antenna for TV reception. Since it is a federal law, there are no HOA, landlord, city, county, or state regulations that can stop you from exercising that right (there are a few special exceptions, so please read carefully).

I don't advocate creating friction among neighbors for the sake of an antenna, but perhaps just knowing that the law is on your side in this case is enough to negotiate a solution that everyone can live with.



Quote:
Will a DB-8 style antenna work at all, VHF is not a necessary.
A DB8 is an 8-bay bowtie similar to the 4221 mentioned above. The main difference is that the DB8 is more directional and will have a narrower beam width (about 30 degrees). This means it might not pick up as many channels that are spread apart from each other without moving the antenna.

For a no-rotator setup, you will probably get more channels at once if you go with the wider beam width of the 4221.

If you do include a rotator, then the higher gain of the DB8 will outperform the 4221, giving you improved robustness (fewer picture dropouts / video glitches). You just need to adjust the rotator to view channels coming from different directions.
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