almost located directly between chicago, milwaukee and rockford...which antenna?

berbes · 17-Sep-2015, 3:03 PM

hello. great site. now, all i need to do is figure out which antenna is right for me. i have been using a dish style antenna (a radio shack hdx1000). i've almost found a sweet spot where i can point the dish between milwaukee & chicago (40-50 miles out) and kinda get a watchable signal, but have recently found out about the existence of multi-directionals. which one is for me?

so far, i've found Antennas Direct, inc DB8e Extreme Range Multi-Directional Bowtie UHF and their lesser Antennas Direct, inc DB8 Extreme Range Multi-Directional Bowtie UHF might work for me.

i'd appreciate some educated opinions, though

.

here are my location results:

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...8e03ffb393ef9e

thanks for the help!!!
heather

Stereocraig · 17-Sep-2015, 5:32 PM

I am receiving all of the Chicago stations w/ no problem and you are about 5mi LOS closer than I am.
"Multi Directionals", are going to have lower gain, than uni directionals.
Just about anything you use, should perform well for Chicago, if it's mounted outside.
Maybe one of the aimable panel antennas, could span that 140+ deg,
Whether or not you are interested in MKE and/ or RFD can also be addressed, depending on your TVs ability to ADD digital channels, or not.

berbes · 17-Sep-2015, 5:36 PM

yes, i am extremely interested in milw tv too. which antenna will get me there and chicago at the same time?

thanks!

ADTech · 17-Sep-2015, 5:56 PM

I'd recommend the DB4e (not the 8e) with the reflector grids removed and with a VHF dipole added. That will give you a bi-directional antenna with unity gain on high VHF and ~ 8-12 dBi gain on UHF and with an average beamwidth of 45-65° in each direction.

If you want something you can pick up locally, the C2V from Best Buy or Walmart is a good enough alternative. Your UHF gain will drop to the 7-9 dBi region.

This assumes you have a decent enough signal path in the required directions are free of buildings and trees as either will make any forecast or prediction of reception results statistically irrelevant.

berbes · 17-Sep-2015, 10:50 PM

hello ad tech,

will the vhs add-on give me enough umph to get ch 2 chicago? it's the hardest one to dial in unless you're in the same bldg they broadcast from. finally, how high can i run the pole? i know the higher the better, but after a certain length, (it's also mounted in a rotator) the antenna will sway too much, right?

thanks!

ADTech · 18-Sep-2015, 12:58 AM

WBBM has a calculated noise margin of 34 dB. If that is accurate (it's really only an estimate), you could theoretically use an antenna with more than -20 dB of gain and still receive it.

The numbers say it will work.

Stereocraig · 18-Sep-2015, 8:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by berbes

hello ad tech,

will the vhs add-on give me enough umph to get ch 2 chicago? it's the hardest one to dial in unless you're in the same bldg they broadcast from. finally, how high can i run the pole? i know the higher the better, but after a certain length, (it's also mounted in a rotator) the antenna will sway too much, right?

thanks!

FWIW, I must be lucky, because I've never had any problem w/ WBBM real 12 and I use a 91XG for that one, at 46 mi.

Yes, the mast will be more susceptible to sway.
Additionally, you'll want to achieve your height, below the rotor.
Keep the stub above the rotor, as short as possible, w/o interfering w/ your coax loop.