Hello,
I have a few questions before purchasing equipment to move toward OTA TV. I would appreciate any help I can get. I do not intend to split the signal, and eventually the feed will be connected to a PC capture card. Here is my TV Fool Report:
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...1ddadbb397ad95.
It looks pretty promising, especially since all of the channels I'm interested in are all at about the 90° position. My first question is about antenna selection. I was looking at the following models and the pros/cons of each:
#1 Choice: Clearstream 1, the reason for this choice from my perspective is the apparent ease of installation as I've already got a mast standing there from an old DirectTv dish. Point 2 was that these are small and the documentation seems to indicate good gain. My concern is that it is mentioned to only be used for UHF, and channels 8/10/12 are important for me. I do find plenty of statements that high VHF comes out pretty good. I don't care about channel 5 (which is the only low VHF on my report).
#2 Choice: Channelmaster 2016, this is pretty close to the top as it is almost as small as the CS1, but also states that it is intended for VHF. Then again the published gain chart on high VHF is nearly nothing.
#3 Choice: Winegard HD7000, looks like the best regarding gain in the high VHF. The size and ability to mount onto the mast I have are the only down sides. It's very hard to determine mounting requirements because I don't find any pics or drawings online, only the very low detail drawing on Winegard's website.
#4 Choice: is there something that I should consider instead of these, like maybe the MS2002?
The second question is about amplifying requirements. I have between 50 and 60 foot of coax from the mounting location to the usage point. I have RG59 and RG6 available there, however the current cable is on the RG6 so I'll have wait until I completely cut the cable before migrating from the RG59 to the RG6 if that is necessary. I also don't have a good understanding if amplification is to take care of losses over the line or to boost the antenna's pickup capability. The documentation for the one of Winegard's antennas, the MS2002 if I remember right, makes you think the amplifier is to help with the antenna's reception. I assume it actually just helps compensate for line losses.
That’s about it, thank you up front for any feedback you can give.
