OTA For Birmingham AL

[agent0]

I would like to go OTA basically I would like to install the antenna in our attic but I really want to put it outside. If I install in attice I will not have to deal with the home owners association. So with that said what type of equipment would you all recommend. I pulled the below info from antennapoint.com seems looks like the odd ball station is ABC it's very important that I'm able to pull ABC. Also I would like to reuse the existing DTV dish mount.

What I've looked at so far
http://www.amazon.com/Winegard-HD769...ywords=antenna

http://www.solidsignal.com/pview.asp?p=hbu33


WTTO CW 28 21.1 UHF 765.0 kW Homewood 19.46 mi 11.16°
WBIQ PBS 39 10.1 UHF 1000.0 kW Birmingham 19.46 mi 11.16°
WABM MYTV 36 68.1 UHF 885.0 kW Birmingham 19.46 mi 11.16°
WIAT CBS 30 42.1 UHF 1000.0 kW Birmingham 19.46 mi 11.16°
WBRC FOX 50 6.1 UHF 1000.0 kW Birmingham 19.83 mi 12.23°
WVTM-TV NBC 13 13.1 VHF 17.75 kW Birmingham 20.00 mi 12.58°
WDBB CW 18 17.1 UHF 350.0 kW Bessemer 35.89 mi 301.81°
WCFT-TV ABC 33 33.1 UHF 160.0 kW Tuscaloosa 37.34 mi 300.36°
WJSU-TV ABC 9 40.1 VHF 15.6 kW Anniston 38.06 mi 43.50°
WUOA NONE 6 23.1 VHF 1.0 kW Tuscaloosa 40.64 mi 254.97°
WBIH TBN 29 29.1 UHF 1000.0 kW Selma 46.21 mi 177.85°
WPXH ION 45 44.1 UHF 225.0 kW Gadsden 52.58 mi 26.03°
WTJP-TV TBN 26 60.1 UHF 150.0 KW Gadsden 48.53 mi 30.11

[timgr]

Originally Posted by agent0

I would like to go OTA basically I would like to install the antenna in our attic but I really want to put it outside. If I install in attice I will not have to deal with the home owners association. So with that said what type of equipment would you all recommend. I pulled the below info from antennapoint.com seems looks like the odd ball station is ABC it's very important that I'm able to pull ABC. Also I would like to reuse the existing DTV dish mount.

What I've looked at so far
http://www.amazon.com/Winegard-HD769...he+air+antenna

http://www.solidsignal.com/pview.asp?p=hbu33


WTTO CW 28 21.1 UHF 765.0 kW Homewood 19.46 mi 11.16°
WBIQ PBS 39 10.1 UHF 1000.0 kW Birmingham 19.46 mi 11.16°
WABM MYTV 36 68.1 UHF 885.0 kW Birmingham 19.46 mi 11.16°
WIAT CBS 30 42.1 UHF 1000.0 kW Birmingham 19.46 mi 11.16°
WBRC FOX 50 6.1 UHF 1000.0 kW Birmingham 19.83 mi 12.23°
WVTM-TV NBC 13 13.1 VHF 17.75 kW Birmingham 20.00 mi 12.58°
WDBB CW 18 17.1 UHF 350.0 kW Bessemer 35.89 mi 301.81°
WCFT-TV ABC 33 33.1 UHF 160.0 kW Tuscaloosa 37.34 mi 300.36°
WJSU-TV ABC 9 40.1 VHF 15.6 kW Anniston 38.06 mi 43.50°
WUOA NONE 6 23.1 VHF 1.0 kW Tuscaloosa 40.64 mi 254.97°
WBIH TBN 29 29.1 UHF 1000.0 kW Selma 46.21 mi 177.85°
WPXH ION 45 44.1 UHF 225.0 kW Gadsden 52.58 mi 26.03°
WTJP-TV TBN 26 60.1 UHF 150.0 KW Gadsden 48.53 mi 30.11

Please post a link to your TV Fool report, using these instructions: http://forum.tvfool.com/showthread.php?t=4

[timgr]

Ok, this appears to be the OP's report -

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...1dda3ac17641e9

Winegard link does not work.

You can get the HBU33 through the Antennacraft site - they have a link to Radio Shack's web site.

The main problem I see with wanting the ABC affiliate WJSU is that it's off-axis from the major group of stations at 12 degrees. You can easily add a second VHF-high antenna to get that station, like an Antennacraft Y5713. However, mixing two antennas with the same bandwidth on a single wire is not recommended. So if you had the HBU33 pointed at 12 degrees and the Y5713 at 45, you could combine them with an A/B switch or with separate tuners connected to your HTPC.

An outdoors installation would certainly be preferred. You'd want the antenna mounted in clear air, unobstructed in the direction of the transmitters by buildings or trees. Whether the dish mount will work for this depends on the location of the mount and its surroundings.

[GroundUrMast]

Presuming you are still at the same location that you dealt with in your thread of 2 years ago, http://forum.tvfool.com/showthread.php?t=13107, The same comments re. the HOA and antenna suggestions remain valid.

I believe the Winegard HD7000R mentioned in the previous thread will be difficult or impossible to find since it's been discontinued by Winegard. There are equivalent options available from Antennacraft and Channel Master. Consider the HD1200 or the CM3016.

The only concern I have is that the ABC affiliate, WJSU (real CH-9) is coming from a different direction than most of the other signals. There's a chance that a second antenna may be needed. However, I'd try a single antenna to start with... We can add another antenna if the need is proven.

Your best chances of reliable reception will be had by mounting outdoors clear of obstructions. Re. the HOA, if you can't achieve the desired reception when following their preferred guideline(s) then they can't prevent you from taking the needed steps to achieve reliable OTA reception.

[ADTech]

WBMA-LD should be your target for ABC programming. WJSU does air the simulcast for WBMA as its .2 subchannel. If you can get WBMA-LD, there is no need to mess with the VHF antenna aimed at Anniston.

[agent0]

I can buy the HD700r from here if needed.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Winegard-HD7...item3cf0c7d63f

Also how do I know if the sub channel is broadcasting in 1080i or 720p and do I need an amplifiers? Its strange that you brought up HTPC's I actually plan on using the HDHOMERUN Dual in conjunction with Windows 7 Media Center. Also whatever antenna I get I do not want it to be seen from the street. As of right now you would not even know that we even have a dish until you enter our backyard. Also I spoke to a rep at our local abc station he told me that if I pull WABM-DT 68.1 than I should be able to get all ABC and all of it's sub channels since they come off the same tower.

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...1dda3ac17641e9

[GroundUrMast]

Also whatever antenna I get I do not want it to be seen from the street.

If that forces you to aim through trees or structures (including your roof) you may not be able to achieve the best results.

...how do I know if the sub channel is broadcasting in 1080i or 720p[?]

TV Fool concentrates on reception of the 'real channel' and only offered limited virtual channel data as a helpful cross reference. Selection of the appropriate antenna is based on the 'real channel' used to broadcast the OTA signal, the virtual channel is not relevant to the antenna.

For more detailed information about the virtual channel(s) and network affiliation(s) of a given station, rabbitears.info is quite helpful. For your area, here's a link: http://www.rabbitears.info/market.ph...n=wbma#station

...do I need an amplifiers?

The gain of the HD1200 is likely to be more than enough to make an amplifier unnecessary. But if you are going to connect many TVs, maybe. I'd suggest you make a test install (avoid drilling any new holes until you are sure you have a suitable location for the antenna) of the antenna with no amplifier... Run this test: http://forum.tvfool.com/showthread.php?t=13646 then act accordingly.

[agent0]

How does the HD1200 compare to the HBU33 I ask because the HBU33 is cheaper? However, if the HD1200 is the way to go I have no problem spending the extra money. If this goesin the attic I will need to get a mount. So with that said what all mounts do you all suggest?

[timgr]

The specs are on the Antennacraft web page.
http://antennacraft.com/Antennas/AntennasHBU.html

The main functional difference is that the HD1200 is meant to receive VHF low, as well as VHF high and UHF. The HD1200 is also a longer antenna, 120" vs 85", which goes along with the capability of receiving the longer wavelengths of VHF low.

The HD1200 is also somewhat more sensitive to VHF high and UHF than the HBU33. The HD1200 and the HBU44 are nearly equivalent in these bands.

You can also look at the half-power beam width. This will tell you how focused the antenna is in the direction you point it. The HBU33 is the widest, at 56 degrees, with the HBU44 at 50 and the HD1200 at 33, all for VHF high. So a HBU33 may work a little better than a HBU44, when the transmitters are more spread out. Look at your simulation and try to match the beam width to the stations you want to receive.

For your mast, indoors you can use pretty much anything that's convenient. PVC plastic pipe is probably the cheapest. Screw it to the attic floor and roof rafters - it only has to support the weight of the antenna - no wind or other weather.