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Sorry for the delay in responding. There are some very good reasons, but let's not clutter up this discussion.
I tested as you suggested. Components are all OK. One straight-in short coax with no splitter and no amplifier supplies most of the desired channels OK, but weak channels 22, 34, 52, 58. 58 (58 is worst) are still weak.
Also, I put a 3db attenuator in front of the amplifier and lost most of the good signals. It's a weak signal problem because of the 4-way split, not an amplifier overload. Note that the AP4700 amplifier is UHF only, to avoid overload by VHF in this area.
It's interesting that Ch 7 breaks up a lot when the 3 converter boxes' signal strength indicators are a little bit into the green whereas the other good channels work fine at that signal strength. Maybe interference? In addition, our Samsung flat panel TV (with an internal converter) has never responded to Ch 58 while the other converter boxes captured it OK. A Winegard consultant said that it has a poor internal converter that requires stronger signals in order to work properly. (Isn't that nice of Winegard to help out?)
Three months ago, pointing the antenna at 80 degrees was necessary because pointing at 100 degrees, straight at Mt. Wilson, was too weak for all the channels.
Weather conditions have changed substantially since then. Now I receive all the desired channels by pointing at almost 100 degrees, with the amplifier and 4 way splitter in place. This is still marginal because turning the antenna only +- 5 degrees loses the weakest, ch 58, even though the CA7078 antenna is pretty broad beam. Surprisingly, the Samsung is capturing Ch 58 now, for the first time. Signals are definitely stronger now.
This suggests that the multipath has shifted dramatically. Since I'm now pointing a little North of straight on to Mt. Wilson, I think I'm getting mainly direct and still a little multipath. Electron, you mentioned, "The Tv stations that are in the direction that you are receiving have a spread of about 25 degrees." But looking at Mt. Wilson from my house, all of it only looks like 10 degrees, which offers hope that a higher gain antenna might avert the multipath change that will surely recur when the weather changes again. If it's 25 degrees, it looks like I'm stuck.
Comments, please.
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