Hi,
My TVfool report is -
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...a362c9e5bf0ede
I am looking for an antenna to pull in the stations about 46 miles to the north in Butte. I would also like to pick up the PBS channel 85 miles to the NE in Bozeman. Mainly for the Red Green show :-)
The UHF channel 51 is a rebroadcast of one of the Butte stations. While it is easy to recieve channel 51 analog, the rebroadcast installation has problems. Chan. 51 recieves a digital OTA signal from Butte and rebroadcasts as analog channel 51. 51 suffers from frequent pixelization, frame freezing and outages. It appears 51 is the only UHF channel, so I am thinking of skipping 51 and picking up this signal as DTV direct from the Butte transmitters.
My research indicates the CM 3671 with a CM 7777 preamp and a CM antenna rotator for deep fringe installs. While this is doable, the CM3671 is absolutely huge. The old antenna has bent and broken elements from various large birds attempting to land on the long elements. Given the channels I am trying to get appear to be in the VHF, I don't know that I need the added size of the UHF portion of the antenna.
Last winter, I was able to get the Bozeman PBS channel when there was snow on the ground with clear air. Once the snow melted, the signal strength dropped. I was using a 30-40 year old VHF only antenna, about 8 feet long frame. It has a lot of the larger elements bent, misaligned or missing. Don't know the brand or model.
I have 3 houses to install antennas in, so would be willing to try a couple of options. I think all three houses will have coax runs of 100 feet or less from the antenna to the TV set. We live in a wide mountain valley, with mountains between us and the transmitter sites.
Thanks, Rob