[txakura]

I moved thirty-five miles closer to the transmitters I can receive OTA broadcasts from. At my old location I had a small directional antenna with an amplifier which allowed me to receive any station I wanted. Now that I've moved, I'm practically underneath the transmitter locations (7 miles to one, 14 miles to another and others more or less than that.) The 7-mile location has NBC, ABC, Fox, CBS and PBS. As can be seen from my radar scan, all of those channels should be able to be picked up with an indoor antenna. The reality is, "not quite." There is absolutely no obstruction between the antenna and the transmitter site. The fact the transmitter is over 3,000 feet above my location might be an issue, though. The 14-mile location is even higher, by a couple of hundred feet.

I started with an omni-directional amplified antenna (Winegard "Flying Saucer") about 20 feet above the ground on a mast. Way too much signal. The AM-21 tuner into which the antenna was connected couldn't provide any picture. After posting to the DirecTV forum, I changed to the other extreme, a pair of rabbit ears in my den. They are able to provide picture for all the transmitters from the seven-mile location (the PBS channel and the CBS channel, which I guess are lower power, manage to show pixelization at times) I still receive no pictures from the 14-mile location. I'm thinking about going back outside with a non-amplified omnidirectional on the mast. Anyone have model suggestions - or other suggestions?

Further info - that I'm surprised at: The 14-mile transmitter site - at almost exactly 180 degrees - is shaded by a gigantic oak tree just outside my house. The tree only affects the rabbit ears antenna, though. The antenna mast is far enough back on the house to have a clear direct line (partly because it is as high as it is) to the transmitter site. So... Looks like it would be of benefit to me to use the antenna mast for something because the tree may be the cause of no reception from that direction. Don't know if that helps, but it seems it might.