[mtownsend]

Originally Posted by bmelanco

I have thought about just raising the antenna? I think I have a UHF only antenna and wondered if this might be the problem?

Originally Posted by bmelanco

even though I have a hard time pulling in 9.1 (VHF low band channel), it's not that its low freq. because I'm using the true number (17.1 I think)?

Hello and welcome!

Your antenna and amp are only designed to handle UHF channels (14-69). All of your stations are on UHF channels except for WWNY (CBS, channel 7). For the rest of your channels, including the specific ones you listed, it's fine that you are using a UHF-only antenna.

So is it my antenna height? Should I get a different antenna?

A few comments:

1) You may need to run the TV Fool analysis for a more precise location. Your area appears to be rather hilly, and small differences in location can make the difference between having terrain blockage and not. Address lookups are not always accurate, so your signal analysis might be for the wrong location. Just to be sure, you should try using the Interactive Maps feature (here). If the address lookup is wrong, you can drag/drop the orange marker to move it to the correct location. You can use the "Make Radar Plot" button to generate a report that you can post back here. If the address lookup was way off, then your new analysis results might look different than what you've seen so far.

2) The Interactive Maps tool lets you change the antenna height. When you enter different values into the antenna height field, it will re-compute all of your signal strengths automatically. Look at the "NM" numbers for each channel as you change the height. This will give you some idea of how much you can benefit from having more antenna height.

3) For most situations, there is usually negligible improvement once you get more than about 20 feet off the ground. That means that for most people, there's not much to be gained by going much higher than their neighborhood's average roof line.

4) Make sure there are no local obstructions/objects that might be altering the performance of the antenna. If there are any objects within 4-5 feet of the antenna or in the signal path, then the antenna might not be performing up to its ideal specifications. Antennas work best when there is nothing else around them and they can be aimed clear of any local obstructions.

5) Make sure all exposed cables and connectors are protected from moisture ingress. Any rain/snow/condensation that gets into the connectors or cables can really block or reduce the amount of signal getting through.

6) The channels that seem to be giving you trouble are partially blocked by terrain (2Edge diffraction). You might be able to pull in a bit more signal if you can tilt your antenna up a little so that it points just above the local hill tops. I don't know if the mount on the HD-9032 makes this possible or not. FYI, the Antennas Direct 91XG (another UHF-only antenna) comes with a tilt-bracket that makes it easy to make these kinds of adjustments.



Overall, I would say that your antenna should be able to pull in the channels down into the red zone on your list. We should see if re-running the analysis for a more accurate location changes anything.

Is it correct that analog channels broadcasat on VHF not UHF?

Nope. There are specific restrictions on analog or digital broadcast channels. There are no more "full power" analog broadcasts since they were all required to be shut down last year. There are still low power analog broadcasts in use (booster, translator, educational, local community broadcasts, etc.), and they can be on any channel.