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I had a guy at radioshack tell me hes been doing this his whole life and where I'm at the only way to get reception is a large 12' directional antenna with an amp.
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Based on your TV Fool reports, I would expect a large antenna is needed. Rather than dwelling on the physical size, look at the gain. Reputable antenna vendors will provide plausible gain figures for their products. Don't believe gain figures of 20 and 30 dB. I can only think of one commercial antenna that legitimately claims more than 20 dB of gain... It's a custom built double parabolic dish array from Wade. Each of the dishes are about 8' in diameter and the tower needed to support the thing should be engineered. The GH and M4 designs qualify as 'large' antennas based on their gain. Store bought antennas such as the Winegard HD7698P, Antennacraft HBU-44 & HBU-55, together with the combinations of Antennas Direct DB8E + Antennacraft Y10713 or Antennas Direct 91XG + Y10713 would offer similarly 'large' performance.
The key to reliable reception is that the antenna must be located where there is enough signal with sufficient quality (a combination of factors, not just raw strength, including freedom from noise and distortion.) In weak signal locations, a large antenna is needed to intercept enough RF energy from the air to produce acceptable amounts of RF signal level at the antenna terminals. The distortion produced by rapidly changing reflections and signal fading which can be caused by moving tree limbs, airplanes and other vehicles, can make strong signals unwatchable. It will no doubt be vital that you avoid aiming through obstructions such as your house, roof or trees.
If the antenna has collected a signal of adequate quality, an amplifier can help by pushing that signal through losses in coax and perhaps splitting. No amplifier can 'pull' signal from the air, antenna or coax.
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In terms of grounding, lets say I build the GH10n3 on a pvc support, connect the pvc to a metal mast. What is the proper protocol for grounding? Mast to ground? or???
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Have you read
http://forum.tvfool.com/showthread.php?t=901, particularly post #20?