Antennae recommendations please

[Greeley]

Hi all,
I'm new to the OTA world and have joined the ranks of people upset w/ giving Comcast so much money every month for what is freely available. I've read through several forums and am looking for the advice of the experts here.

Here is my Signal Analysis Result:
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...99000073c01e88

My plan is to mount this in the garage attic, which sits roughly 12' above ground. Ideally I would be able to receive signal both from Denver in the south and Cheyenne in the north.

I am interested in both antennae recommendations as well as any other equipment recommendations that would make my OTA experience a good one. My home is a 2-level w/ a finished basement. There are 3 televisions that would be fed the signal via the in-house coax wiring.

I did contact Wingard and they recommended: HD-7697p

Thanks in advance to all of you who reply for your time!

[GroundUrMast]

Reception of Denver and Cheyenne signals with a single antenna will require a rotator. Because you plan to feed multiple TVs, I'm curious if there will be agreement as to which way the antenna should be aimed.

You could opt to install a single antenna with no rotator. I presume the Denver signals would offer the best selection of programing if you go with this option. The HD7697P and the slightly larger HD7698P are appropriate if you are going after the Denver signals.

If you mount in an attic, you'll be limiting your ability to receive the weaker signals. If you get a load of snow on the roof, expect reception to be worse. If I were in this same situation, I'd opt for mounting outside.

Regardless of which option you choose, you'll need to add a preamp such as the Antennas Direct CPA-19. If you intend to feed 3 sets, then use a 3-way splitter. Most 3-way splitters have two ports with lower output than the third port, use the low loss port to feed the longest coax run.

In addition to using a rotator, there are other options:
http://forum.tvfool.com/showthread.php?t=2882
http://forum.tvfool.com/showthread.php?t=820

[Greeley]

GUM,

Thanks for the reply. Unfortunately, the HOA does not allow me to mount outside. I could also mount in the attic, which gets me up around 25' or so.

As for the splitter, I was intending to use the whole house splitter that is in the garage. I believe this has ~8 or so splits on it. I'm assuming it's okay to use this one. Would the stubs from the cables not in use hurt the signal?

Are you suggesting the preamp since I'm feeding multiple tv's or in general since I'm a good distance from all broadcasting towers?

Thanks for the links as well. Seems like a rotator may be a large source of frustration and at least initially I'm better off just focusing on Denver.

[ADTech]

Under federal law in effect since 1996, HOAs and the like are prohibited from interfering with the installation of a homeowner's antenna. See the FCC's OTARD rule for details. http://www.fcc.gov/mb/facts/otard.html

It's generally best to select a splitter with the number of ports that most closely matches your requirements. Large splitters have an insertion loss penalty that's usually best if avoided. If you do end up with unused outputs of the splitter or of a cable run that is connected to the splitter,. terminate it using a screw-on 75 ohm terminator.

[Greeley]

Thanks ADTech, I'm guessing I'll end up w/ the terminators.

Also good info regarding HOA's and federal rules regarding the antennae's.

[signals unlimited]

Do your neighbors have satellite and/or internet antennas? If so an outdoor antenna solution could be the Tripleplay antenna, www.tripleplayantenna.com.

This is a real antenna that has the electrical characteristcs similar to the DB4 inside an all fiberglass panel that resembles a small dish or internet antenna, just 10 1/2" X 12". Many have been installed in areas with strict HOA with no problem.

[Greeley]

I just realized how long the Winegard antennae are. What recommendations are there if I want to be more compact? I see the Clearstream 4 & 5 that would take up less space.

Other thoughts and recommendations?

Am I better off with the single long antennae?

[GroundUrMast]

ADTech's advise re. using a splitter with only the needed ports is the best option. If you have cables attached to a splitter already, and you opt to leave them in place, perhaps anticipating using the capacity in the future, you can install the terminator at the end of the cable or disconnect the cable and cap the unused splitter port with the terminator.

If the splitter is outdoors, I'd leave the cable connected to the splitter to keep weather out of the cable. Terminate at the TV end of the cable run.

http://www.homedepot.com/buy/ideal-f...ck-288699.html

[GroundUrMast]

Originally Posted by Greeley

I just realized how long the Winegard antennae are. What recommendations are there if I want to be more compact? I see the Clearstream 4 & 5 that would take up less space.

Other thoughts and recommendations?

Am I better off with the single long antennae?

Are you thinking of mounting outside? If inside, how much room do you have to work with?

[Greeley]

The goal is to mount inside. I have 2 attic areas to work with. The garage attic is preferred since it is most easily accessed and all of the cabling can be hooked in to simply there. The garage is 2-car, so I figure 20' for length and 18' for width. Height is up to 6' in the center and has a pretty heavy slope.

The Colorado and Wyoming stations will be received. NO antenna rotor required.

Above The Roof.

Install a Antennas Direct C5 antenna aimed at 150 degree magnetic compass reading. Here is how to aim antennas , http://www.kyes.com/antenna/pointing/pointing.html.

As always , the starting aim direction is the -> starting aim direction. The antenna is then turned to find the direction that receives the receivable Tv stations the best.

For your location the starting aim direction is about 150 degree magnetic compass , the antenna is then turned toward the south and south west for the best reception of the receivable Tv stations/channels.

The Digital Tv Stations Channels in the Current Plus Pending Applications Included Channel List.

Tvfool shows the Real And Actual channels that are being transmitted and received.
And tvfool also shows the Virtual channel numbers.

The REAL Tv Channels in the tvfool channel list will be received down to KCNC-DT Real channel UHF 35 Virtual channel (4.1) , will be received.

Here are above the roof antenna mounts , http://www.ronard.com/909911.html , http://www.ronard.com/34424560.html , http://www.ronard.com/ychim.html , http://www.ronard.com.

Buy the ronard antenna mounts at solidsignal by typing the word ronard in the solidsignal search box.

Here are places to by antennas and etc. , http://www.solidsignal.com , http://www.antennasdirect.com , http://www.amazon.com.


For 3 Tv's connected install a Channel Master CM3414 distribution amplifier.


The C5 antenna Must be mounted up high above the roof in such a manner that the roof of the house is not restricting or reducing the reception of the C5 antenna in any direction.

Also it is a good idea to mount a Tv antenna so that there is the least amount of obstacles in the way of reception such as trees and tree leaves and other buildings.

The C5 antenna receives channels , VHF high band channels 7 thru 13 and UHF band channels 14 thru 51.

Your receivable channels in the tvfool Green and Yellow zones are in the VHF high band 7 thru 13 and UHF band 14 thru 51.

The Federal Antenna Law says Yes you can , Install , Use , Maintain , antennas on your property.

http://www.fcc.gov/guides/over-air-r...n-devices-rule

Hoa's can not delay or prevent you from installing antennas.

And no , you can not be required or even suggested that have to hide the antennas.

Hoa's and housing covennuts and etc. , are 100% aware of this Federal Antenna Law yet still seek to scam people.

[GroundUrMast]

The CS4 and C5 combination has enough gain to succeed outdoors in the clear. But if mounted in an attic, you'll have little fade margin. My calculations indicate you'll have trouble with KUSA, KDVR and KCNC. I doubt you would see any of the signals highlighted in red on your report.

If you are going to succeed in the attic, you need the most antenna gain you can lay hands on. The HD7698P has quite a bit more high-VHF gain compared to the C5. It also has a few dB more UHF gain than the CS4.

http://www.winegarddirect.com/viewit...P%29&p=HD7698P
http://www.antennasdirect.com/cmss_f...20with_uhf.pdf
http://www.antennasdirect.com/store/...V-antenna.html

[GroundUrMast]

Originally Posted by teleview

...

Install a Antennas Direct C5 antenna aimed at 150 degree magnetic compass reading. ...

150° seem like a typo... The weak signal from real channel 9 would need the forward beam of the C5 aimed toward it for reliable reception. A beginning aim point of 200° seems more intuitive.

... Also it is a good idea to mount a Tv antenna so that there is the least amount of obsticals in the way of reception such as trees and tree leaves and other buildings.
...

True, but in an attic, this option clearly lacks the needed gain.

KFCT-DT Real UHF channel 21 , Virtual channel (22.1) is a Translator for KDVR Real channel UHF 32 , Virtual channel (31.1).

KFCT is Very Strong Signal Strength at , 58.6 NM(dB).


I am researching the rest of the Tv stations , The Main stations , The translator stations , The low power stations , The repeater stations , that are receivable at your location.