Kent, WA Antenna help needed

[cyclingcoach]

I need help choosing an antenna for my home in Kent, WA

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...a3620e6beaea1b

Any help or recommendations appreciated.

[John Candle]

How many Tv's will be connected? Big/small trees around the house? How many stories the house? Will a Tv be in the basement?

[cyclingcoach]

How many Tv's will be connected? 3 TVs
Big/small trees around the house? Some tall trees to the NE
How many stories the house? 1 story
Will a Tv be in the basement? Yes

[GroundUrMast]

Your TV Signal Analysis Results http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...a3620e6beaea1b looks as though they are based on ZIP code only. The Kent / Covington area has some varied terrain so it would be worth your time to get specific when entering your location.

If you find yourself up on a convenient ridge or hill you may be able to use an attic or indoor antenna. If the TV Signal Analysis Results you have provided are accurate however, A roof mounted antenna will likely be needed. Your TV Signal Analysis Results list quite a few 1 and 2 edge signal paths. My experience with 1 and 2 edge signal paths leads me toward a larger, higher gain antenna to reduce the probability of signal drop-out due to multi-path and fading.

There are three 'full service' stations in the area: Channel 9, 11 and 13 that transmit on high-VHF all the other stations are now on UHF. This means that you will need a combination UHF/VHF antenna. I'm hesitant to give a specific recommendation without knowing that the location you have provided is fairly precise and your proposed antenna mounting height.

Finally, are there any stations that you 'must have' or 'don't care'?

[John Candle]

I suggest a Winegard HD7697 mounted on the roof of the house pointed at 317 magnetic compass.

[cyclingcoach]

I'm on a bluff on the West side of a lake. North and East are clear but a few trees to the NE. I can mount an antenna 20 feet up no problems. NBC,CBS, and ABC and PBS are all between 317 and 321 degrees and I'd be happy to get all these.

[GroundUrMast]

Originally Posted by John Candle

I suggest a Winegard HD7697 mounted on the roof of the house pointed at 317 magnetic compass.

If you are able mount outside at 20' AGL, you may get enough signal to feed a passive 4Way splitter. However, if you find enough signal to directly feed the closest receiver with no splitter but can not deliver an acceptable signal to all sets with the loss of a splitter added, you will need to consider a mast mount amplifier such as the Winegard AP-8700. That is a medium gain amplifier that will easily overcome the losses of the splitter and cabling.

I would try the install without the amplifier first. In you situation, antenna gain is needed for sure. Amplifier gain may not be needed and if not, could make things worse.

Stay safe on the roof and ladder

[cyclingcoach]

Thanks to all for their time and help. I will try that set up and see what happens. You have saved me much time in trying to understand antennas. There is so much information out there but little advice. I appreciate you sharing your knowledge with me.

[Tigerbangs]

The issue will always be KCPQ-the FOX station, whose tower is about 25 miles west of the other Sea-Tac stations. a single antenna, no matter how powerful, won't see KCPQ adequately without a rotator OR a separate antenna aimed at the KCPQ transmitter. In your situation, I would use a 2-antenna system consisting of a Winegard HD-7696P aimed at 320 degrees AND a Winegard YA-1713, a high-band VHF yagi, aimed at 275 degrees. Separate the two antennas n the same mast by 4', and mount the lighter YA-1713 at the top of the mast. Combine the signal from the two antennas using a Channel 13 Channel Master Join-tenna, which is available from Warren Electronics. Then run the
output of the Join-tenna into a Winegarrd HDP-269 high-input preamplifier, and mount a 3-4 way high-quality splitter in the line AFTER the power injector for the preamp. Once the signal is at the splitter, make your cable runs to various TV sets throughout your house. This combination will allow you to see ALL the major Sea-tac stations, and will insure enough signal that each TV set will function properly on all the channels. Good Luck

[GroundUrMast]

Not to step on Tigerbangs toes... but, KCPQ and KMYQ are sister stations. KCPQ simulcasts their primary HD (720p) feed on UHF 25 (Virtual Chan. 22.2). The KMYQ transmitter is located next to the PBS and CW transmitters on Capitol Hill in Seattle. Therefore the suggested aim point of 317 mag is spot on.

So you will not need to spend the money on a channel 13 solution unless the 24/7 weather channel on 13.2 is a must have.

Oh, and BTW, KOMO feeds "This" ntwk on VC 4.2. KING feeds "Universal Sports" ntwk on VC 5.2. KIRO feeds "RTV" ntwk on VC 7.2. KCTC feeds "V-Me" ntwk on VC 9.2 and "Create" ntwk on VC 9.3. Quite a bit of good programing in that line-up I think. Well worth the cost of a good, well chosen antenna installed safely.

[Tigerbangs]

That's good to know:I wouldn't know that from Springfield, MA

[ADTech]

Does KMYQ allocate enough bandwidth to the Fox feed to provide a decent-quality HD experience, especially during sports events?

[GroundUrMast]

Originally Posted by ADTech

Does KMYQ allocate enough bandwidth to the Fox feed to provide a decent-quality HD experience, especially during sports events?

The VC 13.1 and 22.2 feeds are the same. Both are 720P. (The VC 22.1 feed is also 720P so I don't think KMYQ has much, if any bandwidth left for virtual channel additions). I have not seen any difference in the quality of 13.1 vs 22.2 other than raw signal strength.

[GroundUrMast]

Update to ADTech...

The KCPQ feed on VC 13.1 is running at 16 Mbps, twice the rate I see for the visually same feed on VC 22.2

I just got a new HDHomeRun network attached dual tuner up and running. I really like the Signal Strength / Signal Quality / Symbol Quality metering. Also, it reports Network Data Rate which is how I am able to provide this update.