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Old 7-Oct-2014, 7:23 PM   #1
klahmers
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Blacksburg,VA area recommendations

I'm looking to drop the directv, but I don't know what I will be able to do OTA. I thought I might invest in a small in home omnidirectional to see what kind of signal I can get. Here is my report:
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...d243fd9f7fa84b

Any suggestions would be a appreciated. Our house sits up on a ridge with open pasture and visibility over the trees. I will miss the espn/tnt basketball, but would settle for a smaller monthly bill. As an aside, how challenging is it to set up a DVR for OTA programming? With kids, I have learned the value of being able to replay things and pause when needed.

Thanks for your help.
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Old 9-Oct-2014, 8:23 PM   #2
klahmers
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I picked up an RCA 1450 and connected it unamplified to the tv tuner. I got nothing. I added in the amplifier and now got 27.1 and 27.2 pretty clear, but I didn't get the two channels with the highest signal. All of them should be from the same direction. I need to reprogram the tv and see if maybe it missed some of the stations. Progress, halting, but progress nonetheless.
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Old 9-Oct-2014, 8:52 PM   #3
ADTech
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With a plot like that, you truly need a large, conventional, all-channel antenna up on the roof. You'll also likely need an overload resistant pre-amp and some attenuation on low-VHF to keep WBRA in check.

Yours is not a simple indoor-indoor-antenna-out-of-a-box location.
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Old 9-Oct-2014, 9:03 PM   #4
tomfoolery
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Playing around with the map function and putting the icon in different places on Blacksburg and Newport Road (about 10.5 mile NNW from the closest transmitters), I can get hugely different plots just by moving the icon only a little bit. I suggest you run a new plot using the map function (put in the exact address, then zoom in all the way, switch to satellite view, zoom in more if needed, and slide the icon to the exact location of the proposed antenna - don't worry, the TVFool report won't show the exact location, just the resulting plot), and raise the elevation to 25 ft. With all those hills all around, altitude will likely be your friend, and the exact location may generate a much different report.
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Old 16-Oct-2014, 3:39 PM   #5
klahmers
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New plot

I took your advice and plotted the map using the map function. Here is the new plot
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...d24357edd5ae98
I am lucky enough to be almost up on the top of a south facing ridge with a clear pasture and sight line to the major location at 143 degrees. I have tried out the RCA 1450 antenna and get 27.1/.2. I was surprised that I didn't get the WBRA to tune in, but I may just need to reposition to get better signal there. Is it possible that even without the amp WBRA is too strong? I appreciate your input.
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Old 16-Oct-2014, 4:04 PM   #6
tomfoolery
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You've got channels in all three bands (look at the "Real Channel" column - that's what your antenna sees). Real channel 3 is a very long wavelength (low-VHF band), and that tiny antenna isn't likely to get anything useful that low. You also have ABC on real 13 (high-VHF band), with NM value getting a bit low with 1-edge condition. The rest are UHF, with the shortest wavelengths. It looks to me that you'll need an all-band antenna (low-VHF, high-VHF, and UHF) so you can get real 3 and all the UHF stations at around 150 deg. magnetic, and perhaps a separate high-VHF only antenna for channel 13 at 98 deg. magnetic., combined with a channel 13 Jointenna.
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Old 16-Oct-2014, 6:51 PM   #7
timgr
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Re your little amplified antenna, typically you can't defeat the amplifier. If you unplug it, the internal amplifier turns into an attenuator, and blocks any signal. So it could be overload, or it could be the long wavelength (though RCA says all VHF and UHF channels).

It's possible that you'd get WBRA 3 anyway from a passive VHF high antenna, simply because the signal is very strong. I'm not sure which single antenna to recommend to you.

If this were me, and I had no better recommendations from the experts here, I'd probably buy an Antennacraft Y5713 http://www.antennacraft.net/Antennas/AntennasVHF.html point it at WSET ABC and see if I get WBRA too. The Y5713 is fairly inexpensive, so it might be worthwhile to experiment. Then I'd add a UHF antenna pointed at WDJB, to pick up the remaining majors on UHF.

Last edited by timgr; 16-Oct-2014 at 6:57 PM.
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Old 16-Oct-2014, 7:58 PM   #8
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The RCA 1450 comes with a fully separated amplifier. The antenna may be used with or without the amp.

However, it doesn't work very well to try to receive a signal with an antenna that's a mere 12" or so when that signal has a wavelength of 15-16'
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Old 17-Oct-2014, 3:03 PM   #9
Ben Myers
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Quote:
Originally Posted by klahmers View Post
I picked up an RCA 1450 and connected it unamplified to the tv tuner. I got nothing. I added in the amplifier and now got 27.1 and 27.2 pretty clear, but I didn't get the two channels with the highest signal. All of them should be from the same direction. I need to reprogram the tv and see if maybe it missed some of the stations. Progress, halting, but progress nonetheless.
Try temporarily moving the antenna outside, or at least close to a window, preferably in the direction of the desired stations. Also, it may be helpful to know the manufacturer and model of the television you are using.
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Old 17-Oct-2014, 4:21 PM   #10
No static at all
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IMO, if you can't at least use an attic antenna, OTA reception is a lost cause. The attic might work, but a small, outdoor all band antenna would be my minimum recommendation for reliable reception.
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