Asking for help

[earnest79]

I want to pickup channel 38 univision in Chicago. I have been thinking about buying a DB8e and trying to get Southbend also but i am mainly only wanting 38.

What antenna?, booster?, how high do i need the antenna?
Below is using my address. Thanks in advance for any help you can give.


http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...e1c6eccac80d7e

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As always , trees and tree leaves , plants and plant leaves , have a Negative Effect on Broadcast Tv Reception and so do buildings and other obstructions including your own , attic , roof , building.

Some and not all Negative Effects are.

Absorbing Blocking Reception.

Multi-Path Reflecting Tv Signals Bouncing All Around.

The Best Practice for Reliable Reception is to install antenna/s at a location that has the least amount to no amount of obstructions of any type or kind in the directions of reception including your own , attic , roof , building.

The directions of reception are , North West , North , North East , South East.

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Install a.

http://www.antennacraft.net.

HBU55 antenna.

Aimed at 330 degree magnetic compass direction.

Here is how to aim antennas.

http://www.kyes.com/antenna/pointing/pointing.html.

Use a Real and Actual magnetic compass to aim antenna , do not trust a , cell phone , tablet and etc. compass.

Most Digital Tv's have Signal Strength Meter and some Digital Tv's also have a Signal Quality Meter.

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Install a.

http://www.antennacraft.net.

10G201 preamp.

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For 1 Tv connected use no splitter.

For 2 Tv's connected use a , Holland Electronics , HFS-2D 2 way splitter.

For 3 Tv's connected use a , Holland Electronics , HFS-3D , 3 way splitter.

Buy the , HFS-2D , HFS-3D , splitters at , http://www.hollandelectronics.com , or , http://www.amazon.com.

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Install the HBU55 antenna at about 25 or more feet above ground.

Here are some above the roof antenna mounts.

http://www.ronard.com/909911.html. Install the , ronard(911) , 5 foot tripod antenna mount.

http://www.ronard.com/34424560.html. Install the , ronard(4560) , eave antenna mount.

http://www.ronard.com/ychim.html. Measure around the chimney and use a , ronard(2212) , ronard(2218) , ronard(2224) .

http://www.ronard.com

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Home Depot has , 10 foot 6 inch length , 1 and 3/8 inch diameter , TOP RAIL , chain link fence , Pipe , that makes good antenna mast/pipe , the price is low at about 12 dollars.

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You have not said if any other antennas are installed.

If any other antennas/antenna systems are installed , do not connect this HBU55 antenna system to the other antenna system.

[StephanieS]

Greetings Earnest,

You are on the fringe edge of Chicago at your location. WGBO reports a signal of 11.2 db, which is very weak but is still possible.

At what height did you run this TVfool plot? I'd like to see 25' and 50' respectively.

Your thoughts on a DB8e are in the right direction. With WGBO's weak signal though, I would advise against aiming the panels separately (one for Chicago, the other for South Bend). You are going to need the antenna's full gain and receiving ability to work Chicago.

This plot does have some negatives. First, normally I'd advise you aim and Chicago and leave it. Unfortunately, you don't have a reasonable chance at all of Chicago. If your plot is accurate, ABC, Univision and FOX from Chicago are your best bets. NBC is on the bleeding edge and WBBM CBS is unlikely.

There a good likelyhood of NBC and CBS from South Bend. However, if you aimed half of the DB8e towards magnetic 49, the chances of WGBO reception diminish. As mentioned earlier, for Chicago you need every ounce of gain from the DB8e working WGBO.

If WGBO is priority, I would purchase the DB8e. Install on your roof with no obstructions trees or structures - aim both panels to magnetic 330 (NW). A preamp could help as you don't have any strong signals to contend with. The RCA TVPRAMP1R is a good low cost unit that performs well.

The "combined" antenna input is what you'll connect to DB8e antenna coax to on the preamp. Then the coax from the preamp will run into your home. At that end of that coax, install power inserter for preamp then split signal if desired.

How many TVs do you intend to feed?

Using a preamp in these situations can often have a benefit. Signals that you aren't aiming for get amplified too, the result is that South Bend may pop in.

You don't have the best plot to work with, but with some good luck, you'll be able to reliably see Univision along with a mix of Chicago and South Bend affiliates.

Cheers.

[stvcmty]

Originally Posted by earnest79

how high do i need the antenna?

Another question may be “how high can you put the antenna?”
Is your house in an area with an HOA? Does the city/town/county you live in have any restrictions on antenna height?
If you could face any restrictions on installing an antenna, along with StephanieS’s suggestion of 25’ and 50’ it would be helpful if you posted a TVfool plot at the height of your roof plus 12’ (In most cases the FCC protects you putting up antennas 12’ above your roof). If you don’t have any restrictions to worry about, post a plot of the highest you would be able to mount an antenna.

With a little height, I would expect your chances of getting WHME are pretty good. In the markets around you (Indianapolis, South Bend, Chicago), there does not appear to be any co channel concerns for channel 38. Nothing is on channel 37 because those frequencies are reserved for science, so you don’t have to worry about any lower adjacent channel problems. There are/will be low powers in all three markets on 39, but no full power stations, so upper adjacent channel should not be a problem. The biggest concern is probably the 2 edge path, but height should help that.

Out of curiosity, do you want WGBO for Univision or for Get TV?

[earnest79]

I only need channel 38 and I plan on feeding 3 Tvs. I am trying to pick up Univision.

The channels in South bend are pretty easy to pick up with any antenna, Ill work on getting 38 for now then add another antenna later as needed.

25' http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...e1c6c505b329d3
35' http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...e1c64e0a9e8ebc
50' http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...e1c6de0b9fc2dc

No restrictions to worry about.

I will be putting the antenna on a tower.

I am looking at purchasing a db8e, and a cm7777.

Do you recommend the RCA TVPRAMP1R over the cm7777, and is there a better antenna?

[Stereocraig]

Originally Posted by stvcmty

Another question may be “how high can you put the antenna?”
Is your house in an area with an HOA? Does the city/town/county you live in have any restrictions on antenna height?
If you could face any restrictions on installing an antenna, along with StephanieS’s suggestion of 25’ and 50’ it would be helpful if you posted a TVfool plot at the height of your roof plus 12’ (In most cases the FCC protects you putting up antennas 12’ above your roof). If you don’t have any restrictions to worry about, post a plot of the highest you would be able to mount an antenna.

HOA rules regarding antennas, are unenforceable.

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

[stvcmty]

Originally Posted by Stereocraig

HOA rules regarding antennas, are unenforceable.

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

BUT city, county, and state laws CAN limit antenna/tower/mast height for safety reasons. The FCC rule only protects antennas up to 12' above the roof. Beyond that the FCC gives cities, counties, and states the final say for safety reasons. So while higher than 12' above the roof is possible, local goverment can delay it in a permitting process.

That does.not seem to be a problem in the OP's case, but it should be considered when we are asking how high someone can put an antenna.

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If installing the HBU55 on a tower , That is Ok . Go for it.

[Stereocraig]

That is 100% true, stvcmty.

I'm just not going to pass up a chance to take a jab at HOAs. =D

When I installed my first tower, I called the village hall.

They gave me the expected response of maintaining adequate distance from the utility ROW.

What I didn't expect, was when she told me that its height could be no more than 3X the distance to the property line.

That wouldn't do much good, if it fell into the road, or if a neighbor had a building in that radius.

They didn't even require a permit.

That was 25 years ago.
I have since installed a second one on the opposite side of our gigantic maple.