Quote:
Originally Posted by danl
I currently have an in attic antenna with amp an have removed all splitters.
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Can the amp be completely removed from your setup or is it built-in to the antenna?
The signals on your chart are probably too strong for any amp to handle, so you should avoid using anything with an amp in it.
The Terk HDTVi suggested by Dave Loudin is a great place to start because it's about as good as it gets for small "set-top" type antennas that do not have a built-in amp (avoid the HDTVa version that includes an amp).
It's possible that even with an un-amplified antenna, the signals might still be too strong for your receiver to handle. In that case, you may need to add a signal attenuator (like
this one) to bring down the signal levels even further.
If switching to an un-amplified antenna makes your channels more stable, then it's a good indication that amp-overload was your problem.
If channels are still breaking up or if many channels are still missing, then you may be dealing with a multipath issue. Multipath is a situation where the signal is reaching you via multiple paths (like reflections off of other buildings, walls, hills, etc.). Since the length of each path is different, these multiple copies of signal going into receiver look like delayed "echoes" of the signal that interfere with reception. In the days of analog television, these would show up as "ghosts" on your TV, but with digital television, these "echoes" can make it difficult for the receiver to lock onto the digital data stream. If the data is decoded correctly, you get a perfect picture (no "ghosts"), and if the data cannot be decoded, you get discontinuities in your picture (picture break-up and/or dropouts).
Multipath can be the most severe with indoor and attic antenna installations because there is more "stuff" that can bounce signals around before it reaches your antenna. If your problem is being caused by multipath, the best defense against it is to find a low-multipath location for the antenna (i.e., relocating it, maybe even moving it on to the roof), and to use a directional antenna. A "directional" antenna will do a better job of ignoring signals coming in from the sides, top, bottom, or back, so the severity of the multipath as seen by your receiver is much less.
I suggest taking this one step at a time. Try a simple passive antenna first and see if it makes any difference. The process of elimination will help identify the problem(s) and find the best solution for your situation.
