Rural location antenna suggestions

[xwing777]

My report http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...1ddad9cd0bd997

2 story house, have trees all around property that are 40+ feet tall. Currently have RG-6 quad shield cable feeding an amped Onq distribution block going to 6 wall plates to TV's.

Wanting to use an outdoor antenna and running new coax isnt an issue if needed, but i can use the existing wiring and distrubution setup as i will drop cable eventually if i get ota working good enough to justify.

[GroundUrMast]

You have quite a few signal available to you. They're spread wide though, so you'll need an antenna with both gain and very wide forward beam.

Antennas Direct has the DB8e available for pre-order. It's based on the DB4e which was engineered to do well with real channels 14 through 51 (52 through 69 were taken for cell phone, PCS and broadband in 2009) so it has more gain than the old 14 to 69 designs.

The DB8e is adjustable. You can set it up as a traditional 8-bay panel antenna to get maximum gain in the forward direction and, you can turn the left and right panels relative to each other to trade some gain for wider beam width. I would suggest you set the antenna elements for 30° to 45° off broadside. This will direct gain so that you can receive from the south and the east simultaneously.

If you want to add the signal from WTVI on real channel 11, add an Antennacraft Y10713 or Winegard YA1713 pointed toward 157° compass. Use a UVSJ to combine to UHF and VHF signals.

Presuming the existing distribution panel has only a passive splitter, I would suggest the Antennas Direct PA-18 preamp, installed close to the output of the UVSJ which would be mounted on the mast just under the antennas.

http://www.antennasdirect.com/store/...r-Antenna.html
http://www.antennasdirect.com/cmss_f...s/DB8E-TDS.pdf
http://www.antennasdirect.com/store/..._combiner.html
http://www.antennasdirect.com/store/...e_amp_kit.html

(I would shop for price at Amazon, Best Buy, Solid Signal, 3 Star Inc... etc.)

A Simple reception situation that will receive , Many , many , many , many , OTA = Over The Air , Digital Broadcast Tv stations/channels.

For reception of the Charlotte area Digital Tv stations.

Above the peak of the roof install a Winegard HD7696P antenna aimed at about 175 degree magnetic compass direction.

Here is how to aim antennas , http://www.kyes.com/antenna/pointing/pointing.html.

Install a Winegard HDA200 distribution amplifier.

Connected to a 6 way splitter. http://www.amazon.com/Way-Splitter-2.../dp/B005MKE7PM.

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Here are some above the roof antenna mounts.

http://www.ronard.com/909911.html , if using a tripod antenna mount use the 5 foot antenna mount.

http://www.ronard.com/34424560.html , if using the eave antenna mount use the #4560.

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 or buy from ronard.

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

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As always trees and tree leaves do a good job of , reflecting , reducing , blocking , Digital Tv reception and so other buildings and other obstructions including your own roof and house.

It is best to install the HD7696P antenna 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 roof and house.

The Tv's Must Channel Scan for the , OTA= Over the Air , Digital Broadcast Tv Channels , often named the 'Air Channels' or 'Antenna Channels' in the Tv setup menu because the Tv transmissions travel through the Air from the transmitting antenna to the receiving antenna.

Some Digital Tv's will automatic channel scan for cable tv channels.

DO NOT channel scan for cable tv channels.

Go into the Tv setup menu and select , 'Air Channels' / 'Antenna Channels'.

[xwing777]

Thanks for the reply. I found the DB8 for around $70 but the DB8e only found for $199. Spec comparison shows approx the same for both (unless they havent updated the new e yet?)

So my question is it really worth the price difference? Since im new to OTA, not sure if im overlooking something or not.

[GroundUrMast]

There is a significant difference between the DB8 and the new DB8e. The new antenna has been specifically redesigned to take advantage of the reduced frequency span allocated to UHF TV broadcasting since 2009. Squeezing another 2 dB gain out of the basic 8-bay panel design is a remarkable achievement. However, Antennas Direct has done something I have yet to see any other manufacture do, they made the panels adjustable AND documented the performance of the antenna in various configurations. This adjustable pattern is not needed in every case, but you application is a prime candidate for the feature which the old DB8 lacks.

The DB8 and similar 8-bay panel antennas will have a narrow forward beam pattern, limiting you to reception of one market or the other.

If you had all stations arriving from one direction, the difference between the DB8 and the DB8e would be too small to pay much for..

[GroundUrMast]

televiews suggestion is also quite valid, so I don't wish to discredit it. I would like to point out the differences in performance so you can decide for your self.

The forward beam of the HD7696P in the UHF band is limited to less than 50° at frequencies above CH-15 or 16.

When adjusted correctly, the DB8e can have a forward beam of 90° or more.

That said, the HD7696P would be a rock solid solution for reception of the signals 20° either side of it's aim point.

Perhaps ADTech will weigh in on this one...?

These Charlotte area Digital Tv stations will be received with the HD7696P antenna.

The main digital channel and the digital sub channels of each digital Tv station.

WCNC-DT REAL UHF channel 22 NBC and digital sub channel Live Well Network.

WBTV REAL UHF channel 23 CBS and digital sub channel Bounce.

WHWD-LD REAL UHF channel 48 Religion.

WJZY-DT REAL UHF channel 47 The CW and digital sub channels , Antenna Tv and This Tv and The Country Network.

WHKY-TV REAL UHF channel 40 IND. and digital sub channels , RTV and Tuff Tv and PBJ.

WMYT-DT REAL UHF channel 39 MyNetwork.

WCCB-DT REAL UHF channel 27 FOX and digital sub channel Me-Tv.

WSOC-DT REAL UHF channel 34 ABC and digital sub channel - a rebroadcast of WXAN IND.

WUNG-TV REAL UHF channel 44 PBS. and digital sub channels , http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UNC-TV.

And most likely ,

WTVI REAL VHF channel 11 PBS.

WXAN-TV REAL UHF channel 36 Religion.

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All information is from wikipedia and rabbitears.info

Here is how I look up what is on the Tv stations/channels and More about the Tv stations.

As an Example , In the google search box , I type in variations of Tv stations Call Sign.

whky or whky tv or whky-tv or whky 40 and other varations.

The 2 main web sites that have Practical and Useful Information are that are found by the google search are , wikipedia and rabbitears.info.

[nkirkley]

I live in Charlotte and have a DB8 antenna mounted on the roof with a rotor. The antenna is about 30 feet high (not completely sure because I had someone do the job for me). Anyhow, I am loving this setup right now. Not only do I get all my Charlotte channels, but, I get a majority of the stations out of Winston Sale/Greensboro/High Point. We cut DirectTV this January because the bill just kept going up year after year. Time Warner is not any different. Further, with the internet, you tube, and Netflix, you can practically watch anything you want at any time.

Anyhow, this antenna is wonderful, with Charlotte coming in at over 95% and the out of town channels coming in at anywhere between 65-95%. My only regret is that I would love to get channel 12 (WXII, NBC affiliate) in Winston Salem. They broadcast on actual channel 31.1, which it appears WCCB in Charlotte uses as well. Main goal is to have two of each network. This comes in handy during the NFL season and your local network station is still showing a game that is a blowout and the neighboring town has a close knit game playing. Any suggestions? I tried WIS, channel 10 in Columbia, but didn’t have much luck there either.

This is my TVFool info:
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...5b940f290b8ac7