Help with Antenna selection for Nashville market

[wreckbuilder]

I'm looking to get Nashville stations. I'm trying to select an antenna and looking at the W7698p. From what I can tell I dont need VHF but for WSMV And WNPT and I really want WSMV. Will I be giving up much UHF reception with the Winegard 7698p compared to a dedicated UHF anntenna. I am 80 miles away but on a high ridge for the area.

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...60ed010c956bba

[JoeAZ]

With the distance and trees, you are unlikely to get
reliable reception, even with the best antennas. You
might want to consider streaming your programming
with something like Roku.......

[wreckbuilder]

Thanks for your response. There is a lot of antennas pointed towards Nashville in this area so that makes me think it will work. I just need some help choosing the optimum antenna setup. Its mostly UHF out of nashville .

[Tower Guy]

I'd consider one of the highest gain UHF only antennas. These include the 91XG and the DB-8e.

[wreckbuilder]

What would be a good high gain VHF antenna to use with the 91xg.
and would this be a better setup than a single like the winegard 7698p

[rabbit73]

Welcome to the forum, wreckbuilder

I really want WSMV

Then you must have a high gain antenna for VHF-High.

Will I be giving up much UHF reception with the Winegard 7698p compared to a dedicated UHF antenna?

No, the 7698 has good gain on VHF-High and UHF.

[rabbit73]

Your TVFool report says antenna height 60 ft; do you have a 60ft tower?

Originally Posted by wreckbuilder

What would be a good high gain VHF antenna to use with the 91xg.
and would this be a better setup than a single like the winegard 7698p

The best current VHF-High antenna is the Stellar Labs 30-2476.

http://www.newark.com/stellar-labs/3...vhf/dp/71Y5462

I'd say it was a toss-up.

You can combine a UHF antenna and a VHF antenna with a UVSJ, which is a low loss device.

The 7698 is a popular combo antenna for both UHF and VHF-High. With the 7698 you must follow the instructions with care when you unfold the VHF elements for max gain. The 7698 has a unusual method of combining the UHF and VHF sections that I don't like, but it rarely is a problem. There are forks on the circuit board that connect to the wires from each section with pressure contact. The circuit board is in the CB-8269 housing that can be replaced.









How To Troubleshoot a Winegard Antenna Cartridge Housing
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlQk...ule1MX8jCAfvPQ

[rabbit73]

WSMV has co-channel interference from WFXL, also on channel 10. WSMV must be at least 16 dB stronger than WFXL to avoid interference, but it is only 1.3 dB stronger on the report. However, WFXL is in a different direction, so the antenna pattern has a good chance of giving you the margin that you need if the antenna is aimed at WSMV.

http://www.winegard.com/kbase/uploads/HD7698P.pdf

http://www.hdtvprimer.com/ANTENNAS/W7698.html

If the antenna pattern isn't sufficient to attenuate WFXL, you can use a building or wire wesh screen to block the signal from 173 degrees.

You will need a preamp for your antenna.

[wreckbuilder]

great information Thanks, Yes I do have a tower and receive the Huntsville stations. I think I will try the 7698 Will I be able to combine the existing UHF antenna pointed at Huntsville and the new one and receive both markets? or maybe use a A/B switch because of the two channel 10 stations.
Any recommendations on Preamp
Thanks again

[rabbit73]

The curvature of the earth blocks the WSMV signal. This is the terrain profile you will see if you click on the callsign in your signal report:

[rabbit73]

Originally Posted by wreckbuilder

great information Thanks, Yes I do have a tower and receive the Huntsville stations. I think I will try the 7698 Will I be able to combine the existing UHF antenna pointed at Huntsville and the new one and receive both markets? or maybe use a A/B switch because of the two channel 10 stations.
Any recommendations on Preamp
Thanks again

I'm getting confused, so I need to ask you some questions to give you an accurate answer, and look at the map above because I don't know your area.

Do you have a rotator, or do you want to avoid using a rotator?

Are most of the stations that you want, UHF stations in Huntsville and the only VHF station you want is in Nashville? If that is true, then you need a UHF antenna aimed at Huntsville and a VHF antenna aimed at Nashville. The two antennas can be combined with a UVSJ.

If it isn't that simple, the you might need the 7698 aimed at Huntsville and the 30-2476 aimed at Nashville with an A/B switch.

Can you give me a list of must-have channels by callsign and real channel number?

Preamps:
Antennas Direct Juice
Channel Master 7778
Channel Master 7777HD/Amplify; has HI and LO gain settings, but the switch is at the preamp

FYI:
WZDX will be moving to channel 18 because of repack
https://rabbitears.info//market.php?...&callsign=wzdx
WAAY to 17
https://rabbitears.info//market.php?...&callsign=waay
WAFF to 15
https://rabbitears.info//market.php?...&callsign=waff

[rabbit73]

Here is a terrain profile using different software. VHF signals can make it over a path like this better than UHF signals.

[wreckbuilder]

Thanks for the help I appreciate it.
I don't have a rotator. And would'nt be opposed to one unless they give trouble.

My situation is we like the Nashville market news mainly WSMV real channel 10 which we get through Dish. We want to get rid of the Dish bill.

We have a UHF on a tower pointed towards Huntsville and receive them good. So my idea was to get setup for Nashville and possibly keep the Huntsville antenna also. So that would be a Winegard 7698p for Nashville mounted below the existing UHF (for huntsville). Could they both be on the same amp and coax or would they need to be independently wired and amped and use a A/B switch in the house.

The Nashville channels we want in order of priority are
WSMV real 10
WKRN real 27
WTVF real 5 and also 25 (only shows 5 on tvfool)

I wonder if WSMV has any plans of moving to UHF?

I looked at the 7698 its a montster at 14 ft long so I am a little concerned about that. I like the looks of the smaller dedicated UHF/VHF antennas but that would be a total of 3. What about that HDStacker is it a good option?

I am open to any other brands or combinations
Thanks so much

[rabbit73]

Thank you for the additional details. It is getting more complicated, so I will need to ask more questions and study it further.

If you just wanted WSMV from Nashville and only UHF from Huntsville, it would be easy to combine the two antennas.

My situation is we like the Nashville market news mainly WSMV real channel 10 which we get through Dish. We want to get rid of the Dish bill.

Now I understand why WSMV is so important.

If I were there with you, I would want to buy a 30-2476 VHF antenna and a preamp to see if WSMV is even possible. It would be a $35 gamble for the antenna.

We have a UHF on a tower pointed towards Huntsville

What UHF antenna are you using?

How many TVs are you using?

So that would be a Winegard 7698p for Nashville mounted below the existing UHF (for huntsville). Could they both be on the same amp and coax or would they need to be independently wired and amped and use a A/B switch in the house.

They could be on the same amp and coax IF you only wanted WSMV from the 7698 as a VHF only antenna and only UHF from the Huntsville antenna.

But if you want VHF and UHF from Nashville and UHF from Huntsville, that creates a problem, because it is difficult to combine UHF from two antennas aimed in different directions.

You would need an amp for each antenna and a separate coax for each antenna. Down below you could have an A/B switch to select which antenna is needed. This creates a problem if your TV can't add a channel after scan; you would need to rescan after changing the antenna switch. The way around that is to connect the main antenna to the TV antenna input, and connect the second antenna to a separate tuner with its output connected to the TV aux input.

The Nashville channels we want in order of priority are
WSMV real 10
WKRN real 27
WTVF real 5 and also 25 (only shows 5 on tvfool)

Just real 10 is easy to combine with UHF.
Real 27 would be hard to combine with UHF from Huntsville.
Real 5 requires a BIG VHF-Low antenna. It is as long as the 7698 and much wider.

I wonder if WSMV has any plans of moving to UHF?

I doubt it. The FCC is cutting back UHF from 14-51 to 14-36. The channels from 38 to 51 have been auctioned to cellular companies. The listing indicates it will stay on 10.
https://rabbitears.info//market.php?...&callsign=wsmv

I looked at the 7698 its a montster at 14 ft long so I am a little concerned about that.

Weak signals require antennas with more gain. Antennas with more gain are bigger. A preamp can't compensate for an antenna that is too small.

What about that HDStacker is it a good option?

I'm not impressed with it for your location.

[JoeAZ]

Originally Posted by JoeAZ

With the distance and trees, you are unlikely to get
reliable reception, even with the best antennas. You
might want to consider streaming your programming
with something like Roku.......

I continue to believe Roku would be your best option.
We now know you can watch tv from Huntsville, AL and
with Roku's News ON app, you can watch news from
Nashville via WKRN and WSMV and from around the
country as well. It is a no brainer...............


https://channelstore.roku.com/details/71845/newson

[wreckbuilder]

What UHF antenna are you using?

It is like the old Channel Master 4228 not sure but it resembles it.

How many TVs are you using?

We are using two TVs

I may just get a 30-2476 VHF and do like you said and if it works I could just point my existing UHF towards Nashville and forget about Huntsville. It might simplify things.

I have tried the Roku like JoeAz suggested, Although there's nothing like just changing channels without having to change imputs and waiting on Roku.

Thanks for your help