Now at 72, I am getting ready to finally purchase my first new television antenna. I cut off cable in 1969 and always received TV over the air, but have never purchased a new antenna. I usually grabbed cast off units and patched them together with my own designs. They worked. As a youngster at 9, when TV was actually getting viable, my dad owned an electric shop and although we did not sell TV’s we installed antennas. My dad had built a tunable signal meter so we could set up on the roof and find the best location to pickup the 50’s few stations. These were on the other side of a mountain from our town and that presented a challenge but we found that we could pickup a reflected signal from the two high water tanks. Enough diversion, but that was fun at that early age.
I have now decided that my time is worth more than the small amount of cost to put up a new antenna. My old antenna is missing several pieces (I made it from other people’s cast offs) and it has served well for 9 years now but pine branches have grown more dense anyway. I have found a location that I think gives me a clear line of sight to most of the stations. I live in Los Alamos (87544) at an elevation of about 7600 feet and Albuquerque is about 48 miles away and the Antenna farm is at a little over 12000 feet. I say that it appears to be a direct line of sight, but the haze and smoke from various forest fires shows only a gray haze in the correct direction. I still get pretty good reception on my old antenna except when the wind blows the pine branches around.
I am at a little quandary as to what antenna to get. Currently I am looking at either the Winegard HD8200U or the Xtreme Signal HD8200XL which are quite similar and am sort of leaning towards the HD8200XL simply because it uses a standard impedance transformer for the coax rather than a special one. I would appreciate any comments on comparison between the two.
I also am concerned with wind loading and whether I am going into overkill by buying too large an antenna. I will need to receive both high VHF and UHF. We have recorded wind gusts as large as 69 mph on the mast of the old antenna. (location of our wind gauge) I fear that the larger antenna could be more easily damaged. Feel free to make comments, I don’t get my feelings hurt easily. (I was a GE field engineer and the various electricians tried many times to hurt my feelings) If anyone has a better idea, then please voice it.
My report from TVFool cannot be attached. I am intending to keep my existing amplifier and will use this main antenna in a fixed location. I am also adding one of the CCPOC small units with rotator and built in amplifier to pick up a few closer station which I occasionally watch. I will use an AB switch for that rather than a combiner but would listen to opinions.
I am trying to learn as much as possible and please be free with any comments.
I have now decided that my time is worth more than the small amount of cost to put up a new antenna. My old antenna is missing several pieces (I made it from other people’s cast offs) and it has served well for 9 years now but pine branches have grown more dense anyway. I have found a location that I think gives me a clear line of sight to most of the stations. I live in Los Alamos (87544) at an elevation of about 7600 feet and Albuquerque is about 48 miles away and the Antenna farm is at a little over 12000 feet. I say that it appears to be a direct line of sight, but the haze and smoke from various forest fires shows only a gray haze in the correct direction. I still get pretty good reception on my old antenna except when the wind blows the pine branches around.
I am at a little quandary as to what antenna to get. Currently I am looking at either the Winegard HD8200U or the Xtreme Signal HD8200XL which are quite similar and am sort of leaning towards the HD8200XL simply because it uses a standard impedance transformer for the coax rather than a special one. I would appreciate any comments on comparison between the two.
I also am concerned with wind loading and whether I am going into overkill by buying too large an antenna. I will need to receive both high VHF and UHF. We have recorded wind gusts as large as 69 mph on the mast of the old antenna. (location of our wind gauge) I fear that the larger antenna could be more easily damaged. Feel free to make comments, I don’t get my feelings hurt easily. (I was a GE field engineer and the various electricians tried many times to hurt my feelings) If anyone has a better idea, then please voice it.
My report from TVFool cannot be attached. I am intending to keep my existing amplifier and will use this main antenna in a fixed location. I am also adding one of the CCPOC small units with rotator and built in amplifier to pick up a few closer station which I occasionally watch. I will use an AB switch for that rather than a combiner but would listen to opinions.
I am trying to learn as much as possible and please be free with any comments.
