First time antenna purchase

[silversschevy]

Hey guys,

I am looking for some help on choosing an antenna for my local digitals. I don't know much about antennas at all honestly. I know I have one VHF (7) and the rest are UHF. I would prefer to keep the antenna small if on the roof or maybe even stash it in the attic. Thanks in advance.
Here is a link to my TV Fool

TV Fool

 

[Mr Tony]

you have 2 stations on VHF....PBS is on 8 (remaps to 2)

Looks like you are about the same distance I am here in Minneapolis from the towers. I use a HBU33 that I got from Radio Shack a year ago. Its not that big but does work pretty well.
edit: looks like they dont carry it anymore.....solidsignal does...and a lot cheaper than I paid at Rat Shack. Here is the link

 

[silversschevy]

Do you think I would have any problems if I mounted this in the attic? Any chance that a smaller UHF antenna would bring in the two VHF channels?

 

[Mr Tony]

depends on what kind of roof you have. A note that any time you put an antenna in the attic you do cut down on the signal receiving

I would get a combo unit. I use to have a UHF only antenna (when Minneapolis digital was all UHF) and after the transition I had issues with my 2 VHF stations (9 & 11) with dropouts

 

[silversschevy]

thanks for the help. I have a composition shingle roof. I also have cable run to all my televisions (4 in total). What kind of setup do you recommend for splitting this into either 2 or 4 rooms?

 

[DRCars]

Those channels listed as "Green" (the major networks to your North at 7 and 15 degrees) should be easy to receive. If you have a rabbit ear antenna of any sort I would give it a try inside first. I'm talking about one of those expandable retractable antennas ( looks like a V) that used to come with portable analog TVs.

If that doesn't work well I would then try the same simple antenna outside a window close by.

DRCars

 

[Mr Tony]

Using the antenna I linked to I have it going to 5 spots (living room HDTV, Dish 211k, computer room, basement, garage) with really no signal loss. There are a couple low powered religious stations that the picture drop in and out because of the split but would be fine without but I'm not worried about those.

 

[silversschevy]

Using the antenna I linked to I have it going to 5 spots (living room HDTV, Dish 211k, computer room, basement, garage) with really no signal loss. There are a couple low powered religious stations that the picture drop in and out because of the split but would be fine without but I'm not worried about those.

Iceberg, do you have a amplifier? What splitter do you use?

 

[silversschevy]

Those channels listed as "Green" (the major networks to your North at 7 and 15 degrees) should be easy to receive. If you have a rabbit ear antenna of any sort I would give it a try inside first. I'm talking about one of those expandable retractable antennas ( looks like a V) that used to come with portable analog TVs.

If that doesn't work well I would then try the same simple antenna outside a window close by.

DRCars

Are all those retractable rabbit ear antennas about the same? Will they grab UHF and VHF?

 

[Mr Tony]

Iceberg, do you have a amplifier? What splitter do you use?

no amp and its a stock radio shack splitter I had laying around

checking my tvfool I am 29 miles away from the towers
TV Fool

 

[silversschevy]

I tried a set of rabbit ears with a uhf receiver I had lying around the house and was able to get channels 4 and 14, but none of the others. Looks like maybe I need more juice than just that.

 

[Mr Tony]

I relooked at your tvfool and you get the 2 UHF stations in the market. The other 3 are VHF (2,7,10)

 

[silversschevy]

I relooked at your tvfool and you get the 2 UHF stations in the market. The other 3 are VHF (2,7,10)

Good catch Iceberg. I hadn't noticed that 10 was VHF as well. Do you think there is any hope to getting the vhf channels indoors?

 

[Mr Tony]

I never have been able to....and I've tried 2 or 3 indoor antennas before

 

[Don_M]

Looks like maybe I need more juice than just that.

Those VHF signals are just strong enough that it should be worth trying the HBU33 in the attic by itself with no amp at first. Another worthy performer is Winegard's HD-7694, which is at the same price point. Either one should provide enough gain to get those three VHF stations through a plywood-and-shingles roof. (All bets are off, though, if the antenna must be aimed through a gable end finished in brick, stucco, aluminum siding, etc. Ditto a radiant barrier on the underside of the roof deck. Then you'll need to go above the roof.) Install the antenna and run a cable to a single TV first to verify reception reliability. If your reception gets sketchy after adding more sets, you can always add a low-gain pre-amplifier (Winegard HDP-269) or distribution amplifier (Channel Master CM3412, Winegard HDA-100) near the antenna to overcome signal loss through the splitters/wire runs.

 

[Jim5506]

Welcome to Satellite Guys.

Looks like you are not down in the "canyon" at Canyon otherwise an attic install would be a problem.

Ex son-in-law lived in Canyon for a while.

We tried a medium all channel Radio Shack antenna in the attic above the garage but that did not work too well.

This was about 5 years ago before the stations got their new digital antennas all up and running at full power.

I ran a TVFool report on their old house on Mesa Drive and it came up very similar to yours - so if you go with an attic mount bump the antenna up one size, maybe a Winegard 7695.

 

[silversschevy]

Welcome to Satellite Guys.

Looks like you are not down in the "canyon" at Canyon otherwise an attic install would be a problem.

Ex son-in-law lived in Canyon for a while.

We tried a medium all channel Radio Shack antenna in the attic above the garage but that did not work too well.

This was about 5 years ago before the stations got their new digital antennas all up and running at full power.

I ran a TVFool report on their old house on Mesa Drive and it came up very similar to yours - so if you go with an attic mount bump the antenna up one size, maybe a Winegard 7695.

thanks for all the advice guys! I will let you know once I get it up and running.

 

[stanleyjohn]

Im also thinking of going back to the old days by putting a OTA intenna in my wood frame colonial attic.I have heard that there really isnt such a thing as a digatal antenna! just a gimmic.Im located in south/central Ct and looking for a good OTA to complete my TV setups.How about Rat Shack for buying one and if yes,what model.

 

[poopsiega]

Hey, I'm a newbie to this forum. I have been a Dish customer for years but I am really trying hard to justify the $60+ I pay for cable when I only watch about 5 or 6 channels on a regular basis. (I don't watch sports and I don't shop on the TV. I have five Tv's in my home. A couple of sites I visited said that I need a converter box for each TV in my house. Most of them are 5 years old or older that we have "collected" over the years so I don't know if they are digital or analog or what. How do I tell if my tv's are digital or analog and whether I need a converter or not?
Do I need a converter for each tv or can I just purchase a good quality antenna to mount outside to serve all of my tv's? I just need a direct answer. I am trying to cut expenses with the economy being in the toilet and all.

 

[jayn_j]

You need 5 converter boxes, unless the TV already has a digital tuner built in. The antenna is not analog or digital and it will work fine with either signal. The old TV tuners will NOT work.