Get VOOM to Upgrade my OTA or DIY

[Howaraj1013]

I live in small town in Alabama called Cullman which is located 50 miles south of Huntsville and 50 miles North of Birmingham. I get 0 (none) local channels over the standard antenna, a Sensar II. I was curious to hear some of your opinions on upgrading the antenna.

Should I try and convince VOOm to do an upgrade?

Or, just bite the bullet and do it myself. Order a nice antenna and pre-amp and mount it on a mast or tower. I downgraded to basic Adelphia cable temporarily which costs $45 month ( a mf*** ripoff, huh?) So I would like to get on with this.

All opinions welcome.

 

[Sean Mota]

Before DIY I would do some research. Do you know which channels are transmitted digitally? and why is the Sensar II not picking any channels? Is it properly installed? do you have a diplexor installed? Is the SS II amplified? How far from the towers are you? Visit www.antennaweb.org and that should give you a start.

 

[Howaraj1013]

Here are the Digital Stations
Station --- Channel --- Distance (mi)

WBRCDT (WBRC-DT) -- 6.1 (50) -- 48
WVTMDT (WVTM-DT)-- 13.1 (52) -- 48
WHNTDT (WHNT-DT) -- 19.1 (59) -- 42
WTTODT (WTTO-DT) -- 21.1 (28) -- 48
WAAYDT (WAAY-DT) -- 31.1 (32) -- 42
WCFTDT (WCFT-DT) -- 33.1 (5) -- 59
WIATDT (WIAT-DT) -- 42.1 (30) -- 48
WAFFDT (WAFF-DT) -- 48.1 (49) -- 40
WZDXDT (WZDX-DT) -- 54.1 (41) -- 42
WTJPDT (WTJP-DT) -- 60.1 (26) -- 34
WABMDT (WABM-DT) -- 68.1 (36) -- 48



I assume they are simply out of the Sensar's range.
It appears to be properly installed, I'm hoping to play around with the aim of it today.
Dish and OTA are mounted on top of my garage.
And Yes I have a diplexor installed.
OTA does not appear to be the amplified version but I'll check.

I'm guessing a UHF antenna capable of pulling in 60mi signals would do the trick for these channels.
btw, channel data is not from antennaweb.org, instead I used

Broadcast Station Search

 

[Ilya]

If you can get to the diplexer, (the one that combines satellite wire with the OTA) check the diagram on it. You need to make sure that it passes DC voltage to its antenna input. Otherwise, the pre-amp in Sensar II won't work. I would also check the signal readings for each of the channels mentioned above in the Installation Wizard. Remember, that you must use RF numbers there (e.g. 26, not 60). Good luck!

 

[Howaraj1013]

Does an amplified Sensar look any different from a non-amped one? In other words can you see the pre-amp or is it an internal component?

We rotated the antenna to a few different orientations, all with the same results:

Zero signal level on all 3 major networks in both Huntsville & B'ham.

I called Voom and set up an appointment for a site survey afterall.

We'll see.

 

[Ilya]

No, I don't think you can easily tell, but I believe Sensar II comes with pre-amp standard.
If you are getting 0, I would suspect the wiring. Make sure to check all connections.

 

[Ilya]

How is everything connected right now? Do you have a square diplexer attached to the back of your STB?

 

[Howaraj1013]

Yes Diplexer on back of STB and one on the Dish outside. One run Coax.

 

[Howaraj1013]

Update:

Local installer cancelled today's appointment yesterday afternoon. SHOCKER!!

 

[Ilya]

Update:

Local installer cancelled today's appointment yesterday afternoon. SHOCKER!!

Well, at least he called in advance!