Help with antenna in Chicago area

[jae]

Hi folks,

My first post.

My parents live in Des Plaines, IL - which is about 20 NW of the John Hancock Center (JHC) where ch. 41 is transmitted from. Channel 41 is a low power station that my parents are most interested in.

They get very poor reception of channel 41, and I was wondering what recommendations anybody might have.

Right now, my parents use a Radio Shack antenna with a built-in pre-amp <http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2348191&tab=features>

Before that, they had a boom antenna (I'd guess somewhere around 72 inches) also from Radio Shack.

Neither one pulls in enough signal for channel 41 to make it watchable, although most of the other stations seemed to come in very well.

Any suggestions?

Jae

 

[dodge]

JAE
that station is a low power station
your best bet will be a high gain uhf antenna such as the antennas direct 91xg with an amp. I dont know the status of that station going to digital as of yet. I can get that station at my house on a Winegard HD8200 and it is decent and watchable.

 

[Don_M]

Jae, your parents are temporarily in a tough spot for receiving WOCH. I poked around the FCC and station Web sites; WOCH easily got to Des Plaines before it was bumped off channel 28. It's nowhere near as strong now that it's on channel 41. See the coverage maps here: Des Plaines is completely outside the channel 41 contour, even though it's pretty close to Chicago proper. Fortunately, they plan to solve this issue by flash-cutting to digital channel 49; there's a coverage map on that page showing Des Plaines comfortably inside the broadcast contour on 49. Problem is, it hasn't happened yet, and as best as I can tell from a spot check of the records, it may not happen until late September this year.

So where does that leave the folks between now and then? You may have some luck raising, lowering or re-locating the existing antenna if it's outdoors, but that may take quite a bit of trial and error. If the antenna is indoors now, by all means move it outdoors and above the roof. That could make a big difference by itself. If it doesn't, and if moving the antenna around outside also doesn't help, they'll need a higher-gain antenna until WOCH switches to digital broadcasting. When it does, they'll need to use a converter box or a TV with a built-in digital tuner to receive it.

 

[jae]

Thanks Dodge and Don_M

The WOCH website has a lot more info since I last looked at it a couple of months ago. I should have checked it again

The antenna right now is on the roof - probably about 16 feet off the ground. I don't think there is much obstruction between the house and JHC, so I'm not sure if raising the antenna will do much good.

I think I'll try the high-gain antenna you recommended, Dodge, along with an amplifier.

Do either of you have an amplifier that you might recommend to go with this antenna?


Thanks,

Jae

 

[Don_M]

That 91-XG is the finest mass-production UHF antenna made today, but there are two issues that need to be considered in your situation:

* It's a UHF-only antenna. While it will probably pull in WOCH just fine, it's not designed for VHF reception. You'd risk losing VHF stations WBBM (now and after the transition) plus WLS (post-transition).

* Its gain is unsurpassed -- so high, in fact, that using an amplifier of any kind with a 91-XG is likely to cause amp or tuner overload that close to the transmit antennas. Overload won't permanently damage the electronics, but it will preclude reception of one or more channels.

Sorry, but I simply can't agree with Dodge on this. Using an amp with either one of the fine antennas he recommended would be a waste of both your money and your time. (At his distance to the stations, however, an amp is frequently necessary.)

 

[Tower Guy]

That 91-XG is the finest mass-production UHF antenna made today.

I would add that the 91 XG does better on the higher UHF channels. This includes channel 41. The Winegard HD-8800 outperforms the 91 XG on the lower UHF channels.

 

[goaliebob99]

Isnt channel 41 carried on WCIU's digital subchannels, you could get a digital converter box and pickup RF 27, I think it maps to 26.4, Thats the chinese station right?

 

[jae]

That 91-XG is the finest mass-production UHF antenna made today, but there are two issues that need to be considered in your situation:

* It's a UHF-only antenna. While it will probably pull in WOCH just fine, it's not designed for VHF reception. You'd risk losing VHF stations WBBM (now and after the transition) plus WLS (post-transition).

* Its gain is unsurpassed -- so high, in fact, that using an amplifier of any kind with a 91-XG is likely to cause amp or tuner overload that close to the transmit antennas. Overload won't permanently damage the electronics, but it will preclude reception of one or more channels.

Sorry, but I simply can't agree with Dodge on this. Using an amp with either one of the fine antennas he recommended would be a waste of both your money and your time. (At his distance to the stations, however, an amp is frequently necessary.)

Thanks Don.

You mentioned earlier that WOCH might improve their coverage in September. Where did you get this info? Just curious because I had talked to them in January and the person I talked to said that things might improve in September, and I'm guessing you didn't call the station

I removed a length of cable (about 6') from the power supply (for the built-in pre-amp of the present antenna) to the TV. That made the reception a little better. My parents say they can live with it. Maybe I'll just wait until September.

 

[jae]

Isnt channel 41 carried on WCIU's digital subchannels, you could get a digital converter box and pickup RF 27, I think it maps to 26.4, Thats the chinese station right?

It's a (mostly) Korean station. I'm pretty sure it's not carried by WCIU, and Wikipedia says 26.4 is "This TV" channel.

 

[Don_M]

You mentioned earlier that WOCH might improve their coverage in September...

No, I didn't call the station. The FCC maintains records on all licensees and posts them online. Most of WOCH's records are available on or from this page. Further information may be obtained through the links Station Info and Application List. I did a quick search through those records.

I found no categorical mention of a switch to digital in late September. I inferred that from statements in the station's Request for Extension of Special Temporary Authority, a copy of which is attached to this message, and other records. Basically, they requested permission to maintain the status quo until Sept. 25. However, WOCH can't broadcast an analog signal on channel 41 indefinitely because 1) it interferes with another channel 41 licensee, WIFR-Freeport, and 2) this was their fifth request for an STA extension. There's no mention of whether FCC has granted the request, but since WOCH has already been bumped off channel 28 due to another interference issue, denial would be rather extraordinary at this point.

Meanwhile, the station holds a construction permit for digital operation on channel 49. The "path of least resistance" is a permanent DTV broadcast on 49, eventually. It may happen sooner than Sept. 25 (you'd have to call the station to find out for sure), or it may get delayed again if they request another extension due to those ever-present "technical difficulties." (Unlike the full-power stations, WOCH isn't under the mandate to terminate analog broadcasting on June 12.)