Does such an animal exist? Or if there isn't a meter for it, do you guys recommend an OTA tuner box that has a great, readable signal meter that I can use for the same purpose?
Meter for Pointing an OTA antenna
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They exist and good ones are expensive I think the one I had was by Blonder Tongue and approached $800. You can find DISH PAL dtv converter boxes under $50 that will display a signal on screen not the best but good enough for most OTA applications.
In addition, many TVs have a signal strength meter hidden somewhere in their menus, usually under 'channel' in setup. My TIVO also has such a meter.
One thing you are going to discover is that these meters will swing wildly over short and medium periods, due to atmospheric effects. For example, my CBS may swing fro 88 down to 56 in a 2-3 minute period.
Also be aware that the meters on TVs and boxes generally report on an arbitrary scale. An 85 on one TV may be a 75 on a different one.
One thing you are going to discover is that these meters will swing wildly over short and medium periods, due to atmospheric effects. For example, my CBS may swing fro 88 down to 56 in a 2-3 minute period.
Also be aware that the meters on TVs and boxes generally report on an arbitrary scale. An 85 on one TV may be a 75 on a different one.
No I don't it was mine to use with an employer that closed down due to bankruptsy.Do you have a link to the blonder tongue? I'm a meter whore.
?? http://www.nsccom.com/productpdfs/btl/BTPRO-1000_Spec.pdf http://www.nsccom.com/btpro-1000qam8vsbanalogsignalanalyzer.aspxDo you have a link to the blonder tongue? I'm a meter whore.
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The main problem with using a meter to tune an OTA tuner is that different channel frequencies that the antenna will receive respond differently to the same conditions, antenna location and direction.
Channel 20 may be very good while channel 38 might be attenuated at the same antenna position.
OTA digital TV reception is an art with a little science thrown in.
Channel 20 may be very good while channel 38 might be attenuated at the same antenna position.
OTA digital TV reception is an art with a little science thrown in.
The above only show signal strength. Not very useful for optimizing signal quality for reliable reception.
I use a SiliconDust tuner and SiliconDust HomeRun Meter app on an Android tablet.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.zaren
I use a SiliconDust tuner and SiliconDust HomeRun Meter app on an Android tablet.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.zaren
I just did a really quick search to see what might be there.I'm not in the market so didn't do the "research",I'll leave that up to the OP
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FYI - We (Applied Instruments) now offer our model XR-3, which is a modular test instrument. One of the meter modules we offer (our Cable-Air module, part number XR-CA-01) is designed for testing 8VSB digital off-air signals, digital QAM J.83B, QAM64/256 CATV signals, and analog signals. With the XR-3, you can see the RF signal level and MER demodulated signal quality of up to 5 channels on the screen at once, which is great for tuning an over the air (OTA) antenna since it's common to have transmitter towers located on different sides of town and therefore the final antenna position ends up being a compromise to adequately receive signal for all channels in the area.
There is a few cheap tv signal meters in the $20 range for a basic testings:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Labgear-27866R-Compact-UHF-DVB-T-Digital-Signal-Meter-/121515896630
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Labgear-27866R-Compact-UHF-DVB-T-Digital-Signal-Meter-/121515896630
There is a few cheap tv signal meters in the $20 range for a basic testings:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Labgear-27866R-Compact-UHF-DVB-T-Digital-Signal-Meter-/121515896630
We don't use DVB-T in the USA, so this won't work.
This DVBT meter appears to only be a signal strength indicator, it should display if signals are being transmitted in a wide RF range, but it would be useless for aiming and optimizing an antenna. Since the unit cannot tune a specific frequency, it would not be capable of optimizing for a selected channel. Since most channels are transmitted from different antennas and often the antenna must be dithered to receive multiple channels, it is critical to be able to select specific channels during the antenna tuning.
Same thing as using a signal strength meter for satellites. Yes, you have a signal. But unable to optimize the signal quality.
Same thing as using a signal strength meter for satellites. Yes, you have a signal. But unable to optimize the signal quality.
I bet they do "tune" a frequency; probably the strongest one they can find. Broadband "strength" measurement would be a huge process and the result may not be particularly useful.
My old DVICO tuner card would give a db reading of signal strength in its display of controls. As you moved the antenna, you would see what strength you needed before the channel would display properly, and then turn the antenna for maximum strength. A lot of my channels were very unreliable, so moving the antenna a few degrees could make a few db difference which made the difference of receiving it or not. As others have pointed out, the strength would change greatly in short periods of time due to atmospheric conditions.
Probably more economical to use an OTA tuner/tv but more cumbersome. Those meters aren't cheap but here is one I've been looking at that is 'fairly' affordable.
http://www.solidsignal.com/pview.asp?p=digiair-pro-atsc
Bet? Cool! $100? Need my PayPal info? LOL
Never have seen a signal strength meter that "auto-tunes" a frequency. Meters typically use chokes or circuits to limit the upper and lower frequency range and measure the minute microvolt strength over a auto or manual threshold.
Never have seen a signal strength meter that "auto-tunes" a frequency. Meters typically use chokes or circuits to limit the upper and lower frequency range and measure the minute microvolt strength over a auto or manual threshold.
