New ChannelMaster 4228-HD antenna only picks up Digital stations...

[BigNebraskaFan]

I recently purchased a new antenna to put into my attic to receive OTA channels. I currently have Dish Network but with frequent bad weather in summer we lose signal and still wanted weather coverage during outages.

I live in an old house with old wiring (RG59). When I first got the antenna I hooked it up directly to my HD Samsung tv just sitting on living room floor and picked up over 30 channels (both Digital and analog). There used to be an old antenna on roof that I took down when I purchased the house but kept the internal wiring in the house. I went to the attic and re-spliced the ends to give new ends and used the existing cord to run to tv. Now when I plug the antenna in I only receive 14 stations ( all digital). It will not pick up any analog stations. My tv in living room picks up all these HD stations but will not scan any analog stations. When I split the signal to tv in basement, I get nothing. (tv in basement is not HD tv).

Hope all that made sense. Was just wondering why I only get Digital signal? Is the RG59 coax the culprit? Does a bad splice prevent analog signal?

The cord is very long. Probably 60ft plus. I have an UHF/VHF booster that i hooked up and it did nothing. Can cord length cause me to lose signal by the time it gets to TV? I would figure it should at least be fuzzy but I get nothing.

I love this forum for information and great ideas. First time posting so i hope that someone can help me out. Thanks in advance!

 

[Mr Tony]

unless you live in some weird area you should only get digital stations. Very few stations (just low powered) are still in analog

Can you post your tvfool report?

TV Fool

 

[BigNebraskaFan]

Thanks for the quick reply Iceberg.

TV Fool

I just don't understand why I can't get signal on tv in basement when it works on tv in living room.

 

[Mr Tony]

ok I can answer both. Looking at your tvfool report you dont have any analog stations in your area.

The TV in the main room picks up all the digital stations (not all are HD but they are all digital). All TV's made in the last 4-5 years are required ot have a digital tuner in them.
The TV in the basement you put ((tv in basement is not HD tv) which probably means it doesnt have a digital tuner. You would need a converter box for that. The converter box will pick up the stations and allow you to view them on the older TV. I've got 2 TV's set up like that

also the tvfool report will help you aim the antenna for optimum signal

 

[BigNebraskaFan]

Iceberg you are a lifesaver. You just made me mad that I screwed around for 3 nights trying to figure this crap out just to find the answer in 20 minutes in 3 posts. Any suggestions on a converter box? Do I need anything special or just a cheap one.

Thanks again!!!

 

[Bob2011]

It could be a number of factors but I would be curious if you get the same channels with just the wire hooked up. You could have a bad end that is allowing the wire to act as an antenna which is just enough to get the digital channels. Also a tvfool.com report could show us how strong or close your stations are and help rule out some things. The RG59 should be ok as long as it still has its shape (not smashed flat) and is free from cuts through the braided shield. In the end a new 50 foot RG6 cable with premade ends is only about $10 at Walmart or Lowes and would be a cheap solution to the problem.

EDIT: Whoops I see I was too slow to post my reply and the problem was solved.

 

[Mr Tony]

most converter boxes all work the same. The issue now is trying to find one. The Digital conversion was back in June 09 so everyone went converter box crazy and bought them. After that they were harder to find. All the converter boxes made for the DTV transition will convert digital signals to be used on an a analog TV. They wont get HD like your main TV does.

I know Radio Shack still carries one. Otherwise check Ebay/amazon.

I've worked with 4 different models (well 5 actually) and am based in MInneapolis about 28 miles from the towers
-I've got 2 DTVPal units set up. They are made by Dish and use the Dish remote. Tuner isnt too bad in them. They are basically a Dish receiver but for OTA (smaller than a normal Dish receiver). Has a 24 hour guide
-Had an old Magnavox one...pretty chinsy and had remote issues
-Worked with an RCA one...nice unit but tuner isnt the best if your further away from the towers
-worked with a zenith one...strong tuner in it and has a decent guide

The other one is a DTVPal DVR. Dish made them (not anymore) and are under a new model made by ChannelMaster. This one is a true HD tuner and has a DVR in it to record 2 shows. Probably overkill for a basement TV

 

[BigNebraskaFan]

Great information. Thanks again Iceberg!!!

 

[Mr Tony]

Also note most of the stations now are on UHF so you may need a little more fine tuning. Yes they "remap" back to the channel numbers we all know but if you look at the tvfool you'll see the only Sioux City station on VHF is channel 9. If you are trying to get Sioux Falls too they have a couple on VHF...11 & 13

uh oh...the antenna is a UHF Only one. I know some will get the VHF stations decent (had a old U120 antenna that was like that) but not as good as a VHF/UHF antenna

 

[BigNebraskaFan]

I am picking up basically all of the sioux city channels plus some from sioux falls. The best weather channel in my area is channel 9 and I am getting 9.1 and 9.2. Thats all I really need. Just need it for emergency use during storms.

 

[Mr Tony]

couple thoughts here too...

I see you mentioned you have Dish. Do you have a HD receiver? If so you can plug the antenna cable into the back of the Dish receiver and get the stations OTA
I know you mention using it for just emergencies but some stations have subchannels with programs not available on Dish. Looking at the Sioux City locals you have ThisTV on 44-3. They have older movies. PBS has alot of subchannels. I see you get Iowa PBS. They have a channel called "Create" (how to, diy stuff) and PBS World.

Also back to point 1 if your Dish receiver is HD and you hook up the antenna to that you can record shows too. Just a thought.....

 

[BigNebraskaFan]

Had the dish netowrk installer there yesterday because box quit working unexpectably. He upgraded my box to the new HD receiver that just came out. This new box does not have an OTA hookup in the back of the box. My old one did. Your suggestion was something I was going to do so that I could use my DVR to record. Now Iguess that is not an option. I have messed with my antenna in the attic quite a bunch. Made 3 different brackets to hang antenna on so that I can quick change direction of antenna and get different channels. I am greatly impressed with this antenna. Crystal clear picture and great reception through a roof and many trees in path.

Again thanks for all the help.

 

[Mr Tony]

What model receiver is it?

722k? (sounds like it)

If its the 722K you need a OTA tuner for it. Good thing is if you add it that would give you the option to record 2 OTA channels and 2 satellite channels at the same time

Glad the antenna is working good for ya