OTA Antenna / STB connection question...

[Andrew B]

Hi Folks, sorry for the long post, but I need some advice!
I used to use two Terk 55 antennas with my DirecTV HD setup.
(I know DirecTV HD is an oxymoron, like Jumbo Shrimp, Army Intelligence, Rap Music, etc, but we'll let that go for now.)
When I switched over to VOOM, I got a Wineguard "SENSAR" that attaches to the back of my dish (and looks rather goofy).
My Terk 55s have a dedicated COAX running to them with an amplifier inside the house (next to the STB).
The SENSAR is connected to a diplexer (?) at the dish and shares the same coax as the dish.
So...
With just the SENSAR I get my local OTA channels at about 89-92 and they look fine. I tried to get all the antennas hooked up by using another diplexer(?) that will only pass DC to the DISH and putting my Terk55s on the other side. Basically the two Terk 55s on one side and the DISH (with the SENSAR) on the other. Now I get 10 additional OTA channels (total of 25) with most at 99 and some from as far away as San Jose (approx 160 miles) coming in at 88!

I love it, but wonder if I could hook this up better. I know the Terk 55s are not all that wonderful, but if you look at my house, you can't see any antennas (they are mounted under my eaves). Even my dish is on the ground!

Any ideas how I could make better use of these? I have them aimed about 45 degrees apart so they cover a good area and used info from antennaweb.com to make the adjustments.
Asking the pros for help!

Andrew

ps - Can I hook anything up to the UHF connector on my STB? It didn't seem to make any difference...

pps - one more thing. With only one antenna I get more channels in my immediate area than with all three. i.e. channels broadcasting on 35 and 55 both come in OK with one antenna, but with three, channel 35 is at 99 while channel 55 is below 70! Per antennaweb.com, they are both in the exact same drection! HUH?

 

[Ilya]

I am not an expert in antennas (perhaps some installers can advise you better), but as I understand, connecting two antennas at once may cause problems with reception of certain stations (I think it's called multi-path interference).

As for UHF input - it is for RF remote controls, not for antennas.

Good luck!

 

[crash331]

Ok, antennas are a little more complicated than just buying 6 of them and pointing them in 6 directions. If you point them away from each other, the signal is just going to reflect out the other antenna. Also, make sure that the antennas are the same. I am not sure what that terk looks like, but several people have dual-mounted yagis and bowties. There is a specific way to do it, though. A google search would be best because it is a lenthy process and it's not something you just throw together with no knowledge of what you are doing.