South Bend, IN - Question about OTA antenna

[eilros]

I just upgraded to DISH HD today and now I need an OTA antenna. I live in NW South Bend (Cross Creek subdivision - west of Lilac, between Cleveland and Brick) and according to antennaweb, I'm about 10 miles from the towers. My TV is in the basement and I'm wondering if an internal OTA antenna will work. If so, what is a good brand/model to get? Or am I better off getting an external antenna installed? The DISH techs that installed my HD today weren't very helpful regarding the OTA issue and said that they don't do OTA installs.

Thanks,
Dave

 

[Hall]

There are hundreds of internal antennas to pick from..... A popular, and good, one is the Silver Sensor. I have a Terk copy of one and it works fine when located properly. If I located it in my living room, walking in front of it caused picture breakup. I located it in the attic and it worked great. An antenna in a basement is not likely to be successful.

If an external is an option for you, and you only need UHF, there are many highly-rated antennas in the $30 range that work. In many cases, they can also be mounted in an attic, if available.

 

[KAB]

I am about 12 miles away from our antenna farm. I use this guy and am happy with it. Inexpensive as well.
Winegard GS 1000 Sensar II Antenna (GS-1000) | GS-1000 [Winegard] | batwing bat wing bat-wing GS-1000 GS1000 GS 1000

 

[andynifong]

Just for reference, I live in Tippecanoe, about 30 miles away from South Bend and unless there's rain between here and South Bend, I get the SB locals in HD just fine with my $30 RCA amplified antenna that I bought years ago when we didn't have satellite. Ch 16 is strongest, with 90+ signal strength, while Fox is usually the weakest, with 70 or so signal strength. I would guess you may be fine with just an internal antenna.