Terk HDTVi, Silver Sensor, or Paper Clip?

[alan_techcentral]

Hi,

I am a newbie and so I know very little about OTA HD. From what I understand, the Silver Sensor is one of the market's best indoor UHF antenna but it unfortunately lacks VHF acceptance.

* yellow - uhf XETV-DT 6.1 FOX TIJUANA MX 143° 28.3 23
* yellow - uhf KFMB-DT 8.1 CBS SAN DIEGO CA 182° 2.7 55
* yellow - uhf KGTV-DT 10.1 ABC SAN DIEGO CA 183° 2.7 25
* yellow - uhf KPBS-DT 15.1 PBS SAN DIEGO CA 111° 21.4 30
* yellow - uhf KNSD-DT 39.1 NBC SAN DIEGO CA 112° 21.4 40
* yellow - uhf KSWB-DT 5.1 CW SAN DIEGO CA 113° 21.0 19
* lt green - uhf KUSI-DT 51.1 IND SAN DIEGO CA 112° 21.4 18

Non-Digital (just to name a few):
yellow - vhf KFMB 8 CBS SAN DIEGO CA 182° 2.7 8
yellow - vhf KGTV 10 ABC SAN DIEGO CA 183° 2.7 10
yellow - uhf K35DG 35 IND LA JOLLA CA 183° 2.6 35
yellow - uhf XHDTV 49 MNT TIJUANA BC 126° 51.1 49
yellow - uhf KPBS 15 PBS SAN DIEGO CA 111° 21.4 15
yellow - uhf KUSI 51 IND SAN DIEGO CA 111° 21.4 51
yellow - uhf KNSD 39 NBC SAN DIEGO CA 112° 21.4 39
yellow - uhf KSWB 69 CW SAN DIEGO CA 113° 21.0 69
green - vhf XETV 6 FOX TIJUANA MX 143° 28.3 6


My questions are:
1. Will a paper clip get me HD reception (sorry for asking again, I didn't get a lot of feedback from the other post)

2. If not, and if I want to get as many channels as I can (analog + digital), should I get a Terk HDTVi instead of a Zenith Silver Sensor since the Terk has VHF reception. How is it that ithe Silver Sensor is better than the Terk HDTVi, since they both look alike? Would the VHF reception be well worth it (would it be clear for analog signals)?

3. If I end up getting the Silver Sensor, I probably won't be able to get the local channels very clearly (on the analog VHF signals). If that is the case, would I be able to enjoy the same broadcast on its digital counterpart.
e.g. God forbid let's say I wanted to watch Oprah at 3PM. Since theres no good way for me to get good VHF reception on the Silver Sensor, could I tune to the ABC-HD channel and watch Oprah there instead of watching it on ABC-nonHD channel? Would Oprah so despite the fact that it isn't broadcasted in HD?

Sorry for the long questions. But thanks so much in advance.

 

[larrykenney]

Hi,

I am a newbie and so I know very little about OTA HD. From what I understand, the Silver Sensor is one of the market's best indoor UHF antenna but it unfortunately lacks VHF acceptance.

It's not designed to pick up VHF stations.

My questions are:
1. Will a paper clip get me HD reception (sorry for asking again, I didn't get a lot of feedback from the other post).

Yes, if the signal is strong enough. You'd have to be pretty close to the transmitter site to have a signal strong enough for a paper clip to work very well though.

2. If not, and if I want to get as many channels as I can (analog + digital), should I get a Terk HDTVi instead of a Zenith Silver Sensor since the Terk has VHF reception. How is it that ithe Silver Sensor is better than the Terk HDTVi, since they both look alike? Would the VHF reception be well worth it (would it be clear for analog signals)?

I've heard nothing but bad reviews of the Terk antenna. The SS and Terk might look alike, but they sure don't work alike. Don't know why... it's just so.

Depending on how far you are from the transmitters, a simple "rabbit ear" antenna with a UHF loop might be all you need. The further away you are the better the antenna you need. The best way to see what's best for you is to go to AntennaWeb (http://www.antennaweb.org/) fill in your address and zip code and see what you get for results. Terrain, distance, power of the station, etc. can all affect your reception.

3. If I end up getting the Silver Sensor, I probably won't be able to get the local channels very clearly (on the analog VHF signals). If that is the case, would I be able to enjoy the same broadcast on its digital counterpart.
e.g. God forbid let's say I wanted to watch Oprah at 3PM. Since theres no good way for me to get good VHF reception on the Silver Sensor, could I tune to the ABC-HD channel and watch Oprah there instead of watching it on ABC-nonHD channel? Would Oprah so despite the fact that it isn't broadcasted in HD?

Sorry for the long questions. But thanks so much in advance.

Most stations have the same program on their digital channel as they have on their analog channel. I haven't watched an analog channel in years. Why watch a fuzzy, snowy picture with ghosts when you can watch a clear digital picture?

There's no such thing as an "HD channel", they're digital channels. The content of a digital channel can be SD or HD depending on the program being broadcast. Oprah is not in HD yet, so you'd get the SD version of that show.

It's really not as confusing as you're making it out to be. Good luck!

Larry
SF

 

[Peter Parker]

MAybe my experience is stypical but I get consistently higher sigal readings with the Terk than the SS.

 

[Jim5506]

Digital TV reception is an art not a science.

The only real way to tell if an antenna is going to work for you is to try one.

Buy at a place where you can return it and keep it if it works.

 

[roashru]

My experience using the terk hdtvi has been very good my work i travel a lot setting up my atsc tv for a different city is not very hard i even aim the terk hdtvi at reflective astc signal (a ghost for analog) and sometimes works better!. if you have a voom receiver put it on the channel you want to tune. on the remote control press voom then green then green enter pin if needed select installers menu next select system status use the up and down arrows to find the signal to noise ratio meter keep selecting up and down on the remote control to avoid the display time out. you can set any antenna you have connected for the very best signal!.