Home Improvement → Re: Hopeless or possible? HDTV OTA

Ok let's focus on getting to the 85 miles away stations on UHF only. I can deal with the local stations with a second smaller antenna placed away from the big one.

I'm still torn here on whether I go directional (XG91) or multi-element (HD 4228).

They are both available locally to me at the same price (100$).

TechGuru recommended directionals yagis.
Leibold recommended multi elements.
Then everyone else is on either camps.

What do?

Notes: Tree will not come down (if it makes a difference for either antenna).

Buy both and return one?

One of them is from a store with no return unless defective (exchange only) policy.

Also I'd rather not be playing on my roof switching back and forth between two antennas :P
AND, the tree doesn't have leaves anymore at this time of the year, so I wouldn't be able to test how they behave differently in summer time.

Are you trying to pick up a station from Ottawa? Is it on satellite or cable?

Based on the specifications the XG91 is the clear winner. I just recommended what I have experience with.

Before purchasing the antenna also check the space requirements which are very different for those two types of antennas.

While I don't advocate cutting down the tree I do agree on avoiding the tree in the straight line between antenna and transmitter. Consider a different location for the antenna mast or using a taller one.

trees DO matter !

I get better signal in the winter months (no leaves in the trees).

Leaves play heck with the UHF signals. Mostly multipath problems.

To go above the tree,I'd have to go a good 70 feet up.

HOWEVER, if I move the antenna away from the originally planned location, and put it over my garage, I could avoid the tree from the LOS. I'd go down to 10-15 feet elevation, but I guess losing 15 feet is better than having a tree in the way.

Jack_in_VA, that amp.... too TOO expensive, woah

Not only that it comes from the UK and the exchange rate impacts it.

In my CB years one of the station engineers was a friend of ours put a CB antenna (Big Stick) 900 ft up their 1140 ft tower. 900 ft because we bought a 1000 ft reel of coax and needed 100 ft to get from the tower to transmitter bldg. As the old CBers used to say we could "Blow Smoke".

That said sometimes height is not the answer to good reception. In the early days of TV one of my neighbors worked for an appliance store (Wards TV) single store parent of Circuit City. He had an antenna mounted on a trailer with a crank-up tower. He would come to the home and crank the antenna up and down until the "sweet" spot was found. That's the height he would install the antenna.

At first we only had one station that carried all three networks then 3 stations that were not close together. They sold a "Richmond" special which consisted of 3 separate antennas for those who didn't want to invest in a rotator. One for channel 6, Channel 8 and channel 12. Each was mounted on a single mast with proper vertical spacing and aimed at the correct tower.

Here even with Directv they did not broadcast our locals in HD so the only way was to put up an antenna. For several years we experimented with the help of the station engineer from a LINTV station. It was very interesting and a lot of us including the stations learned a lot. Even now the PQ with the Antenna is a little better than that on Directv but I think my DVR is screwing up my main tv because my tv in the bedroom has much better PQ.

I look at 47 miles to the Hampton Roads stations and the Richmond stations are about 65 miles. Can only get Richmond with the leaves off the trees.

you bought from that store near the bar b barn eh:P

over here on the south shore im able to get WPTZ, WCAX, WETK, WFFF and WVNY if i point my rotor at mount mansfield, I never looked on a map where the transmitters are but i can get WCFE when i point at the adirondacks, i think they are still at tupper lake, also on a clear day i can sometimes get WMTW if i play with the rotor