Outdoor Tv antennas

I am 60 miles east of Chicago and looking for a very good outdoor roof Tv antenna. Radio Shack has a 160" 57 element antenna for 99$. Would I benefit from a rotator and amplifier. What is the best cable to use. I know nothing about outdoor tv antennas.

Reply to
m Ransley
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Reply to
jappy

Reply to
jappy

That's probably their #190, a good antenna , but $99 is the normal price, not the sale price, which is often 50% off, and some stores have closed out antennas for $5-20 (my #210 was $10).

Mount the antenna as high as possible, but secure the mast well, including with guy wires in addition to any tripod. Ground the mast to earth, with a long grounding rod if your house's ground rod isn't close by (best to bond any other rod to the house's rod0, and ground the coaxial antenna cable shield with a grounding block. Also install a lightning arrestor (Radio Shack doesn't have them any more) and ground it too. Use either RG-59, RG-6, or, best of all, RG-6QS (quad shield, blocks interference best) cable. Where the cable enters the building, let it sag at least 6" to make any water that runs down it drip off instead of run inside. All of this information is given in the instructions included with every outdoor antenna, VCR, and TV, among the precautions listed in one of the first pages.

Each kind of cable requires its own connectors, and connectors are made in both regular and waterproof types, but black electrical tape does a good job of waterproofing (don't stretch the last few turns or the tape will unravel). Do not use RG-58 cable, which is 50-ohm characteristic impedance cable and will cause ghosts with TVs, amplifiers, and antennas, all which use 75 ohms. With a high-gain antenna you may not need an amplifier, just a splitter. Any unused outlets of the splitter should be terminated with 75 ohm resistors to prevent ghosting, either at the splitter or, more conveniently, at the wall outlets (may not be a good idea if small children are around since they can unscrew them and swallow them). Amplifiers are either preamps that mount on the mast (usually best) or distribution amplifiers that go indoors. With the latter I don't like mounting powered devices inside unfinished attics, unless they're completely enclosed in steel to block fires.

You may want to paint the plastic of the antenna white to protect it against ultraviolet sunlight and ozone. Don't use any other colors since they may contain metals that can short out the signal, and other colors can make plastic get hot enough to melt or crack. Ordinary white spray enamel or lacquer works, but you may want to try Krylon Fusion, made especially for plastic.

Reply to
do_not_spam_me

Radio shack is overpriced for what you get ok for quick small parts. current antennas will and do pick up hdtv signals which will all be on uhf frequences (make sure uhf section is top line if you get combo vhf and uhf) the 8 bay channel master is pretty good this link link will tell you what you need in antenna and the exact direction and distance from your house so you can determine if you need a rotor

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All this stuff can be ordered over the net at good savings for DIY

For wire use rg6 or for extremely long runs rg10 Belden (not belken) makes very high quality wire.

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channel master here
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chanel master also makes good pre amps (make sure you get antenna mounted pre amp not one inside your house) but uou can allways mount it later if needed unless you are getting a 50 ft mast etc.

as noted before be sure both the antenna and the antenna lead > I am 60 miles east of Chicago and looking for a very good outdoor roof

Reply to
Anonymous

RG58 is 50 ohms and can cause ghosts with TV, which is 72-75 ohms.

Reply to
do_not_spam_me

Reply to
Anonymous

I live on a farm and the only way I can get any tv is with an antenna (unless I want to go broke with a satellite dish). I have one of the cheaper antennas from Radio Shack. My nearest city is 55 miles, the next is 70, and the last is 90. However, each one of them is a different direction. Since the antenna needs to be pointed at the station, a rotor is a MUST. Of course my first rotor was pretty silly. I ran the mast all the way to the ground, right outside a window. I had a bearing in the upper mast holder and the bottom was in a drilled hole in a timber. I left a vice grip in the mast, and when I wanted to rotate it, I just opened the window and turned the vice grip. This actually worked well, but was soft of inconvenient in freezing cold weather. Plus, winds liked to rotate it for me, at least until I used a second vice grip to lock it against a steel fence post I drove in next to it.

Anyhow, I finally got a rotor and that made life easier. You will learn (and mark with tape) the location of each channel.

I get the 55 mile starion very well. The other two are not as good, and require lots of tweaking of the antenna direction. I think a better antenna would help, but tv is not very important to me. I watch the news and weather. The rest of the time it's just there to make noise. Unless "Home Improvement" comes on....

As for the cable, just standard tv coax RG59 (I think thats the nimber, but may have it confused with CB coax). R.S. carries it. (DO NOT USE THE FLAT 300 ohm wire). To use coax cable, you need an outdoor adaptor that may or may not come with the antenna. ASK the clerk/read the box.

Amplifiers are not all they are cracked up to be. They do help a little, but very little. If you get one, be sure it covers both VHF and UHF or you wont get any UHF channels.

I do have one myself, I got it for free from a friend that switched to cable tv. It helps a tiny bit.... Probably not worth buying...

Mark

Reply to
maradcliff
2 words..... Dish network.

Seriously, rotators, etc are a pain. No more programmer the vcr for 2 shows unless you get a programmable rotator.

In any case, you may not need a rotator at all if all the channels are broadcast from the same direction. Only if broadcast companies are in different directions do you need to consider a rotator.

Don't forget to ground everything. The wire gets grounded near where it comes into your house with a special one time use connector. And the antenna gets its own grounding wire to the earth.

Make sure your subdivision allows antennas. Some don't.

As to who makes a good antennna, there is so little interest in them these days, I doubt anyone knows any more. Channelmaster used to be good. I would look at Lowes and Home Depot too. And amplifiers definitely help a bit. Also buy the gold coax connectors at Radio shack and not the cheap ones. They are better.... check the specs. Wire varies too in quality.

Bottom line, call Dish network and Direct TV and check their deals making sure they have local channels in your area. The quality is worth it and they will do all the work and wiring.

Reply to
Art

By the way with HD, theoretically the picture is either perfect or you don't get anything at all, if you are thinking of a HD antenna. And if you are not, why bother since old fashion over the air broadcast antennas won't be getting a signal one of these days.

Reply to
Art

Yeah, if you got LOTS OF MONEY.

Spend $200 for a good antenna, and all the goodies to install it, and never pay anything again.

*OR*

Dish Network, which will cost $200 every 4 months, and you will pay this $600 per year forever.

To me, tv is not worth the cost.

Yeah, but living in the city and driving thru rush hour is more of a pain. Living in the country is peaceful, but we pay the price when we got to adjust our rotors. At least we never have car crashes while doing it (unless the Dukes of Hazzard are on tv).

True, but they must be pretty much of a straight line

Actually the MAST is what gets grounded, (and the wire), not the antenna or it wont work.

Where? I never heard of that. I'll be sure to never live in such a place.

In the rural areas, there are still plenty of them sold.

Not for me !!!! I dont need more monthly bills. I can find much better use for $600 a year, and still buy a few movies on dvd or vhs......

Reply to
maradcliff

Ha Ha Ha...... I missed this one......

They definately need a rotor in case their boat starts spinning in the wind :)

Reply to
maradcliff

60 miles east will put you in Lake Michigan. If the water is choppy you need a special antenna.

You may get better advice from a local TV dealer or it may even pay you to get a pro to do the job. Do you want Chicago stations or Lansing? Or South Bend? Distance is a big factor, but so is the location of your house. If you happen to be in a low spot, you may not get the same performance as the guy two streets away.

Reply to
Edwin Pawlowski

I have been a professional installer for 30 years and what I have learned is that bigger (more elements is always better) to make up for some of the VHF radio and FM radio stations in portions of the bands that you will be trying to receive. The pre-amplifier is a must if you want to receive some of the other cities in the radius of your geography. This also means that the rotator is also a must. Buy the best quality of RG-6 that you can get your hands on. You need RG-6 especially for the uhf band (chan's 14 thru

69) RG-59 is much to lossie on the uhf band.

Radio shack is kinda sorta "mediocre" at best. I personally use a Channel Master set-up that has been up there off my 2 story atop the chimney with about 13ft free standing including the short 3 foot mast from above the rotor motor and has survived the past 7 hurricanes here in eastern North CArolina for better than a doz years where I live near Fort Bragg. Winegard is also a great choice. Winegard should be available in your area at a good electronic's dist or you could consider checking prices from the internet. By the time you add the cost of a good pre-amp and rotator you would and could buy the same products from Channel Master or Winegard for perhaps $75. to $125.00 more for the whole package and you would be getting the benefit of wireless remote control for your rotor and that is a nice feature that unfortunately Radio Shack doesn't offer. A few dollars better spent now could be insignificant in the many years that you want to enjoy the value and cost savings of your own ant system. There are so many good and wonderful independent stations in the regional area that neither cable nor satellite TV can offer. They keep it down to the big five and and few independent locals and that's it. You have the opportunity to watch dozens of crystal clear channels and no monthly bill either. That's the nice part also.

My complaints with Radio Shack is that the array doesn't hold up well during high wind storms and the pre-amps they sell don't seem to make it for the long haul, whereas the CM or Winegard seem to last forever and even survive most lightning. Not to say that you shouldn't invest in good surge suppression and be sure to ground your coast thru a grounding block with #6 solid copper and attached to the copper ground at your meter base or external grounding loop that could be at your foundation/slab etc.

Oh, also check at Lowe's building suppy store if in your area. They usually have a sale going on with Channel Master antenna products.

Good Luck and hope this helps a bit. If you have any other questions, give me call at 910 964-2009.

Ernie Krist

Reply to
ek

I have a house in upstate NY about 50 mile away from the nearest transmitter. I put up the biggest antenna Radio shack has, plus a rotory motor, which helps a lot. As far as the type of cable, I always thought twin lead was the best since it has the lowest loss. Thats what have now. I say this because I actually did a test with both RG59 and twin lead, and the twin lead was a lot better. This was about 10 years ago, so I don't know if RG6 would be better because I have not tested it.

Reply to
Mikepier

I wanted to be able to get HD signals and others but since I am surrounded by 60-80ft trees I wonder if this will even be worth the effort, the large old trees are also next to the house, the antenna would be 30ft in the air. I plugged into and am trying my neighbors 18 segment antenna now, 2 comes well, 5 barely, 7-9 poor but Uhf is basicly non existant. I hate to put up the best with a rotator, amp etc and find the trees make this un useable.

Reply to
m Ransley

First, check out antennaweb.org. You can put in your address, bldg height, etc and it will tell you the distance and angle to the stations in your area and give you an idea of what kind of antenna you need. You may very well not need a rotor at all, as in many areas, all the main transmitters are located close together.

I would also consider what someone previously pointed out. And that is that the existing analog broadcast system is scheduled to be shut off completely in the not too distant future. The date has been pushed out before and probably will be again, but it is the direction we are heading with the transition to digital broadcasting. If I were installing an antenna and/or rotor today, I'd be looking at something that would be capable of digital reception and at least planning on how I might migrate to that.

Reply to
trader4

Art wrote: since old fashion over the air broadcast antennas won't be

I thought that you would still be able to get HDTV using a regular antenna? At least thats where I reads somewhere. As far as I know the only thing different that you will need is a converter box to convert the HDTV signal to a regular analog signal if you still have an old TV.

Reply to
Mikepier

"People claiming that there will be a "true" "digital only" tv antenna is ludicrous. Present day tv antennas will pick up tv signals for the next 100 years. "

100 years? LOL

No one on this thread ever claimed that there was a "digital only" antenna. However, most of the digital transmitters are on the UHF band, so if one has an old VHF only antenna, they won't have to wait

100 years, they already are unable to receive most digital now. Another issue is the location of the digital transmitters, which may not be in the same location in every case as the analog transmitters they are replacing, which means the antenna may need to be oriented in a different direction.

And if you don't believe analog TV is scheduled to be turned off, just go to the FCC website.

Reply to
trader4

"Like IPODs. Why do people need those things? Radios cost less than $10 and can play the same songs, and even have speakers. I can not stand having earphones hanging on me. "

You're a real classic. First you bitch about TV not having the shows you would prefer and infomercials, then you blast people who get an iPod so they can load the commercial free music of their own choice?

" guess the older we get, the more we learn to just appreciate things the way they are, and get real tired of being forced to spend money. I got lots of vhs tapes, but now I am supposed to get dvd. Either one plays a movie and the advantage to dvd is really not all that noticable. "

No one is forcing you to do anything. You can keep right on watching your VHS, can't you? The superiority of DVD's vs VHS is very apparent when viewed on a good display with a progressive scan DVD player.

I don;t think much of this has anything to do with age. It's more an issue of just falling into a rut and failing to grow.

Reply to
trader4

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