Needing a TV provider, tired of just PBS

[Josh B]

That's it for the electrical part of it. I think it had some boost and a rotate, but it isn't doing me much good now, I'm thinking there's just no signal out there for it to grab.
Does an expanding airport have anything to do with it?

 

[RonD]

From what is shown that's a UHF only antenna
And the electronics are nothing you need, just something that can break so no more signals

An antenna, of the right size, has no electronics as there is no need, all the electronics are at the other end at the broadcast tower, you just need to collect as much of the signal as possible

Go to "TV Fool" website and see where your local stations are, the direction and distance
Most of the time you do not need an antenna rotor as the same stations are broadcast from multiple towers, so you just need to point the antenna at the best tower, highest signal

This antenna is probably now the biggest for residential use: https://www.solidsignal.com/xtreme-signal-70-mile-vhf-uhf-yagi-outdoor-tv-antenna-hdb91x
$65

But might be more than you need, you need that info from TV Fool first, but there is also no such thing as "too much antenna", lol, same as having "too much money" just can't happen

 

[Bill]

That's it for the electrical part of it. I think it had some boost and a rotate, but it isn't doing me much good now, I'm thinking there's just no signal out there for it to grab.
Does an expanding airport have anything to do with it?

That's a folded dipole. They work, but they are a low-gain antenna. They are designed for areas with strong signals. Otherwise, they are junk. Assuming you only have UHF stations in your area, try a panel-reflector (often called bay/bow-tie) antenna is a good option. Yagis and corner-reflectors are better, but require a better aim. If you feel enthusiastic enough about it, there are numerous do-it-yourself instructions on making antennas. You can even make an antenna designed for a specific TV channel.

 

[Josh B]

That's awesome yall, it worked fine for at least 5 or 6 years.
Thanks too Ron for that link, I think a new antenna is in my future

 

[sgtsandman]

Just keep in mind that the end you point at the signal is the "pointy" end and not the end with the panels on it. Think of it like an arrow head.

 

[Josh B]

I got the antenna ordered, it'll be here Monday.
Got the old mast from the old house and started getting it cleaned up and ready. It would likely reach 60 ft but I'm looking at maybe 20/22, that will be 2 ft above the ridge.
Found a length of galvanized guy wire, it's 45 feet, but I can make some 12 or 14 ft bottom lines to steady the bottom half. The pole will be sitting on a length of 2x6 treated and the lower anchors will be tied in along the roof framing, the top ones will also be higher up and farther out. I hope no helicopter tries buzzing around here.
I just need some anchors and some more wire, and a calm day

 

[JohnnyO]

We found a reasonably priced local internet provider, got Rokus for the TV's, and subscribe to Hulu Live to get local channels. Local channels still broadcast over the air for free but you have to get a digital antenna now.

 

[RonD]

Just for the record all antennas are "Digital", even the one on your vehicle
Marconi's first Radio antenna was "digital"

Digital in wireless transmission terms is a "language" like English or Spanish
If you tune to a Spanish language radio channel and do not understand Spanish, then you won't understand whats being said, but if you have a friend that does understand Spanish he can translate it for you

A Digital tuner is a "translator"
The broadcast antenna and the receiving antenna are just the same old antennas that have been used for 100+ years
The language being broadcast has nothing to do with the antennas themselves
i.e. you don't need a Spanish antenna, lol
And you don't need a digital antenna, you do need a digital tuner/translator

 

[RobbieD]

^^^ Well that explains that.

I had always heard that you can tune a piano, but you can't tuna fish.

 

[Josh P]

Seems like the old school antennas would work better, remember when you could get one 8 feet wide and 12 feet long. The ones they sell now are tiny.

 

[Josh B]

My french antenna should be here tomorrow but its rained all weekend and I haven't got the pole and supports anywhere near.
Just after dark Fri I decided to get a coat of paint on it due to pending rains coming so I went out and sprayed as good a coat as I could. I had already cut some rusty areas from top and bottom, and I sprayed paint also into the pipe ends top and bottom far as it would go. I looked it over this morning and it appears what coverage I got was dried before the rains..

It's a 4 pole antenna set that might reach 60 or 80 ft stretched out but I'm just going for maybe 20, which should have it above the ridge so it has a shot at all directions, no rotator, other than a pipe wrench.

I'll have 3 15ft guy wires on the bottom section and 3 33ft ones off the top, anchored into 2x6 treated wood which will be anchored where I can best get it anchored to
I'll need some more hardware tho, guy wire, cable clamps, eye bolts etc

 

[franklin2]

Seems like the old school antennas would work better, remember when you could get one 8 feet wide and 12 feet long. The ones they sell now are tiny.

Not true. Antenna element size is based on the wave length of the signal you are trying to receive. Lower frequencies require a longer element. The older TV antennas were designed to pick up all the way down to channel 2. Those channels were taken away from us years ago when they went digital, only the higher frequencies are still used for broadcast TV. Some are still in high band VHF, but only a few. They would require the widest antenna, which will still only be 2ft wide or so. Most tv now is located on UHF, thus the reason for the very short antenna elements. And of course the higher the frequency, the more line of sight the signal gets and the more it is degraded by trees and other objects. That is why TV is harder to get now than it was out in the country.

You can still use the smaller front part on most older antennas, the wider part to the rear is just along for the ride.

P.S. Do you have any CB nuts in your neighborhood? Some of them had those huge antennas in their yard. But they were using frequencies around 28mhz. UHF used for tv is around 470mhz and up.

 

[Josh B]

I decided to go ahead and try the antenna, it is roughly, excepting a number of hardware accessories I'm a bit shy on, no more than what a month of subscription TV will be, PER MONTH. At the moment my primary objective is hoping to avoid the subscription service.

 

[Josh B]

This is the antenna https://www.solidsignal.com/xtreme-signal-70-mile-vhf-uhf-yagi-outdoor-tv-antenna-hdb91x

 

[franklin2]

Do you have a idea what stations you are trying to receive and what direction they are from your house? You can go to that website someone mentioned and get an idea. Like someone mentioned, that is a decent antenna but it is very directional. Once you get it in the ballpark you will most likely need to get someone to holler to inside the house. As you turn the antenna they are yelling out the signal strength for the best picture.

High gain and being more directional is just how it goes. I bought one of those flat antennas with the bowties, it did not work as well as the type you have bought. But the bowtie type doesn't require as precise an aim. If you live in a strong signal area it would be ok, but I need all the gain I could get AND have a pre-amp on it also. I am in a poor signal area.