suggestions for a hdtv antenna? and a stupid 720p > 1080i question

[LordSnailz]

Any suggestion on a good hdtv antenna, I won't get dtv installed till a few couple weeks, so I need sometime to hold me over.

okay, the second stuipd question was, if the tv is 720p, how would it handle 1080i signals?

 

[Slick5150]

Originally posted by: LordSnailz


okay, the second stuipd question was, if the tv is 720p, how would it handle 1080i signals?

It just takes the signal and downsamples it to 720p. Works just fine.

 

[ColdFusion718]

I would suggest you get an amplified one. I'm using a Philips 45dB amplified VHF/UHF antenna and I get most of the network stations in HD. If your TV does 720p, it probably has scalers/deinterlacers that will convert the 1080i signal into 720p. All of this is happening behind the scene so I doubt you actually have to do anything besides hooking up the antenna, getting excited when you receive 1 or 2 HD channels, then tearing your hair out as you try to get the rest without losing the ones you just gained.

Don't buy any Terk antennas (especially the Terk TV55). Get something with dipoles (rabbit ears) and a UHF loop.

 

[Safeway]

Terk HTDVa Indoor Antenna, Terk HDTV Outdoor Antenna

-or-

Gigantic 16' wingspan roof-mounted antenna.

I have a Terk HDTVa in my apartment, and a mounted 16' antenna at my parent's house. The 16' antenna gets ridiculously good reception on every station in 720p and 1080i, better than cable or satellite even. The Terk HDTVa is pretty good, and definitely out-performs any other indoor antenna I've owned.

 

[torpid]

I have the philips (formerly the zenith) indoor antenna and it works fine, but my friend has the same one and is too far from the stations to get a good signal since it is not amplified.

Even after you get DirecTV you might want to watch the antenna feed. The picture is less compressed most likely and not transcoded even if not.

 

[LordSnailz]

thanks for the replies guys.

so directv would not look as good as the feed from the antenna? In that case, is cable better than directv than? I have comcast and they're insanely expensive

 

[iamwiz82]

Originally posted by: LordSnailz
thanks for the replies guys.

so directv would not look as good as the feed from the antenna? In that case, is cable better than directv than? I have comcast and they're insanely expensive

In my experience, going from DTV to Comcast, Comcast has a nicer HDTV picture.

 

[ebaycj]

(Good Over-The-Air HD Signal) > (Comcast Digital HD) > (Satellite Digital HD)

IMHO


(Sweet this was my RaZoR1911 Post)

 

[jonny13]

First of all, HD frequency is the same as non-HD frequency, so you won't need a *special* HD antenna. I get perfect reception with a $14.99 RCA rabbit ears antenna from Best Buy and I am about 24 miles away from the towers. You can check how far away you are from the towers by going to the following site:

http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/Address.aspx

Just fill in your address or at least your city and it will tell you how far away from the towers you are.

And your TV will downconvert the 1080i signals when they come in, so you won't have to worry about that part.

 

[OutHouse]

there is no such thing as a HD antenna. its a marketing scam.

 

[FlashG]

TERK TV3 Set-Top Antenna or Terk TV1 Indoor Passive depending on where the transmitters are.

 

[MikeyIs4Dcats]

yup, many people report that justa pair of cheap rabbit ears works well. Or an attic mounted antenna just like you used to see on every chimney in town. A UHF-only antenna is also said to work better than a UHF/VHF one.

 

[torpid]

I have a rabbit ear antenna and the philips one I mentioned. You'd think the rabbit ear one would be better since there's all kinds of angles and the dial, but the opposite is actually true. I have to adjust it when switching OTA channels. The philips just stays pointed in one direction and gets a better signal on all channels. I've been wondering if I got an amplified one if I could pick up milwaukee stations 60 miles away.

I just debated someone about cable vs satellite. I thought it was generally agreed that cable > satellite for HD, but it seems like that might not be true any more. But OTA is definitely better than both.

 

[RagingBITCH]

I have the Philips Silver Sensor and get everything except ABC (haven't ever been able to get it OTA at the new place or the old place).

Never wondered if the amplified one would pull in better reception, curious to know if everyone else here thinks it does.

 

[torpid]

I think outdoor would make a bigger difference, personally.

 

[dullard]

I just bought an antenna this week. Best Buy had models from $9.99 on up to $129.99. I tested the $9.99 version (no features) and the $29.99 version (amplifier and UHF loop). The $29.99 version was far superior in reception, although the amplifier does need to be turned down on one station. I didn't bother trying any with more features/higher cost.

It appears the UHF loop was the most critical, but the amplifcation certainly helped on a couple channels. Just the rabbit ears alone wasn't enough for good reception. Sure I got reception, but no channel was clear.

 

[Atrail]

Originally posted by: RagingBITCH
I have the Phillips Silver Sensor and get everything except ABC (haven't ever been able to get it OTA at the new place or the old place).

Never wondered if the amplified one would pull in better reception, curious to know if everyone else here thinks it does.

I think it is just location. I get all channels at my old place in Arlington and in Fort Worth. When I unplug the amplifier I do not notice much of a difference. I have a
Winegard SS3000 Sharpshooter HDTV indoor antenna. I will do some testing again, still unpacking.

 

[Apex]

Originally posted by: RagingBITCH
I have the Philips Silver Sensor and get everything except ABC (haven't ever been able to get it OTA at the new place or the old place).

Never wondered if the amplified one would pull in better reception, curious to know if everyone else here thinks it does.

The best thing to do is to check what channel ABC is, then check out the best net gain:

http://www.hdtvprimer.com/ANTENNAS/comparing.html

Awesome resource, there, BTW.

 

[ColdFusion718]

I have a question regarding how you're supposed to point/angle your UHF loop and rabbit ears according to the antennaweb.org website.

With the rabbit ears, are you supposed to point them parallel or perpendicular to the lines they give you on the "street map?"

 

[Apex]

Originally posted by: ColdFusion718
I have a question regarding how you're supposed to point/angle your UHF loop and rabbit ears according to the antennaweb.org website.

With the rabbit ears, are you supposed to point them parallel or perpendicular to the lines they give you on the "street map?"

Perpendicular. Imagine the ears were covered with paper to form a dish. The dish would point towards the towers.

Here's basically what the gain chart would look like:

http://www.hdtvprimer.com/ANTENNAS/Loop.html

 

[ungsunghero]

This is the antenna I use:

http://www.amazon.com/Terk-Technology-HDTVi-Indoor-Antenna/dp/B0001FV36E/

According to antennaweb.org, I live about 32 miles from the nearest transmission tower. I also live in a first floor condo of a two-story complex. I tried a couple sets of rabbit ears to no luck, but this antenna consistently gives me excellent reception for most OTA HD channels.

I don't use it anymore, though, once I discovered that my HDTV has QAM.

 

[ungsunghero]

Originally posted by: ebaycj
(Good Over-The-Air HD Signal) > (Time Warner Digital HD) > (Satellite Digital HD)

IMHO


(Sweet this was my RaZoR1911 Post)

Fixed (for my situation, at least).

I'm glad I'm not the only one that thinks OTA HDTV looks better than Digital Cable HDTV; I always thought my eyes were just playing tricks on me.

 

[Apex]

Originally posted by: ungsunghero
This is the antenna I use:

http://www.amazon.com/Terk-Technology-HDTVi-Indoor-Antenna/dp/B0001FV36E/

According to antennaweb.org, I live about 32 miles from the nearest transmission tower. I also live in a first floor condo of a two-story complex. I tried a couple sets of rabbit ears to no luck, but this antenna consistently gives me excellent reception for most OTA HD channels.

I don't use it anymore, though, once I discovered that my HDTV has QAM.

That's a reasonably good antenna. It's a clone of the $18 Silver Sensor sold under Zenith and a few other nameplates.

It's not as potent as something like the AntennasDirect DB2, WineGard Square Shooter, or Radio Shack Double Bowtie, but it's not a bad indoor antenna at all.

Here's the gain info in comparison:

http://www.hdtvprimer.com/ANTENNAS/GlossaryG.html#indoor

 

[ungsunghero]

Originally posted by: Apex

Originally posted by: ungsunghero
This is the antenna I use:

http://www.amazon.com/Terk-Technology-HDTVi-Indoor-Antenna/dp/B0001FV36E/

According to antennaweb.org, I live about 32 miles from the nearest transmission tower. I also live in a first floor condo of a two-story complex. I tried a couple sets of rabbit ears to no luck, but this antenna consistently gives me excellent reception for most OTA HD channels.

I don't use it anymore, though, once I discovered that my HDTV has QAM.

That's a reasonably good antenna. It's a clone of the $18 Silver Sensor sold under Zenith and a few other nameplates.

It's not as potent as something like the AntennasDirect DB2, WineGard Square Shooter, or Radio Shack Double Bowtie, but it's not a bad indoor antenna at all.

Here's the gain info in comparison:

http://www.hdtvprimer.com/ANTENNAS/GlossaryG.html#indoor

Well, I had a $25 Amazon.com GC to boot, so that made my decision to purchase it a lot easier

 

[waggy]

HOLY CRAP! i just hooked up a old crapy antenna i had for my radio (cost me $9.99)

it found 8 channels with 3 of them in HD. hell now i am going to pick up a better one heh