tv tuner signal strength

[DrPizza]

I'm on the verge of building an HTPC. I see that all the channels I frequently watch have a "signal" at my house. TV Fool lists them in gray, as in, I'll have to go to some effort to receive these. Even bothering with the HDTV in the first place somewhat relies on getting a few of these channels. Here's what TV Fool says for my specific location (I ran this assuming a 10 foot antenna on the roof of the house):
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id=9900d6f2f69567


I already see recommendations for a tv tuner in this forum. Any recommendations of other equipment I'd need (preamp?) - or, with these signal strengths, would I be wasting time/throwing money away to add this functionality?

Thanks.

 

[somethingsketchy]

It really depends if your house is in a valley or on top of a hill. If you are stuck in a valley, you would benefit from a preamp. Then again, if tvfool is reporting a weak signal in your neck of the woods, you may not have better results, especially in rough/foggy weather.

 

[DrPizza]

TV Fool already accounted for the terrain by me; those signal strengths are assuming I mount an approximately 10 foot antenna on the roof.

 

[wirednuts]

a 10ft antenna on your roof is a pretty big deal though. and ugly.

30miles from your house? a db-4 antenna should work. either buy it or build your own- http://www.amazon.com/Antennas-Direc...ds=db4+antenna

indoor antenna probably wont work well for you, but any decent outdoor one should. you MIGHT have to amplify it, but worry about that until after you try it passive.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but, based on the info from TVFool...with the signal strengths in your area you would be wasting your time because the signal levels are so bad. You would need a pretty beefy antenna at 25' to 30' AGL to hopefully get a reliable signal and even then still might need an amp.

 

[amdskip]

Antenna on the barn an option?

 

[DrPizza]

Antenna on the barn an option?

I was actually considering that - my house is 1 story. The barn roof gives me significantly more height, though I don't have a ladder that reaches the peak of the roof (and it's a metal steep roof, so I'd slide right off and get seriously injured pretty easily. If running 1000 feet of cable wouldn't be bad, I could go to the top of the hill. But, I suspect 1000 feet of cable would be bad.

At one end of my house/back, I could easily extend an antenna beyond the peak of my garage, which is the highest point. I suppose that in the end, sticking another antenna up there, even with a 10 foot mast, wouldn't be much worse than the two satellite dishes up there that I can remove (directv & wildblue.)

 

[wirednuts]

can you get a basic antenna and put it outside to see if you get any channels at all? i really hate to go by an automated too thats only gives you a general idea

 

[tivo1]

go check out http://www.antennaweb.org/ it will tell you what color antenna you need to get the channels you want...

 

[Modelworks]

Amplifiers are for compensating for the loss in the cabling from the antenna to the receiver, they do little to increase the actual signal level beyond what it already present at the antenna.

Height is the greatest factor in improving reception. The easiest way to add height is to use a telescoping mast, they are not that expensive and can get you up to around 50 feet. Around the mast is a ring with several holes , off each hole you attach a guy wire that runs down to an anchor point on the ground, the anchor point doesn't need to be heavy duty, the mast supports the weight of the antenna and the anchors and guy wire just keep it from swaying in the wind.



You can assemble the whole thing on the ground and then push the mast up like one of those telescoping antennas on portable radios.


Mast , something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/Channel-Master.../ref=pd_cp_e_1

Antenna I would go with a DB8
http://www.amazon.com/Antennas-Direc...1&keywords=db8

Amplifier , winegard anwi8700
http://www.amazon.com/Winegard-ANWI8.../ref=pd_cp_e_0

Barn with a metal roof would be a bad idea. The signal will reflect off the roof causing multipath reception, which basically destroys the reception if it is too great.

 

[Ken g6]

can you get a basic antenna and put it outside to see if you get any channels at all? i really hate to go by an automated too thats only gives you a general idea

This. Antennaweb says my location is hopeless, but I'm on top of a hill and can receive all the local stations but NBC. (Edit: This with unamplified indoor rabbit ears!) And who needs NBC, anyway?