Choosing and Installing an Antenna for HDTV (Cable Networks DeathWatch™)

crutchfield ^ | Sep 05, 2008 | Steve Kindig

[Kevin J waldroup]

Choosing & Installing an Antenna for HDTV

TV antennas may seem like relics from the last century, but a growing number of viewers are finding them to be indispensable in getting the best picture from their HDTVs.

In this article, we'll discuss the advantages of over-the-air (OTA) reception and explain how to find digital TV signals in your local TV market and in nearby cities. We'll introduce the different types of TV antennas and tell you which ones perform best under various reception conditions. And we'll offer tips on how to install larger attic- and roof-mount antennas.

To learn about the government-mandated changes coming in February 2009, check out our article about the digital TV changeover.

[CPC24]

Yes, a lot of digital stations will be boosting power, and even switching to their analog channels, which usually have better coverage. One of my locals will be going from channel 56 to channel 5.

It’s the only one that ever breaks up; 20 or so others come in great on my rooftop antenna. Of course, living on a ridge east of town certainly helps.

[Army Air Corps]

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[Army Air Corps]

I just wish I could get my hands on a handheld/mini digital TV.

[Kirkwood]

Buy an amplifier for the antenna to get the most out of it. I was able to triple the number of digital stations I could pull in. Install it right at the antenna if you decide to split the signal to different TVs.

[Clinging Bitterly]

Gotta echo everything Tarpon says here, I was going to say so much yourself.

If you have an antenna now, the same one will most likely work for HD. But out on the fringe, you might have to experiment some to get good reception, especially in the hills & valleys or in a concrete jungle. The way you will be impacted by or can take advantage of things such as multipath, reflected signals, knife edge diffraction and so on will be a bit different, because with DTV you generally won't have instant visual feedback when you are experimenting with antenna positioning and orientation.

But there is no special magic in HDTV antennas. The common split boom design, with a sort of log periodic section for VHF, and corner reflector Yagi section for UHF, is still the norm - and the farther out you are, the bigger and more directional you will need to go.

In my location there are 6 local stations broadcasting 11 or 12 separate channels of programming from two locations - nearby hilltops that are about 110 degrees apart with respect to my location. The hill to the South is line of sight and also the closer of the two, but the hill to the NE is blocked from view by a thicket of large trees. My small directional antenna is aimed straight at the NE site through the trees, and I pick up the South site off the side. I didn't change a thing when I bought my digital TV a year ago - I just plugged it in and began enjoying more channels and a crystal clear picture on all - and for most it's just that simple.

Tarpon is also right about OTA DTV being superior to cable - and it's likely to remain that way unless and until cable starts delivering by fiber direct to your house. I'm not up to date on satellite tech, it may have similar limitations.

[steve86]

I pulled out a 30 year old commercial double bow tie and it works great. I was going to parallel a second one (has to be done properly), but turns out there is no need, signal is extremely strong (OTA HD).

[steve86]

I don’t think your experience is that typical because of s/n issues in most metro areas but I’m glad it worked for you.

[SOLTC]

In September, I had a Winegard HD-7084P VHF/UHF Antenna installed. [97.00 from Summit Source]

I get 51 HD channels.

I also have a Sony RDR-VXD655 VHS DVD Recorder Combo with Built In HD Tuner which works great.

[Tarpon]

I just like the flat UHF design, but as yoy state all existing UHF-VHF antennas will work fine. This DB4 style antenna will also receive high VHF at reduced signal level, which may be enough to receive high VHF. Out at fringe ranges the “all or nothing” characteristics of the digital signal may make an amplifier a necessity. If the picture you can get does drop sometimes, you likely have enough S/N that an amplifier will help dramatically.

It's been my experience if you can get a “good low noise picture” with analog, the same channel's digital signal should be good to go. The FCC are also allowing increased power from the digital stations after the cutoff.

You would be surprised what you can do with a 2x4, coat hangers, screws and washers. You will also find that most channels are using some of their sub-channels which adds to what you can get. Locally the weather is broadcast on one stations sub channel, and on the others it's mostly the standard definition version of the same programming for now.

I emailed the local stations, their OTA signals are 1080i, which compared to local Comcast cable, which is mostly lossy compressed 720i or so, really look a lot better. I have to set up the antenna so the wife can watch American Idol OTA, the sound is also much much better. ^_^ Got to keep the wife happy.

[bert]

You say triple the number of stations but how many networks.....ABC, CBS, Fox NBC and PBS....... what else?

[Kirkwood]

Lots of local stations from 4 different markets, about 7 or 8 different PBS channels alone.

[dvwjr]

Verizon (FIOS) can not make you use their rented DVR. You can use a Tivo Series 3/HD with a CableCard. They are required by the FCC to allow subscribers to have access to CableCards for their DVRs. Verizon (FIOS) now offers both the S-card (single stream) and M-card (multi-stream) for customers who have Tivos which support the cable card standard.

I do not think that the Tivo Series 2 supports CableCards...

Hope this helps,

dvwjr

[seemoAR]

I live in a fringe area and was getting 7 channels with a good vhf/uhf rooftop antenna. Most of the channels had snow but I could see them. I installed a converter and added a booster on the top of the antenna. I now get 2 stations all the time and 4 others that have a picture some of the time. I am not very happy about that. ;o(

[Tarpon]

I get 51 HD channels.

You should be having a ball. I can only get 6 digital channels, which is all there is around here. Been thinking of getting one of those big boom antennas like you have and giving Miami stations a shot.

[holymoly]

Is there any truth to the rumor that when the tv broadcasters totally drop the analog side that they will be boosting the signal on the digital side? Might end up getting even more stations.

Some will, some won't. Some may also change frequencies.

One way to check is to visit TVfool.com, and check the pre- and post-transition info for your zip code.

You could also view FCC information regarding your stations using the FCC TV Database Query.

[Clinging Bitterly]

Funny there are almost no flat UHF only antennas in use around here - but the legacy of Eugene TV was only two stations both on VHF (186 and 210 MHz), plus a PBS station about 45 miles North also on VHF (174 MHz). Other than that there were a few low power translators on UHF (the since reallocated channels above 806 MHz) that covered very small areas.

Because of the surrounding hills everybody always needed directional antennas to receive the big stations without ghost, and higher gain UHF antennas to get the low power translators - exactly the characteristics of the split boom design. So for the 45 years there has been TV in Eugene, that's just what everybody used. I'm getting better reception today with digital than I ever got with analog on the same setup, so won't try to mess with success.

Today I don't know the exact frequency assignments of the local stations’ digital signals. I'll investigate that if the need ever arises to help someone tune up at a difficult location (I have built custom single channel antennas before).

Another observation I make about this HDTV antenna marketing scheme - I'm old enough to remember when color TV was new, and I now see HDTV antenna marketing is just a rerun - the manufacturers marketed special “color” TV antennas back in those days.

Years ago I lived over a mountain range and about 50 air miles from the Eugene market stations, and it took a deep fringe antenna about 20 feet long with a mast mounted amp to get anything. Even with an amp there is an environmental noise floor that's difficult to overcome with anything except very directional antenna arrays. Most of the population in that area was covered by one of the nation's very first cable TV systems, but out in that last mile and beyond, people with the money and the room put up stacked arrays of 4, 6, or 8 single channel antennas and super low noise preamps for each station they wanted to receive.

And if you're in that deep fringe and need or want to get OTA DTV the story is still the same - consumer grade setups today offer nothing more or less than they did 20 years ago in terms of antenna gain, signal to noise and so on. The antenna is still king and it will be either a compromise or a very expensive custom setup.

For those reasons a lot of folks can be very thankful for satellite.

[Clinging Bitterly]

To address the “cable network deathwatch” aspect of the title, I'd have to say that depends. Certainly the DTV spectrum offers the potential for number of programming channels to rival cable, and if I had to guess I'd say the cost of deployment (in terms of real plant cost including installation and maintenance) for current digital broadcast technology vs. cable would be better for broadcast.

BUT - the whole method of regulating broadcast and cable TV will have to be rebuilt from the ground up for that to become a reality. Right now the regulatory scheme from the FCC on down to local bureaucracies is almost impossible to describe, and has an inertia about it that is very much in favor of the status quo. Any major changes now are going to cost some members of a very powerful lobby a huge amount in lost equity. The friends and foes in past failed attempts to fix this situation would be a big surprise to many FReepers.

In a more consumer friendly market, broadcast TV supplemented with DBS (satellite) would have made cable TV obsolete years ago.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

I just wish I could get my hands on a handheld/mini digital TV

Heartland America: Axion 7-inch portable handheld TV

[Tarpon]

I have used the “flat type” TV UHF antennas for fixed mount for quite some time. They do OK with high band VHF, no where near what a specific VHF antenna would receive. Their stack ability is good for doubling the gain. Flatties also work well in camouflage, where you can mount them on a flat wall down low, if circumstances allow.

Currently, my coat hanger one doesn’t use a reflector, so it is seriously compromised with F/B ratio, but seems to work well for what I want, sniffing the air.

My home made coat hanger DTV flatty is now standing ready for the Christmas HDTV ... To sniff out how good the area is with a really good tuner for digital OTA. If it’s good enough I may actually buy an antenna, probably a DB4.

It’s true, antenna technology hasn’t changed much in a very long time. Once the equations were known, and it was simple to build them, antennas seemed to be size dependent for the most part. As a ham, antennas are something you deal with a lot.

I am finding the OTA signals are far better with HDTV than is cable or satellite. Most cable and satellite is compressed 720 and most OTA is 1080i, at least around here it is. I canceled my DirecTV because of that. Well, that and the fact that there is nothing on it worth watching. We get videos from the local library, which produces much better picture and sound quality. I have a Christmas Blu-ray up scaling DVD to carry on with the tradition. Cheap compared to subscription TV -— LOL.

[Army Air Corps]

Thanks!

Now, I just need to figure-out a way to rig a converter box for my trusty ol’ Sony mini TVs (the type with 2” to 3” screens)...