ello,

Am in my 70's now, and frankly not all that sharp with antennas.
I figured someone here might be able to help me out.

Live about 25 miles due west of Boston.

Have an old fashioned analog TV in the kitchen (not on cable)
that this question relates to.

Some time ago, as you know, all the TV stations required one to get
a Converter box. Did so, and am using it with an old fashioned,
el-cheapo indoor antenna; the one with the rabbit ears, and a loop.

The Converter box feeds my analog TV.

Works "fairly well," but lots and lots of dropped signals.
Makes listening very unpleasant.

It has been recommended that I purchase a:
DB-2 antenna for about $ 35.00

This is shown in (please take a look):

HDTV Antennas

http://www.antennasdirect.com/store/...onf=55&slot=68

http://www.antennasdirect.com/store/...roductid=55DB2

Questions:

a. Are these new, converted, stations now transmitting in the vhf or
uhf ?

e.g., am I after a new, better, vhf or a uhf antenna ?

b. Do you think that this DB-2 would be worth trying ?

Any thoughts would be most appreciated.

Thanks,
Bob

Bob,

Except for a few low power or educational stations you just need a UHF
antenna, and the DB-2 looks like a good choice.

Marv

On 7/29/2010 7:16 AM, Bob wrote:
ello,

Am in my 70's now, and frankly not all that sharp with antennas.
I figured someone here might be able to help me out.

Live about 25 miles due west of Boston.

Have an old fashioned analog TV in the kitchen (not on cable)
that this question relates to.

Some time ago, as you know, all the TV stations required one to get
a Converter box. Did so, and am using it with an old fashioned,
el-cheapo indoor antenna; the one with the rabbit ears, and a loop.

The Converter box feeds my analog TV.

Works "fairly well," but lots and lots of dropped signals.
Makes listening very unpleasant.

It has been recommended that I purchase a:
DB-2 antenna for about $ 35.00

This is shown in (please take a look):

HDTV Antennas

http://www.antennasdirect.com/store/...onf=55&slot=68

http://www.antennasdirect.com/store/...roductid=55DB2

Questions:

a. Are these new, converted, stations now transmitting in the vhf or uhf ?

e.g., am I after a new, better, vhf or a uhf antenna ?

b. Do you think that this DB-2 would be worth trying ?

Any thoughts would be most appreciated.

Thanks,
Bob

Hello Bob,
I understand the age reference, I turned 70 in April.

The antenna you are looking at is a tried and true UHF Bow Tie. It is
definitely better than rabbit ears. However, it is pretty bulky for
indoor use. Since you are getting a poor picture now, I would guess
that it is likely that this would do the job. The twin lead wire that
they offer is lower loss than the coax cable. The twin lead also
allows a old fashioned tuning trick: Wrap a small piece of aluminum
foil around the twin lead and slide it around for the best signal.
That might help your existing Rabbit ears as well!

A better Bow tie can be fashioned from hardware cloth (tighter mesh)
and wire. The dimensions are not very critical and if it is to be used
inside weather proofing is not a concern. Think in terms of tape, foil
any kind of wire. Clothes hanger wire is usually handy.

Thanks for the reminder, I need to try a couple of long dormant ideas!


On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 08:16:42 -0400, Bob wrote:

ello,

Am in my 70's now, and frankly not all that sharp with antennas.
I figured someone here might be able to help me out.

Live about 25 miles due west of Boston.

Have an old fashioned analog TV in the kitchen (not on cable)
that this question relates to.

Some time ago, as you know, all the TV stations required one to get
a Converter box. Did so, and am using it with an old fashioned,
el-cheapo indoor antenna; the one with the rabbit ears, and a loop.

The Converter box feeds my analog TV.

Works "fairly well," but lots and lots of dropped signals.
Makes listening very unpleasant.

It has been recommended that I purchase a:
DB-2 antenna for about $ 35.00

This is shown in (please take a look):

HDTV Antennas

http://www.antennasdirect.com/store/...onf=55&slot=68

http://www.antennasdirect.com/store/...roductid=55DB2

Questions:

a. Are these new, converted, stations now transmitting in the vhf or
uhf ?

e.g., am I after a new, better, vhf or a uhf antenna ?

b. Do you think that this DB-2 would be worth trying ?

Any thoughts would be most appreciated.

Thanks,
Bob
John Ferrell W8CCW

On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 08:16:42 -0400, Bob wrote:

Have an old fashioned analog TV in the kitchen (not on cable)
that this question relates to.

Hi Bob,

Good starting point.

Works "fairly well," but lots and lots of dropped signals.
Makes listening very unpleasant.

Only means you need to move your existing antenna HIGHER.

It has been recommended that I purchase a:
DB-2 antenna for about $ 35.00

If you want to spend $35 and mount it HIGHER, you can do that too.
[The implication here is you will probably need an external set-up any
way you look at it.]

If your rabbit ears need to be turned to capture the best signal, then
you may need to do this second option. Don't forget the expense of a
mast and cable/wire to go between things. If you still need to turn
the antenna, then you need a proper rotor and mast (with a bolt to the
side-of-the-house kit). Somehow, given your location I would suspect
all the major broadcasters would be on the same general beam heading.

Getting the antenna (whatever you choose) higher recovers from a lot
of ills.

73's
Richard Clark, KB7QHC

In article ,
Bob wrote:

a. Are these new, converted, stations now transmitting in the vhf or
uhf ?

Bob-

It depends on where you are. There is a web site that has that
information, along with pointing information from your location. I just
can't recall the URL due to Old Age!

I think we all are experiencing the same problem with HDTV, regardless
of whether we have a converter box or an HD set. Unless you happen to
be close to the transmitter site(s), you probably need an outdoor
antenna, as others have suggested. I'm using a simple attic-mounted
VHF/UHF antenna with an amplifier, but still have dropouts when a
low-flying airplane passes.

I just found the URL listed on the plot for my local TV stations as:
http://www.tvfool.com.

Fred