Any one have a good antenna advice for me to be able to receive Houston DTV? Victoria DTV is OK, but I would like to get Houston if all possible. I can receive the analog pretty well. But all the digital channels says no signal. I'm wondering if I could unhook the splitter and run it direct if that may improve? It seems I can pull in Corpus DTV somewhat better than Houston. Every once in a while I can get channel 2 but not very often,.
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Tips on picking up Houston 80 miles?
- Thread starter jras20
- Start date
Thanks, the funny thing is I can pull in Houston HDFM better and easier than I can HDTV. I can get HDFM signal pretty decent using a dipole antenna. I have my antenna going towards Victoria for now for TV. I can get Channel 25 (15) about 82-86% power and Channel 19 (11) I can receive about 67-70%. I can get all networks but CBS From Victoria thanks to DTV. Victoria cut off their analog signals which I think everyone should of.
Getting UHF at 80+ miles can be done, but it's going to be tough. VHF is easier. I'm not sure if any of the Houston stations are broadcasting digital VHF stations, though.
For VHF-Hi (channels 7-13), I'd recommend a Winegard YA-1713 antenna. It's inexpensive, yet pulls in channel 12 which is over 80 miles from my house.
For UHF, you may need to gang together two 8-bay antennas. Instructions on how to do this can be found here: http://www.hdtvprimer.com/ANTENNAS/16bay.html
A good, low-noise preamp is also essential. I'd recommend a Channel Master 7777. It also has a built-in FM trap which you may need.
Height will help. But at 80 miles, you'll need a lot of height to see much improvement. If you can get an antenna 50 feet up, go for it, but don't fret about one or two feet. (Try going to tvfool.com and playing "what-if" with the antenna height.)
Reception is probably going to be spotty no matter what you do. But it will generally be best after dark. During the day, a layer of warm air forms near the ground which can refract TV signals upward, preventing them from diffracting around hills and other obstructions. (This is like the "mirage effect" you see sometimes when driving on the highway during a warm day.)
For VHF-Hi (channels 7-13), I'd recommend a Winegard YA-1713 antenna. It's inexpensive, yet pulls in channel 12 which is over 80 miles from my house.
For UHF, you may need to gang together two 8-bay antennas. Instructions on how to do this can be found here: http://www.hdtvprimer.com/ANTENNAS/16bay.html
A good, low-noise preamp is also essential. I'd recommend a Channel Master 7777. It also has a built-in FM trap which you may need.
Height will help. But at 80 miles, you'll need a lot of height to see much improvement. If you can get an antenna 50 feet up, go for it, but don't fret about one or two feet. (Try going to tvfool.com and playing "what-if" with the antenna height.)
Reception is probably going to be spotty no matter what you do. But it will generally be best after dark. During the day, a layer of warm air forms near the ground which can refract TV signals upward, preventing them from diffracting around hills and other obstructions. (This is like the "mirage effect" you see sometimes when driving on the highway during a warm day.)
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