Need an answer and don't see it here. |
When did the Digital Transition occur?
Are digital signals available now?
How do I best evaluate where to install my outdoor antenna?
Will my old outdoor antenna work?
Do outdoor antennas work inside attics?
Will adding an amplifier or preamplifier improve the range of my antenna?
How do I know which way to point my antenna?
What type of cable do I need to connect my antenna?
Do trees interfere with digital signals?
Do indoor antennas or rabbit ears work?
Are expensive amplified indoor antennas or rabbit ears better?
I thought they were getting rid of VHF all together?
When did the Digital Transition occur?
June 12th 2009
Are digital signals available now?
Yes! All mid-Michigan TV stations are transmitting in full digital format with most programs being delivered in High Definition. Many TV stations are providing multiple channels for increased viewing options.
How do I best evaluate where to install my outdoor antenna?
1. Find out were the towers are for the channels you want to receive.
2. Pick antennas that have enough gain to get all of the channels, make sure you have an antenna
that will pick up vhf(7 to 13) if needed and uhf(14 to 69) if needed..
3. Find a location on the roof that will give best line of site to towers.
4. Get antenna as high as practical and use good quality mounts and pipe.
5. Ground antenna with #10 or larger ground wire and bond to electrical grid. Ground sheath of coax.
6. Properly fasten wires.
7. Seal all connectors and holes
Will my old outdoor antenna work?
In most cases, antennas as old as 30 years have been brought back to like and work fine for digital signals. The key is to make sure that the downlead is high quality RG-6, good F-connectors properly tightened. Good distribution techniques. Digital signals do not like loose connectors, water in cable, connectors or splices. Trees have high moisture content and can affect digital signals. High gain antennas and pre-amplifiers can be used to overcome elevation problems and attenuation caused by trees.
Do outdoor antennas work inside attics?
They do, but there are several factors that limit the efficient operation of indoor and attic antennas. Elevation is key to good signal reception so the lower the antenna, the less efficient it will be. The structure will attenuate the digital signal and when wet, will be more likely to diminish the quality of the signals. In northern latitudes, when the roof becomes covered with snow, there will be a greater risk of signal loss and problems due to the high moisture content of the snow.
Will adding an amplifier or preamplifier improve the range of my antenna?
Amplifiers can only amplify the signal they receive, so they will not enhance your antenna's reception, amplifiers only make up for signal loss from long cable lengths or splitters. If you have cable lengths over 50 feet or if you are splitting to multiple TV's a preamplifier would improve your signal strength to overcome any signal loss.
How do I know which way to point my antenna?
Go to www.antennaweb.com or www.tvfool.com and put in your address for an evaluation or call us at 517-645-7676 or 517-646-0439.
What type of cable do I need to connect my antenna?
We recommend RG6 coax cable. If you are running RG59, then it's probably over 15 years old and should be replaced.
Do trees interfere with digital signals?
Yes. Dense high trees are a big problem with digital signals. In the winter when the leaves were off, your signals may have been good, but as leaves came on, the signal levels typically deteriorate and cause problems.
Do indoor antennas or rabbit ears work?
In most cases the reception is very poor and unreliable. An indoor antenna has very poor gain and digital signals have trouble penetrating walls and siding. Homes or mobile homes with metal siding are especially problematic since digital signals do not penetrate metal in most cases.
Are expensive amplified indoor antennas or rabbit ears better?
In most cases, no, as noted above, the antenna needs to bring in clear stable signals, the amplifier in the indoor antenna allows you to split signal and run longer coax runs, but most people do not do this with rabbitears/indoor antennas so this is probably a waste of money.
I thought they were getting rid of VHF all together?
Most areas of the country will still have at least one VHF station after the digital transition, at least for now. In most areas of the country, all broadcasts will use channels 7-51. VHF broadcasting will be substantially reduced with the digital transition. Low band VHF, channels 2-6, will be completely eliminated in most areas of the country. Most areas of the country will still have some stations that will broadcast in high band VHF, channels 7-13. The UHF range will be reduced to channels 14-51.
