Antenna for 92057

[Sven]

Greetings- I live in Zip Code 92057, Oceanside California. I currently have a RCA Suburban Mini Yagi Digital Outdoor Antenna, mounted above our chimney on the roof. We recently cancelled cable in favor of Netflix streaming and our limited TV reception. We get channels 8 (CBS) and 10 (ABC), and are content to get only 2 -- though getting FOX, NBC and PBS would be awesome. Our problem is that even 8 & 10 have been getting spotty reception recently. 99% of the time its great, but the 1% of the time we lose signal is most annoying. Any advise for better reception?

Hopefully my TVfool link works here:

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapp ... c4960a1c2c

Note about our location: we're in a slight valley, no large hills to the south of us. Our homeowners association limits us to antennas 1 meter in length and less. thank you!
Sven

[ProjectSHO89]

It is a violation of federal law for an HOA to limit the size or placement of an OTA antenna except in extremely narrow circumstances. See the FCC's OTARD rules.

You need a considerably greater amount of directivity on both your two VHF channels and your UHF channels. Since the two groups of channels come from different transmitter locations, separate antennas that can be aimed independently are suggested for best performance.

A "medium" high VHF such as the 5 or 6 element CM or WG or the AD C5 pointed at 162 magnetic plus a deep fringe UHF antenna such as the 91XG aimed at 140 magnetic should work. Either use a UVSJ plus a U/V pre-amp or a preamp with separate U/V inputs (doesn't matter much) and feed it into your home's distribution system.

[Sven]

Thank you for your reply. I am a little confused by your recommendation of where to point the antenna. Channels 8 and 10 are both at 174 degrees, and all of the other San Diego networks are on UHF. So by suggesting 162 for the C5, perhaps you're thinking I could also receive 7, 9 and 11 in Los Angeles, in the opposite direction? That would be very nice if possible. I'm most concerned about getting a steady signal from 8 and 10, which I do get most of the time with the current antenna. I would very much like to get the UHF San Diego networks, so will be considering the 91XG, though the size might scare the wife more than my HOA. Perhaps I could simply add a pre-amp to my existing antenna?

thank you again

[tigerbangs]

You are on the right track with the XG-91, but remember that any preamplifier can only cover your line and splitting losses: it does NOT give you a better signal-to-noise ratio, which is the critical component in digital TV reception. Only the raw gain of an antenna can actually RAISE signal-to-noise ratio, so, in a difficult area like oceanside, more antenna gain is always preferable, but more preamplifier gain will not necessarily help you. When selecting any preamplifier, the noise floor, or noise figure is the important spec to consider, as long as the preamplifier covers you actual line and splitting losses.

As for a VHF yagi, I would strongly consider using a 10 element VHF high-band yagi such as a Winegard YA-1713 or an AntennaCraftt Y-10-7-13. Both antennas have at least 3-4 dB more gain than an AntennasDirect C5, with the trade off of added size. These antennas will provide enough signal and directionality to insure glitch-free VHF reception in almost any weather condition..

Another consideration might be to use an antenna rotator to allow you to turn your antenna array from San Diego to Los Angeles, as I believe that you'll see decent reception of the LA channels as well as all of the San diego stations. As for a preamplifier, most people who use this combination also use a Channel Master Titan 7777, which has a very low noise floor, ample gain, and, for you most importantly, separate VHF and UHF antenna inputs that make connecting the two antennas very easy

You will see a photo here of the system installed on a roof:



And here are links to the equipment:
http://www.solidsignal.com/pview.asp?mc ... enna-(91XG)&c=TV%20Antennas&sku=853748001910
http://www.solidsignal.com/pview.asp?mc ... na-(YA1713)&c=TV%20Antennas&sku=615798304867
http://www.solidsignal.com/pview.asp?mc ... a--(Y10713)&c=TV%20Antennas&sku=
http://www.solidsignal.com/pview.asp?mc ... ly-(CM7777)&c=Pre-Amplifiers&sku=02057207774
http://www.solidsignal.com/pview.asp?mc ... e-(CM9521A)&c=Antenna%20Rotators&sku=

And here is a good installation guide to help you:
http://manuals.solidsignal.com/AntInstallGuide.pdf

[ProjectSHO89]

Sven,

I gave your azimuth in "degrees magnetic" while you gave the azimuth is in "degrees true". The difference in numbers is due to your magnetic declination but both describe the exact same direction.

[Sven]

Ah, thanks for the clarification and advise. Now that I understand a little more, I'm realizing my current RCA Yagi antenna may be pointed in slightly the wrong direction, so I'll get up there this weekend and check it out. Perhaps redirecting a little all the help channels 8 & 10 will need.

I showed the wife tigerbangs impressive antenna rig, and I'm afraid its size scared her a bit. I don't think she's going to go for an antenna that looks to be 10' or more off the roof. While I do have a father who often battled with his HOA over the size of his HAM antenna, I don't think I want to battle the wife over it.

I'm wondering if perhaps one of the antennas might be able to do the job from the attic? I'd think the VHF antenna would have the best chance, since channels 8 & 10 are the closest. I'm then pretty sure the wife would accept having the larger UHF on the roof, and since those stations are 45 miles away I'm sure that one would need to stay there. Any suggestions for an attic install of a VHF antenna? I do realize it is far from ideal.

thanks again!
Sven

[ProjectSHO89]

Depending on the construction material used for your roof and gable ends of your structure, an attic-mounted high-VHF antenna has a fairly decent chance of working up there. The UHF antenna will really need to go outside.