Multidirectional TV Reception without a Rotator

[BWCDoc]

I really want to dump SuddenLink Cable and go OTA. If I do this, though, I want to be able to receive all of the major networks: PBS, NBC, CBS, ABC and maybe Fox. Unfortunately Bryan/College Station (B/CS) is inconveniently located in the middle of nowhere about 90 miles from Houston, Austin and Waco/Temple/Killeen (W/T/K). We have a local PBS station (KAMU) and CBS station (KBTX).

I record almost everything before I watch it on TV. It would be very difficult to rotate an antenna every time that I wanted to record a program and, since an antenna can point in only one direction at a time, it would be impossible to record two programs at once from stations with transmitters in two different directions.

Would it be possible to receive signals in the B/CS area from different transmitter locations?
Would I be able to receive signals of vastly different strengths from different transmitter locations?
Would I have a problem with overload (especially from KBTX)?
What sort of set-up would be required?
My non-local reception preference would be from W/T/K, then Houston and lastly Austin.

Data
Zip: 77840
Coordinates: 30º37'24.5"N 96º19'10.5"W
Elevation: 95M
Topography: antediluvial hills (max. height about 50 ft.)
Vegetation: Post Oak Savannah (fairly dense oak trees w/ max. height of about 25-30 ft.)
Obstructions: None (in the big state of Texas, for the most part, we build outward, not upward)
Equipment: one analog TV and two analog VHS tape recorders
TV Fool Report: http colon slash slash www dot tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3dc723c3cb9f266b
(I haven't posted enough to include the URL in its proper format but I will also try to add the file as an attachment below)

I really appreciate any help and, after reading about six months of posts in this forum and twelve months of posts in the High Def forum, I especially appreciate the effort that Tigerbangs and others put into educating me and other people about our antenna problems.

attachment

Radar-All.png

[tigerbangs]

When I look at your TVFool.com report, it looks as if you have access to all of your major TV networks locally, and that they transmit from the same basic direction. Several of the stations are low-powered translator stations that operate in Bryan, but everything should be available to you. I would use a medium-range VHF-high-band plus UHF antenna like a Winegard HD-7694P or an AntennaCraft HBU-33 aimed at 310 degrees by your compass. KBTX's (CBS) transmitter lies in the opposite direction from your location, but we can overcome that by using a small UHF yagi like a Radio Shack 15-2160 (U-75) aimed at 100 degrees, and combined with the signal from the other antenna using a high-quality 2-way coax splitter. You'll get all of major TV networks just fine in that way without using a rotator. I hope that you are equipped with a digital TV converter or an HD Tuner, or you'll see nothing at all!

http://www.winegard.com
http://www.antennacraft.net
http://manuals.solidsignal.com/AntInstallGuide.pdf

[BWCDoc]

Thanks for the recommendation Tigerbangs.

I grew up south of Houston and, to this day, like to watch the Houston 10 pm news because of their state political reporting and sports reports. Would it be possible to receive KTRK (ABC), KPRC (NBC), or KHOU (CBS), all 2Edge stations broadcasting from Houston (actually Missouri City) without a rotator? What set-up would I need to receive Houston along with the closer stations? Can I do this without a rotator?

I knew that I would need a convertor box but I am not sure if I need one or three. When convertor boxes convert digital signals to analog do they convert all of the signals or do they convert only the digital signal that the box is tuned to? Is there a more efficient (less expensive) way of handling this problem?

I realize that this is not the subject of this forum, but I suspect that you have been around the electronics block a time or two and might have an opinion: Is there a DVR/PVR that has a high capacity drive that I can buy without also paying a subscription? (I don't need an onscreen guide, I get a TV listing at Zap2It.com on my computer and I certainly don't think that it is anyone's business knowing what I watch.) I would even consider setting up a computer based recording system if it would work and I could do it on a Mac.

[tigerbangs]

A couple of thoughts here: First of all, at 88 miles from the Missouri City Transmitters, you are not going to see the Houston stations with any degree of reliability with ANY antenna: you are just about 20 miles beyond the curve of the earth, and your reception will depend largely on atmospherics. If order to give you any hope of seeing Houston, you would need to erect a 60' tower, and use deep-fringe antennas and a high-gain preamplifier to have any shot at Houston at all, and you have several things working against you, like very strong local TV signals, that will tend to overload a tuner, and several instances of co-channel interference that may make stations like KTRK impossible, even with the best antennas. (There is a Univision station on channel 13 that is stronger in your area that KTRK). I would hate to have you invest big money in a project that has dubious chances of success, no matter how much you want to project to work.

As for recording TV shows if you have a MAC, there are a couple of companies that manufacture TV tuners that can be plugged into the USB port of your computer. Ther require that you use at least OSX v. 10.4x, but they do work.
http://www.cwol.com/pc-tv/eyetv-250-plus-elgato-mac.htm
http://www.mac-digital-tv-tuners.com/

There is no subscription cost to these products.

[BWCDoc]

Thanks for all of the good advise, Tiberbang. I find it hard to imagine the amount of time and energy that you put into helping people such as myself.

I have a couple of final (I hope) questions:
Will a splitter be sufficient to combine the signals from the two antennas or should I consider a Pico-Macom UVSJ or Join-Tenna antenna joiner? If only a splitter is needed, you have always recommended getting a 1GHz or better. Exactly how do I determine this? Will it say on the box or in the product description? Am I right to assume that "or better" means a number greater than 1GHz (not less than 1 GHz)?
How high should my mast/tower be?
Can you recommend a good source for masts/towers? (I've been doing Google searches w/o much luck.)
It seems logical that the VHF/UHF antenna should be above the UHF Yagi. Correct? And separated by four feet (or more?)?
Do you have an opinion on the converter box question from my last post:
I knew that I would need a convertor box but I am not sure if I need one or three. When convertor boxes convert digital signals to analog do they convert all of the signals or do they convert only the digital signal that the box is tuned to? Is there a more efficient (less expensive) way of handling this problem?

I'm sad that receiving a Houston station is impractical, I guess that I'll have to join a twelve-step program to wean me off of their news!
Thanks Tiger.

[tigerbangs]

I suggested using a simple splitter-joiner becasue most of your stations are on UHF, and a UVSJ is meant to combine a VHF and UHF antenna: it doesn't work for 2 UHF antennas. Your signals are strong enough locally that you shouldn't sshave any problem joining the two antennas: it is possible that you may see your CBS local station using JUST the HD-4400, but I wanted to be sure that you have enough signal to go around. There isn't any really good way of combining a UHF antenna for a single channel to a broadband antenna. Channel Master make a product called a Join-Tenna, which I have used successfully on many occasions, but they are now very hard to find, and are not sold for stations higher than channel 45. The issue with a Join-Tenna for UHF is that it filters stations up to 5 channels apart on UHF frequencies, which has negative impact in many TV markets with a lot of UHF stations.

As for using a splitter, I always suggest that you use a low-loss 1 gHz splitter of beter splitter, meaning a splitter that covers AT LEAST 1 gHz. Many satellite-quality splitters go to 2.2gHz, and will work, but those splitters usually do not pass DC current necessary to power preamplifiers.

As for towers: at the distance that you are from the transmitters, you do not need a tower, as such, but you can consider using a roof-mount tripod, or an eave or wall mount. Towers are usually a minimum of 30' tall, and can ofteh go to more than 60'. If we were going to try for the Houston stations, you would need a tower, but to receive the local stations, a tower would be overkill.

When mounting multiple antennas, the rule of thumb is to mount the heaviest antennas on the bottom, which will make the array more stable in the wind. Yes, antennas should have a minimum of 4' of separation when mounted on the same mast.

If you look at the websites for http://www.SoulidSignal.com or http://www.summitsource.com, you will see a number of mounting options available. I would suggest that you also refer to the installation guide that I linked to you earlier, which has a good discussion of mounting options.

Convertor boxes are necessary for each TV location where the TV set does not have a digital tuner installed. TV sets made after March 30, 2207 have digital TV tuners built-in. They connect to the TV sets using either an antenna connector or separate audio and video cables, in much the same way as a satellite box connects to the TV set. If you own an HD-READY TV, meaning a set that is capable of showing an HD picture, but has no digital TV tuner installed, you should buy a HDTV TUNER rather than a a CONVERTER. The TUNER has the ability to output a HDTV signal to the TV set through either component cables, a DVI connector, or an HDMI connector. You will need to determine which connections are available to each of your TV sets to know which type of device is appropriate.

[elguapo27]

Be careful combining two antennas into a splitter. You can run into some signal canelation when doing this. You will have about a 50/50 chance of this type of setup working. The most important thing is to make sure that the two leads going from the antennas into the splitter are exactly the same length. Do not rely on factory cut lengths of cable as they are not very consistant. Cut your own and use compression fittings. The problem you may run into in your area will be phasing problems. You have several strong signals that you are going to pick up with both antennas no matter how you set them up. If these two signals reach the splitter at different times you will be sending the same signal down the main coaxial cable at different times. This is going to confuse the tuner and it will most likely couse signal loss or worse signal cancelation. Unfortunatly the only way to guarontee success otf this type of setup is to run two lines and run it through an A/B switch. This is a hassle but it works. If you like fooling around with this type of setup go for it. Just be prepared for some frustration. You may get lucky and hit it on the first try though.

[tigerbangs]

The channel in question is a high-frequency UHF antenna, and will be largely unaffected by the use of a splitter-joiner. This is a low-multipath area, and the poster intends to use a Tivo to record programming, so an A/B switch is NOT an option.