Single Antenna Selection for 30708

[thriftstorechad]

I'm interested in dropping Dish after the Super Bowl and going OTA with a little Hulu/Netflix on the side. I would prefer to do this with a single antenna without a rotator since I like to DVR most everything I watch. This will all be run to one TV (mac mini, actually). I live in a single story house and it is wooded around me. The major networks are must haves. Anything else is cake. The antenna selector suggests a Winegard HD7696P, but says I might not be able to pick up Fox. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for all you guys do!

[tigerbangs]

Chattanooga is always a problem because of the mountainous terrain, but you should be able to see FOX with the right antenna system. The Winegard HD7696P will serve just fine for ABC, NBC and CBS, but you will need a little more muscle to see FOX and CW. Becasue of the distance from the transmitters and the terrain, none of your TV stations are very strong, so I would uncork my deep-fringe prescription: an AntennasDirect XG-91 UHF antenna plus a Winegard YA-1713 or an AntennaCraft Y-10-7-13 VHF yagi mounted on the same mast, with the UHF antenna mouted 4' above the VHF antenna. Combine the 2 antennas using a Channel Master Titan 7777 preamp, which has separate VHF and UHF antenna inputs, and run the output of the preamp to the preamp power supply, which must be mounted indoors near an AC power outlet. You can then run the output of the preamp power supply to either a TV tuner or to a splitter to distribute the signal to the other TV sets in your house. All of the transmittters lie in the same direction, at roughly 300 degrees by your compass, so a rotator won't be necessary. Have a look at the instructional video posted on the forum about the Channel Master Titan 7777: You will find it very helpful.

When mounting the XG-91 UHF antenna, I suggest that you use the tilt-feature of the antenna to tilt the front of the antenna UP about 20 degrees from the horizon, which will allow the antenna to see the refracted signal coming over the mountains a little better. If you can see the mountains blocking your view of the transmitters, I suggest that you tilt the antenna so that the antenna sights just a bit OVER the top of the mountains.

http://www.winegard.com
http://www.antennasdirect.com
http://www.antennacraft.net
http://manuals.solidsignal.com/AntInstallGuide.pdf
instructional-video-the-channel-master-titan-7777-preamp-t853.html

[thriftstorechad]

Wow. Thanks for the awesome reply. Do you have any suggestions as to where to purchase? I'd like to use amazon, since I have a prime account. Thanks again!

[tigerbangs]

Amazon should have most of what you need: You can also try SummitSource.com or Solidsignal.com

[thriftstorechad]

I think I have located all the elements that I need except the mast. Any suggestions there? Thanks again!

[elguapo27]

Before you go and buy an antenna iI would look at the Channel Master cm-2018 antenna. This antenna has proved itself inn the Chattanooga. With the range of 60 miles UHF and 45 miles VHf it is pefect for the areas surrounding Chattanooga. You will need only the one antenna and should be able to get everything without the use of an amplifier depending on how long your cable run is and how many TV sets you are gooing to hook up. If you feel like more power, the ChannelMaster cm-2020 has more gain in the VHF range. Either one of these antennas should do the trick for Fox and all the other major networks.

[tigerbangs]

The OP has signals on CW and FOX that are in the very low single number NM, with mountains obstructing his view of the transmitters. An antenna such as you have suggested will clearly be inadequate for his UHF needs.

As for finding masting, you first need to determine how you would like to mount the antenna on your house. You can consider chimney-mounting, tripod mounting, eave or wall mounts, or using a tower. if you consult the installation manual that I have attached, you will find a good discussion of each type of mounting. Many different kinds of mounts and masting can be found locally at Radio Shack, or they can be ordered via the internet from companies such as http://www.solidsignal.com or http://www.summitsource.com