Getting started.
I live just north of the Racetrack/Casino, Quinn Rd
I have lived with rabbit ears for years and want to upgrade to an outside antenna system for 3 TVs picking up as much UHF and VHF signals as possible to start with. By living with cheap rabbit ears running two TVs for years, I know I will be very happy with the improvements I will have going to a proper outside Anenna system for analog and digital signals.
I have been reading posts for 2 days now to get myself started and I think I have information overload and there are so amny things to consider.
I have gone to TVFOOL to find out channels and locations.
I understand I probably do not want a long distance setup as most station are fairly close.
I am not sure of the antennas I need for my area/use.
Does anyone live near me that has been doing this for a while who can help me get started?
Global has indeed switched to digital, and you're not alone. I don't get it either, along with many others. You might have been optimistic getting it with a 4221hd, but I can't get it even with a vip302sr VHF antenna in the attic, pointed at CF.
My Digital Reception Status near Stittsville, Ontario
I am located approximately 4 miles outside of Stittsville, Ontario and this is my Digital reception information to date. If there are any suggestions that would improve my reception they would be appreciated.
Ch 18-1,-2,-3 WPBS from Watertown, USA will lose signal strength during mid-afternoon but is mostly a 90% strong signal.
On occasion Ch 7 NY, and Ch 28 NY will be present when unusual atmospheric conditions support it.
My converter box is a Zenith DTT901 Digital TV Tuner Converter Box with pass-thru.
My Yagi antenna (993140 HD-2900 High Definition Antenna ) --- faces East-South-East for most of the time in a stationary position
Ch 6 Global and TVO 24 appeared on Aug 16/2011 with strong reception.
Oddity: If I set my DTV Converter to Ch 25 (supposedly CBC) it will automatically shift and tune Ch4. Normally my converter would sit on the selected channel slot with a "no signal" on the screen, but not for Ch25????
Global digital is crisp and clear, CBC French digital gone!
Rescanned this morning and to my surprise, Global (which was not viewable in analog) is crystal clear. To my surprise, CBC French 9-1 is no longer being received, just a black screen.
I tried adding a CM7777 pre-amp to my modified CM4221HD and adjusted the position of the antenna today hoping it might help.
It would appear I simply cannot get the HC tower solid without positioning the antenna upward toward the sky, but when I do that I end up having trouble getting CF, specifically 6.1.
Can I use two antennas, one for CF and one for HC?
Looking for options.
Edit: I decided to give up on 6.1 as I can get 4.1 and 20.1 regardless where I point the antenna knowing that 6.1 is terribly weak. I am still getting 6.1 but its pixel hell.
you can use 1 uhf and 1 vhf without any problems since you have a cm7777
just set it it to seperate instead of combined
also make sure you have tre fm trap set to in
this will help
then point the vhf directly at CF since the only 3 vhf will be at CF
i now get 6.1
5$ rabbit ears attached to the last dipole of my vhf hi pointed to CF
try and point your uhf to hc while keeping the cf uhf's
Indeed adding a VHF antenna helps when you already have the 7777. With my 4228hd on the roof pointed at wnyf I got way better ctv and global reception when I added an attic mounted VHF VIP-302sr pointed at CF. But that's not good enough for Global DIGITAL from Orleans
"Oddity: If I set my DTV Converter to Ch 25 (supposedly CBC) it will automatically shift and tune Ch4. Normally my converter would sit on the selected channel slot with a "no signal" on the screen, but not for Ch25???? "
Carper,
Ch25 is the real DTV RF channel of CBC that you know as Ch 4,
the old analog channel.
The ch 4-1 that you see is called the virtual Channel.
In our area , as today, only 6-1, 17-1, 20-1, 24-1, 27-1 and 66-1 are on the ch that is indicated. The RF ch and the virtual ch are the same.
But PBS 18-1 is on RF ch23, 28-1 is on RF18, and 57-1 is on RF38.
I am not getting global 6.1 either with my roof mounted 4228 and cm7777. Thats from the top of beacon hill and regardless of whether I point the antenna directly at CF.
Been reading this forum for awhile now and thought it might be time for me to post something since I have been unable to improve my TV reception.
I cannot receive any of the Herberts Corners stations in either analog or digital. On a good day, channel 14 (CJMT - OMNI 2) is somewhat viewable but all of the others do not come in at all. The Camp Fortune digital channels (except Global) come in perfectly as do most of the English analog ones. The French ones are snowy but viewable.
I live in a ground floor apartment in New Edinburgh and face south-west with only a few small trees as obstructions. Looking out my window, the nearest building is probably 500 feet away.
Here's what I'm using...
Tuner: Built-in to my Panasonic plasma TV
Antenna: Cheap RCA VHF rabbit ears/UHF loop type located 2 feet away from the window. I cannot recall the model name but I bought it at The Source about a year ago.
In terms of antennas, the recommended one for indoor (according to the chart in the new members FAQ) is a Zenith Silver Sensor (or clone?) while the second best (Winegard Sharp Shooter) seems a bit too big for my apartment.
Here are my questions:
1) What are my chances of receiving any of the HC channels in digital and;
For indoors and possibly outdoors on your patio, look into the cm4220hd or cm4220mhd which includes a mount. Also the Antennas Direct CS2. Check the dimensions to see what fits for you.
Are you allowed by your landlord to put a small antenna outside ?
Then the next question is, can you tolerate the size of a CS2 or 4221hd near a window ? These are the best rated antennas for indoors. Check the antenna chart for reference. http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=97121
I probably could put either near (or right on) the window but aren't they both UHF only?Don't I need some VHF-high band capability to receive CBOFT and CJOH post conversion?
Do you think it's even likely that I'll be able to pick up the HC stations from where I live with an indoor antenna?
You may have a chance at CHCH-DT on channel 22. Try it on Sept 1. According to your TVFool, it should be about 10 times more powerful at your location than the other HC stations.
OttawaGuy999, I am in Centretown so really only a few km from you. On the ground floor with a RadioShack omni antenna (which I believe is really poor), I am receiving OMNI1 on 27 very well and CITY on 17 cuts in and out. By Sept. 1, OMNI2 20, CHCH 22, CTS 42 and CTV2 on 43 should all have good signals into your location. I find if you are using a poor antenna in the downtown area, positioning is important. Because of multipath issues, it doesn't seem to matter as much whether you are close to a window but just finding the right spot where the signals are strongest. A better, directional antenna overcomes this problem to some extent. I will be buying one soon!
OttawaGuy999, you are definitely right, these antennas are UHF only. The HC signals you have trouble with are UHF only. To get VHF indoors, you'd want rabbit ears. Combine the rabbit ears & a UHF antenna with a UVSJ, or using a dual input preamp like the cm7778 or cm7777. You seem to be getting good signals from CF, so hopefully you'll get good VHF coverage for CTV & SRC. Global is a completely different problem at channel 6, everybody's got trouble with it anyways. Anyhow, rabbit ears is also how you'd get Global.
With the current tropo weather conditions i am not getting either of the 2 omni
Once the tropo change goes to normal i have omni again
But i am getting global
For global you musthave a vhf lo
The element should be 34" on each side
So about 68 - 70 " total
Is the Delhi VIP-302SR considered good all around VHF antenna for attic mount? I ask as I wish to have something that covers Global as well as those that may arise in the future.
I have a 302 which was attic mounted but I decided to roof mount it to get 7.1, 7.2 and I get Global on the back side at 90%. Wish I would of left it in the attic until after Global went live to see if it would get a lock on it
flavoie has a 302
its in his attic and does not pull in global
it seems that at 3kw
its not enoughto penetrate the roof
for now it needs to be outside i think
i have been calling global every day to complain about low power
others are too
WNPI (x3)
WCFE (x3)
28.1 (FOX)
28.2 (CBS HD)
CBC HD (French and english)
OMNI
CITY
SUN
TVO
27.1 (CFMTDTR)
I even get 50.1 and 50.2 a good deal of the time and I have seen on rare occasions 7.1 and 2.1 from watertown.
I have great elevation at the top of beacon hill with a cm4228 on the roof and CM7777.
No joy on Global. Seems like they are transmitting with the equal of a fisher price walkie talkie.
I know the CM4228 is not great for VHF...but are these guys for real?
I spent a few hours playing with the rabbit ears today...still no dice. Oddly, I get better reception with them from the bottom floor of my house vs on the roof.
Could someone post a diagram on how to set them up properly?
they should be 34.5" per side
perpendicular to the tower
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
Canadian TV, Computing and Home Theatre Forums
1.7M posts
115K members
Since 2001
A forum community dedicated to Canadian TV, computing and home theatre owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about home audio/video, displays, troubleshooting, styles, projects, DIY’s, product reviews, accessories, classifieds, and more!