I'm trying to figure out an antenna for my new installation. There are some antennas that are marked UHF/HDTV and some are just UHF. What is the difference? There is no such thing as HDTV-only frequency, is there? As far as I can tell, I just need a good UHF, VHF or a UHF/VHF combo antenna depending on what channels I want to get and I should be good to go, right? What does the "HDTV" marking mean? Do I need to look for antennas that have "HDTV" marking as well?
Thanks!
-Alex.

I'm trying to figure out an antenna for my new installation. There are some antennas that are marked UHF/HDTV and some are just UHF. What is the difference? There is no such thing as HDTV-only frequency, is there? As far as I can tell, I just need a good UHF, VHF or a UHF/VHF combo antenna depending on what channels I want to get and I should be good to go, right? What does the "HDTV" marking mean? Do I need to look for antennas that have "HDTV" marking as well?
Thanks!
-Alex.
you do not have to get an OTA antenna that says HDTV. digital broadcast are on UHF. remember those OTA antennas that people would post on top of the roof for better analog reception, Those will as well receive the digital broadcast.

The HDTV marking can be read either of 2 ways. If you're the pessimistic type, you could reason that it's marketing hype. If you're the "glass-half-full" type, you might say it's for informational purposes.

One note about the VHF section. If you have a tuner that doesn't have a signal meter, it's tough to determine signal strength with an analog signal. I have a Mitsubishi without the meter, and I use the VHF antenna to tune in the corresponding channels for an area. I know that this will soon be a moot point, but it's currently very helpful.

By the way, what will become of the old VHF channels?

Thank you for the quick replies! I guess I'm more of a pessimistic type then, since I thought it may have to do with a marketing trick :) Another possibility is that they probably started marking their antennas "HDTV" just recently and local stores still have some of the old stock left unmarked, hence the confusion. In my local Fry's store they sell three different outdoor roof-top type Channel Master antennas and only the biggest and the most expansive one has the HDTV marking on it, the other two are just "plain old" UHF/VHF combos...
-Alex.

you do not have to get an OTA antenna that says HDTV. digital broadcast are on UHF. remember those OTA antennas that people would post on top of the roof for better analog reception, Those will as well receive the digital broadcast.
First, digital broadcasts are on VHF and UHF, not just UHF. After the analog shutdown, there will be 40 full power stations on low VHF 2-6 and 450 full power stations on upper VHF 7 to 13. (There are ~200 digital stations currently broadcasting on VHF). Most major cities will have at least 1 station on upper VHF. The channels being taken away from TV broadcasting after next February 17, 2009 are UHF 52 to 69.

Second, yes, there is no such thing as a "HDTV" antenna. Nothing but a marketing term, often used to push overpriced indoor antennas with built-in amplifiers. All digital broadcasting is done on the same VHF-UHF channel range as analog, but is currently simulcast on channels not used for analog.

jvfff, if you want advice on antenna selection, please post your zip code and a brief description of your situation - house or condo/apartment, in wooded or hilly terrain. We can look up the local stations, the distances & directions, and what channels they are on & will be on after the big changeover next February.

This thread is likely to be move to the HDTV technical forum. You should check the "OVER-THE-AIR DIGITAL TELEVISION RECEPTION FAQ: New to OTA? Start here!" sticky thread for basic info and links.

This thread is likely to be move to the HDTV technical forum.
Moved.

digital broadcast are on UHF.Please do not post incorrect info. As noted, Digital TV, including HD, can be on either VHF or UHF.

As noted, Digital TV, including HD, can be on either VHF or UHF.

It seems that there is a widely-held perception that VHF is going away for DTV. How did this ever come about? As I recall the original plan was for UHF only, but that hasn't been accurate for over 10 years, has it?

UHF antennas can sometimes be used for upper VHF (7-13), but this is generally inadvisable unless the VHF signals are strong and not distorted by multi-path or other distortions than can be mitigated by a directional VHF antenna.

The UK and some other countries may be UHF only, but in the US we still have to worry about both VHF and UHF. Perhaps we can at least leave behind Low-VHF in a few years, but who knows.

It seems that there is a widely-held perception that VHF is going away for DTV. How did this ever come about?

I think because most of the DTV got put onto UHF, with 2 to 4 channels for every analog channel. There was little space to put any DTV on VHF. I think then people made incorrect assumptions that everything would stay there and not move back.

I had a sales guy tell me a few weeks ago that I couldn't use an antenna that wasn't marked HDTV ready for HDTV. I told the sales guy he was nuts, the signal doesn't know what type the antenna is. There is a whole lot of confusion out there, mostly to get people to buy stuff they don't need.

For our digital broadcasts we have all UHF stations, except one which is high VHF, about 60 miles as the crow flies, so I needed a high gain combo antenna. I talked with the the VHF station's engineer and he said they are staying VHF, so I have a UHF antenna and one less channel now ^_^. The local home owners association turned down the big VHF antenna. Which I argued they couldn't do to no avail.

Doesn't sound to me the 'old VHF' channels are going anywhere. All ATSC tuners tune channels 2-69, as far as I know, VHF-UHF without missing a beat. Just like the old analog tuners. I doubt VHF is going anywhere.