I'm in the chicago area, and I wanted to know if anyone knew of anyway or any place that would let you try antennas before you were committed to them. Obviously my fear is spending $200 on a fancy antenna and still having the same results as my rabbit ears. And since reviews are so scewed based on a person's geography relative to the towers, i figured the best way to know is to try it first.

Your best bet is to find a local installer that will come to your house and try a variety of antennas at various locations. Most of the places I've bought antennas from won't let you return them after being mounted.

You can also post your situation here to see if anyone local to you can help.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=11984261#post11984261


James

The only place I know of that readily takes returns on outdoor antennas is Radio Shack. And even though their best antenna performs pretty well, it's always been suggested more for attic installs, due to it's not being all that sturdy. If you live in an area where the elements aren't too harsh, particularly the wind, you'd probably be OK with it outside.

(edit: Oh, wait - I just saw you lived in the Chicago area (same as me). I think you can scratch that idea, then. Unless you live in an unusually calm area. I live in the northern Fox Valley area, and we can get those 40 - 60 MPH winds on occasion out here.)