Seattle, WA - OTA - Page 4

There are many posts in the AVS Forum regarding your rights to place a television reception antenna and/or dish on your home per FCC rulings that supersede any local government or homeowner association rules.

That's good news Budget_HT. Thanks.

Mike, I'd love to help you out some evening next week as soon as you get your gear. I'm definately not afraid of heights so no problem with getting on the roof. Just send me another PM when you're ready to go.

Brent

You lucky dawg. You are dead-even with the base of QA at 18.2 miles and there is nuttin' in the way (well, perhaps some trees or houses?). Get your antenna in the right place, aim it upwards ~10 deg. & happy viewing!

Larry

You are an even luckier dawg than the Big_Dawg, being 75 feet higher up. Your main problem may be trees or houses. A number of people have had good luck with the Channel Master 4228 (as I have also). It is an 8-bay bowtie that presents a wide and tall area for signal capture. The trick is finding the sweet spot around or on your house. It may not be the roof. Good luck!

Hmmm... this is turning into a cottage industry. Let's see, laptop with TopoUSA, HD receiver, RatShack bowtie mobile antenna...say $100 site checkout fee... 5 sites per day.... carry the 3, hmmm.... I may quit my day job.

Larry

Hi Larry --

I am another Duvall person. 278th Ave NE between 150th and Manion. Can you check things out for me?

I am just now thinking about buying a MyHD card and antenna, I would have no idea what flavor I need. I am hoping to just stick one up in my attic...

Big Dawg & BJM:
I'm in the same neck of the woods as you two. I live at 128th St & 29th Ave - roughly 2 miles NW of you guys. I get great reception with a Channel Master 4248 on my roof - and I'm in a hole. All of my signals come in at a minimum of 80 for all networks that are (or will be) broadcasting in HD - ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, Fox. I also get uninterrupted reception on all the other digital stations.
Good luck!
Tom

.."cottage industry"... my eye...check-out my website, WWW.ISFMD.COM, click the antenna link...there you will see a service entitled "site signal survey" . the prospective ota viewer engages us to visit his property to tune-in and quantify any and all uhf channels dedicated to atsc signals. we do this with a spectrum analyzer which, when said frequencies are found and quantified, lets the client know exactly which digital channels he is able to receive and at what reliability level. then he is able to make antenna decisions based on known values...number of channels, which channels, reliability of channels...zero guess work. if he is a go, we know what antenna design will be superior, rotor question answered, placement decision made. this service is $75.00...or free if we are engaged to do the install.
we also offer the existing antenna optimization service...same basic procedure, from a known spot...check the antennas focus, evaluate antennas design suitability, as well as the wiring and installation integrity.

test reports, observations and recommendations reports given...again, $75.00,,,applicable towards any service orders.

somewhere in here, your analysis protocol would seem to be a valuable addition. if you can out-line a merged system of superior value, and would be interested in participating let me know..

thanx

robb

seattle

robb@isfmd.com

Not if thats what is needed to receive a signal - It can be up to 12ft above roof line if I recall and the CC&R's don't count.

To all talking about CC&R's. The FCC regs overule them. Search this place and you will find. I just forget the FCC web site page that addresses this issue.

My Sweet Spot in Woodinville

Most of the time reception

robb - I was obviously joking about the "cottage industry", need I say more? All I do is plot people's LOS using a topo program so they can find out if there are major obstacles in the way, for Free. Didn't mean to insinuate anything about professional services.

Larry

Your LOS situation is marginal to fair, depending on the height of your antenna. You have a hill 3 miles SW that is right on line with the top of the QA towers from ground level at your house. If you can get your antenna even 20 feet off the ground you have a decent chance. Or you can pay 'isfmd' $75 to evaluate your site.

Larry

sweeeeeeet. imagine what a mast would do. and I see you have watched Over Everything - over and over and over....
I've started naming individual rocks and trees in Over BC after 20 some viewings.

Larry

So much sadness.

using a radio shack UHF only antenna (looked like maybe it was the 150-216?), and the MyHD card (the older one) -- I got horrible reception in Duvall. I was able to get channel 32 (bellevue I believe?) up to maybe 50%, and that was really about it -- certainly nothing from the seattle area.

This was w/ the antenna up in my attic -- figure 20'ish ft off the ground.

Most of my reading were dead zero. the PBS station (forget the number) flickered to 10% once in awhile.

Should just give it up and call my location a loss -- or would a different antenna really pull me from zero to watchable?

Can't do quarque, I am on the Cascade side of a hill directly over which (or at the top of) is a direct line of sight to Queen Anne. It is only erratic when the leaves come out. Otherwise its D* most of the time. I am a "content" guy mostly and Hack and NYPD are usually fine on 7 and 4. Discovery HD is slowly becoming my favorite since it came on D* July 1st.

I think if you had a good antenna on a 10 foot mast on the roof you would have a good chance. You can pay someone to come over and evaluate your site, but that costs more than an antenna (which you could resell). I use and recommend the Channel Master 4248 since just about everyone that has tried it has had success. On your previous attempts did you investigate aiming the antenna and also what trees/houses might be in the LOS? I'm not sure how good the MyHD is at low signal levels and multipath interference. There is a definite difference between STB's.

Larry

edit: meant to say CM 4228 above, although 4248 is also very good

Larry
well interesting results so far!. I was using a RS UHF only antenna and cheap RG6, with this setup on a ten foot pole(on the ground), all i could get was 13-1-2, now I am using a CM 4248 with preamp CM7777 and good RG6 on same ten foot pole I now get 18/25/31 and many analog stations as well, now when i put this new antenna up on my 50' tower, i hope to see all availible channels. i will keep you posted.

I am still looking for some one to climb/mount this antenna? sugestion?help?in Kitsap area.
thanks Mike

Mike - If I was 30 years younger I would give it a go. Perhaps a pro installer would do it for some $$. Your biggest problem is liability if an amateur does it. But I think you are guaranteed reception at 50 feet! What about your roof? Is the tower one of those triangular affairs in 10' sections? Guy wires galore?

Larry

Larry- its a free standing tower, 48' in 6 -8' sections no guy wires etc. I have been up it many times, however age and a current hip problem prevent me from doing this 15 min job. i am first going to call a tree service and get them to prune(top) a (now 50') alder tree that is interferring with antenna rotation, i need ~ 15' turn radius. I am so LOS with the ch13 antenna that the digital siginal locks in with 2 bars with just a 1m piece of unterminated coax hanging on the back of this T165, very nice unit so far. later Mike

Gosh, right now I have my choice of 9 HD programs and one SD 16x9 program: ch's 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13 (SD), and the 4 DirecTV HD package channels. If I subscribed to premium movie channels I would have even more choices.

Who says there is no HDTV to watch?

Am I one of the few people in Seattle which has a cheap $10 Radio Shack indoor UHF loop antenna getting basically all of the OTA HDTV channels? (70%-90% signal on a DISH 6000 8VSB tuner)

Hey, guys. I'll join the fray. I bought stuff from Good Guys today, including a Hughes E86 HD D* package and a Zenith 250 unit thrown in for free. Up till now, I've been receiving OTA channels on my standard TV from the biggest TV antenna that Radio Shack had that I installed in my attic a few months ago. Standard TV reception has been overall very good on all major channels, with a bit of static here and there. The smaller channels like 11, 12, 33, etc are kind of fuzzy. The antenna is rated for HD reception too, so I'm wondering what kind of HD reception I can expect through my new HD tuners.

I'm down in Puyallup, just south of Highway 512. Intersection of 80th Ave. and 152nd St. Any guesses?

Maybe... where are you located?

I'll give you more than a guess: your elevation is about 500 feet and there are no hills between you and QA hill. You should have excellent HD unless you have major trees or reflections (multipath interference). A highly directional antenna will help. I'm not sure what the specs are on your Rat Shack unit. Aim it upward about 10 degrees. Probably will work but you never know.

Larry

Wow, thanx Larry. Elevation here isn't bad on Puyallup's South Hill. My subdivision is even called "The Ridge" on... well.. you know.

I've been watching SDTV off the Radio Shack antenna up to now, and it's been pretty good. I've got it pointed North in my attic towards the broadcasts, but unfortunately there's another house right on that side which may be degrading my reception a bit. I hooked up my Hughes E86 last night and started to watch antenna HDTV on my new plasma today. WOW! Great picture. One thing I've noticed, though, is a big difference in the volume or dynamic range between the HD and SD channels. HD are always quieter.

I'm not sure about the channel lineup that the receiver found, but most channels are very good. Here's a summary of what I remember it found for channels:

4 SDTV, good reception
4-1 HDTV, excellent reception

5 SDTV, very good reception
5-1 HDTV, excellent reception

7 SDTV, very good reception
7-1 HDTV, excellent reception

8 SDTV, very very poor reception (is this the Canadian channel?)

9 SDTV, very good reception
9-1 HDTV, excellent reception, (seems to be 4:3 format though)
9-2 HDTV, excellent reception (also KCTS HDTV, but different program than 9-1)
9-3 HDTV, NO reception. Labeled as "learn" channel, but nothing received.
9-5 HDTV, excellent reception (same as 9-1, but in 16:9 format)

11 SDTV, fair reception
11-1 HDTV, fair reception, lots of pixelation and hesitation sometimes

12 SDTV, fair to poor reception

13 SDTV, excellent reception. Best reception of SD channels
13-1 HDTV, excellent reception
13-2 HDTV, excellent reception. (this is the HD mirror of channel 22, though, the WB network. Very strange)

15 SDTV, fair to poor reception. (seems same as channel 28 SDTV)

16 SDTV, fair to good reception

20 SDTV, good reception

22 SDTV, good reception
22-1 HDTV, NO reception. Just blank
22-2 HDTV, NO reception. Blank again (KCPQ?)

28 SDTV, fair to good reception

33 SDTV, fair to good reception
33-1 HDTV, fair to good reception. Intermittent pixelation and hesitation

41-2 HDTV, another KCTS repeater like 9-5

45 SDTV, fair to good reception

51 SDTV, fair to good reception

56 SDTV, fair to good reception

Chris - looks like you are doing very well. Note that 22-1, 22-2 are the same as 13-2, 13-1 so if you get one of the pair don't worry about the other pair (same broadcasts). 41-2 IS one of the digital channels for 9, not a "repeater". Some receivers like my Samsung don't call out both sets of numbers once they are "mapped" by the receiver. 9-2,9-3 are only on during the day. 11-1 problem is probably path interference - try moving your antenna around or elevate it. I also notice the volume is lower on digital channels, not sure why.

Larry

I have noticed that the volume varies significantly between digital channels. 11-1 is by far the lowest volume (by ear I would guess down 6 about dB), so much so that I have to turn my volume up to hear it. 13-1/22-2 and 22-1/13-2 are by far the loudest (by ear I would guess hotter by about 6 dB), so much so that I have to turn my volume down. The other DT stations are somewhere in the middle and somewhat close to each other.

I hear the same differences on my RCA DTC-100 and my Hughes E86. I notified Ron Diotte (engineer) at channel 11 of the low audio on 11-1 some time ago. He acknowledged it if I recall, but he was not sure what might be causing it. It looks like no changes have been made yet.

Chris Dotur,

I live across the valley toward your northeast about a mile or so (Woodland and 138th) and have a medium size UHF radio shack antenna in my attic pointed towards Seattle. Here are my HDTV exceptions to your list:

1. 11-1 Never received even a bite.

2. 16-1 KONG (good reception)

3. I have seen 28-1 show up on the guide recently but not enough signal strength to pull in a pixel.

Thanks to everyones input into this thread. Having moved here from Philly this past week, I'm having frustration getting signals from Queen Anne Hill.

I live in a high rise facing sw on corner of Elliott and Clay, 2 blocks off of the sound. Unfortunately, the building is made of concrete and steel and I'm getting no reception from the towers on the hill even though I'm about a mile away and in sight of the towers (on the other side of the building). I get 18-1 and 18-2 with my silver sensor however....

1) Would purchasing the large channelmaster bowtie help in my situation or am I just out of luck given the construction of my building?

2) Where have people been purchasing channelmaster antennas in Seattle area?

3) Should I be pointing the sensor through the building toward the hill or placing it out on my patio facing sw even though the towers are not located there?

Thanks for any help.