[SJMAYE]

I live in Hendersonville which is just North of Nashville, TN. I would like some recommendations on an HDTV antenna.


The farthest station is 24 miles southwest(WSMV). I want to put it in the attic. I know i will lose about 40% efficiency in doing this, but it just would be easier and cleaner.


I saw the ChannelMaster 3020 at Lowes. the VHF range is 100 miles and the UNH 60 miles. It seems to be overkill, but with all the hills and valleys between here and Nashville along with the losses being in the attic I thought it would be smart.


Is there a better model for my situation? Is it possible to have too strong a signal?

 

[magic123]

For your distance, the CM 3020 should be ok. It will not be overkill. You will possibly need no pre-amp if you have a relatively clean line of sight..except for your house, itself, that is. There is probably no consumer antenna available that will give you 100 percent at 60 miles But, for the 24 miles, the 3020 should be ok and it is good to buy a VHF-UHF antenna. Depending on where the stations are located, you may need a rotator.

 

[magic123]

By the way, the hills may be a problem if they do block line of sight. Only way to know for sure, try the antenna from Lowes'. Tell them you would like to return it if it does not do the job for you. If the antenna does not do the job, you may have to think about getting it outdoors and up higher.

 

[SJMAYE]

Thanks for the help. I will give it a try this weekend and let you know.

 

[patrickhurt]

Or you could get a HDTV box from Comcast.



Patrick

 

[SJMAYE]

Yeah, just a little late. I really hate Comcast. They doubled the cable bill inside just 4-5 years. The signal was poor and the programming the same(for the money).


Due to all that I bailed over to Dish Network last summer. That wasn't too costly until I bought the Dish 6000 receiver in order to get the HDTV signals. Now I am just waiting for my one year contract to expire so I can decide whether to pitch all this flaky hardware and go back to hating Comcast again.


Sounds like I have a distaste for everything? I really don't. Cable is a monopoly and I don't like being held captive to a company who continually raises prices and reduces the quality of the programming it does have.


Cable has it made. Virtually every TV sold has a tuner in it that takes the signal directly from the cable company. An automatic "in".


If it weren't for all the hardware, Dish Network and the like would be great. It creates quite the package to have 4 receivers throughout the house.


Right now although I love the signal quality from Dish I am pretty frustrated with trying to get their Dish PVR to work. I have become best friends with their advanced tech support. So far the rest of the plain old 301 receivers work well.


We will have to see if I have one of those Comcast boxes perched on top of my RPTV next August.



Patience IS a virtue, isn't it?