Solution to television reception problem

Jan 03, 2005 24 Replies

Until a few weeks ago, I had line of sight to several local TV transmitters. Then someone put up a large building in between me and the transmitters. Suddenly, my VHS reception has gone from excellent to poor or terrible. I can't find a good antenna position where I don't get lots of interference. Cable in my area is way too expensive, so I don't consider it to be a good solution. I am currently using a Radio Shack amplified antenna with two telescoping antennae, a VHF/UHF switch, what appears to be a loop antenna that can be placed in a vertical or horizontal position, and a rotating knob that changes the fine tuning. What can I get to replace this that will solve this problem?



Thanks!


One time in my junior years I went on a antenna installation job. The TV reception was shadowed by a hill. The solution was to put two antennae connected to each other on top of the hill. One was aimed at the station and the other at the receiver antenna.

Regards,

Boris Mohar

Got Knock? - see: Viatrack Printed Circuit Designs (among other things)

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DishNetwork or DirectTV They both beat cable hands down.

-plant an antenna on the tall building and run a long cable.

-move.

-get a directional antenna and aim at a building or other surface that provides a usable reflection of the main signal.

Chuck Reti Detroit MI

wrote

A large, very directional antenna mounted to a mast (or the chimney) with an electric rotator.

Nicholas O. Lindan, Cleveland, Ohio Consulting Engineer: Electronics; Informatics; Photonics. Remove spaces etc. to reply: n o lindan at net com dot com psst.. want to buy an f-stop timer? nolindan.com/da/fstop/

Two back to back yagi's, on top of the tall building.

One pointing to the TX, the other pointing to your residence.

Dont forget to use coax to join the antennas together

martin

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Ok. I should probably point out some design constraints to go with my original question :-) :

I live in a high rise apt building. I can not mount anything on the exterior of my building, nor do I have line of sight to a satellite (especially since the 15 story building was put up in front of me). This includes roof antennae

I can not modify the building in front of me. That building is still under construction, and I do not own it, nor do I have access to it.

I am not looking to subscribe to any sort of pay service, such as cable or satellite. It's too expensive. Likewise, I am not looking for a replacement for my TV right now.

In other words, anything I do needs to be inside my own apt, and should not be very expensive.

Thanks, michael

CWatters wrote:

this....

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Probably a good idea - but my guess is the transition from a standard indoor antenna to a proper outdoor will probably do the trick. Under all circumstances it is needed anyway ;-)

Cheers, Anders

At the house a directional antenna aimed at the top of the building will be needed. ... and you have to get to the top of the building.

It should be possible to have bounce antennas to the side of the building.

A newer TV will have circuits for multipath elimination, this may improve matters. Or it may not.

Nicholas O. Lindan, Cleveland, Ohio Consulting Engineer: Electronics; Informatics; Photonics. Remove spaces etc. to reply: n o lindan at net com dot com psst.. want to buy an f-stop timer? nolindan.com/da/fstop/

You have 4 possible options:

1) Put up an antenna at another location, and run a feed wire to your location. 2) Subscribe for cable TV service. 3) Subscribe for a satellite TV service. 4) Pack up, and move to a new location where TV reception is good. 5) Buy the new property, and have the new building demolished, in order to clear the way for you.

For simplicity, I would prefer option 2 or option 3.

Option 4 is also very good, especialy if you don't get along with the neighbors.

Option 1 can be viable, but may be inconvenient.

Option 5 is not impossible, but may be expensive, and not practical. Jerry G. =====

Get a proper roof mounted aerial. It should look something like this....

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or this

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I read in sci.electronics.design that snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com wrote (in ) about 'Solution to television reception problem', on Mon, 3 Jan 2005:

Given that constraint, there is no solution.

But do other people in the building have the same problem? If so, a joint approach to the landlord might get you an antenna on the roof, and a distribution system to each apartment. You may have to contribute some $$, but shared out, the cost should not be unsupportable.

In Japan, it used to be a legal requirement that if a new building created a TV shadow, its owners had to provide a remedy free of charge, but I don't think it applies in any other country, and maybe not even in Japan now.

Regards, John Woodgate, OOO - Own Opinions Only. The good news is that nothing is compulsory. The bad news is that everything is prohibited. http://www.jmwa.demon.co.uk Also see http://www.isce.org.uk

wrote

No problem.

Get a BFA (big effing antenna), a short mast and a roof tripod.

If you have a balcony just set it up out there. If not, then aim it out the window.

Whatever you do, you are going to need a directional antenna or cable service if you want good reception.

The lowest cost, highest performance idea is to drop the TV off at the Salvation Army and get a good book and some music from the library.

Nicholas O. Lindan, Cleveland, Ohio Consulting Engineer: Electronics; Informatics; Photonics. Remove spaces etc. to reply: n o lindan at net com dot com psst.. want to buy an f-stop timer? nolindan.com/da/fstop/

Ok just use one of those big roof aerials indoors. You can get some quite cheap models.

£9...

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Yoroshiku onegai shimasu!Watashi wa koko ni imasu yo!Mizu tsumetai desho?Iie, sonnani tsumetaku arimasen yo. (Mean:I need you to be in favour with me,Here am I,is the water cold?It's not that cold.)

-- Tzortzakakis Dimitriïs major in electrical engineering, freelance electrician FH von Iraklion-Kreta, freiberuflicher Elektriker dimtzort AT otenet DOT gr Ï "John Woodgate" Ýãñáøå óôï ìÞíõìá news: snipped-for-privacy@jmwa.demon.co.uk...

snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com wrote: [snip]

[snip]

Probably American public housing, aka Welfare ;-)

...Jim Thompson

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You live in a high rise appartment and find $42 a month too expensive for DirecTV?

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