Sick fo digital crap

[k0ua]

ok...i have some help for you.


I got rid of CATV 2 years ago, and was very frustrated with digital over the air signals. I purchased a $150.00 over the air antenna from best buy (it was a clear stream digital antenna Antennas Direct C4 - Best Buy) what a piece of crap....never worked right.

But after looking at the many youtube videos on building your own digital antenna, i made my own. All it took were a few feet of copper wire and a 2x4 board. And i added the 2 reflection screens i took of the old digital stream unit i threw out. Coat Hanger HDTV Antenna! - YouTube

I did a few modifications...i used #10 bare copper wire instead of coat hangers for the antenna loops and i used insulated #12 for the longer runs. that way they did not interfeer with each other.

Next i added a signal booster i was told to add for long runs (as i put the new antenna on the 10' mast on my roof where the old antenna was mounted. I tried the radio shack unit ($10.00) with some luck. Someone suggested that i try a product called "Channel Master CM-3410" its a 15db signal booster.

what i did was install the antenna outdoors, have a 50 foot drop of RG6 cable to the splitter in the closet. I took this cord and ran it to the input of the signal BOOSTER, than put an output cable to a 6 in 1 splitter. this unit transmits all signals to the other tv's.

i used to get 4.1 and 4.2, 28.1 & 28.2, and sometimes 26.4. it was spotty at best

now i get crystal clear

2.1 2.2 4.1 4.2 6.1 6.2 7.1 7.2 7.3 26.1 26.2 26.3 26.4 28.1 28.2 40.1 40.2


all on a $3.00 antenna and a $20.00 signal booster (amazon )

Good for you. That is true DIY or as us Amateur Radio Operators like to say "ham spirit".. Hams have been making antennas for over a century now, but not too many other folks will try. Wasn't that tough was it? I built my first set of VHF Yagi stacked beam antenna's when I was about 16. A pair of 5 element beams stacked and phased together. It was made from aluminum wire that my dad helped me "draw" (work harden) and some 1/2 inch EMT conduit for the main booms and a 3/4 EMB conduit for the cross boom. We used pulled apart zip cord for the phasing harness, and homeade plastic spreaders. It was an real Electricians special. It worked though, I made contact with 25 states in less than a year on that 146Mhz FM homebrew piece of junk antenna that was up on a pole 25 foot from the ground, and turned by the "armstrong" rotor method.

 

[deepNdirt]

My BIL built a antenna from a Bicycle wheel, It was impressive to see how clear his TV was, I watched some of those Youtbe video's, and thought about building one, But thought the materials would cost more than 3.00 bucks,
Incidentally if anyone can get their hands ahold of an old Satellite dish swivel wall mount, they work great for holding the mast pole, and much easier to raise the mast,
Note: it does require bending the pole enough to get it out and around the overhang of your house,

 

[Daver1963]

ok...i have some help for you.


I got rid of CATV 2 years ago, and was very frustrated with digital over the air signals. I purchased a $150.00 over the air antenna from best buy (it was a clear stream digital antenna Antennas Direct C4 - Best Buy) what a piece of crap....never worked right.

But after looking at the many youtube videos on building your own digital antenna, i made my own. All it took were a few feet of copper wire and a 2x4 board. And i added the 2 reflection screens i took of the old digital stream unit i threw out. Coat Hanger HDTV Antenna! - YouTube

I did a few modifications...i used #10 bare copper wire instead of coat hangers for the antenna loops and i used insulated #12 for the longer runs. that way they did not interfeer with each other.

Next i added a signal booster i was told to add for long runs (as i put the new antenna on the 10' mast on my roof where the old antenna was mounted. I tried the radio shack unit ($10.00) with some luck. Someone suggested that i try a product called "Channel Master CM-3410" its a 15db signal booster.

what i did was install the antenna outdoors, have a 50 foot drop of RG6 cable to the splitter in the closet. I took this cord and ran it to the input of the signal BOOSTER, than put an output cable to a 6 in 1 splitter. this unit transmits all signals to the other tv's.

i used to get 4.1 and 4.2, 28.1 & 28.2, and sometimes 26.4. it was spotty at best

now i get crystal clear

2.1 2.2 4.1 4.2 6.1 6.2 7.1 7.2 7.3 26.1 26.2 26.3 26.4 28.1 28.2 40.1 40.2


all on a $3.00 antenna and a $20.00 signal booster (amazon )

Good job. Your modifications of wire larger than the coat hangers probably helped with reception of the lower channels. The frequency at which a piece of metal resonates decreases as the size and surface area goes up. #10 wire is definitely larger that coat hanger wire.

You have pics of this contraption, I would like to dump cable tv in the spring

The You-Tube video he linked was very self-explanatory.

 

[Egbert]

Every approach seems to have its drawbacks. It just comes down to what you're willing to pay for the services you would like to have.

Between my cell phones, Internet and Dish TV - I drop about $250 per month. Outrageous? Yes. So far, I haven't missed a meal - but it's an irritation to be sure. My wife and I also pay for these services for our disabled neighbor. you'd think we'd get some kind of a discount! LOL

 

[grsthegreat]

OK, here goes.

i used bare copper wire cause i have lots laying around, and then i did not have to insulate the areas where wires touched by using spare #12 scrap wire.

Being an electrician does help. Heck even the piece of wood is a scrap piece of oak i found lying around on a jobsite.

The roof is too slippery to walk on, so i took some pics from the deck. Id guess the antenna is about 25-28' AGL. I didnt shrink the pics too much so you can see details..sorry for large file sizes. That f2.8 70-200 lens man canon 50d make some HUGE file sized pics.

edit: apairently this site automatically shrinks the uploads.....oh well. i tried

this was only a test antenna. i was just seeing if it would work. i was thinking about making a better one using some PVC pipe and making one a bit more weatherproof. but after getting such good reception with this one, ill probibly never get around to it HAHA

 

[MotorSeven]

3rdDoc,

You are going in the wrong direction. Go cold turkey on "tv", get rid of it and the giant idiocracy anchor that comes with it. We ditched TV over a year ago, and I am happy to report that our lives are much better. We retained the internet, and Netflix so we can watch the movies or series that we choose, without commercials.

What is really nice is when friends/neighbors ask if we saw the latest tragedy, or latest Hollywood arrest, or........"Nope, really...that's just terrible"gringrin. The reality of no TV is that you can be much more creative with your life and accomplish more every single day....try it.

 

[oldballs]

I'm with MotorSeven. TV is the last thing I do at night in the lounge chair that usually puts me to sleep right away. Admittedly, I do catch some football....sports events now and then... or an old movie. Don't want to pay the price for more TV or spend the time to "enjoy" it. I've found that reading something that I am interested in is more satisfying. Such is the life of a widower but healthy old guy.

 

[s219]

We needed a rooftop antenna to get channels, but it has worked great, pulling in 19 channels from about 45-50 miles away. Ended up getting the Mohu Sky antenna, and it was worth the $150 just for ease of use/installation alone. It's small and lightweight. Don't miss cable at all.

 

[Soundguy]

i remember my 1st tuned half wave dipole I made with house wire and pvc. Used it to tune in my favorite fm station. worked GREAT for that one it was tuned for. when aimed correctly.

later on i remember looking all over for a low freq balun for one of my rigs. when it came in.. it was a hand made job using grey plastic pvc

Good for you. That is true DIY or as us Amateur Radio Operators like to say "ham spirit".. Hams have been making antennas for over a century now, but not too many other folks will try. Wasn't that tough was it? I built my first set of VHF Yagi stacked beam antenna's when I was about 16. A pair of 5 element beams stacked and phased together. It was made from aluminum wire that my dad helped me "draw" (work harden) and some 1/2 inch EMT conduit for the main booms and a 3/4 EMB conduit for the cross boom. We used pulled apart zip cord for the phasing harness, and homeade plastic spreaders. It was an real Electricians special. It worked though, I made contact with 25 states in less than a year on that 146Mhz FM homebrew piece of junk antenna that was up on a pole 25 foot from the ground, and turned by the "armstrong" rotor method.

 

[rekees4300]

Unable to afford the outrageous price of cable, we put up a digital antenna. The two "strong" stations, we do not get, the two "moderate" stations we sometimes get, forget about the rest.

Location and environment are important re digital antennas. This link may be helpful.

HDTV Antennas | Reviews - Consumer Reports