Don's Home Products Digital TV antennas |
This a very cursory summary.
Many people are cutting their cable TV service and relying on Netflix and Hulu (see Internet TV).
In 2009 the US switched from analog to Digital TV format for broadcast over the air (OTA) TV.
First let me say that the frequencies didn't change so your old antenna should work.
See Solving VHF DTV Reception Problems | TvTechnology
Test with Winegard FlatWave FL5500Y Amped Indoor HDTV Antenna $80
I got 32 channels. In addition to those above I got 41.1,2,3,4; 51.3,5; 52.1,3,5,8; 58.1,3; 63.1,2,5,6,7,8,9 Channel 9 was marginal until I attached an amplifier. A cheap ($10) only got 58.1, 3 miles away in Warren. Where I live on the top of the first range of the Watchung Mountains in Martinsville, NJ it is 29 miles to 1 World Trade Center (WTC) and 31 miles to the Empire State Building. I have a line of sight to the WTC.
Mohu test from Bound Brook test - 43' elevation - 30-32 mi to NYC
Notice none are VHS channels (RF channel 2-13).
Most analog stations changed their RF channel in the digital conversion (and most VHF stations moved to UHF) for DTV, but were allowed to keep their old analog channel identification as their DTV or Virtual Channel.
I got 35 channels with a Mohu. Adding an amplifier didn't make any difference. Tips:
Antennas are either passive (connected directly to the TV) or amplified. Amplifiers only help if you're far away (more than 20 miles) from the transmitter.
Don't be fooled by claims of astoundingly high gain. Some manufacturers are marketing small indoor antennas and labeling the boxes with gain numbers between 30 and 55 dB. This kind of unit is actually an antenna paired with an amplifier, and the gain value stated on the package is really the gain of the amplifier and not that of the antenna. While it is possible to improve reception by using a well-designed low-noise amplifier, most of the inexpensive antennas designed this way actually have cheap amplifiers and too much gain. That combination generally overloads the amplifier -- and potentially the receiver as well -- causing signal distortion that can degrade or eliminate DTV reception entirely. Most consumers are better off with a well-designed nonamplified unit, also known as a passive antenna. If television reception does require an amplifier, the best choice is a high-quality, low-noise model connected as close as possible to the antenna.
Reviews/Tests: Wirecutter assembled a list of indoor antennas based on top recommendations on Amazon, as well as antennas recommended by respected reviewers from sources like Digital Trends, CNET, Tom's Guide, and Consumer Reports.In Consumer Reports tests, performance varied wildly--so much so that we couldn't really rank them in order of performance, as a model that did well for one tester couldn't pick up any TV signals for another.
Useful Gadgets: Wall-Mounted Indoor DTV Antennas - HDTVexpert tested 6 antennas from Mountain Lakes, NJ (25 miles from the empire state building (ESB) in New York City). Results.
At Solid Signal Blog they say "So far, I don't see where one has an advantage over the other."
Others: New York City transmission antennas: See Which TV Stations You Can Get on a Map | TV Fool Empire State Building - WCBS-DT,
After 9/11 2001 most NY stations lost their antennas on top of the WTC. Amplifiers: Amplifiers can: 1. Amplify a weak signal from a distant transmitter. 2. Compensate for cable and splitter loss between the antenna and TV. 3. Reduce noise Cable Loss - RG6 Coax Cable - 6dB per hundred ft. RG59 Coax - 10dB per hundred ft. Splitter Loss 2-Way Splitter 4dB 3-Way splitter 8dB 4-Way Splitter 8dB 8-Way - 12dB Even if ports are left unused on a splitter, there is still the same amount of signal loss. Source: How to Choose the right Pre-amplifier Links: Internet TV Free Over-the-Air TV Channel Guide Options – The Cordcutter – Mohu AntennaWeb Find distance to local transmitters See Which TV Stations You Can Get on a Map | TV Fool Empire State Building - WCBS-DT, How to Choose the right Pre-amplifier Amazon.com: TV & Radio Antennas HDTV 10 things you need to know about Digital TV Antennas Digital HDTV Converter Box Tests and Ratings New York City Free HDTV Channels and Antennas. Television Frequency Table Best indoor antennas for free HDTV (YouTube) | Digital Trends
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