I want to hook up OTA TV.Can I use my old Direct TV dish for an antenna?
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P
https://www.tvfool.com/modeling/tmp/8e03/93f/e03d94a/Radar-All.png. trying to choose correct antenna for directv existing mount? Thanks for any assistance! Paul
TV Fool
The easiest thing to do in your location is get a Stellar Labs VHF/UHF HDTV 60 Mile Fringe Yagi Antenna and point it toward 243 degrees magnetic.
Dan
The easiest thing to do in your location is get a Stellar Labs VHF/UHF HDTV 60 Mile Fringe Yagi Antenna and point it toward 243 degrees magnetic.
Dan
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Cutting the cord...Indoor vs Outdoor for my area.
Hi guys,
I'm cutting the cord coming from Direct TV because it's just too expensive. I would like to use an indoor antenna, however I am willing to go to an outdoor one if absolutely necessary. Below is my TVfool url. I would love some suggestions about the type of antenna and even a particular brand/model. Any help would be much appreciated. Thx
TV Fool
Hi guys,
I'm cutting the cord coming from Direct TV because it's just too expensive. I would like to use an indoor antenna, however I am willing to go to an outdoor one if absolutely necessary. Below is my TVfool url. I would love some suggestions about the type of antenna and even a particular brand/model. Any help would be much appreciated. Thx
TV Fool
I have cut the cable finally. I was given a Lava 2605 antenna and I put it on the roof about 25 ft off the ground. I receive about 32 channels with the antenna pointed NE. Here is my TV Fool report:
TV Fool
I can not pick up WBAL or WBAL with my antenna in the current direction. Any advice on an antenna that would allow me to reach those while maintaining my current channels?
TV Fool
I can not pick up WBAL or WBAL with my antenna in the current direction. Any advice on an antenna that would allow me to reach those while maintaining my current channels?
First, the Lava 2605 may not last very long. It has a very poor reputation.
Second, what do you get with it pointed to about 190 degrees? Could you live with those channels?
Third, What channels do you get now that you are unwilling to lose?
Any solution will likely require some compromise.
Second, what do you get with it pointed to about 190 degrees? Could you live with those channels?
Third, What channels do you get now that you are unwilling to lose?
Any solution will likely require some compromise.
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Thanks for the replies. So the biggest thing I would gain with the antenna pointed at 190 degrees would only be the choice of Network affiliates to watch. No a huge deal but it would just provide some Maryland local news and once in a while some sports that are not Philly or Jersey based. Not a huge deal more of a I want to pick up every channel in the air approach. Right now I receive the 4 major networks, PBS along with several religious channels. There are also some channels that show some old TV series. I'm not unhappy with what I am getting at all more of a curiosity factor. So given my TVfool report what antenna should I purchase because I agree that the Lava 2605 may not be as good as some others or last very long?
Attempt at cutting the cord
Another "newbie" here also. Seemed like this thread would be the best place to ask my question because it's similar to the others here. We have Charter currently both for TV and internet, but I'm looking forward to removing the expensive TV price off the bill.
We moved into our home 4 years ago and the previous owners had satellite before us, the 2 dishes are on the roof still. One has 3 receivers on it and the other one is just the standard one. I would like to be able to pull the dish off and attach an antenna to it, but I'm not sure how I would combine all the previous coaxial to attach to the antenna especially if I may need an amp. There is no way to get power up there other than an extension cord! So I guess that is my first question, second is what would be the best antenna for my location?
TVFool
I put 15ft in, but I'm really not sure on the height and the antenna would be pointing to an open back yard (a little less than an acre) but there are very tall pine trees at the end of our lot that it will be pointing at.
I've been trying to do my homework and reading here has helped me learn a lot quickly, but I still have a lot to learn!
Thanks in advance for any help!
Another "newbie" here also. Seemed like this thread would be the best place to ask my question because it's similar to the others here. We have Charter currently both for TV and internet, but I'm looking forward to removing the expensive TV price off the bill.
We moved into our home 4 years ago and the previous owners had satellite before us, the 2 dishes are on the roof still. One has 3 receivers on it and the other one is just the standard one. I would like to be able to pull the dish off and attach an antenna to it, but I'm not sure how I would combine all the previous coaxial to attach to the antenna especially if I may need an amp. There is no way to get power up there other than an extension cord! So I guess that is my first question, second is what would be the best antenna for my location?
TVFool
I put 15ft in, but I'm really not sure on the height and the antenna would be pointing to an open back yard (a little less than an acre) but there are very tall pine trees at the end of our lot that it will be pointing at.
I've been trying to do my homework and reading here has helped me learn a lot quickly, but I still have a lot to learn!
Thanks in advance for any help!
Hi, hma95!
As long as the Dish/Cable cabling isn't that old, it should be RG6, which means you shouldn't have any issues attaching an antenna to it. Even if it is old, unless your house is very large, your problems probably won't be cabling related. Just make certain the cables aren't corroded and haven't been chewed on by an adventurous squirrel.
Your main issue is going to be that the majority of the stations in your area seem to either be a long way off, or low-power broadcasters. You also seem to have a fair number of hills in the area. Yes, trees can be an issue, but their effect can be mitigated with proper placement. So based on your TV Fool report, it doesn't appear that you'll have much luck with those long-range stations without a reasonably large, directional antenna. Others here can indicate what antenna would be best for your needs.
TV Fool estimates your signal strength, but it's not perfect. Local conditions affect your reception, and it could be better or worse than predicted. So you may need to adjust the height of your antenna once you get it positioned on your roof to the best signal quality. Make sure you don't have any excess splitters in your cabling since each splitter reduces the signal strength. Once you have clean runs and a good height to the antenna you can experiment with a low-noise pre-amplifier, which should be placed as close to the antenna as possible, preferably on the pole itself. Others here can explain that to you better than me.
The only thing other thing you'll need to watch out for is that the cable company can use the same cabling for its internet service as it does for your TV service. If you leave the cable modem attached to the TV cabling, the antenna signal and cable internet signal will almost certainly interfere with each other, and so neither one will work. You'll need to make certain the internet is on it's own circuit going back to wherever the cable enters your home, and the antenna cable is on its own circuit connected to your TV(s).
As long as the Dish/Cable cabling isn't that old, it should be RG6, which means you shouldn't have any issues attaching an antenna to it. Even if it is old, unless your house is very large, your problems probably won't be cabling related. Just make certain the cables aren't corroded and haven't been chewed on by an adventurous squirrel.
Your main issue is going to be that the majority of the stations in your area seem to either be a long way off, or low-power broadcasters. You also seem to have a fair number of hills in the area. Yes, trees can be an issue, but their effect can be mitigated with proper placement. So based on your TV Fool report, it doesn't appear that you'll have much luck with those long-range stations without a reasonably large, directional antenna. Others here can indicate what antenna would be best for your needs.
TV Fool estimates your signal strength, but it's not perfect. Local conditions affect your reception, and it could be better or worse than predicted. So you may need to adjust the height of your antenna once you get it positioned on your roof to the best signal quality. Make sure you don't have any excess splitters in your cabling since each splitter reduces the signal strength. Once you have clean runs and a good height to the antenna you can experiment with a low-noise pre-amplifier, which should be placed as close to the antenna as possible, preferably on the pole itself. Others here can explain that to you better than me.
The only thing other thing you'll need to watch out for is that the cable company can use the same cabling for its internet service as it does for your TV service. If you leave the cable modem attached to the TV cabling, the antenna signal and cable internet signal will almost certainly interfere with each other, and so neither one will work. You'll need to make certain the internet is on it's own circuit going back to wherever the cable enters your home, and the antenna cable is on its own circuit connected to your TV(s).
:welcome: hma95
You cannot reuse the existing coax to the dish unless you make certain it is disconnected from any satellite dish 'switches' which (somewhat) resemble signal splitters. Secondly, you cannot 'integrate' free OTA antenna signals with satellite signals on the same coax: you need to establish two separate systems because they are two entirely different non-compatible signal sources.
The best answer would be to use either a manual or remote-controlled A-B antenna switch near your TV set: one side with the satellite channels and the other side with the OTA TV channels. However, every time you switch from A to B, you will have to go into the on-screen menu on your TV set and manually change what IT expects for signal input, from satellite to antenna and back to satellite, depending on the A-B source.
Before I make an antenna suggestion it would help if I knew how high above ground level you could install an antenna, because at 15 feet you will receive only a few: in your location height matters a lot. Please advise,
Jim
You cannot reuse the existing coax to the dish unless you make certain it is disconnected from any satellite dish 'switches' which (somewhat) resemble signal splitters. Secondly, you cannot 'integrate' free OTA antenna signals with satellite signals on the same coax: you need to establish two separate systems because they are two entirely different non-compatible signal sources.
The best answer would be to use either a manual or remote-controlled A-B antenna switch near your TV set: one side with the satellite channels and the other side with the OTA TV channels. However, every time you switch from A to B, you will have to go into the on-screen menu on your TV set and manually change what IT expects for signal input, from satellite to antenna and back to satellite, depending on the A-B source.
Before I make an antenna suggestion it would help if I knew how high above ground level you could install an antenna, because at 15 feet you will receive only a few: in your location height matters a lot. Please advise,
Jim
Thank you for the welcome 
I don't have satellite TV now, it's just the dishes are still attached on the roof from the previous owners of the house. The problem is that there are 3 coax cables coming directly off of one dish and one off of a second dish that all run directly to different rooms (all running to the upper level of the house that don't have any TV's, but would like to put a couple TV's in the rooms upstairs in the future). I'm thinking I can use an amp on the roof to connect them all to an antenna. The internet I have is on it's own coax line through charter cable and also our current TV is also from Charter cable that is all on a different set of coax lines in the home. I seriously believe there is more coax running through our house than electrical wiring! LOL. Previous owners seemed to go a little over board with that.
As for height we can just install a new pole on the roof to get to any height needed. We also thought about just buying a coax tester, figure out where all these coax lines actually run to and if we need to do a new main run from the antenna, that's fine and probably less headache.
Thanks again for everyone's help! We really appreciate it!
I don't have satellite TV now, it's just the dishes are still attached on the roof from the previous owners of the house. The problem is that there are 3 coax cables coming directly off of one dish and one off of a second dish that all run directly to different rooms (all running to the upper level of the house that don't have any TV's, but would like to put a couple TV's in the rooms upstairs in the future). I'm thinking I can use an amp on the roof to connect them all to an antenna. The internet I have is on it's own coax line through charter cable and also our current TV is also from Charter cable that is all on a different set of coax lines in the home. I seriously believe there is more coax running through our house than electrical wiring! LOL. Previous owners seemed to go a little over board with that.
As for height we can just install a new pole on the roof to get to any height needed. We also thought about just buying a coax tester, figure out where all these coax lines actually run to and if we need to do a new main run from the antenna, that's fine and probably less headache.
Thanks again for everyone's help! We really appreciate it!
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