Social Feed

D
Dew
Last reply · posted in Over the Air Television By RabbitEars.Info
Hello All -
This is my first post here. I am interested in setting up an antenna to pull in OTA HD channels and was hoping to get some advice.

Goal: I'd like to pull in HD signals from the major networks (NBC, ABC, CBS, Fox, and PBS)

Location: Here is my TV Fool report. All of these channels look to be less than 30 miles away and coming from the same direction albeit "edge" and not LOS.

Limitations: I can't mount on my roof and frankly I'm not up for trying even if I could. I have a deck off the second story of my house I could mount something small under or I could mount something in the attic above the third story - plenty of room up there. If there is a simple indoor product that would achieve my goals that would be great too. I tried a simple rabbit ear setup with an RCA ANT301 and only got 1 really spotty channel. I think the existing coax in the walls can be accessed through the attic.

Ability: This is all completely new to me, but if I can find the right instruction I'm up for it.

Here is a link to my TV Fool report -
TV Fool

I guess I'd mainly like to know what all I would need to buy and where I should go for instruction on installation and what installation approach would make the most sense.

Thanks for the help!

Dew
9 Replies · 2613 views
M
I see solidsignal has both the antenna and the tripod. I didnt see a 10 foot mast but they have a 5 foot one
antenna
AntennaCraft 33 Element UHF / High-Band VHF Outdoor HDTV Antenna (HBU33) - AntennaCraft - HBU33 -

mast
Channel Master CM3092 3 ft Tripod Mount (CM-3092) - Channel Master - CM3092 -
B
What worries me is your location. The chart says you have 2 edge reception. To me that means you have no clear line of sight, in other words the transmitting tower can not see your receiving antenna. In fact the signal has to be "bent twice" to reach your location. I'm located about 30 miles from from a signal that also has a 2 edge path. Depending upon the weather generally determines whether I receive the signal or not. My antenna is a 4 element bowtie with an amplifier attached to it.
D
Dew
That HBU33 looks like a good fit. Given the size, it looks like an attic install is going to be my only option though. HOA/Neighbors would be an issue with a visible deck mounted antenna for me. I was tempted to give the Terk HDTVo a try and mount in under the boards of my deck where it wouldn't be seen, but it doesn't look like that would do the trick.

So, here is what I'm planning on buying/doing:

Buy:
- HBU33
- 5 ft mast
- mounting bracket to attach mast to rafter in attic
- splitter with two inputs to take in CATV signal and OTA signal and output to 3 devices
- diplexer to separate the CATV signal from the OTA signal just before going into my Tivo.

Does that sound like the right approach? I know the attic install is going to cut into the signal. Do you think the HBU33 will still be beafy enough? I found the lines in my attic that take the incoming CATV signal and split it three ways, so i'd like to just use those and not run more cable (doubt I'm up for that). If all goes well I'll drop CATV (Comcast) anyway, but I figured I'd like the option to use both if I decide to. Will the other TVs need a diplexer to separate the incoming combined signal or can I simply switch between the two (CATV/ANT) through the TV?

Thanks for the help and advice.

Dew
M
you cannot diplex cable & antenna since they run on the same frequencies
cable & satellite yes
satellite & OTA yes
cable & OTA...no

The HOA cannot say anything if the deck is your exclusive area. Per FCC OTARD the antenna can be up to 12 feet above the roofline
FCC Fact Sheet on Placement of Antennas
Larry1
Mounting inside the atic will greatly reduce your signal strength. If you could run a mast up the side of the house and pin it to the eve to place the antenna a couple of feet above the roof would greatly help. (this may not be an option as you discribed) Before making a permanent mount, try placing the antenna in various locations as it can make a big difference. If this gets you some channels but low signal strength, you may need a pre-amplifer. Also, try it first with no splitters direct to only one tv. If splitting reduces the signal too much, a distribution amplifier may also be needed. just remember, moving the antenna a couple of feet or turning a couple of degrees can make a big difference in signal strength.
Scott Greczkowski
Staff member HERE TO HELP YOU! Cutting Edge
Last reply · posted in The Chit Chat Club
Sometimes a thread gets so many posts in it that is can cause issues for the server so that why today we introduce The Song Name Game Part 3!

So let the game continue!

The last song was added by Bobby who posted...

One Meat Ball - Andrews Sisters

CONTINUE ON AND HAVE FUN! WELCOME HOME TO SATELLITEGUYS.US!

Here are the original rules for the game as posted by WebbyDude back in 2006. http://www.satelliteguys.us/threads/68645-Song-Name-Game

Just name a song title and the band who performed it. The next person does the same thing, but needs to list a song title or band name which includes a word from the previous entry. Pick songs from any genre.

Example:

Long Live Rock and Roll -- Rainbow

Rainbow in the Dark -- Dio

Another example:

Ride the Lightning -- Metallica

Lightning Strikes -- Ozzy Osbourne


Get it?


An additional note: we all know that song titles, sometimes, use profane words. Because this is a family friendly website it is advised that you clean up that title up a bit. This is accomplished by using something like sh!t instead of the real word. Thanks....
68658 Replies · 2680205 views
  • Like
Reactions: c-spand
dishstaller
I Wanna Talk About Me - Toby Keith
  • Like
Reactions: RaiderPower
Bobby
98.6 - Keith
harshness
I'm Easy - Keith Carridine
  • Like
Reactions: RaiderPower
gms49ers
It's Easy - Boston
RaiderPower
Take It Easy On Me - Little River Band
  • Like
Reactions: dishstaller
R
Last reply · posted in Computers and Gadgets
Lately my eight year old Dell laptop has been shutting off even when I have a full battery. I have had to keep it plugged up all the time to keep this from happening. Any idea what is causing this? I replaced the battery about three years ago.
2 Replies · 45 views
arlo
A recalibration might be needed. Even if it shows full, the individual cells may have become unbalaced. And the BMS chip in the battery reports false information to the pc.
Try this. Start it up in the bios/uefi and leave it there until the battery dies and it shuts off.
It might just keep running longer than in Windows. Or run for a short while and shut off.
If it's the first case. Probably just needs a balancing. If the latter, the pack might just be dead.
Not throwing stones but perhaps just a cheaply constructed battery with substandard cells. Could be.

Patience. Keep restarting it in bios/uefi until it won't fire up anymore.
Then plug the charger in and let it complete a full charge. And see what happens. If it's better.
Do the same thing one more time. Run it until it dies dead-dead. Then just let it charge, pc shut off.
When charged, it might be better. It might not be.

There are bench jigs that read the actual BMS and override it to let a tech manually monitor and charge the separate packs. They can also reset any "time bombs" in it that cause an otherwise good pack to show bad.
Maybe Santa will be good to me some year.

You might just need a new battery. Maybe the PC power management chip is going. A Dell common thing.
Leaving a laptop plugged in with a full battery is known to reduce the life. Asus for one recommends that you don't leave the charger plugged in all of the time even when shut down. And setting Windows to charge the battery to 85% instead of 100% increases life.
That's all I got.
dishstaller
That's all I got.
That was quite enough....I definitely learned something from your post. Thanks
TRG
TRG
Pub Member / Supporter
Last reply · posted in Computers and Gadgets
I set up a music server for my brother a few years ago. It's basically a small headless computer but it needs to have a DHCP IP address reserved for it in the router settings. This was easy to do in his DSL router. He's switching to Starlink now and I was wondering if these setting are easily accessible in the Starlink router. I'm pretty sure he will be getting the latest V5 router.
5 Replies · 283 views
b4pjoe
I set up a music server for my brother a few years ago. It's basically a small headless computer but it needs to have a DHCP IP address reserved for it in the router settings. This was easy to do in his DSL router. He's switching to Starlink now and I was wondering if these setting are easily accessible in the Starlink router. I'm pretty sure he will be getting the latest V5 router.
If you can't get into the router to reserve an IP address just don't use DHCP on the device that needs connected and assign it to a specific IP address in the network settings.
  • Like
Reactions: harshness
HipKat
I set up a music server for my brother a few years ago. It's basically a small headless computer but it needs to have a DHCP IP address reserved for it in the router settings. This was easy to do in his DSL router. He's switching to Starlink now and I was wondering if these setting are easily accessible in the Starlink router. I'm pretty sure he will be getting the latest V5 router.
They are not. Your best bet is to set up a third-party router, attached to the Starlink for your server, that you can get into, like a Linksys, etc
  • Like
Reactions: Foxbat
Foxbat
…it needs to have a DHCP IP address reserved for it in the router settings. This was easy to do in his DSL router. He's switching to Starlink now and I was wondering if these setting are easily accessible in the Starlink router. I'm pretty sure he will be getting the latest V5 router.
The Starlink V5 Install Kit I just got comes with the Mini Router. It is pretty limited in what it can do. For example, it can provide only one IP subnet at a time, no Guest Network, but it does support the pass-thru to a third-party Router. You can also split the Wi-Fi into separate 5 GHz & 2.4 GHz SSIDs to help some IoT devices that don't support 5 GHz bands to work.

The larger Starlink Router that still comes with the V4 Kit does support a Guest Network with separate IPv4 Subnet, but it's $120 from Starlink. And it still won't do DHCP Reservations.
harshness
If you can restrict the DHCP address space to assign addresses to one end of the subnet (i.e. x.x.x.50+), you can manually assign the IP address on pretty much any operating system. This is a default behavior on several popular routers. As the Router Mini only supports 235 devices, I expect that's already done.

Another option is to use a router that supports PoE to power the antenna. This article discusses that option (under PoE Power heading):

  • Like
Reactions: Foxbat
Foxbat
Now that I've had the v5 kit with the Mini Router, it's not as bad as I first thought. Yes, no DHCP reservations, but you can set up multiple SSIDs that have separate IPv4 subnets, and like the big brother, you can select from 192.168.x.0/24 or 10.x.0.0/16 (where "x" is 1-4).

You can also split a subnet and have different SSIDs for the 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz channels to handle some IoT devices. I haven't discovered what subnet the 2nd NIC on the router assigns, I'm guessing it's the first subnet.
dishstaller
Pub Member / Supporter Lifetime Supporter
Last reply · posted in The Chit Chat Club
2 Replies · 50 views
dishstaller
Sorry for posting the wrong link. Just corrected it.
dishstaller
Pub Member / Supporter Lifetime Supporter
Last reply · posted in The Chit Chat Club
Terrible tragedy. You would think that they would have safe guards in place that would prevent something like this from happening. I guess if you are going to ride in a passenger train it might be best to get a car near the rear.

2 Replies · 55 views
  • Sad
Reactions: Jimbo
Jimbo
Terrible tragedy. You would think that they would have safe guards in place that would prevent something like this from happening. I guess if you are going to ride in a passenger train it might be best to get a car near the rear.

They will have to look at the switching sections to determine WHY 2 trains were on the same track ... at the same time.
dishstaller
Thought this article might be of interest to some of you who might travel via train.