Post Repack TVs and Tuners

TNGuy84

SatelliteGuys Guru
Original poster
May 27, 2018
136
117
Tennessee
Does anyone know if TV manufacturers have started to scale down their tuners to just scan channels 2 through 36? I bought a TV a few years back that still had a 2-69 tuner in it, despite it being years after the first repack. It would be nice if they would put in the effort to not include dead space in their scans in the future rather than having you sit through several minutes of checking for channels that no longer exist. It would also be nice to have updated firmware for most tuners and TVs already out there to exclude channels that are now off limits.
 
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A lot of TVs have manual scans on them to just scan in single frequencies. I haven't seen any lately that have the feature you're talking about. I had a 2014 Sony that would scan in additional channels without erasing what you already had. I would've kept that TV if the smart functions hadn't slowed it down. That thing took 1 minute to boot up before you could do anything with it, and it came a year or two before Android OS was put on the latest models. So most of the smart functions went extinct by the time I ended up selling it due to them abandoning support.
 
I wonder if antenna manufacturers will start developing 2-36 and 7-36 antennas. They could be smaller without the need for higher frequencies.
 
Wouldn't the antennas be bigger? If I'm not mistaken, I believe the antennas are measured closer to the higher part of the UHF band than the lower part. More metal is needed to catch lower frequencies, so the antennas would have to get bigger to focus in more on the remaining band.
 
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Some of use still need the low vhf channels also. I would be happy if there was a antenna that has vhf low and vhf high plus the uhf up to channel up to 36 that was still for long range. Kind of wonder if they can do this without lowering the performance that the present antenna,s have. going to barter for a big winegard in case It gets hard to get.
 
A lot of TVs have manual scans on them to just scan in single frequencies. I haven't seen any lately that have the feature you're talking about. I had a 2014 Sony that would scan in additional channels without erasing what you already had. I would've kept that TV if the smart functions hadn't slowed it down. That thing took 1 minute to boot up before you could do anything with it, and it came a year or two before Android OS was put on the latest models. So most of the smart functions went extinct by the time I ended up selling it due to them abandoning support.
Wouldn,t the tv work well if you just forgot about the smart part of it? All my tv,s i have are all dumb except my panasonic. and I either use roku sticks or amazon sticks on them. My panasonic remote went bad and I couldn,t find a replacement that controlled the smart part of it so use an aftermarket remote that seems to controll everything else. Since I put the amazon stick on it all I need the tv remote is to change imputs on the tv.
 
Channel 14 quarter wave length is about 16 cm or 6 1/3 inches.
Channel 37 quarter wave length is about 12 cm or 4 3/4 inches.
Channel 61 quarter wave length is about 10 cm or 4 inches.

If the UHF elements on an antenna were restructured to conform to current channels, you could probably not tell the difference without measuring them.

It could help the antennas to be more efficient by not resonating at the higher frequencies.

Whether antenna manufacturers believe the cost to change their antennas so slightly is worth the investment is questionable.
 
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Wouldn,t the tv work well if you just forgot about the smart part of it? All my tv,s i have are all dumb except my panasonic. and I either use roku sticks or amazon sticks on them. My panasonic remote went bad and I couldn,t find a replacement that controlled the smart part of it so use an aftermarket remote that seems to controll everything else. Since I put the amazon stick on it all I need the tv remote is to change imputs on the tv.
The TV was just kind of getting aggravating to operate. I got tired of dealing with waiting on the 1 minute boot up time before changing a channel or turning up or turning down the volume. Sometimes I'd hit the power button by accident instead of some other button on the remote. I'd have to wait a minute each time before doing anything. I went for a dumb TV as a replacement instead. It may not have the picture quality of the Sony, but it's sufficient for my needs. I use a Roku stick with it for smart features.
 
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Yes I kind of like dumb tv,s and would be just as happy without thier operating platform. That way you can set up your tv with multiple operating systems. you want. Wish they had at least 6 to 8 hdmis. I want to try atsc 3.0 and probably will wait till silicon dust makes thier player available. I was going to sign up for the kick start but procrastinated 2 days too late.
 
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I have put a channel master LTE filter on my antenna system that receives UHF. I figure since the antenna is built to receive what will now be LTE frequencies, it’s time to block that RF range.
The signals seem to be more stable after attaching it.
Also, the repack helped signal quality a lot for me as well. In the Detroit area I was seeing noticeable signal problems on our stations that were in the RF38 to RF 51 range.
Repack plus LTE filter was the winning ticket.
 
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I need to look into getting one of those myself. Like you said, the antennas are tuned more towards the frequencies taken over by the cell carriers, so I'm sure all of that noise will likely influence reception. One thing I've thought about with the repack is that since the UHF band is tightly packed in now, there's not much room for Dxing except for those few channels not assigned to your local or nearby markets.
 
I need to look into getting one of those myself. Like you said, the antennas are tuned more towards the frequencies taken over by the cell carriers, so I'm sure all of that noise will likely influence reception. One thing I've thought about with the repack is that since the UHF band is tightly packed in now, there's not much room for Dxing except for those few channels not assigned to your local or nearby markets.
Definitely a lot tighter now. For me it’s only RF 7-13 and RF 14-36. Not going to chase after the one LP station on RF 3 in our DMA.
 
After reading this thread this morning I ordered the Channel Master LTE filter. It is not expensive and ships from Arizona so would arrive before I need to leave for the Holiday. I got to thinking that I probably can not place it on the back of my Orby DVR (records both satellite and OTA signals) which has an internal diplexer. Would the filter pass the power back up to the LNB and would it also block satellite signals? If it needs to go on the roof before the antenna feed is connected to the diplexer up there I may have to just hold on to it until some later date.
 
After reading this thread this morning I ordered the Channel Master LTE filter. It is not expensive and ships from Arizona so would arrive before I need to leave for the Holiday. I got to thinking that I probably can not place it on the back of my Orby DVR (records both satellite and OTA signals) which has an internal diplexer. Would the filter pass the power back up to the LNB and would it also block satellite signals? If it needs to go on the roof before the antenna feed is connected to the diplexer up there I may have to just hold on to it until some later date.

It's not power-passing. It really NEEDS to go between the OTA tv antenna, and the coax normally connected directly AT that antenna. You want it to cut the LTE before it gets amped by anything in your system. If you can't do that for now, install it at the RF connector on the back of your TV SET! Not on the back of the Orby receiver.
 
After reading this thread this morning I ordered the Channel Master LTE filter. It is not expensive and ships from Arizona so would arrive before I need to leave for the Holiday. I got to thinking that I probably can not place it on the back of my Orby DVR (records both satellite and OTA signals) which has an internal diplexer. Would the filter pass the power back up to the LNB and would it also block satellite signals? If it needs to go on the roof before the antenna feed is connected to the diplexer up there I may have to just hold on to it until some later date.
The filter only allows from about 5 MHz to 600 MHz through it. I have no problems with it passing my locals on RF 7, 9, 20, 21, 24, 25, 31, 32 and 34. I don’t use a line amp and there is no noticeable signal degradation on the channels mentioned above.
I did test it pre-repack and it progressively suppressed up the RF 38-51 range, with RF50 completely blocked.
We will see how good it really is when T-Mobile gets fully implemented LTE in the RF38-51 range.
 
OK, I will plan on connecting the LTE filter at the grounding barrel connector about three feet below the antenna. From there a 100 foot RG6 quad-shield cable goes to the diplexer just under the satellite dish. There are no amplifiers in the system and no coax is connected to the back of my TV, just the Orby DVR. Here in El Paso UHF TV goes from 15 to 36 with one lone VHF on 13.
 
Some of use still need the low vhf channels also. I would be happy if there was a antenna that has vhf low and vhf high plus the uhf up to channel up to 36 that was still for long range. Kind of wonder if they can do this without lowering the performance that the present antenna,s have. going to barter for a big winegard in case It gets hard to get.

There is, the Winegard HD8200U.
 
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