Selecting an OTA antenna - is VHF necessary?

[SparksPA]

I have selected a somewhat over-sized UHF OTA antenna to be connected to the OTA modules on two soon to be acquired 722K receivers and to several SD televisions in my home. I do not see any digital SD or HD VHF stations on the list of available stations in my area (16801) at this time. It would then seem that a UHF only antenna would be sufficient. I do notice that there is a comment in the FAQ section of the antennaweb site that states that the former analog OTA channels could be used for digital transmissions in the future (now?). I also notice quite a few high band VHF/UHF antennas being advertised. My question is, is there any digital SD or HD activity in the VHF spectrum now or or in the foreseeable future that I should be planning for with my entirely new Dish + OTA installation?

On a related subject, can someone tell me if the OTA module on the 722k receiver will be capable of receiving analog channels that I inject into its antenna input (properly combined along with the antenna feed) from a multiple channel frequency agile analog modulator? My intent is to create several channels to enable me to view CCTV cameras and the output from a computer to view a web page throughout my home. I have done this before with all analog signals but have not done so with digital OTA and locally modulated analog channels.

 

[CowboyDren]

1) It'd help if you posted your zip code, but...
2) If TVFool.com doesn't list VHF stations in your area, you probably don't need it.
3) The OTA tuner on a 722 is digital-only.

 

[SparksPA]

OK, thanks CowboyDren. The 16801 shown is my zip code. I am not familiar with TVfool.com but I will check it out as well. Thanks for the tip. My concern is for the future use of the VHF spectrum for digital broadcasts. I will be installing a seperate directional FM antenna so I could make it a broadband VHF antenna if necessary. The FM antenna is considerably smaller, less expensive and easier to deal with than a similar performing broadband antenna would be though. If there is little or no potential for digital television use in the now unused VHF spectrum then I will stay with my original plan of a directional UHF only OTA antenna and a separate directional FM band only antenna.

As to #3, it looks like I will have to scrap my analog modulator and buy a digital modulator. I haven't looked for one of those yet so I have no idea what is out there. Actually, I may need to use both for a while because some of the "convenience" TVs (kitchen, bath room, garage, and my man-cave/shop) in my home are older analog only tuner sets. All that is a minor detail at this point so I can re-think the plan as necessary now knowing that the 722 OTA module is digital only. Thanks again for that information. I do appreciate your help.

 

[CowboyDren]

Sorry, I guess I missed your zip code in the first post. Considering all of the VHF stations that are petitioning to go to UHF like everybody else did, I wouldn't worry about future use, at least not for TV.

Out of curiosity, what's your favorite FM antenna?

 

[ericha]

Most TV's still have analog tuners, so you could look at your CCTV camers that way. You won't be able to record them with the 722--you'd need some other tool for that. This could be a PC, a Tivo, or a specialized security recorder (which usually supports multiple camers).

 

[SparksPA]

I thought about using the analog TV tuners to view the analog modulated signals but I want to keep viewing them as simple and convenient as possible, hence the insertion of the new home-made channels blended into the channel lineup of OTA channels. The less switching of TV inputs to see them on the various televisions the better. I am not concerned about recording the cameras at this time on the 722. In fact, if I develop a need to do so I will invest in a dedicated security DVR / multiplexer to do so.

I think the FM antennas that I have in mind are commonly referred to as the FM-6 or the larger FM-10. They are Yagi types of directional antennas. I have a large mountain near my home so multipath is an issue. Actually, I live in a mountainous area so the one nearby that I am referring to is really in my back yard. If you watch a Penn State football game and they show a picture of "Nittany Mountain", the three pixels in the lower right corner of your screen is the roof of my house. Soon there will be a gray dot in the middle of the brown spec. (You will have to look really, really closely though! ) That will be the back of the Dish. The directional antenna with a rotor will help to extend my listenable range and hopefully minimize the multipath issue.