Tips For Using OTA Tuner with Hopper 3

[david_jr]

I have Hopper 3 (actually two of them) and have the OTA tuner connected to the Family room H3. So last week we lose our local Fox (WXXA 23) in the Mission dispute. Wife is concerned because she has a few shows on Fox that she watches. She likes to record the shows and watch them later when she has time. Me and my boys wanted to watch Giants vs Vikings on Sunday too also on Fox. I am frustrated with the Dish OTA tuner. I have separate VHF & UHF antennas, roof mounted, using a Channel Master amp combining the two. So I have the OTA split out after the amp and reception is still pretty good on most channels even though I'm almost 40 miles from the tower and multiple mountains between us. So that's where the frustration comes in. I scan the OTA using the H3 OTA tuner and it only picks up 22 channels not including the Fox channel we need because of the dispute. So I tried clearing the channels on the H3 and rescanning and it picks up 27 channels again not the Fox station we are trying for. I even tried taking my splitter out and running an unsplit signal directly to the H3 OTA tuner, but it would not pick up any more channels. So I take the antenna feed and run it into my 65 Sony Bravia and the first scan I get 41 channels including the Fox channel I'm after. So me and my boys end up just watching the game OTA and there wasn't so much as a flicker in the picture. Then again last night my wife watched her Fox shows the same way and there wasn't as much as a flicker in the signal. Why won't the Dish OTA tuner scan these channels? Even my el cheapo 24 inch Vizio that I have over my workbench in the basement gets the 41 channels WITH the splitter in the mix. This is a major frustration for my wife who is not good at going back and forth between DISH and OTA on the TV. Anyone have any secret tips for picking up more channels with the Hopper 3 OTA?

 

[HipKat]

I have Hopper 3 (actually two of them) and have the OTA tuner connected to the Family room H3. So last week we lose our local Fox (WXXA 23) in the Mission dispute. Wife is concerned because she has a few shows on Fox that she watches. She likes to record the shows and watch them later when she has time. Me and my boys wanted to watch Giants vs Vikings on Sunday too also on Fox. I am frustrated with the Dish OTA tuner. I have separate VHF & UHF antennas, roof mounted, using a Channel Master amp combining the two. So I have the OTA split out after the amp and reception is still pretty good on most channels even though I'm almost 40 miles from the tower and multiple mountains between us. So that's where the frustration comes in. I scan the OTA using the H3 OTA tuner and it only picks up 22 channels not including the Fox channel we need because of the dispute. So I tried clearing the channels on the H3 and rescanning and it picks up 27 channels again not the Fox station we are trying for. I even tried taking my splitter out and running an unsplit signal directly to the H3 OTA tuner, but it would not pick up any more channels. So I take the antenna feed and run it into my 65 Sony Bravia and the first scan I get 41 channels including the Fox channel I'm after. So me and my boys end up just watching the game OTA and there wasn't so much as a flicker in the picture. Then again last night my wife watched her Fox shows the same way and there wasn't as much as a flicker in the signal. Why won't the Dish OTA tuner scan these channels? Even my el cheapo 24 inch Vizio that I have over my workbench in the basement gets the 41 channels WITH the splitter in the mix. This is a major frustration for my wife who is not good at going back and forth between DISH and OTA on the TV. Anyone have any secret tips for picking up more channels with the Hopper 3 OTA?

The tuner in the Hopper is not good. I have similar results with 65 Sony Bravia comp[ared to when I had a Hopper

 

[KAB]

My AirTv dual tuner picks up all there is to pick up with indoor flat antenna. I use the compass on my phone to carefully point to the all closely located towers.

 

[TheKrell]

My AirTv dual tuner picks up all there is to pick up with indoor flat antenna. I use the compass on my phone to carefully point to the all closely located towers.

Mine does pretty well too using a rooftop fringe antenna. I can pick up all DC stations, the Annapolis PBS, Baltimore stations, plus a few others even farther away. I want to say Harrisburg, PA but surely I can't receive those!

 

[HipKat]

In the realms of antennas, a friend of mine picked up this one I installed for them on a 1 story roof and split it into 5 TVs. Different models, an older LG, newer Samsungs but the older LG picked up the most at 149 channels!! Of course, many were not clear but it picked up OTA and some cable channels like ESPN and Fox News, et al.

That's here in the Peoria, IL area pointing slightly northeast. Now I want this beast!

https://a.co/d/8nfTm9j

 

[c-spand]

Best bet to use the best cable new and no breaks or splits in it. I have had trouble with the directv ota too. For the most part the main stations i watch they are tuned in fine. There are 3 that are marginal but i don't watch those channels much. 104 channels on my Vizio tuner and 4 or 5 channels less in the directv. Each tuner is different thats for sure.

 

[david_jr]

Thanks for the replies. I have this antenna for VHF and this antenna for UHF combined this preamp. My antennas are aimed by bringing a TV up on the roof and adjusting the antennas based on the signal strength meter on the TV that has all the channels scanned into it already. My frustration is that I can't get the Hopper OTA tuner to scan all the channels that my TV's seem to have no problem scanning and holding. I bought another H3 OTA tuner and I am going to try to swap it out with the first to see if any better results. Should I remove the tuner and then do a hard reset of the receiver before connecting the new tuner?

 

[c-spand]

Thanks for the replies. I have this antenna for VHF and this antenna for UHF combined this preamp. My antennas are aimed by bringing a TV up on the roof and adjusting the antennas based on the signal strength meter on the TV that has all the channels scanned into it already. My frustration is that I can't get the Hopper OTA tuner to scan all the channels that my TV's seem to have no problem scanning and holding. I bought another H3 OTA tuner and I am going to try to swap it out with the first to see if any better results. Should I remove the tuner and then do a hard reset of the receiver before connecting the new tuner?Hop

Thanks for the replies. I have this antenna for VHF and this antenna for UHF combined this preamp. My antennas are aimed by bringing a TV up on the roof and adjusting the antennas based on the signal strength meter on the TV that has all the channels scanned into it already. My frustration is that I can't get the Hopper OTA tuner to scan all the channels that my TV's seem to have no problem scanning and holding. I bought another H3 OTA tuner and I am going to try to swap it out with the first to see if any better results. Should I remove the tuner and then do a hard reset of the receiver before connecting the new tuner?

Good luck. Hope you get good results.

 

[TheKrell]

I have this antenna for VHF and this antenna for UHF combined this preamp.

That's the UHF antenna I have (no preamp)! It works well enough for my 9 high VHF stations.

 

[navychop]

I gave up on the Hopper OTA tuners long ago. I use a separate OTA DVR. Sadly, the Channel Master units I use are no longer available.

 

[Jim5506]

I have the OTA dual channel dongle from AirTv and it is weak in comparison to the tuners on my TiVos. There is one UHF channel that even though I have an original CM-4228 pointed at the tower at most 6 miles away, the AirTV tuner shows signal strength of 40 and will not decode the channel but all 4 of my TiVos will each is on its own small uhf/VHF yagi. I've tried amplification and switching antennas aroungn nothing will bring in tht channel on the AirTV dongle. It is a fairly low power station but even my Hauppauge WinTV dongle sees it with a small UHF whip antenna.

 

[david_jr]

Does it really make sense for DISH to push everyone toward OTA because they think they are helping beat the greedy conglomerates that bought up all the network stations, and then produce an OTA module that is about the worst OTA tuner on the market, that a $100 Vizio 24 inch TV tuner craps all over? If DISH was serious about moving their customers toward OTA they would be resolutely striving to develop the best OTA tuner available, would they not?

 

[Peter Parker]

That's the UHF antenna I have (no preamp)! It works well enough for my 9 high VHF stations.

What are the nine stations?

 

[TheKrell]

What are the nine stations?

Oops! More coffee was needed before I typed that nonsense, which I fixed. I have 2 (not 9) high VHF channels: 7 (ABC) and 9 (CBS).

I gave up on the Hopper OTA tuners long ago.

How is it you can live so close to me and yet have such a God-awful experience? I can scan in something like 78 channels. I have no complaints about the AirTV dongle. Maybe you got a bad one?

 

[Peter Parker]

Oops! More coffee was needed before I typed that nonsense, which I fixed. I have 2 (not 9) high VHF channels: 7 (ABC) and 9 (CBS).

I was getting worried about you Krell. I thought you were hallucinating VHF Hi TV reception.

 

[bookworm370]

The Dish single version is not all that great. Pickup one of the dual tuner AirTV tuners. Direct plugin replacement and I get so many hits that I have about 2/3rds of them not added. That's even with a directional VHF antenna inside my attic pointing at the main city I'm interested (Columbus) in (about 30 miles away from the transmitters). It picks up tons of channels even off axis behind and off to the side of the antenna. Like Dayton behind where the antenna is pointing (70 miles away), Chillicothe(sp) 90 degrees off axis 80+ miles away. Some of them report as just 'fair' but totally watchable if I wanted to.

I just have the antenna in the attic, local pre-amp (power over coax) and the amp in the basement where I split the line.

 

[navychop]

Oops! More coffee was needed before I typed that nonsense, which I fixed. I have 2 (not 9) high VHF channels: 7 (ABC) and 9 (CBS).

How is it you can live so close to me and yet have such a God-awful experience? I can scan in something like 78 channels. I have no complaints about the AirTV dongle. Maybe you got a bad one?

Not gawd awful. But one major station (NBC) sometimes does not come in well. Not the strongest signal. But going thru the stations just now, I see no serious problems. I even get METV- but the EPG does not list any info or even program names.

Via the H3, I get 40 stations. Time of year? Will check later maybe using the Channel Master DVR.

I have the single tuner.

 

[TheKrell]

I have the single tuner.

Bingo! There's your problem.

 

[navychop]

CM DVR pulls in more stations and is faster.

I have my antenna on a rotor, from back when I unsuccessfully tried to bring in the Hagerstown stations.

 

[n0qcu]

The single tuner isn’t that bad I actually use the single tuner to scan as the dual tuner doesn’t always pick up all the channels during the scan but works great after you have the channels scanned in.