Subject came up since I just noticed an ad for Winegard Roadstar 3000, omidirectional TV antenna, in latest issue (June 2012) of Motor-home on page 15. The interesting point of the article is that Winegard claimed a 35 mile radius for the antenna.
As most people know by now since the government decided to switch television transmission of signals from analog to digital is that we are back to the good old days (1940's to 1950's) on how to build and aim antennas for best reception.
Since having delt with shortwave radio since 1950's and having purchased a Hammarlund HQ180 receiver back in 1963 I have constructed different antenna over the years. Anyone having done this understands how some of us keep tinkering with systems to get the most stations with our current HD televisions using OTA antennas.
Basicly there are two types of antennas; "Omnidirection" and "Directional". The worst is omnidirectional since it gets signals from any direction (no aiming). This is bad because to get a good signal from a long distance away you need to aim an antenna at the transmitter (or find the strongest bounce) and amplify the incoming signal to make it work in your current TV.
Current ranges for RV amplified antennas are:
Omnidirectional antenna: 35 miles (less for older models)
Directional Antenna (Winegard): 50 miles
D.A. with (Winegard Wingman): 65 miles
My Winegard Antenna with Wingman and an additional Radio Shack RF anplifier added in line just before TV input no gets about 105 miles this year (roughly level elevation).
Getting many stations means running the first auto search aimed at the nearest major city/town. Then aiming at alternate towns with transmitters using the Add search. This takes time.
For those who like to cheat the normal system and camp most the the year somwhere near home there is a way. This will work if your television also has a ADD stations Manualy function. My Insignia TV does.
I ran my Auto search (clears memory and starts fresh) at the storage yard close to home. Then keep all these stations in memory and add additional stations found using the "Add" search. Next camping location in state I do the same. The manual function then allows me to block (show or hide) stations not receiving signal at current location and keep the others in memory. Deleting them would remove the needed link.
The reason this works is that the television still holds links to all stations found in past searchs. It is possible to still get stations a long distance away if you keep that link in the TV. If the Television cannot find the link in Auto search you cannot get the station. This due to the fact that the antenna may not be pointed close enough to pick up the link.
* This post was
edited 05/01/12 05:48pm by MNtundraRet *
Mark & Jan "Old age & treachery win over youth & enthusiasm"
2003 Fleetwood Jamboree 29
I have had occasions when I moved hundreds of miles and still got the same staion on the same frequency.. Coincidence. it was not the same station at all but a different one that just happened to be the same "Channel number" and on the same broadcast frequency.
Though I know there are places I want to go in say 2015 where this will not be the case, Most everywhere I park now I get so much Over the Air, that paying for Sat-Tv would be stupid to the max.
That said. teh cable/sat companies would like the FCC to stop licensing TV broadcsaters and make us pay them for TV or go without. I think the FCC told 'em to take a hike, (I am no longer hearing ads about it on TV) but be aware the robbers over at Direc, Dish, Charter, AT&T, Comcast, and so on want us paying them for our TV, and of course assorted other companies want the bandwidth.
Anything to make our lives more expensive.
Nothin adds excitment like something that is none of your business
Kenwood TS-2000 housed in a 2005 Damon Intruder 377
I dont know if this would help. But this is a website that you punch in the zip code and it will show you where all the digital tranmitters for that zip code.
Can you give details about the RF Amp (model, cost, wiring req'd)? Also, what would be the range if you removed just the wingman from your present rig setup?
Also, which Insignia model does 'ADD Channels', and can you think of other common sets with that feature in the under 24" size?
We are mostly traveling in a 150 mi. radius, and go from 24 OTA channels to 1 at various locales. Have the standard Wingman with its green LED lit amp and the Happauge 950 USB tuner. I am not sure if the Happauge is a strong tuner or a bad one, but it takes 10 min to scan, and has no ADD Channels feature.
Can you give details about the RF Amp (model, cost, wiring req'd)? Also, what would be the range if you removed just the wingman from your present rig setup?
Also, which Insignia model does 'ADD Channels', and can you think of other common sets with that feature in the under 24" size?
We are mostly traveling in a 150 mi. radius, and go from 24 OTA channels to 1 at various locales. Have the standard Wingman with its green LED lit amp and the Happauge 950 USB tuner. I am not sure if the Happauge is a strong tuner or a bad one, but it takes 10 min to scan, and has no ADD Channels feature.
The model I use is: Radio Shack #15-2505, Bidirectional Cable TV Amplifier. They are less than $30. now. If you just type in "15-2505" in the Radio Shack site it will go straight to it for information.
The amplifier has a 120v AC adapter for power. I plug into an inverter when on battery. Since you want to amplifiy the best incoming signal possible, it is best to connect to output coaxial connection just after the Winegard Amplifier plate inside. Then connect this amplifier directly to television coax. input. Use the switch-box later if desired. I skip mine since I only use the one TV.
My Insignia (Best Buy) is the 19", LCD, 720p, model from about 2007. Find the search menu first: All options are on the menu including; Auto search, Add search, Signal strength meter, Manual add for showing or hiding channels stored in memory. My 40 inch Sony Bravia from 2006 also has all these features.
For any television just check the menu for initial channel searching for these features. Anyone working at any television department can do this for you.
As for your current setup I would suggest just purchasing the Radio Shack amplifier and test it on your system. They have a 30-day return policy so save the box and paperwork.
As for your current setup I would suggest just purchasing the Radio Shack amplifier and test it on your system. They have a 30-day return policy so save the box and paperwork.
Thnx for the TV menu info - will add much know how to shop beyond pic/sound and inputs..
I just have one TV (tuner), and the Winegard amplified antenna with no Wingman.
For a first try, for about $30, I can either get the RadioShack amp, or the Winegard snap-on Wingman. It appears you believe that the amp would bring in more OTA ststions than the Wingman option. Am I getting this right?
I have a regular batwing, with a wingman-like add on plus a amplifier that came with the TV. The TV has a digital tuner.
I also have a high end digital to analog converter left over from before I got a new lcd tv.
At my favorite campground, I found that if I point the antenae at the nearest tower using an app on my phone, and I scan for channels from scratch (not using add channels) I can get two or three channels.
However, if I use the analog to digital converter, without moving the antenae, using the same amplifier, and scan for channels from scratch (not using the add channels function), I can get 8-10.
This makes me think that the digital tuner might make some difference, and that perhaps some TVs come with a crappy built in tuner, and might not get as many channels as other tuners.
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