❗ MAKE SURE TO WATCH MY UPDATED VIDEO ON THIS TOPIC BELOW 📺 th-cam.com/video/9118Hw8wZHA/w-d-xo.html UPDATE: Since I made this video Televes released an antenna combiner linked below that will not negatively impact reception: amzn.to/3zpj2XC
Sorry placed answer separate. Both reception problems just can only get channel 12 in bedroom which is 12.1,12.2,12.3,12.4,12.5,12.6. Living Room receives that & 5 different channels plus the extras for all the channels without turning antenna so no there is no reception problem has to be in house.
@@lisaa1134 Try using a powered splitter. If that doesn't work you are free to sign up for a consultation with me at the link below: antennamanpa.com/antenna-recommendations.html
There is a good way to combine different antennas without causing any interference, hook up each antenna to it's own HDHOMERUN device. Many smart TVs now have the HDHOMERUN app.
Antenna Man, I've watched several of your videos and just realized that there are no Um's or Ah's, you must know your stuff and prepare your dialog in advance, well done sir!
Hey Antenna Man love your reviews i’ve been getting over the air service since 2006 witch includes the conversion from analog to digital. Two years ago I started losing two stations.... I’m in 05356 at an altitude of 2000’ and pick up stations from Albany N.Y. my antenna faces south west I pick up NBC Fox WGBY and CBS but it constantly pixelates and drops out.... any suggestions. I have a Winegard 8700u and a Titan 7777 Pre-amp.
There is some good editing involved, but his delivery is good too. Short, concise, to the point, and a little bit of dry humor injected but not over the top. Thanks Antenna Man!
I just installed and am using a Winegard CC-7870 Antenna Coupler I bought on Amazon. Its doing a great job of interfacing my Clearstream 2V antenna facing northwest (that I am using for UHF channels in my area), and a homemade VHF Single Dipole antenna facing southeast tuned for channel 11 (28.1 inches in length, other VHF channels would benefit from their own calculated length). FULL DISCLOSER: The two antennas are shielded from each other and their signal direction by a distance of about 30 feet by using the house itself to isolate them, and then each antenna has a long run of RG6 Coax to the inside of the house where I am using the Winegard Combiner. Using a signal strength meter I have only noticed a 2-4% loss using this device, well tolerated for what its doing for me. Thank you Antenna Man for the wonderful and informative videos you have made. They have really helped us out here trying to cut the cord.
Two network TV tuners (ie: Hdhomerun), each one connecting to a different antenna, which will be facing a different directions. This way all device on your network gets all channels.
You are brilliant sir! Your solution is definitely another (albeit slightly more costly) solution. I’ve got one (hdhomerun dms 10631cca) and have it running thru my Plex server. Great little device!
👍💯👍Dude you the man. My grandfather was trying to hook up two different antennas and he wasn't getting all the channels he wanted and now I can let him know why. I appreciate your insight and advice. Thank's for the information because I didn't know either what he was doing wrong. You have become my go to guy for everything about this subject so please keep up the AWESOME job and I will keep watching and sharing your video's with as many people as I possibly can and I wanted let you know you are really helpful and I hope you will continue to help people like us out.
Antenna Man, you have an amazing and uncanny ability to convey realistic, practical, and just plain common-sense information about HDTV reception via antennas. A potential "cut-the-cable" devotee should be required to watch a few of your videos so (s)he would understand that you cannot pick up signals that just aren't there, no matter where you put an antenna or how much amplification you use. Well done! Please keep up the fine work.
The way to do it is with microwave filters it’s what I do at a large hospital. I have two antennas. One gets the majority of channels, the other gets the one channel that’s in a different direction. Each channel gets it own microwave filter for the actual RF frequency of the station then I combine them with a RF splitter and send it to a amp for distribution. The problem is it’s not practical for the home owner to do this because of cost. Love your channel you are right on the money with your information.
I am a extra class amateur radio operator and I have a pair of 2 meter Yagi antennas phased together on a pole with a rotator. that work exceptionally well. At first after i built these antennas, both identical, they would not load up properly at all. Then an old timer ham told me to turn the top one bottom side up . He said that one antenna was cancelling the other out. I did as I was told and they load perfectly and have worked for twenty years. I must add that I was using these antennas for transmitting so it might not make a difference for receiving.
I have two antennas pointed in different directions, 1 towards my local tower. The other is pointed towards a different country picking up their channels. I have no cross channel interference. I did make sure the cables going into the combiner were roughly the same length
I really hear you on that one. I had to move my antenna around five times until I finally found the sweet spot. That receives about 32 channels clearly all day.
When you receive plenty of Good Staions You do what the DEVO song says Whip it And Whip It Good But when you don't receive Any good station and your Pictures pixaleats Then you do what QUEEN sings Another One Bites The Dust Both songs are from 1980 The Analog years !
@2.00 - the ghosting picture example. The shock of watching an American antenna man 10,000 miles away talking about his local market and seeing a picture of a Melbourne, Australia news reader (Brian Henderson) and the even freakier scenario is that the TV studio is right next door to my apartment less than 500 feet away. Freaky man. Informative video by the way which is why I’m here.
I am successfully combining signals from two antennas mounted in my attic. I am about 15 miles from one set of broadcast towers and 35 from another cluster. I believe that there is a key point to maximize the chance for getting a good result: Try to have the two antennas pointed in directions 90 degrees apart. This puts the main "beam" of one antenna in the "null" of the other. I am fortunate that in my situation that arrangement matches the compass directions of the two transmit antenna clusters.
@@dennisgarber I would expect the results to depend very much on the actual side lobes of the two antennas being combined. My pair of antennas happen to work well (and have for 26 years now). I oriented each antenna in isolation for "their" set of channels before combining them, so I suppose that might be a good practice.
Very good about explaining the ghosts effect. I combine two antennas and I received extra channels. ( using vertical and horizontal antenna) You mention about grounding. I completely ground everything and I gained a total of 13 extra channels. Given me a total of 43 channels. But I need to add that my antennas are on top of my 108 foot Tower that I used for my amateur radio. Thank you for keeping it real Rev Damon A Conn
Back in the 70's I used to install antennas and we used what was called and area special which consisted of 4 antennas connected in a particular order using 300 ohm twin lead, that was supplied with the antennas, that were pre-cut to specific lengths. These antennas allowed every TV in the house to receive any channel and no rotor required. They worked great. If I recall they were made by Winegard.
You can combine antennas, different metro areas would have "area specials" where the antennas were configured properly with each other. One was Tampa Bay Special for instance for Tampa, since WTSP used to be located in Holiday, FL, while the rest are in Riverview, so WTSP got its own antenna.
Just want to thank you because this video inspired me into purchasing the 4max when I saw this video. Your videos have been very informative in helping one do there research and providing multiple options to think about. I have had the 4max since December. The only problem is I still haven’t bought a ladder long enough to get to my roof. So it been hooked up in the living room. Thanks again
Thanks for checking in. I'm glad my videos helped you get better reception. Feel free to give a contribution at the link below as I spend A LOT of time making the videos and responding to these comments: antennamanpa.com/support.html
If you have the right gear you can use an RF signal generator and a scope to precisely adjust the length of the two coax feeds to perfectly overlap the two signals. This is a major pain and won't help for reflection issues. i.e. if the multipath is somewhat unstable. Good chance you'll end up with a pile of extra coax on one of the feeds. Not the only way, but one way.
love this channel. I've had a combo roof antenna for a few years getting about 30 channels. This guy is gonna help me maximize the other towers nearby.
I have a Lava HD 8008 in the attic and it does great. I used their splitter and every TV in the house gets a great signal. It comes out of the box multi-directional.
Thx Tyler! This is the most understandable, concise, and useful post I have seen on the subject. Rock on dude, you are a knowledgeable educator. Peace!
4:37 This is awesome solution for RV (or home) as you can use omni ant but have option to pop up or second directional as necessary. Also you can mount 2 cheap or DIY antennas in different directions and switch easy by indoor switch. ❤️ Great channel. Thanks for sharing your knowledge. 👍👍👍
"Maybe they'll be some...PBS station that you don't really watch and it doesn't really matter"! There you go again, knocking the only network that some of us
Only if you can get the phase of the two exactly right. Lots of coax length tweaking. They may still sell variable delays for this purpose which allow for fraction of a picosecond delay changes. More or less a trombone type device inside a sealed can which changes the length of the signal path via a mechanical adjustment. Not cheap.
When combining 2 antennas (or any RF source for that matter) in the same frequency band with a simple RF combiner/splitter you have to make sure that both input signals have more or less the same Amplitude levels, otherwise the sideband of RF carriers on the stronger input will end up overlapping the adjacent RF carriers on the weaker input sinal. Try attenuating the stronger signal to the same amplitude level of the weaker signal before combining both. The resulting/combined signal can then be amplified
@@Pidalin That's correct. If you want to combine specific channels from antenna A with other specific channels on antena B, you should filter-out the unwanted/duplicate channels on both antenas (meaning, on Antenna A you should filter-out the channels that are already being picked up fine by Antenna B, and vice versa) - otherwise you will get multipath interference on the combined RF coaxial
@@miguelangeloconceicao738 It worked for me for some time when I was catching one multiplex with vertical polarization and rest of programs with standard horizontal polarization, when you have antenna in vertical polarization and there is only one transmitter with such polarization around, then you can just connect antennas together, horizontaly polarized signal is very weak on verticaly oriented antenna. We have transmitters with vertical polarisation only in two biggest cities which is like 200 km from each other so there is no interference. I heard that Slovaks changed all their transmitters to vertical polarisation for some reason, I guess such little country has problem with interferences from other countries, so that could be solution. We also have (here in Czechia) some problems with Polish transmitters, they have 100 kW transmitters literally on our border which is not kind from them, but it's good for people who like to catch foreign TV. Unfortunately Germans and Austrians made all transmitters very directional when they changed to DVB-T2 so catching their TV is almost imposibble now, but it solved interferences from their channels.
@@Pidalin question: two identical antennas, positioned one over the other on the same mast, pointing in the sane direction. if these signals are merged with a regular splitter, would it still have the 360 reception problem?
If you are going to use a "splitter backwards" you have to make sure: 1st, that the lengths of cable between the antenna and the splitter are exactly the same. 2nd, space the antennas a few feet apart so that they don't interfere with each other, 3rd, Use the same model antenna before combing..... Otherwise, you are absolutely certain to have ghosting or multipath issues. 📶
All my signals come from the "Towers" on top of South Mountain in Phoenix! 80 channels, some dupes but hard to beat. I use 1 of those figure 8 outdoor antennas.👍
Please a demonstration of two antennas connected to a RF switch. I tried connecting two antennas and had the multipath problems. I use a splitter/combiner. I like the idea of using the switch. Most of my channels come from Raleigh NC, but the closest PBS channel is from Lumberton NC.
At 4:29 you say to forget about directional antennas if I have stations north and south I’m not going to pick them up pointed west. That is exactly what I am doing. I live in Tennessee, exactly halfway between Chattanooga and Knoxville. I have a mountain to my west exactly 1/4 mile from my door to the foot of the mountain. There are 2 LP FM radio stations in top of that mountain. I have my antenna pointed straight at that mountain and I get all the Chattanooga Stations, all but one of the Knoxville stations (and nothing is on that channel I want to watch anyway) and one PBS affiliate from Atlanta, GA.
Setup 3 tv's each with their own antenna. In the 80s an evening magazine news story showed a family of 'couch potatoes' who had 5 or more tv's that they watched all at the same time. Maybe I can find that video on TH-cam.
Not all have luck with multiple dipoles, although it's worth a try. I happened to luck out: built a Gray-Hoverman antenna with no reflector. So I pull in channels from both Needham and Springfield, opposite directions --> same antenna. This is possible only because digital broadcasts have error-correction. 13 years ago my setup would not have worked out. Going to be interesting through the repack of course, since the two markets are in repack phases 4 and 8. I may lose some channels, and maybe gain one or two. I'll definitely lose the channel moving to low-VHF.
I take it you are in Massachusetts. I am getting ready to set up a second antenna, a CM 3020 to face eastward to Needham/Wellesley. I have a Mohu Leaf indoor/outdoor aimed toward Hartford, CT area. I am undecided about how to combine the antennas.
Have you set up the Channel Master yet? You might haphazardly pull in Hartford, Springfield etc. off-axis. Usually it doesn't work, but you may be surprised. I'm high on a hill in metropolitan Sturbridge. Most everything comes in well again, but WCVB didn't come back. They used to be my second-strongest signal after channel 2.
Quite a few months later, I got a channel master 4221 and rebuilt the damaged elements. Though it's a 4-bay UHF design, the high-VHF reception is strangely good. I even pick up WVIT which I'm not supposed to get at all.
I noticed that combining two antennas, you used different antennas with different cable lengths. I have had success using two of the same type of antennas (GE attic antennas) with the same length cable, in the same spot in the attic, pointed in different directions. Thanks for the videos.
This claim that matching identical antenna, identical cables, identical spots, and different directions, is something that needs to be tested like myth busters! Not only as to whether it works, but if any one or 2 of the 3 variables make a huge or small difference. I just bought a $79 Televes 560483 It worked great to combine a large attic antenna with an outside art piece antenna pointing 30 degrees apart. The televes balanced the signals and added them. No evidence of multipath. So, naturally, I am wondering if I wasted money. Most likely in my case I did not, because I was forced to use 2 antenna. I am also wondering if 30 degrees is not enough to create multipath or I got lucky, or if the tuners I tested or televes eliminated the multipath.
What would happen if you pointed identical antennas at the same tower and joined them with a combiner would the signal go up or would that cause issue. Gonna be an attic setup
Thank you for information. I have two antennas facing opposite directions. One toward Santa Barbara (west) local, the other toward L.A. (east) distance. Both have preamps. I have the splitter mentioned to switch between antennas. Only glitch is the TV set must be auto programmed for each antenna. Can't simply flip the antenna switch and expect the former programming to work. I'm still experimenting which is kind of fun. I'm 76 years old and when I was a young teen, my Dad and I loved to mess with crystal sets and antennas. BTW my antenna mount is about 8 feet above the roof line and I think I better run a guy wire as it's kind of shaky. Also couldn't drill through (tough mount) where they overlap to install a screw, so I spliced them together with one of the antenna mounts. Call it semi-stable.
You might benefit from this video. With the DTV box I use you can manually add channels so you wouldn't have to run rescans when changing direction. th-cam.com/video/xgIqk8Py3Fc/w-d-xo.html
Ghosting in the analog days was due to signal echo mostly because each signal arrived with a slight time delay. To be able to use both antennas, you need to have both antennas on the same pole with both antennas connected to the same plexer by 2 cable of the same lentgh this way, even though the antennas not facing the right direction stil get the signal, it is transported down the cable at the same time and speed as the other antenna.
Could feed each antenna into a separate networked tuner and set the display device to use the tuner based on channel. No combiner used this way and mismatched coax not an issue.
Another option to consider is hooking up 2 (or more) network TV tuners, like the SiliconDust HD HomeRun tuners. Connect one tuner to one antenna, another tuner to the 2nd antenna then combine the 2 tunes in your media server. My buddy used to do this with a small whip antenna for the local stations feeding one HD HomeRun and then had a long distance antenna for stations about 90* away with 1 or 2 additional tuners. I'm half way thinking of adding a 2nd antenna to pick up some Lo-VHF stations to the south of my main stations. I already have 2 HD HomeRun tuners, so would just need to separate them onto different antennas: th-cam.com/video/0h1tJQ-17Y0/w-d-xo.html
I really like this channel, great videos! I think there maybe another way to incorporate 2 or more antenna. With a pc install multiple tv tuner cards, hook one tv tuner card to a beam pointed at one market and have it scan the channels it can get and with another hooked to another antenna pointed at another market.
Not so much. If you look at the label on most 2-way splitters it says -3dB, which is the nerd way of saying your signal is cut in half for the two outputs. The antennas would have to be exactly in the same plane with respect to the broadcast station and have the exact same length of coax from each antenna to the splitter. Even with all that it's almost impossible to overcome the multipath. I did exactly as you proposed and hung 2 expensive long range antennas side by side in my attic connected with a splitter. Downstairs my tv showed only a minor gain on some channels while other channels did not even come on until I went back to a single antenna. The only other solution I have is to run an outside antenna once I get a ladder long enough. That being said, I noticed there are some posts here of people claiming that combining two antennas with a splitter DID work for them. I guess each experience will be different. Try it out it might work great for you.
I tried to connect 2 power antennas to the splitter. This didn't work. I found out that you have to use a bi-directional splitter. Like this one, Channel Plus 2512 DC/IR Passing Splitter/Combiner, 2-Way
All of my in market channels are UHF, but there are some out of market channels I would love to have that are high VHF. Glad there's a straight forward solution to this by using a VHF/UHF combiner. Also, that Stellar labs high VHF antenna model you reviewed seems like it will do the trick for tramsnitters about 50 miles away with no mountains in between.
Thanks for all the insight on installing antennas! I am a recent cord cutter and was wondering why I can’t get any VHF high band stations. I live approximately 14 miles from the majority of my market stations which are a blend of VHF lo/ hi and UHF frequencies. They are pretty much on axis with each other. There is a small mountain between my home and the stations. I have an outdoor Lava 8008 omni directional antenna (supposedly compatible with VHF and UHF) mounted where my satellite dish previously was installed. Due to HOA restrictions it had to go there so it’s about 15 feet off the ground. A top of roof mount is not an option. Also have a 25db booster installed in the house. Would a dual antenna setup work if I could combine the Omnidirectional with a unidirectional antenna or are the characteristics incompatible? I had also considered putting one antenna in the attic or would that not be a good setup because of the distance between the two antenna?
HOA restrictions on outdoor antennas are illegal. Visit the link below and present the law to your HOA: www.fcc.gov/media/over-air-reception-devices-rule
@@AntennaMan heck citizens have free travel rights in usa airspace, it's a us code, so this should include traveling our tv wavelengths right? Technically doesn't this make wifi, and television illegal to charge for? It's our information traveling, we have the right to unencumbered travel don't we?
Great vid, very informative. What if you have 2 markets in opposite directions and you use highly directional antennas, could that work to cut-out multipath? Is there any way to shield an antenna to make it even more directional, i.e. antenna blinders? maybe faraday shielding? Let's assume they both have vhf/uhf so first option is not possible.
A bi-directional broadband splitter can be used to combine the received signal from two antennas with the use of quality custom notch filters between each antenna and the splitter. We use them in the amateur radio and scanner world all the time for frequency isolation. You can purchase one or make one yourself. The frequency formulas can be found on the web.
(in a tone of astonished enlightenment) Aaahhh! So the multipath issue may explain why my two receiving antenna array in my attic blocks out digital channels 29 and 40, while digital channel 2 comes in fine. My attic antennas array consists of a CM-4228HD; with the digital channel 2 reception coming from a V shaped homemade antenna made out of PVC pipe. The recommendation, in this video, of UHF/VHF combiner may be the solution to the reception issue I have. In another video post comment, by Tyler GH, it was suggested to me about a cm3020 antenna to resolve the lo-VHF/high-VHF/UHF reception issue. I attempted that antenna attic install years ago, but the roof rafters extremely restricted its lateral movement of that antenna when it came to adjustments; where I could not receiving the low-VHF digital channels; so I scrapped that ChannelMaster antenna. Although in my HOA restricted community I can install an outdoor antenna, the issues with summer lightening storms, the gale-force winds from the thunderstorm micro-bursts, and the lack of confidence with local installers not to damage the roof or siding of the house with the antenna installation, discourages me from going to an outdoor install. Where I live, the selection of (ahem!) "professional" installers is slim, and I've heard about their handiwork on houses in my community. In addition, I'm at an age where climbing a 25 foot ladder, to reach the roof for a do-it-yourself antenna install, is not in the cards with me.
I hear you on the Not at age or desire to go up on roof or in the attic to do the install.. However.. Try looking up in your local area for ham radio operators... they are Expert in all aspects of needed antennas..coax feedlines..if needed using antenna pre-amp and or signal blaster within your home and far more
In spent hours tweaking the antenna direction to completely block out that religious channel, heaven forbid it spook the devil outta me! Thanks Antenna Man for the tips and great information!
In the 1970's many people in my area (WI) had a large rooftop antenna with a motor that permitted the antenna to be rotated 360 degrees from inside the home. Today, I don't see these being used anymore. Are they still available? Is this something you can address in future videos?
Question if you wanted to connect two or more Antennas to RAK Hotspot Miner. Is there a way, and what would you need to do it? Also how to use the same Antennas for over the air tv as well. Thank you Antenna Man.....
Thank you for the video. I’ve got a multi directional antenna that I have pretty high up in my attic right now it gets great signal strength Except for there’s this one channel that has a lot of pixelation. I was thinking of adding a directional antenna to pick up the One channel that is having issues. It is in a slightly different direction than all the other channels. I will use all cables that are exactly the same brand type in length. I have a channel plus signal combiner that allows for DC circuits to pass. I also have a preamp on the antenna I currently have. Should I leave the preamp on the one antenna or can I install the preamp after the combiner? Also, do you think a directional antenna is good to add a system to help pick up a channel that’s a little weaker than the others?
This is super helpful. I am not that far away, in central NJ, and have the problem that markets are basically 1/2 NYC (to the north) and 1/2 Philly (to the south) and each a mix of VHF/UHF. My house is oriented East-West under a metal roof with one area on the east-side of the attic (a small, hard-to-access chamber) to install antennas. So I have to aim antennas through the wall near the peak of the roof. I installed two within a few feet of each other, one pointed NE and the other pointed SE (hoping to grab signals from Philly and NYC), using two of the same model UHF/VHF antennas and equal lengths of cable connected to a passive splitter. I lost half my channels by connecting the second antenna. Surely this is related to interference as nothing else changed. The question is whether there is a powered device that can merge and resolve the signals? Is the situation hopeless? If anyone could help that would be great.
No power will only make the multipath interference worse. One option you can do is run two cable lines. Connect one to your TV directly and the other to a Tablo or AirTV and access the different market stations that way. If you need assistance I do service your area. My website is antennamanpa.com
After the repack, nothing worked for me until I got a directional antenna. It even works fine in the attic. But I had to choose between the nearby stations to the south and the northern stations 35 miles away. A rotator is not going to work here. Attic mounted is working fine but I have to choose my direction. Is there any chance that I could mount a sheet metal shield in the attic oriented from east to west, put a directional antenna on each side of it, then combine the signals with something like a Channelmaster Jointenna? Or would I still likely be getting multipath from the strong nearby stations to the south?
What will give a better stronger signal? Connecting cable in cellar from roof antenna to 4 way splitter with power booster from an omnidirectional antenna, then run from splitter upstairs or run directly to upstairs splitter to main tv then back to cellar splitter.
Thanks! As soon as I found your channel, I subscribed & started binging! You've got a *_ton_* of great info here. My wife & I have 2 phones, 3 computers, 2 smart TVs, & a dumb one. We've got cable & internet, but I can't actually get the one channel I watch, unless I hook up an antenna to the dumb flat-screen! With all the different services offered on various platforms, it's a confusing mess. Thanks for clearing up a lot of it. tavi.
In the NTSC days I would put tunable traps on antennas as each station was a different strength and direction. I took the local station which was blasting away from 6 miles away took an antenna tuned to its wavelength pointed directly at it and then attenuated it by 100db it was a perfect signal as it also knocked down the noise by 100db. The other channels were all filtered and levelled. Nowadays with the ATSC system ghosting is not that big of an issue. I know a fellow living in an apartment building and his balcony faced the wrong way to point an antenna in the direction to get his favorite station. He managed to get the signal by pointing antenna at another building an caught a reflection. ATSC aeems immune to ghosting.
There is the old solder diy way but thats a little more advanced, anyways its basically creating a phased array and this most likely increases the impedeance so a balun (300 ohm) may help there though thats only speculative
I just got a radio shack tv antenna and it really works great ! Can I hook up a clear tv antenna with it ? Will I be able to pick up more channels with it ?
The author gives some good info, but I would like to clarify a few things. Regardless of whether the signal is digital or analog, ghosting is caused by the reception of two out-of-phase signals. If a signal reflects off of a nearby tree, for example, this reflected signal will in turn recombine with the signal that reached the antenna by line of sight when it arrives at the antenna. The reflected signal has a longer path to travel, hence the out of phase reception. In the author's example, he mentions the two antennas being at right angles from each other, and if he has nearby trees or buildings, it is entirely plausible that this caused the out of phase condition. In any case, it is NOT the mere fact that two antennas are combined that is causing the problem, as long as they are equidistant from the station (read: mounted on a common mast). The same problem would be created if you use two different lengths of cable from the two antennas to the combiner. Combiners/splitters are lossy things, and you will lose at least HALF your signal power using them. The better choice (if you can find one) is a two-input signal amplifier. I have had great success combining a Stealth Hawk antenna with no reflector (receives on both broad faces - google it) for the direction(s) with nearer/stronger stations, and on the same mast, but 90 degrees rotated, a Gray Hoverman with no reflector (receives on both broad faces - google it) for the more distant/weaker stations. These are both designs available on the web to make your own antenna. I use a combiner with equal length feeder cables for now; but I am looking for a two input amplifier (I may build my own). BTW, who wants to waste time with an antenna rotation drive?
Tyler I am from Williamsport,Pa with my rooftop rig! I pull in penobscot mountain ! But becasue of WSWB ch.38 being on bald mountain the signal dosn't make it over Ricketts Glen to Williamsport! Is there anything I can do! And their tower is low!
In the old days we had "channel traps" which were just filters for specific channels. We had one antenna for channel 4 going through a channel 4 trap, an antenna for channel 6 going through a channel 6 trap, and a third antenna for the rest of the channels, These were combined on the antenna and then went down through the old 300 ohm twin lead to our television. *Everyone* in our area had multiple antennas on their roofs. There was simply no other way to get all of the channels except using a rotor which I don't recall anyone using.
Back 10 -15 years ago you could buy those traps from ChannelMaster, they were called JoinTenna. But they've replaced that product like now with a new "JoinTenna" that apparently does the notching automagically. I would consider this a 4th option.
If I combine 2 or 3 antenna pointing in different directions do I need a preamplifier on each or one after I combine them. Or should I use an amplifier? Thanks
Have you made sure your signals from both antennas are in 'phase' with each other? Retry your A-B test by changing the phase at the 300 ohm output of one of your antenna, if possible.
No I am in Pennsylvania. If you're in the market for an antenna consider a custom antenna recommendation from me at the link below. This can save you hundreds of dollars not wasted on buying and setting up the wrong antenna for your area. www.antennamanpa.com/antenna-recommendations.html
I live in a weak zone for reception. I'm very close to the Florida coast. I think if I lived more inland, my reception would probably be better. Been toying with ideas on trying to boost my signal.
Do you have to re scan the channels if you point your single rotor mounted antenna to a total different direction ? Then re scan the channels again when you want to go back to the original direction ?
We appreciate the effort you put into your productions; keep up the great work Tyler. Regarding combining antennas. In addition to having the cables from each antenna exactly the same length, you need to make sure it is the exact same brand because the "velocity factor" varies from brand to brand. Just make up your cables from the same roll. '73 Bob
I have two UHF only antennas pointed about 100º apart plus a long range VHF only antenna pointing about 180º from one of the UHF antennas. Each channel I pick up is a different frequency, so no multichannel interference for me. I combine all three antennas with a Televes three antenna combiner that comes with a two port power inserter/distribution amplifier. The cool thing about the Televes combiner is that you can adjust the gain for each antenna separately. That comes in handy because one of the UHF antennas has a long cable run before it gets to the combiner. This antenna has a Channel Master pre-amp. I dial down the gain on the combiner for this antenna so as not to over amplify the signal going to the TV. Finally I use quad shielded RG6 cable to maximize signal transmission and minimize interference. This presents a slight problem with the combiner as it is not designed for the extra thickness of quad cable. However, it was fairly easy to modify the the way the quad cable is fed into the combiner. Over all, I am very happy with the way this system works.
@@dennisgarberYes. As of last summer (2023) , I was able to pick up adequate signal from Vancouver BC (100 miles) on the UHF antennas, and Seattle (60 miles) on the VHF antenna. My modifications to accommodate the quad coax cable was to replace the stock clamps with large fender washers, which I filed to fit the space for the cable attachments. The newest Televes combiner has female F connector points. My modifications are not nesessary for this newest version.
I do not recommend omnidirectional antennas as they do not pick up weak stations well. Remember that amplifiers only make up for signal loss in a long coaxial cable. They do not make stations magically come in on a a junk omni directional antenna. It's best to purchase an antenna and point it towards your major market stations as the majority of out-of-market stations are duplicate and you would be sacrificing reception just to get them if you combine antennas.
using a seperate tune box for different facing antenna connected to its own hdmi input gets this done for me. I am not combining signals just seperate antennas for each tuner box.
I'm gonna have to do something like that soon. In my area, all of my TV channels were broadcasting from towers in the same general direction, but there's one station I watched a lot that moved the signal to halfway opposite direction of where my antenna is pointing at and therefore can no longer be picked up by that one antenna I have. Luckily I have some spare quality antennas laying around at home, so all I really need to do next is to get the splitter and perhaps some more knowledge on how to do this.
How about explaining the difference in a VHF Lo (channels 2-9) and VHF Hi (9-13) ? Isn’t a different size antenna required for Low ? A longer antenna for low and a shorter for hi ? Wider for the low narrow for the hi ?
Interesting.... I hav an indoor multi directional antenna covered in plastic. Other antenna is pointed towards RAL N.C with a basic splitter. Total channels, 53 ... long distance antenna I purchased from Ollie's for 20.00
❗ MAKE SURE TO WATCH MY UPDATED VIDEO ON THIS TOPIC BELOW 📺
th-cam.com/video/9118Hw8wZHA/w-d-xo.html
UPDATE: Since I made this video Televes released an antenna combiner linked below that will not negatively impact reception:
amzn.to/3zpj2XC
Sorry placed answer separate. Both reception problems just can only get channel 12 in bedroom which is 12.1,12.2,12.3,12.4,12.5,12.6. Living Room receives that & 5 different channels plus the extras for all the channels without turning antenna so no there is no reception problem has to be in house.
Could the cable be the issue? If it could be why are we receiving the one channel? I think this is why I am stumped.
@@lisaa1134 Try using a powered splitter. If that doesn't work you are free to sign up for a consultation with me at the link below: antennamanpa.com/antenna-recommendations.html
@Moshe Luke why are you invading her privacy?? That's kinda creepy dude I wouldn't brag about it.
There is a good way to combine different antennas without causing any interference, hook up each antenna to it's own HDHOMERUN device. Many smart TVs now have the HDHOMERUN app.
Antenna Man, I've watched several of your videos and just realized that there are no Um's or Ah's, you must know your stuff and prepare your dialog in advance, well done sir!
I've been an OTA TV hobbyist for nearly 20 years
Hey Antenna Man love your reviews i’ve been getting over the air service since 2006 witch includes the conversion from analog to digital. Two years ago I started losing two stations.... I’m in 05356 at an altitude of 2000’ and pick up stations from Albany N.Y. my antenna faces south west I pick up NBC Fox WGBY and CBS but it constantly pixelates and drops out.... any suggestions. I have a Winegard 8700u and a Titan 7777 Pre-amp.
Excellent observation thank you his delivery is so good
Heavy editing :-)
There is some good editing involved, but his delivery is good too. Short, concise, to the point, and a little bit of dry humor injected but not over the top. Thanks Antenna Man!
I just installed and am using a Winegard CC-7870 Antenna Coupler I bought on Amazon. Its doing a great job of interfacing my Clearstream 2V antenna facing northwest (that I am using for UHF channels in my area), and a homemade VHF Single Dipole antenna facing southeast tuned for channel 11 (28.1 inches in length, other VHF channels would benefit from their own calculated length). FULL DISCLOSER: The two antennas are shielded from each other and their signal direction by a distance of about 30 feet by using the house itself to isolate them, and then each antenna has a long run of RG6 Coax to the inside of the house where I am using the Winegard Combiner. Using a signal strength meter I have only noticed a 2-4% loss using this device, well tolerated for what its doing for me. Thank you Antenna Man for the wonderful and informative videos you have made. They have really helped us out here trying to cut the cord.
Two network TV tuners (ie: Hdhomerun), each one connecting to a different antenna, which will be facing a different directions. This way all device on your network gets all channels.
You are brilliant sir! Your solution is definitely another (albeit slightly more costly) solution. I’ve got one (hdhomerun dms 10631cca) and have it running thru my Plex server. Great little device!
👍💯👍Dude you the man. My grandfather was trying to hook up two different antennas and he wasn't getting all the channels he wanted and now I can let him know why. I appreciate your insight and advice. Thank's for the information because I didn't know either what he was doing wrong. You have become my go to guy for everything about this subject so please keep up the AWESOME job and I will keep watching and sharing your video's with as many people as I possibly can and I wanted let you know you are really helpful and I hope you will continue to help people like us out.
Antenna Man, you have an amazing and uncanny ability to convey realistic, practical, and just plain common-sense information about HDTV reception via antennas. A potential "cut-the-cable" devotee should be required to watch a few of your videos so (s)he would understand that you cannot pick up signals that just aren't there, no matter where you put an antenna or how much amplification you use.
Well done! Please keep up the fine work.
I do not own a television. I watch Tyler because of his excellence in presentation. He could give lessons.
The way to do it is with microwave filters it’s what I do at a large hospital. I have two antennas. One gets the majority of channels, the other gets the one channel that’s in a different direction. Each channel gets it own microwave filter for the actual RF frequency of the station then I combine them with a RF splitter and send it to a amp for distribution. The problem is it’s not practical for the home owner to do this because of cost. Love your channel you are right on the money with your information.
I am a extra class amateur radio operator and I have a pair of 2 meter Yagi antennas phased together on a pole with a rotator. that work exceptionally well. At first after i built these antennas, both identical, they would not load up properly at all. Then an old timer ham told me to turn the top one bottom side up . He said that one antenna was cancelling the other out. I did as I was told and they load perfectly and have worked for twenty years. I must add that I was using these antennas for transmitting so it might not make a difference for receiving.
I have two antennas pointed in different directions, 1 towards my local tower. The other is pointed towards a different country picking up their channels. I have no cross channel interference. I did make sure the cables going into the combiner were roughly the same length
I really hear you on that one. I had to move my antenna around five times until I finally found the sweet spot. That receives about 32 channels clearly all day.
2 TV Antennas got married.
The wedding was not so good.......
but the reception was Great !
*GROAN* LOL Good one.
Got that one loud and clear....
HA
When you receive plenty of
Good Staions
You do what the
DEVO song says Whip it
And Whip It Good
But when you don't receive
Any good station and your
Pictures pixaleats
Then you do what
QUEEN sings
Another One Bites The Dust
Both songs are from
1980 The Analog years !
Yes, but how was the wedding night??
@2.00 - the ghosting picture example. The shock of watching an American antenna man 10,000 miles away talking about his local market and seeing a picture of a Melbourne, Australia news reader (Brian Henderson) and the even freakier scenario is that the TV studio is right next door to my apartment less than 500 feet away. Freaky man.
Informative video by the way which is why I’m here.
I am successfully combining signals from two antennas mounted in my attic. I am about 15 miles from one set of broadcast towers and 35 from another cluster.
I believe that there is a key point to maximize the chance for getting a good result: Try to have the two antennas pointed in directions 90 degrees apart.
This puts the main "beam" of one antenna in the "null" of the other. I am fortunate that in my situation that arrangement matches the compass directions of the two transmit antenna clusters.
Good point, I'll give that a try.
This totally makes sense! I wonder if it usually always works in practice, with the expected exceptions, or always.
@@dennisgarber I would expect the results to depend very much on the actual side lobes of the two antennas being combined. My pair of antennas happen to work well (and have for 26 years now).
I oriented each antenna in isolation for "their" set of channels before combining them, so I suppose that might be a good practice.
Very good about explaining the ghosts effect.
I combine two antennas and I received extra channels.
( using vertical and horizontal antenna)
You mention about grounding.
I completely ground everything and
I gained a total of 13 extra channels.
Given me a total of 43 channels.
But I need to add that my antennas are on top of my 108 foot Tower that I used for my amateur radio.
Thank you for keeping it real
Rev Damon A Conn
Back in the 70's I used to install antennas and we used what was called and area special which consisted of 4 antennas connected in a particular order using 300 ohm twin lead, that was supplied with the antennas, that were pre-cut to specific lengths. These antennas allowed every TV in the house to receive any channel and no rotor required. They worked great. If I recall they were made by Winegard.
You can combine antennas, different metro areas would have "area specials" where the antennas were configured properly with each other. One was Tampa Bay Special for instance for Tampa, since WTSP used to be located in Holiday, FL, while the rest are in Riverview, so WTSP got its own antenna.
Just want to thank you because this video inspired me into purchasing the 4max when I saw this video. Your videos have been very informative in helping one do there research and providing multiple options to think about. I have had the 4max since December. The only problem is I still haven’t bought a ladder long enough to get to my roof. So it been hooked up in the living room. Thanks again
Thanks for checking in. I'm glad my videos helped you get better reception. Feel free to give a contribution at the link below as I spend A LOT of time making the videos and responding to these comments:
antennamanpa.com/support.html
Well done! PBS is weak in our area. To maximize our reception we use a pre-amplifier. Works great.
This guy knows his sh#t for sure
If you have the right gear you can use an RF signal generator and a scope to precisely adjust the length of the two coax feeds to perfectly overlap the two signals. This is a major pain and won't help for reflection issues. i.e. if the multipath is somewhat unstable. Good chance you'll end up with a pile of extra coax on one of the feeds. Not the only way, but one way.
love this channel. I've had a combo roof antenna for a few years getting about 30 channels. This guy is gonna help me maximize the other towers nearby.
I have a Lava HD 8008 in the attic and it does great. I used their splitter and every TV in the house gets a great signal. It comes out of the box multi-directional.
I just want to say thank you your advice!! The information is very useful! You saved me a lot of time.
Thanks again, have a great day!
I've spent lots of time trying to get this information. Very kind of you... Thanks!
Thx Tyler! This is the most understandable, concise, and useful post I have seen on the subject. Rock on dude, you are a knowledgeable educator. Peace!
Thanks make sure you're subscribed to my channel I'm working hard on a reception improvement video.
@@AntennaMan do you do work around Harveys Lake Pa
4:37 This is awesome solution for RV (or home) as you can use omni ant but have option to pop up or second directional as necessary. Also you can mount 2 cheap or DIY antennas in different directions and switch easy by indoor switch. ❤️ Great channel. Thanks for sharing your knowledge. 👍👍👍
You can also use notch filters before the combiner. They can be purchased in 5 channel increments. They are quite common in the CATV industry.
Tylar, I would like some guidance but do not need a lot of oversite. Do you have a low help plan Sir ??? Thanks V
I offer direct assistance at the link below: www.antennamanpa.com/antenna-recommendations.html
Also add notch filters to remove the signal from the antenna in the wrong direction for each channel that is lost to multipath.
good idea but those are expensive.
@@burblegobble Notch filters should still have been covered.
"Maybe they'll be some...PBS station that you don't really watch and it doesn't really matter"!
There you go again, knocking the only network that some of us
It's because you're a victim! Always remember, being a victim releases you from accepting responsibility for where you're at in life.
Putting two antennas together gives you a lot more gain.Add a pre amp and pick up alot more channels.
Only if you can get the phase of the two exactly right. Lots of coax length tweaking. They may still sell variable delays for this purpose which allow for fraction of a picosecond delay changes. More or less a trombone type device inside a sealed can which changes the length of the signal path via a mechanical adjustment. Not cheap.
I like your channel, wish this was around like 20yrs ago playing with my antenna outside.
I've used a 2way splitter for 2 antenna. Worked out for me
Me too. I get over 100 channels.
When combining 2 antennas (or any RF source for that matter) in the same frequency band with a simple RF combiner/splitter you have to make sure that both input signals have more or less the same Amplitude levels, otherwise the sideband of RF carriers on the stronger input will end up overlapping the adjacent RF carriers on the weaker input sinal. Try attenuating the stronger signal to the same amplitude level of the weaker signal before combining both. The resulting/combined signal can then be amplified
when you just connect 2 antennas together without channel filters, you literally create 360° antenna, which is obviously bad idea
@@Pidalin That's correct. If you want to combine specific channels from antenna A with other specific channels on antena B, you should filter-out the unwanted/duplicate channels on both antenas (meaning, on Antenna A you should filter-out the channels that are already being picked up fine by Antenna B, and vice versa) - otherwise you will get multipath interference on the combined RF coaxial
@@miguelangeloconceicao738 It worked for me for some time when I was catching one multiplex with vertical polarization and rest of programs with standard horizontal polarization, when you have antenna in vertical polarization and there is only one transmitter with such polarization around, then you can just connect antennas together, horizontaly polarized signal is very weak on verticaly oriented antenna. We have transmitters with vertical polarisation only in two biggest cities which is like 200 km from each other so there is no interference.
I heard that Slovaks changed all their transmitters to vertical polarisation for some reason, I guess such little country has problem with interferences from other countries, so that could be solution. We also have (here in Czechia) some problems with Polish transmitters, they have 100 kW transmitters literally on our border which is not kind from them, but it's good for people who like to catch foreign TV. Unfortunately Germans and Austrians made all transmitters very directional when they changed to DVB-T2 so catching their TV is almost imposibble now, but it solved interferences from their channels.
@@Pidalin question: two identical antennas, positioned one over the other on the same mast, pointing in the sane direction. if these signals are merged with a regular splitter, would it still have the 360 reception problem?
If you are going to use a "splitter backwards" you have to make sure:
1st, that the lengths of cable between the antenna and the splitter are exactly the same.
2nd, space the antennas a few feet apart so that they don't interfere with each other,
3rd, Use the same model antenna before combing.....
Otherwise, you are absolutely certain to have ghosting or multipath issues.
📶
very good video! well spoken and quick and to the point.
All my signals come from the "Towers" on top of South Mountain in Phoenix!
80 channels, some dupes but hard to beat.
I use 1 of those figure 8 outdoor antennas.👍
Dang that 80 channels would be nice.
@@VROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM 80 channels for free is amazing!
Please a demonstration of two antennas connected to a RF switch. I tried connecting two antennas and had the multipath problems. I use a splitter/combiner. I like the idea of using the switch. Most of my channels come from Raleigh NC, but the closest PBS channel is from Lumberton NC.
Try this preamp. It separates the VHF and UHF inputs to limit the multipath interference:
amzn.to/2npMxqx
At 4:29 you say to forget about directional antennas if I have stations north and south I’m not going to pick them up pointed west. That is exactly what I am doing. I live in Tennessee, exactly halfway between Chattanooga and Knoxville. I have a mountain to my west exactly 1/4 mile from my door to the foot of the mountain. There are 2 LP FM radio stations in top of that mountain. I have my antenna pointed straight at that mountain and I get all the Chattanooga Stations, all but one of the Knoxville stations (and nothing is on that channel I want to watch anyway) and one PBS affiliate from Atlanta, GA.
thank you for this information. you explain things in a way that i can understand.
Every topic i look up, you have a video for. Well done sir
Having a triangl tower I would like to have three separate antennas. How would one hook these together, using one coax to television?
You'll probably kill your signal if you connect all three together. Maybe two combined and an A/B switcher.
Setup 3 tv's each with their own antenna. In the 80s an evening magazine news story showed a family of 'couch potatoes' who had 5 or more tv's that they watched all at the same time. Maybe I can find that video on TH-cam.
Not all have luck with multiple dipoles, although it's worth a try. I happened to luck out: built a Gray-Hoverman antenna with no reflector. So I pull in channels from both Needham and Springfield, opposite directions --> same antenna. This is possible only because digital broadcasts have error-correction. 13 years ago my setup would not have worked out.
Going to be interesting through the repack of course, since the two markets are in repack phases 4 and 8. I may lose some channels, and maybe gain one or two. I'll definitely lose the channel moving to low-VHF.
I take it you are in Massachusetts. I am getting ready to set up a second antenna, a CM 3020 to face eastward to Needham/Wellesley. I have a Mohu Leaf indoor/outdoor aimed toward Hartford, CT area. I am undecided about how to
combine the antennas.
Have you set up the Channel Master yet? You might haphazardly pull in Hartford, Springfield etc. off-axis. Usually it doesn't work, but you may be surprised.
I'm high on a hill in metropolitan Sturbridge. Most everything comes in well again, but WCVB didn't come back. They used to be my second-strongest signal after channel 2.
Quite a few months later, I got a channel master 4221 and rebuilt the damaged elements. Though it's a 4-bay UHF design, the high-VHF reception is strangely good. I even pick up WVIT which I'm not supposed to get at all.
I noticed that combining two antennas, you used different antennas with different cable lengths. I have had success using two of the same type of antennas (GE attic antennas) with the same length cable, in the same spot in the attic, pointed in different directions. Thanks for the videos.
Yes, I've been told that's the trick.
This claim that matching identical antenna, identical cables, identical spots, and different directions, is something that needs to be tested like myth busters! Not only as to whether it works, but if any one or 2 of the 3 variables make a huge or small difference.
I just bought a $79 Televes 560483
It worked great to combine a large attic antenna with an outside art piece antenna pointing 30 degrees apart. The televes balanced the signals and added them. No evidence of multipath. So, naturally, I am wondering if I wasted money. Most likely in my case I did not, because I was forced to use 2 antenna. I am also wondering if 30 degrees is not enough to create multipath or I got lucky, or if the tuners I tested or televes eliminated the multipath.
What would happen if you pointed identical antennas at the same tower and joined them with a combiner would the signal go up or would that cause issue. Gonna be an attic setup
Thank you for information. I have two antennas facing opposite directions. One toward Santa Barbara (west) local, the other toward L.A. (east) distance. Both have preamps. I have the splitter mentioned to switch between antennas. Only glitch is the TV set must be auto programmed for each antenna. Can't simply flip the antenna switch and expect the former programming to work. I'm still experimenting which is kind of fun. I'm 76 years old and when I was a young teen, my Dad and I loved to mess with crystal sets and antennas. BTW my antenna mount is about 8 feet above the roof line and I think I better run a guy wire as it's kind of shaky. Also couldn't drill through (tough mount) where they overlap to install a screw, so I spliced them together with one of the antenna mounts. Call it semi-stable.
You might benefit from this video. With the DTV box I use you can manually add channels so you wouldn't have to run rescans when changing direction.
th-cam.com/video/xgIqk8Py3Fc/w-d-xo.html
@1:48 had that idea a few years back, thanks for putting it to rest-in a good way :)
Ghosting in the analog days was due to signal echo mostly because each signal arrived with a slight time delay. To be able to use both antennas, you need to have both antennas on the same pole with both antennas connected to the same plexer by 2 cable of the same lentgh this way, even though the antennas not facing the right direction stil get the signal, it is transported down the cable at the same time and speed as the other antenna.
Could feed each antenna into a separate networked tuner and set the display device to use the tuner based on channel. No combiner used this way and mismatched coax not an issue.
Another option to consider is hooking up 2 (or more) network TV tuners, like the SiliconDust HD HomeRun tuners. Connect one tuner to one antenna, another tuner to the 2nd antenna then combine the 2 tunes in your media server. My buddy used to do this with a small whip antenna for the local stations feeding one HD HomeRun and then had a long distance antenna for stations about 90* away with 1 or 2 additional tuners.
I'm half way thinking of adding a 2nd antenna to pick up some Lo-VHF stations to the south of my main stations. I already have 2 HD HomeRun tuners, so would just need to separate them onto different antennas:
th-cam.com/video/0h1tJQ-17Y0/w-d-xo.html
This is a brilliant idea.....
I really like this channel, great videos! I think there maybe another way to incorporate 2 or more antenna. With a pc install multiple tv tuner cards, hook one tv tuner card to a beam pointed at one market and have it scan the channels it can get and with another hooked to another antenna pointed at another market.
What if i combine two antennas pointing in the same direction with a splitter would it give me a stronger signal?
Not so much. If you look at the label on most 2-way splitters it says -3dB, which is the nerd way of saying your signal is cut in half for the two outputs. The antennas would have to be exactly in the same plane with respect to the broadcast station and have the exact same length of coax from each antenna to the splitter. Even with all that it's almost impossible to overcome the multipath. I did exactly as you proposed and hung 2 expensive long range antennas side by side in my attic connected with a splitter. Downstairs my tv showed only a minor gain on some channels while other channels did not even come on until I went back to a single antenna. The only other solution I have is to run an outside antenna once I get a ladder long enough.
That being said, I noticed there are some posts here of people claiming that combining two antennas with a splitter DID work for them. I guess each experience will be different. Try it out it might work great for you.
Nobody knows more about anthennas than Tyler
I tried to connect 2 power antennas to the splitter. This didn't work. I found out that you have to use a bi-directional splitter. Like this one, Channel Plus 2512 DC/IR Passing Splitter/Combiner, 2-Way
All of my in market channels are UHF, but there are some out of market channels I would love to have that are high VHF. Glad there's a straight forward solution to this by using a VHF/UHF combiner. Also, that Stellar labs high VHF antenna model you reviewed seems like it will do the trick for tramsnitters about 50 miles away with no mountains in between.
Thanks for all the insight on installing antennas! I am a recent cord cutter and was wondering why I can’t get any VHF high band stations. I live approximately 14 miles from the majority of my market stations which are a blend of VHF lo/ hi and UHF frequencies. They are pretty much on axis with each other. There is a small mountain between my home and the stations. I have an outdoor Lava 8008 omni directional antenna (supposedly compatible with VHF and UHF) mounted where my satellite dish previously was installed. Due to HOA restrictions it had to go there so it’s about 15 feet off the ground. A top of roof mount is not an option. Also have a 25db booster installed in the house. Would a dual antenna setup work if I could combine the Omnidirectional with a unidirectional antenna or are the characteristics incompatible? I had also considered putting one antenna in the attic or would that not be a good setup because of the distance between the two antenna?
HOA restrictions on outdoor antennas are illegal. Visit the link below and present the law to your HOA: www.fcc.gov/media/over-air-reception-devices-rule
@@AntennaMan heck citizens have free travel rights in usa airspace, it's a us code, so this should include traveling our tv wavelengths right? Technically doesn't this make wifi, and television illegal to charge for? It's our information traveling, we have the right to unencumbered travel don't we?
great info, what about the Winegard CC-7870 (or similar) it might be hard to find any more.
Great vid, very informative. What if you have 2 markets in opposite directions and you use highly directional antennas, could that work to cut-out multipath? Is there any way to shield an antenna to make it even more directional, i.e. antenna blinders? maybe faraday shielding? Let's assume they both have vhf/uhf so first option is not possible.
A bi-directional broadband splitter can be used to combine the received signal from two antennas with the use of quality custom notch filters between each antenna and the splitter. We use them in the amateur radio and scanner world all the time for frequency isolation. You can purchase one or make one yourself. The frequency formulas can be found on the web.
(in a tone of astonished enlightenment) Aaahhh! So the multipath issue may explain why my two receiving antenna array in my attic blocks out digital channels 29 and 40, while digital channel 2 comes in fine. My attic antennas array consists of a CM-4228HD; with the digital channel 2 reception coming from a V shaped homemade antenna made out of PVC pipe. The recommendation, in this video, of UHF/VHF combiner may be the solution to the reception issue I have.
In another video post comment, by Tyler GH, it was suggested to me about a cm3020 antenna to resolve the lo-VHF/high-VHF/UHF reception issue. I attempted that antenna attic install years ago, but the roof rafters extremely restricted its lateral movement of that antenna when it came to adjustments; where I could not receiving the low-VHF digital channels; so I scrapped that ChannelMaster antenna.
Although in my HOA restricted community I can install an outdoor antenna, the issues with summer lightening storms, the gale-force winds from the thunderstorm micro-bursts, and the lack of confidence with local installers not to damage the roof or siding of the house with the antenna installation, discourages me from going to an outdoor install. Where I live, the selection of (ahem!) "professional" installers is slim, and I've heard about their handiwork on houses in my community. In addition, I'm at an age where climbing a 25 foot ladder, to reach the roof for a do-it-yourself antenna install, is not in the cards with me.
I hear you on the Not at age or desire to go up on roof or in the attic to do the install..
However..
Try looking up in your local area for ham radio operators... they are Expert in all aspects of needed antennas..coax feedlines..if needed using antenna pre-amp and or signal blaster within your home and far more
In spent hours tweaking the antenna direction to completely block out that religious channel, heaven forbid it spook the devil outta me!
Thanks Antenna Man for the tips and great information!
In the 1970's many people in my area (WI) had a large rooftop antenna with a motor that permitted the antenna to be rotated 360 degrees from inside the home. Today, I don't see these being used anymore. Are they still available? Is this something you can address in future videos?
Question if you wanted to connect two or more Antennas to RAK Hotspot Miner. Is there a way, and what would you need to do it? Also how to use the same Antennas for over the air tv as well. Thank you Antenna Man.....
Thank you for the video. I’ve got a multi directional antenna that I have pretty high up in my attic right now it gets great signal strength Except for there’s this one channel that has a lot of pixelation. I was thinking of adding a directional antenna to pick up the One channel that is having issues. It is in a slightly different direction than all the other channels. I will use all cables that are exactly the same brand type in length. I have a channel plus signal combiner that allows for DC circuits to pass. I also have a preamp on the antenna I currently have. Should I leave the preamp on the one antenna or can I install the preamp after the combiner? Also, do you think a directional antenna is good to add a system to help pick up a channel that’s a little weaker than the others?
This is super helpful. I am not that far away, in central NJ, and have the problem that markets are basically 1/2 NYC (to the north) and 1/2 Philly (to the south) and each a mix of VHF/UHF. My house is oriented East-West under a metal roof with one area on the east-side of the attic (a small, hard-to-access chamber) to install antennas. So I have to aim antennas through the wall near the peak of the roof. I installed two within a few feet of each other, one pointed NE and the other pointed SE (hoping to grab signals from Philly and NYC), using two of the same model UHF/VHF antennas and equal lengths of cable connected to a passive splitter. I lost half my channels by connecting the second antenna. Surely this is related to interference as nothing else changed. The question is whether there is a powered device that can merge and resolve the signals? Is the situation hopeless? If anyone could help that would be great.
No power will only make the multipath interference worse. One option you can do is run two cable lines. Connect one to your TV directly and the other to a Tablo or AirTV and access the different market stations that way. If you need assistance I do service your area. My website is antennamanpa.com
Locast.org
I have had good results with two antennas by using the exact matched lengths of RG6 from antenna to 2-way splitter.
I have too, it seems to help keeping each coax to the splitter as short as possible as well.
Different antenna?
After the repack, nothing worked for me until I got a directional antenna. It even works fine in the attic. But I had to choose between the nearby stations to the south and the northern stations 35 miles away. A rotator is not going to work here. Attic mounted is working fine but I have to choose my direction. Is there any chance that I could mount a sheet metal shield in the attic oriented from east to west, put a directional antenna on each side of it, then combine the signals with something like a Channelmaster Jointenna? Or would I still likely be getting multipath from the strong nearby stations to the south?
Channelmaster Jointenna would still give mutlipath. You can try it but a good chance you'll kill some stations when you combine the two antennas
Is it better to use a converter box rather then the back of the tv?
What will give a better stronger signal? Connecting cable in cellar from roof antenna to 4 way splitter with power booster from an omnidirectional antenna, then run from splitter upstairs or run directly to upstairs splitter to main tv then back to cellar splitter.
Antenna consulting is available at the following link: www.antennamanpa.com/antenna-recommendations.html
you are straight up and that what i like about you if its good you say it if it sucks you tell it like it is
Can two antennas, both pointing in the same direction be combined to give increased signal strength?
Thanks! As soon as I found your channel, I subscribed & started binging! You've got a *_ton_* of great info here. My wife & I have 2 phones, 3 computers, 2 smart TVs, & a dumb one. We've got cable & internet, but I can't actually get the one channel I watch, unless I hook up an antenna to the dumb flat-screen! With all the different services offered on various platforms, it's a confusing mess. Thanks for clearing up a lot of it. tavi.
In the NTSC days I would put tunable traps on antennas as each station was a different strength and direction.
I took the local station which was blasting away from 6 miles away took an antenna tuned to its wavelength pointed directly at it and then attenuated it by 100db it was a perfect signal as it also knocked down the noise by 100db.
The other channels were all filtered and levelled.
Nowadays with the ATSC system ghosting is not that big of an issue.
I know a fellow living in an apartment building and his balcony faced the wrong way to point an antenna in the direction to get his favorite station. He managed to get the signal by pointing antenna at another building an caught a reflection. ATSC aeems immune to ghosting.
Thank you for the video, you answered a lot of my questions.
Have you tried the Channel Master, jointenna, cm-0500 ?
Yes, works for me.
There is the old solder diy way but thats a little more advanced, anyways its basically creating a phased array and this most likely increases the impedeance so a balun (300 ohm) may help there though thats only speculative
Two tuners SilconDust box for example. I am in the KickStarter ATSC 3.0 and you just gave me a great use for my current digital tuner box.
I just got a radio shack tv antenna and it really works great ! Can I hook up a clear tv antenna with it ? Will I be able to pick up more channels with it ?
The author gives some good info, but I would like to clarify a few things.
Regardless of whether the signal is digital or analog, ghosting is caused by the reception of two out-of-phase signals. If a signal reflects off of a nearby tree, for example, this reflected signal will in turn recombine with the signal that reached the antenna by line of sight when it arrives at the antenna. The reflected signal has a longer path to travel, hence the out of phase reception. In the author's example, he mentions the two antennas being at right angles from each other, and if he has nearby trees or buildings, it is entirely plausible that this caused the out of phase condition.
In any case, it is NOT the mere fact that two antennas are combined that is causing the problem, as long as they are equidistant from the station (read: mounted on a common mast). The same problem would be created if you use two different lengths of cable from the two antennas to the combiner.
Combiners/splitters are lossy things, and you will lose at least HALF your signal power using them. The better choice (if you can find one) is a two-input signal amplifier.
I have had great success combining a Stealth Hawk antenna with no reflector (receives on both broad faces - google it) for the direction(s) with nearer/stronger stations, and on the same mast, but 90 degrees rotated, a Gray Hoverman with no reflector (receives on both broad faces - google it) for the more distant/weaker stations. These are both designs available on the web to make your own antenna. I use a combiner with equal length feeder cables for now; but I am looking for a two input amplifier (I may build my own).
BTW, who wants to waste time with an antenna rotation drive?
Tyler I am from Williamsport,Pa with my rooftop rig! I pull in penobscot mountain ! But becasue of WSWB ch.38 being on bald mountain the signal dosn't make it over Ricketts Glen to Williamsport! Is there anything I can do! And their tower is low!
Unfortunately no the CW is a smaller station. I can't get them where I'm at either.
@@AntennaMan Thanks for getting back:)
In the old days we had "channel traps" which were just filters for specific channels. We had one antenna for channel 4 going through a channel 4 trap, an antenna for channel 6 going through a channel 6 trap, and a third antenna for the rest of the channels, These were combined on the antenna and then went down through the old 300 ohm twin lead to our television.
*Everyone* in our area had multiple antennas on their roofs. There was simply no other way to get all of the channels except using a rotor which I don't recall anyone using.
Back 10 -15 years ago you could buy those traps from ChannelMaster, they were called JoinTenna. But they've replaced that product like now with a new "JoinTenna" that apparently does the notching automagically. I would consider this a 4th option.
If I combine 2 or 3 antenna pointing in different directions do I need a preamplifier on each or one after I combine them. Or should I use an amplifier? Thanks
You take two Clearstream 2Vs to make a 4V, or an 8V, or 128V
Can you put three or more to get signals from 3 different directions?
AM: What's your take on "Jointenna" products?
How do I hook up a digital TV box with my outside antenna with amplifier box on the inside of the house I need the digital TV box for the signal meter
You can bring the DTV box and a small TV set outside using an extension cord.
@@AntennaMan so the digital TV box won't work with this amplifier that came with my outside antenna
Have you made sure your signals from both antennas are in 'phase' with each other? Retry your A-B test by changing the phase at the 300 ohm output of one of your antenna, if possible.
Can you use this if all the signals are uhf but in different directions with two antennas
Are you in MA? looking at the map you showed. We're on Cape looking for an antenna, I've watched so many of your videos today to decide
No I am in Pennsylvania. If you're in the market for an antenna consider a custom antenna recommendation from me at the link below. This can save you hundreds of dollars not wasted on buying and setting up the wrong antenna for your area. www.antennamanpa.com/antenna-recommendations.html
I live in a weak zone for reception. I'm very close to the Florida coast. I think if I lived more inland, my reception would probably be better. Been toying with ideas on trying to boost my signal.
Do you have to re scan the channels if you point your single rotor mounted antenna to a total different direction ?
Then re scan the channels again when you want to go back to the original direction ?
We appreciate the effort you put into your productions; keep up the great work Tyler. Regarding combining antennas. In addition to having the cables from each antenna exactly the same length, you need to make sure it is the exact same brand because the "velocity factor" varies from brand to brand. Just make up your cables from the same roll. '73 Bob
I have two UHF only antennas pointed about 100º apart plus a long range VHF only antenna pointing about 180º from one of the UHF antennas. Each channel I pick up is a different frequency, so no multichannel interference for me. I combine all three antennas with a Televes three antenna combiner that comes with a two port power inserter/distribution amplifier. The cool thing about the Televes combiner is that you can adjust the gain for each antenna separately. That comes in handy because one of the UHF antennas has a long cable run before it gets to the combiner. This antenna has a Channel Master pre-amp. I dial down the gain on the combiner for this antenna so as not to over amplify the signal going to the TV. Finally I use quad shielded RG6 cable to maximize signal transmission and minimize interference. This presents a slight problem with the combiner as it is not designed for the extra thickness of quad cable. However, it was fairly easy to modify the the way the quad cable is fed into the combiner. Over all, I am very happy with the way this system works.
You bought the televes smart Kom 3 years ago. Is it still working well?
@@dennisgarberYes. As of last summer (2023) , I was able to pick up adequate signal from Vancouver BC (100 miles) on the UHF antennas, and Seattle (60 miles) on the VHF antenna.
My modifications to accommodate the quad coax cable was to replace the stock clamps with large fender washers, which I filed to fit the space for the cable attachments.
The newest Televes combiner has female F connector points. My modifications are not nesessary for this newest version.
I've got three in tennis hooked up together and one inside they're all on splitters they work good
What about using an omni-directional antenna with an amplifier to boost the weaker signals?
I do not recommend omnidirectional antennas as they do not pick up weak stations well. Remember that amplifiers only make up for signal loss in a long coaxial cable. They do not make stations magically come in on a a junk omni directional antenna. It's best to purchase an antenna and point it towards your major market stations as the majority of out-of-market stations are duplicate and you would be sacrificing reception just to get them if you combine antennas.
using a seperate tune box for different facing antenna connected to its own hdmi input gets this done for me. I am not combining signals just seperate antennas for each tuner box.
Yes, this is a good solution I'll mention in an updated version of this video soon.
I'm gonna have to do something like that soon. In my area, all of my TV channels were broadcasting from towers in the same general direction, but there's one station I watched a lot that moved the signal to halfway opposite direction of where my antenna is pointing at and therefore can no longer be picked up by that one antenna I have. Luckily I have some spare quality antennas laying around at home, so all I really need to do next is to get the splitter and perhaps some more knowledge on how to do this.
How about explaining the difference in a VHF Lo (channels 2-9) and VHF Hi (9-13) ? Isn’t a different size antenna required for Low ? A longer antenna for low and a shorter for hi ? Wider for the low narrow for the hi ?
The rf switcher you recommend you just use like a switch to change from one antenna to the other?
Interesting.... I hav an indoor multi directional antenna covered in plastic. Other antenna is pointed towards RAL N.C with a basic splitter. Total channels, 53 ... long distance antenna I purchased from Ollie's for 20.00