Anyone dropped cable and gone with a digital antenna?

[MoparMuscleGuy]

Anyone dropped cable and gone with a digital antenna? I currently pay 135.00 dollars a month for cable, internet and phones. I don't watch much TV and basically have it for the cartoons for my son Alexander. My neighbor just dropped cable and went to a digital antenna and picks up around 60 high definition channels, some of which are cartoon channels for my son. He paid 80.00 for the digital antenna. I was thinking of going this route and could save about 75.00 a month in cable expenses. MMG

 

[67Dart273]

Some incredibly obtuse musings from the nearly old


First, there is NO such thing as a "digital antenna." TV antennas are the very same right now today as they have always been, I.E. either VHF only, UHF only, or a combo of UHF/ VHF. There is a wide array of designs, intended to provide more or less gain depending on your distance / location from the transmitter(s) and local terrain (hills.)

One thing you need to do is some research to find out what stations there are, and where they are located. For example, in my area -- a "fringe" of the Spokane area, there are several digital repeaters/ translators, and for a couple of stations, these are in at least TWO locations, so in some cases you can receive the high power main transmitter, as well as two different repeaters rebroadcasting the same programs in low power

The other thing to realize is that digi TV suffers from the very same problems as the old analog sets--except that now it's nearly impossible to troubleshoot

One example is "ghosts." The proper term for this is "multipath," which means that due to reflections, the original signal AND a reflected signal(s) gets to the antenna AT DIFFERENT TIMES. This is what caused "ghosts" because you were receiving a reflected signal AT A DIFFERENT TIME, causing distortion and offset in the original signal.

WHY is this important? Because with digi TVs, you never SEE the ghost, but if it gets bad enough, your picture tiles or freezes, or the audio blanks, or the thing just freezes or goes completely blank.

The same idea is true of interferance of various sorts. Remember when granny next door went on a marathon vacuuming spree, and you were PO'd because your picture went to hell, and the audio sounded like the antique vacuum she used?

Well guess what. The SAME interferance can cause signal deterioration on your digi signal, --and it just tiles, freezes and quits.

Just trying to make you aware. If you are in a hugely strong signal area, you may not have these kinds of troubles. Make sure you buy an antenna appropriate for your area, and you might need a rotator, depending.

Once again, DO NOT get taken in by antenna hype. THERE IS NO SUCH THING as a "high def" or "digital" antenna, it's just marketing hype.

 

[Robbie2734]

X2 on 67dart273's response. I did get a new antenna and rotor, it works fine and I get 37 stations out of Philidelphia and none out of New York yet. New york used to transmit off the World Trade Center. I think once they get the new tower up that won't be a problem. I am tired of being ripped off by cable, poor service, no repair and very expensive.

 

[MoparMuscleGuy]

Good info. I would think more and more people will go this route(antenna). I'm sure most of you are just as sick and tired of your cable bill as I.

 

[moparshaker]

yeah its called digital tv, my dad uses the new antenna type for digital signal and pictures looks great, if you plan on splitting signal you need special equipment with it and the closer you are to a major city the more channels you will have. these antennas can get pricey too the more you need it to do.

 

[dustoff440]

I'm pissed at Direct TV and looking for an excuse to drop them. I would be very interested to see how it works out for you if you decide to do it.

 

[MoparMuscleGuy]

I'm pissed at Direct TV and looking for an excuse to drop them. I would be very interested to see how it works out for you if you decide to do it.

I'm looking at the antennas as we speak. I'm sick of Brighthouse cable. Can anyone recommend a good quality antenna?

 

[Wylde1]

I dropped my cable when I moved in October last year. Then I bought a 58" plasma tv in January. I still don't have cable or satellite yet. One of my movie night buds loaded up a 2 terabyte drive for me with tons of movies and tv shows. I'm still going nuts without my weekend car shows and racing. I was looking into the free-to-air boxes, but I'm still undecided.



Wylde1.

 

[67Dart273]

Can anyone recommend a good quality antenna?

Like I said earlier, first you need to research where the stations are and how strong they are in YOUR area. Here, I have one corner reflector pointed at a nearby hill to catch a few of the translators up there, but.....

The Spokane PBS channel(s) are not repeated locally, so I have a VHF/ UHF yagi/ corner combo on a 14 foot boom. This is a big, high gain antenna, but because of a hill that shadows the local Channel 2/ (CBS) and PBS (7) I sometimes cannot receive either.

By the way, the DISPLAYED channel number on your TV/ converter has nothing to do with the RF channel, I.E. a low displayed number could be EITHER UHF or VHF.

This is a huge irritant for me, because when you try to explain the "true" channel a station may be on, all the "other guy" sees is the displayed channel number.

 

[mullinax95]

Yes I did ... the best move I have made in awhile. I'm like you I don't watch that much TV. I installed a set of RABBIT EARS up in the attic,ran the wire down the wall and out a out let box to the TV, did a scan, bam I'm in business. Local news, FOX, ABC, etc....

 

[nuttyprof]

I don't use cable tv. I only get 4 chanels (rural Nebraska), but that's ok with me. I'd watch to much tv (and not get anything done on my car) if I had more!:toothy4:

 

[RustyRatRod]

I dropped doosh network over three years ago and mounted an airial on the roof. The converter box is where the digital part comes in. I get 12 channels. That's plenty. We thought we would miss satellite but we don't. We got DVD and VHS so we can watch what we want to.

 

[RedFish]

Cable comes about half way down my street and ends before reaching me. I dont want or need it anyway. Every time I get a promotional mailing from them I call and order the most complete package they offer. LOL

 

[AdamR]

I would love to drop cable or at least most of the channels and my internet but I hate ATT even more them comcast and have no other choice for internet.

 

[oneway71]

I have not had cable since 2003. Air antennae works fine for me.

The new digital signal sucks for the tiling and freezing issues mentioned above; although I like all the new channels available.

 

[swinger 367]

I have never had cable in this house (13 years) keeps me focused on doing stuff that needs to be done and working on my projects. That said I have a Terk antenna that I love. Digital stations come in great and in hi-def. Here is a link to Amazon, way cheaper than Best Buy [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Terk-FDTV1A-Digital-Directional-Amplified/dp/B001UE8KUW/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1305389273&sr=8-2"]Amazon.com: Terk FDTV1A Flat Digital Omni Directional Amplified Indoor Antenna (Black): Electronics[/ame]