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Old 08-09-2012, 02:18 PM   #1
jwedell
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Over the air antenna use

We canceled direct tv because every time we changed something (added a reciever or changed to a dvr) they renewed our contract to 2 years. I was just wondering if anyone just used the over the air antenna and how reception was when they were traveling.
 
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Old 08-09-2012, 02:29 PM   #2
lfw
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We have used the over the air antenna with the wingman ...for about 5 years with very few problems.. I also have 3 boosters that I use in case we have a weak signal. We have only been in 3 campgrounds where we could not get a tv station..we know this ahead of time.. I use a website to check the signal in the campground before we get there and know what direction to point the wingman...

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Old 08-09-2012, 03:01 PM   #3
steelpony5555
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If you buy your own antenna and receiver there is no contract. You can get it all for around $300 and I have
Dish that I can stop and start when I want.
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Old 08-09-2012, 03:17 PM   #4
BB_TX
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As long as you are within 40-50 miles of the transmission towers (meaning major cities), you can usually get good antenna reception. After that it begins to fade. And local terrain has an effect also. But most parks have cable so you can usually get that if over the air is not available.
Just depends on where your travels take you.
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Old 08-09-2012, 03:26 PM   #5
richfaa
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Quote:
quote:Originally posted by jwedell

We canceled direct tv because every time we changed something (added a reciever or changed to a dvr) they renewed our contract to 2 years. I was just wondering if anyone just used the over the air antenna and how reception was when they were traveling.
That is odd. we have changed equipment over the years and never had to extend our contract?? The overv teh air antenna works just fine .

In remote areas there may be spotty reception.
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Old 08-09-2012, 03:57 PM   #6
jwedell
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richfaa,
If you add an additional reciever or change a standard reciever to a DVR they will extend your contract an additional 2 years even if you only have a few months left on the current contract. They did it to me twice without even telling me. I signed up in 2006 and the contract still wasn't up in 2011.
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Old 08-09-2012, 05:06 PM   #7
Rondo
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I took the "batwing" antenna off and put on a Jack antenna and could not believe the difference in reception. Before I could only get about 8-10 air channels and when I put the new antenna on I picked up 52. Some were just audio channels and a lot of repeat channels but it works like a champ! Glad Xnavydiver clued me in on it. I also use a Jack antenna out at the farm since I don't have Dish or Direct out there. It works OK out there too but I haven't put it on a pole yet just have it set up on the inside of the house looking out a window! I figure if I get it put up I'll pull in Kansas City stations!
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Old 08-10-2012, 02:14 AM   #8
DQDick
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They are a good option unless, like us, you spend a lot of time 70 miles away from the towers.
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Old 08-10-2012, 03:35 AM   #9
richfaa
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Quote:
quote:Originally posted by jwedell

richfaa,
If you add an additional reciever or change a standard reciever to a DVR they will extend your contract an additional 2 years even if you only have a few months left on the current contract. They did it to me twice without even telling me. I signed up in 2006 and the contract still wasn't up in 2011.
I will have to call them and check into that. We upgraded about a year ago to One DVDR and 3 HD receivers and the slimeline dish. I do not see anything in my account that says we extended the contract. I woud not care if they did but just curious.
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Old 08-10-2012, 04:24 AM   #10
c214dick
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No dish, no direct, just air. Bad reception we read, play cards or go SHOPPING
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Old 08-11-2012, 04:25 AM   #11
WorkerB
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lfw,
Would you please share the web site you use to check the signal strength and direction to point your OTA antenna? Thanks in advance,
John...... AKA WorkerB
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Old 08-11-2012, 04:27 AM   #12
grampachet
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I just got the Dish tailgater and so far am favorably impressed. I had (still have) the wingman, winegard digital booster and a clear view antenna from Costco but could have saved money if i had only got the tailgater first.
As others have said, no contract and seven dollars a month when it is used, providing you have Dish at the stick home.
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Old 08-11-2012, 04:37 AM   #13
oldelmer1
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Quote:
quote:Originally posted by WorkerB

lfw,
Would you please share the web site you use to check the signal strength and direction to point your OTA antenna? Thanks in advance,
John...... AKA WorkerB
Here is one that I've used before:

http://transition.fcc.gov/mb/engineering/maps/
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Old 08-11-2012, 04:53 AM   #14
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Thanks Tom!
John...... AKA WorkerB
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Old 08-11-2012, 05:46 AM   #15
8.1al
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Maybe I'm doing something wrong, according to that site there is no tv reception in Quartzsite.
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Old 08-11-2012, 07:10 AM   #16
WorkerB
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Hey Charlie,
I got the same result when I input 96121! I thought it was me.
Since going digital, service has been perfect or nothing acceptable. That's the way it is with digital. One's and zero's.
Some towns still offer analog signals and they degrade when you add distance and terrain to the equation. Overall, I use the OTA antenna to get the major ABC, NBC, CBS channels. Satellite to get the latest political BUZZ.

John..... AKA WorkerB
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Old 08-11-2012, 07:28 PM   #17
drknapp
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Quote:
quote:Originally posted by WorkerB

lfw,
Would you please share the web site you use to check the signal strength and direction to point your OTA antenna? Thanks in advance,
John...... AKA WorkerB
Here is another I use that's not too bad: http://www.tvfool.com/
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Old 08-12-2012, 02:16 AM   #18
WorkerB
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Drknapp (Dave),
Outstanding! Excellent info.
Thanks,
John...... AKA Workerb
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Old 08-12-2012, 04:14 AM   #19
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I checked both those mapping tools and according to them I have a wonderful variety of TV stations out here in the boonies. The problem is it's a lie. The reason they're wrong is that they are using the coverage maps provided by the stations to justify what they charge for advertising. I fought with Dairy Queen over this for years. In Council Grove, where the store is located (16 miles closer to the stations than I am), you can't buy a single part for an over the air antenna in either hardware store. If you asked them why they'll explain that they just don't work here and so there is no need to stock parts. Any home that can afford it has either satellite or cable. The stations, however, want to claim as much coverage as possible so if their signal occasionally skips out to some far point, or gets there in the winter but not in the summer heat, they'll claim everything in between. Before DQ started buying mostly cable my ad dollars were almost completely wasted because my customers never saw the commercials. Worse than that sometimes they came in asking for a new product we didn't have because they saw it being tested on either the East or West coast feeds on the satellite. I got deeply involved in this because we were talking about over $40,000 per year going down the drain and we couldn't afford to waste 50¢.
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Old 08-12-2012, 08:08 AM   #20
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I use both of those mapping tools but doing so I that them as a rough guide. Sometimes they are spot on - usually they are about 50% accurate.

Sometimes I get more stations than they say - sometimes less.

Where they've helped me out on a regular basis is when I'm somewhere marginal - on the edge of no coverage. I can see where the towers are and point the antenna accordingly. It's often allowed me to pull something in and get to watch that network show that I thought we were going to miss.
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