Digital HD Antennas

[rosebud5]

I wanted to move away from Hulu and streaming and ask about my next curious topic. Who uses a digital HD antenna to get local stations? How successful are you? Do you get a good picture? Do you get all the local channels (ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox, PBS, etc). If you do get local channels, do you know how far you are from the transmitters?

Finally, if you do get local stations, what HD antenna do you use?

 

[buzglyd]

I use them in San Diego but I live on top of a hill and pull in all the locals plus even Mexican stations crystal clear in HD with a cheap Amazon $20 antenna.

That being said, it depends on where you live and how close you are and/or clear shot to the towers. You might want to check The Wirecutter or Techhive for reviews. Start with the cheap option and work your way up.

 

[R1964]

I cut the cord 4 years ago and never looked back. I live about 30 to 40 miles away from the transmitters and have the antenna mounted in my attic and use my existing cable wiring to get the signal from the antenna to my TV's. I get 20 stations OTA all the majors and the sub-channels. I use a Televes Diginova Boss antenna and it works great and all channels come in at full signal strength. Check out antennaweb.org and put in your address and it will tell you how many station you can get OTA and the direction of the signals to your home. Best move I ever made and I save $100 per month by not having to pay for cable anymore. Hope this helps you.

 

[Brett]

I wanted to move away from Hulu and streaming and ask about my next curious topic. Who uses a digital HD antenna to get local stations? How successful are you? Do you get a good picture? Do you get all the local channels (ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox, PBS, etc). If you do get local channels, do you know how far you are from the transmitters?

Finally, if you do get local stations, what HD antenna do you use?

I experimented with an "over the air" antenna a few years ago at my mothers place near Wash DC.
She could get over 20 channels using a cheap ebay digital antenna but it was highly directional meaning you had to turn the antenna to get individual stations. Like the old rabbit ears

 

[TUGBrian]

ive had two leafs...and they were fairly ho hum. would get about half the channels if pointed one way..and the other half pointed in a slight other direction.

ordered this one a few months back and get nearly all the channels available in my area..minus one or two that I didnt ever really watch anyway (who'd have thought there were so many evangelical and shopping channels over the air).

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07W52G8Q5/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

gets all the 4 majors (abc, cbs, nbc, fox) and a ton of PBS stations...which is really all I wanted to get out of it in the first place. Wish id have bought it before wasting money on the leafs. and this one just sits on the tv stand without having to be mounted on a wall or window.

 

[buzglyd]

ive had two leafs...and they were fairly ho hum. would get about half the channels if pointed one way..and the other half pointed in a slight other direction.

ordered this one a few months back and get nearly all the channels available in my area..minus one or two that I didnt ever really watch anyway (who'd have thought there were so many evangelical and shopping channels over the air).

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07W52G8Q5/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

gets all the 4 majors (abc, cbs, nbc, fox) and a ton of PBS stations...which is really all I wanted to get out of it in the first place. Wish id have bought it before wasting money on the leafs. and this one just sits on the tv stand without having to be mounted on a wall or window.

You would be amazed at how many over the air stations there are in Tijuana and how many OTA foreign language stations out of Los Angeles. Since Florida is flat as a pancake, I’m not surprised the cheap ones didn’t work. I can pull in almost all the San Diego stations with my foil hat on because it’s so hilly.

 

[Eric B]

I wanted to move away from Hulu and streaming and ask about my next curious topic. Who uses a digital HD antenna to get local stations? How successful are you? Do you get a good picture? Do you get all the local channels (ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox, PBS, etc). If you do get local channels, do you know how far you are from the transmitters?

Finally, if you do get local stations, what HD antenna do you use?

There are a lot of antenna sales outfits on the internet that will allow you to check the distance and direction to your local stations' transmitters. That's important to see if you'll be able to get specific channels and where to point whatever antenna you get. We get a fair number of local channels, but not all. Best to check the potential reception you'd have before proceeding; we do go the antenna for local programming and streamir.

 

[isisdave]

rosebud, I responded to your other thread. If you live within 20 miles of your transmitters, and better yet they're all at the same hill or tower, you can do this with a cheap antenna.

Over 50 miles, or with obstructions, it gets harder. Check out tvfool.com and antennaweb.org .