IP-006 I Need to Spend How Much?
Look, I’m and Engineer. I know how painful it is to fill up a vehicle just to get to work and when it takes over twenty dollars to fill up my lawn mower, things get extremely tight. That’s part of my message in all these posts. Start small, cheap, and move up when you can. Reader Mark tossed an Internet Pumpkin asking how much should a good antenna cost?
Antenna prices vary, but if you have an indoor antenna laying around, try it and you may succeed for free. Keep in mind the old fashioned “V” shaped rabbit ears aren’t usually going to work well, but push the rods in to about 24″ and see what it does. If you’re close enough to the transmitter, it can work.
If you’re out around 30-40 miles or so, you will need a more directional style UHF antenna. Terk makes a good one, and you know I fell in love with the Silver Sensor by Phillips. (Zenith, LG, etc.) These run in the $40 range and will work for most viewers.
Out past the 40 mile range, an attic mount or outdoor antenna might be best. Those can get pricey at $70-$120, and a rotor will run around another $70.
I’ve also stressed you need to experiment a little. I get emails from viewers in Fayetteville using indoor antennas as well as outdoor antennas. Quite frankly, I was stunned that indoor units would even work that far away, but it just depends on what is in way. That line of site to the towers is important, and buildings, trees and hills play a major role in whether you get it or you slide off the digital slope.
You probably already know about www.antennaweb.org but my favorite is www.tvfool.com because they have actual signal strength overlays on Google Maps that show the signal contours for most major stations. Check out our analog coverage map presented on their site here. They have our digital coverage for our current ch 55 coverage here.
They also have links to download most TV market’s coverage data from the FCC so you can overlay it using Google Earth. I have been playing with that version and it’s pretty impressive to be able to “fly” to your neighborhood and see the signal coverage in detail. You’ll need Bit Torrent client software to download the market data, but it is impressive what you can do with it once you load it. I’ve spot checked it and it has been exactly on the money in the areas I have personal knowledge of.
Bottom line is, get the coupon from www.dtv2009.govand buy an inexpensive CECB (Coupon Eligible Converter Box) from your favorite retail store, and spend a little money on an antenna. We’re all going to be sitting home a little more with the economy in its’ current state, and investing in home entertainment makes perfect sense. I’ve heard of the term disposable income, but I really have no clue what that is like, but if you have it, go ahead and get the nice flat panel TV and Dolby surround sound. Again, it’s an investment in your family’s entertainment, not a waste of money.
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Well said.