reception????

TV Fool
Why do i have great reception one minuet and no channel next. I had only 2 channels all day after haveing 11 or so last nite. I have to move antenna up or down a number on roter when watching sometimes. I have a 3 year old 100 mile radio shack antenna 25 or 30 ft high with rotor, inside radio shack amp with Tivax stb9 box. Im not 100% in the open there are trees in area but it seems like when ive got the signal then its here if i can just hold on to it.
any help appreciated Thank: suzzie

Originally Posted by suzzie

TV Fool
Why do i have great reception one minuet and no channel next. I had only 2 channels all day after haveing 11 or so last nite. I have to move antenna up or down a number on roter when watching sometimes. I have a 3 year old 100 mile radio shack antenna 25 or 30 ft high with rotor, inside radio shack amp with Tivax stb9 box. Im not 100% in the open there are trees in area but it seems like when ive got the signal then its here if i can just hold on to it.
any help appreciated Thank: suzzie

for some reason i have 2 channels all day that come in from the same network. When the sun is low i start getting other channels.after dark i get more. this seems to me like i do have the channel in my grasp just need to know the low down on how to keep them up. Im in florida and it is hot as hell in the afternoon,could heat have a part in digital signals,boy i sure hate to think it would.
suzzie

Originally Posted by suzzie

for some reason i have 2 channels all day that come in from the same network. When the sun is low i start getting other channels.after dark i get more. this seems to me like i do have the channel in my grasp just need to know the low down on how to keep them up. Im in florida and it is hot as hell in the afternoon,could heat have a part in digital signals,boy i sure hate to think it would.
suzzie

You might be experiencing Tropospheric Ducting. See this thread for a little more info http://www.dtvusaforum.com/dtv-recep...does-last.html

Originally Posted by Aaron62

You might be experiencing Tropospheric Ducting. See this thread for a little more info http://www.dtvusaforum.com/dtv-recep...does-last.html

The ducting in FL has been herendous the last week. It's so bad that I can't watch Jacksonville VHF except between 2 and 5 in the afternoon when Tampa gets quite. I used to like to DX, not I hate skip.

Originally Posted by suzzie

for some reason i have 2 channels all day that come in from the same network. When the sun is low i start getting other channels.after dark i get more. this seems to me like i do have the channel in my grasp just need to know the low down on how to keep them up. Im in florida and it is hot as hell in the afternoon,could heat have a part in digital signals,boy i sure hate to think it would.
suzzie

As Aaron says you are seeing Tropo skip. It is frequent all over the Gulf Coast. We are endowed with more than our fair share of it. It tends to be stronger at night than during the day.

Not only will tropo bring in stations you don't normally see but it can also wipe out a channel you normally see because another town has a channel on the same RF (not virtual) channel.

Originally Posted by suzzie

TV Fool
Why do i have great reception one minuet and no channel next. I had only 2 channels all day after haveing 11 or so last nite. I have to move antenna up or down a number on roter when watching sometimes. I have a 3 year old 100 mile radio shack antenna 25 or 30 ft high with rotor, inside radio shack amp with Tivax stb9 box. Im not 100% in the open there are trees in area but it seems like when ive got the signal then its here if i can just hold on to it.
any help appreciated Thank: suzzie

See above why you had more in the day than night.

In another thread I suggested you buy a CM7777 preamp by Channel Master and mount it up at the antenna.

Another misnomer is no antenna in Florida will work 100 miles. From 30 ft you get about 60 miles unless there is skip.

In amp being inside where you live probably doesn't help that much.

If you buy a CM7777, you will need to remove the inside amp or it will make things work with an amp outside (cm7777).

Thats sounds just like my problem. my questrion is why in the hell don't they send analog and digital signals to because i used to get 6 pretty good channels atleast they would come in and not break down so they are not viewable, mite get a little snowy but still ok. leave it to the smart government to screw it up to.
anyway i am putting in the cm7777 as soon as it gets here and im looking into connecting another antenna.
thanks for all your input: suzzie

I believe that it is the heat also but why can i get channel 2-1,2-2 all day long in the heat and absolutly nothing else??? I had great tv on 2,6,9,15,24,36,40,45,65 untill around 10:00 this morning and just channel 2 now. I just can't understand the cause behind whats happening.sorry abought the complaining but it is a bitch.
thank you for your comments:suzzie

Originally Posted by suzzie

That sounds just like my problem. my questrion is why in the hell don't they send analog and digital signals to because i used to get 6 pretty good channels atleast they would come in and not break down so they are not viewable, mite get a little snowy but still ok. leave it to the smart government to screw it up to.
anyway i am putting in the cm7777 as soon as it gets here and im looking into connecting another antenna.
thanks for all your input: suzzie

Well Suzzie, I can't disagree about the fact those of us in the deep fringe watched snowy TV for decades and never complained. Now with digital it's all or nothing. Before digital from here in Orange Springs I could watch 2,6,9 from Orlando, 4,7,12,25 from Jax, 5,20,51,53 from Gainesville. Now I can see 2 sometimes but not usable from Orlando only, then 7,12,25 half the time from Jax, and all of Gainesville all the time, except WNBW that is too low power.

Remember to not use your indoor amp once you get the cm7777 up at the antenna. Also make sure you have enough coax in the jumper from the antenna to the amp (CM7777) up top so it doesn't get hung up when you turn the rotor around. Inside you should be ok, just replace the old amp inside with the power supply that comes with the CM7777.

Originally Posted by suzzie

I believe that it is the heat also but why can i get channel 2-1,2-2 all day long in the heat and absolutly nothing else??? I had great tv on 2,6,9,15,24,36,40,45,65 until around 10:00 this morning and just channel 2 now. I just can't understand the cause behind whats happening.sorry abought the complaining but it is a bitch.
thank you for your comments:suzzie

To get a little more specific without burying you in details, actually the weather condition causing the heat to build up is the same condition that brings in all those channels at night.

It's not that the heat blocks them in the day. Normally the stations you see during the day are you always there stations. Extra ones at night come in because of skip.

Now the connection between the heat and the channels at night is the weather that holds all the heat in the day is causing skip at night so channels you see lately at night probably won't always be there.

The reason you see channel 2 all day is that it is the only Orlando station on the VHF band. All the other ones are UHF. VHF travels farther than UHF. Plus despite so many complaining about VHF stations running too low of power, WESH from day one turned it up full blast years ago.

If you can get your antenna up 30 ft for sure it will help while you have it done to add the amp. . At 30 ft you would need guy wires though if you don't already have them.

The CM7777 once installed and you get rid of the inside amp will show you exactly what your antenna sees. By putting the amp up next to the antenna there is no loss of signal before getting to an indoor amp. This is critical for you living in a fringe or distant location.

I can't remember if you told us the model of your antenna, other than it's Radio Shack. Do you remember the model number? It is possible you have all the antenna possible now or there may be a better solution there also.

Piggie,thanks for the info; my cm amp is in so i have my antenna lowered ,its at 35ft to be exact. no info on antenna, its been up for 4or5 years so the info faded away. I do know its approx. 14 ft long it has 9 pairs of fold OUT elements. on the one end it has the 2 fold UP elements approx 18inches long. On the top it has a wire weeving back and forth from element to element ending up with 2 lugs in the middle of the antenna that actually didn't have any nuts ,just loose.What i need to know is that on the end with the fold UP elements it has a coax connector which is the one ive been useing or do i use the one with the wire lugs located in the middle of the antenna? can you tell if i have both a vhf and uhf or just one or the other with what ive mensioned?
thank you:suzzie

Originally Posted by suzzie

Piggie,thanks for the info; my cm amp is in so i have my antenna lowered ,its at 35ft to be exact. no info on antenna, its been up for 4or5 years so the info faded away. I do know its approx. 14 ft long it has 9 pairs of fold OUT elements. on the one end it has the 2 fold UP elements approx 18inches long. On the top it has a wire weeving back and forth from element to element ending up with 2 lugs in the middle of the antenna that actually didn't have any nuts ,just loose.What i need to know is that on the end with the fold UP elements it has a coax connector which is the one ive been useing or do i use the one with the wire lugs located in the middle of the antenna? can you tell if i have both a vhf and uhf or just one or the other with what ive mensioned?
thank you:suzzie

WOW YALL i fixed it. after cleaning connections installing CM7777 raising antenna up to 35ft,was at 30 ft. and doing an add on scan im showing 40 channels and without haveing to tweek the rotor im seeing 35 beautiful channels. screw cable.
I want to thank everyone for your input into my fix. I reconmend the CM7777 hands down; Suzzie

One last question: the cm7777 has 2 connections, one for vhf only and one for combinned which is the one im useing now. Could i gain any by installing a vhf antenna into the 7777?
thanks:suzzie

Originally Posted by suzzie

WOW YALL i fixed it. after cleaning connections installing CM7777 raising antenna up to 35ft,was at 30 ft. and doing an add on scan im showing 40 channels and without haveing to tweek the rotor im seeing 35 beautiful channels. screw cable.
I want to thank everyone for your input into my fix. I reconmend the CM7777 hands down; Suzzie

That's great news, enjoy all those channels!

Originally Posted by suzzie

One last question: the cm7777 has 2 connections, one for vhf only and one for combinned which is the one im useing now. Could i gain any by installing a vhf antenna into the 7777?
thanks:suzzie

No. There is a switch inside the CM7777 after you take off the 4 screws. When you throw that switch, the two inputs become separate. One VHF and one UHF.

But your antenna is a combo VHF/UHF so you need the switch in the factory default position as it is now. When it is in that position the VHF port is turned off.

Adding a second antenna to the style antenna you have would be moot.

=====

I thought being in Georgetown you would be in the cat birds seat. Because both Orlando and Jacksonville towers from your house are up and down the St. Johns river valley. In Jax they are a little east of the river. Toward Orlando the river gets smaller but the valley gets very wide.

Glad it worked and wish I had that kind of luck from Orange Springs.

I have been thinking of putting a rotor on my VHF array and raising mine from 30 to 35 ft. But it will take guy wires, that are not that big a deal really.

One last note Suzzie, what who you recommend a CM7777 to, because in town they are too big of an amp. They are meant for rural locations like me and you.

It's better to tell them to come here for advise.

gotya Piggie: thanks for the info,i had no idea. Im still going to add a second antenna so i wount have to rotate. i get 29 in one spot and can move 30 degrees or so and get a few more. should i add a second uhf/vhf or just uhf?
thanks:suzzie

Originally Posted by suzzie

gotya Piggie: thanks for the info,i had no idea. Im still going to add a second antenna so i wount have to rotate. i get 29 in one spot and can move 30 degrees or so and get a few more. should i add a second uhf/vhf or just uhf?
thanks:suzzie

Can you tell me the main channel numbers of the 29 you get without the dashes? Then tell me if they are channel numbers off the TV or the real RF channel.

Then again for the other ones 30 degrees.

I need to know which stations you mean to tell you if it would work.

But also you should be able to turn about north and see something out of Jax???

Suzzie also tell me which way you are pointed on each set of stations.

From TVFool plot I would think that you could point south (approx) and see Orlando station.

Then west and at least see Fox51 and maybe WUFT PBS out of Gainesville (you might also see WCJB and WGFL).

Then north you might see WTLV, WJXX and WJCT out of Jax.

But the 30 degrees doesn't make sense. As turning from Orlando to Gainesville stations would be a little more than 90 degrees.