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Something like this includes the coaxial cable with it, but otherwise you can buy the cable with connectors already attached at most any hardware store, Home Depot, Lowes, or many dollar and discount stores.
Wow, this is interesting. I went on the TV Fool site and plugged in my address and it seems to think I could get a number of channels with an attic antenna. I've seen references to non-cable TV before but figured it didn't apply because I live in a condo and can't put an antenna on my roof, but if I could have one in the attic...
I'm in Monmouth County, but if you look on a map, NYC is pretty much just north of me. It's all the water that makes it take so long to get to work!
The ONLY cable channel I would miss is Investigation Discovery, but I might be able to get that on the Internet somewhere. (I'm a technology tard, so I don't understand what all this "streaming" and everything means. BUT MY KID MIGHT.)
So where would a person even buy an attic antenna? And would it be something I could set up all by myself or would I have to get someone to install it?
I use a previous model of the small DB2 INDOORS, in an upstairs room next to/through the glass of a sliding door. I get great (including HDTV with 5.1 audio) reception on about 20 channels (I'm not near you, so your mileage may vary...no guarantees as so many factors can affect the results). Occasionally I rotate the thing manually when conditions change or I want to improve signal of a weaker channel etc. but it works well most of the time...and my TV monthly bill is...well you can guess. Yes, I don't get the cable channels...some I can stream, some I have learned to live without. I do get the majors and some others.
A nice trick I learned on the web was to use a short tripod designed for holding music to mount this puppy on so it can easily be stood indoors and manually turned as needed. (It is designed to be mounted on a mast/shaft). Musician's Gear Low Profile Tripod Base Mic Stand | Musician's Friend . Depending on where you try to use it and the size of the antenna, a taller stand may be better etc.
With a good shot into NYC you probably don't need anything extensive, but DTV doesn't work, unless you're every close or in town with just a piece of wire. It would be fun if you could borrow a temporary antenna just to set it up and give it a try. Even when I set up an antenna in a town like Plainfield, it had to be pointed just so in order to catch the signals, but once it was peaked you got everything and in full quality.
I managed to get HD with a paper clip and some silverware, but that was at 27th and 6th in Manhattan, which really shows the meaning of "line of sight".
From the wrong side of the hill in West Orange a big UHF antenna (the AntennaWeb 91XG), even at ground level, can pick up all the UHF channels from NYC. There's a few VHF channels which I haven't gotten, but I don't have a decent VHF antenna to try with. I couldn't get much useful from my attic (probably too much metal). I'd be surprised if there was anywhere but the far northwest that you can't get either Philly or NYC. From Plainfield, NYC should be easy, no terrain between you and the Empire State Building.
As others have said, check TV Fool to see what direction to point the TV antenna and also see the FCC color coding. You can use the color code as your guide to select the TV antenna. Good source of various antenna are in Solid Signal - Signal Solutions including HDTV Antennas, DIRECTV & DISH Network satellite equipment and home entertainment supplies & accessories. Also some of them are available locally walmart (RCA Ant751), Radioshack stores(HBU22, HBU33). I have previously stayed in Piscataway, Franklin twp, Monmouth Junction. I was able to get all the NYC channels using various antennas.
1) Terk HDTVa (Directional antenna) - Broke down after about 6 months of usage
2) Eagle Aspen DTV2UHF (DB2 clone) - I used this for the longest time after the Terk broke down. Probably available in amazon for $25. This antenna would work fine, as long as you are within 35 miles from the broadcast tower (typically Empire State Building.. but soon they will move to Freedom Tower).
Currently I get Philly channels better than NY one, here in Monroe. I am planning to install Antennacraft HBU22 (radioshack stocks this) in my attic to try to get NY channels.
Any move of TV signals to the new Freedom Tower will be at least a few years away.
Many of these large RF plants involve building antenna combiners so that multiple stations share the same antenna while RF filters keep the individual transmitters separate.
Complicating it more, the US Gov't has ordered the FCC to repack all the TV signals nationwide into a smaller portion of frequencies so that the Gov't can auction off more frequencies to wireless, broadband and cellular companies.
No one wants to invest many millions into building anything just yet until there is a final plan as to any frequency moves caused by the repacking and auctions. Political footballs like that can stretch for years.
Also renting transmitter space atop NYC skyscrapers costs about $1 million a month for each station. Things will have to settle down before everyone gets together to build a new TV site. In the meantime they expect everyone to live with the signals as they presently are from Empire, 4 Times Square, that Citibank skyscraper in Queens, the NJTV tower in Montclair, the towers up on West Orange, etc.
Hey, thanks everybody. I am going to start investigating this.
Jersey people are SO smart.
I understand about the people who live on the wrong side of hills. Back in the 80s I used to live in West Paterson, which is on the western side of Garret Mountain. You couldn't get anything without cable except for the Fishing Channel, which I think came out of Montclair.
After nine years on those hills I swore that someday I'd live somewhere flat, and now I do.
You can definitely put one on your roof. If you Google the topic you can find the FCC ruling on it if your property manager gives you any crap about it.
This is correct if you own a townhouse or a house, but it's a little complicated for condo owners. The FCC regulations allow condo owners to put antennas in places they have exclusive access to, like a balcony. For a condo owner to put an antenna on the roof, it would have to be their own roof, not a shared one, which is rare for condo buildings.
This is correct if you own a townhouse or a house, but it's a little complicated for condo owners. The FCC regulations allow condo owners to put antennas in places they have exclusive access to, like a balcony. For a condo owner to put an antenna on the roof, it would have to be their own roof, not a shared one, which is rare for condo buildings.
I do have my own roof. Our complex has a mix of two-story townhouses with one-story "ranches" in between. I'm in one of the ranches. No one is over me or under me, and I have an attic.
Go for it, its sort of like planting the flag at a monumentous battle,,, a chicken in every pot,,, a pot in every chicken,,,free pot for all Americans,,, a free tv antenna on every rooftop
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