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I'm glad making those changes worked for you. It's amazing what you can do with a couple of thin pieces of aluminum and some wire. If you like to tinker then look at making an antenna and building your own DVR/HTPC. The rewards are great for not much work.
I am on my 2nd year after having ditched Dish. I don't miss it at all.
I'm glad making those changes worked for you. It's amazing what you can do with a couple of tubes and some wire. If you like to tinker then look at making an antenna and building your own DVR/HTPC. The rewards are great for not much work.
I am on my 2nd year after having ditched Dish. I don't miss it at all.
I really like the Media Center solution from Microsoft. DVR to XBOX via Ethernet is a perfect HD picture and I can watch over my phone, share recordings between two PCs etc. I was worried they were going to kill it off by now because I think they introduced it too soon. Looks like Silicone Dust is working on a 4 tuner version or something with MPEG2 to H.264 live transcoding to DLNA to save bandwidth. Should be a lot more expensive than my current solution.
The addons to WMC like caller ID and other stuff are good bonuses. There's a radio recorder for instance but again that really shouldn't be needed with podcasts.
When I get things squared away I'll record 3 OTA programs at once just to see what the resources etc are but for now thanks again for the 42 help.
You will want to snag a copy of Win 7. I think they start charging for WMC in Win 8.
I use MythTV for DVR/HTPC & XBMC for many other shows. Myth can operate as a whole house DVR like hopper and if you have more than one antenna, it will pick the right one depending upon channel selected. It can automatically transcode to any format and will stream to any device.
You will want to snag a copy of Win 7. I think they start charging for WMC in Win 8.
I use MythTV for DVR/HTPC & XBMC for many other shows. Myth can operate as a whole house DVR like hopper and if you have more than one antenna, it will pick the right one depending upon channel selected. It can automatically transcode to any format and will stream to any device.
I have about 40 or so W7 licenses. The box doing the heavy lifting has been in place with Media Center since 2009. It was fun when I bought it because they were trying to sell me some optimization crap at Best Buy but I told them it would never run Vista and I wiped it and put an RC on it right away and then the real thing when it came out. Amazing that a box with a Vista sticker is still running well so many years later.
I took a similar vintage quad 4 / 12GB RAM and who knows how many TB and added a SSD drive lately and am now expanding that. Both are old machines but doing well. W7 on the quad SSD box boots in less than 20 seconds past post.
I assume you are using an amp for the cable? I might need one though I have a real old one somewhere that might work but I think with the power on this antenna I'll be OK. It goes direct to the computer and doesn't use the house wiring so it isn't split to any outlets.
I am using an amp (very low power) on one of the antennas because it is a particularly long run to the tuner. However for the other two, I'm using an old school solution. Twin lead wire. No amp necessary for that. The trade off is you have to take more care in running it but it works perfectly.
Can either one of you suggest an amp? I am running the Wingard version of the Leaf, and would like to amplify a couple of channels.
Radio Shack's overpriced unit was the only amp I tried that offered an improvement, albeit a very small one. I tried a few other brands (RCA and Monster), that did absolutely nothing.
Radio Shacks unit is rated for a 10db gain; at best I got 3-4 db gain.
Can either one of you suggest an amp? I am running the Wingard version of the Leaf, and would like to amplify a couple of channels.
Radio Shack's overpriced unit was the only amp I tried that offered an improvement, albeit a very small one. I tried a few other brands (RCA and Monster), that did absolutely nothing.
Radio Shacks unit is rated for a 10db gain; at best I got 3-4 db gain.
Any suggestions?
Thanks in advance .
The other guy is more the expert but I imagine he needs to know which part of town you are in, what channel you want to improve and which antenna you have.
Can either one of you suggest an amp? I am running the Wingard version of the Leaf, and would like to amplify a couple of channels. Radio Shack's overpriced unit was the only amp I tried that offered an improvement, albeit a very small one. I tried a few other brands (RCA and Monster), that did absolutely nothing.
Radio Shacks unit is rated for a 10db gain; at best I got 3-4 db gain. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance .
You probably won't like this answer, but you need a better antenna, not an amp. Amplifiers don't improve reception. They are there to boost an already received signal to compensate for losses in the transmission line. If you have an antenna like the leaf inside, you don't have transmission losses.
(and those flat leaf style antennas are a lot of hype)
I'd at least trade it for a Winegard Freevision. I saw on the Charlotte OTA forum where it's being sold locally by Home Depot these days. If you could mount it outside on a short run of cable, you would see a vast improvement in reception.
The other guy is more the expert but I imagine he needs to know which part of town you are in, what channel you want to improve and which antenna you have.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Barфsa
You probably won't like this answer, but you need a better antenna, not an amp. Amplifiers don't improve reception. They are there to boost an already received signal to compensate for losses in the transmission line. If you have an antenna like the leaf inside, you don't have transmission losses.
Thank you both, for your replies
I currently live in an apartment dwelling, and the leaf looks inoffensive enough. If I could somehow disguise the Freevision, it looks to be a worthy trade up .
My main objective, is boosting channels that I already get. (I'd love to get channel 14, but I live in the Steele Creek/Lake Wylie area, which is probably too far away)
There are a few channels that come in fine, that once in awhile pixilate. Radio Shack's product worked, but nominally, for $30. Perhaps there's a reasonably priced product that works better?
I currently live in an apartment dwelling, and the leaf looks inoffensive enough. If I could somehow disguise the Freevision, it looks to be a worthy trade up .
My main objective, is boosting channels that I already get. (I'd love to get channel 14, but I live in the Steele Creek/Lake Wylie area, which is probably too far away)
There are a few channels that come in fine, that once in awhile pixilate. Radio Shack's product worked, but nominally, for $30. Perhaps there's a reasonably priced product that works better?
Thanks again, for sharing your experience with me
I'm real happy with the HDTVa and I'd love for you to buy it and compare. With the VHF leads extended though you need some space. But I keep it on top of a bookcase.
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No amp necessary for that. The trade off is you have to take more care in running it but it works perfectly.
