I finally ditched Directv

Nex

Now I want an antenna. I had DTV from decades before digital TV, I really don't know what terrestrial TV is now. I sort of just want TV for sports, is there a 20 buck antenna that works?

CottageChz

There are plenty of antennas around $20 that work. They kinda look like a piece of paper and you can put them up on your wall or in a window. They also have some that include a powered portion to improve signal reception.

The bigger question is the signal quality in your area and what channels you can get. Buy from a place you can return in case you’re not happy with the channels you get or need to get a better model.

Emlyn

A lot of sports programming has moved to streaming platforms. There are still plenty of college and NFL football games on over the air channels. Other sports are quite sparse without cable. Streaming is best.

This will give an idea of how good reception is for cheap. I have one. It'll pull in 40 to 50 channels locally depending on what room I put it in. It won't pick up CBS in my family room because of a lot of large trees being around. With digital the TV tuner will either pick up and tune a channel or it won't. I've never found that using a powered antenna does anything better than just a regular unpowered device inside a structure.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VDT3391/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

pitdogg2

Cheap powered antennas IME increase both noise and signal equally. I good bowtie antenna with the proper preamp and amp mounted outside with a rotor will run circles around those other versions. Buy once cry once.
Look into Channel Master
https://www.channelmaster.com/collections/tv-antennas/products/extremetenna-80-outdoor-tv-antenna-cm-4228hd

https://www.channelmaster.com/collections/antenna-pre-amplifiers

https://www.channelmaster.com/products/titan-2-high-gain-preamplifier-version-3-cm-7777v3#video

https://winegard.com/tv/home/free-over-the-air-tv/outdoor-hdtv-antennas

https://winegard.com/hd8200u-platinum-hd-series-antenna/

https://winegard.com/tv/home/free-over-the-air-tv/amplifiers

Winegard and Channel Master are both great companies.
I've used Channel Master and have had them not just want to sell me something just to sell an item. I've had great luck with their products.

This is the antenna I've used in the past with a preamp at the mast leading to an amp in my house that brought in channels 100+ miles away on good atmospheric days. Contrary to thought your atmosphere determines the amount of signal you get on any given day. You'll have great days and bad days that's just the way it is with OTA.

https://www.channelmaster.com/collections/outdoor-tv-antennas/products/ultra-hi-crossfire-100-tv-antenna-cm-3671

Like I stated earlier. You can try and cheap out and might get lucky or you can keep spending money because of disappointment. I went for broke the first time and was not disappointed in the least. OTA is a native signal and not compressed at all. EXCELLENT PICTURE!!

https://www.channelmaster.com/pages/tv-antenna-map-by-state

https://www.antennasdirect.com/transmitter-locator.html

https://www.antennajunkies.com/tv-station-locator-for-antenna/

gudnoyez

Good for you, a amplied antenna plus a gig internet plus a few Roku sticks and we get more Channels and movies at half the price we were paying with cable.

Jimbo18

I use a Mohu Leaf, similar to the one @Emlyn listed above, and get about 50 channels downstairs and over 60 upstairs (I have that one hanging in the attic). However, I live about 20 miles from Charlotte.

When visiting my sister in Pa. a couple weeks ago, I suggested one to her and my brother-in-law because they were sick of Direct TV. They live on a mountain but are 60 miles from Harrisburg, Williamsport and 45 from Reading. They got bad reception on about 12 channels.

So, it has more to do with where you live than what kind of antenna you use, imo.

pitdogg2

Jimbo18 wrote: »

So, it has more to do with where you live than what kind of antenna you use, imo.

Exactly ! Yes, just like an FM signal you can also be inundated with multipath in cities and little to no reception in the hills and mountains even if you live fairly close to the transmitting point.

CottageChz

pitdogg2 wrote: »

Cheap powered antennas IME increase both noise and signal equally. I good bowtie antenna with the proper preamp and amp mounted outside with a rotor will run circles around those other versions. Buy once cry once.
Look into Channel Master
https://www.channelmaster.com/collections/tv-antennas/products/extremetenna-80-outdoor-tv-antenna-cm-4228hd

https://www.channelmaster.com/collections/antenna-pre-amplifiers

https://www.channelmaster.com/products/titan-2-high-gain-preamplifier-version-3-cm-7777v3#video

https://winegard.com/tv/home/free-over-the-air-tv/outdoor-hdtv-antennas

https://winegard.com/hd8200u-platinum-hd-series-antenna/

https://winegard.com/tv/home/free-over-the-air-tv/amplifiers

Winegard and Channel Master are both great companies.
I've used Channel Master and have had them not just want to sell me something just to sell an item. I've had great luck with their products.

This is the antenna I've used in the past with a preamp at the mast leading to an amp in my house that brought in channels 100+ miles away on good atmospheric days. Contrary to thought your atmosphere determines the amount of signal you get on any given day. You'll have great days and bad days that's just the way it is with OTA.

https://www.channelmaster.com/collections/outdoor-tv-antennas/products/ultra-hi-crossfire-100-tv-antenna-cm-3671

Like I stated earlier. You can try and cheap out and might get lucky or you can keep spending money because of disappointment. I went for broke the first time and was not disappointed in the least. OTA is a native signal and not compressed at all. EXCELLENT PICTURE!!

https://www.channelmaster.com/pages/tv-antenna-map-by-state

https://www.antennasdirect.com/transmitter-locator.html

https://www.antennajunkies.com/tv-station-locator-for-antenna/

I’ve been wondering about a good outdoor powered antenna to improve our reception. Should have known to ask here. But geez, are those things ugly… idk if I really would want to put one of those on my house.

Emlyn

I lived in the eastern part of England when I was growing up and, if the atmospheric conditions were right, we could recieve Dutch and Belgian TV stations with a rooftop antenna.

That's still a great technology that works. I don't live in an HOA community so I could put an old school satellite dish or two in my front yard if I wanted to.

CottageChz

Emlyn wrote: »

That's still a great technology that works. I don't live in an HOA community so I could put an old school satellite dish or two in my front yard if I wanted to.

LOL

I don’t have an HOA either, so I CAN put it up if I want to. I just don’t know that I could stand the looks. It is a great technology though, when I first got my little indoor antenna I was impressed that it could pull in nice clear HD signals for the football games. Works pretty well, but would love more channels and a more reliable signal on one or two that can be spotty.

pitdogg2

Personally I don't care that some may think they're "ugly". The picture and sound speaks for itself. I can tell your age with your statement, growing up every house had an antenna on its roof, there was no cable. The only way to get the 3 maybe 4 channels was by antenna only.

billbillw

Nex wrote: »

Now I want an antenna. I had DTV from decades before digital TV, I really don't know what terrestrial TV is now. I sort of just want TV for sports, is there a 20 buck antenna that works?

Probably not for $20, unless you live smack in a big city. Use this website to guide you and the type of antenna and the direction you need to focus on: https://antennaweb.org

I live 20 miles outside of downtown Atlanta. I like to make sure I have un-flappable reception. I use a Channelmaster CM-4228HD, which may be overkill. I got it used for $20 off Facebook Markeplace. I was very lucky. The tuner you have also plays in a little. The NextGen ATSC3.0 signals are actually easier to receive reliably. If you have a really new TV that has an ATSC3.0 tuner, it will be easier to get reliable reception. My old Tivo is stuck with an ATSC1.0 tuner and even with my big antenna, I still have multi-path issues with my ABC channel, which should come in easily, but it doesn't.

CottageChz

pitdogg2 wrote: »

Personally I don't care that some may think they're "ugly". The picture and sound speaks for itself. I can tell your age with your statement, growing up every house had an antenna on its roof, there was no cable. The only way to get the 3 maybe 4 channels was by antenna only.

You’re probably right about my age, but I bet there are a few people who are your age who don’t love the look. All good by me if other people want to put one on their house, I’m just not sure for myself. Maybe I’ll give one a shot one of these days. If it wasn’t visible from the front of my house I’d probably be less bothered by it.

billbillw

BTW, even in neighborhoods with overly-restrictive HOAs, the option to install an antenna in your attic can work in some instances. Yes, it works better high and clear of the roof, but if you over-size the antenna, the attenuation from the roofing material may be minimal. I don't have an HOA, but I decided to install mine in the gable of my garage for ease and convenience. I was, again, lucky that the gable of my garage was perpendicular to the direction my antenna needed to point. Also, the gable over my garage only has a layer of vinyl siding and a layer of 1" foam board (no-foil) so there not a lot of attenuation going on from those materials. Being in the garage attic let me just hang it from the trusses and run a single line down to my living room. I don't even tie into the coax network of the house. I just installed a new single outlet coax plate for my Tivo. The combination of an over-sized antenna and minimal attenuation allows me to get two PBS stations, Fox, ABC, CBS, NBC, a CW affiliate, a few independent stations, Univision, Telemundo and dozens of sub-channels for each main channel. I don't get to watch much baseball or basketball, but I have at least 8 college games every weekend plus 4+NFL games. I could watch hockey on ESPN+, but I lost interest in that sport after the 2004/2005 strike. Plenty of PGA/LIV golf, NASCAR, English Premier league, and other sports too.

College Bowl season usually forces me to get a 1-month subscription to Sling Orange to watch ESPN bowl games.

txcoastal1

If you have a 2nd floor attic the Channel Master works as long as your roof deck does not have the radiant barrier, if it does....it will not work

Nex

I ordered this thing from Amazon

"TV Antenna HiDB TV Antenna for Smart TV Indoor, Long Range Reception Antenna for TV Without Cable, Antenna TV Digital HD Indoor Support All Free HDTV Channels (Triangular Shape with Magnetic Base)"

I will post how and if it works.

Jimbo18

Worth a shot for that amount of money. GL

SCompRacer

FWIW, Antenna Man has some helpful videos with equipment reviews and recommendations for indoor and outdoor antennas. I was watching them for help with my attic antenna (HOA says no external) until I realized I installed it backwards 23 years ago while the house was being built, just after the roof was put on....

Its a large antenna in a truss roof, very difficult to get folded out. Guess I forgot which way the broadcast towers were.

He even offers a consulting service for a small fee.

https://youtu.be/Fbhr1qT6EBY?si=9kp793qZeA_lJ2HZ

billbillw

Nex wrote: »

I ordered this thing from Amazon

"TV Antenna HiDB TV Antenna for Smart TV Indoor, Long Range Reception Antenna for TV Without Cable, Antenna TV Digital HD Indoor Support All Free HDTV Channels (Triangular Shape with Magnetic Base)"

I will post how and if it works.

That might work if you are in a city. Did you ever put your address into Antennaweb? What did it tell you?

SCompRacer

Some helpful links like Ivan and Bill mentioned. You can also download an antenna pointing app, like Antenna Point, as a guide. It's good to know where the broadcast antennas are located, how far away they are and the signal strength in your area.

https://www.fcc.gov/media/engineering/dtvmaps
https://www.antennaweb.org/results
https://www.rabbitears.info/searchmap.php

What rabbit ears shows for my location.

Nex

Well, that didn't work. I got a powered one on the way. My TV saw the signals but wouldn't actually pick them up?

treitz3

I would ditch DTV in a heartbeat if I could figure out how to watch one show. It's on channel 360 and it's called, "The Five".

The wife and I have tried many different avenues to do this and every one of them ends up in disappointment or the same payment as we are paying for DTV.

We have been watching this show for the better part of our marriage and we sort of consider it part of our, "adult time" together, after dinner during the week. This is something I don't want to lose. I enjoy the time with Kimmie, even if we both yell at the TV from time to time.

Tom

vmaxer

treitz3 wrote: »

I would ditch DTV in a heartbeat if I could figure out how to watch one show. It's on channel 360 and it's called, "The Five".

The wife and I have tried many different avenues to do this and every one of them ends up in disappointment or the same payment as we are paying for DTV.

We have been watching this show for the better part of our marriage and we sort of consider it part of our, "adult time" together, after dinner during the week. This is something I don't want to lose. I enjoy the time with Kimmie, even if we both yell at the TV from time to time.

Tom

Have you tried streaming? I have an Nvidia Shield with a Kodi build and can watch anything that I have tried. Been off cable since 2018. Also have an IPTV app that I hardly ever use except for PPV events.

treitz3

Yes. That's where we hit a road block. It keep s asking us for our "provider".

Well, it's that provider we are wanting to cut out of the loop.

Tom

billbillw

treitz3 wrote: »

Yes. That's where we hit a road block. It keep s asking us for our "provider".

Well, it's that provider we are wanting to cut out of the loop.

Tom

Does a Fox Nation subscription not allow you to watch The Five without a provider?

If that's all you care about on DirecTV, have you looked at Sling TV? They have one of their $40/month options that includes Fox News.

vmaxer

treitz3 wrote: »

Yes. That's where we hit a road block. It keep s asking us for our "provider".

Well, it's that provider we are wanting to cut out of the loop.

Tom

I tried finding this show on the Kodi app. I think this is the first show I haven’t been able to find and play from Kodi…..Strange.

SCompRacer

Nex wrote: »

Well, that didn't work. I got a powered one on the way. My TV saw the signals but wouldn't actually pick them up?

I've had that happen too. That's where a signal strength meter helps. Here, the TV tuner will find a channel with a low signal strength, but it either won't display (no signal), or picture goes to h...eck.

My TV's don't have a signal strength meter so I picked up this Mediasonic HomeWorx digital converter box. Like $25 IIRC. The HomeWorx box came in handy as the wife doesn't have to change inputs on the TV to watch air channels. She just selects TV on the AV receiver and uses the HomeWorx remote to change channels.

Keiko

We cut our cable a couple years ago and invested in a $20.00 Roku Box. It's been great and we haven't looked back since. Saved us 60.00 bucks a month.

halo71

YouTubeTV has The Five I am pretty sure...

treitz3

We did look into that and if memory serves, we could watch the first 8 minutes. Then it prompted us to log into our provider. It's the provider that is the constant road block.

We are trying Sling TV (thanks @billbillw) and using the free 50 hours of DVR to record it. I haven't had the time to watch it lately on Sling, due to work demands, but will definitely check it out. Hopefully, we can fast forward through commercials.

We did try Fox Nation and you could listen to the Five....but you couldn't watch it. So, we canceled it the day we subscribed to it.

Tom

Nex

That didn't work either. I missed the World Series but I don't think that I miss the rest. I have some neighbors that have roof antennas so I will ask them how it's working.