jheis Posted April 18, 2005 Share Posted April 18, 2005 I know this is a little off topic, but has anyone found an indoor or attic FM antenna that really works? A mast and outdoor antenna is not an option at my current home. Thanks. James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironwoods Posted April 19, 2005 Share Posted April 19, 2005 Hi, not OT at all, but just curious as to why an out-door, roof mounted is not an option? How rural, is your location? Does it not need to be for UHF/VHF also? What has not "worked", thus far? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrestonTom Posted April 19, 2005 Share Posted April 19, 2005 Hello James This is bringing back some memories! The bottom line is that an indoor antenna really does not work very well (even the fancy active ones). I live in a somewhat rural area of SE Connecticut and I am able to pick up the Boston / Providence / New Haven stations (esp at night) using a Yagi roof antenna mounted on a rotator. You might see if this would work in a attic space if you do not have access to your roof. The basic problems are sensitivity (is there enough signal to pick up) and directivity (are you picking up channels from other loacales) and the ability to reject nearby frequencies. If you are in an urban environment there will be multi-path problems also. In my case I used a radio shack FM antenna. They have two versions one is about $15 and the other about $20 (spend the extra $5). They will not pick up much television broadcast (some around ch 5,6,7) and they are quite directional. The directionality is the advantage since it gets rid of channels on the same frequency, but coming from other locales. However, it also means that you need a rotator (also available from Radio Shack) so you can direct it toward the different transmitters. If there is a single station you are interested in, it can be left in a fixed direction. If the cable length is long (and you can use coax rather than 600 ohm) you may need an amplifier (luckily this is usually not the case). Also any metal in your attic or roof will compromise the reception. Near an attic vet or window is helpful. The funny thing about working with an antenna is that simply snaking the wire around a bit differently can make all the difference in the world. Good luck -Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jheis Posted April 19, 2005 Author Share Posted April 19, 2005 Thanks Tom & Ironwood: The only thing I've tried so far is the little dipole antenna that comes with the tuner. I have three systems set up. The cheapo dipole actually works pretty well attached to the B&K Ref 50 in my main listening room. However, the results are less satisfactory in my home office (one room away) using a Carver CT-17, or in the garage using my old Optonica tuner. Local stations are no problem, but I mainly listen to a PBS station in San Francisco (about 60 miles away) and to another PBS station in San Mateo (south bay) which plays 24 hour commercial free Jazz (the real stuff not the smooth crap). Both stations have fairly local translators or repeaters, but weather can affect the signals pretty dramatically especially the SF station. Both stations are in the same general direction and I'd just like to be able to get as clean a signal as possible. Before I start wasting money I thought I'd see if anyone else has had experience with the various FM antennas being peddled. My only experience was years ago with a BIC unit (as I recall) which was pretty much useless. James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dflip Posted April 19, 2005 Share Posted April 19, 2005 Put a 9' yagi antenna on the roof and you will have no problems at all. If you get stations from several directions then you might need to attach a router. I just aim mine at the CN tower and it works fine for pulling in Jazz FM, 91.1 from Toronto. Since I live in a valley, the regular antenna was pretty useless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott0527 Posted April 19, 2005 Share Posted April 19, 2005 You'll notice, no matter how many times you ask about what is a good indoor antenna gadget, we'll keep reccomending an outdoor rooftop model. Whne it comes to indoor, I think the cheapy dipole wire jobs are about as good as it gets. Nothing beats the antennas you can mount on your roof or at the very least, hide in the attic. I also ran Quad Shielded coax cable that I think helped eliminate some interference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jheis Posted April 19, 2005 Author Share Posted April 19, 2005 Dflip & Scott: Interesting. Dfip's local jazz station is the same frequency as my local station that plays 24 hour commercial free jazz - 91.1 (it's 90.7 on the translator). If you have a broadband connection it's available over the net. KCSM.org. Great station - run out of the College of San Mateo. They inherited the massive KJAZ library after the KJAZ frequency was sold and SF lost its commercial jazz station. KCSM is a worthy successor. I was curious whether any of the gizmos currently being marketed (such as Terk) were any better than the worthless juck I tried 15 years ago. I guess I'll probably try sticking an exterior antenna in the attic. Probably not ideal, but I just need to clean up the signal a little bit and I'll be happy. James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted April 21, 2005 Share Posted April 21, 2005 ---------------- On 4/21/2005 7:21:12 AM mdeneen wrote: A small antenna 200 feet above ground will outperform a monster that is 20 feet above ground. ---------------- Hard to accomplish this in the 'burbs. Could run a cable over to Zeno's, I suppose... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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