Community Forums

BillJinOR · 01-01-2020, 07:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old Scout

...upon reconsideration....my OEM frisbee disk was pretty corroded inside when I replaced it...but it did seem to still "work" with analog signals but not so much once digital came in????.....true story--we often winter in Glendale AZ during Jan/Feb....first year we had the Jack head mounted to OEM satellite arms [so pointed south/southwest]….we could only get 2 of the 3 network OTA stations [CBS,NBC,ABC]...as luck would have it, Super Bowl was on the station we weren't getting. So turned Jack head to north and got that station--had to "assume" it was a directional thing??? The built in signal meter is interesting but direction tends to determine signal strengths.
PS--to this day, have no idea where OTA station towers are physically located in Phoenix area?????

Go to http://antennaweb.org
input your location and you can see where and how far away the stations are from you. This works for any location in the US. You can also see what type antenna is needed to get reception. The reason digital may have changed your reception is while the station channel number didn't change it most likely went to UHF. Channel 2 isn't really vhf channel 2 it's actually UHF 22 or some such frequency" Digital "is still on either UHF or VHF even a old antenna from 30 years ago will still work, if it is set up for UHF and VHF and pointed properly if its a directional antenna. Although,if your close enough,even a coat hanger will work
BTW the Phoenix stations towers are all south of town according to the map.

Jim A · 01-01-2020, 10:02 AM

I have a Winegard Razer antenna (now discontinued), a flat paddle type of antenna mounted on the old batwing mast. (Not the expensive automatic Razer.) In Goodyear, AZ, I get over 60 stations, including the ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, and CW networks. Still got them in Tonopah, about 50 miles west of downtown Phoenix. (It is flat with good line of sight, so that helps.)

A directional antenna will almost always work better than an omni-directional antenna.

If this antenna ever fails, I will go back to the batwing. You really can't beat it.

Unplanned Tourist · 01-01-2020, 01:05 PM

I changed from the factory Batwing to the King OA300 just because I needed more room for my solar panels.

No change in reception that I can see.

I keep the wind-up setup because the antenna is the highest thing on my roof. (no AC on top. Basement heat pump)

Happy Glamping.

Alpine36 · 01-02-2020, 10:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Unplanned

I changed from the factory Batwing to the King OA300 just because I needed more room for my solar panels.

No change in reception that I can see.

I keep the wind-up setup because the antenna is the highest thing on my roof. (no AC on top. Basement heat pump)

Happy Glamping.

I considered keeping the crank up as well but the gears were kind of hinkey, half stripped out. The antenna is located between the roof ac units and seems to work fairly well considering it being low profile. Before I mounted it I tried setting it on top of a garbage can on the roof, to give a clear line of sight above the AC units. It didn't seem to pull in any more stations, fwiw.
It is nice having the option for local broadcasts, although we mostly stream Netflix of watch the bluray while out glamping.
TV isn't really high on our priority list of things to do....

Happy 2020 everyone!

Dudley do-right · 01-18-2020, 02:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old Scout

...upon reconsideration....my OEM frisbee disk was pretty corroded inside when I replaced it...but it did seem to still "work" with analog signals but not so much once digital came in????.....true story--we often winter in Glendale AZ during Jan/Feb....first year we had the Jack head mounted to OEM satellite arms [so pointed south/southwest]….we could only get 2 of the 3 network OTA stations [CBS,NBC,ABC]...as luck would have it, Super Bowl was on the station we weren't getting. So turned Jack head to north and got that station--had to "assume" it was a directional thing??? The built in signal meter is interesting but direction tends to determine signal strengths.
PS--to this day, have no idea where OTA station towers are physically located in Phoenix area?????

Dean... get on your cell phone and Google (for the Phoenix area) "Where is the antenna farm for Phoenix TVstations? Youshould get a map showing their location. Then you can figure out which way to point from your spot.
Dudley

KanzKran · 01-18-2020, 03:34 PM

TVFool.com map of generic Phoenix.

AnotherMike · 01-18-2020, 03:55 PM

Another good resource for where the TV or FM transmitters are is tvfool.com (no www in front of it)

All you need is a zip code to start. Then once the dot is on the map then move it to where you really are. Then click on the "Make Radar Plot" button.

Mike

Billhawk · 01-19-2020, 01:05 AM

Hello, we have an older coach and want to add a King Jack replacement head. Our OTA is very old but still picks up some channels. It is stationary. We don't have a crank up/turn type. We do however have an old Travel Sat dish setup and the electric controls to tilt/turn work fine. I don't want a monthly fee so I wonder if anyone has put a directional OTA like the King Jack on the satellite base so you can aim it with the inside controls?
Thanks for any ideas!
Bill

Old Scout · 01-19-2020, 06:14 AM

BillHawk--putting the Jack head on the old OEM [crank-up][seems designed to mount that way] allows me to "point" the head toward the OTA stations [assuming I know where they are]….the primary issue with this is, generally speaking, the satellite dish is pointed south or perhaps southwest....if the strongest OTA signals are from the north, then the Jack head is less efficient--notwithstanding what I have now learned about OTA stations in Phoenix [smile]….
Again, the Jack mounting base antenna is designed to be turned--again I assume to optimize reception by pointing toward the OTA station[s]....