Any way to get a better Tv signal?

[Teamgreen]

Hello:

Been a member since buying a 2017 Forest River Grey Wolf 23MK Last year.We frequently go to a campground in the Northeast which has no cable.

We usually can pick up a few public service channels and a few more local ones with our hotspot in our Chevy Silverado. Hard to do as you have to keep the key on all the time for it to work and our plan had only 10 gigs of data.

How much do we have to spend to get more channels?

PS. The campground has a lot of trees and is far away form any large city.

Thanks for the great site!

[Twincamper]

Dish or Directv is the only way to go. We got it for home and a extra box for our seasonal site and it works great. You need clear line of site to SE.

[Kaadk]

Assuming you already know about the antenna booster, and that it's on, the only other thing you can do is with the antenna itself. A directional antenna (turned in the right direction) will typically provide better gain than an omni-directional, so first, what kind of antenna is on your rig?

Secondly, have you used one of those antenna tower mapping websites to see what should be available in your area? There's a variety of them out there like this one:

TV Station Locator Tool - Over The Air Digital TV

You'll want to make sure there actually are signals to pick up before you go too extreme in your modifications.

Lastly, if there are signals, and you do have the antenna pointed at them, the last measure would be to try to get it over the tree-line, or at least higher than it is now. That's going to take an external antenna, some kind of antenna mast, a way to have the mast raised (I've seem some strapped to rear ladders, some u-bolted to the side of rigs, etc...) ways to run the cabling, power lines for the booster.... I.e. All doable, but enough of a hassle that I really hope you don't have to resort to those measures.

Alternatively, our solution to lack of TV signal is this:


https://www.apple.com/ca/shop/produc...tal-av-adapter

We typically have a bunch of movies downloaded to the tablet or my phone, or one of the kid's tablets so if we really get stuck, we've got plenty to watch.

[emm-dee]

If your Silverado is 2015 or later you can get the AT&T Connected Car plan for $20 a month...unlimited data subject to “management” after 22 gig. The management thing is based on tower congestion so it’s pretty rare outside big cities. I’ve used over 800 gig this month (that’s gigs, not megs) with no “management”. The bad thing is you do have to leave the truck radio powered.

As far as entertainment if you get DirectTV Now for $35 a month and stream it on ANY AT&T plan there’s now charge against your data.

[5picker]

Originally Posted by emm-dee

If your Silverado is 2015 or later you can get the AT&T Connected Car plan for $20 a month...unlimited data subject to “management” after 22 gig. The management thing is based on tower congestion so it’s pretty rare outside big cities. I’ve used over 800 gig this month (that’s gigs, not megs) with no “management”. The bad thing is you do have to leave the truck radio powered.

As far as entertainment if you get DirectTV Now for $35 a month and stream it on ANY AT&T plan there’s now charge against your data.

Slightly off topic...

emm-dee could you point me to something that says this in writing?
I have ATT & DirecTV Now and my local rep says the data WILL be charged against my current plan. (not unlimited)

They tell me the only two plans it wouldn't be charged against is the AT&T Unlimited Plus Enhanced℠ and the AT&T Unlimited Choice Enhanced℠.

[emm-dee]

Originally Posted by 5picker

Slightly off topic...

emm-dee could you point me to something that says this in writing?
I have ATT & DirecTV Now and my local rep says the data WILL be charged against my current plan. (not unlimited)

They tell me the only two plans it wouldn't be charged against is the AT&T Unlimited Plus Enhanced℠ and the AT&T Unlimited Choice Enhanced℠.

I should have said AT&T device, not plan. However, the info given by your local rep is incomplete. I have the Family Share plan with 20 gig shared data. We have five iPhones and one iPad on the plan ($170 per month) and have never gone over 15 gig usage. That plan is not unlimited data. It’s hard capped at 20 gig (plus rollover amount) and has a hefty charge for any overage. But we use the DirectTV Now app on all the phones and have never been charged.

I also understand the free DTV data is available on the prepaid devices (used to be called GoPhones).
https://www.att.com/esupport/article...less/KM1248135

Curious if the local rep who gave you the info was ATT or contract. The ATT stores you can walk into usually have the most accurate information but it has to be an ATT company owned location, NOT a reseller. Resellers are notorious for giving bad info in order to “upsell” your plan and make more commissions.

[Scrapper]

I agree with higher is better, I'm 50 miles as the bird flies from the nearest OTA tv stations. Being surrounded by trees and raising my antenna 5 feet higher made a huge difference in reception.

[BandJCarm]

Just understand that many of the suggestions require a WiFi signal to implement.

Without that, either OTA signal OR a portable dish is required for tv viewing.

[fella10]

Originally Posted by Teamgreen

.... How much do we have to spend to get more channels?

not much if you're talking about Over The Air channels, ... our original tv antenna has never been worth a hoot, ... a couple of months ago a camper at the site beside us had an inexpensive aftermarket OTA antenna from Walmart(link below) mounted on a painters poll from Lowes(link below), ... I copied his setup and we're amazed at the improvement over the FR antenna, ... at that cg we had only been able to pick up 4 very weak channels, now we get 28 strong reliable channels, ... if you're talking about cable channels, that's a whole different ballgame, ...


https://www.walmart.com/ip/Onn-by-Wa...range/56136521


https://www.lowes.com/pd/Mr-LongArm-...n-Pole/4755038

[glsimms]

fella..... I like your idea! Plus it's a very affordable mod!

Question: How do you run your coax cable?

[5picker]

Originally Posted by emm-dee

I should have said AT&T device, not plan. However, the info given by your local rep is incomplete. I have the Family Share plan with 20 gig shared data. We have five iPhones and one iPad on the plan ($170 per month) and have never gone over 15 gig usage. That plan is not unlimited data. It’s hard capped at 20 gig (plus rollover amount) and has a hefty charge for any overage. But we use the DirectTV Now app on all the phones and have never been charged.

I also understand the free DTV data is available on the prepaid devices (used to be called GoPhones).
https://www.att.com/esupport/article...less/KM1248135

Curious if the local rep who gave you the info was ATT or contract. The ATT stores you can walk into usually have the most accurate information but it has to be an ATT company owned location, NOT a reseller. Resellers are notorious for giving bad info in order to “upsell” your plan and make more commissions.

Thanks emm-dee.

We have the Family Share plan as well, 20 Gigs. Androids here.

I've only recently subscribed to DirecTV Now, and only have used it briefly to make sure I understand how and how well it works. We have DirecTV at home (dish fed) so I don't need it there yet, but we plan to cut the cord as we begin to travel more full time and so I'm looking for alternatives.

Yes the retail store is AT&T corporate.

Sorry to derail the OP.

[fella10]

Originally Posted by glsimms

fella..... I like your idea! Plus it's a very affordable mod!

Question: How do you run your coax cable?

thank you, ...this antenna is a motorized unit to rotate to the direction that you want, ... cable runs from the antenna to the control unit inside, ... I wanted to use the propane hatch cover to get the cable inside, so I used a 10' cable from the control unit to the hatch cover, ... at the hatch cover I connect the outside cable to the inside cable, .... the 10' cable inside allows me to mount/locate the control unit where I want it inside, ... that control unit has a switch to rotate the antenna, and it also comes with a remote, which hasn't proven to be very useful, ... but the antenna itself is amazing, ... I also use an app on the cell phone for locating where to point the antenna, ...

[emm-dee]

Originally Posted by 5picker

Thanks emm-dee.

We have the Family Share plan as well, 20 Gigs. Androids here.

I've only recently subscribed to DirecTV Now, and only have used it briefly to make sure I understand how and how well it works. We have DirecTV at home (dish fed) so I don't need it there yet, but we plan to cut the cord as we begin to travel more full time and so I'm looking for alternatives.

Yes the retail store is AT&T corporate.

Sorry to derail the OP.

Don’t think the thread is derailed because we’re discussing ways to get TV.

The Family Share plan is AT&T’s best deal for multiple devices on one account. I don’t think it’s offered any more so don’t let it expire.

Just for verification I’m running DTVNow on two iPhones with Wi-Fi disabled. One is showing on the phone screen and the other is connected to AppleTV via a hotspot. Going to let both run about two hours so I can use more than one gig of cellular data. Then tomorrow I can check the account online to see how the data gets billed. Will let you know tomorrow.

[richp]

Hi,


I have had amazingly good results with my moveable Winegard antenna, and it's little clip on digital extension accessory. We have good reception in places as varied as Quartzsite, the Utah desert, southern Illinois, and the UP of Michigan.



More concretely, I live 40 miles west of Chicago, and easily get all the stations there when I have tested the TV in our storage lot. Last weekend I was in Wisconsin, about 30 miles east of Lake Geneva, WI. Not only could I get every station in Milwaukee, but all of the Chicago stations as well.



I am personally convinced that being able to aim a good antenna like my Winegard properly (an use an aiming aid like TVFool) is the key.


FWIW.


Rich Phillips

[dsiegler]

fella 10 - What do you do with the antenna itself when you are travelling?

[Tom48]

Originally Posted by Kaadk

Assuming you already know about the antenna booster, and that it's on, the only other thing you can do is with the antenna itself. A directional antenna (turned in the right direction) will typically provide better gain than an omni-directional, so first, what kind of antenna is on your rig?

Secondly, have you used one of those antenna tower mapping websites to see what should be available in your area? There's a variety of them out there like this one:

TV Station Locator Tool - Over The Air Digital TV

You'll want to make sure there actually are signals to pick up before you go too extreme in your modifications.

Lastly, if there are signals, and you do have the antenna pointed at them, the last measure would be to try to get it over the tree-line, or at least higher than it is now. That's going to take an external antenna, some kind of antenna mast, a way to have the mast raised (I've seem some strapped to rear ladders, some u-bolted to the side of rigs, etc...) ways to run the cabling, power lines for the booster.... I.e. All doable, but enough of a hassle that I really hope you don't have to resort to those measures.

Alternatively, our solution to lack of TV signal is this:


https://www.apple.com/ca/shop/produc...tal-av-adapter

We typically have a bunch of movies downloaded to the tablet or my phone, or one of the kid's tablets so if we really get stuck, we've got plenty to watch.

Ditto all of that. I notice that the new omnidirectional antenna on our 2017 is measurablly less effective than our camping partners who have the King Jack new one mounted up top of the old style crank up base. Height and directionality really help.

Finally I download Netflix to phone or tablet and beam that to our new 32" Samsung smart TV. I hear you can download and store YouTube too on their subscription Red.

[jeff64]

Topside, at the connector to the antenna you should be able to read 12 vdc across the conductor and ground nut/shield. Anything less than that you want to go back to the plate with the lighted green button and see why you cant if the readings are different. All connections should be somewhat more than finger tight. My TT has an antenna junction covered by Dicor where the wiring comes up through the roof and goes over to the antenna, that was loose. You could wiggle the wire up to that point and see the loose signal on the VOM. I corrected that and the reception greatly improved. Maybe you have a similar thing going on. /per winegard install manual

[Sandy B]

Following

[Bose04]

Wouldn’t you need a Directv antenna

[formerFR]

there are simply areas that don't have local tv, it's just too far from a local station 'area' to reach a signal... all the other ideas of internet and satellite 'tv' are appropriate, but to just pick up local signals, as the OP questioned, it's not just your antenna strength, but whether there IS a local signal... sometimes there's just not. We're in one of those areas ourselves...without Dish, we'd have nothing, other than maybe internet streaming, at least when our phones can get a 'decent' signal themselves!

We've had days where 'The Andy Griffith Show' was on 24/7, though.....
on our DVD : )